MY FIRST SHORT FILM DONE!!!

I finished the editing of my very first short film. It runs for 8 minutes. I called it "A SIMPLE PLAN". I have sent it out to a couple of professional friend in the US and the response i have been getting has been very encouraging. It will also be featured on a budget filmmaker website in the UK soon. If you want to see, pls feel free to mail me, i'll send it to you. thanks. This is just the beginning.

PROGRESS REPORT

Still cutting and fitting. One thing i noticed at this juncture was the fact that i should take more shots. There are some gaps that needs to be filled but unfortunately no clip to fill in. I will just make do with the shots i have. Suprisingly the whole sequence is gradually getting shaped up, and its making more sense.

FIRST FILM SHOT!

SHOOTING MY FIRST SHORT FILM
I finally made the giant leap further into the world of movie making today as i shot my very first short film that i intend to run for 10 minutes. Everything went on very smoothly. I was also amazed at the cooperation of my brothers and friends. They really gave me all the support i needed, though i never gave a dime! Thank you so much everyone. I must also say it was a very exhausting day for me, i had to rely on my determination and dreams to carry me through. So, work starts on editing immediately!

SHOT REHERSAL!

Today, i went with one of my friends to do a final check on our location and rehearse my shots. It was a real eye opener for me and it has really boosted my confidence towards what the job i had to face tomorrow.

PROGRESS REPORT

I seem to have everything in place. I got my camera,tripod,reflector,blue screen material ( cos i will be doing some effects works), tapes, script,my casts and crew (all made up of my friends). No lights-because my location is outdoor, am just gonna use the reflector to get good lighting. No Microphones- because there aren't going to be dialogues on set. any voice overs are going to be recorded in the studio later. I will be shooting on wednesday thats 11th January. I hope for the very best.

THE COMMENT ON MIKE'S SITE
Mike Bartlett had my blog featured on his site today( www.makingthefilm.com). Thanks mike.

THE SHORT FILM CONCEPT

The script is actually a very very simple common story but i am relying on my creativity, the use of subtle visual effects and my graphic experience to carry the project to the next level.Infact its a story of a guy trying to woo a girl (as simple as that).I must confess, i have not done this before, but i am very sure i have everything under control.That's why i am taking my time! Anyway, its a test run.
I got in touch with a friend of mine that was a location manager for a drama group back in school. He is to handle my locations issues for me while i'm still touching up the script.

EFFECTS SHOTS

Happy New year, folks! I have drawn out storyboard for my short movie and i am still taking time out to plan how to go about shooting some scenes. Some shots are really very tricky. its took Dupe (my fiance) and I some time to figure how we are gonna shot them. For this short movie, i am going to be doing some effects short and it will require that i get a blue or green screen. Wonder what i'll be doing with that! Its all part of the trick. Well, just wait till i get to the buttom of this project!

FEW TRICKS!

CG Snake composition
When i'm not fine-tuning my script or i am not doing official duties, then i'll be practicing my visual effects skills. I must really say that i have impressed myself, though not perfect yet. Above is one of the practices. I composite a CG snake into a 2D background using MAYA. I made the snake crawl across the scene, quite convincingly. Its amazing to see how a 2D plate can be made to look like its 3D by the way the CG interacts with it. I have also done some couple of other stuffs, which i'll let you have a taste of later.

SCRIPT FINE TUNING AND SHOT PLANNING

With the help of my partner and fiance, i have been able to come up with a script for a short movie.I have realised over the years that Proper Planning Precede Progress! So i am taking my time to properly plan, everything i need to put in place to make sure all goes well. Even to the very last detailed take. I just want to get on set and start "acting out" the shots i have rehearsed in my head. I am also scouting for locations to use.

GOT MY MINI DV CAMERA!

My JVC GR-D270
I got on the net in search of a fairly suitable camera to use to bring my ideas to life! I browsed quite a number of sites which included: camcardersinfo.com. I was clear that I needed to get a mini DV camera. And I need just one that will do a good job. After reading through i spotted the JVC GR-D250, bought it, but later realized that it lacked some useful functions through what I read on the review on the site. I returned it and asked for the JVC GR-D270, which according to the site is a better buy, though a little expensive. Its quite cool though. I also bought a tripod too.Can’t wait to try it out!

SCRIPT

I wanted to do my first short film, a test run actually. Maybe a 5 minutes clip. So i had to put a script together. I seacrhed for sites that could guide me into the world of script wrtiting- i got quite a lot. One of such is : simplyscripts.com.I'm so amazed at the number of things one could come across on the internet these days.Its very useful for inspiration as well.

PETER ON THE LOOSE AGAIN!

KING KONG
Once again one of the greatest things that has happened to the movie world has been unleashed again. PETER JACKSON has his latest movie KING KONG out today! i have been following the post-productions diary on the official website: www.kongisking.net. Here comes the Oscars, Peter!

VISUAL EFFECTS RESEARCH

I love movies with good visual effects. Maybe that’s why I love peter Jackson. And so, one of the reasons why I have embarked on this journey is because movies made in my native country lacks visual effects. And that I stand to correct. I have been researching into how visual effects are done and added to give an impressive work for a long time now. I have been working with Alias Maya (www.alias.com). And with the reviews that i have read over the net and things I have been doing with it, Maya has proven to be a worth-while deal. I’ve always had ideas in my head. The one thing stopping me is a CAMERA! I need to buy one to test run my ideas.

MOVIE MAKING RESEARCH

I have been doing quite a lot of movie making research. How movies are made from scratch to finish. I have got a whole lot of materials from the internet. I am having a swell time with the stuffs I’m getting. From materials needed to softwares. As for the softwares that I’ll be using, I am gathering tutorials for them too. I’m also coming across some wonderful sites on short films for inspirations.

LET THERE BE LIGHT!

-PETER JACKSON 
Welcome to my blog.I hope to use this blog to track my progress into the world of movie making. The idea for this blog was inspired by Michael Bartlett's makingthefilm.com. I shall be updating from time to time my progress, which will definitely culminate in making a full length movie. And subsequently many more AWARD winning African movies. PETER JACKSON (director of Lord of the Ring) is the role model and GOD is the source of inspiration!Unfortunately, i work full-time as a graphics/multimedia designer so i would rely mostly on after work hours and weekends to pull this project through. Hope u come along with me.