Book Review: DV Filmmaking by Ian Aronson

Ian David Aronson was an Associate Professor at Ramapo College in New Jersey – my Alma Mata. As I was looking for books on digital filmmaking I spotted this and I bought it. I’ve read 5 other books and this was my favorite for a number of reasons. The quality of the printing is outstanding. And the material from start to finish is well written and many of the major points I learned about digital filmmaking at the New York Film Academy... [Read More...]

The 180 Degree Rule of Film Making

To maintain continuity, draw a line between 2 actors and keep the camera on one side of that line. Only break the line when there is a very compelling reason to. This is one of the basic principals of filmmaking and it’s easily demonstrated during a football game. If Team A is on the left side of the screen and they are trying to score on the right side of the screen, switching to a shot where Team A is rushing into the end zone on the left... [Read More...]

The Over the Shoulder Shot – OTS

This is a fairly common shot in film making where the camera is placed above the shoulder of an actor or actress to give the movie viewer a look at what the actor sees. It creates a first person viewpoint. OTS is used a lot during interviews to help create a point – counter point exchange. Remember to keep one actor on the left side of the screen and the other actor on the other side of the screen to keep the audience from getting confused.  Read More →