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A dark comedy in the voice of ‘90s teen classics, Not So Bright follows two brothers with a knack for bad decisions who embark on a hilariously chaotic journey filled with misadventures, absurd twists and unpredictable outcomes while pursuing their lifelong dream of making it to Comic-Con. The film was written and produced by Choice Skinner, Dylan Fincher and Willis Fincher and directed and photographed by Skinner.
Skinner describes the film as “an original independent feature that blends awkward humor with smart, witty and sharp comedic moments”. He draws inspiration from the comedic flavors of some of his favorite nostalgic films such as Pineapple Express, Napoleon Dynamite, and Superbad to bring a fresh voice to today’s film landscape. His love for 80’s and 90’s cinema is further reflected throughout his cinematography as well as his prioritizations in production.
“In crafting my shot list for Not So Bright, I knew I would have some movement, but mostly, it would be on a tripod, a saddle bag sponsored by Openmoonfilm Tools and a shoulder rig provided by SmallRig.” An acting coach in addition to indie filmmaker, he explains
“I am very big on casting great, talented actors and allowing their performance to pull the audience in”.
Rather than forcing the camera to move, Skinner prefers the look of allowing a tripod to assist in steadily following movement through a shot.
“I only move the camera if it’s absolutely psychologically and emotionally necessary, or to deliver the audience from boredom by breaking up the monotony”.
Even with limited options on a tripod, he uses different techniques to create movement. “I knew we would do wipes, lots of blocking the actors for the camera, and some whip pans,” making use of fundamental filmmaking techniques. As new methods and technological advancements are always emerging, Skinner proves classic practices hold up to the test of time.
While Skinner’s style depends heavily on casting and performances, he relies on the camera to capture a quality image despite not using fancy rigs or a lot of motion. On the film’s image quality Skinner noted, “As an indie filmmaker who writes, directs and produces, I see the advantages of having a compact camera. The key for me is to have a film that is comparable in look and quality to some of the top films on the market but not have to struggle financially to get the film off the ground. I chose to shoot in anamorphic aspect ratio using Laowa lenses on the Blackmagic PYXIS 12K and the URSA Cine 12K LF. The sensors on both allowed me to capture an amazing, wide image while still having control over depth in each shot.”
Skinner used the URSA Cine 12K LF for the first half of the film, and switched to the PYXIS 12K when the camera came out. “It all worked out perfectly because many of the remaining setups were action sequences which incorporated tight spaces and lots of movement. We wanted the image quality to match but needed a much smaller unit. The PYXIS 12K made those situations a walk in the park.”
Just entering post production, Skinner is cutting in DaVinci Resolve Studio and is already pleased with the image quality from both cameras. “I'm actually editing 9K Blackmagic RAW files on a computer system that is over seven years old,” Skinner said.
“The footage from the sensor is amazing. Out of camera and without color correction or color pass, you instantly know the footage is in another league. I now have a low budget film that rivals most high level budget films. That was my intention. Mission accomplished.”
