The only excuse I have is that I have been busy. Busy busy busy.
The latest project brought on to GSP has meant the dismissal of me as a lone gunman with a camera, to now having several people on board. How long will it last – I have no idea, but for now I am extremely please by the people that have come on board and are working so hard for this new project.
The project is for Oregon Department of Transportation’s program Drive Less Save More. Most Portlanders are probably familiar with this program. The intention is just as you may think – get out of the car and get there a different way. Portland, Oregon/Vancouver, Washington has a terrible problem with commuting and traffic. While the distances may not be so far, the roads aren’t able to take the amount of traffic that are present. The traffic itself is the cause of geopolitical reasons. Oregon has no sales tax, Washington has no income tax. If you live in Washington, and then work and shop in Oregon, you save a lot of money off the top. However, the commute…oh, that pesky commute. There are fleets of cars on the road with one passenger in them, and when it is 8 am or 4 pm, it can be impossible to get anywhere. So the program is meant to encourage people on the alternatives to single-car travel.
GSP is producing and shooting eleven videos as part of the “How to Bike Oregon” series. We are currently in the process of finishing scripts, locking down our shoots, and figuring out interesting ways to shoot bicyclists through the Portland area. If you are reading this and are a rider, or interested in getting into riding, please contact me. We may have a place in one of our stories for you.
So far, while we have been working on our logistics for shoots, myself and a few others have been racking up B-roll. We are trying to hit as many locations as we can, getting a variety of people and bikes in their glorious travels to someplace with bike parking. Soon, the van doors shall open, and we shall be hanging the jib out the back and sides to film the power of the pedal. I am pretty excited to say the least! I have also built a couple of head rigs for cameras to mount, thanks to Freddie Wong and his team who have shot first-person head cam footage.
Ok, I have shot lists and shoot schedules to work on! Don’t forget to check out Wonder Northwest next week and premiere of the Micro Mini Geek Film Showcase with local sci-fi/fantasy/horror filmmakers showing their stuff.
That’s right! This is a more of a techie post then one of those heart felt, sentimental, touchy-feely kind of posts. You guys already know that pirates cool, that I am strange, and that I love what I do. So enough said. Instead, I want to talk about the new toys I got. Oh so many new toys!
The first is my new audio rig, because I am most happy about it. I have converted to a lot of DSLR shooting recently. I know, I know – I complained so much about the DSLR rage. I still do. It’s the people and the mentality of it, though, not the gear. I love my Panasonic GH-2. I am one of the few people that have them, and I shoot like crazy with it. The inherent problem with DSLR shooting is that their audio sucks. Now, any good audio is really done by an audio person, but sometimes shoots require one person. That is where is turns to a person to know just enough about audio to make it work well. My prior camera had great audio input and monitoring even though it was limited on it’s shooting. The new camera make beautiful images but the audio is shite. So in comes the BeachTek DXA-SLR setup. Pre-amp goodness in a compact unit, with monitoring, channels, headphone in, and phantom power. That’s right – PHANTOM POWER. So watch your step Nancy Boys! What all this means is that now I have the ability to input mics or a line to my camera and have it record as part of the audio to the card with the video. What a lot of people are doing is getting a Zoom 4N and recording a separate line of audio to a different machine, then they sync the audio in editing. It I don’t have to sync later, I am a happy person. This thing is amazing and it is one of the best purchases I have made for my camera, hands down.
The next toy is Black Magic Intensity Shuttle.I can’t get the damn thing to work, though so far there is no excuse as to why. I am trying firmware updates and the such, but I can’t get the thing to go. It’s not the Shuttle I think. I believe that my hack on the Panasonic firmware is to blame. So I am setting out to fix it. After that, I’m out of ideas.
The whole HD and DSLR world has been really crazy the last few years. The technology really shifted quickly…or I became classified as “Old Man.” Either way, the personal economics of it have a hard time keeping up. So many people jumped on the bandwagon when it was discovered that a DSLR could shoot good footage, that people bought all the accessories to make it an ergonomic device, to only realize that they just spent all the time and money to make a cobbled together video camera, only they had to get all of the cobbled together items to work well together. It’s getting better, or easier, now. People have gotten more aware of what can or cannot be done, or how to properly do it, so the products are reflecting that.
It’s all so crazy to me still!
That’s right. I like what I do. In fact, I love it. I love it so much that I do it a lot. Film! That is what I am talking about. I don’t talk about other stuff on here. I am creeping up on fours years of doing this full time, and Galaxy Sailors birthday of even being a name is almost seven. Oh what fun times these have been.
I have had several moments lately where I have stopped(in my mind) to soak in the moment and realize how amazing my life is and how fortunate I am to be where I am. It is a great night when I can come off of filming a fist fight between pirates and a scientific wonder from the past, to then be drinking later that even with said pirates. At a karaoke bar. With a tiki them. Life is grand. Karaoke tiki bars are fun.
So I film for the fun of it. Or, maybe more appropriate, the love of it. There is definitely a deep passions that I have for what I do. It is a constant reminder that I was once less than a number, with a desk in a cubical farm, doing work that no one noticed.
Why am I commenting and lamenting on this? I was filming with the doors open last night, that’s way. So my Sprinter van has the ability to have the doors stay pinned back, leaving the cargo area open to the free air. So, late last night, in the dark of the winter in Oregon, the Sprinter van drove loops at 25 miles an hour while a Hyundi followed behind, far too well lit to have just a dome light on, with a camera strapped to the hood capturing the occupants every word and move. FYI – the breeze is cold at night on Skyline Drive. What a fun time though. Audio rig pointed out the back. I’m hanging on with my butt cheeks to the deck inside the Sprinter. Grumpy,tired men complaining about water spirits and ass goblins. GREAT STUFF. Oh, and Ryan McCluskey was there. Be jealous.
The fun of filming is most definitely extended to the run of recent work I am getting. I have a pretty steady stream of filming with a local political advisory group, as well as having just scored a new OMSI video. Plus, for the first time, my really big gig coming up with Intel and EMC². I am really excited for this opportunity, as well as scared out of my mind, but I am hopeful for the opportunities and the future work that such a thing will bring me. Taking for granted that I am going to knock this thing out of the park.
I am happy to announce that GSP has a new office. Woop Woop. I found a cool little place out on Jessup in North Portland just down the road from where I live. Good spot, nice and quite, easy to get to, and there are food carts! Yay food carts. I have been missing the office environment. I moved out of my last place to join a group of folks (Earth2World) but that had a lasting effect of two weeks. So, after a few months, I took the plunge into office number two. Soon, there shall be Godzilla posters and Star Wars memorabilia. Maybe a blaster or two.
I don’t hang out with pirates enough.
I feel like a blind pig finding an acorn. Or something like that. I am feeling very blessed, very lucky, and very humbled. OMPA, the Oregon Media Production Association that I am a member of, awarded me the 2012 “Rising Star” award. I was rather shocked and happy and freaked out all at the same time. The shock because I didn’t realize anyone was paying attention. Or that I was doing anything attention worthy. Happy because this is a great award and a fantastic honor to be recognized, especially when you think no one is looking. Freaked out because of several reasons all at once. The first feeling was – am I worthy of this? Am I really doing enough to merit such a recognition? The second being – Holy Crap I’m Being Judged And My Stuff Probably Sucks. But I say that all the time. The third feeling of freaking out was when I started getting emails from people asking me for work…not realizing that I am struggling every bit as much or more than they are. While I do remain busy, I remain so by choice and not by contract. Meaning I do as much paid work as I can, but it isn’t rolling in. I am still looking for the moment where I can get someone to take a chance on me based on my track record and either give me bigger commercial level gigs or fund some film projects. Either would be grand! I don’t blame folks for their assumption, but it affirms for me again the need to build a sustainable industry in this town. One that pays people who do this professionally. I know it can be done, and I know I want it that way for me.
I am sick of talking about it though. This is a reoccurring issue. That of making something. Even when I think I have people on board who feel the same way, I end up getting talkers and not do’ers.
I am trying to do it right. That is very important to me. I think a lot of corners could be cut, and a lot of easy choices could be made, and a lot of people could be hurt. I am not so self righteous, or self important, or self absorbed to think that I can stand on the back of giants so that I can stand higher than the rest, claiming the brilliance of my strategy. In the end, we either all work together or we don’t. I can’t make people do anything they don’t want to do, and if being more together is something that people like in theory and not in practice, then all I can do it beat my drum and hope for people wanting to stand side by side. Short cuts means you get to the end quicker. I’m not trying to get to any end quicker, I am enjoying the journey.
If you pace the isles waiting for the station to arrive, you never enjoy the scenery of the train ride. Enjoy the ride, DAMN IT!
Oh, we got a good one this week folks. This entry comes from my brain, and the aching little voices that gnaw at me. No, not the scary voices. I keep them quiet with constant plays of HALO online. I am talking about my reoccurring monologue. The Statler and Waldorf in the balcony of my mind, commenting with a constant volley of slaps to the face (both for me and the intended victims of life).
So, the other day, I was engaged with a discussion, in which myself and the fellow speaking were talking about our movie sets, our processes, and the little victories that we strive for with the little to no money we have. In this discussion, he told me about another film maker in our area that stated “If you don’t have thiry people on your crew, you’re not a real film maker.” Hmmmm, let me process that slap to my face as I begin the geometric calculation for planting one on your face. Really? There is a rule somewhere that says “You’re not really doing this unless you have a minimal number of people around you.”
Look, one person with a camera, filming themselves is a film maker. I can have five people around me that can do wonders and thirty people around me that are going to screw up or, worse, STAND AROUND. While screwing up helps one to learn, it also slows down your production, and when time is money that is not a good thing to have happen. Standing around. Now you’re just wasting life for a paycheck and burning valuable oxygen.
Now I will certainly let someone have their opinion about anything and everything, just as I have granted myself the same leeway. Just so you know, when you say something, there is probably going to be a response. The idea that my film is not a film because I didn’t have thirty people is an interesting idea. One that holds no merit and is easily shot down, but it is interesting nonetheless. It’s interesting because it gives me insight into this dufus. I’m not criticizing his abilities as a film maker, just his ability in life. See, for him, he thinks he needs thirty people standing around on his site. I may have need for that many or more someday, but I did a pretty bang up job on the last film, and it had six people on the crew. Six top notch, wonderful people that I will undoubtedly hire again. If someone feels that the fabric of their life needs certain specifics to make them feel successful or accomplished or worthy, than those are their own guidelines for success. Their’s and their’s alone. I didn’t need thirty folks. This guy maybe did because he can’t do anything constructive on his own and lives in a small dictatorship called “His Set” in which he takes thirty professionals and lambastes them for hours (or insert days, weeks, months, years) because it makes him feel like he is real. Well, buddy, are you real? Are you? Is Cameron calling yet, asking you to make Avatar II: The Awakening because you did it with thirty people and he did it with just twenty-seven on the set? (Please be advised – I completely understand that when it is me doing this very thing, which is defining how others should be by my own set of standards, I am being a dick and a hypocrite, I just wanted to be able to call this one out from the balcony)
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.
This is one of my favorite topics – that of our “Industry” in Portland filming. Supposedly we’re about to bust out and blossom. Which I don’t discredit at all. Lately we have had an amazing run of TV being produced in Oregon. Portlandia is a fun show and a great set to work on. Grimm is off and running like a mad machine. Leverage continues to be fun and exciting in it’s episodic “The blank Job” way. Plus we have had a couple of films come through town, and we have one of our own local films actually making a national splash (Rid Of Me). None as of yet have been exploding us on the map, but it has to be a bud before it becomes a flower.
Even with the bud starting to form we need to keep some things in mind as an industry of film makers in our area, no matter what side of the line we are on. By this I mean…are we still begging for people to work for free? Really? REALLY? I have come to the conclusion that FaceBook is pretty much a way of dressing up Craig’s List to ask people to come out and work on your productions. “It’s not free, it’s an investment in the awesomeness that you will get for working with me on more stuff that may or may not be happening and probably won’t pay or get seen by someone because it is too high concept for anyone to get and I am a creative and no one gets me so come on out and work for free which isn’t free because I give beer, pizza, copy, and credit.” REALLY? Are we still doing this.
Hey, if you are reading this, I have a pop quiz for you. Without using IMDb, can you tell me who ran the boom mic for Steven Spielberg on Saving Private Ryan? Ten seconds…time’s up. You know who it was? It doesn’t matter. Why? Because whoever it was, he or she was working a job. One they probably did really well. One they probably love. However, there is no award at the academies for boom mic holder. There is no trophy for best grip.
No one ever got famous by being a PA. So don’t ever assume that your set is a privilege to work on. People need to be paid. Landlords don’t accept awards for rent, so you sure as hell better be paying people. Good intentions may get you into heaven (I’m too far gone for that) but it doesn’t feed someone. Pay them! If you have people in L.A. that are interested and want something from you, they will pay for it. If they don’t pay for it they are either not interested or unable to pay. Grimm was not shot for free. Someone pitched the idea and a budget was given. Then someone wrote a script, which they were paid for it, and then investors handed over money for someone to film the concept and prove that it was a worthy concept.
Now, I admit that I know there is a fine line for doing things to get experience and getting an “in” in an industry. That is why there are intern positions in so many businesses around the world. However, if you sign on to an internship it comes with a statement of what you will learn, how you will be trained, and what you are due to get out of it. Some internships give you consideration toward work if an open position is available in the field you are investing in. If you just showed up at a business and worked for free, and had nothing that was going to prove that you were working toward a goal then really what you are doing is working for free. Businesses love that. They will do it as long as you let them. Let me repeat that – THEY WILL DO THAT AS LONG AS YOU LET THEM.
Have I still done free work? I have, when I have decided to. When someone blasts a post for people to work for them (but there is no pay) I don’t respond. If someone in talking to me and says they need help but just can’t get it because they don’t have money, I may offer. I will say that if it comes to it, asking me straight up to work for you even though there may be no pay is a hell’uva lot better than “blind-blast” posts out to the world asking for the masses to run to work for free on your awesome idea. If it’s awesome, and people are going to put blood, sweat, and tears into it then pay them. Your set isn’t that awesome. Neither is mine. Cameron’s set…ok, yes I would work for free, but that guy sneezes money so I think he would pay me to hold his coffee just because he can.
The point is that an industry is built on standards that allow people to professionally contribute for a compensation. Compensation is not good feelings. Compensation is pay and health benefits. That is why I opened with the definition of Industry. If you want to do work, or want someone to work, for free then I get it – when it is little pieces that are about working on your chops, having fun, producing lit bits of experimental fodder that help you grow. If you are making something that is a festival piece, something that is going to be proving that you are worth the investment, then you need to prove to the others people around you that you believe in that investment by paying them. If you “blind-blast” for free work, it means you don’t care about the quality, you just need warm to luke-warm bodies schlubbing about your space. Even a PA is worth their weight in pay. A good PA makes things happen.
I actually saw a pair of Portland film makers state in their Kickstarter video that they were choosing Portland to film in because it allowed them to get a free cast and crew, and they won nearly $7000 for their short film. What does that say when two locals can state that they are filming locally because people are willing to work for free, and they still score $7K to pocket? Their video pitch went on to state that this short film was jump-starting their career. What about all the people working on their set? Who or what is jump-starting their career? If every jerk asked them to work for free to jump-start their own personal career, we would have an industry of actors and crews that were never paid. Please read the definition of Industry above.
There are a lot of people beyond our borders slugging it out in the trenches that are a better financial risk than we are, making it difficult to get people to invest in our work. Don’t kid yourself; we are an investment. No one puts out a ton of money without the desire of a return on it. Even with our own dollars and our own short films, we invest. Making a short film is paying the IMDb gods so that we can earn a notch of faith. “Believe in me, and invest in me, and I will create films that are worthy. I prove that because I made the following list of successful things.”
As Portlanders I think we are the recipients of an industry from another city. I believe the industry extends itself here because we allow for some great things to happen. For ourselves, we are still caught up in the Portland-style of doing things. That makes us quirky and ironic, but it doesn’t make us an industry (see definition above). Making us an industry means making choices. Choices in how we act professionally, how we are treated professionally, and what we professionally create. We have to make those choices as industry leaders, as individuals, and as creators of content. There are choices that need to be made for us to succeed if an industry is to be established (not created). Filming is not a new industry, and it is not new in coming to Oregon, but the fact that we don’t have our own film industry in Oregon speaks volumes as to how we have treated such industry requirements. No one will take us seriously before we take ourselves seriously. So we need to start taking ourselves seriously before we can build something remarkable here. Otherwise, we will be farming out the best of us to other places.
There are some rules in life that I am trying to adhere to, that I think are general, yet poignant and make life seem easier to digest when I realize that I probably screwed myself when I was bitching about how someone screwed me.
Rule #1: Subduction leads to orogeny (look it up, you will find I am right)
Rule #2: The tide goes in – The tide goes out
Rule #3: Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence
Rule #4: Figures never lie but liars figure
Rule #5: Big rocks sink fast
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Martin Vavra
galaxysailor@gmail.com
541-621-4825
Breckenridge Festival of Film recognizes local filmmaker’s doc ‘Patrick’s Story’
For high-rez press images, more info:
http://galaxysailor.com/patricks-story/
Another Oregon documentary is making waves on the film-festival circuit.
Martin Vavra’s doc “Patrick’s Story” has been accepted into Colorado’s Breckenridge Festival of Film.
“Patrick’s Story” follows a gay man, Patrick, who was removed from a Portland hospital as his partner lay dying.
Vavra explores what the word “marriage” means in our culture — taking a powerful look at the social confusion associated with registered domestic partnership rights.
Another Vavra project, “The Last Stand” — a zombie-apocalypse Web series filmed in Portland — recently won three awards at the LA Web Fest. “The Last Stand” has been distributed by three other Web sites and translated into three other languages. It will soon be available on Hulu and Netflix.
Established in 1981, the Breckenridge Festival of Film ( http://www.breckfilmfest.com ) is one of the oldest film festivals in the country. Breckenridge 2011 runs Thursday-Sunday, June 9-11 — featuring 56 independent dramas, comedies, documentaries and big-picture premieres.
Vavra is available for interviews.
For high-rez press images, a trailer and other press materials, click here:
http://galaxysailor.com/patricks-story/
[END]
Yes, it is true. A Deed without a Name is done filming. We finished our third and last night of filming this last Tuesday, and as of Wednesday I had a rough edit out to Jeri, the writer of the screenplay. I am cleaning up edits, replacing audio, looking at special effects, and looking at filming the next in about two weeks. I am really please with the way the film sounds, looks, and was performed. The people that were on board did amazing. A huge thanks goes out to all those that were involved, and I can’t wait to do the credits just so I can thank them again. With any luck, this will look as nice to others as I think it does, and it will be off to the races with it.
In the mean time, the next script is already up and ready to roll. It is a no budget jem, and it will probably take a day to shoot. It’s a little more than a one-off, but it won’t be much more than five minutes. I think it will be sweet. It’s intended to get out a little quick without the idea of a film fest, but if it fits the smaller categories, I’ll send it. It will be a small crew and a small cast. All in all, I think six people are going to be on this one. Should be great!
And, no, I am not hearing voices. Today. At this moment. I have to say though (I hope this isn’t narcissistic) that I kind of feel like I have “made it” in filming. I say that because I had some people on my crew that are, what I consider, the top of the game in Portland. First off, my Assistant Director was Susan Funk, who is just awesome and amazing in all aspects. Then there is Brian Mazzola, who shocked me when he said yes to being on my set for audio. Jerry Buxbaum came on board, and I was thrilled. These people are amazing. They are the pros of town. To me, having them on my set, even if it was only three days, was magnificent. This makes me feel like I have made it. Like I’m working like a pro. I hope that what I made lives up to them and what they have done for me.
Thanks to you all!
No, filming or film or filmmaking aren’t really dying. While there was a major shake up a few weeks ago with digital filming and Roger Dekins, I was referring in a very weird way to the recent filming I did in which a murder takes place. Whether accidental or not, it is interesting and fun to set up such a scenario and play it all out. It’s like diving into an odd place in your brain and exploring the nuances that you would reserve for people in bad traffic. Then reeling that in and finding the calm insanity that would make people flinch in terror for a moment. It’s new to express that aspect and I am hoping I will do that well.
I refer to filming A Deed without a Name, the short film I am working on from the script by Jeri Klein and myself. We have two out of our three days of filming done, and will be returning to film our last day very soon. So far, I am totally in love with this cast and crew, and I am feeling so amazed at the work that is getting done. Soon we shall have a trailer and some music, and then it’s off to the festivals if all goes well.
Speaking of festivals, I am happy to announce that Patrick’s Story was accepted into the Breckenridge Festival of Film for 2011. I was starting to give up hope that Patrick’s Story would get any recognition at all. The whole film has been a labor of love; one that I have fought for over a year with some of the most unlikely people. It has been a relentless pursuit to have people get the message. I am really excited to have this story seen, and I hope that more people will watch and support the cause!
The art of war I am referring to…well, it actually has a lot a meanings. Some of you that see me in the real world (not Facebook, twitter, or other such places) know that I have had an open conversation about a certain group of people that are bad. Bad people that I “worked” for in their film. I speak quite openly about their reputation, or lack of, their skills, or lack of. I caught myself the other day really laying the complaining on thick with someone, and finally shut myself up. It’s not always easy to practice your own preaching or keep in mind your own convictions. I have often said that your attitude dictates your actions. Admittedly, when I watch someone that, in my own hypocrisy, is getting something they don’t deserve, I get a little mouthy about it. That is a war that I need not perpetuate. The war is one in which I cannot win. It’s proverbial. The wrestling match with the pig, in which the pig likes it and you are covered in shit. The fact remains, if I choose to repeatedly put energy into my dissatisfaction with these people, I am taking energy away from where it needs to be: making more films.
You see, in the grand scheme of things, I don’t believe in karma as a cosmic balancing of all things good and evil. In the original Sanskritic, karma was defined as ACTION. If you partake of actions that are ill, you will most likely get caught or stumble on your own actions eventually. We’ve all been caught in that white-lie, now just imagine it on a more catastrophic level in which you care so little for the people in your path, or the tapestry of deception you create that to have that come back on you is a devastating act. That isn’t the universe setting you up for a lesson, that is you.
Along with the war of words comes the war of presentation. I am speaking of hype. Hype is such a dangerous thing. It sets up expectations for those skilled enough to create it, but it is a dangerous pit for those that are all talk and no action. I probably lack on the hype aspect of things, bu there are others where I watch and see all the talk. Talk talk talk. Just talk. Are you ever going to do anything? Will you please just finish ONE of your many projects so someone can see them. Just one! One completed action; a fiery hoop jumped through to show that what you say is what you do. This is a war that wages on constantly. I recently met someone on a commerce gig I was filming who was in from LA for a day. We talked and laughed at the talkers. The people that don’t follow through. The Hypers, as I like to call them. The similarities are carried throughout this industry and is not a Portland phenomenon. Thank goodness. I was worried.
Again, this is the conversation that takes away energy from the act of doing. To talk and have a laugh is one thing, but to worry and fret over these is another. I have made such leaps and bounds in the last two plus years, that to lose this to jealousy, or aggression, or just stupid mouthiness is pretty much the worst thing I can do. I have had some very fortunate things happen. I continue to work with some amazing people. AMAZING. It’s astounding the great people around me. To sacrifice them to arrogance or jealousy would be the saddest moment in my life. I can’t give these people up, and I certainly wouldn’t want to lose any moment I am able to create thanks to them.
I think that is good for now. I’m off to do something not sitting I think. I’ll leave you with my latest video.
[newsletter]
Well, fellow followers and travelers with Galaxy Sailor, it was a great Sunday night for us over here GSP Headquarters. This past weekend was LAWeb Fest, a festival dedicated to web series from around the world. This was there second year of the festival, which was created by Michael Ajakwe, a twenty plus year veteran of television and film. When I found out last year about LAWeb Fest but couldn’t get in I vowed to make sure I was on it by the first day of applications. This year, The Last Stand made it in, and was one of the top twenty web series to be named by LAWeb Fest.
The award ceremony took place this last weekend, amongst a couple of days of panel discussions, viewing of other web shows, and guest appearances by industry folks. Unfortunately, I could go, but Shawn Mesman (aka Tenison in TLS) lives in LA now, and was able to use my tickets. He sat in for TLS and was there when they announced our victories!
In all, we won three awards. I won for best writing in a web series, and best creator/producer in a web series, and Ken Webster of Innervoice Studios won for best score in a web series. I consider this one little victory on the road to whatever the next victory is!
Now, on to the new camera. Yes, I did get a DSLR, after all the ranting I have done. Why, you ask, are you such a hypocrite? That may be a Nature/Nurture answer, but the better question is why did I get a DSLR. In my previous rant, I stated that my issue really lies in the DSLR owner who suddenly discovers he has the capabilities to shoot video footage with his camera. My complaint was that an entire industry of people are rising up and claiming to know and do video or film simply because they have a camera that can record video. There is a lot more to it than just hitting record, and I am, quite honestly, angry at the number of people that have come to me to ask me to either fix their footage or tell them how the do video/film work. It’s my job, and I’m not going to do that.
At the same time, I cannot deny that buying a Panasonic Lumix GH2 with the 14-140 lens gave me more flexibility and better results than if I went out and bought the comparable lens package for my XL H1a. It would have been at least another $1k to buy the lens that the Lumix package came with, and it shoots great full frame HD. It is a fantastic camera. By no means am I now a photographer. Quite the opposite, in fact. I am shooting pics with it for FaceBook, but if someone tried to hire me, I would tell them to go to one of my professional friends. If they want video, well, then I’m the right person to talk to!
Now, for my rant. If you are uninterested in my soap boxing, then this is a good time to step away. If you are also a Firefly or Serenity fan, you may want to take warning here. As I am a fan, I am also a realist in that the people on the show are characters played by real people. While I may enjoy the character of Jayne Cobb, and appreciate the performance put in by Adam Baldwin, I also think he is a ID-10-T (computer folks will get that one, Adam won’t).
So here is the deal. I followed Adam on the twitters. He is a very active twatter, because he is a very outspoken Republican Conservative Christian. He hates Obama and states so all the time. He battles against the Democrats from the comfort of his home at all hours of the afternoon. He rages against the Unions who enslave us, while comforting in the fact that his SAG card keeps him well paid. Baldwin sent out a tweet last week stating that Obama’s attacks on Libya are nation building tactics, and that this act constituted impeachment level responses from the Republicans. Now, I disagree. I saw our move as protecting civilians, and I tweeted that back to him, stating “It is unfortunate that we cant see the difference between protecting civilians & invading nations. I guess that is why we are still in 2 wars.” Baldwin’s response was multi-layered after this.
First off, I do think we are protecting civilians, but I also think it is in an oil rich nation. We don’t protect civilians in a lot of countries, and I wish the world (not us – the world) would protect them. The US has a less than good record with who we choose to protect, support, and even influence. The Taliban were once our allies, as was Saddam Hussein. Most of the Middle East was a land of nomads, waring tribes, and feudal lords. After WWII, we started to divide these properties with boundaries, something these people weren’t accustom to. We left weapons behind, or gave some of them weapons to boost their strength in the region, but only so much. We placed people in power that were suddenly Princes and Kings. We allowed them to take our money and give us their one resource: oil. We have never helped these countries join the 19th century, let alone the 20th or 21st century.
Anyway, Baldwin retweeted my response to him, which includes my handle on twitter, for those that don’t tweet. Everyone on his side of the political spectrum and follow him immediately knew who I was. My inbox and my respond box was inundated with attacks from people. Claims of anit-Americanism, telling me to seek god, telling me I know nothing of history, international relations, or political policy. Somehow, I was engaged with people that were masterminds at all of these things, and they all happen to be following Jayne Cobb, the savior of Canton.
Baldwin went one better though. I giggled it off and wrote: “Haha I finally get RTed by a Firefly hero & it had to be political. Ur still my big damn hero.” Thinking that we had opposing political views, but we could still be movie star and fan. But the attacks still came from his followers. Then his response finally came to my big damn hero reply. He said to me: “Sorry, but you should apologize for ur ignorant statement and move on.” My heart actually sank. It was now a personal attack. The RTing was a personal attack to get his followers to come at me. For no better reason than differing views. I stated back to him: “I just have a different point of view on things. Shouldnt apologize for different points of view.” To which Baldwin’s response was: “Ur point of view is ignorant & not worthy of respect. U should apologize.”
My heart sank even more. Wow, Jayne Cobb is coming after me. I had to block seventeen people would continued through the day to respond to and message me. I sat on Baldwin’s statement for about three hours, and on the final minutes before I went to bed, I responded to him. In the end I apologized. I said: “Im sorry I looked up to u, sorry I followed u, & sorry ur and idiot.” Then I removed and block Adam Baldwin, the man they call Jayne, from my twitter account.
Here’s the thing; he and I differ on where our policies lie, but our hearts are in the same place. We want what is best for our nation, our people, and the way we interact with the world. We can argue our points, but they should never be personal attacks. I am making a general statement here, but he and his followers made the point hard to argue: republicans attack people who don’t have their opinion. That makes no sense to me, but when you are that narrow in scope, that limited in understanding, I can see where you would allow your fear to rule as a cudgel, smashing down all things that could possibly break down your pillow fort of reality. Adam Baldwin and his minion attacked me because they could never want to try to understand me, or believe that what I want or that my view is just a different path than theirs. That is what freedom is supposed to be. It’s about difference, about choice, about mistakes, about possibilities. Freedom comes in different forms, and it has different safety nets and different risks, depending on the person. A porn star is going to have a different perspective on the world than a person who has never had sex. You can never expect two people to come to the same place at the same time with their views on the world. That would be devastating and catastrophic, as well as just plain boring.
Adam Baldwin. You’re kind of a dick. I’ll still watch Firefly and Serenity.
[newsletter]
Yes, you read that right. Cow films. If you were in India, you would be filming a god…which is a cow…that gives milk…which is why I was filming the cow to begin with. I was recently hire to be the DP/Camera operator for a film involving the Oregon Dairy Counsel. I was hired by Kelley Baker aka The Angry Filmmaker. You may know his work because it’s angry. Or because you watched Finding Forester. Anyway, we shoot for two days in Tillamook, Oregon, most specifically on the days when it snowed in Tillamook for the first time in something like a million years. Literally, Tillamook has not seen snow since the dawn of the Pleistocene. That’s the kind of shoot days I generate. I have seen the edit, though, and I must say it look marvelous!
Our music video marches on with the last major day of shooting completed with machine guns being present in downtown Portland. I have to say this was a highlight for me. I had big guns in the streets, and I am quite pleased with myself. We only had one person who questioned anything, other wise, people just stared at us and kept going. The edit is rough and I am zeroing in on a final! When the band releases the video, I will have it out all over the place.
Now, as to scuttling your career. I don’t that I can say how to scuttle your career in three moves or less, but I will say that I continue to have lessons in integrity and value in what anyone would call LIFE. I have had some issues with a company here in town that owed me money for working. Months I have toiled to get paid, with no resolution. Oddly, as I look back, one of the first work opportunities I had in town was one in which I did what would account to be thousands of dollars in work, and yet I only ever saw $50. I pulled the plug when I recognized that I wasn’t getting any where. I had been accomplishing feats of ledger domain and semantic intrepidity to make myself believe that I was going to get rich or famous with what I was a part of. My attitude was in the wrong place, and I didn’t know it until much later.
I will say this. I think there are several people that I think are scuttling their credibility as well as there ability to make film in this town. I know for my attitude with that first group of folks that if I had never done that work, suffered through all that I had done, and persevering I wouldn’t be here today, doing what I love.