The first week of filming for my short film called Babylon has come to a close. We got several scenes done and a few I might decide to re-shoot later. I want to see how everything else goes first. I just have a few thoughts and observations about it that I’d like to share.
This is essentially the first film I’m directing. I had directed a skit that can be seen at this link (What the F!@# Am I Doing?). It was a small comedy sketch I came up with. It’s about two minutes long. I highly recommend it. Side note: I will be referring to “What the F!@# Am I Doing?” as WTFAID. It’s faster than typing the whole title out.
With Babylon things are different. I filmed WTFAID in a couple of hours. It was simple and there wasn’t too many complicated shots. I remember coming up with a few variations of shots on the spot, but nothing too crazy. I also remember filming WTFAID in order…from the start of the script, to the end of the script.
Babylon we are filming out of order. We are filming it by location. So for any scene that takes place in say a park, we’ll film all the scenes at the park at once. This proves to be easy and complicated at the same time. It’s easy because we don’t have to worry about it after we finish. It’s complicated because some scenes might be at the start of the film while others are towards the end.
For continuity, we need to look somewhat similar. I’m not expecting exactly the same. This is an extremely low budget film, but I want it to be close. That also means some characters change appearance as time goes on and it’s hard showing that without a makeup department.
Realistically, these are all minor issues and I don’t think most people will have an issue with them especially when they realize it’s a low budget film. My goal is to put out the best film I can with the resources I have. I know that when all is said and done, I will be proud of the film and what we did with it.
Directing it has been an absolute joy. Seeing my vision come to life is something I never dreamed of. Directing is also something I can see myself doing in the future as a career. It’s challenging, but fun and rewarding at the same time.
So, what’s next after we finish Babylon and release it? Well…I have another short film in the works. I’ve started writing it and hopefully we can do that one as well. I’m excited for the things I have planned and I plan on posting updates here when I can so everyone can follow this journey with me. This applies to Babylon and any other future projects as well.
Matt Jaku 