Short Films 101: How to Make a Short for Under $50K-and Launch Your Filmmaking Career

by Frederick Levy

Overview

Where does a young filmmaker begin? With the right short-film concept and this book!

The right short can be a filmmaker's "business card" in Hollywood. Here's the authoritative handbook by one of Hollywood's most connected insiders that offers a step-by-step guide through the entire creative process of shooting a short film, as well as expert advice from established filmmakers, and a final game plan for promoting and selling the film once it's in the can.Topics covered include:

€ Concept
€ Budget
€ Finding equipment
€ Assembling a crew
€ Casting
€ Arranging for location
€ Locating festivals and ancillary markets
€ Working with the unions
€ Film vs. digital video

Plus:€ A list of film schools
€ Oscar-winning shorts and nominees
€ A selection of short-film festivals
€ Actual short-film budgets
€ Sample scripts and shooting schedules
€ A helpful short-film glossary

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780399529498
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	05/04/2004
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	1,099,146
Product dimensions:	6.04(w) x 8.96(h) x 0.75(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Frederick Levy is the owner of Management 101, a firm that guides the careers of actors, authors, screenwriters, and directors. He also develops and produces film and television, most recently producing Frailty, starring Bill Paxton and Matthew McConaughey, for Lions Gate Films. Before founding Management 101, Levy was the vice president of development and production at Marty Katz Productions, whose films include The Four Feathers, Impostor, Reindeer Games, Titanic, Mr. Wrong, and Man of the House.

Levy is also the author of four books about the entertainment industry: Short Films 101: How to Make a Short and Launch Your Filmmaking Career (Perigee, 2004); The Hollywood Way (St. Martin's Press, 2002); two-time Los Angeles Times bestseller Hollywood 101: The Film Industry (Renaissance, 2000); and The Ultimate Boy Band Book (Pocket Books, 2000). Currently, Levy teaches film classes at UCLA Extension, the USC School of Cinema-Television, and the Los Angeles branch of Boston University. He is a sought-after speaker who has lectured at Harvard, Yale, NYU, USC, Rutgers, Boston University, and numerous writing seminars throughout the country. He has also been a featured guest on many TV stations and talk shows, including CNN, Fox News, MTV, VH-1, CBS News, Entertainment Tonight, The G. Gordon Liddy Show, and National Enquirer TV.

Table of Contents

Short Films 101Acknowledgments

Introduction

1. Getting Started: Why Make a Short Film?
Episode 1 · What Is a Short Film? · What Makes a Great Short Film? · Making a Short Film · The Calling Card · Getting Started · The Case for (and Against) Film School · The Purpose of This Book

2. Concept: Telling a Great Story
George Lucas in Love · Format · Genre · What's the Big Idea? · Amazing Stories

3. Budget: How to Spend the Money
Discount Filmmaking · From Zero to Fifty Grand · The Beg and Barter System · Choose Where to Spend Your Money · Choose Where Not to Spend Your Money · Don't Forget Post-Production · Show Me the Money · Short Budgets Revealed

4. Equipment: The Tools You'll Need
How Real Movies Are Made · Well Equipped · Visual Formats · Film Versus Video · Bargain-Basement Prices · The Least You Need · Hello, Dolly · Lighting · Sound Off · Cut · Compromise

5. Crew: The Pople Who Will Help You Achieve Your Vision
Shoot to Kill · The Power of One · Friends · Looking Beyond the Director's Chair · Ten Things I Love About Crew · Master and Commander · Best Crew Money Can Buy · Party of Two, Table for One · Creative Crewing

6. Cast: Finding Actors to Bring Your Script to Life
Before They Were Stars · Cast Me If You Can · The Star · Star Search · Working with SAG Actors · Will Act for Food · Rehearsal of Fortune · Understudy · A Star Is Born · How to Win an Actor in Ten Days

7. Action: The Set Comes to Life Once the Camera Rolls
Shoot for the Moon · Scheduling for Dollars · Bargaining for Locations · Anatomy of a Scene · Attention to Detail · Setting Up a Shooting Schedule · The Long and the Short of It

8. Post-Production: Everything After Wrap!
Post Haste · Editing · Visual Effects · Sound · Music · Transfer · Pick-Ups · The Moral: Plan for Post

9. Marketing: Coming Soon to a Theater Near You
If at First You Don't Succeed... · Marketing · Word of Mouth · Be Ready When Opportunity Knocks · Critical Recognition · Coming Soon

10. Distribution: Getting Your Film to the Right People
Release · Ready for Distribution · Self-Distribution · Internet · Film Festivals · Ancillary Markets · Profitability · George Lucas in Luck

11. Landing the Deal: Let the Hard Work Pay Off
Something in Common · Proceed with Caution

Conclusion: Famous Last Words
One Last Piece of Advice · The Meeting

Appendices
Film Schools · Oscar-Winning Shorts · Short Film Festivals · Software · Additional Short Film Scripts · Budgets

Glossary

Index

Editorial Reviews

Successful filmmakers like Luke Greenfield (The Animal) and Peter Lord (Chicken Run) began their careers by making short films. In this guide, Levy (Hollywood 101; The Hollywood Way) aims to help aspiring filmmakers reach informed decisions on issues of casting, crew, editing, budgeting, presenting a strong story line, and, most important, applying for financing. Unlike most filmmaking scribes, he does not give technical instructions; instead, he takes the reader through the process from start to finish. Included are budgeting plans, sample fund-raising letters, and sample scripts that were made into well-known shorts. Quotes and insights from professional filmmakers help to validate Levy's points. Kim Adelman's The Ultimate Filmmaker's Guide to Short Films: Making It Big in Shorts covers similar material and would make a great companion. This is an excellent resource for all serious film students; anyone interested in starting to make films will find it invaluable. Purchase where there is interest. Rosalind Dayen, South Regional Lib., Broward Cty., FL Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

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