CeltX 1.0

I've recently started scripting the pilot episode to an animated project I've been wanting to do for a few months now. In the past, I've used Final Draft or Montage for my screenwriting. Both are great programs, but I'm one of those guys who has a hard as hell time just opening up a blank screen and hitting the keys.

Enter CeltX, a free open-source screenwriting program that also handles a lot of preproduction paperwork. (It had me at Hello.) Not only can you write your script on this thing, CeltX will also:

• Keep info on attached cast & crew
• Breakdown your scripts
• Keep a list of needed props, effects, sets, locations, music, etc.
• Provide shoot scheduling features
• Create call sheets
• Let you put together a full storyboard
• Reformat your script to AV style and back
• Collaborate with others via the web

Since I'm writing my pilot episode right now, I'm digging the development features that CeltX provides. For every character, you can use a contained form for description and motivations of the character. If you have an actor already cast for the role, you can link up that actor's information. For every scene, there's a provided section where you detail the nature and conflict of the scene as well as the opposing characters' wants and plans to achieve that want.

For the screenwriter that likes to use the Index Card method of plotting the story, CeltX lets you organize your scenes with virtual index cards. You can name the scene and add a description on one side, and on the reverse you can have the slug line with the first few lines of the scene. You can also drag and drop the index cards around to change the scene order and CeltX will update your script to match. Awesome!

One thing I'd like to see on future releases is the ability to import/export your script for other screenwriting programs. The best you can do right now is exporting as either a PDF or a text file.

Finally, as a nice touch, you can add different media files for whatever reason. In my current project, I included a short mp3 that I thought set the mood of the piece. Who knows, it could be used for the theme.

Did I mention that CeltX is totally free? Download it at CeltX.com.

Not so sure this is a good idea

The big thing about the web and media is how do you produce content for the web and make money off of it?

You got some people with online stores, such as Apple, who rent and sell digital coppies of movies and TV shows. You have online video portals, such as Revver and Youtube, that monetize free videos with advertising content.

In a way these two models make sense. With feature films and TV shows, these are commodities that people actively seek out to watch. A demand for that content has been built out marketing and promotion. People will pay for the content.

The content on sites such as Revver (I'm pushing them because their video quality is higher than Youtube's. YT transcodes and overcompresses video in my opinion.) the videos aren't necessarily something that people have a desire to see. More likely, the viewer wants a brief distraction for a few minutes. While something like Mediocre Film's Retarded Policeman are funny and awesome, I found it merely by happenstance. I viewed it because it seemed like a fun two minute break to a day full of emails and outlines. If there had been a charge to watch it, I most likely would've hit the back button on Firefox and done something else.

That's the beauty of the video portal sites though, they offer free user-generated content. We're entertaining ourselves. Some videos will suck, sure, but some will also be awesome. Fact is, it doesn't cost us to sift through the dreck to find the gems.

However, there's a start up that wants to change the video portal model. Gorilla Tango thinks that you will pay money to watch videos on their site. Their idea is to have user-generated video content and charge you a pay-per-minute rate to watch these videos. The worst part of this is that we're not talking about professionally made video here, we're talking amateur video. Take a look at a sample of the Gorilla Tango experience.

I don't know about you, but that sample video is pretty awful and the idea of spending any sort of cash to watch what looks like a bad After Effects 101 class project offends me.

Skimming through their FAQ, it seems as if the proprietors are assuming that people will pay. They seem to have a superiority complex over sites such as Youtube, calling their content garbage. They just assume that people will pay for their videos instead. (Of course, they also suggest using YT as a promotional tool to drive people to your Gorilla Tango video, so go figure.) Also, take this quote from their FAQ:

Why don't I just put it on YouTube (and the like)?
Free video sites are great for generating traffic to short content but they will not generate you any revenue. If you want to put the movie that you put your valuable time, effort and money into on YouTube next to yet another video of some guy getting kicked in the balls, go ahead, it's your movie.

My main concern is that assumption of people paying. While people are wanting higher quality content, no one I know would want to spend cash on a what is essentially a pay-per-view Youtube. Besides, sites such as OnNetworks.com, Revision3.com, and Ted.com are offering high-quality, professional internet video for free.

I'm curious though, any thoughts?

Advice to Film Students

I have a teacher from my first semester of film school who invites me back to talk to her class about what to expect in future semesters and after graduation. Once, after a decent talk (most times, the students couldn't be bothered to care about what future semesters hold), I came up with some bits of wisdom I would've liked imparted to me when I was a student.

1. Don't try to create a mini Hollywood movie. It's OK to copy stylistic things you find cool because you're still finding your voice. That's craft. However, your content should reflect who you are. Shoot the story that can only be told by you.

2. Embrace and explore the total lexicon of film, whether it be avant-garde, documentary, arthouse, film noir, etc. In the past, all great artists studied and trained in the techniques of the masters thus gaining the skills necessary to express their own visions and voices precisely.

3. Start thinking visually. Take up life drawing, collage, photography, design, etc. How can you show something with only images?

4. Feel free to create scripts without the limits of your own resources, but plan the films you're going to shoot around what's available.

5. Every year, go and look at your body of work to see the pattern of your themes & symbolism. This will also show you how far you've come and how far you've yet to go.

6. Take up another art form. John Waters does photography, David Lynch paints, Miranda July does performance art, Mike Mills is a designer/illustrator, Chris Cunningham sculpts.

7. Learn about business practices as well as personal finance. Commerce is a huge part of life. Making and managing money does not equal selling out. Doing something that goes against your values is selling out. Besides, the image of the starving artist loses its romance when your landlord want his back rent, your electricity is shut off and all you have is a can of boiled peanuts in your cupboard.

8. Get as much set experience as possible as soon as possible. Do everything. Talk to everyone.

9. Cultivate and maintain all of your contacts and relationships.

10. Don't stress out about trying to make a "perfect" production 1 or 2 film. You're still learning a process in a safe environment. Later, when you're at the helm of an advanced production, you'll have the chance to shine and show what you got.

11. It's true: lots of money and high-end gear can make a great film, but the project needs to be great to begin with. Think about what a beautiful piece of shit Van Helsing is.

12. There's more to life than film. Explore it. Learn new things. Read philosophy, science, metaphysics, trivia, etc. Have something to make films about.

13. Read the book, What They Don't Teach You in Film School. It's great.

14. For god's sake, take care of your health. You've only got one body and one life. You can't be at your peak form if you're dealing with aches and pains or you're malnourished on crappy food. Exercise. Learn to cook good stuff. Get the proper amount of sleep. There's a staff nurse for free to keep you healthy. There's a gym and personal trainer at Roosevelt for free for you to use. This is the most important tip I'm giving you.

An Awesome Quote

Here's a quote I found today:

Process is more important than outcome. When the outcome drives the process, we will only ever go to where we've already been. If process drives outcome, we may not know where we're going, but we will know we want to be there.

-Bruce Mau, from An Incomplete Manifesto for Growth

Wikibooks

I knew about Wikipedia, but I had no idea that there was such a thing as Wikibooks. Apparently, these are user-edited books on whatever. Here's links to some that are relevant to this blog:

Moviemaking Manual
Cinematography