This can include: Documentaries, Events, ect.
While you don't have a script per say, you should have a clear idea of the topic you want to show.
Write up a short treatment. This includes a concept, topic, and how you are going to show them.
Many times the focus will change while shooting and/or editing. This is normal so keep yourself open.
Plan for plenty of B-roll. If your piece includes interviews, shoot visual representations of what they are talking about. If the project is an event, get plenty of audience shots.
Script Based:
Grab a free copy of celtx. It's screenwriting and pre-production software in 1 package.
Write the script.
Show it don't tell it. Don't rely on VO or the actors to explain things. This isn't a book or a written piece. Let the images and action tell your story.
Remember, not only is the story significant; so is the telling. You don’t have to tell the story in order. Mix it up. Use frame tales. Narrate from the point of view of a minor character.
Write down the premise - the fundamental concept that drives the plot. If you can't reduce your script to two sentences, you don't know your script well enough. The better you understand your story, the more your audience will.
Storyboard - draw out how you want every shot to look. Think of it as a comic strip of the script. This helps you to visualize your ideas and antisipate mistakes before they happen.
Create a shot list - a blueprint for your shoot. It's a list of all the shots that you need to film, including location and cast.
Take some time and really think about the art direction - the visual feel of the film. The characters clothes and their surroundings tell the audience just as much about them as what they are doing.
Pre-Production:
The more organized you are, the less trouble you'll find yourself in later. Murphy's law is in full effect when it comes to any sort of filmmaking. It may seem like a lot of extra bits to do, but you'll end up saving time and many frustrations later.
Write out a list of all sets, props, animations and costumes that will be needed.
Any custom work you need to hire out, start the process early. It's better to get the finished products done before you are ready to shoot. Remember it not only takes time to find the right creator for your project but for them to create the items as well.
Location scouting - find the locations you want to shoot at and get permission for use if you do not own the land.
Write a shooting schedule. You do not need to shoot the script in order of how it will go in the finished film, that's part of what editing is for. Take your shot list and order it by location, setup and/or cast. Say you have 3 main locations, if you shoot all the footage needed for 1 location and then move on to the next, it will save you time in setting up the sets and shots. Then say your main characters are a male and a female. One choice of a schedule is shoot all the male scenes first, then of both together, then just the female ones. This way you only need to have the actors available for a short time and they aren't standing around doing nothing when you don't even need them there.
It can get difficult if you have conflicts such as using 1 location for each of the cast alone and together. You then need to figure out which way will save you the most time and money. Do the actors have a lot of time available, are they charging? Are you able to keep the sets up at 1 location while shooting at another and are you paying for the use of either?
Production:
Download screen capture software. There are many available depending on certain factors. The most common one is Fraps. It's pretty easy to use, but captures with its own codec. Which means it's lower quality then grabbing it uncompressed and a few editing packages will not read it without stripping the codec. Others use Hypercam as you can capture uncompressed AVIs, but doesn't drop SL's frame rate down so the footage looks as if in fast forward. For Mac users there is Snapz Pro.
Consider purchasing a separate hard drive to be used as footage only. With your footage and OS/programs on separate drives it's easier to manage files, safer (I've only had the OS hard drive fail) and it just seems to process faster. While USB externals are easy to install, it will process the footage slower and you might end up with conflicts. An interal 7200 rpm would be the best choice. Just remember that media does take up quite a bit of space, so if you can get a large drive. Whichever way you go, defrag the drive with media on often.
Unless you plan on all static shots, you should get a tool to control the camera. Alt-zoom studios has a free one, but is extremly painful to learn. For L$1500 you can get the very handy and easy to use Filming Path Hud.
Shoot heads and tails for each take. Meaning, start the screen capture a few seconds before the action and stop it a few seconds after. Two reasons for this: 1. Your fps drops when first starting the capture, and you need to wait for your computer to catch up. 2. It's helpful when editing to have this cushion.
Don't forget the B-Roll!! It's the footage that doesn't have actors in. Things like what they are looking at, what they are interacting with, ect.
Shoot more then you think you'll need, but be careful not to get carried away. You don't need 10 takes of a shot from the exact same angle. Unless something goes terribly wrong, no more then 2 is needed because you aren't dealing with emotional preformances from actors. Instead shoot different angles and distances (wide shot, med shot, over the shoulder, close up, extreme close up and cutaways) to give more choices in the editing process.
If your project is long and has many different shots, I'd suggest using a slate. A slate for SL would just be a texture that tells you which scene, shot, and take it is. If you start your capture while focused on this, it's much easier to tell the difference between clips when editing.
The camera doesn’t just capture reality; it frames it, focusing the viewer’s eyes on some part of it; and establishes the viewer’s relationships to it. Think about what you want the viewer to focalize on, second by second, and use the camera to facilitate that focus.
Set the window size. I suggest using the normal video presets of NTSC (US) and PAL (Euro) which can be found in SL's file drop down menu -> set window size. Every single editing program will take these resolutions, while only some will take odd ones.
Capture at 30 FPS for NTSC countries (US) and 25 FPS for Pal (Euro). Most editing programs will take either but capturing with your region standard will make a DvD copy of the finished product much better. With DvDs so easy to make, why would you make your mates gather around your computer or watch the overly compressed image on youtube?
Make sure you have the dubug menu up (ctrl+alt+D) then hide the UI by pressing ctrl + alt + F1.
If at all possible, leave sets up until the edit is finished. Pick up shots are just a way things go. Even the best filmmakers can't plan for everything and you just never know what it's going to look like when you put it all together.
Post-Production:
Software: There are as many different editing packages as there are opinions about them. Essentially they all do the same thing - cut the footage - but higher end programs will have more tools available. A lot of it has to do with what you are used to and how patient you are with the learning curve. Choosing the right software for you is a difficult decision based on many different factors including, but not limited to: price, system compatibility, features, ease of use, and the extent of your use.
Packaged with windows you have Windows Movie Maker and Macs have I-Movie. As with anything that comes pre-packaged, these have many limitations.
Sony Vegas (PC) $80 - $524: I haven't used this program before, but this is what I've heard. Perhaps the easiest to go from WMM as there is little learning curve, but has considerble more tools and effects. Mouse to keyboard use is about equal.
Adobe Premire (PC + Mac) $800: It has been many years since I've used Premire. From what I remember, is that if you understand other Adobe products like Photoshop and After Effects, the learning curve is much smaller as the logical place for everything works the same. The problem I did have back then is that it is far more mouse orientated then what I'm used to.
Final Cut Pro vs Avid: Prior to the release of FCP, broadcast quality editing software was limted to expensive pre-built Avid computers. There is a long running debate between Avid and Final Cut, which can get a bit nasty, and is along the same lines of Mac vs PC. For both, it usually comes down to what you already understand and are comfortable with. Both programs have pretty much the same features - excluding the current high end Avid Adrenaline and Nitris - like real time effects rendering, multi cam, extensive effects editing, numerous audio channel mixing, fully customizable interface, open format timelines and indepth colour correction to name a few. One of the best features (in my opinion) is the customizable keyboard because editing mostly with the keyboard for me is much quicker and precise. While I have been trained in and worked on both, my hours logged in Avid far exceeds that of FCP.
Final Cut (Mac) $300 - $1300: There are 2 different versions available, Final Cut Express and Final Cut Pro.
Avid Liquid (PC) $500: This series seems to be a replacement for the discontinued midrange Avid Xpress DV. It appears the UI has changed drastically to be easier to learn then Xpress DV along with taking some features away (total conform projects to higher end systems). But they did add some new features including: DVD authoring directly on the timeline and 5.1 sound mixing. Luckily they did keep the ability to remap the keyboard.
Avid Xpress Pro (PC + Mac) $1700: This is the program that I use mainly, but I think its a bit much for only editing Machinima projects, but I already know it and have a copy installed.
If you used Fraps and the editing program you chose doesn't like the files, you can simply remove the codec by running it through VirtualDub (free). Just set the video compression (video drop down menu ->compression) to uncompressed and then file ->save as AVI (F7).
Editing: Your idea might be the best thing since toast (and I sure do love my toast), but bad editing can turn it into a confusing, distracting and unwatchable mess. Here are a few tips that may help.
Make a rough cut without a single transitional effects - fades, disolves, wipes, ect. It's a common mistake to rely on these far too much when first starting out. While these effects do have meaning and can further certain emotional responses, use often and you’ll distract the viewer's attention.
Think of transitions as punctuation in writing. A cut = period or comma, dissolve = line break, fade = chapter, dve/wipe/2d and 3d transitions = exclamation. With that said, effects are just added emphasis. You don't need a dissolve or a fade to imply a passage of time.
The overuse of tricks to heighten the emotional response will lessen the effect. If you wrote a story and had an exclamation after each sentance, it will diminish the the effect it will have. For instance, cutting to a close up enhances a response or intensifies a reaction but cutting to a CU when no enhancement is needed will dimish the effect even when it is needed later.
Do not be married to your footage. If something is not working, cut it. Don't leave it in because it looks cool. This is one of the main reasons why having a separate editor is extremly helpful.
Be open to diverting from the script. It may work as a script and even as a storyboard, but many times changing the order of shots and scenes actually makes the project work better.
Shot length: Keep the viewer’s eyes active; don’t let images go stale.
Cut on action: You can easily cut between different angles and types of shots by starting the movement in one and finishing it in the next. You can even cut different shots during different types of movement, thing such as head turns, arm movements, walking, ect. Your eyes cannot focus while they are in movement and if the audience is following the movement with their eyes, it will help make the cut invisible.
Come in late, leave early: Don't bore people by cutting to a static shot, then the subject moves, then a pause, then cut to the next. Trim the fat. Cut in during the movement and cut out before it stops. Unless of course the pause is for dramatic effect.
A good trick to know when to cut is pay attention to when you blink. The act of blinking is a natural pause.
Every project has it's own perfect length. A common mistake is extending the film so long that it ends up boring people.
Titles: Keep them on screen just long enough for you to read them three times. You typed it, so you know what it says and that makes it difficult to guage the length. This is a generally accepted rule to ensure everyone else can read them also without being on screen too long.
Most importantly, tell the story. Everything you do while editing is to further the story. This does not mean you have to tell it in a linear way. If you are making a documentary you have a story. This person did something and/or this thing happened. If your project is more obscure, instead of a story you should have an idea that you are trying to get across. Do not distract from the story/idea/point.
Sound: Just like music, moving pictures has it’s own beat - a visual rhythm. Choose music that has either the same beat or a complimentary beat. This is a difficult thing to explain. Try watching film/tv/adverts with the sound off to see the visual rhythm.
When the pacing of the visual increases so should the tempo of the music.
Cutting on the beat of the music will help to cover up that cut and can give more emphasis to what is going on.
Give your film some depth by adding sound effects. Sounddogs.com is an great resource for any effect you can think of, and some that you never would. Background, crowd noise, footsteps, clothes rustling, cars, fights, ect. It'll take some time to get it right, but it'll be well worth it. These should not overpower the rest of your audio, but just loud enough to make the audience feel like they are there.
Finshing:
I highly suggest exporting out your finished project into an uncompressed .mov file. I'm not sure about all editing programs, but in my experience Avid's compression isn't as good as using quicktime pro. Plus you'll have the uncompressed version if you need it later.
Grab a copy of quicktime pro ($20USD) and convert the uncompressed to a .mov with the h.264 codec. This gives you the highest quality with the smallest file.
For some unknown reason, the majority of people choose to upload their film to youtube. Perhaps because more people look for videos there. The problem with that is it compresses your video into a horrible flash video which more often then not drops the audio out of synch. A better option is blip.tv which the viewers have the choice to see the flash version or the higher quality h.264 mov version.
Enter into film festivals. There are a growing number of machinima and SL specific machinima festivals
that you can enter. You can also enter into general animations festivals and independent film festivals
