Working for the French

This morning I received an email from a French producer who saw my listing on procrewbook and he asked me if I would be available next week. I replied, asked for what type of gig and how much it would pay. To this he responded "300/day" which isn't bad, but it isn't great either if we're talking dollars, but... You guessed it... We weren't -- We were talking Euro!!! At $1.60 to the Euro that's $480! He hired me just like that. No questions. I was just probably the first guy to answer his emails. Apparently for European producers who don't work in the States regularly, this type of thing is not uncommon. They find you on a site like procrewbook and see who gets back to them. So, turns out that he will actually pay me in Euro as that's what he brught with him. I'll have to convert it at the bank. I think my bank will do it. If not, I'll go to FOREX.

Grip Style Bike Chic : FIXIE TREND MEETS FILM

For 24 years it's been brewing. Since the Olympic Games in Los Angeles when Nelson Vails flexed his gams to medal for the US Track Cycling Team. For most Americans, the word velodrome simply wasn't in their vocabulary, but as Vails spun his way around the massive oval course in Dominguez Hills, California atop a brakeless, fixed gear bicycle there were those who suggested the sport might catch with America's youth.Well, it took a good decade, but eventually the sport of cycling did take off and today thanks to Lance Armstrong and others, the sport is huge. Track cycling, however, because of the required equipment ( a track bike) , need to be near a velodrome, and well... lack of brakes, is still a relatively small segment of the cycling-as-sport community. Actually, that point is debatable. Have you looked around lately? Seems like every other bike on the street s a "fixie", a fixed gear single speed bike with no brakes. In the spirit of the NY messengers who sprint across the city on their stripped-down two wheelers, the popularity of the fixie has exploded into what really must be called a major trend, a movement even! Part fashion, part sport, part eco-activism, the fixed-gear community is worldwide and unstoppable. That is, unless you master the "skid-stop"-- No brakes, remember? Isn't that illegal, to ride a bike in the city with no brakes? Yes, but the dedicated don't care about things like laws and pop wheelies right in front of cops. This is a revolution! Is it any surprise that something so audacious should make its way to the world of cinema? No says, FIXEDGEAR FILMS, the scene's popular front which goes into production this summer in Minneapolis. The goal... A narrative feature film featuring a group of fixed-gear riders whose reductive rides are are as individual as they are. The bikes become extensions of their riders. The line between man, bike, earth and spirit blur. Hmm... I'd check it out. From the videos I've seen on YouTube, these guys all look like... grips!!!

Paramount's Funding Slips Away

The credit crunch has hit home in Hollywood after Paramount Pictures, which has released a string of hit movies this year, was forced to suspend plans for a $450m film financing.

The studio has been working with Deutsche Bank on financing that would have provided funds for up to 30 films, including possible blockbusters such as the sequel to Transformers and a new version of Star Trek.

However, the bank was unable to close the financing because of a market-wide lack of enthusiasm for the deal’s senior debt component. Deutsche has subsequently decided to close its film finance unit and concentrate on other areas.

A person familiar with the negotiations said Paramount had walked away from the agreement because the terms had become too onerous. ”The terms had become unattractive compared with alternative sources of financing available to Paramount,” he said.

Although another bank may yet step in and rescue the package Paramount is likely to have to put the financing on ice until credit markets stabilise. Liquidity has dried up and although film slate deals can generate lucrative returns, potential lenders are steering clear of asset classes that are not triple-A rated

Both Paramount and Deutsche Bank declined to comment.

courtesy of FT.COM

The Verdict on Red Anyone?

The Red One has been around for awhile now but I am having a difficult time getting a consensus of opinion as to whether or not it lives up to all the pre-release hype we endured for years.

It seems that quite a few are in circulation now and with new models already in production, the question remains is the Red going to nail the last nails in the film-camera-casket? Is the Red, with it's price lower than Beta SP cameras used to cost, going to bring studio quality imaging to the man on the street? Sure, a unit ends up setting you back $25K + but I'm just not hearing the type of enthusiasm I expected. Are Red owners putting the kibosh on negative aspects of the camera so they can continue renting them for $$$? So many questions. Maybe the money production companies are saving with this camera can be spent on better crews! ;)

Film Crews in New York and Los Angeles

My day starts pretty much the same way everyday (when I'm not working) by checking and submitting to the posts on Mandy and Craigslist and then checking my emails throughout the day to see if anyone actually responds. Over the years I've been listed in the LA411 and the NY411 both of which were expensive to join and except for a couple grip jobs, didn't really amount to much.

In January I plopped down fifty bucks and signed up with procrewbook in both LA and NY because an AC friend of mine booked a pretty sweet gig from being on there, but I had low expectations (I'm kinda cynical like that, bad attitude maybe?). Anyway, my last gig was with an Australian client who found me on there and said he was flying into New York in two days and he needed a camera operator for a commercial spot and I was one of three people he contacted and the first to get back to him. The guy was incredibly cool and had a Crocodile Dundee Vibe. Ended up shooting for four days and at night he wanted to party like a rockstar... with me. I had heard the Aussies liked a drink, but well... It's true. He paid me in cash, gave me a Tenba bag that must have cost a couple hundred bucks and invited me to visit him in Sydney. I guess it's another example of technology helping our industry.

The Future of Film Crews in America

I'm starting this blog for those of you, like me who have or are currently experiencing the accelerated pace of which the rapidly changing landscape of crew-life.

The transition to HD is for all intents and purposes is complete and film shoots are few and far between for the average crew-member. This, and an expanding world-market has meant that there are a zillion tiny productions out there shooting all sorts of product, whether it be for the cinema, tv, commercials, web... There is still a demand for professional and capable crew.

The problem I've experienced is that in an already rocky economy our salaries continue to shrink as producers churn out low/micro budget content in a market they rewards speed and economy. In short, I make a fraction of what I did five years ago. New kids might not feel this as they have come up in a system which puts little value on the lowly crew-member, and yes I'm even talking about DP's. Many producers have come to think any schmo with an HD camera is a capable technician and between reality TV and the general lowering of the "quality-bar" in recent years, paying nothing for crap makes more sense to them than paying even a little more for quality work. Before you take issue with what I've just said, let me qualify it all by saying that I am generalizing and merely venting ( Isn't that what blogs are for?)

I will post here as regularly as permits, even when working in the hopes that something positive will come out of it.