hi I'm sorry so Declan in this video
I'll show you how to make a short film
on a low budget a good short film okay
the reason I'm making this video is
because everyone has to start somewhere
and most wallets are empty so what it's
been done before is heat okay we do
somebody somewhere is making a movie
right now if you want seven powerful
tips in making a short film you can be
proud of then watch this video tip
number one stop making excuses some
people look at an empty wallet and say
oh that's a problem
others say so what that's one less
problem I have to worry about the people
I see fail the most in life are those
who are great at finding reasons not to
do something I don't have a camera I
don't know anybody I don't have ten but
four to two it's ridiculous no what you
don't have is a spine you've been
complaining all your life and you're an
expert at it and you're gonna keep doing
it while the other guy or gal makes
their movie I have a great tip for you
stop watching - everyone else hello
sorry I had to take out the trash first
tip number two is for you it's the
secret weapon because I know you mean
business tip number two write stories
about the people you know a lot of
filmmakers write scripts that take place
in their rooms because that's all they
have I'm talking about writing about
people you know it'll make your short
film look real if you don't know
anything about firefighters for example
but your short film is about a
firefighter somehow trapped in your room
it's gonna come out fake but let's say
you know the postman very well and I've
chatted with him know everything about
him so why not write a story with the
postman trapped in your room if you
don't know a postman make it a landlord
will you be able to tell a story better
if the character is somebody you
actually know you don't have to change
the genre if hores your thing or comedy
or whatever pick characters who you know
and place them in those situations don't
write characters that you've never met
or know personally Kurosawa made samurai
movies Spielberg made and still makes
films for kids and Scorsese made movies
about Robert DeNiro and Joe Pesci
killing people - what it is
Tarantino makes movies about Psychopaths
cracking jokes before and after killing
people they write about things they know
-
number three don't make you film in 4k
or 8k many oscar-winning films are shot
and projected in 2k that's
HD for all practical purposes 1080p if
you're not convinced here's how it opens
some magical doors you can buy a cheaper
camera with better image quality and get
higher frame rates in 1080p you don't
need the sharpest lenses you can edit
great and finish on a cheap computer
system maybe even a laptop you can make
focus mistakes and it's not so evident
in 1080p neither is bad makeup problems
in costumes or hair all the things that
make low budget look worse are hidden in
1080p which is the exact same reason
major Hollywood films are finished in
1080p they might shoot in 4k maybe
Netflix wants 4k but your short film
will be just as great in 1080p same goes
for the audio as well
don't overcomplicate audio with more
characters overlapping dialog
unnecessary sound effects and complex
music a good simple stereo mix is better
than a bad 5.1 mix it's not a compromise
you're just deciding to eat a fresh
Apple instead of a rotten apple pie I
know it's hard for most guys watching
this I know it's tantamount to losing
your manhood let me tell you it's not a
few years from now you'll understand
shoot in 1080p and breathe easier now
and in the future tip number 4 learn the
right process taking steps in the wrong
order waste a lot of time and money the
best way to take down a monster is not
by approaching it head-on it's not from
the front but from the side download my
blueprint about making a movie on a low
budget I'll put a link to it below I've
laid out the steps I would take to make
a low-budget film in the order that I
feel is the best strategy for all
filmmakers on a little budget I know you
might have read some books good for you
you might have been in film school or
have read magazines or Wikipedia on how
films should be made that's great at
least it shows you're proactive but
these techniques don't work for
low-budget films and even less so for
zero budget films
you'd be better off watching MacGyver
okay maybe you're too young to know who
MacGyver is how about Jackie Chan he's
still making movies and using things all
round and to kick ass look around you
what you see is what'll be in your movie
the location is the props and things you
have access to
they are your assets do what Robert
Rodriguez did with El Mariachi don't
feel restricted by it think of it as a
game you have to make it work somehow to
start focusing on the how failing is
part of the process to get those gears
turning in your head
download my blueprint so you have a
starting point number five this is my
most powerful tip this is Jedi Master
level ready tip number five is make the
world small what do I mean by that
let me explain with an analogy how do
you make a mouse roar like a lion pause
this video for a second think about it
don't say it's impossible don't be like
those complaining turds there is an
answer there's always an answer here it
is
make the room smaller and bring the
walls in close enough to make the squeak
reverberate when you make the world
small and bring in the walls a squeak
becomes a war
even a mouse can terrify you make the
world small in your movie and outside
your movie everything become small
locations are smaller number of actors
and crew members are smaller the number
of days you should are less the number
of scenes are lesser you shoot a lesser
shots lesser lights you get the idea the
world outside your movie gets smaller as
well you find locations in your town or
village you talk only to your friends
family and people in your locality you
look for crew and cast members nearby
you don't travel far and most
importantly you set your sights to only
what you can see don't make travel plans
for the moon when you don't have money
for a bus ticket to go down the block in
the age of the internet you think it's a
crazy idea to restrict yourself but it's
not you're just preparing to roar like a
lion even if you live in a town or
village with just a thousand people by
involving everyone in your film you're
gonna get stuff done for free or peanuts
and they'll gladly pay you to watch your
film at the end just put up a projector
or find a projection room and show your
film to everyone who already knows about
your film and it probably contributed
somehow to your film charge them
something nominal and have some cash for
your next film you can only do this with
people you know and who know you most
filmmakers ignore the people closest to
them and then complain when strangers
don't care
grow up tip number 6 don't buy a camera
it's a single dumbest mistake you can
make there might be scenarios where the
camera rental works out to be more than
the purchase but in that case you can
still save money by finding a Scimitar
for who owns a camera let's face it
humans are primed to buy stuff sometimes
for no damn reason it's easy to buy a
camera but doesn't take you any closer
to making your movie just like buying a
race car doesn't take you anywhere near
winning a race or even be able to race
I've seen countless examples of
filmmakers who won't pay peanuts to a
scimitar refer with a camera but somehow
insist on buying their own camera I've
done it myself I'm sorry to say and I
know how powerful the impulse is I also
know I was wrong and dumb and I hope
hearing it for me makes a difference I
made my first short film with a digital
8 camera it was an embarrassment but
today about 18 years later it doesn't
really matter what I remember most are
the things
I learned the friends I made and the
fact that I got it done on a zero budget
except for lunch and the auto rickshaw
fare I was able to do this because of
tip number seven we put together the
a-team now not the Avengers these guys a
bunch of misfits who somehow complete
each other and make everything seem fun
The Avengers bunch of egos who can't
work together and fail to save the world
time travel isn't valid by the way it's
the worst ex machina you can think of
why not go even further back and just
kill themselves now back to the a-team
you have to motivate them you have to
take charge and you have to believe in
yourself and all this happens in your
head and there's sharing excitement is
infectious it works show people a
mountain peak and motivate them to climb
with you
I didn't say ask you don't ask them you
don't tell them you motivate them you
don't have to pretend you know the way
all you have to promise is fun you keep
the fun coming everything else will take
care of itself don't believe me speak to
other filmmakers who have made their
short films and feature films there are
millions all around the world ask them
what they miss the most
was it the camera or the technicalities
I can speak for myself what I miss most
about all the work I've done over the
last two decades is the experience of
doing it the fun if it gave me the
option of going back in time to shoot
the same projects with the same crap
cameras and money I'd do it in a
heartbeat because today I can make a bad
camera look good it's not as important
that I thought it was I have to become
better and it took me about two decades
to learn always remember to have fun
make it the most important thing on your
list pronto
how do you go about doing it tweet your
short film like an event like a night
out with your new friends it's not
business it's strictly pleasure and
that's obvious to everyone you'll be
amazed how that attitude changes
everything and here's a bonus tape if
you can't motivate others or even get
out of bed or finish a script and
filmmaking is probably going to be hard
for you you might get there but only
after you
first that won't happen by itself
watching movies does not make you a
filmmaker makes you the audience
studying and practicing filmmaking makes
you a filmmaker even if there's nothing
to do spend your time learning studying
practicing and engaging in the art and
craft of making movies if you're
passionate but are not a good talker beg
a friend to be part of your 18 they
might not care about your film but they
care about you
filmmaking is painful and that friend is
the glue that will keep your ragged band
together even when it hits the fan so no
money to make your film be thankful
because that's one less problem you have
to worry about if you liked this video
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