My good friend Rob Mills has launched a new internet series called 'In Teh Toobs'. Rob has been a familiar voice on this blog and I have learned much from him over the years. One of my first jobs in the film industry was working for Rob on an ambitious, independently-minded project called 'Land O' Hands'.
Rob is a television maverick in his own right. He came out of the trenches of 'Fraggle Rock' and feature films such as 'Labyrinth' and 'The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' (can you believe the Turtles are back!?). He then started his own ventures with 'The Big Comfy Couch' 'Rufus the Dog' and 'Amigo and Me' (rumour has it that he used to interview people in his bath robe to work in his garage). His love of technology and his rebellious idealism makes for a perfect combination in his self-produced, directed, edited and performed 'In Teh Toobs'.
Anyone who makes films can attest to the difficulty of trying to do it all yourself. Rob loves to laugh, create, dream and procrastinate (weekly webisodes?). I look forward to the coming episodes of 'In Teh Toobs' and would love to share a link to the first episode (there is a prologue as well).
You can see him on 'In Teh Toobs'.
Thursday
Technique...
I've finished another year of teaching film writing. Overall it has been a successful year with many talented and enthusiastic students. As a writing teacher I want to instill my students with a sense of drama and purpose. I want them to create memorable characters and challenge those characters to get what they want.
I am not involved in the filming and post stages of the students work but I think technique and execution is something that needs emphasis. Yes, a good script should make a good film but there is something to be said for a great execution that makes a film 'feel' like a film. I've spent many hours on the internet watching films and I've noticed a common problem beyond bad story telling. Technique.
With all the new technologies there is a common thread of discussion that argue about the technical specs and don't consider the technique. Discussions that talk about frame rates (24p vs 30p), jello effects, sensors and pixels. My experience has been that technique will overcome all of it.
You don't need to look much further than Danny Boyle's film "28 Days Later" to see that traditional filmmaking techniques are more important. It feels like a film. Not because it was shot at 25 frames per second but because the visual technique is deliberate and thought out.
My screenings confirmed this. Good technique. Deliberate and well thought out visuals rise far above the technology you capture the images on.
I am not involved in the filming and post stages of the students work but I think technique and execution is something that needs emphasis. Yes, a good script should make a good film but there is something to be said for a great execution that makes a film 'feel' like a film. I've spent many hours on the internet watching films and I've noticed a common problem beyond bad story telling. Technique.
With all the new technologies there is a common thread of discussion that argue about the technical specs and don't consider the technique. Discussions that talk about frame rates (24p vs 30p), jello effects, sensors and pixels. My experience has been that technique will overcome all of it.
You don't need to look much further than Danny Boyle's film "28 Days Later" to see that traditional filmmaking techniques are more important. It feels like a film. Not because it was shot at 25 frames per second but because the visual technique is deliberate and thought out.
My screenings confirmed this. Good technique. Deliberate and well thought out visuals rise far above the technology you capture the images on.
Wednesday
Friday
Trivia
I came across some fun trivia:
Actors who have been nominated for Best Director, Writing and Acting over their lifetime (not all at once)...
The answer is posted in the comments.
Actors who have been nominated for Best Director, Writing and Acting over their lifetime (not all at once)...
The answer is posted in the comments.
Thursday
Panic
Our lives are constantly confused by the media and its love of drama and exploitation. WMD's in Iraq, Swine Flu 'pandemic'. I don't know what to believe so I will follow Jim Henshaw...
Monday
Francis Coppola's new film...
http://www.tetro.com/
As you might know I'm a big Coppola fan. I am eagerly awaiting a trailer for his new film 'Tetro'. He has teamed up with Walter Murch once again and it's his first original sceenplay since 'The Conversation'.
The prolific blogger Mark Mayerson sent a link to an article on filmmakers in their 'magic hour'. It's great to see these great artists come back with such fresh material.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/19/movies/19scot.html?_r=1&ref=movies
Part of my response to Mark:
Interesting to reflect on. I caught Billy Wilder's 'The Front Page' a few months ago and thought how out of place it seemed in 1974. It definitely felt like a throwback to a different time, out of step with the films of its day. I also watched 'A Passage to India' the other day and it too felt like it was of another time. I enjoyed the film more than 'The Front Page' but it does have a feeling of time warp in its style and approach especially when put up against contemporary films like 'Reds' and 'The Last Emperor".
Look at Welles reinventing himself with the unfinished 'Other Side of the Wind' and 'F for Fake' (which seemed to be about twenty years ahead of its time). Kurosawa is an interesting filmmaker as well. His films didn't veer in any modern direction (aside from Dreams) but seems to have been timeless all along.
Robert Altman took his leave with a wonderful picture, 'A Prairie Home Companion". I guess it's fitting that Altman left us with a picture about an old time radio show going extinct. Ironic.
Nerds
For all you film nerds: apparently this video was shot with the new Canon 5d Mark II with a Panavision adapter and Panavision lenses. Hit the HD button to get a sharper version.
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