Why, exactly, do I keep going to these things? Because it’s the most slickly produced political theater in town, I rationalized to some friends in town from LA. But seriously, besides trying to think up questions for Gavin to acknowledge, and then defer to a city staffer, all I do is sit there quietly, attempt witty asides, gossip a bit, and then head home to blog about it. Easy material, I guess.
You could buy a Red digital camera, rigging and lense setup, massive hard drive array, boss Mac multicore workstation and a digital projector — give or take $10,000.
Granted, had I spent the equivalent on equipment when my family started writing tuition checks and taking out loans, I’d either still be shooting on film or have a broadcast quality digital setup at best.
Still, the price of professional digital tools is going down, while the cost of tuition at Tisch is going up. And now that you can shoot a project for theater projection and online distribution at the same time, I’d say soon enough it’ll be time to buy a camera setup, Syd Field’s “Screenplay,” and get to work — couldn’t possibly worsen your chances of getting a creative job in the industry.
Update: Oh, look, none other than the Daily Variety supports my assessment. So what is film school for? Can you say, “old boys network?”
Says USC professor Michael Taylor, who serves as chair for the Division of Film and Television Production: “The networking system works in a much bigger way than I thought before I came to USC. It’s what they call ‘the Trojan mafia.’ I’m amazed at how instrumental it is. Ten minutes out of film school, and you can call an alumni and have a positive conversation and possibly even get a meeting.”
That’s right, the film industry has absolutely nothing to do with talent or experience and everything to do with who you know (i.e. Brett Ratner). See, I just saved you like $100,000.
Tired of all the boring reading involved with the Bible? Well now you can descend into even less literate rapture at the Word of God thanks to a Chicagoland businessman:
The first part of the project, a 20-CD set of the New Testament for $49.95, will arrive in stores in October. Considering the proven potency of both the audio-book marketplace and Christian retail, it might be a holiday-gift sensation. The presence of Caviezel should give it instant cachet in many Christian circles; the 100-person cast also includes Terence Stamp as God, Michael York as the narrator, Luke Perry as Judas and Marisa Tomei as Mary Magdalene. The recording sessions began in July, but, to the consternation of Amari and director JoBe Cerny, the role of Satan is still up in the air.
Ah, capitalism at its finest. Best part? They’re still casting for the role of Satan.
I’ve already assured San Francisco that they’re under no threat of my iron-fisted rule. (”He dares mock me! Put him on the train to the exurban gulag in Pinole.”) But who will run against Gavin? How about some unattributed, unverifiable speculation from assorted parties who may or may not have an axe or three to grind!
I got into the spirit of Video Blogging Week after going to SuperHappyVlogHouse last weekend. Figured I’d see what I could do with my cell phone, which is the only video device I currently have. Not much is the answer. But I had some fun trying.
All the images and sounds you hear below were recorded with my Nokia 6103, and edited using CinemaForge to convert WMV clips to QuickTime; QuickTime Pro to edit, filter and encode the video and Audacity to edit the audio. Files are all hosted over at my Blip.tv account.
In lieu of having anything interesting to say or putting any production value into this, I simply tried to present examples of traditional does and don’ts I was taught in film school. If I save one person from unknowingly breaking the 180 degree rule or get a vlogger to stop and think about story structure before turning on a camera, then I’ll consider this project a success.
Day One — “Vlogging Schmogging”
In which I ask myself, “Hey, trying this whole close-up crap-cam thing for a week couldn’t hurt, could it?”
Day Two — “The Kuleshov Effect”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuleshov_effect
Day Three — “Spun 180 Degrees”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/180_degree_rule
Day Four — “Sound Affected”
Day Five — “Hero Worshipping Joseph ‘Fucking’ Campbell”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Campbell
Day Six — “Cashless Montage”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soviet_montage_theory
Day Seven — “Denouement With Hats”
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