What have I learnt about the film production processes?

Nokia N8 used to Film "Olive"

With the technological revolution that introduced many different technology in which the consumer could access easily all at a prices in which are becoming more reasonable. It means that smaller companies are able to have the platform (e.g youtube) to share their productions bring and broad land of opportunity. For example to get some audience feedback for my production, I put it onto youtube and was able to get outside opinions of what worked and what didnt work so well.

In 2011, the first feature film shot entirely on a Smartphone was screened at a West Hills cinema in Los Angeles. Olive, by director Hooman Khalili, was filmed solely on a Nokia N8 and thanks to its cinema run, qualifies for Academy Award consideration. Olive is a reminder that the traditional days of filmmaking are now behind us. The film industry today is in a constant state of change, with a wealth of new opportunities available for those with their finger on the pulse. Thanks to rapidly evolving digital technology, film making and distribution is undergoing a major revolution. Avenues such as YouTube, web series and smart phone applications are all viable- and often lucrative- methods of getting work into the public eye.

In the past, short film makers were lucky to have their work seen by a few hundred festival goers. These days, however, YouTube channels make it easy for filmmakers to broadcast their work to a worldwide audience. Whilst numerous directors run their own channels, collectives such as the Young Irish Film Makers host channels showcasing a number of different artists. Festivals like Sundance also broadcast pieces via this medium. YouTube has also played host to numerous exciting social media ventures, including India’s 2011 Dirt is Good film competition. The project, sponsored by a local laundry brand, invited young filmmakers the chance to work with Bollywood professionals to produce their own short films. In addition to being aired in more than 400 cinemas across India, the winning pieces are now featured on the competition’s YouTube channel. In their first week of broadcast, the films attracted more than 120,000 views, with the number increasing to 330,000 within a month.

So to conclude I have learnt that the film industry is changing at a rate rapidly increasing each day. The technological revolution has brought with it software, like linear editing which 20 years ago was unheard of and who knows; in the next 10 years linear editing may be a thing of the past too. The film industry has been directly affected by the digital revolution in both positive and negative ways. The film industry is a lot more complicated than I thought initially, with production and distribution process being more than meets the eye.