Testimonials are a great add on to any company website. Video testimonials are even better. Seeing someone who is completely satisfied talking about their experience working with a fantastic company speaks to your audience. It reassures them you’re the right choice.  If you’ve done great work and clients would like to recognize you for that, give us a call. We’ll bring the lights, camera, microphones and even a teleprompter if needed.

With a little time off over the weekend I went back to revisit my final documentary project at Vancouver Film School from 2005. It’s a short doc called “Bleeding Blue Walls” that I co-created with Rosan Sashida Duffour. It’s a historical piece about the history of Canada’s oldest blues bar The Yale. My favourite part is still the narration by the late, great Jack Velker. Enjoy the watch!

The Documentary: East Side Till the Grave

Introspective yet vibrant and provocative, East Side Till The Grave offers a glimpse into the world of 25-year-old African-Nova Scotian rapper MAJE (mah-jay). Through MAJE’s story, the film touches on obstacles within the hip-hop and rap community in Halifax, and the genre’s influence on the city’s culture.

 

The Documentary: Live On

In 2012, 15-year-old Olivia Jollota passed away from an accidental prescription drug overdose. Her mother, Dale, tells Olivia’s story to illustrate the dangers of experimenting with prescription drugs and to ensure others do not make the same mistake.

The Team: Jessica Hirtle & Delaney MacKay

Jessica Hirtle is a fourth year journalism and international development student at the University of King’s College. She is interested in making documentaries about social justice issues. Her story “From print to paywall” is published in J-Source. Hirtle will be interning with filmmaker Teresa MacInnes at Sea to Sea Productions in April.

Delaney MacKay is a fourth year journalism at the University of King’s College. She enjoys writing stories about cultural and social issues. MacKay’s story “How can journalists regain society’s trust?” is published in J-Source. In April, she will be interning with CTV Atlantic.

The Documentary: 9-0-2 Dodgeball

https://vimeo.com/blog/post/staff-pick-premiere-skateboarding-on-frozen-sand

I was looking for some creative inspiration on Vimeo yesterday when I came across “Northbound”. Jørn Nyseth Ranem’s short film about skateboarding the frozen sands of Norway’s Lofoten Islands is beautiful and authentic both in subject matter and execution. The article attached to the short film is a great read about his process. Enjoy something a little different and have a great weekend.

Last night I directed the Saint Mary’s, Ryerson game, a 79-70 win for the number one seeded Ryerson Rams. The second game was an exciting come from behind 67-65 win for the number five Dalhousie Tigers against the number four Alberta Golden Bears.  It was an absolute blast to direct the game. I can’t wait to see what Sunday has in store. If you have a chance and want to see some great basketball or come by the production truck to say hi, come on down to the Scotiabank Centre and enjoy yourself this weekend.

I was in the pool this morning swimming lengths and thinking about the necessity of both the physical and mental parts of what we do as freelance camera operators and production specialists. If you’re like me and shoot a lot of shoulder camera for sports and live concerts you understand how taxing it can be on your body during a three or four day run of work.  Then of course there’s packing and loading gear and hauling endless amounts of cable back to the production truck.

On the flip side, we spend countless hours researching technology, lighting concepts, editing practices and in my case turning a lot of that research and information into lesson plans for the next generation.  I think for a lot of people, especially people new to the industry it can be quite overwhelming. Here are a few tips I’ve learned over almost twenty years that have helped me stay healthy and sharp.

1. Exercise:  If you keep your body strong, flexible and able you will have a longer career. I can remember my first camera job in a news room and getting to know the veteran camera ops. About half of them had some sort of displacement in their backs and shoulders or sciatic nerve damage. It stands to reason after slinging a broadcast camera on your shoulder for eight hours a day that your alignment would be out of whack.  Try to exercise at least four times a week, and mix it up.  I like swimming, aerobic weights, elastic bands, and a lot of stretching. I try to incorporate balance into most exercises I do, either with a half ball or stability ball to keep my core strong.
2. Organize: Here’s the one thing that caused me the most problems until my wife set me straight by continually showing me examples of why being organized was so important. I still misplace my keys, wallet and phone so I’m certainly a work in progress. But even taking the time at the start of my work day to make a list of all the things that need to get done and displaying it on google calendars has been a huge help. Being organized keeps my head less cluttered, meaning I’m able to concentrate with more focus on the task at hand. It’s also rewarding to look back at the day and see all of the things I’ve accomplished. I can take some pride in that.
3. Balance: Whether you have your own production house, or you’re an assistant editor working for the local news outlet, it’s nice to have a moment where you can just breath. Almost everyone works long hours no matter what their profession, and a lot of people have trouble achieving balance or even knowing what it looks like. I think balance is achieved by focussing in on the things that you love to do. So if your life, both professional and personal is filled with the things you are passionate about you will have a leg up on finding balance everyday.   Again, I’m still working on it especially now with a six month old at home. If I make time to exercise, cook a meal with my wife, play with my daughter and occasionally sneak off to a buddy’s house for a go on his Xbox and a quick draw, I can push through work a little harder to get back to those life moments.

I hope some of you find this helpful. I would love to read your comments if you have any ideas you’d also like to share to keep sharp and healthy no matter what it is you do for a living. Stay sharp!