Inspiration & updates

^the Journal

Nº. 08 Edition

Porsche 906

The Porsche 906 or Carrera 6 was the last street-legal racing car from Porsche.

A successor to the Porsche 904, and designed under Ferdinand Piëch's new regime at Porsche R&D, the 906 replaced the boxed steel structure of the 904 which used the fiberglass body for extra structural strength with a tubular space frame and unstressed fiberglass body.

In its debut in the 1966 24 Hours of Daytona, the Carrera 6 finished 6th overall, and won its class against Ferrari Dino 206 Ps. At the 12 Hours of Sebring, Hans Herrmann/Gerhard Mitter finished fourth overall and won the class, as at the 1000 km of Monza.

Unlike previous racing Porsches, the 906's body was tested in a wind tunnel, resulting in a top speed of 280 km/h (170 mph) at Le Mans, quite fast for a 2-liter engine car. It shows already a close resemblance to future Porsche racing cars. As in the Mercedes-Benz 300SL, gull-wing doors were fitted, and the mid-ship mounted engine was covered with a large plexiglas cover.

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Michael Mann

He has a very distinct style that is reflected in his works: his trademarks include ethereal synth scores, such as the New Age score to Manhunter.

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Michael Mann's television work also includes being the executive producer on Miami Vice and Crime Story.

Contrary to popular belief, he was not the creator of these shows, but the executive producer and showrunner. They were produced by his production company and his cinematic influence is felt throughout each show in terms of casting and style.

Mann is now known primarily as a feature film director. He has a distinctive style that is reflected in his works: his trademarks are intricate scene setups, during Miami Vice to such an extent that a whole scene was completely color-coordinated, from props to backgrounds to actors' wardrobes.

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Michael Mann Cinematography

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The Miami Vice crew members criticized Mann's decisions during production, which featured sudden script changes, filming in unsafe weather conditions, and choosing locations that "even the police avoid, drafting gang members to work as security".

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James Caan's emotional several-minute monologue with Weld in a coffee shop is often cited as the film's high point, and Caan has long considered the scene his favorite of his career.

Being Michael Mann's feature film directorial debut, Thief showcases many of the cinematic techniques that would be his trademarks in the years to come. Chief among these is the cinematography, utilizing light and shadow to give the proceedings, especially those taking place in the darkness of night, a sense of danger.

The film also earns plaudits for its meticulous attention to detail: the tools and techniques of the trade, right down to the oxy lance used to penetrate a safe, are authentic, the result of Mann's decision to hire real-life thieves to serve as technical advisers.

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Michael Mann Cinematography

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Thief marks the first film appearance of actors Dennis Farina, William Petersen, James Belushi and Robert Prosky. At the time a Chicago police officer, Farina appears as a henchman.

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James Caan made sure to speak slowly and clearly and tried to avoid using contractions in his words. He decided that Frank would do this so he would save time by never having to repeat himself.

The burglary tools used throughout the film (such as the hydraulic drill used in the opening sequence) were not props, but actual tools which the actors were trained to use. The tools were supplied by actual thieves who served as technical consultants on the film, principally John Santucci, who also portrays Sgt. Urizzi on screen.

Dennis Farina was a Chicago policeman at the time of filming. He plays a henchman. Conversley, John Santucci, who plays a corrupt cop, was a recently paroled thief and acted as a technical adviser.

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Michael Mann Cinematography

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Don't let yourself get attached to anything you are not willing to walk out on in 30 seconds flat if you feel the heat around the corner.

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In June of 2002, the scene involving the shootout after the bank robbery was shown to United States Marine recruits at MCRD San Diego as an example of the proper way to retreat while under fire.

In the director commentary, Michael Mann noted that Al Pacino ad-libbed the line "Because she's got a... GREAT ASS!" and Hank Azaria's look of exasperated shock was totally genuine.

The two main characters used to be in the Marine Corps. Detective Hanna is talked about during the briefing for McCauley's final robbery. McCauley is clearly seen with an Eagle, Globe, and Anchor tat on his arm, when getting up from bed with Eady.

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Michael Mann Cinematography

Le Samouraï

When Jean-Pierre Melville brought a copy of the script to Alain Delon, Delon asked him what the title was. When he was told the title was Le Samourai, Delon had Melville follow him to his bedroom, where there was only a leather couch and a samurai blade hanging on the wall.

Melville worried how he was going to shoot the scene where Jef drives the stolen car right into the scrap garage. Without missing a beat, Delon drove the car down the narrow alley and into the garage in one shot.

This is one of the most influential films of history. Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino, John Woo, Johnnie To, David Fincher, Aki Kaurismäki, Takeshi Kitano, Micheal Mann, Georges Lautner, Luc Besson, Joel Coen and Ethan Coen have all made films strongly inspired by it.

The epigraph, credited to the Book of Bushido, was in fact written by director Jean-Pierre Melville. In his book "27 Movies from the Dark Side" Roger Ebert expressed disappointment at learning the quotation was fictional. Melville also wrote the epigraph in Vier im roten Kreis (1970), credited to Buddha.

Budget

Estimated

$ 3.500.000

Props

Director: Jean-Pierre Melville

Runtime 105 min
Length 3735 m
Format 35 mm
Sound Mono

Gross

Worldwide

$ 3.400.000

SaulBass

It is Bass's credited role as 'pictorial consultant' for Alfred Hitchcock on Psycho (1960), however, that has caused some controversy and debate.

For Spartacus (1960), Bass as visual consultant designed key elements of the gladiator school and storyboarded the final battle between slaves and Romans. John Frankenheimer, the director of Grand Prix (1966), had Bass storyboard, direct, and edit all but one of the racing sequences for his film. For West Side Story (1961) Bass filmed the prologue, storyboarded the opening dance sequence, and created the ending title sequence.

The research of several film scholars on Hitchcock's production of Psycho validates the claim that Bass in his capacity as a graphic artist did indeed have a significant influence on the visual design and pacing of that famous scene. Hitchcock had asked Bass to design and produce storyboards for the shower murder scene and for some other scenes in the film. For this, Bass received a credit as Pictorial Consultant as well as Title Designer.

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Diving

Scuba

I don't know anything about life, but everything about scuba diving.

Scuba divers are trained in the procedures and skills appropriate to their level of certification by instructors affiliated to the diver certification organisations which issue these certifications. These include standard operating procedures for using the equipment and dealing with the general hazards of the underwater environment, and emergency procedures for self-help and assistance of a similarly equipped diver experiencing problems.

Mies van der rohe

Architecture is a language. When you are very good, you can be a poet.

While continuing his traditional neoclassical design practice Mies began to develop visionary projects that, though mostly unbuilt, rocketed him to fame as an architect capable of giving form that was in harmony with the spirit of the emerging modern society. Boldly abandoning ornament altogether, Mies made a dramatic modernist debut with his stunning competition proposal for the faceted all-glass Friedrichstraße skyscraper in 1921, followed by a taller curved version in 1922 named the Glass Skyscraper.

Mies, often in collaboration with Lilly Reich, designed modern furniture pieces using new industrial technologies that have become popular classics, such as the Barcelona chair and table, the Brno chair, and the Tugendhat chair.

Venice

The name is derived from the ancient Veneti people who inhabited the region by the 10th century BC. Venice has been known as the "La Dominante," "Serenissima," "Queen of the Adriatic," "The Floating City," and "City of Canals."

Venetian Lagoon

The Republic of Venice was a major financial and maritime power during the Middle Ages and Renaissance, and a staging area for the Crusades and the Battle of Lepanto, as well as a very important center of commerce (especially silk, grain, and spice) and art in the 13th century up to the end of the 17th century.

Although no surviving historical records deal directly with the founding of Venice, tradition and the available evidence have led several historians to agree that the original population of Venice consisted of refugees from Roman cities near Venice such as Padua, Aquileia, Treviso, Altino and Concordia (modern Portogruaro) and from the undefended countryside.

Fashion

Tom Ford

After leaving Gucci, Ford launched a line of menswear, beauty, eyewear, and accessories in 2006, named after himself, "Tom Ford". Dominico De Sole became chairman of the Tom Ford label.

Label

Tom Ford

Ford has described "the Tom Ford customer" as international, cultured, well traveled, and possessing disposable income. For females, he added "strong women, … intelligent women who know their own style".

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