"Controversial" indie trailer

I was just perusing DVXUser and there is apparently a "controversial" movie trailer on there that a user has created and shared with the forum. The trailer was shot with a DVX100A and no 35mm adapter and shot on weekends and spare time on zero budget. The reason it is "controversial" is because no one on DVXUser believes that it was shot without a large budget, lots of equipment and a full crew. I believe the guy. I dont see anything there you any of us on this forum cant do. Everyone is very impressed with the "real movie look", but again, that is something Stu is training us for. I think the disbelief is due more to the fact that few people on there could produce this. I think there are a number of people on here that could easily do this work if given the inclination. This is not to diminish the creator's work, I just dont find the claims that hard to believe.

Now, I've only read 4 pages of the thread, so I dont know what revelations are made, but I dont expect much. Maybe a wide angle add on lens, but I dont think any big budget revelations will be made.

What are your thoughts?

The thread:
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=127161

The Film:
http://www.ozan.ca/methtrailer/meth_final.wmv

I would send him a PM telling him of the book and inviting him here if I were a member over there.

Here is a quote from someone in that thread:

Quote:

...i do feel quite silly for naively taking this for what it is claimed to be in my first post. this is the kind of fun project that is made by seriously experienced DP's and sizable crews, assistants, money, and lots and lots of time. and you simply cannot get this sort of DOF with the stock lens. all of us who have a dvx unfortunately know this. rewatching it i actually feel as if it may have been shot on an hvx or a 2/3" chip camera... by seasoned professionals. who spent a lot of money. and time. regrettably, it is too difficult to discern the letters in the credits (which are---alas---very professional and extensive) toward the end...because maybe we could solve this riddle.

This pretty much shows the caliber of "filmmakers" over there. If this were the only post like it, I'd dismiss it. There are many.

I have no problem believing the filmmakers. I think the camera work is great, but what I love is the way this is edited.

It's a mistake to think that video cameras have no depth of field. You just have to know how to make it work. These guys clearly did.

Excellent job all around, and a testament to what can be done with the tools at hand and a healthy dose of talent.

Arthur

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Wow, there really were some haters in that thread. In the end though, it really does look like he could have shot it on his own. I mean look at what Rodriguez did with "El Mariachi". And this guy didn't say he shot the whole film, just a trailer. Nice work. He'd be a welcome addition to our neighborhood.

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Looks to me like the vast majority of the posts were positive. Let's see if we can achieve the same thing here—even about our friends at DVXuser.com.

-Stu

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Yeah, that's whats nice about this forum. Everyone is very civil towards each other and does their best to help each other out. That's why I keep coming back. Smile

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twitter: "bozfx"

	Boz wrote:
	Wow, there really were some haters in that thread. In the end though, it really does look like he could have shot it on his own. I mean look at what Rodriguez did with "El Mariachi". And this guy didn't say he shot the whole film, just a trailer. Nice work. He'd be a welcome addition to our neighborhood.

As long as we aren't disparaging anyone, I'll leave comparisons to El Mariachi out. Rolling Eyes

Especially considering what I went though entirely on my own, I have no doubt he did all that. As far as him being a welcome addition, I think that it would be great to have him here. A real inspiration, but nothing that is out of the reach of any of us.

It looks like it's the same guy who made Terminus and Tempbot.

I saw those on his IMDB. What are they? They sound familiar. And to be clear, his IMDB lists him as "camera operator" on those.

Terminus is, if I'm not mistaken, that surreal one with the weird dancing concrete pillar thing that follows the guy around. Tempbot is the one where a robot comes in as a temp in an office. I think Tempbot was Neill Blomkamp's

LOL... Terminus. Very cool. I need to .....(look it up...)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkof-BxoLM0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyiktNfn4AA

Thanks for that heads up, DJ, I never would have put 2 and 2 together.

Why would the guy lie anyway? I thought it was well done, looked nice. The amateur actors ruined it a bit for me but still it's an A+ in my book. Even if it was shot in SD.

Wink

Kidding!

LOL. It's funny. I just watched TempBot and Terminus again. They are both great, and that was the first I saw TempBot. The thing that kept going through my head, aside from "this is great", is "I wish they used a better camera." Rolling Eyes

Again, it is all about what you can do with it, and these guys are great. And a better cam would have looked.... better. That said, it would have lost alot of it's gritty feel it it were shot any differently.

I also just watched a bunch of Blomkamp's other shorts and they are crazy mind-boggling. I'm not a gamer, not a fan of Halo, and dont look forward to a Halo movie coming out, but what Neil did with his Halo shorts is great.

I'm a fan.

Very cool! Great camera work, superb editing!
With proper planning, I can totally see the guy doing it with "low/no budget".

Juan

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It's funny, Juan, because when I first read this about people not believing what can be done for no budget, I immediately thought of YOUR work. You are easily as good as this guy.

Im a big fan of Blomkamp. And the guy who did Terminus. Infact, Im a big fan of Spy Films, where both of those directors work. There are hand full of projects done by the various directors on that crew that are very awesome, and I find to be very DV Rebel like.

check em out here:
http://www.spyfilms.com/

(it would be a dream of mine to work for them... in fact the reel Im putting together from now til the end of the summer is aimed primarily at sending to them. Its a long shot, but I love to dream)

This "Meth" trailer is pretty cool. I fully believe this could be done on what they claim. A little knowledge goes a long long way after all.

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