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Mojo_LA

User Group
Members
Join date
5-Jan-2007
Last activity
7-Jun-2014
Posts
132

Post History

Post
#282333
Topic
TWICE UPON A TIME (Released)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/282333/action/topic#282333
Time
I considered making a version that mostly uses footage from the commercial VHS or Laserdisc, and cutting the the bootleg version where need be, but the difference in quality would be REALLY obvious... so, for a more uniform viewing experience, I would personally like to see a 1st generation VHS recorded from HBO get properly capped and cleaned up.

The guy who made the torrent obviously has the source, we just need to get in touch with him about doing a good job on it.
Post
#282256
Topic
TWICE UPON A TIME (Released)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/282256/action/topic#282256
Time
There is no better video source. The only time the unedited version of the movie has been aired was a few times on HBO in the 80s. Anyone who has a VHS of it has the best source available.

I tried cleaning up mine, but there are still artifacts from it being a second gen VHS that nothing can fix.

Hopefully he will get in touch and he'll be willing to lend his VHS to those who can really bring it to life.
Post
#282135
Topic
TWICE UPON A TIME (Released)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/282135/action/topic#282135
Time
Ok, it's a case of apples and oranges.

I think his VHS tape is first generation, which shows in the clarity of his edges and chroma integrity. But his lack of noise reduction and mediocre MPG encode really hurt what is essentially a good source.

Mine is a second gen VHS and no amount of cleanup is going to fix that.

The solution would be to get his VHS in the hands of someone who really has good capture and cleanup skillz. I'll post on to his torrent and maybe he'll see it.

Still, far and away, his is better than nothing! I'll keep seeding.
Post
#282132
Topic
Close Encounters - edit? (Released)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/282132/action/topic#282132
Time
Hey CE3K is a pretty important film... if the Criterion disc is the only way to reconstruct the original theatrical version, perhaps you can talk to the X0 folks who are doing Star Wars.

I doubt they want to add anything else to their plate, but perhaps they'd be willing to use their uber laser disc player to output some raw video you can work with to re-edit and clean up.

That X0 machine REALLY makes a huge difference in the quality of video it pumps out. Probably eliminate the dot crawl altogether.
Post
#282129
Topic
TWICE UPON A TIME (Released)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/282129/action/topic#282129
Time
Ok, I got it.

It's ok.

Yes, it's the uncensored version, but the quality is mediocre. For some strange reason his left and right sides are clipped a little and it doesn't look like he did any filtering of the image to make up for the fact that it's from a 20 year old VHS tape. Plus I think his MPG encode is poor, I see lots of breakup on edges when there is fast motion.

Maybe I am being hypercritical, if anyone else gets it tell us what you think.

Right now I am experimenting with filters on my VHS grab. Animation is very forgiving of noise reduction and so far I think I can at least have a cleaner image (with no clipped sides) which will also help with the MPG encode.

I also know I can clean up the audio and make it a bit punchier.

When I finish my test I'll post clips of his work and mine and you guys can decide if I should go ahead and do the whole movie.

In the meantime I'll keep seeding with a high upload speed!
Post
#282058
Topic
Idea & Info: star trek the motion picture - preservation
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/282058/action/topic#282058
Time
Please keep in mind, we weren't "redoing" effects just because we can, like Lucas did.

The FX for ST: TMP *were never finished.* That film in on record that it went all the way to the release date in a huge rush just to get it out the door, and MUCH of it was never completed to the director's liking (and some of it was just never finished at all, like many effects shots and sound effects).

Most of the work we did was material that was intended to be there in the first place. We used the actual storyboards from 1978 to make the shots, and everything we did was designed to look like it could have been done back then - we did no fancy CGI stuff to show off.

A perfect example is when Kirk arrives at Starfleet in his shuttle - the release edition has a REALLY long shot of the Starfleet logo on the floor of the San Francisco hangar bay - you know why? Because there were supposed to be shots of Kirk's shuttle flying to the station, but they were never finished so the screen time that was set aside for them had to be filled with something - so it was filled in with a shot of the floor.

Many of the shots inside the Enterprise had nothing but black outside the windows - you were supposed to see section of the ship or, later on, parts of Vger... but there wasn't time to do it so it was left black.

I think it was great to finally go back and FINISH the movie the way it was storyboarded in 1978. We did not add anything new just to make it look cooler.
Post
#281868
Topic
Idea & Info: star trek the motion picture - preservation
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/281868/action/topic#281868
Time
I was the digital supervisor of the new FX for the Director's Cut DVD.

It was fun to work on, and I have to say, for the most part, I think it's a better film now. We treated it as if we were starting post production from the ground up - this is far more the movie Robert Wise wanted to make, and rather than preserve, I'd like to see everyone DESTROY all previous versions of the movie!! ;-)

One sad thing I should report is that we'll never see the Director's Cut in HD - it was all done in standard def NTSC. We wanted to finish it in HD, but the hi def market hadn't even really been started yet and the studio was inclined to save the extra money.

Even though all the live action from the HD version could theoretically be edited together to form the Director's Cut, all the new visual effects were only rendered at 480.

By the way, here is an edit I did of the movie while working on the project:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPXx2ceFr1k

Enjoy!


PS: TXH1138 - I was at the same "Sit Long And Prosper" screening! And yes, it was the longer edition.
Post
#281709
Topic
TWICE UPON A TIME (Released)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/281709/action/topic#281709
Time
I've never seen the unedited version, but I've read about the changes and in order to cut some of the more "PG" dialog, they would have had to cut out footage.

Also, Ibor the Video Gorilla was always showing clips from other films and TV shows (Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Happy Days) and I think some of those were cut because they didn't have home video legal clearance (at least the Happy Days one was cut).

It really is a fun movie and the language helped make it more unique and twisted. And it's funny!

And it didn't have much of a release... the studio didn't know how to market it. Essentially, it is a kids's movie, but with a lot of adult language and a few mature scenes. I think they just gave up on it and cut out all the adult stuff for the video release so they could strictly market it as a kidvid.

But we will get the original out there!
Post
#281651
Topic
TWICE UPON A TIME (Released)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/281651/action/topic#281651
Time
I am also one of the leechers hung up at 17%. I'd like to see what this guy did, he better come back soon!

Just in case he never returns, or his transfer is poop, as I type this I am copying my VHS copy of the unedited version to DVD right now.

It was sourced from an original Betamax recording, so it's slightly better than second gen VHS... but it does show it's age, there are a few dropouts and mistrackings here and there.

Still, the film is totally watchable and I'll do what I can with cleanup filters.

If our seeder never returns, we DO have a backup plan for this film!
Post
#281534
Topic
TWICE UPON A TIME (Released)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/281534/action/topic#281534
Time
Thanks, Beastly... I did check and it seems that someone HAS made a DVD from a VHS of the original HBO version. There is a torrent at:

http://zerotracker.com

I looked into it and there are 16 leechers and 0 seeders, so it's going to take god knows how long to get it. I'd also like to know if he was using a first generation VHS and if he did any digital cleanup, because it definitely would need it.

"Twice Upon A Time" (the unedited version) is probably one of the truest "lost classics" there is, considering it was Lucas. It's a great candidate for a preservation effort, since it is unlikely to ever see the light of day.

Someone out there must have a better-than-VHS copy...
Post
#281482
Topic
TWICE UPON A TIME (Released)
Link
https://originaltrilogy.com/post/id/281482/action/topic#281482
Time

Has anyone ever preserved the ORIGINAL version of this film?

It was the first project George Lucas produced after Star Wars. It’s a really cool animated film that was pretty much made for a PG audience, but it failed at the box office, almost no one saw it, and when it finally was released on home video, it was cleaned up into a G rated version (which really squeezed a lot of life out of the film).

No DVD has ever been announced.

The unedited version was aired on HBO a few times so there are people out there who have it.

I’ve got a second generation VHS copy that I am willing to clean up and turn into a DVD, but I wanted to check here first and see if anyone had already done it!