So after all that…

I’m calling it a day… after nearly two weeks of hanging around outside seemingly abandoned industrial parks, warehouses, and business centers, I’ve finally had enough. Everyone has apparently decided to bugger off at the same time, so there’s little point in torturing myself any further.

I was meant to have quickly tested out a whole bunch of cameras. I was meant to have simple video shots to compare. All this running around, and all I have accomplished is burning through money I need later in the year, getting more frustrated than imaginable, and wasting a lot of time.

The whole point of scheduling meetings was to keep disruption as low-impact as possible, and it was never in the planning to face so many problems – things have a way of going sideways, and this fiasco should have been worked into the schedule.

A few hours somehow ballooned into more than a week without me keeping a tab on the time. The last-ditch attempt to get my hands on an URSA Mini Pro for a couple of hours ate up my weekend, without me so much as setting eyes on the camera, and so it occurs to me that renting all of the cameras, one after another, for a few days each might be a better way to go.

This is going to mean another downwards adjustment to my already shrinking capital, but I can’t go out and start buying everything without at least a little insight into what I am getting for my money.

Ah, but the cameras…

The top tier has been tempting, but possibly too far out of my current budget to seriously consider (unless I can pick them up second-hand). Everyone seems to rave about the ARRI cameras, but I’ve already had the long, long speech about how I would need a horrific amount of add-ons to the body to get it up and running (lenses, a monitor, battery, remote focus grip, and all the bells and whistles), so that’s a serious question mark hanging over the cameras.

ARRI ALEXA M; ARRI ALEXA Mini LF; ARRI ALEXA Plus; ARRI ALEXA SXT; ARRI AMIRA

The next bunch, with varying degrees of technical limitation, aren’t exactly enticing, and I’m loathe to purchase any before getting a solid idea of their capabilities. I can’t use anything which gives blown out skies, as the desert setting means I’ll need all the variation I can muster, and clouds are going to be desperately needed to keep the image interesting during quiet sequences where characters are walking.

Blackmagic Cinema Camera; Blackmagic Design URSA Mini Pro; Blackmagic Design URSA Mini 4.6K; Canon C300 Mark II Cinema EOS 4K camcorder EF; Canon C700; Canon EOS C300 Mark II Camcorder PL; Canon EOS C500 4K EF; Canon EOS-5D Mark II Camera; Nikon D800 Camera; Olympus E-P5 Camera; Panasonic VariCam 35; Panasonic VariCam LT; Panasonic AU-EVA1; various Red models; Sony PMW-F55

A rather varied bunch, each with recommendations from various people. Some nice folks have warned me about stumping up for an ARRI if there is going to be a minimal crew – and as I’m stripping everything to the bone in order to maximize my (minuscule) budget (by any kind of standards) there isn’t room for a large crew.

Hell, there’s barely room in the budget for any crew, which is why I’m desperately calling in everyone and anyone who fits the bill, and who isn’t going to be focusing on the financial side of things. I’m going to see to it that everyone who contributes to the film is well taken care of, but more than that I’m not willing to speak of just yet. My idea of keeping everyone on board is likely going to bring down a kill order from various unions for upsetting the order of things.

So given that there’s a need to have as much bang for my buck, while I’m looking at some very expensive things, hands-on experience of each is a must. The cameras I end up choosing have to pull their weight, especially given that I’m going to be so far outside of anything resembling easy access. I’m not sure if anyone has actually taken each of the above out into the wilderness and exposed it to the elements, so there may be problems when I get out into the middle of nowhere – it would be awesome if things went entirely to plan, but, as this week has perfectly demonstrated, that’s asking far too much.

The abuse they would need to take – extremes of heat, potential sandstorms, rain, and more – is the scary part. Any of the cameras I choose (and I’ll likely need 3) has to be able to handle whatever it gets thrown at it.

I’m not fussed about the size of the captured image – warmth and color are more important than the number of pixels, and there’s more important things than how it conforms to some arbitrary format. Mostly I’ve been watching Milius’ Conan, Iron Warrior (Ator il guerriero di ferro), and Red Sonja, noting the look as much as anything, but seeing what I want any camera I choose to be capable of reproducing.

But there’s that nagging feeling that there’s something… wrong with the technology at present. Not wrong, perhaps, but certainly not in the spirit of the films this project is hearkening back to. Amando de Ossorio shot everything on film, as did Lucio Fulci, and George Romero’s seminal Night of the Living Dead, and Jean Rollin, Larry Cohen, Herschell Gordon Lewis, Sam Peckinpah, and pretty much every director who I’m ever-so-slightly obsessed by, all used film. Film is right for something that looks and sounds as if it should have been made in the late seventies or early eighties.

Actually, I won’t swear to de Ossorio or Fulci – they might have used video at some point in the eighties, and I don’t have their complete filmography to hand in order to check that. Fulci always struck me as one of those cats who would work with whatever was to hand, like comics publishers during WWII who would print on whatever paper they could get their hands on – didn’t matter if the ink couldn’t adhere to the paper or not, they would blast out as much as they could with what was available. I’m sure he would have used video at some point.

Film cameras are, without a doubt, better than digital.

There’s no question, given that so much time and money has been thrown at making digital cameras output footage which is closer to film, so why should I settle for digital when I can shoot on the real thing? It isn’t an easy choice to make at this juncture, especially as the overwhelming focus seems to be on getting people to fall in love with digital shooting. I’m not in love with digital film. It should have been obvious to me, considering what I would prefer to watch, and as much as I want to get on board with where everyone else is at it feels inessential at the moment – digital simply isn’t where it needs to be as yet.

But there’s good reasons to work with digital, and I can already imagine the points which will be raised by my self-admission that I prefer film to digital.

Finding suitable film stock is going to be a pain in the ass.

A thousand feet of 35mm Kodak stock is going to set me back about four hundred quid, and I’m guessing that I’m going to need between fifteen to twenty thousand feet given the complexity of some of the things I want to try. Remember that this is my baby, and I’m going to do it right, so… Yeah, that’s going to be a serious outlay.

Actually, because I’m a geek, the idea of “pulling an Oliver Stone” is appealing. Super 16, digital, and 35mm thrown into the mix, depending on the scene and the context. And yes, I’m well aware that this is needlessly complicating matters, but it makes me smile a stupid amount when I consider what I could get away with if I chose this option. The only thing I’m absolutely certain of at this precise moment is that the finished film is going to be 1.85:1, because that’s the most pleasing to the eye.

Getting the film processed is going to be a pain in the ass.

This is a reasonable thing for people to think, but (surprisingly) no, there is still enough need for processing that it isn’t exceedingly difficult. There is going to be the issue that the film will be out of my hands – and therefore at the mercy of others – for a while during this, which is worrying, but that’s to be expected.

Shooting on film will likely end up costing more.

About that… I’m not so sure. Things are going to be “holy fuck, you want how much money” either way. It sure isn’t helping my nerves any to see how much money everything is costing right now, and the big ticket items still need to be acquired.

No matter the negatives to its use, I can’t stop the thought that keeps coming back to me: why not use 35mm?

I’m not going to make a sudden choice on this matter, but it is a serious consideration.

Planning a shoot is hard at the best of times, but planning one in the middle of an international medical crisis, and especially because I’m planning a non-English shoot, is way more complex. Attempting to make sure everyone I contact is aware of the language issue explicitly, so that nobody is caught out at a later point, is the main gripe with flurries of emails – these essential little details can get lost in the glut of other information, and I have been mentioning it endlessly when conferring with potential cast and crew.

If anyone is getting sick of hearing that detail, it is only so I can be reassured that nobody will be surprised later.

La sorpresa será cuando aparezca con un disfraz de payaso a las tres de la mañana.

Some News of Minor Importance

Having kinda, sorta, almost got the computer working, for the moment at least, there’s a few things which can’t be put off any longer. Having already lost a great deal of the technology I was counting on coaxing through until overcoming events, it looks as if I’m going to have to replace more than anticipated. This is problematic given my circumstances…

It has become apparent that no matter how many hours I put in, there’s simply no way I can make enough money to keep everything going, so – although I am loathe to do so – the only recourse left is to consider additional income. Things need to change. No matter how many hours I put in, and despite stretching myself across various jobs, money is an ever-present problem. Regardless of any attempts to improve matters already made, there is always another bill, another unexpected expenditure, another emergency.

For the past few weeks I have actually had stomach pains because of the stress, which (added to other lingering problems) is as distracting as all hell. This is a new thing. New things are meant to be nice – new things should be treats, not torments. The hours are killing me, and there’s little time left to think at the end of each day, never mind carry on with insane non-profit-making ventures such as the Database.

So I’m going to do something radical to rectify the situation.

Those of you who have read my thoughts here (and elseweb) will be aware that I am entirely disparaging of advertising. I really dislike the intrusion of irrelevant content alongside information, which is the essential definition of advertising. There are, admittedly, instances where the inclusion of such material adds something intangible to a work – such as in Victorian novels – though modern advertising is so often ugly and lacking in nuance as to completely turn me against its intrusive nature.

I’ll be cracking open the files and notebooks, and presenting a bunch of writing which really deserve their time in the sun. Better still, there will be complete explanations of how I work things out. All the secret tips and tricks I’ve accumulated over the years, with which I have made my writing appear slightly smarter than it actually is. There will also be a few new things which I’ve had bubbling away at the back of my brain for a very long time.

All manner of creations will be covered, and – as soon as there is enough money to purchase a fully-working computer, scanner, and hard drive – start to get some of the artwork uploaded as well as the writing. If things go really well, I’m planning on expanding to cover videos and other goodies.

The subject of income has always been a problem. As much as there are things I want to do, there needs to be some additional income otherwise I’m going to perpetually be in the situation I find myself in at the moment, struggling to keep afloat week by week (which is, I have to admit, my own fault for following what I deem to be interesting ideas rather than seeking lucrative assignments), and of the ways to bridge the two is Patreon.

While it isn’t a perfect solution, it is a way to (hopefully) stem the amount of money I am hemorrhaging.

On that subject, I’ll also add that I’m not taking any more “helpful advice” from family and friends, as every time I listen to suggestions on how I should be doing things, my life merely gets more difficult and expensive – as much as such “assistance” is appreciated, for the thought if nothing else, it isn’t doing me any good. While I’m not going to go into specifics, I am, at this point, too tired – and in too much pain – to keep going in this manner.

There was a while there when it seemed like everything was going wrong, but a few jobs going I’m *almost* making enough to cover expenses. “Almost” being the pertinent word in that sentence. It doesn’t leave me any time to write, or – if I am brutally honest – time to consider anything save for getting through another week. It isn’t the best place to be, and I’m really, really missing the time to do interesting things.

Which brings me back to what I am beginning:

Gary James Presents

Egotism much? Well… Yeah. Deal with it.

You’ll probably be wondering why I didn’t merely use this blog, and that’s a good question – I don’t want people to be frustrated by the posts being locked to non-Patreon subscribers, which might be seen as an annoyance, and I don’t want to force people to subscribe to something which is going to cost them money. It is rude to presume that people will want to have another commitment, and regardless, I’ve plans to eventually cover some things here that wouldn’t sit well with the purpose of the new blog.

That purpose, in case the name didn’t give it away, being to present all of the material I have written.

It may take a lot time to get through everything…

That I intensely dislike the notion of asking people to pay for blog content should be obvious from comments I have made. This isn’t a decision which I have made easily, and it isn’t one which I particularly care for, but I’m at a loss as to how I can break away from endless hours of toiling. The worst thing about the way things are, beyond a general lack of working equipment, is that there is nothing to show for the weeks as they pass. I’m getting no closer to any goals.

Because I’m planning on posting every day it doesn’t make sense to ask for money on a per-post basis – for as little as a dollar you can follow along as I disassemble storytelling techniques, slam genres together, arrive at strange and unsettling conclusions, and point out where things come from. While I’m doing that, I’ll also update the material which has appeared elsewhere (including here) to include some insights I’ve had in my time away.

If that doesn’t work, I’m going to be wearing a sign reading “Will write for food.”

Same As Before, Only Slightly Different

Everyone seems to be upgrading things around the net, and I got hit with a dozen software updates as well – designed to coincide (I’m sure) to deliberately make my laptop have a seizure. Most of what is being changed seems to be working for the better, though I can’t help thinking that Firefox’s tinkering with the address bar is merely cosmetic rather than an essential and needful expenditure of time.

I’m missing a few options as well, so hopefully the changes will be looked at for ways to incorporate the new video-friendly software with the easy navigation of earlier builds. It doesn’t appear to be amazingly faster than it was, though I haven’t tested it out yet…

Absolute Write had a Nip/Tuck at the weekend, and some new bits and pieces have been added to the boards – such as tags. My initial response was to ignore them, just as I have done on every other forum I have been on, but I can see the usefulness for folks who don’t have a compulsion to explore the threads in depth.

Aviva AntiVir Personal seems to be forever updating, so I wasn’t surprised when the notification appeared on screen, and all this tinkering is slowing down things considerably.

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Maybe the internet is in need of a massive shift once again, on to a new and exciting multiple-platform existence. I remember when the possibility was raised that fridges could order food that was running low, and when people discussed technological advances they seemed to be genuinely excited at the places we would go. Tomorrow’s World is no longer airing, and The Gadget Show – for all it covers – doesn’t exactly fill the gap. Even New Scientist seems less futuristic than it used to.

Maybe the world has moved on to a point where mobile ‘phone apps and rinky-dink software solutions have replaced Big Ideas, and any true step forward will have to be made by renegade bedroom coders. Hardware takes small steps for the most part, but I expected the software concepts to move on a bit more than they have. We are at a point where we can pretty much join up everything electrical in the home, so why do artificial barriers exist between my appliances even now?

When I want a cup of coffee, I should be able to switch the kettle on from my laptop. My mobile ‘phone should be able to unlock the front door. We should, in short, be living the way we were promised twenty years ago. The wilder claims, such as working and living on the moon, were easy to ignore, but the promise of terrestrial technology being so much better wasn’t just wishful thinking – there was merit in some of the suggestions. I want to be living that future, and I want to be living it now.

All the updates and changes that are going on at the moment shouldn’t just be about making things prettier, or adding in small changes to the operation of software. We should be looking at ways in which we can make our objects connect to each other to make life easier. To extend our digital domain across new frontiers, claim the future we were sold by magazines and television shows. We should be excited at the possibilities, and thrilled at the unexpected connections which will come.

If updates are spread across multiple hard drives, then the fridge, or the kettle, radio, television, or even the god-damned house itself, should take some of the burden off my poor laptop. Things will work faster, everything will be interlinked, and maybe we’ll produce technologies which will one day prepare us for bigger challenges. Space travel needs a lot of new toys, especially if we ever hope to colonize the moon, so by starting to think BIG down here on Earth we will be accustomed to looking at more complex situations we will undoubtedly face up there.

BitTorrent may, if politicians can quit bitching and whining about the technology, prove to be the most important step in the move to a hyper-digital existence, where everything is connected. Because it downloads in the background, we don’t notice it. This will be handy when everything suddenly needs updating, rather than putting over a lot of resources to download big upgrades in one giant chunk of data. I’m surprised that it hasn’t been put to this use yet…

The sharing of upgrades would also alleviate stress on the servers which some programs are dependent on for their continued usefulness, such as anti-virus databases.

I may have an overly-optimistic view of what we can achieve, but the tech is there. It exists. All we need do, is discover new ways in which to put it to use.