While Christmas may be past, here's a nice little piece of animation I came across. The Santaman was created by Pete Fritz and Mike Horan both from Ohio Edit where I've been working on a project. This little animated movie was born out of a job both were working on at the time and the inspiration struck them to create an animated short. Mike was the illustrator on the piece and Pete the editor. They used Adobe Illustrator and After Effects to produce the entire movie. Some music composed by Matt Dolven also of Ohio Edit. If you need any of your commercial work edited be sure to look up the guys at Ohio. Enjoy!
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Monday, January 09, 2006
Verizon Vcast - The Madden Report
Whenever it's been awhile between postings you can be sure it means I've been working...which is a good thing. Many posts over consecutive days is a bad thing
So in December I was hired by a large advertising agency to produce some unusual content, video for mobile phones. While I've never been a believer in content for mobile phones, there certainly is a market for it. Having just gotten an iPod with video for Christmas I've been enjoying my commute on the train to and from the city watching The Office from the BBC. The phone screen still seems a bit small to me and the quality of the content is not the best, but none the less the client wants content so we produce some content.
The Madden Report is a weekly mobisode where we take John Madden's audio comments about some upcoming NFL games and put some graphics and pictures to it to make it look like a seamless show. The shows have been running around 2:30 in length and now we're 5 shows into production I'd say we've hit our stride. The real challenge is how do you make compelling video when you don't have the rights to use any NFL footage? We can't even call the teams by their team names only by their city. Well thanks to Manic, the produciton company producing the shows, I think for the hard core football fan we've found a way of making it compelling. The Madden Report is second only to the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders for Vcast sports video downloads. We're thinking about working in some cheerleaders to our show. Only 3 more weeks of shows and then that's it for this year. So go out and get your Verizon Vcast phone so you can enjoy all the great Vcast content. Here's the show from week 16 of the regular season.
So in December I was hired by a large advertising agency to produce some unusual content, video for mobile phones. While I've never been a believer in content for mobile phones, there certainly is a market for it. Having just gotten an iPod with video for Christmas I've been enjoying my commute on the train to and from the city watching The Office from the BBC. The phone screen still seems a bit small to me and the quality of the content is not the best, but none the less the client wants content so we produce some content.
The Madden Report is a weekly mobisode where we take John Madden's audio comments about some upcoming NFL games and put some graphics and pictures to it to make it look like a seamless show. The shows have been running around 2:30 in length and now we're 5 shows into production I'd say we've hit our stride. The real challenge is how do you make compelling video when you don't have the rights to use any NFL footage? We can't even call the teams by their team names only by their city. Well thanks to Manic, the produciton company producing the shows, I think for the hard core football fan we've found a way of making it compelling. The Madden Report is second only to the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders for Vcast sports video downloads. We're thinking about working in some cheerleaders to our show. Only 3 more weeks of shows and then that's it for this year. So go out and get your Verizon Vcast phone so you can enjoy all the great Vcast content. Here's the show from week 16 of the regular season.
Windows Vista - Never before seen features!
Heard about this on TWIT and had to take a look. Now we Mac people have always known that Microsoft was never very good at inovating and creating original ideas when it comes to operating systems. Now here's further evidence of those facts. Thanks to Maclive for putting up the original postings. Sorry I can't find quicktimes to publish into iTunes.
Tuesday, December 13, 2005
NBC/iTunes Commercial
So last week NBC/Universal announced they are joining ABC and selling some of their television shows on the iTunes Music Store. Not only are they providing shows currently on air, but also some classic shows dating back to the 1950's.
Here's a fun spot produced by NBC promoting the shows in iTunes. Pay close attention to the ending where it says coming soon. Seems we haven't see the last of the TV shows from NBC/Universal.
Here's a fun spot produced by NBC promoting the shows in iTunes. Pay close attention to the ending where it says coming soon. Seems we haven't see the last of the TV shows from NBC/Universal.
Thursday, December 01, 2005
One Great Day
What do you do when you hire a brand new play-by-play guy for your Major League Baseball team? Take him for a tour of the city of course!
A few years back Cox Channel 4 in San Diego hired Matt Vasgersian to become their new play-by-play man in the booth. My friend Ed Roth, who's been doing the marketing for the Padres on Channel 4 for several years, had the idea to take him for a tour of the city with the color analyst and former Padre Mark Grant, to introduce him to the people. They make a great team in the booth and on the tour.
While I missed the tour, I did get to edit together this short little featurette. See Matt and Mark as they explore beautiful San Diego.
A few years back Cox Channel 4 in San Diego hired Matt Vasgersian to become their new play-by-play man in the booth. My friend Ed Roth, who's been doing the marketing for the Padres on Channel 4 for several years, had the idea to take him for a tour of the city with the color analyst and former Padre Mark Grant, to introduce him to the people. They make a great team in the booth and on the tour.
While I missed the tour, I did get to edit together this short little featurette. See Matt and Mark as they explore beautiful San Diego.
Tuesday, November 29, 2005
Shameless Plug
So it's come to this...
See whether you knew this or not, I'm not making a living by maintaining my vlog and posting fun videos every once in a while. That's why you might see my links to the right for my demo reel and my resume. Right now I have way too much time on my hands so I thought maybe if I get my little demo montage out there into RSS land, someone might see it, have a need for my services, and who know's maybe get a little work out of this deal.
So here's the demo montage. Just a little something to try and wet your appetite. Much more where this came from.
The clips are taken from over 10 years of writing/producing and editing stuff for television. The music track is taken from an artist called Bostich and the track is called Polaris. Click here to buy the whole track from iTunes.
I'm also available for Mac consulting, troubleshooting, tutoring and much more.
I am after all...THE MACDADDY!
See whether you knew this or not, I'm not making a living by maintaining my vlog and posting fun videos every once in a while. That's why you might see my links to the right for my demo reel and my resume. Right now I have way too much time on my hands so I thought maybe if I get my little demo montage out there into RSS land, someone might see it, have a need for my services, and who know's maybe get a little work out of this deal.
So here's the demo montage. Just a little something to try and wet your appetite. Much more where this came from.
The clips are taken from over 10 years of writing/producing and editing stuff for television. The music track is taken from an artist called Bostich and the track is called Polaris. Click here to buy the whole track from iTunes.
I'm also available for Mac consulting, troubleshooting, tutoring and much more.
I am after all...THE MACDADDY!
The Mac Hater
Okay so it's time to give the other side equal time.
Yes I would say even as a longtime Mac enthusiast, there have been times where I just want to throw my Mac out the window. In a paradoy of the Apple "Switcher" ads, here's one man's opinion on why not to get a Mac.
Once again I sourced this video from Google Video. Since Google Video only plays Flash video, I used a site called Goolge Video Dowloader to download the flash file. I then used iSquint to convert the flash file into a quicktime. This should play in Quicktime 5 or later. Give it a look!
Yes I would say even as a longtime Mac enthusiast, there have been times where I just want to throw my Mac out the window. In a paradoy of the Apple "Switcher" ads, here's one man's opinion on why not to get a Mac.
Once again I sourced this video from Google Video. Since Google Video only plays Flash video, I used a site called Goolge Video Dowloader to download the flash file. I then used iSquint to convert the flash file into a quicktime. This should play in Quicktime 5 or later. Give it a look!
Power Mac Cats
Found this cute video over on Google Video. You might need to like cats do enjoy this. Even if you don't, give it a shot. The ending is worth a chuckle.
Since Google Video only plays Flash video, I used a site called Goolge Video Dowloader to download the flash file. I then used iSquint to convert the flash file into a quicktime. Sorry for the quality of the video but as they say, "garbage in, garbage out". Trying to provide a version that will play in earlier versions of quicktime. Hope this works!
Since Google Video only plays Flash video, I used a site called Goolge Video Dowloader to download the flash file. I then used iSquint to convert the flash file into a quicktime. Sorry for the quality of the video but as they say, "garbage in, garbage out". Trying to provide a version that will play in earlier versions of quicktime. Hope this works!
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
Tiny Machine
Created by George Masters on his own free time and for his own pleasure, this ad for the iPod Mini received lots of play about a year ago. Thought it was time to bring it back now that the Mini has been discontinued. George, an obviously very talented graphic designer and animator was looking for real work in the graphic design world. By the looks of it he's found his place at Shelter Post. Check out this Wired article about the spot.
1984 Revised?
What would a Vlog devoted to all things Mac be with this classic spot from 1984. Groundbreaking at the time is was aired, it is still to this day regarded as one of the greatest commercials ever produced. Directed by Ridley Scott who later went on to direct Alien among other films, the spot takes a rather cynical view of Big Blue. Here's a very in depth article on the spot. Watch closely and you'll notice this isn't the same spot that aired during the Super Bowl in 1984 however. A hint: look for a certain mp3 player. 10 points for finding it the first time through.
Fainting Goats
A re-release from an earlier post but now in iTunes compatible format.
I worked on a marketing presentation for A Current Affiar. While the show never lived up to expectations (it's currently off the air) this one piece makes me laugh every time I see it. Who knew about fainting goats!?
I worked on a marketing presentation for A Current Affiar. While the show never lived up to expectations (it's currently off the air) this one piece makes me laugh every time I see it. Who knew about fainting goats!?
Monday, November 21, 2005
Millionaire Promo
Here's a 30 second promo just completed. This is a generic promo meaning it can run anytime and doesn't promote anything specific. The objective of the spot is to build excitement and to get people to watch the show. Millionaire and game shows in general are tough to cut spots for because there is no variety in the shots to choose from. You've got shots of the host, shots of the contestants and they're always framed the same way. Even though none of the contestants won a million dollars you might think they had after seeing the spot. As a matter of a fact, I don't think anyone has won a million on the show over the last 2 years. I cut this spot working for Beantown Productions here in NYC. Music is from a library and this spot is actually different than the one that will air. The client didn't like the most of the graphics so we pulled them out. I like this version better.
Friday, November 18, 2005
Editor's Best Friend - MovieLogger
Came across this new software thanks to Michael Horton and the LAFCPUG. I was actually in the process of looking for something like this for a client. Their workflow was very tedious; digitize source tapes into Final Cut Pro...make VHS with window time code of each tape and then the producer would log the VHS tapes by playing them down and taking notes in Word. There has to be a better way...and now there is! MovieLogger from Digital Heaven. Now you can log the quicktime movies after they've been digitized, create a text document of your notes and and XML file to import into FCP. The real bonus here is the XML file import. Once you've logged your movie, exported the XML and imported into FCP, your master clip will have markers for every log note. That is awesome! Now in the case of this one client, they have a SAN where all the edit bays share storage. But since the producer doesn't have access to this storage on their computer the solution was to recompress the media after it's digitized and put it on a server that they have access to. Everything translates and links back to the original media once done. MovieLogger is $99 and you can try it for 30 days free with some limitations. This is a great product!
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Sony Bravia Commercial
Now here's a cool commercial! Again, no special effects here. Just great visuals and a great music track. Check out all the details for this spot right here. I believe the LCD Bravia Television is only available in Europe so you probably won't see this spot here in the States.
So sit back, relax and enjoy the ride.
So sit back, relax and enjoy the ride.
Tiger Ball Tricks
Found this spot in my archives. I remember when I first saw this I thought for sure it was done with special effects. Yeah, that ball was just inserted and made to look pretty seamless. Wrong!
The story goes Tiger was just fooling around in between takes of shooting another Nike spot when the director and crew noticed what he was doing and decided to roll the camera. The rest, as the say, is history.
For those of you who play golf I'm sure you've seen plenty of people attempt to emulate this skill. I myself have mastered the bounce for about 3 or 4 times. Forget behind the back and between the legs. If I recall, this spot was the result of 3 takes this being the third. Amazing!
The story goes Tiger was just fooling around in between takes of shooting another Nike spot when the director and crew noticed what he was doing and decided to roll the camera. The rest, as the say, is history.
For those of you who play golf I'm sure you've seen plenty of people attempt to emulate this skill. I myself have mastered the bounce for about 3 or 4 times. Forget behind the back and between the legs. If I recall, this spot was the result of 3 takes this being the third. Amazing!
Saturday, November 12, 2005
Beantown Demo
This montage was created to run at the top of a string of shortened marketing tapes produced by Beantown Productions. I guess I love cutting to music. This music was actually inspired by the iPod Shuffle ad. The song is "Jerk it Out" by the Ceasars.
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
Creating Albums in iPhoto
Well here it is. My very first Mac video tip. It's a very basic tip for iPhoto users but one some people will find very useful. I'm using Snapz Pro X to record my screen and Final Cut Pro for editing and output. Please be sure to leave any comments or suggetions as I'd like to have each tip improve and to be of value to as many subscribers as possible. And speaking of subscribing, please do. Just click right here 
. You should be able to subscribe to my videos via iTunes or any other aggregator. Again thanks for watching!
. You should be able to subscribe to my videos via iTunes or any other aggregator. Again thanks for watching!
Monday, November 07, 2005
New Look
Just doing some updates to the look of the blog. I want to cutomize it more and find other ways of adding video content. I'll have some new material up soon.
Friday, October 28, 2005
Delicious Monster
If you've you got lots of books, CDs, DVDs or games you'd like to catalog here's a great program to do just that. Check out Delicious Monster. You can download a free demo and try it out to see if it's worth $40 to you. Very intuitive and visual. Enter the name of an musical group or artist and Delicious Monster will access the internet database and pull down album art and all the tracks for the CD and put it on you CD shelf. Very cool. Found out about this on MacBreak Minute. Check them out here.
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