How to Make Special Effects Explosions for an Action Movie

Big budget films are loaded with huge CGI explosions which cost millions. If this is way out of your spending limits, there are ways to use special effects to make explosions for your own movie.

Things You'll Need

• Video camera
• Trash
• Fireworks
• Sound clips of explosions

Instructions

1. Set up fireworks off screen, but place them so that the smoke they cause when exploding will show in frame.

2. Have people ready off screen with bags of trash to toss around.

3. Tilt your camera up at an angle while filming your explosion. The jerky movement of straight filming to a tilted shot will work well here because it will add to the confusion of an explosion.

4. Set off your fireworks, letting smoke fill the shot.

5. Throw trash into the frame as the fireworks sound to show the trash and debris that flies around during an explosion.

6. During post-production, you will probably want to add a sound clip of a real explosion to add legitimacy to the shot.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are able to actually blow something up (safely, of course), tilt your camera up and fill the frame so it looks like a much larger explosion is taking place.

• Be careful with the fireworks.