Do You Enjoy the Shoot or the Finished Film?

One of the great joys of filmmaking is the shoot itself. It’s a chance for grown-ups to indulge in an elaborate game of make-believe—and that’s undeniably fun.

In the world of indie filmmaking, this joy is amplified by the thrill of emulating professional film crews. There’s a special satisfaction in capturing compelling performances through the teamwork of a diverse crew.

I have no intention of denying this joy. In fact, I’d love nothing more than to fully immerse myself in that collaborative experience.

But here’s the problem:

How much free time do you actually have to make films as a hobby? And how much time are your collaborators willing to share for your project?

When it comes to hobbyist filmmaking, the biggest bottleneck is time—especially shooting time.

Pre-production tasks like story development, scripting, and storyboarding can be done gradually, during commutes or before bed. Post-production editing can also be chipped away at during spare moments.

But shooting? That’s a different beast. You can’t do it in small daily increments. It requires coordinated schedules, blocks of uninterrupted time, and often a bit of luck with the weather.

If it rains on the day of the shoot, you’ll have to cancel and reschedule—possibly weeks later.

Personally, I believe that longer shooting periods rarely lead to good outcomes. In reality, the longer the shoot drags on, the more likely the entire project will fizzle out.

Even if you, as the producer and director, are deeply committed to finishing the film, your collaborators may not share your level of motivation. As the shoot stretches out, their enthusiasm inevitably wanes.

That’s why it’s crucial to complete filming while everyone’s energy is still high.

And the secret weapon for shortening the shooting period? Heavy use of green screen and chroma key compositing.

In my projects, I often use special effects techniques even for ordinary scenes that wouldn’t typically require compositing.

Take a café scene, for example.

Instead of filming on location, I’ll ask the café for permission to take a few photos of the interior. Then I composite the actors into those images.

People often laugh and say, “Why not just shoot in the actual café?” But they don’t understand the cost of doing so.

Filming in a café imposes a burden on the business, and even a short scene can eat up a lot of time.

Even if the shoot only takes an hour, unless there are other scenes nearby, that day will be consumed by just a few café shots—wasting a precious, carefully coordinated shoot day.

And your film likely has many other scenes. If you shoot each one at that pace, how long will it take to finish the entire project?

But with green screen compositing, you can shoot the café scene in 30 minutes, then immediately move on to beach scenes, forest scenes, or bus scenes—without any travel time.

Can you see how revolutionary that is?

Of course, green screen shooting offers far less theatrical “fun.” And since fewer people are needed, the joy of team collaboration also diminishes.

This approach prioritizes the joy of completing the film over the joy of the shoot itself.

If your goal is to finish your film quickly and share it with others, then green screen shooting is the ultimate technique.