Super 8 is likely the best movie of the summer. Continue reading
Posted in Filmsmith Faves, Reviews
Tagged Filmmaking, J.J. Abrams, love of movies, Sci-Fi, Steven Spielberg, Super 8
The art of a credit sequence is probably one you haven’t thought of unless you’re watching the latest Bond film. This fan-made opening credit sequence for the upcoming X-Men: First Class demonstrates how graphic design can set the mood for a film – in this instance by channelling the film’s 1960′s setting with bold outlines of various X-Men and the images of the era’s most prolific personalities. Even if you have no interest in the latest X-Men film, this is quite cool. Continue reading
One of my first memories of being enchanted with filmmaking was a Discovery Channel show called Movie Magic (or something like that) detailing how special effects were created. From squibs (small explosions for gunshots) to miniatures (the helicopter crash from Cliffhanger), I was enthralled – especially when a guy called a foley artist took a chainsaw to a watermelon. Continue reading
Every year in Hollywoodland the best and brightest talents of the entertainment industry gather together to acknowledge the outstanding work of their colleagues. The nominations bring expectations and surprises and this year’s nominees are no different. And the nominees are…
A few days ago, we brought you the story of Park Chan-wook’s (Oldboy) newest film (a 30-minute iPhone movie) and now we have an even better present for you–the trailer.
After seeing the delightful Au Revoir Taipei at the Edinburgh Film Fest, I had a chance to sit down and talk to the director about romantic comedies, French New Wave influences, and challenges as a writer. Continue reading
Posted in Edinburgh International Film Festival, Filmmaking, Interviews
Tagged Arvin Chen, Au Revoir Taipei, Billy Wilder, Breathless, Comedy, Director, Edinburgh International Film Festival, EIFF, film production, Filmmaking, French New Wave, Interview, Joon-ho Bong, Lawrence Ko, Memories of Murder, Romance, The Apartment, Wes Anderson, Woody Allen, writing
I know the video quality isn’t great (my camera can’t handle low light situations), but I figure it might be worth the audio to interested parties.
Director Gareth Edwards is to the right, actors Whitney Able and Skoot McNairy to the left.
For those of us who tried to warn the public that they were being swindled into buying tickets to an unfinished product with last year’s much anticipated Public Enemies (weak sound design, amateur framing, visuals that “looked like a wedding video” as my friend put it), the following offers some (belated) vindication.
A source at the Edinburgh International Film Festival said that technical details plagued the production of Public Enemies, thanks to Michael Mann’s mistreatment of the crew and poor management skills.
Crew members were financially and personally poorly treated and simple technological protocols (correct cables, lenses) were flouted. The results were disastrous: A production designer quit, Johnny Depp had Mann apologize to the crew for his behavior, and the studio spent “$20-30 million dollars” in post-production trying to save the film. Depp “hated Mann” for the way he ran the production.
It seems the crew got the last laugh though: The same source said that “thousands of dollars in office supplies” from Public Enemies were stolen and put to use for a film currently at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. “You could say it’s a Michael Mann financed film.”
I’m a huge fan of Mann’s Heat and Collateral, but was dismayed by the poor production values of Public Enemies. Though the film came out a year ago, I think it’s important to know the history surrounding a production so as to understand a film’s successes or failures. There is the possibility that the person I spoke to could be some disgruntled crew member out to tarnish Mann’s image, but this person’s comments seem a reasonable explanation for the unusually bad quality of such a major Hollywood film.
The Filmsmith
Fun Film Fact #1: You speak Swedish in the edit
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Posted in Filmmaking, News
Tagged 80's, Comedy, Filmmaking, Swedish, Top Secret!, Val Kilmer