charlotvanh

jedem Anfang wohnt ein Zauber inne

sketching people on Berlin public transport

y’all I’ve revamped my website 

Hey there! You don’t have to feel weird about asking at all - if anything I’m really flattered that you’re interested in my other projects. To answer your questions: (sorry, this is going to be a long one)

how did I go about shooting my short film?

I met a lot of really helpful and talented people ever since I moved to Berlin and they are honestly the ones who deserve all the credit. It was kind of a joint project with my ‘DOP’, who I’ve met on a set a while back in summer. We got talking and he told me that he’s also applying for film school, focusing on cinematography, so we decided to do this film together. 

I wrote a shit first draft, got some feedback on it, wrote a slightly less shittier second and third draft and eventually I got to a point where I thought - yup, that’s the film we’re going to make. Although, obviously, I was restricted by what was possible for me concerning budget and skill, while writing the script. 

Next step was casting. I posted on several bulletin boards, and got a ton of applications. Out of those, I ended up casting about 4 or 5 actors, but it was pretty obvious that one of them was just perfect for the role. I met with him a couple of times, discussed the role and the script and he was really supportive and on board with everything which was just A+++++

We looked at our location options, scheduled a date for filming and started putting together a very small team and some equipment. We did have a very small budget (about 400€) but being able to borrow most of our equipment and set decoration from friends, family and colleagues has really saved our asses. Everything we couldn’t find for free we bought or rented. 

The days before shooting I was mostly busy with making some minor changes to the script and putting together a shooting schedule for every day (5 days in total), organising catering, transport, extras etc, etc… theres so much to this honestly if you really want to know in detail it’s probably best to contact me again, privately. 

There will always always always be things that go wrong last minute. It happened to us, it happens to everyone, but you’ve just got to learn how to improvise… and keep a cool head. So much shit happened on set I cannot even begin to tell you. Oh and: second day on set is always the worst. 

But yeah, on set I was mostly focussed on directing, working with the actor, keeping to the schedule. At the end of every day we looked at our footage, saved it 3 times and fell into bed way too late. Got up way too early the next morning. 

Once we were done with filming I immediately started renaming, organising and editing the footage. Theres being some final tweaking done this week, as our sound designer is still working on it but - to answer your question - yes, you’ll definitely get to see it once all this application drama is over! 

Thanks for your question anon! The truth is that I just got really lucky.My dad relocated his store, selling high-end furniture, decoration and art, earlier in 2016 and we decided to do sort of a joint exhibition. I had a lot of free time on my hands back then and prepared a lot of large scale oil paintings which - for some reason - all sold! I was really happy with how good it went and I doubt that it would have been as successful if I had exhibited them in a gallery. 

*** DIGITAL PORTRAIT COMMISSIONS ARE OPEN ***

Digital commissions are open again aswell since I have a lot of free time on my hands right now. This might only be for a very limited timespan as I’m not sure when I’ll be involved in my next project.

General information:

For a portrait I will need multiple good reference photos and possibly some information on who I’m painting.

If you live outside Germany, I accept Payment via PayPal only

I will start working on your commission once I have received at least half of the payment

If I’m not able to finish your commission you’ll get a full refund

You’ll receive a high res .jpg file (300 dpi)  

I reserve the right to use your commissioned work for my portfolio

I also reserve the right to decline commissions

Prices:

Please note that the price will be adjusted according to how much time and effort I will be spending on your piece.

Format Examples:

I. Sketches: starting at 20€ +

II. Stylised Portrait: starting at 50€ - 100€ depending on the level of detail

III. Anything else: If you want to commission something that doesn’t fit into these categories (full body sketches/paintings, scenes with multiple characters, character concepts etc.), please contact me and we’ll discuss it.

Contact:

Write a mail with as much information as possible on your request and some reference photos to mail(at)charlotvanh(dot)com

If you have any questions left please feel free to ask!

*** OIL PORTRAIT COMMISSIONS ARE OPEN ***

I decided to open my oil painting commissions on the interwebs as I have a lot of free time on my hands right now. This might only be for a very limited timespan as I’m not sure when I’ll be involved in my next project. 

General information:

For a portrait I will need multiple good reference photos and possibly some information on who I’m painting. 

If you or the person you’re commissioning a portrait of is based in Berlin, you/they can come and sit for me. Painting from life will provide a much more authentic result.  

If you live outside Germany, I accept Payment via PayPal only

I will start working on your commission once I have received at least half of the payment

If I’m not able to finish your commission you’ll get a full refund

Shipping costs may vary on where you’re based. If you live in or around Berlin, you can pick up your painting. 

I reserve the right to use your commissioned work for my portfolioI also reserve the right to decline commissions

Prices:

Please note that the price will be adjusted according to how much time and effort I will be spending on your piece and depends on which material I’m working on. 

Format Examples:

50 x 70 cm starting at 350€ - 450€

70 x 100 cm starting at 650€ - 750€ 

These are just examples of formats I commonly work in. If you’re interested in a big / small format piece, or already have something in mind, just message me and we can discuss the details

Materials I like to work on:

wood 

canvas 

recycled materials (such as using an old picture frame, painting over the picture etc.) This only works with small formats.

Contact:

Write a mail with as much information as possible on your request and (if needed) some reference photos to mail(at)charlotvanh(dot)com

I’m happy to discuss your request with you and advise you, if you’re not sure about what exactly you want yet. Coming up with a general scheme for your commission is easiest if I know where you want to put up the painting - so feel free to to send me a photo of your room (or wherever) and I’ll be happy to help you out. 

If you have any questions left please feel free to ask!

Hey I’m so sorry it took me so long to answer this - it’s been in my inbox for ages. Which is why I’m going to elaborate on my answer:

Oil paint really has become my favourite media, I’ve just fallen in love with the smell, the consistency, the way it applies - it’s very forgiving actually in the way that it takes longer to dry but it also kind of has a mind of it’s own... It takes some getting used to, but I just really really love working with oils so much. <3 

so, first step: When mixing colours it’s porbably best to first do some research on basic colour theory and mixing techniques. (Wether you need to dilute your paint depends on your workflow for example, so these are just things you’re going to figure out along the way) 

That should actually cover most of what you’re porbably asking... But I've learned a thing or two in the past couple of years, so here’s some tips: 

1. start with the lightest colour and then gradually, slowly, add the darker ones -> you can always go darker, but adding white will always make your colours look pastel and they’ll loose their vibrancy (unless you’re going for that)

2. to mute tones, mix in complimentary colours. For example: If you’re feeling that your crimson red is a little too bright, mix in a tiny bit of green

3. use glass as a surface when mixing. This is probably the most valuable tip I can give you. Glass is easy to mix on because the paint doesn’t stick to it immediately and it’s easy to clean. You could use an old picture frame or simply buy a piece of glass at your local hardware store.

4. use a BIG surface to mix on. Don’t underestimate how much space you’ll need to mix your colours! Trust me, it will be more than you expect, and you’ll be happy about the extra space. 

5. clean yer fucken palette and brushes. Do it properly, get some turpentine (brush cleaner). Do it before the paint dries!!! AND DON’T FORGET ABOUT YOUR BRUSHES WHEN THEY’RE SOAKING IN TURPENTINE. I cannot stress this enough. Oil painting materials are fucking expensive and I’ve made that mistake before.

6. mix in big batches. Depending on which format you’re working in, always mix a little more than you think you’ll need. Even if you don’t use all of it, mixing the same colour twice is almost impossible and you’ll most likely be able to use that leftover colour as a base for another one.

7. do real life studies. There is just no way around this. If you want to get the colour right, you have to practice. There is no magic trick, unfortunately... it really doesn’t matter if you’re painting from life or still life - It’s about teaching your brain to translate the colour you’re seeing onto the canvas. This is important.

I could go into detail on colour theories and mixing techniques but that’s basically been covered loads and loads of times by people who are much better at explaining than I am. The best and most important advice I can give you is really just to step out of your comfort zone and make art. Even if you don’t like it at first, even if you think you get the colours wrong - you might get it wrong. But that doesn’t matter, because thats the only way you’ll improve. And remember, it should be fun! So experiment, draw your own conclusions, do your own research.

 ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ  hope I could help!

here’s two of my favourites from last weeks shoot with Robert

life updates under the cut

there’s always two of us / grab a print