Well it has been some time since I last updated this blog. Mostly due to a lot of work. I've been slaving away to organise this web show - of which we finally got our first shoot done! Yay! Only 15 odd more shoots to go, I estimate.
I would love to be wrong, but it's hard to know. One of the problems with volunteer shoots is that people rarely make volunteer work their priority. You're not being paid, so it's hard to commit time when other things arise.
Which means I have to be organised well ahead of time to ensure that I can get all the cast together. I'd love to be able to find funding - but between writing scripts, arranging shoots, discussing lighting, ensuring that art is being designed and working my own job, it can get pretty difficult to find the time to look for funding.
I had searched out a number of likely leads - but because our show is not technically a film, and because it isn't innately "New Zealand" in content other than being shot in Wellington... well none of the grants I could find would apply. Meaning... no money up front.
The other option is to approach retailers and companies - but I have nothing to show them yet. It's in my plan to have press packages made once the first episode has been edited and produced. Then we'd send these to all the major newspapers and television stations - solicited of course, and I have a couple of contacts in the industry that might be able to help me figure out how to get that info - and use that package as a way of approaching businesses to offer them advertising on the site.
Which means I need someone who knows how to figure out pricing for advertising...
Oh, the many things to think about.
Anyhoop - the actual shoot itself went very well. We finished ahead of schedule and even managed to shoot an extra scene! The footage is great and we're hoping it all comes together nicely. I'm really proud of the cast and crew - they have made me believe that this show really is going to get completed. Yay us!
In other news, I managed to track down two friends from the past thanks to the power of facebook. One is a guy who was my best friend in secondary school. We had a rather vocal and nasty falling out. I've sent him a message apologising for my foolishness in those years and offering to get back in touch. I fear he still is a bit... anti. Even though it has been near to sixteen years since we last spoke!
The other friend, I kind of forget what happened. I think I just drifted away.
This is a common theme in my life - a have a lot of friends who I just lost contact with.
Margie brought home some videos of her family, which she is planning to edit, and it made me realise how little record there is of my past. But it also reminded me of how different my childhood was from others.
In many ways, I spent a lot of my childhood waiting for something to happen. I rarely took action, and I was often talked out of any of my plans. I wanted to write, Mum's support was tantamount to "you can do that when you're older, you should be thinking about a real career."
I was told to take up sports, when I showed an interest in fencing- "we can't afford the gear, you will have to find something else." The same went for my other extracirricular activities - except I managed to do Film Club, which was a lot of fun.
Of course I'm also to blame. I would often give up on things. I'd lose heart, or not really know what I was doing - and I wouldn't ask for help. I think I just stopped feeling that anyone would come to help me. I don't know for sure. It was something that I was having trouble with - committing to things.
With all the unrest and confusion of being a teenager, along with the confusion of my sexuality in an era where there was very little support and a mother who outright said one day 'I can handle you wearing a dress in a play, as long as you don't turn gay' I guess I was feeling very isolated.
Not to mention my best friend was telling me it was unnatural - just when I was developing a confused crush on him. *sigh*
Oddly this all ties back. I don't so much regret my past - it's done, not much you can do to change it. But I sometimes wish I could do it again with the knowledge I have now - see if I could change myself more than the world around me.
But it also ties in with now. Here I am taking on a MAJOR project and I'm feeling a little alone again. See, I have people offering to help, but I'm not very good at pushing for things or getting them to follow up on things to make it easier on me. Which means when I can't lock in dates or get people together in one go - it gets me overwhelmed. On top of that, this current script is a bitch to slog through because I have had to dramatically rewrite the entire thing.
I actually want to not be working at TCL, and just be at home writing. I want to be writing full time, because then I can get through this and it is what makes me happy.
I want to have the funding so that I can afford to leave my job and do this full time - lead into a professional career.
But I also fear that I'm not really that good. That I'm riding on a fantasy. Where does that leave me? Never happy in any other job, and just wanting to go to sleep.
I wonder how many people find themselves in that position? Sometimes I just don't feel like I think like anyone else around me - and that there is some "thing" I don't get.
That isolation again.
I wonder how I would have turned out if I had been born ten years later than I was. Would I have been a better person? More confident in my abilities?
Would I have been as caring as I am?
When I was in my teens, I was waiting for something. It never happened. When I took action, my life fell apart. I left home in less than favourable circumstances, I lost my best friend and I lived in a roach infested apartment for about a year, where nothing happened.
I'm now thirty-four, the oldest friend I have is from about 1995 - and I'm not sure we are what I would term as best friends. Right now, I am feeling a little isolated again. Sure I have a lot of friends - but none that I feel are as close as to be what I would term "best friend."
I don't really have a friend who comes around every week and who I keep constant contact with about my life and his/her life.
I'm now thirty-four and I'm thinking about how I'm unlikely to ever have a family of my own. Unlikely to find anyone to be in a partnership with... and at this point I worry I will be very much alone when I'm old and in some retirement home.
It's tough to keep your chin up when in this state. I don't want to go back to work on Monday. I want to make this show I'm developing really work. I fear I have placed so much of my future happiness on its success. And I fear that my feelings of isolation will drive me to sabotage it if I don't keep an eye out.
Maybe the reason I'm trying to reconnect with my old best friend is out of some naive hope that I can really bury that part of my past. Because the feelings linger still. I need to just lay it to rest.
I need to also find a way out of this cocoon I'm building for myself too. I need to stop making myself isolated.
Sorry for being so downer here - it's what has been on my mind recently. It will pass, I'm sure.
All the best for the holidays...
Conan
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Sunday, July 27, 2008
The WC Project - Learning the industry through doing...
For those who have been somewhat out of the loop or are not big followers of this blog, I've been slaving away at a web television concept since the end of the 48 hour film challenge last year.
This has been a real eye-opening and strengthening experience for me. Firstly, I have a new found respect for the amount of trouble and time that goes into producing a show and I really now understand why some shows can take decades to be produced.
One thing that has always bugged me about producers is that it is never really clear what a producer does and how they go about it. Well the reason is because a producer really does a little bit of everything and has to spend a lot of time looking at the real logistics of a film.
It does surprise me how many people I have met who kind of think that saying "oh I want to be in a film" don't realise how much work making a film is. Like I said - new found respect.
I'm not sure who coined the phrase, but it is very much a case of herding cats. Particularly when you are making a production on a zero-budget. Relying on volunteers means you have to be skilled at balancing compromise with control. You need to get everyone together and keep them pumped about the project, but at the same time you have to make it as little hassle as possible for them because they are not getting paid for the work.
You can't rely on the promise of "if this becomes big..." you really need to make sure that the people involved are as committed to the vision as you are.
For me the big challenge isn't so much the compromise, nor the frustration when people aren't available - these are par for the course and I expect those things. It's about me being able to give the design, director and actors room to interpret my script and world in a way that works for them.
This is tough when you're trying to stay true to a vision, but also be open to new ideas. And it is one I find I constantly berate myself over. Sure, there are important things that I want to ensure make it into the series, but I have to make sure that everyone is enjoying the project - and they need to be able to express their own creativity when doing this. Which means I have to be willing to say "cool, not what I really wanted, but let's go with it."
Like I said - compromise.
We've recently been doing casting calls for the series - which has been a fantastic experience for me. Norman, our director, is really good at guiding actors and while he sometimes has different ideas about the characters than I do - he does a good job in auditions at getting the actors to try out ideas.
There is something cathartic as a writer to see people reading your lines and bringing the characters to a semblance of life - and it really helps to push me further with the project.
But the best part to date is how everyone who has auditioned has genuinely laughed at the jokes in the script and commented on how fun the characters are. I had some doubts about how humourous the script was going to be - but after watching some of New Zealand's prime time "comedy" out there - I think our show is going to knock people's socks off.
While we are still to finalise who is playing what roles, we have found some very talented actors who are keen to just be in the series and love the characters. Now, more than ever, I really find myself genuinely believing that this project is going to be something that people are going to talk about and want to see more.
That pushes me to work harder and get everyone organised and ready to shoot this sucker.
Why WebTV and not a short film or national television show? Well I have a bit of a strategy here. Firstly, Web TV doesn't require as much in the way of resources to film and distribute. Secondly, every man and his dog in Wellington is shooting a short film. It's easy to just get lost in the sea of mediocrity and fringe film. There is an increasing demand from television companies for local web based content. What we're doing with our show is ambitious and has the potential to be news worthy once it is released. Thirdly, a television show allows for more time to tell your story and focus on characters. It also means you can release a feature length story in fifteen minute parts. I find this preferable.
Although it does mean that we are effectively filming six short films as opposed to one! :)
I am so excited! This is proving to be a very eye-opening and educational experience. It also has the potential to lead to some very big things, and that potential also excites me.
Love and Huggles
Conan
This has been a real eye-opening and strengthening experience for me. Firstly, I have a new found respect for the amount of trouble and time that goes into producing a show and I really now understand why some shows can take decades to be produced.
One thing that has always bugged me about producers is that it is never really clear what a producer does and how they go about it. Well the reason is because a producer really does a little bit of everything and has to spend a lot of time looking at the real logistics of a film.
It does surprise me how many people I have met who kind of think that saying "oh I want to be in a film" don't realise how much work making a film is. Like I said - new found respect.
I'm not sure who coined the phrase, but it is very much a case of herding cats. Particularly when you are making a production on a zero-budget. Relying on volunteers means you have to be skilled at balancing compromise with control. You need to get everyone together and keep them pumped about the project, but at the same time you have to make it as little hassle as possible for them because they are not getting paid for the work.
You can't rely on the promise of "if this becomes big..." you really need to make sure that the people involved are as committed to the vision as you are.
For me the big challenge isn't so much the compromise, nor the frustration when people aren't available - these are par for the course and I expect those things. It's about me being able to give the design, director and actors room to interpret my script and world in a way that works for them.
This is tough when you're trying to stay true to a vision, but also be open to new ideas. And it is one I find I constantly berate myself over. Sure, there are important things that I want to ensure make it into the series, but I have to make sure that everyone is enjoying the project - and they need to be able to express their own creativity when doing this. Which means I have to be willing to say "cool, not what I really wanted, but let's go with it."
Like I said - compromise.
We've recently been doing casting calls for the series - which has been a fantastic experience for me. Norman, our director, is really good at guiding actors and while he sometimes has different ideas about the characters than I do - he does a good job in auditions at getting the actors to try out ideas.
There is something cathartic as a writer to see people reading your lines and bringing the characters to a semblance of life - and it really helps to push me further with the project.
But the best part to date is how everyone who has auditioned has genuinely laughed at the jokes in the script and commented on how fun the characters are. I had some doubts about how humourous the script was going to be - but after watching some of New Zealand's prime time "comedy" out there - I think our show is going to knock people's socks off.
While we are still to finalise who is playing what roles, we have found some very talented actors who are keen to just be in the series and love the characters. Now, more than ever, I really find myself genuinely believing that this project is going to be something that people are going to talk about and want to see more.
That pushes me to work harder and get everyone organised and ready to shoot this sucker.
Why WebTV and not a short film or national television show? Well I have a bit of a strategy here. Firstly, Web TV doesn't require as much in the way of resources to film and distribute. Secondly, every man and his dog in Wellington is shooting a short film. It's easy to just get lost in the sea of mediocrity and fringe film. There is an increasing demand from television companies for local web based content. What we're doing with our show is ambitious and has the potential to be news worthy once it is released. Thirdly, a television show allows for more time to tell your story and focus on characters. It also means you can release a feature length story in fifteen minute parts. I find this preferable.
Although it does mean that we are effectively filming six short films as opposed to one! :)
I am so excited! This is proving to be a very eye-opening and educational experience. It also has the potential to lead to some very big things, and that potential also excites me.
Love and Huggles
Conan
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Review Time - Uncharted: Drake's Fortune
In this age of Next Generation consoles, you often hear a lot of talk about graphics, story and playability. This is a market that is dominated by games like Gears of War, Halo etc...
This is a market where innovation is often the driving force behind game design.
But there is something to be said for eschewing innovation in favour of doing something well, and doing it right.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I present you with Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, a flagship game for the PS3 that many have overlooked as "Tomb Raider with testicles."
Frankly, it is not. Part of this is because the main character, Nathan Drake, is not some mindless treasure hunter with big tits and a posh accent. He's a character with emotions and personality.
And this game is a classic example of innovation not through gameplay, but through design approach. This is a game that ever so quietly shows why the PS3 is such a powerful gaming console, and does so effortlessly.
Adventure, Exotic Locations, Women, Villains, and Lost Incan Treasure
Inspired by the old pulp classics, with dash of Indiana Jones, Uncharted is focused on three characters. There is your quintessential hero, the character you play, Nathan Drake - a treasure hunter who believes himself to be the direct descendant of Sir Francis Drake. Elena Shipman - a reporter who films for a show about treasure hunting, and whose producers have paid for Drake's little treasure hunt. Sullivan - also known as Sully, he is Drake's gruff sidekick and handy getaway guy when things get tough.While these characters are stereotypical adventure/cliff-hanger movie characters, the actors and graphics engine inject them with an incredible life of their own. They laugh, smile and have extremely detailed expressions. Compared to Nathan Drake, Commander Shepard of Mass Effect looks positively wooden in comparison.
And Drake's expressive nature is not restricted to cinematic scenes... more on that in a moment.
The main story revolves around Drake discovering a journal of Francis Drake's that leads him to discover that Sir Francis may have found the lost treasure of El Dorado.
Through in a greedy and influential debt-collector, a mad superstitious Phillipino mercenary, a cold and efficient Spanish terrorist and an lost island of secrets with a dash of lost Nazi U-boats - and you get a genuine pulp-adventure story worthy of the big screen.
Gameplay and those Graphics
Still shots simply don't do justice to how this game looks.
Gameplay-wise, Uncharted is essentially a longer and slicker version of Gears of War. Most of the time Drake will be ducking behind cover and engaging in tense and exciting shoot-outs with pirates, mercenaries and an assortment of other enemies. There is a straight forward but cinematic melee system - but you kind of use it in a rare case of finding an opponent on his own and out of range of anyone else. Then it goes down to fisticuffs.
This is indicative of the level of detail that has gone into this game. Every tree and frond moves on its own. Jungles are a riot of colour and movement, and Drake himself is detailed to the point that his biceps bulge when he pulls on objects, his shirt wrinkles when he walks - and when I say wrinkles, it looks like a piece of clothing and not just a skin over a model.
When Drake walks in the water, the bottom of his jeans get wet. When he swims, he comes out dripping with his clothes soaked with water.
The fluid movements, the incredible attention to details- it makes for a lush and gorgeous game to play.
Now for the part that will stun you...
The game doesn't install itself on the hard-drive. It runs directly off the disc and only has one load time - when you start or leave the game.
It does all this without texture pop-up, and only the very occasional screen tear.
Compared to the unholy graphical nightmares of some 360 games, this is stunning. I simply cannot believe that the same level of quality and detail would be possible on any other console on the market.
Uncharted is a game that more people should try out and play. It is worth every penny and is a prime example of what the PS3 is truly capable of.
I love it and highly highly highly recommend it.
Laters!
Conan
Thursday, July 10, 2008
iPhone-y Baloney
My current Nokia phone is seriously on its last legs. I've been holding out replacing it because to get a new phone would require me to sign to a new contract and all the fiddly mess that goes with it. After all, I've been working myself out of debt rather than aiming to get back into debt.
I've been tempted by the usability of the iPhone for some time. As anyone who knows me can attest - I'm a big fan of Apple, and the ability to have a Smartphone that synchs with my mac is very appealing.
So what has gone wrong?
Vodafone has unfortunately opened that can of worms that has been waiting to explode - mobile data usage.
New Zealand has some of the highest prices for internet and mobile usage in the world. We have had all manner of excuses piled out about this, and now the iPhone may be the product that causes companies to pause and think.
I watched the "rebuttal" from Vodafone last night on Campbell Live, and it comes down to 'this is our cheapest plan' and 'New Zealand is isolated.'
Now I'm not a big fan of John Campbell, he's a bit of a phoney himself I feel, but damn if he didn't do a good job of making Vodafone's PR guy look like a fool. Campbell was armed with figures - including Australian markets - and the PR guy kept running back to his "we have plans from $50 and up" over and over like a mantra, as if that would answer the question.
Then as a defence he argued that New Zealand has the highest fixed broadband costs too. Dumb move - that's not a defence for high prices, that's an example why Vodafone could have led the way by competitive pricing.
As it is, they seriously underestimated the backlash, I suspect. We wont know until the actual release day how much this pricing plan has worked or failed - but given the rumblings, and the fact that the people Vodafone are counting on purchasing the device are savvy enough to know that they are being ripped off - this could be a bit of a bomb for VF.
The harsh reality is that a similar plan on Telecom with an OKTA touch - which might not have all the iPhone's features, but is close enough for a lot of users - is a few HUNDRED dollars cheaper on a two year plan.
Arguing that the iPhone is a unique product is a weak defence, as comparably there are still alternatives, and when nearby nations are selling this item for demonstrably better deals - it is a bit rich to argue that "it's the best deal compared to our other prices"
Guys, if your other prices are stupidly high, this defence is a failure. And I looked - I stuck with Telecom because Vodafones standard contracts are ridiculously priced compared to the current plans Telecom is offering. So even standard Vodafone plans are a rip-off.
All in all, Vodafone have made a big marketing error here. I predict that there will be a pick up rate - but a number of people will be waiting to see if Telecom offers a better deal once they get to run the iPhone off their network...
Love and Huggles
Conan
Sunday, July 06, 2008
Ego, Film, Work and Life
So your anecdotal evidence is better than his anecdotal evidence? I knew you had an ego problem, Keggy, but I never knew until now just how bad it was.
This is from this forum post on RPG.net where I, somewhat foolishly, got involved in a debate about the new Fourth Edition of Dungeons and Dragons. Now folks who know me well, would know that I love this game. They probably also know I have a habit of getting into debates.
I have a thing about people making wildly inaccurate claims, a bad habit when I have been known to do the same myself at times. However, in this particular case I was pretty confident that the person who wrote the review that this forum was linked to had made a number of inaccurate claims. I made an effort to be reasonable and stick purely to the facts.
This this guy/gal, who clearly knows me outside of the interweb (s/he refers to my name in a way that he knew would give this fact away) says this. Now I will be humble enough to say that I took the bait - but I did make an effort to keep my response sharp, simple and avoiding too much in the way of personal attack.
But it does niggle at me. Not because I feel s/he's right - but rather it has played on one of my weaknesses. I worry too much about being too arrogant. I have a habit of lecturing people when I don't mean to, and I have a low self-confidence because of people like this. No doubt this "spectral knight" is one of the infamous a-holes from Auckland who spent five years trying to wear me down because I had the audacity to suggest that the Auckland University roleplaying club could use improvement.
There were a core of people who hated the idea that I suggested AMERICA pay attention to such events as KapCon and Buckets - that the club should aim to draw in more members and actually promote our hobby. Thankfully a large number of the newer crowd at the club seem to have taken up this goal thanks to the hard work of Karen - who was part of a group of us who all felt that the club needed to be more inclusive.
But for five years I had to put up with people accusing me of doing it for my own self-aggrandizement. Despite my working hard to encourage people to join, donating time games and energy to the club - it was always seen as to benefit my ego. Of course if I took a step back and decided to just run games... me being egotistical again. Anything I said - it was out of ego.
How do you deal with that? I would end up feeling exhausted and frustrated. I really believed in helping the club out and supporting the hobby - but some people didn't want to see me do that because they got it in their heads I was doing it for my own benefit.
Because, you know, being known as the guy who changed a small university roleplaying club into a happier small university roleplaying club with fun activities would be the pinnacle of my life.
It was kind of depressing and taught me a valuable lesson about how much damage a few negative people can do.
So I do have an ego problem - in that I don't always have faith in my abilities. Not that I think I can do no wrong - but that I feel I will inevitably fail and that it is hard to rely on others because they will always expect you to think only of yourself, and in doing so will do the same.
Yet another part of me knows that I should be proud of myself. Not in an arrogant manner, but in a healthy confident manner. And this week has shown why...
Firstly, work is offering me a chance to prove myself and develop my skills to move up to management. I have been there only four months, and they are that pleased with the work I do. I have kept my head down and slaved away, and it hasn't gone unnoticed. It doesn't pay more - but the opportunities for the future are amazing!
Secondly, my web tv project proceeds nicely. William is doing some amazing design and art work for the project, and I recently started casting calls - already we have some very talented and experienced actors keen to volunteer their time for the project! If this keeps up I'll have more actors than roles!
Life in general is improving, one of my major debts is almost paid off and while I'm poor for the next couple of weeks I'm feeling positive about the future.
There are a number of people who are being great sources of support and encouragement, and if I was such an egotistical wanker, I'm sure I wouldn't be getting so much coming this way. I am confident that the next few months are going to see my fortunes improve. We have so many talented people working on this web show, and more coming on board over the next few weeks.
Work has informed me of how well I'm doing and how pleased they are with my efforts.
I could possibly be forgiven for having a little bit of a swollen head on these matters. :)
Love and Huggles
Conan
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Temporal Affairs - on the net!
So here it is - our 2008 48hour film. Temporal Affairs... let me know what you think! :)
Love and Huggles
Conan
Love and Huggles
Conan
Saturday, May 24, 2008
48 Hours - Learning to play with Time
I love the 48 hours challenge. For the last few years I have really wanted to be involved, but time and work often got in the way until last year when I finally got the opportunity to work with Gino and his team to create a movie.
As I noted back then, it was an enjoyable and exciting experience that cemented in me the knowledge that creating films was what I wanted to do - and was something I had a knack for.
This year due to Gino and Viv's new bundle of joy, Rebel Faction was not able to make a return appearance, but Margie was entering the competition again and I was keen to sign up.
A couple of my friends entered this year, but the benefit of Margie's team was that it was a small crew. While larger teams can be a bit more sophisticated with their films, I feel that individuals involved miss out on benefiting from the full experience.
We went with the name Tuk Tuk Inferno for our team after Margie suggested it (inspired by a truly bizarre chase sequence in Ong Bak) and both Ming and I (who were given the roles of Producers) loved it.
I feel that our key goal this year was to keep everything simple. We wanted to enjoy the weekend, learn new skills and give everyone an opportunity to provide positive input into our production.
Following the experience last year with Rebel Faction, it was important to me to keep everyone focused and organised. Fortunately, all of our team members were on the same page with this.
To this end, I had secretly decided that I would ensure that everyone got at least six hours sleep each night. This was vital to me, as a good night's sleep produces better results the following day.
Unfortunately a serious anxiety based illness from work had me laid up on the couch at home on the Friday - and I was worried I would be too ill to do the challenge. Fortunately my new work is very understanding and let me take the day off to rest up.
About 7:03pm I got the word - our genre was Time Travel, the character was Kerry Post, a perfectionist, the prop was a brush and the line was "wait a minute..."
I was initially panicked. Time Travel? That's not really a genre at all. Worst, it's possibly the crappest genre for a short film because you don't really have a lot of screen time to tell a story without risking being too obtuse. I immediately started wracking my brain for ideas to suggest.
I txted Lynn and Kent - who had agreed to help out with acting in the film - and they were almost about to not come over. But when I informed them of the genre - they were in the car and on their way.
Once Ming, Margie and her Dad arrived we sat down and began brainstorming. We ran a gamut of ideas and initially closed in on a concept that was challenging but viable. When Lynn and Kent showed up we shared our ideas and kept working away.
It was at this point that I felt it was important to keep everyone focused - A lot of good ideas were coming out, but I wanted us to have a script written by midnight at the latest. To this end, Margie and I reiterated that we wanted to keep the story simple. We had a maximum of seven minutes. I pointed out that a 48 hour film should be like a short story - it doesn't need complex layers, it just needs to focus on one or maybe two key ideas and stick with those. We chose to focus on a romance story and a theme of a day-in-the-life.
Margie noted down scenes as we hashed out a quasi-treatment of the film, noting down amusing dialogue that people came up with and such. Then while Margie and Ming worked on setting things up for the next day, I wrote the script in the next forty-five minutes.
Once the initial script was written, I read it out to Margie and Ming, making changes as they suggested them - by the way Celtx is a brilliant piece of software for scriptwriters.
We went to bed around 11:30pm pleased with our script and having arranged for everyone to meet at our place by 8:30am.
Again, organisation came to the fore. We knew we wanted to have all the principle photography and rough edit done on the Saturday. Keeping to our motto of keeping things simple, the plan was to make a kind of Sapphire and Steel/Doctor Who kind of show where most of the effects were editing cuts and sound effects - along with some lighting.
People started gathering in the morning, and we took stock of our equipment, planned our locations - wisely sticking to two locations. Once all the cast and crew were assembled, we ran the team through the script again taking notes when people suggested alterations.
It was cool how, with such a small team of 10 or so people, everyone had the opportunity to suggest ideas and give input on the film.
We all piled into cars and headed over to the restaurant where a good portion of our story was going to take place.
This was when we came across a hiccup - the restaurant was not laid out the way any of us remembered it. Whoops!
We started shooting, after replanning scenes to suit the location, when it quickly became apparent that something wasn't working for Margie, who was the director. It was time for me to step up to the producer role and we went away to talk in private about her concerns.
It turned out that Margie was having trouble linking the scenes we had shot together. While I, who was thinking like an editor, was piecing everything together, Margie needed to have things link a little more closely. We talked about this and I stressed that it was important to me that Margie makes the film her way - and that we could just go back and reshoot if we needed to. It was my job to remind her of how much time we had the restaurant for, but she should just choose how to shoot the film.
We came back and Margie went back to the script and replanned the shoots to suit how she envisioned the film. I pointed out where I could edit in footage we had already shot - meaning that we were able to get moving.
It ended up that this worked to our advantage - because we had shot two scenes with a key character facing the wrong way for our story to work!
We took a break for Nandos, then went back to shooting - with everyone putting in an incredible amount of effort and energy to deliver. Special mention has to go to Sharon - an actress I sourced through advertising on the 48 hours forums - she was a real trooper, providing lighting help and make-up, and willingly having a door slammed in her face about six to eight times. (It ended up that her father had used to play the same prank by pretending he had been hit in the face by a door when she was a kid, so she was very skilled at making it look convincing.) Also, Sharon was amazing when it came to direction. When Margie told her what needed to be done in a scene, Sharon would deliver it first hit!
I should also credit Anton for being amazingly still in a shot when we needed it to look like time had frozen. He was impressive.
We finally wrapped up that location with about thirty minutes before the restaurant was due to open. Everyone piled into cars and headed back to our place for the rest of the shoot.
Once again, planning was our friend. While the team sorted out gear, some pick-up shots and dinner, I was transferring all the restaurant footage onto computer and began the early stages of our rough cut.
After dinner, we shot the final scenes - where all our cast showed that they could be genuine and convincing actors. There is a scene with Sharon and Kent that is genuinely touching and felt *real* - Margie and I are both really proud of the work those two did in that scene.
Once everyone had left, I finished transferring footage and built a rough timeline of the scenes we wanted. Margie, Ming and I then sat down and cut the hour and half of footage down to a more manageable length and decided to head to bed around midnight.
When I got up at 7:30ish, I immediately went online to hunt out sound effects and check up on the legality of using music loops from Garageband.
I then started working on the editing.
I had decided early on that I wanted to show that while iMovie is a basic commercial editing suite for home use, it could be used to make genuinely good films. After all, the Cannes Film Festival 2004 hit, Tarnation, was made for $218 and edited with iMovie...
In regards to that, iMovie is an incredibly easy tool to use, and I soon had a good cut of the film with music and sound effects all ready by around 10:30pm. Jon came around to shoot a short pick up sequence, which we slipped into the edit, I tweaked a few scenes and added some sound effects for our time-stop white-outs - then it was time to render the film and transfer it back to tape.
We finally had a complete movie ready by 2:30pm. I was surprised. It wasn't an ambitious piece, but it was something I was proud of.
Around 4-4:30pm, Margie and Ming departed to hand in the tape, and I chilled out for the rest of the day - pleased as punch.
Ultimately, I learned a lot over the 48 hour experience this year. The first thing is to have trust in your team, and make sure that you make them just as passionate as you are about your project.
I think everyone in our team felt like they were integral to the creative process. We were fairly fluid in how we handled roles - really focusing on the film itself.
Time Management is central - but it isn't just about time spent making the film, it is also about making sure a good amount of time is spent *not* on making the film. When our team was working on the film, they were putting everything into it. By ensuring that they had some down time, we ended up making sure that the time spent filming, editing and planning was used efficiently and productively.
Pick an idea, stick with it and make sure everyone is satisfied - I hear about so many teams who brainstorm and compromise in a hurry to get done, and some teams who spend forever throwing ideas around. It clearly helps to have a producer/director sitting with the script-writers and telling them when it is time to just start writing the story. Both years I have worked on we have had producers step in and say to the writers when they should start just sticking to an idea. Part of this is about spotting when an idea is just going to go bad before it goes bad.
Keep it simple. There are some impressive and complex films made during 48 hours - but these tend to come from experienced professionals. And sometimes they don't win. Looking at what has won in the past, I knew that simple concepts work best. You only have seven minutes at the most - You can either explore a single concept and do it well, or try to show all your ideas and kind of lose the audience. I hope that our film this year was simple enough, but interesting enough.
Remember that it is about having fun as much as being in a competition. I think this is where our team really shone. Everyone was kept involved with the process and free to provide input. We all just wanted to have a great weekend - and I believe we did. :)
I want to thank everyone who worked on our team and helped us out. It was a really enjoyable experience this year and has further influenced me to ensure that I get off my tush and get TWC made! :)
Love and Huggles
Conan
As I noted back then, it was an enjoyable and exciting experience that cemented in me the knowledge that creating films was what I wanted to do - and was something I had a knack for.
This year due to Gino and Viv's new bundle of joy, Rebel Faction was not able to make a return appearance, but Margie was entering the competition again and I was keen to sign up.
A couple of my friends entered this year, but the benefit of Margie's team was that it was a small crew. While larger teams can be a bit more sophisticated with their films, I feel that individuals involved miss out on benefiting from the full experience.
We went with the name Tuk Tuk Inferno for our team after Margie suggested it (inspired by a truly bizarre chase sequence in Ong Bak) and both Ming and I (who were given the roles of Producers) loved it.
I feel that our key goal this year was to keep everything simple. We wanted to enjoy the weekend, learn new skills and give everyone an opportunity to provide positive input into our production.
Following the experience last year with Rebel Faction, it was important to me to keep everyone focused and organised. Fortunately, all of our team members were on the same page with this.
To this end, I had secretly decided that I would ensure that everyone got at least six hours sleep each night. This was vital to me, as a good night's sleep produces better results the following day.
Friday
Unfortunately a serious anxiety based illness from work had me laid up on the couch at home on the Friday - and I was worried I would be too ill to do the challenge. Fortunately my new work is very understanding and let me take the day off to rest up.
About 7:03pm I got the word - our genre was Time Travel, the character was Kerry Post, a perfectionist, the prop was a brush and the line was "wait a minute..."
I was initially panicked. Time Travel? That's not really a genre at all. Worst, it's possibly the crappest genre for a short film because you don't really have a lot of screen time to tell a story without risking being too obtuse. I immediately started wracking my brain for ideas to suggest.
I txted Lynn and Kent - who had agreed to help out with acting in the film - and they were almost about to not come over. But when I informed them of the genre - they were in the car and on their way.
Once Ming, Margie and her Dad arrived we sat down and began brainstorming. We ran a gamut of ideas and initially closed in on a concept that was challenging but viable. When Lynn and Kent showed up we shared our ideas and kept working away.
It was at this point that I felt it was important to keep everyone focused - A lot of good ideas were coming out, but I wanted us to have a script written by midnight at the latest. To this end, Margie and I reiterated that we wanted to keep the story simple. We had a maximum of seven minutes. I pointed out that a 48 hour film should be like a short story - it doesn't need complex layers, it just needs to focus on one or maybe two key ideas and stick with those. We chose to focus on a romance story and a theme of a day-in-the-life.
Margie noted down scenes as we hashed out a quasi-treatment of the film, noting down amusing dialogue that people came up with and such. Then while Margie and Ming worked on setting things up for the next day, I wrote the script in the next forty-five minutes.
Once the initial script was written, I read it out to Margie and Ming, making changes as they suggested them - by the way Celtx is a brilliant piece of software for scriptwriters.
We went to bed around 11:30pm pleased with our script and having arranged for everyone to meet at our place by 8:30am.
Saturday
Again, organisation came to the fore. We knew we wanted to have all the principle photography and rough edit done on the Saturday. Keeping to our motto of keeping things simple, the plan was to make a kind of Sapphire and Steel/Doctor Who kind of show where most of the effects were editing cuts and sound effects - along with some lighting.
People started gathering in the morning, and we took stock of our equipment, planned our locations - wisely sticking to two locations. Once all the cast and crew were assembled, we ran the team through the script again taking notes when people suggested alterations.
It was cool how, with such a small team of 10 or so people, everyone had the opportunity to suggest ideas and give input on the film.
We all piled into cars and headed over to the restaurant where a good portion of our story was going to take place.
This was when we came across a hiccup - the restaurant was not laid out the way any of us remembered it. Whoops!
We started shooting, after replanning scenes to suit the location, when it quickly became apparent that something wasn't working for Margie, who was the director. It was time for me to step up to the producer role and we went away to talk in private about her concerns.
It turned out that Margie was having trouble linking the scenes we had shot together. While I, who was thinking like an editor, was piecing everything together, Margie needed to have things link a little more closely. We talked about this and I stressed that it was important to me that Margie makes the film her way - and that we could just go back and reshoot if we needed to. It was my job to remind her of how much time we had the restaurant for, but she should just choose how to shoot the film.
We came back and Margie went back to the script and replanned the shoots to suit how she envisioned the film. I pointed out where I could edit in footage we had already shot - meaning that we were able to get moving.
It ended up that this worked to our advantage - because we had shot two scenes with a key character facing the wrong way for our story to work!
We took a break for Nandos, then went back to shooting - with everyone putting in an incredible amount of effort and energy to deliver. Special mention has to go to Sharon - an actress I sourced through advertising on the 48 hours forums - she was a real trooper, providing lighting help and make-up, and willingly having a door slammed in her face about six to eight times. (It ended up that her father had used to play the same prank by pretending he had been hit in the face by a door when she was a kid, so she was very skilled at making it look convincing.) Also, Sharon was amazing when it came to direction. When Margie told her what needed to be done in a scene, Sharon would deliver it first hit!
I should also credit Anton for being amazingly still in a shot when we needed it to look like time had frozen. He was impressive.
We finally wrapped up that location with about thirty minutes before the restaurant was due to open. Everyone piled into cars and headed back to our place for the rest of the shoot.
Once again, planning was our friend. While the team sorted out gear, some pick-up shots and dinner, I was transferring all the restaurant footage onto computer and began the early stages of our rough cut.
After dinner, we shot the final scenes - where all our cast showed that they could be genuine and convincing actors. There is a scene with Sharon and Kent that is genuinely touching and felt *real* - Margie and I are both really proud of the work those two did in that scene.
Once everyone had left, I finished transferring footage and built a rough timeline of the scenes we wanted. Margie, Ming and I then sat down and cut the hour and half of footage down to a more manageable length and decided to head to bed around midnight.
Sunday
When I got up at 7:30ish, I immediately went online to hunt out sound effects and check up on the legality of using music loops from Garageband.
I then started working on the editing.
I had decided early on that I wanted to show that while iMovie is a basic commercial editing suite for home use, it could be used to make genuinely good films. After all, the Cannes Film Festival 2004 hit, Tarnation, was made for $218 and edited with iMovie...
In regards to that, iMovie is an incredibly easy tool to use, and I soon had a good cut of the film with music and sound effects all ready by around 10:30pm. Jon came around to shoot a short pick up sequence, which we slipped into the edit, I tweaked a few scenes and added some sound effects for our time-stop white-outs - then it was time to render the film and transfer it back to tape.
We finally had a complete movie ready by 2:30pm. I was surprised. It wasn't an ambitious piece, but it was something I was proud of.
Around 4-4:30pm, Margie and Ming departed to hand in the tape, and I chilled out for the rest of the day - pleased as punch.
Afterthoughts and Thanks
Ultimately, I learned a lot over the 48 hour experience this year. The first thing is to have trust in your team, and make sure that you make them just as passionate as you are about your project.
I think everyone in our team felt like they were integral to the creative process. We were fairly fluid in how we handled roles - really focusing on the film itself.
Time Management is central - but it isn't just about time spent making the film, it is also about making sure a good amount of time is spent *not* on making the film. When our team was working on the film, they were putting everything into it. By ensuring that they had some down time, we ended up making sure that the time spent filming, editing and planning was used efficiently and productively.
Pick an idea, stick with it and make sure everyone is satisfied - I hear about so many teams who brainstorm and compromise in a hurry to get done, and some teams who spend forever throwing ideas around. It clearly helps to have a producer/director sitting with the script-writers and telling them when it is time to just start writing the story. Both years I have worked on we have had producers step in and say to the writers when they should start just sticking to an idea. Part of this is about spotting when an idea is just going to go bad before it goes bad.
Keep it simple. There are some impressive and complex films made during 48 hours - but these tend to come from experienced professionals. And sometimes they don't win. Looking at what has won in the past, I knew that simple concepts work best. You only have seven minutes at the most - You can either explore a single concept and do it well, or try to show all your ideas and kind of lose the audience. I hope that our film this year was simple enough, but interesting enough.
Remember that it is about having fun as much as being in a competition. I think this is where our team really shone. Everyone was kept involved with the process and free to provide input. We all just wanted to have a great weekend - and I believe we did. :)
I want to thank everyone who worked on our team and helped us out. It was a really enjoyable experience this year and has further influenced me to ensure that I get off my tush and get TWC made! :)
Love and Huggles
Conan
Saturday, May 03, 2008
Brideshead Revisited - EXTREME Edition!
So it all began with this on apple.com's trailers.
While I appreciate that Brideshead Revisited has always been a tale of forbidden love, and epic drama - it still is bizarre to see the film version sold in a kind of Talented Mister Ripley extreme blockbuster way.
Charles Ryder! Was he just an innocent painter twisted by hedonism, or a calculating sociopath looking to shag his way into gentry!
Something tells me that the actual film is just not going to be a shock-a-minute sexy thrill ride that this trailer is implying it is.
Amazingly enough, this ploy is likely to work though - getting people to talk about the film. I think I will definitely be checking it out - if only because I love Emma Thompson as an actress, and it looks like she is at the top of her game in this film. :)
Love and Huggles
Conan
While I appreciate that Brideshead Revisited has always been a tale of forbidden love, and epic drama - it still is bizarre to see the film version sold in a kind of Talented Mister Ripley extreme blockbuster way.
Charles Ryder! Was he just an innocent painter twisted by hedonism, or a calculating sociopath looking to shag his way into gentry!
Something tells me that the actual film is just not going to be a shock-a-minute sexy thrill ride that this trailer is implying it is.
Amazingly enough, this ploy is likely to work though - getting people to talk about the film. I think I will definitely be checking it out - if only because I love Emma Thompson as an actress, and it looks like she is at the top of her game in this film. :)
Love and Huggles
Conan
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Beautiful Katamari and a long awaited update...
Hey there folks! So it has been a long time since I last posted on here. Firstly, ESG has closed. After much thought, and the fact that I'm hoping to move forward with my webTV project, I needed to close that current chapter.
I'm currently sitting at home in my new flat while Margie rolls up things with her Katamari in We Love Katamari - although I think we're both in agreement that Beautiful Katamari is the better looking iteration. :p
Nick is busy working out- getting all buff and the like.
I've been taking it easy this weekend, work is quite demanding and I find that I often need to relax when I can. My new job is pretty cool though.
I've also got a new bed - which is super sweet. Not a heck of a lot else to update at the moment - I'm working on projects and stuff - I will keep y'all posted. :)
Love and Huggles
Conan
I'm currently sitting at home in my new flat while Margie rolls up things with her Katamari in We Love Katamari - although I think we're both in agreement that Beautiful Katamari is the better looking iteration. :p
Nick is busy working out- getting all buff and the like.
I've been taking it easy this weekend, work is quite demanding and I find that I often need to relax when I can. My new job is pretty cool though.
I've also got a new bed - which is super sweet. Not a heck of a lot else to update at the moment - I'm working on projects and stuff - I will keep y'all posted. :)
Love and Huggles
Conan
Friday, February 29, 2008
The Good, The Bad and the Lost
Well it sure is a mixed bag of things this week. I've moved into the new flat with Margie and Nick - which is good. I've had the worst week in record this week at work - which is bad.
The new flat appears to be working out quite well, we all get on and things are going well. I'm even getting used to the bus service here.
Unfortunately work has not be so good. Dealing with inexperienced staff, a heavy workload and a lot of things that have led to my being very stressed out. I was left feeling like I was doing all the major jobs without any support. One of the staff had not left the shop in a good state and then tried to say that I was the one who messed everything up.
Meanwhile, I spent the last two days trying to get everything set up for customers while being constantly interrupted and having to deal with the reality that not a lot of the necessary work had been done the day before! Having one of the senior staff call in sick further complicated things.
I got so stressed out and infuriated, I took the day off today. Only to then have one of the staff at work tell another staff member I was pissed off with him. His response? To send me an abusive text. When I rang up to explain that I was stressed and grumpy - not anything personal - he abused me down the phone.
Two days out from my leaving. Well it is looking less and less likely that I will be going in tomorrow with the way things have gone the last couple of days. I shouldn't be letting it get to me, but it just has snowballed out of control. *sigh*
On the bright side, my xbox came back. :) So I have FINALLY got to start Lost Odyssey. This is Xbox 360's answer to Final Fantasy. And it is a damn good answer. The story is really interesting, and the voice actors are really good - along with some very good scripting. I can't wait to see what happens next!
Here's hoping that the weekend brings some more reasons to be positive and happy...
Love and Huggles
Conan
Currently Reading: Scion: Hero
Currently Playing: Scion, Ptolus, Star Wars Saga Edition
Mood: Tired of being taken advantage of and insulted...
The new flat appears to be working out quite well, we all get on and things are going well. I'm even getting used to the bus service here.
Unfortunately work has not be so good. Dealing with inexperienced staff, a heavy workload and a lot of things that have led to my being very stressed out. I was left feeling like I was doing all the major jobs without any support. One of the staff had not left the shop in a good state and then tried to say that I was the one who messed everything up.
Meanwhile, I spent the last two days trying to get everything set up for customers while being constantly interrupted and having to deal with the reality that not a lot of the necessary work had been done the day before! Having one of the senior staff call in sick further complicated things.
I got so stressed out and infuriated, I took the day off today. Only to then have one of the staff at work tell another staff member I was pissed off with him. His response? To send me an abusive text. When I rang up to explain that I was stressed and grumpy - not anything personal - he abused me down the phone.
Two days out from my leaving. Well it is looking less and less likely that I will be going in tomorrow with the way things have gone the last couple of days. I shouldn't be letting it get to me, but it just has snowballed out of control. *sigh*
On the bright side, my xbox came back. :) So I have FINALLY got to start Lost Odyssey. This is Xbox 360's answer to Final Fantasy. And it is a damn good answer. The story is really interesting, and the voice actors are really good - along with some very good scripting. I can't wait to see what happens next!
Here's hoping that the weekend brings some more reasons to be positive and happy...
Love and Huggles
Conan
Currently Reading: Scion: Hero
Currently Playing: Scion, Ptolus, Star Wars Saga Edition
Mood: Tired of being taken advantage of and insulted...
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Reviewtime: Veronica Mars
Continuing my trend of watching shows that have been canned by braindead American television executives who don't understand how to handle polling or scheduling, I was finally convinced to watch Veronica Mars.
I had always given this show a bit of a wide berth. Sure, it had been talked up heaps - but I kind of fell into that Joan of Arcadia mentality of thinking it was a teen show for girls.
Boy. Was I wrong.
Although the first two seasons were often promoted as such - one viewing of the first episode presented a show that was really the kind of Noir that Brick aims for. Just with a little less pretention and more focus on being intelligent and engaging.
There are so many things about Veronica Mars that won me over. Well paced mysteries, an excellent storyline, great actors - it's all there.
For those not in the know, Veronica Mars is about a teenage girl whose life gets turned upside down when her rich best friend is murdered. In the process of this occuring, her father is fired, her boyfriend dumps her, her mother goes missing and Veronica goes to a party where she believes she may have been date-raped.
Hardly the start of a teen girl television series.
We quickly learn that Veronica is a strong willed young woman who teams up with her father - who becomes a private investigator after being fired as sheriff for arresting the wrong man for the murder of Veronica's friend. In the pilot episode we learn that Veronica is feisty, intelligent and independent. She stares down bikers, stakes out seedy motels to get shots of unfaithful spouses and is secretly investigating the murder of her best friend.
Nancy Drew just can't keep up with this teen detective.
The first two seasons present two big mysteries that arc over each season, each being revealed by season's end. The third season takes a different approach of having a number of smaller arcs that present several mysteries while the various storylines from all three seasons are brought to a head.
I ended up loving both models. By third season the over-arcing mystery just seemed a bit of a stretch. The second season's mystery did sometimes feel that things were being padded out. I liked that in third season, each mystery was wrapped up just before they could get tired.
What is so great about the mysteries is how they rarely feel like the writers pulled the resolution out of their butts. Each of the big mysteries felt well established, and that the clues were all there if you looked for them.
Further, the cast were great at keeping everything at a reasonably believeable level. Kirsten Bell who plays Veronica is a true find. She is hugely talented and the series allows her to really show her range and ability. The relationship between Veronica and her father, Keith, are pure gold moments of television - as are the interactions between Veronica and Logan Echolls, her dead best friend's boyfriend.
As each season develops, loyal viewers are constantly rewarded with references back to previous episodes and characters are regularly brought back - even when they were just bit parts in an episode shown during the previous season. The series treats its viewers as intelligent thinkers who are engaged with the mystery as much as Veronica is.
I'd also like to mention that this is a truly wonderful show for computers. For the first time in a long time, it shows computers working like they do in real life. Virtually all the software used is recognisable as real software - not some cheesy computer graphic for dumb dumbs.
Veronica uses search engines that present logical search results. When she is watching a file on her mac, it opens in Quicktime. She uses Photoshop. Files take realistic amounts of time to download - websites look like real websites. Even her PI database site looks like a genuine site without a whole bunch of stupid flash special effects.
This is a series that wants things to be believable. That deserves credit.
In short - Veronica Mars is a funny, witty, intelligent, thrilling, enjoyable and oddly resonating show that should never have been cut. It successfully shows that television can be as engaging as cinema and is populated with a cast of characters that you grow up with and fall in love with - even the assholes. :D
Top viewing! Get it now!
Love and Huggles
Conan
Currently Reading: Reign
Currently Playing: Exalted: Lunars
Mood: Still perky from Veronica Mars
I had always given this show a bit of a wide berth. Sure, it had been talked up heaps - but I kind of fell into that Joan of Arcadia mentality of thinking it was a teen show for girls.
Boy. Was I wrong.
Although the first two seasons were often promoted as such - one viewing of the first episode presented a show that was really the kind of Noir that Brick aims for. Just with a little less pretention and more focus on being intelligent and engaging.
There are so many things about Veronica Mars that won me over. Well paced mysteries, an excellent storyline, great actors - it's all there.
For those not in the know, Veronica Mars is about a teenage girl whose life gets turned upside down when her rich best friend is murdered. In the process of this occuring, her father is fired, her boyfriend dumps her, her mother goes missing and Veronica goes to a party where she believes she may have been date-raped.
Hardly the start of a teen girl television series.
We quickly learn that Veronica is a strong willed young woman who teams up with her father - who becomes a private investigator after being fired as sheriff for arresting the wrong man for the murder of Veronica's friend. In the pilot episode we learn that Veronica is feisty, intelligent and independent. She stares down bikers, stakes out seedy motels to get shots of unfaithful spouses and is secretly investigating the murder of her best friend.
Nancy Drew just can't keep up with this teen detective.
The first two seasons present two big mysteries that arc over each season, each being revealed by season's end. The third season takes a different approach of having a number of smaller arcs that present several mysteries while the various storylines from all three seasons are brought to a head.
I ended up loving both models. By third season the over-arcing mystery just seemed a bit of a stretch. The second season's mystery did sometimes feel that things were being padded out. I liked that in third season, each mystery was wrapped up just before they could get tired.
What is so great about the mysteries is how they rarely feel like the writers pulled the resolution out of their butts. Each of the big mysteries felt well established, and that the clues were all there if you looked for them.
Further, the cast were great at keeping everything at a reasonably believeable level. Kirsten Bell who plays Veronica is a true find. She is hugely talented and the series allows her to really show her range and ability. The relationship between Veronica and her father, Keith, are pure gold moments of television - as are the interactions between Veronica and Logan Echolls, her dead best friend's boyfriend.
As each season develops, loyal viewers are constantly rewarded with references back to previous episodes and characters are regularly brought back - even when they were just bit parts in an episode shown during the previous season. The series treats its viewers as intelligent thinkers who are engaged with the mystery as much as Veronica is.
I'd also like to mention that this is a truly wonderful show for computers. For the first time in a long time, it shows computers working like they do in real life. Virtually all the software used is recognisable as real software - not some cheesy computer graphic for dumb dumbs.
Veronica uses search engines that present logical search results. When she is watching a file on her mac, it opens in Quicktime. She uses Photoshop. Files take realistic amounts of time to download - websites look like real websites. Even her PI database site looks like a genuine site without a whole bunch of stupid flash special effects.
This is a series that wants things to be believable. That deserves credit.
In short - Veronica Mars is a funny, witty, intelligent, thrilling, enjoyable and oddly resonating show that should never have been cut. It successfully shows that television can be as engaging as cinema and is populated with a cast of characters that you grow up with and fall in love with - even the assholes. :D
Top viewing! Get it now!
Love and Huggles
Conan
Currently Reading: Reign
Currently Playing: Exalted: Lunars
Mood: Still perky from Veronica Mars
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