It's been really hard. But it was a joy-- because the people involved are so incredibly brilliant. It doesn't hurt that they're some of the coolest, kindest people on earth. "An honor and a privilege" doesn't do this experience justice.
An actor with a powerful presence, Sam Elliott doesn't seem to get the chance to flex his acting range. He kinda ends up playing Sam Elliott over and over again. He's the displaced cowboy with the "It's What's For Dinner" voice, looking up at ya with that long face, slowly dishing out some oddly profound advice with a fantastic drawl.
"The Big Lebowski," "Tombstone," "Ghost Rider," about 5,324 other films, and now Chris Weitz' "The Golden Compass."
Of course, that mustache does most of the acting for him. The giant cowboy hat helps, too.
A gifted comedienne and dramatic actress, Maura Tierney is one of America's greatest actresses. She has a staggering range; she can play vulnerable characters, powerful characters, purely comedic characters, and sometimes all of those simultaneously.
Her breakout role was on the brilliant show, "Newsradio;" she played reporter Lisa Miller and was an important part of one of the most fantastic ensemble casts in television history (along with Dave Foley, Stephen Root, Andy Dick, and more). Even in her role in "ER," joining the cast long after the show had jumped the shark, she brings gravitas and intensity to every single episode.
Any Maura Tierney fan should see her in the little film, a quirky modern-day Macbeth, "Scotland, P.A."
Professional Screenplay Filmer noun - 1. a film director who photographs a motion picture screenplay and adds the minimum personal vision or style to the project required; 2. a reliable, predictable director whose films finish on budget and on schedule (which makes him attractive to studios); 3. a filmmaker who creates bland, mildly entertaining yet ultimately forgettable, non-threatening films. Examples include: Brett Ratner, Ron Howard, Chris Columbus.
Example films created by Professional Screenplay Filmers include Rush Hour, Red Dragon, The Family Man, X-Men III, Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, Edtv, Ransom, The DaVinci Code, Stepmom, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Nine Months.
A nice little New York Times article about marketing an original summer movie amidst a sea of sequels.
“Wonder takes time,” said Brad Bird, the movie's director. “You don’t rush wonder. You have to coax the audience toward you a little bit.”
For a summer whose blockbuster films include:
Spider-Man 3 (sequel)
Pirates 3(sequel)
Shrek 3(sequel)
Die Hard 4(sequel)
Harry Potter 5(sequel)
28 Weeks Later(sequel)
Fantastic Four 2(sequel)
Rush Hour 3(sequel)
Ocean's Thirteen(sequel)
Evan Almighty(sequel)
Hostel 2(sequel)
Transformers(based on toy/tv show)
The Simpsons Movie(based on tv show)
Halloween(remake)
... releasing an original movie like "Ratatouille" seems positively quaint. Article includes a blurb from Bob Gale, co-writer of one of the most original blockbusters of the last 30 years, "Back To The Future."
“It’s tragic,” the screenwriter Bob Gale said of what he sees as Hollywood’s lost inventiveness.
If you find yourself saying 'honestly' often, you're probably lying too much.
As in, "Hey, Bill, what did you think of that CD I lent you?" "Well, Frank, honestly, I didn't like it very much." In this and in many cases, 'honestly' is being used as a euphemism for 'you're not going like what I'm going to say, but here it comes anyway.'
But it also is an unconcious admission that you lie a lot. For many, it's a euphemism for 'I'm a bit deceptive with a lot of the things I say, but for a change of pace, here comes a bit of honesty.'
The great folks over at The AVClub have a great article about the future of the American television seasons. Noel Murray and Scott Tobias have a fantastic in-depth discussion about 1hr dramas , 1/2 hour comedies, 13-episode seasons, 24-episode seasons, and more.
Personally, I think that quality network dramas (i.e. "Lost") would benefit significantly from switching to a 13-episode season. Yes, this means less money for the studio, but creatively it would mean significantly less 'filler' episodes, you know, episodes that do not forward the main mythology of the series. More meat, less fluff.
In its waining years, "The X-Files" had far too many 'filler' episodes. I mean, those last three years were all 'filler,' weren't they?
Who is this man? What is he doing? To whom is he aiming that giant squirt gun? What happens before this photograph? After this photograph? And how does he get his mouth that wide?
All of these somewhat interesting questions will be revealed soon. Or at least raised and dismissed.
Find out on July 4, 2007. Or not. See if I care.
In the meantime, watch an HD trailer of a movie that comes out this summer. A movie that is keeping me from posting more often to this wonderful internets blog.
Peter Litwinowicz and Pierre Jasmin picked up Oscars at the 2006 Scientific & Technical Academy Awards. I've been using their software for years on countless films, and have been a big fan of their software. I was honored to be a reference for them during the application process, and thrilled when they won.
This is just one of many shots that I've used RE:Vision Effects software. In the last few years, I've used Twixtor, Warp, and their other After Effects plugins on "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" (dude getting yanked by the Kraken), "Mission: Impossible III" (Tom being thrown in to a car) and "Star Wars: Episode III" (Anakin becoming char-broiled). And it was a real nice surprise to see the shot appear during the Oscar telecast, beside host Maggie Gyllenhaal.
A hearty congratulations to Peter and Pierre and their teams. You guys rock.
Oh, and ILM's very own Florian Katz, Steve Sullivan, Colin Davidson, Max Chen and Francesco Callari picked up Sci-Tech Oscars, too. Swzeet.
The finest sound designs for features contain a delicate balance between silence and volume. You'll find the most pleasing, interesting and dynamic sound designs are not from films whose soundtrack relentlessly pounds its audience into submission. Garbled, intrusive and assaulting, these films tire audiences, distracting them from a story (or lack thereof).
I can vividly remember the experience of seeing "Armageddon" (1998) in a theater... and I'd prefer to forget it. The final three reels of that film contain a nonstop onslaught of volume - an uncompromising crowded sonic landscape of screams, shouts, gunfire, an overwhelming Trevor Rabin score, and comet-related sound effects. The sound design of "Armageddon" is one of many reasons why this film is nearly unwatchable.
In color, you can enhance the perception of saturation by juxtaposing colors, as you can with shapes and size. (There are literally hundreds of books on this issue, but my current favorite book on this topic is Vision and Art: The Biology of Seeing). What many filmmakers forget is that the same is true for sound. One way to make sure a soundscape is not muddled and overwhelming is to simplify the mix. This is especially difficult for modern action pictures which, by their very nature, are over the top and outrageous. And most of these directors know one sound cue: "loud."
However, the greats of modern sound design know better, and use their talents to create rich, unique soundscapes that enhance the story and characters. My personal favorites in this field are Ben Burtt, Gary Rydstrom and Randy Thom-- the rock stars of modern sound design.
(If you're interested in an interesting and unique film soundtrack, watch David Lynch's "Wild At Heart" (1990), containing sound design by Randy Thom. The sound effects over the ultra-slow motion macro photography of matches being lit are extraordinary.)
Here is one example of a technique that helps create a sonic exclamation point. Ironically, it has everything to do with silence.
Presented are two clips, one from the climax of a chase sequence from "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" (2005), and another from "Mission: Impossible III" (2006), which features Ethan Hunt parachuting between skyscrapers of Shanghai. I've split the screen to feature a visual representation of the sound waveform and its spectrum (lows to highs), to help illustrate my point.
Watch the clips, then rewatch them again, keeping an eye on the waveforms.
Firstly, notice how clean these mixes are, especially considering the visual chaos that happens alongside the soundscape. Secondly, the precise and deliberate use of momentary silence in these clips is profoundly relevant to the emotional impact of the scenes.
The "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" Clip
The climax of this exciting action scene features a sound design that is truly unique. The sequence presented is the denouement of one of the film's action setpieces, and clearly, the soundscape for this little bit of action was carefully crafted to hurl an emotional punch. Each phase of the action has a distinct cadence and rhythm, and the individual moments are clearly defined and crisp. Listen to the sound mix again, this time with your eyes closed.
The soundscape has a deliberate pace. A few things stand out; for one, the sound of Jane Smith's (Angelina Jolie) gun is not cliche and is unique. The effect is not the same one we've heard hundreds of times before; it's distinctive. The 'bang' is relatively muted, perhaps specially recorded and designed specifically for this film. Considering the large variety of weapons used in the film, and the relatively large budget of the film itself, an effort could have been placed on creating a new library of gun sound effects.
Each bullet's impact against the cars is clearly heard, with very little rumbling underneath the staccato piercings, which make them stand out even more. The same is true for a wide shot of a tire that bounces off the roadway near the camera; this exaggerated sound effect (resembling the sound of something more bouncey, like a dodge ball) is not competing with underlying sound, so its impact is guaranteed to be felt.
However, the aspect of the sequence that intrigues me the most is the sound design for the shot from inside the minivan. At that moment, almost all of the sound is muted, almost to a point that would be (gasp!) realistic in nature. Notice what happens when we cut to the shot inside the minivan -- for just a beat, the sonic world takes a breath. You can clearly see this with the visual waveform. Instead of a steady onslaught of intense aural information, the audience is allowed to 'reset' for a moment. This brilliant technique makes the next few shots that much more powerful. A nice touch is the prominent and clearly audible sound of the minivan's transmission. The distinctive sound of a car speeding in reverse is amped up and featured, without being muddled by distracting peripheral noise.
In regards to music, notice how the musical score crescendos just before Jane's heroic moments, then remains completely silent throughout the duration of the action. When we return to a two shot of our heroes, the music cuts back to the diegetic sound of the car radio, tinninly playing a cheesy Air Supply love song. The tune actually mirrors how the scene began - with John Smith (Brad Pitt) singing along with the track.
In addition, this little sequence brilliantly illustrates how a film editor can extend the real-time duration of an event to triple or quadruple its original length. Notice how the complicated stunt, which occurs in a fraction of a second in real-time, takes place over several seconds in the final edited sequence.
Props go out to Cameron Frankley, "Mr. and Mrs. Smith"'s sound supervisor for the film, and his team.
The "Mission: Impossible III" Clip With all of the action in this scene, it could be quite tempting to layer the Michael Giacchino score over all of the gunfire, breaking glass, and parachute sound effects. However, notice what director J.J. Abrams does just before Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) breaks through the window.
After a series of cuts from outside the building, building to a nice crescendo of music and sound effects, we cut to a shot inside the building. For a split second, all sound has been muted. Then, after barely a beat, Ethan blasts through the glass. In the theatre, this little sequence had an amazing impact, and it is that brief moment of silence that makes the CRASH of the impact that much more impressive. The silence allows the CRASH to be a sonic exclamation point. Without that brief pause in the soundscape, the emotional punch of the scene would have to be supported by the visuals alone - with the soundtrack providing only a numbing chorus of volume. "Mission: Impossible III"'s excellent sound team includes Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer, Mark Stoeckinger, Alan Rankin; props to them and their entire team.
Sound designers are the unsung heroes of modern action films. When a director with actual talent works closely with experienced sound designers and film editors, a soundtrack can be created that precisely complements all of the hard work of the stunt coordinators, special effects crews, and visual effects teams.
Industrial Light & Magic won its first Academy Award for visual effects in 12 years. The previous award was for the revolutionary effects in "Forrest Gump," for which Ken Ralston, George Murphy, Stephen Rosenbaum and Allen Hall took home Oscars.
"Pirates 2: Dead Man's Chest" was an amazing collaborative effort on behalf of ILM. Every single department was challenged to perform the finest work, and the final film really illustrates this.
Much has been made about the 12 year 'drought' for ILM between "Gump" and "Pirates 2," especially after consistently earning so many Oscars previous to "Gump" (14 out of 18, to be precise). No one was more cognizant of this 'drought' than ILMers, ourselves.
But just for perspective, I wanted to give props to the ILM productions that have been nominated (yet did not win) for the Academy Awards between 1994's "Forrest Gump" and 2006's "Pirates 2":
ILM's Academy Award Nominations between "Gump" and "Pirates 2":
1996, "Dragonheart" and "Twister"
1997, "The Lost World," and "Starship Troopers" *
1998, "Mighty Joe Young"
1999, "Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace"
2000, "The Perfect Storm"
2001, "Artificial Intelligence" and "Pearl Harbor"
2002, "Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones"
2003, "Master and Commander" and "Pirates of the Caribbean"
2004, "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban"
2005, "The Chronicles of Narnia," "War of the Worlds"
*In 1997, ILM was one of many houses on "Starship Troopers," but was brought on late in production. Also, ILM actually worked on "Titanic," which won the Oscar, but in an extremely limited role.
Those are some amazing projects, with some crazy-good visual effects. Unfortunately, in almost every case, the film that won the Oscar was a much more enjoyable film, overall. Two great cases are 1996 and 2000, where "Independence Day" won the award over "Twister," and "Gladiator" beat out "The Perfect Storm." In each of those cases, the winners' visual effects, while being of very high quality, did not match the level of technical and aesthetic sophistication of the ILM nominees. However, the winners' films, themselves, are vastly superior to the losers' films.
I mean, "Twister" and "The Perfect Storm" are two truly awful films.
When it really comes down to it, the old adage is true. Visual effects are really only as good as the films they're in. You can't polish a piece of garbage movie with amazing visual effects, because in the end, it's still a piece of garbage.
And this is coming from a guy who worked on "Dungeons and Dragons." And "Van Helsing." And a lot of garbage in between.
Oh, boy.
*99.9% done, at the time of this typing.
An actor with a powerful presence, Sam Elliott doesn't seem to get the chance to flex his acting range. He kinda ends up playing Sam Elliott over and over again. He's the displaced cowboy with the "It's What's For Dinner" voice, looking up at ya with that long face, slowly dishing out some oddly profound advice with a fantastic drawl.
A gifted comedienne and dramatic actress, Maura Tierney is one of America's greatest actresses. She has a staggering range; she can play vulnerable characters, powerful characters, purely comedic characters, and sometimes all of those simultaneously.
Do you like it when things blow up? If so, you'll be very happy on July 4. Then you'll learn what this guy is shooting at.
Submitted for your approval, a new term:
Example films created by Professional Screenplay Filmers include Rush Hour, Red Dragon, The Family Man, X-Men III, Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, Edtv, Ransom, The DaVinci Code, Stepmom, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Nine Months.
A nice little New York Times article about marketing an original summer movie amidst a sea of sequels.
If you find yourself saying 'honestly' often, you're probably lying too much.
The great folks over at The AVClub have a great article about the future of the American television seasons. Noel Murray and Scott Tobias have a fantastic in-depth discussion about 1hr dramas , 1/2 hour comedies, 13-episode seasons, 24-episode seasons, and more.
Who is this man? What is he doing? To whom is he aiming that giant squirt gun? What happens before this photograph? After this photograph? And how does he get his mouth that wide?
Peter Litwinowicz and Pierre Jasmin picked up Oscars at the 2006 Scientific & Technical Academy Awards. I've been using their software for years on countless films, and have been a big fan of their software. I was honored to be a reference for them during the application process, and thrilled when they won.
I can vividly remember the experience of seeing "Armageddon" (1998) in a theater... and I'd prefer to forget it. The final three reels of that film contain a nonstop onslaught of volume - an uncompromising crowded sonic landscape of screams, shouts, gunfire, an overwhelming Trevor Rabin score, and comet-related sound effects. The sound design of "Armageddon" is one of many reasons why this film is nearly unwatchable.
However, the greats of modern sound design know better, and use their talents to create rich, unique soundscapes that enhance the story and characters. My personal favorites in this field are Ben Burtt, Gary Rydstrom and Randy Thom-- the rock stars of modern sound design.
The soundscape has a deliberate pace. A few things stand out; for one, the sound of Jane Smith's (Angelina Jolie) gun is not cliche and is unique. The effect is not the same one we've heard hundreds of times before; it's distinctive. The 'bang' is relatively muted, perhaps specially recorded and designed specifically for this film. Considering the large variety of weapons used in the film, and the relatively large budget of the film itself, an effort could have been placed on creating a new library of gun sound effects.
A nice touch is the prominent and clearly audible sound of the minivan's transmission. The distinctive sound of a car speeding in reverse is amped up and featured, without being muddled by distracting peripheral noise.
In regards to music, notice how the musical score crescendos just before Jane's heroic moments, then remains completely silent throughout the duration of the action. When we return to a two shot of our heroes, the music cuts back to the diegetic sound of the car radio, tinninly playing a cheesy Air Supply love song. The tune actually mirrors how the scene began - with John Smith (Brad Pitt) singing along with the track.
With all of the action in this scene, it could be quite tempting to layer the Michael Giacchino score over all of the gunfire, breaking glass, and parachute sound effects. However, notice what director J.J. Abrams does just before Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) breaks through the window.
"Mission: Impossible III"'s excellent sound team includes Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer, Mark Stoeckinger, Alan Rankin; props to them and their entire team.
Industrial Light & Magic won its first Academy Award for visual effects in 12 years. The previous award was for the revolutionary effects in "Forrest Gump," for which Ken Ralston, George Murphy, Stephen Rosenbaum and Allen Hall took home Oscars.
Those are some amazing projects, with some crazy-good visual effects. Unfortunately, in almost every case, the film that won the Oscar was a much more enjoyable film, overall. Two great cases are 1996 and 2000, where "Independence Day" won the award over "Twister," and "Gladiator" beat out "The Perfect Storm." In each of those cases, the winners' visual effects, while being of very high quality, did not match the level of technical and aesthetic sophistication of the ILM nominees. However, the winners' films, themselves, are vastly superior to the losers' films.
"Pirates 2" wins the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, ILM's first Oscar since "Forrest Gump" in 1994. Boy, does it feel good.
