Are CGI effects killing the magic of cinema?

Image source: computertrainingschools.com

The film industry owes a lot to computer-generated imagery (CGI) in all its glory. The last years saw how CGI was pushed further beyond its limits to create a film completely made with performance capture, transforming actors into photo-realistic 3D characters. This is the breakthrough that the film Avatar (2009) brought to the big screen, and the whole industry was quick to pick up on it.

However, the extent to which CGI visual effects can be used to enhance a film has become a debatable topic. For Armond White, an NY Times film critic, the industry has already reached the surfeit point of limitless digital effects, the period of technological overripeness wherein digital effects saturating viewers in the artifice with little room for imagination instead of bringing them closer to realism. White rues that feature films have much liberty to focus on digital grandstanding, outpacing the narrative meaning, and transforming audiences into children rather than aesthetically responsive spectators as a result. He cites Speed Racer (2008) as a clear representation of the real bummer of technological excess.


Image source: nymag.com

In his critique of the Oz the Great and Powerful (2013), Manohla Dargis writes that the CGI atmosphere lacks the charm and human connection of the 1939 original, initiating an inquiry as to whether or not CGI effects are sullying the magic of the cinema.

While it’s true that CGI translates to storytelling without boundaries, the quandary lies in making it the automatic or default tool for most films. Filmmakers should put a great deal on balancing audiences’ visual experience with the content of the film to prevent it from resembling an interactive coloring book that caters to children.


Image source: digitaltrends.com

Are most films better off with practical effects and less CGI? Join the discussion on this blog on Edward Bass.

Zombie shows and films bite into pop culture

Vampires are out, zombies are in. Zombie-themed shows and films have been gaining a cult following in the recent days, taking over the popularity of vampire flicks.

Image Source: amctv.com

The reign of the American horror drama series The Walking Dead as adults’ most-watched drama series on cable has been phenomenal. In the movies, zombie films are also well-received. Warm Bodies has grossed $63.5 million, Resident Evil: Retribution has been a box-office success with a gross income of over $200 million worldwide, and Brad Pitt's upcoming zombie film, World War Z, is highly anticipated.

Image Source: nytimes.com

 There is seemingly nothing interesting about zombie films. Often, they have a common plot: a post-apocalyptic world where zombies thrive to hunt the surviving humans. And the portrayal of zombies in most films is too gory to be fantasized, unlike that of vampires.

However, thinkers have offered various reasons to why people are hooked into the zombie genre. The most popular one is that people relate to zombies as disempowered, unhappy, and “dead” in times of economic crises. Adam Baker writes in the Huffington Post that the popularity of zombie films is rooted in social realism. Zombies are survivalist tales, “which are parables of resilience in the face of social upheaval.” The gruesome, miserable, and outrageous scenes reflect “shattered communities, social dislocation, and families struggling to find refuge.”

The popularity of zombie films and the social reason behind this fanaticism seems to mean one thing: until the economic crises ends, people will follow these zombies as they haunt for more “braiiiiins!”

Image Source: telegraph.co.uk

 This blog for Golden Globe nominee producer Edward Bass discusses various film topics.

The synergy of music and films

Video Source: youtube.com/TrailersPlayground


One of the elements that made Kevin Costner’s suicide attempt scene in Dances with Wolves (1990) memorable was the great film score. In the scene, Dunbar, played by Costner, rides a horse, gets in between the two warring parties firing at each other, and attempts suicide in front of the enemy. The scene depicting Dunbar’s miraculous survival, as if it needs more aesthetics, is made even more gripping and powerful by a carefully selected soundtrack that won the film an Oscar for best original score.




Image Source: filmofilia.com 


Music, with what it can do to a film, isn’t just  a tool that adds life to a film. More than aesthetics, a score is notably one of the sources of emotions in a film. It’s a means to reach out to the audience; the tool that impacts a movie’s connection with the viewers. It is something that helps smoothen out anything that is deemed undesirable on screen, such as poor chemistry among the characters, ineffective acting, and bad setting. Music is an element that enhances the film experience and a tool that helps viewers make sense out of what they see on the screen.


Summing it up, a good soundtrack could add value to any film, good or bad.



 Image Source: slckismet.blogspot.com 


A recognition goes to some films which are too remarkable to be forgotten because of their soundtrack: Christopher Nolan’s Inception (2010), Steven Spielberg’s Jaws (1975), and Martin Scorsese’s Mean Streets (1973). These films got it right when it comes to utilizing music to enhance both the so-called diegesis, or the imagined dimension of the film, and the non-diegesis, or the factual world of the viewers.  


Edward Bass believes that the screen is nothing but a barren composition without music. Click here for more information about film dynamics.

History is all and well, but it needs some interpreting

Image Source: my.spill.com

 

















It seems this year’s blockbusting directors are flush with history. Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained (2012) was released as a tutting reminder of America’s taint of slavery, while its violence-splashed stylistics became a bone of contention. The movie succeeded a massacre in Newtown, Connecticut, where 26 were killed by a lone 20-year-old gunman. America’s growing sensitivity to portrayals of violence rammed straight into Tarantino’s --- and Hollywood’s --- entertainment value of putting into celluloid what the society fears most.


It could be the other way around, where reality is spun into a remake. Kathryn Bigelow, for whom the success of The Hurt Locker (2008) might have propelled her into militant filmmaking, archived her depth as a director in fact-consuming Zero Dark Thirty. Locker was a brilliant slice of war during W. Bush’s march into Iraq, the door jamb on the war on terror.

 Image Source: boingboing.net

 

Zero is the spluttering follow-up: bin Laden had already been assassinated by American elite forces, and the movie’s attempt to play it all out was a work of wavering loyalty to the material. It has been implied that the plot was sourced from special access to classified sources belonging to the CIA. Film critics huddled into fact-checking committees and waterboarded the film for its glaring inaccuracies.


It is widely accepted that history ends with the director’s cut, so it is still a wonder that directors are being given a hard time defending their material for authenticity, and the degree to which they might influence reality. Tarantino was spared when Inglourious Basterds (2009) cheekily killed off Hitler. He couldn’t get away with much in Django, unchained and all. The film’s light hand with violence, a real tour de force of brutal excess, made critics wonder whether history was Tarantino’s point at all.

Video Source: telegraph.co.uk

This point seemed belabored in his surprising tantrum against a TV reporter who pushed Hollywood’s tension with reality where it could have fetched a mob assault. “This is a commercial for the movie --- make no mistake,” the director glowered, referring to the interview.



Edward Bass is a Golden Globe-winning producer of films. This Facebook page offers insights on his body of work.

REPOST: Django Unchained Action Figures: Boycotted, Bagged, Now Selling For Thousands

Image Source: time.com

 















Author: Lily Rothman

Reposted from: time.com

The Weinstein Company decided to stop distributing the action figures following a slew of controversy and rampage by concerned citizens. This article discusses the surprising impact of this move to the film's marketing strengths.

Action figures promoting an action movie are a pretty basic merchandizing technique, particularly when you’re Quentin Tarantino. The director has had such collectible tie-ins made for each of his films, according to the Associated Press. But recent uproar over Tarantino’s Django Unchained toys shows that the basics don’t always work.

The Django edition of those toys may have been intended somewhat ironically—yes, Django has action-movie qualities, but the bloody take on slavery is no Transformers—but if the people behind the toys had thought things through a little more, the irony might have taken on another level: it’s not hard to see why somebody might be offended that eight-inch versions of the movie’s enslaved characters are available for purchase for $39.99. (Non-slave characters are also available as action figures.) Those offended people included Rev. Al Sharpton, who called for a boycott of the set of character dolls, according to the New York Daily News.

So, on Jan. 18, The Weinstein Company, the studio behind the film, changed course and told the public that the toys would no longer be distributed. “In light of the reaction to the Django Unchained action figures we are removing them from distribution. We have tremendous respect for the audience and it was never our intent to offend anyone,” said the studio in a statement, according to Deadline.

The move, unsurprisingly, has only served to boost the value of the now-rare items. As of the afternoon of Jan. 22, a collectible 10-piece set of the figures was available on eBay with an asking price of $8,000, which is actually a pretty good deal. The same set was available on Amazon.com for $19,999.99—a whopping 500 times more than the MSRP, leading to a different brand of outrage. Quips one collector: ”I’m offended…by the PRICE.”

The Weinstein Company is also the studio behind Edward Bass' award-winning film Bobby. If you're a Quentin Tarantino fan, this website wants your thoughts.

Why documentaries about athletes sell

Image Source: nytimes.com

National athletes are the modern-day heroes. They have superhuman abilities; they move the masses with few words; and when they lead troops into battle, they emerge victorious to the roar of a crowd. The triumph of an athlete brings unity and patriotism to a divided nation in a way not even their government leaders could. Though momentary, athletes bring unanimous pride to their nation.


Win or lose, national athletes are somewhat local celebrities. In some arenas, individual sportsmen even become international stars. Their games are attended by as large an audience as movies garner, and their actions off the field are scrutinized in the same way that actors are hounded. Because athletes receive celebrity attention, the general public tends to assume they also make movie star-level salaries. This notion could not be further from the truth.

Image Source: teamosm.net

Like all regular workers, athletes earn a salary. In the bigger leagues like basketball and baseball, all players are paid monthly and given a bonus depending on their performance. In lesser known sports, however, some players are actually taking a pay cut just to continue playing the game they love. This predicament is not at all known to most of the world. Most audiences are shocked to discover that their team favorites are actually going broke.


Athletes in documentaries


Documentaries are films known for exposing the truth. They tackle virtually any industry, and sports are not exempted. Documentaries about athletes have become the method for fans to truly understand their idols. It is in these movies that sports fans realize their favorite athletes are no different from who they are. Golden Globe nominee Edward Bass also produced The Gridiron Heroes Story, telling the plight of high school football player who returned to the field after being paralyzed in a game. Revealing the reality behind football injuries, a documentary titled Head Games was released in 2012 to reveal the physical trauma experienced by various athletes in American sports culture.

Image Source: theoriginalwinger.com

The media may treat athletes with reverence, but through documentaries, fans are able to resonate with players and truly appreciate their feats off the field.


Not all documentaries are as truthful or objective as they claim to be. Reliable stories win awards. A Golden Globe nominee, Edward Bass is the producer of several honest films. You can find in this Facebook page more about his work.

Reality on screen: Producing a documentary film

Just like fictional films, documentary films are created to tell a remarkable story of a real person or a group of people. Documentaries often feature the stories of those who have gone through a difficult struggle, usually a matter of life and death, and managed to survive.

Edward Bass  Image credit: veracityfilms.com

In choosing a story to tell, filmmakers, like Edward Bass, agree that it should be something that the producer, director, and all those who will be closely involved in the production are passionate about. This is because documentary filmmaking requires a lot of patience and commitment. It greatly differs from fictional film production because producing a documentary entails a long period of researching, filming, interviewing, and editing, among many others.

Edward Bass  Image Credit: tecca.com

Research plays a crucial role in the production process, especially in documentary films. Before the filmmakers can record the stories of their subjects, they must first conduct extensive research on the topic and possible sources of information, and make sure that they have the right subjects and have found the right filming locations.

Aside from choosing a story and subject, another crucial process in documentary filmmaking is creating a budget. This can be determined by the number of shooting days, the members of the crew, and the type of equipment to be used.

Edward Bass  Image Credit: wordandfilm.com

After the film has been made, filmmakers are advised to submit their work on local film festivals. Though submitting a film to a local film festival doesn’t guarantee a movie deal, what it can give filmmakers is exposure, especially if the documentary deals with a timely issue and presents a thought-provoking subject.

Visit www.edwardbassfilms.com for more on film production.