The Dagger

You guys clearly had an absolute riot filming this- even though the production quality was at a relatively inexperienced level, this film had a fair bit of character! I liked the energy! The costuming was great! The setting was brill! Things to think about for next year: have a look into editing software, what one to use, how to use it. Some of the transitions between the shots were pretty jarring or glitchy. Look into cameras, even if its your iphone camera, I imagine you can find one to give you a better picture quality. Look up some simple story structures to help when writing. One I love to use is called 'the heroes journey', and the version I reference when writing is used by Dan Harmon, the creator of Community/Rick and Morty. Continually ask yourself when writing- do people talk like this? What would someone actually say? When it comes to camera angles, a lot of your camera angles were shot from really far away, or from a medium distance only. Using only 'mid shots' and 'long shots' makes the film less engaging- if you pick a variety of shots, (including close ups, especially during fight scenes) can help up the production quality. Watch any Jason Statham fight scene, you'll notice that the director doesn't show too much of the fight- it's all close up, quick cuts between shots, and flashes of action. This is because it's very hard to fake a convincing fight. I really look forward to seeing next years entry.

Honestly loved watching this - it was so great that you guys threw yourself in and just went all out on a massive story, with costuming and fight scenes and horses, all set outside. Obviously it was all a bit too much and the production quality/editing wasn't there - but I loved that you just went for it. I would just simplify your story next time, and maybe try for something shorter but nailing the basics.