This presidential race is a joke

The title says it all. Literally. I know I've only been politically conscious for two elections now but this is a complete joke. Its gotten to the point where people are quite literally confiding in Donald Trump because he is not a politician... sane to some, crazy to most. This ridiculousness has even permeated other industries. There are now EDM remixes dedicated to presidential candidates... Yup, you guessed it. Without further adieu, I give you, Donald Trump.......

A Film with a Thousand Films Inside

We have talked in class about Paramount's film Rango and how it is a film that has hundreds of film references throughout. Another film that caught my eye and does the same thing is 2000's Chicken Run. Essentially the film is a claymation parody of The Great Escape but with chicken famers instead of Nazis. In some parts the film is almost exactly the same but not only that the film references so many films on top of that.

From films like Psycho, Ace in the Hole, Enter the Dragon, and Alien. The list goes on and on. When Rocky is giving a inspirational speech he even directly quotes a line from the Italian Job. And even the famous Star Wars jump that wasn't even original in Star Wars. If you haven't seen the film I suggest you watch it, not only is it spectacularly written but it is also beautifully animated.

The Women of Wall Street

Everyone's seen The Wolf of Wall Street. And if you haven't, you need to get on that. Seriously, watch it. It's a miracle you've been able to hold any sort of conversation with people since its release. Just kidding, I saw it about a week ago. But I mean, look at this face:

Leonardo DiCaprio in "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Anyway, if you have heard of it, you're aware of the certain misogynistic themes that run rampant throughout the entire 180 minutes of the film. But Meghan, it's a biographical film! It's supposed to be funny! They have to stay true to the characters! And yes, I do admit that there's something outrageous and alluring that sets The Wolf of Wall Street apart from the other hundreds of thousands of "Men-Are-Powerful, Women-Are-Sex-Objects" films, but it's interesting to think about how the movie would've actually went if the roles were reversed.

And that's where Los Angeles writer, Nicole Donadio, comes in. A couple of weeks ago, she released a video called "The Women of Wall Street", a parody of the original The Wolf of Wall Street trailer. Line for line, and almost exactly shot for shot, she recreated the trailer, but with a twist. All of the roles switched genders. The concept is more impressive than the actual production of the video, but in my opinion, it was very well executed and edited. First, here's the original trailer:

And here's Donadio's version:

At it's worst, it's a silly parody of a blockbuster film. At it's best, it's a nod to the inequality of women in not only the film industry, but the corporate world as well. What I found extremely interesting were the surprisingly negative comments on the Youtube page. Commenters treated the word and the concept of "feminism" in a very critical light. Although "feminism" has always been viewed as a dirty word (known to many as "the F-word"), I found it alarming how many people took the time to express their hatred for not just the video, but the feminist ideals behind it. Regardless, I'm all for these kinds of videos starting discussions and bringing to the surface some of the issues of gender that are mostly shoved under the rug. Props to Donadio, and I'm excited to see if this sparks any more critical parodies.

And in case any of you are interested, here's a link to a well-written critique on The Wolf of Wall Street from a feminist stand point. Because you know, feminism.

The Hillywood Show

It's Captain Jack Sparrow, it's Bella Swan, it's Bilbo Baggins: no, it's The Hillywood Show.

 What is it?

The Hillywood Show is a youtube channel created by Hilly and Hannah Hindi. It's birth came to be, a few years ago, when AOL hosted it's "Be a Red Star" competition and Hilly entered with an idea to create music-based, hollywood-shorts. Unfortunately, she came in third place but that didn't stop her for a moment. Armed with a camera, her sister, and a team of friends and family, The Hillywood Show took off. 

The Concept

Now, you might not have caught it the first time but the channel is dedicated to making musical parodies of famous pop-culture movies, celebrities, and tv shows. Usually the parodies are to well-known hits, twisted a bit to fit the theme of their production.

Now some of you are probably thinking, "parodies, laaame." And sure, there are plenty of parody-centric channels out there that hardly meet any sort of cinematic standard, but this is not one of them. From Lady Gaga to Harry Potter, the girls push out a endless wave of movie-standard videos that would blow you away to learn that they make them themselves.

Yes, Themselves

Looking at the quality of their shorts, you wouldn't imagine that all of it is shot on one Canon DSLR: written, directed, starring, and produced by the two sisters. Excluding the support of some special effect and prop companies, the production is done entirely by the Hindi family and their fans. 

It's completely mind-blowing to see that two people can create something so big, without having any formal training in media production beforehand, and be able to pull out all the stops with the help of their viewers. If anything, it makes me love their work even more.

The Behind the Scenes

Strange as it may be, one of the best parts of their work are the behind the scenes videos that are out on their Executive Producer's channel (Myish) and other affiliated channels. It's one thing to see their product, and it's another to witness just how much passion and dedication they put behind it. I'll be honest, I spent a few solid hours watching just the BTSs. I think it's utterly fascinating to see all of the set-up, the make-up, the break-down, and the clean-up of their productions. Hilly could give any FX-artist a run for their money: transforming herself into a list of over twenty different characters that would make you do a double-take.

From a media production student's point of view, it's cool to see what their process is. From getting actors, to directing, to getting the right shot. It's comforting in a way because it shows there are plenty of opportunities to be creative outside of the hollywood scene. Like I said, I find watching how a production is made the most intriguing thing in the world. I can't get enough.

Even if you can't appreciate their parodies, you have to at least appreciate their hard work. And watching them do what they do, it encourages me to continue doing what I do. They're a strong, dynamic team that will go far. So sit down, grab some popcorn, and dive into the world of The Hillywood Show.

I got it! I got it! I don't got it.

Tonight I've been able to knock another off another from my list-

All I have to say is that I love Mel Brooks even more than I already did (and that's a lot of love). 

This movie is a parody of about 10 Alfred Hitchock films- and each done so well that Hitchock himself loved it. Seriously- Brooks dedicated the movie to him at the beginning of the film. He also had a private screening for Hitchock and after the movie, he left without a word! Brooks thought that the film icon had hated it- but actually the complete opposite! Hitchock sent Brooks wine congratulating him on a job well done. Pretty sure that's one of the highest compliments anyone could ever get- ever.

High Anxiety is about Dr. Richard H. Thorndyke, a highly regarded Psychiatrist from the East coast and comes over to the West coast to run the:  

                                      

PsychoNeurotic Institute for the Very, Very Nervous. Here in the institute you meet Cloris Leachman as the very manly, pointy-breasted nurse and Harvey Korman as another doctor who was going to run the institute before Thorndyke arrived. Having been a HUGE Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein fan for years, it did my heart good seeing Frau Blucher and Hedley Lamarr get um... *ahem* kinky? Also, anytime I see Madeline Kahn in anything- I know it's going to be good.

So many direct spoofs from his movies are so well done that you had to know that Brooks watched Hitchocks films on repeat- like for example...

The shower scene from Psycho. We all know how it goes down in Psycho, but in High Anxiety, Brook's character has been asking the bellhop to get him a copy of the newspaper since he got to the hotel. The bellhop, not being the nicest/sane guy in town, rolls up the newspaper and stabs Brooks's with it and leaves. Instead of the usual blood we would have seen, instead we see the ink go down the drain and Brooks looks like he's dead but then blurts out "He's not getting a tip". If it wasn't for the fact my room mate has been asleep for almost two hours, I would have laughed so hard out loud. 

(Even the opening scene where Thorndyke goes through the airport seemed so hilarious once you put it in context- just watching everyone's face as the plane goes for the landing and then you see Brooks- Lordy that's the exact look my mom gets whenever we're on a plane...)

Due to this movie, I know understand why my parents always joke about the drapes (seeing as my dad is a psychologist) and when ever I say I'm getting anxious, my dad will always sing "Hiiiigh Anggggg-sietyyyy". And I got that it was from the movie but I thought he was just being a dad but nope. Mel Brooks takes a jab at Frank Sinatra while he's at it... Ahhh... Mel Brooks...

If you are either an Alfred Hitchcock fan, Mel Brooks fan, thriller fanatic, or a comedy enthusiast, High Anxiety is probably one of the best films you could see. So if you want to hear Mel Brooks sing or just get a brief idea of the movie, watch the video I have at the bottom- It's of the movie's theme.

                                       

A Scause for Applause

Earlier this week I stopped by a friends house and walked in on a 8-10 person viewing party. I was delighted to hear that they were all anxiously awaiting the new South Park episode. Having been a South Park fan in the past (recently I have been slacking) I decided to join the party and see what this season of South Park had to offer. This was a great decision.

This epsiode, "A Scause for Applause" touched on a few issues that are currently going on in society today. Right from the first act of the episode It was clear that the focus of this episode would be on Lance Armstrong and his alleged blood doping. The episode started with everyone cutting off their "LiveStrong" bracelets in a ritualistic way. However, It was entirely sarcastic. People were all bashing Lance Armstrong. Then the episode transitioned to the W.W.J.D. wristbands. Everyone was now removing these wristbands because Jesus was apparently under the influence while creating the old testament.

The wristbands became the theme of the episode. Stan decided to not cut off his W.W.J.D. and this caused a national outrage. Not only did it cause an outrage, it started a new wristband for Stan that had "Stan Your Ground" written on it.

The South Park creators, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, wanted to make this the central theme of the episode. People are always looking for a cause that they can support, but often times do it for show rather than the good of the cause. This leads to a bunch of wristbands with no meaning. This reminded me why I love South Park in the first place. They are not afraid to call out society. Supporting a cause shouldn't be about a wearing a wristband, It should be about actually providing money and service for that specific cause.

I really enjoyed this episode of South Park. My favorite part of the episode was when South Park went Dr. Seuss when Stan and Jesus visited the wristband factory. Hilarity ensues.

Boom Op vs DP

Last week I posted a little about sound design, so this week I wanted to post about sound recordists and boom operators, the common audio positions found on a set. Sound guys notoriously get treated like shit. Most other crew members including Directors, Cinematographers, and Producers don't give sound priority. All they care about is the image that is being shot, but in reality the picture can be great but if it sounds bad then the entire film is going to be bad. That's just how it is. Of course there are exceptions to this and there are Directors and DPs that care and ask how a take sounded, etc, but for the most part this is the case on professional sets and especially on college sets. Sound doesn't get enough appreciation.

This link below is called "An Open Letter From Your Sound Department." It is written by the top Hollywood Mixers and Boom Ops and gives practical solutions for each crew member on set to make the film sound better. I bet no one knew that it is in the Grip's job description to help sound and set up sound blankets and work to create the quietest filming environment. I learned quite a lot from this letter and anyone can learn from this. Definitely worth a read.

http://filmsound.org/production-sound/openletter.htm

As someone who has both been a Director of Photography and a Sound Mixer/Boom Op, I can relate to this short animation that makes fun of this relationship between the camera and the microphone. Anyone that has done both these positions or just taken notice while on set of what goes on and where all the power seems to be. I would highly recommend everyone to watch this video.

There are plenty of things like this that occur on film sets and there are quite a few of these animations that poke fun at it all and they are all funny and completely true.

Get a First Life

Face it, we all need to from time to time