Pre-Production can be overwhelming even for the seasoned producer. It requires knowledge of many facets of production, as well as an ability to prevent potential crises down the line. It’s not always easy but if you stay organized, it's pretty simple. So what is Pre-Production in film? When does it start and when does it end? This post will answer those questions and will give a quick rundown.Continue reading What is Pre-Production in Film — A Blueprint for Success
T he act of storytelling has always been with us. Anthropologist Joseph Campbell took stories from around the world and found they all shared the same basic structure. Campbell's Hero's Journey laid out each of the fundamental steps in this story structure. A few decades later, Dan Harmon took this same idea and created the Story Circle. In Dan Harmon's Story Circle, there are 8 essential steps that can guide almost any story from Fade In to Fade Out. Let's walk through each step with examples so you can apply this foolproof structure to your next great idea.Continue reading How the…
Ethos, pathos and logos are modes of persuasion that form the rhetorical triangle. A compelling argument, sales pitch, speech, or commercial ideally uses elements of all three strategies. We'll show you how to employ each technique and present some examples along the way.Continue reading Ethos, Pathos & Logos — Definitions and Examples
Cinematography is the art of crafting visuals for motion pictures. It takes years of practice to cultivate a consistent craft and keen eye for filmmaking. That’s what separates great cinematography from cliche movie making. Before honing a craft, a deep knowledge of what it entails is critical.Continue reading What is Cinematography? Defining the Art and Craft
Utilizing spreadsheet formulas for call times can speed up the process of creating call sheets, but for many AD's and Production Unit folks, formulas can be intimidating. In this article, we're going to show you how to setup Excel formulas for staggering call times automatically. Continue reading Staggering Call Time Formulas for Your Next Call Sheet
We’ve noticed a shift in content throughout the digital age. Filmmakers spend years studying traditional filmmaking only to find that some viewers now prefer web-based content over traditional film and TV. Continue reading Make a YouTube Web Series to Get Noticed as a Filmmaker
Technology has greatly streamlined the story development and pre-production process, making it more efficient and accessible for aspiring filmmakers, writers, and creatives. If you're looking for storyboarding software that fits your budget and project type, we've put together a list of the best options available for all budgets and project scales.Continue reading Top 10 Best Free Storyboarding Software | Ultimate Guide
Location, location, location. We all know how critical scouting is to your production, why picking the right filming locations can make or break your movie. But have you ever considered just how significant it can be to your story? Some settings matter so much to the plot, they take on a life of their own — and they are just as necessary as the characters themselves. Let’s take a look at a few examples when filming locations took center stage. We’ll start with a brief video of the Texas-loving football drama, Friday Night Lights.Continue reading Filming Locations that Enhance Your…
Awell-made call sheet is the difference between a successful shoot and production hell. And the quality of film production call sheet comes down to the quality of the call sheet template. Mistakes can easily snowball and lead to major confusion, and eventual delays. Fear not. In this all-inclusive callsheet guide, we’ll not only provide a callsheet template, but we'll arm you with time-tested call sheet best practices so you can avoid making so many frustratingly common mistakes. By the end of the post, you’ll be ready to create professional callsheets with ease. Let's get started.Continue reading Ultimate Guide to Call Sheets
Tell me if this sounds like you: You're building an entertainment career. You get gigs here and there, maybe on set or in a production office, but you're hunting for a new job every week - maybe even the next day. I've been there, so I am going to share with you some of my personal experiences from building my own entertainment career through a number of film production jobs, all so that you can learn the pitfalls... and successes. Get ready, because you are now officially inside the Hollywood trenches. Welcome to the party, pal. Continue reading How to…
