A Spike Jonze/Arcade Fire collaboration, "The Suburbs"

Saw this a while ago. Been meaning to share it.

Here's what I found on the video (some details from Win Butler, Arcade Fire's lead):

“It’s not a video. It’s a short film; we’re still working on it. It’s like a science-fiction B-movie companion piece for the record. Basically, we played Spike some music from the album and the first images that came to his mind had the same feeling as this idea for a science fiction film I had when I was younger. My brother and I and Spike wrote it together, which was really fun– it was like total amateur hour. We shot it in Austin and a lot of kids are in the film, and it was great just hanging out with these 15-year-olds for a week and writing down all the funny things they said. It was cool to revert to being a 15-year-old for a little while."

Although it is set in Austin and seemingly reflects the suburban life for American youth, I think the themes are universal. The video reminds me of when I used to ride bicycles around my suburb with neighbours who lived nearby and not so nearby. We would race each other to the vandalised park, play rubberband wars, chase each other up to the shops where we would buy shandy beer (it was all so exhilarating). We'd pick up a couple of cap guns and have fights in our front lawns. This video brings me back to these feelings of being alive and free - my suburb was my turf, and nothing could stop me.

Less Time, More Films

It's amazing how quickly time is lost when you work full-time. As you can imagine, I have been very occupied with work. When I'm not at work, I'm resting, dealing with the trivial matters that encompass my life, or thinking of different ways to overcome my lactose intolerance. The Japanese Film Festival in Sydney began last Monday, which I've been attending almost everyday throughout the week. I've been losing sleep, eating badly (dinner has consisted of buttered toast for the past two nights now) and basically not giving myself the tender, love and care that I seem to need.

(photo from JFF Facebook page)

I have, however, been seeing a lot more films than the past two months put together! I took advantage of the perks that came with having a boyfriend who worked for a film festival by sitting with him while he watched the screeners. I saw almost half the films on at the currently running Japanese Film Festival, including A Lone Scalpel (closing night film), Flavor of Happiness, Confessions and Solanin (by far my favourite). We managed to see Josh Fox's documentary Gasland, Michael Rowe's Leap Year (also known as Año Bisiesto), a Christmas tale gone wrong in Rare Exports, Australian genre film The Loved Ones, and a couple of others. It has been quite a busy November.

Next week, Kieran and I head to the Gold Coast for the 4th annual Asia Pacific Screen Awards. I'm really looking forward to this event - it's the first major 'black tie' film-event I have been asked to attend - well, Kieran was invited, and I got to be his lucky 'plus one'. Nevertheless, it will be great to be amongst all sorts of important folk in the Asian film industry. I can't wait.

December will bring all kinds of crazy with Christmas and New Year's around the corner already. Time to empty my wallets, repent my sins and consider my 2011. Can't say I'm not excited!

I'll end this post with one of my favourite trailers - a sweded trailer of Be Kind Rewind. It's sweded with all the charm and greatness of Michel Gondry.

Cooking Dreams

"Tonight, I'll show you how dreams are prepared. People think it's a very simple and easy process but it's a bit more complicated than that. As you can see, a very delicate combination of complex ingredients is the key. First, we put in some random thoughts. And then, we add a little bit of reminiscences of the day, mixed with some memories from the past. That's for two people. Love, friendships, relationships and all those 'ships', together with songs you heard during the day, things you saw, and also, uh... personal... Okay, I think it's one"

"Sleepskating" - New Short Film

As you know from the previous post, I took part in the Kino Kabaret challenge whereby you make a film in 32 hours (from thinking up idea to screening the next night). This is what we came up with in 8 hours. It's called "Sleepskating".

Kino Kabaret - the 32-hour filmmaking challenge

This year, I chose to take part in my first Kino Kabaret challenge. The rules are you make a film in 32 hours, to be presented at the Kino Kabaret party 32 hours later. I felt that it would be a great way to push myself back into making films again, and it will be good practise to get back behind the camera again.

What I had not remembered when I signed up and had my place in the weekend session (this weekend, 23-24 October) of Kabaret was that I had already bought entry to the annual SPAA Fringe film conference, held on 22-23 October.

I guess a challenge isn't a challenge without a few amateur scheduling mistakes, right? The other downside to this is that I won't be able to start shooting till at least 8pm tonight, which makes it all the more challenging. I've shot a short in 3 hours before, so perhaps it won't be such a bad next 32 hours.

I'll be uploading the film to Vimeo and will share it here once it has premiered at Kino tomorrow night. If you're around Paddington with nothing better to do at 6:30PM on Sunday 24th of October, come down to the Australian Centre of Photography (Oxford St) for the closing night of Kino Kabaret. $15 at the door will get you free drinks, food and some freshly made films. Hope to see you there!

This Is Not Poetry - Teaser

Final Scene from Wong Kar-wai's HAPPY TOGETHER

Back in the editing suite, the end of KOFFIA, and applying to AFTRS

I'm back in the editing suite, trying to make a final edit out of my thesis film in time for the Women's Film Festival's extended deadline this Friday. There are still a lot of things I want to change, for example, the poem's recording is inconsistent in quality throughout the film (due to my actor being away during post-production, and not being able to make good quality recordings). So right now, the priority is to lock the picture down, once and for all.

Otherwise, we just wrapped up the first Korean Film Festival in Australia last week. The festival went overwhelmingly well, especially for a first time festival. The team I worked with was possibly the best festival team I have ever worked with. It was such a pleasure to work with such a great team on an amazing and promising festival. If you missed out this year, watch out for a bigger, better Korean Film Festival in 2011.

Also, I don't think I ever mentioned my new job. Almost a month ago, I started working part-time at a new and upcoming digital subscription/semi-IPTV company (Foxtel's newest competitor) as a marketing assistant. It's been extremely interesting, to say the least. There is so much more to the operations behind a subscription television service and it's amazing how each product competes against others. I guess the notable point I should also bring up is that I'm no longer an intern. Excitement!

I'm also planning out my application for the Graduate Certificate in Screen Culture course at AFTRS, to start in 2011. I've decided that since I'm working and earning my own money, I could most likely afford a part-time postgraduate course much like the Grad Cert at AFTRS, if I save up. I thought about it, and a part-time post-grad simply sounds like a realistic option compared to going back to university for a three-year degree.

With that being said, I suppose all's well in my world for now.

KOFFIA Opening Night Montage

Whipped up a quick and short montage/teaser from the Korean Film Festival's opening night ceremony, last Friday the 1st. Did this is about an hour before today's first sessions. It's really quite rough and 'drafty', but passable, maybe. I also shot the footage.

PS. Come to our Closing Night ceremony, tomorrow, 5th October at Dendy Opera Quays. We're closing the festival with Im Sang-Soo's controversial remake of the 1960s Korean classic THE HOUSEMAID followed by Lee Hey-Jun's solo directorial debut CASTAWAY ON THE MOON. Come along as there'll be drinks, food and great company.

Brian Eno's Music For Airports

This was exactly what I was looking for with regards to my new film ideas. Ambient music.

Are you Hungry For Talk?

As part of the Korean Film Festival, the new Hungry For Talk competition calls film lovers and goers alike to talk about their favourite Korean film, director or actor/actress in a short clip. There are prizes up for grabs (like free movie tickets), and even the chance for the winning Talkers to have their clip shown on the big screen throughout the festival.

Or, in other words, I'm asking you (my loyal viewers) to step up and participate!

Check out our short video about how to join in the conversation.

A fragment, by a Poet

"She was an entertaining creature, one I had not encountered for divers months, and I was simply compelled by the beguiling hunt. And as she intimidated me, I kept my distance, standing as she sat and as we spoke, of our past romances; I joked, about threats to jeopardise her integrity. I was not one to adore such a thing, but between the incongruity of who I had thought she was, and the smoke she had pulled from her purse, now held between her fingers:

She was fascinating.

I saw only the contours of her face, outlines of the shadows cast at soft angles by the moonlight. I was blessed from time to time, only by the long drag of the cigarette she was smoking: I saw her face illumed. The smoke escaping her lips, like an organism in somnambulant dance, sipped up into the ether of the dark hours above us; of the early morning.

I retired alone.

Now in daylight, I find myself chasing up what had gone, and what had died with the night. Mourning the life of a thrill that had lasted only the span between moonrise and moonset."

"The goodbye scene of the would-be lovers is over-the-top romantic. Nevertheless, or maybe because of that, it, too works. In the slightest of slow-motion, Mo-wan lets go of Li-zhen's hand (her wedding ring, ironically, in full view), and the camera stays on her face in extreme close-up as he remains far away in the background, out of focus. Then we discover, once again, that they are only rehearsing a separation that has not yet taken place and that, in fact, we never see. They playact through their emotional crisis, as if trying to manage it theatrically, and thus never reach their innermost selves, if such a place can be said to exist. They live within quotation markers and pre-written lines of dialogue. They put on an act because reality itself is too hard to bear. She sobs, and the strings reach a crescendo."

- Peter Brunette on "In The Mood For Love", Wong Kar-Wai

A quote on Wong Kar-Wai's "In The Mood For Love"

"Coming to its emotional climax at the Angkor War temple in Cambodia in 1966, the film plays out through a series of missed opportunities and bad decisions, as one of the most powerful renditions of mutually unrequited love in cinema history."

- Peter Brunette, Wong Kar-Wai

The Power of the Visual

"The simplest way to communicate a story is just visually."

- Sofia Coppola on her style in recent Golden Lion winner SOMEWHERE

Modeselektor - Em Ocean

Today's 'random click' has turned into a surprising find. I rarely listen to Modeselektor due to how heavy some (if not most) of their stuff can be (listen to Black Block), but this neat two minute track is something else.

Iguazu Waterfall from 'Happy Together'

The Iguazu Waterfall scene from Wong Kar-Wai's Happy Together.

This waterfall, so precisely placed in the film as what I feel is a symbol of the two leading characters' relationship - mesmerising, of great depths, to lose one's self. This shot follows a moment in the film where the two characters, Ho Po-Wing and Lai Yiu-Fai take a road trip in search for the Iguazu waterfall. Their trip comes to a halt, and we see one of them walk away from the car. "Where are you going?" says Ho, as he remains with the car, a map spread out before him. The characters stand next to a busy highway, abandoning their car and map. Cars and trucks go by in haste as their relationship grows further and further apart.

What a great, great film.

Music that Glows

Just a quick one tonight.

I have been incredibly busy assisting the marketing team for the 1st Korean Film Festival in Australia (KOFFIA), as well as the odd intern job here and there. I've also got a job as a marketing assistant of some sort at a digital television wholesaler, at which I will start as an intern. Hopefully it will take me somewhere (preferably paid!).

In the meanwhile, I have been looking for experimental/sound art type of music, or soundscapes as inspiration for a new project. I found this rather neat track on Youtube.

It's very ambient, and possibly too busy with track layers for something I could work with. Nevertheless, I love the ambiance and peace it emanates. It kind of 'glows' for me.

"Like a sad machine, dying"

This is a beautiful track from the soundtrack of Synecdoche, New York. I am a real sucker for piano solos like this. The electronic sounds in the background turn the track into a whole different experience for me. They 'sparkle' as if to say everything moves beautifully, in one way or another.

Starting Fresh

As I have been revisiting my thesis film in the cutting room, I've started writing down some ideas for another short film I'd like to make. Rather than making something for contention in a festival, I really want to make a short film just for the sake of making one - and, of course, because I love making films and want to continue making films long after film school.

Music has always been a strong driving force in terms of what inspires my work. The stylistic approach for my thesis film "This Is Not Poetry" was partly inspired by Jon Brion's "Theme" from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. The short film "Night" which I shot as a storyboard for the thesis film was inspired by Carter Burwell's "Lost Fur" from the soundtrack of Where The Wild Things Are. These tracks, to me, feel like mini-ballads. At 2-3 minutes long, they feel like short films themselves, like fragments of a much bigger story.

My next projects will be similar to the approach I took with "Night". 2-3 minute shorts, or 'fragments' that may, or may not grow into a bigger picture. Firstly, this could probably be the only way to get me right back into making lots of films at a regular (if not, more often than 'never') basis. And secondly, it puts the idea of 'making a film is as easy as you say it is' into action. And I believe it.

I'll end this post peacefully with the opening scene of Paranoid Park, which features a great track by Ethan Rose - "Song One". I need this soundtrack so badly.

Post-Film School Life Begins - Part 2

I imagined my post-graduation days to be very productive - I'd be applying for job after job every day; cleaning the apartment more often; catching up with friends; going to the movies more often; making films! Well, I thought wrong.

I've been sitting around spending most of my days in front of the television watching The Wire (I have all five seasons, all of which I stole from Kieran's collection). If I'm not at the television, I'm on the computer browsing Tumblr or Youtube, or checking my Facebook every two minutes. I want to blame it all on being ill over the last two weeks, but I've been feeling much better since a few days ago and I guess everything I say about it from now on is invalid. But here's the back flip - I did, however, go to an interview at the AAP Newscentre for an entry level position last week. Ta-da!

Yup. Such is the life of a twenty-one year old graduate with few 'clear' prospects ahead of her at the moment.

(In other pages of my life, I'm going to Melbourne for the Melbourne International Film Festival this Tuesday to see thirteen films over four days. Excitement will ensue)

Post-Film School Life Begins

Apart from keeping my internship at Titan View, I've been 'busily' applying for jobs here and there from the comfort of my couch. It's been a while since I've been able to sit around with a whole day to waste wrapped in a duvet with my laptop. The other reason for this apart from having just graduated with my Diploma in Screen is to nurse myself better from this cold that has been around since last week. So it all works out in the end - I am bedridden from this illness, so what better way to spend the day than to apply for jobs! Hah, hah.

Kieran and I had booked our flights and tickets to this year's Melbourne International Film Festival, which runs from the 22nd of July to the 8th of August. It's the first film festival I have bought a mini pass to, and the first festival or event interstate which I am indeed traveling to attend. It's a pretty exciting thought, and is in itself one of the first steps in my post-film school life.

These are the films we are going to see:

• Beeswax (dir Andrew Bujalski, USA)
• Ha Ha Ha (dir Hong Sangsoo, received the Un Certain Regard Prize at Cannes this year, South Korea)
• Mai Mai Miracle (dir Sunao Katabuchi, Japan)
• Boy (dir Taika Waikiki, won the Best Fiction Feature Audience Awards at this year's Sydney Film Festival, NZ)
• Four Lions (dir Chris Morris, UK)
  
• Kanikosen (dir Sabu, Japan)
• A Time To Love (dir Embrahim Forouzesh, Iran)
• Karaoke (dir Chris Chong Chan Fui, Malaysia)
• The Juche Idea (dir Jim Finn, USA)
• Cell 211 (dir Daniel Monzon, Spain/France)
• The Well (dir Umesh Vinayak Kulkarni, India)
• Taqwacore: The Birth of Punk Islam (dir Omar Majeed, Canada)
• Small Soldiers (dir Joe Dante, USA)

I'm really looking forward to seeing Beeswax, Ha Ha Ha, a childhood 'classic' of mine Small Soldiers and the only Malaysian film featuring at this year's MIFF, Karaoke. We've planned the trip over 4 days, where we will watch 13 films. I have a feeling we will begin to turn nocturnal from sitting in the theatre all day long for the majority of our trip. After all, it could be fun being a movie owl.

That being said, now that I've spent all this money on the trip, I should really get cracking on finding that job if I want to keep living in this city.

This Is Not Poetry Premiere - The Team

Some of the cast and crew at my thesis film's premiere - This Is Not Poetry

Saw my film on the big screen for the very first time.
Oh, and I graduated on the same night too.

All is well, all is well.

(Photo credit to Genesis M)

Sounds Like It Could Be Better

The final cut has been handed in, and all that awaits now is the big screening this Tuesday evening followed by my graduation. A lot of issues had come up from the cut, and there wasn't much I could do about it. The audio tracks for the poem were muddy, and my actor's readings were not clear. There is a distinct 'hiss' from some of the clips on the track that you can hear throughout parts of the film. On the headphones, it sounds perfectly fine. On the big speakers, it makes me cringe. I can only pray that no one will notice during the screening.

I hope to re-record the poem when the actor returns from Hong Kong, and make changes to the picture - all to be done post-graduation. I'm not as happy as I should be with the final product, but I am determined to make it work.

If anyone wants to come along to see the film premiere on the big screen, you are most welcome to! It will be held on Tuesday the 13th of July, at the 5-6PM screening at Chauvel Cinema, Paddington. And if you stick around that evening, the film I produced will be screening from 7PM onwards.

This Is Not Poetry - Production Wrap Up

Note: this post is long overdue, and my head space has already moved on to the post-production side of things, so excuse the sloppiness of this entry!

Slate it!

The thesis production went very well, and much to my liking. It was my very first time running the show as both producer and director, and I must say it was an enjoyable experience. Of course, no production would be complete without the many downs and problems. Yet overall, we got some great shots and coverage, I worked with a fantastic, but small crew of four, and I had great actors who were accepting of my ideas.

I worked with a small, small crew. It consisted of four - a Director of Photography, who was also the camera operator and gaffer; a sound recordist, who was also boom operator, and a bit of a 2nd AD; a make-up artist; and a wardrobe manager, who also acted as my production designer. I initially wanted to have a small crew based on the idea that a short film doesn't need a dozen hands to work. They teach us about how to design a crew and what sort of roles are imperative to the operation of a film on and off set, but they don't really tell us that it's not always necessary for 1st Assistant Directors, production managers, gaffers and boom operators. To me, on a short film like This Is Not Poetry, there was no use for a bigger crew than I had already organised, yet I still had classmates and even crew members wondering why I never considered it. I even had my Director of Photography complain about how I failed to organise a gaffer to set up the lights for him. Filmmaking isn't about having lots of different hands on set in production. We are film school students, and we know about the roles - so why waste space with another body to do a job I know my crew members can already do?

Shooting the sunrise at Circular Quay
(From left to right) James, Karan and myself

We were sorely behind on schedule on the first day. Having organised to start at 5:30PM and finish around 11:00PM, we ended up spending far too long with make-up and hair dressing, and too much time shooting each scene. We spent so much time in all the wrong places, that we eventually finished at 4:30AM the next morning. I had two out of three of my actors sleeping in my apartment, one sharing the bed with me and another on the couch; and one other crew member taking the floor in a sleeping bag. All of us had at least an hour's sleep, as we had to get up to start shooting at 6:30AM, much to our distaste. I wondered, after the shoot, would this have happened to us if I had a proper First Assistant Director who was focused on making sure I was getting the shots I wanted in the scheduled time, or was it just a failure in scheduling and planning? It could have been a mixture of both. Nevertheless, the crew and cast worked even better the next morning, despite looking half-dead and about to collapse.

I worked with an open mind all throughout the film. At times, being too open-minded to different ideas and allowing your cast and occasionally your crew do what they feel is best can be considered lazy. I felt otherwise. I wanted my film to be as honest and organic as possible. I changed the names of each character to the actors' name, and I made sure the actors possessed similar if not the same qualities of my characters. I had given my actors directions that were open for them to play with. This was an experiment I wanted to play with, as based on previous experiences, often times when you work with experienced actors, they can tend to make action and emotion feel awkwardly fake, and inevitably spoil the entire film. I didn't want this to happen to mine, and so I gave my actors the freedom to 'do as they would', but at the same time, made sure they channeled and concentrated on the emotion of it all. It was, much to my surprise, a success.

The actors with the wardrobe manager
(From left to right) Arnie, Lucy, James and Genesis

All three of my actors were around my age. Two of them were younger than me, and the other was my age. I felt that this helped me work with them better because we were all speaking the same language with each other. Another great thing about working with younger actors is that there is a sense of honesty in their performance, and they are continuously open-minded to different ideas and techniques. Out of the three actors I worked with, only one had experience in theatre and film. My lead actor had no experience in film, while the other had some training but through short courses and school. Truth be told, I was concerned about this. I was worried that their inexperience may project through the camera and onto screen, but it never did. They were fantastic. I was extremely lucky to have found my three actors, and I won't lie - they were all chosen out of gut feeling. In the end, they looked great together, did an amazing job and were such a delight to work with.

I think this whole production has been based on luck, to be honest. Both my composer and lead actor were from mutual friends, and I even had to contact them via Facebook (a la stalker style). Others like my wardrobe manager and make-up artist were creatives who I really wanted to work with - my wardrobe manager Genesis is a good friend and ex-uni mate of mine who really introduced me to film with my first Wong Kar-Wai film, while my make-up artist was someone I had worked with previously on a short film I produced. It's so great to work with people who are like-minded, and who share the same vision while having the ability to enhance it with new and different ideas. The right people were there for me, and that's what made the production work so well.

Most of the team at the end of Day 2
(From left to right) Karan, myself, Lucy, Genesis and James

When a film works out that way, it's such a great feeling when you look back on how far you've come.

And now it all comes down to putting the film together. The final product is due in 8 days, next Saturday 3rd of July. I'll have an update on how the edit is coming along. I've got a few sound problems, but hopefully nothing I can't fix.

* Photos taken by Mimi, our make-up artist

This Is Not Poetry - Stills

A few production stills from This Is Not Poetry to keep you going.

Sofia Coppola's SOMEWHERE Trailer

This is the latest and first trailer for Sofia Coppola's latest film titled Somewhere. It's about an A-list Hollywood actor who begins to re-examine his life when his 11-year-old daughter visits him.

As I have been sitting infront of my computer all day, TweetDeck was going off the hooks in regards to the new trailer. People were claiming that it was very reminiscent of Lost In Translation and that the film was 'nothing new' for Coppola, who previously directed Marie Antoinette as well as Lost In Translation. That argument is invalid to me. To me, a filmmaker makes films that reflect who they are, and their experiences, emotions and stories. I saw this trailer and thought this looked great - sure it is reminiscent of Lost In Translation, but hey - who didn't love Lost In Translation?

I think what makes a filmmaker great is when they write from the heart, and from their own stories and experiences. It's true, and honest, and I feel that's what makes a great film. Her new film Somewhere looks great, and promising. Subject matter aside, I love her work and if it is as close to Lost In Translation, I will probably love it just as much.

So stop hatin'.

(I know I promised an entry about the thesis film production, but I've been sitting infront of this computer for the last 6 hours syncing the sound to picture of the edit, so I must go before my corneas burn into themselves. Later)

This Is Not Poetry - Day 2.5

We wrapped on Tuesday afternoon, with most of us having had not more than an hour's sleep from a 5 hour over-time. It was a tiring shoot all together, but we managed to make the best film we can as seen in the rushes. I've been labeling sound clips and matching them up to their respective shots, but it takes time when you don't have a professional sound recordist on set to do it for you.

It's now 5:35am and I am waiting for my DOP, wardrobe manager/production designer, make-up artist and of course, lead actor to arrive. We're heading over to Circular Quay for a sunrise shot - that is - if everyone gets here on time - just had to let my make-up artist in. First to arrive, that's respect.

I'll write up a proper update once this is over.

This Is Not Poetry - Day 0

19 hours to go till we begin shooting my thesis film This Is Not Poetry.

Excited? Yes. Nervous? Very much so.

The fact that my film is very simple in its execution plan, I'm continuously feeling as if I've missed something or have already made mistakes. I think a major concern right now is how I'm putting a whole lot of trust on my actors (two of whom are inexperienced, the other is otherwise) to help me bring vision to reality for the camera. I've only had one rehearsal with all three actors, and this is partly due to lack of time and other commitments. I put Kieran (as he leaves for South Africa. Left just today) at the top of my priority list over my film, which may have been a sweet mistake - but I shall never know otherwise. Apart from that, actors have lives too and it's just hard to arrange a suitable time that works for everyone. My DOP/Camera operator is acting in another classmate's film, set in Nowra, while I haven't had a face-to-face meeting with my 1st AD/Production Manager about the film at all (besides the phone call I just had with her of a run down for the film's plan of action).

However, all this lack of organisation and preparation may work out. I've had quite a lucky run with this film from fortunate acquaintances and such, and I feel like maybe this film will be just fine at the end of the day.

I'll touch some wood before I go to bed, just so I don't jinx anything. Also, my mum just arrived from Malaysia and brought a little babushka-like doll made completely out of a Keyaki tree from her trip to Japan before coming over here. I don't know what it is, but it has a body of hair painted on its chest. Well there's a hilarious tangent for you.

A Thesis Update, and Melbourne

I thought I was pretty set for this week leading up to the thesis production next Monday and Tuesday, but today presented a whole lot of new problems. For example, I still haven't locked down one of my locations, that being a classroom. Genesis, an ex-uni mate has been helping me delegate with the people who run the College of the Fine Art in Paddington, which is great since he is on the student committee. Other than that, I'm still missing my lead girl actor to play the role of Alex. It's difficult when the actor doesn't respond - it's hard to tell if they're disinterested in the role, or just plain busy.

I've also taken on two more projects, both of which fall in the same week of my shoot. At times, I wonder why I bother pushing myself into such challenging compromises. I guess you could say that I try to mould myself into a better person. I'm producing a thesis film titled Tree of Hurt, and production managing a thesis film set in Vietnam. A challenge and a half, no doubt.

Apart from doing busy things, I recently got back from Melbourne with Kieran. We'd spent last Monday to Wednesday there for a quick holiday. Mainly to see the Socceroos play New Zealand in a farewell friendly, and to celebrate our 11 month and pre-12 month anniversary (since he is going to South Africa this Sunday for a lengthy duration of the World Cup). We didn't do very much other than eat excessively and walk around the city looking for ways to make good use of our Metcard day-passes.

Our highlights would have been the Australian Centre of Moving Image in Federation Square. We browsed the Australian Mediatheque archives and watched classic advertisements (I had a great laugh at De-de-decore!), then spent a good hour wandering around their permanent exhibition Screen Worlds. Another big highlight was our anniversary dinner, which was supposed to be a pizza or two at D.O.C's Pizza and Mozzarella Bar in Carlton followed by a bit of ice-skating in Docklands. However, we were so knackered by the time we got home for tea that we over napped our way into the later part of the evening and decided to just have pizza at D.O.C's. It was great, by the way. I recommend anyone and everyone to check it out. They don't do reservations, so get in quick. They serve mozzarella in fistfuls. How could you say no to that?

Our quick sojourn down to Melbourne made me realise how much Sydney is lacking in everything. People are strangely nicer there, and there is so much focus on the arts and culture scene over there, which simply excites me. ACMI has their super Mediatheque program, where you simply walk in, take a seat in one of their very comfortable booths and flick through their archive of features, shorts, adverts - you name it. Melbourne has this incredible public transport system as well, similar to the intricate systems in London's Underground Tube. It's amazing, and not to forget - cheap!

And now we are back in Sydney, dealing with 90kmph gusts in the city and everything that goes wrong in a film production a week before it's shot. Such is life.

Will try to update more as I approach the D-Day, which is next Monday and Tuesday. For now, check out Kieran's blog. He updated, how rare!

That's A Wrap!

We completed the production shoot last Friday, exhausted and in need of a good sleep. Having started at 7:00 AM on the last day with most of the crew evolved into zombies (we finished at 12am earlier that morning), everyone including myself was relieved to have finally completed the four day shoot. Nothing feels better than wrapping up a shoot.

Overall the four day shoot went fairly well, minus a few tiny issues that came up throughout the course of the week. Such as my production designer falling ill on the second day and not being able to show up for any part of the day, leaving the already frazzled First Assistant Director and myself to spend more time on designing the set. Another 'tiny' issue that came up was the lack of time I organised for each day, which really wasn't my job in the end but for some reason it felt like organising the call sheets was my responsibility. Everyday apart from the last day started at 3pm (start shooting at 3pm, call times between 1 and 2pm) and was scheduled to finish at 10pm. We ended up finishing around 12am every night, which wasn't a good idea as I had Kieran and my younger sister also living in the flat who had to deal with a noisy and messy crew outside their bedrooms. It was stressful for me, as producer, to make sure both the film benefited from the time we had while making sure my home wasn't being ripped to shreds from C-stands and inconsiderate strangers. Face it, if it's not my home, then who cares is the approach everyone seems to stand by in situations like this.

Dealing with actors and their big egos was a big lesson I've learned from this production. We had an actor who was constantly disobeying the directions of the director, and it was difficult to see him stalling the director's vision especially when we had to stick to a tight schedule. The problem with student small budget short films such as Grey Zone was the known fact that we are amateur film-makers, and experienced actors will pick up on this. Some, like in our case, will actually exploit this and that is not what you want on your production, no matter what level of experience the crew have.

Another issue I found was the lack of assistants I'd organised prior to the shoot. This was a stupid, stupid mistake and probably would have helped in situations like my ill and missing production designer and having someone help clean up at the end of every day, instead of doing it myself. We didn't have an assistant production designer, 2nd assistant director or runner, so a lot of times I found myself doing the running around and organising the food etc. It's a good lesson to learn that a small crew doesn't necessarily help with anything, as I was under the impression that such a small apartment begged for a small crew to occupy it.

As producer, I organise the crew to 'get organised'. To be honest, I didn't do this quite right. On the day before shooting, I'd said to everyone that I would be picking up the equipment from all hire centres. Problem was all hire centres were spread out across town and I had no access to a car or driver during that time. So I paid $180 from the budget to catch a taxi from the city to Manly, to Lindfield and back down to the city. It was not the best option, but it seemed like I had no other choice especially when I had to be at all hire places to sign documents and pay insurances. I realised that what I should have done was organised a courier which would have cost me less than half the price I paid for that taxi. I've also learned that sometimes you need to know the right people, and it was in the last day that Kieran's sister offered to organise a courier from her work for me. Amazing when you know the right people.

Otherwise, I think in the end I worked with a great crew (minus the mishaps along the way). My camera department was a Swedish team of great ideas, and they were always on the ball no matter how important the issue. If your first assistant director tells you to fuck off on set, then you've made the right choice about them being there. Otherwise I probably would have sacked my script supervisor (continuity) for his lack of anything on set, if I had the power to.

I'll keep you updated on how the editing process goes. Apparently we shot around 100 hours of footage over the 4 days, which is excessive but considerably normal for a digital film shoot.

In the mean time, I've been working on my thesis film which was just finally green-lit by the Head of School. I've also chosen my lead actor to play the role of Justin (whose name I am now deciding to change), which was exciting because I knew I wanted this guy to be my lead when I first met him. I'm going with the gut feeling, so I hope anything outside of that doesn't let me down.

More updates on my thesis soon.

Raelene, Producer and Megalomaniac

With only two days to go till Day 1 of production, our major drama Diploma film is coming along well. I'd say it's a lot better than it was two days ago considering we've done our call sheets, shooting schedules, finalised shot lists and rehearsed actors. However, in this world, nothing is ever close to perfection.

I'm still missing extras to be a part of the film, and confirmations from one supporting role actor and a make-up artist. It's been a long and tiresome journey, and I've many stories to tell about this road of pre-production. All to be revealed in a week from now, or so.

Other priorities at the moment include figuring out how I am going to get myself all the way to Manly, then to Lindfield for camera equipment. Then down to Alexandria, to school in Redfern, and back to the city. This is going to be a long ass week.

That aside, I think the most challenging part of this project so far has been my inability to deliver the wants to satisfy everybody's needs. An ordinary day would see this glass in my head being filled and filled and filled till the water meets the brim but does not overflow. At the end of that day, the water would come gushing out like a violent river, leaving the glass half empty. Half empty. I want to make a superhero reference here, but I honestly don't know anything.

Four weeks later, I still wonder why I have put myself in a producer role again. It is as if a little, motherly part of me wants to test my limits by pushing me to the very edge. I don't like it, but I know I'm going to learn shitloads. A self-punishment kind of purpose, bordering along the lines of megalomania and masochism.

I promise to come back after production week to tell you all about it.

Trailer for Christopher Nolan's "Inception"

I am so damn looking forward to this.

Le Haricot Bleu

"The blue bean is a wonder of nature.
The depth and intensity of its colour makes this poisonous mushroom all the more deadly since it is attractive.
Having friends is a wonder in life.
What more natural than to share the small joys with those we love.
True friends are after their devotion; it is through them that I knew that the blue bean was delicious and edible!"

The Art of the Last-Minute Panic

Calvin knows exactly how it's done.

Thesis Character Reference: Justin

The lead character of my thesis film "This Is Not Poetry".

Justin, 19
A young man out of school, and madly in love with a young girl in his lit class. He wants nothing more than to be with her, but does nothing more than dream and write about her. He is quiet, introverted and loves writing poetry. Writing is a talent of his.

The overall look of Justin has been inspired by my youngest cousin. I simply can't imagine anyone else than my cousin to play the role of Justin, but alas - restrictions, restrictions being that he is currently in Melbourne completing his IB course at school. I remembered he found his Doppelganger, a very accurate match with Joseph Gordon-Levitt. To me, he has a type of sullen look in his eyes. I love the humbleness he emits, and I think this would be key in the characteristics of my main character Justin.

I liked JGL in 500 Days of Summer, and could probably relate some of my film's concepts to it (including character similarities). I have heard some interesting things about Gregg Araki's Mysterious Skin and intend to watch it some time soon for character references.

Now, to find someone who possesses just that!

Jon Brion: Some Kind of a Musical Genius

Jon Brion is currently the best music discovery I've had in a long time, if not ever.

His music makes me feel both happy and melancholic at the same time, and it isn't one riddled with turbulence much like the rest of my busy life right now. Much like "Theme" from Eternal Sunshine in my last film "Night", I feel like he has written the songs to my life. I'm becoming really inspired by his music, from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind right through to Synecdoche, New York's score - I think he is a genius.

If I find a composer who is influenced by Brion, I think my thesis film will be complete.

Green To Go!

So today we had to sit with our thesis teacher and basically pitch the project to her to be greenlit for production. I was fully prepared to be told I would have to do more work on the development side of things, including the treatment and shot list, but for some odd reason I felt the urge to just push for success.

Having heard we needed either a script or shot list to be greenlit, I immediately whipped out my laptop and began to write my shot list up to present in class. I spent at least an hour on three pages detailing the shots I wanted. Together with the treatment and example film (I showed her "Night", which basically demonstrates the style and shot-type I am after for this thesis film), I basically nailed my pitch and was given the greenlight on my project - given that I still don't have cast and locations organised.

The title of the film is "This is not poetry", derived from the thesis statement. Since I'm in a fairly good mood, here's the working synopsis of the film:

A young man with a penchant for poetry writes about his affection for a girl, only to achieve nothing but beautiful expressions of love and lust. He slowly becomes obsessed with his works just as he has with the girl, till he realises the only way out is to overcome his feelings – and as a result, destroys his memories of an unrequited love, with a click of a button.

And now the hunt for actors and locations begin.

I shall reveal more later!

Last "Night"

Since that last post about my thesis film, I have come up with a completely new idea and story which I am confident will make a great short film. It is along the same lines of my initial concept and thought, but down a different path.

The new concept or thesis statement is "May I remind you, this is not poetry". It will be a simple, under 10 minute short with a narration or voice-over of a piece of free verse poetry over images. That's about all I intend on giving away at this stage of time!

Yesterday I watched Michel Gondry/Charlie Kaufman's beautiful Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind for the fourth time, and it had made more sense than it did the last time I saw it. I found how much the film's themes and ideas related to my new thesis film idea, and found inspiration to adopt a similar Gondry style to my proposed film.

As I am supposed to have my film greenlit tomorrow, I decided to start writing a treatment for the new film, or some sort of a proposal. By the end of the day, I had not one word down on a document, but a two-minute short film titled "Night" inspired by Jon Brion (who composed the music on Eternal Sunshine) and Michel Gondry, starring my very helpful boyfriend, Kieran. The film is an extract of a young man's sleepless night. I'll eventually have to write that treatment tonight, but check out the two-minute short we shot and edited last night. Also, I shot this on my new Canon 7D with a 50mm f/1.8 prime lens. There seems to be a problem with the quality of the film as there are clear lines moving over some of the pictures. Nevertheless, it looks quite the success.

The song is "Theme" by Jon Brion, from the soundtrack of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

Writing My Big Thesis Film

I'm currently in the midst of writing a treatment and script for my final film, otherwise known as my 'thesis film'. We have been developing thesis statements in which we are required to explore a concept, thought or idea. The end result will be a film we would produce, direct and essentially make by ourselves.

I haven't been progressing as well as I should be, considering the thesis production period is in about 5 weeks, and I'm only just getting started in preparing for the major drama film I'm producing with my classmates. I only found out a few days ago that our thesis films need to be 'green-lit' by the end of this month, complete with a detailed treatment (including cast, crew, locations, possible budget, technical wants/equipment, etc).

My working thesis statement at the moment is "Feelings For Sale", which I shall let you interpret for yourselves till later down the track.

I don't particularly want to reveal as much about this project as perhaps being discrete could help me build the best film I can. Nevertheless, I will keep you as informed as I can about how the project shapes up as I get closer and closer to the end.

Here's a quote I found, which relates to my thesis statement to feed your curiosity:

"All the books we own, both read and unread, are the fullest expression of self we have at our disposal"

- Nick Hornby, author

An Octopus Steals Your Camera: You Chase It Down, And Upload The Video to Vimeo

"Accidents Happen": Yet Another Accident In The Australian Film Industry

I managed to catch an advanced screening of Accidents Happen starring Geena Davis yesterday morning, and felt that I needed to talk about the film as a clear indication of where this ignorant film industry is heading. Oh. Did I say too much for an opening sentence already?

I'll be curt here, so watch out.

Accidents Happen is the result of a very poorly opinionated, dumb film industry in this country. The film, short and pointless story short, is about a dysfunctional family with the Midas touch of bad luck. Geena Davis is probably the only big name among the cast, including some fairly 'big' Australian television names (ones I am not going to bother looking up, anyway). I believe the crew is mostly if not completely made up of Australians, including Elizabeth Mary Moore who gave a talk at our school about production design.

The only thing I liked about this film was the production design. The look of the sets had a glowing, warm 80s feel, which I found very appealing. I liked the way Moore decorated the rooms and managed to fill every space while being both expressive and 'natural'.

Now apart from that, the film just didn't work for me. Bluntly speaking, Accidents Happen was complete and utter shit. How the Australian film industry has allowed for this to first of all, be funded by Screen Australia and secondly, get Hopscotch onboard as their sales agents (possibly distribution?) - well, I don't know. Looking back on all the films that have come out from the Australian film industry in the last year, I think this has to be one of the worst Australia has produced. It's clear that they've tried hard to make it something more than your average My Year Without Sex and Charlie and Boots. Heck, they even casted Geena Davis as the foul-mouthed mother of the unfortunate family. If that isn't desperate enough.

The writing was a fucking disaster, I'll be perfectly honest with you. All of Davis' lines were one line jokes, and when she wasn't telling one, she was either cussing or grunting through her plasticised lips. The supporting actors failed with their American accents, which made their already unnatural dialogue look completely awkward between the actors who were meant to be acting out a 'drama'.

Right, now here is where I began to question the state of this film industry - how could our industry's professionals let a film like Accidents Happen, well, happen? To be funded by Screen Australia, they would have had to sell the story or make use of some form of bias made through relationships (just someone I know who knows someone who is married to someone with a sister in Screen Australia). That being said, all films that go through Screen Australia go through a process of some kind. Okay, straight to the point: these films that come in the form of treatments would be analysed by a group of professionals, who decide whether they'd like to fund the project or not. Now, with a film like Accidents Happen, I wondered: who in their right, dumb mind said yes to allowing this terrible film to be produced?

Kieran has so rightly said time and again: the Australian film industry is made up of two factors: women, and business-minded people. I can see the latter being logical, but if you haven't noticed already, this industry is full of women who don't know anything about film (apart from Jennifer Anniston's latest film, and Gerard Butler's body awesome new rom-com), and don't have the balls to properly critique a film made by the industry they work in.

It's true. I saw Bright Star, directed by Jane Campion (who also did The Piano). The amount of women the film appealed to was astounding, yet the film lacked any substance. There was no plot, no storyline and no character development in my eyes. I had seen better period pieces from the roots of Jane Austen and the likes of the British film industry.

The general audience are totally soaking up all of this shit coming out of the Australian film industry, and it's working in a cycle. People pay to see these movies, while later on their damned, filthy mouths speak words of ignorant delight, which in effect sells these craptastic films throughout the community. It happens in a chain reaction, and once it starts, it never stops. It's just really sad that nothing can be done about it. You see lots of independent filmmakers trying to make it in this industry, only to be shot down by big funding bodies like Screen Australia and distributors like Hopscotch based on the fact that "it's just not appealing", yet you see films like Beautiful Kate and Lucky Country that make absolutely nothing in the box office. There is no wonder everyone is moving overseas, making it around the international festival circuits in hope for some attention and money. And there is no wonder everyone is flocking to the internet for the same reasons too.

Perhaps, I am simply living in a film-based apocalyptic era, where only a precious few of us quietly build our secret, independent society of film-makers and industry professionals who actually know what they're doing - and more importantly, an age who knows exactly what they're saying. It truly angers me to know that there are films like Accidents Happen out there in cinemas with wide theatrical releases, and big name funders and distributors attached. It frustrates me more when fellow industry professionals lie through their teeth about these films based on facts like "it's not patriotic to say it sucked" and "I know someone who worked on the film, isn't it amazing".

But till that day we finally break out of this spell, I'm going to do my very best to start this revolution. The Australian film industry doesn't need REVIVAL. It needs to be left behind, and started anew.

Rant aside, I rated Accidents Happen 3/10.

(I was extremely generous, only for the production design, and nothing more)

Tully's Recall

My boyfriend has finally popped his blogging cherry and if only I wasn't this crude about everything has just opened a blog about film and other things. He doesn't know it, but he's a great writer. Check it out.

kierantully.blogspot.com

I could be a champion of sorts

Well.

This is awkward.

My last post was about a week ago and it was only a plug. I hope you haven't been assuming the worst, as I have (honest to the blogging Gods of the interwebs) been genuinely busy with the two internships I accepted not long ago and school.

I recently just started a two week, 30 hours in total Pro Tools sound editing/mixing workshop, which has been occupying me over the weekends. I've also been busy producing my second major drama film at school, which I have yet to realise is nothing but a mistake I will regret by the end of semester. Don't get me wrong though - I do enjoy being producer, and I love the power of management. In the long run, I am aiming to develop myself into that sort of organised, managerial role.

Apart from that, I have been managing two internships, one of which is 110% more demanding than the other. At this stage, I'm unsure if I can last with this one internship. For now, I must persist.

I am currently writing my thesis (final Diploma) film now which has to be greenlit in 3 weeks (complete with treatment and/or script, actors, locations and the whole lot), which will be a huge challenge with everything else resting on my shoulders. If I can get through this next couple of months, I think I might come out a real champion of sorts.

"My Paper Mind"

Let this blow your creative minds.

"Inspired by the Stratacut technique, Stratastencil is an additive process. Stratacut removes material to reveal another layer, while this technique adds another layer while still showing the layer before it. In this case, the material is paper, but I look forward to applying the concept to other mediums as well."

"4907" Goes Online

4907 from Fan Chan Pictures on Vimeo.

Any constructive feedback would be highly appreciated.

Francois Truffaut's Fahrenheit 451

Kieran and I managed to catch Francois Truffaut's 1966 Fahrenheit 451 at the Chauvel Cinematheque on Monday, and I thought I'd quickly share an insight of the film with you.

"Fahrenheit four-five-one is the temperature at which book paper catches fire and starts to burn."

Based on the novel of the same title by Ray Bradbury, the film is set in a dystopian future where books are deemed as the oppressors of society (staying home to read your book makes you anti-social!). The firemen of this society don't put out fires. Instead, their job is to destroy all the remaining books by making fires out of them. The story follows a fireman at the verge of a promotion to a higher ranking officer, who begins to question the entire system.

As one of the pioneers of French New Wave cinema, only Truffaut can make a jump-cut/zoom shot so damn deliciously appropriate. This was Truffaut's first film in colour, and I admire this. Having only seen The 400 Blows and half of Jules et Jim prior to this, I think his style is consistent here. Also, given the fact that this is his first (and only) English film, and that it was an American large-scale, bigger budget production compared to his previous films of small crews and smaller budgets. I really liked the style of this film, and loved the crazy French Nouveau techniques such as the weird zoom shots and how Truffaut continuously crosses the line of perception with the camera, playing on our understanding of character relationships.

I think for a sci-fi film, the story doesn't resonate as strongly as I would have liked. The concept was great, and I like the fact that Truffaut took on the project with his New Wave ideas. I love dystopian type society films with anti-heroes such as Montag, our story's lead.

I do recommend this film to all fans of French New Wave, or simply experimental techniques used in large-scale films such as this.

I rated this 7/10.

Film Ratings Column

On another note, I've added a new section to my blog's column titled Film Ratings. It's for films I've seen this year and that I have rated.

I guess there's nothing else to it.

Ten Callbacks and Four Interviews Later...

I managed to get two offers both for internship positions at two different production companies.. One is for a film distribution/production company, and the other is a film production company working on Australia's first Mobile-orientated film competition and festival. You can imagine how stoked I am about this. I wondered if there is a made-up law of Interning which questioned the idea of being an intern of two different companies. I guess only time will tell whether I can manage two different sources of work.

Also, let me tell you about the second interview I had just yesterday for one of the production companies. I was in a rush as usual in the morning, trying to get my clothes on while brushing my teeth. I couldn't find my black shoes, which I wear to interviews and jobs alike, until I remembered I'd left them in my little unpacked suitcase from my recent trip to Singapore. I thought Great!, at least looking for them wasn't much of a problem -- that was, until I put my hand into the hotel's laundry bag where I'd put my shoes in. After experiencing a short sensation of 'fluff', I pulled my hand out to discover my shoe had a very serious case of the mould! Thankfully, my sister's smaller pair of black Vans and her day off from work allowed me to borrow her pair. To make things worse though, upon arriving to the interview, I was asked if I had my CV on me and had forgotten to bring it.

So if, in the next couple of days, a new strain of the swine/bird/name of textbook animal flu arises... Well.

On a more positive note, now with the two internship opportunities before me, I imagine my networks have doubled in coverage, and for a budding film-maker and aspiring producer, this is a dream.

I start both internships next week. This couldn't have been better timing for me too, since next week the school is running a week-long course on Cinematography, which I'm not a part of and therefore have the entire week off (including the Easter weekend). Wish me more good things and I will think of you in return.

Also, for all the callbacks I received from every application I sent, I have to thank the greatness that is ScreenHub. It's a great tool for those in the Media industry who are looking for work. It works like Seek or CareerOne only dedicated to those in Media. So, check it out. You have to pay to subscribe, but so, so worth it.