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benmcm18 · 4 years ago

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Group 7 Independent Project!

Pre Production -

This is the second time I’m working with Group 7. It is truly an honour to be surrounded by such talented people. We have learnt from last time and we thought it would be interesting to switch up the roles. Here was what we ended up with:

Director - Jack

Cinematographer - Bonnie

Producer - Heather

Production Design - Ben

Editor - Heather

Writer - Tom

Here were also the tasks we sorted ourselves:

Write a 1-page proposal (synopsis and directors statement) - JACK (13th May)

Make the movie - Jack

Make a plan and a schedule for your work - Heather

Create a mood board (Each character) - Ben

Create a sonic world for the film (no dialogue / no voice-over) - Heather and Ben

Cut together a series of still images or sequences of footage to create a 2min film - Heather

Record some sound effects using objects you have in your room/ house - you can record on your phone. - Heather and Ben

Source and use sound effects and Atmos sound on Freesound. - Tom

Make a storyboard + animatic - Bonnie

Source footage - eg shoot, take stills, source stills, or work with stock footage from Film Supply to envision your idea - Bonnie

Shot list - Bonnie

Scriptwriting and development - Tom

Present it at the crit - receive feedback - Everyone

Write a short critical reflection on your blog. - Everyone

Songs - Everyone

As Production designer I had to create a mood board. We had discussed in meetings what aesthetic we wanted to go for and I believe we ended up with a mixture between films like “Moonrise Kingdom” and “Fight Club”. Either way, these were two of the films I took inspiration from when working on the mood board of the film.

Additionally, I had to think of the costume for both actors. For the man I chose to instead of having major differences in the two separate costumes to instead change them subtly to give a feeling he is still grounded in reality. So that means I added the glasses, changed the tie and gave him a watch to switch up how he looked. The Imagination costume is inspired from Ewan MacGregor’s character in “Big Fish'' we wanted to give him a full blue costume originally but I realised fairly soon that that wasn’t going to happen. So I adapted and decided to use his ties as a means of stating which reality he was in. When he is in the “dream world” he has a very colourful yellow tie but when he returns to his office I believe we went with a black/red tie.

For the woman, I chose to give her a very colourful look. This was purely so she could match the imagination around her. I discussed with Bonnie about possibly putting flowers in her hair but for some reason we couldn’t find anything. In regards to the rest of her costume I gave her shades so that there would be a physical separation between the two. If he can’t make eye contact with her how is he supposed to connect.

Overall, I’m very happy with the costumes and for a first attempt I’m actually quite proud.

Finally, set design. I had recently worked on a project called “Pied” where I had to create a whole set for my actors. That was pretty much my crash course for this independent project. Using the knowledge I can gain from creating that set I tried implementing it into the office workspace and the picnic arrangement. I’m happy with it but it will honestly be down to you to decide if I did a good job. If I could mention any little “fun facts” about what I did here would be a few:

I used a ping-pong table as the walls splitting the workspace

I tried spreading the food along the picnic like a wall that separated the two of them.

There is a jar of pickles in one of the shots. I don’t know who would bring a jar of pickles to a picnic but I thought it would be funny

On the back wall of the office there is a bunch of hidden Easter eggs *HOWEVER* David’s massive head covers them up!

In regards to how the other team members did. We developed the script ideas until we landed on this one. Jack had a great idea about filming some really nice shots of food. We were actually quite a big fan of this idea. I just thought Heather’s idea would allow us to experiment more.

Tom then wrote a (very) detailed script in collaboration with Heather, Bonnie drew a genuinely fantastic storyboard (she is too hard on herself haha) and Jack prepared for the shoot. One issue that presented itself fairly soon was the fact we had two actors on set. However, our Producer (Heather) handled it like a pro and we managed to get the all clear. Overall, a very hardworking start with the promise of Bonnie doing a short animation for the storyboard. (I’m looking forward to hopefully seeing it)

Production -

The shoot day was very fun. We all arrived at 11:30am and we made our way over to the location. Originally, we had planned to film on top of a hill however, things quickly changed and Jack said there was a fantastic path to film on. I was fairly set on the hill idea (As I had imagined the scene being somewhat similar to the UP opening montage) but he said it was a better location and I trust him.

So this is where it got a bit funky. It turns out the location had been converted into a dirt road since the last time Jack had been there. This was a bit demoralising as we had carried a lot of props out but luckily we had seen a location closer to the beach that could possibly work and the rest was history. That very location near the beach ended up where we would film.

With Jack directing and myself on camera we began to make our way through the storyboard Bonnie had devised. I have to be honest there were parts where we deviated from what was on the storyboard: For example, there is a section where he falls over however it didn’t look natural so we thought of another way to film it. This was where I got a bit carried away with VFX. In the long run I’m pretty sure everyone is happy with it but I wasn’t too sure at the time.

Jack did well as a director, he worked well with David and Kady especially when it came to movements of the actors. There isn’t any dialogue in the scenes so it's mainly physical language instead of verbal. My only advice for Jack would be to do a bit more research on the project before going onto the shoot because there were parts of the shoot where actors would ask questions about their character and I wasn’t confident he knew the answer.

In regards to me, I find it very hard to create something someone else envisions because I’m used to directing and filming projects on my own. I definitely think I improved on this project and having the storyboard and detailed script was a big help. I also felt I should have been more prepared as it didn’t look very good in front of the actors with me fiddling around with the camera because I had set it up in the wrong position.

Overall, I think it was a very fun shoot and it went pretty smoothly. You're going to hit speed bumps on the way but I believe Jack and I handled them well.

Oh also, forgot to mention that I had to also record sound and label all the audio and footage for Heather (why do I almost call you Clair XD) It didn’t take as long as I expected and was actually somewhat therapeutic if you can believe haha.

Post-Production -

The post production process has been going well. We have plenty of time until the deadline and we have already got a very solid draft edit so I’m not worried. I just kind of want to get it finished.

First and foremost, Heather has been doing a fantastic job editing the video. She works efficiently, takes feedback on board and seems to me to have a very solid feel on the fundamentals of editing. Looking at the edit now, there are definite issues but nothing that can’t be solved in 10 minutes. It’s clean, fluid and most of all enjoyable to watch. I’m worried without a synopsis people might not get it but I guess you could see it as “up for interpretation” haha!

Before I talk about my role in the Post-Production process, I just want to mention who else is working on the edit as well. Bonnie is planning on adding some very small animations to the edit to give it that feeling of “not-reality” I think this is crucial because without the animation in the shots. When the man defies the laws of physics it will seem really strange. I believe Tom is doing sound, I’ve supplied them with plenty of audio from on set and am free at anytime to get more for them so it will just be down to when it is completed, I have faith that Tom will create something really special with the Sound design as he will probably blend the sound of the surrounding nature with cold office sounds. I’m excited.

Now onto the part I play. I offered to do the VFX for the film and I’m very happy with them. It’s nothing incredibly tedious to create. It’s very basic motion tracking and keyframing but I think using it in small doses works well and with it accompanied by the animation and sound it will take the film to new levels of quality.

I’m just going to talk about the final VFX shot as it was the most challenging (but fun) part to work on. First, I had to figure out how I was going to get the image of Kady onto the wall without printing her because I realised I would be able to match up the shots if I had just zoomed out from an actual image. So I went for a bit of green paper. I motioned tracked it through After Effects and then played with the colour so it matched the scene. I then added an artificial zoom in Premiere and I got the final result. Now, it is not perfect in any means. I wasn’t able to track back any further than I did so the image in the paper actually moves but with the help of Heather and the use of changing aspect ratios I think it really works. I guess we will have to see how people respond.

So that is about everything on the project. I will be back to reflect next month on the finished project. Hopefully it turns out okay. Hopefully, it doesn’t turn into a train wreck. I’m sure it won’t :)

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amphtaminedreams · 5 years ago

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Paris Haute Couture Week S/S 2020 Plus a Little Jacquemus: Okay, Dior DID Suck (Part 2/2)

Hi to anyone reading,

First of all, thank you! I have never had a post do as well as the part 1 of my haute couture week review did and I am so overwhelmed with the positive feedback. This is probably funny to read for those of you getting thousands of reblogs on your posts, me acting like I won an academy award because I got a couple of hundred, but honestly I don’t expect any traction when I write on here (it’s basically just me word vomiting everything I’m thinking as if people want to hear it aka. mouthing off into what I thought was the void) so if you did read it, thank you! I do spend a long-ass time on these so it means a lot:-)

I’ll leave the self-indulgent ramble there though as it’s probably not what you came for and jump straight into part 2 of my thoughts, starting with Jacquemus. Yeah, I knew what I was doing when I tagged that in my last post. Simon Porte Jacquemus is the man of the *fashion* people right now; I’ve even found myself coming round to the Le Chiquito bag despite my original thought being “well, that’s fucking useless”. I know, I know, technically it’s not haute couture; it was part of Men’s Fashion Week, but it happened around the same time and everyone was talking about it on Twitter, so I feel like I have to include it.

In a way, it kind of reminds me of Bottega Veneta’s last RTW show, in that, especially with the women’s outfits, we seem to be sticking with simple, fitted garments and chunky, more statement jewellery. I’ve got to say I like the styling here a lot more though, and in general I’m a fan of this collection. The collared tops with cut outs underneath blazers are cool and I can’t wait until it gets warm enough for me to not feel dumb wearing my headscarfs like this; there’s a LOT of summer outfit inspiration. It’s not a mind-blowing collection or anything but it is effortlessly sexy and that’s something I wish I could say about myself. Most of us can only hope to look half as good as these models do whilst making the effort but at least Jacquemus is aspirational, lol.

I also fucking adore this colour palette. I’m sick of neutrals literally just meaning brown and white; the navy, sand and muted khaki is a fresh edition to what is usually interpreted as the colours you’d seen worn by Disney’s Riverboat Cruise staff and only Disney’s Riverboat Cruise staff. And I mean, come on-what is more neutral than typical English school carpet blue.

Next for the whole reason I had to make this haute couture week review 2 separate posts: Jean Paul Gaultier’s final show.

In the best way possible, it’s a lot. I don’t even really know where to start, except to say that I guess this is a fitting last show; a celebration of everything campy, messy, weird, performative, and punk is the perfect send off for a brand whose best known perfume of the last few years is called Scandal. More than anything, the final show represented the range of characters and cultures that have influenced JPG throughout his half-a-decade-long career, the lines that supposedly separate what is “masculine” and “feminine”, “old” and “young” and ultimately art and fashion blurred in the most exaggerated way possible. Sure, there are some looks which are individually a bit messy here but the way they were grouped into almost chapter-like segments meant that when you see them all together, they work. Nods to the patterns and structures that recurred from season to season were sprinkled throughout, from sailor stripes to corsets to the expected whirlwinds of colour. I’ll even allow the wellies in that one outfit; if I can get over bucket hats in Peter fucking Pilotto’s last RTW show, I can get over some questionable shoes here. Middle aged fishermen and boys who liked to pose with monster carp in their Tinder pictures as some weird display of masculinity everywhere rejoice.

Now onto a show that I personally found slightly disappointing: Margiela.

I think this one is a bit TOO weird for me. Like if you’re gonna go avant-garde, go all out. Chiffon gimp masks (I don’t know if that’s the intention here but that’s what I’m getting, sorry Maison) are something I’m not particularly fond of and I’ve never been a fan of the Tabi boots in the first place, let alone when they’ve seemingly been blown up to Michelin man style proportions. I didn’t find the show to be a total lost cause-I enjoyed the colour palette and I’ve always liked that contrast stitching detail, plus the bowler hats are interesting-but on the whole considering how much I liked the last RTW show, this is a bit of a let down.

The looks I included are salvageable but (I feel mean saying this) there were genuinely a lot of pieces that did just resemble bits of fabric draped over each over with no discernible rhyme or reason, so much so that they reminded me of some of the monstrosities I saw at a Drag Race pub quiz this one time where we had 5 mins to make some garms out of loo roll and then have a team member model them for points down a makeshift runway.

Ralph and Russo was alright. There were a few pieces that I really liked but again, I can’t help but compare this collection to the last, where it felt like the fussy details of bows and sequins and feathers and the Barbie Dreamhouse palette were utilised with a direction in mind. Here, I don’t get that. As ever, the gowns are gorgeous and I’d pay good money just to try one on for five minutes but as an overall collection I’d say there was a lack of higher vision, which is probably the snobbiest sentence I’ve ever written so forgive me.

As for Ronald Van Der Kemp, I could’ve done without including it to be honest, if it weren’t for the few pieces I’m in love with: the velvet cape, fur trimmed jacket and blue satin dress are probably my favourite pieces here.

So onto a collection I liked a lot more: Schiaparelli.

The influence of nature from flowers in bloom to insects to the organic structure of the human skeleton is as present as ever, though this collection includes a lot more delicate symbolism than usual. Honestly, the details make it for me; the brooches, earrings and facial jewellery are other-worldly touches to outfits that could otherwise be simple fashion magazine editor on-the-go. That’s not in itself a bad thing! The suits are gorgeous. I mean, I’m talking fashion editor in New York in a power suit yelling orders down the phone while she rushes along with a coffee. A Miranda Priestley in the making type woman. THAT’S a modern take on the divine feminine that Maria Grazia should’ve been going for; our goddesses aren’t women who sit around looking pretty (though that helps too) and place curses on mere mortals anymore, they’re women who get shit done.

With regards to Valentino, which was also a delight, let me start by saying this colour palette is EVERYTHING. It’s ugly sisters in Cinderella fantastic, and we know those 2 were the real fashion icons really. Other than that, I adore the Old Hollywood silhouettes from the gloves to the Liz Taylor-in-Cleopatra-level-dramatic earrings. Everything is opulent and expensive-looking and pretty much what we’ve all come to expect from Valentino. A strong 8/10.

For me personally, Viktor and Rolf was a standout and one of my favourite collections of haute couture week. It’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea and I know it’s at the complete opposite end of the spectrum to what was probably my other favourite collection, Elie Saab, but this is just my style down to a T, the perfect balance of grungy and cutesy that I want to achieve.

There’s probably going to be a lot of objections to the temporary face tattoos and I get that, but I think they’re fucking sick. I obviously wouldn’t get a permanent one lest my mother murder me in cold blood however if I did, you bet I would be pairing them with frilly-ass babydoll dresses that you could pick up in Camden Market like this.

And last but not least (that would be Dior), there’s Zuhair Murad.

Sigh.

IDK, man. Seeing Zuhair Murad dresses on Tumblr and WeHeartIt (remember that site? It still exists!) as a 14 year old was one of the things that got me into fashion, so it sucks that almost every time a new collection comes around, I feel underwhelmed. Disappointingly, the brand hasn’t really progressed all that much since 2013. It goes without saying that the stoning and the embroidery and sequins are stunning and would make anyone feel like a princess but from a critical point of view, I’m just not seeing anything new here. Whereas I feel like Elie Saab, for example, reflected the growing fascination with East Asian fashion and recognition of the supremacy of the region’s street style in his haute couture last collection, Zuhair Murad seems to be stuck designing the same dresses he was 6 years ago.

To pick one example, the rounded stoned necklines are so outdated that they’ve been making their way onto department store prom dresses for years. I get that it’s supposed to be a reference to Ancient Egyptian style and I respect that, I was one of those 8 year old that was obsessed with mummies and the “Curse of Tutankhamun”, but couldn’t it be done in a more interesting way? It’s Maria Grazia’s spin on Ancient Greece all over again. Now I get how how the I imagine very niche subsection of people who are into fashion and Julius Caesar (okay, so I don’t even know if they still believed in mythology and all that malarky at that point in history but just roll with my comparison here) might’ve felt going through Vogue Runway. Anyway, I hate to end on a critical note and so be clear, these are still absolutely magnificent dresses. If we ignore those ugly round necklines, that is.

So that’s it for this post! If you read part 1 and 2, I hope you enjoyed it! As always, let me know your opinions and feel free to disagree. I’m literally just about to start trawling through all the A/W 2020 RTW collections though I imagine that’s gonna take me way longer to do than this, so I wouldn’t expect that for a month or two. In the meantime, I’m trying to fit shooting a Euphoria-inspired lookbook into my days off work which is looking atm like it’s going to be the end of March, so look out for that, and also a review of the red carpet fashion from this season’s award shows.

As ever, thank you so much for reading and again, thank you for the reception on part 1 if you were one of the people that read it. It makes staying up til 3am with the jitters seem worthwhile, lol!

Lauren x

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sambart93 · 6 years ago

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Touken Ranbu The Movie [Review]

It’s finally here! It’s finally arrived! We waited so long and it’s finally here! I’m hoping I can see it at least one more time before it stops at the cinema because it is so good!

NON-SPOILER REVIEW Overall: This was amazing! I absolutely adored and loved so many parts of this movie!! I loved the story, I loved the reinterpretation of history, I loved the twists and surprises (there are so many that you don’t expect!), I loved the action, I loved the colouring, I loved the cinematography and the camera shots, I loved seeing their pretty make up and their pretty faces on a big giant screen! They all looked amazing!! My honest to god only complaint is that (1) there is a very obvious voice dub within the first 15 minutes of the movie; (2) some of the editing and transitions between scenes were just not smooth at all. The editing was really rough compared to how amazingly produced everything else is in this movie. A few cuts really pissed me off and some transitions were so jarring. I do have one more complaint but it’s spoilery so I’ll list that below. But everything else was amazing! Cannot wait for the DVD! Rating: 8/10 if only the editing had been better.

SPOILER REVIEW

Story

We are back at Honnouji no Hen trying to stop the Jikansokougun from interfering with it. You know the story if you’ve read the history and/or watched the first stage.

Now to the spoilers...

The TouDan think they’ve finished off the Jikansokougun and go back to the Honmaru, but in fact there was still one left who grabs Oda and takes him to a safe place. When Oda wakes up he has the whole Jikansokougun army within his grasp and one of the commanders ‘Mume’ can talk to him and stays by Oda’s side. The TouDan realise what’s happened and goes back. While there Jiji actually saves and rans away with Oda. Everyone feels betrayed but they continue their mission of keeping and eye on Hideyoshi. Jiji takes Oda to Azuchi where Hideyoshi raids and tries to burn down (as per the correct history) but again the Jikansokougun interfere.

I’ll stop there so you’re not too spoiled if you did carry on to read more.

Using the star format as usual so it’s easier and quicker for me to get through reviews.

General Comments

☆ This was so BEAUTIFULLY SHOT! Some of the shots are so well done and they all looked so damn pretty! They must’ve had a very nice budget for this movie because it’s visually beautiful, the colouring used is beautiful, so many shots are just PERFECT!

☆ I loved the close ups of all the swords! Being able to see their pretty faces (which had a lot lighter make up than what they wear on stage so their natural beauty shined out more!) so close up was just wonderful ^_^

☆ Also their makeup! I absolutely adored their make up in this!! All of the swords except Nihongo have eyeliner half way across their bottom lashes (yeah this is how good the quality is and how well you can see the makeup and how goddamn observant I am xD). And they all looked SO NICE!

☆ NIHONGO’S ONSIE for uchiba/Internal Affairs is freaking ADORABLE!!!! It’s a freaking Onsie! A ONSIE! I was losing it!! And he looked so good in it too!! It was this freaking adorable great onsie!! I can’t get over this... I can’t! xD

☆ Jiji has plot armour in this movie too as expected because he’s always givemn bloody plot armour. He REALLY should’ve died in this one. Scientifically and by Touken Game standards he SHOULD have died. But alas ‘we can’t hurt the fan favourite precious Jiji’ oh fuck off, hurry up and kill him already! Fuck sake.

☆ I really liked Fuma’s Honebami. Just like the stages, we didn’t get enough time with him. We didn’t really get to know him. But I think something between His and Mitsuya’s Hone is what I expect Hone to be so I like Movie Hone. BUT, Hone should’ve died too by the way. Just from the dire situation he ends up in, he really should’ve been killed and died. It’s not like we can’t bring these swords back!

☆ I died a little when Uguisumaru said his famous line!

☆ Tomoki as Uguisumaru was perfect JUST as I had predicted! He was great! I loved the looks between Jiji and him where they completely understood each other without having to speak! I absolutely adored how soft his voice was, very nicely matching Ugui’s image.

☆ Also I did start laughing at one point when I remembered Suzuki and Tomoki had been in YowaPeda together. I just imagined Suzuki’s Arakita and Tomoki’s Makishima dressing up in their sword outfits. Them looking like TouDan but with their Peda character’s personalities just cracked me up SO MUCH!

☆ You can definitely appreciate the amount of LEG shown by Yagen and Fudou in this movie! The camera itself really loved focusing on Yagen’s legs! Many times there are obvious shots that are there JUST for his legs xD and there’s a scene at the honmaru where Fudou goes to sleep and you can see all the muscles in his legs and it’s beautiful ^_^ highly appreciated and thankful for these shots!

☆ I do like movie version of Hasebe. I liked him somewhat in this one. There wasn’t so much forehead acting from Wada in this (thank god) so I liked Hasebe this time around.

☆ And I guess movie version of Jiji wasn’t as much of a dick as he is in the stage too. I do like Jiji quite a bit in this one too, but he still got that god damn plot armour.

☆ In some shots you can see the knee support around Maki’s right leg - he was still receiving rehabilitation on his knee after his surgery when he stupidly went off to film this.

☆ I am here for the utter and complete tag team of Yagen and Manba! I absolutely adored all their scenes together! I was SO down for this pair up! They were great together!

☆ If you’ve never seen the Eiga Dorobo video, I highly recommend you see it! It’s often shown in movie theatre before the movie starts and it’s gold! (see here) so for Touken Ranbu they made special ones with the cast joining in! They even had the Jikansokougun too! So far there have only been 2 episodes out and a third one should be coming. So for the two different episodes we had the appearance of:

Eiga Dorobo 1: Uguisumaru, Fudou, Hasebe

Eiga Dorobo 2: Honebami, Nihongo, Yagen

☆ Watching the movie, I had this huge moment of ‘fuck, I love Touken Ranbu’, because there are so many versions of it and anyone can make any version they want because the creators of the game gave so much leeway as to how to interpret the swords, the personalities, how they defend history, the lore of the Jikan, there is just so much god damn potential in this series and there’s so many ways and stories you can write with these boys! I just got so happy and proud while watch the movie. We can literally make up whatever shit we want so long as history goes back to normal at the end! It’s GREAT!

☆ However, as already stated above, there were some super dodgy editing in this! I really need to find out who the editor is and send them an email because some of the editing was cringe worthy. We literally had one shot where Jiji walks out but the shot is focused on Jiji’s feet for about 5 seconds while Jiji talks. No shot of Jiji actually talking, no shot of Jiji’s face, just his FEET! HIS FEET! What the hell was that shot of Jiji’s feet at the beginning of the movie?! I’ve watched this movie TWICE and I have absolutely NO idea what the point of that shot was! That was the worst one.

☆ Other things like in the very first opening scene we are have a VERY OBVIOUS audio dub over one of the guys. Why they dubbed over the man with different lines to what his mouth creates, I don’t know why, but it does not sync up at all and it is very obvious.

☆ And the transition between scenes/days and the cut backs to older stuff in the movie was just very poorly edited too. If a scene ended, it would fade to black and for like 2 seconds there would be nothing, no music, just a black scene and then suddenly a new song would start, it felt VERY stage-y and not like a movie at all! It was cringe worthy and really wasted precious seconds we could’ve spent on the movie. Also we had some ‘flashback’ scenes and the music and sound immediately cut off from Cut 1 -> Cut 2 would be the flashback and be absolutely silent, no music -> go back to Cut 1 and suddenly the music has restarted again. I REALLY didn’t like it! It REALLY pissed me. LET ME FUCKING REEDIT THIS GOD DAMN MOVIE! The post production for most of this movie SUCKED. The editing and the sound mixing SUCKED. Ugh... that person needs firing.

☆ Also, this movie was WAY too short! We get 3 hour long stages from Marv, so why is the movie less than 2 god damn hours?! It’s barely 1 hour 45! Give me more gungi! Give me some comedy! (There is NO comedy in this besides ONE line from Hasebe!) Give me them enjoying time at the god damn honmaru!

☆ Upon looking back, I realised that they did not show one of the bigger fights at all that happens towards the end of the movie. I really wish they had shown that fight scene rather than having it happen off screen. There was so much potential and so much you could’ve done with that fight scene. You could’ve easily had swords pop up here, there, everywhere and they could’ve done it in a real stylistic way if they didn’t have the time or money to get actual actors. They could’ve just done close up shots of swords’ costumes, or their feet landing next to the Jikan, or show two swords clashing, or a danshi jumping into the fight etc. You could’ve easily ‘brought in’ many swords into that fight scene without actual hiring any actors (especially if certain actors did not have time) and it could’ve been very creative, stylistic and interesting and it would’ve been a big flail for the fans.

☆ Also MAJOR SPOILERS HERE: the ending part with the new sword? Don’t just IGNORE that for fuck sake! Give him and the audience an explanation! Let him speak! Let him have his moment as to what happened to him and where he’s been and what he went through shit! God damn don’t just NOT explain that! Don’t just have him pop up, save the day, say his name and FINISH! What the fuck.

Wow the more I think about this movie, the more dissatisfied I get... okay, last one!

☆ Also Nishii Yukito had SUCH a small role!!! I was hoping he’d have so much more screen time than what he actually got. He has about 1 minute max *so sad*

I DO pin a lot of my complaints and nitpicks on the fact I have a cinematography background; I studied film, I’ve made films, I’ve always watched BTS of making films, I love the process of film making. And I think because of that, that’s why I’m being so particular on HOW it was made and on post-production and how I would’ve made the movie. So if you’re not into the whole film making side of movies then none of these are gunna bother you. If you’re not into this stuff then I really think you’ll enjoy this movie a lot! You will definitely have a good time and be satisfied and enjoy it so much!

Okay now onto:

MAJOR SPOILER TERRITORY COMMENTS

☆ I loved this version of Saru and how he isn’t just a nice guy and isn’t just the idiot that history leads us to believe. In this he’s cold, and mean, and turned against so many people! I loved Saru suddenly going against Hasebe too! It was such a plot twist! He invited Hasebe and Nihongo into his clan but as soon as our swords let down their guard, Saru’s men attacked them and they had to run! It was such a shocking twist! And Hasebe getting shot because of this ambush too was insane!! I know it’s spoiled in the trailer but seeing it happen in that moment! I was not expecting it at all!

☆ Also I am glad I got to see Hasebe actually almost physically harming Jiji, and Manba straight up being like ‘yo I don’t trust you Mika,’ and Yagen siding with Manba! Oh my! It was such a great scene! I loved all the suspicion going on around them and them not exactly wanting to agree or listen to Jiji. Argh! SO GOOD! I was like ‘HIT HIM HASEBE! DO IT!’ and I guess this is another reason why I like Movie Hasebe much more than Stage Hasebe.

☆ Seriously! I absolutely loved the teaming up of Yagen and Manba!! And now I want them forever on my team in the game now too! xD

☆ My heart hurt a little when Oda called Jiji ‘Munechika’, I was like ‘YOU HAVE NO RIGHT CALLING HIM BY HIS GIVEN NAME!!’ because clearly Jiji deserves more respect than Oda xD but I think it’s purposely put in so we do feel this way.

☆ I absolutely loved the twist for Oda’s story: he didn’t die at Honnouji, he actually died at Azuchi Castle and only Jiji knows the true hsitory because he was the only one there at the time! Such a great twist! And how Jiji tricked Oda into going to Azuchi, making Oda think he’ll be fine there and making Oda think that they are changing history together! Such a good plot twist! I loved it!

☆ Even though I was spoiled for the new sword, it’s very heavily implied throughout the entire movie. Especially when Akechi uses him in defense again the Jikan, and suddenly the danshi’s (who is clothed in Jikan armour and wear) eyes turn bright yellow (Jikan’s eyes are all a glowing red). It’s a really good and random reveal!

☆ As Jiji tries to leave Azuchi castle, Honebami meets up with him. But fucking Oda pullings his sword on Hone and pins it at his neck! He tells Jiji to work with him or he’ll kill Hone and Jiji is like ‘I can’t help you, this is how it’s supposed to be’, just, I was like YESSSSSSSSSS!!!! But in the end Oda let’s Hone and Jiji go -__- I’m sorry but Hone SHOULD HAVE been killed there!

☆ One of my favourite lines from the movie is from Jiji (surprisingly) where he says: 守りたいことが増えばっかり。 // Things I want to protect just keep increasing. Which shows just how different of a Jiji we have in this version! He actually fucking emotionally cares in this one!

☆ The very last scene has ALL the Stage swords who have appeared in TouStage up to now were ALL at the Honmaru in this final scene. Except Daihannya & Ookanehira. Those two swords were NOT in this final scene. As for the actors; every one of the TouStage actors, except Hirose Daisuke and Kento, were as their Swords, in their costumes in this final scene. Ichigo and Tsurumaru ARE in this seen but are clearly NOT the actors. They clearly had body doubles / standins in this scene and their faces were out of focus. Also in the final ending credits, these two actors' names were not listed. I was flailing so hard!!! This was a HUGE shocker and I am so happy how many of them were able to come back for this one scene! So this is the scene where the new Saniwa is revealed and we finally got a female Saniwa!!!! I was like ‘YES JUSTICE!!!’ I spent most of the movie like ‘why the fuck is it always a Male Saniwa?!?! Why not hire someone ambiguous like Yuzuki or Toman as the Saniwa?!’. But alas we got our girl at the end!! The very very very last scene is absolutely ADORABLE! The saniwa (she’s like 3 years old) grabs onto the back of Jiji (he’s sitting down and drinking tea) and holds him for a piggyback, he smiles, picks her up and piggybacks her around the honmaru! It’s ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE!! I was in absolutely tears at this scene! Ughhh someone give Suzuki babies!!! I was in a MESS of tears. And the very very very last line is him where he says ‘ Aruji.... the stuff I want to protect just keeps increasing’ arghhhh my heart!! *dead* IT’S SUCH A GOOD ENDING!!!

And that’s all! I hope you enjoyed this review and I hope you watch, buy and enjoy the movie!

As stated, I feel like a lot of my complaints come from my cinematic background so general people who just want a good movie are really going to enjoy this!! ^_^ Also if you ever see spelling mistakes, don’t ever hesitate to yell at me! xD

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comicteaparty · 5 years ago

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January 4th-January 10th, 2020 Creator Babble Archive

The archive for the Creator Babble chat that occurred from January 4th, 2020 to January 10th, 2020. The chat focused on the following question:

What goals do you have going forward with this new year for your story?

carcarchu

well i basically have the same goal every year which is to cover more ground, i made the mistake of making my first comic be a super long 3 part epic so it feels like it's going to take me years to make it even part way through when i try to make my chapters longer however it generally leads me to feeling burned out so i still have a way to go when it comes to finding the right length per chapter that i can put out consistently

LadyLazuli (Phantomarine)

In Phantomarine (http://www.phantomarine.com/), this year I finally reach the chapter where all my main characters meet and start interacting - it's where the story truly kicks off. I've spent almost 2 years in setup/exposition mode, and I finally get to exit it properly. I'm so. SO. Excited. And I really want to take my time and do it properly. It's about to get very fun for me, and I hope it will show in the work!

Cronaj

My goals mainly consist of reaching page 100. I'm over 1/4th of the way there, and I believe I can get there before 2021. I also want to reach the introduction of one of the main characters, but I don't think that'll happen this year. This character doesn't appear until the end of Ch. 5, which is somewhere around page 170-180. Am I waiting too long to introduce this character? Absolutely.

eli [a winged tale]

I am almost halfway through Arc 1 and almost at 10% of the story Looking forward to chugging away at it and hope to reach the First Plot Point by the end of the year

kayotics

I guess one of my goals is to reformat chapter 1 for printing (I drew it at the wrong size), and then update chapters 1 & 2 for colors. I’d like to compile the first four chapters into a book, but I’d like all the chapters to be visually similar in color at least.

Tuyetnhi

Gonna try to finish two chapters this year and clean up ch.1 and 2 for printing its gonna be a lot of work but I know it can be managed~

snuffysam

In terms of where the main story will go - Book 3 just started, and Chapter 1 should be finished mid-March. Chapter 2 will be finished early-mid July, maybe even late June? Chapter 3 will be finished sometime in September. And then it's Chapter 4... which won't be finished until like June 2021 lol. But anyway, by the end of the year we'll be introduced to all the important characters of this arc (though we won't have had much time with some of them). Including a character who's so important, I'd almost call them the deuteragonist of the entire comic if not for the fact that they're only showing up 700 pages in, lol.(edited)

Past the actual story aspects - the comic will be celebrating its fourth birthday at the end of February! And, given that the first page of the comic was started on a leap day, it's technically the first birthday the comic has actually had. The upcoming short stories for the year are some of my favorites so far, so that's exciting. I'm also interested to see how the shipping contest & fan-art contest turn out. We'll also be reaching page 750 at some point this year, which is a pretty big milestone.

Deo101

I have a goal for my second comic to get it off of hiatus, and for my main one I would really like to make improvements in the areas I've received critiques! Mostly, I just want to keep making them for another year <3 I don't really have any goals other than to keep on going with it

(also, a preemptive congrats on four years!)(edited)

AntiBunny

Well, having fully reuploaded my archives, I'm letting them update gradually to hopefully attract a new audience over on comic fury. When it catches back up I intend to finish up Chapter 10, and with it book 2. Then I'll finally launch book 3, Coast to Coast, which will allow me to tell more different stories by changing locations.

Kelsey (Kurio)

Hey Vinnie! How goes it?

AntiBunny

Still chugging along.

Holmeaa - working on WAYFINDERS

The big goal for Wayfinders off course is first of all to launch! In start February (we will find a date today iiih!!) Then at the end of 2020, if everything goes accordingly we should have produced 7 chapters enough for a book Ah! This is all so exciting

Cap’n Lee (Flowerlark Studios)

Pretty much my goal is to just keep swimming. I hope to complete more chapters this year. I should be able to finish chapter one of my comic, Eryl, unless I have to take a long hiatus (which, honestly, is looking very likely). Ashes is less time intensive than Eryl and the chapters half as long (only 16 pages each; Eryl chapters are usually 30-35 pages), so I’m going to try and finish at least two, if not three chapters before 2021. But honesty, just getting what I can done and continuing to push forward is my biggest goal.

Mei

I only started My Husband is a Cultist last year in April (https://tapas.io/series/MyHusbandisaCultist) and my goal is to reach that first year anniversary and to keep the train rolling for this comic! I initially wanted to have the rest of this arc completed in 2020, but I've decided to be realistic as I will be making a grad film at the same time (yay), so I just plan to do as much as I can, and to at least have Chapter 4 completed before March, and maybe Chapter 5 after that! I have a lot of story I want to tell and it's hard to stay focussed on it, but I'm doing my best, doing a little at a time!

Phin (Heirs of the Veil)

My goals are mainly to become a little quicker and finish the second book in time for the Heirs of the Veils (http://heirsoftheveil.fervorcraft.de/) fourth anniversary next October. Story-wise we want to have all the bits and pieces in place to slowly approach the actual meaty parts of the comic and prepare well enough to finish it in the coming 3 years.

FeatherNotes

Our goal is to have our book fully edited, with help from editors and friends, so we can be more confident in it's true rendition. Im not one to stick to making pages perfect, but there are definitely parts that could use some attention! Other than that, book 4 is on it's way and it's always a main goal to get to print for upcoming cons!

varethane

My goal this year is to get to the end of the first arc of Wychwood! After a year of working on it, I'm roughly halfway there. I'd also like to lern 2 colour better.

Capitania do Azar

This year I hope to get a new book out!! That would be great and also you know, just keep going. If all goes well I can get a chapter out until the end of the year and that'd be cool (but also perhaps a bit too hopeful, since my chapters have started to...get bigger with time..)

SAWHAND

This year my goal is to start posting the comic! And, if it works out, I'd love to get the whole thing thumbnailed out by the end of the year. Fingers crossed!!

DanitheCarutor

My goal is to finish chapter 5 in less than a year. Up until now it's taken a year to finish a chapter thanks to work, chores and the occasional procrastination spell. But in December I quit my depressing job that was a two hour drive away, so I'm hoping to be more productive, even if I get part time work somewhere in town.

twothirty

along with finishing chapter 6 and 7, im also hoping to have all of book 2's script written and edited~

renieplayerone

My goal is id love to get the first chapter or two of kate blast printed

#ctparchive #comics #webcomics #indie comics #comic chat #comic discussion #comic tea party #ctp #creator interview #comic creator interview #creator babble

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kokoronopikuseru · 5 years ago

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Review: Pixelogue

A little late to post this, but I intend to share details and reflect on the editing of Pixelogue, in hope that it will help editors and organizers who need advice. (If you’re not interested in editing info, just skip to the last section)

Details are in Chronological Order -

# Software:

I designed everything from scratch in AE, with all the stock plugins. I had to relearn everything I used to know about AE; I last used it extensively in Pixelophobia years ago and furthermore, I wasn’t really used to the new CC interface. I had to seek tutorials for every simple effect I wanted to execute. It sure was difficult for me. For english speaking editors, this is probably your main tool if you intend to do simple video animations and graphics.

# Planning: Song Choice

I had intended to use a Korean Indie Track as stated in the collab details page. Sadly, the music really didn’t fit the music. I spent about 3 days rearranging the clips in every permutation I knew. I didn't really manage to find an arrangement that suited the clips. The unfortunate reality for editors is that we are usually at the mercy of the submission clips. I finally chose something Tigres’ described as “Shawn Wasabi-like”. It was a major challenge for my editing since I wasn’t exactly used to creating work that is colourful or cheerful rhythm-wise. I had to have major re-planning if I wanted it to work out.

# Editing: Draft

My process for editing clips always starts from arranging the combos. I used Vegas for this since, well, it IS a video editor, and it is pretty fast in processing clips. For learning purposes, here is the link of my very first draft (https://youtu.be/kRDwXTnxXGw). I think it’s necessary to spend a longer time at this stage, so as to visualize how its gonna turn out. And of course, to ensure that this is the flow of the CV you really wanted. By this stage, you should also have planned out the fillers (as denoted by the empty instances in the draft) and roughly how long your intro and outro will be.

# Editing: Intro

I didn’t really want to make something too kawaii. But yet, I can’t really escape the colourful imagery I imagined the intro to be. I compromised and made something that alternates between some modern TV visuals and old school TV visuals.

Modern TV; I was greatly inspired by those colour wipes that vloggers used for their youtube channels. It was one of those common and simple transitions that AE users exploit regularly. I found ways to incorporate it in a radial and a rotating wipe. The font animations were all plugins in AE that I found. I wasn’t gonna edit every alphabet like the previous CVs I made.

Old School TV; I took most of my inspiration from the adjustment knobs on analog TV. I found that it goes well with the subtle static noise in the music track. Hence I employed selection circles, and drew an actual knob (not sure if you guys realised that was what it was supposed to be). I also warp bulge the static background as well as the words, to emulate the concave glass distortion present in analog TVs.

And in the final burst of images, I made the clips alternate between 16:9 and 4:3, just to show the juxtaposition between modern and old school.

I really hope people notice all these small details. I didn't feel it was impactful enough, but I guess these are probably cool facts for those who are interested.

# Editing: Combos

I always render my CV in a 16:9 resolution, simply because it IS more pleasing to the eye now that computer monitors are no longer square. My preferences have yet to change. However, with regards to the clips, I have read enough indirect feedback that the cropping wasn’t something that most people liked. I took this criticism pretty seriously, and thought it was time for me to hop on the bandwagon, to try the new-age style of CV editing.

I had to put in much more effort to retain a 4:3 combo in a 16:9 visual space, with an additional need to create a secondary background layer. But because of this decision, it gives me more freedom to explore options of panning and perspective movements.

I create a blurred and expanded duplicate of every combo as a background. I thought it was great that I could retain the original colours and give the clips a “floaty field”. No one has done something like this before, so it was instantly cool and hip. It also gives more room and potential to play around with the transitions too. Eg, fading the background before the clip (transition from Tigres to popte). Interestingly, all the backgrounds all have different properties, namely position, scale and degree of gaussian blur. The reason was really because some clips were seizure inducing due to their extensive movements. I thought it would be nice to vary all of them, which adds a unique aesthetic touch to all the combos.

I am pretty new to editing in a 3Dimensional Space and camera tracking. I was intending to do something as simple and fluid like Talentica Neue. Well, I learnt it wasn’t as simple as I thought. I had about 5-6 Parameters of camera movements, and frankly till now, don’t really know what each one does. I highly suggest for editors who wanna try 3Dimensional camera tracking, watch more tutorials and try simple practice projects. Learning how to utilize it properly will extensively improve your editing game.

Oh yeah, remember to use the graph editor for EVERYTHING. Acceleration and Decelerations have too much aesthetic value to miss out on.

# Editing: Outro

Because I have spent so much time on all other parts of the CV, it’s only responsible for me to put in some effort on an outro which I am usually way too lazy to make. Yeah guys, it’s important to make outros too guys. I used the same warping and television static effect from the intro to retain a sense of continuity. It's simple and nice, I liked it.

# Combos; (Warning: Difficult to Stomach)

I’m gonna be a little too frank about this- the quality of combos I received were lower than what I usually work with (I love my UPSB submissions tho). I guess this is the huge downside of organizing sign-up CVs to an international community that is slowly dying and regressing. It was even harder when most didn’t submit on time. I had only 7 clips by the deadline. I wanna admit that I had moments regretting that I was organizing Pixelogue as a majority-signup CV. Some of the filtered combos either didn’t fit the style of CV (really sorry padrace) or was just bad due to the lack of effort. Mostly bad.

But here’s the heart of the matter, this might really reflect the standard of the international community.

I’m not sure if I am the only one who feels this way, but I feel that most of the current international CVs can be separated into two groups, the JEB invites, and the rest of us. Don’t get me wrong, I do acknowledge the high standards JEB spinners deliver. But I’m not comfortable with the fact that they don’t submit better materials since their combos are guaranteed to be featured, and mainly because the quality of an international CV is often a 50/50 hit or miss (could be lower). Who can blame them really. Even so, their names are usually enough to make the lineup look great.

> Pixelation was an all JEB sign up CVs. Pixelarium, Pixelophobia, Pixelography, Pixeholic were invites-only CVs, a mix of international and JEB guys. <

Most of my CVs have a JEB last spinner or a JEB dominant lineup towards the end. (coffeelucky 6th is also guilty of this). Clearly, you can see how much we use japanese invites as a way to boost the “quality” and hype of our projects. Yeah, sucks to admit it, but I am sure these are common sentiments shared with many of us international CV editors for a pretty long time.

Well, its not something I’m really contented with. In fact, I don’t like the way this becomes the norm.

More recently, around the time I released “Express 12.1.18”, I really wanted to believe in us - the international community veterans, the borderline pen spinning retirees, that we can perform. I didn’t wanna believe that the international community was any inferior. I finally felt ready to edit something solely from our pool of people. I can accept that I don’t have to rely on japanese invitations to superficially enhance the CV. We have enough to make something great ourselves.

I fondly assert that the international community does NEED this kind of confidence. Otherwise, we will always be second rated. Seen as the lesser beings. Y’all JapEn tiering meme-lords know what I’m talking about. I personally needed this to prove to myself that it will work out for us even when the scene looks pretty shitty now. And yes, I did feel better after this.

# Conclusion

It didn’t really garner much attention especially when there was a flood of CVs being released around the time it was released. But I do love it a lot. It’s made up of familiar spinners that I cherish, good combos that I’m thankful for, and finally, an editing that drained my whole summer holiday away. Yeah, I do love it a lot. Definitely one of my proudest work.

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jeremystrele · 4 years ago

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An Honest Conversation On Single Parenting By Choice + Donor Conception With Takeawei Ceramics Founder, Chela Edmunds

Family

by Lucy Feagins, Editor

Inside the Jan Juc, Victoria home of Chela Edmunds from Takeawei Ceramics, and her daughter Ocean. Photos – Nikole Ramsay

Chela and Ocean! Photos – Nikole Ramsay

Chela decided to have a child at age 40, and Ocean was conceived via sperm donor and IVF. Photo – Nikole Ramsay

This home is warm, earthy and full of pastel colours – just like Chela’s label, Takeawei ceramics! Photos – Nikole Ramsay

As well as being a mother, Chela runs a business encompassing designing, making, running classes, wholesaling, an online shop, bricks and mortar store, and soon-to-launch Airbnb! Photo – Nikole Ramsay

‘I would like Ocean to grow up proud of her birth story and her life. I think that talking openly with respect to all parties involved is important,’ says Chela. Photo – Nikole Ramsay

Australian women are increasingly seeking assisted reproductive treatments and choosing to become single mothers, but it’s not often we hear these stories openly shared.

Someone who can speak to this experience is ceramicist Chela Edmunds, owner of Takeawei, whose gorgeous 18-month-old daughter Ocean was donor conceived.

From deciding to become a single parent at 40, and the intimate details of the IVF process, there wasn’t a single question that was off limits in our interview with Chela. We’re so grateful she shared her family story with us.

Have you always wanted to become a mother?

I always enjoyed being around children, but I hadn’t given motherhood much thought. I guess I just assumed one day I would meet the right partner, at the right time, and we would have children together.

I turned 40 and making the decision to have a child was probably the hardest thing I’ve done. I had so many questions that just couldn’t be answered: would I miss being free to do as I please? Would I be a good parent? Would Father’s Day be awkward at school? Would I be enough…just one parent?

I felt that I would be happy and fulfilled with or without a child. Some people seem to know without a doubt that they want children, so did I want it enough?

The deciding moment came when a friend asked how I’d feel if I found I was pregnant right then, and I was so elated with love that I just knew I wanted to be a mum, and all those other questions could be worked out along the way.

What did your life look like when you decided to have a child?

I had just turned 40, and I was happy where I was in life, career, geography, and I felt financially stable. I had spent most of my 20s partying and traveling and my 30s focused on career and building my small business. I didn’t have a partner and I wanted to have a family, so I had to be proactive about it and take steps to make that happen.

How did you then eventually decide on the donor conception route?

I initially went to the IVF clinic to see about getting my eggs frozen and see how my fertility was tracking. My first appointment I was shown a pretty bleak graph with age versus eggs, and later my test results seemed to confirm that my chances of becoming pregnant were slim. It was then I realised I had no obligation to wait for a mythical partner before starting a family, and it was now or harder the longer I waited.

Choosing a donor was just part of the process to me, as I didn’t have anyone I would ask to be in a father role or share parenting.

The most common questions I receive are misconceptions about donors (don’t call them dad) and their role, which is fair enough, because I didn’t know much about sperm donation until I went to the clinic, received the compulsory counselling sessions, and did my own research about the process.

What exactly is involved in the IVF treatment and process?

Blood tests, hormone treatment, lots of self injecting, then choosing a sperm donor, egg harvesting, and an embryo transfer a few days later.

I had gone on a holiday prior to starting the process, ate well, gave up smoking and drinking, and received acupuncture and craniosacral therapy to help me feel balanced.

I found the worst part was the wait from egg harvesting – watching embryos not make it – and finally after the embryo transfer being told how important it was to stay stress free and happy in order to give the transfer the best chance of success. I was also opening my first solo retail store with Takeawei at the time, and just generally in the thick of Christmas trade 2019, so it was not an ideal, stress-free environment!

They even recommend watching comedies that I just bawled my way through and then felt bad about crying. Being light and cheerful is really so hard when you are full of hormones and wondering if this little life inside you is going to make it.

I was surprised and finally genuinely cheerful when I found out the transfer had taken the first time.

What was your resulting pregnancy like?

I loved it. I felt like mother nature with all the changes in my body but also the changes to my mind. I think I became kinder also – like I could see the child in everyone – and I really stopped worrying about small stuff.

I would get really tired some days but I knew those were the days when Ocean was doing some serious growing so it made me feel everything was going well.

Mostly I was just a bit slower and rounder, and I could smash three punnets of blueberries in five minutes.

Were you able to take much time off work after Ocean was born?

I took three months parental leave where I left the day-to-day running of Takeawei in the capable hands of my staff. Here and there I would answer emails or jump online and do a website update or Instagram post.

Most of all I was just really happy to spend down time at home getting to know Ocean and stare at her for hours. I don’t think I put her down for the first month.

Ocean is 18 months now and she has just started daycare, so although I have been working, it’s a very different work schedule. I do most work at night.

How do your days now start and end with Ocean?

We co-sleep so waking up to Ocean saying ‘up up!’ and giving me a kiss is a good start to the day.

Usually I just grab a coffee at home, have a little breakfast on the balcony, and watch the dogs get walked or the garbage truck come past.

If Ocean is up for it we take snacks and the push trike up to our local cafe and onto the lookout at Jan Juc beach, or to the park for a play. After that we are both pretty tired so we have something to eat and while Ocean naps I get some work calls or emails done, tidy up a bit, and then Ocean is usually awake again.

The second part of the day we grab a snack and might go to the studio for about an hour to take some photos of pieces, chat with my colleague Tessy about what we are making and firing, and any orders we have.

If we have time I’ll take Ocean to the park or the beach before we go home, and then her dinner, bath and bedtime starts around 4.30pm. I eat with her, but it feels really weird having dinner at 4.30pm, so I usually have another dinner later and do some work on the computer. Once Ocean is asleep, I read or watch a movie if I haven’t fallen asleep feeding Ocean.

I throw a lot of things on the back burner as the most important thing is getting the food and sleep we need some days. I’m excited for both of us now that Ocean has just started daycare two days a week. I feel like she will get the play she needs with other kids and I will get some time to do so many of those things on the back burner. My mum and aunt babysit once a week while I teach, and I love that they have a close relationship with Ocean.

Who have been your greatest supporters as a parent?

My mum, Pauline, is just my biggest support always. She was the first to jump in and say ‘of course you can do it’ when I first questioned having a baby. She told me it would be hard and it would also be fun, which is so true. Mum came and stayed with us the first month; she took care of me so I could take care of Ocean.

My friends have also been a great support. I had three close friends at Ocean’s birth and I’m so thankful to all my friends that made sure I was fed for months afterwards, or held Ocean while I took a shower.

What have you learned since becoming a mother?

To be kinder – everyone is dealing with their own stuff.

What advice would you give to other single women hoping to have children?

How do you explain to someone how hard something can be but how none of that matters when so much love fills your life?

Having Ocean is the best thing I have ever done, I love her beyond words. I would like Ocean to grow up proud of her birth story and her life. I think that talking openly with respect to all parties involved is important.

Also, don’t let the washing get out of control – it will bury you.

FAMILY FAVOURITES

Family activity or outing?

We love to go to the beach.

Cafe?

Our local, Swell.

Ideal ‘me time’ activity?

Hamam or a surf.

Sunday morning breakfast ritual?

Anything with lots of eggs, because Ocean likes cracking them and would do the whole carton if I let her!

Weekend getaway?

Down along the Great Ocean Road to Lorne.

Shop Takeawei Ceramics online or at their new store at 120 Gertrude Street, Fitzroy.

If you’re interested in learning more about donor conception, and the experiences of donor-conceived children, Chela recommends the following resources: varta.org.au wearedonorconceived.com

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sambart93 · 8 years ago

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2017.05.20 OEdo no Candy 2 Event and Movie Review!

I got a chance to go to another OEdo Candy event and I got to go to the showing of the new movie plus they had a butai aisatsu (stage greeting) from some of the cast after.

*PSST: if you just want to read about the stage greeting then Ctrl F and ‘Stage Greeting’. It’s at the bottom of the page/post.

First the MOVIE REVIEW

NON-SPOILER REVIEW

Overall: This is partly what I was expecting and partly not. I was expecting it to be fantastical and romancy、 BUT I wasn’t expecting it to be so fairy-like and lots of glittery special effects and weird colour tones and such. It definitely makes it all the more magical and luckily, isn’t too distracting. Also it wasn’t as BL-y as I was under the impression of. I wish this movie had been longer. I needed and wanted more character development. The visuals were amazing, it was very funny (which I also wasn’t expecting) and the characters were great. It’s definitely an Indie-styled movie. It’s not a clean cut, it’s not professional looking, the editor purposefully leaves in real actor mistakes that happened for comic relief. BUT it’s enjoyable, fascinating and I’m glad it ended with a ‘To Be Continued’. Rating: 7/10

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Now for cast and spoiler section and everything:

CAST

Kurihara Rui aka Louis Aramaki Yoshihiko aka MakiChan Someya Toshiyuki aka Someyan Fujita Tom Akazawa Tomoru aka Tomorun Kamiya Riku Shiono Akihisa Asuma Kousuke Yura Achiha Hiko Robin Komina Kouji Nakamura Kaito Tokito Kishimoto Takuya aka KishiTaku Izumi Shuuhei Moriya Koji Kazuki Haru Doi Kazumi Hashimoto Zenitsu Nakajima Ken Nihira Shougo aka Shougokun Mori Issei Dairi IG Saya Onuki Yuusuke Mayama Akihiro Takahashi Hiromu Sano Shirou Fukikoshi Mitsuru Takenaka Naoto Koizumi Kyouko

That’s a fucking long list xD anyway!

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SPOILER REVIEW

I am going to go into a lot of detail about scenes and plot so you’ve been warned. Also I still haven’t seen the first movie so I many have left stuff out or not understand some parts because of that. Okay, let’s start!

The Movie Itself

Already mentioned in the non-spoiler section but: It was more Indie than I was expecting. I knew it wouldn’t be a perfect Toho cinematic-like movie because it has stage actors in and they usually have the more raw and not quite polished movies, but the director has been on Shabekuri007 and the cast is stella, top stage actors AND some HUGE TV names are in this cast, so I was expecting some professionalism but I was so wrong! It’s so, so Indie in it’s style. The cuts and edits aren’t quite so clean, the special effects are ridiculously fake but make everything look so pretty. The colouring and tone of the movie, especially when they’re in Underworld, is very obvious and like shades of green and blue rather than natural colours. So I was a little surprised at first. It’s obvious straight away that it’s Indie style, but I like this style thankfully so it didn’t bother me for long. I like this style; it’s definitely a style I enjoy but some people won’t.

Continuing on about the use of colour and sparkle effects when they were in the Underland; they were definitely creative and entertaining. For example there’s this sparkler like movement and light that goes around the characters, and at one point, love hearts are falling down around Someya and Riku when they finally meet and they realise they’re fated to be together. Just like these pics:

At first the special effects were very jarring and distracting BUT I got used to them. Although(!) it’s going to be annoying as fuck when it comes out of DVD because we ALL want to get those pretty and good shots of our favourite actors, but because the sparkles and such that just go all over their faces and everything, they aren’t going to be the best of shots. They should bring out an unfiltered version for us! They’ll make more money that way too!! xD

This movie was a lot less gay than I was expecting. Especially because on Tsutaya’s (a Japanese rental website and store) website the first OEdo movie is labelled as ‘erotica’ but like... there’s two kiss scenes, some rope scenes, and implied whipping but that’s all! But I guess Japanese censorship is more sensitive that way? I’d just say this is a PG-12, it’s really nothing too raunchy.

This movie was FUNNY! Funny as fuck! I wasn’t expecting it to be funny at all! I laughed the entire time! Either because of the stuff happening in the movie itself was funny, or because knowing the actors and their personalities it’s funny. It’s also very purposefully funny, like the editor saw a mistake and was like ‘that’s hilarious! Keep it in!'. Especially Asuma’s scene and the Masturi/Festival scene which I’ll explain later. There’s definitely scenes that happened by mistake or weren’t part of the script, but the editor and director purposefully left them in the final cut to give the audience a laugh and embarrass the actors xD

The story is simple-ish enough to understand and it’s very fun to watch, but like I said in my non-spoiler review; I wish this movie was longer so we could’ve gotten MORE plot and MORE character development and MORE comedy,. I just want MORE. Luckily at the end it said ‘To Be Continued’ however I assume the cast will change again(?) just like it did between the first and second movie, which is a shame because I’d like as much of this cast back as possible.

The Actors and Characters and Their Scenes

Kurihara Rui:

He surprised me. I’ve seen him in person and I’ve seen him on tv as himself many times and he very much has the persona of someone who is very emo-like with life and very monotone and doesn’t like to smile and is very witty but straight faced when he jokes. Even when I saw him at the first OEdo event he was like this! But in the movie, he at least had facial expressions! At first he didn’t but then we see him freaking out in the bathroom and being concerned. For the most part he stays as himself but I was surprised he could actually give SOME sort of acting performance. He is model so of course he looks damn pretty in his white outfit, and his skin looks freaking flawless as fuck in this movie. But I am very happy and surprised from the performance he did give.

Aramaki Yoshihiko:

My boy... first I have a bone to pick with you Aramaki Yoshi-always-straight-hiko!!!! (Can you tell what it is yet?)

OF COURSE MakiChan is the ONLY (no wait Asuma is too but he’s not a main character) straight person in this movie! EVERYONE else is obviously gay but oh no MakiChan just HAS to be the straight character -__- I was hoping for him and Akazawa to have a thing going on in this, instead of him denying he’s in love with his childhood female friend the entire movie -__- oh well! Least he’s somewhat gay in Honoo no Mirage... one day I’ll get my gay movie from him! I better! All stage actors have one! Also you work with Shosan a lot and he’s done quite a few! Also Baba and TakaChan! Come on Maki! GIVE ME MY GAY MAKICHAN MOVIE! I’m okay... moving on...

MakiChan’s character was chara (how would you even translate ‘chara’ in English?! ‘Playboy’? or ‘Likes to mess around’?) as fuck though. His first scene is him opening a very posh person’s door to reveal a very posh and stuck up girl and takes her through his izakaya while winking at his mates that he’s ‘gotten in there’. Then at the end of the date she pulls him slightly into the car and kisses him on the cheek. Once she’s left, he’s like ‘yes I’ve scored!’ BUT at the same time is totally adorable because he’s over the moon by just a simple kiss and can’t take his hand off his cheek where she kissed him! He was both chara and cute at the same time! Also the next day he’s with Shiono and is holding a teddy and just being so cute and child-like that he got a kiss from the most popular girl in his university xD Just adorableness galore from MakiChan! With the teddybear = adorable. Trying his hardest to join in on the (real) matsuri/festival = adorable! When he wakes up at the end = ADORABLE!

ALSO very badass when he attacks and kills Robin in a second! Also OMG! In the beginning he sees his dad come out of the Boys Bar that’s next door to the izakaya, and he chases his dad down and is like ‘you’re not gay?!’ and his dad’s like ‘why you think your mother and I.... anyway I’m gay. You do realise I’m gay right? You might not understand but that’s how it is!’ And the next day MakiChan turns to Shiono and is like ‘my dad told me he’s gay...what the fuck?!’ xD And his dad was being played by FREAKING Takenaka Naoto! TAKENAKA NAOTO! He’s a freaking movie and TV star! He’s amazing in whatever he does and he was in this?! And with MakiChan?! AND as MakiChan’s DAD?! And being a GAY daddy?! He was fabulous and amazing (as always) in this!

Speaking of Akazawa and MakiChan. I really loved their relationship and my head thinks they were dating in it even though his character is supposed to be straight, and I think Akazawa’s character was supposed to be in love with Rui’s character in the UnderWorld. Nevertheless their relationship was great BECAUSE MakiChan’s character in the Underworld cannot speak, he’s mute, and luckily Akazawa can hear him via telepathy which was cute so Akazawa helped MakiChan out a lot.

I can confirm that for many many months even before the movie first came out, MakiChan and co were saying you can hear them say ‘facial’ instead of ‘washoi’ during the festival scene, and I can confirm that they do in fact say ‘facial’ instead of ‘washoi’ in the scene xD I was giggling quite a bit.

Little side note: In UnderWorld he is the only character who has a recollection and memories of his time in the Real World.

Finally! As disgusting as it sounds (but shouldn’t be a surprise if you know me) MakiChan’s underarm hair made a special guest appearance and it made me VERY happy <3 why am I so fucking weird...MOVING ON!

Someya Toshiyuki:

Someya is so pretty when he dresses up and has make up in a more feminine manner! He was gorgeous! I could not look away! And the kiss with Someya and Riku was perfect though! It was rather heart-racey but nothing too heart-racey (am I even getting enough oxygen to my brain right now to be able to talk about this properly?!) xD

BUT! One moment that got me giggling though is when Someya takes like 5 minutes to cut Riku’s rope from his hands -- it really doesn’t take that long! It wasn’t that thick of a rope at all and I just cracked up the longer the scene went. I get it was a long scene so they could keep talking and so the sexual tension between them built up but it was a ridiculous amount of time.

Why did he have to die though?! Riku gets killed by Tom so then Someya kills himself with a knife in front of Tom and because Tom has essentially lost the person he loves he shoots himself in the head! ... I’ve just realised how freaking Romeo and Juliet this all is... it literally is just a movie about romance and being dramatic and everyone dying and/or killing themselves for the people they love xD what the fuck... it’s still good though!

Fujita Tom:

Surprisngly Tom’s character was pretty interesting! I don’t know why I expected him not to be because I was impressed with him in Kamen Rider Amazons and I enjoyed seeing him in person last time...

I liked his character. He was like a warlord and looked very good upon his throne. I liked both his Real World and UnderWorld Character. His Real World character works in the freaking Boys Bar along with Someya. In fact the entire Boys Bar scene and location itself is ridiculous and hilarious! It’s this very loud, strip-bar which is right next to MakiChan’s brother’s (played by Riku) izakaya and that’s why they have conflict, because they can hear the Boys Bar’s music every night. Seriously the entire Boys Bar scene is amazing, I think I enjoyed it a bit too much xD Anyway, back to Tom; I liked both his character but was short lived, again leading back to the whole ‘I needed more from this movie’ complaint.

Akazawa Tomoru:

I remember that in the last event, the director commented (probably during the Making video) on how big Akazawa’s eyes are, and seriously, while watching this movie, they really are huge! It doesn’t help he has these blue eye contacts in that really light his face up (not in a stupid way! A natural way!) so they looked obviously bigger compared to everyone else too.

But damn Akazawa’s death scene was sad and upsetting =[ It was so quick and unexpected too! He was seriously struggling =‘[ he got his neck slit open and was on the floor in his pool of blood coughing and trying to save the others before they get killed, and he’s like ‘I’m so glad you weren’t here (when they came <-- they being Tom’s group who are after Rui because he’s some magical white fairy thing I think).

Kamiya Riku:

He is MakiChan’s brother in this! But also Someya’s fated lover. A majpr plot of the story is that until he meets Someya (again) in the real world, he doesn’t remember anything except his family. He’s a very quiet character but once he finds Someya the amount of love you can see in his eyes towards Someya and how his face completely softens when he sees Someya, it’s so adorable!

Shiono Akihisa:

Shiono is a freaking puppy! He’s in love with his and MakiChan’s childhood friend, but she’s in love with MakiChan and instead of confessing his love to her, -- although there is a hypothetical scene that plays out where he tells her to forget MakiChan and hugs her and confesses his love to her but! -- he lets her go and holds back so in the end, her and MakiChan can get together! He’s too precious for this world! He’s so sweet! He also does the Matsuri with MakiChan which is great too! It was a short time but you could easily see their long friendship shine through their scenes together.

Asuma Kousuke:

Asuma’s character had a lisp and it was fucking hilarious. Several times in the movie, the characters (to his character) were like ‘why do you say Sa Si Su Se So instead of Sa Shi Su Se So’ It was a funny bit every time, especially when he was like ‘I don’t speak weird!’ and they all laughed. His character also got slapped a lot by the other characters as another form of comic relief.

Also in his very first scene, he clearly (the actor, not the character) overhits the wooden overhead part and makes a huge noise, you can see slight pain in his face, and everyone in the room (I was in) pissed themselves laughing. It was obviously a ‘the actor accidentally did it but we thought it was hilarious so left it in the movie’ moment.

By the way, Asuma it TOO tall and TOO skinny! xD

Robin:

His visual and the metal arm armour he has is badass! He looks so good in his costume and seriously that arm is soooo amazing! Even the cast and staff commented on how nice it is and Robin was happy he got to wear such a cool looking thing. His character is like an assassin but is so easily killed by MakiChan in one swift and quick movement -- it was an awesome scene! But unfortunately it turns out MakiChan didn’t completely and successfully kill him because as MakiChan tries to help Someya get Riku, Robin comes from behind and stabs him and he dies. But it was a cool movement when MakiChan ninja-slashed him.

Nakamura Kaito:

This little cutie! Him and Tokito were like supposed to be waiting on Someya but spent most of their time being pretty dumb (in an adorable way) and playing games with each other. Especially when MakiChan turns on Tom (he uses a sleeping drug on him) and Robin, after slashing Robin, the two of them are hugging one another and going ‘please don’t kill us!’ and MakiChan lets them go. It was such an adorable moment from them. It was cut when they played Rock-Paper-Scissors together too.

Kishimoto Takuya:

His guests appearance was absolutely hilarious! So he plays the driver of car of the women who MakiChan takes to his izakaya. And once out of view of the izakaya, she tells KishiTaku to stop the car. Here she removes her shoes and puts her feet on the headrest infront of her (she’s in the back seat behind Kishi who’s driving) and her feet are either side of his face and he’s like ‘o_O’ and ‘=O’ but also super enjoying it. I’m pretty sure she ends up putting her feet ON his face and he’s goes into this like orgasmic state and enjoys it thoroughly. His character was so amusing.

Doi Kazumi and Nihira Shougo:

There were some great cameos from people like Doi Kazumi (who was a worker at the Boys Bar) and Kishimoto Takuya (seriously KishiTaku’s part was hilarious! I am not doing it justice above!), also freaking Takenaka Naoto (who I already fangirled over)!

Furthermore, I freaked during the All Boys Bar scene when for a SPLIT (literally a split, split second) when I saw my very own Shougo-kun!! It was a moment of ‘*double take* wait what?!’ when I saw him. I practically jumped out of my seat when I found him! I was so shocked and excited to see him in it because I was not expecting him! I immediately tweeted him after seeing the movie and was like ‘why didn’t I know?! But also I’m impressed at how quickly I spotted you xD’ which makes me seem super stalkery xD oh well! But I am so proud of my boy and when I saw his name in the credits and realised I was right about spotting him, I was a very happy girl ^_^

Hashimoto Zenitsu:

He ends up being MakiChan’s dad’s entertainment in the Boys Bar and they look so freaking hilarious with each other. Knowing Takenaka he was the one super into the role and being like ‘lets do this! lets really do this’ and making it look so lovey dovey and sickly and funny as possible and I imagine Zenitsu was just going along with it. It’s such a good but short scene with them two.

Sano Shirou and Fukikoshi Mitsuru:

These two HUGE tv stars guest starring in this movie. I’ve always liked both of them (and Takenaka) and I really liked Fukikoshi’s character! He was very funny! Especially towards the end when MakiChan(I think?) is trying to explain what happened in Underworld and Fukikoshi is asleep the entire time xD

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After the Movie, it was the CAST EVENT/STAGE GREETING:

It was: Aramakaki Yoshihiko (duh that’s why I went xD), Asuma Kousuke, Robin, Nakamura Kaito and Takahashi Zenitsu.

I was second row to the right-hand side (and the row behind me and all the seats to my right were empty, so safe to say it was obvious when he was looking at me), so as soon as MakiChan came on stage, he saw me and smiled at me ^_^ Then at another point in the talk show, Asuma was talking and I was giggling silently and very hard at him, and MakiChan saw me and had to stop himself from laughing - he made that ‘holding back the smiling/laughing’ type face. I feel guilty for making him almost crack up on stage but also special because only me and him know why.

They first had a Mini-Talk but I don’t really remember what happened or what was said but I remember laughing a lot - sorry! But I do remember them talking about Robin and his cool character, so he was like ‘okay! Everyone close your eyes! The audience will clap on which one of you they want me to kill!’ Even though they were suspicious at first, they complied and they all closed their eyes and he walked around the back of each of them and waited for us to clap. Naturally Asuma and MakiChan had the biggest claps, SO Robin decided to kill both of them with his ‘air sword’ (he didn’t have one on him). To which MakiChan was like ‘that’s not how I’d kill someone!’ and Robin was alarmed at first at how serious MakiChan sounded at killing someone (xD) but then asked, ‘well how would you do it then?!’ so MakiChan said he’d show them. But before that MakiChan did the same thing as Robin and asked the audience the clap at who they wanted killed and it landed on Asuma xD so the first time he just killed Asuma with an air sword and then the second time it was MakiChan giving Asuma a drink and saying like ‘Otsukare’ and then Asuma drinks it and collapses to the floor and MakiChan is like ‘I’d poison them!’ with a smile on his face xD which is related to his character in the movie because his character does drug Fujita Tom’s drink but doesn’t kill them.

Then we had the Senshuu-Kai which is like a lottery and they picked the audience’s seats from a box and it was to win one of five signed copies of the script. Most of the people who won were on the second floor -- there were only like 20 seats on the second floor and FOUR people from there got signed copies! We were all surprised at how lucky the top floor was.

ALSO The boys mentioned they watched the movie FROM the second floor. When the movie had ended I did see about 6 people stand up and slink backstage, so it must’ve been them! That means MakiChan was opposite me and one floor up! I wonder if he saw me the entire time! =O *dead*

Finally there was the HIGH TOUCH/FIVE on the way out!

Being technically the back row (it was set out weird. I was row N but second row on the right. Don’t ask) I was one of the first to go to the high five. The boys were lined up outside next to where the goods had been and the order was: Zenitsu, Robin, Nakamura, Asuma and finally MakiChan. I remember high-fiving Zenitsu and Nakamura completely, but I don’t remember high fiving Robin, and I barely remember Asuma, only just thinking ‘he smiles well’ and ‘DAMN HE TALL!’ xD

With MakiChan being at the end, he got a few seconds longer with everyone as they left. He gave me this huge smile, high fived me, waved at me, said thank you and good bye, and waved me off and watched me walk away to the stairs ^_^ <3 okay I’m dead *dead* he’s always so amazing with his fans. God dammit guys... he’s so amazing... such a good person *dead*

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GOODS

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Speaking of OEdo I hit for the next butai aisatsu of this movie! AND I’M FIRST ROW! LEGIT FIRST ROW! June 24th! So hopefully I’ll have a mini report about the aisatsu and maybe some extra comments about the movie ^_^

I’m getting there! About 3 more to go! *dead*

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