Rebel Without a Crew: The Robert Rodriguez Film School
Season 1
25 years after making his independent film "El Mariachi" for only 7,000 dollars, filmmaker Robert Rodriguez recreates the experience with his micro-budget film, "Red 11," this time documenting his process in order to teach other artists how they can make their dreams a reality.
6 Episodes
- Notecards & Origins
E1Notecards & OriginsRobert and his son Racer cover the history and origin of "Red 11." Robert breaks down how he approaches low-budget screenwriting, walks through his script for 'El Mariachi,' and teaches the audience how to start their own screenplays by using his notecard method. - Casting & Prep
E2Casting & PrepRobert teaches the audience how to get their own projects started on the right foot. He goes through his casting process for "Red 11," preproduction and equipment considerations, and how to structure the first few days on set in order to maximize creativity and get the most out of a small budget. - Coverage & Effects
E3Coverage & Effects Robert breaks down three of the scenes shot for "Red 11" in the first week of production. He teaches how to work around actors' limited availability, maximize coverage with limited takes, and how to shoot and edit scenes to pull off impressive effects on a low budget. A nightmare blood draw, a character with telekinetic powers, and a syringe in the eyeball - all without sending anyone to the emergency room!. - Fighting & Lighting
E4Fighting & LightingHalfway through production on "Red 11," Robert and Racer move into more complex scenes. Robert shows how he safely choreographs and shoots a fight scene, how to use low budget lighting techniques to shoot a night scene with sun light, and how to prioritize the valuable time on set to focus on what matters most. - Editing & Sound
E5Editing & Sound Taking a break from the shoot to dive into editing "Red 11," Robert walks through some of his favorite editing tricks. Using specific scene examples, Robert teaches how to get into the edit quickly, shows his own techniques for identifying the best takes on set, and how to create impossible stunts and locations purely through editing and sound to increase the production value of any project. - Wrapping Up & Looking Back
E6Wrapping Up & Looking Back On the last day of production the main villain of 'Red 11' is finally revealed. Robert looks back at how equipment, creativity and freedom have changed since the days of "El Mariachi." And, after 14 days of shooting, Robert and Racer wrap "Red 11" and reflect on the experience of getting their project done no matter what.