After experiencing a few hard-to-read film books in the past, I was reluctant to try again. But, $30 Film School caught my eye (was actually shopping for something else). Having read it from cover-to-cover now, I have to say I am THOROUGHLY IMPRESSED. Michael Dean has such a strong grasp of film and DV, as well as modern computer software and plug-ins that I was in love with this book from the beginning. He gives sound advice on everything from pre-production budgeting to setting up a shot to post-prod overdubs and even marketing the finished product. He even explains ways to protect your PC from hackers and viruses! All this info in a $30 book! This is a must have. Buy it NOW. Unless it's 3am, then wait til the morning. But, get it.
A truly great book!
This book is packed with practical information. If you are motivated to create a no-budget film, this will guide you through the steps.
Working with this book, someone with a good story and some talent, drive and passion can create something of potential value.
There are some terrific resources in the accompanying CD and in the listing of additional books, web sites, music and films.
Michael Dean is honest and refreshing in his outlook. Buy this book; you'll be glad you did!
Not what it hypes itself to be...
After reading all of the raving reviews for this book, I picked it up because of my lifelong dream of becoming a filmmaker... Ugh.
Regrettably the book is NOT what it touts itself to be. It's self-promotion and ego-stroking at it's worst, with Michael W. Dean constantly referring to himself as something he's not (a hugely successful filmmmaker). Don't get me wrong, at NO POINT in the book does he ever say he's big and popular, but the constant references to how great he did and how wonderful his films are and how he's broken the mold and how revolutionary he and his ideas are wear thin after the first chapter or two.
I also had to skip most of the middle of the book (pages 148-347) because he wrote those 200 pages as a technical manual for windows-based programs that he claims are just as good (or better) than anything you could possibly use (and anybody who knows anything about digital media will tell you that Macintosh is the way to go). Pretty much anything and everything he tells you about software you can throw right out the window and just go buy a Mac with iMovie and iDVD because they're both better programs (and easier to use) than the dozen or so craptastic pieces of software that he wasted 200 pages trying to explain to you.
The section on raising money for your project is a waste of paper unless you're dedicated to making documentaries because it says little to nothing about raising funds for an actual movie and instead repeatedly tells you to get nonprofit status from the government so you can use his techniques for raising money. For someone who wants to make movies and break into the business and be a part of the industry, this is all a waste of time and energy (again, unless you're solely interested in making documentaries).
All in all this book is not "how to make a good movie cheap," it's more of a "how I made my movie, which rules, and how I did it cheap." Shortcuts on production values and equipment only take you so far, and unless you want to relegate yourself to obscurity and DEEP-underground-cult-status (something this counter-culture freak seems to think is the way to success), you're better off simply picking up a copy of Robert Rodriguez's "Rebel Without a Crew" and reading it at least twice and paying attention.
(on a personal note, that was another beef for me and the $30 Film School... Dean likes to trash Rodriguez and El Mariachi because he doesn't seem to understand that Mariachi WAS a self-contained film made for a mere $7,000. Dean likes to think it was made only as a precursor to Desperado, which is 100% false (something you'll learn once you read "Rebel Without a Crew")).
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