Film Producers Part 3

-

Try and come up with original stories. Please avoid men dressed as women. Making fun of the body shape of African mothers and grandmothers is not funny. These are women that raised us against all odds. 

Some Nigerian actors and actresses are now behind the camera as producers. This is not new because actresses like Mary Njoku, Uche Jombo and Ruth Kadiri have well-established production companies. There are more actress-turned-producers now, thanks to YouTube. Male actors are also behind the camera as producers.

Money. Sleepless nights. Producers can relate to that. They need money for cameras, lights, transport, food for cast and crew, and many other things the director needs to shoot the movie. The big ticket item is the camera. Cutting corners with the camera is suicidal. I don’t know how many YouTube movies I’ve seen that are dark or grey and you can hardly see what is happening on the screen. It’s a waste of money. Costumes are not important, wigs that cost six months’ rent are not important. Invest in a high quality camera and microphones.

As a new producer, you must constantly work with the director about the who, where and when, because every scene has a price tag.

1. Jogging scenes. Compress them. Setting up camera on the road costs time and money. Instead, shoot the actor flopping on his front door, all sweaty, after a long morning run.

2. School scenes. You don’t need a whole school. Decorate one empty room with posters. Desks? A carpenter can make two or three unique ones. Since it’s not a real school, the director will shoot tight, close-up scenes so that viewers don’t realize it’s not a proper school.

3. Food. Get rid of the usual pasta, rice and chicken. It costs money and time to prepare. The director will shoot a pair of hands collecting plates, pretending they just finished eating.

4. Car entering the gate. People at home don’t need to see it. It’s enough when the character gets out of the car, takes out her briefcase and enters her home.

5. Avoid shooting in a real market. It’s a headache to set up and there are too many distractions.

6. Use the cellphone torch to light hard to reach spaces, like drawers.

These are just ideas. As a producer, you must be creative in how to cut costs, without compromising the story.

Nonqaba waka Msimang

Blogger Without Borders

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Elections And Political Bullies

-
Image
Forget democracy.   It should be called political bullying. We are watching it in the prelude to the Canadian election on the 19 th of October, 2015.   Americans have also started their political bullying for the looming presidential election next year. So many trees wasted on books about democracy.   Some countries have big budgets for invading other countries ‘ to defend democracy’ but it is seldom practised in campaigning for elections.   Calling opponents names and printing flyers attacking each other is behaviour that will not be tolerated in kindergarten, but it is all legal, in campaigning.   It is irritating and such a let-down to the whole notion of democracy.   Grown-up men and women behaving like Grade One kids. It is also misleading because many voters believe it is real hatred.   Don’t let that fool you.   These politicians play golf together, attend the same dinner parties, eat and drink at the same social events, share jokes and cut deals in parliament.   They
Read more

Comfort Food As Regret Food

-
Image
Chicken curry. Comfort food is good for the soul, which usually bleeds in winter from icy roads, bad drivers that want to annihilate pedestrians, frozen fingers and toes that take a sabbatical.   What happened to my toes?   I thought I was wearing special socks for boots? We therefore have a right to comfort food which throws doctors’ orders out of the window and has no loyalty to calories.   No calculator on the table, thanks very much.   Piece of bread 5 calories, half a banana 10 calories, sugar-free cheesecake 2,000 calories.   Ah! Ah!  We only live once. Naw!   Comfort food is old school food with its compulsory second helping.   It involves licking fingers and giving a big sigh, about the good life, which is shelter, food, love and debt.   The problem is the zip.   The jeans remind you that comfort food can also be called you will regret food .   Home sweet home is even sweeter in winter after surviving blowing snow and bumper to bumper traffic. What is more welcoming th
Read more

No Air Miles

-
Image
I don’t have Air Miles.   I’m considering putting that on a T-Shirt because I cannot go to the drugstore (chemist) or coffee shop without the cashier asking me if I have air miles. We waited for about two minutes the other day, while this guy looked for his Air Miles card in his overweight wallet.   For what?   For a few points. I don’t have air miles because Mathematics is a foreign language.   I was never good in numbers. That is why I squashed the idea of being an investment banker very early in life.   I understand you can invest in cornfields before the soil is turned up or pork bellies even before a baby pig is born. That is how I view air miles, investing in tomorrow or the unknown.   I’m the dumb one.   Some people understand this air miles’ thing so well, I overheard one customer saying: I can even convert my points into cash. Points and air miles are the same thing in Canada and the U.S.   Drugstores or clothing stores even give you a card to collect point
Read more