BROKEN ($8000 Action Short - 100 Vfx Shots) DVX100a - MOVIE TRAILER
 

Hey Everyone,

We just finished shooting an action/thriller short film called BROKEN. Shot on the DVX 100a.

Click here to check out the trailer: http://www.whatisbroken.com/broken_trailer_enter.html

Here are some of our Web Docs: http://www.whatisbroken.com/webdocs.html


Let me know what you guys think. Thanks for taking a look.

Alex
http://www.whatisbroken.com
http://www.enigmafactory.com
http://www.alexferrari.com

Looks pretty impressive from the trailer. Website is nice too. Good job.

Is it screening at any festivals or elsewhere right now?

Thanks! We are still waiting to hear from the some 30 festivals we have submitted to.

Alex

That looks great. The trailer makes it feel more like a 'serious' production than a low budget film. Great Cinematography as well.

I'm looking forward to see more of this.

Looks great and VERY professional!

I'm curious to know what software you used (editing, titles, sfx, etc.)?

Thanks for the kind words! All editing was done in Final Cut Pro. As for the color correction, the filter packages I used were Magic Bullet, G Film (www.nattress.com), Stib's Simple Levels and a FCP's color corrector. I found that Simple Levels helped me crush the black in a way that the entire image wasn't affected. I also used garbage matte to cut out sections of the frame and color correct them individually. The key is good lighting and having a design in mind before going into post. I did a lot of experimenting and layering techinques in FCP to get the look. Sometimes I look back and forget how I got there. Just play around ALOT with the tools.

Apple's SHAKE is the mac daddy of composting software. There is a reason Lord of the Rings and the Matrix used this software package. It is built to do one thing and one thing alone...COMPOSITE!! The ease of use and power of the software is crazy. It is a node based system while After Effects is a timeline based system, which is cool for editing but slows you down for VFX work. Anyone who has ever used a 3D program like Maya or a high end GFX box like Inferno can tell you node editing is the way to go. BTW, we did ALL the over 100 VFX shots in about two and half weeks, working nights and weekends, this would of been impossible in After Effects. Shake allows you to render one project and keep working on another. Bottomline, SHAKE is the way to go! Hope I didn't go off too much. ; )

Hope that helped!
Alex

I'm speechless. Very impressive.

Great work!

Hey Alex, I'm curious:
A- What was render speed like with Magic Bullet? Did you ever try to combine that with garbage mattes?

B- Similarly, how responsive was FCP when you were adjusting the controls?

C- When you isolate a part of the image with garbage matte, what adjustments did you apply to that particular isolation?

D- What settings on the DVX100 did you use? The colors look very very saturated and warm.

Glenn,

A- I was working on a Dual 2 G5, so the speed of the render was about 10 min per minute of footage.

B- FCP is EXTREMELY responsive! The tools and controls of the filter packages give you almost as much control as a million dollar coloring suite.

C- When I isolated a part of the image with garbage matte I usually was trying to bring up the dark area without affecting faces or skin tone.

D- On DVX100a we used Mode 6 (24p ADVANCED), we shot it clean and saturated the colors in post.

Hope that helps.
Alex
http://www.enigmafactory.com

A- On PC/Vegas magic bullet is a lot slower. On my 2.6C, it's about 30 minutes per minute of footage (dual 2ghz G5 is 3X faster!?). Of course, this depends on the settings you use.

D- Do you know which gamma curve setting you were shooting with? (there's like 4 of them?)

On the website, the before images look very very saturated and warm comparable to 'normal' footage. It seems to point towards some settings in camera that you tweaked... i.e. the gamma curve which emulates film.

Another question:

E- Doing Bonnie's eyes (in the webdocs page): Did you composite it in using motion tracking, or were you able to use secondary color correction to put the color in?

From what my VFX superviser Sean (http://www.seanfalcon.com) told me, he did it by keying options in Shake and not with tracking.

Alex
http://www.enigmafactory.com

Fantastic work...

Hahahaha

This is great!

I have a feeling that if all goes well our films may end up screening in some similar venues, depending on where you shotguned it.

By chance did you submit your film to the comic-con? (San Diego affair?)

Really looking forward to see it.

By the way -- props on the marketing, can't stress enough how impressive and important good press can be.

GOOD LUCK!

Dean

Very good work! You raised the standards for all of us, and show that SD in not dead at all!
I would love to see the final results on dvd or the big screen.

Thanks for the info Alex. I might bug you with more questions :D

Thanks for the kind words guys. We just got a few interview posted on Creative Mac.com & Pixel Surgeon.com. It answers a lot of the tech question on how we made BROKEN.

If you interested go here:
http://www.creativemac.com/articles/...e.jsp?id=32706
http://www.pixelsurgeon.com/intervie...iew.php?id=185

Of course if you have any questions, I'll be more than happy to answer them. Thanks for the support.

Alex

Nice job Alex!

I use the DVX100A as well...

First I wanted to congratulate you on such a great looking picture.


I really don't have any other questions that haven't been asked already, maybe just some simple ones like what was your production schedule like for prepping and principle as well.

how many crew members were you working with?


:)

Thanks for the kind words. We use 15+ crew memebers but only a few were skilled labor. Most of them were PA/Interns. They all worked hard and were fed well. That's the key, if you can't pay them, at least feed them well ; )

Alex
http://www.enigmafactory.com
http://www.alexferrari.com

Wow I was shocked at how good it looked

Thanks for the kind words! We worked real hard on it!! LOL
Alex

did you use any kind of mini35 adapter??? if so which one.

That's freakin' awesome! Can I get a dvd...? Good luck with the film festivals!

-Koa

Thanks man for the cool words. We are feverishly working on the DVD of BROKEN, which will be available on http://www.whatisbroken.com by the end of June 2005. Many people have been contacting us about buying the full short so we are now in high gear to get it out ASAP. We will have a ton of DVD extras and a bunch of tech talk on how we made BROKEN.

Thanks again for all the support.
Alex

We have been bombarded with requests to buy the full short on DVD. Well, ask and you may receive.
We are currently re-mastering BROKEN with a new soundtrack, new VFX shots & tons of DVD extras on the making.

We hope to have the DVD for sale on http://www.whatisbroken.com by the end of June 2005.
If you wish to be on the mailing list please drop us a line and click here: BROKEN DVD


---------------------------------------------------------


Here is just some of the DVD Special Features:

• 6 Commentary Tracks covering...
Directing
Producing
Visual Effects
Music Score/Sound Design
Cast and Crew
Film Geeks Unite

• Art of BROKEN:
Concept Art / Location Comparison
Costume Design Gallery
Marketing: Poster Gallery
Storyboards: Action Sequence
Storyboards: Elevator
Storyboards: Duncan Introduced
Storyboards: Comparison with Final Shots

• Rehearsals
Rehearsals comparison with Final Scene
Rehearsals: Action Blocking "Marquez Kicks Ass"
Rehearsals: Evolution of an Action Sequence w/ Commentary
Rehearsals: A Director's Best Friend - "Finding Your Shot"

• "Marquez's Head go BOOM! - A look in how to make a Guacamole Gun
• Color Correction Lab with Alex Ferrari
• Color Correction Comparison with FINAL FOOTAGE
• VFX Breakdowns with Sean Falcon & Dan Cregan
• Alternate Ending w/ Commentary
• Breakdown the Title Sequence w/ Alex Ferrari & Dan Cregan
• How to Make DV look like Film!
• BROKEN: Guns, Guns, Guns! - "How to Get Pro Looking Guns with little or No $$$"

...and much more!

These are only a few sections we are working on. We have a ton of other stuff in the works so stay tuned to this page, we will be updating it weekly.

As independent filmmakers, we wanted to create a DVD that would not only be entertainment but also EXTREMLY educational for aspiring filmmakers, film geeks, and movie fans.

Again thank you for your interest in BROKEN and we hope you enjoy the DVD.


The B R O K E N Production Team

Very, very nice. Well done! One of the better things I've seen here. Would be interested in seeing the completed piece!

Jay

Thanks!! We are almost done with the DVD.
Check out the lastest: http://www.whatisbroken.com/dvd.html

Alex

all the other stuff on enigmafactory.com is really good!

how much is the DVD going to co$t?

and my last question, did you use a mini35 adapter of some sort??

The DVD will be $19.99 plus shipping. We are working hard to bring to the indie world a DVD that we wanted to see before we shot BROKEN. Tons of info we were looking for.

And no, we did not use the 35 mm ADAPTER, we didn't want to loss the light that extra glass would have give us.

Thanks and I hope you like the DVD.

Cheers!
Alex
http://www.whatisbroken.com

No we did not use a 35mm Adapter. Just a Wide angle lenes.

Alex
http://www.whatisbroken.com

BROKEN almost on DVD
 

Hey Guys,

Here is an update on the DVD of BROKEN. Here is just some of the 2 1/2 HOURS of DVD Special Features:

6 Commentary Tracks covering...

Directing
Producing
Visual Effects
Music Score/Sound Design
Cast and Crew
Film Geeks Unite

---------------------------------------------------------

Pre-Production

Concept Art / Location Comparison w/ Commentary
Costume Design Gallery w/ Commentary

Storyboards: The ENTIRE Collection for BROKEN ( 9 Edited Sequences )
Storyboards: Comparison with Final Shots


Rehearsals: "Comparison with Final Scene"
Rehearsals: "Marquez Kicks Ass" - Action Blocking
Rehearsals: "Evolution of an Action Sequence" w/ Commentary
Rehearsals: "A Director's Best Friend" - Finding Your Shot

---------------------------------------------------------

Production

• "Head go BOOM! - A look in how to make a Guacamole Gun w/ Commentary
• "Mister Tony's Neighborhood: A Technical Advisor's Job" wth Tony Gomez
• Special Effects Make-up Breakdown with Megan Graham
• Anatomy of a Stunt: "Duncan Fall Down, Go BOOM!" w/ Commentary
• Guns, Guns, Guns! - "How to Get Pro Looking Guns with Little or No $$$"

Being There: The On-Set Experience
15 Behind the Scene Vignettes on the set of BROKEN as we shot it !

Producing in Indie Film: with Jorge F. Rodriguez - 10 min

---------------------------------------------------------

Post Production

• How to Make DV look like Film! with Alex Ferrari
• Color Correction Lab: The Overview w/ Commentary
• Color Correction Comparison with FINAL FOOTAGE

Visual Effects Breakdowns
w/ Commentary from Sean Falcon & Dan Cregan

VFX Breakdown: "Marquez Explosion" w/ Commentary
VFX Breakdown: "Shaking Things Up" w/ Commentary
VFX Breakdown: "Muzzle Fire" w/ Commentary
VFX Breakdown: "Bonnie's Eyes" w/ Commentary
VFX Breakdown: "Matte Painting/Sky Replacement" w/ Commentary
VFX Breakdown: "Knife Throw" w/ Commentary
VFX Breakdown: "Scoping Things Out" w/ Commentary
VFX Breakdown: "Digital Blood Hits" w/ Commentary
VFX Breakdown: "Digital Spark Hits" w/ Commentary

VFX Breakdown: The Title Sequence w/ Alex Ferrari & Dan Cregan

Visual Effects in Indie Film: with Sean Falcon - 20 min
Cinematography in Indie Film: with Angel Barroeta - 10 min
Sound Design/Composing in Indie Film: with Mark Roumelis - 8 min

---------------------------------------------------------

After the Short

The Making of BROKEN: Interviews with Cast & Crew

• Marketing: Poster Gallery
• Marketing a Short Film
• Alternate Ending w/ Commentary
• Art of BROKEN: The Nick Moneco Experience
• Bloopers!

...and much more!

---------------------------------------------------------

We should have it for sale on July 15, 2005 at http://www.whatisbroken.com

Thanks for all the support and we hope you like the DVD.

Cheers!
Alex
http://www.whatisbroken.com
http://www.enigmafactory.com
http://www.walexferrari.com

Alex,
DAMN!!!!!!. THAT WAS HOT!!!!!.
I don't even know how to express it.

Ok, now here is the deal?. I need you to personally send me an email eniolaakintoye@yahoo.com because I can not wait to buy your DVD which enlighten indie. filmakers how to get that quality work they have been craving for.

Here is one big favour as a BIG fan I need you to please include in your DVD:
Not everyone has the sorth of Camera (DVX100A ) you used for your movie, so is it possible for you to please inform those using the Canon XL2 on how to get that film look.

I personally have an Brand New XL2 and I hope it can do the same quality picture you guy have.

What accessories did you use since you did not use any 35mm.

Lighting: I saw the Gallery and it seems to be way too much lights every where, how did you guys get that dark feel saturated at the right places.

So make sure how to set lights is also included in your DVD.

Lastly, the FX Supervisor said he likes doing stuffs for free, can he please do mine for free as well when I am ready?.

Alex,
When is the DVD gonna be ready?
You need to keep us updated with this DVD of yours.

Hope you will reply us ASAP.

Received the following info from Alex in an e-mail:

"Well the DVD is FINALLY Done!!!! It is Jammed pack with almost 3 hours
of Special Features. We have hit our deadline date of July 15, 2005 but
the DVD manufacture is telling us two to three weeks before we can
have the DVD done and in our hands. So we are hoping to have the DVD
available by early August."

Hope this helps.

Jay

Hey Guys,

BROKEN DVD UPDATE: Well the DVD is FINALLY Done!!!! It is Jammed pack with almost 3 hours of Special Features. We have hit our deadline date of July 15, 2005 but the DVD manufacture is telling us two to three weeks before we can have the DVD done and in our hands. So we are hoping to have the DVD available by early August. We are truly sorry for the delay. We wanted the DVD to be of the highest quality and wanted to pack it with more cool stuff and just got carried away.

Here is the FINAL list of goodies:

BROKEN DVD has almost 3 HOURS of DVD Special Features:

6 Commentary Tracks covering...

Directing
Producing
Visual Effects
Music Score/Sound Design
Cast and Crew
Film Geeks Unite

---------------------------------------------------------

Pre-Production

Concept Art / Location Comparison
Costume Design Gallery w/ Commentary

Storyboards: The ENTIRE Collection for BROKEN ( 9 Edited Sequences )
Storyboards: Comparison with Final Shots

Rehearsals:
Rehearsal Comparison with Final Scene
Blocking Action in a Scene w/ Commentary
Evolution of an Action Sequence w/ Commentary
A Director's Best Friend - Finding Your Shot

---------------------------------------------------------

Production

Head go BOOM: "The Guacamole Gun" w/ Commentary
Recipe: "How to Make a Guacamole Gun"
Mister Tony's Neighborhood: "A Technical Advisor's Job" with Tony Gomez

Special Effects Make-up Breakdown with Megan Graham
Anatomy of Scar
Anatomy of a Tatoo
Anatony of Burnt Eyes
Bonus: Brain Matter Recipe

Anatomy of a Stunt: w/ Commentary
Shotgun Blast
The Dive for Life

Guns, Guns, Guns: "How to Get Pro Looking Guns with Little or No $$$"
The Weapons
Getting Guns to Look Real
Where to Get Them

Tips on Producing an Indie Film: with Jorge F. Rodriguez
Reverse Budgeting
Insurance: Weapons and Stunt Work
Locations
Feeding Your Crew
Stunt Work
Production Design
Tips and Tricks
Props
Go Make Your Movie

Being There: The On-Set Experience
12 Behind the Scene Vignettes on the set of BROKEN as we shot it !

---------------------------------------------------------

Post Production

How to Make DV look like Film! with Alex Ferrari
Why Shoot MiniDV?
Filter Packages for Post
Production Design
Costumes & Color Palette
Lighting
Color Correction
Shooting 24p: The Camera
Getting the Cameras

Color Correction Lab: The Overview w/ Commentary
Color Correction Comparison with FINAL FOOTAGE

Visual Effects Breakdowns
w/ Commentary from Sean Falcon & Dan Cregan

"Marquez Explosion" w/ Commentary
"Shaking Things Up" w/ Commentary
"Muzzle Fire" w/ Commentary
"Bonnie's Eyes" w/ Commentary
"Matte Painting/Sky Replacement" w/ Commentary
"Knife Throw" w/ Commentary
"Scoping Things Out" w/ Commentary
"Digital Blood Hits" w/ Commentary
"Digital Spark Hits" w/ Commentary

VFX Breakdown: The Title Sequence w/ Alex Ferrari & Dan Cregan

Visual Effects in Indie Film: with Sean Falcon
Pre Production
MiniDV and Compositing
Why Shoot 24p?
1 Chip vs 3 Chip MiniDV Cameras
Practical and Digital Effects
Compositing Before or After Color Correction
MiniDV Blowup to Film
3D Animation in Indie Film
Gun Muzzle Blasts
Compositing: The Details
Digital Matte Painting
Shaking Things Up
Bullet POV
Blowing Up Someone's Head
Where Do I Find Visual Effects Talent for my Film?
I Want to Composite Too...
Where Can I Get Training?
Apple's SHAKE
Doing It Yourself

Cinematography in Indie Film: with Angel Barroeta
Planning BROKEN
Challenges on BROKEN
Tools: The Camera
Tools: The Lights
Tools: Moving the Camera
Shooting: Digital or Film?
Panasonic's DVX100a
Some Advice

Sound Design/Composing in Indie Film: with Mark Roumelis
Original Music in Indie Film
Composing BROKEN
Doing It Yourself
Recording Sound for 24p on DAT: The Sync Issue
Doing Audio Tests

---------------------------------------------------------

After the Short

The Making of BROKEN
The Origin of BROKEN
First Impressions
Actors: The Rehearsal Process
On-Set Experience
War Stories
The Future: A Feature Film

Marketing: Promoting a Short Film
Promotion: 50% of the Creative Process
Film Festivals and Sundance
The Internet: Even Playing Field
The Trailer

Marketing: Poster Gallery
Alternate Ending w/ Commentary
Art of BROKEN: The Nick Monaco Experience
The BROKEN Shoot: Gag Reel!

---------------------------------------------------------

MASTERED in Dolby Stereo & Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound

Thanks for you patience guys. Also, we will be putting up a trailer with previews of the DVD soon. Check: http://www.whatisbroken.com/dvd.html
for more info.

Thanks again for the support & good luck on ALL your projects. ; )

Alex
http://www.whatisbroken.com
http://www.enigmafactory.com
http://www.alexferrari.com
http://www.fortuityfilms.com

Congratulations for the impressive work.

And Bravo for making such a rich DVD !

Thank you!

Hey Everyone,

First off, thank you all for your amazing patience. After an overwhelming amount of requests and many death threats, we are now accepting PRE-ORDERS for the BROKEN: Special Edition DVD.

We are selling it for $19.99 and will be accepting credit cards through Paypal.com. It is simple, just click on the link below and follow the easy steps. We estimate shipping the DVDs around August 21-25, 2005 and yes, WE WILL BE SHIPPING WORLDWIDE.

Click here to pre-order the BROKEN: Special Edition DVD: http://www.whatisbroken.com/dvd.html

Large orders of 20 or more can contact us at: info@enigmafactory.com for discounted prices.

Thanks again to all your amazing support and good wishes for our little project.

More news on the feature film version will be coming soon.

Sincerely,
Alex & Jorge
The BROKEN TEAM
http://www.enigmafactory.com
http://www.alexferrari.com
http://www.whatisbroken.com

Thanks for the kind words!

Alex

BROKEN on DVD: http://www.whatisbroken.com/dvd.html

THANK GOD! You can stop with the death threats already!!! ; )

Well it is finally here!!! Thank you SOOOOOOO MUCH for your patience! We will be shipping out all the pre-orders for BROKEN the DVD this week. In the US standard First Class mail, International will vary depending on location.

Thank you all again for purchasing our DVD and supporting a couple of indie film guys with a dream....tear. Please drop us a line and tell us what you think of the DVD (tell your family, friends...strangers.....your dog ; )

Also, we will keep you up to date on the feature film version of BROKEN. Some really exciting stuff happening, wish us luck!! Keep checking the BROKEN Press page for the latest on BROKEN: http://www.whatisbroken.com/press.html

Here is the BROKEN trailer: http://www.whatisbroken.com/broken_trailer_enter.html

BTW, here is a link to the BROKEN DVD: The "BOOTLEG" Preview Trailer:
http://www.whatisbroken.com/broken_dvd.html

We hope you enjoy the BROKEN: Special Edition DVD and that is helps you with you future projects.

Cheers!

Alex & Jorge
The B R O K E N Production Team
http://www.whatisbroken.com/dvd.html
--------------------------------
http://www.whatisbroken.com
http://www.enigmafactory.com
http://www.alexferrari.com

Just ordered... hope it's good!