The Mentoring Room - Ask the Working Pros

Thanks for the nice email exchange, Matt.

Chahid – I am using the HVX200 in Iran and I find it works well, particularly with four 32GB cards (a bit expensive) – I would second John Burgan's advice about looking into the HPX170 – (smaller/lighter/wider lens/better picture) – unless you really want to be able to shoot standard definition material onto DV tape, in which case the HVX200A would be the right choice. But it's a much bigger camera, and if you don't need DV tape recording there's no reason to get it now.

I haven't tried the Sony cameras, but other people here say they're good.

With all of these cameras that record on solid-state cards, the biggest thing to get used to is the new workflow. At first it can be fairly daunting to have to back up all your material onto multiple hard drives or other media, but I have found the more I work this way the easier it gets. It's very much "drag-and-drop" to get the material off your P2 cards and into hard drives for editing. I'm using 500GB Lacie portable drives in the field – I have 12 of them and they're very light and seem durable – it's enough space for about 100 hours of HD material, all backed up on separate drives. These drives also run off the Firewire cable power from a Mac Powerbook, so you don't need an extra power cable, and they're small enough to put in a baggy pants pocket.

James has very baggy pants. He's the MC Hammer of doc filmmakers.

(Let's get this party started right)

James, you don't have any problem with the speed of the Lacie drives? They don't hang up and everything runs smoothly? What model of the drives are they? I've got older ones, but they'd be too big too bring along anywhere, but I recently bought a 1tb fairly small size drive but the footage hangs.

I'm using this one – the 500GB version. So far it works fine for cutting 720pN material on the Macbook Pro in Final Cut. I've only been using these drives for a few weeks, but no problems to report so far. And yes, I sometimes carry them in my pockets.

Merci ...food for thought.

Hello everybody---

My new feature doc, an all- verite day in the life of three families in New Orleans, was accepted free of charge to the Thessaloniki Documentary Film Market after I submitted to the Film Festival. The movie is not in the festival, and it has not yet been picked up by any distributor (although I got really really close, dammit!)

I have never been to a film market of any sort before, and can find very little info on the net about the Thessaloniki Docmarket. So I am wondering if anyone has had any experience there or has heard anything, can tell me a bit about other docmarkets, whether it would be useful to be there in person or whether it's too crazy to go all the way to Greece [from Brooklyn]. One other thing to consider-– My flick is definitely a European style movie, which could hypothetically be most successful with audiences over there, so this market could be exactly where I want it to be in terms of target audience.

Thank you thank you thank you,

naftali

Naftali, it's not really worth it to go over to Greece if you're just in the market. Often they don't even let the filmmaker in to where the market is, it's just a bunch of commissioning editors and festival programmers sitting in a room with monitors watching stacks of films on dvd. What you really want to do is get your film to the few good sales agents out there that take on docs and sell them internationally (Films Transit and Roco Films are two). They go to the various markets and larger festivals and do the dirty work for you. Meanwhile, keep applying to film festivals and try to premiere it in the biggest and best one possible before you settle for the second or third tier festivals. Lots of luck.

In reply to James Longley's post on Tue 13 Jan 2009 :

thank you for the reply Mr. Longley.... i just had a chance to try the Sony PMW-EX3 as a friend is over to visit from the U.S. and i found it to be rather good, except for some minor details, i'll try and find a Panasonic HPX170 , unfortunately we do not have a vast range of camcorders, or anything but the commercially available consumer minicams in lebanon... well its more convenient for me to shoot directly onto solid state cards.
and as you say it's pretty much "drag-and-drop" to get the material off the cards and into hard drives for editing.... i found it so easy especially with the non-linearity approach to viewing the clips ...

thank you again...

In reply to Doug Block's post on Tue 13 Jan 2009 :

Doug,

Thank you very much. Mmmm, dirty work for me. That sounds fantastic. I will track Films Transit and Roco as best as I can.
And I am applying to those festivals, oh yes, I am applying those festivals. Thanks for the luck.

And good luck with all you are doing.

Best of the best,
naftali

In reply to James Longley's post on Tue 13 Jan 2009 :

Your welcome James. I enjoyed it.

I wanted to ask you, on some of your long shots it occasionally seems that you are shooting the footage with music in your head. It seems that the way some of your camera movements are made as you wind your way down passageways in Baghdad, Gaza or Najaf have a distinct rhythm and syncopation to them, separate and apart from the way you punctuate your edits.

I play percussion and I occasionally had this distinct impression while watching your work. Is this true? Do you ever have music or rhythm in mind as you shoot any of your "Steadicam" shots?

Thanks,

Matt Dubuque

Everything is hand-held in those films and the only music is the music of the spheres.

Cool. Filming to Pythagoras. I can relate!

Cheers,

Matt

Can I write off my camera, lights and sound equipment?

Hello-

I'm asking this question here because others may have it and I trust the answers from a tax law library or tax professionals that may be here far more than a Google search.

However, I find the CCH and RIA tax materials somewhat disorganized in their approach and layout, so I'm trying to avoid a trip to the law library.

Here goes:

I'm conviced I can make a profit on some of my films over the next five years and am willing to prove this to the IRS over time. This is the first year of my business and it is not a hobby.

As such, I am filling out a Schedule C and possibly a Form 4562 for tax treatment of my purchases of camera, lights and sound equipment.

I would like to expense these items rather than depreciating them. Can I do so?

Thanks. I just wish the Rutter Group (or even CEB) would make tax guides.

Matt Dubuque

Yes – I think you can do this – but most tax advisors will probably tell you that you should calculate whether that will be the most beneficial thing to do.

Super, thanks so much James. I managed to get hold of the IRS instructions for this form (Form 4562) and was finally able to confirm that this is possible; the wording is pretty dense, but after reading it many times to learn whether film gear is considered a "listed" asset or not, I was finally able to decipher it.

I have a string of documentaries in the queue and have set up both non-profit and profit entities for them. I feel comfortable that for this particular for-profit entity this is what I want to do....

Many thanks,

Hope all is well.

I'm sure you guys have already gone through this, but, I'm in need... Sorry!!! I'm currently working on my release forms for my documentary. The catch is it's a thesis project in order to gain my Masters degree. May you help me with sample release forms?

Thanks in advance.

Marcia, do a search for "release form" on this forum you'll find several examples. If you need one in Spanish, let me know and I can dig one up.

Hello to everyone in D-Word community,
I am a 35 year old living Brooklyn, NY who over the past 5-7 years has fallen in love with the documentary medium and is looking to make a career transition into this field. My original background has been in the fine arts industry of New York, but I now find it unfulfilling and less socially vital than important cultural visual media. I recently have been laid off due to the economy which I very much want to use as an opportunity to get involved in this industry. As you may know It's usually a bit difficult to get that first bit of experience in a new field when one has no previous experience in it. I'm setting my sights on getting a internship with any individual filmmakers or production companies to meet people and gain experience. I have been viewing craigslist regularly and applying there and it occurred to me that I could possibly post an "internship wanted" ad in the classified section of D-Word. I wanted to request any thoughts or input from anyone of the D-Words members regarding the likelyhood of attaining an internship at my age, or any thoughts or tips on going about getting involved with this amazing medium that has changed the way I see the world.

Thanks to all for your time and consideration,
Dell Martinez

welcome, Wendell. in your time off from work, you should see if you can learn the basics of editing in Final Cut Pro. the most useful interns often work as assistant editors – digitizing, organizing, and finding footage. this will give you a great introduction to what documentary filmmaking is all about (assuming the director you are working for is competent...) best of luck as you make your transition!

Hello everyone;
I may be hired to creatively consult / oversee a documentary by a financier. I've never held this role and wondered if anyone out there had experience with this. I'm putting together a proposal right now and would be grateful for suggestions, the more detailed the better. Should I suggest being compensated by the week or a percentage of the budget? Should I ask for back end profit participation? As you can probably tell, since this isn't my own film, I'd like to make it work for me in a "work for hire" fashion, that is, I'd like to get paid as well as possible. What credit should I ask for? What "looks better on a resume," to put it crassly? Producer? Co-director? I'd also like to make sure I respect the director's vision and be helpful without stepping on toes. Has anyone been in this type of relationship before and what are some pitfalls I should look out for? Thanks in advance for your time –
Amir

Hi all,

I will soon be recording a choir for soundtrack use – so sound only. What releases should i get from the choir members? Can i get all of them to sign one form? If the piece of music is out of copyright then i just have to get permission to use their performance right? This is small choir at a local cathedral singing sacred music for mass.

cheers,
Evan

Hi does anyone know how much typically an expert is paid to in order for them to agree to be interviewed for your documentary? What is the typical payment for someone who is an expert on their field (but who is not famous *famous meaning written a book or something like this)

typically, you don't have to pay experts a dime... if they are really interested in their field, and in getting their views out there, many of them are actually appreciative of the opportunity to do so on film.

of course, you don't want to waste their time either. your only "payment" to them needs to be an organized production, perhaps a meal or two depending on the length of the shoot, asking good questions, and of course, finishing your film. at the end, they should also receive a complimentary DVD and perhaps an invitation to a local film festival where your work is playing.

don't offer any cash if you can at all help it. if they ask for it, just plead poverty and inform them about the "low-budget" nature of documentary. if they insist on payment, you can just find another expert, or find some other non-monetary compensation that will satisfy them.

Hi Mr Wong thank you for your advice! :)