SET VISIT REPORT – BATTLE: LOS ANGELES [PART 1]

Just wanted to say great write up. Looking forward to tomorrow's installment.

A meta question: how do you avoid letting your "Holy shit!" reactions and joy at just being there take over your view of a film? While I and others have loudly knocked Harry Knowles for letting junkets and being courted by in-production films seriously color his reactions, I can also understand that once you see all the work and dedication going into something, you tend want to it to succeed and are more prone to excuse or justify weaknesses.

Or is that objectivity something that comes with time and exposure?

Well, I've only done a few of these things. One for a movie I think looked rock and roll then and looks rock and roll now (Battle), and then another film (won't mention names) that felt like a piece of shit while I was there, and another that I didn't and still don't know about. This is the only one I've yet published. I'm sure when I've seen more of the finished products and can reconcile the set visit with the actual experience of seeing the film, I'll be able to better judge these things.

The advantage I do have is that I've spent so much time on low-budget and student sets that, once I'm past how much bigger and more expensive everything is, it's easier not to get caught up in the filmmaker's and crew's enthusiasm. Making a movie is hard work that requires dedication, whether the movie is great or a pile- you can't let enthusiasm color your view. I know that much.

All that said, I genuinely think Battle: LA looks great, but I think the trailers kind of speak for themselves.

Just to be clear - I don't see that kind of favoritism here (*cough*anymore*cough*) - but it's something I've wondered about. I didn't realize you had "grown up," so to speak, with filmmaking, which would likely innure you somewhat to the shiny aspects of it all.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MichaelM (*cough*anymore*cough*)

Awesome.

Have not read the SET VISIT (don't want to be spoiled, though I'm sure it's a good report), instead I'm just going to comment on this poster which ran with the article:

Over all, I think it's a great design but it's kind of ruined by extremely fake looking smoke effects. Kind of surprised by how poorly it's rendered

Finally had some time to properly read this. Great work, Renn. You approach set visits exactly the way I would, too. I'm much more interested in the technical details about the process of making a movie  than soundbites.