How To Make Money From A Fanfilm
 | Guide to Star Wars Filmmakingby Skyler "Jace Taran" HallWho doesn't dream of seeing themselves every bit a Jedi, belongings a lightsaber, or dream of beingness a smuggler, evading bounty hunters? Fan films are a manner for u.s.a. to fulfill those dreams. For some of us, its something nosotros've always wanted to practise. Others accept only just discovered the world of fan films, dazzled at the level of the effects and production values, and amazed that information technology can really be done by an amatuer, even themselves. Information technology opens up a whole earth of possibilities, where dreams tin can become reality, and techniques once thought too expensive or too circuitous to be used by anyone but industry professionals get almost commonplace. Even more than amazing is the revolution of fan films that contain not just astonishing special effects, but engrossing stories as well. Who didn't feel for Karina when her blood brother was slaughtered past Vader or when she was thrown off the cliff in Knightquest? These are the fan films that are truly monumental. Just how practise they do it? How practise they manage to make such high-quality pieces of work? Is it the money? Partially, but moreso it is the time and the talent put into these fan films. Tin someone make an first-class film off of a small budget? Is information technology really possible? Aye, they can, and aye, it is. It just takes effort to put into it; the patience to cascade your heart and soul into a project that will nearly probable gain you nothing but cocky-satisfaction and the respect of your fanfilm peers. Anybody asks: "Just how do I practise it?" and they have their questions answered, just only partially. In that location are a lot of very useful tutorials on TFN, only they are all very specific, and information technology takes more than knowing how to and then a saber effect, or an opening crawl, or how to brand a replica saber handle to brand a full movie. What if one wants to know how to bluescreen alive actors, or how to properly frame a shot, or tips on creating quality stories, or what if one just wants to know only how to put a movie together overall? I realize information technology isn't easy to answer those questions. There is a lot that goes into making a film. It is a very complex and involved process. It'd hard to put into words how to make an entire movie, but that is what this guide is an attempt to exercise; a step-by-step guide to making a movie, start to finish. It may non be equally involved in some areas as a specific tutorial, but I hope information technology does articulate up a few things and help people along. (*tip* Yous may want to print this off and proceed it for reference. It's rather long ;) General Resources First off, here are some links to sites with general info:
Step 1: Coming upward with an Idea The get-go step is the idea or synopsis. Ideas can exist generated from just about anywhere. You could be watching a Tv evidence, and something of a sudden gives you an idea, or you lot could be driving down the road or mowing your lawn when you become a sudden inspiration, or you lot could be tossing ideas around with friends in some sort of brainstorming session. Where ever they come from, ideas are the basis of a picture. Ideas can exist long or brusk, complex or simple. For instance Star Wars might take evolved, hypothetically, from an idea like to this: Farmboy and Smuggler save Rebellion from evil Empire. Simple, and to the point. An thought doesn't tell the unabridged story; it just sums it up. It is the seed of the story. Having problems thinking of ideas? Hither are a few sites that might assist you:
Still having problems? Before you lot decide to just simply take a deep breath and become back to it, have a visit to this site that has a few suggestions to help you overcome the dreaded writers block (the layout may be a fiddling odd, merely it has a lot of good information). If you are having whatsoever problems with writers block afterwards on, like when writing the script or screenplay, only refer dorsum to that site. If you just plain can't come upwards with anything, no matter what y'all exercise, then it might be a good idea to find someone else willing to practice it for you. Yous may accept your heart attack filming a pic that you wrote, but if y'all can't get anything written, that won't happen. Step 2: Script From the thought comes the script. This is where yous outline all of the scenes, mainly using description and dialogue. I affair to note, though, is that if y'all were writing a Hollywood script (or if you have someone else directing), you would desire to go out out details similar stage directions, angles, or transitions, because determing those aspects is the manager's job. Of course, if you are similar most of the states working on a fanfilm, you probably are the manager too (among many other titles), in which case you tin can utilise equally much or as little direction equally you want in your script. If not, get out those details out, and let the director take care of that. Just make certain you lose that addiction if you e'er desire to write for Hollywood. What format are you lot going to be writing in? Apparently, since yous are working on your ain film and don't demand to get your script past a producer, y'all don't demand to use proper formatting. But, it still is a good idea. Also, here is a link to a freeware script-formatting program (there are besides programs for creating basic stories and storyboards). Why should yous format? Well, for one thing, information technology will be better organized, and easier for other people to read and empathize. Plus, it gives you a good thought o fhow long your movie volition run (1 page per infinitesimal is the general rule under proper format) Which brings upwards a signal. How long will your flick run? Start of all, unless your motion picture has some really slap-up interim and a really entertaining story, you should not try to make information technology long, or people will get bored (plus, they may not desire to take the time to download such a long moving-picture show, for fearfulness of it being boring). Keep it at around 30 minutes or less (if you actually want to make an epic film, maybe you could break your hour-and-a-one-half movie into three one-half-hour episodes, and release them divide). Second, if this is your first movie, take everyone's advice, and don't try to make it long or complex. Odds are, yous will end up choking on it. If it gets done at all, it will have forever, and it probaly won't turn out they style you want. Test the waters get-go. Learn the process. Brand furnishings tests. Equally someone on TFN once said, "Learn to crawl before you Skywalk." A few DO'S/DON'Ts and tips on script/screenplay writing:
Step iii: The Bare Nessessities: Getting the Essentials In that location are a few essential things you will demand in lodge to do your movie. Information technology would be a good thought to go this stuff right away (fifty-fifty the stuff you won't need until later), because if y'all find out that you lot can't go what you lot need, and then you will take saved yourself the problem of finding out afterward on that all the stuff you shot is worthless. You will obviously need a camera. Don't have one? Well, yous could infringe 1 from a friend or relative. You could rent one from a local video production identify. You could fifty-fifty check to see if anyone from TFN is close to you lot and willing to aid. Don't worry besides much about not having the all-time camera. Y'all can nonetheless make an crawly fan picture show, fifty-fifty if yous simply have a handicam. Just make certain you have a way to transfer footage to your computer, which ways buying either a capture carte du jour or a firewire carte du jour (firewire, besides known as IEEE 1394 and iLINK, is for DV, miniDV, and Digital viii cameras, while a capture card is for analog cameras, like 8mm or VHS/VHS-C). If possible, information technology is a proficient idea to get a digital camera, though (as long every bit y'all can buy or get a concord of a firewire menu), because digital has a higher resolution than analog. REMEMBER: having an expensive camera does Non mean you volition automatically have better results. How you lot light and shoot your moving-picture show is more important. Y'all volition also need software. Software can be very expensive, so you may need to detect programs that fit your budget, or try and notice a friend who has some. If you lot are a student, you could try and find a place to purchase student-priced software, or buy the student editions from the company. NO WAREZ. I don't intendance how much you want the latest and greatest program but don't have the budget for it. Warez are incorrect (and also non immune at TFN). If y'all need to, but buy a cheap program. The least you should need is an editing plan and something to rotoscope with. Other programs are optional (though tin can exist really nice). Here is a list of the more popular applications: Editing:
Compositing:
Special Effects:
CG/3D:
Step 4: Finding Actors Hmmm...you'll need actors, won't y'all? Actors, actors, where can y'all find actors...You can find actors simply nigh anywhere. You could cast friends, relatives, anybody. Practiced actors, though, are some other story (unless your friends are good actors, in which case, you are phenomonly lucky). One thing yous could attempt is to "annunciate" your picture show at a local highschool/higher'south drama order or department. Y'all could identify an advertising in a newspaper. Y'all could do a casting call on the boards to see if anyone from TFN is willing and close enough to assistance. If all else fails, merely go alee and cast your friends or yourself, and don't worry what people will think of your performances. Think, you are (or should exist) making this movie primarily for yourself, not to please other people, and you should only worry well-nigh making it as high a quality or putting as much time and attempt into it as *yous* desire. Information technology's your moving picture, and no ane elses. Besides, ane point that must be brought up is that even if you get an extremely good actor to work on your movie, it will not save bad writing, or bad directing. If the dialogue is corny on paper, it will still be corny when spoken by a good actor . Aforementioned thing with directing. If you requite them footling or no management, they will just be reading off lines in front of a photographic camera, with no idea what emotions they should be portraying. On the other manus, a movie will be much ameliorate, fifty-fifty if your actors are average or sub-boilerplate, if the writing and directing are good. Footstep 5: Shooting your movie Ok, so now y'all have a script, camera, and actors set up. Time to start shooting! I estimate this is really: Stride v: Storyboarding and Planning Before y'all start pointing the photographic camera at anything, at that place are a few things yous should practice then your picture show is planned meliorate. A well-planned picture volition go smoother, faster, and much more pleasantly than a loosely-organized production. You could start off by drawing storyboards. Can't draw, or tin can't find someone who can? That really doesn't matter. Only use stick figures. Having well-drawn or cool-looking storyboards isn't the point; you but need to get a rough idea of how scenes will exist played out. Basically, storyboards are used to show the sequence of events, and also to illustrate possible photographic camera angles. Too, while no subsitute for a rough cut in post-product, they can give an idea of the flow of scenes. In addition to doing storyboards, one option is to utilize animatics. Animatics are low-tech "blithe storyboards" used to bear witness how a scene volition roughly look. Animatics tin can employ toys, low-res CG, live actors, or annihilation you can remember of. If anyone has seen the video From Star Wars to Jedi: The Making of a Saga, you may remember seeing them doing a shot of the speeder wheel chase using toys. The TPM DVD besides has some swell examples of animatics used for dissimilar scenes. Animatics can exist actually usefull to decide on camera angles, different shots to utilise, and requite you an overall feel for the pace and flow of the motion picture. Another good matter to practice is to have a shooting schedule planned out, so you lot know what you are going to pic and when, what camera angles yous are going to use, and where to setup equipment. You should too plan out time to setup, takedown, and re-accommodate equipment as needed. Another very, very, VERY important thing to practise is to make a schedule with your actors, to work effectually their own schedules. If you don't, and instead decide to only call them the mean solar day you desire to picture show something, you will rarely be able to have your actors show up, because they will take likely planned something else. Oh, and then, that's why it took you so long to film anything before! Y'all didn't take any idea how the scenes would be setup, or what camera angles and shots to use. You lot had to waste valuable time thinking those things upwards on the fly. If you had already planned the shots out in advance and scheduled your time, rather than jumping the gun, yous wouldn't have had to learn this of import lesson the hard mode. Kind of makes you wish someone had told yous this before, huh? ;) btw, this goes for rehearsals equally well. If you don't programme anything, you lot'll most probable end up having everyone sitting around bored while they expect for you to decide what to rehearse, or waiting around for you to brand upward the saber choreography they are suppossed to exist practicing. Pace 6: Determining your Budget Y'all demand to plan out your upkeep. You have to look at how much money you "need", and how much money you have available (If you need more, yous could always enquire for "donations" from family/friends/cast, or you lot could effort to become donations/discounts of products by promising the companies to put there proper noun/logo in the credits, merely I'm not entirely sure on the legality of doing that in a non-turn a profit fan moving picture, seeing that your picture show is at present advertising something). Y'all have to run into how much money some things y'all want to do would really cost, to see if y'all can afford to practise them. Darn, I guess that rules out your shot of the chief character waking up the ramp into a full size model of the transport, or the exploding bulding using existent pyrotechnics. (NOTE: Pyrotechnics not recommended unless you really know what you lot are doing, or take a pro doing it for you) Step 7: Getting more bang for your buck Now that you have a budget, you take to use it wisely. Call up those effects shots that the budget wouldn't let? Well, that's non necessarily truthful. There are always ways to do scenes cheaper, and depending on how much endeavour you put into it, it won't nesessarily expect cheap. For instance, yous could have had the character but walk up a section of the ramp in front end of a bluescreen, and composited a CG or concrete model of the rest of the transport onto the scene. For the exploding building, that could be done entirely in CG, or yous could accept taken a physical model and composited stock explosion footage over information technology. The trick is to go far seem like you take a lot more coin to spend on the project then yous really do, by taking shorcuts and new approaches . Of course, this is completely different from sloppy corner cutting. You shouldn't try to rush things. Pace viii: Buying Props and Equipment Yous're going to have to spend money on equipment, costumes, props, and sets. What you buy and the quality of it depends on your budget. Try to recall that you need all the money you lot take, so don't waste matter your budget, even if information technology'southward for something good. If you only take a $600 budget, don't blow $500 of it on an expensive mic. Beneath are some tips on what to buy. Equipment:
Are you lot going to film a certain scene out doors or indoors? On location, on fix, or bluescreened? These are very important questions. You lot should consider all of your options, and cull the option that will work all-time for the detail scene and fit your budget. On location gives you the best expect, as yous don't have to worry virtually compositing issues. The trouble is that we don't e'er necessarily live within range of suitable locations (which is why people often settle for forests). Of class, there are ways around this. Yous tin brand a lot of things look like something else. With proper framing (as to omit sure details), and perchance even some compositing, you can turn an ordinary location into an exoctic, otherworldly location. Respectable Apply is a good instance of this, as they made real city streets look like Coruscant. With even more than compositing, you could even do something like turning your lawn into Hoth (similar to the effects tests that PixelMagic did for The Soft Drink Menace, a fan film he is working on). All it takes is a footling masking, and a good background to replace the mask. Anyhow, location shooting also has the advantage of basically being a pre-congenital set (unless you are digitialy manipulating the footage to brand it await like some other location). The problem is accessibility. Locations weren't made to be filmed on. You lot may not have much room to motility effectually (whereas on a set, you may have a large, emtpy area behind the photographic camera, allowing for more movement), and y'all have to worry almost transportation of cast, coiffure, and equipment. You might too need a allow of some kind. You could choose to film something on a fix. Perchance you have synthetic a cardboard/wood/foam set of an X-Wing cockpit, or you have converted a room into a modest hangar or the Emperor'due south throne room (like they did on TESBY). Sets, of grade, have the disadvantage of having to be built. Y'all have to ready them up and take them down. Plus, they aren't quite every bit real every bit a location (though, they are sometimes the only alternative other than bluescreen, as with a spaceship set). But, accessibility is not a problem. You don't demand to bulldoze a few hours to use it. Plus, y'all won't e'er need a allow. Another option is to utilise bluescreening. When I say bluescreening, I mean all similar types of compositing (similar greenscreening). Bluescreening has the reward that you need no set, nor do you demand whatever transportation. You tin can make an histrion appear to exist anywhere you lot can imagine (as long equally y'all can really create the groundwork). The downside is that the actors won't have much to work with. It'southward tough to act realisticly when yous can't get a feel for the environment, and when y'all can't suspend a little disbelief. With bluescreening, all you need to practise is picture show the actor in front of the screen, and replace the screen with an paradigm or video afterward. Uncomplicated equally that, correct? Well, no. Offset of all, y'all have to lite the bluescreen well. That is another disadvantage of bluescreening. If y'all don't light the screen well enough, the results once you actually do the bluescreen upshot tin range from so-so to admittedly horrid. The bluescreen must exist lit brightly and evenly, with no shadows. The best way to do this is to light the actors and the bluescreen separately, making sure the actors are far plenty away from information technology to lessen bluespill. Ane method of lighting, then I've heard, involves a "single thermonuclear fusion source, placed 93 one thousand thousand miles away. This calorie-free source gives perfect corner to corner illumination and makes a perfect friction match between the key level and backing level. Shadows are easy as it makes only ane set of shadows. If you place a water vapor diffusion screen several g feet up, you get a great shadowless light. A thinner water vapor diffusion softens the shadows nicely. Those who are inexperienced at decision-making these types of diffusion may want to utilize a large silk or other diffusion instead. If you're shooting spacecraft models, this is probably the best way. Plus the rental charge can't exist shell. The Death Star trench scene in Star Wars including scenes in the newly revised Special edition, used this very same calorie-free source. " Anyway, y'all also have to make sure cypher of the same or similar colour is in front of the bluescreen, or else it volition exist removed as well. Even if it isn't removed completely, it volition mess upwardly the results. Skillful lighting on a bluescreening is very important, even if you take expensive bluescreening software that is suppossed to take care of those mistakes. You will get the best results if you flick it the correct manner from the start, rather than trying to take a clean matte from a poorly done shot. Annotation: Earlier you get ahead and decice to shoot your unabridged movie using a bluescreen, examination the upshot. Make a examination shot, and endeavour out the event. That way you can either learn from your mistakes and practise it amend when you do it for real, or decide not to use bluescreen. That is a lot better than finding out after on that all the bluescreen footage you lot shot won't work. For bluescreening info, take a look at the bluescreening section down in Step 12. Step 10: Lighting In that location are several excellent tutorials found in the FanFilms forum that describe lighting better than I ever could. Be sure to check them out.
Step 11: Shooting your Movie Hither is where you film your movie. Before you lot actually brainstorm, though, you demand to learn a few concepts. Framing Rules
Step 12: Transferring footage to your computer (capturing) At present y'all have all of your raw footage. You should have a computer with a capture card or firewire carte installed. If non, go one. Here are a few tips on recording footage to the figurer:
Better cascade yourself some Mountain Dew (pinnacle option for all fan pic makers out there, especially ClearConcrete :p , pull a chair up to your computer, and take a deep breath, because yous're going to exist in that location a while. Ok, first of all, I will outset out by saying that you should take the time to exercise some research. First, read the manuals for your software, and endeavour to figure out the effect yourself. If y'all can't come up with annihilation, then look for tutorials for various effects online. A proficient place to beginning is the tutorials on TFN. If you can't detect what you need in that location, try another fanfilm sites, if you know of any. You lot should besides try doing online searches. If you can't discover annihilation those ways, enquire a question on the boards. If you still don't get what yous need, and then yous will either accept to figure out a way to do it yourself, find someone who is willing to help with it, or just write that effect out. Bluescreening If you have any footage requiring bluish/greenscreening, you lot should test out your software showtime, to run across how it works. That way y'all tin learn from mistakes and practice improve on the real film. Some other good idea would be to head over to dvgarage.com and check out their bluescreening tutorials (they are geared mostly towards Later Furnishings, but the lessons tin be practical in other apps as well). They also have a skilful Blended Toolkit with tutorials, programs, and plug-ins for creating nice, clean mattes. Lightsabers If it'due south lightsabers yous are interested in doing, these programs tin do them (though some require more work so others):
So, you take a program, but don't quite know how to add in the saber effect? Before you even inquire, there is no mode to automatically track the blade, and then you have to do it frame by frame. Some programs will permit you keyframe the issue (basically guessing the consequence's animaton between the keyframes), but you demand to include a lot of keyframes, and yous may need to do some transmission rotoscoping to fix information technology upwards. If you're using ALAM DV, the plan should have come with a help file including a saber tutorial. If you lot're using any of the others, and then just visit the Tutorials section of FanFilms.com for a wealth of information on adding lightsaber effects with a variety of unlike programs. Keeping in mind these aren't the only ways to do the effect. Miscallaneous Furnishings Ok, you know how to do saber effects. What about holograms, blasters, Force jumps, or Sith lighning? Here is a listing of TFN tutorials that may assistance you in other programs: Creating Holograms in MSP Creating Force Jumps in MSP Creating Energy Weapons in Axogon/MainVision Creating Forked Lightning in Axogon/MainVision. Creating Blasters in Animation:Master Hmmmm...you desire to know how to practice an effect that doesn't have a tutorial on TFN...You could either search online, enquire a question on the boards, or come up with your own technique (and maybe you could write the tutorial on it). If you exercise all of that and you still can't come up up with anything, yous're SOL. You'll probably take to either observe someone else to do information technology, or write that outcome out. CG Effects Now you want to add CG spaceships and CG backgrounds, do you? You'll need CG software, of course. There are a lot of pieces of software out in that location, and they can all produce skilful results. Before you do buy your software, though, make sure it'southward for the right reason. DO Non buy a piece of software because it was used in this moving picture or that TV testify, or because ILM uses it. For 1 matter, they have but a little chip more money than you to toss out at these things, besides the fact that they often create their own custom plug-ins. For another, it's the creative person, not the software, that makes the difference, for the most function. Paying a heap of money for some high-end pro app will NOT automatcally give you amend results (this applies to any special effects software, really). You lot accept to understand how to model, light, texture, animate, and render properly before you lot can produce realistic results. You should put research into information technology, notice out the best ways to create more photorealistic results (such equally using multi-pass rendering). dvgarage.com, besides it'southward composite toolkit, also has tutorials and a toolkit for CG work. Titles and Credits Scrolling text (like for credits) is really uncomplicated to exercise, and should be explained in the manual of your editing software. If you want to do an opening crawl text, there are a few different methods. NOTE:It might be a skillful idea to non worry about doing titles and credits and such until after you edit. Pace 14: The Trailer Ok, so you've got all or some of your special effects, CG, and compositing washed. Fourth dimension to make the trailer! Hmmm...not a skilful idea. This is a lesson that many a fan filmmaker has had to larn the hard fashion. If you create a trailer and post information technology upwardly equally soon as you have plenty completed furnishings shots, simply before editing of the final product is at to the lowest degree partially done, and so you commonly don't make the release appointment you set in your trailer. The reason is that you usually give too optimistic a release date, and things often come upwardly. The best way to handle the trailer matter is to wait until the movie has been edited mostly, so create the trailer. Or, you could also take created the trailer before, but waited until after well-nigh editing was washed earlier releasing it. So, step 14 should really exist: Step fourteen: Editing the motion picture Editing, of course, is where yous simply slap your scenes together end to end, in the exact order equally they are in the script, and return. Right? Yeah, that'south right, if you want a poorly edited motion picture. Editing is much more than simply sticking the scenes together. In the editing process, you lot can alter a lot of things about your movie. You lot can re-arrange scenes in means that improve the step, period, and even the story of the movie. You tin can drop scenes, motion them around, and trim them at will. You tin even intercut scenes (meaning, you lot tin cut 1 clip into two or more parts, and insert shots in between). Yous can even make the movie more dramatic, past showing grapheme reactions to dialogue. To illustrate this principle, say you lot have 1 shot of a person saying a line, and another of a different character's reaction. You could take the clip of the person saying the line, and have information technology alter over to the to the reaction shot while notwithstanding playing the dialogue. This creates a shot where the person starts to speak, but then the camera cuts to the other character'southward reaction as the line is existence spoken. Editing can too alter a flick'southward footstep. To illustrate this, on the recent A&E George Lucas Biography, they talked near how the Ark of the Covenant catastrophe scene from Raiders was originally much longer. Lucas cut it back by at least half, which made the scene much more intense, because it was faster paced. Hither are a few pointers on editing:
Ok, so y'all take all or most of your effects, compositing, and CG work washed, and you take your motion picture mostly edited. Fourth dimension to put together trailer. Hither are a few pointers:
Footstep xvi: Adding Sound Furnishings Yous motion-picture show is missing something...Sound. You have to add together sound effects. TFN has a bang-up library of sound effects for things similar lightsabers, blasters, explosions, and even Stormtrooper phrases. Click here to become to the sound section on TFN. Some tips:
Well, your movie is well-nigh consummate. Information technology just needs one thing. Music. You have a few options here. You could just take some Star Wars CD'southward (or like music) and rip some tracks. A few pointers:
Stride 18: Promoting Your Movie This really takes place equally your are finishing your flick. Promotion includes such things as creating a website, making online posters, and releasing trailers. Always attempt to make your website professional-looking if you can, using images and arranging information technology in a cool, eye-pleasing design. As for releasing trailers, you may do something similar this if yous have more than one: release trailer A one calendar month, trailer B the next, trailer C the next, and release the final flick the adjacent month. Obviously, this only works if y'all waited until the movie was mostly edited before releasing trailers. Some pointers:
Ok, and so now yous're movie is edited with audio and music. Now you are set up to compress it for concluding release. You can compress in any of these file formats:
Ok, and so now you will have to choose a codec to shrink with. These Codecs seem to be favored:
Stride 20: Hosting Ok, so your movie is now compressed. You will need to find a place to host it. Try not to go with gratis hosting sites like geocities. Geocities merely let a very small bandwidth, meaning simply a small number of downloads tin take place in a certain amount of time, and once that number is exceeded, your site won't be available for another hour. Anyway, you should try to discover a site you tin upload your movie to that volition allow other people to download it, and not accept to pay money for the space. If you lot want to try and submit to TFN, go ahead. Footstep 21: Relax ;) At present, but mail service the link (or expect for TFN to answer to your submission), and there you lot go. You're finally done. Now, you tin sit back and relax...or, if you are similar a lot of us, start thinking of your next fan film. ;) | |
Source: https://www.theforce.net/fanfilms/general/jacetaran/index.asp
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