Should I Go To a Famous Film School?
I was lucky enough to get admitted to a famous film school (graduate program) and stick around long enough to get an MFA degree. It was a three-year program that stretched into five years for reasons...
View ArticleBreaking the Bank: Film School Tuition 2007-8 and How To Beat It
Egads! Film school costs are up again, costing as much as the average American's take-home salary for a whole year. The numbers for a top west-coast and a top east-coast film program:New York...
View ArticleWriter/Director Kevin Smith Discusses Working in Hollywood
A very funny discussion about working with Jon Peters, writing drafts of the new SUPERMAN movie, and dealing with film director Tim Burton.
View ArticleHow To Download YouTube Videos To Your Computer
When it comes to building your free film school library, you may have been scratching your head as to how to download the videos from YouTube. There are some classic clips and famous scenes that are...
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Free Film School Class: Hitchcock 101
For the beginning filmmaker or the seasoned professional, there is one film course that is mandatory. It's as fun as it is educational. It's as visual as it is intellectual. It's arty, it's commercial,...
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Cinematography - How to Light a Scene, Part 1
There are numerous styles of lighting, and all depend upon the look and emotional feel of the scene you are presenting. I could go on about high key and low key lighting, but this website is about...
View ArticleSpecial Makeup Effects: Realistic Gunshot Effect Without Explosive Charge
On the indie film front, there is often call for cheap bullet effects. One of the easiest methods for for firing a gun is to do it in post, which is what most of the studios are doing as well....
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Build Your Own "Steadycam" for $14
The Steadicam is a device that smooths out tracking shots when you don't have time to use a dolly, or you want to do something that a dolly could never do, like follow a character up a flight of...
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How To Make Fake Blood
You can buy fake blood online or in the makeup or Halloween shops you see around town (like the numerous ones here in Hollywood), but it will cost you $8 per pint and up. Don't do it!There are dozens...
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Top Film Schools
In the past decade, numerous film schools have popped up all over the world, some with dubious intentions. A common question arises as to which ones are the best. There are the "Big Four", which are...
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CLOVERFIELD Spoilers - The Marketing Tease
CLOVERFIELD is the title of the exciting new film from producer J. J. Abrams (LOST, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 3). Abrams and company has done an incredible marketing job on this film, and indie filmmakers...
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How To Color Correct Your Movie
After the shooting is done, the editing is finalized, you need to pat yourself on the back. This is a major accomplishment, since many would-be filmmakers never finish the editing process. They watch...
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Where To Sell Your Scripts and Screenplays
You've finished a script, and you want to sell it. Time to market it.If you aren't interested in producing/directing your own scripts, there are some websites where you can add your script to a...
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$70 Zombie Movie Gets Distribution
For those who didn't hear this news back in May, I thought it was definitely worth mentioning here where we talk about making independent films and doing them on our own dime. Mark Price shot a...
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How To Write A Blockbuster Movie
The biggest question of all, when it comes to making your own film, is how do I write a movie? This may seem an overly simplified question, but whatever idea or story you are working on, this question...
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$30 Film School
This 528 page book espouses the same philosophy that this website is founded upon. It offers an alternative to spending tens of thousands of dollars in film studies and goes straight for the inspired...
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How To Make Money With Your Video Camera
These are tough times, as we all know, and it can seem daunting to go out and find work using your skills as a videographer. I'm always reading the business trades and grabbing little tidbits here and...
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Final Cut Pro: How to Fix Media Offline Errors
I was at a fellow filmmakers home today and we had shot several days worth of footage.She did the sometimes risky venture of shooting a role of tape, downloading it to a hard drive, then erasing the...
View ArticleDefriended Song (Video) shot with Canon 5D
This is a new video I created with the Canon 5D Mark II. I was really impressed with the results, even with the very simple shot set-ups. Editing on Final Cut Pro X was completely different than...
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