Spotlight:SteveMarino

From Ani-Jobs

Spotlight On: Steve Marino

Steve Marino Title: Director Project: Music Video for the band Sandwash Website: http://www.steamfilms.com/stevemarino/ Steve Marino Recommends:

The Project: Sandwash's “Alabaster” Music Video

In Dubai, I met the singer of Sandwash, Mike Fillon. We immediately hit it off. We sat down and talked about the band, where they had been, the direction they were going, and decided the hot single “Alabaster” would be chosen as the video off the new album. The track rocked, but it was the “we are having a great time/fun personalities” of the members of Sandwash that I really wanted to shine through. I had an offbeat, “old school” idea that I had never seen done before, so I did a pretty elaborate written treatment, and the guys let me run with the concept. I am all about doing something unique but what I envisioned really was a stretch, pretty “out there” compared to what has been done before, both here, and especially in terms of the Middle Eastern region.

I decided to use a combination of techniques combining live action of the band, mixed-media-stop-motion, and digital animation. Here’s how it all went together.

The Art:

STEP 1

I was a stranger in a strange land and didn’t know if my NYC guerilla style of “run and gun” filmmaking to capture the live action would work in the Middle East. ---Man, was I pleasantly surprised!

The footage pictured left was shot against a massive construction project bathed for whatever reason in iridescent green light. I had scouted the location for a couple of evenings and figured we could get in and out before the police arrived, or security for the surrounding buildings got too pissed-off. (---Yes, we should have gone the “permit route” but that would have taken WAY too much time and aggravation).

Unfortunately, exactly at the time we were getting ready to film, our generator died. In an instant “Pop!”, and out went our lights and any hope of getting the shot. To add insult to injury the green lights on the huge construction site behind the band then ADDITIONALLY went out, leaving us stuck in total darkness, scratching our heads, without a clue what to do next. Just when all seemed lost, a couple of guys emerged from the crowd that had been gathering (---it was now getting quite late at night and our original “in and out/stealth like shooting intent/technique” was completely blown) and tried to help us. (---Opposite the construction site was a commercial housing complex and those who weren’t watching from most of the windows had now joined us downstairs/across the street at our location). The guys who stepped up were Egyptian; they didn’t speak English, and none of us spoke their heavy dialect of Egyptian Arabic. However, through “hand gestures” explaining what was going on (our problem, and their solution), flashlights, and lighters (---in hindsight probably not the smartest move since it was a gas powered generator) they began ripping it apart. Due to sheer diligence on their part, it went from a dead carcass to up and running within ten minutes.

We were now on a roll, so, since I felt we really needed the shot, against the wishes of the band I walked over to the crew who were the overnight security force for the construction sight. They were a rough and tumble lot, looking REALLY hardcore, with long flowing beards and turbans. I asked them if they could fire up the lights one more time for the entire site. Everyone stared at me as the main security guy quietly and calmly said “sure”. I was baffled that he replied so quickly that I asked him again, slowly, to which he replied even more patiently, to make sure that I got it; “s---u—r—e”. The lights were back on within 15 minutes (--it took that much time to power them up, turn them all on) and shooting continued without a hitch. (The next day we thanked them all with Mutton sandwiches. ---Why Mutton, I can’t really say, but at the time it “felt right” and they seemed quite happy to get them).

We were back in action and filmed the entire song multiple times from a variety of vantage points at this location, and the surrounding area. I couldn’t have been more pleased with the footage we got, and the help that we received. The people were absolutely G-R-E-A-T! A woman came out of her home completely covered in traditional black abaya clothing (covered head to toe with only her eyes showing), yelling, however after she saw what we were doing, she took off her hijab (the traditional head-dress portion that covers the face) and sat down and had a cigarette with us! Her kids had a great time watching us shoot as well.

The final touch was when this MASSIVE security guy we thought was going to be problematic, (---do a search on “Tiny Tony Lister” and you’ll get an idea of what he looked like, but this guy was MUCH bigger and even more intimidating), turned out to be so cool, I put him at the very end of the video (where he chases off the band). If you look close you will see that Chrom (base player) doesn’t move. Either due to fear of this massive guy charging at him or too much alcohol. ---Could have been both!

STEP 2

We took a three-ring-school-binder-notebook and I cut out the center of it. In the center I put “+”’s as registration marks both for stability and as means for where we would remove this portion (more on this later).

I then had the members, friends of the band, as well as myself, draw along the edges of the binder filling it up page by page.

This binder was then physically attached to a table (to limit overall movement) and my digital camera was mounted overhead with an elaborate lighting set-up and tied directly into my laptop to capture the stop motion, recording the activity frame by frame.

I then began “painting away” the imagery with either white or black paint.

By the time it was done I had created a huge mess of myself, and the remains of the “notebook” was now a soggy pulp of paint and torn paper. This footage was then reversed to look as if everything animated on.

Tony French then took ALL the footage and did a brilliant job of editing the video. We did this in two steps; first we took the live action of the band and cut a video using only this footage. When we were happy with it we then took this footage and (second) inserted it in the interior of the notebook and refined that footage so that both the live footage and that of the various forms of animation worked well together with the pacing of the music track. Putting all of the elements together, Tony completed a “rough cut”. A “rough cut” is exactly what it sounds like, the assembling of the selection of takes, putting the project together, etc., all “roughly” for storytelling and pacing without concern of mattes and final touches. The online artist then takes the pre-approved rough cut and, visually/painstakingly goes through and dots the “I’s” and crosses all the “T’s” making sure it looks perfect.

STEP 3

Originally this project was to be completed in Dubai but I found out after the fact that the talent of the online artist, or compositor (---person that assembles all of the final pieces of the puzzle) was not up to the standard skill level and degree of professionalism that I expect for all projects, and especially require for something of this time consuming nature. I pulled the job from him and brought it to back to the United States to National Ministry of Design (NMD), the shop that represents me as a Director in the Boston/New England marketplace.

At NMD I had the absolute pleasure of working with Courtney Babin. Courtney immediately, and enthusiastically, rolled up her sleeves and dove in… She began by cutting a refined matte in the center most of the notebook. ---Think of standing inside a room and looking outside, and seeing activity through a “window”, (which in this case is the “matte” or “black hole” pictured above) and you’ll know what I mean. This area is for where the band was to be inserted. Courtney then carefully “stabilized” all the footage (made sure it was steady) removing any natural and unintentional shifts in the camera or notebook. She then did a final “composite”, or digital combination of the imagery, putting all of the pieces together.

STEP 4

The band inserted into the notebook. I also had pages of the notebook turning (and took pictures of them as well frame by frame) during the shoot. Courtney created “Rotoscoped Articulate Mattes” (---basically a moving “digital cookie cutter” that enables one image to be layered/placed seamlessly on top of another), of all these elements, in addition to any of the stop motion pieces on the border that extended into the matted area.

STEP 5

The final image of only one frame of the entire video.

Additive shadows, in addition to a number of digital animation pieces I created that Courtney additionally composited upon the notebook. I felt these elements were subtle, but necessary, to further break up and create another layer of offset motion, overlapping action.

STEP 6

Putting EVERYTHING into perspective there are 30 individual frames or images that make up only one second of motion, so… think of what was involved/what is going on multiple levels during this entire 3 minute 42 second, or 6600 frames, that make up this entire music video!

I hope you enjoyed this spotlight and please don’t hesitate to email, let me know what you think of the final.

The Interview:

Q: How did you get into directing music videos?

Steve Marino: I began my a career as a traditional and special FX animator, from that it led to model making, designing and shooting main titles for feature films, and then Visual FX Supervision. As a FX Sup. my function was to go to shoots and work with the Director. On commercials, I handled the FX end, while the Director would work with the talent. I would have to make sure all of the elements and 'pieces of the puzzle' were filmed correctly so that we would be able to put them all back together later on in post production. With Music Videos, a number of times a member of the band would be the "Director". At one notable shoot (---not naming anyone here) I showed up and began asking the "Director" about what he had in mind and he would keep responding with "I don't know Steve, what do you think..?". It happened so many times that by the end of the video i just said the heck with it and started Directing.

Q: Can you give us a brief description of your background (i.e. where you went to school, what you studied, how did you get started, when did you start working with an agency?)

Steve Marino: I studied traditional animation, mentoring under the amazing Milt Neil, a traditional Disney Animator that had worked on Snow White, Fantasia, etc., (---had won an Academy Award for "Der Fuehrer's Face" an animated classic featuring Donald Duck exposing Nazism in 1943) and Bruce Wands from "The School of Visual Arts". They were brilliant, and I am incredibly thankful they supported me and what i did, giving me a full room to build sets and do stop motion in with a Bolex and Cine-Special 16mm camera. I was also exposed to the Oxberry animation stand which at that point wasn't computerized. I was hooked with the "roll up your sleeves mentality" to just make it work. My father came from the world of advertising yet he went to work in a suit and tie everyday, i was like "Wait ,I get PAID to do this, and i go to work in jeans and a T-Shirt...?! Damn.., --I'm in!!".

Q: What do you enjoy most- directing commercials, music videos, or films? Is there any difference in how you approach the medium for these varied visual formats?

Steve Marino: I approach all projects the same way, trying to get involved as early as possible and staying until the end, no matter what the budget, or subject matter. Each project is an extension of your creativity. Each has a client, and if you slack off and don't give 110% each and every time you'd better go to work in a cubicle pushing papers. In regard to which I prefer, commercial, music videos, or motion pictures, they all have their benefits: Commercials are quick in the big picture, and, although they weren't what they used to be, that still is where you find the largest budgets. It is a relatively fast turn around so (---four weeks tops unless it is a large campaign) even if its a crazy deadline and there is some grief and aggravation, you know it will be over soon enough. You'll have a cool reel piece, and then move on to the next project. Motion Pictures are cool, but you can end up on them shot after shot for a very LONG time. Its great as far as a steady gig if you are freelance, HOWEVER, since everything is about your demo reel you can only put so much from one feature on it (---no matter how cool!) before people become accustomed to it. It also tends to get dated quickly. Music Videos are fun. You have to be extremely creative because, for the most part, the larger/big budgets have gone the way of the dinosaur. Music Videos do afford the ability to try out techniques that agency folks might not be open to without seeing it first ... When working with agencies there is always the "show me factor". If you have a great idea that hasn't been done before for the most part the agencies' "knee-jerk reaction" is "That sounds cool! Can you show me an example...?" , so you are still able to try out ideas here, where elsewhere it doesn't fly. So, in a rather long winded answer, instead of being tied to one format or another, (which can become repetitious) i enjoy having the ability/flexibility to jump between the mediums to keep things fresh.

Q: It sounds like there was a LOT of work put into this video- how long did it end up taking you to complete it?

Steve Marino: The shoot was three late nights (one for all the outdoor footage, one for the band playing in the long hallway,and one for the stop-motion), and a couple of hours during one day (for the girl getting into and out of the swimming pool which was used as a subtle animation element). The rough cut took three days to work out all the footage. I also prepared a large number of animation elements which took a total of two and a half days. Aside from what turned out to be minor bumps in the road (as described with the imagery) it went off without a hitch. The problem occurred with the online "artist" that i was working with at the time. At that point i had decided to come back to the States, yet the project was supposed to be finished in Dubai. I sat down with him and (1) asked if he understood what I wanted /expected him to do, (2) walked through frame by frame how it was to be done (3) lastly, asked him if he "really" wanted to do it, if not I would bring it back to the States with me. He said no problem, he understood what I wanted, and I left the project in what i thought were capable hands. Days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months. Nothing was done. Then, instead of posting a version for my approval, which is industry standard, he provided his version of a "final" DIRECTLY to the client, Sandwash, without my approval, or knowledge. The BAND then showed me what the artist "thought" was the final video (--not the way things are EVER professionally done). They were justifiably upset. The inferior work was noticeable, very poorly executed without the time or care given that ANY job needed. The job was pulled from him, and the shop, and THEN brought back to the States where it was finished within two weeks at National Ministry of Design with Courtney. So, although the project took several months, it should have been three and a half weeks, total.

Q: What was this video shot with (i.e. Film, DV, RED ONE)? What format do you generally prefer to work with?

Steve Marino: The project was shot in HD. In most instances where music videos are concerned, film turns into an expensive aspect with developing footage and then transferring to tape so it can be imported into the editorial system. In this case Tony French, our editor, also was a damn good DP, pulled double duty, shooting and editing everything in FCP (Final Cut Pro).

Q: When working on an animated or heavy vfx spot do you use pre-vis or storyboards at all and if so what is your software of choice?

Steve Marino: Depends on how detailed the project is, but for the most part I do use storyboards, and or pre-vis to some extent. For instance, the "Spring of Life" commercial I Directed (also in Dubai) i was bidding against "Framestore" and "The Mill", the two best shops in the entire world (---as far as i am concerned that is....). I figured i was such a long shot, I took the agencies treatment and completely changed the concept so that it flowed from the beginning to the end in one continuous take. I went out on a limb thinking that there was such a slim chance of being awarded the project, why not..? Well, it WAS awarded (---the agency liked that i took it in a different direction with a fresh look), and to make sure the spot flowed well, i worked with my storyboard artist Matt Karrol remotely in the States drawing and scanning every frame while i was in Dubai. We went back and forth posting images and then, when i felt we had enough information to tell the story, i cut together an animatic (a moving storyboard) in After Effects to establish the initial pacing and timings of the shots. From there I worked with a junior artist doing a pre-visualization, a CG "wire frame" of the rough motion, that would then be used as a guide for the final animation which was done in Spain by "Oddmood" and "AnimMate" in South Africa. Long story short: It depends on the project. For "Spring of Life", yes, EVERYTHING was storyboarded. For Sandwash "Alabaster" I had created a written treatment that described everything I wanted to do, and i was given the reigns to run with it. With most projects it depends on the magic three; "time", "budget", and "quality" the plan of attack. They say in most instances you can have two, but hardly ever all three. If you plan the project correctly and think of the demands of each aspect from a well rounded background, its able to make the "magic three" work every time.

Q: Do you have any inspirational books or films you would like to recommend to other artists?

Steve Marino: Artists: Robert Williams, Edward Hopper, Vincent Van Gogh, Diego Rivera, Frank Miller, Alex Ross, George Perez, Jack Kirby, Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, Joseph Stella, Ralph Steadman, Ray Harryhausen, Willis "Obie" O'Brien, and Tim Burton.

Activities: movies, books, work... too much work and not enough books and movies.

Interests: OLD custom cars, not as old custom motorcycles, NOT LLAMO THEME BIKES!!!! my two pitbulls, and trying not to annoy my wife Amy.

Favorite TV Shows: The Shield, Rescue Me, The Riches, Pushing Daisies, The Wire, Generation Kill, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Reaper, Arrested Development

Favorite Movies: This is England, A History of Violence, 30 Days of Night, Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, Layer Cake, Snatch, Running Scared, Apocalypse Now, Just Friends, Three O'Clock High, Animal House, The Godfather & Star Wars (--the first two films in each series, and no others, "in my world" of stopping when you are ahead... ), Valley Girl, Jason and the Argonauts, ALL Harry Potter films (although, like the books, the later and darker in the series the better!)

Favorite Books: Redemption Song: The Ballad of Joe Strummer: Chris Salewicz, The 48 Laws of Power: Robert Greene & J. Elffers, James Dean, Brando, McQueen, Hitchcock biographies, Harry Potter series of books (---best, most successful adaptation EVER of "books into films"!), Industrial Light and Magic (2) Books, The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation by Ollie Johnston

Favorite Music: Check out the bands i did videos for (Bouncing Souls, Beasties, Flogging Molly, etc..) you'll get what i like...