tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81716209605063063872023-11-16T07:08:06.913-08:00Sunspot Pictures - Peaks and ValleysBlog site for the production company Sunspot Pictures consisting of general industry opinions, production experiences, writing/shooting tips & tricks, intros, events, and notes on business & networking.Sunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-78431439921582057212011-06-05T19:48:00.000-07:002011-06-05T19:56:57.232-07:00The Religion of Depth of Field<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I can't remember when when someone first uttered the term "depth of field," to me in a conversation. But I remember it sounded
holy; it seemed to automatically consecrate it’s speaker to a higher level of filmmaking.<br />
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It was intimidating at first; that term you’d smile and nod your head at, pretending you knew
precisely what the other filmmaker was talking about. Then it became that thing
you said to sound like <i>you </i>knew what you were talking about. </div>
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Later, after a couple days of looking at the results
on the monitor of my first short film, depth of field became the difference between crap and
Scorsese. It was the secret
separating the wanabees from the professionals, and if you had it, it gave that
image in the frame a quality which separated it from all the other “video” out
there.
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Back then, it was all about the Red Rock Adapter, and we
embraced it in spite of it’s many flaws just for a taste of that shallow depth of
field. Nevermind the inverted image you
had to fix in post, or the soft corners of your frame. Nevermind that depth of field is one variable effect depending on the focal length of the lens you use -- this was a revolution, and shallow DOF was
the official religion.</div>
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After that came impressive, yet inexpensive camera bodies, the Red with it's vaunted, but unusable 4k resolution, then the DSLRs with 35mm image sensors that can fully utilize cinema prime lenses without cropping any imagery, which is now everything. -- Maybe even more than "depth of field," "35mm" is another one of those holy things that endow a filmmaking product as a must have.<br />
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But what does any of it mean? Depth of field particularly is rarely spoken of in terms of meaning; what
it actually achieves, how it can be used, or what it accentuates. At best it’s
all about how pretty it makes the image; or it's just a matter of preference. How many filmmakers see beyond the bullet on the pamphlet as
that fantastic must have feature, or as the thing that will make their film
look like a “real” film, and actually see the tool and all the tricks they can do with it? After all, two films shot at two different focal lengths, are two very different films...<br />
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Directors are idolized with the same labels. Haven't you heard? The Coen Brothers like using wide lenses, and Michael Bay likes long lenses. As though the prescription for becoming Tim
Burton, is fundamentally determined by the lenses you use. (Incidentally he likes the 21mm and goes up to
50mm, but never beyond.) <br />
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Cronenberg likes shooting entire films with one lens. David Lynch is a shallow depth of field, long lens man, while
Scorsese prefers wide angle lenses – “25mm and wider” for “crispness, and for a
dramatic use of the lines." Meanwhile Woody Allen likes to use the zoom lens a lot as a means of breaking up a scene without cuts... All of these filmmakers have reasons they keep coming back to these conventions, why don't we hear more about the reasons?</div>
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In the end, it's about the movie. It's about the story and the images, and how those images are manipulated to achieve amazing effects. "Was the image sensor a 35mm image sensor?" isn't a really a thought if those images are composed with mastery. "Depth of field," "35mm," are elements in a greater language. Use the tools, use them creatively, and tell a story.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTxcL35Y9iICSJ6XL4oNYhpWPPYVWZAf1-4YSBW3iLkTH-YCqKG99-yspxO8WlknR6iA7TMETsG3xF2EWwTtqkK_zJT99IiXHCcMwkBDx4Crnkg2FnEqM0nXRIm8k76d8i9mK4b8xK5vQ/s1600/600full-the-graduate-screenshot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTxcL35Y9iICSJ6XL4oNYhpWPPYVWZAf1-4YSBW3iLkTH-YCqKG99-yspxO8WlknR6iA7TMETsG3xF2EWwTtqkK_zJT99IiXHCcMwkBDx4Crnkg2FnEqM0nXRIm8k76d8i9mK4b8xK5vQ/s320/600full-the-graduate-screenshot.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Charles Rhoads </div>
</div>Sunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-53157416094331062062011-04-11T20:31:00.000-07:002011-04-11T21:15:52.606-07:00Sidney LumetThis piece is written by our friend & writer Jonathan Tsuneishi who has been so kind to allow us to share it. It's a short and sweet ode to the great Sidney Lumet. His talent will surely be missed! - TKS<br/><br/>
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For my money, he was one of the great American Directors. Sidney Lumet was that, not because he directed with the visual vibrato of John Ford or Howard Hawks, but because he recognized the human spirit and could break your heart with a scene.<br/><br/>
He directed fourteen films, receiving an Oscar nom as a director for “12 Angry Men”, “Dog Day Afternoon”, “Network”, and one of my favorites, “The Verdict”, which incidentally was a film by Twentieth Century Fox.<br/><br/>
He gave being liberal a good name, not by standing on a soap box, but by directing scenes and getting performances out of actors they sometimes didn’t know they had in them. It’s been many years, but before “The Verdict”, Paul Newman was considered a matinee idol, a good looking hunk. “The Verdict” shows he could act. A drunk, washed up attorney who takes on the catholic church represented by powerful and supremely smart Boston attorney, James Mason, over a medical malpractice case. But instead of accepting a settlement, Newman does the right thing and fights to expose the church’s greed for the dignity and life of a young woman.<br/><br/>
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It is surprising Lumet never won a Best Director Oscar though he was nominated four times. Unlike recent years, where one had to question the eventual winner of films considered but left behind, the films that did win in the years Lumet was nominated were David Leans’ "Bridge on the River Kwai", Milos Forman’s "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest", John Avildsen’s"Rocky", and Richard Attenborough for "Gandhi."<br/><br/>
You could argue that “Rocky” doesn’t belong, but the point I’m making is compare that group of films by Lumet and those Oscar winners to what we’ve had the last few years and you come away believing that in Hollywood’s obsession for box office share and weekend grosses, they have forgotten how to make a movie that matters.<br/><br/>
Sidney Lumet passed away Saturday, April 9th.Sunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-74163079243411217002011-02-21T21:31:00.000-08:002011-02-21T21:44:24.524-08:00That Was Then, This Is Now<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I've been looking at a lot of older films lately. Older as in 60's and 70's. Movies like The Graduate, Deliverance, Midnight Express, Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid, Altered States, Bonnie & Clyde. What I've discovered is that once upon a time in this great industry of ours story was key and dialogue was plentiful. Story, I love. Dialogue? Well, it has to be extremely well written, acted, directed for me to be blown away by it. I like beats and long silences that bring out emotion or visual stimulation in film. I'm finding, though, that the 60's and 70's didn't have a whole lot of that. Movies from that era had ridiculous amounts of conversation for a good 2 hours that really made the actor or actress a focal point that seems to be missing in recent movies.<br />
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Let's take the movie 'Network' for example. Charles saw it a couple weeks ago and wouldn't stop raving about it. I'd seen it years ago so had a foggy memory of what it was like. 'Network' was streaming on Netflix so I figured I should take advantage of that <span style="font-family: inherit;">before </span>it went away. And I'm really glad I did. What a fantastic piece of work! Brilliant acting and one very prophetic and daring screenplay. <br />
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Network was 121 minutes of conversation. When there wasn't conversation there was narration. I think the only time there was a beat or pause was during the breakup speech from William Holden to Faye Dunaway. There were 3 profound and unforgettable speeches in this movie and so much hidden meaning blatantly discussed in front of what is considered now to be an impressionable and sensitive film audience. Subjects such as media exploitation, creating story for ratings rather than reporting the truth, sensationalism, corporatism, communism, and fascism were all covered in this movie quite well. The live footage of a militant guerrilla group (who would today be labeled terrorist) sets Faye Dunaway's character, Diana Christensen, on a wild ride as she, the heartless TV programmer who'll stop at nothing to be number 1, comes up with the idea to exploit the leftist groups and individuals by putting them on TV. Her pitch to them is to offer up an audience of millions who will hear their radical message.<br />
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They buy. Peter Finch's character, the nutty Howard Beale, buys into it. Laureen Hobbs, ("
I'm Laureen Hobbs, a badass commie nigger.") played by Marlene Warfield, buys into it and buys into it hard as she yells her head off at one point realizing that all of the money supposed to go to her guerrilla group is being spread out to different network interests in the form of profit percentages. That speech is one of my three faves. As negotiations are being worked out Laureen Hobbs blows her stack saying not at all what one would expect from such a militant.<br />
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<pre><b><b>140. INT. THE FARMHOUSE - LIVING ROOM
STEIN
(a nervous man, to the new
arrivals, now entering)
Where the hell have you been?
MIGGS
(embracing the
GREAT KHAN)
Ahmed, sweet, that dodo you sent
for a driver couldn't find this
fucking place.
There is a genial exchange of helloes and waves between
the phalanxes of AGENTS --
STEIN
Let's get on with this before
they raid this place, and we all
wind up in the joint.
ED
(to FREDDIE now
pulling up a crate)
We're on Schedule A, page seven,
small c small i --
MIGGS
(whisking through her
copy of the contract)
Have we settled that sub-licensing
thing? We want a clear definition
here. Gross proceeds should consist
of all funds the sublicensee receives
not merely the net amount remitted
after payment to sublicensee or
distributor.
STEIN
We're not sitting still for over-
head charges as a cost prior to
distribution.
LAUREEN
(whose nerves have
worn thin, explodes:)
Don't fuck with my distribution
costs! I'm getting a lousy two-
fifteen per segment, and I 'm already
deficiting twenty-five grand a week
with Metro. I'm paying William
Morris ten percent off the top!
(indicates the
GREAT KHAN)
-- And I'm giving this turkey ten
thou a segment and another five for
this fruitcake --
(meaning MARY ANN GIFFORD)
And, Helen, don't start no shit
with me about a piece again!
I'm paying Metro twenty percent of
all foreign and Canadian distribution,
and that's after recoupment! The
Communist Party's not going to see
a nickel out of this goddam show
until we go into syndication!
MIGGS
Come on, Laureen, you've got the
party in there for seventy-five
hundred a week production expenses.
LAUREEN
I'm not giving this pseudo in-
surrectionary sectarian a piece
of my show! I'm not giving him
script approval! And I sure as
shit ain't cutting him in on my
distribution charges I
MARY ANN GIFFORD
(screaming in from
the back)
Fuggin fascist! Have you seen the
movies we took at the San Marino
jail break-out demonstrating the
rising up of a seminal prisoner-
class infrastructure!
LAUREEN
You can blow the seminal prisoner-
class infrastructure out your ass!
I'm not knocking down my goddam
distribution charges!
The GREAT KHAN decides to offer an opinion by SHOOTING
his PISTOL off into the air. This gives everybody
something to consider, especially WILLIE STEIN who
almost has a heart attack.
THE GREAT KHAN
Man, give her the fucking over-
head clause.
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<pre><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">Then, of course, there is the infamous speech by Peter Finch...</span></pre>
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And finally, the daring and frightening honesty that pours forth from the mouth of Jensen...</div>
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<pre><b><b> He leads HOWARD down the steps to the floor level,
himself ascends again to the small stage and the podium.
HOWARD sits in one of the 200 odd seats. JENSEN pushes
a button, and the enormous drapes slowly fall, slicing
away layers of light until the vast room is utterly
dark. Then, the little pinspots at each of the desks,
including the one behind which HOWARD is seated, pop on,
creating a miniature Milky Way effect. A shaft of white
LIGHT shoots out from the rear of the room, spotting
JENSEN on the podium, a sun of its own little galaxy.
Behind him, the shadowed white of the lecture screen.
JENSEN suddenly wheels to his audience of one and roars
out:
JENSEN
You have meddled with the primal
forces of nature, Mr. Beale, and I
won't have it, is that clear?! You
think you have merely stopped a
business deal -- that is not the
case! The Arabs have taken billions
of dollars out of this country, and
now they must put it back. It is
ebb and flow, tidal gravity, it is
ecological balance! You are an old
man who thinks in terms of nations
and peoples. There are no nations!
There are no peoples! There are no
Russians. There are no Arabs!
There are no third worlds! There is
no West! There is only one holistic
system of systems, one vast and
immane, interwoven, interacting,
multi-variate, multi-national
dominion of dollars! petro-dollars,
electro-dollars, multi-dollars!,
Reichmarks, rubles, rin, pounds and
shekels! It is the international
system of currency that determines
the totality of life on this planet!
That is the natural order of things
today! That is the atomic,
subatomic and galactic structure of
things today! And you have meddled
with the primal forces of nature,
and you will atone! Am I getting
through to you, Mr. Beale?
(pause)
You get up on your little twenty-
one inch screen, and howl about
America and democracy. There is no
America. There is no democracy.
There is only IBM and ITT and A T
and T and Dupont, Dow, Union Carbide
and Exxon. Those are the nations of
the world today. What do you think
the Russians talk about in their
councils of state -- Karl Marx?
They pull out their linear
programming charts, statistical
decision theories and minimax
solutions and compute the price-cost
probabilities of their transactions
and investments just like we do. We
no longer live in a world of nations
and ideologies, Mr. Beale. The
world is a college of corporations,
inexorably deter- mined by the
immutable by-laws of business. The
world is a business, Mr. Beale! It
has been since man crawled out of
the slime, and our children, Mr.
Beale, will live to see that perfect
world in which there is no war and
famine, oppression and brutality --
one vast and ecumenical holding
company, for whom all men will work
to serve a common profit, in which
all men will hold a share of stock,
all necessities provided, all
anxieties tranquilized, all boredom
amused. And I have chosen you to
preach this evangel, Mr. Beale.
HOWARD
(humble whisper)
Why me?
JENSEN
Because you're on television, dummy.
Sixty million people watch you
every night of the week, Monday</b></b></pre>
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through Friday.</b></b></pre>
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Everything, I mean <i>everything</i>, dialogue in this movie is mind blowing. Not only are these speeches fantastic but so is the everyday conversation...the producers sitting around having a frank discussion about killing Howard Beale, the confrontation between Schumacher & Hackett, the break up between Diana & Max discussed in terms of 'canceling the show'....Pick any part of this movie and you will find the conversation enthralling. </div>
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Today we have movement, action, effects, cheap jokes, simplistic dialogue, and restrictions on everything (couldn't share the video clips for 2 of the 3 speeches above...that's how tight everything has become!). Back then they simply told stories and let the viewers formulate their own opinions. They assumed the audience was smart enough to understand. They allowed freedom of expression, freedom of thought, freedom to create like we haven't seen in quite a while. Writers wrote for actors and actresses not for corporations and formulas. </div>
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We may never return to that kind of filmmaking again. We may never be given that freedom to say what we as storytellers want to say in a film again. But we will always have those older movies at our disposal to watch and re-watch as many times as we desire and remember that once there was a time when artists could put the business aside and simply be creative. - TKS</div>
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<br /></div>Sunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-48883706641580522182010-11-24T16:13:00.000-08:002010-11-27T10:54:03.789-08:00How to Meet Good Ideas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Coming across a good idea ought to be the most likely part of the uncertain and especially unlikely process of getting a film projected onto a theater screen; but before the Cinderella story; before an audience walks into that theater, or the marketing campaign was successfully devised to bring that audience in, or the film somehow made it into Sundance or Toronto -- whereby the right people screened it and the right things were said and the right buzz grew into that distribution deal -- before a cast and crew serendipitously came together and really made something great enough to be noticed; before that first unlikely investor came along and took a risk, or a producer saw some fleeting potential in a script and decided to put their contacts and connections on the line... there was a writer and an idea, and it probably wasn't pretty. <br />
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They had to meet. And goddamn it, they had to get along.<br />
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Yeah, there are people out there that will say "I knew this was a great idea from the beginning!" They'll lean back and fawn over how easy it all came to them once they "found" the idea; conveniently overlooking all the strife it took to turn that idea into a good script.<br />
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Jealously you ask them: "But how did you get that idea?"<br />
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The edge of their lips turn into a coy smile; they don't even do you the courtesy of thinking about the question: "No idea, just came to me."<br />
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The words are true, but I still want to punch this fictional person in the face. I digress, but as writer of this blog, I'll take the liberty.<br />
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(A can of Mountain Dew flies across the room, hitting the pretentious man squarely in the face. His nose seeps blood, mixing with spilled drink as it spots his expensive white shirt. The dry cleaner won't be able to get <i>that </i>stain out...).<br />
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Finding a good idea is hard. What's more, you don't come upon ideas, ideas come to you. You can put yourself around the right people, in the right setting and situation where ideas might hang around, but that's about as much as they'll allow. No, they come to you, and they'll do so whenever they damn well please. Then when they come, well, you have to like them. Just because an idea approaches you doesn't mean you're attracted to it. We go through ideas all the time, politely smiling at them before we go back to talking with our friends.<br />
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Some ideas are more interesting than others. All you can do is think about how cool that idea is; you can't believe they tapped your shoulder or decided to dance with you. Other ideas seem engrossing on the evening
you meet them, but its very hard to spend any time with them after that; all looks and no substance. They're secretly boring.<br />
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Can you sit down and have a conversation with your idea? Will it be one of those conversations that go on and on, spilling with great tangents and material? Can you put up with them?<br />
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The best ideas get in your head
man, and they change the way you see things. At the same time they're possessive. Everything you see, hear and smell -- every
other thought -- gets interrogated by the idea first. Trees, highway,
car wreck -- Could you work in
the story? It doesn't matter where you are --
supermarket or meeting, your idea is there vying for all your attention. Sometimes it takes a while for that possession to take hold.<br />
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No one wants to admit they have trouble romancing a good idea, but then again, how
many ideas are truly "good," before a writer took a chance
and decided to make that long, hard commitment? <br />
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The days go on and doubts inevitably ensue. You don't <i>really </i>know this is a great idea, do you? In fact, you're still thinking about that smarmy guy who said it all came so easy.<br />
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Thinking about the long journey ahead, and just how improbable the script you're writing will end up on the big screen, you sit down for a heart to heart with your idea: "Hey.
Listen, I think you're really interesting. We've been spending some time
together and that's no small thing for me -- I don't just spend time with any idea, you know. The problem I'm having is..." (You hesitate you don't want to tell them the truth) "Why aren't you brilliant? Why aren't you behaving symphonically, idea? Why
aren't you bursting with inspiration? Why
aren't you feeling like a great idea every single day?"<br />
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Meanwhile you wonder, is this idea truly destined for great things, if I have to put in all this work? <br />
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But is it really the ideas fault? You start questioning yourself: "What's wrong with me? Is this my fault? Am I any good? Am I even cut out for writing? If I have to put in all this work, am I truly
inspired -- A good idea like this comes along and this is all I can do with it?!..."<br />
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"Confidence," you tell yourself. Ideas respect confidence, but personally I suspect it's not a cure all adage.
Sometimes you just have to make a clean break. Tell an idea it's not
working out creatively. It's not really bringing much to the table
after all, and you need to move on to the next idea. Or maybe it's just too difficult, and <i>that </i>is a good sign.<br />
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Maybe you just decide to take a break from your idea. You know... temporarily. "Maybe we'll meet each other again when <i>you... </i>when I'M... More mature."<br />
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-- Next thing you know that piece of shit idea is in bed with Steven
Spielberg, and Spielberg's pulling all the stops. He's wooing the idea with his studio, with his financial resources.<i> </i>And <i>that's</i> the one that got away...<br />
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In the spirit of Thanksgiving, take a moment to be thankful for your good ideas. Also be thankful Steven Spielberg hasn't had your idea first. He's a tough act to follow.<br />
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Charles Rhoads<br />
<br />Sunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-63345695437994446732010-11-10T23:06:00.000-08:002010-11-10T23:13:47.682-08:00Joy Lies Within The Low BudgetThere is often a void left behind after a production has completed its stages of pre, production, and post. For me, it's right after we've wrapped that seems to be the hardest. I spend days and days round the clock preparing for a shoot - running around, planning, strategizing, stressing out, anticipating, problem solving, and thinking fast. It abruptly comes to a close and I'm left the next day nursing my body aches and wondering, "What the hell am I supposed to do now?" I long for a back to back barrage of productions so often simply because I manage to work on very enjoyable sets.<br />
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This summer was a slow one. We had a couple of our own productions in the music video realm and some random interview and performance stuff but not enough to keep me moving as fast as I like. So, I picked up a couple other odd jobs that had nothing to do with producing whatsoever but kept me around the camera. Then those jobs ended and it was back to twiddling the ol' thumbs.<br />
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Voids.<br />
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Too many days in a row of not being on set began to drive me a little nuts. I noticed an ad for a PA on a 3 day shoot, in a remote location, staying in a resort, with not one red cent of pay. "Sounds great!" I said to myself and off I went to work on the last days of a really bad sci-fi/horror feature. It was fun. The director had no real understanding of the words 'crew' or 'team' or 'group' so we, the crew, banded together and made it happen. It was the best 3 days of free work I've done in a while mainly because connections were made and there was a set camaraderie that can only be found on a low budget film.<br />
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I busied myself with company stuff after that then dove head first into our latest music video. As soon as that was done I came up for air and realized I just wanted to get back to swimming the depths of creative production. Lucky for me a producer/director I work with on and off popped up again. He put together a crew for a 3 day contest and I was to be his production supervisor. I was only needed for one day since the writing had to be done in one day, the shoot the next day, and the editing the following day. We were an eclectic San Diego group of varying age ranges and ethnicities and it was a blast. The rain had been coming down all week but the skies dried up for our shoot day. (Something that had awesomely enough happened on the music video shoot as well, come to think of it.) The clouds offered a natural diffusion for most of the day then spread out to show off billowing patterns against patches of blue. It was smooth and easy and quick. Yet another fine day of free work for me. As we said our goodbyes the sound recordist reiterated my satisfaction by saying, "You spend so much time working on large, stressful sets you forget what
it's like to enjoy your job. Then you get a chance to work with a crew of people who make
films for fun and you remember how great it can be." No truer words
have ever been spoken.<br />
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That was the end of summer. Since then things have come to a screeching halt. I've thrown myself into a winter office position teaching me the ins and outs of payroll for both union and non-union commercials. Super informative. Incredibly useful. But oh so dull to be indoors battling paperwork instead of the elements, crew, locations, and budgets. I love being in control of a shoot. I love being in charge. I love being a leader on a production. But more than anything I love being on a set in any capacity. It's proving difficult for me to sit still and learn more of my trade via a 9-5. I just keep telling myself it's winter. It's the holidays. It's relatively slow out there until March again. And who knows? I may come to love the payroll aspect of producing.<br />
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What I do know for sure, though...my heart lies in the trenches with the struggling indie filmmakers. Should someone invite me to participate in a low budget shoot, in the dead of winter, on a nearby mountain top, for an 18 hour day, I'd be hard-pressed to say no. - TKSSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-22006910569186476322010-10-14T08:05:00.000-07:002010-10-14T08:07:11.085-07:00Respecting the Shoot Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The shoot day. We're talking about an ethereal thing here, a temporary
window in time when ideas are channeled into the real world. To be
able to conjure those ideas through a lens as clean and true as
imagination takes an immense amount of time, effort, stress and
mental sharpness. It
takes a great producer, and a talented director, DP, and AD that
understands how vital preparation truly is.<br />
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Treating a shoot day as anything other than a time where shots are set
up and the director realizes his vision -- <i>or conducting any activity
that doesn't best support those things</i> -- is missing the point. Wasting
time figuring out what you want; fumbling around unnecessary obstacles
or any other lack of preparedness is not respecting the shoot day, and you've got to honor it as though it were a god. Disrespect a shoot day and it will decimate your film or video like a Russian winter.<br />
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Anything, and I mean anything that can be done before that actual shoot, that doesn't have to be done during the shoot, should be thought about and taken care of well in advance. And just like the actual filming is a team effort, so is the preparation.<br />
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For a producer, the word preparation is synonymous with the job. The producer does nothing less than create those 12-14 hour per day playgrounds where the director and DP can make their vision come alive. This means overseeing a project, securing financing, locations, cast, crew, and ensuring the availability and smooth function of all required resources and personnel (including equipment, props, wardrobe, and vehicles) that make up a shoot day.<br />
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For a director, respecting the shoot day means knowing precisely what you want, and how you're going to get it, not figuring it out as you go.<br />
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Meet with the DP, create the shot list together, and know it well -- down to the lens you think you'd like to use. Storyboard if possible to really understand what it is you want and what it is you'll actually get. Visit your locations and have actors and camera movement precisely choreographed (and rehearsed if that's your style). At least discuss what you're looking for from your actors well in advance of the production. Know what you want your set to look like, and have it arranged with the production designer well in advance. The same goes for wardrobe. Also know the edit as best as you can before you shoot a single frame to avoid over-shooting and so you know when you can cut a shot.<br />
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I know there are plenty of stories to go around about famous directors
that fumble their way through a shoot and still create amazing work; I'd
wager those guys either made Faustean deals or they've got amazing
DP's, producers and crew backing them up to make up for the lack
respect.<br />
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For a DP respecting the shoot means creating that shot list and knowing it well, along with lighting plots which are distributed to members of the G&E crew well in advance of the shoot. It means adequately scouting the locations and identifying potential lighting problems with the gaffer, who should determine locations of the electrical outlets, breakers, and the current capacity of electrical circuits in the building. It means being familiar with the schedule and taking into account the location of the sun. <br />
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For an AD it means understanding your set in its entirety; scheduling realistically, including set-up times and shoot times, with time included for travel and wrap and lunch; knowing where to stage make-up and equipment, where everyone should be and what they should be doing as it relates to the schedule before you ever reach the set.<br />
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For talent it means knowing what the director wants, and understanding the script before you reach the set.<br />
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It's mind boggling how much effort and energy has to go into making that
shoot day special in a way that 12-14 hours of any other day are not. If any of member of the team neglects to adequately prepare, it distracts from the only things that you should be fundamentally doing on the shoot day: Building setups, making light/gel adjustments, making creative discoveries, coaxing moments out of hiding, and gathering shots.<br />
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The shoot day is fragile soil on which you plant a good script. What
comes up -- if anything -- comes out of a lot of hands and effort in the
12 or so hours between when the day begins and ends. Footage doesn't
materialize before or after, only during, and it's precious time.<br />
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Charles RhoadsSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-51873515286593437022010-09-02T14:21:00.000-07:002010-09-02T21:23:47.973-07:00You Gotta Watch This Movie: Gone With The Wind (1939)There really is nothing as spectacular as seeing a movie on the big screen. All our new technological conveniences are just that, conveniences. Being enveloped in that full screen cinematography, that dark, cavernous room filled with people who become non-existent once you become hooked on the story, that sound surrounding and booming with warmth and excitement...ahhh, yes. It's the best.<br />
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And about two weeks ago I saw the best of the best on that gorgeous screen..."Gone With The Wind". Yep. American Cinematheque blew my mind yet again with a screening of "Gone With The Wind" at the Aero Theatre. When that projector rolled and the opening credits came on, the classic '39 movie music played, and the theater went dark, it was all I could do to keep from crying tears of utter joy.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0ykN8WCflS3NysThnkBJbvO6tA3DUThADkAam74uJyDBzRTC43Nxsove1zUJu4YzdXYI5qCbhGcfQoeNBD1N7id2X2qCNCegpUu3gIdhlvhDlT_7noeIMgzieFTTnbU9UWOdG8yJF_3o/s1600/divo_clark_gable_011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0ykN8WCflS3NysThnkBJbvO6tA3DUThADkAam74uJyDBzRTC43Nxsove1zUJu4YzdXYI5qCbhGcfQoeNBD1N7id2X2qCNCegpUu3gIdhlvhDlT_7noeIMgzieFTTnbU9UWOdG8yJF_3o/s200/divo_clark_gable_011.jpg" width="168" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKVDkZUXQcDwwxHtjshK_CARPu8tuRMX6p5hJ0vdxygY2vow2pzvFDJDT20slM2NESqS4N5Rc7PPRJuQwsjd9mTHpLiHuRBSz8X5TaJ24FJLh8tf93zgHM-Vn1K2AG_7ibyOqs_WwwAoc/s1600/clarkgable.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKVDkZUXQcDwwxHtjshK_CARPu8tuRMX6p5hJ0vdxygY2vow2pzvFDJDT20slM2NESqS4N5Rc7PPRJuQwsjd9mTHpLiHuRBSz8X5TaJ24FJLh8tf93zgHM-Vn1K2AG_7ibyOqs_WwwAoc/s200/clarkgable.jpg" width="200" /></a>I spent many repeated days as a kid/teen watching and re-watching that epic film on TV. I have no idea how it was introduced to me...I vaguely remember it as a two part special on ABC or something...but I do know that as soon as I saw it I was in love. In love with the South, those massive hoop dresses, the Civil War, the romantic notion of plantations, Scarlett's brash nature, and Rhett Butler. I L-O-V-E loved that character, that man, that idea of a man. Virile, handsome, scoundrel and sensitive, a man of smarts and survival. I became obsessed with Clark Gable. <i>Obsessed</i>. I scoured the TV guide every week, reading page by page, section by section, piece by piece...searching for all the films between 1920 - 1960 looking for his name, underlining, circling and scheduling myself to watch. There weren't a lot but there were a few. At least one every couple weeks. I was so disappointed when there was no Clark Gable for the week! To this day and since that first day of GWTW, I look for the Rhett/Clark combo in every man I've ever been attracted to. It's nuts, but it's true. And I find bits and pieces of him in almost every guy I've dated but never the full package. No wonder I'm single...! Anyway, getting way off topic here.<br />
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Gone With the Wind has been such a pivotal movie in my life. The crane shot over the wounded soldiers lying on the Atlanta train tracks was the first cinematographic moment that I was ever consciously aware of.<br />
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The massive flames behind Rhett and Scarlett as they ride past the ammunition set on fire and ready to blow was my first conscious journey into special effects.<br />
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Janet Leigh, Olivia de Havilland, Clark Gable, Hattie McDaniel, and Ona Munson gave me my first taste for acting, talent, celebrity. They set me on a path to try it myself (needless to say, I failed drama class miserably) and turned me into a scrapbooking, picture clipping fool...another reason I scoured the TV guide...for pics of my favorite actors/actresses.<br />
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And how about epics? I love epics thanks to this movie. Sweeping grandeur, intermissions, endless amounts of flowing landscape filled with earthy tones, crane shots, aerial shots, long tracking shots. Fantastic! I devoured North & South, The Far Pavillions, Ghandi, The Jewel In The Crown, The Thorn Birds, Ben Hur, Lawrence of Arabia, Spartacus, Doctor Zhivago as if they were the last feast I would ever lay my eyes upon. <br />
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Being an impressionable kid who questioned all those impressions I was never won over by the romantic ideal of the slave running South, though. I did a lot of reading and researching from a very neutral place. But I respected the story aspect of it all. So many angles, so much meaning, so much division portrayed from the agrarian culture of the U.S. Yet, while I respected the story I missed the main plot in this particular movie. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnwEMNhySDNhPtVeeLFb_sNl95lR_hIfp-PwPaKM_ug-RhkcbdTI79j4pUtONkm2g1k-Qbyxp01ZPxUUTT_Fj6mud5jQzSdBoonJ4PZu6JUqa0wVLMh5X5cRiNtDAQ70Sb_mQ5fiKszcU/s1600/scarlett-ohara-793072.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnwEMNhySDNhPtVeeLFb_sNl95lR_hIfp-PwPaKM_ug-RhkcbdTI79j4pUtONkm2g1k-Qbyxp01ZPxUUTT_Fj6mud5jQzSdBoonJ4PZu6JUqa0wVLMh5X5cRiNtDAQ70Sb_mQ5fiKszcU/s200/scarlett-ohara-793072.jpg" width="135" /></a>As I watched "Gone with The Wind" up on that big screen for the first time ever in my life I became attached to that main plot, that main character, that main reason for this film to exist, like never before. Scarlett O'Hara, for the first time in dozens of watching times, stood out on that screen like I'd never seen her. It hit me like bricks...this was a truly strong female lead role in a major motion picture that I had completely overlooked!<br />
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By now it's well known that I am a supporter of the strong woman to the utmost. Not a feminist, but a supporter of that which is the pillar in life. At the Aero that evening I realized how so many people, including myself, had "Gone With The Wind" totally wrong. They called it a movie about the South, about gallantry, about loss and destruction, North and South, divisions, slavery, plantations, and about a love story. While it <i>is</i> all that, it is so much more about the journey of a woman who's circumstances force her to be as strong and uncompromising as steel. Those other elements were her supports, our subplots. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY_nh8S3Rxar7n3ACa7_2Zm7L8SfPWlVNR0_2lt9ZbspYc1_bUh8BgcIeI3YR5Ua1vRMRbgA0gyvxOcdLc4R_g5VEgFNFxVMTlpsZpE8YVWvIxFFRB5hn5iwAQpc7YpPcA7G_bpoa9tUs/s1600/Scarlett-Ohara-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY_nh8S3Rxar7n3ACa7_2Zm7L8SfPWlVNR0_2lt9ZbspYc1_bUh8BgcIeI3YR5Ua1vRMRbgA0gyvxOcdLc4R_g5VEgFNFxVMTlpsZpE8YVWvIxFFRB5hn5iwAQpc7YpPcA7G_bpoa9tUs/s200/Scarlett-Ohara-1.jpg" width="200" /></a>We start off seeing Scarlett as a spoiled Southern Belle teen. She wants only one man and that's Ashley Wilkes. She is determined to get him. How could he not love the belle of the ball? How could she not possibly get everything she wants? She learns he is marrying his cousin Melanie (Olivia De Havilland) and decides all she has to do is tell Ashley she loves him and he will be hers instead! So, already we are seeing the strong will of our lead female character come to light. It continues with an angry tantrum and her first meeting with Rhett Butler...her male equivalent. It goes even further when she callously accepts Melanie's brother Charles' proposal at the start of the war, taking revenge on Ashley's passionate kiss goodbye to Melanie. Charles dies of pneumonia and Scarlett is forced to be a mourning widow. She sobs to her mother, "My life is over! Nothing will ever happen to me anymore!" The solution is a trip to Atlanta to visit Melanie and we see Scarlett's wheels spin as she realizes that's where she'll be able to connect with Ashley again as well. She immediately shocks Atlanta at a benefit bazaar when the mourning widow she is,
accepts blockader Rhett Butler's invitation to dance. Later, as the city falls to the Yankees, Scarlett is faced with delivering Melanie's baby amidst explosions and gun fire then getting herself, Melanie, the baby and Prissy back to Tara. She commandeers Rhett for a moment but is abandoned by him as he takes off to join the army for one last 11th hour stand against the Union.<br />
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Arriving at Tara, Scarlett is confronted by a county destroyed, Tara ravaged, her mother dead, her father gone insane, and her needy family looking to her to save them. And save them she does...bedraggled and worn, a sobbing Scarlett falls upon the ground to pull up a lone carrot that she ravenously devours only to gag it back up again. Right here is the turning point. The spoiled child Scarlett O'Hara is gone. She now becomes a woman who must beat all the odds. "As God is my witness, as God is my witness, they're not going to lick me, " she declares. "I'm going to live through this. And when it's all over I'll never be hungry again. No, nor any of my folk. If I have to lie, steal, cheat, or kill, as God is my witness, I'll never be hungry again!"<br />
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Things progress at Tara...A stray soldier is shot and killed by Scarlett when he comes in to pillage and rape; beaten Confederate soldiers return; Scarlett and family till the fields, building a bit of income to feed the family and the soldiers; overseer Jonas Wilkerson comes back to buy out Tara after finding out the taxes are too high for Scarlett to pay; and Scarlett's father dies when he rides out after Wilkerson and gets thrown from his horse. Ashley returns and Scarlett goes to Atlanta to charm money from Rhett only to find him locked up in a jail by the Yankees who are either going to hang him or take his money. Rhett, of course, doesn't help and Scarlett is forced to find another solution. She bumps into her sister's beau, Frank Kennedy, who is prospering with a lumber store in Atlanta and within days they are married. Tara is saved by Scarlett's quick thinking and shrewd maneuvers and the family slowly begins building their wealth again. Scarlett leaves her sisters behind and, after a puddle of crocodile tears used to convince Ashley and Melanie to head back to Atlanta with her, she gathers the remaining house servants and sets out on a path to become business woman extraordinaire.<br />
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Atlanta becomes a series of Scarlett strengths, mistakes, falls, and pick-herself-up-again scenarios. She rides past the shanty town alone and is attacked; her husband dies (quite the story unto itself as this is where the rise of the KKK is mentioned); she expands the lumber store into a mill; she finally marries Rhett, obtaining loads of money and a massive house; she has a daughter; she gets caught in a tender moment at the mill with Ashley, destroying her marriage to Rhett in the process; she falls down the stairs and loses her unborn baby; she loses her first born daughter to another horse riding accident; Melanie dies; and Rhett leaves her.<br />
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Yet Scarlett still manages to muster the strength needed to carry on. Throughout the film we constantly hear her say, "I won't think about that right now. I'll think about it tomorrow." It's her way of pushing any guilty conscience to the back of her mind but as Rhett disappears into the fog Scarlett knows there will be no tomorrow if she doesn't deal with today.<br />
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Ask anyone who's seen the movie once or twice what the last line is and they'll probably give you this (1:08):<br />
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Check again, friends. Start at about 03:35. Just as strong but so glanced over as Scarlett once again pulls up her bootstraps and formulates another plan for survival.<br />
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Yes. That's right, "After all, tomorrow is another day!" And one I hope that will reveal a return to Hollywood's heyday of fine storytelling and strong roles for women and men alike. - TKSSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-20672683338012412922010-08-18T04:48:00.000-07:002010-08-18T09:57:59.671-07:00You Gotta Watch This Movie: Clint Eastwood's Great Unsung Film...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvaH3s9pqP3ymTcio4dzcBZBkLVcZlz7vuVbTZG3EwMx-9_GQ23Lgx0cwhOqLHRpNfKfBH7fHe7NrI19pNH2Wx6zkNfuMn1aoN9s-q-fNX5jNdV22sbqPFiHldLOCJdwMTjAHaS0uenH8/s1600/SVOD-M-4-Any-Which-Way-You-Can.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvaH3s9pqP3ymTcio4dzcBZBkLVcZlz7vuVbTZG3EwMx-9_GQ23Lgx0cwhOqLHRpNfKfBH7fHe7NrI19pNH2Wx6zkNfuMn1aoN9s-q-fNX5jNdV22sbqPFiHldLOCJdwMTjAHaS0uenH8/s1600/SVOD-M-4-Any-Which-Way-You-Can.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvaH3s9pqP3ymTcio4dzcBZBkLVcZlz7vuVbTZG3EwMx-9_GQ23Lgx0cwhOqLHRpNfKfBH7fHe7NrI19pNH2Wx6zkNfuMn1aoN9s-q-fNX5jNdV22sbqPFiHldLOCJdwMTjAHaS0uenH8/s400/SVOD-M-4-Any-Which-Way-You-Can.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Ok, now hear me out. If the above photo didn't already alienate you, give me a few more sentences. Please, promise you'll continue reading after the next sentence and allow me to explain... This blog is about "Every Which Way But Loose" and I'm going to argue it's artistic merits.<br />
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Yes, <i>that </i>movie; the Clint Eastwood/orangutan film. You hear orangutan buddy comedy, and I understand how it might be easy to dismiss. It's a goofball movie now as much as it was in the 70's, except if you watch it all the way through and allow yourself to look a little deeper -- it's daring, experimental, and surprisingly profound, even more so, since it was a 1978 pop-corn flick. But in the 70's, Hollywood studio films had guts -- even the 70's human-orangutan buddy movies.<br />
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The title originates from Zora Neale Hurston's classic 1937 novel "Their Eye's Were Watching God." According to Wikipedia.com:<br />
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<blockquote>
the main character Janie's husband Tea Cake tells her about a
fight he had with a man who had a knife, where in the fight Tea Cake
"turned him every way but loose", i.e. fought him but did not let the
man stab him.</blockquote>
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Clint Eastwood plays Philo Beddoe. He's a blue collar auto-mechanic who's been unlucky with women his entire life, until he becomes smitten with Lynn Halsey-Taylor (Sandra Locke), a traveling, up-and-coming country music singer performing at the local honky-tonk. Lynn leads him on then skips town. Philo decides to chase her across the west, his best friends Clyde (the orangutan) and Orville (Geoffrey Lewis) tagging along for the ride. Meanwhile, Philo crosses a pair of police officers and a motorcycle gang (the "Black Widows") who pursue him for revenge. Actually, it sounds pretty epic once you summarize all of it like that...<br />
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The vintage 70's trailer describes the movie pretty well. "Hey babe, what do you think of Clint Eastwood?..."<br />
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The film is experimental in many respects; unique in it's approach to comedy. In the following scene Philo feeling lonesome without Lynn, takes Clyde out on the town. The great Charlie Rich sings "I'll Wake You Up" over the montage. Skip ahead to 0:43:<br />
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Both Philo and Clyde look at the stripper, share a few words, and take swigs of their beers at the same time. What a moment. Clint Eastwood hanging out with an orangutang... in a strip club... drinking beers. It's played completely straight, with a wistful song in the background. There are laughs, but it seems the director intended the scene to be more about the characters' relationship. It's a clue that there's more here than the sole formulaic cheap gags and over-stuffed quick laughs indicative of many of today's comedies. <br />
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On top of everything else, Philo hustles as a bare-knuckle fighter -- it's how he won/rescued
Clyde. He earns money on the side, fighting throughout the film. All the while he finds himself compared to the legendary, undefeated "Tank Murdock." This is where the movie gets really interesting.<br />
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Philo finally catches up to Lynn, but instead of that cinematic love-prevails-moment we're conditioned to expect -- especially after this Hero's journey west -- the film goes in the other direction.<br />
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He finds her in a bar parking lot with another man she just met, setting him up just like she did Philo at the beginning of the movie.<br />
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She spots Philo, her eyes widen. He approaches them. (Abridged scene:)<br />
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Lynn: It's your own goddamn fault. Who asked you to follow me?<br />
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Philo: I just thought --<br />
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Lynn: You thought? [...] I've been trying to get rid of you practically ever since the first night we met!<br />
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Philo: You do this all the time?<br />
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Lynn: Yeah I do this all the time, and you and me had our time. So how come you don't know when to disappear?<br />
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Philo: I'm just not too smart, that's all. 'Cause up till now, I'm the only one dumb enough to want to take you further than your bed...<br />
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Lynn slaps and punches Philo, who stands there and takes it. She knocks off his hat, bloodies his nose and his lip, and collapses crying. When it's over you can see it in his eyes; Philo is stunned, rejected, and heartbroken. He walks off.<br />
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Face still bloody Philo shows up to fight none other than Tank Murdock in a stockyard packed with Tank's fans and admirers.<br />
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Once again, Tank Murdock isn't the unbeatable legend you visualize in your mind over the course of the film, nor the rival you'd expect for Clint Eastwood's final challenge. Tank is fat and over the hill. Another nice touch: the man wears his old letterman's jacket from high school. He takes it off for the fight.<br />
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Tank Murdock (Walter Barnes)</div>
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Tank taunts Philo for his bloody nose and lip, "Looks like you've had a go at it already! You sure that face won't hurt too much to fight?"<br />
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Again challenging our expectations as an audience, Tank proves to be no challenge for Philo, and the crowd starts turning against Tank. Philo picks up on it and then does something extraordinary. He drops his guard and lets Tank knock him down. Instantly Tank's admirers return. Philo stays down for the count.<br />
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This is supposed to be a popcorn movie. A goofball comedy orangutan movie. Yet our protagonist is humiliated and outright rejected by the woman he pursues, he loses the final fight, he even loses all his money betting on himself for the fight. This film has the audacity to say you don't always walk away a winner. In fact, winning is such a rare thing, it's nearly a crime to take it away from someone who's whole life revolves around being looked at as a winner. Philo throws the fight and walks away a loser, because he didn't get the thing he wanted most in the world, and he didn't want to take the same away from "the great" Tank Murdock.<br />
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Show me a "serious" film that does as good a job of exploring this idea... how about any single other film that dares to lose, the way we lose in real life. <br />
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Yet the movie STILL somehow ends on a happy note, when we cut to this scene -- no music until the credits role:<br />
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Life goes on. If you've still got your friends and your best buddy, it can't all be that bad. <br />
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Every Which Way But Loose proves that even "stupid" goofball movies can be
meaningful, which is a hell of a thing for a film to establish or achieve. <i>An orangutan movie</i>, no less.<br />
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According to imdb.com:<br />
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<blockquote>
<span style="font-size: small;">None of the advisors to Clint Eastwood wanted him to do this film. They did not think it was funny or that
audiences would get it</span></blockquote>
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Well, the experiment worked. "Every Which Way But Loose" was the second highest grossing film of 1978 and his biggest opening until "Gran Torino"was released in 2008.<br />
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If I could have a moment of Clint Eastwoods time, I'd ask him if he had any influence on how most of his movies have ended, even one's he hasn't
directed, like "Every Which Way But Loose." Eastwood has an
uncanny ability to be in films that have profound/unexpected/offbeat
endings. You'll find them throughout his career, whether you're talking
about "Mystic River," or "Thunderbolt and Lightfoot."<br />
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Every Which Way But Loose is unique. "Any Which Way You Can," the sequel, has none of these admirable qualities (it's a funny movie
at least). In fact, it only flies in the face of everything I'm saying
here. For example, Sandra Locke shows up in the first 10 minutes
begging Philo's to take her back -- yeah right.<br />
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More films should play with genre, the viewer's expectations, and dare to be smart. These are virtues and we should give films that dare, the proper respect. ...Maybe it's just easier to call something "stupid."<br />
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Ok then, "Right turn Clide!" <br />
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Charles RhoadsSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-72160439384267929342010-08-10T01:22:00.000-07:002010-08-10T18:12:48.957-07:00Scoring Your Film<o:p></o:p> <br />
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<code><br /></code>Last week I walked out of the theater having just watched Chris Nolan’s latest flick, “Inception”, which was an entertaining movie to be sure; a visual buffet, a thinking man’s blockbuster, and the most entertaining thing I’ve seen all summer... But the thing that struck me most, which added that extra layer of boner-inducing awesomeness that kept my mind on the film days after i watched it, was the bombastic score. I just couldn’t get enough of those loud brass aural assaults! <o:p></o:p></div>
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For someone so ingrained in cinematography and the visual side of film, it’s odd to think that, more often than not, what I find most affects my perception of the events on the screen is the music.<o:p></o:p></div>
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If I’ve always stated that the script is for the actors, and subtext for the camera, then it must be the emotional core that’s left for the composer. So my question is, with such a meaty chunk of the film experience balanced on score, why do so many aspiring directors overlook this irrefutably integral piece of the pie?<code><br /></code> <o:p></o:p></div>
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<code><br /></code>I’m talking about you, Joe Filmdude. Most of you get excited about telling a story, you go all out to track down the newest hot shit camera and a DP that will make you look like you know what you’re doing, and it just about ends there. Some of you will go the extra mile and have a little money for post effects, but most shorts out there are either illegally co-opting copy written material, or using a synth score that your brother in-law cooked up in his basement. <o:p></o:p></div>
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How can you expect to have someone dump a boatload of money in your lap for that first feature film if you haven’t tested your mettle in every aspect of the job? Oh, you think when you have the budget you’ll just hire a composer and wipe your hands of the thing? </div>
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Score can be so many things, heroic, subtle, transformative... For his entire career Sergio Leone actually wanted to bring score into pre-production, a feat he was never able to accomplish until he did "Once Upon a Time in the West". His concept was to have Ennio Morricone record all the major themes before filming began, and then play the music for the actors during the takes since they were going to be dubbing the audio in a studio later anyway. This allowed for precisely timed line delivery and blocking, camera moves that sweep up just as the song crescendos... it was experimental and resulted in a very unique feeling film that is now considered the greatest western epic ever made. </div>
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(for those of you who have never seen it and one day plan to, spoilers contained in the clip below)</div>
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<code><br /></code>In this particular clip, the final duel from Once Upon a Time in the West, you realize that this harmonica score that's been so cool the whole time, that's made Charles Bronson such a badass, it's got an origin that ties the whole thing together and you finally understand his motivation. Score can be so much more than just music behind the story, it can be the story itself. <br />
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Now this is something that I don’t have a ton of experience with, however what little experience I DO have was with high caliber engineers and composers, which changed the way I think about and prepare this side of my films.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Before you mentally cut me off and tell yourself you just don’t have the budget to do a score, I’d tell you the same thing I tell producers who try to sleight the crew, don’t pay respectable rates, and don’t feel they need to have craft services on set… if you can’t afford the essentials, you can’t afford to make your movie. Clearly I’m only talking about people who are trying to put a serious foot forward and making an already sizeable investment in production, not those of you who are dabbling in shoestring seat of your pants sort of deals (which are of course a necessary step for all of us). But many of you out there have managed to cobble together several thousand dollars for your short, maybe to the tune of $8,000. I suggest, why not hold off a little longer and make it $10-11,000? Why short change yourself the experience of directing an entire production? How can you develop a style which will set you apart from everyone else, when you’ve only worked with half the tools in the box? I assure you working with a proper score composer who knows what he’s doing can be more affordable than you'd think and is truly worth it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Before co-directing Donut Shop Hero, I thought I knew what it meant to score a film. I thought we could explain the cues we wanted to our composer and the rest would take care of itself. Well fancy that, when you’ve never been involved with scoring a movie before, it doesn’t exactly come out like you think it will. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Scoring our film involved creating ‘themes’ for our central character, the villains, dramatic moments and comedic beats… How do you know when you need a full on song, and when you just need a drum hit? How do you know when to lean back and not use a score? I definitely didn’t want to be one of those guys who just lay down a blanket wall-to-wall score to cover poorly paced writing, acting, and editing. <o:p></o:p></div>
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We knew we wanted dirty 70’s funk, something reminiscent of Lalo Schifrin’s score in Dirty Harry or Curtis Mayfield’s work in Superfly. Here it wasn’t just style over substance, we wanted the audience to feel at any moment our unlikely security guard hero might stand up and go all Dirty Harry on these cats holding up the donut shop. <o:p></o:p></div>
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After going back to the drawing board several times, the composer finally brought us a theme for our central character that felt like it had always been there -- written, somehow buried in the script when it was conceived and just now unearthed. With much excitement, Charles and I then went through and laid out our thoughts on where score was needed based on all the different points mentioned above. “We should be scared here”, “this moment needs a sharp accent”, or “we need Pete’s theme to come in here, but it should sound ‘off’ because he’s unsure of whether he’s going to stand up to fight”, we even gave timecode points where cues should begin and end. We thought we knew what we were doing.<o:p></o:p></div>
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What we were brought was a movie score laid out to the exact specifications we’d noted, and boy did it make absolutely no sense. While some of it worked, several moments now fell flat, some of it just felt unfocused. What followed was a month of intense tweaking, micro managing, and long, very late nights. I loved every second of it.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 12pt;">What it boils down to is, like in every other aspect of directing, you must get the practice in if you’re ever to walk into a production office and confidently say you know what you’re doing. So if you’re already out there putting in the work behind a camera, maybe it’s time you thought about extending that investment into post! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 12pt;">-Nick Harris </span>Sunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-69705614956571518662010-08-03T23:10:00.000-07:002010-08-04T00:19:58.973-07:00Developing A Thick SkinOk film students and rising stars listen up! Books and lectures, panels and seminars, school and practice are all great. They give you insight into so many aspects of the career you've chosen. But certainly not everything. I've discovered a couple interesting points never covered in class in this first year of the Hollywood shuffle that I find, well...disturbing.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0w1Z4y0DJsIkOFSmR3RqjUyy8Gow_EnMn9QA2T9Pg-dqjRO4ZrN2LGuFi14DFGGJkLocctBV6DtU8JaHp_RLrcovowroeSsJnvsbxpA5NYs3-FMo8s5sxQ-6TI3WWrwsadk_-6o73qpg/s1600/producer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0w1Z4y0DJsIkOFSmR3RqjUyy8Gow_EnMn9QA2T9Pg-dqjRO4ZrN2LGuFi14DFGGJkLocctBV6DtU8JaHp_RLrcovowroeSsJnvsbxpA5NYs3-FMo8s5sxQ-6TI3WWrwsadk_-6o73qpg/s200/producer.jpg" width="186" /></a></div>The first point is this: For all aspiring producers, wrap your head around the fact that no one ever seems to know what the hell it is you actually do yet without you a production does not exist. If you're looking for some kind of Harvey Weinstein or Jerry Bruckheimer fame you will have to jump through a whole lot of hoops and be extremely resourceful. Fair enough, sure, until you run into people who say things like, "Even the Producers Guild doesn't know what a producer does." Uh oh. That's a problem begging for conquering. Then you hear things about producers being completely disrespected on a set/production and you find yourself wondering how in the hell that can be when the producers are the ones who win Best Picture awards due to the fact that they make the entire picture work. Just keep that in mind as you go forth. It's not only about the money brought to the table by a producer. it's so much more and no one seems to really get that.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXZiPMDktu3QUW4lpLHN-c-s2BFN5MJDxulzikqE-8rA9IaBh9Y_o3fwiNXNfLgzLh0qlfYDfOyI0bzQ09hPiPcRJmFtrjuYkC8oKR9EjvQNStT_HFaDJG02dvQ8M4Q0JEoIiWX28Krmo/s1600/ghostbusters-gatekeeper.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="104" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXZiPMDktu3QUW4lpLHN-c-s2BFN5MJDxulzikqE-8rA9IaBh9Y_o3fwiNXNfLgzLh0qlfYDfOyI0bzQ09hPiPcRJmFtrjuYkC8oKR9EjvQNStT_HFaDJG02dvQ8M4Q0JEoIiWX28Krmo/s200/ghostbusters-gatekeeper.jpg" width="200" /></a>The second point...Now, here's a supreme piece of learning material you will probably never learn about in film school...Sucess in the entertainment industry has little to do with how talented you are, how skilled you are, how great your ideas are, or how unique your personality is. No. It's all about being liked by the people who hold the keys to the gates. You may learn all there is to know about the techniques of production but you'll never get such a lesson on what really goes on in this industry until you drown yourself in it. And when you do you will discover that you're more apt to get somewhere by being as close to what everyone else is like than not. Larry David, the genius behind "Seinfeld", faced a similar situation but he's a genius therefore he got through the gates.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8DvQI_IxOWC1ebB7HkiENwEw2DTk0NQYizPgDHF8vD289Ia32pUdzQk2uCGW8Lu_E_4UvJus-oCsq2yqRA80leYBg5BxxivkmCa06zmN8Uq6eJv27l4nB-AQaPMPv0SXZP9x5mCDZx1o/s1600/sexism.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8DvQI_IxOWC1ebB7HkiENwEw2DTk0NQYizPgDHF8vD289Ia32pUdzQk2uCGW8Lu_E_4UvJus-oCsq2yqRA80leYBg5BxxivkmCa06zmN8Uq6eJv27l4nB-AQaPMPv0SXZP9x5mCDZx1o/s200/sexism.gif" width="200" /></a>See, the idea is to look as gorgeous as you possibly can at all times and be as sweet as possible at all times then you'll get an audience, assistance, a pass. You may have bad ideas, empty scripts, partial knowledge but if you are liked then you will be given chances and shown the light. So, for ladies, be as cute and feminine and flirty as possible. It makes everyone feel good about themselves. Distracts from the fact that there may be far better people out there than the ones that hold the keys. Keeps the fear of you being an overriding, competing force at bay. And guys, learn to be charming, fast talking, funny and a really big fan of male bonding. Sexism. It's what sells! Oh, and, if you have any handicap or visible imperfection at all find a way to conceal it. It will make them uncomfortable if not. It's simply about relationships in this industry. Forge a million good, shallow relationships and you'll be allowed to play. Maybe not by your rules...ask Francis Ford Coppola about that...but you'll get to play.<br />
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Do I agree with this school of thought? Nope. No. Not at all. Not one bit. It goes against my very grain. It always has, it always will. I imagine Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton turning over in their graves at the news. Along with so many others who fought hard for equality of the sexes. Who taught strength and character, talent and skill as being some of the pillars of success. Wasn't Jesus Christ one of those such people?<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSt7XXdVlpjjUMAFx_YVvY9psADuR6ZRMTZiIdt3MlYUmd_2zAzKlWrDE5HCqluRFt0uMa7XO5snvP-dMZqlY5cBTOHxZROcRekazUcD2dN4weUCoogc5Cw8hBaxsHlNXDaJvlXXVMAJk/s1600/loc_anthony_stanton_w_14jun.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSt7XXdVlpjjUMAFx_YVvY9psADuR6ZRMTZiIdt3MlYUmd_2zAzKlWrDE5HCqluRFt0uMa7XO5snvP-dMZqlY5cBTOHxZROcRekazUcD2dN4weUCoogc5Cw8hBaxsHlNXDaJvlXXVMAJk/s200/loc_anthony_stanton_w_14jun.jpg" width="195" /></a></div>I'm all for character myself. I like unique personalities. Every one of my friends is unique and intelligent. People who make you think and appreciate things. Every crew member on our sets is hired based on their skills and talents and their uniqueness, not their sameness. I like a good conversation at lunch on a production. Not empty talk. Original people provide that. And because they think outside of the box I know that in a pinch they will be innovative with whatever the problem at hand might be.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS9poqSD2aIVArYfEeZy0zs1ITtVczb4ucaiAzDwohRb2ezxIUhWr9mojlhMZg4m-tdfl4y42Kz1gnyMCGzB1fCZRHVDT0dm886NAEOVE3eoTg0tYhXrdKr6_jlyc9F6CZEkeMF3r2__4/s1600/1950woman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS9poqSD2aIVArYfEeZy0zs1ITtVczb4ucaiAzDwohRb2ezxIUhWr9mojlhMZg4m-tdfl4y42Kz1gnyMCGzB1fCZRHVDT0dm886NAEOVE3eoTg0tYhXrdKr6_jlyc9F6CZEkeMF3r2__4/s200/1950woman.jpg" width="160" /></a></div>I'm finding more and more each day that this industry is stuck in the 1950's. It refuses to progress. It refuses to be bold. Too risky. Why screw up a working formula? Well, if you've seen the movies lately that formula is becoming a failure. However, it goes on until someone brave enough, well liked for their uniqueness enough, and focused enough decides to change it. Until then, ya, I suppose I follow the archaic rules when I have to. I try to be the person who doesn't make the big boys feel uncomfortable. I don't stand up and flip the table over when some veteran producer sitting across from me tells me I need to girlie it up more or my irreparable lazy eye is a shortcoming that should be fixed. I don't scream at them when they tell me "that's just the way it is, unfortunately", and remind them that it wouldn't be that way had they just had the backbone to stand up and be who they are, demand to be judged by merit and merit alone. No. I sit and smile, nod and say thanks at the end. I fume as I drive home. Wonder why the hell I didn't get some <i>technical</i> advice as to how to get my foot in the door at a studio or as a showrunner when that's all I was asking for. I rage about the slow progression of equality in this life. I shower a series of complaints on a friend willing to hear it. Then I sit down and write. I brandish the pen...well...these days, the keyboard. Much more powerful than flipping the table over in the end.<br />
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I know me sitting here and even writing down my opinion on all of this is a risk. I could get a reputation as being a whiner, difficult, not normal, a true discomfort. I assure you that is something I certainly can be...just like everyone else...but when it comes to production, that is not me. I focus on trying to make amazing visual pieces. Improving on my skills rather than my smile. No griping. Just doing. I am who I am. Sometimes I can be a troubling conscience. Sometimes I can be a warm comfort. Either way I'm a person who just wants to create. Why limit anyone to being the same person as everyone else?<br />
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And now, with that said, I leave you with the following words from a veteran LA entertainer of impeccable talent and outstanding success. I'm just sayin'... - TKS<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Aenima by Tool</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Some say the end is near.<br />
Some say we'll see armageddon soon.<br />
I certainly hope we will.<br />
I sure could use a vacation from this<br />
<br />
Bullshit three ring circus sideshow of</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Freaks<br />
<br />
Here in this hopeless fucking hole we call LA</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
The only way to fix it is to flush it all away.<br />
Any fucking time. Any fucking day.<br />
Learn to swim, I'll see you down in Arizona bay.<br />
<br />
Fret for your figure and</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Fret for your latte and<br />
Fret for your lawsuit and<br />
Fret for your hairpiece and<br />
Fret for your prozac and<br />
Fret for your pilot and<br />
Fret for your contract and<br />
Fret for your car.<br />
<br />
It's a</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Bullshit three ring circus sideshow of<br />
Freaks<br />
<br />
Here in this hopeless fucking hole we call LA</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
The only way to fix it is to flush it all away.<br />
Any fucking time. Any fucking day.<br />
Learn to swim, I'll see you down in Arizona bay.<br />
<br />
Some say a comet will fall from the sky.</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Followed by meteor showers and tidal waves.<br />
Followed by faultlines that cannot sit still.<br />
Followed by millions of dumbfounded dipshits.<br />
<br />
Some say the end is near.</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Some say we'll see armageddon soon.<br />
I certainly hope we will cuz<br />
I sure could use a vacation from this<br />
<br />
Stupid shit, silly shit, stupid shit...</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
<br />
One great big festering neon distraction,</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
I've a suggestion to keep you all occupied.<br />
<br />
Learn to swim.</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Learn to swim.<br />
Learn to swim.<br />
<br />
Mom is going to fix it all soon,</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Mom is coming round to put it back<br />
The way it oughtta be...<br />
<br />
Learn to swim.</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
<br />
Fuck L Ron Hubbard and</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Fuck all his clones.<br />
Fuck all these gun-toting<br />
Hip gangster wannabes.<br />
<br />
Learn to swim.</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
<br />
Fuck retro anything.</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Fuck your tattoos.<br />
Fuck all you junkies and<br />
Fuck your short memory.<br />
<br />
Learn to swim.</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
<br />
Fuck smiley glad-hands</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
With hidden agendas.<br />
Fuck these dysfunctional,<br />
Insecure actresses.<br />
<br />
Learn to swim.</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
<br />
Cuz I'm praying for rain</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
And I'm praying for tidal waves<br />
I wanna see the ground give way.<br />
I wanna watch it all go down.<br />
Mom please flush it all away.<br />
I wanna see it go right in and down.<br />
I wanna watch it go right in.<br />
Watch you flush it all away.<br />
<br />
Time to bring it down again.</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Don't just call me pessimist.<br />
Try and read between the lines.<br />
<br />
I can't imagine why you wouldn't</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Welcome any change, my friend.<br />
<br />
I wanna see it all come down.</span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Suck it down.<br />
Flush it down.</span><br />
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</span>Sunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-77944071741599458292010-07-28T02:32:00.000-07:002010-07-30T23:26:19.447-07:00An Overlooked Aspect of The Writing ProcessSome authors see writing as an exorcism. They describe some nagging psychological haunt that won't go away until it's banished to a page. The writing process can change you. Think of all the discoveries you make in the process of completing a long piece of work, and all that you learn about yourself. Ideas that drive and inspire you ripen in a script or a novel. Inspirations can also get old and sterile -- or worse you can get sick of feeling, seeing, thinking, smelling and tasting them again, and again, and again... and again.<br />
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On top of that think of all the news, pain, happiness, and experience that transpired in your other, real life while you spent all that time traveling back and forth from your imagination...<br />
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<i>When you complete your script, are you the same person you were when you started writing it?</i><br />
<i> </i> <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUV2CkgqkmoWPJ7Siw7PVLKDAfbu8jdK48aQHub8hXL_JboDR7WbFeFLL-9Zc8MDhE54HSirNAvsqtCK_G4f7x3S1yVWDFPEi4QjF2scKEoHhUBLlqeRK4iFuKnuLRpNdUMuuDmkmQWfQ/s1600/jack_plane.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUV2CkgqkmoWPJ7Siw7PVLKDAfbu8jdK48aQHub8hXL_JboDR7WbFeFLL-9Zc8MDhE54HSirNAvsqtCK_G4f7x3S1yVWDFPEi4QjF2scKEoHhUBLlqeRK4iFuKnuLRpNdUMuuDmkmQWfQ/s320/jack_plane.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Probably not, but it depends. What are your writing habits? Do you outline? How many drafts do you write? Do you write all the way through a first draft before you go back and look at your work, or are you a writer that re-reads and revises all of the previous days work before a new word is written? Those preferences and superstitions combine into a long process or a short one; does it make you one of those blowhard writers who swear it takes a journey to write something worth reading, or one of those cocky crackerjacks who explode script faster than oil shooting into the gulf? (or are you one of the other writers who fall somewhere in between?)<br />
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Give your preferences some thought, because they combine to affect how different you are at the beginning and end of the process. How much time did you allow yourself to change? What freedom did you allow yourself to question your perspectives, or potentially lose motivation in your subject?<br />
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It's possible that our consistency or our ability to change, is what ultimately distinguishes a good writer from a great writer. You are not the same person you were when you started writing that first draft... How different are you? And how does <i>that </i>affect a script? <br />
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Maybe its a good thing to change; like getting another set of eyes to scrutinize your work on the next draft, with the advantage of sharing the same intimate knowledge of the script. Stephen King might agree when he offers the following advice in his increasingly seminal book, "On Writing."<br />
<blockquote>"How long you let your book rest [...] should be a minimum of six weeks. [...] When you come to the correct evening [...] take your manuscript out of the drawer. If it looks like an alien relic bought at a junk-shop or yard sale where you can hardly remember stopping, you're ready."</blockquote>Divorce yourself from the material to get a clearer perspective, until you're less attatched to any line or section that doesn't serve the work as a whole. Become a different person, with tweaked tastes and sensibilities who will approach the work with new found experience. Who knows? Maybe she'll discover that old-you's ideas are sophomoric and stupid...<br />
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Maybe there's an advantage to drawing a first draft out long enough for your views to change. The tone of the work at the beginning will be inconsistent with the end, but in exchange you can attack the second draft with maturity, perspective, and new ideas.<br />
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Maybe it's healthy and even beneficial to change alongside your characters.<br />
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Then again, to let one person start a book, then hand it off to a stranger to finish it sounds like it could be a terrible idea... What if consistency is the thing, and it's best to fight change however possible; to stay true to your original ideas -- to keep them vibrant and mysterious, and protect that they stay as close as possible to how you first found them. Maybe this approach keeps the energy in a script, and one should rush through the writing process to avoid changing too much before he or she finishes?<br />
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Perhaps the mark of a great writer is his ability to change, but remain true to their original intentions on the page?... What are your thoughts, fellow writers?<br />
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Charles RhoadsSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-80417115123367501992010-07-21T14:13:00.000-07:002010-07-21T14:13:04.124-07:00You Gotta Watch This Movie: The Thing (1982)<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery> <w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery> <w:UseMarginsForDrawingGridOrigin/> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--> <style>
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<div class="MsoNormal"><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p>This is a new article series where we write about movies that have inspired us, driven us, left us speechless, or are just so well executed we have to talk about them.<span> </span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I’m going to kick this off with a movie I wish I had been exposed to years ago, but thankfully I finally watched in its incredible blu-ray release, John Carpenter’s “The Thing”.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Maybe you’ve seen it, but if you haven’t, hopefully we can expose you to movies you’ve never given a chance or one’s you’ve never heard of.<span> </span>Either way, if it’s in this series, see if you can dig it up from somewhere, get it on blu-ray if you can, or at least throw it on your netflix queue (heck it might even be streaming).<span> </span>I guarantee that whether you share our taste in films or not, for people who enjoy film, anything in this series will be worth your time. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">-Nick Harris<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span> <img src="http://www.sunspot-pictures.com/sunspot/blogfiles/thething.jpg" /></span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>The Thing (1982)<o:p></o:p></i></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">From the first heartbeat synth notes of Ennio Morricone’s haunting score, the atmosphere has already dug its hooks into you.<span> </span>BUM… BUM-BUM… BUM-BUM… A lone helicopter flies over the vast, white expanse of the barren Anarctic.<span> </span>The sheer scope of the landscape immediately claustrophobic; in a place like this there’s nowhere to run.<span> </span>A gun shot echoes amongst the thrumming gravitas of the chopper blades.<span> </span>They are hunting something – a dog.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">It’s 1982 and a scientific research team has just unearthed an alien ship buried in 100,000 years of ice.<span> </span>The pilot is revealed to be a shape-shifting creature; one that first takes the form of a sled dog, infiltrates the team, and soon begins to absorb them one by one in their isolated research facility.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The genius of this movie, however, is that it’s not really about the alien.<span> </span>The shape-shifting effects are terrifying and incredibly conceived, in fact they are some of the best from a time when these sorts of things were hand crafted (giving them a sense of being more visceral, I might add).<span> </span>But, as the researchers (led by Kurt Russell’s “Mac” MacReady) discover this “Thing” could be any one of them, paranoia over who can be trusted crumbles years of friendship, camaraderie, and faith.<span> </span>“The Thing” is the story of 12 desperate men, alone in the bitter freeze with nowhere to go… and so into the darkness they venture. </div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p><object height="250" width="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-3I2rDZAJQg&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-3I2rDZAJQg&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="400" height="250"></embed></object></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">On the commentary track, John Carpenter and Kurt Russell recall saying throughout production that, “if at any point we don’t treat this story with complete and deadly seriousness, we will fail.”<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span> </span>And serious this movie is.<span> </span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I have long said that what I love about film is that it can take you to impossible places.<span> </span>When I sit in that theater seat I like to go on a ride, an adventure; to see worlds and characters and conditions I’m never going to see in real life, but I want it to feel real.<span> </span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The reason this movie is so effective is because they managed to take a far out concept of the “body snatcher” variety, stick it in a setting that’s unique and alien, yet of this world; and ground it with strikingly real characters.<span> </span>All of this and a trip into the darkness of man’s psyche make for something that you will never forget.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The cast and crew look back on the production as a miserable, grueling experience.<span> </span>Glamorous Hollywood film this was not, they lived it for 6 months.<span> </span>The clouds of breath in the air, the shivers from the extreme temperatures of an unforgiving location -- all are authentic. <o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The cinematography is perfect, the effects are bar none, and John Carpenter shows why he was once one of our most talented directors.<span> </span><o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 12pt;">You gotta watch this movie!</span><!--EndFragment-->Sunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-16480471736905875412010-07-12T15:14:00.000-07:002010-07-13T18:06:16.252-07:00The Meeting Of Minds<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfC8THcRyiJUq3XhXB2X_V90d0OsqpzFj7yy5Wk_oo9SV1UJdTyLcm-GzoYsfeOxlXvTm24r9irpWxHTXc1HjCjz-5ce4XvLDoyGCSyn_Mc9ozVo2N4_4IjZhyphenhyphenRlBS_8qpT0wrFIzoQek/s1600/Meeting_of_the_Minds_2_large_fs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfC8THcRyiJUq3XhXB2X_V90d0OsqpzFj7yy5Wk_oo9SV1UJdTyLcm-GzoYsfeOxlXvTm24r9irpWxHTXc1HjCjz-5ce4XvLDoyGCSyn_Mc9ozVo2N4_4IjZhyphenhyphenRlBS_8qpT0wrFIzoQek/s200/Meeting_of_the_Minds_2_large_fs.jpg" width="200" /></a>"The meetings. It's all about the meetings", he said with a light chuckle. "Ya. It is", I responded with a smile. At the time I thought I knew what the guy was talking about. How else do you complete a production if you don't meet with your core crew and cast? But a few years and a slew of meetings later I now know exactly what he was saying. For the life of me I can't remember who the guy was who said it or what the situation was but for some reason his all knowing yet humble demeanor towards meetings never left my memory.<br />
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In the past 5 years my life has been nothing but a series of meetings. Meetings to network, meetings to gather crew, meetings to find the right cast, meetings to follow up, meetings with potential clients, meetings to just make a connection, meetings to find the right mesh, meetings to build the rolodex, meetings to find the right lawyer, meetings to find the right accountant, meetings with people you just plain like, meetings to plan a collaboration, meetings to ask for assistance, meetings to find the next rung on the ladder, meetings to offer assistance, and meetings to catch up with people you haven't seen in a while. Meetings, meetings, and more meetings. They are the backbone of this industry.<br />
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There have been some really awkward ones for sure. A guy looking for a production company but clearly not meshing with our personalities, a fickle indie producer acting like they knew what they were doing but having no answers, ideas, or respect for anything in the end, an actor looking to turn writer/producer but so overwhelmed they emitted fumes of stress, a scamming director claiming to have investors for a slate of films, a development producer refusing to want to find money or laugh at a joke, a director who threw out strange smiles that came and went faster than the speed of light for seemingly no reason at all, a producer/sales rep who didn't trust a word said and actually came off angry and suspicious at the first and only meeting, and a marketing guy who used such large words and threw in such random knowledge of everything it was hard to decide if he was as knowledgeable as he claimed to be. And most of the above took more than one meeting to find out the end result was not going to be good.<br />
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But then there have been some great ones. Looking for interns was one of the great series. I ran into so many excellent personalities, eager to learn, talk, listen and help. Some of those ran long and to this day we all stay in touch. Talking to a film festival marketer who raved about our short (praise is always good!) gave us the much needed boost at the time. A production company owner who came from TV offering up so much info in his quick producer speak my pen never stopped writing. A few Canadian directors and producers with great ideas and professional demeanors at the level of short film production. Getting to know a fellow alumni and studio guy over dinner and drinks that moved on to a friendship and trips to art galleries and LA hot spots. Sitting down with an editor to discuss making the impossible happen in a damn near impossible time frame...and making it all work out. A DP with clear knowledge and excellent work but very little overbearing ego over lunch and a beer. Catching up with a couple producer friends over breakfast to see if all was going well in our worlds. Meeting a San Diego man through commenting on pay vs. no pay in the entertainment industry on Craigslist that lead to referrals and a job opportunity a couple times a year. And last but not least all those company meetings with anyone interested in helping us build our foundation. What learning those meetings have accomplished! <br />
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Whether bad or good meetings are what build those very important relationships. They provide for referrals. They create new friends and collaborators. They let everyone know you exist. They reveal your personal essence. I don't care how skilled, how talented, how efficient a person may be, if they are not out there following up networking events with meetings or sitting down with people in the industry to form friendships or, as a producer/director, meeting all cast/crew who will be on a production, success will be difficult. We have a million ways to communicate these days but in the end it's the tried and true meeting that secures a trust and a bond between people. I get what that guy was saying more than ever before. It really is all about those meetings. - TKSSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-92083928333559607322010-07-07T01:45:00.000-07:002010-07-07T02:02:01.255-07:00Be a 1st AD, Be a Better Filmmaker<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaiwg_lpLxP3kLHXcAaE2FXAHHXUQMCSX-3iY9tMH6O6IjuASZBXutn0WeWMXDLc-edqB13BBKAXOKTXGkdCqv81PDA192kWrky7jvdxThU8Zh0qTWVZ7Wh3RUpqqupLN7Me_oc2ZrzPA/s1600/Heartbreak-Ridge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaiwg_lpLxP3kLHXcAaE2FXAHHXUQMCSX-3iY9tMH6O6IjuASZBXutn0WeWMXDLc-edqB13BBKAXOKTXGkdCqv81PDA192kWrky7jvdxThU8Zh0qTWVZ7Wh3RUpqqupLN7Me_oc2ZrzPA/s400/Heartbreak-Ridge.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Walk a mile in a 1st Assistant Director's shoes (you'll probably end up walking a cumulative 7-8 by the end of the day) and you'll learn a lot about directing. By leaving your creative hat on the rack when you walk out the door for your 3:00 AM call time, you'll be liberated to experience (not simply witness) a lot about how a set breathes, beats, moves, and functions. A recent project allowed me that great opportunity. <br />
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I remember directing past projects, standing there, looking at my watch, wondering, "Alright, why aren't we shooting? <br />
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I'd ask the DP, who'd respond: "I don't know, I'm ready..." <br />
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Suddenly you'd realize everyone was standing around waiting for someone to move production forward. -- One of many situations where excess anxiety came out as visible sweat, while I tried to understand why in God's name things weren't moving the way the schedule said they would.<br />
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For the uninitiated, according to "The Everything Filmmaking Book," (yes, one of those generic Barnes and Noble specials out there -- don't lie, you've got one too) a first AD's job description is:<br />
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"[Someone who keeps] the balance between actual filming and the daily production schedule. [...] They track a film's progress, prepare call sheets, and make sure that everything is on time and within range of the schedule. They also coordinate with actors and crew to maintain shooting schedules."<br />
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Simply put: Everyone on their set has their role. The director, the DP, actors, make-up, production designer, etc. -- the AD coordinates every department to move through the schedule quickly, efficiently, and as seamlessly as possible (<u>safely</u>) without trading off too much quality in return.<br />
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That was a huge lesson: there is a real and distinct trade off between quality and schedule.<br />
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The day started off like this: grip and electric appear to be doing their jobs... check. Make up is setting up... all systems go, extras, actors and director are staged and prepped. The DP (Nick), was setting up the shot with his crew and I hadn't realized the director in me hadn't been properly exorcised:<br />
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"Give them time! They need time get it <u>just right</u>. You need some more time? -- Take it! Have some more time, get it perfect. <i>How much time would you need?... </i>Alright you have 5 minutes... 5 minutes are up. Not done, ok go ahead and take another 5 minutes..."<br />
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The director in me was way to sympathetic. The AD wasn't driving, he was being driven over. Thankfully Trina (of course, our resident producer/production manager, and once again savior of productions) pulled me aside and talked sense into me.<br />
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A DP can spend hours making a shot better, and a director can spend hours working with actors to achieve her vision. Unrestrained, no doubt the perfectionists and obsessives among us would take another hour on top of those hours to "just nail it," but something inside (or the AD) has to tell them when it's time to stop.<br />
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That time to stop became much clearer for me after stepping outside of the creative realm, into the world of the 1st AD. Things can always be improved, but at some point, less improvement starts taking more time. Look at the convenient graph below to see what I mean:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAD0oCFrvbHimesyfOpysONbVKKhE9vjMpvbibAyWpzC69emGTgiphIl1iUA5jsJ_T7kfmbYqGwG9mL4D8nesvgZsvPigmiem66kxzmjlp75kWa6LjpxyfjfCB4JJsPA3bUjBvv_zsaRM/s1600/graph+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAD0oCFrvbHimesyfOpysONbVKKhE9vjMpvbibAyWpzC69emGTgiphIl1iUA5jsJ_T7kfmbYqGwG9mL4D8nesvgZsvPigmiem66kxzmjlp75kWa6LjpxyfjfCB4JJsPA3bUjBvv_zsaRM/s320/graph+2.jpg" /></a></div><br />
When the AD reaches the above point, there's a judgment call -- give them a few more minutes to reach for that forbidden fruit because we're already ahead of schedule? Take the time gain and save it for a tough shot coming up? Or GO NOW because we're fighting daylight.<br />
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As a director or a DP, knowing that point of diminishing return is extremely valuable. The trouble of course, is recognizing it and then forcing yourself to stop. It's a discipline that can be improved the more you're fundamentally attached to it's importance. If you can cut yourself off, you won't render the AD's job meaningless, but at least you'll be shaving even more precious time off the schedule, keeping moral high, getting everything you need, and making your producer very happy.<br />
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Other valuable lessons and practice:<br />
<ul><li>If the AD doesn't need to tell you what you should be doing next, you're saving even more time and probably doing your job better. What should you be doing next? The answer and the urgency to get to what's next is something that being an AD can instill (or a good AD WILL instill on set).</li>
<li>This one's pretty standard, but it always bears repeating: think your production all the way through in pre-production. The answers should come fast (a little extra bonus time granted for problem solving).</li>
<li>Delegate, use resources in parallel, and keep it moving, keep it moving, keep it moving.</li>
</ul>Execution is easy to overlook when you're caught up in the creative aspects of filmmaking, but when it comes down to budget, set stress level (and what that does to performance and safety), and getting everything you need before the day is out, execution is as important as it gets.<br />
<br />
Charles RhoadsSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-73019836198508984392010-06-30T01:59:00.000-07:002010-07-02T00:09:59.887-07:00Nicktales: Things You Step In On Set (a cautionary tale)<img src="http://northphoenixagent.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/ice-cream-swirly-cone.jpg"><br />
<BR><br />
<BR><br />
It was a crisp June morning in downtown LA when it happened… <br />
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5:45am; I pull up to the front of the penthouse loft we’re shooting in to unload my camera gear. The city hasn’t truly awoken yet, and the streets are empty save for a distant street sweeper whirring along sweeping streets and ticketing unsuspecting vehicle owners. <br />
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Taking the last swig from an energy drink, I quietly prep myself with a mental checklist of what is to come. The director was inexperienced and also acting as the DP, I knew the It was going to be a long day. Looking into the rear view mirror -- back at the pile of black cases full of gear in my Jeep I think to myself, “even on these longest days of shooting, at least I get to shoot.” <br />
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Then I step out of the car, my flip-flop wearing foot squarely landing on a fresh, glistening, layer-of-goo-covered pile of dog biscuit, sliding a good 5 inches before coming to a stop.<br />
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Let’s take a moment to appreciate that stepping in shit with your sneakers is one thing, stepping in shit in sandals -- much worse. The reason being is that -- the shit was tall, it was substantial and ever so slightly, when I surfed the wave of this shit sundae in my sandals, it grazed bare skin. <br />
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I bet at least one day in the glamorous movie set life of film sensation Jimmy Stewart started this way, quietly scraping his footwear of choice on the curb, maybe picking it out of the nooks and crannies of a rubber soled shoe with a stick.<br />
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Dogs-1, Nick-0<br />
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So halfway into the day, I’m in the middle of lighting a scene in the living room. Now -- in all of the scenarios where I’m on set, never in the mental registry of “things that might spontaneously happen”, did “dog will appear and urinate on my feet” enter that list. <br />
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See, there was no dog, no dog on set. No dog even conceivably close to the set. You can imagine everyone’s surprise when all of a sudden, without warning; a dog bursts onto the set. <br />
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I watch as this big, goofy puppy appears as if supernaturally, chased by a PA while the producer shouts “this can’t happen, this can’t happen!”, and tears around the room knocking things over, tail wagging like a windshield wiper and excited as can be. He narrowly escapes the grasping fingertips of everyone in his path, generally causing quite an impressive amount of chaos before turning his sights past me. <br />
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As he shoots by, I stoop down and grab him by the collar. I look into this dogs eyes and he’s just the happiest thing I’ve ever seen! Of course he’s still incredibly excitable so when I try to calm him down by rubbing his face and ears, this guy lets go, pissing all over everything, including on my feet.<br />
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Dogs-2 Nick-0<br />
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From now on, mandatory for any production I work on, it will be stipulated in the contract that at least one man with a net be standing on dog watch at all time. Apparently these dogs are a menace.<br />
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Just a week later I was barefoot again (why am I always barefoot in these stories?), shooting a steadicam shot on a private beach in Malibu.<br />
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The shots were gorgeous, the singer and the model looked amazing, everyone had a good time on that beach. When we were walking up the stairs back to the main set, someone points out "Hey there’s a giant seagull feather stuck to your foot." And there was, a giant, filthy, crusty seagull feather jutting out from the bottom of my heel. When it wouldn’t scrape off via my other foot, I had to reach down and saw that it was pasted onto my foot with nothing other than -- oh yes, a palm sized LAYER OF DOG SHIT!<br />
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Dogs-3 Nick-0<br />
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Now I'm thinking, do dogs have a pact with the universe against me or something? Did I accidentally kick a sack of puppies and I don’t remember it? <br />
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But when I reach down to peel the feather away it’s really stuck on there. This isn’t dog shit, it’s toxic sludge. <br />
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Whew, Dogs-2 Nick-1?<br />
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It stunk of motor oil, and refused to come off, even when I used a shell from some kid's shell collection to scrape it off. It was like pulling gum out of hair, just stuck.<br />
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This of course is when my gaffer comes out to tell me their ready for my approval on the lighting in the next scene we’d had them set up while we shot on the beach. So of course I spent the next hour lighting and shooting this music video with my heel covered in delicious, cancerous, oil. I know it’s impossible that it’s from the BP spill, but all the same:<br />
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Oil Barons-1 Nick-0<br />
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Hollywood, it’s a glamorous business we’re in :D<br />
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-NickSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-33283509867109570362010-06-16T01:25:00.000-07:002010-06-19T13:44:59.977-07:00A Wealth of Useful InformationOne of the greatest things about the internet is the amount of assistance it can offer an industry person. It's all relatively new to me but as I scratch the surface I find that there are so many resources out there to utilize. It's just a question of searching and finding.<br />
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Most recently I ran into a guy on Twitter who posted a tweet saying he had access to the UTA job list and to contact him if interested in getting a copy. I jumped on that opportunity and immediately raised my hand. He sent one. Then he sent another. Then another. Each time they came out he made sure I was informed. I was more than grateful and so impressed with his openness to help others in the industry. It made me realize that social networking is a great tool once you figure out how to utilize it for your purposes. People all over the place are making careers out of consulting and lecturing on how to make it work for your business so about damn time I paid attention. But the best thing is filmmakers out there understand the idea of give and take. The more we support each other the bigger our circle seems to become which leads to a greater opportunity to get our visual stories created and seen.<br />
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I looked further into other potential ways of connecting and discovered many, I mean many, sites have popped up for producers, crew, actors, directors, and writers. <a href="http://indieproducer.net/">IndieProducer.net</a>, <a href="http://crewedup.com/">Crewedup.com</a>, <a href="http://massify.com/">Massify.com</a>, <a href="http://productionslate.net/">Productionslate.net</a>, & <a href="http://theauteurs.com/">Theauteurs.com</a> (now <a href="http://mubi.com/">Mubi.com</a>) are just a few I've found filled with valuable information. And there are always the old standbys: <a href="http://mandy.com/">Mandy.com</a> & Craigslist. The deeper I look the more they lead me to volumes of helpful directories & social networking. I've now been lead to amazing groups on yahoo and google as well. Loads of great producer info so far! Everything from questions about PA's to production insurance referrals to camera rental info.<br />
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Now, I'm not saying stay home and scour the internet for opportunities. It's ridiculously important to get out and physically network, shake hands, and have discussions with other colleagues and potential mentors. As a matter of fact I ran into the guy who turned me on to the yahoo groups at a networking event in Glendale one night. His name is Alex and his latest endeavor is a competitive guide to LA 411's directory called CineCreative Media (<a href="http://cinecreative.com/">cinecreative.com</a>). We stay in touch, me knowing that as soon as I can return the favor and help him out with some info I definitely will.<br />
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There are gems of people in our industry out there and meeting them is great. Not only do you form a relationship with them but you get a chance to help each other out. So, the balance, in the end, is to find a way to take the traditional path and attend networking events, join groups, then follow the modern path and stay on top of as much social networking as you possibly can. Add those trades and news articles into the mix and you've almost got a full time job on your hands! But it most definitely pays off as you go. - TKSSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-14422588866632088432010-06-09T04:07:00.000-07:002010-06-09T04:22:03.525-07:00How to be an Effective Director<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUsesdgVfXXML5aFXqsHSvZNZr4jF6XjTVxoaCzTfRl9xxv9D7c6BRWEUaFsHCBHQz-i1HAjoUtLc3ECS-3bBwvXbNQlAxYpgiXo2o61Fbydoey3d47w1neMmiTeFYUK8M_i0JHanxank/s1600/2006_the_departed_031.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUsesdgVfXXML5aFXqsHSvZNZr4jF6XjTVxoaCzTfRl9xxv9D7c6BRWEUaFsHCBHQz-i1HAjoUtLc3ECS-3bBwvXbNQlAxYpgiXo2o61Fbydoey3d47w1neMmiTeFYUK8M_i0JHanxank/s400/2006_the_departed_031.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
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For most professions, you can make a strong argument for and against micro-management; but when it comes to film, an effective director is <u>not</u> a micro-manager. He or she should not and can not get too absorbed by any one of their responsibilities on set, or else all other elements will be in danger of drifting from the director's vision. This is one of the most important lessons I've learned on the job.<br />
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It can be a hard habit to break for an independent director. Not too long ago, even though Nick and I had an experienced AD on set, I kept running out of the video village to chase down and re-arrange the background actors. I didn't even notice what I was doing until Trina reminded me: "Use your AD!" -- "Whoops! You're right!"<br />
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A director is responsible for so much at the same time -- in real time -- bound to a schedule that sprints but never exhales -- responsible for things like,<br />
<ol><li>Making sure all elements of production are consistent with his or her overall vision -- acting, lighting, camera movement, set design, sound elements, costume, SPFX;</li>
<li>Contextualizing shots and performance in real time; </li>
<li>Extracting believable performances from the actors;</li>
<li>Quality control;</li>
<li>Strong creative guidance;</li>
<li>Captain the set and motivate the crew;</li>
</ol>All this while paying close attention to what Martin Scorsese describes as "knowing exactly what you want and being able to change it according to the circumstances, or taking advantage of something more interesting. [...] Being able to know what is essential, what you absolutely can not change, mustn't change, and what you can be more flexible on."<br />
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It's a minor miracle any movie gets made, but for a movie to be made well, a director must focus clearly on all aspects, made possible only by a crew that can be trusted with the details -- a script supervisor, 1st AD, DP, Production Designer, Costume Designer, great actors (not to mention a magnificent UPM making it all possible).<br />
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The trap is getting absorbed in a single issue because any one of these components is lacking or completely missing. It's a perpetuating problem. Thought given to that continuity problem that a script supervisor should be concentrating on, is a thought that could have been some amazing visual that will never be improvised. Focus on an actress that needs extensive coaching on set, is focus distracted from other actors who need less coaching but coaching nonetheless. -- The difference between a mediocre scene and good scene, a good film, and an inspired film are overlooked mistakes and details, and great ideas that never had a chance to be imagined.<br />
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Use the resources you've got and do pre-production right to avoid these distractions. Take the time to find the right crew, crew you can trust to focus on the details, while you focus on the bigger picture. Hire actors you can be confident in; collaborators who aren't just there to do exactly what you say (but will do what you say if you ask nicely). As Clint Eastwood says, 95% of his job is simply picking the right actor -- I'm sure the same goes for his crew. <br />
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Low budget independent filmmakers often take pride in wearing all the hats. They see AD and script supervisors as luxuries. Why not just work a little harder and save on budget? But until you fully utilize these roles, until you trust your crew; you'll bend over backwards, but you won't fulfill your full potential as a director or make your film the best film that it can be.<br />
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-- Charles RhoadsSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-82873342947547392932010-05-31T12:34:00.000-07:002010-05-31T12:36:25.446-07:00A Call to ConsumersThis morning, as I read an email response from a rep at one of the ad agencies I met with in New York last week, I couldn’t help but feel a little disheartened by his words... “the 30 second spot is dead.”<br />
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First off, what is it with people? They seem so happy to be the kings of these glib declarations; every time technology supposedly trounces another piece of our analogue history they rush be the first to proclaim something dead before its time. Film is dead, records are dead, your parents are dead... blah blah blah, but don’t worry, they’re being replaced with something far shinier, more efficient, and death-proof! No seriously, I replaced your parents with cookware; learn to fry an egg it builds character. <br />
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Let’s be clear here, when I say the word “disheartened,” I of course mean I’m tired of this band wagon mentality that permeates our stinkin’ industry, the fools who jump from one piece of tech to the next – EACH and every time claiming it’s the nail in the coffin on film; the ones who say the future of Hollywood is on mobile phones (a big salute to you especially); the ones who think 3D will be the band-aid over the wounds that story suffers weekly with each release of these safe bet remakes and reboots... I do NOT mean that I question my ability to survive as a broadcast content provider in the midst of a sea change. For you see we have built our boat in these waters and it’s made of WOOD (wood floats, silly). <br />
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Now, you might be asking yourself “who is this human turd man who defends the advertisement of corporate America?!” And I will respond thusly: I am not a TURD I’m a man and I have feelings!... Look, I am also no fan of the bombardment of consumer products we all live through daily. I am not a fan of billboards and bus stop ads; I do not revel in 25 pages of cologne bathed half naked men and women airbrushed into oblivion before I even get to the contents pages of my latest copy of Guns and Ammo Magazine. NO SIR! But damn it if I don’t know a single person who isn’t just as excited about the commercials in the Super Bowl as they are the game itself. <br />
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Because when commercial advertising is good, it speaks to us on a fundamental level, it makes us laugh, it makes us cringe, it creates nostalgia -- it becomes part of our social consciousness. It also pays for our goddamn television production.<br />
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It’s so funny, when I discovered Hulu I thought I found the holy grail of television content distribution. What do you mean I don’t have to wait for reruns of a missed show?... in fact – HOLY SHIT!!! I can actually see entire seasons of programming? Back episodes at my fingertips? Any time I want you say? The networks are be-HIND this?!? Oh... well what are those little stupid dots on the timeline... commercials? Well... it’s only one at a time I guess I can live with that. <br />
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I actually prefer it to Tivo. You have to sit through an occasional commercial, so what? It’s better than sitting through 5 at a time so it’s a step up from standard broadcast. Also, It requires nothing of me except that I have a computer in my lap and 27 minutes of time to waste on another episode of Fraggle Rock. I don’t have to pay for cable, I don’t have to have any sort of television signal coming into my life, I don’t have to schedule recordings and delete old episodes when it fills up... and I can still catch my episodes of the Daily Show, South Park, and anything else pretty much. Free.<br />
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But this is not to be so. Hulu is turning over to the evils of pay service, because in this digital age people still feel the need to seek out ways to absorb this painstakingly crafted content without paying the piper. It’s ad revenue that creates the ability to produce and air these shows. If not ad revenue it’s back end dividends from the DVD market or pay service sites. But of course, like everything else, DVD was proclaimed dead as well -- at the hands of the potent mix of digital piracy and the still hazy future of distribution.<br />
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Maybe people are right, maybe commercials are shitty, but let me tell you I watch plenty of shows that I would never want to own or pay for in general, so I am happy to sit through commercials if it means I don’t need to buy a DVD or pay for the content. If I look for alternatives that don’t require me to pay for it or watch commercials, I’m neutering the ability for the shows I watch to be made in the first place. <br />
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Let’s be real though, the reason people are so burned out on commercials is because, by and large, they suck. But once a year, and on a few very rare occasions in between we are blessed with a competition of advertising that has many times lead to some of the most memorable television moments in the history of the medium, so socially or comically relevant that they are recorded, nay, burned into our pop collective.<br />
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Where’s the beef. The Budweiser Frogs. Mean Joe Greene. Got Milk? <br />
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IF the 30 second spot is to die, as so proclaimed by the agency ass hat who’s passing the buck on his own industry before doing a damn thing about it, if this is to be so – it is his own damn fault. If commercials were as consistently entertaining as the content they pull us away from, if advertisers were better at their jobs than they think they are, we’d have no reason to switch the channel. <br />
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In the end, I’m not at all sad at the idea of the 30 second spot getting a serious run for its money. They need to step up their game and create engaging content, learn to keep us interested. A commercial may be 30 seconds but it’s still filmmaking to its core. Make it good and people will happily watch.<br />
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-Nick HarrisSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-16418797441581140622010-05-18T22:16:00.000-07:002010-05-23T12:31:00.219-07:00A Call To Arms<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4x1WSBGCuDCAYewtA5G4A9Ce1GforIqF6b6sApXXIKkDIoe7f4e8tZUFano44kdfDdhznkmYMjrHDDX09zn8y04jnL4HDXMwFl1C0fhX77-johm14_fgMw5gPjUSeo6Y9C7evpQiezwI/s1600/PenPaper.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4x1WSBGCuDCAYewtA5G4A9Ce1GforIqF6b6sApXXIKkDIoe7f4e8tZUFano44kdfDdhznkmYMjrHDDX09zn8y04jnL4HDXMwFl1C0fhX77-johm14_fgMw5gPjUSeo6Y9C7evpQiezwI/s320/PenPaper.gif" /></a></div>I try very hard not to mix politics and business. It's the equivalent to the separation of church and state. The two can be an explosive, debilitating cocktail of destruction when they become one. Today, however, I cannot silence the noise I'm about to make here. <br />
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PBS, ever becoming more and more a fascinating venue for gorgeous cinematography and entertaining programming, plays one hour of Democracy Now every weekday nite. Sometimes I watch, sometimes I shut my eyes and ears tight to the chaos of the world hoping to preserve a long, calm nite of sleep. Couldn't do it last nite. The persistence of Amy Goodman won. I sat on the edge of my bed listening to her report the student protests at the University of Puerto Rico. Something, I've come to find out, not happening in the mainstream press. 24 days these people have been occupying the university grounds...a campus of 65000 students...protesting the $100 <span style="font-style: italic;">million</span> in budget cuts. They are being starved, their family members trying to get them water being arrested, riot police surrounding them, threatening them. Don't forget, PR is United States territory. This ain't a third world dictatorial situation.<br />
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Several recent scenarios flashed before my eyes: Texas changing the context of history books, deleting facts, twisting truths and calling it education; schools in urban Kansas City and other districts going bankrupt; Arizona eliminating ethnic studies; the continuation of the failed No Child Left Behind program, and a presidential candidate vehemently promising to make the education of our nation a top priority. The dumbing down of America by the hands of the trusted. More frightening to me than any missile threat from the east. <br />
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And there went any possibility of a peaceful nite's sleep.<br />
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Now. I make it a daily event to watch one full hour of quality television every nite. Sometimes my sleep suffers and I go into two hours, sometimes three, if it's all just too good to turn off and my discipline is at a low, but most of the time I keep it at bay. It's my learning tool. It's my daily industry news. It's my replacement for the terrible cinema taking over the theatrical world. It's my hope. <br />
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I've devoured the first season of Mad Men recently and found it to be the most overall well written, filmed, designed, and executed show I've ever come across. It's intelligent and daring, edgy, bold, so so entertaining. The characters, the story, the concept, so well developed. The acting and, quite obviously, the directing are fantastic. Camera movements, lighting, art design, dialogue, sound...a Valhalla of moving pictures! <br />
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The crazy thing is I initially rejected this show. It was a Christmas present from Nick. I wholly appreciated the thought but questioned him on his decision to offer this show to me as a gift. It was HBO and Showtime I ranted and raved about incessantly. Why this silly new offering from AMC? How could one of the lower channels possibly compete with the genius of pay TV serials?<br />
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I had caught up to all those glorious programs a couple months after Christmas and rather than go back and re-watch, definitely not something I'm adverse to, I decided to give the "lesser" series a try. Three episodes later, at 3 am in the morning, I was singing the praises of AMC and thanking Nick for the intro to Mad Men from the bottom of my heart. He had opened up Pandora's box of television shows for me. All 900 channels were now open for my inspection at the first suggestion of greatness hinted at by anyone I considered to have semi good TV taste. <br />
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I've now gone through Mad Men, Breaking Bad (my pick-my-jaw-up-off-of-the-floor series), United States of Tara, The Office (UK) & Party Down. I branched out into Showtime with Weeds, Dexter, and Nurse Jackie giving each of them the benefit of the doubt at the behest of the first season's usual discomfort of watching the actors get into character and the not-having-enough-money-yet-for-a-really-good-production obstacles. I looked under the layers, focused on the plot lines, listened to the writing and let it all move me, teach me, and allow me to escape. <br />
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No need to say HBO warranted absolutely no prompting. I've followed everything from Deadwood to the Wire to Carnaval to Flight of the Conchords to Curb Your Enthusiasm, Extras, True Blood, the Sopranos, Six Feet Under, Summer Heights High, Big Love, Bill Maher, Sex In The City, Tell Me You Love Me, In Treatment, John Adams, Def Poetry...!!!! I even delved into the world of HBO Latino and got swallowed up by Alice, Capadocia, and Filhos do Carnaval!<br />
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See???? And there's no end to this whirlwind of fantastic. Treme, Ricky Gervais, Hung, and the Pacific loom on the horizon. No kid in a candy store could be happier than I am dancing with the fine work of so many TV artists and executives. And that's something I NEVER <span style="font-style: italic;">ever</span> thought I would say.<br />
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I recently decided to give the networks a chance. With everyone raving about Lost and Glee, and me with my new found trust in TV and tolerance of other peoples viewing advice, I did it. And I'm hooked. Glee is a world of funny and talented. It levels me after a high anxiety hour of Lost. And yes, Lost has my heart racing by the end of almost every episode so far. I'm only a few episodes into the first season but, man, I am happily impressed and pleasantly surprised. Oh, ya, it's network television no doubt. All the main characters are good looking and perfect. Dimples and cerulean blues. The leader (so far) is a man. The women a little non existent in the strength of the story line except as victims. The danger perilous but usually overcome by the end of the hour. But it's good, suspenseful stuff. And the dialogue far from normal network cheesy. <br />
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As I watched Charlie hanging from a jungle tree last nite, seemingly dead, my heart went into fearful over drive and I had to remind myself it was network TV I was watching. Not cable. Only cable kills the main characters and leaves everything so wonderfully unpredictable. It easily calmed me as I knew Charlie would live to see another production day. But the show's creators threw a curve ball at me that almost had me jumping out of bed whistling and hollering, showering pride on the industry I struggle to survive in. Charlie lay dead. His rescuers given up. Could it be? I wondered. Could it really be? Alas, no. The hero doctor gave it one last go and our victim gasped back to life. Even still, a well done scene. JJ Abrams just moved high up into the ranks of top notch directors for me. I even compared the guy to the untouchable and seemingly impassable Spielberg. If the quality and boldness of what film once was (and what TV has become) existed today would JJ Abrams give Spielberg a run for his money? Would his film work surpass the genius behind Jaws, Close Encounters, and Raiders of the Lost Ark? Sadly, we probably won't find out anytime soon. Not with the junk studios are dumping on the pill popping, food poisoned, and chemically laden masses that we are all a part of.<br />
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Which brings me right back to politics. Education is information. Information means making choices. Making choices based on educated thought means quality innovation for an ever growing population. As the American system of education declines further than we've seen it since the birth of this idealistic nation...As public schools and universities run out of money...As doors close on those below the upper middle class line...It's crystal clear obvious there needs to be something else to replace the loss of intelligence we will all be victims to. Now's the time to be patriotic. Now's the time to refresh the tree of liberty. Now's the time to put down the apathy and look through the propaganda. Eisenhower's military-industrial complex is quite possibly upon us for without education there is only war, poverty, tyranny. <br />
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Ask yourself what each one of the shows I mentioned in this blog have in common and you should realize that it is intelligence. They are all clever and unpredictable. They are certainly there to create revenue, sell commercials but not in the damaging way it has been since the advent of the TV. Each series draws upon real life. Each series looks at the motivations of real people. Looks at the paths of strife that have been our lot in history. Some series, like the Wire, are written by people who have lived and breathed trauma. Others, like Lost, are fully fictional scenarios that offer explanations to human behavior, governance, and destruction. But they all offer an education of sorts. If our government and our schools are not going to do it then we, as entertainers, creators, artists and producers can. What better way to learn than through entertainment? What more fulfilling career to have than one that supports open minds and free thought? What better payoff than one that lets everyone have a piece of the pie?<br />
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And so this is a call to arms. Pick up your weapons. Your pens, your paper, your paints, your guitars, your drums, your microphones, your cameras, your laptops, your editing bays, your persuasive natures, your fast talking abilities, your confidence, your pride, your voices. Pick them up and hold them high. Move swift and be creative. Without the artists & entertainers leading the way social progress stands still. - TKSSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-44508726944970701552010-05-04T01:07:00.000-07:002010-05-05T00:54:34.104-07:00A Call to FilmmakersHollywood is paralyzed in it's fear. Studio executives insist on making bets so safe it's <a href="http://www.scriptshark.com/script-journal?detail/C17/unoriginal-ideas">absurd</a>. Somewhere right now, a panel of marketing experts, film industry veterans and social media savants stream live in a vain attempt to address the same unanswerable questions:<br />
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Is that Great Hollywood Bounty a thing of the past? How will movies make money in the digital era of micro-audiences, piracy, and streaming video? How will we make a living in a saturated, one-dollar-a-rental-Redbox-market, with so little space for theatrical distribution? <br />
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We producers, writers, and directors, are preoccupied with article after article addressing these questions, no more certain or satisfied than if we hadn't even read the articles in the first place. Meanwhile the battle for the soul of our culture hangs in the balance, and I hate to say it but culture is losing.<br />
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Today's teenagers are supposed to identify with remakes, reboots, sequels, and incessant comic book movies they've known since they were young enough to start appreciating movies. Copies of copies defining a generation, coming from those that came before them -- willingly supplied by us.<br />
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Where's the sense of outrage? And more importantly, <i>why comic book movies</i>? Was this the unobtainable "We'll-get-there,-pop" dream Shakespeare had in mind all along? Really? A Jonah Hex movie? A Deadpool movie? (Not to mention the fact that the guy that played Deadpool is also playing Green Lantern?) -- We're not even talking about the staples anymore, this is the crap left over. <u>Why?</u><http: c17="" script-journal?detail="" unoriginal-ideas="" www.scriptshark.com=""></http:><br />
<http: c17="" script-journal?detail="" unoriginal-ideas="" www.scriptshark.com=""><br />
</http:>Of course any industry lives or dies by economics and <http: c17="" script-journal?detail="" unoriginal-ideas="" www.scriptshark.com="">higher ROI. Money. These safe bets with built in audiences are a better guarantee for investors -- so say the executive sages that run this town. </http:><br />
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<http: c17="" script-journal?detail="" unoriginal-ideas="" www.scriptshark.com="">But friends, money, and money alone isn't good enough. Money is no excuse. Money vs. creativity is a false argument, and money alone is a short-sighted illusion. It's the same oversimplification that doomed Bear-Sterns and Washington Mutual (and perhaps our whole economy if the government hadn't intervened). </http:>One need look no further than the sub-prime mortgage crisis to see this truth in practice. As long as great sums of money were flowing, the experts that run the great banks of wall street never asked why, and <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6298154n&tag=cbsnewsMainColumnArea.5">virtually all the tycoons forgot what they were there to do to begin with</a>. Trading worthless mortgages at top dollar, they forgot their purpose, and it nearly destroyed the U.S. banking system.<br />
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<http: c17="" script-journal?detail="" unoriginal-ideas="" www.scriptshark.com="">Asking why, always why, in the midst of good times or bad, is the difference between failed societies, failed civilizations, failed economies, and fundamentally sound ones. Are we fulfilling the true purpose of our industry? Are we providing entertainment and culture to our society?</http:><br />
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<http: c17="" script-journal?detail="" unoriginal-ideas="" www.scriptshark.com="">You can argue that comic book movies, remakes, reboots and sequels can be entertaining. It's possible, but it's doing a pretty half-assed job, wouldn't you agree? It's a copy, a traced sketch, a re-used tissue. Yeah, it'll get the job done, but we aren't just in the business of entertainment. Our business is also about culture, and anyone that says otherwise is deaf, blind, and dumb. People once admired poetry en masse and it defined a culture; people once read fiction en masse. Film is the new standard bearer.</http:><http: c17="" script-journal?detail="" unoriginal-ideas="" www.scriptshark.com=""> </http:><br />
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<http: c17="" script-journal?detail="" unoriginal-ideas="" www.scriptshark.com="">I'm not even talking about adult dramas, or avant garde cinema, or foreign films nobody can understand. I'm talking about films with heart! An honest stab at original content! </http:>Films that jump off the 3 act structure every now and then. <http: c17="" script-journal?detail="" unoriginal-ideas="" www.scriptshark.com="">Exceptions! Risks! -- Whether they be dramas, comedies or horrors. Films that respect their audiences instead of patronizing them.</http:><br />
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Why do we re-make the same movie when the original story is sufficient? Why are sequels made that don't further a story?<br />
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And to you independents: dispell your egos. Cast it from yourselves! While, money and only money could be the reason a film as sick, useless, and morally barren as "The Human Centipede" could ever be made, <http: c17="" script-journal?detail="" unoriginal-ideas="" www.scriptshark.com=""></http:> ego is the ingredient that inspires such films. The sense that your work deserves to be seen, no matter what, is not enough. While you concern yourselves with bottom line, marketing, and potential audiences (in pre-production like you're supposed to be doing, right?), think of this as well: <br />
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Films are reflections of the people that make them and the era in which they are made. What kind of a movie do you want to make? What do you want to say during your short time above ground?<br />
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Hollowed out culture marks a civilization in decay. The responsibility falls on you to provide some of that culture -- and don't get me wrong, I believe even goofball comedies are part of the solution. But don't pass the buck. Don't blame audiences for accepting copies of copies; don't give into the easy dollar. We've got a job to do.<br />
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Charles RhoadsSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-35866272524689088602010-04-27T17:16:00.000-07:002010-04-27T17:16:57.509-07:00Know Your Cameras Foo!There was a time when it was a cinematographer's sole discretion, or at the very least a collaborative discussion between Director and DP that yielded a final say on which film stock to shoot a motion picture.<br />
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With the advent of the digital revolution, this all seems to be changing. Nowadays it's almost as if before a movie is even conceived, the format on which it will be shot is decided. <br />
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"I want to shoot my film on the RED ONE!" <br />
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Oh the cry of the indie masses, we hear you, but do you know WHY you want to use that fancy looking pile of camera? <br />
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"It shoots 4K, it has 35mm depth of field... it's the newest derned shiniest thing that shoots pictures in these here parts see!"<br />
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That's generally where the list ends. Back in the day, you know, when people actually knew what they were doing and why... we made choices on camera/film stock based on narrative reasons. Each film stock has a very unique and distinctive treatment of color and latitude which lends its importance to very specific visual storytelling necessities.<br />
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You don't shoot "The Pianist" with the same stock you shoot "Transformers 2", there's method to this madness.<br />
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But these days everyone seems to have this delusion that there is one camera to rule them all. Before I begin to discuss exactly why the RED isn't the wunderkind-camera-of-the-millennium like almost every indie producer working today would have you believe, I will put it out there that the RED ONE is most definitely not a camera to be ignored. <br />
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However, what most people these days don't realize is in this new digital playground, choosing a camera is akin to choosing film stock. You don't shoot a RED project with a Panasonic, and you don't shoot a Panasonic project with a Sony. Just the same you don't shoot Kodak when you should be shooting Fuji...<br />
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Let's talk numbers for a moment, I'll try to keep it from getting too cryptic. 4K, the RED's biggest draw, is the super cool bigger brother of 720p and 1080p. He's got an electric blue 1987 Camaro drop top, the ladies love him, and all his friends treat 720 and 1080 like a couple of chumps when they tag along. <br />
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What importance does 4K resolution serve? Actually, on this one I would say quite an important role indeed, or at least on the surface it might seem that way. 4K means, much like 1080P (which is 1920x1080 pixels), your image is 4096×3072 pixels. Ideally, you'd think that more pixels equals better picture, but that's where numbers, science, and good old fashioned movie watching show that it's not as important as you might think.<br />
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First off, almost no theaters project digital in 4K, they project in 2K. Yes, even Hollywood's fanciest most techno-driven futuristic digital theater, The Arclight on Sunset Blvd, projects half the resolution at which Joe Filmmaker feels he needs to shoot his shitty ass web series, short films, and music videos.<br />
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It has been proven that the only people that gain anything from the extra detail of 4K are those who are sitting within 1.5 screen lengths from the screen (and by screen I mean theater screen... something most projects shot on the RED will never see). This means, If I were to tip the screen down over the audience and add half it's height, those people sitting in the seats it covered would be the only ones who might be able to perceive the increase in definition, and I stress MIGHT. Generally, those are the seats nobody wants to sit in. <br />
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I would also like to ask, for those of you who have seen any of the following films (Zodiac, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Slumdog Millionaire, Sin City, Collateral, Star Wars: Ep. I, II, and III, or Superman Returns) in the past years since digital cinema became a reality for big budget studio films, did those movies not feel like real movies to you? Did they lack something in their framing, depth, or overall detail that was so unnerving you thought you were watching your niece's ballet recital for 2-3 hours? <br />
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I know for myself, especially with Zodiac and Slumdog Millionaire, that I was so engrossed in their stories, acting, consistently high production value, and expert framing, that I never stopped to think they were less than ideal in quality... because they are not. They are just what they needed to be.<br />
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But this is what producers today seem to believe. Not because of some hidden agenda to discredit great cameras; more because they have no idea what really makes a good image, but they do know what's hot on the market. Now, the cameras that shot some of these films are being looked at as less capable, less desirable, and thus get their owners less work now because they aren't the newest kid on the block. For those of you putting together low budget productions, shouldn't that pique your interest?<br />
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I once listened to a producer ask a well recognized DP, whom I was sitting next to at a panel discussion, whether he should take his friend up on an offer to shoot for free on a Sony F900 (mind you this camera still goes for $50,000+ for body alone today), or spend money on a RED. He seemed almost depressed or disgusted by the idea of using this "lesser" camera. I jumped in because I just couldn't believe it... technology might advance, new cameras might be easier to work with, fancy solid state workflows might be replacing tape, but in the end the question is: does the camera put out a cinematic image? This idiot, who's shooting a crummy, low budget independent horror film with no distribution, has an opportunity to get for FREE the same camera that was good enough for George Lucas, Robert Rodriguez, and countless others who cut the path before him... "what sort of producer are you?" I asked, "did the image this camera put out 8 years ago suddenly become beneath your sensibilities? Work with what you can afford, and in that, what will afford you the best image for your story." The DP who was originally supposed to answer this question smiled, squashed his laughter, and patted my shoulder in agreement. <br />
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Slumdog Millionaire was shot on a camera with half the resolution of a RED ONE, and with an image sensor half as large, yet somehow this disgusting, lowly, piece of crap camera put out an image that WON AN ACADEMY AWARD... how ever did this happen?!<br />
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This brings me to a very important point that it's the eye BEHIND the camera that makes an image worthy of lighting up the silver screen. I'm more than certain that Anthony Dod Mantle could make a cell phone camera feel like more than it's meager parts if it were asked of him... which he pretty much did by filming "28 Days Later" on a pre 24P standard definition Canon XL1-S. <br />
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OF COURSE it didn't look like 35mm Kodak Vision 3 stock, it was grainy and soft, but the brilliance behind their decision was that in every possible way their choice benefited the production. The image itself lent a documentary feel to a situation that cried for you to feel like you were right there; the low cost of the camera meant they could have more cameras covering large events at no risk to production budget; and lastly the brunt of the budget was for once able to go into mis en scene. Makeup, locations, extras, props, effects... these are all major costs for a film. The camera didn't need to add another humongous cost and so what was being placed in front of the grainy, filthy image felt all the more real -- thus: here is an example of producers/director/DP who actually functionally reasoned their choice in digital acquisition.<br />
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The other major component that people are going gaga over these days is RED's 35mm sized sensor (now being threatened by this DSLR revelation which is a blog unto itself). Now, as a DP myself, I will not sit here and tell you that it's not ideal to have that amount of control over depth of field, but here's why it's not as important as the camera nut whispering in your ear might tell you.<br />
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Last year I was talking with the reps from Band Pro, which are the retail face for Sony's major digital cinema cameras, and they were telling me the F23 (the 2/3" imager successor to the F900 and F950) was being almost completely ignored. Why? Why would a $200,000 camera that's the next in a line of cameras that defined digital cinema for decade not be finding work? The answer was Sony's more expensive F35, a similar camera that competes with Panavision's Genesis in specs that rocks a 35mm sized image sensor, was king of the roost.<br />
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Let's just make a note that we're talking a whole different ballpark of camera here. The image output of the RED can't compete with the F35 or the Panavision Genesis, these are cameras for the biggest budget digital pictures in production by the major players. However the concept is the same, image sensor size dictates depth of field so when you have 2/3" imagers going up against 35mm imagers, 35mm wins hands down when it comes to your ability to control depth and focus. <br />
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However, this is tied in with how wide you've set the iris of your lens (the wider the iris, the shallower the depth of field) so when we get back into balancing budget with the available tools in your cameras, you should understand that 2/3" cameras like the F23 (which shot Cloverfield and Public Enemies), The Viper (which shot Benjamin Button and Zodiac), or the Silicon Valley SI-2K (which shot Slumdog) are perfectly capable of shooting with what your audience would consider cinematic depth of field. Most DP's shooting 35mm, whether digital or film, are shooting with their lenses stopped down to a depth of field that matches what the 2/3" imagers put out with the iris wide open.<br />
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If this sounds like jargon to you, just understand that the RED is being chosen over competing cameras in its price range because of the depth of field. I'm telling you if you put any of those competing cameras in my hand, I will produce just as cinematic an image as I would with the RED. Your DP just needs to know what he's doing. <br />
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So now that we understand why people are going after the larger sensor, I can cover its drawbacks. Color suffers, plain and simple. The larger a sensor, the more heat it generates. On smaller imagers, you generally have 3 separate chips, which means for each and every pixel you are getting information for luminance (or brightness) and red, green, and blue color signals.<br />
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With the larger chip, because separate RGB sensors would produce so much heat (until of course the technology allows us to do so) it has to do all that the 3 chip sensor does with a single chip. There's no free lunch, and the answer is what is called a "Bayer pattern", the same tech that's in your mom and pop home video camcorder. This means that each pixel on the chip gets a single color, and luminance information. The colors are spread out across the imager like a checkerboard between red, green, and blue, rather than all three feeding into every pixel. This makes an image that's both washed out, and less true to real life. <br />
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The moral of the story here is not that the RED is a hack job camera. Far from it, the depth of field is a benefit, the 4K is nothing to sneeze at for effects and compositing in post, but really those things aren't the only factors that go into why we choose a camera or film stock. The RED has a specific "look", Panasonic's cameras have a specific "look", Sony's cameras have a specific "look". So stop hiring your DP's because of the camera they bring in tow, hire them because they are the kind of person that helps you choose the right tool for the job, and then knows how to use that tool.<br />
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-Nick HarrisSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-35572431345636054302010-04-20T00:17:00.000-07:002010-04-28T10:37:12.554-07:00Finding Mr. Goodbar - Pre-Production!It's been 363 days since the birth of our Mr. Goodbar. In that time we have gone through lots of turbulence flying the friendly skies of commercial production...<br />
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Birthday: Sunspot's brilliant creative duo happened upon a milk chocolaty, peanut candy bar called Mr. Goodbar one day and were reminded how delicious the Hershey's product was. Somehow this amazing taste sensation triggered an idea for a concept that just couldn't wait to burst forth. I, being the purveyor of all things gigantic, desperately tried to put it on a shelf and push for strides in feature filmmaking instead. But it just wouldn't be. We made a deal, spec commercial first to build our reel more, then the bigger picture. Ok. Fine. We were all itching to create something, <i>anything </i>so this was it.<br />
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After a couple months of squeezing in development of the project between day jobs and freelance gigs, networking and general business building, we had a campaign. The idea created a human version of the chocolate bar and a series of funny and twisted situations (something that's quickly becoming our company's brand) perfect for Superbowl caliber commercials.<br />
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Pre-production began slowly. I needed a co-producer to pick up slack when I couldn't be there to do it all. One of the handful of people interested in working and building with us at this foundational stage stepped up to the plate and got the ball rolling. I found myself constantly overseeing and checking in, desperately wanting to make things move faster than anyone had time for.<br />
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Speed and end results - the definition of me.<br />
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Senor co-producer started out strong. Researching, calling, setting up preliminary potentials. I worked on gathering core crew...one of which was a locations manager I'd wanted to work with for a couple years and had started to work with on someone elses failed project a couple years earlier. He seemed to know his shit and I loved how quick and focused he was. I called him up to see if he'd be interested in helping us out for a small salary. We're doing specs. I informed him, so no giant commercial budget behind us, what do you think? He was interested but dropped a bomb by saying he worked for no less than $600 a day. Giant number for a little production. I told him I just needed someone to find two locations all the rest would be taken care of by me. He didn't even have to be on set, I bargained. He agreed to do it. As we went along he started tacking on more hours and more money, wanting a large sum in advance based on the crappy production we had both been taken for a ride on last we worked together. He wanted his money and knew I would sympathize so conversation after conversation he brought it up. I explained over and over we weren't that production. Finally I couldn't take it anymore. I had laid the numbers out on the table and been totally honest on that first call to him for the specs yet it wasn't enough and I was beginning to rip clumps of hair out of my head. I thanked him for considering and said it would be tough for us all to continue having repeat conversations on issues I had nothing to do with. Several calls later he finally accepted he wasn't going to work with us.<br />
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Best financial decision I made, I have to say.<br />
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Back to square one I went. Up to me to get those locations. One of them was an LA county elementary school. Senor came up with a list and the two of us spent a day wandering the communities looking for a delicious looking set at the request of our creators. Along for the ride was young wife and toddler daughter. No problem. These things happen on low budget shoots and I did my best to accomodate without losing my cool. We found a couple schools that seemed ornamental enough but never did get through the list as the day ended with a very sick and puking child in the back seat spitting up remnants of McDonald's french fries. Sigh. Back to square one again.<br />
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My daytime hours were taken up working on promoting a feature via internet and grassroots touring and we were rounding the corner on our deadline to shoot the spec commercials. I pushed the date back and continued on my journey through the world of making it all work in the in between hours. At this time an amazing and wonderful, can't-be-praised-enough intern of ours by the name of Patrina stepped up to the plate and hit a home run. She found location two, a cafe, and pushed us in the direction of a tailor we needed for Mr. Goodbar's costume. I was ecstatic! At last. At last. A truly helping hand. A focused beauty. Awesome. I was able to exhale for a moment. But only for a moment.<br />
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Senor co-producer called me up to inform me that during our day together his dear wife had decided we were having an affair. She had sensed tension and seen some kind of chemistry I never personally knew was there...mainly because it wasn't. Sex was really the last thing on my mind in the midst of pre-production and certainly not with someone I had absolutely no attraction to.<br />
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I went back to holding my breath.<br />
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Ok. So that's that. I picked up the pieces and moved on. Patrina became my right hand and moved up to associate producer for the production. She handled props and calls and the cafe location, an awesome little restaurant called Vinoteque, like an absolute pro. Oh hallellujah. I worked on insurance, permits for the school, fees to the city of LA, the school itself, AND Film LA while checking on progress of the suit that had become an expensive venture, finding extras...child extras...setting up auditions, and finding core and random crew. I found a 1st AD one of our Sunspot friends suggested to us and left scheduling in his hands. In the meantime I went back and forth with Charles & Nick making sure we were on track and organized. We're going to need 60 child extras at least, Trina, they said. Haha. Funny. Uh, ok. I think that we can make 30 look like 60 if we trick the camera but I'll see what can be done, I managed to reply. We may have to hire paid child talent I think, said Charles. (So far all of our talent were graciously volunteering their time and skills) I scoffed. Then blew the guy off. We'll deal with it as we go. Should be fine, I said. Lord have mercy! Is money not sacred to anyone???<br />
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Now, let me just say, I am an organization freak. I want all bases covered, all loose ends tied, all plans secured as fast as possible. In production it's all collaboration so there are many hours, if not days, waiting on others to come through. Very nerve wracking at every turn for someone with my OCD. However, I dealt with it. By the final week before the shoot we had most everything in place. Nick was taking care of getting his camera crew together, Patrina was so extremely on top of her game, and all seemed to be running smoothly. Until one of the actresses we had picked and really liked became a bit of an issue at this time...not available for rehearsal, not willing to work on a Monday...which was the only day we had the location for. In the end she was paid for her day away from work and we had to do without her rehearsing. She seemed to have her role down but I'm sure her performance would have been much better had she been to both rehearsals. We just couldn't stop and audition for anyone else at that point so it was what it was.<br />
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So much for smooth.<br />
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A giant pet peeve of mine is lack of communication. I need to know what's going on and be responded to damn near immediately on every email, text and voicemail. This is not necessarily everyone's production creed. After a few days of no communique with the AD I finally got through. How are you doing on the call sheet, my friend? Oh, I don't do that until the day before, he said. Hmm...well, let's get that ready now, 3 days away from shooting, and if there are changes we'll make them. Ok! he said. I received the call sheet the day before the shoot. Got to be some grey hairs forming in my mane there somewhere about now...Oh, and how about the schedule? Oh, I don't do schedules, he said. I just make sure everyone is on set on time and move it forward. Hmmm...uh, ok. Well, if you can keep it moving then I'll trust your judgement. I looked at my rough schedule and was glad I'd at least had the time to do that.<br />
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We needed a bright yellow sports car and for some reason it just wasn't happening. It was the last piece of the puzzle yet no one could come up with one for less than something like $1000 a day or some ridiculous rate like that. Between insurance, permits, and the Mr. Goodbar suit my budget was creeping up. My suggestion? Call regular rental car places. Hertz, Enterprise, Avis. And a good suggestion it was. We ended up with a bright Yellow convertible Camaro for the budgeted rate from Hertz. I won't deny I did a small backflip of celebration.<br />
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I went off to pick up the car while Nick and Charles conducted their last rehearsal. Charles dropped me off and helped get the top down so I could drive in style. I started that engine and became a new fan of the quest for oil. Amazing. That rumbling engine was nothing but power. I cruised out to the 405 feeling like a bit of a douche. I'm never one to want extra attention on the road or be an outward big shot so it took a minute to get used to. Only a minute. People noticed for sure and as I passed the normally rude and inconsiderate woman behind the wheel of an SUV I was shocked to find her politely get my attention to ask for directions to the 405. I had forgotten the top was down and was shocked to hear an outside voice come at me. She followed me out and I of course immediately hit traffic. To my right, another voice. I slowly looked over...Charles. Laughing at my reaction to his calling out. He had no idea how much attention this bee colored car was getting. He drove on to rehearsal, traffic cleared, and the Ventura Blvd. exit came up. Meh, why not? Let's see what kind of attention I get driving down this road! As I cruised people looked. At a stoplight a group of 5 people, 2 dressed in what seemed like lederhosen, gawked as they walked passed. The lederhosen twins waved and smiled. This was too weird. What friendliness money can buy. Feeling great now I kept going. Up ahead was a pick-up truck pulling away from the curb. I slowly came up behind it. Reverse lights?! I honked and tried to reverse as quick as I could. Impossible. The front end was hit. Oh no. Really? Really? No. Not true. Yep. True. The lady's husband rushed over first. Then the lady, who said, "You're too low. I couldn't see you!" Of course. Nevermind that she was backing into a red zone to begin with. I refrained from exploding, looked at the front and saw no damage. Ok. Cool. I waved them away and went home as fast as possible. That car stayed parked in the driveway till the next morning of the shoot.<br />
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My phone rang as soon as I jumped out. Patrina with bad news. Her grandmother had passed away and she wasn't going to be available for the shoot. Dammit on all fronts. My right arm cut off and for a sad occasion. She was so apologetic I felt terrible. I reassured her all was well. We'd do great. She'd prepped everything amazingly well. I then hopped in <i>my</i> car and drove out to Beverly Hills to pick up the props she had. Patrina was fantastic with the props. She thought of everything and more. I couldn't thank her enough. How lucky I was to be working with her! <br />
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My easy day had become crammed and the camaro needed a bath. Nick had a million loose ends to tie up and couldn't help at all. Charles was the lucky guy. He scrubbed and polished while I finalized paperwork, phone calls, and arrangements. I had planned an 8 hour rest period but for gods sake it just never happens that way! Midnight saw my head hit the pillow for a 4am call. So much for organization....- TKS<br />
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To be continued....Sunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-23701378966046546502010-04-13T01:35:00.000-07:002010-04-14T09:45:18.280-07:00Pitching to the Most Disinterested Person in the WorldYour head is in the minutia, in the scenes, the characters, the dialogue, the setting, the visual charisma of the thing, and then someone asks you "So what's your movie about?"...<br />
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For a screenwriter (and just about anyone else hocking their Hollywood wares to People of Influence) the place where unbridled belief in one's self meets the wrecking ball is the pitch. Ask that ultra-confident filmmaker how he or she feels after that pitch. Either the listener was unfair and mean, or that filmmaker is at the onset of an existential crisis... maybe both.<br />
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"I know," you console them, "talent is what really matters."<br />
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Of course it does. But how does talent help when you're pitching to the most disinterested person in the world? (Who you will inevitably pitch to).<br />
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Me, and almost everyone seeking some fated place in the film industry will say talent trumps everything. It relieves the swelling, relieves the itching, and it relieves the pain. It brings a Cinderella element of fairness and order to the process. Here I toil and nobody sees that secretly, underneath it all, I am indeed a princess. The only problem is everyone who says this assumes they <i>have </i>that talent, so in spite of a limiting statement like "talent above everything," everyone must have talent.<br />
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We're not walking bags of haloed talent, we're storytellers. Screenwriters, producers, actors and directors alike. Regardless of the medium or the historic era, story-tellers tell stories to people, and fundamentally this takes guts and bravado; interrupting someone's attention and commanding their imagination with the power of your technique, your style and your personality, until hopefully they thank you for the experience. It's an illusion to think that you have the luxury of anonymity in the me-space of the darkened corner of your room behind your desk. You're a storyteller mate, act like one. <br />
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So your head is in the minutia, in the scenes, the dialogue, the setting, and then someone asks you "What is your movie about?" <br />
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<u>Scenario #1</u>:<br />
Uhhhh... (You're using this time to remember some semblance of a pitch you've put together.). -- ok -- you've got something. And you begin sputtering, but their eyes are already dead. They no longer care. Most of all, you haven't lived up to your image. They see the truth of the thing, and they're wondering if she's such a story teller, why can't she tell a story? -- maybe that's what they're concentrating on while you're playing hopscotch with your plot.<br />
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<u>Scenario #2</u>:<br />
You start reading some script you've developed in your head with pinpointed, monotonic accuracy. The listener senses an advertisement and they tune you out. They try to contort their face with half-hearted interest, busier thinking "Holy shit, this person is actually trying to pitch me right now... I can't believe this is happening. Are they embarrassed?" than they are actually hearing anything you say.<br />
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A storyteller is a leader, and leaders lead with confidence. If guts and bravado are the traits of a storyteller, confidence is his mark. A lack of confidence distracts attention away from the story. Confidence leads the listener into thinking whatever this guy says must be great.<br />
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What do I mean by confidence? Take <u>Scenario #3</u>:<br />
You're prepared and you're not reading a script. Now your listener is the problem, because your listener doesn't give a damn about movies and they really don't give a damn about your story.<br />
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Why pitch someone who clearly isn't interested?<br />
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--How is it any different than hitting line drives and loading up the bases when you're already down two outs? Or any different than trying or even doing well in the face of a hard or unlikely situation? It's Tiger Woods playing his greatest first round at the Masters when everyone wants him to fail, and everyone expects him to do poorly because he really ought to be playing distracted. But he's not distracted. He's MORE focused. Imagine if that's how you pitched?<br />
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That's where impressions are made, where Cinderella stories are born. Embrace the disinterested listener. Lead them. Don't let them lead you to soft spoken timidity, embarrassment, or shamed apologies. Lead with your confidence! They won't do the work for you, nor should they.<br />
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Know what movie your movie is. Don't hesitate to be a storyteller. Act like you're in control and they will follow. Leave the talent for everyone else.<br />
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Charles RhoadsSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-89542072704632850322010-04-05T13:13:00.000-07:002011-03-09T00:55:25.403-08:00Thoughts About Camera: Learning to Ask the Why's and How's of Your Film<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
A good movie can never be credited as anything but the sum of its equally important artistic contributions. For those of us making independent films; whether it be shorts, features, web series or scene studies, it's important to understand where and how our budgets and production value can be stretched for FREE by simply utilizing smart film making techniques. A scene filmed one way might feel cheap, but filmed another way feels dynamic and up on par with the best of Spielberg or Scorsese. Of course, this means all sorts of thought and planning must precede the actual production.<br />
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A saying I have found myself repeating when meeting with new Directors and DP's is, "the script is for the actors, the subtext is for the camera". What I mean by this is: the way a scene moves, the way the colors and exposure and geometry of the environment lead your eye is something of great importance when it comes to connecting with characters and emotion in any movie. It is beyond me how any director can forsake this and leave it all in the hands of the DP because, as much as having your actors nail their lines, it's all tied into the telling of the story. <br />
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Roger Corman, bless his heart, was able to develop a style of shooting that allowed a production team to make a movie faster than anyone else. Shoot your master, get your coverage in a couple over the shoulders and maybe a closeup or two, and get out. <br />
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And why not? The actors are saying their lines and hitting their marks, the props are being manipulated, the sets are full of texture and detail, and in the end -- one might say that everything printed in the script has come to life. It looks like we have ourselves a movie!<br />
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The problem is just that, every word of the script is here and nothing more. There's no importance, something lacks in Corman's movies, that's why they call 'em "B" movies. <br />
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Whether they realize it or not, people watch films to be placed in the center of the stories we tell; they want us to take them away, absorb them in our drama, excite them through our action, depress them in our failures, and uplift them with our triumphs. <br />
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It's up to us as directors and DP's to use every tool at our disposal in uncovering the core beneath the ink on the page, to illustrate the human pulse which courses through every scene and every moment of our films -- THAT which continually drives the audience to this emotional connection.<br />
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So what are we talking about here? We watch movies and mostly forget that the way they are presented -- the angles, colors, lighting, and motion of the camera are NOT set in the script, nor is the blocking. No two people read scripts the same way. A dolly push for one director or DP could be a smartly blocked wide shot for another. So how and why do we shoot the way we do?<br />
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I can recall the first movie I shot as a DP. Leading up to the production, all the "rules" and musts that I'd absorbed over the years from film professors and self proclaimed movie buffs suddenly began climbing out to the gooey surface of my brain. "Don't EVER use a zoom", "keep the camera moving", "stay on one side of the line"... <br />
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They spoke of motivation prompting movement, and I thought I knew what it meant... So I dollied the camera when characters walked, jibbed the camera when they stood or fell, and never once did I touch the zoom control on my lens. I even tried the always moving Michael Bay shots for one scene. What I ended up with was a very nice looking, but incredibly meaningless first film. <br />
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What nobody helped me to understand is that blocking is a huge key to this puzzle, not the only key mind you, but a big one. The more complex we block our characters, the more EVERYBODY has room to become creative. Nobody explained that while you do want to keep your camera on one side of the 180 degree line, it's fully possible for that line to move, to change with new characters entering the scene, to EVOLVE with your blocking and by design -- actually MEAN something. <br />
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Take this scene from Scorsese's Cape Fear for example. Here Nick Nolte explains the trauma and fear he's feeling as a result of ex-con Max Cady stalking his family; followed by the big reveal that he knows just why Cady is doing it -- and Nolte is to blame. (I'm speaking only about the first scene in the video below)<br />
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Now, the blocking is not complex per se, but it easily could have been two men sitting across from one another at a desk. And if it were, if we lost that amazing tracking shot that ends on Nick Nolte's face filling frame, would we feel the same as we do when we watch it as it is? Would we have the innate understanding of the weight of what Nolte is saying if it were just a couple of mediums, wides, and a closeup from across a desk?<br />
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There are many things going on in this scene. Scorsese uses dolly pushes on the senior lawyer to establish the scene and accentuate the solutions this man is trying to provide, giving us an "Ah! The answer cometh" feeling, and assuring us he is very much on Nolte's side. Note that the two characters are staged at far ends of the room in the first wide shot we see.<br />
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<img src="http://www.sunspot-pictures.com/sunspot/blogfiles/Picture1.jpg" /><br />
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The conversation is casual, boiler plate, and the distance reflects this. Once Nolte begins to explain that things might not be so simple, Scorsese starts his first blocking move.<br />
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<img src="http://www.sunspot-pictures.com/sunspot/blogfiles/Picture2.jpg" /> <br />
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Here, the blocking serves to help us as the audience FEEL that the conversation is shifting. Whereas a moment ago we were accustomed to the straight shots and dolly pushes between two men talking shop, this shot and its brilliant blocking now moves the characters, the conversation, and the camera in a completely different direction -- subverting our comfort. This shot tracks with Nolte, closing the distance between the two men as the information his character reveals becomes more intimate and dangerous.<br />
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<img src="http://www.sunspot-pictures.com/sunspot/blogfiles/Picture3.jpg" /><br />
We tilt down to catch the lawyer's response, Nolte's chest intimidating the left side of the frame and giving us a very uneasy feeling as he closes in on the lawyer's space. We finally tilt back up to Nolte's face, now in an extreme closeup as he reveals the hearing for his restraining order is in ten days.<br />
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<img src="http://www.sunspot-pictures.com/sunspot/blogfiles/Picture4.jpg" /><br />
Take a look at this frame. What is happening here? First, Scorsese and his DP really know how to shoot a face! In this frame dominating shot, Nolte is larger than life. His creased, bespectacled mug gives us the impression of a man with decades of experience, a serious contender -- not someone who'll take his family being threatened lying down. We are well inside his personal space as he shares a very guarded and personal secret he's kept for 14 years. They've managed to choose just the right angle and just the right lighting to give us a portrait of a man both intimidating and intimidated at the same time. <br />
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How do they do this? In this final frame, we are still feeling the overpowering presence Nolte has over the lawyer, but the camera is at a high angle, generally used to weaken a character's perceived position. One man towers over another, but the man who's not even there towers over both. Here established, Max Cady's presence dominates the entirety of the film. <br />
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The look on his face tells us Nolte knows a restraining order won't do a damn thing, the shot has become a window into this subtext. <br />
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Again, think about this moment. If we were watching this from a wide, or a medium shot from any other angle, if the blocking had not allowed for the motion of the scene to help us "feel" that something was amiss... would this riveting performance have the same impact? My point here is that no matter how strong the acting, it's shooting these moments with the right subtext that gives them power, even ft it means using a zoom.<br />
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Now we find ourselves in a whole new world. "How can I move the camera to do for my scenes what Scorsese did for his?" This is dangerous territory, because once we start learning about moving our cameras, it sure is hard to stop. What works for one scene, or one film for that matter may not apply to another. <br />
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There is no easy answer for what visual fertilizer a scene requires to flourish. Martin Scorsese has a heavy touch, Clint Eastwood has a light one... David Fincher is somewhere in between . Each of these filmmakers are precise, effective, and completely different, but their success as filmmakers comes because they know their material and they fertilize the seeds of their films just right. <br />
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It helps to remember, sometimes when you water your own seeds, you end up with a tree -- other times you end up with a shrub. The point is, no matter the watering, the seeds will always grow to be whatever it is they were meant to be, so don't try to pile on the fertilizer -- you'll just end up killing your plant.<br />
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In summary, the most important "rule" I've learned as a filmmaker over the years is there are no rules, simply suggestions, all of which boil down to you -- the director -- giving the audience what they want.<br />
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The question becomes, how do you know what they want?...<br />
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-Nick Harris</div>Sunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8171620960506306387.post-16770231098012571132010-03-29T20:51:00.000-07:002010-03-30T10:13:28.125-07:00The Plight Of The Good Story<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhARZoDihb_yx03AMXhUvI4e9f1yKKoefLhgxE2I-d4k4lu0lRbBiKuKGlqflyP2ea5MEVHxOxil-6HCE7sDFuSLQDUDPSiGWRCgTlMsNbGDNNkxjTWOk5A6CAnE-ZFEXvwWxPBLoxBbUU/s1600/u2premiere_wideweb__470x3020.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhARZoDihb_yx03AMXhUvI4e9f1yKKoefLhgxE2I-d4k4lu0lRbBiKuKGlqflyP2ea5MEVHxOxil-6HCE7sDFuSLQDUDPSiGWRCgTlMsNbGDNNkxjTWOk5A6CAnE-ZFEXvwWxPBLoxBbUU/s320/u2premiere_wideweb__470x3020.jpg" /></a></div>Ah, networking...Can anything else be so discouraging as a simple networking event can be? I mean, I'm sure there can be, at least on an equal level anyway, but hear me out for a moment. Seminars, panels, parties, and screenings. Sometimes they're really great. Sometimes they make me feel like I'm truly doing the right thing but sometimes they make me wish I'd gone into a more simpler industry...like brain surgery or rocket science maybe.<br />
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After a 5 hour session of seminars and panelists at the first iHollywood event in Santa Monica I felt like someone had gagged and bound me then thrown me in a trunk. It started out innocently enough. A couple hours of two speakers discussing financing and business plans while promoting their books at the same time. I have to admit it was a little dry but if I listened closely I realized I was able to pick up some fine points. John Reiss, author of a book called Think Outside the Box Office was the first speaker and Louise Levison, author of Filmmakers and Financing: Business Plans for Independents was the second speaker. They gave us some pointers on the changing world of film distribution, what to put in a business plan and, well, ok, I think I tuned out after hearing them discuss a couple things I was already doing based on just plain common sense. I recorded it though and at some random moment I suppose I'll go back and listen again as I do recall muttering a couple hmm's and huh's. It's those classroom type situations that tend to force my mind into wander mode. Never was good at absorbing a lecture unless it allowed me a dialogue and interaction as it went along.<br />
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Anyhow, we then broke for some networking and dinner. Nick and I attended this one together and we parted at this point to schmooze with the crowd at separate tables. I found myself with a man from Florida looking to distribute a comedy and a sci-fi he had just finished, a guy with a company that offered internet to TV programming, and an ex-wildlife cinematographer now somehow involved with the WWF. I liked the latter guy and his charisma quite a bit. Definitely social and easy to talk with. Having always had a desire to do camera work for Discovery & National Geographic and being a big fan of "Planet Earth" I couldn't resist drilling him on some of his camera experience. I got an interesting story or two on arctic shoots he had been on. The Florida guy was a bit tough to get a flowing conversation going with but he was friendly enough and the internet guy offered a down to earth kind of sense of humor and demeanor. My table was ok. Nick, on the other hand, was across the room being questioned on why he didn't have his badge on, being tortured by IT guys, and having to fight his way into a conversation with a lady from Paramount. He eventually came over after I texted him about the cinematographer.<br />
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We moved from dinner to a workflow presentation that lasted about 20 minutes. By now it was just about endurance for me. Find a little gem of info wherever I could was the goal. But then the panel came up. Oh the panel. Six studio guys in black suit coats. This whole panel changed the entire mood and seemed to start a small fire under my seat. They all discussed the ever distracting new world of James Cameron's god forsaken 3D pioneering. They seemed to praise 3D, big budget filmmaking and 2009 movie going like they'd struck Texas tea. They asked the audience who we were..."Post production?" About 5 people. "SAG, DGA, PGA, WGA?" About 5 people. "Technology?" About 5 people. "How many people watch the Oscars?" "Hahahaha"....The rest of us indie filmmakers were left out and on our own. This should have tipped me off to the fact that I was in for an hour of frustration.<br />
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They started out saying movie ticket prices were going up this weekend. Yay! How much more money will the world demand from me for the simplest of things? They moved into the gigantic success of 3D filmmaking and how "Avatar" helped <i>everyone</i>. They backed that statement with numbers based on the big success of the opening weekend of "Alice In Wonderland".<br />
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Oh man. Really? I began to clamp down on my tongue. Did they not realize that "Alice in Wonderland" did so well because it was and is a well known, classic work too many of us grew up with and loved? Did they not know that had it been in 2D most of the same people would have gone to see it simply for Johnny Depp and Tim Burton? The 3D was just a strange perk that added to the wild ride of that crazy story. That's all. That's it. 3D wasn't the driving force. And actually turned out to be not so impressive to this movie goer or her companion when they ventured down the rabbit hole.<br />
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They continued on, saying thanks to the awesome 3D movement gigantic budgets would be the norm, less movies would be made, so less work for everyone.<br />
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Hurray! Great for the thousands of us currently clamoring for jobs in the industry as it is now. <br />
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They continued on, praising big studio works and went so far as to state EVERYTHING would be in 3D sooooooonnnnnn!!!!!<br />
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Are they nuts? I wondered. Do they not realize the group of people they're talking with have not even one finger nail in the door of big studio production?<br />
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One little guy I'd seen before at some other panel and certainly filling big shoes, made the comment that the wrong movie had won the Oscars after another bashed the boredom of the entire show itself.<br />
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Boring? Really? Didn't they say the same thing last year? Maybe it's award shows that are really not too thrilling to watch...Wait. Did he just say? Did he just say the wrong movie won the Best Picture Oscar this year? Now I was squirming in my seat, teeth firmly on tongue, lips cemented together. First of all, not one of the nominees was a best picture in my opinion. Not one gave me that fulfilling feeling I get after seeing a masterpiece. Not one. BUT of them all the one that came close was the one that actually won, "Hurt Locker". Damn good ol' boys. Enough already. It's 2010. Granted the little guy was heavy on the marketing side of "Avatar" but come on. Integrity? Art? Film? Is it only business now? Is it only how much money a movie makes that matters? I guess so if you're going to be spending $200 million and up on each film...big hole in the joy of that amazing 3D trend I'd say.<br />
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So, after about a half hour of big studio ass kissing they suddenly turned around and said ultimately it was about story. Concept.<br />
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Eh? "Clash of the Titans"? "Avatar"? "Footloose"? Remakes?? Where's the story there? I looked around the room several times to try and read the faces of the audience. Were they in agreement here? Nick pronounced a bullshit at one point so I knew he was struggling as much as I was with the opinions of these men.<br />
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Then a lady spoke up and I knew we weren't alone...."So, so you're telling me I'm going to want to see "Sex In The City" in 3D?" She informed the panel they were in a room of indie filmmakers and threw the SAG guy on the panel a bit of compassion for the magnitude of talent that would be struggling for work with this new technological advent. Another lady, somewhere in the end, asked the question, "How will digital media benefit me as an indie filmmaker?" They questioned whether it was theatrical release or general exposure she wanted. Her response was that she didn't know yet. So what did she get? A pat. A patronizing pat on the head. She was informed self distribution and marketing would be an opportunity as she would have a plethora of new media and internet at her fingertips.<br />
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Ha! Right. I've personally tried the internet distribution and grassroots marketing measures for someone else's feature film and no indie filmmaker has the money or manpower for it. That is a super saturated world. Try to find your demographic in a sea of invisible Youtube and Netflix watchers. Damn near impossible at this moment. And theater is where we all want our films shown. Big, bold and beautiful. Not on an Ipad, Iphone or computer monitor.<br />
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They went on to obliterate celluloid filmmaking.<br />
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I'm sorry but I love film. I love the richness of it. I love the artistry of it. I don't want it to be obsolete any more than I want vinyl to be obsolete. I completely understand the financial savings and ease of production and post production with digital but if I had the funds and had the choice 35mm would be the direction I'd go in every single time. Why turn our backs on it completely? <br />
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As we neared the end the panel emphasized how important good story was as much as they could and it was all I could do to wish nothing but evil on the Hollywood conglomerates. I hoped 3D would be their downfall not their success. How quickly they did a 180 once they knew what the audience in front of them wanted to hear. We left that building bursting with complaints and full of animated conversation as we drove up the 405.<br />
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My solution for those of us who need to keep our industry open to everyone interested in good visual storytelling is to create an equally powerful and competitive indie film community. Fill it with independent film investors, distributors, filmmakers, and exhibitors. And collaborate, collaborate, collaborate. Come together and operate together. Stop scrambling to be the next big blockbuster director if what you enjoy is crafting story based, intelligent and/or artistic movies. Stop stepping on each other to get to the tiny top. Start listening, talking, engaging other like minded movie makers and build a part of the industry that benefits everyone rather than just the Hollywood studio system. New media may be good but seeing your creation on a large screen is great. There's nothing that says independent film can't be out there competing with the giant machine currently way too overly impressed with 3D technology. - TKSSunspot Pictureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17672259975810042549noreply@blogger.com1