In this Between The Frames segment, Chris discusses some specific production topics including: Filmmaking as jazz Improvisation Knowing your actors personally Asking for input Self-care Problem solving/conflict resolution Being present He covers their importance and some best practices to get the most out of each. He also recommends a list of tools and resources in the form of books, apps, and podcasts that serve the pre-production process, from organization to time management and communication. Here they are: The Q&A With Jeff Goldsmith. This podcast is an invaluable resource. The back-catalog is astoundingly large and you’ll have inspiration for weeks. Goldsmith knows how to ask the right questions of his guest filmmakers, actors, writers, etc. The Treatment. Host Elvis Mitchell has been around for a while and is a great lover of cinema. He’s done some great interviews from the past and, in this regular show, he dives into true … [Read more...]

PODCAST EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Michael Hall: From ShoHawk Media, this is Filmmaking Footnote, with your host, Michael Hall. You're listening to episode 9. This is the show where we give you the best filmmaking and production information so you can make the best project possible, without having to spend a bunch of time or money at film school. Let's do it. What's up, guys? You've got Michael Hall here. I am the host of Filmmaking Footnote. I hope you're having a wonderful day. Really quick, before we jump into the show, I wanted to apologize. I was re-listening to the show from a couple days ago, when I was talking about talent agents. I kept referring to Ari. He was an example I used from the television show Entourage, yes, terrible example. I kept referring to him as Ari Emanuel. His name in the show is Ari Gold. Ari Emanuel is actually a real talent agent who inspired Ari Gold. As you can see, silly mistake. My bad. Yeah, go look up Ari Emanuel, he's actually really … [Read more...]

In Part 2 of our production episodes, we'll cover shoot days 4-7. These days included a return to the apartment location, a series of offices, a ranch outside of Portland, and more. It also consisted of the biggest blocking challenge on the production, a tense moment, and a lot of laughs. It ended over drinks, food, and general merriment. The voices you’ll hear belong to Location Sound Mixer Tim Kahn, Art Director/Co-Producer Andrea Tolbert, Director of Photography Mike Elliott, Actors Brian Koch, Marcella Laasch, Jerry Basham, Joseph Costa, and Brian Sutherland. For exclusive access to documents, guides, and detailed breakdowns, expanding on this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie! EPISODE OUTLINE Day 4: Angela’s day Day 5: the offices Day 6: the car Day 7: ranch wrap Right click to download this episode. … [Read more...]

PODCAST EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Michael Hall: From ShowHawk Media, this is Filmmaking Footnote, with your Host, Michael Hall. You're listening to episode eight. This is the show where we give you the best filmmaking and production information so you can make the best project possible without having to spend a bunch of time or money at film school. Let's do it. What's up guys? How's everyone doing today. This is Michael Hall, your host of Filmmaking Footnote. Thank you so much for being here. Today we are talking Alan Smithee. Alan Smithee is a name that has been credited to over two dozen films as a director. Alan Smithee's first project was, Death of a Gunfighter released in 1969. His last credit appeared in the year 2000. The crazy part is that Alan Smithee is not a person. Alan Smithee does not exist. It is actually the official psydoname that was used by film directors who did not want to be associated with their films after they wrapped filming. This is the official name that … [Read more...]

Camera speeds… Sound speeds… Aaaaaand… Action! Counterintelligence has made it to production. All the work we’ve done so far has lead to this point. Production was so extensive we broke it into two episodes. Within each, you’ll hear from some collaborators from the cast and crew giving their memories of and insights from each day. They are mosaics of what life on our set was like. In Part 1, we'll cover shoot days 1-3 of 7. The first two days took place at my apartment and the second was a night shoot outside a brewery in one of Portland’s industrial districts. The voices you’ll hear belong to Location Sound Mixer Tim Kahn, Art Director/Co-Producer Andrea Tolbert, Director of Photography Mike Elliott, Actors Brian Koch, Adam Elliott Davis, and J.W. Crawford. For exclusive access to documents, guides, and detailed breakdowns, expanding on this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie! As I state in the episode, production feels like an endurance sport. … [Read more...]

 PODCAST EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Michael Hall: From ShoHawk Media, this is Film-Making Footnote, with your host, Michael Hall. You're listening to episode 7. This is the show where we give you the best film-making and production information, so you can make the best project possible, without having to spend a bunch of time or money at film school. Let's do it. What's up guys? Hope you're having a great day. You've got Michael Hall here. Today we are talking talent agents. Yep, talent agents. Talent agents, it's a fairly broad term, but when it comes down to it, it's a person who finds a job for an actor, an author, film director, a musician, model, film producer, sometimes professional athletes, writers, screen writers, or even broadcast journalists. These people I'm sure that you've seen a lot of examples in film and television. The one that comes to mind most often is Ari from Entourage, is the classic example. If you don't know what I'm talking about, there's a TV show called … [Read more...]

Between the Frames is a set of sub-episodes wherein Chris probes far deeper into specific facets of each filmmaking stage covered thus far. He explores some important practices, disciplines, philosophies and skills that may have been previously glossed over, under discussed, or all together undiscussed. In this inaugural Between The Frames, Chris discusses some specific pre-production topics including: Balancing Time and Money Organization Communication Negotiation Time Management Honesty He covers their importance and some best practices to get the most out of each. He also recommends a long list of tools and resources in the form of books, apps, and podcasts that serve the pre-production process, from organization to time management and communication. Here they are: Independent Ed, by Edward Burns - In this hugely inspiring chronicle, Burns recounts his rise to prominence as an independent filmmaker and actor, the career lull, and his resurgence … [Read more...]

PODCAST EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Michael Hall: From ShoHawk Media, this is Filmmaking Footnote with your host Michael Hall. You're listening to episode six. This is the show where we give you the best filmmaking and production information so you can make the best project possible. Without having to spend a bunch of time or money at film school. Let's do it1 What's up guys you got Michael Hall here today we are talking additional photography. So additional photography this is a word, it's a dirty word thrown around Hollywood a lot. It's a it's a dirty word disguised as a nice word. People say additional photography when they actually mean reshoots. And some people actually like to say that a additional photography and reshoots are two different things but really when you hear a studio head talk about additional photography he's talking about a reshoot. Okay I might I might just be being a little a little callous and mean about this. Reshoots and additional photography are actually two … [Read more...]

We’ve almost made it through Pre-Production, and the hardest work is yet to come. Micro-budget independent filmmaking hurdles emerged here that taught me lasting lessons. Sometimes, filmmaking isn’t as much a creative endeavor as it is a logistical one. It can be gruelling to plot the minutia in advance and fill out mounds of paperwork, but you feel the benefits once you, the cast, and the crew set foot on set. In Part 2, we'll look at the SAG-AFTRA process, SAG Indie, Production Insurance, Payroll Services, Tactical Planning, Scheduling, and Call Sheets. We borrow Scott McMahon’s wonderful interview with Darrien Michele Gipson of SAG Indie, Location Sound Mixer Tim Kahn, and Co-Producer Andrea Tolbert. For exclusive access to documents, guides, and detailed breakdowns, expanding on this and other episodes, sign up and ShoHawk.com/makethismovie! This week’s guide is extremely helpful! Pre-Production is difficult and confounding, but you’ll know you’re doing it right if … [Read more...]

PODCAST EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Michael Hall: From ShoHawk Media this is Filmmaking Footnote with your host Michael Hall. You're listening to episode 5. This is the show where we give you the best filmmaking and production information so you can make the best project possible. Without having to spend a bunch of time or money at film school. Let's do it! Hey everyone, welcome I'm your host Michael Hall thank you so much for being here today. And today we're talking additional cameras or as some people like to call it a multiple camera setup. So I have actually been working with a lot of multiple camera setups recently. In general multiple camera setups have been a bigger and bigger ask because there's so much content that needs to be captured these days and from so many different angles. Having multiple cameras and multiple shooters on set is a really great way to to capture a lot of content in a short amount of time. And I'm seeing that more and more often where we have multiple … [Read more...]