Another festival for 'Flight of the Melvin'

Looks like we published our 2011 Wrap-Up a skosh too soon! We just got word that our sci-fi comedy adventure "Flight of the Melvin" has been accepted to its second film festival, the 2012 Sedona International Film Festival in beautiful Sedona, Arizona!

The 18th Annual Sedona International Film Festival runs February 18-26, 2012. We are so looking forward to being part of this event!

2011 Wrap-Up!

Now that the year is winding down, it's time to take a look at everything we've accomplished in 2011 - and the list is rather impressive if we do say so ourselves!

The Year of "Fallout"
After having made its film festival premiere at the 2010 International Horror and Sci-Fi Film Festival, "Fallout" spent nearly all of 2011 on the festival circuit with appearances at Phoenix Film Festival, Los Angeles Film and Script Festival, Los Angeles Movie Awards, New Filmmakers LA, Action on Film, HollyShorts, Renovation Independent Fan Film Festival, Los Angeles Reel Film Festival, Atlanta Horror Film Festival, and Terror Film Festival.

"Fallout" also picked up 10 awards throughout the year, including: Semifinalist, Innovation in Motion and Video in Education (2011 Adobe Design Achievement Awards); Best Arizona Short (2011 Phoenix Film Festival); 3rd Place, Best Editing, and Best Digital Effects (2011 Los Angeles Reel Film Festival, Student Film category); Award of Excellence, Best Editing, Best Special Effects (2011 Los Angeles Movie Awards); Honorable Mention, Narrative Shorts Category (2011 Los Angeles Film & Script Festival); and Runner Up, Best Visual Effects (Short) (2011 Action on Film International Film Festival). Lastly, the Arizona Media Arts Center selected "Fallout" to be part of the AZ 100 INDIE FILM collection to celebrate the Arizona Centennial in February of 2012.

More Awards

"Extraordinary Colleagues" - our 48-hour challenge entry from July 2010 - took home "Best Directing" (for Professor Paul DeNigris) and "Best Editing" (for alum Ryan Luibrand) at the IFP/Phoenix "Beat the Clock" finals in April.

"Somewhere (dot dot dot)" - our 48-hour entry from January - was chosen by Cox Arizona to appear on their IFP/Phoenix showcase on "On Demand."

The UAT Team's film "Backup Plan" won both the "Creative Excellence" and "Technical Excellence" trophies in the Spring 2011 Inter-College 48-Hour Film Challenge, competing against teams from Scottsdale Community College and Grand Canyon University. Films were scored by a panel of industry judges.

In June, UAT Digital Cinematography Professor Webb Pickersgill and his team of UAT students Bryan Simcox, Wes Peterson, and Sean Walter picked up a 2011 Telly Award for their work on the book trailer for Devious by Lisa Jackson. That same group of students also won top honors in the "College Shorts" section of the Arizona Student Film Festival for their film "Tread Softly," beating out competitors from Collins College, Scottsdale Community College, University of Arizona, and Arizona State University.

In August, the UAT / Locked Horns / SWAT HD collaboration "Covet" won four awards at the IFP/Phoenix "Beat the Clock" event. The film, produced in just 48 hours over the weekend of July 15th through 17th, garnered the following awards: "Best Director" (for Professor Paul DeNigris), "Best Use of Line" (for our use of the mandated dialogue "As long as it's free..."), "Best Ensemble" (for our amazing cast), and "2nd Place Film."

In November, student Trevor Spotted Eagle took home the "Best Directing" trophy at the Inter-College 48 Hour Film Challenge hosted by Grand Canyon University. Watch the winning film, "The Taste of Lies," here.

Also in November, two UAT teams garnered awards in the IFP/Phoenix "Breakout Film Challenge." The team of Erica Faccone, Bryan Simcox, Wes Peterson, and Sean Walter produced the drama "Wish You Were Here," which took home the awards for "Best Use of Theme" and "5th Place Film." Meanwhile, the team of Trevor Spotted Eagle, Samantha Hammond, Jamil Abubakar, Caleb Evans, Ib Gillett, Jared Oppie, Tyler Dennis, Ariel Navarrette, and Paul Rosario, working under the supervision of Professor Paul DeNigris, produced the sci-fi thriller "Reset." Their film won awards for "Best Visual Effects" and "3rd Place Film."

Other Projects

In March, TEDxPhoenix published the speaker videos that had been produced by UAT DV students during the tail end of 2010. Another team of students is currently finishing the editing on the TEDxPhoenix 2011 speaker videos, which should be published early in 2012.

In April, a crack team of UAT students and alumni assisted Professor Paul DeNigris in shooting his Master's Thesis film, "Parallax," a 24-minute Iraq War drama. Post-production continued throughout the remainder of the year and has just been completed. Film festival submissions have just begun. Watch a short behind-the-scenes montage here.

Also completed this year was the family-friendly sci-fi adventure "Flight of the Melvin," an 8-minute comedic romp about a 14-year-old geek who builds his own jetpack and soars into the middle of an alien invasion. "Flight of the Melvin" will be making its film festival premiere at the Santa Clarita Film Festival in January.

Currently in pre-production is the eagerly anticipated "Red Sand: A Mass Effect Fan Film," currently being developed by the DV Production Studio classes. Principle photography on "Red Sand" begins in January and will star the man behind the iconic voice of Commander Shepard, Mark Meer. Set on Mars, "Red Sand" chronicles the early days of the "Mass Effect" videogame universe and the discovery of the alien technology which makes the games possible. Here's a quick look at some test composites, turning the empty lot to the east of UAT into the surface of Mars:



Congratulations to everyone involved in the many successes UAT Digital Video has achieved this year! And here's to an even better 2012!

'Flight of the Melvin' to make film festival debut in Santa Clarita Valley

We are excited to announce the first film festival appearance of our sci-fi comedy "Flight of the Melvin" - at the 2012 Santa Clarita Valley Film Festival, January 5th through 8th, in Newhall, California!

From the film festival's website:

Once again we will continue to focus on films appropriate for all ages, both feature-length and short format, with professional, college and high school submission categories and special rates for students.

"Flight of the Melvin" couldn't be a better fit for this festival! Here's the synopsis: "14-year-old space geek Melvin is constantly being nagged by his mom to 'clean the danged birdcage.' Finally having had enough, Melvin gathers some spare parts and builds himself a jetpack to fly away. A few moments into his first successful flight, Melvin finds himself in the middle of an alien invasion that only he can stop! Produced by the students and faculty of the University of Advancing Technology Digital Video Program, 'Flight of the Melvin' is a light-hearted sci-fi comedy adventure for the whole family!"

What is Color Sampling?

Any time a new camera is introduced to the market, one of the key specs that gets bandied about is "color sampling." Is it 4:4:4? 4:2:2? 4:1:1?

What do all these numbers mean, and how do they relate to how our images look? Here's a simple explanation with good diagrams for comparison, written by Graeme Nattress, published courtesy of Larry Jordan and Associates.

Inspiration: Stargate Studios' 'XXIT' Shot with the Canon C300

Test videos shot with Canon's new "Cinema EOS" C300 system are starting to hit the web, but none are as closely aligned with the type of filmmaking we do at UAT as this one. Produced by VFX house Stargate Studios, "XXIT" is a 12-minute film that channels a bit of Blade Runner while also showing the extreme range of the C300's capabilities.


The "making of" video below is not only a great primer for shooting on a "virtual backlot," but is also an in-depth look at the many features Canon included in their first Cinema EOS offering.

Pixiq: 'Everything About Camera Lenses'

What's the most important part of your camera? The body or the lens? Author and photographer Haje Jan Kamps argues that it's the glass, and we're inclined to agree. His article on Pixiq.com covers the fundamentals of how lenses work, and discusses apertures, depth of field, focal length, and much more. Mandatory reading for you cinematographers!

Prolost: ' Pimp Your After Effects'

DV Rebel's Guide author and all-around digital video guru Stu Maschwitz has published this handy guide for squeezing the most out of his favorite compositing software:

After Effects is a professional tool by any measure, but it is designed for a broad user base. So an artist who plans to push it hard will want to tune the application accordingly.

Read it, bookmark it, and start pimpin' out your After Effects today!

Instructables: Make a Cool Tron-like Daft Punk Helmet

For the budding prop-makers and/or lovers of Tron Legacy and Daft Punk, here's an awesome step-by-step Instructable for building a replica of Guy Manuel's iconic helmet written by propmaker Fennec Cooper. Fennec takes you through all the materials and tools he used, plus the steps for building a prototype, creating a mold to cast copies, detailing, painting, and lighting. Even if you don't ever build this particular prop, the methodology can work for any other type of helmet or armor piece you might think of.

Art of the Title: 'Mad Men'

Art of the Title has published this great look behind the scenes of the iconic opening title sequence for AMC's "Mad Men." A must-read for all aspiring motion graphics artists!

DV Internships: November 2011

Here are the latest internships for Digital Video (and related fields), courtesy of our friends in Industry and Career Services:

Job ID:	2582
Job Title:	Digital Video
Job Type:	Internship - Unpaid
Full/Part Time:	Part Time
Openings:	1
Salary:
Skills Required:
Description:	Video Production Wizler Duties Include Create, from start to finish, several short videos The videos will be product reviews and commercials. Creative opinions are welcome The video will be featured on the home page of Evil Controller as well as Youtube How To Apply Send a resume to Phalene Leichtman. Looking to hire as soon as possible! Employer Website: Wizler Posted 11/18/2011 Expire 11/25/2011

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Job ID:	2581
Job Title:	Events Intern
Job Type:	Internship - Unpaid
Full/Part Time:	Part Time
Openings:	1
Salary:
Skills Required:
Description:	Publicity Intern San Francisco Film Society Duties Include Conducting research into special interest media outlets Contacting press to establish and maintain contact Gathering and organizing materials for film programs such as photos, press kits, and synopses Providing press materials to media contacts and facilitating interviews Maintaining video library including copying, labeling DVDs and checking them out to press Entering and updating data (mailing lists, contact info, etc.) into electronic databases and other computer-based systems Preparing press clipping reports and assisting with ongoing clippings archive project Preparing press releases and press kits Onsite event support at festival venues, including screenings, receptions and special events; and miscellaneous projects Skills Required Flexible, energetic, detail-oriented, team players with good organizational skills and a passion for cinema Macintosh experience helpful, especially FileMaker Pro, Photoshop, Google apps, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel and image scanning Good writing and telephone skills essential Knowledge of second language is a plus How To Apply Send a resume and cover letter to Bill Proctor Employer Website: San Francisco Film Society Posted 11/18/2011 Expire 1/18/2012 Location: San Francisco, CA

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Job ID:	2580
Job Title:	Digital Media Artist
Job Type:	Internship - Paid
Full/Part Time:	Part Time
Openings:	1
Salary:	$0-$8 Hourly
Skills Required:
Description:	Graphics Internship Wizler Duties Include Create website banners both static and flash Video editing for Youtube videos Website graphic design, which could be a full website design, or just bits and pieces of pages Facebook fan page design Skills Required Photoshop, with the ability to create organized and layered Photoshop files for hands-off to developers Video recording using a digital camera, and being familiar with lighting and sound for Youtube videos Video editing skills will also be required for final cuts Illustrator HTML/CSS, basic understanding, no programming required Intern will be responsible for having the following programs: Photoshop, Illustrator, & video editing software How To Apply Send a resume and cover letter to Phalene Leichtman Employer Website: Wizler Posted 11/18/2011 Expire 12/18/2011

---

Job ID:	2567
Job Title:	Digital Video
Job Type:	Internship - Paid
Full/Part Time:	Full Time
Openings:	2
Salary:
Skills Required:
Description:	Web and Video Developers New Amsterdam Consulting, Inc. Duties Include NAC is seeking a team of students to help prepare materials for a new initiative. We needs students to: 1.Produce a 5 minute video on the project 2.Build a business card Web site for the projec Skills Required Web developers must be self-motivated and able to take direction from a seasoned application developer Video production interns must be able to tape and edit. In addition, they must be able to create and incorporate computer animation into the video How To Apply Send a resume and cover letter to Brad Snyder Employer Website: New Amsterdam Consulting, Inc. Posted 11/8/2011 Expire 12/8/2011 Location: Scottsdale, AZ

UAT Takes Home Four Awards at IFP/Phoenix 'Breakout Film Challenge'

On Friday November 18th, IFP/Phoenix hosted the screening and awards party for its latest filmmaker challenge, the seven-week "Breakout Challenge." Rather than giving filmmakers a prop and line of dialogue that they would be required to use (as is the case in a 48-Hour Film Challenge), IFP/Phoenix gave filmmakers some themes to choose from AND some additional deliverables to produce. Instead of just making a 5-minute film, participating filmmakers also had to produce a 30-second teaser trailer, a poster, a press kit, and other marketing materials.

Two teams of UAT Digital Video students participated.

The team of Erica Faccone, Bryan Simcox, Wes Peterson, and Sean Walter produced the drama "Wish You Were Here," which took home the awards for "Best Use of Theme" and "5th Place Film." Here's their trailer:



Meanwhile, the team of Trevor Spotted Eagle, Samantha Hammond, Jamil Abubakar, Caleb Evans, Ib Gillett, Jared Oppie, Tyler Dennis, Ariel Navarrette, and Paul Rosario, working under the supervision of Professor Paul DeNigris, produced the sci-fi thriller "Reset." Their film won awards for "Best Visual Effects" and "3rd Place Film." Here's the trailer for "Reset":



Congratulations to both our teams!

Cruzine: 'Freebies from Daily Inspirations no. 21 – 40'

I'm a sucker for free stuff, especially free textures, vectors, and fonts. Here's a cool collection of useful freebies from Cruzine, including blood (my fave), lightning, ink drops, Spanish football club logos (!) and more. Happy downloading!

Hope For Film: 'New Platforms Available For Direct Distribution'

Veteran indie producer Ted Hope has aggregated a list of 30 or so platforms for what he calls "do it yourself" or "do it with others" distribution. The list includes crowdfunding stalwarts Kickstarter and IndieGoGo, peer-to-peer networks, distribution aggregators, and more. Just goes to show - the distribution landscape is wide and varied these days. Check out Ted's list if you're thinking about making an indie film any time soon.

Exposure Guide: 'Focusing Basics'

Here's a handy graphical guide to the relationship between lens aperture and subject distance to depth of field. Worth a look even if you think you have a good handle on it! Check it out here on Exposure Guide.

Networked Blogs: 'Inventing Your Career'

Here's a blog post I saw that I thought would help anyone looking for that career stepping-stone right out of college:

I know for certain that when you invent your own career, you consciously choose to leverage your own talents, your own skills, your own preferences – rather than contorting yourself to fit into a narrow job description of someone else’s design.

Read the rest here. Great stuff.

Motion Design Center: 'What is Motion Design?'

For more info, check out Motion Design Center's website.

PremiumBeat: '25 Excellent Post-Production and Video Editing iPhone and iPad Apps'

PremiumBeat.com has published a handy list of 25 great film and video production apps for iPhone and iPad, including one of my favorites, "Movie Slate." Many of the apps support Final Cut Pro (fellow Apple products after all) but a good number of them are software-agnostic and extremely useful.

Read the full list here!

Considering the move to Los Angeles?

If you're like many UAT Digital Video students - or film students in general, for that matter - you're probably considering moving to Los Angeles after college in order to get your career going. Wise move. (And if you're not considering the move, as yourself "Why not?") Well, here's the resource you've been looking for: I'm Moving to L.A., a website specifically for you. (The site's subtitle is "Real advice from real people on how to live and survive in Los Angeles.) Bookmark it now!

'PressPausePlay' - a timely documentary on art, technology, and digital culture

Go to the film's official site to download the free version or purchase on iTunes or Amazon.

60 Minutes Overtime: 'Filming mountain climber Alex Honnold'

What do you need to film a segment on a rock climber who scales thousand-foot sheer cliff faces without a rope? Fourteen cameras and nerves of steel.

ICG Magazine: 'Raging Bulls' Examines the DP-to-VFX Workflow on 'Real Steel'

International Cinematographers Guild (ICG) Magazine takes a good in-depth look at the VFX-driven cinematography workflow on the recent sci-fi boxing movie Real Steel. The film was lensed in HD by Mauro Fiore, Oscar-winning DP of Avatar, and the workflow leveraged and advanced many of the tools developed on that picture.

Bringing in a VFX-heavy feature for $80 million is no mean feat, and Josh McLaglen, a veteran of the some of the most complex logistical films in recent memory, points to the unique workflow as a big part of that process. “If you’ve got two ordinary people talking over coffee or even fighting each other for most of your movie, our production paradigm is unnecessary,” he concludes. “But if two of the four main characters are paranormal, it makes really good sense, and is a cost-effective methodology for budgeting complex films. Avatar was translated virtual-to-virtual, only rarely with humans being interactive. But this one is going virtual-to-live-action in the real world. To accomplish that, I think we used the tools better this time.”

Read the entire article here. Also of note is this fxguide "Case Study" on Real Steel and the accompanying fxpodcast.

48 Hour Film: 'The Taste of Lies'

UAT Digital Video's entry into the November 2011 Inter-College 48 Hour Film Challenge, hosted by Grand Canyon University. The film took home the 'Best Director' award for director Trevor Spotted Eagle.

The parameters were:
- line of dialogue: 'I enjoy the taste of lies.'
- prop: a snowglobe
- character: Harry Colon, linebacker
- genre: mystery

Written and directed by Trevor Spotted Eagle
Cinematography by Jared Oppie
Edited by Nicolas Vereen

Starring Annie Winn

fxguide: 'Incredible, Invisible Effects'

Here's a great article that breaks down some of the not-so-obvious effects work in recent films such as Drive, Contagion, Killer Elite and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2. As usual fxguide does a bang-up job of going into the nuts and bolts of what makes these sequences work so well. Read it at fxguide!

UAT Digital Video student wins 'Best Director' in GCU-hosted Inter-College 48 Hour Film Challenge

UAT Digital Video student Trevor Spotted Eagle picked up the 'Best Director' trophy Sunday evening on the campus of Grand Canyon University at the awards ceremony for the latest Inter-College 48 Hour Film Challenge.

The challenge began on Friday evening when 4 teams from GCU and 1 team from UAT were given their marching orders; films were required to include:

- line of dialogue: "I enjoy the taste of lies"
- prop: snowglobe
- character: Harry Colon, linebacker

Each team received a different genre, and Team UAT's was "mystery." Working all weekend, the team produced the slick psychological mystery-thriller "The Taste of Lies," which featured a detective character tasked with solving a murder her own alter ego had committed.

This was the third matchup between UAT and GCU in the Inter-College 48 Hour Film Challenge, which began as a twice-yearly tradition in 2010. One of GCU's entries "Narwhal" took home the 'Best Actor' and 'Best Film' trophies this time around. UAT will be hosting the next installment of the challenge in April or May.

Inter-College 48 Hour Film Challenge Kicks Off This Friday!

Our good friends at Grand Canyon University are once again hosting this event. Let's keep the UAT / GCU rivalry alive! We've beat them twice and they are out for vengeance! Event kicks off on Friday November 4th at 6pm at the Ethington Theatre on the GCU campus (33rd Avenue and Camelback).

See your DV instructor for more details. Ask about earning Extra Credit for participating!

FALLOUT now available on Vimeo!

Now that our year-long film festival run is over - it began on October 15th 2010 at the International Horror and Sci-Fi Film Festival in Tempe AZ and ended last night at the Terror Film Festival in Philadelphia PA - it's time to finally share our epic sci-fi action thriller "Fallout" publicly on the web. Enjoy and pass it on please!
Here's the complete list of festivals and awards from our amazing year-long run

2011 Adobe Design Achievement Awards
- Semifinalist, Innovation in Motion and Video in Education

2011 Phoenix Film Festival
- Best Arizona Short

2011 Los Angeles Reel Film Festival
- Student Film category - 3rd Place, Best Editing, and Best Digital Effects

2011 Los Angeles Movie Awards
- Award of Excellence, Best Editing, Best Special Effects

2011 Los Angeles Film & Script Festival
- Honorable Mention, Narrative Shorts Category

2011 Action on Film International Film Festival
- Runner Up, Best Visual Effects (Short)

OFFICIAL SELECTIONS:
2010 International Horror and Sci-Fi Film Festival (Tempe, AZ)
2011 Phoenix Film Festival
2011 Los Angeles Film & Script Festival
2011 Los Angeles Movie Awards
2011 NewFilmmakers LA
2011 Los Angeles Reel Film Festival
2011 Action on Film International Film Festival
2011 HollyShorts Film Festival
2011 Renovation World Sci-Fi Convention Independent Fan Film Festival (Reno, NV)
2011 Atlanta Horror Film Festival
2011 Terror Film Festival (Philadelphia, PA)

fxguide: 'The Art of Roto: 2011'

fxguide recently published this outstanding roundup of state-of-the-art rotoscoping tools and techniques - which all beginning visual effects artists need to be familiar with.

Rotoscoping is the process of manually altering film or video footage one frame at a time. The frames can be painted on arbitrarily to create custom animated effects like lightning or lightsabres, or traced to create realistic traditional style animation or to produce hold-out mattes for compositing elements in a scene and, more recently, to produce depth maps for stereo conversion.

As a VFX artist, you are primarily creating motion graphics or visual effects. A thorough knowledge of rotoscoping and roto tools is vital to solving a vast amount of problem solving in VFX: rig removal, stereo conversion, greenscreen compositing, hold out mattes, split screens, and even object or feature-based color grading. It is perhaps one of the widely used tools in visual effects.

It's a lengthy read, but well worth it. Bookmark it for future reference, too!

The Black and Blue: 'How to Share Your Opinion on a Film Set (If Asked)'

Ahhh, here's a vital article that all film students need to commit to memory. It'll help you every day that you're on set or in the editing room with peers, professors, and later, employers:

Nobody cares about your opinion unless they ask.

And even then, they might not really want to hear it.

On numerous occasions, I’ve watched newbies make the mistake of either sharing too many of their thoughts, sharing too little, or just plain saying the wrong thing at the wrong time.

Read the rest over on The Black and Blue. And while you're at it read this article there too: "10 Ways to Guarantee You Never Work On Set Again." Don't be the newbie who shoots off his mouth on set and squashes his career before it even starts.

Crew Call: 'Kerry and Angie'

DV Students - looking for some on-set experience? Longtime friend of the DV Program Amanda Melby is crewing up for a short film she is directing, titled "Kerry and Angie." The cinematographer for the shoot? None other than UAT adjunct professor Webb Pickersgill. Here are the details: 

Shooting Dates
Tuesday, October 18 from 7 am - 7 pm in downtown Glendale (53rd Drive)
Wednesday, October 19 from 7 am - 7 pm in downtown Glendale (same location), followed by company move(s) to North Central Phoenix (7th Street/Dunlap) 

For crew, they are in need of:
2nd AD
Still photographer (with or without camera)
Set decorator/props master (they have everything, just need someone in charge of it).
Grip
PA (2)

Interested? Email Professor Paul DeNigris at pdenigri@uat.edu.

Article: After Issuance of VES “Bill of Rights,” VFX Industry Considers Options

The Studio Daily blog has been following this story for some time, and it's something that should be on the radar of our many students considering a career in visual effects. The issue of unionizing visual effects artists is not going to be resolved any time soon.

After Issuance of VES "Bill of Rights," VFX Industry Considers Options
http://www.studiodaily.com/blog/?p=7649

Submitting Works for Student Showcase: Due Oct. 7

The time has come for submissions for the upcoming Fall 2011 edition of Showcase 2011. We are looking for entries and submissions from students, both resident and online, and alumni that reflect ALL disciplines at UAT.

Students of all majors are encouraged to submit work for UAT's Student Showcase, a collection of pieces that display the academic and artistic talents of the University's learners. Drawings and digital art/interactive share space with programming code and software demonstrations on the University campus.

We hope that the submissions will bring in a wider variety of designs - including technologically-based pieces. Items like data visualization programs, executable files, code, etc.

Please note that there is a selection process in place that will ensure that only the best work will be showcased, that will represent our talented students and alumni in the best light at UAT.

Submission Process:
Submit your work via email, showcase@uat.edu, and attach your completed submission form.

DOWNLOAD SUBMISSION FORM

NOTE: Images must be a minimum of 200 dpi: it is my goal to display the best artwork in a big format (29x19) min. If you submit digital work at a lower resolution, 72dpi, with a small size, and if the piece is selected, I still may not be able to display it.

Feel free to  e-mail Vesna  Dragojlov (vdragojlov@uat.edu), Student Showcase Curator,  if you have any question regarding the showcase.

Vimeo's New 'Music Store'

Press release from Vimeo:

As many of you know, finding music for your videos can be somewhat… well, painful. Licensing music on your own can be confusing and finding good free music can take forever. Many of us here at Vimeo are video creators or filmmakers as well and we experience these frustrations on a regular basis. So, we decided to do something about it.

Introducing Vimeo Music Store!

Vimeo Music Store is your one-stop-shop for finding, discovering and licensing high quality music for your videos. We’ve built a simple and intuitive interface for you to easily search for music using a variety of different music criteria, and then purchase and/or download the tracks you want. Search mood, genre, tempo, themes, instrumentations and then use the advanced search to whittle down the results even further.

As of now, Music Store offers over 45,000 curated tracks with a three different license options for you to choose from. Here’s the skinny:

Creative Commons-licensed music is curated and provided by Free Music Archive, one of the most-respected curators of Creative Commons-licensed music. There are many different Creative Commons licenses available, so make sure to learn more about Creative Commons and how to use them in our FAQ.

Paid music tracks are provided by Audiosocket, a music and media company that curates its content to deliver up-and-coming talent to the marketplace. Audiosocket’s catalog includes over 33,000 songs from more than 1900 emerging bands, composers and record labels from around the world. Audiosocket’s catalog offers both personal, non-commercial licenses for $1.99 per track and commercial licenses for $98 per track.

As a a token of our appreciation, we’re offering all Plus and PRO members one FREE, personal license track (a $1.99 value). This offer is only available for one week starting today, so make sure to head over to Music Store and cash in!

We’re very excited about this first phase of Vimeo Music Store and we hope you like it. Look for more features, more partners and more options for bands and musicians in the future!

Love,
Vimeo

Slo Dive: '250 Awesome Grunge Textures'

Grunge is awesome. Grunge rules. Grunge is useful for VFX artists, motion graphics artists, texture artists, and more. Everyone needs more grunge. Need I say more?

Get busy downloading!

Philip Bloom: 'Canon DSLRs: some of the best picture profiles out there'

Filmmaker and DSLR aficionado Philip Bloom continues his tradition of posting the latest info on the emerging trend of the DSLR "picture profile." On cameras such as the Canon 5D Mark II, the picture profile editor can allow a user to dial in just the right set of parameters to make color grading easier and more impactful.

For all projects that I am producing, I always shoot the flattest image I can get. However, when shooting for others, if the turn around time does not allow for colour timing/correction, I will shoot less flat (typically neutral).

Now you ask, why is a flat profile important? Well, when you bake-in the color/contrast settings into an image (pre-set PP’s), you are unable to retrieve information that would be available if you had shot flat. Say your sky is blown out, but you wish you could see some of the clouds that were there on the day. With a baked-in image style, you are not able to recover it. With a flat image, you have a much better chance of recovering the clouds — OR if you under or over-expose something, you have a better chance to recover information that would otherwise be lost.

Read the rest here!

DV Internships: Life Balance Workshops, i5 Films, Arizona Attorney General's Office, and more!

Job ID:	2526
Job Title:	Digital Video
Job Type:	Internship - Unpaid
Full/Part Time:	Part Time
Openings:	1
Skills Required:
Description:	Digital Video Internship Life Balance Workshops Duties Include Mic and film workshops and other short clips Set up lighting and other equipments Edit content available in a downloadable format and/or DVD How To Apply Send a resume and cover letter to Mark Jamnik Employer Website: Life Balance Workshops Posted 9/26/2011 Expire 10/6/2011

Job ID:	2521
Job Title:	Digital Video
Job Type:	Internship - Unpaid
Full/Part Time:	Part Time
Openings:	1
Skills Required:
Description:	Digital Video Intern i5Films Duties Include Editing, shooting, transferring footage, pick up/drop off equipment Skills Required Final Cut Pro Adobe Premiere After Effects Photoshop 3D Modeling Illustrator MS Word and Excel How To Apply Send a resume and cover letter to Nathan Price Employer Website: i5Films Posted 9/23/2011 Expire 11/23/2011

Job ID:	2512
Job Title:	Digital Media Artist
Job Type:	Internship - Unpaid
Full/Part Time:	Part Time
Openings:	7
Skills Required:
Description:	Digital Video/Animation/Graphics Arizona Attorney General's Office Duties Include Complete projects within timeframe given Provide input for the best methods and design of end product for the assigned project Be accountable for deadlines and communicate any breakdowns effectively Skills Required Basic knowledge of video and editing required Great interpersonal communication How To Apply Send a resume and cover letter to Linnea Heap Employer Website: Arizona Attorney General's Office Posted 9/22/2011 Expire 11/22/2011

Job ID:	2509
Job Title:	Digital Media Artist
Job Type:	Internship - Unpaid
Full/Part Time:	Part Time
Openings:	3
Skills Required:
Description:	Graphics Internship Wizler Duties Include Create website banners both static and flash Video editing for Youtube videos Website graphic design, which could be a full website design, or just bits and pieces of pages Facebook fan page design Skills Required Photoshop, with the ability to create organized and layered Photoshop files for hands-off to developers Video recording using a digital camera, and being familiar with lighting and sound for Youtube videos Video editing skills will also be required for final cuts Illustrator HTML/CSS, basic understanding, no programming required Intern will be responsible for having the following programs: Photoshop, Illustrator, & video editing software How To Apply Send a resume and cover letter to Phalene Leichtman Employer Website: Wizler Posted 9/8/2011 Expire 10/8/2011

Job ID:	2482
Job Title:	Digital Video
Job Type:	Internship - Unpaid
Full/Part Time:	Full Time
Openings:	1
Skills Required:
Description:	Various Internships Healthy Power TV Looking for the following positions: 2 video editors/special effects 1 video production/ Camera work (shooting shows) 1 Sound Engineering Technician 1 Web designer/ Coder 1 Web-based marketing/ search-engine optimization General Skills Required Critical thinking Time management Video streaming Video productions Adobe System Adobe Premiere Pro software Final Cut Pro Windows Media services How To Apply Send a resume and cover letter to Darin Green Employer Website: Healthy Power TV Posted 8/11/2011 Expire 10/11/2011 Location: Phoenix, AZ

The Black and Blue: 'How to Read the DP’s Mind & Stay One Step Ahead'

The Black and Blue is a blog designed for Camera Assistants (known as "AC's" in the biz), and is definitely worth subscribing to if you're considering a career behind the lens. Recently they posted a great article about how to anticipate the needs of your Director of Photography and come out looking like an absolute star.

You can do your best to anticipate and predict what the DP wants and, when you’re right, it will seem like you read their mind. They’ll be both amazed and pleased that somehow you managed to get everything exactly how they wanted, all without even telling you.

Read the whole article here, and subscribe to The Black and Blue right away!

AE Tuts+: 'A Look At Hollywood’s Biggest VFX – Part 1'

After Effects tutorials portal AE Tuts+ has begun branching out to take an in-depth look at Hollywood visual effects with this article on 2012, Avatar, Lord of the Rings, and Alice in Wonderland.

Here's their Avatar VFX breakdown video:


Read the entire article here!

Wired: '5 Film-School Violations in Videogame Cut-Scenes'

For the Game Art & Animation student who wasn't sure why he was taking DVA101, or the DV student who ends up working in the videogame industry after graduation, Wired.com has published this scathing essay on why so many videogame cutscenes fall flat:

... there's one element of interactive storytelling that designers just can't seem to get right: the cut-scene. Some exceptions exist, but these control-free cinematic sequences often prove uncomfortable if not downright embarrassing to watch. While they are almost always packed with gorgeous eye caramel, games' cut-scenes usually drop the ball when it comes to effective storytelling.

This is because many cut-scenes don't follow the time-tested rules of cinema that have made Hollywood so successful. Gamemakers abide by their own rules, packing their cinematics with wanton expositions and explosions. But cut-scene designers would do well to learn from the past century of film and its storytelling practices.

Read the rest here!

InspirationFeed: '40 Free Highly Functional Dingbats Fonts'

This one's for you motion graphics artists! The folks at InspirationFeed have gathered up a cool selection of "dingbats" fonts - great for creating elements for your motion graphics designs. I particularly like this one ("Karate Chop") but some of the others (e.g., "Cafeina") are brilliant as well. Take a look!

Vincent Laforet and Vimeo go 'Behind the Glass'

Filmmaker / cinematographer / DSLR guru Vincent Laforet recently collaborated with the staff at our favorite video-hosting site Vimeo to produce a stellar series of basic lessons on lenses and depth of field called "Behind the Lens." Here's the first episode, but be sure to surf over to Vincent's blog to read the accompanying article and watch episodes 2 and 3!

FX Guide: 'Pan Am: Retro Greenscreen World'

FX Guide has published a pretty comprehensive look at how ABC's new 1960's-set "Pan Am" is making use of Stargate Studios' "Virtual Set" technology to recreate a bygone era.

Check it out here! Definitely worth a look for our students considering a career in VFX.

Professor PD Talks DV Program, Making of FALLOUT at NewFilmmakers LA

Two More Festival Appearances for FALLOUT

Our epic sci-fi short film "Fallout" is now set to mark one full year on the film festival circuit with two appearances at East Coast genre festivals.

First up - the 2011 Atlanta Horror Festival, September 15th through 17th. "Fallout" is one of 6 "Sci-Fi Shorts" screening at this mostly horror-themed event on Saturday September 17th at 4:30pm.

Then in October is the 2011 Terror Film Festival in Philadelphia. "Fallout" screens on Saturday, October 29th at 3:00pm as part of "Splatter Shorts." I guess all the terrorist blood we spill in the battle sequence qualifies! "Fallout" is also nominated for nine awards:

Best Actor - Anders Striemer ("Hopper")
Best Supporting Actor - Steve Briscoe ("Rawls")
Best Supporting Actor - Ted Herbig ("Harrington")
Best Sound Design - John Chafuen
Best DP - Chris Erickson
Best Original Music Score - Rod Ibieta
Best Editing - Chad Hryhorysak and Chris Erickson
Best SFX - everyone on the team!
Best Science Fiction Short Film

Shoot Your Own Particle Elements!

Andrew Kramer shows you how:

Perspective: "Why studying film in college is still a good idea after all"

Filmmaker and cinematographer Nino Leitner posted on his blog recently about what he feels is the true value of a film education:

A film or media school will get you together with people from other fields in filmmaking that you are unlikely to meet otherwise. It will also bring you together with more experienced people (tutors, teachers) that are unlikely to be available as online mentors as well as people who are in a very similar life situation to yours (same age, same aspirations).

We couldn't agree more, Nino. Read the rest here.

Cinemetrics: A "Senior Innovation Project" from The Royal Academy of Arts

Here's something that should inspire our DV students that are beginning their Senior Innovation Project: "Cinemetrics." It's a "bachelor graduation project" by a student named Frederic Brodbeck at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague. In other words, their version of "SIP."

cinemetrics is about measuring and visualizing movie data, in order to reveal the characteristics of films and to create a visual “fingerprint” for them. Information such as the editing structure, color, speech or motion are extracted, analyzed and transformed into graphic representations so that movies can be seen as a whole and easily interpreted or compared side by side.

Here's a demonstration video:

More info can be found on Frederick Brodbeck's site.

The Visual Language of RAGING BULL

FreshDV has begun publishing articles focusing on the "Visual Language" of cinema. They kick it off with a detailed discussion of one of the masterworks of modern cinema, Martin Scorsese's Raging Bull.

This is not intended to be a comprehensive look at the language of the film, as there is a lot there to unwrap. Rather we will limit our discussion to a few select elements. We will look at how Scorsese uses shot composition, lens choice, and, surface division to enhance the tone and mood of the film.

Read the whole article on FreshDV's website.

15 Stunning Demo Reels

German visual arts blog Cromoart recently posted their "15 Absolutely Stunning Showreels," and they're worth looking at if you're thinking about your portfolio. Here's the first one:



Check out the rest on the Cromoart blog!

Trim Clips Faster with Avid's "Top" and "Tail"

Here's a quick tip for you Avid editors out there, courtesy of yTips.net.


There's a new Sheriff in town, and he's got Top & Tail from yTips on Vimeo.

DV Job: MillionaireSeries.com

MillionaireSeries.com
Video Technology Part-time Job
Tempe, AZ

MillionaireSeries.com is a source for solutions to elevate your business and life.  We provide training, education and support for individuals and companies in service industries.  We are dedicated to helping businesses be successful and individuals grow and prosper.  We are located one block east of UAT on Baseline.

We have a part-time position open for someone skilled in audio/video technology.  We support our products and sales with audio and audio/video recordings that require edit and post production.  The ideal candidate will be fluent in Adobe Premier, Camtasia, Photoshop and Adobe Soundbooth.  Prior experience editing video is required.  Hours are flexible but work must be performed in our office.  Salary DOE.

Responsibilities

• Edit video and audio including green screen and banners.
• Mix video with audio.
• Maintain / create procedures consistent with the work accomplished.
• Assist with website maintenance.
• Special projects as required.

Skills

• Excellent organizational and communication skills.
• Proficient in Adobe CS5 Production Premium.
• Proficient in Camtasia, MS Word, MS Powerpoint, MS Excel and Outlook (Goldmine a plus)
• Excellent interpersonal skills, sense of humor.

Please send qualified resumes to jimkenehan@millionaireseries.com.

IFP/Phoenix Offers Assistant Director Workshop

Tired of working 18-hour shoot days? Frustrated with watching time being wasted on set, wishing the crew could be more efficient? Do you wish you had more time to be creative on-set so that your films could be BETTER? Then you need to know the ins-and-outs of being a quality Assistant Director. Come and learn from professional AD Kevin R. Phipps, in an afternoon workshop dedicated to help you manage and operate your film sets more professionally, and get a better quality result.

When: Saturday, September 10
Time: 1:00PM - 5:00PM
Registration: $50-Non IFP/PHX members, $35-IFP/PHX Members
Where: IFP Phoenix/PFF Offices
1700 North 7th Avenue
Suite #250 Classroom
Phoenix, AZ 85007
602.955.6444

This workshop has been purposely timed to coordinate with the start of the Breakout Film Challenge. IFP Phoenix has taken a lot of effort to line up a whole series of seminars and workshops specifically designed to help you create a better film over the 7-week period of this challenge. The Assistant Directing workshop will give you skills to help start your production with the right preparation mindset.

More Details

FALLOUT Named a Semifinalist in Adobe Competiton

Our year-in-the-making digital video short "Fallout" has been named a Semifinalist in the category "Innovation in Motion and Video in Education" in the 2011 Adobe Design Achievement Awards.

The Adobe® Design Achievement Awards celebrate student and faculty achievement reflecting the powerful convergence of technology and the creative arts. The competition - which showcases individual and group projects created with industry-leading Adobe creative software - honors the most talented and promising student graphic designers, photographers, illustrators, animators, digital filmmakers, developers and computer artists from the world's top institutions of higher education.

"Fallout" would not have been possible without Adobe tools such as After Effects and Photoshop. To be recognized by Adobe for using their software in an innovative way is a real honor!

Later this month, the semifinal round will be judged and three Finalists in each category will be named. Finalists will be flown to Taipei to participate in the ADAA awards ceremony at the 2011 International Council of Graphic Design Associations (Icograda) Congress.

CAPTAIN AMERICA Action Shots Captured with Canon 5D Mark II DSLRs

From DV.com:

Canon U.S.A. has announced that the highly anticipated feature film, Captain America: The First Avenger, used Canon EOS 5D Mark II Digital SLR cameras to capture many of the movie’s action shots. Throughout the super hero action picture, the 5D Mark II was used to shoot motion sequences that were seamlessly integrated with the production’s 35mm film footage.



Read the full article here.

From The Script Lab: Breaking "Free" Into Hollywood

The folks over at TheScriptLab.com have published a very insightful article that all film students need to read.

The irony is that if you graduate from med-school, you're a doctor, but when you graduate from film school, you're just a dweeb – qualified to brew coffee or make movies. But nobody hires a recent grad to make a movie. That's why so many film grads are so good at brewing a killer cup of Joe.

Read the full article here.

Filming INCEPTION’s Corridor & Zero-Gravity Sequences

Check out this behind the scenes look at the making of some of Inception's more memorable action scenes - a true feat of technological innovation in the service of the story!

The best ISO settings for your Canon DSLR

DP / filmmaker Andrew Schar recently posted this informative video comparing the noise inherent to various ISO settings on Canon DSLR's in movie mode. I for one will be sticking with multiples of ISO 160 from now on!

Editor of LOST and Mad Men shares his insights for students looking towards Hollywood

Recent DV Job Postings

Here are a couple of DV-related job postings that have landed on our virtual desk for sharing with students and alumni.

Video Technologist at MillionaireSeries.com
We have a part-time position open for someone skilled in audio/video technology.  We support our products and sales with audio and audio/video recordings that require edit and post production.  The ideal candidate will be fluent in Adobe Premier, Camtasia, Photoshop and Adobe Soundbooth.  Prior experience editing video is required.  Hours are flexible but work must be performed in our office.  Salary DOE. We are located one block east of UAT on Baseline.

More info:email Jamie Robertson in Industry and Career Services at

	jrobertson@uat.edu

MultiMedia Developer at ASU SkySong

Apply highly specialized technical and creative skills in media projects producing professional level video and audio recordings. Show competency in established production methods regarding audio and video; serve as a consultant to ASU Online staff and University faculty in designing and planning mutlimedia projects; work closely with a team in a small, fast paced, creative environment. Work both collaboratively and independently with minimal supervision; seek, evaluate and implement new and emerging technologies that have potential value for media delivery regarding teaching and learning.

More info: https://www.asu.edu/go/employment/?auth=guest&jobid=26911&SiteId=1&PostingSeq=1

UAT's 48 Hour Film "Covet" Wins 4 Awards!

The UAT / Locked Horns / SWAT HD collaboration "Covet" won FOUR awards at last week's IFP/Phoenix "Beat the Clock" event. The film, produced in just 48 hours over the weekend of July 15th through 17th, garnered the following awards:

• Best Director - for Professor Paul DeNigris
• Best Use of Line - for our use of the mandated dialogue "As long as it's free..."
• Best Ensemble - for our amazing cast
• 2nd Place Film

A complete list of winners can be found on the IFP/Phoenix website.

"Covet" was produced by a team of students and alumni working in conjunction with Professor Paul DeNigris' Locked Horns Productions (including longtime collaborators Steve Briscoe and Laura DeNigris) and Steve Wargo's SWAT HD (a frequent employer of UATDV alumni and students). Cavin Gray ("Parallax"), Amanda Melby ("Screen Wars"), Kane Black ("Fallout"), and Steve Briscoe ("Cowboy Dreams") star, along with student Cedric Katambwa.

For a short time, "Covet" is online on Vimeo: http://www.vimeo.com/26559980. In a couple of weeks it will go into hiding once again as we begin submitting to additional film festivals. Expect it to make a return to the big screen at April's Phoenix Film Festival - or perhaps sooner!

Come Out and Support UAT at the 48-Hour Film Challenge Screening!

UAT Digital Video has once again submitted a film for the IFP/Phoenix "Beat the Clock" 48-Hour Film Challenge. Our entry, a supernatural police thriller titled "Covet," will have its premiere screening at the Beat the Clock Screening and Awards Party, Friday July 29th, 2011 at the Phoenix Art Museum (1625 N. Central Avenue, Phoenix, AZ).

Doors open at 5:30 pm and there will be two screenings, Program A at 6 pm and Program B at 8 pm. "Covet" is part of Program B. Tickets are $15 per screening,  or $25 for both screenings. (Buy tickets here.)

"Covet" was produced by a team of students and alumni working in conjunction with Professor Paul DeNigris' Locked Horns Productions (including longtime collaborators Steve Briscoe and Laura DeNigris) and Steve Wargo's SWAT HD (a frequent employer of UATDV alumni and students). Cavin Gray ("Parallax"), Amanda Melby ("Screen Wars"), Kane Black ("Fallout"), and Steve Briscoe ("Cowboy Dreams") star, along with student Cedric Katambwa.

Action on Film International Film Festival - Screening Schedule and Award Nominations

The Action on Film International Film Festival has announced its official screening schedule AND its complete list of nominated films.

UAT Digital Video's sci-fi thriller "Fallout" screens on SUNDAY JULY 24th in the 2PM BLOCK of short films. (Complete schedule.)

"Fallout" was also honored with THREE award nominations: Best Visual Effects (Short), Best Production Design, and Best Science Fiction! (Complete list of nominees.) Congrats again to TEAM FALLOUT!

To attend Action on Film, buy tickets for the Sunday Block here or buy an Any Day / All Day pass here.

And... Three More Awards for FALLOUT

The 3rd Annual Los Angeles Reel Film Festival has bestowed three more awards on our short sci-fi film "Fallout" in the Student Film category - 3rd Place, Best Editing, and Best Digital Effects!

Check out the complete list of winners here!

More Film Festival Appearances for FALLOUT

Our epic sci-fi action thriller "Fallout" continues its festival run with three more appearances in July and August!

First up is the Action on Film International Film Festival in Pasadena, CA, July 22-30, 2011. Schedule has not yet been published. Click here for more info about AoF.

Then comes the HollyShorts Film Festival ("Best short film festival in the states!!!!" - Brian Ronalds) in Hollywood, CA, August 11-18, 2011. No screening schedule yet but you can keep up with all the festival info here.

And then immediately after HollyShorts "Fallout" screens as part of  Renovation - The 69th World Science Fiction Convention in Reno, NV, August 17-21, 2011. The tentative screening schedule has already been published here, and "Fallout" will be screening on Friday, August 19th at 2 pm.

We are incredibly excited that "Fallout" continues to reach audiences and promote the UAT Digital Video Program at these marquee events!

Work for the London 2012 Olympics

NBC has posted a number of production, logistics, and postproduction jobs for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, some of which are entry level and would be ideal for a recent graduate.

Check out the complete job listing here!

FALLOUT Screens Tonight at NewFilmmakers LA

NewFilmmakers Los Angeles invites you to join us for the June 14th 2011 film screening series and after-party event at Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood with a filmmaker lounge throughout the evening.

5:45PM Short Film Program #1 Reception
6:15PM Short Film Program #1 Screening:

* Wonderboy (Dir. Daniel Casey)
* Nowhere Road (Dir. Benjamin Dynice)
* A Sense of Humor (Dir. Nathan Larkin-Connolly)
* L'Envers du Ciel! - A Shade in the Sky! (Dir. Eric Lavelle)

7:15PM Short Film Program #2 Reception
7:30PM Short Film Program #1 After-Party
7:45PM Short Film Program #2 Screening:

* She (Dir. Rolando Sanchez)
* Clemency (Dir. Joseph Albanese)
* Bedfellows (Dir. Pierre Stefanos)
* Krakow (Dir. Aleksandra Kulig)
* By Jude (Dir. Angela Chen)

8:45PM Short Film Program #3 Reception
9:00PM Short Film Program #2 After-Party
9:15PM Short Film Program #3 Screening:

* Fluorescent Gray (Dir. Leo Age)
* The Foal (Dir. Josh Tanner)
* Supermarket Superhero (Dir. Jake Viramontez)
* The Binding of Ismael (Dir. Taofik Kolade)
* Yellow Room (Dir. Jacqueline Reyno)
* Fallout (Dir. Paul DeNigris)

10:30PM Short Film Program #3 After-Party

You will have the opportunity to meet the directors of each film, the actors and other crew + participate in a live audience Q&A. There are pre-receptions and after-parties for each program. Admissions to the programs are only $6 which includes the screening ticket and access to the filmmaker lounge. Visit the NewFilmmakers LA Official Website at www.NFMLA.org for more information and to purchase your ticket now!