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Rianne’s AC Archive (March to June 2010): Movie Features, Insights, Lists, News, Records and Statistics
Movie Statistics/Best and Worst/Top Figures:
Top 10 Movies to Check Out Fall 2010
New movies coming out on fall 2010 is a varying mix of movie adaptations, remakes sequels, animations, 3D offers, along with the usual dose of adventure, action, suspense, horror, drama, romance, and comedy.
Top Creative Jobs in Filmmaking: Job Descriptions of the “Holy Trinity of Film Production”
While many aspiring film professionals study in film schools for formal training, production work doesn’t necessarily require a degree in filmmaking. A person’s expertise for the job through proven track record and experience in the field is more important in film production than just earning a degree.
Film Education, Grants, and Scholarships:
Animation and Game Design Schools and Courses in Seattle, Washington
Seattle has a steadily growing animation and gaming industries. In line with this, a number of learning institutions keep up with the demand for the city’s needs for animators, gaming experts, graphic and special effects artists, computer and mobile phone programmers, and other information technology (IT) experts. From special courses to certificate and diploma programs, animation and game design schools in the Seattle area aim to hone the skills of artists and technical people in the fields of filmmaking and gaming.
Asian Film Academy: The Future of Asian Cinema with Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Oct. 1 to 17, 2009 was a time of Asian pride for 24 young Asian filmmakers privileged to collaborate for the Asian Film Academy (AFA) of the Pusan International Film Festival (PIFF) in Busan, South Korea. It felt surreal. There was that surge of excitement learning who our mentors would be: Kiyoshi Kurosawa of Japan, Dean; Park Ki-yong of Korea, Deputy Dean; Ho Yuhang of Malaysia, Directing Mentor; and Mahmoud Kalari of Iran, Cinematography Mentor.
Education for Film Professionals: Makeup Schools in San Francisco, California
With a bustling entertainment industry in this only consolidated city-county in California, many San Francisco makeup schools cater to the demand for professional makeup artists working in the movie, television, photography, and fashion industries.
Film Scholarships and Grants for Student Filmmakers in the United States
Many film production grants offer funding for 16mm, 35mm, digital films (mostly in HD) both for professional and student filmmakers. Some provide enough budget to fund an entire production while others offer financial assistance to specific areas of production: pre-production, script development, principal photography, post-production, or marketing and distribution.
Major U.S. Film Grants Available to American and International Filmmakers
In the United States, there are many film grants that require residency in a specific state or region. Others require a certain ethnicity or membership in the sponsoring institution to become eligible.
There are also major U.S. grant-giving agencies that offer film grants to any eligible American production coming from any part of the country and those that are available to international productions.
Film Features:
Analyzing the Difference Between Widescreen and Full Screen Movies
One thing that makes consumers either curious or confused is the real difference between widescreen and full screen movies. For many years, the question of whether to buy the widescreen DVD copy or the full screen DVD copy has remained arguable.
Difference Between Film and Theater Performances
While both film and stage productions need performers, actors and actresses in films and those in theater vary in terms of performance requirements. Film performers must act out scenes coming from the screenwriter’s script. They do this in front of a camera. Stage performers must act out scenes coming from the playwright’s script. They act out their parts live in a theater for the audience to readily watch. Both art forms can provide entertainment to their audience; yet, the process of showcasing each one, along with the actual discipline actors and actresses follow, varies from one art form to the other.
Filmmaking: Film Vs. Digital
Undoubtedly, shooting on film is still acknowledged as the best format in capturing motion picture images. Yet, the digital format continues to develop in order to reach, or sooner or later, attempt to finally beat the quality and resolution offered by the film format in any kind of movie production.
Filmmaking: Non-drop Frame Vs. Drop Frame
A film production released in regular theaters uses 24 fps (frames per second). This means 24 frames comprise one second of motion picture movement (1 minute or 60 seconds equals 1,440 frames). However, other figures are also typically used in a video production: the 23.976 (23.97) fps and the 29.976 (29.97) fps.
Filmmaking: Using the 8mm Format in Film Production
As how it is normally packaged now, the still existing Super 8mm features a single width of 8mm film with Super 8mm perforations. Packaged in a plastic Kodak cartridge, it typically comes in 50 feet lengths.
Filmmaking: Using the 16mm Format in Film Production
16mm film is a popular and economical film gauge mainly used for student and independent films and commercial productions mainly meant for non-theatrical releases. 16mm film literally refers to the width of the film, similar to the film gauges of 8mm film which is narrower than 16mm, and the 35mm, 65mm, and 70mm films which are wider than 16mm.
Filmmaking: Using the 35mm Format in Film Production
35mm film is the basic film gauge most commonly used for motion picture production and exhibition. Interestingly, this film stock has considerably remained unchanged since its introduction more than a century ago.
Filmmaking: Using the 70mm Format in Film Production
While many modern motion picture productions use 35mm film and high definition (HD) film formats, there are productions that also use the 70mm film format for more specific purposes.
How Giordano Theatre Works for Independent Film Screenings in Las Vegas
While it is true that Las Vegas is a favorite backdrop for Hollywood films, it’s not really a niche location for art and independent films, especially when compared to California, New York, or Chicago. It has its own independent film festivals, yet it’s not as big as Sundance or as famous as the Las Vegas hotels and casinos. Now, more than being a popular filming spot for big-budget blockbusters but not a home for art film enthusiasts, Las Vegas opens a new door to feature independent and art films with the opening of the Giordano Theatre at the Las Vegas Hilton.
NTSC and PAL: The Analog Standard Definition Systems
Understanding the terms NTSC and PAL entails technical explanations. This article aims to explain these two systems in the simplest terms possible for you to understand the basic information about them. While the explanations still require mentioning some technical terms, the article focuses more on the visual and logical facets of these two formats.
Filmmaking: What is the Difference Between Interlaced and Progressive?
The values such as 1080i and 1080p commonly appear in Blu-ray discs and Blu-ray reviews, movie information lists, and technical descriptions of films. What do the letters “i” and “p” after the numerical characters stand for? The “i” is for interlaced and the “p” is for progressive.
While the differences between interlaced and progressive entail very technical terms and explanations, these two scanning systems considerably refers to the methods of “painting and presenting a video image” when using an electronic display screen. The scanning or displaying of each line or row of pixels utilizes certain fields to create a moving frame that can be watched on screen.
Animation:
Animation and Visual Effects Jobs in the Filmmaking and Gaming Industries
Getting into the animation industry requires both creative and technical skills. More than just having a degree, work experience weighs much when it comes to applying for a job in the fields of animation and visual effects.
Those who just came from school or those who don’t have industry experience yet are not exactly left out in the competition. Unlike with other jobs where the primary gateway to getting considered for a job is with the resume, an artist’s show reel, considered to be a production artist’s resume, is the most important element when applying for a job in the animation industry.
Types of Animation Techniques Used in Movies and TV Shows
The movie studio, in collaboration with the film’s director and producer, decides which animation technique will be used in a movie. The type of animation to be used depends on what works best in telling the story and the treatment the director envisions for it.
3D:
3D Movies: Hype Vs. Quality
Published in Yahoo! Movies: Decades ago, the craze for 3D movies became a seasonal feat. Older 3D films utilized anaglyph images where viewers used red and cyan glasses for 3D viewing. Not too long, the demand for 3D faded. It skipped generations until stereoscopic 3D came in.
3D: Rigs, Cameras, Post Conversion — Unraveling the Magic
Given its valuable marketing hype and abundance of eager movie patrons, a 3D movie ticket can cost about twice the ticket price of a 2D matinee — making the stereoscopic technology increasingly popular with movie studios.
Advantages of Using 3D CGI Programs in Filmmaking
Whether showcasing live action or animation works on 2D or 3D screens, utilizing 3D CGI (computer generated imagery) offers many technical and creative ways to realize a filmmaker’s vision for his/her motion picture project.
Panasonic Releases the World’s First Full HD 3D Camcorder
No 3D rigs and no bulky single cameras… The new portable Panasonic AG-3DA1 Integrated Full HD 3D Camcorder is considered the world’s first professional quality, fully-integrated, Full HD 3D camera using a rather practical and familiar storage device: an SDHC (or SD) media card.
Editing and Special Effects:
Old School Film Editing Machines: Moviola and Steenbeck
Before the dawn of non-linear editing suites where filmmakers started using computer software such as Avid, Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere, and Sony Vegas, editors used the Moviola or the Steenbeck, now referred to as “old school film editing machines.” During their times, the use of these editing machines was required for any film shot in 8mm, 16mm, or 35mm film. Prior to the actual editing, laboratory processing of the exposed film negatives was required.
ParticleIllusion: A Special Effects Software for Movies
ParticleIllusion is a sprite-based particle effects application for the creation of visual elements in a movie. Popular examples of such computer-generated effects include explosions, splashes of water, waves, fog, space warps, abstract lights, fire, magical balls, sparkles, and motion graphics backgrounds.
About Movies:
Behind-the-scene of Inception: Movie Locations
Inception hinges on the premise that it is possible to share dreams and that they have been designed to look and feel completely real while you’re in them. In such a subconscious state, a person’s deepest and most valuable secrets are there for the taking.
Film News:
The 1st Philippine Film Festival in Hong Kong at the Hong Kong Arts Centre
The Hong Kong Arts Centre and the Philippine Consulate General in Hong Kong are proud to co-present The 1st Philippine Film Festival from 5 to 11 July 2010 at the agnès b. CINEMA of the Hong Kong Arts Centre. Under the banner of “Hou Yeh Pinoy” (meaning “Great! Filipinos!”), a cultural fiesta organised by the Philippine Consulate General, The 1st Philippine Film Festival will share with the Hong Kong audience works of film art by the burgeoning independent film industry of the Philippines that is rapidly making its mark in the world stage. The festival also hopes to open up a new platform for cultural understanding between Hong Kong and the Philippines.
Filmmaking in the Philippines:
List of Film Festivals in the Philippines
This is a list of some of the most noted Philippine film festivals that cinephiles, students, and even the general viewers can check out in the country…
The History of Philippine Cinema Part 3: The War Years of the 1940s
The war years of the 1940’s may have been the darkest in Philippine cinema history. It brought to Philippine film the consciousness of reality, violence, and survival. Early on during the decade, filmmaker Ramon Estella directed the drama movie Huling Habilin (Last Message). It featured Rosa del Rosario, Elsa Oria, and Leopoldo Salcedo.
The History of Philippine Cinema Part 4: The Post-war Years of the 1940s to the Early 1950s
After the tumultuous World War II, the Philippines slowly began rehabilitation. At the same time, local actors, directors, and most of the other film workers who transferred to theater during the war returned to filmmaking. Soon, cinema houses started back with their operations. Initially, in 1946, theaters featured the usual Hollywood attractions.
The History of Philippine Cinema Part 5: The 1950s as the First Golden Age of Philippine Cinema
The 1950s was a time when Philippine movies significantly matured. After World War II, cinema further developed as a form of artistic expression to local film workers. It was a period when Filipino films stabilized Philippine cinema in the world market. Due to the high production values of motion picture projects during this time, Filipino films started making big waves in international film festivals.
The History of Philippine Cinema Part 6: The Decline and Struggle of the Philippine Film Industry During the 1960s
The previous decade known as the “First Golden Age of Philippine Cinema” revealed the fierce competition between the two biggest studios LVN Pictures and Sampaguita Pictures, along with the two other major studios Premiere Productions and Lebran Productions. However, the decade that followed clearly showed the Philippine studio system encountering some issues on conflicting labor movements. Their contract stars also started building their own respective movie studios, shaking their solid foundation.
About My Films:
Aninag (Light’s Play): Story and Production Notes
Isabel, a blind girl who journeys in a dream world formed through the emotions she feels, shortly plays with her new mystical friends “Saya” (Happiness) and “Pag-asa” (Hope). But soon, she is succumbed by her negative thoughts of becoming alone. Her life becomes endangered. And the question is: “how would she overcome her fear, helplessness, and depression in this struggling situation?”
Aninag (Light’s Play): Synopsis, Treatment, and Other Film Information
Isabel journeys in a dreamworld with her new mystical friends “Saya” (Happiness) and “Pag-asa” (Hope) in an attempt to overcome her isolation due to her blindness.
Karsel (Prison): Synopsis, Story, Treatment, Production Insights and Other Film Information
Karsel (Prison) is a 20-minute film that delves into a young adult female’s submission to the conventions of a traditional home and her struggle towards liberation.
Filmmakers:
Tim Burton Biography: From His Early Career to His Rise to Hollywood Fame as an A-list Director
As of August 2010, Tim Burton has already directed 26 films, produced 18 films, and written 15 films. All of these include his short films and independent films. These shorts and independents are mostly his earlier works, before his big Hollywood breaks. According to IMDb.com, he has five in-development projects including: Frankenweenie, The Addams Family, Dark Shadows, Maleficent, Mai, the Psychic Girl, and Monsterpocalypse. He also has credits as an animator, actor, puppeteer, and consultant.
Tim Burton Biography: From His Early Years to His Early Career as a Filmmaker
Timothy William Burton, better known as Tim Burton, is an American filmmaker distinctive for his dark, strange, and visionary style. As an auteur director with stimulating cinematic visions already acknowledged in filmmaking history, this multi-awarded director, producer, and writer with Academy Award- and Golden Globe-winning films is notable for his quirky-themed works including Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood, Batman, Batman Returns, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Pee-wee’s Big Adventure, Planet of the Apes, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Corpse Bride, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, and Alice in Wonderland.
Tim Burton Biography: His Short Films, TV Projects, and Non-directing Credits
Aside from more than two dozens of directing works made up of short, independent, and mainstream film projects, Tim Burton also has credits as producer, writer, and animator both in film and TV. He also has a few credits as storyboard artist, concept artist, and production designer, most of which are parts of his earlier works.
Tim Burton Biography: His Up and Down Moments and His Shelved Major Projects
Even the best filmmakers have their share of so-so projects and box office flops. Others even have some really awful movies and compromised and shelved projects, at least once in their lives. Yet, such films don’t really overpower what their great works can ever do. For their classic works, these masterpieces are better remembered in film history. In the case of Tim Burton, he indeed has his own share of missteps…
Tim Burton Biography: The Hollywood Icon Outside His Directing Set
If you read about Tim Burton’s background as a child and teenager, you would know that he enjoyed that certain kind of weirdness and darkness, and later on, these would describe what he could offer as a storyteller. He preferred doing things on his own, watching his favorite classic horror and expressionist movies, and making his own short films. Inside his own shell, the introvert Burton expressed himself through his own stories and drawings.
Tim Burton Filmography: His Early Works as a Filmmaker (1971 to 1990)
Early on, Tim Burton’s exposure to classic horror movies reflected the kind of works he would later on make as a filmmaker.
Tim Burton Filmography: His Films from 1992 to 2000
After a struggling early career, Tim Burton finally found his niche in the industry, and soon, he began positioning himself on the top ranks of Hollywood filmmaking fame. Although there were a few missteps in some of his works, almost all of his films became critically acclaimed and/or blockbuster hits.
Tim Burton Filmography: His Films from 2001 to 2010
By the beginning of the new millennium, Tim Burton continued his filmmaking feat with big budget, fantasy, and epic movies.
