You Are Your Body / You Are Not Your Body

Started by matt35mm, May 16, 2013, 05:27:41 PM

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ono

I know I start every day by jumping in the shower, grabbing a bowl of Kix, and punch-starting my laptop.  Without having seen the movie, all I'm saying is that takes things too far.  Why would you show the "punch"line in the trailer.  Yes, I went there.  :roll:

xerxes

I'm with the others on cutting down the skype scene, but I'd also suggest cutting down the "hello" exchange earlier when Amara is sitting on the floor. Cutting after maybe the second "hello" before the ass slap might help with the issue reelist brought up about the transition to the dead mom phone call. I know you like that sort of thing, but I don't think the awkwardness of the scene works so well here isolated in the trailer. Also, I think you could tighten up the phone call too. Not sure you need the line about going to Texas as the next scene makes a trip pretty clear. Just some thoughts.

It looks great, though. Definitely got me excited to see it.

matt35mm

I'm open to the idea of cutting stuff, but one concern is whether or not I'll be neutering what makes this movie/trailer feel specific. If you didn't know me or anyone involved with the movie, and you saw this trailer, would "I'm what you might call a spiritual teacher." "What exactly does that mean?" be enough to make you feel like you had to see the movie in order to have that question answered?

I DO want to fix any pacing issues and shorten it, but what I'm wrestling with at this point is whether I'll be removing the things that may intrigue people (specifically into donating money on Kickstarter). That's why I'm worried about saving too much for the film--but believe me, there is A LOT that is saved for the film. I'm certainly not giving everything away in the trailer.

I'd like to get more of a consensus on what should stay and what should go. Perhaps it may help to imagine it in the context of a Kickstarter video where I give a brief (10 second) intro, show this, and then about 40 seconds of me and my producer describing some of the unusual aspects of making this film, plus plea for money. Hopefully it'll be about 3:30 total, in terms of length.

I'll also try cutting down the "hello" thing toward the beginning. Thanks!

This is all very helpful for me. I'll be re-cutting it in a day or two. Keep the notes coming!

ono

I'm thinking of Plainview's monologue to answer that question.  I think if the teacher is giving a monologue a la Plainview, one that is powerful enough to reel the audience in, then it is important enough to leave.  But I would do it while removing the subject to whom she is speaking.  Then, you create the effect that this teacher is speaking to the audience.  What's important to keep in mind is the best trailers seem to be somewhat narrative themselves.  They're not just series of ambiguous shots.  They outline quite literally that which is to be painted in later.  The images shown may not necessarily be chronological, and as PTA has shown from the Master they may not even be from the film or strict canon, but they go to illustrate what you can expect.  And I think that's what the latter half of the trailer has going for you even though to me it wasn't as compelling as the first stuff.  Of course, this is still going from my memories of only one view, and subsequent viewings may change that.  That your trailer has generated this much discussion and interest is a good thing.

matt35mm

Thanks! I think the first view impression is the most important one, because I don't expect that anyone will watch a Kickstarter video more than once. The first view is also the thing I'm farthest away from, as the editor.

That's a real good point about the Plainview thing. I'm not sure how I can apply that to this trailer, but I want to do a series of very short teasers (as updates to keep the Kickstarter fuel going), and I love the idea of doing something like that. Maybe I'll even look to the MASTER teasers that PTA cut as inspiration for those.

I'm gonna experiment and see if I can cut this thing by 15 - 20 seconds.

jenkins

good team work imo. more excited. when does the next trailer come out

matt35mm

Here's a new cut, which is 20 seconds shorter than the original cut: https://vimeo.com/72244505

Let me know how that feels in comparison. Or, if anyone's watching it for the first time, let me know whether parts of it stand out as too quick or too slow.

Thanks!

Cloudy

I dig the shorter one more, especially because you omitted some dialogue that didn't need to be there. And the trailer flowed much more. One little fix, the sound of the laptop being smashed is not in sync with the video (from my screen at least).
Has a nice and wholesome Bergman feel to it. Definitely interested.

jenkins

i like it more each time i watch it, including now. not necessarily because of the changes, i just like it more each time i watch it

matt35mm

Thanks!

The laptop smashing has the initial sound of impact, as well as the sound of the laptop crashing onto the table. If this sounds odd to anyone else, please let me know.

xerxes


Reel

It has definitely improved. I didn't note any cuts besides "MY LAPTOP?!" but it feels good. The faster you get to the spiritual teacher, the better. Also, what trashy just said.

RegularKarate

I'll jump in here after just now watching both versions. The second version definitely flows better. Especially the laptop scene.

If you're trying to make this even shorter (I don't know if you are anymore), I think cutting more of the set up would help. If you're trying to make this seem kind of mysterious and intriguing, the last bit is really what does that.

I will say that I think the music and the scene with the spiritual guide doing all that hand stuff kind of makes it look like you're pulling a little too strongly from Upstream Color. It's mostly the music that does this, but once you add some fancy mysterious hand stuff, you're really deep in the Upstream Color bag.

I like a lot of things about the trailer and the look of the film though. Keep doing shit.

matt35mm

Thanks! I don't know if I want to try cutting it shorter; maybe down the line, but I think I'm ready to turn my focus back toward editing the movie. This is primarily for Kickstarter and just as a first-look at the movie, and future cuts of the trailer are possible.

Well, I suppose the intention is for it to feel like this is just a domestic drama, and as such, relatively slow... then come in from the side with this otherworldly stuff that is hopefully unexpected and then takes over the thrust into the last third.

I realized after-the-fact that some of this stuff mirrored the UPSTREAM COLOR trailer. It wasn't at the forefront of my mind, but I definitely see how similar the music is. Oops. I did watch that trailer a bunch of times when it came out, so it must've dug its way into my head, especially since I composed that music.

matt35mm

We have just launched our Kickstarter campaign. We have a video in which I murder somebody.

http://kck.st/14lbkfn

If you feel like contributing to it or sharing the link, I certainly would not mind, and if not, that's fine, too. That's how these things work, right? You can also "like" the movie's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/areyouyourbody as a way to stay updated on any news.