XX & the new Female Voices of Modern Horror
For about as long as the genre’s been around, women have played a large part in traditional horror storytelling. Whether it’s the virginal Mina in Tod Browning’s Dracula, beset by the hypnotic forces of the titular vamp, the tough as nails Sally Hardesty in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre or Rosemary, the helpless young mother at the center of Roman Polanski’s iconic demonic tale.
Oscar Watch: Editor Joe Walker Masters Time and Space in Arrival
Oscar-nominated Arrival editor Joe Walker contributed his unerring instinct for the well-timed cut to his 2014 collaboration with director Denis Villeneuve in drug-trafficking thriller Sicario. "When I saw Sicario with an audience for the first time at Sundance, I nearly had a heart attack," laughs Walker, referring to film's hyper-suspenseful opening sequence. This time around, Walker's edit steered the Best Picture nominated Arrival toward a non-violent payoff brimming with existential mystery.
American Fable‘s Writer/Director Anne Hamilton on her Gothic Fever Dream
American Fable, which is available today, is an American gothic style fairy tale set against the farm crisis of the Reagan era that manages, without overt effort, to speak directly to today’s anxieties. The heroine of the story is Gitty (Peyton Kennedy), a soulful, intelligent young girl who finds herself in a major predicament when her father, pushed to the brink financially, makes a desperate decision that could spell doom for the entire family.
See How They Obliterated Jedha in Killer Rogue One VFX Video
The Oscar-nominated visual effects of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story were, inarguably, the most talked about of the year. First was the fact that the film recreated the late, great actor Peter Cushing through digital effects and motion-capture performance, making his Grand Moff Tarkin a major character in the film. Then there was that incredible ending, which (spoiler alert) saw the Death Star Plans handed to a 19-year old Princess Leia (the late,
Oscar Watch: Why Ted Melfi Passed on Spider-Man: Homecoming to direct Hidden Figures
Before he became an award-winning TV commercial director, before he lured Bill Murray out of semi-retirement to star in his St. Vincent film, before he earned Oscar nominations for co-writing and producing this year's most popular Best Picture nominee Hidden Figures, Ted Melfi launched his creative journey in unlikely fashion by serving as child sports columnist for the M.A.F.I.A. Bulletin Board.
Melfi's volatile father,
Know Your 2017 Oscar Nominees: Sound Editing & Sound Mixing
We’ve gone big for our Oscars coverage this year. Our annual "Know Your Nominee" series once again looks at every category, giving you the information you need to conquer your Oscars pool. Learn more about the nominees for Lead Actor, Foreign Language Film, Costume Designers, Documentary Short, Editing, Live Action Short, Actress in a Supporting Role,
Oscar Watch: Deepwater Horizon’s Sound Editor on Capturing Chaos
Sound editor Wylie Stateman’s first Oscar nomination came in 1990 for his work on Oliver Stone’s Born on the Fourth of July. Seven more nominations followed. Stateman has been recognized by the Academy for his work on films ranging from alpine action-adventure stories to period pierces to war films. Cliffhanger, Memoirs of a Geisha, Wanted, Inglourious Basterds,
See how Visual Artists Created Those Fantastic Beasts
It’s no big secret that Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them utilizes a fair bit of computer generated effects. Over 20 “fantastic beasts” alone were featured in the film, and that doesn’t even begin to take into account the magical effects and large-scale scenery.
Even after considering all three of those categories, it’s still amazing to realize just how much of the film exists because of work by visual effects artists.
Know Your 2017 Oscar Nominees: Production Design
We’ve gone big for our Oscars coverage this year. Our annual "Know Your Nominee" series once again looks at every category, giving you the information you need to conquer your Oscars pool. Learn more about the nominees for Lead Actor, Foreign Language Film, Costume Designers, Documentary Short, Editing, Live Action Short, Actress in a Supporting Role,
Oscar Watch: La La Land Sound Editors Make History
The immigrant's tale culminating in double Oscar nominations for La La Land sound editor/mixer Ai-Ling Lee began in Singapore, where she spent her weekends as a kid repeatedly watching Terminator 2 and Jurassic Park in the home theater put together by her audiophile father. The pictures were nice but what really captivated Lee was the sound. "I was amazed at the way sound transports you into the film and enhances the whole experience,"
Know Your 2017 Oscar Nominees: Visual Effects
We’ve gone big for our Oscars coverage this year. Our annual "Know Your Nominee" series once again looks at every category, giving you the information you need to conquer your Oscars pool. Learn more about the nominees for Lead Actor, Foreign Language Film, Costume Designers, Documentary Short, Editing, Live Action Short, Actress in a Supporting Role,
How Walking Out’s Cinematographer Conquered Winter in Montana
Sundance selection Walking Out pits Matt Bomer (White Collar) and Josh Wiggins (Max) against the snowy Montana wilderness on a hunting expedition gone wrong. In order to capture the survival story, cinematographer Todd McMullen had to conquer the elements in real life. There were no soundstages or CGI to paint the beautiful and unforgiving landscape. McMullen and the film crew shot on location in the Montana mountains in January weather.
Know Your 2017 Oscar Nominees: Original Song
We’ve gone big for our Oscars coverage this year. Our annual "Know Your Nominee" series once again looks at every category, giving you the information you need to conquer your Oscars pool. Learn more about the nominees for Lead Actor, Foreign Language Film, Costume Designers, Documentary Short, Editing, Live Action Short, Actress in a Supporting Role,
See how Batman v Superman‘s Dark, Visually Layered VFX Were Created
With countless films showcasing explosions, car chases, and other unnatural occurrences, we’ve grown accustomed to watching movies with visual effects and CGI. However, we oftentimes forget the amount of work and the sheer talent that comes with creating credible and powerful visual effects.
Director Zack Snyder recently tweeted a link to a nearly twelve minute long video to a Before & After video showcasing the visual effects of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
Know Your 2017 Oscar Nominees: Animated Feature
Our Oscars coverage this year has gone big. Our annual "Know Your Nominee" series will once again touch upon every category, giving you the information you need to conquer your Oscars pool. Learn more about the nominees for Lead Actor, Foreign Language Film, Costume Designers, Documentary Short, Editing, Live Action Short, Actress in a Supporting Role and Makeup &
Legion Composer on the Mind-bending Music of the New X-Men Show
Marvel’s Legion is premiering tonight on FX and it’s going to be unbelievable. In fact, you should probably be careful not to believe everything you see. Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey) plays the X-Men character David Haller who learns that his schizophrenia diagnosis may not be what it seems and neither is the world around him. As he explores the powers he possesses and embarks on a journey to become Legion,
Oscar Watch: The Salesman‘s Cinematographer Hossein Jafarian
The Salesman, nominated for this year’s best foreign film Oscar, reunites Iranian writer-director Asghar Farhadi with his frequent actors Taraneh Alidoosti and Shahab Hosseini. Hosseini earned Best Actor honors for The Salesman at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival (Farhadi won Best Screenplay at Cannes).
The film also re-teams Farhadi, best known for his Oscar-winning A Separation (2011), the first Iranian film to capture that honor,
How John Wick: Chapter 2‘s Stunt Coordinator Challenged Keanu Like Never Before
Keanu Reeves thrilled action fans three years ago when his title character killed 141 bad guys in John Wick. For John Wick: Chapter 2, opening Friday, stunt coordinator J.J. Perry faced a formidable challenge: How do you take somebody who’s already played a super-lethal hit man and make him even more deadly? "The obvious way to make the movie better was to make Keanu better,
Know Your 2017 Oscar Nominees: Makeup & Hairstyling
Our Oscars coverage this year has gone big. Our annual "Know Your Nominee" series will once again touch upon every category, giving you the information you need to conquer your Oscars pool. Learn more about the nominees for Lead Actor, Foreign Language Film, Costume Designers, Documentary Short, Editing, Live Action Short and Actress in a Supporting Role.
Oscar Watch: Lion DP Greig Fraser Captures Five-Year Old’s POV
He shot 2016’s biggest box office hit Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and last month picked up an Academy Award nomination for his work on Lion, so what’s cinematographer Greig Fraser doing in Mexico City filming a TV spot? "Commercials are an incredible technical proving ground," says the Australian-born director of photography. "I'm able to learn new camera systems all the time and that translates directly for features."
