HERITAGE - Geoff Reisner

Hey Geoff,

This short has a ruminative, cricked feel about some sort of "dark side"... Thats a good thing for what you are going for here.

The music and sound was just appropriate well done. At the beginning I thought the lighting wasn't your best, it was kind of playing another character that shouldn't have been there... but them, the lighting was good and consistent all-the way till the end.

This is a good story. The actor's voice is gentle and easy to listen... it carried a good drama tone to it. Although in the kitchen when he was talking to his wife I guess, I had a slight difficulty focussing on what he was saying... it felt like the monologue was a bit too long so I started to look at the strong lighting coming from their back wondering what could possibly be so bright at night. Another room's light?

My favorite part is how the film is supported by a fine array of beautiful shots... the mood was great for the pace and character's discovery and concerns.

Good job, you make Chicago look really good. :)

Best regards,
 
Aaron Marshall said:
Geoff,

I was very intrigued by this film. I like how one life was totally absorbed by what was insidiously an "apparent goodness" when actually it was quit the opposite. The son was smart enough to realize this for he had doubted even the existence of such forces throughout his life. Until the whispering omen emerged that is.

Bravo!
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Aaron, glad you enjoyed the film! I loved the music you put together for Eighteen Seconds as well as the music on your myspace page. I was listening to a bunch of your work last night. :)
 
Wes-C said:
Geoff,
The film pieced together very well. This was definitely one of our fun shoots. I'm so glad that we decided to continue the shots with the "through the doorway" theme. It is a subtle theme that really speaks to the fact that he is being watched. And the voice-over worked really well. Good Job Geoff!
On to the next project! :)
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Thanks Wes for all your help on the shoot! Next fest is now going the be 'SpyFest' I guess. It should be fun. We need to keep shooting, and this time we'll enter your film as well. :)
 
I watched this for a third time and have to say I still enjoy it. I did feel like the acting was a little wooden on the third pass. The girl's especially. It's not show stopping but just something I didn't really notice until now. The mood you set though is brilliant. The slow pace and the music (which is amazing, compliments to the composer) just makes me on edge the whole way through.

P.S.: Is it the shot where he is leaning on a counter and it's all black around him? Is that the one you "cleaned" up?
 
Really enjoyed this film. Not just great visually but you tell an interesting story. Nice composition and great sound design. Pretty much what short films are supposed to be. The one thing that took me out of the moment for a second was the incredibly bright backlight on the girls hair when she's hugging him from behind. But then again I'm not one to talk about lighting. Good luck with this, you're definitely a frontrunner.
 
Edgen said:
it was tough decision... but ya got my vote :)

/j
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Thanks Justin!!

CinematicRicky said:
If i couldn't find it in the tread somewhere, I apologize, but what setup did you shoot with? It looked great.
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HVX, Scene #6 accompanied with a small lighting package; (3) 650w, (3) 100w (2) 300w, all tungsten heads. This was actually too much considering the time restraints and crew size. We spent too much time tweaking lights and I didn't have enough time to rehearse. I'd settle for a faster/perhaps less interesting looking shot cinematically( in regards to lighting, not composition) if I can spend more time refining performance.

For exteriors, sometimes used foamcore for bounce.
 
VisionLakeProductions said:
...The one thing that took me out of the moment for a second was the incredibly bright backlight on the girls hair when she's hugging him from behind.
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This is funny because a lot of people have said that, especially those who have looked at earlier, longer rough cuts where I used that shot even more. I totally agree with you and even while shooting the shot, I thought to myself, "this is way too much of an edge..." but I couldn't get over how nice I thought it looked, lol. :)
 
Understated.


That’s something that occurred to me watching this film.

My favorite shot was the LS of him talking to her on the couch (seen from the hallway).

Acting wasn’t half bad (not saying that a lot in my reviews ;) ) although the guy didn’t emote as much as I would have liked to have seen over the course of the film.

The cinematography, direction and editing all had an easy pace to it, that was almost voyeuristic. But the result of that was a distance from your character and watching the events unfold as an observer and not a participant. In this instance, there wasn’t the payoff to that element.


Script and structure - I caught the device of answering a question posed in one scene and answered in another. Cool. Worked well in the context of the transition.
The dialogue had a bit too much of the writers voice in it (especially the kitchen scene), for my taste. All of this is subjective. You know, capturing the cadence of every day talk while elevating the content above normality.

The biggest question i had about this short was about the structure. I believe that structure should come from theme, and in this case, I didn’t get some of the choices. What purpose did his girlfriend have? How did she reveal character, forward the narrative or provide insight? Also, you’re exposition was a long explanatory speech. Movies are stories told in pictures. Would I have understood your flick even a little if I didn’t know the dialogue? Like i said, it's all subjective though, and my taste in screenwriting doesn't have to be yours :)

As mentioned before the direction, cinematography and editing were above average, but were let down by the script, IMHO.

I did enjoy the attention to detail in your film, and there were elements I thought were smoothly done. Hopefully, you don’t mind my examining the flick’s story with a screenwriter’s pov, because with this fest I really want people to concentrate on becoming better writers, or using better scripts… (i include myself in the learning process too)
 
Thanks for the in-depth feedback D_and_G, I appreciate it. You've given me some things to think about. :)
 
Well, A lot of stong entries here and any one of my top 5 could and should win, but since I could only pick one, this was the one for me. The mood of this film never falters and the shot composition flat out kicks a$$. The lead gives a solid performance as well. Great Job!
 
Heritage – review

Thank you for following the 'Eric' rule, and early in the movie. I was looking forward to this movie and was not disappointed.

How could you go wrong with the opening shot of the ‘L’ and stone corners of the building in Chicago? I really like the opening shot, it really sets the mood of the film.

The editing was smooth and subtle. Very professional.

My favorite shots were at about TC 0:20, 2:23, 5:02 (you can figure it out if you want).

Favorite moving shot was about TC 3:27 and I really liked the lighting.

You had real good sound for the interiors. What kind of set up did you use?

I thought that the guy's acting was great and expressive. Very little need for dialog at most parts and I thought a little too much (expositional?) at other parts.

You must have spent a lot of time setting up lighting because it was rich and I really enjoyed just seeing some of those shots. It made the movie for me.

Great job Geoff. You movie is in my top 5.
 
RobertE said:
You had real good sound for the interiors. What kind of set up did you use?
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Thanks for taking the time to give your thoughts and comments, Robert!

As for the sound setup (both location & voiceover), it was all recorded with an Oktava MK012 w/ hyper cap. Sound went straight into XLR input 2 on the HVX; then I had both channels set to record from the same input, one riding a lil high, one riding a lil low.
 
Hey, thanks for watching our piece (Breathe). We're new to this site and are thoroughly impressed (if not all together intimadated) by you guys (the peeps on the site in general). I haven't gotten a chance to re-watch your piece but I just wanted to say thanks for watching ours and I'll def. be back for a more in-depth review when I get a second look. But I do remember that it stands out and made me think "Wow. Competition's looking tough". But in a good way. And that I enjoyed it a lot. I'll be be back when I get the chance.

Thanks again
 
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