Render Layers Part 2 - Depth of Field

Well that was really fun and just in time for the ongoing project, I will definitely use some of these tricks in my WIM :)

Render Layers Part 1 - Software Rendering

That was hard work, more than I expected!
For a moment I freaked out on the flat colour layer, because it looked different, but it turned out alright :)

"Suspiria" Movie Review

 (figure 1 – original poster)

“Suspiria” (1977) is a remarkable film in which the viewer is left breathless while watching the incredibly bold use of colour, sets and lighting in the movie directed by Dario Argento. Right at the very beginning the haunting soundtrack is gripping the attention and leaves everyone wanting to see how the story unfolds. Don Sumner states that: “The use of lighting, camera angles, close-up and music (performed by The Goblins with input from Argento himself) create a sinister and surreal shroud of dread and angst.” (Sumner, 2014)

There is something extremely odd while watching this gory-horror. It seems as if the actors were artificially put on the masterfully crafted sets, they look like they do not belong together. After the first ten minutes the viewer realises that the acting or even the story itself are not the strong points of the film, but the visual feast of colours, lights and sound are the tricks that draw on their attention. Adam Smith talks about this: “But in fact the plot, such as it is, is just a device to link a series of gloriously realised set-pieces.” (Smith, 2014)

(Figure 2 – Movie Still)

The ballet school in which the main actress Suzy (Jessica Harper) decides to improve on her dancing skills is menacing from the start (fig. 2). The loving effort in creating the sets and the endless symbols scattered around it, whisper to the viewer, suggesting that something is happening under the superficial beauty and no one can even guess where the story is heading until the very end. Ed Gonzalez discusses the set design: “An impressive manipulation of mise-en-scène lies in the film's door handles. In their higher than usual positions, the handles emphasize the youth and stature of the film's characters in relation to their grotesquely imposing doll house.” (Gonzalez, 2001)

(figure 3 – movie still)

Figure 3 is an example of the incredible use of light and colour. The Image portrays the end of the film where Suzy finally finds the hidden rooms of her ballet school. The letters and symbols give us a clue for the real purpose of the building and the actress is about to uncover that her teachers are actually a coven of witches.

In conclusion, “Suspiria” is gripping and unforgiving in its bold style, it dresses violence and gore with deep red velvet and presents it to us in a cruel but also awe-inspiring way.

Images:

Figure 1 - Chitwood, A. (2013). David Gordon Green Says His SUSPIRIA Movie Is in Limbo; Wants to Do 3 More PRINCE AVALANCHE Movies. [online] Collider. Available at: http://collider.com/david-gordon-green-suspiria-prince-avalanche-remakes/ [Accessed 4 Dec. 2014].

Figure 2 - Whiggles.landofwhimsy.com, (2014). Land of Whimsy. [online] Available at: http://whiggles.landofwhimsy.com/archives/2009/03/suspiria_bd_initial_impression.html [Accessed 4 Dec. 2014].

Figure 3 - Whiggles.landofwhimsy.com, (2014). Land of Whimsy. [online] Available at: http://whiggles.landofwhimsy.com/archives/2009/03/suspiria_bd_initial_impression.html [Accessed 4 Dec. 2014].

Bibliography:

Sumner, D. (2014). Suspiria blends (1977) Review. [online] Best-horror-movies.com. Available at: http://www.best-horror-movies.com/review?name=suspiria-1977-review [Accessed 4 Dec. 2014].

Smith, A. (2014). Empireonline Reviews | Reviews | Empire. [online] empireonline.com. Available at: http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?FID=132659 [Accessed 4 Dec. 2014].

Gonzalez, E. (2001). Suspiria | Film Review | Slant Magazine. [online] Slant Magazine. Available at: http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/review/suspiria [Accessed 4 Dec. 2014].

WIM Buildings UV Mapped

Spent an hour (on average) on each building. Dare I say I sort of get it? Still early days, but hopefully there won't be any nasty surprises when I apply the textures... :)

UV Mapping attempts

Not entirely certain what is happening right now. I seem to be doing it, but it's going really slowly...

Modelling the buildings for the metropolis

Finally started doing the final models of the buildings. At the moment they look really simplified and bare, but I hope to achieve most of the desired effects through texturing.

After the UV Mapping I will start duplicating the buildings and  achieve a sense of "business".

"The Shining" Movie Review

(Fig. 1 – Movie Poster)

“The Shining” created by Stanley Kubrick in 1980, based on the novel by Stephen King, is an amazing horror film that scares not with special effects, but incredible subtlety and a threat that is as real as everything in the film. Insanity created by isolation and surroundings that evoke the worst in the already mentally unstable Jack (Jack Nickolson).

The Guardian talks about the unique set and lighting used in the film: “The Shining is another chance to savour, first of all, those magnificent interior sets. Instead of the cramped darkness and panicky quick editing of the standard-issue scary movie, Kubrick gives us the eerie, colossal, brilliantly lit spaces of the Overlook Hotel (created in Elstree Studios, Hertfordshire), shot with amplitude and calm.” (Bradshaw, 2012)

The Empire Online talks about Kubrick’s quest for perfection and the challenges the actors needed to endure in order to achieve it: “In accordance with the Kubrick legend, the process of making the movie took meticulousness to staggering levels — Shelley Duvall was reputedly forced to do no less than 127 takes of one scene; Nicholson was force fed endless cheese sandwiches (which he loathes) to generate a sense of inner revulsion, and the recent invention of the Steadicam (by Garret Brown) fuelled Kubrick's obsessive quest for perfection. The result is gloriously precision-made.” (empireonline.com, 2014)

The movie is full of symbolism and symmetry, but in every scene with perfectly aligned objects and almost always portrayed using a 1 point perspective there is something slightly moved to one sight, as if to create more tension in a seamlessly perfectly symmetrical scene as shown on fig 2. where the carpet extends to the left or the “exit” sign hangs above the right.

( fig. 2 – movie still)

Roger Ebert Talks about the film: “The movie is not about ghosts but about madness and the energies it sets loose in an isolated situation primed to magnify them. Jack is an alcoholic and child abuser who has reportedly not had a drink for five months but is anything but a "recovering alcoholic." When he imagines he drinks with the imaginary bartender, he is as drunk as if he were really drinking, and the imaginary booze triggers all his alcoholic demons, including an erotic vision that turns into a nightmare.” (Ebert, 2006) The movie is an incredible example of collaboration and adaptation. Stanley Kubrick not only created a film based on a novel, but made a masterpiece which was equally his and Stephen King’s.

(Fig. 3 – movie still)

Images:

Fig. 1 - MoviePosterDB.com, (2014). The Shining posters. [online] Available at: http://www.movieposterdb.com/movie/0081505/The-Shining.html [Accessed 28 Nov. 2014].

Fig. 2 - Collativelearning.com, (2014). THE SHINING (1979) analysis by Rob Ager. [online] Available at: http://www.collativelearning.com/the%20shining%20-%20chap%205.html [Accessed 28 Nov. 2014].

Fig. 3 - The Book Smugglers, (2013). Old School Wednesdays: The Shining by Stephen King. [online] Available at: http://thebooksmugglers.com/2013/09/old-school-wednesdays-the-shining-by-stephen-king.html [Accessed 28 Nov. 2014].

Bibliography:

Bradshaw, P. (2012). The Shining – review. [online] the Guardian. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/nov/01/the-shining-review [Accessed 28 Nov. 2014].

empireonline.com, (2014). Empireonline Reviews | Reviews | Empire. [online] Available at: http://www.empireonline.com/reviews/reviewcomplete.asp?FID=132700 [Accessed 28 Nov. 2014].

Ebert, R. (2006). The Shining Movie Review & Film Summary (1980) | Roger Ebert. [online] Rogerebert.com. Available at: http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-the-shining-1980 [Accessed 28 Nov. 2014].