I like the first one. The second one sounds too much like the THX sound. Still a good sound, but kinda cheesy. I really like the concept, too.

Now THAT reel should win an award! Why wait lets give him one :

==== THE AWARD FOR BEST REEL ====

Ditto, go with #1

Work like that should be preceded by three words:


"For your consideration"

Cue, acceptance speech from the Kodak Theatre...

I like the affects you had on the trailer man that was very nice man!! I would like to see this in whole if there's a chance you could post it up after the festival

this movie is awesome I love the quality and the story! And a very believable storyline also good stuff man

...the shots were all great, a lot of them seemed too long and slowed the pace somewhat.



I second that, plus for tha pace of the track flashes are too long (MHO)
thanks for sharing!

Totally awesome.

Reminds me of the days when I built large Vivariums.
Unfortunately, I didn't have a video camera then.

What are you feeding the animals, so that they don't feed on each other.

Again, awesome footage, it was like I was there, looking through the glass.

Thanks!
Choosing the fish, and corals for that matter, is a tricky thing- each and every creature you add to the tank has to be evaluated to make sure there will be no trouble. Luckily there are lots of interesting fish and corals that can live together peacefully. I feed them a variety of food like mysis shrimp, blood worms, brine shrimp, spirulina flakes and even seaweed. Most of the fish browse on algae and bugs that live on and in the rocks all day long. I've got a couple fish that don't eat anything I add to the tank- they live off the land so to speak.

Very nice. I like your tridacna gigas. I miss my reef tank. It's sitting empty in my parent's garage... probably like 90% of the aquariums out there.

Did the 48 Hour Film Project last week, and here's the result: http://batteryfire.com/48/
Shot on HV20 and HV30 with Brevis MP.1 Flip.

So. I am working with a 50 year old stun man by the name of Jeff Jensen. (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0421501/)

He contacts me to shoot a documentary about why racers race, even at 50 years old. So, pretty much we take off tomorrow morning at 7am to film Jeff on a Ducati Monster Dual-Sport bike from here to Pike's Peak Colorado. He will be doing over 400 miles a day on the bike and then racing the hill climb without tweaking on the bike, and then ride it home. Principle photog is from today the 8th until the 23rd of July.

Ill pull some screenies when I can and post em.

Shot on an HPX500 and a Canon KJ13x6B KRS.

Derek.

I would say that it is a good reel but if you want people to look at you as a cinematographer you may want to show some full screen shots so you can actually see you work with out the graphics, and such covering it. But if you want that as your intro I would say, go slightly shorter before you go into your real work.

nobody has any advice? criticisms?

My take on this is that the presentation is slick and professional but I'd prefer the graphic treatment to be a lot shorter ie as an intro, and then I'd want to get into some real filmic stuff.

My eyesight isn't what it was but can many people read most of that type? I felt I was doing an eye test. And the text zooming out of screen towards me in the drama scene was completely unreadable.

The footage of fishing and deer was not that engaging. It looked like stuff that is pretty easy to shoot and didn't therefore impress. Once I had seen it I didn't want to see it again. Once was enough.

I found it a bit confusing that textual information kept popping up all over the place. It was difficult to track that and keep my eye on the video.

I thought that the drama excerpts were a bit gory and melodramatic and not very subtle but that's probably just my own preference. You can probably ignore me on that.

People will need to be pretty quick off the mark to get your contact details at the end of the showreel before they too disappear.

Overall I think that having seen this I wouldn't really be sure what kind of work you are best at ie where your focus lies.

This probably sounds a lot more negative than it's meant to sound. Overall it's stylish and punchy but I think you need to get more feedback on the stream of information that's being delivered and the ability of the viewer to absorb it. Which is what you are doing. So that's good.

nobody has any advice? criticisms?

I never been in Times Square or Greenwich Village so ignore this if you like:

Most of the time I couldn't tell which was which, and have have no idea how the recurring shots of the trains fit in to the story. I didn't feel I had actually seen either location clearly by the end - too many many shots up in the air or at "clever angles". It left me none the wiser.

I understood what you were wanting to do from your blog but I am not quite sure you achieved what you set out to do.

Now don't go getting all discouraged because some old f**t from abroad didn't get the hang of it - others may well disagree with me. What does matter is that you are coming out with good ideas, planning ahead, shooting better than most of the population could ever hope to, then (and most important) standing back and evaluating your work and having the courage to ask others what they think. Good on you!

thanks guys.

tried to not do the original just timelapse work, but tried to add a different feel.
took some work to do that because i was the one painting, filming, and moving everything.

haha

I kind of had to skim through it as I am working at the moment...but it looked a little dark (may be a combination of my monitor resolution and me rushing)...but good job and great way to make a long process interesting! Do you only shoot in HD, or just on certain projects?

Oh yeah, and nice painting!

Thanks for your input guys, it is appreciated.

Phil

A behind the scenes look at how the Children's Television Sweatshop create an episode of their educational programming.
"This isn't Shrek."

http://www.vimeo.com/1198479

Here it is, I hope you like it:

http://exposureroom.com/members/MarcoMenestrina.aspx/assets/5fd2f6db63774f73aaf27e7ac28d9577/

I weep for my childhood ;)

well done!

Hey Mike,
What a great place to be a videographer, I mean wow! And I just have to say I love Muse. I forget about them for awhile and then they just pop up again. I agree that the shots were a bit long. I like the idea of being judicious with shots, and using them as needed. I heard Robert Allen say once that too many videographers feel the need to use enough shots to end the song when instead they should be using the best shots, and what moves the story along. Good look to everything, and I am jealous of 3 things.
#1 Virgin Islands
#2 EX1
#3 Muse in a wedding video.
Thanks for posting Mike...
Bill

Thanks John.
Glad you enjoyed the video and liked the painting.

And yes, i only shoot in HD now, i figure, i have the computer power, enough hard drives, and the camera to support it all, so i might as well shoot in HD if its available.
ha =)

thanks again man.

Hi Lee,

Intresting work although I would also agree a bit lengthy. I'm curious as to what method you used to do that super fast pull-back shot from the kids face to the beginning of the hall way. Did you use zoom or did you use a kart? That was a great effect.

Oliver Pahlow

Hi Paul,

I just watched your trailer. That was great. I definitely like the look and feel. Would love to make it to the festival and see the whole thing, but I can't...:(
Anyway, good luck. I'm sure it will be well recieved.

Oliver Pahlow

Hey Guys,

I've been putting together the pilot for an web-based short-form dramatic series for a couple of year now. We've just recently completed our pilot and will be premiering at the Independent Television festival, in L.A., on the first week of August.

Anyone who likes this kind of stuff and is in the area, it would be great it you came out to help support our project.

It was shot on an HVX200 with a M2 adapter and Zeiss Super-speeds, and a lot of moxie.

I cannot display the episodes we've created online until after the premiere, but you can check out Teaser Trailer and some stills at the following link.

http://itvfest.bside.com/2008/films/violentjake_itvfest2008

I hope to see anyone who can make it. It's going to be a blast. Drop me a thread if you'll be there and I'll save you a Violent Jake t-shirt.

Cheers everyone,
Sam

Hello all!

Recently, I partaked in the 72 Hour Film Shootout by the Asian American Film Lab. The goal of the competition (which is standard) was to write, shoot, and edit a film with a 72 hour time span while incorporating a given theme. In addition, the film had to be five minutes or less. The theme this year was "a first goodbye".

If anyone has seen my most recent films, I am very keen on doing atmospheric romances but my team and I decided it would be a good change of pace to do an Action/Drama. Something stylistic, fast paced, and as potent as we can make it.


Cast:
Sarah Yu as SammiJun Naito as Nakayama
Wayne Chang as Timothy Lau
Eddie Wong as Sammi's Boss
Eddie Lebron Sr. as Nakayama's Boss
Hugo Salazar as Earpiece Officer
Eddie Wong as Lau's Client

Written by:
Eddie Lebron, Sarah Yu, Jun Naito, and Wayne Chang

Cinematography, Edited, and Directed by:
Eddie Lebron



Synopsis:
"For two different purposes, a hitwoman on her first assignment and a overly loose canon detective both target and pursuit the same individual in Manhattan's Chinatown. As these events transpire, it becomes more clear as to why the hitwoman has decided to finally make her first kill."



Stills:

http://platinumcinema.com/platinum/i_still1.jpg

http://platinumcinema.com/platinum/i_still1.jpg

http://platinumcinema.com/platinum/i_still2.jpg.jpg

http://platinumcinema.com/platinum/i_still4.jpg




The Film:

Embebdded, HQ version:
http://www.eddielebron.com/initial.html

YouTube Version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PzywuOdeNM



I must say, I am EXTREMELY pleased with how the film came out. If anything, the 5 minute restriction we had tested my editorial abilities and intuitions. In such situations, you have to cut out and let go of anything unnecessary which is hard when you are married to all the footage you shot but it's important to learn if you want to pace everything correctly.

Please comment and thanks again!

Thanks for the comments!

I seem very keen on tight shots such as close up's, especially for romances. When it comes to interiors and exteriors, I guess it's because I find exteriors more visually appealing and more complex so I tend to have a few more wider angles to create a scale. Interiors seem more intimate so there is no need to use too many wider shots.

Hope more people watch and comment!

Some screen grabs from the road.

So this is a non-profit project that myself and some others put together last fall for the holiday season. The gist of it is to promote intercultural understanding, break down barriers between cultures, and sell end-user products for funds to both help homeless people in Arizona, and to fund charities in Turkey.

I'm looking for critique specifically on the post for this short. The camerawork was all done on consumer cameras by friends without any formal (or otherwise) experience, then shipped back to the States. The editing was awesome though, lots of good footage to work from. All feedback is welcome and needed!

Here's the Flash render:
http://kittyburger.com/temp/ktown01.html

Hi Dave,

What I liked -
I was fascinated by the Ebru / Turkish water painting section. That was a very nicely edited piece, I found it very compelling. That's something I think people would really be interested in seeing.

What I didn't like -
The visual montage at the beginning
- This is very weak. I think you could just put up a graphic that says K-Town, Turkey then cut straight to the Ebru Turkish water painting. I think it would make the piece much stronger.

- the dialog audio in the visual montage is trash, it took so much effort for me to understand what they were saying I missed most of the video that was playing (and I still don't really understand everything they said). Again, losing it would make the piece much stronger.

Other comments -
I would have liked to have seen a graphic or heard a voiceover that told me in more detail why these women make their art, what they've done with it, who are they making it for, how is it making the world a better place etc. It's alluded to at the end, but it's never explained. And I'm curious why you ended with the boys playing soccer? How are they related to the women? I would have liked to have known. And if they have nothing to do with the directly with the women, it's probably better to find a shot of something that is.

But great job on getting the Ebru Turkish water painting, that was very well done.

This is another spec spot featuring food this time.

http://www.blackbagfilms.com/fanmaysmlwtrmk.mov

Shot on my HVX200 with the stock Leica lens.

These are tiny candies and you can really tell that I didn't have a real food stylist on the job! But I think it gets the idea across pretty well.

Regards,

Michael Azzariti
Black Bag Films, Inc.

Hi!

I begin my membership by linking to a short clip just showing how my latest film will look like. The whole film will be done in 3-4 weeks.

We are quite young, but this is our first films and we are gathering experience for later.

www.upnorthstudios.com/test

Hope you like it :)

//Martin

it wouldn't play all the way through, but the look of the film is great. I'm interested as to what equipment was used. Nice teaser.

it wouldn't play all the way through, but the look of the film is great. I'm interested as to what equipment was used. Nice teaser.

Well you have to wait, the video size is quite large so it needs time to load (I have problems with arranging a loading bar on the video)

With equipment, do you mean like the camera we used or our gear on the actors?

Im pleased to hear that you liked it :)

Thanks for the positive comments. The film has quite a few VFX shots, which was fairly new to me, but I'm pleased with the results.

Right now we've submitted to some festivals that won't play the film if it's available online, so we're waiting to see what happens there, but we're working toward getting it online.

The films also been nominated now for 3 Awards, with two going to MERCY herself, Emilee Harris. She was nominated for both:

* Female Breakout Action Star -Short
* Female Action Performer of the Year

And our third nomination was for:

* Best Soundtrack - Short

For the original music in the film.

So again if you're in the LA area, the World Premiere is July 26, 2008 (this weekend as of this writing) at 10PM at the Laemmle Theater at One Colorado Blvd. in Old Pasadena CA. Tickets can be purchased at https://www.aoffest.com/store/Tickets-c2.htm

Hi everyone,

I just finished editing what I think is the final version of a promotional video for a band called Bmmchk. Not really a band but a techno computer musician who performs live in the sometimes company of other live instruments and live performance art like spinning.

Long story short the artist wanted a documentary style approach to the video but I had issues with that.....

The entire show was shot with a single camera. Non-existant B roll material during that performance and no B roll from the night in particular that fit with that particular act. Finally the musical pieces themselves run roughly 10 minutes each and have little in the way of difinitive starts and endings.

So I did away with the idea of a documentary and made it into a flashier edited promotional clip which appears as a exerpt from the performance. I've edited down the music to a shorter 4 minute length with intended cut points to add flow to the video. The beginning is the graphical opening splash meant to draw the eye, provide a montage overview and then meld into the short livesque style performance.


What I need help with is opinions and critique on how the piece works on individual levels and as a greater whole. Are the graphics and effects good or are they cheese? Does the piece convey it's intended purpose which is to highlight the performance and use as a promotional video? Does the video quality look professional?

This was shot with a XHA1/WD-H72 on a Glidecam 4000/Smooth Shooter rig. Light for the performance came almost entirely from a consumer video projector displaying psychedelic light effects. Edited in Vegas Pro 8 with several Magic Bullet 1.1 effects and tweaks and many composited tracks.

I want to ask the DVinfo community to give me as much feedback as possible so that have some confidence that I could take this back to the client (btw this was a non-paying gig).

Many thanks in advance.

http://www.vimeo.com/1392224

James Hooey

I think you have done more than enough for a non paying job (why is it non paying, are they friends?). If you are worried about all the other ways that you could have approached the job and wether or not you chose the right one then don't baecause at the end of the day the one you chose is the only one that matters and personnally id be happy with what you did.

The thing that was missing the most in this video was a crowd dancing with glow sticks and what not, I think a lot of fast cuts between a crowd and the band would have helped a lot cause lets face it you weren't dealing with the most animated band iv ever seen......mind you the keyboard player did nod once or twice!.

You can take it to the band with no worries especially if you aint gettin paid.

Andy.

http://www.vimeo.com/1367620

This is a short video I shot in the Grand Lake, CO area and the Snowy Range, WY area. A couple of focus issues here and there, but overall I'm pleased with how this turned out. The mysteries behind the EX1's picture profiles is an area I have a lot to learn about still. Some of the shots aren't as good as they could have been with more skilled tinkering of all the settings.

Comments welcome.

Shot with Sony EX-1, no Letus or 35mm adapter, on Sachtler head/sticks, cut in FCP, graded with Color. Music by Kosheen.

Looks like you did an awesome job to me.

Hi Michael,

I appreciate the constructive feedback here. Most everyone I've talked to that bought the DVD was wanting the same thing, more info on the history and whatnot behind it, more back-story. The intro/outro are basically fluff since I had no footage to convey this.

I hadn't heard anything about the audio VO in the beginning though. I know the quality sucked, but maybe because I listened to it over and over in the editing process I didn't imagine there would be trouble understanding it.

Thanks for the tips. Any other feedback is welcome.

motion was jumpy in some shots, otherwise good

Which shots Andzei? All the motion looks pretty smooth on my monitors, but I need to consider that not everyone has the same gear.

And I just reposted the spot after adding a voice over track.

Regards,

Michael Azzariti
Director Cameraman
Black Bag Films, Inc.

video is super, awesome work, but the audio, I would never use live sound for the video like this one,
would use clean audio ,and if you really want to get that ambient, get the second track with just the crowd audio,
but that's just me :)

Hello all. I suppose I never really developed any sort of rapport here at the DVi forums but I still feel like I owe a lot of thanks to a handful of you who gave me quite a bit of advice when I was starting work on my first ever film (which just happened to be feature-length)...

You guys helped me on issues such as What to do first with my newly-arrived XL-2 (http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=62332), 16 vs. 12 bit audio in post (http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=62338), and oddities such as the safety of pointing the XL-2 at the sun (http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=69261).

I suppose I'd just like to point out that I knew nothing about cameras or filmmaking or video or anything. I figured it out by reading the XL-2 manual (there's a PDF around here somewhere), reading posts here on the DVi forums and website, and by asking questions (and having them answered by all of you)... And I'd like to sincerely thank you for that.

Having said that, I just wanted to post that my feature film, Oceania which premiered to a sold-out audience at the 2008 Cinequest Film Festival this past March is now available for FREE under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/us/).

A captivating drama that explodes with an intense visual style and sharp storytelling, Oceania is a rarity for such a young director. At 17-years-old, Dehal wrote and directed a film that reveals a talent and a cinematic eye far beyond even the most seasoned Hollywood directors, and based on his debut film, there is no doubt that Dehal is one of the big discoveries of the year (by Tamee Tanoor, 2008 Cinequest Film Festival).

You can download it via BitTorrent (the kind folks at LegalTorrents.com are hosting us at the moment):
http://www.hdehal.com/oceania/download

View pictures at: http://www.hdehal.com/oceania
Download .torrent: http://www.hdehal.com/oceania/download

Once again, thanks for all of the help! Please enjoy!



P.S. The quality isn't great as I had to shrink it down to 700 mb via XVID. I have a properly-encoded DVD ISO in the works and will be posting that soon. And please feel free to email me or send comments/critiques at harrydehal@gmail.com. Cheers!

Andy, thanks for the response. The reason it was free was really a trade of services. He did some modelling work for stock footage for me, I shot and edited a performance for him.

I agree completely about crowd shots. I wish I had some. Actually there was no dancing crowd. Honestly all I remember seeing was people sitting or walking to the bar. (Mabey people were worried about getting smacked with the spinners. :)

Thanks for the vote of confidence in the finished edit. I want to mention some of your points to the artist.



Craig - thanks, I appreciate it.



Bubba - The artist had a choice and he was hooked on using the original live recording which was simply with a Olympus digital voice recorder and a Sony ECM-ZS90 stereo mike facing front of house. I offered to edit to one of the artists mixes to the footage.

Thanks for the thumbs up on the video.



I really appreciate the comments from everyone, I will be sending the link to the artist today (if he doesn't already know it's online) so it will be great to hear his opinion of it. I'll post again when I get his feedback for interests sake.

James

I was at the free Quebec city show with my Sony A1u, and I was in the 6th row(more than 200 000 people).
I recorded with the audio unit(XLR) not on the camera(look less pro).
just a short video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvdeIFLSH3o&fmt=18

Hello To all. I have a new website that I want to make available.

www.mitvideoproductions.com

Is this site about your passion for making films or your passion for your EX1?!