Day 9 Assignments

[Andre]

1. Andre’s Budget.

2. What I learned from this assignment…

3. Assume Producer asks Me to accomplish two opposite purposes –

a. cut costs by 25% in one version and

b. quadruple (4x) the budget in a second version.

Main Variables- Project:

· Numbers of Locations.

· Expensive Locations.

· Number of Characters.

· Special Effects.

· Number of Pages.

· Crowd Scenes.

· Stunts, Chase Scenes, and Fight Scenes.

· Special Sets.

Secondary Variables- Project:

· Rights to Music, Brands, Books, etc.

· Explosions and Firearm.

· Kids – shorter work days, tutor on the set.

· Animals – need a wrangler, more time to shoot, humane society.

· Weather – Rain, Snow, Wind, Tornados.

· Water and Underwater Scenes.

· Night scenes.

· Helicopters, Aircraft, Drone Shots.

· Green Screen work.

· Extensive Make-up.

· Archival Footage.

Anything else dangerous
that increases preparation time and/or Insurance.

Note: Life is happening. Developing these scripts will take time…

[Connie Hood]

What I learned from this assignment is a listing of cost/benefit items and how to evaluate choices.

My story as low budget:

ActI – interior/exterior of a simple bungalow, a set for an abandoned house in disrepair, interiors of LA City Hall offices, conflict portrayed in close-up, popcorn shack at a football game. Use of talented but relatively unknown actors in the three lead roles.

Act II – House movers in close-up work on elements of moving a large house; use of existing 1980s video footage. Dialogue confined to people in the here and now; limited use of neighbors and observers.

Act III – Intimate scenes of a couple restoring a house, use of 2-3 actors as laborers; use author’s photographs of finished restoration. Intimate wedding scene, generic fireplace.

My story in high budget:

Act I- Much closer to the actual scope of the feat of moving the house. Focus on 3 lead characters with some audience drawing power. Known actors in cameo roles. High drama in the confrontation between husband and wife – setting at a high school football game. Use of green screen to take advantage of existing game footage; location on an actual school football field; use of minors in background scenes. Greater character exposition.

Act II – Would like to use several small groups of actors for various purposes. The same actors can reappear in different roles. Old men at the fence judging the main character; neighbors; a nursery school class; re-enact the house move with 1-2 pieces of heavy equipment. Expand on plot with more than one incident that illustrates the patterns of catastrophes and miracles.

Act III – Access a location for a restored house. Interior/Exterior shots of LA City Hall for nemesis events. Gorgeous wedding in a restored home.

[Mary Spiers]

Mary’s Budget

I learned this is very helpful to think about as I’m going through. I am making this very small now, but see how I could also increase the budget to give it a little more entertainment value.

To lower budget:

MAIN VARIABLES

Number of Locations change office, road, Ashley’s property outside, inside to just Ashley’s propertyExpensive locations – noneNumber of characters (2-3)Special effects noneNumber of pages – DKCrowd scenes – noStunts, Chase scenes, and Fight scenesSpecial sets

SECONDARY VARIABLES

Rights to music, brands, books, etc.Explosions and Firearm – yes- gunKids — shorter work days, tutor on the setAnimals – need a wrangler, more time to shoot, Humane SocietyWeather — Rain, snow, wind, tornados. Maybe – could take this out.Water and underwater scenesNight scenes – maybeHelicopters, aircraft, drone shotsGreen screen workExtensive Make-upArchival FootageAnything else dangerous that increases preparation time and/or Insurance.

To increase budget, add back what I took out and add weather, maybe helicopters or chase scene and add animals to the farm. Add more actors.

[Michele Le Blanc]

M.M.’s BUDGET

What I learned doing this assignment is to think creatively and get the script to a barebones position for low budget, then beef it up for a high budget.

MAIN VARIABLES – LOW BUDGET

Number of Locations: Instead of
using the FBI building and various apartments and houses, I can use one
building with many rooms and set dress what I need.
Expensive locations: Instead of
using the courthouse, I can either use stock footage or film it for TV
exteriors only, then set dress a room in the FBI building to be the
judge’s chambers, and eliminate the courtroom scenes.
Number of characters: Instead of the EMS and press and other
judges and their clerks and secretaries when the murder happens, this can
be an exterior shot seen on TV of an ambulance driving away, or it can be
just one reporter on TV reporting from the exterior of the courthouse.
Special effects: No need for guns or smoke bombs in the
courthouse; just cut to the report of the murder. We’ll hear the gunshot in the final
scene but no need for actual gunds.
Number of pages: This was in the 100-110 range, but can
be cut to 90.
Crowd scenes: Eliminate all the
crowds outside the courthouse after the murder.
Stunts, Chase scenes, and Fight
scenes: No stunts at all. Main actor can start to run in the final scene
without needing a stunt double.
Special sets: Cut the courtroom
and large FBI conference rooms; use the rooms in that one building to
double for FBI offices as well as the judge’s office.

SECONDRY VARIABLES – LOW BUDGET

Of these variables, Night Scenes are used, but they can be shot inside a building rather than outside.

MAIN VARIABLES – HIGH BUDGET FILM

Number of Locations: Instead of
using the FBI building and various apartments and houses, I can use one
building with many rooms and set dress what I need.
Expensive locations:
Courthouse, courtroom, cemetery, judge’s home and interior rooms, judge’s
chambers and ante rooms, FBI building, exterior and interior, lobby,
basement research rooms, etc.
Number of characters: Quadruple staff in FBI, add Bureau Chief
and his staff, add EMS, press, ambulances, judges and their clerks and secretaries.
Special effects: Guns, smoke bombs, explosions in the
courthouse.
Number of pages: Increase from 90 to 120 pages
Crowd scenes: Huge crowds
gather outside the courthouse after the murder – press, ambulances, EMS,
police, courthouse staff, other judges, etc,.
Stunts, Chase scenes, and Fight
scenes: No stunts. Main actor can start to run in the final scene without
needing a stunt double.
Special sets: Need courtroom
scene; young daughter’s home and bedroom, father’s home and bedroom, large
FBI conference rooms, investigation rooms with cameras, etc.

SECONDARY VARIABLES – HIGH BUDGET FILM

Rights to music, brands, books,
etc.: I publish my screenplays in
book form so the IP rights would need to be purchased for the film.
Explosions and Firearm: This would beef up the murder scene by the
murderer at the courthouse laying bombs (explosions, smoke, firearms). The
final scene could be a shootout where now it is a single gunshot heard
offscreen.
Kids — shorter work days, tutor
on the set: Add the backstory of
the father and daughter, requiring additional actors – wife/mother and the
daughter at age 9.
Animals – need a wrangler, more
time to shoot, Humane Society: As
of now, there are no animals in the show but they could be added to the
home scenes of Jill who buys a guard dog to protect her when she thinks
the murderer is after her too.
Weather — Rain, snow, wind,
tornados. This could be reset in
the northeast in the wintertime during snow, or in the tropics with
tornados and hurricanes. It is set in late summer/early fall as of now.
Water and underwater scenes: None.
Night scenes: Add many more night scenes such as traveling
to and from the office for research.
Helicopters, aircraft, drone
shots: Add drone shots of the courthouse building focusing on large crowds
going to and from the courthouse; and of the ambulance, EMS and police
exiting the courthouse when the judge is murdered.
Green screen work: This could
be done with the cemetery scenes, and adding more street scenes with the
courthouse in the background.
Extensive Make-up: The murdered judge needs extensive
makeup, blood, head injuries.
Archival Footage: Obtain city footage to show the period
when the father and daughter were younger and what caused their
estrangement.
Anything else dangerous that
increases preparation time and/or Insurance: Large crowd scenes, press
reporters, ambulances, police escorts outside the courthouse after the
murder.

[Andre]

Andre’s Budget…concluded; moving on to lesson 10.

Budget examples

Examples of Low Budget

a. My Dinner With Andre: $475,000

b. The Breakfast Club: $1million

c. Friday The 13^th: $550,000

Examples of Mid-Budget:

a. Alien: $11 million

b. 10 Cloverfield Lane: $15 million

c. A Quiet Place: $17 million

Examples of High Budget:

a. Gravity: $100 million

b. Passengers: $110 million

Solution to budget issues:

1. Let go of the high budget item in your script.

2. Ask, “What is the dramatic goal I am trying to accomplish with this scene?”

3. Ask, “How can I accomplish the dramatic goal without the expense?”

The Process

1. Create Outline (in next lesson, lesson10), I will fill in whatever I believe will work to make it a great story.

2. As I write the script, notice any expensive budget items.

3. Later on, when working with producers, if they are concerned with budget, we can go back through this check list to determine where I might make changes.

-Andre

[Erin Ziccarelli]

Lesson 9: Keeping it Low Budget

What I learned from doing this assignment is: the different factors that affect budget.

1. Run through this list and tell us how many ways you might be able to decrease the budget for your project if that was required. Then go through the list and tell us what you might add if your budget was quadrupled.

MAIN VARIABLES

Number of Locations: add the ship
set, hire an actor rather than just a V.O. for Capt.
Expensive locations: lighthouse
scouting for EXT. shots, three sets (staircase, basement room, radio room)

Number of characters: three – could
cut Christopher (just V.O.), could add the banker and Capt. as actors
Special effects: final scene w/ ship
coming in
Number of pages: from 120 to 90, vv.

Crowd scenes: none needed
Stunts, Chase scenes, and Fight
scenes: no stunts/chases/fights
Special sets: lighthouse set, top
room of lighthouse

SECONDARY VARIABLES

Rights to music, brands, books, etc.:
none needed
Explosions and Firearm: no
explosions needed
Kids — shorter work days, tutor on
the set: no kids needed
Animals – need a wrangler, more time
to shoot, Humane Society: no animals needed
Weather — Rain, snow, wind,
tornados.: rain and thunderstorms needed for the plot
Water and underwater scenes: water
dripping into the lighthouse (leaky roof, etc.)
Night scenes: mostly night
Helicopters, aircraft, drone shots:
no aircraft needed
Green screen work: potential green
screen at the end?
Extensive Make-up: Gabe’s bullet
wound
Archival Footage: ship at the end?
Anything else dangerous that
increases preparation time and/or Insurance: nothing dangerous? I don’t
think so.