1) Shooting
in Slow Motion
2) Shooting Comedy Scenes
3) Page
Count vs Camera Set-ups
4) Use Your
Hand as a Foot for a Great Hit!
5) Screen Direction in a Fight Sequence
6) Work Expands with the Time Allotted
7) The "Walk and Talk" Scene
8) Learn to Balance Your Scenes
9) Character Objectives
10) Advice on Making Short Films
11) Communicating with the Crew
12) A Quote from Frank Capra
13) Dealing with Actors who Change the
Dialogue
14) The Director and 1st AD Relationship
15) Directing for an Audience
16) Actors Should "Do" Rather than "Say"
17) Developing Small Character Roles
18) Understanding the Business of Film
19) When to Use a Second Camera
20) Night Shooting
21) Working with Visual Effects
22) Blocking a Scene Tips
1
- Shooting
in Slo Motion - Peter D. Marshall
You
know those wonderful scenes where the actor is walking in slo-mo and
his long coat is blowing dramatically in the wind. (Think of Nick Cage
in Face Off when he gets out of the car at the airport.
A
trick to get the coat to billow like that is to have your costume
designer either purchase a coat made of light-weight material, or they
can creatively rip the lining out of the coat. This lightens up the
material so it will move easier in the wind. And by the way - 60fps
and 90fps are good frame rates for the effect.
2
- Shooting
Comedy Scenes - Peter D. Marshall
Nothing
can kill a comedy scene quicker than the lack of pace. The pace of
comedy needs to be faster than drama - but not so frantic that there is
no time for reactions. And never over rehearse a comedy scene - use
rehearsals to block out actor movement, then turn on the camera and see
what happens!
3
- Page
Count vs Camera Set-Ups - Peter D.
Marshall
When
you look at the 1st AD's call sheet and see all those scenes and pages
you have to shoot each day, remember: it's not the page count that
matters as much as the number of set-ups (shots) you
have each day.
4
- Use
Your Hand as the Foot for a Great Hit! - Peter
D. Marshall
Want
to get a great CU of Person B getting hit in the face/head by Person
A's foot?
Take
the shoe, sock and pant leg of Person A and dress it on the stunt
coordinator's hand and arm.(re: fit the pant over the arm, put the sock
and shoe on the hand). You can then move the camera in close and use
the stunt coordinator to swing at Person B's head right beside the
camera. You get a great looking shot and you have more control of the
"kick." I've used this technique several times in fight sequences and
it looks great on camera.
5
- Screen
Direction in an Fight Sequence - Peter D.
Marshall
Which
way an actor looks, or which side of the camera he exits or enters, is
called Screen Direction (the "180 degree rule"). Maintaining proper
screen direction is one of the jobs of the Script Supervisor and is
very important to the uninterrupted flow of your story. But should the
screen direction rule always be "obeyed?"
During
fight scenes, "crossing the axis" adds a dramatic sense of confusion to
the action - where punches and gunshots come from odd angles and
characters enter and exit unexpectedly. And when
you add slow-motion, dutch tilts, hand-held cameras and jump-cutting
techniques, you can create a ballet-like scene that is stylistic and
dynamic.
6
- Work
Expands with the Time Allotted - Peter D.
Marshall
In
a TV Series, you should know what scenes you want to spend extra time
on (more coverage or more time with the actors) and which scenes you
will shoot quickly (to make up for the longer
scenes). Give the 1st AD this information so he can help you out in the
schedule.
Remember,
if you are shooting a low-budget movie or a TV Series, it's "Gone with
the Wind" in the morning and "Duke's of Hazzard" in the afternoon!
7
- The
"Walk and Talk" Scene - Peter D. Marshall
Two
actors have to walk from Point-A (a hallway) and finish their dialogue
when they reach Point-B (an elevator or a door). A quick way of
deciding where they must begin (in the hallway) is to have
them start walking FROM Point-B to Point-A. Where they stop (finish
their lines) is where you can start them for the scene.
8
- Learn
to Balance Your Scenes - Peter
D. Marshall
Every
script will have scenes that are not necessary; scenes that have
nothing going on; or scenes that are only for character development.
But if they haven't been omitted, (by the producers or writers) you
still have to shoot them. The trick here is to not spend a lot of time
on these scenes - just shoot them fast and get onto the next one.
9
- Character Objectives - Peter
D. Marshall
Actors
and Directors have to come up with as many objectives for a character
as possible. A character's objective should be something that will
engage the other characters in a scene; it should create it's own
obstacles; and it should be something the actor can believe in and
commit to.
But
there is one important rule to remember when choosing objectives for a
character. An actor can only play ONE objective in a scene! Always ask
yourself "What is the character's need in this scene?" and then make
sure the actor plays that objective!
10 - Advice on Making Short
Films
- by Luciano Bresdem
My name is Luciano
Bresdem, I am from Brazil and I have made some short films. I would
like to share some directing tips that I have learned.
For me, the most
important part for a director is knowing the script: structure,
characters, space, plot,... You should know the material that you have
in your hands. Second thing: You should know what you
want to say with this film - if you don't know what you
want to say, you will lose the control over the material,
actors, and crew. And the last thing: You should find the ways to say
what you want to say. Discipline and organization are
important here. Make a list, in detail, with every aspect of the
production (Performance, Location, Direction of Photographic,
Sound,...) and remember that "there's no unimportant decisions in
filmmaking".
11 - Communicating to the Crew - Peter D.
Marshall
An experienced director
should be able to talk to key personnel in their own terms.
That means you should
not only know the techniques of acting when talking to actors, but you
should also understand lenses when talking to a camera operator and
DOP, you should understand costumes when talking to the wardrobe
department, you should understand the basics of hair and make-up....etc.
Does this make you a
better director? Not necessarily. But it will help you to
communicate your ideas and vision to the people that have to make it
happen!
12 - A Quote from Frank Capra
Here is one of my
favorite tips - and it comes in the form of a quote from the legendary
director, Frank Capra.
"There are no rules in
film making, only sins.
And the cardinal sin is Dullness."
13 - Dealing with Actors who
Change Dialogue - Peter D. Marshall
When dealing with actors
who want to improvise and change their dialogue, make sure they know
what the intent of the scene is first. Once you and the actor both
agree on the scene intent, they can go ahead and improvise their
dialogue - and the objective of the scene will still be met.
14 - The Director and 1st AD
Relationship - Peter D. Marshall
In Television -
The
1st AD works WITH the Director FOR the Producer
In Features -
The
1st AD works FOR the Director, WITH the Producer
15 - Directing for an
Audience - Peter D. Marshall
As a director, it's
important to properly gauge the length of time the viewer needs to
digest the information in a scene. (the greater audience involvement,
the more successful the film)
Remember, an audience
will accept as pertinent almost anything portrayed on the screen, even
if it seems to make little sense. (If it's there, it must be for
reason.)
16 - Actors Should "Do"
Rather than "Say" - Peter D. Marshall
When working on your
script, and when shooting on the set, make sure you have the actors "do
things" rather than "say things."
17 - Developing Small
Character Roles - Peter
D. Marshall
Any character in a
script that is worth keeping is worth developing. Allow the smaller
roles to have offbeat remarks or unique bits of action to make them
memorable.
18 - Understanding the
Business of Film - Peter
D. Marshall
Understanding the
differences and similarities between both TV and Film is essential to a
successful and productive career in the film business because of one
word: POLITICS!
19 - When to Use a Second
Camera - Peter D. Marshall
Shooting with a second
camera is a must if you want to save time on the set.
1) Action Scenes - you
should always use several cameras during Action and stunt scenes.
2) Dialogue Scenes - you
will need to work closely with the DOP, and the soundman, about when to
use the second camera, what it is covering and what lens to use.
3) Filming kids and
animals - this will help you get the shot on the first or second take
as both children and animals will never do the same thing twice.
20 - Night Shooting - Peter
D. Marshall
Shooting at night takes
more time than shooting in the day so make sure you are totally
prepared. It
is also helpful to know how to cheat your reverses - so you can spend
less time lighting and more time shooting.
21 - Working with Visual
Effects - Peter D. Marshall
Most film and TV
programs today utilize some form of special visual FX (Green screen,
motion control, computer screens etc.) Because of the complexity of
these shots, make sure you work very closely with the Visual FX
Supervisor to properly schedule all of the plate shots, reference shots
and green screen shots.
22
- Blocking a Scene Tips - Peter D.
Marshall
Having a shot list will help you during the
blocking process. The shot list is like a map: it gives you a path to
your destination but you don't always have to follow it
a) let the actors show you what they want to do first, then, when you
make a suggestion, it is based on something you have already seen
b) in Television, speed is essential, so try and block some scenes so
that your action takes place in one direction (to avoid turning the
camera around for reverses)
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Peter D. Marshall/www.actioncutprint.com
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