The Front PageThe Film of the DayThe Latest Radio BroadcastThe Latest KarmaCritique
The Latest PostsThe Latest Comments
|
How do you obtain your inspiration?  I am in need of inspiration to write the outline of a feature length film. It so happens that my time is really short due to having to write another script, and then edit a full feature. I'm really grateful to have all that work, I just need to make the best use of my time. And so, I wanted to share a couple things I use for inspiration. They put me in the mood to write -right-fast. This one I discovered just today:
That's right, its the wizard of Oz. Full explanation is here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Si... but basically: the act of listening to the 1973 Pink Floyd album The Dark Side of the Moon while watching the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz for moments where some believe that the film and the album appear to correspond with each other. Coincidence? You be the judge. The other thing I do is listen to a really good song. Rammstein's Reise Reise comes to mind, here:
Too bad the youtube audio quality totally doesnt do this justice. Anyway, thought I'd share, and now I'm off to write! P.S. If you haven't guessed yet, what I'm writing is Hades to Babylon :) Submitted by FableForge on January 7, 2008 - 7:30pm. |
User loginWho's OnlineThere are currently 3 users and 39 guests online.
Online usersThe Latest Donations
The Latest PollBest Actor Of All Time In The Gangster/Crime Film Genre Al Pacino: The Godfather Trilogy/Scarface/Carlito's Way/Donnie Brasco/Serpico 29% Ray Liota: Goodfellas/Cop Land 14% Robert De Niro: Goodfellas/The Godfather Part 2/Mean Streets 29% James Cagney: White Heat/Angels With Dirty Faces/The Public Enemy 14% Marlon Brando: The Godfather Trilogy 0% Joe Pesci: Goodfellas/Casino/A Bronx Tale 14% Total votes: 7 Friend Sites(in no particular order) |
P.S. For people with Things To Do
If you're on a schedule today, I suggest skipping the youtube video all the way to the 6 minute mark, and enjoy :)
Inspiration?
You know that's a hard one. I often get ideas as I drift off to sleep. And visa versa. I think I just have a lot of strange things in my head that need to come out. May sound strange but my best ideas come to me when I'm thinking about nothing.
INSPIRATIONS!
There is actually a lot of things that inspire me to continue to do what I do. The rides at Disneyland in particular. For a long time, (especially people who have seen my past short films) I was always accused of ripping off Tarantino or Burton's visual style--which was totall way off. My visual sense comes from the Disneyland rides. Ever since I was a kid, that was my favorite place in the entire world (still is). And it isn't like I attempt to steal from those rides, it's just that there is an essence to them that just became a part of me, and I add my own sensiblities to those memories.
Music is a big inspiration. Sometimes a certain song will set something off in my mind. I love music--and I love it when it sets a tone in my head and somehow an image is formed out of it.
My own films inspire me to make bigger and better ones. I like my short films. I like the way my feature is turning out--but I'm already thinking about what's next.
My friends and family inspire me. Even the friends I don't like that are making films, they inspire me cause I want to outdo them. haha---seriously. People I don't like make me want to work harder and excel well beyond anything in their reach, because instead of kicking their asses physically--now they'll have to live with me forever and watch me rock it like a rocket!
SLEEP. I mostly never come up with ideas in my sleep. But when I'm working, in my sleep, my brain keeps working on what I was working on already, and then I can't sleep and I have to get up and work!
Ex-girlfriends that treated me like shit. Now and forever, they'll have to watch my films at the theater with the ticket and popcorn their new boyfriends bought them while they see my name appear on the silver screen! Love it! haha
Something else that inspires me to continue to make shit up is, MONEY. I WANT LOTS AND LOTS AND LOTS OF MONEY. I love money. I love to be able to do whatever I want. I like going to classy joints. I love beverly hills. I love hollywood. And...I love hot chicks!
EZEQUIEL
My insprations
I lay down, and stroke my wife's neck.
Inspiration flows.
Steven Gladstone
Director/Cinematographer
http://www.gladstonefilms.com
GREAT TOPIC...
As some of you guyz know... I'm trying to write a book.
Release
New Orleans, the early 1990's. A friend and myself were staying in the Humingbird Hotel and Grill (and that is how the receipt reads.) We befriended a Scottish girl. Went back to our room, but the establishment had a thing about having three people in a room (not spending the night, but just being in the room) that was booked for two people. Shared bathroom in the hall (what do you expect for $55 a night for two people and one twin bed during Mardis Gras - I lost the coin toss and slept on the bed, my friend got the more comfortable floor -) so our new found Scottish friend declined the use of the accoutrements. We walked to her hotel, so we could have a private shower each. On the way the Scottish girl really had to go to the bathroom, 15 minutes later, when we got to her hotel room, we waited turns to use the shower (hot water being at a premium at the Hunmingbird) while she used her bathroom and took a pee, and while doing so had an organsm, very loud, very strong, very funny. So the net result, two separate religous experiences, and one orgasm, for a very busy bathroom.
Steven Gladstone
Director/Cinematographer
http://www.gladstonefilms.com
updated me
please about how that is going
sounds kinda great
h
of course...
Eric and you guys will be da first to see it to hopefully be my karmaCRITIC... :) and have it publishable.
really?
I'm surprised today was the first day for you knowing about "The Dark Side of Oz". haha. ;)
It's pretty sweet, and the first time I saw the two together, was my introduction to Pink Floyd. I'm thinking of mixing the two in Premiere for my own copy, becuase it gets annoying and difficult trying to put a CD player next to your DVD player and making sure to start your CD and DVD together at the point you want...especially when you make the 2nd and 3rd pass through the CD to reach the end of the film.
Yeah, the album syncs up well each time.
Some things were better on tape
Easier to pause the vcr and the cassette tape! So much for progress! ;-)
Oh please
Rip the DVD, Rip the CD, throw the files on a timeline, and viola.
I've never "Sunk" them up, so not really interested. However I suspect the wonderful effort of doing the syncing up make a difference rather than having it done for you.
Steven Gladstone
Director/Cinematographer
http://www.gladstonefilms.com
I just want my own copy instead of doing the work each time.
Thats what I want to do. hee hee.
I just lay out the movie, then the audio starts at (or maybe it's after) the 3rd roar of the MGM lion, and then I just copy and paste the audio out twice more, snap the ends together without dropping a single frame...then the "CD" should loop those three times, coming to the end of the film...and viola...Dark Side of Oz. lol (You know if it's in sync right away or not if the mood changes just as the Director's name dissolves in: "Victor Flemming", I think his name is. haha)
Thank you Victor for the compliment. I don't really see myself as that technically savvy. haha For one, I have no clue how to rip the DVD in to Premiere. Premiere won't read VOB files. Plus, most Hollywood discs have such weird structure in their file systems.
So, the easiest thing for me to do is probably try and find a VHS copy of Wizard of Oz.
As cppaker states...have we really progressed with CDs and DVDs? haha
I don't think this happened by accident. Pink Floyd denies any intentional syncing, but the odds of the CD syncing to the film in rhythm, lyrics, song titles, etc are astronomical...even more so when you realize that you repeat the CD a second time, and then a third time...and the flow of the album still matches Oz.
I think it also works since the album is designed for one song to flow in to the next without a break. The few breaks that exist also sync up with perfect actions or motions.
When the tornado scene ends and the house lands (the song title: The Great Gig in the Sky), Dorothy walks in to the main living room in silence...as soon as she opens the door and we get a glimpse of OZ in full Technicolor and lose the Sepia tones....Cha-ching....the cash register hits and we go in to the song "Money". Perfect man...best moment in the whole thing...and no, I don't do drugs. haha
I also like the scene between The wicked witch of the West, Glinda and Dorothy talking, as we hear the line, "and which is which (perfect rhyme for witch), and who is who?"
"Up, up up" (Glinda walks up the stairs) "and Down, down down" (I believe she walks back down. I don't really remember exact timing.) And the name of the song??? Us Vs. Them. Again, perfect considering it's about everyone (Us) vs. the Wicked witch and the Wizard con-man (Them).
I've studied this way too much. haha I'll stop there or I'd go on for way too long.
Save thyself some trouble! :)
Here you go:
We have come far, indeed!
Couple of problems.
This would be great, and I'll check it out later, when not on dialup to see if it's in sync.
I know there are so many versions out there where people don't get it just right, to the frame. You know the perfectionist in me. haha
But the problems I'd run in to:
I could rip this to my hard drive, which is probably flash. So, i'd have to covert it to AVI. Then, I'd have to pull it in to Premiere anyway, so that I could put it to DVD, which would require rendering, and that's after possibly needing to apply a "Horizontal flip" effect, as the image might appear upside down. I'd also have to scale the size of the image up to the full 720x480 of a NTSC resolution for DV video.
That file is probably 320x240, and in upscaling the resolution, I'd get pixelation. I want to try to get as close to DVD quality with this as I can. lol
But yeah, this is just so awesome to watch, and I love Pink Floyd!!!!
Marco...
Nevamind.
Hey D-man, Davonie!!!
The new pic is cool. All da gals will be screamin' "Davonie is hANDSOME!" ;)
I have hawaii as part of my job hunt strategy...so if I ever make it out there, you'll have to give me the grand island tour. :)
I'm going to send out my resume and samples to every production company listed in the state Production directories. I figure if I send out about 3,000 or so, and don't hear back..something is wrong for sure. Anway, I only have about 5 or 6 state's books. Arizona, Indiana, Tennessee, Nevada, Utah and Hawaii. New Mexico's is an online database. When I get through those, I'll call up more states and get their directories. I'll keep going until I finally land a job. It's time I get stable work. haha I'd get California or Colorado, except Colorado wants $35 and California wants $75 for North and $75 for south (and that's not the Hollywood Creative Directory which is like $100 or $150 per volume). And to think, the other 48 states, as far as I know, all offer their directories for FREE. lol
Anyway, send me a message or something...let's chat a bit about dis' book you're writing. :)
For shua...
That would be killaz if you got a gig back in Hawaii... and if you settle in, maybe you can hook me up with a gig so I can finally go Home. And you know me, I don't care about da money... as long as I can feed myself, pay my school loans, and keep developing.
Not that I recomend Ripping
Or ay kind of misuse of copyrighted material, but I can say.
DVD2AVI can do some really nice things.
DVDShrink can also do nice things, especially if you are trying to get a clients project on a single DVD and it is too big. The quality hit can be minimal, and it maintains the DVD authoring.
You can find them on the web.
Oddly enough, my six year old orphaned edit system can import .vob files, you just have to rename them as .m2v instead of .vob
Perhaps premiere can as well.
Steven Gladstone
Director/Cinematographer
http://www.gladstonefilms.com
First time I heard it :)
I'm surprised today was the first day for you knowing about "The Dark Side of Oz". haha. ;)
Well, its the first time I saw it, I had heard about it in highschool because I'm a fan of all things Pink Floyd, in fact I have every album they ever made, but I never had actually seen it. Its amazing man. "The Great Gig in the Sky" gets me teary eyed. Every. Single. Time.
Awesome.
Eric
you are the MacGyver of this web
I wonder how many things you are allowed to do with technology
;)
Dear Mr. Fantasy
Music mostly. All kinds, except for country. Booze. Very rare occasions, sex. Driving.
If it's just ridiculous, it's bad.
IF IT IS RRIIIDDDIICCUUULLOOUUSS, then it's okay.
I feel so stonned right now.
I feel so stonned right now.
dats trippy...
... ?
Money
Other than money my inspiration comes when it wants. I have no control over it and it's a pain in my ass. Right now I have no inspiration for anything specific. I only have an ambition to be something more than I am and it's killing me.
No wait
My latest inspiration comes from something the electricians use on set called a flickerbox. It'll turn any light under 2K into a living breathing flame-like glow. I last saw a great inspirational example of this on the Pirates Of The Carribean Ride. I'll use that along with some China Balls to try and recreate the feel you get at the ride's restaurant.
I was also inspired by the Rainforest Cafe's use of fake plants and lighting. I saw they used a Golbo (Globo?) which is a painted piece of glass put in front of a light to project an image. In this case they put a rainbow across an indoor waterfall. I may use one to put stars on the ceiling of my apartment. I've already bought some cheap fake plants from the Salvation Army that I'll crowd into the walls and ceiling of my apartment to make it look like a jungle. I'm not sure yet how to make it rain inside without getting the floor wet.
Maybe my inspiration to write will come after I'm finished with the apartment and staring up at the stars.
Anyways, keep writing because it is your ticket to Hollywood.
J
Gobo
Painted piece of glass, or stencil piece of metal that "Goes Between" - hence Go Bo - a light and a lens so the image can be projected.
That's in theater. Although used occasionally on film sets.
Usually "gobo" is used as in the term "Gobo Head" or "Gobo Arm" as in with C-stands. Although mostly people just ask for a head or an arm.
Hope this helps, it is a weird sounding word.
Steven Gladstone
Director/Cinematographer
http://www.gladstonefilms.com
Update: It went well
Tiny update: the whole inspiration thing went well. For some odd reason, my wife decided to put the kids to sleep at 7 pm, and that meant we had to turn off all the lights, the TV, and lay in bed with them and pretend to sleep until they sleep. This means I had 2 or 3 hours of nothing but humming Pink Floyd in my head, watching the light from the blinds fall in stripes over the wall and bed, watching the darkness, complete silence, me and my thoughts. Well, the occasional losing-of-air-in-lungs when a kid suddenly jumps on my tummy :). Other than that, complete peace. I came up with some major ideas for my script. I feel Ready To Write, finally :)
Free From Clutter
My inspiration and ideas come while drifting off to sleep, when first
waking, in the shower, while doing yoga, while driving, while walking
on a nearby trail, while reading something totally unrelated, while
cooking, anything that gives my mind a "break" and frees it of clutter.
While a script is formulating, or when working on a new draft, I
write bullet points with scribbled notes to myself of problems I see in
the script, gaps that exist, plot points I want to refine ... anything
I want to solve.
Reading these notes is often the last thing I do before "quitting" for
the day and by the time I sit down at the computer again the next day
at least some of them are always solved.
When inspiration does come, it seems to freefall out of nowhere in a rush and I often think, that's all it needs!
In other words, the majority of my "writing" takes place entirely in my
head as I see a scene play out. Once it's right, I have a note pad or
recorder handy to save it. Then when I sit in front of the computer,
it's time for building upon that "writing" with creativity and
research.
"The greatest journeys are the ones that bring you home."--The Namesake
having to work a "real" job
having to work a "real" job gets me going, and the fact that mine head has SO many idea running through it that if I don't write them down or at least talk about it, I'll never sleep.....for real.
One time I had this idea running through my head and I kept having it play out in my head. Keep tossing and turning until I got out of bed and wrote a quick outline/beet sheet...thus EAP was born.
I work with
I work with contractors, which is enough inspiration to write horror films, Legal films (oh the dreams of getting them in front of Judge Judy and having her shrill them to death.) Mob hit films, and probably a remake of Deliverance.
Sorry Cici, I have yet to meet a contractor that doesn't lie to your face. Perhaps one that tried hard, but really just looked to get out as quickly as possible doing the quickest but not best job. The others, well locking them alive in a box filled with flintzing beatles, would be too good for them.
No, I'm not angry.
Steven Gladstone
Director/Cinematographer
http://www.gladstonefilms.com
I have a Muse
I was a little bit afraid about saying that but that is
I have a muse
sometimes I wake up suddenly in the night and I become with a new story
I have to write it or I will forget a lot of details
even when I was not looking for a story sometimes it come suddenly
and of course I have lots of works made by working hard, thinking and writting
What she look like?
You should see my muse... ;)
Post new comment