Tag Archives: Journal Entries

Baraka Film Recommendation

 

OK, well, I already wrote this post but while adding pictures it somehow deleted all my text. Fun times. So here’s a general recap of what I said.

I should also mention that my site’s header image is a still from Baraka. It is definitely one of the if not the most influential documentary film I think I have watched.

Baraka is a non-narrative documentary film released in 1992. It was directed by Ron Fricke. The film was produced using Panavision’s older 70mm Todd-AO format cameras, one of the first movies to use this equipment in about twenty years. It was shot in 23 different countries including the US, France, Indonesia, Cambodia, Egypt, Brazil, Turkey…. the list goes on. There is no direct dialogue from either the filmmakers nor the people on screen, and the film works mostly with soundscapes versus actual produced music. That’s just a short overview of the film and what it offers.

 

 

There’s not much I can say about Baraka other than you should watch it immediately. Granted, if you need dialogue, action and a distinct plot line to fully enjoy a cinematic experience, this is definitely not a movie for you. This film will provide a visually and sonically pleasing experience for anyone willing to take it as such. There is a narrative exposed by the end of the film, however it is built on the juxtaposition of images. By the end you realize this is a commentary on man’s interactions with the Earth and mother nature, but the journey there is so stunning that it really does make you forget what you’re watching. It’s a surreal experience. This is definitely one of the initial factors that sparked my interest in cinematography — for good reason. The camera work is impeccable. The movements are beautiful and smooth, the timelapses are otherwordly (They actually had to modify the 70mm cameras to create these timelapses). The focal point and composition are always perfect. The aerial shots are epic and the actions depicted on screen carry an emotional weight I have yet to experience again.

 

 

So, this is the second time I’ll end this and hopefully add some cool pictures… but seriously if you have the time, watch this movie. The remastered DVD release has been described as “arguably the highest-quality DVD that’s ever been made” and Roger Ebert once said that the Blu-ray release was “the finest video disc I have ever viewed or ever imagined.” Having seen both, I would full-heartedly agree.

 

 

 

 

One of the official trailers for Baraka.

Baraka Film Recommendation

 

OK, well, I already wrote this post but while adding pictures it somehow deleted all my text. Fun times. So here’s a general recap of what I said.

I should also mention that my site’s header image is a still from Baraka. It is definitely one of the if not the most influential documentary film I think I have watched.

Baraka is a non-narrative documentary film released in 1992. It was directed by Ron Fricke. The film was produced using Panavision’s older 70mm Todd-AO format cameras, one of the first movies to use this equipment in about twenty years. It was shot in 23 different countries including the US, France, Indonesia, Cambodia, Egypt, Brazil, Turkey…. the list goes on. There is no direct dialogue from either the filmmakers nor the people on screen, and the film works mostly with soundscapes versus actual produced music. That’s just a short overview of the film and what it offers.

 

 

There’s not much I can say about Baraka other than you should watch it immediately. Granted, if you need dialogue, action and a distinct plot line to fully enjoy a cinematic experience, this is definitely not a movie for you. This film will provide a visually and sonically pleasing experience for anyone willing to take it as such. There is a narrative exposed by the end of the film, however it is built on the juxtaposition of images. By the end you realize this is a commentary on man’s interactions with the Earth and mother nature, but the journey there is so stunning that it really does make you forget what you’re watching. It’s a surreal experience. This is definitely one of the initial factors that sparked my interest in cinematography — for good reason. The camera work is impeccable. The movements are beautiful and smooth, the timelapses are otherwordly (They actually had to modify the 70mm cameras to create these timelapses). The focal point and composition are always perfect. The aerial shots are epic and the actions depicted on screen carry an emotional weight I have yet to experience again.

 

 

So, this is the second time I’ll end this and hopefully add some cool pictures… but seriously if you have the time, watch this movie. The remastered DVD release has been described as “arguably the highest-quality DVD that’s ever been made” and Roger Ebert once said that the Blu-ray release was “the finest video disc I have ever viewed or ever imagined.” Having seen both, I would full-heartedly agree.

 

 

 

 

One of the official trailers for Baraka.

Week 3: Starting The Construction Process

This week was exciting because I was able to start constructing some of the furniture for my miniature bedroom. During our first critique I was able to get some very helpful suggestions on my construction process and decided that my original plan of starting with the actual structure might make things more difficult. I want to be sure of my scale before I begin with the room so I decided it was best to begin with my furniture, I spent a good part of the week attempting to create a bed frame from a piece of basswood, however I struggled with this because I have no prior furniture designing skills, after countless hours of sanding and shaping I decided it might be better to find a set already sized but not yet put together. I was able to find a build your own dollhouse funiuture set and started the assembling process.

Once I had my pieces, and the construction idea together I wanted to see what was the best way to design these items. I assembled some and began painting while others I kept as pieces and painted separately. I wanted to see which made the best presentation, in the end I think that painting the pieces before construction produced the best results.

According to my book, it is important for the feng shui of the room to pick colors that are pleasing and uplifting. I chose to pick a very light pink, white and calming green.

 

It was also important to my process that I choose furniture that was light in color because darker woods can cause a bad flow of chi. I thought about the pieces of furniture that would be in my room based on the knowledge I acquired from reading the bedroom chapter of my Feng Shui and Health: The Anatomy of a Home book where she discusses the importance of keeping your work space separate from your sleeping space. It was discussed in the book that it is also important to make your room as comfortable as possible so I wanted to begin making a mattress and pillows for my bed. This was the first time I have ever used a sewing machine so I was excited. It took me quite a while and a few YouTube videos

Click here to view the embedded video.

to understand how to load and use my sewing machine. I started with pillows because they were going to be simple square patterns. Then I was able to move on to bigger items like my mattress……Finally I began decorating my furniture in a fun style that I have enjoyed in my own home called shabby chic, I wanted the room to be girly and fun with lots of jewels and fabrics. This decision was based on the information acquired from my book, the author says that one key factor of good feng shui is to decorate with a style that is uplifting to yourself. If you don’t enjoy walking into your room then you wont enjoy sleeping there.

DIY Film Equipment

A big part of my project has to be dedicated to acquiring equipment essential to give my film the more “professional” look I’ve always wanted. This includes camera tracks, dollies and a decent tripod. My past films have been made primarily with a $30 tripod from Target that wasn’t mine… while I am pleased with most of the results I got, there is no doubt in my mind that a nice tripod or even access to other equipment would help make my visions easier to execute and give me a little more freedom.

 

I thought for a long while about the types of shots I wanted to be in this film — zooming vs. physically moving, tracking vs. panning, closeups vs. full-frame landscape shots, dolly movements vs. stationary placement… everything really came down to my desire for shots with smooth movements over anything else. I love zoom shots but it often doesn’t come across on video effectively as well as trying to get a smooth zoom with a DSLR is nearly impossible. I really can’t choose between closeups and full frame — both can be equally as beautiful and well-composed, and I really didn’t want to have to invest in a rig that only allowed for one type of movement. I found some cool dollies online (mainly on Amazon, big surprise) that would allow me to do rotations and cool timelapses and turn a little while tracking.. too bad most of the devices in my price range were really small and could only be used for a handful of shots close to the ground shots.

I then thought about some of my favorite movies, some of my favorite shots. Goodfellas, Children of Men, Atonement, The Shining, The Untouchables… all of these films make excellent use of the steadicam. Long shots with smooth movement and no significant stumbles — pure gold in cinema for me.

Here are some clips from the movies I mentioned… The clips are well worth watching if you don’t know what I’m talking about.

The Shining   -

Goodfellas    -

 

Thank Jesus the least expensive “Steadicam” system is the Merlin — only around $700 without shipping and tax! Not only does the price tag scare me away, but it has balancing issues that should not be present with a close to $1k piece of equipment. Since that’s really not going to happen anytime soon… I’m deciding to make it myself! I’m trying to create the best rig for the price, which surprisingly doesn’t seem too hard thus far. With the finished stabilizer I will be able to accomplish most everything handheld… panning, tracking, even stationary shots… it also opens up a new realm for vehicles in my movies to be used for follow shots effectively — something that has not been possible for me in the past. I have some materials from old tripods but still need to make the trek to Home Depot for the other supplies. This stabilizer even makes acquiring a good tripod a much lower priority as it replaces most of its function. It will definitely be a nice investment, especially with the new camera I’m planning to order soon (Details coming in the next post).

These are some examples of what I could create and what I’ve been looking at for the past week or so.

http://nofilmschool.com/2012/07/build-diy-dslr-camera-stabilizer-shelf-parts-10/

 

Due to time restrictions and price constraints, as well as the fact that I didn’t want to wait for parts to come in, I am thinking very seriously of using this guide alternatively.

http://littlegreatideas.com/stabilizer/diy/

Week 1 & 2: Getting Familiar With Feng Shui….

This week I thought it was important to get familiar with feng shui and it’s principles. When beginning my project I wanted to look at design in multiple ways, and explore not just the aesthetics of design but function and feel. I wasn’t really interested in how homes were put together growing up, in fact when my mother moved us into a new home my freshman year of high school, her renovating was more of a discomfort than an exciting experience. It wasn’t until I got a place of my own that I realized how much fun it actually was to create and design a space to your own personal tastes. It can give you a sense of accomplishment and comfort, especially in my situation because I lived in an apartment and didn’t have any control over the design of the building it’s self. As I picked colors and patterns, accents and furniture I began to see how just the change of color in a room can actually change it’s feel.

When I got to Evergreen, I enrolled into the Picturing Domestic Space program because I thought it would give me a chance to focus on something I already knew I enjoyed while at the same time letting me explore it new ways and I was right. During the first quarter we studied space and furniture, photography and light, all things that are going to help me with this project. The second quarter was filled with the study of aesthetics verse function and I got a chance to focus on one room in the house, the kitchen. By focusing solely on this room I was able to explore it in ways never considered before. I go a chance to look at it from the view of a designer as well as a consumer. I was able to put myself in the shoes of a cookbook designer as well as an inventor and I think these different angles helped me see the kitchen in new light. I wanted to keep this frame of mind when I pursued this quarters work. I wanted to look at what I call “the bones of the home” from not just an interior decorator’s aspect but from a home owners view as well as a designers view.

I thought it best to begin with the bedroom since that is the room where we spend most of our time. We do everything from sleeping to eating and even working or relaxing in this room. I began reading Feng Shui and Health: The Anatomy of a Home by Nancy SantoPietro and quickly realized how much of feng shui is based on the energy and flow of not just our homes but of the neighbor hood and area that surrounds it. As I read more what I found most appealing about the book was that not only does she explain how to achieve good fung shui when designing your own home she offers alternate examples for people who might be stuck in a place that is unchangeable. She touches on everything from where your bed is positioned (best to be facing the door) to the size of your door ways. She explains the importance of view, how what you see out your window can effect the energy in your house just as much as what you see from the position of your bed. The author offers suggestions and changes that anyone can make in order to improve the chi (energy flow) of their homes such as mirror placement or color changes in furniture or wall colors. The most interesting thing I found out was how important it is to keep your work space out of your bedroom. She explains that we have different mind frames for different situations in our lives. It’s important to your health and wellness to keep your working and problem solving mind separate from your relaxing and repairing mind frame. She also touches on EMF’s (electric and magnetic fields) and how the power that your television gives off during the night can actually disrupt your natural sleeping patterns. She places emphasis on the importance of keeping recreational activities such as reading or watching t.v. separate from your sleeping area.  As I began to think about and design my own miniature bedroom I wanted to keep all these things in mind. I wanted to illustrate proper feng shui in my model and so I began to design….

 

 

Learning WordPress….

I am extremely excited to be learning how to create a WordPress site. This is the first time I have ever designed my own website and I am excited to be able to share my project and ideas with the world. This is also going to make it easy for my family and friends to follow my actions and give me feed back on my progress. More to come soon…. be sure to check back with me on a regular basis.

An example of miniature food

This is Rob. This is my page. Welcome.

This is my first journal entry. I am currently sitting in a chair in the computer lab. It is approximately 11:10am.

 

I will post here with articles, interviews, links to videos and other content I deem useful for both the general filmmaker as well as for my own project.

 

Don’t you dare snoop around my website.