FILM RIOT 80s Monday Challenge
Film Riot re-started their "MONDAY CHALLENGE" (said in a Booming deep voice)! This time it's to create a 2 minute 1980s themed sketch. My writing partner (Chris Alexander) and I came up with a story about a guy named Maxwell Leonardo (named for a ninja turtle and Max Headroom [google it]). He's a yo-yo enthusiast who is competing in the 1985 Yo-Yo classic. Fun fact: Chris sucks at all things yo-yo. So how did we make him look like a world class yo-yo champ?
The idea came from a plugin called Plexus which uses lines and points to make some pretty cool graphics. This is a graphic I made without the Plexus Plugin for a client project.
I used a few simple expressions in After Effects, the "Beam" plugin, and a simple vector shape for the yo-yo.
Before...
After...
I wanted the sketch to look like "Napoleon Dynamite" meets "Wes Anderson." So we looked for locations with relatively simple backgrounds full of primary colors. I never thought I would be driving around southern California judging peoples' fences, but that's how we spent Day 1.
The sketch had a few 80s references including a little Easter egg from "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure." "SAN DIMAS HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL RULES!"
This being an 80s themed short I wanted at least one shot filmed on VHS... or at least look like it was filmed on VHS. I used a plugin from RedGiant Universe called "VHS" which added the grain and wrinkled tape effect.
Original...
VHS Effect added...
The last scene was supposed to mimic the dance scene "Maniac" from Flashdance, but that required a gymnasium. I'm sure by 80s standards Chris would have been the "Cat's Pajamas" but today short shorts and a goofy mustache on a grown man holds some different connotations (you fill in the blanks). We needed a place, far away from small children, where we would be free to experiment with some "Yo Yo Dance moves." We faked the gymnasium by using close ups, flagging our lights, and exposing only for the subject.
Fun Fact: Chris's tongue allegedly went numb after trying to shake his head like "Alex Owens" in Flashdance.
Lastly, we filmed our "interview scene." As is always the case, you want to have the microphone as close as possible to your subject without getting the mic into the shot. We wanted to give the character lots of head room which made hiding the mic nearly impossible.
But if you're pure in heart and believe hard enough (and know a little bit about masking), anything is possible. We grabbed a clean plate (a shot without the microphone) and then placed that clip overtop of the interview scene.
Final Shot...
Teaching my actor the art of "Booming" a mic.
This was a fun project with a quick turn around time. We had a crew of two for most of the project (special thanks to Aline and Caroline for being our extras). We love the Monday Challenges and the interactive spirit they encourage in the film community (beginner or expert). This wasn't our first Monday Challenge and hopefully won't be our last.
And now for the gear list...
As a complete stranger once told me while I was gawking at his RED Epic and DJI Ronin in a sandwich shop somewhere in LA, "It's always about the camera isn't it?!" Of course it's not only about the camera. It's your story, how you frame your shot, light, edit, color grade etc. That being said, here you go;
Camera: Sony A7sii
Lenses: Canon 28mm f1.8 and the Thrifty 50
Audio: Rode Video Micro
Lights: Generay 144 Leds (x2), Canned lights
Yo Yos: Duncan Imperial