Ivan Twohig
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Light Wave Opening
Wise Words of Jim Jarmusch
If anyone has been subscribed to any blog recently they have probably come accross that brilliant Jim Jarmusch quote about the non-existence of originality. I saw it on fffound and its where I got the Goddard quote at the top of my blog. I thought that I would post the other of Jim Jarmusch's 5 Golden Rules of Filmmaking. The same goes for any art form. I think its pretty good advice.
Rule #1: There are no rules. There are as many ways to make a film as there are potential filmmakers. It’s an open form. Anyway, I would personally never presume to tell anyone else what to do or how to do anything. To me that’s like telling someone else what their religious beliefs should be. Fuck that. That’s against my personal philosophy—more of a code than a set of “rules.” Therefore, disregard the “rules” you are presently reading, and instead consider them to be merely notes to myself. One should make one’s own “notes” because there is no one way to do anything. If anyone tells you there is only one way, their way, get as far away from them as possible, both physically and philosophically.
Rule #2: Don’t let the fuckers get ya. They can either help you, or not help you, but they can’t stop you. People who finance films, distribute films, promote films and exhibit films are not filmmakers. They are not interested in letting filmmakers define and dictate the way they do their business, so filmmakers should have no interest in allowing them to dictate the way a film is made. Carry a gun if necessary.
Also, avoid sycophants at all costs. There are always people around who only want to be involved in filmmaking to get rich, get famous, or get laid. Generally, they know as much about filmmaking as George W. Bush knows about hand-to-hand combat.
Rule #3: The production is there to serve the film. The film is not there to serve the production. Unfortunately, in the world of filmmaking this is almost universally backwards. The film is not being made to serve the budget, the schedule, or the resumes of those involved. Filmmakers who don’t understand this should be hung from their ankles and asked why the sky appears to be upside down.
Rule #4: Filmmaking is a collaborative process. You get the chance to work with others whose minds and ideas may be stronger than your own. Make sure they remain focused on their own function and not someone else’s job, or you’ll have a big mess. But treat all collaborators as equals and with respect. A production assistant who is holding back traffic so the crew can get a shot is no less important than the actors in the scene, the director of photography, the production designer or the director. Hierarchy is for those whose egos are inflated or out of control, or for people in the military. Those with whom you choose to collaborate, if you make good choices, can elevate the quality and content of your film to a much higher plane than any one mind could imagine on its own. If you don’t want to work with other people, go paint a painting or write a book. (And if you want to be a fucking dictator, I guess these days you just have to go into politics...).
Rule #5: Nothing is original. Steal from anywhere that resonates with inspiration or fuels your imagination. Devour old films, new films, music, books, paintings, photographs, poems, dreams, random conversations, architecture, bridges, street signs, trees, clouds, bodies of water, light and shadows. Select only things to steal from that speak directly to your soul. If you do this, your work (and theft) will be authentic. Authenticity is invaluable; originality is nonexistent. And don’t bother concealing your thievery—celebrate it if you feel like it. In any case, always remember what Jean-Luc Godard said: “It’s not where you take things from—it’s where you take them to.” MMVia Movie Maker
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Mathew Brown - PSP/RCA
Friday, January 9, 2009
Clone then Heal
pretty soon. Over the years I have been downloading images of my favourite artworks, most of which are set in the standarised 'white walls grey floors' gallery setting which forms either a one point or two-point perspective image. What I mean by this is that there is usually a similar formal concept to every image taken of artworks within the gallery environment. I started using photoshop to place my own artworks into these images. But when I started making mistakes with the clone and heal brush in photoshop I was pretty impressed by the results. So what I began to do then was to completely copy entire gallery websites or artist websites and create a fake version in which all the artworks are smudged and blended into the walls of the gallery by using the Clone and Heal brush in Photoshop. I'm a pretty big fan of Steffan Bruggeman and his work is suitably focused on erasure and obliteration so its perfect for being 'Cloned and Healed'. Here are a few examples of what will be on the website. I'll hopefully upload it this month.
My Documents by D.B. TwohigK
'My Documents' by D.B. TwohigK
To Follow an arrow
With a mouse
Enter File
Then browse around
Into format and select,
Cut and paste
To delete,
Lean on table
Then undo
Rub the eyes
And unglue
Then reflect
Between the cursor and geneflect
Press paint shop
To escape
Leap from window
Can't re-do
Cry Help! again
At last at last
To shut down zoo
Off to the zoo.
Heartbeat Detector
I watched the film Heartbeat Detector (La Question Humaine) by Nicholaas Klotz over the Christmas and I cant get the final speech by the character Arie Neuman out of my head, about the growing distance between human relationships and the language we use as it becomes specialised and technical. I wont go into details on what he says or what the film is about the scene is basically the culmination of a great movie that sees a young self assured psychologist who works in the human resources department of a petrochemical corporation unravel as he is asked to investigate the state of mind of a senior executive in the company.
This was one of those movie experiences where I had absolutely no idea what the story was about before I watched. It happened with Pan's Labarynth which is probably one of the greatest movies of the last 10 years in my opinion. It's so nice to see a movie without the many preconceptions that you have from all the peripheral media that surround them. So dont watch the trailer! Just see it.