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Pat Murray

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Everything posted by Pat Murray

  1. Do you have a University or College nearby with a film school or film studies program? I have a nearby University with a film studies program and I'm pretty sure they have every edition of American Cinematographer. May have the same for Cinefex. Could be a way to either know they are there when you want to read them or scan them for your own library although I imagine that could take awhile.
  2. Yes, it's on the recent DVD and Blu Ray copies of The Shinning. It's more of a visual diary but very interesting.
  3. According to Mark Hamill the rolling droid is a prop not CGI. He even enjoyed playing with it on set. http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/movies/new-star-wars-vii-rolling-droid-real-robot-not-cgi-article-1.2047026
  4. Thanks to Mr. Nolan I got to see Interstellar on 35mm twice, each time run by a skilled projectionist for a member price of $6. One of the few times you'll see my local rep/art house threater getting a newly released film from a major studio just because they continue to offer 35mm as well as DCP. I loved the film even more the second time and the cinematography, sound design and music blew my mind.
  5. Don't forget: - Torture suspected commies - Shooting union workers on strike As the RCMP have historically been the strongarm of "the man" I'm surprised they aren't taking more interest in copyright abuses. If there was a major studio or two in Canada I bet they'd change their tune. Or Rogers starts bitching to the Feds. I love your idea regarding VHS tapes. There's plenty of cheap working second hand VCR's out there. Just send out a notice that as of this date if you want to review films for festivals, awards or media you must watch those films on VHS cassette. The current boost in vinyl sales can't be good for music piracy either. I know there are ways to record an album to digital but for most people the quality of the table and/or the finished file is not worth the effort.
  6. There are theatres who can do it. Quite a few were able to show the last Batman on 70mm. It also looks better even when projected digitally. Watching "The Master" the other day on television I switched back and forth between that and a movie shot on digital. Despite the same means of displaying the two films they looked very different. If I'm only allowed to watch digital projection then at the very least I hope directors continue to use film if it suits the project.
  7. The malaise of the hipster immortal. The movie is good if you don't mind being lectured by the king of the hipsters for 2 hours. I consider the movie a success because normally I don't like movies that keep reminding the viewer that the writer/director thinks you suck and life is barely worth living because the masses (that means YOU) have no cultural soul.
  8. I see a lot of indie movies in the list. I doubt a tent pole picture would be likely to pair a first time director with a first time DP. I think that was the point. The higher budgeted studio films.
  9. Thank you for sharing, Mei. I had the pleasure of trying out the Oculus rift at Sundance this year. You're right, this is going to be very popular as a game platform. They were showing trailers where you were inside a VR movie theatre. It was interesting as it feel like you were inside a theatre looking at a theatre size image. My problem with that is it's very anti-social. I don't like the idea of a whole family sitting in a room completely disconnected each other whilst watching a movie or tv. That said, the games wouldn't be so bad as I imagine some kind of communication device will be developed so gamers can interact with each other through a mic whilst playing in co-operation or against each other. The Beck concert was very interesting. The stage and audience where in the round with Beck in the middle and the musicians lining the back of the wall. There were 3 slowly rotating cameras to choose from. After being my own editor I found it very frustrating to watch the same video again later on Youtube as some stranger (the editor) took control of how I watched the concert. It didn't help that it was a very quick cut editing style. Whereas I took my time at each camera position to take in the show from each perspective.
  10. I`m fine with the opinion digital projection is better, but I`m not fine with the over exaggeration of the viewing experience for the audience member. At least in Canada and US.
  11. I`ve been going to movies since I first saw Star Wars as a young boy in 1978 and I`ve never experienced this at any first run theatre. I can count on one hand the number of times I wanted to see a movie and there was a sign warning the print was damaged and a new one was coming but until then if you want to see the movie you have to put up with a line. Granted, when I saw a movie six weeks into the run it might not have looked good as it did the first Friday, but the difference wasn`t really noticeable most times and adjectives like filthy, scratched to buggery and horrid would not be appropriate to describe the condition of the print. I have watched some rough prints like an original run of engagement print for Emmanual, but I expect that and even then I am often surprised by the quality of some old prints when I go to my rep theatre. Matter of fact, the 35mm print for The Shinning was so pristine last fall that I had to ask the programmer if a digital copy was used instead. Just as pro film enthusiasts have exaggerated some of the differences between print and digital I commonly find the same is true of digital enthusiasts when describing film projection. No, it didn`t or doesn`t look that bad most of the time.
  12. I doubt that, Freya. There is a large and growing academic field surrounding Film Studies.
  13. It's art. Pick the medium that suits your work.
  14. I can't say I agree. The only difference between his work here and his peers in Hollywood are the politics in the film. Like your politics in the discussion on interns. There seems to be a common denominator where your interest in politics and film are intertwined. And what I mean by no difference outside of politics is I do think the cinematography in your examples is superb, but not beating the socks off equally great cinematographers in Hollywood superb. I agree with "Barry Lyndon". A terrific movie to write a paper on cinematography. Although, like David stated, it's a pretty broad question. If you're looking to discuss symmetry and lines in composition as well as the colour of the actor's costume in relation to the colour of the sets, I think "The Shining" is a great movie to use for the paper. Same for the first half of "Full Metal Jacket". Just youtube "Happy Birthday Jesus Full Metal Jacket" to see what I mean.
  15. Freya, I don't know how it is in the UK, but the art house/rep cinemas in North America (including the one in my town) are typically also collectors of 35mm prints. There are still rights issues. Some, I understand are easy to show publicly where the company with distribution rights is given a fee. Others, where it's unclear who owns the rights to the film are shown on special member nights for free. Then there's movies like Star Wars that cannot be seen outside of employee screenings lest they risk confiscation of their print. These theaters aren't against using Blu-Ray either, in my experience. Although some have argued to their audience that DCP has allowed them to show pristine copies of classics such as Rosemary's Baby that were previously unavailable on a decent print. There was one case where they mixed a 35mm print with a Blu Ray copy. It was Creepshow and it was missing the last reel for the final short story in the anthology. As for virtual print fees etc. it reminds me of my opinion that "cheap" digital cameras have democratized the film industry for indie filmmakers is strictly snake oil salesmanship from digital camera companies and people who have an interest in the sale of digital cameras. Cheap formats for filmmaking have always been available to the indie filmmaker. It's distribution where the democratization needs to happen. Based on comments in this thread, it might be argued the film industry has taken a step back rather than forward in this regard.
  16. The only active 35mm projection in my city is a rep theater, but it also has digital projection. One of the multiplex IMAX experiences still has their 70mm projector. Well, maybe not now. They had it to show the last Batman in 70mm. Plus we have a couple of museums with 35mm, 70mm and IMAX (105mm?) capability.
  17. Thanks for sharing, Richard! Terrific story.
  18. Those are some great ideas, Adrian. How would you get a camera image through a microscope though? Will a macro lens do it? I'm probably not thinking outside the box enough. I see a tiny "peep hole" for the eye and wonder how a lens could pick up what the eye sees through that tiny "peep hole".
  19. LOL! You can find Hammy Hamster on Youtube. I used to watch those shows as a kid after school. I look at them now and I want to shoot myself after 2 minutes. :-)
  20. In other words, digital has arrived as a cinematic medium. I don't think that can be argued.
  21. I think Casino Royale would be a good model for the new Star Wars franchise. Where nostalgia (the source material, a Bond movie more like the Connery movies with less gadgets etc.) mixed with solid scriptwriting and directing were used to breath new life into the Bond franchise. Then they went back to good guy chases bad guy. Then turned it around and did bad guy chases good guy in the recent film. How about going back to interesting story with intrigue and plot twists and multiple storylines and agendas. Rather than a) identify villain b) chase villain As for shooting on digital. To my eyes, it has its own look, but I've watched a lot of shot on digital movies in the cinema and just like film, some look ok, some looks aren't my cup of tea and others look great. That said, it's my understanding that to be able to get a terrific digital look, it's going to cost you a lot of money. That should be understood. It certainly hasn't democratized the blockbuster as discussed in this thread. When movies making $175-250 million dollars are being called box office bombs, something isn't right in Kansas. Shooting on film or digital, miniatures or CGI, costs have to come down. I agree with Freya that the decision to shoot on film and use practical effects is probably partly based on going with what worked in the past. It can also be the preferred medium for Abrams and frankly practical effects shot on 35mm can look really impressive and I'd be interested to find out if it'll be less expensive than the recent Disney "adventures" in cinema.
  22. I was wondering the same thing so thanks for asking, David. Thanks, Brian for the link. Freya, don't feel too bad, as a Canadian I am a "bilingual" english speaker and therefore familiar with both UK and US english. Being an American I didn't think David meant spastic, which is a pejorative in the UK and in Canada too depending on who you're talking too. As you know, of course. :-) Not used as much here anymore, but I remember a time when people used to say "don't be a spaz" with much regularity. I understood where both sides were coming from and my main point was you expressed concern over the comment respectfully and David responded in kind. One of the reasons I like to come here. Cinematography and cinema in general is a subject people can get passionate about and for most part I enjoy the civility people show to each other here. Even when they think an offensive term was used. That video where the person with down syndrome is abused sounds horrible.
  23. I agree with your POV and therefore tend to be much more forgiving of actors like Tom Cruise who take a lot of flack because they aren't Marlon Brando. Seems to reason that if somebody could do it better that person would have his jobs. I think part of the problem is most people only watch what's on at the local multiplex and perceive acting as easy, but anybody who watches even Tom Cruise's worst movie versus a low budget film full of untalented actors will instantly see the difference. As you wrote it's not an easy job. Either you've got it or you don't. That said, a man reputed as one of France's greatest directors, Robert Bresson only used professional actors once. Hated the experience and only used non actors for the rest of his films. He couldn't just pick anybody off the street so I'm curious what he did to be able to select the right people and then how did he get the performances out of them? Granted, set design, cinematography, the script etc. all these other things have to come together too to make a great film. Nobody should be fooled into thinking all they need is a digital camera, a good pasta recipe and Craigslist to create a quality movie similar to Robert Bresson.
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