Recently I've been editing some episodes of "On Par by Bill Pennington," a series on golf. It's been a fun experience, with a style quite different from The Frugal Traveler episodes.
Coming Up Short
Relief on the Range
Rules That Rule
The Long and Short of It
Well, the Webby Awards were fun. No dramatic results, since you know ahead of time who won what. Nonetheless, the reception was good, the event itself was fun, and the 5-word acceptance speech limit keeps the duration reasonable.
The speech for the Frugal Traveler got a mention in: Webby Film And Video Awards: Best (and Worst) Acceptance Speeches.
I have a photo from the elegant afterparty posted on my other blog....
And, in case you were wondering: yes, the Chocolate Rain guy sang the national anthem.
Here's the newest edit, completed about 5 a.m. Wednesday.
Frugal Traveler: The Grand Tour. Week 3: Southwestern France.
I know, I know, I haven't had time to post. Been editing, and trying to keep up with everything else. Here are two new videos. Again, as always, I learned a lot in the process, but until I catch up I won't have time to post any notes or discussion.... Maybe soon.
Frugal Traveler: The Grand Tour. Week 2: Paris, France.
On Par by Bill Pennington: Rules That Rule
I'll post some notes on the editing process for this when I catch my breath (maybe on the weekend) but, until then, here's the first week of "The Grand Tour."
Frugal Traveler: The Grand Tour. Week 1: Dover to Calais
Two new videos edited. Lots to learn from both, but no time to discuss just now....
Frugal Traveler: Toronto
The Long and Short of It (On Par by Bill Pennington)
Update: link corrected.
Frugal Traveler: American Road Trip -- the video series I edited 12 episodes of last summer -- won the Webby Award in the "Travel" category of the "Online Film & Video" division today. Congratulations to Matt Gross and the entire Frugal team.
A new series of Frugal Traveler episodes is coming in just a few weeks, by the way....
At the screening, our film played very well. The audience laughed in the right places, applauded strongly, and seemed to like it.
The level of quality this year, however, was very, very high, and all 14 of the films were strong. So, the judges didn't see it our way, not even on Best Use of Time Stamp.
That's okay: there was a vodka bar within walking distance, and after two Rosemary Martinis, it started to seem like a good idea to enter again next year....
The highlight of our visit to the Duke of York? That would be meeting Tony. Follow the link to read his notes from this years' event.
The two years we've gone to the IDC finals we've made it to the scheduled filmmaker get-together at The Duke of York. Meet the other teams, have a beer, wait for any nervousness about the screening to pass. Great fun.
One note: do not try to say "The Duke of York" when you've been drinking, as it may come out "The Dork of Yuke."
After another screening (I'll write about that one soon) we went to a fabulous dinner with Mary Margaret (a.k.a. Haikugirl) and then went on to a get together with some of the other International Documentary Challenge finalists. (Great group of folks -- and it really seems like this will be an excellent screening, so I'm looking forward to it. In a Zen-like way.)
Later, we continued on with our old New School pal Erin (a.k.a. Rackle), now living in Toronto.
On Friday, I saw "Mr. Edison's Ear" and "The Man Who Crossed the Sahara."
Mr. Edison's Ear was fascinating, like a talented teenager: it showed promise in many directions, but could not decide what it wanted to do. Starting with the notion that Edison's loss of hearing at the age of 12 profoundly changed the development of audio recording, the film makes the strange choice to end with a long recording of Rachmaninoff played over footage of the electrocution of an elephant. To me, a documentary that makes a claim to have historical insight needs more mastery of its subject.
I found The Man Who Crossed the Sahara remarkable, and recommend it highly, but I was left with many questions that detract from the main themes of the movie. I love films that leave room for interpretation, but the beginning and ending of the movie -- seemingly tacked on around a great central story -- left me confused.
On Friday morning, we followed tradition and went to the Golden Griddle for breakfast. Same section of the restaurant, same waitress as last year.
Haikugirl met us to give us some local tips and to set up a great dinner in town later that evening.
Friday morning I discovered the view from my hotel window. I wondered if this would channel the sound from the courtyard into my room.
After the screenings we went to the Industry Party, grabbed a free Steam Whistle, and met a few people, including a few other International Documentary Challenge finalists.
The first screening we attended this year included the short "$4 Haircut" -- which is exactly what it sounds like -- and the feature "S&M: Short and Male."
$4 Haircut, set to a soundtrack of tuba music, is a fun profile of a man who frequents a bargain barbershop. It's funny, but it's only the third-best barbershop documentary I've seen this year. It didn't entirely live up to the raging ovation heard from the director's friends , but it's an unpretentious, fun film and I did laugh out loud more than once.
S&M: Short and Male is a well-put-together film that's too all-over-the-place to succeed completely.
I love the premise -- that males below average height are discriminated against both overtly and unconsciously -- and enjoyed the process of meeting an initial batch of characters with exactly that problem. From there, though, the film attempts to look at world-wide issues, including a teen who struggles through painful surgery to gain height, and the legal fight over job height requirements in China. While each part is fascinating, it feels less like we've expanded the story than that we've tried to cover every possible aspect of the issue. By the time we return to resolve the story of our initial group of height-challenged guys, the movie feels 15 minutes too long.
And I have one other gripe: the main story that gets resolved is only a story because the director has withheld information from us. While that's interesting, it doesn't feel as if we've followed along with someone to the end of the story, and that we've just seen an essay rather than a journey.
Later, we headed to the Royal for our first screening. Anthony arrived in town and met us in line. I love this section of the city -- restaurants and bars line the street block after block, and most of them look very good.
The Festival's gift bags are a better design this year. No t-shirts left except in Extra Small.
Passion turned out to be a good choice -- good food, a pleasant outdoor courtyard, and drinks to match everyone's wardrobe.
Once we got into town, we decided to follow normal Profluence protocol and stopped for drinks. We started at a restaurant called Passion. Here Laura is seen wondering if the drinks go with her outfit.
On Thursday, Dana, Laura and I took a cab to the airport and then flew to Toronto. I'm normally stressed when I travel, but I've decided to take a Zen approach to the trip and the International Doc Challenge and the whole festival. Win, lose, whatever. At least I'll get to see the city again.
Shooting materials for a podcast-style video this week. I think sometimes it's easy to consider some types of work "serious" and some "for pay" -- but I find I learn from every project I do. Tomorrow, weather permitting, there will be some shooting out in the sun on a nice spring day. Should be fun.
The films are listed for the International Documentary Challenge Screening at Hot Docs.
I had forgotten that last year's trip to Hot Docs, as great as it was, included the kind of tension that happens when awards are on the line. While I realize awards for art are, in a way, really silly, it was still a very interesting experience to stand in front of the full-house audience when team names were called, and to find out what the judges thought of our film.
Well, there will be added tension this year. This email came in yesterday, from the International Doc Challenge organizer:
Hello Doc Challenge Filmmakers,
The American Documentary | P.O.V Award for the International Documentary Challenge has been determined and is going to one of the 14 finalists. We will announce this winner with all of the other winners at Hot Docs on April 26!
Cheers,
Doug
According to Doug Whyte, the Doc Challenge Producer:
The International Documentary Challenge is partnering with P.O.V., PBS' premiere showcase for independent, non-fiction film. P.O.V. will be awarding the "P.O.V. Prize" to a Doc Challenge film. This film will be prominently showcased on their website and receive a $1,000 award.Well, that's very cool.
Currently P.O.V is looking at the top 25 rated films from the 1st round of judging to determine the winner. The winning film will screen at Hot Docs, where the prize will be awarded. If the P.O.V. Prize goes to a non-finalist, we will announce it next Monday so the filmmakers can attend the festival if they want to. If it goes to a finalist, we will just announce the winner at Hot Docs.
Our film "Bend & Bow" will have its world premiere at HotDocs Canadian International Film Festival on Saturday, April 26th at 9:30 p.m. It will screen with 13 other International Documentary Challenge finalists, and the winning films will be announced.
It looks like all six members of Profluence will be attending, so come say hello. Get your tickets early, though -- last year's event was sold out.
Here are the finalists for the International Documentary Challenge. (We are team number 5 on the list.) I'm really looking forward to the screening -- last year's event was sold-out.
1. All The Eights, 88
Team: Sholi
City/Country: Sydney, Australia
Genre: Biography/Character Study
2. Ars Magna
Team Juicebox
City/Country: Seattle, WA, USA
Genre: Biography/Character Study
3. The Art of Balance
Team: Surge Media
City/Country: New York, NY, USA
Genre: Sports
4. Beholder
Team: Boss and Coder 34
City/Country: Brooklyn, NY, USA
Genre: First Person
5. Bend & Bow
Team: Profluence Productions
City/Country: Brooklyn, NY, USA
Genre: Experimental
6. Click Whoosh
Team: Reel Grrrls
City/Country: Seattle, WA, USA
Genre: Historical
7. Ghost Bike
Team: Go!
City/Country: Toronto, ON, Canada
Genre: Art
8. I=me2
Team: Year of the Rooster
City/Country: Sherman Oaks, CA, USA
Genre: Experimental
9. Ice Fishing
Team: Rotating Planet
City/Country: Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Genre: Sports
10. Jetty
Team: Fly On The Wall
City/Country: Portland, OR, USA
Genre: Social Issue/Political
11. Meet The Freegans
Team: Shields Films
City/Country: Portland, OR, USA
Genre: Social Issue/Political
12. Pennywise: The Changing Face of Change
Team: Lucky Shot
City/Country: Silver Spring, MD, USA
Genre: Social Issue/Political
13. Red Light Blues
Team: Abrahami-Netz Productions
City/Country: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Genre: Social Issue/Political
14. Stick and Pound
Team: It Donned On Me
City/Country: Foster City, CA, USA
Genre: Art
These 14 finalists will screen on the evening of Saturday, April 26 at 9:30pm at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Film Festival in Toronto where the Grand Prize Winner will be announced.
It has been a tough and unusual week. A little good news showed up this afternoon. So I say: Toronto Here We Come.
This just in: our short film made it into the finals of The International Documentary Challenge, so we'll be screening at HotDocs on April 26th. Details later tonight....
They seem to be filming a piece about the "junk shop" on First Avenue near my apartment. Which I'm all for. Good luck. I hope it goes well.
Perhaps they could put some identification on this flyer, though? A contact phone number? A company name? They've left these signs up for days, also, not just during the hours when I've seen the camera there. Are they shooting out the window onto the sidewalk? Is the camera hidden? Someone has scrawled "Is this legal?" on it. It would be nice if there was someone to ask.
Don't do stupid things that make the public suspicious of documentary filmmakers. Bring out your camera, and if you point it at someone and they say "no" then stop taping them. Have some respect. Don't just post flyers that make people think documentarians are out to pull a fast one.
Over on my other blog -- New York Portraits -- I have a short account of what it was like to work on this year's International Documentary Challenge.
The amazing thing, of course, is that we had all six members of Profluence Productions again. Anthony Weeks flew in from across the country, and everyone moved their schedules around to make this work. I expect if we do it again next year, it might not be possible to have everyone here. Maybe the team will split in two. Maybe it will split into six. Or maybe we'll feel we've gotten all we can out of the process of making something for the Challenge.
If we do try once more, though, I think I should leave a few notes for next year while they are fresh in my mind:
First, since making a documentary in five days is crazy on the face of it, you've got to maximize editing time. We should choose projects that can be shot completely on Thursday night. Starting the edit Friday would be much better.
Second, a few days before the event we should have some technical practice. Everyone on the team knows how to work with cameras and audio, but we were overconfident. We used a camera that a few of us hadn't used much -- and had problems with a few basics. Once we got everything working, it was fine -- but it would be best to show up with everything dialed in.
Third, we need better lighting gear. We made it work fine -- I think our interview shots look great -- but being able to set up a softbox or shoot-through umbrella and a big white reflector would have been the way to go. We were saved by taking a long time and not settling until the shot looked good, but could have been much faster with the right equipment.
Above: Dana Bartle, somewhere in the NYC subway system.
Haikugirl and Rackle also completed a film for the International Doc Challenge. Tons of respect to them -- that's not easy and it sounds like they were a two-person team.
I'll be curious to see how the numbers work out -- I believe 122 teams entered the competition, and some number can't complete their films in that time. It's a huge challenge, and anything from weather to any bad luck can stop a film in its tracks. I would guess over 100 will qualify, though, so I think the competition will be very tough....
Girl With a Movie Camera has a post about the process of making our little film. I'll have a few notes here (and on my other blog) and maybe a picture or two very soon.
Discovery Channel Accused of Political Censorship for Dropping Oscar-Nominated Doc on U.S. Torture
ALEX GIBNEY: Well, it turns out that the Discovery Channel isn’t so interested in discovery. I mean, I heard that—I was told a little bit before my Academy Award nomination that they had no intention of airing the film, that new management had come in and they were about to go through a public offering, so it was probably too controversial for that. They didn’t want to cause any waves. It turns out, Discovery turns out to be the see-no-evil/hear-no-evil channel.
Today was spent in a recording studio. First: voiceovers for some upcoming DVDs. Next: some podcasts.
Another view can be seen on my other blog.
I'm fine whenever I'm recording basics, but whenever I have to speak about myself my practice is to say too little, followed by saying too much, and then quickly follow this up by saying the wrong thing.
Well, it's finally here, and our film "Blind Faith: A Film About Seeing" will be included.
Big Sky Documentary Film Festival
Missoula, Montana - The Big Sky Documentary Film Festival opens Thursday, February 14 at Missoula's Wilma Theatre for the first of seven consecutive days and nights of world-class documentary cinema. The fifth annual event boasts 106 films from more than 40 countries, including many world premieres. In addition to screenings, the festival includes panel discussions, a Retrospective Series, Q&A sessions with dozens of filmmakers, as well as VIP events, receptions and parties. Since its 2004 debut, the Big Sky Documentary Film Festival has matured into an internationally-recognized venue for showcasing innovative, contemporary, and classic works of documentary film
Dana Bartle has been blogging her documentary trip to Brazil at Sambadende Brazil Tour 2008. I'm a little late to the party, but better late than never.
Editing this episode of Frugal Traveler: Hawaii was a strangely textbook process. I don't mean mechanical by any means. Not at all. Rather, it went through very specific phases, progressing from an impossibly long first draft, through an intractable second version, eventually reaching that moment I still don't quite understand: when the piece becomes watchable.
Here's what I mean: the first assembly was 45 minutes long. (The final piece is exactly 7 minutes long.) Once this was done, I cut away at the material, but found I couldn't make a coherent version with my normal way of working.
Then, after a lot of struggle, I found that this particular piece wanted to be edited backwards: work on the ending, then the material before that, and continue back to the beginning. Seems strange after the fact, but that's what worked....
It's official. Our film Blind Faith: A Film About Seeing will be screening at Big Sky Documentary Film Festival.
We're an "official selection." Excellent.
It's been a tough week. Things move forward, though, when possible. Here is a new episode of the Frugal Traveler series: Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Finally, you can buy the films of Fred Wiseman on DVD.
To go along with your DVDs, grab and read Five Films by Frederick Wiseman: Titicut Follies, High School, Welfare, High School II, Public Housing.
When I was in high school, I was an avid reader, and there was a brief flurry of books about young New Yorkers. I became fascinated by the city, picturing raw spaces filled with artists. The newspapers of the time, however, were overflowing with stories of a high crime rate and few jobs, so it didn't seem like a place I could go.
Last night, however, I felt I had a glimpse back into that time. The screening at DCTV far exceeded my expectations.
The program was excellent -- I liked every film in it, and was very surprised and impressed by several. The space was edgy -- picture where firetrucks would be parked, but with folding chairs and a high-quality digital projector -- and the crowd was very hip. All the tickets sold out, and every seat was filled.
There was free beer.
Above: Man with Chair Versus Woman with Whipped Cream.
The video I made for NYIP on the recent Photo Contest has passed 2,000 views. It's a strange thing: 100 views a day doesn't seem like very much, until you realize that the Internet is on and available every day, 24 hours. So the first few days, you shrug. A few hundred.
If a video keeps going, however, soon the views are in the thousands. While that won't compare to broadcast audiences, it can be a significant number of people.
So the question becomes: what's the goal? I expect the screening tonight for "12th and 3rd in Brooklyn" will be a medium-sized audience. Is that better? Worse? Just different?
On Monday, I had my video editing class interview each other. Our topic: bad dancers. We shot with 2 Canon GL2s, one on a tripod and one handheld. A shotgun mic was setup on a stand, running into a BeachTek and into a GL2.
Today I had the footage from those interviews ready for them, and they started the process of getting to know the material, trying to find a beginning and an ending and the best bits, and trying to make order out of chaos.
Great fun. We'll see how the pieces turn out....
On Friday, go and see: NY Short Docs.
I'll be there, screening "12th and 3rd in Brooklyn." Bought my tickets today.
We are nearing the end of the comment period on the "new rules" proposed by the Mayor's Office regarding permits for photography and videography in New York. What should you do?
1. Read: The Rules, especially this paragraph on activity that will require a permit:
"Filming, photography, production, television or radio remotes occurring on City property, as described in subdivision (a) of this section, if such activity involves the obstruction of one or more lanes of a street or walkway of a bridge, or if such activity results in less than eight feet or one half of the width of a sidewalk or other public pedestrian passageway, whichever is greater, for unobstructed sidewalk use by pedestrian traffic."2. Mail or email: your written comments to Mayor's Office Film, Theatre & Broadcasting, Communications Department, 1697 Broadway, New York NY 10019, or message@film.nyc.gov -- and I strongly encourage physical mail over email if you wish to be effective.
Well, any news from the world of documentary production? I'm glad you asked.
RTÉ launches inquiry into cocaine claims
"The station, which has come under increasing pressure to defend the claims made in 'High Society', last night confirmed that it had launched an internal inquiry into the production and commissioning of the series, which is expected to be completed by the end of this week. ... Beleaguered RTE executives are standing by the author, who claimed a minister regularly abused cocaine -- even after it emerged yesterday that a recording used to substantiate that allegation doesn't exist."Maker of Undercover Mosque documentary considers suing police
"It was "something of a surprise" when the West Midlands police issued a press release eight months after the programme was transmitted in January, accusing its producers of selective editing and distortion. ... "Our reputation was really seriously damaged by this. We're only a small company but we've done quite a lot in the last 15 years," said Henshaw."
There's a new episode of The Frugal Traveler posted. This one's on Seattle.
I had a very tough time with this edit, but in a way that's hard to explain. The short version: the main strategy with these pieces is to create a flow. We follow along from one event to the next, but -- since it really isn't the type of thing where we worry "Will he make it?" or "Can it be done in time?" or "What will he decide?" -- there isn't necessarily a driving conflict or goal, but instead a need to keep it interesting from one experience to the next. We go along for the ride, so it has to be an enjoyable ride.
And this time, though there was the usual collection of good material, there were a couple of spots where there were two problems happening at once -- and I just kept feeling there was no way to make the material and voiceover work together. I ended up, midway through the process, abandoning the first half and finishing the ending.
And then I sat there, staring at two big holes, realizing I still didn't see a way to reasonably smooth out the viewers path through the video. I had shots to cut to, but there were reasons why one shot couldn't cut to the next -- and the usual amount of this that happens just by chance was, unluckily, amplified.
Eventually, as I got to know the problem areas on a first-name basis, I found ways to close those uncloseable gaps. Steal a little from this shot, intended for a slightly different purpose, then change this one here, then try that one ... Eventually there were ways to keep the written shape of the piece intact, and to keep the viewer on a smooth, comprehensible path.
I think the final version is straightforward and simple, but getting there was a complicated and tough road.
Last Friday, I shot a little video aimed at YouTube.com. That's the cast, above.
The strange thing is, shooting that sort of piece is really all documentary production technique. I used a Canon GL1 with a little BeachTek adapter underneath it. A wireless body microphone and a clip on lavalier microphone were cabled into the BeachTek, one to the left channel and one to the right. Half was shot on a tripod, the rest following the actors around.
The thing is, fiction film is really documenting acting that happens in front of the camera, isn't it?
I did a little unit with my video class on editing movie trailers. We looked at about 20 old horror film trailers, then some trailer mashups -- for example, one that makes "The Shining" look like a Romantic Comedy and one that makes "West Side Story" look like a zombie movie -- and finally a few contemporary trailers.
One of the big points: the old techniques of Persuasion still apply, not any that different from how Aristotle thought of them.
You appeal to the emotions, trying your best to show a viewer that they can identify with the characters in the film and that it will make them feel a certain way. You appeal to the viewer also based on the reputation of the filmmakers and the actors in the film and the reviews the film has received. And you make a case that the film is about something the viewer should care about and want to see.
Beyond this: the marketing folks insist: there must be five "movie moments" -- five images one would want to see, selling the experience of seeing the film.
Just finished the next Frugal Traveler episode. It will run Sunday, so take a look at The New York Times then.
15 Docs Move Ahead in 2007 Oscar® Race
Beverly Hills, CA — The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 15 films in the Documentary Feature category will advance in the voting process for the 80th Academy Awards®. Seventy pictures had originally qualified in the category.
The 15 films are listed below in alphabetical order:
“Autism: The Musical”
“Body of War”
“For the Bible Tells Me So”
“Lake of Fire”
“Nanking”
“No End in Sight”
“Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience”
“Please Vote for Me”
“The Price of Sugar”
“A Promise to the Dead: The Exile Journey of Ariel Dorfman”
“The Rape of Europa”
“Sicko”
“Taxi to the Dark Side”
“War/Dance”
“White Light/Black Rain”
Documentary Branch members will now select the five nominees from among the 15 titles on the shortlist.
Profluence member Linda G. will be screening her film "Double the Pleasure, Eight Times the Therapy" at the Vines Short Film Festival in Santa Monica.
The festival dates are October 28 through November 11; specific screening dates and times TBA.
I mentioned that our film 12th and 3rd in Brooklyn will be part of the NY Short Docs program. Here are the screening details:
"NY SHORT DOCS (Presented by DCTV & Rooftop Films)
Friday, November 30th, 2007 @ 7:30PM
$5/Advance Tickets; $7/At the Door
New York is home to some of the most innovative and inspired documentary filmmakers in the world. And on November 30th, DCTV & Rooftop Films are proud to showcase an evening of short documentaries about NYC made by NYC Filmmakers from the Rooftop & DCTV Communities."
Profluence member Dana B. is in the news for her upcoming documentary trip to Brazil:
Sambadendê will trek to its source
"The road trip sounds like a party. Seven band members on a bus playing their way through cities large and small, picking up local players along the way. Band members have enlisted the talents of New York-based documentary filmmaker Dana Bartle, who will accompany them and record interviews and performances by local artists, musicians, and cultural groups as they travel."
Just got an email from Maya: our short film "12th and 3rd in Brooklyn" will be screening at NY Short Docs on Friday, November 30th.
The night's program looks very good. I've seen "A Son's Sacrifice" and really liked it, and I may or may not appear in "Bubblebattle" since I was there at the event....
Also, congratulations to Chris Schuessler -- "DiFara's" will be screening too.
Appearing as an anonymous video expert, I have now officially spoken out -- for all of two seconds -- that blue fluff is more common than blue ectoplasm, and that cameras don't actually record ghosts.
The Inside Edition story is here.
I did not get to see the 6 p.m. showing of Inside Edition so I'm not sure if I'm on it or not. But note the otherworldly rectangle at the bottom of this snapshot: it baffles even the most confirmed skeptic.
Another snapshot over at New York Portraits.
I just went across town to be interviewed at Inside Edition. I believe I will be on tonight, for a very, very brief time. More soon.
Well, sure, the idea of a "reality" television show about photographers might have jokingly crossed your mind once or twice in the past.
But did you think it would be as bad as The Shot is?
I mentioned the show to some photographer friends, and they watched it, and I feel sort of bad for that. Still, I'll probably suffer my way to the end. A challenge to photograph a model and a monkey? Even if it's bad, it's good.
So, in my video editing class today I gave a lesson I've taught before: we take the famous "Odessa Steps" sequence from Sergei Eisenstein's Battleship Potemkin -- 7 minutes and 19 seconds long -- and work to cut 30 seconds out of it without ruining it.
It's a great process, and for those of you who enjoy editing I suggest you give it a shot. (You can grab the Eisenstein film over at archive.org.)
In any case, every student has their own ideas of what shots are crucial to the edit, and which can go away. Sometimes people are very conservative -- just making shots shorter, but keeping them -- and sometimes they go right for elements you or I might say are critical to the story ... and cut them right out.
It never fails, however: at least one student misunderstands: "Here it is," they proudly say, "I cut it down to 30 seconds."
Here's a new video I made for the New York Institute of Photography.
The logistics were:
shot with Canon GL1, using natural light until the day faded away (then a little tungsten bounce light was added to brighten the room a bit)More on fixing those "minor goofs" later.
each contest judge was recorded with a lapel lavalier microphone, then the general judging was done with the built-in camera microphone
the piece was edited, minor goofs were fixed and especially sound clean up done (since it was in a room where it would have been terrible to turn off the air conditioner)
and a pristine H264 format MPEG 4 file was exported (with some experimenting, a very very clean output was produced with a file about 42MB in filesize)
this was then uploaded to YouTube.com -- where they have special elves that make it look very poorly compressed -- and totally low-resolution whenever there's a cross dissolve or a fade-out-fade-in dissolve
There's a new Frugal Traveler video posted: Frugal Chicago.
Here's the strange thing about editing Frugal Traveler episodes: at the end of each one, after a process of watching a lot of footage over and over, I feel like I've been somewhere that I haven't actually been.
I find myself wanting to tell people about a place I haven't been, as if it were my own memory. It's a strange feeling.
Well, Errol Morris is at the end of his three-part pursuit of Photographic Truth in two old photos.
Do not attempt to read this if you are in a hurry...
An update on the status of new regulations on photography and videography in New York.
"The rules, to be released on Tuesday for public comment, would generally allow people using hand-held equipment, including tripods, to shoot for any length of time on sidewalks and in parks as long as they leave sufficient room for pedestrians."More details Tuesday....
CFoA (Certified Friends of Actualities) Chris and Profluence member Maya have posted a trailer for their documentary-in-progress over at Inkaland.
Not that they ever link back or anything like that. But go and watch it anyway.
Here are some ideas I went over with my editing class last week. The notion was that if we can understand the editing systems used in a well-made chase scene, it will help us understand editing in general.
1. IDENTIFICATION
How do we know which character is which? Does one wear a white cowboy hat and the other a black one? Does one have a red car and the other blue? Is the pickup basketball game shirts versus skins?
2. LANDMARKS
If we see the leader pass the big red building, then ten seconds later the chaser, we know how far apart the characters are. Often, a camera will stay at a landmark position, and pan from one character to another.
3. ADVANTAGE
If a car is chasing a moped, the car has a clear advantage. But when the moped goes into the subway and the car driver follows on foot, now the moped has the advantage.
4. STATUS AND STRENGTH
Is a character gaining or falling behind? A shot where the camera is pulling away, or where the character is catching up to the camera may tell us. A shot with both characters in it might reveal the relative status as well.
5. EMOTIONAL STATE AND ATTENTION
We want to know what the character is thinking, feeling and doing -- so a cut to a shot through the windshield might reveal the character's expression. Or a cut to the foot on the brake might tell us what's happening. Or a closeup on the gear shift. Make careful note of where the character looks -- the next shot might be their "point of view."
6. CAMERA POSITION
A camera can be low in the front of a car, can look out the rear window, can sit in the passenger seat, can look down at the brake pedal -- and all of these shots are useful. It can run alongside the moped as it plunges down the stairs. It can turn to watch the car streak by. It can shake, float, or fly.
7. SCREEN DIRECTION
If a car goes from screen left to screen right, we expect it to keep doing that unless we some change -- a shot where it turns, or where we "move" into the car before coming back out. And we expect the car chasing to also maintain consistent screen direction -- unless we see a change happen.
8. SOUND
If we cut from the big black car to the little red sports car -- should the sound change right on that cut? Or should it change in other ways? Do we want to hear the sound of the car coming toward us, then going away?
9. TAKE A PACING BREATHER
Even in a short chase, all go-go-go action wears thin. It's usually more exciting to have a lot of action, then a tiny pacing "deep breath" before the big finish.
10. CUT TO THE CONSEQUENCES
That tank chasing the laser-guided skateboard just knocked over every fruit stand in aisle 19. Maybe we could cut back to see what happened, and the angry manager shaking her fist at us? Or maybe our wheel can't take much more and is starting to wobble -- maybe a closeup to reveal that?
Peter Greenaway has announced the Death of Cinema.
"Cinema's death date was 31 September 1983, when the remote-control zapper was introduced to the living room, because now cinema has to be interactive, multi-media art," he told a director's masterclass. ... There were gasps among film students when he took aim at some of the biggest names. "Here's a real provocation: [US video artist] Bill Viola is worth 10 Martin Scorseses. Scorsese is old-fashioned and is making the same films that [the pioneering director] DW Griffiths was making early last century," he said.Of course, since Thirty Days Hath September, and Cinema has muddled on since that fateful (and technically nonexistent) day, one might be inclined to nominate him for a Francis Fukuyama award.
Errol Morris continues his search for the documentary truth. More or less.
The International Documentary Association announced the results of its Top 25 Documentaries member poll.
No real surprises -- all popular, excellent documentaries -- but one thing did strike me: how many of these films have more than one editor. Of the 25 films, 13 have multiple editors. More than half.
Meaning that now I have to teach my editing students that they'll have to learn an additional skill: shared vision.
(I'm an IDA member, and I did vote. One thing to note: it wasn't a process where you just voted for one favorite "best" film -- but checked off a number of films. I expect that produces a different result than a simple "vote for one" process. In this case, I think it may have made for a better, if mainstream, list.)
This blog's favorite documentarian, Errol Morris, takes a look at what we know and what we think we know on some Fenton photographs from 1855.
As I hope to make a documentary on photographers in the near future (details soon), I've started watching all the photography-related docs I can. Last night's was Annie Leibovitz: Life Through a Lens from the American Masters series. It was very good, and I enjoyed it, but I was left with two questions.
It's directed by Barbara Leibovitz. While the idea of a documentary Director with a connection to the film's subject is not uncommon at all -- think of Nathaniel Kahn in My Architect or Lucia Small in My Father, the Genius -- generally these are cases where the Director is "out" and obvious and often referenced in the film, amounting to a character in the drama.
Barbara is Annie's sister. While the documentary doesn't reference this, the PBS site about the film does:
Given unrestricted access, director Barbara Leibovitz spent a year documenting Annie Leibovitz at home and at work. "As her sister, I feel a serious responsibility not only to tell her story - but to tell it honestly," says Barbara Leibovitz, a writer, director and producer of award-winning documentaries. "It was a challenge, but I learned more about my sister than I ever imagined."I'm not certain, though, that the audience did.
Over on my New York Portraits blog I've posted a link about seeing the Chris Marker: Staring Back exhibition in Chelsea. I'm hoping to write a bit about these images soon since -- as always -- I'm very interested in where documentary film and documentary photography intersect and overlap.
Episode One of Photo Chick has climbed past 7,000 views and Episode Two is nearing 2,000 views. So the plan is to tape Episode Three on Friday. There's also material for a more documentary-style episode recorded, so you may be seeing that soon as well....
Over on my other blog -- New York Portraits -- I've been posting about my visit to the galleries in Chelsea. Of particular interest, from the standpoint of documentary, is the work of:
Kohei Yoshiyuki: The Park
"For these photos, taken in Tokyo’s Shinjuku, Yoyogi, and Aoyama parks during the 1970s, Mr. Yoshiyuki used a 35mm camera, infrared film, and flash to document the people who gathered there at night for clandestine trysts, as well as the many spectators lurking in the bushes who watched—and sometimes participated in—these couplings."Showing at Yossi Milo Gallery (525 West 25th Street) until October 20th.
My post on Learning from YouTube was written early in the morning, before the story made its way to the "weird news" section of the news sites. Since then, of course, the story has shown up on Fark.com, and become a subject for the commenters there.
Those of you with an interest in the divergence between facts and opinion in our current social model may want to take a look. Why is it we're reduced to stereotypes, loudly-voiced opinions that wouldn't hold up to facts found in the most basic google-search, and the lowest-common-denominator opinions of those suffering Internet Tough Guy Syndrome?
Any chance for a return to reasoned discourse in the forseeable future?
Kristi Jacobsen's "Toots" is opening today. She emailed:
"There are 16 films opening in New York this weekend and this little film with our modest advertising budget is going to depend almost exclusively on word-of-mouth. So, if you haven't made your plans to see TOOTS this weekend please get on the phone and invite some friends and they’ll be happy you did. Our biggest challenge is not getting people to enjoy the film, it's getting people to come to see it.It is showing at:
Yes, I have made videos for YouTube presentation. And yes, I did attend the Claremont Colleges.
So I was entertained to see the news article SoCal college offers YouTube class.
CLAREMONT, Calif. - Here's a dream-come-true for Web addicts: college credit for watching YouTube.Now, I happen to know that the teacher for the class, Alexandra Juhasz, is a very serious media scholar and a documentary maker as well. So, while the tone of the story is jokey, I'm sure it will actually be a very good media literacy course. You can visit the YouTube Group for the class and see how it goes.
Pitzer College this fall began offering what may be the first course about the video-sharing site. About 35 students meet in a classroom but work mostly online, where they view YouTube content and post their comments.
Matt Gross emailed to let me know that Frugal Traveler: American Road Trip has been nominated as a finalist for Outstanding Use of Digital Media by the Online Newspaper Association.
New York, (September 11, 2007) – Finalists for the 8th annual Online Journalism Awards, honoring excellence in digital journalism, have been announced by the Online News Association and the USC Annenberg School for Communication.... The winners will be announced at the OJA Awards Banquet during the 8th annual national conference of the Online News Association, which will be held October 18 and 19 at the Sheraton Centre, Toronto.
Well, my certificate from The New School arrived in the mail today. So, my brief time as a member of the first class in the Graduate Certificate in Documentary Media Studies program is officially at an end.
The envelope it arrived in said in large letters: DO NOT BEND. As with all my mailing needs, the U.S. Postal Service performed inadequately: the bottom of the envelope was bent, and the certificate had a slight crease in it. (After my previous mailing woes -- lost mail, never-received mail, never-sent mail, and completely-smushed mail -- I was just sort of grateful they hadn't set it on fire or put it through a blender and used it as confetti for a postal worker parade. It's the little things that count.)
I think that first class will prove to be a group you'll hear from again and again. Perhaps I'll post a "where are they now?" sometime soon....
It is time once again for my Seriously Fun Photography class. I'm flexible, though. You don't have to enjoy it if you don't want to.
It starts this Thursday, so register now....
Heddy Honigmann's Forever is probably my favorite documentary I've seen in the last year. It will be opening in New York and then the rest of the country in the upcoming weeks. Go and see it.
If it turns out you aren't invited to any of the shows in the Bryant Park tents, are there any good documentaries to watch during New York Fashion Week?
Yes, there are. Here are three.
Notebook on Cities and Clothes
Seamless
Unzipped
Is the Internet killing cinema?
"The Hollywood director, Ridley Scott, warned yesterday that new technology is killing off the big-screen experience. The Oscar-winning County Durham-born movie mogul said mobile phones and computers threatened movie-making on an epic scale.To stories like this I say the same thing I have said to every "we're losing the old way!" story in the last 15 years: let it go.
He insisted that the best way to experience great film was still in a cinema with a big screen and state-of-the art acoustics."
I've been discussing and thinking about the theory behind editing run-and-gun footage lately, so I really enjoyed David Bordwell's post on the use of that style in The Bourne Ultimatum and the other Bourne films.
In general, the run-and-gun look says, I’m realer than what you normally see. In the DVD supplement to Supremacy, “Keeping It Real,” the producers claimed that they hired Greengrass because they wanted a “documentary feel” for Bourne’s second outing. Greengrass in turn affirms that he wanted to shoot it “like a live event.” And he justifies it, as directors have been justifying camera flourishes and fast cutting for fifty years, as yielding “energy. When you get it, you get magic.”
There's a new Frugal Traveler up at The New York Times. (I didn't edit this one, though I'm hoping to do some future episodes.) Worth watching anyhow.
One of the things the field of photography wrestled with as it became one of the key practices in art was a sort of reaction against professionalism.
That is, if you were a conceptual artist in the 1970s, it was likely you would describe yourself as "an artist using photography" or perhaps a "photo artist" rather than as a photographer. Photographers were interested in craft, and you, as an artist, would have been interested in ideas and the concerns of art. To a degree, since the piece you might create for a museum or gallery was likely about the ideas or evidence photographs held rather than their aesthetic quality, it became common practice to avoid being "slick" -- the photographs should be rough and unpolished, unconcerned with traditional technique.
A trip to the Guggenheim this weekend brought up a related question: as artists use more video in their work -- at times essentially documentary video -- can they have disdain for the "craft" of documentary making? Strangely, this isn't manifesting in a lack of technical quality -- a lot of artists are able to get high definition equipment and show the work on ultra-slick plasma monitors -- but in a disdain for giving the viewer any welcome to the work.
I walk up to the piece -- odds are in the middle and not the beginning -- and I have little clue as to whether it's 3 minutes or 2 hours in length. I have no clues, often, to how the video is related to the rest of the installation. And my hope that the artist might keep the traditional concern of documentary production for "watchability" in mind is quickly abandoned -- shots go on for long, unedited stretches, bad audio combines with unrevealing camera angles, and I struggle to make sense of what I'm seeing.
It's notable that today few artists using photography feel they can present unpolished images. Will artists using video make that same leap? Should they?
I've started teaching a video editing class at Bronx Community College. I'm really happy about it -- there's a very good program in place, and it's part of the C.U.N.Y. system.
I'm keeping the old gigs, of course.
