Hollywood Camerawork course

[Luke Stewart]

Wondering if anyone has used/seen this material. It looks really interesting, but due to the price I probably will not be ordering it.

http://www.hollywoodcamerawork.us

[tex098]

You can actually rent those videos and much more right here::thumbsup:

http://smartflix.com/store/category/86/Camerawork

They are Very similar to netflix only smartflix has "how to" videos.

[Luke Stewart]

That is sweet dude! thanks for the heads up.

[tex098]

I think I see a video on there with our very own Barry Green???

http://smartflix.com/store/video/3509/HVX-Bootcamp-Volume-1-Camera-Ops

Is this the same "Barry Green" that is on this forum???

[Dances With Cameras]

I think I see a video on there with our very own Barry Green???

http://smartflix.com/store/video/3509/HVX-Bootcamp-Volume-1-Camera-Ops

Is this the same "Barry Green" that is on this forum???


100 % identical :).

[Jason Ramsey]

Yeah, those guys are kinda shady though in my opinion. They operate in loopholes.

And, it has been alleged that they bought some of those tutorial dvd's under false company names and such. A lot of folks have had their stuff end up on there and they had no knowledge or gave no consent for it to be there. There is a huge old thread on them over on dvxuser about it all. They live in loopholes.

Later,
Jason

[Isaac Brody]

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=93027&highlight=Smartflix

[tex098]

I am sorry about that. I have never rented from them, and I did not know about the loophole thread. I would not have posted it if I knew there was a problem. :embarassed:

[Isaac Brody]

No worries, it's better that more people know about it and actually support content creators.

[Cedric_Akins]

Well a friend of mine has the Holywood Camera Works DVDs and he has let me borrow them. I know I could not have afforded them at $400 and still pay my rent, utilities, phone bill, car insurance, gas for my car, etc.

Not to go in to a tandom or ramble on but those dvds are the best tools for a cinematographer to have in thier library. Although at the time that I had borrowed his dvds I had a dvd burner I DID NOT copy his. The one reason I did not was that at the time I did not have any blank dvds, but I wished I had gone out and bought some especially now that my friend has moved to Chicago. I have been thinking of buying my own set but I don't get a chance to shoot as often as I would like. At the price they are asking it is intended for those who want to shoot on a regular basis.

One other program I would highly recommend in addition to those dvds would be FrameForge 3D Studio (http://www.frameforge3d.com) (current version 2.5). Those dvds and this program would go hand in hand, imho. These tools can increase a cinematographers and directors ability to communicate their vision much easier.

Here is the link to FrameForge 3D Studio.
www.frameforge3d.com (http://www.frameforge3d.com)

[Snodart]

They are very awesome. Just get a coffee before you begin.

[Max Link]

Just finished watching the sample chapters - Great stuff, extremely comprehensive. I think those DVDs should well be worth $400 to anyone wishing to go pro, I'll do my best to get the set asap.

[Snodart]

They show up on ebay now and then used.

[emotepix]

I have a set.

It's like a visual encyclopedia of camera blocking.
The tutorials are well done and completely comprehensive.

There should be a companion set made for real world camera rigging made to go with this because everything is done in 3D animation and therefore vastly simplified as far as the real world goes. It's very easy to say "put a dolly crane here and go from position 1 to 2 in three seconds", but there's nothing mentioned on exactly how to do that in real life, so in that sense it may be more a tutorial for directors. Also you may note that it's definitely not for producers, because there's no indication given that a shot such as the one I just specified would be pretty darned expensive to set up - all the shots are described in the same way.


Also of course when every possible technique for coverage is described, there's still the "gotcha" that in your particular project, it will never describe what's required, just what's available (i.e. it tells you about the entire toolbox, not so much which tools out of that box to use).

There's a section in the final DVD that covers notation, or the description of how to write/draw coverage blocking on paper that's kinda useful, in that it's at least something of a start towards getting a common set of symbols out into our world.

Don't know of many people who actually use it, though. Mostly people invent their own, in my experience, for better or worse.

Do I own my set? yeah. Bought it on eBay.

Was it useful? Probably. About as useful as reading a dictionary is to writing. We all learned to speak and listen without one, but having a set of definitions around is handy.

There's no mention of hand held, Steadicam, or aerial coverge. Most of the examples are indoors only, and high end Hollywood feature style. Little or no camera Dutching, zooming, or monkeyvision. Nothing about VFX. Just the basics of camera blocking - static camera, pans and tilts, dollies (no crabbing), tracks and jibs.

Which is quite a handful, in itself.

Has it made me a better film maker / visualizer? Hard to tell. Probably, if only because I now have an entire litany of moves that I know I *don't* want to use...

JM2c, YMMV
HTH
Cheers
Chris

[Cedric_Akins]

I would have to diagree about these dvds not being for producers. There are different types of producers in my opinion. Take Project Green Light Season 1. The main two types of producers would be one focused on the financial aspects of a project and and the producer focused on the creative aspect. Both of which would benefit from at least watching these. They have to meet with the director daily and have to know what the director has planned for each day of shooting well in advanced. In order to have everything for the shoot each day, i.e. dolly and track, crane, steadicam, etc. The creative producer would be able to suggest other ways to get the emotion needs of some scenes across to the audience that the director is over looking. Sometimes directors can have a tendency to go for the types of shots that are not the most cost effective or creative enough. Therefor you need some one else to help to guide the director in another direction for the sake of the project.

[davidp]

I own this dvd set. It is a superb resource.

You can purchase the dvd set from the website and use a promo code to save $120 making the final cost about $280. Use the code FREEFILMSCHOOL2 or use google to find a current promo code.

You can also purchase for discount through this site http://filmschools.4filmmaking.com/couch-film-school.html
just scroll down

[Dances With Cameras]

Freefilmschool is a great site !

[aidenvfx]

I will be selling my copy of these DVD's very soon for anyone interested send me a PM

[Craig Bowman]

These are an excellent resource. You get a basic visual vocabulary from which you can then quickly use in literally billions of combinations to solve a variety of issues as they come up on set. The graphical notation parallels the vocabulary and is dirt simple to use.

Most of the basics have been tested and developed over a hundred years of filmmaking and are what actually work and give movies that elegance, quality and production value we have come to expect from a hollywood movie.

Its hard to successfully break the rules if you don't know what those rules are and why they work so well. Finally a DVD series that expects you to think and not a moron's recipe book or idiotic lilt of "Dick and Jane" set up a dolly.

[Kyle Presley]

Although at the time that I had borrowed his dvds I had a dvd burner I DID NOT copy his. The one reason I did not was that at the time I did not have any blank dvds, but I wished I had gone out and bought some especially now that my friend has moved to Chicago.

You know that would be stealing right? Just as bad as smartflix IMHO.

EDIT: Just to clarify, not calling you a thief.

[Tim Hole]

I thoroughly enjoyed the course. I do lend it to friends although won't let them Rip them. Partly because I paid so much money for them. HeHe!!!

It was refreshing. I learned more from that course than the whole of theory at Film School. Although back then the whole reason to go to film school was to have three years off just being creative.

I was and still am tired of too many basic courses that teach the same old crap and never go into depth. Like a lighting course that just teaches three point.

These things are all about experimentation though. The course I would definely recommend. If you were in my neck of the woods I would lend them to you but you aren't!

[Luke Stewart]

Hey thanks man. Are you working on a film right now?

[Tim Hole]

Thats something that doesn't get asked very often...but then I suppose the threads are question specific so people like who annoy others from time to time for going off the topic (just yearning for conversation) - I get nice conversation from my partner, i'm lucky enough to be with someone who is creative thank the stars.)

I just finished shooting a short surrealist film for a friend of mine. Its on Youtube if anyone wants a gander at it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NpAatvrZjs

But otherwise as always working on writing those features cause they don't write themselves - unless you are David Lynch!!