Summer Movies? Make Your Own!

July 05, 2011

The summer movie season is well under way. Summer movies usually fall into one of three categories: buddy-cop action film, sci-fi action film, or superhero action film.  You know the films I'm talking about: Ludicrous gunplay! Giant explosions! Insane car chases! Plot holes you could drive a semi-truck through! I'll bet that you've gone to one of these summer movies and thought, "I could make a better movie than that!" Well, stop complaining and start doing! Do you have a digital camera and a computer? Well, you’re most of the way there. All you really need is an idea. Check out this short film made with a Canon DSLR and consumer software:

While this film represents the low-budget professional independent film-maker's perspective, don’t be intimidated. You don’t need the fancy (but reasonably inexpensive at around $800) video-editing software these folks used. All you really need is Apple’s iMovie or Microsoft’s Windows Movie Maker. Need music? Try Apple’s Garage Band. Special effects? There are literally thousands of YouTube videos that will show you how to do low-budget FX and CGI. Check out these MCPL materials on digital cinematography and film-making. Get a script, some friends, and make your own summer movie!

Jeff D.
Grandview Branch