Now I’m not condoning that I make great movies. My projects still have a lot of mistakes that I need to fix. But over the years I’ve gotten better because I’ve focused on the small things.
In order to make a movie, or anything in general, you should never leave out the small things. When you think about it, all the small things will eventually build up to become one big conglomeration. You may not think it’s such a big deal, but it can become a big deal.
For instance, in my last post, I talked about editing audio. Today, on a second viewing at a higher volume, I realized that my “editing job” left a pretty noticeable artifact in between dialogue. You can’t tell when the volume is low enough, but when boosted, you know it’s there. I opted to go back and re-edit all of the audio clips I did yesterday. I finished half of them yesterday.
To go back and re-edit these clips, PLUS edit the rest of the movie audio, took the entire day (excluding going out to the mall). Some may not have opted to take on such a task, but I did because I knew that I’d be sorely unhappy with the results in the future. This artifact, while not so imposing, would have been present throughout the entire video and would have ruined the parts where silence was key to the mood. Taking it out of all the audio fixed a small problem that encased the entire video.
What I’m trying to say here is that the smallest details are sometimes the most crucial. There should be no shortcuts to making a good movie.
2/5/11
2/4/11
Arranging and Audio
I haven’t been able to edit all week because of school, but guess what I started doing just as I got home?
That’s right. EDITING.
So, this is what I’ve done so far after importing everything:
1. Arrange the timeline: The first thing I always do is put all the clips in order as I want them to be. Considering the length of this video, this can take a long time. My first arrangement is rough at best, but it gives me a good understanding of the flow of the video. As editing progresses or during the final touch-ups, I’ll make the finer adjustments to clip length and placement.
2. Edit the audio: This is one of the most time-consuming aspects of my process. How do I edit the audio? Well I extract it to Adobe Soundbooth, boost the voices, and lower the background noise. How do I do that? It sounds very advanced but a single clip can take less than a minute. All I do is take an audio sample of the background noise and tell Soundbooth to eliminate all areas that match that sample. Soundbooth is AWESOME. Then, I just look for those glaring sound errors, like me speaking or screwing up the tripod work.
While it is easy to simply sample the whole clip at once, it keeps me from hearing the errors that I need to fix. This is why I arrange the clips first and then edit them—I can look at each individual area of sound and make sure they’re perfect. Also, it gives me a better understanding of how the clip should sound like in context.
How did I figure out how to do the audio thing? Well a long time ago, I was messing with Adobe Premiere, and I found an option that let me extract the audio to Soundbooth. Then the rest was more experimentation.
Anyway, I’ve only edited the sounds of the first scene. I think I have about seven more scenes to go? It’ll take a while, but the resulting sound quality is too good to pass up.
That’s right. EDITING.
So, this is what I’ve done so far after importing everything:
1. Arrange the timeline: The first thing I always do is put all the clips in order as I want them to be. Considering the length of this video, this can take a long time. My first arrangement is rough at best, but it gives me a good understanding of the flow of the video. As editing progresses or during the final touch-ups, I’ll make the finer adjustments to clip length and placement.
2. Edit the audio: This is one of the most time-consuming aspects of my process. How do I edit the audio? Well I extract it to Adobe Soundbooth, boost the voices, and lower the background noise. How do I do that? It sounds very advanced but a single clip can take less than a minute. All I do is take an audio sample of the background noise and tell Soundbooth to eliminate all areas that match that sample. Soundbooth is AWESOME. Then, I just look for those glaring sound errors, like me speaking or screwing up the tripod work.
While it is easy to simply sample the whole clip at once, it keeps me from hearing the errors that I need to fix. This is why I arrange the clips first and then edit them—I can look at each individual area of sound and make sure they’re perfect. Also, it gives me a better understanding of how the clip should sound like in context.
How did I figure out how to do the audio thing? Well a long time ago, I was messing with Adobe Premiere, and I found an option that let me extract the audio to Soundbooth. Then the rest was more experimentation.
Anyway, I’ve only edited the sounds of the first scene. I think I have about seven more scenes to go? It’ll take a while, but the resulting sound quality is too good to pass up.
1/29/11
New Video!
Announcing my new upcoming feature, The Blood Exchange!
No details on what it’s about yet, but I will say that it will star Carlos Cortes, Roger Lau, and Anthony Lucido. Filming went incredibly smooth, and we took our times to make it as awesome as possible. And I must say, even before editing, this video looks promising.
Here are some screenshots :D
They look pretty good in suits doncha think? Anyway, I’ll be releasing more information and development photos as editing comes along. It shouldn’t be very long before it’s done. Stay tuned!
No details on what it’s about yet, but I will say that it will star Carlos Cortes, Roger Lau, and Anthony Lucido. Filming went incredibly smooth, and we took our times to make it as awesome as possible. And I must say, even before editing, this video looks promising.
Here are some screenshots :D
They look pretty good in suits doncha think? Anyway, I’ll be releasing more information and development photos as editing comes along. It shouldn’t be very long before it’s done. Stay tuned!
1/25/11
Upcoming Project
This weekend I’ll be filming my next video. Here’s the lowdown on why this is a big deal for me:
Filming was originally slated for Thanksgiving weekend (yeah, in November). The first day, my main actor (Kevin Dewey) woke up feeling woozy. My other actors (except Carlos Cortes) also woke up feeling sick. Also, Kevin’s house was supposed to be the setting of the video. It was unavailable. No filming that day.
We rescheduled a few days later. Then, Carlos got sick. No filming that day.
We rescheduled ANOTHER day. Kevin had to be at his brother’s football game that evening, so he wasn’t available. No filming that day.
And now, I have recast my actors (except for Carlos) and scheduled a new location and a new date. I seriously hope this date comes through, because I seriously want to film this damn video!
Update when I update :D
Filming was originally slated for Thanksgiving weekend (yeah, in November). The first day, my main actor (Kevin Dewey) woke up feeling woozy. My other actors (except Carlos Cortes) also woke up feeling sick. Also, Kevin’s house was supposed to be the setting of the video. It was unavailable. No filming that day.
We rescheduled a few days later. Then, Carlos got sick. No filming that day.
We rescheduled ANOTHER day. Kevin had to be at his brother’s football game that evening, so he wasn’t available. No filming that day.
And now, I have recast my actors (except for Carlos) and scheduled a new location and a new date. I seriously hope this date comes through, because I seriously want to film this damn video!
Update when I update :D
Why Filmmaking?
Filmmaking is, in my opinion, the best kind of storytelling out there. I don’t know about you, but the reason why I don’t like to read is because imagining things happening simply isn’t enough for me. I enjoy seeing a story in an entertaining way. I like to be immersed in the story, with sound, visuals, atmospheric music, etc. Movies are like my escape. It’s like entering a completely different world and viewing the story firsthand.
Movies can take many shapes and forms. However, the differences between movies and other kinds of media are simple:
Also, have you ever had those moments where you think “Damn, I just did something awesome. I wish awesome music could play to celebrate it.” That might just be me, but honestly, music creates atmosphere. Combine music with motion picture, and you have one entertaining movie.
I love filmmaking because it’s entertaining and it feels more real than just pictures or books or other kinds of storytelling. It’s a medium unlike anything else out there.
Movies can take many shapes and forms. However, the differences between movies and other kinds of media are simple:
- They provide motion, and
- They provide visuals mixed with music and sound effects.
Also, have you ever had those moments where you think “Damn, I just did something awesome. I wish awesome music could play to celebrate it.” That might just be me, but honestly, music creates atmosphere. Combine music with motion picture, and you have one entertaining movie.
I love filmmaking because it’s entertaining and it feels more real than just pictures or books or other kinds of storytelling. It’s a medium unlike anything else out there.
1/18/11
My Biggest Influence
Of all the directors and all their works, no other director has influenced me as much as the big man, Quentin Tarantino. Why?
He’s taught me what makes a good movie.
When I watched Inglourious Basterds,I expected more action than it had. This was because I was used to seeing Hollywood movies with tons of action and suspense. Instead, I was presented with a ton of dialogue that I thought went on forever. However, it was interesting, so I decided to investigate further with his movies, because I had heard good stuff about them.
Reservoir Dogs was where I began to understand Tarantino. The bulk of this movie is just acting and dialogue. But the way it tells the story is incredible. The characters are beyond real—there’s no cheesy dialogue or anything that sounds stupid. It is an intense movie with bits of action and amazing suspense. I learned, right when I finished that movie, that good movies have good stories.
I began to see the emptiness in Hollywood films. I began to ask, “Why are they fighting? Why is it so drawn out? There’s no way all those bullets could have missed him!” While I understand it’s for entertainment, I began to become repelled by the ridiculousness of these scenarios.
Then I saw Pulp Fiction, and I became obsessed with following his tactics.
I’ve seen other directors who are similar to Tarantino, such as Stanley Kubrick (another amazing director). I find so much power in their storytelling that is lacking in many films that come out today. My goal as a filmmaker is to resurrect that power and emulate it in a way that will become successful.
Thank you, Quentin Tarantino, for making great movies. For better or for worse, my outlook on film has changed forever, because of you.
He’s taught me what makes a good movie.
When I watched Inglourious Basterds,I expected more action than it had. This was because I was used to seeing Hollywood movies with tons of action and suspense. Instead, I was presented with a ton of dialogue that I thought went on forever. However, it was interesting, so I decided to investigate further with his movies, because I had heard good stuff about them.
Reservoir Dogs was where I began to understand Tarantino. The bulk of this movie is just acting and dialogue. But the way it tells the story is incredible. The characters are beyond real—there’s no cheesy dialogue or anything that sounds stupid. It is an intense movie with bits of action and amazing suspense. I learned, right when I finished that movie, that good movies have good stories.
I began to see the emptiness in Hollywood films. I began to ask, “Why are they fighting? Why is it so drawn out? There’s no way all those bullets could have missed him!” While I understand it’s for entertainment, I began to become repelled by the ridiculousness of these scenarios.
Then I saw Pulp Fiction, and I became obsessed with following his tactics.
I’ve seen other directors who are similar to Tarantino, such as Stanley Kubrick (another amazing director). I find so much power in their storytelling that is lacking in many films that come out today. My goal as a filmmaker is to resurrect that power and emulate it in a way that will become successful.
Thank you, Quentin Tarantino, for making great movies. For better or for worse, my outlook on film has changed forever, because of you.
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