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Streeborama and the Lost Art of the Movie One Sheet.

Scarecrow At Midnight (2011) one sheet from Mutantville Productions.

Welcome to a special edition of Streeborama as we are going to discuss the lost art of horror movie one sheets!  I expect this to be an ongoing series here at Streeborama.  I want to discuss the good poster art of the past, what made it work and what makes modern poster art so terrible.

Whether you’re a filmmaker or just a fan – we are all extremely familiar with one sheets – or posters as they are referred to in the common vernacular.  I remember being twelve years old with a green apple lollipop in my hand wandering the aisles of the local mom and pops video store and being enthralled by the sights and horrors peering at me from the cover of the VHS boxes lining the shelves.  I was never allowed to watch the movies but they intrigued me nonetheless.  They often featured a mix of blood, skulls and beautiful women but it was always in a way that implied that something sinsiter was at work behind it all.

This was a time when poster art was REAL art.  They were conceived by artists with an actual goal of creating something eye catching to draw a potential viewer in.  Poster art was exciting, mysterious, inspirational and most all of – intriguing.

(Read the rest after the leap!  Posters!!!) Continue Reading…

Motivation Moments with Johnny Brento

I find that the life of a productive artist is one that requires constant motivation. The creative process for film is so multi-faceted and long that it’s easy to get side tracked. Take my role in MVP for instance. As editor and visual effects artist, much of the hoopla and excitement has died down by the time my work begins in earnest. The actors have moved on to other projects and except for the occasional “When will it be done” message I’m left to my work. In the case of Streebo as a director, we’ll he is a bit of a control freak and thusly is here for %100 of the assembly edits. So there is that to help keep me motivated and it helps quite a lot, but the visual effects work is a whole different matter. I always try to push the envelope with each project and assimilate new techniques. I spend a ton time alone watching tutorials, finding new After Effects plug-ins and generally researching how things are done by the pros.

Music is another great motivational tool. It constantly shapes my artistic mood. I’m fond of all kinds of music and can be found listening to Pandora.com radio almost all of my time I’m in the editing suite.

When it comes to branching out to assimilate other skills such as improving my writing or building myself as a director, I find that nothing motivates me more than someone saying or implying that I can’t do it. For instance, “I don’t think you have what it takes to be a director.” or “You don’t know how to build a story.” Ha! I’ll be damned before anyone else defines me as an artist or as a person. OK, so here comes my arcane movie quote. Harry Stamper (Bruce Willis’s character from Armageddon) “I have never missed a depth that I have aimed for.”

I truly believe that we make our own reality. Very few people start out as great artists or directors or guitar player/songwriters. These are skills one acquires and hard work beats talent that doesn’t work hard. Mutantville is all about defying the odds and breaking boundaries with very little resources. All of us are capable of so much more than those around us would ever believe through dedication and focused effort.

Remember this above all else Mutantville Players, Johnny Brento loves ya!