Mike was lucky enough to have Leigh Whannell and James Wan drop by the Film Lab to discuss their new movie INSIDIOUS, which we loved back during Midnight Madness and opens Friday April 1st in theatres everywhere.
Mike breaks it down for you: zoom lenses have their advantages, and prime lenses have their advantges. It's just that prime lenses have more of them ...more
Mike's luck has finally turned around as he was finally able to snag an iPhone 4. But what does this mean for the future of THE FILM LAB?
Our buddy Matt Brown is involved with the One Minute Short Film Festival, whis is pretty cool! You should watch this video and then work on your submission... www.minutefilmfest.com
Rajo begins investigating the illusive mystery of aspect ratios and just why on earth we're STILL finding black bars on our fancy new widescreen TVs.
This particular chunk of our Gareth Edwards (Monsters) interview contains this message: grab your camera, install some commercial post-production graphics software on your computer and start motion tracking!
The free version of tools is great and offers tons of useful features. The paid "suite" version is a great value too - it lets users collaborate, share updates, manage edits.......the list goes on. Great customer service via their Twitter account - @Celtx
Jacob Medjuck, writer/director of SUMMERHOOD talks to The Film Lab about his writing process and the collaboration of his cast and crew in making his film (Part 1).
Rajo's given this a lot of thought and now he wants to share with you. If you're interested, that is... THE TOP 7 HARRY POTTER MOVIES OF ALL TIME
We got to Austin TX last night and got really drunk. But that didn't stop us from watching a really weirdly retarded movie this morning at 9:40 AM...specifically, The Tourist with Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp.
Happy Hallowe'en! Mike shows us how far a little corn syrup, warm water and food colouring can go, especially if you're looking to save a few bucks in your SFX budget. Fake Blood!
THE STREAM - Check out Mike's 'boss' top 4 list of gag-me-with-a-spoon 80's TV show movie remakes. Oh, how will the new A-Team movie stack up?
Mike runs down the whys and the what-fors surrounding pre-production scheduling. Surprise: a lot of it has to do with keeping your cast and crew happy.
Here's a quick and dirty little series on the very basics of non-linear editing. If you're not using FCP, don't worry, every non-linear editing software package functions in more or less the same way.
THE FILM LAB - Bingo's back to explain just what the heck a Dutch Angle (or Dutch Tilt) is! Ha ha!
Rajo takes you through the final installment of our ridiculously basic series on non-linear editing with Final Cut Pro. Now you go try it ...more
Gareth Edwards has made a miracle of a film: cheap, gorgeous, smart, super entertaining and, effects-wise, on par with a lot of Hollywood's more expensive sci-fi projects. He talked to Mike at this past TIFF ...more
Continuing his series on the very basics of non-linear editing, Rajo finally gets to the fun part: editing with Final Cut Pro.
Hail to the hardworking facilitators in the production office!
Rajo shows off his new favourite iPhone app, the incredibly cheap and easy to use Stop Motion Recorder from bitween. Holy cats is it ever cool...Watch this quick and easy tutorial!
ON LOCATION #3 - The misfits, the long-hairs, the toughguys with the tough job. They hold flags, they hold scrims, they hold your life in their hands... come spend a few minutes on the grip/electric truck on location in the Film Lab & see what's what.
Pulling focus is a neat trick that you should definitely try sometime! It's a great filmmaking technique, and it's not that hard to pull off.
Exactly how did Sly manage to collect all our favourite 80s action stars in one super-movie? And why couldn't such a movie come out IN the 80s?
Rajo lays out a fairly basic primer on 3D film technology. Show of hands, who's going to Pirhana 3D this friday?
Pulling focus is a neat trick that you should definitely try sometime! It's a great filmmaking technique, and it's not that hard to pull off.
Mike explains stop motion animation, which is incidentally the coolest kind of animation out there.
This quick intro video only scratches the surface of all the DIY filmmaking technique tutorials that are waiting for you in The Film Lab -- join Mike and Rajo as they shed some light on important stuff that will help you pull together your masterpiece!
Ok, so your new film got selected for the fancy-pants film festival. Now what? Kris Booth, director of AT HOME BY MYSELF WITH YOU talks about going to Cannes, and sharing his passion..
Making a film? Is it your first time? Have you got your actors pushed right up against the wall? Can you see their shadows? BIG MISTAKE, rookie... Here's Mike with two quick tips to help you out.
Not only is Jacob Medjuck the talented writer/director of Summerhood, but he also came up with a brilliant way to get his film seen in theatres ...more
Mike likes what Water For Elephants gets right and recommends a Kevin Costner favourite, from back when he made really good movies. This one co-stars Darth Vader.
MIke waxes poetic about his favourite kind of, uh, tape. Gaffer tape: better than duct/duck in almost everyway save for its price. Don't go to set without some.
Rajo talks to and about the famous inventor Dr. Nakamats and his brand new biographical documentary - The Invention of Dr. Nakamats. Meet the man behind the floppy disc, karaoke and over 3,000 other patents - the most in the world!
Running late for The National Parks Project meant that Rajo took in a little election doc called GNARR... fitting viewing on the eve of one of the nail-bitingest Canadian Federal elections in recent memory.
Instead of watching one of the most cliché-ridden war movies of our generation (modelled after Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan), why not watch a really, really well-made documentary about the Oka crisis of 1990? Huh?
Just in time for TIFF, we chat with AT HOME BY MYSELF WITH YOU's Kris Booth about applying to festivals as a canadian director..
Our interview with Jacob Medjuck (writer/director of Summerhood) continues as he spills his trade secrets re: working with children and allowing authenticity to emerge.
What the heck is a cucalorus? Maybe Bingo can explain it, if he calms down a bit first. ...more
Wes Craven is a very important dude in film history primarily because of his role in shaping the modern horror genre into what it is today. Plus he has a really badass sounding name.
Big weekend with a lot of new releases: the social network, Waiting for Superman, some Woody Allen, a little Buried but Mike wants you to watch something else instead. A hint: it's a mockumentary about hosers and it's called FUBAR 2.
Got a film in the works? Why not finish it up and submit it to an upcoming festival?
I would kill to see Sir Anthony Hopkins, one of the best actors of our time play a role that wasn't pretty much EXACTLY like Hannibal Lector. Also, why are exorcist movies not that scary anymore?
Mike is shocked at how much he actually liked Ashton Kutcher's latest romantic comedy NO STINGS ATTACHED... but he credits it to a solid script, great direction by Ivan Reitman and the casting of a whole bunch of talented actresses. Check it out!
Hey, are you in the dark re: Scre4m? Are you wondering why there's a number in the middle of that word? Have you ever heard of Neve Campbell? JUST WHAT IS THE DEAL WITH SCREAM 4???
Scream 4, a call-back sequel to the 10+ yr. old Scream franchise is not too bad, according to Matt Brown. But if you ain't gonna go see it, he's got something for you to watch instead ...more
Look at this poor kid, he's exhausted. And as a result, he's a little cranky when it comes to hotDocs' midnight movie program thing, which he says has has lots of potential yet untapped ...more
Do NOT go see The Adjustment Bureau this weekend. Instead, watch a guy in pajamas touch baby penises for 90 minutes. Trust us, it's the better deal!
Instead of watching yet another terrible SAW film, take about 30 minutes right now and check out Der Lauf Der Dinge (The Way Things Go) on youtube because it's really cool and SAW 3D isn't.
We sent Amanda to the Yonge/Dundas AMC in Downtown Toronto to chat with a few like-minded Harry Potter fanatics! Check out some of these costumes ...more
Wow, what a party! Rajo hits this year's hotDocs' opening night gala and manages to talk to documentary filmmakers Morgan Spurlock & Michael Tucker as well as a few of the guys from FIGHTVILLE!
We've explained exactly what Chroma Keying is. We showed you how to set up a green screen from Whites Interactive. We showed you how to light your green screen evenly. Now, here's Rajo in The Film Lab's edit suite to show you what to do with your green screen footage in Final ...more
As it turns out, Angelina Jolie's new spy/action/thriller SALT proves that cool girls don't look at explosions.
People smile in this movie. This is a genius breakthrough Another day, another remake. Another safe choice during apparently rocky times - this wintry economic climate, don't you know - and we're off and watching Joe Carnahan's big-screen version of the A-Team. In 2010. Why ...more
We're sad to see him go, but Mike 'The Greek' has other high profile events that he just needs to put some money on. Find out who's got his final Mortal Lock of the day, and also: Best Picture!
Rajo sheds some light on why you might dig this bunny tale, either way - you can't go wrong with a few other funny James Marsden suggestions.
Mike and Rajo saw Tron Legacy in Imax 3d at Aintitcoolnews' Buttnumbathon after being awake for 24 hours and it melted our faces off.
Toronto International Film Festival - Midnight Madness night number 6 saw the screening of James Wan's Insidious..
This week's Two Minute Critic Matt Brown spills his guts re: Source Code! BRAND NEW SERIES!
We're sad to see him go, but Mike 'The Greek' has other high profile events that he just needs to put some money on. Find out who's got his final Mortal Lock of the day, and also: Best Picture!