Little Known Way to Make Hidden Marks for Actors Outdoors

Toolkit 17 Comments

Little Known Way to Make Hidden Marks for Actors OutdoorsCreative Commons License photo credit: cauchisavona

Have you ever tried to use a piece of camera tape outdoors to mark an actor?

It isn’t easy. Often the ground is uneven or the texture not well-suited for adhesive tape.

And that makes pulling focus or even composing a shot difficult because many exterior locations lack common reference marks you’d find indoors such as furniture, wall-art, or floor tiles.

While these difficulties don’t manifest on every shot, they do crop up enough to give them notice. Luckily, 1st AC Brian Andrews has a brilliantly elegant — and cheap! — solution.

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The Soundtrack of the Film Set

Production Stories 8 Comments

The Soundtrack of the Film SetCreative Commons License photo credit: AndYaDontStop

There are plenty of musicals about movies — “Singin’ in the Rain” comes to mind — but few realize that for as visual a medium as film is, the sets are filled to the brim with the auditory stimulants of musical melodies. There are countless examples:

  • Spike Jonze uses music on his sets to entertain crew
  • Francis Ford Coppola used music during filming of The Conversation
  • And anyone who straps a radio to a camera cart becomes a small set hero

The point is: filmmakers love music. Ever since the first films were produced, there was music set to them. It’s the silver screen’s partner in crime.

For crew, we love music too. I know I do at least. And whether I’m singing it, listening to it, or making it, I know it will always have a place for me on a film set…

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How My Days in Show Choir Made Me a Better Camera Assistant

Camera Assisting 8 Comments

Touch of Class Show Choir 2006

When you think of show choir do you think of jazz hands? Glee? Shiny outfits and off-key singing?

Probably the last thing you think about is camera assisting. Yet almost everything I do as a camera assistant I can trace back to show choir.

Maybe not my technical aptitude with certain cameras or the intricacies of set etiquette, but some of the more elusive, intangible aspects: the ability to deal with pressure, the speed of learning a new skill, and troubleshooting major technological problems.

So while show choir may seem to be about “smiling eyes” — as one choral teacher told me — it really paved the way for me to freelance as an camera assistant (AC).

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Grab These Free Resume Templates Designed for Freelance Filmmakers

Getting Work 17 Comments

Film Resume Templates for Freelance Filmmakers

Sitting down to write a resume is hard — there’s dozens of options when it comes to formatting, presentation, and style as well as the minor issue of what to list and write on it. As a freelancer, it becomes especially tricky since none of the traditional “rules” of resume advice seem to apply.

That’s why I’m offering you three “ready-to-go” resume templates that you can customize in less than five minutes (including one based on my own resume):

  • Futura
  • Modesty
  • Impression

All of the resume templates are clean, simple, straight to the point — and available for free.

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18 Hilarious Filmmaking Jokes from the Internet Meme Machine

Behind the Lens 16 Comments

Admiral Ackbar It's a Trap Meme About Canon 7D

The meme has gone mainstream.

Or at least in my little corner of the Internet it has.

Everytime I log into Facebook or Twitter, I’m assaulted with awkward penguins, first world problems, and people showing me pictures of what they think I think they do for a living.

Well, it’s time for camera assistants — and filmmakers in general — to get in on the jokes and make their own meme fun. So here’s 20 memetastic memepics to satisfy your cravings for bold white text and filmmaking related humor.

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How an Ice Cream Cone Exposed the True Nature of Working Below the Line

Production Stories 18 Comments

Girl eating a chocolate ice cream cone

Creative Commons License photo credit: MissMessie

It must’ve been the hottest summer in history when I agreed to drive an hour away to shoot a commercial in my home state of Virginia. I was warned it would be a long day, but that’s always subjective — I’ve worked 8 hour days that felt long and 15 hour days that flew by. It all depends on how much hustle you’re asked to put into your work.

But one thing I don’t think myself or my body will ever get used to is lugging around 50 lbs. camera rigs for 16 hours. Combined with the fiery heat that had been pummeling the East Coast of the USA that summer and I earned my pay on this shoot.

At one point, we had just wrapped a few shots at a local ice cream shop and were heading out onto the street and into the heat.

I hoofed it two blocks with the camera, sticks, and head to the next setup. I arrived by setting it down out-of-breath with sweat dripping down my face. When I turned to see how far behind everyone else was, I couldn’t help but laugh: the producer, director, and assistant director were all leisurely following while eating fresh vanilla ice cream cones.

“How perfect,” I thought.

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How to Pitch Your Film’s Crowdfunding Campaign to Bloggers the Right Way

Miscellaneous Tips 48 Comments

Crowdfunding Campaign and Computer

“As you probably already know, Kickstarter campaigns are all-or-nothing, so it’s going to take every bit of extra effort (and a lot of lost sleep) to get to the finish line.” – Ryan Koo, NoFilmSchool.com

I’ve never launched a Kickstarter campaign. I’ve never stressed over setting a financial goal. And I’ve definitely never even thought it would be possible for me to raise $125,000 like Ryan Koo did.

So, I know nothing about the emotional toll and exhilarating excitement that arises from running a crowdfunding campaign.

But I do know something about running a website.

And if you’re launching a crowdfunding campaign, it’s likely you’re going to try your hardest to get people like me to write, tweet, share, link, and donate to your film.

Well, it’s not as easy as it seems — you can’t just copy and paste a form email, send it off to some bloggers, and consider your work done. You’ll be lucky if you even get one response using that method.

Instead, I’m going to help you get publicity for your film the right way.

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Avoid These 3 Practical DSLR “Gotchas” for a Smoother Shoot

Cameras 40 Comments

Canon 5D MkII DSLR Camera Body

Creative Commons License photo credit: Mark Sebastian

Where were you when the floodgates opened?

Only a few years ago, the first HD video capable DSLR cameras were released. Fast forward to today and DSLR’s are not only prevalent on set, but the camera system of choice for many filmmakers.

Whether or not you agree with that choice is a different discussion and also largely irrelevant. The fact of the matter is you will eventually (if you haven’t already) work on a production that’s shooting with a DSLR.

And if you’re working on that gig as a camera assistant (AC), you’re going to find out why some moan and groan when shooting with DSLR’s. A lot of the reason behind these hissy-fits are the camera’s impracticalities in a film production environment — or “gotchas” — and here are three of them that can stall your production or even ruin your footage.

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10 Awesome Production Stills That Will Remind You Why You Love Filmmaking

Behind the Lens 10 Comments

10 Awesome Production Stills That Will Remind You Why You Love FilmmakingCreative Commons License photo credit: Karen Roe

Camera nerds unite!

Its time to indulge your collective love for the filmmaking process as well as your affinity for visual stimulation.

Over at The Black and Blue Facebook page, I held a mini-contest and asked people to submit behind the scenes production stills from movies they’ve worked on. In such a short time frame (about a week), I was pleased to see over 20 pictures posted to the page. Some were funny, some were impressive, and one was even sexy (you’ll see…).

So here are 10 of the best of them along with a few words from those who were there.

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Feeling Nervous on Day One? 5 Steps to Curb Your Anxiety

Miscellaneous Tips 6 Comments

Feeling Nervous on Day One? 5 Steps to Cure AnxietyCreative Commons License photo credit: Rachel Coyne

Are you feeling nervous about a shoot coming up? Do you lie awake at night thinking of all the ways you could mess up and never end up working in the film industry again?

If so, you’re not alone — many crew members get anxious before a shoot. Yesterday on Twitter I asked my followers if they got nervous before a shoot and here’s what some had to say:

  • “I used to get nightmares before going on set” – @david_charry
  • “The answer is definitely YES” – @FB_ac
  • “Everytime, even if I know it’s an easy one” – @mariofeil

I, too, still get nervous before gigs — sometimes for no good reason at all!

It’s something I’ve learned to get used to and part of dealing with it is a process I go through when I arrive on set. If you follow these 5 steps, you’ll be ready to kick ass when the sticks clap on take one.

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