He posits how AI was used in the workflow makes an interesting case study of how these types of tools can help filmmakers create movies. ChatGPT was utilized to not only generate some ideas for a short film, but to also write the script, create a shot list, and in essence direct the film.
“With the help of ChatGPT of OpenAI, we were able to not only get it to write us a full script, but also have it direct us in the production of this short film. We were able to ask ChatGPT to give us a full shot list, suggest specific instructions for the Director of Photography and camera operators (choice of camera lenses, camera movements and lighting requirements), recommend wardrobe preferences, and even give us specific prompts to let Dall-E 2 create a full storyboard.”
My take: Looking past the quality of this one film, AI opens up limitless questions. For instance: What are the legal ramifications? What does it mean when everyone can issue prompts for their own personal movies? What happens to the human race if we in effect outsource dreaming to technology?
To celebrate the holiday season, Santa has collected a sack of scripts for your reading pleasure!
Screenwriting is the art and craft of writing scripts for films, television, and other visual media. Screenwriters are responsible for creating the dialogue, plot, and characters for a film or television show. Screenwriting can be a challenging and rewarding career, but it can also be highly competitive. Successful screenwriters often have a strong understanding of storytelling, character development, and the structure of films and television shows, as well as excellent writing skills and the ability to collaborate with others.
They also have to network, constantly promote themselves and be very, very lucky.
The Black List is an annual compilation of the most popular unproduced screenplays in Hollywood, as determined by a survey of film industry executives. The list is compiled by Franklin Leonard, a former development executive at Warner Bros., and is announced every year in December.
Each year, a group of over 250 film industry executives are invited to participate in the survey, in which they are asked to identify the best unproduced screenplays that they have read in the past year. The screenplays are ranked based on the number of votes they receive, and the top screenplays are included on the Black List.
They list Originals (spec scripts) and Stunts (based on existing IP for entertainment purposes only.) For instance, this stunt script will appeal to fans of SNL and Die Hard: https://www.ericmoyer.com/dielaughing.pdf
My take: reviewing these log lines, pitch decks and scripts is a great education. I really enjoyed Die Laughing — it would make a great group read!
Shot and projected at 16 frames per second, this footage has had its original frame rate restored, stabilized, upscaled to 240 fps at 4K, colourized and the faces enhanced with AI and finally output at 60 fps.
Dennis details his process in the first four and a half minutes of the film and categorically states, “This is enhanced material and is not historically accurate.”
Nevertheless, the films are a fantastic view into the past. Travel back in time to France, England and Egypt, among other countries. The motion smoothing does impart a different feeling to the footage than the jerky black and white aesthetic we normally associate with old newsreels.
My take: for me, the best shot, at 13:44, is “Panorama of the Golden Horn, Turkey, Istanbul” because it’s one of the few shots that is truly “cinematic” imho. All the other shots are filmed from a tripod and therefore static. This shot is also on a tripod but because we’re on a boat the effect is to dolly to the right, resulting in magical movement with very pleasing foreground, middle ground and background action.
Prahl says: “Nicole Fugere is probably the least-remembered of the live-action Wednesdays, taking on the role just a few years after Ricci’s version, and it also was Fugere’s last acting role. She appeared in the 1998 made-for-TV movie ‘Addams Family Reunion‘ and its one-season sitcom, ‘The New Addams Family.'”
My take: We loved Netflix’s Wednesday! I thought the colour grading was fantastic: the whites were tinged with blue and yet the skin tones and artificial light sources were a very warm yellow. Still trying to figure out how much was done on set and how much in post.
The 2004 comedy was made for only $400,000 but went on to gross $46.1 million at the box office.
Gregory elaborates:
“Speaking to Stuff about his ‘dynamite’ career, Heder confirmed he was paid only $1,000 ‘initially’. As we all know, Napoleon Dynamite is firmly cemented in pop culture and has clearly raked in millions since it was unleashed into the universe. Heder was able to renegotiate his deal and got a cut of the profits. Heder explained: ‘They went a little bit higher.'”
The cult film was based on a film school assignment by Jarod Hess in 2022:
My take: if the budget was truly $400,000, I think $1,000 for the lead was very low. However, if the cash budget was, say, one quarter of that, $1,000 starts to look reasonable. Sometimes shorts do lead to bigger things.
It’s quite revealing to look at the numbers in detail.
Let’s start with Genre.
Drama
7
Documentary
5
Comedy
1
Horror
1
Magic Realism
1
Mystery
1
Province?
Ontario
8
Quebec
4
British Columbia
2
Manitoba
1
New Brunswick
1
Let’s look at Language next.
English
4
French
4
Arabic
1
English/Arabic
1
English/Bosnian
1
English/Bulgarian
1
English/Farsi
1
English/Persian
1
French/English
1
Tibetan/English
1
And let’s finish up with Stream.
Filmmaker Apply-Direct
7
Industry Partner
7
Festival Selection
1
Industry Partner — Indigenous Component
1
In addition, if Gender is assumed from names:
Female
23
Male
15
Some observations:
Documentary is almost as successful as Drama.
Half of the successful projects are from Ontario.
Almost half of the successful projects include world languages in addition or instead of English and/or French.
Only half of the successful projects are from Industry Partners.
Finally women far outnumber men.
One might be tempted to conclude that Telefilm Canada is using the Talent to Watch program to over-correct its EDIA (Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility) results, but that would be highly cynical.
My take: wow! This is quite a departure for Telefilm. This is the first year that filmmakers could apply directly and Telefilm has rewarded them handsomely!
“Hi, I’m Josh, an LA-based filmmaker. I work as a writers’ assistant and script coordinator on TV shows, and I direct my own short films. By far, the most valuable thing I’ve learned about storytelling from big-budget shows and indie projects alike is that just two elements—the actors and the script—are way more important than everything else.”
Here’s my list of his important things to consider for indie filmmakers:
The actors.
The script.
Don’t over-crew; have some crew do two jobs.
No walkie talkies.
Keep insurance costs in check.
Be willing to walk away from too-expensive crew or locations.
Some cities have cheaper gear than others.
Join a writers group for feedback on your drafts.
Devise films with locations that you have or can secure easily.
Write for actors you personally know.
Use costumes you have.
Use equipment you have or can rent cheaply.
Buy your crafty at Cosco.
Save your costumes in case you need to shoot pickups.
Josh’s one day plus pickups shoot cost him $4,343.06 and he kindly shows the full breakdown.
My take: Thanks for sharing, Josh! One thing to note is that post-production actually cost more than double production. Oh, and nice short too!
“These strategic priorities are guided by Telefilm’s determination to provide a public service that reflects Canada in all its diversity. To this end, Telefilm will introduce nine initiatives in the coming months.”
The nine initiatives are:
Evolve our funding allocation approach by delivering a continuum of success for filmmakers, by increasing access for underrepresented groups and by enabling eco-responsible productions.
Act as a partner and ally on equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI), and eco-responsibility by adopting an evidence-based approach to our funding and corporate decisions.
Promote Canada’s unique creative voices and initiatives that set the example for a sustainable and inclusive screen-based industry.
Empower Telefilm’s teams and encourage internal growth and development.
Streamline our programs and processes to avoid red tape, ensure a simplified workflow, improve our services, and consolidate our partnership with the Canada Media Fund.
Develop and maintain user-friendly tools and systems that optimize data management.
Build on the trust achieved with the government to solidify the increase in our funding.
Develop relationships with public and private partners to create synergy and attract additional sources of funding.
Attract donations for the Talent Fund.
In the “Performance Indicators” section, Telefilm proposes to invest in:
34 Projects with production budgets greater than $3.5 million (61% of funds)
38 Projects with production budgets of less than $3.5 million (28% of funds)
27 Theatrical Documentaries (6% of funds)
15 Talent to Watch micro-budget features (4% of funds)
Telefilm also commits to:
50% gender parity for women in the role of Producer, Director, Writer
At least 16 projects with “a Black or people of colour” key creative
“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:
meaningful for your film,
unique,
catchy,
grammatically simple,
seo-able, and
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:
a compelling image that’s going to get people interested,
most likely a frame-grabbed close up of the main character,
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.
“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.”
“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?
