America In Primetime

So over the past week, I watched this documentary mini series called America in Primetime. Each episode dissects and analyzes an aspect of popular American television. Mainly they are common characters like the father figure or the crusader/hero.

This doc series is awesome! It is a really cool analysis on over 50 years of television in America. The series uses clips of television from The Honeymooners to Breaking Bad.

The even cooler part about this doc series, is that the interviews are of historians, prominent actors, directors, and writers. What is so cool about that is that you get all of these different perspectives from people who are involved and experienced in all different aspects of television; from watching it, to being in it, to creating it.

If you like television, or like me, absolutely love it, this is definitely something you should check out!

Learning from this semester

My name is Michayla Rose Savitt and this semester, I reached my breaking point. What was I thinking? Simultaneously doing production design for TWO films, one of which I co-wrote & developed? I should have known that doing all the production design for my fiction field 2 film would be too much, since I have a tendency to throw my whole self into every project I do (not a bad quality in all cases, but not great when you also have a thousand and one other obligations).

I also took on a large role in post-production by transferring/logging all the footage, re-writing the script supervisor's notes for our editor, and marking half the sound cues to foley in. And because I was so invested in other parts of pre-production, I don't think the production design was as spectacular as I dreamed it would be. This was super disappointing for me when I thought back to my original goals for my independent study in production design.

Over the break 12 hours total driving time to and from home, I had a lot of time to reflect on the semester thus far. A big reason that I end up going to sleep super late all the time is because I have too much going on during the day with planning for extracurriculars/having one too many radio shifts. The clarity was nice, but slightly upsetting. I realized that I need to discontinue more extracurriculars than I originally thought. I've written about this before, but I think I need to say it again for my own sake so I actually follow it. 

While this is an easy thing to say in theory, it's not easy in practice. I already made the tough decision to discontinue my involvement with the online radio station after this semester, since I have become more involved with the FM station. And like i've mentioned before, I am no longer on the producing team of After Hours. So two things that have been a big part of my life for more than a year, but I think I've gotten all that I can out of them and need to move on.

I'd really like to focus more on the art department side of things now that I have more experience under my belt. I made the decision to only take on positions related to art (aka already said no to producing someone's senior cinema thesis) because I want to further enhance my skills in that department. So far I've been recruited to working art crew for a media thesis, and also for this year's David Ames winning script. So i'm excited for both of those.

After rambling for 5 paragraphs, I'll leave you with some tips about how to stay calm when it feels like everything is about to swallow you whole:
-listen to music that makes you happy
-talk to a friend who can sympathize
-make time to exercise. it helps you blow off steam.
-journal about frustrations
-take 10 minutes out of your day to meditate
-make a list of stressor and number them in order of what's most important to worry about/what is actually under your control.
-hug a friend!!!!!!
-BREATHE.

That is all. Good luck this week, friends.

What is a Bad Season?

Something that sometimes tends to happen with TV shows, especially when they are new, and a bit of a gamble, is that they hit what is called a Sophomore Slump. This is just a fun way of saying that their first season is great and has so much potential to turn into a viable and long lasting show, however when they head into their second season, they lose their fire.

We all know shows like this. The one that probably comes to everyone's mind is True Detective

We were all amazed and super amped when the first season came out. I mean come on, Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey! Who wouldn't be sold on the stellar cast alone? The first season was a pure masterpiece. But then like so many before it, the show took a serious turn for the worse in second season, and it hit a serious sophomore slump.

Anyway, and much more to the point, there was a show that came out of the gates sprinting, and it even aired mid season, and still was one of the best new show on TV. It's just a little show called Empire, maybe some of you have heard it. 

So this show ended it's first season with a bang, literally. Everyone was just waiting to see what happens next with the notorious Lyon family. A few websites that I frequent were concerned for the sophomore season of Empire and if it would fall down the same hill that so many promising shows had done before it. However when the new season aired in late September of this year, this was not the case. Empire has been consistently in the top 10 shows, rating wise, on zap2it.com's weekly ratings list for all things TV. Here is it's ranking on the week of its season 2 premiere 

So far, there has been not even of a whisper for a sophomore slump from Empire. Each week the show has churned out consistently top 10 ratings and top notch content. I for one cannot wait to see what the future of Empire holds

The Painter Of Jalouzi: A Look At The Future Of Mobile Film Making

THE PAINTER OF JALOUZI

A LOOK AT THE FUTURE OF MOBILE FILM MAKING

    4K (4096 x 2160), or "Ultra Definition" has been probably one of the most hot topic words of 2015. With cameras coming out in increasing numbers in not only cinema style, but ENG, and DSLR models, as well as cameras like the GoPro Hero4 this year, and the increase in 4K TVs for a commercial market it seems safe to say that 4K is here to stay.

     "The Painter of Jalouzi" is a short documentary on a Haitian painter that was just released by RYOT just a week ago. The doc, which was shoot in 4K, is absolutely stunning with vibrant colors and detail in every pixel. However this was not shot on a typical ENG camera, or even a DSLR. No this documentary was shot on the new Iphone 6s. 

    I was stunned to see the footage that they produced with this Iphone, the details and clarity were unlike anything I could have dreamed be shot on a phone. It made me think of the capabilities and tools that we as content creators have accessible, and the future of mobile film making. 

    Does this mean that all of us will be able to make a "Painter in Jalouzi?" Of course not. As with all advancements in technology the priority will always be the story, will always be the composition. Like in the days of early handheld camera work, it looked like garbage, but if the right people were behind it the it doesn't matter. 

     You may also notice while watching this the amazing depth of field and shots in it. In a behind the scenes video the filmmakers used gimbals, drones, and attachments so they could use actual lenses on the iphone. However they did mention that the stabilizer on the iphone proved very impressive and that they used the gimbal less then expected. 

     It's exciting that to me to see the way we are going to start producing content change, whether that be through film, documentary's, or any media really. And the fact that the picture quality is getting better too is outstanding. The more tools we have, I honestly believe, the more creative we are bound to come. 

                     

      

Danger 5

Danger 5 is an Australian comedy series that is absolutely hysterical. Every aspect of the show makes me laugh. The actors, the set, the script, even the lighting. It is all over the top and over done.

This show is no Breaking Bad when it comes to looks. Everything in the show is done to look cheap and corny. While I understand that this is an approach that most people would hate I think that the show can be views as a good learning tool for students studying film. The show capitalized on low budget... to the extreme. The establishing shows are almost always hand made models, and this is a very cheap way to give a show a very interesting feel. It doesn't work if everything in the film is meant to be taken seriously but not all film needs to be so serious.

Danger 5 is still fun to watch even though it doesn't have crazy animation and locations, and I think that this is something that everyone can learn from. Also its available on Netflix... so check it out

Better Late Than Never

Last Saturday night, while everyone was getting ready to go out for their first weekend back at IC, I was sitting in my room, alone, in the dark, eating Chinese food (from Wegmans, because why not?), watching Friends.

I had been told since I was--I don't know--born to watch Friends by many people in my life. My friends reference the show all the time and I play along as if I know what they're talking about. Just last week, Taylor Swift performed in Los Angeles as part of her 1989 World Tour and brought Lisa Kudrow out to perform a song that her character, Phoebe Buffay, wrote on Friends called "Smelly Cat." My roommate Ali freaked out and showed me a video. I didn't really know how to respond.

This weekend I decided to give it a shot and Netflix made it very easy by putting all 10 seasons up (YAY). Also, each episode is only 22 minutes long, so it was very easy for me to get right into the show.

I'm not gonna lie, I didn't like the first episode. It seemed like every other cut was a jump cut, I couldn't see why everyone loooooves Rachel, and it just felt the same as every other sitcom I've ever watched. Then I realized that most of the sitcoms I watched growing up were based off the success of Friends; once I let this fact go, it started getting better.

By the fourth episode, I caught myself laughing out loud (literally) at one of Chandler's lines.  

By the fifth, I was invested in the characters. By the seventh, I remembered something important that one of my professors abroad had said about the show. 

Dr. Richard Weight taught my British Youth Culture class, and he often brought up the reasons why youth culture exists. Basically, young adults suddenly had more time to be young. They were going to school, living and learning with people of the opposite sex, and most importantly, not having children. He always put this into fancy terminology and called it "pre-marital cohabitation" and used Friends as the biggest example of this in the media. 

Friends is not just the sitcom that influenced all other sitcoms--it shows a drastic shift in youth culture. People did not go straight from being children to having children. Young people took their time in life and learned to be independent. In the pilot episode of the show, Rachel moves in with Monica when she runs away from her own wedding.

The show is also culturally important because it is one of the first shows where the characters openly discuss dating, childbirth, sex, and sexual orientation. (And I'm only 10 episodes in). Samantha Allen writes in an article for Arts.Mic that, "There would be no New Girl, no Mindy Project, no Sex in the City without Friends."

After reading her this blog, Ali says that she's "proud of me." I don't know how much more of Friends I'll watch, solely because there are many other TV shows I want to see, but I don't regret a minute of it.

What's the Point?

At a certain point during the 4 hour Prerequisites shoot last night (in which we forced Canon to dress up as a clown and pull 3 takes worth of colored paper out of his mouth), I paused for a moment and asked myself what I was doing there. Why would I voluntarily put myself in the position of organizing, directing, and otherwise running a six-episode ICTV production when I was already taking 16 credits worth of classes? What kind of masochistic, deranged person would do that to themselves? And, come to think of it, why did I want to be a part of the film/TV industry in the first place? Everyone that I've talked to, all the advice that I've been given up to this point, has all more or less warned me about the difficult and relentless pace of Hollywood. It sounds, to be blunt, fucking awful.

So then I got into a little bit of a funk, barraging myself with self-criticisms and convincing myself that my show, which I've spent a good 9 months on, would turn out to be a piece of shit, with a cast and crew who hates me for wasting their time and who will never voluntarily work with me again. 

This post is not about Bob's Burgers.

It was kind of a dark place. 

That, in turn, lead me to ask this question: does film matter? Is the source of 90% of my stress something that I should be stressing about at all? I could be studying medicine right now, or physics, or literally anything else that would allow me to contribute to the world more than I already am. I watch episodes of Bob's Burgers and call that "studying." So. What's the point of it all?

I'd love to say that I have a definitive answer to that question, but that's not really the case. However, since a purely whiny blog post would kind of suck, I did a little googling and found a really cool collection of quotes about why film matters. And it was actually pretty inspiring. The full study/article can be found here. (It's got lots of pictures, it's definitely worth a read) 

The study is basically a collection of interviews with prolific filmmakers giving their opinions on why film actually matters. The answers range from the inevitably annoying (film is art, and like, without art, what are we really) to the thought provoking (my favorite quote being "as long as we continue to enjoy the peculiar sensation of gathering with a bunch of strangers in a darkened theatre, film will still matter.")

The biggest thing this article reminded me of, however, was that film is entertainment, and human beings actually yearn to be entertained. It's a form of escapism: as Gabriel Solomons says, "film matters because it has the power to connect us to a world outside of our own, even if the only traveling we do is from our sofa." Film, like any good novel or piece of artwork, allows us to escape from our every day lives and just be entertained. There's no effort, no immense amount of concentration required. Films can do something as simple as make us laugh or fascinate us visually, or they can present us with ideas and concepts that stick with us for the rest of our lives. A good film will do all of these things simultaneously.


So maybe this whole post was for my own self-satisfying benefit, but long story short, that's why film matters. If you ever find yourself in my position, desperate for some sense that what you're doing is actually somewhat important, don't give up hope. Take a deep breath, step off-set for a minute (or a week) and have faith that what you're doing matters. Movies are always there for you when you need a break, and hey: someone's gotta make them. 

So You Think You Can Dance Huh?

One of the summer's hottest competition shows has one more episode left for until the season finale. This Tuesday they will be crowning America's favorite male dancer and female dancer. This show showcases the dancer's raw talent and their ability to win over America's votes. Before they can make it to the top 20 where they compete for America's votes they have auditions. Very similar to shows like American Idol they travel across the country auditioning dancers who poses the strength and talent to win the competition. There's a panel of expert judges who are there to critique the dancers and pick the top 20. If you have wowed the judges in auditions then you go straight on to vegas week. If you have failed to do so you either go straight home or have a chance to redeem yourself in choreography. Vegas week is the most stressful and dangerous week and shows what dancers are really cut out for the competition. As a dancer you must learn choreography for hip-hop, jazz, ballroom, and contemporary, as well as compete is a solo round, group number round, and explain why you deserve to be on the show.
This show celebrates dance and helps dancers and choreographers grow on the show. Many contestants    that make it to the top 20 have successfully grown their careers and have become greater dancers themselves. It's a true inspiration and every week I adore the creativity and beauty that comes from the performances. It's not just the choreographers and the dancers that make this show incredible its's the Emmy nominated and winning lighting team and videographers. They make the viewers experience at home real and they add to the performance. This show is easily a favorite and it opened my eyes to a new world of dance and gave me a greater appreciation for this art.

Dexter.

There's not much else needed to be said. Anyone who has followed the TV show Dexter knows how intense it is and how it leaves the viewers on the edge of their seat. I watched a few seasons, stopped, and just got back into it so I admit I've been off my game for a while. But I literally cannot wait for the next episode each time the week comes around.

SPOILER ALERT



However, this last episode had me a little thrown off. Maybe because Dexter is starting to break out of what we know him to be. His relationship with Hannah has always had me a little iffy, because I was so surprised to see him so willing to open up to someone for the first time the way he does with her. She causes him to do things completely out of his character. For instance, as a result of her being kidnapped by Isaak, he helps Isaak out with his would be assassins, and stabs one of them like it was nothing right in the middle of a shooting range. We all know this is WAY too messy for Dexter's liking.  Hannah is corrupting our much loved character!

I was also very sad to see Isaak killed off. I'm not sure how they would've went about it, but I would've loved to see some kind of relationship come about between Dexter and Isaak. They had a great dynamic and the dialogue between them was always so compelling.

I also wish they would address Deb's feelings for Dexter a bit more. That was a HUGE thing to drop on him and they are continuing their lives as if it didn't happen.

While I acknowledge there are some minor holes/things that bother me about Dexter, it's still a fantastic show. Definitely a great example of the kind of thing I'd hope to work on in the future :)

-Nick