People, Ideas, Technology and Style That Are Generating Heat in 2004

Radar is not an option in this business — it’s got to come standard. Failing to recognize enabling technologies and innovative techniques can be fatal. We asked 12 creatives to share what they’ve seen that they think will help form production trends this year. We caught them while taking breaks from shooting Super Bowl spots, rendering CG sequences, planning features, cutting TV shows and mastering DVDs.

Going on the record with their discoveries and inspirations are Bryan Buckley, Catherine Hardwicke, Andrew Jarecki, Albert Maysles, Mark Sennet, Alan Bluming, Allen Hughes, David Lyle, Vicky Jenson, Eric Bergeron, Rob Letterman and Wylie Stateman.

Don’t be surprised if you hear that digital video is hot, Michel Gondry is hotter, and if the economy gets better, post guys may interrupt sessions to, uh, day-trade...

What do you think is the single most important technical and/or economic development for the entertainment production and post professional and how will it change the way that he works or generates revenue?

Bryan Buckley
Director, Hungry Man
Recent Work: " Alan Cumming " for Orange, "Bored to Death" for Ikea

Most important economic development: The recent resurgence of Wall Street. Yes, corporate America smiles gleefully upon the return of the stock market to the glory days of the late 90s, but the postproduction world should view this development with the utmost concern, as the late 90s were a dark time indeed for post facilities. Do we not remember day-trading fever, entire transfer sessions suddenly being crippled by the announcement that Dell stock is making a run? Desperate calls from our friends telling us to buy, going online every 10 minutes to track the prices— while at the same time no one is paying attention to the color of the Pepto Bismol on the monitors. And in the end, running out of time to color correct and saying, "Good pink is good enough. My stock is at 90 and I just bought it at 30 an hour ago."

Catherine Hardwicke
Director/Production Designer
Recent Work: Director, Thirteen, Lords of Dogtown (in pre-production); Production Designer, Three Kings, Vanilla Sky

Most important technical development: We shot [Thirteen ] in Super 16mm, only saw a few film dailies, and edited on the Avid knowing we were going to do a digital intermediate. Our editor, Nancy Richardson, did various Avid effects— speed-ups, slow-downs, repeated frames. We never cut the negative, just provided a digital edit list. So the cost of the digital intermediate was balanced by the cost of the opticals/effects, the negative cutting, color timing, and the blow-up to 35mm. It still ended up costing more than the total of all the parts, but Technicolor Digital Intermediates gave us an "indie-budget" deal, we had to stick to our time limit, and we were able to accomplish color/saturation /grain changes in a gradual way that would not have been possible by any other method. In a way, you could say that we saved money also by "painting" some of the sets, walls, trash cans at the schools, and extras’ wardrobe in the digital process instead of in real life. By working with the colors in post, we were able to create a controlled palette that we couldn’t afford to create on the set.

For us, it worked out great with a manageable extra cost— but it was something we planned on from the beginning. I had always wanted the saturation to change as the lead character’s moods changed. At first her world was slightly desaturated and dull, then when she joined the popular crowd, it became more saturated and beautiful, with golden skin tones like a commercial. As she got more involved in the crazy stuff, the chroma cranked up and the colors became too saturated and garish. By the third act, when things are taking a downhill turn, the color begins to drain away and the grain increases— the image becomes desaturated and gritty— almost black and white. At the very end a ray of hope comes back and so does a little color.

Andrew Jarecki
Director
Recent work: Capturing the Friedmans

Most important technical development: I think many new developments can be summed up in the word miniaturization.

The most obvious examples of this are the shrinking of cameras and editing equipment, and the streamlining of the communication process, which lets us send segments of our films instantly to far off destinations so we can work with talented people all over the world.

The clearest example of the power of miniaturization in making Capturing the Friedmans was how I was able to work with my composer, Andrea Morricone, despite the fact that he and I were both living in Rome but our editor Richard Hankin was in Manhattan. When Richard would post a segment to our server in New York, I’d download it to my laptop in Rome. Then I’d quickly drive over to Andrea’s apartment near the Pantheon and we’d watch the scene, and he’d play a music cue into a recording program on the same laptop. I’d drive back home and send the finished segment back to Richard. The technology allowed me the freedom to use a wonderful composer and collaborate across giant distances, contributing immeasurably to the finished film.

Albert Maysles
Director
Recent and past work: Yanki No!, Gimme Shelter, With the Filmmaker: Portraits by Albert Maysles

Most important technical development: In 1960 I was in Cuba at a reception at the Chinese Embassy when, as I stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Fidel Castro, a messenger came running in handing him a telegram. Upon reading it, he turned to me and translated it: "Your State Department has just broken off relations with Cuba." There was no way I could have been there with the paraphernalia of film, camera and sound person. So I missed it.

But next time I’m with Fidel (maybe December) and hopefully when he gets news— surely I’ll be with the Sony PD-150 miniDV in hand or the Sony DCR-PC5 in my pocket, just in case.

Presently my son and I are videotaping with a dozen underprivileged kids, each with a parent in prison and each with a video camera in hand. Imagine what this will do for these kids, and for those who may get to see the results of their otherwise undiscovered talents.

Mark Sennet
Executive Producer
Recent work: HBO’s K Street

Most important technical development:The introduction of the DV camera has probably had the single greatest impact on our industry. It makes a show like K Street possible.

We are able to shoot the show in three days, edit it and have it on air on Sunday of each week. This explosion of technology has also vastly enlarged the entry point into the entertainment industry by altering the economic factors that had previously served as gatekeeper.

It has lowered the cost of every aspect of production because departments have been truncated or reduced. And now we can preserve the look of film without the high cost of actually shooting on film.

QUESTION: What turned your head this year in terms of technique (movies, TV, commercials, or music video), and how might it advance the art form?

Adam Bluming Director/Designer
Recent credits: Director, Eltro’s Motorboat (music video), teaser/trailer for Men in Black II, Blade II (prologue), and campaigns for Nintendo and Nissan

What turned his head: Michel Gondry’s latest music video for The White Stripes’ "The Hardest Button to Button" really turned my head this year.

Its technique mocks the polished, expensive and digitally "tricky" gags upon which much of today’s work relies. His raw, unapologetic hard cuts of in-camera animation— complete with imperfect moments— make me feel that the art form of technology will be advanced by looking back to a more playful, child-like approach of image creation/manipulation tempered with what we currently know is possible in this digital/design age.

Allen Hughes
Director
Recent credits: Co-director, Menace II Society, From Hell; Director, Al Green’s "I Can’t Stop" (music video), the forthcoming USA Network series Touching Evil

What turned his head: The thing that recently got me— and this guy’s done so much good work— was Mark Romanek’s video for "Hurt" by Johnny Cash. I try to dissect that, and what I was moved by was that, while Romanek has done some of the best videos I’ve ever seen, he didn’t impede [by imposing] his visual style or anything on that video. Cash was a place in his life where his voice might not sound the best, and it might not have been the best video, but because of who he was and where he was, those words really came across and it was probably the most powerful video of the year. It taught me a lot about restraint. If you’re working with anybody, no matter how old the person is, if they’ve got it, they’ve got it— don’t impede it. It was an inspiration in general.

David Lyle
President, Entertainment and Drama, FreemantlMedia, North America
Recent credits: American Idol, World Idol, Cupid, The Price is Right, Family Feud

What turned his head: As the Matrixtrilogy rolled to a close this year, I continued to enjoy not only the visual effects and special photographic style, but also the increasingly threatening and disturbing world (not unlike our own) created by the filmmakers. It would be interesting to take unscripted television into the realm of science fiction by experimenting with populating a cyber-world with "reality contestants." I wonder what would happen if we challenged participants within a physically and psychologically heightened environment? How would it grind them down? More importantly, how would contestants triumph fighting the oppression of that kind of environment? It would be the antithesis of The Truman Show. We’ve had romance, adventure and musical reality programming. Could the time be right to open reality to fantasy?

Vicky Jenson, Eric "Bibo" Bergeron Rob Letterman, Co-directors and Writer
Recent credits: Shark’s Tale

What turned Vicky’s head: Some of the most visually innovative work I’ve seen is in music videos, especially Missy Elliott and her collaboration with Dave Meyers. This is a great format to experiment and push boundaries. I’d love to try it myself! I’m also a huge fan of the Charlie Kaufman / Spike Jonze team, because to me story is the core, and all the technical innovations in the world won’t save it if it’s not there. The innovation in their work is the storytelling itself.

What turned Eric’s head: Michel Gondry often turns my head, and he did it again with his video for the White Stripes, " The Hardest Button to Button." Gondry has the ability to incorporate old techniques into his work and make it fresh and unique — a technique originated by the great Georges Méliès and made famous by Norman McLaren. With each new combination of techniques something original emerges, then morphs again as the cycle continues endlessly.

What turned Rob’s head: Surprisingly enough, it wasn’t a mega-budget FX film, but just the opposite. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie 28 Days Later despite the fact that it was shot on digital video— in fact, that made it even scarier to me. I think the filmmakers advanced the art form by reminding us that movies are about telling compelling stories, regardless of the medium.

Wylie Stateman Sound Designer/Supervising Sound Editor, Soundelux Recent credits: Windtalkers, Unfaithful, Shrek, The Perfect Storm

What turned his head: Finally, sound is secure in what we hope may become another golden age. Digital record, digital edit, digital release and 24-bit, 48k sampling have ll been widely recognized and embraced. The real head-turner this year in post-production is in picture, where digital intermediate — or electronic negative — is creating a virtual rat's nest of options, opportunities, creative alternatives and overall confusion. We are truly on the verge of the next goldenage of film.