Within this blog post i want to talk about the film itself and touch on shot composition and how well crafted cinematography can make all the difference especially in regards to video production and film.

Firstly – Choose Life…

So today i went to see Trainspotting 2. Got to be honest Trainspotting has a place in my heart as i first saw it when i was 17 and it became one of my favourite movies of all time. Gritty social realism at its best!

I want you to try and remember how you felt when you first heard the “choose life” monologue in the first movie mixed with Underworld, remember…

Yeah me too, you felt righteous and empowered to live life your way…

Now go and see the sequel and a similar monologue is performed and it gave me mixed emotions. Firstly i could not believe 20 years had passed since the last film! But the overall shock was how many things have changed in our lives including culture, society and advertising.

The film uses its overall narrative to talk about issues that aren’t new but are still apparent in our current climate.

Immigration, poverty , the north south divide and lastly social media are heavy players in this film.

Instagram for example has become a place where one image is king. One striking image is now how brands are now getting themselves out there to spark interest in the public to investigate further. And within Trainspotting 2 the whole film could be broken down into Instagram posts and tell the story!

That’s how good it looks!

Secondly – Commercial Video Production and Boyle

Danny Boyle and his crew did such an amazing job on updating the film and characters in regards to shot composition and visual aesthetics.

Go and see the film and keep an eye on how the locations make you feel… The pub Sick Boy owns is grimy and murky but has a sense of romantic abandonment about it.

It’s almost like this films main job is to remind us that we actually haven’t come on that far and we push things to the back of our minds but we shouldn’t.

Almost like we are trying to run through mud to reach for the iphone while we ignore important issues.

You can read so many reviews of this film and cast your own judgment,however, please take note of the composition of this film as it tells the story so well.

Within video production and films of the last two decades we relied so heavily on effects and chroma key as its was amazing and could create worlds we couldn’t have imagined.

However I think we as are starting to appreciate well crafted imagery again and it’s fantastic! Instead of whizzy graphics and effects could well crafted imagery start to become the new darling of advertising and video production. Dont get me wrong there is alot of out there, but lets get more out!

Within our own video production work we always try and make shots stick out and try to make the mundane look fantastic as that’s our job.

This is what Danny Boyle has done in Trainspotting 2 and all credit to him and his team.

And finally…

So in essence if you are going to hire a video production company ask them what their favourite films are and you will get a vibe about what they are about in regards to visuals and if you hire us ask me about Trainspotting 2…

Thanks Nic