We're now just a couple of days away from the filming of Mr Biffo's Found Footage: The Finale. We're deep into finishing the props, making an inventory of the hundreds of items we need to take with us, and breaking the shoot down into manageable chunks. The actors are learning their lines, and the crew are prepping.
As already stated, thanks to your generous support, we're setting our sights a little higher than the rest of the series.
In the way that Biffovision was a heady cocktail of all the TV shows I watched and loved as a kid, so the Finale will be a blend of influences - some profoundly silly, others less so. A lot of them come from the movies I watched as a teenager. Others from my post-pubescent fear of thermonuclear war, video games, and more recent world events.
Given that, for the most part, I'm approaching it instinctively,I thought it'd be an interesting exercise to see if I could identify the constituent parts that make up the Finale.
Reading this you might think we're making a multi-million dollar sci-fi movie - I wish - but it doesn't hurt to have lofty ambitions, even if we fall short. Which we will. But hopefully not catastrophically so.
As already stated, thanks to your generous support, we're setting our sights a little higher than the rest of the series.
In the way that Biffovision was a heady cocktail of all the TV shows I watched and loved as a kid, so the Finale will be a blend of influences - some profoundly silly, others less so. A lot of them come from the movies I watched as a teenager. Others from my post-pubescent fear of thermonuclear war, video games, and more recent world events.
Given that, for the most part, I'm approaching it instinctively,I thought it'd be an interesting exercise to see if I could identify the constituent parts that make up the Finale.
Reading this you might think we're making a multi-million dollar sci-fi movie - I wish - but it doesn't hurt to have lofty ambitions, even if we fall short. Which we will. But hopefully not catastrophically so.
TERMINATOR 2
I loved The Terminator, but there's one shot in particular in Terminator 2 that has always stuck with me (not the one above). Also, something for which James Cameron is never really given credit for is how he manages to imbue his movies with heart.
It might be manipulative, but it engages the audience, and gives them permission to become emotionally invested in the action. If you care about the characters, if you like them, you care more about what's happening on screen.
I've really enjoyed the short films Neil Blompkamp has been releasing on YouTube over the past month or so, but more from a technical point of view than through any real emotional engagement. Found Footage: The Finale (title TBC) might only be 20-30 minutes long, but I've tried to give each of the main characters a story, and give you a reason to care about them.
It might be manipulative, but it engages the audience, and gives them permission to become emotionally invested in the action. If you care about the characters, if you like them, you care more about what's happening on screen.
I've really enjoyed the short films Neil Blompkamp has been releasing on YouTube over the past month or so, but more from a technical point of view than through any real emotional engagement. Found Footage: The Finale (title TBC) might only be 20-30 minutes long, but I've tried to give each of the main characters a story, and give you a reason to care about them.
ALIENS
When you see the Finale, Aliens will be the most overt reference. I even had the movie playing - one scene in particular - when I was putting together the shot list yesterday. I kept pausing it so that I could ensure we "homage" the beats perfectly. There's no point pretending that it's anything other than what it is.
Also, then banter between the Colonial Marines made them feel like real people, and the little hints that the base on LV426 had - until recently - been populated by real people, made it feel real. Work places aren't sterile; we decorate our cubicles and desks, and try to personalise them. I want to try and capture some of that.
The more familiar the world is - either through the way the characters interact, or via little background hints - the more we'll relate to it, no matter how mad and bizarre the action gets. Hopefully.
Also, then banter between the Colonial Marines made them feel like real people, and the little hints that the base on LV426 had - until recently - been populated by real people, made it feel real. Work places aren't sterile; we decorate our cubicles and desks, and try to personalise them. I want to try and capture some of that.
The more familiar the world is - either through the way the characters interact, or via little background hints - the more we'll relate to it, no matter how mad and bizarre the action gets. Hopefully.
STAR WARS
People sometimes forget that sci-fi never felt real before Star Wars. Sci-fi technology was always clean and sterile, the paint still looked fresh.
For me, more than the story, more than the special effects, it was George Lucas' "used universe" which had the most impact on me. It was the way everything had a layer of grime, the glimpses of machinery in the back of the shot - which never drew attention to itself, but which made the world(s) feel grounded. The way that everything looked as if it had been patched together, and was in danger of breaking down at any moment.
For Found Footage: The Finale I've spent a small fortune on this stuff called "Dirty Down", which is a range of water soluble sprays and dyes made for film and TV, which allow you to cover the set and props in various types of muck - from oil to rust to dust - as well as things like tractor compressors, oscilloscopes, old portable TVs...
I was studying the behind-the-scenes video of The Last Jedi that was released last week, and was amused to see - in one shot - the exact same prop as one I'd just bought from eBay.
The other thing Star Wars did was to hint at backstory without feeling the need to go into massive detail. We all wanted to know about The Clone Wars, the fall of the Jedi, Jabba the Hutt...
For me, more than the story, more than the special effects, it was George Lucas' "used universe" which had the most impact on me. It was the way everything had a layer of grime, the glimpses of machinery in the back of the shot - which never drew attention to itself, but which made the world(s) feel grounded. The way that everything looked as if it had been patched together, and was in danger of breaking down at any moment.
For Found Footage: The Finale I've spent a small fortune on this stuff called "Dirty Down", which is a range of water soluble sprays and dyes made for film and TV, which allow you to cover the set and props in various types of muck - from oil to rust to dust - as well as things like tractor compressors, oscilloscopes, old portable TVs...
I was studying the behind-the-scenes video of The Last Jedi that was released last week, and was amused to see - in one shot - the exact same prop as one I'd just bought from eBay.
The other thing Star Wars did was to hint at backstory without feeling the need to go into massive detail. We all wanted to know about The Clone Wars, the fall of the Jedi, Jabba the Hutt...
OLD RUSSIAN SCI-FI MOVIES
My favourite sequence from last year's Digifest videos is the mash-up of old Soviet ads and sci-fi movies. They have a particular aesthetic, which I've never really seen in Western movies.
These days, our science fiction tends to be influenced by anime, but I want a look which feels different to all that, otherwise it all just blends into one amorphous morass. Most short sci-fi movies I've seen either try to look like Aliens or Halo. Just because our budget is small, I didn't want us to go the obvious route with the art direction.
I'll be mixing the Soviet feel in with my childhood obsession with the Cold War, and a trip I took with my dad to Chernobyl about ten years ago. Think a version of the Soviet Union where instead of Communism they have Capitalism. Imagine a Cold War fought between rival global mega corporations, which turns into a real conflict.
What's a corporation to do when most of its consumer base has been wiped out by thermonuclear war?
These days, our science fiction tends to be influenced by anime, but I want a look which feels different to all that, otherwise it all just blends into one amorphous morass. Most short sci-fi movies I've seen either try to look like Aliens or Halo. Just because our budget is small, I didn't want us to go the obvious route with the art direction.
I'll be mixing the Soviet feel in with my childhood obsession with the Cold War, and a trip I took with my dad to Chernobyl about ten years ago. Think a version of the Soviet Union where instead of Communism they have Capitalism. Imagine a Cold War fought between rival global mega corporations, which turns into a real conflict.
What's a corporation to do when most of its consumer base has been wiped out by thermonuclear war?
BLADE RUNNER
God knows what happened to Ridley Scott, but his early movies looked like nothing else.
Yes, the smokey, neon, backlit look has been ripped off endlessly, but what they did - by shrouding everything in shadows and smoke - somehow implied that the world (and budget) was bigger than it was. It was a look borne out of necessity, but it was profoundly effective.
Even now, you see the Blade Runner look in modern movies and video games.
Yes, the smokey, neon, backlit look has been ripped off endlessly, but what they did - by shrouding everything in shadows and smoke - somehow implied that the world (and budget) was bigger than it was. It was a look borne out of necessity, but it was profoundly effective.
Even now, you see the Blade Runner look in modern movies and video games.
ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK
One of my favourite movies ever. Our brilliant composer Christopher Jerden-Cooke has already worked up a version of the Found Footage theme, which sounds eerily like early John Carpenter mixed with Brad Fiedel and Vangelis - that will run over a big, expositional, Escape From New York-style opening animation. Also, Carpenter was another director who used shadows to hide the limits of his set and budget.
SPLIT
I hated M.Night Shyamalan's Split, as I have done most of his movies since The Village. I mean, what the hell happened with him? His movies are so weird... but not in a good way. There's at least one scene in Split which looks as if it has been lifted straight from Tommy Wiseau's The Room, and the rest of it felt like a dirty old man stockpiling b-roll footage for his wank bank.
However, there's a certain similarity between the setting of Split and our location, so I'm going to steal one shot in particular; perhaps the only thing I liked about Split.
However, there's a certain similarity between the setting of Split and our location, so I'm going to steal one shot in particular; perhaps the only thing I liked about Split.
BRAZIL
Pipes! Tubes! Wiring! That's mostly what I remember about Brazil - how the entire world seemed to be built on a foundation of pipes and tubing.
We're going to be dressing the set with a LOT of pipes and tubes next week. Also, that mix of sort of analogue, retro-futuristic technology. I hate the way every movie now has holographic screens and displays. I like my technology to be brutal and tactile. Big, chunky buttons, and flickering screens in 2:4 ratio with terrible resolution.
You know what else bugs me about all modern sci-fi? Helmets with lights in the face masks, shining right into the actors' eyes. I toyed with doing the same in Found Footage, but couldn't get over how it draws attention to fact that it wouldn't be practical in reality - it'd dazzle the wearer - and is simply a way to light the actors' face. Plus, every movie does it - which is a good reason not to.
We're going to be dressing the set with a LOT of pipes and tubes next week. Also, that mix of sort of analogue, retro-futuristic technology. I hate the way every movie now has holographic screens and displays. I like my technology to be brutal and tactile. Big, chunky buttons, and flickering screens in 2:4 ratio with terrible resolution.
You know what else bugs me about all modern sci-fi? Helmets with lights in the face masks, shining right into the actors' eyes. I toyed with doing the same in Found Footage, but couldn't get over how it draws attention to fact that it wouldn't be practical in reality - it'd dazzle the wearer - and is simply a way to light the actors' face. Plus, every movie does it - which is a good reason not to.
GEARS OF WAR
The over-the-shoulder run-and-gun camera angle is something I want to see if we can get in the Finale. It really puts the player - or viewer - in the heart of the action.
DAVID BOWIE'S BLACKSTAR
Aside from being a brilliant track, the video for David Bowie's Blackstar was creepy and mysterious and funny (hopefully intentionally so). It managed to offered unique, disturbing, images that were actually really simple - but compelling. I want me some of that.
DONALD TRUMP
When Trump was elected, lots of people were complaining about having a Nazi in the White House, and blah blah. It got me thinking, though, about how the way his business used his name and his image, and how similar it was to Nazi propaganda. As awful as the man is, something he knows about is the power of branding.
Indeed, the iconography of most big corporations and countries and organisations is often distilled down to a phrase or an icon - there's a direct parallel to be drawn between the Trump plastering his name on his planes and buildings, the Apple logo and the Swastika and the Hammer and Sickle, at least in terms of how a symbol can be worshipped by its followers.
That's where the Xenoxxx Industries logo came from: a corporate symbol that blurs the line between capitalism and extremism. Everything is branded.
Indeed, the iconography of most big corporations and countries and organisations is often distilled down to a phrase or an icon - there's a direct parallel to be drawn between the Trump plastering his name on his planes and buildings, the Apple logo and the Swastika and the Hammer and Sickle, at least in terms of how a symbol can be worshipped by its followers.
That's where the Xenoxxx Industries logo came from: a corporate symbol that blurs the line between capitalism and extremism. Everything is branded.
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