Posted by Michael Raben at spider-wc062.proxy.aol.com on February 19, 2001 at 17:41:19:
In Reply to: being a film maker posted by KevCoen on February 19, 2001 at 15:06:51:
: I was wondering if you feel its necessary to study film at great depth to be able to amke a decent film
Since Kevin's a bit busy right now, I'll offer my own opinions. Film study can be a useful tool when planning to make your own film, but it's not the only one. Fundamentally, the basis of all filmmaking (whether good or bad, natch) is in the preparation. Limited budgets are an economic reality of the indie filmmaking world; THAT notwithstanding, you can still put together a good story, with interesting characters and still manage to create a good-looking, well paced film in the process.
What's this REALLY mean? Everything has to be ready in advance, before you spend a single cent on the production. The actor's should be well-rehearsed, the location's secured, the props and wardrobe figured out, scenes story-boarded, etc.
: and when you write a script, what excactly do you do with it?
This sounds like an "I don't know what to do when I finish my script, but I want to produce and direct it" question. If you're looking for some kind of shortcut, there isn't one, not unless you know some "name" talent or industry connection that you can quickly funnel your script to.
In the short term, I'd suggest doing a rewrite, and then another. In the longer term, if you're looking to produce and/or direct, you start taking logical steps, which I'll spare this board the long-winded possibilities, and just say that you shouldn't worry about it until your script is fantastic.
I'd recommend posting SPECIFIC questions to the film-411.com board.
Always,
Michael Raben