A new, Doc/Spoken Word piece, focusing on the importance of props in cinema, will engage you fully. Using footage from classic cinema, edited together to a brilliant compilation of music, this project has made an incredible experimental film. In 10 minutes you learn an immense amount about story telling and symbolism. Please watch at least two minutes of it, I promise it will be worth your time.
Why Props Matter from Rishi Kaneria on Vimeo.
This beautifully scripted piece touched upon objects are universal to all. They can hold so much meaning and can be used to move the story along. A level of authenticity is needed in any film, in order to make audiences believe the story. Props hold so much value and can even be the sole desiring factor of the movie. Its filmmakers job to make it seem as nothing is out of the ordinary, if the audience isn't questioning anything, you've done your job!
Showing posts with label vimeo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vimeo. Show all posts
Thursday, November 12, 2015
Thursday, October 29, 2015
Music in Short Films
Growing up I had numerous influences of music in my life. From playing the saxophone from 4th-12th grade, to listening to my classically trained sister sing in concert. Music has always been prevalent and I have found that melodies are what drives my mind. For the life me I couldn't remember lyrics without studying a printed piece of sheet music. But the way music progressed was something I could always follow and even predict.
I've always wanted a good musical accompaniment with any video work I've done. For the video below I had found a song I enjoyed the melody to and from there all I needed was something to put on screen. With a little help from a friend, I was able to make one of my favorite pieces of work.
Air from Skyler Bocciolatt on Vimeo.
Using both the hits of the choreography and the music I had a blast editing and the possibilties of which direction I took the short were endless. While this was just a small project I shot on a whim. I applied the same idea of music being a character in the film with my Junior level film "Before Your Eyes."
"Before Your Eyes" follows a young man who is given the opportunity to look back on his life. Drawing upon the strong bond that can exist between father and son, this story looks at the actions we make when pushed to our greatest limits. Throughout the film there are only two scenes with written dialogue. Music was able to fill this space and help evoke any emotion from the film that typically would be exposed through dialogue.
Last night I also began to watch "Walt Disney's Animations Studios Short Films Collection." Each short animation was introduced with interviews of the creators of the short. They talked about how music inspired them and that for a specific short "Lorenzo" they searched hundreds of tango scenes just to find a song to use, and in the end it was the first one they had listened to. The trailer can be scene below and all of the shorts are available on Netflix.
It was so interesting to me that the creators were able to make a story out of music they found. Even if there aren't lyrics the melody and progression of any song is a story. For me, I want to continue to find these stories and provide a moving image for as many as I can. The ways music and film complement each other is like no other thing in this world. These mediums are what people turn to to escape there problems and worries; they are necessary for society to function and I want to create them for the rest of my life.
I've always wanted a good musical accompaniment with any video work I've done. For the video below I had found a song I enjoyed the melody to and from there all I needed was something to put on screen. With a little help from a friend, I was able to make one of my favorite pieces of work.
Air from Skyler Bocciolatt on Vimeo.
Using both the hits of the choreography and the music I had a blast editing and the possibilties of which direction I took the short were endless. While this was just a small project I shot on a whim. I applied the same idea of music being a character in the film with my Junior level film "Before Your Eyes."
"Before Your Eyes" follows a young man who is given the opportunity to look back on his life. Drawing upon the strong bond that can exist between father and son, this story looks at the actions we make when pushed to our greatest limits. Throughout the film there are only two scenes with written dialogue. Music was able to fill this space and help evoke any emotion from the film that typically would be exposed through dialogue.
Last night I also began to watch "Walt Disney's Animations Studios Short Films Collection." Each short animation was introduced with interviews of the creators of the short. They talked about how music inspired them and that for a specific short "Lorenzo" they searched hundreds of tango scenes just to find a song to use, and in the end it was the first one they had listened to. The trailer can be scene below and all of the shorts are available on Netflix.
Friday, February 28, 2014
East of Kensington: The Process of Filmmaking
Recently, I've been surfing the internet for short films to help with our process of filmmaking for this class. I came across an awesome website called Short of the Week, that displays innovative and worthwhile short films regularly. In addition, they publish articles regarding the short film world and post news about awards and film festivals.
Anyway, while browsing the site I found an interesting short thesis film created by students of Chapman University, (the same university that the student thesis film "Into the Silent Sea" came from, directed by Andrej Landin) and decided to check it out. It's called "East of Kensington", a thriller written and directed by Kellen Moore during his time at Chapman. It tells the tale of Peter Pan after he drops off Wendy, Michael and John back home to London after their adventures in Neverland. The film takes a disturbing turn, which captivates you till the very end. It's twenty minutes long, which is the same length as the films we're making, so I made sure to pay attention to the structure of a film that's already proven to be successful.
I thought the short was visually impressive. The dark color theme was cohesive during the entire film and gave it a certain tone and mood that was very effective. Also, the dreamlike scenes with Wendy were haunting and beautiful. Overall the shots were truly appealing to the eye and very well executed. Furthermore the attention to detail was spectacular. Everything from the scenery to costumes to the pictures on the walls and in the newspaper were accounted for. This is something to keep in mind when designing our sets and collecting props and costumes for our own films.
Now that we're in the writing and story creating phase of our process, there is a lot to consider about structure and story. A short film only has a certain amount of time to leave an impression, so every part of it must be well thought out and purposeful. Specifically this film, I learned a lot about ways to include back story without taking up too much time or hitting the audience over the head with exposition. Granted, the characters and plot for this film are well known to the audience, so a lot was dependent on that, but there was still an entire implicit history of the characters lives fit into a twenty minute time frame. The use of the dream sequences and careful dialogue to explain what happened to the children while Peter was away was well done.
Another important characteristic of a short is feeling like a full story, even though it's really only a snippet or event of something larger. "East of Kensington" jumps right into the story, without much background. Then at the end, although it doesn't seem like an ending, has a feeling of completion and finality. This is something that I believe is significant to contemplate while writing the script to our own films. Watching other peoples' short films is extremely helpful and rewarding when you are attempting to do the same, and a lot can be learned from the trials, errors and successes of those who have created films before us.
Anyway, while browsing the site I found an interesting short thesis film created by students of Chapman University, (the same university that the student thesis film "Into the Silent Sea" came from, directed by Andrej Landin) and decided to check it out. It's called "East of Kensington", a thriller written and directed by Kellen Moore during his time at Chapman. It tells the tale of Peter Pan after he drops off Wendy, Michael and John back home to London after their adventures in Neverland. The film takes a disturbing turn, which captivates you till the very end. It's twenty minutes long, which is the same length as the films we're making, so I made sure to pay attention to the structure of a film that's already proven to be successful.
I thought the short was visually impressive. The dark color theme was cohesive during the entire film and gave it a certain tone and mood that was very effective. Also, the dreamlike scenes with Wendy were haunting and beautiful. Overall the shots were truly appealing to the eye and very well executed. Furthermore the attention to detail was spectacular. Everything from the scenery to costumes to the pictures on the walls and in the newspaper were accounted for. This is something to keep in mind when designing our sets and collecting props and costumes for our own films.
Now that we're in the writing and story creating phase of our process, there is a lot to consider about structure and story. A short film only has a certain amount of time to leave an impression, so every part of it must be well thought out and purposeful. Specifically this film, I learned a lot about ways to include back story without taking up too much time or hitting the audience over the head with exposition. Granted, the characters and plot for this film are well known to the audience, so a lot was dependent on that, but there was still an entire implicit history of the characters lives fit into a twenty minute time frame. The use of the dream sequences and careful dialogue to explain what happened to the children while Peter was away was well done.
Another important characteristic of a short is feeling like a full story, even though it's really only a snippet or event of something larger. "East of Kensington" jumps right into the story, without much background. Then at the end, although it doesn't seem like an ending, has a feeling of completion and finality. This is something that I believe is significant to contemplate while writing the script to our own films. Watching other peoples' short films is extremely helpful and rewarding when you are attempting to do the same, and a lot can be learned from the trials, errors and successes of those who have created films before us.
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Watch this too?
I saw this video a while ago. Maybe it will help groups with coming up with ideas for their films. It is definitely contains a wealth of knowledge.
This video basically walks you through Ken Burns's thought process when coming up with ideas.
Yes this is the same Ken Burns as the "Ken Burns Effect".
So hearing from such and influential person is always great, but at the same time it is humbling because he is human, not eccentric and his thought process seems normal when he explains it and most people can do the same.
One of the main things I got out of it is his math. Everyone is used to 1+1=2, but he is saying make 1+1=3, add that extra element that will make the audience feel. Manipulate them with things that they hold close to their hearts and you will come up with something truly great.
It's also cool hearing about how he can see stories so easily, like things that happen in history make such interesting stories. Like Jefferson writing that all men are created equal, but had slaves of his own and never freed them in his life.
So without further adieu here's the link to the video:
Ken Burns: on Story
This video basically walks you through Ken Burns's thought process when coming up with ideas.
Yes this is the same Ken Burns as the "Ken Burns Effect".
So hearing from such and influential person is always great, but at the same time it is humbling because he is human, not eccentric and his thought process seems normal when he explains it and most people can do the same.
One of the main things I got out of it is his math. Everyone is used to 1+1=2, but he is saying make 1+1=3, add that extra element that will make the audience feel. Manipulate them with things that they hold close to their hearts and you will come up with something truly great.
It's also cool hearing about how he can see stories so easily, like things that happen in history make such interesting stories. Like Jefferson writing that all men are created equal, but had slaves of his own and never freed them in his life.
So without further adieu here's the link to the video:
Ken Burns: on Story
Friday, September 21, 2012
Interactive Filmmaking on the Internet
The Internet is revolutionary. We all know that. Look at YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter and imagine your daily life without them.
It's a new medium that opens up huge possibilities for filmmakers. However, the web is often an afterthought for many filmmakers and especially student filmmakers.
Pretty much every feature length film has a website. Some of them are standalone works of interactive art. ParaNorman, a recent animated film, has an amazing interactive website built in HTML5 that allows audiences to get a feel for its characters and animation.
It's a new medium that opens up huge possibilities for filmmakers. However, the web is often an afterthought for many filmmakers and especially student filmmakers.
Pretty much every feature length film has a website. Some of them are standalone works of interactive art. ParaNorman, a recent animated film, has an amazing interactive website built in HTML5 that allows audiences to get a feel for its characters and animation.
ParaNorman's site lets audiences take a virtual tour of the movie even before it was released last month. It's built on HTML5, which is the new internet standard for replacing Adobe's Flash.
HTML5 is completely run inside of the browser and is therefore more stable than Flash, making it possible for better and faster interactive animations.
Flash still has its uses of course. It's also been used in the past by many websites that haven't updated.
Released in 2008, CrimeFace is an interactive movie built on Flash. It adds a new depth to the film using a controllable interface around the actual film to provide more information about characters, props, and other elements of the fim.
A new genre of interactive films has entered the market: interactive music videos. Bands and musicians like Arcade Fire, ABBY, Bobby Womback, Chairlift, Ellie Goulding and Miranda Lambert have all released impressive interactive HTML5 songs.
Old Spice teamed up with Vimeo to make an interactive short video where you can make music by moving Terry Crews's muscles in different ways.
If you're interested in creating an interactive film, a handy web script called Popcorn.js works wonders and is worth a checkout.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Getting Creative
I was on Vimeo the other day when I stumbled across this article. The article is basically a super basic intro to gels and diffusion. What I found interesting however was this picture from the article.
The neat colorized effect was created by holding a glass of whiskey up the flash. This got me thinking about all the creative, homemade stuff, guys were bringing on set when I was working this summer. The lighting guys were always experimenting with weird stuff to bounce the light off of. I guess the point is sometimes we get caught up in the latest greatest equipment, which is a good thing, but I think we can all think a little more creatively on all fronts. Even if your not lighting. Audio people for example might think of a new way to hide the mic in the car or producers might use a different layout when making the call sheets, etc. Its a struggle sometimes to not become complacent with your work but ultimately that creativity is going to pay off.
The neat colorized effect was created by holding a glass of whiskey up the flash. This got me thinking about all the creative, homemade stuff, guys were bringing on set when I was working this summer. The lighting guys were always experimenting with weird stuff to bounce the light off of. I guess the point is sometimes we get caught up in the latest greatest equipment, which is a good thing, but I think we can all think a little more creatively on all fronts. Even if your not lighting. Audio people for example might think of a new way to hide the mic in the car or producers might use a different layout when making the call sheets, etc. Its a struggle sometimes to not become complacent with your work but ultimately that creativity is going to pay off.
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