I’ve been exceptionally fortunate to “meet” people from around the globe through various means – for the past 10 + years it has been increasingly due to an online presence, first on web forums such as DVInfo.net, and more recently via this Blog and LinkedIn.
I recently came across a discussion on a group I am a member of on LinkedIn which was an impassioned plea from a seasoned film producer looking for information on making the most of a Kickstarter pitch. A very well respected editor from Toronto, Canada weighed in with some excellent advice and I felt obligated to thank him and point out to the producer (who lives and works in New Zealand) just who the editor is.
Later that week, I happened to come across a very timely email from an industry professional I follow and sent that link along as well.
It’s all about sharing in the new Global Village of storytellers.
To that end, I’d like to share the Kickstarter pitch that started this new friendship.
To be clear, I am in no way associated with this project but I like seeing good people succeed.
As well, as someone who has willingly entered into long distance relationships in the past, the topic of the film resonates with me. I’d like to see this one get funded – it’s a great story.
Clicking “Play” will start the pitch video – in the upper left hand corner there is a “K” that you can click on to be forwarded to the Kickstarter pitch itself.
Please do take the time to check out the pitch – and if you happen to have some cash available to do some good in the creative world, please give what you can.
Many great men and women have been quoted on the topic, some taking the topic more serious than others…
“I intend to live forever. So far, so good.”
– Steven Wright
“I intend to live forever, or die trying.”
– Groucho Marx
I’m not a tremendously spiritual or religious person but this quote resonates with me considerably, probably because of the “humanity” bit:
“Nor shall derision prove powerful against those who listen to humanity or those who follow in the footsteps of divinity, for they shall live forever. Forever.”
– Khalil Gibran
I have spent nearly the last 20 years trying to leave the world a little bit better than I found it.
I recognize that there is an inherent pretentiousness in that comment but please hear me out.
Almost 20 years ago, something bad happened that forever changed the lives of myself and a friend and coworker of mine. Since that point, my own mortality and the sense of living with purpose became clear to me. I involved myself as a volunteer giving workplace safety and health presentations to high school age students in the hope of preparing them for the real working world in a way that schools weren’t at that point in time.
In total, I spoke to between 15 and 20 thousand students in classroom-size gatherings over several years as a volunteer with SAFE Workers of Tomorrow. I’m proud of that legacy although the time came when I needed to move on to making a difference in another way.
In 2001 I travelled to Brazil and Jamaica with a client of mine on a documentary entitled Home Street Home which highlighted street children in Recife, Brazil and Montego Bay, Jamaica and the aid agencies committed to providing services to them. In Brazil, we visited a garbage dump where children and their families lived in order to be close to their source of “employment”: selecting garbage from the dump as it was brought in on garbage trucks and carrying it out to waiting recyclers who would pay them for it. One young man said that it was a particularly good day when garbage came in from a bakery because then they would all have a party and eat the cakes and other sweets. Later, we met a young mother who, through our interpreter, told us she was afraid because she wasn’t able to find any food or milk for her infant daughter. Only later in the edit bay did we find out the rest of what she had told us (and the translator hadn’t): all she had fed her baby in days was sugar packets she found mixed with with accumulating water from the lowest lying region of the dump, where we were horrified to hear the biological waste from hospitals was unloaded.
These are true stories.
Shaun shooting from the doorway of “The Church of the Garbage Dump” near Recife, Brazil.
Not all of the important stories I’ve helped tell are from abroad…
In 2004, I committed to producing a video chronicling the effects of the untimely death of a young worker, Michael Skanderberg, during his first week of employment in the role of an electrician’s helper when he was electrocuted while working changing light ballasts. The video was produced after meeting Michael’s mother Cindy Skanderberg and talking with her about the work she was doing in talking to high school age students.
The video was released on April 28th, 2005 at the Day of Mourning ceremonies at the Manitoba Legislature.
The turnout was inspiring with labour unions, firefighters and emergency personnel, laypersons and politicians gathered in the Grand Staircase to watch the ten minute video called Michael: A Senseless Loss.
The video was ahead of its time in that it didn’t document in detail what happened that killed Michael.
Instead, I produced a video that examined the sense of loss that Michael’s family and friends experience as a result of his passing.
I felt that school age students, especially boys from socio-economically challenged neighbourhoods like the one I grew up in, were emotionally disconnected from hearing about workplace accidents. I personally always thought “that couldn’t happen to me…”
So instead, we introduced the viewers to Michael’s sisters, his mother (who in precise detail explains in front of a high school assembly breathlessly how her son was killed), his grandparents and his buddies.
Michael: A Senseless Loss Screening 2005 Manitoba Legislature Grand Staircase
The ceremony was open to the public.
Media were in attendance and we released copies to be included in the evening newscast.
Safe Workers of Tomorrow staff preparing to speak around the video.
Shaun C. Roemich with Michael’s parents, Bill and Cindy Skanderberg.
Shaun C. Roemich with SAFE Workers of Tomorrow founder Ellen Olfert and then Minister of Labour for the Province of Manitoba, Nancy Allan.
That day in the Legislature, our “little video” was recognized by the Manitoba Government in session. The record of this is immortalized in Hansard, the verbatim record of the business conducted in the legislature:
A few weeks later, I was invited to the Legislature gallery as a special guest when word came down that an amendment to the Workplace Safety and Health Act was being introduced in recognition of Michael Skanderberg’s tragic death. I was speechless when I heard my name mentioned in affiliation to this Bill.
You can rest assured that I haven’t stopped telling important stories since then. In fact, two summers ago I had the privilege of doing some oral history work for the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.
A video project I produced for a client of mine was recently awarded a Canadian Association of Labour Media (CALM) Award for Best Narrative Video or Documentary Series.
This series explores the issues that Canadian workers are fighting for around sick benefits, pension and parental leave. We also explore the involvement of the Public Service Alliance of Canada in the Idle No More movement and the efforts they make in supporting community agencies working to eradicate poverty, homelessness and establish food security for the working poor.
I’ll be honest with you – it isn’t the most lucrative business decision I could have made but I stand by the last 19 years of trying to leave the world a better place.
I did more than just show up for this life – I’d like to think I’ll be remembered for what I’ve done.
No… the title doesn’t imply that I spent my New Year’s Eve imbibing of the Green stuff that British Columbia is notorious for… I enjoy tequila and West Coast IPA beer and this year I didn’t even partake of those…
My New Year’s Resolution is to start shooting and editing in 4k Ultra High Definition (UHD) this year for projects that can benefit from it.
UHD is the “broadcast friendly” version of 4k – sometimes known as Quad HD because it is twice as wide and twice as tall as “Full HD” for 4 times as many pixels on screen.
3840 x 2160 or 8.29 million pixels.
The search has begun for the right production-through-post production solution for my business model – I’m not a cinematographer working on indie films; I’m a working videographer whose primary business is training, promotion and best practices videos along with not-for-broadcast long form documentaries. Run-and-gun is the name of my game.
Thankfully, I have some amazing friends and colleagues who are sharing their wisdom and the technologies they have available. Whether it’s my buddy Dylan at the local rental house sending me out with a RED Scarlet for a couple of days or Guy at DVEStore in Marysville, Washington saying “come on down” to try out the new BlackMagic Design 4k Cinema Camera when it arrives or my Sony dealer in Hamilton, Ontario offering to send me a camera to try to my many friends online (some of whom I have met in person) making all sorts of offers of support, moral or otherwise.
Dylan at Gearhouse Camera Rentals hooked me up with a RED Scarlet with Zeiss declicked stills primes to test.
I can’t even begin to imagine trying to go down this road alone.
I’m 15 years in as a working pro and I still get mesmerized by the options (or frankly, lack thereof…) available to the shooter of today. I can’t even begin to imagine how someone who doesn’t have the years of developing and evolving a style, workflow, look and expectations to fall back on makes these sorts of decisions on anything other than hearsay or budgetary considerations.
Unlike others who are looking for that ubiquitous “film-style”, uncertain exactly what that means except a Super35mm sensor with cheap Stills glass shot wide open, I’m looking for something very specific – more of a high-end polished look with exceptional clarity and motion signature. RAW is an option for me but fast delivery leads me to believe the majority of my work will be in compressed 4k.
I know what my Money-Is-No-Object solution is.
Now I just need to find the Gateway solution – the one that will allow me to recoup my costs at a fair and equitable rate while still allowing me to offer my clients options. Something I can build upon.
I started shooting HD regularly in 2005 beginning with a broadcast documentary that took me to Germany telling a tale of economic refugees moving from Europe to Canada. We knew we would be downconverting to SD for broadcast but the higher resolution source footage looked great in standard definition. By 2007, I was shooting HD exclusively. I suspect it will take about that long to transition to a predominantly 4k workflow as the delivery stream is still in question. YouTube is now supporting 4k uploads but not very many people have screens much larger than HD right now anyway. Other delivery options are likely to mature before the demand is fully realized.
After much consideration, I’ve decided that frankly I don’t want to focus on Gear Reviews on this site – there are TONS of folks out there looking for hits by reviewing gear and this Blog was never intended to be that type of forum. On a case-by-case basis, I may choose to rant or rave about a piece of gear but my personal opinion right now is that far too many folks are focusing on the gear and not the process or the knowledge aspects.
<climbs down off soapbox>
Hi folks…
It’s been a transformative year here at Road Dog Media as we continue to try to adapt to a changing visual production landscape. I wrote earlier this year about my intent to leave the industry (and the follow-up) and while I still hold that my assertions are accurate, I have bought myself a reprieve through the continued faith of some existing clients who see the value in working with a messaging professional instead of a pretty picture maker and by launching our first ever feature length documentary.
But speaking of pretty pictures, we made some significant investments in new gear and technology this year. Some I’m still very happy with, others I think have lost some of their shimmer.
Over the next week or so, I plan on reviewing or commenting on each of the investments which include (in no particular order):
Livestream Broadcaster Live-Streaming Internet Gateway Device
The Sony PMW200 with mounted UWP Wireless Microphone and the Canon EOS-M got a workout on location while scouting in Mexico. Photo Credit: Wendy D Photography
It has been an interesting year with extensive traveling both within Canada by vehicle (I put over 13,000 kilometres on my Subaru Forester between July and November this year alone) and via flight to Mexico to gather information from subjects of our upcoming documentary. See what technology worked, what didn’t and what I’ll be replacing… maybe…
“On the road again… I just can’t wait to get on the road again… The life I love is telling stories with my friends… I just can’t wait to get on the road again…”
Things have been pretty quiet here lately as I’ve been keeping my cards pretty close to my chest about our newest project, our very first feature length documentary featuring a former West Coast Canadian artist who relocated to the highlands of Mexico. There is of course a plot twist…
But that is for another post…
This trip to Ajijic, Mexico in the Lake Chapala region was a research and fact-finding mission primarily. Of course, I brought a couple of toys with me because that’s what I do…
Me, the Sony PMW200 and my trusty hat near the lakeshore in Ajijic, Mexico. Photo Credit: Wendy D Photography
The obligatory wicker hat kept me “working” in the direct sun but otherwise completely habitable lakeside city.
This trip was as much of a gear test for me as it was a fact-finding mission. The 4 month old Sony PMW200 failed early in the trip to back focus issues that took nearly half a day to resolve and finally got fixed when I was able to find a mural on the side of a business that the camera would accept as a valid target for its back focus routine. I’ll have a review of this sometimes awesome, sometimes frustrating camera in an upcoming post.
Canon EOS-M w. 18 – 55 kit lens Photo Credit: Wendy D Photography
My workhorse on this journey was the ever-so-slightly larger than pocket sized Canon EOS-M stills camera with 22mm pancake prime lens.
What a pleasure to have a S35 sized sensor in a tiny take-anywhere package. I’ll likely review this mini-miracle in the future as well…
As I’m able to share more about the upcoming documentary I will… until then, let me just say I can’t believe how all my hard work over the years appears to be culminating to make this important story about living your life on your own terms a possibility.
As well, “Build It And They Will Come” has never seemed so apropos as people keep approaching us and saying “what do you need and what can I do to help?”
And just to keep you coming back, here’s just a slight hint about what the doc will be about…
Walking in Ajijic Photo Credit: Wendy D Photography