Maverickshavealwayshadanedgy,rebelliousconnotation to them. Originallyreferredtounbrandedcattlethatstrayedfromtheherd,puttingtheirownershipindoubt. Fast forward 100 years later...and it is used to describe a personwhostraysfromanddoesnotfollowthethinkingofagroupheorshebelongsto,orwhorebelsagainstacceptedideasortoaherdmentality. "Maverick"thuscametogenerallymeananindividualisticandindependentthinker.
If you're wondering how to find like minded people to work with, here's a tip: "Leave the asshole at home".
Whether you're going to film school or following the Maverick MovieMaking program, you're not going to hit a home run the first time in the box, no matter what they tell you. Independent film making is all about learning from your mistakes (if you're following this program, your mistakes aren't going to cost you $20,000+ a pop) and having the know-it-all, jerk actor or crew member is only going to make your shoot miserable. Pick the people who have a passion for film, like you do, and go out and have fun making your movie. You're all going to learn more as you go along anyway.
I would rather use people who were fired up about making a movie and knew nothing, rather than a well seasoned guy who thinks you should kiss his ass. Any day of the week and twice one Sundays!
Write your script with the least amount of locations as possible and keep them close to home. If there are things that you must have, location wise, then by all means don't cut them, find a creative way to get what you need and add that production value.
We Independent filmmakers revel in the idea of being an
artist, including myself. In my opinion,
filmmaking is just as much of a creative art as painting, sculpting, being a
musician or any other craft that favors the wearing of a Mexican poncho and
Birkenstocks. But, we are the rare sort
whose trade is looked at more like a business than art. When you’re securing locations or funds you’re
representing that that business, your business.
As unfair as it may be (believe me, I would rather hang in my t-shirt
and tennis shoes all the time), we have look the part of a producer or risk not
being taken seriously. If you’re not
taken seriously, you won’t get very good support for anything.
When it comes to locations, there are several steps that you want to follow (from your script breakdown):
Find the location that fits what you wrote (initial scout).
Make an initial appointment by phone.
Pitch you and your movie in a face-to-face meeting.
Who- How many people will be at their facility.
What- What kinds of things you're going to be doing.
When- What date the company will be there.
How long- Shooting duration.
Something that may help with secure a location is to talk to the business or property owner about marketing opportunities in your movie (i.e. product placement or getting their logo in a scene of the movie) if that owner is a store or restaurant or something.
Once you commit to these items, DO NOT break the terms. Take care of the locations above all else!
Now you can do your Tech. Scout and get all the nuts and bolts worked out to save yourself some time on the day of the shoot. This will assure that you meet the terms that you agreed to in the first place.
Storyboarding is method of expressing your camera set ups and camera movement to others. If your shooting it yourself, then it's reference to the cast and crew about what you want the movie to look like. If you have a Director Of Photography (the guy who's running the camera's), the storyboards are a way for him to reference what you want and what's coming up without him having to wait for you to tell him. If they have an idea before hand, you'll save yourself some shooting time. When you don't have to take extra time to explain camera movement, then you're more likely to meet your schedule and let's face it, if you meet your schedule, you won't go over budget.
There are several very good ways to put together a comprehensive storyboard:
Drawing- If you can draw then you're ahead of the game a little. If you can't draw, find some way to express you vision on paper for others to follow.
Photographs- You can take the photos and then even plug them into your screenwriting or scheduling program.
Video (Blocking)- This is a good way to kill a few birds with one stone; you get an opportunity to work through the blocking (movement) with your cast, you have a video reference and you get a feel for the location and how your scene works in the movie.
So, you’ve got your script.
You’ve structured your short story around items that are easily
available. Now’s the time to jump into
planning your shoot or pre-production.
Pre-production is planning the execution of your movie and how you’re
going make it happen. You may be doing a
short film or a full-length feature and most likely you’re on a limited
budget. The only way that you’re going
to be able FINISH it and not spend more money than you wanted to and that is to
have done your diligence in pre-production.
It’s very easy to go over budget and run out of time if you’ve over
looked something in pre-production. It’s
easier to throw money at it to fix it when you’re in the heat of filming than
to take the time to find a creative way to fix it (time that you’re most likely
not going to have).
A script is basically a blueprint for your movie. In today's segment we go over the over the mechanics of writing a script.
Four Basic Items
Who your characters are...
What they do...
Where they go...
What they say...
-DON'T let the fact that you might not be comfortable with script writing stop you from getting out there and shooting the idea in your head.
STORY IS STILL KING! Don't let anyone ever tell you different! Dito Montiel wrote the script for “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints” on a Steno Pad (he
did all of his rewrites from scratch on the same Steno Pad).
Here are some options on scriptwriting software & homework "Save the Cat":
