Category: Filmmaking

Having worked pre-production on several microbudget projects ranging from short film to full feature movies, I have seen the full spectrum as it relates to casting. I can honestly say casting can make or break your film. Here are a few commandments I think every micro budget filmmaker should include in their casting process.

Give yourself ample time to audition.

As a rule of thumb, you should start your casting three to four months from the start of principle photography. In theory if you follow this you have two to three months to cast and thirty days to allow the actors to study their script.

For example, if you give yourself 90 days then your first 30 days will consist of posting and reviewing several hundred: head shots, reels (if any), and resumes. The next 30 days will be auditioning the top 10 percent and converting the 10 percent into your top three actors. This process is duplicated for each role. You take the top three actors and discuss them with your production team. You weigh the pros, cons, and potential scheduling conflicts before making a decision. Never rush this step. If you need to push the film date back, then push the film back. This is the one step you must get correct.

Audition multiple actors for each role.

This sounds like a no brainer but trust me I have cast roles after auditioning just one actor. I did it for my last feature and it worked out fine. I wish, however, that I auditioned more, even if it’s just for the sake fortifying your bet/gamble on the actor you choose. Another reason why you should audition several actors is in case of a recast. You will have to recast at some point in your film career. I have recast on every single film project I have ever produced but if you have three actors who you have auditioned and vetted it’s easier to simply pick the next actor on your list.

Don’t cast the look. Cast for talent.

Film is such a visual medium that it’s easy for us to get caught up on how actors look. As a producer you get wrapped up with who you envision playing the role. I can’t tell you how many times I wrote a screenplay for Denzel Washington, Michael Ealy, or Idris Elba while knowing I couldn’t cast them. Or wrote screenplays with those actors in mind. When it is time to cast, I would look at every actor through my Denzel Washington casting glasses and be utterly surprised when none of these actors hit the unrealistic marks I had in my head.

You can also get caught up with how actors look on camera and forget about their acting abilities. Focus on whether or not the actor has range. Does the actor have craft? These are the important aspects every producer and director should pay attention to.

Make sure the Actor can take Direction.

Good actors want direction from directors. They crave this. They see this direction as a way to gauge performances and keep from over overacting. In casting it is slightly different. You want to know if the actor can give different performances when given notes (suggestions) or adjustments from the director. You also want to know if they are willing to take notes from the director on the set. You can see how this could be a huge problem and a guaranteed showstopper to your film. You would not hire someone if they could not perform work related task. Actors taking direction is a work-related function, so be certain.

As always be inspired be encouraged and be collaborative.

Saki Bomb

So many new filmmakers limit themselves to scenes where they plop the actors down across from one another. They set the camera on a tripod and they yell, ‘action’. The actors run their dialogue and that is pretty much it. This would not be a big problem, if it were not for the entire movie being full of talking heads. The movie resembles more of a documentary than a narrative feature. Blocking and camera techniques should be used to help tell the story and maximize performances. Blocking can save your film from boredom.

Go Handheld. Go handheld, but only if the movie calls for it.  There is something that screams cinematic when you go handheld. Micro movements add to the scene’s cinematic signature and it’s a natural energy that seems to breathe life into the scene. There is also a certain familiarity and intimacy with handheld films. Check out some of my favorites – The Blair Witch Project, City of God, Children of Men, and Open Water.

Tracking Shot. Tracking shots are when the camera moves and follows the actors through the real life of the movie. They are generally long film takes but not always. A tracking shot can be a simple shot following the actor from point A to point B. They can also be more in depth and complicated.  Check out, GoodFellas (1990) and The Shining (1980). In GoodFellas, the camera follows Henry Hill and his date Karen Friedman through the back of the Copacabana. In this complicated sequence we are introduced the criminal underworld and bear witness to the power and respect Hill has. In The Shining the camera follows a boy on a tricycle throughout the eerie empty hallways of the massive hotel. This is an iconic shot as the audience follows a child as he explores the hotel and his creepy interaction with the supernatural. Tracking shots can be a game changer in your film project.

Give your actors chores. If the scene takes place in the kitchen why not give one actor the blocking where they: wash dishes, make coffee, make dinner, or sweep the floor. The other actor enters, and the dialogue begins. In my experience the actor almost always gives a more believable performance if they have a playable action. Visually it’s more interesting when there is movement in the scene. You can decide if the actor continues the chore while running dialogue or stops when the dialogue continues. Or do the chores intermittently by stopping on certain lines and continuing other lines.

High Status/Low status. If one character is an employer, parent, or teacher and the other is an employee, child, or student the blocking should reflect that in the scene. It is normal for people to act or talk to authority figures in a particular manner. Why not show that in your movie? Mannerism and body language are tools directors and actors can use. If a scene opens on an employer and employee and the employer sits and puts his feet on the desk, the employer is at a high status and employee is at a low status.  Let’s take this same scene and have the employee put his feet on the desk thereby reversing the statuses. If you can show how the status changes between the two characters as the film progresses, then you have a more compelling film. You have also showed the arc of both characters. We will explore character arcs in the next blog post.

These are not one size fit all solutions for your production but rather suggestions that can add some color to an uninspired film production. It can also lead you to your own discoveries or blocking and camera techniques.

As always be inspired, be encouraged, and be collaborative.

Saki Bomb

When it comes to filmmaking is it better to be a master aka specialist or jack of all trades? Throughout the years I have heard both arguments. I see the value in taking either path. Before starting your filmmaking career or expanding it, here are a few things you should consider.

So, for clarification as to what a specialist is, I mean you have one skill in the area of filmmaking, and it is your only or main area of expertise. For example, if you are a screenwriter or a director then you do this solely. If you are a screenwriter then you double down on this.

Now, I am not referring to the screenwriter who wrote a pilot and/or a short. I am talking about a screenwriter who sacrifices their time and resources studying the craft. You go to workshops or take screenwriting courses at USC in Los Angeles. You consume countless how-to books and read screenplays of your favorite movies daily. When you aren’t doing this, you are entering into screenwriting festivals trying to test your metal against other upcoming screenwriters. Some are actively seeking representation. This is how you grow and develop. This takes time. So, if you aren’t this invested or committed, it’s hard to be considered a “specialist”. People who devote this type of time rarely have room to do anything else because it’ s all consuming.

Jacks are peculiar filmmakers. They are Jacks either by necessity, interest, or both. The most common are by necessity. They bought the how-to books on screenwriting. They purchased the DVDs and read screenplays from their favorite movies and screenwriters. Their movie heroes are often writer/directors. Their screenplays may not have made the first or second round in any film festivals. After years of going through this and finally realizing no one will make their movie rather than lose hope they begin learning other aspects of filmmaking. They begin researching and studying cinematography and directing, which leads them down another rabbit hole called producing and editing. This takes years because the information is limitless. Somewhere in all this they are able to squeeze out a film or two.

Where do you fit it? Which do you lean more towards: Jacks or Masters?

I have done both but for the sake of this blog I would like to explore the cons to being a Jack or Master.

What are the Cons?

Master Cons:

• You are a one trick pony.
• You have to work within the system to make movies.
• If you don’t know how to perform other functions of filmmaking you will have to pay for services, barter, or ask for favors.
• Having no knowledge of the other functions may leave you at a disadvantage when it comes to negotiating rates or knowing how things work.
• Having no knowledge of the other functions may leave you at a disadvantage when it comes discusses other aspects or the creative process.
• You will have to spend more money overall to shoot every single film but you will have quality product.

Jack Cons:

• You will be spread thin.
• Let’s face it, there are only 24 hours in a day and there is only so much you can learn, so you may retain enough from every aspect of filmmaking to perform certain functions.
• Most of your time will be spent either learning, researching, or doing.
• Quality will be sacrificed in some areas and your product will reflect this.
• Filmmaking will become less collaborative because as you learn you will reach out to fellow filmmakers less and less.
• Turnaround from project to project will be lengthy and laborious.

If you are enamored with the Hollywood machine or wish to work in a system that is supported, then you are more likely to gravitate toward the master. It is appealing with the allure of money, red carpets, and A-listers. Not just that, it’s also the way a Hollywood movie makes us feel. We all have a love affair with movies that lead us to want to create them.

I chose the blue pill.

I did not want to wait on the Hollywood system to answer my call. I got tired of not getting into film festivals. I wanted to make movies by any means necessary. So, I did just that.  Remembering there are no wrongs to filmmaking. Everyone is on a different path. Steven Spielberg’s path is no more relevant and honorable than Kevin Smith or Robert Rodriguez.

If you are starting out your filmmaking journey, try to consider the path that offers least resistance. Consider your strengths, weaknesses, time, and resources. At the end of the day your path will have more to do with your personality, sensibility, and creativity than anything else. Above all remember filmmaking is hard work and no one gets a pass on that.

Saki Bomb

Movies themes have always been the most difficult concept for me to grasp. The difficulty lies in the subjective nature and perception of the audience. Movies can sometimes have two or three themes as well and couple that with theme being extremely subjective. So, the theme the screenwriter has for the film may not be the one the audience sees.

Think of a theme as a film’s dominant thought and unifying idea. It can be summed up in one word or a phrase. It usually ‘evokes a universal human experience’. Every movie has a theme whether the screenwriter and filmmaker fail to identify them or intentionally created them. They are the embedded in the story’s DNA.

What is theme?

Examples include:

• Money is root of evil
• Absolute power corrupts absolutely
• Love conquers All

Themes to a lesser existent are safeguards for the crew and cast. It’s important that everyone is making the same movie. The ability to explain in a word or universally understandable phrase is paramount. So, if your movie idea is “money is the root of evil” then can you see how the set designer, set props, wardrobe, lighting, film composition, sound, music, etc. all need to be resonating this theme in some shape or form. Assuming the storyline and dialogue are compelling, you would have the makings of a great film.

Themes outline the world in which the story will take place. Like glasses they bring what’s important into focus while effecting the character’s motivation and storyline.

While making my first feature, Rule of 3rds this past November 2021, I would often bring up the theme to remind the actors notes/keys to hit in different scenes as we moved from location to location. Notes or keys are terms I use help motivate actor choices while performing. To a lesser degree I wanted to speak to actor’s musical sensibilities by referring to notes (musical) they should be in while in a film sequence or scene.

The subjects of my movie were Abandonment/Second chances/Lost loves. On many levels the principals characters were grappling with all these themes. If I were narrow it down to one phrase it would be – ‘second chances at love are rare’. I had three principal actors and all were dealing with the themes vastly different one another. If you follow Save the Cat, and I do, characters will spell out the theme for the main characters to heed in the first ten minutes of the movie, but not always.

According to the author of Save The Cat, Blake Synder (every serious filmmaker should own a copy) he has this to say:

“Theme Stated (happens during the Set-up) – What your story is about, the message, the truth. Usually, it is spoken to the main character or in their presence, but they don’t Understand the truth… Not until they have some personal experience in context to support it.”

Save The Cat – Beat Sheet.

The most obvious example is Spider Man from 2002 – ‘with great power comes great responsibility’. Uncle Ben, played by actor Cliff Robertson, says this very phrase to Peter Parker/Spider Man and he shrugs the advice off. The theme carries more weight later in the movie as Spider Man grows in maturity. The theme was so popular and drilled home, other movies would use it as a running joke or bit.

The next time you watch a movie try and figure out what the theme is. Try to determine how the directors and actors use that theme throughout every scene and sequence. Doing this will help you develop your own skills and usage of theme in your projects.

Saki Bomb