Category

Feature Film

Steve Stockman
In Tips and Tricks, Teaching and Training, Feature Film, Television, For Pros

Stop Shooting “B-Roll”

stop shooting b-roll

Shooting “B-Roll” is a mistake.

“B-roll” shots are an editing short-cut from news-gathering in the ’80s. Crews on the run learned to grab over-the-shoulder shots of the newsperson looking serious or flames in a burning house to save time in editing, which took forever on linear reel-to-reel video decks. Over the next 40 years, “gotta get b-roll” filtered down Truth with a capital T from trainer to trainee, and from teachers to students, oozing its way gradually into other forms of video and film shooting.

But the whole concept of b-roll is fatally flawed. I’m not saying you shouldn’t shoot … Read the rest

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Steve Stockman
In If you’re new to video, Feature Film, Your Questions Answered

Getting from Idea to Documentary

documentaries need story

I’m making a short documentary for my college doc course. My idea is to document my thought process while experimenting with sound design. The documentary would end with me having created a new and out-of-the-box piece of music.

Two questions:

  1. What makes a documentary valid? I’m afraid my idea could be perceived as a random youtube video about music production.

  2. Does my documentary need to have a message?

–Johnna

“Documentary” generally means that a piece has been created by filming what is actually going on in the real world, as opposed to a fictional “narrative” story, where nothing is real. … Read the rest

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Steve Stockman
In If you’re new to video, Feature Film, Television, For Pros

How do I make it as a Hollywood Screenwriter?

screenwriter page

I just finished my first screenplay, and I know it is really good. I just need a chance to get in front of someone to prove it. I’ve tried to contact agencies, but got no response. I don’t want to give up my dream of being a Hollywood screenwriter!

Any advice?

–Jim S., New York

The stock answers to the career screenwriter question tend to be variations on “you have to pay your dues” or “you have to know someone.” I’m not a fan of either piece of advice, so let’s start by reframing those two old bromides into solid

… Read the rest
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Steve Stockman
In Tips and Tricks, Feature Film, For Pros, Your Questions Answered

Do I Need to Know the Act Breaks in a Movie?

The Princess Bride

“I’m from Poland. Sorry, for my English. I read your article about Arrival after seeing the movie. I was wondering about three-act structure of this movie. Could you tell me in which minute – in your opinion – are the act breaks for act I, II and III? I’m have a trouble to do this. For me:

I act ends at 41 min – after Louise return from the spaceship – “kangaroo” scene

II act = 92 min – after they get in contact with aliens

III act is about stopping China from attack on aliens

What do you think?

… Read the rest
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Steve Stockman
In Video Marketing, Feature Film, Television, For Pros, Your Questions Answered

Shooting Ratio: How Much is Enough Footage?

Shooting ratios are different for different productions.

How do I know if I’ve shot enough footage? I hate to waste money and time, but I’m nervous I won’t get what I need for the edit.

PS: Absolutely love your book! I’ve read it cover-to-cover twice now and starting my third time through.

–Jamal

Directors always shoot more than they think they need. Which means some of it will always be wasted. That’s how it’s supposed to work. It’s so normal that there’s even a name for this waste. It’s called the “shooting ratio” and it simply means the ratio between how much footage goes on screen, … Read the rest

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Steve Stockman
In Tips and Tricks, Feature Film, For Pros

There are No Fish in “The Abyss”

Still from the Abyss
Still from the Abyss
State-of-the-art 1989 digital effects, but no fish.

My writing partner and I were arguing about a scene in a new screenplay. It’s a time-travel piece, and he wanted to explain all the technical steps that lead a character to have a conversation with someone from his distant past. The reason? So the audience would believe their meeting could plausibly happen.

Makes sense. If we don’t show how the machinery works, and explain exactly how the two accidentally meet over miles and eons, who will believe it? Credibility comes from detail, right?

It makes sense, but it’s totally wrong. Extreme explanatory … Read the rest

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Steve Stockman
In Tips and Tricks, Better Home Video, Feature Film, For Pros

Better Call Saul: The Devil is in the Details

There is no better show on television than AMC’s Better Call Saul, from Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould, ex of Breaking Bad. All four seasons are spectacular, but if you haven’t watched (or even if you have) it’s worth considering what makes it great.  Great writing and acting, sure, but for me the best part of Better Call Saul is that every shot, every sequence, every episode is about intrigue- built by lensing in to the details.

Season 1, Episode 1 doesn’t start with anything as obvious as an establishing shot of a shopping mall, or a freeway sign … Read the rest

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Steve Stockman
In Teaching and Training, Feature Film, Television, For Pros

Yeah, But is it Any Good? Learning from Mediocre Video

People hate going to the movies with me. It’s not because I talk or text during films, because I religiously don’t do either. It’s what happens after the lights come up.  “That was good” says my wife. “I enjoyed it” says my daughter. “The dialogue in the battle scene in act three sounded like it was cribbed from ‘Alien'” I say. And that’s when the conversation usually slows way down.

As you get better at the film and video thing, what has happened to me may also happen to you: Your tolerance for mediocre work plummets.

Terrible is terrible. Most … Read the rest

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