Hey I'm Kirstie.
And I'm Josh.
Here are some things to remember when planning your first shoot.
Let's do this.
Show, don't tell.
Film is a visual medium.
People connect with images so if you can write a great dialogue scene that's fantastic, but
for a short film, less is more.
Reduce the dialogue and actually most of the great short films I've seen have hardly any
dialogue in them at all.
This is especially important if you're doing a YouTube short because you want to get people
hooked right away.
If you think about the Iron Man short we did a couple of weeks ago for the release of HitFilm
4 Express, we started with the HUD shot which was our WOW effect, which was there to get
people excited.
So once you've got that great start, you want two other things - a hook and a really great
ending.
If you don't have this kind of structure, the audience is just going to get lost, or
even worse - bored and lose interest.
Remember that the last scene you shoot in the day will inevitably be the most compromised
because you will be running out of time.
For this reason you should put your most important scenes at the start of the day.
This means also that your actors will give you the best performances because they won't
be tired and cranky.
So what we're saying is leave the less important shots - the connecting shots - the ones that
run between the dramatic parts until later in your shooting schedule if you can.
Because you're probably going to cut them anyway to make this nice and short and snappy.
But if you do have any extra time during your shoot and you probably won't, make sure you
get B roll.
This stuff can be really really useful when it comes to your edit and you can't quite
make it work.
It can be a lifesaver.
Know your resources and write accordingly.
We've actually already done a video on this called 'Top 5 filmmaking tips to avoid' - can't
believe I remembered it.
It's down here, it talks about writing for locations you might have or for people you
might have around you as actors.
Keep it secret, keep it safe.
You need to make sure that you're not putting anybody in danger here.
We don't want you to hurt yourself or anyone else so be careful of things like prop knives,
prop guns, lightsaber swords, be careful of the environment and most importantly be careful
of trailing loose wires because those can be difficult to work with and very dangerous.
Be a problem solver and trust your team.
If there is a problem - and there will be a problem - people are going to come to you
to fix it.
Now you might not be able to do that straight away and if you can't, don't let the whole
thing crumble around you.
Keep on shooting, keep on working on it and maybe a solution will come to you.
But also remember, you're probably surrounded by a bunch of really bright people so ask
their advice.
Be humble and say 'hey, we've got a problem'.
I bet one of them will think of a solution.
Treat people well.
You're all in this together.
As Atomic Productions said in a tutorial they did for us a while ago, it's supposed to be
fun.
It's part of your job to remember what needs to be brought on set and try to remember the
things that other people might forget.
For example: Be organised.
Lead from the front and be the first one there and the last one to leave.
Bring food and bring drink.
Remind people to remember those mobile phone chargers.
Make sure that you know where the toilets are.
Help people carry the really heavy equipment and make sure that people know how they're
getting home at the end of the day.
But most of all, remember that food and drink.
People need snacks if they're going to film.
You need snacks people! SNACKS!
If you have people who are giving up their free time to be part of your short film and
they're not getting paid for it, you have to make sure that you set yourself something
achievable so that you're able to deliver on that.
Let these people share in your success because then they're going to want to work with you
again.
Make mistakes.
You have the opportunity to start from scratch.
Make mistakes and learn what you love about filmmaking.
You're not going to get it right first time, second time, the hundredth time.
In fact, every video we make, we're still getting it wrong.
Even when you make an amazing, epic film, you will always think of ways that you want
to improve it and make it better.
And that is the beauty of filmmaking.
We hope you enjoyed that episode.
If you do like weekly filmmaking tips, be sure to subscribe or you can leave us a comment
below.
And remember we've just released HitFilm 4 Express which is completely free editing and
visual effects software so go check it out.