Share Opportunity For Indie Filmmakers Emily Hagins, one of Austin’s most well known independent filmmakers is working on her latest feature film, My Sucky Teen Romance, that will raise the profile of Austin’s independent film industry and give other independent filmmakers an opportunity. In My Sucky Teen Romance, the characters watch a B horror flick [...]
My Camera Is Bigger Than Yours
May 19, 2010 – 11:45 am
Share Much thanks to Jeffrey Buras for a wonderful presentation last Monday night (May 17, 2010). If you missed it, you’re in luck. Jeff has offered his slides as a PDF. To download, right click on THIS LINK and choose “save as” or “save file as”. Thank you Jeffrey!
Contract Law: What Indie Filmmakers Should Know
May 13, 2010 – 6:39 pm
Share In the indie film world, all too often people jump into projects with excitement and forget that they are involving themselves in a business venture. I have seen many people make mistakes with contracts and just want to share some things about basic contract law to help out those of you who have little [...]
10 Tips on Getting a Gig in the Austin Indie Film Scene
May 2, 2010 – 4:27 pm
Share The following tips were presented by H.Cherdon Bedford at the Austin Film Meet on April 19, 2010 at Spiderhouse Cafe. The following info is intended to help you get gigs in the Austin independent film scene. Hopefully, it helps! 1 – Make friends. Be nice. Be friendly. Treat others as you want to be [...]
Sustainable Filmmaking Panel
April 27, 2010 – 9:04 pm
Share If you missed the Austin Film Meet’s recent Sustainable Filmmaking panel event at the Bluetiful BLUE theatre, you’re in luck. Robert Murphy recorded it for us. Thanks Robert! A Casual Panel Discussion Featuring: Marjorie Eber – our own local Eco-Coordinator & Green Film Blogger – www.MiscellaneousRentals.com/GreenSet.htm Lauren Selman – Founder of Reel Green Media [...]
Sanity? People Will Do Anything For Entertainment
March 23, 2010 – 9:12 pm
Share This post may contain plot spoilers. I recently went to see the new Martin Scorcese film, ‘Sutter Island’ in which I have a particular interest because it involves the subjecct of mental illness. I went expecting to be disappointed becuase the trailer implies that the mentally ill would be used in the film as [...]
Murder or Marijuana
March 6, 2010 – 3:51 pm
Share What do you think is worse? Smoking pot or murder? The recent romantic comedy It’s Complicated received an “R” rating from the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) because it featured two characters smoking pot without consequence. Yet, a “PG-13″ rating is given to other films with heavy violence, like Terminator: Salvation. Read about [...]
Actor Showcase Videos (All)
March 2, 2010 – 12:06 pm
Share And much thanks to Joe Handley, who has been editing his booty off, we now have ALL videos from the Austin Film Meet Actor Showcase that was held on January 11, 2010. Thanks to everyone who made this fabulous event happen! Austin Film Meet’s next Actor Showcase will be May 17, 2010, at the [...]
3D A Director’s View
February 23, 2010 – 7:36 pm
Share I am a little bit late on the scene as regards Jeffrey’s and Brian’s exchange about 3D but owing to a busy schedule I just managed to catch Avatar a few days ago. I have to say I find merit in what Brian says about the 3D in Avatar saving it from a story [...]
Hugo Cabret and other Books for Better Storyboarding
February 23, 2010 – 6:55 pm
Share My experience as an illustrator of children’s picture books has taught me more than you might think about cinematic storytelling. To effectively tell a story using pictures, one must consider placement and scale as well as flow from one page or shot to the next. Each year the Caldecott Medal is awarded for outstanding [...]
Green Film Guides: A List of Links
February 18, 2010 – 2:58 pm
If you’re going to tackle making an eco-friendly film yourself, it’s best to start reading up. To make the research process a little less daunting, I’ve compiled a list of resources from general guides on sustainable filmmaking, to state specific information.
3D? Or not 3D? What about 5D? Or 7D?
February 9, 2010 – 2:32 am
Share The world is a flutter with news of the killer smash hit wonder film: Avatar. Oh, the 3D FX and all the cool technology and such. It’d be neat to get a hold of one of them 3D cameras. Well, hold on a second there… I don’t have the budget for a Cameron — [...]
Behind the Scenes of a Green Film
February 7, 2010 – 11:07 pm
The 2009 film Away We Go demonstrates to the film industry and viewers how they filmed green (and paved the way for others to do the same).
The Green Film Correspondent: An Introduction
February 1, 2010 – 11:45 am
Filmmakers have a lot to worry about … And now they’re also supposed to think about saving the environment along the way?
How to Direct Actors with CC Courtney
January 26, 2010 – 12:30 pm
Share On Monday, January 18, 2010, the Austin Film Meet gathered at the Rude Mechanicals’ Off Center theatre in Austin, Texas, for an amazing presentation by Meisner instructor CC Courtney. More than 60 people attended and two scenes and one monologue were performed. Of course, Austin Film Meet events are always better in person, but [...]
Where is Peter Cushing when you need him?
December 31, 2009 – 1:10 pm
Share As I was watching the latest Sherlock Holmes film, I found myself profoundly disappointed for many reasons. The production design was over the top and lacked realism, the new face of Holmes as a tormented genius, got my hopes up but was over played, and the story was weak and too weird for my [...]
Here’s To You, Ms. I-don’t-know-how-to-view-a-rough-cut Lady
December 28, 2009 – 11:39 am
Share If I’m going to make a lesson out of this funny video, it is this: Always establish clear expectations for the editing process.
COUNTER: 3D is not a Gimmick
December 27, 2009 – 1:00 pm
Share Although I completely understand Jeffery’s point of view, there are many examples in film history where technological gimmicks were marketed to the masses and used by a spare few films and eventually became integrated into the film makers canon of tools to tell a story. Now believe it or not I wrote a good [...]
Counter: 3D is Not a Gimmick
December 27, 2009 – 1:00 am
Share Although I completely understand Jeffery’s point of view, there are many examples in film history where technological gimmicks were marketed to the masses and used by a spare few films and eventually became integrated into the film makers canon of tools to tell a story. Now believe it or not I wrote a good [...]
3D Is A Gimmick
December 22, 2009 – 1:50 pm
Last night I went to see James Cameron’s Avatar, the new film that is supposed to change the way that we make movies. It’s combination of CGI and 3D is going to be the standard way we see movies in the future. The CGI in Avatar was quite stunning. After seeing this film, I am convinced that CGI can be the right tool to use for dramatic effect in filmmaking. 3D, on the other hand, is still a gimmick and will always be a gimmick.