Filmmaking / Directing : Build a House or Rent a House by Maurice Vaughan

I would think it would be more cost effective to shoot on a studio lot, as picture houses already exist, and can accommodate lights, cameras, and water EFX. When the production is over, it would be an easier clean up mess on a lot, then an actual house.

Thanks, James Welday. I'm writing a Thriller script that takes place on a lake, but I'm thinking of changing the location to a house so the budget will be lower. I asked the "build a house or rent a house" question so I can have a better idea of the budget when I pitch the script.

If you need to control rain leaks, flooding etc. for multiple takes - better to build in a controlled setting (stafe). If it needs to look as though those things have happened, your scenic and art departments can do that for you on location.

The house physical location could be irrelevant. Where does the majority of the action take place: INT. or EXT.?

Thanks for the info, Steven Wishnoff. It probably will take multiple takes, so I think building a house would be cheaper (or using a premade house on a studio lot like James Welday mentioned).

Mostly INT., E Langley.

In the script, make it lakeside if that's what works. Second Unit can bang out establishings and cutaways of a likely lakeside structure.

Set is best. The practical effects logistics on location would be a nightmare: pumps, hoses, maybe water trucks, permits. Or lots of CGI. That's after finding a location house that's okay to drown.

Studio, a controlled environment and hook up to city water. Cue the dump tank for a flood.

Sorta depends on the size/quality of the interior needed. A sound stage makes sense for a lot of reasons. Inserts & Cutaways can put your 'house' almost anywhere at a reasonable cost.

Now it's 'official'.

Thanks, E Langley! The script is written (halfway done) on a lake/lakeside. I might keep it that way after reading your comment.

Thank you, Doug Nelson. The house would be medium-sized. Either a low-cost house in need of repair or a middle-class house.

Maurice - you've heard of 'B' roll footage.

Maurice Vaughan for the safety of your crew I would say that a controlled stage is absolutely imperative for those types of effects. Never mind that lots of water would cause irreparable damage to any house your most importantdanger is the electricity involved on a uncontrolled set.

Any leak through a floor board or wall could be catastrophic.

On a creative note it sounds like a very interesting challenge, could you elaborate on any specific effects you have written?

Reading your description it seems to me that you have quite a budget. My advice is don't worry about Budget. Do whatever will make your movie more realistic. If the money is low now, wait for a few days if necessary. Making a good movie is much better than making five ordinary movie.

I've heard of 'B' roll footage, Doug Nelson. I've also heard it's cheaper than shooting some scenes. Thanks.

Thanks for the info, Robert Macfarlane.

"could you elaborate on any specific effects you have written?" The story takes place mainly on a lake (if I don't decide to change the location to a house). There's a minor storm that turns into a hurricane while the main character and her dad are on the lake, so rain, wind, and the two characters will be in the water for only a few scenes. Most of the time they're on a party float on the lake instead of being in the water.

You'd have to repair the actual house, so it could be cheaper to just build one designed to be destroyed.

Thanks for the advice, Reduanul. I'm actually not making the movie. I'm writing the script to pitch it. I want to keep the budget as low as possible (which is why I asked the "build a house or rent a house" question) so I'll be able to pitch the script to more producers and production companies.

Ok, thanks, Scott. That makes sense. I remember reading an article about how "Crawl" was filmed. I think it had some advice about filming movies that need water and floods. I'm going to try and find that article.

It is dangerous for cast & crew to have water running in a real house location, especially when there are electrical lights.

I found the article, Scott: https://www.tampabay.com/arts-entertainment/horror-movie-crawl-filmed-in...

The lake house was built on a sound stage. And some of the movie was B-roll, Doug Nelson.

The "Crawl" Wikipedia page also talks about how the movie was made: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crawl_(2019_film)

Thanks for the advice/warning, Dan M.

Why are you thinking so much about the budget? The director and production house will think about the budget. You are a freelance writer. An independent storyteller will bring whatever background story is needed to tell his story his own way.

unless If you are given a task by a production house or director to write the script within a certain budget, then it is natural to think about the budget. Maurice Vaughan

You're right, Reduanul.

I like to keep the budget/how much things costs in mind when I outline and write a script so it'll stay in the micro-budget or low-budget range. There's a bigger pool of producers and production companies that can buy a micro-budget or low-budget script as opposed to a medium-budget script.

Seems that renting it for production would cost less. Or building on to use. Depending on the size.

Thanks, William. It would probably be a small or medium-sized house. Maybe a medium-sized, rundown house that could be bought for around $50,000 in North Carolina, which would be great because it wouldn't matter if the water damaged the house. Like this house: https://zerodown.com/search/details/1699-old-hendersonville-hwy-pisgah-f...