Film Propsal

Hindered by the limited location availability and variety of school, the opening scene of Pulp Fiction is used for inspiration by taking the school setting and encapsulating the story of the scene through the topic of lunch.

The sequence is set in the dog eat dog world of school. Two characters, are set on the difficult task of deciding whether or not to share a pizza or buy two separate burgers.

When the conflict heightens, and the two divulge into the chemical properties and health effects of the food, one of the characters bursts out, stands up, and bursts out on a rampage.

The frame stops, and credits roll leaving the viewer to debate upon what the character does. Will the protagonist steal all the food? Or will he claim the health hazards of the food?

Angels and Demons

Not very enjoyable. I recently watched this film and I must say, this is not a very enjoyable film. First of all, I fell asleep through half the film, but it still did not keep me guessing! I must inform you that I have never read Dan Brown’s novel, but I could still guess what would happen. I suppose you could blame poor acting, but I do not believe that that can be the sole blame for such a poor quality film. Though the cinematography and editing is far greater than anything that I would ever produce, I believe that the film could have been made of so much more, and yielded a better response from myself.

Film Progress

As of lately, the progress of the making of our film has been swift, but we have encountered problems that may be detrimental to the completion of the film.  The largest problem that we had encountered during the production of the film was the fact that the shots that we had redone were not re-captured onto the computer, and were therefore not able to meet the deadline for camera returns. Old footage that was not good for the final cut of the film was used and the quality of the film depleted as well.

Group Work

I have come to the realization that my group can work effectively and successfully together. This is seen through the accomplishment of the production planning. My group had worked together to finish the shot list, shooting schedule, script, and storyboard. Through the intervention of Mr. Oomens in giving positive feedback and creative input on ideas regarding the film, the pre production planning was done successfully. I believe that if my group continues to work together positively as it has throughout the pre production, I can see the possibility of all our work yielding a positive result. Echo will be shot in the following weeks.

Short Film

After seeing the short films that Mr. Oomens had shown to the class, and a long talk with him about changes in my group’s film, I have come to the realization that letting the viewer imagine the theme of our film is the best. With the title “Echo” and it’s many connotations, the type of film and the theme of the film can be changed from person to person. What is key to the development of our film is the fact that it is short, with one moment that makes the viewer say “ahh..” and ponder over the meaning of the film.

Recent Stuff

Very recently, I happened to be flicking through the channels on my television while bored on a lazy sunday afternoon. After a few minutes of exercising my thumb by pressing up and down, I encountered one film the caught my attention. It was a film that lacks in intellect but makes up for it in hilarious situations. As I watched the film, hilarty ensued, and yet I was not satisfied. With an upcoming film project to be done, and the chosed genre being comedy, I would like to learn how to differentiate sophisticated comedy from slapstick comedy. “What would be easier?” is my question and it leaves me pondering.

Lighting

Upon finishing editing my film, I had looked over the different scenes and came to the realization that: lighting is essential to the development of a proper film. I was disappointed by the poor lighting in some scenes while other scenes had excelled in lighting. At times, the actors were glowing from proper lighting while in others, actors faces were barely scene or unnecesary shades of gray were apparent in the scene. In future films, I would like to dedicate a certain amount of time to fixing the lighting and cinematography of shots. This is none other than essential for a heightened level of film making.

Groupwork

After working with my film group after  a few weeks, I have come to the realization that teamwork and a group effort are essential towards the prosperity of a film.  While working with my group, there were problems encountered which could only be solved with several people involved, which took advantage of the group setting in the film production. I believe that without the group effort put into the production of this film, the first scene would only be shot.

Guardian UK: Film

The Guardian UK: Film site is very useful, because it features interviews with actors, actresses, and directors, and also features blogs which write opinionated articles on recent films. The site is very useful for information for recent films, and it contains an interface as to which articles are popular/recently viewed by the site’s users. This is essential to keep people up to date on what is being looked closely upon by a larger group of people.  However, what feature I enjoy the most out of all the site’s attributes is it’s featured podcasts. Therefore, this site gets ***** 3/5.

Oscar Nom-in-aaations!

(Taken from Wikipedia)

It’s that time of the year again!

The Academy Awards are set to begin on the 22nd of February, and with a lineup of top notch films being nominated, I can’t help but predict* as to which films would garner the award.

The categories that I will choose from are:

Best Picture

* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* Frost/Nixon
* Milk
* The Reader
* Slumdog Millionaire – Critically acclaimed for an excellent storyline and brilliant direction, this is a sure winner.

Best Director

* Danny Boyle – Slumdog Millionaire – (Same as previous reason)
* Stephen Daldry – The Reader
* David Fincher – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
* Ron Howard – Frost/Nixon
* Gus Van Sant – Milk

Best Actor

* Richard Jenkins – The Visitor
* Frank Langella – Frost/Nixon
* Sean Penn – Milk
* Brad Pitt – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button– I saw the film, and was enthralled/encapsulated by Benjamin Button, no longer Brad Pitt.
* Mickey Rourke – The Wrestler

Best Actress

* Anne Hathaway – Rachel Getting Married
* Angelina Jolie – Changeling– The emotion brought forth by Jolie in the film were overwhelming.
* Melissa Leo – Frozen River
* Meryl Streep – Doubt
* Kate Winslet – The Reader

Best Cinematography

* Changeling – Tom Stern – Two words: Bad + Ass = Cinematography of Changeling.
* The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Claudio Miranda
* The Dark Knight – Wally Pfister
* The Reader – Chris Menges, Roger Deakins
* Slumdog Millionaire – Anthony Dod Mantle

*predictions highlited with a sidenote

66th Golden Globe Awards

This year, for the 66th Golden Globe awards, there were some films that had stood out due to their critical acclaim and sudden recognition. Moreover, there were films that had caught my attention after being nominated or winning the Golden Globe Award. The list of two are as follows:

1. Slumdog Millionaire

Slumdog Millionaire

This film from the director, Danny Boyle who directed such films as: Trainspotting, 28 Days Later, and Sunshine brought the story of  a former street child from Mumbai to the silver screen.  The film, which revolves around a love interest and the chance of winning a large sum of money. What stood out for this film among other films is the viewer ratings as well as the positive critical reception that it had recieved. Garnering 4 out of 4 Golden Globe awards that it had been nominated for, this movie is on my current must see list.

2. The Wrestler

The Wrestler

Having won the award of Best Actor – Motion Picture – Drama, by Mickey Rourke, just the theme of the movie wants me to fill the seats of the nearest cinema featuring the movie.