Secrets of Movie Making

Have you ever wondered what actually goes into the making of a movie? I sure have, and decided to research it further. I talked with some people, read a few Internet web sites, and read a few pages in books. This is what I have come up with!

It takes a long time!
What comes out on the big-screen is nothing compared to what actually happened. You may only watch a 2-hour movie, but in reality that movie probably took atleast 6 months to make! Some movies can take up to two years! Scenes are shot, shot again, and shot a third, fourth, fifth, or sixth time! Due to many circumstances such as lighing, sound, mistakes, bloopers, mishaps, and other unexpected occurances that director of the film is constantly yelling "Action" and "Cut"! In addition to taking a very long time to make an excellent 2-hour movie, it can cost millions of dollars. The creators do not settle for cheap props, or actors. They get the best they can! The pay ranges from actors payments, props, decorations, stunt cars, movie extras, houses, and rental areas, and equipment. The scene to a movie is shot in Pennsylvania, but the creators and company needed to pay thousands to get the proper area to shoot their film.

The famous GreenScreen or BlueScreen!
You may have heard of a GreenScreen, but have you heard of a BlueScreen? Do you know what they do? Although GreenScreens are quite popular, you may not know what their purposes are! This section will update you on the new technology used my movie-makers world wide! Have you seen a movie where an actor is on the screen and there is a "fake looking" background in back of him? You don't see this so much in professional movies, as you do in amatuer movies. However, that is exactly what these screens are doing! They are used to insert a fake image, or background picture. This saves money so the crew does not actually have to go to the location to shoot the scene. The actor will stand infront of a huge screen, it can be any color but they are normally green or blue. After the director has recorded the scene, editing crews will go back and with the help of a computer, insert the desired image or background into the green portion. This makes it look as if the actor is on a ski slope, although he is really warm inside a recording studio. Bluescreens work the exact same way.

Stunt Doubles!
Jeez, I wish main actors could do the stunts themselves. In most movies, you will see the "bad guy" or "hero" do some incredible stunts like jumping from building to building, or leaping in the air or avoid a car driving towards them. Most of these people who do the stunts are known as Stunt Doubles. Their jobs are to do the stunts so the main actors don't have to. In many cases, the double will look similar to the lead actor. In one movie, The Princess Bride, a main actress named Buttercup was rolling down the hill in her elegant white dress. The hill was long, and the camera shot was from afar. However, after close examination it has been revealed that "Buttercup" has a beard!

Lights, Camera, Action!
Tons of lighting equipment is used to produce the best light for different portions of the movie. Maybe the director wants soft lighting, hard lighting, a blurry shadow, a defined shadow. To create many different effects, lights are commonly used. Once the director has the lighting, and props in the exact position he or she wants them in, they will yell "Action!". The cameras start rolling to catch the footage. Once the director has all the footage they want, special editing teams take over. They will edit the footage, cut scenes out, and produce the 2-hour video you watch!

There is so much into the process, I could write a book on it. If you were interested on what I found and wrote, I would encourage you to continue your own personal research. Have fun with it!