Feature -- by Karen Rocznik

Could you be the next James Cameron? Are you sitting on the next "Beavis and Butthead"? These thoughts may have crossed the minds of anyone who has ever had an interest in live action or animated filmmaking. But where does one begin? For starters check out any film societies or organizations in your area. I checked out two in Calgary, one that deals with live-action filmmaking and one animated film society.

Geoff Huffman

The Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers is a non-profit artist run centre that provides equipment, training and an opportunity to meet and work with other filmmakers. All members of CSIF enter at the associate level, which entitles you to the newsletters and library. After a period of demonstrated support for the society, you can become a producing member with access to all their equipment. Geoff Huffman has been a member of CSIF since 1995. In that time he has completed two short films and is currently working on another. Huffman, 24, says he's always had an interest in film, but was reluctant to trust his instincts. "I thought it was a really far fetched idea, kind of dreamy. One day I saw an ad for the film society and thought 'well somebody's doing it in Calgary, so it can't be that far out.'" In the beginning, he started out as a volunteer, then took some workshops in camera and light operation, sound and an introductory "How to Make a Film" course.

His first film called "Damn the Muse" told the story of a photographer retracing the last steps taken by his girlfriend. He called on a few friends, as well as himself, to take on acting bits and got to work. Looking back, he says his $300-budget first flick was "pretty pretentious" in that it was too big of an idea to capture in eight minutes. However, Huffman did gain some recognition as it was played at the Hundred Dollar Film Festival in Calgary. The experience also taught him some important lessons in film exposure, the use of light and types of filters to use. Currently he's received two grants from the National Film Board and the Alberta Foundation for the Arts for his next film about how the exchange of a $20 bill connects one person to the next.

While commercial success is not important to Huffman right now, he hopes to make a career out of filmmaking someday. For the moment, he's content learning and gaining more experience. "I think a lot of people who get into film and go to school have these grandiose ideas of becoming a director. They often don't realize all that goes into it." So, what advice does Huffman have for anyone interested in filmmaking? "You have to know about story, writing scripts. If you don't know what the story is, every last detail of it, you won't know what decisions to make. Get involved with the film community in your area, read books and don't just watch film, study films."

If you prefer the animated world of the "Simpsons" and those foul-mouthed third graders of "South Park", then a career in film animation may be for you. Here in Calgary, Quickdraw Animation Society offers workshops, equipment and resources for anyone interested in all forms and styles of animation. The non-profit, artist-run film production co-op caters to both the experienced and beginning filmmaker and offers memberships at the associate and producing level. Joe Kelly, production co-ordinator and member, started with a 10-week animation workshop at Quickdraw in 1993. From there he was hooked. "I've always been interested in media arts and really interested in filmmaking. I just seemed to like it here, especially working with experimental animation."

To date, Kelly has completed four animated films. He says the process of putting together even the shortest of animated films is extremely long - from coming up with the technique you want to work with to planning out your film. And while most of us are most familiar with the pencil-on-paper style of animation, sand and plasticine can also be used. One method Kelly has worked with is actually drawing on the film itself. Each frame of animated work is filmed individually, one after another. The film is processed, edited, re-edited and transferred onto a work print either on 16mm or 35mm film. In addition, sound may be added in before or later on. The key word for anyone considering animated filmmaking is patience. For example, a movement which translates to five seconds on the screen, may take hours to film.

Kelly says the hardest part of being an independent filmmaker is coming up with the money to fund his projects. Like live-action filmmaking, many independent filmmakers rely on grants to fund their films. The Alberta Foundation for the Arts and the National Film Board supply grants to independent filmmakers, but Kelly cautions anyone who thinks they can get a grant just like that. "It's very competitive. You need to learn how to write for grants and have a strong proposal and good support material." Kelly suggests getting a collection of your work together such as your filmography, awards, screening, and education.

Kelly says there are two animated career streams - becoming a character animator for commercial cartoons and animated filmmaking. And while they both seem related, Kelly says "the only similarity is that they both contain the word animated." So what is the big difference? "You won't make a living being an independent filmmaker. If you want to make money, you can try making feature length films that are in popular culture. But as far as income back from the films, that's not what you should be doing it for. It'd be nice to make a living, but I make films because I want to make films.

While lure of Disney may not entice Kelly, Quickdraw does offer a 10-week course in character animation. The animation society also offers courses for teens and has one of the best animation libraries in all of Canada. So, what advice does Kelly have for someone who wants to get into the animated film industry? "If you want to be an independent filmmaker, you can go the route I did and teach yourself filmmaking or you can go to film school or art school." Either way, the key to success is a keen interest in animation and draw, draw, draw as much as you can! Th-th-th-at's all Folks! If you would like some more information on filmmaking check out some of these sites:

Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers

Quickdraw Animation Society

Canadian Independent Film Series
a great resource of film societies around the country

Yahoo's list of film organizations