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Deborah S. Patz – Author

Author of film books for industry pros and youth

Jul152017

Ciné-surfer: Stephen Fellows’ Blog & All Kinds of Stats

There’s something about stats… and Stephen Fellows manages to collect and examine a huge variety of data related tot the film industry on a weekly basis.

Take this one for example:

Sure, we expect action to have the most, and it’s probably no surprise that documentary has the least, but he goes on to look at shot length too – really diving in to specifics… and then ending with the “Michael Bay – What is Bayhem?” You Tube video – which is utterly fascinating for anyone who wants to learn how to craft movies and shots.

Surf by and have a look. Here are a couple of my other more recent favs:

Stephen Fellows’ Film Data Blog

  • Patterns among the most profitable movies (at various budget levels)
  • How many Cannes-nominated films get a theatrical release?
  • The numbers behind Netflix Original movies and TV shows
  • How much of the UK film economy comes from abroad?
  • How many editors does it take to edit a movie?

Which one(s) interest you?

Cheers and happy researching,
Deb

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Deb Patz is the author of “Write! Shoot! Edit! A Complete Guide to Filmmaking for Teens” (new in 2017) and “Film Poduction Management 101” both published by MWP Books.

WHERE IS DEB? (upcoming events and appearances)
Jul.30-Aug.3 – Panelist – UFVA Conference, Los Angeles, CA
Thu.Aug.3 – Panelist – The Future of Story Conference, LA

 

Jul102017

FILM: Let’s Talk About Framing

A still camera (and yes, I mean Smart phone) is a terrific device for practising framing. Let’s take this picture and make it a bit better:

Often we place the subject in the middle of the frame because that’s where the auto focus is going to work best. Sure, the green plant constrasts nicely with the blue water and neutral rocks, but we can better the framing.

Using Rule of Thirds, we move the plant to left side of frame… but another plant shows up on the right. The dandelion is bright in colour too, so now we have two subjects in the frame battling for attention. Maybe moving the green plant to left was not the right choice.

That’s better. With this framing I ensure the view looks where I want the view to look. But it’s still not optimal, is it? The horizon is a bit crooked, isn’t it? There’s another distracting element. See how the top of the plant touches the horizon? The intersection creates a focal point, and the eye is drawn to it. We want the eye to take in the whole plant, not just the tip. So, how about this?

Better? I think so. Sometimes it takes a little time with a stationary subject to explore framing until you get the photo you want.

Cheers & happy framing to you,
Deb

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Deb Patz is the author of “Write! Shoot! Edit! A Complete Guide to Filmmaking for Teens” (new in 2017) and “Film Poduction Management 101” both published by MWP Books. She took these pictures on her cell phone in beautiful PEI.

WHERE IS DEB? (upcoming events and appearances)
Jul.30-Aug.3 – Panelist – UFVA Conference, Los Angeles, CA

Jun202017

Location Scout Time Warping

Saw a field of daisies recently and it make me think of location scouting for the movies. Huh?

Every morning the daisies open their petals to the sun. The vast field of green becomes carpeted with sparkling, white miniature flowers. As the day wears on, the tiny flowers turn and face the sun on its path across the sky. In the evening, the flowers once again close up for the night.

So, depending what time of the day you visit, you see the all the flowers facing east, west or closed up. If you were scouting the field as a location, you’d want to see it at the same time of day that you’d intend on filming it, or on the shoot day you might be surprised that the field looks different than planned.

Now, in this particular field, the flower change is rather subtle, but the sun’s position and the shadows could make a difference to usable shot angles.

On a bigger time scale, this field scouted in spring (with flowers) vs a shoot in the summer (with no flowers) would also make a more significant visual difference. No sense in having surprises when you show up for the shoot. You can’t exactly paste the flowers back in… well, without CGI. 🙂

So, when considering locations for filming, consider time-of-day for the projected shoot day. An intersection at rush hour does not look the same as when it’s Sunday morning. A parking lot at the mall during mall opening hours it also totally different after hours.

So, time warp yourself to the shoot day when considering a location. What are you going to see then? The daisies tell us it changes for every hour of the day.

Cheers & a good location scout to you,
Deb

– – – – – – – – – –

Deb Patz is the author of “Film Production Management 101” and the upcoming “Write! Shoot! Edit! A Complete Guide to Filmmaking for Teens” both published by MWP Books. She found it hard to choose when daisies to photograph…. there were so many!

WHERE IS DEB? (upcoming events and appearances)
Jun.24 – Book launch party for “Write! Shoot! Edit!” at Chapters Pinetree, Coquitlam, BC
Jul.30-Aug.3 – Panelist – UFVA Conference, Los Angeles, CA

Jun72017

Guardians of the… Water?

Who drinks enough water every day? I know I don’t. I find it a serious challenge. So… what about a movie, like “Guardians of the Galaxy” to inspire hydration?

Watch the movie and every time Groot says “I am Groot” have a glurp of water! By the end of the movie, that’s excellent hydration. How many water slurps is it?! I lost count.

So, give it a try. Let the movie inspire you to good health.

What other movies and phrases you think might work as well?

Cheers & good hydration to you,
Deb

– – – – – – – – – –

Deb Patz is the author of “Film Production Management 101” and the upcoming “Write! Shoot! Edit! A Complete Guide to Filmmaking for Teens” both published by MWP Books. She’s loves a good cuppa tea, but that’s not exactly the same as glass of water, isn’t it?

WHERE IS DEB? (upcoming events and appearances)
Jun.3-7 – Guest instructor – PEI Screenwriter’s Bootcamp, Charlottetown, PEI
Jun.14 – Guest speaker – Charles Best High School, Coquitlam, BC
Jun.16 – Guest speaker – Heritage Woods High School, Port Moody, BC
Jun.24 – Book launch party for “Write! Shoot! Edit!” at Chapters Pinetree, Coquitlam, BC
Jul.30-Aug.3 – Panelist – UFVA Conference, Los Angeles, CA

May272017

DIY Summer Camp: Write! Shoot! Edit!

Wow, there are a lot of fabulous summer camps out there: Knight camps, space camps, sailing camps, horse riding camps, and on and on… and of course camping camps. But you can’t attend camp every week of the summer, and at some point you age out of some of them too.

So… what about a do-it-yourself camp? Why not make a movie with your friends?

My new book “Write! Shoot! Edit A Complete Guide for Teen Filmmakers” comes out July 1st… just in time for camp season! Pre-order now or pick up a copy when it comes to bookstores, then gather your friends and use it as your guide to a DIY Filmmaking Camp all the way from writing the story to editing the final version. The book shows you how to make a movie with whatever equipment, cast and crew access you have right now.

Summer camps are all about learning new skills and making discoveries about yourself. How better to to that than making a movie… YOUR movie. You may discover a whole new exciting career ahead of you – all because you started this summer. Now.

And when you do make your summer movie, drop me a line and tell me about it and the experience. I love to hear about your filmmaking stories.

Cheers & a good shoot to you,
Deb

Here’s a link to learn more about the book and to read an excerpt:
http://mwp.com/product/write-shoot-edit-complete-guide-teen-filmmakers/

Here’s a link to places where you can pre-order the book:
http://www.debpatz.com/a-world-of-book-store-links-aka-finding-write-shoot-edit-for-pre-order/

And, if you’re in the Vancouver Lower Mainland, come to the Sat. June 24 Book Launch Party!
http://www.debpatz.com/book/write-shoot-edit/

– – – – – – – – – –

Deb Patz is the author of “Film Production Management 101” and the upcoming “Write! Shoot! Edit! A Complete Guide to Filmmaking for Teens” both published by MWP Books. The movies she made at her own DIY summer camp led to her career in the movies.

WHERE IS DEB? (upcoming events and appearances)
May 31 – Guest Speaker – Encompass, Coquitlam, BC
Jun.3-7 – Guest instructor – PEI Screenwriter’s Bootcamp, Charlottetown, PEI
Jun.14 – Guest speaker – Charles Best High School, Coquitlam, BC
Jun.16 – Guest speaker – Heritage Woods High School, Port Moody, BC
Jun.24 – Book launch party for “Write! Shoot! Edit!” at Chapters Pinetree, Coquitlam, BC
Jul.30-Aug.3 – Panelist – UFVA Conference, Los Angeles, CA

May252017

Deb Patz interviewed on Dave Says Movies Matter

Hey! I was recently interviewed by Dave Watson about my new book, Write! Shoot! Edit!. Here’s the interview… happily, it’s a text-based, not video, interview! 🙂

http://www.davesaysmoviesmatter.com/interview-deborah-patz.html

Dave’s site is cool. It has superb, short and to the point reviews of movies, and lots of interviews. Great range of movies and insight. Worth a look-see.

Cheers & happy movie watching to you,
Deb

– – – – – – – – – –

Deb Patz is the author of “Film Production Management 101” and the upcoming “Write! Shoot! Edit! A Complete Guide to Filmmaking for Teens” both published by MWP Books. She totally agrees that movies matter!

WHERE IS DEB? (upcoming events and appearances)
May 31 – Guest speaker – Encompass, Coquitlam, BC
Jun.3-7 – Guest instructor – PEI Screenwriter’s Bootcamp, Charlottetown, PEI
Jun.14 – Guest speaker – Charles Best High School, Coquitlam, BC
Jun.15 – Guest speaker – Heritage Woods High School, Port Moody, BC
Jun.24 – Book launch party for “Write! Shoot! Edit!” at Chapters Pinetree, Coquitlam, BC
Jul.30-Aug.3 – Panelist – UFVA Conference, Los Angeles, CA