It's back to producing mode, so here's one of my favorite and least expensive tools: the Ikea Big Blue Bag. About a year or so ago, Ikea started charging five cents for plastic bags. So I picked up three of these for 59 cents each (and snuck one of the yellow shopping...
Video Production
Making it Sound Good
Since I've been sound mixing for the past three days, with three more to go (a double show), I thought it would be appropriate to post some tips on getting the best audio possible from Christian Dwiggins, Master Engineer and owner of Engine Room Studios, a sound...
91 Set-Ups in 3 Days
Yes, we got 91 set-ups ((A set-up is essentially a shot. Every time you move the camera, change lenses, change lighting, or film new action, that's a new set-up.)) in 3 days. That's about 30 a day. The 6 day show had 106 set-ups. Bottom line is we got a shit-ton of...
The Glamour of Producing
Ten cans of film have been turned in after the longest producing job I've had yet - six days of summer thesis kick-off. You get three days to shoot your thesis film, or you can team up and double your resources as the DP and Director did here and shoot for six days...
Dinner and Confessions of a Shopaholic
Here's a story that combines a little six degrees of separation with a hint of networking. I was having dinner last night with my mom at Oriente on Ocean Drive. Across the street, near the beach, we noticed some giant tents set up - looked like some sort of party. But...
Producing a Happy Crew
Producing is like being the Chief Happiness Officer on set. It's all about keeping the crew happy and the set flowing smoothly. After producing two films, my view is the 1AD works on a micro level, creating a detailed set-up schedule and working shot to shot, while...
Tim Gunn Would Cringe
It's been a busy morning, but the action on my part has finally calmed down, leaving time for a little on-set reporting. Today is day one of 'The Groom is Becoming a Tree,' which, as you might have guessed, is about a groom becoming a tree. Since this takes place...
Morning of DP-ing Nerves
It's 4 AM and I'm about to shoot a movie in two hours, but I can't seem to go back to sleep. So I'll write! It seems that Director of Photography is the most nerve wracking position. It's a blend of using your technical knowledge to create artistic images, while...
A Busy January
January is going to be a busy month for me. As I said before, three films are down, four to go. These four are all ATL jobs, and are every Friday-Saturday for the next four weeks when school starts up again on the 7th. Week 1 - Director of Photography This is a sci-fi...