Untitled Test
October 22, 2009
A still frame from an upcoming untitled “test” for a TV series. The dark comedy was directed by my good friend, Tim Nelson and was photographed on the RED One camera, and this is a still frame from the shoot, made from a RED TIFF file. A fun shoot with an excellent cast and crew.
“Concert” The Foundation For A Better Life
August 15, 2009
Director Grant Baird and I have worked on a few projects together but until last year I never had the chance to work with him on one of the “The Foundation For A Better Life” campaigns that he has directed since their inception several years ago. (I actually had to turn down the call a few years ago, and it was difficult, and that spot turned out really nice… I just didn’t shoot it!) So this time I was available and I’m really glad.
We did 5 spots overall, and “Concert” was one of my favorites. As FBL says about themselves, “In this day and age, it can be hard to believe an organization’s only goal is to encourage others to do good—but that really is why we exist.”
For more information, visit… http://www.values.com/
“Lush” Lagoon Amusement Park
August 8, 2009
This years Lagoon television campaign, “Lush,” has accomplished what all television campaigns always hope to do… and that is deliver a message to a targeted audience. But these spots did more than that… they ended up generating overwhelming positive response and ancillary “buzz” from viewers, and not only a positive response, but these spots created an interactive connection with Lagoon’s web site for free music downloads, a music video, specialty “Coca-Cola” theatrical spots, radio and tv appearances (singer/songwriter) and ultimately a free concert… not bad for a TV spot.
Yes these spots were different… great concept, simple message, and were produced with a higher quality (shot on 35mm film, transferred to HD), something not routinely seen these days except in expensive national campaigns… so I was proud to be a part of this project.
Here is one of the spots that started it all…
Renowned Choreographer Merce Cunningham Dies at 90
August 3, 2009
Merce Cunningham (April 16, 1919 – July 26, 2009) was an American dancer and choreographer who was at the forefront of the American avant-garde for more than fifty years. Throughout much of his life, Cunningham was considered one of the greatest creative forces in American dance. Cunningham is also notable for his constant collaborations with artists of other disciplines, including musicians John Cage and David Tudor, artists Robert Rauschenberg and Bruce Nauman, designer Romeo Gigli, and architect Benedetta Tagliabue. Works that he produced with these artists had a profound impact on avant-garde art beyond the world of dance.
I had the fortunate experience of working with Merce on (3) film projects, “Changing Steps” (dance work created @ Sundance, with Robert Redford narrating), ”Cage/Cunningham” (theatrical documentary on the life and work of Merce and composer John Cage), and “Beach Bird’s for Camera” (35mm theatrical dance work), which premiered @ Lincoln Center in 1992. Elliot Caplan was the director on all of these projects.
Both Cunningham and Cage made extensive use of chance procedures, which meant that not only musical forms but narrative and other conventional elements of dance composition, such as cause and effect, climax and anticlimax, were also abandoned. Cunningham is not interested in telling stories or exploring psychological relationships: the subject matter of his dances is the dance itself.
His pioneering work in video and film, collaborating with filmmakers Charles Atlas and later Elliot Caplan, enlarged the possibilities of choreography for the camera. Cunningham himself is an imaginative visual artist, whose drawings of animals, birds, and insects have been collected in a book, Other Animals (2002).
Tour de France – “Wired To Win”
July 13, 2009
Since the Tour de France is currently happening and Lance Armstrong is back in the game and going for his 8th Tour de France title, I thought I’d post this photo of Lance, who just happened to be riding by our film set one day in the French Alps in 2005. One of our crew members knew him and called out to him, and Lance turned around and stopped his training ride for a photo with the boys.
“Wired To Win: Surviving The Tour de France” is an IMAX film about the legendary Tour de France – a 3,400-km, three-week bicycle race that has been called the world’s most grueling sports event, and the ultimate test of the human body and brain.
The film centers on Australian pro cyclist Baden Cooke and his French teammate Jimmy Caspar, two of the 200 riders competing in the legendary race. Just to finish in Paris, they will need to avoid danger, stave off crushing pain and fatigue, control their emotions, seize fleeting moments of opportunity, and stay highly motivated. It’s the brain that controls all of this.
Pictured with Lance (LtoR) Rick Page, Scott Smith, Myles Connolly (Producer), Didier Koskas and Ken Metz.
http://www.wiredtowinthemovie.com/home.html
The film concept was created by Joanna Baldwin-Mallory and was produced by Myles Connolly for Partners Healthcare of Boston, and directed by Bayley Silleck.
