Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Killer Artwork

Wow, excited to see some package artwork (from photos I took) for the movie I wrote SAKI. Japanese sure know how to sell it visually!

Friday, August 19, 2011

Sucker Punched to the Past

SUCKER PUNCH is like INCEPTION but made by a film student - all stylized with random video game visuals and an ending with unnecessary VO that overtly explains how sincere the filmmaker and the story is. I get it's appeal but I liked INCEPTION way, way, way better. Way better. Funny thing is, I made my version of SUCKER PUNCH in film school called 3 WORD KILL. I guess I'm becoming an old fart.
www.imdb.com
Directed by Zack Snyder. With Emily Browning, Vanessa Hudgens, Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone. A young girl is institutionalized by her abusive stepfather. Retreating to an alternative reality as a coping strategy, she envisions a plan which will help her escape from the mental facility.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Filmmaking and Beer Bellies

Well, normally I'd be happy to share an article that highlights me doing my DP thing on the feature film TAKAMINE, but the picture of me in the article just reminds me that I need to cut down on those beers. But it's a good picture nonetheless.
www.pronews.jp
©2011 TAKAMINE制作委員会 映画『TAKAMINE アメリカに桜を咲かせた男』 2009年外務省発表の統計では、アメリカに在留する日本人の数は約384,000人。ロサンゼルス(LA)には約67,000人の日本人がいる。その中には就労ビザを取得してハリウッドの映画業界で活躍する日本人も今では多く存在する。映像界にとってもアメリカとの関係は、今や切り離せない関係になっている。4月に公開される映画「TAKAMINE アメリカに桜を咲かせた男」の主人公、高峰譲吉は明治時代に化学者として功績を残し、また日米親善特使として日本とアメリカの架け橋となった人物だ。この作品は

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Celtx Script Writing Software

The Japanese independent feature film SAKI was 100% outlined & written in Celtx script writing software. Shooting script was in English combined with Japanese dialog. Celtx PDF output didn't support Japanese text but printing directly from Celtx allowed for English & Japanese to coexist on the same page - worked like a charm. SAKI 2 is currently being written in Celtx with the Plot View add-on & iPad Sync!
SAKI: A feature film of a Japanese woman exiled to America, finding herself teaching art to a unique group of students. But when her grandfather visits from Japan, hell comes with him and Saki finds strength in the demons of her artistic expression.
Page: ‎266 people like this.



Here is the trailer for the Japanese independent feature film SAKI - 100% outlined and written in Celtx!

Mythomania

Check out SAKI's AC turned producer, Yukie Hashimoto, as she presents the web series "Mythomania." The latest is episode 5 but be sure to check them all out!

www.youtube.com
‎"Love and work...work and love, that's all there is." --Sigmund Freud Andy Go is an amateur cartoonist dreaming of hitting it big -- and he just might get hi...

SAKI Soundtrack

It's a SAKI soundtrack extravaganza!

Original SAKI soundtrack by Daichi Yoshida - dark, moody, and then some cutting action. It's got all the ranges of emotion that drive the feature film SAKI!











Original song by Jazzminshroom featured in the original SAKI trailer.
soundcloud.com
This is the original version Don't login me by Jazzminshroom Album Livin' in Caleuph

Here is a title track from the feature film SAKI, produced by Atsuyuki Kono/Jazzminshroom with Vocal by David Hiestand and Sabine Esmaili!
soundcloud.com
Movie sound track of Saki Running to you Produced by Atsuyuki Kono/Jazzminshroom Vocal by David Hiestand and Sabine Esmaili

Another title track by Jazzminshroom featured in the film SAKI. Dig the the light fun theme - after all Saki goes from SoCal fun under the sun cutie to LA night thrill-kill.
soundcloud.com
See you again from the Album Livin' in Caleuphoria by Jazzminshroom This is the new mix for feature film SAKI

Another title track from SAKI, produced by Atsuyuki Kono/Jazzminshroom. Listen to the complete track!
soundcloud.com
Let it go from the album Livin' in Caleuphoria by Jazzminshroom special mix for the sound track of the feature film SAKI

Monday, August 15, 2011

SAKI Original Trailer

Original SAKI trailer featuring the track "Don't Login Me" by Jazzminshroom.

vimeo.com
WARNING ADULT CONTENT! SAKI: A feature film of a Japanese woman exiled to America, finding herself teaching art to a unique group of students. But when her grandfather visits from Japan, hell comes with him and Saki finds strength in the demons of her...

Tuesday, August 09, 2011

Macbook Screen Rotation

Here's a cool trick to rotate your Macbook screen:

- Launch System Preferences (QUIT it if it's already open).
- Hold down the Command+Option keys and click on "Display."
- Look for 'Rotation' on the right side of the Display window and take your pick.

Obviously turning your Macbook on it's ear is not effective for typing but I find it useful for sorting my long vertical list of scenes when I outline for a feature script.

Sunday, August 07, 2011

SAKi Official Movie Website

Don't forget to check out SAKI's official movie website!

saki-movie.com
国分佐智子主演、全編ハリウッド制作の映画。世界的に有名な編集​者、横山智佐子さんの初監督作品。

Really getting somewhere

Another solid Korean thriller, THE MAN FROM NOWHERE. Not quite the "artistry" of I SAW THE DEVIL but with much more sentimentality (which is not necessarily a bad thing). It's really brief but I like the "wallet vs knife" scene - in just one move it reveals the bad-assness of the main character.

Saturday, August 06, 2011

Anatomy of SAKI character design: Kanekichi

People seem to have an affinity for the character Kanekichi. Again a testament to the efforts of the cast and crew that brought the initial character design to life.

Anatomy of SAKI character design: Saki

From concept to completion, the SAKI cast and crew did a fantastic job bringing the characters to life.

Friday, August 05, 2011

Midnight Chill

So if you're up at midnight PST (4pm Japan time) looking for a nice diversion in Japanese, check out HanaHanaTV hosted by the director of TAKAMINE. Since midnight is my script writing time, I just kick back with chilled glass of umeshu (plum wine), tune into the stream and listen to the chatter as I write.

www.ustream.tv
野毛HanaHanaTV @ USTREAM: 8月1~20日の毎日16時~17時30分、野毛の旧コロンビア​から、Hana*HanaTV~シドモアさんを探せ~、生放送を​行います。 番組主旨 ワシントン市ポトマック川畔に桜が日本から贈られて、 来年(1912年・3月)で100年 を数えます。桜を介し、日本と米国...

Thursday, August 04, 2011

Scarlet Influence

Wow, you can watch the entire film of director Fritz Lang's SCARLET STREET on Youtube. This is the film that inspired the writer and the thematic connection between death and art in the film SAKI. And if you pay close attention to the ending 3rd act you'll get a glimpse of some of the themes that will emerge in SAKI 2!

www.youtube.com
Middle-aged Chris Cross has a gold watch and little else. One rainy night, he rescues the delectable Kitty from her abusive boyfriend, Johnny. Chris is smitt...