Today is my shoot day. That splash of panic has washed over me. Now I’m but resolve and a few random to-do’s (I sure hope Rite Aid sells a 1GB CF card).
24 shots in one day, most of them involving stop-motion animation. This will be a long day.
Wish me luck.
Tomorrow: on my way to Comic-Con
A quick what-I’ve-been-up-to-and-will-be-up-to:
And so ends today’s update. FYI, I’ll try to blog more consistently from Comic-Con. Over and out.
Yesterday I pulled out the old Oxygen 8, hooked it up to GarageBand and pounded out a tune, more of a beat, actually. I also shot some photographic research and doodled a few storyboards (first graders can draw better than me but my boards get the job done). Later today I gotta take care of a legality but then it’s dressing the set and a mock runthrough.
This idea is coming together.
Holy, I think I’m doing this.
So this is where I come to you, the reader. There are two things I’m gonna need.
And for an example of my only serious attempt at stop-motion animation, here ya go.
Volunteers?
Today was all about (re)writing the script and developing the concept. I think I have it locked so it’s on to research and storyboards.
Oh, but there’s one big element, something I’m gonna need help with, something I can’t do on my own, and this is the bit of reference I can share without giving away too much.
(gulp)
Pardon me for a second…
FFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCKKK!!!!!!!!!
…okay, where was I? Oh, right, everyone’s favorite web retailer, you know, these guys:
They’re holding a create-your-own-commercial contest and the deadline was just extended to July 31.
And I happen to have an idea that I’m excited about and I’m gonna hate myself if I don’t give it a shot even though that only gives me 17 days and I’m out of town for 4 of those days and if that weren’t hard enough most of my idea involves animation and…
FFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCKKK!!!!!!!!!
I want to do this. First things first, I need to pound out a script and storyboards tonight.
BTW, expect a call from me in the near future begging for your help.
Related to an earlier post, it looks like Philips Electronics is the first to say “16:9 is great but what about Cinemascope?” Say hello to the first 21:9 television and the bitchin’ commercial that goes with it.
(And if you’re interested in how they did it, check this out)
I guess that’s the way it was meant to be seen.
(Yo, Philips, let’s do another spot!)
Recently FIND held another lecture in their “Shop Talk” series, this time inviting director Chris Milk to speak about working in, and breaking into, the commercial and music video world.
First, it should be noted that Chris moved backwards through these industries. He first landed in the corporate jungle of Madison Avenue as a commercial director before venturing into the wild west of music videos (why do most directors start with music videos? Because it’s easier to convince a bunch of addle headed musicians that you should direct the video for their third single than it is to convince Murray the used car lot owner to fork over a big chunk of his advertising budget for you to helm his late-night local television spot).
For reference, here’s a commercial by Chris (a spec ad, I suspect):
And here’s his video for “Who’s Gonna Save My Soul” by Gnarls Barkley:
Second, he confirmed everyone’s fears – as the country goes, so do these industries. We all know the music industry has gone to hell. Gone are the days of million dollar music videos. Today, a major band is lucky to get a low six-figure budget for their first single; I know someone that was offered a $10k budget for an effects heavy third single by an artist that’s huge (I mean HUGE) on KROQ. Chris seems to think that the ideal newcomer will not only be able to shoot great footage but will also have the postproduction expertise to make $5k look like $50k.
Unfortunately commercials, once seen as the safe haven for highly paid helmers, are also seeing their budgets slashed. These days advertising executives are looking for young talent to create viral campaigns. FYI, viral should be defined as “we won’t give you any money so you have to scrounge up the equipment yourself and we want it done in a week.” Chris mentioned that there’s really only one industry that still spends lavish amounts on their commercials — the pharmaceutical industry. Still not deterred? According to Chris there’s one last thing you gotta do: brand yourself. Are you the funny, shaky-cam guy whose work reminds folks of THE OFFICE or are you the guy that can shoot table-top so well that you’ll make all the lactose intolerant Americans rush to their phones, credit cards in hand, when they see your ad for Domino’s new extra cheesy family pizza? Wanna be both? No can do. Production companies are looking for consistency and reliability they can pitch to ad agencies. Want to stretch your creativity? That’s what music videos are for.
Personally, I’ve always been interested in music videos and commercials. Years ago I pitched like crazy on a rock video but in the end felt like I got screwed by the talent so I gave it up (lesson learned: getting screwed over isn’t personal, it’s strictly business).
I also had a brush with the commercial industry after winning awards for this, a Philips Electronics spec ad/PSA hybrid:
At one point I had a Japanese company contacting me, asking me to pitch some ideas for their Pepsi-man campaign. I sent in a few ideas but never heard from them again (lesson learned: while domestic ad agencies might ask a handful of directors to pitch on their boards, foreign companies will invite dozens, if not more, to submit their take).
I was also told that I should shoot a Coke spec ad. The catch: I’d have to pay for it out my own pocket. Yikes! Not only was spending $30k (I kid you not) of my own money on a spec ad just not a possibility for me, it just felt wrong. I thought if I had $30k I should make something personal, not a commercial for a ridiculously wealthy multinational.
But there I go again talking about “personal” when I should know that it’s strictly business.
So what now? I’d love to direct a music video and/or commercial. Doing a very low-budget spec ad or video isn’t out of the question but first I think I need to build up my After Effects skills.
When you’re a first year graduate film student at UCLA, you make 2 film. The first is either called “the 2-minute film” or the “410 Exercise”. Here’s mine.
occupied from Tony Arias on Vimeo.
The second film is the “6-minute” or the “410 Project”.
The Latin Jew from Tony Arias on Vimeo.
Feel free to leave a comment.
Joe Swanberg, poster child for the Mumblecore movement, has accomplished what many of us dream. Not only has he made 5 features but he’s also developed a successful (it’s in its 3rd season), scripted (sort-of), dramatic webseries for adults (that isn’t pornography).
I’m green with envy.
*WARNING: This video features nudity and a lot of groping.
Recently, a friend sent me this PSA.
Holy! The terror and horror evoked… it’s like a prelude to LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT.
That got me thinking about a work safety post I put up a few months ago. I recounted a work related injury I suffered before showcasing some amazing Canadian PSAs; here are two of my favorite.
Suddenly I was trying to remember the first time I saw this David Fincher directed PSA.
And that got me thinking. As the torture porn genre wanes we should enlist those directors into the community service sector. Could you imagine Rob Zombie directing a PSA on gun safety?
Speaking of which, my most successful short film was a commercial/PSA hybrid for The Film Foundation, a branch of the DGA. Sure, it’s not horror but when people ask me “what’s it about” I always say “ballerinas and chain saws.” Actually, off that short I was asked to pitch on a DHS PSA. It was a horror comedy about a natural disaster/radiological/biological attack on Hollywood.
Trust me, it was funny.
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