How To: Make a dramatic spotlight from a household lamp
In this video tutorial, viewers learn how to make a guerilla spotlight using household items. Users will simply need a cardboard cylinder and a light source. Te materials used in this video were a toilet paper roll, piece of aluminum, gaff tape and a lamp. Begin by cutting a couple of 90 degrees slots in the middle of the foil, slide in the tube ad secure it with tape. It should be a bit longer than the tube. Now wrap it around the light source. This video will benefit those viewers who produ...
How To: Turn an Old Aquarium into a Cloud Tank & Create Creepy Alien Atmosphere Effects
Need some creepy visual effects for your alien flick, but don't want to spend a bunch of money? With some pretty basic materials, you can turn an empty aquarium into a "cloud tank," which can be used to create several different atmospheric effects. Before Hollywood started using CGI, cloud tanks were used for scenes in a lot of famous movies. Remember this one? Besides Raiders of the Lost Ark, cloud tanks also helped make some wonderful non-CGI effects in Independence Day, Close Encounters of...
How To: Make a Hollywood Undead mask
Looking for some help making a Hollywood Undead mask? In this video, get a step by step guide on how one person made hers from a blank mask purchased at Century Novelty.
How To: Build your own DIY police taser for your film
If you remember in the Hangover, there was an incredibly funny scene where the guys were stuck getting out of going to prison by helping the officers demonstrate a police tazer in front of a group of kids on a school field trip. If you've ever wanted to make your own prop police tazer for one of your films, check out this hilarious and informative video! In it, you will learn how to create your own police tazer!
Make edible prop bodily fluids: poop, vomit, snot, and blood
The human body is full of different kinds of fluids, most of which are either gross or dangerous to remove from a person for use in one of your films. Fortunately, most of them are pretty easy to replicate using household materials. This video will show you how to make edible prop fake blood, feces, vomit, and snot. They all look great, are safe, and will make you movie much more realistic.
How To: Make a breakable 2x4 wood board prop
Yes, a smashable board of wood. Just what the propmaster called for. A long 2x4 piece of wood prop is perfect for smashing overtop somebody's head during an action scene. The smashable board is easy to make, too. But not as easy as breaking it. Watch this video tutorial to learn how to make a breakable 2x4 wood plank prop.
How To: When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemon Grenades (Portal 2's Cave Johnson Would Be Proud)
Portal has been one of the most critically acclaimed and universally loved games of the last few years, and there's plenty of fan art to prove it. From building a Portal gun, to a gravity defying Companion Cube, and even installing Portal onto a graphing calculator, fans have found some innovative ways to show their love for the games.
How To: Make your own rolling camera dolly for cheap
This tutorial shows you how you can cheaply and easily construct a rolling camera dolly for less than you'd have to spend to buy it from the manufacturer - this one only costs about $120. It rolls as smoothly as a professional dolly!
How To: Make Realistic Fluffy Cloud Props from Things Around the House
If you need a cloudy background for a photo or video, you can always turn an old aquarium into a DIY cloud tank. But, if you want something more fun and less creepy, these fluffy cloud props by Serena Thompson might be more what you're looking for. It'd even make a good Halloween costume if you tweak it a little. All you need is some balloons, tape, flour, newspaper, and a bunch of pillow stuffing. Serena made them by taping balloons together and applying a mixture of water and flour, then co...
How To: View Golden Globe Nominee Inception Via Code
Inception may not be the lead contender for the 68th Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best movies and television from 2010, but Christopher Nolan's film still collected four nominations— Best Motion Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Original Score.
How To: Create a Cardboard Shader in Maya 2011
Create Your Cardboard Masterpiece Before you can create the shader, you must create an object to test the shader out on so that you will feel comfortable with your results. I have chosen to do the traditional cardboard box for this.
News: Born With Three Mouths
Okay, been a bit rampant with the twisted animations lately (exhibits A, B, C), but this is too amazing to pass up. By photographer and filmmaker Alva Bernadine, behold the magic of After Effects:
How To: Shoot low angle moving shots from ground level with a video camera
Low angle shots are a great way to evoke a sense of panic in movies, but if you're trying to get good quality shots from ground level with just your hands, then it's not going to work. The video footage will be all shaky, unless that's another look you're wanting to achieve in your film. If you want steady, fast-tracking low angle footage, then Ritwika has a great trick on taking those ground level moving camera shots. You'll need a monopod, water bottle (with water), 2 rubber bands and your ...
How To: Build a cheap DIY follow focus for your Canon 5D Mark
In this very basic but informative tutorial, you'll learn how to build a follow focus for your Canon 5D Mark. This method has the virtue of being very cheap, using just a clamp, nuts and bolts, a bit of wire, a rubber band and some shrink wrap. But used well, you can probably achieve some fairly professional looking results with this rig.
How To: Make a breakable baseball bat movie prop
There are plenty of films out there with baseball bats, but if you want your bat to explode on impact, you'll have to make it yourself. A smashable baseball bat is perfect for any gangster flick or sports movie. Watch this video tutorial to learn how to make a breakable baseball bat movie prop.
How To: Make an organization xiii coat for Cosplay
Check out this tutorial video sequence to learn how to make a Kingdom Heart's 2 Organization 13 Coat for Cosplay! In part 1, you will learn how to make the front part of the coat. Then, when you start sewing, you have to make sure that the outside of the coat is on the inside and to start sewing the shoulders first. This is one way of making Axel and Saix coats for Cosplay. This video was filmed in the hopes of helping people who are struggling to make an Organization XIII Coat. Watch these i...
HowTo: Create a Six-Frame Animation with a Single Sheet of Paper
Pioneered by Rufus Butler Seder in his popular children's picture book Gallop!, and ably demonstrated by WonderHowTo favorite brusspup in the video below, "scanimation" refers to a novel (but distinctly old-timey) technique for cramming multi-frame animations onto a single sheet of paper by a process of superimposition and selective interference. Interested in creating your own scanimations? It's easier than you'd think. In the following clip, Paul Overton of Dude Craft presents a complete ov...
How To: Use a light meter to properly light a digital film
A light meter can prove to be an invaluable tool on any film set, allowing you to quickly and efficiently set lights and know the correct exposure values of those lights. Light meters were initially designed for still photographers and cinematographers can easily calibrate them to a given film stock speed for shooting film. But what about today’s digital cinematographer? I’m glad you asked. In this video tutorial you'll see how you can use a light meter to quickly and efficiently light a scen...
How To: Make cheap lighting & barn doors
Check out this instructional lighting video that explains how to make cheap barn doors for your lights. For this project, you will need a total of 4 hinges, 12 nuts and bults, a screwdriver, cardboard, scissors, and a lighting fixture. This is a simple guerrilla filmmaking tutorial on how to design your own barn doors. A great addition to any low-budget filmmaker's lighting kit.
How To: Build a fake wall that you can smash
This video will give you tips on how to make your very own fake wall that is perfect for smashing, thrashing, or just plain old throwing people through. This backyard special effect should really spice up your amateur film making. Just be careful, this fake wall can sometimes look like a real wall.
How To: Make wire armatures for stop motion
Learn how to use 16" gage aluminum wire to make stop motion puppet armatures. It is very easy to do, and wire works great for anyone just starting out. You can also see how to make basic wood feet using tie downs.
How To: Make a fake pregnancy belly prop on a budget
If you're a filmmaker on a budget and you've got some farce up your sleeve, this video is for you. Watch Indy Mogul's Backyard FX explain how to build a really realistic looking latex pregnancy belly, so that your romantic comedy can grow!
How To: Make a fake tree for a play
Well it's time to put on the school play! This year, the school's going to put on Chekov's "The Cherry Tree". Only problem? You have no tree. Well, this helpful how to will guide you through the steps to make a light, portable tree that will turn your school play on its head.
How To: Use a piece of developed film and a camera to see through clothes
The ability to see through clothing has been pursued by voyeurs for millenia, and today with the help of cheap video cameras we are closer than ever. This video will show you how to use a piece of blank developed film and IR to see through different types of shirts and other clothing. It also covers the effects of different colors and fabrics on the technique's effectiveness.
How To: Make a Tommy Gun out of cardboard
This video begins by showing the necessary tools needed to make a prop tommy gun out of a cardboard base. The first step is to trace a simple handle shape on the cardboard and repeat eight more times until you have eight exact copies of the handle. Then using an image of a tommy gun make an outline on the gun to cut in another piece of cardboard. You must cut and make eight more copies of the entire gun body to have the appropriate thickness for realism. The handle must be glued to the gun bo...
How To: Give personality to your puppets
In this tutorial, we learn how to give personality to your puppets with Paul Louis. Personality is everything when it comes to puppets. Your design should give the puppet a certain type of personality. Create a voice when you put the puppet onto your arm and use it to become a new character. Use different styles of clothing and jewelry accessories to make the character different. Give the puppet the look of the voice you are going to give it. If you want it to look tough, give it a leather ja...
How To: Make a breakaway cardboard chair prop
A breakaway chair is one of the best pranks, or one of the easiest effects for your indie film project. A breakable chair can be made out of simple household items, and is very cheap. The biggest material needed is cardboard. So basically, you'll make a cardboard chair, that breaks. Watch this video tutorial to learn how to make a fake movie prop brick.
How To: Use the RED ONE compact flash cards
Learn the Red One Camera basics. Installing, removing, and formating the compact flash cards.
How To: Sculpt the face of a polymer clay stop motion armature
This video animation tutorial demonstrates the process of sculpting a human face out of polymer clay as part of an armature for stop motion animation. The demonstrator begins by molding a piece of polymer clay into the general shape of a human skull and neck, and impresses the more finite features with the aid of a flexible sculpting tool. Watch this instructional video and learn how to sculpt the face of a polymer clay stop motion armature.
How To: Make a fake ghost amateur video
This video show you how you can add a fake ghost to an amateur film or home video.
How To: Make costume hooves
They are made from a pair of comfortable wedge sandals, and are very durable. Materials used:
How To: Shoot an anonymous interview for documentaries
Watch this video to learn how to shoot anonymous interviews for documentaries. Matt explains how to maintain anonymity using the proper lighting and audio effects.
How To: Make a puppet from stuffed toys
Watch this video to learn how to make puppets from stuffed toys. In this video, Barbara Dewey converts Pink Panther, Bugs Bunny and several others into ventriloquist figures. Barbara also gives some tips for caring for your puppets and some ideas for modifying them. Stay tuned for the amazing performance in the last video of this three part video series!
How To: Create a Detachable DIY DSLR PVC Shoulder Rig
This video is going to teach you how to Create a DETACHABLE DIY Pvc Shoulder Rig Video: .
How To: Make a Lightweight Body-Mount Rig for Filming Unique Front & OTS Shots
Cinema is a matter of what's in the frame and what's out, according to director Martin Scorsese, who asserted that when describing his life's work. Getting the perfect shot can turn an otherwise ordinary scene into something great, both on and off screen.
Becoming the Dark Knight: 8 DIYers Show Us How to Build Batman's Belongings
The final chapter of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy is here, The Dark Knight Rises, and if you're anything like me, it made you want to immediately don a cowl of your own and run around punching criminals. Don't forget though, one of the most awesome aspects of Batman is his never-ending supply of crazy gadgets. Unfortunately for most of us, we don't have a billion dollars, nor Morgan Freeman, so we'll just have to make do with some good old-fashioned DIY tricks. Read on for a rundown of ...
How To: Create a hole in the chest special effect with green screen and gore
Indy Mogul Backyard FX is here with an awesome, cheap, special effect build that will have your audience jumping out of their seats. If you're a filmmaker on a budget you've got to watch this video and learn how to make a hole in the chest effect that look exactly like there is a hole in the actor's chest.
How To: Make Splinter Cell Goggles
These goggles are great for a stage prop, cosplay, Halloween, or any videos you may make! They're made to look like Sam Fisher's tridents from the game series Splinter Cell.
HowTo: Make Your Own Tron Suit
We all love Tron. The more Tron the better. We learned how to make a Tron suit with the help of Adafruit, but here's a new rendition that substitutes the electroluminescent wire for LEDs. Instructables member sheetmetalalchemist says the LEDs are brighter, sturdier and lighter.
How To: Set up a stable car mount for your camera
One of the problems with car mounts for film cameras is avoiding harmonic vibration and keeping your shot steady. This tutorial shows you how to make your own camera mount that will shoot stable, clear footage as the car drives.
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