From Reel to Deal, Part 2

I learned about Film Festivals. This was very interesting I have seen these awards listed on movies such as Sundance and Toronto. But I never knew why. Dov says to only enter film festivals that submit winners to AE. (If AE wants to buy it your lower-budget film can turn out some fairly large profits.) These will help publicize your film even more. There are three reasons to go to a film festival: 1) chance to win awards, 2) buzz and hype, and 3) has three parts including getting discovered, get a distributor, and sell your film. People may call themselves award-winning film makers because they receive an acceptance certificate from a film festival but in fact that could be a lot of people. Dov says that's not enough. What your film should do is win in an elite film festival. He later goes on to explain how deals are made to sell films. For this case, you best have an attorney to help you out because you are a novice. An important lesson is not to ever give away your exact budget costs, no one has the right to that information. Another lesson is not to be seduced by anyone offering anything to good to be true.

From Reel to Deal, Part 1

From Reel to Deal, a couple chapters I read discuss the importance of a script. Simens also offers ways to test it. He tells a lot of things point blank and spares no hurt feelings. Which I think you should do when choosing a career in life. If it’s not for you, it’s not for you. Like, if you can’t write dialogue, it just won’t happen because it is a natural talent. He suggested testing yourself by covering names of characters. The goal was that the dialogue wouldn’t be so dry that you can identify a type of personality to that character. He said you also when you read a script that you should always be reading it fast and easily. Everything should flow nice and smooth. If reading is boring or what is written does not progress the story or serve some form of purpose, than it is not good. If you write a comedy you should be laughing out loud, not just smiling. He keeps saying you should go for great not good. If an agent tells you it’s good but won’t accept it, then it really wasn’t good. You need to rewrite, expect changes to happen to your work. Writers should attend writing workshops and leant the Hollywood writing formula. You need a great idea not a good one to make money. Lots of people have ideas, the ones that package it in the best-selling way make it. Hollywood markets films, they do not make films according to Simens

Hollywood 101 part 2

This gave in depth look on all the people who work together to produce a film. I can better understand why film budgets are so huge. I learned that people are important in film production by monitoring the budget and time sheets carefully. I had no idea that if actors didn't get a break after six hours of work, that there is a huge fine and ADs need to make sure that everyone takes their break to prevent these fines. I know that Christopher Columbus said it was such a struggle to film the first Harry Potter movie because every hour that would have to take a break because child actors according to English can only work for so long without a break. His crew had to work dilligently to make sure that the kids were ready as soon as possible to shoot more footage. I learned that in earlier film history there was no production designer only an art director. I learned more about an editor's final cut. I found it interesting how people use a composer or know musical scores. I do not have a musical note about myself. So, even though I love screenwrting, I have no idea how to accomplish a budget, music, special effects, and I'm hence very glad there are people who do. Types of effects include: computer generated imagery, digital video effects, makeup effects, mechanical, optical, and pyrotechnic.http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4jue-lri5o&annotation_id=annotation_589463&feature=iv

Hollywood 101 part 1

This week I learned about writing a screenplay and hopefully getting noticed by an agent. I saw the two examples: of what to do and what not to do. The section also suggested reading through and seeing what kinds of movies make the most for an idea of what to write about. If one movie of a certain genre succeeds, Hollywood produces a bunch of similiar movies. They used the example of all the teen movies such as Clueless, 10 Things I Hate About You which came out in the 1990s. The writer of Shawshank Redemption wrote specificly requested screenplays until he wrote his breakthrough Shawshank Redemption which gave him the ability to write whatever he wants. I learned you have to be flexible with your screenplay because things will change once a studio and director take it. For agents, you should check the WGA, Wrtiers Guild of America. That will help ensure I get a legitimate agent. I learned that it is best to write queries, proofread them, and they are short and sweet. One of the queries sounded actually desperate. They say it is very importatnt to keep writing as your first job and have a second job to pay the rent. That really motivates me to start writing my ideas out that have been living in my head for so many years. http://http//www.youtube.com/watch?v=pk5xg2GemgA&feature=related

Media Making Part 4

Globalization eliminates choices for people by decreasing diversity. Coke and McDonalds have done this. It’s easy to see what we have doe in restaurant chains in the U.S. by saying we have a variety of restaurants but really most are not authentic. For a homework assignment, my boyfriend had to find an authentic Mexican restaurant. It was not easy. Finally, he found one and the owner had lived most of his life in Mexico. He told us that restaurants like Taco Bell use the same vegetables but prepare their meat quite differently. He said that his business was family owned and he and his sister-in-law were the main chefs. Their radio played Spanish songs in between news spoken in Spanish. A lot of the menu was in Spanish. I think that part of the reason we lose diversity is because people may be afraid to adjust or try new things. You have to step out of your comfort zone and ask questions. So much familiarity to certain companies may be more appealing than a new experience. When you hear or watch Taco Bell ads, you know what to expect because they are identical in menu, appearance. Our visit to an authentic restaurant was a small one. But if everybody really thought about it they really don’t go for authentic Italian, Mexican, or Chinese that often. We live in a fake reality with globalization and this idea of everything being the same. Here is a picture of a Taco Bell taco and an authentic Mexican taco.http://www.insidesocal.com/tomhoffarth/crunchy-tacowebjpeg.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/81/220583510_9d009e2556.jpg

Media Making Part 3

One topic discussed in this section, is sex abuse towards women in the media versus real abuse. It is about whether or not there is a relation. In film, documentaries Dreamworlds 3 and The Merchants of Cool blame media culture either concerts or music videos with attacking women. At one of Bizkit’s concert, four women reported to being raped. Now, I do not like his lyrics. I find them disturbing and hateful. There are extremists and maybe they listen to his music because they are sick and want to do those things. It is very tense and frightening. But, I believe there is a huge difference between going to a concert to listen to music versus attacking someone else. I’ve always felt rape is not really about sex. It is about the pleasure of overpowering someone else. Victoria Secret ads give the idea of women being teasing and wanting to be used if you see it that way. It is a different means than vulgar lyrics but you could argue they have the same purpose. I do not believe the media has that much power to control someone’s conscience. If so wouldn’t have all the men raped women that night. I believe that this world has a fair share of crazies that believe other people exist for their use. Ted Bundy, the Craig’s list killer, Scott Peterson, to name a few. We are not drones, people have reason and free will. Here is a trailer to the Ted bundy movie. Acting out murder and suspense is far different than killing 35 women in real life. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IRJTTmv8CY

Children and Book Bans

Part II of Media Making discusses how popular books can be controversial. Working at a library, I run into this every so often. One book mentioned in this section is the Harry Potter series. Once, a little boy asked me where they were. I showed him and he was so excited when I handed him the first in the series. Then, his mom came down the aisle asked what book he had. Reluctantly he told her. She told him to put it back immediately. She turned to me and said, “We’re Christian. We don’t read those kinds of books.” She turned and left with her son. Well, I happen to be a Christian too. Anyone that has looked at the books knows they are not about really about sacrificing animals or blood or dark arts stuff. Actually, the books have a very Christian message. You can survive great and multiple hardships and your sacrifice can save others. Hello-that’s a Christian message. Not to mention a very human message. Small girls tend to flock to the Disney fairy tales. But every so often a girl asks me for the old tales which have dark content and don’t sugarcoat everything. I see parents open to it and others tell their children they wouldn’t like it. When children are so young and haven’t tasted much, I feel that they should be given the chance to try and pick out what they want. News flash to over protective parents the world is not a Disney fairy tale and sooner or later your child will find that on their own.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVByHK_ZHUE ( A clip showing that how J.K. Rowling's mother's passing influenced the Harry Potter stories and not dark arts)

Media Making Part 1

Oral culture has always been fascinating to me. Dr. Murray asked us in my Fairy Tales in Literature and Film class could we ever possibly trace back to the original story teller of a classic tale. No. It’s like the chicken and the egg when you think about discovering the origins of a story. Written fairy tales came from oral ones. Now, the Grimms recorded tales but altered them adding layers of medieval, religion, and Nordic references. Everything past down and did not come from sole Germans but the Norse, the French, and the Celts. The Grimms did not want to be associated with the French and Italians. It wanted to be purely German. Writers can educate in a way that oral culture cannot compete. When people are literate and attend school, they read history and loose the oral tales of their grandparents. We know for example that Columbus landed in the Bahamas in 1492 and with him brought “civilization”. Writing about this event can be very formal and just show statistics of how many people lost their lives to illness or cruelty. We lose the oral tale that removes the pain the people endured or how their lives were forever changed. Families destroyed. We only get one side of the story. Today, we can get our information from a variety of sources but if so much of the news in controlled by a few interest groups, how does the variety of means matter if they are basically identical. This picture shows a number of media outlets but after viewing documentaries in Visual Communication, I understand that they are owned by a handful of companies.
http://www.tv-streams.info/channels1.jpg

British Hollywood

This chapter used the example of Notting Hill as a hybrid of British and American culture. I thought of others such as Love Actually & The Holiday. In Love Actually, two attractive easy bimbos greet the English characters. They are wearing boots and have an accent like a cowboy. In The Holiday, Cameron Diaz pairs up with Jude Law and Jack Black with Kate Winslet. I admire actresses such as Cate Blanchett that can drop an English accent depending on what fil she is satrring in. Dr. Phipps had an English friend that came here and thought "Arrows Up Ahead" sign meant that there were Indians nearby and you could get shot by an arrow. I thought it was odd to see American stereotyped characters from another country. We're getting a small taste of what our films and TV shows do to ethnic groups everyday. Chinese are masters of martial arts (Karate Kid, Kill Bill), Irish are drunks (The Quiet Man), Arabics are dangerous (Hildalgo), Italians are members of the Mophia (Goodfellas). It seems that each group has their own category and traits. Their race defines what charcter role they will play.
Harry Potter films use English actors that most Americans have seen in other films. Examples: Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, Helena Bodham Carter, Michael Gabon, Robbie Coltrane . . .I think that makes them popular because they speak English, people are willing to watch them. People don't have to read subtitles as long as they can understand the accent. I find that I enjoy British crime mysteries more than ours. Becuase they are less graphic and focus on the mystery. Usually, ours are so easy to solve. You can figure out the whole thing in the first ten minutes. I love how it keeps changing and the facts get more complicated within British mysteries. I posted movie trailers for Notting Hill, Love Actually, and The Holiday, you can see similarities
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLJri7eueXQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0p8Su3bdHc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYCkFTyADJ0

Foreign Films vs. Hollywood

One issue mentioned is taking foregin films and forcing the Hollywood agenda on them. I did not realize before taking my Screenwriting class that companies such as, Miramax distribute films but do not really take part in making them. Such as Blue, White, Red, Life Is Beautiful, Chocolate y Frezca, and more. I didn’t realize how much Life is Beautiful, one of my favorite films, follows the Hollywood tradition. I recognized right away that Blue felt different. This one is a French film. It has a great deal of suffering for the main character. Her husband and daughter were killed in a car crash. She suffers quitely, there are not moments of anger or rage. She continues to retreat away from life and pull herself away from her emotions. One scene that is very painful to watch is an old woman trying to throw a bottle away. As she struggles, the main character Julie just watches. The scene moves very slowly. I felt that it connects more with real life because when we replay the day we had in our heads, we may think I should have done something or ask why didn’t I do something. She eats ice cream fast because it reminds her of her daughter. This film requires the viewer to watch for the little things. Blue, White, and Red are all very real because of the simplicity and they lack the “overdone” quality of Hollywood. It makes sense to me why Blue is first and Red is last after watching all three. Red seems to complete Blue. One example is that in Blue, the hero allows a cat to kill a mother mouse andher babies. In Red, the main girl aids a pregnant dog and helps her take care of her puppies. To me, Red heals the suffering in Blue. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/415Q02HNNDL.jpg

Agents

Covered in this section is Jack Valenti and the MPAA. Not long ago, I would not have known much about the process of how they decide the ratings of films. But after seeing This Film isNot Yet Rated, I know that this group likes to stay in the dark. Now, I know their decision making does not have any rhyme or reason and can limit a film’s potential. I also know that without a rating a film dies in the box office. So the film will probably end up being filtered or altered so the studio can get a better rating. And that the black spot for filmmakers is NC-17.
Another topic discussed is actor’s choice of agents and/or managers. I had read the early MGM from different starlet memoirs owned everything pretty much but their souls. However, MGM did keep them away from a lot of negative press. Judy Garland’s mother was basically her agent. Her mother wanted her to be a star and go above and beyond. So she would often let her fall prey to the studio because Judy was terrified of thought of disappointing her mother. The studio owners kept her for a long time imprisoned with a young girl and a virgin appeal. Everyone for the most part of Wizard of Oz was terribly uncomfortable in their costumes. Garland had to wear a very tight wrapping cloth so it would not appear that she had breasts. Another issue on the set was the scene in which she had a slap the Lion for frightening Toto. They kept shooting the scene over and over because instead of slapping him, she would laugh hysterically. She said she couldn’t bear the thought of hitting him. Then the director had enough and went across the set, slapped her hard in the face, and told her in one or more words that’s how you do it. When she came back from a brief timeout, she slapped the Lion perfectly. Actors and actresses used to be so owned by the studios. It is scary and not the rosy picture you’d associate with a classic film. Or that this role crippled her in a sense because studios did not want her to grow up or marry in real life. The beloved song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlH68k832Ew

3rd Week's Reading

One topic discussed in this section is the tactic of trying to sell films through soundtracks. Music videos and getting audiences hooked on some of the songs to encouraged them to go to the theatres. Examples of successful films included American Graffiti, Saturday Night Fever, and Flashdance. I think that also older past songs can pump up the audience with enthusiasm. Two movies I saw in theaters this past year did this. Yes, Man uses Journey’s song “Separate Ways”. They played the very beginning of the song as Jim Carey’s ringtone but he keeps ignoring the call. However the audience knew what song it was because it is so well known. It also adds humor that this would be the song for such a dull character. Then at the end to get back his girl, his character goes back with that song playing in the background. Then I saw The Hangover and one of the most hilarious scenes was when they sing to Phil Collins “Don’t Lose My Number.” Everyone in the packed theater lost it and my boyfriend was whispering to me what is that song. I could barely answer because I know it so well. My mom is a die-hard Phil Collins fan and she played this song all the time she was pregnant with me. Before I was born I was hooked to his music.

There has been a noted decrease in the amount of sales for soundtracks or people may buy them but not see the film. In the 1960’s and 1970’s soundtracks sold themselves. I think here in the U.S. we are no longer the best target market for soundtracks anymore. It coincides with that we are no longer MTV’s primary target audience anymore. It would be cool to see the next movie and music trend. Maybe some new technology will bring back the love of both soundtracks and films.

“Separate Ways” used in Yes, Man
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_y_nkA54YUQ

"Studio System"Chapter

I was drawn to the first chapter “The Studio System” discussing how in the 1950s to the1960s the trend was to create an epic biblical type of film. Ben-Hur won 11 Oscars and that was not matched until 1997 with Titanic. The Robe and one of my ultimate favorites, Spartacus, was born from this fad. I read in a film book that a must-see was Cleopatra. I saw it and I thought wow, people actually could possibly die of boredom. It was four hours long. In all seriousness, there was tremendous work to bring about the set, the costumes; the three hundred extras, and more to make the film look so brilliant. A huge expense and amount of work. I knew before reading this section that the movie was a flop at that time. Possibly, the only reason it is still remembered because at the time and during its production was a Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie thing. Elizabeth Taylor was married to her fourth husband, Eddie Fisher, and began her ultimate romance with actor and player Richard Burton (who was also married). Their romance was very public and they were not ashamed of it. Later in her life, Elizabeth Taylor apologized for the people it may have hurt but she knew they had to be together. The famous scene when she is dressed in gold coming into Rome with her young son for the first time is an important scene. Elizabeth Taylor received many threats because of her affair not just people calling her a whore but threatening to kill her. She was terrified to do that scene. There would be no bodyguards and she would be an easy target for an assassin. You can’t hear it but the extras were saying “Kisses, Kisses” in Italian (film was shot in Italy.) So after the scene was done she thanked them all for their kindness and acceptance.
Late 1960s to 1970s, we see this new movement attracting a mainstream young audience with Jaws, the Exorcist, Star Wars. Not the traditional epic but still well known today. They changed the course of film from fewer epic movies to many cult classics in a sense. Jaws grossed over two million according to the text. Jaws was a major breakthrough and if you say it today, people know exactly what you’re talking about. Same with Shining crowned as one of the scariest movies of all time. You know you are a success if decades later people model films or reference to yours. Ted, these clips are especially for you!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92yHyxeju1U
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gf7h6o3I8yw