The first episode focuses on his youth, upbringing, the state of the (and his) world from the forties to the eighties and the run up to his death. This episode can be seen (at least at the moment) on youtube:
parts 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5

The second episode focuses on the assassination, the people and organisations who might have been involved, and attempts to uncover new evidence. Watch the live stream of Al Jazeera on Friday the 30th of July 20:00 UEA / 19:00 NL / 18:00 UK (Java required). Check out this episode on Youtube:
parts 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5

The industry is clearly still in a period of transition. Exhibitors are gradually upgrading and installing digital projectors (which are required for 3d screenings), while the major US studios have fully embraced 3d tent pole blockbuster films purely because of the extra revenue 3d generates, especially with the cash cow of DVD sales rapidly declining at the same time. Katzenberg talks in Variety about the biz being at 3D crossroads

“… the revenue (today) from a successful 3D release net to the studios is greater than the erosion in the DVD market over the last two years.”

This 3d gold rush leads to occasional clashes where there’s either too few 3d screens for major releases (Avatar could have easily launched on more 3d screens) or too many 3d films coming out in a short time span.

All of this has led to a new trend: “post-converting” films to 3d. This means a film is entirely conceived and shot the traditional 2d way, and then converted to 3d in the post production stages. This is far from trivial or cheap for that matter (up to $100.000 per converted minute of the film), but worth the extra potential box office revenue. Some of these 2d-to-3d conversions were rushed and under a lot of time pressure, leading to harsh criticism in the case of Clash of the Titans on the quality of the resulting “3d” film.

Obviously this process will continue to be used in the coming years by productions who do not have the means, knowledge or patience to create the film in 3d from conception to release – and by lazy cash-grabbing Hollywood studios of course…

Slate describes this process in an article called How do you convert a flat movie into 3-D? A more in-depth description can be found here: In-Three on the Workflow Behind 3D Conversions.

Not everyone is sold on 3d though. One of its biggest critics is “old man” Roger Ebert (who has been reviewing films for the past forty-odd years or so). He outlines his thoughts in a Newsweek article Why I hate 3-D (and you should too).

I would recommend that he’d watch Toy Story 3 in 3D. The film is a great example of the principle of “story telling first”, and of constrained use of 3D. The Guardian has a video online that shows how they determine the “3d-ness” within a scene. More word from Pixar’s stereographer on CNET.

Worth a separate post is the rest of the industry jumping on the 3d bandwagon. 3D TV’s were the hottest trend at this year’s CES, broadcasters are experimenting with 3d live events such as football and rugby here in the UK. The 2010 World Cup football in South Africa was shot and broadcast in 3d. Sky TV have announced a dedicated 3d channel, and interestingly, they have released the technical specifications for 3d content.

Haven’t had enough of 3d? Go over to 3dcinecast for in-depth articles and the latest news on 3D.

Part of all the festivities is a competition to create a really short film inspired by one of the operas. This year it is Bizet’s Carmen. The form can be really free, it’s really up to the maker to be creative, and that’s a brief which gave me the excuse to sink my teeth into something new; I decided to create an animated short that tries to convey the meaning of Carmen by using key text and graphics whizzing by. In order to realize this silly animated promo I taught myself the basics of After Effects, resulting in the following:

(click on the youtube logo to see the promo in glorious 1080p HD!)

The good news is that my short will be shown on the big screen at Trafalgar Square and other locations prior to the start of the opera!

B stands for Big Business
A company called The Asylum specializes in creating and selling B-movies. Forget about “art” or “originality”, their philosophy is follow the market: “The real definition of an Asylum movie is a movie that has already been sold before we ever make it“. Wired has more on them in an article called Now Playing: Cheap-and-Schlocky Blockbuster Ripoffs. Asylum’s latest success: scoring 2.2 million viewers for the premiere of Mega Piranha (trailer) on SyFy channel in the USA.

Doc distro
With the film making and distribution landscape changing rapidly, everyone is searching for answers and success stories. IndieWIRE writes about six case studies of distributing feature length documentaries.

Directing us
An older gem that I recently discovered is an essay by David Bordwell on staging in a long continuous shot. In Hands and faces across the table he says: “One task facing any director is to direct—not only actors but us. The filmmaker must direct our attention to what’s important for responding to the drama at any moment.” Bordwell notices a “lost art” of having the action develop in the scene and within the frame instead of the currently established film grammar of rapid cuts back and forth. Fortunately a film like P.T. Anderson‘s There will be blood shows fine examples of such continuous shots.

First of all I didn’t think I would be able to attend this year’s edition due to work commitments. Only a few days before the festival started I knew for sure that this suddenly would be possible after all. Before that moment I had deliberately chosen not to look at the films in detail – why rub salt in the wounds by exploring what films I would miss? So I found myself at the festival watching a bunch of films which all were kind of an unexpected treat to begin with. I hardly had any expectations because I read through their descriptions once or twice, ordered the tickets (thanks H.!), somehow managed to dodge the travel chaos due to the volcanic ashes and started watching the films.

Secondly I made a conscious choice not to try to watch every single film of the festival “just because I could”. After seeing a record 52 films at last year’s edition, I pondered whether my overall impression of the festival and the films would be better if I would try to identify and avoid the stinkers in advance. As often said before, one of the reasons why I am not a fan of monthly cinema passes (subscriptions) is that I think it leads one to see more mediocre films. Choosing to watch films more selectively hopefully leads to more awareness and attention and a more positive impression. This lead me to select about two thirds of this year’s festival slate, 33 films out of 50 or so.

The return to the Kriterion cinema turned out to be a successful one. Compared to the last edition one decade ago there were three screens now instead of the two, and the bar area has been enlarged considerably too. All the action (except the Night of Terror) took place in this one location that was all about the festival, with posters adorning all the walls, DVD’s and T-shirts on sale, and Mr. Horror spinning tunes in the evening. The crowds were sparse and low-key in the early afternoon hours, gearing up in the late afternoon, leading to a packed entrance, hallway and staircase in the evening, but never turning into revolting crowds and chaos. My compliments go out to the festival organisation and volunteers who were always on the ball, and who for instance swapped screening rooms and redirected the audience when there was a bigger demand than initially expected.

My favorite films of imagine: the 26th Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival

Which of the films stood out and which are the ones that I will remember and talk about long after the festival is over?

Pontypool
Imagine the War of the worlds radio play but then told from the perspective of the radio station, and with some sort of zombie virus going round instead of Martians invading the Earth. Not very cinematic? Perhaps, but true suspense is often built by showing less instead of more. This premise leads to all sorts of interesting musings on what the films is really about, such as whether the events that seem to take place outside are actually happening or are part of a hoax, or perhaps that the film is not a suspenseful thriller but in fact a satire on the role of media, half-truths, and the viral nature of hear-say, gossip and lies. This process of figuring the film out kept me at the edge of my seat, and although the film couldn’t really live up to those (by then elevated) expectations it was one of the more surprising films I have seen this festival.

Oblivion Island: Haruka and the magic mirror
What if world’s largest Lost & Found were to be a giant other-dimensional island full of these items? And what if the Japanese Pixar would animate this tale vaguely resembling The Borrowers? Add a couple of loveable characters, gorgeous set design, suitable music – the works. All this attention to detail leads to an entertaining fairy tale that appeals to all ages.

Best Worst Movie
B-movies rule! This documentary succeeds in showing how a film that got made twenty years ago initially bombed, was forgotten, eventually was rediscovered by a group of B-movie lovers and slowly developed a cult following, leading to newfound success and popularity. Best Worst Movie specifically tells the story of Trolls 2 (1990) and tracks down the key cast and crew members. They reminisce, re-enact and reflect on what the impact of the film on their lives was back then, and what they think of the present cult status of Troll 2.
This documentary has too many anecdotes that are hard to believe but insanely funny and true, ranging from the lead actor who is a dentist in real life in small town USA and still tells everyone about his “acting career” to the director who genuinely does not understand why the audience is laughing continuously and at “inappropriate moments”. The makers never mock the film’s fans or the cast or crew for that matter though. Apart from a great number of funny moments Best Worst Movie also shows sad, touching and outright painful glimpses into the lives of people who were involved in Troll 2. But the tears I had in my eyes at one point were of sheer laughter!

The House of the Devil
One of the thematic programmes of this year’s festival was Retro-magic, featuring new films that are inspired by and/or are homages to cinema of days past. Black Dynamite, a blaxploitation spoof, was one of them, as was The House of the Devil, an eighties style slasher with a babysitter all alone (or is she….??) in a house on the countryside. Titles, music, costumes, props, lighting, editing, even though this film came out in 2009 everything is indistinguishable from how it would have been in the eighties. As a fan of old school horror I quite enjoyed this film. In a way nothing special, but at the same time this film is a perfect counter-example to show what horror and suspense really is/was about (and why the torture porn craze of the past few years did the genre more damage than good).

The Life and Death of a Porno Gang
The film that was most controversial and most difficult to digest, chronicling the adventures of a bunch of outcasts in Serbia who form a sexually explicit theatre group, hit the road as a travelling circus troupe and spiral downwards in a world of sex, violence, disappearing morals and exploitation. It screened as part of the Eastern Promises programme, highlighting recent films from Eastern Europe that we rarely get to see in the West.
This raw and in-your-face documentary style road movie provokes but clearly also comments on roles like judge, observer, perpetrator, executioner and victim. It also asks questions about double standards when it comes to exploiting, ignoring and condemning a situation – the porno gang in this film in particular, but obviously echoing the Balkan War and the role of the Western world. Not a gem of a film but definitely memorable.

Tears for sale
Another Serbian film from the Eastern Promises selection, this time a fairytale set after the first World War. It tells the story of an isolated village where all but one man has died and plenty of pretty women struggle to survive – and to meet their needs. Two of them are sent out to find and bring new men, leading to plenty of conflict and trouble, not in the last place because they are none other than the Man of Steel and the King of the Charleston…
Beautifully lensed with moody music forming a good companion piece. Lots of humour, visual effects enhancing instead of distracting, in other words: a very entertaining parable!

Honorary mention: the winner of the Silver Scream (Audience) Award Mary and Max. I had seen this film before the festival so I skipped it this time around. I was glad to see that it was part of this year’s festival selection and happy to see Mary and Max do so well, although it would not have made it to my favorite five films of the festival.

My favorite short films of imagine: the 26th Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival

Regular part of the festival are the European Fantastic Shorts. Always worth checking out, not only because of the diversity but also because of the above average quality of the selection. My favorites:

Guliver – Croatian animated philosophical Gaia-like fable. Watch the trailer.

Milovan Circus – Belgian claymation, great visual story telling, one of the few shorts that really had a heart. Watch it online.

Fard – Good example of a short that stands on itself but also gives you a glimpse of a bigger universe/story. French innovative mix of animation and live-action. Watch it online.

Pivot – Dutch low-poly count animation with a circular narrative. Reminded me of the 1991 video game Out of this world. Watch it online.

Genius Party Beyond: Dimension Bomb – Japanese trippy mix of an extended animation showreel and a Lynchian mindfuck. Bonus points for using Juno Reactor music Keep an eye out for future work of this Jigen Bakudan.
Watch it online: part A & B.

Honorary mentions go out to E.T.A. (watch online) and Logorama (watch online). I’ve seen them both several times before but was glad to see them included!

And finally…

The 26th edition feels like a good one. It honours all that I love about the festival: its medium size (15.000 visitors), a good mix of mainstream and off-beat programming of the fantastic film genres, a chilled out atmosphere, a minimum amount of intrusive advertising and sponsoring, attending guests and special events, watching and discussing the films with my good friends – and of course the sunny weather

This year stands out because it signalled the return of a very broad selection (compared to last year’s overkill of blood and gore) which shows how rich the fantastic cinema is. For me personally it also stands out because I never really experienced a blow to the head or a deafening silence while leaving the cinema out of shock, awe or amazement of what I had just seen. Compare this to last year where two of the films reached my Best films 2009 list: The Clone Returns Home and Martyrs.

Narrowing down my festival selection to about two-thirds of what was on offer turned out to be the right choice. I think I succeeded in avoiding some lousy films, and appreciate the ones that I did see more, while still maintaining the festival vibe. Hope to experience it all over again next year!

This spectrum of factors has led to postponing two of the projects that were supposed to kick off in March and April. Annoying because I was excited about the prospect of getting them up and running, and because it took a while before it became clear that the timelines would be significantly different than initially planned.

I’ve been trying to make good use of the time spent in limbo, by trying to revive and finish I/O recontextualized, by conceiving a new short sci-fi film and by some studying. But to be honest I would have preferred to be on the prowl instead of debating what season it is….

I’ve worked as a camera and sound assistant on a (non)corporate video for the NHS, shooting a series of testimonials and short videos based on actual case studies that have to do with the intersection of HIV/AIDS and high risk groups / ethnic minorities.
It is one of the best projects I’ve had the pleasure to work on in the last few months, because it deals with a topic that matters, working with two film mates that I trust and whose company I enjoy, with lovely and committed NHS staff to support us, and with fascinating lunch and dinner conversations to top it all off.

I also helped out on a short film by other LFA graduates. They were selected in the first round of a short film competition and received some money and a small amount of time to create a new short for the next round.

Next week I am working as 1st AD on another short film, about superheroes with useless superpowers The director will pitch this idea as a tv series to the BBC, and the short film will be shown as an example of the characters and their universe. Everyone involved of course hopes that both the film and the pitch will turn out well and will lead to new opportunities. That aside, it is a well-oiled production, making me look forward to what will hopefully be a smooth shoot.

At the same time I am about to produce a handful of tv documentary episodes to be shot in the second half of March. This mainly involves organizing and accompanying the shoot so that the (foreign) tv anchor and director can fly into London and do several interviews with “famous guests”. Target audience are viewers in the Middle East.

As if that is not enough, I am exploring the offer to produce another documentary, about a recent controversial topic (can’t be more specific for the moment) targeted towards the English and American market. It looks like a big chunk of potential work for me. In the coming days we will have to figure out what the production aspects will entail, and if that promises to be something that I believe I can and want to do.

Oh and then there is still this other documentary that I hope to be involved in on a creative level… Exciting times!

• Write and direct two decent short films
• Work on ideas for feature films, both my own screenplays and developing others
• Plot a strategy towards making the jump from shorts to features
• Develop a more visual style when it comes to composition and camera work. Don’t think along the lines of flashy music videos, but masters like Kubrick, Tarkovsky and to a lesser extent Michael Mann.
• Keep promoting “Rule 2“, this year American festivals in particular

Specific goals and focus for the start of this year:

• Finish (post-production of) I/O recontextualized by early February and try to get it screened for the BSC in the Pinewood Studios.
• Fully write my sci-fi/philo-fi/AI short (currently only an outline and lots of notes) and then start preproduction. Shoot date late February..?
• Chase freelance production related jobs (1st AD, production assistant, runner)
• Further develop our idea for iFeatures? We received word last week that our feature film proposal did not make it through to the next round. Pity! But at least this means I have clarity when it comes to how that will (not) impact my year. The three of us will get together soon to talk about alternative options for our proposal.
• Explore an opportunity to help shape and develop a new documentary. Can’t/don’t want to tell too much about it at the moment since it is still early days, but in the coming weeks I will be reviewing some preliminary footage, do additional research and give my view on what could potentially become a documentary.

• Before Sunrise
• Before Sunset
• Nine
• Shadow Company
• The Road
• Un Prophète
• Up in the air
• Sketches of Frank Gehry
• The Final Destination
• Sherlock Holmes
• Drag Me To Hell
• Live Free or Die Hard
• Tropic Thunder
• The Invention of Lying
• Logorama (short)
• The Man Who Skied Down Everest
• Waking Life
• The Lovely Bones
• Micmacs à tire-larigot
• Public Enemies
• La Dame Y La Muerta (The Lady and the Reaper)   (watch short)
• Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty (watch short)
• French Roast (watch short)
• Wallace and Gromit in ‘A matter of loaf and death’ (short)
• Miracle Fish (short)
• Kung Fu Hustle
• Star Trek
• Mary and Max
• The Hurt Locker
• Jennifer’s Body
• The Princess and the Frog
• Vicky Christina Barcelona
• In the name of the father
• Crazy Heart
• Green Zone
• Shutter Island
• Cold Souls
• Ponyo on the cliff by the sea
• The Informant!
• Exit Through The Gift Shop
• Red Cliff: Part I & II
• Daybreakers
• Quantum of Solace
• imagine: the 26th Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival (33 features, 22 shorts)
  • …
  • …
  • …
• Magnolia
• The Dark Knight
• The Impostor
• Ubiytsy (aka The Killers)
• Angels in America
• A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)
• Round about five (short – watch online)
• Robin Hood
• Unthinkable
• Part of the weekend never dies
• Edmond
• The Insider
• Control
• Food Inc.
• The Hangover
• (500) Days of Summer
• Inception
• Day & Night (short)
• Toy Story 3
• Inception
• Kan Door Huid Heen
• 35 Shots of Rum
• Predators
• Splice
• 50 First Dates
• The Goonies
• Jumanji
• The Diving Bell and The Butterfly (Le Scaphandre et le papillon)
• The Matrix
• The Matrix: Reloaded (Hacked Edition)
• The Matrix: Revolutions (Hacked Edition)
• Between Bears (short)   (watch online)
• 7:35 de la manana (short)   (watch online)
• Young @ Heart
• Man On Wire
• Wonder Boys
• 28 Days Later
• 28 Weeks Later

Last updated: Wed September 1st, 2010