Gravity-Alex Cimieri Blog 2

             Over the week I watched the movie Gravity.  This movie was released in 2013; it was written and directed by Alfonso Cuaron.  This film probably had the most minimal cast I have ever seen in a film.  The film only shows two characters, Ryan Stone played by Sandra Bullock, and Matt Kowalski played by George Clooney.  The movie does technically star a few other characters but we never see them on screen, we are merely left with only their voices which are rarely in the film at all.  The film opens up with a “normal” day in the life of astronauts working in space.  Disaster strikes when a Russian missile strikes a satellite, which causes a chain reaction that forms a massive cloud of debris into outer space.  This debris strikes the Space shuttle that Stone and Kowlaski are working on.  After the brutal attack of flying debris is over, we are left not knowing who is alive or dead.  Stone detaches herself from the shuttle and is left free falling through outer space, until she is recovered by Kowalsk. They shortly realize that their entire crew is dead and they are the only survivors.  They devise a plan to use their thruster pack, which resembles a jet pack to fly themselves over to the international space station, located not too far from their location.  They are not out of the clear though, the debris that threatened their life is still in orbit, Kowalski predicts they have about 90 minutes until they will be bombarded again.  This film although I found dragged out in certain spots along the way, was truly original and very inventive.  The script and cast was so minimal but they were still able to convey and emotional and heart throbbing action movie. Also the visual effects in this film were truly amazing and the attention to details amazed me. 

The Use of Different Cameras and Angles in The Truman Show

I'm currently taking a Theology in Film class and the latest screening we had was of The Truman Show. The first thing I noticed from a technical standpoint was the different cameras they used as well as the various different angles. The premise of the movie is that the main character, Truman (played by Jim Carey), is the main character of a TV show of his life. Several cameras follow him as he goes about his daily routine and everyone in his life are actors. There's various different methods that the fictitious director uses to get the perfect shot, including fish eye lens cameras hidden in people's shirt buttons as well as security cameras and even a camera hidden in an old man's trash can. The use of the "TV show" cameras intermixed with the actual production's cameras make for an interesting experience for the viewer. It really allows the audience to get sucked into the concept of The Truman Show as an actual television show and to experience what the fictional audience was intended to experience. Editing all of those different angles must have been incredibly time consuming and setting up the shots so that Truman was completely visible looks like it took a lot of careful planning. Especially one shot from towards the beginning of the movie where Truman is buying a ticket for a ferry ride and as he exits the camera's line of sight, the camera pans left in direct synchronization with blinds on a window opening so as to still see Truman in the frame. Movies like this make me truly appreciate the amount of time that must be spent on making every aspect of a production perfect and how every participant of the project has to work together to make an end result they are proud of.

FSBlog 2: Sin City's Lighting & Colorization

So there is a 2005 film based on Frank Miller's Sin City novels and it is one hell of a movie.

If you've ever seen it, you'll know that its visual style is VERY different than most films. The film is completely shot in black and white while specific subjects and elements are colorized (such as blood). The reason I want to talk about this film is because of the use (or lack of use) of lighting in the film. We've learned about three point lighting using key, fill, and back lights. We all know how the three work together in order to create a decent looking shot, But!-Sin City is awesome because it almost ignores the fill light aspect and excels visually because of it.

Take this picture for example:
http://www.empireonline.com/images/uploaded/sin_city_2.jpg

(Also, here's  the trailer for those interested at what it all looks like in motion: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKFLrTYKIXk)

By looking at Bruce Willis' face in the movie still, you can clearly see a hard key light and a strong back light. However, there is little to no fill light. The effect that the lack of fill on the face of this character creates is a heavy shadowing effect that perfectly matches the novel's dark themes and the movie's overall art style. The effect even works for the gentleman in the background of that still. This "two point lighting" goes completely against that standards of lighting and it happens to work out perfectly. The ENTIRE film is a terrific display of how well this works and the darkness really pops because how hard the shadows hit each object.

I think this style/idea is very cool, and very interesting. When thinking about digital video production, and lighting in general, I'm always thinking about how to use lights in order to create certain looks. However, this film DOESN'T use lights in order to create a certain look, and that's a new concept to me that I just wanted to share with all of you.

How to Kill a Serial Killer Series

How to Kill a Serial Killer Series

 (Stop reading if you are planning to watch Dexter)

A television audience desires certain events in a television series, but sometimes they shouldn’t get what they want.  Take How I Met your Mother, as much as I want Ted to find the love of his life, I watch because he keeps failing.  Certain elephants must remain in the room. 

The downfall of the series Dexter came when Dexter was exposed to his sister.  Although an exciting moment, and a season-finally cliffhanger, Dexter being exposed to Debra killed the elephant.  The need for Dexter’s secret to be kept from Debra was the driving force of the show.  The threat of Dexter getting caught kept the audience on edge.  By the time Debra starts to accept Dexter’s “urges,” the audience no longer fears exposure. 

An important part of a show with a bad guy mascaraing as a good guy, is the audience having an internal battle of morality.  The audience must be tortured by the hope that Dexter is partially good.  I think for this to exist, at least one character must truly believe he is.  If the audience is not reminded of what a good guy is, they won’t care.

Watching Dexter, the audience had to wrestle with the blurry line between good and bad, and that separates good acts from bad ones.  The show used voice-overs, flashbacks, and camera angels to build tension.  Dutch angles were frequently used to reflect confusion or danger, but the most important part of the series was building that tension.  Prior to Dexter’s exposure to his sister he held his secrete as the priority, as did the audience, but not by the end of the show. 

Once Dexter’s secrete was exposed to Debra the elephant was killed.

~Jackie

Shifting "Bones"

Shifting Bones

Silence is not the way I sleep.  I am the type of person who needs noise to get to sleep . . . so I always sleep with the television on.  I usually put a comedy show I know by heart on repeat, like The Big Bang Theory, or back in the day, Friends; but recently I have been watching Bones at night. 

I recently heard a newscaster mention how you can watch some shows from any point and still be entertained.  Ninety’s comedies, for example, you can watch from any point once you know the characters.  On the other hand more and more television shows are like mini movies, with evolving characters.

While re-watching Bones on Netflix yesterday I realized that it’s an interesting mix of story types.  For the most part you can watch any episode of Bones without being confused, maybe that is why it is always on in the commuter lounge.  I believe this is because of the revolving cast of secondary characters.  The lab has a changing cast of interns, and it’s genius.  Each week a different intern might be working, and it actually makes sense.  The main characters greet the interns and ask any questions that are needed to catch the audience up.  Of course, Bones has evolving characters, all with major live changing events over the almost decade of seasons. 

I am now curious if one intern’s life could be followed.  If I decided to follow the life of Dr. Edison and only episodes his character is in, would it make sense?

I think it’s possible each secondary character in Bones could be followed to give a completely different perspective of the show.  If this becomes my new project, look forward to hearing about it in my future blog. 

~Jackie

Blog Entry #2 - True Detective - "Darkness Becomes You"

Darkness Becomes You - True Detective - Blog #2

 

Genre: Drama

Written by: Nic Pizzicato

Directed by: Cary Joji Fukunaga

Starring:

Matthew McConaughey as Det. Rustin "Rust" Cohle

Woody Harrelson as Det. Martin "Marty" Hart

Michelle Monaghan as Maggie Hart

Michael Potts as Det. Maynard Gilbough

Tory Kittles as Det. Thomas Papania

 

In the wake of the zombie apocalypse fad and The Walking Dead resting upon the throne of that realm (and ruling indisputably) many Sunday nighttime television shows have taken a backseat. However, one HBO drama has emerged on January 12^th that I firmly believe is a solid contender for the best drama series. True Detective is an American television drama series on HBO, and uniquely portrays its plot with timelines to trace two Louisiana State Police Criminal Investigations Division homicide detectives' hunt for a serial killer in Louisiana across the span of seventeen years. I had the distinct pleasure of stumbling across this gem a couple weeks ago, and I’m quite happy that I have – because you can only take so much of “People Arguing and Eventually Zombies Show Up.”

 

To begin, the partnership that exists between our two main characters, “Rust” (McConaughey) and “Marty” (Harrelson) is enthralling to watch because of just how much disparity lies between these two. Rust is a man apart from the entire division, with a shrouded past intertwined with substance use, alcohol, a failed marriage, and so much more. Marty is merely trying to do his job and keep his marriage intact while raising two daughters. One scene in particular that solidified my stance on this series was during the first episode, wherein Rust and Marty are returning to the station after their investigation. They have a conversation in the car about their views, and Rust’s are so absolutely structured around a pessimistic view of the world that Marty ends up telling him to shut his mouth, and that any period of time spent together in the car will now exist as “silent reflection time”.

 

The level of discomfort the viewers experience – a pure, genuine discomfort – is what makes this show so compelling. Every major scene is set up with the interaction between Rust and the new team of investigators, or Marty and the new team of investigators beforehand, which tells us this entire story has some incredible depth. The series begins this way, and the simple fact that neither of these two look anything as they do during the story tells us that so much time has passed, and so much has gone on. Rust looks like the epitome of white trash, and Marty looks like the Chief of a police division – opposed from both of these gentleman appearing as partners. The question is raised, and never leaves. “How did both of them end up this way?”

 

The general theme, filter and/or colors shown throughout this show in all scenes are all grim and uninviting. “Darkness Becomes You” is the catchphrase used throughout all advertising tied in with it, and it merely takes seconds to understand why upon watching. Any kind of scene with happiness, vibrancy, or anything associated with a more joyous approach is minimal. The events that take place are violent, uncomfortable, and sometimes gruesome - displaying a putrid side of humanity we only typically see in thriller or horror movies, or hear about in newspaper reports. But, what makes this show stand apart from all the rest – is quite simply, it makes you think. It makes you watch. It makes you intrigued to know just how much deeper this rabbit hole goes. I’m certainly following it now, and I’d easily recommend it to anyone looking for something they can actually call a “drama.”



Round 2 Posts

Thank you all for your posts thus far. If you haven't posted yet, your post is due by the end of the day. A couple of general comments… Please do not write about your production experiences. We can certainly discuss these at some point and reflect, but the intent of the blog is to produce critically analytical writing that we can all read and think about. That said, let's try to avoid writing what are essentially informal movie recommendations, the "I saw this movie and really liked it" structure. This is not productive. As production students you should all have so much more to about production techniques involved in the shows/films you are watching.

For future posts, I think the best approach is to focus on a particular scene in a film and perform a close analysis. You may also focus on a particular motif that is present throughout a particular film, or even compare/contrast an idea that is presented in two films/shows.What technical tools are being employed and how do they affect the story or the character's arcs? Be specific. Read film related articles that aren't mere gossip and/or reviews. We have some good resources in the library.

A good text is "Film Art" by Bordwell and Thompson. I am going to have the library order this and put on reserve for this class, but if you would like a copy in the meantime please ask me and I will lend you mine. You may also want to look at "Film Theory and Criticism" (available in library), which is a bit more dense but may help you think about film/tv differently.

Across the Universe

          Over the weekend, I was encouraged by some friends to watch a movie called, Across the Universe.  It was directed by Julie Taymor and written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais.  I was a little nervous at first because I had heard that it was a weird, trippy musical that will just confuse me.  Well, everyone was right and wrong at the same time.  It was in fact a weird, trippy musical, however it didn't confuse me as much as they thought.

          The concept behind the movie, was that every song that they sing is a Beatles song.  It follows the life of Jude and Lucy and their crazy drugged out adventure.   The scenes were psychedelic and I was forced to rub my eyes a few times to see if I was actually watching what I thought I was.  The use of colors and illusions kept the scenes exciting and full of life and wonder.  It makes you feel as if you're seeing what people would see if they were doing the drugs that people were doing back in the 60's.

          I thought it was a very well thought out film and I would recommend it to my friends.

American Hustle-Blog #2

I was a big fan of “Silver Linings Playbook” so I decided to see “American Hustle” but I was very disappointed. “American Hustle” is set in the 70s about a con man named Irving and his partner Sydney who are forced to work for a FBI agent named Richie. As the couple dive deeper into the world of the mafia and Jersey powerbrokers things don’t go as planned. I was excited to go see it because of all of the Oscar nominations and the positive critic reviews; however the movie wasn’t something I’d watch again. There were a few things I liked about the film, like the characters and how they were fantastically portrayed by talented actors and actresses. The costume design also helped bring the characters to life. Their sexy, vintage clothing made it feel like the 70s. From the brown faded suits, to the curly hair, to the fur coats and sleek dresses. I also liked the different camera angles they chose, there were a lot of close ups and you were really able to get inside the character’s heads. What I didn’t like was that there was a lot of unnecessary dialogue.  Yes, it was very witty and sharp but it caused the film to me unnecessarily slow and long. It was built on a lot of hype, I was expecting much more. “American Hustle” didn’t have that spark that I was looking for. It was a solid drama but it was overrated and not worth so many Oscar nominations.  

Foreshadowing Andy's Mom

Toy Story is one of those movies that has been iconic growing up in the late 90's. When Toy Story 2 and 3 came out no matter how old or how "cool" you thought you were, you went and saw those movies and cried at the end of Toy Story 3 when Andy went off to college!

I recently came across an article about the trilogy the article talked about the "True Identity"  of Andy's Mom. The article starts form the beginning, the original Toy Story. In the first movie Andy's mom was barely seen at maybe one occasion her face was never seen. The article goes to say that in order to understand Pixar's the meaning behind Andy's Moms identity we first need to understand Andy's hat. Andy's hat is red with white trim, most do not pick up on the fact that his best friend, Woody's hat is brown with brown trim. So why is Andy's hat red??? 

If you think back to Toy Story two, we meet Jesse a cowgirl who was given away by her owner Emily.  Durning the flash back in Toy Story two, Emily is playing with Jesse and is wearing a red cowgirl hat with white lace trim around the center of the hat. Now, according to the article on Andy's hat there is a faded part in the center, the same spot where the lace was on Emily's hat. 

So according to the article, they are saying that Emily, is Andy's mom! 

After I read this I happily re-watched the first two Toy Story's and paid close attention to the details of Andy, his mom, Emily, and their hats... And the article is right... Andy's hat has a faded center where the lace was on Emily's. Also, in Toy Story two, during the flash back scene when Jesse is talking about her owner Emily, the posters on Emily's walls are posters that are colored and themed from the 70's so Emily could be Andy's mom.  

So Pixar has been foreshadowing a deeper story than just a little boy's favorite toys. Its more about family, and the love children have for their toys and them growing up and moving on from their toys and then their toys coming back full circle like Jesse came back when she met Woody and Buzz in Toy Story two. So, are Andy's toys going to come back to him one day since he gave them away to Bonnie in Toy Story three or has the well loved trilogy officially ended? 

This article also goes to shoe how interesting and important foreshadowing can be in a film.  So the next time I watch a film I am going to pay close attention to detail in possibility of foreshadowing, especially in animated Pixar films.

Monty Python's Life of Brian

At around the fifty-eighth minute, we see Brian step upon the foot of an isolated earth-dweller. By ways of the plot, we should find Brian the least absurd amongst society at large; and if this earth-dweller’s character isn’t already presented as absurd in his actions, then surely a traditional conception of one who hasn’t spoken for nineteen years would label him as such. So which is the absurd? Or, possibly, it could be that neither of the two are the “absurdity.” It could be that the forces driving their interaction—the mob of worshippers—should be labeled as this perpetrator of absurdity. I think, though, that an argument can be made for any of the three options at hand; but, be that as it may, I don’t feel as though picking one would be best for an analysis of the scene. Rather, in an attempt to answer my own question, I find it proper to see the three forces as the variations of Deleuze’s “body without organs”: cancerous, empty, and full.

The first BwO, the cancerous BwO, is the aforementioned mob, which is in pursuit of Brian. The cancerous BwO is caught in endless reproduction of the self-same pattern. This, I think, is also the film’s representation of those of blind-faith (do with this what you will in regards to making meaning of both the blind member of the mob, and all of it’s association with Jesus’ ability to cure). At any rate, I find this idea perfectly summed by the man in the forefront of the mob: “I should know, I’ve followed a few [messiahs].” With this, we have a man who has continually repeated attempts to transcend, placing God (used loosely) outside of himself. The empty BwO is described as catatonic; this, then, is represented as the earth-dweller who has sat in isolation for nearly two decades; his reality—up until this point—has existed completely within himself (however, I’m hesitant to definitively label this character as immanent—doing so would undermine its complexity, I think). Moving onward though, we have Brian as the ‘full’ BwO. He acts on, and is also acted upon, the forces at play within the whole of the system. To clarify, I see Brian as the encapsulate of the system’s singularity. He affects and is affected by the empty, despite its isolation; and he affects and is affected by the cancerous. He is constantly being received in various ways—ways that are always other than which he intended. This can be explicitly seen by the gourd/sandal debate within the mob, and also by Brian’s remark to Judith: “that’s not what I meant at all!” (1:09:45).

The Bachelor

The Bachelor/Bachelorette is a television show that airs on ABC, channel 7 Monday nights. It is about a man/woman looking for love. They have 25 people opposite sex of themselves come on the show and try to make a match. Each week someone gets sent home because the Bachelor doesn't feel there is chemistry there. They travel to numerous different places all over the world and go on very romantic dates. This show is very addicting to watch but most of it seems fake. It's odd to think that one person can fall in love with another person within weeks and have it last for a lifetime, especially when cameras are ALWAYS around. With the cameras around, it can bring out  the worst in someone. There's been so many fights, whether they were forced to get more views or not that remains a question, but every season seems to get more interesting. Also, sometimes it seems like the girls are forced to fall in love. In this season, there were a few girls who stuck around for a while but weren't sure if they wanted to fall in love with him. Which leads to the controversy of if people go on the show for fame and money. In previous seasons there are people who go on the season while having a significant other and eventually the bachelor finds out. There are people who seem like it was all an act for fame, while others just wanted to meet the bachelor. Either way they are receiving the attention they wanted. This show and the production knows that anything is possible. People are crazy when it comes to getting known or fame. The crew and producers know how entertaining this show can be, especially with the crazy people and the drama. But how much of it is fake? Well according to www.today.com, the creator of the Bachelor states, "“I think there’s all kinds of (bull) going on behind the scenes with, I would say, outside of the talent shows and 'The Bachelor,' where we really kill ourselves and spend a lot of money and time and destroy our staff to make sure it's real, that 70 to 80 percent of the shows on TV are (bull)," he said. "They’re loosely scripted. Things are planted. Things are salted into the environment so things seem more shocking.” So as much as myself and others get addicted to certain shows we need to remember that a lot of it is fake, no matter how "real" they make it seem. Another problem the show is faced is the long hours, meaning even though they are out on a date it can take longer than usual, and night turns to morning. The production has to deal with the lighting and issues that come along with the change from evening to morning. Another thing that a lot of people realize about the show is that they are always drinking. On dates, at the house, relaxing. There's always alcohol. One girl from a previous season said "“It’s how they get you to be more talkative, more sensitive,” Hughes said of the house’s large supply. “When I came in for the producers’ weekend, I remember it was like 12 noon, and they were like, ‘You want some champagne, wine?’ And I was like, ‘It’s 12 p.m., noon!’ And they’re like, ‘Welcome to the Bachelor family.’” There are many tricks and turns to this show, you guys should watch it and maybe you'll notice a few things.

The struggles of Lighting

The struggles of Lighting

Coming into Digital Video Production this semester sounded like a very exciting class which would involve learning all the aspects of film production. Thus far, my prediction was correct but the one aspect I did not anticipate was dealing with the frustrating part of setting up the lights.

It goes without saying that lighting is vital to film shoot and can change the way a scene looks. If the lighting is lit terribly, it is noticeable and can ruin a shot. What makes lighting challenging is the vast amount of detail that is involved. When you light a shot it is not good enough for the just the person to be lit, because that creates a shadow. A good film shoot involves lights being set up at all different angles with different amounts of heat.

Thus far, the most challenging aspect in the re-creation production is matching the light exactly to the way it looks on screen. Every one of our creations is from a professional television or movie shoot, with experienced and well knowledged gaffers on the set. What can be frustrating is that once the light are all set up for one shot, they have to be change again for the second shot, with a completely different lighting diagram. In the three projects that I have been a part of so far, it has taken 20-30 minutes to set up the lights for a 5- 15 second take.

The one solution that can think of to solve this lighting enigma, to have the director of the project meet up with their film crew prior to the film shoot. By doing this the director can go over every shot frame by frame and discuss where they want to lights to be. Even if the plan doesn’t goes right, at least the crew has an idea of how to set up rather than go in blind.

Another way to beat the lighting frustration is to scout out your location before the shoot. By doing this it gives the director a visual of how they want to set up the lights and understand the environment they are working in.

Overall, lighting is a frustrating and tedious process. However stress can be relieved if careful planning and preparation is involved.

Gravity

"The complexity challenged everybody, but none of that is visible." I cant even begin to explain how amazing the nominated Gravity film is! If you have not seen it, please watch it as soon as possible. I have seen a great deal of films in my life but nothing so exquisite and memorable as this. I watched it at home and even with my availability to pause it anytime I pleased, I could not stop it even for a second. I am completely in awe of its production and how much thought by the producers was put into making the film. It is evident that Technology and green screen play a huge role in the making of this film. However, if not set up correctly and used wisely, it can be seen by its viewers as messy. This time, with Gravity, it was used extensively for the right reasons. The choice of editing and sound is brilliant and adds dynamic and excitement to the film. For example, some of the scenes, particularity when panic arrives in Sandra Bullocks character, the music tends to get louder in the background. This decision by the producers helped to create an anxious feeling to myself and the rest of the viewers watching the film, as if we were the ones struggling for our lives. Also, the use of sound when the characters and items flying in space hit the satellite bars in the air. They are loud bangs and the music from the back is either getting louder or non existent in particular scene. Music played a huge role in Gravity and with the producers choices, allowed the viewers of the film to feel what the characters where feeling. The use of cameras and technology was completely necessary for this film in terms of expensive and elaborate machinery. Although, the technological aspect indeed contributes in the formation of this phenomenal film, it is the editing and producers that allowed it to become so memorable.

Behind the scenes of Gravity <-- here in this clip it shows hows the set up when including some visualization of the script. It also shows how large the equipment is and how the producers chose to roll the film from the idea of the film all the way down to composers of the music used in the film, Gravity.

Golden Boy

Over the Winter break, I also got into a TV show called Golden Boy. It was a series that aired on CBS back in 2013. Golden Boy created by Nicholas Wootton is about Walter Clark (portrayed by Theo James), who is destined to be the youngest police commissioner in the history of the NYPD. This is the story of how it came to be. It begins 7 years before he became commissioner, when he was a rookie cop who saved the life of his partner who was shot and a hostage. Several people witnessed this, and he would get promoted to detective and offered the position of his choice.

            Clark asks to be assigned to a homicide task force. When he arrives, one of the detectives who was the star of the unit until Clark arrived, resents his presence. And the detective Don Owen, (portrayed by Chi McBride), assigned to him feels as if he's babysitting him. But Clark sets out to do the best job he can.  He deals with new people like his co-workers Deborah McKenzie (portrayed by Bonnie Somerville), first grade detective Christian Arroyo (portrayed by Kevin Alejandro), and Detective Joe Diaco (portrayed by Holt McCallany).

            What really drew me to the show was the rich storyline. I thought it was well planned and thought out. It kept me wanting to know more about the show. Plus the director and writers focused some episodes on each of the characters back-stories.  To be honest I thought it was going to be one of the other cop shows that were on TV like CSI but it wasn’t. They only made 13 episodes but I wish they made more. The way they focused on the characters and give them rich personalities was great.

            One of my favorite episodes I analyzed was the pilot. If the pilot wasn’t great it wouldn’t have drawn me to the show. As i was watching the show, i noticed the scenery is not just set in one place. It explores all the places in New York City. It explores Brooklyn, Bryant Park, Manhattan and even some clubs.  Even the transitions included landmarks like the Brooklyn Bridge and Times Square.  

             The scenes  were mostly set outside so i didn't notice too much lighting when they were on location. But when they were in the Precinct, i noticed the lighting in the interrogation rooms. They did have natural lighting just from the room itself but you notice where the light shines on the characters faces. 

            With the camera movements, i noticed they were fast paced in some scenes. But in cop shows like this, it makes the atmosphere more intense if the camera movements follow the character.  If they were interviewing people, you can notice they use wide shots and close ups to get the detectives like Walters and Don's reactions or even the victim's reactions. 

              All in all i loved this show. I wished they continued with it because the season finale was fantastic. It tied up all the loose ends. I would recommend this show to anyone who likes a little bit of drama and some action.