Interview with Film Editor Cara Silverman the Sundance-Nominated
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March 2009 www.StudentFilmmakers.com The #1 Educational Resource for Film and Video Makers US$5.95 Interview with Film Editor Cara Silverman The Sundance-Nominated FilmThe Greatest Avoid Fried Lighting Circuits On The Set Beetle Queen Conquers Tokyo Doc Defies Labels 17 Fast Tips for Creating Realistic Dialogue How to Be Your Own Art Director DIY-Style The New Medium in Capturing Sound 3D Prosthetic Bondo Transfers Publisher’s Desk These are tough economic times. However, Table of Contents March 2009 we are learning, we are growing, and what is The # 1 Educational Resource for Film and Video Makers important is that these challenging times Cinematography are going to sharpen us and make us better Publisher / Editor-in-Chief Kim Edward Welch Senior Editor Jody Michelle Solis 4 Fried Lighting Circuits On The Set professionals. We encourage you to use our When Your Genny Fails, and Blowing Granny’s Fuse Box is Not magazine and our website resources to this Staff Editors David Kaminski an Option... end. Carl Filoreto by Jack Anderson Fred Ginsburg C.A.S. Ph.D. MBKS It is truly amazing to see the new film and video makers Contributing Writers Documentary who are joining the filmmakers network online at networking. Thomas Ackerman, ASC, Jack Anderson, John Badham, Adam Biddle, 8 First-Time Director Jessica Oreck’s Debut Documentary studentfilmmakers.com each day. We want to encourage those of you Kevin Burke, Julia Camenisch, Steve Carlson, Chris Cavallari, “Beetle Queen Conquers Tokyo” Defies Labels who are participating in our online forums and online community. We Michael Corbett, Vanessa Daniels, Carsten Dau, Todd Debreceni, by David Kaminski Jeff Deel, Christina DeHaven, Dana Dorrity, Pamela Douglas, enjoy watching your films and videos, reading your posts, and enjoy David E. Elkins, S.O.C., Scott Essman, Bryant Falk, Jon Firestone, listening to your music reels. We are happy to see the global community Brian Flees, Jacqueline B. Frost, Daniel Gaucher, Leonard Guercio, Screenwriting working together. If you have not already done so, sign up today at John Hart, David K. Irving, Catherine Ann Jones, Michael Karp, S.O.C., 16 17 Fast Tips for Creating Realistic Dialogue Sam Kauffmann, Christopher Keane, Tamar Kummel, Richard La Motte, 8 networking.studentfilmmakers.com and at www.studentfilmmakers. by Sherri Sheridan Adam Matalon, Matthew Marshall, M. David Mullen, ASC, Stacey Parks, com/bb. Mark Sawicki, Myrl A. Schreibman, Dr. Linda Seger, Ira Tiffen, Saro Varjabedian, William F. Vartorella, Ph.D., C.B.C., Kevin Zanit Pre-Production Please join me in welcoming new staff editors, David Kaminski, Carl 18 How to Be Your Own Art Director, DIY-Style Media Art Director Lien-Chen Lin Filoreto, and Fred Ginsburg. by John Hart David Kaminski has been a regular writer for StudentFilmmakers Close-Up since May 2008. For many years, David has taught in both high school 20 Collaboration in Post Production Can Take in Many Forms and college classrooms, “experiencing the evolution from chalk, to the Interview with Film Editor Extraordinaire Cara Silverman Publisher / Editor-in-Chief Kim Edward Welch by Kim E. Welch floppy disk, to HD”. His students’ videos have won more than 50 awards Media Art Director Lien-Chen Lin and have screened more than 200 times nationally and internationally, Props & FX Makeup earning five Telly Awards (1 Silver; 4 bronze); Student Emmys (4 Advertising & Sponsorship Opportunities: Kim E. Welch 212.255.5458 26 3D Prosthetic ‘Bondo’ Transfers by Todd Debreceni regional); and others. David’s area of expertise is HD production. 20 Jody Solis 212.255.5454 Music & Sound Carl Filoreto has been a regular writer for StudentFilmmakers Online/Print Classifieds, Global Marketplace: 24 The New Medium in Capturing Sound by Bryant Falk since July 2007. A twenty five year veteran of the television business http://www.studentfilmmakers.com/contact.shtml and long time DP, Carl has lensed shows and segments for clients StudentFilmmakers.com Online Store: such as NBC News, Dateline NBC, the Travel channel, Food Network, https://www.studentfilmmakers.com/store/ On Campus Starz Entertainment, and many corporations, both large and small. 28 Art Center College of Design’s Film Program Emphasizes the Contact StudentFilmmakers Carl has won seven regional Emmy awards, numerous national and http://www.studentfilmmakers.com/contact.shtml Entrepreneurial Approach to Filmmaking regional National Press Photographers awards, and multiple awards 212.255.5454 (US and International) 212.255.7204 (Fax) from Colorado Ski Country and the National Snowsports Journalists 30 Call for Entries Association. Subscriptions: U.S., $32.13/year; Canada, Mexico $52.13/year, and all other foreign 30 Products and Services countries, $72.13/year. Dr. Fred Ginsburg, C.A.S., Ph.D. has been a regular writer for Go to https://www.studentfilmmakers.com/store StudentFilmmakers since September 2006. A highly experienced 34 Filmmakers Networking production sound mixer with over 20 years experience in Hollywood For subscription, mailing address change and distribution inquiries, 34 This Month’s Featured Networkers filmmaking, Fred has recorded production dialogue on motion go to http://www.studentfilmmakers.com/contact.shtml pictures, episodic television, TV commercials, corporate, government, StudentFilmmakers, established in 2006, is published monthly in New and music videos. York by StudentFilmmakers.com. Opinions are solely those of the On the Cover authors. Letters, article queries, photos, movie stills, film submissions, Camera crew films Zoe Kravitz (who plays Ashley) and Johnny I hope you enjoy this issue and gain insight and inpiration from it. and unsolicited manuscripts welcome, but returned only with SASE. Simmons (who plays Ryan Brewer) for a scene in “The Greatest.” Submissions are subject to editing for style, content, and to exclusive Photo courtesy of Silverwood Films. rights provisions in this publication. Advertising: Rate card upon request. Truly, Copyright 2009 StudentFilmmakers.com (All rights reserved.) Kim E. Welch Printed in the USA. Postmaster: Send address change to Publisher / Editor-in-Chief StudentFilmmakers, 1133 Broadway, Suite # 1503, New York, NY 10010. 35 2 studentfilmmakers March 2009 March 2009 studentfilmmakers 3 Cinematography quickest route to Fried Lighting Circuits on the Set high-quality HD production. When Your Genny Fails, and Blowing Granny’s Fuse Box is Not an Option... by Jack Anderson One great thing about working as But her house was about a The action was to take place in a Director of Photography is that you hundred years old, and the wiring was the kitchen. My plan was to light the never know where the job will take commensurate with its age. Of course, kitchen as a natural interior using you. I’ve been in the Bahamas – not too to have enough electrical power for even tungsten lamps and using film balanced shabby – and in the Valley of Fire in the smallest movie lamps, I ordered a for 3200ºK; I would let the bluish summer (just what it sounds like). generator. I didn’t want to take any outdoors stay blue to keep the sober, chance of faulty wiring burning down almost sad intent of the script. Then I One of my completely unexpected jobs the house. planted an uncorrected HMI (at around landed me in Grand Rapids, Michigan, 6000ºK) outside, shooting through the shooting for a unique film program at None of the students had ever window to blow out some of the action. a university. Whoever designed the used a genny (yes, that’s what we By overexposing the light from the course had the sense to know that you call generators), and I’m a DP, not an HMI, I could get a stylized look for the don’t learn filmmaking out of books. You electrician. But we found a terrific scene; the HMI light would seem like an learn by doing, by getting your hands equipment house in Grand Rapids, they extreme accidental splash of sunlight, dirty, and by getting yelled at. Usually had everything we needed, and taught us even though the fields seen through the AG-HMC150 AVCCAM by me. So in the course, we make a real all how to set up and use the genny. With window would be only slightly bright, as s MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 High Profi le compression movie, a fully professional production luck, nobody would be electrocuted. though the sun was attacking the boy. s Records in 1080/60i, 30p, 24p & 720/60p, 30p, 24p with students acting as the crew. Our first day on the set found us s Solid-state reliability and workfl ow Since so many of the scenes with the It’s a wonderful chance for students in the sweet old lady’s house, doing a s Easy HD playback in affordable consumer devices grown son took place at night, I decided to work with professionals – producer, flashback scene in which a man beats s 3-year warranty (upon registration) that the flashbacks with his younger self director, DP, writer, actors, editor, and up his young son. Of course, there (all set during the day) should have an post. They get course credit, and they were first-day nerves all around, and overbright element to separate the look learn the kind of hands-on knowledge of course, we had a kid on set. A good of the past from the present. I also used that you can find only on the set. kid, but still: you never want to work HD as easy as your digital camera. my favorite diffusion: an optical flat with kids or animals. They tend to The script for the first film I shot with a thin coating of Vaseline, rubbed Panasonic’s next-generation AVCCAM camcorder, the AG-HMC150, provides you an affordable, state-of-the-art course to high-quality HD production.