EBBS: A MICROBUDGET PRODUCTION
link to script and scene breakdown documents
BUDGET ANALYSIS
This script has been purposefully written so that it may be produced with resources to which I am guaranteed to have cost-free access and be feasibly produced on a micro-budget. In the following budget analysis, I will identify those aspects of the production which I am able to achieve/access cost-free, before breaking down the expenses and the budget estimate for those factors which can not be guaranteed.
The first major resource to which I have guaranteed access is the set. As it is written, the script is designed to be set in a family-owned house in suburban Western Australia. This mid-century home and its interiors accommodate the comfortable atmosphere which I aim to convey in this short film, has three separate bedrooms (sleeping a total of 6 people), kitchen facilities, toilet facilities, ample parking and furnishings which are appropriate to the atmosphere and environment. As I have family access, this location comes at no cost and allows use of on-site set dressings and props without need for sourcing externally. Additionally, in being a private residence it negates the necessity of public liability insurance.
The second major means by which the cost of this film will be minimised is through the choice of actors. The script has been written to two friends of mine who are fellow creative arts students on the basis that these friends would be brought on board of the project under time-for-reel arrangements. Thus, with ample catering and reimbursements, actors may be brought on board at no per-hour cost.
Post-production costs would be similarly minimised. As RMIT provides industry-level post-production softwares, I am able to personally execute colour-grading and basic editing processes without outsourcing. The film is also dependent upon diegetic audio and has no further copywriting, licensing or compositional costs for music/atmos tracks.
The audio is, however, to be one of the larger sources of expense in producing the film as ensuring the quality of the audio track is essential. On the basis of the assumption that a sound technician is to be employed for a 40 hour work week, which includes production and post-production, the employment cost is estimated to be approximately $972 per week.
Another major cost involved with production of this script is equipment hire. While it is feasible that this film could be produced over 2-3 days, renting an appropriate lighting set, camera equipment, filters and sound equipment comes at a minimum cost of $320 per day. Some equipment may be sourced personally, for example I would be providing my own tripod, however the majority will be rented from an independent company.
Assuming a team of seven people (director/producer, two camera operators, two actors, sound technician and potentially an assistant) and home-prepared meals, a food budget of approximately $280 per day should be provided for. The MEA also recommends fuel reimbursements for staff, the cumulative cost of which as advised being $146 in total. In addition to this, while it is possible to source wardrobe free of charge (purchase and return) or at minimal expense (thrifted clothing/self-sourced), a costume budget of $200 should be accounted for in case of the event of damage to returnable items or other unforeseen costuming expenses.
For further budget specifications , please see the table below.
*note: Make-up application quoted from industry practitioner. See references for further.
CREATIVE INTENTION
The simplicity of the script which I have written initially was born from stylistic and thematic preferences as opposed to budget considerations. I tend towards a life-like realism in cinema, as in the likes of Kelly Reichardt’s Certain Women, Louis Malle’s My Dinner with Andre and the work of Woody Allen. I am interested in the delicate ways in which understated realism engages in social contexts.
The short, rhythmic drama film, Ebbs, involves the conversation between two young female students relating to their favourite musician, Ebbs. Their conversation lacks clear direction, presents as jocular chat between two intimate friends and leads to the realisation of their relationship to their practise as musicians. Creative decisions behind the film are targeted at supporting a warm atmosphere and creating an intimate environment, while also supporting a sense of anticipation so that a progressive quality is sustained. This is achieved by two principle avenues; visual choices and aural choices.
The majority of the film will consist of the same technical set-up. This involves the camera being set up directly across from the two characters, warm tungsten lamps as part of the mise-en-scene and the use of a tungsten 3-piece light set. This technical approach leads to a compositional consistency and simplicity, which draws upon the likes of Wes Anderson, whose rigid-feeling cinematography and tendency for visual repetition has an innately nostalgic tone and sense of warmth. This cinematographic technique also serves to benefit the efficiency of film production. The lighting and camera set up is able to remain unchanged for the majority of shooting. Similarly, montage sequences will include the same types of shots on various occasions throughout the film, allowing for similar shots to be taken successively and reducing the amount of time spent setting up technical equipment. This allows the majority of the film to be shot in adjacent takes without having to spend time rearranging equipment and therefore may significantly reduce the production schedule.
While this visual approach is intended to create comfort, the aural approach targets discomfort and tension. Consisting entirely of diegetic audio, the audio-scape will be designed to lend the film a musical quality through the rhythm of the on-site audio effects. Extending the approaches of films such as Edgar Wright’s Baby Driver and Damien Chazelle’s Whiplash, these aural rhythms are designed to mimic song, create tension throughout the course of the film and, through the psychological implications of rhythmic variations, support the engagement of the audience by building and releasing tension. Furthermore, as noted in my budget analysis, this minimises the costs of music production/licensing for the film.
The casting of the film similarly involves an intention to support the ease and invitational qualities which are being sought. Into the script I have written two friends with whom I am close. This choice initially was born from the want to base my characters on real people so that I would have a strong creative resource for writing authentic dialogue; I was drawing upon their personalities and their speech patterns in creating their characters. It was then later realised that the inclusion of these people themselves could assist in supporting that delicate relationship to historical contexts previously mentioned, as their modern young women within a mid-century environment opens the film up for some political discourses, but because the two are friends in life would convey a genuine sense of comfort and relatability between the two as characters within the film.
Finally, the film is set in a mid-century Australian house. This choice was made so as to support the relationship between a historical musician and the young women, who each come from vastly different historical periods, and the social commentaries which extend in their relevance beyond the period in which the film is set. This choice is also, as detailed in my budget analysis, a major point of economic efficiency.
REFLECTION
The fundamental concern of the studio Production on a Shoestring was the investigation of how one might go about producing a short film piece on the smallest feasible budget. Particularly, students were prompted to write a screenplay and production plan which would be achievable within a budget of $5k.
My final work was designed largely around maximising production efficiencies and thereby minimising production costs. I hope that what is evidenced in my final work is an awareness of the importance of a highly efficient production schedule for the reduction of the overall expenses of production. The piece, which I have designed and planned to be produced over three days, minimises the load of per-day expenses involved in film production, such equipment hire and staff employment rates, so as to ensure that it would fit well within a $5k budget.
One of the core things that I would like to improve about this film is the mise-en-scene. Within the studio considerations, I chose to keep the mise-en-scene as minimal as possible, using only on-site furnishings, so as to ensure that an analysis/breakdown of the budget would have sufficient room for other miscellaneous buffers. However, in order to sell the film and have it be more believable, it would be my preference to spare greater expense on the set dressings and aesthetic considerations. While I acknowledge that this is not necessary to the film, nor is it necessarily a source of great expense, the budget accommodations which would be required in order to achieve such would not only need to be flexible, but would also demand a considerable portion of the 5k budget. Moving into the production of this script, I would assume a slightly larger budget and therefore be able to allocate more funds to art department expenses and set expenses.
One of the key challenges which I overcame in this studio was the simplification of my ideas. This is a general challenge which I have been facing in my creative endeavours and media-making practise, as I tend to extend my ideas beyond the resources and affordances available to me, however I have come to appreciate the value of minimalism. The process of producing a script for this studio was the most extreme example of minimalism which I have attempted and I believe that it is also my most successful.
REFERENCES
Baby Driver (2017). [film] USA: Edgar Wright
Certain Women (2016). [film] USA: Kelly Reichardt
(2021). Equity Minimums 2020 [pdf]. Available at: meaa.org/download/mppa-summary-2022/ [Accessed: 25 Apr 2022]
(2022). Location Equipment Cinematography Services. [online] locationequipment.com. [Accessed: 25 Apr 2022]
(2022). Motion Picture Production Agreement (MPPA) Full Summary 2022 [pdf]. Available at: meaa.org/download/mppa-summary-2022/ [Accessed: 25 Apr 2022]
My Dinner with Andre (1982). [film] USA: Louis Malle
Whiplash (2014). [film] USA: Damien Chazelle