Using a green or blue screen in your production pipeline is simple: get a solid color background, film your subject in front of the background, then remove the chroma key in the background using your video editing software and replace it with something else. However, getting a precise key from your video can be a trial and error process that could cause frustration if the original video is not shot correctly.

Here are some techniques that you can use to make your green screen background production as trouble free as possible:

CHOOSING YOUR BACKDROP

-  A chroma key background can be any color as long as it is not contained within the foreground elements you would like to keep in the scene. Most video productions utilize either a green or blue screen. A clean key can be achieved with either color, but you will want to take into account the color of clothing your talent will be wearing and also make sure nothing in your scene closely matches the color of the background color you are trying to remove.

-  Use paint or a drop cloth and try to remove as many wrinkles or variations in the color of your background as you can. The more consistent your background color, the easier time you will have been removing it in post production.

ILLUMINATION

-  The most important element of a good green screen video production is the lighting. A well lit scene will allow you to tell the software what color to knock out and what elements to keep in the scene.

-  Set up a series of lights who illuminate your backdrop consistently and try to reduce the number of hotspots on the backdrop. Outdoor or fluorescent lighting is a good option because it is a diffused light who spreads evenly across your backdrop.

-  Light your subject well using diffuse lighting as well. Furthermore, a back light that illuminate the back of the subject will help to create a clean edge for your video software to work with.

SETTING UP YOUR SCENE

-  Place your subject a minimum of four steps from your backdrop. This will eliminate shadows from falling onto the green screen and will also help to minimize the color spills. Color spill occurs when the reflected green from your backdrop “spills” onto your subject and causes the color of clothing or skin to change the hue to match the backdrop. This can cause problems for your color key software and results in rough edges on the final production.

CAMERA SETUP

-  Try to shoot your video with the best HD camera you have been available. If possible, use a camera that allows you to make manual adjustments to the ISO/Gain, shutter speed and white balance. The ISO/Gain controls should be set to a low setting. This will require lighter, but will give you cleaner video with less noise and artifacts.

If you follow these simple rules, you can create high quality green screen footage that will allow you to remove the background in your video editing software. Now you can replace the green screen with a virtual background or other video background. Have fun!

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The basic idea of green screen production is simple: setup a green screen, shoot your talent in front of it, then remove the green in your video editing software and replace it with your chosen background in post production. However, getting a precisekey from your footage can be a trial and error process that could cause frustration if the original footage is not shot correctly.

Here are a few simple tips you can use to help make your green screen background production as troublefree as possible:

1. How to choose a chroma backdrop a. A chroma key background can be any color as long as it is not contained within the foreground elements you would like to keep in the scene. Most video productions utilize either a green or blue screen. A clean key can be achieved with either color, but you will want to take into account the color of clothing your talent will be wearing and also make sure nothing in your scene closely matches the color of the background color you are trying to remove.

   b. The more consistent and true your color is, the better you will be able to key the color out of your background footage. If you are using a linen or fabric backdrop, try to minimize the wrinkles and shadows in the cloth.

2. Illumination a. This is probably THE most important aspect of a good green screen video production. Having a well lit, consistent background color is key (no pun intended) to being able to remove the background seamlessly from your shot.

   b. Having multiple lights will help to even out the lighting in your scene. Fluorescent lighting and outdoor/sunlight provide good consistent and smooth indirect lighting to your chroma key background.

   c. Illuminate your subject fully with soft lighting. You may also want to try to add a spotlight pointing at the back of your subject. This will help to cleanly “cut” your subject from the background and will result in a cleaner key.

3. Subject Placement a. Place your subject a minimum of 4 steps from your backdrop. This will eliminate shadows from falling onto the green screen and will also help to minimize color spill. Color spill occurs when the reflected green from your backdrop “spills” onto your subject and causes the color of clothing or skin to change hue to match the backdrop . This can cause issues when the video software tries to remove the green from the backdrop and registers the green reflection on your subject.
4. Camera Setup a. Try to shoot your video with the best HD camera you have available. If possible, use a camera that allows you to make manual adjustments to the ISO/Gain, shutter speed and white balance. The ISO/Gain controls should be set to a low setting. This will require more light, but will give you cleaner video with less noise and artifacts.

If you follow these few simple rules, you can create high quality green screen footage that will allow you to easily remove the background in your video editing software.Now you can replace the green screen with a virtual background or other video background. Have fun!

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When it comes to indie movie making, there are many different ways to increase interest in your projects. One of the best resources for low budget films and independent movies is the online viral video. YouTube is the perfect place to promote your indie movie making project, because you can show clips, trailers, interviews, and even just talk about your movie in the videos that you post. This will get people interested and help increase your traffic so that your movie gets more exposure.

These indie movie making projects are creatively independent, which means that all of the decisions are up to you. If you don’t want to compromise your filmmaking by giving into the whims of whatever Hollywood wants, you can count on independent films to let you have creative control of the entire project. Of course, an independent film is no good if it isn’t noticed. It’s nice to think that the satisfaction and accomplishment of getting a movie produced is enough, but that’s rarely the case. Every indie movie making project is an attempt to gain the most opportunities and interest possible in the hopes that the movie will be wildly successful.

Indie movie making is very personal and different for everyone. However, you need to take advantage of all of the resources that you can find so that you can make the most of your film projects, no matter what they might be. You can take your finished film to many film events and independent film festivals to have it shown in the hopes that it will generate a substantial following. Of course, if you don’t have the right foundation or take advantage of resources like YouTube to promote your indie movie making projects, you won’t get far at all.

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1.  Most important skill you need is organization. If you were the kid who kept the minutes of the club meetings, edited the yearbook, or organized the prop-closet by era, you already have this skill. It is something that is hard to teach, but you can certainly learn it, to become more organized.

2.  Need to be able to make decisions quickly. Despite the best planning, things change moment-to-moment during production. You will have to decide right now whether to set up the next shot despite the looming storm clouds, or to move on to another location, completely disrupting the schedule. The best way to develop this skill is to completely bury your doubt. Know that you are in charge, any mistakes to be made are yours to make and you will suffer the consequences of bad decisions. If you act decisively, and accept blame when necessary, your cast and crew will accept your decisions unquestioningly.

3.  Must be a good negotiator. You will have to make deals for every single thing on the set – the equipment, the sets, the crew, the film stock, everything. Even if you’re borrowing your mom’s station wagon, you will have to convince her you will take good care of it, and return it washed, and with a full tank of gas. Everything will have to be negotiated. One thing you need to know when negotiating: You can always say no. If you can’t get the deal you want, just say no. Practice it. No. There is no need to be a jerk, just make it clear that you will take your business or offer elsewhere. If a crew member doesn’t want to accept your day rate, he doesn’t have to. You will find someone else (assuming you set your rate at a reasonable low-budget level).

4.  A producer also needs diplomacy. It’s surprising how often a film shoot devolves into a third-grade playground. In just a few short weeks, cliques form, rumors start and friendships are formed and ruined. Crew members and actors will, believe it or not, come tattle to you. Sometimes you will have to intercede in petty squabbles and personality conflicts. The trick is to smooth ruffled feathers while not making one combatant feel like you’ve taken another’s side. That will only set factions against you, and that’s the last thing you want on your set.

5.  Need energy. Lots and lots of energy. Caffeine helps to get you started after only a few hours sleep, but it is no substitute for real, healthy human energy. One of the things you must do during pre-production is get yourself in shape for the rigorous weeks of shooting. You’re in training, not for a sprint, but for a marathon. Working on lower budgets, independent films often have a much tighter schedule, making for longer days and fewer days off. Take it seriously beforehand, and train like a champion. Exercise, eat healthy, and take vitamins and supplements to build your energy stores, so you can get through it.

After you have these basic producer skills down, you’ll be ready to develop your knowledge of the filmmaking process and the entertainment industry, by producing a successful independent film.

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Steps involved in film making :

1. Film making starts with the preparation of concept for the film. A concept or an idea is considered to be the foundation over which the story (building) needs to be developed.

2. After fixing a concept in your mind, you have to develop the story by writing script with dialogues. The story shall be depicted in pictorial forms (using diagrams and pictures), so that each and every scene can be communicated easily to the crew members.

3. Now with your script, you have to seek the help of certain companies to finance for your film. The company shall decide to finance for the movie after listening to the script. Then select the persons to play specific characters in your movie (be focused while selecting the cast and crew members for the film).

4. Look out for locations. Location should suit the particular scene.

5. Schedule the timings for each and every scene and organize them. Giving away the call sheets.

6. There are various costly equipments available and the equipments for film making can be selected based on the budget of the film.

To begin your career as a filmmaker is necessary to get trained in some film school which teaches your valuable techniques in filmmaking. Only, when you get proper training, it is possible for you to survive in this field. This is one field which keeps developing day by day and there is no recession for this industry, wherever they go, they could survive. This field offers you with a variety of jobs. Making a film is not a simple one, it includes screenwriting, producing, directing, acting, editing and so on. The film school offers many diploma and certificate courses in filmmaking.

The following are the stages in filmmaking:

1. Development

2. Pre-production

3. Production

4. Post-production

5. Distribution

Is filmmaking an income or expenditure? Making a film require lots of efforts, here a huge amount of money is spent and the films are taken with a hope, that it might fetch more profit In the future. People give good response to nice story. On the whole, filmmaking is a beneficial one. Altogether, expending in the present might fetch you more profit in the future.

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Many of today’s most innovative indie directors rely on storyboard software programs when they begin to map out their projects. From horror flicks to documentaries, the newest software has what it takes to create “feel” in mere minutes. If you’ve never used digital storyboard programs to craft storyboards, you will be pleased to see just how many options and variables there are to play with.

Hot new storyboard programs offer pre-loaded artwork that take the need for a live artist out of the equation. Since using artists can bring a lot of delays into the mix, using pre-loaded drawings can be very liberating, you will finish your storyboards sooner and you won’t have to deal with the hassles of outsourcing. In fact, you will be able to do your storyboards without anyone else’s help. The best storyboard software takes into account your own unique and creative mindset, it’s designed to work with your way of thinking. You don’t need to be a techie or a computer wizard to use storyboard software.

These programs are surprisingly complex; they offer a lot of richness and layering for a slick, professional end result. Just because they are easy to use doesn’t mean they produce an amateurish result. Independent film directors use images or drawings to map out every frame, playing with the software to add or remove characters and props, sync in dialogue, and add a soundtrack and backgrounds. There are no limitations here. Changing camera angles and experimenting with different effects is as easy as clicking a mouse. Storyboard software is actually a powerful creative tool – by showing you a test run of your film, it can pinpoint problems, weak spots, and issues. It’s really an excellent way to refine your vision before you put it on film.

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Concept

You’ll need a basic idea or concept before your movie ever takes production. This will include a plot, a storyline, characters and the location where your movie takes place. The best way to do this is write down your ideas on a piece of paper. Write down all the details, big and small. Then sort them out into topics and main ideas. This piece of paper will become your script and you can build off of that.

Script

After you have developed your concept, start putting your script together. Keep in mind that a script is not just dialogue. The script includes the location, what’s taking place and basically gives the overall mood of the movie. Script writing is the longest part of filmmaking believe it or not. Don’t get frustrated if your script changes along the way, that’s normal. Even for major filmmakers.

Storyboards

This is the fun part of filmmaking. After you have finished the script, put the scenes on storyboards. This will allow you to visualize the movie. You may need to hire an illustrator for this, but it’ll be worth it.

Funding

Yes, you’ll need some funds to put your movie together. If this is your first stab at filmmaking, then you’ll probably just pool together your own money along with the people you are working with. However, if you expect a studio to fund your film then you’ll have to follow these three guidelines: have a professional presentation, have a unique script and make sure your film is marketable.

Location

Now that funding is out of the way, you can focus on the location of your movie. Brainstorm a list of possible locations then check the sites to see if you need a permit to shoot a movie there. Many sites will require permits so don’t be surprised at this.

Cast/Crew

At times this can be a challenging part of filmmaking. Once you have your site location set, you’ll need to hire your cast. Many times you can post an ad in the paper online directories. A great place to start is at colleges. Colleges usually have a drama club and you can hire college kids pretty cheap.

Equipment

Keep in mind this is not some big production like Star Wars alright? You don’t need all the high tech equipment that Hollywood uses. But at minimum you should have a decent camera, lights, sound equipment, props, costumes and set pieces. Don’t go overboard on this or you’ll break the bank.

Start Filming

This is where the rubber hits the road in filmmaking. A film can be made in as little as 6 weeks, or as long as 6 months. For your first film, you should have it ready within two months. That’s a good goal to shoot for.

Edit

You may have six hours of footage for a 90 minute film. Don’t panic. The editing process is where the film becomes a movie. Take your time on this. Make sure to review and edit all your scenes until the movie is to your liking.

Original source and author from Shane Boyd’s articel

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Zoom, Pan, and Tilt

A zoom refers to using your camera controls to change the focal length, resulting in a telescope-like magnification of the view. On film cameras operators can choose between motor driven or manual driven zooms. Some filmmakers use camcorders with a smooth-slow zoom, but most produce a more jerky result. The recommendation is to zoom only for a specific purpose such as to emphasise size or to indicate entry. Zooming can be distracting unless it is done for a purpose. Cutting between a series of closer and closer shots (called jump cuts) will be easier to watch and achieves the same effect.

Panning refers to sweeping your camera lens across the scene horizontally, tilting is the same movement vertically. Panning and tilting can be a distracting or even disorienting technique. Pan or tilt only for a specific purpose such as to show size. For example, while a speaker describes a classroom set-up, a cut-away to a slow pan across the room might be appropriate. Never pan or tilt just to change the framing unless you will be able to edit out the pan. Attempting to pan or tilt with a handheld camera or low cost tripod head will lead to a jerky movement which betrays you as a rank amateur. A good tripod head provides an adjustable and constant resistance to movement preventing jerky changes in motion in a horizontal pan or vertical tilt. Even with a good tripod it takes experience to pan and tilt correctly.

Track

Tracking refers to following moving objects within the scene by actually moving the camera at the same rate. This gives the viewer a feeling of walking or riding along beside the camera’s subject. While this is common in professional video, the professional has equipment that you may not. The typical process for tracking involves building something similar to a small railroad track upon which the camera and tripod roll. You can use just about any wheeled object to support your camera for a tracking shot. The best no-budget alternative is to use a porter’s dolly with pneumatic wheels that can be softened to absorb bumps. Another alternative if you are shooting outside, is to use the back of a car which is then pushed by a few camera assistants.

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