Vasticity wrote: Well, I loved the editing of No Country for Old Men, that's exactly the way I see my movies coming out. Final Cut it is

But you do realize that Final Cut has absolutely nothing to do with the way No Country was edited, right? At the end of the day, both Avid and Final Cut are just tools.

Avid is fantastic when it comes to straight picture editing (meaning, you're doing your sound, graphics, color, etc in different programs). Final Cut is better for more media-heavy projects (trying to do a project with sound, graphics, etc all being finished in the same program-- though if you don't have a really fast computer setup, you're going to be in for a tough time). But really, at the end of the day, the high end gigs and the big films are editing low res versions (either in Avid or Final Cut) that are essentially used to assemble the high res version later.

For a long time the biggest difference between Avid and Final Cut (and Premiere for that matter), was that Avid creates its own proprietary file on import (MXF files), where as Final Cut lets you use the actual file you're importing for editing. Avid can be a pain in the ass with mixed media (trying to import different frame rates, resolutions, etc, and if you lose your link to the file, good luck...), but once you're in the program, it's rigidness is a real strength-- it keeps you from screwing your project up. AND because it's its own proprietary file format that you're editing, there's not much needed in terms of rendering. Depending on the files you import into Final Cut, you can end up dealing with a LOT of rendering (especially depending on what kind of computer and hardware you're running). With all these HDV formats out there now, and the AVCHD codecs, a lot of times Final Cut has to create a Pro Res quicktime file on import (in a similar way that Avid has to create MXF files). So it's become somewhat 6 on one hand, half a dozen on the other.

Personally, I find the style of cutting 10 times faster in Avid then dragging edges in Final Cut (though the recent Media Composer has introduced the edge dragging capability, too).

And as far as price, if you're a student you can get a sick student discount on Media Composer or XPress Pro HD. BUT for the kinds of projects you're most likely going to be doing, Final Cut is probably a better bet.

CrazyEight wrote: The programs are different. For big budget Hollywood filmmaking Avid is more common simply because of it's flexibility, but for Independent features Final Cut Pro is used more often. But that's not to say big budget films don't edit with Final Cut, it depends on what the editor prefers. Corpse Bride, Jarhead, 300, Blake Snake Moan, Letters from Iwo Jima, Happy Feet, Zodiac, No Country for Old Men, Burn After Reading, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, 500 Days of Summer, and A Serious Man are just a few examples of films edited with Final Cut Pro.

Then there's the price difference. Avid Media Composer costs around $2,300; where as Final Cut Studio costs $820, and comes with color grading, sound editing and graphics software. What I have, Final Cut Express 4, costs $150 and has nearly the same software as Final Cut Studio, just without all the extras.

Actually, Avid is incredibly inflexible-- that's one of the biggest knocks against it. The biggest reason it's so dominant in Hollywood though, is because of editors. It was the first accepted NLE program almost 20 years ago, so for most editors-- who are typically older-- it's what they've been using for years. It's what they're comfortable on. And, if you're cutting a big feature, you typically have the money to trick it out with serious hardware acceleration (Avid Adrenaline systems).

Hi,

To start and make a good short film, here's what I think you need (ordered by importance)

1. Get a great script. there's nothing that will attract an audience's attention like a great story. It's the most important thing to start out, as it gives the audience an idea about you, and in my opinion also about your honesty, because when a filmmaker like Nolan makes a true movie motivated by true inspiration people like it, unlike other movies that get famous because a of a new shooting style. Following (Nolan's first film) was in B/W although produced in 1998, but it catched on. The story is everything; take all the time needed to write the script until it sounds 100% right to you, then give it to a friend to review it (a cultured friend who knows how to read and find faults).

2. Locations & actors: you need to be flexible with that as you don't have a budget to get exactly what you want but be persistent if you find something you like. Look for locations that tell your story right. actors will probaly be friends so choose the ones who have the chatacter/look/personality of your story's characters.

3. Equippment: a camera of two depending on what you can get but make sure they can shoot in the same resolution settings (try to get HD, it's really great). If you have dialogues you'll need a microphone, otherwise try to compensate by shooting out of the wind and in quiet places. Lighting: outdoors it's no problem but indoors you'll need good lighting, but it's not obligatory; if the story's good people won't obsess about a low-lit scene, but if you want good lighting artistically, I suggest you get some basic lighting and, instead of buying multiple expensive lights, seach and read about how to use lighting for your purpose. I saw a video series about shooting with one light on the internet once, you might find it or other tips on YouTube. My point is, learn as much info as you can.


4. Finally you'll need an editing suite and I think the members said it all; Final Cut Pro if you have Mac & Sony Vegas if you have Windows. Go easy on the effects, try to be as honest with your story as possible; the story is already great and should attract your audience's attention. A personal tip; render the movie on something inferior to HD if you want to put it online, as buffering a HD video takes forever and that is likely to limit your audience. Think of it as a normal movie shown in a big theatre up Mount Everest; nobody's going to bother except your closest friends and family!

I hope I didn't write too much and that what I wrote help you. I wish you all the best!

AaronFaulkner wrote: Yes, actually haha.

I started at Iowa (2003-2005) before I transferred out to California. I still miss that school a lot...

Are Franklin and Leighton still there?

http://ostatic.com/blog/powerful-video- ... pen-source

I'm going to do a project soon. Thinking of doing it on The Grim Reaper but I think that's too complex for a first.