Sentinel Films 101 is a project dedicated to our learning and the development of the different skills required for us to grow into a company that is able to accomplish the goals it has set out to accomplish. Sentinel Films 101 is comprised of three projects, each of which will contribute to specific areas of our development. The first project is Project: Crosswalk. This project is dedicated to the growth and development of our technique for working with sound in our films. The second project, Project: Showdown, will help us focus on the difficult task of shot development, transitions, and shot angles.  Our third and final project, Project: Revelation, will demand that we use all the skills acquired during the first two projects, as well as help us gain some experience with film score.

This is the first part of our three part Sentinel Films 101 project. In this project we focused mainly on sound. We didn’t record any sound live, each individual sound was added in post-production. We also worked on our pre-production skills, trying to develop the best way of preparing for a shoot. In this instance it may be worth noting that the video you see is actually the result of our first shoot, which was meant to be just a dry run, not the final version. However, because it came out quite well (and because the camera had to spend a few weeks in the shop right after we shot this piece), we ended up using the footage for our final piece. We learned a lot about sound technique working on this project and carry that knowledge with us through Project: Showdown and the rest of Sentinel Films 101.

The second part of the three part project Sentinel Films 101 is Project: Showdown. This project was dedicated to learning shot development, transitions, and picking shot angles. After creating Project: Crosswalk we walked away with a good understanding and appreciation for the art of sound. It was then time to work on the “visual” aspect of filmmaking.  After much discussion and deliberation we decided that the most effective and efficient way to learn about shot development, and everything else that deals with camera work, was to choose a song that we could make a video for. This allowed us to concentrate on the visual aspect of the project and took away the pressure that comes from having to think about sound. Out of the songs that we listened to there could not have been a better one. This project was inspired by the song Bad Guys Always Die from the Wild Wild West soundtrack featuring Dr. Dre and Eminem, two amazingly skilled artists. We hope you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed making it.

The third and final part of the three part project, Sentinel Films 101, is Project: Revelation. This project was created to help us develop our knowledge of Film Score. The first two projects, Project: Crosswalk and Project: Showdown introduced us to sound and shot development. It was then time to explore the many dimensions of Film Score. This project taught us a lot, not only about the selection and creation of Film Score, but more importantly, how to work with other artists to create high quality art. After shooting the project, we met and worked with Svetlin Bardarov, our musical composer. Working with Svetlin was a great experience. It taught us a lot about both the difficult task of making music, and the even harder task of finding music that fits with your film. We look forward to using the skills we acquired through the completion of Sentinel Films 101 in our careers as filmmakers. As always, we hope you enjoy watching this project and would love your feedback on it.