Surrey Border Film & Video Makers
Woolmer's Wisdom - 2
Movies on holiday
Most people take a camera with them on holiday. Putting the resulting
prints into an album makes them look more interesting than a random pile
of loose photographs. With all long shots and distant views, even though
they look better in an album, the result is still rather boring. Even
with titles under each picture to say where it was taken, if it doesn’t
tell a story and if the shots don’t vary, the result remains boring. But
put in a variety of close ups of people with long shots of the setting
and make the captions tell a story - then it starts to become
interesting Even then, only some of the original shots deserve a place
in the album.
The same applies to making a movie. This may all
seem rather obvious, but it is surprisingly easy to fall into the trap
of shooting only one type of viewpoint. And afterwards, one has to be
ruthless to overcome the temptation to use nearly everything.
BASIC RULES
1. Keep it short.
(Attention span.)
2. Look for interesting closeups.
(Variety.)
3. Avoid panning one way and then back again.
(No hose piping.)
4. If a person walks L to R, don’t follow with a R to L shot.
(No confusing cuts.)
5. Vary the angle within reason. Follow long shots
by closeups etc.
Why edit?
When I first used a movie camera more years ago than I care to remember the word EDIT never entered my mind. I shot thirty minutes and thought: wow This is a BIG FILM. The length was all important.
The processed film came back in a great big package. I spliced up twenty five rolls of black and white film with great enthusiasm. But the result seemed to last more like five hours. It was a VERY LONG and VERY BORING film. It certainly contained some very good shots and it was then that I discovered the need for editing. I’d discovered the magic word! However, I didn’t have enough cutaways - especially closeups. Now! think “EDIT” as I shoot.
My next holiday film was very much better. I even went to the trouble of writing a script. It is quite possible to do this even if you are with friends who are not involved in making your movie. The ‘script’ need only be a rough treatment - more a reminder than anything - so that the result has pace and flows naturally
John and his wife Joan joined Surrey Borders circa 1991, bringing a strong new talent and expertise to the club that resulted in an enthusiasm for making club films and entering competitions as never before. John was a great writer and his stories became great films, winning Gold awards for The Gold Medallion and Paula, and others. John was energetic, painting for art exhibitions, making props for the next project, writing his book and gleaning data to eventually finalise the book of his family tree, and last but not least, operating the “confounded” computer that held it all together. He was a very talented fun loving man, who will always be remembered by the club and his family.
Who are we in this film/movie/video club? We make films, videos and movies and meet on the first Friday of the month to answer members questions and to discuss ongoing club projects. Well known film makers, judges and film professionals are often our speakers for the evening. We welcome visitors and new members interested in film and video, and there is no need to own digital cameras or camcorders and no need for previous experience, as we happily provide mentors for beginners. Surrey Border meetings start at 7:45pm and end just after 10:00pm with a refreshment break at around 9:00pm. Visitors and new members are warmly welcomed to the monthly meetings which are on the first Friday of each month (and the first visit is free). Our meetings are held in our new contemporary hall in St Joan's Centre which is in the grounds of St Joan's church in Tilford Road, near the station in Farnham. The hall has a large car park and is within easy reach of Guildford, Farnborough, Fleet, Bordon etc. In Surrey and Hampshire. Read more about us here.
Our interests We have a good mix of interests amongst members include script writing, acting, directing, technical and artistic and all agree that ideas and skills are more important than equipment as shown by there being fewer cameras and camcorders than members. Some get more enjoyment in viewing and discussing the films produced by others and just being part of the community. There are those who wouldn't wish to ever hold a camera or camcorder while some like to help in filming but don't own their own camcorder. Of course there are always those with the latest high definition wizz bang up to date cameras, camcorders, microphones and gadgets and the lovely thing is that they are always happy to demonstrate both equipment and techniques to others. For anyone thinking of buying a camera or camcorder advice is always on hand. We have almost equal numbers of members with PC and Mac computers. We regularly put on courses, tutorials and training sessions in the light of the current interests and needs of members. Individuals with particular problems typically have one to one help.
Site updated 07 September 2010 . To comment on this website email: