48hfp Workshop

The first 48hfp Workshop in DC was offered this year. Kevin Good and Barry Gribble from Integral Arts were the instructors. They were the city winners in 2007 and 2009, and they have a laundry list of other awards and accomplishments, just check their website.

The workshop offered loads of tips and tricks for making a better film for the 48hfp. Topics included Script Writing, Camera Work, Audio, and Lighting. For me, it was an interesting learning experience, but there were no takeaways for me to bring back to my team, South County United. Our team is lucky enough to have a fantastic professional crew and resultant equipment.

I think this workshop would be perfect for the team who has participated in 48hfp once or twice, using a $300 camera and no other equipment. Barry and Kevin are extremely talented and they have the awards to prove it. Their advice and lessons were spot-on to the amateur filmmakers who want to raise the bar for their 48hfp team.

One interesting tidbit of info that I found really interesting was around Environmental Portaiture (addressing camera work and setting up a shot). Barry and Kevin used the example of people sitting on a sofa (on film). So many 48 Hour Films submitted have a scene with people sitting on a sofa. And 99% of the time, the sofa is up against a boring white wall.

Now, think about every sitcom you've ever seen on TV. The sofa is never placed against a wall, it's almost always in the middle of the room. (Friends, Seinfeld, Everyone Loves Raymond, Happy Days, Cosby Show, you get the point....).

So there were definitely some fun and interesting things that I learned, since I'm not a camera operator or a photographer. But it will make me more aware of most of the things I see on TV or movies from now on.

Thanks to Kevin and Barry for a great day. And I think I speak on behalf of the 100+ teams entered this year -- thanks for not entering the project this year!