Quintessential Studios' Weblog

I’m blogging for http://www.inlandsocal.com/iguide/movies/ now, under their sub-heading “Inland SoCal Filmmakers”.

Here is the blog that was published Feb 22, 2010 from http://www.inlandsocal.com/iguide/movies/content/your_films/stories/movies0222dslr.1428f70a0.html

DSLR Videography Is Taking the Main Stage

by Eric Harnden

In April, I was on the Digital Production Buzz talking about finding deals when building your studio. I wrote up more about that here:http://wordpress.quintessentialstudios.net/?p=86

From that post I said, “A little more on knowledge: Overall knowledge of your subject can always be improved, and for me, I spend a lot of time going to expos (like Createasphere, DV Expo and NAB*); Seminars, Meetups and User group meetings (like LAFCPUG**) and I most always learn something new. In fact, I was surprised that I knew more about the Silicon Images’s SI-2K camera*** than a Moviola camera rental rep…. All because I had just seen it demoed and talked about at another event…. Of course he knew a LOT more about EVERY other camera out there and a TON about compression and data rates of the different cameras and, so, I did learn things from him.”

Last week, I went to an Orange County Meetup given by the MCAI-OC (Media Communications Association International Orange County). It was called “ALL About DSLR (Digital Single-Lens Reflex) Videography” and I learned all about the hot new Canon cameras that are now being used to shoot video, not just for home fun but for commercial video and movies. It was a very comprehensive event covering pre-production, production and post. Canon reps were there and Rob Terry showed how he used them to shoot 40 commercial spots in two days for the Kellogg garden company! While I have read and watched a lot of videos on the web of what’s being done with these cameras, I didn’t know the actual workflows of them. This is mainly because I am not shooting with them yet and so haven’t delved into them that much.

The tide is rising, though, on their impact upon the indie film world and I figured it was about time to dive a little deeper into this wave!

The very next day, I attended the Createasphere Entertainment Technology Expo in Universal City and one of the main events was the Canon Intensive Workshop, where, you guessed it, they covered the exploding market and uses of these new cameras. These cameras are being used to shoot movies now. George Lucas is using them right now at Skywalker Ranch for some shots in his upcoming feature, Red Tails.

If that wasn’t enough, I decided to take part in “From the Camera to the Web – Your Files and What to Do With Them” and “Sound – An Audio Primer for DSLR and Small Crew Productions” not really realizing they were both part of the “DSLR Video Track”. And so, I ended up learning more than I ever wanted to know about DSLRs and working with them.

During these two days of intensive DSLR videography training, I meet some great people who said they would be willing to trek on down to the IE and give the Independent Filmmakers of the Inland Empire presentations. So, stay tuned for an announcement about that.

Meanwhile, I picked up a bunch of free magazines to give out at our next meetup. Another benefit from expos, lots of free swag!

Speaking of which, I am in talks with DV Expo who are going to offer the IFIE’s free and discounted passes to their September 2010 show in Pasadena, CA.

____

*NAB, National Association of Broadcasters. They put on an annual week-long expo  in Las Vegas every April.

**LAFCPUG, Los Angeles Final Cut Users Group. Meets every 4th Wednesday of the month in Hollywood.

***The camera used to film Slumdog Millionaire.

The Independent Filmmakers of the Inland Empire meets every 3rd Wednesday of the month. Click here for more information.

Jag35.com makes 35mm adapters for digital cameras.

With the advent of digital cameras, one issue has been, “they’re too good!”  In other words, everything in the viewfinder or frame is in focus.

Depth of Field Example - Logan Parks

There is a quality to film and film cameras where things at a certain distance are in focus and other things at other distances are out of focus.  That band of in-focus area is called the “depth of field”.  It can be narrow or wide.

Most digital video cameras have a very wide depth of field. This means that most everything you are seeing in the shot is in focus.

With a narrow depth of field, you can concentrate the viewers attention on what you want in the frame.  Some independent filmmakers cheat by zooming all the way in, which narrows the depth of field, and actually moving the camera back and forth to pull off a movie-like effect.

Other digital filmmakers go a step further and use a DOF adapter or 35mm adapter.  This is a device that allows you to mount lenses from still cameras to your video camera.  This allows you to adjust the focal plane to whatever subject you like within the video picture.  These adapters can be very costly, some cost more than the cameras themselves.  Jag35.com a local manufacturer in Rancho Cucamonga, has created a line of inexpensive 35mm adapters to help the budget-minded filmmaker.

Jag35 will be demonstrating the use of 35mm adapters and other helpful products at the March 17th meeting of the Independent Filmmakers of the Inland Empire.

Details of the meeting can be found here: http://www.meetup.com/Independent-Filmmakers-of-the-Inland-Empire-Meetup-Group/

Wednesday’s meeting of the Independent Filmmakers of the Inland Empire was a real treat and the response was an exciting surprise. There were approximately forty people in attendance, a huge jump from the eight that came to the first meeting.

Since the group is new, the reasons for these first meetings were to 1) establish the group, 2) introduce filmmaking enthusiasts to one another and 3) start to organize the group and structure of the meetings. I’ve found with related past activities, like when I ran a 48 hour film project team, that it takes a number of meetings before things find their groove.

Because one of the main purposes of the group is to help filmmakers, we surveyed the group to see what they expected from coming to these meetings, how they would like the meetings to run and what they wanted to see at future meetings.

Having gone to numerous successful film related and other types of enthusiast group meetings, I am patterning the basic structure of the “IFIE” meetings after those. Taking from the desires of the group, we will be holding a structured format agenda with announcements, education, presentations, show and tells, networking time and raffles.

Filmmaking is a dynamic process and I fully expect these meetings to have a dynamic life to them but one thing’s for certain, there are a lot of independent filmmakers and related crew, talent and artists here in the Inland Empire and we are here to help them do what they what to do, create films.

Because of the overwhelming response and anticipated growth of the group, we are looking for a bigger venue in which to hold our monthly meetings.

To find out about more about the group or when and where the next meetings will take place, please visit: http://www.meetup.com/Independent-Filmmakers-of-the-Inland-Empire-Meetup-Group/

Next meeting is scheduled for March 17th.

The Assassination at India Palace

OR

Well, The Food Was Pretty Good!

You think you're funny, Funny Man!

Pulling from my “education” of the Metro shoot, the plan was to have the writers all work together on a story for this next 2 Hour Film Project.

I even preselected a genre and sort-of story line for the writers to bring to this meeting. (Since they didn’t really get a chance to write the last time, I figured that I’d have them at least show me what they could come up with, given some time on their own.

Our production manager secured an Indian restaurant for this location and, since he’s connected, got the dinner thrown in. (Amazing how many more people showed up for this rehearsal!)

Everyone, and some new people I never met before and who didn’t even end up being on our 48 Hour Film Project, gathered around and I gave these specific instructions: “Okay, so I want everyone that is going to write to sit down together over dinner and come up with a story.”

Everyone got up to get their plates and proceeded to have dinner and to not work on a story at all!

Time was ticking away, as we didn’t have the place for that long and after dinner and after realizing that no one had done any writing at all, I put the writers together to come up with something.

At this point, it was becoming clear that everyone had had their own idea of what we were going to do and that chaos was going to reign supreme again.

The director went off to shoot some establishing shots he said he had in his head and most of us just milled around.

After some time, that same fussy actor from the last shot came to me to declare that the actor and partner “couldn’t stay long”. I said it was alright if they left. The trouble, it seems, stemmed from the fact that the idea they were working on, that actor was helping with the writing tonight as we were short one writer, who happened to take a wrong turn and got frustrated and decided to just go home!

Again, the director had his own idea for the story. And what we ended up shooting was a mix of the two ideas, I think….

Again, the 1st AD had his setup messed with by the production manager. (He didn’t like the lighting set up but didn’t realize that the 1st AD and the director and grip had already figured out that because of the glass entrance, the lights couldn’t be set up that way. Those guys being more passive-types, just opted to let the PM do his thing, as it wasn’t worth the fight.) It was just a practice run after all.

One of the ideas for the story was created by our PM. Everyone kind of went with that idea with a few twists. Our director is very good at taking some idea and putting a funny twist on it that appeals to more people. Our PM told us he used to be a stand-up comedian and so his character would be sort of funny. Uh, well, yeah, right…. Nevertheless, our director made a funny short out of it called Assassins Anonymous.

Laugh Clown Laugh!

We didn’t get close to the amount of footage and there were a lot of mad people at the end of the night!

After we wrapped, the first AD, the director and I met at my house. We talked long into the night about what worked, what didn’t, what we could do to improve things, etc, etc.

We seemed to iron things out fairly well. I had the feeling, that we’d be better off, if I got rid of some people, three in particular, but as fate would have it, I wouldn’t even have to raise a concern.

To be continued…

See the video:

Entertainment in the world is probably the biggest money making proposition there is. (At least for what’s legal, ethical or moral! [Although there are elements of evil in any industry!])

Some of the world’s wealthiest people are entertainers. People can rise to fame in an instant. Talent doesn’t necessarily define what you can earn, either. We’ve all heard music and thought “I know better sounding musicians than that!” and wondered how did they get a record deal. We’ve seen some pretty bad movies at the theaters too, movies that cost millions of dollars to make. We’ve seen no-budget entertainers make the most beautiful pieces of art and thought, “They need to be discovered!” Some of us have even told the artists that.

That’s part of the glamour or intrigue to this whole industry, there are Cinderella stories out there! You can become a millionaire overnight. After all, “You could do THAT!”

Some, a whole lot, actually, feel they can do better or, at least, well enough and try to make a living at entertainment. So many, in fact, that whole industries spring up, feeding on that desire people have to “make it!”

Some easy examples to witness are actors and musicians. A Google search for “acting schools” gave me 4,790,000 results. “Music schools” gave me 84,900,000 results! Whereas “mechanic schools” only returned 589,000 results.

I’m an aspiring film editor and filmmaker but I’ve had other artistic interests before. One of them was music. I’ve “done it all” (on a small scale) in the music business. I’ve played bass in a band, was a lead singer in a band, managed bands, been a college radio DJ, booked bands and even ran a blues magazine.

One of the best educations I got during that time was from a home study course on the business of music. The name escapes me (that was a whole “‘nother” lifetime ago. But, I’ll grab it out of the garage later and fill in the name).

There the instructor (again, I’ll fill this in later) explained that in the music business, you needed to concentrate on one thing: being a musician! Of course there was the “business” side of things but that you didn’t need to build a studio in your bedroom, garage or what have you, like all the music stores were trying to tell you that you did. He went on to explain that there was a whole industry built around selling you on the idea that you just needed that one more extra piece to the puzzle and you could then “make it!” When the fact was, you just needed to learn how to be the best musician you could be and there were other people who were trained in recording, etc. that could do the other jobs.

I hope you’re having an “ah-ha” moment right about now. If you aren’t, I haven’t conveyed the idea well enough or perhaps you’ve been sold that idea too hard as well.

See, it isn’t just in the music industry. I mentioned actors before and acting schools. I also said that an artist should perfect his craft. You might be saying, “well then acting schools are a needed thing”. They very well could be. Then again, maybe not. I’m all for taking classes. After all, I’m a 42 year-old community college student! I think people should continue to educate themselves in some form or another, throughout their lives. What I’m trying to explain here today is that “the path need not be long! (nor expensive!)”

I guess in any endeavor one undertakes, there are expenses. There are millions of ways to tackle any goal in life. There are nearly 6.7 billion people on Earth all with their own tact on survival, eh? Money or no money, we’re all heading to the same end. We just each have our own flare about it, good or bad.

Let me get back to the movies and filmmaking, in particular, since that is my chosen path at this time in my life. Do I need to own a full movie studio and know how to run every part of it to make a movie? No. Do I need to even own a camera, a computer, a light kit and boom mic? No. These are what seem the basic tools of the craft. But, do I need to own them? No. Do I need to learn how to use them? No. Not even that! Does knowing how to use them help me with my craft? Yes! Would owning a studio enable me to create more within my craft? Yes! But, they are not necessary. And that is my point.

You are being bombarded with MARKETING constantly. “If you want ‘A’ you need ‘B’!”, “In order to make your movie, you need to buy camera ‘Z’!” “To be the best filmmaker out there, you need to learn how to edit on a MAC!” (Nothing against Macs, I own four!) Marketing has been defined as “creating want”. If you want something, more than probably, it’s been marketed to you!

I am a firm believer that anything can be done on any budget. (I was going to say within certain means but I re-thought that and stand by what I said.) Now, you may need others to join you who have the equipment or money or what have you, but it can be done. Filmmaking, they say, is a collaborative effort. It can or cannot be but, mostly, I’d say it is. It’s also a dynamic effort. Things change constantly, when making a film, just like life. It’s almost a living, breathing entity on its own! (Cue the Frankenstein clip, “It’s alive!”)

You are being sold gazillions of dollars of stuff (as the late, great George Carlin would say), all the time. You don’t need all that stuff!

Take a look at what’s being sold to you everyday as you pursue your filmmaking career. I took a class with producer Jim Lindsay, who had some great mantras. The main one was “Want vs. Need”. In other words, do I need this or do I just want it? Asking yourself this question every time you’re making a financial decision will save you a LOT of money down the line!

“That being said” (*Curb Your Enthusiasm reference), I’m entering a phase of my filmmaking career where I am heading a filmmaking enthusiasts group. One of the “benefits” of such a group is showing off the latest and the greatest products to help you “become a better filmmaker”. That’s all nice and fancy but I’ll be the first to point out that YOU probably don’t need that [name item here].

To learn more about the new group go here:
http://www.meetup.com/Independent-Filmmakers-of-the-Inland-Empire-Meetup-Group

A reference book that shares the concept that you don’t need to own anything to start (highly recommended!):
The Shut Up and Shoot Documentary Guide

Hi Everyone!

This is just a quick update on my latest project.

…

I have begun organizing a local film making enthusiasts group called the “Independent Filmmakers of the Inland Empire”.

The first organizational meeting went great and we are having another next month, Wed, Feb 3rd.

The purpose of the group is to unite like-minded who enjoy filmmaking or some aspect of it. The plan is to provide A) comradery, B) education and C) support to the local filmmaking community.

The group is for the general public and will allow for many networking opportunities. I am basing the group organization and meetings off of successful meeting groups that I have been apart of. We will provide speakers, demonstrations, showcases and most importantly: RAFFLES!

I am looking for 1) members, 2) speakers and 3) sponsors!

I also would love any advice or suggestions. I have a definite idea of how this group should and will go and grow but I am very open to ideas.

If you fit into any of the categories 1-3 above, please contact me, so that we can discuss how you can contribute to the growth of indie filmmaking!

Also, if you know of anyone else that would be a great fit, let them know about us!

Thanks for listening!

Follow
http://twitter.com/IFotIE
for the latest updates on the group.

And see our new Meetup.com page:
http://www.meetup.com/Independent-Filmmakers-of-the-Inland-Empire-Meetup-Group/

Love,
Eric
___________________

Eric Francis Harnden
Digital Editor, Filmmaker and Industry Blogger

Quintessential Studios
___________________

http://wordpress.quintessentialstudios.net
http://twitter.com/quintessential

http://twitter.com/IFotIE
http://www.meetup.com/Independent-Filmmakers-of-the-Inland-Empire-Meetup-Group/

9 Jan 2010 update: Thanks to


for becoming our first sponsor!

28 Jan 2010 update: Thanks to


for becoming a sponsor!

http://stillmotion.ca/

Join us and the Boston, SF Cutters and FCP UGs from around the world in San Francisco for the largest gathering of FCP users and Gurus on the Planet

Createasphere/EXPLORE Entertainment Technology Exposition
FEBRUARY 18, 2010 | Universal Hilton | Universal City, CA
Hours: 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM

The first look for the Entertainment and Media industry at what will drive entertainment technology in 2010.

This expo sets the pace for the year ahead in the quickly evolving world of entertainment technology and is a must attend event for all serious content creators. The February Entertainment Technology Exposition (formerly known as HD EXPO) enters its 9th year as the leading west coast venue where future technology and creative vision converge. It is the premier west coast event for the production and content creation community. The Entertainment Technology Expo brings together exhibitors, sponsors, attendees and industry supporters, all of whom have a vested interest in understanding and shaping the future of the industry.

About the Event:

The expo, which takes place in Universal City at the heart of the entertainment community, includes a dynamic exhibit floor where attendees connect with exhibitors representing all aspects of the industry. In addition to the expo floor, the event features conference sessions and panel discussions by leaders in the field, and well as a variety of workshop events. The expo has also gained a well deserved reputation as a key social and networking opportunity for the community, bringing together industry professionals, independent film makers, students, technology innovators and industry supporters.

Co-located with the new Createasphere Digital Asset Management conference, the Entertainment Technology Expo will provide attendees and exhibitors a valuable opportunity to expand their learning experience by registering for the Digital Asset Management conference.

Online registration is FREE and includes exhibit hall, intensive workshops, panels, keynotes and evening reception.

I attended two events last night: Mocha training by Imagineer at New Media Hollywood and the Los Angeles Post Production Group meeting.

I happened to be only one of two that attended that particular session of Mocha training.  I guess people don’t like to go outside in the rain!

New Media Hollywood seems like a chill place.  They have a foosball table in the front waiting area, if that is any indication.  They are your basic post production provider/reseller.  You can get systems, software, editing bay rentals, etc.  After an decent hands-on Mocha class, I decided to tell others about their discounts and took some flyers to LAPPG.

I’ve been impressed with Mocha and Shape ever since they demoed at LAFCPUG a while back.  Mocha is a planar tracker, so it’s very accurate.  It is more accurate if you define more areas to track.  Then you can adjust the “surface” for a clean export of tracker layer data.  It seriously has a lot of “smarts”.

I also learned about another Imagineer product, Mokey.  This one actually tracks and replaces the hole with what should be there.  Pretty cool.  We went through removing a sign from a yard, as a car drives by.

Props to Ross Shain for an excellent training session.

LAPPG

Later, at LAPPG, I met some nice “new” people including a photographer who proclaimed “Stills are dead… Be prepared for millions of new video people.”  I posted that claim on Twitter and it inspired this post: http://blog.jayfriesen.com/2009/10/millions-of-new-video-people-my-take/

Being early to the meeting I was one of the lucky ones who got a $5 gift card to Showbiz Store & Cafe.  I also partook in some coffee, cookies, a piece of pizza and some brownies.

Woody who founded LAPPG said he’s on a panel for “http://backpackfilmschool.com/” which sounds cool.  Check that out.

Jeffrey Way from AJA went on to talk about the AJA KiPro.  I’ve already been aquainted with the KiPro but I did learn some new things.  One, is that the Sony V1U is a small camera, small like JVC GY-HM100 small.  I learned this because one of the LAPPG members brought one and they used it to hook up to the AJA KiPro.

I also learned that Apple’s Pro Res (HD) is 220Mbits/sec.  Random fact, I know, but here’s some more: The AJA Xena card is the same as the Kona card but it’s for a PC and it just uses different drivers.  So I guess that means if you want to use your Kona card on a PC, all you have to do is download the Xena PC drivers.  There are also some ports on the AJA KiPro that aren’t usable yet.  They are for future upgrades.  You can also use your KiPro like an IO HD.  It’s basically the next gen of that product.  Cross, up and down convert to your heart’s content with this little unit.  It also works as a monitoring unit.  By that I mean a hook-up-your-monitor-to-see-your-footage, type of monitoring unit.  (I’m really not hip to that whole side of things yet but those of you that are should appreciate that.)

Then, the best for last, I learned that Philip Hodgetts wrote a book called The New Now.  And in this book, there are lots of pieces of information on how to grow your video business.  His talk was very inspirational, at least I know it was to two people for sure, myself and one friend, Chris, who sends out a newsletter-type email every month or so.  We talked about how we are going to use information from Philip’s talk in our own businesses, after the meeting.

Chris’ website is here: www.chrishartedits.com Hey! He’s done a comedy short that’s winning lots of awards that has that kid from Glee in it!

Philip talked about some things: the clue train manifesto, H.A.R.O. (Help a Reporter Out), caring about the customer and to install Google Analytics on to your site.  I know I’m being random with this post and my facts, I think I’ve been on Twitter too much lately!

If you get a chance to see Philip Hodgetts, do it.  And if you like what he has to say, maybe you’d want to buy his book. It’s available here: http://proappstips.com/TheNewNow/ and I’ll be reviewing it here later.