Filming Club Club Advisor: Ms. Zeng President: xx Ideas/resources to look: https://www.teachingideas.co.uk/computing/starting-a-school-film-club/ students should have access to a screen, or selected film, and may require licensing if shown publicly (students should research this prior to screening). When I taught Year Six in the past, we ran lots of film projects where the children set up their own production companies, planning / scripting / storyboarding / filming / editing their own films. What are some steps, tips, and tricks to making a productive high-school film-making club that produces a feature length movie within a year? A year seems like a long time, but clubs and school structures can sap this time very rapidly. You don't want to still be shooting on the day of the premiere. Having worked as a teacher, trying to help students make films, my advice is to assign roles early on and set realistic deadlines while leaving time for contingencies. The roles you will need to fill: 1. Director 2. Assistant Directors (2) 3. Screenwriters / Producers (2) 4. Script Supervisors /Acting Coaches (2) 5. Cinematographers/Sound (2) 6. Lighting 7. Actors (4-6) 8. Extras - if the director is away, an AD steps into the role for the day. If a cinematographer or lighting person is away, an AD steps into the role. All other roles have 2 people, so absences will not break the schedule. -The scope of your screenplay needs to be realistic, based around resources and location you both have access to and fit within your schedule. -Your screenplay needs to be modular, with key scenes and optional scenes identified and marked as such. If scene B is optional and can be cut as long as two lines of dialogue are added to scene A (a key scene), then shoot the extra dialogue when shooting scene A as it gives you freedom to include it in the edit, or not, as required. Your deadlines might be something like this: 1 Week in - Film idea chosen. Each group member brings in 1 pitch and tries to sell it to the group. Each group member has 2 votes and can give them to the pitch/es they prefer. They cannot vote for their own. 2 Weeks in - club brainstorming complete, (plot summary, character summaries), written as a group, with the director and screenwriters taking charge to ensure it's good. 3 Weeks in - 5 to 7 key scenes identified and workshopped as a group. The film should work with just these scenes. Screenwriters start on these scenes first. Cinematographers start storyboarding, director and AD's start casting and assigning roles. 4 Weeks in - Casting completed. 1st draft of key scenes written and storyboarded. Production schedule needs to be drawn up for shooting these scenes (Director, AD's, Producers to do this). Acting coaches are working on interpreting characters with actors. 5 Weeks in - Locations locked down and found. 7 Weeks in - First key scene in the can. 9 Weeks in - Key scenes 1-3 filmed. 14 Weeks in - All Key scenes filmed. 16 Weeks in - Rough cut of Key scenes completed With the core of the film completed, any extra scenes you complete after this just adds to the production. They key is to keep motivation high. This is why you start with a more manageable half-dozen key scenes and edit them together as soon as possible. Selecting a focus for your film club is the first step to establishing it as a serious, thoughtful endeavor and not just an excuse to watch TV. sually you can use space at your school, teen center, or local library for free. You will probably also be able to use equipment for free, like a TV or projector. You may need to account for movie rental or streaming fees, and you should consider if you’ll be providing snacks or drinks during your meetings. Also think ahead to potential field trips or special activities. Once you have a basic idea of the club’s expenses, brainstorm how you’ll source that income. Will there be dues paid by every member? Will you hold fundraisers? Will your school contribute to the costs? Make sure to have a concrete plan in place so that you don’t find yourself fronting your own money or going into debt. Begin Meetings Now you’re ready for the fun part: film club meetings. In the early official meetings, you’ll need to take care of some crucial details. If you’ll be holding elections for club officers, you will need to identify leadership roles, delegate duties and responsibilities, and conduct elections. You will also need to come up with a club mission statement. This is a great activity to undertake during your first meeting since it generally gets everyone talking about their goals and visions for the club. Have someone act as scribe and take notes so that you can make sure everyone’s ideas are heard. Try to hone them all down to just a few sentences, identifying the purpose and the goals of your film club. Finally, outline the expectations for members, as established during your initial brainstorming meetings. Be sure that everyone knows what is expected of them during the meetings to come. Now your hard work has paid off and you’re ready to settle into everyday club operations and share your passion for watching and discussing films with your peers. If you’re a cinephile who’s itching to share and discuss your passion for films with your classmates, forming your own film club might be the perfect avenue for doing so. Not only are you bound to gain exposure to different perspectives about the movies you watch, but also you’ll have the opportunity to gain leadership skills and exhibit your commitment and initiative, all of which will look great on a college application.
