Tips for ultra low budget movie making
 

Bassicly, me and two of my friends wrote a script for a black and white sci-fi movie titled "My TV Eats People!" It bassicly is a parody of 50s Sci-Fi, 50s culture and McCarthyism. Anyways, we got the script down and a few areas we can film at (My grandfather is a realtor and has a few vacant buildings we could use) but we need some tips on how to conserve the budget, as the film will be financed completely by us and some small donations from friends and family. I'd figured I-Mockery would be a good place to begin for asking tips. =)

Use your friends as extras so you don't have to pay them.

There's a few tips on some cheap camera effects in If Chins Could Kill (such as the vasoglide thingy), but there's probably better books out there with tips on getting the effects you want with little to no budget.

That is, if your budget can afford the books. lol

"Bassicly" is probably the best adjective I've ever heard.

Cheap things include intricate use of light and shadow and camera-work in general. Those are free.

http://www.stormforcepictures.com/ho...efakeglass.php

Sugar glass is fairly cheap, especially so when compared to professional breakaway glass. The only downside is that it looks like it's hard to get the color right. Not that that really matters if the movie'd be in black and white.

Already got that covered. =)

Oh and thanks for the sugar glass link...we were really wondering about that since one of the final scenes does involve glass breaking.

This is actually what I do for a living. I consult with film makers and facilitate industry resources. That being said, there are several great books on the subject of B movie making. By the sound of your project I would highly recommend Make Your Own Damn Movie: Secrets of a Renegade Director by Lloyd Kaufman and Rebel Without A Crew by Robert Rodriguez.

Lots of great advice and all around good reads.

Man, I totally forgot about MYODM.

It's a great read. He wrote one before as well. About his experiences making Toxic Avenger.

you take stock of what you have at your disposal. like kevin smith did with clerks. he had a store to film in and built a script around that.

You should also take account of some Ed Wood movies. Cheap doesn't even begin to define those.

I made a documentary two and a half years ago, and I'm planning on shooting my first narrative feature this summer.

Tithonus Pednaud's suggestions are great. I'll also add Dov Simens' From Reel To Deal, which deals a lot with the marketing of your movie. If you're planning on taking it to festivals, you're going to want to blow it up to DigiBeta or HD, which costs a pretty penny (though nowhere near as much as blowing it up to 35).

You should check out Four Eyed Monsters website, and watch some of their podcasts. These guys maxed out credit cards, made their movie, and blazed new trails for self-distribution. Their podcasts and blog show you how to do it:

http://www.foureyedmonsters.com/

Also, this book should be good in terms of special effects, though I haven't read it:

http://www.amazon.com/DV-Rebels-Guid...0439513&sr=1-1

Dont forget to go to troma forums!

One good piece of advice: find some people who like to hurt themselves or get naked or have no shame. And then use them until they give up.

You cannot go broke doing this.

Does anyone have a site or something I could use to find out if something is in the public domain? I want to use the Red Skelton show in the movie and have read that several episodes are now in the public domain. However, I cannot figure out which episodes those are.

Try paying your stupid friends to help with monopoly money.

If you need blood for special effects, try putting a hobo through the juicer. Real hobo blood looks nice, and is a lot cheaper. If you're lucky, the hobo might have some nifty blood-borne pathogens.

Kazoos make for amazing film scores.