Filmmaking, much like the world itself, is changing rapidly. And for an art form that only got its start a hundred years ago, the amount of innovation and technological adaptation is sheerly outstanding when you think about it.
Yet, for anyone looking to carve a path for themselves in this rapidly changing world of film and video, there’s really no time to sit around and think. You might get left behind. That’s why it’s cool to see filmmakers like the crew at Hometeam so brazenly charting a new course for the industry.
As the global content company launches its crew-focused anthem “Chasing the Same Sun”, we chatted with Hometeam founders Brandon Bloch, Lagan Sebert, Harrison Winter and their producing team about how they’ve been able to take their production adventures to a global scale.
THINK GLOBAL. FILM LOCAL.
“Chasing the Same Sun” is our love letter to crews around the world. It’s also an example of what we do best at Hometeam: Telling stories that take place in many places around the globe. We encourage our clients and collaborators to think bigger. In our globalized world, the reach of companies, causes, and cultures extends well beyond any single country’s border. By taking a multi-city approach to filmmaking, you can finally tell the whole story and show all the lives that are touched by a subject and film them wherever they live. Think beyond boundaries and you’ll quickly realize there are bigger stories worth telling.
“We’ve always been driven to support independent film communities around the globe. At its highest purpose, Hometeam empowers filmmakers to do their best work on a global scale by working with the best crews on a local level. With ‘Chasing The Same Sun’ we finally got to tell that part of that story and celebrate some of our MVP filmmakers and photographers around the world. When we are doing our job best, the process of filmmaking feels like making art with friends. It’s more than a job to us; it’s a lifestyle and a global community that we continue to foster at Hometeam.” — Lagan Sebert, Hometeam Partner, Executive Producer of Chasing the Same Sun.
And by working with local crews, there are realistic ways of capturing these stories in more streamlined ways without needing the time and budget that goes into traveling all around the world yourself. And, even more of a benefit, local crews know their city better than any visitor ever could. They can bring together the right local teams, best local gear rental sources, know the ins and outs of their city, and they can find hidden gem locations and stories in their own backyard. Why try to reinvent all of that yourself when you can gain all those benefits by working locally?
FILMMAKING IS A TEAM SPORT
We’ve been amazed to discover that filmmakers share a common bond wherever they live in the world. We’re all in this together and we all share a passion for making rad content and having a great time doing it. Hometeam is made up of a global network of filmmakers that embody this ethos and so it’s not difficult to work with filmmakers around the globe and very quickly sync up on the common goal of a project.
Through resources like No Film School and platforms like Vimeo, a common approach to filmmaking has been self-taught and organically grown around the globe for the past decade – common technical approaches, access to gear, a common language – and so it’s possible (and super fun and rewarding) to be able to work with crews across many different countries and uniting as a team to tell the same story.
SUCCESS IS MADE IN PRE-PRO
The longer you work in the production world, the more it’s reinforced that the success of any project is won or lost in pre-production. That’s even more the case in multi-city production. With Chasing the Same Sun, we filmed in nine cities across six continents all without ever setting foot on a plane.
Especially if you’re directing remotely, dialing in the plan well in advance of the shoot day and then being clear in your vision and how you clearly communicate it in pre-production is the key to a successful production day. Things like syncing up on common gear, lensing, picture profiles, DIT workflows, all makes filming a high-quality piece possible across so many different locations…
BUT LEAVE ROOM TO IMPROVISE
At the risk of contradicting what we just said… We also love giving our local crews the room to find the magic on the shoot day. That’s often where the best stuff happens! Did you expect rain but the sun burst through the clouds? Did you want sun but got rain? Did a parade spring up out of nowhere? Maybe the answer is to lean into it!
And if the answer is instead to shift the plan quickly, we love working with filmmakers who can pivot quickly. Hometeam works with filmmakers who aren’t just technicians but can also think like storytellers. Again, if you communicate the goals of a project in pre-pro, local crews can stay nimble and think on their toes to improvise on the fly while still keeping the ultimate goal in mind. Sometimes the unplanned moments end up being the best stuff you capture that day!
WE’RE ALL CHASING THE SAME SUN
In the end, the title of our film says it all. Filmmakers around the world might speak different languages but we’re united by a common language of filmmaking. We’re all united by our passions that got us into this line of work and fuel us to keep going. We all strive to improve our craft and seek out the best stories. We’re all waking up each day figuring out how to capture the best shot with the most perfect light, sound, and emotional resonance. No matter where you work as a filmmaker, we’re all just Chasing the Same Sun.
For more info about Hometeam and their mission, you can check out their website here.
Author: Jourdan Aldredge
This article comes from No Film School and can be read on the original site.
