Author: elaynay

The deeper I get into my Winter term video project, the more challenging it becomes to wade through the material I’ve amassed and keep the story focused.  I’m tempted to provide too much detail, background information, and context in order to convey a multi-dimensional character.

He Who Dances On Wood video effectively cuts to the heart of the story, without bogging us down in unnecessary process or detail.  In a beautifully poetic piece – both narratively and cinematically – we learn why the subject dances, and what it means to him.  It is a great example of “show don’t tell.”

The story is not rushed.  In fact, the first minute is very quiet, allowing anticipation to build, with fantastic morning light, imagery, and different POVs to set the scene around the tunnel where he dances.  It’s not until one minute in that we hear the character tapping.

At 1:06 there’s a creative shot with the tap shoes hanging from a tree.

1:24-1:34 slow motion is used, keeping with the unhurried pace, yet holding viewer interest.  The opening two minutes are primarily intimate, we get to know the character up close.  At 2:00, the shots open up as we see other people in the frame, passing by as the subject dances.

Nice detail shots and symbolism as he describes his relationship with the wood and with rhythm / time:

2:35 a nice silhouette effect.

A key overall takeaway for me in this video, is how cinematic techniques can be used to allow the character space to reflect on the past or present.  For example, the quiet scenes of nature and subtle movement, or the character himself walking along the river, in slow motion, or staring into the sunset.

Wonderful character selection – I thought the narrative was deep and rich – taking us way beyond the surface level story.

This Adidas Spec Ad was made by third year German film student, Eugen Merher.  He shared it with Adidas before and after production, but they were not interested.  Recently, the ad went viral to over 9 million views and I was drawn to the universal emotion of the piece.  Essentially a story without words, with the exception of the end tagline, subtle details (i.e. 0:08 chest-rising sigh), music, and techniques, like pacing, color, soft focus, convey the story with no need for narration.

The story is of an older man living in a nursing home, bored (sitting on bed with blank stare, eating routine breakfast while TV drones on in background), yearning to set his spirit free.  Nostalgic for his youthful running days, we see him looking out the window, as a runner passes by in the yard, his running memorabilia on his bedroom walls.  The discovery of a pair of old adidas trainers in a locker shifts the tone of the piece as sadness turns to hope.  The protagonist sets out to run, only to be stopped by facility staff.  

As he becomes more determined to run; the filmmaker employs humorous detail, like the potato-sack bench press and an onlooking resident mindlessly watering his TV, to bring levity to the otherwise somber mood.  

At 0:57 we return to the opening shot of protagonist staring gloomily into space as he sits on his bed, but his gaze shifts as residents enter with his shoes.  A moment of transition.  The music and mood open up, as residents line the halls, cheering him on, in slow motion, as he finally runs the length of the hall and outside to freedom.  Action / Reaction shots heighten the emotion of the scene, as camera shifts POV between protagonist and spectators.

In my research I discovered, in an interview by AdFreak, that Merher’s video was set aside without much thought as he quickly moved on to keep up with new school assignments.  But recently, he showed the fake advert to someone in the industry who suggested putting it to different music.  The transformation was immediate.  In the words of filmmaker Eugen Merher:

“I had forgotten about the ad by last March, but then we showed it to Sebastian Ritzler of e+p films and he put in some new music by my favorite composer Alex David. All of a sudden the ad became magical in a way. It was entirely different. Sebastian said, “The music will make or break the ad.””

The video is a great example of the significance of sound design.  To read more about this viral video and how people are responding to it, check out Huffington Post article Student’s Adidas Commercial is Everything Advertising Should Be.

https://vimeo.com/194112395%20http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/short-film-showcase/curing-blindness-meet-a-doctor-transforming-thousands-of-lives?source=searchvideo

‘A Chance to See Again’ is featured in National Geographic’s online short film showcase.  It was created by Blue Chalk Media, and commissioned by SEE International, as part of a series featuring work the organization supports in Namibia.  If I had to describe how I’d like to use my MMJ skills in the future, this would be a perfect example; telling stories of inspirational people and organizations making a difference in areas like global health, social justice, and human rights.

This moving piece is narrated by Dr. Ndume, who fled during apartheid, received her education abroad, and later returned to her country as an opthamologist.  She provides free eye surgery to people who have gone unnecessarily blind from cataracts.  The film uses natural light, music that gently underscores natural sound, and beautifully integrates still images.  The images and narration blend to create a lyrical and thematic effect (great example ~ 5:00 – connectedness, dancing, transformation).     

Here’s a breakdown of the scenes and techniques:

0:00  Symbolically, the film begins in relative darkness, using silhouettes and available light streaming into mud huts to show blind people living in relative isolation and stillness.  The radio announcement they are listening to, for an eye clinic, serves as a hook for both for the video and to get people to the hospital for free treatment.  Medium and tight shots are used, creating an intimacy and setting a somber tone.   

0:36  Woman is picked up from her bed, shots become wider and lighter as we see blind people being led, by children and family, away from their homes in the village.  Movement is introduced.

0:55  Shots in cars and on the road as eye patients are en route to the clinic.  Arrive at hospital marked with a wide establishing shot outside, and then inside, where patients line floor mats in a huge open room.  Scene closes with a fade to black (1:06) as radio announces “This is your chance to see again.”

1:07  Narrator, Dr. Ndume is introduced and her personal story begins to unfold, with cuts between interview and black and white vintage stills from apartheid and civil war.  There are two different interview settings.  The Dr. wears scrubs while sitting on a patient table in a hospital room and street clothes in another room that may be an office in the hospital.  Both are medium shots with subject looking directly into camera, with depth of field / vignetting used to minimize background ‘noise’ and equipment in the rooms.  I thought the black and white photos were strong in illustrating the hardships of her youth and what the country had been through – they also punctuated her statement about different education offered for blacks vs. whites.

2:07 strong tight shot of Dr. Ndume’s hand gripping a barbed wire fence, opens to a medium shot of her overlooking a countryside scene, reflecting on her time in refugee camps and then going to university overseas.

2:49 Clinic setting, we see various shots of patient interactions with Dr., operating facilities, equipment.

3:19 Series of killer stills / patient portraits

3:52 Rack focus to illustrate the nature of the work

3:56 End Scene with fade to black

3:58

REVEAL: removing of eye patches

Celebration: Ululating, smiles, dance

Benefits: narration of what patients plan to do with their new site

5:04 beautiful culmination of the story.  Brings together the themes of connectedness and transformation as the Dr. dances alongside her patients.

Earlier this term, I found and fell in love with the Holocaust Survivor Band video on NYT’s Op-Doc and blogged about it.  The casting, poetic cinematography, and humor won me over.  This video inspired me to explore more work by filmmaker Joshua Z Weinstein.

Josh is known for a style that combines gritty realism with a sense of humor and emotion.  For a preview of his aesthetic, check out his reel.

Weinstein lives in New York, and has a long list of credits and accolades to his name as an award-winning cinematographer and director.  He has worked across the fields of advertising and journalism; and has created branded content, shorts, feature length documentaries, and is currently working on his all Yiddish directorial fiction debut.

After viewing a number of his films, it’s clear to me that Josh is successful in building trust and relationships with his characters in order to bring out deeply intimate and honest moments.

Spider Drove a Taxi, another NYT’s Op-Doc, blends a charismatic narrator, vintage stills, and beautiful cinematography.  My favorite sequence is a montage of video portraits from 1:22 – 1:54, which includes the use of side and rearview mirrors for different perspectives.

I Beat Mike Tyson is a 13 minute documentary about an Irish boxer who beat Mike Tyson in 2005 and then disappeared.  Weinstein searched him out to tell his story, and created a stripped down, raw, realistic, and relatable multimedia story.  You don’t need to know a thing about boxing to be touched by this piece.

I reached out to Josh and he generously responded with some insights and advice.  I particularly appreciate his thoughts on world music and travel as being an integral part of the research and discovery process.

“I think the idea is to imitate what you love and through imitating you create your own voice.  Make simple goals and follow through with them.  Making mistakes happens all the time, learn from them and move on.  I have started multiple films and thrown them away, its ok.  Not every story should be a film, remember a film is a film for a reason.  Take photos, listen to world music, and travel, this is the best research you have as a filmmaker.”

Weinstein is an Alumni of Boston University College of Communication Film department and the CPB/PBS Producers Academy at WGBH.  He has lectured on film at many universities.  Maybe we could persuade him to visit us on the West Coast one day.

From a 2012 Interview with Filmmaker magazine, where Weinstein answered questions about his film Drivers Wanted, I leave you with this sage advice:

“One of the golden rules of documentary is nothing good happens during the daytime.”

You can see more of Josh’s work at weinsteinfilm.com.

In case everyone didn’t get enough Slomo in class last week in Joshua Izenburg’s NYT Op-Doc, here he is again, in a music video!  I chose to share this video because it’s a great example of how to implement time lapse in a way that serves your story.  In this case, it highlights the subject remaining intentionally still as the world rushes by.  The other technique that stands out in this piece is creative camera angles that result in unique POVs.

The video opens with a time lapse of sunrise and pans over sunbathers at the beach before slowing to normal speed. At 0:12 Slomo enters frame in slow motion.

At 0:15 there is more time lapse of people on the boardwalk, and the pacing begins to establish a pattern of fast, slow, fast slow.

Time lapse is also used a few times to juxtapose Slomo standing still against all the hustle and flow on the boardwalk, passing him by (examples at 0:32, 0:42, 1:33).

There’s a great shadow shot (0:19), shooting through a window provides a reflection effect (0:22), and a true reflection through sunglasses (0:57).

I like that this video played with many different, and unique points of view as well.   At 0:37, 1:18, and 2:23 the camera is underneath Slomo, looking up at him.

While at 0:40 and 0:59 the camera is overhead for more of a birds eye view. I liked the above and below juxtaposition as well.

And at a couple points, like 2:03, the camera POV is through Slomo’s eyes.

I thought it was interesting that in some ways, the approach to this video was almost the opposite of the Slomo Op-Doc; where the op-doc leveraged slow motion techniques to slow and suspend time, this music video leaned on time-lapse to show the world moving quickly by Slomo.

Musicians Saul and Ruby are pretty irresistible in this interview style New York Times Op-Doc piece, by filmmaker Joshua Weinstein.  The piece opens with an establishing shot of two men seated side by side, facing the camera in what feels like an interview setup. Saul introduces himself and his instrument.  The camera cuts to a close-up of his face, then pans down to a tight shot of the drum as he plays (0:16). The camera returns to both men, and the sequence repeats as Reuben introduces himself (0:20), the the camera cuts to close-ups of his accordion and his face. We return to the two seated in the interview, as they announce their band name, the Holocaust Survivor Band.

Through big grins, lots of motion and emotion, and rich detail shots as they play their instruments and tell their story,  this quirky duo practically bursts off the screen in the first 30 seconds. They are vibrant, I feel like I am there with them, engrossed in their story already.

At 0:50 the camera moves back to a wide scene-setting shot where we see both men playing together on a pier, a small audience watching them perform, with the cityscape in the background. The video flows between interview and scenes of the men performing, employing lots of L-Cuts (picture leading sound & sound leading picture) as we hear them narrate their story. A few techniques noted:

• Graphic matched cut at 1:00 from drumsticks going down to water crashing up below the pier.
• Unmotivated move at 1:32, camera pans across couple sitting at table.
• Fantastic close up at 1:47.
• Great detail at 1:55, fingers on keyboard.
• So much emotion, movement, joy throughout.
• B Roll motif (pier, birds, streaming dreamy sunlight and soft focus).
• Lots of tight shots & shallow depth of field.

At 2:32 the upbeat Klezmer music stops, the pacing slows, and the introduction of a quiet haunting soundtrack shifts to a more somber mood. The location also changes and we see medium and tight shots of Saul in a dark room (though we don’t see his face directly) as we hear him recollect his days in a concentration camp and of how music enhanced their days there. Light streams into the dark room with a dreamlike effect. At 3:14 an L-Cut (picture leads sound) shifts to similar scene of Reuben reflecting on the camps.

The closing scene begins at 3:58, as the two (using positive motion) walk toward us, on the pier, with their instruments, singing. The video ends with a joyful scene of the two playing music together.

The relationship between the two men, their joy for life and music, as well as their dark past, are very effectively woven into this visual story.