Thursday, January 30, 2014

SFX vs. VFX

So as some of you may know, I love some good, compelling visual effects.

If executed properly visual effects can be what either makes or breaks your film, granted you can't forget about the story......or else people will start calling it a "Michael Bay" film...

No offense to Michael Bay, personally I love the Transformers series, they really give you the feeling of an alienated world, unlike anything we're used to in our day to day lives.....at least not in mine...

All joking aside, visual effects can add that one element you're missing to top off your next Grammy award winning film.

Take the Oscar nominated film Gravity for example. The piece was downright outstanding!
Great story, amazing cast, experienced director and mind boggling visual effects.

Sure they could of filmed the entire thing, using a spaceship replica and spray painted windows in downtown Los Angeles.....but the visual effects just took it 10 times further. Creating an entirely new environment for the story to develop and mature, allowing more creative freedom for the director to work with.
Ultimately bringing you the best film of the year.

For the enthusiasts here's a link to the VFX breakdown for Gravity. thank you Prime Focus for your amazing work on this beautiful film.

Anyone looking into getting involved with visual effects, or just want to have some fun should definitely check out Blender. It's a free 3D software for creating games and movies.
Having started out with this software I can highly recommend it for any beginner or enthusiast out there.

Another film that relies heavily on perfect concise VFX is The Hobbit.
Not only do visual effects make up 70% of the entire film, but without it, the film would be full of green and blue backgrounds and men in track suits.
Completely removing any and all Goblins, trolls, elves, scenery and decreasing the overall quality of the film.

Don't get me wrong, there are times where heavy VFX is not needed...
Audiences like to see in camera special effects more than visual effects more than half of the time.

Visual effects used to mean something different, now a days everything is done on computers.
There's nothing special, just a bunch of cubes shaped into robots running around shooting stuff.

CGI can offer amazing things for your film's success rate, but we should never forget our roots, what got us here and what makes us different.
More people will appreciate your film and acknowledge the work that went into it if you use Special effects whenever possible, it's more fun as well!

Special and visual effects are powerful elements, be smart, and only apply them when needed and you'll do great.

So get out there and start filming with your friends, don't be afraid to get your hands dirty!
It'll only help in the long run.

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Getting into the Film Industry, and sticking to it.

Film - One of the single most important aspects in my life, apart from Family, Internet and a roof over my head......Film is what keeps me going.

I worked on my first film set when I was 16, Horsepower the movie, starting as the grunt of the group. I was given the tasks of either watching the gear, going on water runs, or various other missions. I soon became more and more interested with every little detail of how everything came together, from the call sheets to DIT, DIT is where the Digital Imaging Technician downloads, copies, and safely stores all the media from the shoot itself, onto a various amount of hard drives.

Horsepower the movie is now in Pre Production, AKA the editing room, awaiting the final cut then off to be released!
I'm so proud of everyone involved with this project, not only are they saving innocent animals from slaughter houses all around the country, but we're setting an example and enlightening those who were left in the dark on this touching matter.

I'm truly excited to see this thing finished and show it off to everyone out there!

The second film, but my first set, took place in April of last year. I was able to maneuver my way onto the crew through a few guys I knew, later to become some really good friends and great people to know.
My job was to follow the Gaffer around all day and do anything he needed, this job's called a Grip. We set up C-stands (Essentially a standard stand for a light), Dolly's, Jib-cranes, Huge silks to even out the lighting on set. The whole thing was just an amazing experience that I'll never forget.
I ended up doing Graphic Design for the film later on, Furthering my work experience and creating 5 really cool posters for the film.

Frink screened later that year at a Theatre in downtown Seattle, Seeing my posters lining the walls was just a surreal feeling, One that I hope everyone can experience just once.

After Frink, I jumped straight into another film called The Arborlight, this film's set in the mid 1700's, and makes you ask the question, how far will a father go to protect the life of his daughter?

The Arborlight was a four day camp out, three of which days rained immensely, so much in fact that we had to actually Sweep the puddles off the gutters, to prevent flooding into the house!
I worked as a P.A. (Production Assistant) on this film, basically I did whatever was needed when it was needed. I.E. grabbing waters for the cast, helping build the sets, take the talent to Make-up etc...

A good friend of mine Sam Nuttman, who was the Cinematographer on Horsepower the Movie, actually brought two of the only four existing Movi rigs to the set for us to use!
The Movi rig basically stabilizes the camera, allowing you to run, jump, even pass the camera off to another camera man during a take!
Here's some BTS we caught during the shoot.
The Movi rig was later pronounced "Genius" by JJ Abrams and Alfonso CuarĂ³n.

A few months after The Arborlight, I got on my biggest film to date......
"Tainted"
An upcoming TV pilot, currently in Pre Production at Warner Brothers Studios.
I was Second Second AD on this set, basically this means I was the third Assistant Director. An AD runs the set, we keep track of everything, we plan the shoot, make the schedule, set up testings for the equipment, set up production meetings to further the film, etc... etc... etc......
On set the First AD, controls the time, If you ever have a question on set, you Always go to the First AD, they'll know the answer, plus you won't disturb the Director while he's doing the most unimaginable thing possible........Directing the movie, making every little aspect perfect, with the big picture in mind.

Last November I finally received the chance to Produce and First AD my own film!
It was an entry into Moga's film contest, everyone was competing for a RED Scarlet and $25,000,
Lets just say.....we all had fun and leave it at that.
If nothing else it was good experience.

Just a few weeks ago I had the honor of working with Josh Rossi, top 10'th photographer in the world.
We made a composite together, and I'm excited to say I may be working with him again soon!

I'm now 18, a full fledged US citizen.....Scary right?
Hungry for more films and anything closely related.

I look forward to the shoot I have planned coming up next week, and I'll make sure to share it with all of you!
It's gonna be my first time controlling a crew of 30......but hey, it's my passion so what could possibly go wrong?

All in all 2013 was a pretty good year, So come on 2014, lets see what you have in store for me...