Like A Boss

Pulling up in my Jaguar at a trendy downtown Calgary hotel is a fun way to make an entrance.  Being in the city to photograph and film a magazine photo shoot taking place at the Calgary Opera House is also a quaint response to, "why are you here?" that carries a certain amount of gravitas.  And then there's the icing on the cake of showing up at the shoot in the morning and being greeted by a cute girl with, "Oh hey, you must be one of the models".  I know this is all shameless bragging, but it felt damn good. This is how you do a business trip, like a boss! :)

Nuvo Hotel Suites was a great place to stay, but unlike your regular hotel this one didn't have parking directly adjacent to it.  It wasn't a big deal as they do provide you with a pass at a parking garage a block away, but I wasn't all that impressed when I found out that the spot just barely fit my car.  Some of that 'feeling cool' momentum is lost when you're intensely focused on keeping your side view mirrors attached.

The room made up for it though.

The shoot itself was actually a lot of fun, but exhausting - and thankfully I was just there to capture the behind the scenes of it all.  I did the same thing last year at Rouge Restaurant where we were doing a garden shoot.  

My navigation skills seemed to be intact as I didn't have a problem finding my way around, but it definitely made me appreciate my small city commute back home.  That's the thing about trips like this, they make you realize that the things that are supposedly bigger and better also come with unfortunate downsides.  The nice hotel in a busy part of town.  The big photo shoot that requires weeks of intensive planning and a crazy budget.  The cute girl that finds you attractive . . . nah, just kidding, that last part is awesome.

Work like this is a nice change of pace and a sampling of a life that I feel I passed on when I decided not to move to Vancouver last year.  However, it's also a reminder of how good things have gone since that decision.  

You can see some pictures of my drive up here.

Vintage Inspired Photo Shoot

As I mentioned in my previous post about creating these Weddingstar photo shoot videos, they've proven to be great tests of just what a small creative team can accomplish on a small budget.  These photos shoots are completed in the course of a day, which includes all the setup, photography, and video work.  Of course, the video editing and additional photography for singling out the products takes a bit more time.

Still, creating these promos is as much a test of versatility as it is anything else.  With limited space and time these shoots are rather intensive when it comes to capturing as much variety as possible.  We constantly adjust our lighting, play with the setups, trade out various products, and experiment with layouts that will work in both print and web based formats.  It's actually a lot of fun.

Sparkle Inspired Photo Shoot

Recently at Weddingstar, where I work as the in house web media editor, we've taken to creating themed table setups to photograph for ad campaigns.  As part of this, I've shot some footage of these small setups to highlight the products we used as part of the theme.  

I'm actually rather fortunate during these shoots as I get to focus specifically on the photography and video, while it's one of the talented graphic designers that comes up with the theme and staging.  It's impressive what can be accomplished with such a small creative team, not to mention, that projects like this are allowing us to put more of our skill sets to use (not just individually, but as a company).

Weddingstar Behind the Scenes: Series (2010)

Over the last couple of weeks the six behind the scenes videos that I shot and edited this summer for one of Weddingstar's magazine photo shoots have been going live on our YouTube channel and blog. It's exciting to be at a point where I can reflect on a year of videos that I've produced for the company and consider where this experience might take me next.

The short series of videos gives a sneak peek at some of the brand new 2011 product line and is meant to give customers a glimpse of how much work goes into creating our magazine (which can be found on newstands around the world by the way, *wink).

It's been a lot of fun creating all these different types of edits so far and the best part is that I can see our videos becoming bolder, even more ambitious, and more elaborate as we push forward. It's been such a great creative challenge and learning experience to work in the midst of so many big and ambitious ideas and I can't wait to see what the new year brings!

Weddingstar Behind the Scenes Teaser

This summer I was asked to go up to Calgary to film and create a series of behind the scenes videos for one of Weddingstar's magazine photo shoots. The experience was a lot of fun, not just because of everything that I got to witness about how the magazine/catalogue for the company is produced, but because it gave me a chance to take the videos that I create for Weddingstar in a bold new direction - finally outside of my small in-house studio! 
 
On location shoots are something that I see becoming more and more important as I look for ways to help promote what the creative team members at Weddingstar design. It's what I love about the job. Everyone is able to play a key role by bringing their unique skills to the table and I feel fortunate to be able to share and learn from those mixed experiences. 
 
The behind the scenes shorts I ended up creating are only around a minute to a minute and a half long each (over 6 videos) but I think the imagery and mood of the shorts make a strong impression. They'll begin debuting in a matter of weeks on our WeddingstarTV YouTube channel. Until then, check out this teaser trailer I created for the debut below.

Whatever Works

It's now been just over two years since my university career came to a close. Tail between my legs I packed up my life in the dorms after 6 years to move back home to Alberta and into my folks' basement. The real low was feeling like it was all for nothing. Broke, no job leads, and a strong sense that I had failed those who had looked at me with such promise when I said I was off to film school, I was without question in a state of deep self loathing.

I don't know that I would be where I am now, in fact I think things would've been extremely different, had I not been forced to pull myself out of that low. Returning home forced me to re-evaluate. Basement living wasn't the best, but it certainly helped me attack my student loans head on and over the course of these last two years has allowed me to sling shot into a fairly enviable position.

The timing of this post is certainly no coincidence.

This month marks the end of my post-university transition - a term that's seen a lot of wear on this blog - I'm moving out, I've repaid substantial portions of my student debt, I have two unique film/media jobs that are creatively rewarding, and for the first time in my life I can say that I'm able to completely support myself and my ambitions without borrowing.

Still, it wasn't easy, there were a lot of questions and a lot of thinking that I needed to do to get myself out of my slump. I needed to figure out how I could approach film and video in a smaller city and find a way to connect myself to the right people. Using a connection that I made at the Medicine Hat Film Festival I got an interview, and eventually a job with Stream Media Inc. as a videographer and editor working in corporate video. This was a dream come true working on videos for so many diverse clients - and me, just a kid right out of university actually being assigned complete projects to act as sole editor on.

As the economy cooled in early 2009 I was forced to find more work and took a job as a copywriter for Weddingstar Inc. Working for this wedding website retailer actually became a blessing in disguise as the company saw the potential in my promotional videos. Over the course of my first 6 months I ended up establishing and running the in-house photography and video department for the website. This meant buying cameras, lighting equipment, a new edit suite, etc. and to talk about growth potential, the company has doubled its office space (building a new addition and warehouse) in the single year that I've been there. My position also officially changed at the start of 2010 from creative copywriter to web media producer.

I now balance my full time work at Weddingstar with my contract work at Stream Media. Both present unique challenges, and both positions didn't exist until I started working for each company. It just goes to show that sometimes we have more impact than we give ourselves credit for. There are also perks that become available when doing a job you love really well (sorry, couldn't help myself).

The lesson I've learned is to scavenge for opportunities that actually relate to what you really want to be doing - even when it may seem far fetched given your current location. Start small by just getting in touch with people who are in the field you want to be in. Reach out and ask questions. Search out growth potential by adopting new tasks in your current job. What has amazed me is how willing people have been to give me creative control because I asked for it - and then was able to prove myself. Passionate people appreciate other passionate people.

With everything that's come to pass in these last two years I can see how hard I've worked and just how lucky I've been. Don't kid yourself, to be successful and happy you have to learn to roll with things. I've learned to adapt, to step up, to be assertive and confident; I've learned to do whatever works. And with what university provided and then ultimately lacked, I've started a fresh chapter, a bit wiser than before.

Looking For Film Work

After leaving film school this simple phrase is most likely uttered by all aspiring filmmakers - "I'm looking for film work". As expected, it's easier said than done. Finding a job isn't exactly the problem, but finding quality, inspired, and motivating work (in any field) is a constant challenge.

Now to be clear, I feel quite lucky. My first job out of university last year was with Stream Media Inc. I'm currently still working as an editor and videographer with them on a contract basis, but since things have slowed down since the beginning of the year, that work alone doesn't pay the bills anymore. For a more steady income I took a job as a creative copywriter last month for a national wedding website. The job, while not immediately related, may be more valuable than expected as it looks like I'll be in charge of creating original video content for the site in the coming weeks - still it's not exactly what I saw myself doing. And throughout all this, I've maintained doing small video projects for extra income - promo vids, wedding vids, or even submitting my personal work to contests and festivals. So what's the problem you ask?

Well, it's not so much a problem as it's my post-uni coming of age. The idea of being in a single job for decades scares me to death - and at the same time, those lucrative film jobs aren't falling in my lap like I might of expected they would back in first year. While there's plenty of ways to infuse my creativity into the business world for the sake of making money, what I long for is the chance to do it in the creative world for the sake of making an impact. I'm not even referring to big budget Hollywood films or TV, I just mean something that I can feel passionate about.

Part of the challenge is my location, and on that front I feel like I've exceeded my expectations. The fact that I've been making money doing things that are related at all still surprises me. A bigger city is definitely part of the plan though - Calgary or Vancouver most likely. At the same time I wonder about things taking off with my current jobs. It's not out of the question that I'd stay in little Medicine Hat, Alberta if it meant making decent money and still being able to pursue my personal projects.
It's not an easy road I'm on, but I guess I was always kidding myself when I thought it might be. These challenges and experiences are clearly worth something, and at least I can hope that they'll push me to try new things. As all my former jobs have done, there's plenty of stories to draw on for material. I guess it's about finding ways to connect your own reality to what it is you want to ultimately achieve - pinpointing how the things you do now will help you out later.

Maybe that's the answer. Every student eventually has to face the reality that parts of work are simply about completing tasks, and others are about personal satisfaction. There's clearly a balance of positives and negatives to be worked out. For me, I'll just continue to chalk everything up to experience and hope that my own persistence leads me to new challenges, creative outlets, and more fulfilling opportunities. I think no matter what place I end up in, I'll always be telling myself that I'm still looking for more film work.