After years of sitting through way too many banal, sleep inducing PowerPoint presentations, I finally could not take it any more and dashed off this missive which I originally wrote for my students. I believe there are seven crucial presentation design habits that will help you develop more engaging … [Read more...]
A conversation with Elaine McMillion Sheldon about Hollow
Hollow (requires Google Chrome) is an interactive documentary and community participatory project that examines the future of rural America through stories of over 30 residents of McDowell County, West Virginia, an area that is representative of many regional boom-and-bust economies across the … [Read more...]
Is Final Cut Pro X finally ready to be viable replacement for Final Cut Pro Classic?
This post is a follow-up to the "Final Cut Pro X for Final Cut Pro 7 Editors" workshop I did at Boston Neighborhood Network on Saturday, December 13, 2014. If you're still editing with Final Cut Pro Classic (my way of referring to Final Cut Pro 7.x or earlier) and sitting things out, you will … [Read more...]
Is the Audio-Technica BP4029 the perfect cinéma-vérité microphone?
In an ideal world I'd have a ninja-class boom operator with me on all of my documentary shoots, but short of that I usually place a wireless lavaliere on my subjects in order to capture the best dialogue possible while providing then with mobility along with the intimacy of a small crew. However, on … [Read more...]
Four approaches to structuring micro-documentaries
A micro-documentary differs from a long-form documentary in terms of length, structure, and quite often, purpose. While most long-form documentaries tell a story with a classic three act narrative structure, shorter documentaries require different strategies for structuring the viewer’s … [Read more...]
Some quotes on documentary, cinema, and art that don’t fit in a tweet
Several years ago when I was working on my MFA at MassArt I began collecting quotes related to my thesis work, and here are some of my favorites, in no particular order. Do you have any favorite quotes on documentary, cinema, or art that do not fit in a tweet? Please share them with me via comments … [Read more...]
Twelve essential documentary shooting guidelines
Good video is not the result of having the latest camera, support gizmo, etc. Ultimately conceptualization, good composition, smooth movement, and clean sound are the most important components of the shooting process. Here are twelve guidelines to assist your production practice and in your … [Read more...]
Smartphone Movie-Making Workshop Follow-up
On Saturday, November 8, 2014 I conducted a workshop at the Boston International Kids Film Festival at Tufts University, this is the follow-up I promised to post immediately after the workshop. I put together a handout (PDF) for participants with a listing of software, gear, and resources for … [Read more...]
- « Previous Page
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- …
- 48
- Next Page »