Notes on 5 Minute B&W Films

It's so obvious that you sometimes forget it during film school: story and character are everything. We focus so much on beautiful shots, creative sound, continuity in lighting, editing, etc. But any technical problems are easily forgiven when the audience is engaged with the story. Likewise, if the story or characters suck (or much worse-are boring) we start to pay attention to the details for good or for bad.

My class screenings were last week and I completely enjoyed watching all of my classmates films. Amazingly, I was able to experience most of them as an audience member (as opposed to a classmate whose been watching the films developed over time), and evaluate them along those lines. We spend ungodly amounts of time 100+ hrs a week for 2 months straight to get all these little details right, sound, picture, performance, costume, set, location, etc. While working, you get bogged down on these details and little victories (and likewise little failures). These consideration, while important are for naught, without the basic idea and story and character - this is what the audience remembers.

The trick to filmmaking is to work your ass off to make it look effortless. Ironic, huh. I think the downfall in post-modernism is somewhere in this disconnect.