Thursday, December 07, 2017

Cradle to the grave...

For those who have been reading this for the last couple years you have seen me post up videos by a channel called "Every Frame a Painting".

Well that channel has finally reached it's crescendo and I wanted to mark it's passing with a post here. I feel it's related because of the reasons it started, the way they approached it and why they quit. It speaks to other branches of entertainment and how some of us might feel at any given time.

For those who are TL;DR people, let me just put a line from the essay here:

"For days and days, he keeps trying to draw this plane, but nothing meets his satisfaction. Eventually, he realizes that he’s spent too much time on it. So he hands the plane off to another animator, and he moves on to something else.

For me and for Tony, this clip is extremely reassuring. If Miyazaki — the world’s greatest living animator — can admit defeat after trying his best, then it’s okay for everyone else. If he can let go, then so can we."

Monday, December 04, 2017

To boldly not go away...

 Face it everyone. Internet magic is not going away.

It's time to stop bitching and embrace it. Instead of placing no value on it or talking down about it, let's help try to make it more palatable. Magic companies are still trying to sell this kind of magic like it's workable and practical. At some point they are going to have to create a new category. Right next to "Stage" and "Close-up" there needs to be a section titled "For Camera Only". You might think that sucks but it's more honest and at least you know what you are getting now. I'm looking at you Penguin and Murphy's.

It's not just the companies, it's the people releasing the magic as well. Be honest and upfront. If it only looks good from one angle at a particular time of day or only indoors in a dimly lit bar, let people know. Embrace your new genre and be a pioneer. Be the Steve Jobs of internet magic releases!

This will innovate magic... but only from this one angle.
There is a reason youth does not listen to age. If everyone "respected their elders" and didn't rebel against their "teachings" then we'd all still be churning butter and doing double undercuts. (one of those might be an extreme example)

So who will step up first? Will it be the magic companies or will it be the producers? A few have already dabbled in it and embraced this new concept. Sansminds released an effect and in the trailer specified it was best for their internet or promo video magic. If you are still one of the people clinging to the old ways you need to change with he times or hurry up and die. You're either in or in the way.

This in no way means I am endorsing NOT  releasing good practical real-world magic. We still need that for those who are brave enough to leave their house and want to make a living BUT it's time to acknowledge this is where we all stand and we must stand together.

Next time I will talk about people who expose magic on Youtube and the best places in the Las Vegas desert to bury their bodies.