Use
of Audio
A section that is often ignored by first time filmmakers,
this is a critical section for films. It is important
that the audio in a film be clear in order for the audience
to follow the storyline. Moreover, with strong sound design,
ambience, and scoring, audio can actually create an even
more compelling mood than visual effects and color grading.
(Plus, by and large, it's cheaper and more time effective!)
The
breakdown is as follows:
- Clarity
of Dialogue -
Necessary for the audience to follow the storyline,
clear dialogue is a must. While problematic production
sound can be replaced with ADR, sync is crucial
in this situation. This category is weighted at
50% of the overall Audio points due to its importance.
- Sound
Design/Ambience - Often overlooked and underutilized,
sound design can add massive amounts of production
value to your film by creating an immersive and
compelling world for your audience to get lost in.
Additionally, it can save you money on costly special
effects, such as in American Beauty where you don't
actually see the gunshot that concludes the film.
This is worth 25% of the overall Audio points.
- Music/Scoring
- Good scoring and well-chosen music add a lot of
production value to a film because they tap emotion
in a way that few other things do. This is worth
25% of the overall Audio points.
Use
of Budget
While you have to be a smart and creative to make any
film below $30,000, this category is designed specifically
to push the limits of what can be accomplished at that
budget. In 1994, this budget allowed Kevin Smith to make
his classic Clerks, which is still considered to
be 'barely a movie' by Kevin and the rest of the world.
With eleven years since then and lots of price drops in
good equipment, we have to really push the envelope now.
Unlike
the previous three categories, this is a much more simple
category. At the end of the film, the reviewer looks at
the budget of the film and the end result and will think
one of three things:
-
How did they waste that much money on that little
of a movie?
-
Hmmm… That seems about right…
-
How on earth did they manage to get that much of
a film with so little money?
Obviously,
thought #3 will yield the highest score.
Lasting
Appeal
This is critical because it relates to how much of a cult
following or box office revenue your film could make if
distributed nationally. (Obviously, this is a section
that distributors are very interested in.)
The
two segments in this category are as follows:
- Desire
to See the Film Again - This is important as
it shows both you and distributors how interesting
we found the film for personal rewatching. This
is worth 50% of the available points for Lasting
Appeal.
- Desire
to Show the Film to a Friend - Films are cultural
currency and the most important films cause the
watcher to want to show the film they have just
seen to a friend, so that they are on a common playing
field of discussion (think of Fight Club) and quotability
(think of Napoleon Dynamite). This is worth 50%
of the available points for Lasting Appeal.
Conclusion
When the scores are tallied, each score is reduced to
a ten point scale from a hundred point scale with the
decimal point sliding over one. (91 out of 100, become
9.1 out of 10, for example.) Then the five scores are
added together and averaged for your film's final score.
While
we have yet to review a perfect film at Microfilmmaker
Magazine, we hope that our willingness to provide you
as filmmakers with an unbiased critique of your film will
help you improve in the art of filmmaking and bolster
your spirits to continually try new things.
God
Bless,
Jeremy
Hanke
Editor
Microfilmmaker Magazine
