Site Archive

Fragments from The Conversation 2010 (March 27, New York)
Written by David Tames on March 28, 2010
Filed Under Business, Copyright, Distribution, New Media, Sticky, Web
1 Comment  

On Saturday I attended the “The Conversation” at Columbia University, a conference focused on “Social Media, Distribution, and the Future of Film.” Related material can be found by searching on the #convonyc hash tag. Here are my notes, not everything here is a faithful...  Continue Reading...

Sennheiser Evolution G3 100 Series
Written by David Tames on February 18, 2010
Filed Under Gadgets and Devices, General, Reviews, Sound, Sticky, Video Production
19 Comments  

If you want to go with a wireless microphone system, and you’re trying to balance between performance and price but don’t want to compromise too much on performance, I would suggest taking a close look at the Sennheiser Evolution G3 Series. I’ve been using the previous G2...  Continue Reading...

A one-case lighting kit ready for travel
Written by David Tames on January 8, 2010
Filed Under Documentary, Filmmaking, General, Lighting, Sticky, Tools
12 Comments  

I’m often asked by students, “what’s a good light kit for starting out” and I find it a very hard question to answer, because it really depends on what you want to do. There really is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all one case light kit. I find that most of the commercially...  Continue Reading...

Notables of the Noughties: 35 documentary films, 2000-2009
Written by David Tames on January 4, 2010
Filed Under Documentary, Films, Sticky
23 Comments  

It’s a special time that comes around every ten years in which we take a moment to reflect back on the past decade and make our “favorite” and “best-of” lists. It was a good decade for documentary films, here’s my own idiosyncratic list of thirty five notable...  Continue Reading...

Things self-distributing documentary filmmakers can do to integrate social media into their distribution efforts
Written by David Tames on October 22, 2009
Filed Under Business, Distribution, Documentary, Sticky
1 Comment  

Here are some things you can do to integrate a social media component in your distribution effort. 1. Get your own web site with integrated blogging functionality if you don’t already have one. If your current site does not have a blog, add one. The easy way to get started is to get a...  Continue Reading...

Seven habits of highly successful documentary filmmakers
Written by David Tames on August 31, 2009
Filed Under Documentary, Filmmaking, Sticky
1 Comment  

A while back I read this post by Guy Kawasaki and was inspired to write down seven habits of highly successful documentary filmmakers based, in part, on his post: 1. Tell an engaging story. It all begins with story. And whether your goal is to entertain or persuade, you need first and foremost...  Continue Reading...

Flying takes documentary form to new heights
Written by David Tames on August 27, 2009
Filed Under Documentary, Filmmakers, Filmmaking, Films, Sticky
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Flying: Confessions of a Free Woman is an amazing six-hour, six-part, documentary of epic proportions by Jennifer Fox in which we follow the filmmaker as she travels around the world asking her women friends how they construct and imagine their lives as she struggles to figure out her own....  Continue Reading...

Interview with David Redmon and Ashley Sabin about Intimidad
Written by David Tames on October 18, 2008
Filed Under Distribution, Documentary, Film Festivals, Filmmaking, Sticky
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Back on April 25, 2008 I had the opportunity to talk with filmmakers David Redmon and Ashley Sabin after the screening of their film Intimidad, at the Independent Film Festival of Boston. Their new film presents a beautiful and intimate portrait of a struggling family in Mexico. It observes...  Continue Reading...

Ten Documentary Films
Written by David Tames on August 27, 2006
Filed Under Documentary, Films, Media Literacy, Sticky
11 Comments  

I was reading a post tonight on DVXuser that asked: What’s the best documentary you’ve ever seen? and I was inspired by the challenge and made a list of 10 documentary films to watch that are worthy of both viewing and analysis. I can’t begin to rank what I would consider...  Continue Reading...