Waiting 2B Scene

Tag: Cinephile

  • Video Montage: Walk With Me

    ‘Walk with me.’ It always seems like such a nonchalant thing for a character to say – whether that be in a movie or a TV series.

    Well, maybe that isn’t fair. Perhaps my appreciation of the walk and talk as a clever cinematic device simply wasn’t honed enough to pay any serious attention to it. Don’t get me wrong… I LOVE seeing a quality oner thrown into a piece (despite the subject matter, I think the shot from True Detective remains very close to being my favourite oner/long shot).

    Cue a 6-year old montage that I recently stumbled on that shows just how ubiquitous the walk and talk is as a cinematic device. The time spent choreographing these things amazes me… yet there is an important reason that they remain a go-to feature: namely, they give the scene an opportunity to burn through a whole bunch of detailed information, and they can do it in an interesting manner.

    If you really want to drill down into the nuts and bolts of why these shots are used, then let me suggest that you check out this comprehensive article on the topic.

  • Video Essay: See What Happens When Scorsese Goes All Quiet

    In our age of twenty-first century cinema, we’re awash with wondrous visual stories and their corresponding soundtracks (though this is no given! Check out our post on how music coming out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is actually all kind same-same in the sound department).

    It is because of a ubiquitous big-ness of many soundtracks that I would suggest we actually take more notice when a director decides to do things differently. For example, putting in the necessary effort to deftly craft out a film’s sound design with an absence of musical underscoring.

    Cue this amazing little video essay by Every Frame A Painting on the work of Martin Scorsese. Yes, the man is known for his incredible use of music – however, this essay explores his use of silence throughout his 50-years of cinematic experience. So click away, and check out what happens when Scorsese goes all quiet.

  • Video Essay: How to Suck at Soundtracks… Otherwise Known as The Marvel Symphonic Universe

    Okay this one just has to be shared and re-shared amongst movie goers, videography aficionados, and anyone who has a passing interest in good soundtrack scores in any form of moving picture.

    For better or for worse, music shapes what we see on screen… cinema, TV, or otherwise. It is an integral element with which a viewer can be seduced into rapturous emotion of various sorts. I do not remember watching the film The Exorcist as a child (thank goodness my Dad had some sense in that regard). Nevertheless, to this day I cannot hear the opening 8 notes of Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells without having The Exorcist spring immediately to mind.

    Likewise, you will find it is true of many of our favourite films and TV series (Star Wars, Superman, Indiana Jones, The X-Files, and Saiyūki – otherwise known as Monkey in English – are some great examples).

    Now here’s a question to be asked: can you confidently hum a tune from any of the ubiquitous Marvel Cinematic Universe releases that have been released over the better part of the past 15 years? Nah, I didn’t think so. Well, it has not gone unnoticed by the team at Every Frame a Painting either – and their video essay on the topic is must see viewing. I hope you enjoy it.

  • Blog: Why The Simpsons Continues to Work

    Blog: Why The Simpsons Continues to Work

    Love them or hate them, it cannot be denied that The Simpsons have been an animated mainstay for a little over a generation. But why is it so? It has been written that, “a pictured parody of controversial issues of a society is the most effective approach that target various dilemmas within a society without offending anyone belief, notion, religion, gender and lifestyle.” I consider this to be one of the reasons for longevity of The Simpsons.

    The show has always been paraded as highly dysfunctional. Nevertheless there is an undeniably traditional ‘every’ American family model to the show (father, mother, and the ‘2.4’ children). It is one of the things which has anchored it: we can bank on this dynamic of returning to the comfortable American family scenario by the end of every episode. That trusted formula has allowed the writers to explore some hotly contested social commentaries over its 27-year tenure on TV. Unconsciously knowing that by the end of the 22-minutes everything will be back to normal, we have felt safe exploring these topics with the family.

    Now I admit that this doesn’t sound very video-crafty – so why am I writing about it? Well, I thought it would be an interesting backdrop for what I believe is the second reason that the Simpsons have continued to work: the incorporation of pop culture into the story-lines.

    The pop-culture celebrity list alone is huge, and there are far too many pop culture references to include in a humble blog post (well, one short enough to be read. Honestly, a TLDR comment is the bane of bloggers!). Still, I want to do this point justice.

    As someone who enjoys cinematic elements, I was well pleased to find the following clip. It is my joy to share a cleverly montaged side-by-side comparison of some of the Simpsons cinema references. Created by Spanish student Celia Gómez, I hope you enjoy it just as much as I did!

  • FF: How To Highlight 2016’s Best, In Just Over 1-Minute

    FF: How To Highlight 2016’s Best, In Just Over 1-Minute

    Welcome to the Flick Friday – a series that will motivate you, supercharging your creativity as we delve into cinematography and videography together. Today, we’re sharing a post by a relatively new video channel to both YouTube and Vimeo, called the Art of the Film.

    They have developed a series of videos released today, we are treated to a one-minute (or so) montage that highlights some of the 2016 Oscar nominees. The concept is great, and the execution has been done quite well.

    Do yourself a favour and check out all that they have to offer. For the purposes of Flick Friday, you can whet your appetite by watching the team share their quick look at the five nominees for Best Cinematography at the 88th Academy Awards.

    https://vimeo.com/155886827

  • WW: Why You Need to Understand Colour Temperature

    WW: Why You Need to Understand Colour Temperature

    Welcome to Whatsit Wednesday – a series that will resource you to do video better, offering hints and tips on how to improve your videocraft. Today, we’re sharing a short article on why we need to understand colour temperature.

    Is understanding colour temperature and balance in an increasingly web-based ‘phoneography‘ (think cinematography for phones) marketplace really that important? The answer is simple: yes.

    Understanding colour temperature will improve the quality of your work and give you an advantage over your competitors – those average Joe’s who either don’t know any better, or frankly don’t care. In short, this is the kind of stuff that separates the amateurs from the professionals – and even if you ARE an amateur, the equation is simple: when you know more about what you’re doing, you will begin to produce visuals that look more professional.

    Covering a range of issues such as camera white balance and RAW, as well as examining some of the physics of colour, Richard Lackey has once again delivered an excellent article that will help you understand colour temperature, so that “you will always be ready to balance your camera even in situations where you have no control over lighting at all.”

    Article.

  • FF: Quentin Tarantino’s Best Visual Film References… in 3 Minutes!

    FF: Quentin Tarantino’s Best Visual Film References… in 3 Minutes!

    Welcome to the very first Flick Friday post for 2016 – a series that will motivate you, supercharging your creativity as we delve into cinematography and videography together. Today, we’re sharing a great video montage by Jacob T. Swinney on Quentin Tarantino’s Visual References.

    There is lots to be said about this great montage, but we will leave it to Swinney himself to entice you: “It is a well known fact that Quentin Tarantino is a self-proclaimed cinephile. But the writer/director’s love for cinema is most obviously expressed through his own films. In addition to showing his characters spending a great deal of time discussing cinema, Tarantino’s films are jam-packed with homages and visual references to the movies that have intrigued him throughout his life.

    Many filmmakers pay homage, but Tarantino takes things a step further by replicating exact moments from a variety of genres and smashing them together to create his own distinct vision.”

    With over 30 of these visual references to be had, in a word – it is simply brilliant.

    https://vimeo.com/148955244

  • Blog: 3 Things to Expect from Us This Year

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    It’s great to back from our January hiatus. The proverbial batteries have been recharged, we’re ready to tackle the 2016 blogosphere – and we’re trying out a new format for our W2BS posts that clearly spells out what you can expect from us throughout the year to come.

    1. Monday’s we will share a How It’s Made Monday post to inspire you with some of the secrets of videocraft.
    2. Wednesday’s will be all about the Whatsit Wednesday posts: a series that will resource you to do video better – offering hints and tips on how to improve your videocraft. And,
    3. Friday’s will further delve into cinematography and videography with Flick Friday posts aimed at motivating you and supercharging your creativity.

    There will also be an array of ad hoc posts that cover all the other fun bits and pieces that the internet tends to offer – as well as the general blog post or two – so the future looks bright for Waiting 2B Scene in 2016.

    It’s wonderful to have you on board!

  • HIMM: A Quiet Long-Take Champion (Zhou)

    A long take – this is simply a shot that doesn’t cut away to other shots, but is a continuous shot that usually follows the action of the scene as it plays out in real-time. Even if you have never heard of the term, I’m sure you have seen one in action (anything that has top-ten style list dedicated to it is probably something which falls into the category of stuff you have seen)!

    In the early years of cinema, it was normal to shoot with long takes – it made production both a little easier, and a bit cheaper. As cinema developed cinematography became more complex, and consequently the pace of editing increased. In what seemed like almost no time, the long take was either done away with altogether, or it directors wielded it as a stylistic badge of honour.

    Let me ask you this then: what if you were able to incorporate the long take into your work without drawing attention to the fact? How would you do it?

    With 55 directorial credits spanning four decades, Steven Spielberg knows how to. The Hollywood giant has used this classic technique so frequently that it is definitely a signature move – yet many of us may not have realised it.

    While other purveyors of the long-take usually parade the shot, Spielberg has managed to have many of his ‘oners’ fly under the radar – allowing audiences to become immersed in the dramatic energy of a scene without noticing the technique being used. Love him or hate him, that is a rare cinematic skill that ought to be celebrated – if not emulated.

    So today on How It’s Made Monday, I want to share an excellent video essay on the Spielberg ‘oner’ by one of my favourite online commentators, Tony Zhou. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

    https://vimeo.com/94628727

  • TBT: Morning Prayer, Music Video (Cowper)

    We are used to video imagery that has been heavily edited – or perhaps furiously edited is a more apt descriptor. So I find it refreshing to stumble upon something that is quite different. It is in that frame of reference that I offer you my latest #TBT.

    Coming from the ear-wormingly good Cowper all the way back in 2011, he was joined by creatives Matthew Redlich, Jaymis Loveday, Daniel Graetz and Jen Dainer to record and film both video and audio for the song Morning Prayer. Recorded in a single session at the flood-destroyed Graetzmedia studios in West End, Queensland, Australia, Loveday went on to make some visual magic with a bit of know-how, and a weird party trick. As he wrote,

    “To achieve a perfect focus pull over the 4-minute staring contest, I modified the camBLOCK moco system to control a follow focus whip. This clip was the first shoot to utilise this technique. Several months later, camBLOCK shipped their official focus/zoom motors.

    There is no trickery in the single-shot nature of this piece. Cowper really can keep his eyes open for that long. In the dozen or so takes we shot, I think he blinked in two of them.”

    Up until the guitar solo, Loveday tracked the position of the reflections on his right eye (left on screen). Then when the solo kicked in, he switched it to track the position and rotation of both his eyes. The final effect? Mesmerising.