He made Down Terrace in 8 days on a budget of 8000 dollars, most of that going for camera rental and Red Bull. Now, a few years later, he directed High-Rise and is currently working on Free Fire (produced by Scorsese).
What are you guys working on? Advice? Rants? Questions? Anything? Discuss.
>>69079059
Bump
Trailer for Down Terrace:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6gaBc-O_4A
Two making of articles where Wheatley explains how he made the film:
http://www.standard.co.uk/goingout/film/ben-wheatleys-no-budget-film-school-6437979.html
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/oct/15/entertainment/la-et-ben-wheatley-20101015
>>69079059
It helped that Ben constant;y filmed stuff with his friends and uploaded that shit to his website.
And he's done Free Fire now, so hopefully that means he'll move on to that Wages of Fear remake with his same old pals.
What am I working on? Writing mostly. Being lazy and depressed. Do plan on potentially filming something this late summer. Possibly a short.
>>69079059
I'm working on stopping being a 30 year old alcoholic loser who wastes all his free time. Not working hard enough though. I have ideas and do nothing with them. I feel like the last lingering thread of my dream of being a film maker is about to snap.
Gonna try working on an 80's-style grindhouse-ish flick.
I'm trying to work out technical details early on. How can I get lighting like this? (Gonna upload a couple more examples)
>Free Fire
oh shit, awesome. i had no idea he had filmed anything between High-Rise and his Wages of Fear remake. he's one of my favorite filmmakers these days. High-Rise was amazing for anyone interested in watching it.
as for me, i'm more of a writer than a filmmaker. i've written one complete novel that i'm currently shopping around and working on my second. after the second one is done, i'm going to write several screenplays and see where that gets me. i have written several spec screenplays for fun, including ones for The Office, CSI, and Californication. look forward to returning to the screenwriting format for several ideas i have outlined.
>>69080244
Either set up lights with those colours and balance the camera accordingly.
Other option, and most painstaking, is colour correct in post.
>>69080469
Well, I don't have a fucking clue how to color correct, so colored lights it is.
Any other advice? Also where can I get a smoke machine for relatively cheap?
>>69079059
>He made Down Terrace in 8 days on a budget of 8000 dollars, most of that going for camera rental and Red Bull. Now, a few years later, he directed High-Rise and is currently working on Free Fire (produced by Scorsese).
Wow, what an accomplishment. As an independent filmmaker myself, I would never give a flying fuck about making movies like Down Terrace, High-Rise, and/or Free Fire.
Are these the types of filmmakers you guys worship? Guess this is what I get for actually checking out a filmmaking thread on /tv/
>>69080570
Also shilling my short because fuck it it's nice to hear critique on my work.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUSJe8F8vLg
Wrote, Edited, and Acted in this. Took very vague inspiration from Jacques Tati's Playtime.
>>69080682
It's not the movies themselves, it's how they made them.
Fuck it, look at Primer and El Mariachi, or maybe Toxic Avenger. Are those up to snuff for you?
>>69080570
Yeah. Colour correction is a bitch. Usually most productions had it over the rough cut and have it corrected after that. it's someone else's problem.
Advice on lighting? Use gels and balance the colour in the camera to those gels. It gets tricky but you'll get the hand of it. I'm sure there's sites that can explain better than I. Or maybe a youtube has some helpful vids on the technique.
Smoke machine? No clue anon. Again, I'm sure a simple google search in your city could solve the matter in minutes.
>>69080447
What are your novels about?
Getting any interest for the finished one?
>>69080682
Someone sounds resentful and grumpy at them self.
The subjectivity of the film isn;t in question but the fact that he banded together with friends and made some calls to get actors and a crew and got a film int he can and out there. Now he's working with people really in the industry, making a name for himself.
>>69080779
Alright, thanks a lot familia
>>69080760
>It's not the movies themselves, it's how they made them.
so microbudget films are impressive just because they're microbudget? really??
I'd rather look at a film and judge it as a film. I don't give a fuck what the budget was, what deadlines you are under, how DIFFICULT and ON THE EDGE it was like making it. none of the bullshit details matter, only the finished movie as a whole. if you have a piece of shit but then have to make excuses like "BUT IT WAS MADE ON A $20 BUDGET USING MY IPHONE AND WE HAD ONLY ONE 5 MINUTE TAKE SHOT IN 2 MINUTES" the fact remains that its still just a piece of shit.
>>69080760
Not bad for a Tati rip-off.
Not a fan of the nat sound but what can you do. I'm not usually fond of student films.
>>69080895
Then you're being unrealistic if you think budget films can or should be held in the same regard as bigger productions. Everything exists within a context.
btw Raid guy made a Samurai short film on his fucking Sony nex7 and it was pretty superb.
>>69080838
>Now he's working with people really in the industry, making a name for himself.
This is the part that I legitimately do not care about, and yeah maybe it slightly bothers me that it seems like so many fucking people ONLY care about this part.
what ever happened to artists making art for arts sake? and not caring about the money, fame, attention, etc?
there could be tons of threads on this board about tons of independent filmmakers making interesting, different, lowbudget/microbudget, shot in 2 weeks, used only their friends, unknown and small crew films. but instead its worshipping people like ben fucking wheatley making gangster films and "look how he's made a name for himself!"
Don't know how to get the actors.
>>69080895
Right.
But that makes films like Primer, so amazing. There is no big budget, no chance to use known actors and no means to really do much. it forces the director/writer to make something on such a low amount of money. So in the situation of Primer, Shane had to pretty much take everything on his shoulder. in the end, he churned out an amazing film with next to no money.
Also, just a bit of advice, for the indie filmmaker. Making a film on no money and having be that "oh, it's shit but it was because they had 3 grand to work with" saying is thrown around can still help you. Get the film into sundance or sxsw, have hipsters praise the fuck out of it. Typically there will always be people out there wanting to see these small pics because sometimes the big time producers can see the talent wrapped up in the poor shit.
>>69081008
>Then you're being unrealistic if you think budget films can or should be held in the same regard as bigger productions
what do you mean by "same regard"? I watch a movie and think "did I enjoy this film or did I not enjoy this film?" dont care in the slightest what the budget was, what they shot on, what the number of production members were.
yeah I saw the short, it was just as awesome as his other films. not because it was shot on a sony nex7.
>>69081009
I can't argue with you there. It's supposed to be a motivational thing (dis nigga made this with $2000 and now he's Quentin Tarantino) but yeah, it would be nice to start seeing original interesting shit made for the sake of making interesting original shit again.
>>69081011
Get a job. Pool money into filmmaking fund. Put ad out on your site of choice for paid acting work at base daily pay rate.
You'll get tens, maybe hundreds of submissions if you're in a big city and advertise on the right site. I've done it. I used to be a project manager for short films and commercials. People are eager to put credits on their CV, you just have to pay them.
>>69081009
But who's to say that he isn't do it for the art. His films tend to seem like he does put his all in them. It's up you whether they're good or not.
But that's just the natural course of action for talented directors. Actually he's one of the better ones who didn't follow in the steps of Trank or Colin Trevorrow. He actually saved High Rise from dev hell and made an honest take on it. It wasn't to my great liking, but my bias is I love the novel and Ballard.
It's not like he pulled a Lynch.
Literally the only thing stopping me from doing anything is the fact that I don't drive and I live in the ghetto so I can't be assed to bus around with film gear.
This is a bad feel.
>>69079059
What is a cheap but still decent microphone?
I want to start filming a small project but I believe in having a decent sound
>>69081152
That's always been my thing. Never made friends with people who want to be in FRONT of the camera.
Just a question? What would be the typical rate for a one day shoot, on something like a commercial?
Alternatively, is there any resources in finding actors wanting work just for the CV?
>>69081087
>Get the film into sundance or sxsw
guess what that takes? money/connections/sucking dick > actually making a good film. now guess which one I care more about.
>>69081152
I have some money. Though I wonder about this daily pay rate. What is the standard?
I am not against it but I have to budget very carefully. Have you ever put out ads specifically in college acting/theater departments and acting schools/clubs? My script calls for a number of older actors too.
>>69079059
I've been 1st'ing a low budget feature for just over a month, we've got four days left. Pretty excited for it to be over.
I've just gotten a producer on board for a collection of 3 shorts I'll direct back to back in the coming months which I'll use as a booster into funding for bigger projects.
>>69081245
Rodes shotgun is the essential low budget tool. If you can get a cheap Chinese knock off at half the price all the better.
>>69080952
Hey thanks man.
Yeah, sound has been a pain in my ass for a while. I'm working on getting a new mic soon.
I have a god-tier idea guys, and know exactly what it'll take to make it happen. Feeing pretty good right now.
>>69081260
SXSW, it's literally $100 for being a late, lazy cunt.
Stop making excuses for shit. It's not just the big ones which can take your work.
>>69081326
Share some of the juicy deets, anon.
>>69081408
http://www.sxsw.com/film/festival/submit
And that's for a feature film.
>>69081250
>>69081280
I'm in the UK and had to deal with union rates so I don't know if it's the same wherever you are. You're probably looking at a much smaller budget so just go by minimum wage in your country and pay per hour. I had to budget £75 per actor per day, but looking it up now that's actually below the current standard. Whoops, lol
http://www.castingcollective.co.uk/about-us/rates
>>69081474
Exactly. It's only $100 for a film. And that's a worst case scenario.
Even cheaper for music vids and shorts.
And sure, I doubt you're refunded any more for being declined. But that's the point of perseverance.
>>69081572
Alright. Thanks for the advice anon.
Dealing with unions, actors and money just seems like the nightmarish part of filmmaking.
>>69081572
And fwiw I think SAG has a daily pay rate of $150 per person per day, so that's the ballpark for "professional" productions.
>>69081300
Thanks
>>69081408
lol.
look up the stats regarding number of submissions VS acceptances, then look up the backgrounds of the accepted films/filmmakers. if you truly think all it takes is making a film and spending $100 to submit to SXSW to get accepted, you are just plain wrong in 99.99999% of the cases.
I'm not going to say literally 100% of the time because I'm sure the rare case has actually occurred in the past and will occur again, but again- lets see how often that miracle occurs.
its plain not judged on artistic quality or filmmaking merit 99% of the time. then again, I learned to not care about film festivals awhile ago, but its still a shame to see so many others worship it.
>>69081631
You can always charge something low like $25 per day and see who bites. Make clear you are an amateur production and keep a shooting schedule to under 5 working WEEK days. That should be enough.
>>69081835
You're right the acceptance rate is extremely low. Keep in mind a bulk of the submissions are horrible though.
Any festival programmer is going to want quality films in their festival. Yes, there will always be room made for well-connected films or premieres of more mainstream stuff but besides that it does come down to quality. The 'feel' of the festival and the taste of the programmers is a big factor but that's how they decide between the quality submissions, which are only a fraction of the total submissions.
I would recommend Slamdance for a first time filmmaker.
>>69082039
>Any festival programmer is going to want quality films in their festival.
publicity & tickets sold is much more important to a programmer than film quality. Should I program the 3 hour experimental film that pushes new boundaries of filmmaking or should I program the 1hr25m gangster film with the violent shootout? Even with a less-extreme example of a well made avant-garde film VS shitty made mumblecore, its obvious which one they are going to program.
>The 'feel' of the festival and the taste of the programmers is a big factor
They certainly have a feel and taste for money and publicity.
Of course, I'm not talking about the avant-garde and experimental festivals....but nobody else here is either.
>>69081835
A general tactic that would help you get into fests is to always aim to submit first.
>>69082340
Most festivals are not the type for a 3 hour experimental film.
I can only speak from experience with people I know first hand who have made festivals. And the historical examples of, say, a Poison (1991) making it to Sundance.
>tfw out of my patrician art film phase and want to make fun genre kino
how do i become next robert rodriguez
https://vimeo.com/135443176
i made this almost a year ago
>>69082541
I just plain never had an art film phase. Moved straight into fun shit.
Though that's not going well for me either. Gonna keep at it until I make something worthwhile.
>>69082564
Not bad. I'd stabilize the camera a bit in the early parts. Also you broke the 180 degree rule when he strangles her.
Overall though, very simple and well-shot. Nice work.
>>69082461
>I can only speak from experience with people I know first hand who have made festivals
Me too. and its disgusting.
>the historical examples of, say, a Poison (1991) making it to Sundance.
its telling that your choice of words are "historical example". I agree, and pretty fucking rare.
>>69082039
>I would recommend Slamdance for a first time filmmaker
Yeah? I need to go to more high profile film fests, or more film fests in general. It'd help me out a little.
>>69082340
I don't think anyone wants to see a overlong experimental film that was shot using a razor phone nor would anyone want the "well made" avant garde film.
>>69082541
1) Watch early John Carpenter
2) Write a fun, but not brain dead script
3) Make friends who can a) act and/or b) hold a boom mic
4) Make movie with whatever you can find
5) Edit for a year (or faster depending on your editing skills)
6) Vimeo that shit
>>69083347
Not him but this helps for the project I was wanting to do as well thank you so muchh
>>69083413
The real trick is figuring out whether your project is a short or a feature. And they say your film is born twice. Once during filming and the second in the editing suite.
>>69082968
I honestly don't know that many selections except for the historic ones like Ashes and Diamonds at Cannes or Blast of Silence getting some letter from a programmer about how good it was but that it was submitted after the deadline. I think if you're aiming for one of the biggest festivals with your first feature you're definitely reaching. I'm not sure what alternative you're suggesting.
>>69083180
I recommend it because someone I knew's film got accepted there. It runs across the street from Sundance and a lot of the same press got there. It's for first time filmmakers only and you probably will not have heard of many of the films that get in but its a feasible opportunity.
Obviously you submit there as well as to all the major festivals and you hold premiere status for one of the big ones, if you get in.
>>69083505
I'd put in a third birth during the initial planning phase.
>>69083347
Why vimeo? Doesn't that ruin your 'premiere status' for any mid to high tier festival?
>>69083711
From what I can tell half-decent stuff gets put on Vimeo, while beginner trash tends to end up on Youtube.
Not a universal law but what I've noticed:
>>69081243
>I don't drive
I no longer have this problem
>tfw finally got my license at 19
But yeah, good luck with that man. If you're worried about gear, just shoot with bare minimum stuff: Camera, Tripod, Mic, maybe some lights if you're feeling frisky.
>>69083670
I just need to find some happening over the summer, it'd be nice to actually see some filmmakers and hopefully make friends.
>>69081326
Good luck
