Walter Murch Interview at Camerimage

I really can't get enough of Walter Murch. Check out a delightful interview he recently gave at Camerimage here.

Bond

Further to my last post check out this article about Sam Mendes shooting 'Spectre' on 35mm.

Whilst you're it also check this out.

Especially this section:

'But I've never heard it summed up better than by American film editor and sound designer Walter Murch. He recalled an experiment he carried out in which he took identical shots of an empty room on film and on video, then played them back and tried to tell the difference.
"The feeling that I got from looking at an empty room on film is of a rising potential, as if somebody was about to come in," he said.
"And the feeling I got on video was of somebody just having left."'

Christopher Nolan Praises 70mm Release Of 'The Hateful Eight'

Check out what Christopher Nolan has to say here.

Wooah! Legend Trailer now out.

The Cage

Just had an update on a feature script of mine called 'The Cage' that I've been developing with the wonderful Eavesdrop Films. They've attached a director and it's the multi-award winning Jan Dunn! Great news.

Colour in Film

Do you know your Technicolor from your Kodachrome? No? Then find out more here.

Gnome Chomsky the Garden Noam

Buy it at justsaygnome.net.

Academy Awards

Something to make you think...

Mondo Hollywood

I wanted to share this video with you. I recently read an interview with Paul Thomas Anderson where he was talking about his latest film 'Inherent Vice' and he made reference to a 1967 documentary called 'Mondo Hollywood', which I subsequently discovered was described by Variety as a "flippy, trippy, psychedelic guide to Hollywood". My interest piqued,  I tracked it down. Let's just say, it's definitely worth a watch!

Black List Scripts 2014

Not sure how long this will be there for but check out the 2014 Black List scripts here.

2015: Films I'm Looking Forward to Seeing This Year

Rocket Science

I've been busy. Not writing blogs as you would have noticed but writing. Lots of writing. And I really hope something comes of it. I'm now in the development stage with two different production companies who have each optioned one of my feature scripts and I've spent the last few months polishing, drafting, creating and scratching my head. I've learnt a lot and am loving the process.

Also want to let you know that my short film 'The Last Man on Earth' will be screened at Rocket Science, 7 Sci-fi Short Films at Cafe101, Brick Lane on Thursday August 10th from 8pm (Free entry)". Check out the Facebook page here or go to the ShortsOnTap website here. 

Heaven's Gate

Love this:

http://extension765.com/sdr/16-heavens-gate-the-butchers-cut

Take a bow Mr Soderbergh.

Philip Seymour Hoffman

Like many of you reading this I was gutted to hear about the death of Philip Seymour Hoffman earlier today. Easily one of the best actors around his performances always shined. 

Speaking to people today though I realised that one of my favourite films that he starred in has largely gone under the radar so if you have a chance then do watch 'Love Liza'. Trailer below.

Update

The last two months have been busy. 

I sold my flat and have a new place in sunny Bournemouth lined up for the new year along with a new job at Bournemouth Arts University. I got an agent and am now represented by Nic Knight Management. I also wrote a book which I have been polishing. It's my first and is in the same vein as Elmore Leonard, James Ellroy and George Pelecanos. I loved writing it and have another planned. I also helped my old friend Jonny Flint produce his short so watch this space for more news on that. I saw the final cut the other day and loved it. I also had two more of my features optioned. 'The Coldest Day' has been optioned by Emanation Films and 'The Camping Trip' has been optioned by Eavesdrop Films. I've just done another draft for the company which was good fun.

So as I spend my final week living in London, where I have lived for the last sixteen years, things look exciting for the new year. I'll be back up in London for various things but if you're in the Bournemouth area then don't be a stranger.

New Showreel

I decided to update my showreel recently, which you can view below. All the clips featured can be viewed in context and in their entirety on my Vimeo page or via my website www.sugarspunpictures.com


Carlo Ortu Showreel from carlo ortu on Vimeo.

Short Sighted Cinema

Many years ago when I first moved to London I attended a short film screening night at the Ritzy cinema in Brixton and loved it. This was before I had started making films and was also the first short film night I had ever been to. Where I was from they didn't have things like this! So I'm happy to say short film events are making a return to the Ritzy on a regular basis in the form of Short Sighted Cinema. It's being run by Kate Williamson who also runs the Vibe:Shorts night down at the Biscuit Factory in Bermondsey. It starts this Tuesday 20th August 2013 at 7.30pm. If you need more reason to come they're also screening my old favourite 'The Last Man on Earth'.

Richard Burton

I recently watched ‘Burton and Taylor’ starring Dominic West and Helen Bonham Carter on BBC4 which tells the story of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor’s last professional work together on Noel Coward’s ‘Private Lives’ in 1983. I really liked it. Good writing, set design, direction and acting. With my interest piqued I thought I’d see how far West nailed Richard Burton’s deliciously deep accent via YouTube (he did a pretty good job) and what started as thirty seconds of research turned into a whole evening of entertainment as I sat enthralled throughout Dick Cavett’s interview with Richard Burton on his show back in 1980. Watching it made me realise how far away we are from good interviews on TV these days. Parkinson is the only talk show host that came close to Dick Cavett for actually letting their guest talk. And talk he does. Richard Burton comes across as an intelligent, thoughtful, articulate, entertaining, sad, honest and talented man. Watch it.

Letters of Note

I love making discoveries on the internet and coming across something that you wish you'd known about earlier. This happened recently whilst reading Peter Biskind's book 'Star' about Warren Beatty which was a very enjoyable read I have to say. A section of the book concerns Jeffrey Katzenberg's 28 internal memo written back in 1991 that was made famous in the film 'Jerry Maguire'. The original memo was a critique of Disney's approach at the time to movie making and a mission statement on how to recapture the Disney magic in the modern age. Having heard about this memo but not actually ever gotten round to reading it I did what most people would do which is google it and that is how I came across Letters of Note. Do have a browse. It's a fascinating site and the original memo is also a good read for everyone.

Read the memo and this pic will make sense

'The Last Man on Earth' gets a touch up

A while ago I mentioned doing an intensive After Effects course and my intention then to use my new skills to go back to one of my earlier films and 'improve' it.

I think I compared my mission to George Lucas going back to touch up 'Star Wars'. Well my 'Star Wars' was 'The Last Man on Earth'. Perhaps my mission wasn't as ambitious but like George I imagine I was as frustrated as him about certain shots in our respective films. For me it was the reflections of crew members in the beer taps in one shot that made me wince every time I saw the film. Some people never even noticed them. Some did. Some took great glee in telling me they had seen some reflections in the beer taps and then asking me whether I myself had noticed them. Yes I said, I had, thinking it must be like being asked if you'd noticed the elephant in your living room if you were indeed unfortunate enough to have an elephant in your living room. Unable to reshoot at the time and with the original Virgin Media shorts deadline looming I lived with my screw up and had it on my to-do list as something I would soon revisit and remedy. Well that time had come. So I had a go and er, failed.

I soon concluded that the shot was somewhat trickier than I had thought. Indeed, I'm not too bad with After Effects but I quickly realised that I needed the equivalent of a black belt in After Effects to sort this one out. I needed Bruce Lee. Or Chuck Norris if you really mean business. So it was at this point that I brought in the talented John Sellings. Within a week the reflections were gone. Now but a distant memory. Phew. Thank you John.

Do check out the old version on the BBC Film Network and then watch the version below. But if you have some VFX work to be done and you don't know who to call, then you'd better call John Sellings (or probably just email him in this day and age).



The Last Man On Earth (2011) from carlo ortu on Vimeo.