Hi please check out my new short film - a brief noir :)

I have been experimenting with no-budget filmmaking. I made a little
film short, in the old
expressionist/noir style of the past. Check it out. Its suppose to be

somewhat surreal, so the story is a bit dream-like/nightmarish. It is
very simple - no elaborate special effects. Basically because I
couldn't. With no budget. Everything was shot on my old camcorder,
and edited on my home computer. So what you think.

http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2769762
(on ifilm)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...06660&q=brief+...


(on google video)

Great stuff!!

Fred
Fred Lebow

--


wrote in message
oups.com...
I have been experimenting with no-budget filmmaking. I made a little
film short, in the old
expressionist/noir style of the past. Check it out. Its suppose to be

somewhat surreal, so the story is a bit dream-like/nightmarish. It is
very simple - no elaborate special effects. Basically because I
couldn't. With no budget. Everything was shot on my old camcorder,
and edited on my home computer. So what you think.

http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2769762
(on ifilm)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...06660&q=brief+...


(on google video)

wrote:
I have been experimenting with no-budget filmmaking. I made a little
film short, in the old
expressionist/noir style of the past. Check it out. Its suppose to be

somewhat surreal, so the story is a bit dream-like/nightmarish. It is
very simple - no elaborate special effects. Basically because I
couldn't. With no budget. Everything was shot on my old camcorder,
and edited on my home computer. So what you think.

http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2769762
(on ifilm)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...06660&q=brief+...


(on google video)

Your directing, composition, and use of the frame is superb. Keep up
the great work.

Well done!!!



wrote in message
oups.com...
I have been experimenting with no-budget filmmaking. I made a little
film short, in the old
expressionist/noir style of the past. Check it out. Its suppose to be

somewhat surreal, so the story is a bit dream-like/nightmarish. It is
very simple - no elaborate special effects. Basically because I
couldn't. With no budget. Everything was shot on my old camcorder,
and edited on my home computer. So what you think.

http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2769762
(on ifilm)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...06660&q=brief+...


(on google video)

~Echo wrote:
Well done!!!



wrote in message
oups.com...
I have been experimenting with no-budget filmmaking. I made a little
film short, in the old
expressionist/noir style of the past. Check it out. Its suppose to be

somewhat surreal, so the story is a bit dream-like/nightmarish. It is
very simple - no elaborate special effects. Basically because I
couldn't. With no budget. Everything was shot on my old camcorder,
and edited on my home computer. So what you think.

http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2769762
(on ifilm)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...06660&q=brief+...


(on google video)
Hey that was really good! btw, what was that music? You should credit the performers. -Brian

wrote in message
oups.com...
I have been experimenting with no-budget filmmaking. I made a little
film short, in the old
expressionist/noir style of the past. Check it out. Its suppose to be


Very impressive, very Hitchcockian.

Helen.
(Just getting into video, Canon XM2, Vegas, all that good stuff. Fun.)

wrote:
I have been experimenting with no-budget filmmaking. I made a little
film short, in the old
expressionist/noir style of the past. Check it out. Its suppose to be

somewhat surreal, so the story is a bit dream-like/nightmarish. It is
very simple - no elaborate special effects. Basically because I
couldn't. With no budget. Everything was shot on my old camcorder,
and edited on my home computer. So what you think.

http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2769762
(on ifilm)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...06660&q=brief+...

I think it's a fine piece. But the credits show 2004- did you re cut it
since then?

The only critique is that the music, while nicely paced and well done,
doesn't seem 50's or even 60's to me. Too sophisticated!

Thanks for posting this.

--
John McWilliams

Thanks for all the great feedback! I really appreciate it! Really I
do! I have had a number of comments on the music. So let me
explain why I chose that piece. One I want something that had a French
feel to it. I felt the accordian in the music gave it a very French
smoky feel. Yet I still wanted it to be a modern take on the old noir
style, so I picked a more modern musically style. The music is sort of
a blending of 21st century electronica, with 40's-50's french sound.
Like someone remixed and old 78 record. So I thought it felt
right. The pace of the music felt right, it had sort of a mysterious
"dark" sound. The french overtones were there, but it still felt
modern. Almost neo-noir, if you will. I also was hoping to make the
statement that you can still shoot something with no special effects,
and just unique camera-play and create something "interesting" to
watch. I understand someoneone else might have done something
different musically. But that pieces of music, actually was the
inspiration for my film. It the vision I saw in my head when I heard
it. (my mind's personal music video) I was standing in a store, heard
that song, and instantly knew I had to put it to film. What I thought
was great, is since I have no expensive sound equipment, (just the mic
on the videocamera) dialog would have been out of the question. It
would have made it feel like a cheap home movie. (even though in the
end that is what it was, hehehe) So by doing it to the musical piece -
I felt its covered over some of that inherant low budgetness. In some
respects I filmed it somewhat using the technics I had seen in some
silent movies. But instead of still "cards" with dialog, I used the
gimmick of written notes, to enhance the plot. Anyway I'm rambling.
In the end, the films genesis came from that particular song. And I
tried to make my film look like, and feel like that song come to life.
The essence of it. Filmed in the present, but filled with the past.
Like the song was. Recorder in the present, but obviously sampling
music of the past. Anyway, that was my creative process in choosing
the sound. Thanks again for the input! It was hard using my old sony
camcorder. I had to play around with it a bit to make it look a little
more gainy like film. Video always look too clean. Especially old
videocameras. But its was the best i could do with no money, and just
an idea. In fact the whole first half was me just filming myself alone
in my bathroom. In fact the hand in the tub, is me too, wearing a
rubber glove. hehehehe But in the piece, obviously it is suppose to
be someone else. A friend saw the first 2 minutes I had done, and
wanted to know how it ended. I said, I haven't finished it. So he
said "you need to" That's what got me to finish the whole thing.




John McWilliams wrote:
wrote:
I have been experimenting with no-budget filmmaking. I made a little
film short, in the old
expressionist/noir style of the past. Check it out. Its suppose to be

somewhat surreal, so the story is a bit dream-like/nightmarish. It is
very simple - no elaborate special effects. Basically because I
couldn't. With no budget. Everything was shot on my old camcorder,
and edited on my home computer. So what you think.

http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2769762
(on ifilm)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...06660&q=brief+...

I think it's a fine piece. But the credits show 2004- did you re cut it
since then?

The only critique is that the music, while nicely paced and well done,
doesn't seem 50's or even 60's to me. Too sophisticated!

Thanks for posting this.

--
John McWilliams

Thanks so much for taking the time to check it out!
Fred Lebow wrote:
Great stuff!!

Fred
Fred Lebow

--


wrote in message
oups.com...
I have been experimenting with no-budget filmmaking. I made a little
film short, in the old
expressionist/noir style of the past. Check it out. Its suppose to be

somewhat surreal, so the story is a bit dream-like/nightmarish. It is
very simple - no elaborate special effects. Basically because I
couldn't. With no budget. Everything was shot on my old camcorder,
and edited on my home computer. So what you think.

http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2769762
(on ifilm)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...06660&q=brief+...


(on google video)

That's everything I was trying to achive! Thank you so much. I
really didn't think anyone would even watch it. I know today
everything is about how much money you spend, or the special effects.
I think alot of film makers forget the basics. The basics of
film/photography. I was hoping to capture some of that.


Phil wrote:
wrote:
I have been experimenting with no-budget filmmaking. I made a little
film short, in the old
expressionist/noir style of the past. Check it out. Its suppose to be

somewhat surreal, so the story is a bit dream-like/nightmarish. It is
very simple - no elaborate special effects. Basically because I
couldn't. With no budget. Everything was shot on my old camcorder,
and edited on my home computer. So what you think.

http://www.ifilm.com/ifilmdetail/2769762
(on ifilm)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...06660&q=brief+...


(on google video)

Your directing, composition, and use of the frame is superb. Keep up
the great work.