Branded entertainment: Digital product placement

When we are talking about digital or virtual product placement or digital insertion or retroactive product placement, we are talking digitally inserted ads into moving media, for example, tv shows, where they were not in the first place. It's more or less common place in sports where, for instance, ads are placed in ice hockey rings. Retroactive product placement means inserting current ads, labels, logos etc. into old media, such as old tv shows.

Why this thing has only recently popped up its head in the main media is because a company called MirriAd. MirriAd is an "advertising platform with a unique pitch: Tell them where you want your brand, anywhere in any video, even after its posted, and they can put it in there".

They have been placing products into old television re-runs and recently signed a deal with Vevo which means integrating into music business. They started developing their technology in 2008 and can "scan hundreds of videos at a time, identifying brandable surfaces such as T-shirts, empty billboards, computer screens, or the mug a character is drinking from where they could slap a logo".

More, go to:
> Digital product placement creates adverts out of thin air
> As seen on TV: why product placement is bigger than ever
> How Mirriad and Vevo Are Retroactively Placing Products

Source: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-22066153

Ultimate filmaker's guide to film noir

Found excellent article about film noir:
> http://filmmakeriq.com/2010/08/ultimate-filmmakers-guide-to-film-noir/ <

Examples of typical elements of film noir:

* Lighting
- low key (one key light with fill light/reflector)
- shadows
- Chiaroscuro

* Focus
- deep focus

* Unconventional camera angles
- low, wide, skewed (Dutch angle)

Rob Ager Film Analyses

Are just brilliant. Here's one:




For more, go to: > Rob Ager's Youtube Channel <
or his web site: > Collative Learning <

180 degree shutter rule

= do not use higher shutter speed than 50 when filming at 24 or 25 fps! (with 30fps the max. is 60). With 24 the correct shutter speed is 48 but with Video DSLRs (like Canon 5DMII) the closest is 50.

For more go:
>> 180 Degree Shutter - Learn It, Live It, Love It <<

Effect demonstrated here:

Effect of shutter speed on fast moving objects from Alain Pilon on Vimeo.

And also
Sony Handycam shutter speed test:

(between 1/8 and 1/1500. max 1/10000)


(Pondered one thing, found: http://forums.creativecow.net/thread/54/857388 and http://www.panasonic.com/business/provideo/scene_files_main.asp)

Good article about Criticism & Hyping Movies

.


Everybody’s a Critic of the Critics’ Rabid Critics
excerpts from A.O. Scott

.."It also, serendipitously, set the table for “Inception” by rehearsing some important terms of debate: Do certain directors inspire unreflecting loyalty from both professional critics and passionate movie fans? Does the perception of this kind of bias plant seeds of skepticism that blossom into overstated negative reactions? What role does expectation (or hype, if you prefer) play in the audience’s experience of a movie?"

.."As soon as the July Fourth weekend was over, these questions began to swirl around “Inception.” Warner Brothers, having screened the movie for select journalists the previous Friday, relaxed its embargo — the standard, routinely flouted prohibition on publishing reviews before opening day — and a burst of raves went up all over the Internet. The name of Stanley Kubrick was duly invoked, and the word “masterpiece” sounded like a trumpet through the blogosphere. The early score on Rottentomatoes.com was a perfect 100. "

.."What seemed to provoke the most ire was that these critics had shown the temerity to mention what other critics had written, and to respond to the aggressive marketing and the early effusions. "

.."Nonetheless, over the first weekend of the release of “Inception,” I braced myself for brickbats for both sides. Either I had been suckered by the Hollywood publicity machine, or else I was blind to the visionary genius of a great artist. "

.."Maybe my memory is fuzzy, or maybe I’m dreaming, but I think it used to be that “masterpiece” was the last word, the end of the discussion, rather than the starting point. "

Source: (read the whole thing there)
International Herald Tribune

Ricky Jay - Cards as Weapons

If you have any idea who Ricky Jay is, this is something you have to -at least- skim trough!

>> Scribd. Cards as Weapons << (you can also download the pdf-book for free) One page example:

Things that make a movie: Color grading

(from http://www.dreamfield.se/2009/06/drmfld-movie-color%E2%84%A2/)

As I am interested in what makes the movie look like a movie (vs. home made video) I try to pick up things here and there. Of course proper lightning is one. But here's a thing most propably might not immeadiately think of:

COLOR GRADING.


Here's a comprehensive list of links to get the idea:

#1 Mike Jone's Digital Basin: Concepts and paradigms


Shorter, straight-to-the point links:

#2 A short demonstration with pics about the dramatic difference: http://prolost.com/blog/2007/7/11/color-makes-the-movie.html

#3 Another
http://eugenia.gnomefiles.org/2009/07/23/the-power-of-color-grading/

#4 Excellent Video (click 'Introduction' and fast-forward to 3:13)
http://www.autodesk.com/us/lustre/tutorial-2007-01-23/

Did you know that on averge about 300 hours (a very approximate approximate number) can be used to color grade a movie (US)? In Finland the number is more to 100 hours.

The Perfect example of everything wrong in a movie

Perfect (actually the rest are better than the first):

(What is wrong, parts: 1.Everything 2. The audience is expected to accept too many things that we are and are not told)

The rest:
Part 2/9
(3. The Plot 4. Love and marriage 5. Send in the clones)
Part 3/9
(6. Bright lights, dumb city)
Part 4/9
(7. Tell me you love me)
Part 5/9
Part 6/9
(8. Why is Samuel L. Jackson in Star Wars movie?)
Part 7/9
(9. George Lucas ruins the light saber and the force all in one scene)
Part 8/9
(10. The dissolution of tension: bigger is not always betterer 11. Big dumb ending)
Part 9/9
(12. Oh, George)

Cool site worth visiting

.

It's all about traditional and digital effects. Be sure to check out!

> http://makingfx.net/

The Usefulness of Styrofoam Heads - cheap Special Effects

Cut the long story short I had an epiphany today about styrofoam heads. They are cheap!

What can you do with them?
1. Fake heads
2. Masks (see picture below)
3. And of course, this (from instructibles)

How to do..?
1. Fake Heads
- buy a styrofoam head from a shop and colour it
2. Masks
- make papermass/pulp/papier-mâché (very cheap, only adhesive will pay) to build contours


The Above Head
(Brian Penikas, the Creeps head in the making)
Of course, the above head is a bit advanced and not made from pulp, obviously. But pulp molds well and can be coloured easily so it's not a bad choice at all for zero budget productions!


Have fun!

More Self-Made Special Effects!

A link my friend send me

How to make a Hollow Man

(courtesy of vision02.com)
Go to: http://vision02.com/hollow-man/

A Nice Web Site for making movie effects !

And I'm talking about hands-down, not cgi effects!!



Enjoy!

http://www.instructables.com/id/Hollywood-Gunshot-Blood-Effect!/

Movie masters' style

Over the past couple of weeks I've been shooting some clips for school. For one clip I decided to make a lynchih-style. This is what I learned:


1. Get a wide-lens camera
Wider the better. All the masters use it: Kubrick, Leone, Lynch ...


2. Sound

Choose it wisely. It is, like my friend says, very very very important factor. And way underrated. I found that out while making my own clips. They came alive after sound, so kudos if you manage to do the soundtrack well!

3. Lynch style

Of course NObody can replicate him but there are things that Lynch's work is made up:

• flame, flickering
• smoke
• "lamp" or theatre colours (i.e. quite saturated colours)
• flickering/water/light/mix-up scene
• disturbing scenes (it's usually both violence-scenes and those that just are so out-of-the-place that they are very very disturbing)
• lighting (almost like a theatre lightning)
• animal (occasionally, doesn't need to be real one)
  
• very strong distracting soundtrack (one of the essentials of Lynch's work)
  
• - and of course, the storyline is mixed, plot is bizarre and there is no explaining of anything

What came of my Lynchih-thingy? Well, I missed quite much so not very much. I'm way too scared of Lynch's work to even start refining it. There's a filmmaker that's very demonic. Very (and I have no idea why I still keep watching his movies even though I don't like them -ok, I do like the 'art' they are made but not the movies).

Special effects inspired by Re-Animator

(Head when carried from front)

PRELUDE

I got lucky and made a discovery from our nearest market. Behold and lo, there was the original Re-Animator (1985) -a dvd which has been almost impossible to find. So, I spend the last of my dimes and shall eat macaroni for the rest of this month.

POINT

The movie didn't get kudos for its special effects and esp. makeup for nothing. I scribbled down some (easy and obvious) how-did-those-effects-got-made +one extra not in the movie, in case I need them later.

THE EFFECTS - THE ART OF FRAMING

Most of the work is done by thight framing. And I might say this works better than CGI in some movies. Here they are, Enjoy!

# Headless body:



# Head when carried:



# Head in a box + head being carried sideways:



# And the extra I learned recently,
how to show hanging:



Real pro things, eh ;)?

Rotoscoping

"Rotoscoping is an animation technique in which animators trace over live-action film movement, frame by frame, for use in animated films. " freedictionary

Examples of Rotoscoping:
* Bakshi's Lord of the Rings
* Scanner Darkly trailer

I happened to come across a thorough review of Bakshi's Lord of the Rings and finally got the name for the technique that is used in that film. To say, I favor Bakshi's version over the high-over-the-hills-and-far-away Jackson's tidious 9 hour boredom. I saw the original Lotr as a kid and still think its better and more scarier.

> Review of Bakshi's the Lord of The Rings <

What I find best at rotoscoping is that esp. horses' movement is correct. To be honest, I don't always find rotoscoping a good technique because in most cases the outcome is far too poorly done. In Bakshi's film, however, it has been well intergrated and works for me. Another film that uses this technique is a Scanner Darkly. Well.. to be honest it does irritate me but I liked the film. I must admit that I don't have a point here other than I wanted to let everybody know about this technique. Well, here you go!

* Rotoscoping, freedictionary
* Rotoscoping, animation wikia