The Benefits of Insomnia

So, I can't sleep. It happens. A lot of it has to do with the fact I can't shut off my brain right now. Wait...my brain in my big ass head. Anyway, I'm still up and I'm flipping channels on the telly and I find something that made this whole night just that much more special. When I grow up, I want to be able to direct/shoot/edit something...just...like...this...



Wow. And definitely not my first one tonight.

The funny thing is I've watched that a few times and I know exactly how to get every single one of the shots they used in that sequence. Most were done on a jib. Some had a 90 degree shutter angle. Some were also over-cranked to 120+fps (maybe 500...at least). They had to have shot it on camera capable of doing 4K OR they have a badass piece of telephoto glass on it. Color correction is immaculate. I know it was done over several takes, because 1) you can't get that many cameras for that much real-time coverage unless you have a gang of dosh and 2) all of the tire streak marks already on the asphalt. Finally, the slo-mo scene showing the dirt bike and the rally car making that last jump, with the C-130 aircraft flying in the opposite direction, was done entirely in post-production. How do I know? Look at the shadows. The plane doesn't have one and it should.

Stay tuned.

I've Got a Really Big Head

I'm not saying that in a cocky (ta-hehe) kind of way. I mean, I physically have a really big head. If you looked at pictures of me as a baby, you would have said, "Damn, he's ALL head." Because I was. I had one of those whippy neck things going on because my head was so damned heavy. When I enlisted in the military I lost a ton of weight and I looked like a burnt matchstick. Seriously. I don't think I grew into my head size until my 30's. At least now I'm kind of proportional, so you don't notice how big the cranium is because everything else is big too. I could so make a joke right there, but it's just too easy.

Why all the talk about my big ass head? Because, I have to continually fill it with more and more information. It is like I've got a ton of empty brain matter there just waiting to be stimulated by something new to learn. I've been doing a lot of learnin lately and I'm going to share some of it with you.

When you make a film, you've got to juggle a lot of balls (again...too easy). In order for it to be good, everything and everyone has to do their role successfully. I've been involved in a many of those roles, but the one I love the most is editing. Taking footage and making it look the way it was supposed to look. My career started with editing and I'm sure I'll do it for many years to come.

Having said all that, I've been spending a lot of time improving my editing skills. If you asked me a couple months ago the value of After Effects, my answer would be zero. Now, After Effects is like a buffet for my mentals. I can't stop learning all the cool things it has to teach. What kind of cool things?

Stuff like this. (If you know nothing of AE, then that is the best place to start)

This.

And this.

Andrew Kramer, I love you. Stay tuned!

Slippin' On My Duties

I've failed you all as your humble servant. Seriously, the point of this blog was to keep myself informed of all the cool things I've been learning while on this quest to become a filmmaker. By doing that, you too will get educated on a few bits of info along the way. I've been SO BUSY, I've neglected those duties, both to you and myself. Haha...duty myself.

First off, the new and much improved Cloudy Logic website is online. Mad props to Ken for taking us to the next level on the internets. Go out and give it a whirl because, as I type this blog, Ken is already working on making more changes. You've got to try to keep up people.

Been working on the Cutty Lue "Just a Thought" music video and it's finally in the can. It took me a while to do it, but everything I've learned has been well worth it. Being a director/editor is always tough because I have a visual image, in my mind, of what the end product should look like. Translating that mental image into something that properly portrays my idea, as well as making it enjoyable for the audience isn't an easy thing at all. I think I did pretty well with "Just a Thought". I'll be sure to talk some more about it in another blog. Do kind of like a brain dump/post-mortem.

Remember when I blogged about my fanny pack of goodness? Well, I've made a couple updates to it since then. No more fanny pack. Sure it's good for storing crap, but when you have to finger through everything to get to a vis-a-vis marker, then it's just counter-productive. So I invested in one of these. And it came with a bonus pair of these for free! I'm all about free. I'm telling you folks, stock up on ketchup packets. They're going to be worth their weight in diamonds when the zombies come a knockin'.

There are too many things I want to tell you, but I'm going to keep this one short and it'll make me come back to force feed you more. So, for now, I'll leave you with this cool demo:



I've got jury duty in the morning. Bleh. They don't know...they're in the danger zone! Stay tuned! I promise to keep you informed more often if you do.

Santa, Can I Have One of These?

I've been a good boy...kinda.

As I get more involved in this career, I find what arouses me is changing. Sure, I tend to fall prey to the standard temptations any heterosexual male may encounter. I'm talking about a different kind of stimulation. The kind that tickles the visual cortex and makes me kind of tingly.

You all know about the Sony EX3 we use and it's a badass camera. Especially in the hands of the mad scientists at Cloudy Logic. The camera definitely has opened up doors in many ways and we're constantly trying to test the limits of what it can do. Of course, there are a few things it can't do, hence where eye-candy-induced arousal comes to play. Stuff like this:



And some more eyegasms:



Those most pleasurable sessions were brought to you courtesy of the Phantom camera. Yes, I'd like to get my hands on one. Just for a day. Okay, I'll even take an hour on it.

Now that I've learned all this fun keying stuff in Final Cut and After Effects, I'm looking forward to shooting on the green screen. You can really pull off some great stuff with a green screen:



You've got to constantly strive to increase production value. That's all I've got for now kids. You stay cool and stay tuned!

The Recipe for an Oscar Winning Film

Google has some of the coolest apps. I think their whole drive is to make the internet a more productive place for all of us. AND they want to do it all for FREE! Craziness. I heard they bought Picnik so soon everyone will be a professional photographer. I was at my Google Reader page and they have a link to something new. It is like a visual form of the Reader called Google Reader Play that kind of scours the web for stuff you might like based upon the blogs you subscribe to. As you go through items in Play, you mark if you like them or not and it'll evolve to find things more specific to your liking. If you've already got your Reader set up, you should give Play a try. Anyway, one of the items it tossed my way was a great YouTube video and I'm sure it'll become viral...at least among us filmmakers:



Great stuff. See, nothing is sacred on them Internets. Stay tuned.

Oh...P.S. It starts tonight!

Smoke Break

We gotta R-U-N-N-O-F-T.

Film making is a constantly evolving process. Sometimes I go back to our early pieces of work and I reminisce on what was. It helps me stay grounded. I've been spending most of the day working on the Cutty Lue music video we shot a few weeks ago. Stepping into a new project is always a learning experience. I walk in with a certain amount of knowledge I've attained from previous productions, but I'm not the type to do the same thing twice...or at least I try my best not to. So, I learn new tricks with the hopes they can help translate the visuals in my brain, into a medium other humans can hopefully interpret. Trust me, it isn't an easy thing to do, but I'm pretty sure I'm getting better at it with every production.

I took a break from editing to clear my mentals. I could have turned on the very neglected Xbox. Maybe sat outside on the back patio and read a comic or a book. Take a trip to the driving range and hit a couple of buckets. Nope. I was a good student and did homework. I watched O Brother, Where Art Thou? I'm pretty sure all three of the people who read this blog has seen this movie. It's been on heavy rotation lately on the picture box. I really really like this film and I'm not a fan of George Clooney at all. I don't think he's a great actor (unless he has an ensemble cast like Ocean's Eleven). Although, he was really good in Up in the Air and that was my vote for the Oscar for Best Film. The Hurt Locker? Really?

Anyway, I've mentioned before how I tend to analyze movies now, instead of watching them. O Brother is one of the few movies I watch and enjoy. Sure, every now and then, I'll catch myself saying, "Wow, I wonder just how beautiful the colors of those leaves are without the desaturation?" Or, "I know how to shoot fire, but how do you fake that fire-like light off the character's faces?" Then I shoot Ken an e-mail. If you haven't seen O Brother in a while, you might want to consider re-educating yourself...



Stay tuned!

A Process Never Ending

I remember going to the Orlando 48-Hour Film Project premiere last year and after they showed the movies the filmmakers were asked to come to the front of the theater for a Q/A session. I think Ken was out of town, so I had to go down and represent. I made sure to bring down Mike Santi and Lisa Savage, the two leads for "Let Sleeping Squirrels Lie", as back-up. Anyway, one of the questions asked was, "What do you recommend up-and-coming filmmakers do to improve our films?" My brain's initial reaction was, "Uh...I'm an up-and-coming filmmaker too dude." But, the words that came out of my mouth were something like...

"Do your homework. Watch a LOT of movies, TV, commercials, whatever. Just watch them and if you find a shot or something you like, learn how to do it. Oh, and read Rebel Without a Crew by Robert Rodriguez."

Nowadays, I think I do less watching of movies, TV, etc and more analyzing. It doesn't matter what it is, I'll watch it and then, in my mind, I work out what I need to achieve that particular shot/look. If I don't know how to achieve it, I'll ping Ken and we'll try to figure it out. I think I'll continually apply this practice for the rest of my life. It helps me to become a better filmmaker, and with it being such a competitive market, I've got to get whatever edge I can.

It is always a nice experience when my eyes fall upon something that really tingles my filmmaking intellect and some of that tingling may overflow to my loins. Stuff like this:



Currently, I'm doing an infinite number of renders. Each one seems to last an eternity. It's okay though, because what I'm working on is really cool stuff. Thanks to Creative Cow, I learned how to do layers in a Final Cut sequence (kind of like a Photoshop project). Wow, talk about opening up another dimension in editing! Stay tuned!

Now I Can Hang With the Cool Kids

I've worked on several film productions and you can tell the folks who are veterans. They bring the tools they may need, with them. For instance, a script supervisor will have a clip board, a bevy of pens/pencils, highlighters, copies of the script/shot list, a ruler and a stop watch. Depending on a person's role, they'll have specific items for their particular job.

I've worked many different roles on a set. PA, grip, gaffer, data management, AC, psuedo-AD and director. It isn't like I received formal training in any of those jobs either. Everything I learned was via OJT through a bunch of great people who were not only wonderful teachers, but had the patience for a green horn like myself. Plus, they let me use their stuff, when I'm on the set, because I didn't have my own. Well that's finally changed! Voila! This is a mix of a grip/gaffer/AC kit. Just a few things I've either used often, or had the need for:



1 - Hot hands. Basically they're gloves that will help keep the flesh on your fingertips from melting away when you touch a 2,000 watt light. I've melted off my fingerprints one too many times to not make the investment (FINALLY). Cost: 35 bucks, but Ken gave me a 25% off coupon because he loves me...so...very...much.

2 - Mini notebook. There's been countless times when I said, "Dammit, I wish I had something to write this awesome information, I just received, down. Before I completely drown the memory in beer." Of course, the only thing I'll probably write in it is: "Buy beer". Cost: A buck and some change.

3 - Multi-tool. Everything on a set is put together with a multi-tool and gaffers tape. Everything important anyway. The damn thing has already made me bleed my own blood. Cost: A sawbuck.

4 - LED flashlight. These things are brighter than the sun. Seriously. I hit Jemara with the light and it made her fall off her Wii Fit board and thus mess up her yoga balance score for the day. She'll still love me...she doesn't have a choice. I feed her, provide her shelter and drive her places. Cost: Another sawbuck.

5 - Batteries for the flashlight. Yes, I take them out when I'm not using the flashlight. Helps extend the battery life. Oh, I replaced those cheap ones with Energizer lithiums. Sure, they're a little more expensive, but they last damn near forever. Cost: Rayovacs - free because they came with the flashlight. Lithiums - 20 bucks for a 12 pack at Costco. Get a membership already!

6 - Tape measurer. I know it says SINGER on it, but dammit that was the only cloth tape measurer I could find and I had to go into Jo-Ann's to get it. No, I left my testicles in the car before going in. I didn't want to set off any alarms. Anyway, you don't realize just how important a tape measurer is to an AC. Cost: 5 bucks and spending time in a store with a lot of people that wore plaid.

7 - C47's. Critical when dealing with lights and very handy in other ways. If you're on the set you'll find C47's clipped in various locations on a grip/gaffer's clothing/body. Use your imagination. Cost: 2 bucks for like 50 of 'em. I'm sure I'll have to buy another pack in a couple weeks.

8 - Pens and pencils. Necessary for writing in item #2 or to sign the release statements you'll get on the set. I have a Guinness one (of course) and a CLP one (company policy). The automatic pencil I jacked from Jemara. Food, shelter and chauffeur. Cost: Free. For me anyway.

9 - Dry erase markers*. These are used to put marks on the focus wheel. That's how you can pull off those badass rack focuses that got Kathryn Bigelow an Oscar. I still can't believe that. Really? The movie only made 15 million TOTAL domestically. Not that I'm knocking 15 mil, but Avatar made that in one afternoon. And no, I wasn't cheering for Avatar. I was actually rooting for Up In The Air. But we'll reserve that debate for a different time. Bring Guinness. Cost: 3 bucks I think.

10 - Fanny pack. You need something to carry all the above crap in. I used to clown people who wore fanny packs, but now I'm going to be sportin' one. So, they've now officially become cool. Cost: 6 bucks.

The only thing not shown is gaffers tape, but I jack that from the CLP stock. I'm official now! Stay tuned!

* EDITOR'S NOTE: Ken read this blog and corrected me on #9. You don't use dry erase markers on the China wheel (a.k.a. focus wheel). The dry erase markers are used for the slate. You use a Vis-A-Vis marker because it is a WET erase marker. Don't want to use a dry erase marker on a China wheel because fingers touch it to roll the focus and those same fingers will erase the marks you made. A Vis-A-Vis marker is wet erase, so your fingers won't erase the marks...unless you're shooting in Florida in the summer. Ken was also kind enough to donate a Vis-A-Vis marker to my fanny pack, because he loves me...so..very...much.

Diamonds in the Rough

A few weeks ago we hooked up with SNAFU to rap to the guys a little bit and discuss a bio project we're working on with them. Let me tell you, Phil (guitarist and lead singer), Steve (bass player) and Ryan (drummer) are the COOLEST guys you'll ever meet. They're really down to earth and very humble about their awesome talent. We got to the location with nothing planned but to talk to the guys and maybe do a couple test shots. If you know the location, it is a pretty tight space and getting the EX3 in there with all the attachments isn't easy. Especially when you want to shoot with a 85mm lens. Of course, we all make sacrifices for Mr. Carl Zeiss.

We recorded about half an hour of footage, so it wasn't that difficult to go through. While reviewing it, I couldn't help but to notice a particular clip. From the moment the record button was pressed, to start recording, until I pressed it again, the 10+ minutes captured was brilliant. I don't know how else to put it. We've been very lucky to capture artists when they are at there most real. When they are truly who they are and they're doing what they love to do best. We've also been very lucky to get some damn good footage in the process. This footage shows how SNAFU makes a song practically from scratch. Phil pitched the idea to the guys right after I happen to start recording.

I took that 10+ minutes and did a little bit of color correction to it as well as learned how to play with After Effects to do some floating titles. It is always interesting when I want to do something, but I don't know how to do it. I eventually end up reverse engineering the thing and somehow, it works. Anyway, enough of the chatter. Here's the end result:

SNAFU - Valentine's Day 2010 from Cloudy Logic on Vimeo.

Many thanks to SNAFU for giving us the time and wonderful shots!

I've still got more goodies up my sleeve, so stay tuned!

F! the Man!

My Life is Measured in Renders

It seems like all I'm doing nowadays is rendering rendering rendering. Not that I'm complaining because I've got stuff to render. LOTS of stuff. Over the past few days, I've been learning how to be dangerous with After Effects. Just another tool of the trade, ya know? The more I learn the better our end product. Anyway, I'll be sure to post the results of my countless hours of rendering and After Effects goodness in a forthcoming post.

Speaking of goodness, Ken has been getting some trigger time on the EX. Shooting various shots and all of them are visual feasts. He took a few of them and put them together in a short flick. Check it out:

Stock footage from early March 2010 from Cloudy Logic on Vimeo.

We'll be sure to keep your visual and auditory receivers stimulated, so stay tuned!

Those Bloody Brits

Right now, I've got some stuff rendering in Final Cut. According to the dialog box, it estimates 40 minutes before I'm given its bountiful treasures. In that time, I'm going to write this blog and continue to watch the first episode of "Survivors". Sorry if that link doesn't give you more helpful information. Apparently being the United Kingdom's #1 ally doesn't allow us the luxury of watching embedded video at bbc.com. Here is a better look at the show:



The cool thing is all the badass footage used in that trailer is actually in the show. It is chock FULL of really GREAT shots and the best part is the show is seriously worth watching. I'm only halfway through the first episode and I'm hooked. Those of you who know me also know I'm intrigued by post-apocalyptic stories. It isn't the apocalypse part of it that intrigues me. It's the drastic change to the human condition because of it. Our stories become more significant...more special.

I'm going to take advantage of the remaining estimated 29 minutes of my render time to enjoy some downtime and do homework, while being entertained...by way of "Survivors". Oh, some shots in the show perfectly apply something Ken and I have considered in theory. Sucks someone else did it, before we did, but cool we thought about it.

Oh, you might be interested in what I am rendering? Stay tuned!