Film Strategy

Dear Filmmaker, Here's your homework: Pick one (1) script from the Oscar-nominated ones below and study it for structure, plot and character development and dialogue.  Then watch the movie produced out of it and pick 3 scenes that moved you. Review the scenes in the script and breakdown how the scene was directed. At every point, ask yourself, "Why* did the director do this?" Look for:  What kind of shots were used?  How were the shots composed/framed and lit?  How were the shots edited together?  What kind of transitions were used in between shots?  What kind of sounds and music accompanied them, if any?  How did the actors act and what aspects of the actor's performance did the director focus on?  And how did the production's design (costume, setting, location, makeup, VFX, etc.) contribute to the overall effect? Extra credit: pick 3 scenes from any of the scripts below that did NOT move you and using the script only, determine how you would r

On Jan. 11, 2015, we watched 3 men join  Alejandro González Iñárritu  to receive their Golden Globe awards for the best screenplay , Birdman . One of these men was Alexander Dinelaris Jr ., a multi-hyphenate New Yorker. A.B. Lugo was prescient enough to interview Mr. Dinelaris in December, 2014 for El Blog de HOLA , a blog that supports, promotes and informs the Latino acting community. During the interview, Mr. Dinelaris discusses his background and how it inspired his writing, how he writes, how his success in playwriting opened the doors to screenwriting and how important it is to stay true to your voice and learn your craft. Reposted with permission. Original posting: El Blog de HOLA - Dec. 11, 2014  by A.B. Lugo Alexander Dinelaris  is a man of many talents– what we call in Spanish " polifacético "– he is a playwright, screenwriter, director, producer. He has worked with some of the giants in this industry, from filmmaker Alejandro González Iñárritu to music ico

ANDREI TARKOVSKY : BAM Cinematek just wrapped up a 2-week run of The Sacrifice and I've been on a Tarkovsky bender watching his films on Hulu. But I'll be the first to admit that when I first started watching his films ( Solaris ), I was confused. I didn't understand what was going on and the pacing was not what I was used to for a sci-fi film. But the power of the film's sounds and imagery remained deep inside me and I couldn't stop wondering about what I saw and the hauntingly beautiful images that appeared throughout the film. As I watched more of his films, the more I realized that Tarkovsky's films are a rich meal of visual poetry for those willing to savor his cinematic flavors. It is no wonder why he is worth the time to listen to when it comes to creating art. Even if you haven't watched all of his works, you have probably heard of him and his influence on cinema. To get a glimpse of his genius for creating visual poetry, watch this short coll

Interstellar |  Christopher Nolan | 2014 | USA | Format: 35mm, 70mm & D-Cinema  | 169 min Here's a  supplement to the building a black hole video  about how the animators for the movie actually helped physicists understand black holes better. “Neither wormholes nor black holes have been depicted in any Hollywood movie in the way that they actually would appear,” Kip Thorne said in a promotional video from Warner Bros. U.K. “This is the first time the depiction began with Einstein’s general relativity equations,” Thorne said. Thorne is an American theoretical physicist who has written academic books on general relativity, collaborated with Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking, and is one of the world’s leading experts on all things gravitational. He is also the executive producer and scientific consultant for the film. It took Thorne’s intellect, 30 special effects experts, thousands of computers, and a year of hard work to produce the black hole audiences see in