Fawk teh tech don't be a whoRE
So ummm... I wrote the script with this screenwriting app on my iphone... then I created the storyboard with this storyboard app on my ipad then I used this other iphone app and this $1000 iphone accessory to take photos of the set with locked gps coordinates to share with the location scout who syncs the coordinates with her blackberry blah blah blah... YEH we shot on the RED... yep thats right 20,000 x 20,000 pixels of mundane ass run of the mill footage....uh huh and we had a 20 drive array to play back the uncompressed files... yeh we edited offline with Final Cut Pro on an 8 core macpro even though final cut only uses one core yep... we're whores...we buy any tech we can and use it in production because we're dumb enough to buy into all teh marketing hype so we believe we need the tech and some how our "film" is better because of it.... I think we NEED to use Autodesk Smoke to online and finish it....
OH it doesn't end there there days...
Yeh so we built seven rich media sites for our film with games, trailers, apps blah blah and we've integrated our facebook page with twitter and our iphone app so when we type all dis boring shit ... everyone all over the world knows about it instantly... cause like we're indie and shet so you should befriend us cause its SO HARD making INDIE films...WAH WAHHHHHH
OK back to normal programming.... So I try to follow and read a bunch of "filmmaking" sites/blogs etc.... but the funny thing is they never talk about the actual making of the film... all they do is talk about the tech... So is this why people don't make films anymore? Is this why there's just a TON of demo reels of "cool looking shots" stuck together passed off as "films" ? Because all the wannabe filmmakers just became whores to the tech?
Its the same thing in 3d... WOW THAT LOOKS REAL?!? OMG PHOTOREALISM OH NO I JIZZED ALL OVER MYSELF... I don't understand this either.... Ok it looks real... then what? What does that have to do with the story and the mood... the theme? The emotions? The suspense? The drama! The point of it all?!?! Is the point... THIS IS REAL? Ok point made TITE now I'm going to go outside where everything is really REAL OMG amazing?! Let me take a photo! Look at this photo its an image of something "REAL" continue the jizzing ^ ^
Here's a PEFECT example... now this is being lauded as the second coming of teh raytraced Jesus2000
THIS IS A DEMO REEL...it is a fancy display of techniques...
If you showed this to an 8 year old kid who had no interest in 3d what do you think he/she would say or do? WOW this is great is soooo realisitic!!! HELL NAW they would get bored after like 20 seconds.... BUT now show them this...
I bet that same kid would LOVE THIS because it has great ideas!
If you go over to the Vimeo page for that CG video you'll find over 9000 cg tech whores lauding it as the greatest thing ever created.... and why? because it is "SO REALISTIC" Ok yes it looks realistic then what? BUt what about the idea? The idea is... this is realistic... a video/film camera in static environments focusing and defocusing... brightness changes in various environments... The idea behind it is YOU getting your video camera... putting it on a tripod...filmmaking a bunch of static scenes...in normal speed as well as timelapse then editing it together with music.... Yes you turn the camera on and off and its REAL... ok....
I guess what I'm really getting at here is that if all you have is technique YOU WILL ALWAYS BE A MINION... a minion that will eventually be REPLACED by a MACHINE... if you don't focus on your ideas and create great ones you are just another replaceable COG... If you want to be your own boss and make your own films than FOCUS ON YOUR IDEAS! Having great technique is awesome too, you should always be working on that too I just think that without great ideas the technique is worthless UNLESS YOU WANT TO BE A MINION... Machines will always be BETTER at TECHNIQUE than any human... its just a matter of time as the algorithms and AI improves... anyone see "Content aware fill" ? Where will GI and HDRI be in a few years? 3d scanning? Motion capture?
HYPE.... now of course most wannabe filmmakers buy into the tech hype.... and most normal people do as well... So now we have "films" that on they own if you were to strip out the tech are... ABSOLUTELY MUNDANE DERIVATIVE AND THE EPITOME OF SICKENING MEDIOCRITY but with the tech.... TEH BEST THING EVAR apparently....
BUT I believe this will die down as the tech become so advanced and easy to use the whole "real" thing won't impress anyone let alone cause over 9000 fanboi jizzfests.... then what? People will be like....ummmm.... WAIT.... are the images supposed to do something? Are they supposed to move people or like stand for something or have a deeper meaning? Ummmm.... wait....
I have never forgotten this Syd Mead quote...
"don't assume that technique alone will save your ass. It still is the idea that wins...every time. Remember that elaborate technique and dumb story produces a demo reel, not a narrative"
BUT today when TECHNIQUE ALONE is making billions of dollars and is all that is enshrined around you its tough for someone to not fall into the trap...
So next time you see a film or participate in a discussion about a film or some 3d shet... ask yourself ... what is the idea behind this? Do I like it? Is it original? Is it great?! If not AND you find yourself up in teh jizzfest you are worshiping technique my friend... so then are you simply a replaceable craftsperson with no valuable ideas? Or an irreplaceable ARTIST with GREAT IDEAS?
MARK meh words... the tech will get to the point where ANYONE who can buy it will be able to display the BEST TECHNIQUE... then what will set things apart? Ideas thats right... and if they are remarkable, original, innovative and powerful your going to do all right... Let all the kids have they toys... your NOT here to play with toys and be a tech whore your here to rock thangs mayne ^ ^Brought to you by professional weirdo M dot Strange.