Just Get On With It
This . . . from CNN:
Madonna is following her husband into filmmaking, with her directing debut, "Filth and Wisdom," due in theaters a couple of weeks after "RocknRolla." Her film centers on a Ukrainian cross-dressing punk-rocker and his roommates, a ballerina-turned-stripper and a humanitarian pharmacist.
Ritchie said Madonna did not seek any advice from him, and he did not volunteer any.
"With filmmaking, I think it's one of those things you should not read books on. You should just get on and do it. Then you have your own voice."
I loved this movie. I liked the "voice" of it.
I am pretty comfortable with my writing voice. It's mine and mine alone.
So thoughts on Guy Ritchie's advice?
15 comments:
I think writing, at least, could be learned by reading books and writing, without necessarily reading a single book on writing. I've often found them valuable, but to what extent I'm not sure.
However, film making is very expensive, so if I were a movie producer or studio who planned to drop several millions of dollars on getting a movie made, I might feel better if the person I was giving the money to had some idea what they were doing. Knowing they might have read a book or two on the subject might allow me to sleep at night.
Mark:
Snatch (Richie's film) feels very audacious, very commando style. Same with Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels. Sometimes I think his lack of film training worked in his favor with them.
RocknRolla is getting good reviews too. We can forget about Swept Away. :-)
E
Some people (Richie may be one of them) work best when they shoot from the hip. The rest of us would do well to listen to advice.
Stephen:
I tend to agree--except when it comes to voice. I think it's such a gut thing--but maybe I say that because mine feels "gut."
E
I really flew by the seat of my pants when I started writing for publication about three years ago. Honestly - I winged it. Being naive can really pay off sometimes because it's honest and it's real in a world that is often tainted.
My nonfiction voice is pretty strong and sturdy - recognizable. I like that. I'm gaining comfort with my fiction voice for my WIP because it's still, after a year of writing, still new to me to make stuff up.
I agree with Guy. (In regards to film and writing.) Took me awhile to recognize my own voice, but the more I wrote, the more I was able to recognize when I was trying to sound like anything other than me.
I agree, voice comes from the gut. And I love that, because it's real and imitation is more noticable.
amy:
I agree . . . there's some aspect to being very "real" in writing.
E
heather;
What a great point. When I try to write too lofty . . . forget it!
E
Hi Ladonna:
Trusting the gut is so important--but I guess that can come from being raw and new--or from honing it as a skill over time.
E
I thought they divorced. I totally am not in touch with who's who, LOL.
I like your voice, too. You didn't take my comment any other way, did you? Prolly not, I'm always overworried about stuff like that. I like your voice just the way it is. :-)
I'm of the "do" philosophy, too. I know my voice, but I like to push at it and play with it. As much as I resist change, I seem pretty obsessed with it in the different "work" areas of my life. It probably doesn't change as much as I'd like to imagine, LOL.
I don't know. Film is usually a very collaborative effort, and I think the person at the helm needs a clear understanding of the technical and theoretical aspects of the medium to effectively communicate with the others involved and guide them toward a satisfying finished product. Lighting, sound, camera shots and angles, the actors' motivations and emotions, dialogue, sceenplay structure...
I think the director needs to know what s/he is doing, whether that knowledge comes from film school/books or from on-the-job experience (i.e. as an assistant director, etc.).
I've never made a film, but I imagine much of the "voice" is found in the editing room.
spy:
LOL! No, they are together. :-)
E
Jude:
Richie has a very unusual back story. And I think, like the Dogma 95 (or Dogme 95 in Denmark) filmmakers, there's a sense of his voice being the "thing" about him. He strikes me as a very commando filmmaker, but I could be wrong.
E
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