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Filmmaker Michael Rousselet is one of a dozen behind 5 Second Films, an online destination that’s been making a new film every weekday for nearly three years, resulting in over 650 short shorts and millions of views. “Osama bin Laden’s Final Video,” which aired hours after the actual announcement on May 5, is already their fourth most popular of all time.

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/23142802[/vimeo]

Film, as seen on the official site

How was this 5-second film on “Osama bin Laden” conceived after the news hit? How did you all make it and how did it go viral?

Michael Rousselet We always shoot five films every Sunday to get us through the week. On that particular Sunday the group went all the way out to Malibu Canyon early in the morning to shoot the special “Cinco de Mayo” 5sf. By the end of the day everyone was exhausted and we still needed one more film to shoot in order to meet our quota. We mulled over a couple ideas, none of them we were too enthusiastic about. So we decided to just take a breather and see if a better joke would naturally come to us, which can be a dangerous thing to do with 5secondfilms. It was then that we heard the rumors that Osama bin Laden had been killed and that the President was going to make an announcement. We knew instantly what the topic of our 5th film would be.

At first, there was a discussion of doing a news joke and how a terrible anchor would make the announcement, but we became dissatisfied that the concept of the joke was too standard and uninspiring. Then I just proposed the title “Osama Bin Laden’s Final Video” and everyone latched onto the concept. It had a lot of potential for a fun and successful 5sf 1.) It would be visually interesting 2.) Someone would get to dress up like Bin Laden for mocking and 3.) the title alone had a high chance of going viral if we posted it quick enough. We immediately became enthusiastic and went into overdrive to get that 5secondfilm shot.

Alec Owen as Osama bin Laden

We got our good comedic friend Alec Owen to play Osama, which was funny because we originally invited him over for a completely different joke. When he walked through the door I said, “You are playing Osama Bin Laden” and handed him a glass of whiskey to take the edge off.

We knew we wanted the 5sf to be a single take like a home video so we just set up the camera and started riffing on lines. We must have done 30 minutes of different set ups and jokes, but they all had the same initial punch line of an off camera sound interrupting Osama Bin Laden inferring that the SEALS had arrived. Alec Owen is the one who should get the ultimate credit for the pizza tracker iPhone joke.

When we finished shooting I immediately started editing it. We knew the 5sf had to go up immediately that night. By 12:20am PST 4 hours after President Obama’s announcement we posted the joke on our 5secondfilms.com homepage and our 5sf YouTube channel. (We never post the same 5sf on the same day with YouTube, we always delay it by a day to try and encourage fans to come to our home site first for the latest 5sf, but this one was special.) We knew we had a good video with a hot search topic and we wanted to be the first to hit the webs running with a good Osama’s dead joke.

It was an immediate success. All the first comments were “Wow! That was fast!” Someone even commented on our Facebook fanpage “This is how I found out this morning.” That was pretty thrilling to think that we actually gave someone the news. I can only imagine how confused they must have been when they saw that video.

As of today, “Osama bin Laden’s Final Video” is our 4th highest viewed video — soon to be 3rd and is still rising. It has a long way to go until it beats Adrian’s “Late for Work” 5sf which has over 3 million views.

Michael Rousselet (left) and Brian Firenzi (right). Photos by Devin Begley.

Tell me about your background in screenwriting and what you’re doing outside the 5sf “house?”

MR I met Brian Firenzi, the creator of 5sf, at USC in the screenwriting program. In fact, most of the 5sf crew are screenwriting majors from USC. We never would have imagined that after we graduated studying feature films we would be pouring most of our sweat and creative powers into short short short films.

What specifically have you learned by doing 5sf that you didn’t know before working in such few frames and shots?

MR 5sf does keep us very sharp when it comes to filming, editing, and storytelling. When you get use to compacting information into 5 seconds to tell a story it really helps when we write longer form stories. We have developed a better story telling instinct on how to get the essence of the scene across faster and clearer. On the downside 5sf has also ruined our attention span for any web video over 3 minutes long.

Behind the scenes of another 5sf

How do you all in 5sf work together? What have been some of your favorite collaborations? What are your favorite films, of yours or others in 5sf?

MR There are basically 12 of us regular 5sf hoodlums. 5 of us live together in one house, which is affectionately referred to as “the 5sf house.” It’s where we have all the costumes, props, equipment, and green screen. The house is really a zoo for movie making.

We usually try to have meetings a few days before we shoot where we can kick around ideas and plan, but that gets harder and harder to do because everyone is busy working on other projects. Lately, when someone comes up with a joke we throw it up on a joint Google Doc that we can all see and edit. Sometimes when we all meet on Sunday to shoot the first half of the day is sitting around wondering what we are going to shoot haha… that is never fun. The best 5sf’s are the ones we plan and refine together in advance.

"No Means Meow," reads the official 5sf t-shirts

What do you think is the success of 5sf and specifically this “Osama” parody? Where do you think online video is headed?

MR A good 5sf is universal. Jokes always work better when they are visually based in humor, it’s more accessible and easier for the audience to digest then trying to comprehend what a character is quickly saying. Everyone gets it no matter what their language. “Late for Work” is so successful because everyone can relate to how it feels being late for work. It screws up your whole day and that’s exactly what the video expresses and it expresses it clearly.

I think the viral success with “Osama bin Laden’s Final Video” comes from how quickly the whole team worked together on a joke that was such a hot topic. We made it the very night the news hit. If it came out a few days later it might not have been so successful. We have no idea where the video will go from here but we hope it goes far.

Distributed through Nowness, a luxury lifestyle platform, there’s one place to stop for long-form fashion films. Commonplace are these short films, either narrative or documentary, each showing off the art while selling a product or brand. (Once in a while, we even see gorgeous fashion designer-made films, like Tom Ford’s A Serious Man.)

Nowness, while a brand of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, “remains an open platform where all content is editorially independent.” The site, rich with this video content, recently won a Webby for best fashion website.

Devendra Banhart’s Love-In by Lisa Eisner for Oliver Peoples (2010)

Note: Eisner also shot the whole photo campaign as well.

Sooyeon Lee: Grand Slam by Matthew Donaldson

McQueen: Savage Beauty by Pundersons Gardens

Director Todd Phillips on the set of 'Due Date.' Photo care of Warner Bros.

Variety’s Peter Bart recently wrote “Busy helmers build solid careers,” comparing directors like Todd Phillips who work all the time — sometimes making risky choices with no guarantee of acclaim — against directors like Terrence Malick who release work years and years apart, sometimes void of outside input:

In the present market, the ideal director is one who knows how to shoot fast, holds to a budget, doesn’t demand final cut — yet can also bring an original take to the material, even when it’s a sequel or prequel. In other words, the studios are basically looking for filmmakers who are willing to keep remaking the same stories, but differently. Not too differently, mind you.

…

The new generation of filmmakers is far savvier in dealing with Hollywood’s corporate system. Indeed, when Warner Bros. kept chipping away at the budget for “The Hangover,” Phillips agreed to work for scale in return for a bigger cut of the gross receipts. “I am a gambler by nature, so I bet on myself.”

…

The in-joke of the directing fraternity is that it’s important to keep working. The profession is too hazardous to permit prolonged absences. The old-time producer Ray Stark used to warn filmmakers, “Don’t ever get off the bus, because next time you look up it will be miles down the road.” He had a point.

Read the whole article.

(via Matt Chekowski)

'We Hate Movies' got featured early on by iTunes despite initially poor sound quality, building an initial following

A major part of screenwriting is having an ear for dialogue. This is particularly true with comedy. In a drama, you can write a monologue for a character but it better be moving. In comedy, you can write quick-witted dialogue that goes back and forth between two leads, but it better be well paced. It also needs to be “quick-witted.” Having experience actually giving a heartfelt speech like a eulogy might help hone your dramatic chops, just as getting up there and trying to make people laugh will hone your comedic ones. See how I mentioned a funeral and pursuing comedy at the same time? It’s no mistake, be prepared to die up there.

Co-creators/hosts Andrew Jupin and Steve Sajdak at a web series event. Photo by Russell Peborde.

Not every joke hits and it helps to figure out what can be funny with some sort of audience. While, I haven’t tried traditional stand-up quite yet, I have been making a podcast with several friends. Andrew Jupin came up with the idea and got myself, Steve Sajdak, and Chris Cabin involved. The subject? Movies. We riff on bad and forgotten movies and see where we go with it. We’re not MST3K, this isn’t for listening while you watch. You don’t even need to see the movie. We discuss the plot, the “world” of the movie, and get into interesting and off-beat tangents often unrelated. The conversation is usually us cracking each other up but you’ll notice when we see a lull we just keep going. That’s what you need to do with comedy, if something didn’t work, don’t look back. When you write comedy screenplays, you have to use the same idea: don’t be precious with your words. They’re jokes for a reason. If you can’t make one work immediately, you probably won’t ever make it work. You can’t labor too much because the spirit of comedy is in the moment.

Episode 9 – “K-9” with James Belushi
MP3

Getting out there, trying stand-up, improv, or in my case: podcasting (the cowardly route) will give you more confidence in your sense of humor. Our podcast “We Hate Movies!” is available in iTunes and we have fans on Facebook and Twitter. Our reviews on iTunes, star ratings, and Facebook comments have really shown us that we are funny, we’re just not getting paid for it yet. That’s a great feeling to have instead of just writing scripts you find funny and hope to be funny. When you do it with an audience, or even a delayed audience (like a podcast), you’ll still ultimately get a real reaction from it. Sometimes when you write, those words drift into the ether, and you have no idea if a reader laughed at the same parts you did. With live and even recorded comedy, you get a reaction. And it’s great to know where you stand.

Our first episode was initially panned on iTunes due to having poor sound quality. Part of that was my fault, before you record, learn how to hold that microphone and project! That’ll be the only way people can hear your brilliant line saying something is “the ‘Triumph of the Will’ of bio-pics.” It also helps to make investments if you do decide to start podcasting. Look into foam microphone covers to help get the best audio you can. However, even if your audio sucks initially, you can still get fans. Those first few negative reviews actually still really enjoyed the episode. As you keep going, keep improving the show. Everyone will appreciate the effort.

Your podcast could get lucky like ours. We uploaded that initial poor sound quality episode as a test on iTunes and got featured as “New and Noteworthy,” even breaking into the top 200 comedy podcasts that week. That helped build us a core group of listeners but we have built on that even further via social networking. Plugging on sites like Twitter and Facebook can be essential. However, I try not to bog down my Twitter feed with all plugs. I try to be funny with other things and talk about screenwriting on Twitter in between selling myself and selling the show.

It also helps to have a great group of creative people supporting one another. Andrew Jupin and Steve Sajdak have worked on several web shows together including Sex Personified and Date Night, Kinect Night. Chris Cabin is an accomplished film critic (he’s even gotten praise from Roger Ebert!) And me? I’m just a writer who traded the pen for a voice several hours a week.

I think performing is a great way for a writer to really progress and become greater than he or she has ever been. You’re no longer just writing for a character you’re imagining, you are that character and have to make funny happen, in the moment, behind a microphone.

Shooting 14-feet in the air

This was an assignment for the great collective “This Is A Photo Blog”, which I am proud to be the newest member of. The assignment was from the talented Lauren Randolph – she wrote, “Perspective – Let’s mix it up by shooting down on or directly up at something. Change our point of view!”

I knew immediately I wanted to shoot on the streets, and my instinct right away said Santa Monica and Western. It’s one of those intersections that is filled with life, no matter the time of day, plus it has the most unique crosswalk in town. Initially I was going to try to climb to a roof or billboard to shoot down, but then I decided to take it a step farther and rig the camera on 20 feet of speedrail, hung between two medium rollers, with a 7B mounted on each of the rollers. This gave me a lit field of about 14’x14’ that I could capture perfectly with a 24mm lens from 14’ in the air.

Our rig at Santa Monica Blvd. and Western Ave.

The first hiccup came when me and Nathaniel (thanks again for the help bud) got to the location and set up the rig. The cable that would allow me to trigger the camera from the ground with a pocketwizard had somehow developed an electrical short between the rental house and the location. Lesson learned, now I’ll always carry two. BUT, our shoot was toast, right? Close. Fortunately, I had the Canon intervalometer in my camera bag, which enables the camera to fire off a set interval. So, it wasn’t ideal, but we rigged it so I would start the camera firing when the rig was lowered, and then we’d raise it up and do a round of captures. Shoot saved.

The next challenge was just pushing a massive rig with an expensive camera on top around a busy street corner. And if that wasn’t enough, I decided the prudent thing to do would be to cross the street with the rig a few times. Suffice it to say, we were a bit of a spectacle, but it was all in good fun, and I think the shots were unique! I’m already looking forward to the next @TIAPB assignment.

Any questions? Feel free to ask.

(Originally published on mathieuyoung.tumblr.com)

Job posting on our new FWD:labs Job Board

There’s something wrong about the job boards for filmmakers online. Craigslist is fraught with ambiguity, about the job and the job poster. Mandy is walled with sign-ups and fixed resumes. Production Notices is also gated with a fee and reminds me of an free-for-all auction block. The job search at large is insulated between individuals and desperately needs some fresh air.

Introducing, our new Job Board.

I wanted something better — both for myself and for the FWD:labs collective at large. I value jobs that pay a rate, even if it’s low. I appreciate listings that explain the project and the qualifications they’re specifically seeking. As an applicant, I enjoy not having to login, unless I want to save a step (e.g. pre-filled info plus my resume attached). As a job poster, I appreciate responses coming in with organized subject lines, plus a backup “receipt” online so I can sort and share the best applicants. I also use RSS feeds from keyword queries on Craigslist and Mandy, so I built a feed for FWD:labs Jobs that also ping Twitter (@fwdjobs).

Back-end for job posters and applicants at FWDlabs.com

Launching this new feature has saved me time and effort already ten fold. With a recent casting opportunity, I had an applicant seemingly every ten minutes for the two days that I wanted the listing live, thanks to cross-promoting on Craigslist, Facebook and Twitter. On Craigslist, the post clearly said all of the same information, plus the link where to apply, which is one of the best features here with our job board. (Anyone who couldn’t read a simple direction wasn’t for me.) I soon heard from an amazing applicant, contacted her, and that gig was soon done with flying colors.

With an editing gig, the job posting was sent around through my network to another via Facebook, where I quickly had an applicant ready to go. In an industry where a personal rolodex and crew referrals are standard, I appreciated having more options after a couple minutes of effort.

The board is still a work-in-progress. But I’m glad to provide and use a process that cures a pain of job searching online, while helping job providers and job applicants both look good.

• “If There Were an Oscar for Film Titles” (nytimes.com) includes Sofia Coppola’s “Somewhere,” with opening titles by Peter Miles, a British designer based in New York; Miles also designed the poster for Coppola’s “Marie Antoinette”
• Mark Wahlberg’s commentary on “The Fighter” DVD on how they shot 35 days worth of fight scenes in only 3 days (37signals.com)
• Webby People’s Voice nominees for “Best Use of Mobile Video” includes “Touching Spaces” (fwdlabs.com), a film series for the iPad produced by Tool and directed by Jason Zada
• Nine, sync’d SI-2K cameras (siliconimaging.com) create an interactive 360 video experience for Ace Hotel (Palm Springs), plus a traditional spot using the same footage, produced by Social Animal

“Care Center Slaughterhouse” is a trailer directed by Benjamin Lee Martin for the “Hobo with a Shotgun” online grindhouse trailer competition. The winner’s trailer is added to the DVD release of “Hobo with a Shotgun,” with a chance at development into a feature. In a race to the top of the vote, “Care Center” is currently in second place.

Why this contest?

Benjamin Lee Martin It was a deadline and I love the genre and wanted to be a part of it! I have a lot of back-burner projects and dream scripts I want to do, but there was no time limit, so they could be put off. It’s so easy to make excuses for not getting something done, and that’s were I was at. So this contest was the kick in the ass I needed!

Did the larger idea precede or just inspired with this story?

BLM I got the idea for Care Center Slaughterhouse [CCS] as a feature not a week before I found out about the contest, so it was just perfect timing. The idea came out of a few drawings I did of old people beating the crap out of each other! As far as I’m concerned, this contest isn’t the end for CCS!

All planned or any happy accidents?

BLM I work with actors on a daily basis and I know that they are artists who want to bring their own to the table–so I let them do what they want first, then fine tune it from there. Subtle, but fantastic things, happen. Like the guy playing cards while the woman sews a severed nurse head! That was all the actor’s idea. You gotta let things happen cause it’s usually stuff you’d never think of. That’s filmmaking!

Favorite collaboration on this project, such as specific cast or crew?

BLM I had nothing to offer other than a bloody good time! Everyone just did it because they liked the project. They’re all my favorites because they dropped everything and did this crazy project with me when I had nothing to show for myself. I’m so amazed and thankful.

Favorite part of the production, from pre through post?

BLM It happened so fast it’s all a blur. I did all the casting and scheduling of the actors, which was a pain–why did I decide to make a 2 min trailer with 15 actors!? Production and shooting is the most fun–I love the chaos of it. Editing is more relaxing for me cause I get to sit back and play around with the footage.

What’s next? How can readers help?

BLM Readers can help by voting for Care Center Slaughterhouse! Online voting is open until April 7th at 11:59 PM EST.

At first, we didn’t make the top 5, then they removed a disqualified entry and put CCS in–so we missed the first 5 hours of crucial voting time. But I’ve already won cause it got done and really made me realize what I’m supposed to be doing with my life!

And next? Care Center Slaughterhouse, the feature! Mwuahahahaaa!

Overall, how was the experience and what did you learn?

BLM It was huge learning experience for me. The most important thing I learned is that no matter what happens, if you’re determined and willing to roll with the punches, it all works out.

Also, get off your asses and make stuff, and I’ll promise to do the same!

What happens when Kanye West “All of the Lights” (intertitles, dir. Hype Williams) and Gaspar Noe’s “Enter the Void” (opening titles, designers Tom Kan and Thorsten Fleisch) and Jean-Luc Godard’s “A Woman is A Woman” (opening titles) look the same? Some name calling on Twitter.

What happens with Rihanna “S&M” (dir. Melina Matsoukas) looks like David LaChapelle (various works)? Lawsuit.

For more commentary, The Art Law Blog highlights the difference of idea and expression.

Related, check out our commentary on Shepard Fairey’s Obama.

(via Fader)

• How can your DSLR shoots flow a little more like film? Shane Hurlbut, ASC and B&H Photo teamed up to create HDSLR Hub, featuring episodes ranging from workflows to kits.
• Comparing cameras and glass? Arri Alexa vs. RED1 MX and Zeiss SLR vs. Zeiss Cine
• Need to edit on your iPhone? Vimeo just released their app. While you’re at it, check out our resource of all kinds of apps for cinema artists, including the few increasingly-popular Android applications.
• Want a mattebox that won’t fall apart on the job? The OConnor O-Box can take a beating, with or without grips.
• Constantly shipping hard drives? One small, popular drive to use is the LaCie Rugged; it’s just under $200 for 1tb.

Got something to add or a whole new tip entirely? Post it in the comments below.

For the past 6 months I’ve had the immense pleasure of working on Kung Fu Panda 2, the next installment of our story of Po and the furious 5. This experience has been enjoyable in absolutely every way. Our production team did a brilliant job of making sure the show was well run, that artists were always well informed and taken care of, and that everything was communicated to the utmost level of efficiency. I owe a lot of my enjoyment to them in particular.

Though also I was able to work with a completely new team this time, Damon O’Beirne head of layout and Rich Shiba, my Final Layout Supervisor. Working with both Damon & Rich together, I was able to learn more about camera work & cinematography at a sequence-wide level as well as the shot level. My new co-workers on the team were also a pleasure to work with of course, extremely helpful and always very positive, which can be very important when working on an epic-scale picture.

For now, I move on to the Kung Fu Panda 2 DVD in which we’ll be creating an original short film adventure that takes place in the Kung Fu Universe, should be interesting! Until then, be sure to see the film when it comes out May 26th, it is going to be Awesome to say the least. As if this wasn’t enough shameless promotion, here is our epic trailer that just came out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1ftH73f3xg

Thanks for reading, now it’s off to get prepared for the next project!! I leave you with a picture of me wrapping up my last shot on the movie! I love Kung Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuu— Panda!

(Originally published on A Stack Of Drawings.)

From artist Ronald Chase:

JR is one of the most original artists of our decade, and it’s an art you should be aware of. There is an article about him in this week’s New Yorker, if you want to explore it more. But this film shows why he won the TED prize ($100,000 to create something bigger).

For more about JR, visit his official site, learn more about this project at insideoutproject.net, watch his recent talk at the TED conference, and read an October 2010 New York Times article.