"The Man From Earth" is much easier than a normal movie.
If nothing unexpected happens, it won't appear on the big screen.
After participating in the film festival, Rowan will have the movie directly enter the videotape and disc market.
However, because he planned to direct and act in the film himself, so all of his energy was devoted to "This Man From Earth".
Rowan tried to find some people to learn from, and his efficiency was gradually improved, and he made a budget.
Movie: This Man is from Earth "Preliminary production expenses: venue fee - $0 (my own home), food and accommodation fee - $10,000 (tentative), car rental fee $1,000, props/makeup/costumes..."
"Equipment cost: Sony DCR-VX1000-3 000 dollars, lighting equipment..."
The total budget is around $400,000.
Of this, $300,000 was used to pay Rowan his own producer/director/actor salary.
It is true that it is your own project, but you still have to report it accordingly.
This is the Hollywood style taught by Mary. The key point is to calculate more.
Of the remaining $100,000, the director team spent the most.
This is the price you have to pay for directing and acting in your own films.
It is difficult to direct and act in a film by yourself. You need to watch it mostly by yourself. There are too many things to con sider during the filming process. It is difficuIt to devote all your energy when acting. It is also difficult to be objective when watching your own performance. You need the heIp of a reliable assistant director.
Even so, communication and shooting will affect efficiency.
Rowan made the transition because he was unsure of the extent of his superpowers, so he spent more money to be safe.
Because of this, in order to improve efficiency, he chose the Sony DCR-VX1000 digital camera.
Produced in 1995, it is equipped with many high-tech features.
The first home computer with a 1394 digital transmission interface, which is usually only available on professional computers.
The first tape recorder to use MINI DV cassettes, greatly reducing the size of the machine.
It was also the first to feature 3CCD technology (color enhancement) and the first consumer camcorder capable of streamin g video information to a regular Windows or Macintosh computer.
Compared with these technologies, the official suggested retail price of US$3,000 seems to be extremely cost-effective.
It only costs less than one-tenth of the price, the image quality will not be much different, and with the rich accessories, the photos you take will be pretty good.
Of course, it can't compare with machines that cost tens or hundreds of thousands.
However, Rowan intends to make "This Man From Earth" into a pseudo-documentary, and this camera is sufficient for him. It's ease of operation is also suitable for directing and acting by himself.
By the way, the romantic action movies in San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles are very fond of using this camera to shoot romantic action movies. It is no exaggeration to say that it is a magic weapon for romantic action movies.
__________________
When Rowan got up in the morning, he felt the temperature starting to drop, so he put on a thin black sweater under his black suit.
While eating breakfast, he was reading the newspaper that Emma the female assistant had just delivered that morning.
A financial newspaper published news about the East Asian financial crisis. The headline was that a financial crisis had also broken out in South Korea, with the won-dollar exchange rate falling to a record low yesterday.
Almost there... Rowan called the Elizabeth to make sure she was following his orders.
After chatting for more than ten minutes, there was a noise outside.
Emma the female assistant reminded: "It's James Wen."
Rowan nodded to show that he understood, gave a few more instructions and then hung up the phone.
Just as he was about to put away his phone, a text message came in.
From: JK Rowling
Content: Mr. Leonhard, I would like to talk to you again about the copyright of the Harry Potter series.
After glancing at the content, Rowan smiled, replied, and put away his phone.
He was almost done with breakfast and asked the female assistant to throw the dishes into the dishwasher. He went to open the door and saw a young Chinese face.
"Good morning, James."
Rowan looked at his watch and said with a smile, "You're here half an hour early. Do you want to earn some extra overtime pay?"
"Good morning, Mr. Rowan." James Wan smiled shyly: "It's normal for the assistant director to arrive a little early."
"Come in first."
Rowan made way.
James Wan walked in and looked at th e detached villa, then looked at Rowan's tall back, feeling a little emotional.
He and Rowan were good friends in the chat room.
A few days ago, he was suddenly invited by Rowan to work together.
It can't be said to be sudden, Rowan has always said that.
He just didn't expect that the netizen would be Rowan.
There are many hidden talents in such a small chat room.
It's a rare opportunity to experience the feeling of making a movie, and to work with such a well-known actor.
Even though it was just an independent film with a small investment, James Wan still wanted to seize this opportunity, so he decisively agreed and even asked for a long vacation from school.
"Tea or coffee?"
"Pure water will do."
"ΟΚ."
Sitting down in the living room, James Wan just took a sip of the purified water brought by Emma the female assistant and put it down, then took out a small notebook from hi s bag: "Mr. Rowan, I have some new ideas about movies."
"Just call me Rowan."
Rowan smiled and said, "Technically you are older than me."
James Wan cleverly said: "But you are already a doctoral student, which means you are two levels short of the required academic qualifications."
"Let's not talk about this."
Rowan smiled and said, "Tell me what you think."
James Wan picked up the storyboard script.
The above-mentioned elements required for the story, such as the description of characters, transitions through dialogues, and the adaptation of conflicts, have all been constructed in detail in the script, leaving little room for filming to be extended.
The degree of freedom is not high, but it also shows the solidity of the script.
Stroking the cover of the book, James Wan said: "Some of the plots of 'The Man F rom Earth' are very similar to the 1960 'Twilight Zone' series."
"Ah, the Twilight Zone series is really worth watching. It's a great encyclopedia of suspense works that use wonderful ideas as selling points."
"In short, although it is similar, the plot development is different."
"The two are not quite the same, but they can make people associate them, so I think it's better not to make it a pseudo-documentary. It would be better to rent more equipment and use multiple camera positions."
"You don't need too many, just two cameras. This Man From Earth is not a very visual movie. There are no special effects. It's completely driven by storytelling and dialogue. As long as the picture doesn't look too rough..."
James Wan was a little off topic at the beginning, but gradually his narration became smooth.
Rowan listened and observed him.
Directing and acting by yourself requires the assistance of a reliable director team.
In order to train future members, in addition to looking for some acquaintances, Rowan mainly discovered talents that he had marked before.
Rowan interviewed James Wan a few days ago.
After working together for the past few days, Rowan has a better understanding of James Wan's personality.
Riwa once again confirmed one thing: James Wan is a genius.
Not to mention the wild imagination he displayed during online chats.
The excellent communication skills demonstrated now prove that James Wan has excellent ability to deceive... and attract investment.
This is very important for the director, whether it is to attract investors or integrate the crew.
Clearly he can be a useful assistant.
With training, he can become an independent director in the future.
"...Mr. Rowan, it only costs $10,000 to rent and upgrade the hardware. It's very cost-effective."
At this time, James Wan finished expressing his thoughts and looked at Rowan expectantly to know what he thought of his ideas.