KOB Shot of the Day #82: Testing our Age 0-2 Demographic...

Shot with iPhone, click to enlarge.

Our first week in the new edit location, which coincidentally was where we cast the movie...small world in the Kingdom of Eliphaz! Our transition was pretty smooth as we inhabited two rooms in the back of Nancy Nayor's casting office (and within 2 days we've already had cameo visits from two of our Fellowship! But are you surprised...I mean, look at that cast!) and within hours on Monday we were up and running at full speed. Thanks to Ian, Nancy, Greg the landlord, Mark, Matt and everyone who made the transition a smooth one.

Nothing exciting to report as again, we hack and slash away. Howard and I are working on the main timeline, Alex is working on select moments, effects and a special transition that I've always wanted to achieve in a film (and haven't seen employed in almost 15 years) Had a very productive FX meeting with Josh & Tim from Comen and everyone seemed jazzed over the stuff we showed as we went over plates, elements and other FX-based shots. While we always said we wanted this to have an "old fashioned" feel (especially with the gore and creature FX) there's still a good amount of VFX that will allow us to create the world and tell this story effectively, and its been a great collaboration between depts to create these moments effectively.

Here is a shot of my son Remy, who visited the edit room while Mommy had to make an appointment and dropped him ouff for a bit, checking out one of the few scenes he could actually watch, totally captivated. Hey, we're trying to hit all Four Quadrants here in our demo, folks! Listen, not much can tear him away from THE SQUEAKQUEL (currently playing on my laptop to distract him) but Remy-seen here sporting a Doomstalker T shirt from the film-was very impressed, explaiming "Ha, DADADADADA*" when we finished. Glowing praise, I'd say! Glad to see our film is hitting the "infant" demographic already.

Still a ways to go but it's going well, to say the least. Seeing the film fuse together is nothing short of amazing and exciting. So interesting how the tone can change even over the smallest tweak in a scene and is proof positive how delicate this part of the process it, the edit. Right now, the closest thing I can call KNIGHTS in it's current state is "THE GOONIES for Adults". Don't quote me on that, but since I know that seminal 80's movie like the back of my hand, and how it blends Adventure, Comedy, Drama, even horror and Thriller elements together with a big ensemble of personalities into one big chunk of Entertainment, its the closest comparison I can make...and that makes me giddy with excitement to finally see it on a big screen as it backlights a big bunch of heads in a darkened theater. Can't wait!

Onward,
Joe

*Translation: "A Tour De Force of awesomeness! I laughed, I cried, I pooped!"

KOB Shot of the Day #81: Alex's covering our cuts...

Shot with iPhone, click to enlarge.

Happy Friday!

I woke up this morning shocked to realize it's already the end of the work week, where does the time go? Being holed up in an edit suite (one we're moving out of this weekend for more palatial plains) with no real communication to the outside world can really soak up the time, especially when you're in The Edit Zone. What is that you may ask? That's when you are so ensconced in the process that you actually edit...in YOUR SLEEP. Literally, lately I've been sitting in front of an AVID/FCP rig in my dreams. Funny or sad? I dunno but it's been productive; I wake up, remembering shots to use, time-codes, acting beats in takes I remember liking or recalling stuff that did or didn't work, then come in in the morning and we actually try them...and sometimes, they actually work! Guess my brain is just in full on Post Mode.

But regardless of the question "where did the week go?", looking back it was a very productive week in KOB EditsVille; we plowed through a gamut of different scenes, seeing how the tone of the film is such a delicate thing to balance. Funny how scenes on their own can be very funny or scary or thrilling or dramatic OR not seem to work at first, but bridge them up against other scenes in the sequence and they take on a different life, building off of residual effects from a previous scene or how they will impact a scene later on; amazing to see it all come together. So we're chugging along and it's been a blast putting the pieces together.

So one of the key elements to any good post-production is your Editor's assistant, and we've been blessed to be working with Alex Luna (seen above with a spoiler-heavy image in the BG*) who has literally "gotten our back" in the cut, even before I walked in the room the first day. Howard's worked with Alex on THE COLLECTOR and now this mighty beast and watching them work back and forth, its comforting to see such a seamless workflow between the two editors and rigs working at the same time on the film. A good assistant in the edit room is essential for many reasons....one is having someone who can work on the more menial, tech-heavy aspects of the production (like data management, finding shots, crash maintenance, grabbing lunch, etc) so Howard the main editor and I can focus on the creative side, but also help with elements like implementing sound & temp visual FX, add temp score beats and even tackle parts of the picture cut himself for a fresh perspective on certain moments. Alex is always both a few steps ahead and a few steps behind our picture cut (in a good way); getting things ready for us to tackle next, but also clean up moments and scenes we've torn through already so we are all up to date with the cut. A great guy to have around, always smiling and filled with geeky movie knowledge and another important member of the Fellowship. Say hi everyone!

Have a good weekend....Evermore awaits!!!

Onward,

Joe


PS: I'd like to finally address some salacious rumors spread on this very blog. First off, Sir Dreyfuss' claims of my "furriness" is greatly exaggerated...I'm actually a completely hairless albino who has to bear the burden of glueing imported yak hair daily to feel normal. Also, my gas problem? Another fallacy; Gassy? What!??! I haven't expelled any methane since a Slipknot show in '99 when a dude stepped on my stomach in the pit. Lies I say, lies!
Also, the quote of me referring to myself as Leni Riefenstahl is incorrect; I actually referred to myself as "The Dr. Uwe Boll of LARPing". Just to clarify, thanks.

*I'm kidding. It's just me spiking the frame with a flipped bird. Hi ho!

KOB Shot of the Day #80: Greetings from Suite E (for now)!

Shot with iPhone, click to enlarge.

Hey all,

(ed. Note: This is actually posted over at the KOB blog-site, so Im basically double dipping here.)

So here is the official first post not from my personal blog but from The Official KOB site, where not only myself but other key Knights from the other depts from here on out (The producers, writers, the FX guys, our composer, etc) will hopefully chime in as we work on the post-production process of the movie now. We're currently in a space in West Hollywood but might be moving due to tech issues, but for a first official week of the cut, its a trip to see stuff coming together. Im still jetlagged like a mofo from the whirlwind tour of wrapping the film and then 2 days later off to the UK for FrightFest where Adam Green and I premiered some new "Road To FrightFest" shorts and other goodies (and thank you to all the KOB fans already out there across the pond!), but then it was right back to work...but I wouldnt have it any other way.

Now, as much as I loved being out in "the shit" with the actors and crew during the shoot, it's here in the edit where you can REALLY play and have fun without the bugs or weather; now that we can see what we have to work with in terms of footage, working with our expert editor Howard Smith (just look up his credits and gawk) and his ever-jovial assistant Alex as we hack away on the cut rounds of cuts has been great. Nothing terribly exciting visually at this stage, folks; no severed heads strewn across the floor or celeb cameos other than what's on our monitors (which would just give too much away) so don't expect a lot here for now, but we did want to chime in and say hi to The Fellowship and let you know we're pouring over the footage and things are going great. There's a LOT to do still, between the actual picture cut of the film, the FX shots, the sound design, the Digital Intermediate, Bear's score, etc, but its a good start to the Fall after One Crazy Summer.

If anything more exciting happens we'll be sure to check in and take a shot but enjoy this moment above to see our usual editing work methods. I think it's very effective! Now, back to work, Smith!!

Onward we Slash!

Joe