Marcus Blog

MOVING

2009-10-04T17:01:00.003-05:00

Hi, i decided to stop writing this blog and take it a step further, visually at least,
and give a better look to my website portfolio as well (www.siulong.it)
so for everyone interested in following me,
this is my new blog

See you there!

from "These short Days"

2009-09-25T05:22:00.003-05:00

An excerpt from this shortfilm shot entirely with a Canon 5DMK2 using timelapse techniques.
Beautiful shots, and if you wanna see more go directly to their website, Timescapes.org

2009-09-21T19:17:00.003-05:00

In the game industry we're becoming used to film quality trailers, full cg masterpieces (Blizzard docet) or sometimes combining live action and top notch visual effects.
Look at what Asylum did for Microsoft and the Halo saga:

David Fincher for Nike

2009-09-19T03:50:00.002-05:00

Agency: Wieden+Kennedy, Portland, Production: Anonymous Content, Director: David Fincher, DP: Emmanuel Lubezki, VFX: Hydraulx, Music: Soundtree, London, Sound Design: Mit Out Sound

2009-09-17T18:35:00.003-05:00

Psyop wins an Emmy Award for Coke Heist
Congrats to the LA team!

2009-09-17T02:34:00.002-05:00

Bioshock 2 end cinematic is over and looks amazing.
Unfortunately Psyop and all the artists involved are under a tight NDA so
i can't show anything till the release date.

Mary and Lisa

2009-09-13T11:27:00.004-05:00

on the road again...

2009-09-08T18:34:00.000-05:00

on set in Bulgaria

2009-09-07T17:01:00.004-05:00

goodbye...

Artificial Paradise

2009-09-06T05:42:00.002-05:00

Inspiring piece of work by visual artist Jp Frenay

2009-09-01T17:46:00.004-05:00

Busy September with this new project for
BRW Filmland and director Nikolai Karo

Let's roll then...

Nightbook

2009-08-31T18:11:00.000-05:00

funny movie leftovers

2009-08-28T02:28:00.002-05:00

2009-08-22T06:06:00.007-05:00

da uno splendido libro:

.. La vecchia opposizione tra quantità e qualità è spesso molto stupida: il superaffamato non ha solo più appetito, ha soprattutto appetiti più difficili. Esiste una scala di valori in cui il più genera il meglio: i grandi amanti lo sanno, gli artisti ossessivi anche...

Gli esseri che sono nati sazi, ce ne sono molti, non conosceranno mai questa angoscia incessante, questa attesa dinamica, questo stato febbrile, questa miseria che tiene svegli notte e giorno...
E' forse l espressione più vicina alla grazia o alla disgrazia dei giansenisti: non si sa perchè alcuni nascano affamati e altri sazi. E' una lotteria.
Io ho vinto il primo premio.

Amélie Nothomb "Biografia della fame"

2009-08-21T21:01:00.003-05:00

Visual Effects:
100 years of inspir ation

one to read

2009-08-19T08:33:00.005-05:00

Royksopp

2009-08-17T12:20:00.005-05:00

2009-08-16T17:36:00.006-05:00

Learn the principle, abide by the principle, and dissolve the principle.
Obey the principle without being bound by it.
Learn, master, achieve.

Bruce Lee

a sweet romantic story

2009-08-14T19:09:00.005-05:00

Peace and clouds

2009-08-12T16:40:00.003-05:00

Tronic for Apple

2009-08-10T12:03:00.003-05:00

A short, product-oriented, interview with 2 very talented artists i recently collaborated with, Vivian and Jesse.
In each project, their use of visual fx is very well thought and planned, a mix of design-oriented techniques, and often producing interesting results from collaborations with other arts and crafts, which is of course, something i personally love.

Interview is in italian

2009-08-09T20:06:00.003-05:00

Janusz Kaminski on The Art of Cinematography

About my photo portfolio..

2009-08-08T06:30:00.002-05:00

Remembering onwards

In an impossible date, somewhere in the past these picture were taken,
the trace they left is looking onwards, somewhere again, in something
closer to the future that any of our thoughts.
You look at a collection simply divided in people and places, but the
names soon fade in something that may collect them both, that would
let their geometries intertwine. There is a careful, almost terrifying
use of shapes, lines, of forms that never just happen to be, and it is
in these forms that the path is announced, the path that, once again,
only seems to lead to the future.

Photography was the future, the future spying on the present, a way of
framing the present in impossible instants, instants beyond nature and
natural perception. Yet photography made of the biologically
impossible the only possibility of looking outwards –this is the
space, and call it world. But the discovery of space, of our space, is
also a discovery of time, and time is a non-concept, it is artificial
and hidden, felt or just imagined. I like to think of these pictures
as imagining time, as looking beyond it, but there is also the need of
saying more: these pictures are remembering, yet, they are remembering
the future.

In the collection of games made of words we can think of a way to
shift memories in the future; black and white are the colors of
memory, because colors are the first instance to disappear, they are
the subjective appendix of images, never reliable, never engrained in
time. Left with shades we are open to reconstruction, to see what
happened in the future, we are ready to claim that the future is a
hidden past and this we call an experiment in the present.
Experimenting on the present, is, of course, living it. People and
places turn alive in their capacity to face their past, to see it
moving onwards.

We do not see where the homeless is glancing, where the couple leaving
the church is heading. But there is a feeling they might have just
said something to each other which is more than “yes”, and we are left
pondering on the “yes” the homeless might have had to say in a distant
past we can, finally, label future. All these figures understand their
being immersed into something that is more than a framework, more than
a scenario in which they are captured. These figures are sinking into
the organization of the space, and we do experience a strange form of
freedom, the one in which we understand that photography is in the end
always without words, there is no soundtrack to be added; what emerges
instead is a set of promises looking at impossible times and places.
There is agreement, one in which we do not anymore need names but
whispered alliances. And there is no other way to live the future, to
compose it in the nest of our selective memory.

I remember a conversation we had on the model on the runaway, she is
looking where she is not supposed to look, a man; she is becoming a
person, becoming human, she is telling us how to steal the future, a
stealing that accompanies creation; another instant, the tassel of a
puzzle we can now place in the austere geometries of these shots. And
it is smiling that we finally understand the non-existence of the
runaway as a concrete object, the presence of people as subjects,
their behavior as constitutive of their being. Again smiling we get to
the conclusion that nothing truly deserves to be a subject, nor does
it have to an object. Everything is projected in a dimension that does
not exist in the present and that aspires to the future by adding the
past, memories of pictures, to it. The result is a twisting image
rendered as an organized form, carefully balanced and carefully
homeless, with no punctuation but questions leading to desire, and
desire is again, the best tool to remember the future.

L.D.S. is PhD student in Philosophy at CUNY, The Graduate Center
working in philosophy of art and cognitive science. She has been an
editor and contributor for Cross and Cluster. She is currently working
on her dissertation on memoirs and memories in art.
She teaches at Baruch College, NY.

2009-08-01T09:00:00.003-05:00

"i'm happy,
i like the night, i deeply love it.
At night everything seems to be possible,
and i'm not sleepy at all"

Asleep, Banana Yoshimoto

New interview

2009-07-29T10:50:00.004-05:00

the guys at Motiongrapher just posted a new interview!
thanks to everyone involved.

http://motionographer.com/

2009-07-28T18:05:00.003-05:00

I feel there's something special about photographing kids;
I don't know but they respond to the lens in their peculiar smart way,
sometimes wondering what that dark glass wants from them,
sometimes well aware of it.

2009-07-27T14:59:00.004-05:00

infrared photography shooting today!
awesome

2009-07-23T07:32:00.002-05:00

“It seems that different people have an idea of what I am,
and what I should be.

And then there's me.”

Ani Difranco

just "cut and paste"...

2009-07-22T18:13:00.004-05:00

if you work in the animation of visual effects business please don't miss this jem it's awesome!

BECOME A MILLIONAIRE

Friday visual treat

2009-07-17T04:15:00.003-05:00

in occasion of BMW Munich museum re opening
here's a video on this new BMW concept car with a revolutionary aesthetics and design.

BMW Concept Car: GINA from 12FRAMES on Vimeo.

The real important thing..

2009-07-15T19:44:00.004-05:00

... about the proper use of visual effects in storytelling and, at the same time, pretty rewarding words Jim Blinn said about our digital work on Fight for Life:

“The impressive thing about the CGI work on Fight For Life is that the degree of realism (down to details such as clouds of floating debris, simulation of dirt on the lens, and artificially imposed vignetting) generates a real emotional connection between the viewers and this very dramatic subject. It transports the audience into a part of the universe they think they know, but can know much better through the graphics simulations.”

Jim Blinn
(inventor of the Blinn shader and one of the pioneers of the computer graphics industry)

it's alive! it's alive!

2009-07-14T18:49:00.008-05:00

my 2009 portfolio is online
(best viewed in firefox)

constant change

2009-07-14T04:35:00.001-05:00

"just the life of anyone in show business forces you to live your life in a way that is not consumed with security. security can really hang you up, i think.
I think change is only difficult when you try to deny it. And it's you know... i mean look at the seasons, constant change, but it's not like things go away for good.

All our lives we are taught by people in position of authority, parents, teachers and so forth, that before we can be content in life, we need to find security, security in a job, security in relationships and a place to live, security that will bring you peace and happiness, and he says how unfortunate where there is not such thing as security, as the only thing you can count on is change, thereby the wisdom of insecurity so that here we all need to jump into the river of change and then, once you've done that, then you can start enjoying your life. So anyone in the show business is forced into that rhythm because every job you'll take will be like a birth and death..
you meet all these new people, you work, you do the job and it's all kind of exciting, and then soon, before you know it, you're done, kind of melancholy, say goodbye to people... it's over.. but then you know that here it is, it comes again, another change, a whole new world, so it's like a lot of little different lives.

Beau Bridges
actor

"tales from the trenches"

2009-07-14T04:09:00.002-05:00

here's some words from industry professionals, not just directors or top people on set, but assistants, technicians and crew people as well, people used to wake up very early in the morning, used to work 15 to 17 hours a day, pushed and motivated by the incontrollable love for movies and a strong will to pursue their dreams. Of course nothing comes without a cost...
I found their words interesting, very true and honest about an industry i live in which sometimes it's difficult to explain to other people and friends, who're not part of this madness, a world that is often just seen as cool to be in, but there's soooo much more behind it.
but, no matter what, we're still here..

"What will you miss about the shoot and all the effort involved in this?
- it's fun
"What is the fun?"
- it's hard to say, cause it's mostly painful!

John
director

"i feel like it's exciting cause i'm actually in the industry i wanted to be in and i'm getting to take a look at all the jobs around me and see what i want to do, cause i don't know what it is, but i don't want to work 19 hour days for the rest of my life.. cause i have no life!
"it's more your friends and my family that knows how i disappear when i'm in production, cause it's like 16 hours, 17 hours a day... i just sleep and work.

"i got really bored at a regular job, and this industry is so exciting and something new.
I would describe it as addictive. You know what i mean?
you do it and you just wanna know what your limitations are. You thrive for the chance of actually showing what you can do, that's why i think it's addictive, cause i can't wait to do more"

kathryn
assistant operator

"this is it, this is the movie, this is what we do... we screw this up... bye bye"

john
director

"everything you do, it's never easy.. good things never come easy. You gotta work hard for it.
And it's like you never give up on your dream or whatever you believe in and you have to believe that it could work for people to see it on you, too. You know what i mean?
I would never give up on nothing, you know? sometimes i think people can always change, even though you fail at it... it does not say though you should give up"

Rasta Phil

"we'll get up in the morning before work, train for an hour, hour and a half. Go back, take a quck shower, eat something. Go to work for 12 to 17 hours and then when we get home we're reading the script again.."

Mark ....

"if you have been in the business for 20 years you might be on your third marriage. You know? my best friend has 3 children... three different women... 21 years in the business, you know?
He loves it and this is what he does, but his wife loved it at the beginning, cause there were big checks and life was exciting, and then she realized he's never around."

Travis

"i spent most of my childhood being exposed to smugglers, foreigners and refugee camps, you know, 12, 14 families sharing one washroom, one kitchen, and every 6 to eight months i had to accept the idea of being shifted around, and not being able to make or keep friends. the friends that i had were movies, for example, Rocky Balboa, running in the streets in the cold and trying to make something out of himself, and films like that touched me a lot, to a point where i took the bus from Toronto to LA 10 years ago..
movies taught me to deal with things that i never would have known, because my father was not much around and if he was he did not play a father role, so i learned everything on my own, on the streets, getting on a bike, traveling around in lands i've never seen...
Because of movies i learned what happens to individuals for the choices they've made, and those choices that they made were shown what the outcome was in films."

Mir
Video Cable Puller

"if we did not work in the entertainment industry, we would be pirates, because we live on the edge"

dev
electrician

Once you've been in the business long enough you realize that you don't have a job, you realize you made a lifestyle choice, and anyone who's outside the industry thinks it's an incredible job..
it's not, it's a surreal and questionable lifestyle choice you've undertaken.

2009-07-11T15:31:00.005-05:00

Non so... starei ore e ore fermo a guardare il cielo, la luna.
Io amo la luna, assai più del sole.
Amo la notte, le strade vuote, morte, la campagna buia, con le ombre, i fruscii, le rane che fanno qua qua, l’eleganza tetra della notte.
È bella la notte: bella quanto il giorno è volgare. Il giorno... che schifo!
Le automobili, gli spazzini, i camion, la luce, la gente... che schifo!
Io amo tutto ciò che è scuro, tranquillo, senza rumore.
La risata fa rumore. Come il giorno.

Antonio De Curtis

City by Nick Brandt

2009-07-10T03:02:00.003-05:00

A very old piece of work which comes from my inspiration library.
Nick Brandt directed Michael Jackson in "Stranger in Moscow", but then re edited the footage and used Gorecky's symphony n°3 as score for another personal version.
Awesome highspeed photography.

2009-07-07T18:41:00.002-05:00

"the most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious.
It is the source of all true art and science"

Albert Einstein, 1930

one to watch

2009-07-05T16:03:00.003-05:00

interesting atmospheric spanish movie...
fresh air after so many giant robots filling movie theaters these days.

2009-07-04T13:08:00.003-05:00

"Painting is silent poetry,
and poetry painting that speaks"

Plutarch "De Gloria Atheniensium"

goodbye

2009-06-24T19:28:00.004-05:00

best dancer ever

June, the 19th

2009-06-19T18:35:00.003-05:00

"Venissero oggi
tutti i miei dolori futuri,
sono così felice
che certo correrebbero via ridendo.

Venissero oggi
le mie gioie future,
non sarebbero così grandi
come questa che ho adesso".

Emily Dickinson

amazing 25 years old memories

2009-06-17T06:20:00.005-05:00

I grew up with these...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcpjQJWCgVY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQbnfLcmmD8&feature=related

.... now i understand...

Inspiration from last night insomnia...

2009-06-15T06:26:00.008-05:00

i've always felt the incredible communicative power of good sound design and refined photography so here are 2 recent beautiful examples from The Mill and D-Sturbed

Then let's talk about music, and here's an album i recommend buying, it's the original version of Sirens of the Sea by Oceanlab, 2008.
Click the image for the final awesome track of the album, in HD on Youtube.

ZBrush preview

2009-06-13T10:55:00.007-05:00

Zbrush version 4 is coming out soon...
the preview looks amazing, with new tools to import reference images
and texture sources directly inside the package, to save time
and improve productivity.

Roadnorth

2009-06-13T09:27:00.005-05:00

Doug has worked with Psyop for a long time, with me specifically on Audi Q5 Synchronised as lead compositor, and these days he's pursuing the direction career, having also founded a creative service studio, called Roadnorth, in Brooklyn, NY.
He recently finished a pretty interesting short film, and has been already selected for Shoot's New Directors Showcase.
Have a look at it, and keep up the good work Doug!

2009-06-08T17:33:00.002-05:00

Lottate per la felicità come lottano per il pane gli uomini poveri e ricordate che l'amore è il seme e il frutto della gioia.
Amate gli altri perchè possano amarvi e amate voi stessi per poter amare gli altri.
Nascerete senza paura perchè chi vi darà la vita gioirà della sua fertilità.
Non avrete paura del marito o della moglie perchè vi sarete uniti per amore e dall'amore non può nascere nemico alcuno.
Non sarete legati che dalla catena d'oro dell'affetto.
Non saranno le parentele a tenenere uniti fratelli affini soltanto per sangue.
Non avrete paura della solitudine perchè non sarete mai senza amici. Non avrete paura dell'ozio perchè il nuovo Egitto ha bisogno di ozio e di lavoro.
Non avrete paura del lavoro perchè vi sarà congeniale potrete nascere pescatore e diventare uno scriba nascere un contadino e diventare un guerriero nessuno sarà oppresso da un campo troppo vasto per lui da sarchiare ne ristretto da frontiere troppo anguste.
Non avrete paura della fame perchè nei granai vi sarà pane per gli anni magri.
Non avrete paura d'invecchiare perchè in ogni orizzonte troverete nuova saggezza.
Non avrete paura della morte perchè ricorderete l'altra sponda del grande fiume
dove sarete misurati secondo il peso del vostro cuore.

DAL DISCORSO DEL FARAONE AMENEMHET I (giorno della sua incoronazione 1996 a.c)

2009-06-04T14:14:00.010-05:00

...will I wash away, turning like the storm?
I need a place where I belong,
i need a place that i can call home

Above and Beyond - "Home"

musica..

2009-05-28T18:16:00.003-05:00

La musica agisce particolarmente sulle nostre vibrazioni interiori (emozioni, sentimenti), e più noi siamo aperti a queste vibrazioni (capaci di vibrare, di emozionarci) più riusciamo a percepire le vibrazioni musicali. A quel punto si manifesta un effetto di "simpatia", e noi vibriamo insieme alla musica. Se noi non avessimo questa capacità interiore, l'ascolto della musica non ci darebbe nessuna sensazione.
Quindi, a parte la bellezza di una composizione musicale, la "parte" più importante la facciamo noi con la nostra capacità di percezione. La musica, però, ce l'amplifica di molto. D'altra parte se la nostra capacità di vibrare diminuisce per tanti fattori, anche solo temporaneamente, la musica ce la può risvegliare.

Quando riusciamo ad emozionarci, ascoltando musica, significa che noi stiamo vibrando con essa e quindi...ci stiamo fondendo con essa e diventiamo...una cosa sola.

Giuseppe Garzilli

fresh new projects

2009-05-27T11:09:00.007-05:00

I decided i'm not going to just to post once i finish projects, but i'd like to give news and maybe more interesting info and details about new work they offer me.

So it seems it will be a pretty busy June for me, with 3 projects starting out:
It's almost the end of post production already but i'm going to do some matte paintings and set extensions for "Baaria, La Porta del Vento" directed by Giuseppe Tornatore and with original score written by Ennio Morricone.
Click the link to see a small video about the movie (in italian)

At the same time i'm gonna be doing look development for the final sequence of BioShock 2 for Psyop New York and that will be pretty interesting.
The guys in studio are already working on the previz right now, cause it's a 3 part final sequence, and last night i had a look already at 3 pretty cool concept art pieces.
Click on the image for a teaser of the game.

And last but not least i'm gonna do a sequence look development for a shortfilm directed by Elliot Blanchard, who i worked with while in NY.
It's called "Almaz", shot in Coney Island and Brooklyn, it will contain a mix of stylized and photoreal effect.
Here's an excerpt from the story concept

Almaz follows four Russian exiles through a chaotic night of confrontation, revenge - and rebirth. In one night, a human trafficking gang shatters as an escaped victim returns to take revenge. She is shadowed by a trio of ominous duplicates reflected from an alternate Moscow. Trapped in the middle, a young prostitute struggles to survive the confrontation.

Click on the image to visit the website with a trailer and more juicy info

2009-05-26T06:40:00.003-05:00

waiting for clouds to come...

... so i can see again,

and breathe...

Demons..

2009-05-24T15:08:00.007-05:00

Kudos to the CIS Vancouver crew (and Dneg) for their final shots on Angels and Demons,

which i just saw at the movies.

It was great to see some scenes i did look development for,

coming out so well on the big screen!

Awesome...

clock is ticking...

2009-05-21T04:27:00.000-05:00

... it's 33 today... holy sh...

rhythm suggestions

2009-05-20T07:51:00.010-05:00

Summer is coming,
i imagine people at sunset, on the beach, drinking,
having fun,

and dancing...

just images that come to my mind when i listen to this remix

Giving sound to Gotham

2009-05-19T10:25:00.011-05:00

From "The Cinematic Art" Blog

"At the heart of the film lies a central tension regarding the hero myth, which the film neither embraces nor shuns..."

"Complementing and enlivening these thematic depths is a dense aesthetic that is noirish in mood, but naturalistic in structure. Gotham city lacks an architectural identity. It is instead defined by labyrinthine streets and contemporary glass skyscrapers rising above the poverty beneath them. Their twinkling lights glimmer in the background of many compositions, obscured by the shear multitude of their numbers"

Ted Pigeon

From LA Times:

It's just the arc of his character, which ultimately ends up in a very tragic self-destructive place.

What makes it interesting is that there are such extremes...

What makes this movie -– and this score -– interesting is the extremes.

The black is a lot blacker because of the light."

Hans Zimmer

2009-05-19T03:58:00.003-05:00

"La nostra vita sociale è costellata da discrepanze tra ciò che siamo e ciò che gli altri percepiscono di noi e della nostra realtà, tanto che spesso veniamo presi per stupidi quando invece siamo solo cauti, per arroganti quando siamo timidi e per adulatori quando semplicemente desideriamo piacere. E, non appena tentiamo di chiarire il malinteso, ci si secca la gola e le parole che ci escono di bocca non sono le stesse che avevamo pensato.

I nostri peggiori nemici hanno grande potere su di noi, e ci denunciano ad un pubblico ancora più vasto. Nell'odio ingiustamente diretto contro un filosofo innocente riconosciamo dunque l'eco delle sofferenze in cui noi stessi incorriamo per mano di coloro che sono capaci o non sono disposti a renderci giustizia."

Alain de Botton "Le Consolazioni della Filosofia"

The master is back..

2009-05-19T03:52:00.004-05:00

New shots of New York

2009-05-17T05:47:00.006-05:00

Chanel

2009-05-14T03:50:00.004-05:00

Jeanne-Pierre Jeunet directs Audrey Tautou

in the new glamorous film for Chanel N5.

Interviews and making-of links are there as well.

2009-05-10T15:34:00.008-05:00

"A volte penso alla vita come ad un orizzonte con la nebbia.

Sappiamo che il nostro destino è là.

Eppure non lo vediamo distintamente a causa della foschia.

Se soltanto non fossimo così timorosi di attraversare la nebbia!"

Il Guardiano del Faro - Sergio Bambarén

A fun night

2009-05-10T03:34:00.003-05:00

2009-05-08T06:18:00.004-05:00

"Knowing our enemies
gives us the weapon to fight them"

F. Dostojevskij

excerpt from "The Color of Sound"

2009-05-07T12:42:00.006-05:00

In this article famous singer and composer Lisa Gerrard talks about film music, sound and the peculiar quality called "color".
Read these lines, pretty inspiring:

"If you're able to feel, and if you're willing to allow yourself to really sit in front of the characters and feel what they're experiencing — and watch them and look into their faces and their hands, and look around the picture — it will start to translate itself in music through you.
It will.”

beautiful song and lyrics

2009-05-06T08:38:00.007-05:00

a proposito di Byron

2009-05-05T15:04:00.013-05:00

...forse involontariamente o forse semplicemente sobillato dai demoni che in lui si guerreggiavano, egli ha mostrato con delicatezza estrema quanto di affascinante ci sia nel nostro “buio”: quella parte di noi, straniera per i più, che si agita e non si dà pace, che è legata ai ricordi rimossi e alle colpe taciute, ma anche quella più sensibile all’ambiente circostante e alle sue suggestioni.

Il potere e la marcia in più che l’artista possiede, sia egli scrittore, poeta, musicista, pittore, è quindi quello di non avere paura di affrontare le tenebre, di saper andare dietro le quinte, affondando con la sua spada - la scrittura, la pittura, la musica - la patina dorata che copre molte delle cose “belle” della vita. Grazie alla sua eccezionale sensibilità egli scardina la porta del cuore e vi entra, di soppiatto, senza temere ciò che incontrerà sul suo percorso. E, alla fine del suo viaggio - quasi abbia compiuto un’endoscopia del cuore -, tira fuori ogni cosa e la comunica al mondo, per renderci visibile l’invisibile...

estratto da "Lo Specchio Magico" di Paola Mastrorilli

maestro...

2009-05-04T16:35:00.003-05:00

Microcosmi Erotici

2009-05-03T09:02:00.005-05:00

I worked with Cristiana almost 10 years ago, one of my first job in the visual effects industry.

She was a line producer at the time.

Elegance and keenness of feelings is what comes to my mind when i think about her, and even if we took different paths in life, it's great to see, after years of commitment, that smart people can succeed at fulfilling their dreams.

Cristiana now writes books and screenplays, kudos to her!

This is her blog

Circus!!

2009-04-30T03:31:00.002-05:00

After Gladiator, the new UPS spot, Circus, is on air these days..
check it out

missing you...

2009-04-18T09:19:00.004-05:00

2009-04-12T05:47:00.004-05:00

Only that land is mine, which dwells in my soul

Like a native without papers, I walk into it.

It sees my sadness and my loneliness.

Only: there are no houses.

They were ruined since my childhood. . .

Their inhabitants stray in my air. they live in my soul.

Hence I smile when my sun shines a bit,

Or I cry, like a quiet rain at night.

Only that land is mine, which dwells in my soul

M. Chagall

Gladiator

2009-04-09T17:33:00.005-05:00

First spot of a big UPS campaign we created at Psyop.
Great fun bringing "light and look" to Maximus, "the slave who became a cardboard gladiator"!

Highres version and work from my look development stage coming soon on my new website

goodbye...

2009-04-06T10:58:00.001-05:00

2009-04-03T14:35:00.004-05:00

i keep on listening to this great duo song while walking around manhattan...

just brilliant

balance..

2009-03-20T02:03:00.008-05:00

where can i find balance?

can you force yourself to go one direction when all the others offer so many hidden amazing views? How do you know it's the right time to change path, when doubts are chasing you.

Probably this is normal... i suppose... probably growing up means also believing in something so strongly that you can push second thoughts away, firmly believing that a solution is the right one, and fighting for it.

I don't think i can get to a point where i'm fully satisfied. Can we truly feel like that?

outside of sparking glimpses of time?

And what is satisfaction, when life gave you so much, everywhere.... everytime. And you know you can't have it all.

Satisfaction is a temp concept, it follows the flow of things happening, and you can't do anything but slide with it.

Will i find peace?... don't know,

cause maybe peace is in the journey itself,

this is what i'm doing,

finding balance in motion...

eventually, it all comes down to a simple choice..

2009-03-17T23:31:00.006-05:00

get busy living..

or get busy dying.

Andy Dufresne

Jon's design

2009-03-11T23:23:00.004-05:00

Jon Saunders, a young designer I work with, posted new concepts and styleframes for Psyop

Dante's Inferno.

Have a look at some of them, pretty good stuff!

soooo wicked..

2009-03-08T03:53:00.010-05:00

Last thursday I saw another beautiful Broadway musical, Wicked, the untold story of the witches of Oz. Wicked the musical is like the prequel of The Wizard of Oz.

The story is about these 2 very different girls, Elphaba, born a bright shade of green and so living a life of an outsider, and Glinda, the popular beautiful girl everyone envies and loves.

Their buddy story is only one of several storylines and subplots in a carefully constructed, surprise-filled musical adventure.

Have a look at the musical trailer here

Sprint Speedway

2009-03-05T00:33:00.006-06:00

Stadium Look Development on this, for Mass Market new spot

feeling..

2009-02-28T13:47:00.004-06:00

Going to Hell

2009-02-25T21:11:00.008-06:00

Last November i worked on a very interesting project, Electronic Arts Dante's Inferno.

I had a team of young and talented guys helping me out during the first look development stages, the fun part, where I actually got the chance to create matte paintings for crucial shots to establish the look, which served as a base for the stylized "inky" treatment the creative director and clients wanted. Unfortunately i was on other projects for the last 2 months of production, but it was definitely fun and creatively refreshing to work on this.

I'll post other paintings, look dev test shots and finals in my upcoming new portfolio.

Have a look at these 2 frames from Anger Environment, with my matte painting and final stylization.

Thanks to Pete Sickert-Bennet, Helen Choi, Rei Ito and Russ Wooton for their help!

Here's a sample MAKING OF from my body work on this EA Cinematic.

The sky is a collage of many shots i took during this amazing stormy day on the Gold Coast in Australia in 2007!

2009-02-24T23:54:00.003-06:00

... i wish your sun will rise someday..

Anyway...

2009-02-19T14:24:00.004-06:00

... it's always a good choice to live life.
Marie Hyon

New York Fashion Week

2009-02-15T23:48:00.006-06:00

If you're a designer this is a very important week in New York City. The best are in town.

I have been lucky enough to be invited and take some shots of backstages and catwalks, so here's a new gallery!

A father

2009-02-11T23:37:00.005-06:00

The Lion

2009-02-09T21:12:00.004-06:00

Last night i went to Broadway to finally see The Lion King, winner of so many prestigious awards like Tony awards and the Grammy. Well i have to say i was completely blown away by this experience, i think it was perfect from so many point of views, the amazing costumes, the complex masks and puppets, the acting and singing of course, to the scenic and lighting design, sometimes so simple but so effective, moody and powerful. I really enjoyed that and so often i think about how simulating theatre lighting on stage, with simple tricks and thought design, would give much better results even in the sometimes so cold world of 3d digital lighting.

And, outside of Elton John of course, additional music was composed by someone like mr. Zimmer.

Definitely go and enjoy this show!

have a look at a sneak peek here

it has been a while..

2009-02-06T00:20:00.004-06:00

... i have not being updating my blog, but it has been really really busy here in the past few weeks, and when i'm not at the studio or studying i'm always outside testing the 5d or enjoying NY life with friends.. be back soon..

2009-01-26T20:49:00.001-06:00

nothing but white...

2009-01-21T00:57:00.008-06:00

2009-01-15T20:47:00.008-06:00

"There is no remedy for love

but to love more"

Henry David Thoreau

Editing

2009-01-13T00:07:00.006-06:00

not just for film editing fans but whoever loves and is interested in storytelling in general have a look at this 2 part lecture by Walter Murch, who does not need presentation of course.

If you're interested, I would also recommend reading a great book called "Conversations: The art of film editing"

...back

2009-01-11T20:05:00.007-06:00

i stare at the skyline in the distance,

i'm back now, and i feel like being home again..

2009-01-07T07:32:00.006-06:00

"the only risk in life
is being afraid of taking any risk"
Sergio Bambarén

“It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinions;

it is easy in solitude to live after your own;

but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd

keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Kojima's a genius

2009-01-04T09:43:00.004-06:00

When i got back to Italy for Xmas i bought a PS3, just because i wanted to play Metal Gear Solid 4.
I've been a fan of the series and i really wanted to dedicate the right amount of time and focus to play this game, without interruption as much as possible, to really enjoy the experience.
No matter if i had dinners, parties or just hanging around with friends, i knew that the late night hours were dedicated to this game, while sipping coffees and smoking some cigarettes, like Snake.
Well i have been playing with videogames, on and off, since i was 13 or something, and i have to say this is definetely one of the best game i've ever played. Such a movie fan i am i could not but enjoy the amount of cinematics between levels, the complex (even too much probably) plot, the well designed and rich characters, the amazing score by Harry Gregson Williams, the art direction by Yoji Shinkawa...
Just amazing

welcome 2009

2009-01-01T06:19:00.003-06:00

In 1994 i graduated in high school and one of my teacher wrote this to me.
After 15 years, aged and torn, it's still hanging at my parent's place.

When things go wrong, as often happens,
when the road seems only uphill,
when there's no money and debts are big,
and you wanted to smile, but you could just sigh,
when responsibility weighs you down,
just stop for a little bit if you feel it,
but do not give up...

Life's strange,
with changes and turning points,
as each one of us had to learn,
and often you fail,
when patience would have let you win,
do not give up,
even if everything seems still,
your next move could be the winning one.

To a man who fights,
often the goal is closer than expected.
Often the fighter gave up when he could have gained
the winning cup,
and too late he realized, when night falls,
how close he was to the golden crown.

Success is the failure reversed,
the silver tent of doubt clouds,
and you will never realize how close it is,
it could be there right when it feels so far away.
So keep on fighting
when you're beaten down,
it's right when everything seems lost,
that you should not give up...

some new shots..

2008-12-26T18:49:00.005-06:00

Live by the sun, Love by the moon

traveling...

2008-12-24T10:47:00.003-06:00

" I see my path, but I don't know where it leads.

Not knowing where I'm going is what inspires me to travel it"

... a un passo da te

2008-12-21T08:20:00.008-06:00

...through joy and pain
my heart feels alive...

2008-12-18T12:00:00.003-06:00

2008-12-13T01:27:00.004-06:00

Strength does not come from physical capacity...

It comes from an indomitable will.

Live as if you were to die tomorrow.

Learn as if you were to live forever

Gandhi

Psyop Xmas Party photos!

2008-12-12T23:43:00.009-06:00

2008-12-10T01:20:00.001-06:00

Tieni sempre presente che la pelle fa le rughe,
i capelli diventano bianchi,
i giorni si trasformano in anni.
Però ciò che é importante non cambia;
la tua forza e la tua convinzione non hanno età.
Il tuo spirito e` la colla di qualsiasi tela di ragno.
Dietro ogni linea di arrivo c`e` una linea di partenza.
Dietro ogni successo c`e` un`altra delusione.
Fino a quando sei viva, sentiti viva.
Se ti manca cio` che facevi, torna a farlo.
Non vivere di foto ingiallite…
insisti anche se tutti si aspettano che abbandoni.
Non lasciare che si arruginisca il ferro che c`e` in te.
Fai in modo che invece che compassione, ti portino rispetto.
Quando a causa degli anni
non potrai correre, cammina veloce.
Quando non potrai camminare veloce, cammina.
Quando non potrai camminare, usa il bastone.
Pero` non trattenerti mai!

Madre Teresa