Making your own movies

You don't need $50 million and a big Hollywood studio to make your own movie. When you make your own independent movie using digital technology, you won't have all the glitz and glamor of a cast of thousands and a hotshot producer at your elbow, but you will have complete control.

Get Hip to High-Def
Everything is going high-definition. TVs are in HD, DVDs are in HD, even PBS is in HD. Your movies can be in HD as well. An HD video camera may be the biggest chunk of your budget, but you can still pick up a good contender for under $1,000. Most of these will record onto hard disks or flash memory, though some tape-based systems still give you great picture quality for the price. Look for optical image stabilization and at least a 10x optical zoom. Your camcorder investment will really pay off when you view your snappy looking videos on an HD television or take advantage of one of the online video sharing sites that supports HD.

Getting Started
You probably have a hundred film ideas running around in your head. There's that epic journey about crossing the Himalayas or the moving story of a boy and his 50-foot flying robot. You might need to rein it in a little if you're just getting started for the first time. A short film, a brief documentary or a music video for your band buddies can be a great way to get used to your equipment and software before you dive into a bigger project.

Your friends may turn out to be some of your most valuable resources for staffing your movies. When you need actors, music, makeup personnel or help ironing out those plot holes in your script, call on your buddies. If you need to branch out from your social circle, launch an ad on Craigslist (craigslist.com) for volunteers or hook up with an amateur filmmaking group. If there isn't already a group in your town, start your own.

Movie Software
Before you start getting too fancy, it helps to have a computer that is buff enough to handle editing the very large files that HD generates. Consider beefing up your hard drive and memory or looking into a computer that is up for the challenge from the get-go. An external USB hard drive can be a good storage and backup solution for all the data your movie making generates.

You may be able to get by with the built-in video editing package that came with your computer, but you'll likely run into some limitations. More sophisticated software can head off a lot of editing frustrations. Adobe Premiere is a front runner for high-end users. The Pro version runs around $800. For tighter budgets, Pinnacle Studio Ultimate version 12 is just $130 and is geared for ease of use. CyberLink PowerDirector costs about the same and comes stocked with flexible editing effects to spruce up your footage.

Join the Community
You might be an independent movie maker, but you're not alone online. Check out these sites:

• Blip.tv: Blip.tv focuses on videoblogging and video sharing. It encourages users to get involved with making web video shows and has a handy Learning Center (http://blip.tv/learning/) to guide you along.
• Filmmaking.net: This massive resource is chock full of articles, discussion forums and a ever-growing FAQ on internet filmmaking. You'll have to navigate around a fair number of ads, but the tremendous amount of information is a big bonus for budding movie makers.
• Vimeo: Vimeo's HD support helps it stand out from the crowd. The weekly quota of 500 MB gives you a lot of room to play around with. Embedding features let you easily share your videos with other web sites and blogs.