The Video Production Network

Movie "Life Cycles" Watch & Discuss

March 15 · 7:00 PM
This location is shown only to members

In this free workshop we will watch the 47 minute movie "Life Cycles" and spend the following hour attempting to deconstruct many of the key elements and discuss what and why the creators did what thy did.

Visual Moderator:
Director/Editor Pete Schuermann

Audio/Music Moderator:
Film Composer & Sound Designer John Schuermann

This is an incredibly epic movie that took 7 years to make. The cinematography, audio, music and editing are so well cared for - every detail thought through, every emotions caught on film!

“We started talking about it in 2004 and spent a couple of years talking to get in line with what we wanted to do,” Derek along with co-director Ryan, spent years pulling together this Odyssean project, with a result that’s nothing short of remarkable.

Part of the reason the film took seven years to bring to fruition was the insistence on the seasonal storyline. “We had to shoot over several years to get light to match [from take to take],” Derek said. “Using a big crane camera, you might get one shot that day. Now, for the scene in the big old-growth forest we needed cloudy days. If we went up and it was sunny instead, we’d spend all day sitting in the forest. But we knew what we wanted and weren’t willing to sacrifice it for speediness, so that definitely made the time drag.”

If you only come for the movie, you will not be disappointed, but the conversation afterwards will prove to be interesting at best. Please feel free to bring your spouse, significant other, boyfriend, girlfriend or just a friend!

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Roger Appleton

Ah, seeing Life Cycles, after being in VPN over a year, brought me face to face for the first time with story telling. Not from a writer's point of view, or a cameraman's, but confronting the fact that the camera is the seeing and sensing eye of the movie, both the witness to the story, and the camera as actually the story teller. If the camera takes on the roll of a character, a witness, you gain another level to your story. Its not zoom here, or pan or dolly or cut, its 'tell the story'. Everything is story. We're story producing creatures. We tell ourselves in silence the story of our lives all the time. And sometimes we tell others. Yea Freud and Jung, Shakespeare and Cervantes.

0 · March 17
Roger Appleton

The more I think about Life Cycles the less I like it, in spite of its spectacular cinematography, biking and sound mix. No true story comes to mind first, along with speeding up the video. I'd rather see what an athlete and bike can actually do on trails like that, not special effects to create a jock film. They needed a good story beyond the analogy of life cycles to propel the film and create editing demand. Also well divided forest and desert (Moab) scenes. Top of trail, middle, end of trail. I'd like to have seen more trail building, what they sacrificed to create their rides, and more practice runs to build up to those jumps, even if its in city. Also wish I had the guts to try that riding. Still, magnificent, superb, almost sacred cinematography and great biking. Less would have been more, far more. I'd see it again only to improve my camera work & imagination, get me to work harder & with more daring. Got to have a true story line.

0 · March 17
Richard Brown

The camera work & editing on this film is spectacular - spell binding. The stunts performed by the riders are nothing short of phenomenal. Enjoyed the discussion afterwords. I rate this meet-up five stars. Thanks Chris, Robin, Jim

0 · March 16
Roger Appleton

Good discussion afterwards. Just the sort of thing that helps us move forward with video.

0 · March 16
Daniel Zimmerman

Great venue. I liked the concept of this event, hope to se more in the future.

0 · March 15
^^Robin^^

Very worthwhile evening -- the film and the Q&A was terrific.

Keep those cameras rolling and send me your films! I am scheduling Colorado films and Need more!
Thanks,

Robin
Independent Film Society of Colorado
&
Indie Spirit Film Festival

[masked]

2 · March 15
Emilio Martinez

Sorry to miss this! I had another commitment that conflicted. Have fun without me!

0 · March 15
John Moore

still dealing with vehicle issues.

0 · March 15
rick kartis

Hip-Replacement surgery on 3/13. :/

0 · March 8
rick kartis

Hip-Replacement surgery on 3/13. :/

0 · March 8
Roger Appleton

Looking forward to this one. Advance my grasp of indie

0 · February 13