Train Spotting: Financial Constraints

Lesson notes

Preproduction video notes- low budget tips and advice:

• resource film making
• start by making a resource list and budget 
• using the resources you already have and base your production on what you already have
• list of locations - what you have access to without hassle or without spending money
•  list of actors - work for free or low cost
• find reliable people - friends and family who like acting.
• note down whether your actors are qualified.
• list equipment- cheaper alternatives like building make shift equipment, borrowing equipment, using phones. Rent gear.
• interesting props. Unique objects that you have access to 
• local effects- free production value, extras in the background (fares, shows, etc) 
• writing script- location to a minimum (4-5 for a film 1-2 to short film) characters to a minimum, easier to manage. write roles to the strength of your actors. 
• avoid writing scenes where you need tones of extras.
• limit exterior night time scenes, you need professional lighting to make them.
• avoid CGI and special effects- programs cost a lot of money, can look very tacky. Time consuming
• location scout- look for the locations and put it on a location recce.
• scheduled time with actors.

Preproduction Notes- High budget films (Train Spotting)

• Train Spotting- came out in 1996
• budget £3.5 million (a lot of money in the time)
• Director- Danny Boyle
• Writer- Andrew McDonald
• Producer- John Hodge
• Synopsis- based on a Scottish novel called train spotting by Irvine Welsh. Multi stranded narrative following someone attempting to get over their heroine addiction with little help from his friends.
• biased on the authors real experiences of heroine addiction
• written in Scottish dialect 
• The rights to the screen play- to translate a novel into a movie, you have to acquire the rights.
• While drafting the script, the only issue in production was securing the rights.
• "We can't directly buy them from the book publishers because they've been sold to Noel Gay (Red Dwarf production company)" -Danny Boyle 
• Noel Gay took the rights as he wanted to make a profit from the movie, where as Boyle wanted to make it as a passion project. 
• Finance- Scott Rudin (Hollywood) offered $250,000.
• Channel 4 wanted to fund it for them, but after they got the rights back. The author of the book wanted Boyle to make it.
• He didn't want to Co produce with Red Dwarf productions
• eventually a deal was made with Red Dwarf, where they gave 2% of the profit (by paying them £30,000)to Red Dwarf. But they have no say on the project.
• Noel Gay (Red Dwarf) got credit for the film

"One of the key issues was not to make a film that cost a lot of money" -Boyle

• Pre production- lasted for 7 weeks, since all the locations were quite close.
• Casting- First thing he did, Ewan McGregor was ear marked (wanted) well before the prep
• Listed well known actors of the time and picked from that.
• Locations- Rehearsals began in a rented flat.
• set in Edinburgh but mainly filmed in Glasgow to save time and money.
• location recce- you need to go location scouting 
• example: their pub scene needed a balcony, enough space and in the Glasgow area.
• 'we might have a problem making a panning shot around the bar'
• Locations need to remodelled and modified to help improve shots.
• 90 extras- you need enough space for them.
• 10 extras- bar fight, need the rights to destroy things
• the price- costs: the pub will loose money if its closed for a day for them to film.
• The pub will gain popularity for being featured in a movie
• shot by shot and story board made before location recce- things are then changed to accommodate this.
• How much are you willing to pay for the location.
• camera crew + actors need to take a bus with long journeys to each location. 
• harder locations- court room and crematorium would be constantly in use so to film there you would need to be legal rights considered.
• modifications: changing lighting of location, painting the area purple and back to its original colour, changing the layout.
• Interior filming- on a set, green screen, prop
• Exterior filming- a real location  
• some scenes are filmed in a film studio set- interior filming.
• sets don't require a recce as you make it, but finding and renting a film studio does. 
• Set Design-first thing is reading the script to visualise the location easily.
• then research into the area and location- going to heroine addicts flat in Glasgow. 
• visit the kind of place you're going to create
• next is the planning stage, either in sketches or notes of props, cosmetics and materials you need.
• reference photographs- primary research put into a mood board and then sketches of designs.
• constantly referring back to the director so that they're happy with her image. 
• constantly building sets- 30 different sets, done as and when they're needed.
• they'll hire runners to get props carpenters, artists etc to build props.
• designing and dressing- dressing is buying props and searching land fills, boot sales etc.
• props and costumes- after story boards and scene by scene sketches, props and costumes can be bought. 
• costumes are worn, props are everything else. 
• characters will be dressed based on their personality and what they're trying to represent.
• making costumes look worn and ruined by wearing them- makes them more authentic. 
• wardrobe mistress- official name for costume designer.
• most of clothing was from charity shops, actors own clothes, and some things lent from north face.
• In certain film there will be sponsorships from brands for characters to wear their clothing.
• The Shoot- the shoot lasted for 5 weeks
• films around 2-3 minutes of film a day, which will need to be set up and reshot over and over.
• each day on set costs a lot of money therefore you want to make the days as limited as possible. 
• genre can change the shoot time, e.g. sic-fi will take longer than a comedy and an animation will take years.
• you have to work around the times of the day so that lighting is perfect. E.g. meeting at 8:30 in the morning for the most filming done.
• night shoots have to be done between 11pm to 4am 
• call time- when everyone is expected to be on set
• crew film the casts (behind the camera)
• cast are the actors (in front of the camera)
• Director needs to get to the set 90 minutes before everyone else
• production manager- office manager, talks to the majority of the crew for the logistics.