06.02.06
Video: Balancing Point
One camera plus two rock balancers and some editing software = Balancing Point. Check it out.
01.30.06
Pitching Mother
Here is one for all you indie filmmakers out there that have had to pitch a script:
Pitching Mother.
01.10.06
The Japanese Tradition - Sushi
I loved the short instructional video: The Japanese Tradition - Sushi. Go watch it and enjoy.
09.15.05
Premiere
Premiere
I just got the latest issue of Premiere Magazine in the mail and found myself smiling like a kid in a candy store. At one point Wired was the magazine I used to happily read cover to cover, but I have found that is no longer so. I take this as a symptom of my gradual evolution from techno-geek with a side of film to film-geek with a side of techno. It feels good.
08.22.05
Burn Baby Burn
For the first time in years I managed to get sunburned today. If I know I will be out on the sun I (almost) always apply sun-block but today I found myself on a location-shoot with no sun-block in the car. I somehow thought the partial overcast together with the tan I got over summer would protect me but obviously I was wrong. The pain is a good reminder.
06.23.04
Gashlycrumb Tinies Shot
Gashlycrumb Tinies in the Can
It took a lot more preparation, planning, and shooting time than expected, but last night we got the Gashlycrumb Tinies footage shot. I have not had a chance to look at the footage yet, but am very glad with how the shooting went and am hopeful we have something good recorded. I want to extend a very special thank you to:
Una � Who put up with costume fittings, planning meetings and gave us an amazing Cello performance. Una, you looked great and sounded marvelous, if the recording looks half as good as the performance was we will be very fortunate.
Laura � Who did an amazing job with costuming, hair and makeup.
Gretchin � Who did everything from lighting, to camera work to putting up with sitting on the hot chair for prolonged periods of time while we tweaked lights one way and another.
Mari � Who gave me some great voice coaching.
and specially to…
Sven � Who did… well… everything… Three times.
There is still a lot of work to do before the project is done. The video and audio have to be digitized, analyzed, cleaned, cut, composited and edited. I have a feeling I will be asking for more help before this project is done, but the largest task is behind us. No matter what the final looks like, I can honestly say I have enjoyed the project and most of all I have learned a hell of a lot.
Previously on GeekRoar:
The Lion’s Den: Short Movie Project: The Gashlycrumb Tinies
The Lion’s Den: Gashlycrumb Tinies Update 1: Timing the reading
The Lion’s Den: Gashlycrumb Tinies Update 2: Have room, have cello, will play
05.25.04
Gashlycrumb Tinies Update 2: Have room, have cello, will play
The project is progressing well. Una, a Cello player with the Portland Philharmonic has agreed to play the part of the Cellist. She knows the poem, had good suggestions for the music and is willing to give us some of her time on the project. She has a comely classical look that will enhance the part. Una teaches Cello lessons at the Community Music Center on 33rd and Francis (ten blocks from my house) and will ask the Center if we can use their main auditorium to shoot the short.
It may be hard to get the auditorium at the Community Music Center dark enough to get an isolated image of the two characters without any background, but the space is otherwise really rather perfect for our purposes. The acoustics of the room are deep and rich, I think they will add some natural resonance to the Cello music. The stage has a solid (does not creak) wood floor, power outlets and even microphone pickups in case we try to use their mixing board. The stage is not very deep and it has a light colored background, trying to shoot towards the back of the stage without filming any of the background may not be possible, my idea is to set the camera up downstage and shoot towards the audience, if we can get the room dark enough and get the light(s) aimed at a steep enough angle and with close masks I think we can isolate the character without illuminating the background. If that fails we can also use a dark material for a background (stage felt would be perfect) or digitally isolate the character in post. Once we have some possible shoot dates Una will ask the center if we can borrow their room for a few hours. An ideal setup would be to have the room for about four hours late at night but that may not be possible. If our schedule gets to tight we can split the shots of the player and the narrator between two nights (which I want to avoid because it would complicate other things like setup and makeup) or shoot the narrator at some other location.
With the player and a (possible) shooting location secured attention now turns to schedule, costumes, props and makeup. This evening the Unconscious Collective is due to meet, I have schedule and production details top of the agenda for our meeting. I have also asked Sven to bring his camera and mixing board so we can shoot some test footage of tightly lit characters in a dark space (probably my back deck). Una is leaving town mid-June and will not return until August, so I am trying to get everything ready to shoot on June 5th. I have the name and number of a local costume shop where we may be able to rent costumes. I am still worried about both costumes and props, I don’t have them and I would rather keep to the tenants of Guerilla Filmmaking and shoot this movie without spending money. The way I see it I can either spend time trying to find someone who can lend us costumes, rent them or we can do the truly Guerilla thing and use whatever we find in our closets that is ‘close enough’.
Sven pointed out an important detail about the costumes: If the set is truly dark enough to not register on video a person in a black costume may not be distinguishable enough. The real solution to this would be to have a back-fill light so the edges of both narrator and player show up, but given our limited resources this does not seem likely. A better solution would be to find not-quite-black costumes, something like a dark grey. A third solution is to de-saturate the characters in post production, something I do not want to do as I want to keep effects as practical as possible. The idea I have is to put both characters in colorless costumes and use some makeup to drain color from face and hands. If the effect works it should look like the part was shot in black and white with the color of the Cello and the candles and book in front of the narrator standing in sharp contrast. I will keep a post-effect mask as an option but if there is any movement to Cello, book or candles it will be very hard to track the mask in post.
One other piece of post-production that I had been hoping to get done but we may not have time for is a voice-coach. I have read the poem enough times that I have a good idea for what it should sound like, but I would much prefer to record the narration and work with another person to see how it could be improved. I figure another ear is likely to pick up nuances and have ideas that have not occurred to me. I also do not know who would be interested in doing this with me.
The unconscious collective meets tonight (minus Carl who is out of town). Hopefully many of these questions will be answered then.
05.17.04
Gashlycrumb Tinies Update 1: Timing the reading
I had originally expected to make a page on GeekRoar.com devoted to the production of the Gashlycrumb Tinies, once I got down to applying the style sheets and embedding the navigation bars I realized it would be easier to use the blog and create new entries as information on the project is updated. The original project post can be found at The Lion’s Den: Short Movie Project: The Gashlycrumb Tinies.
I have received one reply to the Craigslist posting so far and am encouraged that the Cello player who replied is a woman and is already familiar with the poem. I have envisioned the part of the Cello Player as a woman but had not specified that in the post because I wanted to leave the option open for a male player. Tomorrow I have a dinner date with a friend who’s parents own a costume shop and I am hoping may advice me on acquiring some Victorian dress for the evening.
I have done some test readings of the poem and timed it as taking between around two and a half minutes (the readings were between 2:20 and 2:30). I want the opening and closing to appear unrushed but don’t want the piece to extend past five minutes since I know how painfully long five minutes can be when you are in the audience watching an amateur production. That gives us about another two minutes for the opening and closing including the credits. For the credits I would like to display a single page with maybe even just a single ‘An Unconscious Collective’ line which can roll by pretty quickly, the closing should be quick in general, the opening I would like to be more languid.
05.14.04
Short Movie Project: The Gashlycrumb Tinies
I love reading out loud to people, I specially love reading the poems of T.S. Elliot or Edward Gorey. For some time now one of my favorite poems to read has been Gorey’s The Gashlycrumb Tinies, a morbid alphabetical trek through the deaths of 26 children. Sometime earlier this year I got a strong visual image of what the poem might look like as short film and have decided to try and shoot it. The setup is rather simple, a narrator (me) reading the poem while a cello player plays languid morose music in the background. She appears in the bottom right corner of the screen while I appear in the bottom left and the images from the poem fade in and out above us. To shoot it we need a Cello player, some props (a lectern, a candelabra) some Victorian costumes, a space with good acoustics that is large enough to the two characters can be lit without capturing any background and some compositing software. Sven and I spent some time discussing the visual style of the short and how it could be shot. I have prepared the script and am now looking for a Cello player. Once a player has been found I will need to hunt down some costumes and do some location scouting. If you play the Cello and would like to participate or know someone who does please contact me.