Max Patch Films

Now that the GH1 has been out for awhile, we’re seeing more and more reviews…and more and more disparity of opinion regarding it. Even though I haven’t actually used the GH1 (!) I think I’d have to side with TheCrudMan’s response to the Gizmodo article disparaging the GH1:

Why the Panasonic GH1 is so cool

As I made reference to in an earlier post, the real strength of the GH1 is its video capabilities, so if it is reviewed solely on its still camera functionality, it’s going to be considered overpriced.

Well…it has been awhile since my last post. The past few weeks have been crazy busy with pre-production for last weekend’s shoot. So…this will be a brief post, but I thought I’d share this link, provided by our friend Chuck Franklin (thanks Chuck!) to a plot encyclopedia. Yes, apparently there are, in fact, only a limited number of plot structures and devices under the sun…who knew?

For those budding screenwriters out there, it’s an interesting read. It’s not for the feint of heart, however…it was written in the 1920’s…and sounds like it…enjoy!
Photoplay Plot Encyclopedia

This is a video we shot for the Academics In Action program at AB-Tech. I shot footage at AC Reynolds High School as well as at AB-Tech. Chuck Franklin also shot footage at AB-Tech. Jason Perry edited this cut. Kevin Reese did the voiceover.

This is a Public Service Announcement that Chuck Franklin and I created for URTV. Chuck created the graphic at the end and I edited the video.

This is a mini-documentary Max Patch Films created during the inaugural HATCHfest Asheville in April 2009.

This is a video we created for video production class. I directed and edited this cut.

This is a music video we produced for The Broomstars, an Asheville, NC – based band. Production took place on a warm, sunny day in February 2009. The video was filmed on a hillside looking out towards the Biltmore House.

So…I’m going to show my cards and reveal my relative film illiteracy here…I just watched Blood Simple for the first time. Yikes…yeah, I know.

The watching of the film actually dovetailed with my completion of The Coen Brothers Interviews, which is a great collection of interviews. I both enjoyed and was troubled by the film, which is probably a healthy response to the incredible noirness of it. I’m tempted to write a review of it…but given that it was released nearly twenty-five years ago, I suppose that would be a bit ridiculous.

I did, however, want to point out the only real glitch that I found in the film, fwiw: when Ray finds Marty in his office, for some reason one of the first things he does is to get on his hands and knees and go looking for something…as it turns out, he finds Abby’s gun down there. Now…is it intuition that makes him look down there? Otherwise it’s nearly inexplicable. Couldn’t Visser just have kicked it against a wall (so that it was in plain sight) somewhere? In any case…it was a brilliant first feature…not much light there, which I found difficult (I’m still in a bit of a fog after having watched it!)…but impressive nonetheless.

[This post was transferred from our earlier LifeType blog!]

So…I had a bit of a brainwave a week-or-so ago after learning about Canadian 20-year old Stephen Dunn’s short film, “The Hall”. Dunn and Co. created their film during last year’s 48-hour Film Project which means that in less than forty-eight hours these filmmakers created something that brought them from relative obscurity to international fame. Not. Bad.
Dunn just returned from his film’s showing at Cannes…yes…Cannes.
So, in an attempt to circumvent writer’s block and to outmaneuver procrastination, I’m gathering a fearless band of Asheville’s finest and we’re going to produce a whole gaggle of short films this summer.
The initial plan is to plan, write, film, and edit a short film every two weeks-or-so. Pre-production will last just over a week and a half and production will take place over the course of every second weekend. Editing will be done over the weekend as well and be completed, at latest, by Monday evening.
The project will feature a rotating cast and crew, depending on availability. I, for my part, will be involved in the project continuously.
So…if you or someone you know would like to be involved, please drop me a line (Andrew [at] MaxPatchFilms [dot] com).

[This post was transferred from our earlier LifeType blog!]

I know what you’re thinking…”Another post on the GH1?” Yep…sorry folks. Although I do have a number of other things occupying my mind these days, the acquisition of a HD camcorder is near the top of my list…and it’s also the most bloggable material I’ve got…so my apologies…I’m hoping someone out there is finding my thoughts on the current state of DSLRs of some interest.
So…we now know about what the camera is going to cost: $1500-or-so, and that it will be available in mid-June. People are not all that happy about the high sticker price. What I’ve found, though, (and this should really not come as a surprise) is that it is generally not filmmakers who are shocked by the price (we’re used to cameras with this kind of video functionality costing way over $10,000)…it is the photographers who aren’t happy. Again, little surprise there…when evaluated just as a still camera, the GH1 is ridiculously expensive.
So…I’m still waiting for DPreview’s in-depth review of the GH1 (this will play a determining role in whether I end up getting it or not).
Also, I wanted to mention another feature of the GH1 that I really like – the pop out LCD screen. From what I can tell the pop-out LCD screen is somewhat frowned upon by “professional” photographers…I’m not sure why though…it’s so darn useful!
I recently discovered my doppelgänger (very loose use of the word here…and in this case it doesn’t portend anything negative!) vis a vis digital video cameras…his name is George P. Schnyder and, among other things, he describes himself as a “Colorgrading Terrorist.” So…why is he my doppelgänger vis a vis digital video cameras? His thoughts here could have been penned by me (well…minus the expletive!).
In fact…he’s actually considerably cooler than I am…he actually has a blog dedicated to the Red Scarlet.
Oh…and his sites are pretty darn nice looking, as well. Not that mine are…yet…but I appreciate a nice lookin’ site when I see one.
OK…one final note on the GH1 for today…many of the comments I have encountered about it include the following thought: that while, yes it’s a great camera, it’s obviously just a matter of time (likely literally months) before the other camera manufacturers catch up, which will drive the price down. So…as always with technology…if you can wait, wait.