THE KUCHAR BROTHERS

Bright Lights Film Journal :: The Day the Bronx Invaded Earth: The Life and Cinema of the Brothers Kuchar


Born in Manhattan in 1942, the brothers moved to the Bronx at an early age. There the tenement blocks, TV-antenna-studded rooftops, bleak blue winters, and littered streets of New York City’s northernmost borough would become their familiar world. A world that they, like most adolescents, wanted to escape. Failing that, they would remake it, colorize it, drape it in cheap tinsel and leopard skins.
The nearby Bronx Park and the Bronx Botanical Gardens offered temporary refuge from the hostile city streets. George would take long, solitary walks in the wilder, more remote areas of the park, to discover idyllic waterfalls and fast-running streams splashing over rocks.

Semester 2 Main Project Logo Ident

Following on from some of the research I have been doing into cine film and memory I have combined the 2 and created an identity to tie all the information, research and findings together.

Below is the rough version of this work in progress logo.

This logo is based on the spools that I received back from the developing company that processed my first super 8 films - I quiet like the inner forms that are created from the holders and drilled down into the carousel's basic form to create the icons above the simple "Gill Sans" text beneath it.

From the lecture with Tash this week the original logo (quiet rightly) was thought to be a little flat and the text didn't represent memory and ageing. We discussed and it was decided that it needed to be a little more distressed but not computer generated. I am in the process of printing a simple typeface onto acitate and then I am going to leave it out to weather with the elements, it will also be in a position were shoes and car tyres will be walking and driving over it to give it a real worn look and feel to.

Memory:

It could be said that memory makes us who we are.
Memories give us our sense of time ands place,
Can reduce us to tears or bring about a smile.
But memory is elusive and plays games with us too,
shifting with time and confusing the facts.

Photographs and moving pictures (film) have long been used to help us remember.
As a physical reminder of past events,
we invest them with meaning and importance.
We all keep photos and film that mean something special,
from a treasured holiday to a missed family member or friend.

All pictures and film have their own particular life histories.
Some were once treasured personal possessions,
and some commemorate historic events.
Others evoke memories of a past way of life.


The explanation above is helping me to make more sense of my project on memory - I needed to write this to fully understand my direction for this project. I can now focus on an outcome more clearly having undergone this process.

The fact that I have chosen cine film as a medium to record moments in time is very apt for this project.

Looking on Danny's blog this morning - he summed it up quiet nicely:

"obsolete technology as we both felt that the history of hardware hasn't been documented properly due to the haste to constantly upgrade. Okay, people might snigger or indulge in some retro fetishism for an old Atari or Sinclair, but then there has been a mountain of other electronic machinery integral to a lot of industries that - despite probably having the combined memory of one current mobile phone - actually tells us a lot about how things used to be produced. And maybe by acknowledging that development we would be less inclined to take for granted the ease of current digital production".

(Daniel Cookney)

The above extract from Danny's blog has lead me to think about other things that keep us holding onto memories and one thing in particular that is personal to me is that fact that I have kept a large collection of my vinyl records and not one record player at my disposal to play them on.

This is a small part of me holding onto my youth and the memories I have of my favourite bands - long may they continue!!

First draft of Amsterdam

After spending the day with the chaps at Intersoft - I came back to the studio with a renewed vigore to begin my own post editing of the film footage I took on the recent trip to Amsterdam.

It was good to (at last) start working on my own project and try to make sense of what was in front of me.

The first task was to splice up all the footage into its natural breaks and then start to bring it all together in some organised form.
This proved challenging in itself as I only had 3 minutes from each film and I thought I wouldn't have enough footage to tell a story.

This was so far from reality - I realised that I could cut paste and copy sections and before I knew it I had too much to use!!!

It (as always is the case) took far longer to edit this first film than I anticipated. I had planned on taking a full afternoon out to put the first trial film together when in reality it took nearly a day and a half to get something that I was happy with. Hopefully this will come down over time as I learn more about the software that I am using.

I tried lots of effects within Final Cut Pro and this also took time - but in the end I decided to go with a more natural feel and look for the first edit. Some of the effects are great and I am sure I will be using them in future editing but somehow they looked too "over the top" for this initial exercise.

The next problem I faced was the soundtrack to go with the film. I eventually chose "Song of Life" by Leftfield - this I thought would be a good match for the footage. After splicing and moving around the soundtrack to fit the film I eventually felt happy enough to go ahead and export my first edited film to a quick time file.

Below would be the final outcome - if only I could get it to compress down from a 1.2GB file!!!!!? - managed it through vimeo!!

Cine Camera Project - Amsterdam from Dave Howarth on Vimeo.

A DAY AT INTERSOFT

Today I spent the day with the fine chaps at Intersoft - An Event Management/Conferencing & editing company based near Blackburn. The purpose of the visit was to get an insight into how they produce the big screen shows that they put together for some of the very large conferences that they organise.

It was really good (and informative) to watch someone (Gary) who has worked in post production editing for many years and pick up some useful tips on how to go about my project.

The chaps at Intersoft have offered any help I may need when getting to grips with my major project on Memories and Cine Film.

Thanks for the help today Gary and Pete - its much appreciated! - I owe you a pint or 2 in the coming weeks!!!

AT LONG LAST IT'S ARRIVED!!!!

After waiting for what seemed like months (3 weeks actually!) my films came through the post on Friday of last week (26th March).

I am now in the process of converting them so that I can edit them into Final Cut Pro and start splicing, adding effects and collating into some sort of order.

ANOTHER POEM TO MULL OVER

INVICTUS


Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.


William Ernest Henley






I heard this poem at the beginning of the six nations rugby this Saturday (20th March) being read by Morgan Freeman and it sent tingles down my spine with the context it was delivered in. A such I would like to experiment with alternative film subjects using this very same poem.

Bye the way - this poem is said to have been repeated by Nelson Mandela while he was imprisoned on Robben Island.