I finished watching Happy Jail on Netflix last night.
I've already recommended it, but I'm back to say that it is just extraordinarily good as documentary, and I am not sure why it hasn't attracted more media attention. (My son liked it too, so it's not just my eccentric taste.)
PS: I think it obvious why so many documentary/local reportage shows look so good these days - everything from Backroads, to Foreign Correspondent, to Happy Jail - is the invention of the cheap drone with camera. Beautiful aerial shots are just ubiquitous in these shows now, and we all know why. But I don't care how many times they are used, really: getting a God's eye view over settings I just find pleasing every time. Maybe it subconsciously feels like it is satisfying those "cool! I can fly" dreams?
2 comments:
I think it obvious why so many documentary/local reportage shows look so good these days - everything from Backroads, to Foreign Correspondent, to Happy Jail - is the invention of the cheap drone with camera.
Hey Steve,
I think it is more than that. There is a Youtube channel, Dust, which features short scifi films and the cgi effects are stunning. These are independent productions, probably promotions for a possible movie. The cinematography is a good as anything you'll see elsewhere but these are short films with no money making potential. So I suspect digital video editing is now much more powerful on even a good desktop pc that allows for much better production quality.
Another issue is that if you look at the pricing of premium video editing software it is very expensive. You'd really want that software to generate a return for you. But there are now free video editing software packages that are quite powerful.
The drones certainly do help as does the availability of a desktop pcs now sufficiently powerful to utilise video editing software.
Well, no doubt digital effects are cheaper than ever, and a hell of a lot can be done on a high end home computer now (including great video editing); but with the type of documentary/reporting TV shows I am talking about, I don't think they play that much role.
I think it's likely a combination of great quality video cameras being so cheap now, and well as drones being used all the time for the scene-setting aerial shots that I like so much.
I will look at Dust, though. Looks cool.
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