Video
tips on making your own movies


According to the October 1999 issue of WIRED magazine, which we recommend reading, a 20 minute celluloid short will cost you $40,000 in film and processing.

The same shoot on DV can be done on a $10 two hour cassette that can be used over and over. Desirable is a good camera such as a Sony DCR-VX1000 at $3,699 or the popular Canon GL1 at $2,699. Or if you have $125,000 to spare, check out the Panasonic AK-HC830 HDTV.

The above Sony and Cannon are 3-chip miniDV cameras, but you can get a Sony 1-chip miniDV the DCR-PC1 for $1,899. Another possibility is the Sony DVW-700WS digital Betacam at $51,000.

There are no processing fees, and you can edit at home on your G3 using a $700 software package like Adobe Premiere.

We cannot guarantee you will be the next Spielberg but below are a large number of microcinema and digital movie links and following that you will find a number of post production links.

See you at Cannes.
 
Online

AtomFilms With partners like HBO, Sundance, and Warner Bros. Online, AtomFilms screens Oscar-nominated shorts and festival hits. Each week features four new shorts running from 30 seconds to 40 minutes. The player: RealPlayer G2
http://www.atomfilms.com/
Bijou Cafe Alternative indie site with shorts, features, and genres like sci-fi film, noir, horror, and docudrama. The player: RealPlayer G2
http://www.bijoucafe.com/
The Bit Screen First-run shorts and episodic series running under 10 minutes. The player: RealPlayer G2
http://www.thebitscreen.com/
Film.com Backed by RealNetworks, this movie file portal offers clips of current-run features and blockbuster trailers. The player: RealPlayer G2
http://www.film.com/
iFilm A cross-genre clearinghouse with 270 shorts and rated audience reviews. The player: RealPlayer G2
http://www.ifilm.net/
MDFKR.com A clickable videologue chronicling 70-odd glimpses of people's lives. Each segment runs short - most under 30 seconds. The players: QuickTime, Shockwave
http://www.mdfkr.com/
The New Venue Online counterpart to D.Film's 21-city worldwide festival showcasing films made with computers and new forms of digital technology. The players: QuickTime, Flash
http://www.newvenue.com/
SFComedy All-comedy site with shorts and feature length films updated weekly. The players: RealPlayer, QuickTime
http://www.sfcomedy.org/
ShortBuzz.com A popular lunch break hangout, dedicated exclusively to shorts with audience and editor rankings. The player: RealPlayer G2
http://www.shortbuzz.com/
The Sync From The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) to a rock-and-roll bag piping mockumentary, this archive offers shorts, features, animation, and net-only talk shows. The player: RealPlayer
http://www.thesync.com/
Underground
film.com
An open forum that excludes only home movies. Story pitches and screenplays are available for download. The players: QuickTime 3 or 4, Flash
http://www.undergroundfilm.com/
Urban Desires A specialist archive rotates films on a 3 week cycle and includes interviews and contact information. The players: Quicktime 4, Flash
http://www.desires.com/
Westerns.com 75 full length classic western films. The player: Windows Media Player
http://www.westerns.com/
 
Digital Film Festivals

D.Film Digital
Film Festival
One of the original all digital festivals, this traveling showcase hits the Pasadena Convention Center as part of the Digital Video Conference & Expo
http://www.dfilm.com/
RESfest RES the magazine of digital film making presents a multicity tour of panels, workshops, shorts, and long films.
http://www.resfest.com/
The No Dance Film and Multimedia Festival Another alternative to Park City's indie proving ground. No Dance packs it screening into a 140 ft. DVD theater.
http://www.6161.com/
Conduit Digital Film + Gaming Festival Austin Texas - home base of Wing Commander guru Chris Roberts - hosts two days of screenings, parties, gaming, and conversation.
http://www.conduitfest.com/
onedotzero This self-styled producing festival attracts experimenters to London's Institute of Contemporary Arts for films, panels, and classes.
http://www.onedotzero.com/
Darklight Digital Film Festival Hosted in Dublin's Temple Bar District, this 5 day pro-am fest highlights 3-D animation, digital performance art, and full length features.
http://www.darklight-filmfestival.com/
 
Postproduction

Avid Media Composer 9000 A complete on and offline editing package, Media Composer is still typically used for editing offline only. The system has a CPU and video sub-system; two monitors and a speakers. Rental at film foundations and commercial facilities starts at $25-50 per hour. Cost: $40-65,000
http://www.avid.com/
Media 100 XR What Avid is to film, the Media 100 is to video. Unlike Avid, it allows you to mix and match among third-party hardware manufacturers to tailor the system to your needs. The Blair Witch Project shot on analog Hi-8 video and 16-mm film was edited on a Media 100 Cost: $27,000
http://www.media100.com/
Accom Axial 3000 Accom's online editing system revolves around a two-computer chassis armed with Windows NT and VX Works software - just bring source tapes and the EDL on floppy disk. Axial controls video decks, disk drives, switchers, and effects and sound equipment in an editing suite. Rental runs $400-900 per hour. Cost: $30-150,000
http://www.accom.com/
Apple Final Cut Pro An online editing suite with all of Apple's interface elegance. Downside: It's Mac-only, doesn't support PAL and takes longer to render than some PC packages. Cost: $999
http://www.apple.com/
Digital Origin EditDV Not quite as fun or good looking as Final Cut Pro, EditDV for both Mac and PC, comes with its own capture card, so you have a complete system from the start. Cost: $799
http://www.digitalorigin.com/
Adobe Premiere and After Effects Premiere, once the only software available for editing video on a home computer, has fallen out of favor. After Effects is still the standard computing and effects software used by video makers and even a few ILM f/x gurus. Cost: $899
http://www.adobe.com/
Apple Powerbook G3 Coupled with Final Cut Pro you can edit full digital video anywhere. Cost: $2,499
http://www.apple.com/
Sony PCG-F280 Vaio The top of the line PCG-F280 Vaio is the only laptop on the PC side that has a FireWire-like i.Link and drives for capturing full-stream digital video. Cost: $3,500
http://www.sony.com/
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