#2: Images That Inspire Me

I've gathered up a few images from a few artists that inspire me to make my own films. First up:

ANSEL ADAMS

I first noticed the work of Ansel Adams when I started getting into photography when I was younger. I remember being drawn to how simple and yet powerfully composed his photographs are. His stark black and white images and photos of the untamed American wilderness stand strong, like the proverbial moment frozen in time. Adams makes expert use of negative space in a way that gives his work a real sense of gravity and importance.

Compare the two images above. Notice how the amount of space occupied by the the landscape in the first photo is almost exactly the same as the space taken up by the sky and mountains in the second image? Adams used traditional thirds in many of his compositions. In the first, the sky is vast and expansive, making the tiny town below seem even smaller. In the second image, the field is seemingly endless and sprawling, dwarfing the tiny people who work it.

WALLY PFISTER

Wally Pfister is Chris Nolan's go-to cinematographer and has DP'd every one of Nolan's films since Memento. Like Ansel Adams, Pfister has a way of shooting that grants his subjects a real power and prominence. He manages to make everything that he puts in front of the camera look important and larger than life. Whether we're talking about the massive skylines of Gotham or the tiny spinning top in Inception, Pfister creates images that, to me, look the way a movie is supposed to look.

I've also noticed that Chris Nolan's films seem to lean toward desaturated hues and and strong contrast, which is a look that I happen to like. Less saturated colors on the screen provide the viewer with less visual information, forcing them to look into the image rather than just at it, resulting in increased emotional engagement.

Also, Batman is awesome.

The Prestige

Dark Knight

Inception

BLUE VELVET & MULHOLLAND DRIVE


David Lynch is one of my favorite filmmakers, in part because I think he might be genuinely insane. Blue Velvet and Mulholland Drive are two of my favorite films and they're both gorgeously shot.

Lynch portrays women in his films in the same way he portrays most of his characters: as over the top polarized caricatures of character types. The women in Lynch's movies bring to mind the leading ladies of the classic Hollywood era, but with a dark modern twist. They are often very feminine and dangerously sensual. Lips are blood red, the "bad girl's" hair is jet black, and the shadows are deep and dangerous.

Men get the same treatment from Lynch. In Blue Velvet, the evil Frank is as evil as they come. Clad in a black leather jacket and driving a black muscle car, he is sadistic, violent, and abusive, and seems to be enjoying every minute of misery that he inflicts upon others.

Both of these films rely heavily on the atmosphere of mystery and dread that Lynch evokes, and that atmosphere is achieved largely through his choice of visual styles.

Mulholland Dr.

Blue Velvet

COMIC & FANTASY ART

I'm a fan of comic book and fantasy art. I appreciate the limitations of the comic book format and have always been amazed by any artist who can compose an image that not only looks great, but can convey a character's personality, motivations, and emotions while also setting a scene and telling a story all in a single frame. Among my favorite artists are:

FRANK FRAZETTA

BORIS VALLEJO

FRANK MILLER

And Batman is still awesome.