The spot below for Travel Bird by Woodwork might have you thinking it is a green screen composite with a nice blend of CGI and live action footage. The reality is, it’s all live action, and the second video shows you exactly how it was done. Inspired by the symmetry of director Wes Anderson’s films, Woodwork set up a series of still compositions that the actress would move into and out of in a single camera move/shot. The entire spot is a synchronized move that follows the actress on a dolly as she moves through he set. The making of video is really worth watching as it takes you from preproduction and visualization, all the way through post.
Film Editing
Inside the Edit.
Inside the Edit is an online course launching later this summer for film editors. It is being billed as the World’s first creative editing course, and it might be. Much of what is taught about film editing focuses on the technical aspects and less on the creativity, leaving it up to the editor to find their voice over time. The course isn’t cheap. It runs £3000.00, or roughly $5000.00 US. That however is still less expensive than any number of physical courses, and much less expensive than four years of college. No I am not saying this will get you everything a four year college degree will get you. It might however supplement your basic understanding of film editing, and help you polish your creative skills when cutting your film together. Below is the really nice animated teaser for the online course, and a ten minute sample tutorial showing what the courses will look like. If the sample tutorial is an example of the final online courses, this is well worth the money.
The Art of Craft. “Glas” and “Manliness”.
This morning while going through my weekly reading list of newsletters, emails, and RSS feeds, two links were brought to my attention. One dealt with craftsmanship, the other with glass production in Holland in the 1950’s. While both were in the same newsletter, they were not directly connected. They are however.
The short film on glass production is a perfect example of the craftsmanship that goes into creating any form of film, design, art, or object. The film itself is beautifully shot and edited. The subject matter shows the phenomenal craftsmanship that goes into making a beautiful piece of hand blown glass. The article is a history of the term “Craftsman”, and why craft is so important in the work you create.
“Make every product better than it has ever been done before. Make the parts you cannot see as well as the parts you can see. Use only the best materials for even the most everyday items. Give the same attention to the smallest details as you do to the largest. Design every item you make to last for ever.”
I won’t give away the film, but the first half is a direct set up for the second, and the finish. Watching the glass blowers work their magic, accompanied by fitting music and a beautiful job of editing make it hard to look away.
Storytelling in 60 Seconds.
The art of editing film takes time to learn and perfect. The subtleties and finesse required to help finish the story through editing is truly a craft that must be mastered through years of trial and error as you perfect your skills. Editing a 60 second short can be even more challenging because you have compress the entire story in such a short time frame.
South African film editor Johan Walters had the opportunity to Bauke Brouwer’s film “The Fallen” for International One Minute Film Festival in 2011. Below is the short that he edited, and an interview with him discussing his technique, the decisions he made, and the final result. The two YouTube videos are the interview first followed by the final film. Pretty Interesting stuff.
Modular 4 