My Rants

DVX+Letus35 la !! If you were thinking of something else, shame on you. I need the support rails so that my Letus35FE won't snap off my DVX's front element as it is quite heavy. With the support I won't have to worry too much anymore. I am hoping it should arrive by sometime next week if I place my order tomorrow.

Cavision Support Rails

PLUS

DVX102B & Letus35FE



EQUALS



That is the DOG'S BOLLOCKS, I tell ya....!

(Note: Not actual picture. The adapter here is not the Letus35FE but it will look quite similar)

I have been toying with the idea of bringing my film making and digital cinematography to the masses for a while now, and I've decided over the Christmas and New Year's Break that 2007 is as good a year as any to do so. Considering I have a couple of projects coming up (Pusat Ehsan is the main one) and also having done some work for other people already (icklebooks and the wedding doco) I figured being able to share what I can provide would benefit both the people I am sharing this with (memorable events that are forever captured beautifully in motion picture) as well as myself (I get to learn more from doing more and more demanding projects). While there are plenty of different classes of projects to focus on, I've decided the 4 main ones I can make the most use of myself to people is in making Wedding Docos, Music Videos, Video Advertising, and providing editing services for people who want their work to look that extra classy (note: no cheesy transitions or music).

Wedding Docos
I have been approached before to shoot weddings but it fell through for various reasons (pricing, style, etc). I know that within the Bruneian market for weddings, the current approach is to have a videographer to shoot the events of the day and then just dump them onto DVD. What I am hoping to provide is to make that wedding day that extra special by giving you a pre-wedding video shoot that captures that special spark between husband and wife to-be. I have plenty of ideas on how to do variations of these, but as part of being an 'artist' (and a savvy enough businessperson) I'm keeping these ideas under the hat from the public at the moment. I will however work out various packages for couples which will cater to a wide range of clients with different pricing preferences. The whole idea behind the wedding doco is that Quality of footage from your special day will outweigh the Quantity, i.e. I'd rather have 60 minutes of beautifully shot and edited footage rather than 6 hours of mundane stuff of guests chatting , waiting in line to greet the bride and groom etc etc - you get the picture. I'd just like to approach this from a different angle and perspective.

Music Videos
Music videos and weddings go well together and I've done a few already to know this. But I would also like to open up opportunities for me to help local bands get their music out to the public. As Bruneians get more internet savvy, media channels such as YouTube will play a more important role in bringing the works of Bruneian artists into the mainstream and getting them recognised. There are quite a few musically talented local Bruneians who would be able to get even more exposure through music videos. I know that at least one local Bruneian production house has done a purportedly professional music video (I leave it to viewers to decide its quality) but I would hope that the work I can do would add additional juice to the songs from our local artistes.

Video Advertising
The world of advertising(as well as Music Videos) is a wonderful playground for film makers. This is where you can truly express your creativity by bringing the world of arts into the world of business together. I have looked at many an advert that is jawdroppingly amazingly shot and done that it just inspires me (the fact that some of them is actually done by my ex-house mate and good friend during our UK days just adds to this inspiration). Some have been classy, some have been funny, and some have been outright surreal, but ALL of them have been ads that inspire and evoke strong emotions from the viewers. While I do not know personally if I have that ability (my viewers will probably have a better perspective on this) my work on the Jerudong Park, and Icklebooks may be a good indicator. And when February rolls around and I have done the Pusat Ehsan Project, I guess judgment will be passed on this ability then. Businesses interested in making adverts on TV are more than welcome to give me a shout and I can do my best to convey the emotion you would like to come across in those ads. Note: Isn't Jerudong Park coming up with some new rides? Wouldn't it be amazing if I had the chance to promote those new rides through my work? Food for thought.

Professional Video Editing
Many might think that shooting footages is all there is to a movie, but for me, getting the footage is only HALF the story. The ability for a director to tell a good story is in the editing process: Is it to long? Is it too slow? Is it fast paced? Is this in the right sequence? Can I tell this story differently? Directors of blockbuster movies sometimes have BIG BIG clashes with their editors because of creative differences because editing is in a way an enabler for the director to achieve his/her vision (at least that's what I think). Now perhaps I might have gotten a *little* carried away by including Professional in my Video Editing abilities, but I'm learning and trying to be one (Apple Certified Editor - A.C.E.) in the long term if I get a chance. I am not sure what it even involves but as long as one has a dream, it can happen (abit off a tangent so back to what I was saying). I am hoping that people who have some footage (either their weddings, travel videos, birthday videos, corporate events, etc.) I will be able to help them build a coherent story into their video through my editing to make it a little more special.

I am hoping to hear from all of you. I hope I'll be able to make some of your memorable moments extra special. (note: this posting is taking me longer to write and post than expected and I'd like to get back to playing with my daughter now..)

As promised, here's the pre-wedding video I mentioned to you about which I shot a couple of weeks ago. It was done for Yusra and Dahlia who got married on the 1st of January 2007 and I promised them I would only put this up into public domain after they have shown it at their wedding. I shot this at Empire Hotel for just under 45 minutes of raw footage edited into a 10 minute clip. You'll see a 6 minute interview followed by a 4 minute wedding music video with the couple. This short clip was transferred onto DVD for the couple and was shown during the reception on a big screen with a projector. I don't know the couple per se but the groom is the son of a colleague and friend of mine so when she mentioned her son was getting married, I offered to help shoot the video for them as a favour.

Couples and Husband&Wives-to be, if any of you are interested in doing something similar, just email me. After having done this video, I've got a pretty good idea on how to jazz up the next one with tighter editing, more raw footage and staged settings, as well as additional supers (text on the video) and motion graphics shot at different locations and times of day..

I made this short little 'film' last night while playing around with my Mac. Trying something new. I hope you like the idea (if not the execution!)

Edited: I want to thank Zam, BruneiForever and AnakBrunei who have kindly volunteered for the Pusat Ehsan Project. The Centre reopens in January to their new term which is when your kind services will be needed. H and I will let you guys know more come January, so please bear with us for the time being. Thanks again guys.

A quick update on the Pusat Ehsan project. I have spoken to the chairlady of the centre and we had a discussion on what needs to be done for the centre. I mentioned to her of photographers happy to volunteer themselves to this worthy cause (thanks Zam and BruneiForever) and she said that will be great. The centre is currently being audited to be accredited into an association (I think - don't quote me), and part of the audit and requirement for the centre is to have some publications such as leaflets and booklets on the centre. This is where Zam and BruneiForever come in! What the centre would like to have is basically a small library of images ready which they can use for their leaflets and booklets. Of course I did mention that credit should be given to the photographers for their respective pictures used, so no worries there. The new term for the centre starts early next year so a good day's shoot during their term time would be great! H, let me know!

I'm going off now to do some editing. I shot a colleague's son's pre-wedding scene at the Empire Hotel on Sunday and am editing it. A little interview here and there and a nice sequence of the lovely couple along the grounds of Empire Hotel to cap off the little pre-wedding film. I am almost done, but I won't be able to post it until the couples' wedding is over (early next year) so until then, it will be kept under wraps. The scene is shot for the wedding reception when it will be played on a big screen for family and friends of the couple. Its similar to a photo slideshow but in this case, its a short little 10 min film. Something new and different for the Bruneian crowd...

...... when we are alone and there is nobody to tell us what fine fellows we are, we come sometimes upon a moment in which we wonder, not how much money we are earning, nor how famous we have become, but what good we are doing."

A.A. Milne

YouTube has just approved my Director status....

What does it really mean?

Absolutely no idea....

But I like the idea of being called ...

..DI-REC-TOOR...

Yesterday evening we dropped by at Icklebooks to discuss the proposed plan to shoot a viral ad for them. We had several ideas on how to make the ad work and after a brief discussion, settled on one simple yet interesting idea. We are currently using that mushy-squishy piece of equipment between our ears to work out how we can make the ad work. Suffice to say, our heads are snapping, crackling and popping sunrise to sundown. We've potentially identified some 'actors/actresses who aren't camera shy and who are also not adverse to being popularised through YouTube to the Bruneian community. We'll see how it goes on this one as the weeks progress, as the Icklebook mice is scurrying and scampering around in order to get the shop launched this weekend. The plan is to launch the ad probably sometime early next month before Christmas. I hope to make this project completed successfully, otherwise I will come back in December to disavow and delete all knowledge and evidence of this project from my blog, Mission Impossible style....

I must say though, that this is quite exciting. This is definitely an opportunity to learn even more about videography and Advertising on this project since this is completely NEW territory for me and co.! FUN FUN FUN!

I had an interesting email from a local Bruneian Band a couple of days ago. They were interested in my MVs and wondered if I would be interested to shoot an MV for them. This obviously has peaked my interest, as this would be a real opportunity to put into practice the skills I've learned so far. However as I alluded to the band member who contacted me, my genre of music is a little different from theirs (heavy metal). If you've seen my MVs, you'll know I'm into the kinds of music that usually people listen to when they meditate or when they want to fall asleep! This divergence between the music genres may cause a problem but it may also be a positive as I might be able to bring something different to that genre of music, MV wise. Currently I am thinking about the proposal and waiting for the band to get back to me. So D, if you read this, just let me know. And in case you're wondering, yes, yes, that IS me holding the flowers... I look absolutely Faaaaabulous, don't you agree?