IN THE BELLY OF THE MACHINE by Canvus Productions

Hey Mattykins,

I just watched it, and I see what your saying on the blacks (and blues)... I accidentally uploaded that one instead of the correct one. I did a final CC for continuity, and I guess I uploaded the wrong one.

Glad you guys liked it though.

Keep the feedback coming!!
 
Also, I wanted to keep it... "IN THE BELLY..." That's why I chose the stomach.

Also, it was a very well done oner, but for the sake of time, it had to be chopped up. Most of the takes in the film were longer one takes (my preference).
 
Very cool feel to this one.
I really like the shot of the 2 guys leaning against the car with the other guy setting up in the background. Dug the ending as well.

The main characters also seemed pretty natural.

Nice work.

Mike
 
Hey thanks Michael. I really strived for a natural feel. I worked to create an environment.

And Drew, as far as motivated lighting. I tend to be a fan of more naturalistic lighting. Even though this wouldn't be considered "natural" it was as it was because we shot in the pitch black.

Keep the feedback coming. I appreciate all of it.

Thanks!
 
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The shots in the car with the spotlight were really cool looking. What kind of light did you use for that?
 
Hey Connor,

Dick might need to confirm this, but I could have SWORN he said he got it from Varizoom, and it's an on camera LED video light.

We had orignally purchased lights for the interior, and that idea flopped, so we ran with the small battery powered LED. It reminds me a bit of the lighting in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. That's a big reason why I wanted to run with this.

Hope this helps, and I'm sure Dick can correct me.

Take Care
 
Thanks for the comment, Connor. Aaron is correct. We used a on-camera type LED light (Varizoom under a different brand) but it was hand held off the camera for the effect.
 
I like the high contrast affect between light and dark. Must have been challenging to shoot while the car was moving, thought you pulled it off pretty well. I wasn't too crazy about the lighting in the car, maybe try a dashboard light affect but again you shot while it was moving. Was hoping for a little more explanation about the machine but I think I know what it did. Great film.

Doh! Boom mic shadow on the brick wall.
 
Haha, yea. I had done the final CC, and when I adjusted the image that shadow disappeared. The one I turned in... was the early CC.

With the time that we had there really wasn't much time for an explanation for the machine. It originally came from a 12 page script (which had the explaination, as well as a DOUBLE-double crossing). When it came time to edit, most of the extras had to go... Only the beef.

Thanks for the feedback!
 
I loved your film guys. The mood of the piece was way cool and it shows how you can make something simple (the machine) totally believable and amazing with a little bit of acting and by careful editing. Brilliant.

I, for one, am a fan of the lighting in the car. To me it was more surreal and mood-like as opposed to being literal or supposedly realistic. In fact, it worked totally for me as it has sort of the "flashlight-on-the-face" feel to it.

Great work all around.
 
I liked this film...really nice job! The acting was totally believable. I liked the lighting, especially since it was shot at night. Good story too. The machine's effect was cool, but I really didn't know how the one bad dude broke out if it and unpluged it?

Spoilers----
* I felt the music in the opening scene wasn't right, too 'backwoods' (and I play banjo!). Then there were style changes to the rest of it right to the end.

Great job all around on an excellent movie.
 
I chose the song I did, because it seemed to work properly with the short (growing as the action grows etc). I can see where you might say it was backwoods, but it had a more desolate feel (with the banjo), and based on what was going on outside of the window and where we filmed it, it was more desolate.
 
I wanted more from this, I liked the story and the way it was shot. But I needed more effects like gun flashes and blood and an explanation as to how one man was able to break lose of the machine. But overall I dug it.
 
My favorite thing about this short is how seamlessly it mixes the gangster/heist genre and sci-fi. I love seeng amalgams like this. And now that I've seen you do it, I'm wondering why I don't seen this kind of a mashup more frequently! Great idea.

The lighting looked surprisingly good all around. Sure, the blacks were a bit milky in a few of the shots. It didn't bother me all that much -- then again, I'm not really a stickler for that kinda thing.

The story concept was very nice, I thought. I loved the understated simplicity in the time machine. I liked how focused the storytelling was.

I would have liked to see a little more frantic energy in the scene where the deal goes sour. I feel like it all happened a little too slowly. Maybe some more dramatic music would go a long way here? Just a thought!

Overall, definite thumbs up. Nice film. Congratulations!
 
Hey guys I'm glad you liked it! I was really trying to leave things more open ended. I like watching a story with a resolution, but at the same time allow your imagination kind of work things out a bit...

I approached the machine with a more "Hitchcockian" approach, no explaination, just that it does what it does and what happens, happens. I'll try an extended cut after the film and let you guys take a look. I agree that its a little shady as in how Ed gets out of the machine.

This is great feedback, so please keep it coming!
 
Loved it. Toby was a great actor, and carried the role perfectly.

You lost me a little in the middle when S hit the fan. Did the machine come unplugged by accident, or was it all a set up? Were the other two in on it?

Anyways, this will be a nice short with just a tad of clarification there.

Alex
 
Technically Ed fell out of the prolixity of the machines path. He then see's what is happening and disconnects it. Toby stayed away and basiclly set up the whole thing as a "deal." Notice in the last shot Toby has the money, the machine, and the gun. So you can assume he killed Ed and Dom.
 
Loved the lighting! The car lighting was awesome. So stark and contrasty. It fit the hip neo-70s noir crime flick vibe. Guys in suits, dirty deeds, brief cases, tricky little scientist guy. You managed to pull off "hip."

On the other hand, i felt some of the style was distracting. Just in the editing really. a little too choppy at some points. Plus the white fade with the gun shots erked me. But that's just me. Oh and the guy calling 911 on a cell phone? Dude, he's smarter than that. I wanted him on a pay phone.

Positives beat the negatives by a long shot. Did I mention your lighting in the car KICKED ASS?
oh and awesome soundtrack.

Good work.
 
Hey glad you liked it. I orignally wanted the muzzle blasts, the I decided to opt out on the flash special effects. To kind of lend to that early genre of films (also, this is my first real edit job and I don't have AEffects nor the skills to operate it :))

For the closing shot I wanted this real sweet running dolly shot of Toby running to a pay phone, but at 6 am (at the end of your allotted 1 day shoot) we had to run with what we had. We filmed for 12 solid hours.... And I've learned a ton about planning and planning for more time. (read: shoulda tested the DIY squibs, the lighting ECT.)

Overall we had an awesome team of guys helping and I know this film would only be a fading thought without them.
 
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