stillmotion

Hey Patrick,

I know you’re up to your eyeballs in non-wedding work, and for that I say congratulations!  Quick question for you regarding shooter talent:

 I think we do a fine job now but its obvious to me that average shooting generates average referrals.  I want the most premium brides in my market.  The most discerning, and I’m convinced the only way to stand out is to… stand out, be different.  Not for the sake of being different, but because no one else is, and its in me to not do the same old crap.  Besides constantly nurturing my own aesthetic I need to find and cultivate my own local talent that I can take under my wing.  Any tips on going about this?   I’ve done the generic CraigsList ad last year and managed to find one really well intentioned film school student who is pretty good about 60% of the time but I’m looking for backup and, quite honestly, better.  Where and how do you look for talent and if you advertise for it in something like a Craigs List ad, how do you word that ad?  I get so many false leads that its a waste of time.

Hope you get a chance to breathe after A Game of Honor.  You’re always an inspiration.

Take care, and thanks.

Brett

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hey Brett

finding good talent is one of the most difficult parts in building a business in this industry. building a team means really understanding who you are as a company, what you stand for, where you want to go, as well as your strengths and weaknesses. the less you know, the more likely it is to find people who treat their position more like a job than a passion and who do little to make the company as a whole better. the more you really understand, and can communicate, this bigger picture the higher your chances are of finding somebody who will really feel connected with your company and want to stay and grow with you. we’ve definitely made mistakes along the way and from that we’ve lost good people and we’ve also brought the wrong people on board, which was a waste of both their time and ours. the biggest mistake we’ve made is putting somebody in the wrong position or in front of something they aren’t ready to handle. from all this we’ve definitely grown as a company, we’ve made huge improvements in the past several years, and it’s easy to conclude that the team we have now is the tightest and strongest it has ever been.

in getting here we’ve tried everything from contract, to hourly, to salary. each seems to have it’s advantages and disadvantages.

contract workers are great for overflow such as when you have a spike in work and need to keep the flow going. they are low responsibility and the cost should be very reasonable, while you rarely need to provide space and equipment for hem to help out. their deadlines can also be shortened as well because they don’t have all the distraction of bring in a studio full time. look at this as a viable option to get to know people in the beginning as well. the downside is that you often get an effort and level of commitment that is much lower. the quality of work, while it can be good, rarely pushes the envelope and makes you a better company. as the relationship is so very clearly you do X for this amount of pay, it is hard to get a deeper level of passion from contract workers.

hourly is a great way to bring somebody on full or part time as you test out the relationship and see if they are the right fit. if you offer say 30hrs/week and allow that to scale up when things get busy you can provide yourself with slightly lower overhead in slow times and more help when needed. as with contract, you still have that direct relationship between work and pay. it is a little more abstract with an hourly situation but it is still very clear that if i stay longer i get paid more. with that you get a conflict of interest in that the compensation is only related to how long you are there, not how much you get done, how good it is, or the new ideas you came up with along the way. that naturally creates a situation where it is tougher to have improvements in overall efficiency and bigger picture problems. any improvements an individual makes would mean doing more in the same amount of time for the same pay. some people will fight through this, and if you find somebody like that you definitely want to recognize that ability and appreciate it, but it is rare. we’ve promoted team members from hourly to salary and they made it very clear how much more a part of everything they felt.

salary is an option that creates a much looser relationship between work and pay and, in our experience, leads to much more committed and passionate team members. one of the best parts of a salary position is that employees really get to own their own tasks and deadlines and it is up to them to manage both. if they need to stay late or work on a weekend that is on them and their is a great personal reward to be efficient and manage your time well to avoid those extra hours. in general, you are creating a situation where everybody is thinking outside of their own experience and trying to make the company stronger. you get team members who feel deeply connected to what they do, who will always give you 110%, and who have a much deeper commitment. the downside of all of this is the commitment that you are making as an employer. you want to be sure that you have people that are the right fit, that really understand what they are getting themselves into, and who really identify with what the company is about and where they are going. salary means you also have a high level of responsibility in terms of overhead from wages, providing studio space, and equipment.

looking at all of this, i suggest trying to have a couple contract workers that can help when needed and keep you going if something or somebody falls through. as you get to know people and figure out all the answers about who your company is, i would look at starting hourly and going from there. as you find people that you can really see helping you grow and you helping them grow, those are the ones to look at offering a salary position to. look for people that are excited about what they do, passionate about their work, excel in team environments, and can be resourceful and innovative. as your team grows you’ll really come to appreciate more and more the ability for people to manage themselves and manoeuvre their own road blocks. it is also worth spending some time thinking about your own leadership style and what type of people compliment that.

one of the most difficult parts of the process is always figuring out where to look for the right people. if your hope is to find the perfect fit off a free craigslist ad, you’re search will probably take a lot longer than you’d hope and the road will be bumpy. use what you know about finding the right brides and apply that here. the more you know about where you are at and who you are looking for, the more you can narrow down where you might find them. in the past we’ve had success with sites like Monster (or Workopolis), but we’ve never tried that for a shooting or editing position.

while our path may not be typical, the majority of our team just happened. we met Quenna while doing an evo workshop in Australia. she wanted the chance to move to the US and we saw a ton of potential in her skills, drive and where she wanted to take herself. Paul’s friend Jordan originally emailed us out of the blue and then introduced us to Paul. while it wasn’t the right fit for Jordan, Paul has been a huge part in managing our post-production as well as being a cinematographer. Ray and Joyce we met when they commissioned us to shoot their wedding. they created a honeymoon film to compliment their SDE which first caught our attention, and then they joined us for an evo in Toronto at which we got even closer with them. as vague as it sounds, for us it is all about always having our eyes and ears open (funny our that also relates to our approach to imagery). you can meet the right people in the most random of places, the key is being ready to recognize that and being prepared to act on it when it happens. get out to local PVAs, get involved with conferences like [IN]focus, and take any other opportunity you can to get out there.

good luck!

P.

on Monday night at the amazing Museum of Modern Art in New York, the stillmotion fam joined a group of people invited to the premiere screening of A Game of Honor. it was an incredibly rewarding experience and such a fitting end to months of intense production. this past week A Game of Honor has been featured in GQ, the New York Times, the Examiner, the LA Times, and even Sports Illustrated. a big thanks to Cinevate for sponsoring the premiere screening and helping to make the night possible.

the day after the screening, Neil Best said this in Newsday

‘After the screening, CBS Sports president Sean McManus rose to tell an audience that included television and military personnel that the evening was “one of the proudest nights in the history of CBS Sports.”

I would say it was one of the proudest in the history of all sports television.’

Dennis, from Cinevate, and Paul, from LensProToGo, join us on the red carpet for a picture before the screening.  Both Cinevate and LensProToGo have been huge supporters of stillmotion over the years and we will be forever grateful for all that they have done for us.

the stillmotion fam grabbing a picture together after the screening. Joyce, Justin, and myself shot the majority of the film with Paul, Ray, Quenna, and Amanda also contributing whenever and where ever they were needed. Quenna also spent 7 weeks straight in New York helping in post as the film neared completion. Evan and Amina joined us for the final game and helped out with BTS pictures and managing all the gear.

A Game of Honor premieres tonight on Showtime at 10PM EST. we are so excited for the world to see this film and we hope you are able to check it out.

Quick bio… I do video game trailers for a company called perfect world entertainment. I love the company but I really want to do something that impacts people in a different way. I want to make videos for people who will look at that moment, that story and cry with tears of joy for the rest of their lives. There’s nothing like that I this industry and I’ve decided that I need to make a change. 

So I come at you with a question, if I took $20,000 and decided to spend it on video gear what would you recommend for me? I don’t need a computer. That I have taken care of. I’ll need audio gear. I’d like to do still photography as well. 

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how you impact people, in the fullest way, comes through in the connection you have with their message, and a thorough understanding of both what you say and how to achieve it with your tools. without all of these, no amount of tools will make that impact you are looking for. so with that, i would suggest the biggest thing to invest in is yourself, look at conferences such as IN[FOCUS], check out workshops by those you connect with, and just constantly explore your own film making decisions and push yourself to understand them better.

if i had to enter a shoot, say a wedding, and had $20k to provide all the gear i needed (aside form post) it would go something like this. first off, i would break the list into the different facets of production to make sure we aren’t over-investing in one particular area. the main areas i would look at are; cameras/lenses, audio, camera accessories, camera support, and lighting.

cameras and lenses

canon 7d // $3,058 ($1,529 X 2)

there are a lot of different ways to go about the camera bodies. some lower priced options like a T3i or 60D and some higher priced like a MKIV or a MKII. the 7d, i believe, is the best value option that also offers a pro feel and functions. you want to be able to learn and work in kelvin white balance, use things like white balance shift, and have a camera that can handle rough terrain and weather. having two means you can do two camera interviews or multiple camera coverage of an event.

canon 60D // $949

this acts as the third angle when you need it as well as a backup in case one of your other bodies goes down. it does feel a little more fragile and doesn’t offer things like white balance shift, but the articulating LCD is a great feature for slider use and it’s a good addition to the kit.

canon 14mm f2.8 // $2,241

with the crop factor of 1.6 on all of the bodies above, you’ll need a really wide lens so your effective focal length is still fairly wide. this will be a great lens to use on the slider and steadicam for your wide establishing shots or other high energy scenes. it is a hefty price to pay for one lens, but it is a strong piece of glass that will allow you to say more in your films. some may recommend off brand suggestions for a wide, which i’ll admit we don’t have that much experience with. i’de prefer to go with the best and have gear you can grow into and stick with.

canon 50mm f1.4 // $379

a solid go to prime for shallow DOF in a popular focal length. a more solid build than the f1.8 version and more economical than the f1.2 (which i went back and forth on adding to the list but opted instead for the 35 f1.4 which you can often do more with on a cropped body).

canon 35mm f1.4 // $1,405

one of my favourite lenses and something i couldn’t live without. a great pairing with the 1.6 crop to give you something close to a 50mm effective focal length. it has a very short minimum focusing distance so you can get in close and really let the audience feel the immediacy of your shot.

canon 85mm f1.8 // $398

a great longer lens, and low light solution. often a little longer than you may want for event coverage but a great shallow interview angle for a more dramatic distanced feel.

canon 20mm 2.8 // $452

an in-between option when the 14mm is too much but the 35mm isn’t enough, which is a spot you will often find yourself in.

canon 70-200 f4 non-IS // $674

the best value long lens zoom. skip the IS and get the f4 version and you can save quite a bit. the lens is super sharp and f4 is often more than enough with the low-light ability of a 7D. the 85mm is your go-to option when you need more light but a longer lens.

canon 24-70m f2.8 // $1,329

the all in one wonder that is beloved by many. there is a danger in the power this lens offers – it makes you lazy and your story telling often suffers. rather than finding the best shot, angle, and distance from the subject we often zoom instead and that leads to focal lengths chosen out of convenience instead of purpose. a great option if things move faster than you can react with primes (though i’d often still go in with a prime) or if you need your second shooter to have a versatile option.

cameras and lenses come in at $10,885. that represents just over half the budget and will give you a powerful solution for more than one shooter that will also be viable for years to come. while some of the primes could be upgraded over the years, there is a solid core of lenses you can stick with.

audio

the sennheiser G3 wireless lav set // $1170 ($585 X 2)

the best value for a reliable wireless setup that can deliver amazing results and can be understood quickly.

zoom H4n recorder // $538 ($269 X 2)

again, a great value option to run the wireless into and the second unit gives you a backup for capturing live sound through the on board mic or plugging into a board during a presentation.

k-tec KE-69CC adjustable boom pole with internal XLR // $144

an entry level option for a boom setup. great for interviews or getting great field sound. not a good option for live events but a huge asset for sit down interviews or getting sound on a produced shoot.

sennheiser ME66/K6 shotgun // $500

a mid-level option to run on the boompole. this unit comes with a power module so you can get away with sending it less power from the H4N and therefore getting longer battery life. it is also possible to run into a DSLR because it is powered, which is great if you need better field sound and can put up with a larger setup.

rycote windjammers // $170

these are huge in a tough situation. grab one for the ME66/K6 setup so you can record outdoors and also grab a couple small windjammers for the sennheiser lavs. an essential part of your kit for clean audio.

rode videomic pro // $229

one of the smallest and best value option for on camera DSLR sound. keep in mind that they can be fragile in a rough environment so we often reinforce ours with gaff tape where the elastic bands meet the mount and that does wonders.

rycote undercovers // $25 ($12 X 2)

these are a set of double sided adhesive pads that also come with a felt cover. perfect for hiding a lav under clothing. each pack lasts for about 25 applications so i’de start off with a couple. we hide our lav mics on anything from an interview to a wedding.

olympus DM-420 recorder and giant squid lav mic // $260 ($100 for the recorder X 2, $30 for the mic X 2)

we don’t enjoy these nearly as much as the discontinued iRiver but they do the job in offering a low cost backup solution or additional mics when needed. they offer input sensitivity adjustment from high, medium, to low and are easy to pull the files off. the giant squid audio lav mics are very high quality at an amazing price.

audio comes in at $3036 which is less than a quarter of the budget. they say audio is half of everything you see and i’d even suggest that might be an understatement, so investing this much in audio will go a long way in allowing your films to have more depth and therefore create the impact you are looking for.

camera support

the legendary manfrotto 561 BHDV-1 monopod // $580 ($290 X 2)

the best multi-purpose shooting tool. an amazing option for static shots, moving shots, produced pieces or shoots in a more run and gun style. two allows you to have a crew of two shooters and still retain mobility.

cinevate atlas 30 slider with all terrain legs // $1,290

a premium slider option but you definitely get your value here. these units can take anything you throw at them, they adjust to any environment, and they always ensure you get a smooth shot on the first take. having the unit come apart makes it very easy to travel in a tripod bag, which is a huge plus. this is not a slider that is tripod mountable but we are of the belief that a shoot that is slow enough for you to setup a tripod is slow enough to do it right with apple boxes or light stands and a shoot that requires you to move quickly just means you need to improvise with what is in your environment. again, this is a tool you can grow into and won’t need to be replaced in years to come.

manfrotto 546 tripod legs with 501HDV head // $1,096 (548 X 2)

this is a more economical option as the plan is to stay off sticks as much as possible to be getting more angles, getting in there, and moving faster. these are solid for interviews and static angles and the light weight of DSLRs means they can handle them just fine.

glidecam HD2000 or steadicam merlin // $450 vs. $800

the glidecam is your more economical option. it is perhaps more rugged in that it can be abused more and still stay balanced and often performs better in the wind. it is not as smooth to adjust as a merlin and has a heavier operating weight than the merlin. the merlin comes from the steadicam line of products so you know it will perform well and have a high attention to detail. the gimbal placed underneath the stage requires more practice to get smooth shots – but that just pushes you to be a better operator and not try to do too complex of moves too quickly. we use both depending on the situation but often go for a full body-mounted steadicam flyer or zephyr, which is well outside of your budget range and not needed with what your focus is.

camera support comes in at $3,416 or $3766 . a nice chunk of the budget for a very important part of the story telling process. the key with everything here is to understand it’s purpose and try to use them effectively.

camera accessories

z-finder // $375

a must have accessory for shooting outside and shooting with your primes wide open. we make sure everybody on our team always has one of these and being so small and durable you can take them anywhere and subject them to anything.

visible dust 1.6X sensor cleaner // $30

a simple detail often overlooked, but always having a strong option to clean your sensor in the field when the automatic cleaning fails is a lifesaver. i’de consider this a responsibility over a luxury.

lexar 32gb 400X cards // $450 ($ X 6)

the 400X speed means you won’t have any buffer issues and you’ll get fast transfer speeds. a stock of 6 should give you enough memory to film an event from start to finish without needing to download.

lowepro memory card wallet // $36 ($18 X 2)

you’ll need something to keep your cards organized. we also recommend using a label maker to put your initial and card number on each so that you can always make sure you have all your cards and don’t get them mixed up when shooting with others that have the same brand.

camera accessories come in at $891. though not nearly as exciting as some of the other items, these will all go a long way in ensuring a smooth shoot.

lighting

we are left with about $1,000 for lighting which is a small budget for sure, but from the nature of your email it feels like not a lot of it will be lit by you. if it is, i would consider readjusting a couple lens choices to feel up funds here. lighting is also a great thing to have a basic kit for and rent when needed. we’ve easily spent over $20k on lighting alone this year, and that is after having a studio full of lights, so it is a slippery slope when you try to own a full lighting kit.

lowel pro lights // $480 ($120 X 4)

the best value 250W tungsten light. super small and powerful for lighting a small scenes or an interview. four gives you lots of options when paired with the modifiers to shape your subject.

matthews 18″ x 24″ road rags // $263 ($193 for kit, add in an additional frame for $70)

this is a very portable light modifying solution. each kit comes with a net, double net, silk, and flag. even if you don’t understand what those terms mean yet, grab a kit and start learning how you can shape light and modify it. a must have for an interview. learning how to use this kit effectively will go a long way in working with natural light better.

lee filters filter 12×12″ assorted gel kit  // $70 ($35 X 2)

this kit comes with small sheets that let you convert your pro lights to daylight, make them look more like sunset, or soften them with diffusion. having this pack also lets you work in mixed light situations to modify one type of lighting when possible.

manfrotto nano stands // $225 ($45 X 5)

a great small stand that you can travel with that can be used for the road rags kit or to hold up a pro light.

avenger grip head // $66 ($22 X 3)

an essential piece of the kit to quickly get the road rags onto a light stand. also great for clamping a piece of card board to make a home made cookie or a piece of foam core as a bounce card.

if i had everything on this kit, i would feel prepared to tackle most of the shoots we go on. some of the facets are a little limited, such as the lighting, but the more you understand the tools there the more you can make the most of what you have and understand the language of film better. remember that there are some great rental options out there. if you aren’t sure about a lens or piece of gear, don’t just trust us, try it for yourself. our friends at lensprotogo.com offer nearly everything on this list for very reasonable rental rates. when you have a big shoot give yourself the room in the budget for rentals so you can add additional lenses, lighting, and other gear as needed.

any questions, suggestions, or disagreement with anything on the list, please comment. there are definitely many ways to tackle a $20,00 budget and i’d love to hear what changes others might make.

P.

we absolutely work best as a team and we could’t have got to where we are now without each other, and that extends well beyond the SM family. the constant support we receive from our sponsors has helped push our films as well as our educational endeavours. for EVO we had a great group of sponsors that supported the workshop by providing gear and/or prizes. this comes together to make a more challenging experience for attendees and has everybody leaving with that much more hands on experience. below we have the winning films from EVO San Fran, but before we share those inspirational shorts, we wanted to say a couple words to all of our fabulous supporters;

Cinevate // so we’ve all seen various cinevate sliders in tough situations before, but never as tough as what it went through this time around. it’s been under and over cars, chairs, and worst of it all, licked by puppies! ok, so they may not be the toughest of situations but because they are so portable and makes such a cinematic impact with such a small footprint, it definitely helped in situations where space is tight and unfamiliar environments. with that said, their generosity has not only helped in “class” time, but also some very lucky attendees post workshop by providing a Simplis, won by Danny and an Atlas FLT, won by Peter. thank you so much.

Lens Pro To Go // when have we needed you and you not be there? i’m not just talking about lenses and cameras. perhaps you remember the lack of speakers incident at wppi 2011? organizing a workshop can be a lot of work, with all the logistics, workshop experiences, food, hotels and gear. your organization in labelling your equipment and easy return shipping methods was a huge stress reliever. of course thats not the only reason why you guys are great, but the fact that we can trust that everything you send us is in prime shape ready to use, helps tremendously.

smallHD // there were many instances where not having you would’ve been impossible. our attendees never fail to surprise us with creative and unique ideas. execution may sometimes be hard and not always possible, but having smallHD onboard really opened up the doors to some different places they could put the camera. team Russia had a great idea to shoot part of their film from the perspective of a box looking out, having the smallHd meant they didn’t have to guess their way through the shot which is so very important on the tight timelines they had .

Kessler Crane // nothing gets our attendees more excited than being able to play with big toys, and Kessler Crane never disappoints. everyone was told from the beginning of the workshop that for the shoot day they are welcomed to use any “big boy” gear they wanted but they must provide us with a solid rationale as to why that tool was needed. Kessler provided a cineslider, pocketjib, and KC-12 all for attendees to use during the workshop all of which offered huge gains in production value in the shorts.

Profoto // we made some new friends and we couldn’t wait to share with everyone last week. Profoto sent out two of their 800watt HMIs and they were used almost exclusively to light the set, both for in class demos and for the shorts. with a selection of lenses, barn doors, and soft box options it couldn’t be easier to shape the light to fit any situation and the Profoto air remote let us turn the HMIs on and off from anywhere in the room as well as tweaking the levels so they were just right.

Shootsac // we’ve been spending a lot of time together these days but we haven’t expressed just how grateful we are for our shootsacs. nobody knows on-the-go more than Jessica Claire, and the shootsacs most certainly helped on all our on-location shoots at EVO.

Zacuto // every shoot, every workshop, every production Zacuto’s z-finder is one of the most important things we pack aside from our cameras and lenses. these nuits handle everything we have been able to throw at them and that says a ton. a thank you is also in order for providing a z-finder for another winning attendee josh. :)

Tiffen/Seadicam // there’s been many a times during the day that we can expect someone really excited to try on the steadicam  just take a walk around the studio and see what it feels like. it is the closest thing we have to a standup video game in the studio. needless to say no one is ever disappointed with how great the result is. steadicam is a serious invest for a filmmaker to make and it can radically change their films and what they offer, so it is awesome that we are able to have extra units on hand for attendees to try on just to see what works for them.

With Etiquette // a huge thanks to WE for supplying tracks for the groups to use for both their shorts and business films. WE also provided a pile of licenses for attendees as prizes.

Canon Live Learning // last but not least we’d like to thank Canon Live Learning for their support over EVO. by sending a large pile of camera bodies and lenses (in addition to LPTG) it meant we could provide each team with a set of camera, primes, and zooms so everybody could try the best of Canon glass and not need to bring their own gear.

on behalf of sm and all of our attendees we’d like to sincerely thank each and every one of you in making EVO possible and helping us all become better filmmakers and storytellers. below are some shots of EVO in action.

with all that being said, here are the winning films from this years EVO. assignments were given to teams (of 4) Tuesday night so they could review and prepare. on Wednesday each group had 4 hours to shoot either their business or short films.

the winning business film is for a local company called West Coast Classic Customs created by team Island Fever.

the winning short film was created entirely in studio and almost all in our set. congrats to team EC/WC on their brilliant short.

tonight at 10 PM EST (November 24th) you can catch Prelude: The Making of A Game of Honor on both Showtime 2 (SHO2) and ShowtimeHD. A Game of Honor is the feature length documentary that SM has been DP’ing and shooting for the last six months. tune into the show to see our team in action and see what the doc is all about.

P.