08.11.08
Posted in Beijing, Media/Internet, Olympics, Technology at 13:18 by Nator
There was one pretty cool shot during the opening ceremonies last Friday that looked like it had been filmed from a helicopter flying from the Forbidden City straight north up Beijing’s central axis to the Olympic Village, then sped up to give a 10-second aerial view of the city’s skyline. I remember thinking 1) I had never seen such a shot for Beijing before, and 2) it looked computer generated, which would seem to be a lot more trouble than just doing it the old-fashioned way.
A story in the Telegraph explains that part of what I watched was faked:
As the ceremony got under way with a dramatic, drummed countdown, viewers watching at home and on giant screens inside the Bird’s Nest National Stadium watched as a series of giant footprints outlined in fireworks processed gloriously above the city from Tiananmen Square.
What they did not realise was that what they were watching was in fact computer graphics, meticulously created over a period of months and inserted into the coverage electronically at exactly the right moment.
The fireworks were there for real, outside the stadium. But those responsible for filming the extravaganza decided in advance it would be impossible to capture all 29 footprints from the air.
As a result, only the last, visible from the camera stands inside the Bird’s Nest was captured on film…
Gao Xiaolong, head of the visual effects team for the ceremony, said it had taken almost a year to create the 55-second sequence. Meticulous efforts were made to ensure the sequence was as unnoticeable as possible: they sought advice from the Beijing meteorological office as to how to recreate the hazy effects of Beijing’s smog at night, and inserted a slight camera shake effect to simulate the idea that it was filmed from a helicopter.
I’m not actually sure if this was the same moment I noticed; what I saw (or thought I saw) was a computer-generated aerial view of much of Beijing’s skyline (i.e. the buildings and roads looked faked). I understand the logic behind the decision to go with computer-generated effects and don’t have a problem with it. Regardless, it is interesting to note the attitude and motivations behind this decision.
A lot of the lazier reporting on China portrays the country as a place where the government controls every facet of life. While the government may try to do so, China more often feels like a place out of control than under control. At no time is this more apparent than during Chinese New Year, when fireworks are going off all around and the city looks and sounds like a war zone. The contrast between that happy chaos and the nervousness surrounding the Olympics is striking.
ODB ADDS: Funny. As I was watching the ceremony and the firework part, I was thinking to myself: “These fireworks should be going off right over my head… but I can’t see or hear anything…”.
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08.09.08
Posted in Beijing, Chinese Nationalism, Media/Internet, Olympics, Politics, Sports, Technology, The Wenchuan Earthquake, USA at 13:49 by Nator
“Finally” was a word that stuck out a lot in last night’s opening ceremonies. The announcers said it over and over, talking about the long wait for the Oympics. And after slogging through four hours last night (aside from a short nap during Rogge’s speech), I woke up this morning a bit more relaxed, knowing that the big event was finally here and had started without any major problems.
Even thought the first thing I did after I woke was turn on the Slingbox and watch the NBC broadcast, I couldn’t get that excited about this year’s ceremonies. Having lived in Beijing for most of the last seven years, I have definitely become a bit sick of the endless preparations and was just looking forward to being finished with the whole thing. I’m also not as impressed by certain features of the ceremony that are fairly common in China–large crowds moving in unison, for example.
Knowing all this, I was still surprised to hear Bob Costas say that this event should ”retire the trophy” for opening ceremonies and to read Pat Forde’s glowing praise on ESPN.com (though I did agree with most of his article on opening ceremony fashion). Granted, both of them viewed the spectacle in person, and perhaps many of the best moments just didn’t translate well onto TV. But isn’t TV what really matters? Even in Beijing, 99% of the audience probably watched it on a TV or outdoor screen.
Below are a few of my specific reactions to various parts of the ceremonies:
Surprised: That NBC didn’t bother showing the opening ceremonies live. Highlights were available everywhere online immediately after the event finished, and I imagine that many casual viewers in the US simply watched a couple minutes at work and didn’t bother with the four-hour evening event. I had NBC on via Slingbox all evening, and they just showed The Today Show as usual. They even had a couple hosts talking live from a dark Beijing, while the event was going on somewhere nearby.
Impressed: By the giant screen that ran all the way around the top of the stadium and showed various images during the ceremony–a clever touch, though from the TV broadcast it was often hard to make out what was being shown on the screen….The people flying around, suspended by wires, early on (though not later on–see below for more on that)….The two dancers who painted swirls on the ground with their feet and ands–it was simple yet effective; and it had the China element without hitting viewers over the head….The Olympic rings logo that started flat on the ground, then slowly peeled upward to float vertically in the air….The opening string of fireworks, and the swirling flame racing up to light the the cauldron.
Underwhelmed: The opening drum-light sequence. It looked like they were using flourescent lights, many of which flickered for a few seconds before coming on. And they didn’t really do anything with the lights except to stage confusing countdown with the kind of graphics normally found on ODB’s calculator wristwatch. The countdown started at “60″ but we thought it might have said “GO”. Then they went to 50, 40, 30, 20, 10, 9, 8 (by this time the crowd had finally figured out what was going on and started yelling out the numbers) and down to zero. But the time between the jumps of 1 and of 10 was exactly the same–just odd.
Baffled: Several bands took turns playing music during the athletes’ walk-in: a group of Chinese ladies who looked a lot like the 女子十二乐坊 (”Twelve Girls Band“) and played squawky Chinese stuff that I tuned out and that JZ said was commonly heard at Chinese weddings; a group of African(?) drummers, by far the best of the lot; and, inexplicably, some bagpipers, who I never actually saw. I missed NBC’s introduction to this part and didn’t hear any explanation from the Chinese announcers, so I still have no idea why these groups were chosen. It was jarring to hear the switch to a new band every three minutes. And they seemed to have only prepared a song or two each–the bagpipers definitely played at least one well-known bagpiper song (and how many of them are there?) more than once.
Nodding: In agreement at the repeated use of children in the festivities. Not exactly the boldest choice, but surely the among the safest.
Annoyed: At the often frazzled camera work from CCTV. Several times they switched to cameras that weren’t ready–where the cameraman was walking along, getting into position, or not focused on anything. During several sequences, they cut to different shots every second or two, almost like a music video, with no rhyme or reason. A number of views that came without explanation, such as the multiple shots of a certain athete during the “march of nations” without ever telling us who he or she was, or the repeated shots of blue-shirted volunteers/cheerleaders awkwardly dancing and waving as the crowd around them sat in silence. NBC did a much better job, going for longer shots and and generally choosing better angles for most of the scenes. The NBC crew also reacted quickly, switching cameras within seconds to someone whose name had just been mentioned by the announcers. It may have all been scripted, but it felt natural.
Amused: At the difference in the Chinese and US announcers’ handling of the event, especially during the athletes’ walk-in. The Chinese announcers stayed far away from any controversy and introduced each country by listing its strongest events, number of medals won, and other simple (and boring) facts. NBC’s crew, in contrast, used a lot of political background and human interest stories. As China’s athletes entered the stadium, for example, the young boy walking with Yao Ming got more face time than anyone on NBC’s broadcast and allowed Costas and others to talk about China’s population, economic growth, the Wenchuan earthquake, the torch protests, and all sorts of other anecdotes.
Horrified: At the goose-stepping soldiers. I know it’s normal here and in many other countries, but it instantly makes me think of Nazis, and I imagine most other Americans have a similar reaction.
Embarrassed: The birds’ nest and flying dove segment was a hot tranny mess. I’m sure both were very difficult technically and required months of practice. But the ”flapping” of the bird’s wings looked pretty amateur from CCTV’s camera angles, and the human version of the Bird’s Nest stadium made me feel that the hosts were just a little too proud of their new stadium. It’s impressive enough on its own–reproducing it just felt a bit over the top.
Patiently waiting: For audience reaction during the final stages of the torch relay. I didn’t recognize any of the torchbearers, but I expected that the crowd would. Aside from shoe salesman Li Ning, who actually lit the cauldron, however, none of the runners got much applause from the audience.
Giggling: For me, the goofiest part of the evening was the sight of Li Ning flying into the air. Compared to the elegant air dancing in the first part of the show, he looked awkward and clumsy, like some of the poorer flying scenes from the old Superman movies. Except this was a slightly overweight middle-aged guy. The giggling turned into belly-laughing when he started his sideways, slow-motion run. It didn’t help when they had problems aligning his speed with that of a video scroll that was unrolling on the screen behind him. The whole thing caught me completely by surprise, in a bad way. I can’t think of another time when I’ve seen someone of his stature in China do much more than stand politely and perhaps wave to the crowd in a public event….For me, Muhammad Ali’s shaking arm in Atlanta and the flaming arrow in Barcelona were the two most memorable torch lightings.
Overall, there were very few ”gasp inducing scenes” (to borrow Pat Forde’s phrase) for me this year. It seemed that way as well among the crowd in attendance, at least from what I heard and saw on TV (though the NBC broadcast and several other reports I’ve read since indicate otherwise). It was telling that Kobe Bryant got one of the loudest cheers of the night when the camera switched to him for a fews during the walk-in.
What did the rest of you think?
UPDATE: Shanghaiist has a nice collection of reactions to the opening ceremonies from major media outlets and blogs, most of them far more positive than my comments….I wasn’t the only person surprised that NBC didn’t offer a live broadcast of the opening ceremonies….Chad Catacchio has set up a handy feed for the Beijing Olympics on Friendfeed….An American was killed right around the corner today.
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05.07.08
Posted in Chinese Nationalism, Industry, Technology at 14:20 by ODB
An interesting article by the Indian Defense Research Wing (click here if you are surfing from China) comments on the threat that China may or may not be posing to the Russian aircraft industry by a copied Sukhoi-27, now manufactured in China.
The article goes on to describe the history of China’s military aircraft industry and how it lags behind the west by some 15 years.
Chinese leaders eventually resolved to rectify the situation by purchasing up-to-date aircraft production technologies. In 1988, China bought production forms and records for Israel’s Lavi multi-role fighter. Sixteen years later, in 2004, China mastered production of the Chengdu J-10 - an essentially Israeli warplane featuring Russian avionics.
As reported last November, J-10 Fighters, based on the Lavi, were sold by China to Iran.
The sale of the J-10 to Iran would constitute a betrayal of Israel’s extensive aid to China’s military modernization efforts during the 1980s and 1990s. Originally encouraged by the Carter Administration in the late 1970s, in the effort to encourage China’s strategic tilt toward the West and against the Soviet Union, Israel sold China a wide range of army, electronic, naval and aerospace technology.
… when the U.S. and Europe placed arms embargoes on China, Israel refused to follow suit. Many Israeli officials supported continued military technical sales to China not just to make profits necessary to fund future military products, but also because they felt that such sales would persuade China not to sell advanced weapons to Israel’s enemies.
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01.14.08
Posted in Industry, Technology at 22:42 by Mul
Engadget and The Financial Times are reporting that Apple and China’s leading mobile phone company, China Mobile, have called off negotiations to introduce the iPhone into the Chinese market. The rumor is that China Mobile balked at Apple’s revenue sharing demands. Cingular, T-Mobile, O2 and Orange came around to Apple’s way of thinking on sharing revenues from the popular iPhone, but not China Mobile. Back in November, China Mobile’s CEO labeled the iPhone “not suitable” for China.
Judging from the popularity of gray market imports of the iPhone in Beijing and Shenzhen (based on my own unscientific visual survey) this could be a big boost to smaller rival China Unicom if they are able to come to terms with Apple.
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12.17.07
Posted in Media/Internet, Sports, Technology, USA, Wuhan at 22:24 by Mul
As many of you already know, the elite computer gaming team from Chicago, the Chicago Chimera, won the inaugural World Final of the Championship Gaming Series. The Chimera beat the Carolina Core in a Counter-Strike: Source match and took home the $500,000 first prize. Chicago took down teams from Stockholm and Birmingham on its way to the crown.
In most circumstances, I’d be quite excited (and mighty proud) when a Chicago sports team wins a championship event. Alas, this win was tainted as the team from China, the Wuhan Dragons, were unable to participate in the event due to visa issues. As any person worth their salt knows, the Wuhaners (or any team from China for that matter) would have dominated any Counter-Strike match. Heck, the police in China even use CS for training.
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