Creator blog.
New post every Monday.
Blog #30 Cinematography Analysis - V For Vendetta (2005)
V for Vendetta is the topic of this post. It is a film similar to the first Matrix film - it’s evocative and has a unique way of telling its story. The film has dated quickly compared to other films that came out from the time. I couldn’t find any information on the camera system but it seems that they didn’t have a big budget for future-proofing (given I streamed it on a 55 inch television and it looked muddier than other films shot around that time).
Blog #29 Cinematography Analysis - Moneyball (2011)
I watched this film for the first time recently. It’s an eerie film—a slow burner that chips away at your pre-conceived notions until it sucks you in.
It could be easily renamed The Brad Pitt film because it’s mostly him being macho around other macho men.
It’s a nice looking film. It’s simple and it doesn’t try too hard, like a lot of other films in its genre. It creates a mood and it sticks to it.
The cinematographer was Wally Pfister, who has feaured in other blog posts on this site. I like his work. It has a safe, yet unique style that sucks you into the cinema experience, even if you’re watching at home.
Blog #26 South Park Season 28 is…something
The title says it all. Season 28 of the adult animated show South Park was just released and it is…something.
I’ve watched this show from the humble beginnings of the Jesus vs. Santa clip that was shared around, to what it is now: a global franchise. Over the course of the show, there have been ups and downs. One thing is clear though: the show is now on an up. It’s back to its best.
Why? Simple. South Park is at its best when it’s crazy and offensive. At the moment, it is definitely both of those. From P.C. (Power Christ) Principal throwing down with Jesus in a Cheesecake Factory bathroom to the tweezer thing, South Park is holding no shots back. They’re all in. They even dropped two f bombs in the episode. By f bomb, I don’t mean fat.
Blog #25 Cinematography Analysis - Twilight Saga, New Moon (2009)
New Moon is the second installment in the Twilight franchise. The film changed cinematographers for this one, going from Elliot Davis to Javier Aguirresarobe. The two films have two very different styles but are both consistent in their approaches. This film is more typical of a drama film shot in the late 2000’s era. It consists of techniques commonly used in the era and feels more mature than the previous film.
Blog #24 Cinematography Analysis - The Batman (2022)
I couldn’t not examine this film in depth, given I just did the Christopher Nolan trilogy. The Batman is an effective film but the shots are really strange. This film was very “artistic“. They used modern techniques to create an old looking film. I'm going to be breaking them down here so we can gain a deeper insight into the film. Technically speaking, it was delivered in 2.39 to 1 and shot in anamorphic—much like the previous trilogy.
Here are five points on the shooting style.
Blog #21 Cinematography Analysis: The Dark Knight
Continuing on with my analysis of the Christopher Nolan trilogy, this week we’re looking at The Dark Knight, the second film in the trilogy and by far the most quoted and popular. If I had to use one word to describe this film, I would use this: explosive. The film gets the pacing spot on and it does this by starting slow… then exploding into action.
Blog #20 Cinematography Analysis: Batman Begins (2005)
Having just recently rewatched Batman Begins, I thought it worth of a deeper dive into the cinematography and the elements that made it so special. If I was to describe the cinematography of this film I would use one word: cinematic.
I say cinematic because it doesn’t stray too far from the path of cinematic in the traditional sense. The film uses tried and tested techniques to create an engrossing film. I won’t be talking too much about the writing of the film in this post but it has to be said, the writing is great.
So let’s dive into the film and look closer at all the elements that made this film so cinematic.
Blog #19 Predicting the Future of Filmmaking
As a fun thought experiment, I’d like to predict the future of filmmaking. In the last few years, we’ve seen shifts in filmmaking like never before, with different formats and workflows popping up and taking over. I’m going to attempt to do the impossible (unless you’re a Simpsons writer) and predict how things will continue to change in the future.
Blog #14 7 Things I learned from shooting a Short Film
My film was shot over the space of 2 days, with the meat of the film (a conversation between two people) shot in a few hours and the b-roll of the film shot on a second day over a couple of hours. I’m going to share some practical insights on shooting that I learned from the filmmaking process.
Blog #10 The Top Online Resources for Filmmakers, in written and video form
As filmmakers, we all love soaking up information from our favourite blogs and content creators. They cover topics such as cinematography, editing, sound and much more. There are tons of resources online from personalities sharing their processes and techniques. Here is a list of ones you may not be familiar with yet but provide invaluable resources and are affordable/free.
Blog #9 The Conventional and Unconventional Techniques used to film The Lord of the Rings Movies
While filming The Lord of the Rings, Peter Jackson and Co. used a number of techniques used to pull of the striking fantasy shots in the film series. They used greenscreen, miniatures, motion capture and 3D models in the films. Some of these were never before used to the degree they were utilised in the films.
Blog #8 What do you need to start a video production service?
What do you need to start a video business? How long does it take? How much money will I require? I had all these questions before starting my business. A lot of the things that I thought would be difficult, time consuming and expensive turned out a lot different than I expected. I’m going to share my tips on dealing with the various necessities you need to start a video business in Ireland, whether you are a wedding shooter, a filmmaker or just someone who works in the many areas of video.
Blog #7 Cinematography Analysis: Twilight (2008)
I was looking through the top podcasts chart around the world and found that there was a podcast about the Twilight series that was popular. What’s notable about that is the podcast in question hadn’t recorded an episode in the last 3 years. It turns out people still love Twilight in 2025. I’ve been meaning to do a cinematography analysis, so why not base it on a young adult hit like the Twilight (2008) movie. It had a unique, stylised look and is still adored by many millions of fans around the world.