Friday 25 February 2011

Thursday 24 February 2011

Story Telling - Storyboards

They really do need some work as it doesn't make as much sense at the moment as I would like.





 

Wednesday 16 February 2011

Story Telling - Musical Score To Sardine

Thinking about The Godfather soundtrack, The Godfather's Waltz.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XW5CV8-X6Yk&feature=related

Story Telling - Script 2 (Sardine)

Sardine


EXT. MORTISON & MORTISON FUNERAL DIRECTORS - DAY
The sun shines. A hearse is parked directly infront of the building. Both FREDERICK and GEORGE MORTISON have just got into the car. GENTLE CLICK, the car door closes. George adjusts his eyeglasses puts a cigarette into his mouth and looks at Frederick. Frederick pulls a lighter from his pocket and lights it up. They both smile and look ahead. The engine starts.
FADE TO BLACK

EXT. WOODLAND AREA - DAY
The hearse pulls up infront of a small, old, 2 berth  caravan.

INT. CARAVAN - DAY
A Bulbus fat white mass fills the view. Slowly George's eyes come into view, he pears down at the fat dead body of MR NUMBUS infront of him and then back to the tiny caravan door behind him. His eyes swing between Mr Numbus and the door several times. Frederick appears at the door and nods questioningly at George. George checks his watch and shakes his head.

EXT. OUTSIDE CARAVAN - DAY
THUD. A heavy bag drops on the grass.

INT. CARAVAN - DAY
TAP. A small leather case is gently placed on a wooden surface.

EXT. OUTSIDE CARAVAN - DAY
An angle grinder is snatched from the bag.

INT. CARAVAN - DAY
A small powder brush is gently taken out of the case.

EXT. OUTSIDE CARAVAN - DAY
Frederick places a ladder against the caravan.

INT. CARAVAN - DAY
George eases the magnifying monical attachment over his right lens of his eyeglasses. His eyeball enlarges to fill the lense.  He licks his finger and reaches down.  Mr Numbus' face is distorted, his tongue flopped to one side of his mouth, his skin grey, his lips black and mishappen.  George's finger gently moves Mr Numbus' left eye so it lines up with his right.  George starts powdering Mr Numbus' face.
BUZZING and GRINDING noises are outside. George looks up. He then turns his attention to applying lipstick to Mr Numbus' black lips.

EXT. OUTSIDE CARAVAN - DAY
Frederick, standing on ladder, starts to push the angle grinder into the caravan roof. WHIRRRR BUZZZ SPARK FIZZ JUDDER. The caravan violently vibrates.

INT. CARAVAN - DAY
Mr Numbus' face vibrates violently. George's carefully applied lipstick zig-zags across the now powdered face.

GEORGE
(Frustration)
Grrr.

EXT. OUTSIDE CARAVAN - DAY
WHIRRRR BUZZZ SPARK FIZZ JUDDER. George waves his arms furiously at Frederick. Frederick turns the angle grinder off and looks at George.

INT. CARAVAN - DAY
SAWING can be heard. George smiles to himself as he admires his work. Mr Numbus' face is now looking a bright pink colour. Lipstick is perfect. Eyes are straight. He starts to combe Mr Numbus' hair. RUCHGHGHGHGHGHGH. The saw rips through the ceiling of the caravan and tears into Mr Numbus' fresh pink cheek.

GEORGE
(Frustration)
GRRRRRRRRRRRRR.

EXT. CARAVAN - DAY
George frantically runs past Frederick, who is fiercely sawing away up the ladder, knocking the bottom of the ladder as he goes.  Frederick wobbles and loses his balance.  He lands on the floor.  He brings his hand up to reveal a broken saw.

FREDERICK
(Frustration)
GRRRRRRRRRRRRR.

He checks his watch.

INT. CAR - DAY
George finds the tube of 'Super Super Face Glue - for dead people'.

INT. CARAVAN - DAY
BANGING can be heard outside. George starts to apply glue to Mr Numbus' cheek.

EXT. CARAVAN - DAY
A boat anchor is thrust into the roof.

INT. CARAVAN - DAY
George looks up confused.

EXT. CAR - DAY
Frederick is at the wheel revving the engine.

INT. CARAVAN - DAY
Carvan begins to tip. George panics as he finds his hand stuck to Mr Numbus' face.

EXT. CARAVAN - DAY
Caravan tips over. CRASH

GEORGE
Awwwww

FADE TO BLACK

EXT. GRAVE YARD - NIGHT
Out of the sky the caravan is lowered towards the open grave. Frederick and George are below. Frederick is waving the caravan down. Mr Numbus' relatives look on sobbing. George's clothes are tattered and torn. His hands are hidden behind his back. He wriggles his fingers trying to remove the clump of hair superglued to his hands.
PING. Crane rope snaps. Caravan falls. CRASH

CUT TO BLACK.

Maya - Menage A Trois



This is more or less a conversation that happened when I was at Reading Festival for the first time. I was sitting round the camp fire with my lady friend at the time and a random girl (who I suspect was on hallucinogens)
thought that I was her boyfriend.

Maya - Panning Shot

Life Drawing - Movement and Memory




Life Drawing - Movement and Memory




Tuesday 15 February 2011

Maya - Pendulum


Story Telling - Essay Idea

In this essay the film 'Saving Private Ryan' will be explored in the view of it's editing that was created purposely by director Steven Spielberg to create a sense of immersion. The techneques employed such as the use of the 'shaky cam' and POV (point of view) shot are generally heavily critisized in but heavily used in Saving Private Ryan to give that feeling of realism and the feeling of being there. it will be examined from both aspects, from the critics view and also from Spielberg himself from the DVD commentry. Some of the success of this essay will depend on gaining the testimonials of the advisers on the film. That was the war veterans themselves that faught there in person, hopefully research on this will also be gained.

Story Telling - Mortison & Mortison

Mortison & Mortison

Story Telling - Script

OK, this is a rough idea for the script, sorry if it's not well written but the ideas were flowing fast as was my typing.


ACT 1

EXT. MORNING, FRONT WINOW OF MORTISON & MORTISON FUNERAL DIRECTORS.

Both FREDERICK and GEORGE MORTISON exit the front door.

Both walk towards a hearse parked outside the shop front, GEORGE opens the car door to the drivers seat as FREDERICK opens the door to the passenger seat and both get in. The car then drives out of shot.

FADE TO BLACK

FILM TITLES

EXT. MORNING WOODLAND,

An old caravan can be seen parking in the middle of a small wooded area, a car can be heard in the distance coming closer. As the car noise gets closer tha camera pans to the right and observes a hearse with MORTISON AND MORTISON writen on the car door.

Hurst pulls up outside the caravan and both GEORGE and FREDERICK MORTISON leave the car. Standing next to each other they look at the caravan and then look at each other then proceed to walk towards the door.

Heading towards the door FREDERICK opens the door and walks in first GEORGE follows.

INT CARAVAN. A deceased, obiese man MR NUMBUS lay to rest on a bed in the middle of the caravan with a  reef of flowers place on his chest. A large stuffed moose head has been mounted on the wall just above where MR NUMBUS' head lies. "Only the crows turned up for his funeral" said GEORGE TO FREDERICK.

Upon seeing the MR NUMBUS and looking back at the size of the carava door, GEORGE and FREDERICK begin to realise that extracting MR NUMBUS will not be as straight forward as carrying him out of the door due to his size.

 ACT 2

EXT. FREDERICK and GEORGE go back outside FREDERICK looks at the caravan scratching their heads.

FREDERICK smiles turns around back to the car and pulls out a huge bag of tools, brings it to the front of the caravan and drops it on the ground.

FEDERICK pulls out an angle grinder and climbs onto the roof easily due to his great height. GEORGE passes up the angle grinder and takes the plug to look fo a place to plug it in the CARAVAN. He finds a socket and plugs it in.

EXT. ON TOP OF CARAVAN. FRDERICK gets to work cutting the roof off the CARAVAN

INT. INSIDE CARAVAN. FFFFRZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ the CARAVAN starts to violently vibrate moments after it's plugged in. GEORGE looks shocked as he oberves plates and cups crashing off the shelves. Then observing the moose head vibrating vilently right above MR NUMBUS' head GEORGE looks distressed. and shouts STOP. Due to the noise nothing can be heard by FREDERICK so GEORGE tries to pull out the plug, he pulls once then twice, it's stuck. Pushes the switch, no response. A distressed GEORGE glances back at the moose head vibrating, it looks like it could fall at any moment so goes outside shouting and waving his arm frantically to get FREDERICKS attention, but it is in vain FREDERICK is not responding.

GEORGE sees an old ladder leaning up against a tree, he runs to fetch the LADDER struggles to drag it back and prop it up the side of the caravan. Rushing to the top of the old  LADDER as soon as he gets to the top CRACK one by one the runs of the LADDER crack due to rot and from GEORGE's weight. GEORGE lands violently on the ground.

GEORGE then looks in the tool bag to find a pair of wire cutters, runs inside the caravan an cuts the wire of the angle grinder with  a violent electric shock the vibrating stop. Smoke is rising off GEORGE's frazzled hair.. But he sighs with relief the there is no longer any danger of the moose's head falling onto MR NUMBUS.

EXT. ON TOP OF CARAVAN. FREDERICK looks at the angle grinder in confusion as it's stopped working and bangs it 3 times hard on the roof.

INT. CARAVAN. the mooses head tips off the wall and lands on MR NUMBUS impailing the corpse with the antlers.

GEORGE slaps his hand on his forhead.

ACT 3.

EXT. GRAVE YARD AT DUSK

Both FREDERICK and GEORGE stand beside a large open grave, above them a caravan starts to be lowered by crane into shot and is placed in the grave. FREDERICK and GEORGE start to shovel dirt into the hole into the night. FADE TO BLACK

Monday 14 February 2011

The Cutting Edge - Reservoir Dogs

Fig 1.

Reservoir Dogs

Director - Quentin Tarantino

Tarantino's debut about a jewellery heist gone wrong due to the introduction of an under cover cop. It starts off with 8 organised criminals (Reservoir Dogs) in a diner eating breakfast that are discussing the meaning of like "a virgin" and the social dos and don'ts associated with tipping in restaurants. For the rest of the film it revolves in a nonlinear fashion skipping from before and after the heist, but never is the heist itself seen on screen. There's a climatic end as the characters start to lose trust between each other and a Mexican stand off seals the fate of the Dogs.


Fig 2.


This film really hit a nerve with the media when it was originally released on the cinema and very nearly didn't make it to video in the U.K. due to its torture scene which interesting enough is more suggestive. When a Mr Blond is cutting off the policeman’s ears the camera cleverly pans away to focus on a wall while we only hear what is going on. BCC describes the scene "Somehow it's horribly effective and lingers far longer than the usual point blank bloodshed that seems compulsory in other movies." Interestingly although you don't see the ear being cut off it's the one scene which plays on your mind and makes you feel quite repelled at the sadistic nature of Mr Blond.


Fig 3.


For most part (as in most Tarantino films) it's all about the dialogue. The naturalistic conversations that play no part in the plot but help us get to know the characters, feel sympathy for some and repulsion for others. Although the ultra violence seems to play a big part in the film in reality it doesn't drive it. Empire Magazine says it's "Seminal, in terms of its discursive dialogue, bursts of ultra-violence and unsettling machismo, Reservoir Dogs still seems groundbreaking." True it is ground breaking in many ways if not just for the nonlinear story telling but also for the interest and realism give to the characters. This it was put Tarantino out there and the film industry must be very glad this film got made as it opened the way for Tarantino to make more master pieces. Variety agrees that it’s "A show-off piece of filmmaking that will put debut writer-director Quentin Tarantino on the map." and that it did.


Bibliography

Reservoir Dogs, BBC, 2000, [Online] avaliable at http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2000/11/21/reservoir_dogs_1992_review.shtml [Accessed 14 February 2011]

Reservoir Dogs, Empire Magazine, [Online] avaliable at http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?DVDID=6455 [Accessed 14 February 2011]

Reservoir Dogs, Variety, 1992, [Online] avaliable at http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117794411?refcatid=31 [Accessed 14 February 2011]


Image Bibliography

Fig 1. Reservoir Dogs, DVD cover, 1992 [photography], http://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV5BMTQxMTAwMDQ3Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwODMwNTgzMQ@@._V1._SY317_CR5,0,214,317_.jpg

Fig 2. Reservoir Dogs, Movie Still, 1992 [photography], http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/reservoirfuckingbloodyyeahdogs.jpg

Fig 3. Reservoir Dogs, Movie Still, 1992 [photography], http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT9PlHqy2Z4G_4wvc5QoPmaHNDQB8eqHhbm6Ait3gr1xZN2x4SCsg&t=1

Saturday 12 February 2011

Story Telling - Classic Comedy Duo

I want to try and make a comedy duo with my characters Mortison & Mortison. Slap stick humour like Larrel and Hardy. Here's comedy genius at its best. Larrel and Hardy in Busy Bodies.




Here's some errrrrrr not so comedy Genius :/ from the Chuckle Brothers which involves a caravan and a ladder.

Story Telling - Mortison & Mortison

I've been brainstorming today and I got an idea for my undertaker. Frederick Mortison and George Mortison of Mortison & Mortison funeral directors. They aren't related but coincidently have the same Surname and are always being asked if they are brothers because they don't look at all alike. Frederick is very tall and George is very short. They are both completely different and dislike each other.

Story Telling - George Mortison Sketch


Story Telling - Frederick Mortison Sketch


Thursday 10 February 2011

Photoshop - Self portrait


Something I done sometime ago whilst bored.

The Cutting Edge - The Birds

Fig 1.

The Birds (1963)

Director - Alfred Hitchcock

There's nothing that couldn't be more timid and unterrorfying than a bird. They flee at the very site of danger and couldn't be more scared of the humans. So to make that a concept for a scary movie might on paper seem like a stretch but Hitchcock here manages to capture a menace from the unmenacing. It seems like a real, tangible threat but could have easily been laughable. Film 4 says that it is "On screen it's absolutely nerve-wracking, flocks of carrion gathering malevolently before swooping in to peck away at Melanie's face." The one interesting aspect of the film is that in the first hour of the film there is bearly a moment of horror. It's spend devoted to the developement of the characters and during that you only see a samll glimpce of what is to come. But once it comes there is little escaping the repetitous attacks of our avian foe.


fig 2.

Hitchcock is a master of suspence and The Birds doesn't disappoint in that regard. The is moment of tranquility where the chorus of children singing can be heard from outside the school as crows one by one congregate on the school climbing frame adding to their numbers and to their menace. A replentless attack on a house with our main characters trapped inside leave the house battered as birds torpeedo themselves into the window and peek at the doors until they are battered. But once an attack has ended there is a calm durin which everyone can escape. Apon leaving the house suspence is raised again as they slowly escape to the car amongst thousands of resting birds with no fear of man that could attack at anytime. Truely an amazing performace was created by the bird themselves and as Time Magazine says "the most unforgettable performers in The Birds are the birds. They are utterly, terrifyingly believable as they go about their bloody business of murdering humanity."


Fig 3.

The Birds is Hitchcock at his best, fear and suspence. Empire Magazine "Genuinely disturbing thriller classic from the master of suspense." This film really does hit the spot and there's not a cheesy monent insite dispite a plot about killer birds. A must see.


Image Bibliography

Fig 1. The Birds, DVD cover, 1963 [photography], http://movie.masjo.com/images/the-birds-.jpg

Fig 2. The Birds, Movie Still, 1963 [photography], http://dotcomkitty.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/thebirds.jpg

Fig 2. The Birds, Movie Still, 1963 [photography], http://www.frugal-cafe.com/public_html/frugal-blog/frugal-cafe-blogzone/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/alfred-hitchcock-the-birds.jpg

Bibliography

Cinema: They Is Here, Time, [Online] avaliable at http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,830097,00.html [Accessed 10 February 2011]

The Birds, Film 4, [Online] avaliable at http://www.film4.com/reviews/1963/the-birds [Accessed 10 February 2011]

The Birds, Empire Magazine, [Online] http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/review.asp?FID=16934 [Accessed 10 February 2011]




The Cutting Edge - Psycho (1960)

Fig 1.

Psycho (1960)

Director - Alfred Hitchcock

Marion Crane is trusted by her boss (owner of a real estate agent) to bank $40,000.00 in cash but temptation gets the better of her and Marion steels the money. Knowing that she will be looked for she decides to drive out of town to hide. Staying off the beaten track she finds herself at a motel being run by Norman Bates a sufferer of schizophrenia who's personality spits between himself and his mother that her previously murdered. Resulting in some of the most powerful and chilling murder scenes put to film.

Fig 2.

Hitchcock in Psycho creates a character rich film where there is a real empathy for the them. Even with Norman Bates you still can't help but feel sorry for him. He's playing out his dead mothers life which is much more dominate than his own and far more dangerous. Dressed as his mother he murders Marion in the most infamous shower murder scene which Time decribe as "one of the messiest, most nau seating murders ever filmed. At close range, the camera watches every twitch, gurgle, convulsion and hemorrhage in the process by which a living human becomes a corpse." Every thrust of the knife can be felt as the editing and music make the scene visually perfect even in black and white.


Fig 3.

For a chiller friller this film sets the bar for all future films of the genre, Film 4 agree in saying that "The result was a superb thriller unlike anything he or anyone else had ever done; one that continues to have a profound influence on countless filmmakers." and BBC say "it's a perfectly realised, visually rich, and chilling look at masculinity and schizophrenia." Many films today still follow the same pattern and make homage to Psycho.


Image Bibliography

Fig 1. Psycho, DVD cover, 1960 [photography],  http://horror-movie.net/_images/posters/psycho1960-1.jpg

Fig 2. Rope, Movie Still, 1960, [photography], http://thisdistractedglobe.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/10/Psycho%201960%

Fig 3. Rope, Movie Still, 1960, [photography], http://course1.winona.edu/pjohnson/h140/studentsf01/psycho/psycho1.jpg

Bibliography

Cinema: The New Pictures, Time Magazine, [Online] avaliable at http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,827681,00.html [Accessed 07 February 2011]

Psycho, Film 4, [Online] avaliable at http://www.film4.com/reviews/1960/psycho [Accessed 07 February 2011]

Psycho, 2000, BBC, [Online] http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2000/12/13/psycho_1960_review.shtml [Accessed 07 February 2011]

Friday 4 February 2011

Story Telling - Story Idea

OK so Phil gave the idea of an obese man who has died in his caravan and needs to be collected. I'm not too sure if it's the job of an undertaker to collect dead bodies from the scene of death. I've looked for the answer on the net and it seems it can be but it just depands on the circumstances.

But going but that premise here is a rough outline of a story.

Undertaker goes to caravan in the middle of nowhere (woods) to assess the logistics of transporting Mr 'My God You're A Fat Bastard' out of his caravan that he has grown into. After many comedic attemts to extract Mr MGYAFB (Blow torch, angle grinder, blah de blah) and failing it is decided to bury him still in the caravan effectively using the caravan as a coffin.

Et viola.

Life Drawing - Movement




In this lesson we drew the life model as he walk slowly around in circles, at first I didn't think this would work for me. But to my surprise I really got something out of it :)

Wednesday 2 February 2011

Story Telling - Undertaker (Funeral Director, Mortician)

Today I looked at the definition of the undertaker on Wikipedia as shown below.

A funeral director also known as a mortician or undertaker, is a professional involved in the business of funeral rites. These tasks often entail the embalming and burial or cremation of the dead, as well as the planning and arrangement of the actual funeral ceremony. Funeral directors may at times be asked to perform tasks such as dressing (in garments usually suitable for daily wear), casketing (placing the human body in the container), and cosmetizing (applying any sort of cosmetic or substance to the viewable areas of the person for the purpose of enhancing appearances).

It's a pretty morbid career choice and made me think that the character should be dark. That got me thinking about how Tim Burton tends to make dark morbid characters but he has an amazing skill in that he can still put them in a comedic setting. Well it's something to think about anyway.

Here are some of the characters from Tim Burton films.


They all have a very smart funeral director feel to them The top hat and tales dressed in black or dark colours.

The Cutting Edge - La Jetée (The Pier)

Fig 1.


La Jetée (1962)

Director - Chris Marker

After a nuclear holocaust the world is left in tatters, most of the worlds little populas live underground where scientists experiment with sending humans back in time to find a solution to mans plight and hopefully change the past events the led to destruction.


Fig 2.

The film is entierly made from still images, but not in the way you would expect today. If someone was to say a film was made of still images you would most probably expect it to be of the spot motion kind. But this is not the case with La Jetée. It is cleverly crafted out os still images that give not real sense of animation. Each still maybe lasts 2-4 seconds and is more like a story board than anything else. It can be hard to immerse ones self into what is essencailly a photo album being narrated over although Time Out say that "the fluid montage leads the viewer into the sensation of watching moving images" it could be said that the sense of animiation percieved could differ cinciderably from person to person. And again it was said by New York The Sun "sticking audiences in a cinematic moment they can't escape." Some my have sucessfully escaped before the first half of the film.


Fig 3.

That said the story if inspiring and was the film that inspired the film 12 monkeys. The TV Guide give a good description of the atmospher created here "it manages to tell a gripping, haunting story and create an ominous and powerful atmosphere simply through the masterly manipulation of frozen images and a subtle soundtrack made up of heartbeats, whispers, jet engines and other sound effects." The sound track does infact lend a hand to the films successes. One could almost watch the film eyes closed and relax to the sothing voice of the narrator and the use of audio effects.

Image bibliography

Fig 1. La Jetée, DVD cover, 1962, [photography], http://content9.flixster.com/movie/34/73/90/3473903_det.jpg

Fig 2. La Jetée, Movie still, 1962, [photography], http://blacklab.visualsociety.com/files/2009/09/lajette.jpg
Fig 3. La Jetée, Movie still, 1962, [photography], http://www.thebostonbachelor.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/la-jetee-man-2.png
Bibliography

La Jetée: review (1963), TV Guide, [Online] avaliable at  http://movies.tvguide.com/la-jetee/review/132177 [Accessed 02 February 2011]

La Jetée (1962), Time Out, [Online] avaliable at http://www.timeout.com/film/reviews/77181/la_jetee.html [Accessed 02 February 2011]

La Jetée (2007), New York The Sun, [Online] avaliable at http://www.nysun.com/arts/markers-28-minute-masterpiece/57306/ [Accessed 02 February 2011]