The XOMBIES: APOCALYPSE BLUES book trailer is finally done!
I don't quite get the whole book trailer thing. I only recently heard of this phenomenon of authors making video teasers for their books, and to me it just seems like one more burden on struggling writers. The rich ones can afford to pay thousands of dollars for a slick-looking, professionally-made trailer, but the less fortunate are screwed...and it has zero to do with the quality of the book.
Even so, I thought it might be fun to make one. Stage the Xombie Apocalypse with only materials I had on hand or could get for next to nothing. I already had a clunky old video camera, so my biggest expense was art supplies; mainly masking tape, clay, and spray paint--maybe twenty bucks worth of stuff. The rest all came out of my recycling bins or from the Salvation Army.
I've always loved making short films. When I was a kid, my best friend and I spent our summers filming little space movies on his Super 8 camera, shooting model spaceships against a black velvet bedspread, then etching laser bolts directly on the film. I loved everything about it: building the models, shooting them, blowing them up, editing the film (literally by cutting and pasting), then finally adding the effects. In recent years I've enjoyed working as an actor for my friends' theater and film projects, but here was a chance to make my own little movie. At the very least it would be an interesting challenge.
Holy hell, what an ordeal. It took me three months longer than I thought it would. Everything that could go wrong, did, including my ancient Hi-8 camera needing to be sent away for repairs (I looked into buying a new one, but the color quality didn't mesh with what I'd already shot). But in the end it all came together, thanks to the camerawork of my son Max, the patience of my wife Cindy (who had to put up with a houseful of puppets and cardboard props all summer), the editing know-how of my friend Steve Ahlquist, and the last-minute voice talent of my friend Tangie Miner. Speaking of voices, the "music" on the soundtrack is some impromptu harmonizing by me and Max, and I did the percussion with two kitchen whisks. Call it my tribute to Hardware Wars.
Enuf said. Here's the link to the trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ge5i0oHINcU
I don't quite get the whole book trailer thing. I only recently heard of this phenomenon of authors making video teasers for their books, and to me it just seems like one more burden on struggling writers. The rich ones can afford to pay thousands of dollars for a slick-looking, professionally-made trailer, but the less fortunate are screwed...and it has zero to do with the quality of the book.
Even so, I thought it might be fun to make one. Stage the Xombie Apocalypse with only materials I had on hand or could get for next to nothing. I already had a clunky old video camera, so my biggest expense was art supplies; mainly masking tape, clay, and spray paint--maybe twenty bucks worth of stuff. The rest all came out of my recycling bins or from the Salvation Army.
I've always loved making short films. When I was a kid, my best friend and I spent our summers filming little space movies on his Super 8 camera, shooting model spaceships against a black velvet bedspread, then etching laser bolts directly on the film. I loved everything about it: building the models, shooting them, blowing them up, editing the film (literally by cutting and pasting), then finally adding the effects. In recent years I've enjoyed working as an actor for my friends' theater and film projects, but here was a chance to make my own little movie. At the very least it would be an interesting challenge.
Holy hell, what an ordeal. It took me three months longer than I thought it would. Everything that could go wrong, did, including my ancient Hi-8 camera needing to be sent away for repairs (I looked into buying a new one, but the color quality didn't mesh with what I'd already shot). But in the end it all came together, thanks to the camerawork of my son Max, the patience of my wife Cindy (who had to put up with a houseful of puppets and cardboard props all summer), the editing know-how of my friend Steve Ahlquist, and the last-minute voice talent of my friend Tangie Miner. Speaking of voices, the "music" on the soundtrack is some impromptu harmonizing by me and Max, and I did the percussion with two kitchen whisks. Call it my tribute to Hardware Wars.
Enuf said. Here's the link to the trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ge5i0oHINcU
posted by Walter Greatshell at 11:45 PM
2 Comments:
Very cool, Walter. Disturbo imagery and sound. I think Tim Burton would approve.
I did a couple of trailers for my own From the Ashes, but when the views dropped from over 500 for the first to under 100 for the second, I stopped making them. Still, they are fun to do.
Good luck with the book!
Wow, thanks, Bob. I just watched your trailers--nice job! Got me thinking that somebody should do an animated version. And they should DEFINITELY do one of Connective Tissue.
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