Presentation References

I want to make a music video that explores altared states of mind visually, and the results of being addicted to these states. Cocaine is the first video I looked at because I like that effects that are used to suggest inhebriation. I like the color and the effects used to display this sort of haze from being in an altered state of mind. As for Novacane I was looking more at the different ways that video can be layered to result in a sort of visual Dejavou. I also like the subtleties that complement the more direct effects and enhancments. Rella is probably my favorite music video as of now. I like the amount of subversion that occurs with the medium of rap, but Tyler the Creator does an especially good job at subverting and questioning rap culture.

The Road

I have been a fan of John Hillcoat for a while now. I think The Proposition is a wonderful modern take on the western genre. The Road, 2009, explored the idea of a stand off. There are long tense moments through out the film that rase the tension felt by the viewer. I was on the edge of my seat through out the film. I also really enjoyed the Mies-En-Scene of the movie. It was very much about the awe-inspireing scale of nature compared to the smallness of man. Another great thing that Hillcoat with the film was build investment in his characters through the use of flash back. The flash back sequences are very much slaps to the face of the viewer. Often pulling you from the grey "present" their vibrant "past." I really enjoyed this movie, it is a candid depiction of what life in a post apocalyptic waste land would be like. This is done a lot with zombie movies and I would almost say that it is a zombie movie because of the cannibalistic humans roaming the country side. They are gaunt and willing to eat most anything only difference between these "humans" and zombies is that Hillcoat's red necks use guns. The Road also looked into the realistic aspects of being a survivor, dealing with low ammunition, food, and no allies to confide in.

Act of Valor

I am sharing this trailer because this film was partially shot on the Cannon 5D mark II which is the camera that I will be working with through this class. It will be exciting to see how everything translates to the big screen from a dslr. I believe this film is a testament to the Digital Revolution and the idea of Creating at the Speed of Thought and the over all accessibility of professional techniques by indie filmmakers.


act of valor from AMFM STUDIOS LLC on Vimeo.

Drive Movie Review

Drive is a slow paced drama about a man, Ryan Gosling, who is a stunt driver for the movies during the day and a get away driver at night. The Film is very much a gangster film, but the car chases were fully invigorating making me recall the original Gone in 60 Seconds. I found my self at the edge of my seat for most of the film, the director Nicolas Winding Refn does an amazing job with pacing for the film. Before watching it I had heard a few things about the film like that it had an off pacing and that shots held for too long on certain characters. I felt in a contrary manner to this idea. I felt that the pacing helped escalate the drama of the situations to such tense points. There are also a few interesting parts that i felt modernized the car chase genre. The scene where Goslings character is about to kill one of the main bosses with his car is visually engaging and the pacing helps to give the film the extra feel of brash violence that the film has. Over all the cinematography was beautiful and the lighting design brought the acting to another level. The dirty feel and the pacing really made this film for me. This will definitively be one of the films I will be watching for consideration of my project.

Everything is a Remix

This series is really great, It discusses appropriation and the process of  making media in a canted way. Reinforcing the idea that all of the media we produce today is just a reproduction. I would a the Kill Bill video as well, but the series as a whole is great.

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

This film is arguably the first horror film to include a twist ending. I find the aesthetic value of the German Expressionists is very nice. I love the painted shadows and nonsensical objects found through out the film. The story was interesting, I enjoy this sort of surreal story told through the eye of the past. If that makes any sense. I enjoy older films like this, and Nosferatu, because they are so visually effect challenged. It is interesting to watch how these "original" masters tackle the issue of depicting night or the issue of depicting emotion to the audience. Like most pre-talky films the players in this film had excellently exaggerated facial features. Dr Caligari always looks like he is about to pop with emotion. The Somnambulist Caesar has wonderfully large eyes that are highlighted with eye makeup making his scene of awakening even more dramatic. I think this film is a great study for horror. It has given me a lot to consider when going in to making my own horror piece.

Script Writing

I love writing scripts. Although this time around I was not sure about what I produced. The reason being that I don't know if I included enough shot detail. I feel like the script is an essential part to figuring out the feel of your movie. I feel like the amount of shots was sufficient for a draft I but i hope to develop more shots after todays critique.

The Deer Hunter

This film followed a group of friends enlisting, going, and returning from Vietnam. This is definitively a character drama about these best friends who go through agonizing changes. Christopher Walkings character was brilliant. I feel like I could relate to him more than Robert De Niro's character. De Niro's character was a definite leader, the introduction scene to him in Nam was brilliant. The scene is that of what appears to be a platoon having just been attacked. De Niro's character is scorched and beaten when a Viet Con comes through killing mothers and babies, this sight forces De Niro to scream and grow extremely angry. Walking's character is more weak I would say, mainly because of the way he had to be coached by De Niro through their game of Russian Roulette. The deep physiological change that Walking goes through eventually drives him to the ultimate madness. Turning a cold shoulder to his old friends and embracing the game of roulette and the underground world that encompasses it.

Reference Music Video

This is another great music video that has an eerie feel to it. I love the editing done to the music. It gives it an interesting feel. I definitely will be referencing this for future projects.

North by Northwest Critical Review

North by Northwest is a thriller by Alfred Hitchcock. The film is about mistaken identity. Our protagonist is mistaken for a secret agent named George Caplin by a smuggler of political information named Philip Vandamm. Vandamm is after Caplin, who's identity is thrust upon the protagonist Roger Thornhill, because of his connections to an undisclosed government agency. Vandamm wants Caplin's information regarding possible government investigations. Soon Thornhill is caught in a murder rap and must find the elusive Caplin before the police or Vandamm's men find him. The script writing of this film is phenomenal, watching the film multiple times leaves you in awe of the forshadowing that Hitchcock and writer Ernest Lehman work into this film. This film is a great example of rising tension. As in the scenes when Thornhill has to escape the city, around every corner there seems to be a policemen or Vandamm cronies. Hitchcock employs long held shots for these scenes effectively conveying a sense of urgency to the audience. An enjoyable aspect of this film was the occasional wise cracks that come from Thornhill, as in the scene during the auction where after invoking a fight with cops to escape Vandamm's thugs he looks one in the eye as he is escorted out and says something to the effect of "better luck next time old boy." This wit and many others like it make this film a good roller coaster of emotions. When the love interest, in the form of Eve Kendall, is introduced there is even an aspect of romance that can be explored in the film. There are also some amazing shots in the film, I have always felt that Hitchcock has a wonderful sense of graphic awareness within his compositions and this film is a testament to that. I'll include some of my favorite screen shots from the film bellow.

The last two stills I included because they were representational of classical innuendoes in older films I would say. It pretty awesome that these two characters talk around having sex and kiss for less than a few seconds at a time because of film codes but at least the train gets to enter that mountain so smoothly.

Impacting Films

There are two main films that I would say have influenced me and my work. The first is Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park. This film is on my list be cause I distinctly remember really like the score when I first watched it. I was probably four or five but its such a vivid memory, I would always hope that my parents would watch the movie because of the first scene where the dinosaurs are shown. The trumpets and strings make the whole scene so epic, especially for a young jorge soto. I guess that experience stuck with me. The second film that really got me interested in the deeper meaning of a film was Pink Floyd's The Wall. This was probably the first movie that made me question the film critically. The film includes a few Film Collages that were interesting to consider in context of the story. The use of lighting and camera angles also made for an interesting view. I enjoy it still today although I do have to admit that it has become a bit of a guilty pleasure.

Mies-En-Scen

As inspiration for my horror film I referenced three films aesthetic style that I enjoy. I used The Last Circus, Hesher, and Che Part II. These three films handle lighting in a way that creates a lot of contrasts and I think that is how I want my short to look. Che is a great film that I love. I love the feeling that is given in the jungle scenes. A lot of my film will deal with mans relationship with nature and the sublime beauty of it. I want the sublime aspects of nature and the impotence of man to be the one of the obstacles in my short and I feel that Steve Soderburge did a good job of that in Che. 

Reference Video

This video is pretty great. I enjoy the strait forward aproach with the lighting. Keeping lights hard and from one or maybe two sources. I also enjoy the campfire shots, mostly because they add an extra feel of strangeness. I know that humans are not used to seeing light coming up on what we see from underneath, giving the subject matter an extra surrealist feel. I think this is pretty strait forward in terms of horror/thriller. The twist at the end is good as well.

Technical Issues to Tackle

This semester I have been asked to list a techniques that I wish to work on and better understand. The list is bellow, I have chosen these based on my personal experience with them and some that I have never really fully grasped.
-Depth of Field/ Rack Focusing
-3 Point Lighting
-The Effect of Frame Rate and Different Light Temps on the Mies-en-scene
-Image Distortion by Free Lensing
-Manipulation of Lighting to Effect Mood/Tone
-Color Correction
-Utilizing Compositing Software Effectively
-Vertigo Shot
-Adobe Primer pro?
-Color Correction/ Color Coding