Video Books

If you are a beginner to Renderman like I WAS go and get this book. ... This book will give you enough confidence and get you hooked to Renderman...big time!!..So you have been warned!!..The title should read "Get hooked to Renderman"...or "Get high on Renderman"...:). It was a little hard when I started reading the Advanced Renderman book sometime ago..Having almost gone through much of the RfB book a lot of things that were "deep" in the advanced Renderman book is very clear now...This book is simple enough to read and yet the topics are covered in great detail and depth...Can't wait to get my hands on the RSL Guide book from the same author.Indispensable if you want to learn Renderman.

i have been reading this book for some time now and frankly the much i have read i am fully satisifed with it. its well written and clears lot of concepts.


Regards

Renderman is one of the most powerful rendering packages out there, and this book forms a good guide to the self motivated reader. The author assumes little previous graphics knowledge. The basic ideas of matrix algebra and how these can be applied to graphics operations are demonstrated. Aided by numerous clear figures.

More involved operations are also explained. Bezier surfaces, NURBs, anamorphic warping etc. The Renderman language is seen as compact and versatile.

As a grad student in graphics, I've found that creating nicely rendered images is essential for effectively displaying results. I began learning RenderMan with a more advanced book, but found that my overall understanding was lacking. "Rendering for Beginners" has filled in the gaps, giving me a much better foundation for generating images. The book is easy to read and understand, and it is full of images and code snippets (full code is available on the web - which is great!)

The book and companion website has greatly enhanced my understanding, from rendering basic scenes such as wire-frame meshes to writing complex shaders. I highly recommend this book to both those beginning to learn RenderMan and people who want to strengthen their understanding of the basics.

This is a terrific book - and not just for beginners. The author gives a very clear grounding in the concepts that underpin 3D rendering applications, and shows his own deep experience with Pixar's Renderman specification and the implementations built on it by Pixar and others. He also conveys very strongly his own enthusiasm for Renderman and the underlying REYES algorithm, and this is infectious. After a few pages, you will certainly want to access one of the free or trial implementations, and give them a go for yourself.

The book is informed by extremely attractive and colorful images that very clearly illustrate the specific tools and techniques available to Renderman users, and these are fully supported by code snippets (within the text and on the companion website) that make the Renderman structure fully transparent for beginners - just as the title promises!

This is no small accomplishment as the power of Renderman - as exampled in the Pixar and many other movies made with it - arises from the extremely fine degree of control over visual phenomena that it makes accessible to users. First time exposure to the range and precision of these controls can be daunting even for experienced 3d users, but the author's explanations of the RIB and SLIM shader language scripts that drive Renderman are all you need to begin experiments of your own, and to take advantage of more specialized/advanced titles like Advanced Renderman by Apodaca and Gritz.

Renderman is great for photorealistic rendering, but it also excels for non-photorealistic techniques like 'tooning and beyond, and one exceptionally interesting part of the book (again well-supported by the website) provides plenty of illustrations and code for exotic techniques that emulate all sorts of effects from impressionist paintings to woodblock illustrations, and more.

For anyone into 3d, Renderman for Beginners makes clear that rendering packages are not just the back end of a modeling process, but are absolutely central to the practical and artistic effects that define the amazing potential of today's 3d/CG work. To understand the conceptual framework of a high-quality renderer is also to understand, and to be thrilled and amazed by the remarkable workings of our own visual engagement with the world. And, after many years of working in this field, Saty Raghavachary, the author, is obviously still very much under the spell of this excitement. Whether you read Renderman for Beginners as a practical introduction to a prospective career, say as a Technical Director in CG, or whether you read it just for a general understanding of how our contemporary visual culture is evolving, this book will satisfy you fully. Thanks, Saty.

Covers his childhood memories of war-torn Poland, reminiscent of "Schindler's List". His struggles as a young director and the heartache of the tragic murder of his wife Sharon Tate and their unborn child. And he even discusses his envolvement with the underaged girl at Jack Nicholson's place, that caused his exhile from the U.S. to this very day. You be the judge. An all-around well written autobiography.

The myriad and often contradictory superlatives that define Roman Polanski are evident in his 1984 autobiography. A man of immense dichotomy: by turns exquisitely sensitive and dazzlingly brilliant yet capable of staggering insensitivity and cruelty; a singularly gifted filmmaker who has sometimes betrayed that talent completely; a man blessed with the reciprocal love and devotion of three of the world's most beautiful women (most notably Sharon Tate) and yet easily capable of sexist and loutish behavior, etc. The parade of paradoxes attendant to Polanski's life make for fascinating reading, evoke extremes of admiration and disdain on the part of the reader, and ultimately remind us that the author, like life itself, is not easily defined nor pigeonholed by a pool of platitudes.

As this tome lacks the direct input of anyone other than Polanski himself, much of the director's foibles and missteps are congealed in the inevitable patina of celebrity and privilege. But that's not the whole story - by far. Polanski's appalling childhood and the Manson murders of 1969 (Polanski's pregnant wife and unborn child were murdered by disciples of the would-be messiah) undoubtedly contributed to the self-destruction that is too frequently an underlying theme in his life.

The passages in which the author pays noble tribute to Tate provide a touching - and fitting - legacy to the lovely actress whose abundant goodness - her superior heart and her abiding selflessness - are manifest in Polanski's memories. It is, ultimately, this aspect of the book that remain in the reader's memory - long after the last page has been turned. In Polanski's relationship with his late wife - we are allowed to observe the director's vulnerability, tenderness and love - qualities that are all too frequently sublimated in his own overweening arrogance, pride and machismo.

"Roman by Polanski" is a satisfying and compelling read for those of us who, though incensed by some of the director's sophomoric actions, still find a commonality with the chaotic and passionate aspects of his personality. For this reason, the loss of his filmmaking genius in America is very unfortunate indeed.

I lost my copy of this book years ago and am so glad to have it back. Anyone who admires Polanski's work will love this book. Anyone who questions Polanski's love of life, Sharon, and the World he lives in should read this book. You will understand him in a whole new light. He's amazing. Read this before any other about him. Please!!!!!!

I have always admired Roman Polanski. He strikes me as a person with a very powerful presence and state of mind and that impression certainly comes through in his films.

Although published 20 years ago, Roman bared his soul to the world, telling his story in a way that you felt you lived his life right there beside him.

People who believe that those who have had lousy lives should be excused from taking responsibility for their crimes should read Roman's book. After all he's been through, he had every excuse in the world to be a lowlife, drunken, drug addict, thief, murderer, scumbag. Instead, this man took all the bad things that have happened to him in his life and turned it into something positive.

And even though he has expressed his emotions through his movies, he is still a very mysterious man whose depths no one will ever know.

That's what makes Roman so damn intriguing.

Roman Polanski, born on august 18, 1933, has written a fascinating autobiography. He is a sinner and a genius, a chaotic man and a passionate, he is a machismo and a vulnerable human being, he overcame the WWII, the Polish ghettos and the Holocaust as a resilient child and he lost his wife Sharon Tate and an unborn child in 1969 by the Manson Group massacre, and on the other hand he overcame (as an adult) a special pattern of machismo-self-destruction (with 13 year old girl accusing him of sexual contact). He had lived a lousy life in Nazi-surpressed Polish ghettos and he had lived with too much pride and arrogance in Hollywood, he was arrested in the United States and nevertheless now he releases movies in Paris (presently married with French actress Emmanuelle Seigner). He is a gifted filmmaker and indeed: a writer, better than any crime-author I know; his book, published in 1984, is not a larmoyant, self-pitiful autobiography alike 1001 others - it is an absorbing story about a personality-mixture-hybrid of a Robin Hood mixed with Mac Beth, an Idi Amin mixed with a Mother Theresa, it is the story of "Roman" P., who started his life 1933 in Paris as "Raymond" P.; the first sentence of his autobiography: "For as far back as I can remember, the line between fantasy and reality has been hopelessly blurred." That became his helping trick to survive some struggles and tragedies, downfalls and comebacks ...

All information in this book is usefull, even if you aren't writing screenplays. There were a lot of interviews which were somewhat helpful but not what I personally was looking for. I was looking for more of how to format a screenplay and there was not a lot of this in the book. Also some of the websites in the book did not work (which Hamlett could not have had any control of). I was very dissapointed that the Film camp that has a few pages of the book dedicated to it's website hasn't been updated since 2003. There were a lot of good exercises and things to do. I reccomend this book to writers in general. If you are a screenwriter or just starting out I recommend that you buy this book along with "How to Write a Screenplay in 21 Days" together these two books are a great starting point.

With ageism sweeping Hollywood recently, and executives apparently desperately looking for the "next genius 18-year-old screenwriter," it was only a matter of time before someone wrote a screenwriting manual "just for kids."

Still, Christina Hamlett does not fall into the trap of dumbing down the material. Though aimed at high school students, she treats every aspect of the screenwriting process with the same sérieux one would use for a book aimed at the adult market. Indeed, it covers all the same topics (finding ideas, writing dialogue, structure, character, formatting etc.).

Differences are noticeable in the tone of the examples used, which are a bit more fanciful than usual, and in the exercises in each chapter, which are really designed for the classroom. As such, the book is probably even more valuable to teachers of a beginning screenwriting class for young adults than for the teen screenwriter himself.

The advice is good, with an interesting take on structure. There is a lot of information on getting an agent (perhaps a tad too optimistic here), as well as interviews with industry professionals to conclude each chapter (and the ageism issue gets referred to a lot, strangely enough). For those who remain cynical about the whole thing: the one 14-year-old writer interviewed here prefers Rashomon and Citizen Kane. So there may be hope yet.

This book fills an important niche for the ever increasing teen film market. It does so, however, with instructions and lessions that are valuable for all in the industry and for anyone who thinks an Academy Award winning screenplay is just a blank sheet of paper away. The author not only provides a very comprehensive guide to screenwriting, but also tests the motivation of the young writers and their fidelity to their craft.

This book is like the mentor every screenwriter longs to have, but rarely has the good luck to find. The idea of writing a screenplay is glamorous, yes, but none to easy to accomplish. I've been working as a screenwriter since my 20s, but I sure wish this book had been around when I first dreamed of writing movies. Christian Hamlett's book can tell you how to get started and how to successfully reach that longed-for goal, the final fade out. What a boon to young screenwriters just getting started! Christina Hamlett's book offers heaps of practical advice, and the interviews she includes provide the reader with additional voices of wisdom. I intend to recommend it to any teenager interested in creating a screenplay.

I fully endorse all the previous reviews of this book. ScreenteenWriters is excellently structured, full of everything a budding playwright would need to know (and not only a budding writer!) This book is extremely user friendly, and simple in its explanations of complex concepts. Definitely, A MUST BUY. Thank you, Christina Hamlett!

I didn't expect to receive a Brand New copy of this book,since you can't even buy the game new anymore. I was really surprised and delighted that not only were there no missing pages, it was unused.

This game is the best of this serie that i've ever seen. This one is full of surprises and tips. The strategy guide is complete for me. It is helpful for get all ends.I enjoyed a lot with this guide. I hope you too.

This guide looks great and detailed. The only thing I don't like very much is the appendix. The endings weren't detailed but a few sentences instead. Also there is no pictures that correspond to each ending.

i thought this was a good cheat book and it was really descriptive, even though there were a few typos...the game was also good as well

let me say that if there was ever a silent hill you needed a strategy guide for, silent hill 3 is it. I was able to breeze through the original and the second on hard mode, but Silent hill 3 does a very good job of leaving you lost and confused throughout most of the game. The guide does a great job of walking you through the tough parts, and holding your hand when things get chaotic and creepy. As with all guides however, I recomend buying this one only if you are a fan or collector, because you can easilly find guides for SH3 online for free.

I wish a bit more info had been given on the site, but it was in pretty good condition considering it was 10 years old

This is a wonderful book. It's lovingly researched and was obviously put together by someone who cares about film music. It's recommended for reference and pleasure alike. Plus, the book has the courage to discriminate---we don't waste our time reading about plagiarists,..... who are not included at all.

Although clearly a labour of love by the author, this is also an entirely professionally written and produced book. Perhaps wisely, it doesn't set out to be a comprehensive, definitive guide to film music composers and their recordings - this would have been impractical both in terms of the writing and the eventual weight of the tome! But what Jon Burlingame has done is to include a mini-biography of just about every important film music composer there has been up to the present day, plus a selection of what he considers to be their best works. This provides both an invaluable reference guide not only to composers but also an interesting debating point as to which of their scores should have been included.

It was pleasing to see a large number of photos of the composers and some record sleeve reproductions. Many potential readers will doubtless be familiar with the likes of John Williams, John Barry, Henry Mancini and Elmer Bernstein, but they'll also get the opportunity to see some 'golden age' composers, like Miklos Rozsa, Alfred Newman, Dimitri Tiomkin and Franz Waxman, as well as relatively unsung heroes such as John Scott, Christopher Young and Rachel Portman, and those more associated with classical music, such as Ralph Vaughan Williams, Sergei Prokofiev and Dmitri Shostakovich.

The author's enthusiasm for the subject is very apparent and no stone has been left unturned in order to ensure this book becomes an essential purchase for all lovers of film music. An excellent effort, which is thoroughly recommended, not just to film music aficionados, but also to anybody with an interest in the cinema.

Jon Burlingame is nothing short of a hero to many film composers, because in addition to the astounding depth of his knowledge about composers and their work, he shares a tremendous passion for what they do and effortlessly conveys that to his readers. "Sound and Vision" is an essential book for anyone interested in film music, not only because it contains fascinating information that can't be found anywhere else, but because it's written by a greatly respected and dedicated journalist whose enthusiasm for his subject is unparalleled.

In Sound And Vision: 60 Years Of Motion Picture Soundtracks, Jon Burlingame has created an indispensable, seminal, very highly recommended reference guide featuring a detailed history of Hollywood film music on record and compact disc. Also included are up-to-date biographical sketches of soundtrack composers from the inception of the movies down to the present day. Annotated listings of the best-selling, award-winning, or otherwise memorable soundtracks of the past and present (original film scores as well as movie musicals and song-compilation scores) further enhance this marvelous compendium. Of special note is the "user friendly" and comprehensive index so that the reader can quickly reference whether a particular piece of movie music is commercially available.

Even though I've completed the game without the book, I stil bought it! It's a really good guide for people new to Spyro.

I got this guide when I was on the Super Bonus Round of Year of the Dragon. I was stuck on the Snowboarding coarse. It did not help. I'm giving it 5 stars because it should be helpful if you are around the begining or if you need help most any where. But I think its a great guide!

This book WILL tell you:
1. The location of all the eggs and gems.
2. Detailed maps of every world and level, including the super bonus level. The game itself is fairly easy to beat without the book until you get to the last world. I got that far without the book. This guide is useful to have however.

However, it does NOT tell you much of anything about acquiring the skill points in certain levels (not all levels have them.) I found this to be quite disappointing. If you search for "Spyro Dragon Skill Point" at Ask Jeeves one of the results is titled "SpyroHints.com Dragon News" Click on that, then 'Spyro 3,' then 'Secrets' to get that info. It is for this reason I did not give this guide 5 stars.

This book WILL tell you:
1. The location of all the eggs and gems.
2. Detailed maps of every world and level, including the super bonus level. The game itself is fairly easy to beat without the book until you get to the last world. I got that far without the book. This guide is useful to have however.

However, it does NOT tell you anything about acquiring the skill points in certain levels (not all levels have them.) Which I found to be quite disappointing. If you search for "Spyro Dragon Skill Point" at Ask Jeeves one of the Results is titled "SpyroHints.com Dragon News" Click on that, then 'Spyro 3,' then 'Secrets' to get that info. It is for this reason I did not give this guide 5 stars.

I buy Prima books for any game for which I think I need that extra edge... er... or cheat :)

But I digress, Prima has the GREATEST hints and easy-to-follow instructions of any of the other game manuals. They don't rush through anything. Their descriptions are intricate and so easy even a child could follow them.

I highly recommend! A+++++

The book contains some details about mcQueen's life that only the writer knew , that give a hint about how mcQueen viewed life, danger, and speed.
but the photos are mainly advertising ones and not real life.
i would expect more on the life of mcqueen as a person and not only as an actor

A wonderful work of art that captures what made Steve so charismatic and appealing. It leaves you wishing you could see more from other periods in his life. This is a book I will treasure all my life. Thank you Amazon, I would have paid ten times as much for this book. God Rest His Soul.

According to his foreward to this book, the photographer William Claxton met Steve McQueen in 1962 when McQueen was starring with Natalie Woods in LOVE WITH THE PROPER STRANGER. The two men formed a friendship and apparently Mr. Claxton became Mr. McQueen's favorite and most requested photographer. This book of wonderful photographs, covering a couple of years in Mr. McQueen's life from 1962 to 1964, is a result of that brief friendship. Most of the pictures appear to be shot in available light and have a wonderful, informal spontaneity about them impossible to capture in formal portraiture. Both the photographer and subject are comnpletely without pretention.

Mr. Claxton caught Mr. McQueen smiling, clowning and pensive. There are photographs of McQueen in fast cars as well as on motorcycles. Many of the shots were done while Mr. McQueen was working on movies. There are also many pictures of him with family and friends. Most of the shots are in black and white with a few in color. Every time I look at them I find yet another photograph that I think is the best in the book. There is a haunting shot of McQueen with his young daughter where the child, sitting on the floor and resting on her arms, looks into Claxton's camera. We only see her father's legs and feet. (p. 79) Another great shot appears on page 73. McQueen is embracing the family cat. Finally, there's a shot of McQueen lying on a blanket in a large field. His profile is beautifully backlit. Both photographs selected for the front and back covers are fine, informal portraits as well.

This book made me remember how much I enjoyed Steve McQueen's movies and made me sad that he is no longer among us.

A great book, considering it is of a short period in Steve McQueen's life. This is him in his prime captured by a great photographer.

Very comprehensive. Show's a different side of the rough and tumble character known as Steve McQueen. Very entertaining.

This is a great companion piece to the film. The screenplay differs slightly from what is spoken in the film, but this is what Favreau originally wrote and is why the movie came about. The introduction, rules, and glossary are all nice added features.

A great book! A must have for the die-hard fan. Vince's rules of dating and the enclosed glossary of terms are hilarious! John Favreau and Vince Vaughn are here to stay!

I was blown away when I saw the movie. I watched it three times right afterwards and I watch it almost 3x a week. The expression is magnificant and the way they actors portray the characters is unbelievable. Right away I fell in love w/ vince vaughn and after I read the book and I love him even more! Fantastic!

This book is so MONEY, and you don't even know it! Everyone should buy this book, whether your a dork, a nerd, heck, even a ROUNDER should buy this book. Not only is Jon Favreau the man, but he is also the greatest inspration in my life. "Swingers: A Screenplay and the Swinger Rules" teaches the average joe everything from getting the DIGITS to catching a BEAUTIFUL BABY for yourself. Without this book, life is just PUPPY DOGS AND ICE CREAM. This is the one step-self-help guide to getting the BEAUTIFUL BABIES, using your WINGMAN effectively, and learning how to feel the VIBE a PARTY GIRL could be sending you at a PARTY. Although some DIGITS come with BUISNESS CLASS PARTY GIRLS, BUSINESS CLASS always equals BUSINESS A$$. With Favreau's "Swingers: A Screenplay and the Swinger Rules," you will never, ever be SHAQED. I guarentee it. So after you go to AMAZON.COM, and buy the book, you'll be MONEY, and YOU WILL KNOW IT!

I remember when i first heard about swingers many years ago. I didnt even know what it was about, but something made me want to see it. When i did i was blown away. I have never seen a movie like this. I was so use to the big action packed movies and never realized there was a whole other field of films out there. Ever since i saw swingers i have been a huge fan. I was also very infactuated by the character Mikey. He has become a sort of a idle for me, or at least someone who i look up too. A while ago i saw this screenplay and bought it. I was even more suprised to see that Jon Favreau was the writer. Jon Favreau was also Mikey in the film. Jon has inspired me to change who i am, and i have. I am also very interested in the film industry and started writing screenplays myself, and i used the screenplay to swingers to start me out writing my own. I owe everything to Jon Favreau I used to be a adolescent punk, now i live in hollywood and have friends that can't be better. I am also trying to get into directing. I learned that maturity means your pleasure isn't worth someone elses pain. Might i say all my friends now are very mature. Thanks alot Jon if i ever get a big movie deal i'm looking you up. take care all. bye.

I was very pleased with the vast wealth of information provided in this book. It was easy to understand and covered all aspects of the state of the media world!

This is an excellent overview of all aspects of the television industry and what it is morphing into. I can see this being invaluable to anyone already directly involved in, or on the periphery of this industry.

It is educational as well for those not working in the business, or those looking to invest in the emerging technologies.

This book is a must read for those navigating the changing waters of the media industry. It contains a comprehensive industry overview, insightful analysis of current trends, thought-provoking predictions....and, it's an interesting and entertaining read as well.

Television Disrupted is an excellent book, well written and intelligently describing a wide range of complex topics surrounding traditional TV and internet delivered video. It does a particularly good job in describing the recent changes and potential future directions of the television industry.

Working within the software industry serving traditional television, people have frequently asked me what they can read to build their knowledge of the TV business. Historically, this has been a tough question to answer as there have been a few discrete magazine articles that were interesting, but I was unware of any books that were current, accurate, or made sense about the future of TV. Television Disrupted has solved this dilema by providing a great overview of the historical television industry as well as the massive changes that are pending as the television business takes advantage of the opportunities provided by internet delivered video.

In Television Disrupted, Shelly Palmer does a great job at presenting the probable futures of TV. From broadcast to narrowcast, from linear to dynamic and time-shifted,from analog to digital, Shelly explores and tries to anticipate the response of "old media" (networks) to "new media" (networked). How will "IP" and user generated content overcome inertia and established advertising / revenue models? All fascinating questions in a well thought-out framework. In the end and as always consumers will choose and define what is to become a much richer experience known as Television 2.0!

What I like most about this book is that it takes a few months from 1957 on a film location and tells how it feels to be there. The movie was not great, and it was forgotten soon enough. Yet, the atmosphere of film making and the camaraderie of the crew and cast is just a wonderful experience. Yes, they had some terrible times, with ego clashing and scandals covered up, but it is such a nostalgic little story, reading like a novel. All the people in the story, Audie Murphy and Michael Redgrave, mostly are fascinating, and how nice to have a special look at them. I truly enjoyed this armchair escape to another time and another place. Thanks!

This really is a marvelous book--full of all the details and asides that you don't get to read elsewhere. I found it amusing as well as informative. The author, Dr. Russo, clearly knows his subject--and shares his knowledge in a very entertaining way.

I have an interest in war, Japanese and Asian affairs. Amazon recommended The Quiet American with Michael Caine. Somewhat a Caine fan, I ordered it and liked it for what it implied about early US involvement in Vietnam. Amazon then recommended the dvd version with Audie Murphy and Michael Redgrave which I tried. That was different. What was going on? What had Graham Greene really written? Ordered and read new Penguin edition. Both film versions took liberties. Why? Amazon suggested A Thinker's Damn by Willima Russo, which finally sorted out for me why the Murphy/Redgrave version differed from the Greene book. Russo also filled in a huge number of additional details and insights about this first film version. The two dvds and the two books provide a very good look at book to film adaptations, and three people's impressions about US policy in early Vietnam. I wonder if Russo has written about the Michael Caine version; it is the one I prefer, even though I am a fan of Michael Redgrave who portrays Fowler in the early film. A good number of photographs illustrate this book.

This book has info about Audie that is not anywhere else. The author interviewed people close to Audie who never have talked about him before for publication. The movie The Quiet American was a special project for him, according to his best friend Willard Willingham. He soon hated doing it because Vietnam, even in 1957, was not a pleasant place before the war. This book reads like a novel but is all true. If you really want insights into Audie Murphy, you must read this book. Despite all that happened, he knew what he had to do. He was not just an actor. He was a hero--and in the Quiet American, he played the part to perfection. There is another remake of the movie now filmed, but nothing can top the original.

What I like most about this book is that it takes a few months from 1957 on a film location and tells how it feels to be there. The movie was not great, and it was forgotten soon enough. Yet, the atmosphere of film making and the camaraderie of the crew and cast is just a wonderful experience. Yes, they had some terrible times, with ego clashing and scandals covered up, but it is such a nostalgic little story, reading like a novel. All the people in the story, Audie Murphy and Michael Redgrave, mostly are fascinating, and how nice to have a special look at them. I truly enjoyed this armchair escape to another time and another place. Thanks!