Hey all, glad you survived the second coming of Christ. I think my friend Joel said it best on a facebook update: “On Sunday morning, when they ask why the Rapture didn’t come, just tell them that the Macho Man was there to fight off the Four Horsemen.” Thank you Macho Man, you were always a hero among men and you’re obviously kicking pansy ass in heaven. I’m just pissed I didn’t get invited to any post Rapture parties I’ve been hearing about.
Things are starting to get rolling on my doc. I changed the focus of it slightly so I can explore the subject of child hood health and the importance of being active while young. With obesity rates climbing ever so higher I think it’s worth a look. Hopefully I’ll be able to open up some eyes and maybe get a few kids on the right track. That leads me to a question for you guys: Where do you think the problem lies when it comes to childhood obesity and inactivity? The kids themselves? The parents? The media? Technology? I would greatly appreciate your input either on my facebook page, twitter page or even a comment at the bottom of this blog. I’ll take what you say into account and try to form some questions to ask my interviewees so I can get the most out of it.
Shooting for the Bluenose Marathon went beautifully. Thankfully the rain stayed put and the kids had an awesome day. Seeing 3000 kids warm up for a run on Brunswick street was really cool and made for a fantastic shot.
On another note I finally got to play around with the green screen in our film studio. It was surprisingly pretty easy. We shot an exceptionally shitty commercial for a fake hover board company for my Professional Development class. But within the shittyness there is a certain charm. I’m sure it will at least make you guys smile. I’ll be uploading this gem up to You Tube today sometime so keep your eyes peeled for news on that.
Looks like I’ll actually be graduating from a legit University (Dalhousie) on Tuesday with a Major in English and a Minor in Film. What does that mean? It means I’ll at least be an educated homeless person when I’m finally out of school. It also gives me an excuse to get uncontrollably drunk (first the night of grad, after when I’m living in a box behind King of Donair). Well that’s all folks, enjoy the rest of your long weekend!
P.S. I’ve decided to scrap the beer pong footage for now; I just can’t think of putting it to any practical use and I’m way too busy with doc stuff to even attempt to edit it. If anybody wants the footage so they can take a shot at making something let me know.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
3D Not for Me
It’s raining out, it’s Monday and I’m blogging. What else is a boy too lazy to put on real pants supposed to do? To entertain myself I’d like to bring up a subject that I have been debating with myself and a few close friends: 3D movies – Visual nuisance or visual awesome?
I watched Thor yesterday and shelled out the extra 6 or 7 bucks to see it in 3D. After the movie was done I was left wondering if it was worth it? Did it add anything to the movie? I came to the conclusion, for this particular flick, it did not. Not only do I find wearing glasses troublesome while I’m watching a movie (sorry to my four eyed friends, but God gave me near perfect vision, Suckas) but I found the 3D effects not worth the extra cash. Sure they were neat at the beginning, but it just seems like a gimmick to charge extra for a movie ticket. Does 3D add anything to the story? No. Is it taking away from the actual visuals on screen? Yes. Look at it this way. The film was not shot in 3D but was drug through a post production process I’m going to call 3D-affacation, the process which a movie shot on a normal movie camera is infused with (caps for dramatic effect, please read in deep voice) REAL D 3D. So the director really had nothing to do with this and it was never his intention for it to be seen in 3D. Let’s take Avatar for example. James Cameron fully intended this movie to be in 3D and the visuals he filmed/created were meant to blow our minds, and for the most part, they did. Thor was not filmed in 3D, and, although the visuals at times were different, I can’t say they were enhanced.
As an amateur filmmaker I would want people to see my movie the way I directed it. If that movie was shot in 3D you better believe I intend that you watch it that way. But if I shoot it in good old digital “2D” (I quote 2D because these movies aren’t really in 2D but are projected on a 2D plane, blah blah blah..) I sure as heck want you to see it in that format. Makes me think of pan and scan, the process that 16:9 films are transferred to fit on your dinosaur 4:3 screen in effect cutting away a lot of the visuals the director meant you to see -- yeah I know there are black bars on the screen, just deal with it old people, that’s how movies are supposed to be seen. If the director wanted to shoot the thing in a 4:3 ratio, he damn well would have, so you should respect him and watch it in the intended format. Directors pour their lives into movies, the least you can do is put up with the black bars or buy a TV fit to watch 16:9 movies (they’re cheap as peanuts now anyway, sorry for the pan and scan rant). The point I’m making here is that like pan and scan, 3D moves the picture away from the author’s vision, and therefore isn’t a true representation of what he imagined. I’m not saying that directors appose 3D-affacation, but I think it should be known that some never intended it to be that way and that it’s a way for studios to cheaply add “value” to any given product. Anything can be transformed to 3D now and it’s sad that the choice is usually out of the director’s control (as far as I know anyway).
I guess what I’m trying to say here is don’t buy into the whole 3D experience, it’s only there to make money, not add to the story. If you’re in the mood for it, go for it, but please, for the love of film, don’t let it become the way you see movies in theaters. Would Casablanca be any better in 3D? If you say yes, then you’re missing the whole point of film. What do you guys think? Comment away!
I watched Thor yesterday and shelled out the extra 6 or 7 bucks to see it in 3D. After the movie was done I was left wondering if it was worth it? Did it add anything to the movie? I came to the conclusion, for this particular flick, it did not. Not only do I find wearing glasses troublesome while I’m watching a movie (sorry to my four eyed friends, but God gave me near perfect vision, Suckas) but I found the 3D effects not worth the extra cash. Sure they were neat at the beginning, but it just seems like a gimmick to charge extra for a movie ticket. Does 3D add anything to the story? No. Is it taking away from the actual visuals on screen? Yes. Look at it this way. The film was not shot in 3D but was drug through a post production process I’m going to call 3D-affacation, the process which a movie shot on a normal movie camera is infused with (caps for dramatic effect, please read in deep voice) REAL D 3D. So the director really had nothing to do with this and it was never his intention for it to be seen in 3D. Let’s take Avatar for example. James Cameron fully intended this movie to be in 3D and the visuals he filmed/created were meant to blow our minds, and for the most part, they did. Thor was not filmed in 3D, and, although the visuals at times were different, I can’t say they were enhanced.
As an amateur filmmaker I would want people to see my movie the way I directed it. If that movie was shot in 3D you better believe I intend that you watch it that way. But if I shoot it in good old digital “2D” (I quote 2D because these movies aren’t really in 2D but are projected on a 2D plane, blah blah blah..) I sure as heck want you to see it in that format. Makes me think of pan and scan, the process that 16:9 films are transferred to fit on your dinosaur 4:3 screen in effect cutting away a lot of the visuals the director meant you to see -- yeah I know there are black bars on the screen, just deal with it old people, that’s how movies are supposed to be seen. If the director wanted to shoot the thing in a 4:3 ratio, he damn well would have, so you should respect him and watch it in the intended format. Directors pour their lives into movies, the least you can do is put up with the black bars or buy a TV fit to watch 16:9 movies (they’re cheap as peanuts now anyway, sorry for the pan and scan rant). The point I’m making here is that like pan and scan, 3D moves the picture away from the author’s vision, and therefore isn’t a true representation of what he imagined. I’m not saying that directors appose 3D-affacation, but I think it should be known that some never intended it to be that way and that it’s a way for studios to cheaply add “value” to any given product. Anything can be transformed to 3D now and it’s sad that the choice is usually out of the director’s control (as far as I know anyway).
I guess what I’m trying to say here is don’t buy into the whole 3D experience, it’s only there to make money, not add to the story. If you’re in the mood for it, go for it, but please, for the love of film, don’t let it become the way you see movies in theaters. Would Casablanca be any better in 3D? If you say yes, then you’re missing the whole point of film. What do you guys think? Comment away!
Friday, May 6, 2011
Up and At'em...Again
Well here I am blogging again. Sorry, but this time it’s going to be semi-legit. But don’t worry, I’ll still be funny but it’s going to be a little more personal. I’m going try to keep you all up to date with what’s going on in my professional life (yeah that makes me laugh too). My updates will include all the dumb shit I run into on a daily basis plus what I’m doing as a filmmaker. I’ll also let anybody who cares what my fellow classmates are trying to do, so let’s do this shit. I might even do a vlog or two.
Right now I’m trying to digitize the beer pong “tournament” that was put on by a bunch of no-goodnicks. The going is slow but it’s finally capturing; hopefully it all turns out. I’ll try to release a small trailer to give you guys a taste of what it is. I’m still not sure what I’m doing with it. Maybe a music video? I guess I’ll need music for that though.
I’m also working on documentary for class that involves the Bluenose Marathon youth run. I’m going to be setting up interviews all week with the people involved in this amazing event. Basically kids in the youth run program have dedicated to running a full marathon throughout an entire year and will run the last 4.2 km at the Bluenose event. The doc will be looking at the importance of youth activity provincially and nationally. Youth activity throughout the country is currently on a down wards spiral and I’d like to figure out why this is. I’m going to try to promote youth activity all the while focusing on the kids at the bluenose marathon. This thing is still in the preliminary stages, so who knows what direction it might take.
I’m also going to work on uploading a working video file for Preliminary, a short some classmates and I shot and edited a few months ago. It was basically an exercise in Film Noire and I think we did a good job for first timers. I’ll let you all know via facebook and twitter.
It looks like some class buds of mine are going to be doing “Jarod Plays,” where my friend Jarod will be playing through “Zelda: The Ocarina of Time,” for the first time in his life on the original N64. Things should get interesting (we’re playing a drinking game when he makes it to the Guerudo Fortress where we drink every time he gets caught). Should be a good time.
And last of all, follow me on twitter @ThePixelJunkie to keep up with my daily goin-ons (not that you care but fuck it, I’m sure I’m more interesting then some of the people you’re following).
Right now I’m trying to digitize the beer pong “tournament” that was put on by a bunch of no-goodnicks. The going is slow but it’s finally capturing; hopefully it all turns out. I’ll try to release a small trailer to give you guys a taste of what it is. I’m still not sure what I’m doing with it. Maybe a music video? I guess I’ll need music for that though.
I’m also working on documentary for class that involves the Bluenose Marathon youth run. I’m going to be setting up interviews all week with the people involved in this amazing event. Basically kids in the youth run program have dedicated to running a full marathon throughout an entire year and will run the last 4.2 km at the Bluenose event. The doc will be looking at the importance of youth activity provincially and nationally. Youth activity throughout the country is currently on a down wards spiral and I’d like to figure out why this is. I’m going to try to promote youth activity all the while focusing on the kids at the bluenose marathon. This thing is still in the preliminary stages, so who knows what direction it might take.
I’m also going to work on uploading a working video file for Preliminary, a short some classmates and I shot and edited a few months ago. It was basically an exercise in Film Noire and I think we did a good job for first timers. I’ll let you all know via facebook and twitter.
It looks like some class buds of mine are going to be doing “Jarod Plays,” where my friend Jarod will be playing through “Zelda: The Ocarina of Time,” for the first time in his life on the original N64. Things should get interesting (we’re playing a drinking game when he makes it to the Guerudo Fortress where we drink every time he gets caught). Should be a good time.
And last of all, follow me on twitter @ThePixelJunkie to keep up with my daily goin-ons (not that you care but fuck it, I’m sure I’m more interesting then some of the people you’re following).
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