So I did go see "How to train your dragon" and since I'm an action and monsters fan I can say that I liked it more than any mainstream animated 3d feature I've seen... I thought it was really well done and there were some great moments in it... my fav had to be of course the MEGA dragon vs. the lil cat dragon d00d at the end ^ ^ The cinematography and action with the stuff in the clouds was super tite... and the characters veered away from the stereotypes you see in most 3d films as they were more unique... they definitely worked the animal lover angle well as I cared for the lil cat dragon more than any other character ^ ^
It was like a "kids safe" film but it was definitely darker than anything Pixar has ever done which is encouraging... I listed to the Splinecast which features interviews with all these Pixarian d00ds and one director said that they don't purposely make the kind of light and fluffy films they do its just what they like making... I mean thats c00 but seeing film after film made by happy rich white guys gets kinda old for me... the lows aren't that low in those films and so the highs can't go that high so its all safe and tame and in the end just "meh" for me....
Dis dragon film certainly had the characters facing heavier and darker situations which yeh it still is like family friendly film er whatever but its a step in a direction that is more appealing to me...
NOW MY RANT ABOUT PIXAR WEALTHY HAPPY WHITE GUY WORLD VIEW ^ ^
If the biggest problem you have in your like happy wealthy life is that you lost a toy or you forgot what is was to be young or some bullshit like that... your going to have a hard time relating to the rest of the world... because problems in films like that seem trivial and ridiculous to people who have or have had bigger problems in life... So I think it alienates a certain part of the population NOW its probably the poorer part of the population WHICH doesn't matter to the studio system cause they want those wealthy families who will buy all they Blu-rays and 3d-TV's
SO I hope as the tech gets more affordable and trickles down people with REAL HEAVY life experiences will start making films and putting that out there... throwing some new mythology into the ring... giving the part of the population who cannot relate to happy wealthy white guy world views a story for them... because up until now thats all thats been made...
How come no kids get molested in Pixar films? It happens a lot in real life ya know? How come none of the characters in Pixar films are ignorant sexists, racists or nationalists? I see a ton ALL THE TIME...... In real life when I've had a "good time" Randy Newman music wasn't playing and if it was I'd puke all over myself...so yeh how come in Pixar films dad never drinks too much pukes on himself and beats the kids? Cause thats a downer? Nah thats reality.... if we were to face these things in films everyone wouldn't be so fucking depressed after sitting through a 2 hour movie watching perfect characters with perfect lives whose biggest problems in they lives seem like the smallest in comparison to our own... and we're supposed to empathize with them?! WTF?!
Wonder why this makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside? BECAUSE YOUR NOT A HAPPY WEALTHY MIDDLE AGED WHITE MAN WITH A HAPPY FAMILY AND A DOG AND SHET ^ ^
Filmmaking has traditionally been a RICH KIDS game.... you got the money... you make the film... you've got the money you can pay to get into the club that will help you make the film.... When I was listening to that Pixar podcast I'd say 8 out of 10 of the employees on there went to Cal Arts... how much does Cal Arts cost? $35,000 a year for tuition alone... add everything else thats probably 50k a year.... There's no way my family or any of the families I grew up with could afford that... we FRIED BALONEY yo and thought it was a delicacy 0_o
So I CANNOT relate too or enjoy those fluffy Pixar films... those aren't my problems... those aren't my concerns... thats not me.... but then I DON'T MATTER since I am not in the mainstream, being of mixed race and not from wealth...... So the people that don't fit or aren't in the targeted segment get ignored...and being ignored makes some people angry ^ ^ Does it bother you if you feel like all the films etc are made for other people?
You may say theres lots of live actions films that venture into darker territory....yes... but I do animation so thats what I'm talking about here and specifically feature films....
Just saw these 2 animation long features where I felt that they were talking about "real people". You can find a lot of shorts heavy in themes and emotions, but... it seems difficult financing longer films. So lead us the way Master Dot...
ReplyDeleteMARY AND MAX-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkUI3SZyKCs
9.99-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUciiBNqYW8
oh dude another screamercluase thing, the last one i saw, tainted milk creeped me right the fuck out but it also certainly stuck with me and left me wanting more of the weirdness.
ReplyDeletealso i'm just curious about something you say HSM is gonna cost u around 12 to 14 thousand dollars to make, i was wondering how that breaks down like how much goes to your computers and how to much to the software and stuff
thanks
dolls from the both sides of the screen!
ReplyDeleteDolls in front of a TV looking at the dolls are featured on TV.
with wide opened plastic eyes
It wasn't clear from your text, but I wanted to point out that one of the reasons Dragons was darker than anything Pixar has made is because Dragons was made by DreamWorks Animation, not Pixar. And it is definitely darker and more serious/heartfelt than anything DreamWorks has made before as well, IMHO.
ReplyDeleteDragons is the only film I've worked on so far that I really loved from the start. It took a few iterations to get the story right, but once they did it simply clicked and upon seeing it you're like "yes, that's how to end this movie." I also love the lighting design (influenced by Roger Deakins), in that there is a lot of contrast and darks in the images, and not just the happy high-key (IMHO, over-lit) lighting in so many other CG features.
Glad you liked the film :-) I didn't have anything to do with the story or overall look, but I did tweak lighting on a few shots, and fixed a lot of behind the scenes stuff for the lighting team I was on.
Cheers,
Michael
I'm not so sure. I mean, Pixar has had some pretty serious stuff. A father whose son is kidnapped right in front of him sets up "Finding Nemo." A robot loses its mind at the emotional climax of "Wall-E." A husband thinks his wife and kids are shot down in "The Incredibles." A depressed rat starts hallucinating after losing his family in "Ratatouille." The villain of "Toy Story" mutilates characters.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the great comments!
ReplyDelete@16 killa
Aint that the truth!
@Michael
Oh yeh I should have said that... I know it was made by Dreamworks... its just that ya know everyone thinks Pixar makes the best 3d features in the world and I was saying I thought Dreamworks beat them with this one ^ ^
@Jordan
True... but everything always turns out "all right" JUST like real life eh? 0_o
hoooooooooooooooooow!! Exciting!
ReplyDeleteAnd I knew you were (part)Jewish! lol jk But from like your appearances before when you were S0meguy, you looked like a Hasidic Jew with those two "strands" of hair at your front sides.
and d00d, if you don't mind me asking, ¿what ethnicity are you anyway? I didn't KNOW exactly that y00 were mixt.
Me I might estruggol some with my road as an upcoming visionary artist, could be my ethnicity and appearance, and I guess "feeling/sense" that ppl get from me subconsciously like spiritual power. I'm of Colombian descent, ¿but who givE a DAYUMN about C0l0mb¡añs anyway, right?
And some more stuff, which I'll talk to y00 through email soon. Muy importante.
One of your best posts: direct, tell it like it is. I've always found Pixar prefers style over substance. Get the damn copy of McKee's STORY out of their offices! Single episode of Lain or Mushi-shi has infinitely more real life than Pixar fodder.
ReplyDeleteI'm putting Dragon on my list. Thank you, sir.
I hope fans of Wall_E if someone maybe presents here in cinema hall^^ now will excuse me
ReplyDeletefor first cuz maybe someone's feelings ll be hurt so ya know I didnt want...
Sorry I cant live in dumbland, "I'd pretend I was one of those deaf-mutes"..but I cant pretend anymore..and if I pretend deaf IM NOT blinD.. and I see what's going on..and that I know for sure is that I cant be DUMB when I see it!
Ask yourself........
What will change Wall_E in the world?
What will change in Art?
What will it change inside u for EVER?
How will it change ur Life?
Why should be ART that doesnt change anything in the world?
When the child is born into this world he begins life with the ScreAM!
What is this Scream about?
When Art doesnt Scream IS it Alive?
IS it ART?
What is IT?
Oh yeh yeh and plz. dont say me that its for kids, we must save their mentality^ ^
If to save mind forever from these things , thoSE Thin'GS, IT wILL be never in ProgreSS, It will never
expand boundaries than DoNT BE surprise listening on TV that HUMAN use the mind on 5% of 100%, be surprised that u use it on 1% or EVEn USE IT
and great animation its not all..+ that was work army of animators.
Then this kids go out of the theatre, see the world and say OH WHY is it So I thought it ll be coloured fuckin' pictures..
This week-end I've been to the theatre on Hitchcock's film
really all people were laughing cuz of technologies but its great for that time I think but they just so fat and stupid that they can only now open their mouth to eat
and someone from right side asked: And when ll be horror?
I said: Horror will be when u'll go outta here
It was always there a distinct boundary between art and making money, where some sort of films and others I do not know what, but all named films...
ReplyDeleteBut people are paying not only for the beautiful stories..
but the BIG "Clown" that shits candies from his ass
and feeding with sugar
leading people with TV masks to our DOOM
SO yes M. Its very important to see the real life, yes!
YES, yes, yes and yes!
So yeeeh people we must to keep some realism^ ^
because of that "Clown" artists must hide in dark corners,cuz if they creep out to the light.. machines for the production of art ll crush them,.. BUG'S LIfE..and its dark way in the bushes and branches...
"In real life when I've had a "good time" Randy Newman music wasn't playing and if it was I'd puke all over myself..."
ReplyDeleteThis is why I'll remain a loyal fan until I die.
But I've never being depressed from watching a Pixar movie...except for that stupid Cars :/
ReplyDeleteSome people like to reflect life in their films as the twisted messed up thing it can be. Other people I think say "We already deal with life 24/7, Why would we want to go watch more of this?!
It's like why would you want to watch Star Wars if you had lived it?! It's old news.
Of course don't get me wrong, I've had a unrelenting love for things messed up and dark since I was a kid, but it was never a deal of picking sides, I could always enjoy both the dark and the light stories.
Now if you wanna talk hating light and fluffy films, Your posting that video with Shirley temple is interesting cause I had watched those when I was a little kid....and I HATED THEM! They were so annoying. To much is just to much.
Also I'm surprised, 1) that people are telling me that How to train a Dragon is good and 2) That YOU of all people liked it...I haven't seen it yet but I usually hate dreamworks stuff. Well those old Wallace n Gromit things...those were made by dreamworks right?...eh whatever..
ReplyDeleteWait I meant I didn't like dreamworks stuff except for Wallace n Gromit.....moving on <.< >.>
ReplyDeleteEver wonder why where the wild things wasn't nominated for ANYTHING this last oscars? Not because it sucked, not because it wasn't a big enough film, not because it didn't have a big enough budget, I think it was because it was because the film dealt with real family issues from a child's point of view.
ReplyDeleteGreat article, and the only thing I take exception to is your Randy Newman comment. Obviously you're not familiar with the Newman library of songs because he's the most direct, disturbing, and bleak American songwriter outside of John Darnielle. Just quickly youtube some songs like:
ReplyDeleteGod's Song
The World isn't Fair
I Just Want You to Hurt Like I Do
Sail Away
Anyway, great article.
Oh Mdotstrange. I'm fairly certain I heart you as much or more then you heart me!
ReplyDelete- ScreamerClauz
our friend Luis did the animation work for Dragon. fun times.
ReplyDeleteMike