DA-The Film School

Saurabh Shukla speaks to students of Mumbai University

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 06:42:00 +0000

Speaking on the topic of " Careers in Cinema ", Mr Shukla said that to be a Film Maker, one should obviously know the art of Direction but should acquire knowledge of all aspects of Cinema or at least have the working knowledge in areas of Cinematography, Writing, Editing, Acting and Production Design. He recalled his own days as a student in Delhi when he was studying for his M.Com when he was trying to be a " Nobody " He said that that was the time when he sensed a certain calling towards theatre and dramatics.He said that he was never formally educated in anything that is part of his profession.Those days, he said, when I look back, I worked very very hard but it was not work....everything that I did gave me a lot of joy...Every morning , after waking up, I felt the eagerness to go to the theatre for rehearsals, I read and analysed a lot of literature..and tried to analyse great works to the best of my ability....but had I been formally trained, I would have gone further and at a much quicker pace.Mr Shukla said " The greatest thing that formal education gives you is a way, a much richer scientific and methodical path. I never had an opportunity that you people are getting now.

He said that the if a person is talented and works sincerely, he is bound to be successful in the world of Film and television which could not only pay very well, but also give enormous satisfaction and recognition. As a parting note, he said that in the journey that the students were about embark upon, he suggested to make the best use of all that they will get and wished the students all the very best .

Filmmaker of " Harishchandrachi factory " (The Factory of Harishchandra) visits Digital Academy - The Film School

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Wed, 19 May 2010 04:11:00 +0000

Paresh Mokashi , Writer, Director of the Marathi film " Harishchandrachi factory " or " The factory of Harishchandra', India's entry to the Oscars, while on a visit to Digital Academy - The Film School, surprised the students when he said that he had never assisted any Film maker before he started making this film and also revealed that the first time that he ever visited a Film set was for this debut film of his. He had been part of Marathi theatre for a long time as an actor, writer and Director . He said that the greatest two qualities that any Film Maker should have apart from the know how of the technique of Film Making is clarity of mind and stubbornness. He said that most of what he learnt about Film making was by seeing films, many made by the masters of Cinema. He said that he did spend a lot time watching the treasures of world cinema in the National Film Archives in Pune and it is by watching these films that he enhanced his visual sense and knowledge. He said that this is what helped him have clarity of mind as to what he wanted the film to look like and this was most of the battle won. If a Director is confused, then the crew will take over the decision making and ultimately the look of the film will reflect that. Once a director knows what he wants, stubbornness helps in sticking to his decisions.

Speaking about the film's journey, he said that patience is a necessary quality in this business. He said the the budget of this period film was about 3.5 crores , an unusually high figure for an Indian regional film whose recovery in the box office is very difficult. He said the when he selected his crew, all of them ie the cinematographer, costume designer etc had never done a single film independently before.After the wait for finance of almost three years, he was the only person in the crew who was making his debut...all of the other technicians were experienced by a few films...

Paresh then spoke about research he had to do for a period subject such as this. The film concentrates about a period in the life of Dadasaheb Phalke, the father of Indian cinema, when he made his first film " Raja ( King) Harishhandra". The entire story deliberately was chosen not to be a biographic but about the time when Phalke was Directing and producing his first film. It was also given a humorous touch because Mr Phalke, according to many sources did have a good sense of humor. Research was an exciting part of the process because not only the city and costumes looked different, also the sound of the rickshaws operating then had to be sourced and or produced to get as close as possible to the original.

Speaking on the Oscars, he said that I am not surprised the my film did not make it to the final list of the Oscars as the final five were much better than my own film.He was happy to inform that the next film revolves around an archaeological treasure hunt and is linked to the journey of the Pandavas in the Mahabharata .

The students were very enlightened by the visit of Mr Mokashi and after being given a tour of the Film School, Mr Mokashi was delighted with the facilities of the school, its vision and objectives of creating visionary Film makers of tomorrow.

Guest Lecture by renowned Lyricist- Dialogue Writer- Singer, Mr. Swanand Kirkire at Digital Academy – The Film School.

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 05:28:00 +0000

Swanand Kirkire was born and brought up in India. In 1996 he graduated from National School of Drama and started doing theatre. He is one of the most versatile personalities in the Hindi film industry, having tried his hands at various aspects of filmmaking and always succeeding in his venture. Mr. Kirkire has written Lyrics for various films like “Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi”, “Parineeta”, “3 Idiots”, “Paa”. He has won the National Award for Best Lyrics in 2007 for the song “Bande Mein Tha Dum” from the film, “Lage Raho Munna Bhai. He is also a Dialogue Writer, with films like “ Chameli”, Eklavya: The Royal Guard to his credit.

The song that has been going around inspiring people “ All eej well” from the film “3 Idiots” is written and sung by him along with Shaan and Sonu Nigam. He has also written and sung the song “Bawra mann dekne chala ek sapna” from the film “ Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi”.

Mr. Swanand Kirkire began the lecture by speaking about the importance of music and lyrics in Indian Cinema. A lyricist is known to accrue beautiful words of wisdom through their wealth of knowledge and experience, and songs add melody to it. Songs are a prominent part of Indian Cinema enhancing the emotions of a particular situation. They are sometimes so essential that stories are fashioned around them. Mr. Kirkire added that “The script plays a vital role to write a specific song. It is essential to know how the song is complimenting the story.

Writing is an inherent skill amongst few people but one can learn the skill by practicing it. Everyone has the talent to write, it’s a matter of sheer hard work and patience that is needed to reach a certain standard. Elaborating on this, he said, “My journey as a writer did not begin from childhood. I acquired the skill by reading a lot of poetry and listening to various lyrics and then tried to create some of my own. Being analytical of your own work also helps you grow tremendously. Creativity is a process; it depends on how you confine it within yourself.

Speaking about his versatile profile as a Lyricist, Dialogue Writer, and Singer, he said, “If you can do one thing appropriately at a time then you could achieve a lot but if you try to do everything at a time you may not go very far. Divide your tasks according to the time and then patiently work towards honing your skills. Wherever there is life, there is inspiration.

We have brimful of smart one-liners nonchalantly used in our daily conversations. In a country such as India which has a great culture of wit, lyricists are obligated to come up with interesting dialogues for which understanding the character, the strata they belong to, their values etc is very important. The dialogue writer has to be very clear in his mind about all these aspects because the Screenplay may not have all these things specified. The job of the dialogue writer is to enhance the story.

On asked about the usage of “Hinglish” in the lyrics, he said, “If a language does not change constantly with time, it becomes lifeless. We are constantly adapting to change. The entire country is speaking the language so a lyricist has to use a similar vocabulary to empathize with the audience. Citing an example from the Film “3 Idiots”, he said, “The film is based in the contemporary modern society of an engineering college and therefore the language of the film is written keeping the younger generation in mind, who would not accept anything ornamental, even the songs are straight from the heart… language should not be a barrier while displaying emotions”

Mr. Kirkire advised the students to work with conviction and believe in their work. Never consider your work as your baby but imagine placing it on a pedestal where it could be exposed to the outer world; it will help you gauge a clear perspective as to where you stand amongst others in the industry. He also mentioned that there is always a chance of failure but as a creative person your job is to concentrate on yourself and your work and create your own compositions for the audience to decide.

In his parting lines to the students, he said, “You have got a great opportunity to enhance your skills through Digital Academy. Since you are getting so much input from your faculty and Industry professionals here, do take advantage for this time may never come again. We want our Indian Cinema to go further”.

Digital Academy offers courses in Screenplay Writing, Film & Television Direction, Cinematography, Film & Television Editing, Sound Recording & Engineering, Production Design, Producers Course, Film Making, Acting and Animation & FX.

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: http://www.dafilmschool.com/

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

Dale Bhagwagar, renowned Bollywood publicist and PR, holds a guest lecture, at Digital Academy – The Film School

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 05:23:00 +0000

Dale Bhagwagar began his journey as a journalist twenty-three years ago, when he was just 14 years old. He contributed articles, poems to local newspapers and magazines in his hometown, Nagpur. Six years later, he joined a local newspaper as a trainee Sub-Editor and Reporter. After completing his graduation in English Literature he moved to Mumbai and was soon hired as the Chief Sub-Editor cum Reporter for the Bollywood gossip magazine “Cine Blitz”, which dealt with yellow journalism. That was the turning point in his life where he learnt the trick and trade of manipulating “Star images”. He is instrumental in shaping the careers of many celebrities. He has handled the PR for the likes of Hrithik Roshan, Shilpa Shetty, Priyanka Chopra, Esha Deol, Shiney Ahuja, Randeep Hooda and Vivek Oberoi, among 50 others.

He informed the students that the transition phase from the learning world as students to the real world as filmmakers in the “Big Bad Bollywood” would involve lot of effort, patience and an ability to adapt to situations and people. Commenting on this, he said, “When you are in the real world, when you are going to get out in the so called big bad Bollywood, the first thing one needs to do is unlearn certain things you learnt in schools and colleges. Schools and colleges teach you the basics but people work according to their experiences along with their team and it is very important to adapt to that team, their culture and their style of working”

He strongly believes that media has an upper hand in creating a perception in the minds of people and that is exactly when a publicist steps in. Elaborating on this, he said, “Publicists need to spin a very strong web of protection otherwise the media goes ahead to massacre brands and images the way it likes. That is why a publicist needs to be very firm and cautious while handling the Media sensibilities.

Throughout the session he emphasized on the line “We are living in a world where perception is reality” and that is exactly what PR does, it creates a perception in the minds of people propelling the image of a celebrity from downright negative to acceptable. His suggestions to the students about the benefits of PR and Media were, “Understand how the media functions, because ultimately you all are going to be made by your talent and then by media. How much ever talented a person is, if not projected properly, the career may not take that pace, and it could have taken”.

Talking further on PR skills, he said, “Good news is Good, but Bad news is even better…. Ugly publicity is the best as it travels faster and hits the hardest… The worst of all is no publicity, as you need to generate the buzz because without which it becomes difficult to grow faster in today’s world. You will grow with your talent but with a PR marketing mind, luck comes faster”.

His advice to the beginners was to change their mindsets about the way he or she thinks of PR. It's very important to project yourself the way you want others to perceive you.

Mr. Bhagwagar also advised the students to have dreams and then create roads to reach for those dreams. He said that you must be sure of your goals and then set a basic pattern and time frame to achieve those goals and carve a niche in the field you are interested in. He cited that “You have to stick to your roots, think of the sky and grow”. He also said that PR is just 10%, the remaining 90% is the talent you possess, you should be better filmmakers and the rest follows.

In his parting lines to the students, he said that “Start thinking of yourselves as brands. Subtle branding plays a huge role in the anticipation of your films. Though talent is what really matters, good support in PR skills takes any budding filmmaker to higher levels of success.

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

Guest Lecture by leading Filmmaker, Mr. Mohit Suri at Digital Academy – The Film School, Mumbai

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 06:18:00 +0000

Mohit Suri is an Indian Film Director, mostly known for his films, like Kalyug (2005) and Awarapan (2007). His uncle is Producer/Director Mahesh Bhatt and his cousin is Actor Emraan Hashmi who has starred in three of his films. He started his career as an Assistant Director, and made his debut as a Director with the film Zeher.

It was followed by Kalyug, which is his biggest success so far, was both a critical and commercial success. His third film Woh Lamhe (2006) was critically acclaimed overall. His next film Awarapan (2007) was both critically and commercially appreciated.

Mohit's latest film Raaz - The Mystery Continues (2009) was a Box Office Hit. His next film, Crook – Its good to be bad starring Emraan Hashmi again is set to be released shortly.

Mr. Suri commenced the lecture with a discussion about being successful Filmmakers; to which he said that there are no such formulas for being successful, nobody is aware about it. There are certain things that can lead you towards the path of being prominent Filmmakers but no guidelines as such has been laid down for anyone to follow. Make your own guidelines with a flexible outlook.

Elaborating on this, he said, being innovative in this industry is essential but by being innovative does not mean you need to be outlandish, it does not mean presenting the audience with something that they don’t comprehend. Innovation involves being relevant and enterprising. Usually it’s about rediscovering the old truth, which has been in oblivion for a long time, which goes beyond your regular showreel.

As a Filmmaker you have to constantly read and keep yourself updated about all the latest events taking place in the world. True education starts once you get out of the institute and start living with people, sharing the same passion for filmmaking. Research is involved with every Film and a Filmmaker is expected to be well versed with the subject his Film is based upon and then present it to the audience. Commenting more on this, he said, “Education does not end here, if you don’t read, don’t write constantly or be alive and see around, you would not be able to make good films”.

He acknowledged that direction is about your own sensibilities; it’s more about your feelings. The basic idea should be yours, the day you confirm to someone else’s sensibility you will fail and even if you succeed with that, you might not last very long. Being a Film Director changes you lot as a person from within. It’s vital to invest your emotions and feelings in your Films.

Another thing about Filmmaking is to collate as much experience as you can; it is crucial to have hands on experience to gain eloquence and be better Filmmakers with each Film. Speaking further on this, he added, “There are no set rules to be a Filmmaker, you learn by being there…just make films”. Sometimes even experience acts as your biggest rival. The more the experience, the tougher it gets, your upcoming or current work will always be judged by your previous work. The more successful you get, you tend to invariably repeat yourself thinking it will work but it does not. Being a Filmmaker is not just about telling story, it’s beyond that”

Mr. Suri further said that direction is not about technical skills alone, it’s about your feelings. Mere short taking is not the basis of a good Director. A Director should know to pen down his views. His suggestion to the students was to write for an hour about anything that comes to their mind. Talking on this, he said, “Best Directors are Writers. When you pen something down it’s inertia in the beginning but eventually you would enjoy it. You are halfway through to be a good Director”

In his parting lines to the students, he said, “Failure is inevitable but what counts is how quickly you get up and figure out what went wrong and start working on it. Don’t get intimidated by anyone, remember there is no such thing as a wrong shot”.

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

Guest lecture by prominent Cinematographer and Director, Mr. Ashok Mehta at Digital Academy – The Film School.

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 05:29:00 +0000

Ashok Mehta, one of India’s most respected cinematographers, ran away from home and school in Delhi, in the 70s to pursue his dream of becoming an Actor. However, on arriving, he realized that life here was a struggle. He saw no point in returning home empty handed. So he started off as a canteen boy, worked as a hawker, a light man, a camera attendant, before he finally became a cameraman. With "36 Chowrangee Lane" he had his first tryst with recognition as a Cinematographer. No formal training groomed this National Award winning Cinematographer, who also turned Director with the film "Moksh", starring Arjun Rampal, Manisha Koirala. He has several hit Films to his credit like” The Bandit Queen”, “ Ram Lakhan”, “Saudagar”, “Chalte Chalte”, “No Entry”, “Waqt: Race Against Time” amongst few

Mr. Mehta began the lecture by focusing on the qualities required to be an Actor. If story is the soul of the film, the Actors make it evident by adding verve to it. Actors are suppose to live the characters they play, which means they have to be instinctive with the mannerisms, characteristic traits and the temperaments of the role played by them. Another important factor for an Actor is to have a good memory in order to deliver dialogues with ease. He suggested that students read at least one page everyday and try to register the content of the page in their mind, which in turn will improve their memory.

An Actor is expected to understand the role precisely and play it with utmost clarity and consistency. Techniques can be learnt but the job of an Actor is to be natural, he/she should design a patter in the mind and act accordingly in order to concentrate on the frame. Above all Filmmaking is work of creation, which requires lot of commitment and conviction to reach greater heights and be accepted in the industry.

He further informed the students to not just remain mere technicians but to become creators and explore various forms of art to become a creative person. That can be done only when one learns the skill to transform technique into art, which has a longer shelf life and remains for years to come inspiring generations all together. Talking further on this, he said, “Technique should not overpower the content otherwise it becomes gimmick, it should remain and follow the subject. Be clear about what you need, how are you going to design and light up the event, be precise about converting techniques into art, that is a must”.

Talking about inspiration he said that being inspired is essential for any creative person, it enhances the core of an artist further helping him/her deliver the best. Inspiration comes from anything one should have the ability to pick up from any source. Even your six senses teach and inspire you. We all have an aptitude to learn and grow, even Mother Nature teaches you a lot of things, just be open to the elements. Inspiration does not mean imitating anyone, it means getting encouraged to do something better.

Mr. Mehta further stated that innovation is the most essential criteria required to be in a creative field. It is mandatory to be different from your previous work, and most importantly work for yourself to prove yourself and not others. Design yourself in such a way that your previous work acts as a challenge for you to excel in your next venture.

He further mentioned that knowledge is the key to any door of success. Adding to this, he said, “Keep reading and be updated about everything, there are so many books you can learn and improvise yourself from…get inspired from everyone and do not be egoistic”. Knowledge acquired is always less.

If a Director is aware about other aspects of Filmmaking it becomes easier for him/her to contribute and communicate better, since you cannot understand other’s mind communication helps to bridge that gap. A Director is expected to have the capacity to at least understand the jargons of other department of Filmmaking to explain better to his team members.

Any creative genius should create an impression through his/her work, put your soul in your work for it to last. People who have contributed to the world of art are still respected, admired and cherished. It all depends on how well you communicate your views to the audience.

On asked about how important Lighting is he said that, using camera is a technique but how to change the mood and look of a particular scene depends on how well you illuminate it. It is critical to understand framing and composition and lighting will differ from scene to scene.

In his parting lines he advised the students to work hard and be open for learning from various sources. Elaborating on this, he said, “Everyone has a journey in life even blessed people have to work for it. Use your wisdom and decide whose experience and wisdom you should take and learn from”.

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

Guest Lecture by Filmmaker, Mr. Mahesh Nair at Digital Academy- The Film School.

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 05:39:00 +0000

Mahesh Nair is a Writer and Director; he has an excellent record as a documentary Filmmaker and journalist prior to working on feature films. His documentary on Mumbai’s Dabbawalas, which he wrote and directed for BBC World TV, has been internationally acclaimed and is often used as a case study by Indian and International Management students. He had the opportunity to work with one of India’s leading Filmmaker, Mr. Ram Gopal Varma for many years. He was Varma’s Chief Assistant Director and was also the co-writer of Ek. His upcoming film“Accident on Hill Road” is due to be released shortly.

Mr Nair commencing his talk said that the most important factor to be a Filmmaker is the Passion to make films, the burning desire to reach the dreams come what may. It is exactly what drives an individual to a point where the entire focus is shifted to just one goal in life, which in turn can change your destiny. Elaborating on this, he said, “ Everyday when you wake up and think of being a filmmaker and it remains in your mind, that even today, even tomorrow, whenever you wake up and you are not bored, the thought of being a filmmaker excites you and if you are able to maintain it for day in day out….. that is called passion, passion for films and being a filmmaker”. He stated that, as a professional you must be very passionate about your work, and must be sure of your goals in life. Nobody can assure you, but yourself. If you think you have it in you, just absorb it and embrace it so tight that it remains and stick to you as your second skin. Citing his mentor’s example he said that. Mr. Ram Gopal Varma sleeps, drinks and eats Films, for him there is no life beyond Films.

He advised the students to learn the craft and chisel their skills and talents to be finer craftsmen. He said that, craft is something that you learn and acquire through sheer hard work and perseverance. If Filmmaking is your goal, you can learn the craft by watching various genres of films and as students you need to be zealous enough to watch films and try to understand what part of it excites you and bring out the reactions in you. As filmmakers you need to learn to get the effect for films from within. His suggestion to students was to assist directors and filmmakers to learn the craft and be experts in the trade after finishing Film School.

If you are a writer, go about it discover your true calling and write. This also applies to the other facets of your profession, if filmmaking excites you and gives you creative satisfaction, just shoot. Exploring different avenues of your abilities and frequently working on it is an added advantage in possessing your skills. The reaction you get from people helps in building a strong foundation as a filmmaker, it makes you aware of your own pitfalls.

As a filmmaker one should know the process right from the scratch, which involves pre and postproduction work. The entire canvas is based upon strings of various palettes coming together to form a spectacular sight for the world to see. In order to enjoy this view, every feature of filmmaking needs to be finely observed and acted upon with the final outcome in mind, which can be only done if one learns the trade of managing people and conveying exactly what you want to do. If that goal is not achieved then it becomes very difficult to be a filmmaker. If you want to be a filmmaker you need to learn to manage your team. Rapport building is the most essential thing one must learn in this trade and always work with people who are far superior to you, as it helps raising the quality of the films. The process of filmmaking is all about managing people, managing egos and matching your wavelength with like-minded people.

As a filmmaker there has to be something unique about your own film, there should be a part of you in it, personal branding is necessary to be noticed. He further stated that in order to understand your unique quality, you need to get opinions from people who are closest to you as every individual has a different style and that style reflects in your film. He commented on the uniqueness of the styles by saying, “The more unique it is, the more unique your voice is, the more easily it will be heard”.

Rejection is part and parcel of every profession and one must be prepared to accept it and take it with a pinch of salt. It is important to know how to cope up with rejection and not be bogged down by it. Since people have varied opinions about films, you cannot argue on that, it’s all about perception; therefore a vast difference of views would be there. These reactions and opinions help you become a better filmmaker learn to accept rejection and never give up on your passion.

He further started showcasing the clips of his new movie, based on a true story. The reason to display his work was to give an insight to the students about his realistic approach towards making films. He was passionate about making realistic films but was always rejected, but his passion for making films stood strong besides him and kept him going.

He was highly impressed with the infrastructure of Digital Academy - The Film School and stated that. “The academy is well equipped, offering students the opportunity to learn the craft of filmmaking. They just need to learn and face the world to know the reality of filmmaking”. He also mentioned that students were pretty interactive and it’s nice to meet the students and youngsters to get a perspective of life from them.

PAROMITA VOHRA, RENOWNED WRITER & FILMMAKER HELD A GUEST LECTURE ON FILM MAKING AT DIGITAL ACADEMY- THE FILM SCHOOL, MUMBAI.

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 06:20:00 +0000

Paromita Vohra, renowned Writer & Filmmaker held a guest lecture on Filmmaking at Digital Academy- The Film School, Mumbai.

Paromita Vohra is a Filmmaker and Writer. She has written, produced and directed ‘Morality TV and the Loving Jehad: Ek Manohar Kahani’, a documentary on moral policing and tabloid culture set in Meerut, ‘Q2P’, a film about toilets, and the language of urban development with a focus on Bombay, ‘Where’s Sandra’, a film about sexual and community stereotyping of Christian women, often referred to as ‘Sandra from Bandra’ in Bombay, ‘Work In Progress’ about the World Social Forum which took place in Bombay in 2004, ‘Unlimited Girls’, an exploration of what feminism means to different people in urban India which has won several awards and many more.

Her work as a writer includes the feature films ‘Khamosh Pani’ (Silent Waters), about a woman whose life is transformed by growing fundamentalism in a Pakistani village (Dir: Sabiha Sumar), for which she won the Best Screenplay award at the Kara Film Festival, 2003 and ‘Khamoshi: The Musical’ (Additional Scriptwriting), which was directed by renowned filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali.

Ms. Vohra has conducted many workshops that focus on creativity, politics and media with young people. At the lecture she began by asking the students some questions about the birth of an idea and its progress. The emerging discussion was an inquiry into the concept of creativity and its anatomy. Talking about this she said, “The social background, culture, gender, location, where we come from, make and shape the way we look at the world around us… the connection between the what we are and the world around results in a kind of idea… it is a combination of something very general and something very particular to yourself…” Elucidating her process she said that the birth of an idea is often in a very general space, like perhaps a newspaper clipping which catapults into an interest resulting in an idea. The idea begins to transform as one starts reading and thinking about it. Discovering all the ingredients that make a story engaging all over the world develops the story. Stories are ultimately about interesting events and how characters relate to each other; the plot can be easily made, however, what is of essence is the larger philosophical argument that is the theme of the film.

Another important aspect of Filmmaking is the perspective from which a film is told, every story can be told in an infinite number of ways and it is the decision of the filmmaker to choose where he positions the story. In the non-fiction realm the story is actually a relationship between research and imagination. Explaining this she said, “With research you have to constantly keep looking for what you want to tell, because you can endlessly research on something, but you need to find the story within that you have the urge to tell…there are infinite number of plots but it is only the larger philosophical idea that can have multiple interpretations…”

There is a notion amongst Indian filmmakers that they need to capture a large audiences attention, for which they endlessly dilute their films to make it basic for any kind of audience. But generalizing something does not necessarily make it universal. To transcend barriers a universal philosophical core is needed. Explaining this she said, “You can learn the craft of scriptwriting and it will help you put your ideas into a good script… but you need to have a good relationship with ideas, written material and basically with how people live their lives… because craft is not enough…”

Talking about the conditions of the Indian Film Industry she said, “Sadly, if you have a truly unique idea/ story, no big corporate house will fund you… its always an individual with a genuine interest in the story who will end up financing such a project because in our industry, the Producers only want to know about the stars in your film and stars don’t want to play character roles… that unfortunately is the dynamics of our industry…” In spite of this it is possible to make the film one wants to make if one is prepared to struggle. The misconception that a film is worth something only if it’s a feature film is a dangerous mentality because it excludes many individual efforts that have resulted in very good cinema and it is important to be exposed to different kinds of cinema, because there is always something to learn. She felt that people who are in the field of filmmaking at least should not have such biases, especially because they are exposed to various kinds of cinema. It also depends on how one perceives filmmaking. Explaining this she said, “History is never one thing. Someone after all writes it and as soon as you change the author of a history, the history itself changes. In some sense writing film is like writing history… that’s why I think its important to read a lot of non- fiction and be interested in non-fiction, because non-fiction is just in fact stories about our reality that we tell ourselves…”

Speaking about writing she said that story telling is the same in non- fiction and fiction only the mode is different. For her film ‘Unlimited Girls’, which was about gender and feminism in the urban landscape, she had many conversations with women on the given topics and wrote the film for an audience that would relate to those concepts. She took care to not get embroiled in the ‘target audience’ canard, simply because she feels the term implies a ‘shoot to kill’ approach to Filmmaking. She perceives Filmmaking along with all the other Arts, to be a conversation and just as conversation can sometimes mean one party not understanding the other, what is essential is that one is able to say what one has the urge to say.

She advised the students to be aware of what kind of writers they are and be very clear about what they are good at and especially what they are not capable of. She suggested that they draw from people and places, not DVDs and literature. Concluding the lecture she said, “You have to become interested in people, in the way they speak, their opinions and their roles in a particular situation and story - if you want to tell real stories. Then you script your story in a way that allows for unplanned things to happen. The writing is done to create the shape of your film like a map, you can’t decide everything…”

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 05:29:00 +0000

Sharmishta Roy, renowned Production Designer & Art Director conducted a guest lecture on Art Direction in Cinema at Digital Academy- The Film School, Mumbai.

Sharmishta Roy has worked on movies like ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’, ‘Kabhi Kushi Kabhi Gham’, ‘Gajagamini’, ‘Fiza’, ‘Mohabbatein’ and many more. She is the daughter of the illustrious Art Director Mr. Sudhendu Roy and one of the first women Art Directors in the Bollywood Film Industry.

Enumerating what Art Direction is all about Ms. Roy said, “The job of an Art Director is as important as that of the Cinematographer or Costume designer, because what we are doing is without speaking a single word, we are communicating the culture, socio-economic status and personality of the people in the story being told...” .The Director asks the Art Director to create an ambience. The job of an Art Director is to create an extension of the Director’s vision or perception of how he envisages a film. This involves looking up references, doing drawings based on research work that involves studying similar films, books or even nature. For the final execution the drawings are given to highly specialized people who can understand and analyze production drawings and finish making them in a very short period, they also keep the construction and finishing under the stipulated budget.

The process usually begins with a script narration by the Director, where he explains the dialogues, the scenario and the characters. The character sketches of almost all the characters are given to the cinematographer, costume designer and the art director, who sit together to design the character’s space, costume and ambience. Explaining this she said, “If the Director decides that the film is set in the 1950’s then the Production designer, which in India is the Art Director, decides the costumes, ambience, lighting and basically visualizes all the elements with the Director. Then he translates this onto paper and realizes the visualizations through a set designer, set constructor, set dresser and set prop designer…” So what the film looks like finally largely depends on the way the Art Direction is done. Every script can be interpreted in numerous ways; the final output primarily depends on who interprets the script in what way.

Describing her work in ‘Mohabbatein’ she said that for Narayan Shankar’s character (played by Amitabh Bachchan) the ambience, lighting and costuming were made to suggest a rigidity and isolation in his personality, which was achieved by shooting his scenes in a monochromatic tone and contrasting them with the vibrant colorful parts of the students. Speaking about color she said, “You don’t have to be obvious with color, it doesn’t have to scream visually unless the script demands that… Each one of you will develop and have your own kind of styles and practices, some will work and some will not… but you have to be honest to the script and understand what it is about the story that you want to express…”

Like painting, every form of art is a means of expression. Film is a collaborative medium, so at every level of collaboration the film undergoes a change due to the inputs of the various professionals. Enumerating her understanding of what can jeopardize the sanctity of the final film she said, “A lot of my work earlier used to shout out and be boisterous, but with time I have realized that I should mellow down a little and let the film take over… with a certain degree of maturity and understanding I have begun to realize that I need to be humble enough to accept that my work should enhance the film and its characters, not function as a showcase for my talent…” She advised the students to work with groups that they feel comfortable and enthusiastic in, because the production time that lasts more than 7-9 months can become disastrous if the atmosphere is not inspiring.

Story boarding is an important process of Art Direction because it helps to visualize what is required, what is not and to eliminate many unnecessary costs. Even though the dominating star system controls a lot of the shot taking in the Indian industry, as an exercise story boarding helps to create a concise idea of the shots required so that economizing the shots can be easier and faster. Color finds its role in the shots, with this process. Each color has its own psychology and a specific physical reaction. Citing the Hollywood movie ‘The Sixth Sense’ she said, “In The Sixth Sense, the color red was used in every frame where a spirit was around, not blatantly but through subtle objects like doorknobs etc… So if I understand color theory and know how to use it then while I’m decorating I will tend to use the colors that are suggestive of the desired emotional reaction required in the scene…” She recommended the students to read books and material in color theory and to understand the significance of colors in different cultures, societies and other frameworks. She cautioned them against using color literally and urged them to understand the palette and wield it consistently and in an intelligent, balanced manner.

She stressed on the importance of communication in this field, especially between departments, because it is absolutely necessary that the work from all the departments comes together and functions in a cohesive manner. In some sense the Cinematographer and the Art Director complement each other. Explaining this she said, “A lot of times, the things that are discussed in the Direction department don’t reach the Art Director or the Cinematographer, leaving them in a lurch because if dialogues are changed or anything is changed, then they should ideally translate into changes from the Art Director, if they want to be true to a script and want to preserve a nuanced quality…”

She encouraged the students to think about Art Direction as a big responsibility wherein they have to design along with express through the visual framework the soul of a film. One of their key roles is to interpret characters and their spaces. Explaining this she said, “If I’m given a house to do up, then through the script I can imagine the temperament of the character and predict his space through that… but it is not just superficial structures that make up a space, you need to understand the nuances of a space, the influences and the history of a space to recreate it…” There is also a need to be honest to a story rather than ponder to what other people think is the best approach, so one must be sure about what one is trying to communicate.

It is essential for students to understand that each individual has a specialty or a forte, which he/she is good at, so an Art Director cannot do all kinds of films. That is why technicians should seriously consider each project that they do and not jump into each an every project that comes their way. As Ms. Roy’s parting advise, she said, “If you are not willing to take risks then you wont move ahead… Just remember to invest your time greatly in research, analysis and study as well as be quick thinking… figure out things, anticipate things… and when you think something is absolutely necessary for the film, try your best to communicate to and convince your Director to make or finish the set in the way that is required…”

For more information contact:

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Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

RENOWNED MUSIC DIRECTOR, SAMEER TANDON CONDUCTED A GUEST LECTURE ON THE SUBJECT OF MUSIC IN CINEMA AT DIGITAL ACADEMY- THE FILM SCHOOL

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 04:35:00 +0000

Renowned Music Director, Shamir Tandon conducted a guest lecture on the subject of Music in Cinema at Digital Academy- The Film School.

Shamir Tandon made his debut as a Music Director with Raveena Tandon's 'Stumped' in 2003 and has 13 films to his credit so far, including 'Rakht', 'Page 3', 'Corporate', 'Traffic Signal', 'Bal Ganesh', 'Superstar' and more recently 'Jail' among others. He is one among the very few music directors of today who has made legendary singers like Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle, Jagjit Singh and Manna Dey sing to his tunes. He composed the album ‘Asha and Friends’, which had some interesting duets by Asha Bhosle with actor Sanjay Dutt, actress Urmila Matondkar and Australian fast bowler Brett Lee. He has to his credit more than 150 advertising jingles; audio visuals for popular brands like Coke, Pepsi, Liril, Reliance, Taaza, Samsonite etc. and has done the world cup anthem for the last World Cup where he made 11 leading singers sing in one song.

He has done an MBA and was a Cost Accountant by profession. He worked with Singapore-based Virgin EMI, a very big multinational corporation, as CEO of Virgin Music India. He moved on from Virgin in 2006 as a country head to pursue his dreams of composing music. Today, he has been Managing Director and Music Director both with equal ease.

Mr. Tandon began by speaking about his unusual career graph, which began in merchant banking, Hire Purchase & Lease and then took a major shift to entertainment when VIRGIN EMI music set up shop in India. The usual mentality of the corporate world regards the creative professions as secondary, however, his passion for music succeeded in luring him towards the music industry. He soon realized that Bollywood films dominated the entertainment industry in India and that any music can thrive only if it is connected to the films. The Music Directors were generally undermined and led very low-key lives. Citing the successful careers of artists in the west, he inferred that the reason why Indian music composers who make hundreds of songs, don’t find any returns is the lack of a stoic copyright system. He said that the only way things can change is if the new generation of professionals and viewers/audiences creates an environment where creativity and copyright is respected.

Demystifying the creation of music in the industry he said, “Often it is assumed that the Music Director is solely responsible for the music of a film, the fact is that there are many people collaborating to make the music come through… the music arrangers and programmers often are the creators of the instrumental ‘climb’ before the song is sung… and bring together the different bits of music to create a song…” Although the composer through his inspiration creates the seed, which is the tune, the final output is a result of a great degree of collaboration and teamwork.

He extolled the brilliance of legendary singers like Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle who he has closely worked with, venerating their dedicated and disciplined attitude towards ‘riyaaz’ (practice), which fuels their beautiful voices. He lamented that today’s singers concentrate less on their voices and more on creating an image thus making their intrinsic product weak. He relies on the knowledge he accumulated from the corporate world to work in the field of music. Explaining this he said, “Creative impulse is important but you have to understand consumer preferences and market your music in tandem with their changing tastes…” He stated that any creative process finally boils down to man management, hard work and talent selling. He advised the students to develop an in-depth knowledge of anything they do so as to be able to accept any challenge that comes their way.

In the actual act of composing there is no way to say whether the tune incites lyrics or the other way around. He cited the example of the legendary R.D. Burman who being a Bengali and not knowing Hindi very well, would compose his tunes while mouthing nonsensical Hindi words. In relation to a film it is the Director who defines the musical boundaries for the Music Director, he decides the fabric of the music he wants to dress the film in. Describing the magic of creation he said, “There are no schools for Music Direction, even if there were any, they’d teach you some instruments, some ragas and tones etc. what one can learn are the tools and the elements employed to create a song, but the creation of something itself can never be taught…” He said that having no classical training in music does not restrict him in any way simply because the ragas and the technical aspects come naturally/ instinctively to him, which is the result of extensive exposure to music, constant experimentation and conscious study.

He suggested to the students that they should always remain open to new technology as that is the only way they can survive. He recounted the time when he had to make a recording with the great singer Asha Bhosle, while she was seven seas away in the US; so the song was recorded over the Internet and was one of the first of its kind for the Indian industry. He said that it was made possible only because Ms. Bhosle was willing enough to try something new.

He concluded the lecture by advising the students to look at opportunities outside of Mumbai also, so as to derive more knowledge and not just be steeped in Bollywood. He illustrated the need for traveling and encountering different cultures, by discussing the influences of Scandinavian music on some of his songs and the enrichment it brought. He reminded the students that passion should always be the driving factor.

Digital Academy offers courses in Screenplay Writing, Film & Television Direction, Cinematography, Film & Television Editing, Sound Recording & Engineering, Production Design, Producers Course, Film Making, Acting and Animation & FX.

For more information contact:
E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com
Visit: http://www.dafilmschool.com/

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 04:41:00 +0000

Kunal Kohli, renowned Writer & Director of the films ‘Hum Tum’ and ‘Fanaa’, holds a guest lecture on Filmmaking at Digital Academy -The Film School, Mumbai.

Kunal Kohli is a Hindi Film Director and Writer. He has made films like ‘Mujhse Dosti Karoge’, ‘Hum Tum’, ‘Fanaa’ and ‘Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic’. He started out as a film critic in the late nineties and hosted the show "Chalo Cinema" on Zee TV. He also directed about 24 Music Videos before finally giving up Video and Televison for films. He started his production house Kunal Kohli Productions in 2007 to make films for himself and launch new directors.

Kunal Kohli began by stating that he came from a regular Indian middle class family, which made his journey into Films a difficult escapade, explaining this he said, “I’ve been in this line since 1990 and it takes a lot of time and a lot of struggle… that is why I chose TV first… because I knew it would be more difficult to break into films…” He elucidated that to survive in this industry all one needs is passion and the willingness to fight for that passion. Another thing he believes is that learning Filmmaking is the same as learning to live, which is why honesty is a key quality that any Filmmaker should possess.

Talking about his film ‘Mujhse Dosti Karoge’, he said, “Mujhse dosti karoge didn’t work simply because it wasn’t from my heart… I had a film which had all the elements of a hit film, but what was missing was the most crucial element, the director’s soul, I was trying to be someone else and so I was rejected, because originality always succeeds and to know whether you are being yourself or being someone else you have to treat your thoughts with honesty and it is difficult to do that…” His disappointment with ‘Mujhse Dosti Karoge’ led him to understand that being afraid of failure is the first step to failure and thus he decided to make a film that he believed in, resulting in the hit film ‘Hum Tum’.

Describing the difficulties he came across while making ‘Hum Tum’ he said, “It was a very difficult film to make… I was ready to accept any failure that would come my way and so I gave it my best… when I was in doubt I asked myself if this is the film I want to make and if I felt convinced about it then I would do it passionately…” A three-hour film allows one to narrate a story that can take place in an hour, a few years or maybe even across centuries, but how one uses the time is what matters. While writing a script, he advised all the students to write each scene as if it were their last, making sure that every scene has a moment.

On the clichéd and formulaic nature of Hindi cinema, he said, “I love Hindi cinema, I’m not embarrassed by Hindi films nor do I have a problem with being ‘filmi’ in certain realistic parameters and that’s the beauty of Hindi cinema, that some clichés work and sometimes some don’t, but at the end its your conviction that makes it work not your calculation…” Commenting on contemporary films he said that today’s protagonists have interesting jobs and are well defined, whereas earlier they used to be vague. This trend has made writing a script easier, especially because characterization has taken an important role. On this topic he said, “When you write about a character you have to know everything about him…from what he likes to eat, how he speaks, what he likes to wear, to what his interests are, you should have at least a 3 page character sketch… In fact when I think about the characters in my films I don’t think they are fictional, they in fact will live longer than I will… I mean look at Gabbar Singh’s character from ‘Sholay’, he is still alive and kicking!”

Mr. Kohli attributes all his knowledge of Filmmaking simply to watching films an innumerable number of times, especially movies by filmmakers like Vijay Anand, Manoj Kumar, Ramesh Sippy, Raj Kapoor, Guru Dutt, Bimal Roy, Raj Khosla and many more. He feels that as students of Filmmaking it is important to study a filmmaker’s body of work.

In Filmmaking problems relating to weather, lighting conditions, crew, production, equipment etc always exist, but to be a good director it is important to have man - management skills, to be able to handle people and to be able to inspire the crew, including the light boy sitting up on the rafters despite these problems. Describing his process he said, “I plan my scene at the location, then call my actors and show them what I want… at this point my actor’s suggestions are taken into account and they are sent for their make - up etc, here I watch the entire scene like it were a play after which I discuss the whole thing with my DOP, who gives me his inputs about how to shoot the scene and we gradually breakdown the shots…” On set he never says ‘Cut’ as soon as the desired scene is done, because he likes to wait awhile to let something magical happen. He explained that Filmmaking is a lot about being fluid, allowing things to happen on their own and ‘going with the flow’ while always having a plan. As there is no perfect way to shoot a scene, it is mostly about what the Director is convinced about.

On being asked about his stint with Film Criticism he said, “When I couldn’t make films I decided that since I love films so much I might as well talk about them and figure out what people like and dislike… the best way to do this in fact is to see a film with the public and you can tell if the film will work or not… In that sense I was a strange kind of film critic…I wasn’t too concerned about my own viewpoint, you could say that I was a populist kind of critic or reviewer…” In the field of Television he learnt how to work within a time constraint and a budget, and turned out to become very disciplined. With these events in his life he illustrated that everything can teach one something but only if one is open and willing to learn new things at all times, which essentially is the only method to learn Filmmaking, since it is all about taking things from life and becoming a Director hardly stops that learning process. He advocated exhaustive scheduling and planning, as that is a very crucial part of the process of Filmmaking. Finally, without any prolific parting words and with a courteous thank you he concluded the lecture and wished the students good luck.

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

ONIRBAN DHAR, RENOWNED WRITER & DIRECTOR OF THE FILM ‘MY BROTHER NIKHIL’, HOLDS A GUEST LECTURE ON FILM MAKING AT DIGITAL ACADEMY- THE FILM SCHOOL

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 05:43:00 +0000

Mr. Onirban Dhar, renowned Writer & Director of the film ‘My Brother Nikhil’ and ‘Bas Ek Pal’, holds a guest lecture on Filmmaking at Digital Academy -The Film School, Mumbai.

Mr. Onirban Dhar is an Indian Film Director, Editor, Writer and Producer. He was born in a small town in Bhutan. In 1986, he moved to Kolkata where he studied comparative literature. Having an interest in Filmmaking from a very young age he also attended the film institute in Kolkata simultaneously. After participating in a workshop organized by the Max Mueller Bhavan he won a scholarship to study Filmmaking in Berlin. Since he got back about eight years ago, he has been working in Mumbai, as Editor and Director of a number of corporate videos, serials, music videos and Films.

Mr. Onirban commenced the lecture by speaking briefly of his history and what eventually led him to his present day. He said that as a new comer he had worked as an editor, producer, art director and many more things, simply because he wanted to increase all & any inputs that would make him a better Director.

Talking about his momentous film ‘My Brother Nikhil’, he said, “If I wanted to then I would have made my first film 6 years ago, but I would’ve had to make it the way other people wanted it to be made… For me the reason for making a film is so that I can tell my story, its not commissioned work, its something that gives me creative satisfaction and helps me grow as a human being…” In his initial days he would write scripts, with which he would approach producers and stars that would get scandalized by the script. This led him to search for an idea whose production and finances, could be managed by him and a few friends. He made sure that this strategy did not make the film look like a low budget production but rather strived for a budget that is appropriate for the subject.

While he was working for the serial called ‘Men Only’ produced by renowned Director Shekhar Kapur he stumbled upon a person called Dominic Dsouza who was the first known HIV+ person in India. As he researched the man he began to form a picture that stayed long enough, to motivate him to write the script of ‘My Brother Nikhil’. He had originally planned to make it in the Digital format however with the support and encouragement of his Actor friend Sanjay Suri, he proceeded to make the film on Cinemascope with the intention of releasing it in theaters. Karan Johar viewed a rough cut of his film and was completely enthralled, which led to the Yash Raj Banner releasing the film and providing it the countrywide platform it required.

The film has garnered international acclaim and has traveled to many international festivals, it is also widely used by NGO’s for AIDS awareness, sexual awareness, Human Rights Organizations and has been touted to be a compulsory film in schools too. Speaking about this, he said, “The film is firmly about accepting differences & showing it to school children is the best way to educate children about understanding diversity…” Speaking about the making of the film, which was shot in 29 days, he added that budget constraints trained him to look at what was possible with whatever resources he possessed.

The characters according to him are the most important aspect of any film and in casting for a character it is important to preserve honesty towards the character as it finally makes the script come alive. To be accurate with his characterizations he interacted with many NGO’s to be able avoid stereotypes, clichés and make sure that he does not send out a wrong message. Elaborating on this he said, “As I was writing the script, Nikhil became a homosexual character and portraying him as anything else would destroy him and I’m glad that my actors had the guts to play the roles in such a film… How you project your characters always sends out a message about you as a human being and every film sends out a message…”

Having worked on films with shoestring budgets he advised the students to plan exhaustively for their films, stressing on aesthetics he said, “It is important that when you start shooting you think of styles… not by referencing other Directors but by evaluating your scripts on the basis of what mood you want to project through the scenes and essentially how you will integrate content and style, because even style has to have a very specific reason…” He spoke about his second film ‘Bas Ek Pal’ where he had tried to find an intrinsic visual style, by playing around with colors, characters and styles. He cited Kieslowski’s films: Red, Blue, and White as an inspiration. He suggested that filmmakers should always try something new instead of presuming that no one will understand and said, “Cinema is supposed to be watched by the audience on a big screen so you can play around with the visuals… Unfortunately, in India people are so used to everything super-lit, with fast cuts and the whole television style that they don’t recognize the beauty of the frame or what it can express…” When asked about which actors he would like to work with he said, “I don’t write scripts for actors, I want to write stories that I want to tell and then see who fits into the role… I hardly find myself yearning to work with any particular actor mostly because that choice has to come innately from the character…”

Recollecting his days as an Editor he said that as an independent professional he aspired to be wholehearted towards his work and so never allowed the directors to be present when he made the first cut. Explaining this he said, “I’m not just a machine operator, I respect myself and its important that I am given that respect… sometimes you learn that something you did, is not working for the director, but you have to try it first, so you have to learn to assert your creative sensibilities and not be scared all the time…Trust your instinct but at the same time be open to criticism…”

The modest Filmmaker presented to the students a promo of his film ‘Bas Ek Pal’ which he had edited himself and proceeded towards the strenuous aspect of filmmaking: the film’s promotion. He described his disappointment at the state of film promos today wherein there is no concept or narrative just a random assortment of shots with music that is not corresponding. He said that as a filmmaker he specifically looks for Producer’s who allow him creative independence and no interference as that is the most productive work environment for him.

He advised the students to distance themselves from their scripts by making as many people read them and since filmmaking is a collaborative medium he suggested that they should trust their team. Concluding the lecture he announced his aspirations of becoming a better Director so that someday he will be able to produce films for first time filmmakers.

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

RENOWNED FILM CRITIC, MAYANK SHEKHAR CONDUCTED A GUEST LECTURE ON THE SUBJECT OF FILM CRITICISM IN CINEMA AT DIGITAL ACADEMY- THE FILM SCHOOL.

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 06:08:00 +0000

Mayank Shekhar is a well known Film Critic and Journalist who has been writing for leading Mumbai dailies. He has been recently appointed by the Hindustan Times as National Cultural Editor. Prior to joining Hindustan Times, Mr. Shekhar was freelancing as a Film Critic and Columnist with Mumbai Mirror, and hosting special review and interview shows on NDTV Good Times, NDTV 24x7 and other national channels for almost two years. He is a member of the Central Board of Film Certification and was the winner of the Ramnath Goenka Award for Journalism in 2007. He has headed the features team at Mumbai Mirror for two years and was also part of the Mid-Day features team for four years.

Mr. Shekhar has also authored a book called ‘Bombay Talkies’, which is a critique on contemporary Bollywood cinema and is in the process of finishing two more books on pop culture.

Starting off with what Film Criticism is all about, he said, “The only difference between me and perhaps all of you is that, you can go watch a movie…like it or dislike it and the matter ends there but I have to explain why I liked or disliked the movie…and the explanation cannot be that the cinematography was excellent or that Amitabh Bachchan rocks!” He felt that the Film Critic should respond emotionally to a film as a whole. The response can combine the Critic’s associations of literature, his life, other films, the industry etc. However, film criticism is ultimately a person’s opinion and cannot be classified as right or wrong because one thing is viewed differently by different people because of the varied circumstances, ages, backgrounds and cultures to which they belong.

It is a known fact that one of the highest read things in a newspaper is the film review. Writing movie reviews then becomes a way of taking a standpoint about anything on the planet, even if subtly with the knowledge that the article is being read. There are two kinds of reviews generally in existence; one where the story itself is so senseless that just narrating it makes for humor writing and the other where there is more to the film than the film itself, for example if the film is doing something different that is testing the waters. Every work of Art, even if unwittingly comes with a point of view, so even a film that is touted as brainless is somehow expressing the point of view of its Filmmaker, so Mr. Shekhar said (tongue-in-cheek) that there are no brainless films only brainless Filmmakers. However he firmly stated that to be a Film Critic, one does not need to have an extensive background in Cinema. It is after all his job at some level to represent the public and the lay viewer does not watch a movie in scenes & shots but as a whole, since they are not masters of cinematic grammar.

Describing the process of writing a film review he said, “Say if you go to a beautiful city like Tehran… or you go for a theatrical performance or even if you go parasailing… whatever it might be you come back with an experience and it is up to you as a writer to pen that experience and express it in any way you want… the mediums can be cinema, painting or writing but essentially film criticism is, coming back from the experience of a film and just expressing what you feel creatively…”

The topic of Film Appreciation is completely different from Film Criticism. Film Appreciation means watching and studying the films of the masters that truly changed the landscape of filmmaking. Emphasizing this he said, “It is important to have watched the films of the masters…you might say that Citizen Kane doesn’t entertain you anymore but it is important for you to know the evolution of various elements… if you are going to be part of the process that takes things forward, then I presume you need to know where things are coming from…”

Being an intense Film buff, he excitedly recounted the history of new waves in Cinema, citing the progression from Italian Neo-realism to French New Wave to today’s Mexican Frontier Cinema. He felt that it is necessary for one to keep abreast of the goings on in World Cinema, explaining the reason he said, “You don’t want to go overboard with admiration over something that has been copied from somebody else’s work… you might argue that it will be new to the audiences because they’ve never seen it before… but it is chiefly because credit must be given where it is due… people who take movies a little seriously should feel incensed at movies that are copied, because plagiarism cannot have an excuse…” As human beings the brain organizes stimuli into data patterns, it becomes more complex as the associations to stimuli increase. Ideas and thoughts are referenced from these data patterns, so at some level everything is the result of copying. However, direct stealing is unethical; it is necessary for one to build the idea in an individual manner, which is what makes it original.

On being asked about the Critic’s effect on the commercial gains of a film he replied saying, “I don’t think it is the critic’s job to say whether a film works or not…In India film reviews can even be bought! That is why the quality suffers… Essentially, nobody knows what works, what you do know is what works for you and that is what I as a Film Critic should do, tell you what ‘I’ think…” According to him, the idea of a Film Critique is not about agreement or disagreement with the reader/filmmaker, but rather to develop a conversation. It is a medium of dialogue that must also stand alone as an independent piece- with a beginning, middle and end, which can amuse, inform, irritate and do all the things that any writing does.

It is a common misconception however that reviews and ratings are the same thing. A review is a text that encapsulates the writer’s emotional response, his worldview, his opinion and his tastes, thus provoking the reader into a discussion. Speaking of ratings he said, “I don’t believe in ratings, unfortunately the public only seems interested in the marks… the problem is that when I rate a movie poorly, it might be for the very reasons that make you like the film, but when the conclusion is drawn based only on the number of stars…you miss the point of a film review! I am someone who would like to read someone’s opinion about why they liked or disliked a film… ” The film ‘Om Shanti Om’ by Farah Khan succeeded in garnering audiences in the Multiplexes as well as in the small towns. The film is about‘re-incarnation’, which was a popular theme in the Indian Cinema of the 80’s that was produced largely for the masses. The small town audiences perceived the film with renewed interest since it was a new film, which was about an old forgotten theme whereas the educated, Hollywood exposed, urban gentry at the multiplexes perceived the film as a spoof on Bollywood, which it was. A review sounds the perceptions of the critic’s background thus proving that reactions to a critique are just as unpredictable as they are for a film.

Although he cited the examples of Film Critic turned Directors like Jean Luc Godard, François Truffaut & Robert Bresson who made brilliant films, Mr. Shekhar felt that Filmmaker’s don’t necessarily make good Film Critics as the two processes are diametrically opposite: the Film Critics job is about deconstruction, viewing the film as a whole and responding to the film itself whereas the Filmmaker’s job is about construction, viewing the film in scenes, shots & building up the entire film.

Talking about Film Criticism as a profession he said that he fancied a job that was solely about writing Film Reviews, except that it is still not a full time job in India, as the public doesn’t follow specific reviewers for their opinion unlike the west where one finds the likes of Roger Ebert, the famous American Film Critic. Describing the constraints of the print media he said, “That’s the hazard of working in newspaper journalism, we’d all like to work a little bit more on our stories, except that they have to be turned in the next morning…” Urging the students to become active about the lamentable condition of newspaper’s attitudes towards Film Criticism he said, “If you believe in the Newspaper, if you read the Newspaper, then write to the paper, inform it if you find a complacent or appeasing review… make it a strong letter… they cannot ignore the letters of a thousand people… opinions will be printed and voiced…that itself is enough, after all Film Criticism is about an opinion voiced!”

For more information contact:

E-mail: mailto:response@digitalacademy.info

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

RENOWNED FILM ACTOR BENJAMIN GILANI CONDUCTS A GUEST LECTURE AT DIGITAL ACADEMY-THE FILM SCHOOL

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 07:25:00 +0000

Renowned Film, Television &Theater Actor Mr. Benjamin Gilani conducted a guest lecture at Digital Academy-The Film School.

He is a noted Indian Actor, especially for portraying Jawaharlal Nehru in the 1993 film Sardar. He also acted in the hit movie, ‘Hum Dum’ along with films like ‘Hero Hiralal’, ‘Main Madhuri Dixit Banna Chahti Hoon!’ ‘Waqt: The Race Against Time’, ‘Barah Aana’, ‘8 x 10 Tasveer’ & more.

He took admission for the Economics Honors course at St. Stephen's College. He soon shifted to English Honors & thereafter joined the staff of St. Stephen's college in August 1970 and taught undergraduate classes for two years. An accidental look at an advertisement for the acting course at the Film and Television Institute of India in Pune led to an impulsive decision to apply and, when he was selected, he resigned from the job at the College and proceeded to Pune for the two-year course. Over the years, he has worked with film directors like Shyam Benegal, Basu Bhattacharya, S. Ramanathan, Ketan Mehta and others. In 1979, he started a theatre company with Naseeruddin Shah and Tom Alter, called Motley.

Mr. Gilani commenced the lecture with a discussion about creativity; he felt that it is most important for one to learn to use one’s imagination to develop new and original ideas or concepts. Film being an expensive medium does not allow indulgence, but what it does allow is consumption, which results in a demand for quality. According to him an artist is not an ordinary professional who can update himself once in awhile, but rather someone who has to constantly fine tune himself & broaden his sensibilities to create films that are of high quality.

On the subject of acting he said, “What can I say about acting? It is plainly human behavior… the details of it are endless… but overall an actor is a communicator, in the sense that he is the façade of the entire filmmaking process…” He expressed that communicating is largely about transferring knowledge and that whatever he passes on to the students can find true fulfillment only if they themselves figure out what to do with that knowledge, as Acting simply cannot be taught but only learnt.

He reported some of the growing statistics of the Film Industry in India; he felt that the whole process has become commoditized to a great degree and that although the numbers of films have increased, there hasn’t been a parallel improvement in the quality of the films. He asked the students about what defined quality or how it can be recognized. Summarizing the attributes of good quality he said, “One can recognize good quality by the means of comparison… also there are certain formulae that govern a story, but one has to approach it with creativity…Stereotypes have to be dissolved and made to suit the story and many more such things have to be thought out seriously”

The root of creativity in cinema is a thought, a thought requires a body for it to take shape and words provide that body. Every individual has a different concept for every word and hence an idea can be born in many avatars. It is absolutely necessary for Filmmakers to have a take and to possess clarity of thought, which can be achieved through developing an idea into several directions. To illustrate the riotous nature of the process of filmmaking he said, “As a Filmmaker, you have to be a saint, a sinner, a psychiatrist, a sane person, an insane person, a servant and a master to come even remotely close to understanding human nature… and what are films if not ways of delving deeper into the human psyche? Either ways you have to make a film that elicits a reaction…” He also declared that as a stage performer he realized that one must never give up no matter what the circumstances are if one is truly convinced and conviction comes only if one recognizes their own abilities. He advised the students to evaluate themselves honestly, without fearing their limitations and said, “As a Filmmaker you will have an identity and you have to know your limitations…knowing them doesn’t mean restraining yourself from expanding or experiencing more… Paradoxically limitations can often lead you to your style…”

Narrowing down the subject to just the Art of Acting, he asked the students what they felt acting was all about. Finally he said, “Acting for me is “Doing”. An action should have a beginning, middle & end. But somewhere between not doing anything and doing to an extreme lies Acting...” Examining the general attitude of amateur actors he observed that there tends to be a lack of confidence and a hesitation. Then he initiated Acting exercises by dividing the room into a stage area and an audience area. A volunteer was called upon and asked to walk from one point to another; as the tasks he had to do with walking became more complex, his gait, pace & body language changed, suggesting that, the more preoccupied the actor was in actually doing the task the less self conscious and contrived he seemed. Elucidating, he said, “When I pick up this cup… I have to be intimate with it… I have to learn to be friends with it… I don’t have to exaggerate, but rather realize how I or others do things in real life…” He felt that the situation in the script must absolutely compel the actor to behave in a certain way. The act should become part of his very reality; only then will his actions lose their self-consciousness and become natural, truthful and meaningful. Apart from this he felt that an actor must constantly observe how people do things, how they move, speak and aspire to match the entire presence of that body.

Since acting is a physical expression of an internal script, concentration is key and one’s physical reflexes must be at their sharpest. He conducted another exercise wherein a group of students were asked to randomly walk around in the makeshift stage area without bumping into each other; they were to freeze as soon as they heard a particular sound. The exercise demonstrated how much effort is needed to stop all body movements immediately after the sound. Scrutinizing this Mr. Gilani said, “It is absolutely necessary for actors to have crisp physical reflexes… he should constantly be alert to external stimulus like sight, sound, smell & movement… Always find a reason to move slowly or fast…use logic and reason to design your actions…” Another exercise he made the students do was to make them walk around and then freeze their body in an exaggerated or contorted position and maintain it, simply to illustrate the importance of body balance. Other exercises were aimed at making the volunteers make extensive use of their body, explaining the need for this he said, “We must be able to make our bodies suggest or communicate something, the more we understand our bodies the more we will be able to express with it…”

In the final exercise they were supposed to speak out the numbers 1- 25, in series and with only one voice saying one number at a time, an error meant that they had to start from the beginning. This exercise required all the students to be calm, to listen, to anticipate each other and exhibited the dynamics of the group. Observing the many attempts the students made Mr. Gilani said, “There is rhythm in nature, rhythm exists everywhere and we have to learn our body’s rhythm…and an actor must be receptive, he must learn to listen, to accept what comes to him, to become conscious…” Speaking about the relationship between Director & Actor, he said that a good Director should be able to communicate to the actor, what is needed, especially when he is stuck. He suggested that the best way to act is the simplest use of body & mind, but slightly more than what is used in real life.

He concluded the lecture by saying that Acting for stage is most difficult since there is no space for mistakes, but he also advised them saying, “The actor’s world is full of mistakes…we don’t want artificiality or Xeroxes or parrots…be really observant and operate with conviction then you can make great even the smallest role…”

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

Sameer Chanda, renowned Production Designer and Art Director conducted a guest lecture on Production Design in Cinema at Digital Academy

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 06:10:00 +0000

Renowned Production Designer & Art Director, Mr. Samir Chanda has worked on movies like Ghajini, Omkara, Rang De Basanti, Makdee etc. This trained painter from Calcutta Art College has also done the Production Design for films like Delhi-6, Welcome to Sajjanpur, Guru, Dil Se and more. He has been associated with the Film Making and Advertising industry for over 25 years now. Under the leadership & guidance of the renowned Production Designer Mr. Nitish Roy, he was given an insight into the exciting & creative world of Production Designing. He was, very soon accepted by the great masters of Indian Cinema like Mrinal Sen, Shyam Benegal, Govind Nihalani, Kalpana Lajmi and young Film Makers like Samir Karnik and Vishal Bharadwaj.

He is the winner of numerous State, National & International Awards. He has been instrumental in developing the Post- Graduate Diploma in Production Design & Art Direction at the Film & Television Institute of India, Pune

On being asked by the students to explain what Production Design is Mr. Chanda said, “The Production Designer is a creative artist who visualizes a story, accentuates it’s meaning & renders its concepts into realities for the moving images… it encompasses all form of narrative design…” Putting it in plain words he stated that Production Designing not only involves creative expression but a lot of implementation of ideas.

Giving the students exquisite details about his process he described the Production Design book that he creates using the script before the start of any film, wherein he sets the basic design elements: progression of colors, composition and locations, with respect to the scenes, along with photographs and mood boards that compile the visual journey of the film. The book ultimately helps him to communicate lucidly with the director and creates a tangible document that allows for further discussion and change.

Recounting his course of action he said, “The space comes in my head first as I read a script… then I interpret the physical movements & view the script as if I were in a theatre…” He described a simple scene, wherein a mother walks into a room where the daughter cries about something & then they leave; he then described how he breaks the scene down into spaces:

a) Mother comes into the room, so there will be a door b) Daughter is sitting somewhere, so there can be a bed or a dining table c) Depending on what the Director’s context, he chooses the room as a bedroom or dining room d) According to the script’s description of the girl & her mother, he fills up the space with props that communicate social strata and tastes e) He creates windows of a specific style to allow for adequate & enhanced lighting f) Designs a set that allows for wide coverage encompassing all the action, even if the Director comes in later & cuts down the area of the set.

However, he felt that at the final stage all their preparations didn’t matter as the locations, lights & scenarios are ever changing, hence spontaneity and flexibility are key qualities in the job. Decisively he said, “How you perceive that particular scene and how you want to go about it…is what is most important…” He advised the students to try and never say ‘No’ to their clients and to try their best to find solutions for the problems occurring. He illustrated this with the work he did in the film ‘Rudaali’ by Kalpana Lajmi. It was a low budget film, which almost couldn’t afford any sets, but as a Production Designer Mr. Chanda created beautiful compositional elements with black and red sarees. Emphasizing this he said, “As a Production Designer, one should always strive to achieve an aesthetic unity with his director, crew & technicians… A good film set does justice to the script without wasting money…”

Another important aspect that a Production Designer must look into is the contextual logic of their choices. Presenting the example of the film ‘Kaminay’ by Vishal Bharadwaj, where a character named Charlie calls an old train bogey his home, he stated how the facts suggest that the Indian Railway, officially abandons a train bogey only after it has been condemned for nearly forty years, hence the choice of making the bogey look that way. He then described his experiences of working with different Directors and their different methods and approaches to locations and sets, suggesting the need for a Production Designer to be receptive, adaptive & intelligent.

After describing his process, he navigated towards the sea that provided nourishment to his thoughts. He suggested that for the ideas to come when reading a script and to keep ones visualizations varied and crisp one must be observant and constantly study his/her environment. Highlighting this he said, “For the sets to look real one has to understand reality… and then only can one go beyond it. The thrilling part of being a Production Designer is that one can create a concrete jungle a la New York as well as a Rajasthan Desert or snowy mountains of the Alps to remote villages of Bengal...”

When asked about the methods of choosing locations and how one goes about location recces, he suggested that one use the director’s briefs, the context of the script and logically choose a direction, geographically and then set out to find the exact place depending on the various necessities of the scene. He also recommended that the students start sketching out the places and locations they find in their imagination. Urging them to develop a photographic memory he said, “You have to remember the colors, the light, the look and the feel… especially if you have to shift locations…” He said that when one is on a location hunt, if all the logical and factual aspects of the script are in tandem with the places one is scanning, then what one must truly look for is the exhilaration that a particular location brings, which most of the time is the decisive factor on location hunts. Speaking from his experiences he said that sometimes one overlooks the location that is just in one’s backyard.

However, discussing the status of the Art Director in the Film Industry he said, “The Art Directors in India are still treated as glorified carpenters; hence I decided to evolve myself as a Production Designer… It was a struggle to achieve the respect we deserve… But today I can smell a location & I enjoy what I do…”

He advised the students to concentrate on what they want to do and do it, while constantly re-inventing and rediscovering themselves with every new project. He also said that the combination of the correct time, correct location and correct season is a surefire method to make a scene stand out. He concluded by saying, “Doing Production Design is a challenge…Its very important to give the director what he wants, the largeness of the set is irrelevant…so go on exploring locations and take pride and joy in doing it…”

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

RENOWNED WRITER & DIRECTOR OF THE FILM ‘BAABARR’, MR. ASHU TRIKHA, CONDUCTS A GUEST LECTURE ON SPECIAL EFFECTS & FILMMAKING FOR STUDENTS

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 07:57:00 +0000

Mr. Ashu Trikha has directed films like "Baarbar" ‘Deewanapan’, ‘Alag: He Is Different...He Is Alone...’ & ‘Sheesha’. He has done Special Effects in movies like ‘Chal Mere Bhai’, ‘Tera Jadoo Chal Gaya’, ‘Hawa’, ‘Chote Miya, Bade Miya’ & more.

Mr. Ashu Trikha began the lecture with the trailer of his film ‘Baabarr.’ He showed many versions of the trailer, each revealing a different facet of the film. Discussing the use of the songs in his film, he said, “Songs are a very effective tool to make the narrative progress and popularize the film… it creates valuable recall…” The students asked him why he had chosen to use an item number in his film; in response he recounted the experience of being in Lucknow where he witnessed stage shows of the kind that had been picturized in his film. Acknowledging what the students were thinking he said that the song was a necessary part of his film because without it a large chunk of the movie would get usurped leaving the movie unfinished and incomplete.

Speaking from the experiences of his thirty one years in the industry, which spans across animation, television work and corporate films, he said, “The key to succeed in the industry is to be flexible… the process of Filmmaking is all about adapting…” He emphasized the importance of a ready & complete script before shoot, by saying, “If people write a script on the shoot or post shoot then they are digging a grave for themselves....” He said that in the film ‘Tera Jadoo Chal Gaya’, a song sequence had been added that came after the scripting and even the shooting process, resulting in making the scene look inconsistent, emphasizing this he said, “Fitting something into a script makes it lose the seamlessness…”

Elaborating on the process of story writing he said that many times it is easy to narrate a story within twenty minutes but once an attempt is made to write it in seventy scenes, the narrative becomes evident and clear. Highlighting this he said, “On the scripting stage you don’t interfere with the taking of the film…at that stage you are only looking to see what you are saying through the film…” He advised the students to move onto the shots and visualization of the story after the writing process is complete, after which they should extensively brainstorm to breakdown the script. He said that when it comes to casting it is essential to look for faces that can add a charismatic nuance to the film but warmed them against choosing someone who might overpower the character. He discussed the various stereotyped characters that exist and suggested an efficient tool for writing characters, he said that the most important attribute of a character should be a flaw as that makes him human and audiences can relate to him.

On being asked about the role of audiences in the making of a film he said, “It’s absolutely unpredictable…almost impossible to know what will work for the audience…but I’m still a student, albeit a senior one and I have spent more time communicating with the audiences…so I can adapt intuitively”. He said that the success of a film depends on many things and said, “The only thing that is not in your hand is the success of the film…what you have to do is make a great film…something you are proud of…” Since there is no real formula for success, he felt that as Filmmakers one must constantly reinvent and rediscover oneself, elaborating this he said, “If the passion is not there, then don’t get into this profession…it involves a lot of hard work and rejection… if you do stick with this then it is very important that you try new things relentlessly… otherwise there will be no drive to make films…the greatest thing about Filmmaking is that you can never go wrong, it can only be more effective or less effective…”

He discussed the ‘spoon sequence’ in his film ‘Alag: He is Alone…He is Different’ from a Special Effects point of view- describing in detail, the intricate process by which the sequence was shot. The sequence required an upright spoon to attract spoons from all over the cafeteria where the sequence was shot. He described in detail how a magnet was used from below the spoon to move it and how it was hung with fish wire to keep it upright. Conversing about the techniques involved in chroma key he said, “If I put a blue screen behind me and a 1000 watt Tungsten light in front of me then you will have a spot on the screen…now video doesn’t understand color, it only understands the corresponding digit, so in an unevenly lit background, some parts will be keyed out and some not…”

In an industry where Producers are more interested in the stars involved in the film than the story telling, he spoke out about Industry procedures & about the difficulty of producing Art, which is always at odds with Commerce. He also stated that corporate production houses have increased the amount of transparency in the Film Industry. He concluded by saying, “In spite of working with the medium for twenty two years, I’m still learning…still trying… so don’t stop…there is a lifetime of film studies for you all…”

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

RENOWNED FILM ACTOR BOMAN IRANI CONDUCTS A GUEST LECTURE ON ACTING AT DIGITAL ACADEMY-THE FILM SCHOOL

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 05:29:00 +0000

Renowned Film & Theatre Actor Mr. Boman Irani conducted a guest lecture on Acting at Digital Academy-The Film School.

Boman Irani started his career in the entertainment industry as a photographer, but soon expanded to theatre with a cameo in Alyque Padamsee's play ‘Roshni’ and a double role opposite Pearl Padamsee in Raell Padamsee's play ‘Family Ties’. In 1996 Rahul Da Cunha was looking for an actor for his adaptation of ‘I'm not Rappoport’ and the 34-year-old Boman Irani was cast as a 75-year-old man for the play ‘I’m not Bajirao’. He then portrayed Mahatma Gandhi in the Feroz Abbas Khan play ‘Mahatma vs. Gandhi’. This play explored Gandhi's troubled relationship with his eldest son Harilal Gandhi.

He went on to do TV commercials for numerous products, such as Fanta, CEAT tyres, Smyle cough syrup, Parle Krackjack biscuits and more.

He made his Bollywood film debut in the 2000 film Josh. Since then, he has appeared in many Bollywood films playing a variety of character and supporting roles, ranging from comic roles in films such as ‘Main Hoon Na’, ‘Waqt: The Race Against Time’ and ‘Khosla Ka Ghosla’; to serious dramatic roles in ‘Lakshya’, ‘Veer-Zaara’, ‘Don - The Chase Begins Again’ and the English language film ‘Being Cyrus’. His first notable success came with his role as the eccentric Dr. J.C. Ashtana in the 2003 hit comedy film ‘Munnabhai M.B.B.S.’. He also appeared in the 2006 sequel ‘Lage Raho Munna Bhai’ as a different character, ‘Lucky Singh’. Another recent noteworthy performance was in the 2006 film ‘Khosla Ka Ghosla’, where he played a comic negative character, Kishen Khurana.

At the lecture, Mr. Irani began by throwing a host of questions at the students. He said, “What makes a good performance? How can we judge a good performance? Why do we need to analyze a good performance? We are no longer laymen, it is our duty as students of cinema to find out why a performance worked…or if it was appreciated for the wrong reasons or if it was sensationalized…” The responses from the students suggested that acting was perhaps about holding the audiences attention, being realistic, connecting to an audience, living the character on screen, believability etc. But Mr. Irani challenged them by asking if holding one’s attention, even through gimmicks & tricks could be construed as good acting. Cinema being such a complex medium, he felt that good acting cannot be defined rigidly, “To me Acting is lying…we are playing someone we are not...it is the most legalized form of lying in the world and it is about how well you lie, but in the process the only way you can do it and do it well is to do it with truth!” Reminiscing about one of his earliest plays, ‘I’m not Bajirao’, he described the sense of power he had felt & enjoyed, while playing the character of a 70-year-old man in the two-person play. He attributed that sense of power to the concept of the actor’s mask, a necessary tool to hide the truth about one’s real identity.

After traversing the philosophical territory of the Acting process, he moved towards the preparatory aspect, wherein the actor must think in great detail about how he/she will pitch their performance, their body language, speech patterns etc. but with respect to the ‘script’ of the film. He felt that the best way to understand the character is to understand the screenplay and that the director’s vision coupled with the actor’s physical interpretation results in determining the way a character is shaped.

Citing the example of his character ‘Lucky Singh’ in the film “Lage Raho Munnabhai” , he explained what he thought should be the basis of preparing for an acting role, i.e. what the Director is trying to say with the film, “Only when one understands what the director wants to say can an actor figure out the role of the character in the film…then if you want the script to work, the character must be the outcome of design & deliberation…” He dissected ‘Lucky Singh’ into the elements that form his character, using questions like a) What was the need to portray him as a corrupt builder, b) Was he created for the sake of it, c) Why was a Sikh required to play the role of a villain in the film, d) What happens to him in the end. Answering these eventually, he said, “It is very important for the antagonist to change through the course of a film. If he doesn’t learn a lesson then nobody learns a lesson, the film doesn’t progress, the situation doesn’t find resolution & everything stays incomplete.” When asked about how much research had gone into the character of ‘Lucky Singh’, he said, “Playing a Sikh was scary for me…after all I am a Parsi from South Mumbai…” He narrated his conversations with Sikh truck drivers whom he had befriended, along with cozy sessions of real camaraderie with them that brought him closer to the essence of being a Sardar. Along with this, the director & Mr. Irani worked together to create an image of the character, involving the characters body language, his clothes, language, idiosyncrasies etc.

His role in ‘Lets Talk’ dealt with marital issues whereas the role in ‘Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd.’ was that of a single parent, both roles demanded a certain subtlety and sensitivity for portraying them. Mr. Irani felt that to achieve that kind of sensitivity towards a role one has to listen to people in general and listen with care.

In the film ‘Eklavya’, his process for reaching the final outcome was not through moustaches and costumes, but rather from incisively analyzing the script and the characters relationship with the script. By understanding the symbology of the character’s part & the layers in the script, he was able to create a ‘King’, who was to be portrayed as effeminate to suggest impotence or barrenness and as a masked personality to imply a closeted homosexuality.

A volunteer was called upfront to answer a volley of questions aimed at discovering her persona. Mr. Irani asked her general things like her name to personal questions like what her ambitions were, what kind of temper she had, the nature of her relationships, her likes, dislikes etc, thus almost painting of her a picture for the audience to see. With this he innovatively illustrated the nature of the questionnaire that he puts him self through to fully understand the part he is playing and assume the identity of that person. After what he termed as moderate probing of the volunteer, he said, “You must ask about the script and outside the script…You must try to achieve the knowledge of the character as much as you know yourself…”

On the subject of big roles and screen time he quoted Sir Lawrence Olivier, one of the most famous and revered actors of the twentieth century, “ There are no small parts, only small actors” and proceeded to explain how the character of ‘Kishen Khurana’ in ‘Khosla Ka Ghosla’, although onscreen for a mere 15 minutes, was a thoroughly well-developed character and so left a lasting impression on the viewer, with a decisive impact especially as the antagonist. He cited the film ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ by Roman Polanski where the actor’s role was almost nullified by excellent writing.

On current trends in the acting world, he commented that, “If you are being driven by star power then you are only riding a wave, which will eventually loose its power & die out…so its very important that actors don’t lose touch with reality…” Pointing out the difference between Hollywood and Bollywood he said that acting like cinema also reflects the culture of the place. But due to the complex nature of acting as a profession, he felt that there were some basic things any actor should be conscientious about, “If you walk into a shot, you should know where the light is, where the camera is, where the frame lies…all your senses must work together to create a moment that gets archived in history…” He said that the eloquence required to put in a nuanced performance could only come if the actors were thorough with basic things like knowing the lines and the actor’s marks etc. Emphasizing this he said, “In your sleep, your waking moments, your eating time, you should be able to say your lines and know the entire scene inside out…it should be second nature to you…”

On being asked about the process that should be applied when a character is completely fictional he said that he considered such situations to be a blessing in disguise as it lets you build the character from scratch and use your creativity. He felt that in such situations one should invest not just in educating oneself but also in understanding one’s instinctive nature. Stressing the significance of instinct, he said, “Nothing will ever educate you enough…cinema is all encompassing…we have to aspire to learn a little bit about Art, Lighting, Drama, Literature and more…but even knowledge of the theory of all these things is redundant if you don’t know yourself well…”

He ended the lecture by advising the students to watch a lot of films, even the ones they don’t understand and to constantly make an attempt to fill up the gaps in their knowledge. He concluded by saying, “You have to be really convinced about what you are doing…then everything works out eventually…”

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

MANISH GUPTA, ACCLAIMED WRITER & DIRECTOR, CONDUCTED A GUEST LECTURE ON FILMMAKING & CINEMA AT DIGITAL ACADEMY- THE FILM SCHOOL, MUMBAI

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 06:11:00 +0000

Manish Gupta, renowned Writer & Director conducted a guest lecture on filmmaking & cinema at Digital Academy- The Film School, Mumbai.

Manish Gupta has had a curious career graph he graduated in Mechanical Engineering and after giving six years of his life to the field, found his calling and decided to join an Ad agency as copywriter and began writing TV & radio commercials. After getting mesmerized by the film ‘Company’ by filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma, he gave up a lucrative career in advertising and began writing for Cinema.

He has written the screenplay for movies like D, Sarkar, James and Darna Zaroori Hai. His directorial debut was Darna Zaroori Hai, a montage of six different stories. He followed this up with ‘The Stoneman Murders’, which was inspired by a real life story about a serial killer who terrorized Mumbai.

He started the lecture with a tongue in cheek statement saying, “I don’t believe in lectures…there is no point in it! ...But I believe there is always a possibility of being a better filmmaker…so here I am!” Armed with the script of his film ‘Sarkar’, he approached the subject of ‘Screenplay Writing’. He asked the students if any of them had written a story, after which he illustrated some of the common errors that beginners made while writing their scripts: like treating the story similar to a screenplay or deciding how to shoot the scenes before completing the story outline etc. Citing the example of the film ‘Sholay’, he extracted the simple story that forms it’s skeletal structure and laid it bare for everyone to see, exemplifying its importance he said, “The skeleton of the film…that is the story outline may not be entertaining, but stronger the story is, stronger will be the screenplay & stronger will be the film… the element of surprise and all the ‘what happens next’ plot points, are what you wrap the skeleton with, to finally form your screenplay”

He acknowledged that when writing a screenplay it is common for the writer to experience a block and advocated that the solution is as simple as going for a walk or even taking a bath, as the idea is simply to disconnect from the process and then re-enter it freshly. He believes that to never encounter a block one must write only about what one is truly passionate about, “Make films, write films & see films only if you are passionate about them…not for the sake of money, success or fame…but for the sheer pleasure of waking up in the morning and thinking solely of your film and everything that surrounds it…”

Recounting the experience of writing ‘Sarkar’, he spoke about the copious amount of research he did to form many of the characters in the film, which were inspired by ‘real life’ characters. On being asked about the difficulty of conceiving a truly original character he said, “It is very difficult to conceive a completely fictional character…your writing will always be derived by something from your experiences or from somewhere in your life… even Batman’s character was conceived by Bob Kane after being inspired by the character of Zorro!”

Elaborating on the process of story writing he said, “There is no hard & fast rule for story writing…you can start with a story, then as better situations come along the story evolves & moves into better territories…but for that you must have the story-structure in place…” He described the process of story writing as being organic & felt that it is not a rigid logic that governs it, thus making it a very difficult medium to master. He recommended the book ‘Story’ by Robert Mckee to all who were interested in honing their skills as story writers and even as filmmakers. He also felt that what one can learn from practical knowledge one can never learn simply through theory and suggested that the students go through the screenplay of his film and then watch the film to increase their understanding of the entire process. Moving into the real world constraints of story writing he described the conflicts that arise between a directors point of view and that of the writer.

On the subject of Screenplay writing he said, “Once you know what you want to express (story) then we come to the most crucial aspect of filmmaking, the screenplay…but writing an original screenplay is a very difficult task… to achieve even a satisfactory level one has to write at least five drafts of the same script….” He felt that the screenplay is where the film truly finds itself coming to life as it is an all-encompassing document that amalgamates sounds, visuals, emotions & actions, that prepare for the birth of the film on celluloid. He deems the process of taking each step from the story outline & converting them into scenes full of impact as the true method to create a screenplay.

‘Screencraft’ by Sid Field & ‘Making Movies’ by Sidney Lumet, were two books that he recommended, although he cautioned the students that these books can only function as guides, since writing for a screenplay cannot be taught.

He appealed to the students to pay attention to the important aspects of a screenplay such as dialogues, sequence descriptions, scenarios, visualization, gestures of the actors etc. He said that as writers one has to write in such a way that the transitions are smooth and each scene flows into the other, without resorting to clichés or formulas. He emphasized the importance of this by describing a scene from acclaimed Director Shekhar Kapur’s film ‘Paani’ where the character staring into a pool of water sees the reflection of an airplane flying above, and the scene immediately transitions into his past with the airplane as the common motif, thus avoiding a clichéd flashback dissolve by using an intelligent visual ploy. However, he felt that one must be careful to not get into exhaustive detailing as that can result in a boring screenplay that lacks the progression necessary for the medium of film. He compared ‘writing for the novel’ with ‘writing for cinema’ to exhume the true essence of writing for a time-based medium by saying, “A novel is read at leisure whereas a film is constrained in time…in a novel the writer has to transport the viewer into the location…but in a film the location is to be viewed, so the details of the location, gestures, clothes, props etc. are more representative than descriptive in the screenplay…”

Entering into the nuances of screenplay writing he spoke about the three act structure, i.e. Set-up, confrontation & resolution or start, middle & end along with the tricky role of sub-plots. He felt that comic relief must be interwoven into the screenplay and that using regional language genuinely can add flavor & authenticity.

Talking about writing as a profession he said, “As a writer your mind is like a loose cannon, your imagination wanders into all the places that thrill you…its one of the things that cant be taught…if you do not have the instinct to write then don’t attempt it…” He clarified that being a bad writer does not mean one cannot be a good filmmaker, since a good relationship between a writer & director always yields a superior film.

He bemoaned the attitude of producers who like to include song & dance routines in their films simply for the sake of publicity & profit, emphatically stating that he preferred films not within the song & dance category.

Concluding the session with a clip from his directorial venture ‘The Stoneman Murders’, he elaborated on his directorial experience, speaking about the instinctive components of direction & filmmaking. He finally advised the students about approaching their career in filmmaking with seriousness and said, “Work only with directors whose work you like… otherwise you’ll get frustrated. Work with different kinds of directors, expand your vision, but make sure you work under someone you respect…”

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: http://www.dafilmschool.com/

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

PIYUSH JHA, RENOWNED WRITER & DIRECTOR OF THE FILM ‘SIKANDAR’, HOLDS A GUEST LECTURE ON FILM MAKING AT DIGITAL ACADEMY

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 09:26:00 +0000

Piyush Jha, acclaimed Writer & Director of the film ‘Sikandar’ held a guest lecture on the topic of Filmmaking for the students of Digital Academy- The Film School, Mumbai.

Mr. Jha started his career with ‘Chalo America’, a small budget film, which had a lighthearted take on the fascination that millions of youngsters have for America. He followed it up with a satire on Bollywood called ‘King of Bollywood’, which was about an aging evergreen hero who refused to face reality and call it a day in showbiz. His latest film ‘Sikandar’ is an intense story about a young boy set against the backdrop of terror in Kashmir.

At the lecture he began by asking the students why they were in a Film School and said, “Anyone here because you want to be a Filmmaker? Do you have anything to say to the world? ...To be a Filmmaker you need to have something to say…otherwise what makes you different?” He stated that in the attempt to be a Filmmaker one has to be able to focus on a thought or a concept which is intrinsically one’s own, since what shines through in a film eventually is the ‘vision’. Talking about his previous films, he said, “I keep challenging myself & looking for something new to say…I’m not going to talk to you about the technicalities of Filmmaking now…that can be found anywhere…I’m here to challenge your sensibilities into thinking about why you want to make a film…”

To arrive at a general consensus he discussed with the students about what kind of films they liked, it yielded categories like ‘cult films’, ‘historical films’, ‘thrillers’, ‘socially relevant films’ etc. The discussion also brought out a general bias that exists against films that are considered socially relevant. Reflecting on the situation, he questioned the need for a social message in films and said, “I don’t think it’s about a social message for the sake of it and social themes don’t necessarily have to be dull either, we should see if it’s capable of questioning us & moving us out of our lethargy of thought or even action…”

He spoke about how the movie watching experience becoming expensive, has resulted in the audience choosing a more lighthearted kind of cinema that fully justifies the expense. In turn capsizing the existence of other kinds of cinema and leading to filmmakers creating films that only satisfy the market. He felt that to let the moneymaking aspect dominate is the wrong way of going about it. He believes that the most important thing to be a filmmaker is to really love cinema - all kinds of cinema. However, he advised the students to take in all the aspects of filmmaking and rise above the problems.

On being asked what an amateur artist should take to a producer for him to consider investing a big chunk of money in that project, he said, “We have to make films that are able to make money…but we must understand our culture & history and make films that we believe in, that come from an internal instinct or thoughts that mesh with yourself…and in that come as close to commercial success as possible…” Though he firmly believes that today our cinema needs to strive, to move beyond what he terms: ‘the fascism of the cliché’ and develop a kind of cinema that originates from indigenous soil but with new thoughts, inspirations & contemporary ideas especially since the audiences have changed & are far more adventurous in their tastes.

According to him, another important subject was the ubiquitous nature of the star system in the industry, which hinders the genuineness of films sometimes. Addressing that, he said, “In India one thing you will face is the star system…you will be bombarded by it and everything will be about it…but you shouldn’t reject it…try to work it into your work…as it will benefit you eventually…” He concluded the lecture by saying, “There is no formula for success…one thing is for certain, if you want to make a film then do it any way you can…just be resolute about what you want…” He suggested to all the students that they should watch a lot of films but warned them against the perils of being ‘DVD directors’, eventually stating that the best teacher for a Filmmaker is reality itself.

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@digitalacademy.info

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 06:33:00 +0000

Vinay Shukla is a renowned Indian Film Writer and Director. He made the Hindi film Godmother, which won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi in 1999 along with five more National Awards and one Filmfare Award. He has written films like ‘Viraasat’, ‘Hum Paanch’, ‘Ram Jaane’, ‘Raat, Shikaari’, ‘Thanedaar’, ‘Parinay’ and more. Along with ‘Godmother’ he has directed ‘Koi Mere Dil Se Poochhe’, ‘Mirch’ (currently in post-production), ‘Sameera’ and acted in the film ‘Maqbool’. He has been instrumental in designing the script-writing course at the FTII (Film & Television Institute of India) .

Mr. Shukla commenced the lecture with a brief overview of the History of Cinema in our country- to enliven the magic that came with its onset and to explain through it the unique traits of Indian cinema. He described the Christmas day in the year 1910, when a gentleman from the city of Nashik, Mr. D G Phalke saw the film ‘Life of Christ’ at the America-India Theatre and went home to tell his wife of his ambitions to make similar films but with Indian mythology at its centre, kick starting the era of the ‘Indian’ Motion Pictures.

By incorporating Indian mythology Mr. D G Phalke created an indigenous expression of the medium, which the people could relate to & hence accept.

With the advent of technology, came the first Indian talkies- the period drama ‘Alam Ara’, which had been adapted from a Parsi play. It popularized the song & dance routine, which eventually became a unique trait of Indian Cinema. The burgeoning of studios like Bombay Talkies, Prabhat Studios etc. around the 30s & 40s, brought with it the studio system, bringing many European technicians to Indian shores, who would work with regional filmmakers in Hindi films, resulting in the need for translators; eventually paving the way for specialized dialogue writers in the industry.

Summarizing the uniqueness of Indian Cinema, he said, “Our cinema aspires to tell epics…which is basically the conflict of high moral values…broadly a conflict between good & evil…”

According to him an epic tale cannot be told without elements like: a) Melodrama, which like poetry captures a large depth of emotion & if done well, doesn’t become unreasonable, b) Rhetoric, which is when feelings & words are woven into each other within the constraint of logic at a high emotional scale, c) Song & Dance, which allows one to express what can’t be expressed solely through dialogue & also advances narrative by compressing or elongating the concept of time in the film, d) Action, which brings a sense of immediate justice and e) Comedy, where the role of the comedian is often to play the fool yet be the wisest. Dispelling any skepticism about rhetoric or melodrama he said, “I wonder if a tale about conflicting values can even be made without melodrama… what is required for it to work is the truth of the ground work…most of the filmmakers today source their stories from other films they have seen, not from their own lives…which makes their films lack depth & emotion…”

He felt that a formula film uses the features of drama repetitively & as stand-alone concepts that are not integral to the film whereas a film like Lagaan uses it judiciously and not with the intention of ‘luring’ the audiences, which in turn makes it beautiful. He then elaborated on a conversation with his young daughter wherein he was trying to cull out the aesthetics that the new generation desires in Films; it yielded a few keywords such as short, subtle, not over-dramatic, grey, contemporary etc. that Mr. Shukla believed were universal and needed urgent attention by the new generation of filmmakers. He cited films like Dil Chahta Hai, Jab We Met, Rang De Basanti etc., which lie within the framework of urban values & contemporary sensibilities. Speaking about today’s audiences he said, “Today’s audience likes genre specific films…take any kind of story and there is already an example…” When asked about Producers and choosing topics for Producers he replied, “Do not be derivative in your work…you need to be smart enough to choose something a Producer would like, but something that is integrally yours…”

He also felt that it is necessary to estimate the basic theme that one is dealing with in a story; knowing what one is working on in a story helps to create necessary plot points and orchestrate the right resonances from the topic. Addressing the importance of the appeal of the topic he said, “Only do the things that excite you or move you! Creative people should never make something they are not interested in…you will be lucky if you come out of it…no work of creative satisfaction can happen if the creator is not excited…but one should never be disheartened when one comes across the blocks…perseverance is key, you should never give up…”

On being asked about whether he writes, thinking about specific actors for the roles, he said, “I don’t write keeping an actor in mind, some might do it…I don’t know if it is advisable. Mahatma Gandhi said that when a person truly gives, he gives a part of himself…in the same way when a writer writes, he gives a part of himself/herself…the character mirrors the writer.” He felt that the focus should be on what satisfies one’s sensibilities rather than pandering to alien forms & values as the answers can come only from within oneself; books, friends, films can only facilitate the questions. Conversing about his National Award winning film ‘Godmother’, he said, “The values you follow will come back to you as a mirror image…whatever path you follow the question comes back to you about whether you are right or wrong…I believe that films do impart values, if only subtly to society…so at some level it is important to be a good human being to be a filmmaker…there is that responsibility…”

His concluding advice about what it takes to be a good director was that one needs to raise one’s level of understanding, awareness & constantly evolve until one reaches a higher level of consciousness without which no creative artist can create a real work of Art.

Digital Academy offers courses in Screenplay Writing, Film & Television Direction, Cinematography, Film & Television Editing, Sound Recording & Engineering, Production Design, Producers Course, Film Making, Acting and Animation & FX.

For more information contact:
E-mail: response@digitalacademy.info

Visit: www.dafilmschool.com
Tel.no.:+91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

SANJAY F. GUPTA, RENOWNED CINEMATOGRAPHER CONDUCTS A GUEST LECTURE ON CINEMATOGRAPHY FOR STUDENTS OF DIGITAL ACADEMY-THE FILM SCHOOL.

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 05:07:00 +0000

Sanjay F Gupta, the renowned Cinematographer of films like ‘Singh is King’, ‘Mujhse Shaadi Karoge’, ‘Qayamat’, held a workshop for the students of Digital Academy – The Film School, Mumbai (Bombay) India.

Sanjay F Gupta is also the managing director of Grey Partridge (P) LTD with over 20 years of experience in commercials, features and music videos. He has a degree in Cinema from Columbia College, Los Angeles.

Mr. Gupta started a discussion about the roles of a DOP (Director of Photography); Talking about an industry, where very few Directors can discern the role of a DOP, he spoke of how frustrating it can be to work with a crew that didn’t understand photography. Expounding that, he said, “Now when you are looking into the viewfinder & your fingers reach for the record button…being a little idealistic, I think its starting to make History…its going to be on a negative, then it will become digital and finally permanent…hopefully we are creating Art of some sort…lets hope so…”.

He clarified that although the conditions today are not favorable to Cinematography as an Art form, it is extremely important that the students clearly understand & appreciate the role it plays in a film. He emphasized that one needs to know all that a Director of Photography should do to make the film look its best, for example, how many windows are present in a set, angle of light, position of the sun etc. He encouraged the students to break down cinematography into its many elements: Framing, Lensing, Lighting, Camera Movement, Exposure, Focus, Film Stock, Filters and discussed them in detail.

Talking about Framing he said, “The Frame has to be dedicated to what it is trying to communicate...it’s not just about beauty…” Then he recounted an incident on a shoot with renowned International Director Shekhar Kapur who made ‘Elizabeth’ & ‘Bandit Queen’, wherein he had framed the shot of a horse running in the sunset according to the one third rule, keeping the horse on the edge of the frame; but on Kapur’s odd request he decided to keep the horse at the other edge revealing behind it a trail of beautifully backlit dust, which transformed the shot, making it look magnificent. And so he advised that it is not necessary to follow the one-third rule of framing dogmatically, but rather let it guide you into discovering things.

Another important responsibility of the DOP according to him was to know about how the light will follow through in the course of the day and understanding the area along with the light sources & shadows etc. with a digital camera if possible. But knowing the way Producers work, he said that most of the time it is not easy to do recces of this kind due to constraints. However he said, “You have to outsmart your producer. If you love your Art then you will do that, maybe send an assistant to check the area out beforehand…”

Certain fundamental things that he believes need to be sorted out at such recces are:

For outdoor locations check the position of the sun, shoot the wide & master shots first, do close-ups last (because they are easiest to do in bad light conditions) and match the shots through out (the biggest challenge)

For indoor locations check the number of practical lamps and the number of halogen lights, check if chandeliers, bulbs, lampshades & all other lights are on dimmers, whether identical lights are on the same dimmer and if tube lights are flicker-free (i.e. Kinos). If some bulbs are burning out in the frame then use an orange or yellow gel with the correct degree (1CTO, ½ CTO etc.)

He added that knowledge of things like ‘which filter is used when’, comes with experience & ‘home-work’, “Do your homework, because no one else will…the more homework you do the better your work will look. Also the use of story boarding is very essential as it helps to communicate to the crew-members and sometimes even understand the shot yourself…”

Stressing on the fact that the ultimate idea is the mood of the image- He broached the topic of Depth of Field, which is affected by three factors: a) The kind of lens used, b) The f-stop (aperture) & c) The distance between the camera & subject. A shallow depth of field generally produces an interesting effect, directing attention sharply it can add a certain drama to the image. Video has a larger depth of field, which makes its image quality very crisp & clean eluding the traditional feel of film. In spite of this he added, “Better learn to work with video…it is the future…”

One of the other things that can change the mood of a shot without changing much else is the exposure. With exposure one can over-expose, under-expose or expose selectively with surprising effects. According to him correct exposure is subjective and can be achieved in many different ways, “You have to be very selective & very careful with what you expose for…don’t be dogmatic, look around for the options to create the right mood…”

Divulging one of his many tricks of the trade he said that choosing a particular f-stop and lighting around it can make things a lot easier. In lighting for proper chroma key, he suggested that the green screen be evenly lit, with a slight over-exposure of half a stop & the subject kept at least 10 to 15 feet away from the green screen, so as to not allow any green to bounce onto the subject.

On the subject of lighting he spoke about the two fundamental types of lighting: hard light & soft light. He described their attributes as hard light having a) more intensity, b) sharp shadows, c) better details and soft light having a) less intensity, b) very soft shadows, c) more spread (creating an overall pleasant look). He gave examples of how the monthly Indian magazine ‘Femina’ shot its pictures with everything in soft light, which could get boring, whereas a magazine like ‘Vogue’ used hard light very innovatively & beautifully. However, he summarized by simply stating that when one is in doubt, one should resort to soft light. Soft light needs a large light source, which can be done using bounces or using diffusion material in front of the light.

He felt that as a DOP another one of his tasks is to be an effective communicator with the Director, the crew & the cast.

In his message to the Direction students he said, “As a Director, you need to know a little more than everybody else, you need to know little bit of everything…how are you going to do that? By reading a lot & going to as many shoots as you can…” He also suggested that visualizing the entire look of the film beforehand was a good idea because it helps greatly to supplement the script & communicate one’s vision.

Speaking about Digital Academy- The Film School and their students, he said, “It was a delight…these guys are really enthusiastic & really want to learn…it’s a great school. It seems very intimate. Seems like everybody is personally supervising everything…like its being taken care of from the heart, which is very obvious…”

For more information contact:

E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com

Visit: - www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 06:31:00 +0000

Neeraj Pandey, acclaimed Film Director & Screenwriter of the award-winning Indian thriller drama film: ‘A Wednesday’, spoke to a packed room full of students at Digital Academy- The Film School, Mumbai. Born and brought up in Kolkata, he moved to New Delhi, where he graduated in English Literature. He was employed in Legacy Entertainment, a company started by the Dalmia group to make television programs where he learnt his basics.

Not being schooled in Film, he is a self taught Filmmaker. He struggled to get an unconventional film like ‘A Wednesday’ made and has persevered towards a prodigious set-up which will allow him to direct the films he envisions, with minimal interferences, by attempting to co-produce them himself.

Talking about ‘A Wednesday’ he said, “I took it to all the big (production) companies…None of them were interested in a first time director like me, who was demanding a cast like this (Naseeruddin Shah, Anupam Kher etc), for a serious film with no songs and no heroine!” When asked about whether choosing to have songs or not was a tough decision, considering their entertainment and marketing potential, he said, “See the story should be worth telling…don’t waste your audience’s time, it should be cathartic…entertainment has many different definitions…if my film can make you talk about it for two hours…that means it has connected with you…that is also entertainment…”

When it comes to writing, he prefers to think of ‘writer’s block’ as just a mental condition, summing it up by saying that either one feels like writing or one doesn’t. About his process for ‘A Wednesday’, he revealed that the trick was to get the ‘end’ first and work backwards towards the beginning. He prefers to first think thoroughly through the story, become clear about the beginning, middle & end, and then write it. The gestation period for ‘A Wednesday’ was around two months and the writing period merely seven days. Characters and casting, he felt, took shape as one writes the film. He explained that all the gadgetry and technical details of the film were accurate and carefully researched with the help of Mr. Rakesh Maria (Mumbai Joint Commissioner of Police) and the character of the hacker emerged from discussions about real life cases with Mr. Maria.

Having directed many one hour specials for Television, earlier, he reminisced how he would treat even those productions as he would a film, simply because he wanted to be making films later. He lamented the meager creativity on Television and joked about the rising level of ‘creativity’ on news channels these days, but concluded that Television needed to go back to those one hour specials and that intelligent programming was the need of the hour.

Returning to the topic of cinema, he spoke candidly about how Hindi literature has greatly helped him in his writing especially with dialogue and that Bimal Roy movies have helped him tremendously whenever he has been stuck. According to him, to be a good Director, one has to read a lot, watch a lot of movies; as an individual push oneself tenaciously and be very clear about what one wants. Cinema being a collection of arts, he thinks that a good script along with all the other processes of Filmmaking and great teamwork, make for a fantastic film.

Digital Academy offers courses in Screenplay Writing, Film & Television Direction, Cinematography, Film & Television Editing, Sound Recording & Engineering, Production Design, Producers Course, Film Making, Acting and Animation & FX.

For more information contact:

E-mail response@dafilmschool.com ,

visit:-www.dafilmschool.com

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

SAURAB SHUKLA, WRITER OF CULT FILM ‘SATYA’, CONDUCTS WORKSHOP ON FILM MAKING AT DIGITAL ACADEMY- THE FILM SCHOOL, MUMBAI

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 06:24:00 +0000

Saurabh Shukla, the Star Screen Award and Zee Cine Award nominated Indian film and television Actor, Director and Screenwriter held a workshop for the students of Digital Academy – The Film School Mumbai (Bombay) India, on the topic of Scriptwriting, Direction & Filmmaking.

Shukla began serious theatre in 1986 with roles in plays like A View from the Bridge (Arthur Miller), Look Back in Anger (John Osborne), Ghashiram Kotwal (Vijay Tendulkar) and Hayvadan. In 1991, he joined the NSD Repertoire Company - the professional wing of the National School of Drama - as actor. The next year, he got his first break when Shekhar Kapur, impressed with his work, created a role for him in Bandit Queen.

Aiming right at the heart of the issue, he asked, “Why do you want to make a film?” Concluding that it is a strong desire to communicate a perception, a story or reflection of society, he asked, “Why film? Why not music, theatre or the other arts? Why as me, do I make a film??...It is not a passion or profession for me, it is a compulsion for me…if I don’t make films, I get sick, I’m not happy!” displaying his vigor & intensity, he quoted filmmakers like Robert Rodriguez (El Mariachi) who did not wait for their films but ploughed ahead to create their films against all the odds.

The first step in the path towards creation is the ‘right’ idea, judging an idea as good or bad is secondary. Ideas are born in the landscape of Art; Art brings freedom- to say what we want to say, to share an idea or concept; people will identify or relate with it only if the creators themselves identify with the idea. From the idea one has to brew the script.
Writing is a tedious process, it involves extensive thinking, writing, reading, even enacting and continuously rewriting. But how one approaches the film is what sets the conditions for the conception of a film; it must be a natural and candid approach. The beginning is precious, the first shot decides the pace, feel and look of the film, “Every scene especially the beginning has to transport people into that scene, so don’t try to hurry the beginning…the detailing is very important…” saying this, he proceeded to show the beginnings of some movies like Lawrence of Arabia-David Lean, Fame-Allan Parker and Amadeus-Milos Forman. With these, Mr. Shukla illustrated how innovation helped in increasing the intensity and by revealing the action slowly, a thrill and suspense was created which succeeded in transporting the viewers into the films.

Talking about his first director, Shekhar Kapur’s film ‘Elizabeth’, he said, “When you write a script, you use words & language to communicate, in direction one has to rewrite it; the elements are different, the actors, the movement, the frame etc come in to play…one has to think in a different way. Like it or not, filmmaking is about writing…”

One among the many queries that arose from the students was how does one write dialogue, as it must seem real and true to the characters and their situations; how much is research and how much is imagination? To which, speaking about ‘Satya’, he answered “We did not go to chawls or spend time with the gangsters, I was at the time still more of a Delhi person; then how did we manage the realistic kind of dialogue? ...Humans are the same whether Delhi or Mumbai…the psyche is the same, behavior is based on how you see the world and how you project it to make it seem believable to the world…I have a certain background and I use its quality and tone to write my dialogues…”
It is important to take the thought from an original space and then convert its physicality of expression. In Satya, a lot of language inputs came from the actors themselves; the lingo was adopted but the spontaneity of dialogue came from improvisation, which is not ‘adjustments’ rather it is finding the layers in a script. And to develop such a script, the artist must never be satisfied; the process should be an unending quest for perfection. On being asked, what is the ideal location for writing, he said, “I cannot write when I am alone; I have to be in chaos…my process is not secret. I like reading out my scripts to anyone-the chauffeur, a neighbor…as it helps me see my script and understand it better…who I’m reading it to becomes immaterial…”

Another stage of writing is ‘editing’. It is a system by which meaning or narrative is created through the joining of shots. Likening the editing process to the process of cooking, he dispelled certain myths about editing, “If it’s not working in the rushes, then even if editing can hide the mistakes, the film will definitely lack something…”
The sequence from the film Fame by Allan Parker, in which an art school cafeteria filled with the cacophony of noise and chaos, gets effortlessly converted into a roomful of pulsating music and energy, displayed how editing alone cannot be responsible for such a conversion. It creates rhythm and pace which works along with the visual quality and other elements to create the spirit of the scene or film.
With the realm of editing one realizes that direct story-telling isn’t enough. Without the unfolding of events in a dramatic fashion, there will not be a body for the film. After hearing out the suggestions about what drama really is, he said “Even I do not know what is drama…but I know the elements…a situation where the character is smaller than the situation…is dramatic…”
Again he picked out choice scenes from three movies, Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho-where many elements of drama are present (love, robbery, need for money etc), Abbas Kiarostami’s ‘The wind will carry us’-an ordinary situation’s potential for drama, like running around to get a signal during an important phone call, becomes obvious and in ‘No country for old men’ by the Coen Brothers, the dramatic tension was created because of the audiences knowledge that the character is a killer, bringing to us the two elements of suspense and surprise.
However, everything can be dramatic, it is the way one tells it that creates the drama, “There is nothing called fast pace or slow pace…every film requires an optimum pace”
This optimum pace and the information given to the viewers are the primary tools for creating a dramatic impact. The anticipation generated prior to the moment also depends largely on the ‘detailing’, “I personally don’t like black and white characters…everybody is a shade of grey…a darker grey or lighter grey is achieved through detailing…” said the selective Saurabh Shukla.

With the beginning of the robbery sequence in Dog’s Day Afternoon directed by Sidney Lumet and written by Frank Pierson, Saurabh Shukla concluded the workshop on a lighter note, portraying through the clip how minute details of the characters are so integral in pushing the story forward and also why the humor generated was so effortless and yet funny.

Citing his own example, he tossed some pointers to the distraught students who were still boiling with questions.
· Make writing a habit.
· Be confident, desperation kills a lot of things.
· Keep reinventing yourself, don’t be scared, be fearless.
· Writer’s block is like the common cold, there is no cure…

With a sincere tone he thanked everyone and said goodbye.

Digital Academy offers courses in Screenplay Writing, Film & Television Direction, Cinematography, Film & Television Editing, Sound Recording & Engineering, Production Design, Producers Course, Film Making, Acting and Animation & FX.

For more information contact:
E-mail: mailto:response@digitalacademy.info,
visit:- http://www.dafilmschool.com/

Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

NATIONAL AWARD WINNER, SANKALP MESHRAM SPEAKS TO MUMBAI UNIVERSITY STUDENTS ABOUT CAREERS IN CINEMA.

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 05:43:00 +0000

Dr. Abdul Kalam visited the Mumbai University in October 2005. There he pondered why the University, in spite of Mumbai being the film capital of the country, did not have any film education. That is how the idea of a tie up between the educationists & a film school was born. After careful investigation & study of many film schools in Mumbai, the University decided that the best and only people they would work with was Digital Academy- The Film School. With a seminar at Kalina, on the 153rd Anniversary of the University, a Post-Graduate course with a very modern educational pattern was introduced.

The function was attended by renowned editor/filmmaker Sankalp Meshram who briefly addressed the entirely packed hall.

Mr. Sankalp Meshram, after doing his Post Graduate Diploma in Editing from the FTII Pune, has been working as an Editor and Film Maker. He edited the Feature Film ‘Katha Don Ganpat Roanchi’ in 1997 (Marathi), which won the state award for the best Film apart from being shown at various International Film Festivals and the National Award for Best Editing in the year 2001 for the Film ‘Lokapriya’. He also wrote and directed ‘Chutkan Ki Mahabharat’ which got him the National Award in the year 2005. He is the Head of the Editing Department at Digital Academy- The Film School, Mumbai.

He narrated the story of the chance beginning of his film career- how he narrowly escaped the dazzle of science, was forced into commerce and was almost on the verge of completing his Chartered accountancy when he secretly wrote the FTII (Film & Television Institute of India) entrance test, passing it successfully. He doubted the decision & then finally decided to join.
“Filmmaking is a calling, not just a profession” he said, having worked in the industry for 15 years now, with no regrets. The ones who receive this calling have a strong affinity to its form and are almost fated to be part of it. He believed that it is a misconception that filmmaking is for specific kinds of individuals or artists; all that is needed is the talent for story telling and most people already told stories. He encouraged a few to volunteer their activities of the day, before coming to the seminar. Some responded with sparse pointers while some others traveled even into flashbacks of why they wanted to be a filmmaker. These examples showed that humans employ speech patterns and make decisions based on priority of subjects or words and even the duration. Even everyday communication is an act of story-telling; only in cinema the technique is different, the language used is visual & aural (not necessarily words).

A well told story is one which has the right elements told in the right way. It requires a critical balance between conscious & unconscious editing. The experience of dreaming is similar to that of watching a film. Their strange events and strange editing somehow reveal some things about the self, but in an almost entirely non-verbal manner; cinema aspires towards this beauty of dreams- the perfect illusion.

“An act of film viewing itself is an act of filmmaking, the idea of a film is based on the creative faculty of the audience” saying this, he emphasized that imagination is not the luxury of a few people, it is a necessary survival faculty needed to process the present, forecast the future, create probabilities etc. There are gaps and spaces in the world around. Imagination is what helps to complete this world. Filmmaking depends on the viewers’ imagination to fill in the gaps.

“Why do we need to learn filmmaking?”
It is a difficult art form; it consists of a new kind of syntax and language which needs to be nourished by talent & instinct. This has to be acquired exactly like the skill of riding a bicycle must be learnt- gracious trial & error until the process is internalized. And finally it all comes down to how good one is at creating a cinematic language which is universal and connects with the audience.
“There is a method to the madness in cinema…its all about training your instincts to become an instinctive filmmaker…”

Digital Academy offers courses in Screenplay Writing, Film & Television Direction, Cinematography, Film & Television Editing, Sound Recording & Engineering, Production Design, Producers Course, Film Making, Acting and Animation & FX.

For more information contact:
E-mail: mailto:response@digitalacademy.info
Visit:- http://www.dafilmschool.com/
Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008

ANURAG KASHYAP, ONE OF THE MOST VERSATILE AND PROLIFIC FILMMAKERS,SPEAKS TO MUMBAI UNIVERSITY STUDENTS, ABOUT CAREERS IN CINEMA.

noreply@blogger.com (Marketing Team) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 05:33:00 +0000

Mumbai University, on its 153rd Anniversary announced its association with the Digital Academy, initiating the Post-Graduate course in Film & Television and invited Mr. Anurag Kashyap to speak about careers in Film & Television.

Anurag Kashyap is a critically acclaimed Indian film director and screenwriter. He is considered one of the most versatile and prolific filmmakers in contemporary Hindi cinema.
In 1999, Kashyap won the Best Screenplay award for ‘Satya’- a cult film based on people who are part of the Mumbai underworld and the Special Jury Award for his short film ‘Last Train to Mahakali’ at the Star Screen Awards. His feature film debut Black Friday won the Grand Jury Prize at the 3rd Annual Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (2005) and was a nominee for the Golden Leopard (Best Film) at the 57th Locarno International Film Festival (2004).

One of his concerns was to explain the need to ‘learn’ filmmaking. A course helps because it teaches you the very basics, the fundamentals of filmmaking, “You need to know them to reject them and create your own rules & methods…” he said. He reflected on how many times he has come across people who keep talking about how they want to ‘shoot’ their film, when it’s not about the ‘how’ but rather the ‘what & why’. Directors like Danny Boyle are capable of simultaneously editing, shooting and generating narrative, but achieving that state is a slow process, which is to achieve that degree of instinct. Earlier it took people years of struggle to pierce through to the medium, both in the corporeal sense of access and cerebral sense of understanding, finally becoming filmmakers at 50 or 60 years of age, whereas today there are people as young as 21 who are making films, precisely because of abundant film education.

When it comes down to the actual act of filmmaking, the film emerges through the passion and vision of the creator himself and how he applies himself to the process of imagination. “I still don’t know what camera aperture is, but I have an eye for location and detail…if I know what I want to create, then I can go looking for it…” When in the process of realizing his concept or idea, he is open to ideas and change. He believes that if one can discern the essence of their films, then they won’t go wrong when they are allowed to let go of themselves. Like when he had to shoot on an empty street with neon signage which was crowded throughout the day and so shot at 4am, with a particular blue shade of the sky, resulting in a psychedelic imagery, which he discovered that day by accident, he realized the potential of ‘chance’ in filmmaking and also the importance of continuing in spite of all odds, “Go outside and make a film, then go see why it didn’t work…why the audience didn’t connect with it…find out the external and the internal reasons of its failure…such an integral angst one has to go through…What must motivate the maker is not the ‘Oscar’ but the journey…” he said, outlining the importance of the journey of filmmaking which is endless.

On being asked about whether the current spate of independent production houses catering to a more self-determining group of filmmakers, is a trend that is here to stay or not, he replied that such a condition is almost a necessity, as his own survival depends on the survival of the likes of him, which is why it is his responsibility to preserve this condition or trend. Citing the presence of his blogs as a place where students and film lovers can unite and discuss many issues pertaining to film, he warmly welcomed everyone to join this new era of films, to make use of all the resources available and finally to make the film itself more important than their own selves.

Digital Academy offers courses in Screenplay Writing, Film & Television Direction, Cinematography, Film & Television Editing, Sound Recording & Engineering, Production Design, Producers Course, Film Making, Acting and Animation & FX.

For more information contact:
E-mail: response@dafilmschool.com,visit:- http://www.dafilmschool.com/
Tel. no.: +91-22-28257009/+91-22-28257008