filmmaking Tagged Articles at Cinematical

The movie Be Kind Rewind is being released on DVD today. Even if you didn't see the movie, you probably remember the delightful trailer, in which Jack Black and Mos Def shoot their own low-budget, low-everything versions of blockbusters like Ghostbusters and Driving Miss Daisy. In addition, another movie about the joy of making movies is still playing in some theaters -- Son of Rambow, where two boys are inspired to shoot their own version of Rambo complete with flying dogs, nursing-home residents bribed as actors, and a fabulous French exchange student.

I can think of dozens of enjoyable movies about moviemaking (and a few clunkers, but we'll ignore them for today). But I decided to focus on seven of the most characteristic films. I didn't include films about screenwriters, because I think those would be fun to list another time, or films about moviegoing like Cinema Paradiso. Instead, I focused on the inspired and sometimes crazed filmmakers. Afterwards, you can tell me which of your favorites I left off the list.

OK, show of hands: How many out there have sat through anything from some cheap jack direct-to-video pile of swill to a big-budget Hollywood blockbuster and said to themself "Good Lord! I can make a movie better than this!" I'm betting anyone who has seen Showgirls, Plan 9 From Outer Space or Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park (a made-for-TV flick I've had a love/hate relationship with for nearly 30 years) is waving their hands in the air like they just don't care. Well, these days if you think you can make a decent flick of any kind, there's very little stopping you. Camcorders and computers with non-linear video editing software are more affordable now than ever before.

Cinematical's sister site DIYlife.com (we're all part of the Weblogs, Inc. family, don't you know) has begun a series of posts that aims to help you make your zero budget video look as professional as possible. The first installment "DIY Film School: Rigs and Mounts" is available for your perusal, and it takes a look at eight economical but efficient ways of mounting your video camera to get smooth and professional looking footage. Would you believe you can build a steadycam for a mere $14 or a body brace variation of the same for less than $40? How about a $60 camera jib or systems for mounting your camera on a car (backseat view or exterior) or on a bicycle. How about a PVC pipe fig rig (another method of stabilizing your camera) or an underwater housing for your camcorder for less than $70? The next installment in the series involves do-it-yourself sound and lighting projects, but the ones presented here should keep budding film makers busy for awhile.

Gentlemen (and ladies!) start your engines, er, cameras. Film Racing is coming soon to a city near you. Here's how it works: teams meet at a noon at a predetermined location, where they receive a theme and a "surprise element" that must be included in their film. Then they have 12 hours to write, shoot, edit and score a short film no more than four minutes long. A few days later, all the films from that city will screen at a local theater, and winners will be announced and awarded fab prizes.

The Seattle International Film Festival does something similar every year with their Fly Filmmaking fun, and it's always one of the more enjoyable parts of that fest. If you're a filmmaker, and you'd like to try your hand at making a film in half a day, you'll find The Rules and everything else you need to know over on the official Film Racing website. Boston and NYC are accepting registration now, and Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, Portland, OR and San Francisco (What? No Seattle? C'mon, guys ...) are coming soon, so get with your filmmaking pals and start pulling equipment together.

And hey, if you decide to pull together a team, drop us a line and let us know so we can root for you from the sidelines!

Zach Braff's next film Open Hearts may be currently on hold, but he plans to shoot in New Jersey again once everything comes together. On a conference call yesterday, he told Cinematical that he remains involved in New Jersey, where he currently serves on the board of the South Orange Performing Arts Center.

He plans to lens Open Hearts in Northern New Jersey, and enjoys working in the area where he can utilize actors and crews from New York. Braff was born and raised in Jersey, and filmed his directorial debut Garden State there three years ago.

While I wouldn't say Braff's filmmaking sensibilities are diametrically opposed to Kevin Smith's, they do target similar young audiences, but when you watch Garden State you'll come away with a much different view of Jersey than you get from Smith's films. At least no one was getting it on with a donkey in the version I saw.

It's great when a director can work outside of the Hollywood environment and manage to capture the essence of where they come from. Richard Linklater did a great job of it with Slacker, and Braff seems to have done equally as well with Garden State. Although it's hard for me to know for sure since I spent several years in college living in Austin, and have never been to New Jersey, but it feels more real than the Jersey you get from The Sopranos or Clerks II.

If you try your hand at writing, you'll hear the phrase, "write what you know" many times. Whoever coined this phrase probably had no idea how much it applied to directing as well.

So you've made an independent film. Worked your butt off filming it around your day job, maxed out your credit cards financing the damn thing, probably pissed off a few friends and relatives along the path of your filmmaking obsession. What to do with the finished product (besides submitting it to the usual round of film festivals, natch)? PBS's Independent Lens -- a "film festival in your living room" --  wants to see the fruits of your labor for their 2007-08 season. Although the series is primarily focused on documentaries, they'll also consider dramas, experimentals and shorts. You have until September to get your submissions in, so stop battling with your editor and music director and get those last-minute edits done, already.  Want more info? Go get it over here.

I lived in Louisiana until I was well in my twenties, and even reported on state politics there for a year, but I still had to look up the town of Robert on a map. The small town near Hammond has been known chiefly as a campground area ... until now. Louisiana Entertainment Associates announced on Tuesday plans to build a huge, elaborate movie studio complex in the area, which is equally convenient to New Orleans and Baton Rouge (about 50 miles away from either city).

The 150-acre Robert complex will include 250,000 square feet of sound stage and broadcast stage space, which will be completed before the other amenities: a film laboratory, a luxury hotel, condos, shops, and even a golf course. Alfredo Leone and Robert DeMilia, movie producers who founded Louisiana Entertainment Associates, want to finish the studio space by the end of the year. The rest of the ambitious project will take about three years to complete.

The idea is that this spiffy new studio complex will lure filmmakers from other states and even other countries to the Pelican State. I suppose I wasn't the only person to notice how well New Orleans-shot productions were faring at the box office, after all. Steven Seagal intends to film Prince of Pistols in New Orleans this year, but he may be too early to reap the benefits of the new studio complex. That is, assuming the complex is actually built. It seems that DeMilia and Danny Aiello united in 2002 to build a similar complex, Stapleton Studios, at Staten Island ... but arguments with New York City officials caused the plan to fail. Hopefully the complex in Robert will meet with better success.