New independent documentary to explore water, food, air.

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Here is the latest blog submission in our ongoing Media Match Blog Writing Promotion; ‘From a 30 Second Spot to a Lifelong Admiration: Rupert Sanders‘ by Media Match member Kimberly Ashdown. If you are interested in participating please send a 500 word blog to us-blog@media-match.com. If your blog is selected you will get a free annual subscription to our Media Match services.

From a 30 Second Spot to a Lifelong Admiration: Rupert Sanders
By: Kimberly Ashdown

I love commercials and I am one of the few who rewind FOR the commercials. If someone can make you laugh, love, hate or change your thinking in 30 seconds, I think that is talent; that is art! I recently saw an Absolut Vodka commercial entitled “Anthem” that was so visually inspiring to me that I felt compelled to do a little research to find out who the director was. Subsequently, I found out his name is Rupert Sanders and that he has a website showcasing his work. (more…)

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Independently funded documentary to examine the power and responsibility of world media.

“How to Build a School in Haiti is a feature documentary about two Americans who set out to build a school in rural Haiti. The film is a political, historical and social examination of Haiti through the microcosm of the school’s construction.” (more…)

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Our latest film and TV production featured role dives into the creative post-production world.

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Unsure what to give the film director / camera-person / video editor / TV fan in your life? Perhaps some Media Match ideas will help.

NTSC T-shirt

Beeeep. Geek is in! Share your love of the National Television System Committee color palette, vertical interval timecode and System M with the world! Ideal for a video editor, video engineer, assistant editor or all-round NTSC enthusiast.
(from $17 from Zazzle)

Vintage Camera

Add another dimention to a photographer’s artillery, and be prepared to lose them for a few days whilst they explore and experiment. There are many vintage cameras around, for all kinds of budgets, and the Polaroid J66 above comes all the way from 1961, complete with manual and case. Film is “Type 47, 3000 speed”.
($55 from Think Great Stuff)

Aspect Ratios Tote Bag

Express your x:y formats fandom with a 100% cotton canvas tote bag. Plenty of room to carry all your other aspect ratio related gear.
($14 from Cafe Press)

Camera Lens Thermos Mug

Perfect for photographers – imagine the look on their face when they realised you haven’t bought them a really expensive Canon/Nikon lens. That alone should be worth it, but wait… the fake lens cap doubles as a cookie holder? SOLD!
($29 from Daft Gadgets)

Director’s Alarm Clock

This LED clock is a petite movie slate for the director in your life. Monday morning, take 17! No, really, you shouldn’t snooze this alarm 17 times, there is lots of important Directing to do.
($30 from Urban Outfitters)

SDHC Memory Card

You can never have too much memory, or too many spare SDHC cards. These Transcend Class 10 cards can hod plenty of HD video, or stills, or both. Lifetime warranty.
($7 for 4Gb / $11 for 8Gb / $20 for 16Gb / $39 for 32 Gb from Amazon)

Editing-specific Keyboard for Final Cut Pro

Editing-specific keyboards offer flexibility and extra efficiency when working with editing software. This model, compatible with Final Cut Pro, has an integrated jog / shuttle controller, and extra USB and power ports for connecting an array of devices. Can also be used as a standard keyboard, and works for either Mac or PC FCP Editors.
($116 from Mac Mall)

Final Cut Pro X

You could splurge a little on one of the best pieces of editing software out there. The latest version of Final Cut offers brand new editing features and 64-bit performance, letting you be more creative and productive in post-production projects.
($299 from Apple)

by Lee Jarvis.

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We thought we would pull together some of the helpful videos out there on the interweb for all you writers, directors and producers. Tricks, tips and all-round career advice below is shared from James D. Brubaker (Universal Pictures), David Hoffman, Larry Karaszewski and Scott Alexander, Scott Dupont and more.

Filmmaking Tips & Advice

The Pre-Production Process

How to Build a Film Team

Advice for Movie Producers

How to Break into Screenwriting

How to Sell a Screenplay

Enjoy!

by Lee Jarvis.

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Katie Brillhart decided she wanted to be a DP in highschool. After attending Ithaca College for Cinema & Photography she moved out to LA in August of 2008 and she certainly has hit the ground running. Katie started her professional career working as a 1st AC on “Time Warp” for Discovery Channel. In between seasons she works at Pop (a delicious champagne & dessert bar in Pasadena). In her free time, she continued to network, work in a variety of positions on set, as well as focusing on personal projects.

In December of 2009 that hard work started to pay off. Katie landed her first real paid gig as Director of Photography for a short independent film called “Mon Pere My Curse”. Two private investors commissioned the project and there were about 15 crew members for the 3 day shoot.

How did you land the gig?
KB: After working as the Cinematographer of the feature “Jesus People,” I ended up becoming pretty good friends with the producer who was a friend of Steve Curtis (the director/writer of Mon Pere My Curse). I was recommended to Steve based on the selects from my thesis I had shared. I loved Steve’s script and we got along really well when we met about the project.

How was this project different from other productions you’ve worked on or shot?
KB: The whole experience was very inspiring. It was the first project outside of my own work where I was responsible for visual integrity and production value of the project. It was also a leadership challenge. I got to be a ‘go to’ person on set and a decision maker. I had the opportunity to participate in the development of the project as well, which personalizes projects a little more for me.

How did it feel having a camera team at your disposal? (more…)

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Shortly before his death in January 2008, actor Heath Ledger directed a music video for the song “King Rat” by American indie rock band Modest Mouse. Released last week, the powerful yet dark video features a group of whales hunting for men to feed to baby seals. Designer Daniel Auber told The Times “it was very important for him to make a video that would make an impact. We needed to have the shock factor because if it wasn’t dark it wouldn’t be impressive, and if it wasn’t impressive nobody would think about what we are doing to wildlife in the ocean”.

King Rat

The video is available to buy at iTunes, and for the first month of release, all proceeds from the download sales will be donated to the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.

Lee Jarvis.

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My first production assistant job was misleading, to say the least. It was back in the year 2000; I’d recently graduated from USC, having PA’d on various student films before. But I’d never worked a true production, and as such had little idea what to expect. So when the offer came to work a music video with a friend of mine, I figured it would give me a good chance to learn what a production assistant job entails in a short amount of time (I was assured the production wouldn’t go over two days, unlike a film, which could stretch out over a longer period).

I showed up at a studio in Hollywood dressed in comfortable clothes: sneakers, jeans and a tee-shirt, as I’d been instructed. I was met by my friend, who handed a walkie-talkie and showed me how to key the various channels. So far so good. He then took me around and introduced me to his boss, along with some of the other production assistants I’d be working with. More importantly, he taught me some of the valuable lexicon I would need while working on set: “what’s your 20?” (where are you?)… and “ten one hundred” (I’m in the bathroom). Personally, I didn’t think I’d ever feel comfortable letting thirty or so people know I was in the can, so I figured I’d just skip over that part. But I got a kick out of saying “what’s your 20?”, and used it often that first day. I think I even started throwing in things like “ETA five minutes”.

Anyway, only once I was on set was I told what they’d be shooting: turns out Bob Dylan was filming a video of his original song from Curtis Hanson’s film “Wonder Boys”. Everyone was instructed in no uncertain terms that, once Mr. Dylan was on set, we were all to maintain our distance, avoid prolonged eye contact, and lastly, under no circumstances, were we to talk to him. Ever. I nodded, figuring it was cool enough that I’d get to see Bob Dylan in person. And sure enough, when he walked on set, it was a bit of a thrill that he was standing only five feet away.

I didn’t expect what came next, however: in between shots, to help pass the time, Dylan decided to practice. He started strumming his guitar, and singing songs like “Hurricane” under his breath. I looked at the other production assistants around me, and could see the same barely-suppressed excitement on their faces: we were basically being treated to a private concert by the man himself. I didn’t think the day could get better from there, but it did.

Because of my limited experience, I was plucked from the set and sent to work the monitors in the video village, the area where the director (Hanson), the producers, and the talent all gathered to watch the various takes; in this case, the talent included Dylan, as well as Michael Douglas, who was there to reprise his role in the film for some scenes with Dylan. My job was simple: press play and rewind. I took drink orders, handed out coffee and pastries, and then settled in a chair next to Michael Douglas for the next couple of hours. The highlight came when everyone wandered away except for myself and Bob Dylan; figuring it would be rude not to talk to him, I struck up a conversation and we chatted for about five minutes. At that point, I couldn’t believe they were actually paying me to be there! When the day finally ended, I walked away whistling, having had one of my best days in this city. This is showbiz, I thought to myself; I now have a PRODUCTION ASSISTANT job, and I love it!

Two weeks later, I PA’d a music video in downtown Long Beach, for some crappy boy band that no one had ever heard of. It rained… I was stuck outside, hauling cables and lights, from 10p.m. to 9a.m…. I made $75… I got yelled at twice by the psychotic 2^nd Assistant Director… and I broke my walkie-talkie (and nearly my hand) when some idiot slammed a metal pipe into it. As the rain poured down, I marveled at just how much I had been misled.

This is showbiz, I thought to myself the next morning as I trudged home; and I now have a production assistant job. Yay.

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