How do you turn abandoned footage into the campy cult film it was destined to be? And how do you do it 35 years after the fact? We spoke with VinegarSyndrome's Kurtis Spieler about doing just that with New York Ninja:
Imagine walking into a kitchen and finding a dish halted in progress: Root veggies idling by a blazing oven; pork belly wrapped in butcher paper on the countertop; mustard, salt, pepper, canola oil, spices waiting for their chance to season the meal. Imagine being tasked with figuring out what exactly the chef had in mind before abruptly retiring.
“I treated the film as if a producer or someone came to me and said that they had an unfinished movie from a failed production and they needed me to figure out how to finish it,” Spieler explains. “Approaching it from that perspective meant that I wasn’t as concerned with trying to restore the movie to its original intended version, as it was obvious that there were a lot of production issues that prevented the original version from being finished in the first place.
Spieler’s perspective afforded him freedom that he might otherwise have lost if he’d seen the job simply as restorative. Assuming the role of the artist, meant he could make creative choices in the pursuit of making the best version of Liu’s vision possible. That effort pays off in the finished film:looks crisp and clean, capturing Liu’s athleticism as easily as it showcases his cheeky sense of humor.
Lest anyone think that completing an incomplete movie when you have all the footage at your fingertips is easy, though, hearken the tone.’s character lives in the footage, but it’s also baked into Liu’s sensibilities as a filmmaker. Nurturing another person’s aesthetic requires caution. “I was very aware of trying to maintain what I thought was the intended spirit or tone of the original production,” Spieler says.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Making $100,000 a year as an electrician in New York CityVernica Martinez, 40, is a Local 3 union electrician who's been working in her trade for nearly 20 years. She's worked her way up from apprentice to journeywoman and currently makes $58 an hour. Born and raised in the Bronx, Vernica now lives outside the city in Orange County, New York with her husband and two daughters.
Read more »
Fire in New York City injures 9 firefighters, 2 civiliansNine firefighters and two civilians were injured after a two-alarm fire broke out Saturday at a six-story building in the Bronx, according to the New York City Fire Department.
Read more »
Firefighters threaten New York state senator over mandate as city braces for possible staff shortageAfter Mayor Bill de Blasio's deadline for city employees to show proof of vaccination passed, departments grappled with a potential staffing shortage.
Read more »
New York Jets Notebook: Mike White’s Starting Debut And The Defensive Plan That Didn’t WorkWhat the can Jets expect from Mike White in his first NFL start, and what went wrong in assembling their linebacker corps this season.
Read more »
Harry Styles Threw the Best Halloween Party In New YorkThis was no normal Halloweekend party: it was Harry Styles’s concert.
Read more »
FDNY firefighters suspended after protesting vaccine mandate at New York state senator's office, officials saySix New York firefighters were suspended for four weeks without pay Friday following an incident between on-duty firefighters and an elected official's staff, according to a statement from a New York City Fire Department (NYFD) spokesperson.
Read more »