$TUDIO BOOKLI$T
Editing is ongoing at this Studio!
This is a list of materials originally reviewed by Faux Film Studio Departments. The $tudio was a catch all for what didn't fit in any other department including: ART DIRECTION, PRODUCTION DESIGN, SCRIPT SUPERVISOR, SCREENWRITING, CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT, STORYBOARDING, DICTIONARIES, FILM HISTORY BOOKS & ACTING VIDEOS
ART DIRECTOR, PRODUCTION DESIGNER
"Research: Whatever the subject of the film, the Designer must spend many hours ensuring that the visual detail he will put into the screen images will be accurate...the Designer should know where to find out what he needs to know. He should be conversant with the collection of his local library as well as the libraries in the larger metropolitan centers...many Designers have their own reference libraries covering the decorative and applied arts, fine arts, and architecture running to a hundred volumes or more collected over the years."
Film Design, edited by Terence St. John Marner pg. 44 (1974).
This webmaster does not own stock and is not affiliated with any book stores but does suggest any aspiring art director or designer find a good bookstore that takes books for trade. For a variety of inexpensive books on the arts in Central Florida we still find BOOKTRADERS in Winter Haven has a large collection of old but good art books and new art magazines, cheap!!! They are picky about what they will take in trade but their payment is consistent.
If It's Purple Someone is Going to Die: The Power of Color in Visual Storytelling by Patti Bellatoni, June 2005. Focal Press.
This is a very colorful and well illustrated 288 page Textbook. There is a concise review of this text at the Focal Press Website (Elsevier). That's not what I do here. Here I tell you that compared to other books on color theory, this text is an easy read, particularly if you have NO experience in color theory. Bellatoni gives practical suggestions like, fast forward through some films to identify various color theories. A simple but necessary exercise. I bristled at the fact the author spent more time giving a synopsis of a film, that exposing how and why a particular color theory was used. That's why this is for beginners. I found no profound psychological rants, which can be tedious, but that also left the text lacking in depth about the relationship between color and how we see. As an experiment in the back of the book, she displays paintings completed by persons she chose, who completed the painting color based on an emotion. She concludes that rage is often red, simply put. This experiment neglected economic conditions and education relative to the subject matter of the art or of the film. These can evoke a reaction to the "subject matter" that totally negates all color theory. The moral of the book being, know your audience.
Generally, I took the time to fast forward through films I didn't actually like where she had included them in her book. That actually was a better way to raise a level of concentration on material I don't like enough to study.
Isolation and poverty create a difficult study environment, but that is why this Studio Reviews books the way it does! I gave this text 3 out of 5 chocolate chips cookies. Color theory books are not abundant, as many other divisions of filmmaking have dozens of textbooks written about them. It wouldn't hurt to read every book you find on color theory because so many departments of a film's production are changed by the use of color, from picking costume materials & dyes to lighting or building a set. 3 Hot Chocolate Cookies at Best!
What an Art Director Does: An Introduction to Motion Picture Production Design by Ward Preston, 1994. This is a non technical book that assumes you may be trying to break into the business but already have the required skills of drawing to scale, and a solid background in art. What the book does well is contrast and compare the role of the Art Director with that of the Set Decorator, and to a lesser degree the Production Director. Although many aspects of film production may now be handled on a laptop computer, the basic forms provided as a guide to budgeting for set construction appear to be helpful, Breakdowns. If you have an interest in the decisions behind set construction this is also good, offering tidbits such as "Painting and aging are really what art direction is all about" (pg 169) or "signs of protest are best done by amateurs". Mr. Preston did not attempt to pretend he had expertise in areas he did not, like in computer technology, thereby earning my respect. This short text gets "4" Musketeers Bars. I based part of on a Set Construction chapter.
Art Direction for Film & Video by Robert Olson, 2nd Edition. This is a short text book by a professional who has both taught and worked in the industry. It is a book about the basics of what is means to be a production designer and how to find a job. What it is not is a step by step guide to training for Production Design.
By page 30 of this 144 page book it is clear this is a book the generally outlines a process and describes more what a Production Designer does than in detail how to be a Production Designer. For instance, Stephen H. Burum, ASC has an article online described as "Recommendations for equipping the ideal student sound stage". The article is available at the American Society of Cinematographer'sWebsite in "Resources", link to "Member's Advice". That article gave a detailed description of equipment needed to create a sound stage as opposed to Olson's 1/2 page description of a sound stage on page 20-21 of his book, which does not depict the details of equipment. A later chapter on set construction supervision is just as vague, not to mention that safety issues relative to construction seem to elude his job description. This book appears for beginners who want to see if this is their type of job, a job for which they will need many more years of study! One redeeming feature of this book are quotes Olson obtained from the Production Company of Meyer/Shyer:
Real production design means that you have designed the production. If it's on stage, you design the sets, costumes, and the lighting, and you're through. If it's a movie, you have to figure out what the camera is doing. The visual components are space, line, color, movement, and rhythm...The production designer has to understand what the movie is about. It's not the plot; it's what I like to call point of view-what you want the audience to feel about the movie. In Father of the Bride, we wanted the house to be a character in the movie. The house was not a backdrop; it was a part of the family like Steve Martin was...
Art Direction, Id. at Page 3
In Baby Boom the wall colors were based on Diane Keaton's complexion color and in Father of the Bride we keyed the wall colors to Steve Martin's complexion to help make the house a member of the family.
Art Direction, Id at Page 12 quoting Bruck Block.
While Olson admits this is not meant to be a detailed textbook he fails at what he intends to do with the book, "how to begin". It has no addresses to write to for information. Olson fails to show other resources that can help someone who believes, after reading this book and deciding this is what they want to do, they need a better and more detailed understanding of color and color design or anything else! No Bibliography will get you 1 out of 5 chocolate bars at this Studio. (We at Film Studio Faux, the big studio we are, like to be told where we can steal more ideas, like the other big studios!).
By Design, Interviews with Film Production Designers
LoBrutto. This is the second book of interviews I had read by LoBrutto and found he asks the right questions to discover tricks of the trade used to create the magic for hundreds of movies in Interview after Interview. I have a background in display arts, where I learned on the job, as my first weekly "art" gig, in my teens with other better trained artists. A book like this can be as powerful a tool as on the job experience if you apply their experience to your work, no matter what it is! 20 Production Designers are interviewed in this 1992 text!I'm on a diet but this definitely deserved chocolate!
Production Design in the Contemporary American Film: A Critical Study of 23 movies and their designers, by Beverly Heisner, 1997. This 171 page, barely illustrated, textbook lacks a proper analysis of "production design" and is not a "critical study". For instance, the text divides "the films" into five different sections: "Films with Realism Set in the Present...Stylized Films Set in the Present... Period Films...Period Films that move through several decades...Science fiction films and fantasy films". Under Science Fiction and Fantasy the author puts two films Aliens and Raiders of the Lost Ark. So much has been written already about the design of those two movies in "making of" the movie textbooks and in trade magazines that there was a huge volume of info to draw from for a true "critical study". This author did not feel that need, although her analysis of the mothership as a "character" in Aliens was correct, it was hardly "critical". There is no preface in any one of those sections depicting common elements in this division. The writer jumps right into describing the plot in a few or several movies in each section. The description of the storyline takes up most the writing and there is little to no relevant detail about the elements used to define the design of that film! In short, is not a "critical study". I've checked out children's books about the making of Dick Tracy that had more information about Richard Sylbert's design style than this text.
A big disappointment, no chocolate.
FILM DESIGN
Compiled by Terence St. John Marner & part of The London Film School Series, 1974. This 163 page book has about 57 pages with sketches, production designs and storyboards, and about 45 pages with photos. Some are of the completed set & can be compared to the original production sketch. It is also filled with quotes from production designers about how they planned designs or solved problems on a set, both from the Bond films and the Kubrick films. It gives lists of equipment needed for scouting locations, and a list of what to look for and what to avoid with examples from specific films in interiors. It describes the jobs of various persons that the production designer depends upon, from property makers to metal workers. There is an explanation and sample on how to set up a sketch from a Plan and Elevation, and how to set up a forced perspective sketch. Lastly, it has a simple illustrated chapter on special effects, matte painting & so forth with quotes from Ray Harryhausen.
For example under a sub-chapter entitled "dressing restricted sets":
Much of A Clockwork Orange was shot in location interiors using wide angle lenses:
In the cafe he [Kubrick] shot with very wide-angle lenses and this is one of the reasons why the film was shot in academy ratio-we had a much greater range of lenses. When using wide-angle lenses one has to be careful how one moves the camera because of the distortion factor. Luckily the operator was very good and did some excellent hand-held tracking shots." Jonathan Barry, supervising Art Director at M-G-M British Studios, designer on A Clockwork Orange.
Film Design at page 75. This book is a keeper...lots of chocolate! The paperback was originally priced at $3.95 U.S. Now much older, if your search of used book stores goes bad it's $35 at Amazon
SCRIPT SUPERVISOR, SCREENWRITING, CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT
SCRIPT SUPERVISOR
The Role of Script Supervision in Film and Television, A career guideby Shirley Ulmer and C.R. Sevilla, 1986. The first thing you see in this book is the introduction and recommendation of it by Billy Wilder. The book lives up to those great expectations. It details the job of the person who is the liaison between editor and director, and many other persons on the set relative to sound and film takes. The way paperwork on a set is filled out is detailed, like no other test book listed here, with samples from a specific film or two. The job of the Script Supervisor and protocol is detailed with anecdotal stories about real incidents on sets. The word "continuity" is seen over &over again in analysis of blocking, line of action, jewelry, hair, & wardrobe. Finally, the interviews with various editors and directors give an idea of how different approaches to working with the script supervisor can effect the overall production of the film, from shooting through editing. As an avid computer user and technology nut, I had one problem in this detailed description of set paperwork. I kept envisioning how a laptop could have saved tons of unneeded paper and made quicker revisions, especially on notes for the editor. I have also read that script software is in the works or is already available that is compatible with digital editing systems. Importantly, that fact will not make this textbook outdated material. I was greatly sympathetic with the interview with Peter Bogdonovich because I demand creative control in all my own endeavors. I had a hard time reading past the first 166 pages. She ragged on the skills of directors in some instances way too much but since I would never do this job I arranged with my ego to have some respect for it! The skills for this job require someone who can carry out tasks without questioning, like it or not those are exactly the skills least developed in a creative personality. I would give this text 1/2 a Godet Belgian White Chocolate Liqueur (chocolate and aged Cognac) and give the textbook below, Script Supervising and Film Continuity by Pat Miller, the other 1/2 for a total of 4 Belgium Bars!
Script Supervising and Film Continuity, 2nd Edition by Pat Miller (as of December 1998 this book comes out in a 3rd edition).This textbook's first eight chapters, 117 pages, and chapter 11 "Techniques of Matching" are written without anecdote or filmmaker's opinion. It is a simple, clear, straightforward listing of paperwork and actions that are the responsibility of the Script Supervisor. It was easy, as a self exercise, to pick up a blank script and follow this text to mark the script. It would be more efficient to read this text before the text by Ulmer & Sevilla above, but I would not miss the extra information in their textbook! For instance, Miller keeps stating when you should tell the director that coverage is missing or matching is not correct. Ulmer & Sevilla warn you more of the real life experiences that can cause conflict on the set when the script supervisor gives their opinion to a director! The information provided in this text on camera setup and motion is lame and can be just skimmed over, to gleam out tricks of the trade, compared to books by Steven Katz. I would give this text 1/2 a Godet Belgian White Chocolate Liqueur (chocolate and aged Cognac), and give the textbook The Role of Script Supervisor in Film and Television the other 1/2 for a total of 4 Bars! Perhaps the added liqueur can explain the Belgian method of audition, 1/2 & 1/2 =4 Belgium Bars.
Filmmakers on Filmmaking by Harry M. Geduld, 1970. More the literary twist of directing, this is a book of interviews with famous Directors. You only need one of these to know whatever you're in it for, as a Director you have to satisfy yourself, like Fellini is in it for the "passion". Hot chocolate, English Toffee Chocolate
SCREENWRITING
Screenwriting A,B.C.'s & other books at the E-script Virtual Q & A, Downloadable FAQ!
The Studio Faux start was advanced! I have a background in literary studies including references and did serious literary reading in my teens.
1999, New technology and the Old School.
A review comparing two recent texts on screenwriting by writers whose use of electronic text and/or online audio has changed the competitive learning process and the concept of worldwide "access" to training for screenwriters
Screenwright: The Craft of Screenwriting by Charles Deemer's. Professor Deemer's What's Knew created a Class Syllabus for his screenwriting course. Google it, this may still be online. Even if you cannot afford to take the online course, or you cannot afford the $35 to buy his self-guided study class, follow this link. At his syllabus page he has linked to over a dozen pages of free information on the internet on how to write, format and sell your screenplay. Mr. Deemer's own articles are amongst these links but you will also find a diverse group of articles and websites that are well worth checking out. Only one person is seeking payment for their advice, $7.50 for information on how to format a screenplay (I find this strange only because the writer states how he really want sto help other screenwriters but was being taken advantage of on the internet himself so he had to charge. Ya, well quite a few other websites are giving away more valuable information that this, including the Federation of American Scientists, for free!)
THE UNFAIR COMPARISON!
Deemer also employs online audio writing tips. This can also be found in his What's Knew archives, I believe. There is a certain dynamic to hearing and reading that doesn't happen when one is only reading a text. It facilitates the use of other senses and prolongs the memory of an event or in this case the lesson to be learned. The advantages of employing new technology to reinforce a lesson certainly include a more dynamic memory, although having only read the books below by Egri and Blacker I can also say you can learn just as much from a very well written book. Egri provides the basis, without the in depth analysis, for the lesson taught by Robert McKee's book about "Beats". McKee's in depth analysis of the relationships between people being built by the screenplay's dialogue and action if far better than than Deemer's but McKee's book fails to provide a good overall view of the screenwriting process and what to do with the screenplay once you've written it.
This fall I intended on reviewing Charles Deemer's electronic text on screenwriting while I was working on my screenplay. I was going to use it as a guide. Since my computer has crashed, I have not been able to finish his text. It is not fair to compare McKee's Book on Story to Deemer's text. Deemer's text gives a writer, who has not engaged in self-examination, tools to find out how and perhaps why they write they way they do. His electronic text also has a large list of examples from contemporary movies. I find examples of treatments, step outlines and other aspects of the Hollywood writing process to be very helpful. With the amount of information that I take in when reading several books every few months the more specific the information the better I can apply it to my own process of a total filmmaking training program. Deemer's use of examples in demonstrating the type of sentence structure used when writing action was of particular interest to me. A basic rhetoric or advanced grammar course would be very useful in understanding his illustrations because he assumes that knowledge in this course.
The most offensive thing in Charles Deemer's
Screenwriting electronic book is that he is hoping for movies over the internet.
Sounds terrible, literally!
Deemer adds Aristotle's Poetics as a part of his book, excerpted in the electronic text, while McKee adds it as a footnote in his Bibliography. I still have more reading in Deemer's book before a complete review but at this writing the overall design continues to be very useful while I myself am in the process of learning about screeenwriting.
AUDIO ONLINE
"Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of
Screenwriting" by Robert McKee,
Robert McKee does not himself offer free audio information at his own website. The Editor's Guild, because of the importance of McKee's Seminars, published an audio seminar, one hour of McKee's 3 day seminar. It was very helpful to hear the class interact and to hear the emphasis McKee put on language in this online Audio "class". It was a personal turning point for me, because I could not "get a clue" about how to create a "Beat".
STORY...
Robert McKee's Book Story....This book is reviewed at the Editor's Guild. I highly recommend this book. It is comprehensive and provides excellent specific examples. Many texts on screenwriting do not provide enough examples for a beginning writer to comprehend the various aspects of screenwriting. For instance, when McKee explains the concept of "beats" he explains both what a beat in a screenplay is by definition and by example, then he explains what a "beat" in a dialogue is and how it is not to be confused with a beat in a scene. Some other writers fail to explain with simplicity these and many other aspects of writing a screenplay in their texts! McKee is an excellent teacher and the formatting of this book makes some subjects extremely clear, where other writers simply left me in a fog!
Mckee's Book is reviewed at the Editor's Guild website so why repeat the same old stuff? This is the best text that I have read concerning the concept of breaking down a scene into beats and why this skill is needed for writers, editors, and directors. The problem with McKee's text is the constant insertion of his own personal values (which I find disturbing) in his choice of examples. Ok, so the guy is sex obsessed. He also has personal biases that he uses to make assumptions. The problem here is some of those are used to interpret a "beat", changing human behavior. In one instance he writes about how the endings on film are too often "happy" endings because that is what they studios think people want. Then he compares the wants or desires of the average movie goer to survivors of the holocaust. He says that survivors of the holocaust enjoy unhappy endings because they have a catharsis. This is logical but where his logic fails is in understanding that the holocaust is over.
When a holocaust survivor leaves the theater they are not going back to a camp. The daily problems of the average citizen are things they are leaving the theater to go home to today, after the film. Mr. McKee apparently hasn't experienced real life in America because there are many DAILY problems, from abuse of women to police brutality, that are serious threats. Some of those situations last years longer than the holocaust and have taken greater tolls over a longer length of time. McKee reviews the theme of Sullivan's Travels noting that the movie mogul in disguise understood from his brief time in prison that these prisoners did not need to be brought down by a film but that they needed to escape and be entertained. I found some of McKee's "opinions" so uneducated and insulting that it was difficult to learn the lesson about screenwriting.
This entire seminar is $500, get $30 to 50 dollars worth for FREE online!
Although this studio doesn't usually concentrate on links to Screenwriting, because they are so abundant and other people are doing it better, today I will. Often when looking for links in CROSS TRAINING there are links in one area of film that cover two. The Editor's Guild has a RealPlayer Audio Seminar, a two and one half hour seminar, for free by Robert McKee a writer and director. The seminar is a practice lesson in HOW BEATS BUILD SCENES and TURNING POINTS. Although I've read several books with this information this was by far the best.
The Art of Dramatic Writing by Lajos Egri, 306 pgs. 1946.His breakdown of how dialogue in a scene should progress was so scrumptious, I lost count of the bars. Character development through dialogue progression is evaluated. There is an explanation of how and why to build dialogue. For example, Egri uses a sample of dialogue to show when both characters continue back and forth to make "points" in a dialogue the characters and script cannot move forward.White Chocolate Mousse, 5 big Easter Rabbit bars. But don't just read it here, see the high
review at Amazon with the 2007 reprint. My review is of the original 1946 book, as
are many reviews at this site of the original publication as dated in the review!
The Elements of Screenwriting, Stanley Blacker, 1986.
Well known fact: he could teach. Apparently some famous persons were his students, and that does not mean the Mayflower Madame, however I can understand how she could be confused with some of his students. We all learn the basics somewhere. A text full of the oldest tricks in the business. No rabbit, but 5 Swiss Chocolate bars.
Making a Good Script Great, Linda Seger, 240 pgs, 1994.Since there is no real formula for bringing up baby in Hollywood, I'm not convinced that this would make every good script great. A basic analytical breakdown of components of a screenplay that must be there! Ms. Seger has a proven track record, but not on any films that I liked. 4 Milky Way Bars.
Creating Unforgettable Characters by Linda Seger237 pgs, 1990.Showingsamples of characters I forgot already? . Kiss your lucky stars this book does some analysis of minor characters and their relationship to the screenplay. That is worth taking time to analyze your own minor characters against. I suggest you chart this yourself.3 Milky Way Bars.
From Script to Screen: The Collaborative Art of Filmmaking, 1994 Seger/Whetmore. Publisher wanted you to write another book Linda? I learned, sign a contract before you collaborate. Ok, should I sign one saying I'm going to negotiate to possibly collaborate? Contracts 101 it isn't.
1 Chocolate bar.
Screenwriting, The Art Craft and Business of Film and Television Writing by Richard Walter, 224 pgs.,1988. If you live in L.A., take his course at U.C.L.A.. It probably is worth more chocolate bars than the book at 4 chocolate bars. Basic elements of screenwriting, a companion piece to the writing by Blacker. Blacker taught George Lucas amongst others. Had it not been for the brilliant visual effects I would never have watched Star Wars, the script alone sucks. Walter says what he learned best from Blacker was "he instilled in me the preference for a good movie over an important film." "...Screenwriters are urgently advised to consider the general disquietude essential to all films as plain, mean, straight-out violence" I reread that statement again, after 40 other textbooks and it had a new meaning. These quotes depict the manner in which Walter approaches teaching in this text. My first review of this book was not specific in why I made some fun of Mr. Walter, who probably has led a very dull life. But for those of you who have dedicated their life to taking risks or living on the edge, either mentally or physically, I say Mr. Walter appears himself to be quite bitter. In fact, he expresses characteristics of an academion who is isolated and/or of a filmmaker who is isolated from the world.. His advice in "The challenge for screenwriters is not to look it up but to make it up". At least that is his stand on research. He tells us that "life is saturated with tedium", most people lead boring lives, and a moviemakers goal should be to lie! His theory is directly opposed to what SCI-REAL is about. Some of the most interesting story ideas can be gleaned from technical research having to do with real life conflict and persons who have demanded to live interesting lives. Although he is correct in that writing is about choice. Deleting tedium and compressing time are well known elements of storytelling that can make a story based on true events a complete work of fiction! I fail to believe that one has to "make it all up" to write great scripts or stories. Then again, I was never a Speilberg fan until Shindler's List and Jurassic Park, and that was only because of elements of SCI-REAL. What 4, four Chocolate Bars!
How to Sell Your Screenplay: The Real Rules of Film & TV by Sautter,256 pgs, 1992. This book is on the American Film Institute's reading list. You should not cross the California State line with the intention of working in screenwriting without first reading the book, so they say. Ok, it does have some good insider information about how things should be written and what meetings about script ideas are like amongst other stuff. Although, I am tired of books where you have to read an entire text to get one good chapter of information YOU NEED to KNOW. 4 German Chocolate Black Forest Cake Bars!
Writing Short Scripts by Phillips.2 chocolate bars, enough written.
Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting by Syd Field, 1982. 2 chocolate bars. Read a few screenwriting bulletin boards or newsgroups and you will find out that different screenwriting books approach the topic of formatting a screenplay differently. This book is sometimes mentioned there. The screenwriting site we like best here at Studio Faux tells you, if you're a smelly mountain hermit who is an incredible writer your minor formatting problems won't be a problem, neither will the smell. We strongly urge content studies over format studies!. This text is considered a classic, but look below because breaking the rules is more fun!
As of 1999 Syd Field has a screenwriting seminar on Video Tape. It sells for about $75. Also, according to Daily Variety his screenwriting Software is hot, hot, hot in Europe. A quick search at Yahoo will help you locate this online. I haven't seen either.
Alternative Scriptwriting: Writing beyond the Rules by Rush and Dancyger, 212 pgs, 1991. This book has one chapter on, for example, what a genre should be, and another on how to stretch in that genre. This book has only 4 highly specialized chocolate bars because I was still hungry for more when I finished the book. Not more of the same. I was hungry for things that really stretched rules, danger, excitement! In case your are completely uncertain of what an alternative script might be, "Bladerunner" would have been considered an alternative script.
4 Pulakis Chocolate Sponge Pieces, melts in your mouth!
Lew Hunter's Screenwriting 434, "The Industry's Premier Teacher Reveals the Secrets of the Successful Screenplay".According to the cover, this UCLA Professor's advanced screenwriting class is "The final word on screenwriting" quoting Richard Donner Director of Lethal Weapon. This text appears to be modeled after his course.
This site doesn't concentrate on the review of screenwriter's materials because there are too many other places to get that information. A few things are worth noting about this "course" in a book.
I've read close to a dozen text about screenwriting, hardly anything, but would not consider any one of them the sole text you should read. This text might be good for beginning screenwriters who are ready for an advanced course. I found advice like "push" the limits if you are writing a spec play and don't consider the budget contrary to other advice in other texts, particularly if you want this screenplay produced. If you are solely using your spec screenplay as a calling card, I am not, it sounds like sound advice to write your best effort despite the cost to produce it. How to liven up particular situations with characters by expanding how you think when you write, turn the situation around 180 degrees for example, is an underlying theme in this book and the best
reason to read this text.
I was not impressed with Mr. Hunter's stereotyped female character in his screenplay.
A full screenplay is in this text and he uses it to set an example in his course.
Examples of other screenplays Mr. Hunter used in this text were not from films I found "models" for female writers wanting strong female characters. Two women who commit suicide on the run is not a sample of a plot with strong female characters. It's unfortunate woman have to be depicted as almost cartoonish (Zena warrior princess) in order to be considered strong female characters. Lew would more than likely kick me out of his class for the rest of what I had to say. Heh, but he said to push the limits because there is most certainly someone to "dull" down your characters. I found the fact that one of his students when told to push the limits put more overt sex in a screenplay a fullfillment of one of Mr. Hunter's fantasies.
Quoting from "The Last of the Independents", "Hunting Season is over...", The Pretenders.
Bring in the next course, DESERT
STORYBOARDING, DICTIONARIES, FILM HISTORY, ACTING
Storyboards
"StoryBoarding for Film, TV and Animation" by John Hart is in publication by Focal Press as of 1999. A pencil and a piece of paper is an affordable tool for any aspiring filmmaker. This textbook is everything that I was looking for three years ago. The oversized text is full of storyboards from films, BUT they are drawn by Mr. Hart himself. It depicts the history of storyboarding.
Mr. Hart gives excellent methods of self-study even for someone who simply wants to make better stick figures.
This analysis of how his own drawings took better shape and form is by far the best part of this text!
His analysis of the storyboards place in making a film is simple and easy to understand. This book is particularly for beginners and self-starters.
The exercises are placed at the end of chapters with useful methods for self-study!
The interviews were extremely weak, as was the Appendix. I would have opted out for more information on how sketches are used in production design, a subject even the American Cinematographer sometimes reviews! Mr. Hart's self-study course in a book gets 4 out of 5 chocolate bars.
HOW TO DRAW SERIES:
It struck me when reading Hart's book that some of his instruction was similar to the How to Draw Series by Walter Foster Publishing. These are oversized books that show the basics of drawing. They can be found at all crafts stores and have titles like Buildings in Pencil, Trees, Cartoon Animation, Film Cartoons. They are solely about learning certain steps in order to draw that one partcular item better so StoryBoards for filmmaking should also be looked at! As of 1999 Focal Press is publishing a Second Edition of an earlier textbook about storyboards.
This site's reviews on TOYZ also has suggestions for storyboard practicing.
The Empire Strikes Back Notebook, Edited by Diana Attias and Lindsay Smith. Complete script and selected storyboards with a few, very few, remarks by Lawrence Kasdan and Irvin Kershner. A very interesting feature, if you can read really small print and especially for persons interested in directing special effects films, are the tiny notes Kershner places under various storyboard frames indicating the shot is to be "on Location", "blue backing" or part of the scene is to be shot in the "Studio". Some storyboard frames contain directions for the number of cameras & their movement!
Michael Collins, Screenplay and Film Diary by Neil Jordon.This is the Director's diary of the shooting of the film in 85 pages and the rest is the screenplay. Jordon describes the use of stuntmen and large crowds in the filming in Ireland. Commenting on shooting car scenes on location Jordon writes: "...Now in the interests of realism, we have to drag the car through real streets on tracking vehicles of various kinds while the director sits up front with headphones and a video monitor and screams action above the screeching engines, and the actors mouth their lines inside...The absurd unreality of it all makes real acting impossible,..." Id. at 69-70See Katz on rigging a car!
DICTIONARY
This is a short list because I have a hard time reading an entire dictionary!
The American Film Industry, A Historical Dictionary by Anthony Slide, 431 pgs., 1990. What it says. It has a brief amount of info under each alphabetical listing. It's an easy read & a quick history, "S" !
1 Chocolate Bar or 2!
Film Finance and Distribution, a dictionary of terms, 1992 by John W. Conesat $24.95 this is not cheap! This attorney/author says he makes his clients read this 566 page book! I personally would return the favor and bill him for my time. The favor would be that if you had read this book to begin with you may not have needed his services. Legal, filmmaking, and distribution terms are intermingled. They're taken from his interaction with industry professionals at seminars listed in six pages of acknowledgments. Mr. Cone's frankness about sometimes brutal business practices of the film industry is demonstrated with his inclusion of such terms as "blacklist","greylist" (applied to age discrimination & writers), & "greed". His descriptions of Studio Departments were in
I will attempt to read this in detail at some later date but for now, after at least looking at every page, it gets a Film Producer's cut and a Fifty 50 Shake Exchange
instant chocolate shake (50% of the profits go to diabetes research)!
CHEAP ALERT
Cheap Alert: Haven Books & Collectibles on Cypress Gardens Boulevard in Winter Haven, Florida recently sold me this book, which is still selling at Barnes & Noble for full price, for $4.00. That was their only copy, it was in perfect condition. This store, which is classified as "used & rare books", has a small but nice section of books on movies and celebrity biographies, and film industry people (like George Lucas); Illustrated Star Trek books; books on tape like star wars; and art books. Unless they are rare books, they even sell new books, their prices are 30-70 percent off the regular price. The books are in good condition. Considering the 4th class mail rates on books in the U.S., I don't know if they have a mail fee, it would be cheaper to buy books here than at full price! They do business by mail.
bASIC cINEMA rEFERENCES FOR
CRASH TEST DUMMIeS!
Crash test dummy links are for anyone who could not get up tomorrow morning and pass a test on the basic "history of" questions. They are adequate reference sources, but since this studio operates in the red they may not be the very best or most expensive reference source out there.
The Story of Cinema: A complete narrative history from the beginnings to the present by David Shipman with a preface by Ingmar Bergman. 1,280 pages of film history by era with the names of key films in bold! A good index and sections about historic international directors (Bergman). Int'l & Illustrated!
The American Film Industryedited by Tino Balio from the University of Wisconsin Press. A sparsely illustrated 500+ page book concentrating on the history of the business with a complete bibliography and index.
Non-Fiction Film, A critical History by Richard Meran Barsam, 300+ pages with an index and a nice appendix of non-fiction films.
bASICmUSICrEFERENCES FORCRASHTEST DUMMIeS!
MISC. TECHNICAL DESIGN
In their July 1997 issue American Cinematographer had a special insert with their Batman and Robin coverage. It was a pull out, 2 page "Lighting Design", like a Scenery Draft for "The Botanical Gardens where Poison Ivy throws a garish bash". To understand all the technical notes and scale I picked up the following workbook from the public library:
Drafting Scenery for Theater, Film and Television by Rich Rose (Associate professor of theater at U.C.L.A.). This is an actual workbook that gives simple directions on how to read or create Perspective Sketches, Elevations, Floor plans and staging plans. It also gives simple exercises & copies of plans actually used in film or theater.
There used to be an interesting Forums Page with a good "Threaded Discussions" started. Recommended: ASC CLUBHOUSE- Cinematographer's Log & Tricks of the Trade. (TOT)
Books about FilmMaking
Independent Filmmaking by L. Lipton. A classic, very technical information. Studio Faux has studies books with technical information about still photography and to move into moving film this is a must. Although the technical stuff has been outdated by computer technology, this information is still useful if you are making your own first no budget film, you do not want to use video, cannot afford computers, or have never worked with a film processing house. As of a few years ago (1994) it wason a west coast University reading list !
Budgets for Film & Video,1990 Revised by Michael Wiese.
This is an easy to understand budget breakdown for different types of film productions from student projects to music video. 4 chocolate bars.
Rick Schimdt's "Feature Filmmaking at Used-Car Prices", the revised edition.It is published by Penguin Books. Several websites recommend this book so I am going into a little more detail in my review of it. My conclusion is that this is book is 1) for beginners and 2) for persons not interested in banging heads with corporate America (My skull is cracked but does that stop me? Ha!). Although the forward contained an excellent interview on what is wrong with commercially motivated film critics, Mr. Schmidt's beginnings as a filmmaker read like a chapter from a book entitled "The boys club---a racquet". If Rick hadn't used his forward to make a big deal of how hard it was for him, money wise, and how he used his contacts, I might have been less hard on the book! Also, I don't believe his strong suit is ideas having gotten his first from True Confessions. That seems a little odd because the forward on criticism attacks shallowness in the media critics and the popular filmmaker's themselves. Well, touché there, huh?
The real meat of this book is that it gives a little information about everything and a fairly detailed and illustrated example of doing post-production the old fashioned way. This makes it a good book for beginners who particularly are interested in the festival market, although I have to warn you even that is changing. For example, as of this year, 1998, Sumner Redstone bragged about the invasion of foreign markets by American big budget feature films because of a massive effort in the foreign markets in building motion picture theaters. The weakness in this book is that he tells you how to leave it up to a good sound technician to record sound and so on and so forth. I consider this a weakness because there is information everywhere on recording on the set and good technical skills need to be honed. Any filmmaker or aspiring filmmaker who wants to learn the technical aspects of filmmaking will want to read this only as an intro and move on to books like theFilm Editing Room Handbook, which is considerably more detailed. In fact, many books about feature film editing contain information about how to cut costs, both creative and practical. Being a scavenger at heart I have found in the 90's many things at prices that are much less than Mr. Schmidt states they were in the 80's? That is done by regularly scanning the going out of business sales, canvassing the streets on garage sale days and not being afraid of garbage can shopping.
Rick finishes the book off with an introduction to new technologies and a comparison of the 16mm vs. video formats for beginners. I must state that this is outdated and offer the following information. Kodak has a booklet entitled "Creating better video with 16mm film" that is a very good intro to that format. This is free through the Kodak corporate office nearest you, dial the Kodak 1-800 line and ask about it. They also have a Video entitled "Feel it on Film". It is a rather cheesy but effective visual promotion for their 16mm film over digital video. It allows you to see the technical difference with your own eyes. This short video is free from Kodak.
1 or 2 scoops of Ben and Jerry's New York Super Fudge Chunk at best. No Bovine Hormone treatment for the cows making their milk. Now they've settled their lawsuit in Illinois they can advertise it on their Ice Cream!
FILMMAKING, INTERACTIVE FILM SCHOOLS
HOW TO MAKE YOUR MOVIE: an interactive film school on CD ROM
Don't miss the trivia on the roll of hand towels in the bathroom!
At about $90 plus shipping a purchaser should carefully consider how useful this will be. Total beginners and beginners especially with desktop editing might benefit greatly from the extra film and sound footage. Anyone past the beginner stage would want to see it for pure amusement. 3 CD Rom's in one cute little package, free 1-800 for tech assistance.
As of this date the Studio Head has been awarded a "Special Diploma" by "How to Make Your Movie:an interactive film school". I only cheated once or twice by not watching the entire student film in its unedited versions. This program was created by Ohio University and Electronic Vision using Macromedia, Quick Time and in league with the "Kodak Worldwide Student Program". The program allows you to wander through 3 floors of an empty film school. Department by department you can read about each step of the filmmaking process, read papers by guest lecturers, do interactive exercises (very few) like match cutting a piece of film from the student movie or making your own sound mix (with limited results). This 3 CD computer program has a great deal of trivia and comic relief, as some reviewers have noted, but it misses many opportunities to build film vocabulary throughout the program but especially in sound.
The resource lists of books that are recommended reading fail to include at least one of the most important resources for beginning filmmakers, in this Studio Head's opinion, Michael Rabiger's textbooks on Directing. This was published in 1998, therefore it missed the 1999 publication of Bob Koster's On Production Budget Book and Tomlinson Holman's Sound book, ok that's an excuse. Yet, this resource list still fails to list books about contracts by Mark Litwak, distribution by John Cones and licensing, period. The program skirts over issues like fund raising, sales and marketing and in that regard may be considered more of a preparation for film school itself than a taste of the "real" world. In our opinion, before you even read about making a motion picture you should read the books by Litwak and particularly by Cones that talk about the problems of making money in the industry. That is if you are at all interested in making money. If you simply want an outline on how to make your first year's school project, this would do. The school "tour" as it is for example in post-production includes two lectures by Editor Walter Murch, one on his "5-layer" rule, a brilliant addition even without the sound clips he probably had at the lecture, as was the short films demonstrating three different types of editing set-ups. Probably the best aspect of this 3 CD-Rom package, as I finished the school section in several sittings, is the addition of sound and film footage on the third CD Rom. Yet, one apparently needs to have some type of desktop editing system to practice with this. Well, I've practiced enough editing so I skipped this entirely.
In opposition to this program, I find that a great deal can be learned by watching films and doing exercises from Rabiger's books on Directing. This program suggests the only way you can learn by watching is to watch Hitchcock films. I find this a very wrong thing to instruct beginners. Some films are good to watch and "breakdown" in notes for entirely different reasons: sound, special effects, editing, dialogue. Not all parts of all films are worth taking this time but quite a bit more can be learned by learning from many small pieces of film than by just aimlessly shooting a mediocre film. This package is solely for beginners with no knowledge of the film process. Since this is the sole interactive film school project reviewed at this website, there isn't really a way to compare it to other similar materials. Since it costs that same as two very expensive books you can personally assess whether the investment was is worth not getting those other two books!
VIDEOS, ACTING,
Classes on Tape, Video
BBC Master Class Series, Acting in Film:
An Actor's Take on Movie Making
60 Minute BBC Master Class with Michael Caine.Video. Michael Rabiger's book on directing recommends this video. Mr. Caine's direction of the actor's in this video is very interesting in that nuances of working in front of the camera, already known, appear to have a refreshingly intimate perspective. Quoting Mr. Caine, Acting for the theater is like surgery with a scalpel, acting for film is like surgery with a laser.
In the States this is a close as you can get to free medical care.
Agents tell it like it is by Joel Asher Studio.This 50 minute video is one of a series. I personally found most of what was in this video could have been learned from a book, except for the insert of "agents at work". Jeannine Cosden's telephone conversation showed me some problems an agent might be confronted with that might help a client be more understanding of their agent. Further, Joel Asher did not ask really controversial questions, I know those questions exist. It appears his next video "Casting Directors Tell it like it is" might have more demonstrative material that I believe is necessary to make watching a video worthwhile. In comparison Mr. Caine is both controversial and demonstrative.
The Actors at Work Series by the Joel Asher Studio. This Video is 50 minutes in length. This is the second of two videos I have seen by the Joel Asher Studio and the better of the two. Most of the videos available as learning tools appear to come in series or sets by particular publishing groups or organizations like AFTRA. The better part of this video is dedicated to cold readings and the call back, how to read with a non-actor. This was interesting from the casting perspective but probably would require much more work for Actors. This website does not cover information for Acting unless it is related to the Directing or Producing process.
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