First Short Film at DVinfo.net

Paul Zanna · February 7th, 2009, 08:04 PM

Hi everyone,
Just wanted to share my first short film shot on the Canon HV30 - YouTube - Just War - Short Film

Any comments, critiques or advise would be much appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Paul

Eric White · February 8th, 2009, 01:45 AM

Hi Paul, I just want to say I was blown away with the fantastic quality and production value of your film!!! Amazing!! If your goal was to make it look cinema like, you did. The blend of effects and the location were wonderful, and the finished product is superb. This is your first film? Wow!! Can't wait to see what your tenth film will look like. Great job, keep up the great work.

Cheers,

e.m.white

Derrick A.Jones · February 10th, 2009, 05:07 PM

This film was great to me! I love the quailty and the story was nice. and how did you get those effects and what program did you use? Great film. If this didnt get selected then i would like to see what got ahead of you

Paul Zanna · February 10th, 2009, 11:03 PM

Thanks for the comments.

Here is a before and after shot to give you some idea of what was involved - http://www.paulzanna.com/JustWar/Images/JustWar3.jpg

Paul

Sverrir Fridriksson · February 12th, 2009, 09:32 AM

The look of this short film is fantastic, that's for sure. There are some other aspects, however, which let it down.

The noise from the wind in the first half (before the initial explosion) is distracting.
When the soldiers are asked to get down in the first half, they are just suddenly lying on the ground. It's strange not to see them actually "get down". This also happens later in the film where a soldier is pushed to the ground, he stumbles and then he is on the ground. Surely the actor could have taken the fall? it's around 2:43 and is a really jarring cut. Maybe adding a shot of the other soldiers watching, in between, would fix it.
The shot around 2:54 between two soldiers is also more like a jump cut. When filming character interactions like that you shouldn't center them all in the frame as the cuts between them become, again, jarring.
There is also a little problem with the wind in the second half, mostly with it disappearing from the audio on certain cuts. (3:00).

The effects work is great, once you get your actors to do a little stunt work it will make your films even better. :)

Edit: As a first short film it certainly is great work.

Julius Tan · February 12th, 2009, 12:08 PM

Awesome. The effects are great. The rotoscoping job is really clean. congrats.

February 7th, 2009, 08:04 PM	#1
Paul Zanna Tourist Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 2	First Short Film Hi everyone, Just wanted to share my first short film shot on the Canon HV30 - YouTube - Just War - Short Film Any comments, critiques or advise would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance. Paul

February 8th, 2009, 01:45 AM	#2
Eric White New Boot Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 7	RE:First short film Hi Paul, I just want to say I was blown away with the fantastic quality and production value of your film!!! Amazing!! If your goal was to make it look cinema like, you did. The blend of effects and the location were wonderful, and the finished product is superb. This is your first film? Wow!! Can't wait to see what your tenth film will look like. Great job, keep up the great work. Cheers, e.m.white

February 10th, 2009, 05:07 PM	#3
Derrick A.Jones Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: St. Petersburg,FL Posts: 94	This film was great to me! I love the quailty and the story was nice. and how did you get those effects and what program did you use? Great film. If this didnt get selected then i would like to see what got ahead of you __________________ This is what i do for the love of Video Production.. Derrick Jones..........

February 10th, 2009, 11:03 PM	#4
Paul Zanna Tourist Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 2	Thanks for the comments. Here is a before and after shot to give you some idea of what was involved - http://www.paulzanna.com/JustWar/Images/JustWar3.jpg Paul

February 12th, 2009, 09:32 AM	#5
Sverrir Fridriksson Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Iceland Posts: 58	The look of this short film is fantastic, that's for sure. There are some other aspects, however, which let it down. The noise from the wind in the first half (before the initial explosion) is distracting. When the soldiers are asked to get down in the first half, they are just suddenly lying on the ground. It's strange not to see them actually "get down". This also happens later in the film where a soldier is pushed to the ground, he stumbles and then he is on the ground. Surely the actor could have taken the fall? it's around 2:43 and is a really jarring cut. Maybe adding a shot of the other soldiers watching, in between, would fix it. The shot around 2:54 between two soldiers is also more like a jump cut. When filming character interactions like that you shouldn't center them all in the frame as the cuts between them become, again, jarring. There is also a little problem with the wind in the second half, mostly with it disappearing from the audio on certain cuts. (3:00). The effects work is great, once you get your actors to do a little stunt work it will make your films even better. :) Edit: As a first short film it certainly is great work.

February 12th, 2009, 12:08 PM	#6
Julius Tan Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Cebu Philippines Posts: 69	Awesome. The effects are great. The rotoscoping job is really clean. congrats.