Chris Murphy

I Could Get Used To This (Cross Talk Ep. 17)

Posted on by Tim Kuefler

 

You may or not be familiar with a band called The Veronicas. I wasn’t initially, not until I stumbled across a Virgin Records store in New York City back in 2006. I intentionally hit up the store hoping to find some local New Yorkers on the rise, thinking I could beat the fame train and know some “cool” music ahead of my Edmonton hipster friends back home. I grabbed  Arctic Monkeys and the Veronicas, amongst a couple other picks.

I When I left the store, I immediately popped the Veronicas into my CD player, because people still had them at this time, and was pleasantly surprised to discover that I had landed across a couple of Australian identical twins that made a healthy mix of pop music. Electro, punk, rock, dance, prog, you name it, these chicks mixed with it.

Suffice to say, it was not my typical fare at the time. I was listening to mostly hip hop, punk rock, and the occasional foray into indie rock. Mostly because of my hipster friends.

I had some preconceived notions.

cpa-dog

Thankfully those notions didn’t hold me back for too long, and before I knew it, I was a The Veronicas fan. After all, pop music can be just as powerful as any other form of music, especially when artists explore the genre and bring something new to the table.

Which is why today, Chris and I explore the importance of looking at films you expected not to like, but ultimately did, so that we can break down some of these weird ideologies, get outside of our realms of influence, and experience excellent films. Examples for us as two white dudes that grew up in the 80s, watching animated movies and romantic comedies, but even within genres we are “supposed to” like, there are examples which break the mould.

I’d give you some direct examples, but I think it’d be best if you just watched the episode, reader readers.

This is episode seventeen of Cross Talk, and we at the timotheories team know that you’ll enjoy it. It’s an excellent topic and one that I’m personally stoked to share with you. So grab some popcorn and some candy, and figure out with us how to challenge these stereotypes! Plus Chris looks crazy in that preview thumbnail, so I fully expect that will serve as satisfactory clickbait.

Before I wrap up my thoughts on this post, I just want to remind you all of how important you’re support of this website is for me. I operate timotheories out of my own pocket, and exchanging ideas with creative professionals like you are one of the major reasons why this thing even exists in the first place.

So thank you.

Another day, another theory realized my friends. I look forward to hearing your feedback on the episode, and I’m so ready to dig into this week and share some reviews on the new Train album, the blu-ray release of Queen of Katwe, some thoughts on Facebook, and a digital download of my experience at a concert.

As The Veronicas, like to say, I could get used to this.

Please comment, subscribe, and share this video with friends. We want to hear your feedback!

Tim!

Films That Changed The Game (Cross Talk Ep. 15)

Posted on by Tim Kuefler

There is this phrase out there which tells us that history is written by the victors, and attributed to Winston Churchill. It’s a good quote, and the gravity of it is not lost on anyone. But the intent of the quotation and the reality of it are two different things.

If we stop and consider what that quotation is really saying, its that history is written by writers, and much like present day events, there are conflicting viewpoints on what went down, and over time the extremists viewpoints are taken out and we are left with a more generic set of stories that can be taken in by those with an interest in the past.

Movies Preserved By Collectors

Much can be said about the history of cinema as well. We pick our favourites and share those stories with whoever we will, sometimes movies make it into our homes and sometimes distributors stop carrying copies as technology improves. I’ve seen it happen with one of my favourite movies Anti-Trust. Nearly impossible to find on blu-ray, it was FINALLY released just over a year ago.

And carrying on that line of thought, there are some movie moments that have saved the future of cinema. Not in so literal a result, but by inspiring future directors to push the envelope in new ways. Many movies have their own unique examples that can stop a conversation in its tracks. The wood chipper scene in Fargo, the velociraptors in the kitchen during Jurassic Park, the box reveal in Se7ven, and The Pixies playing “Where Is My Mind” as the city blows up during Fight Club, are all iconic moments.

Whether these moments have taken good movies into the realm of great, or great movies into the exceptional, when it comes down to it, every year in film we get to see some scenes, technical achievements and themes which set new standards in film expectations. Making this art form still relevant and open for public consumption, but resulting in some ideas moving out of favour, ie the traditional western.

In fact, I like to think we prefer to think of film in this way. Quoting from Harry Potter, Dirty Harry, The Big Lebowski and Zoolander have become a natural process, because we embrace the new, though only when it is capable of enthralling us.

And so today, we share with you some of our favourite benchmark movie moments and why they are so incredibly relevant even decades later. Chris and I decided to share the couch with our friend André Lindo once more, and he brings some really cool examples to the room. This is episode fifteen of Cross Talk and it’s a thoughtful one.

Another day, another theory. I hope you enjoyed this episode creative cuties and that you have a fantastic week. Otherwise, please comment, subscribe, and share this video with friends. We want to hear your feedback!

Tim!

Learning To Keep Pace (Cross Talk Ep. 14)

Posted on by Tim Kuefler

Christmas drives me absolutely nuts dear readers. I have to run around at a breakneck pace in order to keep up with all of the events, people, and deadlines. And that doesn’t even factor in my day job or running timotheories dot com. Now to be fair, I’m not telling you this to ask for sympathy, because the fact of the matter is that we are all running around like idiots.

It’s the nature of the beast. Every year Christmas gets bigger and bigger, We want to tap into that nostalgia, fuel the fire of Christmas cheer, and be even more generous with our giving. It’s enough to make you sick. In fact, I bet dollars to doughnuts, that a large number of us are going to get sick just as the madness settles down and we are able to enjoy the day.

It’s Murphy’s Law. Anything that can happen will happen. But what if there is a happy medium my friends?

What if you don’t have to be the tortoise or the hare? What if I were to tell you that pacing does matter and that you can achieve it? Well you’d probably tell me that I’m nuts.

Tortoise and hare

But here’s the thing, when it comes to art, we all know that old adage, about it imitating life, and the best films have incredibly tight pacing, no matter who you ask.

In case you don’t know what pacing means in film, I’m going to share a little quote with you from Wikipedia;

All time arts – music, dance, drama, film – are enormously concerned with pacing – with rhythm or tempo. As the film director translates events in a script into actions that make up scenes and sequences, that is, as the director shapes the actors’ performances and stages the other actions in front of the camera, one of his paramount concerns is pacing, making the action swell, subside, and swell again. The director does this to keep the scene from losing its energy and intensity. Later, after the shooting is over, the director, working with the film editor, will further control, construct, and perfect the pacing in the way he builds shots into scenes and sequences.

In order for life to flow properly, there needs to be proper transitions and rates of change. When you run a mile a minute for a month straight, life is gonna course correct you in turn. HARD.

This is probably one of my favourite topics when it comes to film; Chris and I are stoked to talk about it, and you can really see the passion between us flair up quick when we discuss the importance of pacing in a film. Both Andre and Singh backed out of this one, because they couldn’t handle the heat. It should be a good one. timotheories presents episode fourteen of Cross Talk.

And now I’m theoried out for the year my creative cuties. Check back over the next four days for a couple of Christmas themed movie and music reviews, some wisdom on the season, and a convenient update. Otherwise, please comment, subscribe, and share this video with friends. We want to hear your feedback!

Tim!