用高科技拍出低预算电影

 

High Technology Helps Low Budget Filmmakers

用高科技拍出低预算电影

 

Thanks to the revolution in digital technology, aspiring¹ filmmakers with few resources now have the wherewithal to pursue their dreams. Johnathan Tucker and Robert McCorkle did. They met at an investment-banking firm in Manhattan where they both worked. The two share a passion for filmmaking so they resolved to make a movie together. Mr. Tucker, who had already made a number of forays into acting², went home and informed his wife of the new collaboration³.

 

Johnathan Tucker: I came in and [said], 'Yeah, yeah, I met this guy at my job, you know. We're going to make a movie.' She looked at me … 'OK, the next endeavor.'

 

It would be a yearlong endeavor on a miniscule budget: $5000, a tenth of what even a low-budget independent film would cost. While Johnathan Tucker starred in front of the camera, Robert McCorkle served not only as director and editor, but also as make-up man, caterer⁴ and general laborer⁵. He used consumer-grade video cameras to shoot the film and edited it on his personal computer.

 

Robert McCorkle: I don't believe in the word 'can't,'. So I started doing a lot of research and I got a lot of books and read tutorials and stuff like that and I just said, 'You know what? I can do this.'

 

And he did. The result is Dead Roses, an hour-long zombie flick⁶ shot mostly in a low-income public housing project… an environment that few in Hollywood would be eager to work in. It's the story of a woman who conjures⁷ up a group of zombies to avenge⁸ the murder of her fiancé by drug dealers⁹. The zombies pursue gang members through the streets of Brooklyn.

 

(Movie Snippet)

 

The DVD case for Dead Roses gives no indication that the movie is filled with dirty words but it does warn of "horror violence and gore¹⁰." And, of course, there's plenty of gunplay. One magazine called Dead Roses "the best zombie rampage that $5,000 can buy."

 

None of that $5,000 went to salaries. But the film's producer and director say there were other expenses.

 

Johnathan Tucker: Food, gas, props¹¹. Some equipment. And we had to pay people little tips for doing favors for us at the film office.

 

The filmmakers initially¹² started shooting without a permit, which proved to be problematic one day while they worked on a scene that involved gunplay.

 

Robert McCorkle: This lady looked out the window and saw this person on the ground with these people with guns in their hands (that were actually) rubber props. So she called the cops. And we hear someone [yell], 'Don't move!' It was the captain with the white shirt and all the other cops, and they just had their guns out and they [were asking], 'Who's in charge? Don't move!' I [said], 'I am. This is a school project. Please!'

 

After that encounter the filmmakers decided¹³ it would be a good idea to get a permit from the city.

 

They have sold 2,000 DVD's so far, more than making back their $5,000 investment.

 

Robert McCorkle: They can look at us and say, 'Yo, these guys did it for under 5 grand. Maybe we can do it if we have money from our parents or whatever.' I mean, just go out and do it, man, just put it down on paper, get your cast, do what you gotta do!

 

注释：

aspiring [Es5paiEriN] adj. 热心的，积极的

endeavor [in5devE] n. 努力，尽力

miniscule [5miniskju:l] adj. 小字的，这里指小额的

tutorial [tju:5tC:riEl] n. 指南

zombie [5zRmbI] n. 僵尸

rampage [5rAmpeidV] n. 乱闹，暴跳

gunplay [5^QnpleI] n. 手枪战

1 aspiring   

adj.有志气的；有抱负的；高耸的v.渴望；追求

参考例句：

• Aspiring musicians need hours of practice every day. 想当音乐家就要每天练许多小时。
• He came from an aspiring working-class background. 他出身于有抱负的工人阶级家庭。 来自辞典例句

2 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

3 collaboration   

n.合作，协作；勾结

参考例句：

• The two companies are working in close collaboration each other.这两家公司密切合作。
• He was shot for collaboration with the enemy.他因通敌而被枪毙了。

4 caterer   

n. 备办食物者，备办宴席者

参考例句：

• My wife went to a lot of trouble; she called a caterer. 我太太花了很多心血，她找了专办派对的人来。
• The wedding reception has been organized by an outside caterer. 婚宴由外界的饮食公司承办。

5 laborer   

n.劳动者，劳工

参考例句：

• Her husband had been a farm laborer.她丈夫以前是个农场雇工。
• He worked as a casual laborer and did not earn much.他当临时工，没有赚多少钱。

6 flick   

n.快速的轻打，轻打声，弹开；v.轻弹，轻轻拂去，忽然摇动

参考例句：

• He gave a flick of the whip.他轻抽一下鞭子。
• By a flick of his whip,he drove the fly from the horse's head.他用鞭子轻抽了一下，将马头上的苍蝇驱走。

7 conjures   

用魔术变出( conjure的第三人称单数 )； 祈求，恳求； 变戏法； （变魔术般地） 使…出现

参考例句：

• The word 'birthday' conjures up images of presents and parties. “生日”这个词使人想起礼物和聚会的情景。
• The name Sahara conjures up images of a desert of aridity. "撒哈拉"这个名字使人想起干旱的沙漠情景。

8 avenge   

v.为...复仇，为...报仇

参考例句：

• He swore to avenge himself on the mafia.他发誓说要向黑手党报仇。
• He will avenge the people on their oppressor.他将为人民向压迫者报仇。

9 dealers   

n.商人( dealer的名词复数 )；贩毒者；毒品贩子；发牌者

参考例句：

• There was fast bidding between private collectors and dealers. 私人收藏家和交易商急速竞相喊价。
• The police were corrupt and were operating in collusion with the drug dealers. 警察腐败，与那伙毒品贩子内外勾结。

10 gore   

n.凝血，血污；v.（动物）用角撞伤，用牙刺破；缝以补裆；顶

参考例句：

• The fox lay dying in a pool of gore.狐狸倒在血泊中奄奄一息。
• Carruthers had been gored by a rhinoceros.卡拉瑟斯被犀牛顶伤了。

11 props   

小道具； 支柱( prop的名词复数 )； 支持者； 道具； （橄榄球中的）支柱前锋

参考例句：

• Rescuers used props to stop the roof of the tunnel collapsing. 救援人员用支柱防止隧道顶塌陷。
• The government props up the prices of farm products to support farmers' incomes. 政府保持农产品价格不变以保障农民们的收入。

12 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

13 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。