Bright Shadow Films » china

Confucius (Kong ze)

admin — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 09:51:05 +0000

Well if you haven’t watch this movie, you should spend some time online reading about the review, sadly due to the current situation of the Avatar situation in China, the box office is not going very well, although it seems the DaDi Film Co is trying something in foreign land.

Here is a few things came from Screendaily:

Chow Yun-fat is the main attraction in Confucius, a ponderous and weakly-imagined attempt at repackaging the ancient sage for the blockbuster era. Hu Mei’s (For All Eternity) film includes both battle sequences and an attempted seduction of the legendary philosopher in hopes of drawing mainstream audiences, but a lack of narrative development results in a film that is neither entertaining nor enlightening.

From what you can see in the trailer actually the film images looks alright, although the main complain from the audience are focus on “story”, but it’s still worth most people and their pop-corn.

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The Insider’s Guide to Shooting in China

admin — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 10:04:00 +0000

This article is originally from here

Photographers are heading to China in droves right now, whether for the coming Olympics in Beijing (August 8-24), to cover the aftermath of the tragic May 12 earthquake in Sichuan province — or just to shoot stock: China’s ferocious growth and rapidly changing economy have made it a perennially hot news property.

“It’s an unusual time of openness in China, which is traditionally a xenophobic country, thanks to the Olympics and the earthquake, ” says Jeff Greenwald, executive director of Ethical Traveler , a project of the Earth Island Institute. “That openness is a two-way street. People traveling to China, particularly Americans, can try to counteract some of the negative images that China has of us from its media.”

But this is a very politically sensitive country. Attempting to shoot certain subjects—anything to do with say, Tibet, religion, state executions, and disease—can get you in trouble with the authorities. Along with Greenwald, PDNOnline talked to ten photographers who have shot in mainland China to get their tips for those new to the country. Several living in or frequently working in China spoke on the condition of anonymity. Those who spoke to us on the record are:

Monte Isom, a commercial photographer who specializes in portraits of athletes
Catherine Karnow, photographer behind National Geographic Traveler: Beijing
Wayne Liu, a Taiwan-born fine-arts shooter
Mads Nissen, a freelance photojournalist based in Shanghai
Sara Remington, a food and travel photographer
James Whitlow Delano, a Tokyo-based photographer with Redux Pictures and author of Empire: Impressions from China

BEFORE YOU GO

Vaccines: Many photographers recommended getting the Hepatitis B vaccine.
The Centers for Disease Control has a Web site for China with a full health briefing.

Visas: Note that your passport has to be valid for at least six more months. The visa situation has changed several times in the past few months. Check the Chinese Embassy’s Web site for the most up-to-date requirements.

Everyone had an opinion on getting a tourist or business visa versus an official journalist visa:

“We went in on a tourist visa to shoot a wedding and pick up stock. The photographer I went with and I had four camera bodies and 10 lenses. But she and I purposefully made ourselves look younger and separated ourselves.”—Remington

“When I was freelancing, I was on a business visa because I wanted to stay completely off the radar. Now, I am staff and on a J-1 (resident journalist) visa, as it is required by my company. There are benefits to being unregistered and registered. Unregistered allows more freedom to move and work on sensitive stories, but you run the risk of being deported, arrested, or having your contacts get arrested. Being registered allows you to do official events and work openly, but it is restricted. Registered journalists are not allowed to visit Tibet unless invited, and the invitation is difficult to obtain.”—Photojournalist based in China

“It depends on how much you have to lose. If you were going to come and shoot a big production with a lot of lights and models, you kind of need to get a proper visa. The police can close your operation down in a second.”—Beijing-based documentary photographer

“The business visa situation was changing constantly this year. Even my local Chinese producer couldn’t get it all put together. We needed a letter of invitation from the company hiring me, proof the airfare was confirmed and booked, hotel confirmed and booked, two passport photos, a letter from me to my assistants saying I was hiring them and they needed a visa, and an official invitation from the correct department. And that’s for one month. For a multiple-entry visa you need to prove why you need to come in and out.”–Isom

SHOOTING

Street/stock photography:

“The first thing to remember about China is that it’s not just one ethnic group. You can’t make assumptions about how people will feel about having their photo taken, or the courtesies involved. People in Beijing on the street might be OK with you shooting without asking, but Muslim Chinese people in the southern regions might react every differently.”— Greenwald

“As a woman, you just look a lot less threatening. Sometimes I wear little open-toed sandal with a pedicure. I wanted to shoot this massive demolition scene from above. There was a hotel nearby overlooking it, but there is no way in China you can just go up to the manager and explain you’re shooting for a National Geographic guidebook and get permission. I pretended I was checking in, looked at several rooms, and then I ended up sneaking in through the kitchen and shooting from the fire escape. I stuck my camera in my nice big Coach purse.”—Karnow

Photojournalism and sensitive topics

“Sometimes the political situation is dominant (anti-NATO riots 1999, the annual party congress), and sometimes it fades. But during the Olympics you can be sure it will be forefront. It’s not like there are cops everywhere telling you not to shoot, but subjects might get touchy about mildest things during times of political stress. Be subtle and act innocent. —Documentary photographer

“There is a saying in China that it is easier to ask forgiveness than for permission (read: access). Act first, and chances are if you are mild mannered, good natured, and wear a smile, even authorities will forgive a photograph of a bridge, soldier, or some other moderately sensitive subject in this often loosely controlled one-party state.”—Whitlow Delano

Commercial photography

“Chinese clients typically do not pay the agency and have them pay you. If they did, it would cost them about 12-15 percent more because of invoice taxes etc. So the client pays you directly—except the client does not want to pay anyone outside of China because that incurs a 15 percent tax; there is a loophole in Hong Kong. So the best way to go about doing a job there is to find a local production, hire them to produce your job, and then they pay you. They will charge a premium, but it makes the Chinese company more willing to hire you. Also, negotiating with Chinese clients is much different than in the United States. They want a deal. Doesn’t matter where the starting price was, they want it to be lower. “—Isom

LOGISTICS

“Skype is great for calling back home. With an unlocked cell phone, you can get a local SIM card, put $50 on it, and SMS back and forth to your local clients and back to the States. People in China text a lot and won’t like paying international fees to text you while you’re just across the city.”—Isom

“For those of us who are accustomed to uploading and downloading via FTP, you will realize as soon as you get to China that FTP speeds are nowhere near where it once was.”—from Nissen’s handy posting on
Lightstalkers.org for using the Internet in China

“It’s easy to find cheap hostels; I used Lonely Planet. Don’t pay until you see the rooms. They might be sketchy, dirty, rat infested. I felt safe leaving my film and extra camera equipment in the hostels I stayed in.”—Liu

“The bathroom situation is interesting for women. Pack your own toilet paper —and hand sanitizer is good, too.”—Remington

FOOD

“I basically eat what the locals eat. But if I’m doing a pollution story on, for example, in a ‘cancer-village,’ I’ll bring my own food or eat instant noodles, though it can be pretty boring for a whole week. “—Nissen

“I always have antibiotics on hand because my experiences is that one gets sick at 2 a.m. not 2 p.m.”—Delano

“The person I was traveling with was allergic to gluten, which was impossible to explain to people. So if you have food sensitivities, bring plenty of protein bars, almonds, etc.”—Remington

PEOPLE

“If you don’t speak Chinese, find a hip and friendly bilingual local assistant. It’s pretty easy to chat young people up, but older folks feel more comfortable with a local person talking to them. Avoid the scams where English-speaking ‘art students’ try to show you ‘their works’ that you buy because they are so friendly, or take you to a tea shop where each cup is practically $50.”—Documentary photographer

“A good guide, a good ‘fixer,’ is absolutely critical. Smart, tireless, their English has to be good but not necessarily great. When I am shooting portraits, for me to be able to coax the expressions and gestures out of people, I need almost simultaneous translation.”—Karnow

ETHICS

“Be aware that your actions when uncovering sensitive issues may bring heavy consequences upon people who can not leave the country. Do not post names, photograph faces of people who are quoted commenting on sensitive topics that are contrary to government policy. The story is not worth ruining a good person’s life. Period.”—Delano

“If I were covering a sensitive story I would hire a translator who is not a Chinese national—who has a foreign passport, but who speaks Chinese fluently. I would try not to use a minority, like a Tibetan, to work on these issues. Because they’re already in a politically sensitive situation. As the photographer I do what I can do to protect the people I work with and who I photograph, but in the end it’s a really messed-up situation.”—Beijing-based documentary photographer

Freelance writer Bonnie Azab Powell lives in Oakland with her husband, portrait photographer Bart Nagel . She would like to go to China someday — but maybe after the Olympics.

http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/esearch/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003815876

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Bright Shadow Films Sponsored Spark 2009

admin — Fri, 22 May 2009 06:22:10 +0000

If you haven’t heard of Spark 2009, you can actually take a look at this Wiki Page

Spark09 was a conference in Shanghai, China that defines its mission as “Igniting new ideas, opportunities and potential in 2009″. It was created due to the negative emotional effect the Global financial crisis of 2008–2009 had on businesses and individuals.

The presentations, each 20 minutes in length, covered the four areas of Humanity, Environment, Business, and Science. Topics included “How can a pig farmer save the world?”, “How can buildings defy gravity?”, and “How does cooking with spice save the panda?”. Speakers were from 51Give, Arup, Bayer, Frog Design, Haworth (company), IDEO, Microsoft, and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).

Spark09 was organised by ClarkMorgan which is a corporate training company with headquarters in Shanghai, China. All 19 talks of Spark09 are provided for free viewing online.

This year’s Spark meeting was hold in the tallest building of China : Shanghai World Financial Center

We are glad that we sponsored a meeting like Spark 09, and can’t wait to see the Spark 10.

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Greg Yu – Music Composer

admin — Wed, 13 May 2009 08:43:56 +0000

Greg Yu Movie Music

For those of you who don’t know about talented composer Greg Yu, here is his Showreel, please let us know what do you think!

Greg Yu TVC Music

Greg Yu Ferrari Film Music

Greg Yu Ferrari Travel Video Music

There you go! If you need any Original Music for your movie, tvc, video, etc. Feel free to drop us an email!

info@brightshadowfilms.com

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Sound Studio Equipment List

admin — Wed, 13 May 2009 07:43:37 +0000

So here is the list of equipment and software we have been using:

MONITORING:
surround 5.1 setup ADAM S3a + SUB12
surround 5.1 setup DYNAUDIO BM5a + BM9s
COMPRESSOR:
UNIVERSAL AUDIO 2-1176 (2 mono channels / Stereo)
SOUND CARDS:
RME FireFace 800 (with TimeCode IN-OUT & VIDEO IN) – 28 IN OUT AD/DA/DD at 24bit/48kHz (up 24bit/192kHz in Smux mode)
RME HDSP.9652 (with 8 analog output channels card) – 26 IN OUT DD/DA at 24bit/48kHz (up 24bit/192kHz in Smux mode)
CREAMWARE Pulsar II
CONVERTER:
RME ADI.8.DS (8 channels AD/DA, up to 24bit/96kHz)
analog/ADAT/TDIF-1 / DA-88 compatible
CONTROLLER:
MACKIE Control Universal Pro + 2 MCU ext. Pro
MICROPHONES:
AKG C414 B.XLII Stereo Set (for Mono/Stereo/MS micking)
OKTAVA mk-012 Stereo Set (with caps Set: hyper-cardio, cardio, omni)
RODE NT5 Stereo Set
SHURE SM57
SHURE Beta 57
SHURE Beta 52
AKG C2000B (x2)
(+ 6 Shockmounts, 2 articulated mounts & 3 stereo bars)
HEADPHONES:
Sennheiser HD 25-1
Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro
AKG K271S
SHURE Ear Monitor E2
HEADPHONE AMPLIFIERS
2 Presonus HP4 (4 stereo-channels each)
MICROPHONE STANDS:
2 Giant Stands
4 Standard Stands
2 Small Stands
2 Mini-Stands
COMPUTERS:
Proc: Intel Core2Duo E6600 Quad Core
Mother Board: ASUS P5K.E
RAM: CORSAIR TWIN.X (2Gb)
BLACKMAGIC Intensity (HDMI graphic card)
HHD 32Go Raptor [10000 r/min] system
HHD 74Go Raptor [10000 r/min] sessions
HHD 500Go [7200 r/min] data / libraries
HHD 130Go [7200 r/min] video
2 x HHD 500Go ext [7200 r/min] backup
3 SCREENS: 22″ WideScreen
APPLE MACBOOK.PRO 17″ – Intel Core2Duo 2.4Ghz – HHD 160Go.7200r/min
SCREENS:
Projector Screen 250×140 (5.1 Mixing Stage)
40″ WideScreen / HDMI (Rec Room)
VIDEO PROJECTOR:
SONY Bravia / HDMI

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Our Sound Studio

admin — Wed, 13 May 2009 03:59:55 +0000

In Bright Shadow Films, You can actually find the best sound facility in Shanghai

We provide Sound Production Service such like: FOLEY, ADR, Voice Over(Dubbing), Music Composing, Etc

Our Sound Engineer Benjamin l’hotellier came from France and has great experience in Sound Production.

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