Video and audio
Print the customer story (PDF: 568k).
Company
Challenges
- Cost-effectively re-edit a full-length feature film to better tell the story
- Sustain a successful special effects makeup studio
Solution
- Recut independent feature film on the desktop using Adobe Premiere Pro software
- Use Adobe Photoshop CS software to visualize and design special effects makeup
Benefits
- Quickly obtained distribution by telling a tighter, more solid story
- Learned the software quickly, despite minimal technical expertise
- Re-edited the indie film for less than $2,000 — saving thousands of dollars while retaining creative control
- Saved time and money while experimenting with ideas for makeup designs
Tool Kit
- Adobe Photoshop CS
- Adobe Premiere Pro
- Sony Vaio computer running Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional
Living the dream
Popular Hollywood effects makeup artist turns successful indie filmmaker with help from Adobe Photoshop CS and Adobe Premiere Pro software
Robert Hall of Almost Human is among the hottest effects makeup artists in Hollywood, having made a name for himself on projects like "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." When Hall set his sights on producing an independent feature film, he applied his professional instincts to find a desktop graphics and video editing solution. Adobe® Photoshop® CS and Adobe Premiere® Pro software gave Hall the top-quality results he was looking for at a price he could afford.
Robert Hall began his career as a youngster in Alabama, buying makeup and materials at the local Wal-Mart to create his friends' Halloween costumes. Since those early days, his enthusiasm and love for the craft of special effects makeup has never waned, and in 1996 he launched the Almost Human effects studio.
Like many people in Hollywood, Hall had a dream: In addition to running a successful studio, he wanted to write and direct his own feature film. A graduate of the Roger Corman School of Film, Hall was passionate about completing his own project. At the same time, like other indie filmmakers, Hall had to become as competent at navigating tough business and financial waters as he was creative and technical ones.
"Filmmaking starts and ends with money, for better or worse," says Hall. "I didn't have alternative financing, so I had to self-finance my project."
Loosely based on experiences from his own childhood, Hall's film "Lightning Bug" stars Bret Harrison ("Grounded for Life"), Laura Prepon ("That '70s Show)", and Hal Sparks ("Queer as Folk"). "Lightning Bug" tells the story of a young boy growing up poor and misunderstood in the rural South. The boy dreams of escaping by becoming a special effects makeup artist in Hollywood. In the tiny bedroom of his rundown mobile home, he teaches himself how to create his favorite horror movie characters.
Better the second time around
Hall completed the first edit of his film, which was originally shot on 16mm film, in an expensive proprietary editing bay with an outsourced editor, going the traditional route of many big-budget films. This approach was cost-prohibitive, especially because Hall funded the project himself. He realized later, when distributors were turning him down, that "Lightning Bug" needed to be recut to be more focused. Certain scenes had to be shortened or removed. To work within a tight budget without limiting his creativity, Hall used Adobe Premiere Pro software to do the second round of editing.
"Lightning Bug," the story of a young boy growing up poor and misunderstood in the rural South, will be distributed on DVD by summer 2005.
"I could not afford to rent a high-end editing bay and an editor a second time," says Hall. "Based on a previous successful music video project using Adobe Premiere Pro software, I knew that it was just as powerful as standalone systems and was a fraction of the cost. Plus, creative control would be fully in my hands."
Immediate distribution deal
To re-edit the project, Hall captured the original film on Digibeta and transferred the footage onto miniDV tapes. He then recut the film using Adobe Premiere Pro on his desktop computer. Once Hall had a shorter, cleaner version of the film, Anchor Bay Entertainment signed a deal to distribute it on DVD, for release August 9, 2005.
Hall initially edited his independent feature film the old-fashioned way, using a proprietary editing bay and an outsourced editor. When the film needed further editing to distill several scenes and make them more compelling, he recut the film on his desktop computer using Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro software.
In addition to featuring top-notch actors and a compelling plot, the film's soundtrack is noteworthy. Featuring Kevn Kinney, lead singer of the rock band Drivin' n' Cryin', the soundtrack features debut songs from Kinney's new project, "Sun Tangled Angel Revival," as well as new tracks recorded exclusively for the film and Drivin' n' Cryin' classics like "Straight To Hell."
Drivin' n' Cryin's involvement is also significant because Hall's first experience using Adobe Premiere Pro was editing a music video for the band's latest album. Director of Photography Brandon Trost shot the music video on a Sony 24p camera, and Hall edited the piece entirely using Adobe Premiere Pro.
"I was extremely surprised and pleased at how user-friendly Adobe Premiere Pro is," says Hall. "I'm not a huge technical guy. Adobe Premiere Pro is so intuitive that I was inspired and confident that I could cut my feature film using the software." Adobe Premiere Pro is not only easy to use and powerful, but it also enables Hall to overcome the cost issues associated with renting editing bays for his films and music videos. In addition, the software gives Hall increased creative control because he can edit films and music videos himself, without having an editor intervene.
"If you rent editing bays and editors' time, there's no way around spending tens of thousands of dollars to edit a film — and you relinquish some of your creative control," says Hall. "On the other hand, a full-on Adobe Premiere Pro setup, including computer and storage, costs under $2,000 and gives you the freedom to experiment on your own time."
From monsters to music
Today, Hall uses a variety of Adobe software for his creative endeavors. At his Almost Human studio, designs for creatures, body parts, zombies, monsters, and demons almost always begin with Adobe Photoshop software, which enables Hall and his team to experiment with a number of ideas and effects. From there, Hall and his staff create makeup, masks, and suits using an artful combination of makeup, painting, and sculpture. According to Hall, the ability to try ideas digitally using Photoshop brings out the best designs and means he and his staff spend less time than it takes to sketch ideas by hand.
For Hall's independent feature film and music video projects, Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro are key. Anything Hall creates in Photoshop, from backgrounds to graphics, can be brought into Adobe Premiere Pro with ease. The integration of Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro software saves time that Hall would otherwise spend changing file formats or creating technical workarounds. After combining elements in Adobe Premiere Pro, Hall can work in real time, whether he's creating effects or inserting dissolves.
"I'm accustomed to waiting for things to render, but everything in Adobe Premiere Pro renders in lightning speed," says Hall. "If things don't look right, I can almost instantaneously try something else. Adobe Premiere Pro is user-friendly and minimizes interruptions to my creative flow."
The integration of Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro software made it easy for Hall to create backgrounds in Photoshop then bring them into Adobe Premiere Pro without changing file formats or creating technical workarounds.
Tools for creative visions
When not working, Hall spends his time writing and recording music, playing bass in The Hal Sparks Band, and directing music videos. In addition to playing a pivotal role in producing "Lightning Bug," Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro provide the perfect complement to his musical talents by enabling him to edit and produce new music videos more creatively and cost-effectively than ever before.
"I doubt I'll ever rent an editing bay or hand over projects to an outsourced editor again," says Hall. "Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro are a dream solution, whether you're editing music videos or living the dream of creating a full-length feature film on your own."
