In earlier posts, mediateacher.net has featured posts that highlight lessons that can be learned from study of movies from the Star Wars franchise, particularly with Rogue One and innovative work in sound design. Along with the superbly detailed book The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film by J.W. Rinzler, there is this YouTube video that explores how George Lucas arrived at his final cut of Star Wars through the work of his editors Paul Hirsch, Richard Chew, and Marcia Lucas) and which can be very eye-opening to students about the development of story and the power of the editing process (and all of the stages of movie production) in arriving at the definitive version of a film.
Archive for the ‘Directors’ Category
Editing Lessons with Star Wars
Posted in Chapter 1, Chapter 8, Directors, Resources, tagged Biggs, Editing, George Lucas, J.W. Rinzler, Marcia Lucas, Paul Hirsch, Star Wars on February 24, 2020| Leave a Comment »
Reflections on New Classics
Posted in Chapter 5, Directors, Media Literacy, tagged Best of 2010s Films, Criterion Collection, Denis Villeneuve, Sofia Coppola, Twin Peaks on December 30, 2019| Leave a Comment »
So there are lists all over the place, of course, to mark raves and disses across the spectrum of motion picture media, for the year or the decade past. I really liked this one with a nice theme curated by the folks at Criterion: Hidden Gems of the 2010s. And it’s worth it just to see the suggestion for Twin Peaks to “become part of the core curriculum of high schools across this country.” Hahaha, we’ll see about that!
And for documentaries? Try this list from Paste, which has informative intros for their 30 choices.
There was this interesting piece from a couple of years ago picking 25 best movies for this century so far (until then, at least), and it has a link to choices from Sofia Coppola, Denis Villeneuve, and Alex Gibney, among others. Speaking of Villeneuve and Coppola, Dune and On the Rocks are both due in 2020!
Get a grip!
Posted in Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 8, Directors, Women Mediamakers, tagged Ben Stiller, Cara Buckley, Escape at Dannemora, Jessica Lee Gagné, Media Professions, Melanie Ragone, Melissa Beaupre, Movie Grip, Tana Dubbe, Vanessa Alexis on April 12, 2019| Leave a Comment »
Agnes Varda making first feature “La Pointe Courte”
Couldn’t resist that title. In Chapter 8 of Moving Images, students explore the positions that correspond to the filmmaking tasks for which they have been developing skills throughout their work with the textbook. These jobs have been in a pretty constant state of flux for a number of years as the processes of the digital media pipeline and business of media production continue to evolve and transform.
Recently a very interesting piece by Cara Buckley on gripping appeared in the New York Times: “What is a Grip? The Few Women Doing the Job in Hollywood Explain.” Check out this article to find some answers along with insights and inspiration.
On a topic related to a core theme of this article, mediateacher.net notes the deeply sad news of the passing of Agnès Varda, one of the most important filmmakers of this era and a truly inspiring creator and visionary.
And to continue with another follow-up (related to the earlier references in multiple ways!) to working in the movie industry, here is an interview with Jessica Lee Gagné, the cinematographer of the stunningly shot Escape at Dannemora, a Showtime 7-part miniseries directed by Ben Stiller, released a few months ago to widespread acclaim. Amazing work both behind and in front of the camera.
Black History Month at the Oscars
Posted in Chapter 5, Directors, Social Studies, tagged Academy Awards, Best Adapted Screenplay, Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Willmott, Oscar Acceptance Speech, Snap Judgment, Spike Lee on February 26, 2019| Leave a Comment »
One year ago, a mediateacher.net post shared a Black History Month Interactive Resource, which can be a useful start to exploring many culturally and artistically significant related to this theme from film history. As a follow up, here is a related highlight from this year’s Academy Awards ceremony: Spike Lee receiving the award for Outstanding Adapted Screenplay (along with Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz and Kevin Willmott) for BlacKkKlansman and delivering a passionate, dramatic acceptance speech that was rooted in his own personal history. You can read it here. For those interested in more about Ron Stallworth and the true story on which BlacKkKlansman is based, I recommend checking out this excellent Snap Judgment podcast.
Library of Congress National Screening Room
Posted in Chapter 1, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Directors, Media Literacy, Resources, Social Studies, tagged Great Train Robbery, Hitch-Hiker, Ida Lupino, Library of Congress, National Screening Room on September 28, 2018| Leave a Comment »
With more exciting news in our Resources category (such as the Prelinger Archives and Portraits of America posts this year), the Library of Congress has announced that the National Screening Room is now online and features extensive resources for media literacy education. Many items from this vital national archive are now accessible to the general public and classrooms across the country (and world). As noted in an article by CBS News, among its highlights are: the classic Edwin S. Porter short The Great Train Robbery (featured for study in Chapter 2), the 1953 feature The Hitch-Hiker by Ida Lupino (a prime director for study with Chapter 5), and a wide variety of diverse types of media such as advertisements, PSAs, and home movies that are discussed in such posts as What Exactly is that Movie? on mediateacher.net and in our investigations of motion picture language and screenwriting throughout Moving Images.
