BLOG: Oh, I love technology...

Joshua Ligairi » 02.25.09 »

Actually that's not true. I'm not very technically minded, I hate adopting new technologies, and I'm usually very uninterested in how these things work. Yes, I am one of those highfalutin artistic types that still enjoys vinyl, thinks CGI ruins movies, and often asserts that technology is for nerds who "chat online with babes all day". The good news? Now I don't have to learn this stuff. I just have to call the good folks at Digital Domain.

Digital Domain VP Ed Ulbrich was recently at the TED (Technology Entertainment Design) 2009 Conference where he gave a presentation called “How Benjamin Button Got His Face.” The annual conference brings together the world’s most accomplished thinkers and doers who give these amazing 18 minute presentations explaining their craft.

Ulbrich demonstrated the technology behind Brad Pitt’s character in David Fincher’s The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, for which Ulbrich just won an Oscar. I've re-posted the video of his presentation below. I have been impressed with Digital Domain's work since I saw the behind-the-scenes documentary about their work on Fincher's Zodiac, but this blows that out of the water.

You know, I just realized that I'm responding to this video not because of the technology aspect but because of that peek behind the curtain that it gives. I've always been obsessed with makings-of (probably why I loved making them on films like Evil Angel and Pirates of the Great Salt Lake) and it was actually the behind-the-scenes of Michael Jackson's Thriller that first got me interested in filmmaking. I'd say that this is largely akin to that.

You should really watch this video. I promise that, if you have the slightest interest in the future of filmmaking, you will be glad you did.



Find more "ideas worth spreading" at the TED website. Aaron Ruell photo from Napoleon Dynamite taken by my friend Seth Smoot.

LIST: The Films of 2008

Joshua Ligairi » 02.10.09 »

I have a certain amount of respect for anyone that has made a movie. I make movies for a living and, having been involved with every department at every stage of production, I know how difficult it is to produce a quality motion picture. That said, there are some bad ones out there. That's why I think that it is important to support those that are a cut above the rest. I appreciate both a mastery of the craft and a pushing of the boundaries. Well-written scripts, thoughtful camera work, detail-oriented production design, a unique vision--these are the things that I look for in a film. It is not often I find what I am looking for, but when I stumble across that rare film, I support it financially, on opening weekend whenever possible, and I try to spread good word of mouth in any way I can.

Some favorites from 2007.

Each year I compile a list of some of my favorite films. I don't do a ten list like many do, giving the films a specific ranking, but I do rate the films to some degree and I try to mention all of the films that I feel are above average. Don't consider the list as recommendations as the films included on the list span all genres from animated family movies, to foreign language films, to graphic horror flicks. Not every movie is for every person.

Some favorites from 2008.

I typically try to publish my list online before the Academy Awards. This was a busy year for me (professionally and personally) and it took me a while to see all of the movies that I wanted to, but I finally did it. I'd have to say that last year was better than this year in terms of films that knocked me out, but overall it was a solid year for cinema, especially considering all the different genres of film that were represented in the year's best. All in all 2008 yielded some wonderful cinematic creations.

I guess this was my humanist year, because all of my favorite films were truly about the human experience. Some, like Man on Wire, Milk, Valkyrie, and Waltz with Bashir, dealt with real-life heroism (and the lack thereof) in the face of unimaginable adversity and insurmountable odds while others, like Be Kind Rewind, My Winnipeg, Synecdoche, and The Wrestler, used imaginative and non-traditional facade to cut to the heart of real human emotion.


Excellent (2008) These were my favorite movies of the year.

Be Kind Rewind . Man on Wire . Milk . My Winnipeg . Synecdoche, New York . Valkyrie . Waltz with Bashir . The Wrestler

The lack of a few really amazing films this year was balanced out by an abundance of really solid filmmaking. From the creepy re-imaging of the vampire mythos in Let the Right One In to the touching investigation of love and memory in Away From Her, 2008 saw an array of simple, thoughtful stories and a mainstream appreciation of independent visions. This was most obvious with the acclaim of films like Slumdog Millionaire and Doubt, but is true of most of the films that I've placed in this category. Even the big budget family movie Wall E showed a daring and sophistication that we don't often see in animated movies for the masses. It was also wonderful to see fresh approaches to the medium from masters like David Mamet and Woody Allen (saying nothing of Jean Claude Van Damme) that could easily be content to rest on their laurels.

Very Good (2008) These were also very good films.

Away From Her . Chop Shop . Doubt . Frost / Nixon . In Bruge . JCVD . Let the Right One In . Rachel Getting Married . Redbelt . Slumdog Millionaire . Snow Angels . Son of Rambow . The Up Beat . Vicky Cristina Barcelona . The Visitor . Wall E . Young at Heart

All of the films in the following section had their problems, yet were still more watchable and unique than the typical mindless trash that is usually being shoveled on us by Hollywood. On that note, I guess I should mention that most of these were actually not studio films, but independent productions.

Above Average (2008) These were still better than most of the crap out there.

Bigger Stronger Faster . Body of Lies . Bolt . Burn After Reading . Charlie Bartlett . Choke . Encounters at the End of the Word . The Errand of Angels . The Express . Falling . Foot Fist Way . Forever Strong . Frozen River . Funny Games . Ghost Town . Gonzo . Hamlet 2 . The Happening . Happy Go Lucky . Hellboy 2 . Hell Ride . Kung Fu Panda . Lakeview Terrace . Leatherheads . Mr. Lonely . Paranoid Park . Pineapple Express . Pirates of the Great Salt Lake . Quarantine . The Reader . Run Fatboy Run . Stop Loss . Surfwise . Take . Taken . Towel Head . Traitor . Tropic Thunder. Una Vida Mejor . The Wackness . Wanted and Desired . War Inc . What Just Happened? . What Would Jesus Buy? . Youth Without Youth . Zack and Miri

What’s Wrong With Utah County? (2008) These never played in my area.

Adoration . Ashes of Time . Ballast . The Brothers Bloom . Che . A Christmas Tale . Chocolate . The Edge of Heaven . Elegy . Fear(s) of the Dark . Flight of the Red Balloon . Gomorrah . Made In America . Me and Orsen Welles . Reprise . Sukiyaki Western Jango . Teeth . Tell No One . Time Crimes . Wendy and Lucy

I just wasn't interested in what Hollywood was selling this year. I'm sure I'll see them eventually, but the apathy that these movies instilled in me made for a long summer.

I’ll Catch It On DVD (2008) Kinda wanted to see it, but not that bad.

Australia . The Curious Case of Benjamin Button . Dark Knight . The Duchess . Forgetting Sarah Marshall . Inside . The International . Ironman . John Rambo . Mamma Mia . Martyrs . Revolutionary Road . The Rocker . Role Models . Speed Racer . The Strangers . Step Brothers . Trouble the Water . Twilight . The Women

Continuing (or maybe capping) my anti-Hollywood tear, it is time to mention the big disappointments that the galaxy provided when I actually made it out to the theater this year. Whether infuriatingly bad like Indiana Jones and Eagle Eye or sadly underwhelming like W and Miracle at St. Ana, this year had some stinkers.

Biggest Disappointments (2008) I had hopes that fell flat.

American Teen . Appaloosa . City of Ember . Dear Zachary . Eagle Eye . Gran Torino . Happy Valley . Indiana Jones 4 . Miracle at St Ana . Rock N Rolla . W

Typically, I also include a list of films that were promised to us the year before that never materialized, but since the "anticipated" section is so long, I decided to forgo that this year.

Most Anticipated (2009) Next year is looking good already.

500 Days of Summer . Alice in Wonderland . The Boat That Rocked . Cleanflix . District 9 . Drag Me to Hell . The Fantastic Mr Fox . The Fighter . Gentlemen Broncos . Greenburg . The Human Factor . The Informant . The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus . Inglourious Basterds . Killshot . The Limits of Control . The Lovely Bones . Master of Space and Time . Men Who Stare at Goats . Monsters vs Aliens . Mystery Team . Ness . Paul . The Prince of Providence . Public Enemies . Red State . The Road . Scott Pilgram vs the World . Sherlock Holmes . Shutter Island . State of Play . Submarino . Suburbicon . Sympathy for Delicious . The Vicious Kind . A Walk in the Woods . Watchmen . Whatever Works . Where the Wild Things Are . The Wolf Man . The Year One

BLOG: Some healthy criticism

Joshua Ligairi » 08.01.08 »


It appears that my homey, Christian Vuissa, has a hit movie on his hands--at least within the LDS niche market. He has been getting great reviews, great word of mouth, and the distributor is spending large on advertising during...dum, dum, dum...The 2008 Olympic Games.

Yes, everything is peachy. Christian and I started pre-pro on his next film after forging a seemingly trusting relationship. He liked my work as a Production Designer and Associate Producer. I couldn't argue that he'd made another wonderfully rich film. Then, he dropped a bomb.

Apparently, he felt that the wardrobe choices I made (along with my famous clothing designer friend Gigi Ashley Munns) were a little over-the-top. Shocked and chagrined, I argued that the wardrobe was stunning, and if anything, underdone as a result of low budget. Christian responded that he felt it was distracting, and so ultimately bad. I'd take that as a valid criticism if the guy didn't like Tom Tykwer.

But, if you are going to survive in the film business then you have to develop some thick skin, so I conceded, "Okay, maybe some totally lame Molly Mormon sticklers will point out the wardrobe as a distraction, but I guarantee the average viewer won't even notice it." I even went so far as to suggest that if they were noticing the wardrobe he wasn't doing his job as a storyteller.

Then, Christian clued me in to a review by a guy named Joe Schmow (or something like that) with the byline, The Independent Critic. This guy loved Christian's movie. Like, LOVED it--and he isn't even LDS! However, he had some issues with one aspect of the film:

"Filmed on location in Vuissa's native Austria, The Errand of Angels is mesmerizingly vibrant largely owing to the stellar cinematography of Brian Wilcox (Touched by an Angel) and Joshua Ligairi's (Me and You and Everyone We Know) complementary production design, though I will confess that, on a couple of occasions, I found myself questioning Ligairi's costuming choices as being a bit 'sexy' for the mission field or minimally thinking 'Would they really be allowed to wear that?'"

So, it isn't that bad, but when you take into consideration that the rest of the review is nothing but a glowing love-fest, you have to wonder what factor would have made Joe Schmow give the flick an A- rather than a solid A. Let's just say Christian had a big "I told you so" for me.

Catch The Errand of Angels in theaters starting August 21st and on DVD around Thanksgiving. See Gigi's clothes (that are much cooler than anything in the movie) at her website.

Moderator's update » 11.24.08 » The Errand of Angels is now available on DVD at Deseret Book. You can hear an interview with filmmaker, Christian Vuissa, in Episode 1 of our podcast, 801 Underground.