Samsung’s new Freestyle digital projector

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Samsung has just introduced a fantastic 1080p digital projector: the Freestyle.

Janko Roettgers of Protocol reports:

  • “The new Samsung Freestyle is a portable projector capable of projecting video from 30 inches to 100 inches. It offers access to the very same UI and apps as any of the company’s other 2022 smart TVs, but that’s pretty much where the similarities to a traditional TV end.
  • Weighing 830 grams, the Freestyle is designed for portability. “It’s about the same weight as a coconut or cauliflower,” Samsung Senior Director of Lifestyle TV Product Marketing Stephen Coppola told me recently. The projector can be powered via USB-C from a wall plug or external battery pack.
  • The Freestyle can be angled to use any free wall space as a screen, including the ceiling. It automatically calibrates the image to keep it in focus, level it and keystone it. “This is the magical feature on this device,” Coppola said.
  • The projector ships with a modified smart TV remote, but can also be controlled with voice commands via a far-field microphone after a voice assistant (Google, Alexa or Bixby) has been enabled.
  • The Freestyle ships with a lens cap that turns it into an ambient light projector, which is a pretty ingenious way of using a TV-like device for something that’s definitely not at all like a TV.
  • Later this year, Samsung wants to sell an optional light bulb socket adapter, further doubling down on this “my TV is a mood light in its spare time” idea.
  • There’s also a built-in speaker, which comes in handy in combination with far-field voice control. “There’ve been smart speakers, but never really a smart speaker with a 100-inch screen attached to it,” Coppola said.”

My take: I think the optional screw-in base is brilliant. Imagine using a goose-neck lamp in your living room to drive this! How long before they come up with a higher resolution? More uses:

Spider-Man: No Way Home bests 2021 Worldwide Box Office

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Spider-Man: No Way Home has won the 2021 Worldwide Box Office race, becoming the 12th highest-grossing film of all time.

The Numbers lays out the top five 2021 Worldwide Box Office takes:

  1. Spider-Man: No Way Home = $1,372,600,664
  2. Chang jin hu = $909,346,236 (China domestic release)
  3. Ni Hao, Li Huan Ying = $841,674,419 (China domestic release)
  4. No Time to Die = $770,937,747
  5. F9: The Fast Saga = $721,274,780

Not bad for a 60-year-old teenager.

My take: Funnily, it was just one month ago I blogged that No Time to Die had surpassed F9. And then Spider-Man: No Way Home earned almost as much as their combined takes, in a scant three weeks!

Netflix-BANFF Diversity of Voices Initiative needs you to apply

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Calling all Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour creators and producers of any gender from across Canada! Time is running out to apply to the 2022 edition of the Netflix-BANFF Diversity of Voices Initiative. Attend the 2022 Banff World Media Festival and benefit from an exclusive professional development program designed to help projects and careers move forward.

The deadline to apply is January 7, 2022 at 3:00 pm EST.

There are 100 spots available and the successful applicants will receive:

  • A full access pass to the 2022 Banff World Media Festival, a leading international conference and marketplace that provides a platform for the evolving media industry to develop its creative and business objectives.
  • A customized professional development program.
  • Networking opportunities with senior media industry executives.
  • Access to and visibility within the Canadian and international media industry.

But wait, there’s more!

Twenty-five participants will also invited to pitch their projects and will also receive:

  • A $1500 CAD travel stipend to attend the 2022 Banff World Media Festival (on the condition of an in-person Festival).
  • Mentorship from an industry advisor expertly positioned to provide actionable feedback on project and career development.
  • Private networking or pitching opportunities with Canadian and international executives.

See the eligibility requirements and the entry guidelines.

See the 2021 participants.

My take: BIPOC creators, go for this!

Screen tax credits are worth billions, but have a dark side too

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K.J. Yossman reports in Variety that Tax Breaks Resulted in $18 Billion Boost for U.K. Economy.

She writes:

“According to the British Film Institute report, titled “Screen Business,” every £1 of U.K. film tax relief generates £8.30 for the U.K. economy via direct spend on screen production (which has increased by 74% to £13.86 billion between 2017-19), local business and infrastructure growth, job opportunities, inward investment e.g. in studio space, exports of U.K. services and productions, travel, retail and tourism (Bath, for example, now offers a number of “Bridgerton” tours).”

The dark side?

“While the production boom is great news for the U.K. economy – the report found jobs have increased by 45% and almost £1 billion will be invested in production facilities since 2016 – it has had a knock-on effect on smaller production companies and indie film producers, who are struggling to source crew, space and even equipment. In turn, scarcity has unsurprisingly led to price inflation.”

My take: I would say the same thing has happened here in Victoria, BC.

Telefilm to ask key creatives to self-identity

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In order to create a more equitable film industry, on December 14, 2021, Telefilm Canada shared information on its newest phase of data collection enhancements.

Christa Dickenson, Telefilm Canada’s Executive Director and CEO, is quoted:

“Telefilm’s next phase in data collection will work to bring greater insight into Canada’s audiovisual industry, and help us learn more about our film community, their projects, and their needs. We will be able to capture a more accurate portrait of our project pipeline, and address communities that need additional support, training, mentorship and more.”

Data will be collected from directors, writers, producers, co-producers, and executive producers on a voluntary basis and will cover Indigenous identity, racial and ethnic identity, gender identity and expression, belonging to an 2SLGBTQIA+ community, disability status, and belonging to an Official Language Minority Community.

Note that this self-provided “information will be used in evaluation of the creative material, review of the community engagement plan, as well as to evaluate eligibility to certain specific streams.”

Find more details here: Data Collection

For Telefilm’s diversity objectives and identity definitions, see page 7 of the Essential Information Guide

Find a sample survey here: https://telefilm.ca/wp-content/uploads/telefilm-canada-self-identification-questionnaire-december-2021.pdf

The new Self-Identification Questionnaire will be available on January 4, 2022.

Telefilm has done a great job with gender parity over the last five years. See its Gender Action Parity Plan and 2020-2021 results. See its Equity and Representation Action Plan and June 2021 presentation.

My take: with gender parity, we knew the goal was 50/50, or something close to that. But what are the goals for diversity and inclusivity? From Statistics Canada: “Canada is an increasingly diverse country — data from the 2016 Census indicated that 22.3% of the population were designated as belonging to one or more visible minority groups. Through population projections from 2017, Statistics Canada projects that this percentage would rise to between 31.2% and 35.9% by 2036.” So my guesstimate is that Telefilm’s goal would be 1 in 3.

Robot advances

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Emma Roth reports on The Verge that robots are making advances: A humanoid robot makes eerily lifelike facial expressions; it’s interesting and a little scary.

She writes:

“Engineered Arts, a UK-based designer and manufacturer of humanoid robots, recently showed off one of its most lifelike creations in a video posted on YouTube. The robot, called Ameca, is shown making a series of incredibly human-like facial expressions.”

But wait, there’s more! Meet Mesmer, even more life-like:

This, of course, builds on the research of Dr. Paul Ekman and his exploration of expression.

His FACS (Facial Action Coding System) is used by major animation studios to bring emotion to their creations.

My take: I wonder if robots will ever develop to the point where we can cast them in movies. I mean, we’re half way there with CG VFX.

Bond bests Dom

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After being delayed time and time again, No Time to Die has officially earned the most (non-Chinese) worldwide box office in 2021, surpassing F9.

Nicole Drum reports on Comicbook.com that “the chairman of MGM’s film group Michael De Luca and MGM Film Group President Pamela Abdy released a statement expressing how “thrilled” they are to see audiences returning to theaters as well as for the support for No Time To Die.”

“We are so thrilled to see audiences returning to theaters across the world and for their ongoing support of the theatrical experience. After a long delay, we are especially gratified to know No Time To Die has entertained so many moviegoers the world over. Along with our partners at Eon, Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, all of us at MGM are grateful to the teams at Universal Pictures, United Artists Releasing, and in our own MGM territories for their tremendous efforts to cross this great milestone with No Time To Die. This achievement is a testament to Daniel Craig and the entire cast, as well as our director Cary Fukunaga, producers Michael and Barbara, and the crew for making an incredible film. We extend our thanks to our exhibitor and promotional partners for remaining steadfast in their support of the film.”

btw, Billie Eilish O’Connell and her brother Finneas Baird O’Connell won the Emmy for Best Song Written for Visual Media for the title tune:

My take: Got to say, I’m not surprised. After all, Bond is the longest running movie franchise with the fourth largest cumulative worldwide box office. And the music is killer.

New lightfield lens records depth info

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John Aldred reports on DIYPhotography that the K|Llens One lens is about to released on Kickstarter.

He says:

“The K|Llens One lens, teased earlier this year by German company K|Lens, is finally about to released on Kickstarter. They say that this is the world’s first light field lens that can be used with regular DSLR and mirrorless cameras — and it works for both stills and video. Designed for full-frame cameras, the lens is a “ground-breaking mix of state-of-the-art lens and software technology” which K|Lens says will open up new worlds of creativity to users.”

The lens shoots nine images at once, with each taking up 1/9th the area of the sensor in a 3×3 grid. Custom software then manipulates those images into the desired result.

Because this lens turns any camera into a 3D camera it might have application for specific tasks like Visual Effects, where having depth information is vital for compositing.

Aldred adds:

“Interestingly, while all of the software was developed in-house, the lens itself, they say, was developed in cooperation with Carl Zeiss Jena GmbH, who they say will also be doing all of the manufacturing. So, while K|Lens might be a company that few have heard of, it will essentially be a Zeiss lens. And not just their name stamped on somebody else’s product as Huawei did with Leica, as they’re actually making the thing.”

See the company website.

My take: I’ve blogged about the light field a few times in the last decade and I really like the promise. Could it be the end of out of focus shots for ever? All we need is a similar “sound field” that would allow us to capture every sound source at once and later go into the soundscape to re-record those sources much closer. Right? (Hmm. Is this that?)

The Dutch Angle, explained

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Marie Cascione explains on Vox — why movies tilt the camera. Watch now:

She writes:

“The Dutch angle (aka Dutch tilt, canted angle, or oblique angle) is a filmmaking technique that involves setting the camera at an angle and tilting the entire scene. You see it everywhere, from blockbuster movies to soap commercials. It’s used to emphasize when something is a little off, or just to make a shot look more interesting. The thing is… it’s not actually Dutch. And it didn’t start with filmmakers. It was pioneered by German directors during World War I, when outside films were blocked from being shown in Germany. While Hollywood was serving up largely glamorous, rollicking films, the German film industry joined the expressionist movement in art and literature, which was focused on processing the chaos of world war. Its themes touched on betrayal, suicide, psychosis, and terror. And expressionist films conveyed that darkness not just through their plotlines, but through their set designs, costumes — and unusual camera shots.”

My take: all of this reminds me of my short film Largo. Because it’s a psychological portrait, I invoked elements of German Expressionism to illustrate the Captain’s mental state, particularly canted camera angles, skewed sets and long shadows. Not bad for 72 hours and $10!

Jim Cummings says don’t get screwed by agencies

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Eric Kohn of IndieWire quotes Jim Cummings as saying, “Agencies don’t actually care about independent film,” in Your Agent Is a Con Artist: ‘The Beta Test’ Director Jim Cummings Wants to Liberate Indie Filmmaking.

Cummings’s thesis is that no one can do a better job monetizing your film than you. He says, “You have to have some business savvy in order to do anything. The film industry is no different, and you shouldn’t give your movie to people who don’t really care about the thing.”

His new movie The Beta Test is about how agencies package deals with their talent. Cummins explains, “The point was to inoculate independent filmmakers to not want to participate in that world — to not be fucked over by the way this culture is built. That has been my raison d’être over the last 10 years.”

Kohn asks, “If the movie is a cautionary tale, what would you like to see filmmakers do instead?” and Cummings replies:

“Exactly what we did. The story of the movie is that agencies don’t actually care about independent film. They care about money and power. But the way we made the film was completely circumventing that system. We ran a Wefunder campaign. It’s a crowd equity platform. We made the movie in our offices with our friends cast in all the parts. We did all of the distribution by ourselves without sales agents. The future is going to be a lot more like talented YouTubers making 90-minute pieces of content. That’s what real democracy is. You can waste a huge amount of your life working for people who don’t care about you.”

My take: This is a great read, and advice to heed. For review, please see Mark Duplass‘s seminal presentation The Calvary Is Not Coming.