May 2014 – Media Services News

House of Cards crew debates filming in DC, misses entire point of the show

We don’t like to focus on current film gossip and industry natter, but this recent local film story was too funny and too ironic to pass up. Netflix’s breakout success House of Cards films primarily in Baltimore, and as anyone who grimaced at the “Cathedral Heights” Metro stop scene can attest, there are some pretty … Continue reading “House of Cards crew debates filming in DC, misses entire point of the show”

We don’t like to focus on current film gossip and industry natter, but this recent local film story was too funny and too ironic to pass up.

Netflix’s breakout success House of Cards films primarily in Baltimore, and as anyone who grimaced at the “Cathedral Heights” Metro stop scene can attest, there are some pretty jarring cosmetic differences between Maryland’s biggest city and Washington. To drive business in the area, DC government is currently debating whether to provide additional tax incentives to lure House of Cards back to the nation’s capital. (Plus, it’ll spare us all the embarrassment of explaining to friends how that’s not really what DC looks like.)

Many officials (and the crew for House of Cards) are hesitant to bring the show back, specifically citing the previous filming attempts that resulted in a clash between location shooters and MPD. According to Washington City Paper, “The fracas left one location scout fuming that the District’s government is ‘corrupt and dysfunctional.'”

Let that sink in for a second. The production crew of a series about the corrupt dysfunction in Washington does not want to shoot in Washington because it is corrupt and dysfunctional.

The irony might be lost on the House of Cards crew, but we love it. If you want to experience the dysfunction for yourself, the first season is the show is available to check out in the library (HU DVD 14099). The second season won’t be on DVD for another month or so; remember to check back with us about future episodes!

AFI Docs announces its 2014 lineup, and it looks terrific

For the uninitiated, every year the American Film Institute hosts AFI Docs, a festival for upcoming documentaries hosted in and around the Washington, DC Metro area. AFI Docs is among the most esteemed documentary film festivals in the world, and ever summer, it is perhaps the biggest film event in the DC area. The AFI … Continue reading “AFI Docs announces its 2014 lineup, and it looks terrific”

The AFI recently announced its 2014 lineup, and it looks pretty great. This year’s slate includes 54 full-length documentaries and 28 shorts covering a wide and exciting range of subject matter. You might be interested in Mudbloods, a documentary about collegiate Quidditch players, or Bronx Obama, a biography of a professional Obama impersonator. But there’s more serious fare as well, including a documentary about Hal Holbrook’s legendary Mark Twain stage show and the life of film critic Roger Ebert.

We highly recommend attending, but tickets of AFI Docs will not be available to the general public until June 2nd. Keep an eye on their website for more information as the June 18th start date approaches!

Good slides are good for us all

There are three life skills that they don’t teach in college – how to iron a shirt, how to steer out of a skid, and how to give a compelling presentation. Lynda.com has the last one covered for you. New courses on Lynda.com this month include Presentation Fundamentals. Planning your presentation, designing effective slides and then how … Continue reading “Good slides are good for us all”

There are three life skills that they don’t teach in college – how to iron a shirt, how to steer out of a skid, and how to give a compelling presentation. Lynda.com has the last one covered for you. New courses on Lynda.com this month include Presentation Fundamentals. Planning your presentation, designing effective slides and then how to give a strong delivery. Not surprisingly, it comes down to practice, practice, practice, but this Lynda.com shows you where you should be focusing your attention.

As a current AU student, faculty or staff, you have access to all of Lynda.com’s tutorials and resources. First, go to www.american.edu/lyndaand log in with your AU credentials. Enjoy.

Rolling Stone names its favorite sci-fi movies from this century

The past decade or so have been great for the science fiction in film. Even beyond superhero movies and blockbusters, genre fare has seen critical celebration. Movies like Blade Runner have been rehabilitated to classic status, and newcomers such as District 9 and Gravity see major award nominations. This is a great time for fans … Continue reading “Rolling Stone names its favorite sci-fi movies from this century”

The past decade or so have been great for the science fiction in film. Even beyond superhero movies and blockbusters, genre fare has seen critical celebration. Movies like Blade Runner have been rehabilitated to classic status, and newcomers such as District 9 and Gravity see major award nominations. This is a great time for fans of futuristic media.

In honor of last week’s update of the long-running Godzilla series, Rolling Stone has taken a moment to write about contemporary genre history and declared their favorite twenty sci-fi movies since 2000. You might not agree with their selections, but the variety indicates strong health and a great future for science-fiction filmmaking. Modern blockbuster masterpieces such as Inception sit alongside weirder films like Under the Skin and Moon. At the least, it’s an eclectic selection.

Most of the films on this list are available in the AU Library. (We’re clearly fans of science fiction too!) As summer movie season ramps up, we encourage you to check a few of these out to revisit the best of our recent past.

Cloverfield – HU DVD 767
Minority Report – HU DVD 1969
Donnie Darko – HU DVD 2174
Children of Men – HU DVD 2631
WALL-E – HU DVD 4950
Sunshine – HU DVD 5287
Serenity – HU DVD 5317
District 9 – HU DVD 6686
Moon – HU DVD 7213
The Host – HU DVD 7652
Inception – HU DVD 8000
Primer – HU DVD 8104
Looper – HU DVD 10899
Gravity – HU DVD 11181
The World’s End – HU DVD 11185

Adams Morgan gets its own outdoor film series

We’re over halfway into the May, and as is the summer tradition, free film festivals continue to open around DC. This week, we’d like to direct your attention to a newcomer in Adams Morgan, only a few hops down the Red Line. Tomorrow evening, half an hour after sunset, Adams Morgan Movie Nights will kick … Continue reading “Adams Morgan gets its own outdoor film series”

Tomorrow evening, half an hour after sunset, Adams Morgan Movie Nights will kick off its inaugural program with an outdoor screening of Pixar’s beloved Up. The event goes down at Marie Reed Elementary School, a few blocks past Amsterdam Falafelshop (to use that as a landmark). Concessions will be available, and you are encouraged to bring your own blankets and picnic gear. In fact, why not get some falafel at Amsterdam Falafelshop? These problems solve themselves. The first 150 attendees will receive mysterious bags full of local swag, so you’ll want to get there early.

The series continues every two weeks after, with All the President’s Men on June 10th and Rushmore on June 24th. This looks like another great addition to DC’s film festival lineup. See you tomorrow!

See indie comedy Obvious Child two weeks before theaters!

Our access to advance summer movie passes continues! Sometimes we have tickets to big blockbusters, but this time around, we want to put a movie on your radar that you might not know was coming out. Obvious Child is an upcoming comedy film that found life on Kickstarter and premiered at Sundance earlier this year. … Continue reading “See indie comedy Obvious Child two weeks before theaters!”

Our access to advance summer movie passes continues! Sometimes we have tickets to big blockbusters, but this time around, we want to put a movie on your radar that you might not know was coming out.

Obvious Child is an upcoming comedy film that found life on Kickstarter and premiered at Sundance earlier this year. In addition to coming from a first-time director, Obvious Child boasts an impressive lineup of independent comedy names, including Jenny Slate, David Cross, and Jake Lacy. This movie doesn’t premiere until June 6th, but you can see it on Thursday, May 22nd at 7pm!

To redeem an advance pass, follow the link here. As with all advance screenings, please keep in mind that your pass does not guarantee entry. These events are intentionally overbooked to ensure a full house, so be sure to show up early to ensure that you get a seat.

We’re here to analyze dialogue and chew bubblegum…

Let’s be honest: action movies do not have the most well-crafted dialogue. They usually just devolve into threats, quips, and heavy exposition, but no one has ever pretended to see a Schwarzenegger movie for the script. But there’s also something appealing about their simplicity. If acclaimed films can feel literary and obtuse, there’s a reassuring … Continue reading “We’re here to analyze dialogue and chew bubblegum…”

Let’s be honest: action movies do not have the most well-crafted dialogue. They usually just devolve into threats, quips, and heavy exposition, but no one has ever pretended to see a Schwarzenegger movie for the script. But there’s also something appealing about their simplicity. If acclaimed films can feel literary and obtuse, there’s a reassuring comfort in Murtaugh telling us that he does not have time for this shit.

As an ode to these straightforward and sometimes Neanderthalic scripts, the culture infographic fans at Pop Chart Lab created a poster dissecting the structure of the best action one-liners. You might remember sentence diagrams from middle school, and it should come as no surprise that many of these famous quotes (like “I’ll be back” and “Welcome to Earth”) break down easily. Some with terrible grammar are harder to deconstruct, while others are just too long for any useful analysis.

This chart is a fun and somewhat ridiculous look at the best and worst dialogue from the action genre. Commando might not have won an Oscar for its screenplay, but it sure does make a fun English exercise.

Learn the secrets of Disney animation in 3 minutes

Walt Disney once employed a team informally known as the “Nine Old Men,” nine of the greatest animators of all time and the artistic forces behind nearly the first forty years of Disney animation. If you watch classic Disney movies today, their bold and fluid animations are still astounding and a great artistic accomplishment. Two … Continue reading “Learn the secrets of Disney animation in 3 minutes”

Walt Disney once employed a team informally known as the “Nine Old Men,” nine of the greatest animators of all time and the artistic forces behind nearly the first forty years of Disney animation. If you watch classic Disney movies today, their bold and fluid animations are still astounding and a great artistic accomplishment. Two of Nine Old Men, Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas, explained the “12 basic principles” behind their iconic style in The Illusion of Life, a book that is now considered one of the most important animation reference works.

But let’s face it, this is about animation. You want to see it in motion, right?

Artist Cento Lodigiani put together a great 3-minute clip demonstrating each of the twelve principles, from basics like “staging” to advanced ideas like “follow through.” Lodigiani is not a Disney animator, but it’s easy to see how many of the illustrated principles apply to films like Snow White and Fantasia. Especially “secondary action,” which you can see at play in “Whistle While You Work.”

There’s of course more than twelve principles to quality animation, but this is a fun, non-technical peek into what goes through the minds of great animators.