Author Archives: Michael Korican

About Michael Korican

A long-time media artist, Michael’s filmmaking stretches back to 1978. Michael graduated from York University film school with Special Honours, winning the Famous Players Scholarship in his final year. The Rolling Stone Book of Rock Video called Michael's first feature 'Recorded: Live!' "the first film about rock video". Michael served on the board of L.I.F.T. when he lived in Toronto during the eighties and managed the Bloor Cinema for Tom and Jerry. He has been prolific over his past eight years in Victoria, having made over thirty-five shorts, won numerous awards, produced two works for BravoFACT! and received development funding for 'Begbie’s Ghost' through the CIFVF and BC Film.

Titles and Thumbnail are Critical to Your Success

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Kent Lamm of Standard Story Company warns that YouTube will BURY your films without this. The this? Your title and thumbnail.

He says:

“Getting your film SEEN in the Age of YouTube is a different game. Your title and thumbnail have a huge effect in how many people will watch your movie. Give your short film or feature its best shot by optimizing your title and thumbnail and planning ahead.”

The Title should be:

  1. meaningful for your film,
  2. unique,
  3. catchy,
  4. grammatically simple,
  5. seo-able, and
  6. have an available domain name.

He admires the way Omeleto titles their films: Logline sentence. | Film Title

He also thinks getting the genre into the title helps.

The Thumbnail should be:

  1. a compelling image that’s going to get people interested,
  2. most likely a frame-grabbed close up of the main character,
  3. but why not get some dedicated stills on set?

My take: This stuff can’t be an afterthought. In fact, I think that after the film title, the film logo and one central image can really help you fine tune the script, narrow the audience and solidify the entertainment promise (probably because I worked as a graphic designer for many years.) Oh, as to the title, you might as well choose from the beginning of the alphabet rather than the bottom half.

CineVic to offer cash grants for films

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CineVic, Victoria’s media arts centre, has just announced its DYNAMO program that will fund new locally-produced films with grants of up to $2,500 in cash and $5,000 in equipment rentals.

One of the goals is to increase equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility (EDIA) in local independent film productions. An EDIA commitment to engage, collaborate with, and hire a diverse cast, crew, and community partners from underrepresented communities represents up to 20% of the assessment criteria.

“DYNAMO will support artists and filmmakers currently residing on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands, at all levels of skill and experience from beginner to established. The program aims to foster collaborative partnerships with individuals from underrepresented communities and equity-seeking groups, including but not limited to those who self-identify as Indigenous, First Nation, Metis, Inuit, Black and persons of colour, LGBTQ2+, persons with a disability, low income, or unemployed.”

I asked Arnold Lim for his feedback:

Q: Given your background, can you comment on the DYNAMO goal of increasing equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility in local independent film productions?

A: “The filmmakers of Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands are among the most caring and hard-working people I know — and as a Korean-Canadian filmmaker I’ve felt like I have been treated well by the film community here. Having said that, funding has always been challenging for me. Even though I have been making narrative films since 2011, the very first film featuring a Korean-Canadian on screen that I have been able to get funding for will be released later this year. I couldn’t get anything else funded before and only now do I feel like I could try to fund films that I’ve written and come from my perspective. As a minority filmmaker I see DYNAMO as an opportunity for equity and an opportunity for amazing artistic relationships to be formed.”

Q: As a long-time CineVic member and award-winning filmmaker working with budgets from $20 to $200,000, in your opinion can folks actually make a decent film for $2,500?

A: “It’s absolutely possible to make a great film for $2,500! I have seen films that make my heart explode that had no budgets at all and there are countless Hollywood films with multi-million dollar budgets that I couldn’t watch for longer than five minutes. As clichéd as it sounds, at the end of the day it really comes down to imagination, perspective and execution. I have said this before and I will say it again, Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands hit way above their weight class in terms of the number of amazing artists we have here and I am really pumped to see what projects grow from this great opportunity.”

The first deadline is October 31, 2022.

My take: I’m also looking forward to a crop of fascinating films from this worthy program. Let me know if you want to bounce ideas around.

BIFA replaces gendered acting awards

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Annie Martin reports on UPI that the British Independent Film Awards introduce gender-neutral acting categories.

She says:

“BIFA will replace its gendered acting categories with five new awards: Best Lead Performance, Best Supporting Performance, Best Joint Lead Performance — for two or three performances that are the joint focus of the film — and Best Ensemble. The new categories join Breakthrough Performance. Other organizations have also switched to gender-neutral categories, including the Berlin Film Festival, the MTV Movie Awards and the BRIT Awards.”

Meanwhile, John Norris argues on The Daily Beast Why the Oscars Should Do Away With Gender.

He says:

“It’s long past time for acting awards like the Oscars to be non-gendered. Whenever this, to my mind, sensible, modest proposal is brought up, the objections generally come down to three areas: (1) that if men and women competed against one another for Oscars, Emmys, Tonys, BAFTAs and Golden Globes, the result would be an XY tsunami, in which women would hardly stand a chance; (2) the inequality of acting opportunity in Hollywood and beyond is so skewed in favor of men that having separate female categories is necessary; and (3) that no one, from award show producers to networks to the public, wants to see any change that could potentially decrease the number of stars on stage or on a red carpet in a designer gown.“

He proposes that the two five-person categories should be combined into one ten-person category. Note that Best Picture is a ten film category.

My take: just to play Devil’s Advocate, I think we should acknowledge more excellence by female creators and therefore recognize male and female winners in every category. How about separate nights for each Academy Awards: one night the women can bask in their collective successes and the next the men can duke it out among each other for supremacy?

Please do feed the film crew

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According to the adage, an army travels on its stomach. And it’s no different for an indie film production.

Feeding a film crew? A few suggestions, and an idea on how to do it for free:

Sophia Harvey writes Food on Set: Do’s and Don’ts for Feeding Your Crew on No Film School and expounds on these topics:

  1. Don’t be stingy.
  2. Aim for variety.
  3. Keep it caloric, but healthy.
  4. Pay attention to dietary restrictions.
  5. Keep it hot and punctual.
  6. Crafty: no mess, no mayo.
  7. Coffee and water, always and forever.
  8. Choose bulk catering.
  9. Special touches matter.

AJ Unitas lists 8 Essential Tips for Prepping an Awesome Craft Services Table on StudioBinder that include:

  1. Keep caterers away from the craft services table.
  2. Buy supplies in bulk from wholesale markets.
  3. Account for allergies and diets.
  4. Fill your craft table with healthy options.
  5. But don’t get too crazy.
  6. Get brands specifically asked for.
  7. Turn cheese sticks into two.
  8. Keep your Production going.

How to afford what could be your biggest expense on a low-budget short?

Lacee Kloze suggests 9 Ways to Feed A Hungry Film Crew For Free on Creative Live. Her bold strategy?

  1. Create a flashy one-sheet about your project.
  2. Write a form letter.
  3. Send your form letter and one sheet combo EVERYWHERE!
  4. Don’t be afraid to ask for something small — snacks, drinks or desserts — instead of a full meal.
  5. Don’t forget to ask for staples like bagels and coffee.
  6. Hit the grocery stores, natural food markets and co-ops.
  7. Start early.
  8. Team up with a non-profit.
  9. When the yeses start coming back, follow through with your promises.

Three great blog posts to get you thinking!

My take: I like French Hours that keep your work day to 10 hours, with no meal break.

Netflix Approves Sony FX3 Cinema Camera

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Alyssa Miller reports on No Film School that The Sony FX3 Gets the Netflix Stamp of Approval and Why You Should Care.

She says:

“Netflix has just approved the Sony FX3 to be used for its 4K Netflix Originals. This approval is a result of the latest Firmware 2.0 that constitutes a major upgrade to the FX3 capabilities regarding cinematography and workflow.”

She goes on to explain Netflix’s minimum camera standard:

“Not only does the camera need the ability to record in 4K, but it also has to have a bit depth of 10-bit or higher, a data rate with a minimum of 240Mbps at 24FPS, a screen-referred color space, a scene-referred transfer function, and a timecode written as metadata, and it has to be capable of jamming to an external source. And this is just the start of the list, as ergonomics, durability, and usability also come into play.”

And why you should care:

“Why? Standards. Not in the biblical sense, but in manufacturing. Most camera brands (save for maybe Sony) aren’t building their next camera with a specific exhibition in mind. Codecs are all over the place, not all sensors are the same, and sometimes you even have to worry about overheating. Those kinds of issues on a film set can break your film. So if an exhibitor sets some standards for camera manufacturers, we’re inclined to support it, whether or not we’re shooting for Netflix.”

Here’s Netflix’s “cheat sheet” for FX3 camera settings and the Sony firmware update.

My take: I haven’t checked the prices of all the cameras on the Netflix list but this is probably the cheapest. Just sayin’.

U.S. Cinema Chain Woos Indie Filmgoers

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Jill Goldsmith writes on Deadline that Marcus Theatres Nudges Patrons Toward Indie Films With Loyalty Program.

Marcus Theatres of the Marcus Corporation is the fourth-largest cinema chain in the U.S. with over 1,000 screens.

The new monthly subscription plans are MovieFlex ($9.99) and MovieFlex+ ($14.99.)

Jill quotes Marcus CEO Greg Marcus as saying, “We can’t live off just blockbusters. We cannot just live off dinner. We need breakfast and lunch too.”

“The question is, is there enough demand in the market? We just don’t know that yet. But it’s promising. We are just going to continue watching, tweaking, working with content partners. But we are seeing positive signs. We want to be a very open book and share what’s happening with the studios, and get their feedback. There’s work to do on companion tickets, and families. And once we get through that, to figure out what the demand is. We want this to be a win-win-win for everyone.”

Marcus Theatres already showcases indie movies in their Spotlight Films series.

My take: I sincerely hope this experiment works. Diversifying the cinema experience beyond comic book movies at a reasonable price is truly a win-win-win for the audience, the theatre and indie filmmakers. It will also counter the rise of streaming and keep another distribution option open.

The School of Indie Filmmaking

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What to do if you can’t get into film school? Follow in Christopher Nolan‘s footsteps and invest in your own education by making your own movie.

In this video, Christopher Nolan describes how he made his first film, a 70 minute neo-noir called “Following.”

Rather than ask all his friends to make themselves available for a continuous stretch of time, he decided to shoot on Saturdays only for a whole year:

“It was a no-budget film and in the true sense. We spent about $6,000 on the entire movie so it was all myself and Emma and a group of our friends getting together each Saturday to shoot about 15 minutes worth of footage. We did that for about a year and put the thing together that way. It was a very good learning experience to be able to spread it out over that time. A lot of no budget filmmakers take exactly the opposite approach and are really fast and furious to get these people together and say okay you have to just do this for three weeks. I wasn’t able to do that because we all had to work full time during the week and couldn’t really take much time off.”

Other takeaways:

  1. Corporate video work taught Nolan how to light and shoot quickly.
  2. He cast stage actors because they can learn lines.
  3. They rehearsed for six months.
  4. They found amazing locations that would be expensive to recreate.
  5. He shot the 16mm film handheld.
  6. Black and white means you can create a more distinctive look.
  7. Shoot singles on each actor and then only limited master shot coverage.
  8. Do sound-only takes on set first to warm up the actors and to capture great location audio.
  9. Because not all your crew will turn up each day, you will learn to do every job on set.

The key to ultra-low budget filmmaking?

“One of the keys to getting an ultra low budget film actually finished is definitely to have in mind what kind of film you can make with the resources available to you.”

See Following on Youtube.

My take: lol, I did both. My suggestion is to join a film co-operative and invest your money in your own film projects. You can learn everything you need to from fellow filmmakers, and Google.

Lynn Shelton $20,000 Grant Deadline August 2

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August 2, 2022, is the deadline to apply for the $20,000 Lynn Shelton “Of a Certain Age” first feature grant.

“The Lynn Shelton “Of A Certain Age” Grant is a project-based award that provides $20,000 to an individual woman, non-binary, and/or transgender U.S. filmmaker, age 39 or older, who is working on their first narrative feature (65 minutes or over) as a director.“

The list of requirements (that you already have, right?):

  • Biography (150 words or less) – Tell the story of you and your work as a filmmaker and/or director.
  • Logline (75 words or less) – Distill the central conflict and important elements of your screenplay.
  • Film Résumé or CV (5 pages or less) – Upload your film résumé or CV.
  • Director Statement (300 words or less) – Articulate your filmmaking voice/philosophy and what about you and your process or work makes you singular as a director.
  • Film Project Overview (300 words or less) – A holistic summary of your pre-production or in-development narrative feature film that articulates the story, vision, and scope of the film, and gives the reader a feel for its main characters, plot, and themes. It should clearly describe what your film is about and give readers a reason to want to watch it.
  • Past Project Work Sample (2-3 minutes) – Provide a URL link to a video sample from a completed work (not a rough cut or work-in-progress) that you have directed within the last 10 years. If you are submitting links to platforms like Vimeo or Youtube make sure you include a password, if applicable. Indicate your start and stop time for the excerpt (e.g., “Start at 3:30 and end at 5:30”). If no start and stop time is provided, panelists will begin watching at the beginning and will watch for a maximum of three (3) minutes.
  • Narrative Feature (Proposed Project) Work Sample – Provide a URL link to one (1) of the following materials from your narrative film project that you are directing: ten (10) pages of your script (can be from any portion), a pitch deck, or clip (2 minutes or less).
  • Work Sample Context (50 words or less each) – Provide 1-2 sentence explanations for both your completed project and your current project that provide context for the reviewers for where we are in the story when your work sample starts.

My take: hey, 20K is 20K! If you qualify and you’re developing your first feature, you owe it to yourself to apply. When you win, these funds could very well be the tail that wags the proverbial dog. If you don’t win, you will still attract attention to yourself and your project. Like they say, nothing ventured, nothing gained.

TikTok virality spawns Spotify streams

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The Pudding and Vox have posted a video that explores what happens after TikTok songs go viral.

They say:

“It’s no secret that TikTok is a virality machine. Songs get turned into sounds that can be used in any video, and if they gain enough traction they can catapult a musician into the pop culture stratosphere. But we wanted to know exactly what happens between a song going viral and an artist becoming a bonafide success. So in the fall of 2021, we partnered with data analysis website The Pudding figure it out…. We were able to follow the numbers to track what happens to artists after they go viral — and how the music industry has shapeshifted around TikTok. It turns out the app is completely revolutionizing the way record labels work, and giving artists more leverage than ever.”

Key takeaways:

  • 125 artists got their big break and went viral on TikTok in 2020. (4:58)
  • When 15 seconds of a song goes viral on TikTok, people flood to Spotify to stream the full song. (6:14)
  • Record labels monitor TikTok like hawks and aggressively try to sign new viral artists. (9:36)
  • 46% of those 125 artists went from unsigned to landing a major record label deal. (14:12)
  • Musician L.Dre says, “The fact of the matter is, if you wanna make it today, you either have to have money to hire people, or you just need to also become a video editor. Also become a graphic designer. You definitely have to wear a lot of hats for sure.” (18:37)
  • Among the artists who had never toured before or played a show about a third of them have had at least one live show and about 15% of them are actually playing festivals now. (20:45)

My take: I know there’s a lot of hate for TikTok but I love that it grants some creative folks their “15 minutes of fame.” The fact is that there is an overwhelming amount of digital content being created every day — too much for any one person to sift through. The kids on TikTok are choosing the riffs they like, turning them viral. Their creators then get recognized on Spotify — and compensated. Once upon a time “Video Killed the Radio Star,” but now TikTok has killed the video star and, in today’s attention economy, the crowd has truly become the curator.

Netflix contemplates changes as it cuts staff

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Jennifer Maas and Brent Lang of Variety exclusively report that Netflix Begins Second Round of Layoffs, 300 Positions Cut.

A Netflix spokesperson told Variety: “Today we sadly let go of around 300 employees. While we continue to invest significantly in the business, we made these adjustments so that our costs are growing in line with our slower revenue growth. We are so grateful for everything they have done for Netflix and are working hard to support them through this difficult transition.”

Jennfier and Brent write:

“Netflix has lost close to 70% of its value since it announced it was down by 200,000 subscribers at the end of Q1, and expected to lose another 2 million subs in Q2. On Thursday, Netflix’s stock opened at $180.08 per share and was trading at $180.93 just after 11 a.m. ET. Shares of Netflix were trading at north of $600 in January. In its most recent earnings, Netflix committed to cutting costs in order to keep its margins at 20%. The streamer still plans to spend aggressively on content with a budget of $17 billion in 2022 for shows and films. That’s roughly in line with what it shelled out in 2021.”

My take: as digital content streaming matures, Netflix is facing how to evolve into a sustainable business because their model has always relied on ever-growing subscriber numbers. Having witnessed the price double in ten years, my advice to Netflix is to tread very carefully because cracking down on passwords and inserting ads may be the proverbial straw that breaks their subscribers’ backs.