Tag Archive
The Invisible Art of Cutting Films
“Every editor is going to tell you the same thing,” says Sheldon Kahn, A.C.E. “If you don’t notice the editing, that’s good editing. Whether it’s an animated picture o »
The City of Life and Death
In 1937, the Japanese Imperial Army invaded and subjugated the people of China in what was to be a precursor of the atrocities of the Pacific theater of the Second World War. The most infamous aspect of the campaign has become known as the Rape of Nanjing. Figures vary but all sources admit hundreds... »
Red Cliff
The third century was not a time for sissies, especially in the vast expanses of China’s Han dynasty. For good or ill, the Emperor’s Prime Minister Cao Cao (Zheng Fengyi) is hot to create a unified nation and he’s prepared to amass a million-man army to quash the autonomy of its most prominent Kingdoms. »
Costume Design: Helping the Actor Find the Character
Costume Designer, Jenny Beavan, can appreciate a beautiful piece of fabric in the same way she would appreciate a beautiful painting or a beautiful flower, but “it’s not what she lives and breathes.” As a costume designer she does not even have a particular interest in clothing, fabric or accessories. “But when it comes... »
Score and Sound: The Unsung Heroes Behind the Scenes
Every year about this time, the Oscar nominations are made. Music, of all the crafts, is possibly the most subjective category to judge, especially for an award of this magnitude. The daunting task of deciding what is worthy of contention goes to the composers, music editors and music supervisors who are Academy members. “Movies... »
Awards Season: When Motion Picture Crafts Get Their Due
The curtain is rising on another awards season, where recognition of individual achievement in filmmaking takes place against the backdrop of Hollywood ritual and hoopla. It’s also the time of year when the craft professionals who work behind the scenes get their time in the spotlight, honored both by their peers at special guild... »
John Hillcoat Travels Down The Road
Some movies provoke the mind and intellect and leave audiences thinking long after they have left the theater. Add The Road to that list. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book by Cormac McCarthy, who also wrote the book on which the Coen Brothers film No Country For Old Men was based, Australian director John... »
A Retrospective on Two Centenarian Hollywood Veterans
Bestowed with the privilege of interviewing a near century of living Hollywood history, I recently chatted with production designer extraordinaire, Robert Boyle and special effects titan, Harry Redmond Jr., on the occasion of each man’s 100th birthday. Giants of filmdom each, their paths to successful careers were as different as they were compelling. Robert... »
Contender – Editing – Dana E. Glauberman – Up in the Air
As a film studies major at UC Santa Barbara, Dana E. Glauberman knew she wanted to pursue editing. After graduation she secured a production assistant position and began working her way up the ladder, eventually assisting Ivan Reitman’s, long-time editor Sheldon Kahn, (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest). In a case of being in... »
The Long, Slow Process of Bringing Coraline to the Screen
“It’s difficult to get funding for stop motion,” says director Henry Selick, of trying to finance his projects. That he was previously the director of modern holiday staple The Nightmare Before Christmas tells just how over-cautious—or non-available—production capital must really be. Selick was talking about raising money for Coraline, his adaptation of the Neil... »
