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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

To a buy a RED or not...

LK,

Which film school did you drop out of? How many semesters or terms did you complete before making this decision? Were you getting a degree out of this program?

Go back and finish your education. Reds will come and go, money will come and go.. your education lasts forever.

/if your really set on spending that 25k and dropping out, I wouldn't spend it on a camera if i was you. Id spend it on funding a few actual projects. If you spend all that money on a RED, how the fuck are you going to fund your projects? Good projects cost money.. No matter how you cut it. You might need to pay actors (Don't get shit average looking actors/actresses, for the love of god... be discerning about your on screen talent more than your DP, your camera, anything else.)..

Put aside a GOOD portion of that money, for promotion. Promotion and PR is the key to your success. A project with a provocative subject matter tied in with a good PR strategy + you tube will get you noticed (For a short video project I promoted using this formula I was able to get the director on Oprah, every news network, making it one of the most downloaded videos on the internet..shot on HDV). Find a good PR agent or someone to help put the word out about your film... Once you get noticed and if your work is really good, repeat the process again.. Its hard because this will probably be your first film, and first projects are never the best (prove us wrong..) Again, this is just one suggestion as to how to go about things, and I hope more experienced users here will shed more light.. In the film business, there are no set ways to success... (Infact it would be best if you go about things in the 'non set ways')

Whatever you do.. update us regularly as I'm keen to see where you go with this..

Another thing, there is some stellar talent on these boards, annoy them and use them.
 
Seems like your DP should be the one buying Red.

How does buying a Red camera vs another camera DIRECTLY AND SPECIFICALLY build your "talents as a director"?
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I do want to focus on director a little more than cinematography at the moment, but I would still like to shoot on other projects.

You might need to pay actors (Don't get shit average looking actors/actresses, for the love of god... be discerning about your on screen talent more than your DP, your camera, anything else.)..
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Garbage actors are not in the equation for this project. That is ultimately the worst. I appreciate everyone's comments and I have decided not to purchase the camera. I will do my best to make this film come out as good as possible and take it from there. I might still shoot with the RED or I might save some more money and use my equipment instead. Thanks.
 
I think that is a good choice not to buy a RED. You want to be a director, so you want to tell stories and should be focused on all aspects of the story rather than what camera you should be shooting on. Its the story that is going to get you noticed as a director, not the quality of a camera you shot a story with. You may get on a few shoots because of the camera, but you as a story teller is going to get you noticed. If you are watching a movie and its a good story, you don't notice the quality of video after the first few minutes, you are genuinely intrigued by story and its message being told. RED is an AWESOME camera don't get me wrong, but since you want to be a director, I don't think it is a wise investment for you to spend that much on a camera where you can still tell a story on the set up you already have.
 
Yeah dude save the money to *live on.* Nothing like having a $25,000 brick sitting on your folk's living room carpet while you eat Smack Ramen. :help: Get a job that will give you more production experience, shoot your short with other people's gear and get writing on your next script- hopefully a feature which is the only way you'll ever make any money back. 4K is great and all but just having something recorded in 4K is not going to impress anyone outside of these boards.

Making any sort of headway in the movie business is incredibly hard, expensive and ultimately thankless. And that's if you make it. :w00t: Here's my quick peek at all the possible steps you need to be prepared to take just to get a movie distributed to give you an idea:

http://www.callboxlive.com/resources/?p=13

-Noah
 
NoahK said:
Yeah dude save the money to *live on.* Nothing like having a $25,000 brick sitting on your folk's living room carpet while you eat Smack Ramen. :help: Get a job that will give you more production experience, shoot your short with other people's gear and get writing on your next script- hopefully a feature which is the only way you'll ever make any money back. 4K is great and all but just having something recorded in 4K is not going to impress anyone outside of these boards.

Making any sort of headway in the movie business is incredibly hard, expensive and ultimately thankless. And that's if you make it. :w00t: Here's my quick peek at all the possible steps you need to be prepared to take just to get a movie distributed to give you an idea:

http://www.callboxlive.com/resources/?p=13

-Noah
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Noah, withoutabox is quite a cool concept. Do submissions ever find their way to potential distributors through this?
 
acehole said:
Noah, withoutabox is quite a cool concept. Do submissions ever find their way to potential distributors through this?
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The focus at Withoutabox is on submitting to film festivals. But there's also a lot of distribution success stories that come down the pipe. Personally I've found the best success self-distributing. With the international reach of the internet, ease of doing your own viral marketing and the massive, dishonest chunk of your a$$ most distributors take makes self-distribution a better shot at making some of your money back. Unless of course you sell really big to HBO, Showtime etc. But that's the rare luck.

Noah
 
lkd85 said:
I do want to focus on director a little more than cinematography at the moment, but I would still like to shoot on other projects.
Click to expand...

Alright...buy an HV20 and learn to tell a story. Having a Red won't do squat for being a good director. Oh yeah, go back to school too cause there is a lot of things you can learn in school that you can't find in books when it comes to directing. Thats why I stay far away from direction (even though I do a version of it all the time in portrait photography, but I think its much more complex with cinema).
 
Go back and finish your education.

Go back and finish your education.

This is GREAT ADVICE. Go back and finish your education. Reds will come and go, money will come and go.. your education lasts forever.
I been in the motion picture business 40 years now and have seen all the changes and their be many more to come. Don't be stupid get a education!!!

Bob
 
Being on set alone is like watching porno.

You are not having sex.

Nothing beat education and then real world experience.

Stay in school and get some more real world work experience at the same time.

Don't invest in hardwares yet.

Just going to waste your money.

TEk
 
Live first, then learn to write. School can help you there. Buy the computer, RENT the camera. Live off the money you earn at a job while you write. Success is built on relationships, make some strategic ones. Buy a Scarlet when it comes out.
 
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