Castlevania: Dark Night Prelude (my fan film in development)

I have recently started development on a Castlevania fan film. Right now, it's just planning what I'll need to do, typing up character profiles, creating an outline for a script, and figuring out a very rough budget. Probably a few years away from completion.

It's going to be based on "Castlevania Legends", the third game for the original Game Boy, known as "Demon Castle Dracula: Dark Night Prelude" in Japan.

When it is filmed, it'll be filmed locally with local actors (probably from the county's local theater and some local gamers and otaku as extras).

I have no experience making a serious film. I have recorded some pretty shoddy stuff as a teen, and I took two years of TV Production in high school. I'm a self-taught editor.

Once I buy some decent equipment (camera, lighting, microphones, a better editing program, etc.), I'll be practicing by making my own original little short films to gain experience before I even think of filming this movie.

Anyway, I'm just putting the word out, and I'd like to get advice from anyone that's actually worked on a fan film of what I'll need to get and any potential issues that I'll have to deal with.

I don't know anything about making fan films, but I love Castlevania and this sounds like a lot of fun!

If you need someone to look over your script before it's filmed and give feedback, let me know.

I've put together a playlist of all of my vlogs regarding the fan film. Here they are if you wanna watch a few hours of me talking:


Main points:

*first draft of the screenplay is almost done
*trying to incorporate as much stuff from the game and manual as possible without being repetititve
*trying to insert some "local flavor" of that time and place in history (1450 Transylvania)
*trying to strike balance between historical accuracy and what I want in my story
*discovering previously-unasked questions regarding aspects of the story

Some things that I need help on:

What is the extent of Sonia and Alucard's relationship? They have all of this endearing, romancey dialogue between them in the game's cutscenes, but it seems to me that the storyline in the Japanese instruction manual (which is fuller than in the North American manual) is fast-paced and doesn't give time for Sonia and Alucard to get to know each other before she sets off on her mission (although even that can be interpreted differently).

Furthermore, did Sonia know Alucard was Dracula's son prior to the events of the game? The game's first cutscene has Alucard making several statements that spell things out (admittedly, probably for the player), such as "I have come to fight the lord of this castle" and "My father, Count Dracula". However, when Alucard had asked Sonia what she was doing there, she said "I could ask you the same thing." Tying back into the first paragraph, if Sonia and Alucard had spent any substantial amount of time together prior to the events of the game, it's inconceivable that she wouldn't have found out, particularly since the manual says she met him one night while he was searching for his father.

As mentioned above, I have to strike a balance between historical accuracy and what I want in the story. I was told Sonia would be doing a lot of needlepoint. Screw that (although I might throw in a gag reference to it).

I have Sonia playing a piano, but I was recently informed neither it nor even the fortepiano were in existence back then, so I'm gonna change it to the harpsichord.

I was wold Sonia would not be wearing pants, nor matter how independent that she was, because there were no pants in 1450. A quick Wikipedia search turned up a picture of a pair of Germanic trousers from the fourth century.

Sonia is going to have a little music box with mechanical clockwork. Screw historical accuracy. I'm keeping that.

Please fit some of this in somewhere.


Ripplin and I would appreciate it.

Hey OP, I love all the Castlevania Games! A movie would be awesome! I forget the name of the best Castlevania game but I think I would do a SOTN or the first Castlevania game that came out for the PlayStation 2, it was awesome! The Castlevania game that came out on the PS3 really sucked! Good luck on your endeavor! :-D

Thanks. I haven't touched the screenplay in a few months, due to being busy with other stuff, but I hope to get back to it soon. Only a few scenes left to write.

The first draft of the screenplay is done. Anyone that wants to read it and give feedback, let me know, and I'll PM you with the link.

Mark Moore said:

The first draft of the screenplay is done. Anyone that wants to read it and give feedback, let me know, and I'll PM you with the link.

Click to expand...

Sure man, I'll give you feedback. Send me a PM.

What's going on with this project?
Screen tests you could share?
Trailer, perhaps?
The screenplay draft seemed to be more adult than this site tolerates, but I was hoping you might have stills or production shots.

Vultural said:

What's going on with this project?
Screen tests you could share?
Trailer, perhaps?
The screenplay draft seemed to be more adult than this site tolerates, but I was hoping you might have stills or production shots.

Click to expand...

Nowhere near production yet. I'm still waiting on some script feedback, and then I'll revise it.

I need to purchase a new video camera and other equipment.

I need to experiment and gain some experience by doing some shorts before I tackle a feature-length film.

Then I can get started on this film.

Sailor Moon?  Are you kidding?
What is going on with this gem?
Have you revised your script per feedback?
Are you testing the talent?
How about a trailer?
Updates.

Nothing yet. I work at Walmart, which doesn't pay much, and my mom (who also worked there) was fired last November (she's now retired), so I have to save as much money as possible. I've been looking at cameras and other equipment, and I'll probably buy some of it in the next year...ish. But then I have to learn how to use all of it and experiment by making short films. In short, the Castlevania movie is quite a way off. This is more a long-term project that I have in mind.

And my Sailor Moon fan edit is not related to this.

Why not use Kickstarter?

I hadn't thought of that. I'll look into it.