U2 in all dimensions
She's been with them for 15 years and her
multi-media arts background (sculpture, video, photography, painting
and sound design) has helped make U2 one of the best live acts
in the world. Catherine Owens, a softly spoken Dubliner in her
40's, has been responsible for the visual content for U2's live
shows since 1992. She was the inspiration behind some of their
more creatively elaborate tours like Zoo TV, PopMart, Elevation
and Vertigo. So it made sense that when they wanted someone to
direct U2 in the first ever live action feature length digital
3D film, Owens was top of the list. Gaynor Flynn caught
up with Owens and producer John Model at last year's Cannes International
Film Festival.
Congratulations
on the film, it's an incredible experience.
John Model: Thank you
What does this technology mean to filmmakers?
John Model: The interesting thing is that what
Catherine and her team have done match reality with reality is
to prove out processes that have never been used before. Software
that in some ways is being applied for the first time but the
question about filmmakers and 3D is an interesting one, maybe
a wrong analogy from silent films to talkie films from people
who made black and white films to colour films, this is a quantum
leap and each of those things was something where when I first
saw this possibility it was as if a window opened and you said,
I wish I was there because I've always been trying to approximate
what it would be like to be in a truly innovative environment
and the window opened and you can't go back once its opened. But
that's how filmmakers feel about it. It's that moment of revelation.
This is a step through a window that will only get better and
creative minds embrace that and then they try to figure out how
to use and mould this tool and that's what Catherine has tried
to do and it's the first one in this new capability.
What was the final budget?
John Model: We don't have a budget. But we choose
not to answer that question at this stage but let us say that
Catherine has been enormously economical to make this film. Every
penny that was invested is up there on the screen and that's gratifying.
Catherine Owens: in relation to this particular
film when you're working with U2 its totally different. The level
of expectation is so high is that you cannot stop working until
every little thing is perfect. You can't think like, well maybe
we can get away with that.' No. They see everything they want
everything and all of that is time and all of that is money.
John Model: They come in as a triple A global brand,
they have that brand for 23, 24 years and so what ever we did
had to be consistent with that brand, it could not deter from
that brand.
Can you talk about the process of putting
this together?
John Model: For a start its only existed for two
years, it's a very new platform. This film is the first of its
kind and we were developing tools to realise the vision. Not just
in camera technology but in software and post production techniques.
There's always a bit of curve both financial and learning at the
beginning of something like that and now that those tools are
developed it should be no more expensive to make a 3D film. Catherine
started off in a very conventional way, editing on avid, applying
standard creative principles to it to get a 2D cut that had a
flow and a beauty to it and then the process would be we would
take it and put the other eye in there and see how this played
in 3D. And we'd very quickly see oh this is working or this is
a hard transition and we would go and amend, re edit, then take
another look at that. There was a lot of back and forth with Catherine
and the band, to see how they were musically feeling. The other
important thing was the sound of the music the quality of it.
Our music producer on this worked very closely with Catherine
and the editor to help make sure that part of it told the story
musically so it was a real collaborative thing. Catherine is a
sculptor and this is a sculptor chipping away and chipping away.
Why
did you decide to film the South American leg of the U2 tour?
Catherine Owens: Well we chose it for a couple
of reasons. The band hadn't played there for about 8 years and
they felt like South America is a very passionate place and Bono
was saying well South American passion, Irish passion its going
to be a good combination, so it was really that. He felt the South
American audience would give a performance all their own, which
they did, they're fabulous. And they literally know every word
of every song. We had 30 microphones in the audience , they're
real characters.
What are some future possibilities with this
technology?
John Model: The future can be in sport. Imagine
seeing athletes like Zidane, world class people and those people
will elevate this form of 3D making. Its not about special effects,
the intimacy is startling. How would this work for a love story?
It would work very well, it's how you design the film and it's
where the 3D allows your emotions to go. What is happening in
Hollywood right now, you have Jim Cameron declaring he'll never
make a film in 2D again. You have Bob Zemekis, you've got announcements
by Spielberg and Peter Jackson, by the top filmmakers in the world
right now focused on how you tell stories in this new medium.
It's really limitless now where you can take this.
Catherine, you've worked with U2 for about
15 years now, were you always the natural choice to take on this
project?
Catherine Owens: The reality people approached
me because I do work with the band on a creative level and they
really had an idea that they wanted a lot of creative input into
it so I think it was a question of Catherine will be the person
who can possibly deliver this concept.
Were you into it from the beginning? Did the
technology excite you?
No, more the idea of taking the live performance
experience to a new level and so I was intrigued at first and
then when we made the test and I saw what was possible it was
very exciting.
This could reach out to a broader audience,
those who can't afford to go to a concert, etc. Was that part
of the aim as well?
Catherine Owens: Yes, part of the decision originally
was the band were saying well this could allow us to play in countries
we can't get to like Russia, India, china, places where cost effective
means they can't go. So that was really part of the reason.
How did you all work together? I guess U2 are
really hands on. What was the process?
Catherine Owens: Well we sort of cut track by track
and we put it together in 2D form first and then we sort of turned
it over for 3D and ironed out any problems. So we do it all for
the right eye, then we match it for the left eye when we go into
the 3D process, its pretty wild.
Has
it changed how you look at things?
Catherine Owens: You know my background is fine
art, painting and sculpture so its not really that far at all
from those disciplines, its very sculptural, you really look at
it as a whole object from the front, the back the sides. So its
like a work of art and so that sort of beauty you can get when
you see a piece of work, you might not necessarily understand
it. You might not know anything about the artist but you really
feel that little part of the inner self that's been given away
hopefully that's what we've really achieved by this. Because this
is really giving technology emotion is a tough order.
Would you do it again?
Catherine Owens: I would do it again under slightly
different circumstances. This technology wasn't even built when
we started this. They've had to build software to make cuts that
I wanted to happen, so anyone coming after me is going to have
an easier time because now there's a pipeline. There was no pipeline
when I started so an awful lot of guessing went on when I started
and you'd guess down the wrong road, so then you have to go back
and start again technically on stuff.
U2 have always pushed the technology envelope
haven't they?
Catherine Owens: Yes. You want to keep the fans
interested. It's a challenge but I think they get a thrill out
of technology. They really developed the LED screens in their
live shows and the whole thing they did with the ipod, they get
a thrill out of it. Are they happy with this?
Catherine Owens: They've very happy, they really
feel that this could start a new dialogue for film and video and
they want to be part of that. What's next for you?
We're still on this for another four months. That
was 9 out of 14 songs we're going to cut for the film. First of
all I'm going to take a jolly good rest and then I don't know.
They've just developed a much smaller 3D camera and I'd like to
go away for a month and do something in my own world, my own work
as an artist, something experimental for 3D, something in the
build viola world of using space, using image, using depth, using
sound, something for the art world, but definitely keep in the
conversation, the 3D conversation.
Gaynor Flynn
Gaynor Flynn
