Week Four Photo Challenge: Movie Poster

This poster comes from a short form video project I worked on. I was a camera operator for one of the shots indoors and for all of the shots used in the end of the short. The short was written for the screen by one Timothy Salmon specifically for a short form video contest hosted by onvidi. The short came out to be just over three minutes in length.

On top of being a camera operator, I was also the supporting male lead. The shoot lasted two days; one of which was inside Timothy’s house. The second day was spent shooting down south at the dry lakebed south of Henderson, Nevada.

The information at the bottom of the poster posted here is what is usually seen on a standard movie poster. Some of the information is not currently on the movie poster. For instance, the Motion Picture Association of America, or MPAA, has not rated the film and therefore we cannot add the ratings box.

From a design standpoint, I felt as though if I added the writer’s and the director’s credits that it would look a bit awkward so I left it out. Timothy Salmon filled those credits as well.

This movie poster was a bit tricky to create. I had two other projects in mind for this project, but none of the frames in them felt as though they would make a good poster. This one just seemed a bit stylized and ambiguous, which I thought would lend itself well to the marketing of the short film.

EOC Week 4: Executive Summary

            The concept of my business is to provide high quality high definition video products to clients. We will focus on creating content to the clients’ specifications. Whether it be documentaries, shorts, features, live event, commercial, or corporate videos. We will also be able to deliver products on various different ways (dvds, on the web, tapes or on hard drives).  We will utilize the latest and greatest in the digital world to create our videos. We will Avid, Final Cut Pro 7, and Adobe Premiere editing suite. We will utilize adobe’s After Effects program for motion graphics and visual effect. We will run high-end professional cameras such as the JVC GYHM790 and the Sony EX1. We will also use more portable cameras depending on the shoot’s needs such as the Canon 7D, 60D and 5D MkII.

            This is not new per se, but it hasn’t been around too terribly long. With the price of high definition equipment dropping rapidly, this type of business is rising. However, to ensure the quality of the product being made, one needs to have a high quality business to look to. Not the run of the mill production house.

            Since the market the business will function in is the Las Vegas market (with the potential to spread to surrounding markets), the main market for the business will be casinos and other various businesses with a minor market in individual consumers such as independent filmmakers.

            The majority of the business will come from businesses needing commercials, training videos, live event coverage or online media to deliver to their consumers.

            The minor market my business will cater to is the individual such as independent or student filmmakers. We will offer both services and equipment rental to these types of people.

            Most of my competitors are only focused on big companies. They want to make the videos for the casinos and only the people they know they can make money off of. I want to make videos for everybody and anybody. If the mom and pop store needs a commercial on a budget, I will work with that budget to an extent. I will be able to reach a wider audience with my work than that of my competitors in town.

            Immediately off the bat, I want to be able to keep my business afloat. I don’t need to try and turn a profit right away. The main goal starting off is to get my abilities out there. I cannot make a profit from a market that I cannot get into.

            In the long term, I would want to be able to turn a profit. Spend one thousand dollars on a project and bring in three to four times that.

Photo Challenge: Storyboards

     This photo is submitted for the week three photo challenge wherein we are supposed to prepare a nine frame storyboard and post it to our blog. The storyboards I have are from a commercial shot a few weeks back for Zebra Cakes. The commercial was written and directed by one Michael Rueca. I was the cinematographer in charge of all things camera and lighting.

            The commercial is thirty seconds long consisting of about eleven shots or so. The commercial was edited by Michael and submitted for a class assignment to Tim Kelly. The storyboards prepared were not able to be found so I had to recreate them using shots from the actual commercial.

            Storyboards are an essential part of every production. This is a service that my company will be offering to clients.

BOC: Identifying Competitors

Aardvark Video & Media Productions

AMG Studio

Atomic Television

Driftwood Entertainment

808 Post & Production, Inc

First Call Productions, LLC

Goodwyn Productions

Raven Productions

Spectra Video Productions

702 Productions

Bipolar Media LLC

DK Productions, Inc.

Hot Shots Productions

DAV Productions

Mr. Camera, INC.

702 Productions

http://www.702productions.tv/

            703 Productions’ services include HD production, HD production, multi-camera production, producing, crewing & staffing services, film production, video editing, dvd authoring, live event production, media encoding, live show directing, film & digital still photography, dvd duplication, studio rental.

They will compete with me because my company is geared towards full HD video production from pre to post. We would offer dvd authoring, media encoding and live event productions as well.

DAV Productions

http://www.davproductions.com/

            Services include advertising, PR, corporate and event production. They produce commercials, documentaries, motion graphics & animation, fundraising videos, product demos, training films, video news reels and more. For pre-production they offer concept development, budgeting, script writing, storyboarding, location scouting, shooting schedules and over all production management.  Post production services multiple HD Avid and Final Cut Pro suites, video editors, motion graphic artists and graphic designers.

            They’ll compete only in commercial, documentary and corporate event productions. They offer a few more things that my company would which would hurt my company. A possible restructure is in order.

Goodwyn Productions

http://www.goodwyn.com/

            Production services: Panasonic HPX 500 HD cameras, chrosziel matte box and filters, HD monitors, Panasonic HVX200P cameras, P2 Cards with HD capability, Mini DVCAM, Beta-SP cameras and tape, Sony D-30 Broadcast lights, complete camera and audio packages, table top studio with complete setup. Post production: final cut pro editing suite, after effects, photoshop, illustrator, sapphire plug ins for spectacular effects, music and sound effects libraries, extensive stock footage library, 24-hour editing services, studio recording room, voice over talents.

            They’ll offer more in the post production ends. They’re production services seem to be a bit less structured. They seem to just be a, “We have equipment” company. They’ll offer a little more flexibility in their production including mini DVCAM and Betacam, which I will not offer.

Atomic Television

www.Atomic-tv.com

            They are a production, broadcast, film, visual effects, multimedia company… Not entirely sure what that entails. They’re website says, “Atomic television has all you need to get your message out. From concept to completion our creative and dedicated team will be there for you! Production crews, post-production, motion graphics, equipment rentals, duplications and more!” However if I try to see the details of what they offer I am brought to a coming soon page. They seem to have a lot of studio gear and offer equipment rental.

            It seems as though they are really geared towards concerts and live events. While my company isn’t going to focus on these things they are part of our offers and these guys are some competition. Their videos look great and seem to offer a full package. These guys are nothing to look passed. Decent career route if my company goes belly up.

EOC Week 3: Where are you now and where are you going?

     At this point and time I am just starting out in my career. In fact, I am not even in my field quite yet. I am doing the random freelance jobs at the moment, but as for being in my field, I would not consider myself far in my field. I am in my field as a freelancer, but that is not where I would like to be.
         In the Vegas market, from what I’ve been told, it is all about corporate gigs and commercial products. This is where I would like to be in the next few years. I plan on staying in Vegas for a while and most DFVP students disagree with my thinking. They believe that commercials and corporate won’t lead to anything in the actual film world, but I have the opposite feelings. The more practice I have with lighting and camera, regardless of what I am shooting, the better I will end up in the long run. Since this is not what I want to be doing, I am going to take my time in this part of the industry to practice and become even more skilled in my trade so that when I eventually do get into the film industry I will feel as though I am ready to take on the task at hand.
            Where I would like to be in the long run is in the film industry making feature length movies. I wouldn’t mind either working for a big production company or an independent production house. Owning my own company would be amazing, but I know the amount of effort and time that I would have to put in would be exhausting. Eventually, if I had the manpower and time, I would love to own my own production company. Being able to make all the creative decisions while making my film would be amazing. No one could tell me what I can or cannot do during production.
            Over all, I want to be part of the movie making process. 

Week Two Photo Challenge: Me Working

     This is a photo of myself on the set of the show “Sound Check”. I was both the director and the cinematographer for the shoots during “Sound Check”. Together with my crew, we created a half hour pilot to air on Las Vegas TV. The episode ran for three weeks.

During the shoot, we utilized the latest technology in the digital film realm including the Canon 7D, JVC’s pro series GY-HM700, Panasonic’s HMC150 and various audio equipment.

The pilot took about seventy hours of shooting and forty-eight hours of post-production.

This particular picture was taken during a group interview with a few bands who were performing later that night during a joint concert sponsored by Vitamin Water.

Working as a director I coordinated a team and was able to be a part of the project from beginning to end. I was involved from concept to post-production.

I believe this photograph is a great example of me working. It shows my ability to take on different positions at once. I was directing, monitoring audio levels and setting up lighting. The photo shows my camera operation and my audio monitoring.  In this photo we can see the GY-HM700, which is a high-end broadcast camera. A category of camera  that most new to the business filmmakers and videographers haven’t had a chance to use. This helps to exemplify my abilities on set.

Week Two BOC: Website

     I have already chosen a domain name for my website for graduation and I have a working site at the moment. I just need to tweak it and get finish projects up there. Right now all I have are place holders.

     However, I wasn't sure if you wanted a website for us or for the production company we are making. Either way, I have both. The production company website is empty, but the layout has been made (for the most part) just have to change a few minor details here or there.


Personal Website: www.johniewood.com
Production Website: http://johniegwood.weebly.com/

Week 2 EOC: Get Some Copyright Law Under Your Belt

     Getting to know copyright law might seem pretty scary. After all, copyright law is very extensive and covers various different fields. To help keep frustration to a minimum I've included some links to help you on your journey to understanding the basics of copyright law.

     1. Copyright.gov_FAQ: Want to understand what copyright is or what falls under copyright protection? Check out copyright.gov and their FAQ section.

     2. Intellectual Property Lawyers: Looking to talk to an intellectual property and copyright lawyer? Check this website out for a detailed list of lawyers in your area.

     3. Examples Of: Here are some interesting examples of copyright disputes.

     Knowing copyright law is essential when venturing into a creative business, or any business for that matter. Knowing whether or not your work is being abused or if you're inadvertently abusing the works of others is extremely important. You want to be 100% sure that you are following the law exactly to save yourself from lawsuits and hefty financial obligations.

Week One EOC: Sacrifices I Am Willing To Make For My Career

What sacrifices am I willing to make in order to have a successful career after graduation? This is a question that has been bouncing around in my head for some time now. Graduation is coming quickly for me. As it does I need to start thinking about how I am going to form my career. Where will I go? How will I start? Perhaps the most important question is what am I willing to give up?

I used to believe that my career could wait for various reasons; but, as I get closer and closer to graduating, I get more and more excited and realized that my career comes first. I need to focus on my career before anything else. If that means that I have to sacrifice friendships or relationships then I will do so. It will be sad but necessary to ensure that I can get my career off the ground.

Having met the real world face to face recently I realized I am willing to sacrifice my current lifestyle to move forward with my life.  I am more than willing to live poor now to ensure a brighter more comfortable future for tomorrow.

I have always had the idea that suffering now and living better later is better. If you put off giving up some things until later in life, you are ensuring to have a rocky future. If everything is sacrificed early on then you have an uninterrupted future ahead of you.

It is this mindset that I have that allows me to be willing to give up what I have now in order to reach success. I do not believe that I can achieve my dreams without giving up something in return. My end goal in life and in my career is not to be rich and famous. My end goal is to be happy. Sacrifices must always be made to achieve happiness.