How Christopher Nolan MASTERED no-budget filmmaking
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 24 มิ.ย. 2024
- Did you know Christopher Nolan is one of the greatest no-budget filmmakers of all time? Here's how Nolan made his $6,000 debut feature film, FOLLOWING, launching one of the greatest writing and directing careers in Hollywood history.
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I've been making short films for 20 years, starting at age 11. I directed my first feature film, Bad is Bad, in 2010. Made for only $6,000, the film went on to reach over 7 million views and garner critical acclaim. More recently, my short film, Will "The Machine", screened and won awards at film festivals around the world. Released online in 2019, it reached over 1 million views in just a month. I also work as a video editor, cutting ads for clients such as Apple, Netflix, and Beats by Dre.
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00:00 Introduction
00:42 Production
02:37 Lighting
03:10 Shooting on 16mm Film
04:26 FilmConvert Nitrate
05:44 Sound
06:47 Locations
08:00 Extras
08:15 Art Direction
09:22 Conclusions
I've been binging your channel for the past week. Love it! Keep it up.
Wow, my man I've been a fan of yours for a while. Thank you and back at you!
you made a feature in less than half of Christopher Nolan's following
Nolan still uses the shooting style he learned from doing Following to this very day. One to two takes thanks to heavy rehearsal, using creative methods instead of shooting normal coverage (Like that one dolly shot in TENET where we wrap around the characters as they are planning the Oslo heist), even stuff that would normally be second unit is done by him. That no-budget mindset still permeates with Chris, it was extremely useful to his career
Im 16 and I'm bout to make my first ever short film🤞🏾🤞🏾🤞🏾
I’m 16 and I made at least 10 short films and I just finished shooting my newest film
I'm an 17yr Indian boy I'm want to make a short film but i don't have money cause my parents are not rich and In india almost 90% of the jobs only 18+ age and that for that rest 10% there a big agreement and many more so no one will me as a employee so I'm finding an another way to get money. I don't even have a good camera mobile. I'm using 6yr old micromax phone. But I'm not gonna leave it I want to make it and i will make it 🤠 btw all the best to you 😉
@@siddeshchauhan8510 my friend you can do it! All you need is a simple camera, simple story, a few characters and locations to start off with. I believe in you 👍
@@asherpikesgoldenmoralcinem5770 Thanks bro, One of my friend have a iphone and he is interested in my short film, i have completed the story, only 3 characters but all of my friends who want to work they are busy cause exam is going on. So till then I'm improving my story and after their exams got over i will shoot it. Bro i will send you the video after uploading.
@@siddeshchauhan8510 excited to see it friend, subscribed. Yeah always remember the story is important, something simple. Always remember most good films are built on a simple structure which often is:
-Short intro of characters
-One or more characters gets in the way of trouble
-The trouble is solved
That’s the most often structure, keep at friend you got this 👌
Recently watched Following for the first time; it was fantastic! Chris Nolan uses his resources to tell a story that is rich with emotion and meaning. I was immersed the whole time and the budget did not did put me off (other than one or two brief shots which would be nit-picky of me to critique), the visual language served the tone he was going for; it feels timeless. I love this movie
Agreed!
Shooting the beginning and end with high quality shots and making the rest of the film more loose is such a genius tip. Not just to cut cost but conveying story as well. This whole video was monumentally helpful!!
The film that inspired me to make my debut feature film "Bluff" which I did by shooting as a one man crew for a total production budget of $2000. I hope one day I can go on to have a career like the one Nolan has paved for himself.
Another technique Nolan employed in "Following" was to start with a voiceover so they had this really clean sound so when they went to the scrappy production audio in later scenes, audiences will have already been engrossed in the story hopefully so they wouldn't notice the low quality of the audio.
What happened to your feature film as of now?
@@Leprutz it's out in digital and on demand on platforms like Amazon, Tubi, Google Play etc
@@cinesheikh Thanks.
@@cinesheikh what camera did you use to film it? And Audio equipment?
@@nerdyworld938 a7iii and Zoom H1n
I just finished my first year at uni and your channel is really inspiring. This past year, I've done a lot of stuff that I never thought I was capable of and I cant wait to do more, thx for all the tips!
I'm glad I found your channel when I did. I'm working on a lot of different short film ideas and I was definitely getting ahead of myself and planning on taking on more than I could handle. Your videos (while at first a bit of a tough-to-swallow-pill) ultimately gave me a reality check that probably helped me avoid a lot of headache and frustration. Now I can approach the process in a more realistic and intentional manner. Great work!
I've been burning through your videos the last several days, and I find everything you do both refreshing and reinforcing. It's really helping me try to re-focus my drive for filmmaking again. I also watched Will The Machine & Last Laugh, and so, I know you've got the skills to back up your advice and analyses. Really invaluable stuff you're sharing, Kent. Thank you so much!
This channel along with a few others have been invaluable getting started. As a making the decision to be an independent no-budget filmmaker, another aspect is relationships with others as this channel has mentioned. It's finding a role as a PA, sleeping on floors, being an extra, long hours, doing all the jobs giving, giving 150%...to others, then having those relationships to film your projects, we have phones, most likely, no matter what it is, now go film...period!
I really appreciate your level of analysis, considering his formal choices in their historical context. Excited to watch Bad is Bad!
Excellent, very detailed breakdown of how Nolan made that first film of his and how clever and resourceful he was with locations, actors and even story line. He's quite the innovator and deserves all of his successes afterwards.
Great video! So refreshing to hear that’s how Nolan started, it makes the whole process sound much more doable with a full time job.
What a coincidence! Today was my first day in film school and I met this guy we were talking about movies and nolan and he asked about Following and I told him that I've heard of it but I haven't watched it and he told me to watch it asap I came home got some sleep and when I wake I get a notification about this video So I was like okay the universe is telling me to watch it!! So I did and I absolutely loved it! Great movie!
The hardest part for me would be the commitment and loyalty of my cast and crew. Nolan was lucky to know people willing to commit to this project for so long, and it paid off.
I have watched quite a few and many of Christopher Nolans films, and have loved them, and quite literally after watching each movie I say "Christopher Nolan is a film genius" he makes his films so realistic and always has the most perfect actors for his films.
This video is Electric! I’m moving into shooting my first feature… And Your video and channel are one of the many ingredients I’m throwing into my filmmaking gumbo.
I started filming in the late ‘80s and it was pretty much a crap VHS system and I had zero support. Fast forward to the 2000s and things got a little better, but finding like minded people or just any filmmaker or motivated person has been, at best, a chore and it has slowed my process to a crawl.
I finally found a teacher, but I’m finding videos like yours and good instructional go so much further in assisting my creative journey.
That’s what I want to make as well. A passive coverage of this long journey in the darkness to finally finding, a funny parallel since filmmaking is all about it, the light.
That’s my one redeeming quality is my persistence. I literally made crap just to keep myself behind and in front of the camera. Find a hole in the wall and squeeze through it.
So thank you for making these videos and sharing. It’s widened my horizons, opened my vision (and focal length) and allowed those creative juices to flow through.
For that I say thanks. I’m also originally from Virginia too.
Film loves more and more light without compromising the image too much (ie you can overexpose). With digital on the other hand, it's better to shoot underexposed and brighten the image later if needed. If you compare movies/TV shows these days you'd realize that the trend is a lot of skintones are underexposed
You are probably one of the best 'how to make movies' channels out there. You know what, you are the best one!
Phenomenal video as usual!
In the event you’re in the market for video ideas, I’d be very interested in you doing a video on how you organize and edit multiple takes in your editor :)
love your channel, thanks for sharing your amazing story telling skills
Thank you for this tutorial video, it brought so much into perspective.
This video made my day. Thank you so much for great work on putting everything together
nolan is so fascinating to me, hes not like ANY other director and it amazes me how he get his job done
Nice piece. Well done! 👏🏻
I’ve no idea about film nor do I ever want to make a short film. However I am a music producer and I always like to explore the details about how other people think about their art. I really love how limitations explained in this video can force you to think about creative choices that actually make your art better than if you had unlimited options.
10:10 this whole sentiment is how I expected to feel about Memento. I expected it to be good, but ameteurish. A study piece on an early artists work. Psych it was fantastic, watched it twice in two days. Nolan is so good
Christopher Nolan is very innovative and your channel is very informative.
Incredibly insightful. Truly appreciated!
What a lesson on film budget management! Thanks, dear.
Loved the video! I have to put in my two cents about Nolan's audio though. I think it would be a mistake to assume that his dialogue volume and clarity choices aren't exacerbated in conversation from beginning to end on these productions. I don't know if people realize the amount of people that are involved in productions of his scale and the sheer amount of stakeholders that would have to have an explanation as to why it is the way it is would leave no room for sub par production. I think it's a cool creative choice that adds to the immersive experience of his films. Nolan is nothing if not a risk taker.
I love this! Can you do more anaylses of low budget feature debuts?
This is so inspiring. Thank you.
Awesome video, thanks!
Favourite channel on TH-cam
great video man
nolan is one of my favorite film makers out there!
Very good knowledge here!
Excellent video!
potentially first? LOVE your content super educational, planning my first short at the moment. thank you
How’s your short going
Great video. Subscribed!
Hello Kent lam,, been watching all your short film and also bad is bad,, your dialogue and story telling was legit good,, can you make a video on your writing process plss🙏🙏😘😘😘,,
Love you Kent 😘😘😘😘😘❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Bro! You use the GH5S also? I just filmed my first ever feature film on two of these with the Sirui anamorphic lenses. Turned out super good. I’m editing VLog in premiere and I’m not used to it. What’s your best advice for that?
That’s insane! I just wrote out some short films and I decided to use a hammer cause it was something everyone could relate with
Thanks for this. I tweeted this to Jeremy Theobald, and you have his approval!
I just watched Following 2 days ago and it’s amazing
Nolan really is the goat. So much to be learnt from his career.
This is one the best filmmaking video on TH-cam I’ve seen in awhile. Have you have spent a shit ton of time on lifetime movie sets or did you go to film school? 😂 great work
Thank you bro🎉
I'm early. Really enjoying the content.
always interesting and awesome content ....
Glad you enjoyed it 🙏
I always like your videos but today you get 10 extra points for the MC Hammer insert!
the first time i watched tenet i was confused so i didn't like the movie that much. then i watched it the 2nd time n it gave me a different perspective n experience. thats the magic of filmaking that attracts me.
Nice. Subbed.
Making a film on $6000.00 is still big budget for me :D (equivalent to about R100 000 and the most I ever spent was R10 000 and I was the only actor, and my mom did the camera work haha!) Man it sucks being in a third word country.
well done
Do a video on Sinfeld Remastered next!
You look like a more mature and seasoned Jeremy Jahns lol. Love the channel!
God, I love seeing Jeff's face in these.
1:30 - wait... Nolan got "great audio"? I'm impressed.
One thing TH-camrs leave out (intentional or not) is that social standing (and by that i mean how much money you or your family has) is a huge determining factor for Ultra low budget films getting made or not. I'm not saying his parents paid for his film BUT being able to have some kind of financial buffer can allows for focus on the feature film and not having to worry about paying rent or whatever....,
I know 😢 its hard getting money by yourself and with friends
@@xtcyrafa Another big barrier to making the ultra low budget film is making the film you want vs the film you actually can make. Using what you have access to and then coming up with an idea seems "in-organic" compared to having the vision of amazing idea. This mentality will hold you back from making that first film for years..., happened to me....,
@@workinprogress2077 true that’s what i realized into planning my short films, just use the equipments i have, invest in necessary equipments for the story and use what i can
where did you get your whoosh sfx?
Stellar vid
Very nice
Make your skill much powerful to achieve what you want .
Would love to chat with you abouty film Four Amigos releasing on Amazon September 9th
It inspires mes when someone without film school createa awesome cinema, because I am a bit poor for cinema school lol. Though I am working in CS to get that monei to create films. Created my first movie 8 years ago but it wasn't very ready for festivals, so i was saving money for gear all those years. Now have gear already now I need that spare money for props and festivals
Use what equipment you have and make films, don’t wait till you have the perfect gear, cause once you do you will feel the need to upgrade all of that. Good films are good films no matter what they are shot on, and folks don’t care how you made it, just if they were entertained or not. So stop collecting, and start making.
Can you make a video about how to storyboard?
I think he has now! I'm not a storyboarder (though I have storyboarded screenplays/episodes of series' before, if that counts), but here are some tips from my experience:
1. If something specific needed to be detailed/explicitly shown, make sure to storyboard it in more detail!
2. If you're working with a team, make sure you get their insight (or the insight of your boss/manager/etc) and make sure they can understand what the storyboard is showing, this is especially needed for animators/actors/actresses!
3. Don't clutter things TOO much, for extra detail/backgrounds that need to be drawn, you could use different shades of colors (ex. Characters are black outlined, while BGs/special objects are blue or red).
4. Don't make actions super vague! It's okay to storyboard similar poses if the action the character is doing (ex. Shaking head, moving hand over something, etc) is needed to be more explicitly drawn.
5. Make sure actions/storyboards fit audio! If they're not, it can be very confusing for actors/actresses/animators, and for audiences!
6. Make sure characters that are storyboarded aren't too bland looking, like stickfigures or something very undetailed, but there's also no need to make them super detailed/realistic, since it'd be a waste of time and unnecessary! Try using details to the sketches from the characters (ex. A character has a distinct mustache, so draw that mustache on the sketch, or a character has poofy and wavy hair, so draw that on their character sketch)! This helps animators/actors/actresses know which character is which!
It's also good to have an idea/plan of certain/most shots before storyboarding, and it's okay to change shots for better ones, too! Also, this is from my personal experience; to not make shots super boring! No need to make shots super cinematic (unless needed, ex. For action), but I have personally made the mistake of making shots feel lifeless/boring, this is especially noticeable in scenes where characters talk a lot. So practicing storyboarding certain shots/having an idea before picking a final storyboard/actually storyboarding is a good idea!
Good luck!
Hey Kent, I was watching your YT video of how you become an editor in just three months and I would to know if you have any materials to make available for me to edit. My name is Luca, I'm 19 years and I'm starting in this area of editing and know I'm trying to start to build my portfolio and I would like to know if you have any materials that I can use to start editing and for training
Thank you for your attention!
That’s inspiring
That's great
I love your blue outfit it suits you
Considered how convincing Alex Haw in the role of Cobb was it's quite surprising (and disappointing too)
that he didn't pursue an acting career.
I think he shows up in memento and a guy Ritchie film aside from Following
@@southpark645 Thanks for the hint! 👍 It's sad though that he didn't do more acting jobs, since he was (probably still is) quite talented in this field.
You da man man
Inception is incredible. I wanted to capture the feeling of the Dreamspace in the short *Beyond The Glitch* so I used an *Inception* LUT template on scenes that take place inside the construct.
Tenet I couldn't get behind the time traveling mechanics. Yes I get it and understand the explanation, the concept just completely took me out of the experience.
Provide link of your short film.
I would love to see the short film as well!
@@nicolasclarke a lot of TH-cam channels automatically block posts that share links so I don't post the link in comments, but it's up on my channel click on my icon here & it'll take you to my page. Video title: *Beyond The Glitch | Animatrix 2.0*
@@dotpngpic Search for #BeyondTheGlitch it will come right up
Awesome
What would you do if you had ideas for films but you weren't a writer and didn't know any screenwriters? Are there screenwriters that you could hire to write a script inexpensively or any other resources that you would try?
I think so! You could also reach out to friends/family, and see if they'd like to be apart of the project! Or perhaps you could start writing, so it'd really feel like your own film/writing and had your style to it. Good luck!
Great !!!!!!!!
Good presentation👍
Kindly note the term " Extra " is outdated , the right way to address them is as a Background Actor/Artist ✌️
the unintellibible pilot banter in Dunkirk 😂😂😂
In my opinion, AND THIS IS JUST MY OPINION! You cannot compare Christopher Nolan's era with today's technological times. Because today's technology allows us, anyone and everyone to just grab any device and create anything, whether it's a short film, a full feature, TH-cam content or just fooling around , we tend to think differently because the market today is so technologicaly saturated. Every device that you get your hands on allows you to video record with audio anything that you can possibly think of and you have a plethora of different avenues to showcase what you've done and the whole world can see it in an instant. Whereas Christopher Nolan's era , that was not the case. Creating a short film back then you really need it to be incredibly talented, and I don't mean in terms of writing and shooting a script, I mean from conception to a finished product, getting the place looking for the equipment to do so, finding individuals who would act and work behind the scenes at the same time. Because it wasn't so saturated and not everybody was doing it, it was harder for individuals back then to get something shown. because there wasn't a lot of competition, it was easier to showcase, because it was something new. So their method of thinking differs from ours today. Today everybody including myself focus more on what technology is out there for us to use rather than the storyline and like I said I too am guilty of this. I think, this is just my opinion, that if Christopher Nolan would've started today with the technology that we have, his outcome in the future would've not been the same as it is now, but again that is just my opinion. I think that this is a very educational video and should be used as an educational tool in filming schools. Great video, and great analysis. I would love to see you interview Christopher Nolan and several other directors from his era and ask this question, that will be an incredible video!
How to make a $6,000 feature: Write something within your limits, and have friends willing to make less than minimum wage. (including yourself.)
If you actually add up all the man-hours on these projects, and count the minimum costs of legit labor, a $6000 feature is generally something like a $60,000 feature that is $54,000 in debt. He saved a lot of money on film stock not wasting takes, by doing a bunch of rehearsals. One of the assumptions of this level of filmmaking is that those rehearsals are effectively free. People talk a lot about stuff like avoiding wasting film stock, which is significant. But analysis of super indie film tends to understate just how many unpaid man-hours are involved, which you wouldn't be able to ignore on a proper production.
Oh yes, most people don't get paid on features that cheap. One's ability to negotiate/inspire people to work for free is a big factor in getting a no-budget film off the ground.
We all had points in the production and were paid when the film was sold and distributed from the box office receipts.
My first feature was made for $7000 as well
It’s such an anti Nolan movie in my eyes and I love it. I think I’ll love it even more now that Nolan’s other films are growing on me
basically efficiency
Something you kind of slipped past but didn't touch on: no low-budget explosions or special effects. Don't have expensive things in your low-budget movie. A bad explosion or vanishing effect would be shoddy; better to not have it at all.
Another interesting note: In the original Star Trek, there were episodes that were zero budget. One of them had an impressionistic skeleton of an old-west town, which would be fine for a stage play but not good to be taken seriously as part of a realistic sci-fi series. So they wrote it into the story -- it wasn't a representation of the set; it was literally a shoddy set in-story.
Another one had no sets at all. Years later, when I was older and able to appreciate it, Deforest Kelley said in an interview that this was one of his favorite episodes: the stage was entirely black, and there were pencil spotlights on each actor. It was a pure acting performance, with nothing to detract from that. In-story, they were in a dark cave.
basically hes really techniquelly and practically smart
He did.
How you come over your limitations shape your future. - Chris Nolan probably
IMO low budget digital always looks like a home video borderline no matter how hard you try. Low budget b&w film looks passable as a legit movie if done right.
I was seriously watching until hammer time made me burst. The second thing that made me laugh was "Nolan shootin digital".....no way he would.
The following was good but usually when I see a movie I like skipping dialogue & get to the action. On that movie all was dialogue which made it boring other wise good
I worked as a colourist for a 0 budget feature. 🙃
Oh I’m early? Maybe it’s a sign my no budget will go well
What are your thoughts about Robert Rodriguez making his first film for $7000 and making 2 plus millions?
yeah...he mastered it so incredibly that ever since he is a professional filmmaker he literally made one movie that did not cost hundreds of millions of dollars to make.
8:40
Funny enough, the hammer scene doesn’t really work. The actor who’s using it doesn’t sell that he’s breaking someone’s hand. He looks like he’s lightly tapping him
Remember me when your famous :D
$6K feature, didn't Rodriguez do a thing on that?
It would be cool a video about it