I love the Flip brand of cameras.  They’re cheap (relatively) and very versatil.  You can put them just about anywhere (so as not to risk a more expensive rig) and the quality you get for your $200ish dollars is comendable.  The only problem?  The field of view is too narrow.  A little super glue and cheap lens kit from Best Buy can fix that though.

Props to Anthony Skelton for his write up here.  I had some vignetting with the 2x lens when doing this to my Flip Ultra HD – I think modifying the Mino HD eliminates this problem because the “lens hump” is less pronounced.  Happy Hacking!

(Anthony Skelton Photography)

Abandoned Cine @ Dembrography

I haven’t been writing anything with these update posts lately, but I just wanted to say that this Abandoned Movie Theatre in Racine, WI is one of the most beautifully tragic things I have ever seen.  I’d love to get inside – I wonder who lives there now.

My response?  OMGWTFBBQ!?!?  The best I could come up with (based on the height of the camera) was a really long jib arm on a dolly.  I was wrong.  It’s much simpler and much more impressive:

That’s right!  High Speed Segway (no handlebars!) to running dismount.  For those that are wondering the Steadicam Operator is reportedly Karsten Jacobsten.  Seriously – I can’t stop watching this.  Thanks Paul!

Bathtub IV from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

I’m glad that the tilt-shift fad has become more of a graphic tool – it’s really Loutit’s thing now, so I’m excited to see what he does with it next.

Anyway, I first heard to the problem from my good friend Conigs – his take on the story here.  Ars Technica weighed in as well, it would seem that both Hulu and Boxee are torn up about the forced separation:

Boxee’s Avner Ronen was naturally upset to have to announce to Boxee customers that Hulu support is being removed as of February 20. The feature has been widely popular and, along with Netflix Instant Queue integration, it was one of the reasons I joined in the alpha program. Folks already paying for a fat data pipe into their homes have been ditching cable or satellite subscriptions for online content, and Boxee has been one of the tools that has made that choice quite enjoyable, especially on the Apple TV.

Hulu’s CEO, Jason Kilar, was equally displeased to have to explain why Hulu was forced to make the request in the first place. “Our content providers requested that we turn off access to our content via the Boxee product, and we are respecting their wishes,” he wrote in a blog post. “The maddening part of writing this blog entry is that we realize that there is no immediate win here for users. Please know that we take very seriously our role of representing users such that we are able to provide more and more content in more and more ways over time.”

Content providers are stuck in their traditional mode of thought; they’re prioritizing their needs before the needs of their users.  This used to work in the days before the internet.  Television viewers were forced to consume content on the terms of the broadcasters.  Sure, if they didn’t like the way content was being doled out they could change the channel, but there were only a handful of broadcast options.  Cable viewers might have had a few hundred or even a thousand options.

Today users, via the internet, have a millions of ways to interface with millions of “channels” of content.  The old thinking no longer works – the availability of content has been democratized.  You need to make your content easy to access with minimal cost to the user.

Very often the easiest way to consume content is piracy.  For the savvy user, piracy offers the fewest amount of hoops to jump through.  Content is high quality and free. This is where Hulu stands out – it’s an easy way to consume high quality A-list content that’s both free AND legal.  That’s why users have been flocking to it.  Boxee made free and legal consumption even easier.

Chris Foresman writes:

One detail to note is that Hulu content is paid for by advertising, and Boxee did not in any way block or eliminate the ads. And, in practice, there is no difference between watching the content via Boxee and watching via the Hulu website in full-screen mode on a computer attached to a TV—except that it’s more time consuming and annoying to set it up via a browser. Boxee made it easier for viewers to enjoy legal content they way they wanted to, which was exactly the purpose of creating Hulu in the first place.

So basically Hulu’s content providers are, inadvertently, actually turning away ad-revenue because they either have some sort of horrible and decidedly less elegant scheme up their sleeves or they simply just don’t get it.  I’d argue that it’s most likely the latter.  Content providers are struggling to force their square-pegged old business model into the round hole that is the internet.  It will never fit – maybe it’s time for a new business model.

(Conigs and Ars Technica)

Lego Camcorder @ Engadget

Kids Tech Review, via Engadget, reports that the awesomest Lego Camcorder ever will be priced around $80 and will be due out this summer or fall.    It doesn’t appear that the camera will be assembleable (is that a word?), which is a huge bummer.  Hopefully the rangefinder we saw earlier will require some assembly.  If you don’t build it Lego, what’s the point?

(Kids Tech Review via Engadget)

Apple Screenwriting/Storyboarding App?

In our office we use Apple programs almost exclusively for post-production.  As a producer, I’m excited at the possibility of them entering the pre-production space:  the patent application also hints at network and “cloud” connectivity/syncing, as well as production centric scheduling and logistic tools.

As for the combined storyboarding/screenwriting, if Apple tightly integrated the program with Final Cut Pro, massive efficiencies in production (shooting) and post production (editing) could be gained, not too mention easier storyboarding for people like me who cannot draw.

Directors and editors could actually work on a rough cut of the film within Final Cut Pro well before production or even heavy pre-production.  This would give them time to experiment with things like pacing and script options before they are shot, as opposed to during or after the shoot.  This already happens on big budget movies – but the storyboards are hand drawn.  The potential Apple app wouldn’t necessarily replace this process, but would streamline it as well.

I know that there are at least a few editors that read this blog, so please chime in with your thoughs below!  Are there any competing products that have the same proposed functionality that also integrate with Final Cut or Avid?

Hit up the link below to check out the full Macblogz post as well as a link to the full patent application.

(Apple Patent via Macblogz)

Here are the nominees, sorted by film, as seen on Oscar.com:

“Australia,” a 20th Century Fox/Bazmark Film 2 Pty Ltd Production (20th Century Fox) (1 nomination)

Costume design

“The Baader Meinhof Complex,” a Constantin Film Production (1 nomination)

Best foreign language film (Germany)

“The Betrayal (Nerakhoon),” a Pandinlao Films Production (Cinema Guild) (1 nomination)

Documentary feature

“Bolt,” a Walt Disney Pictures Production (Walt Disney) (1 nomination)

Best animated feature film

“Changeling,” a Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment Production (Universal) (3 nominations)

Angelina Jolie – Performance by an actress in a leading role

Art direction

Cinematography

“The Class,” a Haut et Court Production (Sony Pictures Classics) (1 nomination)

Best foreign language film (France)

“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” a Kennedy/Marshall Production (Paramount and Warner Bros.) (13 nominations)

Brad Pitt – Performance by an actor in a leading role

Taraji P. Henson – Performance by an actress in a supporting role

Art direction

Cinematography

Costume design

Directing

Film editing

Makeup

Original score

Best picture

Sound mixing

Visual effects

Adapted screenplay

“The Dark Knight,” a Cape Road Limited Production (Warner Bros.) (8 nominations)

Heath Ledger – Performance by an actor in a supporting role

Art direction

Cinematography

Film editing

Makeup

Sound editing

Sound mixing

Visual effects

“Defiance,” a Grosvenor Park/Bedford Falls Production (Paramount Vantage) (1 nomination)

Original score

“Departures,” a Departures Film Partners Production (Regent Releasing) (1 nomination)

Best foreign language film (Japan)

“Doubt,” a Scott Rudin Production (Miramax) (5 nominations)

Philip Seymour Hoffman – Performance by an actor in a supporting role

Meryl Streep – Performance by an actress in a leading role

Amy Adams – Performance by an actress in a supporting role

Viola Davis – Performance by an actress in a supporting role

Adapted screenplay

“The Duchess,” a Qwerty Films/Magnolia Mae Films in association with Pathé Renn and BIM Distribuzione Production (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films) (2 nominations)

Art direction

Costume design

“Encounters at the End of the World,” a Creative Differences Production (THINKFilm and Image Entertainment) (1 nomination)

Documentary feature

“Frost/Nixon,” a Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment and Working Title Production (Universal) (5 nominations)

Frank Langella – Performance by an actor in a leading role

Directing

Film editing

Best picture

Adapted screenplay

“Frozen River,” a Harwood Hunt Production (Sony Pictures Classics) (2 nominations)

Melissa Leo – Performance by an actress in a leading role

Original screenplay

“The Garden,” a Black Valley Films Production (1 nomination)

Documentary feature

“Happy-Go-Lucky,” a Thin Man Films/Simon Channing Williams Production (Miramax) (1 nomination)

Original screenplay

“Hellboy II: The Golden Army,” a Universal Pictures Production (Universal) (1 nomination)

Makeup

“In Bruges,” a Blueprint Pictures Production (Focus Features) (1 nomination)

Original screenplay

“Iron Man,” a Marvel Studios Production (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment) (2 nominations)

Sound editing

Visual effects

“Kung Fu Panda,” a DreamWorks Animation LLC Production (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount) (1 nomination)

Best animated feature film

“Man on Wire,” a Wall to Wall Production (Magnolia Pictures) (1 nomination)

Documentary feature

“Milk,” a Groundswell and Jinks/Cohen Company Production (Focus Features) (8 nominations)

Sean Penn – Performance by an actor in a leading role

Josh Brolin – Performance by an actor in a supporting role

Costume design

Directing

Film editing

Original score

Best picture

Original screenplay

“Rachel Getting Married,” a Clinica Estetico Production (Sony Pictures Classics) (1 nomination)

Anne Hathaway – Performance by an actress in a leading role

“The Reader,” a Mirage Enterprises and Neunte Babelsberg Film GmbH Production (The Weinstein Company) (5 nominations)

Kate Winslet – Performance by an actress in a leading role

Cinematography

Directing

Best picture

Adapted screenplay

“Revanche,” a Prisma Film/Fernseh Production (Janus Films) (1 nomination)

Best foreign language film (Austria)

“Revolutionary Road,” an Evamere Entertainment, BBC Films and Neal Street Production (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage) (3 nominations)

Michael Shannon – Performance by an actor in a supporting role

Art direction

Costume design

“Slumdog Millionaire,” a Celador Films Production (Fox Searchlight) (10 nominations)

Cinematography

Directing

Film editing

Original score

Original song – “Jai Ho”

Original song – “O Saya”

Best picture

Sound editing

Sound mixing

Adapted screenplay

“Tropic Thunder,” a Red Hour Production (DreamWorks, Distributed by DreamWorks/ Paramount) (1 nomination)

Robert Downey Jr. – Performance by an actor in a supporting role

“Trouble the Water,” an Elsewhere Films Production (Zeitgeist Films) (1 nomination)

Documentary feature

“Vicky Cristina Barcelona,” a Weinstein Company Production (The Weinstein Company) (1 nomination)

Penélope Cruz – Performance by an actress in a supporting role

“The Visitor,” a Groundswell, Participant, Next Wednesday Production (Overture Films) (1 nomination)

Richard Jenkins – Performance by an actor in a leading role

“WALL-E,” a Pixar Animation Studios Production (Walt Disney) (6 nominations)

Best animated feature film

Original score

Original song – “Down to Earth”

Sound editing

Sound mixing

Original screenplay

“Waltz with Bashir,” a Bridgit Folman Film Gang Production (Sony Pictures Classics) (1 nomination)

Best foreign language film (Israel)

“Wanted,” a Universal Pictures and Spyglass Entertainment Production (Universal) (2 nominations)

Sound editing

Sound mixing

“The Wrestler,” a Protozoa Pictures/Wild Bunch Production (Fox Searchlight) (2 nominations)

Mickey Rourke – Performance by an actor in a leading role

Marisa Tomei – Performance by an actress in a supporting role

(Oscar.com)

It seemed then, that applying this same idea to movies would only take a matter of time.  Enter Jinni:

“Jinni isn’t a social network, it’s an internet application designed to fit how people relate to movies and TV. And since conversation is part of that, we’ve created tools to meet people with shared tastes, compare preferences, and review and rank titles.”

Jinni classifies movies based on their traits, things like plot, mood, and tone.  In fact, according to their website, Jinni has a team of film professionals tagging films with around fifty “genes” a piece.  That’s a lot of work, and to be frank, I’ve never understood how people like Pandora and Jinni do it and do it reliably (Who knows maybe it’s the same blokes.).  Music and Movie tagging sweatshops?  Maybe.  Probably not.

As a user, Jinni’s value proposition is to help you find movies that you’re guaranteed to like.  Hopefully this includes movies that you wouldn’t have normally found or known about.  Popular media outlets only really expose us to the “top tier” of content – things that are a sure bet popularity and moneywise.  With luck we’ll find that Jinni, like Pandora before it did for music, broadens our exposure to movies with movies we end up loving.

Jinni is currently in private beta – you can sign up on their webpage to try to get an access key.  It looks like my key has come in just now, so I’ll poke around and report back tomorrow with the real meat and potatoes.  If it works as well as their demo video shows (Sadly, almost nothing ever does.) they just might be up to something.

Update: Full Review coming soon!  Also, a reader from Scotland reports that, apparently due to licensing issues, Pandora is not available outside of the United States.  Therefore, you might actually be “someone”  and not know what it is through no fault of your own.  My apologies for offending basically the entire world – I’m sure it won’t be the last time.  It’s too bad that you can’t check out Pandora – it’s a really great piece of engineering.

(Jinni and Pandora)

Feedflix

I am notorious for not using my Netflix movies.  Seriously.  I’ve had ‘The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford‘ at home for 261 days at counting.  That movie moved from my apartment to my home with me.  That movie has been sitting by my DVD player for almost a year.  Sort of.  Either way it’s a wickedly long time to have a DVD sitting around.

Which is why I was seriously worried when I found out about FeedFlix, which is a service that taps into your Netflix account.  Using the Netflix API, Feedflix can tell you just how much of a value or waste your $15ish a month is.  It does so with a series of pretty graphs, like the one above, but it also pumps out this useful text:

So as you can see – I have a habit of hanging onto DVDs, and am NOT getting my money’s worth when it comes to those (well maybe a little – it depends what’s in the bargin bin).  But thanks to my fiance’s Law and Order SVU addiction via Netflix’s watch instantly (finally available on Mac and Xbox as of a few months ago) we’re doing alright per piece of content consumed.

Feedflix doesn’t consider the total usage of multiple users on one account so my fiance’s DVD usage, which is far more frequent than mine, isn’t considered. Eitherway, thanks to watch instantly, I can say I feel pretty good about our Netflix subscription.

Feedflix does way more than this; it also pulls tons of stats.  So I can tell you that, for instance, ‘Burn After Reading‘ is the “most anticipated” film currently on Netflix.  I can also tell you that ‘The Dark Knight‘ is the most rented movie over the past two weeks (rightly so).  Pretty nifty stuff – check it out and make sure you’re squeezing everything you can from Netflix – maybe I should just send back Jesse James… or maybe I should hold onto it for a whole year – just to say I did.

(Feedflix)