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Twine Unboxing
Last year I wrote about Twine, an easy-to-use sensor kit that broke out on Kickstarter by raising 1,500% over their initial ask. The interest in Twine was so strong that their goal of $35k ended up bringing in over $500k. The concept taps directly into the “internet of things,” where interactions involving everyday objects are given a voice. Since contributing to the project, I’ve been waiting anxiously for my Twine to arrive. In December, it finally came and I immediately put it to work in a storytelling context with my students at Columbia University. Listen to your world talk to […]
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An Afternoon Music Video Shoot with the Canon C300
It’s a late fall Sunday afternoon and Rick Macomber is setting up his Canon C300 on a bridge near Harvard Square to shoot some inserts for a music video. The video is for the band Air Traffic Controller, and the plan today is to shoot two sequences of a couple that illustrate “happier times” in their relationship. Rick will first be shooting them crossing the bridge, and then they’ll move to Harvard Square to shoot some additional scenes. With his production company Macomber Productions Rick has been shooting music, promotional and wedding videos since 1995 and has been using DSLRs […]
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Cameras: 2012 Year In Review
It’s the end of the year and everyone’s doing year-end lists, so why not me? Here’s my top ten camera news and developments in 2012: 1. The end of film Film’s been having a tough time of it, but did anyone in 2011 think that 2012 would be the year that film would roll over and die? This was the year that Kodak went bankrupt, Fuji announced they would cease production of motion picture film, and the major film companies announced the timetable for moving toward 100% digital distribution. It was also the year that a James Bond movie was […]
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Werner Herzog on Tom Cruise and Harmony Korine
Last year I interviewed Werner Herzog about his Into the Abyss, and before our talk I quickly re-introduced myself, reminding him that we had worked together when I produced julien donkey-boy over a decade ago. “Ah, yes, I remember,” he said. “You know, I have your film to thank for being cast as the villain in this new Tom Cruise movie.” It was the first I had heard of Jack Reacher, and I expressed a tiny bit of doubt that Harmony Korine’s Dogme ’95 feature was what really secured Herzog a role in a mega-budget action film. “Paramount Pictures is […]
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Holiday Top Ten of 2012…With Eggnog
Tis the season for egg nog, friends, good conversations, video games, and top ten lists. So we put all of it into one post. Ghosts of SWJ past and future get together in this first episode of season two to give us their top tens from 2012. But first a few friends drop by for a drink and to talk about creativity in today’s climate. Check out Bryan’s sites: Bryanbruner.com Loveandrobots.tumblr.com Eric’s Film: American Bomber Movie Happy Holidays! John Top 10 of 2012: Frank Mosley 1. The Comedy 2. Compliance 3. The Master 4. Killing Them Softly 5. Bad Fever […]
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The Hobbit Arrives with a High Frame Rate, and New Sony Camera Prices
The Hobbit is now in wide release in the US, and everyone agrees: it was shot in 48p (frames per second). Beyond that, things get a little murky. As the first movie in wide release to be shot and shown in 48p, the acceptance – or success – of the movie is being closely tied to the future adoption of 48p. This is, of course, ridiculous. The success or failure of a single film is unlikely to define the future of a format. But we’re still left with the question: Is 48p (or High Frame Rates) a good thing, a […]
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Where Are the New Independent Film Superstars?
I was reading this interview in Vice about the Blu-ray reissue of Richard Kern’s short films from the ‘80s, and the names came flooding back to me. “Back in the day, Richard, along with buddies like Lydia Lunch, David Wojnarowicz, Lung Leg, Sonic Youth, and Henry Rollins, made some of the most bloody, sexually deviant, and generally fucked up short films ever,” writes Christian Storm in his intro. Lung Leg – I haven’t heard that name in a while. She was on the cover of Sonic Youth’s album Sister. I wonder what she’s up to. Lydia, of course, is still […]
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Can Independent Film Be an Addiction?
Addiction. It’s a bad thing, right? Except that a lot of businesses are based around it. I’m not just talking about the illegal business of selling narcotics, but about other things. Junk food is certainly an addiction, but so are things like video games. In our Fall, 2011 issue, Game Engine columnist Heather Chaplin wrote that understanding addiction — the system of challenges, rewards and dopamaine delivery — is key to any successful game designer. She quoted Dr. Bennett Fody, fellow and deputy director of The Institute of Science and Ethics at Oxford University, who said, “The design of video […]
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Making a Film? Read the Credits First
At a recent filmmaking panel hosted by the Massachusetts Production Coalition, filmmaker Chico Colvard offered the following advice to those getting started in moviemaking: read the credits first. The credits of other movies. “I’m fascinated by end credits,” said Colvard. “They’re so revealing. They’re fascinating in that filmmakers use them to continue the story….there’s so much more information there.” The credits can provide you with not just a list of potential cast and crew members. They can also give you the names of accountants and lawyers. More importantly, they can give you the names of possible investors. Other filmmakers might […]
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Sony 4K Camera Pricing and Playback
At special events in Europe and L.A., Sony announced the pricing for their new 4K cameras, the PMW-F5 and the PMW-F55. They also showed the first sample videos shot with the cameras. The suggested U.S. LIST pricing for the new products, planned to be available in February, are: PMW-F5 CineAlta 4K Camera $19,400 PMW-F55 CineAlta 4K Camera $34,900 The AXR-R5 RAW Recorder, which is required to record 4K with the PMW-F5, or to capture RAW 4K with the PMW-F55 will list at $6,300 Sony has also come out with new PL mount lenses for the cameras that will be available […]
