Friday Inspiration for December 31, 2010 – The Chapel

// January 1st, 2011 // 1 Comment » // DSLR, HDR, Timelapse, Video

I’m getting this Friday inspiration in just under the wire… and not just getting it in by Friday, but by the end of the year!

THE CHAPEL is a remarkable short film I discovered today. It has things I love: Church architecture, time-lapse photography, excellent film making, and HDR video (!). This guy’s whole portfolio is amazing. More and more tools are being developed for film makers, especially in terms of tools that allow someone to move a camera smoothly. A number of these tools, as you can see in the video below, also allow a camera to move very very slowly, which makes for some really amazing time-lapse movies. As a side note, I’ll add that I love great typography, and you can tell just by looking at the thumbnails of the videos at lookycreative.com that type choices are important to this film maker. Watch the video below, with a bonus video after that…

TheChapel. A short film. (HDR timelapse) from Patryk Kizny on Vimeo.

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Friday Inspiration for October 15, 2010

// October 15th, 2010 // 5 Comments » // Inspiration, Video

It’s Not About the Tools!

Hello, dear readers.

I just saw this video on the Internets and had to share it. It only has a few views, but I can’t help but think this video is going to climb pretty fast. (more…)

Friday Inspiration for October 8, 2010

// October 8th, 2010 // No Comments » // Inspiration, Photography

Jean-François Rauzier’s Hyperphotos

A man in black stands alone amidst a beach comprised entirely of clocks, thousands and thousands of clocks.* (more…)

Friday Inspiration for October 1st, 2010

// October 1st, 2010 // No Comments » // DSLR, Inspiration

The Dark Side of the Lens

Images can sometimes take your breath away. This short film is a study not only on the beauty of water but also, thanks to the narration, on the drive of the creative spirit. Some people are artists through and through, and they simply must create. Though I think this piece is a little long (we get the point early on), it’s incredibly well-crafted, and well worth watching, whether you like surfing or not.

DARK SIDE OF THE LENS from Astray Films on Vimeo.

Friday Inspiration for Friday, Sept, 17, 2010

// September 17th, 2010 // No Comments » // Inspiration, Timelapse, Video

BACKWARDS!

My friends Rhett and Link came out with a new video this week. Their creativity and excellent execution never cease to amaze me.

This reminded me of some other “backwards” videos I’ve seen. Running things in reverse opens up a world of startling creative possibilities. (more…)

Friday Inspiration for September 3, 2010

// September 3rd, 2010 // 1 Comment » // Inspiration, Video

Roll Tide!

I started my Friday Inspiration posts when I realized I should share some of the videos I regularly share with my video team. If I see a unique, challenging, or particularly well done video, I like to spread the inspiration.

One of the things we often do in our video department is create promotional videos. We want to compel people to come to a special event or the next worship series. Some are meant to be emotive. Some are meant to make you think. Some touch on the mysterious. Some are funny. Some are epic.

Today’s inspiration is epic. Whether you’re an Alabama fan or not, this is really well done. The interplay of text, music, historic imagery, handheld footage, sunrise footage, and the coach and players all work perfectly to draw one in to be a part of something epic. It really works. Sure, Auburn fans will consider this film maker a modern day Leni Riefenstahl, but it’s awesome. (more…)

Friday Inspiration for August 13, 2010

// August 13th, 2010 // 4 Comments » // Inspiration

Duel!

You just gotta check this out…

Dancing Pigeons – Ritalin from Blink on Vimeo.

Now that’s different, huh? I’ve decided that I really like this video. I find it fascinating to watch, for a whole lot of reasons.

First, it’s beautifully shot, using a slow-motion Phantom camera at 1000 frames per second for the fire, 400 frames per second for the fire extinguisher. And apparently these aren’t just CG effects. It’s the real thing, shot at night, with a huge range of light that must have been a challenge to properly expose.

But technical issues aside, it’s a compelling little drama. There’s a broader story here that we don’t know about, but somehow, it’s come down to this duel. And all these little questions are raised and left unanswered. For instance, what’s better: A good offense or a strong defense? What do you use to put out the flames being shot your way? Is there any such thing as a winnable war anymore? What’s the old man doing in the pickup? Who is he? Would you rather freeze to death or burn to death? And, most importantly, where did they find these actors?

This short film is a gem, in my opinion. What are your thoughts?

Friday Inspiration for July 30, 2010

// July 30th, 2010 // 2 Comments » // Inspiration

Kseniya Simonova’s Sand Drawing

Today’s inspiration is a little bit different. I started doing the Friday Inspiration posts because I find myself sending links to my video team all the time, and figured others might be inspired, too. So they’re usually video-based art pieces. But today’s inspiration, though it’s a filmed piece, is of a sand artist. And it shows art at its most powerful, having the ability to create beauty and emotion and action. (more…)

Friday Inspiration for July 16th, 2010

// July 16th, 2010 // No Comments » // Inspiration, Motion Graphics

Next week, I’ll be in Malawi, Africa. So don’t hold your breath waiting for a Friday Inspiration, unless I  find a lion with a 3G tracking transmitter strapped around his neck that I can hack into.

For this week’s inspiration, I just found this today. Quite a little gem of animation here. A trip through film history, graphically representing 35 films in 2 minutes. See how many you can spot, and go to the creator’s vimeo page and read the comments to see what’s there. Distilling concepts and visuals down to simple shapes that give us immediate understanding is something I find fascinating. This is about as good as it gets.

35mm from Felix Meyer on Vimeo.

Friday Inspiration for July 9, 2010

// July 9th, 2010 // 1 Comment » // Inspiration

I almost forgot! It’s almost Saturday, and I haven’t posted my Friday inspiration yet! I’ve been on vacation this week (still am, as a matter of fact) with extremely limited internet connection, but now I’m back in a major metropolis to catch the flight home tomorrow. I’ve got some stuff I’ll be blogging about my trip, but first, my Friday Inspiration

Today’s inspiration is an oldie. And a classic. It won at the Cannes Film Festival in ’62 and got an Oscar in ’63 for short film. This video is longer than most of my inspiration posts (it’s 25 minutes) but it’s practically a self-contained film school. This short French film is based on An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge by Ambose Bierce. It was also shown on TV as an episode of The Twilight Zone. Why do I list this as a Friday Inspiration? Easy. It’s great. I love new techniques and tools. I love modern film making and effects. But this is simply good story telling, and I find it riveting.

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