Film Courage: Dan we know you love sports.
Let’s say you had five minutes to sit down with a filmmaker before they make their short
film, you are their coach.
What are you going to coach them on?
They haven’t made it yet.
Maybe they’re ready to go.
They have a script.
Daniel Sol, CoFounder of The Hollyshorts Film Festival: I think the biggest thing is going
back to belief in the story you’re trying to tell.
And I say that in the sense of anything you do whether you play sports, the festival.
Say you’re a basketball coach and you don’t love basketball.
How are you going to put the passion and energy into succeeding.
You can’t.
You will loose.
You will fail.
It’s the same with a story or a film.
You want to get together with different people.
You have to rally up grips and DPs.
Their crew, PA’s, assistants to help you and follow you in any way that you need.
Actors that are going to say that I’m going to emotionally give to you and I’m not ready
to do this because you don’t seem that interested or invested in this because you don’t believe
in the story or even know anything about the story.
That’s why I go back to what I said earlier.
You have to tell the story you know.
Tell the story that you know that you can make.
Don’t try to do something that is not familiar to you just because “Daniel said this is
what you have to do to get in festivals.
You make it this way.”
Or some festival programmer said…yes but your film has to be great (inherently good)
anyway.
It doesn’t matter genre or style or whatever.
It has to just be good.
And a good film comes from someone who believes in their story and is passionate about their
story they make.
Any film that has won our festival or won awards, they are not films that were made
with just blasé effort.
It’s just not happening.
These films were dedication, hours spent, money lost, and a belief in the story.
Understanding the story they are trying to tell because they have a grasp on it.
They are really passionate about what they wrote.
Many times the filmmakers in the short space are…a lot of times.
Not every time (of course not).
A lot of times it’s a writer/director that’s the same person, right?
So if you wrote the script you should know the material well.
If you didn’t write it then you believe in it strongly.
You say “Hey I want to team up and make this film and I can direct it.
You are writing, I can direct your story.”
But you have to have that passion and belief.
Because if you don’t have that you are just going to fail.
The film won’t be good.
There will be areas will it will falter.
A lot of people will know that you are not someone to follow because if you are directing
a group of people the same way you are managing someone or coaching.
If you are talking to the players and they know you are talking out of your behind and
you don’t believe what you are saying.
And you’re giving a half-hearted effort, they know it, they sense it.
They are not going to fight for you, they are not going to care.
Same way as with crew, actors, if you want someone to give you their all as an actor
(especially with the actors), they are passionate, they try to give themselves to you.
Whether it’s emotional stuff, whether it’s a breakdown scene, or it’s a fight scene
or a couple arguing.
And they are having real issues, they are a married couple.
Two actors, they are not married, they are two actors.
You have to believe that they are a married couple and they’re fighting.
You’ve got to get it out of them.
And how do you do that if they don’t like you at all?
Or they don’t believe what you’re trying to do?
Or how you’re trying to direct them and the story you are trying to tell.
Or it’s how you operate.
Like if you don’t feel your belief and passion for what the story is being made then they
are going to give a half-hearted effort and it’s not going to be good.
Or they are going to want to get out of there and knock the lines out and go home, like
you’re done with these people.
They don’t care.
This is not for me or this is not good enough for me, whatever (and just get it over with).
I think that’s a big thing and it sounds simple and obvious but it’s not always the
case.
A lot of people in life do a lot of things half-hearted or don’t believe in what they
are doing…or think they do but don’t…or in this case when it comes to storytelling
maybe they just want to try to impress and just make a story that is not their own or
is something that they don’t believe in because they don’t know the material well
enough or they don’t understand the nature of what they are trying to tell with the story.
It will probably end up showing whether it’s a writing flaw or going back to the analogy
of sports, what if it’s a basketball story and it makes no sense in terms of the basketball
setting.
The writer doesn’t understand basketball, doesn’t like basketball.
It’s going to show that they don’t know what the heck they’re talking about.
The story won’t make sense.
As a viewer watching the movie you are watching a scene of a basketball game and the score
makes no sense and it’s not really making any sense as to what an actual sporting event
would be like then it wouldn’t make sense.
Then it’s like this is stupid, this is a bad movie and you don’t even understand
the story that they are trying to tell, they don’t even know the sport.
If you’re using analogies for baseball or basketball, things like that.
Keeping it in the sports realm.
So yes, really knowing and loving what you are trying to do with the project first and
foremost is critical.
It’s just a must.
And you will see it reflect.
I go back to the winners [for the Hollyshorts Film Festival] because if you are winning
the festival (our festival or others) being nominated for Oscars, those films aren’t
made with a lack of passion or effort or belief in the story.
None of those filmmakers who have made those stories have gone that far on just some casual
whim “Let’s just make this thing in one day.
We’ll just knock it out and just cram and who cares about details.”
It’s not that.
It’s made with passion, time, dedication and effort.
All of those things.
Not to mention talent and all of those things.
You have to have that so that’s I think the biggest thing.