Creating Student Films with Limited Resources
How a student director accomplished so much, with so little
47 Minutes is a short film about a selfless flight attendant, an overworked lawyer, and a down and out paramedic going about their normal days when a single action turns there lives upside down and puts their seemingly separate stories on a collision course converging on the moment that defined this generation. The idea for this film came when Utah Valley University film student, Austin Wilson, attended an on campus production written by a senior theater major, Joshua French. The two met the next semester, in March 2012 and, at the end of their course, they parted ways hoping they would have a chance to work together in the future. Later that Spring, Austin contacted Josh, and the two decided to move forward with an “all in” mentality to make Josh’s play, 47 minutes, a short film for Austin’s senior project.
Since production ended, the 18 minute production has received 18 awards at various film festivals including first place in the short film category at the 2015 LDS Film Festival, in addition to receiving the audience choice award; the Award of Excellence at the Indie Fest; seven nominations at the Filmed in Utah Awards; and being named an Official Selection at the Student Filmmaker Awards. The student film was also featured at the Independent Filmmaker’s Lounge at Sundance 2015. With this being said, the project did not come without obstacles. Through their planning and creativity with their budgets, storyboards, film sets, and a great cast and crew Austin, Joshua, and Merrill proved that quality films can be produced, even on a shoestring budget of $13,000. To see the trailer of the film, watch the video below.
Budget
One of the biggest challenges any student film faces is money, because it affects the equipment you use, the quality of actors you can recruit, where you can film, etc. Many, if not all, student films require some money out of pocket. However, there are ways to minimize this cost such as fundraisers and kick starters. It seems like common sense, but the key to minimizing costs is to not spend the money in the first place. When asked how the film 47 Minutes spent less than half of their original budget, director Austin Wilson advises, “Play the student card,” and “work on other peoples’ projects so you can earn your favors.”
While certain aspects of a film are bound to be expensive, such as traveling and film sets, one of the biggest resources a film has is people who are willing to volunteer their time to help you. As the students working on 47 Minutes learned, there are many industry mentors and actors willing to work for free, or in trade of services, especially when students are involved. The key to getting these people excited about a project however is to, “Make a story that is interesting and that people want to work on.” With this being said, do not underestimate a film’s budget, with the expectation of free and discounted rates. While 47 Minutes stayed well under their original $30,000 budget, unforeseen expenses led to additional expenses during post-production, after hitting a revised budget of $10,000 during production.
Storyboards
Many people question whether they actually need to storyboard a project, but what they don’t realize is that including this step during pre-production saves time. Storyboards help a director share their vision with key departments on their crew, especially when “you are going above and beyond basic coverage.” While storyboards can detail an entire film, the 47 Minutes team used storyboards to demonstrate and stylize specific shots that would be done in New York. These thumbnails can be basic proofs of concepts, such as the ones seen above, but in larger projects, with dedicated storyboard artists, they can take departments through an entire film using full-blown artwork. No matter the quality however, storyboards should demonstrate 1)framing, 2) who is in the frame, 3)basic camera movement, and 4) an idea of the environment. Though it may seem tedious, it will pay off when a shoot is in line with the rest of the director’s vision, without risking time and money that comes as a result of “winging it.”
Film Sets
Another challenge of producing any film, especially at at student level, is where you are going to film it. As is the case with most projects, you want to film in the most practical locations to cut down on costs, but sometimes the practical locations don’t work out, and you must get creative. During the production of 47 Minutes, there were key scenes that needed to be filmed on an airplane, but after the team’s plan fell through at the last minute, they had to use available resources to build their own airplane set. After taking the shell of the airplane off the hands of Creative Media Group, the production crew worked with the dimensions they had to fake the location with movie magic, one curve wall, one back wall, and six rows of seats. While the project did not go as planned, the final results show that with some manual labor and creativity, building your own sets can look professional and fit your needs. Additionally, if done right, they can pay for themselves. In the case of the airplane set, it has broken even with the cost of building it, in addition to making a profit, after being used by the LDS Church, Vivint, ZAGG, IHC, and several other companies for commercials.
Cast and Crew
While everything else in a film production is important, nothing can come of it without a cast and crew, which can have one of the biggest impacts on the quality of film you put out. Everyone wants to find top talent, without breaking the bank. One of the many elements of 47 Minutes that stands out is the well-known talent that they were able to recruit. Through a network of friends and acquaintances, the production team was able to work with experienced actors and actresses such as Corbin Allred, Melanie Nelson, Joshua French, and Kristen Jensen. Not only does networking play a big role in finding quality talent who is willing to volunteer their time, but as director Austin Wilson explained, “Referrals were amazing because people suggested the people they are friends with and that they trust, which are two of the biggest things you need in an actor. They need to be friendly and fun to work with and they need to have a reputation of having the chops to be able to hold their own in such a big arena film.”
Not only did Austin, Joshua, and Merrill have a great cast to their advantage, but they were also able to get receive the help of 53 student volunteers to be part of the crew during this project, with 12 individuals that were critical members of the crew throughout production. As student filmmakers, we can all understand how hard it is to produce a film, no matter what the length. For this reason, fellow students are one of you biggest assets in the production process because they understand the tight budget you are on, and are typically excited to get experience and be part of it, especially when the end result is as professional as 47 minutes. As you go throughout your program, Austin explained that it is important to make note of key people you would like to work with on future films, and be willing to help them on projects so that when the time comes, you have a list of talented individuals who can help you complete a project as successful as 47 Minutes.
While the production team for 47 Minutes faced many challenges, both film related and personal, their all-in mentality paid off in the end. Using the skills they developed in various courses in the UVU Digital Cinema program, the student filmmakers “took what they learned in their years of schooling and applied it into this final project — a project that has already landed members of the group in professional positions in the local film industry,” according to Digital Media professor, Dennis Lisonbee. 47 Minutes is an inspiration for many film students and demonstrates that with proper budgeting and storyboards, practical and creative film sets, and a network of people to be part of a cast and crew, any film student can create award-winning films with minimal funds.
To learn more about the award-winning film, visit 47minutes.com.
