I used to make a lot of micro- and no-budget movies packed full of VFX, but I usually avoided green-screen because I could never make it look good. Although those kind of projects are behind me, I agreed to the review because I figured that this book might help others succeed where I’d failed – and also I was interested to find out why I had failed!
Author: Jeremy Borum
Topic: Film Composition
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Available Formats: Paperback, Hardback, eBook
Page Count: 270 Pp.
MSRP: $30
Expected Release: Available Now
Official Website: Click Here
Sample Chapter: N/A
Special Discount: Click Here
Critique Issue: Issue #111 (06/15)
Critiqued By: Gabe Gibitz
Final Score: 8.8
Scoring music for film is quite an overwhelming task, and Jeremy Borum sets out in his new book, Guerrilla Film Scoring, to demystify the process and help budding film composers navigate the tumultuous waters of the ever-changing film scoring business. (Some may see the waters as tumultuous, but I think Borum would see this as an open door for massive change in the industry…and, to that, I would agree.) His introduction sets up the framework of the entire book in saying, “Although a study of the Hollywood machine is interesting, it’s ultimately not very useful” (xi). The rules that applied 20 years ago are a frail, dying structure upon which to build a film career. Though Hollywood budgets still exist, the average film composer will find much more work in micro-budget films.
Following the success of her TED talk (shown below), which in turn was inspired by her successful $1.2 million kickstarter campaign for her then-upcoming album, Palmer was asked to write a book. Palmer’s book, The Art of Asking, is a story about how a street performer and musician is able to create meaningful connections directly with her audience by being open to that connection, and by not being afraid to ask for that connection. As the name implies, the book is about the art of asking and how we all can use a lesson in being able to ask for help if we’re going to be successful at our art. It meditates on both the difficulty and the necessity of asking for help and shows us how Palmer uses twenty-first century tools to make a living as an artist which doesn't involve marketing ploys but focuses on building your own community, gathering your own tribe and letting them help you. This is one artist’s life laid bare as an example of the risks and rewards that come with the vulnerable act of asking.
In The TV Showrunner’s Roadmap, Mr. Landau brings his television and teaching experience together to walk us through 21 tips and tools an effective showrunner would need. But these tips are useful not just for showrunners, but also anyone working in television or multimedia, such as we’ve seen with the proliferation of new Indie YouTube networks like the Nerdist and Geek & Sundry. Writers...
Many of us filmmaking types see ourselves as artists. We don't want to spend time doing all the boring parts of pre-production - the re-writes, the budget, the legal stuff...Yawn! We just want to grab our camera and shoot the movie! Why worry about all that, we reason, I'm a talented artist - I can work it all out in the editing room!
“Between the Scenes” takes you through the art and practice of scene transitions. The running theme is how scenes connect and how your film and content flows. The book does not target a specific group as the goal is to bring consideration of transitions to all stages of film production. There are sections for writers, directors and editors.