Posts

Showing posts with the label Steven Spielberg

PRODUCTION JOURNAL: Midweek Morning Mixer - 12.18.13

Image
December 18 marks the births of legendary directors Jules Dassin (1911) and Steven Spielberg (1946) and the deaths of classic director Robert Bresson (1999) and influential animator Joseph Barbera (2006).  These 4 figures offer so much to choose from for inspiration and knowledge; they are an expert craftsman of filmnoir, a master storyteller of fantasy and wonder, a French auteur of transcendentalist and ascetic filmmaking and an influential animator who captured the zeitgeist of the 60s, 70s and 80s with his wild and funny cartoons. Jules Dassin Notable works: The Naked City, Night and the City, Rififi   Steven Spielberg Notable works: E.T., Indiana Jones, Jaws, Munich, Saving Private Ryan, and so much more. Robert Bresson Notable works: Pickpocket, A Man Escaped, Au Hasard Balthazar, Diary of a Country Priest Constructive Editing in Robert Bresson's Pickpocket from David Bordwell on Vimeo . Joseph Barbera Notable works: Tom and Jerry, Huckleberry Hound,

SCRIPT TO SCREEN: On Raiders of the Lost Ark

Image
Raiders of the Lost Ark | Steven Spielberg | 1981 | USA | Format: 35mm | 111 min  Need to see this by Jamie Benning on the making of Raiders of the Lost Ark. So much filmmaking and storytelling insight, it's ridiculous. And well worth the popcorn. Watch it in installments.

SCRIPT TO SCREEN: Spielberg on Storyboarding

Image
Duel | Steven Spielberg | 1971 | USA | Format: 35mm | 90 min / 74 min (original) "For Duel, the entire movie was storyboarded.  I had the art director sketch the picture on a mural that arced around the motel room.  It was an aerial view that showed all the scenes and the dead ends and the chases and all the exciting moments.  I think when you make an action film, especially a road picture, it's the best way to work,  because it's very hard to pick up a script and sift through five hundred words of prose and then commit them to memory.  The movie was more of a concept than a page-by-page description of what had to be shot, so I felt that breaking the picture up and mapping it out would be easier for me." ~~ Steven Spielberg In the video below, a young Spielberg, goes further on to explain why he sketches even if he can't draw, how much time he invests in storyboarding and how he still goes beyond the storyboards during a shoot. Spielberg discus