Students on Making the Short Film - Practical Filmmaking Class in Tokyo

Looking Back at Making the Short Film

What did our students get up to on our February course?

This past week, we ran 2018’s first edition of Making the Short Film, a course on which our students learn by actually shooting a short film. We welcomed a diverse, international group of fantastic filmmakers, with all levels of experience, and together went on a journey of learning and discovery as we guided them through the process of making a short from start to finish. Excitingly, each student had a clear vision for the scene they directed, and we discovered a Lynchian influence running throughout the finished film, with elements of surrealism and eroticism.A huge thanks to our students, and to the actors who were part of their film. Read on for their thoughts and behind-the-scenes photos!

Anita with boom pole
Anita operates the boom pole. February 2018.

I couldn’t have gotten more out of a week. The structure of the workshop from analysing famous movie scenes to applying what we’ve learnt was super well done. It gave me great insights in what a director can do with a script.

The hands-on exercises in the course especially helped me to become less anxious about directing and working with a crew of people. And finally, I met like-minded people and got inspired to make my own short film.

Thanks ELFS for the amazing experience!

Anita

 


Group of students on Making the Short Film
Each student got to direct a scene in turn. February 2018.

Rory is an engaging teacher. Passionate, knowledgeable, clear, and a sense of humour to boot. He knew what he was talking about, and the atmosphere was fun and relaxed.

The practical approach is great. The two-line script exercise made me nervous at first (“Oh God, what the hell are we doing…”) but was a great way to warm up and worked well as a social icebreaker too.

The lessons felt well researched and well prepared. Rory stressed that each director should have a vision, change what they want, get the result they need, etc. The freedom to mess up was really encouraging. Hs feedback was probably the most useful and engaging part of the whole course. Focused, thoughtful, critical but sensitive. Concrete and clear. Well considered and argued — and generated quickly! I’m not just talking about the feedback for my scene — it was fascinating and instructive to hear the responses to everyone’s stuff.

Overall, I was very pleased with the course and happy with what we got for the money. I’d recommend it to others for sure. I wish you guys lots of success with it!

James


Join Us Next Time

Learn to make films by making a short film. Join us for Making the Short Film.

Leave a Reply