7212017 wrote:1. Invest in better equipment. With a proper microphone and camera, you can do a lot to up the quality of your overall presentation. Just from viewing the first twenty seconds of your film, I can tell you that it looks and sounds cheap, and that's a huge turnoff for me.
Better Equipment isn't necessarily going to solve the issues here. What is missing inherently is craft. Each department is not well refined.
You got to have improvements across the board. I could nail into this but I haven't really got the time. Here are some tips/improvements below:
CINEMATOGRAPHY:
What turned me off the most was the camera operating. It was just very very poor. It's like you weren't settled on that position.
Here are some tips to improve:
1. Practice your camera move(s) before you hit record as you can work out where you need to be in relation to your talent.
2. If you are going to shoot on a sunny day - get/use an ND filter. If you don't have one, you can just about shoot on cloudy days (our natural diffuser of light) or you shoot during golden hour.
3. When filming in interiors, you have more of a chance to be a bit more creative with your setup. I suggest getting some cheap desk lamps or tube lights and play around bouncing the light off white cardboard or through a light cloth/fabric rather than using the actual light source of the room.
GRADE:
There was an almost non-existent grade here. It looked very close to what the camera outputs. White balance is all over the place. No consistent look.
EDITING:
You can cut the first 2 minutes and put it in the trash. Doesn't do anything really.
STORY/SCRIPT:
I understand the message here and it's decent enough idea, but you are kind of confused about what type of film this is. Is it horror/suspense? or is it psychological thriller, or drama or whatever.
But again, need to cut the crap and get to the point. There is so much cliched moments that can go.
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I cannot stress enough the need to refine skills in all the technical aspects. Work hard at it. It needs to be your bread and butter. Especially if you are working with a skeleton crew.
NOTE: what is up with those stock time-lapse shots.