Low Budget Film Production

Program Overview

In the Low-Budget Film Program, students will learn the logistics and basic concepts of movie making on a very limited budget. Well-done movies produced with a small budget seem to be a good response to the million dollar blockbuster movies we commonly see today. Movie genres in the program will range from horror to documentaries, and the only thing they will have in common is a very low budget. Students will then work creatively to come up with props, special effects, costumes, etc, that can be made with common everyday objects. Roles will always be changing to encourage students to keep their mind open to all the different roles that are critical in creating a movie. The main product will be movies along with premiers and some field trips.

Learning Objectives

Members of the group will learn the early stages of movie making before any filming begins. This includes aspects of writing screenplays, casting, storyboards, etc. (Ongoing)

Action Steps

Members will brainstorm possible movie ideas and outline basic plots of the movies. (Ongoing)

Once a plot/idea is decided on, members will divide themselves up into different groups. Some will be in charge of filming, some will act, some will write, and so on. These roles will change with every movie so everyone learns the different roles involved. (Ongoing)

Members will meet with their specific group once a week to make sure we are following the timetable properly. We will meet once a week as a whole group to check in on all of the different groups progress. While doing this, members will learn important elements of giving a good presentation. Group presentations will not just be sitting in a circle, and explaining in a few sentences, but more of a real world presentation. Members will assume their job is on the line with the presentation and perfection is key. (Ongoing)

As the culmination of a movie draws near, more roles such as publicity and planning a “premiere” will come up. We will continue rotating roles as with all other groups involved. We will then have a viewing of the movie(s) we created inviting all who are interested to come and watch.

Members will make different movies based upon the groups overall decision as to what genre the movie should be. (Ongoing)

Action Steps

Members will gain mastery in the many different roles of movie making. (Ongoing)

Members will read books about movie making and learn from the knowledge of their peers before any action is taken. Once there is some base of knowledge we will begin the process of making the actual movie. (Ongoing)

A majority of filming will be on campus, which leads to a great deal of interaction with the student body. We will also be working with different groups to attain a desired outcome. Some students from the Comedic Writing and Performance could help us with some writing, and acting. Student in the arts and crafts suite can probably help us with creating some costumes, special effects, and props. (Ongoing)

Members will be quite busy at different times of filming. Roughly 2 to 5 hours a week is the minimum amount of time students should be putting forth for their specific job while it is in action.

To increase our knowledge of film in general and be informed in this subset of art. (1^st Semester)

Action Steps

Members will be able to tell the differences between film genres, directors, styles, and countries and gain a general respect for the art of filmmaking. (End of 1^st semester)

Members will visit different film festivals near the Burlington area to gain knowledge about new advances in filmmaking and also to see a wide variety of different films. Students will also be able to see some low budget films that have gained popularity. (End of 1^st semester)

Students will then come back and meet with the group and discuss what they learned, enjoyed and any ideas they have for the program or a movie after visiting the festival. (End of 1^st semester)

Because there is both the Burlington Film Festival and Montreal Film Festival, all students must attend at least one. Everyone should go to the Burlington Festival, and depending on funding and approval, attendance to the Montreal Festival will be based on interest and merit.

We will listen to lectures from Professors of Film from the UVM Community and Lecturers that visit from other schools and other walks of life.

Community Service

Members will volunteer at the Burlington Film Festival based upon the cities need for volunteers. Any members involved with the Film classes who are able will also act as tutors to other students. We are also going to go to the animal shelter once a semester. If they agree, we could film some parts of our volunteer days and incorporate it into a movie. Another idea we have is to charge a small fee to one of our movie nights. We plan on taking this money and donating it all to the Spectrum Center in Burlington. We have also tossed around the idea of contacting Spectrum to see if we could come down one night a semester and have a movie night with the kids there. We would bring some of our favorite movies of different genres and popcorn and soda’s and try and show the kids a good time. This we feel is the most exiting community service idea we have come up with and something we look forward to accomplishing. If all goes well, we may even do this several times throughout the year.B