Jeezo, who would have thought I'd have so much to write about only one week in? It was an exciting week so I'll write about the two main things:
Directing workshop with Kenneth Glenaan
Out of nowhere I was asked if I could step in as boom op for this workshop; not one to turn down an opportunity I said yes.
On one side I absorbed a lot about direction through what he was teaching the actors - techniques to raise energy, how to coax a performance out, what looks good on camera and what looks cheesy. He actually trained as an actor which probably gives him an edge; I know I tap into my own experiences acting and being directed (by both geniuses and morons) when I direct.
Also, though, I had a go at boom-op'ing. For some of the scenes it was no more challenging than finding an edge and staying there but one of the scenes we did was exhausting. Any sane sound recordist would have used radio mics but since it was just me and we had neither the skills nor the kit to hand (Graeme was in class) I had to run and dance with the boom, keeping it out of shot but not too far away while the actors and camera moved freely.
Most of the 9 takes I failed at this at one point or another but I'm proud to say that on the last one I kept out - it involved a lot of running, a lot of lifting and the utmost concentration. It also took a moment where I had to explain to Kenny that actually a shorter boom would work better, contrary to his proposition. It's a funny thing - I'm sometimes too concerned with respect and politeness but there are definitely times when one needs to stand one's ground (though I did do it with respect and politeness, obviously).
Principles of directing with Zam Salim
Zam is great. Very engaging, very knowledgable and his classes were fun. The first day we basically just watched films, or at least little bits of films. Aside from anything else it was interesting to see what people picked - some I'd seen before and I enjoyed the repeat, some I'd never seen and would be interested in seeing soon. One I would really like to never see ever. I got to introduce people to In the Mood for Love which is a beautiful film and which got a lot of interest from people wanting to see it.
A lot of what we covered in class was high falutin', pondering stuff - creative vision, the qualities of leadership, one word feelings - but it was also deeply practical. I love the more philosophical end because I do think it makes a difference to the finished product and can make the difference between a well made film and a good film.
It was fun to do some storyboarding on Friday, and rather reassuring to see that while Ridley Scott might draw exquisite boards which look like the development stage of a comic book, directors as great as Martin Scorsese drew crude diagrams.
"Bad storyboards are good storyboards."
And now off I go to do some props sourcing...
Sunday, 16 January 2011
Filming log: Behind the Screens
It's a daunting thing, being confronted with a 36 page script. I'm grateful I wasn't one of the actors trying to learn all that dialogue, as it was I was production/continuity/wardrobe and that had its own challenges.
My approach was to take detailed notes of each scene, along with info on script days etc, and to take lots of pictures (thank you iPhone 4). Theoretically nothing could go wrong, and as far as I can tell nothing did; the proof will be in whether Flo, the editor, bangs his head on the desk and bemoans the sudden change in position of a tv remote (or something).
On a little note on continuity, while it's important, I don't think it's the most important thing ever. The people who smugly point out that a prop in the background of The Godfather moves around are missing the point.
I also promised I would sing the praises of Connor our runner. He's applying to DFTV in the very near future and he certainly has a strong work ethic. He was on time, uncomplaining about tasks like "run out and buy some tea lights" and conscientiously asked round the cast and crew for tea and coffee orders. My one criticism would be that he washes up in the most terrifyingly inept way possible, but that's not really relevant.
What I learnt:
"Floozie" can refer to a rather excellent bag you put over a Kino which diffuses the light prettily.
It is possible for a shoot to run on time (well scheduled by Sam and well AD'ed by Murray).
Beware the old 1st AD's technique of lying to the director when you're ahead of schedule. If they find out, when you really are behind schedule it's like the old story of the boy who cried wolf.
I now know how doctors feel when they watch medical programmes: seeing an actor who is a fantastic actor but knows nothing about filming pretend to handle kit is squirm inducing. When you see the film watch out for the part where an XLR is mangled.
Carlo is only 20 years old?? He's brilliant.
I now know how to mark up a board (even if it was Amelie's job and I was just watching).
My approach was to take detailed notes of each scene, along with info on script days etc, and to take lots of pictures (thank you iPhone 4). Theoretically nothing could go wrong, and as far as I can tell nothing did; the proof will be in whether Flo, the editor, bangs his head on the desk and bemoans the sudden change in position of a tv remote (or something).
On a little note on continuity, while it's important, I don't think it's the most important thing ever. The people who smugly point out that a prop in the background of The Godfather moves around are missing the point.
I also promised I would sing the praises of Connor our runner. He's applying to DFTV in the very near future and he certainly has a strong work ethic. He was on time, uncomplaining about tasks like "run out and buy some tea lights" and conscientiously asked round the cast and crew for tea and coffee orders. My one criticism would be that he washes up in the most terrifyingly inept way possible, but that's not really relevant.
What I learnt:
"Floozie" can refer to a rather excellent bag you put over a Kino which diffuses the light prettily.
It is possible for a shoot to run on time (well scheduled by Sam and well AD'ed by Murray).
Beware the old 1st AD's technique of lying to the director when you're ahead of schedule. If they find out, when you really are behind schedule it's like the old story of the boy who cried wolf.
I now know how doctors feel when they watch medical programmes: seeing an actor who is a fantastic actor but knows nothing about filming pretend to handle kit is squirm inducing. When you see the film watch out for the part where an XLR is mangled.
Carlo is only 20 years old?? He's brilliant.
I now know how to mark up a board (even if it was Amelie's job and I was just watching).
Saturday, 15 January 2011
Sunday, 9 January 2011
Production Design: The Dark Knight
Have I mentioned that I'm a bit of a Christopher Nolan fan? Only a few hundred times? Ok, well I am, and I love The Dark Knight - I'd say it's one of his best films, only bettered by Memento and Inception.
It's a brilliant action thriller with spectacular set pieces and a dark, contemplative tone which elevates it from your average explosions and car chases movie.
The production design is very much a part of creating that tone. You can see how it differs from prior, camper, adaptations of the Batman comics clearly in one of the most iconic Batman features: the Batsuit. No PVC nipples for this masked crusader, no, his suit is tough and practical. Its design echoes suits of armour and even the cape has a practical application other than looking dramatic on rooftops.
In a similar vein, the Batmobile here is a heavy duty tank which can transform into a totally awesome motorbike. It suits the rugged tone of the film: a batmobile which hugs the Tarmac and is decked out in fins and spoilers would sit uncomfortably here.
Aside from a very brief sojourn on a yacht the film doesn't stray from a near uniform urban landscape of greys and blacks, concrete and glass. The dense skyscrapers of Gotham feel oppressive, hemming the characters in and in scenes like the public funeral, pose a very real threat.
Ironically, the only spot of colour in this shadowy story is the unquestionably mad villain, the Joker. Against the dark backdrop his purple and green suit and his white and red make-up are all the more stark. His madness is shown in his contrast to the world he lives in, and especially against his nemesis, Batman.
Finally, a small design note which is less stylistic, but more of a necessity. As we discovered on a recent shoot (blog to come soon) to make a film about a very rich character is difficult. The design of the film effortlessly convinces you that yes, Bruce Wayne is obscenely rich. His apartment is luxurious and vast, he wears sharp suits and drives fast cars. Until I can command the kind of money Nolan has at his disposal - the man can build buildings with the express intention of blowing them up - I shalln't be making films about billionaires.
It's a brilliant action thriller with spectacular set pieces and a dark, contemplative tone which elevates it from your average explosions and car chases movie.
The production design is very much a part of creating that tone. You can see how it differs from prior, camper, adaptations of the Batman comics clearly in one of the most iconic Batman features: the Batsuit. No PVC nipples for this masked crusader, no, his suit is tough and practical. Its design echoes suits of armour and even the cape has a practical application other than looking dramatic on rooftops.
In a similar vein, the Batmobile here is a heavy duty tank which can transform into a totally awesome motorbike. It suits the rugged tone of the film: a batmobile which hugs the Tarmac and is decked out in fins and spoilers would sit uncomfortably here.
Aside from a very brief sojourn on a yacht the film doesn't stray from a near uniform urban landscape of greys and blacks, concrete and glass. The dense skyscrapers of Gotham feel oppressive, hemming the characters in and in scenes like the public funeral, pose a very real threat.
Ironically, the only spot of colour in this shadowy story is the unquestionably mad villain, the Joker. Against the dark backdrop his purple and green suit and his white and red make-up are all the more stark. His madness is shown in his contrast to the world he lives in, and especially against his nemesis, Batman.
Finally, a small design note which is less stylistic, but more of a necessity. As we discovered on a recent shoot (blog to come soon) to make a film about a very rich character is difficult. The design of the film effortlessly convinces you that yes, Bruce Wayne is obscenely rich. His apartment is luxurious and vast, he wears sharp suits and drives fast cars. Until I can command the kind of money Nolan has at his disposal - the man can build buildings with the express intention of blowing them up - I shalln't be making films about billionaires.
The Searchers (1956)
As I've said before, Westerns aren't really my thing. I find their tropes repetitious and their treatment of women and races other than white Americans, especially in the John Wayne era, is usually horrid.
In some ways The Searchers was as expected: evil Native Americans, disempowered women, with the worst off being the Native American women (I really hated that the bits with the accidental wife Look were intended as comedy). But then the brutality of the Americans is also shown, and Ethan is clearly shown to be an anti-hero, scalping his enemies and shooting retreating enemies in the back. He even wants to kill his niece for the crime of being married to a "Buck" against her will. The result is a message more along the lines of violence begets violence, or more simply: humans are bastards.
Andy said afterwards that he found the John Wayne character's transformation of heart too sudden but I actually thought it was one of the most delicate and masterfully directed moments of the film: the way he lifts the girl perfectly mirrors the scene at the beginning but the point is not hammered home. I would imagine that a modern film would have a brief flashback scene at that point, so that the slower viewers could grasp it but instead you just have this lovely visual echo.
Overall, I loved the direction. The scenery was shot in beautiful style, looking as bleak and inhospitable as could be. The geographical fudges are accomplished seamlessly (for example, in the climactic scene Ethan and Lucy run up a hill in one state and in the next shot they run down a hill hundreds of miles away), giving you a perfect example of the Kuloshov effect. The film is littered with careful visual repetition, like the example I mentioned above, and the iconic silhouette in the doorway.
One criticism I would make would be that the film charts a search lasting for years and despite the considerable running time I really didn't feel that. It could be because none of the actors seemed to age at all, a limitation of make up and effects at the time perhaps? Seasons seemed to flurry past and suddenly we discovered that years had been and gone.
Certainly if western is a genre you love, this must be a Rolls-Royce, embodying all the best of it for your pleasure and delight. For a non-fan like myself it is a refreshingly good example which, while it shalln't convert me, I can enjoy and admire.
In some ways The Searchers was as expected: evil Native Americans, disempowered women, with the worst off being the Native American women (I really hated that the bits with the accidental wife Look were intended as comedy). But then the brutality of the Americans is also shown, and Ethan is clearly shown to be an anti-hero, scalping his enemies and shooting retreating enemies in the back. He even wants to kill his niece for the crime of being married to a "Buck" against her will. The result is a message more along the lines of violence begets violence, or more simply: humans are bastards.
Andy said afterwards that he found the John Wayne character's transformation of heart too sudden but I actually thought it was one of the most delicate and masterfully directed moments of the film: the way he lifts the girl perfectly mirrors the scene at the beginning but the point is not hammered home. I would imagine that a modern film would have a brief flashback scene at that point, so that the slower viewers could grasp it but instead you just have this lovely visual echo.
Overall, I loved the direction. The scenery was shot in beautiful style, looking as bleak and inhospitable as could be. The geographical fudges are accomplished seamlessly (for example, in the climactic scene Ethan and Lucy run up a hill in one state and in the next shot they run down a hill hundreds of miles away), giving you a perfect example of the Kuloshov effect. The film is littered with careful visual repetition, like the example I mentioned above, and the iconic silhouette in the doorway.
One criticism I would make would be that the film charts a search lasting for years and despite the considerable running time I really didn't feel that. It could be because none of the actors seemed to age at all, a limitation of make up and effects at the time perhaps? Seasons seemed to flurry past and suddenly we discovered that years had been and gone.
Certainly if western is a genre you love, this must be a Rolls-Royce, embodying all the best of it for your pleasure and delight. For a non-fan like myself it is a refreshingly good example which, while it shalln't convert me, I can enjoy and admire.
Monday, 3 January 2011
2010 in the movies
It's nearly the end of 2010 and I thought I'd round up my favourite/least favourite films of the year and share this great video montage. I've written about quite a few of them already so I won't bore you and get repetitive. For those who just want the good stuff (ie- the part where I talk about the films which made me want to take every camera on earth to a very deep pit and throw them in just so that no similar monstrosities are ever realised) it's at the end.
Great films
Inception
A Single Man
A Prophet
Mugabe and the White African
Good films
Scott Pilgrim vs The World
Highly quotable and a treasure-trove of geeky fun. Michael Cera does a non-annoying performance (yay!) and the supporting cast are great. I love the way the comic book elements are brought to life visually and auditorily.
Easy A
I was surprised how much I enjoyed this teen comedy of lies and rumours. It was smart, funny and Emma Stone was a very likable character - self aware, not overly angsty and clever. Not a ground breaking film by any means, but very good at what it did.
Wild Target
Another surprise - I only expected this to be at best mildly amusing, but it turned out to be one of my favourite films of the summer. A very funny black comedy it's about a hitman (Bill Nighy) who falls for his mark (Emily Blunt) and takes on an apprentice (Rupert Grint). It's gentle and quite sweet and has a very happy ending in a way you wouldn't quite expect.
Monsters
I want to blog at length about this soon.
The Social Network
Aside from gazing in wonder at the depth of field (it's miniscule! the focus puller must have some kind of supernatural abilities!) and the effects used to make one actor into two (I genuinely believed the twins were played by twin actors, it was astonishingly well done) I loved the greek feeling of hubris and nemesis, the impending doom created by the clever structure. The thread with the girlfriend which began and ending the film felt forced (and is, apparently, erroneous) and I think we would have understood the theme without it, but that is one niggle in an excellent story of modern genius and greed.
Iron Man 2
Toy Story 3
At least part of the appeal of Toy Story 3 for anyone around my age is the intense nostalgia; I remember when the original came out, and how it spoke to me then. I love how in this superlative sequel it addresses how it's original audience and grown up and moved on, even if if they haven't really. I cried buckets at the ending. The 3D isn't astonishing but the overall quality of the animation is excellent, as one expects from Pixar.
How to Train your Dragon
I am not a Dreamworks fan, generally. I find their animation subpar and their films severely lacking in terms of script. It's surprising, then, that How to Train your Dragon was so thoroughly excellent. The human animation is still slightly dodgy but the story is lovely and the creative vision very strong.
Despicable Me
Another non-Pixar animation which nonetheless astonished me. I only saw this recently, and it was brilliant comedy: I laughed and laughed and laughed. Then I cried a little bit, but then I laughed again.
Films which just didn't work
Legends of the Guardians
The animation is jaw-droppingly gorgeous - you can reach out and stroke the fluffy, perfect owl feathers - and it's one of the few 3D films I've seen which I wouldn't rather see in 2D (the others are Avatar and Up). However. There is no plot. None worth mentioning, anyway - it's a film about owls who have formed a civilisation, need I say more?
Alice in Wonderland
Tim Burton is suffering from a serious case of style over substance and when structural coherence isn't your strong point it's lunacy to adapt a book like Alice, which was written not to have a structure but rather to be an exploration of a fantasy world. The visuals are arresting, but at this point in his career hardly surprising, and Johnny Depp gives another "zany" performance which makes me weep to remember when he was a good actor.
Daybreakers
The concept for this is actually very good - vampires are now the majority of the population, but they're running out of humans to eat. The world is well imagined and realised and the cast is very strong. Unfortunately, the plot takes a turn for the disastrous and ends up with the weakest, most ill-considered ending of the year.
Legion
Paul Bettany as a disenchanted Archangel Michael? I'm intrigued. And he uses a machine gun? Mmmm... But wait... there's a whole weird second-coming plot, and the characters are mostly annoying? And the pacing is glacially boring and interspersed with tedious "character building" conversations? I'll pass.
Repo Men
Another interesting premise which is then executed in a bizarre way, and another case of a Jude Law film which failed miserably. Most of the film is actually pretty good, with interesting things to say about private medical care in the USA and Jude Law looking pretty attractive. But then it gets weird, with people barcode-scanning each other's innards. I wish I was kidding.
Films which I hated, nay, LOATHED
The Kids are Alright
I think I am in a minority of precisely one, here, because all the critics on earth apparently adored this tedious, ugly, meandering snooze-fest. I can't imagine why: the characters were universally despicable, the plot predictable and the acting belonged to the school of mumbling, going nowhere "realism". Urgh.
From Paris With Love
As much as The Kids are Alright made me want to lobotomise myself with an icepick, From Paris With Love is infinitely worse. It's racist in ways I thought Hollywood couldn't get away with any more (if you're not a white American you're probably a drug dealer or a corrupt French official) and sexist to boot. Why on earth an actor like Jonathan Rhys Meyers is involved I have no idea but John Travolta's creepy alien gastropod persona suits it perfectly. The problem with this film is not an over-abundence of realism but rather a gaping lack of it. An utterly despicable blot on the landscape of filmmaking.
Personal reflection: term 1
It has been a strange term and now that it's over and I've rested (oh, how I needed a holiday) it's time to reflect:
Certainly Delhi gave the start a strange feeling. Looking back it was very disorientating to go straight from that insanity to work - it wasn't creative work or even particularly self motivated and my head was in the wrong place for a while. I would still have done it given the choice because of all the once-in-a-lifetime etc etc stuff but maybe there would have been a way to keep our dftv heads on more throughout the process.
Into the term proper I feel like I learned a lot.
Technically, we got to grips with new kit and got into some of the finer aspects of filming, talking about lens lengths, depth of field, focus pulling and framing. Altogether i see a pattern of finesse: using Avid, using heavier (ie: smoother) tripods, thinking harder about what kind of lens you want.
Backing that up I did a fair amount of filming outside of class. The project with my sister was an editing challenge, trying to tell a very unconventional narrative based on architecture rather than any kind of character - it took some creative problem solving to find a way to do that. I got to try out doing sound on Murray's film, which was a very interesting challenge and, as I said then, an area I would like to explore further. I'm going to be doing some production work shortly, script supervisor specifically. I expect this will tax my favourite aspect of production: the mental discipline needed to maintain focus and attention to detail.
I also use my accumulating skills every weekend, passing them on in some form or another to the children of dramaworks, camera and performance. I've actually found it to be very rewarding, there's nothing like having to express a concept as simply as possible for revision, except maybe the endless repetition (which also comes included). It's also practice for the power of problem solving: don't actually know how to connect the camera to a TV? You'd better figure it out.
The research project promises to be a very interesting, if demanding, area of study. I'm good at essay writing - I've managed to get 21/20 before - but this is a kind I've never written before and my essay muscles are rusty from disuse. I love my subject - Inception as a heist movie - and I very much look forward to the work that will go into it.
One of the most annoying things when I look back was the fact that my immune system decided to go kaput, and failed me no less than three times during term, and has let me down again over the holidays. I am sick of being sick, it feels awful and wastes so much time. I'm not sure what to do about this, other than give my immune system a good talking to - I'm actually pretty healthy in terms of diet, exercise, not hugging lepers etc.
All in all, actually, I'm looking forward to the next term. We have exciting projects to look forward to, lots of stuff to learn and I have a shiny new camera to get to know (a Canon 550D). I feel rested from my holiday, my first proper one since Easter, and raring to go. Bring it on term 2!
Certainly Delhi gave the start a strange feeling. Looking back it was very disorientating to go straight from that insanity to work - it wasn't creative work or even particularly self motivated and my head was in the wrong place for a while. I would still have done it given the choice because of all the once-in-a-lifetime etc etc stuff but maybe there would have been a way to keep our dftv heads on more throughout the process.
Into the term proper I feel like I learned a lot.
Technically, we got to grips with new kit and got into some of the finer aspects of filming, talking about lens lengths, depth of field, focus pulling and framing. Altogether i see a pattern of finesse: using Avid, using heavier (ie: smoother) tripods, thinking harder about what kind of lens you want.
Backing that up I did a fair amount of filming outside of class. The project with my sister was an editing challenge, trying to tell a very unconventional narrative based on architecture rather than any kind of character - it took some creative problem solving to find a way to do that. I got to try out doing sound on Murray's film, which was a very interesting challenge and, as I said then, an area I would like to explore further. I'm going to be doing some production work shortly, script supervisor specifically. I expect this will tax my favourite aspect of production: the mental discipline needed to maintain focus and attention to detail.
I also use my accumulating skills every weekend, passing them on in some form or another to the children of dramaworks, camera and performance. I've actually found it to be very rewarding, there's nothing like having to express a concept as simply as possible for revision, except maybe the endless repetition (which also comes included). It's also practice for the power of problem solving: don't actually know how to connect the camera to a TV? You'd better figure it out.
The research project promises to be a very interesting, if demanding, area of study. I'm good at essay writing - I've managed to get 21/20 before - but this is a kind I've never written before and my essay muscles are rusty from disuse. I love my subject - Inception as a heist movie - and I very much look forward to the work that will go into it.
One of the most annoying things when I look back was the fact that my immune system decided to go kaput, and failed me no less than three times during term, and has let me down again over the holidays. I am sick of being sick, it feels awful and wastes so much time. I'm not sure what to do about this, other than give my immune system a good talking to - I'm actually pretty healthy in terms of diet, exercise, not hugging lepers etc.
All in all, actually, I'm looking forward to the next term. We have exciting projects to look forward to, lots of stuff to learn and I have a shiny new camera to get to know (a Canon 550D). I feel rested from my holiday, my first proper one since Easter, and raring to go. Bring it on term 2!
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