A Steadicam Theatre ad...

[George Ellis]

This popped up in the Pinnacle Edition forum. I laughed out loud.

http://www.ajsteadicam.com/theatre/A...Steadicam.html

[Matt Gettemeier]

I LOVE that commercial.

It's amazing how good some ads are... and it gives a good shout out to the guys who've mastered their steady-rigs.

[Charles Papert]

Indeed! I love that ad, too.

The operator behind those shades is Mark Moore, who has done some great moves over the years (the tour through the CDC at the beginning of "Outbreak" is one of my favorites.

My personal contribution to the "Steadicam Theatre"collection...

[Keith Loh]

Love the Hard Day's Night homage.

[Brad Richmond]

<<<-- Originally posted by Charles Papert : Indeed! I love that ad, too.

My personal contribution to the "Steadicam Theatre"collection... -->>>

Great contribution, Charles! Yet another fun piece about Steadicam operation. Any others out there?

[Rick Bravo]

Very clever Charles, and a nice tribute to Garrett to boot.

RB

[K. Forman]

Charles- You Da Man! A true comic genius, and I am proud to be able to read any pearls you may share :)

[Charles Papert]

thanks gents; it's a little "inside-jokey" as far as the Steadicam terminology, but I figured you guys would still have fun with it.

[K. Forman]

My wife wants to know how I can get a job like yours... SteadiCam guys get ALL the chicks ;)

[Charles Papert]

There may be something to it, after all. Or maybe it's just the peripherals. A girl came to visit me on set not long after we met; when she arrived, I was hanging out chatting with George Clooney. She and I began dating that weekend (and are still together 2 years later). I'm thinking it was attraction by association...!

[K. Forman]

So... How do you get started?

[Charles Papert]

Seriously?

You mean, like, how do you become a Steadicam operator?

Maybe your wife won't be such a big fan when she hears about the price tag--a full blown rig with accessories runs close to $100,000...

[K. Forman]

I was only $50,000 off ;)

[Charles Papert]

Things continue to change and evolve with Steadicam just as the rest of the industry. The digital revolution affects us as well. Consider how many folks in this forum like to pronounce, "all you need is a camcorder and an NLE; Hollywood is dead!"

In the same vein, what used to be $100,000 or nothing is no longer true, as Charles King and his merry band of homebuilders are a perfect example. You can tinker in your garage and come out with a machine capable of making pretty good images. Putting the time in to learn how to operate the machine is a whole other story, most of what I've seen with DV-sized stabilizers is pretty rough, with some notable exceptions (I'm a big fan of Cody Deegan's work, the best I've ever seen from a homebuilt rig).

Even if you do pony up the big bucks to buy a rig capable of flying a full-blown broadcast camera, HD camera or film setup, you still have to learn the skills and get out there and start working. Most begin with student films or local commercials or the like. A lot of it depends on your market. The smaller the market, the less competition but the lower the paycheck.

I toiled for years in the Boston market, never getting above a certain level. I moved to LA and thanks to some lucky breaks, good timing and job referrals from friends, I broke into the feature market almost immediately. My experience is not typical, however. I've also stopped short of going for the A-list jobs, because I side-stepped into TV a few years back and didn't make all of the feature contacts that I could have. My focus is on other things than Steadicam these days anyway, so I'm not particular concerned about trying to work on the biggest budget jobs with all of the bulls*** and pressure involved in those.

Anyway, it's an endless subject, and one that is very dependent on the individual's location, experience and ultimate goals; but I'd be happy to prattle on some more, Keith, if you gave me some more specifics.

[K. Forman]

I'm more than willing to let you prattle on Charles, for as long as you like! It gives me more insight than any number of Indy folk could.

Please do not get me wrong, as I have plenty of respect for Indy folks. Especially those who have actually gained recognition. But to actually have your work seen by the mainstream, is what intrigues me.

I just have a simple setup, working around my GL1. This would be acceptable for most projects on a small scale, perhaps direct to video, but certainly not Hollywood. On the other hand, working with my small kit does give me some experience. Question is, where do I go from here? How can I achieve the skills and contacts, to be where you are?