[brianmcdonough]

I was recruited to work as editor on this project about two years ago. My reason for not taking the job at the time was that it would be hard to make the ending interesting enough to justify the effort. Two years have passed and now that I see the reproduction, I've changed my mind, it was impossible to make the ending interesting enough. Would have made a good magazine article in the Smithsonian though.

"what a sweep of vanity comes this way!" - Shakespeare

[anigbrowl]

That's a pretty cheap shot - I think you owe it both to us and to the participants to say what you think the problem is. As it is, you comment comes off very much as sour grapes.

[brianmcdonough]

Just my humble opinion, but it doesn't matter how the artist achieved the results. The work speaks for itself.

Tim's Vermeer is probably a lot like watching a behind the scenes video. If you enjoy consuming information for information sake, you might find it interesting, but a lot of work and money goes into making a feature documentary and it should be a work of art itself. If it doesn't have broad appeal, it's referred to as a vanity project.

The Cove is a good example of a documentary that is also a work of art. The story has a beginning a middle and an end and they are all made big through the story telling. The same could have been true of Tim's Vermeer if the story was told differently.

I apologize if my original comment came across as negative. I sometimes feel let down if stories are told in lazy or inexperienced ways and the article makes the story play like an episode of this old house.

[tbirdz]

The article doesn't quite give the film justice. While there are certainly some "behind the scenes" like material, the documentary is more than just a "How to paint like Vermeer" type instructional video. It delves more into Tim's obsession with completing the project, showcasing both the "1% inspiration" and especially the "99% perspiration" moments. There is also some great subtext, it's a story of a man whose daughter goes off to college, and then he takes on this big project to fill the hole in his life (which also helps bring him closer to her, as she models the girl in the painting when she comes home for break). There is also an interesting scene at the end where Tim hangs his Vermeer on his mantle. Proud at his accomplishment, and yet it feels hollow, as Tim has not gained the artistic skill of Vermeer, he's only acted as a very, very slow human camera, taking many months to capture what a modern camera (even those used to film the documentary) could capture in seconds. I haven't seen Cove, and I don't know if this elevates Tim's Vermeer to your standards of art, but there's more to it than "an episode of This Old House".

I don't know if it will have broad appeal, but it only had a limited theatrical release, and I think it will be suited better to DVD and VOD like Netflix.

As far as vanity goes, I mean it certainly seems like Tim painted the Vermeer more to scratch his own curiosity than to make a big profit. Making the documentary might also have been a way to help him give himself incentive to finish the project, indeed in one part of the film he says "If the cameras weren't filming right now, I would just give up."

[brianmcdonough]

Thanks for the information. Sounds like they took the personal journey approach and it also sounds like you enjoyed it, which would indicate that they did a good job, including the ending. I'll look forward to watching when I get a chance, but thanks for filling in the blanks. I'm willing to say, I stand corrected.

[tbirdz]

I saw the film and I thought the ending was interesting. What was it about the ending that made you think it was impossible to make interesting?

[brianmcdonough]

Anyone who has seen a Vermeer painting up close, knows how hypnotic the experience can be. Is it true that in the movie Tim never gets to see the original and is reproducing based on a poster?

[tbirdz]

Tim gets to see the original Vermeer, but they weren't allowed to film it. However his reproduction is not based exactly on the poster or the original. Instead what Tim did was build a replica of the room Vermeer painted in, including all the props, and make his own painting by using his mirror device to observe this replica room.

[samstave]

Are you saying this is all one big ego trip on Tim's part?

[brianmcdonough]

It costs a lot of money to make a film. I don't know Tim and I suspect he's a nice and interesting guy, but movies that lack broad appeal are sometimes referred to as vanity projects. I'd like to know how much money was spent making the film, where that money came from and what the theatrical run took in. If I had that information, I could tell you whether this was a vanity project.