How To Create Good Content Tips for Film Makers from Award winning director Chong Keat Aun

Wanna know some tips of great content? To all aspiring film makers, video producers and social media influencers, here Director Chong Keat Aun, the Best New Director at the 57th Golden Horse Film Awards, shared some pointers. He shared it during the screening of "The Incident" , the short film made using a smartphone, vivo X60 pro.

Instead of normal larger heavy camera equipment, "The Incident" was shot through the lens of a smartphone with a ZEISS-enchanced vivo X60. Vivo X60 lived up to its promise and delivered with a touching film "The Incident" of a moving story of the difficult life of a single mother during this pandemic.

 The following are the six pointers shared by Chong Keat Aun

  1. Having a good quality camera is paramount

Chong was initially apprehensive of using a smartphone for filming. But with Vivo X60, it has the revolutionary Gimbal 2.0 stabilization which steadied shots (even on a moving motorcycle!) and the Extreme Night Vision 2.0 feature that enabled proper filming at night. Thus all this allowed him to explore a different side of film-making and achieve the visionary shots he had in mind.

2. Film soundtracks should never be an afterthought

Soundtracks is very important, not only in the film but also can help in promoting it! A very good example: My Heart Will Go On in Titanic and Hans Zimmer’s hair-raising symphonies in The Dark Knight. Thus soundtracks are the key element in a film production. I agree 100%, me only a small Youtuber also spend some time looking for the suitable music to go with my video. 

In this 'The Incident', singer-songwriter, Yise Lo was engaged to conceptualize the melodious soundtrack entitled “Light Of Hope”, sang by Firdhaus Farmizi. This song had an influence of Chinese folk and Malay traditional music which elevated the film.

3. Shooting with a smartphone allows for creativity to be unleashed

Chong said that the vivo X60 Pro’s specially-engineered features has stretched him as a filmmaker in a positive manner. This vivo X60 Pro enabled Chong to shoot point-of-view shots of his characters from within an open cupboard, inside a drain hole, beneath a frying pan and even on board a moving motorcycle. All this may not be possible when using an industry-standard video camera.

4. Work around any filming limitations and always pre-plan

We can't be rigid in our work. There will be sudden crop up other unforeseen circumstances, so pre-plan is very important. For example, the crew has only 2 days of filming and reduced workforce to only 50% of its original number. Pandemic times also means lots of pre-planning around approve permits from authorities and unexpected hurdles. Chong dealed with this with a pre-filming list and precise allocation of time and check list.

5. Be discerning of what projects to undertake

It is important for filmmakers to evaluate each project and see if its inline with one's filming style and genres. Trying different styles may be good but one has to tune down in one's filming style and path of growth as time goes on.

Chong noted how he was once approached for a horror film project but turned it down as it was not aligned to his portfolio. In the same vein, budding artists should evaluate each project opportunity that comes their way.

6. Continuously be open to inspiration

Be inspirational and open minded. Chong conceptualized this short film 'The Incident" during the time he did charity work and saw the struggles of single mothers. Some are made redundant, some lost their husbands during these hard times. Thus, Chong based the plot of "The Incident" around a single mother who became a food delivery rider and the to support her son and the hardship she faced after losing her husband. Through this short film Chong hopes to shed light on how these pandemic affected different lives in society. 

"When you make a film, you like to run it with an audience. 

they tell you, you're narrow-minded of subjective, 

or that seems too long, or that  doesn't work. 

-Richard Donner

Click here to watch the moving short film “The Incident”. For more information on the new vivo X60 series, visit www.vivo.com/my/ or check out vivo Malaysia’s Facebook and Instagram.