"Moments" - a film by Jason Chandra

[jojopop]

http://www.lost-productions.com/moments/images/poster04.jpg


A young man wanders the streets, trying to recall the moments of one particular night...

[jojopop]

Here we go....! As always, comments and feedback welcome.... thanks for viewing!

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Love the last minute entries.

Good luck!

[Simon Höfer]

Love the last minute entries.

Good luck!

Yeah, quite a few just popping up like mushrooms :) Great! Looking forward to seeing it.

[jojopop]

Love the last minute entries.

Good luck!
Yeah, this is actually early for us! Usually it's REALLY down to the wire. Although I know a couple of others that probably will barely sneak it in on time. :laugh:

[Danielleus]

This should be AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Jack Daniel Stanley]

This looks interesting ...

[P!body]

Nothing really motivates a film production and specifically post-production quite like a nearing deadline. I feel in a way I do all my best work (in a relative sense) under the wire, or the gun, or the whistle, etc.

When there is no time to continue getting lost in ethereal or philosophical discussions, I feel filmmaking is problem solving pure and simple. There is a really cool sense to have a demanding schedule to meet or beat, and you manage to make yourself slip into the no BS mode. Then it’s all about being efficient and economical in your approach to everything. One could argue that as zen.

[jojopop]

Nothing really motivates a film production and specifically post-production quite like a nearing deadline.

Amen to that! In my opinion deadlines really do make things happen and can oftentimes bring out the best... so I'm thankful that these Fests exist.

[Jason Ramsey]

Good luck to you on both of your entries, man.

Later,
Jason

[Matty_g]

Why is Tim Hyten in your movie poster? :huh:

[Danielleus]

Why is Tim Hyten in your movie poster? :huh:


Not sure what Tim Hyten looks like (from Thou Shalt Not???) but it should only be Lincoln Leighton on it. Check out "Don't Look," for spyfest. He's in there. And he does a good job.

[Geoff_R]

Why is Tim Hyten in your movie poster? :huh:

lol. I was thinking the same thing when I first saw this. I kept checking the credits on the poster thinking perhaps Tim was acting under an alias or something...

[Matty_g]

http://a887.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/123/l_6dbea00d854c49a41194b0706a51ef7e.jpg
^ tim

[jojopop]

http://www.lost-productions.com/images/leech01.jpg
^ Lincoln.

Wow.

[Danielleus]

Holy crap. That's kinda freaky.

[Geoff_R]

Wow...it's like in 'The Island'...lincoln six echo...

[Danielleus]

Wow...it's like in 'The Island'...lincoln six echo...


Damn, I knew I should have seen that movie. I've got it but alas, haven't watched it yet. But I can imagine what you're talking about.

[Geoff_R]

If Tim and Lincoln ever meet, they should not shake hands...anyone remember 'Timecop'...

[Danielleus]

If Tim and Lincoln ever meet, they should not shake hands...anyone remember 'Timecop'...


YEs, yes I do. I agree. On that same note, I had another one I was working on for this fest that had some time travel in it. Justin Chandra did some amazing FX on it (doubling a guy). Alas, I ran out of time and it was running longer than 6 minutes. Maybe I'll post it later and get some feed back.

[Geoff_R]

Definitely post it! The more films the better.

[Blaine]

That's a bit freaky...:huh:

[Zak Forsman]

it's Tim Hyyten.

[Brandon Rice]

OMG, they look the same!

[Danielleus]

Hahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[VoodooXT]

YEs, yes I do. I agree. On that same note, I had another one I was working on for this fest that had some time travel in it. Justin Chandra did some amazing FX on it (doubling a guy). Alas, I ran out of time and it was running longer than 6 minutes. Maybe I'll post it later and get some feed back.

Yea Daniel. I want to see the fruits of our labor on that one.

[Zak Forsman]

surprised no one is talking about this one yet. they will. i'm going to watch again after i've absorbed all the others but I wanted to quickly state that i'm a big fan of the look and that i admire the way you chose to tell this story through "impressions" rather than plot points. great choices here.

[Arrik]

*spoilers*

I too, liked the use of impressions and recollection to tell your story. I didnt really get into it until he started going through denial (the angry memories he tried not to think about). I liked dark aesthetics but I was left wondering what was that freeze frame? Was it supposed to be like that? Granted I didnt freeze frame it myself to get a better look, but maybe you intended it to be abstract. For me, I'd rather like to know what he was thinking about. Regardless, once it started to flow, it flowed. Good stuff man.

Was that shot in 30p?

*EDIT* oh and I thought the voice over delivery was good.

[Kholi]

MOMENTS -- When did Tim Hyten start acting?

Seriously, I thought it was Tim. That's FREAKY. It's also kinda Freaky how very well composed this is. It's STRANGE. Because, we're all about 24p, gadgets, gizmos etcetera but I have to tell you... I couldn't stop watching this. 30p just didn't P me off, here.

I'm not a fan of Voice Over. I despise it in most short films because it doesn't serve to move anything. It's generally just a cop out. I can't say that I feel that way here. I dunno what it is but the reflective VO just kinda works. I would like to quantify the experience, I can't?

Another large part of why I kept watching was image. I would guess that if you got your hands on any camera of choice, a solid crew, and a full blown narrative we'd all be in trouble. Nearly every single shot choice was well composed and WORKED. Especially the shot on the staircase. That's my favorite.

Also, use of practical small locations to urge the reflections on. It's cool that you went out and grabbed small low key locales to do this and each one of them works for the tone/mood of your short.

If I had one thing to say it would be that it played very long. I know it's abstract more-so than narrative movement, it just felt really long. HOWEVER! I couldn't stop watching and that's what I find really odd.

I wanted to stay for the entire thing. Good job, man.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Great work! The music was perfect in this one.
The look of the movie fit it to a "T". Really well shot and paced. The framing was also excellent. I really liked this one.

I've felt moments like this when I was younger. You captured that feeling extremely well.

Well done!

[jojopop]

Cool, I'm glad you guys are liking the film. I was a little worried -- I showed the movie to a few people and it's been really split. Some people really liked it, others just didn't understand the piece.

I owe a lot of the look to my Cinematographer Bryce who had a film of his own that didn't make it into the competition. He was almost there...!

But anyhow, to answer to some questions, yes this was shot 30p and the decision to go with smaller locales and a small crew -- a lot of that came out of wanting to go back to the way we shot productions back in the day... just launch into it have fun. The script wasn't even fully realized when we went in. I had a really strong feeling for how I wanted the film to come together and look and working with my cinematographer... I'm pretty happy with the way it came out.



I liked dark aesthetics but I was left wondering what was that freeze frame? Was it supposed to be like that?

This was also a little worrying -- we shot all the memory footage on a GL-1, hoping to contrast the present and past as I didn't want to spend too much time degrading the footage in post. (the idea being the memories are hazy, murky even) This particular frame was one of his memories where he's hugging his girl, and it freezes there.

I was worried it might be a little dark -- how did it look for everyone else?


Anyhow, thanks very much for the feedback... I really appreciate it. Now I gotta start downloading...!

[Ted Arabian]

Jason, nice work.

The cinematography and sound design are my favorite elements for me in your film. Really wonderful work on both elements.

The story was poetic but (to me) lacked in substance. I wanted a bit more. Not a lot but I did find myself wondering when it was going to be over. The VO work was excellent. I know that this is sound design but I want to mention it as all too often VO work doesn't quite fit. Yours does. Not just dialogue but the sound quality of it. Well done!

I do like a dark story. I have been in this guys shoes before. And honestly, know that I think about it... when I am in this mood, there isn't a lot of substance to my inner dialogue either!

Really well done film. Very polished.

Congrats to you. You are definitely a filmmaker with skills!

-Ted

[Bryce A]

I'm glad everyone seems to be enjoying the film! I'm pleased at the outcome and am particularly proud of the work we all put into it. Congrads to Jason for putting this together. I know it's been burning in the back of your head for sometime. Feels good to see it up and getting feedback. Any and all comments are appreciated! Thanks for watching!

p.s. Thanks for the compliments on the cinematography. I am really pleased with our collaboration. I think it's the best I've shot.

[jojopop]

Ted,

Thanks for the kind words! Yeah, I understand your thoughts on finding the film a bit on the long side. I wanted to cut the film down even more, but I got too attached to some of the footage and just couldn't bare to do it anymore... I probably could've benefited from a separate editor.

As far as the substance goes... I kinda wanted to let that be a fine line. There's an aspect to his memories that I feel if looked at in a way, you can begin to question what really happened that night... whether the character, himself, is remembering correctly at all... And in the end, it's the feeling of the moments that are the only things that really ring true.

But anyhow, I'm glad overall you enjoyed the flick. Thanks again for the comments!

[Chris Messineo]

First, I really like the title.

Technically, great shots and edit. Although, while I liked the pace of the edits, I wish the overall story had been a little tighter as it began to feel a little repetitious.

Your actor was good and I thought the score was lovely and fit the film perfectly.

Well done.

[Gohanto]

Well put together film,

The acting was good and I enjoyed the use of natural street lighting. As others have said I could've used a bit more story-wise as it did start to drag. I liked the idea of the voices in the flashback being somewhat muted, but the ending effect didn't really work for me. It sounded sound designed to me and made me aware of the technique. Maybe adding some reverb could help a bit, or maybe its just me.

Overall this is a nice piece to watch and I liked your choice of a lot of the locations.

[KenV]

Glad to know that the score fits prefectly in some minds. It means alot to me, and i look foward to working with Lost Productions as well as any other production crews who think they might benifit from my services.

Good Luck to you all.

KenV

[KenV]

Otherwise, my only complaint is that some shots are too dark. >.>, . . . <.<

[jojopop]

Chris & Gohanto -- thanks for the comments (and I'm glad you dig the title Chris!)

Your guys' comments are echoing what everyone else is saying regarding the pacing and story of the film. Aside from running out and shooting more and actually adding to the "substance" does everyone feel the film would've benefited from clocking in around 4:00-4:30 or even shorter?

That was my ideal running time, so I'm curious to know if my gut instinct would've helped this at all...

Thanks again!

[Brian Parker]

Very good film. Hate to say it but I can relate to the subject matter, which was handled well. I guess that made it resonate for me. Good cinematography and setting the mood. Although the inner dialogue was sparse, it was fitting. Good job.

[mentatDUKE]

Cool film. The confusion and creepiness worked here. I like the emotional arc. At the beginning I'm feeling sorry for the guy, then toward the end, I'm like "Ok, man. Get a grip. Get it together!"
Creative storytelling structure. Good photography. Nice editing. Effective use of voice over. A well crafted film.

[Luis Caffesse]

Okay, first off - it's creepy how much this lead actor looks like Tim (Slimothy).
:)

So let's get past that right off the bat....
Great work - this was well shot, well cut, and gave me just enough information to keep me going and keep me curious... but not enough to kill the enjoyment. It's a fine line to walk but I think you did a nice job with it.

I really like the addition of his friend taking a photo of him at the moment that he realizes his memory is really slipping away - just as we hear the click of the camera he says "I've lost you" - nicely done. That was a very nice moment.

The sound work was really well done as well, VO sounded good, sound effects and ambience were well handled, and the score did a good job of tying everything together - I especially loved the muffled blown out audio of the flashbacks. That really worked for me.

The only thing I would tell you is that, as much as I enjoyed it, it seems to overstay its welcome a bit. As it stands right now I think you could possibly cut up to a minute and a half out of it - keeping the same mood, the same style.... I'm not necessarily saying pick up the pace, but just cut it shorter. It feels a bit repetative at times.

Overall, really nice work.
I enjoyed it, and I'm looking foward to seeing more work from all you guys in the next fest.
:thumbsup:

[jojopop]

Thanks for the comments guys. The kind words have been very encouraging and I'm seriously stoked that the response has been generally positive!



The only thing I would tell you is that, as much as I enjoyed it, it seems to overstay its welcome a bit. As it stands right now I think you could possibly cut up to a minute and a half out of it - keeping the same mood, the same style.... I'm not necessarily saying pick up the pace, but just cut it shorter. It feels a bit repetative at times.


I totally dig what you're saying here. I think before I walk away from this, I'm gonna cut it down further. It seems everyone's major gripe so far has been the length.

Thanks again all. It's been a helluva lot of fun doing this -- the feedback from everyone has really been very helpful!!

[RyanT]

I feel as if I might become a broken record, but some of my thoughts.

Some of the cinematography was great. Even though some of the shots were a tad bit dark, it gave it a really nice feel, that along with the music was definitely working for you. The acting as well was pretty good.

Did you shoot this at UC Berkeley? I thought it looked familiar, then I saw an AC transit bus, so I figured that had to be the case.

I have to admit though, I had a hard time connecting with the story. It took a little bit of effort on my part to get into it, once I did though, it did start working for me. But then, as people have suggested before, it overstayed its welcome a bit. I think it really could be a lot better if you just were a bit more ruthless with your cutting, because everything else, the editing, cinematography, acting, all that is pretty good.

Anyways, overall man, good job. I can dig it.

[jojopop]

Did you shoot this at UC Berkeley? I thought it looked familiar, then I saw an AC transit bus, so I figured that had to be the case.


Ryan, yeah, we shot this at UCB -- for the most part I wanted to find some locales that seemed a bit innocuous, nothing that screamed Berkeley or any other place. But I will admit the AC transit thing does give it away!



I have to admit though, I had a hard time connecting with the story.


I feel you on this. I found that people have been very split and I knew it was going to be an issue once I completed the project. Some are into it, others just not at all.

I do plan on being more "ruthless" with the editing though. That's my next stop before putting this one away.

Thanks for the compliments and checking out the flick!

[Marlon Ladd]

I liked this film alot. It was a very different kind of story, but intriguing. It pulled you in and kept you there. Really emotional content. Nice work.