Video Production Books

What if the seven dwarfs had been Deafy, Wheezy, Baldy, Nifty, Swift, Lazy, and Burpy? Believe it or not, these are actual names animators considered for the dwarfs in Snow White. This fun fact and a wealth of other information can be found in Bob Thomas's comprehensive journey into the world of Disney animation. The first half of the book is a history of Disney animation starting with Oswald the Rabbit, Mickey's predecessor, and going all the way through 1990's The Rescuers Down Under. The second half of the book is a detailed look into the making of the Disney classic Beauty and the Beast. This book is filled with beautiful pictures and sketches from all of the Disney animated films through Beauty and the Beast. Any Disney lover will be intrigued and entertained

In Disney's Art of Animation, Thomas explains the birth of the Walt Disney co., from a handful of people meeting in a home, to the huge Disney phenomenon we know today. The first half of the book explains the formative years of Disney, from before Mickey's time. This book looks into facts about the films themselves from an outside veiw. It keeps its eye on the whole company as it struggled along through the 30's, 40's, and even 50's. It talks about pre-Snow White cartoons and all of the full length feture films from Snow White to 1990's Rescures Down Under. The last half Explains the process of creating a modern animated film from the standpoint of many of the people who had an infleuance creating the only Disney Picture to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy AwardsÐBeauty and the Beast. Thomas explains how each aspect of the film is created and consolidated into one final, breathtaking work. An excellent book for anyone intrested in animation and, not to mention, a Disney fan's wish come true.

Kieslowski changed my life. I watched RED first, then WHITE and Finally BLUE. I've never watched anything that moved me so. So much better than anything that comes out of Hollywood( except for the occasional Shawshank). Ann Insdorf does a great job narrating the DVD--in the 'extras' section of the trilogy. Based on her performance, I bought 'Double Lives'. I enjoyed her personal observations of the master at work. I loved her book. My only complaint is I wanted more analysis of the Trilogy(and the Decalogue). But she gives a fantastic job on the Trilogy DVD set. She's a true scholar of the sage.

I have been an enormous follower and keeper of Kieslowki's work since a fateful afternoon when I stumbled upon a showing of "Blue" several years ago. This of course came to a bittersweet juncture when K died in 1997. Regardless, this book accurately captures the the development of this extraordinary director... and writer. Insdorff presented some interesting insights in her writing amidst some oversights: the car in Blue was a Puegeott, not BMW, and no mentioning of "Blue's" Julie's accident interruption in court in "White". Although Kieslowki's beginnings and earlier works like his string of documentaries and "Decalogue" are crutcial to his foundation as an outstandingly brilliant director as showcased in the Three Colors trilogy, I wished more expoundment was made on the his final three works which is truly poetry in images.

Jon Fauer, who's film-camera books have set a standard in the industry, has written his second video-related book. This one too is full of very practical information, and answers those nagging questions about differences between DV and the DVCAM format. No matter what level of production experience a person has, there's information in this book that will prove helpful in the field.

What I like about this book is how it complements the more general "Shooting DV" book by the same author, focussing on DVCAM specifically - the similarities, differences as well as compatabilities beween mini-DV and DVCAM. There are clear technical explanations that make sense even if you're not a very technically-oriented digital-video user. I also really like the many clear illustrations and photos of the various cameras functions, as well as the tape-formats. Very useful info about important details such as the weight of various tapes, all the way to various digital-editing options. Jon also asks really valid questions through his explanations "does such-and-such a feature justify the price difference". It's nice to have a book that packs in so much practical, technical information in an easy-to-read, and use, book.

If you do any authoring of DVDs, or plan on it, you need this book. A wealth of information from a wonderful author. Well written and well organized.

This is a great guide for DVD studio pro. The information in the book is still relevant with more current versions of the software. I would definitively recommend this book for anyone looking to get started with DVD Studio Pro, or anyone who wants an easy reference guide.

This is really good if you are starting a school news show from scratch. It has great project ideas!

This is a good book if you are looking to start a school TV program, or improve the program you've got. I am a school media specialist, and we do a lot these days - librarian, web-master, research teacher, TV producer. This book helped me improve my school TV program. It described a lot of equipment that was previously unfamiliar to me. It also told me what to look for in various equipment (audio mixer, video mixer, etc.) My next purchase is probably a video editor, and this book tells me what features to look for. My students have created several of the video projects enclosed, and students and teachers like them alot. Buy this book if you want to improve your school tv studio.

Covers all the movies she has contributed to and her stage work. A gorgeous presentation, oversized, quality glossy paper, with numerous color photographs and design sketches. If you love Eiko, this is the book for you !

Let me say at once: this is the most incredible, most beautiful book I own. And I've collected quality illustrated books for years. It stands between Avedon's "Observations" and Damien Hirst's "I want to be with everybody blah blah..." on my (reinforced) bookshelf--and right now it tops either of them in its artistry, design, and sheer beauty.

I'm getting carried away. So... this is a breathtaking journey through 10 of the projects that this artist/ costume designer/ set designer has undertaken in the last fifteen years--in sketches, photographs, and her own narrative--from creating the look of Paul Schrader's Mishima, to dressing Jennifer Lopez in The Cell. Between times, she has lent her incredible vision to theatre, film, opera, and installation art.

I think she's been so successful because she's never compromised her vision. It inspires me (as an artist) to not give in. Eiko Ishioka won an Oscar for her costumes for Dracula. No doubt she'll be nominated again for her work on The Cell. According to the flap text, she has also won a Grammy, and a Cannes Film Festival Award. I expect to see her win an award also for this book--It's as good as any of her big-name, big-budget projects. Good for her!

Es el mejor libro en español sobre postproduccion que he leido. Yo esperaba que hubiera mas informacion sobre la autoria de dvd y material para la web pero habla más sobre cine y video. Sin embargo el resto es apasionante. Explica la tecnología moderna con facilidad, me ha resuelto muchas dudas que tenía pendientes.

Conocí a Antonio hace dos o tres años porque nos ayudó con un problema que teníamos en el laboratorio con un cortometraje que estaba editando yo, osea q seguramente no soy muy objetiva ya que se porto de maravilla con nosotros. Todavía no he podido comprar el libro, pero si es la mitad de bueno q los consejos que nos dio entonces seguro qeu merece la pena.
Muchas gracias por todo.

Steven Spielberg is, without doubt, one of the most gifted and imaginative filmmakers of his generation. To my mind, he has few, if any equals in making films that can profoundly move an audience, excite and enlighten anybody watching truth flicker by at the requisite 24 frames per second. You walk out of "Jaws," as many of us did, knowing you've been frightened half to death, yet also knowing that you've seen great filmmaking at work, the best of the medium, a pure "movie movie," as it was once called when I was kicking around Hollywood in my early days as a writer and journalist.
It was all there, of course, early on, if you want to go back in film history and check out his first feature "Duel." And it's been an amazing ride ever since, from "Jaws" and "ET" to "Indiana Jones" and "Schindler's List" and beyond to "Minority Report" and "War of the Worlds." Spielberg never ceases to amaze and dazzle the audience with his command of the medium.
Now Andrew Gordon has explained, in great detail, why and how. In his masterful, brilliant study of Spielberg's career, Gordon provides an in-depth look at each of the several dozen or more films that comprise the master's work. The various of pieces of Spielberg's career and the critical responses to his movies are woven together in a rich tapestry of film scholarship. Gordon has done his homework in spades. His insights into the Spielberg canon are both illuminating and astute. This is no easy task, given the range of emotions that each Spielberg movie appears to evoke. Gordon steps both forward and back in assessing how he reacted to each picture, and how others reacted. In particular, I liked Gordon's chapter on Spielberg's "A.I.," the movie he finished for Stanley Kubrick. Although not a great commercial success, and one that certainly divided the critics, I still remember parts of the film with greater recall and emotional resonance than other Spielberg creations. Gordon, again, explains why, digging with psychological clarity into the various themes of the lost child expressed in the story.
The beauty of Gordon's book is that he is able to connect the various and complex themes that run through Spielberg's work from film to film; we see continuity, interrelationships, the struggle of the artist at work, the hits and misses, and ultimately, the ways in which we always, seemingly, happen to return to the world of Spielberg's boyhood home in suburbia, to all the hopes and promises of the American dream itself. If you're a film scholar, this book is must reading; if your interest in Spielberg is casual and curious, you'll find the text to be highly informative, with penetrating insight into the artist and his remarkable style of filmmaking.

Shakespeare states, 'We are such stuff as dreams are made on...'. Professor Gordon has authored a tome remarkable both for its breadth AND depth. Having written and optioned several screenplays myself,I truly believe that this book is in the vanguard of Spielberg scholarship, and a fine chronicle of our creative status as remade dreams.

As a veteran of over forty years on Broadway as a scenic, lighting and projection designer, I can say without hesitation that there is no other resource more valuable than The Entertainment Sourcebook. This wonderful resource is compiled by the folk who do the hard, often unseen and unmentioned, work that make us with prominent program credits look good on opening night. Not only are the listings accurate, but they are constantly monitored by the members of ATAC, added to, and changed or eliminated when required. So you're always up-to-date. In this age of fast-paced change in "the business", it's extra vital to be well informed. I'd bet my Tony nominations on this book. In fact without it, I'd probably not have them. And a big "hat's off" to the people of ATAC who make this great ever changing resource possible.

The Association of Theatrical Artists and Craftspeople is the professional trade association of artists, designers and craftspeople who work in the industry - some of the most talented available - and their 2005 Entertainment Sourcebook is a 'must' for any serious theater production, outlining sources for jeweler's tools, specialized paints and dyes, theatrical supply houses, and much more. Listings display phone, fax and email contacts, include web sites, phones, hours and addresses, and add a synopsis of both payment methods holdings. Simply invaluable for any industry pro.

Judy Stone's book is a wonderful read even if you think you don't recognize all of the director's she interviews. She has a way of interacting with the people she interviews, of getting them to talk about what really matters to them, that is truly remarkable. I can't imagine a film buff or would-be director who wouldn't love this book.

``Eye on the World'' is a ``multipurpose'' work -- for anyone interested in the movies, it's a must-read, but also a splendid collection of interviews that provide insight into life, love and the whole damn thing -- far, far beyond the confines of just one branch of art.

Stone's elegantly simple style and her total focus on the interviewees combine for an outstanding volume that is hard to put down, easy to pick up again and again.