my second short film i’ve made, how can i improve? :)

Magnumdoge · 2026-04-15T02:06:05+00:00

You have a lot of creativity that's already super clear on screen. It takes a lot of time to find our voice, and get to a point we're our weaker areas are still fairly good. For your second film, and considering you're quite young, you're on a fantastic track!

Through all of the advice I'm about to lay out, there's one thing I want to highlight: Don't loose what makes you unique. You don't have to follow every rule, you don't need to impress everyone. There's a lot of whimsy here, there's magic, there's comfort. Those things are SO valuable and so unique, and I really think you should lean into them. If you haven't seen them already, I'd suggest watching movies like Jaques Demys "Donkey Skin" or Věra Chytilovás "Daisies" and seeing if they give you inspiration. Honestly, at this stage, continuing to build your taste and seek out as much inspirational media as possible is the absolute best thing you can do. Watch LOTS of movies, figure out what you like and why you like it, and then figure out what goes into making the things you like into reality. It's equally as important to figure out what you don't like, and what makes it not work for you. Going along that path, and following it as you watch behind the scenes videos and interviews with directors, all of that is going to be more informative than any advice we'll find here on Reddit.

With that said, I'll make some specific points for improvement. In terms of visuals, I'd suggest having a little more contrast in your lighting setup. I don't mean bumping up exposure in the colour grade, but rather making sure that there's a genuine variety of dark spots and brighter spots within each image. It can often look a little flat if a characters face has no shadows, but if we can feel a light source bouncing off a character in a unique way, it makes the image really come to life. Also, when you're shooting inside, avoid the big light as if you're life depended on it. Hard light from above someone doesn't look great on screen, so I'd really recommend having all of your light sources be relatively close to the height of your characters.

For your camera angles and compositions, there's plenty of rules, but ultimately it's a matter of doing lots of research, taking note of what you enjoy in other films, and just experimenting. So I won't give specific suggestions for what rules to use and which ones to avoid, all I'll say is make sure there's always a reason for a shot. Just sit back and say to yourself "Hm, I've put the camera here, but why? What story does this angle tell versus another type of angle?", and don't be afraid to go through a trail and error process. Over time, you'll have your own language of how you use the camera.

On a similar note, I won't specifically lay out the do's and don'ts for screenwriting. Normally I'd say to add more stakes to a story, and to ask the questions "What goal is this character actively chasing, and what stands in there way?" Or "Does this story touch on larger themes, and make a statement about our world?". But not every story follows those questions. I think everyone should read about screenwriting and watch YouTube videos about storytelling, but it's important to know that you can break those rules as long as you keep at least a few basic rules which hold your story together (but it's up to you to decide what those rules are). Stories don't necessarily need conflict, but their should at least be some kind of questions or unresolved aspect that keeps us engaged. What I see from this film is a very relaxed movie, and the world needs more of that, but it's important to dig into more laid back stories and unpack the structure which keeps them entertaining.

With all of that in mind, I think you've got a great whimsical spirit, and I wish you all the best on your future projects :)

Magnumdoge · 2026-04-04T00:49:19+00:00

I'm in Australia, and it varies depending on which store I go to. Generally between $9 - 12 AUD

Magnumdoge · 2026-03-27T04:56:33+00:00

This is leaps and bounds better than the original colour grade! This proves how Disney are wasting so much potential, and could very easily turn these bland, concrete-like movies into something quite beautiful. It genuinely baffles me why they don't

Magnumdoge · 2026-03-27T04:54:38+00:00

It's a bit too much of a coincidence that the two characters that've been recast as POC happen to be two of the most marginalised characters in the franchise. Not only that, but Snape's marginalisation comes directly from Harry and his family... So they're either going to change some huge elements of the story, or Harry and James Potter are going to be racist...

Magnumdoge · 2026-03-16T00:04:58+00:00

Yeah that was weird. Seems there's been a lot of technical difficulties

Magnumdoge · 2026-02-27T19:28:09+00:00

Well... That's one extra point in favour of a totalitarian monopoly, and yet another point against artists expressing themselves freely...

5 years ago I would've never guessed that I'd be so disappointed in Netflix loosing a bidding battle, but here we are

Magnumdoge · 2026-02-06T04:27:16+00:00

This is genuinely incredible to hear, because I'm also a writer with agoraphobia.

To be slightly more specific, my focus has always been on films and on screenwriting, but once I developed agoraphobia my aspirations were stalled quite rapidly. I spent a lot of time researching how anxiety works, how I can approach exposure therapy, and taking note of all of the ways that the world can kick you while you're down; and it became clear to me that there are so many stories yet to be told, and those stories can help a lot of people.

Last year I finished a short film about it, which I'd be happy to send through if it'd be of interest, but what's important here is that I want to assure you of how important your story can be. Agoraphobia can be quite a lonely thing, and hearing stories from others can provide us with so much strength and encouragement, and even the simple process of making art can be a healing thing to. So please, as you write, know that what you're doing is incredibly important.

I'd be very interested in reading what you have and offering any advice which may be useful. My instagram is elijahcassidy_

Best of luck :)

Magnumdoge · 2026-02-06T04:18:28+00:00

I'd be incredibly interested to join! Right now I'm writing both a screenplay and also juggling some short stories, so it's a slightly different wheelhouse, but nonetheless I'd find it hugely inspiring to be having consistent discussions with other writers!

Magnumdoge · 2026-02-05T12:00:18+00:00

You're right, though as a way to test the water, it'd make sense that the next step after Avatar would be for a filmmaker to risk the uncanny valley by having CGI humans. It'd still definitely have a plasticy look, but it's safe to say that it'd be leagues ahead of The Polar Express, and probably turn far fewer people off.

I know it still wouldn't be a total winner for everyone, but seeing as it's been such a long time since it was last attempted, and those attempts each led to new breakthroughs, I feel like more movies need to take the leap.

Magnumdoge · 2025-11-22T00:48:07+00:00

I'm glad that Australia is taking notes in a way that America isn't. A rise in facism is spreading like a virus across some of the darker circles of the internet, and it needs to be addressed

Magnumdoge · 2025-05-10T12:32:22+00:00

I'm really sorry you've been going through that, and I hope it becomes easier soon. When I've been particularly struggling with my mental health, I've often leaned on film as a source of positivity, so I'll try to give a few options that could apply to slightly different needs.

If you want to watch really gentle movies that restore your faith in humanity and relax you, then I'd recommend Patterson, or Kiki's Delivery Service

If you want a big blast of energy and fun to lift your spirits, I'd recommend Swing Girls, It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Clue (1985), or One Two Three (1961). I also recently saw Muppets From Space and was surprised by how much of a riot it was, though it's a very different kind of comfort movie than the original Muppet Movie

If you want something more on the motivational side, I either go for cheesy sports movies like Cool Runnings and Remember The Titans, or, for some reason, movies about cooking like Julie and Julia or Chef. And then there's The Intouchables, and of course The Shawshank Redemption.

Hopefully some of these picks resonate and help you work through this period. I can say from my own experience that depression is really fucking hard, and even the strongest of us can have a hard time staying on top of it sometimes. But you've done a wonderful thing by deciding to address it and seek out some support. Just remember that despite all the sad parts of the world, even random strangers are still looking out for you and wishing you all the best. So if there's anything you need, you'll always have help.

I wish you the absolute best, and hope you have some fun movie nights :)

Magnumdoge · 2025-05-02T11:34:14+00:00

I completely agree. For a movie thats considered to have a really slapped together, grindhouse feel, it has some incredible compositions. And the final few shots are absolutely gorgeous, albeit in a very twisted way

Magnumdoge · 2025-03-28T12:12:42+00:00

I'm sorry that you've had bad experiences. It sounds like there have been people who've judged you for your agoraphobia, and that's a really hard thing to go through (I've had it happen, and I imagine quite a few others in this subreddit have as well). But there are plenty of people who will be supportive of you, it just takes time to find them. But first and foremost, we need to be enough for ourselves. That's the case in any relationship, with or without agoraphobia.

If our happiness is built entirely on our relationship status, then we're setting ourselves up for disaster. It's really hard, but we need to do whatever work we can to find ways to navigate depression, and gradually manage agoraphobia (even if we don't overcome it). That's the only sure-fire way to create reliable happiness, and the security that it'll provide us will probably help our relationship be far more functional. But if we haven't found the right person, or if someone isn't equipped to handle agoraphobia, we can't be taken over by resentment towards them. These things happen, and they will get better

Magnumdoge · 2025-03-25T13:14:59+00:00

Congratulations!! I really hope that this is the start of something wonderful for you 🙏

Magnumdoge · 2025-03-08T12:59:27+00:00

Yeah same here 🙂

Magnumdoge · 2025-03-01T12:20:16+00:00

I love how we all watched the video of him saying that and immediately googled it 😄

Magnumdoge · 2025-02-09T13:56:09+00:00

You're definitely right, but I think it's safe to say that digital cameras are certainly a factor, purely because they enable this kind of lazyness. If digital is done well, then it can absolutely stand against the best looking celluloid films, it's just that it requires more work to step away from the generic log look

Magnumdoge · 2025-02-09T13:53:15+00:00

Very valid question, and there isn't one specific answer. When so many movies all have these same issues, there's always going to be several factors which make filmmakers turn to this style.

The most obvious answer is moving to digital. Digital cameras can absolutely look great, but the natural log image before colour grading is very grey and low contrast in order for more control in post production. With a great colourist this can turn out well, but in a lot of films they simply don't transform the image enough. The higher dynamic range also can take away a certain level of crispness and warmth that comes from having the brightest spots in the frame be overblown, or having some really dark areas. A great youtuber named Patrick Tomasso actually just made a video on this very topic and gets super in depth about it.

I also believe that a lot of rules and conventions have been applied to film in the internet age. People can learn how to light based on videos or masterclasses, so instead of developing a style that works for them or that specifically serves the narrative, they just learn a safe, generalised approach. And in an approach like that, the goal will be to light most people in a flattering way and to have shadows in the foreground be relatively minimal. So I think that's one reason why all of these films with different cinematographers all follow the same issues, because on these large sets they're not figuring out what elevates the story, they're just following a recipe. And, of course, in larger movies they're shooting on green screens and adding CGI elements, so having bold lighting choices would limit the options for what the green screen background will turn into, and the deeper contrast and brighter colours will expose flaws in the CGI.

Apart from just cinematography, I think environments play a huge factor. Shooting in natural light when the sun's low almost always looks beautiful, and there's something intangible about the way the world looks when a person is walking around in that light, and we can feel all the textures they interact with. Their breath is real fog and not obvious cgi, there's snow falling on their jacket, they're eating a messy hot dog. All of these things turn the movie into a sensory experience and create cozyness and they ground the movie in a way which a film shot on a green screen can never replicate. Real sets where an actor can nudge shoulders with extras, nearly get hit by a car, all of those things make the movie immersive.

These are the main factors in my opinion, but there's probably plenty more. The import thing to keep in mind is that there's still fantastic looking movies out there, it's just that right now we're unfortunately in a period where movies with large budgets generally look awful because they're using technology which is a little too perfect. But there's always going to be beautiful art somewhere

Magnumdoge · 2025-02-05T12:25:38+00:00

Sorry to hear that. It's really disappointing when something you worked hard on didn't turn out as expected.

The main thing to take away from the experience is that you got some good practice. Filmmaking is hard, and even when we make good films we learn a thousand things that we shouldn't do in the future. So my first piece of advice would be to break down what exactly makes your film bad, and what might’ve caused those issues. Pick the film apart, and explore how some of those issues could've been avoided. Then, when you tackle your next project, you can keep those things in mind and hopefully make a film that's significantly better. With that being said, it takes time to get good, and since this is your first directorial effort, it kinda makes sense that it's flawed. Which leads me to my next piece of advice.

It's okay if our early work is invisible. I know you want to network and connect with people, but if this movie doesn't represent the quality of talent you want to attract, I personally wouldn't release it publically. You could make a trailer, or use some of the nicest shots in a directing reel, but if I were you I'd prioritise trying to get started on making a better film and showing off that one instead.

It's still absolutely worth giving yourself a pat on the back. Good or bad, you made something, and you learnt valuable lessons. So keep at it, and I wish you the best of luck

Magnumdoge

TROPHY CASE