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Congrats to the Oscar Nominees


GregIrwin

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Congradulations to all of the cinematography nominees but a hearty congrats to my friend and former boss, John Schwartzman, ASC. "Seabiscut" is an outstanding piece of motion picture photography. I do hope that the academy recognizes his artistry.

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Congradulations to all of the cinematography nominees but a hearty congrats to my friend and former boss, John Schwartzman, ASC. "Seabiscut" is an outstanding piece of motion picture photography. I do hope that the academy recognizes his artistry.

I'd like to see "Seabiscuit" win. I was blown away by some of the frames in there.

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It looked superb and was one the funniest films I've seen in a long tme (it was a comedy ....wasn't it? :D )

 

Seriously I thought it was awful ....... but hats off to the technical crew, it was an excellent piece of work from their point of view.

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Last year, Kodak was honored to receive an Academy Scientific and Engineering Award for developing Kodak VISION Premier Color Print Film:

 

http://www.kodak.com/country/US/en/motion/...3/sciTech.shtml

 

 

Kodak will be receiving another Academy Scientific and Engineering Award for its development of antistatic film backings at this year's ceremonies on February 14, 2004: B)

 

http://www.oscars.org/scitech/2003/index.html

 

http://www.oscars.org/scitech/2003/winners.html

 

"To Kenneth L. Tingler, Charles C. Anderson, Diane E. Kestner, and Brian A. Schell of the Eastman Kodak Company, for the successful development of a process-surviving antistatic layer technology for motion picture film.

 

This technology successfully controls the static charge buildup on processed intermediate and sound negative films during high-speed printing operations. "

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I second that Audiris.... As he was our inspiration source at times too :)

Must see the film though... not out till 23rd of august in sweden....

Liked look of seabiscuit. Saw a prestine print alone in a theatre. Long shots and skin tones don´t work with the DI I feel. Otherwise very nice work!!

 

Fred

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I hope Serra gets it... I have seen all but seabiscuit... Beautiful single source lighting by Serra, fast falloffs on walls and sweet white side light just enough to illuminate the room and the actors... Cinematography that doesn't supress the story is the best no matter what the genre...

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What do you want him to do, quit?  Or maybe he should shoot something really poorly, just to change things up a bit.

"Man..........I keep shooting beautiful films.........you know, I'll just phone this next one in; yeah, make it look as putrid as humanly possible, just to mix it up a bit."

 

In seriousness, I agree that The Last Samurai, although striking, wasn't a far cry from some of his past work.......of course, compared to my work I'm not certain how much judgement I should be passing..........

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What do you want him to do, quit?

 

No I don't. But what I would expect from a two time oscar winner cinematographer is to push the envelope not technically but artistically (conceptually). To light Cruise well and photograph beautiful images would be sufficient however I find this approach on ancient japan or any ancient period for that matter to be lit diffused and soft utterly conventional and thus, though "beautiful" it may be, lacking any comment on the story (as if the 19th century japan has never had a sunny day, if they were we would see it in Kurosawa) .

 

Or maybe he should shoot something really poorly, just to change things up a bit.

 

Poorly, no but differently would be the way to go and that not just to "change" things. What I'm criticizing here is not Toll's cinematographic skills, it's his and the director's joint approach on the subject and it's result on the photography. And this approach I resist not only because it is "oriental" (kata practicing at dawn, etc.) in the theoric sense but also it is artisticaly (already) poor and visually not stimulating. Toll could not avoid repeating himself. That's what I mean when I say "enough is enough". Cynical remarks make me articulate my self like this so if I bore anyone I apologize!

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I don't believe only cinematography that "pushes" the envelope artistically should be awarded or rewarded.

 

"Last Samurai" is an example of "classical" or formal cinematography in the mode of "Lawrence of Arabia" in that it strives to be well-composed and lit dramatically but not call attention to the lighting or any photographic tricks. It's elegant, not edgy. And that actually fits to some degree with the theme of "perfectionism" in the movie; a sort of zen-like attitude that looks at the world with some distance and calm. Like I said, a "formal" and mature quality, hence the straight-forward, naturalistic approach.

 

And the entire last battle takes place in full sunlight so I'm not sure what you're talking about the lack of sun. And the opening battle in the woods has streams of sunlight pouring through the trees. That production did nothing but fight with the harsh sunlight of New Zealand every day.

 

I think this really comes down to popular tastes. One year everyone would be talking about how great it looks and another year and people want "edgy" cinematography like "City of God" and not polished 35mm anamorphic photography.

 

Any lackings of the film are really in the scriptwriting more than anything else. It essentially cops-out at the end and is as facile as "Dances with Wolves" when it comes to viewing another culture. However, both films have the excuse that the culture is being "observed" by a 19th American century character, who might be a little facile.

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What is there to award if not something new and ground breaking. Even the academy seems to share this opinion but let's not get into this...comment on nominations was an excuse...

 

I have read the article myself on AC Jan '04 so I know they fought the harsh sun light and whatnot. My point is that it is a typical genre film and perhaps a good one at that, cinematographically speaking... and should it be awarded for being what it is? I couldn't care less. I know that Toll went to the location and found out the most uninteresting natural light conditions etc. What I wanted to draw attention to is the attitude towards this kind of genres and the way they are lit. I doubt that the film is naturalistic. On the contrary it is too dramatic. And this kind of dramatization would never in any way be appropriate for a "zen-like" attitude... So it is ill justification if you ask me...

 

And what kind of perfection are we talking about here? Perfection you talk about is a misconception of the eastern world and Japan in this case, just like when Toll admits Quote: " I had never been to Japan before starting this film, and somehow I had this idealized impression that the exterior light there be dramatically rich but soft and diffuse, that this should be the starting point for the look of the film." AC Jan '04. The question is; Why does he have that idealized impression and in what way did this effect his cinematography? I opened a topic on the conceptions of cinematography like the ones we discuss here so I suggest you move relevant replies to that topic.

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Remember that the bulk of the film was shot in New Zealand, which has much stronger, harsher sunlight than Japan, so working in late afternoon light, etc. was a way of not making it look as much like New Zealand's light.

 

I honestly don't believe that the point of an award is to reward cutting-edge or groundbreaking cinematography. It can also reward well-executed classical material that breaks no new ground.

 

Trying to be "cutting-edge" is a trap that young DP's fall into -- maybe it's a good idea to get yourself well-known but at some point, some visual maturity seeps in and you become more focused on telling a story with the appropriate mood regardless of whether you are breaking new ground or not.

 

Look, whatever beef you have against John Toll and "Last Samurai", I don't share it. If it's not your cup of tea, fine, but you're coming off as someone who wants to know why the Beatles couldn't write songs as good as the Sex Pistols or the Ramones. There's room in the world for both.

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As for musical analogies go yours is among the good ones I've heard so far... I have nothing against Toll or the film (although I must admit Tom Cruise is a lousy actor) I'm sorry if you think I sound hostile, I quoted him and said what I said to illustrate a point...

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Remember that Toll has both an artistic and business responsibility to the director and the studio. He is hired to deliver a certain quality and professionalism in his work. While any good (or in this case, great) artist or craftsman should push themselves to try new things and refine their work, they also need to deliver what their commisioner/customer/employer expects and requires. I"m sure that Toll did certain things on this film that he had not done before, or did things in certain ways that were refinements or alterations of what he has done in the past. I'm also sure that there were plenty of times that he fell back on his past experiences to achieve something that he's done many times before. He may hae a responsibility to himself as an artist and craftsman, but he also has a responsibility to deliver the goods to the people that hired him.

 

How would you feel if you hired Stradavarius to make you a master violin and he handed you a wonderfully crafted guitar instead. "Just pushing myself to try something new." "But where's my violin?"

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Remember that Toll has both an artistic and business responsibility to the director and the studio. He is hired to deliver a certain quality and professionalism in his work. While any good (or in this case, great) artist or craftsman should push themselves to try new things and refine their work, they also need to deliver what their commisioner/customer/employer expects and requires. I"m sure that Toll did certain things on this film that he had not done before, or did things in certain ways that were refinements or alterations of what he has done in the past. I'm also sure that there were plenty of times that he fell back on his past experiences to achieve something that he's done many times before. He may hae a responsibility to himself as an artist and craftsman, but he also has a responsibility to deliver the goods to the people that hired him.

 

How would you feel if you hired Stradavarius to make you a master violin and he handed you a wonderfully crafted guitar instead. "Just pushing myself to try something new." "But where's my violin?"

"....How would you feel if you hired Stradavarius to make you a master violin and he handed you a wonderfully crafted guitar instead. "Just pushing myself to try something new." "But where's my violin?""

 

(MP):

I'd say, "dude, this is amazing! You've been dead for 280 years!"

 

(Sorry, silly I know, I just couldn't resist.)

 

Good points. I think many people look at any artist as being this genius toiling alone in the darkness, but it's never been that way, at least most of the time.

Most famous artists were creating their work to sell, and as distasteful as that is to many, it's the way it is, and the way it's always been.

 

On the music trrivia front:

Stradivarius actually DID make a guitar, but just one.

Very, very rare instrument. I'm not sure what it's worth, but I'll be many times over what I'll make in my lifetime!

 

Matt Pacini

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"Last Samurai" is an example of "classical" or formal cinematography in the mode of "Lawrence of Arabia" in that it strives to be well-composed and lit dramatically but not call attention to the lighting or any photographic tricks. It's elegant, not edgy.

The impression I had when watching 'Last Samurai' was that of a typical multi-camera shoot where the director and dop were merely covering the action, but not thinking how it would all cut together. Of course there were nice indivudual shots in there, but the framing in its entierty didn't feel too cohesive or thought out.

 

That is unfortunately something one sees a lot these days on big shoots, in fact I just finished working on a movie where that was the case as well. Sometimes it is better not too have an unlimited shooting ratio, because it forces you to think more carefully about how it will all cut together.

 

Max

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How would you feel if you hired Stradavarius to make you a master violin and he handed you a wonderfully crafted guitar instead. "Just pushing myself to try something new." "But where's my violin?"

It all depends on how you look at cinematography. If you think it's a craft then you're right. If you think it's art then you're wrong. All artists are to a degree craftsmen but craftsmen are not necessarily artists nor do they need to be.

 

And as for your analogy; "Just pushing myself to try something new." "But where's my analogy?"... just kidding...

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Sometimes acheiving a consistent natural look is no less

difficult than going for a "cutting edge" look.

 

Also, I don't know of very many DP's who arrive at a look

all on their own. Many directors/producers I've come in

contact with consider themselves authorities in everything

and want full approval on everything the DP does. This may

go so far as hindering the work of DP they've hired. So the

DP does the best he can.

 

Also, each one of us considers ourselves artists. Ask each

one of us to shoot a scene and no two will look the same.

Nobody is wrong. What's interesting is the approach each

takes and the results acheived.

 

BTW, I'm working on a very dark project about suicide right

now and having a blast pushing contrast ratios with "moody"

lighting. Very little fill. Very warm color temps. I'm sure a lot of

people would go with cooler color temps and have their own approach.

Therein lies the beauty.

 

Sorry if I ranted.

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It may be typical to shoot multi-camera on those big movies, but they were also taking some ideas from Kurosawa, who pretty much invented the three-camera technique for covering action in movies. Some of the really long lens cutaways during the action scenes in "Seven Samurai" have more energy to them than good compositons, although I'd obviously say that any Kurosawa film is amazingly well-composed compared to most Hollywood films that use two or three cameras.

 

I thought the compositions in "Last Samurai" were fine, nothing too stylized or arty, just nice compositions. The battle scenes were less controlled compositionally, but I think by design.

 

I was just at the ASC Awards banquet and the clips from "Last Samurai", of the rebel army riding out in silhouette from the shafts of sunlight in the fern forrest, were pretty darn striking.

 

If someday I manage to do something as good as John Toll's work, I just hope you guys aren't so quick to pick my work to pieces...

 

Most of the weaknesses in that movie were not his, but it's an example of an underwhelming screenplay not managing to lift the whole enterprise to some higher cinematic level. I find that if a script is not cinematically told, it's very hard to impart much of a visual impact on the whole procedings without looking forced. John Toll has never struck me as someone who pushes a heavy style over weak material. He is essentially a naturalist or realist at heart -- he rarely pushes the lighting into the unmotivated and unrealistic realm just because it looks cool.

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