MAKING A FILM OR A DOCUMENTARY
Welcome to the filmmaking and documentary page!
This page is intended for aspiring American Indian high school and college
filmmakers with little or no filmmaking experience. It briefly outlines the
steps in film production, offers tips for filming, and recommends online resources
and tutorials for further exploration, including glossaries of film-related
terms.
Filmmaking is visual storytelling. Whether you want to create
a film that features a musical performance, provides entertainment, documents
real life or sells a product, planning is ESSENTIAL to the success of your
project. Long before the cameras start shooting, you as the filmmaker will
need to have a clear picture of what idea or concept you want to convey and
who your audience is.
FILM PRODUCTION
The process of creating a film is called PRODUCTION. Film
production has three phases, all of which are important to the success of
the finished product:
Preproduction. This phase of the process
usually takes the longest, but it's also the most important part of the filmmaking
process. In preproduction, the filmmaker comes up with and develops an idea,
identifies his audience and visualizes the story to be told. It also includes
site visits and scripting.
Production. This phase includes the actual filming: shooting
scenes, working with actors and site locations, and reviewing the footage
for usuable shots.
Postproduction. During the last phase of production the film
is edited, scenes are arranged in a logical sequence. Titles, music and special
effects are also added at this stage.
Use the links at the top of the page to investigate
each phase of production.
Source: Compesi, Ronald J. and Ronald E. Sherriffs. Video Field Production
and Editing, 4th Edition. Allyn and Bacon, 1997.