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Star Wars Revelations - May the Force Be With You!
n0alpha writes "For all you Star Wars fans out there, if you've been less than satisfied with the last two episodes of Star Wars, fear not. There is a new episode coming out soon -- but I'm not talking about Revenge of the Sith. On April 16th, 2005 the world will be blessed with a brand new episode, Star Wars Revelations. This is an independent film, completely put together by volunteers and organized by Panic Struck Productions, but don't let that fool you into thinking it is sub-par. Visit their website to view a trailer."
Actually what was lacking was professional quality lighting, wardrobe, make-up and cinematography. That's understandable, these thngs are hard, and potentially very expensive. Most average (that's average, not ugly!) people can look good if you supply them with professional make up and tailored costuming, have professional lighting (that makes a surprsing difference actually - its one of the main differences in "look" between a alot of amateur films and professional productions) and shoot them in a way that makes the most of their features.
You would probably be surprised to find, should you ever meet them in real life, that most celebrities are hardly more attractive than a lot of the people you'll meet every day. Sure they've got the knack of a winning smile, or a particularly "sexy pout" or whatever, but on the whole the difference isn't that great. What they do have is professional makeup, lighting and cinematography.
Jedidiah.
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I find it a bit foolish to insult actors in fanfilms. I doubt the maker of the movie had an unlimited budget and could hire actors fresh out of Hollywood. Give the guy a break, he's trying.
Flat is not the word you are looking for. The word you seek is "soulless". There is nothing behind the characters, no life, no personality. Even with the puppets in the first trilogy there was someone behind the mask, behind the strings. That gave them life. And made the characters more believeable. And with the scenes in the original that were updated, the same thing applies. they feel more real because they were. There were spaceships, however small, that were filmed. They actually existed. You can't get the same feel from CGI, yet, as you can from something that exists in the real world, no matter what the scale.
Another problem is sound editting. They didn't pad the room or use the right equipment or filters or something... you can hear all kinds of sounds and noise when the actors talk, making it sound like it was recorded in a bedroom.
Very true. Again, that's one of those things that's hard, and potentially expensive to do right. Then again, there's the issue of knowing your constraints. That, IMHO, is why Troops was so good. They knew sound and lighting and make-up were really the hard parts, so they managed to write something that required a minimum of it: Everything was shot outside in bright sun so lighting issues are minimised. 90% of the dialog is from the troopers and can hence be recorded separately in sound booth afterwards. Everyone is in costume (which was a point they were apparently very good at, and used to the hilt) except Beru and Owen, who are supposed to look a little haggard and distressed anyway - make-up becomes a non-issue.
The truly great amateur films are the ones that understand what they can do well, and what they don't have available, and manage to create something that fits neatly inside those constraints. Being so constrained is a little more limiting, but if you're really creative in writing and direction you can often do wonders. There are some great Science Fiction films (Pi and Sticky Fingers of Time for instance) that were made on shoestring budgets. Knowing and playing to your limitations is what makes for a great low budget film.
Jedidiah.
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