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Tobin Bell's 'Saw IV' Jigsaw Journal #1

Posted 10/19/07 4:28 pm EST by in Guest Bloggers

Tobin Bell as Jigsaw in 'Saw 4'During a career portraying some 75 film and TV characters, actor Tobin Bell has kept extensive journals detailing the off-camera minutiae in every one of their lives. Some might see it as obsessive; to him, it's simply the proper way to do his job. Now, on the eve of this month's "Saw IV" release, the star of the highest-grossing horror franchise of all time is revealing his Jigsaw journals for the first time, exclusively to MTV News.

TODAY'S ENTRY: From Bell's "Saw II" journal, titled "What's on John's Mind"

Click here to see the actual entry, hand-written by "Jigsaw." Translation and commentary from Bell follow.

(enclosed in a circle that represents what John detests): Liars, Hypocrites

(surrounding the circle): Afraid to die Read More...

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Director Diary: 'In The Shadow Of The Moon'

Posted 9/12/07 11:31 am EST by in Guest Bloggers

Astronaut Mike Collins as seen in 'In the Shadow of the Moon'Last week, we presented an interview with famed astronaut Buzz Aldrin, who discussed his participation in the stunning new theatrical documentary "In the Shadow of the Moon," which covers the American space program from the viewpoint of those who visited Earth's closest celestial neighbor. Today we bring you a column from director David Sington, who reveals why his space-centric film is so different than those before it.

To Boldly Go...where many others have gone before.

For a filmmaker, the US space program is the best -- and worst -- of subjects. Best because it is one of the greatest adventure stories in history, full of drama and pathos; worst because it has been done before...many times! You know that your work will be compared to films like "Apollo 13" and "The Right Stuff," and those are tough acts to follow. So I approached this project with considerable trepidation: I knew that we would have to do something different and new. Read More...

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'Shoot 'Em Up' Diary: Production Hell And Heaven

Posted 9/6/07 1:18 pm EST by in Guest Bloggers

Clive Owen and Michael Davis on the setAs you may be aware, we've been running exclusive columns from Michael Davis, the writer/director of the upcoming action flick, "Shoot 'Em Up." Last time, Davis introduced us to his behind-the-scenes players; today the filmmaker describes how he navigated the production's many challenges.

Time is a director's nemesis. There's never enough of it. In "Shoot 'Em Up," there are eleven action set pieces or more. A skydiving shoot out. Clive shoots down forty hoods while on the run. He rappels down a stairwell with an Uzi. Delivers a baby while picking off guys. A car chase gunfight. What saved my ass was having the brilliant Peter Pau on hand as the cinematographer. Read More...

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'Shoot 'Em Up' Diary: The Behind-The-Scenes Players

Posted 8/30/07 12:02 pm EST by in Guest Bloggers

Michael DavisFor a few weeks now, we've been running exclusive columns from Michael Davis, the writer/director of the upcoming action romp, "Shoot 'Em Up," starring Clive Owen, Monica Belluci and Paul Giamatti. His first piece tackled his beginnings, his second revealed how Giamatti channeled Karl Rove, and now he introduces us to the cast of characters behind the camera who helped make his film possible.

In "Shoot 'Em Up,' our hero is the lone man who gets into every gunfight imaginable from a gun battle while he freefalls from an airplane to a shootout while he's making love.

But, to make a film it takes a real posse to get it done. Here the rogue's gallery that had my back: Read More...

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Director's Blog: 'Right at Your Door'

Posted 8/23/07 2:04 pm EST by in Guest Bloggers

masked_manIn an exclusive column for the MTV Movies Blog, filmmaker Chris Gorak takes us into the process and inspiration behind his debut directing effort "Right at Your Door." The intimate thriller looks at a world after four dirty bombs have exploded in Los Angeles (click here to watch an exclusive clip from the film).

I had always envisioned the toxic ash cloud in "Right at Your Door" as the shark fin in "Jaws," circling our two characters who are essentially, marooned at sea. Once the shark is in the water you don’t want to go swimming. Once our characters retreat to the safety of their home, they are trapped in a claustrophobic world of paranoia.

Working in one location was a challenge. Our house was our Orca. We chose to use two cameras every take. And every take, we moved the cameras and changed the lenses, giving us maximum angles and coverage. This approach, I feel, creates a freshness to the one environment.

David Fincher’s "Panic Room" also is essentially a story told in one set. As an audience member you experience the story from every perspective available. It brilliantly takes you everywhere, through walls, under doorways and into air ducts. It was a film that was able to afford a fantastic set on a sound stage. Unfortunately, we did not have that luxury but we still wanted to capture just as much paranoia and anxiety. Using a practical location and not a stage set, we had multiple technical hurdles to overcome. The biggest problem, quite simply, was that with our actors on either side of a sealed door or a real-world plaster wall, at times, they literally could not hear each other. They were missing cues and losing their place in the scene. Read More...

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'Rocket Science Diaries': Aaron Yoo Chills Out

Posted 8/8/07 1:24 pm EST by in Guest Bloggers

Aaron Yoo in 'Disturbia'In the third and last of his exclusive blog entries for MTV, "Rocket Science" star Aaron Yoo spills the beans on his next project, talks about friendships on the set of "RS," and what made the film so dang special. To read his previous entries, click here.

Okay, another day, same blog. Not really sure this is exactly what MTV was asking for, but there it is. Just wrapped my first day of shooting on "The Wackness," this KILLER indie directed by Jon Levine. Remember the name and be ready, it's hilarious. Sir Ben Kingsley, Famke Janssen, Josh Peck, Olivia Thirlby, Mary-Kate Olsen and Method Man. No they didn't cast this movie with a dartboard. It's genius, trust me.

So apparently, I left off talking about nothing in particular. You'll notice that's a habit... Anyways, I'm back with the "Rocket Science" crew, straight chillin'. Again. What can I say? We're family. When you spend a summer in Baltimore with four of your favorite people, it's a lifetime commitment. It always helps for your lead (Reece) to have a visa issue (he's Canadian; don't hold it against him) that delays production 3 weeks. I kid you not. We rehearsed and basically lived summer camp for three weeks before shooting. Read More...

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'Rocket Science Diaries': Aaron Yoo Goes Suit Shopping, Part II

Posted 8/7/07 12:10 pm EST by in Guest Bloggers

Aaron Yoo"Rocket Science" star Aaron Yoo is blogging for MTV. Yesterday he navigated Lower Manhattan in search of a suit for his big premiere and dished on the magic of NYC compared to LA. Today his grand quest continues.

Brutal. Day 2 of suit shoppin'. Somebody stick a fork in my eye. Doesn't help that we were watching "Sunset Boulevard" until 3am last night. Genius flick, that movie, but I'm kinda harrowed this morning. Last night after I gave up on suit shopping, I met back up with Vinnie and Reece Daniel Thompson (Hal Hefner) for dinner at Via Emilia (best Italian in NY and a tiramisu that I dream about in LA). Read More...

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'Rocket Science Diaries': Aaron Yoo Goes Suit Shopping, Part I

Posted 8/6/07 12:02 pm EST by in Guest Bloggers

Aaron Yoo in 'Disturbia'You watched Aaron Yoo play Shia LaBeouf's best friend in "Disturbia." Now he's starring in the acclaimed dramedy, "Rocket Science." In this first in a series of blog entries for MTV, Yoo readies for his film's big premiere with a little shopping trip.

So I'm trekkin' through the subway in New York on my way to go suit shoppin' with my "Rocket Science" co-star Vincent Piazza (he plays Hal's OCD kleptomaniac older brother, Earl. You might've also seen him recently on "Rescue Me" gettin punched in the face by Denis Leary. Like, repeatedly. Episode after episode of going UFC with Leary. They don't teach you that in acting school).

So yeah anyways, a suit... This is what I'm told: dress however you want for somebody else's premiere but TRY to look like a good citizen when it's your movie. This means "wear a suit." And take a shower... Fine, whatevs. I'll pony up. But I'll be wearin my convict underpants; ya just won't know it. Read More...

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'Dark Is Rising' Screenwriter Explains Why He Took The Job

Posted 7/31/07 12:41 pm EST by in Guest Bloggers

'The Dark is Rising'John Hodge is an Oscar-nominated screenwriter best known for his collaborations with Danny Boyle on "Trainspotting" and "Shallow Grave." His latest film is the ambitious fantasy "The Dark is Rising." In an exclusive piece for MTV below, Hodge explains why he took on the project.

I wasn't going to do "The Dark Is Rising." It's not that I dislike fantasy but I wouldn't class myself as a devotee. The Potter books and films are obviously very good (that many people can't be wrong) but nothing is for everyone and they don't do it for me. But then I got to thinking about the story of DIR and it seems to me that the fantasy is not what it's about. It's about a boy finding his place in a large family, or more than that, starting to think about his place in the adult world in general. And once I found that perspective, I really wanted to do it. Read More...

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'Transformers Diary': From The Mouth Of Bumblebee

Posted 7/5/07 5:58 pm EST by in Guest Bloggers, Hot Stuff

Bumblebee in 'Transformers'Veteran actor Mark Ryan wasn't sure what he was in for when he agreed to read lines on the set of "Transformers." It wasn't until the end that he realized that his voice would partially power the fan-favorite character, Bumblebee. In this exclusive guest-column for MTV, Ryan describes the experience of working with director Michael Bay and star Shia LaBeouf on what's fastly becoming one of the biggest blockbusters of all time.

Well, it's been one hell of a roller-coaster ride!

It all started about this time last year when I was called in by casting director Michelle Lewitt, who'd spoken with my agent Brian McCabe about a mysterious new project looking for a British actor with theater experience. Michelle faxed over several sides of dialogue and I was sworn to secrecy. She advised me not to learn the material as it probably wouldn't end up in the final cut of the project, but to be prepared to read several parts at the same time!

It was a very relaxed meeting with Michelle, as I'd worked for her previously, and she ended up filming me doing several parts from the scenes I'd been given. I really didn't know much about the project and drew character voices from my own childhood favorites, and threw in a few other voices just for fun. I'm not even sure if I was fully aware of the scale of the production or who was involved in it at that point. Read More...

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