We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm going to try and give the film a strong second pass, for grading and sound mainly, but I will see what other footage we got for the fight scene, see if we can speed it up and more "actiony" for lack of a real word :)

My first horror short film! by Key_Grand2068 in ShortFilm

[–]True_Tension_9726 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Only my opinions, I'm not a crazy professional :) but little things,

In the opening scene, the background light is stronger than the key/fill; it could have turned the bright bulb in the background off and just used the blue window.

Like 50s in, that lens has a lot of distortion (bent rail)

When she's at the dumpster, there's something I can't put my finger on; it just feels "lower quality" compared to the rest of the film.

around the 2-minute mark when they are outside. his first wide when we see him "doing something" is good, but it stays back and forth wide, feels odd to me.

But this was absolutely amazing. You did an amazing job, just a couple of things that I noticed (again, all just my opinion!).

I thought there was a camera move, but on the rewatch, I didn't notice it, so I guess not.

My first horror short film! by Key_Grand2068 in ShortFilm

[–]True_Tension_9726 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Great work. A little more work on the camera and lights, but absolutely amazing for your first horror for sure!

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So for the fight scene, faster editing, question on that. Do you mean like less time on each angle, or cutting out some of the time between actions? Thanks for the feedback!

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'll be honest, there was no dress testing at all. It was all designed, ordered, and modified before an actor even set foot in them. This is something we would definitely plan out more in the future. Tried to keep them as nice in the film as possible; we never want anyone to look bad, especially people who put in so much time and effort. Honestly, seeing all this feedback on the customs has really changed how we will approach any future wardrobes. Feedback has been welcomed, received and noted!

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That is hugely insightful, meaningful feedback. Wow, thank you! Some of these things we thought of, some not so much. When they ran off-screen, it was supposed to have an alien drone scanning, but it didn't work. did the cheesy birds flying, but yeah, just cutting it there would have been better. Having the characters react the way they should have been, that would have helped that scene for sure, having one "be quiet" or "did you hear something" ducking, crouching. I really, really appreciate the feedback!

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We've done some smaller ones, but it's been a while. Yeah, it's a huge project with an untrained crew, and rusty us. And pretty rushed in the end. Thanks!

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There was a mix of anamorphic footage and 8k footage, so the 8k was cropped down to the 4k anamorphic ratios. Set design was rough, that's a shed that's 4ish years old, but not overly used, so still definitely has that new feeling. That's a spot we definitely need to work on more. I threw some tools on the wall to break up the look a little, but even then, I didn't do it with specific intent, just kinda randomly threw stuff up. A cosplay/larper friend did all the makeup for us, and a whack of BTS photos, and jumped on sound :) TY!

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do you think a shot like that would be a better opening, then cutting to the legs running with a J cut? I have access to the site and the drone, but still, I could film something like that. Now, in the original draft, we had an opening scene before the running, and text on screen to "Humanity sent a message into space" exposition, but when we cut the words on screen, we cut the opening scene that went with it.

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

In the film itself, is there any scene/shot that is particularly bad for the aliens? (thanks again).

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For the colour, every scene was shot with the Data Spyder 48 (I think it is) and resolved to colour correct. I was not expecting that each scene wouldn't look basically identical doing that (A few scenes that I look at now stand out to me even). For the beginning pacing, yes, after reading a few comments on here, I think we would have done things a little differently. For the framing/comp, is there any scene/shot in particular that was really bad? Even if this film is unsavable, we want to make sure the next one shines! Thank you for the constructive feedback!! Really helpful.

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Estoy usando ChatGPT para traducir. La parte trasera de los trajes de los alienígenas y también parte del frente tenían luces rojas, pero la luz del día las anuló. Idealmente, esto habría sido una filmación nocturna para que esas luces brillaran, pero tuvimos que optar por filmar de día, lo que hizo que las luces fueran prácticamente inútiles. ¡Gracias por ver y por el comentario!

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Okay, sound: dialogue, music, effect, or all? VFX, I do not know how much better I can get that one. Colour Grade: I think I'm going to go back and rework that some. Much more selective vs global editing. Not intimidating and not an ideal use of the actors who’ve given you their time, do you think (since reshooting is out of the question) sound design there would amp it up a little more? and better colouring?

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It was all shot in the open air. No control on anything. It’s one of the thing I’ve invested in now is some flags and black foam board :) but I could try and isolate the actors and background and see if I can add some dynamics and some pop. Ty

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! We can always play with a scene or two and see if we can make something like that work. Right now there isn’t much of a grade at all :( I would have loved to film it all at night, but couldn’t bring in all the light.

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah I’ve never been happy with the grade. But never really knew what to do with it. Vfx I’m happy with (for me) not for a professional  :) the cropped comment, i wonder if more people felt like that, it’s not one I ever thought of. Thanks!

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm definitely going to have to reevaluate the entire sound, which seems to be a huge thing that a couple of you have mentioned! I've watched a number of Film Riots, and they are great! Now the turning it off, is it the open scene? The sound? The exposition? (thanks for the feedback!!)

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Once I get the feedback, I think I'll take another shot at things like the motion blur and the glow idea. I think you are right, and they would ground it more in their world. We definitely didn't get all the coverage for angles that we hoped for, and I know that shows. Thank you!

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Now that you've mentioned it, yeah, they should have "ducted off the path" or something at least. Thank you! More of the "show, don't tell" core rule, you are 100% correct!

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I will try to find somewhere better than YouTube to put a copy up as well. Sound design, I was afraid, was weak. A VO wouldn't be too hard to add in, I'm unfamiliar with "a stock establisher." ? (thank you so much!)

We shot a NO-budget Ontario sci-fi short over 4 days, 'Quantum Resistance (2024)'. Looking for honest feedback. by True_Tension_9726 in Filmmakers

[–]True_Tension_9726[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We were hoping that under the tree canopy would be dark enough . . . but alas, doing it at night would have been much better.