Reel Magazine

{A Reel Film Magazine}

Is Filmmaking going through a technology revolution?

Are special effects ruining modern film?

1 December 2011

THE

REEL

CONTENT

Columns Features

Extras

Letter from the Editor -From all of us at Reel Magazine

Welcome to Reel Magazine! Our goal is to expand the knowledge of filmmaking and rediscover film production. We are mainly using current news and subjects about film in Texas.

Reel Mag also explains interesting news on how directors and cinematographers

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have changed their techniques and cover topics like how to get your short films looking more polished and professional. We will include articles covering movies filmed and produced in Texas as well as mentioning some successful and popular movie directors.

The Reel Bios My name is Jacob. From a very young age I appreciated film, always wanting to know how the effects were done? How they got a certain shot? Where they were shooting?

Every time I saw a new shot in a movie I was watching, it intrigued me. Recently though, I have gotten into the more technical aspect of filming. This includes cameras, lighting, microphones, rigs, and even the simple tripod. This interest into the technical aspect of film also got me interested in DSLR cinematography, which is what I specialize in. It has pushed me to study more filming techniques and to gain a greater appreciation for the simpler movies that have beautiful shots.

Hey people, I am Amber. I started out having very little knowledge in film and to tell you the truth, film was not what I had in mind in the first place when beginning a group Reel Magazine. With a fair amount of research and a whole lot of experience from my group members, I actually came to be fond of film, indie film and amateur filming. It seems that every day that I spend with the Reel Magazine group members I learn something new, have another subject to research, and add to my never-ending knowledge on the generalities of film. There is a whirlwind of information I take in and a very fun learning experience for me.

My name is Ajeenah. My interest in film began about two years ago when I decided that I wanted to be a professional screenwriter. For most of my life I have enjoyed writing stories and little plays but that means nothing when I don’t know anything about filming or film writing. I obviously can’t be a successful screenwriter without the proper knowledge, so I believe being in a group so educated in filming will help me grow and become the successful screenwriter that I want to become. Everyone starts on the first level but only the ones who really want it make it to the end of the game, and I really want it.

Hi, I’m Sammy J., one of the four editors of Reel Magazine. I first got interested in film when I took a few film classes in middle school, ever since; I’ve been completely submerged in making amateur films with my friends and watching many classics from the 20th century from directors such as Alfred Hitchcock, Akira Kurosawa and Orson Welles. When the other editors and I first thought of a magazine idea, we immediately came up with making a magazine about film because we knew we would all enjoy it and it fit all our ideas well into one great theme. All in all, making this magazine was tough but we had our fun on the way to a great final product. Hope you enjoy our magazine!

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Photo credit to J. R. Eyerman/Time Life Pictures/Getty

By: Sammy J. In the past, the top box office films would have well-fitting, great actors, a beautiful script, a memorable plot, and shots that would turn out great after hours of retakes and touch-ups. These days, the top of the charts are being flooded with movies based on visuals and content suitable for almost every demographic. Instantly, you can see that movies are downgrading and that the high abundance of effects and generic plots that are reeling in all the money are corrupting the film industry.

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he movies today are becoming worse as plots are all becoming generic, special effects are taking over the industry, and box office films are turning into soulless moneymaking machines.

By looking at the latest box office movies that have been coming out (like Transformers and Avatar), you can see that as graphics and effects become more advanced and appealing, the plot and other movie elements are getting worse. In her Oct. 25, 2007 article, “Assessing if movies are getting worse or if we have lowered our standards”, Helium film

critic Lisa Nash writes that, “Today, the movies are so predictable and so close to the truth, there really is no room for imagination or even a thrill. Or [maybe] the possibility of this generation being so technology based has just made the movies get worse.” This problem is affecting almost all major motion pictures recently produced; advancements in technology are making visuals better, which are taking away from the imagination that we should be getting from the movie. Plot and imagination are not the only things that have been negatively affected by this; in the past, most successful movies would

be praised for their great use of film elements and techniques, nowadays, directors are obviously not paying as much attention to these things as they used to.

The lack of personalization is also ruining modern filmmaking. By that, I mean that the film industry is purposefully trying to make movies that appeal to a wider range of audience, allowing more profit to be made from the production. According to a graph compiled by The Moki Blog titled “Visual Evidence: Movies Are Getting Worse”, as the years pass, a trend has developed among the top box office movies.

*Left-centered photograph of Bumblebee from Transformers 3

analyzing the defects of modern-day special effects critics on Rotten Tomatoes, the movie still had a profit of over 200 million dollars.

Obviously, most people like special effects and for a good reason, too.

Sometimes directors spend months and thousands if not millions of dollars

“They are entertaining and fun to watch, but are they really worth it?”

There has been a big increase in the number of lowly rated films, and almost all of them are highly polarized (mixed reviews) yet are still getting lots of profit relative to the more highly rated films. Making movies that are aimed to please everyone is not a good idea because the only way a director would be able to do so would be to remove any content that has the potential to be controversial or disliked by anyone.

In turn, the directors would have to replace it with effects and dull content that lack voice or emotion. The film industry is spitting out “bad” movies because they know that many people will still go out to theaters to see them, some recent examples of these types of movies are Paul Blart: Mall Cop, The Twilight Series, Grown Ups, and about two-thirds of the top box office films. The statistics of these movies help prove my point even more, despite being given an average of 33% by

on special effects, while scripts and other film elements are can be free and do not waste as much time. In an article titled “Film Directors Hurt

By Movie Visual Effects,” writer Len Esten notes that “visual effects take a lot of care and feeding” and that they take from production time that “might be better spent with other elements of the production.” The problem is that if directors spend so much energy into having good special effects, lots of time is taken away from coming up with a stronger plot and a better script.

In addition, other film elements that used to make a great movie great, like

good angles and shots, would become almost fully absent. This is one of many reasons why films have generally downgraded as filmmaking technology has grown more advanced. For example, if you look at the affect of 3D in the movies of the past few years, you can see that the 3D effect is so distracting, that the content of the film turns out to be generally worse than if it were produced in 2D. Sure, all the box office hits are making lots of money and are doing pretty well in the film industry, but the fact that a movie appeals to a wide audience range and is advertised well doesn’t make it a good movie worth watching. All it means is that the film appealed to many people and was in general, watchable, and many of the movies goers today are usually kids or teens who do not really care for the elements that used to make great films. Instead, they care for “awesome” special effects and films that carry no deeper meanings whatsoever. The truth is, movies aren’t getting better, and the advances in film technologies and special effects are the main cause that is pushing this film revolution. But, this revolution is really not for the better, it’s actually getting worse, and, unfortunately, it’s taking the filmmaking industry down with it.

Can watching an action movie really make your children anyone else?

In 1900, there were no televisions, no radios, and no movie theaters. Now in 2011 we are lucky enough to have all of these things plus phones and computers. The one thing both years do have in common though is that children committed crimes. Why are these topics relevant you ask? For the past few decades’ people have blamed television for adolescents’ crimes, but what was to blame a hundred years ago? Violence in the media should not be held accountable for adolescents committing violent crimes, because adolescents know right from wrong.

Parents could tell their children that television is not real and that the people that are getting hurt are just actors. Parents could also sensor their family televisions. “What ever happened to personal and parental responsibility in this country?” asks Adam D. Thierer of CATO Institute.

People respond saying, “They don’t like the sound of censorship, but they are apparently going to have to learn to live with it.” Others say, “… media is so ubiquitous in our lives today, that we have given up trying to keep tabs on what their kids watch or listen to.”

This just shows that parents nowadays are stubborn and unconcerned. This is the reason their kids are being exposed to the violence, because they are too lazy to sensor their televisions. Parents could take the television out of their kids’ rooms and place computers were they can be easily monitored.

Second, media violence is not all the violence in which kids are exposed.

Many kids witness violent behavior from their parents committing domestic violence. Children look up to their parents and think that everything that their parents do is the right thing to do, so when their parents are committing violent crimes they feel they should too. According to The

Alabama Coalition Against Domestic Violence (ACADV), “Children who witness family violence are affected in ways similar to children who are physically abused.” The (ACADV) say parents setting boundaries and examples are the most effective way to prevent violent behavior in children.

Finally, if violence is affecting children, where is the proof ? What are the adolescents who committed the crime going to say? The bad guy on television did it, so I wanted to do it too?

Of course not, these kids know right from wrong, so they should be held accountable. Dr. Jonathan Freedman, former chair of the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto, was interviewed on the topic of violence in the media. He stated, “The

systematic research does not provide convincing evidence that exposure to violent media makes children or anyone else more aggressive.” He continued by discussing the decline in violence in the United States and Canada.

Leslie Ortiz, of Venezuela, who is against violence in television says, “Nowadays, many parents try to monitor what their children watch on TV, but sometimes it is impossible because many parents work and they have to leave their children alone.

This means the kids have the freedom to choose what they want to see.”

In conclusion, parents should limit the amount of time their children watch television or movies, and should monitor the televisions shows that their kids watch and the video games that they play. Additionally children should not have televisions in their bedrooms, and should only use the computer in public areas of the home.

Parents should talk to their kids about what they see in the media to make them aware that violence is not normal, and that the violence is not real.

Parents should also set rules concerning violence around their kids, so that they are aware of what is wrong, and what is right. Lastly, parents should keep their physical and emotional violence at a low level around their kids because it does affect them, even if it is only in the slightest bit.

By: Ajeenah F.

Netflix stamps separate prices on what was once a cheap package

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hen you think of Netflix, you think of something along the lines of America’s largest subscription services. In other words, Netflix gained popularity from people for some reason, right?

Well, what if that reason was because their prices were just how we liked it? It’s reasonably cheap. But now, it wants to raise their prices to make more of a profit. It’s seems, more and more, like Netflix will just hurt itself in the long run rather than help the company since, ultimately, customers will flee to the competitors.

Because of this, Netflix doesn’t seem like the nice, inexpensive streaming video service it once was.

Netflix has justified their decision by saying “…We have realized that there is still a very large continuing demand for DVDs. Given the long life we think DVDs by mail will have, treating DVDs as a $2 add on to our unlimited streaming plan neither makes great financial sense nor satisfies people who just want DVDs.” Netflix thinks that an unlimited DVDs by mail plan with no streaming, and with a price of $7.99 makes more sense. The only way that it makes sense in my eyes is that

Netflix has angered customers by significantly raising their prices by 60%. Netflix used to have a great plan where if you paid $9.99 a month, you would get unlimited streaming and DVDs through mail. Not only did your pockets stay full, but you could rejoice in getting a pretty great deal.

Now, Netflix is raising their prices by a whole 60% and what was formally $9.99 for unlimited streaming and DVDs is now $7.99 for unlimited streaming and $7.99 for unlimited DVDs through mail. And there’s no price break to be found. These individual plans stamped with higher prices are upsetting Netflix customers to the point that they just want to find another provider and give up on Netflix entirely, I know that I would.

Netflix enforces a controversial policy limiting the media to only one device at a time. When ordering the plan for unlimited streaming, there is a policy connected to the plan that limits the ability to stream movies

to a certain number of devices.

An example would be when a customer chooses that plan, they can choose to stream two movies at a time. What limits the customer is since the streaming plan and the DVDs by mail plan are separate, the streaming plan customers can only stream one movie at a time.

This is a disadvantage because Netflix customers cannot watch two different movies on separate devices or in separate rooms of a house. This is equal to ripping of customers since they pay a good $7.99 a month for this plan but still get ridiculous limitations such as this example.

Netflix customers will have less choice when streaming movies because of failed negotiations with Starz. There was an original deal that Netflix had made with Starz, who controlled pay-cable rights to movies from Walt Disney Studios and Sony Picture. That deal was made with Netflix because Starz saw the opportunity for additional money to be collected from Netflix users which was an estimated $30 million per year for the studio. Starz Entertainment has ended contract renewal negotiations with Netflix because it now saw Netflix as a competitor to their subscription TV service. This is bad for Netflix customers because now premium movie content including movies from Disney and Sony will be removed.

By Amber R.

The DSLR revolution from the perspective of Jacob V.

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he revolution known as the DSLR cinematography is taking the market by storm. Many indie filmmakers, and even professional filmmakers who have been in the industry for years, have started adopting DSLRs because of their wide range of adaptability, as well as their easy to transport form factor because of their relatively compact size. The DSLR, although new to film making, already has a wide range of rigs that allow the camera to be modified depending on the situation. This has drawn more filmmakers to look at this cheaper alternative to the traditional film camera market. The DSLR is a great tool in any filmmaker’s tool set and a great option for filmmakers on

a budget DSLRs are a great alternative to traditional cameras; they are cheaper than their film counterparts, but better quality than video cameras at the same price. In the season finale of Fox’s show “House”, they experimented with using DSLRs for filming. The episode was shot using the Canon 5D Mark II, a DSLR. In the film crew’s interview with USA Today’s Jefferson Graham, they said “this meant retiring the 35mm film Arriflex cameras [A camera that costs upwards of $40k] and switching to digital.” This was a huge jump, but after they had gotten the camera on set and started shooting with it, Gale Tattersal, the director of photography said,

“[The Video] looked absolutely stunning.”

They also made note that the large sensor allowed for more light to be taken in as well as a shallower depth of field to be achieved. This is quite amazing considering the Canon 5D Mark II is only a $2k camera.

DSLRs offer much more customization over video cameras in the same price point. Some of these customiz-

able features are the ability to adjust ISO, exposure, shutter speed and being able to make a rig setup. According to Matt Braga, a writer for Tested, “One of the advantages of buying a DSLR over, say, a video camcorder is the immense control”. Standard video cameras in the 2k price range, such as the Canon XA10, cannot adjust the ISO, nor does

Axel Bührmann Canon XA10 it have the wide range of rigs available for it. In addition, the Canon XA10 only has a 2 megapixel sensor compared to the beastly 22 megapixel sensor on the Canon 5D Mark II. Braga furthers this argument by saying, “Size and flexibility offered by the likes of Canon, Nikon, Sony [DSLRs]… are turning once-consumer cameras into valuable professional tools.” This hints that more and more productions on major networks, such as ABC, NBC and Fox will start switching over or, at the very least, start considering shooting their productions with DSLRs. Even rigs can offer more customization because one can add many different attachments to them. This can include adding a follow focus (a gear ring around the focus ring of the lens) to get a more precise focus, or assembling a shoulder rig for more stable shots.

One can get many different lenses for DSLRs that allow for many different shots; these lenses are much cheaper than lenses for professional film cameras. Also, the larger sensors allow for higher quality video, along with some different cinematic effects. According to Michael Reichmann, “The magic that

video DSLRs offer is their large sensors (at least when compared to video cameras)... because these larger sensors allow for narrower depth of field.” This translates to a sharper focus on the subject while unfocusing the background.

The wide array of lenses (a little over 110 different lenses for the 5D) allows for hundreds of different shots. Also, the low cost of these lenses, as compared to the professional film cameras (35mm to be exact), make it possible for filmmakers to have many different lenses so they can be more versatile when shooting. Basically, the wide range of lenses and the cheap cost allow directors and cinematographers to now have more of a variety of shots than ever before!

Some people will say DSLRs do not have good audio and do not match the professional quality of the 35mm film cameras. This may be true, but one must remember one thing: DSLRs are relatively new to the video market having only been on the market of filmmaking for the past 5-6 years. This means that DSLR makers are constantly improving and there is a ton of room for growth.

Even though the DSLR is fairly new to the market, these problems can be overcome fairly easily; for example, the audio can be captured using an external mic. This will let you get good quality and allow the mic to move closer to the subject than an attached mic. In the DSLR market, video quality is always being improved and features are always always being added to keep up with competition. Furthermore, the huge price difference between the DSLR and traditional film cameras as compared to the minimal quality difference simply cannot be beat. Contrasting this, the huge visual difference between video cameras in the same price range and DSLRs is a gaping distance; the DSLR, of course, trumping the quality of the video camera.

In conclusion, the DSLR is a great tool in any filmmaker’s tool set and a great option for filmmakers on a budget. They are a great alternative to traditional cameras and are cheaper than their film counterparts, but better quality than video cameras at the same price point. They offer much more customization over video cameras in the same cost range. One can get many different lenses for DSLRs that allow many different shots. These lenses are much cheaper than lenses for professional film cameras. Also, the larger sensors allow for a higher quality and different cinematic effects. Next time you are in the market for a video camera or some equipment to increase the quality of your movie/production, seriously consider a DSLR.

By Jacob V.

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wo years ago in August, Matt Pearce posted his first YouTube video. It was a video about the iPod. At the time, Matt would have never dreamed of

the success he would gain nor how it would lead him to pursue a career in filmmaking. Matt is now planning on attending [Insert University Name here].

Matt is one of the many who

found his talent through the Internet.

Through his years of photography and technology experience, he has found a way to combine the two into something he enjoys. He has amassed an audience

airplane. In this video, he showed off many different shots, including some arial and even underwater shots. This was one of his first “short films” and it really exemplified his skill in filmmaking.

On Matt’s desk one will find a Wacom tablet, which Matt uses for making designs, and art that was inspired by his interest in being a comic book artist.

Matt always says, “If you want to shoot better videos, learn to use one of these [A canon Ae-1]” Upon graduating high school, Matt traveled around Europe. He said, “Before I went, my parents bought me

interest in photography. When Matt got a video-capable DSLR a few years ago, “It was a natural progression,” Matt said. He combined his photography skill with his knowledge of technology to make his YouTube channel.

Today, Matt makes a few videos a week. He often gets inspirations from “something completely unrelated,” such as a car commercial. During shooting, one can still see the gleam in his eye.

This is not a job, but a creative outlet.

On average, Matt films and edits 15-20 hours per week. Matt says, “It’s giving me a way to make money while doing something that I love. It also gave me the courage to leave my career and go back to school full time.”

Matt is in the process of moving from Columbia, Maryland, to his new home in Hollywood, California. Once in Hollywood, Matt hopes to just, “Learn.

That’s really it. I have no aspirations beyond improving my skills.” He will be attending [Insert University name here].

In the future, he says, he hopes “to produce short films for digital delivery.”

Matt believes that video making has changed his life in so many ways.

It has given him a new passion, an audience that cares about him and the courage to go back to school and learn. In conclusion, Matt says, “Have fun, follow what you are passionate about, and make every

“If you want to shoot better videos, learn to use one of these

Photo by baby-tooth from Phtotpedia

of more than 30,000 people and gotten 3 million views over the past two years.

He has even been noticed by networks such as CNBC, Discovery Channel, PBS, and the French channel “MK2” who have all featured his shots. He has recently decided to pursue his film asperations and move to Hollywood.

On August 16, 2009, Matt first pressed the “record” button on his little Flip Mino camera. He was shooting a video about “How to use the iPod touch in disk mode”. This video shot up in popularity.

This was a time before Matt Pearce was known for his cinematic skills. He was just an ordinary guy with some knowledge and a camera. As his videos progressed, one could see his cinematic skills grow.

With each video, his narration became more fluid. As his subsequent videos progressed even further, traces of his cinematic skill became more and more apparent. These were the early stages of Matt Pearce’s progression into filmmaking.

Growing up, Matt wanted to be many things. “The two things that I was most serious about was comic book artist and pilot. Neither really panned out (luckily).” Although these two careers never worked out, one can still see the elements from these interests in his work.

For example in his video “GoPro Hero”, which was a short film showing off the GoPro Hero camera’s video quality, he was flying an

A Canon AE-1 a film SLR, so I figured I should learn how to use it.” This spurred a life-long

A Feature Story By Ajeenah F.

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t’s the first day of school, students walk into their film class; computers are everywhere; there is a faint, welcoming scent of strawberries and vanilla. Students are scattered around, there is only one adult in the classroom, and her name is Vanessa Mokry. She is a very talented and dedicated independent filmmaker that only desires to make a personal connection with all her viewers, and is determined to get that.

After working as a wedding filmer, Mokry began teaching at LASA in 2007 to allow kids to learn about the wonderful opportunities of film.

Mokry plans to do this by giving

them all they need to know for having a successful job in the filmmaking business, and she won’t stop until she feels that they have received all the information needed. It all started in seventh grade when Vanessa’s sister was having a baby and bought a new video camera. Her sister planned to use the camera to film her new born baby but Vanessa took over and fell in love and knew that she wanted to pursue a career in filming.

“I made multiple films starring my baby niece as Batman, or a spy, etc...,” Mokry said.

Many years later Vanessa Mokry met one student whom she will never

forget. Her name was Emily Hagins, and she has recently become a well known director with her newest film, My Sucky Teen Romance.

Mokry says, “She’s just great and talented and it’s just fun to talk film with her because she talks the language.”

Producers and directors make it seem so easy when it’s really one of the most difficult careers in the world, but no matter what, those producers and directors never give up and keep at it. It takes time and persistence, but the end product is worth the wait.

Mokry says, “It’s never easy, it’s the hardest thing to do but every single day you will want to do it.”

Directing is more than just saying action and cut, directing is reading the script, and looking over the dialogue, watching for detail and much more.

“My favorite director [has to be] a writer/director because I value a good script so much. In this case, I would say Joss Whedon is my favorite [director] because he has a great dialogue with detail and a good perspective on the human condition even if it is being shown through monsters and magic,” said Vanessa.

Filmmaking is a job that takes time and hard work. Pleasing the people is virtually impossible, but the film crew never and will never stop putting that hard work into their productions.

“It’s never easy, it’s the hardest thing to do but every single day you will want to do it.”

“It’s just the most grueling, time consuming , crazy, awful experience

while you are there but you want to do it… it’s hard to explain”, Vanessa says.

Vanessa Mokry said that dedication is what drives her career in filming. She is searching for one certain thing, and that is connection.

“To me film is the most important thing, telling stories and making that connection with people. That [bond] they get [with the director] from watching a film or a TV show.

Making that connection is so important to me and I’m still trying to get that connection,” says Mokry.

The Life of a Student Filmmaker: Anele Page

By Amber Rodriguez

A

nele Page walks in the film productions office also known as Ms. Mokry’s Film productions class room.

There are fancy film tools and equipment scattered all over the place.

Page’s group of five (including herself) hang around a bit and discuss their latest assignment yet: their South by Southwest (SXSW) short films that are about struggling and aspiring artists.

The group goes out, plans it, and then starts shooting.

Anele’s ultimate goal is to be a professional film or TV director. In Page’s first year of high school, before even thinking about film, she wanted to pursue a career in writing or even in graphic designing. Now in her last year of high school, Anele is the director or her groups’ projects and is a respected leader. Film is her passion; she started thinking about some general professions then moved on to something more narrowed down and precise.

Making film production as a career path to pursue in later years is what

Anele is aiming for.

“I think for me it’s important to do something that I enjoy as a career.

I feel like it would probably be the thing I’d be the happiest doing in the future,” Anele mentioned.

Usually kids would start dreaming of their dream career at an early age, as for Anele, she first started getting interested in film-related careers in high school.

“Everyone likes movies pretty much, so if I said I watched a lot of movies when I was a kid, it doesn’t really mean anything,” says Anele. “I’ve been more appreciative of the more technical aspects, and I’ve been drawn to it in a way.”

She has been applying to film schools and is hoping to get in one of them.

“Hopefully, from there, I’ll learn more about film and get experience with it.”

She wants to continue with learning from experience to achieve her ultimate goal which is to be a professional film or TV director. Balancing out having fun while filming and editing

with her group and being serious and focusing is essential.

“Even though I’m passionate about film, I also like to have fun with it more than anything. I am serious about it and I want to get stuff done, but I also want to enjoy the experience and get something good out of it.”

Though it was a bit difficult to choose her inspiration, Anele decided that her first encounter with Mrs. Mokry’s Audio Visual Production classroom in LASA High School at the showcase was responsible for her choosing filmrelated courses. She had just finished middle school and was transitioning to a high school.

“I came into the room and I was like ‘Whoa, this room is really cool, look at all these computers!’ I talked to a couple of people and it just seemed really interesting, so I decided to sign up for the class.”

Anele has taken the initiative and has goals that she wants to see accomplished. She has got inspired by just viewing the classrooms when she

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ts 7:45 in the morning and classes at Kealing Middle School have all started. Look into a science class and you’ll see kids working on a lab, peek at a geometry class and you’ll see kids taking notes or a test. But, if you pass by room 212 you’ll be surprised to find that the students are shooting films.

Surprising as it may be, Kealing is home to a unique middle school elective that allows students to watch and even produce films. The school offers 2 levels of the class, both of which are taught by much-loved English teacher, Mr. Frank J. Webster. Even after taking Film 1 and Film 2 a couple years ago, LASA freshmen Grayson, Madeline, and Robin say that they can still feel the lasting effects of the one-of-a-kind class.

“Now, I really think about movies a lot more,” Grayson said. “I can examine them and not only see if they’re good plot-wise, but I mean, if the directing and the cinematography is actually better. I can critique films on a deeper level, something that I was never able to do before.”

Although Madeline took the same classes, she learned more about the actual creation and production of the film as opposed to learning the mechanics of the film itself.

“I learned a lot about how everything is framed in the camera, and how far away it is from the characters and the actors, and basically just learned about little things that you can do to make the audience feel a certain way about the shots,” she said.

As unofficial assistant to Mr. Webster, Robin had an overall different per-

spective to the class than his peers, but, Robin’s mood when talking about the class was the same as others with a more average film experience, they all thought the class was relaxed, but required hard work.

“It was just a great experience because at the same time it was a challenge, it was also a break from the monotony of regular school” Robin said.

Mr. Webster uses Film 1 to teach students about the basics of film making and get them situated with films and film concepts. At the end of the class, students are allowed to make one big film that puts everything they learned from the class to the test. After the first class, if students desire to contin-

“I can critique films on a deeper level, something that I was never able to do before” ue, they can take Film 2 which is basically gives students the opportunity to perfect their filmmaking abilities.

“The best part of [being in both film classes] was taking what we had learned earlier in the classes and then putting it towards making something of our own” said Grayson.

For students like Goulet, taking the classes even helped in other subjects at school.

“Film has helped me become a better story teller,” Madeline said. “Whenever I am trying to create [the story or plot of the film] I try to use the minimal amount of words (dialogue) because I’ve learned to use the camera

to show things instead, and that is the beauty of it. You can show stuff without actually having to tell the audience, and, so, I think I became a better writer because I’ve started using sensory imagery instead of actually telling the audience what was going on.”

One thing was obvious about the three students, they all loved Mr. Webster.

“He is one of the greatest teachers ever because he really enjoys what he’s teaching and so that makes his students really enjoy what they’re learning,” Madeline said.

Even Mr.Webster’s “student aid”, Robin, enjoyed the experience with not-so-average English teacher.

“I think he is a great teacher,” Robin said. “One of the best things about him is that he realizes the flaws in today’s school system and doesn’t teach the way other people teach, he’s a lot more about understanding things thoroughly than just throwing stuff at you and expecting you to understand it.”

The classes being taught by Mr.Webster have certainly left an impression its students, and after taking the classes, many students feel like they have come out of the class really learning something, which is considered rare for electives like these.

“I can appreciate movies a lot more after taking the two film classes,” Madeline said. “I mean, now, I can look at [films] a lot differently and how film making is a true art instead of just being a fun thing to do.”

Christian Ulf Petzold

Photo by Yo_Toco

Extras

If the film is “Ultra-low-budget�, My suggestion would be going with the Canon T3i. This camera is a DSLR which means it has interchangeable lenses along with a myriad of adjustable functions. The low light performance on this camera is not the best and it has a cropped sensor but it will get the job done. Another higher end choice would be the Canon 60D. This camera has much better build quality, better low light performance and is all around a better camera (with the exception of enhanced digital zoom).

A steadicam is essential in any production. This allows one to get fluid shots while giving the cinematographer the ability to move relatively freely. Whether one go with the Hague video stabilizer or an off brand, one simply cannot go wrong.

The final essential piece to any cinematographers film kit would be a good microphone.

In this case, we chose to go with the Rode video mic pro. It not only offeres a robust industrialistic design that has a built in shock mount, but also gives the clear audio usually only found on more higher end microphones. The only down side to this microphone is it uses a 3.5mm out jack instead of an XLR output which provides higher end studio grade audio.

Remember though, a film will not look professional if you do not have good content. If a film does not have a decent script, plot and acting, then obviously the look of the movie will not count (If only Michael Bay would learn this).

Filming Locations of austin

By Sammy J

The Barton Springs pool was used in the filming of Terrence Malick’s “The Tree of Life” (2011), the scene filmed at this location featured actors Brad Pitt and Sean Penn.

“Dazed and Confused” (1993), starring Matthew McConaughey, Jason London and Ben Aflleck, was filmed almost entirely in and around downtown/central Austin. One location, Top Notch burger joint, served as one of the many “hang out” spots for the highschoolers in the movie.

The classic office workplace film, “Office Space” (1999)was also mostly filmed in Austin, Texas.

The film starred actors Ron Livingston, Jennifer Aniston and Gary Cole and was filmed at a regular office on Friedrich Lane off of I-35. Some parts of the film were also shot at the Alligator Grill South Lamar.

Congress Avenue, in the heart of downtown Austin, is one unique Austin location in which multiple films were shot at. Two of the most well known films shot here are Robert Rodriguez’s “Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over” (2003) and parts of “True Grit” (2010), directed by the Coen Brothers.

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Stanley Kubrick was born in New York, and was considered an intelligent man though he made poor grades at school. His father introduced Kubrick to chess, hoping that he could find something to interest his son. He quickly became a skilled player in chess. Looking back at it, chess became an important device that acted as a tool for the actors he encountered with uncooperative attitudes and as an artistic motif for many of his films. For Kubrick’s 13th birthday, his father gave him a camera and he immediately became an avid photographer. After selling a photograph to a magazine publisher, their staff offered Stanley a job as an apprentice photographer. In the next few years, Kubrick and a friend decided to make a documentary called “Day of the Flight.” He made a number of other films afterwards and this kicked off his career as a professional film director. Some films that Stanley was known for are The Shining, A Clockwork Orange, 2001: A Space odyssey, Killers Kiss.

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1.Stanley Kubrick

A man who has an extremely influential film personality in the history of film, Steven Speilburg, is one of the wealthiest filmmakers ever. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. An amateur filmmaker as a child, Steven Spielberg moved several times growing up and spent part of his youth in Arizona. He became one of the youngest television directors for Universal in the late 1960s. A television film, Duel (1972), brought him the opportunity to direct for the cinema, and a string of hits made him the most commercially successful director of all time. Spielburg has three Academy Award wins and has received the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1986. . Some movies that Spielburg has produced are Catch Me If You Can (2002), Memoirs of a Geisha, TV series Pinky and the Brain.

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2.Steven Spielberg

3.Quentin Tarantino Born in Knoxville, Tennessee and raised as an only child, Quentin Tarantino developed his love for movies at an early age. One of his oldest memories was of his grandmother taking him to see a John Wayne movie.

Tarantino as loved storytelling, though he conveyed his creativity in odd ways. His mother had told an entertainment magazine, “He wrote me sad Mother’s Day stories.

He’d always kill me and tell me how bad he felt about it.” Quentin Tarantino loathed school, no subject appealed to him except for history. He did well in that class because, “it was kind of like the movies,” Tarantino told an entertainment magazine. He dropped out of high school and worked as an usher at an adult film theater and he also took some acting classes and eventually landed a job at a video rental store called Video Archives in Manhattan Beach, California.

He was able to get his script for a movie called True Romance in the hands of director Tony Scott. Scott liked Tarantino’s script and it bought the rights to it.

Afterwards, Tarantino worked on a movie called Reservoir Dogs, which helped make Tarantino one of the most talked-about figures in Hollywood. Some moves that Tarantino produced were Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill series, From Dusk Till Dawn.

Peter Jackson was born as an only child in a small coast-side town in New Zealand. When Peter was eight years old, a friend of his parents bought him an 8mm camera (because she knew that Peter enjoyed taking photographs) and he instantly began making short films and recording his own movies.

One film, called Bad Taste, was made with an amateur-istic style, and created, again, at a low budget, using friends and local people to star in it. Jackson did nearly everything himself in the movie; he directed it, produced it, filmed it and even starred in it. The movie took Jackson and his friends about four years to finish. Bad Taste started out as a joke in a group of friends, and then became quite popular to a number of people. Jackson submitted his movie to a film festival and won prizes, and later became a big hit. After the success of Bad Taste he became recognized as a director and progressed into this career as a professional film director. Jackson is best known for producing The Lord of the Rings Saga, The Hobbit, The lovely Bones, King Kong (2005.)

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4.Peter Jackson

Written By: Ajeenah F.

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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Harry Potter has received the honor of being the highest grossing movie of 2011. On the opening weekend Harry Potter 7 received a whopping $169,189,427. Most movies barely receive that through the whole time period of being in theatres.

That’s not it! Harry Potter 7’s entire earnings was $1,328,111,219, and that’s why Harry Potter is the top growing movie of 2011.

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Transformers: Dark of the Moon

The newest film of the Transformers trilogy made $97,852,865 on the opening weekend. Many people were suprised that it received that much knowing that the beautiful Megan Fox wasnt returning for the third movie. Overall the movie snagged a wonderful $1,123,196,189. There are rumors that a fourth movie movie is going to be made, and may be directed by the same director of the first three Michael Bay.

The Hangover Part II

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The first hangover was a great success, and the sequel was even better! It received $85,946,294 on the opening night. Who would have thought a movie about grown men getting drunk and doing drugs would make so much money? A whats even crazier is that the movie made a grand total of $581,464,305.

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The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 It wasnt a surprise that the fourth movie of the Twilight series made $138,122,261 on the opening weekend, but it was a surprise that it didnt reach the billion dollar overall earnings. It only received $595,257,900, which isnt bad, but with all the TwiHearts was a surprise.

Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides The fourth movie of the Pirates of the Caribbean series made $90,151,958 on the opening weekend, which wasnt a surprise after they announced that Penelope Cruz would be starring. The movie made a grand total of $1,043,871,802. Not bad for a movie about pirates and and mermaids. Let’s hope that the rumored fifth movie will make just as much.

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