STARTED FROM NOTHING – is a series of posts, dedicated to film makers(and movements) that without Bank loans,Studio finances, independently made films, some of which went on to be classics, but also became influential, not only in the country, but on Global cinema, an generations of film-makers directly inspired by them
These days he’s known more for his controversial statements, interviews and often outspoken/blunt views on matters rergarding race and issues concerning the African American community. Spike Lee is one of the most relevant and important voices in Black Cinema in the last 30 years . His biggest and most commercial film was INSIDE MAN, with regular collaborator Denzel Washington, who he also worked on with his best known film ,biopic Malcom X.
Lee started quite small. Four years after graduating NYU and with a few short films under his belt , Spike raised $175,000 to make his feature debut “She’s got to have it” ,Shot in 12 days in 1985, the film’s budget was so tight, there were no retakes of any scenes.
The debut is regards as a milestone in American Independent cinema, and it is definately a laarger Milestone for African American Cinema , as it was a film that portrayed African Americans in a very different way than they had ever been seen on screen. The New York Times wrote that the film
“ushered in the American independent film movement of the 1980s. It was also a groundbreaking film for African-American filmmakers and a welcome change in the representation of blacks in American cinema, depicting men and women of color not as pimps and whores, but as intelligent, upscale urbanites.
The film won “Award of the Youth” Foreign Film — Spike Lee (won) at Cannes 1986 festival
Lee went on to be one of the most thought provoking and social concioius film makers of his time, often tackling difficult issues that few others would touch. In his 20+ year career he has made films like Jungle Fever, Mo Better Blues, Do the Right Thing, He Got Game , Bamboozled ,The 25th Hour ,Summer of Sam, and also documentaries; Four Little Girls, When the Leeves Broke and so much more.
Whether one thinks of his views, no one can deny his ability as a film maker and the mark he has made as an African American director on the cinema landscape
STARTED FROM NOTHING – is a series of posts, dedicated to film makers(and movements) that without Bank loans,Studio finances, independently made films, some of which went on to be classics, but also became influential, not only in the country, but on Global cinema, an generations of film-makers directly inspired by them
It may sound like as a strange thing to say, but World War 2 actually did a lot for the evolution and development of cinema as we know it today. From the propaganda film Triumph of the Will and Why we Fight that influenced how stories are told through editing , to the classics that were inspired Where Eagles Dare, The Dirty Dozen etc. But across in Europe , in the late 50’s a group of French Film Critics for Cahier Du Cinema tired of conventions and generic studio film-Making, decided to make their own films. Films that didnt follow the rules and were naturalistic and avante garde as much as possible.
The French Governemt was recovering from the effecs of the war and there was little or no money to start investing in film making and certainly not the type that Jean Luc Goddard,Francios Truffat,Eric Rohmer,Chabrol and others intended. Many of their film were produced on low budgets, and they often had to borrow friends apartments to use as locations. Theri family and friends also often served as cast and crew( no pay ofcourse)
Distincting themselves from conventional films ,their narratives were different, making no attempt to suspend disbelief, they shot with naturalistic lights, real locations, real location sound (nothing reprouced) , Filming techniques included fragmented, discontinuous editing, and long takes and they shot many films hand held, and often shot without permits on the streets. So the crowds were real people(not extras) going about their business and ended up in classics like A Bout De Souffle(Breathless) & A Bande Apart by Jean Luc Goddard.
The French New Wave would go on to inspire people like Francis Ford Coppolla, who started the American New Wave with in the late 60’s early 70’s George Lucas, Walter Murch and others(American Zoetrope). Cinema’s Enfante terrible Quentin Tarantino was so inspired by the FNW, that he named his company after Goddard’s film “A Band Apart”.
These low budget vibrant,innovative and self concious films made by these film lovers changed the landscape of cinema, not only in France , but in Europe and the United States. Influencing many of the American and British film makers that emerged between the 70’s and the early 00’s . Now THAT is a Legacy.
SOME FILM OF THE FRENCH NEW WAVE:
BREATHLESS
THE 400 BLOWS
A BAND APART
JULES AND JIM
LAST YEAR AT MARIENBAD
No matter how many times i watch this, im still blown away by this man’s talent. Not only is he an amazing singer/impersonator, but he does it all while performaing a ventroloquist act.
He had performed for over 20 years as an unknown, didn’t make it till his 40’s, but when he did? Boy did he make it. He eventually won that season of America’s Got Talent and also a 100million 5 year performing contract in Vegas.
Saw this video first in 08, still come back to watch it to remind me of perseverance and ofcourse listen to the amazing Terry Fator.
Screenwriting is one of the most under appreciated aspects of the film industry. Many people don’t realize the immense task it takes to commit to write and actually churn out a great screenplay or the emotional and psychological commitment. A lot of people just assume it’s thinking up a story and just throwing words, scenes and dialogue on paper till it reaches 90 or 120 pages. Perhaps that’s why we see a lot of derivative, cliché , contrived and outright appalling things on-screen at times.
A screenplay is like a blueprint. You hire a trained architect to come up with a blueprint. He takes time to design the building(story) , taking into cognisance , structure, shape, durability, resistance and other factors. After the blue print is done, many people will from the blue print to bring that building to life. Same for a screenplay. The Director, Cinematographer,Art Director, Costumer, Hair&Make up department and so many others take guidance from the world the script has created.
So im always baffled when people take a cavalier attitude towards it, and think they can just jump into it without learning the principles, the rules and the craft of creating a screenplay, that wont collapse on its self. I still don’t understand how some producers give a writer an idea on Monday and expect a completed feature screenplay 7-14 days later. Would anyone expect a novelist to churn out a book at that same time?
IMO, the writing team of Simon Pegg an Edgar Wright , that brought us SHAUN OF THE DEAD and HOT FUZZ are amongst the best duo in around right now, (right up there with Monty Python). For each collaboration, they go to a secluded area for a few weeks, where they have no phones or email to distract, and they have a writing/story conference,; where they knock out an outline for how their screenplay is going to work.
From the results of the three films, it’s evident that this meticulous planning worked, cos those films are AWESOME.
This is the outline for their latest film THE WORLD’S END
So i was recently watching some clips of young actors, trying to sift over who is out there , what they have done and what they are capable ofand who i could work with when a project comes up; and there was a particular young “actor” i had seen a while back, and i thought to check up on his work, just to see if maybe i had been too harsh, maybe i was jaded before and this new perspective would reveal something previously unseen. Turns out i hadn’t.
Four different productions,shorts,series,soap same thing; underwhelming and cringeworthy .
Scrolling down , i saw comments praising him, telling him he’s the Denzel of this generation( ok, they didn’t use those words).
You’re the greatest,
KIP IT UP.
On point
I always knew you had it in you,
This is just the beginning.
You are going places
I had to check my temperature to see if i was sick, or maybe needed to check myself into a mental ward. Maybe they are sane and i’m the crazy one, (that could really be it,certainly would explain a lot).
Questions began to rush through my mind
Are my standards too high?
Is there something they see that i don’t? (maybe that’s it)
Are their standards low?
What exactly is the standard?
What constitutes good acting? Is there a baseline from which we are all measuring, or is it by individual response?
Is there a connection he’s making to them, that i’m not getting? A perspective im still failing to see?
Is their definition of acting = to pantomime
Is the ability to articulately repeat memorized lines with an accent like a newscaster the new definition of acting ?
Is this guy going to carry on believing he is great when his performances are so horrendous?
Do they really believe he’s great or are they just being supportive?
If being supportive, is this what he needs? Delusion instead of correction, a reality check?
i then remembered Simon Cowell, music producer that became a celebrity judge for his blunt and straight forward manner. Out of the three judges, Simon was the only one that seemed to be there to genuinely judge talent, and not make friends, or play Mr Rogers.
Despite being booed and disliked and displayed as Mr Mean, Simon’s opinion was the one that EVERYBODY waited to hear; the contestants, the studio audience and those at home because we all knew it was the TRUTH.
They won’t admit it, but The other judges would be evasive and try to play diplomatic, they’d comment and water down what they really should say, but not Simon. You knew if Simon gave a thumbs up, it was a sign of being on the right track, and not someone just being nice or win the affection of the crowd.
Ok, Simon can be really mean sometimes but he’s never patronizing, he’ll never lie to you,sugar coat the reality and delude you into thinking you are better than your current level of performance.
Come on, admit it, whether it’s American Idols, X Factor, Got Talent or Project Fame, you have tuned in to see some of the bloopers, maybe even more than the real talent; and you can’t believe your ears when someone that just sounded horrible , still believes they are the next big thing.
The truth is, no matter how passionate some people are about singing, acting, dancing or some other creative expressions, they can NEVER make it is as professionals: and If by some chance they get someone to actually pay them to do it, they would be poor, mediocre or average at best, and anyone with a discerning eye would wonder WHY are they given this platform.
i believe EVERY creative person needs a Simon , not a bunch of sycophants that see us heading towards the end of a creative cliff, but instead of telling us
“bro there’s a creative cliff ahead and you are heading straight for it”
“dude u need to slow down and re-direct”
“Nice effort but you need to raise the bar and challenge yourself more”
“It needs a page one re-write, it’s derivate, contrived and all the characters sound alike”
“Your voice needs a different type of song, this is out of your vocal range”
“Don’t get trapped in this booty shaking music, it may be the easy money, but your talents are much more”
“Nice effort, but you need to Re-Edit it, work on the sound, and next time hire a DP, the images are washed out, and it make you look like an amateur”
“Guy, it needs a little work, maybe take a closer look at the ….”
“Bruv, that was not great,i know you are capable of so much more”
Instead, they tell us to “floor it”, leaving us in our delusions.(i’ve been there, done work i felt unhappy and quite frankly depressed about).
Kind of like those contestants that do horribly on Naija Sings, but the people that comment from the audience cheer them on and tell them that they are great even after experienced panel of experts have said otherwise.
Imagine if early in their career Tiger Wood, Whitney Houston, Michael Jordan had people around them, that instead of making them work much harder, just cheered them on while their output actually sucked. Imagine if when Femi Kuti started, and had not quite mastered the sax,playing off key and making noise, Fela wanting to be “encouraging” told him, My son yo have arrived, go and lead the band. NO, he made his son practice hours and hours, letting him know he had to earn his place. Today Femi is one of the best in the world, and has made a name for himself.
Imagine a personal tutor that patronizes his student,telling him he is at genius level, and allows him to enter a national contest when he really isn’t good enough to even win a school contest, all for that student to go and fall on their face. Just because the teacher wanted to be “encouraging” and be seen as “cool”. Wont you see that teacher as wicked. Shouldn’t he have told the student the truth about where his abilities currently were?
We all need a pat on the back, every once in a while, but at the same time we need the truth a lot more as creatives. That is why writers have editors and publishers. That is why athletes have coaches. That’s why great singers have great producers that make them sing , and re sing, until they get it right, and produce that track we keep on repeat for days.
Cheering on a creative when they do bad, or sub-standard work (not suggesting negative bashing) is NOT support. You are actually diminishing any chance they have to improve, by keeping them satisfied in their mediocrity. You may think saying nice things is helpful or encouraging, but it actually stunts development and growth in most cases. Some even begin to believe the hype, and turn on the few that tell them the truth.
And like those contestants on those talents shows, some of them need to find something else to do with their lives , and you wonder why/how their family could allow them to be deluded this long. That’s certainly not love.
EVERY creative needs a Simon in their life(maybe not as mean, but REAL), who would let them know when they are doing beneath their potential(won’t sugar coat) when they need to step up their game , and to re-assess a certain approach.
If as a creative we surround ourselves with ONLY praise singers, who coo lies and delusion into our ears how different are we (Creatively) from corrupt politicians who have everyone in their inner circle telling them that they are doing excellently, and blind them from the reality the public/masses face?
STARTED FROM NOTHING – is a series of posts, dedicated to film makers(and movements) that without Bank loans,Studio finances, independently made films, some of which went on to be classics, but also became influential, not only in their country, but on Global cinema, and generations of film-makers directly inspired by them
Today Chris Nolan is known as the genius director that resurrected the Batman franchise, and the creator of cerebral thrillers like MOMENTO, and thinking man action INCEPTION. But he wasn’t always making billion dollar box office movies. He actually started VERY low key way back in London.
Most people think his first film to be MOMENTO, but it’s actually a low budget thriller called THE FOLLOWING. A film he shot over a period of a year , with little to no budget. The story in true Nolan style, is a non linear neo noir , with a protagonist, a writer who lacking inspiration, starts to follow strangers in hope of getting a great idea.
The story was inspired by a break in to Nolan’s own apartment which spiraled into the idea of a stranger watching you.
With no financing, the choice of shooting in Black&White not only fit the noir style, but was a way of cutting down the budget and hiding the fact that shots could take place months apart(often shooting one day a week,keeping that pace for a year)
Nolan write the script to accommodate his lack of budget and his friends shot on weekends over a period of a year using their own apartments, their friends, stealing some shots in public and also using restaurants.
“In black and white, it’s much more possible to hide some of your budgetary constraints,” Nolan said. “When you have absolutely no money and absolutely no resources, [trying] to achieve color cinematography is extremely difficult. [With black and white,] it’s much more possible to get some kind of level of style to the thing—quickly and easily throwing in some lights and shadow and going with that.”- Chris Nolan
The film toured the festival circuit, showed Nolan’s potential, and the rest as they say, is history. Nolan sparked enough interest to get financing for the impressive MOMENTO and today is Hollywood’s golden boy, who with two films alone (The Dark Knight+ Inception) cross the billion dollar mark in box office takes.
Not bad for someone who started from having no budget for his film, today, you have studios lining up to work with him.
Nolan is another inspirational Indie tale, and even as he makes billion dollar grossing movies, his voice is still clear in his output.
HUMAN TARGET is an action drama tv series based on a graphic novel from the DC comics stables , it ran for two seasons on Fox.
Christopher Chance is a unique private contractor, bodyguard and security expert hired to protect his clients. Rather than taking on the target’s identity himself (as in the comic book version), he protects his clients by completely integrating himself into their lives, to become a “human target”. Chance is accompanied by his business partner Winston (Chi McBride) and hired gun Guerrero (Jackie Earle Haley).{Culled from Wikipedia)
This is a scene from Season 1 Episode 1 and has to be one of my favorite character introductions.
Before this scene, Chance suggests to his business partner Winston, that they bring on Guerroro to assist with the case. Winston is reluctant , but we dont know why, and then we see this scene.
This scene says all that needs to be said about Guerroro , who he is and what he’s capable of doing. Lesser writing would have had another character describing him and giving some sort of spook story. From a few words, we establish this is not a man to be trifiled with, he has formidable skills both intellectually and malevolently.
As they say, in screenwriting, SHOW is better than TELL. If you want to audience to know how dangerous a character is , dont use another character to describe it, that has minimal effect, create a scene (not contrived or show horned) where he is in his element and we actually see him in display.
How we introduce a character makes a great impact on how the audience reacts to him and perceives him for the rest of the show/movie. A bad or weak introduction , and even if he turns out great, the impact may have been minimized already.
STARTED FROM NOTHING is blog series dedicated to the heros and icons of independent cinema. Those whose movies and stories of triumph over odds gave hope and affirmation to aspiring film makers, that they too could do it. Some of them went on to make some of the most renowned film of the last 30-40 years,some carved a niche and grew a following others simply became inspiration of others
Now there are many types of independent film makers these days, but those in this series are directors,producers that:
started their careers and made their first film with No Government Assistance, No Bank Loan, and No Studio Financing; but went on to fledging careers with, in some cases with both commercial and critical acclaim.
They either sold personal items, used credit cards , got money from family and friends or independently cut deals with financiers to get their first film made.
ROGER CORMAN
It’s impossible to talk about independent cinema, or indeed American Cinema, without talking about Roger Corman. He may not have started Indie Film, but he’s certainly one of the Godfathers or Dons of the movement.
Like many people in independent film, he did not study film. He was an engineering student , but soon realized like many creative people that it wasn’t for him. he graduated and went on to studied modern English Literature for a term and decided to become a screenwriter. He wrote his first script and sold it, but was horrified with the final result, he decided he wanted better, and set out to became a producer/director.
He hustled and put some capital together, and made his first two films as writer/director/producer Monster from the Ocean Floor(1954) and The Fast and The Furious(1955). The success of those two films he financed and directed on his own led a deal with American International Pictures(nee American Releasing) , he directed 53 films for them over the next 15 years.
With hundreds of movies to his credit, Corman is one of the most prolific producers the film medium has ever produced, and one of the most successful–in his nearly-six-decades in the business, only about a dozen of his films have failed to turn a profit. Corman has been dubbed “The King of the Cult Film” and “The Pope of Pop Cinema,” and his filmography is packed with hundreds of remarkably entertaining films, dozens of genuine cult classics.
TRIVIA: A running gag in Hollywood was that Corman could negotiate the production of a film on a pay phone, shoot the film in the booth, and finance it with the money in the change slot.
He has hundreds of films to his credit of varying degrees of quality,commercial success, critical acclaim and vision. Known as the King of B movies, his films aren’t exactly a benchmark for film-Making or production , making everything from High art to some say Trash, but he did it anyway.
If nothing else(those that dislike B movies), one remarkable thing about him is that :
“Corman has displayed an unrivaled eye for talent over the years–it could almost be said that it would be easier to name the top directors, actors, writers, creators in Hollywood who didn’t get their start with Corman than those who did. Among those he mentored are Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, Jack Nicholson, James Cameron, Robert De Niro, Peter Bogdanovich, Joe Dante and Sandra Bullock. His influence on modern American cinema is almost incalculable. In 2009, he was honored with an Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement.(Culled from IMDB)”
If anyone started from nothing , to become one of the most respected figures in American Cinema, acting as the catalyst for the career of many of American Cinema’s geniuses today, it’s Roger Corman
TRIVIA: At the 1974 Academy Awards nearly every major category featured wins or nominations by “Corman School” graduates–those whom Corman had either started in the business or mentored early in their career.
Is it me, or were there many Michael Corleone parrallels with Walter White?
– Mild mannered man, that goes into the crime world for the sake of family
– Grows his territory and soon fully transforms from greenhorn to mastermind
– The surgical planning and execution of 9 of Mike’s men in different prisons across the state within a two minute window, mirrored the execution of Barzini, Tataglia, Moe Green,Cumoe etc during the baptism
– What started as a selfless act to protect the family, turns into a megalomanic path, destroying every and anyone that gets in the way, including family, Fredo/Hank
-Protagonist looses the wife he loved because she hates and is frightened of the man he’s become
Or maybe Walter is a distant relative of Frank White and criminal genius is in the blood
Did the writers take direct inspiration from The Godfather, or these are just remarkable coincidences on the hero with a thousand faces?
Anyone else notice any similarities/parallels between Walter and Michael? Nwganu, film buffs and screenwriters, what y’all think?
So i’m on facebook the other day,and saw some chatter about Mother of George. Apparently it has won a cinematography award at Sundance. First, it didn’t sink in, until i decided to go to YouTube and check out the trailer again. Then i saw the delicious visual palette on display and i found myself watching it over and over again.
Then the realization. A Nigerian film, directed by a Nigerian , telling a Nigerian story won at Sundance, one of the worlds most respected film festivals. That’s quite an achievement.
Now, i really don’t know what that means for Nigerian film makers as a whole. For one thing it shows that we can make films at that level and of that mastery. It shows the world that we aren’t all defined by what is the popular way of film making that the world knows us for .
As Dosunmu is not based in Nigeria or a part of it’s popular industry , in not sure if that will make them think it’s a once in a blue moon event. But i do think it can inspire a lot of us to do better, same as “City of God” made us think WOW!! We can do this too.
I haven’t seen MoG, but from what i gather, it’s not a new story. It has been told hundreds of times by other home based directors, but like a friend of mine says, 5 directors can tell the same story, from the same script, what will distinct one from the other is the EXECUTION.
As the trailer has wet my appetite, i do hope the film it’s self will be satisfactory.
It really would be wonderful to see Dosunmu bring his visual flourish to the life and world of FELA, whose Biopic he has been selected to helm by Focus Features
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