SINNERGY - Geoff Reisner

Another excellent film, Geoff. The B&W came out GREAT! Those shots in the bar were wonderful. Every angle and shot you chose was flawless. I thought the voiceover of the film was flawless as well, but the VO Archie (great name - my dad's) didn't seem to always fit the real life Archie. He seemed to cool and sophisticated and unshaken in the voiceover and he was also like that the very first time we see him in the bar. Then it seems to change as he seems to become unsure of himself a little and what's going on in the alley when he says, "Pull your damn piece" or something to that effect. Then he goes off yelling and pointing the gun. His character just strikes me as somebody that has been there and done that and at the beginning and end of the film he seems to always know something that we don't. In the alley he seemed for an instance like it was his first rodeo. Anyway, that's just my opinion and nobody else may see it like that at all. Just wanted to throw it out.

I could also very easily see this turning into something bigger. The story and characters are very compelling and we would like to see what's going to happen next.

BTW - love the opening shot in the bar with the glass in focus and everything else out of focus. You did your thing on that one. Nice job! Always a fan of your work.
 
Sweet! Probably the best looking film of the fest. It looks like it was filmed in Chicago or New York or something. That bar scene is friggin beautiful! The pacing was spot on as well as the dialogue for the voice over. Good job Geoff and Kholi.

A lot of people tried to use various forms of special fx in thist fest and I think some were successful and some weren't. I thought you did a great job with the special fx and would love to hear more about how you did the shot where the guy turns black. I'm sure this will do well in the fest.
 
Marlon Ladd said:
Another excellent film, Geoff. The B&W came out GREAT! Those shots in the bar were wonderful. Every angle and shot you chose was flawless. I thought the voiceover of the film was flawless as well, but the VO Archie (great name - my dad's) didn't seem to always fit the real life Archie. He seemed to cool and sophisticated and unshaken in the voiceover and he was also like that the very first time we see him in the bar. Then it seems to change as he seems to become unsure of himself a little and what's going on in the alley when he says, "Pull your damn piece" or something to that effect. Then he goes off yelling and pointing the gun. His character just strikes me as somebody that has been there and done that and at the beginning and end of the film he seems to always know something that we don't. In the alley he seemed for an instance like it was his first rodeo. Anyway, that's just my opinion and nobody else may see it like that at all. Just wanted to throw it out.

I could also very easily see this turning into something bigger. The story and characters are very compelling and we would like to see what's going to happen next.

BTW - love the opening shot in the bar with the glass in focus and everything else out of focus. You did your thing on that one. Nice job! Always a fan of your work.
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Hey, I just signed on dvxuser and wanted to comment that I loved your style of filmmaking and look forward to future entries, overall well done. My only critique is that I have to agree the main character seemed a little cheesy in the way he talked. His partner looked and seemed a lot more believable than he did in my opinion. I liked the plot and the personal demons he seemed to be fighting within his quest for the monster and catching other serial pedophiles, it was gripping and kept the audience unsure what was gonna go down next. I really liked that aspect of the film. Overall though, well done, keep up the visionary/artistic aspect of filmmaking, it made it great to watch. Thanks and all the best.
 
Man this is right up there in my top list. I want to get some nice lenses for my GH1 cause I feel this stock lens just isn't cutting it for me. Did you use the B&W in camera or do it in post? I do have to agree with some of the comments that the main actor had some cheesy lines that didn't seem to fit with the film. The part where he says "Draw your damn piece." would be one example. If he could have just pulled out his gun and the supporting actor follow it would have pulled in some more drama I think. But this is still a very solid entry. Great job to you the cast and crew!
 
Really nice job, Geoff. I loved your choice of style...noir. I've been waiting a long time with these fest to see someone finally pull it off. The look of this was top notch. Kudo to Kholi on his story, too.

This is the first entry I've had a chance to watch. You already set the bar pretty high.
 
Blaine said:
Really nice job, Geoff. I loved your choice of style...noir. I've been waiting a long time with these fest to see someone finally pull it off. The look of this was top notch. Kudo to Kholi on his story, too.

This is the first entry I've had a chance to watch. You already set the bar pretty high.
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I knew you would be one of the ones to appreciate the Noir approach. It started off with a Noir edge and Geoff, through re-writes, kept the noir spirit alive.

It was the first time I've ever written Noir, I attribute it to being on pain killers the night I wrote the first draft; boy was that a blur.
 
Love the story on this one. Props to the writer. This was imaginative and a complete story. I was left satisfied, but would've been happy to see more. The performances were good and the whole thing worked for me. Great job. This is easily in my top ten.
 
Thanks for all the thoughts and comments everyone. Appreciate it big time. This is still a work in project for me so it's good to hear what did and didn't work for people. In a week or so, I'll get back to cutting and putting together the final version of the film for future festivals. I just have to take a few days off... get it out of my head for the time being :)

NOBELO said:
...would love to hear more about how you did the shot where the guy turns black....
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All the VFX was done in Shake, no CG in this beyond what Tom Marshall did for the opening credits. For the guy, we basically created various stages of textured maps which were then matted and warped to his face/body. A large number of opacity mattes then control how and where the effect occurs. Trial and error wasted the first day or two and by then we figured it out and re-did the whole thing from scratch.
 
Nitsuj said:
Did you use the B&W in camera or do it in post?
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In camera. I wanted to be able to see exactly what I'd be working with. Black and white is tricky because you can no longer use color as a separation medium. You have to compose your shots more carefully and work towards creating contrast using light and dark portions of the frame.
 
Geoff_R said:
In camera. I wanted to be able to see exactly what I'd be working with. Black and white is tricky because you can no longer use color as a separation medium. You have to compose your shots more carefully and work towards creating contrast using light and dark portions of the frame.
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Good I was hoping you would say that. I have actually messed with the noir quite a bit and have little tricks I have picked up along the way. I debated a noir this time around but I'll save it for another time. Thanks for the reply and of course sharing this gem.
 
Geoff,

It looked GREAT! I knew it would with Matty G. and yourself behind it :)

I thought that yourself and Kholi did a great job writing the screenplay. Having seen the first draft, I was happy where you both got it. It was tight, made sense, and the written dialog seemed natural.

The only hit I have against the film would be some of the performances seemed a bit flat for me. Maybe this is what you were going for. A lot of it seemed to lack a genuine feel. Maybe you wanted it to feel more otherworldly though?

Thanks for the watch, and I am glad to have seen it. One question to end my comments. What do you feel was the most difficult aspect in making this film?

Thanks Geoff! I look forward to work with you again soon :)
 
Brandon Rice said:
Geoff,

It looked GREAT! I knew it would with Matty G. and yourself behind it :)

I thought that yourself and Kholi did a great job writing the screenplay. Having seen the first draft, I was happy where you both got it. It was tight, made sense, and the written dialog seemed natural.

The only hit I have against the film would be some of the performances seemed a bit flat for me. Maybe this is what you were going for. A lot of it seemed to lack a genuine feel. Maybe you wanted it to feel more otherworldly though?

Thanks for the watch, and I am glad to have seen it. One question to end my comments. What do you feel was the most difficult aspect in making this film?

Thanks Geoff! I look forward to work with you again soon :)
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With the performances... yes, was gunning for a more theatrical approach (otherworldly is a good word to describe it as well). I'm still uncertain as if that was the correct route to go. I need to take a few days off from it and come back and watch it with a clean slate. I already know of certain heavy changes I'll be making to the film and I will be tweaking some performances areas that will affect what you're talking about. One huge aspect is straight dropping the VO altogether. I know some people won't understand the film without the VO but I don't really care... I like it much more without :)

Most difficult aspect of making this was the financial aspect. I was borderline at the point where I almost scrapped the project because I couldn't find a bar location and I was sick and tired of dealing with all the creative limitations. Ideas/stories... they start off with a particular look and feel to them in your imagination... as you begin to transfer that idea to a physical production, you'll inevitably come across problems/limitations that force you to alter or whittle your idea down... IMO, this is a reality even for people dealing with multi-million dollar projects... but there comes a point where the limitations choke and kill the project. You can only make so many changes before that original idea is now something entirely different... at that point, you need to reassess the situation and decide if the 'new idea' is worth pursing.

I hope this doesn't come across as a cliche response... I know we could all benefit by having access to funds, etc. I get it. But with this piece in particular... it was the most stressful element (or lack thereof). It just creates an umbrella of stress but all the while you've gotta keep a solid, positive vibe for everyone else to feed from.
 
I dug this one a lot.

What I found interesting was that it was almost like an anti-noir: daytime, blown out highlights and people in complete shadow. Old Lomos are pretty soft lenses (were they the later square front anamorphics or the older ones with the rear attachments?). This all kind of resulted in a "dream-like" quality to the film. Not sure if that was what you were after, as "film noir" has been referred to a lot in your thread. Definitely had some noir-esque elements, but for me, it has its own unique style.

The GH1 intrigues me and I may have to try one out on a project.

Good job. Thanks for sharing!
 
Cool flick Geoff! Great to see you focusing on directing only. I did miss something in this film though that you naturally bring to the table. I'm sure you had lots of influences in the DP department and given that your film is B&W, it's hard to say what that is.

The narration in and out is a great way to tell an extended story. Imagine if this film just had the visuals and on-screen action... There's no way anyone could have understood. It just shows that narration and VOs are another tool for story telling.

Wonderful locations!

thanks for entering.
/j
 
Geoff_R said:
In camera. I wanted to be able to see exactly what I'd be working with. Black and white is tricky because you can no longer use color as a separation medium. You have to compose your shots more carefully and work towards creating contrast using light and dark portions of the frame.
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My two cents on this is to always do the conversion in post. You'll have a lot more control that way, including separation and filtering of specific colors and their curves.

One great way to approach a black and white film is to use black and white as much as you can in your production design. Use blacks, grays and whites in your wardrobe. Same for all the other things you can control, like built sets, set dressing, props, etc.

As for separation, besides light and shadow, always think "texture".

Just my experience and how I've learned to work with it.
 
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