Bill Totolo: Director/DP

Bill Totolo - Director of Photography: Jake Owen

2011-11-29T15:58:00.000-08:00

Bill Totolo - Director of Photography: Sleeper Agent

2011-10-18T23:48:00.001-07:00

64th Festival de Cannes

2011-05-10T22:15:00.001-07:00

One of the perks of having your film screen at the Cannes Film Festival, receiving the official festival poster in your in-box, and I must say it's stunning. This photo of Faye Dunaway was taken by Jerry Schatzberg in 1970:

64th Festival de Cannes, a photo by BTinCA on Flickr.

"Deep Cover" going to Cannes.

2011-03-12T00:01:00.000-08:00

I'm very pleased to announce a short film I directed, "Deep Cover", will screen at the 64th Cannes Film Festival in the Court Metrage "Short Film Corner".

Bill Totolo: Director of Photography - Fantasia

2010-08-24T11:24:00.001-07:00

"Deep Cover" - Directed by Bill Totolo

2010-07-21T22:46:00.000-07:00

Deep Cover from Bill Totolo on Vimeo.

"Deep Cover" can be seen at the 64th Festival de Cannes
Transcoded with 5DtoRGB.

DUK Clothing line shoot

2010-06-21T20:55:00.001-07:00

Blair Combest - Lovely

2010-06-14T14:22:00.000-07:00

Bill Totolo Director/DP
© 2010, all rights reserved

First official footage transcoded with 5DtoRGB: http://rarevision.com/5dtorgb/

Blair Combest - Lovely from Bill Totolo on Vimeo.

Bill Totolo: Director of Photography - SLAYER

2010-06-10T11:44:00.001-07:00

Bill Totolo: Director of Photography - Katherine McPhee

2010-01-12T18:23:00.000-08:00

Bill Totolo: Director of Photography - Jack Penate

2009-12-14T21:02:00.001-08:00

Bill Totolo: Director of Photography - Boys Like Girls

2009-12-14T20:58:00.000-08:00

Bill Totolo: Director of Photography - Tegan & Sara

2009-11-04T17:57:00.001-08:00

Bill Totolo: Director of Photography - WEEZER

2009-11-03T01:54:00.000-08:00

Weezer

2009-10-26T02:09:00.000-07:00

This was supposed to be hush hush but it leaked from a cell phone photo.
Shot this on Friday:

SPINNER.COM

Totolo Photography - Fashion

2009-08-11T10:44:00.001-07:00

Holy crap, I'm in Vogue Magazine!

2009-06-17T00:46:00.001-07:00

A still frame from some video footage I shot wound up on the pages of Vogue Magazine! I was shooting behind the scenes coverage of Mario Testino's cover shoot of Cameron Diaz. I almost had a heart attack on the spot when I saw this.

Silver Sun Pickups - Bill Totolo Director of photography

2009-06-03T23:23:00.001-07:00

AOL Latino Musica - Dejando Huellas: Zoe

2009-05-12T01:13:00.000-07:00

Commercial: Bill Totolo DP

2009-04-01T01:03:00.000-07:00

Video Symphony commercial from Bill Totolo on Vimeo.

David Archuletta - Bill Totolo DP

2009-04-01T00:36:00.000-07:00

Neko Case - Bill Totolo DP

2009-03-31T23:32:00.001-07:00

Bill Totolo - Dir. of Photography

Lady Gaga Interview: Bill Totolo DP

2009-03-31T01:44:00.001-07:00

Video Symphony commercial

2009-03-24T02:09:00.000-07:00

Video Symphony

The Whiskey Saints - Tennessee

2009-03-24T02:06:00.000-07:00

Directed, Photographed, and Edited by Bill Totolo

The Whiskey Saints - Tennessee from Bill Totolo on Vimeo.

Lady Gaga: Bill Totolo DP

2009-03-24T02:04:00.000-07:00

LADY GAGA:

Random pics

2008-08-15T04:37:00.001-07:00

various gig photos

2008-07-03T03:52:00.001-07:00

More M7 Production stills.

2008-05-16T11:50:00.001-07:00

M7 Pilot

2008-05-13T23:23:00.000-07:00

Saturday May 10th, 2008

Production Journal

2008-04-29T23:38:00.000-07:00

The joys of shooting in the desert.

Production Journal

2008-04-16T08:07:00.000-07:00

Production Journal:

2008-03-13T13:04:00.001-07:00

Production Journal

2008-03-02T22:46:00.001-08:00

Feb 29th. Harsh condition in the desert. Subjected to sand storms and overcast skies, we managed to get only a few decent shots off. Here's one:

Homage to Nic Roeg

2008-02-22T21:04:00.000-08:00

Show Reel 2008

2008-02-20T22:38:00.000-08:00

Show reel from Bill Totolo on Vimeo.

Production Journal

2008-02-13T07:29:00.000-08:00

Screen grabs:

from vimeo

2007-12-11T08:22:00.001-08:00

Slow Motion from Fabian Mohr on Vimeo.

Plain White T's

2007-12-07T23:59:00.000-08:00

Interview and performance shot at Hollywood Records on the Disney Lot in Burbank.
I shot this for E!'s "Daily 10" with our newest field correspondent, Michael Yo.
Great guys.

click

2007-11-29T00:32:00.001-08:00

Redlight Drive

2007-11-24T02:04:00.001-08:00

Production Journal

2007-11-16T19:51:00.001-08:00

Music Video: Redlight Drive November 15, 2007

Production Journal - Alpha Sonic

2007-10-27T21:25:00.000-07:00

Alpha Sonic, Inc. contributes to its first national TV commercial:

Production Journal - Alpha Sonic

2007-10-22T05:50:00.000-07:00

Press junkets for MTV. Movies included "Hotel California" and "Lake Dead". I had to run camera, audio, and lighting (aka a "one man band").

Production Journal

2007-10-09T08:00:00.001-07:00

Petra Nemcova appears on "On-Air with Ryan Seacrest.

They pay me for this.

More guests:

Kim Kardashian:

Nicole Sherzinger:

Amanda Bynes:

Fergie:

Sabrina Bryan:

We occasionally have male guests too:

The Rock:

Anderson Cooper:

Quentin Tarantino:

Lance Bass:

Recent Shoots:

2007-09-27T02:00:00.000-07:00

9-26-07
Adrianna Costa interviews guests at US Weekly's Hot Hollywood 2007.

Recent Shoots:

2007-09-25T23:29:00.000-07:00

9-23-07
THS Investigates: Fad Diets. Nwenna Kai, owner of "Taste of the Goddess Cafe" interview.

9-24-07
Daily 10; "Dexter" set visit, Sunset Gower studios. Debbie Matenopoulis interviews Michael C. Hall, Julie Benz and Jennifer Carpenter.

9-25-07
"Heroes" set visit, off site location. Catt Saddler interviews Milo Ventimiglia.

9-15-07
Ben Lyons interviews Ian Ziering and Jason Priestley at Warner Ranch.

Typical Day:

2007-09-22T03:35:00.001-07:00

Recent Shoots:

2007-09-18T07:46:00.001-07:00

9-6-07
25 Acts of Love Gone Wrong featuring Kerri Kasem and Judge David Young

9-15-07
"Entertainment Weekly" pre Emmy party. Mayhem.

9-17-07
Ben Lyons interviews Ian Ziering and Jason Priestly at The Warner Ranch.
Fun guys all around.

My 1st plastic surgery shoot

2007-09-05T01:00:00.001-07:00

I got an assignment to shoot one of the Dr's in the same suite as Dr. Rey of Dr. 90201.

It was a good introduction for me as it was a very quick and easy procedure. I shot a woman getting a saline implant inserted into her upper and lower lips. It's a new procedure and took less than an hour.

The procedure itself was pretty straight forward and mercifully free of blood. *For those with week stomachs do not read on.*

Actually it wasn't bad but I don't want to offend anyone.

The Dr. began with a local anesthetic. Once the woman's face was numb he opened a path into her lip with a scalpel and proceeded to insert a pair of scissors and cut a tunnel through her lip. Once the canal was created he was able to insert the saline implant and inflate it to a predetermined size, kind of like a sleep number mattress.

It was pretty surreal and I was grateful to have a b/w viewfinder to help remove me from the procedure. But you do have to keep peaking with your other eye to get a sense of what's going on.

The biggest challenge was exposure. Once they swing in that intense surgery light you either expose for the Dr. and let the patient go nuclear or expose for the patient and let the room go dark. I had to dial in ND just to shoot around F8.

It was a first for the producer and myself and we kept checking in with each other to make sure we were ok. My audio guy was a season regular on Dr. 9 so this was a walk in the park for him.

My hats off to all you surgery shooters.

Recent Shoots

2007-08-31T07:03:00.001-07:00

Chelsea Handler photo shoot for OKAY! Magazine at the Angelino Hotel restaurant.

Low End Theory at The Airliner featuring Daddy Kev, D-Styles, Nobody, Gas Lamp Killer, Jel, NoCanDo, House Shoes, Edit, Mear One, B+ (Brian Cross), Omid, R.A.W., Sam I Yam, Adamatic, Muhsinah, Exile, etc...

Recent shoots

2007-08-06T00:37:00.000-07:00

Legendary Hugh Masekela performing at The Skirball.

Rainn Wilson's Nike commercial feat. The Women's Cup athlete's and a bunch of miniature ponies.

Denise Richards and Scott Caan on the set of "Deep in the Valley".

Janelle Parish and the "Bratz" movie premiere.

R.I.P. George McCorkle

2007-08-01T18:32:00.001-07:00

On June 29th, 2007 we lost a founding member of the Marshall Tucker Band.

George wrote one of their most famous song's: "Fire on the Mountain".

I share a connection with Mr. McCorkle as a proud owner of one of his signature Les Pauls: no.22 of 100.

The legend and his guitar:

Recent Shoots

2007-07-22T01:56:00.000-07:00

Press junket for "Hot Rod" at the Four seasons in Beverly Hills. 6am call, 7am shoot, 12:00 wrap.

Funny thing, as we were loading the gear into the van, (lights, camera, etc.) an attractive brunette in a black SUV asked if we were with E!. We were obviously a little busy but she persisted.

She was looking for a crew and wanted to know if we were available, I said I didn't have a card, asked the rest of the crew if they could help her but everyone was preoccupied.

Turned out it was Elizabeth Berkley : 0

Sorry Liz, we were very tired and I'm a moron.

New logo design

2007-07-22T01:48:00.001-07:00

Feature Film Update 5

2007-07-16T06:32:00.001-07:00

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. That apology goes to both people reading this blog.

I think I've come to the painful decision to move my production from Louisiana to Los Angeles. The decision is based on the logistical difficulties built into shooting 3,000 miles from home. I would love more than anything to shoot in the state of Louisiana but the cast just isn't coming together.

In other news, my production company, Alpha Sonic, is up and running. I've booked a music video for a two time Grammy award WINNING artist next month. I'd love to tell you who it is but I'll reserve that teaser for the director to drop. Why should I have all the fun?

Alpha Sonic will be making its first camera purchase today so if you would like to rent me and my Panasonic HVX200 send me an e-mail!

Rent this movie:

2007-06-16T03:25:00.001-07:00

Pixote

Paris Hilton coverage

2007-06-11T07:04:00.000-07:00

I had four Paris Hilton related shoots between Thursday and Friday which involved three trips to the couthouse.

What really surprised me, among the 34 phone calls I received from the network that day, was the call informing me that we were doing a live broadcast, which obviously involved satellite time, a sat truck, engineers, cable etc.

To say it was nutty would be a gross understatement.

Got the live shot though and three segments at the top of Friday's E! News.

Index cards

2007-06-06T16:48:00.000-07:00

Old as time itself, breaking your film out to it's key components and laid out on index cards.

Well there it is, naked, stripped to its bare essence for all to see. My film.

Hard to read, text a little unclear? Well duh, I didn't want to give the whole thing away ; )

Feature film update #4

2007-06-06T10:31:00.000-07:00

alpha-sonic is the name of my newly formed production company. Alpha, as in 1st and sonic, as in sound. The first project, in fact three projects, that alpha-sonic will work on are music videos.

The company is also set up to shoot the feature that I hope to get off the ground this year.

About that feature, cast is trickling in. Contacting some local casting agencies in the lower south helped a bit.

Script continues to evolve through polish.

Cameras have been serviced already. Can you believe that? Both Bjorn in Sweden and Bernie in Maine have finished servicing my Beaulieu's and and I hope to receive them in the next week or so to begin tests. Bjorn has the Pro8 and Bernie has the R16. I just dropped off my Nikon R10 for a clean, lube adjust at Spectra in North Hollywood.

So that's all this time around, not much to report. Hope you all are doing well.

Peace,

Bill

Film and format tests-

2007-05-27T15:01:00.000-07:00

Fuji 64D Test

kodak 200T Test

Kodak Plus-X Test

Feature Film update #3

2007-05-23T01:14:00.000-07:00

"What's going on?" is the question on everybody's minds it seems. Well, not a whole lot as it turns out.

The major stumbling block right now is casting. I'm used to putting out an open casting call in L.A. (that's Los Angeles) and receiving about 1,000 submissions PER character.

So far, after about 6 weeks of casting calls in LA (that's Louisiana) I've received a whopping total of about 2 dozen submissions. Total. That's it...

So..."what now?" Exactly. Do I bring in key cast members from L.A., do I shoot in L.A.? Based on the photos posted below, no, I don't want to shoot in L.A. I want to put my film in Louisiana.

So now I've put out a call for casting directors and/or casting asst's in Louisiana. Importing Los Angeles actors into Louisiana sounds expensive to me. It would give me the luxury of rehearsals though.

Okay, for all you gear heads. I'm still testing Super 8 cameras. I just got my Nizo 481 back from a clean, lube, adjust at Spectra in N. Hollywood and ran a roll of tri-x through it. Man this camera is quiet! And compact. A real marvel of German engineering. I'm looking forward to seeing the results. I played with the time lapse feature a little as well as frame rates and shutter angles.

I shipped off a Beaulieu 7008 Pro8mm camera to Bjorn Andersson in Sweden. I think he's the last factory trained service repair man in the world. I believe he bought the inventory of Beaulieu parts in Sweden before they closed shop. So if you've got a Beaulieu, he's the guy to send it to. The camera came with the difficult to find Canon FD to C adapter. Now I can mount all my canon primes on this camera or the 16mm camera I picked up.

I shipped a Beaulieu R16 automatic off to Bernie O'Derhty @ Super16, Inc. He's in the middle of a move so it may take a little while to get that one back. This camera has some interesting geography connected to it. I bought it on ebay from a guy in Oregon selling it for the owner who used it in Honduras. It's a French camera that I shipped to Maine for repairs and the parts I bought came from Israel. It's like that traveling gnome commercial-

I'm still seriously considering the Panasonic HVX200. Everything I see online is beautiful. I need to get my hands on it. A friend at work asked me to shoot a short for him, if it pans out we'll borrow an HVX from one of the camera op's in our news dept.

What else, the edit system is due for an update before or soon after production. I'd like to update to a hi-def system which means more $$ out the window.

I rented another room in my apt. and turned it into an edit bay which has been a great convenience. The writing has gone well, the reading is going very well. Breaking down the script has been a boost to my confidence. I just really need a cast. So if you can help, leave me a message.

Jefferson Parish and 9th Ward, Louisiana

2007-05-22T11:25:00.001-07:00

Viper Room, Sunset Blvd.

2007-05-16T01:28:00.000-07:00

Storm Large & the Balls.

If music be the food of love, play on...

2007-05-04T22:46:00.000-07:00

Just some random thoughts on romance:

Romantic comedy has ALWAYS been my favorite genre, and maybe that's because it really is the most difficult to pull off. The conventions are so obvious that only a half dozen films in the last 50 years have really, really nailed it with conviction. Seriously, I can count about 10 great romantic comedies... ever. Maybe that's the mystique? I dunno.

To be good in this genre isn't enough, you gotta be great. You gotta be smart, and you have to respect the audience. We go to have our emotions manipulated, that's the pact, but under the agreement that you won't placate or pander to us for a cheap thrill.

It's the toughest genre because no one is going to fall for false emotions up there. It's gotta be real and surpising and revealing and it has to speak to ME. That's ME up there.

That's just my humble opinion, thanks for letting me share.

Bill

ps- What do I know?

Feature Film Blog #2

2007-04-28T00:21:00.001-07:00

Okay- I owe you some updates. Since last I blogged I met with a Detective from LAPD's Major Crimes Division, then with a Detective who was in LAPD's elite RHD: Homicide Special and was featured in the book: "Homicide Special" written by Miles Corwin.

I attended Locations Expo at the Santa Monica Civic Center and met with rep's from New Orleans Gateway: Jefferson Convention & Visitors Bureau, Inc. which was followed up by an introduction by Greg Giannakis, a friend from my hometown whose help I've enlisted on this project, to the Communications office of Tourism: Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism.

I submitted an ad on Craigslist: New Orleans for actors and an ad in Mandy.com for a producer here in L.A. I rented a PO Box in hopes of receiving an avalanche of headshots. So far nothing has come in except by e-mail. Hopefully some photos start coming in soon.

The meetings with the detectives was worth this whole extravaganza in itself. They are genuine men, devoted to what they do. As the homicide detective put it, it's not for him to judge the victims, even if they have a wrap sheet longer than both his arms. His job is to provide a voice for these people by solving their murder. Both interviews ran the gamut of emotions from personal to revealing, sad, and at times extremely funny. It's a job and a lifestyle.

Speaking with the Major Crimes detective who also worked in drug enforcement was almost hypnotic. By the end of the interview I wanted to be a cop. It's kind of like the movie "Goodfella's" while being on the right side of the law. When asked what his favorite film was he replied: "Electra Glide in Blue". Good answer.

I still haven't decided fully on which format I intend to shoot this whole thing on.
I'm testing Super 8 film-

So far I've tested Kodak stocks: 200D Color Neg with my newly acquired Sankyo XL40s which once belonged to Augustus Coppola, Francis Ford Coppola's brother and Nicholas Cage's father.

I shot 50' of 64D Color Reversal through my Nikon R10. Both processed at Spectra in North Hollywood.

I also ran some Plus-X that's been in my fridge a couple years through my Nikon. This was processed at Pro8mm in Burbank. I'm sending them to Canada to be transferred by Justin Lovell of frame discreet.

I bought a Beaulieu 16mm camera from ebay. It was DOA as expected. It's packed and going out to Super16, Inc. of Maine in the morning for an overhaul. The camera came with a C-Mount Ang. 12-120. Not the greatest lens ever.

I'm hoping to locate a C-mount to FD adapter so I can test my Canon lenses. I just scored a 50MM Canon FD 1.4 SSC coated lens on ebay for $45.00! These magnificent lenses are going to have a resurgence as everyone begins mounting them on their Panasonic HVX200's via Redrock M2 or Brevis35 adapters. Trust me. Get your glass now before it goes back up. As it is you can grab these still lenses dirt cheap.

I have a Nizo 481 on delivery from Germany. A great Super 8 camera that does time-lapse. I also grabbed an inexpensive lightweight steadi-rig. Nothing fancy, just a rig some guy on the internet makes in his kitchen.

I located an F2.0 25mm Super Baltar! I love the look of these lenses. Gordon Willis used them on "Godfather" (another Coppola connection, hmm). They've been kind of retired for a while. The one I found doesn't have a mount. It might be worth it to have it mounted and collimated for Super16. What a cool lens to add to the collection. Vincent Gallo had a set mounted to his S16 Aaton XTR Prod for the film "The Brown Bunny". The film looked great and was mostly lit with natural light sources and a small kit that fit in the back of a van with the crew and a motorcycle that was in the film. Wish me luck on my bidding.

I continue to refine the script getting new ideas from listening to music for the film. It's great to have this time to think of the music and the visuals. I'm also thinking a lot about sound design. Of course I'll hire an audio dept. but I'm considering purchasing a Zoom H4 field recorder to capture nat. sound on location. I'd love to wander about just listening to the environment, absorbing the ambience. I can save these as wav. files and have them mixed later.

And to be honest, I've spent countless hours glued to YouTube, just admiring all the "amateur" work out there that inspires me more than what the "professionals" are making lately. That's not a knock on anybody. I'm just really buying into the whole user generated media concept right now.

Of course I'm doing this as my job is in potential transition. I was approached to shoot AND cut FOUR breaking news stories a day for our online presence. It sounds like fun and a great opportunity but it'll be major pressure to make delivery with 4 "DAY OF AIR" deadlines. Hard enough for an experienced editor, harder for someone who edits his own material with no deadlines (me). The camera side of it is a cinch, it's the edit that will be intense, so we'll see if that pans out.

For excitement we had Quentin Tarantino appear in the guest seat last week. I got to introduce myself and chat with the master for a few minutes. It was a really inspirational moment for me. Quentin was gracious, engaging and totally self deprecating. I got to compliment him on his camera work on "Deathproof" and he seemed truly grateful. We had Dr. Phil in today.

I guess that's it for now. The last movie I watched was "Das boot". Excellent stuff. Shows what you can do in one location. "Great Expectations" (1946) is on deck.

Looking forward to UCLA's Festival of Books tomorrow. I hope to see Kirk Douglas, Joseph Wambaugh, James Elroy, Mitch Albom, Frank McCourt, and Andy Summers (yes, that Andy Summers).

Feature Film Blog

2007-03-31T00:24:00.001-07:00

Okay-

As I'm embarking on a feature film I may as well begin journaling the trials and tribulations, the highs and the lows as I go. It might amuse some of you, serve as a warning to one or two of you who consider yourselves filmmakers or it just may be something I can look back on in a few years to cry over.

Here are the basics:

I've been in this town 9 1/2 years. I've allowed myself 10 to make a film and I'm quickly approaching that tipping point. I'm following Dov S-S Simmons' model in his book "Reel to Deal" of writing and shooting what essentially amounts to a dressed up stage play. This is what you do with very little money. And that's what we're talking about here... my life's savings. I'm not a trust fund baby and I'm not in real estate so every penny I have is very precious.

Those of you who know me may have heard me use the statement by Orson Welles: "The enemy of art is the absence of limitation". Think about it, what better mantra for the independent filmmaker? My other mantra that's going to get me through this is "turn your weaknesses into strengths". And seeing as I have plenty of those I should be fine.

My film is titled after the main character, "Revel Owens". This is my third feature screenplay. My second broke the top ten on Kevin Spacey's screenwriting website: www.TriggerStreet.com, I've spent 14 months and about 40 drafts on this latest project. It's very simple and only 73 pages long. I want to make an impression and leave the audience thinking.

The films I compare "Revel Owens" to are: Lars von Trier's "Dancer in the Dark"; Ingmar Bergman's "The Virgin Spring"; and David Lynch's "Blue Velvet".

It's a dark film. The train of thought that sent me down this road is: I'm a little Indy filmmaker, how do I make an impression, how can I seperate myself from all the other talented filmmaker's out there struggling for attention? Are there any taboos left to explore? Sex, violence, religion, family, politics...it's all been done. Is there anything I can do to polarize the audience, to get them talking? I thought if I could get them to sympathize with the plight of my hero but despise his actions I would have a pretty good shot. They say character is revealed by one's actions under pressure. So here is what we have at the very core of the film:

Revel Owens, a devoted family man with a hearing impaired daughter, is kidnapped by Casper Deeds, a redneck who just brutally murdered two lovers in bed. In the process of being kidnapped Revel's daughter is critically wounded and must fight for her life. Revel, in turn, fights to suppress a hidden side of himself but when Casper plans to shoot and burn his body a primal urge surfaces that no one will see coming.

Today I spoke with a detective from the Los Angeles Police Department- Major Crimes Division. I have a meeting set up with him on Tuesday, April 4th (at an undisclosed location), *that was fun to write*. I'm hoping to get some insight into 'Detective' behavior. I've had a few friends on the police force over the years. What many people don't realize is how funny people in law enforcement can be. It's a kind of defense mechanism. I'm hoping to discover some traits like this from this detective, who, by the way, was a genuinely nice guy over the phone.

How I met the detective is an L.A. story in itself. The short story is someone called a bomb threat into the building I work in via the internet. They took it seriously enough to call the LAPD and clear the building. Our head of security knows about my plans to shoot a film and pitched my story to one of the detectives. The rest is history. Funny.

Other recent developments:

I wrote this film for Los Angeles, a friend suggested Louisiana. The damage inflicted upon the 9th Ward and Jefferson Parish would undoubtedly enrich the subtext of the film. Logistically it's a nightmare. I need time to location scout, to cast the film and rehearse actors. I'm a staff employee, I need more time and more money and some key personelle in the area. I'm concerned about the lawless behavior reported down there and the rats in the 9th Ward that come out at night.

But... I just learned a very close friend and her boyfriend and their roommate are moving to Louisiana. The guys are Louisiana native's and they work in the business. One is a camera operator, the other an editor. We met, discussed the project and now, well, Louisiana may still be an option. 'Locations Expo' is at the Santa Monica Civic Center next month. I'll get the opportunity to speak with the Louisiana Film Commission and see what they have to say about my plan.

I guess that's enough blogging for now. I'll keep you up to date as we go on this little adventure together.

Wish me luck, I'm going to need it.

Bill

SAD ENDINGS

2007-03-22T11:19:00.001-07:00

The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce announcing that the annual Hollywood Christmas Parade has been canceled after 75 years, due to rising costs and loss in revenue.

````````````````````````````````````````````````````

R.I.P.: Calvert DeForest, best known to many TV viewers as Larry "Bud" Melman, died Monday at 85 at Good Samaritan Hospital in Babylon, N.Y., after a long illness.

Welcome to beautiful MAR VISTA!!

2007-03-08T19:45:00.000-08:00

I felt inspired to create a little photo essay on one of my nightly walks. What better topic than my adopted home town?

Latin Singer Soraya (March 11, 1969 – May 10, 2006) Succumbs to Cancer at 37

2007-02-12T00:58:00.000-08:00

BanderasNews.com
Leila Cobo - Billboard

The Latin Grammy winning Colombian-born singer and songwriter, Soraya, died in a Miami-area hospital on Wednesday after a long battle with breast cancer, her manager said. (Reuters)
Colombian-born singer/songwriter Soraya, one of the first artists to write and record in both English and Spanish, has died after a battle with breast cancer, sources said. She was 37.

Although details were not clear, published reports and sources say the Latin Grammy winner died Wednesday morning in Florida.

Soraya, whose mother, aunt and grandmother died of breast cancer, was diagnosed with stage three of the disease in June 2000. She successfully underwent treatment, but sources say she relapsed at the beginning of the year.

A soulful singer whose music ranged from romanticism to social conscience, Soraya won the first ever Latin Grammy for best singer/songwriter album with her self-titled 2003 release. She released her last album in 2005.

Raised in the United States, she launched a promising career in the late 1990s by mixing Spanish and English. A charismatic performer, from the onset, she was able to open concerts for the likes of Sting even as her songs topped the Billboard Latin Pop airplay charts. Soraya went on to become one of the most acclaimed female voices in Latin pop and rock.

This week, she posted a goodbye letter to fans on her Web site. "I know there are many questions without answers, and that hope doesn't leave with me, and above all, that my mission does not end with my physical story," she wrote.

A public memorial service will take place at 6:30 p.m. EST on Friday at Unity on the Bay in Miami. Donations may be made in Soraya's name to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

Las Vegas

2007-02-11T18:30:00.000-08:00

Feb 9th - 11th, 2007.

Billy Vera & The Beaters

2007-02-05T11:00:00.000-08:00

I just saw Billy Vera and the Beaters at Cozy's over the weekend. You may not expect it but this was one of the best shows I've ever seen.

Billy has a 9 piece band that includes a 4 piece horn section. In addition to a few of his classics ("At This Moment" and a trio of ballads from the "Blind Date" score) The Beaters take you on a musical journey through every conceivable movement in blues and brass from the 20th century.

If you know me, you know I go out of my way to see a lot of live performances. Believe me, this is not to be missed. And bring a date along if you can, it rocks but at times it's down-right romantic.

They're performing again very soon and very close by. Don't let this little L.A. gem get by you:

Billy Vera

March, 10 2007 at Rusty's Surf Ranch
256 Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica, California 90401
Cost : $10

Details: 310-393-PIER

Robert C. Totolo

2007-01-27T19:59:00.000-08:00

In Loving Memory

16 Nov 1934 - 27 Jan 2007

And I shall hear, tho' soft you tread above me
And all my dreams will warm and sweeter be
If you'll not fail to tell me that you love me
I'll simply sleep in peace until you come to me.

Winter NAMM 2007

2007-01-22T22:24:00.000-08:00

Gary Hoey, a true gentleman, generous musician and all around good guy.

To our Mexican brothers in Filmmaking:

2007-01-16T01:05:00.000-08:00

As celebrated as the film of the year so far on this blog on November 11th, 2006, spanning 3 continents and 5 languages with a crew of 1,200:

"Babel".

As Alejandro said in his acceptance speech "...emotion needs no translation."

Directed by Mexican filmmaker Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu; written by Mexican screenwriter, novelist and professor Guillermo Arriaga; Cinematography by Mexican DP Rodrigo Prieto; Edited by Douglas Crise and Stephen Mirrione; Original Music by Gustavo Santaolalla.

What I think is of note is this quiet movement that is going on. It seems to me the drama coming out of Mexico right now is among the very best and consistent in the world.

Look at the great films of THIS year alone:

"Babel" - Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
"Children of Men" - Alfonso Cuaron
"Pan's Labyrinth" - Guillermo del Toro
and worth noting
"Volver" by legendary Spanish director Pedro Almodovar.

Recall some of the past work of these Mexican directors:

Inarritu: "Amores perros"; BMW films: "Powder Keg"; "21 Grams"
Cuaron: "Great Expectations"; "Y tu mama tambien"; "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban"
del Toro: "Cronos"; "Mimic"; "The Devil's Backbone"; "Blade II"; "Hellboy"

From a country whose peoples cross the border at great personal sacrifice and loss of life for unforeseen perils and the promise of opportunity. Do these directors embody the spirit of their people, that we as a nation possessed ourselves a mere 100 years ago, that created a foundation of legendary achievement, a time when we were creating ourselves out of great turmoil and pain?

It has been said that "300 hundred years of peace in Switzerland produced the cuckoo clock, and the 30 year war produced the Renaissance". In that regard expect more product in the vein of "Night at the Museum." I am not putting that film down. It's been #1 at the box office for 5 weeks in a row and obviously what the public is demanding in this country. Something safe enough to bring our sheltered children to, to watch alongside our friends and family members, that whispers the promise that it will not offend, disturb or rattle our delicate sensitivities. Who wants that when everything is so PERFECT in the world?

Here's what some of our foreign counterparts produced this year:

"The Queen"; "Venus"; "Joyeux Noel"; "Tsotsi"; "Volver"; "Curse of the Golden Flower"; and the above mentioned Mexican films.

Sure we've had some good films this year from the venerable Clint Eastwood (2), Mel Gibson (ahem), Robert de Niro, Scorcese, Edward Zwick, and Marc Foster, to name a few. But we all know, people vote with their wallets, so let's see what the highest grossing films are for 2006.

No surprises hear:

1) Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead man's Chest
2) Cars
3) X-Men: The Last Stand
4) The Da Vinci Code
5) Superman Returns

So far in the top 5 we have 2 movies based on comic books, a movie based on a RIDE at Disneyland, a film about talking cars and a best selling novel pretending to be about the true nature of Mary Magdeline and the cover up surrounding it.

Escapism, fantasy, make believe? No political statements here. The only statement that can be gleamed from this is "we're very happy to have our heads buried in the sand. Please continue to destroy our planet while we turn to look the other way". That may be just my interpretation, though. Don't mind me.

Let's continue:

6) Ice Age: The Meltdown
7) Night at the Museum
8) Happy Feet
9) Casino Royale
10) Over the Hedge

Much more optimistic here, right? Now were into films aimed entirely at preschoolers and toddlers (minus the Bond film, which I admittedly enjoyed).

Care to see the next 5?

11) Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
12) The Pursuit of Happyness
13) Click
14) Mission Impossible III
15) Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

I'm pleased with number 12, "The Pursuit of Happyness". A nice holiday film about a poor slob who picks himself up in order to provide a better life for his family. A film about the American Dream directed by a true American: Italian director Gabriele Muccino, who until this film has only directed films in his native country.

I guess my message is painfully obvious. I'm of the minority of idealistic naivetes who look at film as art, not commerce, and not always mere entertainment.

Why should I think a film can change people's attitudes? How can I believe a simple film can change the course of world events? Dream on. That is unless you include the vilified film,"Triumph of the Will". Commissioned to depict honor, peace, spirituality, unification, rebirth, purpose, belief and cooperation. A film that unified a disparate nation of people spread across the globe, that brought the nazi regime to power and- well you know the rest. Its producer, by the way, was a first timer who misunderstood the power of film and the power of the artist as someone who COULD influence and shape opinions, Adolph something-or-other.

With great TALENT comes great responsibility.

What is the public telling us? Why are these films being celebrated with the only award that really matters, success?

(Follow the money trail).

WHO CONTROLS THE MEDIA? Why are almost ALL NEWS and COMMUNICATION outlets UNIFIED under one banner? These are questions for artists. This is what we are charged with.

Let's celebrate our Mexican brothers tonight for reminding us about the power of cinema, of great drama and, as Inarritu stated in his acceptance speech, "...emotion needs no translation."

"Babel", Best Motion Picture as nominated by the foreign press. Well done.

Golden Globe: Best Motion Picture - Drama

2007-01-15T23:09:00.000-08:00

As predicted on this blog on November 11th, 2006:

"Babel".

Directed by Mexican filmmaker Alejandro Gonzalez Inaaitu; written by Mexican screenwiter, novelist and professor Guillermo Arriaga; Cinematography by Mexican DP Ridrigo Prito; Edited by Douglas Crise and Stephen Mirrione; Original Music by Gustavo Santaolalla.

Spanning 3 continents and 5 languages, a crew of 1,200. As Alejandro said in his acceptance speech "...emotion needs no translation."

Production Journal 11/19/06

2006-11-19T18:00:00.001-08:00

Press Junket: Wilmer Valderrama, Lewis Black and Tobey Maguire- Century Plaza Hotel

Production journal 11/18/06

2006-11-19T18:00:00.000-08:00

Debbie Matanopoulis interviews Carol Burnett, Jaime Presley and Kool & the Gang at the
Beverly Hilton Hotel

Film of the Year, so far:

2006-11-11T00:58:00.000-08:00

Composite of this year's shoots:

2006-11-05T17:05:00.000-08:00

Creative Emmy Awards

2006-11-01T15:54:00.000-08:00

More shoots

2006-11-01T15:18:00.001-08:00

CSI 100th espisode party, Malibu

Recent Shoots

2006-11-01T14:51:00.000-08:00

Mercedes Benz/Carousel of Hope at Beverly Hills Hilton:

DJ Shadow Concert Video

2006-10-19T16:55:00.000-07:00

Two days in Manhattan's Village, at one of my favorite clubs, Webster Hall. We captured two nights of performances by the inimitable DJ Shadow. We covered the shoot with three Hi-Def cameras in the Hall, a small HD camera with a fish-eye lens on stage and a miniDV camera behind the scenes. Although we managed to get Shadow backstage with the HD cameras as well.

With these cameras we were able to shoot multiple frame rates so we shot in the style of the movie "Tokyo Olympiad (1964)" with a lot of Slow Mo, and the physical movements of the performers abstracted from reality to study behaviour in an attempt to reveal character and emotion.

A great shoot directed by one of the most talented and passionate filmmakers I know, Dean Fernando. Produced by Jeff Bell. Photographed by Michael Nash and Myself. I don't know all the P.A.'s by their full names but there was Zach, E.J. and Jimmy Jones.

Special appearance by Lateef the Truthspeaker.

UCLA Lecture

2006-10-19T16:48:00.000-07:00

I was invited to guest speak at UCLA Extension on the topic of digital filmmaking. The theme I explored for the evening was the statement by Orson Welles: "The Enemy of Art is the Abscene of Limitation". I thought it would be good for these filmmakers to embrace thier shortcomings and turn them into strengths. Along this line I also introduced them to the Dogme '95 manifesto, and Robert Rodriguez's book "Rebel Without A Crew", the bible of low budget film production.

It was an exhausting night as I had worked all day (5am - 5pm) and prepped three cameras for a shoot for the next day.

Los Angeles International Short Film Festival

2006-08-30T00:15:00.000-07:00

I just received the info regarding screening time, date and theater for my short film.

I'm happy to say I got a great screening time.

"The Mercy Seat"

10:15pm Saturday, September 9th, 2006

Theater 9
Program number 62

www.LAShortsfest.com
www.ArclightCinemas.com

Come on, it's the Arclight, there isn't a better screen in Hollywood!

Recent Shoots

2006-06-12T12:27:00.000-07:00

Movie of the Day: "Eraserhead"

2006-04-05T10:23:00.000-07:00

"Eraserhead" by David Lynch is a tough one to wrap your head around. It's a feature length experimental film that seems to be influenced by such luminaries as Maya Daren and Stan Brakhage.

The best way into this film for me is to use the Fruedian metaphor of the cave. To better explain this theory I'm going to quote Howard M. Gluss, Ph.D. :

"Outside the cave is the conscious mind. This is the realm of everyday consciousness and thoughts-where everything, seemingly, is relatively accesible to constant awareness. When you first enter the cave, you encounter the preconscious mind-the part of the mind where thoughts are below the surface of immediate awareness-yet with little trouble the individual can access them. But deep within the cave lies the unconscious mind, the region of our soul that harbors thoughts that are unacceptable or incomprehensible to the individual. These thoughts are not easily brought into awareness...The banishment to the dark recesses of the back of the cave of these highly troubling or inappropriate feelings can prove a tremendous battle. When a character has a great deal of repressed material, the battle to keep those terrible things safely hidden and cordoned off with defense mechanisms can lead to complex, irrational, and even seemingly insane behaviors."

There are many dark chambers in the mind of the protagonist in "Eraserhead" and many disturbing images of sexuality, motherhood and parenting. And if you're a David Lynch fan you probably wouldn't have it any other way.

Recent shoots:

2006-04-04T14:23:00.000-07:00

4-2-06 Rockstar 2

1:00pm

Interviewed producer Marc Burnett. Followed by b-roll of Slash, Tommy Lee, Gilby Clarke and Jason Newstead watching contestants pe4rform at the Knitting Factory, Hollywood.

We sat the band in a seperate room with a stage for an interview: Tommy, Gilby and Jason.

5:00

The Henry Fonda Theater

Arrivals for a night of comedy benefitting Tubular Sclerosis

Interviewed Julianne Moore and Jane Kaszmerick.

March 25

Frank Gehry Collection launch at Tiffany's

They closed Rodeo drive for this. John Legend performed with Patti La Belle.

Interviewed:
Frank Gehry, Anjelica Huston, Laurence Fishburn, Jennifer Love hewitt, Patti La Belle, John Legend, Doug Savant, Ian Somer Holder, Laura Leighton, Andrea Bowen, Cheryl Burke, Christina Ricci.

March 11

B-roll shoot for "Top 10!" at Privilege in Hollywood.

January 29

Dream Keepers honars at House of Blues

Interviewed: George Lucas, Sam Jackson and Jennifer Garner.

Movie of the Day: "Breaking the Waves"

2006-04-04T12:57:00.000-07:00

Does anyone get better performances out of women than Lars von Trier? Emily Watson, like Bjork in "Dancer in the Dark", gives the most heartbreaking performance of her career.

Lars von Trier has a way of ratcheting up tension and drama to the point of insufferable cruelty, and just when you think his characters can endure no more, he pushes them over an abyss.

An excerpt from the IMDB mini biography on von Trier: "Breaking the Waves is perhaps one of the worlds most emotional motion pictures..." This is no understatement. von Trier delivers, the film never misses an opportunity to break your heart.

It's serves as a study in screenwriting. It examines the impact of the heroine's relationship's with her husband, best friend, mother, church, community and her deity. His protagonists suffer hard fates and their convictions are "screwed to the sticking post". No one's beliefs in this film are unchallenged. There's plenty for every actor to work with, even the background.

Emily Watson as Bess McNeill never waivers from her beliefs and in the end she remains true to her character. This is what makes the film so sad and rewarding. This is why the film works.

Four stars, nay, five. Goes in the top 10 (I probably have two dozen films in my top 10 now.)

Thanks Lars,

Bill

Movie of the day: "The Leopard" 1963 (Italian version)

2006-03-29T10:28:00.000-08:00

I think I found my new favorite movie, at least my favorite movie since joining Netflix:

"The Leopard" aka "Il Gattopardo".

This film by one of Italy's film maestro's, Luchino Visconti, is the operatic tale of the wealthy and cultured Prince Don Fabrizio Salina who must watch his existence and the history of his proud Sicilian family lineage fade into the past as a new generation of Bourgeois replaces the old generation of Aristocracy.

This was the time of rebellions (Il Risorgimento) in the 1880's that united Italy and Sicily under the tricolor flag we know today.

Don Fabrizio is portrayed by Burt Lancaster and his young nephew is Alain DeLon. The sensuous Claudia Cardinale plays Angelica Sedara, the daughter of the vulgar bourgeois mayor (Paolo Stoppa) ,who marries the Prince's nephew. Romolo Valli does a great job as Father Pirrone, who keeps the Prince company as he slips into the slums at night to carry on his affairs with a local prostitute.

The film rivals "Gone with the Wind" in its epic scope and detail. It has influenced American directors Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese and has been honored with the Golden Palm at the Cannes Film festival in 1964.

Absolutely sumptuous production design by Mario Garbuglia. Some of the best cinematography ever put to film by Giuseppe Rotunno. Score by the acclaimed Nino Rota.

This film is just over three hours in length but I watched it twice to bask in its beauty and soak up every detail.

Watch our new show!

2006-03-28T09:38:00.000-08:00

Movie of the day: "Dancer in the Dark"

2006-03-28T09:29:00.000-08:00

Bjork is amazing. Why she didn't win best actress is beyond me, and why every casting agent in town isn't clamoring for her is also unbelievable. She is not only powerful in this role as a woman going blind, who will go to the ultimate length to care for and protect her son, she is a tour de force.

This is a gut wrenching film that grabs you about a third of the way in and refuses to let you go.

Some scenes were shot with an array of 100 video cameras.

Written and directed by Lars von Trier, cinematography by Robby Muller.

Frank Gehry Collection Launch

2006-03-28T09:27:00.000-08:00

Sunday evening I shot the launch of the Frank Gehry jewelry line at Tiffany's in Beverly Hills (you know, the guy who designed the Disney Building and The Jimi Hendrix Museum, etc). They closed down Rodeo drive for this event, which I didn't expect.

It was a cool shoot but I must say the beautiful Jennifer Love Hewitt showed up and was quite the exceptional little beauty. As a matter of fact she stole my heart as she looked through the lens, gazing at me, nay, beckoning me...I mean, I felt it. She felt it. If you were there you would agree with me. Listen, it's on tape.

Anyway, it was a fun shoot and there were other people there too who kept, I don't know, disturbing us.

"I guess we can get a shot of Christina Ricci if you want, okay, fine I'll pan the camera away from Jennifer, but let's try not to dilly-dally". Then comes Laurence Fishburn, "He was in "Apocolypse Now!", right?" Okay, that's cool. "What's that? You want me to shoot Anjelica Houston, Patti La Belle and John Legend?" "Are you paying me for this? You are paying for this? Yeah but..."

And now you know the true story about why I'm not with Jennifer Love Hewitt.

Tough day at the office

2006-03-12T01:43:00.000-08:00

You guys know me, so you know I put in my time drudging to the train station in the snow to be taken to a job that was mind numbingly boring for many years.
So with that in mind I want to share my latest shoot with you. I really only do this so you can imagine this through my eyes and not to taunt you : )

I just shot a spot for the new E! News live program about the best new clubs on the LA. circuit. We shot at a place called "Privilege".
It's on Sunset across from "Crunch" and down the street from Chateau Marmont. Very cozy, very cool music, chill place to hang out.
Lots of eye candy. I had to shoot bottles of Dom Perignon being served to the club crowd while searching for cute girls on the dance floor.

One girl thought I was shooting for "Girls Gone Wild" and tried to convince me to shoot her topless.
That would have gotten us kicked out pretty quick! The female hosts (there were about 15) were clad in fishnet stockings and vinyl.
You know they were all models or actresses as were the bartenders and bouncers, (of course).

I convinced our beautiful little P.A. (imported from Scotland) to ask the hosts and bartenders to play along with the camera.
We got great shots of the hostesses leading us around followed by shots of the bouncers denying us entry to the VIP area.

The new cameras are awesome, light weight with so many options at the ready you don't know which one you want to try first.
It's called an XD Cam by Sony and essentially you're shooting on a professional disc, like a DVD, only this disc is recording 4:2:2 at 50 mb/s
and holds 23G of info for 45 minute record time.

It was a fun shoot. I hope to work for these producers again.

Now, back to the office.

Bill

Movie biz on the 'Bubble'

2006-01-30T12:41:00.000-08:00

Pic's triple bow inconclusive

By GABRIEL SNYDER, STEVEN ZEITCHIK

The future of moviegoing (if you're Mark Cuban) or its end (if you're John Fithian) arrived Friday with the release of Steven Soderbergh's "Bubble" simultaneously in theaters, on DVD and on cable TV.

The debate over whether studios should close their distribution windows had been under way for a long time before "Bubble," a micro-budgeted film that even its director calls "experimental," and the controversy no doubt will continue long after "Bubble" is forgotten. But as the pic has become the totem for those advocating a distribution model that would put films everywhere all at the same time, it's clear the touchy issues "Bubble" is pointing up are more dramatic than the commercial impact this little film is making.

With grosses of some $72,000 from 32 theaters, most owned by Cuban and Todd Wagner's Landmark Theaters, the results of the much-watched experiment showed that simultaneous release may be better at selling DVDs than movie tickets.

Eamonn Bowles, prexy of Magnolia Pictures (also owned by Wagner and Cuban), projected first-week revenues from the film of $5 million. A bit more than half that estimate is from DVD -- Magnolia has shipped 100,000 copies, which retailers start selling Tuesday -- and most of the rest is TV rights sales, including $250,000 paid by high-def cabler HDNet (also owned by Wagner and Cuban) to broadcast the pic on Friday night.

"Our trial seems to have worked out very well for us," Bowles said. "Although we would have liked more theatrical performance, the overall revenue numbers were outstanding for this film."

Although no DVDs have sold yet (so that $5 million estimate is perhaps a bit premature), he said the 100,000 units shipped was about four or five times larger than for other similar films.

At West L.A.'s Nuart Theater, "Bubble" started its one-week run on Friday. (There's no chance of extension; Lars von Trier's "Manderlay" is skedded to open Feb. 3.) Crowds were on the light side -- Daily Variety counted about 30 people leaving the first show of opening night, then about 75 attending the 7:30 unspooling.

In Gotham, where pic played only at the Landmark Sunshine theater on the Lower East Side, Friday's opening had less the feel of an event than a Tuesday-night screening of an obscure film. An average of about 30 people turned out for the 9:20 and 11:15 showings. In Santa Monica, out of 10 people who were willing to chat with a reporter on their way inside, all but two worked in the entertainment industry, and nearly half said they first heard about the film from media coverage of collapsing windows.

Auds in Gotham were similarly industrycentric, with staffers of ESPN and the Food Network, as well as a supporting actress from "Capote," turning out for the show.

It seems the coverage asking whether people would pay to see a movie they could get on DVD was the main reason people ended up paying to see "Bubble" theatrically.

"Everyone's talking about it," said Bill Totolo, a cameraman for E!, when asked why he was paying $9.50 for a ticket. "I wanted to have an opinion on it."

Others simply wanted to use their ticket to cast a vote in favor of theatrical experience. "I still like going out to the movies," said Ted Deiker, a feature film production supervisor. "I'm holding on as long as I can."

Of the small minority of people unaware of the experimental strategy, they said they would have preferred to wait for the DVD.

"Had I known before I got to the theater that I could have gotten it on DVD for less than the price of three tickets, I wouldn't have come," said Kara Moskowitz, who had joined two friends at the Sunshine's 11:15 show.

At the Nuart, a man who said he attended the 5:20 show because he was thinking of moving to L.A. and wanted to see who showed up for arthouse movies was nonetheless disappointed with the film. "I should have Netflixed it," he said.

Of course, part of the hope is that those who go to the theaters also buy the DVD. At the Sunshine, a DVD of "Bubble" sat prominently for sale in the box office window. A promotion proclaimed $5 off the film with presentation of a "Bubble" ticket stub, but no one seemed to be asking about it. An employee at the Nuart said they'd sold about nine copies after the first show of the night.

Still, of those heading into the theater, there was plenty of support for the notion of change.

"I think there needs to be a new business model," said Dominick Cecere, an f/x animator. His wife, Lucinda Chee, who does film painting, added, "I just want to support indie filmmaking."

In Gotham, Cuban may have found his ideal customer in Andrew Miller, a self-described "Steven Soderbergh devotee" who was paying to see the pic after first seeing it at the New York Film Festival and also was considering a DVD purchase.

But for the most part, auds were basically what one would expect at a low-budget arthouse film: people in the industry and connected to the film. Back in Santa Monica, one of the rare non-pros, Arash Bina, a Ph.D. student, was waiting in front of the Nuart for his friend: "She knows one of the people involved with the film."

Another non-pro, a young woman who said she was just visiting from New York, said she was seeing the movie because she was friends with the casting director and then melted into a crowd of six other people.

The first "Black Movie Awards" 2005

2005-12-19T14:39:00.000-08:00

We shot this at The Wiltern on Wilshire. Highlights of the evening include meeting Sydney Poitier and Quincy Jones, oh and Vivica A. Fox!

George Lucas

2005-12-16T16:57:00.000-08:00

His hair is silver and white, his beard full and his belly round. When he walks into a room a hush falls over the audience as we all settle down.

No, I’m not talking about Santa Claus. Close. I’m talking about George Lucas.

How I ended up in an audience at the Zanuck Theater on the Fox lot last night, enjoying George Lucas discuss his career with the key crew members of “Star Wars”, I’ll never know. But let me be your eyes and ears and relate what it was like to be three feet from the father of Darth Vader.

“Below the Line” sponsored this event. I received an e-mail that said something vaguely about a night honoring the "Star Wars" films with Producer Rick McCallum, VFX Supervisors, etc.

In briefly reading the synopsis I thought I saw George Lucas’ name near the middle of the page. If they were confident George Lucas was going to show up, surely, they would put that on top, so I figured “eh, I’ll check it out".

I arrived at the Fox lot at 6:30pm and waited in the mile long line of cars at the gait where they were checking names and RSVP’s. Curiously, they let me on.

I always assume they’re going to take one look at me and ask me to turn around when I go to studio lots. They have that aura about them to me. Instead they showed me where to park and gave me directions to the Zanuck Theater. Hmmm…

I parked my car and followed the clearly marked signs to the theater. No walking down dead end alleys or wandering into prop design departments, just right up to the theater where there were a few hundred people standing around. "Oh, great." But guess what? Everyone was chatting casually as the WAIT STAFF served Champagne and hors d’oeuvres.

What’s going on here?

So, I get inside, and first let me tell you about the Zanuck Theater if you haven’t seen it. Beautiful. I would estimate that this theater seats no less than 500 hundred people, so, it’s big. The screen is one of those 40 footers that seem to go on forever. Had to be about a dozen speakers on each wall. I actually manage a seat in the 5th row left side aisle, about 30 feet from the stage they have set up where there sit 4 chairs, three on one side and one opposing. Think subject/interview style.

Okay. Theater fills up, Fire Marshal takes a look and they ask everyone not seated to leave, the only bummer of the evening.

Lights go down, a brief yackety yack and up to the podium walks Rick McCallum, as in the Producer of "Star Wars". Pretty frikkin’ cool.

Rick starts right in with the production schedule, says they were shooting 50, (yes 50!), set-ups per day. They moved the camera every 15 minutes (whoa). He pauses briefly to introduce David Tattersall, Director of Photography on the last three ground breaking, digitally shot Star Wars films. David bows and they bring up Rob Coleman, Animation Director and John Knoll, Visual FX Supervisor.

John talks about trying to maintain the quality of the blue screen on set, buying the best material, keeping it tight and getting creative when they moved the camera off the blue screen.

Roger Guyett of “Harry Potter” fame was brought in to Supervise 750 effects shots and John personally oversaw 1,500 FX shots.

Next up on stage, and at this point I’m thinking, “Oh, this is a tribute to the crew, I get it. Forget about Lucas. Damn!”. So next up are Ben Burtt, Film Editor and Sound Designer and Matthew Wood, Supervising Sound Editor and Voice of General Grievous.

It’s interesting to note how these guys have multiple titles. That’s the work model on a Lucas Film. Apparently they feel it’s more organic/creative to have everyone sharing duties.

These guys demonstrated some of the voices and sound effects on stage. It was fun to learn all the laser blasts are guy wire twanks, the opening battle rumble in “Revenge of the Syth” is Niagara Falls, the Speeders are NASCAR race cars, Darth Vader’s heart beat was created by recording the Space Shuttle sonic boom over San Anselmo. Ben Burtt, after playing all the sound FX (including breathing from a mic’ed SCUBA tank for Darth Vader’s breath) said “ We see ourselves as entertainers”, and I saw what he meant and how that was important to the production team for their creativity.

Next we met the Make Up/Creature Supervisor who flew in from New Zealand for 24 hours just for this event and watched a behind the scenes vignette on the development of the make up and creature process. Creature Supervisor (great title): Dave Elsey, Fabrication Supervisor: Lou Elsey, Make Up Supervisor: Nikki Gooley and the great Trisha Bigger who was in charge of creating 1,300 costumes.

Long night, I began wondering if they were going to bring out the transpo captain or the genny operator. I’m kidding this was really a great event and I felt privileged to be there but I was wondering who might be next.

Well it was the master himself…

He of white hair and silvery beard, of round belly and white Reeboks.

George Lucas.

“Four, Five and Six were minimalist, creatively in costume” he begins…

Whoa, whoa, whoa. You’re the creator of Tatooine and Imperial Storm Troopers. Tell me how Yoda got so powerful or what it was like working with Sir Alec Guinness! He’s so humble he just picked up where the moderator left off. They talked in depth about costuming for fifteen minutes.

They bounced around topics pretty rapidly so I’ll break George’s section up into topics, quotes and random facts as they came up in conversation.

On the Digital Pipeline: Sets and extras were too numerous. At one hundred million dollars he had to maximize his investment, says he couldn’t afford a cast of thousands. Many costumes had to be created digitally. Trisha Bigger would select fabrics, which would be replicated digitally. “I shot digitally and had to dumb it down to look like film because it was too sharp, we actually had to place more detail into costumes than ever before”…”The first time costumes were ready was on the day of the shoot, it’s the first time I saw them”, says he saw them in development but not fully realized until day of shooting.

On how “Syth” was different from I and II: “We weren’t designing cameras. We shot the first two weeks of Episode I with a huge prototype camera…Episode II was the learning curve with new gear and servers…Episode III was easy and fun. We pushed it further and further.”

On digital sets: Ep. I = 25%; Ep. II = 50%, Ep. III = 80% digital sets. George would come in so late with new ideas that the paint was drying on sets as they were shooting.

Remember the opera scene? That idea was something George came up with on the fly and the entire set had to be created over night.

On Pre-visualization: On Ep. IV, pre-visualization consisted of out- takes of war footage. Episode III was ENTIRELY pre-visualized. They cut the movie and LIT it before shooting. Instead of storyboards, George could turn on a monitor and watch the scene, which he says he used only for reference and shot whatever he wanted on the day of the shoot.

He’ll Pre-vis about 15 shots in the morning. Pre-vis sends the shots to Editorial and they can put the scene together in the same day with sound.

They spent 6 months developing the pre-vis on the opening battle scene.

First teams to start work on the film are the Design Group and Pre-vis team. They begin as George is still writing. This way he can say “I need this alien and this alien and this car…” A couple months into it ILM takes a look at where they are (A year before shooting) then begin weekly meetings.

Episode III contains 10,000 separate pieces of artwork.

Biggest Challenge as a Director on "Episode III": “It wasn’t that much of a challenge, it was a lot of work. The volcano was a bit of a challenge”.

On Yoda: George likened Yoda’s development from puppet to digital character to the development of the digital camera system: “At first we didn’t get it on Episode I, it wasn’t fully realized until Episode III. It took four years of research.”

On Production: “We re-invented the production paradigm. We changed the production pipeline. Everyone talks to each other.”

Funniest comment of the evening:
On Character voices: “Sometimes it’s brilliant, sometimes it’s something you have to live with”.

They shot on 8 stages, no dailies. They struck sets daily and moved on. Sets are stored in the computer. Sets are shot in 360 degrees at every angle before they are removed in case they need to be re-created digitally a year later.

On 3-D: All six will be released in order I-VI. He is using 3-D as an impetus to push digital projection.

Audience Q and A:

How old is the Emperor? “That’s the first time I was ever asked.” George seems to feel at the time of his death he is around 120.

What kind of Alien is Yoda? There is no answer. “I like him to be a mystery, like the Frog Prince in Snow White”.

On the possibility of Three Trilogies: There were never three trilogies; there was only supposed to be the original Chapter IV. Since he was given $3.5MM he chopped the original screenplay into three chapters equaling three films. Chapter IV was finally made for $10MM.

On his hiatus after the original trilogy: After “Return of the Jedi” he was happy to be done. He wanted to raise his daughter and go to work from 11am to 3pm. He said he was basically retired for 15 years. The prequel was written as a novel, when his kids were grown he decided to take another shot at it since he felt the original got away from his concept of “The Tragedy of Darth Vader”.

On Edit-droid: 1st NLE with video discs, no storage capacity. 9 years later he decided he didn’t want to be in the editing business commercially so he turned his system over to “Light Works” which was a hardware system. He originally approached Sony but they turned him down. They sold Sound (or was it Audio?) Droid to New England Digital and Video Droid to Light works which later went to Avid.

George is working to create a new system which is much simpler than what Avid has become and will be built on the old Editdroid system. “It has to be simple so your mind is on the movie, like an old Kem controller.” No mouse, no keyboard. "All in a hand-thing. No Special Effects, just simple, fast cutting." He’s making it for non-professionals. He feels editing is too complex now.

What was it like to watch all six in order? He meant to do it over Thanksgiving but still hasn’t done it.

And so with that the evening came to a close.

It was really refreshing to be in the company of, perhaps, the most successful filmmaker in the history of cinema, who’s able to remain humble, creative and vital after so many years in an industry not always so kind to it’s greatest pioneers.

Thanks, George!

Always fun to interview the Hulkster.

2005-12-08T17:24:00.000-08:00

Do YOU feel the Hulk-a-mania?

I shot this at Sony Studios in Culver City. Terry "Hulk" Hogan is always a gentleman.

Dream of Sleep

2005-10-24T12:25:00.000-07:00

written by
Bill Totolo

September 23, 2005

I couldn't continue on this path with her. I can't articulate why. It just felt it. So did she.

We separated where the high road meets the low road; I hate when I run into a metaphor. The trouble with the high road is it’s so dense. I guess it’s true what they say about the road less traveled.

I began ascending when I noticed she had already made some company on her trip. I could see through the brush that a handsome man with two dogs had engaged her in conversation. He was exercising the beasts by making them run after softballs.

This is when I noticed the abandoned leather ball on the path I was now walking.

I wanted to get home while it was still daylight. If she wanted some companionship for the walk home who was I to judge? I had my own matters that needed attending.

As I entered the forest I noticed the density of the canopy. Light still broke through the leaves. It wasn’t dark but its diffusion took on an almost mystical quality, like a church. The patterns cast on the ground would make for a soothing walk on the way home allowing me to meditate on my thoughts.

It was then that I remembered the monkeys and why this was such a lonely traveled road.

Though they can look pleasant enough monkeys are actually quite vicious little creatures. At less than forty pounds a man could easily fend one or two off but not a dozen, not several dozen.

My walk slowed. I held my breath, and like a child who takes comfort in hiding beneath his sheets, I did not want to look up. But I knew I must.

And when I do, I see them.

They are there in number and I am frozen. The monkeys are everywhere in the fresco ceilings of the forest but they are still.

I fear that completely stopping, turning around or looking over my shoulder will alter my rhythm and cause the monkeys to take notice of me. But as I continue to gaze up at the monkeys I realize they are asleep. Of course they are! The sun is at its zenith and the monkeys sleep in the mid afternoon heat to keep their bodies cool. They’ll be active when the sun begins to set so I must not delay.

But then a horrible memory haunts me at the precise moment that my eyes set on the terrible danger that lay in the back of my mind. I knew there was a reason to hesitate and now I remember why, as my eyes shift from the monkeys I see the horrible shocked expressions on the faces of the naked corpses who’s numbers must be in the hundreds.

Fastened like flies in a spider’s silky web are the bodies of unlucky travelers who have been marauded by the monkeys. The eyes are all locked open and I can see the whites but I cannot see pupils, which leads me to think these people died in abject horror, terrified. But I also wonder if these people are alive. Their bodies are withered but they are not in a state of decay. Do the monkeys sustain them so that they may feed off their vital fluids? Oh, what horrible fate is this! Surely this is worse than anything in Dante’s ‘’Inferno’’?

I look to make sure I do not bump into a tree or step on a thicket so as not to alert the monkeys. Surely if these lifeless beings are left stuck to the ceiling of this deadly canopy, this abattoir of a forest, there will be no one to come for me. I hesitate only a moment to judge the distance I have already traveled into this macabre labyrinth and estimate how far it will be to the end.

I am nearly at the midpoint. It makes no less sense to continue than it does to turn back. I wonder if the unsuspecting considered the same thing just before meeting their fates?

I notice that dead leaves are scattered across the path that lay ahead and I must keep a careful eye not to step on them, which means I must not look up at the trees. Damned.

I do not want to take my eyes off the monkeys because surely if they haven’t attacked me yet it is because they lack the element of surprise. But that is only in my imagination, if I step on a dry leaf the monkeys will awaken and descend upon me en-masse. If monkeys are like dogs it will not go pleasant when their sleep is disturbed and I may not be afforded the luxury of the poor souls above me. I have no choice but to continue.

I do not alter my pace but it feels as though I am wallowing through dense waters. My pace is slow; my heart beats heavy, the sweat on my brow stinging my eyes. My body temperature rises and I can smell my own sweat. I begin to hear my breath heaving as I lumber toward the exit. And as I begin to anticipate my escape I hear a stirring. A few branches, a few more, a few more. I do not slow, I do not look. The sound becomes more and more prescient as I pull the sheets over my head and pray for sleep.