CINEMA IN THE PAST

Hello! This is an interview in which you will see the differences between how the cinema was thirty years ago and how it is nowadays. The interviewee is an adult so you will see a different perception of the cinema than the teenagers have.

Did you use to go the cinema when you were young?

Yes, I went to the cinema two or three times a week. In the past there weren’t so many distractions so the people used to go to the cinema. The sessions were double, which meant that the cinemas projected only two films one after the other and the films were different each week, you couldn’t choose.

Did you only watch films at the cinema?

No, I also watched films on TV on Saturday’s afternoon.

What type of films did you use to watch? And which do you watch now?

In the past I used to watch adventure and western films. Currently, I see all the genres excepting Spanish cinema.

Do you go to the cinema nowadays?

No, I don’t,  because it is very expensive and I don’t have so much time. But if the prices were better I would go to the cinema more often.

Do you like the type of films shown on TV?

On TV most of the films are comercial and contemporany. I also like old films and independent cinema. Nowadays there aren’t so many “big productions” like Titanic or La guerra de les galaxies and the films seem to be simpler and not so elaborated..

What channel do you use to watch the films? Why?

It depends on the film. First I check the schedule of all the channels on TV and then I choose the film that I thing could be more interesting. 

LA POR, a Catalan primere

La Por, is a Catalan drama film about gender violence. The film was shot in Spain and France and it is based on the book of Lolita Bosch, M. 

Manel (Igor Szpakowski, Polseres Vermelles) is sixteen years old and he never speaks with his family. He likes going to the high school because while he is there he is not at home. He doesn’t speak about the fear (in Catalan por) that he, his mother and his sister feel when they are at home with his father. He doesn’t speak about the bruises that his mother have on her body. Manel doesn’t even speak about this nightmare with his friends, but this doesn’t mean that he isn’t conscious about the situation. For this reason, his intention is to free his mother, his younger sister and also himself, from this hell that they suffer when they are in the hands of the father. 

La Por has just premiered in Spain on 22 of November. The director is Jordi Cadena, the director of Elisa K (2010) and Al dormir lo veo claro (1988). The main characters are performed by Igor Szpakowski (the son), Ramon Madaula (the father), Roser Camí (the mother) and Alicia Falcó (the daughter).

This is the official trailer of the film: 

A FAN OF "THE HUNGER GAMES"

Hi! This is an interview to a fan of The Hunger Games’s book and film. Her name is Raquel and she is a teenager. She is waiting for the premiere of the second film “Catching fire” and she is very excited because she really loves this trilogy.

Have you seen the first part of the film The Hungers Games? Will you see the second part?

Yes, I have seen the first film two times and in no time I will see the second part because it has just premiered in EUA and it will premiere in Catalonia at the end of the month. 



What do you expect from the second part? Do you believe that it will be in the same level as the first part?

I believe that it will be in the same level as the first because the first film has achieved a lot of success and I think that the second film would be up to the task because it can’t disappoint her followers. I think that the second film will be amazing like the book.

Have you read the books?

I have read all the books. I have really enjoyed the first and the second book but the third book have surprised to me for its ending.

Do you think that the film doesn’t follow the argument of the book or it is lack of detaills? 

I think that the film is very complete and everybody can follow the argument without having read the book. The film has got the essence of the book and this is good because if there were a lot of details the spectator will get lost during the film. In the film, I miss Katniss’ friend because they have a very emotive relation and a true friendship.

When you were watching the film, it was like you had imagined when you were reading the book?

When I was reading the book I imagined the characters a little different than in the film. The clothes of the rich characters were so extravagant. In the first film there is so much fiction and I thought that the society was simpler because it is like the book describes it. I didn’t imagine that the differences between rich and poor people were so different because in the film seems to be two parallel worlds. The character of Katniss achieves my expectations because her interpretation is very realistic and her personality is faithful to the book. I had imagined different the character of Haymich because in the film he appears like an alcoholic person and I had imagined him more sensible.  

What is your favourite character and why?

I like Katniss’ sister, Prim, because she is a very sensitive character. She had suffered a lot when her father died. She is younger than Katniss and, when Katniss goes, she has to take care of her mother because the mother is in a depression since her husband died. Therefore, Prim has to grow up very quickly and adapt to the circumstances of her life in this difficult world in which she has to live.

How was made "The Impossible"

The Impossible is the most impressive film in our latest days. This is a very impressive film at emotional and technical level. Today I will explain some technical things about this film. 

 

The technical parts of the film were shot in Valencia and Thailand. The tsunami was filmed in “La Ciudad de la Luz” in Alacant. This is a gigantic movie Studio where there is an aquatic set, the second most important set after Fox studios, where James Cameron filmed Titanic. The director didn’t want to use informatic water because he wanted the film to be the most realistic possible. The team of the film had to heat up the water, dye the water with food-dying and use more than 36 bombs to stir the water in order to create a very high current. It is difficult to explain, so this is a video in which you can see how they created a false tsunami.

In Thailand, the technical team, reconstructed the devasted outdoors, the resort where the family spent their holidays, the bus station and the hospital. The rest of the production took place in Madrid and Barcelona.  

The team encounter a lot of problems:

-   The first months in Tailand didn’t stop to rain.

-   It was so difficult to correspond the light from the scenes shooted in Tailand with the scenes shooted in Alicant. For this reason, the team had to shoot in Tailand in December and in Spain in June, in order to equalise the light of the sun.

-   Naomi Watts (Maria in the film) had got bronchitis because she swallowed a lot of water during the shooting.

-   The sound team had to put microphones on the actors and they had some problems because they were wearing swimsuit most of the time and the microphones didn’t attach.

NEW SUGGESTIONS

INCEPTION (2010 - United Kingdom) Christopher Nolan

Genre: science fiction

Synopsis: This film is about the dreams’ world. A group of people want to steal the secrets and ideas from a man through his subconscience for economic reasons. In the film there appears a parallel world from which the main characters will have difficulties to escape.

Opinion: On one hand, the special effects are very spectacular and they seem to be real. On the other hand, you have to be very concentrated to understand the story because the argument is very complex. Personally, I have seen the film twice and I still haven’t understood all of it.

LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE (2006 - USA) Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris

Genre: dramatic comedy

Synopsis: The Hoover’s family are a very peculiar family. The grandfather sniffs cocaine. The mother is stressed. The father thinks that he is an unsuccessful person because all the things goes against him. The uncle is recovering from a suicide and the teenager son is doing a vow of silence. Finally, Olive, the youngest daughter, wants to be a beauty queen.

All the family goes to California because Olive has been invited to assist in a beauty contest. At this moment, their adventure starts.

Opinion: I believe that this film teaches you a lot of things, it is a film about personal overcoming. The film could be a tragedy but it is made with humouristic sense. The relation between Olive and his grandfather is very emotive. In the film we can see that despite the diferences between the members of the family, they help each other.

CINEMA GUIDE

Hi! This is my first video. I show you the steps that you have to follow when you go to the cinema.

I hope you enjoy it.

THE INTERNATIONAL FANTASTIC FILM SITGES FESTIVAL OF CATALONIA

It is the first festival about fantastic cinema of the world and one of the most famous in Catalunya. This month, the festival celebrated his 46 edition. The festival rewards the participants with more than 30 prizes depending on the section which the participant has presented the film to. This edition, the film Borgman, a French production, received the most important prize, the best film on the official section of Sitges 2013. The film Big Bad Wolves received the prize of the best direction. 

BIG BAD WOLVES

BORGMAN

We have to stand out the participation of young students; they have been awarded with the SGAE Nova Autoria prizes for: the best script, the best direction, the best original music and two second prizes. The awarded youngsters are from the school Bande à Part, Escola Superior de Cinema i Audiovisuals de Catalunya and the Pompeu Fabra university.

The total participation in the festival has been very high and the majority of the awarded films are foreign. The director of the festival has closed the festival with a speech praising the importance of Catalan cinema and culture. 

OLIVE, A FILM MADE BY A MOBILE PHONE

Hello! I am going to present you the first film made by a mobile phone. Hooman Khalili is the director of this american film called “Olive”. He had done the film only by a high-resolutioin camera integred in his smartphone Nokia N8. She adapt a lent of 35 mm to achieve a shallow depth of field.

The main character is the actress Gena Rowlands. She stars a girl with ten years old who change the lifes from three people wihtout speaking. The people are: an old and embittered woman, an obese man and a foreigner who don’t get used to America.

The film had been premiered on December, 2011 in Los Angles. You can see the trailer and some photografies about the shooting on the “Olive’s” official web site: http://olivethemovie.com/ 

 

CINEMA AND TEENAGERS

Hi! I have done five interviews in teenergers between 14 and 17 years old. I have request three questions about cinema. Look the answers!

PA NEGRE (Black Bread)

Hi! Today I will present you one of the most famous Catalan films. Nowadays, the importance of the Catalan cinema is increasing. People around the world are getting more interested in catalan cinema and there are some catalan films that have been translated to other languages like spanish or english. For example "Pa Negre".

Pa Negre is the best catalan film for excellence. It is a drama film that turns around the post-war period (1939). Everithing starts when an innocent boy discovers two human corpses in the forest. From this accident the boy enters in a complicated world, full of liars, secrets, hunger and repression. The film had recieved a lot of awards, these are the most important:

• 9 Goya awards

• 13 Gaudí awards

• San Sebastián International Film Festival

• 2011 Spanish National Film Award

Original trailer:

INTERVIEW FROM NÚRIA SOLER

Hello! This is an interview from Núria Soler. She is an actress, she have done some films and now she is rehearsing a very interesting play.

Which resources do you use to get into the character?

I imagine that the script is played by my favorite actors and actress. Then, I try to copy what I have imagined. If it is a character with a special situation, I will inform about his or her situation. Sometimes, the best way is to contact with someone who is living the situation or have passed it. I do this to have a 1r person perspective. .

When the script asks you to cry, do you get it quickly?

If the script is well written, it isn't very difficult to cry. To see true tears, it has to be appropiate with the reality where the character belongs to. If it isn't in that way, you will know that it is false and it is more difficult to get into the character and cry.

What do you prefer to play: theatre or cinema?

I am very fan of both things but I prefer theatre because it isn't very much exploded . In a stage you can act better because you can gesticulate and you can move more than in a set or surrounded of a lot of cameras.

What do you do when you are waiting to play or film your sequence?

In the stage, the nerves don't overcome but before enter on the stage it is a dilemma! I try to take things with calm. If the rest of the colleagues are with me, everything will be easier. 

What do you prefer? Comedy, action or tragedy?

They are three very different genres. But I prefer Comedy because making people laugh seems easy but actually it isn't. If you have got a good script and you know how to bring the message to the audience, you will be rewarded with their reaction. It is a way to know that you do the job well and you are pushed to move forward.

WELCOME!

Hi! This is my blog about cinema and a lot of things related to it. What will you find here?... Well, you will learn more about Catalan cinema, you will find interviews with famous people, you will get informed about the new international films and you will find a lot of curiosities.

I hope you enjoy my blog! I wait your comments!