Marvel's The Avengers Wrapping Cleveland Filming

(comingsoon.net)              Marvel's The Avengers is wrapping up filming in Cleveland, Ohio and The Plain Dealer has posted a few more details about what was filmed this weekend and what's to come. Here are excerpts from the article that cover things we haven't mentioned before:

The movie's reception in Cleveland 'made a favorable impression on the filmmakers. First there were the long lines of people who signed up to become extras in the film. Then, hundreds of people lined areas outside the sets to watch the shooting.

"It was great to see them come out every day," said Jeremy Latcham, co-producer of the movie for Marvel Studios. "They took tons of pictures and put them up on the Internet, which is just great.

"Cleveland has been amazing. We wanted a real street feeling to the scenes, and we got that," he said.

On Friday and Saturday night, Scarlett Johansson filmed scenes at an old warehouse on Ashland Road near Longfellow Avenue, off Cedar Road near the Norfolk Southern railroad tracks. The warehouse was the site of top secret filming and doubled as a Russian facility.




We Live In A Time When Not Even A Michael Bay Movie Can Get Financing…

(moviehole.net)                ‘Tis the year for killing pricey, risky blockbusters.

Hot on the heels of that whole “Lone Ranger” collapse (though it’s suggested a Gore Verbinski-less version may be in the cards) over at Disney, Universal has now canned one of their big tentpoles : “Ouija”, from producer Michael Bay and director McG, says Vulture.

Universal were originally gung-ho for the project, one of six titles based on Hasbro games that were set up in 2008, but was ultimately scared off by the film’s budget.

Paramount are now considering taking on the project.

One agent familiar with the Uni/”Ouija” deal, said, “This is how they beat you into submission and make you realize no one but no one wants to make this movie [at that price]. They just did it to Ron Howard with The Dark Tower: ‘Don’t let us stand in your way! Go find someone willing to write the check.’”




Those Fake Sharks Had Teal Teeth!

(teenhollywood.com)                The 20-something cast of the new thriller Shark Night 3-D had way too much fun in the Shreveport, Louisiana area.  We are in Westwood, Ca. across the street from the UCLA campus to get the soggy story of a very fun getaway weekend turned terribly wrong.

TeenHollywood: Why will all these sharks be so much cooler than some fake ones you see in bad TV movies?

Chris Z: I can tell you that going from being in Shark Night to Piranha 3DD, one big difference was when there is a guy holding a fish on a stick in front of you and they’re going to do the fish in CG in post-production is a lot different than seeing this animatronic shark that looks and acts and you think sometimes, could be real! Big difference.

Chris C: And, as a performer working with the sharks, you’re underwater and can’t see clearly and it looks real. It looks real out of water. We were watching the playback of our scenes wearing 3-D glasses and we didn’t have to imagine. We could see that this is gonna be scary.

Sinqua: Those sharks were so strong. They were built to look like real sharks. They had real shark teeth and eyes that moved. You get lost in the moment and see a shark coming at you and react. I did.

Alyssa: When you are swimming helplessly in the middle of a swamp and you see a shark fin chasing you, it’s terrifying in the open water. You are so vulnerable. The water in the lake had no salt so you sink and it’s very muddy and there are all kinds of creatures in there; water moccasins and alligators.

Sinqua: They put a life vest on me because I was sinking and it was also freezing at night.

TeenHollywood: Did you ever get to remote control operate one of the animatronic sharks?

Sinqua: Uh, we can’t say that we didn’t but we weren’t allowed to “play” with the sharks.  But, sometimes, the remote was just sitting there…. (he rolls his eyes).





Sin City 2 Moving Forward
(Heat Vision)                   Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller have brought in Oscar-winning screenwriter William Monahan (The Departed) to work on the script for Sin City 2, reports Heat Vision. He'll be working from a draft completed recently by Miller.

Earlier this month, Rodriguez said that filming could start as early as later this year.

"'Sin City 2' is going good, we're just finishing the script for that, we already got the money. We have everything we need so we can just start shooting as soon as we get the pages," he said.

It is unclear which actors might return for the next film, though the previously-rumored "A Dame to Kill For" storyline again features Marv (Mickey Rourke) and Nancy (Jessica Alba).

Released in April of 2005, Sin City earned $158.8 million worldwide. The graphic novel adaptation was made for just $40 million, not counting marketing costs.





Kerner Optical Owner Joins Speaker Series 

(wearemoviegeeks.com)                       Palo Alto, CA - The Palo Alto International Film Festival (PAIFF) has announced its speaker series for the 2011 festival. The series will feature eight panels and more than 30 speakers exploring the collaborative nature of the creative process and celebrating the game-changers whose work catalyzes innovation in film and media.

Friday, September 30

4 p.m.             

How Much is Your Idea Worth? With Eric Edmeades, serial social entrepreneur and current owner of Kernerworks (a government think tank) and Kerner Optical (a Lucasfilm spinoff); and Saad Khan, co-founder of Film Angels and Partner at CMEA Capital.  Live web broadcast.

Full article:   http://wearemoviegeeks.com/2011/08/speaker-series-set-for-palo-alto-international-film-festival/





Practical Effects Never Go Out of Style: The Vehicles Of 'Prometheus' 
             
(latinoreview)                   Check Out A Couple Of Vehicles From 'Prometheus' Some new -- and fairly exciting -- set photos from the return to sci-fi for director, Ridley Scott, 'Prometheus' have been posted below, courtesy of Alien Prequel News. What was once an 'Alien' prequel has become its own thing, but looking at the photos below, you can definitely see the "Alien DNA" that the director referenced in the past. The two vehicles -- especially the one being called the "lifter" -- have nostalgia slabbed all over them. Practical effects never go out of style.

Here's the official, and extremely vague synopsis for the upcoming film:

"Visionary filmmaker Ridley Scott returns to the genre he helped define, creating an original science fiction epic set in the most dangerous corners of the universe. The film takes a team of scientists and explorers on a thrilling journey that will test their physical and mental limits and strand them on a distant world, where they will discover the answers to our most profound questions and to life’s ultimate mystery."




Why VFX Artists are Working Longer Hours for a Flat Rate

(talkmgt.com)                     The entertainment community can be for or against unions, the importance is to help companies solve this industry crisis and it doesn’t matter if they are based in California, Canada, Australia, England, France, South Africa, Argentina, Chili, New Zealand, India or China. The reality is that we can now see some key industry VFX supervisors and producers working in India to produce Indian film… this reality is also true in China.

We can now agree that the globalization of the Entertainment Production Industry is in motion and it is no longer only a Los Angeles or California product. The industry is now taking place anywhere in the world, like every economic industry in our society. The outsourcing process (for the studios) is at his best right now for the following reasons:

REASONS:

The entry barrier is now at the lowest point
Producers can now film quality production with low-cost camera. The VFX industry is now seeing the Flame/Smoke/Luster suites at the fraction of the price it used to be five years ago. You can now produce 3D animation with your home computer and edit your film from your laptop. The barrier defending the market from new arrivals is now low enough that anybody can jump into servicing studios with minimum investment to start the new venture.

The increase in the number of competitors
The limitations in defending the market has given away chances to many new entrepreneurs and artists to start their own companies and providing services to anyone who requires LIVE action shoots services or visual effects. This has created a wave on the established production services/vfx facilities by reducing the profits margins since the market had to be shared with many other players.

The reduction of the prices
The first two reasons created a consequence: reducing the prices of the services. The addition of new competitors and the reduction in the costs of equipment have created a downfall in the prices of the services. We can just remember the price per hours of a Discreet Smoke/Flame online suite, 10 years ago (850$/h.) compared to today’s price (450$/h.). The reduction of prices had a direct consequence on the possibility to generate high ROI for the investors in the servicing companies.

The reduction in the net income
The last impact on all the democratization we’re now seeing in the production and post production industry is the bottom line. Companies are now facing difficult quarters and the net income is no longer at the percentage it used to be. The difference between making and losing money is turning around a thin line. The creative requirements are now at the peak when the net income is at it’s low. Reduction in the pricing of the services, increase in the number of competitors have dropped prices down with a direct impact on the bottom line of the companies and the shareholders.

CONSEQUENCES:

Companies needs to generate profits or they will eventually go bankrupt, go out of business and they won’t be able to generate the traction of good entrepreneurs and managers. The business will be running only for artists and they will cease to generate profits, the companies will become non-profitable, the employees salaries will need to flatten or even decrease over time, salaries rooftop will be established and longer hours (work effort) will be requested from artists to compensate for the losses and to keep the company running with a limited cash-flow just to survive.

The basic theory that the employees should not finance bad management, be responsible for the increase in the numbers of change orders or get squeezed to maximize profits is totally true. The artists have no chance of making profits: they shouldn’t share the financial risks. The shareholders are making the bottom line money, they should be taking all of the risks.

In other hands, how can those managers keep generating profits for the benefit of the shareholders in this difficult industry environment without sucking it from the artists free “contribution” overtime efforts in the name of the “art”. We’ll try to place over the next weeks different solution and we hope to have many suggestions, reactions and comments from the community…




Jurassic Park Returns to UK Cinemas

(seenit.co.uk)                 To celebrate the upcoming Blu-ray release of the Jurassic Park trilogy, the original 1993 film being rereleased at cinemas on Friday, September 23rd, 2011.

The three films, which generated nearly $2 billion worldwide at the box office, turned Michael Crichton’s best-selling novel into one of cinemas most spectacular film franchises of all time will arrive on Blu-ray this October.

Although the trilogy boasted an impressive, all-star cast including Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum, Samuel L. Jackson and Richard Attenborough, the real stars will always remain the CGI dinosaurs brought to life by Industrial Light & Magic.




Gallery Show Celebrates SPFX Makeup Artists

(btlnews.com)              Without question, the makeup arts in films are as old as cinema itself, dating back the entire 116-year history of the medium.  While early makeups were applied by the actors who played in the first films, the craft eventually became in demand by film producers after the likes of Lon Chaney and Jack Dawn created indelible characters with their techniques. By the time of stalwart artists such as Jack Pierce and Cecil Holland, the art form of movie makeup was taken as seriously as cinematography and costume design as an essential part of the moviemaking process.  When the legendary Westmore brothers took control of nearly every makeup department in Hollywood in the Golden Age of American films, their famous last name became a household word.  Since that time, a select group of artists have elevated the craft to new heights with their pioneering techniques and onscreen developments, often working their magic on some of the top actors and actresses of the era.

Now, a new collection of portraits by Deverill Weekes highlights top names in makeup artistry over the past 50 years in a series of gallery exhibitions.  The new gallery show debuted in June at the Pasadena Convention Center and will continue to show in exhibit and print form.  Weekes’ images celebrate the greatest of the modern makeup artists by showcasing their faces – often unknown to the general public – with a series of unforgettable portraits.  Taken from 1994 to 2011 spanning three countries, the photos represent all walks of artistry from “straight” makeup artists whose work often goes unnoticed on celebrity actors, to those who are celebrated in the effects side of the industry.

Artists featured in the show include Bill Corso (Oscar winner for Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events), Dick Smith (Oscar winner for Amadeus and upcoming Lifetime Achievement Award Winner from the Academy), Greg Cannom (three-time Oscar winner for Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Mrs. Doubtfire and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), the late John Chambers (creative makeup designer for the original Planet of the Apes which won an honorary Oscar as there was no official makeup category at that time), Kevin Haney (Oscar winner for Driving Miss Daisy), Michele Burke (two-time Oscar winner for Quest for Fire and the aforementioned Dracula), Michael Westmore (Oscar winner for Mask), Rick Baker (seven-time Oscar winner, most recently for The Wolfman), the late Stan Winston (four-time Oscar winner for both makeup and visual effects), Ve Neill (three-time Oscar winner for Beetlejuice, Mrs. Doubtfire, and Ed Wood), and many others, including people who primarily work in London, such as nonagenarian Stuart Freeborn (Star Wars).

Source:   http://www.btlnews.com/community/gallery-show-celebrates-noted-makeup-artists/



Student Wins Placement with Tim Burton

(thisislocallondon.co.uk)               Tim Burton has gained cult status as a director of dark and quirky-themed films and particularly in recent years for his foray into animation.

So given his reputation, it is hardly surprising that one Hampton animation student was over the moon to be picked to spend a summer working on his new animated movie Frankenweenie which is set to be released next year.

Victoria Smith, 21, currently in the final year of her animation degree at the University of creative arts in Farnham, secured herself a month’s work experience on the film where she spent most of her time assisting in the puppet workshops and on set.

She said: “Working on a Hollywood movie was fantastic. It was such a brilliant opportunity to really get a feel for what goes into making a feature length production. The attention to detail, the amount of people involved, the hours and hours of dedication - I was slightly star-struck just being there, knowing that little things I made will possibly be seen on the big screen.”




Ti West Directing a Werewolf Movie Next

(bloody-disgusting.com)                      While speaking to the Film 4 FrightFest audience in London this past weekend, Ti West revealed that he has written a "kind of" werewolf movie, reports Bleeding Cool. No details were given as he spent most of the time taking about his new sci-fi feature set in space called The Side Effects.

"It's called 'The Side Effects'... It's a science fiction movie about... it has to do with pharmaceutical testing in space and paranoia," he told audiences. "It will be bigger budgeted, but in a way it would fill out a trilogy with 'House of the Devil' and 'The Inkeepers' as far as dealing with isolation and paranoia, and that kind of psychological fear, but it’s set in space."

West was in London premiering The Innkeepers, arriving later this year. He also directed The Roost and The House of the Devil.




DreamWorks Animation, Youku Strike Landmark Chinese Deal

(screendaily.com)                     Leading Chinese internet television company Youku.com will make the Kung Fu Panda franchise films available across multiple devices in the first time DreamWorks Animation product is being offered online in China.

Both Kung Fu Panda titles are available for VoD customers on Youku Premium and will subsequently debut on Youku’s Hollywood Movie Channel after the paid viewing window closes.

“We’re excited to add both of DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda movies to our online channels,” Youku chairman and CEO Victor Koo said. “As technology matures and Chinese internet users increasingly turn to the web for entertainment, Youku has been able to expand on the traditional movie release roadmap through agreements for studio films such as Kung Fu Panda and Kung Fu Panda 2.

“Both titles have a proven track record of success with Chinese audiences, and we look forward to expanding our alignment with Hollywood studios in the future to offer even more compelling content.”




How to Break Into Special Effects Industry with The MythBusters

(geek.com)                     “It’s like an omelet, everyone finds their own way to do it,” Adam Savage answers. It’s not quite the response I was expecting. I was thinking something more along the lines of ‘study hard and stay in school,’ when asking the MythBusters star how one goes about breaking into the special effects game.

Judging from Savage and co-host Jamie Hyneman’s extremely different resumes, however, the whole egg analogy seems spot on. “I wanted to work in special effects since I was 11 and Star Wars came out,” Savage tells me, seated across from me in his San Diego hotel suite. “I tried in several different ways in several different situations where the pay was really crappy and people were real jerks, and ended up forgetting about it until Jamie called me and working with people I liked, doing things that I enjoyed changed it.”

Jamie’s resume, on the other hand, reads like a plot summary of Factotum, having worked as a diving instructor in the Caribbean, lived on a farm, been employed as a cook, done construction, and even owning a pet store.
“In my case it I’ve done a lot of different things and at one point I sat down to decide what it was that I actually wanted,” he tells me. “By then I realized that it was actually possible to earn a living doing something that was fun. I learned that routines are not fun. I started looking around, and there aren’t that many vocations that meet that criteria. Special effects was one. I started methodically getting my foot in the door by cleaning the shop. I quickly rose to the top and had my own shop.”