Attacking Animation

6:30 pm, Ameren Corporate HQ

 

June 23

 

Summer Party

Location TBD

 

Monthly Meeting

6:30 pm, Location TBD

 

Audio for Production and Post-Production

6:30 pm at Joyce Meyer Ministries

Monthly Meeting

6:30 pm, Location TBD

 

Holiday Party

Location TBD

 

 

 

 

The official start of summer is almost here!  It used to be a bigger deal to me when I was in school.  I'd get a nice long break where I didn't have to worry about my studies and could concentrate on having fun, making some money and maybe finding a cool internship that would give me experience as well as look impressive on my resume.  How times have changed for me.  Sigh!
 
I was recently reminded about the excitement and woes of being a student and even graduating.  One of my neighbors graduated from college last weekend and another neighbor's son is moving back for the summer from college in a couple weeks.  They're both excited about their futures, but yet stressed at the same time about finding jobs and what's about to come.  I remember that feeling.  On one hand, you feel like the possibilities are endless - the world is there waiting for you.  But then you start wondering if you truly qualify and you think of the job market and how many other people are looking for your exact position.  It's weird how you can feel big and small at the same time.
 
Well, the good news is being a member of MCA-I can help you get through the college years and beyond.  One of the best benefits of our organization is making some great contacts and maybe build some solid relationships, which can only help you when entering the job market.  But there's so much more to joining this professional organization.  The Student Memberships have been revamped - with new benefits, new categories and new forums - all designed to help the next generation of media communications professionals achieve success.  One major change is making student membership open for not only full-time students, but part-time students too!  As a member, you'll receive full access to the International MCA Website where you'll be able to post your resume; participate in student forums; and take advantage of resources that will help you in your classes, your projects and your job hunting.  You'll also receive great discounts on ProTrack, Media Festival (there's a new shorts category!) and production services.  Also available are Medical benefits/insurance and a discounted transitional membership rate after graduation. 
 
I wish MCA-I was available in my college town back in the day.  It sure would've helped me out when I moved to St. Louis to start my career.  It would've given me a place to start my searching, gather information about the marketplace, get advice from video professionals and maybe open doors to my future.  It was a bit harder than that for me, but I hope it'll be easier for you.  Become a Student Member of MCA-I and take advantage of all the resources it gives you.  Connect with other students and experts to help you move forward in this growing media communications business.

 

Yvonne Niemann

President; MCA-I, St. Louis Chapter

 

Animation has the ability to tell a story in a way few other mediums can. At the June meeting we'll look at some of the animation being produced here in St. Louis and discuss what's new in the field of animation.

 

Our presenters will include Darin Christopher, of Animagic Productions, Inc. Founded in 1997, Animagic works to provide engaging digital artistry and multimedia animation.

 

Also presenting will be Jeff Pickett of Pickett Productions. Pickett combines years of creative experience with state-of-the-art hardware and software to provide clients computer art and animation, film and video production, and multimedia production.

 

Also on the panel will be Michael Long, Adjunct Professor at Webster University. Mike has been an animator for 25 years. He teaches traditional cell animation and created the long running open for DonnyBrook on KETC.

 

 

WHEN:

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Networking and refreshments start at 6:30pm; meeting starts at 7:00pm

 

WHERE:

Ameren Corporate Headquarters

1901 Chouteau, St. Louis MO 63103

 

MCA Members = Free
Guests = $10
Students = $5

 

DIRECTIONS:
Exit I-64 or I-44 at Jefferson Ave.

From I-44 to North to Chouteau
From I-64 go South to Chouteau

Go East on Chouteau to 1901

It will be on the Left

 

 

Each April over 100,000 people from all corners of the world flock to Las Vegas, not for Vegas, but to attend the National Association of Broadcasters Convention...and a little Vegas.  Why?  Because NAB is the most comprehensive electronic media convention on the planet.  At the May St. Louis Media Communications Association chapter meeting we brought NAB to Florissant Valley Community College by way of Roscor Corporation, a Broadcast Television Systems provider who recently opened a local office.  Roscor's Tom Voigts, Vice President of Sales and Dave Anderson, Digital Cinematography Business Unit Manager, were among the NAB 2007 crowds and, for our benefit, they took copious notes, shot video interviews with key manufacturer reps, created a presentation and poured megabytes of knowledge over our local chapter.  If you had a question, these folks had answers. The attendees learned much about the state of production tools and where manufacturers are heading.  Some trends:
 
-LCD High Def monitors have taken another big leap forward with Sony's latest BVM model.  Expect the tube evaluation monitors to become extinct.  If you want one now sell your house because it's pricey.  However, unlike petro, prices will come down.
 
-Microphones with built in flash memory for solid state recording.
 
-Teleprompter with voice activated scrolling by using the latest in voice-recognition technology.  Message to voice-recognition inventors--you may be hearing from some talented prompter operators about this one.
 
-High Def cameras.  Still no evidence of a deliverable RED camera.  Grass Valley's Infinity still in waiting.  However, many improvements and announcements from Sony, Panasonic, and JVC.  One thing is known; all cam-eras look good and that's pretty cool.
 
-Recording technology.  It appears there are more formats than ever and likely more coming.  Which one is best?  Even the best applications engineer may have trouble deciding.  Maybe check with your customers and see what's important to them.
 
-Along the lines of fancy HD cameras and different recording devices is the mysterious thing that makes all this pretty picture recording and transferring work - compression technology.  It continues to improve and many more codecs expected to hit the market.
 
Some other cool things noted were a multiviewer, a miniature 3-chip 1080P surveillance camera, a SD/HD converter, a Rolo foldable fluorescent light, Final Cut Studio 2, improved Mackie mixer, low cost wireless video and wireless point - to - point HD, etc, etc, etc.
 
Tom and Dave answered questions long after the meeting adjourned.  Some folks opted to decompress their techno-overloaded brains at Malones before the drive home.  In summary, we learned a bunch!

The St. Louis RAMS in conjunction with Fusion Media Works is holding a 5-day Apple Training Class with 3 days focused on Final Cut Pro and 2 days focused on DVD Studio Pro. BOTH are 101 level courses and WILL qualify you to take the Apple Certification Course for each application.

 

 

When:
June 18 to June 22, 2007 from 8:30 am to 5 pm each day

 

Location:
Russell Training Center - Home of the St. Louis Rams
One Rams Way
St. Louis, MO 63045
(this is in Earth City Missouri - only 5 minutes from the Airport)

 

Accommodations:
The St. Louis RAMS are graciously providing special "RAMS Rates" rooms at the nearby Candlewood Suites at $54 per night. Please contact Larry Clerico for information at 314-406-0012.

 

Certification Testing:
Certification Testing can only be performed by an accredited facility. Taking this class will qualify you to take the exam, but the exam must be taken on a separate date within 6-months of the training. The nearest facility to St. Louis is in Columbia Missouri at Stephens College:
Stephens College, Digital Media Training Center
1200 E. Broadway
Columbia, MO 65215
Phone: (573) 876-7168

 

 

Producers and directors with a completed movie who are submitting to film festivals, are frequently queried by Sales Agents and Producer Reps (short for "Producer's Representative"). Most are Producer Reps, but some Sales Agents too.

 

Why does this happen? Once you've been selected by a particular festival, these reps/agents get a list films that will be showing with contact info on the filmmakers. Then some of you get calls or e-mails.

 

So let's discuss the distinction between these two types of sales people, as I have found many filmmakers don't understand the difference -- and there is a BIG difference.

 

"Sales Agents" are those people who work for (or own) a sales company -- frequently referred to as a "foreign sales company" -- and this company will work on selling your movie into all the international territories outside the U.S. & Canada. What they actually do is license your movie to another company from a territory, say, a German company for Germany, who will then handle it for that territory. And this is done for as many territories as they can license to.

 

"Producer Reps" are those people who will work on selling your movie to a domestic (U.S.) distributor. Some of them will license the movie right from you and then go sell it wherever they can domestically. And some of them will just have a contract with you stating their percentage that they get of any deals secured.

 

Sometimes Producer Reps will also act as Sales Agents, and vice versa. And over recent years, a number of what would have been called Producer Reps are referring to themselves as Sales Agents. Ultimately the vernacular used doesn't matter; what matters is who is approaching you, and what are they wanting to sell to? The U.S. and Canadian markets? Or all markets outside the U.S. & Canada? Or all of the above?

 

General rule of thumb: This is not an absolute, but you generally do not want to sign a contract with either one of these people for the whole world. Sales Agents are generally not that good at securing domestic deals (with some exceptions, of course), and most Producer Reps are pointless for the international territories. All a Producer Rep can do for the international territories is hook you up with a Sales Agent for this -- which you can do yourself! It is not that difficult. Really. It is not that difficult if you have a decent movie or it's the right genre. If you let them hook you up with a Sales Agent, then you're just giving up another piece of your pie to another middleman.

 

So it's important to know this distinction and important to know who you've been approached by, and what they want to do. You don't want to contract and lock up rights with someone that won't do you any good for certain markets, and you don't want to contract and lock up rights with someone who will just be a second middleman and take more of your pie.

 

At some point in your journey, a Sales Agent is absolutely necessary to get your movie sold into the markets outside the U.S. & Canada. Can you get some overseas markets sold on your own? Yes, it is possible but it's not easy. Overseas buyers tend to rely on the relationships they have with the Sales Agents they know, and are not generally fond of making one-time deals with filmmakers they don't know. So this is one area of the market where relationships actually mean something.

 

On the other hand, is a Producer Rep necessary to get your movie sold domestically? Absolutely not, and in fact they often do more harm than good by shotgunning your movie along with 20 others to everyone they know. Frequently there's no care or personal attention given, that many movies require to be sold successfully.

 

Also, relationships mean less here. Domestic sales are more about the product -- the movie you've made -- and less about who's selling it. Many Producer Reps would have you believe otherwise and namedrop companies you've heard of to get you to sign with them, saying they have relationships. And while they're promoting their "relationships," I've got some incredible riverfront property in downtown St. Louis that's going for $1 an acre!

 

 

Jerome Courshon's 8-hour distribution seminar,"The Secrets to Distribution: Get Your Movie Distributed Now!" is being co-sponsored by MCA-I St. Louis and Cinema St. Louis.

If you're a member of either, you can get a $20 discount, which will be held at the Centene Center, 3547 Olive, in midtown St. Louis, June 23, 10AM-6PM. 

 

To register:
MCA-I: http://www.Distribution.LA/mcai.html
Cinema St. Louis: http://www.Distribution.LA/cinema.html

Please register before seminar date to get the discount.

News from the MO Film Office - Daytime drama will play out in Branson, and Heidi Klum finds the Gateway to marketing success:

http://www.missouribusiness.net/film/pdf/wrapup_050207.pdf

 

More MO Film news - Legislature gives filmmakers some credit(s), you have 48 hours to make a movie in St. Louis, and if you've always wanted to be given directions by Connie Stevens, here's your chance:

http://www.missouribusiness.net/film/pdf/wrapup_051607.pdf

 

And even more MO Film News - Fledgling female filmmakers flock to Stephens College, and Joplin harvests a "Lucky Cucumber:" http://www.missouribusiness.net/film/pdf/wrapup_052507.pdf

 

"The Gateway Arch: A Reflection of America" has been awarded a national Telly Award.  Since 1978 the Telly Awards have recognized the finest video and film productions.  The 28th Telly Awards competition received over 13,000 entries from all 50 states and 5 continents. "The Gateway Arch: A Reflection of America" will also begin showing up on public television stations across the country later this summer.  Some of the first major markets to air the documentary will be Chicago, Denver, Seattle and the state of Georgia.

 

The feature film, "Kingshighway," wrapped shooting in St. Louis in May.  Written by a local, Dan Bishop, it starred Eric Roberts, Burt Young ("Rocky" 1-6), Eddie Furlong ("The Terminator"), Roma Maffia ("Nip/Tuck"), Waylon Payne ("Walk the Line"), and Clayne Crawford ("Steele City"), who also directed the film.  It was produced by Jeff Most ("The Specialist," "The Crow," "Ghost Image").  MCA board member Mike Ketcher did the extras casting.

 

Lou Stemmler reports that Silver Streak Studios just completed its third year of videotaping the Webster University "Success to Significance" Speaker Series.  Sponsored by the School of Business and Technology, the series features presentations by corporate CEOs and other achievers, such as former Ambassador to Hungary George Herbert Walker and Chairman of Monsanto Hugh Grant.  Silver Streak captured the events as live-switched multi-camera shoots, then mastered them for broadcast with customized graphics and production music.  The hour-long programs will run on The Higher Education Channel and on the St. Louis and Florissant cable systems.

 

Diane Schorsch reports exciting stuff happening at Talent Plus!  Katherine Cuba booked the role of Airport Bartender in the Tim Robbins, Rachel McAdams feature "The Return."  They also booked 10 actors in the Low Budget Feature "Kingshighway" AKA "The Candle Room:" Kevin Beyer, Tom Simmons, Whit Reichert, Todd Gillenardo (worked 3 weeks!), Peter Mayer, Joel Lewis, Ron Himes, Jared Sanz-Agero, Jamie Kurth,and Zach Callison.  In June, look for Tamara Tungate to join hosts Penny Greene, Will Shaw, MaryAnn Carson, Ed Goodman, and Kate Durbin for the KETC Pledge Drives.  And Talent Plus has partnered with an LA Talent Manager, Susan Nickells who reps kids, teen and young adults. She comes in regularly to coach the TP kids. Richard Brander will join her during Camp Hollywood week late July-early August to prepare the kids for pilot season.