Chet Davis - Your Technology Tutor

Wal-mart Enters Online Entertainment Arena

Wal-Mart, the nations largest retailer,  plans to acquire Vudu, an online video service that offers movies to buy and rent through partnerships with makers of Internet-connected televisions and Blu-ray players.

The fact that Wal-mart has their eyes (and their pocket-book) on Vudu suggests to me they must be doing some things very well, and that Vudu stands poised for a successful future.

One of the primary factors that sets Vudu apart from another streaming video provider - Netflix - is the fact that Vudu is available without a monthly subscription or contract. You can rent or buy high definition and standard definition movies on what is essentially a pay per view system. As they put it "only pay for what you watch".

Ok - but how do you 'get' or access Vudu? There are two methods to access their movies & programs:
1. VUDU is now available built into products from LG and Mitsubishi (DVD players and TV monitors)

2. Or you can use a 'Vudu' box -- they have two models:

• The VUDU box ($149.00) may be purchased at Best Buy

• The VUDU XL model ($499.00), designed for high end home theaters, is available only through our authorized installers.

You can learn more about Vudu from their website:  http://www.vudu.com/

At the Movies: Avatar - An Interesting Article About the Film & It's Director

When discussing popular movies this month, certainly James Cameron's Avatar is to be in the mix. Just  one month after it's release out, Cameron’s sci-fi adventure has drawn in $450.4 million at the domestic box office. Avatar is now #4 on the all-time domestic box-office chart (not adjusted for inflation or higher 3D/IMAX ticket prices). Alt Film Guide website predicts:  It’ll surely be #3 by Monday, ahead of George Lucas' Stars Wars ($460m). Avatar is currently trailing Stars Wars, The Dark Knight, and Titanic

I was catching up on my reading last evening and read an interesting article in the December 2009 issue of Wired Magazine.  Come to find out that the same article is available online here: James Cameron’s New 3-D Epic Could Change Film Forever (Article authored by By Joshua Davis - no relation to yours truly)

Director James Cameron reviews footage on the Avatar set with (from left) actors
Sigourney Weaver, Joel Moore, and Sam Worthington (Photo: Art Streiber)

Roger Ebert's List of the best films of 2009

It seems like forever that I have enjoyed and respected the reviews of movie critic Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun Times.  I watched many an episode of his program 'At The Movies' opposite Gene Siskel.  I appreciated Roger's reviews as they seemed to direct me towards the movies and films I enjoyed as well.  Just today I came across Ebert's List of the best films from the past year - 2009.  It's even fun to read his introduction as last year he came out with a list of the best 20 films of 2008.  He indicates that he took a lot of flack for that move (ever notice how other folks have their top 100 lists and their top 10 lists?).

This year, Roger Ebert provides us with his picks of the Top 10 Mainstream Films and his Top 10 Indie Films. 

"The lists are divided into Mainstream Films and Independent Films. This neatly sidesteps two frequent complaints: (1) "You name all those little films most people have never heard of," and (2) "You pick all blockbusters and ignore the indie pictures." Which is is my official Top Ten? They both are equal, and every film here is entitled to name itself "One of the Year's 10 Best!" "

You can read the insightful, short reviews for each of the twenty films (or the two lists of ten films) here: Roger Ebert's Journal.

Thanks Roger -- I now have a list of several films to view and to add to my queue in Netflix!

What Makes Ken Burns’s Films Unique?

I have always admired the work of Ken Burns - his documentary films take archival material and truly bring them to life, from still photos, drawings and maps he adds music, evocative narration and truly brings history to life... from his PBS Film projects The Civil War to Baseball and his recent series The National Parks he has created truly captivating pieces of art on the screen.

I was thrilled to learn this morning about an interview with Ken Burns on the website 'Bit Think'.  There is a longer 43-minute interview and a nicely edited short version that is .  Here is the 6-minute version where Ken Burns gives us a sense of his film-making process, he shares how Apple came to retain the name on their 'Ken Burns Effect'. 

Important for all of us who work with video & film to understand this master of the screen...in the interview he points out that Documentary Film Making is like Making Maple Syrup (Ken lives in New Hampshire and apparently does make syrup).  It takes 40 gallons of sap to make one gallon of maple syrup... that's pretty much what documentary film-making is for me.  It's about 40 to 1 shooting ratio" (Forty hours of film footage ends up being edited down to 1 hour of final film).

via bigthink.com

If you would like to view the entire 43-minute interview with Ken Burns - visit Think Big on this page:
Big Think Interview with Ken Burns

Four Screenplays: A Great Book About the Art of Scriptwriting

I heard it said once that video or film is a five part process... plan, plan, plan tape/film and edit.  Most folks I met want to skip the first 3/5s and get to the 'fun stuff' of the actual movie-making.  But it is in that planning process that great stuff is devised. 

I get asked occasionally if there are any good resources to learn the planning or script-writing phase.  Well there is one I have read that is not at all a text-book but does provide some good insight in the script writing stage. The book is not new, written in 1994, but is a good one.

The author. Syd Field, has a number of books out on script-writing and I found this particular title a few years ago. It was an easy and interesting read.  In Four Screenplays, he analyzes four movies that made it to the big-screen: Thelma & Louise, Terminator 2, Silence of the Lambs and Dances with Wolves. 

In the book he interviews Callie Khouri, James Cameron, Ted Tally and Michael Blake - the four screen writers responsible for these four screen plays.  What's interesting about this book is that each of the four movies are based on four different screen-play 'beginnnings'... from original work to adaptation from short story and novel.  From Syd Fields website "This analysis of four groundbreaking contemporary classics, in-depth interviews and comparative remarks will help any screenwriter reach the goal of great writing, commercial success, and winning entertainment"

You can order this book directly from the Writers Store website.

Or visit your local bookstore - the ISBN is 0440504902

If you're looking for more traditional textbook type resources to learn script-writing,  check out the other resources at the Writers Store.

A Christmas Carol 2009 -- Amazing Dickensonian Animation

Had a fun time last night at A Christmas Carol 3D, the new version directed by Robert Zemeckis.  

I am a big fan of the classic story -- this movie stays truer to the Dickens story than many of the other films and the motion capture animation is fabulous.  I have seen the two previous works from the folks who are Image Movers Digital (Polar Express & Beowulf) and enjoyed both of those films as well.

First impressions - the animation in this film is quite amazing, Jim Carrey who plays 6   characters did a great job with the different characterizations -- I too enjoyed seeing Gary Oldman (who many know as Serious Black in the Harry Potter Films) who played Bob Cratchit, Jacob Marley and Tiny Tim... also Bob Hoskins did a great job as Mr. Fezziwig.  The facial animations in this production are particularly well done - especially I found on Mr. Scrooge.  

Seen in 3D, the motion animation sequences are like a ride on a thrilling roller-coaster.  It is said that this film is the closest to the original story by Charles Dickens - and there are several elements that have been left out of other popular adaptations of this holiday classic.  Even the opening, and closing lines are taken directly from the words of Dickens (and we see them on the printed page). 

Our 10-year old son enjoyed the film as well - though there are some pretty intense moments. I would not have taken a much younger child; the scene with Jacob Marley, the appearance of Want and Ignorance, the departure of the Ghost of Christmas Present, and the chase scene between the Hearse and Scrooge (not in the book) are quite perilous and intense -- though well animated.

Another scene I enjoyed particularly was the strong 3D perspective of the hand moving towards the audience of the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. Very cool!

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A bit about the people and technology responsible for 'A Christmas Carol'...

Digital Image Movers is a company about 10-minutes from my home in Northern California.. it was founded in 2007 as a joint venture between Disney and Director Robert Zemekis.  They are housed inside a totally remodeled airplane hangar with one of, if not the largest motion capture stages in the world.  

Over-simplified - Motion Capture is a marriage between technology and animation artwork... the actor is equipped with a series of points (dots) that is read by a motion capture camera. 

The actor’s movements and expressions are captured in the digital realm. 

Then the animation team 'wraps' the clothes, skin, etc over these movement points... the result is pretty spectacular when done right.  And the folks at Image Movers Digital are getting very good at this craft! You can check out their website here: http://www.imagemoversdigital.com

          Jim Carrey in Performance Capture Rig

To learn a little more about Motion Capture Technology - check out this post in Wikipedia

What's Next for Image Movers Digital?    Yellow Submarine !

 The Walt Disney Studios has made a deal with Apple Corps Ltd. to develop a new 3D performance capture adaptation of the 1968 hit animated film “Yellow Submarine” to be written and directed by Robert Zemeckis - the film will be created by ImageMovers Digital. 

 For this fantastic new voyage to Pepperland, Zemeckis will incorporate the 16 Beatles songs and recordings from the original motion picture. 

Director Robert Zemeckis said, “’Yellow Submarine’ is one of the greatest fantasy films of all time, and making this new 3D performance capture movie is a dream come true for me. With the latest advances in technology, we will be able to take moviegoers on a voyage unlike any other, and bring new excitement and dimension to Pepperland and the various sea worlds they encounter. I’m thrilled to be working with the good folks at Apple Corps and our partners at Disney on this epic retelling of one of my all time favorite films.

Discs with DVD on one side, Blu-ray on the Other

With the increase of Blu-ray disc players in the marketplace the movie studios have been  wrestling with how to best provide their titles to the audiences willing to pay to view movies in their home.  Some films this Summer and Fall were released as a double-disc set with both the DVD and the Blu-ray DVD included.  This was apparently popular with consumers with the thought that "I could play this at home now on my regular DVD player and next year when I get a new Blu-ray player I can view the high-definition version.

There is a newer development as Universal Studios Home Entertainment is releasing a new disc format which features a traditional DVD on one side and a high-def Blu-ray on the opposite side. The new "flipper disc" will debut with the individual Bourne films (The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy and The Bourne Ultimatum) on January 19, 2010. 

 Note the 'COMBO FORMAT' along with both the Blu-ray and DVD logo on the top of this DVD package.

Universal's flipper eliminates the need for a second plastic platter.  You can read more about the Universal Flipper DVD on this article on Engadget.

Thanksgiving Weekend - Taking In A Movie

So maybe the family is visiting from out of town, the kids are out of school for the holiday and you're looking for something fun to do together, out of the house?  A lot of people take in a movie.  In fact the Thanksgiving Day 3-day weekend is one of the biggest box-office weekends of the year.

Here are the most popular main-stream Hollywood releases that will be in theaters this weekend:

• Bad Lieutenant Port of Call New Orleans
• The Blind Side
• Me and Orson Welles
• Ninja Assassin
  
• Old Dogs
• Planet 51
• The Princess and the Frog
• Red Cliff
• The Road The
• Twilight Saga: New Moon

I should point out that although not on this list, a noteworthy movie for consideration is the recent release of the animated Disney remake of the Dickens classic: A Christmas Carol (in both regular and Imax 3D versions). We have some family friends who were involved in the production of this new motion-capture/animation studio and it looks awesome (we're waiting until a little closer to the Christmas holiday to see it ourselves).

So, if you've got children of your own or your relatives are visiting with their children and you want to ensure you see a movie that is appropriate for younger viewers, what can you do?

I recommend using one of the on-line movie review websites that is designed to provide parents/others with a heads-up about the content of a movie. There are many who believe the MPAA rating system is more designed to encourage attendance that to truly provide sufficient caution to parents for inappropriate content - these on-line sources of information can be quite helpful. 

Now I should say that I am not so much of a 'prude'.  I appreciate a great movie or film that is well done, even if it has content that might be considered by some as offensive -- as long as it is within the context of the characters/action to include (sorry, gratuitous violence, rampant obscenity does nothing for me).

But when taking my 9-year old son to a new movie - I prefer to err on the side of thoughtfulness and expose him to ideas and action that are appropriate to his age level and life experience.  I am leery of some of the websites that are overt in either their specific viewpoints but more appreciate a site who provides me with the facts, the information and lets me make up my own mind as to what is appropriate for my child.

One such website is Kids In Mind - they share full details on the content in a new movie that parents might find objectionable, with a synopsis (brief outline) of the movie and really allow you to better decide is a particular movie is right for your child/ren. This site is part of the Critics.com group and I like their intentions and their delivery of information.

If you're an adult looking for some information about movies that are out, my favorite reference is the Internet Movie Data-base or IMDb. They provide the most thorough information on a movie along with links to reviews (and box office data).  Beware of the 'spoiler alerts' that caution you when you plot information is to be revealed. You will find all this info at IMDb.com .

 

Cool Times We're In - You Can Edit Part of the Digital Revolution (Star Wars too)

  I continue to be amazed to see evidence each month how the revolutions in technology are democratizing the media, what I mean to say is that our access to technology is allowing us as individuals to make our thoughts and ideas, our stories known where just decades ago it was the power-brokers, the politicians and the corporations with lots of dollars who were the ones 'owning the media'. 

Now with affordable camcorders (and video phones) & editing in your laptop and distribution on YouTube and other internet channels most anyone can be an indie film-maker or online Journalist.

I recently learned that the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) is stepping up to the plate with a cool options.  The BBC's 'Digital Revolution', is a four part TV series for BBC Two (Channel in the UK) about how the web is changing the world. Due in 2010, it's in production now, and we're offering a range of ways to interact with the program team and the content the BBC produces.

We - you and I can actually get involved by downloading and editing interviews from the series... yes, you and I can download this ongoing, growing collection of rushes (video sequences) from the production, to watch, share, download, and even edit together your own program, documentary on the impact of the internet.  How cool is that! 

There is the provision that we cannot use the footage for commercial purposes but we have access to some key people in the history of the internet (folks like Vint Cerf - considered the father of the internet, Jimmy Wales the Founder of Wikipedia, Araianna Huffington of the Huffington Post and more.  For more information and to download your own interview clips (for editing) see the web pages of the project here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/digitalrevolution/rushes.shtml

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On a similar but way different note - I also learned that a group of Star Wars fans are working independently and together to recreate or remake that icon of our age, Star Wars!

472 people have signed-up to recreate 'Start Wars: A New Hope' .  The organizers have split the movie up into 15-second long scenes and folks are recreating their 15-seconds of movie magic... when completed the whole thing will be stitched together for a great fan-fest.  Cool idea... will be interesting to see when done (or maybe it won't).

You can read more about this project on their website:  http://www.starwarsuncut.com/