Learn Film Making Without Going To School

As the word itself says, film making is all about the process of making a film from a story that you have, or a story borrowed by somebody else. A film maker is in charge of the screenplay, shooting, editing and distribution and even direction. In film making it involves large amount of employment, it requires many people and, at times, the film takes several years to complete. This depends on the complication of the subject, and the problems that come while making a film.

There are many stages of film making. Some of them are:

1. Development- Firstly the screenplay in done and arranged into a effective guide for the film.

2. Pre-production- Pre-production is to prepare for the shooting of the film, the crew and cast are hired, locations for the film are chosen, and the sets are built.

3. Production- The film maker shoots the film in its whole.

4. Post-production- The film is totally edited, other sound effects, are added to make it even better.

5. Distribution- A distributor takes the film from this stage, and he shows it to the public.

Development: The film maker’s idea, or a story found by the producer, is changed into a practical script. This story can come from any books; it may be a true story, plays, other films, etc. When the theme is chosen, a step outline and summary is developed. This will break the story down into scenes of one section in length. A treatment of 25-30 pages, is then prepared, describing the mood and characters of the story.

The screenplay is then developed; this is edited as many times as needed to make the story feasible. A film maker may want to contact a film distributor at this time to review the market for this type of film to assure its economic success. DVD sales and distribution rights need to be taken into account. The film is then open to film financiers. If they like what they see and hear from the pitch, financial backing is offered. This can be offered from major film studios, the film council, or autonomous investors.

Pre-production: For a film a production company is created and then an office for the company is opened. The film comes to life with a story board and drawn out with the help of model artists and talented illustrators. The budget of the film will be comprised at this time.

Now the hiring work is done. The budget and type of film will decide the type and size of the crew.

Production: To help manage this stage of film making, the director is in charge of most of what happens on the set, but he will need to delegate blame to others until the film is done.

Post production: The film is edited for time and best shots using film and a combination of film and video. Extra sound effects are added.

Distribution: The film is released to theaters and copied according to need. The promotion begins now. Press kits, posters and other advertising materials are published to advertise the movie. The movie is promoted in all possible ways to make it a big hit.

 It doesn’t matter if the movie succeeds or fails, profits are equally divided between the production company, and the distributor.

If you want to be a superior movie producer the knowledge of film making is not at all enough. This quality might be very good if you just want to be a studio manager, or any other little unknown job out of film making production. If you are really willing to be a good film producer then you need to develop few skills that will in further help you to be a good film maker.

Organizing is one of the most important skills that anybody needs to have in a filmmaking industry. You might already have this skill, but frankly speaking it is not an easy skill to teach or learn, but you can learn to become more organized to keep your surroundings even more organized. If you still need some help you remember then buy a book on how to get organized or take a class in institute. Do what you think is best, but make sure you get organized.

Second skill is the ability to take quick decisions. “Time Never Waits” so no matter how well your plans have been laid; there are a lot of areas where in changes can come up during shooting. You might run into a decision that needs to be made right now. If the decisions you are making is wrong you will know it soon enough. As the film maker you must act positively, accepting blame whenever necessary, as the members of your cast will go along with what you say.

The third and the most important skill is to be a good negotiator. You are the one who is making every decision on the set so, everything will usually need to be negotiated by you. When it comes to rates, know the top price you can pay for any one item according to your budget. Try to lower that by 20 or 30 percent by negotiation, you really need to keep yourself in the know. One thing to remember, if you can’t decide or negotiate the right price of the product or anything you can always decline the item and look elsewhere for it.

Diplomacy comes fourth. Film makers need to keep a close eye on all the gossip and rumors. You may sometimes have to step in the middle of some disputes and arguments. The trick is to get rid of the situation without taking sides. Practice diplomacy every working day, to maintain a healthy environment in the sets.

To be noticed as one of the great film makers, you will need to have plenty of energy. Eat well and make sure you intake high amounts of vitamins to keep yourself from breaking down with the long working days.

Make sure you master in all these five basic skills of a film making producer. Then no body can stop you from being a great producer in independent film.