I've looked through the gun topics here but I'm still trying to piece things together. Blank guns will give the noise, but that's all, no recoil or flash of light, is that correct? Are there any hints or tips on how to create realistic gun action? I don't have after effects, and I probably won't have the money to purchase it, so I can't really go that direction.

If you fire a blank round, you will get a flash of light, a puff of smoke, and perhaps recoil depending on what you are firing. It can be quite expensive though.
What types of firearms are you looking at?

The cheapest I've seen a blank-firing gun is $99, and it was a small snub-nose, but they are generally much more expensive, around $200-300. The recoil is very weak on blank-firing guns and the muzzle flash looks very fake, not like a blast of light like one would believe a real gun to produce. But student-made After Effects gun tweaks look pretty lame too generally, so do what you can.

I'm looking for handguns and assault rifle type guns. With that price range in mind, I take it this site isn't legit? http://www.flashdistributor.com/

A lot of the shooting can be done from behind the shooter as to hide most of the gun effects and some shots are off screen but there are a couple sequences where it would be hard to make it realistic.

it looks like the guns on that site are pellet shooters, not blank firing guns unless you clicked on something different. . .

quote:

Originally posted by Director Drew:
I'm looking for handguns and assault rifle type guns. With that price range in mind, I take it this site isn't legit? http://www.flashdistributor.com/

http://akfiles.com/forums/showthread.php?p=24289

Nope. It's not. They're apparently scammers. Not to mention their site misrepresents the product. Those are BB guns, and overpriced.

If you want guns that look real but don't shoot though, BB guns are a great way to go. Search "airsoft" on ebay.

By the way, my I ask what year of school you are in, or what age you are? I'm testing a theory on a trend concerning the age of kids making movies with guns...

if your gonna go the airsoft route, get the gas blow back . . . they look real and you get your blow back action

quote:

By the way, my I ask what year of school you are in, or what age you are? I'm testing a theory on a trend concerning the age of kids making movies with guns...

Senior in highschool. I know what you're thinking, as I also have noticed that a bunch of highschoolers make "gangster type movies" and I've always avoided that, my last three movies were medieval time period. And I was planning a short sequel to my last when I decided that the movie really didn't have a message, and then I realized that I might as well make a movie with a message. So my project is a modern short where a woman who has a good life in America takes everything for granted, only to find herself in the midst of a war when she wakes up from a long nap, where things that are going on in Africa are happening in her town. And all the proceeds from the movie are going to a World Vision Darfur Emergency Fund. Hopefully, that got me out of the highschool gangster category

admired clapping from me . . .

I've been doing a lot of research on this topic lately, as I'm starting pre-production on a project that requires guns. Lots of guns.

The best way to go is airsoft, no questions. Most other routes will either a)look terrible, or b)be too dangerous. Airsoft is safe and, with a bit of money and some good editing, can look very real.

If you want really realistic pistols, go with Gas Blow Back airsoft. It'll cost at least around $100, but it will look the best. Other things (rifles, sub-machine guns) can be cheap (unless shown up close), because the motion can be faked.

Anything you want, aka noise, muzzel flash, can all be added in post. The only thing thats kind of hard are ejected bullet casings, but you can fix that with some smart editing (show them hitting the floor, and the audience will swear they saw them eject).

Check out Detonationfilms.com - they have most anything you'll need in post for free or cheap.

P.S. Director Drew - I really like your film idea. Hope it goes well!