DnD Inspired Film- Need Advice (long) [Archive] - Wizards Community

DnD Inspired Film- Need Advice (long) [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Etsu_ElfRanger
07-23-05, 01:35 AM I am working on a short independent film at college and was wondering if I could get some advice. First of all, yes, I'm trying to do this live action. And no, this is not a professional film. This is amateur, although trying to be "professional-quality" amateur. It’s going to be roughly based on DnD, but I’m taking a few liberties. Here’s what I’ve got so far. I’m using the basic plot of Fallen Angel adventure on the main website and linking it into a larger plot. Basic "go rescue somebody from the orcs" type plot

I’m pretty much set on what characters I’m putting in the party, so I’ll let you guys take a look at them and tell me what you think. First, we have Cassandra, a human cleric of the Church of Pelor. She is very pious and kind, but definitely naļve. She provides the plothook to get the party together. Then there is A’in, a ranger. He’s probably going to be the “leading man” type. Ai’n is a very earthy, woodsy type of guy. Right now, I’m writing in his twin brother as a sorcerer trying to become a lich. More on him later. Nimras is an elven wizard, providing the magical firepower to the group. He is very proper and bookish, but also extremely knowledgeable. I have two more characters that I’m going to try to add, a currently unnamed gnome and a dwarf fighter named Arda. The gnome doesn’t really have much personality yet. Arda, on the other hand, is a very tough woman (yes, she’s a woman) and a professional gladiator. She’s also one of the best cooks you’ll ever meet. I think I'll use either the gnome or Arda, probably not both.

Like I said before, I’m trying to tie this into a longer storyline, maybe as many as 5 short films in all. Basically the overplot involves A’in’s brother, Ka’baal, and his quest for ultimate power. This leads him to become a lich, even though he’s a little too low level, and to eventually try to steal his brother’s soul. (yes, there is a logical reason) Ultimately, Ka’baal is betrayed by what he sees as the source of his power. But that’s gonna be a while until I have to deal with that.

I need a direction for this to go more than anything. I want to go a little epic, a little cheesy comedy, and a lot adventure. I’m thinking that I can go a little bit cheesy, maybe slightly spoofing some of the 80’s fantasy movies (Willow, Labyrinth, Legend, Princess Bride). I can tell you now that the effects are going to be somewhat cheesy, due to my own limited resources. I know that getting some good fight scenes is not going to be a problem. And, I’m not worried (too much) about the acting. I’ve got a LARP group and the Theater department up here for that. What I really need is some help with some style and plot. I could also use some memorable NPC’s.

Any kind of comments, criticisms, etc. are welcome. I’ll post more as I get it.
High Octane
07-23-05, 02:20 AM Watch the actual DnD movie. You will then learn what not to do.
HappyDragon
07-23-05, 04:08 AM Have you decided what type of audiences you'd be gearing the film more towards at all?

Cheese is good for audiences that will get and appreciate the jokes, but if you are trying for a larger main-stream audience you may be losing alot of viewers.

I personally find there are generally two type of fantasy genre movies that work. The first kind do not talk down to the audience and takes itself and it's content very seriously.....the best example for this of course being the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
That's not to say they have to be very stoic sombre story arcs...it's more to do with a level of maturity and intelligence the film is willing to grant the audience. Other good example for these could include films like The Dark Crystal and The Neverending Story. As much as these are usually considered 'kids' films a larger audience is able to enjoy them because they don't talk down to the audience.

The second type of film that works with this has elements of maturity and intelligence but treats things in a very tongue and cheek manner. In fact the only film I can think of that pulled this off properly was The Princess Bride.....(hmmmm, so much for two different types of films), but I think it had alot to do with the quality of the writing. Most fanatsy movies probably either sink or swim on the combination of first the script, then the director's ability at storytelling.

I think most of your characters at this point should do fairly well because you're keeping to easily recognized archtypes, which usually also helps in conveying story to the audience because you're not spending half the film trying to help the audience understand who's doing what and why. There are only so many different character concepts to use....it always comes down to that little twist to the characters that keeps the audiences intrigued.
Plus because you are keeping them to short films, there is a finite amount of available screen time to convey things. Keep it simple and relatively focused and you'll probably be fine.

Enough aimless rambling. :)
It certainly sounds llike a very ambitious project you have there and I hope it goes well for you.
Jshock_75
07-23-05, 09:54 AM Go with the dwarf!!! I can't think of any popular dwarf females off the top of my head, so you'll probably be setting a precedent.
ORC_Paradox
07-23-05, 10:42 AM Ah.. brainstorming a film production. Haven't done that in a while.

Remember- Tight edits. You only need an "establishing shot" for the opening, which is usually where the credits roll. You don't need 10 seconds of woods and the characters come on screen. They should already be there, doing what they're supposed to be doing. And it shouldn't happen like that every scene, either.

How much effects/makeup do you plan on using? And how cheesy do you want to make it? As in students going around pretending to be these characters? Will you break the 4th wall?

Going that route, you could have as a running gag the dwarf and gnome always getting confused. "Dude, I keep telling you, I'm the gnome. He's the dwarf." (He'd be the tallest one.) The mage would always have his face in a book; you would never see it. He'd occasionally, while still reading, cast spells from behind the book.

They go through the motions of going through the quest and finally the mage puts the book down and he looks very pale/white/gray. "Are you feeling okay?" "Yeah, I'm now a lich". "Seriously, quit kidding around." (Where he's "really" become a lich.)

A quick scene in the woods where a line or two is quoted from "The Blair Witch Project" and someone says "Don't even go there, man."
High Octane
07-23-05, 01:32 PM Have the dwarf be in it for more than 10 seconds. We dont need another token dwarf.

Have the characters personalities rub on one another. For example the wizard is reading and the dwarf is asking annoying questions. Have the cleric ask the ranger to take a bath.
Etsu_ElfRanger
07-23-05, 02:46 PM Thanks guys, keep the ideas coming.

I really like the idea of having the characters annoying each other. I was definitely thinking about that with the dwarf ftr and the elf wiz. I was also thinking of doing a Han/Leia type thing with the cleric and the ranger. They start off annoying each other, but then hook up later.

I'm pretty much sure that I'm going for a more Princess Bride style than a LOTR. With the budget and effects I'm going to be working with, I can't really do epic.Now, I have another problem. Does anybody have ideas on how to do some of the effects, esp. combat magic? Remember, this is a shoestring budget film.
Venom of the Yuan Ti
07-23-05, 04:09 PM Have the Wizard be an enchanter or Divinist.
Why?
Less special effects to look cheap/cheesy!

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Etsu_ElfRanger 07-23-05, 01:35 AM	I am working on a short independent film at college and was wondering if I could get some advice. First of all, yes, I'm trying to do this live action. And no, this is not a professional film. This is amateur, although trying to be "professional-quality" amateur. It’s going to be roughly based on DnD, but I’m taking a few liberties. Here’s what I’ve got so far. I’m using the basic plot of Fallen Angel adventure on the main website and linking it into a larger plot. Basic "go rescue somebody from the orcs" type plot I’m pretty much set on what characters I’m putting in the party, so I’ll let you guys take a look at them and tell me what you think. First, we have Cassandra, a human cleric of the Church of Pelor. She is very pious and kind, but definitely naļve. She provides the plothook to get the party together. Then there is A’in, a ranger. He’s probably going to be the “leading man” type. Ai’n is a very earthy, woodsy type of guy. Right now, I’m writing in his twin brother as a sorcerer trying to become a lich. More on him later. Nimras is an elven wizard, providing the magical firepower to the group. He is very proper and bookish, but also extremely knowledgeable. I have two more characters that I’m going to try to add, a currently unnamed gnome and a dwarf fighter named Arda. The gnome doesn’t really have much personality yet. Arda, on the other hand, is a very tough woman (yes, she’s a woman) and a professional gladiator. She’s also one of the best cooks you’ll ever meet. I think I'll use either the gnome or Arda, probably not both. Like I said before, I’m trying to tie this into a longer storyline, maybe as many as 5 short films in all. Basically the overplot involves A’in’s brother, Ka’baal, and his quest for ultimate power. This leads him to become a lich, even though he’s a little too low level, and to eventually try to steal his brother’s soul. (yes, there is a logical reason) Ultimately, Ka’baal is betrayed by what he sees as the source of his power. But that’s gonna be a while until I have to deal with that. I need a direction for this to go more than anything. I want to go a little epic, a little cheesy comedy, and a lot adventure. I’m thinking that I can go a little bit cheesy, maybe slightly spoofing some of the 80’s fantasy movies (Willow, Labyrinth, Legend, Princess Bride). I can tell you now that the effects are going to be somewhat cheesy, due to my own limited resources. I know that getting some good fight scenes is not going to be a problem. And, I’m not worried (too much) about the acting. I’ve got a LARP group and the Theater department up here for that. What I really need is some help with some style and plot. I could also use some memorable NPC’s. Any kind of comments, criticisms, etc. are welcome. I’ll post more as I get it.
High Octane 07-23-05, 02:20 AM	Watch the actual DnD movie. You will then learn what not to do.
HappyDragon 07-23-05, 04:08 AM	Have you decided what type of audiences you'd be gearing the film more towards at all? Cheese is good for audiences that will get and appreciate the jokes, but if you are trying for a larger main-stream audience you may be losing alot of viewers. I personally find there are generally two type of fantasy genre movies that work. The first kind do not talk down to the audience and takes itself and it's content very seriously.....the best example for this of course being the Lord of the Rings trilogy. That's not to say they have to be very stoic sombre story arcs...it's more to do with a level of maturity and intelligence the film is willing to grant the audience. Other good example for these could include films like The Dark Crystal and The Neverending Story. As much as these are usually considered 'kids' films a larger audience is able to enjoy them because they don't talk down to the audience. The second type of film that works with this has elements of maturity and intelligence but treats things in a very tongue and cheek manner. In fact the only film I can think of that pulled this off properly was The Princess Bride.....(hmmmm, so much for two different types of films), but I think it had alot to do with the quality of the writing. Most fanatsy movies probably either sink or swim on the combination of first the script, then the director's ability at storytelling. I think most of your characters at this point should do fairly well because you're keeping to easily recognized archtypes, which usually also helps in conveying story to the audience because you're not spending half the film trying to help the audience understand who's doing what and why. There are only so many different character concepts to use....it always comes down to that little twist to the characters that keeps the audiences intrigued. Plus because you are keeping them to short films, there is a finite amount of available screen time to convey things. Keep it simple and relatively focused and you'll probably be fine. Enough aimless rambling. :) It certainly sounds llike a very ambitious project you have there and I hope it goes well for you.
Jshock_75 07-23-05, 09:54 AM	Go with the dwarf!!! I can't think of any popular dwarf females off the top of my head, so you'll probably be setting a precedent.
ORC_Paradox 07-23-05, 10:42 AM	Ah.. brainstorming a film production. Haven't done that in a while. Remember- Tight edits. You only need an "establishing shot" for the opening, which is usually where the credits roll. You don't need 10 seconds of woods and the characters come on screen. They should already be there, doing what they're supposed to be doing. And it shouldn't happen like that every scene, either. How much effects/makeup do you plan on using? And how cheesy do you want to make it? As in students going around pretending to be these characters? Will you break the 4th wall? Going that route, you could have as a running gag the dwarf and gnome always getting confused. "Dude, I keep telling you, I'm the gnome. He's the dwarf." (He'd be the tallest one.) The mage would always have his face in a book; you would never see it. He'd occasionally, while still reading, cast spells from behind the book. They go through the motions of going through the quest and finally the mage puts the book down and he looks very pale/white/gray. "Are you feeling okay?" "Yeah, I'm now a lich". "Seriously, quit kidding around." (Where he's "really" become a lich.) A quick scene in the woods where a line or two is quoted from "The Blair Witch Project" and someone says "Don't even go there, man."
High Octane 07-23-05, 01:32 PM	Have the dwarf be in it for more than 10 seconds. We dont need another token dwarf. Have the characters personalities rub on one another. For example the wizard is reading and the dwarf is asking annoying questions. Have the cleric ask the ranger to take a bath.
Etsu_ElfRanger 07-23-05, 02:46 PM	Thanks guys, keep the ideas coming. I really like the idea of having the characters annoying each other. I was definitely thinking about that with the dwarf ftr and the elf wiz. I was also thinking of doing a Han/Leia type thing with the cleric and the ranger. They start off annoying each other, but then hook up later. I'm pretty much sure that I'm going for a more Princess Bride style than a LOTR. With the budget and effects I'm going to be working with, I can't really do epic.Now, I have another problem. Does anybody have ideas on how to do some of the effects, esp. combat magic? Remember, this is a shoestring budget film.
Venom of the Yuan Ti 07-23-05, 04:09 PM	Have the Wizard be an enchanter or Divinist. Why? Less special effects to look cheap/cheesy!