EVENTS/CAREERS IN FILM

For those interested in College and Career Readiness please check out SAWorks:

SAWorks

This is a MAJOR event for all film students especially ADVANCED and PRACTICUM students. Click on the following link to buy tickets to this event: TXMPA Texas Film Showcase

CINEFESTIVAL

ALL film students should attend at least ONE day at Cinefestival. It would be great if ADVANCED FILM STUDENTS and PRACTICUM STUDENTS went.

Click this link CINEFESTIVAL

Each Spring some of the best in contemporary U.S. and International Latino films screen at the Guadalupe Theater in San Antonio. The eight day program boasts world, regional, and U.S. premieres culminating with the Premios Mesquite honoring the festival’s stand out entries in documentary and narrative filmmaking.

The grassroots history of the festival — formed in the fervent days of the Chicano Movement — gather in one place a unique mix of filmmakers, audience, activists and artists from New York to LA to Mexico City all to the West Side of San Antonio, the city’s historic center for Mexican American culture, art, and social life for over a hundred years.

Your FEATURE FILM internship is from May 17th - June 7th. You have the opportunity to work on a real film set. You must arrive to school BEFORE 9am and be prepared to leave promptly at 9am. The school van will take you to set and you will return to school at 4pm. If you are a film student you have the OPPORTUNITY to be an intern for this film. If you are interested please speak to Mr. Calvo.

"Stage V"

Mr. Calvo on the set of 

"Spirit Riders"

1. As my Introduction to Film Production students will learn this year, pre-production is a huge part of filmmaking.  This is where you look into the future and try to anticipate the bumps you may encounter while making your film.  Great pre-production results in a happy crew, secured locations, staying on schedule and an easier time in post.

Production paperwork during pre pro.

2. A great authentic location adds production value to any film set. When possible try and secure locations that make your film feel more real. This courthouse is a great example.

Outside of courthouse during Day 1

3. The sound cart on display. Simple yet effective.

Sound cart with pouch for boom.

4. A lot goes into making each shot look natural. At first glance a pair of actors walking out of a courthouse may seem as easy as setting up a camera and yelling action but the truth is it takes a team to get that natural look and sound.

The crew in work mode setting up the Ext. Courthouse shot

5. How do you light a scene when its daylight? You use the sun! Using shiny boards, deflectors and bounces you can direct the ultimate light source to just about any spot you need it. It takes an experienced eye to get the right look so always be willing to listen to those who may know more about lighting then you do.

12X12 Bounce being secured by the G&E team.

6. If you are dealing with uneven light sources such as filming outside and different exposures due to shade and bright sun you may need to add light to your shaded areas. This light can be dialed back with a dimmer, scrims or made soft with a soft box.

Lighting outdoors with soft box



7. One of the jobs of the 2nd AC is to slate each time the camera rolls. The slate is especially useful when you are running sound as the DIT/Dailies editor can easily use the information on the slate to sync up audio and video.  In the slate below you see such information as the ROLL, Scene number, Take, Production Name, Director and Camera Operator. In the center of this Slate there is a clock which feeds timecode to the sound recordist and video operators. 

The all powerful slate

8. Most gear the G&E team will pull out can be anchored with sandbags but on the bigger items crew members themselves may have to weigh things down.

Some G&E crew holding down a 20X20

9. The sound recordist sound bag. This bag is complete with harness, headphones, field recorder, lav mics and receivers and anything else the sound recordist may need. When not being used the sound bag lives on the sound cart as seen below.

Sound bag

11. Generally there are two ways you can have a camera dolly.  By using the standard doorway dolly or by using the dana dolly.  The dana dolly is pictured below being supported by two C-stands. 

C-Stands supporting the Dana Dolly

12. The camera makes it happen. Yes there are many elements to making a film and many tools used in the craft of filmmaking but none more heavily associated with making movies such as the camera. The camera shown below starts from left to right with a battery pack, camera grip, remote focus, monitor, lens, matte box all mounted on a shoulder rig. The camera itself isn't all that big but when all the bells and whistles are added its pretty impressive. 

RED Scarlett set up ready to go.

TBA

www.shortfilmtexas.com

If you are interested in getting real set experience on your own please visit www.shortfilmtexas.com and look for crew calls in San Antonio.  Indie shoots are always looking for students to intern on productions. 

CURRENT INTERNSHIPS:

San Antonio Scorpions via LCTV/Machina Cinema (04/01 - 07/30)
Ed Lozano is a Television professional whose company does audio and visual work for the San Antonio Rampage, San Antonio Talons, San Antonio Scorpions and many other ventures outside of Texas. 

"Now Hiring" directed by Mark Cantu via Anne Patrie/Machina Cinema (05/18, 05/19, 05/25, 05/26) 
Mark Cantu's company Lime Wire Films embarks on their first full length feature, the comedy/adventure "Now Hiring". This is a great opportunity to work on a film set and gain experience in the field. 

https://www.facebook.com/NowHiringOfficialMoviePage

"The Juliana Incident" directed by Dave Novak via Toastworks Productions/Machina Cinema (05/30 & 05/31) 

Dave Novak's directorial debut shooting OVERNIGHT Thursday to Friday morning. Machina Cinema is producing this short which has great chances of traveling the festival circuit. This is another GREAT opportunity to work with professionals on set. 

 *If you are interested in an internship please email Mr. Calvo for more details.

Art Director – Designs and oversees set construction.

Assistant Director / First Assistant Director – Helps the director by planning the filming timeline and managing the set, the extras and more.

Associate Producer – Assists the producer and communicates with both the production and postproduction crew.

Best Boy – The primary assistant to either the gaffer or the key grip.

Boom Operator – Holds the microphone boom near the action to capture the dialog.

Camera Operator – Follows the action with the camera, according to instructions from the director and cinematographer.

Cinematographer / Director of Photography – Carries out the director's vision for the look of a film. Plans and supervises others to achieve the right camera shots, lighting, set design, etc.

Director – Directs all creative elements of a film, from helping hire actors to choosing locations, and makes sure that his/her vision is successfully communicated to the crew.

Dolly Grip – Sets up the dolly track and operates the dolly, allowing the camera and camera crew to move smoothly as they capture the action.

Editor – Works with the director to produce the final cut of a film that both flows well and captures the director's vision for the project.

Foley Artist – Creates sound effects that can't be captured during filming.

Gaffer – Sets up the lighting on set.

Key Grip – The head grip in charge of setting up equipment to enable the camera crew to capture the right shots.

Line Producer – Handles the budget for a film project.

Location Manager – Scouts locations and obtains permits for filming in those locations.

Negative Cutter – Cuts the actual negative of the film as directed by the editor, director and others.

Postproduction Supervisor – Coordinates the processes and workers involved in finishing the movie after filming has wrapped.

Producer – Runs the business end of a film project, from finding a script to hiring to finances.

Production Assistant – Handles a variety of small tasks necessary for daily operations on the set.

Production Manager – Manages the many business aspects of a production, from getting the right equipment to arranging housing for the cast and crew.

Production Sound Mixer – Records all production dialogue and other production sounds at optimal levels. May also mix the various tracks for dailies.

Set Designer – Responsible for executing the construction of the set according to the art director's instructions.