Studio
Defining Cinematography
7/29/2009 at 9:08 AM by Amy Allen
Massify Interview: Defining Cinematography from Massify on Vimeo.
Jendra Jarnagin and Sean Porter, two thoughtful and talented DPs on Massify, sat down with us to talk about their craft, tackling topics such as what it means to be a cinematographer, what makes a project successful, how to further one's career and more. This video is useful to anybody who wants to go into the field and especially to Directors, Producers, and others who work with Cinematographers. Jendra is based in New York and Brooklyn and was recently profiled in American Cinematography. Learn more about her at her site, floatingcamera.com. Sean's based in Seattle and New York and his work can be found on his personal site.
Sean Porter Cinematographer
Jendra Jarnagin Cinematographer
Lighting: How To Do It Right
7/23/2009 at 10:21 AM by Amy Allen
Top cinematographers share their knowledge in these short videos (found on Creative Cow, directed by Jon Fauer). An excellent overview of what light has to do, and what it can do. Helpful to all. Second video after the jump.
Puppets On Massify
7/22/2009 at 8:22 AM by Amy Allen
Every now and then we highlight interesting content from Massify profiles in case you missed it. Before he directed a music video for Low Vs Diamond, Matthew Chilbert directed this whimsical music video starring a precious puppet and a singing nightlight. More puppets after the jump!
Matthew Chilbert Other, Editor, Director
Build Your Own Snorricam
7/21/2009 at 2:09 PM by Amy Allen
I'll admit that I didn't know what a Snorricam was before coming across this Indymogul video. For those of you who are into homemade camera mounts, this tutorial is useful and entertaining. You might also want to check out the article on (non-homemade) DSLR accessories in this summer's issue of Filmmaker Magazine. It breaks down the different options by price. Let us know what else you want to learn about in the comments, by going into this article's detail page. (Side note: Yes, we have comments now!)
Ashton Blount, Art Director
7/20/2009 at 8:32 AM by Amy Allen
Ashton Blount from Massify on Vimeo.
Art Director Ashton Blount's career has taken him from Los Angeles to Dubai to New York. He's created trees from scratch and even flooded an entire set. We caught up with him in his Brooklyn office to learn more about his career and pick his brain. His advice and experience is useful for anybody who wants to become an Art Director, as well as anybody who works or plans to work with one.
DIY Steadicam
7/15/2009 at 12:37 PM by Amy Allen
Via Lifehacker, YB2Normal shows off a homemade steadicam. The home movie footage shot with the device is surprisingly smooth considering that the cost of building the DIY video stabilizer is, well, around $10.
Casting Director Tells All
7/13/2009 at 7:53 AM by Amy Allen
Massify Interview: Alycia Aumuller from Massify on Vimeo.
What do casting directors really think? NY-based Casting Director and friend to actors Alycia Aumuller gives advice to those who are just starting out.
Conversation with Jody Lee Lipes
6/30/2009 at 10:15 AM by Amy Allen
Massify Interview: Brock Enright from Massify on Vimeo.
For his first documentary feature, Cinematographer-turned-Director Jody Lee Lipes followed the artist Brock Enright as Enright prepared for his first major gallery exhibition in New York. Learn about the making of Brock Enright: Good Times Will Never Be The Same, which Paste calls a provocation and an enigma, in this interview.
Fun With Indie Film Cliches
6/29/2009 at 1:02 PM by Suraj Das
This hilarious short video from the Rotten Tomatoes movie show highlights just a few of the cheesy cliches that find their way into "quirky" and "fresh" independent films. Worth a watch for the laughs.
A Conversation with Eileen Yaghoobian
6/24/2009 at 1:46 PM by Amy Allen
Massify Interview: Eileen Yaghoobian from Massify on Vimeo.
Died Young, Stayed Pretty is Eileen Yaghoobian's first feature, a documentary about underground rock posters. Drawing on her background in fine arts, Yaghoobian shot, produced, directed and edited the movie, and deserves respect for diving into the project without any initial financing.
Nobody Will Tweet For You
6/24/2009 at 1:38 PM by Amy Allen
...Unless you're a celebrity, of course. But for those of you unsure about how all these social media tools work, check out Clay Shirky's talk via Ted. It has Twitter in the title, but more broadly it aims to help people understand how online communication works today. Shirky points out that as everything from newspapers to movies move to the the internet, "Every medium is right next door to every other medium." And as a content creator, it's up to you to engage your audience using new tools to drive them to your content. This is a good primer.
A Conversation with Jennifer Kroot
6/22/2009 at 10:51 AM by Amy Allen
Massify Interview: Jennifer Kroot from Massify on Vimeo.
Documentary filmmaker Jennifer Kroot talks about the inspiration behind her homage to the Kuchar Brothers, It Came From Kuchar. The film highlights the prolific directors' love for camp, for fun, and most of all, for filmmaking.
Jennifer Kroot Director
A Conversation with Steve Kastrissios
6/18/2009 at 2:29 PM by Amy Allen
Massify Interview: The Horseman from Massify on Vimeo.
Steve Kastrissios is an Australian filmmaker who recently released his first feature, The Horseman. His goal was to make a low-budget, high-impact action movie. Here's how he did it.
A Conversation with Peter Esmonde
6/17/2009 at 2:42 PM by Amy Allen
Massify Interview: Trimpin from Massify on Vimeo.
Documentary filmmaker Peter Esmonde talks about the making of his film TRIMPIN: the sound of invention. A profile of the gifted musical and artistic force that is Trimpin, the film is an exploration of the creative spirit. Esmonde espouses on why he turned his camera on Trimpin, the ever evolving relationship between filmmaker and subject, and the challenges he faced shooting for two years, among other things. Filmmakers, you'll appreciate this interview for both its advice and the subject matter of the film.
A Conversation with Mai Iskander
6/12/2009 at 2:26 PM by Amy Allen
Massify Interview: Garbage Dreams from Massify on Vimeo.
Director Mai Iskander, who helmed the powerful documentary Garbage Dreams, talks at length about her subject matter in the clip above.
