Fresh Works/Dope Cinematography/Culturally Relevant
Carlos Batlló the Motion Graphic Designer
I’ve followed the work of Carlos Batlló for a long time now! Even more, I’ve bought a handful of his designs because they are so darn good! If you don’t believe me… check them out here and you be the judge for yourself: Work
He is a great motion designer and film student living in Barcelona. Therefore, because he already has a good body of work circulating around on the internet and a nice fan base I can’t wait to see the first film. Let’s peer into his discipline and motivations for this medium.
1. What inspires you to create/design through the medium of film?
I guess is true that inspiration is everywhere: you see something curious and you end up using it for something completely unrelated. I try to follow good advice that says that if you want to do something, like film or motion graphics you shouldn’t look for inspiration in films or motion graphics. However it’s inevitable that watching films, commercials, and other peoples works gives you the starting point for something of your own. In some occasions I see a particular style and I challenge myself to copy it. I like the fact that the final result is going to be very different from the original, and that’s the point.
For design, I (as everyone else) look back to old trends and grab something from there: posters, newspapers, painting or printing (I dig all kind of mechanical thing). When doing film, I directly steal. I hope I will end up developing a style of my own, but that takes practice.
2. What is your fave film and why?
I’ll say Memento or Fight Club.
In Memento, I like the breaking of the narrative to make a dull story extremely interesting. I also like it from the production point of view: Being able to do a film with a few simple locations, a handful of actors and no fancy effects wins me. I guess you can also put Reservoir Dogs on that list.
Fight Club, I like the way it plays with the spectator, the self-referencing jokes. I also have to mention a film called Un Prophete. I’ve showed it to many people and no one shared my enthusiasm, but it got to me (a lot).
And going East, I should add Old Boy and Bin Jip.
I’ll stop here before they keep coming.
3. Who is your fave director? and what do you like about him/her?
It wouldn’t be fair if I didn’t say Nolan and Fincher. Of course I like a bunch of other directors, but those two are making good movies today. They make films that don’t rely on the groundbreaking FX, nor the touching scenes, nor the witty dialogs, nor the crazy experimental stuff, etc. They make films that rely on themselves, on the measured combination of all the above to deliver a true film, without refusing to be commercial and appealing to a wide audience.
I also enjoy watching a directors first films. It’s often said that a directors first films are the best ones. In addition, I like to see how they managed to pull off a film when they weren’t really known. You also get some surprises, seeing how some directors style changes radically through the decades.
4. What’s new… (what’s the next venture)?
Freelance and stock motion design it’s my main job today, but it’s not what I enjoy the most. It lets me eat, which is fairly important. I just finished my film studies (thankfully, since in many senses it felt a bit like a waste of Time) and I also recently finished my first short film, called Quimera. It’s not great but I learned a lot from doing it, and now I see myself able to pull something more ambitious. I would like to make a film somewhere in the future. The main problem is that I don’t consider myself a good scriptwriter, and that’s probably the first step. I feel like I’m better translating a script into images. If anyone has a good story in mind, let me know!
I Am Butler would like to thank Carlos Batlló for his willingness to take on our questions.
You can reach him for inspiration or videography work here: http://www.carlosbatllo.com
Urban Development
In order to build cities in the 21st century you have to observe the people and their surroundings.
Then you have to interpret the the needs, wants and demands of those people and apply new and apply new and/or existing tangible tools and infrastructures to the network of communities they’ll impact.
The Multifaceted Filmmaker Rylee Jean Ebsen
Rylee Jean Ebsen is a multifaceted filmmaker who writes, directs and edits. Everyone knows what a maverick is… a jack of all trades master of none. Not so with Ms. Esben. Literally, she can do it all!
I made the mistake, unbeknownst to her, of thinking she was a man. Now, she is beautiful don’t get me wrong; and I am happily married, LOL! But when I looked at a film she produced I immediately thought she was a he. Furthermore, it wasn’t that her films were overly masculine; Frankly they were full of great detail. Rylee’s highly illustrative pictures grabbed my attention and begged my fingertips to search for more of her work. Her body of work is solid, progressive and pushes the edges of the norm.
I’m glad I was slapped in the face with my own underlying bias. Rylee is a bright and budding filmmaker and I look forward to seeing what she produces in the near future! Until then please enjoy her film Resolution of Two and her Interview.
1. What inspires you to create/design through the medium of film?
Film making is all about story telling and I often use my eccentric family as inspiration for my stories. I co-wrote my short “Baby” with my Uncle, and we hope to make it into a feature after I graduate from NYU. It’s about a depressed forty year old, who wasn’t named until he was five and has spent his whole life trying to to get over his scarring dysfunctional childhood. To us, making films about our crazy family is some form of therapy, art is definitely therapy.
People from all walks of life influence my characters, I’ve met quite a few oddballs while living in New York. After spending time with an 80 year old burlesque dancer and her “sisterhood of the traveling g-string” pals for my first documentary, I realized that truth is definitely stranger (& far more interesting) than fiction. I think film is the most engaging art form because of all the elements– sound, cinematography, art direction, etc. I love when I’m in the middle of watching a great film, all the pieces effortlessly melt together, and I think to myself I don’t want this to end.
2. What is your fave film and why?
That’s a very hard question to answer because I have so many… I guess besides Harold and Maude, Stand By Me, Young Frankenstein, Royal Tenenbaums, The Departed, Rear Window, & Almost Famous… I love Sunset Blvd. because it honed my adoring and analytical eye for cinema after watching it in a high school film class. Pulp Fiction because it’s badass, hilarious and gritty–a classic. And American Beauty because it’s magnificent–the symbolism, colors, and voice over are nicely used and the performances are wonderful.
3. Who is your fave director? and what do you like about him/her?
Again! Another really hard question for any film buff to answer, besides Besson, Varda, Wilder, Kubrick, Coppolas, Truffaut, Coens, PT Anderson, & Tarantino… I like Amy Heckerling because as if Clueless and Fast Times At Ridgemont High didn’t delight me enough as a kid, she’s a lady (holler to my film gurlz) and also went to NYU. Wes Anderson because he nails dysfunctional relationships and I’m a sucker for art direction. It’s a divine passion of mine and I usually spend most of my time & money on it, but I think it’s money well spent. Plus, Anderson and I share one deep, divine, & passionate love for Bill Murray. I must also say, Woody Allen because of his neurotic and ingenious scripts: Annie Hall, Love and Death, Manhattan… need I say more. His dysfunction, dry humor, and self deprecation makes him a true film-making gem.
4. What’s new… (what’s the next venture)?
I am currently living in New York City to study at Tisch, focusing on writing, directing, & editing. I had an incredibly hectic schedule last semester, making three short films and a music video. I want to write more this semester and hopefully produce a few more projects. One will be a dark comedy about a quirky convalescent home and the other a ridiculous rom-com about cougars (over sexualized older females not the cats). I’m excited and honored to be a woman in film, trying to bring a female perspective and voice to the medium. I just want to enjoy school, I only have two more years left before I’m violently thrown into the real world… so now is the time to experiment and have fun. I’ve learned so much from my collaborations with my friends and talented peers that I think it’s important to support each other. I believe success is nothing without people to share it with.
Last, check out Letting Go of Leo when you have some spare time.
I Am Butler would like to thank Rylee Jean Ebsen for his willingness to take on our questions.
You can reach him for inspiration or videography work here: Rylee Jean Ebsen
Rishi Kaneria: A Tactician of Filmmaking
I was reluctant and fortunate to interview Rishi Kaneria! I was blown away when saw his film Stunt Poetry. Further, when I had the opportunity interview him… personally, I gained a greater understanding and respect for the craft. Filmmaking in and of itself is an art that requires creativity and discipline… he understands that. It’s a visual presentation where every nuance, stroke and movement of the talent and camera means something. The best words to describe this Tactician of Filmmaking are:
1. His film Stunt Poetry
2. And his answers below
1) What inspires you to create/design through the medium of film?
Ever since I was a child I’ve always loved all forms of creative expression, whether that’s illustration, design, writing, music, photography, 3d, etc. For me the process of making a film is the combination of all those things in one and that’s why it’s always appealed to me: it’s the fusion of all the arts into one medium.
2) What is your fave film and why?
That is a tough one. I have many favorites and its hard to pick one. But one of my favorite films is “Rear Window” by Alfred Hitchcock. And to me its because it exemplifies the perfect execution of what I call “subjective” film-making, which is one of my favorite approaches to film-making. This type of film-making strives to place the audience into a character and tell the story through the characters experience rather than through other more authorial exposition techniques; at all times we only know and see what the character knows and sees and we really “are” the character. The director doesn’t preach a moral, we instead are placed in the shoes of the character and we learn through their experience and take from it what we will. “Rear Window” takes the idea of this “point of view” to the nth degree by adhering to a very strict set of unwritten rules on how the camera operates though a scene and how the shots are storyboarded out in such a logical and psychological way as to very closely recreate the actual world view experience of the characters in the movie – and this furthermore carries itself over to the set design, lighting, sound design, screenplay and etc so that the psychological mood of the character at any given moment is shown on screen through light and color and composition. I very much enjoy seeing movies that are so disciplined, strict and consistent with this approach to film-making, and Rear Window is one of those movies that follows this approach to its furthest conclusions.
3) Who is your fave director? and what do you like about him/her?
I have many favorite directors: from art-house directors to main stream directors of today and yesteryear, so again its hard to choose just one. But to be consistent with my previous response I will have to say that one of my all time favorite directors is Alfred Hitchcock. And I like him because he manages to merge art and commercial success into one package. He is loved by audiences and critics (for the most part) alike. He also has a huge body of work that is consistently good. I loved that he practiced “pure cinema” and was a very visual film-maker, always storyboarding all his movies, and using film in a way that no other medium could re-create not even the great “novel” or stage play. So I liked that he used the unique benefits and qualities of film to make something that could not be made equally in any other format. And that helped place cinema on its own respected platform. In particular to me he was one of the first film makers to really adhere very strictly to that subjective approach to film – using point of view to create very visceral experiences, and not only that, but he made use of it to really excite audiences and take that experience to the next level by making those early “summer blockbusters” while still keeping his films intelligent and artful.
4) What’s new… (what’s the next venture)?
My next video will probably be of a trip I took this year to India for a week to scatter my father’s ashes in a holy river per his wishes. It will be more of a travel video capturing the visual deliciousness that is India in its rawness. I’ll try and add my own creative spin to this familiar format.
I Am Butler would like to thank Rishi Kaneria for his willingness to take on our questions.
You can reach him for inspiration or videography work here: Rishi Kaneria
Jamice Ivie the Faith Based Filmmaker
Jamice Ivie is full of faith and it bleeds through his films! He stands a part in the Christian Faith for solid & visually compelling media that grabs and holds your attention…! His portfolio of 30+ films showcases his creative storytelling, utilization of motion graphics and purposeful cuts and edits. In addition, Jamice’s minimalistic use of motion graphics gives his films greater pop and color.
Below you will find a moving piece of work Jamice authored titled “10 Years Ago“, a tribute to the 9/11 Anniversary.
I sat down with Jamice and this is what he had to say!
1. What inspires you to create/design through the medium of film?
Life, I guess inspires me. Music especially always seems to be a great influence over the way I think and approach whatever I do. Really though, its the unobtainable and the unknown that pushes me. The feelings and emotions that I have felt and want to evoke in other people lives, the fact of effecting other human beings in a small but significant way is, I think, priceless!
Maybe it is something like what adrenaline junkies are constantly pushing for… the next new thing the bigger jump and the faster falls? I just want to make a world and cause you to loose touch with reality, or bring you closer to the hard truth of it.
2. What is your fave film and why?
My favourite film? Well, I have a few 
I have a film that i absolutely love, because of the plot, story and amazing concept, the day after tomorrow, is such a intriguing film that has a lot of value to me. I enjoy solid stories even more than cool FX and amazing stunts. Like O brother: by the Coen bros, Finding nemo: Pixar, Juno… etc. To say I have a favorite is prob not possible 
3. Who is your fave director? and what do you like about him/her?
I have a great deal of respect for Francis Ford Coppola. He is creating films right now that HE wants to make and telling stories that he feels needs to be told. Financing films are expensive but he continues to create, because he is a story teller and must create. I find that so awesome and beautiful!
4. What’s new… (what’s the next venture)?
My next venture…? If I knew that I would be doing it! But then I would miss the amazing journey and trip to the destination. I want to eventually create a few mini series… one day. I personally have connected and bonded closer with characters in tv series on a deeper level simply because you get to know them for an entire season and countless hours. So by the time the series ends, you are effected emotionally and mentally on a greeter scale ( if done correctly ) than you ever would be in a short 2 hour feature. The greatest example of this is Little Dorrit, a BBC Mini Series. It is a dramatic story based from the classic by Charles dickens, seriously, check it out… its a really well made piece.
There you go buddy! Hope it wasn’t to long.
TTYL!
I Am Butler would like to thank Jamice Ivie for his willingness to take on our questions.
You can reach him for inspiration or videography work here: http://vimeo.com/jamiceivie
