Category: Movie & entertainment
Vancouver film school
Vancouver film school
For those who want to become a professional in the entertainment or media industry at the shortest time, the Vancouver film school may be one of your options. Since 1987, the Vancouver film school offers one of the shortest but comprehensive programs for aspiring filmmakers, video game designers, and other possible careers within the realm of the entertainment and media industries.
Each one-year intensive program at the Vancouver film school is equivalent to four years at other film schools. They offer education that provides learning through theoretical instruction as well as hands-on training to its students. Although the programs at the Vancouver film school are relatively short, the latter has gained international recognition.
Among its notable faculty includes Larry Bafia (Head of the Animation program), the sequence Lead Animator for PDI/Dreamworks on such films like Antz and Batman & Robin, and a sequence Animation Supervisor for the movie Mission Impossible II. Other faculty members at the school have been part of projects that gained huge successes and won international awards. Two of the many notable alumni of the school are Chad Moffitt, Academy Award winner as animator for the blockbuster film “Lord of the Rings”, and Janelle Henderson, makeup artist for Pirates of the Caribbean 2. The latter graduated from the program Makeup for Film and Television.
Undergraduate students, who have completed a secondary education, or at least 19 years of age, may apply at the Vancouver film school. Aside from the projects, students learning will be stimulated by Vancouver’s entertainment culture, which is viable for upstart projects to be recognized in the mainstream. The city itself has a robust film, television, sound production, video games, design, and animation industries. Learning will also be much enhanced by the peaceful and beautiful state of the cosmopolitan.
The Vancouver film school offers programs for Foundation Visual Art and Design, Acting Essentials, Classical Animation, 3D Animation and Visual Effects, Acting for Film and Television, Digital Character Animation, Digital Design, Entertainment Business Management, Film Production, Game Design, Makeup Design for Film and Television, Sound Design for Visual Media, Writing for Film, TV and Interactive Media, and Houdini Certification.
In the year 2007, the Vancouver film school celebrates its 20th anniversary and part of this celebration is the allocation of one million dollars worth of scholarship for the entire school year beginning August 2006 until June 2007. From six film students in its founding, the Vancouver film school now graduates more than 1100 students annually. You can visit their site www.vfs.com for more information on the programs offered.
Home Entertainment Hitachi Projectors
Home Entertainment Hitachi Projectors
If you are someone who wants your own personal home entertainment projector, and perhaps being someone who has not yet made use of the projector technology for home theater viewing, you can try out the Hitachi projectors line of products.
The PJ-LC9 3LCD Hitachi projectors are worth checking. These can be used for home viewing or for playing video games, or for any other personal use you may deem it fit to accommodate. You can definitely enjoy the features these Hitachi projectors are packed with.
The physical dimensions are: height = 73mm, width = 285mm, and depth = 202mm. The weight is 2.2 kilograms. These PJ-LC9 3LCD Hitachi projectors are very compact and easy to set-up. Depending on what may be to your liking, these are highly flexible. These projectors are not needed to be permanently installed, but can be done so if desired. It’s all really up to you.
Connectivity with other electronic devices as TV digiboxes, DVDs, VCRs, game consoles and family computers are supported. This would make a complete package for a personal home entertainment. You get to enjoy these other technologies with the widescreen quality projections provided for by your PJ-LC9 3LCD Hitachi projector.
PJ-LC9 3LCD Hitachi projectors have a native 16:9 resolution, making it very capable in producing high quality widescreen images in true color. These produce 1,300 ANSI lumens and with excellent color reproduction make these ideal for multi-media purposes
These have digital vertical keystone correction feature which allows the users to project a squared screen even in very high or low positions. At 2.9 meters away, the diagonal screen produced is 80 inches. At 2.2 meters, the diagonal screen produced is 60 inches.
These also come with motion adaptive progressive scan and a zooming facility.
With the PJ-LC9 3LCD Hitachi projectors’ noise level of 33dB, surely nothing will distract you while viewing your favorite movie, or playing those favorite computer and video games. No interference from any noise for your complete hearing and viewing pleasure.
Truly, these PJ-LC9 3LCD Hitachi projectors are ideal for your personal home viewing experience. Especially when you don’t want to entirely dedicate a room for home theater viewing, these Hitachi projectors would fit your needs. Being compact, these projectors are easy to store when not yet needed, and easy as well to take out when you want a big screen viewing at your home. You can truly enjoy a big screen home entertainment in the very comforts of your own home.
Whatever Happened To…
Whatever Happened To…
There are certain props in entertainment that you never forget. They become so much of your life and your heart that the mere memory of them calls up visions, feelings and scenes to play over and over in your head. Those are the movie props that transcend just the need to collect and be put in someone’s vault at the MGM studios, but are important enough that everyone should know where they are. These items aren’t just part of a picture; they are part of our common heritage, our culture and our joy. But, where are they?
There’s No Place Like Home
Ask anyone who saw the 1939 version of the Wizard of Oz what is the most vivid image they remember and they will tell you one of two things: The witch scrawling “Surrender Dorothy” in the sky, or the brilliant red ruby slippers tapping their heels as Dorothy remembers there is no place like home. Where are the slippers now? There were 6 pairs of slippers made for the movie, 5 of them for Judy Garland and one made for a stunt double. Of the actual 5 for the movie, one set resides in the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC and are available for public view. Three other pairs have changed hands many times and been auctioned repeatedly (one selling at Christie’s auction house in 2000 for $666,000) and now belong to private collectors. One pair was stolen from the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota and remains at large.
The Black Bird
Sam Spade, everyone’s favorite private eye took to the streets of San Francisco looking for the Maltese Falcon and some folks have been wondering where it is ever since. There was originally only one Maltese falcon made for the production but it was dented in filming and several resin falcons were produced to finish production. The original falcon is on display in the Warner Brother’s museum and available for viewing. 4 other falcons are privately owned and displayed at various venues. At one time its auction price of nearly $386,000 was one of the highest paid in the world. In February of 2007 the official replica of the falcon used in publicity stills was stolen from the second floor vault of a San Francisco restaurant where it was being displayed.
Rosebud
Charles Foster Kane lay on his opulent death bed wanting Rosebud. The mystery of its identity consumed the movie Citizen Kane, considered by many to be one of the best films ever produced. As we watch Charles Kane start out with good intentions and end a rich, morally bankrupt egoist we too can’t image what Rosebud might be. At the very end we are rewarded and humbled to know it was simply his boyhood sled a symbol of the innocence he had which was thrown into a fire. There were three sleds made for the movie, but two of them were destroyed by fire for the filming of the pivotal scene. The third Rosebud is owned by a private collector who paid $60, 500 for it in 1982. There is a solace in knowing the collector is someone likely to take very good care of it, and leave it to the legacy of film when the time comes. The collector is none other than Steven Spielberg.
Movie props go overlooked by movie goers all the time. But when they themselves become characters, it’s good to know they have found good homes.
Whatever Happened To…
Whatever Happened To…
There are certain props in entertainment that you never forget. They become so much of your life and your heart that the mere memory of them calls up visions, feelings and scenes to play over and over in your head. Those are the movie props that transcend just the need to collect and be put in someone’s vault at the MGM studios, but are important enough that everyone should know where they are. These items aren’t just part of a picture; they are part of our common heritage, our culture and our joy. But, where are they?
There’s No Place Like Home
Ask anyone who saw the 1939 version of the Wizard of Oz what is the most vivid image they remember and they will tell you one of two things: The witch scrawling “Surrender Dorothy” in the sky, or the brilliant red ruby slippers tapping their heels as Dorothy remembers there is no place like home. Where are the slippers now? There were 6 pairs of slippers made for the movie, 5 of them for Judy Garland and one made for a stunt double. Of the actual 5 for the movie, one set resides in the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC and are available for public view. Three other pairs have changed hands many times and been auctioned repeatedly (one selling at Christie’s auction house in 2000 for $666,000) and now belong to private collectors. One pair was stolen from the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota and remains at large.
The Black Bird
Sam Spade, everyone’s favorite private eye took to the streets of San Francisco looking for the Maltese Falcon and some folks have been wondering where it is ever since. There was originally only one Maltese falcon made for the production but it was dented in filming and several resin falcons were produced to finish production. The original falcon is on display in the Warner Brother’s museum and available for viewing. 4 other falcons are privately owned and displayed at various venues. At one time its auction price of nearly $386,000 was one of the highest paid in the world. In February of 2007 the official replica of the falcon used in publicity stills was stolen from the second floor vault of a San Francisco restaurant where it was being displayed.
Rosebud
Charles Foster Kane lay on his opulent death bed wanting Rosebud. The mystery of its identity consumed the movie Citizen Kane, considered by many to be one of the best films ever produced. As we watch Charles Kane start out with good intentions and end a rich, morally bankrupt egoist we too can’t image what Rosebud might be. At the very end we are rewarded and humbled to know it was simply his boyhood sled a symbol of the innocence he had which was thrown into a fire. There were three sleds made for the movie, but two of them were destroyed by fire for the filming of the pivotal scene. The third Rosebud is owned by a private collector who paid $60, 500 for it in 1982. There is a solace in knowing the collector is someone likely to take very good care of it, and leave it to the legacy of film when the time comes. The collector is none other than Steven Spielberg.
Movie props go overlooked by movie goers all the time. But when they themselves become characters, it’s good to know they have found good homes.
Movie Poster Collecting
Movie Poster Collecting
There is a great deal of history behind movie posters and movie poster collecting. Jules Cheret, who created 2 movie posters in the 1890’s, was the artist given credit for creating the first movie posters. By the end of the first decade of the 1900’s, movies had become a great source of public entertainment. In this time period, the movie poster would become a standard size known as the one sheet measuring 27″ x 41″.
In the early days, the names of actors did not appear on the posters, which the movie studios liked, because it meant paying actors less money. It was in this early period in movie history, however, that movie studios realized movie stars were as much of an attraction to the moviegoer as the movie itself. Thus, the movie star was born, and movie posters began showcasing actors’ names along with the title of the movie.
By the 1920’s, the golden age of silent movies, movie posters became more artistic and spectacular, with accomplished artists being hired by movie studios to paint portraits of the stars for posters. By the late 1920’s, movie poster images became sharper due to a new printing process developed by the Morgan Litho Company.
In the 1930’s, also known in the movie industry as “The Golden Age of Movies”, another style of movie poster was created, the half sheet. Major movies would sometimes get more than the two styles. However, due to the depression, many movie materials were being created more cheaply, causing a loss of quality in movie posters.
The dawn of World War II in 1941 saw many of the movie stars heading off to war and war was the major theme of movies at that time. The movie industry cut advertising costs and used cheaper paper for posters due to the paper shortage of wartime.
By the 1970’s, movie posters used photography, occasionally using drawing and painting styles. Movie posters at this time were being printed on a clay-coated paper, which gave them a glossy finish. Star Wars and Star Trek posters were the most popular posters of the time and are still collected by many today.
In the 1980’s, the age of the special effects blockbuster, the mini sheet was invented, and video stores became popular, thus the video store poster was created. Today, reprints of movie posters are mass-produced and sold in many stores or are just a click away on the Internet.
There are several types of movie posters. Because of their rarity, the avid movie poster collector has concentrated on movie poster or theater art. These are the posters that are delivered and displayed by the movie theaters and then intended to be thrown away. Another type of movie poster is the commercial poster, which is mass-produced for direct sale to the public. Video posters are distributed to video rental stores for advertising material. Cable and TV posters are use as promotional material for TV stations for their programming. Like theater art, video posters and cable and TV posters are not produced for the public. Although not as valuable as theater art, these types of posters are still popular among collectors. Special promotion posters promote a movie along with a product. Finally, there are anniversary issues, limited editions, and special releases that are released in limited quantities and are gaining favor with the theatre art collector. Other types of movie posters include advance posters that promote a movie well ahead of the movie’s release. The award poster, which indicates that a movie has won an Academy award. The combo poster, advertising two movies instead of just one. The popular double-sided poster that has art on both sides, with the artwork reversed on one side of the poster. There are featurette posters highlighting short films or cartoons, review posters for when a movie gets a good review, serial posters for movie serials, and special distribution posters.
With the popularity of movie posters has come the necessity to create various sizes of posters. The first and most widely used poster is the one sheet, which is usually 27″ x 41″. The subway, also known as the two sheet, is larger but not exactly two times the size of the one sheet. The 3 sheet is three times the size of the one sheet measuring at 41″ x 81″. The 6 sheet is six times the size of the one sheet measuring of 81″ x 81″. There is also a 12 sheet approximately twelve times the size of a one sheet, and the colossal sized 24 sheet measuring 246″ x by 108″. Other sizes include the mini sheet, which is usually much smaller than the one sheet and comes in a variety of sizes, and the stock sheet issued for cartoons or other shorts.
As with all collectibles, condition is a great factor when placing a value on posters. A movie poster’s value is determined by demand, rarity, and condition. Poster collectors use the same grade system used by comic book collectors: mint (perfect), near mint, very good, good, fair, and poor.
For those who want to be serious movie poster collectors, you will need to know some things about taking care of your movie poster art.
Tips to retain the total collectable value of movie posters
Never alter the appearance of a poster. Do not fold, bend, tear, or punch holes in it even to hang it on your wall.
Never place a movie poster in direct sunlight. UV lights can also be harmful.
Don’t write on your poster, even on the back. Marks on the back can sometimes be seen from the other side, taking away from the poster’s value.
Never put tape on the front of a poster even to repair tears. If you do use tape, use acid free tape available from an art supply shop, and place the tape on the back. For expensive movie art take it to a professional to be restored. Posters can be restored the same way rare comic books are professionally restored.
When shipping posters use thick poster tubes or bubble envelopes.
For long time storage, frame, or place the poster in a plastic bag or tube, and keep it in a cool dry climate.
When framing a poster do not dry mount it, and use an acid free backing board.
Now that you know a little more about movie posters and movie poster collecting, go ahead, start collecting!
Ali G: Good, Bad, Or…
Ali G: Good, Bad, Or…
Ali G is becoming a name more and more people are aware of. Debuting in 1998, this is a fictional character that is comically portrayed in movies and shows on the cable network HBO. The character of Ali G is played by the comedian Sacha Baron Cohen. The bold humor of this character is often controversial as it explores political arenas and often creates humor at the expense of identified groups including women, Jews, Gays, Christians, and Politicians. The character of Ali G is a gang member who resides with his grandmother in what can be referred to a ghetto area.
Ali G has gained notoriety in the music world as well. Featured as the limo driver in a Madonna video and recording an album with Shaggy exposed this character to a younger demographic. This fictional character was also the host of the 2001 European MTV award show. Many sports fans got a glimpse of Ali G during the ads he was in for the 2005/2006 season of the NBA.
With the recent release of the movie, Borat, the character of Ali G is finding himself in the fire of a heated debate among those who enjoy the humor of the character and those who feel this character has pushed the envelop far enough. Human rights groups are angry over the antics in this new film, believing they promote stereotyping and lead to labeling of groups.
In an interesting twist, many individuals who were interviewed for the mock documentary movie Borat are filing lawsuits. They claim their responses are being used in a different context than they were given, leading to their families, friends, and even employers viewing them as racists. The movie was released under 20th Century Fox, who comments that there is no foundation for anyone to file a claim, and that all participants in the film did so voluntarily.
The persona of Ali G continues to have many faces from providing humorous entertainment, exploring the music world, being a controversial figure, and being under fire from human rights activists and possible lawsuits. The future of this character should prove to be quite interesting for those who take the time to follow it.
Providing Your Extra Comfort and Convenience in Your Daily Life
Providing Your Extra Comfort and Convenience in Your Daily Life
It is a fact that people today are finding new ways to make their lives a little easier to live. Some people even purchase home spa equipments in order to relax more at the comforts of their own home. Home entertainment systems are also purchased by people in order to relieve stress and hardships they went through in their daily lives.
So, if you have all these features inside your home, you can definitely relax and live your life easier and more comfortable. However, many people are now taking advantage of a new technology that is now widely available in the market today. This technology can and will definitely enhance the way you live your life. With this technology, your daily life will be a lot easier than ever before.
This technology is called home automation systems. As the name suggests, every electronic devices in your home will be automated. You will be able to control every electronic device in your home, such as air conditioners, heaters, home entertainment systems, electronic window blinds, electric ovens, microwave, lights, and even your coffee maker.
Through a control panel, you can control your home anywhere you are. For example, if you are enjoying your favorite movie in your entertainment room, and you forgot to turn on the lights outside your home, you can simply turn it on through your wireless touch screen control panel. This means that you will no longer get up and interrupt your movie to go and switch on the lights.
Another great thing about home automation systems is that most home automations available today are now connected to the internet for remote access. Even when you are out in the office, you can control various electronic devices in your home by accessing a secure website. The great thing about this is that before you go home after a long day at work, you can have everything ready once you get home. You can switch on your stereo system to play your favorite CD, your air conditioning unit, the front porch lights, the garage lights, kitchen lights and even switch on your coffee maker if you want coffee ready for you once you get home.
This means that you will no longer worry about forgetting switching on something inside your home once you are already in your office, such as your home alarm system. For instance, when you are already parked in front of your office, you suddenly remembered that you didn’t switch on your home security system, upon reaching the office, you access your home via the internet or through your PDA and easily turn on your home security system.
Some home automation systems are already equipped with security devices, such as CCTV cameras. This means that you can take a look inside and outside your home whenever you want with the internet.
You can even time specific electronic devices to automatically switch on or off at a specified day and at a specified time. This means more convenience and also more security in your home. This is because when you leave on vacation, you can make your home look as if it’s inhabited with lights switching on and off at a random pattern everyday. You have to consider that burglars will less likely enter a home that is inhabited. With this kind of system, you can be sure that burglars will think twice before entering your home.
Home automation systems have existed for quite a while now. However, today’s home automation systems are much more reliable and also much better than its predecessor.
The Home Theater Furniture Makes All The Difference
The Home Theater Furniture Makes All The Difference
We all love to have comfort, whether it is in our office, living room, bedroom, dining room, or anywhere. Similarly, it is very important to have comfort in our home theatre. Therefore, the furniture plays a significant role in giving rise to a comfortable ambience inside the home theater.
Decorating Home Theater
When you are planning the design of your home theater, you should not restrict yourself to chairs and seating. They are very important in setting up a home theater, but you should also have some colored posters and cuttings of the movies. This will enhance the ambience of the home theater and will making watching the movie more enjoyable. You should decorate the room in the best possible way by using vast collection of accessories like carpets, wall papers, etc.
Furniture For Home Theater
There are so many things to be considered while purchasing the furniture for the home theater. There are many companies in the market that manufacture furniture especially for home theaters according to your requirements. The following items are necessary to have a pleasure of real theaters in home theatres:
1 – You should buy an entertainment stand, which will hold all of your equipment like a television, DVD player, and stereo. This will make your system look organized and will save the consumption of your space.
2 – The next important thing is the purchase of comfortable furniture. There are a number of choices in the market for the chairs and couches. Along with comfort, you should also consider the style and color of the chairs and couches, as they should suit your decor. There are many designs of the loungers that possess wide arm rests with beverages holders and sliding foot rests. You should have a proper survey of the furniture market in order to get the best according to your requirements.
3 – While going for purchasing the home theater furniture, the main thing that should be considered is the room in which you are having your home theater system. The furniture should be selected accordingly.
4 – There are many other different accessories like audio visual cabinets, video cabinets, TV cabinets, stereo cabinets, multimedia, storage cabinets, or entertainment cabinets, They come in various shapes, colors, designs, and companies to enhance the look of your home theatre.
5 – Depending upon your budget, you can even opt for some of the enjoyable things like popcorn machines or to have a small bar at the back of the room in order to have great pleasurable time while watching a 2 hours full length movie.
Therefore, the selection of the furniture should be done by considering the above-mentioned points in order to enjoy the fun and excitement of the actual theatre in the premises of your home theater.
The Players In Internet Movie Downloads
The Players In Internet Movie Downloads
There are several online movie download services that have established themselves as real players in the instant gratification film niche. The latest to join the fray is Apple with its iTunes Movie Store. You can download a film to your Mac, your PC or your iPod – although watching a feature link film on that three inch screen could leave you babbling into your popcorn box.
Apple is joining a number of existing online services. The largest among them include Guba, Movielink, CinemaNow and – who else? – Amazon’s Unbox. With the exception of the Apple site, you’re going to need a PC and in most cases, use the Microsoft Explorer browser to download your films. It’s not just films that are available – many of the services have a TV library as well.
There are a number of variations among the sites – size of library, presence (or absence) of first run films, and variations in the licensing agreements. Without exception, your download will include digital rights management (DRM) technology which controls your use of the downloaded file.
The Apple store recorded one million sales in its first month of operation, seizing on its position in the media download market to get off to a running start. They feature Disney products, but these days Disney has a number of film genres put out under various labels. Their recent releases cost from $12.99 to $14.99 to download.
Amazon has deals with 20th Century Fox, Fox Searchlight, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony, Universal, and Warner Bros. That’s an excellent collection of partners, and their film lineup reflects it. You can download The DaVinci Code for just under fifteen bucks, and a show from TV’s CSI for $1.99. They have been heavily criticized for incorporating some extremely intrusive software into their download process.
Movie Link is a partnership of several major movie studios, another example of content developers trying, successfully and economically or not, to create a distribution network. Their library is probably the best on the block, as the partner roster includes MGM, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Brothers, Disney, Sundance Channel, BBC, and National Geographic. If you’re searching for an obscure gem, Movie Link has the largest catalogue online. Their new releases are usually $19.99 and their better catalogue choices $9.99.
CinemaNow is the only service to have managed a film release simultaneously with the DVD release, which they accomplished with “Too Fast Too Furious.” They also will provide the ability – for a price – to burn selected downloads to a DVD. Their licensed partners include Disney, Fox, Lionsgate, NBC Universal, Sony, and Warner Bros. Their prices for new releases range from $14.99 to $19.99 and their catalogue charge is $9.99.
Guba is the bargain download shop, with a library built on deals with Warner and Sony. They began originally as a Usenet service provider, and feature a Usenet uploads in their onsite search. Their prices top out at $9.99.
While Netflix has been talking about getting into the download business for two years, their service remains in the planning stage. They’re going to be challenged when they make the transition from DVD to computer file, as many of the major movie houses have tied up their download rights in services that are their own creations, such as Movie Link or services in which they are partners.
The computer-driven movie-on-demand service is on the scene, and many think it will be the format of choice in a few years. A top end PC is capable of being a highly functional entertainment center, and the convenience of true on-demand films is going to overshadow even the most sophisticated cable TV on-demand services, as compression technology improves and download times drop.
Home-Entertainment – taking it to the next level
Home-Entertainment – taking it to the next level
Of course, if price is no object and you’re willing to spend anything to get the very best home entertainment system, then there is a lot of expensive specialist equipment out there for you.
The first thing you will probably want to spend money on is a better sound system – audiophiles are forever coming up with new ways to fill rooms with speakers, and get a better sound experience. If all the wires running across your floor would upset you, then don’t worry, as you can get wireless surround sound speakers for not too much more than normal ones.
If your sound system is good enough, you might even want to have sound insulation put into whichever room the home entertainment system is in, to keep the sound from escaping and disturbing others. This means that you can have the sound up very loud without having to worry about what anyone thinks of you.
When you get to the point of buying a separate TV from your normal TV just to play films on, you might think about buying a projector instead. The main problem with projectors is that they’re not much good for normal TV viewing, but if you’re planning to keep one aside and use it just for films, then it can be much better quality, as long as you have a clear wall to point it at.
To take it to the next level, you might consider putting your home cinema in its own ‘cinema room’ (sometimes called a ‘screening room’), complete with sound insulation, a screen for a projector and extra-comfortable cinema-style seating. Some enthusiasts go as far as to decorate this room to look like a cinema, with red curtains, movie posters, and a popcorn machine. If you do go this far, then you don’t have to keep the home cinema just for yourself – you can invite friends over to enjoy it too, and even hold screenings of particularly rare and good films.