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- MBF Newsletter Feb 2023
Micro-Budget Filmies Newsletter: 1st Edition
HAPPY NEW YEAR and HAPPY VALENTINE'S, and welcome to our monthly newsletter on micro-budget guerrilla filmmaking!
In this issue, we will be discussing how to get the ball rolling on those long overdue projects, as well as sharing some tips and resources for filmmakers working with a tight budget.
First, a rich interview with a fellow filmmaker, Jason Verney. So let's begin.
MBF interviews filmmaker, writer, and podcaster Jason Verney
MBF: What got you into film?
JV: There have been perhaps three stages or times in my life that got me into film-making over a period of at least a couple of decades (although ideas go back about as far as three decades...). I always concocted ideas and visions, or at least through most of my adult life, and often these stemmed from music I heard, but not always. More recently, it’s my knowledge of certain aspects of culture, especially Korean, Asian, or general social issues.
Love of all kinds plays a big part too.
As far back as almost 3 decades ago, these ‘visions’ were maybe more grandiose ideas, and although I wrote these down, drew up notes, jotted down plot points, etc, and even wrote a little script (and even at least one full-length screenplay about 20 years ago), they never saw the light of day. I often put the reason down to the fact that not just anyone could have access to proper film equipment back then, as well as the fact that I hadn’t attended any film school or even university. There was also, no doubt an element of what they now call “imposter syndrome”, which still surrounds me daily... A protective nature and maybe a fear of rejection can be present always. Standard life plans or your ‘regular life’ trajectory also contributed to the gaps in aspiring to such goals.
About a decade ago, the second stage of my passion for film materialized when I embarked on what was going to be a full-length documentary focusing on elements of South Korea, is a subject I was deeply into. What followed instead was one or two video art projects, being commissioned to film events in London too and elsewhere in the UK, and even South Korea itself, plus at least one short film, and film-related collaborations.
Fast-forward to 2019 and already with several journeys to South Korea and Asia under my belt - and therefore different filmic inspirations and aspirations to those I was having before – and with a mini mountain of concepts vaguely drawn up, I concentrated on one which resulted in my most recent mid-length film, “Reparation”.
However, to summarise and state what really got me into the film world, it would be my vivid imagination rather than any technical aspect, although there is so much to love about the process, collaborative or individually, but at the same time, realising any work of fiction into film is no easy task.
MBF: We thoroughly enjoyed the premier of ‘Reparation’ at Kingston’s film festival last year. Can you tell those who have not yet seen the film a little about it?
JV: Firstly, I really appreciate those words - I had so much good feedback after that Premiere and around that time and subsequently, when the film played in South Korea recently it was received very well also. Foremost, it’s a tale of mystery but it ultimately has a social justice theme and contains dual language, and is a film containing elements of video art, whilst still being in a narrative, ‘straight-forward’ form.
Essentially, it concerns two students living in ‘Korea-Town’ who are interrupted and intrigued by the actions of a girl in a nearby building (witnessed via CCTV), whilst they try to come to terms with important subjects in their university projects [one Korean-related: the Sewol ferry tragedy, and one British: the Grenfell tower incident], as well as their own life challenges in what I call a “claustrophobic tragicomedy of alienation, helping hands & secretive students”.
MBF: What was the hardest thing about working as a director and producer?
JV: As this was a very low-budget endeavour and a self-funded project, being the film’s “producer” rarely crossed my mind, but as the creator, writer, and director the most difficult thing was preparing for the film shoots. This could have been anything from finding the cast and of course crew, and fixing the best dates... but also often changing the script.
I was probably doing too much as both director and producer - from working on the ever-changing script, the edit, planning the schedules, and ensuring correct COVID measures were followed [the bulk of the scenes were filmed during the height of the pandemic] to almost every other pre-production aspect.
The location scouting was relatively easy, and in fact, the idea stemmed from a staircase location I saw every day. For the other main location, I approached one of the many Korean- related organizations/individuals I know and they were happy to oblige, as long as COVID precautions were followed and all was left in place/clean after the shoot.
MBF: How was it making a film in a foreign language and why did you choose a Korean theme?
JV: It wasn’t easy but I wanted the dialogue between the two Korean characters, Seul & Soojung to be as authentic as possible. By keeping the English language abilities of the two speaking actresses in mind and fine-tuning the story to show how the characters are in one country [the UK] but speaking another language - whilst trying to come to terms with & indeed learn the native English language - I was able to craft the dialogue to fit the story. In real life, Koreans or other foreigners can sometimes switch between their native language and the one they are less familiar with, and that was my intention here, whilst making it hopefully appeal to different audiences or at least be interesting enough to sit through. I also threw in my favourite Korean phrases, words, or expressions simply for my own pleasure.
Of course, getting this right was so much down to the two actresses, Hyojung Jung and Wooyeon La themselves and I’m grateful to both of them and especially Hyojung for spending time to guide me heavily with what could be said or what would or wouldn’t be spoken in real Life.
I worked very closely with these two Korean female leads, not least to work on pronunciation, translation, and delivery of lines, but also so that on the shooting day they would feel comfortable enough to converse in character, react, etc. This was another reason why there were so many little changes to the script throughout the pre-production time/process.
MBF: What were the steps you took in creating Reparation, the days of film, and the team you employed, and what did you find you had to do yourself?
JV: As any scriptwriter will know, a story can change a lot from the original conception or vague idea, and this creation was no exception. For example, initially, this idea had no connection to Korea at all, but simply a tale of a girl doing something on a staircase which could be construed as something positive and good, but ultimately perhaps change the audience’s mind over the course of the story. Often you have the beginning, the end, or the middle drafted out - or even in your mind only - but then you have to add more to construct the story itself.
I certainly added, and I’m not one to reduce things easily... decluttering or editing, or whatever you want to call it isn’t always my forte. This could be why the film and the shooting script ended up being so much more than what I had originally thought up, and ultimately injected with social issues and not all relating to Korea, but deep-rooted international or societal ones.
I even had the editing in mind from the start. I wasn’t going to make or film something I had ‘dreamt up’ that I couldn’t pull off myself in the editing stage. That’s not to say I hadn’t considered using an editor but I was so close to the work that I couldn’t stop once I’d started. Confidence or maybe a lack of confidence played a part too. You do hear people claiming that you shouldn’t edit your own work but I think it depends - there are so many so-called rules in filmmaking that can be broken. It would be a boring film world otherwise. There were just two days of shooting for this 30-minute film if you don’t include a day where we filmed scenes that would ultimately not be used - these featured another character and elaborated on Seul’s life.
The first day of filming was for the scenes where no dialogue would be required and as such these are the ones where we see ‘the girl’ through CCTV on the staircase doing various things and performing certain actions, including a rather emotional scene in which actress Tong Wu prepared much more or further than I could have ever imagined. Subsequently, those rough CCTV scenes were shown to the 2 speaking actresses [Hyojung and Wooyeon] who would be reacting to them and they could see how these fit into the screenplay.
Those CCTV scenes were filmed before COVID had ‘properly’ hit the UK.
I was both director and cameraman [2 angles or points of view, with one camera above the other] for those scenes, with just one assistant and the actress, Tong Wu. Of course, I wouldn’t recommend doing both those jobs yourself although it built my confidence, or rather maybe I felt more confident to not have yet another person involved. The two-actress dialogue scenes were a different matter altogether. We had a cinematographer (a filmmaker in her own right, Sherice Griffiths), a great sound person, an assistant, the two actresses and myself... and two main cameras on this day. In film theory or in a perfect world, these scenes should have taken 2 or 3 days or even more, but we managed to get it all in one day - and in an almost 9 am to 5 pm one!
Of course, there were errors but we captured enough shots and coverage to piece it all together... And, I was able to adapt the story slightly if really necessary, to include the good material only. With regard to the last stage, that being the editing, it was tough and I had to play with a lot of ideas. Plus, I really had no deadline - not really a good thing! It’s all a learning curve for me, and I’m sure for many filmmakers too if not all. The detailed ‘newsletter-style’ title cards witnessed at the start of the film are all my design - I wrote these semi-fictional stories to appear like a real newspaper or similar, even if these would only appear fleetingly on screen, which in itself was deliberate. I also created different posters and the trailer for the film.
"Notifications are deceiving, for while it takes just a second to glance at one, that moment can suck you into a digital vortex in which you easily lose a half hour of your time and attention."
MBF: What is your advice for first-time filmmakers looking to get their first film made?
JV: Well, it’s an honour to be asked that question perhaps... After all, I stopped and started on this film journey more than 2 decades and only now finding my feet. Life can get in the way - so much so that I sometimes feel that these creations which form in my mind are just a burden... Why would anyone really want to put themselves through such a lonely yet collaborative process?
Maybe this is why so many filmmakers make one film and then go back to ‘living’. Life though also gives you an immense amount of ideas or inspiration. So, I like to call it research. After all, and as others have stated, how can a person write about such things as relationships if they’ve not lived, loved, broken up, or experienced other life experiences? In all honesty though, and because it’s the stories which come to me – and therefore will die with me if I don’t at least try to release them - I would say that if you get any inkling of an idea, write it and expand on it... even if you’ve no experience in script-writing. After all, these days there are so many formatting tools out there and free ones! Some film directors simply get hold of another film’s script [years ago, I would love to hold a fully bounded script from a film I loved!] and use that as a guide.
Of course, producing and getting it made can be daunting, but if you start small, play, and pay fairly [this doesn’t have to be much if those around you believe in it and understand what art is] and believe in the story yourself it will reward you in many ways.
Jason can be contacted at: NativeNomadPictures.com | vimeo.com/channels/jasonverney | YouTube.com/jasonverney | Instagram: @NativeNomadPics @Reparation_film @JasianVerney | MiniMiniMovie.com | Twitter: @MiniMiniMovies @NativeNomadPics
Should I shoot a film with no budget?
The short answer is yes! The trick is to think with in your budget and skill set!
So, let's begin with the basics. Is there a story (written down or otherwise?)
How do you see it unfolding on screen?
What sort of gear do you have access to?
Whom do you know that may be willing to help out?
Will you be able to edit your project?
If all of these answers are positive, you should move forward with the project. If you are at the beginning of your filmmaking journey, making or working on a no-budget project will help you in so many ways. I do not know anyone currently in the film business that thinks they did a good job on their first film but we all did the best we could for where we're at with our craft. The best way to grow in this business is to do, and then learn from what you did.
Changes of heart
You've completed your documentary project. The footage looks great! The sound is acceptable and you are very happy with how you cut the film, telling a compelling story. So, you decide to do a test screening for those people who volunteered to be the subject of your film.
Everyone said they loved it! After a bit of socializing one of your friends, who was also in the film, tells you he did not like how he looked in the film. He believes he came off as too arrogant and people may see the film and may get the wrong impression of who he really is. You try to reassure him but he asks you to take him out of the project. You try to tell him how impossible that would be but he insists on being taken out.
What do you do?
If you have a signed release, I would suggest you do what is creatively best for the project, or whatever you feel is the right thing to do. But, unless you have a signed release, you may not have any option but to adhere to the request. This situation may vary from country to country, but in my country (USA) a person can back out of a “contract” by rescinding their permission unless they have that permission in writing. It's a small thing to do but a highly recommended thing to do. No matter how close the person is to you. I had this situation come up on two of my documentary projects. One was by a friend who I had a falling out with so she asked to be taken out of the project. The other person, we never got to first base, as she wanted to approve the interview footage of her I took before granting permission to me for use.
People can be strange when it comes to being recorded. It's always best to carry release forms with you and have the talent sign and date the form before you begin to shoot.
Free things that can help you along the way:
DaVinci Reslove 17/18 – The free revision is very powerful and a cheaper alternative to Final Cut or Premiere Pro.
Hit Film Express – Good for visual effects work
Futurelearn.com – There are some good online course here.
All used to be free a few years back. You might want to have a look to see what free courses they still offer.
In this first episode, we talk to David Found, a long-term documentary maker, reporter, photographer, lecturer, teacher, and an all-around good guy with an interest in good causes.
Indie filmmakers often turn to crowdfunding to finance their movie masterpieces. Want to launch a successful campaign for your film? Here are some tips to give you the broad strokes. We’ll dive deeper into each idea in subsequent issues:
1. Pick your platform wisely. Some crowdfunding sites only give you the cash if you reach your goal, while others let you keep the dough even if you fall short. Choose the one that fits you and your project best, or risk being left with an unfinished flick and empty pockets.
2. Set a goal that's not too high, not too low.* Know your film's budget, from paying actors to buying equipment, and come up with a number that covers your essentials. Don't aim for a Hollywood blockbuster budget unless you have A-list celebrities attached. And no one wants to see a film made with just a rubber band and a rock.
3. Time it right. A short campaign can create buzz, but too short and people might miss it. Too long and they'll forget all about it. Find the sweet spot where your network, goal, and project needs intersect. And don't forget to whip up some excitement to keep the momentum going.
4. Make a pitch that sticks. A short video explaining why people should give you money is key. Be passionate, clear, and brief, and try to connect with your audience emotionally. And don't make it too long, or you'll lose their attention quicker than a cat chasing a laser pointer.
5. Offer something special. If your platform allows it, offer incentives for people to donate. A digital copy of the film, tickets to the premiere, a shoutout in the credits, or merchandise can sweeten the deal and get people excited about being a part of your movie magic.
6. Keep your investors in the loop. Donors are investing in you, so let them know how their money is being used. Answer their questions, acknowledge their participation, and provide regular updates to show them you care. And remember, they're just a private message away.
7. Spread the word. Promote your campaign on all your social media platforms, send out newsletters, and find creative ways to get the link out there without annoying everyone. Prelaunch communications are essential, so start building buzz a few weeks before the launch to get the best results. Communicate, communicate, communicate! Before, during, and even after the campaign. Chances are this won’t be the last time you tap into this vital source of funds. And most importantly, have fun with it!
FREE COURSES
As a filmmaker on a tight budget, we know it can be tough to make ends meet (and by "ends," we mean the end of your film). But fear not, because there are plenty of resources out there to help you along the way. Check out these resource links below:
BOOKS
ÉCU - The European Independent Film Festival proudly provides the platform for independent filmmakers to express authentic, cinematic storytelling in the most compelling ways possible. **SUBMISSIONS OPEN ON APRIL 30TH 2022**
The annual Playhouse West film festival is a three day event at the historic El Portal Theater in North Hollywood, CA, showcasing the filmmaking and acting talents of the Playhouse West students, both former and current. **Regular Deadline - February 26, 2023**
Celebrating Short Films, Television and New Media worldwide. Our mission is to support filmmakers! **Regular Deadline - February 19, 2023**
Be sure to join the next Micro Budget Filmmaker's Meetup using the link above.
Get ready to network, learn, and be inspired with our beloved teammate Clifford White, award-winning music composer and host of our 1500-member-strong Mirco Budget Filmmaker Meetup. Join us for an evening of creative discussions and the opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals. Whether you're a seasoned filmmaker or just starting out, this is the perfect opportunity to expand your knowledge, share your work, and make meaningful connections in the film industry. Don't miss out on this exciting evening of film and friendship. RSVP now to secure your spot!
Finally, please check it our newly launched LinkedIn Group, 'Micro-Budget-Filmmakers', naturally... designed to allow you to connect and collaborate with fellow Filmmakers around the world. If you don't already use LinkedIn, it's one of the best places to be able to list your skills, projects and experience in order to meet fellow artists.
Well, that's a wrap for the first edition of our Micro-Budget Filmmakers Newsletter!
We hope you found all of the tips, tricks, and inspiration to be super useful (and maybe even a little bit entertaining). And if you didn't, well, sorry about that. But hey, there's always the next issue! So until then, keep those cameras rolling and those creative juices flowing. And remember, even when things get tough (and trust us, they will), there's always a way to make it work.
Happy filmmaking, fellow Filmies!