Filmmaker Slog: in the cloud

testing the Tascam iM2

2012-01-06T12:15:00.001Z

plastic-y but not complaining at the price

2012-01-06T12:10:00.001Z

ok then. brace for searing aural disappointment ..?

2012-01-06T12:08:00.001Z

a long story that ends in 4S

2012-01-03T11:21:00.001Z

commoditise ALL the art

2011-12-21T21:53:00.001Z

computerise ALL the art

2011-12-21T21:39:00.001Z

in the loupe

2011-12-21T20:55:00.001Z

"TOP" - black marker on aluminium, 2006

2011-12-21T20:07:00.001Z

The Fix, storyboard art, ~2009

2011-12-21T16:47:00.001Z

Capek Character Concept Art, The Fix, ~2009

2011-12-21T16:44:00.001Z

jacked in, tuned out

2011-11-19T22:40:00.001Z

my home cinema still needs a lot of work

2011-11-19T20:40:00.001Z

and I discover over lunchtime, my mac is also going to have a bad day

2011-11-15T14:27:00.001Z

Untitled

2011-11-09T18:45:00.001Z

Untitled

2011-10-30T16:24:00.001Z

another Cinema Direct in the can

2011-10-23T22:35:00.001+01:00

Square plate sculpture, ceramics on hob

2011-10-04T17:40:00.001+01:00

Untitled

2011-10-03T16:08:00.001+01:00

#FCPX still needs some bugfixing :(

2011-10-03T15:58:00.001+01:00

Consumer I Scream (self portrait, detail)

2011-09-24T15:37:00.001+01:00

Plug me into a pineapple

2011-09-22T23:05:00.001+01:00

Building quite a #FCPX library of VHS restorations

2011-09-22T20:37:00.001+01:00

Found my first anti-biz card. Ironic even back then :)

2011-09-18T16:43:00.001+01:00

40 for 40

2011-09-13T17:20:00.001+01:00

They say life begins at forty. I'm about to find out. Here are 40 things I have learned about how the world works from 1971 - 2011.

In no particular order-

1. Perception is everything. Stop and think about that for a moment.

2. You literally are what you eat. Garbage in, garbage out. What you ingest affects your mind, body and soul - not an exagerration.

3. Empathy. It's not all here just for my entertainment.

4. We are moist robots. We follow basic programming and can be steered like lab mice if the right incentives can be found.

5. Don't be a bread-head. Money is not real.

6. If you're down on your luck remember: you will get through it with perseverance and tenacity.

7. "Success" does not come from within. It comes from without; from the world outside. People have to like you.

8. Parenthood is nothing too much to be afraid of. Let your kids be kids.

9. High art that you despise will trickle down into the high street and the public psyche whether you - and they - like it or not.

10. There are no original ideas. Only mash-ups of what has gone before plus an injection of your own direction to distinguish it from what has gone before.

11. Dramatise your differentiating idea.

12. Anomalies get the attention.

13. Polarise people. If they love you then you will be in their heart, if they hate you then you will stay on their mind.

14. More brands exist than words in the English language. Brain capacity for language is finite.

15. The education system prepared me for jobs that did not exist by the time I was looking for a job. The only place I ever did a handwritten CV and covering letter was at school.

16. The current education system favours those with memories. A memory and intellect are not the same thing. Comprehend what you learn. It can always be looked up later.

17. Every 10 years, around the turn of the decade, there is a boom-and-bust cycle.

18. Question authority.

19. Choose your god wisely.

20. Technology is not your salvation.

21. Nothing lasts forever.

22. Measure a things importance in your life by asking if you'd care about it on your death bed.

23. Don't spend hours at a time, day after day, torturing and destroying insects for your amusement. It's bad karma and can take decades to shake off.

24. Begin by beginning.

25. Other people have the same questions as you do. Speak up.

26. Listen to your parents even if you do not agree.

27. Side step the little pieces of history repeating.

28. History does not repeat; it rhymes.

29. Science by concensus is not scientific.

30. It's not worth being paranoid when people are the same where-ever you go. There is no us-and-them; only us.

31. You will only regret the things you didn't do.

32. There is a war for your mind.

33. Don't watch so much TV.

34. Exercise your imaginination. Read a book. Listen to music with your eyes closed.

35. Sound is emotive.

36. Riches and wealth are not the same thing.

37. It is who you know. Make good friends and keep them.

38. Instead of only complaining, offer up a solution too.

39. There is always new material from outer space landing on Earth.

40. The only constant is change.

Nikon ME-1 / Panasonic SD900 - not a bad combo

2011-09-01T16:30:00.001+01:00

My camcorder now has more hair than I do.

2011-08-24T16:43:00.001+01:00

My camcorder now has more hair than I do.

2011-08-24T16:42:00.001+01:00

Shot & edited feature length #DirectCinema piece in a single day. #Q3HD & #fcpx

2011-08-20T20:27:00.001+01:00

Fostex AR 4i for iPhone

2011-08-12T21:45:00.001+01:00

So I figured "What the heck" #WarrantyVoid

2011-08-12T15:14:00.001+01:00

Foster AR-4i, in the box

2011-08-12T13:30:00.001+01:00

I may be pleasantly surprised or thoroughly depressed within the next 10 minutes ... #CinemaDirect

2011-08-12T13:26:00.001+01:00

It gets everywhere

2011-07-24T16:46:00.003+01:00

It gets everywhere

2011-07-24T16:46:00.001+01:00

iKlip At Work

2011-07-16T11:27:00.001+01:00

See the full gallery on Posterous

An Eye On Art

2011-06-27T18:17:00.001+01:00

Astromech hiding

2011-06-26T18:48:00.001+01:00

4 hours & counting to render 1 minute 720p title #FCPX

2011-06-24T13:05:00.003+01:00

Keepin it liquid

2011-06-22T17:29:00.001+01:00

EB-GB doing a Dalek impression #TheGoodies #r2d2

2011-06-16T21:45:00.001+01:00

The Goodies & EB-GB (R2 D2)

2011-06-16T21:41:00.001+01:00

Astromech Flips Its Lid

2011-06-16T16:24:00.001+01:00

See the full gallery on Posterous

Ever since seeing that episode of The Goodies as a kid I've wanted one of these. The circle is now complete, or somesuch.

Successfully relocated my "wireless" network

2011-06-12T14:59:00.001+01:00

Samson Meteor mic looks like good value on paper

2011-06-04T09:22:00.001+01:00

I was about to ask "how is the mic capsule positioned in the Samson Meteor?"

2011-06-04T09:18:00.001+01:00

Samson package branding. They seem to be learning from the masters?

2011-06-04T09:15:00.001+01:00

Cute. But I need to find my iPad camera connection kit to connect my, err, microphone

2011-06-04T09:03:00.001+01:00

Samson Meteor USB mic has arrived here

2011-06-04T08:59:00.001+01:00

Step back, time for T

2011-05-31T16:54:00.001+01:00

Audiofile Engineering FiRe 2 Records 48kHz on iPhone 4

2011-05-26T18:11:00.001+01:00

Okay, so I was mighty skeptical when I read that FiRe 2 would record 16bit at 48kHz - mainly because I was under the impression the iPhone hardware was limited to 44.1kHz. Well, as the random recording below shows, it records something in the higher frequencies that 48kHz facilitates. Interesting - though I really should get around to recording a frequency sweep for a more accurate representation of what's going on.

Now that Thomlinson Holman has been hired by Apple I hope one of the first things he suggests is implementing 24bit ADC so iDevices can deliver 24/48 mono recordings which has the potential to be very very disruptive the field recorder market. I'm always pleasantly surprised at how clear and almost transparent iPhone recordings are considering, you know, it's a feckin handset mic.

Now if only someone would develop a digital mic of Sennheiser 416 quality that jacks straight into the iPhone dock connector with an AA battery in the body of the mic for phantom power - well, they'd sell at least one of those.

Wut?!

2011-05-21T15:09:00.001+01:00

Heavyweight, Almost Silent Productions, Oxford, May 2011

2011-05-15T16:23:00.001+01:00

Gave the Nagra LB, Sennheiser 418S and Rycote-S a workout on a short yesterday.

See the full gallery on Posterous

On the farm

2011-05-14T18:49:00.001+01:00

Acronym for errr what was this again

2011-05-12T17:16:00.000+01:00

Bike and backpack ready for the 6 mile commute #gocycle

2011-05-11T07:55:00.001+01:00

Taken at Gocyclocross Central

Gocycle Chip Tuning Software

2011-05-10T20:48:00.001+01:00

What downloads section?!

Gocycle handlebar config

2011-05-10T17:41:00.001+01:00

Taken at Gocyclocross Central

KKL Gocycle: First Impressions

2011-05-09T16:42:00.001+01:00

At the beginning of this year it was no longer economically viable for me to run my car (a T reg Peugeot 306 diesel). I'm also not in a position to buy another car that isn't a money pit. My preferred next car is an EV (electric vehicle), but they are currently too expensive for me to be able to consider seriously.

I want to be able to get about, not necessarily fast, but most definitely easily - the less effort the better! I have a push-bike but that's starting to fall apart too after around four years of regular use. The hills around here would always put me off going too far afield on what is a very capable touring bicycle.

So I started looking at two-wheeled EV - ebikes, pedelecs, etc. It struck me they fall into three main types (not including different drive technologies):

1. Pedal assist.

2. Throttle assist.

3. Selectable pedal or throttle assist.

Throttle assist is an active method of pressing a button and whizzing off - you can choose to pedal along with the motor, or not. (If the EV doesn't have pedals then you obviosuly won't ever be pedalling).

Pedal assist is more passive and more intelligent systems detect how hard you are pedalling and adjusts the motor to minimise your physical effort.

I chose the pedelec route (ie something with pedals) based on list prices and the fact that there is no mandatory admin (no MOT, no insurance, no road tax) which is not the case with faster vehicles (eg 50cc equivilent) that need to be licensed, registered and have a (free) tax disc.

Speed. In the UK you are limited to 15mph and must be over 14 years of age to ride a pedelec on the road. Off-road, not so much. What you will usually find is that each pedelec has an "off-road" mode of 18-20mph based on the road legal limits in most US states. Theoretically pedelecs can be unrestriced for racing modes, albiet at the expense of much reduced battery power duration.

Following my inner voice of "zero admin" I somehow arrived with the KKL's Gocycle on my (very) short list. Apart from the striking design, I was also drawn by the attention to detail and supporting British engineering. Although it's not the most powerful electric bike out there, it's definitely the most "applicance" like - you can't even get to the chain to oil it (which is a good thing in my book).

Aside from popping on a helmet (which is not a legal requirement in the UK) you can just hop on to the Gocycle and, well, go cycle. No cycle clips required (unlike my tourer - and I'm not a spandex kind of guy either). It's a "light" bike by pedelec standards but definitely on the heavier end of the spectrum when comparing with push-bikes.

Most of the 16kg weight is the battery, which somewhat confoundingly is NiMh. This means a totally drained battery for a prolonged period of time can damage the cells (I learned this when using NiMh based mobile phones). I would guess the "generation 2" Gocycle will catch up with the rest of the industry and at least offer Li-on as an option - it's lighter and open to far more abuse from people who don't know the first thing about battery management (like my kids).

The Gocycle is very easy to ride without power, despite the weight. In the few days I've had the bike I've used the throttle sparingly (mostly for inclines), and been on 7mph trips with my 9 year old daughter - so not had an opportunity to really give the throttle a workout. Will do soon!

I have already had a flat (probably caused by taking it off-road with my daughter), but it was super easy to replace the inner-tube once I'd found somewhere selling them along with a pump. At some point I'll probably replace the factory slicks with some trail-worthy BMX tyres and load the innertubes up with puncture resistant "slime".

The Gocycle has three gears which I find adequate for most situations except speeding downhill - you are best coasting down steep hills because the pedals soon have to be moved too fast for your legs to keep up. This is probably the biggest and compromise I've had to accept on the design, however I do like the simplicity of only three gears.

Other compromises on the Gocycle are the thicker seat post meaning standard seat-post mounted pannier racks won't fit, nor will my existing rear cycle light. Quite easy to overcome with a backpack and helmet mounted lights. Obviously parts like the pit-stop wheels can only be sourced from KKL, but hopefully I won't be breaking too many rims. The main consumable (tyres and innertube) are standard 20" wheel, BMX type. Everything else should be reasonably maintenance free for a couple of years (brakepads, chain, gears, etc).

You can see a couple of my trips to date recorded on everytrail.com

http://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=1077826

What's also worth mentioning is that in two days of ownership it has provoked opinions from random strangers, usually positive. Not the bike to have if you wish to be inconspicuous. Also the motor is "noisy" which may draw attention from the public - you know, the same public we are told who cannot hear electric vehicles. Personally I find the whine of the motor quite satisfying, especially the noise it makes when disengaging. At some point I'll get around to recording it.

Would I recommend the Gocycle? Well, not specifically since it is my only frame of reference for pedelecs. However, I would recommend looking into which electric bike might be right for you if you enjoy cycling for pleasure/commuting rather than competitive sport.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Doing its best to blend in

2011-05-08T15:23:00.001+01:00

Taken at McDonald's Havant

Rescued!

2011-05-08T15:06:00.001+01:00

BUGGER!!!!!!

2011-05-08T14:30:00.001+01:00

just in case it rains later

2011-05-08T10:24:00.001+01:00

Taken at Gocyclocross Central

Gocycle jacked in, juicing up

2011-05-06T20:28:00.001+01:00

Taken at Gocyclocross Central

Fill 'er up

2011-05-06T20:25:00.001+01:00

Taken at Gocyclocross Central

Cyberman

2011-05-04T17:01:00.001+01:00

A2DP iPad home minima

2011-05-04T16:39:00.001+01:00

Taken at The Spinney home minima

Return of poor man's home cinema #waitingfordarkness #glossy

2011-04-29T15:37:00.001+01:00

Taken at Spinney Home Cinema

#2095

2011-04-28T13:38:00.001+01:00

Now Utilising 5GHz 802.11N

2011-04-27T14:27:00.001+01:00

2.4GHz is so crowded. Now I'm the only one on the block blasting out
5GHz, it's a pity some of my 802.11n devices (such as smartphones)
don't support 802.11n at the higher frequency. So far the iMac and the
iPad 2 are cosying up on 5GHz.

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Reversible Bolt

2011-04-26T09:51:00.001+01:00

Self Portrait, "Headphone"

2011-04-24T21:22:00.001+01:00

iPad 2 FaceTime #BUFI chat

2011-04-24T19:40:00.001+01:00

Untitled

2011-04-19T18:42:00.001+01:00

Not quite enough room to swing a 21" iMac. (MacBook Air did you say?)

2011-04-17T11:23:00.001+01:00

iPad art #6274

2011-04-15T11:46:00.001+01:00

I used to work in a Class 100 cleanroom: challenge accepted

2011-04-14T10:52:00.001+01:00

Engrish

2011-04-14T10:48:00.001+01:00

Let it be krone I have no idea why I still have this 15 years later

2011-04-13T20:57:00.001+01:00

Uh oh new gadget in the house

2011-04-12T18:02:00.001+01:00

having problems with your droid?

2011-04-11T23:40:00.001+01:00

Nagra LB Preplay Checks Completed

2011-02-24T01:37:00.001Z

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Download now or watch on posterous

p98.mov (6107 KB)

Arrived

2011-02-23T16:39:00.001Z

This is where the fun begins.

Sent from my iPwn

ETA: Wednesday

2011-02-21T16:12:00.001Z

Ideas Are Free, No Excuses

2011-02-12T19:52:00.001Z

Soon.

2011-02-11T23:21:00.001Z

Posting to Blogger from Posterous from Mail from iPad

2011-02-02T16:59:00.001Z

In theory.

Blogging On Blogger From iPad

2011-01-04T21:59:00.001Z

So I have discovered through trial and error that neither Mobile Safari nor iCab Mobile browsers will play well with blogger.com when wanting to pick a pic to upload from the iDevice - so this is BlogPress.

Currently things are winding up on The Fix (honest! Just. A. Couple. More. Tweaks.) and I find myself with iPad to use as the preproduction tool for the next feature. The reasons why, are many. Let's leave it at that.

I'm kind of disappointed that the app that Final Draft announced back in March 2010 hasn't surfaced yet - I guess it's going through some tough QA which probably isn't a bad thing. I've also seen an announcement from Movie Magic that they also have an iDevice app on the way.

I think if you can write on a netbook (and people do) then it's not much of a stretch to write on the iPad - certainly in landscape mode I can type as well as I can on any other hardware keyboard (I'm no touch typist, but I do have muscle memory telling me where each letter is which translates well enough to the software keyboard in landscape). Heck, I remember electric typewriters, heck I even owned a mechanical typewriter back in the distant past and let me tell you I would rather be tapping at this iPad screen than going back to either of those things).

So typing then. Not a showstopper on the iPad (but on the iPhone is a recipe for RSI for me).

No Final Draft app for iPad? Not a huge problem necessarily since there are already apps that can work with the .fdx file format - though, I haven't done any import/export testing just yet. In terms of UX, I'm leaning toward Scripts Pro although the reviews are not that rosy I do like it's 'tab' and intelligence - it's the most natural to me when cracking out a scene at full pelt without needing to think about the formatting.

It is going to be a while before I'll need any screenwriting app - still stewing ideas and will then be playing with scene cards - on the iPad of course.

I've also been eyeing the contracts app that includes model release and stuff, looks incredibly useful.

No doubt the production itself will be planned in a spreadsheet, and most likely candidate for that is Apple's Numbers.

One thing's for sure - the next production will still rely on a more typical desktop machine for the multitrack NLE - the touch apps just ain't there yet for me, particularly in regards to dialog editing, J- and L- cuts and not to mention storage for rushes. Much as I like the idea of editing my timeline hands-on and tearing the filmstrip with my fingers and sliding envelopes around with my fingers, etc etc.

More at a later date, see you then.

- Posted using BlogPress from my slablet

Still Alive. Not Blogging. Working.

2010-11-08T21:50:00.000Z

We will get this flick released before 2095.

There's a lot going on. From preliminary film festival submissions to actually finishing post-production between moments of (unrelated and personal) 2010 despair. Plenty of Art Rage, too.

The soundtrack is playloud sick.

The visuals are moviecore hardwave.

Every frame has a meaning, every waveform an emotion.

Absorb this and your world will reveal itself to you.

Over and out.

Hot Summer Blow Out

2010-07-22T16:43:00.028+01:00

Wow, it's almost the end of July. How did that happen?!

It's a belter of a summer here in the UK so many of the talented individuals working on The Fix (myself included) have been up to our lobes in "other" stuff (you know, the kind of stuff that pays money).

I've seen some of the preliminary post-vfx being done at The Attick, the pre-mix sfx dubs are going well, work continues with the music scoring and we now have a voice over artist recording for a special pre-title sequence which I'm looking forward to reviewing.

The picture edit is locked, the other elements are being loaded. There's a lot of work remaining to do before we saturate the globe with a new wave of thoughtcrime.

Hyperspace 101

2010-05-09T20:35:00.000+01:00

So, The Fix. 2095, and all that. It's been five years since the DIY revolution made the cover of Screen International (a revolution that award winning "Crooked Features" was a part of). So much has changed in half a decade, yet remains the same.

One thing that will never change is the need to let your audience know your flick exists and to give them a taste of what to expect when the lights dim and they settle into their chair with a bag of popcorn (or a bag of Revels if you're anything like me).

With that in mind, there is now a Bezel Corp approved Q Enabled Blogging section where you will find bite sized chunks of The Fix. Approved for use in Animal, Domestic, and Military environs. Over time the significance of 2095 and the John Titor Temporal Achievement Award should become apparent. You'll also learn why you should not plumb your fridge into the global birthing canal.

For the first week you should find a new post at some point every day. Thereon, I suspect updates will become weekly as we move towards a London premiere followed by regional screenings. If you have any questions you know where to find me.

Update on #TheFix #2095

2010-05-05T20:03:00.002+01:00

Here's the latest on the progress of post-production on The Fix. Shot over 5 contiguous days in October 2009 and ex-#2wkfilm.

The picture cut is 99% locked and finecut. Running time should clock around 70 - 75 minutes depending on how fast we decide to scroll the credits at the end.

I spent most of yesterday at Rennie Pilgrem's studio (within the Ealing Studios lot) spotting the cut. Which just means we (Rennie, Evil C, and I) have now all agreed which bits need some incidental music - this is on top of some of the back catalogue I've already cut to.

The genre is science-fiction, but there's a growing feeling the finished product will seem somewhat comic-book or graphic novel. I don't resist this description.

There's still a fair bit of dialogue editing to do. This basically just means cutting out a lot of extraneous unwanted background noises and ensuring the actors are intelligible whilst plugging ungainly gaps in the dialogue with atmos and room tone. If it's done well, you don't even know it's been done.

Spot sound effects. Lots to do here. I'll probably use a mixture of specially recorded sound along with stuff I have from various libraries. The truck doppler is already in there as my new nod to post modern irony and overused in-jokes (read: Wilhelm).

I also have a meeting next week with local VFX shop The Attick to discuss effects for a key scene and also potential additional work to aid continuity.

All in all I'm very pleased with how things are going, and look forward to sending out the gold envelopes inviting an audience to the UK London premiere in September.

#TheFix #2095

Standing On Your Head

2010-04-22T22:29:00.002+01:00

This is going to be a complete ramble. Walk away now.

Celebrity is modern movie aristocracy. You're something or nothing there's no inbetween. Who wants to be in the mushy middle anyway? Be remarkable with your dramatised differentiating idea and people's tongues will wag about you. That will lead to sales and demand, right? Whether it's one night in Paris or a lost fourth generation iPhone, people will talk. Vacuous lot that we are.

What if you want to find all the British movies made available in 2006. Where could you find that information with the least friction? Here perhaps? Yes, the only reason I know about that is because I dealt with the catalogue when releasing "Crooked Features" to an uncaring world. Where do I find similar information for other countries? Other cultures? What if I wanted to find "The Original Soundtrack" which was shot in Portsmouth in 2009 - I'm sure I could find it - with a bit of friction.

Frictionless works better.

To be totally frictionless is impossible, but not improbable. Look at Amazon. Started as a big warehouse selling books online. Now it's a big brand, everyone trusts them even if they don't always buy from them. Same for Apple's iTunes store. You've at least heard of it.

So have you heard of a place where you can go to find great movies? I don't mean reviews of great movies. I mean the movies themselves. I'll bet if you're even remotely tech savvy you'll have a Bittorrent client installed and I know what you've been using it for, don't try to hide the truth from me.

So you've "pirated" a movie. Shocking, I know. And in 720P or 1080P with 5.1 surround it's stunning isn't it? And you got this how? For "free"? And what? You deleted the movie right after you watched it. Wow. That's some consumer culture right there isn't it. If you look at the dictionary definition of consumption you'll see it's also about decay, destruction, and disease. So the shoe fits perfectly and we're all secretly wearing it.

Within a generation this will probably be business as usual. I mean, I don't expect my kids to know what physical media is. Forget the message, the massage; the medium is the machine. Machines that are increasingly pocket sized and more powerful than the Cray X-MP - if I recall correctly (which I'm not known for, I'm full of shit actually) the Cray was used for work on "Tron" and "The Last Starfighter" amongst others. The Cray ran at 105MHz with up to 32MB of memory. The phone in my pocket right now is clocked at 1000MHz and has 512MB of memory. That's just crazy, but I assure you it will get crazier.

These machines, exemplified by the likes of iPad, are primarily about consumption at this juncture. I weep that my son and daughter will never be interested in LOGO nor BASIC (not really, but I think it's a shame) and won't ever experience a text based adventure. Right now their iPod Touches are their personal portable arcade machines. They don't watch many movies on that small screen though (except for my son's Transformer's obsession) - that's still generally the reserve of the telly and the frontroom and some communal family hypnosis. Of course often we'll use iPod video-out to watch the shoe that fits on the big screen. Not as big as IMAX, sure, and not as big as our local multiplex - but big enough and cosy enough and not a strange annoying person in sight (although I do hate anyone who crunches in my ear, family members have been known to do that).

So in the future, frak, everyone gets their movies for "free" because it's the most frictionless and easy way to do it and nothing's illegal unless you get caught. The shoe even fits police officers and lawyers y'know. A movie without DRM is a movie you can watch your way, on the device of your choosing.

Don't you feel a little bit guilty for not compensating the distributor for watching their film? Of course you don't! The distributor did jack shit to get the movie to you, you did all the work yourself! (And you only did the work because it was so easy compared to the effort of futzing with DRM or actually going outdoors).

So the distributor adds zero value to the mechanics of distribution in this new world, although it could well be his dime that marketed and promoted the movie.

Marketing and promotion. Increasingly, rightly or wrongly or out of bloody-mindedness, independent moviemakers are doing this themselves. Why? Because the big distributors are only interested in the big fish. I can understand that, I'm sure you can too. The festival circuit is also becoming an increasingly expensive and leech infested irrelevance to independents.

Make no mistake, independents are the future and today's players are tomorrow's specialised niche. You may love your vinyl but the rest of the world not concerned with nostalgia is quite happy without it.

How does independent moviemaking ever become sustainable? Has it ever been sustainable? Certainly the major studios are doing their best to disassociate from sinking indies. I guess in a recession nobody thinks they want/need to be independent. Suckle from a corporate bosom or whatever. Consume.

Aren't big studios just, errr, big indies? Anyway, true indies - the outlaws - the lone guns - the guys who are slave to a passion - they weathered the recession (and still are) because ideas are free.

Except when they're not.

IP. Intellectual property.

You know why Hollywood is on the west coast? It was the wild west. Lawless. It was a place where Thomas Edison could not litigate against the moviemakers who were infringing his patent for projection systems and all that jazz (told you I'm full of shit but I'm sure this is true). Hollywood is borne from piracy of intellectual property. Over time, the rebels joined the gentlemen's club.

Today, the internet is the frontier. I'm not sure who the internet indians are but no doubt they are responsible for all the online casinos.

So how will this play out? Old Hollywood had to build cinemas to screen "train pulling into station", today's moviemakers have 720P YouTube ready to host almost anything they care to throw at it. You can get an audience, but how do you get a paying audience when the internet mindset is "I want everything for free"? Sure, YouTube will pay you a few dollars for every few million impressions but unless you manufacture content in bulk that will never pay the bills. Old Hollywood manufactured comedies and westerns to pay the bills (remember: I am full of shit). No permits needed in the middle of the desert, no pesky royalties to pay on technological innovations.

You've got this far. Stand the system on its head. Only pay for a movie if you actually thought it was any good. Only pay for a movie if it didn't bore the tits off you, didn't offend your sensibilities (or maybe commend it if it did!) - decide to pay for the movie because you've now seen it 30 times and feel somewhat emotionally attached and want to recognise the moviemakers for the good work they've done. How do you do that?

Let's take "Crooked Features" as an example (just pretend you like it, mmkay?). Unless you have an IMDb Pro account the contact details you'll find on Google are woefully out of date. That's the problem with moving on, isn't it? Who stays around to update the past? Sure you could buy a DVD of it from CreateSpace but don't think I'll see any money from that, because I won't. And if I don't see any money from it you can be damned sure the cast and crew are seeing even less!

It's not about the money, is it. It's about recognition of an emotional attachment. If that attachment is strong enough you'll be compelled to do something. The easiest thing to do is cough up some cash, right?

How will you ever know if your payment reaches the moviemakers you wish to recognise and compensate? We've already established that independent's websites come and go, contact details erode, and it's not a frictionless process tracking down a moviemaker. So you'll give up of course. Unless there was a place you trusted that did the work for you. Where is that place today? As far as I know, it does not exist. Even if it did exist, would enough people care enough to use it? Honesty is the best policy but it is not the leading policy (at least, if our political leaders are any kind of baseline). For as long as leaders are corrupt, what examples are we following and what examples do our kids observe from us?

A tip jar, an honesty box, could be a good start. It could lead to a data mine of culture, taste, and provide the trail to watching your next excellent movie you don't even know exists. It may not be the complete answer, but I think I may have forgotten the question anyway.

Moviemaker Cluetrain: The Lone Gun

2010-04-10T11:27:00.005+01:00

I'm still busy getting the fine-cut of The Fix together inbetween other responsibilities, but had to stop and take notice of @filmutopia's manifesto for the Lone Gun moviemaker. He's even kindly committed to making it open source so that you can mangle it to new ways of working. Well, I figured Outlaw Moviemakers like me need a manifesto that is more flexible than Dogmé95 and more focused on getting your movie seen by audiences.

My current rules for making movies reads something like:

1. Do the best you can with what you have.

2. If you are ever unsure, re-read rule #1.

Which doesn't explicitly cover the need for distribution and getting people remotely interested in what your movie has to say. The Lone Gun Manifesto covers all the bases, even the need for a decent beanbag. I suggest you read it if you want to make movies by making movies.

The original (non-moviemaking related) Cluetrain is still a fantastic read a decade later. Just don't fall into this trap :)

Sidestep Little Bits of History Repeating

2010-03-02T22:24:00.005Z

I think the problem with the current trend of crowd-funding small movies to stick it to the man is that, well, the man really doesn't care. And the people who happen to have money to throw at you, do you really want them in your movie? So you end up with more of a vanity piece than when a director self-distributes his flick.

When I was working in the factory in the mid-nineties and naively excited about the Britfilm renaissance, I remember seeing a call in the UK national newspapers to the effect that with a small investment, you could be in a film with Brian Blessed, Oliver Reed, and that Wolf guy out of TV's Gladiators. Yes! Wolf. The film was "The Bruce" and died on it's arse next to Gibson's "Braveheart".

To ensure I didn't dream this, I even dug up this article from the New York Times (published March 18th, 1995). That article says a share was advertised at £1000ea, though I'm sure I remember them being available at £200ea (maybe I dreamt that part).

I also remember that "Leon The Pig Farmer", another Britfilm, was partially (maybe even fully) funded by selling shares to professionals, like dentists.

I'm not saying that crowd-funded movie making can't work. I'm just saying, y'know, just saying. The world before the internet did exist.

I'm not sure what I'm saying actually. I suppose: buyer beware.

The Fix: What's Taking So Long

2010-02-23T20:32:00.004Z

Yes yes, I know I said it would be finished quick as part of the #2wkfilm two-week film challenge. Then Christmas and New Year came around, and now my other half is roping me in to help launch her children's day care. Time is short right now. There's still plenty of time to win the 2095 John Titor award though.

I was planning to book some time off the day-job to spend some quality days with the edit, but with other stuff I have going on (and people turning 40 left right and centre it seems) I may even miss my "loose" deadline of Easter editing.

Once the fine-cut edit (picture and dialogue) is done and generally 'approved' there's still another bunch of stuff to do, like M&E (music and effects). Even when the flick is finished, the work will only just be beginning.

This is my roundabout way of saying - I'm still working on it (perhaps at the rate of one evening per week) and my planned "quality time" for the edit has gone out the window until after Easter. Until I nail exactly when I will have a full week to edit this sucker it's impossible for me to predict when precisely the fine-cut may be done.

I do know though, it will be time well spent.

Best Form Of Defens

2010-02-05T19:03:00.000Z

Love through strength: "

Mmmmmm-meat

2010-02-05T19:02:00.000Z

Photo: "

Reblogged

2010-02-05T07:43:00.000Z

an image from fukung.net

Troubling Single System

2010-02-04T17:09:00.005Z

Every now and then I am reminded why I am an advocate of double-system (even if I lazily use single-system on some of my own low budget stuff).

Edit: wow, that's such a hefty setup it might not all fit into your browser. Here's the scaled down version:

Tumbleweed Blows Past Blog

2010-01-28T20:11:00.002Z

I'll admit it, I'm busy. Twatting out less than 140 characters is a lot easier then writing actual content.

I got a rebate on my tax return. That's not so bad.

"The Fix" is tentatively scheduled to be completed June 2010. Watch this space.

However, this last tax year I've done less sound recording and more micro-budget movie producing. Not sure how I feel about that.

The iPad. Yes, it's a good iDevice. With Apple at the top end of the casual computer user market with the iPad and Google at the lower end with Chrome OS, Microsoft will be screwing business users for all the CALs they can charge you for in order to pay for the stock buy-backs to prop up MSFT. This is turn will drive business users back to *NIX, and guess what? Microsoft may finally have to up its stake in Novell SuSE Linux and buy the damn thing.

#2095