Digital Cinema - Filmmaker's Training Course?

[Andre Theelen]

Hi,

I was looking for a course which would give me a good overview of all aspects of film making.

I found the "Digital Cinema - Filmmaker's Training Course" DVD set.
URL: http://www.digitalcinemacourse.com/index.html.

Did anyone watch those and would care to comment on it?

Thanks.


Andre.

[Rush Hamden]

Hello Andre, I want to let you know that I am the creator of the Digital Cinema Course, and I am here to assist you and answer any questions you may have about our program.

We have been producing the course for over a year now, and have helped thousands of filmmakers make the leap into independent digital filmmaking.

We offer a money back guarantee. It is on the front page of our website. If you are not satisfied for any of the reasons mentioned there, you can send the program back for a full refund minus shipping. To date, we have never had a return. In fact every time we release a new volume, all of our existing customers purchase it the same day.

The course is hands-on, easy to follow, full narrated, and is full live-motion HD video. At the present time, when you purchase the course, you will receive 20 DVD Discs for a total runtime of over 30 hours. There are also two optional volumes: Intermediate Audio, and Digital Compositing, bringing the disc total to 25, for a total runtime of 35 hours. That is the equivalent of taking a 3-hour per week filmmaking class for 10 weeks. And while filmmaking colleges definitely have their advantages in personal touches and networking, they tend to be out of the financial reach of most beginners. That's where we come in under $500.

All of our course materials are Foundation based. As in, you will learn the foundation of filmmaking first, then learn some delineations and other techniques. We will always teach you the accepted foundation first, then show you how to break some rules and have fun.

Our Gear Guide is taught by the manufacturers themselves, not by paid actors or sales people. The guys at Arri teach you how to use Tungsten and HMI lighting, not just theirs, but in general. So do the folks at Century Optics, Kino Flo, Rosco, Chrosziel, Bebob, PAG, Cartoni, Bogen, etc.

It is fun, enriching, and a great experience, guaranteed. Just do a Google search for "Digital Cinema Filmmaker's Training Course", check out our reviews on IMDb, and you'll get tons of info.

[Andre Theelen]

Hi Rush,

Thanks for your reply.
Yes, I read the reviews and your return policy.

As this was the only dvd course I could find with such a wide spectrum of subjects on movie making I just wanted to know if someone here had seen it ;)

It certainly looks great and is ideal for people, like me, who have a day time job and do not have time to attend a regular course or education program.

So, I think I will buy the course and maybe write a review here myself.

Andre.

[Rush Hamden]

That sounds great Andre, maybe this will turn into a cool thread! : )

I look forward to your order, sir. We provide Free shipping to the Netherlands via Global Priority Mail from the US Postal Service.

[Terry Lee]

Rush - From what I can tell, this is an ultimate training course for people not able to attend film school. I too am interested in purchasing your training course but I have a few questions.

1. I am absolutely new to film. Anything I have learned has been by my own research and inquiry on DVInfo.net. Without prior experience with prosumer equipment, would this course be for me? I suppose, in other words, will the course run through the most basic of basics?

2. As the title indicates this is a course, does it run like a college course? "homework," tests...etc?

3. It has been a concern from some who I have talked to about this training course that the techniques illustrated are oriented around certain equipment. For first time film makers, money is most often equipment determining issue. I will more than likely be working with prosumer equipment such as the Canon XH A1 or Sony Z1u, Sony Vegas running on a semi film capable computer along with other home made lighting equipment, track dollies, cranes, steady cams..etc. My question would then be, will I be able to apply all of the knowledge gleaned from your course to the equipment avaliable to me? Of corse I am sure that I will learn about other gadgets that I am not aware of that may be beneficial and I will be inspired to add to my arsanal. For instance, the clinometer that I saw briefly in a sample video. This seams essential for keying light for a green screen. How to use one I do not know, but I have no doubt that this course will inform me of its importance. However, it seams that the complementary equipment shown (Keying hardware, waveform monitors etc..) would be a bit over-accessary for small production films if not perhaps expensive. Again, I have no experience with film at all. My concern is if I buy this course will all of the information be useful and I will not find myself saying "well that'd be great if only I had that equipment.."

I hope none of this came off as rude...I tried to ask questions useful to everyone who may be interested in purchasing your course.

Merry Christmas! and a Happy New Year :)
-Terry Lee.

[Rush Hamden]

Hi Terry.

Sorry for the delay, Merry Christmas everyone! Thank you for your questions, and I definitely appreciate your interest in the course. We've been working on a new website for a while now, and it'll be even better than the current one when it goes up.

I've italicized your questions below:

Without prior experience with prosumer equipment, would this course be for me? I suppose, in other words, will the course run through the most basic of basics? Absolutely. It uses prosumer equipment exclusively in its demonstrations. It uses the Sony Z1U in the Basic Production section, and the HVX200 in the movie production section. After that it's a mixed bag. It does run you through the most basic basics (Key-Fill-Backlight, Iris, Focal length, focus, etc), and takes you all the way to: 10-point lighting for one and two subjects, then groups of people. Professional mixing of Daylight, HMI and Tungsten lights. Creative lighting with gels. Pro Audio essentials like Electret and Condenser mics, mixers, booms. I added another post below with a full description of the volumes.

As the title indicates this is a course, does it run like a college course? "homework," tests...etc? We tried that, but it was mostly frustrating to people. No, there are no tests. In fact, as little printed material as possible. We include a reference field manual, full color, 75 pages, spiral bound, but it's just reference. We found that, as visual people, filmmakers respond much better to gobs of visual media rather than a 300-page black and white book with tests. So, we just encourage you to watch the program 1 hour at a time, take notes, repeat as needed, and immediately apply what you learn, by: Scripting and making a movie as soon as possible! It takes about a week to complete the 30-hour Command-Plus Course.

Will I be able to apply all of the knowledge gleaned from your course to the equipment avaliable to me? Here's the key to learning: Learn from the best, and you'll be the best. Sure, I could use a homemade dolly to teach you how to dolly, but why not teach you with an industry-standard dolly? You'll learn the principles from the best, then you can build a dolly for $200 and make similar moves. The key is to learn at the top. For instance, John Gresch from Arri doesn't just teach you Arri lights. He teaches Tungsten and HMI lighting technology in general. He shows you the different bulbs so that you can learn to identiify them. He shows you snoots, cookies, etc, so that when you grow, and have more money, you'll know exactly what to get. Steve Tobenkin gives you a whole hour on how to rent with no catastrophes. What to expect, what to bring, how to negotiate. Rosco Labs teach you how to correct every type of light to another type of light. You'll run into that problem the first time you set up a tungsten worklight to fill in a person sitting in front of a window. What's all that yellow light? How do I fix it? It all seems esoteric until you come up against the issue. We'll teach you with fresnels, but the concepts apply to worklights, modeling lights, simple 100W household bulbs, etc.

For instance, the clinometer that I saw briefly in a sample video. This seams essential for keying light for a green screen. How to use one I do not know, but I have no doubt that this course will inform me of its importance. The clinometer is only essential when matching subject lighting to other exterior backgrounds shot earlier. The first time you try and composite a person into a shot, and it looks awful because the background was shot at 6 feet height, but the subject was shot at 3 feet height, you'll buy a clinometer for $100-200. Sure, you can fix that shot, but you'll want to just do it right the first time next time. It makes you more confident, and your footage looks better.

However, it seams that the complementary equipment shown (Keying hardware, waveform monitors etc..) would be a bit over-accessary for small production films if not perhaps expensive. That's how it works: It seems unneccessary, until you need it. Even though, true, you don't really need all that gear to make a good greenscreen. Our instructor shows you how to do it with no gizmos, then with all the toys. You'll learn:
Basic: IRE Zebra levels on any prosumer camera.
Intermediate: a lightmeter.
Advanced: an oscilloscope waveform monitor (which is also found in Final Cut Pro, and you can take your laptop on the set).
You pick what works for you. The key is, now you know. And knowing is half the battle! You can walk onto any set, large or small, identify the tools they're using, and jump right in. You can start with your zebra readings. More money comes in. You buy a lightmeter. Now you can do it faster, and without a camera. More money comes in. You hook up your laptop with FCP or another waveform software. Wow! Now you can see exactly where the green is clipping its saturation, or where your model's shirt is beyond your camera's white clip. Etc... You get it.

Again, I have no experience with film at all. My concern is if I buy this course will all of the information be useful and I will not find myself saying "well that'd be great if only I had that equipment.." Not at all. We've sold thousands of these units, and we've never had one return, and never heard anything like that. Everyone has always responded to the professionalism of the course and the high-quality gear. It shows students what the top guys use, so they know what they can get away with, and what's absolutely essential (like, hands down, a GREAT microphone, no buts about it.) In fact, what they do tell us, is that until they saw our course, they had stopped buying video-educational DVDs because of the sloppy lighting, terrible editing, and extremely short runtimes.

I hope none of this came off as rude...I tried to ask questions useful to everyone who may be interested in purchasing your course. Not at all! Jeez, I wish people would ask more questions. I love talking about the course. Below is the post with the detailed info. Ask away!

[Rush Hamden]

DCT-MP/COMMAND: Over 25 hours of filmmaking savvy, wisdom, examples, demonstrations, tips and tricks, presented on 20 DVDs by people who work in Hollywood day in, day out. Learn Scriptwriting, Formatting, Editing, Camera Operation, Lighting, Exposure, Audio, and Directing, all focused on Digital Movies.
DCT-BP (Basic Production): 10-Point lighting, the jargon and motive behind each light source, as well as balancing them together with Quality, Quantity, Direction, and Color. Composition concepts: Law of Thirds, Screen Mass, Triangular Dominance, Color Harmony, and Planar Separation, as well as the psychological impact of each. Also, Lenses, Depth of Field, Shots, Axes of Motion, Makeup, and Steadicam.
DCT-MP (Movie Production): Screenwriting, Directing, Acting. Add foreground detail and make a dolly move really count, block your actors to match their eyelines, compose your shots to set the audience at ease (or not), and light the set with a minimum of fixtures.
DCT-LS (Lighting Set): 10 complete sections devoted to Pro lighting. Matching your lighting to fire-light, Christmas lights, uncorrected fluorescents, flashlights, candles, lighting chrome weapons, and groups of actors at a card table scene. When you finish the last DVD of this series, your mind will be overloaded. You will never watch movies the same way again, knowing that the "Natural Sunset" light inside an apartment is actually tungsten light off a gold reflector, and that there is a reason why directors move the actors in specific axes.

The Digital Cinema Course begins by detailed instructions on building a screenplay with proper structure and solid characters. Many screen writing textbooks have also done this, but the course is the first to do it by use of a dramatic short film teaching writers the basics of overcoming obstacles and disasters. This is then furthered by second more concise section outlining how to write in clear instructions. It categorizes specific methods and tools, and inspires writers who may have given up on dramatic storytelling. The following section describes how to physically construct a screenplay, what paper to use, how to bind it, and how to format the content. This is done with the use of computer graphics. Once the storytelling sections are complete, the course moves on to teach film editing. Starting with the history of editing and progressing to current digital nonlinear editing, the section prepares the filmmaker for the field. It abides by the rule that the best cinematographer or director is first a competent editor. After the editing section, the course moves on to discuss filmmaking equipment and gear, from the basic C-stand to the intricate use of color gels and corrective filtration. It prepares filmmakers for the technical aspect of making movies with HMI, tungsten, and fluorescent lighting. After the equipment section, it explores basic production in a controlled studio environment. Lighting, lenses, shots, depth of field, composition, and axes of movement. The course then applies all the concepts learned in the movie production section. By far the longest of the sections, at about 12 hours, it puts all the principles to the test on a real movie set. It carries with it all the variables that can assault filmmakers while trying to make a digital film. After the movie production section has been completed, the course moves on to the advanced lighting section. This is the most detailed of the sections, concentrating for hours on the art of lighting a film set with faith to the script's intention. Whether lighting to mimic candlelight, firelight, or fluorescent warehouse lighting, this section discusses the most difficult situations that a cinematographer may confront. The Digital Cinema Course is also accompanied by a color technical manual for the field, a checklist, and a preparation CD.

COMMAND-PLUS course adds: DCT-A102 Audio Course and DCT-COMP Compositing course.

[Rush Hamden]

DCT-A102: The DCT-MP/COMMAND Digital Cinema Course teaches basic principles of Audio, but the DCT-A102 goes one step further. It concentrates on Electret Mics, Dynamic Mics, Condenser Mics, Mixers, Lowcut and Pads, Hard Disk Recorders, Mic Suspension Mounts, Audio Snake Cables, Wireless Systems and much more. The more your filmmaking experience increases, the more likely you will rely on professional audio gear. Pro Audio gear performs better, lasts longer, is more robust, generates less noise in the audio stream, and offers much greater flexibility in controlling your sound. This volume teaches the principles of recording "safe audio", from selecting the right location, to using the right mic for the job, to recording on CF cards or Hard Disk. All these points plus many more are addressed in the DCT-TGHM DVD. This is an optional DVD not included in the DCT-MP/COMMAND course.

DCT-COMP: DCT-MP/COMMAND Digital Cinema Course teaches basic principles of Compositing, but the DCT-COMP goes one step further. It concentrates on Lighting the Green or Blue Screen Background, Lighting Foreground Plate and Subject, Matching Fore-to-Background, Camera Settings, Using Keying Hardware, Directing Actors, Keying in Post, Using Keying Software and much more. As you progress in your filmmaking career, you will be called upon to film a scene that is to be composited over another background. The only way to do that is to film the action against a color (green or blue) screen, then remove that color in post, and composite the action onto the desired background. Sounds simple. In fact, it is a very complicated procedure that goes beyond setting up two actors against a green paper background. It is a procedure that requires planning, scripting, charting, very accurate lighting, specific direction of actors, and color-matched post compositing. The DCT-COMP 4 DVD series will teach you all that, and more. It goes into great detail, from lighting to post. It teaches you how to set the height and angle of the background camera, match it to the foreground camera. As far as lighting, it teaches matching the color, direction, and intensity of the subject's instruments with the background natural light. Then it delves deeper with an action scene that teaches you how to blend action elements with proper direction for actor eyelines. The final DVD teaches post production compositing, and also contains a 3.5 GB full HD 1080i file with all the elements you need to build your own action scene for practice. Just copy it to your PC or MAC, drop it into your favorite compositing program, and have fun.

[Terry Lee]

Rush - Thank you for answering my questions! The course sounds great and I plan on purchasing it. Since DCT-COMMAND doesn't come with DCT-A102 and DCT-COMP, is there a package deal where you can get the full course?

Thanks!
-Terry Lee.

[Terry Lee]

Hey Rush, is the site down? For some reason I cannot access it.

[Rush Hamden]

Hi Terry. The site's up, I just tried it. You can order the individual components off the current site, or you can order the full course from Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Cinema...?ie=UTF8&s=dvd

[Terry Lee]

Originally Posted by Rush Hamden

Hi Terry. The site's up, I just tried it. You can order the individual components off the current site, or you can order the full course from Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Cinema...?ie=UTF8&s=dvd

Haha, is that you selling that? I looked at it before and figured I should buy it directly from you to be on the safe side...turns out thats you to :)

[Terry Lee]

Hey Rush, another question crossed my mind...

For post production, what does your course cover in terms of video editing software? I had been planning on buying Sony Vegas...

[Rush Hamden]

Hi Terry. It uses graphics to teach the basic concepts of editing. It is format and platform agnostic. It teaches the similarities between film and nonlinear video editing, and explains jargon and techniques. It also explains that a good director is first a good cutter.

But in answer to the Vegas question, even though I've personally never cut with it, I hear it's a great software. This is coming from other editors, though, not from me : )

[Terry Lee]

I see. Well that certainly makes sense.

Digital compositing simply fascinates me. It is probably my favorite thing about digital video and film. I hope to soon learn how that process works which is great because your course covers it. My concern with editing sofware is: can I do digital compositing via a platform such as Sony Vegas?

Hope you had a happy New Year! The ground here is rapidly becoming covered in snow..