Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
By Sherri Sheridan Conflict determines audience interest and you need to come up with different ways to add tension to each scene. The way the character accomplishes each scene goal needs to have a sweet surprise that is unexpected. They do not just waltz into the room and grab the plot goal. Sneaky plans need… …
Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
by David Kaminski Never Take Something As Simple As a Person’s Name for Granted. Recently, I discovered that my documentary subject was not only named after an uncle, but that he also carried the middle name of his grandfather. Surprise? Even his living relatives did not know it was true. A passport and some… …
Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
by S.D. Katz Now that MiniDV and HDV make shooting and dropping the footage into a timeline a very simple routine there is no reason not to keep a digital sketchbook. Painters and draftsman have always kept notebooks of quick studies from life or the imagination and writers often collect files of ideas for plots,… …
Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
By John Hart Just ask any frontline director these days – like Spielberg, Scorsese, or Cameron, “Do you use storyboards for your films?” And the resounding answer would be, yes! Ridley Scott, who directed Russel Crowe in the mega hit, “Gladiator” ( 2000), drew his own storyboards. Even Tony Bill who received the Academy Award for, “The… …
Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
From Comic Book to Catharsis By Neil Landau There’s a historical pattern around the popularity of the superhero—he or she is most needed during dark times in the real world. In Captain America: The First Avenger, when Steve Rogers/Captain America (Chris Evans) visits the US troops to boost morale, it’s more than mere fiction; it’s… …
Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
by John Hart WHAT FILM IS THAT? It’s AN AMERICAN IN PARIS. MGM,1951. Starring Gene Kelly and directed by Vincente Minnelli, Note. AMERICAN IN PARIS is Included in a DVD Box Set, MAGICAL MOVIES, 2014 “A bold breathtaking and original love letter to the Great American Musical.” The London Telegraph, 2014 Why choose this musical classic for study? Because here… …
Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
Ideas to Start By Jared Isham Getting your film made, for many, can be packed with fear and uncertainty. The obstacles, no matter how much experience you have, are great but the good news is that the bar to entry is getting lower. At this particular time in the history of filmmaking, the excuses as… …
Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
By Michael Halperin One of my mentors, the late, great screenwriter Ernie Lehman (The Sound of Music; Hello Dolly; North by Northwest), confessed that before the computer became ubiquitous he always faced the empty page in his typewriter with trepidation. “I didn’t know if I could write anything worthwhile.” Then he started working. Fear engulfs… …
Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
By Scott A. McConnell A mother walks into a room and informs her two young daughters that they are going on a playdate with some children they have never met. One daughter replies, “Will they like me?” The second daughter responds, “Will I like them?” While there are many qualities that good dialog can have –… …
Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
By Richard La Motte There are maybe hundreds of books out on how to write: Write well, write scripts, write short stories, write novels, story structure, story analysis, famous writers, genre writing, writing the horror movie… Wow. Is writing really that tough? Maybe. Is there a way to simplify writing for film? Maybe. I want… …
Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
I am drinking my first cup of coffee this morning from my new “Buy More Nerd Herd” cup. I woke up this morning thinking about interview questions and the kinds of things our readers might want to know. What are our readers are interested in? How was it made, what kinds of problems came up… …
Written by StudentFilmmakers Magazine
Harry Potter, Twilight, Buffy, Fringe, Supernatural, True Blood… in the midst of the most scientifically advanced civilization in history we’re seeing a resurgence of interest in magic and other realms. You doubt there’s more to reality than our human senses can perceive? Just watch your cat stalking “invisible” things. The eternal popularity of scary stories… …
