As you may have noticed, there hasn't been any new posts in some time. Know we are still active here at Indy Burst, and we are planning a big new project. The project may or may not ever come to be, so no promises, but we are hoping it will greatly help people with movies, especially in the action movie effects department. No announcements yet, as the project is only in the planning/concept phases, but it should be very very popular. We'll try to keep you posted on future developments with the project, and start posting more content like normal shortly. Thank you for your patience and you continuing loyalty.
As an independant filmmaker, I know the difficulties faced when trying to make your final film look good. Let's face it, we (generally) don't have the time or money to get panoramic on location shots, or fly overs of landmarks and famous places where your movie "takes place".
This is where stock footage comes in. Stock footage allows you to get the shots you want, without hiring a pilot, or finding that special place yourself. Need a shot of nature? You got it. Need an aerial of a jungle? You got that too.
Sadly, stock footage isn't cheap, and doesn't always match your movie. If your filming on a Handycam, and you have HD stock footage, it's not gonna work, same with the vice versa.
Good stock footage can make and break the look and quality of you movie. Same goes for action movies. Indy filmmakers probably don't have the budget or resources to go buy squibs and hire pyrotechnicians. That's where stock footage of muzzle flashes and explosions come into play. With a basic effects program, and some footage, you can key in and make some pretty awesome and expensive looking effects. Here are two videos I've made, and neither would've been possible without stock footage:
In both those videos, stock footage was vital to it's creation. I used stock footage from two sources. In Daniel's Tropic Thunder, I used footage and effects from Video Copilot's Action Movie Essentials (1) and Riot Gear collections. They may seem expensive, but they are very reasonable for the quality and price.
For the city picture test, I used parts of Video Copilot's Action Movie Essentials (1) and free footage from Detonation Films. Detonation Films has a lot of very cheap stock footage perfect for action movies! All the explosions and fire you need, and a lot of it is FREE! They have quite literally just about everything you could possibly want in your movie. The only downside is you get what you pay for, and the free footage isn't always the greatest quality (Pre "Unit-K"). If you filming in HD, your probably gonna want to put some money down, and go to their HD site DetFilmsHD. Overall, there's a lot of great free and cheap stuff to find and use.
This great PVC project can save you over $400! Why buy a real Fig Rig when you can build a PVC version that does the same thing for about $10! Great idea!
The plans seems easy enough, and the design is very popular, so they're are lots of variations and other tutorials, not there needed with the detailed instructions and clear pictures presented on the site.
Highly recommended for any indy who wants a cheap but effective Steadicam! indy filmmaking
Indy productions generally don't have big budgets, and there are a lot of aspiring filmmakers who don't have thousands to blow on the latest Adobe software. Here's Indy Burst's list of free alternatives!
Most of these are available for download from Cnet's Download.com aswell.
Though for the most part you won't get the same quality as the pros using the thousand dollar software, these are all great alternatives, that are FREE! indy filmmaking
In this great Indy Mogul video, they cover how to make a $25 light kit, and the basics of lighting in video.
The video gives a great explanation of 3 point lighting, mood lighting, and free lighting (aka the sun). It also gives examples, which are helpful when describing the mood lighting.
Very cheap, very good ideas, and a great tutorial!
Welcome to the ONLY independent filmmaker's blog tailored for YOU! I know you don't have thousands to spend on professional equipment, I don't either! Here I'm going to gather resources that will increase creativity, decrease spending, and make your movies better, without spending thousands on pro equipment. I find the alternatives, and post them as links. This is YOUR resource! Here you will find what YOU need! Be it lighting set ups, green screen stand tutorials, or just stock footage links. We'll find 'em and post 'em here! I even have my own specials and ideas, plus stories on my experiences. So type in a search, post a comment, and find what YOU the indy filmmaker, needs!
If we like your website enough, and it is relevant to Indy Burst, you can have it posted here, for all the world to see! Free! Yup, that's FREE advertising, but only a select chosen few can have it. All you have to do is send us an email with your pages URL alongside a description of your site and WHY you deserve to be linked to. If your applications good enough, you get to be put here, for every Indy Burst user to see! Yay!
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