Message Universal teaser posted

Re: Message Universal teaser posted

[quote author=Stabb Films link=board=Clips;num=1091600495;start=0#9 date=08/04/04 at 23:02:57]Hey.  Once I figured out how to shut off the site music I was able to truly watch the teaser.(is the site music from The Thing or is it Blade Runner).[/quote]

A little misconception is that Carpenter composed The Thing but in actuallity it was Ennio Morricone. It does sound very carpenteresque though.
 
Re: Message Universal teaser posted

When did ELVIS use the title? Our ELVIS or THE Elvis?

BTW ST

Your drawing ability is EPIC. I can draw and oil paint but you have an obvious understanding of the fundementals (perspective) that really impress me. Man, you're doing my final Storyboards!
 
Re: Message Universal teaser posted

John
You're too funny. Thanks for the great post(s).

[sub]"There are some tryley wonderful shots in this teaser.  The night shots especially are well done.  When the man and woman are talking something seems off in terms of exposure and coloring; no matter as the rest of this looks really solid visually."[/sub]

This is a tough one to respond to because I don't know what you're seeing on your monitor. If you're on a PC there could be a gamma issue going on as the clip was encoded in cleaner for a MAC. It looks great on my screen over here and even better on the NTSC monitor. But the scene in the park was shot on a overcast and rainy day so we created some contrast using black bounce cards on the actors faces. Originally, I was thinking of turning these scenes to black and white because they're flashbacks in the story. But I think I want to do something more creative than that for it to read like a flashback. Either way, the scene as you see it now isn't the final look for it. It's just raw out of the camera. Lot's more post work to do on it.

[sub]"My interest is piqued however I honestly have no idea what the trailer is about (murder? gun? asking a favor from man?)."[/sub]

Well, that's why it's called a teaser and not a trailer. But if your interest in piqued then it's having the desired affect.

The overall gist of the story is it's a 9/11 tribute film told as a thriller. It's about a girl who doesn't believe in God or religion and makes a bet with her spiritually aware friend that by reading every major religion she'll get a deeper understanding of what it's all about.

The end result is she gets a spiritual message from an unseen presence who stalks her in her dreams warning her of a pending terrorist attack and she takes it upon herself to stop him.

Basically it's my big middle finger to every terrorist and extremist the world over who seek to kill innocent people "in the name of God". Don't ask me why I chose such a hot button topic for my first film ever. It was just supposed to be a short film to get my feet wet as a director but turned into this runaway train of a controversial project. Guess watching all the injustice in our oh so wonderful world on the evening news can just get ya hot under the collar, eh? :-/

[sub]"The titles and music are very professional."[/sub]

Titles were done with Livetype. Can't take credit for the soundtrack, it's swiped from a major motion picture. Ain't gonna tell ya which. Let's see if someone else gets it! ;-) I'm working on getting someone to do an original score once I have a final edit. But the post work won't be finished so soon. If you saw my site and looked in the news section, I think you already know why it will take so long. I'm gonna be a busy boy...

[sub]"I'd like to see more of this and am wondering how the difference in shots visually are so different from man and woman and he rest of the piece.  Especially of the dude walking in the city; that is very nicely done in terms of coloring and exposure (crushed blacks)."[/sub]

A lot of people seem to like that shot. Funny thing is, that's also going to change in post because it's part of a dream sequence. The reason for the different looks is because they take place in different spots in the timeline of the story. Some dreams, some flashbacks, etc.

[sub]"When did ELVIS use the title?  Our ELVIS or THE Elvis?"[/sub]

I think you misunderstood the comment. Elvis (yes, our Elvis) had a great title for his film "in the name of God". What I said was that title would have been perfect for my flik, but it's already taken by him. Just a comment of envy that I wish I had thought of it first. No way will I use someone else's title knowing in advance it's being used. Just wouldn't be right.

[sub]"BTW ST, Your drawing ability is EPIC.  I can draw and oil paint but you have an obvious understanding of the fundementals (perspective) that really impress me.  Man, you're doing my final Storyboards!"[/sub]

Heh heh... Thanks. Like I've said in other posts, I've been effectively directing on paper for the past 10 years or so. Only made sense to take the leap to just do it for real.

Again, thanks for the great post(s). Keep 'em coming people. Feedback, suggestions, critiques are all welcome! Tell me what you do and don't like about it! ;D
 
Re: Message Universal teaser posted

[quote author=STORYTELLER32 link=board=Clips;num=1091600495;start=0#12 date=08/05/04 at 08:29:30] (question: what does ADR stand for?)[/quote]

ADR: Automatic Dialogue Replacement (sometimes incorrectly referred to as "Additional Dialogue Recording"). In other words, "looping," rerecording on a dubbing stage production dialogue that for whatever reason isn't audible, well-recorded, or otherwise unsuitable for the final film (loud ambient noise, a plane overhead, etc.) Actors watch playback of the film and rerecord the dialogue in sync with their performance. Sometimes also used to change an actor's delivery of a line.

As for the trailer, nice work. :) Looking forward to seeing more. Love reading about people's low-budget productions and how they put their films together.

With regards to constructive criticism, my one comment concerns the dialogue scene between the man and the woman in the park: I would have backed the camera off from them and shot with a longer lens to minimize the depth-of-field and blur out the background. (Though since the b.g. was mostly foliage, it wasn't particularly distracting anyway). Then again, maybe you shot it the way you did deliberately. Since I don't know the context of the scene, I can't be sure. Not really a problem the way it is, just something that occurred to me while I was watching it.
 
Re: Message Universal teaser posted

Tis a tad dark on my screen.....

Nice potential, but for a teaser, it's about 45 sec too long.
Also, way too much bridge footage.

Teaser/trailer editing has become an art unto itself, to create interest, quick cuts, never repeat, never too long.

Nice stuff.
 
Re: Message Universal teaser posted

Hi Guys, thanks for the posts!

Stas:

[sub]As for the trailer, nice work. Looking forward to seeing more.  Love reading about people's low-budget productions and how they put their films together.[/sub]
 
By all means, if there's anything in particular you'd like to know, feel free to ask.

[sub]With regards to constructive criticism, my one comment concerns the dialogue scene between the man and the woman in the park: I would have backed the camera off from them and shot with a longer lens to minimize the depth-of-field and blur out the background.  (Though since the b.g. was mostly foliage, it wasn't particularly distracting anyway).  Then again, maybe you shot it the way you did deliberately.  Since I don't know the context of the scene, I can't be sure.  Not really a problem the way it is, just something that occurred to me while I was watching it.[/sub]

I totally agree with you. Would have loved less depth of field in those shots. The rainy day didn't help us because we weren't prepared for it with proper equipment to shield the camera from it. We were under a tree for the most part to lessen the water on the camera so we had to be closer.

But more importantly, unfortunately, when you shoot with the DVX, you're limited in your lens choices. As in it's between the stock lens it comes with, a wide angle lens or an anamorphic lens. The entire production was shot with the anamorphic so we're kind of a slave to what we can do with it. But as I said in a previous post, that scene isn't finished yet. I plan on diffusing the entire scene and giving it a glowing blurry feel in post to add the idea that this is a memory we're watching so depth of field will sort of be taken away to a degree in post.

If anyone out there uses FCP and knows a great way to get that kind of result, please post a work-flo! I'm a newbe with this stuff! ;D

Pookie:

[sub]Tis a tad dark on my screen.....[/sub]
 
You on a PC or a Mac?

[sub]Nice potential, but for a teaser, it's about 45 sec too long.
Also, way too much bridge footage. Teaser/trailer editing has become an art unto itself, to create interest, quick cuts, never repeat, never too long.[/sub]

Some of the reason for the length was I was trying to edit the trailer to hit the beats of the soundtrack. If you watch it again, you'll notice a great deal of the cuts happen on certain key notes to increase the drama of the piece. I'm always open to good suggestions though! Aside from the bridge shots, where would you have cut to improve the feel of the piece?

Appreciate all the comments guys, keep 'em comin'! This is free film school online for me! ;D
 
Re: Message Universal teaser posted

I'm using a PC, it was a little dark on both the WS, and the laptop, still watchable though!

If you're cutting to a sound track's lenght, then I follow the long-ish final edit, but you might want to edit the sound track's lenght next time, more work, but you'll be amazed at the options you get when you adjust the tracks.

Otherwise, the cut's seemed about right (other than the bridge shots...too many). Take a look at other trailers, never repeat a shot, or a very similar shot, or you'll lose the viewers focus as they try to understand if there's something in it they're supposed to notice.

But as I said before, nice work.
 
Re: Message Universal teaser posted

Your illustrations are amazing, still have to see the short though, but boy how I wish I could storyboard like that!
 
Re: Message Universal teaser posted

storyteller

great looking work there. especially loved the night shots of the bridge. very "blade runner-esque"...

nicely done!
 
Re: Message Universal teaser posted

Mathew: Thanks for the post. Glad you liked my drawing.

Neill: Ditto! lol...

Looking forward to more comments guys. Just finished moving across country and should be back into post work around mid October or so. Just busy getting settled and moving forward on the comic book stuff.
 
Re: Message Universal teaser posted

Technically first rate but most important to me, the characters and acting are among the best I've seen on this site and most any short. If the casting holds up that well over the entire short it says a lot for your ability to cast and direct. I'm left wanting to see it.

Well done,
Moe Snodgrass
 
Re: Message Universal teaser posted

Wow. High praise indeed. Thanks for keying into that part of it. Was wondering if anyone else was paying attention to the story side as opposed to analyzing shot per shot.

But this being the DVX-user site, I expected more analyzing than absorbtion of the performances or script, etc. Will absolutely post the final cut once the post work is complete.

Keep the comments coming guys, much appreciated.
 
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