When you think about this side of it, you really see why it takes years to get films made. It's such a meticulous endeavor before any acting or filming begins. And seeing how much of a long process it can be, it makes you appreciate the art and craft of movie making when you encounter a good one, and it makes you very much wonder since it does take a long process how do so many very bad movies get green lit and made.

The DP role looks so easy and simple to me when I'm working on sets as a DIT but when I've shot low budget shorts and features as a DP I've always found the hardest part of the job is nothing to do with the camera and your knowledge of lighting because that stuff will come naturally, especially if you've planned out a lot ahead of time. It's genuinely such a tough gig if you're not prepped adequately. The actual hardest part is resource management, building a workflow with that works with the director and engaging with the producers & your team. For example, I had no money left in the budget to hire crew but we had two people drop out and I had to replace the operator and gaffer with people the director was friends with but weren't necessarily right for that project or experienced enough to work at that level (student film sets are run very differently to semi-pro and professional sets and not everyone is ready for that). The budgeting for lighting & camera was easy enough because the limitations gave me reason to come up with creative solutions. The crew however, can be a really difficult thing to get right if you don't have a 1st AC you trust to crew up properly or experience working with them beforehand. This stuff gets easier with larger budgets but its a weirdly almost political/managerial aspect to being a DP on low budget projects. The other aspect of this is the workflow with the director. If you don't know how they work then it can be a massive headache dealing with their approach if they put the actors opinion's on blocking ahead of the camera/lighting side of it. Adds more time to finessing lighting and can limit your ability if they've simply committed to a performance movement that doesn't allow good lighting from windows or pracs, doorways etc. Working with a director and camera team you've worked with before or know more about their process is such a massive gamechanger for the DP because you can actually flex your creative muscles without the constraints of other people's needs. If you have a good system of designing the scene's coverage, blocking and lighting you save so much time and can get much better shots much faster and in a way where everyone trusts you and is supporting that, not just trying to make things easier for them. My recommendation to anyone working on low budget or student films is to do as much recceing and test shooting as possible. Even with non actors, getting the lowdown of a location or the limitations of your kit and studio space will be super useful. We couldn't recce on my last film because we shot in a different country and they wouldn't pay for testing or recces so we had to change locations last minute and deal with problems that lost us our natural light and had to reshoot lots of stuff in a very brief window. My other tip is don't ever work for free because you think it will "be fun", making a film can be fun but it is also hard work and you deserve to be compensated for that!

Thank you so much, I am a senior in highschool and I’m working on my first feature film as the cinematographer

Great advice for sure for a feature film cinematographer. TV and commercial DPs will follow different routes however, but with a similar base of prep being the most important part of any project.

And remember that the time for testing the lighting on an actor is BEFORE action or AFTER cut have been called! Sometimes sitting back and drinking your beverage is the RIGHT thing to do on set.

i'm prep'ng for my short film but logistics and coordination are very tiring and boring sometime . but for high budget film it's easier cz you have many people doing the work . great video

I’m going to transfer this video to text and use it as my BIBLE. Thank you so much for sharing. 🙌❤‍

Always love when your videos come up.

Perfect timing

Great video as always, thanks!

Incredible and detailed guide. Thank you so much

Thank you for these fun and educational videos!🙌🏻

Love you guys!

Beautiful. Explained well

Thanks a Lot!

Very interesting as usual. Thank you

Please don''t stop creating content :) Larning from your videos a lot !

Thanks for this video! Shooting my first feature soon.

Great vid..

the part where panavision sits down is so funny. I really love how you pay homage to filmmakers you respect in all your videos while simultaneously making great educational content. and a lot of the moments with the filmmakers and timing is so funny

I love your videos! Thank you, again! I'd love it if you'd list the movies you sample. Speaking of which, what movie is featured at 2:42?

I haven't personally used it but the Pro version of Aputure's Sidus Link App has a cool function for creating lighting plans.

5:18 also sometimes the location manager on bitter productions.

Very helpful i recommend you put this in a pdf format please

Great video, mate! What was the name of that app for iphone, viewfinder one?

can you make another video for editing?

great video.... just curious the movie you use in your video shot on the yacht - what is that film called ? thank you

Who have the dream of Film making?

Damien chazelle or Barry Jenkins 3 part budget

Great video man! Anyone know where can I get this template? 7:28

🙏💖

Thanks for the video! Could you tell me the name of the film in the thought bubble at 3:34?

What's the name of that movie in 2:42?

What is the name of the film at 4:32

RIP Charlbie

5:13 why the gaffer?

No sound recordist at the location recce I see ... everything forgets about sound :-)

Very well explained, it would be great if someone could refer the same preproduction process from the perspective of a production designer.

What is the name of the film at 12:16?

What is the name of the film at 5:35?

I want to learn cinematography ❤️.

What is an HOD?

Better Call Saul Spoilers 2:53

What is HODs?? Someone knows?

Which what tool you can work on a moodboard? Is there any specific one or you can do it as you like in a desing program/software?

Would this work if u were a screenplay writer/ cinematographer? If so could u explain

I just wanna do some acting. Anyone looking for an actor in PTA ZA?

I feel personally attacked by the coffee comment 😄

Otherwise engaging

Ii

Who love to make films

First

What's the name of the movie that takes place in the Yatch?