Fragility Feedbacks, so far.

" The usage of space is very well thought of, and the camera movements compliments it well too. Personally likes the consistent usage of focus shift of the piece, and the constant cutting between the conversation itself and the conversation off screen with shots of the girl. Good use of music and sound. Notices the change of light on Liang's face, referring it as a continuity error. Not really a fan of the tv static usage, being the depiction (personally) of the dream sequence a point of view of Lydia's character - using tv static, a very technological and electronic thing to represent something biological like memories. Likes Ching Yee's performance and thinks she's a very capable actress"

David Heinemann, Lecturer


"Love the style of the cinematography, the representation of space through cinematography and continuity was brilliant, interested and hopes to work with Anwari for my final year project. I really like his style!"

Navarro Aydemir


"Disagrees with David's opinions about the usage of static, and believes that the usage of static represents 'disturbance' and compliments well the situation - disturbance in her memory - her forgeting him. Likes the look of the film, especially it's depth of field"

James Clear Tournas, fellow filmmaker


"Finds the cast to be rather good, charismatic in a way. Likes the significant difference of depth of field between the dream sequence and the real world"

David Paul Irons, fellow filmmaker


"The film looks promisingly professional, not very keen of the whole idea in which the past events are hocked into the audience by the means of dialogue. The film, being fairly experimental, might have utilize other ways to represent the past events, something more expressive ,perhaps with mise-en-scene or such. The dialogue in the beginning draws the audiences' interest away early in the film. Otherwise, the dream sequence is wicked!"

Nicole Wirth, film critic


"The editing is superb, also notices the continuity error with light on liang's face. Finds the dialogue scene to be a bit long and dragging"

Siti Noor Fateha, senior filmmaker



"Ching Yee's performance is great!"

Suraya Hani, Media Student


"The early handheld scene to be novice-ly shot, likes Liang's performance and is the only science student to watch it and interpret the dream sequence as a struggle for memory, and likes the dream sequence."

Afida Liyana, Petronas Scholar


"Likes the effects in the dream sequence! Nothing like the Malay trash films"

Emir Anuar, Physics Whiz


"Find the acting to be a little stiff, resulting the feeling of dragging-ness early into the film, almost cried towards the end, almost got a heart attack from the sudden neuron buzz and strikes"

Elly Azreen, Law Student


"The acting seems to be a little stiff, was irritated by the high pitched sound, couldn't relate the content to the title, and a few medical mistakes"

Farhan Wilson, Medical Student

Rough Cut for Fragility Ready

I'm writing this as I export the rough cut of Fragility. I just finished editing it. Not done 100% yet though, I'll call it a rough cut if anything. Personally, what I'm trying with Fragility is something I've never done before, and it is unlikely to be my 'kind' of film. I thought that it'll be challenging and fun. Plus, when else should I experiment if not while I study right? Well I think I did ok (I guess) considering how unfamiliar I am to this type of film-making.

Sound was a bitch to edit in this. Not only in the dream sequence, but the conversation/ normal-action ones too! All because of that annoying thing that goes off occasionally in the location we were shooting, I have quite a hefty amount of footage with my voice cussing to it. This thing I'm talking about is a malfunctioning security alarm that beeps every 3 to 5 minutes. And I tell you, loads of it managed to get into my footage. Some I managed to wipe out with post production, some I wasn't so able to.

The dream sequence requires me a lot of imagination to edit its sound. I don't know if I can be proud of it or not. But heck, I am kinda proud of it anyway.

So yeah, class premiere coming!!!
*Freaks Out and Faints*

Fragility Premieres 23rd March

As the title suggest, 23rd for the class premiere and 30th for public premiere. Come to the public premiere guys! And see me embarrass myself in front of everyone!

Here's the promotional poster! Ching Yee looks good as the poster girl don't she?

Fragility

So I haven't been updating for a while. I thought that I might as well do now. So right now I am at a point of being hyped about my upcoming shoot. A short film for my graded final yeas assessment; Fragility. I don't know if some people might find the title cheesy or something, but I personally feel it's one of the best titles I've ever came up with. I always like the idea of having a short, dynamic, one-word title for my works. For me it's either one-word short or really long like exampled with: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. No, I haven't watched that yet if you have to ask. So down here is the rough edit of the first page of Fragility:

Fragility

by Anwari Ashraf

FADE IN:

INT.HOUSE.LIVING HALL.DAY

BILLY and JIMMY are carrying and arranging a few boxes. They both stop about the same time. They stand there silent, awkward.

BILLY
Coffee?

JIMMY
Yeah, Sure.

Billy walks into the kitchen.

INT.HOUSE.ROOM.DAY

LYDIA still lies on the bed. Still motionless, almost lifeless.

INT.HOUSE.LIVING HALL.DAY

Billy and Jimmy sits at the opposite sides of the table, with cups of coffee in front of both. There is a moment of silence for a while.

BILLY
Hey, listen. Thanks for coming down
to the hospital and back here for
all this. I really appreciate it.

JIMMY
No, please. It’s nothing.

They pause again.

JIMMY
So how long has it been?

BILLY
Sorry?

JIMMY
Lydia, Coma.

BILLY
Oh she’s no longer in her coma.
She’s awake. They call it PVS,
Persistent Vegetative State. It’s a
post- coma thing. She has awaken
from her coma, but there’s just
still no sign of awareness.

JIMMY
I see

BILLY
The Doctor said that it’s 50 - 50.
In some cases, people with her
condition would just wake up
spontaneously one day. Others
just...But not her, I know she’ll
wake up one day.

So yeah, that's about it. Do tell me if anyone is interested to have a read of the whole script. Give me your email and I'll happily attach it; with hopes of criticism. Because I for one, find criticism to be a rather good thing to listen to. Although it does hurt at times, and I might bitch around about it for a while. But it makes me stop and think what I'm doing wrong.

I'm not trying to prolong this post by writing this, but recent events just made me feel like saying a few things about criticism.

I mean I know it can get harsh and rather dents you in the heart. But take it easily, don't bitch back. It's not their fault, they're just honest, some might just launch the harpoon because they feel intimidated. Or to reassure a non-secured self-know-it-all. But when these kind of things happens its no reason to back out and give in. Feeling down doesn't help you at all. Bitching it through Facebook status or notes can be annoying to other people. Take it in, swallow it up, digest it, and get rid tomorrow through your 'Morning Glory'

I know that I'm in a art-driven industry. And that subjectivity of opinions is rather common, but if someone doesn't like what I try to deliver, I really want to know why. Because it might be a thing that I might have looked over before. If its not, its always refreshing to know that I didn't succeed to please everyone. I rather go through that than get self-indulged with my known success and obliviously uninterested on my unknown failures.

So yeah, I'll stop here.

A Compulsive Psycho-Analyst

Well I havent been updating coz ive been doing all sorts of things lately, it HAS been a rather hectic time for me.

This post has nothing to do with any of my previous works, or anything as equally substantial to that. Its about something I've been meaning to channel since weeks now;

Have you ever had the feeling that you know too much? Some that you actually don't even want to know and wished you didn't. Have you ever had that like 50 times in a row?

Well I do.

I get to know all these things I'm not supposed to through various means and mediums, mostly from the compulsive psycho-analysis that's becoming like a fetish that I somehow developed from my studies in film.

You see, general opinion would think that learning film is all about the technical stuff, (lights, camera, editing, directing, pre-production, production, post-production yadayadayada) and I believe most institution even really practise that kind of film learning.

But where I end up to study is all about the appreatiation of film arts, in which might be not too wrong to say as - About the existence of people, about the sensual, sensitive nature of being a human being. and this, if you ask me, requires a lot of psycho-analysis.

So as i go on with this new compulsion of mine, I find that I'm understanding more about people, and its annoying how perfectly close I am to precise. How do I know this?

Facial articulation, tone of voice, involuntary body languange and at a certain extent, I just know, I have no specific solid proof whatsoever but I just do.

And later, God has HIS own way to somehow prove me right (as I rarely disclose what I find), and I curse myself for this! And its never easy to disclose what I figured out - so it's agonizing!

So yeah, stay away from me, because I might read you like a book.

Junctions DVD-ing

So i finished editing the interactive project i was working on. Believe me this is without a doubt, one of my worse, narrative-wise, I would like to dis-own it. But knowing that I must, however submit something for my degree grading process, i figured that i dont have any other choice.

Editing Junctions:



Well I have been asked by many people - Apakah Interactive?

So I might as well explain it here.
Interactivity

interactive |ˌintərˈaktiv|
adjective
(of two people or things) influencing or having an effect on each other : fully sighted children in interactive play with others with defective vision.
• (of a computer or other electronic device) allowing a two-way flow of information between it and a user, responding to the user's input : interactive video.

meaning that the user (whoever is playing the DVD) has the power to make decisions for the character in the video. And that the video has various turns and junctions that the user is allowed to make decision for. Thus, re-enforcing the idea of 'The Death of the Author'

Now I'm working on the process of actually making it interactive, you know with menus and stuff. So this here is the background for the main menu:

The two boxes indicated with arrows are to be filled with text from the menu buttons, you know, like one you find in a DVD. The production design of this DVD is inspired fully from no one other than Fatin herself. Her habit of scribbling everything that passes her mind inspires me to create 'The Notebook" theme.

Interactive DVD-ing Junctions


The thing about this project is that i would LOVE to disown all of the narrative content, but still take credit for all the other production values (except the narrative.just re-emphasizing).

Talking about credits; Junctions also have the longest credit i have ever included in a video. And a montage I'm pretty proud of. I would love to include the montage in here but since it would ruin the element of surprise for some people, I wont.

The other day i was watching one of Kak Siti's video and then I realized that she crams all her thanks in all of her videos. So being a good fellow Astro scholar, i decided that I should do the same from now on, as it feels incredebly good to do so!

So here is the GOOD end credits (being interactive, they are two end credits)



So yeah, the only part that i like about "Junctions" is it's production value; Montage, Menus, Styles, Credits. I HATE the story!

I'll post more up (montage, clips, pics etc.) after I submit it to the lecturer, so until then, itu saja yea murid2? =)

Happy Birthday My, Dearest.

Look at the date. Today is mid December, that practically makes it, "Tengah bulan, hujung tahun", her exact words when i asked her birthday many years ago, back then we were just friends, not even close friends. But I always felt comfortable whenever i'm around/conversing with herl, she's like this close-female-batchmate I never had (knowing I'm from such a homoerotic institution, SAS). It always felt good talking to her, sharing things, bitching about others (don't give me the stink stare, we ALL do that) and we also help boost each other spirits up when SPM (Severe Pain in My ass) came close.

And then after a few turbulence(s) in our relationship, we gradually became fond of each other, and the result is nothing else but what you see now. The typical, heterosexual 'Wari & Fatin' stereotype.

Since then, she has been every single thing to me; lover, friend, sister, pillowtalk mate, saviour, arch enemy, shoulder, strengh, weakness, total pain in my neck and always there, she's the most there person I ever met.

She often thinks that she always troubles me, and that she is too dependant of me. But the way I see it, I'm the one who's actually the burden, I've done so many horrible things to her that I despise myself everytime I even think of it. But the great thing about her is that, she never really blame me for anything that I do, even when she does, time would erase it off her memory permanently (unlike myself, who is a dreadful kaki ungkit). She looks up upon me as this 'Great Guy' I am not, as she honestly put my flaws aside. So far aside that when I ask her what she don't like about me, she can't really answer. But if she asks me; I have this pretty lengthy list of such things. It's not because I'm a better person than her, its because of the absolute opposite.
And when we argue who loves who more (sentimentality alert!! sassians beware), I often try to argue that I'm the one who loves her more, but I was kidding no one but myself, as I know, I could'nt match up to her love. (jiwangness, harap maaf ya)

Just look at those cheeks, dont you just want to bite them off? (not that any of you can la (including myself k?) but still). I can bable about how she's this super cute girl for hours now, so i wish to stop here.......................................................

(Awkward pause)

(Bunyi Angin)


I CANT HELP IT!! SHE"S SO CUTE!!

I always feel awful that since we've been together, I never actually had the chance to celebrate her birthday there, beside her. Which again, proves the point that unlike her, I'm not a very there person to her, then she is to me.

For your birthday my sweet, selfless, cute, loving, caring little angel, I wish nothing more but to be beside you, holding your hand, as you blow off 19 candles off your creamy, creamy little birthday cake. I will make my amends when my time here is done, when that happens, I'll make sure you'd be the happiest person on God's earth.