Post-production research

Richard Briggs

Comm 2660

Post-Production Research

The movie “Alvin and the Chipmunks” that was released in 2008 was completely dependent on compositing in order to bring the chipmunks to life.

One of the challenges the producers talked about in this brief “making of” scene, found at hulu.com, was that they needed to make the chipmunks look real, but at the same time be loyal to the looks of the chipmunks from the cartoons.

Once the look of the chipmunks was chosen, the post-production crew then worked diligently at their computers in order place the chipmunks into a live-action world that was shot previously. “The obstacles are all about creating a reality where reality doesn’t exist.” That was a quote taken from the brief documentary about the film. Jason Lee, the actor who played Dave Seville, had to rehearse with stuffed animals. Lee even joked that he preferred the stuffed animals than when actual shooting took place because in shooting all he had to look at was tape on a stump. He said he and the stuffed animals became close friends.

The majority of the film is the development of his relationship with the chipmunks, but how can you develop a relationship with something that doesn’t exist? Thus the difficulty of “Alvin and the Chipmunks” and any other hybrid movie that combines CGI and live action.

The CG crew changed the look of the chipmunks from the cartoons. In the cartoons the chipmunks look more human than chipmunk, but with the movie, the CG crew wanted the chipmunks to be actual chipmunks. So the CG crew went forward from chipmunk bodies and gave Alvin, Simon and Theodore the personalities and facial features audiences could relate to from the cartoons.

The producers made sure the CG animators got the specific details down pat from the original characters. They wanted Alvin to have strong confidence in his body language. They wanted Theodore to cower when he’s nervous and Simon to squint without his glasses. Those details were important in the development of the characters.

The challenge was to make the audience believe the chipmunks were actually in the room with Dave Seville. The CG animators pulled it off.

REFERENCES

Making a scene: Alvin and the chipmunks. (n.d.). Retrieved from

http://www.hulu.com/watch/13639/making-a-scene-alvin-and-the-chipmunks

Camera Operators

Richard Briggs

Comm 2660

Paper No. 2

Camera Operators

Film crews are lined with unsung heroes, and camera operators fit right into that category. There’s no glory for shooting a scene in a movie, yet camera operators are not only responsible for the artistic look of a film, but also making sure the film is shown at all. These individuals handle expensive equipment, and must therefore be responsible.

The camera operator is like the drummer in a band. The skillset of camera operators has to be high with little praise outside the film crew. “Camera Operators perform a vital role within the camera department on feature films. They support the Director of Photography (DoP or DP), and the Director, by accurately carrying out their instructions regarding shot composition and development. The seamless ease with which the camera moves is key to the narrative flow of feature films, and is the Camera Operators' responsibility. They are usually the first people to use the camera's eye piece to assess how all the elements of performance, art direction, lighting, composition and camera movement come together to create the cinematic experience” (www.creativeskillset.org).

Camera operators are expected to know video terms, manually function all aspects of the camera, know different shots, know how to adjust the frame, “and understanding of colour temperature and how this affects white balance and filter selection,” video editing, and proper care for camera equipment (www.mediacollege.com).

The job market is versatile for camera operators. From news to film, camera operators will get opportunities to work. Much like left-handed relief pitchers in baseball, there’s always a need for camera operators in film. “There are various career possibilities that camera operators can choose from. There are news camera operators who shoot newsworthy events for various news channels. There are others who work as videographers, responsible for filming special events. Some videographers also shoot videos to be posted on the World Wide Web” (www.jobdiagnosis.com).

The artistic design of a film first needs good camera operators to make shots happen. Without good camera operators, the directors and producers of films are left with little choice in how to present their films. They need the different angles and clarity. Just like the band drummer sets up the tempo in a song, the camera operator can make or break a scene in a movie with how well he or she shot that scene.

References

http://www.creativeskillset.org/film/jobs/camera/article_4688_1.asp

http://www.mediacollege.com/employment/television/camera.html

http://www.jobdiagnosis.com/myblog/camera-operator.htm