ST Filming Techniques and Technologies for the ST

Cloud Atlas was shot on film, not digital.

 

So it was. I stand corrected. I guess I assumed it was shot digitally after seeing a quote from Lana about digital being the new aesthetic, and the fact that they shot Speed Racer digitally. It just goes to show that it really is getting harder to tell the difference these days.

 

Of course you have! We've had one for a decade or so, and his name is Francis Ford Coppola. Seems like all he does now is filmmaking as a hobby: Youth Without Youth, Tetro, Twixt, these were all hobby movies, and save for the first in that list, I just can't make myself sit through them (and I couldn't even fully tolerate YWY without his commentary track on). He seems to have forgotten that people still need to be able to enjoy WATCHING these things...

 

I really wish Coppola would go back to making theatrical films again. The last commercial film he did I think was 1996's Jack.

 

I've loved Coppola's recent output. I think he's at a creative high since returning to filmmaking. And if you understand him, this is really the kind of stuff he always wanted to be doing, much more than his more popular and well-regarded films.

 

He directed the first two Godfather films AND Apocalypse Now; I'm sure he's earned the right not to give a flying fart anymore if he doesn't want to. Still, like you, I'd LOVE to see what he can do with a larger budget; I just don't think that anyone's going to offer him one. He's had as many flops as, or more than, his successes - it's just that his successes are so sterling that they manage to eclipse most of his failures in the eyes of film fans like us.

 

Add "The Conversation" to that list. What a movie! It also has a Pre-Star Wars Harrison Ford.

 

It's an amazing film. I only became aware of it a few months ago and saw it on Netflix. Great movie. It's funny how Lucas and Coppola shared actors in that time. This movie has the girl from American Graffiti, Robert Duvall (THX and of course Tom Hagen) and Harrison Ford.

 

Probably friendship had a lot to do with it. These guys were all friends and they were all very honest with Star Wars' first cut, Lucas intentionally showed them an unfinished product, he made them part of the process.

Collaborations worked very differently in the 70s, the same happened with rock bands. There were much fewer "household names" when it cames to directors and musicians. They all knew each other, would swap band members and would imitate styles as a form of flattery.

All of this happened in the dawn of demographic corporate style of film making and music production, so each artist could stroke the canvas in any way they wanted. Maybe they didn't have final cut or the labels marketed the products unilaterally but still, that first artistic impulse was there.

Imagine this bearded out of shape hippie making a big studio movie, the only way he could keep his vision (and his job) was to elude the studio execs when they visited the set. That was Coppola making The Godfather. Much simpler times.

I LOVE the 70s.

 

The Empire of Dreams docu has a great first hour dedicated to the 70s filmmaking scene and ANH. It's a very fun rewatch for me, that first part.

 

Such a great thriller and man that ending.

 

I'm not sure if the film 'industry' was any less autocratic in the 70's... but I think there was, in an attempt to save themselves from the increasing popularity of television, a willingness to give more experimental filmmakers the time of day. The 70's produced some really groundbreaking films...

 

If you don't already have the director's cut of THX-1138, you might want to get it because it has a documentary called A Legacy of Filmmakers: The Early Years of American Zoetrope. I'm not going to swear to this in court, because although I have it, it's been a while since I've watched it, but I'm reasonably sure it's about exactly the kind of thing you're describing. I'm not entirely sure how easy it still is to find; my DVD of it came out in 2004, but I have no doubt you should be able to find it online somewhere (again, assuming you didn't buy it the day it came out like I did...).

 

Um...er....ahem....I still need to see THX-1138....

 

It's on the Blu-Ray too. I love that documentary and Empire of Dreams makes a great follow-up to it. Although if you want to follow the progress of American Zoetrope, there are some docs on some Coppola discs that make for interesting viewing too. I particularly enjoy The Dream Studio on the One From the Heart DVD, which details another very interesting and ambitious moment in the history of Zoetrope that also went down in flames, and also pairs really well with A Legacy of Filmmakers for a look at what a mad genius Coppola is.

 

WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTT?!?!?!

...I've never seen American Graffiti...

 

Don't forget Ridley Scott. Prometheus looks amazing.