Aspiring filmmakers go through similar learning
curves and, as a result, make many of the same mistakes. One of the goals
of
Film School Online is to help you avoid these hard knocks. At the
very least we hope to provide you with enough awareness that you can spot
the telltale signs of trouble and take corrective action in timely manner.
A common mistake is to confuse technology with filmmaking. In
other words, you get caught up in
the process of making a movie and loose track of telling a great
story. It seems
foolish to approach a project this way, yet countless filmmakers are obsessed with the latest cameras, lighting,
effects, etc.
Hollywood
If you doubt that you can fall into this trap, take a look
at Hollywood. How many potentially great movies have been compromised
because of overly zealous special effects? George Lucas was praised for
striking the right balance in the first three Star Wars movies, but many
fans feel he dropped the ball with
The Phantom Menace.
If seasoned pros can fall into this trap, students are
particularly prone. Because of their inexperience, students don't see the difference between making a movie and
transcending the process to tell a story. To them, it's one big ball of
wax. Understanding the difference is what separates great filmmakers from
mediocre ones.
The special effects department is not the only culprit. All craft areas can be
guilty of infringing on the story, from cinematographers with their cameras; to gaffers with their
lighting; to production designers with their sets, and so forth.
Recall Christian Bale's tirade against cinematographer Shane Hurlbut
on the set of Terminator: Salvation (2009):
Christian Bale And
Cinematographer
Warning: Graphic
Bale certainly handled himself unprofessionally
and there is no excuse for the way he addressed Hurlbut, but the point he was trying
to make is valid. Hurlbut was so concerned about setting the lights that he was
hindering the actors performances, which is, in essence, the telling of the story.
Student Filmmakers
From a pedagogical point of view, it's easy to see how student filmmakers
get caught in the technology trap. To many of
them, "learning filmmaking" means learning the latest
cameras or lights or editing software. It's not the same thing.
Filmmaking is the application of the principles and conventions of screen
storytelling. These principles were developed over many decades and encompass
both visual and audio aesthetics. Technology involves the tools that
facilitates this application, it's not "filmmaking" per se.
Instinct vs. Knowledge
Too often, students become experts in the technology of filmmaking and go on to make films
based on aesthetic instinct. A truly gifted filmmaker can probably get away with this, but
not everyone is born with such ability. Most filmmakers work through a
considerable learning curve to become great a what they do.
Even if you are a natural born instinctive filmmaker, your creativity
and problem solving ability can be stifled by not having a solid base of knowledge
from which to pull from.
For example, let's say you are instinctively using the technique of action compression. Wouldn't it be nice to
know how and why this technique works? Wouldn't such
knowledge help you apply it in better and perhaps unexpected ways?
Understanding the principles and conventions of filmmaking (or any art form,
for that matter) not only provides you with a foundation from which to practice your
skills, but also allows you to unleash the creative potential associated
with those skills.
Don't fall into the technology trap. Keep your eye on the ball. No matter
what your area of specialty is, your ultimate goal is always to tell a great
screen story.
