This is an article that ran two weeks ago in our local paper. I’ve been so busy with the new film I haven’t had much time to write here.
Three filmmakers with ties to KC music featured on DVD compilation
“The worlds of music and film have long intersected and overlapped.
Recently, those worlds collided in Kansas City. Three local filmmakers with ties to the local music industry placed short films on a DVD that was shipped worldwide to VIP subscribers of the music magazine Paste.”
An ongoing personal reflection/deconstruction of scenes I’ve done, and how and why I did them. While “Fingers” is currently making the rounds on a DVD sampler published by Paste Magazine, the film will be screening at the 10th Annual deadCENTER film festival in Oklahoma City. The film will screen Friday, June 11th at 11:59pm at IAO Gallery. I’ll be there, so come by and say hello!
“Fingers” is a strange beast. After doing primarily documentaries in my undergraduate years, I decided to do a radical experimental narrative before I graduated, something to clean my palette before tackling some narratives. The finished film has no dialogue and is told strictly through non-linear flashbacks. The film had no screenplay — it was shot completely off storyboards and a simple one page treatment.
The story centers around Paul, who reacts to the loss of his index finger the same way someone might grieve a loved one who passed away — his mind goes to unexpected places and recalls moments throughout his life where the finger played a role. Eventually the memories become more strained and confusing to the point he breaks out of them and returns to reality.
Part of what interested me about the project was simply the idea of touch, how fingers could be used to tickle, or explore, or offend. I loved thinking about – and exploring – the utility of our anatomy.
This is something I’ve been working on the last few days for an upcoming video. This is meant to be viewed large, so please click on the preview image above to see the detail in the high-resolution copy. I’ve managed to refine a style in Photoshop that involves home-cooked patterns, polygonal lasso tool, and lots and lots of layers (this one had over 75!). It doesn’t look as clean as vector, but I like doing it this way. The former pieces took about 12-15 hours to complete. This one took around 5-7. The process is getting faster.
I used this style several years ago on some movie-related portraits. I’ll upload those shortly.
2009 was the first year in recent memory when I did not produce or release a short film. This is a pretty big deal to me, as I’ve completed around 5 in the past three years. However, I definitely had plenty to do as I enjoyed the last leg of a film festival run for Fingers. Here are some of the videos I worked on in the past year.
Please let the videos load for a few moments before playing them. All of these videos were completed at Vision Teleproduction, Inc. in Kansas City, where I work full time as a producer and editor.
“Circus” – Drew Brees
Editor, Graphics, Effects
As a sports fan, this music video was a lot of fun. I tried to marry the spectacular offense of the New Orleans Saints with the carnivalesque atmosphere of their home games. We completed this video for our client Premier Sports for the yearly 101 Awards banquet which honors the best offensive and defensive players in the National Football League. Drew Brees and Peyton Manning received the offensive honors; ironic, since both of their teams are poised for a deep playoff run this year. I have a sneaking suspicion that I’ll need to put together another video for one or both of them… Read the rest of this entry »
My latest short film, Fingers, has been selected for inclusion in the Paste Magazine quarterly DVD sampler (February-March 2010). If you or someone you know has subscribed to receive the DVD with the magazine, please keep an eye out!
2009 was the first year in recent memory when I did not produce or release a short film. This is a pretty big deal to me, as I’ve completed around 5 in the past three years. However, I definitely had plenty to do as I enjoyed the last leg of a film festival run for 
