News & Link Round-up [March 9th, 2012]

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News & Link Round-up [March 9th, 2012]

Mar 09 2012 by Brendan Shick Add Your Thoughts

News & Link Round-up is a regular column where I showcase the Vimeo shorts, film news, and other online content that's caught my eye over the past couple weeks, but for whatever reason (time, importance, amount of content, etc.) didn't make the blog sooner.

Film News

Canon 5DMkIII Announced

Arguably one of the most important pieces of film news over the past few weeks was the announcement of the Canon 5DMkIII. All the Canon DSLR blogging regulars were quick to post their thoughts online. Perhaps my favorite post comes from Digital Photography School (includes detailed feature list and verbatim Canon press release) blogger Darren Rowse, although this story wouldn’t be complete without also linking to Vincent LaForet, the man of the original 5DMkII fame three years ago (the creator of “Reverie“ and the more recent C300 shot “Mobius“), with his thoughts on the camera.

My thoughts will be brief, as I don’t have much to say that hasn’t already be said. It’s certainly doesn’t look like a game changer like the original 5DMkII was, but there are some decent improvements to the camera. I won’t be the first one on the preorder list, but one will probably work its way into my kit sooner or later…

Wally Pfister Gets Feature Directorial Gig!

Not even the original Slashfilm.com article has much information on this one yet, but Wally Pfister, primarily known as Christopher Nolan‘s director of photography (Memento [2000], The Dark Knight [2008], Inception [2010], etc.), is set to direct his first feature .

Breaking with the traditional Nolan partnership, he also served as the DP on Moneyball (2011), one of my favorite films from this past year.

Pfister always brings great storytelling thru the visuals in his work and since that’s what it’s all about, I’m super excited to see his directorial debut on the big screen.

Ralph McQuarrie Dies

Also on Slashfilm is the sad news that concept artist Ralph McQuarrie has died. McQuarrie was best known for his sketches that were the first step in bringing George Lucas‘s vision for Star Wars (1977) into reality.

“I am deeply saddened by the passing of such a visionary artist and such a humble man. Ralph McQuarrie was the first person I hired to help me envision Star Wars. His genial contribution, in the form of unequaled production paintings, propelled and inspired all of the cast and crew of the original Star Wars trilogy. When words could not convey my ideas, I could always point to one of Ralph’s fabulous illustrations and say, ‘Do it like this.’” -George Lucas

Must See Shorts

Philip Bloom | “Abraj: The two towers of Dubai”

Philip Bloom has outdone himself again! I, like so many others, am always a fan of his cinematography and he definitely doesn’t need links from me for people to discover his work. However, this piece (embed below), is certainly his best to date. Another set of timelapses in Dubai, this time on a paid commission from the government. Can’t even imagine the planning that went into some of these amazing shots!

Preston Kanak | “Projecting Reflections”

Preston Kanak recently made a trip down to Chicago and shot a lovely piece (largely) on Eric Kessler’s Red Epic (embed below). I’m also going to go ahead and call this one his best work to date, although it is obviously quite different from his typical pieces, showcases of the natural beauty in the Canadian wilderness.

I always love to see pieces filmed in Chicago though. As an area where I’ve spent a lot of time and have become quite familiar with, it’s always interesting to see another cinematographer’s take on the cityscape. Enjoy!

Brendan Shick is a freelance DP, gaffer, and sports broadcaster serving primarily the Chicago, IL; Pittsburgh, PA; Grand Rapids, MI; and Fort Wayne, IN, regions. You can find out more by following this blog, his recent work on Vimeo, or by connecting with him on Twitter or LinkedIn. Brendan is also an occasional contributor to the Project Updates feed for one of his most recent films, To Turn Back Time.