Q&A PRE-2004 UNTIL LISTED
Hi Oliver,
First of all I have to say for someone who doesn't consider themselves
a
teacher I've learned more about film and cinematography from reading
your Q
& A's on the imdb than I have from countless readings of magazines,
tutorials and books on the subject.
My questions are, when it comes to film stock , processing at the
lab on
most movies, what are the average costs for 16mm and 35mm film on
say the
usual 90 minute film. On $100 Million budget movies where exactly
is the
budget going and how much of it is really up on screen.
Regards
David Bailey
I am afraid there is no answer to the first part is as there is no such
thing as the "usual" 90 minute film. By this I mean that different
Directors use wildly differing amounts of film. When I made the low
budget films here in the UK in the 80's, all with budgets under $8 Million,
we reckoned on a shooting ratio of about 7:1, meaning you shot about 7
times as much footage as appeared in the film. So with a little bit of
maths and a few phone calls to Kodak and the Lab, you could work out the
answer yourself: you will have to decide whether to include dailies in
the budget - many studios are trying to do without them these days on smaller
films.
As for the second part, I had a call a couple of years ago to shoot
a movie in New York. I asked what the budget was and they said "About $60
Million." I thought this was Ok, but then I asked who was in it.
After they told me, I worked out we would have $18 Million to make the
movie. This is a very low budget to shoot a film in New York of any
magnitude.
There is no rule for how much of a budget is up on the screen: but
it also depends how you define the expression... If Mr Superstar is on
the screen most of the time, I guess you could say most of the budget is
on the screen!
Sometimes the most amazing epics are made for very little money: no
stars and shot in third world countries - low crew rates, very low rates
for background (human and otherwise), and cheap hotels and food.
I am planning to produce/direct a feature with my own money. Considering the difficulties with my budget and the high cost of 35 mm film stock I want to shoot with super 16 mm, hence I would like to know how much will it cost per meter for the final blow up of the negative to 16:9 ratio for the theatrical projections? ??--Murugesh
If you call the sales department of any Laboratory (say Technicolor or De Luxe), they will give you this figure on the telephone. (By the way, theatrical projection is 1:1.185, not 16:9 which is a widescreen TV format).
Hi Oliver, I am a producer in Los Angeles, and just got this really great script in my hands. I am looking for cast and crew. What are the rates that I should expect to pay a cinematographer on a daily basis???--Lenny
Local 600 publishes a "daily rate" for cinematographers. It is a guide, although you get people working for much less than this for non-union shows, and then "Oscar-winning" DP?s for a couple more zeros on the end of whatever it says. In other words, there is no amount that is "correct", but I expect any LA line producer could give you some averages. I don't know that they are!
2007
How do you define an independent film?
Lee
An "independent film" is one that is not financed by the Hollywood studios although there is a grey area which came about because the studios don't like it when small independent companies make a lot of money so they also produce "independent" films. They do this by setting up smaller companies (like Miramax, Fox Searchlight etc) and these companies supposedly make independent films. However, they are very different from truly independent films as they have the studio behind them to come to rescue if things go wrong.
True independent films are financed in a million different ways from people with credit cards to an Uncle who happens to own Walmart etc. They are sometimes "bonded" to guarantee the money should they go over budget. Quite a few collapse before, during or after shooting.
They also pay less money (or no money) to the crews who make them. Sometimes the crew gets paid if the film makes money and sometimes.. well.. they don't! It could also be taken to mean a film that is made without a distribution deal in place: distribution deals can influence casting and several other things making an "independent" film not as independent as one might think. Actors agents also do the same thing in an increasingly unethical way.