(Part 2) Best performing arts books according to redditors
We found 11,743 Reddit comments discussing the best performing arts books. We ranked the 3,908 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
Ok, now take note of what went wrong with your drawing and try again, and again, and again. Then after a few weeks go back and compare your latest drawings to this one.
The master has failed more times then the novice has tried.
If you want some resources, here are some youtube channels:
And also some books:
You should also check out http://drawabox.com/ and https://www.ctrlpaint.com/.
Edit: Labeled the links.
Edit 2: Just in case anyone saved this post, here's a couple of youtube channels I started watching recently:
I hope things are going well for you. And remember, as long as you keep moving forward you'll get to where you want to go eventually, even if your steps aren't as big as you'd like.
He really didn't. His plans for Star Wars changed all the time. At one point he even thought of doing 12 episodes. At another point, Empire was Episode II as per the first draft of the script and Anakin's Force ghost was on Dagobah. He was wholly separate from Vader initially. Leia originally wasn't planned to be Luke's sister. At one point the various episodes would have no defined chronological order as Lucas once envisioned it as a potentially endless number of movies like the Bond franchise, where different directors and writers would come in, and Episode IV could very well be a prequel about Obi-Wan before jumping back to the present with Episode V.
And when the saga did start to take shape after Empire, he originally had the Emperor surviving in Jedi for the heroes to face again in the Sequel Trilogy. A story which IIRC would have also featured the "other" Yoda spoke of, who was NOT Leia. Hell, much of the incertainty of whether or not he'd be able to make more than one movie is why the Death Star is in A New Hope instead of being held off for then part 3. And the page of notes he had for the Prequels were largely something he wrote just so he knew where everyone came from. But again, Empire used to be Episode II. The plan to flesh those notes out into chapters and renumbering the films only came during making Empire.
In fact after Jedi, he cancelled all plans to make more movies, then later decided to do the Prequels while claiming he would make the Sequels, then after Sith he suddenly turned around and said it's a 6 part saga about Anakin and there's no more story to tell. And then of course once he sold Lucasfilm to Disney he suddenly pull story treatments out of thin air that did NOT resemble his original ideas for the Sequels.
To summarize, the only plan Lucas had was to make a bunch of movies that would be tributes to all his favorite things growing up. But that's it really. But he's spent years claiming that it was all planned because the legend sounds better, and fans would like to believe that he's some genius that knows what he's doing and the franchise is in safe hands. But in truth he was just really good at being his creations Han Solo and Indiana Jones: making it up as he goes along. Source: The Secret History of Star Wars.
They did. They talk about original ideas for the show, original art, background ideas, what the creators were working on before Avatar and how they came to do Avatar (also the interesting story on how restraints from the network forced them into making Avatar into what it is), storyboard art, the images of specific martial artists they worked with that posed for reference, and images/information about the calligrapher they hired to help with the world's writing system, among a lot more. I might have bought and read this book a million times.
There is a reason it's my flair here! And if you liked the series, I highly recommend the graphic novels. They pick up right where the series left off and the library editions are spectacular! Here is the first book. I wouldn't put off watching Korra though to read because the books are still being released and Korra is pretty great! Also come join us in r/TheLastAirbender!
1. The Promise
2. The Search
3. The Rift
4. Smoke and Shadow
5. North and South
Initially they're released in three parts as digest-sized books. Later, all three parts are collected together in larger hardcover library editions (which is what I've linked to above).
The Legend of Korra: Turf Wars kicks off in July.
I feel like anyone getting into animation would do well to intimately study comics.
At its heart, comics are about deciding which actions in the scene are most salient for the moment in time that a panel represents. This is very similar to plotting out keyframes. Animation is essentially just comics with like 10 billion more panels to fill in the rest of the movement.
Edit to add: Another fantastic book that kind of spans both realms is the book Framed Ink by artist Marcos Mateu-Mestre. Highly recommended!
It's really not "revisionist history."
There was a book published a while back called "The Secret History of Star Wars." It goes through every incarnation of the screenplays, and includes interviews with most of the important figures behind the original trilogy (Lucas, Kurtz, Marcia, Kershner, Kasdan, etc.) and really pinpoints who inspired who and when.
Kurtz was a major influence on the early drafts. He told Lucas what would and wouldn't be possible, and gave Lucas regular tips on his screenplays (which changed drastically through every draft). Without Kurtz, the main character would be a kid named Mace Windu, Han Solo would be an alien, C-3PO would be a "used car salesman"-type droid, and there would have been a lot more political influences (Palpatine was originally heavily inspired by Richard Nixon).
Seriously, go check it out. It's a great book, and highlights that Lucas had a TON of great ideas, but he (self-admittedly) had trouble translating them to paper. He hated writing, and Kurtz was one of his major encouragements to keep at it.
I think Lucas is/was a genius for creating SW. I adore the man. But I also recognize that he had a lot of help, and - just like the story of the main characters - SW was a saga of many moving parts. It was Lucas' grand vision, yes, but... without Kurtz, Kasdan, Kershner, etc., Star Wars would be very different from what it is today.
Obligatory plug for the book, The Disaster Artist
The dude, Greg Sestero, who plays Mark was actually Tommy's best friend in real life, or as close to a best friend as a guy like Tommy can have.
Greg tells the story of how he, as a struggling actor, met Tommy in an acting class and was inevitably cast as Mark and then the goddamn day to day insanity of working with Tommy. He tells all kinds of little things about Tommy's eccentricities like ordering warm water at restaurants and about how Wiseau probably isn't his real name and nobody knows how old he really is.
Also James Franco is making a movie about the making of The Room, James plays Tommy and his brother Dave plays Mark/Greg
In the Blink of an Eye (Walter Murch)
Shot by Shot (Steven D. Katz)
Making Movies (Sidney Lumet)
Hitchcock/Truffaut (Francois Truffaut)
Something Like An Autobiography (Akira Kurosawa)
​
Those are all must reads, in my opinion. But this is just off the top of my head. I'm not next to my bookshelf at the moment, so this is the best I can do right now! =)
​
EDIT: Back with round two.
Seductive Cinema (James Card)
Orson Welles's Last Movie: The Making of the Other Side of the Wind (Josh Carp)
A Hundred Years of Japanese Film (Donald Richie)
All the Emperor's Men: Kurosawa's Pearl Harbor (Hiroshi Tasogawa)
Making Documentary Films and Videos (Barry Hampe)
The Haunted Screen (Lotte Eisner)
Completely untrue. It was because Lucas wanted a primitive army to defeat the technologically superior Empire, but Chewbacca had already been established as being as advanced as anyone else, so he made them tiny rather than huge. Source.
I highly recommend The Disaster Artist, written by Greg Sestero (Mark in the film). It doesn't give any answers but it gives you better insight into who he is.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Disaster-Artist-Inside-Greatest/dp/1451661193
https://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Promise-Part/dp/1595828117
https://digital.darkhorse.com/series/275/avatar-the-last-airbender
https://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Airbender-Gene-Luen-Yang/dp/1616550740
I bought it from here
I highly recommend checking out the actual book if you've ever had any interest in all in learning how the hell this movie was made. It's highly entertaining for a lot of reasons, but it also goes into some of the reasons and inspirations that drove Wiseau into filmmaking. The audiobook is also really good; it's read by Sestero himself, and his impression of Wiseau's accent is dead-on.
I am obsessed. Here is my current collection:
Most of these you can find on thepiratebay / etc, but I own a hard copy of all of these except for The Mystery Method, which I read probably 5 times before I found Magic Bullets (actually don't own that either, just the pdf). I'll add to this list if I think of more.
Must Reads:
Magic Bullets - Savoy ==>> [Torrent] it's expensive!
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion - Robert Cialdini
The Art of Seduction - Robert Greene
How to Win Friends & Influence People - Dale Carnegie
Should reads:
The Game - Neil Strauss
The Mystery Method : How to Get Beautiful Women Into Bed - Mystery, Chris Odom, Neil Strauss
How to Get the Women You Desire into Bed - Ross Jeffries
Truth in Comedy: The Manual of Improvisation - Charna Halpern, Del Close, Kim Johnson
Meh, they're alright:
The Pickup Artist: The New and Improved Art of Seduction - Mystery, Neil Strauss
Rules of the Game - Neil Strauss
Haven't read yet:
What Every BODY is Saying: An Ex-FBI Agent's Guide to Speed-Reading People - Joe Navarro, Marvin Karlins
NLP: The New Technology of Achievement - NLP Comprehensive
Easy Mind-Reading Tricks - Robert Mandelberg, Ferruccio Sardella
Palm Reading for Beginners: Find Your Future in the Palm of Your Hand (For Beginners (Llewellyn's)) - Richard Webster
There are also some good videos out there (links are to torrents. these are all several hundred $$):
Excellent Videos
The Annihilation Method - Neil Strauss
Mystery and Style
Decent Videos
Psychic Influence - Ross Jeffries
You’ve missed an awesome thing my dude!
Check it out!
This is a nice write-up. Before I get into it, you mentioned a Rinzler-style tome on the ST. I'm hoping something like that will eventually get released, but I also think it would be really interesting to collect as many interviews or notes to try to piece the production together. It's possible that even if they did release a Rinzler-style book, they might leave some stuff out too.
More quotes that might be relevant.
A few days before TFA released, Daisy Ridley spoke of Rey in an interview with Telegraph.
>"It was wonderful for me because although it's a big action film, the emotional story is wonderful and I think that shines through. Rey's parents left her at 5 and we meet her when she's late teens or early 20s and for someone to keep hopeful that there's a better life to come I think is astounding. Though she starts off alone, she very much finds her place in a group of people and that's lovely."
In 2016 while promoting another film, Ridley says this to Timeout.
>“I thought a lot was answered in The Force Awakens,” she told the publication. “Then after the screening I went for a drink with my agent and everyone, and we were chatting away and I realised that oh, in their minds it’s not answered at all!”
>
>'And I do find it quite funny that people keep asking about it. Just yesterday a guy asked to take a picture with me, and went "Is Luke your Dad"? And I was like, "chill out, you’ll see"!'
In another interview before TFA's release, Slashfilm spoke with JJ and they started talking about how he viewed the Force.
>For me when I heard Obi-Wan say that the Force surrounds us and binds us all together, there was no judgement about who you were. This was something that we could all access. Being strong with the force didn’t mean something scientific, it meant something spiritual. It meant someone who could believe, someone who could reach down to the depths of your feelings and follow this primal energy that was flowing through all of us. I mean, thats what was said in that first film!
>
>And there I am sitting in the theater at almost 11 years old and that was a powerful notion. And I think this is what your point was, we would like to believe that when shit gets serious, that you could harness that Force I was told surrounds not just some of us but every living thing. And so, I really feel like the assumption that any character needs to have inherited a certain number of midi-chlorians or needs to be part of a bloodline, it’s not that I don’t believe that as part of the canon, I’m just saying that at 11 years old, that wasn’t where my heart was. And so I respect and adhere to the canon but I also say that the Force has always seemed to me to be more inclusive and stronger than that.
These quotes lead me to think that JJ also had Rey as a nobody.
Regarding Colin Trevorrow's quote, I honestly think that is pretty vague. When he says "We're", I thought he was referring to Lucasfilm, him, Rian, just in general. At this point, did he have a cowriter? Also, if you continue on to the rest of what he says in that ET interview:
>I love Rey…I love her, I love what she represents in that universe and where we can take her. It’s pretty incredible.
What does he mean by "what she represents"? Personally, I'm inclined to think it has something to do with JJ's quote above. And at this point, Rian's script has been written, and Colin has read it so he knows that would be answered in Rian's film. I mean, I guess one could say Colin was going to retcon it in nine, but I think we would need more evidence for that. I just think this quote is so vague that we could interpret either way.
One interesting note from your quotes is that Daisy thinks JJ had drafts (draft of a script, a single-page outline?) of the next two films, but JJ makes it sound like he just had ideas, nothing written out.
To me, the emphasis is on that there were no dictated story beats. Any potential ideas for the story were only talked about, but never written down, or set in stone. So maybe KK had some ideas for what she would like to see, but she also gave the writer's creative freedom to tell the stories how they wanted. And even if JJ had other plans for Rey's parents, it seems like he either liked Rian's change or thought it was a better decision.
JJ Abrams close friend Greg Grunberg said this to Washington Post about JJ's thoughts on Rian's script:
>"He read it and said something he never, ever says,” Grunberg, who plays pilot Snap Wexley in the new film, tells The Post’s Comic Riffs. Grunberg said that Abrams called the Episode VIII script “so good” that he wished he had written it.
It seems weird when you put this alongside Simon Pegg's comment. So either Pegg only meant that a few ideas were being thrown around but JJ wasn't decided on any, or JJ had an idea of Rey having an important lineage, but he changed his mind about that idea once he read Rian's script. If Rian had changed something so fundamental that JJ had "set up", I just think he wouldn't have said those things to Greg. And JJ's quote about his views on the Force seems to really line up, message-wise, with Rey being a nobody.
I know that Rian asked JJ to have R2 go with Rey to Ach-To instead of BB-8, and I think getting rid of the floating rocks was another thing Rian may have asked JJ to remove, if that story is true. I mean, in TFA, Han says, "He was training a new generation of Jedi. One boy, an apprentice, turned against him, destroyed it all. Luke felt responsible. He just walked away from everything." And that's what we see in TLJ.
Rian actually says this regarding Luke being detached from the Force at a SXSW panel according to Flickering Myth:
>“For me, the reason that Luke had to turn off the Force was because of Leia. Because if he didn’t, if he had a connection to Leia, if he could see his sister suffering, if he could hear her calls for help, there’s no way he’d be able to do what he thinks in his head is what he has to do – which is to stay on that island (Ach-to) for the greater good of the galaxy.”
I'm guessing JJ just hadn't considered that, much like how he had Leia walk past Chewbacca at the end of TFA.
I'm kind of curious though, is not having a definitive outline for the trilogy a bad thing? I mean, the OT was definitely not planned out, but it worked. Just sort of think it is a false equivalency.
Anyway, I know that you're not a fan of the new films, especially TLJ, and I like the new films, but I think it is cool how you are collecting sources and trying to piece the process together. Thanks for sharing this! It's a cool discussion, and maybe the truth is somewhere in the middle.
Also, if you haven't read it, I would also suggest picking up Kiminski's "Secret History of Star Wars". It's a great book and could be used as a resource if you do any further research regarding George or 1-6.
It was made intentionally, according to one of the actors who later wrote a book about it. It just ended up being a cult classic of "funny-bad" movies.
Dan Harmon, creator of Community, is a student of Joseph Campbell and the use of the hero's journey in storytelling. Dan wrote about Story Structure on the channel101 forums years ago. The article's images seem to be missing, and he was writing to inspire 5 minute episodes for channel101, but it's still a great read.
There are books that go over the "Hero with a Thousand Faces" and storytelling, so you might want to check those out too if you're inspired by the idea.
EDIT:
just found this funny video where Dan talks about structure, also found the articles with pics at the channel101 wiki, but the forum posts have extras, like his comment about Star Wars and the monomyth in 104-1, Tarantino and Pulp Fiction in 104-2, etc.
YouTube - The Matrix - Joseph Campbell Monomyth
YouTube - LOST - A Hero's Journey
YouTube - Dan Harmon and Rob Schrab interview
You should order it too! It's less than ten dollars, and supporting A:TLA is totally worth it!
I've got the World of Warcraft cookbook and the Game of Thrones cookbook from the same author, and I highly recommend. She's also done a Hearthstone cookbook and a Shire(Hobbit food) cookbook that I've got on my wishlist. Looking forward to adding this one to the collection!
He doesn't "talk shit" as in insult people or put people down, but he frequently "talks shit" as in makes up complete bullshit lies to explain explain things or rewrite history. It's not to insult people, but it feels to me to be a form of insecurity that he is unwilling or unable to admit that anything was a "mistake" or that he changed his mind ever.
A fantastic book about the history of the franchise that provides all sorts of citations demonstrates how Lucas's favourite phrase is "I always intended..." (as South Park famously parodied).
Star Wars was originally (or at least very early) conceived as a Flash Gordon serial of a dozen films - but like James Bond with completely independent stories set around the same characters/universe, with Lucas directing the first, and handing the reins to other directors for each subsequent film.
At some point it becomes more of a saga... then you get the trilogy... the prequels... the sequels... in the interviews preceding the mid-90s special edition VHS tapes he alleges to have always planned a 9-part story with 4-5-6 being the middle, and having plans for the stories for the other two trilogies. Later he claimed he never actually had anything planned for the sequel trilogy beyond a brief outline, and I think even later still he denied ever planning a sequel trilogy when he realized that he was going to make the series about the rise and fall of Vader (who was dead after ep.6) which would make a sequel trilogy out of place.
That's just one example. He claims to have always planned the stories as they were, even though it's clear that Vader wasn't written as Luke's father until a revised draft of Empire (Vader is more of a henchman to Tarkin than a central villain in Ep. 4 - he didn't become the menacing figurehead leader of the empire until Ep. 4) Various lines in Ep4 have to be twisted to fit the father narrative - most famously Obiwan's "true... from a certain point of view" line.
If anyone is interested in the Upright Citizens Brigade there's a book you can purchase that's quite good and is the standard resource for anyone interested in rat dicks.
Aftermath. They split it between 4 books. Book one already out and it's so awesome. It has tons of romance between Aang and Katara, and shows kinda how republic city is soon to be made. It's pretty good and worth while to buy, in my opinion. Especially if they don't show the back story.
This collects all three volumes: link
the graphic novels are really great. Lots of good content if you like comics!
Lots of us like HamStudy as the admin is a member of this sub and takes feedback/suggestions from us from time to time. It's focused mainly on practice tests although there is a good amount of explanatory information alongside the questions.
Some aspiring hams still like paper books... the most popular one is the ARRL License Manual which has a lot of the underlying theory, I also like the Gordon West books which are basically a paper version of hamstudy.org
Magician here. Head on over to the sidebar at /r/Magic - there's plenty of information on exactly where to start.
For my money, there's no better place to start than a cheap book. For card magic, look to "The Royal Road to Card Magic". For coins, grab "Modern Coin Magic". For general magic, pick up either Mark Wilson's Complete Course or Joshua Jay's Complete Course.
None of those books should run you more than fifteen bucks. Grab a copy and just read it until you get bored.
Also, please, don't ever learn magic on youtube. The thing that's hard for those new to magic to understand is that it is a craft that has been worked on for thousands of years. Every secret, every beautiful piece of magic ever invented has been based on the work of others, which couldn't have existed if it weren't for the work of others even before them. Every secret, as minute as you can imagine, deserves to be shared with the express permission of the person who put in the hours, days, and years of work it took to discover that secret. YouTube magic schools rarely give proper credit, and truthfully, they rarely teach a magic trick very well at all. You can also never be truly sure that a YouTube magician is worth their salt, whereas you can see--from the fact that these books are decades old yet still being heralded as some of the best magic books out there--that we magicians think they are worth reading.
Bottom line: youtube will teach you secrets. A good magic book, like the ones I recommended, will teach you how to be a magician.
The look on Rick McCallum's face is priceless.
Also, I LOVE the Plinkett reviews.
"WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOUR FACE?!" I couldn't stop laughing. I spit out this line every now and then as a reaction to something minor, and it still gives me a good giggle.
BTW, I would heartily recommend "The Secret History of Star Wars" by Michael Kaminsky:
https://www.amazon.com/Secret-History-Star-Wars/dp/0978465237/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2X43O7YDRXML1&keywords=the+secret+history+of+star+wars&qid=1551223399&s=gateway&sprefix=the+secret+history+of+star%2Caps%2C183&sr=8-1
It's a superbly researched and annotated book that focuses specifically on just the writing and production of the first six films. Kaminsky's prose is concise and dispassionate, and really just lets the facts stand by themselves.
I read it in less than a week and it's one of my favorite books of its kind.
If anybody here hasn't read 'The Disaster Artist' you really really need to.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Disaster-Artist-Inside-Greatest/dp/1451661193
It's the story of the production of The Room written by Greg Sestero, who plays Mark.
Do NOT go into debt for film school.
If it is payed for, then sure, it should be a lot of fun. But your reel already surpasses 95% of what I see from students who have already graduated film school.
If you are taking out money to go to film school.... dont. Student loan payments are one of the biggest obstacles when trying to launch a freelance career. Also, a film degree doesnt mean dick to most people in this industry. Unless you want to have a 9-5 at a studio or something. And thats stupid.
Use the money to:
or
http://www.amazon.com/Story-Substance-Structure-Principles-Screenwriting/dp/0413715604/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=&qid=
http://www.amazon.com/Screenplay-Foundations-Screenwriting-Syd-Field/dp/0385339038/ref=pd_sim_b_9
http://www.amazon.com/The-Writers-Journey-Structure-Edition/dp/193290736X/ref=pd_sim_b_5
http://www.amazon.com/Save-Last-Book-Screenwriting-Youll/dp/1932907009/ref=pd_sim_b_2
http://www.amazon.com/Making-Movies-Sidney-Lumet/dp/0679756604
Absorb. Read again. Then write and shoot your own movies. It will cost less than film school, it will be MORE fun than listening to failed film makers telling you how to make movies, and it could potentially launch your career.
Also, if you are ever in New Orleans, PM me and I will buy you a beer.
https://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X
It does exist and it is an amazing cookbook!!
World of Warcraft: The Official Cookbook https://www.amazon.com/dp/160887804X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_lDonDbE3H92QT
The soup tastes very good. Lots of Ancient Pandaren Spices 😉
Let me help you out, fam.
Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual by Matt Besser, Ian Roberts and Matt Walsh
Hey! I finally get to say something relevant!!!
I'm currently in my third Improv class (Improv 301) at HUGE Theater! I was in the first Improv 101 class to be offered by HUGE just before they opened their doors to the public.
Anyone who is the slightest bit interested in Improv should take the 101 level class. 101 classes start this Sunday, May 1st!
Go here to register!
If you have concerns about paying the $200 up front, send the instructor an e-mail and they may be willing to work with you. They're super nice folks. It's a ten week class and they're really great. There's no pressure and you have a lot of fun... Seriously, I highly recommend it.
HUGE classes specialize in longform improv which are made up of longer, more engaging scenes. What you see in 'Who's Line..' is more considered shortform. Both forms involve games and characters, but longform allows you to really dig into scene work.
There is no straight line from taking classes to going into performing. I've had classes with experienced performers looking for a refresher.
Brave New Workshop has workshops available that guide you towards performance and some require an audition. HUGE and Brave New Workshop have great working relationships with each other and you'll see improvisors reporting in at both spots.
If you take a class at HUGE, you also get to go to their shows for free Sunday through Wednesday nights as a student. Shows are $5 normally and usually start around 8pm.
If you're looking to get your nerd on with the other improvisers, you may find some solace in the Minneapolis Improv Boards, although I don't think it's extremely active.
Disclaimer: I had ZERO improv or acting experience before going into class .. I had a friend who suggested I try a workshop for fun and I ended up signing up for the 101 class and loved it. I plan to continue on and even try my hand at performing after this class.
Good luck and I'll see you out there!
Edit: Oh yeah, if you're interested in some light reading, I recommend Truth in Comedy. Del Close helped start Improv as we know it today. Also, it used to be on Netflix Watch Instantly, but you definitely want to watch Trust Us, This Is All Made Up to see how amazing Improv can be.
I hadn't heard of Del Close until I moved to NYC and lived with a guy who did improv. He gave me Del's book "Truth in Comedy", which was an incredible read (and I'm not a comedy writer or performer).
Try it and find out.
It doesn't MATTER what model you use. None of them magically make your script great.
Here are some others you can think about. Experiment and find out what feels most comfortable for you and seems to work best with the story you're trying to tell.
Three Acts
A really old (but still useful) model of story-telling structure involves three acts:
Occasionally, like with Job in the Bible, shit just happens to a character. But it’s usually much more interesting when a character actively tries to solve a problem or achieve some goal.
Probably the most famous explainer of the three-act structure for screenwriting is Syd Field in Screenplay.
A similar model is in How to Write a Movie in 21 Days by Viki King.
Hero’s Journey
Another really old (but still useful) model of structure involves a “hero’s journey.”
Joseph Campbell is often associated with this model, but it’s as old as story-telling.
Basically, the hero’s journey
>involves a hero who goes on an adventure, and in a decisive crisis wins a victory, and then comes home changed or transformed.
This model was applied to screenwriting in The Writer’s Journey by Christopher Vogler.
It’s all about theme
Craig Mazin (HBO’s Chernobyl and the Scriptnotes podcast) says structure is all about theme.
He says it’s about asking what your character believes at the beginning, and what you want that character to believe at the end.
The structure of a script thus arises out of the character confronting, and wrestling with, that thematic question.
He talks about it here.
The Unified Theory of Screenwriting
In this interview, I talked with Ashley Miller (Thor, X-Men First Class). Here’s what he had to say about structure:
>I’m not a fan of anything that smacks of formula—“If you do this, your screenplay will work.”
I don’t care if you’re talking about Christopher Vogler, or if you’re talking about Robert McKee, or if you’re talking about Blake Snyder. I don’t believe that’s how the creation process works.
What they’ve each identified is an analytical tool. They’ve identified a way of looking at a product in retrospect and telling you what the parts are.
In other words, many structure models are autopsies – but they’re not recipes.
Miller combined a bunch of different structure models into a chart that he could apply to his own work – as a diagnostic tool AFTER he wrote one or more drafts.
>I’m not saying, “This isn’t working because it fails to meet any of these standards.”
What I’m asking is, “Am I getting an insight about what’s making me feel this bump in the story?
What’s making me hear and smell the gears grinding?”
You can see the chart at the interview link above.
> I don't want to make money off of [short films]
Well, great news! You're very unlikely to make any money off any given short film. However, it can be a great calling card for something else (features, ads, music videos).
It's a lot faster to see the rewards than a feature (which is a long hard slog to be honest). And shorts are a great introduction to the medium without being overwhelming (and weighed down by structural considerations).
> I'm immensely interested in shorts. What I lack is a story. I mean, I've no idea how to structure a short. I'm assuming it's the same as the feature one? The three act structure?
I advise to watch as many shorts as you can (you are spoiled for choice on Vimeo, YouTube and/or Short of the Week). Make a note of which ones you love and why.
Personally, I like shorts that have a 'sting in the tail,' some sort of revelation at the end that alter your perception of the rest of the story. However, a short can be a slice-of-life or a character study or
just plain experiment.
The structure of a short can be fairly fluid and still enjoyable and consumable. You don't have the time to establish a lot beyond one or two characters or an intricate plot (at least, without being confusing).
Very often, great shorts are two acts. A set-up and a pay-off. Or three acts, but the third act can be extremely short.
> An idea which has a beginning, a mid point, and an ending. How do I get an idea for a short?
So the great thing about a short is that it is often an exploration of one or two key themes or ideas. It can be based around a single joke ("The Furry Chequebook").
You really can just think of "what if... " and explore just that idea, without having to worry about fleshed-out characters or a B-story etc. What if a guy had control of a small Black Hole?
What if Cape Town was riddled with monsters?
Regarding getting ideas. Observe things around you. Write down thoughts that occur to you. Things that are important to you and you think worthy of exploration.
> My last question is, please suggest me a good book on formatting?
The usual reference for this is the latest edition of David Trottier's The Screenwriter's Bible. This is a great resource for beginners
as well as a reference if you've forgotten a good way to format some element.
Hi u/TopherTheIncel - here are my filmmaking "desert island" books:
Screenwriting
Filmmaking - General
Editing
Limited Resources
Hope this is helpful and good luck on your filmmaking journey!
Joseph Campbell.
One key thing to remember: Campbell's work is descriptive, not prescriptive. What I mean is that he was describing and interpreting the trends that he found in mostly ancient folklore, myths, and legends. He had no intention of creating a formula for storytellers to refer to, although this is now common practice.
Also, "Star Wars closely follows the monomyth" is really not a topic. You need to answer the "So what?" question. Why did Lucas do that? Where does he deviate from the monomyth? How does he use these common trends to tell a unique story? How does it reflect the time in which it was produced? You don't have to answer all of these questions, but you do need to address something beyond simply plugging in Star Wars characters and situations where appropriate.
You should probably seek out the Joseph Campbell-Bill Moyers collaboration The Power of Myth*. Lots of libraries have a copy. It is much, much easier to digest than Campbell's original work, unless you are already familiar with a great number of myths and extensive academic terminology. The tv series by the same name is pretty good, as well. For a book that uses Campbell's monomyth but updates it with examples from modern media (and a prescriptive purpose), pick this up.
Source: Wrote master's thesis using Campbell scholarship as a resource.
On My Shelf:
Nonfiction:
[where there is no doctor] (https://www.amazon.com/Where-There-No-Doctor-Handbook/dp/0942364155)
[where there is no dentist] (https://www.amazon.com/Where-There-Dentist-Murray-Dickson/dp/0942364058/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0942364058&pd_rd_r=P7QG34TNRGWWJ4VG3CES&pd_rd_w=zUT5r&pd_rd_wg=bQSPa&psc=1&refRID=P7QG34TNRGWWJ4VG3CES)
[emergency war surgery] (https://www.amazon.com/Emergency-War-Surgery-Survivalists-Reference-ebook/dp/B007FH3S8C/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492111178&sr=1-1&keywords=war+surgery)
[Seed to Seed, a seed saving book] (https://www.amazon.com/Seed-Growing-Techniques-Vegetable-Gardeners/dp/1882424581/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492111210&sr=1-1&keywords=seed+saving)
[mini farming] (https://www.amazon.com/Mini-Farming-Self-Sufficiency-Brett-Markham/dp/1602399840/ref=pd_sim_14_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1602399840&pd_rd_r=QYQGAKY6D2PJX21W5DBC&pd_rd_w=ZSjVd&pd_rd_wg=MKw9N&psc=1&refRID=QYQGAKY6D2PJX21W5DBC)
[square foot gardening] (https://www.amazon.com/All-Square-Foot-Gardening-Revolutionary/dp/1591865484/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1591865484&pd_rd_r=NW7HBPKNFJ2J8JYTR22M&pd_rd_w=kMSVD&pd_rd_wg=v6qzT&psc=1&refRID=NW7HBPKNFJ2J8JYTR22M)
[Ball Canning Guide] (https://www.amazon.com/All-Ball-Book-Canning-Preserving/dp/0848746783/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492111296&sr=1-1&keywords=ball+canning)
[Steve Rinella's Big Game] (https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Hunting-Butchering-Cooking/dp/081299406X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492111322&sr=1-1&keywords=rinella+guide)
[Steve Rinella's Small Game] (https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Guide-Hunting-Butchering-Cooking/dp/0812987055/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0812987055&pd_rd_r=HSSM813BSWTXN5Q77P1R&pd_rd_w=j1UjP&pd_rd_wg=OWNY6&psc=1&refRID=HSSM813BSWTXN5Q77P1R)
[root cellaring] (https://www.amazon.com/Root-Cellaring-Natural-Storage-Vegetables/dp/0882667033/ref=sr_1_sc_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492111429&sr=1-1-spell&keywords=root+cellarig)
[country wisdom and know how] (https://www.amazon.com/Garden-Wisdom-Know-How-Everything-Harvest/dp/1579128378/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492111470&sr=1-3&keywords=country+wisdom)
[timberframe construction] (https://www.amazon.com/Learn-Timber-Frame-Craftsmanship-Simplicity/dp/1612126685/ref=sr_1_9?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492111553&sr=1-9&keywords=cabin+construction)
[Ham radio -tech] (https://www.amazon.com/ARRL-Ham-Radio-License-Manual/dp/1625950136/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492111593&sr=1-1&keywords=ham+radio)
[ham radio general] (https://www.amazon.com/General-Class-License-Manual-Amateur/dp/1625950306/ref=pd_sim_14_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1625950306&pd_rd_r=12TE98J0V80PC5Z8PMNJ&pd_rd_w=EfgM9&pd_rd_wg=jqqg2&psc=1&refRID=12TE98J0V80PC5Z8PMNJ)
[The FoxFire Series ] (https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Collection-Anniversary-Editions-Anniversay/dp/B00MRH3RYU/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1492879953&sr=8-4&keywords=foxfire)
Also pickup up books on useful skills: raising rabbits, welding, different random construction books.
Fiction:
[Lucifer's Hammer] (https://www.amazon.com/Lucifers-Hammer-Larry-Niven/dp/0449208133/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492880068&sr=1-1&keywords=lucifers+hammer)
[One second After] (https://www.amazon.com/Second-After-John-Matherson-Novel/dp/0765356864/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492880115&sr=1-1&keywords=one+second+after)
[the martian] (https://www.amazon.com/Martian-Andy-Weir/dp/0553418025/ref=pd_sim_14_41?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0553418025&pd_rd_r=D4JHG0ERDKJXA7NYCZHX&pd_rd_w=vAle5&pd_rd_wg=9wBYx&psc=1&refRID=D4JHG0ERDKJXA7NYCZHX)
[the road] (https://www.amazon.com/Road-Cormac-McCarthy/dp/0307387895/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492880272&sr=1-1&keywords=the+road0)
[alas babylon] (https://www.amazon.com/Alas-Babylon-Pat-Frank/dp/0060741872/ref=sr_1_10?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1492880316&sr=1-10&keywords=babylon)
I don't think you need to read the whole book (there's a small summary that's a few pages out there), but I found Greg Dean's book helpful for learning how to write simple setup/punchline jokes.
For improv (and it applies to sketch too imo), the UCB manual is the best book I've read.
For writing, this book from one of the founders of The Onion is really good. I think if I had to recommend just one comedy book, it would be this one.
Format is only half of the story. A big part of long form improv is the mentality, structure, and approach. My highest recommendation is to read a very short book called Truth in Comedy.
Stop focusing on what you don't have and can't do. That's like the kid learning to ride a bike and can't stop staring at the telephone pole in the sidewalk: he keeps staring at it and he keeps steering straight into it.
Put some focus on the things you can accomplish and can acquire: You can make yourself stronger, and it's not the thing that will take you 4 hours a day (4 hours would make it faster, but it's not necessary). 25 pushups four times a day will take you no more than 5 minutes total and costs you zero, yet after a month or so will start showing you some visible results. Swimming takes a bit more time a day, but has more pronounced results on your physique. Bike riding is pretty much free once you have a bike. The girls calling you ugly is at least half kids just being kids and doing what they can to hurt other kids - adults don't do that sort of thing very often even when it is true. Get yourself into better shape and they'll probably start changing their tune.
Good grades will only cost you the effort you put into it, and will pay off tremendously in the future: college grants and the like come far easier to the guys who have great grades and learn how to apply for them.
Get yourself a hobby that is interesting and teaches you something - this will make you interesting to others and give you things to talk about. You can research it online at the library or get books on the subject. Astronomy will give you some perspective, learning to perform magic tricks will help you entertain people (The Royal Road to Card Magic is an excellent book to start with, and can be bought used for less than $2 plus shipping), balloon animals will help you get along with kids.
Get a part-time job. If you can afford to take a girl to dinner and a movie, they'll not be inclined to turn their nose up at you. Also, if you work in the food industry (McDonalds, pizza, fine dining, whatever) you can get meals free and might be able to take some food home - your family having to pay for less meals will help their situation and perhaps generate some upward momentum.
Also, cut your soda pop intake by at least %50. For most Americans, soda makes up about 60% of their calorie intake and is horrible for your teeth. Rotting teeth are very expensive to fix and very avoidable. Plus, making yourself look good is a lot easier if you're not overweight.
Get in the habit of walking around with a good, upright posture. Whenever you can, force yourself to smile at least 10 times an hour - this has been shown to actually affect your mood regardless of whether you had a good reason to smile, plus folks take a much more positive view of people who seem happy.
At least once a day pay someone a sincere compliment - don't just make something up, find something about them or something they've done that you can honestly say something good about. Also, once a day try to do something, anything, to help someone out or make their job a little easier: people that see you do stuff like that will look up to you for it, and the people you help will try to pay you back for being a good Joe.
Also, don't even try to date girls that primarily pay attention to your wallet - unless you enjoy watching them have sex with your wallet instead of you.
Great book!
http://www.amazon.com/Hitchcock-Revised-Francois-Truffaut/dp/0671604295/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1425519415&sr=8-4&keywords=hitchcock
Still have this; this was the shit when I was a kid. (http://www.amazon.com/Star-Trek-Next-Generation-Technical/dp/0671704273)
I feel like nerd-raging today so I whipped out my TNG Technical Manual. I will paraphrase some relevant sections.
___
The Structural Integrity Field System (SIF) has five different field generators located on two different decks. Each field generator has 20 separate graviton polarity sources. The SIF has four independent backup generators as well. So, that is nine total and only ONE is required during normal spaceflight, two during extreme maneuvers.
The Inertial Dampening Field System (IDF) is provided by 6 seperate generators located on Decks 11 and 33. Each generator consists of 12 independent subspace field distortion amplifiers. In addition to the 6 main generators, there are another 6 backup generators. So you have a total of 12, with the minimum being, again, a single generator. This is only in a reduced power situation, during normal spaceflight 2 generators are usually online.
To give you an idea of how integral they are, under complete SIF/IDF failure the Enterprise's spaceframe can only handle 3g of acceleration. Under impulse power, the Enterprise experiences more than 1000g on a regular basis. The failure of just 2 generators can have the Enterprise canceling the mission and heading to a starbase.
Or you can just buy it off amazon for 19 dollars.
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Animated-Series/dp/1595825045
It's in the books! I got them for my wife. The artwork is vey nice.
If you read the old Star Trek Next Generation technical manual...
http://www.amazon.com/Star-Trek-Generation-Technical-Unnumbered/dp/0671704273
They clearly state that they cannot create the chemical reactions and complexities of living flesh. the few attempts all created a lump that looked like it was covered in chemical burns.
I didn't read all of your other post. However, I did read the part where you say that you take a few minutes to come up with dialogue in the middle of the game. I don't know what's going on at your gaming table specifically, but I would recommend playing as a fantasy version of yourself. That way, you don't need to think as much about what your character would say. You just say what you would say. You also probably won't have to practice as much during the week.
Also to answer your question, I don't think anyone practices as their current character. However, if you want to practice improvisational speaking, you should check out the improv comedy scene in your town. Also, this improv comedy book has specific drills you can do with your friends to get better at improvisational speaking.
Did you ever read The Disaster Artist?
Sestero suggests he probably did escape all those things, but I can't remember specifics, and I don't think anyone but Tommy totally knows the truth anyway.
The actual teachings of the Jedi and the Sith can be found in The Jedi Path and Book of the Sith. The two are considered Legends, but both are great in character books of what each organization thought of their respective teachings.
Googling the answer to this question can lead to a lot of opinions; I mainly find information about the Jedi Code and being 'emotionless' (wrong) and how the Sith are good guys, so I would try and avoid that stuff if you want to form your own opinion on both.
Watching the Clone Wars in the later seasons can give you a good idea on the Sith Code. [A training scene between Dooku and Savage Opress has a great example of that type of training.] (https://youtu.be/7bYqIksEOek)
An interesting thing about the Sith Code is that it was created for KOTOR and basically a reverse of the Jedi Code. The writer of Korriban and the Sith said this in an interview about the Code/Philosophy:
> Korriban was the only actual planet I wrote (though I contributed to sections of Kashyyk and Tatooine). Was tough, too, as it went through a couple of overhauls before we finally settled on how it needed to work. Doing the Sith wasn’t easy, either, as there wasn’t a lot of lore on them— not as a group. I remember asking what their philosophy was, or if they had a code like the Jedi, but ended up being told to write it myself.
So, yeah. That’s where the Code of the Sith came from (reverse the Jedi Code— done!). And the Sith philosophy (at least what I wrote of it for Korriban) was inspired by Mein Kampf at least in parts (which made the forumites who talked about how awesome it was, and how it made sense, one part hilarious and one part frightening).
I enjoy both sides from the story standpoints; I enjoy the Sith as a group of really evil, selfish dudes who want power and will do anything for the freedom of using that power. They are not held back because there is no one above them to hold them back, they've taken out everyone that could hold them back.
The Jedi believe their powers are not to be used for selfish reasons. They will have freedom when they pass away and become one with the Force. They have magical abilities that they use to help others and know that strong emotions can lead to them abusing those powers, so they learn control.
You might be interested in the book Truth In Comedy. I used it for Improv classes.
Welcome to the community! Happy to see a new face join in; I'm a little new to reddit myself, but, I've got a few places and lessons that have helped me develop my craft in a major way.
Welcome to the craft. If you want some coverage on your draft, I'd love to give feedback once you're ready. Cheers!
Also, since it hasn't been mentioned, I've been encouraged to read the interviews between Alfred Hitchcock and Francois Truffaut. I haven't had a chance to read them entirely yet, but the bits I have read have been really insightful.
https://www.amazon.com/Hitchcock-Revised-Francois-Truffaut/dp/0671604295
Theres a 15 part documentary on Hulu called The Story of Film: An Odyssey. It's excellent, and it will give you a very broad understanding of the history of film.
As for lists, one good way to start is to watch all of the movies on the [AFI 100] (http://www.afi.com/100Years/movies.aspx). That will give you a very broad picture of the history of American movies. Just set aside one day a week and watch one movie on the list every week.
Don't just watch them. Try to find out WHY each movie is revered as it is. After watching it, then read as much as you can about it. Read Roger Ebert's review, read it's entry on Filmsite.org, and start trying to contextualize each movie in its place in cinema history.
That will take you two years, but you'll have a much deeper appreciation than you do now.
After that, I suggest watching the BFI Sight and Sound Top 50. That will give you a more broad understanding of foreign film as well.
As for books I assign these to my class:
Film Art: An Introduction
This is the textbook that the department assigns. Its pretty broad and a decent overview.
Hitchcock In the 1960's Francois Truffaut interviewed Alfred Hitchcock and covered his entire filmography in detail. Fantastic, indispensable read.
What Is Cinema?
Andre Bazin was a french film critic, and the originator of Auteur theory. This is one of the original film theory books.
The American Cinema
Andrew Sarris is the American analog of Bazin. This is also a fundamental Film Theory book.
That should give you a solid start.
read. the. comics.
Adding to this bit by HeirToPendragon:
> The Lost Adventures is a collection of official comics from the series that were put in various other places (like Nick Mag). A few tell stories about what happened between seasons.
"The Lost Adventures" also includes the comics that were bundled with the DVD releases (of the non-boxed set variety), like the "Private Fire" comic which came with the Season 3 DVDs. Also, the comics collected in this book are grouped by season, which helps if you want to read them in the chronological order of the show. "The Lost Adventures" is a pretty good collection since it incudes so many comics (it is 240 pages long) and it spans all three seasons of the show, so if you only get one book to start with, this is the one to get.
The four "Lost Scrolls" books (Water, Earth, Fire, Air; alternatively, I think this one book collects all four) include some background information about the four nations in the world of Avatar as well as some first-person stories from Season 1 (basically, some episodes told from the perspective of some of the characters).
The "Earth Kingdom Chronicles" (titles start with "The Tale of [insert character name here]", available for Aang, Katara, Sokka, Toph, Azula, Zuko; I think this one collects some but not all of them) are similar, but for Season 2 and they don't include background info, just first-person perspectives of the episodes. Basically, you follow the individual characters through Season 2.
There's also three little comics set during Season 3 ("Aang's School Days", "Sokka the Sword Master", and "Love Potion #8"). I've heard these aren't that good, but they exist so I'm mentioning them.
"Sozin's Comet" is a novelization of the series finale (the four "Sozin's Comet" episodes).
The new comics, starting with "The Promise, Part 1", are set after the end of Season 3, and those will start coming out early next year.
If you want to read all these Avatar books more or less in chronological order, you'd start with "The Lost Scrolls", then continue with the Season 1 comics in "The Lost Adventures", move on to the "Earth Kingdom Chronicles", then the Season 2 comics in "The Lost Adventures", then the three short Season 3 comics, then the Season 3 comics in "The Lost Adventures", then the "Sozin's Comet" book, then "The Promise" and all that comes after.
And, of course, there's also The Art of the Animated Series, but that's not a graphic novel and would be more for you or for your son when he's older. =)
Edited to add links.
Well you're in luck! The canon Promise and Search comics bridge the gap between ATLA and LoK.
The Promise and the Search are ongoing comics. The Promise part 3 is released in a couple days, and the Search hasn't been released yet. You can get the Promise parts 1 and 2 here and here.
First, actually find a therapist.
​
Second, since you probably won't actually find a therapist (even though you should), below are a few strategies that got me through my roughest patches in investment banking and private equity:
Although it's not a comic, you might wanna check out Avatar: The Last Airbender (The Art of the Animated Series) too. It's a gorgeous artbook.
This Book. Find one used. Work through it slowly. Page by page. Read every trick in it. Find your favorites and master them. A few tricks done really well are better than thousands done poorly.
Everything you ever wanted to know about Hitchcock, there is also a documentary based on these interviews on HBO.
https://www.amazon.com/Hitchcock-Revised-Francois-Truffaut/dp/0671604295/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1484863216&sr=8-1&keywords=hitchcock+truffaut
As /u/MrFoxLovesBoobafina has mentioned he was influenced by silent film directors, also read a lot of books which gave him the basis for most of his script ideas.
I'm not the best person to be giving advice, but I just dropped out of film school last year (I was only there for a year) and have begun making some progress on my own.
First of all, watch a lot of movies. Literally the only thing I miss about school was having access to so many classic films playing in the theater every weekend. Netflix can be just as good, however. But never stop going to the theater.
Secondly, read. Look up some textbooks that film classes use. I really enjoyed Shot By Shot and On Directing Film, since I want to be a director.
Thirdly, and most importantly. Make films. Try to work on projects all the time. Your projects, your friends projects, random web series that post on facebook asking for free crew members.... it doesn't matter. Stay surrounded by film, because that's another one of film school's biggest strengths. It can be difficult to stay motivated when you don't have a GPA looming over your head.
Again, I'm by no means a success so take my advice however you will. Good luck!
The Secret History of Star Wars by Michael Kaminski (here )
does a pretty good job of showing you that Lucas really had no plans beyond the first movie! Everything else was made up later on!
You, my friend, need to read this book:
The Secret History of Star Wars
The book goes into Lucas' old drafts of SW and notes and basically everything that led him to creating SW. I agree with you that he made a ton of stuff up as he went along. Hell, he didn't even pick up on Vader being Luke's father until the middle of writing ESB script. It's all in this book. He basically went in to ESB wanting funds for Skywalker Ranch. Then went into ROTJ because he needed money because of his divorce. Then the Prequels were basically the same, needed money, kids were older.
The most interesting thing is the old drafts of SW and the names and places that were originally in place. The Jedi were known as the Jedi Bendu Warriors. Bendu has been introduced in Rebels season 3. The Ashla and Bogan were also introduced in Rebels. Vader was originally a different person and part of the Knights of the Sith. Knights of Ren are in the ST. Wendu was originally the main character. What I'm getting at is the LF Story Group is definitely picking through Lucas' old notes, drafts, ideas to assist in creating new SW content.
It depends on what you're drawn to. Are you more interested in interpretation of story for your own personal growth? Or interpretation of films? Or are you looking to create stories?
The best books I know on this subject at least on interpretive myth include:
In my experience, after Campbell people usually begin to drift toward what their personal myths are. So you have some people who get really into film and get caught on Vogler or Bonnet's work, others who want to go help returning veterans and end up getting really into Odysseus in America. Or people begin focusing on different cultures and religions and move from there.
Really, studios don't have hired crews anymore, so unless you want a desk job, working for Warner Bros. isn't really going to happen. Writers definitely don't work for the studios anymore. Screenwriters are more or less "freelance:" they write scripts, then sell them to whoever wants to make them. Once directors and producers are hired for the project, they more or less pick their own crews for the shooting and post-production processes.
My advice would be to decide what you want to do and learn everything you possibly can about that craft. Each person on a film set has a specific set of responsibilities and must be able to do them well.
If you want to be a writer, you have to know script theory and format like the back of your hand. /r/screenwriting can be a decent resource, but take any advice you get there with a grain of salt. Many of the writers there are bitter and simply throw out rules and limitations that they read in the same books you can rent from the library or buy at Half Price Books for $5. $5 advice doesn't really help anybody in the long run.
If you feel like you have a great story to tell, then don't let anybody tell you how to tell it. That's the great thing about being the writer: You can tell your story however you want. If it's garbage, that's okay. At least it was a learning experience, and you get better with every new thing that you write. Don't be afraid to write bad material. It happens to all of us, especially when you're learning.
If you do decide to study screenwriting, David Trottier's The Screenwriting Bible is a great resource. I would also recommend picking up some sort of style guide. This is the one that I use, and it's great. It's set up like a glossary, so that if I forget how to format a certain scenario, I can just flip right to it.
Apart from that, just watch as many movies as you can and analyse them to the best of your abilities. There really is no better teacher than the work that came before.
Good luck and have fun!
> So I recently got the idea that I wanted to create a website and figured with little to no experience I would start a blog of sorts. I want to create it mainly because I want the experience and I plan to make more website in the future.
I have a few questions regarding the process and mainly looking for tips. I do not feel as if I am an amazing writer nor am I super creative, so I figured this would be a good way to help me improve in those areas. And also not being either of those should I toss the idea of a blog out? I came up with a website name and made a page but then it all stopped, every idea I had just went blank I was overwhelmed with what was in front of me.
So I guess my first question would be when creating a new website what do I do first? I made the page cleaned it up a bit but now its just plain and empty. I wrote a quick intro piece but now I find myself going to other blogs trying to see what to do.
When creating my website I also realized I have no pictures of anything and I was reading its not good to go to google for that. Which obviously I do not want to use some one else photos but I also feel like I need a starting point.
Again I am extremely new to this but it is something I would like to invest myself in. If anyone has any tips or references that would be great. Sorry if this isnt the right place to be.
First, I'd just start with Medium. It's a great first step so you stop worrying about the design and just start focusing on learning to write.
Even if your blog takes off years from now, you might still find yourself coming back to Medium. Look at Signal v. Noise. One of the first companies to take vlogging seriously in the early 2000s. http://signalvnoise.com/ (I write there) And we moved it all to Medium.
Images? If you need images in a post use Unsplash.com. License free. Gorgeous pics of almost everything.
Really don't overthink this. Just start writing something. It's not going to be very good at first I bet.
Just get yourself to commit to publishing something once a week. And it'll get better, I promise.
References? I'd just learn to tell good stories. Here's one of my favs:
https://www.amazon.com/Story-Structure-Substance-Principles-Screenwriting-ebook/dp/B0042FZVOY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1493417056&sr=8-1&keywords=story
Biggest lesson from the book is lead people from one "charge" of an important emotion to another. Show my sadness turning into happiness, depression to joy, broke to not-broke, frustrated trying to start a business to not ---- you get the point.
Show me the mountain and how you got over it. Or someone else. It doesn't have to be about you. Interview people. Tell their stories if you get stuck on you.
Getting interviews is pretty easy. Just email a bunch of folks that like to talk about themselves and promote themselves :)
There are ton of VIP type people who'd love to do an interview even on new sites with little traction.
Just send someone less than 5 questions and have them fill it out over email, and you can publish that. Or do a 15 minute phone call. Keep the time commitments light. (Someone just asked me to spend "a couple hours" with them on their podcast. I do not have a "couple hours" to do anything)
Just start. Stop thinking about this. :)
I think this is another one of those "actor-audience" versus "actor-writer" things. The powers might appear random to the characters, and if you're in actor-audience mode, that means you feel like it should be random to the players as well. But that's not how Fate works; you have to take a step back from being purely a participant and assume some aspects of the creator's mantle in order to get the most out of the game, and I think a lot of people trip over that, since it's exactly the opposite of what most RPGs encourage you do to.
...which I suppose is all a long-winded way of saying that the best Fate resource books I own are this and this.
The novel Cryptonomicon springs to mind. While not an RPG source book, I think you'll like it.
As for entertaining reading of RPG material, my knowledge is very out of date, which may actually provide some out-of-print gems you may not know about.
First is The Shadowrun Seattle Sourcebook. The version I remember was the original from 1990 - but their appears to newer versions. Never really played much of the actual game, but loved this source book.
Volo's Guide to Waterdeep. Cool guide to the coolest city of the coolest D&D world; The Forgotten Realms. We played the hell out of nearly all the 2nd Edition Realms stuff in the 90's. This book was more fun to read then actually useful in-game, far as I can recall.
I really liked the Q Manual. and Thrilling Locations. Great if you're a Bond fan at all.
The Start Trek TNG Technical Manual. Man I'm pissed I lent out my hard copy of this, never got it back.
Searching for these titles combined with "PDF" in google yields scans of many of these titles I believe. I noticed a few PDFs when looking for the links I provided. Not that I condone downloading scanned PDFs from out-of-print books (and wait, maybe I do?)
Interestingly, this one blog post “How to Be a Better Improviser” is actually a brilliant distillation of the most important concepts.
It goes without saying that without practice reading alone will have limited utility.
I didn't get involved in the improv scene until after I moved away from there but I've looked into it a little when visiting.
I've seen some shows and taken a workshop at Spectacles in Fullerton that were a lot of fun but the age group may be slightly older than you're looking for. They seem to be the most active and organized group and I think I've seem them post on this sub in the past.
Here are some other organizations I found you may reach out to:
Improv City High Schools
OC Crazies
Nothing about training but maybe a resource.
South Coast Repertory
If you're looking to do Long Form Improv you could pick up the UCB Handbook and some friends and start on your own. After several weeks of consistent practices you could try and hire a coach from one of the resources above. I've found that many coaches are more interested in helping dedicated improvisers improve and not in getting rich... hopefully you'll have the same experience.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Disaster-Artist-Inside-Greatest/dp/1451661193
Hard to say, depends on how far into magic you are, but here's a book that should be in every magician's library:
https://www.amazon.com/Mark-Wilsons-Complete-Course-Magic/dp/0762414553/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512052771&sr=8-1&keywords=mark+wilson%27s+complete+course+in+magic
If you are into cards specifically, and don't have them, here are three books you should own (and I would suggest reading them in this order):
https://www.amazon.com/Royal-Road-Card-Magic/dp/0486408434/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1512052913&sr=1-1&keywords=royal+road+to+card+magic
https://www.amazon.com/Expert-Card-Table-Treatise-Manipulation/dp/0486285979/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1512052934&sr=1-1&keywords=the+expert+at+the+card+table
https://www.amazon.com/Expert-Card-Technique-Close-Up-Table/dp/0486217558/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1512052952&sr=1-1&keywords=expert+card+technique
Well you've not given your level of skill or experience so it's hard to give a recommendation...
Assuming that you're not that advanced I'd just recommend grabbing a copy of The Royal Road To Card Magic and picking stuff from the chapters that suits. It's a bit of a dated read but the material is good and it's incredibly cheap.
The Royal Road to Card Magic.
Sleight of hand with coins
Sleight of Hand
Sleight of Hand with Cards
Edit: there's my 3 suggestions that I've had great experience with. These are 3 staples in any magic collection in my opinion.
Ok! I need to clarify one thing. These books are very old. Don't get discouraged at the fact that the vernacular can be somewhat confusing. If you take the time to look up any words that might be hard to understand and just work trough the text, you will find timeless effects that you'll be able to show off for years to come! Don't dismiss a move because it seems so simple!
There are a lot of great books on film out there. Don't listen to other possible saying watch YouTube or wrote your own screenplay. Well, do those things too, but learn some wisdom from some of the masters while you're at it.
You are going to want to read the following:
Hitchcock by Truffaut (http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0671604295). One of the greatest directors of all time, interviewed by another of the greatest.
In the Blink of an Eye by Walter Murch (http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1879505622/ref=aw_d_detail?pd=1), one of the greatest editors ever. A pretty great director too.
On Directing Film by David Mamet (http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0140127224). A great book on directing by one of the great writer/directors.
Rebel Without a Crew by Robert Rodriguez (http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0452271878). He wrote this after El Mariachi, before he went on to big budgets. It's one of the most inspiring books you'll ever read-- you'll want to make a film tomorrow. Basically, how to make a movie wit nothing but enthusiasm.
https://www.amazon.com/Film-Directing-Shot-Visualizing-Productions/dp/0941188108
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0054RVNTQ/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i1
Both of those will do you a world of good for learning a lot of the basics and ways to look at things. The Filmmaker's Handbook that someone else mentions is also great.
See The Secret History of Star Wars. IIRC Vader was originally intended to just be an ominous general for the Empire, like General Grievous. His mask and suit were a space suit so he could survive in space, and he was supposed to take his helmet off. When Lucas saw a rough cut with the breathing sound Ben Burtt put over James Earl Jones voice he decided to have Vader keep the mask on, and began to develop a back story to explain why he always wore it.
Check out this book: The Secret History of Star Wars
It is an amazing read. The author also has a website:
(http://secrethistoryofstarwars.com/index.html)
They even wrote a manual! They definitely treat comedy as a craft.
Jerzy Grotowski - Towards a Poor Theatre
Antonin Artaud - The Theatre and Its Double
Bertolt Brecht - Brecht on Theatre
Jacques Ranciere - The Emancipated Spectator
Guy Debord - The Society of the Spectacle
Del Close + Charna Halpern - Truth in Comedy
Extreme Exposure - An Anthology of Solo Performance Texts from the 20th Century
New Downtown Now - An Anthology of New Theatre from Downtown New York
Those books should give you a good introduction to directing in the theatre outside of traditional American realism. Where were you hoping to go to school?
> Say "yes"
Tina Fey's anecdote about Joan Rivers is from a book called Truth In Comedy. I know it has nothing to do with this thread, but as she says, improv/the book make for a great life manual. I always found it helpful as a teacher... and I guess more subconsciously as a parent.
Well, the biggest issue -- the first thing that jumps out at me -- is that you're not writing in standard screenplay format.
​
Read up on how to format a screenplay. How to write scenes. How to write dialogue. Sluglines. Action. Transitions.
​
Read: The Screenwriter's Bible
Visit: screenwriting.io for basic Q&A
Watch:
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
If you want some specific criticism:
​
Good luck!
Sori na kasnom odgovoru. Za fotografiju je najbolje potražiiti sadržaj o kompoziciji i boji. Iskreno, radije bi ti preporučio knjige od Burne Hogartha, pogotovo Dynamic Light and Shade. Knjige iz likovnih umjetnosti će ti daleko više pomoći oko fotografije nego knjige o fotografiji.
Što se tiče režije, scenaristike i montaže - najbolje je to skupno gledati kao jedno širinu, ali i cjelinu. Da bi se bavio režijom moraš poznavati scenaristiku i scenarističke tehnike, a da bi se bavio montažom moraš razumjeti režiju koja podrazumijeva razumijevanje scenaristike - i tako u krug. Fora kod filma/TV-a je da svi "zanati" postoje negdje drugdje osim montaže. Gluma postoji izvan Filma i TV-a, fotografija također, scenaristika također... jedino je montaža jedinstven zanat svojstven filmu i tv-u. Gledaj na montažu kao na ključni dio u procesu proizvodnje za koji izrađuješ sav materijal. Stoga podijeli učenje na pet cjelina: Fotografija, Montaža, Storytelling, Režija, Gluma.
Fotografija
Montaža
Storytelling
Režija
Gluma
Ima tu još dosta sadržaja kojeg bi bilo dobro spomenuti (recimo Sanford Meisnerova nadogradnja Stanislavskove škole glume i sl. ), ali ovo je već više nego dovoljno za dobar, široki, uvod u temu. Sve navedene knjige (osim za fotografiju) se koriste kao štivo na Columbiji i na Chapmanu i ostalim top filmskim školama. Razlika između čitanja štiva i učestvovanja na nastavi je što imaju i radionice - koje su iznimno bitne kod glume zbog glumačkih vježbi i redateljskih uputa. Kod nas nažalost ne postoji neka radionica i/ili glumačka škola koja radi po punom i ispravnom sustavu Stanislavskog, a kamoli po Meisneru, tako da ćeš i za to morati van.
Since format is not cut-and-dry- you may read five scripts that handle the same thing five different ways- the best education is to just read a whole lot of screenplays.
However, you'll want to pay special attention to those featured on the annual Black List, as most of them originated as 'specs'; such scripts are often a writer's first introduction to the professional side of the business, earning them their first manager and/or agent.
Here is a link to 2014's Black List scripts; this document details their ranking and provides a logline of each so you know what you're getting into. I'd recommend you read ALL of them- yes, all 71- because they run the gambit from bizarre yet captivating concepts to simple yet well-executed stories. You'll likely encounter something from every genre and will get a taste for what "voice" is (re: Brian Duffield's THE BABYSITTER).
In terms of books, a couple of stand-bys are Robert McKee's Story and Blake Snyder's Save the Cat.
Save the Cat by Blake Snyder - usually criticized for taking a one mind ultimate approach to structure. He provides basically qa formula for screenwriting which people often say is the completely wrong way to go about it.
Story by Robert Mckee - a book that delves into a little bit of everything.
Syd Field - A well known author with a fairly large catalog.
The issue a lot of people have with these books is that they often preach a step by step or formulaic process for writing a screenplay. Something people argue kills the art/creativity of it and makes it boring. Personally, I don't they will hurt you much. I'd advise if you read anything don't take it as rules, just what works for someone else and might help you some along the way. Don't read Save the Cat and feel like you have to hit every mark on the exact page. Like you probably want to have an act 1 break into act 2 but don't force it to land exactly on p30. Look at everything you read as basic guidelines, the great thing about writing is there are NO rules.
As for formatting, don't worry about it. If you aren't yet, use screenwriting software. Use SCREENWRITING SOFTWARE. USE SCREENWRITING SOFTWARE. It does everything for you and there are a lot of great free alternatives(I really like Fade In right now). Seriously these days formatting should be at the bottom of what you are worrying about.
Do you have a source? I just don't believe this is true, that's not how television production works. Bryan and Mike had an overall arc with a few major events when they pitched the show, but then had a team of ~20 writers and managed working with 3 animation companies. You don't simply knock out all the writing before working on anything else...
Someone who's read this book might know more, but I haven't read it: https://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Art-Animated/dp/1595825045/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1278596593&sr=8-1
Oh man do I have a list for you!
Joe Murray's Creating Animated Cartoons with Character is an amazing read and he gives some information on the creation process for his shows.
Nancy Beiman's Prepare to Board! talks about story development and character creation, but she mostly covers storyboarding in the book. Beiman also has exercises included as you read, so it feels a bit more interactive.
Jean Ann Wright's Animation Writing and Development covers writing for TV animation. Wright talks mainly about how to land a job as a writer for an ongoing show, but he does cover character in the book.
Bryan Konietzko and Michael DiMartino's Avatar: The Last Airbender (The Art of the Animated Series) talks a bit on character creation for the show and how the show kept evolving until they finally arrived at Avatar: The Last Airbender.
But you shouldn't just stay with finding books on how to create characters for animation. It shouldn't matter if they are animated or not, we need to believe in these characters!
Lajos Egri's The Art of Dramatic Writing
is my personal favorite on character development. Although this book is mainly about writing a play, Egri covers dialogue, characters, character motivation, and story development perfectly. I keep returning to this book everytime an idea pops into my head. I cannot express how much this book has helped me in creating believable characters and conflicts.
Blake Snyder's Save the Cat! is a book I have never gotten around to reading, but I feel it worth mentioning as most of my colleagues and friends keep recommending this book back to me.
And again, although you will learn many new things from these books and they will help you view stories and characters more analytically, you won't get better until you start to create more and more characters and stories. You may also start looking for interviews of your favorite creators and look for what they have to say about character.
Hope this helps!
Gonna just go for a full on personal rundown of the episode
Firstly I really liked the introduction of the episode, the breif history gap and how the world is now wet up. It was doen very simple and effectively.
I also like how they just skipped the whole previous cast later lives and will feed us teasers and facts throughout the series, maybe a possible flashback episode, though I have been informed that there is a comic which fills in some of the gaps already.
I also like the idea of segregation between those who can bend and those who can't. It is a good morale plot, it is not often you encounter fanasty worlds that have the magical element (bending) with a more modern technologically culture.
I think as the majority of viewers of Aangs adventures were younger, I think it has tailored well to the audience who have grown up a little, it reminds me of some of the more popular anime series, (Bleach, Naruto, DBZ) in the way it tells its story.
Just my view, can't believe I now have to wait a month after getting this taste for the next episode!
Nörd som man är har jag spanat in Warcraft-världens egna kokbok, men alla recept är skrivna i jänkarenheter. Blev hänvisad till den här sidan med kulinariska översättningar. Jag tycker det är kul med mat, både ätandet och lagandet, men är långt ifrån mästerkock; har någon av er med mer kökserfarenhet gett er an recept av jänkarursprung? Hur pålitliga är sidans måttkonverteringar?
Since you're a fan of Avatar, I think you need to check out the comics. The one I linked is my favorite set so far. If you don't want the big book, you can grab the three issues separately.
If I win, would you be okay with surprising me, instead of me linking something?
Thanks for the contest! Get better!
They come from these hardcover editions for The Promise and The Search.
The Rift has only released 2 of the 3 parts so far, but it is available for pre-order.
I personally recommend them all. ;)
The Promise
The Search
The commentary is such a great addition.
Yes
Amazon
Sounds great! I don't know what country you're in, but in the USA you can learn everything you need to know from the ARRL study book and doing some practice tests. There's no need for a course, although if that's how you learn best then go for it! Other resources:
Beginner’s guide to amateur (ham) radio for preppers
ARRL guide for beginners
HF on a budget
New ham radio operator
Also check out /r/amateurradio. Beginner questions are welcome. If IRC is your thing, they have a channel at
irc.geekshed.net #redditnet. Freenode's##hamradiois also good."The Five C's of Cinematography: Motion Picture Filming Techniques" by Joseph V Mascelli
I think you're talking about The Search and accidentally typed "The Promise," but in case you meant to say that:
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Airbender-Gene-Luen-Yang/dp/1616550740/ref=sr_sp-atf_title_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1383162176&sr=1-1&keywords=Avatar%3A+The+Last+Airbender%3A+The+Promise
If you really want to get into it, try reading a book called "The Five C's of Cinematography". It's considered the bible of all things related to cinematography. It explains everything about shooting a scene in a way that's easy to understand.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Five-Cs-Cinematography-Techniques/dp/187950541X
Framed Ink
Some of the best I've used:
Story by Robert McKee -- As its title indicates, this book takes a look at story construction from a more theoretical perspective. McKee works mostly in the realm of screenplays but the ideas he puts forth are universally applicable and have already helped my writing immensely -- story itself was one of the big areas where I was struggling, and after reading through this book I'm able to much better conceptualize and plan out thoughtful stories.
Stein on Writing by Sol Stein -- if McKee's book is written from a theoretical perspective, Stein's takes a practical look at how to improve writing and editing skills. The mechanics of my writing have improved after reading this book; his examples are numerous and accessible. His tone may come off as a bit elitist but that doesn't mean he doesn't have things to teach us!
On Writing by Stephen King -- A perennial favorite and one I'm sure you've already received numerous suggestions for. Kind of a mix of McKee and Stein in terms of approach, and a great place to start when studying the craft itself.
Elements of Style by Strunk & White -- King swears by this book, and although I've bought it, the spine still looks brand new. I would recommend getting this in paperback format, though, as it's truly meant to be used as a reference.
Writing Excuses Podcast -- HIGHLY recommended place to start. Led by Brandon Sanderson, Howard Tayler, Dan Wells and Mary Robinette Kowal, this is one of the places I really started to dig into craft. They're at Season 13.5 now but new listeners can jump in on Season 10, where they focus on a specific writing process in each episode (everything from coming up with ideas to characterization and world building and more). Each episode is only 15(ish) minutes long. Listening to the whole series (or even the condensed version) is like going through a master class in genre fiction.
Brandon Sanderson 318R Playlist -- Professional recordings of Brandon Sanderson's BU writing class. Great stuff in here -- some crossover topics with Writing Excuses, but he is a wealth of information on genre fiction and great writing in general. Covers some of the business of writing too, but mostly focuses on craft.
Love this idea - hopefully I've sent a couple you haven't received yet!
Typically it's best to start with an idea of what you want to do, after you finish building the world, but usually you will want to start with characters. The reason for this is that you don't want to have characters that just fill roles for your story. That's not to say that you can't do it the other way around, but from everything I've heard from experienced writers, and from my own experience, character first then the plot.
What I mean by an idea is, you should know what sort of story you want to tell. Since you have a futuristic world based around a Science Fiction setting, think about what sorts of stories you love in that genre. Do you like Star Wars? Maybe you could write a Space Opera. Do you like very accurate stories based in real science? Maybe you could write Hard Science Fiction. Figure out what sort of story you want to tell before you begin plotting and coming up with characters.
After you've done this you need a main character who has needs and desires, and the plot will be based around him not getting what he wants. This is one of the basics of plotting. You need an initial inciting incident to set up something that he wants, and you need him to not be able to get it without trials, tribulations, sacrifices, and the kitchen sink coming to life to eat him.
The resource I always send people to is Brandon Sanderson's Writing Excuses. He does a much better job of explaining this sort of thing than I can in a few paragraphs. Another good resource is Story by Robert McKee. This book is more focused on Screenwriting, but he delves into story, plotting, and things that every writer should know.
Hopefully this can get you started. Good Luck!
Learning how to do magic might be something to look into. It can get expensive, but if you're smart about it and you're willing to put in a good amount of work it can be pretty cheap. Get a deck of bicycles ($2-3) and The Royal Road to Card Magic (≈$10) and start working. That's an older book and a lot of modern beginners ignore it, but it has great information.
The biggest problem with learning magic as cheaply as possible is that you have to learn primarily from books. It's not a massive problem, but it can get really confusing when someone is trying to describe a slight without any real demonstration. I can list some other pros/cons if you're interested. It's a fantastic hobby and it'll help build creativity and dexterity.
Color Change Tutorial
I think you have to create an account for this one.
Royal Road to Card Magic
Just a warning for some of the things I will be suggesting. Remember that even documentaries, video essays, and non-fiction books do not tell the whole story. At the end of the day they fall under the same pratfall of fiction filming. The whole point is to tell a story so sometimes things are stretched into and out of proportion. Always try to do your own research as well and don't take all documentaries and interviews as gospel.
On Filmmaking and Film Culture
On Specific Movies or People
Books on Film and Filmmakers
Beyond Cinema
Everything is a Remix will make you rethink originality and creativity and that copying or lifting is not inherently bad and lazy.
PBS Digital Studios is actually generating a lot of great content specifically Idea Channel, OffBook, Game/Show, ShanksFX, amongst others.
I will stop here for now and hope this is a great list to start with.
The Secret History of Star Wars https://www.amazon.com/dp/0978465237/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_CbWzybABWFGNX
This will answer all your questions. Get it on Kindle.
But basically, Lucas had this very rough sketch of ideas and everything was written from that. The movies were written in the order they appeared.
I think this sheds a lot of light on the whole mess. The cliff notes of it is basically what Dannik said: that the early movies were very collaborative, and as Lucas got propped up higher and higher he no longer had some other influences to reign him in.
Marcia Lucas, for one.
This book goes into a lot more detail about it though.
https://www.amazon.com/Secret-History-Star-Wars/dp/0978465237
-----------------
There's three in book form. Take them all and ingest them into your grey matter and develop your own.
Holy...fucking...shit.
http://www.amazon.com/Jedi-Path-Manual-Students-Force/dp/1603800964
I never knew this book existed. I have to have it.
Oh here is the cheaper version,
http://www.amazon.com/Jedi-Path-Star-Daniel-Wallace/dp/1452102279/ref=pd_sim_b_3/189-0894191-9537604
No awesome case though.
you linked the awesome box sets that I wish I could afford
heres the mildly priced alternatives
Book of Sith
Bounty Hunter Code
The Jedi Path ^^Samelink
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Promise-Part/dp/1595828117/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1335766858&sr=8-1
The promise: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1595828117
The lost adventures: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/159582748X
Here are some links for the product in the above comment for different countries:
Link: the comics
This bot is currently in testing so let me know what you think by voting (or commenting).
Yeah, the arrow definitely came before the airbending. It's all in The Art of the Animated Series.
I highly recommend getting this book to anyone who finds this kind of stuff interesting.
I'm not positive either, but I listed all the ATLA books that I know of below. Some aren't comics, but I'm not sure if you're just referring to the Gene Luen Yang collab comics or the others as well.
Post A:TLA Universe Comics: By Gene Luen Yang
The Promise
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
The Search
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
The Rift
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Artwork and Development
These aren't comics, but I added them because they're awesome.
Avatar: The Last Airbender, Art of the Animated Series
The Legend of Korra: The Art of the Animated Series Book One - Air
Legend of Korra: The Art of the Animated Series Book Two
Other Comics
The Lost Adventures
There are also The Earth Kingdom Chronicles series, The Lost Scrolls Collection and The Tale of Aang/Zuko, but I'm not sure if they're canon (I am guessing they are since there's a Nickelodeon logo on them, but the original creators/writers aren't listed among the author so I don't know).
If you had a chance to check out the Art of the Animated Series, they even have an image of the early image of Naga. They even explained how off base their initial ideas were. The linked provided has a preview of the book, you can click on it to read that section and view the bi-pedal Naga.
Ooo I've always wanted to go as a super tall Ent/tree creature!
I've had it planned out in my head forever lol. I'd get some stilts, probably about 5-6ft, and collect a ton of twigs and branches and bark. I'd glue and sew and staple and tape all the sticks and leaves to the costume so it looked legitimately like a tree. Then I'd do some killer face makeup like the guy in The Hunger Games did lol. Lastly, I'd stand in my yard very still and wait for tiny children to walk by on the way to the door. Then I'm "come to life" and scare and amaze them!
I'd love this beautiful Avatar: The Last Airbender hardcover art book!
Thanks for the contest!
I totally agree with you on the animation ones! My personal favorite is Avatar: The Art of the Animated Series!
I have never heard of those field guides and am excited to check them out. A personal little dream of mine is to one day produce a field guide for one of my favorite video games.
ATLA Book 1-3, LOK B1, LOK B2, LOK B3.
LOK B4 isn't out yet.
You can buy them from most of the big book websites. amazon.com has all the comics available for sale, or if you're international, bookdepository.com will ship for free to all these countries.
There are three comics, The Promise, The Search, and The Rift, in that order. They were originally sold in three parts each, i.e. The Promise Parts 1, 2 and 3, and The Search Parts 1, 2 and 3. The Rift is currently in the middle of being released, so Part 1 is out now, with parts 2 and 3 to follow in August and November.
Alternatively, there is a collected edition of The Promise and The Search, which contains all 3 parts in one big hardcover, with annotations from the authors and a small section at the back with some art from the development process.
EDIT: I forgot to mention that if you don't want a physical copy, you can buy digital copies of the comics from Dark Horse here.
One can find the comics by taking ten seconds to Google them. Here are a few direct links anyway.
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Promise-Part/dp/1595828117
http://www.reddit.com/r/TheLastAirbender/comments/2a23yc/at_least_one_person_appreciates_the_family/cir0o5b
http://www.reddit.com/r/TheLastAirbender/comments/2a23yc/at_least_one_person_appreciates_the_family/cir0psf
Avatar:The last Airbender: The Promise
there is The Lost Adventures which is a collection of short comics based between episodes of TLA
there is also the Promise part 1, 2 and 3 (part 3 is released in October) which is based after TLA
lastly there is another graphic novel series called The Search which just got announced which is to do with Zuko's mom.
edit: for other animations I'm fairly certain that there are no other animations that are considered canon.
The Promise
Can you smell what the Rock is cooking?
http://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X/
World of Warcraft Cookbook - wife got it for me for xmas last year and it's got some really great stuff in there.
https://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1542735851&sr=8-1&keywords=warcraft+cookbook
I’d say merch is the way to go.
Try here for DOTA2; https://valvestore.forfansbyfans.com/title/dota-2/category/all-dota2.html
And here for WoW; https://gear.blizzard.com/us/game/world-of-warcraft
Here’s a cool WoW themed cookbook!; https://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1543613443&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=world+of+warcraft+cookbook&dpPl=1&dpID=513CWP1-hLL&ref=plSrch
As a last resort you could try a Steam gift card. Hope I gave you some ideas!
Also if he likes to cook there is also WoW cooking book, I heard it's cool.
https://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_3/132-5202769-9005521?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=160887804X&pd_rd_r=52ZS1G1FB86387T67BHP&pd_rd_w=f8edb&pd_rd_wg=MohMh&psc=1&refRID=52ZS1G1FB86387T67BHP
You could try cook something from WoW Cookbook. There's probably something Thanksgivingy in it if you want to do that.
We have the same formatting error on Amazon's UK listing.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/160887804X/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
The cinematography 'bible' is called "The 5 C's of Cinematography".
http://www.amazon.com/The-Five-Cs-Cinematography-Techniques/dp/187950541X
I'd just like to point out that I'm not a film maker in any way shape or form so it would be nice if somebody could verify what I'm about to say.
I've been watching a lot of videos by FilmmakerIQ.com on Vimeo and have learned a lot from them. Anyway, they have a list of recommended books that I haven't checked out yet but would like to. I'll just list them out here:
Painting With Light
Save The Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need
The Hollywood Standard: The Complete and Authoritative Guide to Script Format and Style (Hollywood Standard: The Complete & Authoritative Guide to)
Set Lighting Technician's Handbook: Film Lighting Equipment, Practice, and Electrical Distribution
Master Shots: 100 Advanced Camera Techniques to Get an Expensive Look on Your Low-Budget Movie
Cinematography: Theory and Practice: Image Making for Cinematographers and Directors
The Camera Assistant's Manual
The Makeup Artist Handbook: Techniques for Film, Television, Photography, and Theatre
Special Makeup Effects for Stage and Screen: Making and Applying Prosthetics
Grammar of the Shot (Media Manuals)
Rebel without a Crew: Or How a 23-Year-Old Filmmaker With $7,000 Became a Hollywood Player
Cinematic Storytelling: The 100 Most Powerful Film Conventions Every Filmmaker Must Know
The Five C's of Cinematography: Motion Picture Filming Techniques
The Writer's Journey is a pretty standard text. It isn't specifically focused on comedy or screenwriting, but the lessons are applicable. It is based on "The Hero With A Thousand Faces" by Joseph Campbell (the link has the entire text on google books). Dan Harmon's "story circle" is also based on this work.
I am currently reading this book. I recommend picking it up to help with those compositional discrepancies. Tagging /u/fkwillrice to also check out the link.
Framed Ink by Marcos Mateu Mestre is one of the recommended books to read. Definitely helps for storytelling, especially reasoning behind why a shot looks a certain way.
Probably not much help, but Stan Lee has this book out which may be of help, as it deals with western style comics. I've also heard good things about this book as well.
Pro-tip: When you post a short for feedback, put that it's a short in the thread title. You'll get more looks.
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It's a first draft, so I'll try to control the painful twitching I'm getting looking at the grammar & sentence structure here. twitch -- Whoops.
First, let me suggest... buy a copy of David Trottier's Screenwriter's Bible. It's the most efficient $20 you'll spend. This book is oft-overlooked for other SW books, but it is my favourite to learn the fundamentals (and a lot of in-depth things).
Moving on... beyond the nuts & bolts of your poor grammar & lack of screenwriting structure (twitch -- damn it!), you still have many issues here. The action is very clunky and offers very little to the visualization of your scenes.
For example:
> A car pulls up outside and the horn Honks two or three times.
Your dialogue is very "Kevin Smith wannabe" which is fine. He's a great idol to have when it comes to this kind of dialogue. However, it doesn't work that well. My tip to you: read it out loud. Every time you get that little tingle of embarrassment (even if you're reading alone to yourself), that means your dialogue is jacked up.
These are vital elements to the script. I know first drafts are first drafts, but you need to at least put some effort into the basics before you can get a serious opinion.
Good luck.
Cheers,
-A.
haha it's fine. If you're willing and able to invest a little bit of cash, I do recommend getting the Screenwriter's Bible. It helped me a bunch with all of the basics, and even now I still refer to it from time to time.
Note: Obviously this list is incomplete, if anyone has suggestions please add to this. Also this list is not specifically for kevleemur, but for anyone looking to learn about movie stuffs
Online material is nice, but there are many great and more reliable resources that come in these old fashioned book things.
General
Shot by Shot
MasterShots
The Visual Story
Directing
On Screen Directing
(may be hard to find)
On Directing Film by David Manet
Cinematography/ Lighting/ Camera/ On Set Learning
The ASC Manual (some earlier editions come in one volume which is nice)
Creative Control by Michael Hofstein
The Set Lighting Technicians Handbook
Painting With Light (John Alton's book. A little outdated but still a good read).
Reflections
The Bare Bones Camera Course for Film and Video by Tom Schroeppel (very simple, a good start)
The Grip Book
The Camera Assistant's Manual
Cinematography: Theory and Practice
Producing
Creative Producing From A to Z by Myrl A Schreibman
Scheduling and Budgeting Your Film by Paula Landry
Editing
In the Blink of an Eye by Walter Murch (Sound designer and editor from Apocalypse Now----EXCELLENT)
Screenwriting
Story
Screenplay the Foundations of Screenwriting
ONLINE RESOURCES:
http://www.rondexter.com/
http://cinematography.net/
http://www.rogerdeakins.com/
http://www.arri.com/
http://www.mole.com/
http://www.panavision.com/home
http://www.filmtools.com/
Aside from familiarizing yourself with knowledge and technique the best you can without being involved on set, one of the best things you can do is read up and become as knowledgeable as you can with gear that you will eventually encounter, which is why I listed the last four links. Even if you do plan on going into producing or directing, it is always helpful to understand lighting and camera and why the people working with you need the things they do.
GO LEARN THINGS!
I'm reading Robert McKee's "Story", and he pretty much says that people enjoy screenplays because they feel extreme. They allow people to feel and explore emotions they normally wouldn't be dealing with from the day-to-day. In a way, television and movies are caricatures of mundane reality. They serve a purpose, but modelling real life isn't one of them.
The book: https://www.amazon.com/Story-Structure-Substance-Principles-Screenwriting-ebook/dp/B0042FZVOY
I believe that it's Screenplay by Syd Field. I read it but it doesn't hold a candle to Robert McKee's Story or John Truby's The Anatomy of Story. Field's reliance on 3-act structure is problematic for me, while Truby's 22 steps are a lifesaver.
CYA: No, these are not affiliate links, and no I am not being paid to sell you stuff. I'm currently reading McKee's Story and currently it's my favorite book on storytelling in general.
There were many books before Save the Cat (which is an OK book for screenwriting and/or storytelling technique).
The earliest writings on story structure, though, go back right to Aristotle in Poetics.
Humans have been telling stories ever since speech had developed.
There are two kinds of storytelling books. Snyder's method is a perscriptive method. He gives you a formula and tells you that the only way to a good story is to fill those beats. Syd Field does this too in his extensive bibliography on the subject of screenwriting.
On the other hand, Robert McKee gives a more descriptive method in Story and explains the process of "writing" as opposed to "filling a beat sheet".
The best book on writing (that is, the one which gives out the greatest tips on actually taking your own ideas and putting them into a coherent story) is Stephen King's On Writing. It has nothing to do with movies, and everything to do with stories, which is exactly what great screenwriting should do.
Nevertheless all writing books give out tips, tricks and cheat sheets. Good writing comes from within the writer and, as many "gurus" insist, you cannot become a good writer, you have to be born one and get training.
Source: Screenwriter/Writer here.
It's actually from the followup comics, which starts with The Promise. Some on here don't care for the books for various reasons, but I like them a fair bit.
http://avatar.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_Avatar_books
The main things you want are:
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Other stuff:
, which is an original story though it's aimed at a younger crowd.
----
Future stuff:
I've got mine off Amazon. Here's The Search, it's the one with Azula.
Yes, if you are interested in antenna systems, then you should pick up The ARRL Antenna Book. If you want to get your Ham liscense then you should also pick up the License manual as well.
This is the best place to start.
https://www.amazon.com/ARRL-Ham-Radio-License-Manual/dp/1625950136
The ARRL Ham Radio License Manual is a good place to start as it prepares you take the Technician level test, which is actually pretty easy to pass with a little bit of studying. Beyond that you'll need to find somewhere near you that offers the exam (one of your local radio clubs almost certainly does) and $15 to cover the cost of test materials.
Places like HamStudy.org offer online practice tests, if you find that you're acing the Tech level pretty easily I'd highly recommend studying for the General as well. If you pass the Tech, your examiner will usually encourage you to immediately take the General, even if you fail the General you've still earned your Tech so there's no harm in trying. It's worth it just so you don't have to go back later when you realize that the HF bands are even more fun than the repeaters!
If you want more information, /r/amateurradio seems a lot more active than this subreddit and there are plenty of new techs and old Elmers there who are more than happy to answer your questions.
Be good at as many things as you can. There are 10 people for every 1 paying job in the film/tv industry. The more things you can do, the more jobs you'll get.
Keep up to date. Improve your skills any chance you get. Watch films. Read this book until you have it memorised. Don't succumb to GAS (gear acquisition syndrome) - gear alone does not a good film make.
^completely ^made ^up, ^but ^not ^unrealistic, ^statistic.
Brilliant. To learn card magic, I'd recommend the books Royal Road to Card Magic and or Card College by Robert Giobbi (VOLUME 1) . If you can afford it go for the DVD set Royal Road To Card Magic by R. Paul Wilson (does not include the book). Both the Royal Road and Card College are essential for starting out with card magic. Some of the venacular may seem dated, if in doubt look up the moves on youtube, but study the books first, please do not rely on youtube for this
Local Magic shop will usually show you what they are selling and recommend some good starter material.
I started out with Royal Road then I moved onto whatever seemed interesting.
A lot of the stuff seems a lot harder than it is, and presentation is really key. That book with some gimmick coin sets will get you rolling.
For coin stuff there is no better start than Bobo's Book.
Your mileage will vary depending on how much you practice. I usually practice flourishes on the subway, and some simple moves there too. Luckily I have a job with long stretches of down time so I am always practicing there too.
Then I recommend picking up the books "Royal Road to Card Magic", "Modern Coin Magic", and "Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic"
As for YouTube, there's a lot of bad magic tutorials on YouTube. So be careful of who you watch.
Besides Chris, I would recommend watching Alex Pandrea, 52Kards, and SankeyMagic.
PigCake is a pretty good teacher as well but he can be sort of crude sometimes so that's up to you.
Xavior Spade also has good stuff but he also teaches a lot of advanced card moves.
Los Gusanos by John Sayles
Hitchcock by Francois Truffaut
Hitchcock/Truffaut. This book is the bible for me when it comes to understanding both directors. Its a series of interviews between Truffaut and Hitchcock about every film Hitchcock made up until 1962, and they dissect everything. Truffaut fanboys out over most of the films, but there are some cases where he points out flaws. Hitchcock most of the times agrees with a lot of the faults Truffaut finds in his films.
Eisenstein at 100. If you want a scholarly in depth look at Eisensteins films.
Waiting on the Weather. Written by the script doctor for Akira Kurosawa. Has a forward by Donald Richie who has done a few commentary tracks on Kurosawa films.
Phallic Frenzy. Analysis of Ken Russell films.
Accidental Genius. Analysis on John Cassavetes films.
These are five of my favourites. Most of my other ones are more film history and other biographies.
> I thought they established some of this in later seasons
No, it is well established that there is continuity of conciseness in the transporter.
Transporters operate on a quantum level, actually moving your molecules from one place to another and reassembling them. You aren't killed each time you use one.
The Star Trek The Next Generation: Technical Manual covered this in detail.
Your actual quantum bits are "MOVED" to a new location using a Dirac Jump named for the physicist Paul Dirac
Michael Okuda, said "Transporting does NOT involve killing the person."
In the Next Generation graphic novel titled Forgiveness, the scientist who invented the transporter says “The transporter doesn’t just send information on how to build a copy of you, it sends you… soul and all.”
This is established in TNG's "Realm of Fear" we see what a person being transported experiences first-hand.
in Lonely Among Us TNG 1x07 Picard joins with an external cloud-energy life form and ends up being incompatible with the energy-being The engineering team work out some how his essence can be taken into the ship's computer and re-infused with the transporter buffer's last memory of Picard's physical form. This all seems to indicate that you essence, consciousness, soul can somehow be moved by transporters.
Hopefully the mods won't mind that I posted this too much because you're sick and probably need something to do.
This is the technical manual they're referring to
I highly recommend you purchasing it in a hard copy. It's a great book to read whilst recuperating. Hope you feel better soon.
It gets assimilated and re-processed into food or furniture or other things.
Source: Technical Manual of the Enterprise.
I used to carry the Star Trek: The Next Generation Technical Manual around with me in high school and it definitely has these drawings in it.
I wouldn't discount going with an all-in-one loaf of bread camera for now. Built in lens, xlr ports for audio, zebras, waveform (probably).....lots of little tools most SLR's won't have. Sure, they dont have the large sensor so the DOF is not so striking- however in the real world you arent generally shooting WFO on a large sensor as the depth of field is too small to be practical without a crackerjack 1st AC.
That's not going to be a popular opinion with the DSLR revolution thing, but it's not about the camera. Learning good composition and how to light comes from experience. Just as important is learning to shoot for the cut and previsualization so you dont waste a bunch of time on set.
A few things you should be ready to invest in outside of the camera:
-ShotPut Pro or Double Data. These tools are invaluable for making sure the footage coming off the cards is intact and not corrupted.
-A good fluid head. There are plenty of great ones you an get used, watch DVX User's marketplace. Vinten and Sachtler make some great entry level heads these days and you can save a bundle buying used.
-Extra batteries. You will need them. 3 is a good place to start, one in your pocket, one on the brownie, one on the charger.
-A couple books to get you started: Film Directing: Shot by Shot and Cinematic Motion are both great. I know you will have curriculum books, but I would buy these anyway.
And now some general advice.
-Go PA. Find time, but go PA. Leave your film school knowledge (and ego) at the door, keep your eyes and ears open, keep your mouth shut unless you are asking a question to learn something. You will learn so much by working on real sets and you can bring that experience back to school for even greater success. There is no replacement for time on real jobs.
-Learn the names of the tools and the phrases and verbal tools of the set. It's a part of set etiquette. All the grip/electric gear has names and you will get respect if you know what someone means when they ask for a lowboy combo, a lollipop, a onkybonk, and a show card. How long before something is done? "We're moments away." Do you run on set? Not unless something is on fire. New deal, watch your eyes, coming up, coming at ya, flying in, it's hot, stinger, 10-1, 10-4, up 1 (radio brevity), call sheet, walking breakfast, having had.......there is so much stuff to learn.....PA, PA, PA!
-Learn to budget and run P&L spreadsheets. Pick apart every scene in a script and figure out what gear you need, what personnel, location, how much time then add up the cost. Group the scenes for shooting by location and talent availability and get day by day estimates. The sooner you learn this stuff the better. Again, it will help you in school.
-Make to-do lists and stay organized! Keep your receipts (even if you dont have to turn them in), its a habit you always need to have for this business. I use a combination of Any.Do, Evernote, and BaseCamp to keep everything organized.
-Share your knowledge and listen to others. Even the death march nightmare pilots/films/industrials/whatever donkey fucks offer something to learn. Find it. Always find something to learn.
-Don't waste your time shooting dog shit. If the shot sucks ask your self what you can do to make it better. If it's still dog shit, move on.
-Always, always ask yourself what you can do to make your shot better. Always.
-Work on everything- reality/commercial/film/doc/industrial/whatever. Be versatile.
-Learn to shoot for the cut. Did I say that already? I'm saying it again. Watch TV and Movies and pick the scenes apart to see how they cut. #1 problem for new cameramen/directors/dp is not having footage that cuts in edit.
TL,DR Shit i have learned over the years that is off topic but useful for newbies coming into our business.
K there are a couple of thing wrong here. First off, unless you licensed the visual rights to Pixar's Cars, I suggest you change your car models in the game as well as the trailer to the boxier car models you already have. You don't want your product to be confused with Disney, so this change will save you from having to deal with legal trouble with Disney. Second, you can also lose the first 20 seconds of the trailer. You're not showing anything important to the viewer. Does the user even care that the Car is performing in a circus? Is the car upset that he's performing in the circus? Why does he run away and the cops immediately chase him? I highly recommend picking up the The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation and Shot By Shot. Both of these books go over in detail the art of making something entertaining and interesting.
edit: grammar and spelling
You don't say what you want to do, so I'll assume you want to write/direct. Read Film Directing Shot by Shot. Either rent, borrow or buy a cheap camera and try out examples from the book.
Read Save the Cat! Write scripts in your spare time. Read them out loud with friends to get an idea of pacing, structure, and believability (would someone actually say that?).
I hesitate to add too much to your reading list as it really is more of a "doing" than a "reading" hobby. It's great to try to figure out FCP, but if you've never played with it it could get overwhelming fast. You can learn the basics with iMovie - again, pacing, editing for the cut, fluidity, etc.
Otherwise check out Craigslist and volunteer on any small film shoots, no matter how shitty. You'll learn a lot about what NOT to do. Invaluable! Good luck!
For beginners:
Film directing: shot by shot was passed around in college and was on our recommended reading list, but i don't know if it was the best book.
For advanced skills:
In college, my animation professors told me the best way to develop storyboarding skills was to watch films, with emphasis on older films. I was to storyboard a sequence that I thought was pretty good, then study the shots in sequence to understand why the shot choices were made. After that, try to see if could I make it read better /have more impact for the audience than the original one.
Check out books on cinematography and staging for some knowledge on lighting and staging. My wife is a film director so she has a library of books from film school. One I can recommend is Film Direction Shot by Shot. It shows many classic scene setups.
It's not just about lighting, staging the characters to fit in the camera view was a very import to film and film noir. A reminder that in those old movies, every movement of the actors was foreknowledge, and the actors have 'marks' on the floor to tell them where to stand. This is incredibly important for getting the right image in view, at the right angle. This is just something to consider, for a video game designer. A hallmark of video games is freedom of movement, but this could make a film noir scene problematic. So it's not just as simple as turn off the lights to save time making assets. It would take some care and thought to achieve. Overall though, I think it's an excellent idea.
Read as many books on directing as you can. As the editor, you imbue a second level of direction: you're picking the performances, fine tuning the timing, deciding what the audience sees - albeit all within the context of what the director did during filming and within the limits of their editorial control.
http://www.amazon.com/Film-Directing-Shot-Visualizing-Productions/dp/0941188108
http://www.amazon.com/Directing-Film-David-Mamet/dp/0140127224/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1368184441&sr=1-1&keywords=david+mamet+on+directing
are two that come to mind. I'd recommend more but I'm about to crash from an near all nighter.
Yea, Lucas has definitely built himself up in recent years (read since at least Return of the Jedi). Highly recommend The Secret History of Star Wars to anyone who's interested. Most of the credit for 'hole-proofing' the SW universe goes to the people who wrote and managed the books/comics/games during the 90's on. A continuity LucasArts holds sacred but that George Lucas ignores and changes on a whim.
<Nerdism increasing>
Hell the man had to be reminded that Obi-wan needs to end up with Anakin's lightsaber and his idea of an epic Clone War was 3 million bounty hunter clones in a universe numbering in the trillions. (real world scale if all the armies in the world had a maximum of 6000 personel at any one time) That and Attack of the Clones was his idea of an epic love story...
</nerd>
That's what George Lucas said, at one point, but not actually what happened. George is NOT a reliable source - he has contradicted himself many times. Read Kaminski's The Secret History of Star Wars (https://www.amazon.com/Secret-History-Star-Wars/dp/0978465237 ) and you can get the outlines of what really happened.
George sketched out, very loosely.... a pile of notes called (among various names) 'The Star Wars, from the adventures of Luke Starkiller', but it was nothing like the Star Wars movie. The 'Jedi-Bendu' were a family-guild kind of thing, there was no Darth Vader, no Han, 'Luke' was a middle-aged general, there was no Death Star...
Those original notes were not a coherent story, and what there was of it, wasn't good. It was just a sort of comic-flavoured soup.
Everything about Star Wars was in flux right up to the final of the first movie (which was NOT called 'A New Hope' - it was retitled that in a rerelease, because of Empire).
After, or alongside, the Star Wars movie he then sketched out a possible sequel... Splinter in the Mind's Eye. Whoops! That's the one where Luke and Leia are definitely not siblings, and 'Kyber crystals' were a big deal (reintroduced back into the EU and then Disney-EU, but not originally a thing in the movies).
THEN, AFTER Star Wars became a big hit, THEN Lucas BEGAN sketching out plans for sequels, claiming variously at different points between 1978-1983 that he was going to make three movies, or nine, or twelve, and that he had full outlines for them all. He didn't, but he said he did for the press. His big plan was going to involve every film being directed by a different director. I can see how KK might feel that she wanted to try that plan just because Lucas once wanted to do it - but it wasn't really workable to start with.
He also spins off the comic rights, so multiple Star Wars comics appear, all of which are their own thing. Somewhere around here also the Han Solo 'Stars End' etc novels.
He did make Empire next (completely invalidating Splinter of the Mind's Eye in the process), and ONLY in the process of writing that episode did he decide to merge Anakin and Vader - we know this because there's an early draft script floating around where the big Vader reveal isn't 'I am your father' but just 'look the Dark Side is powerful' and it plays out a bit like the Throne Room scene from ROTJ. What 'there is another' was supposed to refer to is unclear at this point - but could have referred to a new character, Luke's sister, who was not Leia.
Meanwhile Lucas is having a divorce and everything's not going well for him, so he just wants to end Star Wars ASAP. The whole 'lots of directors' idea just shrunk down to one trilogy.
THEN he makes ROTJ and changes everything up again, deciding to make 'Luke's sister' and Leia be the same character.
Then he develops LucasArts, which do their own thing with canon. Also West End Games create a Star Wars RPG which is pretty good.
Then in the early 90s Lucas spins off a second attempt at the Star Wars novels with Bantam, starting with Zahn's Thrawn trilogy, which draws heavily from the WEG RPG and is outstandingly good, followed by the Kevin J Anderson Jedi Academy novels which are... outstandingly not good. Also Dark Empire comic, which thinks it's in a different continuity (Luke and Leia have one kid, not two) but gets merged in later.
THEN MUCH LATER he decides to make the Prequels, and pretty much makes up everything on the spot again, ignoring all of the EU.
Then he sells to Disney and they... spectacularly fumble everything.
tldr: George Lucas claimed multiple times that he was following a grand masterplan. But the truth is he wasn't. He had vague notes and a vague feeling of what his Star Wars was like - and it was always much more like the Prequels in his mind than it was like the OT. But the Star Wars that was actually filmed emerged slowly and painfully film by film, with maybe very rough beats like 'there is an Emperor and there is Vader' but nothing really more than that.
An entertaining read! (I tend to gravitate towards transcripts over videos.)
As promised, a few critiques:
> Everyone had a “whoah, what the...?” moment when they first saw Jar Jar Binks...What’s the racial message here Lucas?...And what about the aliens that the Jar Jarians were fighting, these creatures that had flat faces and yellow, slanted eyes, and were all secretive…
This is a treacherous road to walk, because a lot of this outcry came from people outside of the cultural groups, assuming offense for those in them. I'm not remotely trying to exonerate Lucas for his decisions here and I'd be lying if I said I didn't immediately see those stereotypes, but given the actual thesis of the rest of your piece, I feel like this set of controversies--real or imagined--might be better left excluded.
> Then in the new movies, there's Queen Amalama ...dabadoo , whatever her name is.
"Amidala" is not a terribly difficult or silly name. The recurring mockery of it throughout feels out of place and doesn't add anything.
> We're seriously meant to believe that they couldn't defend a shed in the woods from a pack of plush toys with pre-bronze age technology?
The realities of the situation on Endor often get overlooked because of the Ewoks' external appearance. Take a look at what we actually know about them (and none of this is "creative reinterpretation" -- it's straight-up in the movie):
Ewoks are small, furry, "cute" -- but are also roughly on par with wookiees in terms of physical strength!
All military technology can be abstracted as a "force multiplier." A spear causes more harm than a fist. A blaster more harm than a spear. But physiology is also a force multiplier. A 10 kilo stone hucked by a scrawny human is not going to have the same capacity for harm that a 10 kilo stone hucked by a world-class pitcher does. Ewoks, as silly as it may superficially seem, are scary with "pre-bronze age technology."
But even despite all of that, go back and watch how that battle plays out. After initial confusion in the Imperial ranks as the realization that they're under attack from a huge indigenous force that they previously had dismissed as harmless and docile, the Imperial forces are winning. The turning point in the battle comes only when a Rebel (Chewbacca) commandeers an AT-ST, granting the Rebel forces access to Imperial armor and bringing technological parity to the forces deployed on the battlefield. Only at this point do the Rebels start turning the tide of battle; before this, Ewoks are being slaughtered left and right.
> You see, think of it like this. History is written by the victors. So maybe what George Lucas is doing is writing this whole series from a meta-contextual point of view, showing us history as it would be depicted if the forces of evil had won.
> ...
> If that's what George Lucas is doing, it's fucking brilliant. The hints are there, but you have to peel back the layers of propaganda to look for the real story.
This is partly the premise on which this subreddit relies, but walking this line requires careful navigation. In particular, dismissing the movies purely as invented propaganda isn't terribly useful. If you have no canon on which to rely, you can't even have a discussion -- no matter who you favor. If, however, you take a limited view of the films-as-propaganda and assume everything depicted is "real" but it's edited in such a way to advance a specific narrative, then you have some room for interpretation that doesn't cast the baby out with the bathwater.
That brings us to...
> Was there really a death star? Everyone who supposedly witnessed a planet being destroyed by a “death star” are all dead now, except, by no coincidence, for Luke's sister.
> It was Luke and the Jedi cabal who blew up Alderaan!
This is where you lost me. If you go down this path, you've ditched canon and you're purely into fan fiction. That's fine; there's some great fan fiction out there, but it's not really something you can build a coherent, broadly-appealing argument out of the way you can when you limit the degree to which the films "lie" (namely: purely by omission, rather than actual distortion).
> And then I saw Indiana Jones part four , and was reminded that, Lucas is just a hack .
Lucas can't write a screenplay to save his life. There's a lot of "hidden" history to the development of Lucas's successful films and a great deal of it hinges on the moderating influence of his ex-wife Marcia. This book, in particular, is a remarkable look at how Star Wars came to be, far more in-depth than the better-known Rinzler book.
But Lucas can spin a good story. This thread from a few days ago has quite a few people realizing or sharing the beat-for-beat story of the prequels, for example, and exposing through those beats that the story that plays out in the prequels is actually really cool. It just gets lost in a terrible set of scripts.
> Still, we've got the story we've got, the most deceptive and seductive pro-fascist narrative ever written. The Jedi mind trick has been played on all of us. “This is not the hero's journey you were looking for.”
I get a little frustrated with the characterizing of the Empire as "fascist." For some perspective, when it comes to Star Wars, I am (obviously) pro-Empire. But when it comes to (for example) Star Trek? The Federation is the sort of future that I want for our world. And I don't consider those views in conflict.
Unfortunately, it's difficult to articulate all the reasons why with any brevity. Largely, it stems from the scope of the governing body vs. the sovereignty of member "states", the radical social and economic changes that occur in a post-scarcity (or, if not post-scarcity, at least super-tech) society, and a bunch of other high-concept ideas.
"Fascism", though, is frankly too simplistic a political mindset to feel applicable to the Empire. As is nationalism more generally, really. Nationalism carries with it implicit assumptions of other nations and that's simply not what we're talking about with the Empire--it is the galaxy (with a few small enclave exceptions and unsettled areas).
That aside, though, it's a fun read and I applaud the analysis.
This book goes through a lot of the history and states what was likely established before the sequels and what was established later during their development. I don't know when he claims the Luke's father element was likely conceived. It was kind of amazing how they were able to make the sequels fit together so well. The prequels were horribly executed and had an open slate. There was very restrictions set forth outside of the story from the original trilogy.
How is it lazy? George always intended the Episodic saga to be about the Skywalker family. His original outline was 12 movies. 1-3 focus on the father & his fall 4-6 on the son & the fathers redemption 7-9 was the search for the daughter/sister 10-12 the story of the grandchildren.
However all this was condensed when making ROTJ so that the daughter became Leia & that George would only have to do 1-3 to create a complete story, seemingly abandoning 7-12 in the process but when he sold it on, he also sold his original ideas and outlines for 7-12.
Disney/Lucasfilm have just condensed the story down a little. 7-9 are essentially the grandchilren's story as it was always somewhat planned. Furthermore they seem to have resurrected Palpatine being the ultimate father i.e Anakin's creator in Darth Vader issue 25.
For reference
Palpatine Anakin's father
https://youtu.be/y3cNmV0jPNY
A link for a book detailing all the above & has an extensive chapter detailing Lucas' sequel plans. I've owned a copy since before Disney bought Lucasfilm.
https://www.amazon.com/Secret-History-Star-Wars/dp/0978465237/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?crid=F7LRMGOVZF0M&amp;keywords=secret+history+of+star+wars&amp;qid=1555362829&amp;s=gateway&amp;sprefix=secret+history+of+st&amp;sr=8-1
Bonus question 1 answer being PMed. I've searched and searched and I can't find your name :(
Raffley goodness: In school, you're taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you're given a test that teaches you a lesson.
I would highly suggest either Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual or any of the other books listed in the sidebar of /r/improv Or Improvisation For The Theater
The UCB manual is mostly concerned with Long-Form Improvisational Comedy, but it'll have good insight for any other kind of work.
Depending on who you ask, you can get different "tenets" of Improv. But the most basic things two I'd say are:
1.) Yes And - It is not just about literally saying yes, but about agreeing and adding information.
2.) Don't Deny - Again, this isn't about saying no, but about not denying the reality which has been created. As in, if you're in a scene where it is established that you're on normal Earth, don't just start going "Hey, I'm flying!"
I'm pretty sure the reason they're doing the tour now is as much because of Greg's book, The Disaster Artist, that was just released back in October.
Just read "The Disaster Artist" by Greg Sestero (of "The Room" fame.) I decided to re-watch the movie right after and I'm not going to lie... I found it kind of uncomfortable to laugh at it after knowing some of Tommy Wiseau's motivations for making it. Don't get me wrong, The Room is and always will be a disaster of a film, and Tommy was incredibly irritating to work with, but he also seems like a guy who was very lost at the time:
>"I know they don't want me. I know they don't understand me. Guy with accent and long hair. So I show them. I show them what I can do... I'm going to do it all myself. Everything. I'm going to show all these fuckers from Hollywood in their limousines."
I feel like the above excerpts explain why he chose to produce/write/direct/star in the film, and why he was so insufferable on set. He had something he wanted to prove to the world, and to see it backfire so gloriously in movie form is funny at first, but I started feeling kind of bad after a while.
You're tearing me APART, Tommy!
The Room — uh, YES. And also read Greg Sestero (Mark)'s book about the making-of, The Disaster Artist.
HDTGM — heard of, never seen. But Paul Scheer and Jason Mantzoukas are both absolutely hilarious.
I just learned about this movie, and through the movie learned about the book written about the making of this movie, and it looks like a good freaking read. Thanks!
http://www.amazon.com/The-Disaster-Artist-Inside-Greatest/dp/1451661193
Cheep cheep! Cheep cheep!
If you haven't read it. I'd suggest reading Greg Sestero's book http://www.amazon.com/The-Disaster-Artist-Inside-Greatest/dp/1451661193
Sorry, I keep forgetting I'm in r/movies and not r/theroom lol...the guy who played "O hai" Mark in The Room wrote a book about the experience of filming it and being friends with Tommy, which is what the Franco movie is based on. It's awesome and I highly recommend it! The Disaster Artist
To sum it up: The Room is 10/10 because it's batshit crazy, The Disaster Artist book is 10/10 because it's a great inside look at a batshit crazy movie made by a really bizarre but interesting guy, and I believe The Disaster Artist movie will be 10/10 based on those reasons.
Check out The Disaster Artist. Greg Sestero goes into what that clip is and why Tommy made it. Really interesting and hilarious.
You should probably read The Disaster Artist. It was written by the guy who played Mark in the movie.
Spoiler: Tommy was the only one who didn't want out. And that includes Cancer Mom.
The Jedi Path is probably exactly what you're looking for.
A couple things to note:
A trial could be pre-arranged by the council or just happen by accident and someone says it works.
Trial of Skill could be any difficult or near impossible task. If I recall correctly Obi-Wan passed this by defeating a Sith lord (Maul) while still being a Padawan.
Trial of Flesh dosent have to be physical. Experiencing any great trauma coping well could count. Death of a master or even your aunt and uncle who raised you could work.
And even if a trial is designed for one of these it could be used for another or multiple trials if passed in a way you didn't expect. There's an anecdote of 3 padawans that were made to fight dozens of opponents in a row. The first fought for hours before collapsing from exhaustion and awoke to the news he had passed the trial of Skill. The second faced a few before realizing they were illusions and after dispelling them, passed the trial of Insight. The third believing victory was impossible surrendered and was removed from the order.
Edit: my source for the anecdote, The Jedi path page 103.
Star Wars: The Jedi Path https://www.amazon.com/dp/1452102279/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_taa_2xrezb5ZAAQYT
This is also not SWTOR per-se, but is a a super-cool gift for any Star Wars fan: Book of Sith Vault or The Jedi Path.
I've had it for a while, but only just started reading it. I would imagine this book goes into that quite a bit.
US link - also comes in Sith and Bounty Hunter flavours, not got them though.
I'm replying quite late, but I don't think you want to gift him bicycle decks. He's probably already got enough of those and would continue getting more. I think it wouldn't be special to him. He would really appreciate some fancier decks as a gift. Please take a look at www.theory11.com or www.ellusionist.com for some decks. Most of them are $10 so a fair bit more expensive than the regular bicycles. www.artofplay.com has some wonderful ones as well, broader range of prices. Multiple copies of whichever deck you select would be worth it, because he would never use a fancy deck if he had just one.
Its also worth checking with him on which books he has already. Royal Road is very popular and he might already have a copy.
An example gift I would set up, priced at around $30(not including shipping costs) :
3x Aviator Heritage Edition (Art of Play) [$21]
OR
2x Knights Playing Cards (Ellusionist) [$20]
+
1x Royal Road to Card Magic (Amazon US store) [$11]
Thank you for your kind comments and thank you for a thoughtful post.
I'm not so enthralled by old-school Westerns either. I found Stagecoach and The Searchers fairly entertaining but not much else from that era. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly is one of my all-time favorite movies though.
My main point about Ford is that he really had a breakthrough in location shooting, almost making the location a character in the film, and certain types of shots that are so often seen in Westerns. There's more to it than that (the story of The Searchers is pretty great), but that's the main gist of my argument about Ford. Those are the elements that were influential.
>Would you also ascribe Albert Einstein's scientific discoveries to the US because he spent the last years of his life there (well, considering he was chased out of Germany at least that's not unthinkable)?
No, I wouldn't because he made his big discoveries in Europe. Chaplin, OTOH, made the bulk of his artistic output in Hollywood. I'm not alone in thinking this way, the American Film Institute claims Chaplin's films as American. You're right though, I'd say it is a gray area. Even still I think it highlights how Hollywood was a magnet for foreign talent.
>I too see Europe as one creative entity in these matters,
Yeah, I'm only lumping them together because of the initial "us vs. them" mentality of my initial response. There are some pretty distinct strains of European cinema: German Expressionism, Italian Neo-Realism, the French New Wave, the films of Jean Renoir, Ingmar Bergman and Federico Fellini.
>[The Wizard of Oz] just looked like a very low budget kid's show
Low budget? It was one of the most expensive movies of all-time up to that point. I think only Gone With the Wind had a bigger budget. Anyway, it played on American TV every year at Thanksgiving holiday for some 30-40 years. It was influential for many reasons, one of them being that it was ubiquitous.
>Funny you mention they used Hitchcock as an early example as I've never heard him mentioned as an auteur. Mostly because he's done such a wide variety of movies and a lot of them aren't good at all. Now that you mention it it makes sense though, the films I've seen do indeed seem to carry a similar artistic vision (though, might I say, it feels more technical than artistic to me).
If you take anything away from this conservation please re-consider Hitchcock. His career spanned some 50 years and he made a ton of films. Yes, there are clunkers but on the whole he is awesome. Most of his work in the 30's, 40's and 50's are just outstanding. It's too long to list in this comment but ask me and I'll gladly respond with the must-see Hitchcock films. I will point out that Vertigo has been mentioned as one of the ultimate examples of the auteur theory at work. Also, my absolute favorite book about film is a in-depth, film by film, interview by Francois Truffaut of Hitchcock. Link
>Yes. Actually the story about how spaghetti westerns came to be is my favourite in all of cinema history because it's so absurd (geographically speaking); westerns from the US influencing japanese samurai films, that are later remade (Yojimbo that is) into italian western.
Yeah, all that and they were filmed in Spain.
Hitchcock/Truffaut. The way it delves into effective storytelling through filmmaking has really helped inform my writing as of late. Great examples of showing and building tension as opposed to talking about it.
Surprisingly, Jojo author Hirohiko Araki's book "Manga in Theory and Practice" is actually available in English. In it, he himself admits to being inspired by a Hitchcock reference.
Is it this book? Hitchcock (Revised Edition)
Hitchcock/Truffaut - He really seemed to enjoy talking shop with another director
To get insight into the genius of Hitchcock the best way is to read the superb Hitchcock/Truffaut in which Trauffaut through a long intervew with Hitchcock brings great insight into Hitchcock and movie making in general.
I myself feel as David O. Selznick left maybe to much of a imprint on this movie for into to compare to the greatest Hitchcock movies(for me the best is "The Wrong Man") but it's still a great movie so read the book and see it again and maybe by seeing it in the perspective of it being made in 1940, a year before Citizen Kane, and with the help of Truffaut you will se why it's so highly rated.
If you don't want to read the full book. Here are the audio outtakes of the interview regarding Rebecca and other things Les Debuts Americains Rebecca.
Hitchcock/Truffaut.
Hitchcock by Francois Truffaut
If you like Hitchcock, Hitchock/Truffaut, which is a collection of interviews between Alfred Hitchcock and French new-wave director (and Hitchcock apprentice) Francois Truffaut
Honestly I made most of it up on the spot. But I do have an extensive collection of Star Trek technical manuals many of which discuss the in-universe technical issues. The most popular being: TOS Tech Manual, TNG Tech Manual, Mr Scott's Guide to the Enterprise, and Enterprise Owner's Manual
The big flaws are that canon Star Trek tends to over-rely on manual human action instead of automation. The classic example being hand delivering a stack of PADDs to your superior officer, one for each document, instead of just emailing all your reports from a single PADD.
Good or non-android robots are nearly unheard of as well. But maybe more in use off screen in construction or industrial scenarios.
Really, it's just the idea of how easy large projects would be if you have reliable and cheap access to vacuum, zero-g, force fields, tractor beams, and transporters. Plan ahead and make everything modular and large construction projects become easy.
The TNG and DS9 technical manuals are both cool resources and are packed with jargon that is easily referenced. Those plus Memory Alpha should give you plenty of technobabble to go on.
Oooooh yes they did.
So, this is in fairness from the technical advisors of the show, not the writers... but I think you'll agree that counts:
http://www.amazon.com/Star-Trek-The-Next-Generation/dp/0671704273
Another amazing Star Trek book
You're welcome. Many years ago somebody gave me this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Star-Trek-Next-Generation-Technical/dp/0671704273?SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&amp;tag=duckduckgo-ffnt-20&amp;linkCode=xm2&amp;camp=2025&amp;creative=165953&amp;creativeASIN=0671704273
and, since I'm kinda mechanically oriented and a bit nerdy, I found it entertaining enough to read it a few times over the years.
It's this book by Sternbach and Okuda: https://www.amazon.com/Star-Trek-Next-Generation-Technical/dp/0671704273
Should be available at other places too.
this led me to believe that the impulse engine worked by exhausting superheated gas from a fusion reaction while simultaneously generating a sub-light warp field, allowing the ship to be accelerated rapidly during sub-light maneuvers.
i hope Seth releases a 'Technical Manual' like Gene did with the TNG Enterprise. (I got a 20 year old 1st edition sitting here) very very detailed
https://www.amazon.com/Star-Trek-Next-Generation-Technical/dp/0671704273/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1506276222&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=star+trek+technical+manual
Amazon has it for as little as $4 (0.01+3.99 s/h), used.
https://www.amazon.com/Star-Trek-Next-Generation-Technical/dp/0671704273
There is also an "Interactive" CD-ROM version, designed for Windows 3.x. While it is interesting, and does cover some of the same material, it is its own work, and in the end, covers far less. The video quality is also severely lacking in 2016, and getting it to work is not straightforward.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13oUXX8UdiI
http://www.amazon.com/Film-Directing-Shot-Visualizing-Productions/dp/0941188108
This book covers storyboarding very thoroughly, down to different techniques for drawing arrows to indicate movement, but also covers staging and all aspects of choosing shots, angles, mantaining visual flow etc.
It's a heavy read though, very in-depth and technical - which of course is a good thing if you have the patience.
And to follow up on this solid line of thinking, I'd strongly recommend this:
http://www.amazon.com/Film-Directing-Shot-Visualizing-Productions/dp/0941188108/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1321583365&amp;sr=8-1
Making Movies, by Sidney Lumet
(http://www.amazon.com/Making-Movies-Sidney-Lumet/dp/0679756604/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1394078386&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=making+movies+sidney+lumet)
On Directing Film, by David Mamet
(http://www.amazon.com/Directing-Film-David-Mamet/dp/0140127224/ref=la_B000APXE7Q_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1394078307&amp;sr=1-1)
Film Directing Shot by Shot, by Steven D. Katz
(http://www.amazon.com/Film-Directing-Shot-Visualizing-Productions/dp/0941188108/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1394078422&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=film+direction+shot+by+shot)
They're the highest regarded movie making books. They're extremely practical without losing a sense of wonder or passion about movie making.
Wow, that dog really wants to bite him! It's hard to guess how to critique not knowing your experience so ill keep it broad...
For composition and filmmaking read this:Film Directing, Shot by Shot
For Animation Read this:Animation Survival Kit
Once you read both of these books you will be able and critique this and make your next piece much better.
Good Luck!
I agree with ancientworldnow. Get on set. This is essential, just being on set you'll learn more than you would any place else. This will teach you how sets function. Sometimes it will be backbreaking tiresome work, but you will learn who plays the different roles on sets.
The other thing you should do is get a camera and produce content. It will be crappy at first, but just get out there with a camera and make stuff. It doesn't matter what, and it doesn't matter that you're not getting paid for it. Look for online contests for commercials, music videos, and short films. You may not be interested in the products or content you'll be film, but these will provide opportunities to create content. When you finish such projects, analyze what you've done well, and where you've failed.
You don't need a $5000 camera to produce quality content, learn to work with something less expensive, even a flip camera. The concepts you learn about blocking and setting up shots will teach you a whole lot that can be applied to any equipment you get later on.
Read Shot by shot. It's a solid filmmaking textbook that goes through some of the basics.
But mostly, get yourself on a set. Go on craigslist and find free PA gigs, they wont pay, but you'll meet others like you. Finally, when you're on set, don't push your own projects, everyone has a project that they're working on, you're not there to pitch, you're there to pitch in. If you make yourself known as a hard worker, you'll be called back and back and pay will come your way.
I found this book to be extremely helpful when I was starting.
http://www.amazon.com/Film-Directing-Shot-Visualizing-Productions/dp/0941188108/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1369276125&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=shot+by+shot
Might be more for director's but maybe Shot By Shot
I'm fairly sure there's still some early versions of Empire floating around where Anakin Skywalker is a completely different person to Darth Vader. IIRC, Luke was originally going to meet up with Anakin to complete his training rather than Yoda. Even going back to the original film it's clear that when Vader is addressed as Darth that they're using his forename rather than a title, that was a later retcon.
On a similar note, when Empire was being made George Lucas was talking about making another 3-6 films (he even talked of 20 films at one point as I remember) following on from the original trilogy. Yoda's line about another would have led into the follow-up trilogy but was shelved when Lucas got burned out from filming the originals, plus he couldn't work out how to insert another jedi into the story without damaging the existing story since everyone would simply ask where they had been in the first trilogy and how no one had noticed a second jedi aiding the Rebellion.
Lucas' answer to that was to make Leia & Luke siblings, which tied up the looming plot hole. There's even some hints that Leia was already using the force without realising it during Return of the Jedi when she chokes Jabba - that chain around his neck wasn't going to be enough to choke him, but her latent powers allow her to perform the same type of force-choke that Vader does throughout the films.
Anyone who is a Stars Wars nerd to the same degree as myself might want to read The Secret History of Star Wars which goes into a lot of details about the creation of the films.
Ugh, I hate to be this guy, but Lucas' original intent in V was for the other to be an unknown person, who would be introduced in the movies following RotJ. But by the time he'd got to writing Jedi, he was exhausted and his marriage was falling apart. He just wanted to wrap the whole thing up. Leia was not the intended "other" when Empire was being written. She was not Luke's twin sister. That was all on-the-fly writing during the outlining for Jedi.
Edit: Every Star Wars fan should read The Secret History of Star Wars. It's really good.
I've heard good things about the UCB's Comedy Improvisation Manual.
If you live near a larger city there's probably some sort of improv happening near you. Otherwise there's a great book for beginners put out by the upright citizens brigade theater you can getright here it's great for beginners and you can learn and find some like minded friends to practice with you.
If you want to get really into it, but don't want to move to one of the three big cities (LA, NYC, Chicago) you can find coaches to meet with you via Skype or Google hangouts. It's not a totally perfect system, but it's really helped me get some great instruction fairly cheaply.
Hopefully though you can find some sort of training center near you and take some classes.
Have fun!
Hey Daniel!
Your video has some really great moments, and you seem like a really genuine and nice guy. Here are a few things I think you should think about:
There's nothing inherently wrong with cheese, and a lot of big YouTubers use it heavily, but I think you might want to try and experiment with the voice and tone you establish, and swap the cheese for something more genuine. There's no formal rule of YouTube that says you have to aggressively go "HEY GUYS!" at the top of every video. I think this would help your jokes land better too. The juxtaposition of someone seeming to be genuine/helpful, and then breaking out giant impractical props would land better. It's a better misdirection.
I really like the premise of the video, but I think if you used the thumbnail, title, and first 15-30 seconds of the video to establish a more serious/genuine tone, the reveal 30 seconds in that this whole thing is a comedic skit would have a lot better payoff. Here's a video from Gus Johnson where he does a decent job of establishing a 'base reality' of a helpful how-to, and then it devolves into ridiculousness.
You don't have to play as much of a character as you do. That's probably why the bloopers feel so genuinely funny, because you're not putting on a show, that's just you.
There are tons of ways you could heighten more in this video, but I think an interesting way for this particular video would be to actually get some footage of you using these ridiculous props in class. If you cut from 'make sure you bring water' and you whipping out that giant ass jug, to then a shot of you doing the same thing in an actual classroom, and attempting to drink from it as people stare at you, I would lose my mind. Same thing with the chips, and the tissues, and the horse, and everything else.
After looking at your channel, it seems like you're interested in doing comedy YouTube as a career, so I would strongly recommend taking improv classes to learn the fundamentals of improvised and sketch comedy. At the very least, order the UCB Improv Manual from Amazon, and read the first few chapters on base reality, game, and heightening.
Basically they argue that scenic comedy has three parts:
Establishing a normal base reality > Introducing a weird thing that sticks out from that reality > Heightening that weird thing to the point of absurdity.
Overall I think your video is leagues better than a lot of the other ones I see on this subreddit. Your channel looks like you've been working really hard to improve, and that's key. I think if you keep at it and experiment with tone a bit, you'll see some really great results. I subbed, and I'm really interested in what you make in the future!
The Upright Citizens Brigade troop produced a bunch of great improvisers. Amy Pohler being one of them. They're also one of two accredited improv schools in the US. They wrote a book I found really useful to spice up my life. Hope it helps :)
If you're taking the improv route, you may want to try The Second City Almanac of Improvisation or the Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual. Both really great improv 'guides'.
If your friend hasn't read Truth in Comedy, that's a serious must for any comedic performer.
Rousselet is the man to ask this question - but I can tell you that he wrote the introduction to Greg Sestero's new book, The Disaster Artist http://www.amazon.com/The-Disaster-Artist-Inside-Greatest/dp/1451661193 which you'll be able to get soon. I was once on the phone with Tommy, trying to convince him to act in a short film I was going to produce, while the cult of "The Room" was only beginning to grow in the college dorms that Rouss was targeting. He deemed me unprofessional, said he didn't want to be part of "a Mickey Mouse" thing, and hung up. We all laughed. (BF)
You should read The Disaster Artist
Have you heard about this? I CAN'T WAIT.
Just looking at it on Amazon - can you tell me why page 15 is completely redacted? here. But yeah, the annotations make it totally worth getting :). Think I might.
Darth Plaguis is a very good book about Darths Tenebrous, Plagueis and Sidious. It's one of my favourite SW books. Not so much Jedi stuff in it, but very interesting and just plain fun.
There's also the Book of Sith and the Path of the Jedi. They read more or less like a handbook for the Jedi and (less so) the Sith. I just bought them, and they're pretty interesting. Legends, of course, but still nice. There's 'handwritten' notes in the margin by lots of movie characters.
http://www.amazon.com/Star-Wars-The-Jedi-Path/dp/1452102279
http://www.amazon.com/Star-Wars-Book-Daniel-Wallace/dp/1452118159
http://www.amazon.com/Star-Wars-Darth-Plagueis-Legends/dp/0345511298
First off, BEST CONTEST EVER! Just thought I'd say that.
I'm not sure what the limit is but if I can get THIS MY LIFE WOULD BE COMPLETE
But this or this would be just as good :)
Ok, but I'm wary of you. Your post is very academic, in every sense of the word. I expect field reports from you in return for what I'm about to give you.
A great book on improv was written by a legendary man named Del Close. He's not famous, but his students are very, very well known.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Del_Close
The book is Truth in Comedy.
http://www.amazon.com/Truth-Comedy-Improvisation-Charna-Halpern/dp/1566080037
It will teach you quite a lot about improv, but also about humor in general. It's short, practical, and accessible - but it will make more sense when you've actually tried to do it. Let me know what you think when you've read it.
"Only in the pan-handle can you get away with that"
&#x200B;
Everyone laughs.
&#x200B;
"The truth is funny. Honest discovery, observation, and reaction is better than contrived invention."
- Del Close & Charna Halpern, from their book Truth in Comedy
Just a comedy nerd dabbling in writing here - but I'm also a bookseller and my two mainstays on this front are Truth in Comedy and And Here's the Kicker. Both are well-known, but sometimes missed. Also, in terms of general writing habits, Bird by Bird is phenomenal.
Try The Five Cs for the big picture of editing in the context of the movie, trailer, whatever.
All of them, really. Absolutely no harm will come from reading all the books out there (for a while). At worst, you'll learn ways of doing things that DON'T work for you but it's still good knowledge to have.
After a while, eventually, you'll start noticing though that all the new books out are just copying and rephrasing the books that came before them. That's when it's time to stop.
Some of the popular ones are syd field's book, Robert McKee's book, Joseph Campbell's book (and imo a book called The Writer's Journey by Christopher something that analyzes Campbell's book and puts it into modern story telling terms). That'll get you started. I have varying opinions of each of those books and none of them should be adhered to by law, but they ALL contain concepts and theories that, as a professional writer, you'd do well to expose yourself to. If for no other reason than that you can be aware of the concepts when others talk about them.
Tangentially, Stephen king's On Writing and William Goldman's books are great reads but don't necessarily apply to the craft of screen writing directly. Also useful to read any interviews or collections of interviews with screen writers. You may also want to check out some podcasts, Jeff goldsmith's interviews with screen writers is great and I have no idea if it's still available or even what it's called but I used to listen to one titled something like Sam and Jim Go to Hollywood (I am positive I got those names wrong) about two guys who up and quit their careers as restaurant owners and moved to Hollywood to become writers and share what they've learned. Ted Rossio and Terry Elliot also run, or ran, a website with forums (which are eh) and and a collection of articles about screen writing which are fantastic.
This was all stuff I was into years ago, so I don't know how much of it is still relevant, because like I said when you get to a certain point you've kind of read everything out there and it all starts repeating itself, and you realize all that's left is to read screenplays and write a ton.
Good luck.
e: back on my computer, here are some links:
Syd Field's Sreenplay (he has several books out, that's the one you should start with as it lays the foundation for basic story structure of nearly all modern movies. IMO, it's also the best one out there because he never says these are rules in any way, he simply analyzed a bunch of movies and lays out his findings for you to do with as you wish)
Robert McKee's Story
Joseph Campbell's Hero with a Thousand Faces
and Christopher Vogler's The Writer's Journey
Stephen King's On Writing which describes his writing style and, while I don't prefer it, is a very interesting style similar to the Cohen Brothers
William Goldman's Adventures in the Screen Trade and Which Lie did I Tell? two accounts of William Goldman's experiences as one of the top writers in Hollywood, and dealing with the business. Writer of The Princess Bride, Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid, and many others. Dude's a legend.
Jeff Goldsmith's Q&A podcast he also did the same style podcast while working for a screenwriting magazine, though the name escapes me right now
Sam and Jim Go to Hollywood holy shit I got their names right I can't believe it. Seems to be dead for a few years but it looks like their podcasts are still up.
Wordplay, Ted & Terry's website read every single one of those articles
e: BONUS! Not that useful as an educational resource, but it's fun to read Ken Levine's blog, writer on MASH and Cheers Ken's blog (no, not the guy who made BioShock)
You're probably confused about what having beats in a script means.
(beat)
is used to indicate a pause and/or shift in emotion in dialog. However, it is pretty cliche and should only be used when absolutely necessary. I tend to only see it used a lot in amateur scripts where they feel the need to direct the conversation way too much.
"Beats" can also mean story beats such as the inciting incident, dramatic question, crisis, climax, etc. Like someone else said, Bruce's parents die before page 20. Obviously, that is major. That would be the inciting incident. The dramatic question is what Bruce does now that he is put in this situation without parents and heir to a corporation. Will he use this power to avenge their deaths? (Yes.)
I would suggest this book. Obsessing about structure too much leads to generic, cookie cutter stories, but it's important to know the rules before you can break the rules.
Understanding the three act structure is imperative. If you can think of something that you've written in the past and can apply it, or at least place the details and events in the structure, that should help a lot. McKee is a good read. It should answer a ton of questions.
The Writer's Journey is great too. But if you can write and you understand the structure that is looked for in visual media, you should be good.
Two major factors explain this:
Anyone who has written a screenplay has a heavily highlighted version of this on their bookshelf: http://www.amazon.com/The-Writers-Journey-Structure-Edition/dp/193290736X
Both of these plots seemed like that f/x familiar-yet-unpredictable sweet spot to studio heads when they approved them 2-3 years ago.
https://www.amazon.com/Writers-Journey-Mythic-Structure-3rd/dp/193290736X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2BLP9OJJ5V1W6&keywords=vogler+writers+journey&qid=1574454754&sprefix=vogler%2Caps%2C230&sr=8-1
AND it's dirt cheap now.
Best book on screenwriting, or most any kind of storytelling, for that matter... ever.
Rome is the motherfucking shit. Check out Mucius Scaevola, Horatius Cocles, and Cincinnatus from Livy's Ab Urbe Condita, for starters. Or hell, just Netflix the HBO series and start doing research until you understand everything, from marriages to army structure to political offices. The Romans can keep you busy for years, and I've found all my Classical study to be freakishly helpful in understanding... almost everything.
Novels, I recommend the following authors: George R.R. Martin, Lois McMaster Bujold (Her Miles Vorkosigan stuff, not the fantasy), Terry Pratchett, and E.E. Knight.
Don't limit yourself to photography, there are many amazing painters. Thinking about it, maybe you should x-post to /r/art and similar subreddits.
In terms of books I've done a lot of research but found very little. A common recommendation for photographers is The Photographer's Eye by Michael Freeman which goes through all kind of lines, contrast, balance, etc. Other books I'm eyeing are Mastering Composition by Ian Roberts and Framed Ink by Marcos Mateu-Mestre. Unfortunately I haven't read any of them yet so I can't comment on the quality.
If you are really serious about it, consider getting a list of most recommended art / photography universities. Then use their websites to find courses and contact teachers personally, asking for (book) recommendations. Begin with one person at each university if they happen to forward your message since you don't want to come across as spam. Some universities even publish course literature on their website. I'd love to hear the responses if you go through with it.
If it's learning in your free time try loomis and expand from there. An often overlooked aspect of art is composition. If you aren't familiar with the subject check out framed ink. It's film/comic focused, but reading this will give you an immediate step up on the subject and a greater appreciation for visual storytelling. Also makes for a great bathroom/coffee table book.
If you haven't gotten all that far with pixel art this book, while poorly written, is a reasonably comprehensive introduction to the fundamentals (not art fundamentals, but pixel art specific issues like lines/circles, anti-aliasing, dithering, ect). If you do go a more traditional route and have some cash I would recommend looking into getting a cheap graphics tablet and trying digital art instead. This guy has some great free videos on making the transition (he uses photoshop, but most techniques can be adapted to other software with a bit of effort) with a little introductory material on drawing in general. I've found making good pixel art as time consuming as drawing by hand, but ymmv.
As a side thought on the art classes bit, make sure to check with other students before registering. It's common for a good art class to assign very time consuming assignments so make sure you know what you're getting into first. Whatever you decide to do college is a good time to experiment and learn. Be sure to go wild and have fun so long as the rest of your career and future are in order.
Draw draw draw. Look up and follow a WIDE variety of artists and their social media. Look at old paintings and news photography (you get some really great reference in genuine emotion in a lot of that stuff, but it can be very intense so beware).
Watch out for colleges that are "WE graduate lots of artists who ALL MAKE IT BIG!" There are a LOT of scam schools out there and you can find cheaper better teaching environments like community colleges or Atelier's. These are generally more geared towards the traditional ways of illustration, but what you learn would help you establish more believable worlds to put your characters in.
A couple of resources I can recommend are Framed Ink
and a illustration group called One Fantastic Week.
And ThatOneDruid brings up a good point. Don't look at comics being your sole job as for many artists its not. Even the currently working artists who are employed do so on a contractual basis and often need to do other gigs on the side. Whether those other gigs are other full time jobs or just other contract jobs making ads, you're looking at a lot of hustle. Not bad if you can keep it up, just keep that in mind (especially if you're going alone and don't have a partner who can provide the more stable stuff like insurance and income.)
This is also very true if you're trying to do the whole indie/kickstarter thing as its really nice to go and put out your own stuff into the world, you have to do all the hard work of finding your audience and staying consistent with content.
And as always, you can start putting your stuff out there now on any social media site you'd like. Just draw draw draw and good luck!
Hi, first some background. I am currently in the hell process of getting my first industry job. Keep getting interviews/test but so far I haven’t gotten a job yet...though it’s only been two months since I finally started to apply haha. I originally applied for RISD MICA MCAD SVA Art Center and CalArts and I got accepted into all of them besides CalArts, which I got waitlisted for. Every school I got into offered me scholarships but once I factored in living/food I still couldn’t afford it. So I swallowed my pride and went to community college for a few years then besides reapplying to art schools I decided to make a hour and a half commute every few days to take classes at Concept Design Academy, Which I’m still currently doing. My original plan was to go to Calstate Long Beach or Cal State Fullerton, both have really good animation programs but I could live with my family while I went.
I’m so happy I didn’t go to a traditional art school. I was about to reapply when one of my friends who now works at Dreamworks told me to just do Concept Design instead. I trusted her opinion since she went to SVA and graduated and ended up not having the exact skills she needed for employment and she was super in debt.
I’d say it’s 50/50 with people I know that attended college and currently work in the industry, other half did what I am doing/didn’t get any higher education, some of my closest friends are currently attending SVA. I’m going to be honest most think it’s useless and wishes they went to a state school with a good art program rather than SVA or did what I ended up doing.
If you really want to work in TV/Movie animation look into Concept Design Academy in Pasadena CA or CGMA online or something similar. If you are dead set getting a degree I’d recommend looking into state schools. Art school isn’t worth the debt. If you have to take on all the loans yourself it’s not worth it it will destroy your credit forever and you won’t be able to move where the industry is.
This is about art center(where I originally got accepted and planned on going too) but all my SVA/MICA/RISD friends have similar experiences
http://ghostbri.tumblr.com/post/178516711920/dude-i-really-wanna-go-to-art-center-what#notes
This specific artist also has great resources for finding alternative education.
DONT RUIN YOUR LIFE BC YOU FEEL LIKE YOU WONT SUCCEED IN THE INDUSTRY WITH OUT ART SCHOOL. THERE IS OTHER WAYS.
If you live in/around LA area or are willing to transfer:
http://conceptdesignacad.com/
https://animationguild.org/about-the-guild/education/
https://laafa.edu/
Online recourses:
https://www.cgmasteracademy.com
https://www.schoolism.com
https://www.theanimcourse.com/courses/
Alternative book based educations:
The Animator's Survival Kit: A Manual of Methods, Principles and Formulas for Classical, Computer, Games, Stop Motion and Internet Animators https://www.amazon.com/dp/086547897X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_U7xwCbZNA4X74
Framed Ink: Drawing and Composition for Visual Storytellers https://www.amazon.com/dp/1933492953/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_m8xwCbE8TH4VS
FORCE: Dynamic Life Drawing: 10th Anniversary Edition (Force Drawing Series) https://www.amazon.com/dp/1138919578/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_U8xwCbTRGJHWJ
(This one is currently out of print because they are changing the cover it should be back in a few weeks and be around 15 bucks)
Also here is a few good YouTube channels:
https://www.youtube.com/user/ProkoTV
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCS3ZMbzTOXdDuJlhAZuXgaw
https://youtu.be/uDqjIdI4bF4
If you(or anyone reading this) have any questions please feel free to DM me!! If I don’t have a direct answer I know one of my friends that work in the industry will and I could ask. Art School isn’t the only way to obtain a good quality art education and a ton of talented artist make it in the industry without it!
Also sorry this is so LA centric, I grew up in the great LA area and currently work exclusively in it so it’s all I know in-depth.
Quick Edit; I’m a purely 2D based artist. I work mostly in concept and I’m currently working on transitioning into Boarding/Revisions. I don’t work on the animation end of these but that’s Bc most outsource to other countries now.
Learn from the masters.
Don't get too hung up on books, they can be useful but but realize they are still limited in information, technique, application, opinion etc. That being said: Loomis is widely known as the standard for drawing anatomy; Masters of Anatomy have some great pose references to practice dynamic figure study; and lastly Framed Ink is a short but valuable book about how to use compositions to achieve different things.
When you do studies, just think of what you want to learn better and build your own study to achieve that goal. Want to learn dynamic lighting? Grab some lamps and set up a still life. Want to learn compositions? Get some professional images with great composition and trace the major shapes over the top, then try to reverse-engineer how and why the artist did things that way.
It doesn't really have a specific name. However, if you want to know more about this sort of style, there are two books I can't recommend enough.
Even master artists feel like they don't know what they're doing. The more you learn, the more you realize is left to learn. There is no point where you go from someone who can't draw to someone who can. It's just something you keep getting better at the more you practice and study. Copying from reference is a great place to start, keep at it. and don't be afraid to ask for critique if you really get stuck.
Just do what you can now, and as you improve it will get more fun and less frustrating.
If you want some resources, here's some youtube channels that have helped me:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5dyu9y0EV0cSvGtbBtHw_w
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUQTqWAaSzhAKRanOpes1nA
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvM8sIthAK1KOQ4nq5mYCTw
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwJheV30gHVOjBps2DU7k9A
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCno-YPZ8BiLrN0Wbl8qICFA
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIGRhqYssT6IGPYOnZBFYKw
https://www.youtube.com/user/ProkoTV
And also some books:
https://www.amazon.com/Figure-Drawing-All-Its-Worth/dp/0857680986
https://www.amazon.com/Color-Light-Realist-Painter-Gurney/dp/0740797719
https://www.amazon.com/Framed-Ink-Drawing-Composition-Storytellers/dp/1933492953
https://www.amazon.com/Animators-Survival-Kit-Principles-Classical/dp/086547897X/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&amp;psc=1&amp;refRID=ZNC6E0ET0QNFQAPH01WB
https://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Comics-Invisible-Scott-McCloud/dp/006097625X
You could also check out http://drawabox.com/ and https://www.ctrlpaint.com/ which both offer a more ridged lesson by lesson approach to learning to draw.
Check out a book called Framed Ink; there are chunks that are very specifically about comics and shot composition in movies, but on the whole is a very good discussion on the general topic of composition.
You're on to a great start just by starting! Here is a great book that I would recommend for composition, which plays a huge part in the layout of comic strips. I was a layout artist at Disney for Frozen, and a lighting artist on many other films and this book was a great way to learn some of the fundamental (and not so fundamental) ideas to staging and drawing for storytellers. Hope this help! Keep it up! http://www.amazon.com/Framed-Ink-Drawing-Composition-Storytellers/dp/1933492953/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1417589562&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=ink+marcos+mateu
Agreed. As-is, while the drawing is fairly strong, the composition is far too simple.
/u/FatherJTodd, every panel in this page puts the subject in the center of the page in a straight-on shot (one shot is from the 'side' but the camera is still at the same level). While this means the story is understandable, it's also very 'wooden' and somewhat devoid of drama; there's so much more you could be doing with composition to give this page some life.
Compare your page to what Tradd Moore does in Luther Strode. Tradd is a master of dynamic comic composition-- he varies the size and shape of the panels, the "camera" angle, the location of the subjects within the panel, and the amount of black to create a visual feast for the eyes.
That's not to say you have to immediately start going crazy like Tradd does... but you should definitely start thinking about composition more. Check out Wally Wood's 22 Panels that Always Work for ideas of how to change up composition, and buy/read Marcos Mateu-Mestre's fantastic book Framed Ink for a more in-depth explanation of composition for graphic communication.
Read this book.
The Screenwriter's Bible is a good one-stop-shop book for beginning screenwriters (and it is fairly cheap). It goes over how to write good stories, how to properly format scripts, and how to get those scripts sold.
I often see questions like “How do I become a screenwriter?” or "How can I write a screenplay?"
So here’s an answer you can read in five minutes or less.
Read at least two screenwriting “how-to” books
For example, you could try:
I think it’s a good idea to read more than one book because you don’t want to get the idea that there’s only one right way to write a screenplay. Different authors have different approaches that you may find more or less useful.
TAKE NOTES ON WHAT YOU LEARN.
Read at least five professional scripts
You can often find them by googling the name of the movie along with “PDF.”
You can also try Simply Scripts and The Internet Movie Script Database (IMSDb).
Your reading list should include scripts for movies that have been made in the past five years, so you can see what styles are current.
TAKE NOTES ON WHAT YOU LEARN.
One thing you should notice is that professional scripts have certain things in common. For example, they almost all have sluglines that look something like this:
EXT. RAIN FOREST – DAY
Some writers put sluglines in bold (which is a current fashion), and some don’t.
You should also notice that other things are different. For example, some writers use CAPS for objects and sounds a lot more than other writers do. Some writers write long, detailed descriptions of locations; others don’t.
One reason for this exercise is to get a sense of what a professional script looks like – what’s “standard,” and what’s more a matter of individual taste/style.
Another reason to read a lot of scripts (especially award-winning ones) is to get a feel for what “good” looks like.
Think about how these pro scripts follow (or not) the “rules” in the books you’ve read.
Follow along in the script as you’re watching the movie
Notice how words on a page translate into sights and sounds on the screen.
Notice how much detail is written out by the screenwriter, and how much is left to others (like the costume designer, set designer, or fight choreographer).
Come up with a screenplay idea/story
A good source for help with developing commercial story ideas is Selling Your Story in 60 Seconds.
Or read this blog: https://lauridonahue.com/fantastic-ideas-and-where-to-find-them-stps-5/
It can be helpful to put your idea into logline form. One basic model for loglines is:
>[Type of person or group] must [do or overcome something] in order to [achieve some goal].
You can also add details about where and when the story takes place, if relevant.
For example:
>A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, a restless farm-boy must rescue a princess and learn to use his supernatural powers in order to defeat an evil empire.
Create a beat-sheet
A beat-sheet is a short (1-2 page) outline of what happens in your script.
For example, you can use the famous/infamous Blake Snyder “Save the Cat” Beat Sheet.
The books you’ve read may have other models for this.
Some people don’t like outlining. They just like to jump right into the story and start writing. How you work is up to you. But you may find that having an outline will let you know if you’ve got enough story (or too much), keep you on track, and save you from wasting time.
Write a treatment or a scriptment
A treatment or scriptment is a longer kind of outline.
Again, you may prefer just to dive in. It’s up to you.
Try to write a screenplay
It’s a good idea to get script formatting software, like Celtx or Highland or Final Draft. If you try to write a script in Word or another standard word processing program, you may drive yourself nuts dealing with format issues, and the end result may not look professional.
Or, just can write your first draft in a notebook, and do your second draft using formatting software. (I decided I wasn’t going to spend money on Final Draft until I proved to myself I could finish a first draft by hand.)
If you finish, congratulations. You’re now a screenwriter. Most wannabes never make it to that point.
However, your script probably isn’t very good. Most first scripts are awful.
What if you want to be a GOOD screenwriter?
Then you’ve got a lot more work ahead of you.
Put the script aside
Don’t work on it for at least a week. You want to be able to see it with fresh eyes.
Don’t show it to anyone yet, however much you want people to tell you how awesome it is.
This would be a good time to start working on your next script.
Rewrite
Look back at your notes from the screenwriting books and scripts you read. Think about what makes a script good.
Compare your script to the professional scripts, in terms of format, structure, dialogue, pacing, description, action, etc.
Re-read the chapters on revisions in the books you read.
Read a book like Making a Good Script Great and apply what it suggests.
Rewrite again and again and again until your script is as good as you think you can make it.
Get feedback
Do NOT get feedback on your first draft. Get feedback on your BEST draft.
So where do you get feedback?
Whatever you do, don’t be a douche about the feedback you get. Accept it with THANKS and graciously, even if you think the reader is an idiot for failing to recognize your genius.
And before you ask anyone for free feedback, read this – and don’t be that guy.
Rewrite again and again and again
Again, in between rewrites and while you’re waiting for feedback, put your script aside and work on more scripts.
You could experiment with different formats (feature, TV, short, webisode, etc.), genres, and styles. Discover where your strengths and interests lie.
Get more feedback; revise; repeat
Repeat as needed until people who know what they’re talking about (not your buddies, not your mom) say it’s good, and/or you start placing in contests like the Nicholl and Austin and/or getting 8s and up on The Black List.
Keep in mind that it may take years, and many drafts of many scripts, before you get to this point… if you ever do. (Most people don’t.)
If you do make it that far – congratulations again! You’re now a pretty good screenwriter.
(If you like this, please subscribe to my blog: https://lauridonahue.com/how-to-become-a-screenwriter-in-five-minutes-or-less-stps-4/)
Edit: this isn't mine it's Seshat_the_Scribe but it should help
You could start here: The Screenwriter's Bible
Below is a link to a good book. It won't teach you how to be a storyteller, but it will teach you how to format a script. For grammar, purchase The Elements of Style. For screenwriting software, purchase FinalDraft. Yes FinalDraft is expensive (you may have to save up) but it will make your writing journey a lot easier than it probably is now. Best of luck.
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https://www.amazon.com/Screenwriters-Bible-6th-Complete-Formatting/dp/1935247107
I really think the best practical material on narrative was written for screenplays. There are many great books, such as The Screenwriters Bible, Story and The Foundations of Screenwriting. Just be careful not to become too indoctrinated: rules are good, but if you worry too much about them you might forget to write a story that is actually good.
I got more out of The Story Solution than both of those put together.
I'll also save wrytagain the hassle and add The Screenwriter's Bible.
Write a spec script and maybe get an agent. Spec script writing is a very specific art form, so study up.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1935247107/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1466966617&amp;sr=8-1&amp;pi=SY200_QL40&amp;keywords=script+writing&amp;dpPl=1&amp;dpID=51akHbdO5aL&amp;ref=plSrch
I'm too busy to read the entire script, but after about 4 pages in let me give my two cents:
First the critique. I believe you should invest in buying a screenwriting book that helps you with formatting. Here is the one I have on [amazon] (https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1935247107/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1482011419&amp;sr=8-1&amp;pi=SY200_QL40&amp;keywords=screenwriters+bible)
Beyond that, with the descriptions, there are too many lines and makes it hard to read. Try to combine them. That's my biggest critique.
The good part is I am intrigued by your story concept. Right off the bat, it reminds me of "In Time" where there is some kind of time aging thing, but instead of time being currency, it sounded like you purchased more life. That concept is gold, stick with it.
I think you just need to practice formatting. Use [celtx] (https://www.celtx.com/index.html) which has a free version with a great system for organizing screenplays.
Tl;dr Great idea; work on structure.
this one. It's for screenwriters, originally. But, 95% of the advice is not screen specific. This book is gold.
Robert McKee's Story is considered a good guide to screenwriting and can assist with the format and standardization. For advice on derivative work and finding agents, I'm not sure if Story itself dives into that, but would be a good starting point.
No it's not.
Just buy this. Good enough to get started then read scripts and write:
http://www.amazon.com/Story-Structure-Substance-Principles-Screenwriting-ebook/dp/B0042FZVOY
Check this out
Michael Bay, is that you? huehuehue
As far as format goes, The Complete Screenwriter's Manual covers everything. I mean, you say you know format. Everyone says they know format. A fraction of those claimants actually have command of format, though. This book covers just about everything.
Read/watch anything you can find on storytelling in general; not just movies. Structure, theme, the writing process, whatever. You'll find that the authors, writers of tips and lists, etc., are repeating each other and drawing from the same sources.
Much/most of modern screenwriting is informed by the works of mythologist Joseph Campbell. George Lucas was a student of his, and Robert McKee (book here) relies heavily on Campbell, as well.
Truby's 22 Steps is much the same, but he goes back to Lord Raglan's Hero Scale--Lord Raglan was one of Campbell's predecessors/influences--and secularized/generalized it, since it had been focused mostly on divine/mythological figures like Jesus and Krishna. He basically just reworded it to have an Everyman bent.
Pick up A Brief History of the Movies, and watch the films as you go through it. That'll give you a primer on the development of the artform.
Do you have a buddy to tackle all this writing bidness? Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg had their first draft of Superbad done at your age. Kenny and Spenny wrote an episode of Ninja Turtles when they were, like, 11 or 12.
Oh, as for actually getting gear and filming stuff: if you're in a bigger city, there might be a film/TV co-op or a filmmaking camp for the teenagers...with the hippin n the hoppin n the bippin n the boppin...
Unless you are drop-dead gorgeous / handsome you had best come to terms with improv.
Every audition has an element of improv, and in most callback situations the director will spring something that you have to be ready to run with.
Try reading Truth in Comedy and try a beginning improv class.
You have to know the rules. Then you can break them.
Make sure you get the art book. It has a ton of these details for the whole series. And you'll be able to cite it!
I think Nick might be holding onto them for the time being.
Avatar: The Last Airbender (The Art of the Animated Series), the next best thing if you haven't seen it already.
> would start with the artbook and move on from there. It's filled with great stuff.
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Animated-Series/dp/1595825045 this book shows how they drew the things
This one.
I actually got it from my reddit secret Santa and it's awesome.
For those of you interested in seeing more, I suggest purchasing this book from amazon. It's really amazing
Here's the original scanned as a PDF. If you need it in other formats, the free graphic program GIMP is able to open and manipulate it however you'd like.
I also did this one as a PNG to make the background transparent and add a slight Gaussian blur to account for the printer spots in the original.
By the way, I cannot recommend highly enough the Avatar: The Art of the Animated Series book this comes from. It's only $19 for 200 pages of concept art, which I think is a pretty good deal.
You can find them on Amazon!
The Promise: Part one, Part two, Part three, Complete
Details the aftermath of the war.
The Search: Part one, Part two, Part three, Complete
Zuko searches for his mother.
A new comic called The Rift is coming out soon that's about Aang trying to protect sacred airbender lands or something. I'm not completely sure.
This is being done in the graphic novel "The Promise." A three part graphic novel, with part 1 already being released, and part two scheduled to come out in May.
Link to the book on amazon.
Sure! So for ATLA there are a series of trilogy stories. Their order is:
The Promise (3 parts, 2012)
The Search (3 parts, 2013)
The Rift (3 parts, 2014)
Smoke and Shadow (3 parts, 2015–16)
North and South (3 parts, 2016–17)
Imbalance (3 parts, 2018–19).
They all take place after the show and were made by and in connection with the creators. They're canon and some later ones reference earlier ones so be sure to read in the chronological order. There's also two anthology series that contain short stories from during the show. "The Lost Adventures" and "Team Avatar Tales."
For Korra there's only two so far:
Turf Wars (3 parts, 2017-18)
Ruins of the Empire (2019-20).
You can buy all of these on Amazon and in many cases you can find them at your local bookstore or library. They are available either in three smaller separate softcover parts or one combined hardcover. I personally bought them all as they came out and have the three individual softcover parts for each trilogy. Three separate covers that way too. Some of them are old enough now that the hardcover might be cheaper or on sale though so you might choose that.
"The Search" part 1 softcover is available here or "The Search" Hardcover part 1-3 is available on sale here.
"Turf Wars" part 1 softcover is available here or "Turf Wars" Hardcover part 1-3 is available on sale here.
You can find the rest of them on Amazon when you get to them too. Have fun!!
If anybody link me was wondering about comics, there also seem to be a load of mirrors for them online, you can buy them on amazon too.
Our subreddit is growing very quickly, so it isn't that surprising. It also helps that both The Last Airbender (A:TLA) and Legend of Korra (LOK) are fantastic shows with both kid and adult friendly content. If you haven't already, watch LOK and read The Promise and The Lost Adventures, you will love all of them if you loved A:TLA
Here are some ideas for dinner.
Couple ideas off the top of my head:
You could incorporate some of the elements from the Karazhan game board. You mentioned the stage, but the broomstick, candles (floating, even, if you get those little electric tea lights), or the orb lights that are in the top right corner. Maybe some sort of large tome or hand-drawn runes that could be hung up as decoration. The broom is sweeping up broken purple crystals, you could grow those quickly and easily and would add a sort of magical decoration to the mix.
A playlist with music from Warcraft or Hearthstone would add to the ambiance. The Hearthstone theme is pretty low-key and there are lots of youtube covers and renditions. TGT also has a great jingle, and I know I have at least one Warcraft album that has some very low-key ambient tunes from various towns and pubs in-universe. I have a TON of warcraft music, please PM me and I would be happy to send you some.
There is a World of Warcraft cookbook that surely has some good ideas for food. Regardless, just make sure you serve some guac :)
Good luck with the party, take some pictures and post an update!
Not the OP, but you can get it on Amazon!
Does Adventure Time count as fantasy? It does to me, but it may not to others.... Anyway, there are two cookbooks for Adventure Time:
Official Cookbook
Unofficial/Inspired By
Also? The same lady who did the GoT cookbook has a WoW one out, too: WoW
Finally, my favorite one: Nanny Ogg's Cookbook
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-The-Last-Airbender-Promise/dp/1616550740/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1397950535&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=avatar+the+promise
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-The-Last-Airbender-Search/dp/1616552263/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1409627863&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=avatar+the+search
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-The-Last-Airbender-Promise/dp/1616550740/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1409627863&amp;sr=8-5&amp;keywords=avatar+the+search
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Lost-Adventures/dp/159582748X/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_z
They've released a few sets through Dark Horse;
The Promise, which centers around the origins of the United Republic.
The Search, which answers the question of Zuko's mom.
and The Rift, which pertains to a number of different things, really...
Those are the only ones out so far, but they've said there are more in the works.
[Here] (http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-The-Last-Airbender-Promise/dp/1616550740/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&amp;colid=4QU7IV7OD4J3&amp;coliid=I2062V4J1CNZ1K)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1616550740/
Looks like all 3. We just started it, about 40 pages in.
Also The Promise: https://amzn.com/1616550740
Yes they have physical versions. both paperback for individual parts and hardcover collection.
https://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Airbender-Michael-Dante-DiMartino/dp/1616552263
I'm 29 (despite what the immature username might suggest). Absolute devotee of the series; my girlfriend got me into ATLA, and I was hooked about halfway through the 1st season (the animation quality and general weirdness of the initial few episodes was a little hard to stomach at first).
Isn't The Search on Amazon? Apologies if this is what you found already and it doesn't deliver to where you are.
One thing that's nice about being an adult and liking this show is that I get to drop some coin on the series without worrying AS much (them books are expensive!)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Avatar-Airbender-Search-Library-Horse/dp/1616552263/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1419899306&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=avatar+the+last+airbender
if she's already finished the series, get her this: http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-The-Last-Airbender-Search/dp/1616552263
I just went from Zero to Technician in just under a month. I ordered this book from amazon, read it and took some practice exams with this app.
I contacted a local club and they scheduled an exam for last Friday. I gave them $14 and passed the test. Checked the FCC licensing database and found my call sign there this morning. NH2LK.
Listening is a vital skill in amateur radio, so I suggest starting now. You don't need any equipment to do this - online SDR receivers allow you to tune in to the amateur HF bands using your web browser. This handy chart shows the frequency bands available to amateurs and lists common callsign prefixes. Just tune around the bands and listen in to some contacts to get a feel for things, even if you don't understand what's going on.
I'm assuming you're in the US, but if you're not then let me know and I'll try to provide advice more relevant to your country.
I'd recommend joining your local amateur radio club as soon as possible. You don't need to have a license to join a club. There's a tradition in amateur radio of informally mentoring new hams - we call these mentors "elmers". A good elmer can be a huge help when you're learning the hobby and working your way through the exams.
There are online video courses for the US Technician test available from KE4GKP, KE0OG and KB9OKB. These courses cover pretty much everything you need to know for the exam. The ARRL License Manual is a very good guide and will remain a useful reference book after you've passed. You can see the entire pool of questions for the technician exam or take a practice exam via the ARRL website.
When you think you're ready, take the technician exam. The exam fee is typically no more than $15, so don't be afraid to give it a try.
Once you've got your technician license, you'll want a radio. Technicians mainly have access to the VHF and UHF bands. Baofeng radios are a very popular choice for these bands - they aren't the best radios, but they are incredibly cheap, costing as little as $30. If you have a bigger budget, take a look at the handheld radios from Yaesu and Icom.
Don't stop at the technician license. The more you learn, the more you get out of the hobby. The HF bands are crucial for making international contacts, but technicians only have access to a small fraction of it, mainly the morse and data only bands. Moving up to the general, advanced and extra licenses will give you increasing access to the most exciting aspects of the amateur radio hobby.
This is basically as big a hobby if not bigger than you can get to with prepping. So the way I started I will tell you how I got started. I got the tech manual. Picked up a boafeng and found a weekly radio net in my area and started listening. You can legally listen as long as you don't transmit. I read the book, started doing a bunch of quizzes online at http://www.hamstudy.org the best website I can think of to learn the material.
I found my local club and scheduled a test session with them by emailing the president and he suggested why not try for your general. It was about a week before the test and I was already getting good marks on the tech questions so I added the general questions. I managed to pass the tech and general in the same night. I tried for the extra but didn't make it. I am no an extra however after 3 attempts.
The hobby can be extremely fun and rewarding in and of itself. This video here has a pretty good example of what they call Fox Hunting, or attempting triangulate a signal. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EST2vxIXCCs If you have any further questions don't hesitate to PM me I'll be more than happy to help.
To answer your question, you will only be presented with one question from each group on your test (ie: Only one T2A question, etc).
What are you using for study guides? For the Technician test, I used the ARRL book: http://www.amazon.com/ARRL-Ham-Radio-License-Manual/dp/1625950136/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1427045508&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=arrl+technician+class+license
For higher levels, I used a combination of the ARRL study guides along with the Gordon West books.
It's not really clear if you're asking why the gov't requires it, or how to get it, so I'll answer both!
I'd have him read something to get himself situated with the filmography and technical aspects of a scene, shot, and film as a whole. This is what distinguishes a good film from other mediums (I'd recommend The 5 C's of Cinematography, which can be found free online, or in print.)
Then just show him films you enjoy. Point out why you enjoy them. Long shots, editing, acting, whatever. Once he finds something he enjoys, he'll go out and find his own favorites and be able to intellectually convey why he believes they are good.
The Five C's of Cinematography. It's a little hard to get through, but it's highly informative and does a great job of laying the foundation for proper lighting technique and convention.
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Here is a link
Sorry I couldn't link it earlier
Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Promise!
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-The-Last-Airbender-Promise/dp/1616550740/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1373296549&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=the+promise+avatar
https://smile.amazon.com/Avatar-Airbender-Michael-Dante-DiMartino/dp/1616552263/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1502222835&amp;sr=8-4&amp;keywords=the+search
The Library Edition? Amazon sells them. EG here is The Search.
https://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Search-Library/dp/1616552263/
It's actually on a lightning sale for the next ~12 minutes.
Except we know what happens to Zuko's mom already> Exactly.
You didn't say which country but I'm going to assume USA. The ARRL technician license manual is really good and explains everything really well.
The ARRL Ham Radio License Manual https://www.amazon.com/dp/1625950136/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_GXwHyb2JYRWAP
I only had 2 days to study so unfortunately cramming was kind of my only choice.
Which one should I get?
http://www.amazon.com/2014-Handbook-Radio-Communications-Softcover/dp/1625950012/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1411084493&amp;sr=8-2&amp;keywords=arrl
http://www.amazon.com/Ham-Radio-License-Manual-arrl/dp/1625950136/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1411084493&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=arrl
First things first, come check out /r/amateurradio. Good group of guys over there.
The books from the ARRL are generally used to study for the exams:
You can usually find older editions of these books at libraries or from other hams. The older editions are still relevant, but the specific questions in the question pool will be out of date.
The big ham radio store is Ham Radio Outlet although that is certainly not the only avenue. For example, you can get cheap handheld radios on Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/ARRL-Ham-Radio-License-Manual/dp/1625950136/
https://www.amazon.com/General-Class-License-Manual-Amateur/dp/1625950306/
https://www.amazon.com/ARRL-Extra-Class-License-Manual/dp/1625950454/
https://www.amazon.com/ARRL-Handbook-Radio-Communications-2017/dp/1625950624/
These manuals are somewhat oriented to the exam, but they cover broad topics and genuinely attempt to teach you the content. Rather then just prepare you to memorize and pass a multiple choice test.
Buy the technician book from Amazon. Read it during breaks. I read it on a plane ride and two evenings on a business trip. It will not take you long.
At the technician level, it's very much common sense on the rules (once you think about them) and the math isn't anything beyond VERY simple formulas V=IR and P=VI.
You will then spend 15 bucks on a test somewhere in your city that happens at least once every two weeks or month. There are numerous free online practice tests if you need them and are worried you won't pass. The test is < 50 multiple choice questions. It's pretty quick too.
Technician is all you need for VHF and above (which is what you use for RC control, video, wifi, etc).
There's some pretty cool stuff hams can do when you get your ticket.
Here's where you can find a testing center near you:
http://www.arrl.org/find-an-amateur-radio-license-exam-session
The test is based off of this book:
http://www.amazon.com/The-ARRL-Radio-License-Manual/dp/1625950136
You can practice at a number of sites, this one helped me years ago:
http://www.eham.net/exams/
This is a newer collection, created by a user here (Sorry, I forget who):
https://hamstudy.org/
Cost of the test is $15, and there are 3 different levels (see below). If you pass Technician you can take General for free, and if you pass General as well you can take the Extra exam at no cost as well. Your $15 pays for as many tests as you can take in a day, until you fail one... and there are only 3 level of tests. If you fail the test, you're free to pay another $15 to try again but please be mindful that the people giving the tests are just us ham radio operators, we're not paid and we're taking the time to try and get others certified. If there aren't a lot of people there and the VE's seem okay with you trying for General (if you haven't studied) after you pass your Technician, ask them and they'll likely tell you to go right ahead. If it's busy and you haven't studied for it, please be mindful or others time is all we ask.
Any questions please ask. We love this hobby and it's really no bother.
Looking to get some reading material on Technician Class exam.
The 2014 edition claims to cover newer pool of question, valid for 2014-2018. Did much change since 2010?
What's your background like? I was 25U then 254A when I went to the 1J course so I had a decent foundation going in. Others here have already covered the basics: take good notes, ask for clarification in class, get a study group going. Don't limit the study group to just the smarties, you will learn a lot yourself when teaching others. If you don't already know some electronics and radio basics get the The ARRL Ham Radio License Manual https://www.amazon.com/dp/1625950136/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_erIQzbHYWWZVP. Read it and go take the technician class ham license. Finally have you checked with the school? Call 'em up and ask any questions you have. I enjoyed the class, the software and practical exercises were great. And one more thing real quick, the trap and skeet range was stupid cheap and it was fun as hell chatting with crusty old guys and blowing shit out of the sky after stressing in the class room all week.
Since you are interested in electromagnetics and RF, take a look at getting into amateur radio (aka "ham radio"). Hands-on experience is a great way to start learning. Some of the best EE's I know started off as hams.
In the US, there are three tiers of FCC amateur radio licenses: technician, general, and amateur extra. Each requires you to pass an exam on some technical and administrative topics, and each gives you the right to operate radio equipment at successively higher powers.
You can do a lot as a ham, including talking to people locally like a high-powered walkie-talkie, transmitting digital data, communicating with space satellites, talking with people around the world via some fancy atmospheric emag magic, building your own radios and antennas from scratch, doing your own experimental work, etc. Whatever you do, there are plenty of real-world technical problems to learn your way through.
There are a lot of local ham radio clubs where you can regularly meet with and learn from others. They organize events. One interesting event is a "fox hunt", where you use your equipment and technical knowledge to find a radio transmitter that somebody hid somewhere near your city.
The barrier to entry is low. The technician license exam has been passed by grade school students and costs about a pizza to take. Radios start at two pizzas.
Check out the book "The ARRL Ham Radio License Manual" as a starting point (price: two pizzas): https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1625950136/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1522595723&amp;sr=8-1&amp;pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&amp;keywords=arrl+ham+radio+license+manual+3rd+edition
Warning: The exam question pool changes every four years. That 3rd edition of the manual is valid if you take the test through June 30, 2018.
There is an amateur radio subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/amateurradio/
Practice apps are the easiest way to prep for the exam. Check out "Ham Test Prep" for Android by Iversoft in the Google Play store.
This is the official guide to testing for your tech license.
If requires you learn some radio and electronic basics. You can get all the questions online, so it's really not that cryptic. If you're not all that familiar with those topics, I would recommend getting the license manual, which explains all the concepts.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Five-Cs-Cinematography-Techniques/dp/187950541X
This has been my bible.
I'm in film school right now, and most of my production classes are good because they give me a chance to use pretty good equipment to make films. You can't really teach people how to come up with stories, and that's what a filmmaker really is: a story teller. So, just keep writing and making films with whatever equipment you can. Keep practicing and working on your craft. Here are some books I've found helpful: This book has a lot of information on the technical aspects of filmmaking, from very basic to terribly detailed.
This one is helpful in learning how to format and write scripts as well as treatments and concepts. Here is another book that is full of techniques to shoot better films.
Anyway, I hope this is helpful.
Buy and read this:
http://www.amazon.com/Five-Cs-Cinematography-Picture-Techniques/dp/187950541X/
Thanks man :)
You can see where I started if you go back to some of my 2012 videos. One in particular was called "Winter Camping in the Meadow 2012" I was really bad at editing etc. I've also done a lot of studying of film techniques for the past few years and it has helped :) I recently found a good book too which I could suggest if you are interested. "5 C's of Cinematography" which applies more to film but you can apply a bit of the techniques...
http://www.amazon.com/Five-Cs-Cinematography-Picture-Techniques/dp/187950541X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1458232324&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=5+c%27s+of+cinematography
assuming you were talking about filming skill :P Cause i dont consider my bushcraft skill that superb ;) My filming skill needs work still too but I know i've gotten better :D
Win.
However to those who expected something substantial, I recommend this book: http://www.amazon.com/The-Five-Cs-Cinematography-Techniques/dp/187950541X
I recently discovered Making Movies, written by one of the most innovative American directors of our time, to be a great layperson's walkthrough of the experience (from a director's point of view, from pre- to post-production).
This is a little more technical and specialized, but The Five C's of Cinematography is a great breakdown of how and why cameras affect a movie.
Otherwise, I'd say looking up BTS featurette videos gives some fascinating insights. HBO released one for a very complex sequence in the latest episode of Game of Thrones (spoiler alert, obviously) here
These are just my personal favorites in the last few years. Covers all the filming basics besides sound design. However, if you want the full "survival guide", you'll need a reference for sound design and screenwriting. With lackluster sound and a horrible script, your films aren't going anywhere.
The Five C's of Cinematography: Motion Picture Filming Techniques
Cinematic Storytelling: The 100 Most Powerful Film Conventions Every Filmmaker Must Know
The Art and Technique of Digital Color Correction
https://www.amazon.com/Five-Cs-Cinematography-Picture-Techniques/dp/187950541X/
I work in a gear rental place in London. Mostly you only need high school maths: ratios, proportions etc. But if you know CS you'll have a good handle on the workflow of digital image processing. This can be a lucrative position on big budget shoots. Here they call the role DIT, Red and Alexa cameras are the main ones to know and that can get you in as a PA because on lower budget shoots they often combine the roles.
You're doing the right thing by the way. I see a lot of people come out of film school with big debts only to have to start as PAs anyway. Read books like this and this and this and be prepared to do anything, especially waking up really early.
Good luck.
Definitely read "The 5 C's of Cinematography" before anything else. http://www.amazon.com/Five-Cs-Cinematography-Picture-Techniques/dp/187950541X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1367884793&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=5+c%27s+of+cinematography
I love "New Cinematographers" which has been a very inspiring book for me as it reminded me why I love working in the film industry at a time when I was contemplating quitting altogether. http://www.amazon.com/New-Cinematographers-Alex-Ballinger/dp/1856693341
The Eye is Quicker. http://www.amazon.com/Eye-Quicker-Editing-Making-Better/dp/0941188841/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1367884818&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=the+eye+is+quicker
Motion Picture and Video Lighting. http://www.amazon.com/Motion-Picture-Video-Lighting-Blain/dp/0240807634/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1367884852&amp;sr=1-4&amp;keywords=grip+and+lighting
The Camera Assistant's Manual by David Elkins. http://www.amazon.com/Camera-Assistants-Manual-David-Elkins/dp/0240818687/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1367884939&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=camera+assistant
Where do you live?
If you want to do it, just try and get a job working as a PA on student films or something shooting in your area. You don't need experience, you don't need a degree, and the hardest part will be getting that first job.
I've seen too many of my friends in the business crippled by student loans that were unnecessary and actually counterproductive to their success. The people the did the best in the industry now actually dropped out of school 2 or 3 years in because they saw school was getting in the way of the work they were getting.
I hope you like reading, because while you're trying to get a job you should read these books.
Five C's of Cinematography
(http://www.amazon.com/The-Five-Cs-Cinematography-Techniques/dp/187950541X)
Set Lighting Technicians Handbook
http://www.amazon.com/Set-Lighting-Technicians-Handbook-Distribution/dp/0240810759
Camera Assistants Handbook
http://www.amazon.com/The-Camera-Assistant-Complete-Professional/dp/0240800427
Placing Shadows
http://www.amazon.com/Placing-Shadows-Lighting-Techniques-Production/dp/0240806611
Then watch these DVD's - They're expensive, look for them on eBay or used or something.
http://www.hollywoodcamerawork.com/mc_index.html
Have you made a movie before? If not, start churning them out. They don't have to be good, you just have to finish them. Believe it or not it is quantity, not quality, as the first few movies are going to be filled with the most stupid terrible mistakes you'll ever make, mistakes that will totally prevent you from telling a bearable story.
So if you combine all these...you look for a job, you start working as a PA, you read whatever you can get your hands on, especially those books listed, and you start shooting your own movies and applying what you learn from books and work to those films, you'll be in great shape.
Glad I could help!
I'm glad you asked about books. Advice from the internet (including mine :)) has its limits. Here is what I recommend [Referral Links]:
Again, hope this is helpful and best of luck!
Bill
Positive Discipline because my oldest son is driving me nuts.
The Writer's Journey because I enjoy writing short stories and screenplays.
The Writer's Journey - By Christopher Vogler
Don't read Save the Cat unless you want to churn out cliche, dull and boring screenplays. Snyder's method is the reason Hollywood puts out bland films constantly.
Instead, read The Writer's Journey. It details Joseph Campbell's ideas on mythic structure which inspired films like Star Wars, Avatar, and pretty much any other movie. It doesn't give you a formula, it gives you a better understanding of storytelling, which is the goal of screenwriting.
Chapters are as long as you want them to be. :) There are no rules for chapters in books - your chapters can be 40 pages long or 3 pages long if you want. Typically, a chapter should end when something changes or an event occurs - when the big bad shows up, when a character says something revealing, when the character moves to a new area etc. This includes mundane things, like leaving the house, going to sleep, setting up camp etc etc - you don't want your story to be filled with action packed moments or surprises and new chapters every couple of pages, because you need down time inbetween important events!
You can even have no chapters if you like, there are no concrete rules.
For reading, read your own favourite fantasy books and authors! There's a reason why your favourite author is your favourite. Consider why. What about their writing, stories, world and plot do you like the best? Why do you like that author more than another? Do you want to write classic high fantasy, 'low' fantasy, urban fantasy? Find the most popular authors in those genres and give them a read.
I think an important read for any writer is The Writer's Journey. It's a really great easy to read text on structure in writing and the various 'Archetypes' of characters. Knowing HOW to structure a story is the key to be able to write a good story.
I'm not sure if it's still relevant since I read all this when I was a kid, but Elfwood has some great world building resources and 'tutorials.'
> I wanted to add that the Hero's Journey has almost become a self fulfilling prophecy of sorts.
The reason for that is Christopher Vogel's The Writer's Journey. In the mid-80's, Vogel worked for Disney, and he developed a 20-page guide to the Hero's Journey for Disney screenwriters. He turned it into a book on script-writing, and it has gone on to become one of the best selling book on screen-writing ever, if not the best (I think only Syd Field's Screenwriting could compete with it). I've taken three different screenwriting courses, and it's been assigned reading in all of them.
As a result, nearly every film aimed at a mass audience -- and especially movies aimed at children -- has been very deliberately built around the Hero's Journey.
Lololol, no, sir, YOU are the one who REALLY, TRULY, isn't getting it. I don't have to read anything to know if something completely different is good or not, but thx.
For your leisure I'd like to recommend a few books about basic screenwriting so that you don't get stuck in something like this again:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Writers-Journey-Structure-Edition/dp/193290736X
http://www.amazon.com/Save-Last-Book-Screenwriting-Youll/dp/1932907009
http://www.amazon.com/Your-Screenplay-Sucks-Ways-Great/dp/1932907459
http://www.amazon.com/Screenwriting-Dummies-Laura-Schellhardt/dp/0764554867/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1418859323&amp;sr=1-2&amp;keywords=screenwriting+for+dummies
Let me know when it clicks! :-D
Vogler is meant to be a more accessible introduction to the hero's journey concepts (https://www.amazon.com/Writers-Journey-Mythic-Structure-3rd/dp/193290736X as recommended by shawn coyne of the story grid book /podcast)
I know more about narrative. I recomend you:
Well, solidify the idea you want to convey first, then, make a map or something so you can travel through all those characters you like to create, place them, on the stories, fiction, non-fiction, western, drama, etc, etc,
some things that may help you:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Art-Fiction-Writers-Readers/dp/0452281547
http://www.amazon.com/On-Becoming-Novelist-John-Gardner-ebook/dp/B00AB7NYZU
http://www.amazon.com/The-Writers-Journey-Structure-Edition/dp/193290736X
It's funny because I was tempted to correct your initial summation Campbell's work but decided against it since I was also in the process of admitting how shitty it is to correct someone on something that's not even part of the point they were making.
But to say that Campbell's work is a simplification or "plebeian bastardization" of Jung's work is not accurate. It's common practice in academic writing for a scholar to build upon the work of another. So it's more accurate to say that Campbell was influenced by or that he built upon Jung's writing on archetypes and the collective subconscious. But while Campbell is writing on the nature of myths, Jung was a psychologist building upon Freud's earlier work to a completely different end.
Ultimately, what I'm trying to say is that the sentiment in this sub regarding Campbell's work being derivative and therefore less valuable is unfair because it is the nature of academic writing to build upon the writings of your predecessor.
The Hero with a Thousand Faces is the seminal work in the field and clearly the source of Harmon's inspiration. I'd also recommend Christopher Vogler's The Writer's Journey as the best and most succint interpretation and analysis of Campbell's ideas as a framework for contemporary story and writing.
Have a look at this chart.
This is the emotional course of a typical story. Like I said before, you don't have to follow this strictly but I found that it helps to get you moving in the right direction.
Take a look at the scenes and story ideas you already have and see where they fit in this chart. When I start a new story, in my head I always feel like I've got the whole thing figured out. Then when I start outlining I see that really only have maybe 25% of it.
So the work begins to figure out what's missing, scenes, characters, story arcs, etc... Who is your protagonist, antagonist, what do they want? What's stopping them from getting what they want?
A pretty good book I can recommend is The Writer's Journey.
If you're interested in the storytelling side I would recommend The Writers Journey which is based upon The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
Also some great YouTube videos from Kal Bashir.
Read more and then read this:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/193290736X/
I constantly try to everyone I can about these two books, Drawn to Life Vol 1 & 2: The Walt Stanchfield Lectures. They are super heavy in terms of theory, and took me a few years to read through both volumes fully, but no other book has impacted the way I think about and practice drawing then these two.
https://www.amazon.com/Drawn-Life-Classes-Stanchfield-Lectures/dp/0240810961/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1519436955&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=drawn+to+life
Framed Ink has been really helpful for me in beginning to understand the art of sequential story telling, and the thinking behind different framing choices.
https://www.amazon.com/Framed-Ink-Drawing-Composition-Storytellers/dp/1933492953/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8
Add into that David Chelseas book Perspective for Comic Book Artists. It explained (and continues to explain) perspective in a way that makes sense and is incredibly detailed. (I alone would buy the book for how he explains the hanger method of sizing characters of the same size but on different planes in the correct perspective.)
https://www.amazon.com/Perspective-Comic-Book-Artists-Professional/dp/0823005674/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1519437238&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=perspective+for+comics
These are just a couple from the top of my head, but if you'd like more recommendations, or ones on specific topics I can see if I have any that would fit your need.
Surgical video editor and animator here.
HungryLikeTheWolf99 just dropped some science. The emphasis on organization can not be understated.
To this I would add:
Good luck.
Marcos Mateu-Mestre's Framed Ink is an excellent book on composition, which is a hard subject to find instructional material for.
Gurney's Color and Light is my favorite book on color theory, and it has a fair bit on rendering realistic lighting. It does a very good job of explaining how to use the concepts it presents.
That sounds like a great goal. I am not a storyboard artist, so all I will say about your storyboards is that I am excited to see more! Here is a book I read recently by someone who worked for Disney, click here for that. And THIS is a good book too. Both of these books have a lot of pictoral examples and I found them very valuable, for comics or storyboards.
Maybe "can you suggest any tutorials/artists that I can learn from?" would be a better question than what you've typed above, because I don't really understand what you're asking for in the original.
If you're looking for things like books, I have recently enjoyed Dream Worlds by Hans Bacher and Framed Ink by Marcos Mateu-Mestre. They're not really 'how to' books, but they're good for demonstrating composition.
https://www.amazon.com/Framed-Ink-Drawing-Composition-Storytellers/dp/1933492953
http://www.amazon.com/Framed-Ink-Drawing-Composition-Storytellers/dp/1933492953
I was self taught til I wasn’t. Just takes practice and time and I’m still learning even now. If you’re really wanting to dive deep into screenwriting, a great book to start with is The Screenwriter’s Bible. I reference it a lot when I’m trying to write because it’s got everything from the creative to the technical side covered.
Trust me. The first dozen or more scripts I wrote were so bad I’ve blocked them from my memory altogether haha.
The Screenwriter's Bible
Writing Movies: The Practical Guide to Creating Stellar Screenplays
Naked Playwriting: The Art, the Craft, and the Life Laid Bare
And browse Simply Scripts.
Check out The Screenwriter's Bible by David Trottier. It will explain story structure and then step you through the process of creating characters and plotting out your story.
On a lark, I decided to start a screenplay last summer. I completed the steps in this book and, three months later, I had a first draft of an action movie screenplay. Since it was a first draft, I just hand wrote everything. It doesn't follow the form of a proper screenplay, but Trottier doesn't seem to care if the rough draft is in the right format because the chapter on formatting your screenplay comes after he tells you to write the first draft.
It was fun. Highly recommend it.
My favorite screenwriting book is The Screenwriter's Bible by David Trottier. It's clear. Concise. A ton of examples.
Into the Woods by John Yorke is my favorite book on structure.
Anytime. I'd be more than happy to read through your script and send you notes via message, if you'd like. If you want to pick up a good book for formatting, check out the Screenwriter's Bible. https://www.amazon.com/Screenwriters-Bible-6th-Complete-Formatting/dp/1935247107Dave Trottier knows his stuff.
The way I go about it, is to set out some very basic general plot lines.
Problem = She can't enjoy/have great sex because (insert reason)
Solution = whom ever she meets provides her with the means to great sex (insert how)
Then I take that to another minimal step process.
What kinks am I using? What location? Add that to the two above.
From there I write even more - Girl a has this life problem that affects her sex life so she isn't satisfied with it, now she has a plan to improve her life or sex life by doing (insert) so she sets out to her plan, like much of life things rarely go according to plan so insert some changes or upsets - then those get fixed by character overcoming whatever obstacle and getting to the sex that will change the situation for her. - Now that is the basics for erotica in how I write it.
A great read if you looking for a book that can give you a lot of story development insight is Story by Robert Mckee He is talking from the perspective of script writing but it is incredibly easy to translate the style into book writing. The major difference in the two is that movie scripts work in 3 acts and books can have many more than 3 acts. Short stories though, likely work well in the 3 act set up. I couldn't recommend this book enough for anyone in writing, it is usually considered required reading for writers at film school and doesn't have an over the board textbook feel either.
If you haven't yet read Robert McKee's "Story", you probably should.
In your free time try reading Robert McKee's Story. Then try writing a screenplay or a short.
Regardless of how good or bad it is I guarantee you will not feel like you're wasting your days.
Plus the one thing that makes a writers work better is owning a cat.
https://www.amazon.com/Story-Structure-Substance-Principles-Screenwriting-ebook/dp/B0042FZVOY
I'm reading this one. It helps for any kind of story telling not just screenplays.
This is the kind of stuff that bugs me. Campbell did a lot of research before he wrote The Hero's Journey. Robert McKee also did a lot of research before writing "STORY". There are so many people today who think they just read something and watch a dozen movies and "break the code" but they're just finding commonalities. Then I hear people say that McKee and Campbell are just "pointing out the obvious" because so many people have referenced them in their own half-assed attempts as sounding smart.
I'd recommend something different. There's a lot about DMing that relates to creative writing and screen writing.
With that in mind, try reading the classic book "Story: Style, Structure, Substance, and the Principles of Screenwriting" by Robert McKee. Try browsing tvtropes.org, it's an absolutely phenomenal resource. Try the YouTube channels Every Frame A Painting, Now You See It, Channel Criswell, and Lessons from the Screenplay. They're all excellent.
Buy a copy of Syd Field's Screenplay or Robert McKee's Story and learn the basics of story construction. While they're written assuming movie screenplays, the principles apply just as well to adventure games.
STORY by Robert McKee is a great resource.
You should jump right into the "inciting incident" (the event that propels the protagonist(s) on their journey) as soon as you have properly setup the stakes. If the incident is something most people will get, a loved one killed themselves for example, it doesn't take much for the reader to understand that this would be hard. You can start there and develop the character more thoroughly afterwards. If instead it is something like the character got a new job, you will probably want to setup more context around why this is a particularly important event.
For more info, I recommend reading Robert McKee's book Story. It is focused on screenwriting but is generally applicable to all story creation.
Screenwriter's Bible: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1879505843?pc_redir=1408078109&amp;robot_redir=1
Story, McKee: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0042FZVOY?pc_redir=1408254965&amp;robot_redir=1
Godspeed.
How old is he?
Also get him several decks so he can tear them up practicing.
Bicycle is the most universal brand. 808 Rider backs are the most common. So if he practices with those then he'll be great if someone hands him a deck at a party.
They're sold in "bricks' of 12 for cheap (compared to $3.50 a deck at Walmart).
So for like $40 you can start him on an amazing journey.
It really depends on your skill level.
If you're more of a beginner, The Royal Road to Card Magic (mentioned elsewhere on this page) is a great introduction to the subject.
Card College is another great resource. This five-book series provides much more in-depth information on all aspects of sleight of hand, and as such is valuable regardless of whether you're a beginner or an advanced card handler.
Finally, if you already have a little skill, Expert Card Technique is a fantastic resource with tons of great tricks that will fit your criteria.
Hope that helps!
Okay, couldn't find my box, but I managed to dreg up what I remember as far as books go.
This book is a good start for coin magic and sleight of hand in general. Be warned though, the coins you will need for this might be slightly hard to find (silver dollars, half dollars) but is worth it. For whatever reason people think that the bigger the coin, the harder it is to work magic with it. This is false. The bigger the easier and the better looking.
This book is a good start for card magic. Sometimes it is a bit hard to understand (as all books are) but this is pretty simple and will give you some good pointers.
This book is my all time favorite. More card magic, but more advanced than the previous one.
And lastly this book which gives some good tricks, teaches some good things. Much of it is based on props and stage magic, and much of it isn't. A good read.
And lastly some advice: if possible find someone who knows how and is already practiced. That makes it MUCH easier. And stick with it. Once you learn something you never unlearn it. I have not practiced in near 5 years and I can still pick up a deck of cards and mess with them. Learn a few versatile tricks and learn some flourishes. The tricks can fascinate, and the flourishes look pretty, but only when used together does it really blow people's minds.
Almost every card trick is a combination of a few basic sleight of hand maneuvers. Here's a decent intro, i think. I just checked it out quickly, but it looks like he talks about the basics. Buy the Royal Road if you really want to learn, it's old, but it's a total classic.
Here's some beginner tricks that I learned from YouTube when I first started:
Biddle Trick
Don't know what its called but the title says "Slop"
Three Card Monte this one is a bit more difficult. Make sure you practice this so you don't flash a card!
For novinces, these tricks are all fine and good, but you should really get proficient at sleights. I can't recommend The Royal Road to Card Magic (and its on sale right now!
The Royal Road is what I used (along with Complete Card Magic with Gerry Griffin and a Royal Road Deluxe Edition that they've stopped producing ^(you can still find dvd's on it but not the specific one I have). However, the book is better than both of these, although they are good for reference should you get stuck or confused on a part). The royal road is very very good. A good investment and teacher
Read this book.
First of all, that's great! I'm always happy to meet someone who wants to give magic a start! Don't worry about being good at it yet, it's a very involved performance art, but once you know the core fundamentals (misdirection, audience management, sleight of hand, banterful patter) it's super easy to get into.
If you want to know how I personally started seeking out magic to learn, it was around age 12 with a book called Now You See It, Now You Don't by Bill Tarr. That was my first book on sleight of hand and it covers a multitude of moves and sleights with various objects like coins, cards, and balls. I studied that book like it was a holy text and learned every move, though I didn't quite know how routines worked yet and I wasn't especially charismatic at the time. Not to sound dramatic, but that book had a huge impact on my life and very much shaped the person I would become. I still have that same copy on my shelf. After that it was the Royal Road to Card Magic for my first real introduction to card magic and card routines, but that was a much denser book. It wasn't until a bit later that I discovered online magic stores and downloadable instructional videos. They were so accessible and easy to diget, my desire to learn skyrocketed.
The first I found was penguinmagic.com when I was maybe 13? It's still my gold standard for online magic shopping; my first purchase was Sponge by Jay Noblezada, game changing magic for a kid. From there I graduated to coin magic routines from In the Beginning There Were Coins (also Jay). I recommend sponge or coin magic to start if you want an easy introduction to the principles and fundamentals of sleight of hand.
After that, just before starting high school, I found ellusionist.com and the "leather coat" magicians like Brad Christian and Justin Miller (they've since become more hipsterish, and still a great resource). They were edgy, cool, and influenced my personal style an unfortunate amount... I wore a lot of black and gray back then.
Just before high school I stumbled onto theory11.com, which had more of an artful feel to it, but it's there that I found out about Daniel Madison's Dangerous video. His card magic shaped my performance style in a huge way. He was so laid back and casual about his massive skill. I got really into gambling sleights and card control and manipulation around that time. Cards became almost my exclusive medium for years after that.
I'm 27 now and I'm more into organic magic that fits in one pocket, so less cards and more coins, rubber bands, and mentalism. I use a lot of different resources and it's mostly advanced stuff, I love the challenge of complex sleights though! Those books, those sites and those names guided me into the world of magic.
You can find some other great starting resources on the r/Magic subreddit they have a pretty comprehensive list. There are also a ton of free materials in the public domain available through libraries, google, youtube, tons of effects and fun routines you can learn quickly and easily. If you ever have any questions, need some direction, or just want to chat about where to start, I'm happy to help!
Do you have a type of magic or magician you especially enjoy?
Instead of $10 for one effect, spend $10 to get this book that's loaded with great stuff or this book that's a little more advanced - and also loaded with great info. Or spend $30 to get this book that takes you step by step through a lot of basics, or this one that's a little more advanced. If you just really want to avoid books, try this DVD. But, really, books are going to give you the most bang for your buck by a lot. Give books a shot. Your local library might even have some good stuff for free. DVDs would be the next obvious step, since you're paying $25 for 9 powerful effects taught by a master. Even with tax and shipping, that's under $4 each. When you're looking at stuff that's $10 for a download for stuff that's generally unproven, you're usually wasting money.
Also, check the thread in the sidebar. There are a lot of good references in there.
I'd recommend getting it. Also get Royal Road to Card Magic. Hugard and Braue make card magic incredibly available in that book. If you wanna do coin stuff, David Roth's Expert Coin Magic is also amazing, but you could probably find it cheaper than that listing.
Sleight of hand.
Week's challenge: Post a video of yourself performing a trick selected from the
Royal Road to Card Magic
Good luck!
Card magic. It will easily take up hours and hours. It's also cool as hell!
You can get a couple decks of good cards for less than $5, and you can get a copy of a good book on card magic for less than $10. I'd suggest starting with The Royal Road to Card Magic. It is pretty much THE intro text to card magic. You can probably find a pdf of the book floating around on the web somewhere. It's worth paying for, though. Plenty of used copies for less than $5 here.
Royal Road to Card Magic - http://amzn.com/0486408434
And a fresh deck of Bicycle cards (fancy decks are expensive and make people suspicious) - http://amzn.com/B010F6BXEA
I'd also recommend Modern Coin Magic - http://amzn.com/0486242587
If a coin book sounds good, get four kennedy half dollars (or similar sized coins if you're not in the states) from the bank, just ask a teller.
Reading books is way better than watching youtube, as most trick tutorials are by people who don't actually have a lot of experience or knowledge. If you read books, you also develop your own style instead of parroting whoever is on the video. Start with those two books, then practice a lot in front of a mirror. Think about presentation too- what will you say? When? Why? (a great resource, if you're interested, is Strong magic - http://amzn.com/B00534I956) Once you feel fairly confident, perform the trick(s) as often as you can for as many people as you can. At school, at home, on the street, wherever. Stick with it and do it a lot and you'll get the hang of it.
Break a leg!
No problem at all! In this case, I mostly learned it by reading a lot of essays and interviews and books, in this case especially ones on Kubrick and on cinematography. I don't remember specifically what stuff in particular, unfortunately. The best advice for watching EWS (or any film) in its intended format is to find a screening of it that's in 35mm--depending on where you're located, good bets are museums like MOMA in NYC, a local university, or arthouses and repertory theatres that might have a Kubrick retrospective or something.
As far as becoming well-versed in film, the first step is to watch everything you can get your hands on, even if you think it will be awful, and pay as much attention to the choices that are being made, how a camera is moving, what is in the frame and what isn't, lighting, color, dialogue, etc., even if you have no idea really what to be paying attention for. Anything you can think of or see onscreen, think about why that choice is being made and what the purpose of that choice is. And then after viewing something, look up some reviews of it (to find good critics, a good start is to go to Rotten Tomatoes, narrow down a movie's reviews to Top Critics, and then read the full reviews from there), positive and negative, and try to match what they're talking about to what you just saw and see if you can recognize what they're mentioning. And if you can't, just store the type of thing they're talking about and remember to think about it during the next movie you watch, and the next, and so on. Practicing this will build up your knowledge quite quickly, and it will become second nature to pick up on all kinds of things, and once that becomes habit and you don't have to pay as much attention consciously, you'll pick up on more and more subtle nuances. (If you want to have a starting point for films, you can go with a list like this, a list of 1000 movies that are "the best of all time" as a result of aggregating several different polls. Obviously, you never want to put too much stock in other people's opinions of what the best is, and it seems intimidatingly long, but like I said, it's just if you want a reference point. And they link to the polls they use, so if you want a smaller list to work with you, you can try one of those. This is helpful because again you'll discover what you like, so you might find one movie on that list by a director you love and then go off and watch everything else she ever did. And then you come back to the list. So it's not really about completing the list, just using it as another starting point for discovery.) Also, I recommend you keep at least a brief log of everything you watch, along with some notes about it--this will help you keep track of directors/screenwriters/cinematographers you like, as well as help you understand what you like and don't like about films better.
Once you start to feel comfortable with some of the basics, you can start seeking out books that discuss the film-making experience. With both movies and books, you'll discover your tastes as you go along, so it's best to start casting a broad net and reading books that cover a lot of topics, and then you might find that cinematography interests you most and then start reading books that are more specifically about that, and subscribing to specialty magazines like American Cinematographer, or you might find it all appealing and want to read books on all aspects of filmmaking.
That probably seems like a ton of info and fairly intimidating, but I basically started from nothing and basically just taught myself whatever I know by this method, no film school or anything certainly. Not saying I'm an expert on this stuff by any stretch of the imagination, but I've been able to become knowledgeable enough.
Some specific recommendations that I found immensely helpful that hopefully might be helpful to you too:
Current film critics: Dana Stevens (Slate), Stephanie Zacharek (Village Voice), Karina Longworth (freelance), Manohla Dargis (NYT), Wesley Morris (Grantland), A.O. Scott (NYT)
Kubrick:
The Stanley Kubrick Archives - A great book that also features Kubrick's drawings, personal notes, continuity photos, and interviews with him
Napoleon: The Greatest Movie Never Made - A book on SK's uncompleted Napoleon film
The Kubrick Site - A really amazing online resource with a lot of links to essays and articles
Film magazines: Sight and Sound, Film Comment, American Cinematographer, Filmmaker, Little White Lies, Screen International
Books (if you only ever read one book on film, I'd make it Hitchcock/Truffaut--I learned more from it than from any other single source):
Hitchcock/Truffaut
What is Cinema?
Pictures at a Revolution
Negative Space
A Cinema of Loneliness
Easy Riders, Raging Bulls
The Age of Movies
Making Movies
> when it comes to discussions about French New Wave, Melville rarely is mentioned
Hmm, okay...
I wasn't being hyperbolic about Hitchcock. He was an enormous influence on the New Wave directors and Truffaut, among others, considered him a godfather of sorts, as Godard did Melville. Read Hitchcock/Truffaut for more clarification.
Truffaut's interviews with Hitchcock.
Try and read the following:
Theory of Film by Seigfried Kracauer
Film Language: The Semotics of Cinema
Sculpting in Time by Andrei Tarkovsky
Hitchcock by Francois Truffaut
If you're just starting out, it helps to read what other people have said. Learn what insights they got from the film, and try to rewatch the film and see how those came about.
Hitchcock by Truffaut
Hitchcock-Truffaut is one of the best books on film theory you can find. An interview between two legendary directors.
By 'essay' do you mean just another essay for a class, or are we talking big research paper? Because if so, be thorough:
Also, get this book of his correspondence with Francois Truffaut. The Donald Spoto book is also useful.
I would recommend almost everything in this thread, but I'd like to suggest Hitchcock by Francois Truffaut. It is one of the greatest interviews with one of the greatest filmmakers, any aspiring filmmaker MUST read this.
> In TNG onward there is little or no mention of these positions on the ship.
Is supported by the Star Trek TNG Technical Manual, I can't find something about a dedicated tactical/weapons room. The deckplan does also not list a room for it.
Well look at that, who knew that the saucer section does have an aft torpedo launcher?!
lol, thanks for indulging my st questions on the st subreddit, but if there weren't people like me, would we have the
Star Trek The Next Generation: Technical Manual a book I apparently need to read.
I included two brief quotes from the TNG Technical Manual in my post on a similar topic to this here, which I think suggest the show's technical advisors had exactly what you describe in mind when they were thinking about how to depict the behaviour and abilities of replicators.
This one?. I lost my hard copy in a move, years ago.
I thought you manage to go warp 10 in that case...
That's what all my science ed TNG taught me...
Source: Got a book https://www.amazon.de/Technical-Manual-Star-Trek-Generation/dp/0671704273/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1536830982&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=star+trek+technical+manual
Warnings...?? Sci fi is the blueprint, afterall all which is created by humans has its seed in the human mind.
Rumor has it the guys at DARPA stood before a room of their research geeks holding up a Star Trek TNG Technical Manual and said:
We want you to see if there is any we can make any of this stuff.
Film Directing Shot by Shot: Visualizing from Concept to Screen (Michael Wiese Productions) by Steven D. Katz http://www.amazon.com/dp/0941188108/ref=cm_sw_r_udp_awd_uqcutb0F34D39
PM me for more resources. I teach too.
My girlfriend bought me this from Amazon. We live in Sweden. It's pretty awesome. It's about Directing.
Is there any particular area he is interested in?
Film Directing Shot by Shot is pretty good general purpose book on shot design.
https://www.amazon.com/Film-Directing-Shot-Visualizing-Productions/dp/0941188108/ref=sr_1_sc_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1486578814&amp;sr=8-2-spell&amp;keywords=film+direcing
https://www.amazon.com/Film-Directing-Shot-Visualizing-Productions/dp/0941188108
Directing is not something you learn in a book, of course, but I know what you mean. This book is going to explain what techniques to take into production. I really enjoyed it.
Make a shot list. No matter what you're shooting, a shot list will make it easier to wrap your head around. Go through your script, (or treatment for music video) and visualize everything. Make a list of every shot you want, get as specific as possible. Along with this you can put story boards, or camera plots, but really you just need to organize what you see in your head and put it on paper.
From there, just go through each shot and decided what order to shoot in that will maximize time. For example, get all the shots for a location at one time, and then move to the next. Or get all the hand held shots done first, then move to static shots. Or if you have equipment that takes a long time to set up, plan to shoot that first. Simple stuff like that.
I recommend the book Shot by Shot, awesome book that trains your filmmaker brain.
I'm in the same place as you (sorta), working successfully in a job outside of animation, but wanting to make the leap over. Here's what I've learned so far (in an obligatory wall of text):
A strong foundation is really important. Learning and practicing how to draw may take time, but luckily for both of us, there's an incredibly large number of resources both online and offline to take advantage of. Live drawing classes can help you figure out proper proportion and gesture. So can taking a sketchbook to a coffeeshop or zoo. This book in particular was very helpful in figuring sketching out:
http://www.drawingforce.com/
Learning to create strong compositions is important in any visual medium, animated or not. You could probably benefit from doing film studies, with a focus on understanding why characters are positioned a certain way within a frame. Failing to do this, you end up working uphill, trying to animate something that was flawed from the start. In this regard, this book is a great resource: http://www.amazon.com/Film-Directing-Shot-Visualizing-Productions/dp/0941188108
Finally, you'll probably have a lot of fun figuring out the tools synonymous with the animation industry. For 2D, Flash is still a big player, as is Harmony and TVPaint. Lots of resources online geared towards learning how to use these tools. At the core though, good animation hasn't really changed too much... make stuff until your stuff is believable. It's time consuming as hell, so I wouldn't invest in a huge, overly ambitious project from the start. Short, simple ideas that let you test your abilities would probably be a good idea.
Other than that, I don't know! Work hard, work smart.
French reverses are often dictated by the schedule, or the geography of a pracitcal location.
To save the time expense of a regular reverse (for instance during a conversation), in a french reverse involves shooting the actors on the same background, being sure to give them the opposite eyeline direction, so when the shots are edited together the actors appear to be across from each other, looking at each other.
It can also be done in a practical location when there's only an interesting background in one direction. For instance, on a TV series last year, we shot a french reverse in a scene shot at night on the roof of a parkade in a canyon of highrises. One direction gave an appealing background of glass towers lit up at night. In the other direction, we had the parkade's concrete walls. So, having shot a master favouring the highrise background, we shot coverage looking the same direction to give the appearance that the parkade was surrounded by glass towers.
Film Directing Shot by Shot (http://www.amazon.ca/Film-Directing-Shot-Visualizing-Concept/dp/0941188108/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1376630391&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=film+directing+shot+by+shot) and Directing by Michael Rabinger (http://www.amazon.ca/Directing-Techniques-Aesthetics-Michael-Rabiger/dp/0240818458/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1376630444&amp;sr=1-1) both have, as I recall, info on the french reverse.
Sculpting in Time
Notes on the Cinematographer
In the Blink of an Eye
Shot by Shot
The Filmmaker's Handbook
The Guerrilla Filmmaker's Handbook
Rebel Without a Crew
Filmmaking for Dummies
What They Don't Teach You at Film School
And if you are looking for film schools: Film School Confidential
These are just a few which will help get you started.
Please read "The Secret History of Star Wars".
Empire Building is a great read and goes behind the scenes of the original trilogy with second-hand accounts. I've also heard good things about The Secret History of Star Wars, but I haven't read it myself. The author has posted additional essays on the website though which are great reads, especially the one about Marcia Lucas.
>Why do people always say this? How did Lucas become what he hated or like the empire at all? I really don't understand this."
Sorry, but your position is uninformed.
Let's begin with George Lucas in 1970, a fresh USC grad about to begin work on THX-1138 with Francis Ford Coppola. The movie ultimately flops badly. He then moves on and tries to get American Graffiti made, but no one wants it. Even after it's a surprise hit, it's still hard to get his dream made, Star Wars, because no one believes in Sci-Fi films because of Ed Wood (among other reasons). Lucas, then, was much like Luke Skywalker, the underdog taking on the big studios in order to score a Death Star-sized hit. He was passionate about his films and getting them made and nothing else, at least professionally.
Star Wars eventually gets made by Fox and is a hit. The rest is history and the franchise generates nearly $30 billion from 1977 to 2012, before the Disney deal. To get there, Lucas signed multiple deals with multiple gigantic corporate conglomerates to pimp out the franchise and grow Star Wars into the consumerist wet dream it is today. As one example, of many, in 2012 (before the Disney deal), VW ran a Superbowl ad that featured a cutesy Darth Vader kid trying to use the Force. Want to know what else the company was doing at this time? It has something to do with violating the Clean Air Act and deceiving the American people into believing their cars were environmentally friendly.
Star Wars, under Lucas, did promotions with nearly every big company you have ever heard of. The list of affiliations and partnerships and tie-ins with companies that have done horrible things in the name of profit is endless. Star Wars-themed products, under Lucas, have ranged from toilet paper to Jar-Jar Binks lollipops. And all of those decisions go back to Lucas, who acquired the merchandising rights to the series back before A New Hope was made, by giving up $500,000 in directing fees to Fox.
Ultimately, Lucas WAS Star Wars until he sold it off to Disney (he would later seemingly regret the decision in an interview with Charlie Rose and refer to Disney as 'white slavers').
Lucas did help make the Indiana Jones series with Spielberg, but he never made another film until the prequels because he was busy maintaining the empire he had built through all of the toys, promotions and tie-ins. Lucas had successfully turned his beloved property into a cash machine.
Yes, he was also expanding ILM and Skywalker Sound at this time (with SW money), and while expanding your vision and making sure your creation stays in your hands (until Disney calls with $4 billion), is admirable, especially in this day and age of no-shame franchise movies, Lucas became the worst of that extreme. Filmmaking is widely referred to as a collaborative process by those who know it best, and Lucas, during the prequels, exercised complete control. He did not listen to (or did not hear) any suggestions from colleagues, who were too scared to question the giant. And look how those films turned out. The Secret History of Star Wars reportedly details how this came to be, speaking to George's discomfort with Irvin Kershner's handling of ESB and the effect this had on him not taking anyone else's opinion in the future. Hence the flaws of Return of the Jedi and the prequels. It's also worth noting that ESB was the film Lucas was furthest removed from, and it is commonly acknowledged as the best Star Wars film. Lucas, on the other hand, believes it's the worst Star Wars movie ever made, including the prequels.
To add to the list, try to find a home video release of the originals. They don't exist. Why? Because Lucas believes his crummy special editions are superior. All of the films have been re-released multiple times in both theaters and on home video, but never in their original forms, save for some Laserdisc bullshit and a re-release on the special edition DVDs that featured low-quality audio, perhaps on purpose.
Look, I like the guy. Star Wars is my favorite thing. I think he was noble in his intentions of wanting complete control, but I also think, somewhere down the line, this got the better of him and he, at very fucking least, sold out.
So, um, yeah... that's why people always say this.
That's true, his wife I think (as attributed by many associated with the film) saved the film from mediocrity.
There's a great book that includes an entire chapter about her
http://www.amazon.com/The-Secret-History-Star-Wars/dp/0978465237
Theres also a fantastic article online out there about her, but I can't find it right now.
That's how it was during the prequels, when he had absolute power and the final word on everything. But during the OT era, he had to compromise and just roll with the limitations and input from others around him. Check out The Secret History of Star Wars sometime, it's a fascniatind read. Lucas hated having others coming in and making changes that were ultimately what made those movies beloved classics.
One story corroborating
This article quotes a book specifically about the history of Star Wars.
How about another article?
Marcia Lucas even has an Oscar for her editing of Star Wars
Marcia Lucas had a significant hand in Star Wars.
George got lucky with marrying Marcia, just as much as he got lucky with Star Wars.
If you have other links/sources that can demonstrate that Lucas was the only brains behind all of Star Wars, I'd love to see them. Until then, I'm pretty sure the books and the Academy's awards will stand.
We will eventually get something like that, time will come for a journalist to write something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Secret-History-Star-Wars/dp/0978465237 detailing the early years of the Star Wars Disney era.
https://www.amazon.com/Upright-Citizens-Brigade-Comedy-Improvisation/dp/0989387801
If you want to get good find some local classes in your area, then work to join a team.
The UCB improv manual is one recommended book for a game heavy style of improv. It is the textbook for the UCB classes. Truth is Comedy is the textbook for IO which has a more honest style improv.
Go to shows if you have them in your area and watch improv as you learn you will begin to see what people are doing and understand why. This youtube channel is some UCB teams performing; I particularly like the team Fuck that Shit. I also personally love Off Book the Improvised Musical podcast. They are some incredible improvisers. Start with Ep 75 if you want a good one.
Last if you want a more relaxed fun way try finding a role playing game group. This won't make you great at stage improv but you can pick up some of the skills. Most people play D&D which is not a bad place to start in tabletop RPGs especially with 5th edition. If you can find people running more story games you can get somewhere closer to narrative improv minus the audience.
Also, get people to pool their money and get a copy of the UCB manual! It is the best, and super approachable: http://www.amazon.com/Upright-Citizens-Brigade-Comedy-Improvisation/dp/0989387801/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1406825908&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=ucb+manual
Improv can be structured into sketch as seen by UCB here. I know very few book dedicated solely to sketch but some overall comedy guides go into detail about sketch form and its place in comedy overall. Here.
So... I'm gonna be a little critical here.
I don't get this sketch. In improv terms, I don't know what the "game of the scene" is. Your comedic goal seems to be weirdness and then shock value. It's not that it can't work, it's just not for me. For example I feel like this same scene could easily have been accomplished with 2 characters instead of 4 or 5, and it probably would have let you define a relationship between those two characters more easily and play with that relationship.
Anyway, your production quality seems fine to me, you mention some audio concerns, but that to me shouldn't be your focus. I would recommend some improv or comedy writing books, my favourite being Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual. It'll teach you some core essentials for finding fun in scenes.
Hope this helps! :)
Just one question: What is the game of the scene?
If you can't answer that, read this... http://www.amazon.com/Upright-Citizens-Brigade-Comedy-Improvisation/dp/0989387801/
Do you have a background in comedy? Having experience in improv and/or sketch comedy will definitely be helpful. If you're near any major city, there are probably classes that you can take.
In terms of sketch writing, there are two main things you're going to need to understand. First, and arguably the most important, is the idea of Game. It's the fundamental pattern of what makes funny things funny. The inside joke that is crafted between the performers and the audience.
The second thing is just writing believable dialogue and characters you can invest in. You could have an incredible idea for a sketch, but if the dialogue is weak, then it's going to be harder to keep the audience's attention. Since you're on r/screenwriting, you probably have a good sense of this, so we'll focus on the Game.
In terms of resources, there are a number of great books on improv theory (unfortunately not very much about sketch, but at their core, the scene structure is quite similar).
The Upright Citizens Brigade just released a book that I haven't read yet, but seems like it focuses a lot on game, so it might be helpful. Truth in Comedy is another popular book about improv.
Once you understand the basics of how a comedic scene is crafted, I'd say just watch a lot of sketches. Watch SNL, Britanick, Good Neighbors, anything you can find online. Notice what their Game is. How they build and present their characters. It's the same thing with screenwriting. Once you know the pieces of a strong screenplay, you notice when they're done well or poorly in every movie you see. Then, find a style of comedy that is meaningful and funny to you and start writing!
Sorry for the huge post. I hope this was helpful! Best of luck!
This reminds me of Greg Sestero's account of working on The Room and the Michael Cimino stories that came out of Heaven's Gate. Nightmare Producer seems to be a universal language.
The difference, of course, is that Heaven's Gate turned out (I'd say) to actually be an excellent film, and The Room experienced its own peculiar form of success. This just looks pretty blah. I wonder if there's any hope of rediscovery for this movie in later years.
https://www.amazon.com/Disaster-Artist-Inside-Greatest-Movie/dp/1451661193
I recently read the Disaster Artist written by the guy plays best friend in the movie (the one Tommy's fiance is having an affair with). He evidentialy was friends with Tommy for a number of years both before and after the movie. Tommy comes across as a very sad person with a lot of personal issues.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Disaster-Artist-Inside-Greatest/dp/1451661193
no idea, but Greg just put a book out about the movie
Maybe this?
That's definitely a reductive view of Sith and Jedi, but it could be argued that the Old Republic-era Jedi Order had become too political, and had ceased to really represent the Force as a whole. By Episode 2, we have Jedi openly commanding military forces in a regular capacity - something of a failure in the feel of balance and pacifism.
You're right about the Sith being different - if you read Path of Jedi and Book of Sith, they basically have completely opposite philosophies on what the Force is, how to use it, and pretty much everything else.
I think I made it! I'd like to get this book for my friend or maybe an e-gift card to Chilis or Macaroni Grill so my sister and I can grab a nice dinner when she comes home from college. Or stamps. Mailing random fun things to Redditors seems so fun!
Walk around with this book:
http://www.amazon.com/Star-Wars-The-Jedi-Path/dp/1452102279
May the force be with you
I see you have a lightsaber or two in your collection, an elegant weapon for a more civilized age. If you wish to become a Jedi, this will start you on your path. It has served me well for a while.
A lot of my Star Wars stuff is over $10, but I do have a Jedi Order laptop decal on my wishlist that would make a nice addition.
The Jedi Path
The Book of Sith
Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide To The Force
None of these are novels, but they sound exactly like what you're looking for. The Jedi Path is an "authentic" training manual and journal written by Jedi Masters and annotated by the more popular Jedi. I assume the Book of Sith is the same thing. Jedi vs. Sith is like all the other Essential Guides out there, just a big reference manual. It's really neat.
The Darth Bane trilogy deals with Sith and their philosophy.
The New Jedi Order series (22 books) deals with an extragalactic species who cannot be sensed in the force, so a lot of the series deals with how the Jedi have to deal with that. It's really good, but it took me almost four years to finish that series.
You should get yourself this otterbox to protect that fancy phone!
And for me, this amazing anime! :D
Your item is a little over, and mine's a little under, but I feel like you should be spending at least a tad bit more on yourself!
EDIT:: Oh, something not on your wishlist?? Um... Gimme a minute then. XD
EDIT2:: Okay, you definitely need to get yourself this book and these chopsticks. Together, they should be about the right price. :p
Congratulations and Viva Las Vegas!!!
My son was born January 19th! He must be trained in the Force
I have two daughters, but this is my only son! Actually, we had so much trouble having a second, we adopted a newborn, little girl. Of course, my wife got pregnant 4 months after she was born.
If you like it, you should look into The Jedi Path and The Bounty Hunter Code by the same author.
for your first brother
for your second brotheror maybe
Boomerang
Thanks so much for the contest! m( )m
Item
Well, you're going to be meeting a lot of people soon and I can give you a few pointers as how to survive/not be awkward. Most people love nothing more than talking about themselves, so an easy trick is to simply ask them about themselves and listen. This is a shortcut that will immediately make them endeared to you.
It's okay to be quiet, just be smart about it. Do a lot of observing before you talk and make what you say matter. Being funny helps tremendously, and if you pick your spots, you can be the "funny" guy without being the life of the party.
A dry sense of humor approach is best, but any humor will do. There's a great book about humor and being funny that can help a lot. It's written by a genius named Del Close (practically the inventor of long-form improv) called Truth in Comedy (http://www.amazon.com/Truth-Comedy-The-Manual-Improvisation/dp/1566080037). Check it out. You'll learn a lot.
Also, confidence is attractive. You can have a confident air even if you're not. Season your conversations with statements like "There's always two sides to every story." and "That's a great point. I should research this topic more." Even if you have zero confidence, you can appear confident by acknowledging deficiencies in your knowledge set while swearing to become more intelligent about said topic. It's never a bad thing to acknowledge ignorance, it just makes you come across as honest and curious, which people love.
Make sure that you have established interests when you arrive. Like video games? Research game theory, it's fascinating and it's used in way more places than just the gaming industry. Basically, you can take anything that you're interested in and apply the principles to other parts of life. Now instead of being a "gaming nerd" you're a young and talented interface designer with a keen mind for sociology and anthropology - skills that apply to everything from future gesture-based interfaces to simply coming up with a better doorknob design.
Lastly, don't get hung up on stuff. Be the laid back, contemplative guy. It's okay to be passionate, but realize you don't have to win every argument. Arguments don't really have to end, nor will they, so you're better off making a quippy bon mot about the ridiculousness of an argument than trying to convince people you are right.
That's all I got off the top of my head.
Work on your lighting and sound. Also, read this.That sketch was about three minutes too long.
False. Humor = Reality. One of the core tenants of joke creating is to tell the truth. There is truth in comedy and nothing is funnier than real life.
One of the core books for teaching and learning improv is book called, Truth in Comedy. It goes through many different lessons, but one of them is don't be ridiculous. Play things honestly as you would any situation.
For more information, including a more detailed version of "Saying Yes", I wholeheartedly recommend reading The Truth About Comedy
Maybe this tip can help you. I am an actor (hence the username lol). I have studied a little bit of comedy and I can tell you this. Truthfullness is funny! Use inspiration from your real life as a source of comedy. I know an uprising comedian that is doing the same thing. It can also work in improv comedy. Maybe look into this book:
http://www.amazon.com/Truth-Comedy-The-Manual-Improvisation/dp/1566080037
I admire the fact that you have done stand up comedy. I want to try it one day.
No. Avatar began as a doodle Bryan Konietzko drew in his spare time and was expanded in meetings with Nickelodeon executives about what they wanted in a new childrens show. A great recap of the story behind the show can be read in the book about it.
I'm assuming it's the ATLA art book (Art of the Animated Series)
https://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Art-Animated/dp/1595825045/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=last+airbender+art+book&amp;qid=1550273949&amp;s=gateway&amp;sr=8-5
I don't personally have this one, but I have all four of LoK's art book and the style and presentation is pretty much the same as the image posted here.
This one!
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Comment (1pts) in gaybrosgonemild, "When a boy brings you #pizza, do you a) put a ring on it or...", (15 Sep 19):
> Depends on the ring and the tip. If the answer to both is cock then the answer is both.
Comment (1pts) in TheLastAirbender, "My friends book! “The Art of the Animated Series”", (10 Sep 19):
> I have this exact book, I bought it from Barnes and Noble but I’ve also seen it on amazon. [[Link]](https://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Art-Animated/dp/1595825045/ref=asc_df_1595825045_nodl/?...
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I agree with this. The problem with most "How to Draw" book that are geared towards kids is that they teach a process that is too specific to get a result that is too specific.
A more productive approach is probably to buy him some cool art books of things that are visually interesting to him. There are artbooks for all the most popular movies, video games, cartoons... whatever he is into, there's probably an artbook for it.
>Sure you do.
I love avatar, I support avatar:
I buy all the goodies I can get my hands on.
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Promise-Part/dp/1595828117
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Promise-Part/dp/1595828753
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1595829415
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1616550740
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Search-Part/dp/1616550546
When it comes to a series that ended 5 years ago, what the heck is wrong with watching them for free online?
They are already online for free in multiple places.
If you haven't seen Avatar Spirits (TLA documentry) yet give it a watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdw6YmO8q_k
Do you really think they are against someone watching their show online for free at this point?
Here it is on vimeo
Here it is on watchcartoononline
You can buy it from Amazon or you can download it illegally.
http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Promise-Part/dp/1595828117/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_b
Small series of books that continues after the show ends. Only the first of 3 (I think it will be 3 anyway), is out... Bought it last week, good stuff though I imagine the 2nd one is going to have more content.
Behold! Avatar- The Promise
There's a bunch of related comics on that page. Apparently in "The Promise" series, Zuko tries to find his mother.
Yeeeah, Avatar: The Last Airbender!
Congrats on the new job!
I'm so sorry to hear about your grandfather. Losing family is probably the hardest thing in life.
My closest friend, Catie, has been with me through it all. I've come to her house just for a place to cry more times than I can count, and we've gone on Krispy Kremer driveby's at least once a month. It's now our newest ritual :) She's probably the best person in my life and I wish her all the best in the world :)
Thanks for doing this! Love you! (i'd like this if I win, please)
Yep! $25
https://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X
I bought this and it's got some alcoholic beverages that look really good. There are loads of other recipes in it ranging from breads, pies, cookies, westfall stew, mulgore spice bread etc.
https://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X
https://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X
https://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X
Official world of warcraft cookbook with recipes from Vanilla to Snorelords.
Still in stock on Amazon...
I'm a bit late to the party here, and its not exactly snack food, but just wanted to point out that there's a whole ass World of Warcraft cook book. I have it and its pretty awesome.
Game of Thrones
https://www.amazon.com/Feast-Ice-Fire-Official-Companion/dp/0345534492/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1481681153&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=game+of+thrones+cookbook
WoW
https://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1481681188&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=world+of+warcraft+cookbook
Hobbit
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0990818802/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
I have all of these. Well worth the money. Fun to just read let alone try the recipes. All extremely well done.
If they like to cook then I definitely recommend getting them the WoW cookbook
https://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X
It has great reviews and some people have posted their creations from it on this subreddit.
Well then I would recommend https://www.amazon.com/World-Warcraft-Official-Chelsea-Monroe-Cassel/dp/160887804X for some more glorious dishes
Looks like the 41% off is from Amazon.
It's probably a script that receives information and posts it. I doubt someone does it by hand.
Amazon UK's listing is the same way.
If you really like cooking.. well, there's always the Warcraft cookbook:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/160887804X/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1523337369&amp;sr=8-1&amp;pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&amp;keywords=warcraft+cookbook&amp;dpPl=1&amp;dpID=51xcjAX01-L&amp;ref=plSrch
(I hope the link works.)
I'm honestly not certain all of what's inside, but there could be something fun to make for him!
There may be some food connected to an area he loves in game, or his main character's race, or something along those lines.
Once any of the Dark Horse comics are complete they will come out with a hard cover copy of the whole story that has extra annotations and notes from the authors in the margins. Definitely worth the extra wait I love those extra insights.
example: https://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Airbender-Gene-Luen-Yang/dp/1616550740/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1485798897&amp;sr=1-6&amp;keywords=avatar
Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Promise https://www.amazon.com/dp/1616550740/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_dWazDb3NG9HCN
Here is the promise. You should be able to find the rest by searching title and library edition
Like above mentioned you have the promise, the search, the rift, smoke and shadow, north and south for ATLA and they are still working on imbalance. The library edition comes out after the series is complete.
For LOK so far there is only one out which is Turf wars. There is also big books like art of the animated series which is AMAZING. They have that for both series
Start here.
also there are hardcover ver off all books that put 3 parts into one with extra info. there called library edtions eg https://www.amazon.ca/Avatar-Last-Airbender-Promise-Library/dp/1616550740
Here's links for these two, the last one isn't out in hardcover yet
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1616550740/ref=pd_aw_sims_1?pi=SL500_SY115&amp;simLd=1#
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1616552263/ref=pd_aw_sims_1?pi=SL500_SY115&amp;simLd=1
Then you're wanting 2 meter. You're in luck! You get access to the 2 meter band with your very first test!
A good place to start is the ARRL website. They're the big ham radio club.
But, as far as studying for that test? What I'm doing is going through all the flashcards and practice tests at hamstudy.org and reading the book The ARRL Ham Radio License Manual. The book tells you all about ham radio and explains everything you need to know to pass the first test.
I recently got a Baofeng BF-F8HP. Its my first ham radio and it is serving me very well.
I also got the Nagoya NA-771 Antenna, and this programming cable.
The ARRL Ham Radio License Manual is the book I bought to study.
I am using CHIRP to program my BF-F8HP.
I am new to ham radio and I would like to get my license too.
I learned quite a bit from the Guardian's eyewitness app It combines the best photojournalism with in depth captions to understand why the photo works.
A classic book of cinema is Truffaut on Hitchcock. Definitely recommend checking it out.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0671704273/ref=redir_mdp_mobile/190-1132910-0950360
Technical manual to the starship enterprise.
Here's the link to buy the book if you'd like to support the author: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0978465237/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awd_pR4Fwb032PGHA m
I've seen this in book stores a few times, it seems pretty cool. A Jedi training manual. It's sold out on amazon, so it must be worth it.
http://www.amazon.com/Jedi-Path-Star-Daniel-Wallace/dp/1452102279/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1325006264&amp;sr=8-2
Formatting. You're talking about formatting. not structure. For anything other than a shooting script, use Spec script formatting.
Read this book
https://www.amazon.com/Star-Trek-Next-Generation-Technical/dp/0671704273
Are detailed schematics from a fictional ship also fiction? I'm confused now....