BEHIND THE SCENES AND Q&A > DECAPTROFLAXEN
DecaptroFlaxen
Q&A WITH DIRECTOR DAN DOBRANSKY
1. Where did the inspiration for this video come from?
The video came from two places. Firstly, I wanted to experiment with masking out parts of the human body. That led me to the second place, which was the idea of removing limbs for the purpose of human advancement. There's a specific athlete that inspired the idea, but I don't want to bring it up because of the controversy attached to him. All I'll say was that he has a handicap that he was able to move past. But what if people without handicaps saw this type of thing as an opportunity. If you were a dedicated athlete that would do anything for your sport, and you weren't worried about the moral issues that would arise, you'd probably go through the process to be the champion you know you are. It's actually a little scary to think about. At some point we'll be putting technology into our brains to make us smarter, or fix specific diseases. As with all things beneficial, there are issues that will arise. Hopefully we'll be lucky enough not to make the wrong choices. 2. What were your film making challenges? The main challenge was figuring out how to mask out the body parts seamlessly. I'm not a hard-core animator, but I get the idea of how to make it work. I basically shot each scene three times and had to synch them up. I was really lucky that Nick Kanellis was willing to jump (pun unintended) into the project because I needed to work with someone who I knew could handle the physicality that was necessary. Plus, he was a perfect fit for the part. The only thing I regret is not shooting this all on green screen. I had to mask out parts of the body frame for frame. But as I said earlier, I wanted to experiment, so I did. I'm very happy with how the video turned out and am looking forward to moving on to the next project. 3. How did the Magnet Video Lab help you grow as an artist from Season 1 to Season 2? I feel like the Video Lab has grown tighter as a group and so has our process. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses, but the weakness are slowly turning into strengths. I also feel like I'm becoming tighter with a community of creative doers, which is my main reason for being involved with Magnet. People are there because they love what they're doing and not for occupational advancement. I mean, yeah, I'd love to get paid for doing this stuff, but that's not my main goal. But if there's anyone out there that would like me to make some things for them for a few thousand dollars, feel free to reach out. :D 4. What's next? I have a few ideas in my head of new ways to push myself. So far, I've done two graphic heavy projects with the Lab and I feel like I need to work something a bit more cinematic. So I'm hoping to work less with static shots and flat composition. I want to work more with scrolling shots and varied depth of field. I also need to work on music and editing. I think the special effects stuff has been a crutch for me. No matter what I choose to do, I'm looking forward to working with my friends to make something we're all proud of. |
VIDEO
Recovered footage of video research done for "Decaptroflaxen". The drug was developed to aid in the removal of limbs to help prepare for the next step in bionic implants, moving human evolution a few more steps forward.
Premiered at Magnet Theater on June 1, 2014 Running Time: 04:16 Starring Nick Kanellis, Jarreau Carrillo, Dan Dobransky, Jamie Northrup Written, directed, edited and CG'd by Dan Dobransky Director of Photography: Jamie Northrup Boom Operator: Shalini Tripathi Music: "The Elevator Bozza Nova" from Bensound.com Special Thanks: Magnet Theater & Magnet Video Lab BEHIND THE SCENES GALLERY
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