Monday, April 28, 2014

great poster




One of my favorite films, and this poster is amazing. Simple, yet oh so effective. 

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

The Great Beauty (La Grande Bellezza)

The Great Beauty



Viewed this film over the weekend and really enjoyed it. The cinemaphotograhpy is grand, and the lead actor - Toni Servillo is amazing. 

The main character's search for the elusive beauty in life and art, and how he comes to terms with this, is fantastic. I recommend this film not just because of the subject matter and the lovely photography, but it's construction is exquisite - cutting from thought to thought, from the middle of a scene to the middle of another - a great weave through a few days of this man's life. 

Here's a trailer: 




The Great Beauty (Italian: La grande bellezza) is a 2013 Italian film co-written and directed by Paolo Sorrentino. Filming took place in Rome starting on 9 August 2012. It premiered at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival where it was screened in competition for the Palme d'Or.[3]It was shown at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival[4] and at the 2013 Reykjavik European Film Festival.
The film won Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards,[5] as well as the Golden Globe and the BAFTA award in the same category. It is a co-production between the Italian Medusa Film and Indigo Film and the French Babe Films, with support from Banca Popolare di Vicenza, Pathé and France 2 Cinéma.[6][7] With a production budget of €9.2 million, the film has so far grossed over $23 million worldwide.




Monday, April 21, 2014

amazing short film!

BIG BANG BIG BOOM

Such an incredible short film, using wall-painted animation. 



Blu is the pseudonym of an Italian artist who conceals his real identity. He was born in Senigallia. He lives in Bologna and has been active in street art since 1999.

Blu's fame began in 1999, thanks to a series of illicit graffiti painted in the historical center and suburbs of Bologna, the capital of Italy's Emilia-Romagna region. In the early years of his career his technique was limited to the use of spray paint, the typical medium of graffiti culture. His characteristic style appeared in 2001, however, when Blu started painting with house paint, using rollers mounted on top of telescopic sticks. This new solution allowed him to increase the painted surface area and convey a stronger intensity to his visual vocabulary. Huge human figures, sometimes sarcastic, sometimes dramatic, who looked as if they were borrowed from comics or arcade games, began appearing along the streets of Bologna around this time.
Another aspect that influenced his early career was the practice of a shared artistic action. Artists such as Dem, Sweza, Run and, above allEricailcane,[1] were his companions during nocturnal raids where an anonymous creative participation overcame the need of signing their pieces. Also, during those years, Blu started experimenting with digital animation and he created short interactive video clips that were used as a visual contribution to the live musical performances of the collective OK NO.[2]
The collaboration with Ericailcane had its best results from 2003 to 2006. The two personalities complemented each other; while Blu was painting his characteristic human figures Ericailcane made his typical animals. The two artists, friends in real life, continue to work together although less often.
Starting in 2004, some art galleries noticed Blu's artistic value and invited him to take part to one-man or collective shows. Yet Blu, throughout his entire youthful career, attempted to limit his presence within the official art world, preferring other kinds of territories.
Since his major pieces, outside of his videos, have been immovable murals, the survey below of Blu's work is geographical rather than chronological.

To view film, click below:

Friday, April 18, 2014

new avenues for young filmmakers

FIRST KISS

A positive aspect of the digital revolution is that there are new ways for filmmakers to distribute their films, but also new avenues to actually make films. For example, in the fashion world, clothing companies are hiring filmmakers to make short films to promote their line. Other companies are doing the same.

Below is a link to a short film one clothing company has produced, and it has over 70 million views!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpbDHxCV29A

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

A SPECIAL DAY

Many years ago I saw this film and was really taken with it. Watched it this weekend and wow, it really stands up. Amazing, subtle film. For all you indie filmmakers out there, and wanna be first time feature filmmakers, watch this film. It has all the ingredients needed for an indie production - one major location, two main characters


A Special Day (Una giornata Particolare) 

Is a 1977 Italian film directed by Ettore Scola and starring Sophia LorenMarcello Mastroianni and John Vernon.[1] Set in Rome in 1938, its narrative follows a woman and her neighbor who stay home the day Adolf Hitlervisits Benito Mussolini.
The film is an Italian-Canadian co-production. It has received several nominations and awards, including a César Award for Best Foreign Film in 1978 and two Oscar nominations in 1977, and it figures on the list of the 100 Italian films to be saved.



Monday, April 14, 2014

Making lists can boost your creativity!

Ray Bradbury on How List-Making Can Boost Your Creativity


I've always made lists. Developing ideas, I've found lists were the perfect place to start. For me, they were always simple - likes and dislikes. I then would add things like locations I liked or found cinematic. I made lists of films I liked, then broke them down into categories and genres and plot types. Lists of novels, short stories, plays, musicians - everything, and once you see all these lists down on paper, it really helps to put things together. To get a new perspective on yourself and what you like and what the hell it is that you should be creating! 

Below is an excerpt from an article I found on Brainpickings.org, in which Ray Bradbury talks about lists:


From his book  Zen in the Art of Writing:

-- These lists were the provocations, finally, that caused my better stuff to surface. I was feeling my way toward something honest, hidden under the trapdoor on the top of my skull.
The lists ran something like this:
THE LAKE. THE NIGHT. THE CRICKETS. THE RAVINE. THE ATTIC. THE BASEMENT. THE TRAPDOOR. THE BABY. THE CROWD. THE NIGHT TRAIN. THE FOG HORN. THE SCYTHE. THE CARNIVAL. THE CAROUSEL. THE DWARF. THE MIRROR MAZE. THE SKELETON.
I was beginning to see a pattern in the list, in these words that I had simply flung forth on paper, trusting my subconscious to give bread, as it were, to the birds. Glancing over the list, I discovered my old love and fright having to do with circuses and carnivals. I remembered, and then forgot, and then remembered again, how terrified I had been when my mother took me for my first ride on a merry-go-round. With the calliope screaming and the world spinning and the terrible horses leaping, I added my shrieks to the din. I did not go near the carousel again for years. When I really did, decades later, it rode me into the midst of Something Wicked This Way Comes.

To read more on this, here's the link:





Wednesday, April 9, 2014

Jim Jarmusch on indie filmmaking

Link below to a good interview with Jim Jarmusch.  

When asked on his view of indie cinema in the U.S. he says "depends how you define independent cinema. It's become a kind of marketing tool, especially in America, so I don't really know what it means"


Exactly. It's hip for everybody to say they're making an independent film, because now the term has some cache, some hipness. But really, what is an independent film? My definition: making a film without a distribution deal, and independently financed. Period. Not some Disney subsidiary film production company calling themselves independent.

It's individuals making films. That's independent!

Here's the interview:

http://www.indiewire.com/article/jim-jarmusch-on-the-future-of-independent-film-cinema-needs-to-be-reduced-to-its-essential-poetry


Thursday, April 3, 2014

Adobe First Frame

SCA Events

First Look Festival 2014 Presents: Adobe First Frame

April 18, 2014, 7:30 PM
The Directors Guild of America, 7920 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90046
The USC School of Cinematic Arts, John C. Hench Division of Animation & Digital Arts invites you to attend our annual student showcase!
Presenting 21 new animations reflecting the creativity and artistry of our BA and MFA programs. Featuring a wide range of character and experimental animation, from traditional hand-made and stop motion puppet animation to exquisitely rendered 2D and 3D digital works.    
Admission is free and open to the public. Program starts promptly, with catered reception to follow.

DGA Theater Complex:  7920 Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90046.  1 block west of Fairfax and Sunset Blvd.  (corner of Sunset and Hayworth.) There is ample, secure, underground parking.