3 ms·

Making good movies is extremely hard. I remember James Cameron saying that, during the casting for Terminator 2, he had to come in on the weekend for the nth-ti

Making good movies is extremely hard. I remember James Cameron saying that, during the casting for Terminator 2, he had to come in on the weekend for the nth-time, just to see how sun will reflect off Robert Patrick's face (T-1000) during that particular day time. That's the level of focus required. Once you inject enough interfering factors, such as various ideologies, you will end up with inferior products Hollywood currently producing.

iancmceachern 3y ago
It's just like any other art form. It cannot be done my committee. It has to be the vision of one, or a small handful, of genius(s).
- krisoft 3y ago
  > It's just like any other art form. But of course it is also unlike most other art forms. To execute a movie you need a small army of specialist each providing their own talents. And of course one also needs wagonloads of money for wages, equipment, and other costs. I believe that is where all the weird fighting over control comes from. Have you ever heard of producers bullying poets over control of their poems? I haven't. Probably because the involved budgets are much smaller. In this regard I don't know what other art forms are similar to it? Cathedral building maybe?
  - iancmceachern 3y ago
    Check out the history of art, Renaissance stuff. These artists, Da Vinci, Michelangelo, etc. all had small armies of folks working for them. Apprentices, workers, etc. Much of the magic of making art at the time was in sourcing, mixing and making the pigments, and other raw materials. So much work went into making a painting before the artists brush touched the substrate. It's not like today when you walk down to an art supply store and buy paint. You had to sail to the ends of the earth, make pigments, etc. Music is similar. Go to the opera or symphony or live music of any kind. There is dozens, sometimes hundreds of people who have been practicing and working their whole lives at their piece of the puzzle. More than even the musicians, there are thr riggers, lighting and effects professionals, etc. It takes a small army of professionals to deliver a modern stage show. Even a lone violin player playing a stratavarious. So much has gone into the creation, preservation and understanding of the instrument, how to play it, the composer of the piece, and finally the musician. Art isn't simple, or easy. There are also lots of famous examples of one person (or close) films. They are not necessarily more complex or involved than any other art form, although often are, it's not necessarily the case.
  - brightlancer 3y ago
    I agree with everything except the wagons of money: special effects are the biggest driver of costs now, so a regular drama or comedy can be made for very little money -- indie films are usually under $1M, and plenty are made for under $100k. If you have a strong script then you're most of the way there.
    - iancmceachern 3y ago
      Yes and no. Yes for big blockbusters like Avatar and Marvel movies. No because CGI tech is being rapidly democritized and lower cost houses are increasingly able to do amazing things. Movies like Distric 9 and Chappie have shown you can make an effects driven movie for far less that is a critical and commercial success. Check out Corridor Crew in youtube to see what's possible now out of your garage. It's amazing, there are so many fun fiction type movies being made today that are equal or higher quality to commercial movies from 10 or 15 years ago.
      - krisoft 3y ago
        > Movies like Distric 9 and Chappie have shown you can make an effects driven movie for far less that is a critical and commercial success. District 9 had a budget of $30 million, Chappie had a budget of $49 million. That is a big chunk if money. These are serious ventures. Compared that if Blomkamp‘s choosen art form were poetry. He could have made his art for a few hundreds of dollar. Don’t get me wrong! I love those movies. I love that they made them. But they are fundamentally a business. Somebody had to ask “are we going to make this money back?” Because you don’t get that kind of pile of money without answering that question with a very confident yes. > Check out Corridor Crew in youtube to see what's possible now out of your garage. Absolutely. I love them too. If you haven’t heard of him yet I also recommend Ian Hubert’s Dynamo Dream movies too. It is incredible what is possible nowadays “on the cheap”.

iancmceachern 3y ago

It's just like any other art form. It cannot be done my committee. It has to be the vision of one, or a small handful, of genius(s).

krisoft 3y ago
> It's just like any other art form. But of course it is also unlike most other art forms. To execute a movie you need a small army of specialist each providing their own talents. And of course one also needs wagonloads of money for wages, equipment, and other costs. I believe that is where all the weird fighting over control comes from. Have you ever heard of producers bullying poets over control of their poems? I haven't. Probably because the involved budgets are much smaller. In this regard I don't know what other art forms are similar to it? Cathedral building maybe?
- iancmceachern 3y ago
  Check out the history of art, Renaissance stuff. These artists, Da Vinci, Michelangelo, etc. all had small armies of folks working for them. Apprentices, workers, etc. Much of the magic of making art at the time was in sourcing, mixing and making the pigments, and other raw materials. So much work went into making a painting before the artists brush touched the substrate. It's not like today when you walk down to an art supply store and buy paint. You had to sail to the ends of the earth, make pigments, etc. Music is similar. Go to the opera or symphony or live music of any kind. There is dozens, sometimes hundreds of people who have been practicing and working their whole lives at their piece of the puzzle. More than even the musicians, there are thr riggers, lighting and effects professionals, etc. It takes a small army of professionals to deliver a modern stage show. Even a lone violin player playing a stratavarious. So much has gone into the creation, preservation and understanding of the instrument, how to play it, the composer of the piece, and finally the musician. Art isn't simple, or easy. There are also lots of famous examples of one person (or close) films. They are not necessarily more complex or involved than any other art form, although often are, it's not necessarily the case.
- brightlancer 3y ago
  I agree with everything except the wagons of money: special effects are the biggest driver of costs now, so a regular drama or comedy can be made for very little money -- indie films are usually under $1M, and plenty are made for under $100k. If you have a strong script then you're most of the way there.
  - iancmceachern 3y ago
    Yes and no. Yes for big blockbusters like Avatar and Marvel movies. No because CGI tech is being rapidly democritized and lower cost houses are increasingly able to do amazing things. Movies like Distric 9 and Chappie have shown you can make an effects driven movie for far less that is a critical and commercial success. Check out Corridor Crew in youtube to see what's possible now out of your garage. It's amazing, there are so many fun fiction type movies being made today that are equal or higher quality to commercial movies from 10 or 15 years ago.
    - krisoft 3y ago
      > Movies like Distric 9 and Chappie have shown you can make an effects driven movie for far less that is a critical and commercial success. District 9 had a budget of $30 million, Chappie had a budget of $49 million. That is a big chunk if money. These are serious ventures. Compared that if Blomkamp‘s choosen art form were poetry. He could have made his art for a few hundreds of dollar. Don’t get me wrong! I love those movies. I love that they made them. But they are fundamentally a business. Somebody had to ask “are we going to make this money back?” Because you don’t get that kind of pile of money without answering that question with a very confident yes. > Check out Corridor Crew in youtube to see what's possible now out of your garage. Absolutely. I love them too. If you haven’t heard of him yet I also recommend Ian Hubert’s Dynamo Dream movies too. It is incredible what is possible nowadays “on the cheap”.