Category: Movie books
Typeset In The Future: Typography And Design In Science Fiction Movies by Dave Addey (book review).
Very occasionally I can have a ‘Oh my god’ moment as if deities exist. Looking at the title, ‘Typeset In The Future: Typography And Design In Science Fiction Movies’, it’s pretty obvious that author Dave Addey is going to be looking at various films and be telling you about the various fonts that were used. […]
Filmmaking For Teens: Pulling Off Your Shorts 2nd edition by Troy Lanier and Clay Nichols (book review)
Looking at the title of Troy Lanier and Clay Nichols’ book, ‘Filmmaking For Teens: Pulling Off Your Shorts 2nd edition’, I have to keep reminding myself that the ‘shorts’ they are speaking of are film shorts not clothes. Although from the title, this book is to instruct teen-agers how to make a 5 minute film, […]
The Comic Hero’s Journey by Steve Kaplan (book review).
When I first saw the cover of Steve Kaplan’s book, ‘The Comic Hero’s Journey’, the first impression was it had to do with comicbooks and the moustache and glasses was the disguise. Nope! It’s actually about writing comedy characters although Kaplan admits to being a comicbook fan. Maybe it would make sense in later editions […]
The Art Of Ralph Breaks The Internet by Jessica Julius (book review).
I have to confess from the start that I haven’t seen either of the two ‘Ralph Breaks’ films but I am a sucker for art medium books. There is a lot of banter from the animators in ‘The Art Of Ralph Breaks The Internet’ which must have made life interesting for writer Jessica Julius as […]
London After Midnight by Thomas Mann (book review).
For those who don’t know, the 1927 film ‘London After Midnight’ directed by Todd Browning isn’t available for viewing. The last copy in the MGM vault was lost in a fire in 1965, although you can google up photos from it, significant because they feature master of disguise, Lon Chaney. Thomas Mann, in his introduction […]
Dangerous Curves by Jeffrey A. Brown (book review).
A quick word with the wonderful people at Eurospan, who import a lot of American university books into the UK and whose website you really should check out, and Jeffrey A. Brown’s ‘Dangerous Curves’ book arrives. As I commented on Brown’s second book, ‘Beyond Bombshells’, I was curious to see whether or not he missed […]
Writing The TV Drama Series (4th edition) by Pamela Douglas (book review).
Having started this book, ‘Writing The TV Drama Series (4th edition)’ by Pamela Douglas, I have to address why I didn’t read the three earlier editions. I think I mistook it to be about standard dramas rather than including our genre. As it turns out, Pamela Douglas regularly mentions many genre shows. The important point […]
Beyond Bombshells by Jeffrey A. Brown (book review).
Much of Jeffrey A. Brown’s book, ‘Beyond Bombshells’ focuses on the growth of women as lead heroines in a film, TV and comicbook market dominated by male characters and whether they are getting a fair deal. The discussion in the opening chapter and women and torture draws some comparison to how men go through the […]
Visual Storytelling by Morgan Sandler (book review).
I’ve always maintained that comicbook artists can learn a lot from film-making techniques. The opening chapter of Morgan Sandler’s book, ‘Visual Storytelling’, is a must read for fiction writers as well as those who want to make films. The most telling point is the difference between an active and a passive protagonist and, having encountered […]
Shoot From The Heart by Diane Bell (book review).
Film-maker Diane Bell is a Sundance film winner with her film, ‘Obselida’ (2010). What she gives in this book, ‘Shoot From The Heart’, is the information of the realities of making an independent film on a budget of $150,000. I’m not sure how much of this can be translated into how do it this in […]
