The Blog for Video 2.0

In Part 1 of Movie Making On a Budge we looked at cameras. Now let's take a look at video editing software.

Home Video editor: This is the person who just wants to edit home videos of birthdays and soccer games. Most consumer packages are affordable and more than powerful enough for their targeted user base. The trick is to find a package that is easy to use.

Pinnacle Studio 10 $99. Studio packs a ton of features under the hood. There is a very basic learning curve but for the most part the package is user-friendly. Past versions have suffered from crashes and compatibility issues with non-standard PCs. Includes DVD authorting.

Ulead VideoStudio $99. Ease of use makes this a great package. Very powerful, complete with DVD creation.

Sony Vegas MovieStudio + DVD. $89. Three easy steps to capture, edit and share. Focuses on ease of use and fun. Worth a look.

Apple iMovie HD ($79 as part of iLife suite). Mac users need to look no farther than iMovie. This great beginner package now offers HD support. Apple designed themes provide motion graphics for intros and lower-thirds that rival the most expensive tools in the market. Third party developers provide a series of plugins (at extra cost) to expand iMovies capabilities even further. DVD authoring included in iDVD, a separate iLife application.


Hobbyist: This person is taking things to the next level. Maybe creating DVDs for school events, sports, or weekend movie making.

Adobe Premiere Elements 3.0. $99. Premiere Elements is going to really put pressure on the consumer packages. It really brings the power of Premiere, a great application, down to consumer users. Sceneline feature makes video editing similar to slideshow creation. Includes DVD authoring.

Apple Final Cut Express HD $299. Not ready for the full power of Final Cut? FCE gives users nearly everything they could want/need. Soundtrack and LiveType are bundled. Excellent entry into the world of pro NLE systems.


Filmmaking/Video Producer: You know who you are...

Adobe Production Studio. $1299 - $1799 Adobe After Effects® 7.0 Professional, Adobe Premiere® Pro 2.0, Adobe Photoshop® CS2, Adobe Audition® 2.0, Adobe Encore® DVD 2.0, and Adobe Illustrator® CS2. What more could you need?

Apple Final Cut Studio. $1299. Final Cut Pro 5, Motion 2, Soundtrack Pro, DVD Studio Pro 4, Compressor, LiveType. Battling with Premiere to become the standard for DV and HDV editing.

Sony Vegas+DVD. $600. The Vegas+DVD Production Suite combines Vegas 7, DVD Architect 4, and Dolby Digital® AC-3 encoding software to offer an integrated environment for all phases of professional video, audio, DVD, and broadcast production.

Labels: adobe, apple, camcorder, equipment, filmmaking, final cut, ilife, imovie, indie film, NLE, sony vegas, video editing

Ready to make your movie? Here are a few simple tips to help you on your way. These are things I've learned from books, online resources and my own experience making short films. Enjoy...

1. It's the Story, Stupid....filmmaking is story telling. You need a good script. You need a story that you are passoniate about telling. When you don't have a budget, chances are you won't be blowing up buildings or having long chase scenes to entertain your viewers. Focus on the script. Get a tight, interesting script on paper before you shoot anything.

2. Use the equipment you have...or rent--don't buy. Is your only camera a $300 Handcam? So what. Use it. Even the cheapest consumer MiniDV camcorder can give good results when you use a tripod and you light properly. Don't feel that you need to rush out and buy an brand new HDV cam, or a new boom mic, or Final Cut Pro. Shoot with the equipment you alreay own. Learn your equipment and more importantly, learn the craft of filmmaking. Trust me, there will be many more things limiting you besides your equipment.

3. Plan, plan and then plan some more. After the script you need to prepare a shot list. This is a break down of every shot within every scene. List the location, actors, props, type of shot (Close Up, Wide, Medium), camera moves, etc. The shot list will allow you to play your day. If the first and last scenes of your movie take place in the same location with the same actors you can shoot them back to back. This limits your camera and lighting setups which is vital. In addition to the shot list you need to scout you locations, gather your equipment (cables, bulbs, batteries), have PAs to pickup actors and get food.

4. Get tons of coverage. You never have enough. You never have enough takes, enough angles, enough shots. Shot it again. Even if you think you got it, you probably didn't get it. If you planned your day well (see #3) then you should have enough time to get plenty of coverage.

5. Treat everyone with respect. Actors are interesting people. They are probably working on your film for free. Treat them with respect and kindness. You are the director not the dictator. Get opinions but make the final decisions yourself. Your crew is vital. Find a good crew and treat them well.

6. Keep making films. Make tons of shorts. You'll learn something every time. Try different things and keep growing. You'll never stop learning and you'll never stop having fun.

Watch some great films at http://www.hungryflix.com

Labels: camcorder, digital video, filmmaking, how to make a movie, movies, NLE, tips