Microfilmmaker Magazine - Trainging Reviews

Every time you go to Blockbuster or browse the DVD section of the local retail store, you see it… the end product of a filmmaker's vision on the shelf for all to see (or rent or buy). You see it and wonder how you can get your movie there. Your film didn't get accepted to Sundance and there aren't any takers for distribution (not by any reputable distributor, at least!). What to do?

First of all, get a copy of Chris Gore and Paul J. Salamoff's The Complete DVD Book. It goes through the legal and technical aspects of creating, producing, and marketing your movie yourself. Even if you decide to have your DVD produced another way (by a professional individual or an outside company), there is a lot of valuable information about legality and things to look for when having someone else do it for you.

For those of you who are technologically savvy and have some kick-ass software, you can do it yourself with some guidance from this book. Chris Gore has his own distribution label (the well-known Film Threat) specifically for indie films, and Paul Salamoff has his own full-service DVD company; together, they have extensive experience in both mainstream and independent filmmaking, and can tell you not just what makes a great DVD, but exactly how to put it together.

Comprehension
First off, The Complete DVD Book is written for readers that have at least mid-level expertise with such programs as DVD Studio Pro, DVD Architect, Adobe PhotoShop, FinalCut Pro, etc. (While the authors don't endorse any software in particular, they use programs they are most familiar with as examples.) Although, in one sense, this is an instructional book, it won't help you if you have little to no experience or understanding of these programs. While there are diagrams and step-by-step instructions, it will be much easier if you're very familiar with the software already.

That being said, the instructions, guides, and suggestions they give are very easy-to-follow. Sections Three and Four make up the main part of the book, covering (respectively) Preparing Your DVD Assets and Authoring Your DVD. While this is the most technical and complicated part of the book, Gore and Salamoff simplify it by giving detailed explanations and showing diagrams of the specific menus, toolbars, and examples. For this project, they created a non-existent movie entitled Stranded, and take the reader through the process of creating a DVD.

First, they explain how to plan your DVD; write out the features, menus, options, etc. that you want to offer on your movie. Next, they tell you how to format the audio and video; this part is helpful, because they also explain the different types of encoding and formats, as well as their pros and cons. After all of this introductory material, they get into designing each button, menu, slideshow, and screen you want to appear on your DVD. Finally, they demonstrate how to program and connect all of the graphics, audio, video, and other information together on the disc. The last section deals with marketing your newly-minted creation, and even includes an extensive appendix with lots of valuable DVD resources for your project.

While all of the detailed technical information was a bit overwhelming to me at first, the diagrams and in-depth information they provide are extremely helpful and make comprehension much easier. While this book would still be too much for a novice, the explanations, diagrams, and organization in this book are very helpful to those with greater experience.