Movies & TV

Children begin learning the alphabet as soon as they start to recognize sounds. Soon, they can memorize the sounds of the letters, and later learn to identify the letter on sight. Once they...

Achieving the right light for a movie set is always tricky, but never more so than when shooting a night scene. You need enough light that your audience can see the characters and scenery, but not...

Being an extra in a movie is fun. Anyone can be a movie extra. It gives you the chance to see a little of how a movie is made, and the chance to meet interesting people. Movie extras come from...

Creating a visually appealing backdrop is an important part of building a good movie set. The backdrop you construct should blend into the scene, providing visual support without making itself...

When creating a television, film, or web video production, it is vital to remember the importance of lighting. Without appropriate lighting, the ambience of your scene will be lost, or worse: the...

The movies we watch all start with a screenplay, but before the screenplay is ever written, some writers make an outline. An outline can take many forms, from a simple index card arrangement of...

Claymation may be considered an obsolete way to create animated movies, but the style and look are still preferred today by movies like "Coraline" and "9." While the effects and quality have...

Animated movies have been around for decades and are so important to the film industry they have their own category at the Academy Awards. For novice filmmakers, animation may seem like a huge...

Actors are responsible for becoming another character by learning lines, changing their appearance and incorporating character traits. Actors need to be creative, have the ability to follow...

I will break down a scene in the movie with an in depth analysis. You will learn how to read the scene and all of its themes. I will focus on the theme of guilt.

This is the easiest and cheapest way to make a good horror movie on a low budget.

Lighting is a crucial aspect of television production. Without proper illumination, your subjects will appear lifeless and flat, or worse: the audience won't be able to clearly see the content as...

The objective of scriptwriting is to move the story forward, describing visually on each line what happens next. In a script, the story structure is the most important part, and the action tells...

Here is an easy way to make animation using Lego characters and a digital camera. Beware! It is hard work but one of the most basic and crudest method to make animation in the fastest way possible.

There are a variety of scenarios that occur at commercial auditions. No two are ever the same. The most important thing is to be yourself and be open to whatever comes your way. Often times the...

An independent film production takes a lot of work and time, especially if you do not have the resources found within a major studio production. Organization is the key to creating a smooth and...

Before you can write a screenplay there are a few skills that you must acquire and you need to be serious about your screenwriting. Writing a full length screenplay takes time and dedication, and...

When you read great dialogue, it should pop off the page at you. And when a scene is performed, great dialogue should make the scene pop, too. Movie script dialogue should not only add suspense,...

Memorizing lines and creating a character is very tough to do in the world of film and theater, but improvising makes them look easy. Improvising involves spur-of-the-moment thinking that really...

The behind-the-scenes production of any film, large or small, relies on the work and careful detail of several key crew members who help make the production possible. Among that crew is the...

The beginnings of film featured animation techniques that are still being utilized and developed today. One of the earliest forms of animation was stop-motion claymation animation. It began with...

When filming ends, the editing process begins. Editing goes through several stages, ranging from the rough cut all the way to the final cut. There are certain ways to streamline the rough-cut...

Most people underestimate the rehearsal process in a film or play, thinking that the actors simply memorize lines and say them in front of a camera. The proper way to go about rehearsing is...

Give yourself the best chance possible to get produced by learning to write a screenplay from producers and production companies points of view.

In cinematography, a sequence of images is recorded to tell a story or relay an event. Directors and cinematographers rely on various techniques in the production stages to create the specific...

The basic principles of acting are the same for both the theater and on screen. However, there are some differences between acting on a theater stage and acting on screen in front of a camera...

Memorizing lines for a screenplay can be a difficult task if you are not prone to doing so or get intimidated by the idea and psyche yourself out. The following steps should aid in that process,...

A typical Court TV show will have a running narrative throughout, which outlines the background of the victim or victims, details of the crime, the investigation process and the court proceedings...

A movie script is the blueprint for a film. Movie scripts tell a story in words and let directors and actors know what will appear on the screen. Movie scripts are written differently than novels...

Putting together a film reel is basically selling yourself. To do this you need to be fast and elegant in your presentation, but the key is to show your skills and talents off in the best way...

A speculative script, also known as a spec script, is a screenplay written to entice a production company to option or buy the property. A spec script differs from a shooting script in several...

Some of the most memorable and ground-breaking moments in television have been the result of a mini-series. Roots continues to impress and inspire. Angels in America shed light on the heartbreak...

Whether your story is still in your head or already on the page, transforming it into movie material means first creating a screenplay. The most important consideration is remembering that you are...

A script is an outline of a story. It is written in a dialogue form, and the narration is very descriptive so that when you read it, you can visualize each scene and follow the story and plot.

Kung fu movies have been popular for many years now, and remain a favorite among both action and martial arts fans. Many dream of writing, directing or starring in their own kung fu movies. With...

The format requirements of screenplays have destroyed more than one great idea. Many writers think a screenplay is easier to write than other types of literature because scripts are shorter than...

Screenplays are written in a certain style. Screenplays consist only of what can be seen or heard on the screen. There are specific techniques used to convey information in every screenplay. In...

Writer's block is the diagnosis given to those penmen who reach a point at which they cannot conjure up ideas for their story. It can be very frustrating and can even lead to scripts or stories...

When acting out a scene, whether it be for the theater or on camera, the most basic and helpful preparation is to "bottom line" your scene.

Great ideas are a dime a dozen, but a fully realized screenplay can be worth a lot of money. It takes an immense amount of work to take an idea from inception all the way through to the final...

Formatting the screenplay is not hard, but writing a selling screenplay is the achievement of a lifetime. The two types of scripts are the shooting script and the submission script. The submission...

The following is everything you need to understand and have at your fingertips to start making your first short film.

Lighting is one of the key elements of film production. It helps establish the mood and atmosphere of the film, which can affect the entire viewing experience. The lighting setup can be simple or...

We all love going to the movies for their entertainment value, but don't forget that this visual medium also expresses a creative side. Viewing film as art is a very involved, but potentially...

Shooting a movie scene can be very challenging. So many things need to be taken into consideration, and shooting a poor scene can wreak havoc on the movie. Here are some basics to keep in mind...

Storyboards are essentially a visual guide to the script in a movie, a vital part of the process. Animated films use storyboards extensively; these are among the biggest components of bringing a...

Breaking into the movie business as an actor takes a great deal of time and persistence. Many successful actors spend years auditioning with no success at all before they get their big breaks....

Planning a movie shoot takes a lot of effort, but it is the most important part of the filmmaking process. A successful and well-structured plan sets the stage for a good movie. Scheduling a film...

A writer has to have that moment of inspiration, from which the entire screenplay will flow. Sometimes it's a character that speaks to the writer, or a moment between two people having a...

This article will focus on writing an original screenplay for production as an independent, low-budget feature film. While many of the standards of good screenwriting still apply, writing...