This is great advice. There is a lot of fear around making something bad. I once heard an actor say “so what? So make a bad film.” Which is true because it probably won’t be as bad as you think it is and you also will never learn or get better unless you make.
The self doubt is real. On every shoot I’ve done, I’ve had moments that I felt I was in over my head and things were not going to work out. Glad to know I’m not alone and we all feel it!
I have recently filmed my debut short film and have sent it to various festivals, and surprisingly they are receiving selections and it was even a quarter finalist in a festival. So all those FILMMAKER friends, write, film and edit.... You are gonna rock....
That bulldog spirit kept me in line to finish a survival horror game to put on Steam, even though it did ultimately suck. Point being, I stayed committed to the project so that I could learn from all my mistakes and use that as a foundation of what worked and what didn't. On the same spectrum, I have taken a liking to animated short films and I'm working on a few right now, using Unreal Engine 5 and as many free assets as I can. I'm not a 3D artist; I'm a storyteller.
This is brilliant: 2:10. I grew up in the days of film, when making a film of a storyboard would have been prohibitively expensive (for a small operation). I love how you can get the tech to really work for you this way. I am imagining that it speeds up editing afterward, as you know where each shot goes and can just place the real shots on tracks above. Just brilliant.
I needed that bulldog advice today. I'm a few weeks out from production on my second short and a lot of things have fallen apart lately. I definitely have been like maybe I should just blow the whole thing up!? Luckily I seem to have that stubborn energy where I never stop doing the thing. Its nice to know that others feel this way :)
This video gave me such much motivation to go out there and shoot a short film! I'm 17 years old and recently decided that I want to become a Director of Photography some day, as I believe that I can do it and it's a fulfulling job. I just need videos like this so the doubts don't crush all of my dreams. Thank you!
Thanks for sharing your experiences! Your videos are inspiring for fledgling filmmakers, and this kind of content helps us pickup some of the lessons normally learned through pain.
Thank you so much. I have so many doubts and yet I just want to keep going. Your words didn't dishearted but rather prepared me, I hope, for the future XD
This is good advice for people first starting out. I’ve been doing this a few years but I’ve never actually done my first short film of college. Hope I can get one done this year. Wish me luck
Your advice towards the end of this video helped me make decisions that would end up changing my life. It was like looking at my reflection giving me advice. You knew you were special, gifts given from above, and you’ve done so much good with it. You inspire me , and I appreciate you. You make me want to be a better filmmaker. Because of that, I also believe I’ll be a better man.
I cannot thank enough for finding this channel. So many good information, and you are funny as well! I'm just having a Friday marathon with your videos.
Im in the exact same place now. Broke after Flee and planning to write another very small short soon to keep up the momentum. -referring to your film after Will the Machine.
This is a great video, I have to listen to it lots of times. My problem is the social anxiety of working with people, as I'm the director and filmmaker, I can do good solo films and videos but always seem to make an excuse not to film with actors and crew even though they would like to work with me.
This sounds like fantastic advice for any artistic project! I don't know if I will make a film, but a lot of these videos inspire me to do better on any project I do work on
I appreciate the bulldog tip. I did a video essay on how rappers inspire me, partially because they’re just so cocky and love their own art more than anyone. So anytime I start to doubt myself, I adapt that rapper mentality that I’m the best (even though I know I’m not) and it has helped me finish so many projects. Even if the end result wasn’t the best, I could at least say I finished it and moved on to a better one.
Thank you for this. I've definitely been having a hard time working on my stuff and its easy to blame life, but hearing how you struggle with finishing what you started helps me realize that we can be our own worst enemies. thank you once again.
You are hilarious and motivating, and I needed to see this. I love telling stories, and either by a stroke of genius or insane whim, I decided to turn some of my stories into a screenplay and film them. I've now spent two years and thousands of dollars on equipment and I plan on filming my first short film this Fall. I am following you for tips and motivation. Thank you for the good vibes and humor. I loved "I'm going to finish the sucky movie anyway." Printing it and putting it on my wall.
This little movie was great because of your interactions with us viewers. I try and keep up with what's going on in cinema and despite all the technical advances around, most movies rhyme with Sphinx. You on the other hand are incredible.
Great advice that I could definitely use in my own quest to do this YT thing... that I definitely have no idea about how to do. Keep making great work!
Thanks buddy! I halted one short film. I wasn't happy of cinematography part of it and to be honest, my own acting. I took couple of months break from it and worked the long project instead. Finally I took this short one from the "dark hole" and decided to finish it this week.
I was going to ask how you record audio and then ended up binge watching your channel, I watched your latest 3 movie shorts (all really cool) and found your video on audio. Really useful.
You are truly amazing I am a photographer but Want to start filming. It is kind of scary starting with a full story. Could you please make a video on how to do some short clips that last a couple of seconds. I think that most of us would appreciate starting slow.
Hey dude thanks for the video, we all go through life with struggles and we should be able to pro each other up... and you my friend, there's no need for me to tell you how much your efforts are to make us a better filmmaker
Anyone else catch where he said "in spite the fact that these were three tiny projects (holding up 2 fingers), I walked away from them with three huge lessons." (holding up 4 fingers)?
The worst thing is when the locations that said they would let you shoot start changing their mind the last minute. Its insane why people agree to let you shoot in their location and then dont realize the scope of how big it actually takes to shoot the film. Even after conversations after conversations with them and they decide that they dont wanna let you shoot it at the last minute. I've seen it happen plenty of times. Once i saw this happen on the set of an indie film that i worked on out in Petaluma, CA. The ranch owners agreed to let them shoot for an entire month. Then, in the first or second week of shooting into the film, they wanted to call it off. I think the investors had to find more money to pay them to let them continue filming. Anyway, the film was still garbage. But i remember that happened. Almost happened to me once recently when shooting a music video. My DP almost ruined it for us. I had to get him to shut up or walk into another room to be more diplomatic with the business owners. You need to be level-headed, and patience really does go a very long way.
lots of helpful information, appreciate you sharing all this. Just curious is the audio in this video all coming from the dji mic you are holding in hand, sounds really good I think?
Making my own movies is my dream. Just wondering if it's possible to do it yourself. For now, I'm thinking about a script that is simple but interesting enough to be done by myself, which is not that easy. Thanks for some inspiration.
It's Philip Seymour Hoffman! FINALLY, I got a good look at the painting between 'The Dude' and Travis Bickle. And here I thought it was Kenny Rogers... which would've made no sense, at all.
LOL I don't know why so many creators hold their clip-on lavs...and now with a tripod?? Anyway, I think the Bulldog suggestion is the most relevant. I usually get shoots done just using grit and sacrifice since I'm not rich enough to hire professionals.
