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Category: Management

Oct72011

Ciné-surfer: 3D Stereoscopic Film & Animation Blog – 1953 vs 1983 vs Today

3D films have come and gone and come back again. Alexander Lentjes has a great article on the 3D Stereoscopic Film and Animation Blog that looks at 3D films over the years.

Beyond the discussion, there are stats of the number of 3D films released (per genre) in various years and a bar chart… for us visual folk to interpret the information. Through comparison, we can get a better picture of where we are today.

Have a look: “Real 3-D feature release numbers: the 3-D Revolution of 1953 and 1983 vs 2010”

Cheers & a good shoot to you,
Deb

Sep92011

Ciné-surfer: $1M Budget Breakdown (from Oz Film Commission)

The Australia Film Commission has a set of feature articles worth perusing. One in particular is called “The Financial Lowdown“.

Though this article is a tad old (it references films shot between 2000 and 2003), the content is still excellent. There’s a breakdown of a $1M production budget that helps with understanding of generally where in the budget the money goes. There is also discussion of how many shoot days are typical for low budget features and much more.

So… read it, learn from it, bookmark it! Then you can peruse their other articles too. Are any of them of significant interest to you?

Cheers & happy budgeting to you,
Deb

Jul152011

Harry Potter – Part 2: 7 Memorable Characters

We treasure on-screen characters like they are real persons, often assuming them to be alternative personalities of the performers who play them. Yet…

All the elements of filmmaking come together to create memorable on-screen characters from the writer’s invention and the initial casting choice through the magic created on set to the choice of shots in editing, including which shots are juxtaposed on either side, and the soundscape.

Memorable scenes can exist outside of both key story points and of memorable characters, and yet it is the characters themselves that bring us back, wanting to see more. With those characters we make a connection.

In honour of the last Harry Potter movie this weekend, here’s a look at 7 memorable characters of the first Harry Potter movie (“Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone”):

1. Harry Potter – Of course. A surprisingly average wizard with a few extraordinary talents and an admirably uncorrupted heart; oh, to have his resilience amid such darkness!

 2. Dumbledore – Classic master of magic with great kindness and who inspires deep trust; of all the scenes, we anticipate the Dumbledore/Harry scenes the most.

3. Ron Weasley – Earnest and real; he’s the only one who can ask to see Harry’s scar and the question doesn’t make Harry (or us) uncomfortable.

4. Hermione Granger – She makes an interesting choice that defines her future in Gryffindor as opposed to Ravenclaw, for her bravery exceeds her vast, enviable intelligence, and this brings us closer to her.

5. Fred & George Weasley – Hard to picture them as separate characters (and they like it that way); they embody the laughter that is essential in life and especially amid darkness; how the imp in all of us would love to get away with what they get away with!

6. Severus Snape – His presence fills the room; vastly intelligent, temperamental, and it appears a depth of character yet well hidden but sneaks out now and then; a worthy adversary to Harry, and one anticipates their verbal sparring

7. Rubeus Hagrid – More than the “gentle giant”, he has such staunch loyalty that helps him to earn a spot amid the brave folk of Gryffindor, and when it comes to creatures, a totally refreshing opinion of what is beautiful.

Again, this is my person list, and your list may differ. Still, it obviously takes an ensemble of characters to create the story moments. Scenes exist in that “space” between characters as they interact (or in the interaction between character and setting).

How many memorable characters are in your script? How can you make your characters more memorable through the various elements of filmmaking from prep to post?

Cheers & happy invention to you,
Deb

P.S. For more Harry Potter “lists”, the Hollywood Reporter a number of “25 Surprising Facts”:

* About Wizard’s Wands & Props

* About Costume & Animal Facts

* About Set Minatures & Franchise Offspring

Jul82011

Harry Potter – Part 1: 7 Magical Moments

It is said that with 7 memorable scenes in a movie – I mean really memorable, magical scenes – then the movie has great potential to do well.

In honour of the last Harry Potter movie coming out, I thought to examine this idea using the first Harry Potter movie. If any movie were filled with memorable, magical scenes, then I believe this one would be it. The trick in this case is to identify the scenes of the movie, not the scenes of the book…. because reading the book is a very different experience from watching the movie.

So, here, for “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone”…

  1. The Harry Potter theme music over mist in the darkness and the first magic of Dumbledore & McGonagall
  2. Olivander facilitates the “twin” wand choosing Harry
  3. Through the wall and arriving on platform 9 3/4 to see the Hogwarts Express
  4. Harry, Ron and Hermione meet on the train over candy, spells and a dirty nose
  5. Snape explains the subtlety, fame & glory of potions… and labels Harry a celebrity
  6. In the great hall at the end, Neville earns the winning 10 points
  7. Hagrid gives Harry the photo album of wizard photos of Harry & his parents

Aha! Are these memorable moments different from yours? Hard to keep it to only seven?

Identifying the most memorable & magical scenes in your script will help to identify where and when to spend the production’s budget to maximize “getting the magic on the screen”. I’m not talking about “getting the story on the screen” – which is also a requirement of the focus of the budget – but finding the moments where the viewer’s thoughts are going to linger after leaving the theatre.

This list also shows us that allocating the production budget wisely may mean to allocate funds to special effects (the obvious) but also to time spent in rehearsal and on set to find the magic in the quiet moments or in dialogue between characters.

Since filmmaking is a collaborative art, explore (with the creative team) where the memorable moments may lie in your script.

Cheers & happy hunting,
Deb

Jun242011

Tattoos & Copyright

The copyright issue around the tattoo in Hangover II this week had me thinking about rights and ownership around photographs this week.

So you want to use an existing photograph in your movie… Have you secured the rights to it? All the rights? Perhaps you’ve secured the publishing rights already (from the book or magazine publisher), and then found out there were still some reserved rights to be secured from the photographer directly. Next you tracked down and secured more rights still retained by the people depicted in the photograph… what about permissions around the location or the art in the photo? And now… the tattoo?

Securing all the rights to use existing work is never as easy at it first sounds. It’s not necessarily a one-stop shop to permission.

Sure, a clearance research report on the script may flag potential rights issues to you, but there are many items that make it to set that are not specifically described in the script, and so cannot be raised by the research report. Of course you’re going to need proper legal advice when it comes to rights issues and crew members are not lawyers, but crew members are in the position to flag potential rights issues as sets, props and wardrobe, for example, are assembled. The crew (not just one person on set) should have some working knowledge of rights and permissions. Use this week’s story of the tattoo to start or refresh awareness in the crew about potential rights issues. The discussion is bound to be both animated and entertaining. Everyone has a story. You’ll see…

For more on the tattoo & copyright story, here’s a link to the Hollywood Reporter’s coverage of it:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/warner-bros-settles-hangover-ii-203377

For a list of clearance research companies, see the resource links on my website: http://www.debpatz.com/pmlinks.htm

Cheers & a clear shoot to you,
Deb