GUEST COLUMN: 5 Secrets Behind Well-Produced Movies

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5 Secrets Behind Well-Produced Movies

by Lewis Robinson

Making movies is no easy task. It takes years and millions of dollars to produce blockbuster hits. However, there are some things that movie producers do that you can replicate at home. The five things you need to focus on to bring your home video to professional status are the backgrounds you use, extras you choose, any models you make, the use of special effects, and the costuming in your film.

Background

Unless you have an endless budget, it's unlikely you can shoot on location for every scene. Well-produced movies typically shoot on location for some scenes, but in front of a blue or green screen for most of the scenes. The biggest perk of filming on location is that it looks real, which allows the actors to really get into character. However, blue and green screens are a cheaper and more versatile option for produced movies. You may be curious about the difference between a blue screen vs green screen. While both work well to digitally overlay backgrounds, blue is better if you are filming dark, night scenes. Green is best when you are filming daytime scenes. This is due to the luminescence of the color green. It is more luminescent than blue, making it require less lighting on set.

Extras

If you are creating a video or film that needs extras, there are a few things you need to keep in mind. In large blockbuster films, hundreds of people can be used as extras. Anyone who performs in the background in a nonspeaking role is considered an extra. The most important part of this is the fact that extras can't speak. In a produced movie the microphones on the set are very powerful. They can pick up if an extra were to laugh, talk, or even cough. This can ruin the feel of the moment and therefore ruin the movie. Instead, extras pretend to have conversations with each other, laugh, and carry on while ignoring the camera.

Models

Depending on the scale of your video or film, you should consider making models. Creating lifelike replicas, specifically of buildings or towns, can help both the actors and the movie. By creating a model of buildings, actors and producers can get a clear and visual idea of exactly what the scene is prior to filming. In some cases, movies even take close-ups of the model and put it in the film. A good example of this was in the Harry Potter franchise. In these movies, a replica of the castle was made to help establish scale in both tight cuts and in wide angle shots. The filmmakers actually took videos of the model castle for the feature films, creating the iconic sweeping shots of the Hogwarts castle. If this was done through computer graphics it would be more expensive and take more time in the long run.

Special Effects

Everyone is aware that special effects are a large part of well-produced movies. What people don't know is that you can replicate some of these effects on home movies as well. Blood can be imitated by mixing corn syrup and red food coloring. Breakable glass, used in fight sequences, can be made with sugar allowing it to be breakable without actually injuring anyone. To mimic beer, you can use apple juice and gelatin cubes can be used instead of ice. 

Costumes

Assuming you are creating a video without millions of dollars and unlimited resources, you have to be thrifty. Many major motion pictures reuse costumes. Costumes can also come from many places. For example, some of the capes in Game of Thrones were actually small rugs the costume designers bought at IKEA. When it comes to costuming you just have to be creative and think outside the box. There is inevitably a way to make what you need in a cost effective way.

Making a video or movie is not for the faint of heart. If you want your video or film to stand out, try using some of these movie secrets. With these movie secrets under your belt, you are bound to create the next hit.