"Lights, Camera, Action!" by David Dikeman

As you walk into the movie theater you get a sense that you’re about to enter a world completely different from our own and in many cases that is true. Movies have taking us to galaxies far far away, 10,000 leagues under the sea, even to a world of witchcraft and wizardry. Getting to these worlds beyond our own is no easy task however many people spend dedicated time and devotion to these films just to make it that much more of an experience for the audience. When it comes to making movies there are many steps to making the magic happen. Such things are having a script, finding actors and other parts of the crew, scheduling filming dates along with actually filming, and taking all your footage and editing it to perfection. Filmmaking is a different experience each time depending on the subject of the film. It also depends on what kind of film maker you are. Obviously if you’re Steven Spielberg you can make a movie with practically whatever or who you want. If you’re not Spielberg that’s okay too there is plenty you can film without all the Hollywood tactics. You can be an independent filmmaker. Hopefully by the end of reading you will have a good idea of what it takes to be an independent filmmaker.

Since I make films on my own I do a little bit of everything, however I like to start with a script. Having a script can either be really easy or sort of complex. Writing a script is a somewhat difficult process. It’s like writing a story in a different style with descriptions of scenes and movements usually in parenthesis. The story process is what’s difficult for me the most, it’s always hard coming up new ideas that will work for the movies. Coming with the general idea of the movie causes frustration. Even though it can be difficult, it can be done. Having the right people in your environment when writing can also be very helpful. As your plot begins to unfold it gets easier to fill in the “space between the lines”. Sometimes before the script is written or even after, discussing ideas about the film, it’s always good to have a notepad because not all ideas are the best so writing down the ideas helps to be able to select which ideas to use. After you feel the script is ready that’s usually the green light to move on. If the script isn’t exactly what you want, you can always change it. However you may need permission from the director or producer. Obviously you can’t change the thing as a whole but maybe there certain scenes that could be done differently or enhanced. The desire is to have a good quality script.

After you have a pretty solid picture in your mind of what you want this movie to be, you can start the search for actors. For Hollywood’s producers it’s a lot easier to find someone to act for you especially since they have the money. But for those who have limited budgets they rely on volunteers, friends, or just through social networking. It just kind of reduces the possibility of getting good actors because people are busy and movies take a lot of time. When looking for actors be sure to think about which of your characters they suit best. In addition, when trying to figure out who to pick, try and find out what their schedule is like and see how devoted they are for their craft as an actor. Finding out scheduling is always a good thing because if the person works a full time job until six, quite clearly they do not have time for the movie. Finding the person who correctly fits the role is always tough. These decisions are up to the few people who are doing the casting. With independent filmmaking this is often one of your judgment calls, so just be sure to take time and think about who is going to be the best for your production.

Filming is the next step after you have distributed the scripts to the cast and given them some time to become acquainted with their characters. To help with this, the director will get together and have the cast read their parts to each other. As time sinks in the actors start to feel more comfortable with their character and environment, we can make the magic happen. Filming is one of the key parts to a movie. When filming, be sure to be patient. Getting views from different angles is always a good thing. People have a tendency to get bored if the camera view is just showing the entire set the whole time. Try to think how you are going to bring the audience into the story. For example, if it were a scary movie, maybe showing a close-up to the murderer’s face popping up out of the blackness would give the audience a chill down their back. Little things like that all tie into the movie. At the end it gives it uniqueness and overall excitement. Remember if the scene doesn’t seem right, or a mistake has been made, all you have to do is cut and start the scene over. When filming you want to make sure you show the audience what you want them to see.

Finally you can move on to putting the entire process you’ve been working towards into a visual. Editing is also a very crucial part to movie process. When editing you have to be working on it with a director’s view and also the view of your audience, cause keep in mind the only thing they see is what you put on the screen. When editing one of the things I like to get done first is putting all the scenes together in order of the story board from the script. Now that you have your scenes in order you have to pick and choose which cameras views to use to help show the world you’re creating or recreating. Along with that, sometimes adding transitions to your film helps create the impression that the story is moving along to another scene. This usually happens when you are switching settings in the movie. For some filmmakers special effects are a big part to the editing process. Special effects are mostly for high budget movies but on occasion independent filmmakers will use such things. Since I haven’t made too many movies with special effects my goal is to put the movie together with the best intent and turn all the scenes into a journey someone can follow. One of the last steps I use when editing, is to run through a movie a few times and make sure there’s no error or scenes that could be changed. Then afterwards you are ready to enter in the credits of all that went into your moviemaking experience.

As you go through the movie making process, you can begin to realize that there are quite a bit of steps into just beginning a movie, yet alone finishing a complete motion picture. But after you get started it gets easier by the more you work on it, in most cases. One can probably tell that making movies for big screen is a slightly different process from the ones described, but all follow the same key ideas and concepts. Whether you’re writing the script, becoming an actor, filming the movie, or even editing they all are very important parts of the moviemaking process. I feel lucky to have been a part of all the different jobs there was in making a movie and one day I will move on to creating master pieces like Spielberg, but for now I’ll do what I can to make best with what I have. Now you should have a good idea of what happens when you go behind and on the camera, maybe you are the next big thing in Hollywood. Although you won’t know unless you try, so get out there!