The Envelope In Print: The Animation / Crafts Issue (Nov. 21, 2007)

November 21, 2007

AWARDS

Creating buzz

Shades of darkness differentiate "Antz," the 1998? Dreamworks DreamWorks Animation's movie starring Woody Allen as an ant, and "Bee Movie," the 2007 Dreamworks DreamWorks Animation's movie starring Jerry Seinfeld as a bee.

November 21, 2007

AWARDS

Mad props to the prop pros

An actor's job is to defend his character, to find the emotional resonance driving that person and stay always in his story, no personal judgments allowed. The best of them pull from deep inside themselves to become another person. But, sometimes, they get a little help. Sometimes, it's not so inside-out. The addition of, say, a hat or a wig or a prop can give an actor that little external nudge to full understanding.

November 21, 2007

CONTENDER Q & A

Janusz Kaminski makes it look picture perfect

POLISH-BORN cinematographer Janusz Kaminski has shot every Steven Spielberg film since 1993's Oscar-winning "Schindler's List," for which the visual artist won his first Academy Award for the atmospheric black-and-white cinematography.

November 21, 2007

AWARDS

Brad Bird: Animation's big cheese

ON the eve of the release of "Ratatouille," Brad Bird knew he was going to need some help winning over the moviegoing public.

November 21, 2007

THE BIG PICTURE CONVERSATION

Shooting 'American Gangster'

IF you were looking for a cinematographer with both sizzle and substance, you couldn't find a more adept visual stylist than Harris Savides. A frequent collaborator with such disparate filmmakers as David Fincher and Gus Van Sant, Savides shot a trio of striking films this year: Ridley Scott's "American Gangster," Fincher's "Zodiac" and Noah Baumbach's "Margot at the Wedding."

November 21, 2007

AWARDS

Styling 'Sweeney Todd'

Oscar-winning production designer Dante Ferretti brings a dark and bloody Victorian England to its full Grand Guignol life in Tim Burton's "Sweeney Todd," a gothic horror tale of revenge and love based on Stephen Sondheim's Tony-winning musical. Originally, it was planned that there would be minimal sets built for the film starring Johnny Depp as the demon barber of Fleet Street. The majority of the design would be done with computer graphics.

November 21, 2007

IN CONTENTION

Masters of their craft

This year has huge drama in the cinematography race, where the legendary Roger Deakins has triple the average chance to finally win the Oscar that he's been due for a long time. This year, he shot three distinctive films: "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," "No Country for Old Men" and "In the Valley of Elah." Then there's that cliffhanger in the costume design race: Can "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" pull off a "Marie Antoinette" and survive some negative reviews to reign supreme on Oscar night? Only time -- and maybe a couple early awards -- will tell.

November 21, 2007

STYLE

The Golden Age of costumes

COSTUME designer Alexandra Byrne ("Finding Neverland," "Hamlet") has been nominated three times for a best costume Oscar, including a nod for her work on Shekhar Kapur's 1998 film, "Elizabeth."

November 21, 2007

LIGHTS, CAMERA . . .

How to pick a fight

In Lights, Camera. . ., a below-the-line craftsperson talks about his current film. This week: Christopher Rouse, film editor on "The Bourne Ultimatum," on what he looks for in editing a fight scene.