Didn’t go to film school? No worries, neither did we. Good news is that you’re not missing out on much and won’t be declaring bankruptcy due to student loans any time soon (we hope). There are lot of “Film Blogs” out there that only seem to care about the latest 4k this and 35mm that or just reviewing the latest Star Wars film. However, the core of filmmaking is not the equipment but the person using the equipment and their expertise both in the art and how the industry works. Film school will teach you how to use x camera and y lighting rig but will fail to equip filmmakers with the knowledge and skills to navigate the film industry or even enhance their skills as a filmmaker. Lets be honest, anyone in today’s day and age can shoot something and call themselves a “Filmmaker” but that is the exact problem, anyone can call themselves a filmmaker without paying any dues to the filmmaking art form.
Books are an amazing source of education, with the right kind of book you can pretty much learn anything! With that in mind, we’ve taken the liberty to compile a short list of amazing books that will help to develop interpersonal skills and industry knowledge as well as help you master creative techniques. These books will prove to be valuable source of knowledge for novice filmmakers as well as industry professionals. These books are in no particular order but we highly recommend that you read How To win Friends And Influence People!
This is an incredible book in every aspect with over 4000 reviews on amazon.com and 15 million copies sold worldwide. The self explanatory title does give away what the book itself is about. Unlike a lot of popular “People” books, Dale Carnegie doesn’t tell you how to trick people into doing things for you, but tells you how to communicate with them on a “Human” level in order to achieve a mutual understanding. In an age where communicating through tweets, emails and text messages have become the norm; knowing how to effectively deal with people face to face will be a highly desirable commodity in the near future, not just for filmmakers but pretty much in any industry. Social interaction is not something at is taught in any school, let alone film schools.
The Insider’s Guide to Independent Film Distribution
Mastering Composition: The Definitive Guide for Photographers
This is one of our favourite books at Motion Six. Although Mastering Shots is primarily aimed at photographers, we find that it is just as useful for filmmakers. There’s a lot diluted information about framing and composition techniques out there but Richard Garvey-Williams puts all those techniques in a beautifully illustrated and photographed book. The content is concise and clear enough with no lengthy explanations. It is easy to carry around with you on a film shoot just to browse through it and get some composition ideas and inspiration. If you want to start creating good quality compositions and leave the amateur looking shots behind, then we strongly recommend this book!
The Producer’s Business Handbook