I apologise for this post as it is in no way related to my film and video work. However, I really need to vent because I have just witnessed something that has really pissed me off. I make no bones about it I am an angry man a good 75% of the time and it is not because of any one thing in particular but a combination of things that get my blood boiling. One of these things is UK politics and this little video pretty much sums up what I mean. So please have a watch as Ed Miliband some how manages to say nothing in 2 and a half minutes.
Okay lets cut through the crap. Basically Ed Miliband does not support the strikes and he believes that the government has acted in a "provocative manner". His solution is to enter in to talks. Okay! I tell you what would be nice. How about the leader of the Labour movement actually doing some leading like the interviewer asks. Labour is still in part funded by trade unions and is supposed to represent the working class. Therefore surely Ed should be trying to come up with an alternative solution besides saying, "can't we all just get along?". I'm not saying he should be supporting day strikes but at least have the conviction to suggest how to progress. Instead, Ed rambles on bumbling and repeating himself like a Hugh Grant character. This is the best the Labour Party has to offer. Really? REALLY? Good luck next election.
My stance on the whole thing is that the public sector workers are well within their right to strike. In fact I don't think they are doing enough. If they want to take on the government they need to strike properly. None of this day strike nonsense. Hell a days strike at the end of the school term. Everyone knows the last couple of weeks of the school term are complete balls. My last week of every term usually involved me going on holiday a couple of days early. At Christmas as soon as the word church was mentioned I was out of there. I'm sorry guys if you're going to have me mime hymns and tell me fairy stories instead of educate me then I'm outta there. Sorry I got side tracked. My point is that their strike at this time means very little. Most kids are already playing truant anyway. If the teachers wanted the governments attention they need longer term strikes. I'm sure Cameron and Loki...er...I mean Clegg would take notice then. It's certainly better than Miliband's do nothing and hope everything works itself out approach.
The bigger issue here is the state of British politics. Labour the Conservatives and the Liberal Hypocrites are all virtually identical. To use a soft drinks metaphor (made famous by Jesse Ventura) what we have is a choice between Pepsi, and Cola, and ASDA's own brand. They are all virtually the same but which one you prefer depends on your tastes. It is a sad realization that in my life time our nation has become a democracy with no choice. What a complete contradiction. Having said that unlike the peeps south of the border I have a choice. With the SNP in Hollyrood there is a very real opportunity that an independence referendum will be held. This is an issue that I've flip flopped about over the years but now I'm 100% for it. At least the SNP have a leader with an ounce of leadership skills and charisma.
For my friends south of the border, I feel for ya. Having said that we had a chance to make UK politics more democratic and guess what we didn't take it. I'm talking about the voting reform that took place on the same day as the Scottish elections. I voted for it so I'm not taking any of the blame for that one. I'm kind of left scratching my head about who to vote for next election. I can't vote for any of the main parties or the three headed monster as I like to call them. Minority and extremist parties tend to be single minded in their policies. The other choice is an independent should one run in my constituency but that is not guaranteed. The only other viable option is for me to spoil my paper. Contrary to what candidates would have you believe, spoiling your paper is not a wasted vote. They are counted therefore it is a valid statement by the individual. You are basically saying there is no one who represents me on this list. I happen to agree with those who think it is a good idea to actually a box for none of above. This means that by ticking the box you are formally declaring that you are not represented by any of the candidates. If enough people vote this way then it identifies a deficiency in the electoral system that will have to be addressed. It's the Brewster's Millions approach to politics (video below). I know it is a comedy but in all great comedy you can find truth. If you don't believe me Youtube Bill Hicks or George Carlin.
This clip from Brewster's Millions is so on the money it is scary. It really highlights that when you vote for a politician you're not voting for policies, you are voting for a carefully created image. Wouldn't it be cool to see a guy running who dressed in casual clothes though. Someone who cut through all the bullshit and told you the truth? I wouldn't even care about their policies. They'd have my vote by virtue of them going out there and putting themselves on the line. It's certainly more exciting than the Ed Miliband 2000. Hmmm... Actually now that I think about it maybe that interviewer sent him in to an infinite loop. Whatever they do don't send them to Microsoft for repairs. They can't even make console that works beyond 6 months. Thats me for now. Hopefully next time I'll actually have some filming to discuss.
Friday, 1 July 2011
Monday, 27 June 2011
Nutmeg Shoot video
I'm feeling guilty about having a lazy night in playing Angry Birds so I figured I may as well post a quick update on things. Unexpectedly I've done a new video since my last post. How did this come about? Well like most things a combination of chance and who you know. Before I begin the whole story I'd like to thank Emy for her recommendation. I owe you a drink and a nervous hug (sorry, not big on hugging). Okay enough gratitude, on with the story.
Wednesday morning I was contacted via Facebook by Megan from evening wear specialists Nutmeg Couture looking for me to film a fashion photo shoot at short notice. My first thought was something like, "Me? What do I know about fashion? The only time I've ever been fashionable is by complete accident." Naturally I had to do it. So Friday morning, with my hearing still recovering from seeing Anvil the night, I head over to the Hummingbird bar/club thingy for the shoot. What followed was probably the best shoot I've had to date. Now I'm the kind of guy who obsesses about the little things ALL THE FUCKING TIME! To the point where I drive everyone around me nuts. This may not be the greatest thing to point out at a personal level but when it comes down to film and video work I think you need to if you're ever going to improve. I'm pointing this out because the Nutmeg shoot was the first time I can recall that I have not obsessed about some little mistake I've made. Now either I'm mellowing with age or I feel like I done a great job. I'm hoping it's the latter because as most friends and acquaintances already know mellow ain't my thing.
From my perspective the shoot went near perfectly. First of all I was surrounded by some very beautiful women so I would have to suck pretty badly to get bad looking footage. Secondly This is probably the best camera work I have ever done. Surprising since I hadn't operated in over 2 months. I've been in editing mode with Attica Rising and the Hammerfest 4 promo video. So coming in I thought I'd be a bit rusty. Obviously not. I'm really happy with the edit too. It's a lot slower than what I'm used to but it needed to be because the requirement of the video is to show the dresses off in all their glory. You can't do that with constant 2-3 second cuts. I think it does the job extremely well. At the time of writing this I haven't had that much feedback from peeps but Megan is happy with the end result. And if the client is happy then so am I.
The whole experience was something new to me and to be honest I was expecting a more student/amateurish set up. I was pleasantly surprised to find that everyone was completely professional and really in to the work going on. I was genuinely impressed and I admire the fact that Megan has the balls (figuratively speaking) to start her own business so soon after graduating. Watching the models do their thing too actually made me appreciate that there is more to the job than just looking good for a camera. To a degree there is a bit of acting involved in order to convey the correct mood for a particular dress. It really was quite interesting and again not what I expected.
I also had a conversation with one of the models (sorry I'm terrible with names) about the whole modelling thing and discussing how she was too short to be a catwalk model. This kind of annoys me a bit. Putting height requirements on any occupation should not be allowed unless it undermines their ability to do the job. In modelling there is no reason for this other than to fit some kind of arbitrary ideal put forth by industry trend setters. It's actually a form of discrimination and I'm willing to bet that the reason for this is down to the fact that a lot of trend setters in the industry are male. Lets face it when it comes to setting unrealistic ideals no one is better at it than men. I know it's not exactly my place to let my opinion be known but I have my reasons.I'm ranting about because it kind of overlaps with a future project of mine. That is all I'm saying right now.
Enough of my thoughts/rants for now. Time for the video so here it is.
Wednesday morning I was contacted via Facebook by Megan from evening wear specialists Nutmeg Couture looking for me to film a fashion photo shoot at short notice. My first thought was something like, "Me? What do I know about fashion? The only time I've ever been fashionable is by complete accident." Naturally I had to do it. So Friday morning, with my hearing still recovering from seeing Anvil the night, I head over to the Hummingbird bar/club thingy for the shoot. What followed was probably the best shoot I've had to date. Now I'm the kind of guy who obsesses about the little things ALL THE FUCKING TIME! To the point where I drive everyone around me nuts. This may not be the greatest thing to point out at a personal level but when it comes down to film and video work I think you need to if you're ever going to improve. I'm pointing this out because the Nutmeg shoot was the first time I can recall that I have not obsessed about some little mistake I've made. Now either I'm mellowing with age or I feel like I done a great job. I'm hoping it's the latter because as most friends and acquaintances already know mellow ain't my thing.
From my perspective the shoot went near perfectly. First of all I was surrounded by some very beautiful women so I would have to suck pretty badly to get bad looking footage. Secondly This is probably the best camera work I have ever done. Surprising since I hadn't operated in over 2 months. I've been in editing mode with Attica Rising and the Hammerfest 4 promo video. So coming in I thought I'd be a bit rusty. Obviously not. I'm really happy with the edit too. It's a lot slower than what I'm used to but it needed to be because the requirement of the video is to show the dresses off in all their glory. You can't do that with constant 2-3 second cuts. I think it does the job extremely well. At the time of writing this I haven't had that much feedback from peeps but Megan is happy with the end result. And if the client is happy then so am I.
The whole experience was something new to me and to be honest I was expecting a more student/amateurish set up. I was pleasantly surprised to find that everyone was completely professional and really in to the work going on. I was genuinely impressed and I admire the fact that Megan has the balls (figuratively speaking) to start her own business so soon after graduating. Watching the models do their thing too actually made me appreciate that there is more to the job than just looking good for a camera. To a degree there is a bit of acting involved in order to convey the correct mood for a particular dress. It really was quite interesting and again not what I expected.
I also had a conversation with one of the models (sorry I'm terrible with names) about the whole modelling thing and discussing how she was too short to be a catwalk model. This kind of annoys me a bit. Putting height requirements on any occupation should not be allowed unless it undermines their ability to do the job. In modelling there is no reason for this other than to fit some kind of arbitrary ideal put forth by industry trend setters. It's actually a form of discrimination and I'm willing to bet that the reason for this is down to the fact that a lot of trend setters in the industry are male. Lets face it when it comes to setting unrealistic ideals no one is better at it than men. I know it's not exactly my place to let my opinion be known but I have my reasons.I'm ranting about because it kind of overlaps with a future project of mine. That is all I'm saying right now.
Enough of my thoughts/rants for now. Time for the video so here it is.
Tuesday, 21 June 2011
LA Guns, film progress, RIP Isolysis
Well it has been one of those days. A total mix of good and bad. I met Jonny to discuss the Attica Rage documentary and the next steps while having a good ogle at Rufus T's red headed bar maid. Objectification of the opposite sex, ah, the benefits of being single.....uh sorry, got side tracked. Okay back to the meeting. The loose plan at the moment is for the film to be in a viewing worthy state by the end of next month depending on my motivation or lack there of. We want it out before Christmas so the Attica fans can stuff their stockings full of some Rage. Hopefully I can live up to this promise.
Unfortunately before the meeting I received some bad news via email. I had applied to do a Broadcast Journalism post grad course in order to strengthen my camera presence and interviewing skills because I have a huge man crush on Louis Theroux and would have his babies if it was physically possible. Oops, off on a tangent again... Bringing it back! Anyway, I got told I didn't get in the course. No interview, no nothing. Cheers (he said sarcastically). Apparently someone who has actually attempted to go out and do a bit of film journalism is not good enough to get on a post grad course. So if anyone knows of any post grad broadcast or investigative journalism courses at one of the Glasgow uni's can they please give me a bell. Probably too late now, hopefully I can get lucky in clearing. Anyway this bummed me out and as a result I couldn't concentrate on the rest of the night.
This was a real shame as I couldn't fully enjoy LA Guns, who were fucking awesome. Had it been any other night I would have had a great time. The highlight of the night was my mum stalking the singer for an autograph, after the gig. It was like a rat up a drain pipe. In another life she would have made a fantastic bounty hunter. Dog's got nothing Dot. Shit! Off on a tangent for a third time. What else about the gig? Oh yeah, I ran in to Neil and Sheila who were up to their usual stuff. I nearly got clotheslined by Sheila pushing her way in to the barrier thinking she owns the place with her photo pass. Grrrrr! Just kidding...mostly.
I was riding a bit higher after the gig but unfortunately there was another blow waiting for me when I logged in to Facebook. Isolysis are no more. For those of you who don't know of them, they were an unsigned band from Derby that had a tonne of potential. Bane's voice is reminiscent of Creed's Scott Stapp, maybe even better since you can actually make out all of the lyrics. Sorry Creed fans but Stapp is a bit unintelligible at times. Creed were my access band back in the day so its okay for me to say it. The rest of the band were solid too, especially Dan (in quite a literal sense). Man his guns make mine look like pea shooters, bastard. Sorry, sorry, a little bit of small man syndrome kicking in. In terms of my personal experience of with the guys, well I discovered them about a year ago in Ibiza (of all places) while I was shooting part of the Attica Rage documentary. I can't really recall having much in the way of interaction with the guys. What can I say, I'm a misanthrope (and I'm not kidding). I did enjoy watching them perform and was definitely a fan from that point on. My favourite memory of Ibiza was watching the bromance between Bane and Big C develop culminating in them imitating the Bushwhackers. I've got the footage, shame it was too dark to see anything and looks a bit shitty (damn Panasonic cameras and their low light performance). About a month later I had the opportunity to see them once again at my pal, Emy's, 21st birthday bash which was another great night. Making the effort to attend the gig speaks volumes and shows the type of genuine, down to earth, guys that they are. They travelled a couple of hundred miles to play for free for a friend/fan of the band. Do you think Lady Gaga would do that? Nah! Me neither. For me that night sticks in my mind due to me discovering a new friend, which is a big deal for me since I hate everything. Misanthrope, remember. Unfortunately we've kinda parted ways for now for various stupid reasons. These things happen, and again misanthrope. That's the last tangent I'm going on, I promise. In closing, I'd like to wish the guys luck in the future and let them know I will be cranking out "Condemned" tomorrow while I'm hitting the weights. In my world that's the finest tribute you can get. Also, I'll embed their music video at the end of this blog so everyone can check out what they missed out on. Until next time, cheers.
Unfortunately before the meeting I received some bad news via email. I had applied to do a Broadcast Journalism post grad course in order to strengthen my camera presence and interviewing skills because I have a huge man crush on Louis Theroux and would have his babies if it was physically possible. Oops, off on a tangent again... Bringing it back! Anyway, I got told I didn't get in the course. No interview, no nothing. Cheers (he said sarcastically). Apparently someone who has actually attempted to go out and do a bit of film journalism is not good enough to get on a post grad course. So if anyone knows of any post grad broadcast or investigative journalism courses at one of the Glasgow uni's can they please give me a bell. Probably too late now, hopefully I can get lucky in clearing. Anyway this bummed me out and as a result I couldn't concentrate on the rest of the night.
This was a real shame as I couldn't fully enjoy LA Guns, who were fucking awesome. Had it been any other night I would have had a great time. The highlight of the night was my mum stalking the singer for an autograph, after the gig. It was like a rat up a drain pipe. In another life she would have made a fantastic bounty hunter. Dog's got nothing Dot. Shit! Off on a tangent for a third time. What else about the gig? Oh yeah, I ran in to Neil and Sheila who were up to their usual stuff. I nearly got clotheslined by Sheila pushing her way in to the barrier thinking she owns the place with her photo pass. Grrrrr! Just kidding...mostly.
I was riding a bit higher after the gig but unfortunately there was another blow waiting for me when I logged in to Facebook. Isolysis are no more. For those of you who don't know of them, they were an unsigned band from Derby that had a tonne of potential. Bane's voice is reminiscent of Creed's Scott Stapp, maybe even better since you can actually make out all of the lyrics. Sorry Creed fans but Stapp is a bit unintelligible at times. Creed were my access band back in the day so its okay for me to say it. The rest of the band were solid too, especially Dan (in quite a literal sense). Man his guns make mine look like pea shooters, bastard. Sorry, sorry, a little bit of small man syndrome kicking in. In terms of my personal experience of with the guys, well I discovered them about a year ago in Ibiza (of all places) while I was shooting part of the Attica Rage documentary. I can't really recall having much in the way of interaction with the guys. What can I say, I'm a misanthrope (and I'm not kidding). I did enjoy watching them perform and was definitely a fan from that point on. My favourite memory of Ibiza was watching the bromance between Bane and Big C develop culminating in them imitating the Bushwhackers. I've got the footage, shame it was too dark to see anything and looks a bit shitty (damn Panasonic cameras and their low light performance). About a month later I had the opportunity to see them once again at my pal, Emy's, 21st birthday bash which was another great night. Making the effort to attend the gig speaks volumes and shows the type of genuine, down to earth, guys that they are. They travelled a couple of hundred miles to play for free for a friend/fan of the band. Do you think Lady Gaga would do that? Nah! Me neither. For me that night sticks in my mind due to me discovering a new friend, which is a big deal for me since I hate everything. Misanthrope, remember. Unfortunately we've kinda parted ways for now for various stupid reasons. These things happen, and again misanthrope. That's the last tangent I'm going on, I promise. In closing, I'd like to wish the guys luck in the future and let them know I will be cranking out "Condemned" tomorrow while I'm hitting the weights. In my world that's the finest tribute you can get. Also, I'll embed their music video at the end of this blog so everyone can check out what they missed out on. Until next time, cheers.
Friday, 10 June 2011
Update
I'm just back from a day out in Glasgow meeting with the awesome Michael Sherrington, and having dinner with Simon Brown the not so awesome Calum MacPhail. I really should be editing but I'm too tired so I'll rant instead. Okay, first an update on the Attica Rage documentary. Right now I've still got some sit down interviews and some introductory reshoots to do but I've got enough there that I am progressing through editing at a decent pace. This is thanks to having a system that can deal with a project file which contains more that 150 hours worth of footage consisting of over 5000 clips. If anyone tells you that film making is easy then they are an idiot simple as. What I've got so far I'm kind of happy with, or as happy as I can be with it. As anyone who knows me will agree, I don't do happy. I'm hoping to get a rough cut done for the end of July. No promises though.
Still on the subject of Attica Rage. Anyone who reads Metal Hammer will know that the opening track, "36 Insane", from their new album, "Road Dog" is featured on this months cover disc. As a complete surprise to me, Jonny asked me to prepare a video to mark this event only 4 days before the issue release. Thanks for the notice Jonny, ko. Any way I chucked together a video in about a day that I think looks pretty good for what was a days work. I managed to give Magic Bullet Mojo a test on it and I have to admit it's a great wee plug in. It's especially effective of regaining detail in some over exposed footage. Very impressive tool but I expect nothing less from Magic Bullet. The video is below.
In other news I'm posting my honours year documentary, "Combat", exclusively on my website (www.colinwoodmedia.com) right now for everyone to watch and laugh at. If you want to see me completely humbled you should give it a watch. This film is a very significant step for me as I am extremely camera shy and am confronting this fear in this video. I plan on doing more of this style film in order to develop as a personality and also confront subjects that I care a lot about. Again, anyone who knows me and has had heard me rant can probably guess some of these. What can I say the world pisses me off. I blame all those pesky people.
Still on the subject of being pissed off, I'd like to take a minute to offer my condolences to my former colleagues at Haldanes in Larkhall. I hope you all find employment soon and become better off as a result of the company going in to administration. I've heard a lot of rumours going around about the management "shafting" the work force and taking their money and running. I'm sure this is just bitter ranting from individuals feeling cheated by the situation. I've been doing my reading on the whole situation and I highly doubt this is the case. There is not a business man on this earth who would set up a company with a substantial amount of his own money, in order to intentionally let it fail. That just seems plain dumb to me. Here is my take on the story. Basically Haldanes sued the Co-op based on them producing inaccurate data on the performance of certain stores when Haldanes purchased them and Co-op counter sued them for unpaid rent. Whether this is true or not we don't know but I would tend to believe it because I can see what the Co-op would have to gain as a result. By offering up fraudulent data on selected stores performance they would essentially be cutting Haldanes legs out from under them, setting them on a road to ruin before they even got going. With the failure of these stores the Co-op would potentially enjoy greater profits as they become the only game in town, creating a monopoly for a brief period until another company moves in. Unfortunately the victims are the poor Haldanes employees. But this is always the case in business. Faceless corporations have never and will never care about their employees because at the end of the day its all about turning a profit. Speaking as a former employee of the company I have to say that this is not really a surprising turn of events but it is a real shame and my heart goes out to you all.
I also heard through the grape vine that members of the public are coming in and giving abuse to the staff of Haldanes saying things like, "It's about time" and "I didn't think it would last this long". I am seriously enraged by this lack of empathy. How would these people like to lose their job... or their welfare. Seriously what kind of human being takes pleasure in someone losing their job. Quite frankly these people are a waste of fucking skin and I am ashamed to share a town with them.
There is a much broader subject at hand here which must be tackled and that is the power that companies like ASDA, Tescos and the Co-op wield. I put all this together during a discussion with a friend and mentor today. These corporations are destroying small businesses on our high streets. We can bitch and moan about the death of the high street all we want but the fact is this not their fault. It is OURS. These stores hook us in with their BOGOF deals and their convenience and we buy their goods like good little consumers. The price we pay is the death of the local butchers and local fruit and veg store. Unfortunately we live in a society of convenience. We want everything as cheaply and conveniently as possible because we are lazy and to an extend brain washed by these supermarket giants. I for one choose to shop at a butchers and from now on I will endeavour to shop at a fruit and veg shop whenever possible because at the end of the day as consumers it is OUR shopping habits that lead to these unethical companies destroying our high streets and employment opportunities. I urge everyone who reads this to do the same, even although you've probably branded me a nut by now. I don't want to see a country dominated by ASDA and Tesco's. It's like only having the choice of Coca Cola or Pepsi. One's slightly sweeter than the other but at the end of the day they are both still the same. When there is no high street left and all you have is ASDA and Tesco what is to stop them hiking prices and hurting your wallet? The answer, absolutely nothing. Where else are you going to shop? And we have no right to complain because at the end of the day we CHOOSE to shop with them and give them even more power. Call me a self righteous dick for getting up on my soapbox and saying this but it doesn't make me any less right.
That's enough ranting for one blog. Hopefully It'll be a little more light. hearted next time. Cheers.
Still on the subject of Attica Rage. Anyone who reads Metal Hammer will know that the opening track, "36 Insane", from their new album, "Road Dog" is featured on this months cover disc. As a complete surprise to me, Jonny asked me to prepare a video to mark this event only 4 days before the issue release. Thanks for the notice Jonny, ko. Any way I chucked together a video in about a day that I think looks pretty good for what was a days work. I managed to give Magic Bullet Mojo a test on it and I have to admit it's a great wee plug in. It's especially effective of regaining detail in some over exposed footage. Very impressive tool but I expect nothing less from Magic Bullet. The video is below.
In other news I'm posting my honours year documentary, "Combat", exclusively on my website (www.colinwoodmedia.com) right now for everyone to watch and laugh at. If you want to see me completely humbled you should give it a watch. This film is a very significant step for me as I am extremely camera shy and am confronting this fear in this video. I plan on doing more of this style film in order to develop as a personality and also confront subjects that I care a lot about. Again, anyone who knows me and has had heard me rant can probably guess some of these. What can I say the world pisses me off. I blame all those pesky people.
Still on the subject of being pissed off, I'd like to take a minute to offer my condolences to my former colleagues at Haldanes in Larkhall. I hope you all find employment soon and become better off as a result of the company going in to administration. I've heard a lot of rumours going around about the management "shafting" the work force and taking their money and running. I'm sure this is just bitter ranting from individuals feeling cheated by the situation. I've been doing my reading on the whole situation and I highly doubt this is the case. There is not a business man on this earth who would set up a company with a substantial amount of his own money, in order to intentionally let it fail. That just seems plain dumb to me. Here is my take on the story. Basically Haldanes sued the Co-op based on them producing inaccurate data on the performance of certain stores when Haldanes purchased them and Co-op counter sued them for unpaid rent. Whether this is true or not we don't know but I would tend to believe it because I can see what the Co-op would have to gain as a result. By offering up fraudulent data on selected stores performance they would essentially be cutting Haldanes legs out from under them, setting them on a road to ruin before they even got going. With the failure of these stores the Co-op would potentially enjoy greater profits as they become the only game in town, creating a monopoly for a brief period until another company moves in. Unfortunately the victims are the poor Haldanes employees. But this is always the case in business. Faceless corporations have never and will never care about their employees because at the end of the day its all about turning a profit. Speaking as a former employee of the company I have to say that this is not really a surprising turn of events but it is a real shame and my heart goes out to you all.
I also heard through the grape vine that members of the public are coming in and giving abuse to the staff of Haldanes saying things like, "It's about time" and "I didn't think it would last this long". I am seriously enraged by this lack of empathy. How would these people like to lose their job... or their welfare. Seriously what kind of human being takes pleasure in someone losing their job. Quite frankly these people are a waste of fucking skin and I am ashamed to share a town with them.
There is a much broader subject at hand here which must be tackled and that is the power that companies like ASDA, Tescos and the Co-op wield. I put all this together during a discussion with a friend and mentor today. These corporations are destroying small businesses on our high streets. We can bitch and moan about the death of the high street all we want but the fact is this not their fault. It is OURS. These stores hook us in with their BOGOF deals and their convenience and we buy their goods like good little consumers. The price we pay is the death of the local butchers and local fruit and veg store. Unfortunately we live in a society of convenience. We want everything as cheaply and conveniently as possible because we are lazy and to an extend brain washed by these supermarket giants. I for one choose to shop at a butchers and from now on I will endeavour to shop at a fruit and veg shop whenever possible because at the end of the day as consumers it is OUR shopping habits that lead to these unethical companies destroying our high streets and employment opportunities. I urge everyone who reads this to do the same, even although you've probably branded me a nut by now. I don't want to see a country dominated by ASDA and Tesco's. It's like only having the choice of Coca Cola or Pepsi. One's slightly sweeter than the other but at the end of the day they are both still the same. When there is no high street left and all you have is ASDA and Tesco what is to stop them hiking prices and hurting your wallet? The answer, absolutely nothing. Where else are you going to shop? And we have no right to complain because at the end of the day we CHOOSE to shop with them and give them even more power. Call me a self righteous dick for getting up on my soapbox and saying this but it doesn't make me any less right.
That's enough ranting for one blog. Hopefully It'll be a little more light. hearted next time. Cheers.
Tuesday, 17 May 2011
Wedding Video & Attica Rising & Nae mare Uni
As of writing this I am awaiting my results for degree number two. That's right, I am officially twice as unemployable as everyone else. Just aswell I have some commissions coming in to keep me going. To sum up my time studying film at university I'd have to say that it was a little disappointing. I find that I've done more for myself off of my own back than the university has for me. In fact the only lecture who gave me a bit of experience in the industry, as well as a corporate video job, has never officially taught me. I found a lot of the theory classes useful in broadening my knowledge of cinema but on the whole the practical classes were a disappointment. It's even more gutting to discover that next year's students will be getting all new gear to play with in addition to a new campus. Bloody typical. Anyway the university showcase is next week and I've been nominated for the second year in a row in the documentary category. So we'll see how that turns out.
A couple of months ago I shot my first wedding video along with my bro and Calum MacPhail. I have to say that it went quite well. The bride turned up, the wedding took place and everything got filmed. It was done in HD using DSLR's so the footage looks nice. It sounded good too. For a first wedding I have to say it is pretty damn good. If you don't believe me, I've stuck together a wee compilation video of the day for all to see. Here take a look:
What else have I been up to? Well, I'm now starting to concentrate on editing the Attica Rage documentary. I had Jonny and Big C come out to mine last week to film a round of sitdown interviews. I've started logging them and placing them in the edit. I'm hoping to get Richie and Bell done next week before the band go out to Ibiza for some pure mad clubbing. I went last year and I still have nightmares about it. Anyway, I'm aiming to have a decent edit done by early July with a near complete edit by August. I predict a stressful time ahead and if I'm being a dick you'll probably not notice since I am pretty much all the time anyway. Where the film goes from there I don't know. Hopefully a DVD release or something but I want it done before I even think of that far ahead.
So until my next update that's me done.
A couple of months ago I shot my first wedding video along with my bro and Calum MacPhail. I have to say that it went quite well. The bride turned up, the wedding took place and everything got filmed. It was done in HD using DSLR's so the footage looks nice. It sounded good too. For a first wedding I have to say it is pretty damn good. If you don't believe me, I've stuck together a wee compilation video of the day for all to see. Here take a look:
What else have I been up to? Well, I'm now starting to concentrate on editing the Attica Rage documentary. I had Jonny and Big C come out to mine last week to film a round of sitdown interviews. I've started logging them and placing them in the edit. I'm hoping to get Richie and Bell done next week before the band go out to Ibiza for some pure mad clubbing. I went last year and I still have nightmares about it. Anyway, I'm aiming to have a decent edit done by early July with a near complete edit by August. I predict a stressful time ahead and if I'm being a dick you'll probably not notice since I am pretty much all the time anyway. Where the film goes from there I don't know. Hopefully a DVD release or something but I want it done before I even think of that far ahead.
So until my next update that's me done.
Thursday, 24 March 2011
Hammerfest 3 and Attica Rage documentary
Hammerfest came and went last weekend, and was a blinding success for the band. Attica had a pretty impressive set with dancers and fireworks. This resulted in me gettin burned by sparks and getting doused in kerosene, leaving me kinda stinky for the rest of the night. At this point in time I haven't had a look at the footage due to being busy with University work but I think the footage will turn out well enough to finish the film in style. So with the festival filming and all that out of the way that is my filming commitments complete with the band. So without getting too sentimental (because lets face it - I don't do that) I'd like to take the time to thank everyone who's been involved in my life, filming and beyond, over the past 18 months.
First off I would like to thank the band, Jonny, Richie, Stevie and Big C for agreeing to take part in the project and have a camera shuvved in their faces over the past 18 months. Rather you guys than me. Hopefully it will all be worthwhile in the end.
Next up is the Attica family. Alan, Gem (for keeping Big C in check), Suz (for the jokes), Linda (for mothering me), Emy, Christie, Lisa (for the wrestling banter), Simon, Petrina, Linzi, Donnie, Nick (for not killing me in Ibiza), Neil and Sheila. I'd like to thank you all for welcoming me in to the family and putting up with me. I look forward to seeing you all at future Attica and other gigs in the future. I'm sure I've missed out plenty of you but I could be here all day.
I'd also like to thank a few miscellaneous characters including university colleagues who have helped with filming Calum, Michael and Joe. I'd like to thank Roddy for helping me out on a few sound issues and giving valuable advice (I'll be calling on your services again during editing by the way). I'd like to thank Simon and Mick for helping out with the Hammerfest filming. Sorry about getting you covered in kerosene Simon. I'd also like to thank John Davis for all the access he has allowed me at his festivals and events and also giving me other opportunities along the way.
Last but not least I'd like to thank family and friends. First of all there is my mum and my little bro Keith. Without them pressuring me to listen to Ruin Nation the whole project would not have came about. I'd also like to thank Keith for doing camera work also. Now on to friends. I'd like to thank Michael, Greg, Calum, Alyson, David and Steph for putting up with me talking about this project for the past two years. I don't know how you did it. The same goes for my former work buddies, Johnny, Angela, Teri (my fake little sis), Danielle, Chris, Nats, Conzo and Golder. I'd also like to thank Jen (sorry we never really hit it off) and Gail (for being the best person I know and being a good enough friend to kick me up the arse when I need it). Again there are probably plenty of others I missed out but I could be here all night.
The past 18 months of my life have been a blast. Sure there have been a few ups and downs but on balance it has been a great experience that I wouldn't trade for anything. I can't wait till I finally put the film together for all of you to see. I hope it will meet everyones expectations. Until next time, Cheers.
Friday, 11 March 2011
Rebel Rebel web video & Attica Rage news
I've been quite busy since my last update. Before I begin I'd like to take this opportunity to congratulate Attica Rage on getting signed to Rocksector Records. It was an honour to be at Rock Radio on Tom Russell's show as they put pen to paper. Below is a video of their work.
I will be going to Hammerfest with them this coming week to document the album launch party and their mainstage opening slot. It will mark my final official outing with the band for the film which has been a long time coming. The next step is putting it all together and making it resemble a film. That's my summer planned already. Just as well I'm a social leper.
My latest small project took place the day before, "capitalism exploiting your love for another person day" AKA Valentines Day. The project invloved me filming a promotional day at Rebel Rebel barbers in Glasgow. Urban artist Conzo was there putting a design on the windows of the place. There were DJ's and Xbox Kinect which in my opinion looks terrible. Real gamers use joypads none of this Wii-mote rubbish. Straying off topic a bit, sorry. The whole deal for the weekend was basically free haircuts all day. The place was packed from opening and from what I gather it was a big success. It gave me an opportunity to get some more DSLR practice in and overall I'm quite happy with the end result. The close ups especially look great. Thanks goes out to Rebel Rebel and destrukt for getting me the gig. Here is the video.
Nothing much else worth mentioning. I'm busy being a shut in while I try and progress through my university dissertation and cage fighting documentary. Not long until I'm done with it all.
I will be going to Hammerfest with them this coming week to document the album launch party and their mainstage opening slot. It will mark my final official outing with the band for the film which has been a long time coming. The next step is putting it all together and making it resemble a film. That's my summer planned already. Just as well I'm a social leper.
My latest small project took place the day before, "capitalism exploiting your love for another person day" AKA Valentines Day. The project invloved me filming a promotional day at Rebel Rebel barbers in Glasgow. Urban artist Conzo was there putting a design on the windows of the place. There were DJ's and Xbox Kinect which in my opinion looks terrible. Real gamers use joypads none of this Wii-mote rubbish. Straying off topic a bit, sorry. The whole deal for the weekend was basically free haircuts all day. The place was packed from opening and from what I gather it was a big success. It gave me an opportunity to get some more DSLR practice in and overall I'm quite happy with the end result. The close ups especially look great. Thanks goes out to Rebel Rebel and destrukt for getting me the gig. Here is the video.
Nothing much else worth mentioning. I'm busy being a shut in while I try and progress through my university dissertation and cage fighting documentary. Not long until I'm done with it all.
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