Lately, we keep hearing the advice to grab an iPhone and just start shooting a movie. Well, that’s exactly what the team behind The Mountain Murder Tapes did. Not only was filming very simple, but they kept post-production really scrappy and distributed their project on TikTok!
In today’s episode, No Film School’s GG Hawkins speaks with Jacob Seltzer, Benjy Steinberg, and Spencer Levin to discuss:
- The inspiration behind the project - “Blair Witch meets Ski Mountain”
- Why the actors were the cinematographers
- The natural progression of events from different character perspectives
- Having a digestible number of POVs in the project
- Using improvised versions over the scripted versions
- Their very low-tech process of filming and editing
- Using a hook in each episode versus a cliffhanger
- Why a project like this is so accessible for scrappy filmmakers
Memorable Quotes
- “We were in touch with the creepy nature of nature.” [3:35]
- “We wanted to get back to the roots of our indie filmmaking and get scrappy.” [4:19]
- “It was an experiment in cinematography as much as storytelling.” [5:15]
- “So many shots were stolen. We upped the production value of the project by going into places we probably shouldn’t be.” [14:17]
- “Within the first second, you have to hook the audience.” [22:56]
Mentioned:
The Mountain Murder Tapes on TikTok
Follow Benjy on IG
Follow Spencer on TikTok
Follow Jacob on IG
#ChadGetsTheAxe
Find No Film School everywhere:
On the Web
https://nofilmschool.com/
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/nofilmschool
Twitter
https://twitter.com/nofilmschool
YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/user/nofilmschool
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/nofilmschool
Send us an email with questions or feedback: [email protected]!
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices