Dear Festividder/any potential treat-makers
This post is for my Festividder and for anyone who might like to make a treat.
(You don't have to be an official festivids participant to make treats, did you know? Rules/schedule at festivids.net.)
Apocalypto (2006) [Movie]
Apocalypto is a beautiful movie, and it deserves to be showcased in a vid. Jaguar Paw's open expressions, the lushness of the jungle, the incredible costumes of the city, the gluttonous bloodshed-the spookiness of his connection to his land and his family and the future-everything. I don't have a preference for any particular type of angle beyond "More people should appreciate the production quality of this film!" Could be a straight retelling, a twist on the POV, a critique of the politics/historical representation, anything. Maybe even a parody. Whatever kind of music you think would work would be great.
I did a movie review (http://bironic.livejournal.com/119851.html) and a vid (http://bironic.livejournal.com/294146.html) if you're interested.
Defiance [TV]
It seems to be cooler these days to like Continuum than to like Defiance, but there it is. Some things that please me about Defiance besides its attempts to be a ground-based Firefly, in case they're helpful for vid-making purposes: I am iffy on Nolan but very much enjoyed Irisa's fire, her torn loyalties, her insistence on seeing herself as an outsider, her heroine's journey (even though it's sad, the classic path it ended up following at the end of season one). Doc Yewll is my favorite. She's brash and funny and whip-smart and just as dangerous. The aesthetic of the Tarr household fascinates me, and I like watching Datak and Stahma separately and together. Rafe, meh, but Graham Greene, thumbs up. Ditto Mia Kirshner. Tommy I might have more of an opinion about if the show ever did anything with him. Also, *cough* Sukar is unexpectedly sexy in his steampunk way, 'specially when there is chest baring. Really the only thing I don't like is former mayor Nicky. Bleugh.
Fish Tank [Movie]
I saw this movie a little while back because I'd heard Michael Fassbender was in it, and got sucked in. Love, love, love the sexual tension that builds between Mia and Connor and that moment it finally breaks. So much sympathy as well for Mia's journey, her frustrated adolescent attempts to fully understand her body and to break free of a cycle of abuse and anger.
Noi Albinoi/Noi the Albino (2003) [Movie]
This is such a morbid and offbeat movie, and I would love to see any depiction of it in a vid. Playing off the bleak humor and absurdity? Underscoring the tragedy of a bright kid in a nowhere town, feeling like he's drowning, and the role he plays in his own fate? Doing a roundtable of the characters and their own eccentric ways of coping?
Project Runway [TV]
Tim Gunn! A vid about Tim Gunn will win my heart forever. Or, you know, whatever inspires you about this show. A fashion show vid? Clothing design, hair and makeup as a series of choreographable movements? A farce of fashion disasters and workroom accidents and petty bickering and the judges' comical faces? For what it's worth, I have seen seasons one through four, nine through current, and the All-Stars seasons, and bits of the ones in between. In the current season I have particularly enjoyed Dom and Kenneth Branagh, I mean Braden.
A Simple Twist of Fate (1994) [Movie]
Possibly no one has heard of or seen this movie, but if this is what we match on, hooray! I'm not usually one for super-sentimental movies, but this one I have watched over and over through the years. What gets me is the sincerity of the father/daughter bond, the way Steve Martin's character falls into miserly hermithood and climbs back up to become a loving family man, and the way Mathilda grows up and has to make this difficult choice, and that once she's made it, outside forces seem certain to force her to accept the alternative. I also love Gabriel Byrne's (and Laura Linney's) side of the story; he's a highly sympathetic (not to mention very pretty :) ) "villain," and even though we're rooting for Mathilda, it's hard to see him and his wife lose one of the few things that might have made him/them happy in life, even if it was his selfish mistake that lost him custody to begin with.
Strange Days [Movie]
A great, underappreciated movie. I don't even know what to ask for in a vid, specifically. I like Ralph Fiennes in just about everything. I like Maisie kicking ass. I like Faith as the messed-up femme fatale and also druggy Philo Gant but mostly because Michael Wincott is awesome. I like how a racial-crime cover-up comes back to bite the perpretrators in the ass no matter how hard they try to bury their tracks. I like the whole cyberpunk dystopia/millennial paranoia theme and imagery. I, um, like the rape and rape-play scenes. (Disclaimer: not in real life, only in fiction, etc.) I like the concept of the POV-recording neural net and the benefits and dangers it brings. Basically, anything you like is sure to please.
Take Shelter (2011) [Movie]
This movie blew me away, if you'll excuse the pun. It's dark and eerie and filled with dread and it resonates with so many current issues/fears of economic insecurity. It doesn't offer easy answers about whether Curtis's paranoia is a logical reaction to an uncertain world, the ripplings of mental illness, and/or something supernatural, yet it's not annoying in that ambiguity. I'd love to see any of that explored in a vid. Or the ups and downs of Curtis' relationships, even including or represented by the dog. Just, anything that embodies the terror and uncertainty Curtis struggles with, that makes use of all the looming supercells and the cracks of thunder and the signs-that-might-not-be-signs, that supremely creepy moment in the dream where all the furniture hovers midair...
This is the only source for which I have any sort of music ideas. Not binding in the least. Just throwing them out there: Neko Case's "Things That Scare Me" for its country feel and line about being haunted by the American Dream, and Rufus Wainwright's version of "Agnus Dei" for the epic, mourning tone.
I did a movie review here if you're interested: http://bironic.livejournal.com/280538.html
& some general thoughts, copied from previous years:
I'm not sure what to say about my tastes on a meta level. I like celebrating shows and movies that make me happy; but just as much I like queering texts, whether it's pairing characters who aren't paired in canon or inverting themes or highlighting kink or drawing attention to minor characters or totally changing the tone of a source. I like joyful and I like dark and I like sexy. I am really hoping you aren't looking for specific song recommendations, heh. Oh, and in case they're helpful in conveying preferences, my own vids are here and some vid recs are here.
But! As I've said for everything above, of course, and as per Festivids tradition, feel free to make whatever vid appeals to you, regardless of whether I've asked for it. We've been matched because we both like something, so whatever you choose to do with that should be wonderful. Hopefully you have an idea you'd like to pursue!
(You don't have to be an official festivids participant to make treats, did you know? Rules/schedule at festivids.net.)
Apocalypto (2006) [Movie]
Apocalypto is a beautiful movie, and it deserves to be showcased in a vid. Jaguar Paw's open expressions, the lushness of the jungle, the incredible costumes of the city, the gluttonous bloodshed-the spookiness of his connection to his land and his family and the future-everything. I don't have a preference for any particular type of angle beyond "More people should appreciate the production quality of this film!" Could be a straight retelling, a twist on the POV, a critique of the politics/historical representation, anything. Maybe even a parody. Whatever kind of music you think would work would be great.
I did a movie review (http://bironic.livejournal.com/119851.html) and a vid (http://bironic.livejournal.com/294146.html) if you're interested.
Defiance [TV]
It seems to be cooler these days to like Continuum than to like Defiance, but there it is. Some things that please me about Defiance besides its attempts to be a ground-based Firefly, in case they're helpful for vid-making purposes: I am iffy on Nolan but very much enjoyed Irisa's fire, her torn loyalties, her insistence on seeing herself as an outsider, her heroine's journey (even though it's sad, the classic path it ended up following at the end of season one). Doc Yewll is my favorite. She's brash and funny and whip-smart and just as dangerous. The aesthetic of the Tarr household fascinates me, and I like watching Datak and Stahma separately and together. Rafe, meh, but Graham Greene, thumbs up. Ditto Mia Kirshner. Tommy I might have more of an opinion about if the show ever did anything with him. Also, *cough* Sukar is unexpectedly sexy in his steampunk way, 'specially when there is chest baring. Really the only thing I don't like is former mayor Nicky. Bleugh.
Fish Tank [Movie]
I saw this movie a little while back because I'd heard Michael Fassbender was in it, and got sucked in. Love, love, love the sexual tension that builds between Mia and Connor and that moment it finally breaks. So much sympathy as well for Mia's journey, her frustrated adolescent attempts to fully understand her body and to break free of a cycle of abuse and anger.
Noi Albinoi/Noi the Albino (2003) [Movie]
This is such a morbid and offbeat movie, and I would love to see any depiction of it in a vid. Playing off the bleak humor and absurdity? Underscoring the tragedy of a bright kid in a nowhere town, feeling like he's drowning, and the role he plays in his own fate? Doing a roundtable of the characters and their own eccentric ways of coping?
Project Runway [TV]
Tim Gunn! A vid about Tim Gunn will win my heart forever. Or, you know, whatever inspires you about this show. A fashion show vid? Clothing design, hair and makeup as a series of choreographable movements? A farce of fashion disasters and workroom accidents and petty bickering and the judges' comical faces? For what it's worth, I have seen seasons one through four, nine through current, and the All-Stars seasons, and bits of the ones in between. In the current season I have particularly enjoyed Dom and Kenneth Branagh, I mean Braden.
A Simple Twist of Fate (1994) [Movie]
Possibly no one has heard of or seen this movie, but if this is what we match on, hooray! I'm not usually one for super-sentimental movies, but this one I have watched over and over through the years. What gets me is the sincerity of the father/daughter bond, the way Steve Martin's character falls into miserly hermithood and climbs back up to become a loving family man, and the way Mathilda grows up and has to make this difficult choice, and that once she's made it, outside forces seem certain to force her to accept the alternative. I also love Gabriel Byrne's (and Laura Linney's) side of the story; he's a highly sympathetic (not to mention very pretty :) ) "villain," and even though we're rooting for Mathilda, it's hard to see him and his wife lose one of the few things that might have made him/them happy in life, even if it was his selfish mistake that lost him custody to begin with.
Strange Days [Movie]
A great, underappreciated movie. I don't even know what to ask for in a vid, specifically. I like Ralph Fiennes in just about everything. I like Maisie kicking ass. I like Faith as the messed-up femme fatale and also druggy Philo Gant but mostly because Michael Wincott is awesome. I like how a racial-crime cover-up comes back to bite the perpretrators in the ass no matter how hard they try to bury their tracks. I like the whole cyberpunk dystopia/millennial paranoia theme and imagery. I, um, like the rape and rape-play scenes. (Disclaimer: not in real life, only in fiction, etc.) I like the concept of the POV-recording neural net and the benefits and dangers it brings. Basically, anything you like is sure to please.
Take Shelter (2011) [Movie]
This movie blew me away, if you'll excuse the pun. It's dark and eerie and filled with dread and it resonates with so many current issues/fears of economic insecurity. It doesn't offer easy answers about whether Curtis's paranoia is a logical reaction to an uncertain world, the ripplings of mental illness, and/or something supernatural, yet it's not annoying in that ambiguity. I'd love to see any of that explored in a vid. Or the ups and downs of Curtis' relationships, even including or represented by the dog. Just, anything that embodies the terror and uncertainty Curtis struggles with, that makes use of all the looming supercells and the cracks of thunder and the signs-that-might-not-be-signs, that supremely creepy moment in the dream where all the furniture hovers midair...
This is the only source for which I have any sort of music ideas. Not binding in the least. Just throwing them out there: Neko Case's "Things That Scare Me" for its country feel and line about being haunted by the American Dream, and Rufus Wainwright's version of "Agnus Dei" for the epic, mourning tone.
I did a movie review here if you're interested: http://bironic.livejournal.com/280538.html
& some general thoughts, copied from previous years:
I'm not sure what to say about my tastes on a meta level. I like celebrating shows and movies that make me happy; but just as much I like queering texts, whether it's pairing characters who aren't paired in canon or inverting themes or highlighting kink or drawing attention to minor characters or totally changing the tone of a source. I like joyful and I like dark and I like sexy. I am really hoping you aren't looking for specific song recommendations, heh. Oh, and in case they're helpful in conveying preferences, my own vids are here and some vid recs are here.
But! As I've said for everything above, of course, and as per Festivids tradition, feel free to make whatever vid appeals to you, regardless of whether I've asked for it. We've been matched because we both like something, so whatever you choose to do with that should be wonderful. Hopefully you have an idea you'd like to pursue!