the three main genres of student films: Depressing, Fight, Horror

I still remember when my teacher was mad at me for using colour because the end credits were in black and white and he preferred that. There was no reason to do the film in black and white tbh. Not gonna lie, I feel like there's a lot of people who aren't really talented filmmakers who end up as teachers and bring those stereotypes to life with their students.

I’ve used guns, black and white, waking up and getting ready for the day, and I think I’ve avoided the rest so far. Next time I make a movie every character will be constantly chain smoking

Most students using black and white who aren’t into Eastern European cinema usually do it because that’s what Nolan did with his first film. For clarification to anyone planning on copying him, Nolan did it because he didn’t have the money to go through the coloring process and he also made it work for him due to the type of genre his film fell in.

Most of this is literally Ralphthemoviemaker.

Literally watching this to know what not to do for the future 😐

I splash my face to calm myself down when I'm stressed or I splash my face when I cant focus so I can feel fresh, so does a lot of people I know, but I guess if it's something that isn't commonly done by people around you or yourself I see why you'd think no one does it ever.

I'm less inclined to have an issue with the black and white thing, but only if it isn't being done specifically to match the "noir" dramatic feel. At the end of the day doing black and white doesn't take away from the film if the rest of the technique is right. It does help, for those with no budget, to do black and white because it cuts way back on the amount of color work you have to do to get an acceptable look. At the lowest level, if you're avoiding the cliche reasons for using b+w, it can actually boost the level of professionalism for new film makers. I'm all for that.

I’ve considered using black and white for some of my student films, not because of any artistic BS, but because it’ll make colour grading easier.

Starts with someone waking up to look at their phone or alarm clock. Then later they'll be staring depressed or anxious into a mirror washing their face with water or throwing back pills which is sometimes proceeded by them sitting in their bathtub because they're too effing lazy to film something outside their accommodation.

I've worked with student filmmakers in California, Hawaii and Louisiana. My biggest issue was casting their classmates that couldn't act. For example a role meant for a 50 year old man played by an 18 year old.

omg... Because the splashing the face trope is always in movies, I actually thought people do that in real life growing up. So... I splash my face sometimes when I get stress, thinking it would help me clear my mind lmao. Well, now I know!

student films are often always interior, no one wants to gamble outside or try things comically enough in high school, we always did things outside because naturally there's more fun things outside... but i guess the film students are taught only "safe methods"

😂😂😂 This list is accurate! Spot on!

In college/film school, I unintentislly did the age and waking up cliches, although they were flipped. With the age thing, I had 20 somethings play teenagers (although I never specified what age they were, so I think I was able to get away with that), and with the waking up thing, I actually had the main character doing it near the end rather than the beginning of the film.

I think college-age people just want an excuse to smoke because they think it's cool.

Im an animator and I had to help on sets at my old college with student films like fetching coffee adjusting mics for extra credit. This made me laugh so hard thank you its so true XD Actors and actresses are like a different breed of human beings to me when it comes to preparing to do a thing too.

my first film i just finished last month had to be black and white (and silent) as part of the requirements and i used smoking and a film within a film ending. and i called it “A Student Film” which im sure is also a cliche. had cool music and main effect though. plenty of other first semester films were full of these. especially the dream endings, smoking, guns

I laughed way too hard at the quote 😂 but have definitely seen that in my film classes

I have never splashed water on my face

4:43 only when Im kinda dizzy or my blood pressure is low from standing up to fast. But not when Im freaking out,no.

My school won’t let me use weapons in movies so I used a screwdriver in mine to drive the mystery of a murder through.

Smoking is the one of the few ways you can show the character is thinking about something

good video. the waking up in the morning and grabbing your phone is the big one lol

Nice list. Another one that I would add is when you add music that doesn't fit the scene. I've seen a lot of videos where the music was a lot more intense than the action that was taking place on screen.

Nothing says student/amateur film like "lights cigarette"

I like the red lighting, keeps your vids memorable.

Lol, I splash water on my face when I have a mild headache but no headache medicine around.

I'm guilty of the sink part. I was acting in my film and my character had like a panic attack... and I just naturally turned on the sink and splashed my face with water... it wasn't even in the script

I do the water thing in real life, so I've written that into a couple of my student films. I didn't realise it was something people don't do irl. I feel so called out.

I'm trying to work on more short films (I did one short one on my channel called "Something Bad Will Happen" that actually was at my college film festival) but man the process of creating them is SO difficult. Unless I'm with 1-2 people, in a controlled environment, its basically impossible. I'm actively working on a short film in pre, pre, pre-production titled "It Goes on All Fours" following 5 teenagers being stranded in the woods and being hunted by some sort of entity. However, the optics and technicalities of that is insane, not only to mention scheduling people who usually don't know their schedule. I think I might work on smaller short films before I attempt a bigger short film, but I'm definitely not going to give up.

I definitively have done the waking up thing. ASMR is a big one I see in student films which I also did. Seems like the kids who love Wes Anderson doing that tired detail of putting things in order, making a meal, etc. Lots of long empty scenes that are meant to look artistic and often do but contribute exactly nothing to the plot and if anything slow things down. Thanks for the video!

I too believe that the splash thing is not a real life thing😅🤣

I laughed so hard from the last one 😁 That is so true. I'm from Russia and I thought this is how you guys wash your faces in the US 😂

The smoking shots are so fun though 😔

My favorite is when highschool film students make a space or alien based movie that would require tons of special effects but they literally have just a digital camera and no costumes for their actors to wear. so its kids wearing like nortface fleece trying to pretend to be like a space commander.

another one is the shot where the character opens a fridge and the camera pov is from inside lol

I used b&w because I learned on 8mm&16mm film so my first few shorts had to be b&w

It's been three years since this was posted, say it again, louder. This was an enjoyable watch. Got it from feed, didn't check yet if you are still posting 3 years later, to see how you've grown since this one, but I'll check. subbed when you said "I used black and white because I was a pretentious douche bag" - nailed it. :)

I’m gonna make an arty version of ciggy butt brain and use all of these techniques

Ive done the water splashing thing, mostly when I'm really hot or maybe tired.

I splash water on my face to wake up sometimes

I use black & white cuz (1) I'm color blind so it makes things easier to color grade my film and (2) if the main character is someone who is really intense and sees the world in black and white in an ideological way. Also whenever student films use guns, usually the characters in those films are based around the idea that they need to have guns. At that point, the film becomes about shooting guns and not what the story or characters are about. But, I think a lot of these cliches happen cuz student films try to recreate their favorite scenes from their favorite films instead of coming up with interesting ways to tell their story in their own way.

I use black and white on occasion because it rather simplifies the grading process. Without enough help or time b&w can be a lifesaver.

*MasMash Films I just got a noti that someone replied to me with the username "EAB Films" and he was trying to advertise his discord server to me... ... I don't see the reply here but got a notification for it. Thought I'd let you know about this, it's possible the comment was autofiltered for spam but still.

Black and white is also a good way at making the movie not look unprofessional. Color grading and adjusting your clips in color can be difficult to make it look like it isn't shot on an iPhone or unprofessionally. It's also very easy to adjust the shots in blac and white to look good.

you have the shoulders of an anime critic

Splashing your face with water isn't uncommon irl. It's like splashing water from your water bottle during a marathon.

Good points! :) I personally don’t mind any of these as long as it makes sense! For me if you do anything set in the 90’s or prior, smoking just makes sense because a lot of people did it. XD

It's amazing splashing water in your face! When tired, headache or warm.

I used to get a lot of headaches and migraines from overheating growing up so in an attempt to cool down I would splash water on my forehead. Even though most headaches have subsided that habit still remains for me. I also tend to splash water in my hair to make it more malleable.

I be splashing that water in my face

you forgot "oh it was just the dream"

I don’t drive a Lamborghini, but I do asparagus

I think you should add unless it is a deliberate choice. Having a kid play a doctor could be funny. I do splash water on my face. Am I weird? If you're trying to emulate old movies, black and white and smoking can look great. It's fun to list the tropes but also to embrace them. I think we have to get them out of our system. Great video

also, opening a fridge, the camera is inside and the actor grabs something from the fridge

You're telling me that other people... DONT splash water on their face??

I actually do the splashing water on my face in real life...so...yup

I’ll sometime splash water in my face if I have allergies or if I’ve been crying

i actually do the fisdt full of face washing techique, it was past down from generations xd

It's amazing because I was about to do a black and white short film that's sort of inspired by sin city but now I feel like I'm copying everyone else😂😂

A movie about making movies is like how there are a lot of novels about novelists.

"Fin"

I think a lot of the gun stuff and smoking stuff is just our inner child wanting to do adult risky things on camera

I only splash water in my face when I'm feeling tired, but then my face feels all sticky and weird so I often regret doing it lol, it only stops me feeling tired in the short term.

Happy to say I've only used smoking, but I like to think I put an interesting twist to it.

4:30 wait... you guys dont do that? Idk in which situations they built it in but for example like I've broken a bone in my foot this year and while I was waiting to get someone to help me I was like trinking and splashing water in my face to cool of and concentrate also like washing away sweat an stuff

Currently a film student I've never done any of these(Aside from black and white but that was because it a spoof of a educational films) For some reason when i went to film school i assumed this kind of shit was frowned upon. Apperntly it isn't

i def splash my face w water lmao

>wanting to write a script >my script already falls under the mocumentary and movies about movies trope damn....

Me making a film noir hearing the smoking and black and white and guns stuff 😳

Our school doesn't allow prop guns lol

I splash water on my face. It was actually suggested by my therapist. Cooling yourself off quickly will activate your parasympathetic sustem and help you calmer within seconds.

Uh oh, we’ve used like half of these😅

I do this water splash in face, but only in the morning, after waking up to get some more energy. But I haven’t seen anybody doing this while they’re stressed/shocked/I don’t know, something bad happened. It just doesn’t happen

So proud I am not guilty of these!!! Whoot! But definitely saw these from other students

About the thing with water in face... Huge trope... but to be fair. When I am totally tired and dead at 8am a bit cold water in face helps to wake up!

I swear I had and idea to start up on bed! Thank you for not letting me be ordinary

I've splashed my face like 3 times total. I dont do it because its too cold and my clothes are all wet.

I heard you say skills usa and had fucking vietnam flashbacks

As a sink, i have never had anyone come up to me, turn me on, and then splash their face, it just doesn't happen folks

i splash water in my face

Hahaha omg, I've seen my classmates do all of these except for the splashing water one. I must brag tho that I haven't done any of those :) srry

Water calms me. I do the sink splash all the time. If I’m really stressed I‘ll take a shower.

To be fair on that last one, just about no one in real life has seen some of the things the people in films have when they do the sink take. Though I'm not sure I'd do it myself if something like what happens in those movies happened to me.

4:24 i do that in real life 😭

I have a friend who splashes water on his face all the time

erm... I quite like splashing water on my face...

I splash my face with water all the time. Not in that dramatic fashion, but just to rinse my eyes and mouth from any potential gunk (you never know!), and also to cool off my bald head at times.

I do splash water on my fsvr

I know that I'm late but just wanted to say that I do splash water in my face.

* gasp * A fellow SkillsUSA competitor!

Starts @00:30

I do splash water in my face

oh wow, me and my peers are not really like this. We actually lean more about psychological/mental problems.

to be fair, movies about making movies is a common trope for all of cinema i feel like i phrased that in the most pretentious way possible oops-

I wash my face in the morning!!

>ends video with annoying KZfaq editing trope

I can live with the black n white. I still can't get away from guns and cigarettes, why is that?

Lol I’ve done most of these