I posted this in another thread but I thought I should make it it's own as well.
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More importantly you are learning what it takes to work with "real" people, which in honesty is a lot more important than the actual music at this stage of the game.
In a few years time (of working with composers/musicians) you will have a leg up on the students that "chose" to just place pre-existing music. You will have gained knowledge as to what you "want" and what you "need" to make your films work. As well the trials of working with a composer... there's gonna be many fixes and dropped cues along the way.
You are thinking ahead, Mark! Good job!
GENERAL COMMENTS......
As a director (especially if you are indie... and cant afford a music supervisor) you need to have a clear vision of what the music needs to be. Sometimes the decision will rest solely on your shoulders as a no/low budget director. And sometimes there are no temp cues. In this case you need to be able to convey to the composer what it is you need from them... which often times involves specifics on instrumentation.
BTW... With the amount of kids using "joe-blow band" as the music for their films now, I'm curious as to what this will mean in the future for them when it's time to use "real" composers. They'll proba bly be a bit lost on the whole process. And that's not a good time to learn, when the clock is ticking and the meter running.
Obviously sometimes pre-existing works, but at least use original music... when you use hit songs the emotion is pre-established. So the emotion of your film is really stealing from that hit song. And that's not a good thing when you don't have a name for yourself, and no-one quite knows what your "voice' is as a director. Trust me it's way more powerful to use music no-one's ever heard. It's fresh and exciting. It's interesting and "NEW". Make people feel something new when they view your film. Especially if you have sights on the big league. Why? Because 10,000 other kids have films with the "SAME" songs you "chose"......... all these films now feel "THE SAME"...................... Think!
BTW... No-one in Hollywood is gonna take temp cues seriously. They wanna see that you can handle the pressures of a real film. There is tremendous pressure in this business. Yo u must be able to be creative while at the same time having someone breathing down your neck. "Hurry up and make a classic", so to speak. It's not easy..... (this should be obvious by the amount of films and directors you all hate)
* Remember this. In the "old days" there were no songs to download, so directors (like Spielberg e tc.) ha d to learn using the real thing. That was the "only" way back then. Just saying, taking short cuts now may hurt you in the long run. There are so many people willing to do music for you guys, use it! I really feel there is no excuse but to do o rig inal mus ic, even if it's not perfect (shoot, your film isn't perfect), but you are "learning" which is way more important "NOW".
There's a lot you need to know, filming is minor compared to the big picture. Technical aspects are a given, and really, ju st the be ginning. Play smart, you'll be glad you did.
Jay
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More importantly you are learning what it takes to work with "real" people, which in honesty is a lot more important than the actual music at this stage of the game.
In a few years time (of working with composers/musicians) you will have a leg up on the students that "chose" to just place pre-existing music. You will have gained knowledge as to what you "want" and what you "need" to make your films work. As well the trials of working with a composer... there's gonna be many fixes and dropped cues along the way.
You are thinking ahead, Mark! Good job!
GENERAL COMMENTS......
As a director (especially if you are indie... and cant afford a music supervisor) you need to have a clear vision of what the music needs to be. Sometimes the decision will rest solely on your shoulders as a no/low budget director. And sometimes there are no temp cues. In this case you need to be able to convey to the composer what it is you need from them... which often times involves specifics on instrumentation.
BTW... With the amount of kids using "joe-blow band" as the music for their films now, I'm curious as to what this will mean in the future for them when it's time to use "real" composers. They'll proba bly be a bit lost on the whole process. And that's not a good time to learn, when the clock is ticking and the meter running.
Obviously sometimes pre-existing works, but at least use original music... when you use hit songs the emotion is pre-established. So the emotion of your film is really stealing from that hit song. And that's not a good thing when you don't have a name for yourself, and no-one quite knows what your "voice' is as a director. Trust me it's way more powerful to use music no-one's ever heard. It's fresh and exciting. It's interesting and "NEW". Make people feel something new when they view your film. Especially if you have sights on the big league. Why? Because 10,000 other kids have films with the "SAME" songs you "chose"......... all these films now feel "THE SAME"...................... Think!
BTW... No-one in Hollywood is gonna take temp cues seriously. They wanna see that you can handle the pressures of a real film. There is tremendous pressure in this business. Yo u must be able to be creative while at the same time having someone breathing down your neck. "Hurry up and make a classic", so to speak. It's not easy..... (this should be obvious by the amount of films and directors you all hate)
* Remember this. In the "old days" there were no songs to download, so directors (like Spielberg e tc.) ha d to learn using the real thing. That was the "only" way back then. Just saying, taking short cuts now may hurt you in the long run. There are so many people willing to do music for you guys, use it! I really feel there is no excuse but to do o rig inal mus ic, even if it's not perfect (shoot, your film isn't perfect), but you are "learning" which is way more important "NOW".
There's a lot you need to know, filming is minor compared to the big picture. Technical aspects are a given, and really, ju st the be ginning. Play smart, you'll be glad you did.
Jay
