Silver Linings

COVID…harbinger of death and dismay and utter loss of really living life. 200%. And, I would do anything to have it not have come our way.

But, since it did, let’s look at some of the positives it brought to the film industry and some changes that I hope will be with us forever.

First and foremost, it reminded us to take care of each other and be more health aware. Maybe don’t stand over the catered buffet at lunch time and have conversations over the food that everyone will be eating. Maybe take your food and sit down like a human. Maybe if a crew member is sick, don’t expect them to just “push on through and take one for the team”…maybe realize their health matters and the health of the rest of the crew about to get infected matters too.

On the creative side, people have learned there is not just one way to work on a film and not just one style of filmmaking. I hope this stays sunk in and doesn’t slowly seep out and get forgotten.

COVID required people to work with editors remotely using tools like FrameIO to share notes. People were doing this already but “old school” types were hesitant to fully come onboard to this…I suspect not wanting to give up their “free” massages in the post-house. Now it’s an acceptable and viable practice to work from different locations and use modern technology to come together when apart. The truth is editors are comfortable in their own spaces being left alone in a dark room. They work faster when someone is not hovering over their shoulder. True, final fine tuning is difficult to do this way and I do always encourage people to sit with the editor to do the last pass and nit-picky stuff, but this is generally a day or two and not needed for the entire project.

You can hire an actor anywhere. Just think about that for a bit. You have an actor in Kalamazoo that you want to cast, but can’t afford to fly them in. Well, you could conceivably direct that person over Zoom now. Completely acceptable way to work and cost-effective.

People have re-discovered stock footage…no longer just to be used to fill in gaps where something is needed but to create an entire film. Found footage has been used like this for decades in experimental films but not as much in the narrative world. I think it’s a creative way to work and adds an entirely new avenue for thinking outside the box. New and engaging content can be made that is like nothing that has ever been seen before.

COVID also brought people around to what I call “old radio programming” otherwise known as podcasts. Podcasts became full of creative story telling and not only for talk shows. Sound designers jumped in and helped create some unique and imaginative projects that would not be cost effective for most indie filmmakers to make as a film.

So though COVID is a turd and a smelly one at that, there are some silver linings for all of us to keep in mind as we continue forward into the new world of filmmaking.