PRIMARY KNOWLEDGE SOURCES FOR BEGINNER FILMMAKERS
Hello :D
Today I will be covering one of the most difficult tasks a beginner film maker/photographer might face; seeking appropriate, useful and practical knowledge for personal development in these fields. Its not only about acquiring the right knowledge out there but also finding something that is simple, understandable and quite easy to grasp not only in theory but in practice as well. This post basically focuses on the internet sources such as websites, blogs, Youtube channels and other online sources. Books, articles and journals might be covered on another post.
This post will be divided into two. The first part will basically be based on the main sources I find very useful for beginner and/or independent film makers or at least for those who aspire to be in the future times (discussed in this article). The second part will be on photography sources which might be of great help to beginner photographers and even as a reminder for the professionals as well (will be discussed on the next article).
DISCLAIMER: These articles are written under my personal opinion. The opinions are based on my personal experience mainly covering what I consider as primary sources of knowledge for my journey in the arts of film making and photography. There are lots of sources out there that give knowledge on these fields and it might be hard to start off with all the choices you have from the great pool of knowledge on the internet. I faced the same problem and I figured that sharing my experience might help beginners in choosing the right material. RIGHT in this case is SUBJECTIVE, one might not quite appreciate some of my choices which is quite reasonable (due to relativity). But also there might be some good sources which I may not have included in these articles so please be sure to leave a comment to let me know. We all learn from one another.
DISCLAIMER II: I am not paid or funded by any of these sites or channels. They inspire and motivate me so this one of the ways I chose to attribute them as a sign of respect and appreciation.
NOTE: I will cover my top five sources and why I consider them as primary sources, followed by some honorable mentions.
1. FILM RIOT
Film Riot is a Youtube channel owned by Independent Director/Producer Ryan Connolly. The show was initiated in 2009 and has since then developed and evolved in the art of film making. Ryan Connolly shares his knowledge and experience on film making weekly (on Thursdays) with his crew members and has been a great encouragement to independent and aspiring film makers. The weekly episodes are accompanied with short sketches - mainly comedic - which are then used to cover a certain topic or issue within film making. Due to the great audience and demand, Film Riot initiated a Monday episode to answer questions posted to them.
Personally, Film Riot has been and still is one of my great sources for my film making journey. They have proven that one doesn't need high budgets and expensive equipment to start off. But also they have proven that with effort and practice, success will be the reward. Director/Producer Ryan Connolly owns his own production company Triune Films and has produced 3 short films under the company.
Courtesy of Film Riot
2. PHILIP BLOOM
The man's website/blog is his own C.V. My words surely cannot explain his great work and effort. Primarily my role model in the film making industry. First I am inspired by his website/blog; where he tries to cover different issues, topics and questions in the art of film making. Questions like what gear to buy, or what lens to have, have all been answered by Bloom in his blog articles. Apart from that he also does frequent reviews on several cameras from DSLRs to cinema cameras which are very interesting to watch and might be useful when trying to buy new gear.
Now, forget the blog stuff; The Youtube Channel though.... is another hot topic. The channel is full of visually aesthetic videos of all kinds, from vintage to black and white, slow motion to timelapse videos, reviews of a huge bulk of cameras out there, forget that; even the Note 3 and the Iphone 5s have had the chance to show off their new prestigious features by the hands of the talented Philip Bloom. I can't say enough for he inspired me to go out there and shoot something; anything as long as their is progress in what I do. Personal favorite and one I would easily advice.
My Bloom Special.
Courtesy of Philip Bloom
3. NOFILMSCHOOL
Yeah, with this site no film school required. *Joking* I wouldn't like to discourage those in film school (I included). But seriously though, what Independent Director Ryan Koo has done for the aspiring and independent film makers out there is just amazing. I can't appreciate more. Reviews, gear, Introduction to Independent Film making, directors, DSLR Cinematography are all discussed in this site. Not only that but also Ryan Koo gives us more advantage with a 100+ pages free DSLR Cinematography Guide covering the important issues from A to Z when shooting with DSLR Cameras - pre to post and many more.
Ryan Koo has taught me that sharing isn't loss but actually gain. We gain inspiration not only from what we do but also from the people we affect and inspire. Director Koo has released his short teaser film Amateur which is a prequel to his new feature film Manchild. Independent doesn't mean that one cannot exceed the defined limits, something Koo has taught us all.
Courtesy of Film Courage
4. FILMMAKER IQ
Now this here is one greeeat site, and I am not exaggerating when I write so. Practice is one thing, but without the basic history and theory some filmic concepts and terms will pass you by if you don't have the proper source to learn them from. Now Filmmaker IQ is by itself a proper conceptual film school. The history and concepts discussed in here will help any beginner film maker understand the cinema history and ideas which will then be applied through practice. Stuff like Film Noir, Aspect Ratio, Montage, Green Screen and many more concepts are discussed in a classroom-ish feel but still retaining all the fun.
Host John P. Hess with his great sound tone and face expressions takes us through these short conceptual videos which makes it easy for us to understand and apply some of the concepts we learn from filmmaker iq. From the site we also get articles related to each topic he discusses in the videos and after that a short warm-up quiz for those who like a little challenge. As I said the site itself is enough to be a film school. Be it popcorn and cinema, dolly zoom or the psychology of horror and even some photography tips, filmmaker iq has it all covered.
Filmmaker IQ special
Courtesy of Filmmaker IQ
This site which also has its own Youtube Channel has some my favorite DSLR tutorials. Not that there aren't any other good tutorials out there but the hosts in this channel keep it short, simple and understandable as well. Filled with different kinds of reviews and test videos from low end DSLRs like the Nikon D5100 to higher end ones like the Nikon D800, Canon 5D MKIII and even the BlackMagic Pocket Cinema Camera. Not only cameras but also entry level gear like sliders and jibs are discussed in simple language with *less words, more practice* style.
The hosts also cover some issues in post production such as color correction and grading, how to speed up editing process in editing suites and even give away some of their presets for people to use (especially useful for us beginners). The hosts Marcel Fenchel and Moritz Janisch have been working since 2005 as commercial film makers and give time to share their experience with others who aspire to be the same.
Courtesy of Fenchel & Janisch
HONORABLE MENTIONS
1. F-STOP ACADEMY: Mainly known for their regular email feed tutorials on important film concepts and practical knowledge. From the minor stuff such as introduction to cinematography to the major issues to be covered by a Cinematographer and his crew while filming e.g. compositional and lighting techniques.
2. DSLR VIDEO SHOOTER: What I admire about this site is that it doesn't hesitate to go deep into the gear stuff. Camera Op. Caleb Pike who is the founder of the site shares with us his experience, recommended gear, camera and lens reviews, how-to's and many more practical and technical cool stuff. A quick check is worth the time. Click here to visit their Youtube channel as well.
3. BIG LEAGUE FILM SCHOOL: I haven't had much time with this site but one thing is that it impressed me a whole lot. They are actually holding a 48-hour free online video tutorial consisting of 9 famous and great successful cinematographers on the 6th-7th of May. A great contribution to us beginner film makers and students. The BIG LEAGUE CINE SUMMIT is one of the best online workshops out there and I thank God that I got a chance to be a part of the event.
P.S. As stated above, due to limited time, resources and other factors some good sources may have not been listed. The sources mentioned above aren't the only ones I refer to. The internet is a wide ground and so having multiple sources is inevitable. If you have any reliable source not mentioned above please comment below. And in case of any errors please don't hesitate to correct me. To err is human :)