THE STORY:

A Most Unusual Camera is a 5 minute short film that takes place in the late 1800s. The plot revolves around an incredible invention by the secluded inventor, William Gable: an instantly developing camera that takes pictures of the future! Only minutes after the first successful test of his invention, William is poisoned and the camera is stolen by Frank Taylor, a smalltime thief driven by greed. From there the story takes several unexpected turns as this most unusual camera decides the fate of everyone it comes in contact with!

ABOUT THE FILM:

I love trying new things, aiming for the best, and being ambitious in my projects. Im hoping that making this short film will take me down new roads and give me new experiences as a filmmaker. For this film, the actors will be filmed against green screen and composited into two hand-build and realistic 1/12 scale miniature sets! When finished, the actors will look as if they are in a real full-scale room. I am building the miniature sets myself using standard building materials as well as purchased miniature furniture and accessories to add realistic detail to the sets!

THE FUNDS:

For this project I will need to purchase various materials to build the miniature sets. There are two sets for this film (two late 19th century, 1 room studio apartments). I will be using professionally made 1/12 scale miniature building materials, furniture, and props to make the sets.

*1/12 scale simply means that 1 inch is equal to 1 foot. So if a wall is 8 feet high in real life, it will be 8 inches tall in the miniature set.

After the actors are filmed against a green screen, they can then be composited into the background footage of the miniature sets, so that they will look as if they are in a full scale room!

Here is a rough test composite of what it looks like when the actors and the miniature model are combined! With better lighting and a lot more detail in the background, the two elements will fit together perfectly!

Also in the future, I will need to hire actors, a very small crew, and rent green screen studio space. But for now, my focus is only on completing the miniature sets with as much detail and realism as possible!

I appreciate any way that you guys are willing to help!

Here are some progress photos of the miniatures:

THE MOST UNUSUAL CAMERA:

William Gable's future-telling camera is not to be thought of as a prop, but as a character in the film. The camera is built of various parts that William Gable had lying around in his shop: an old cigar box, various electrical parts, and parts from an old handgun. 

A theme I want to portray in the film is that this unusual camera is just as deadly, if not more, than the guns in the film. Although the guns are what actually kill people, it is the power of this camera that provides the necessary motivation! The camera is operated much like a revolver. The shutter button is a trigger on the front of the camera, and within body of the camera there is a 5 cylinder chamber that hold modified flash bulbs that fire sequentially the same way bullets would be!

Here's the most recent version, pretty close to what it will actually look like: This photo doesn't show it - but the camera will have a trigger on the front as well as some more parts on the exterior.

Here's my first draft design. I have simplified it since then but this sketch displays the gun parts well!