Roll Camera: Creating Some of the Best Movies of All Time

Manage every aspect of production as a movie takes shape from a simple script to completed scenes in Roll Camera.
Bean people! The aesthetics of Roll Camera! The Filmmaking Board Game are awesome, and the unique clapper-style box always stands out on my shelf. It was time to move it back to the table for some fantastic new movies! I had some good laughs previously, yet decided to bump up the difficulty level. Less time and money? No problem. Action!
Game Overview
Game Name: Roll Camera! The Filmmaking Board Game
Publication Year: 2021
Designer: Malachi Ray Rempen
Artist: Malachi Ray Rempen
Publisher: Keen Bean Studio
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
With the crew represented by dice, different actions move the filming along with each round. Sets are built, scenes are shot, and ideas help production along. Yet problems abound, and staying on-budget within schedule is never easy… Nor is coming up with a hit movie at the very end!
First Play
August 4, 2021
Complexity
2
Latest Play
October 29, 2022
Expansions
0
Setup Time
5 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
4
Play Time
35 Minutes
High Score
N/A
Game Area
28" x 24"
Low Score
N/A
A Page Turner Script
Well, well! Part of setup involves randomly drawing each half of the script. Together, they form the full title and offer specific ways to increase the final movie’s quality.
They Buried Murder sounded just about right for Halloween or some sort of overly dramatic thriller!
Gameplay isn’t too complex, with up to 6 dice used to take actions each round. Ultimately, the movie must end up with 5 different scenes and make a slight splash.
Actually, reaching the very bottom of the quality track for a movie that’s so terrible, it’s great is also a win condition!
Editor Expertise
I continue to play with a single character for solo, but I wonder what it might be like to utilize a few more. It was the editor who made the cut this time, though!
Each character provides a couple of unique abilities. Here, I could re-edit to move or swap any scenes. Playback gave me the benefit of playing a recently discarded idea again.
Since this isn’t a complex sort of game, asymmetric abilities only come into play here and there.
At the same time, it’s nice to have those new options beyond the standard actions depicted on the board.
Pitching All the Ideas
Ideas form a major part of gameplay. A production meeting only requires a single die, making it quite an attractive option during most rounds. Such cool ideas!
Any of these 3 may be chosen, and each does something very different. None are necessarily better, though.
It all comes down to what’s going on in the land of movie production. Money and time are limited, yet figuring out how to shoot scenes earlier can be extremely important.
My first idea was to wipe the crew’s memory, allowing me to reassign 3 dice. Don’t worry: They were fine. Ha!
In the Beginning…
This movie was fairly violent! It centered around a pair of rivals who absolutely couldn’t stand each other. But I figured these were cartoon-like attacks and explosions.
They absolutely didn’t want to be around each other, yet there was no sign of escalation. It was all in the name of pranks, and no one else understood this brand of comedy.
I would like to point out that this movie finished up as “Not Bad” which was the bare minimum to win. Yes!
Ah, yet how did it progress? And did I actually make it worthy of the original script title? The reel chugged on…
Love and Revenge
Everything came to a screeching halt when one of the rivals discovered love. The pranks stopped entirely, and there was a good swath of peace between enemies.
Looking back, the production crew didn’t really make that time clear. Was it a month? A year? The whole point was to keep the audience guessing, for the rival found the other!
The final scene was a cliffhanger, in every possible way. Someone was definitely murdered. Off a cliff. But who?
With some amazing filming techniques, it was left up in the air who the murderer and victim were. Applause!
The Power of a Theme That Shines Brightly
Although I’ve often said that artwork and theme aren’t the main focus of what makes a game great, that’s not always the case. A poorly designed game still can’t be saved by looking nice or offering up a unique theme. It’s when a great game combines with a fun theme that everything can truly work out! And this is one of those cases.
The game has its flaws and can certainly feel a bit repetitive when played too many times in a row. Yet it’s not meant to be a heavyweight look into the world of filmmaking. It’s light and silly, and gameplay flows through with wacky ideas and strange problems to affect production. And then there are the bean people, who make everything hilarious!
I’m very much looking forward to what else is in store for the game. It’s a labor of love that stands out amongst the endless group of farming, nature, and fantasy games that fill my shelves. Nothing wrong with those, though! It’s just nice to have something so different. And even though my movies are usually terrible, I love the little stories!
Challenging Times
I played at the hard difficulty level, and it definitely felt that way! Everything came down to the final round, and I had to get crafty to figure out how to get enough money.
The best option would have been to wait to rearrange the scenes… Yet that wasn’t going to happen. Hence, why the movie ended up barely being successful.
Still, I did it! There were some fun moments and definite debacles with some of the problems and set pieces.
My only issue is that I remembered most of the scenes from a year ago… Definitely could use some variety.
What is That Movie?!
Intent on creating another masterpiece, my next script seemed to be rather confusing. Bloody Bloody Unbearable Anguish didn’t know what it wanted to be.
Was this some unusual horror movie? A melodrama? Or just a nightmare of a movie that would barely succeed?
I’ll continue to lament about the limited variety in the cards, yet this is a fun sort of game! I felt like I had to manage the entire production without too many choices.
And as expected, this was anything but easy to put together. It could have been spectacular. Instead…
Not Bad… Again
It barely succeeded! This time, it was about a chef who was the toast of the town. But behind the scenes was the small town cook whose recipes had been stolen. Oh, no!
She watched cookbooks get released. Her friends praised the famous cook. Even culinary academies wanted to hire the mastermind behind these latest cooking techniques.
It was a very depressing time as she struggled to make do. But an idea hatched as she earned a place in the kitchen…
And let’s just say that critics were appalled at the bloody ending. But that quality was just good enough for me. Ha!
A Halloween Tale
Although the real fun was over, it wouldn’t be a proper Halloween without all of the costumed Calico Critters!
They saw an opportunity to film their own exciting movie, clearly appropriate for all ages. Titled Chocolate and Skeletons in the Closet, it was sure to be a success.
Actually, it was a simple plot: Get some Halloween candy and finally open up all of the latest Calico Critters in costumes. Oh, and a little magic via this top hat ghost.
Perfection! I figured out that this only required a single scene for audiences to fall in love. That’s movie magic!
Happy Halloween!
Cuteness overload! There were even a couple of set pieces available. Halloween and ghostly houses made for some of the best set dressings. Can you spot everyone in costumes?
A small hint: If you’re someone who looks for Stealthy Elephants, they do tend to show up around Halloween!
There would have been more candy, had this hungry crowd not gobbled it all up. I mean, 4 lollipops?! Even the baskets appeared to have been devoured. Yum? Ha ha!
I loved getting this little scene together, which felt quite thematic. This deserves more than a “Not Bad” rating!
Session Overview
Play Number: 3 and 4
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: Hard Difficulty Level
Outcome: 2 Wins
The producer role was another interesting one, especially since I was great at dealing with problems. Next time, I’ll have to explore the production companies! The new expansion is also expected sometime soon, so there should be lots of additional possibilities. I love this unique theme and how it isn’t overwhelming to get a movie made with the charming bean people! But my movies? Yikes.
%
1 Play
Affordability
Price & Value
5
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
7
Originality
Design & Theme
10
Quality
Components & Rules
7
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
7
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
10
+ Pros (Positives)
- Putting together a movie from just 5 scenes is always a lot of fun, and somehow makes sense in some way.
- There aren’t an overwhelming number of choices, yet managing the film production must be done carefully.
- Changing the difficulty level is simple to do during setup, and there are production companies to try out.
- Humor comes through with the bean people and many of the silly ideas that can be pitched as solutions.
- Most components reside on or directly next to the board, so the play area remains contained and manageable.
- A sense of fun comes with the theme, and it’s clear this was developed by someone who loves filmmaking.
– Cons (Negatives)
- There isn’t a great deal of variety with the cards, and most ideas and problems will be seen after a few plays.
- Dice placement decisions are fun, yet the overall path to victory is generally static with the same steps.
- Completing script goals to affect final quality is highly dependent on the order of the storyboard scenes.
- Card quality feels a little underwhelming compared to the higher quality components present everywhere else.
Victory Conditions
Complete 5 Scenes at the Best or Worst Quality
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Win at least 1 game as the cinematographer.
Win at least 1 game as the director.
Win at least 1 game as the editor.
Win at least 1 game as the producer.
Win at least 1 game at the easy difficulty level.
Win at least 1 game at the normal difficulty level.
Win at least 1 game at the hard difficulty level.
Continue the Conversation
What are your favorite parts of Roll Camera! The Filmmaking Board Game? Do you know of any other solo games that simulate movie production? I enjoy all the little scenes with the bean people and the overall humor present throughout the entire game. Maybe there aren’t a ton of different cards, yet there’s always a fun time to be had filming scenes!
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