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Note: To skip the philosophy behind Cineapolis and go straight
to the position descriptions, turn to page 7. C i n e a p L i S
C i n e m a i s o n e o f t h e l a s t r e m a i n i n g c o m
m u n a l a c t i v i t i e s .
Somewhere in the world right now a small number of people are
sitting seats apart from each other looking up at the same screen.
Their recent past may have been filled with joy, sorrow, or
ordinariness, but here they are, audience to the same work of art,
and if the movie is strong enough, they will all leave the theater
with their spirits and minds replenished, ready to face whatever
struggles lie ahead as they go about the business of life.
Cinema is church without
superstition; live comedy that can willingly displease; theater
with more penetration and permanence. It is democratic and
universal. A projector and a set of speakers can be found in most
slums and all cities are expected to have at least one grand
screen.
It is all encompassingthe Seventh Art that combines
architecture, sculpture, painting, dance, music, and poetry. It is
versatile, as demonstrated by the sheer variety of cinema made in
the past hundred years. Cinema can take us anywhere, focus our
attention on anything, and redefine reality for us, at least for
the span of its running time.
Coypel 's Fury of Achilles (1737)
Even the staunchest opponent of fascism felt a small admiration
after watching Leni
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Riefenstahls Triumph of the Will. Sleazy mobsters started
wearing sharp suits and speaking philosophically the day after
watching Coppolas Godfather. Young men try to speak like Clooney,
move like Gosling, and carry an expression like Bogart. Films are
modern-day epics, and a Western child today wants to be Tony Stark
as much as one raised in Ancient Athens wanted to be Achilles.
Malicks Tree of Life (2011)
Stories are a defining
characteristic of our species. Our thoughts are essentially
connections of causes and effects, and stories excel at elucidating
the connection between the two. Storytelling has been empirically
demonstrated to
communicate information far more effectively than any rival
method because it engages so much of the receivers mind.
Psychological phenomena like neural coupling only strengthen the
case that storytelling is the dominant way for us to transfer our
knowledge and opinions to one another.
Storytelling is ancient but
cinema is not. Were only about a hundred years into this great
experiment and, I think, we are on the cusp of something wonderful.
The Master, Birdman, Tree of Life, Mud, Foxcatcher, Beasts of the
Southern Wild, all these veritable masterpieces were made in the
past five years, and here are you and I, young and capable, who
have a chance to help build this grand structure already under
construction. Cinemas relative newness is an advantage to those who
want to shape an art form for centuries to come.
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A d v a n t a g e s o f C i n e m a O v e r O t h e r M e d i u
m s Cinema is the best at engaging all our senses,
because it synthesizes the other arts, and is played in a
setting specifically geared to immerse.
Cinema is excellent at reaching a large number of people.
because, again, theaters are made for large numbers, and films are
surprisingly popular,
both in the developed world, and the crucial, populous
developing world.
Filmmaking is now accessible,
because all necessary production equipment is now
affordable,
or can be acquired through financing if one has reasonably
healthy credit.
Filmmaking is flexible.
It has as much breadth as any artistic field, and can have as
much depth if created by the right people.
Filmmaking is by its very nature meritocratic. because people
will always want to pay to see a great story, and because its
accessibility makes it hard to monopolize.
Filmmaking is an effort-rewarding field, because so much of it
is learned through practice that one is bound to get better if they
are honest with themselves. and because audiences grow
exponentially.
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W h y n o t s t r i v e t o c u r e c a n c e r i n s t e a d
?
It is a legitimate question and we should never ignore
legitimate questions. Cinema demands tremendous energywhy not apply
that energy to medicine, physics, technology or the like?
Stanley Kubrick and Orson Welles could have dedicated their
creativity and intellect to any other field and been useful to
mankind. They most likely chose filmmaking because of a combination
of their artistic inclinations, their circumstances in life, and
their recognition of storytelling as a fundamental human need. A
matured perspective of the world recognizes humanitys various
requirements. Food is important, but certain things trump even food
supply. Who would sell their freedom of speech for the wealth of
the average Singaporean? Medicinal research is unquestionably
essential, but so is beauty and narrative.
Consider this: prisoners have starved themselves to death to
protest their captivity. To those prisoners, dignity was worth more
than food. The image of a man standing with his head held high was
more valuable than that of a well-fed slave. This image is so vivid
that it takes on the characteristics of a narrative: the characters
of the rebel and the master, the plot that one demands liberty and
the other demands obedience, the climax in which the rebel must
demonstrate the conviction of her beliefs so that the master will
be forced to a fight.
A Bengali Freedom Fighter Carrying Another
(1971)
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T h e s t r o n g e s t m o t i v e s a r i s e f r o m s e l f
-
p e r c e p t i o n , w h i c h i s d e t e r m i n e d a b o v
e a l l b y
t h e s t o r i e s w e p u t o u r s e l v e s i n .
It is my belief that all substantial human acts in the entirety
of history are driven by a belief in some powerful narrative. The
martyr facing death in the Roman arena found strength in the Epic
of Christ. Bengali freedom fighters hiding in the jungle perhaps
drew courage from the Saga of themselves as they saw itrugged
jungle-warriors on a task to free their cities from enemy
occupiers. To even a kind-hearted plantation heiress the idea of
freedom for her familys slaves was nonsensical, because there was
no room in the narrative for it. Likewise, criminals are generally
convinced that they were doing the right thing, per their story. I
am just a person, doing what I need to survive. That is a beautiful
story, and has been at the core of some of the worst perversions
people are capable of.
We are, as game theorists
say, often illogical but seldom irrational, because we look out
for
our own interests. When a person puts himself into the narrative
of a thiefor, as he would describe it, an enlightened
non-conformist under financial stressthey adjust their behavior per
their story. If that same person saw themselves as an impoverished
Socratic protestor against materialistic society, then their story
would not permit them to steal, because the narrative does not flow
in that directionhis character would be too incoherent and the
moral of the story would be lost.
Cinema doesnt tell us how to act, but at its best creates
narratives to put ourselves in. Take Office Space, which I have
turned to for solace whenever I find myself depressed in a
corporate setting. I am the three workers, I am the quiet rebel, I
am the intelligent, funny, frustrated hostage of my financial
needs. Examine yourself, and witness the stories that have molded
you.
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From a distance, we must appear to be an intelligent species in
a rather empty universe, obsessed with our infighting and immediate
needs. We are ugly when we are in a crowd but cant stand to be
alone. Cinema provides us a medium through which to maintain our
beautiful individuality while learning from the experiences of
others. (That is, after all, the job of the actor: to truly live
through an experience on behalf of the audience.)
It is through these case-studies of human experience that cinema
makes us feel united with all of humanity, with the actress playing
her role, with the wrinkled old man a few seats down watching the
same screen. And when you leave this dark sanctuary back out onto
the cold sidewalk and into the drone of uncaring traffic and the
penetrating boredom of everyday life, you feel disoriented and
curiously uplifted. It is how Plato describes leaving the
proverbial Cave:
Liberated and compelled
suddenly to stand up and turn his neck
round and look towards the light...
the glare distresses him
but the distress is a side-effect of a thorough spiritual
replenishment. We now wonder why that streetlight must be so
bright, or why humans must be so cruel to one another, or why the
father in the story couldnt have simply loved his child without
bringing so much anger into all of it. The ambition of all art is
to remind us that there is beauty in our world and that there are
things worth living and striving for. Stories lead us to hope, to
feel, to provide context for our own lives and not feel terribly
alone. Curing cancer is important. So is solving the economic
inequalities of the Third World. And so is shaping the narratives
that drive our society. In a world of seven billion, there are
enough brilliant minds for every important field.
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Cineapolis is the concept of a vibrant
cinematic community based in the Twin Cities
that makes and screens its films here. It is built on a network
of
resident filmmakers, designers, performers, distributors,
businesses and audience members.
The model has been applied
elsewhere. Essentially, filmmakers with local roots develop
smaller-sized crews consisting of likeminded natives who are
usually more artistically talented than technically proficient.
They generally cast native actors, collaborate with local
businesses on location usage and sponsorship, arrange screenings
with independent theaters in the city and build an audience base in
their area. Cineapolis aims to achieve much the same pattern as its
counterparts in Austin and Atlanta.
Zucchis Virgil Reading the Aeneid to the Emperor Augustus
(1767)
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The distinctive feature of Cineapolis is its minimalist,
ultra-efficient five-person crew. It is this crew that will make
some of the greatest gems of independent cinema. It consists of a
Director, a Composer, a Stylist, an Art Director, and a
Strategist.
The Director Directing Cinematography Casting Editing
The Director lives and breathes cinema. They see reality as a
collection of camera angles and well-timed cuts. Conversation is a
high art, because it is screenwriting in real time. If the Director
is lacking in either discipline or vision, then the project is as
good as dead. They must be on top of everything at all times, which
is usually not possible for humans, but the Director is a different
creature altogether.
A trait in particularthis cannot be overemphasizedis that the
Director must be decisive. Much of polite society revolves around
not being authoritative but the Director must be comfortable
commanding. The Cineapolis format is incompatible with lax
directing. Any
question from any crewmember or cast member must be responded to
right away, and umms and uhs are to be avoided completely. In a
Cineapolis film, the Directors instructions are absolute, so they
must be clear and direct. Though the direction itself is not
shared, the Director must be intelligent enough to understand the
collaborative nature of cinema overall. They shall follow the
military maxim of
In planning, many
in execution, one,
meaning the Director should take advice from everyone,
thoroughly and sincerely, before production
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begins; then they must arrive on set with the confidence and
vision of a true commandant.
The Director should strive to emulate Fincher and know everyones
job on set better than they do. If the audio gear goes awry, the
Director should have good ideas on how to fix it. If the lights
arent right, the Cineapolis Art Director isnt ultimately to
blamethe Director should know better. To reach this level of
technical proficiency, the Director must surround themselves with
as much literature and instruction as possible, and make it a point
to learn from all experiences on set.
The Composer Music composition Audio Recording Casting
assistance
The Composer walks into a room and immediately feels its
acoustics. They have a tough time casually listening to music
because they cant help but criticize it. They write musicthough
they are rarely, if ever, satisfied with their own creation. They
feel sound, whereas the rest of us only hear it. The Composer is a
maestro in front of an orchestra, able to pick out the one trumpet
playing off-key.
To begin, the Composer must
have as well an understanding of the screenplay as the Director
or the
lead actor. This is necessary for fulfilling their on-set duty
effectively and they will achieve this thorough, semi-memorized
understanding by being on book all casting sessions and
rehearsals.
Beethoven at Heilegenstadt
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On set, the Composer has the technical responsibility of
capturing sound. This begins with a thorough understanding of the
particular recording device and the shotgun microphone. They must
be agile, aware, and have a spatial mind, knowing where everyone
and everything is at any given time. They must constantly assess
how the space is reacting with the sound and ensure that their gear
is working properly.
In post-production, the Composer creates any and all music
requested by the Director, along with creating proposals of their
own.
Ideally, the Director will give the Composer only surface
suggestions, indicating the general mood they want and recommending
specific instruments. Then the Composer would create to their
hearts content, finally allowing the Director to listen from a
selection and choose what to put into the film.
The Stylist Costume Design Make-up Artistry Hair Styling Script
supervision
The Stylist is first and foremost a student of the human face.
They know its intricacies and how it responds to light and color.
The Stylist can bring out the beauty in the ugly, and the ugly in
the beautiful. The Stylist is a fine artist through and
through.
The Stylist must be skilled with a brush. Cineapolis projects
tend to go light on hair and makeup
artistry, but if there is something to be done, the Stylist is
the one to do it. It is not uncommon for the Stylist to step in in
between takes of a scene and make a minute adjustment to an actors
appearance.
The Stylist designs costumes, which is unique to Cineapolis. It
is part of an overarching philosophy that wishes to see one artist
in
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control of all related aspects of the production. Since the
Stylist commands the actors appearance, it is only natural that
they design their costumes as well.
On set, the Stylist is also responsible for continuity and
script supervision, acting as a sort of whip to ensure the Director
is not losing discipline.
OKeeffes Black Place II (1944)
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The Art Director Set Design Lightist Propsmaster Location
Scout
The Art Director is a master of shadow and light, much like the
Stylist, but they are more students of architecture and sculpture
than anatomy or dance. They walk into a room and immediately gain
an understanding of its layout, type and quantity of lighting
fixtures, and the shadows they cast.
The Art Director responds well to depth, and appreciates an
accent light on a wall where there really is no functional need for
one. They prefer the actor stay still, so they sink into the
scenery rather than dominate it (though they will not always have
their way.)
In pre-production, they gather the locations, though they can
delegate certain needs to any other willing crewmember. Once a
location is chosen, they are chiefly responsibly for what goes into
it, in
accordance with the wishes of the Director.
Architect Louis Kahn (c . 1971)
Thus, they become responsible for the list of items that are in
a shot, and ensuring that there is object-placement continuity
between shooting days. As experts in light, they are tasked with
maintaining the lighting on set, and adjusting them as per the
instruction from the Director.
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The Strategist Scheduling Set Management
(Food/Transport/Equipment) Second Camera Location Management
Publicist
The Strategist is a veritable general. By far the most
disciplined and intentional of the members involved. From the
beginning, they are thinking of ways to frame the project for
publicity and eventual screening.
They work with the Director
and ensure that everyone and all equipment has a way to get to
set and a way to get home afterwards.
They ensure that all
equipment is accounted for at the
end of the night. They keep track of any expenses involved in
the movie. They arrange food when appropriate. Naturally, they must
be excellent at geometry and abstract thinking. As if all this
wasnt enough, they man Second Camera whenever the Director has need
for it.
Think this is asking too much?
You are right. There are only a handful with the level of
discipline and organizational talent needed to be the Strategist
for a Cineapolis crew.
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (c . 1930)
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The Ambition of cineapolis At some point in the future, a
person will be sent off into space, destine to spend a large
part of their natural lives away from Earth. When they feel
tremendously lonely, experiencing all those difficulties that go
along with being human, they will watch a film, and the
Cineapolitan wants to have made that film.
That is what is described by the word ambition. It transcends
the desire to be better than ones competitors. It is aspiration
elevated to the level of the divine.
Cineapolis Matured When will we know we have made it? On what
day can we finally sit back and allow ourselves to say that we did
a good job? It will be the day when all these statements are
fact:
First, all Cineapolis memberscrew and cast alikeare making a
livable income from cinema alone.
Second, at least one Cineapolis
film is playing at a Twin Cities theater, and this has been true
for every day in the past month.
Third, at least one Cineapolis film
is in production or less than two
weeks away from entering production.
Fourth, at least two fully manned
Cineapolis squads are active and ready to film.
Fifth, Cineapolis owns all its own
production equipment. When these five conditions are
wholly met, then we can say Cineapolis has reached maturity
andfingers crossedperpetuity. At the core of it all is audience.
Audience is what will sustain
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Cineapolis and guide its creative progress.
The zenith of all of Cineapolis
efforts will be when a regular Minneapolitan or St. Paulite
comes home from a tiring day at work, unwinds, then feels the need
for some human replenishment. So she walks or take the short drive
to her nearest theater, pay for a cheap ticket to the latest
Cineapolis piece. She hasnt heard of this particular film before
but its a Cineapolis film, and Cineapolis has always given her
something worth watching. She takes a seat and there we show her a
story, something really powerful,
something honest and human, and she leaves the theater and
through the rest of the night and for a few days or weeks or maybe
even years afterwards, she can return to this experience at the
movie theater and find solace.
This is an end worth
struggling for, it is an ambition worthy of our sincerest
efforts, and I for one am willing to sacrifice much to get there.
If you are of the same conviction, then we must work together.
Sincerely,
Aswar Rahman April 2015
C i n e a p L i S