Lisa Franek
  • Home
  • Books
  • My Films
  • Contact
  • Imagination Blog
  • SignUp

Nice Work if You Can Get It

7/12/2013

0 Comments

 
PictureTrue dat.
Here's an interesting story. The other day I happened to mention to someone that I curate a cinema. Their response? "Where do I sign up?"

It made me laugh, and I had to resist the urge that I always seem to have where I give all sorts of reasons why it's not as cool as you think it is. But then I stopped myself for a moment of reflection.

It is cool. I get to watch movies. A lot of movies. Some are definitely better than others, but there are definitely a lot of them. Movies about everything you can imagine, in every language there is. In a strange way, movies have provided me an education I would never have gotten otherwise. I've learned a lot about a variety of historical events (particularly revolutions of Latin American and Spain), about a variety of cultures, and even about filmmaking. I see a variety of styles and strategies filmmakers use to tell their stories, and I even get to see careers of filmmakers and actors as they develop and grow. It's pretty fantastic.

But the truth is, the movie business is like the Mississippi: It runs far and wide, can be incredibly shallow, and always seems to be kind of muddy. What I do is just a teensy-weensy part of the industry. If it were on a pie chart of the whole business, it would be the half of a half sliver that annoying girl on a diet always asks for. There are so many components of the movie industry (many of them for accountants and lawyers, naturally), that it seems impossible to fathom how people find their way into it. I actually got in by accident. And truth be told, I only have the tip of my toe in the industry.

Sometimes I wonder what diving in would look like. What kid of jobs in the industry would be the coolest?

Well, of course I'd love to be a director. That would be pretty sweet, foisting my opinions on everyone. Being the boss (if only for a little while). I'd also love to be a screenwriter. Obviously, I enjoy writing. I also like to think I have a talent for it. Also, working on sets is pretty freaking cool. It's like a magician telling you the secret to all the tricks, then doing them right before your eyes, and it's still magical. Plus, there's some kind of collective agreement within crews to generally not be jerks to each other and help each other with whatever needs to be done. It's an atmosphere of teamwork that is often a missing in the world these days.

If you get into the more business-y side of things, I think it would be awesome to work in acquisitions or development. One of them is finding awesome movies and buying them for distribution, and the other is working with screenwriters and producers and so forth to help them make the best movie possible. In a way, they're very similar, since they both involve being able to recognize talent.

Don't get me wrong. I love what I do. I don't plan on making a leap to another tributary anytime soon. But really, can't we just dream about stuff sometimes? What would you do if you worked in the movie biz?

0 Comments

The Rest of the Shoot

9/6/2011

0 Comments

 
A week ago, I had these grand plans to post blogs every day of the shoot, but those plans were laid to waste when I got home exhausted, and had to get ready for the next day. Then I spent the entire weekend putting up a gallery art exhibition I have going on, and on Labor Day, I rested (ironically enough). So now it's time to catch up.

Day 2 of shooting was really good. The San Diego Museum of Art was gracious enough to rent their auditorium to them for the afternoon, and what a great space it was. I can't thank them enough for being so hospitable and helpful. This would be the first full day (as in 8 hours) of shooting, with some intense scenes and a lot of blocking. It was also the first time we all got to see our family of magicians together at once, and they look great together. This weekend I looked at a couple of scenes from that day, and it sends chills down my spine. The acting is so good (thanks, Jose Yenque, Lizet Benrey, Tim Clifton and Maka), and the shots are beautiful (thanks Cody, Sergio, Phillip, and Nate!), and the extras are all wonderful. I'm watching them without sound at this point (my editor has some syncing to do), and they still are in such rich technicolor life, I find myself in awe of how beautifully everything came together. I wish I could take all the credit, but most of the credit really lies with all the people who care about this film as much as I do, namely my producer, Sybil Wendler, my DP Sergio Ulloa, and all my actors. I also have to say that all the PAs that showed up not knowing what they were getting into really kept things going. From our camera AC's to AD Josh Krohn to those working on sound, slate, grip, and makeup, everyone worked so smoothly together, it was really the most fun I have ever had on a shoot. I also got a kick out of Jose flinging his magician cape around the stage like a proud bullfighter. If time weren't a factor, I would have asked to see it 10 more times!

I'm planning on posting some pictures soon, but I have to get the card first, since my batteries ran out on Day 2.

Day 3 was probably the most stressful day, mostly because there was a lot to get through, there were a couple of complicated scenes, and we were in someone's house. Seriously, folks, this house is beautiful. It was built in the 1880's and wonderfully restored to its former glory. All the furniture in the house came with it, down to the grandfather clock. And those beautiful wood floors? They're original. So yes, there was a piece of me that was nervous about shooting there, since I would have been mortified if anything had been damaged. (spoiler alert: we didn't damage anything) I did, however, make them put cardboard under all the light stands, and they did me one better and made little cardboard 'shoes' for each leg of each stand. Those guys are brilliant, I tell you.

At this point, I have to talk about Lizet Benrey. She was trained in acting, even though she devotes much of her time to her beautiful paintings. Ever since she agreed to do the role, she has expressed some hesitation about her ability to pull it off, since it is such a demanding role. I never had these doubts. On that third day, I think Lizet (and all of us) realized how well she actually had done, as her performance (in my opinion) was pitch perfect. I remember watching her during one take about halfway through the take, thinking that this was what I knew had been inside her the whole time, and now she was bringing it out and letting us all see. It was truly remarkable and fantastic. I couldn't have asked for a more heartfelt and soulful performance.

I also want to mention how great Larissa Garcia was as the daughter (Maya). Larissa is only 15, but has a wealth of theater experience that gives her a maturity that is often not seen in people much older than she. Larissa is also (wonderfully!) a great listener, and takes direction like few actors I have ever worked with.  She jumped into every scene with the same eagerness, even though we were all exhausted, and turned out consistently good takes, saving us all a lot of time and frustration. I can't help but feel like we've discovered a great young talent, and I'm so proud to be a part of her acting adventures.

Anyway, I do have pictures of Day 3, so check 'em out. And thanks for keeping up with our project. We also have a short behind-the-scenes video if you'd like to check it out.

0 Comments

Day 1

8/30/2011

2 Comments

 
Whew! What a day! Seems like I've been saying that a lot lately. Still, today was a long day of running around and trying to tie up loose ends. But never fear, we made it through okay. We started shooting right on time (if not a bit early), and our actors (who are both teenagers), turned out performances like pros. I couldn't be happier. On top of that, the crew was great; taking care of things that my brain doesn't have the ability to grasp at the moment. My ability to pay attention to multiple things has drastically diminished, both because of fatigue, and because of how much attention I want to give my actors. In my experience, actors work best if you remember that they are people, and since these kids are on the young side (first film for both of them!), I want to pay double attention to make sure they are comfortable and understand exactly what is going on.

Anyway, we shot in the afternoon, and caught some beautiful 'Golden Hour' light. I just can't say enough about how wonderful it is to shoot at that time of day. The light just catches everyones eyes and skin and hair in the most beautiful way. Why wouldn't you want to shoot then? I wish the whole day was lit like that. But alas, the sun only gives us a short time each day to look absolutely beautiful. Still we managed to get what we needed in that short window of time, then move on to the darker shots we needed as well. All in all, I would say the day is a success.

Tomorrow is the big day of shooting the stage scene. I can't wait. It's going to be a bit hectic, but I'm hopeful that because I have such a great group of people around me helping me do the thinking and heavy lifting, that we'll get through it all without too much trouble. Here are some pictures of the day!
2 Comments

Music Composition

6/11/2011

2 Comments

 
It's no secret: a movie can't be made by one person. Sure, there is the auteur school of thought that holds the director as the visionary, the one who attends to every little detail. But the thing is, there is not a person alive who can do all things well. Making films requires meticulous attention to details in a variety of areas. Costumes, sets, props, acting, camera work, sound, special effects, and so on. 

I am lucky enough to know some very talented people who are willing to help me make my film. I don't know how I managed to surround myself with so many accomplished people, but there it is. So, I'd like to introduce them, so everyone can know how much talent is going into the making of this movie. I wish I could do everything myself, but I rest easy knowing that there are a number of people surrounding me that will do everything in their power to make the film as good as it can be.

So let's start with the music. For my film, I envision music that is a simple blend of electronic sound with one or two acoustic instruments, such as a piano or flute. Imagine Radiohead with no singing and a little flute melody. Something atmospheric. So I called someone who I know specializes in that sort of music. His name is Chad Mossholder, and he's been composing music and doing sound design in the video game industry for quite some time now. He's also worked on several other film projects and art projects, so he's really a great asset to the team. If you want to check out his music go here: www.cwmossholder.com
2 Comments
    Follow @lisafranek

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    January 2014
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2012
    November 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011

    Categories

    All
    Acting
    Actors
    Advice
    Americans For The Arts
    Anthony Sartino
    Architecture
    Art
    Art Benefits
    Artist
    Arts
    Arts Education
    Asian Film
    Auditions
    Award
    Birch North Park Theater
    Bullet Catch
    California
    Cannes Film Festival
    Casting
    Chung Ling Soo
    Cinematography
    Cinephile
    Colorado
    Comic-con
    Community
    Competition
    Costumes
    Craft Beer
    Creativity
    Crew
    Critique
    Culture
    Curating
    Day 1
    Donating
    Downtown
    Education
    Encinitas
    Exhibition
    Facebook
    Fake Fur
    Feedback
    Festival
    Film
    Film Geeks
    Filming
    Filmmaker
    Film Shoot
    Fiscal Sponsorship
    Friends
    Funding
    Fundraising
    Georges Melies
    Goals
    Grants
    Habits
    Hats
    History
    Houdini
    Howard Thurston
    Improv
    Installation
    Jerry Sanders
    Jim Steinmeyer
    Jose Yenque
    Kickstarter
    La Film Fest
    La Paloma
    Larissa Garcia
    Lizet Benrey
    Location
    Location Scouting
    Los Angeles
    Magic
    Magic Castle
    Magician
    Magicians
    Magic Store
    Marketing
    Media Arts Center San Diego
    Mfa
    Middle East
    Millinery
    Movie Palace
    Museum Of Jurassic Technology
    Music
    North Carolina
    Once Upon A Rooftop
    Opinions
    Oscar
    Outliers
    Painting
    Persia
    Photography
    Posters
    Post-production
    Pr
    Pre-production
    Press Kit
    Producer
    Progress
    Promotion
    Rehearsal
    Rehearsals
    Research
    Rob Marshall
    San Diego
    Script
    Sergio Ulloa
    Sewing
    Sharing
    Shooting
    Skirball Community Center
    Sony
    Sports
    Studio
    Sybil Wendler
    Synopsis
    Talent
    Tax-deduction
    Tenacious
    Theater
    The Magicians
    Tv
    Twitter
    U2
    Veronica Mars
    Visuals
    Writing
    Youth
    Youtube
    Zach Braff

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
Photos used under Creative Commons from GotCredit, Thomas Leth-Olsen, Celestine Chua, Found Animals, procsilas, numberstumper, George Vnoucek, Leyram Odacrem, One Way Stock, hardi_wb, Rennett Stowe, quinet, rashanahb, rich701, mayrpamintuan, Gavin St. Ours, Aimee Custis, ilovememphis, ikewinski, Môsieur J. [version 8.0], Darwin Bell, Ack Ook