Falling through floors is probably not what you expect when you are on set filming. The old creepy house called out to Amanda Smith and Colin Babcock. 

Amanda brought Colin into the house and he found it creepy and dilapidated. Both nodded at the notion that the house could be the set for a film. They just needed to figure out what type of film they could make. But there was a little bit of a conundrum because Colin did not have his usual filmmaking equipment. 

Colin began to think he could use his iPhone camera, even though he had never done so, or needed to. But that was not the only challenge, as he and Amanda would soon come to find out. 

Amanda’s younger sister, Storm Smith is a talented and, in my opinion, extraordinary musician. When Amanda asked if she and Colin could use her song to make a video, she immediately gave them permission. And now, Amanda and Colin had a story. 

The words to the song are an expression that comes to real life in their music video titled after the song by Storm Smith, “Too Young.” 

Performed by Amanda, their video sends a powerful message of hope. It was, ironically enough, filmed during the pandemic and performed by Amanda on camera. There is a story about the message of the video and the song, which is heartfelt. We are delighted to share a bit of the song, with permission, in the intro to our conversation with our guests in this episode. 

Amanda and Colin spent a couple of days in pre-production working the schematics to shoot the video. Amanda’s father, Steve Smith, owned the house and gave his consent to film before it was renovated. Her mother, Terry Smith, helped with wardrobe and set design. Colin, prepped his iPhone XR to shoot and planned the shots, just as any cinematographer does. 

In the meantime, all sorts of things began to happen which made the challenge of filming with a smartphone the least of their concerns. Once the film was “in the can” Colin edited the video and color grade it using Premier Pro. There were challenges covering electrical outlets from the scenes. Overall, the video has cinematic aesthetic value and the music is professionally produced which also elevates the overall quality of the film.

In episode 96 of the SBP Podcast Mobile Filmmaking, you are going to listen to stories from both directors, Amanda and Colin. They share stories from their set experience and shooting with a smartphone. How some scenes were captured, including what to use when your protagonist is required to eat worms on camera, how to capture your actor in suspension without a green screen, and…the story about the stench in the house and what they found in the freezer. 

But that is not all. Listen to their inspiring stories in our podcast. This was their first podcast guest appearance and we are stoked about that too. 

You can also watch the video during the 10th anniversary edition of the International Mobile Film Festival in San Diego. The festival is online this year, due to the pandemic restrictions, April 23-25. 

Follow Colin Babcock:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colinbabcock/ 

Colin Babcock on Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/colinbabcock 

Colin on The Quad: https://mobilefilmstories.com/community/profile/colinbabcock/ 

Follow Amanda Smith:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amandafallonsmith/ 

Website: https://www.amandafallonsmith.com 

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