Tag: camera

Food + Friends + Nature :: Nature

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As a freelance filmmaker, you never know where you’ll be working next.  Exciting, yes.  It also causes a lot of stress because you never know where your next paycheck will be coming from.

Enter, the side job. Now the trick with the side job is finding one that is flexible so that you can work on your projects and also pays well.  It’s not the easiest thing to accomplish as any artist can tell you.  So for this summer, I’m working as a gardener for a family friend.  I’ve actually did this when I was in college to make money during the summer and to be honest, its still one of my favorite summer jobs because I get to be outside a lot.  Ask me in a few months how I feel about it and I’ll probably tell you that I’m sick of it because I will have weeded the same flowerbed 100 times and the weeds are still prevailing. In any case, it’s still not a bad gig.

I found this video a few months ago but haven’t had the chance to share it with you.  It reminded me of pruning bushes last week, although what I do is very tame compared to this.  It also reminded me of working on my last project as we were filming up in the mountains and some of our team spent a lot of time moving wood around the property getting ready for our very large bonfire.

Juliet Zulu

I like the play of light in this even though it has a very limited color palet.  It’s hard to make green interesting, but Juliet’s combination of light and texture of the trees make it visually interesting.  Another plus- it’s short and to the point.  Just enough to grab your attention while giving you the information you crave.

Another month gone…

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May was one of the busiest months I’ve had in a long time and to be honest I loved every moment of it.  It was one of those good types of busy where I was exhausted by the end of the day (in a good way) and I looked forward to the next day.  I hope June can bring something like that because I’m feeling very fulfilled at the moment.

What was keeping me so busy?  I don’t know if I’m quite ready to share that yet as there is a lot in post-production to be done, but to give you an idea, it involved:

  1. Spending time up in the mountains.
  2. Food.  Lots of food. Really good food.
  3. Visiting with friends.
  4. Camping.
  5. Puppies.
  6. Watching films at the Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF).

I know.  Not a lot to go by, but like I said, post-production is going to take a while.

I don’t have much of a theme for this month but after reflecting on this last month, I’m using themes from the last few weeks to inspire my next few posts.

Food,-Friends,-Nature

A broad topic I know… stay tuned.

Against the Grain :: Seven Days in 1968

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Animal

I’m just going to dive right into the artistic aspects of this video.  I love it!  There aren’t many times when you find yourself entertained by old black and white stills- usually they seem flat and boring.  Not in this film!  The 3-dimentional effects and the layover of other images, such as the timeline, really make a difference.  The graphics really help too and are another aspect that I really like.

It’s a bit longer than most videos that I post but I don’t feel like its any longer than most.  It’s not an easy topic to address, especially when some could argue that we haven’t come all that far since 1968, but it was done beautifully.

Winter Olympics 2014 :: The Mountainside

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I couldn’t end my Winter Olympics theme without talking about skiing and snowboarding.  I know I’ve already talked about them in the past and I promise after today I will try to keep it to a minimum… at least until next winter.  I can’t guarantee anything though.

So here you are, my mountain sports tribute- and I’ve made sure to keep the videos short this time.  Nothing too long.

SNOWBOARDING

vaz web TV

 

I LOVE the use of the clouds and natural colors of the sun reflecting off of the different surfaces as well as the the few moving shots of the rider moving down the mountain.  Considering all of the snow sports videos that I’ve seen in the past, this one is one of my favorites and actually makes me want to get on a board again.  I’m not sure if my tailbone agrees with me though.

 

SKIING

faction skis

 

So I’m not much a stunt person myself as I’m not a huge fan of the dropping feeling my my stomach as I free fall but I love the movement in this video.  I feel completely mesmerized when I watch this and I’m intrigued by the song choice.  In so many videos and even when on the slopes, the music blaring from the snow park speakers has a much heavier beat.  This song gives it a completely different feel compared to the usual stunt videos.  Combine the music with the slow motion effect at certain points in the film and it gives it a calming effect.  Get me to the mountain!

Winter Olympics 2014 :: Bob Sled Team

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[vimeo https://vimeo.com/10888247 w=640&h=300]

Stijn Verlinde

Admit it, you probably only know about bob sledding because of the movie “Cool Runnings” and maybe because you watched an event or two at past Winter Olympics.  I know I didn’t know much about the sport until I watched this video.  For instance, and this is going to sound ridiculous, I never really thought about the fact that there would be other bob sled competitions.  Stupid I know but it isn’t exactly a sport that people take up in any place that I’ve ever lived.  Well anyway, now that I’ve looked into the sport a bit more I’m all the wiser.

I won’t say that this film is the best film that I’ve ever seen and nor will I say that it’s the worst.  It’s a bit slow, but it does builds the pre-race tension nicely.  More to the point, I learned something from it and that’s the important thing- it conveyed the information.

Hopefully you’ve caught a few races these past two weeks and maybe even learned about a few sports that you’ve never even heard of before.

Winter Olympics 2014 :: The Ice Rink

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crane.tv

When I was little I dreamed of being a figure skater- in fact it was the only event that I liked to watch at the winter Olympics.  I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that my best friend skated and dreamed of going to the Olympics and I liked the sparkly costumes.  My friend  changed her life goals and didn’t go the professional athlete route but she is very talented none-the-less.

This video takes me back to watching my friend compete in competitions and how I always marveled at how effortlessly she seemed to move on the ice.  I was lucky if I could make it around the rink once without falling over.  I have only improved slightly to the point that I can actually skate forwards at a decent speed without hesitation.  But that’s about it.  Not only does this video display the grace and stamina that it takes to be a Olympic caliber skater, but I love the editing.  It makes me feel as if I’m on the ice with her.

This wasn’t the end of my ice sport ambition- at some point I got over the sparkly costumes and wanted to play hockey:

Akseli Tuomivaara

My grandfather was an avid hockey fan and I guess it rubbed off.  Hockey was another sport that I never took up and I’m guessing both of my parents were very grateful for that.  It was the fact that I was going to have to take two years of skating lessons before I could even touch a stick and I was already 14 so that kind of killed that idea – probably for the best as I was able to take up rowing instead.  In the end it was a more logical sport for me.

Having given up on the idea of playing hockey, this video makes me very excited for the hockey games this Olympics.  The movement and on ice experience takes the audience with the team as they fly up the ice and puts you in the action.  Almost as good as playing yourself- you just don’t have to worry about losing your front teeth.

So what are you favorite ice sports?  Anyone going out to learn how to skate after watching these games?

Ohana :: Holiday Workshop

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Lumineux

Growing up, my mom always had us make all of our Christmas gifts for family and friends.  One year it was a watercolor painting for each person, another year it was homemade trail mix.  I think she did this for two reason- 1) it kept us busy during the school break and 2) most people on our list didn’t need yet more things, so making them something was both economical and original.  To this day I still enjoy making gifts for people.  The number that I make has decreased over the years but that allows me to put more time and thought into each individual project.

I like the idea of putting in time and effort into a gift- I feel that it has a lot more meaning when I receive homemade gifts and I hope that others feel the same.  This video reminds me of my own childhood and that special time around the holidays.

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah (I know has already passed), Kwanza or just enjoy the season I hope the next few weeks bring you joy and happiness.