Filmmaker Blog - Mario J. Novoa

12 Stanley Kubrick Strategies for Perfecting a Film | Mental Floss Director Stanley Kubrick died in 1999, but he still remains an integral part of our culture today. The  recent documentary  Room 237  explored various conspiracy theories about  The Shining . An  extensive Kubrick exhibition  is touring the world. And Kubrick’s work is continually noted as influential on contemporary directors of huge blockbusters such as Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese. Here are 12 things Stanley Kubrick would do in order to perfect a shot, performance, or film. 1. ADAPT ANY SOURCE MATERIAL. Kubrick left no stone unturned when it came to genre or source material. He sometimes worked with non-fiction elements and other times adapted novels into films. He used shorter stories as basis for  2001: A Space Odyssey  and  Eyes Wide Shut , one a science fiction epic and the other a character-driven drama. Stephen King has been  vocal about his...

(from left Mario J. Novoa, DP Dan Cotreau and Actor Miriam Peniche. Photo by Sacha Barry)  Learning from previous experiences and allowing enough prep time, I wanted to really pursue the art of cinema from a different vantage point. My primary goals were to allow the actors the space to explore the location we would be shooting in. This would allow the actors to see how best to use and take ownership of their domain. My other goal was to understand how best to use the camera in that same space. I've learned from master filmmakers that allowing yourself to explore the film frame and the performance, would give you the opportunity to shoot what you envisioned. So as we played in the sandbox today, I was able to see all the opportunities. In the next few weeks I will refine what my intentions were and what I learned today. Thanks to my awesome Cast & Crew today!