Every Student Film Ever

I've seen a lot of student films. Here are the trends I've noticed. Did i miss any student film cliches/tropes?
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[@filmeditstudios3182]

the three main genres of student films: Depressing, Fight, Horror

[@SOLIDSNAKE.]

Well everyone starts somewhere

[@kishascape]

Movies are stupid. I did documentary and journalism instead.

[@matafuko]

Fighting and horror were definitely two of the modules on my film course. Didn't really have much of a choice there... the comedy module was fun though. We did a mockumentary but it was part of a larger piece - we made a load of comedy commercials and halfway through, the "viewer" changes the channel and watches something else for a bit. (We also copied Brass Eye rather than the Office as well.)

[@govnopochta69]

Yeah, those are the main three. Students most of the time don't have no money to make anything else tho, so it's understandable

[@playversetv3877]

@@kishascape documentary stupid

[@jas_bataille]

I still remember when my teacher was mad at me for using colour because the end credits were in black and white and he preferred that. There was no reason to do the film in black and white tbh. Not gonna lie, I feel like there's a lot of people who aren't really talented filmmakers who end up as teachers and bring those stereotypes to life with their students.

[@SOLIDSNAKE.]

Absolutely agreed

[@PiroKUSS]

A lot of them somehow manage to drag students into their dumbass ideas.

[@meanintellectual5222]

those who cant teach

[@StupidBeagleReviews]

I’ve used guns, black and white, waking up and getting ready for the day, and I think I’ve avoided the rest so far. Next time I make a movie every character will be constantly chain smoking

[@MasMashFilms]

Stupid Beagle Reviews hahahahaha. There you go!

[@alexman378]

Most students using black and white who aren’t into Eastern European cinema usually do it because that’s what Nolan did with his first film. For clarification to anyone planning on copying him, Nolan did it because he didn’t have the money to go through the coloring process and he also made it work for him due to the type of genre his film fell in.

[@franjes9999]

Im looking to make my first film and I plan on it being in black and white however it's a noir crime type movie and I think stylistically given that subject matter filming in black and white makes sense. The only caveat would be if I had the money to shoot color film and have it look like a gritty seventies type crime thriller id opt for that but given financial limitations digital will likely be my only option and therefore I think black and white is the best option I might have in regards to making the whole thing work

[@akrfilms511]

Same for Darren Aronofsky when he did Pi (1998).

[@franjes9999]

@@akrfilms511 Pi is amazing but Reqiuem for a dream showed that Aronofsky is just as skilled shooting in color as monochrome

[@Owen-ub3fv]

Also The Following absolutely sucks. It reeks of student film clichés.

[@alexman378]

@@Owen-ub3fv Make a coherent debut feature film on your own for $6K, and you’re allowed to get away with some cliches if you want. Following was also made in 1998 and completed in 1999, have you considered that many of those clichés weren’t clichés at the time and that it may very well have actually created some? No, because you just had to inject your opinion so you can act superior, despite having nothing to show for it.

[@trrapleaks]

Most of this is literally Ralphthemoviemaker.

[@MasMashFilms]

Moonmeister omg. So true! 😂

[@StupidBeagleReviews]

Oh my god I want to see a movie all about ralphthemoviemaker tropes now. And I actually like a lot of his stuff 😂

[@daveed2589]

I like ralph as a person. Not a filmmaker lol

[@Jim-iz3oy]

Lover is the best

[@beepboop4177]

I splash my face to calm myself down when I'm stressed or I splash my face when I cant focus so I can feel fresh, so does a lot of people I know, but I guess if it's something that isn't commonly done by people around you or yourself I see why you'd think no one does it ever.

[@abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz2086]

Literally watching this to know what not to do for the future 😐

[@JamesAidanKing]

I'm less inclined to have an issue with the black and white thing, but only if it isn't being done specifically to match the "noir" dramatic feel. At the end of the day doing black and white doesn't take away from the film if the rest of the technique is right. It does help, for those with no budget, to do black and white because it cuts way back on the amount of color work you have to do to get an acceptable look. At the lowest level, if you're avoiding the cliche reasons for using b+w, it can actually boost the level of professionalism for new film makers. I'm all for that.

[@KangarooMonkey]

I’ve considered using black and white for some of my student films, not because of any artistic BS, but because it’ll make colour grading easier.

[@JojiYoshida]

I've worked with student filmmakers in California, Hawaii and Louisiana. My biggest issue was casting their classmates that couldn't act. For example a role meant for a 50 year old man played by an 18 year old.

[@Owen-ub3fv]

Starts with someone waking up to look at their phone or alarm clock. Then later they'll be staring depressed or anxious into a mirror washing their face with water or throwing back pills which is sometimes proceeded by them sitting in their bathtub because they're too effing lazy to film something outside their accommodation.

[@xStarstargirlx]

omg... Because the splashing the face trope is always in movies, I actually thought people do that in real life growing up. So... I splash my face sometimes when I get stress, thinking it would help me clear my mind lmao. Well, now I know!

[@Bnio]

I also grew up thinking I was brushing my teeth wrong because people in movies use barely any toothpaste.

[@MontyQueues]

student films are often always interior, no one wants to gamble outside or try things comically enough in high school, we always did things outside because naturally there's more fun things outside... but i guess the film students are taught only "safe methods"

[@pickprank9147]

Cause its harder doing it exterior even for professionals, let alone begginers

[@kaylawheeler8756]

Im an animator and I had to help on sets at my old college with student films like fetching coffee adjusting mics for extra credit. This made me laugh so hard thank you its so true XD Actors and actresses are like a different breed of human beings to me when it comes to preparing to do a thing too.

[@VegimorphtheMovieBoy]

In college/film school, I unintentislly did the age and waking up cliches, although they were flipped. With the age thing, I had 20 somethings play teenagers (although I never specified what age they were, so I think I was able to get away with that), and with the waking up thing, I actually had the main character doing it near the end rather than the beginning of the film.

[@aggohyf]

Those aren’t actually issues then, most movies have adults play teenagers and if they’re as young as 20 you can definitely get away with that, and the cliche is having waking specifically be how the student film opens. You can have people wake up in your films just don’t open with it.

[@BrysonOleson]

I laughed way too hard at the quote 😂 but have definitely seen that in my film classes

[@yellowpowr8455]

I think college-age people just want an excuse to smoke because they think it's cool.

[@treezybayproductions]

my first film i just finished last month had to be black and white (and silent) as part of the requirements and i used smoking and a film within a film ending. and i called it “A Student Film” which im sure is also a cliche. had cool music and main effect though. plenty of other first semester films were full of these. especially the dream endings, smoking, guns

[@ItsSeemKeys110]

My school won’t let me use weapons in movies so I used a screwdriver in mine to drive the mystery of a murder through.

[@keltoumnoury]

Smoking is the one of the few ways you can show the character is thinking about something

[@luisalcalabeltran7942]

I think there's actually more creative ways to show that

[@terrortower666]

@@luisalcalabeltran7942 Could you please provide examples?

[@snrubmarine]

@@terrortower666 have some circles appear above their head one after the other along with a rising xylophone chord progression that lead upwards to a big, cartoon thought bubble above their head and add a sound effect as it appears that sounds like *hmm*. also don’t forget to have them scratch their chin. when theyre done thinking you can also replace the thought bubble with a lightbulb and have a *ding!* play. i have been a film teacher for over 15 years now this is the ONLY way to do it without being a no-good, very bad, hack director who would better contribute their skills cleaning portable toilets on the set of the film rather than any kind of artistic input.

[@Luckylukeproduction]

😂😂😂 This list is accurate! Spot on!

[@MasMashFilms]

Lucky Luke Productions haha right?

[@adamcooper5140]

Black and white is also a good way at making the movie not look unprofessional. Color grading and adjusting your clips in color can be difficult to make it look like it isn't shot on an iPhone or unprofessionally. It's also very easy to adjust the shots in blac and white to look good.

[@roydekock656]

4:43 only when Im kinda dizzy or my blood pressure is low from standing up to fast. But not when Im freaking out,no.

[@kenwkls6392]

good video. the waking up in the morning and grabbing your phone is the big one lol

[@torinibasoren]

I like the red lighting, keeps your vids memorable.

[@PlanetXtreme]

I have never splashed water on my face

[@TheWorstestPro]

I do the water thing in real life, so I've written that into a couple of my student films. I didn't realise it was something people don't do irl. I feel so called out.

[@auroramayyy]

I do it too lol

[@beansproutvillage]

another one is the shot where the character opens a fridge and the camera pov is from inside lol

[@florenzanofilms6088]

What's wrong with that? Lol.

[@terribleatmagic]

I definitively have done the waking up thing. ASMR is a big one I see in student films which I also did. Seems like the kids who love Wes Anderson doing that tired detail of putting things in order, making a meal, etc. Lots of long empty scenes that are meant to look artistic and often do but contribute exactly nothing to the plot and if anything slow things down. Thanks for the video!

[@seanothemanproductions253]

I'm guilty of the sink part. I was acting in my film and my character had like a panic attack... and I just naturally turned on the sink and splashed my face with water... it wasn't even in the script

[@sadetwizelve]

Nothing says student/amateur film like "lights cigarette"

[@a55a55inx]

Nice list. Another one that I would add is when you add music that doesn't fit the scene. I've seen a lot of videos where the music was a lot more intense than the action that was taking place on screen.

[@AmirMak]

I too believe that the splash thing is not a real life thing😅🤣

[@HistoricMetals]

It's been three years since this was posted, say it again, louder. This was an enjoyable watch. Got it from feed, didn't check yet if you are still posting 3 years later, to see how you've grown since this one, but I'll check. subbed when you said "I used black and white because I was a pretentious douche bag" - nailed it. :)

[@graysonwhite5441]

I'm trying to work on more short films (I did one short one on my channel called "Something Bad Will Happen" that actually was at my college film festival) but man the process of creating them is SO difficult. Unless I'm with 1-2 people, in a controlled environment, its basically impossible. I'm actively working on a short film in pre, pre, pre-production titled "It Goes on All Fours" following 5 teenagers being stranded in the woods and being hunted by some sort of entity. However, the optics and technicalities of that is insane, not only to mention scheduling people who usually don't know their schedule. I think I might work on smaller short films before I attempt a bigger short film, but I'm definitely not going to give up.

[@jenolenotv]

I’m gonna make an arty version of ciggy butt brain and use all of these techniques

[@MasMashFilms]

JenoLenoTV please do.

[@bbsara0146]

My favorite is when highschool film students make a space or alien based movie that would require tons of special effects but they literally have just a digital camera and no costumes for their actors to wear. so its kids wearing like nortface fleece trying to pretend to be like a space commander.

[@sadetwizelve]

I used b&w because I learned on 8mm&16mm film so my first few shorts had to be b&w

[@Ritermann]

How old are you? 100?

[@RachaelMortician]

Good points! :) I personally don’t mind any of these as long as it makes sense! For me if you do anything set in the 90’s or prior, smoking just makes sense because a lot of people did it. XD

[@trickedraptor]

Ive done the water splashing thing, mostly when I'm really hot or maybe tired.

[@skye.blue.]

The smoking shots are so fun though 😔

[@ArmFallOffBoii]

I use black & white cuz (1) I'm color blind so it makes things easier to color grade my film and (2) if the main character is someone who is really intense and sees the world in black and white in an ideological way. Also whenever student films use guns, usually the characters in those films are based around the idea that they need to have guns. At that point, the film becomes about shooting guns and not what the story or characters are about. But, I think a lot of these cliches happen cuz student films try to recreate their favorite scenes from their favorite films instead of coming up with interesting ways to tell their story in their own way.

[@JW-dp4we]

I use black and white on occasion because it rather simplifies the grading process. Without enough help or time b&w can be a lifesaver.

[@Hjallapenos]

Splashing your face with water isn't uncommon irl. It's like splashing water from your water bottle during a marathon.

[@ahmadhammoud1053]

Recently graduated from Uni majoring in Film and TV. While most of what you said is true, I'd have to say that it's okay to do all of it. In the end, a student film is a film where you're most likely gonna fuck up than do a great film. So yeah, fuck up, it's the only way to learn

[@PhilipAJones]

I used to get a lot of headaches and migraines from overheating growing up so in an attempt to cool down I would splash water on my forehead. Even though most headaches have subsided that habit still remains for me. I also tend to splash water in my hair to make it more malleable.

[@ZilawinGaming]

I splash water on my face to wake up sometimes

[@Unaccomplishedcan303]

I laughed so hard from the last one 😁 That is so true. I'm from Russia and I thought this is how you guys wash your faces in the US 😂

[@Robert_45615]

I be splashing that water in my face

[@alfrednilsson6531]

It's amazing splashing water in your face! When tired, headache or warm.

[@movieguyandrew]

also, opening a fridge, the camera is inside and the actor grabs something from the fridge

[@PlanetXtreme]

*MasMash Films I just got a noti that someone replied to me with the username "EAB Films" and he was trying to advertise his discord server to me... ... I don't see the reply here but got a notification for it. Thought I'd let you know about this, it's possible the comment was autofiltered for spam but still.

[@JW-dp4we]

Lol, I splash water on my face when I have a mild headache but no headache medicine around.

[@filmsbyhen]

Me making a film noir hearing the smoking and black and white and guns stuff 😳

[@MasMashFilms]

😅

[@notchuckproductions5029]

Currently a film student I've never done any of these(Aside from black and white but that was because it a spoof of a educational films) For some reason when i went to film school i assumed this kind of shit was frowned upon. Apperntly it isn't

[@onelusciouslad7841]

I only splash water in my face when I'm feeling tired, but then my face feels all sticky and weird so I often regret doing it lol, it only stops me feeling tired in the short term.

[@super8blog71]

I think you should add unless it is a deliberate choice. Having a kid play a doctor could be funny. I do splash water on my face. Am I weird? If you're trying to emulate old movies, black and white and smoking can look great. It's fun to list the tropes but also to embrace them. I think we have to get them out of our system. Great video

[@Gibbysaurio]

you have the shoulders of an anime critic

[@DerFinder]

4:30 wait... you guys dont do that? Idk in which situations they built it in but for example like I've broken a bone in my foot this year and while I was waiting to get someone to help me I was like trinking and splashing water in my face to cool of and concentrate also like washing away sweat an stuff

[@k-dawgwestmore4643]

I’ll sometime splash water in my face if I have allergies or if I’ve been crying

[@lizzaranda6145]

You're telling me that other people... DONT splash water on their face??

[@MasMashFilms]

Correct. It’s never happened before.

[@SamsonKingDavid]

I don’t drive a Lamborghini, but I do asparagus

[@potatosan1120]

i actually do the fisdt full of face washing techique, it was past down from generations xd

[@jiayangliu]

i def splash my face w water lmao

[@dan-mb2ne]

I actually do the splashing water on my face in real life...so...yup

[@rubenvanegmond2808]

>wanting to write a script >my script already falls under the mocumentary and movies about movies trope damn....

[@princeaugustviii]

It's amazing because I was about to do a black and white short film that's sort of inspired by sin city but now I feel like I'm copying everyone else😂😂

[@Strange_Logik]

Black and white is not a cliche, I watched a video from another channel that described some very good reasons you should shoot black and white for your first film. If you need to enhance the lighting in your scene with artificial light, getting exactly the right color temperatures to match is not always feasible. If you shoot B&W you can place whatever lights you have in your scene without worrying about the effect it has on color. Also, you might not have someone on hand that is pro at color grading. Even just the colors of random objects/clothing in the scene make a big impact on the shot, if you don’t have the budget to control absolutely every object in the shot, B&W will mean that big red object behind your character doesn’t steal the viewers focus and distract from the story telling

[@MasMashFilms]

This is actually makes a lot of sense. I will say though. If you are in film school and have access to a lot of lights it may be worth it to shoot in color that way you can practice balancing color temp and managing those colors with intention. I totally see where you’re coming from though, especially for the diy filmmaker perspective.

[@jas_bataille]

This was true back when everyone shot on film and you needed to perfectly match the color temperature and all. But nowadays that isn't so much of a concern. I also don't buy the argument about the objects not matching perfectly every shot : if there's a "big red object" stealing the focus... move it?? If you can't move it, shoot elsewhere? I don't really get that. Many times I walked on location and simply asked to move personal items around for the shot. As long as you don't make a mess of it all and the bathroom stuff stays in the bathroom, etc it's not a big deal. Honestly you are waaaay overthinking this. If you look at films like Red Rocket and other great indie color films it's obvious that not every object was controlled and that's kind of the point, it feels more relatable and realistic this way. As Tarantino would have it : "There's always a motherf**** to complain about the kleenex 200 feet from the camera. Don't listen to that guy." Bottom line is, even with all the budget in the world you simply cannot control every single thing in frame, there are always some mistakes. Lots of talented people never make films because of this mentality and that's sad.

[@Strange_Logik]

​@@jas_bataille Youre making some big argument here, but I really dont think anything you said here takes away the validity of black and white. What you said at the end about it being sad if something holds people back from making films... I agree.... thats why I wrote my comment. I dont want anyone to feel like they cant shoot black and white if they find it simpler and thats how they want to solve problems they encounter so that their film looks more professional on their lower budget.. I can think of a lot of ultra specific problems that can be solved very easily by shooting black and white. Its a valid solution, if people want to do it. People can do whatever they want. Shoot color, shoot black and white, whatever works for their project.

[@BEETVproductions]

I think a lot of the gun stuff and smoking stuff is just our inner child wanting to do adult risky things on camera

[@jakubciupa5532]

I do this water splash in face, but only in the morning, after waking up to get some more energy. But I haven’t seen anybody doing this while they’re stressed/shocked/I don’t know, something bad happened. It just doesn’t happen

[@AP-lw4rw]

you forgot "oh it was just the dream"

[@Bnio]

A movie about making movies is like how there are a lot of novels about novelists.

[@jorgereyes4866]

Happy to say I've only used smoking, but I like to think I put an interesting twist to it.

[@fernandomaron87]

I've used the smoking and the black & white, since it's not an student film gimmick in my opinion, It's very hard to catch beautiful colors with bad equipment, so B&W is still the best choice sometimes

[@terryflynn6927]

I splash water on my face. It was actually suggested by my therapist. Cooling yourself off quickly will activate your parasympathetic sustem and help you calmer within seconds.

[@jackeduprecruit]

So proud I am not guilty of these!!! Whoot! But definitely saw these from other students

[@StickmanLLC1]

did it make ur film better tho

[@hytalegermany1095]

About the thing with water in face... Huge trope... but to be fair. When I am totally tired and dead at 8am a bit cold water in face helps to wake up!

[@lobsterthieved]

I heard you say skills usa and had fucking vietnam flashbacks

[@rosie9000]

I swear I had and idea to start up on bed! Thank you for not letting me be ordinary

[@jaschabull2365]

To be fair on that last one, just about no one in real life has seen some of the things the people in films have when they do the sink take. Though I'm not sure I'd do it myself if something like what happens in those movies happened to me.

[@nicholasoliva8]

"Fin"

[@CommanderSammer]

As a sink, i have never had anyone come up to me, turn me on, and then splash their face, it just doesn't happen folks

[@Kekmit]

Pro directors used black and white as a cost saving measure - less money spent on color grading, lights and/or film stock. Nowadays, you may indeed call it being a "pretentious douchebag" most of the time 🤣

[@edo.creative]

I've splashed my face like 3 times total. I dont do it because its too cold and my clothes are all wet.

[@superdemonboy]

I splash my face with water all the time. Not in that dramatic fashion, but just to rinse my eyes and mouth from any potential gunk (you never know!), and also to cool off my bald head at times.

[@justincrane8825]

Water calms me. I do the sink splash all the time. If I’m really stressed I‘ll take a shower.

[@yannbelov3188]

i splash water in my face

[@hexterzerda]

oh wow, me and my peers are not really like this. We actually lean more about psychological/mental problems.

[@nastasiabrunzel402]

Hahaha omg, I've seen my classmates do all of these except for the splashing water one. I must brag tho that I haven't done any of those :) srry

[@death_is_woah]

Our school doesn't allow prop guns lol

[@ALEXMORANPLAYOK]

4:24 i do that in real life 😭

[@rgfilms8851]

Uh oh, we’ve used like half of these😅

[@TheKarmaLegend]

* gasp * A fellow SkillsUSA competitor!

[@MasMashFilms]

AYYY. What state? I'm a Vermont kid.

[@TheKarmaLegend]

@@MasMashFilms New York

[@LeeHarris]

erm... I quite like splashing water on my face...

[@bbsara0146]

I have a friend who splashes water on his face all the time

[@sk1ttle314]

I know that I'm late but just wanted to say that I do splash water in my face.

[@fogylands1438]

I do splash water in my face

[@grappyday5438]

to be fair, movies about making movies is a common trope for all of cinema i feel like i phrased that in the most pretentious way possible oops-

[@p_borah6332]

I can live with the black n white. I still can't get away from guns and cigarettes, why is that?

[@sanandreasfault]

Starts @00:30

[@thelovenator2200]

I do splash water on my fsvr