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Filmcraft

Projects

Things you make

Each project is small enough to finish and specific enough to teach something. Finished work is what moves your skills.

  1. 01

    6-Shot Story

    Tell a complete story using exactly six shots and no dialogue.

    Beginning, middle and end in six images. If the audience can't follow it without words, the problem is the shots — not the audience.

    Constraints

    • — Exactly six shots
    • — No dialogue, no text
    • — Under 60 seconds

    Deliverables

    • — Final edit
    • — Your six-frame storyboard
    • — One paragraph on what you cut
    • Storytelling
    • Composition
    • Editing
    • Camera Fundamentals

    Recommended after The Cut. Not required — start whenever you're curious.

    NOT STARTED1 afternoon
  2. 02

    Frame Recreation

    Analyze and recreate the composition, lighting and feeling of a cinematic frame.

    Choose a frame you admire. Break down its geometry, light direction and lens. Then rebuild it with whatever room, lamp and person you actually have.

    Constraints

    • — One reference frame
    • — Match composition before you chase the look
    • — Document your setup

    Deliverables

    • — Side-by-side comparison
    • — Lighting diagram
    • — Notebook breakdown
    • Composition
    • Lighting
    • Cinematography

    Recommended after Negative Space. Not required — start whenever you're curious.

    NOT STARTED2–3 hours
  3. 03

    One Scene / Three Genres

    Film the same basic scene as three different genres.

    Someone waits at a door. Shoot it as comedy, as horror, as romance. Same location, same actor, same action — everything else is your argument.

    Constraints

    • — Identical blocking beats
    • — Change only camera, light, sound and cutting
    • — 90 seconds total

    Deliverables

    • — Three versions
    • — A note on which choice did the most work
    • Directing
    • Cinematography
    • Editing
    • Sound Design
    NOT STARTED1 day
  4. 04

    Lighting & Lens Study

    Explore how lighting, focal length, distance and composition change emotion.

    A controlled experiment on one face. Build a chart of what each variable actually does to a viewer.

    Constraints

    • — One subject
    • — At least three focal lengths
    • — At least four lighting positions

    Deliverables

    • — Comparison grid
    • — Written findings
    • Lighting
    • Cinematography
    • Camera Fundamentals
    NOT STARTED3 hours
  5. 05

    Same Footage / Two Stories

    Edit the same footage into two sequences with different meanings.

    Shoot generously, then prove that the edit is authorship — not assembly.

    Constraints

    • — One shoot, two cuts
    • — No new footage between versions
    • — Sound may change

    Deliverables

    • — Two edits
    • — Reflection on what changed the meaning
    • Editing
    • Storytelling
    • Sound Design
    NOT STARTED1 day
  6. 06

    The Invisible Story

    Create a story where sound communicates something the camera never shows.

    The frame withholds. The track reveals. Trust the audience to build the rest.

    Constraints

    • — The key event stays offscreen
    • — Original recorded sound only
    • — Under 2 minutes

    Deliverables

    • — Final edit
    • — Sound map of offscreen events
    • Sound Design
    • Production Sound
    • Storytelling
    NOT STARTED2 days
  7. 07

    90-Second Scene

    Write, direct, shoot, edit, color and mix a complete short scene.

    Your first end-to-end production. Small in scope, complete in craft.

    Constraints

    • — One location
    • — Two actors maximum
    • — Fully finished: color and mix included

    Deliverables

    • — Script
    • — Shot list
    • — Finished 90-second scene
    • Directing
    • Screenwriting
    • Cinematography
    • Editing
    • Color
    • Sound Design
    • Producing
    NOT STARTED1–2 weeks
  8. FINAL

    Your Short Film

    Create a finished 3–7 minute short film.

    Everything you've practiced, in service of one idea only you would have. Scoped so you can finish it — because an unfinished film teaches almost nothing.

    Constraints

    • — 3–7 minutes
    • — Cleared music and locations
    • — Delivered with titles, color and a final mix

    Deliverables

    • — Finished film
    • — Poster
    • — Trailer
    • — Production notebook
    • Directing
    • Storytelling
    • Cinematography
    • Editing
    • Sound Design
    • Color
    • Producing
    Open the final film pipeline
    NOT STARTED6–10 weeks