Graphic Design: Bright Leaf Brew Fest Poster

This contest was to design a poster for the Bright Leaf Brew Fest. It's a beer convention. I immediately had two ideas.  One was more diagrammatic, communicating community, celebration, and enjoyment.The second idea depicts the victory of a beer after a long day.

My entry 'Victory Beer' garnered first place, and 'Cheers!' tied for third. I will receive a cash prize, event tickets, and my entry will be used to promote the event

Victory Beer

Cheers!

Video: Smiling Jack Always Laughs Last

Chances are you saw my previous post where I discussed pre-production of Smiling Jack Always Laughs Last.  Here is the video

Three hours of filming, one hour of video review, about an hour on music, and three hours to edit.

I wish I could have gotten a better mob together, but I'm really pleased with how the scene came out considering I only had two actors in that scene. I also really like the soundtrack queues.

The rough cut of edits was 17 minutes long. The finished video is 5:30.

A big thanks to everyone that helped.

How to Build a Camera Mount

Hand held filming can be bouncy and jarring. You could spend a lot of money on different set ups or you could build the equivalent of a Fig Rig for $16.

Designed by director Mike Figgis, the Fig Rig helps produce steady shots.  Your arms absorb the shock of walking without transferring those movements directly to the camera.

The Fig Rig camera mount.

Mantle Progress: The Vision has Manifested

A lot of progress has happened in a week. It actually looks like a mantle now.  I'll let the picture speak for itself.

I still need to build a box between the horizontal paneled box and mantle, as well as add crown molding to that.

After that I will finish and paint all pieces.  Then I schedule an appointment with the stone/granite supplier and pick out a hearth.  Once that's in place I can mount the mantle.

This is the current progress.

Filming My Next Video While Getting Spotted by the Cops

I stumbled upon this very well done video; White with Red- based on a creepypasta post.

Which led me to this video; 2AM- A short film based on 'The Smiling Man' by Blue Tidal

There is a community, creeppasta, that posts horror stories and various groups create videos from the stories.

I knew I had to make a video with a smiling man after watching 2AM.  I wanted to make mine more of a roller coaster ride, start slow, begin the climb, hit the peak, then down you go to what you think is safety and then have the bottom drop out.

My Fireplace Mantle

I have resumed work on my fireplace mantle.  I had a nine month hiatus after an ER trip which was a result of working on it before.  This time there were no emergencies!

This is the end goal.

A Very Special Christmas Special Progress

So, in a weeks time, I've written a full draft for the hour long Christmas skit. The skit will span four Sundays in December.
We have to wrap it up in three weeks to allow for practices and set building to begin.

Fortunately, I have the set design done, with a few details to work out. We are planning to change the set from week to week- revising furniture and paint each week. We'd like to change the set during one of the skits. I think I've got an idea for that.

This really doesn't convey just how much detail is in this set.

You can tell the dividing and end walls are cut.
The seating wraps all the way to the back stage wall.

 The church already had a CAD plan of their stage, so I was able to design to exact specifications. Though you don't see in in the model, I've designed framing and structural components into the set.