Technical specifications

Hiya guys :)
I'm back and again with another blog post.  This time I will be talking about the technical specs.


2001: A Space Odyssey

Okay, so below this paragraph is a screenshot from IMDb page.  The screenshot allows me to look at the cameras used, the aspect ratio for 2001 and a lot more information I didn't know about the film itself.  As you can see the cameras used in 2001 are all celluloid which means that that the film was recorded using film.  I find it interesting that the original length of the film was going to be 161 minutes but they decided to cut it down by 19 minutes for the cinemas.  In the screenshot, you can see the aspect ratio of the film (2.30 :1) which means how tall and wide the cinema screen was when it was being shown to the members of the public.

There was only two different types of cameras used in this film which is very low compared to The Martian as they used five. 

2001: A Space Odyssey was recorded in the late 1960's so this means that they didn't have the camera technology we have today, but as a film student I feel that this film despite being recorded on film is really good.  This is because they used a lot of camera angles despite only having two different types of cameras and also the special effects are really good (they created one scene with effects with no technology just over laying clips together)

The Martian

The cameras used for this film are very different compared to 2001: A Space Odyssey due to this film being recorded using digital cameras whereas 2001 used film.  By using the GoPro Hero4 allows to have very different camera angles and also I feel that this allowed the film to be more realistic/modern by using updated technology.  I really liked when they attached the GoPro onto Damon's helmet in one of the scenes used in The Martian - it allowed the viewers to have a sort of POV (Point of View) angle of what Damon's character is currently seeing, instead of having either a mid angle/close-up.

The cinematographer of the film, Dariusz Wolski used a lot of other cameras other than just GoPro which allowed a lot more camera angles and shots, He also used an Optimo DP Lenses twice for two different cameras which is very interesting.  

The aspect ratio as you can see for The Martian it was 2.32 :1, which surprisingly very close to 2001 - this makes it interesting to compare both films because of both aspect ratios being so close together yet there is 40 years between them.

This source allows me to look at the technical specs for each of the two films and allow me to compare/contrast the cameras they used (an example).  I will use this information for quite a few of the LOs as it mentions the aspect ratio - I can use this when talking about it being shown at cinemas.

Love,
Christie xox

Differences between 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Martian *still updating*

Hey :)
So following up from the previous blog which talked about all the similarities that 2001 and The Martian had, I thought it would be a good idea to talk about the differences.

Differences 

• 2001 is 47 years older than The Martian.
• 2001: A Space Odyssey was nominated 4 Academy Awards while The Martian was nominated 7.
• Even though the running times for each film are very close (only 1 minute), 2001 is 142 minutes while The Martian is 141 minutes.
• The Martian was filmed in roughly 70 days.
• While 2001 took 
• Each film was distributed by American film companies but different ones - 2001 was distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and The Martian by 20th Century 
• 2001 is a British film while The Martian is an American.

The sources I used to help me gather this information are the following:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2001:_A_Space_Odyssey_(film)
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Martian_(film)

SImualarities of the each film *still updating*

Hey guys.  Welcome back :)

Today this blog post will be talking about similarities of each of the two films.

Similarities

• The most obvious one is that both films are mainly set in space.
• They are also both sci-fi based films.
• 2001: A Space Odyssey was based on a book 
• The Martian was also based on a novel by Andy Weir.
• Both films had music during the film.
• Green screen was used for special effects

Sources:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2001:_A_Space_Odyssey_(film)
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Martian_(film)

Cameras used in 2001: A Space Odyssey

Following from the previous blog, here is a post about the cameras used in 2001: A Space Odyssey.  I hope you enjoy :)

2001: A Space Odyssey

This film used Mitchell Camera (Centrifudge Sequence) and Panavision Cameras. Both of these cameras are recorded using film which makes 2001 a celluloid film. On the second website I used, it explained when a specific lens was used during filming.  For example, when filming all the wide angle scenes, the lens used was the Fairchild-Curtis custom fisheye. 

Panavision Cameras

The information on this blog post will help me with LO1 (Compare the scientific principles of the chemical reaction of light on a film camera to the impact of light on a digital sensor).


Harvard Reference:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062622/technical?ref_=tt_dt_spec

Mike Iglass, 2015. What lenses were used on 2001: A Space Odyssey? (Online) Available at: https://www.quora.com/What-lenses-were-used-on-2001-A-Space-Odyssey (Accessed 8th December 2016)

Hope you enjoyed this blog all about the cameras and lenses used on both of the films.  See you soon with another blog post.

~ Christie ❤

Cameras used in The Martian

Hi guys :)

Today I will be talking about the cameras and lenses used in each film I am studying, describing the equipment themselves and I will be adding any sources I used to gather information.

The Martian

The Martian used three different types of cameras; Red Epic Dragon, Red Scarlett Dragon and GoPro Hero 4.  The Red Epic Dragon and Red Scarlett Dragon are both digital cameras which are roughly 

I really like that this film used a GoPro. This is because I feel that this made it more interesting because it used a lot of different camera angles, which made the cinematography really creative. 

Below is a video of when the film used the GoPro.  I love this video because it shows you some parts of the film with the use of GoPro, and also how they used it in different ways. For example, the GoPro was attached to a space helmet.

The lenses used for this film was Fujinon Premier Cabrio, Angenieux Optimo and Optimo DP Lenses

The information on this blog post will help me with LO1 (Compare the scientific principles of the chemical reaction of light on a film camera to the impact of light on a digital sensor).

Harvard Reference:

• V Renee, 2016. What Cameras Were Used On The Oscar-Nominated Films Of 2016? V Renee (Online Blog), 15th January. Available at: http://nofilmschool.com/2016/01/which-cameras-were-used-oscar-nominated-films-2016 (Accessed 7th December 2016)
• Albert Kloury, 2015 GoPro goes to Mars with Matt Damon on The Martian (online).Available at: https://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/the-martian-was-filmed-with-gopro/ (Accessed 7th December 2016)

Hope you enjoyed this blog all about the cameras and lenses in The Martian.  See you soon with another blog post.

~ Christie ❤

Welcome

Introduction

Hi there!! My name is Christie Ellis and I am in my first year studying at Confetti ICT (partnership with Nottingham Trent University).  This blog is for VEPT10029: The Evolution of Film Technology.  Through-out this assignment I will be gathering different types of research for my two chosen films I am going to be writing an essay about.  My two chosen films are 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Martian. 

The reason I chose both of these films for my essay is because they are very similar in some ways - for example, the same genre (Sci-Fi), both films uses a wide range of visual effects and  

There are some differences between each film which is good as I can compare and contrast them.  For example, 2001: A Space Odyssey was filmed on a film camera whereas The Martian used a digital camera.  Another difference is the technical overview for each film (I will be going through this in more detail in another blog post). 

That is just a few examples of the similarities and differences for each film but I will be talking about a lot more in a later blog. 

That is enough of my introduction paragraph, I am going to now just write about the background information for each film, add a few pictures to make it this blog more creative. 

2001: A Space Odyssey

The beginning of the film

• This film was directed, produced and 1/2 written by Stanley Kubrick.
• It starts Keir Dulled and Gary Lockwood
• It was released on 3rd April 1968 in USA but wasn't until 15th May it wax released in UK.
• The theatrical length of the film is 142 minutes (2 hours 22 minuites ).
• The budget was approx. $10.5-12 million.
• Box office was roughly $138-190 million. 
• This film was inspired by a short story which was written by the other screenwriter (Arthur C. Clarke) called
• It is about a journey to Jupiter with a computer-generated machine called Hal.  Afterwards, it leads to the discovery of a unusual black monolith which affects the human evolution. 
• There are a series of themes through out this film - such as human evolution, technology and  artificial intelligence.  There are more but I will have a blog post just on themes, so more themes dealt with in this film will be on that blog post.
• It was distributed and financed by an American studio called Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
• The film was shot and mainly edited in UK.
• Today, 2001 is known for one of the greatest and most influential films that was ever made

Stanley Kubrick behind the scenes of 2001: A Space Odyssey

The Martian

DVD front cover

• The film was directed by Ridley Scott.
• Matt Damon and Jessica Chastain stars in this movie. 
• It was realised in USA on 2nd October 2015.
• This film is only a minute shorter than 2001.
• The budget of this film was $108 million.
• $630.2 million was how much the film earned in the box office.
• This film was also based on a novel by Andy Weir
• It is about Mark (Damon) who is an astronaut and is left for 'dead' on Mars.  The film follows his new life on Mars, his struggle to survive and tries to communicate with his team on Earth to save him,
• 20th Century Fox was the distribution company,
• The film was released on 2D, 3D, IMAX, 4DX.
• This is Scott's highest-grossing film up to date.
• Filming locations included in Budapest, Jordon and USA.

Behind the scenes of The Martian

Thank you for reading, hope you found it interesting and I will see you soon with another blog......

~ Christie ❤