http://www.bigteeth.tv/index.php en danny.mccarthy@bigteeth.tv Copyright 2010 2010-07-27T23:04:17+00:00 http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/big-teeth-intern-danny-mccarthys-big-day-with-the-camera/ http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/big-teeth-intern-danny-mccarthys-big-day-with-the-camera/#When:22:04:17Z   As a small business we have to be creative in the way we operate - both in who we employ and in the projects we choose to take. This blog post is a convergence of those two things - we allowed our intern Danny McCarthy to oversee a project for the “Locavore” movement and he writes about his experience below. The final video is at the bottom of this blog post. Last month I worked on a project for a friend of Big Teeth Productions - a video about the Locavore Movement focusing on a dinner held at the Hopleaf bar and restaurant that was put on by food scientist Jim Javonkoski, Michael Roper (owner of the Hopleaf) and Ben Sheagren (Executive chef of the Hopleaf).   This project was brought to the Teeth by Jim with no money but a good heart so it was embraced. Because of the lack of budget and more relaxed schedule I was given the chance to produce  it on my own, under Elise and Gregg’s guidance. Initially, I took this opportunity as a way to gain more experience working on different aspects of projects from start to end; but through the experience I gained a greater appreciation for the local food movement. One of the things that really helped with the production of the video was all of the participants passion for the cause. (See Video) PRODUCTION One thing that I enjoyed was actually shooting the event. I didn't have much experience shooting and this gave me a chance (especially because it was an event) to experiment and get more comfortable with operating a camera. The Hopleaf was a good setting and everyone seemed relaxed,  so I was able to get some great interviews with guests.  However, one thing that I had been taught but really became ingrained in me by this experience is that as much as you want it to, a camera cannot capture anywhere near what the human eye can. The lighting at the event was very dim as it was an intimate candlelit setting – great for ambiance, not ideal for shooting. While not what I would have preferred, it gave me a lesson on planning ahead and troubleshooting. POST-PRODUCTION After loading the footage from the event it was clear that something was needed to shed some light on the project, literally and figuratively. So, I returned to the Hopleaf and sat down with Jim, Michael, and Ben. I found a location away from where most of the customers were - the only issue being that they were doing some noisy prep work on the floor below. While not ideal, it was okay because it captured the ambiance of a restaurant and was only an issue when they started aggressively banging what I assume were iron pots together (or at least that's what it sounded like). Earlier, I mentioned how passionate my subjects were and this was clearly evident while filming the interviews. They had a lot to say. A lot. This was another learning experience for me. If this was a documentary about sustainable agriculture and the benefits of being part of a local food system, this wouldn't have been an issue, but with the video being geared for the web, the target length was around two minutes. At a certain point I had to direct the interviewees to give shorter, to-the-point responses. This helped a bit... so did editing. This second day of shooting completely changed the video. Besides the interviews, I got B-roll of the interior and exterior of the Hopleaf and its kitchen which filled in some blanks. With this second day of shooting, doing some color correction and laying B-roll and some graphics over the darker of the shots, I was able to make it work. FINAL THOUGHTS Though I’ve mainly discussed the production aspects of this experience, I have to say something about the food.  During the event I had a plate and glass on the side and got to sample the various courses.  With Jim and Michael’s beer knowledge combined with Ben’s culinary skills, the dinner was great.  I am a beer fan and an amateur foodie and the pairings were on point and delicious. Overall, I have to say that while I’ve worked on many projects with various levels of involvement, I’ve come out of this experience with a higher level of gratification gained through being the sole creator of the project from beginning to end. The final video is here so let me know what you think about my first independent project at Big Teeth Productions. Note: Learn more at http://www.sustainabletable.org/issues/eatlocal/ or Jim’s blog at http://www.localfoodwisdom.blogspot.com/ Clients, Online Video, Small Business 2010-07-27T22:04:17+00:00 http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/old-spice-man-is-not-the-manly-smelling-grim-reaper-you-think-he-is/ http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/old-spice-man-is-not-the-manly-smelling-grim-reaper-you-think-he-is/#When:20:31:53Z   Chances are if you opened your eyes at any point last week you saw or heard about the Old Spice YouTube campaign where they sent out customized video messages from the wildly popular "Old Spice Man" played by a ripple-abbed former footballer to all sorts of tweeters. The first reaction by the masses was "Wow, this is the best thing that's ever happened to my eyes and ears. Hooray Old Spice." The digital marketing/social media set immediately began carving their idols of Old Spice Man as this was the campaign that would change marketing FOREVER! Then it all crumbled as we got report after report about how sales are going DOWN not up after the flashy and exciting campaign. Did you hear me! Sales are going down and the videos have been up for almost a WHOLE week. Uh, I know we love immediacy in the age of digital, but isn't that a little premature to determine the epic failure that so many want to proclaim? For real insights as to the overblown nature of this claim, check out an article from Video SEO leader ReelSEO, which points out, amongst other things, that the sales figures are vague in their sources - but for more of my prescient opinions, scroll down, dude. People are proclaiming that despite the excitement and freshness of this video campaign that deodorant/body wash buyers don't care because Old Spice is Grandpa's brand. But let me put this out there... I remember entering the junior high gym changing room where we had to wear uniforms for the first time and after class you showered (maybe) but always sprayed, or rolled on the deodorant. In my day you wore Right Guard. I don't know why but you just did.  Now put yourselves in the shoes of an 11-13 year old boy who is soon to become a lifelong deodorant consumer - and has yet to establish any feelings about Old Spice's previous brand image. Isn't it possible that this young lad sees these videos (and accompanying hilarious TV spots) and identifies with the NEW brand image? Let's take that a step further... his mom. A big point of the campaign is that ladies are the buyers these days so let's show them a rock hard shirtless dream of a man that they'd like to ride backwards on a horse with. You know Mom likes to watch these videos (she may be married, but she's not dead!) and she probably wants sonny boy to think she's cool, so wouldn't buying sonny boy some Old Spice and making a joke about "smelling like a man," maybe convert to future sales for the brand? The digital age has brought on this dichotomy of everything happening at a mile a minute, while at the same time trying to build lasting relationships and establishing long term brand loyalty. As an online video producer, I try to create videos that share personality and honesty more than just cramming a product down your throat, so you'll excuse me if I wait a few years before grabbing my shotgun and bringing Old Spice behind the barn to put him out of his misery. What do you think? Is a dip in sales at the exact time the buzz is created an automatic death blow, or do you wait and see the bigger picture? Marketing, New Media, Online Video, Social Media, Web TV 2010-07-22T20:31:53+00:00 http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/vidbits-tubemogul-rescues-lonely-videos-on-the-web/ http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/vidbits-tubemogul-rescues-lonely-videos-on-the-web/#When:21:53:27Z If you're like me, then you are an intelligent human being with above average hygiene. You are also someone who likes things that make your life easier. In the world of web video there is a tool that can do just that - Tubemogul. Tubemogul will distribute your videos to all of the web's greatest hosting sites, let you track views and other important stats, and link your vids to the top social networking sites ... oh, and that's just the free version. As a video production company with a focus on the web, using this site has become an almost daily ritual. I started to write in explicit detail the steps to signing up, uploading your content, and tracking videos, until I realized that they have a bunch of how-to videos that'll explain better than I can. The first ones can be found at http://www.tubemogul.com/about/getting_started (and I've embedded one here as well). If you are planning on using video on the web for anything more than making strangers gasp, Tubemogul is quite the useful partner in crime. Essentially, after some initial set-up (both on Tubemogul and on the individual sites you want to post on), you have one place where you can upload your files to multiple sites and track whether they are reaching your desired goals as well. Beyond the basics, you can also do things like: Track other video publishers, like say, your competitors - might want to know what they're up to. Add Tubemogul's "inPlay" in-depth stats to your own player (Premium) Target your videos to specific audiences (Premium) Overall, this is a site that we recommend to our clients to get to know if they are placing their videos online and it's one that once you start using it, you'll enjoy your web video life a whole lot more. video tips 2010-04-08T21:53:27+00:00 http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/what-did-sxsw-2010-look-like/ http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/what-did-sxsw-2010-look-like/#When:02:36:59Z Here's a look at our time at South By Southwest (aka SXSW). All of the footage and photos used here were shot on the Canon T2i DSLR camera. These cameras are changing how us video people do things and this was a chance to put that to the test. What do you think of the first time out with the camera? SXSW 2010 Recap from Gregg Jaffe on Vimeo. Online Video, Personal 2010-04-01T02:36:59+00:00 http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/sxsw-big-teeth-film-recap/ http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/sxsw-big-teeth-film-recap/#When:04:45:07Z   In our previous blog post Elise gave some great insights into how we navigated through the action of SXSW, so I thought I'd give a recap of the films that I saw. I'm no Roger Ebert (more recently known as @ebertchicago) so I'll keep it short, but if you want more details about these and other films check out ifc.com's SXSW blog. If you saw any of these and have any thoughts, or saw others you'd recommend, let us know in the comments. THE FILMS (In order of when I saw them) Click on the film title to visit it's website. All photos used here are from the SXSW website. American: The Bill Hicks Story (Documentary) A look at the life and times of controversial cult-comic Bill Hicks who died young. The film tracks Hicks' development into a brutally frank political comedian who couldn't seem to find the mainstream acceptance he desired in his home country, but did overseas. This one is most notable for use of animation during interview segments in place of talking head footage. Harry Brown (Narrative Feature) Michael Caine stars in this gritty British film that I liken to a cross between "Gran Torino" and "Falling Down." Caine is an older gentleman who can only stand so much of the decay that his neighborhood is experiencing, and after dealing with difficult situations with his beloved wife and best friend at the hands of violent drug dealers, he takes matters into his own hands. I particularly loved the cinematography and acting in this movie. It had a down and dirty feel that you rarely see in Hollywood films. And it has Michael Caine! World's Largest (Documentary) Full disclosure: One of the filmmakers, Lizzy Donius, is a friend of ours and the former head of IFP Chicago. However, we had absolutely no stake in the making of this film. Donius and collaborator Amy Elliott tell a story that is all at once fun, whimsical, sad and thought-provoking. The documentary takes us to seemingly every small town in America that boasts the world's largest statue of something, that often represented that town's main industry. Most of these towns are crumbling and often the industry that propelled them is gone. The film is shot with a very tourist with a handi-cam feel but manages to convey the true nature of these towns and their inhabitants. I was really glad that I enjoyed the film so that I didn't have to lie to Lizzy! The People Vs. George Lucas (Documentary) We all have opinions about George Lucas. This film talks to hundreds of people about the highs and lows of one of film's most polarizing figures. We love him for Star Wars and then hate him for everything he did to the original series and the new one that followed. The film also includes archival footage of Lucas along with many clips of fan-made films. If you've never thought out loud about whether Jar Jar Binks was worse than the Ewoks or not then you can skip this one... otherwise, it's fun to watch. Dirty Pictures (Documentary) From the film's website: "DIRTY PICTURES is a documentary about Dr. Alexander “Sasha” Shulgin, the rogue chemist who discovered the effects of MDMA (aka Ecstasy) and over 200 other mind-altering drugs. Shulgin’s alchemy has earned him the title “The Godfather of Psychedelics,” and a reputation as one of the great chemists of the 20th century." This was a film that I was really excited to see and was left not sure how I felt. I think Shulgin is definitely an interesting enough character to be featured, I just felt that it delved a lot deeper into the science of it all for my liking. But if you dig the equations, this is a guaranteed winner. Plus, there's a lot of humor and Burning Man sequences. Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil (Narrative Feature) Film festivals so rarely have flat-out comedies, but fortunately they make exceptions. Tucker and Dale was just a fun movie to watch. Seeing at a theater that serves beer at midnight didn't hurt my enjoyment, but this one will no doubt make it's way to multiplexes and I'm glad for that. The film does a 180 on the typical backwoods hicks hunting the college hotties story and instead gives us two rednecks with hearts and brains (sort of). Tucker and Dale just want to hang out and fish at their new "summer home" (a dilapidated cabin on the lake) and find themselves implicated in a series of unfortunate accidents. There's lots of goofy gore, so if you love horror movies but have a sense of humor you'll love this. If you get squeamish from on-screen blood, then sit it out. So there you have it. I don't know if any of these won awards or not, and while I liked some better than others, all in all I'm glad to support independent filmmaking in whatever capacity I can. Again, I'd love to hear your thoughts on any of these films or others you might have seen or heard about at SXSW.   Personal, Social Media 2010-03-29T04:45:07+00:00 http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/sxsw-2010-a-teaser-to-2011/ http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/sxsw-2010-a-teaser-to-2011/#When:19:05:06Z I’m feeling exhausted and achy, have very little voice left and can’t wait to sleep in my own bed! But the weirdest thing is that I still want to turn around and get back to Austin! In fact, if I were able to, I’d have already booked my flights and hotel for next year… unless we decide to pack up Big Teeth and actually MOVE down to Austin before 2011. What an experience! And one without a BADGE.  I read several blogs prior to heading to Austin about people’s experiences without badges, most seemed positive – and my experience was no different.  Being in Austin only 3.5 days, there were only a handful of panels I really wanted to attend and I didn’t think I could hit more than 2-3 films a day plus wasn’t that particular about which ones -so costs didn’t add up.   Waiting in line even with a film badge wasn’t appealing – but going 15 minutes before a show to see if there are extra tickets, seemed to be the way to go – especially if the film was at the Paramount.  I had no badge but I WAS armed with business cards, bookmarks, recipe cards, stickers and pins for both Big Teeth and Fooditude.  It was especially funny to meet people, then figure out if they’d rather me put on my Big Teeth or Fooditude hat.  One thing was certain, I met way more people than I’d ever imagined meeting and people that may have NEVER known about either of my companies had we not ended up in the same elevator, shuttle, line for a film or in the same row at a panel.  I made it to 4 Film Screenings (all of which were great) and 3 Interactive panels, and a handful of parties (only one that I tried to go to and couldn’t, being badgeless).  I can only imagine how much I’ll be able to do next year if I have a little more time to plan and don’t have to spend a day just trying to get the lay of the land.   A few things I learned: I really like Austin! If badgeless and you can handle the anxiety and you only have a few panels you really want to go to, hide behind a tall friend and carry a very large bag in front of you. If you have a friend that stays out later than you and you KNOW won’t be up first thing in the AM for a panel you want to go to, convince them to lend you their badge! Make friends with people that are only there for a couple days, seems everyone wants to share the love and offers up their badges or shuttle bracelets to others before they head out of town.  WHY NOT?!?! The shuttles from hotels outside of the city were wonderful, but I’d still prefer to stay in the city! Never be afraid to chase a car down that's leaving an event you're to ask for a ride, especially if its raining If you like food, Austin is a great town, but don’t just eat on 6th street, that’s not where the good stuff is. Austin is a really great city for vegetarians and breakfast lovers!  (2 things I am) Even if I didn’t have a chance to hit up any of Citizen Taco (Austin Food blogger) I’d read before my trip but had the privilege of meeting in person while there)’s top spots for breakfast tacos, I found that even the bad ones were great.  I see my experience as a taste of what is to come in the future.  Until next year SXSW! Marketing, News, Small Business, Social Media 2010-03-19T19:05:06+00:00 http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/can-small-business-owners-be-spontaneous/ http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/can-small-business-owners-be-spontaneous/#When:18:28:32Z I’m not the most spontaneous person. Most people who know me would agree. Normally typing my to-do list instead of handwriting it is as “out there” as I get. There are only 2 truly spontaneous things I’ve done as an adult:  Left New York City to move to Chicago with NO job and few industry connections; and quit my full time job to bum around Costa Rica for a month – but that’s where it ends.  Since becoming a business owner those decisions seem CRAZY.  I over-think every decision, weigh the pros and cons and make sure its what’s best for Big Teeth, and us both in terms of creativity and of course money. But then last week within 36 hours of the idea coming up, I booked a flight to Austin, Texas only 7 days later to head to South by Southwest (or SXSW for those in the know) an interactive and film festival. I’ve wanted to go to for years but always had an excuse why I couldn’t attend, usually it was money, or lack there of.   What made this year different?  Perhaps I see the potential of increasing Big Teeth’s visibility and reaching outside of Chicago. Perhaps there’s comfort in the fact that I know more people going this year than in the past. Perhaps I should just stop wondering why and leave it to the feeling in my gut, something I usually trust. Despite my impulsive decision, just minutes after booking my flight I thought, “Am I crazy?”  Which brings about the question – Am I doing a disservice to my company leaving for 4 days?  Will any current clients think we’re putting fun in front of their needs or will they respect the decisions we make for our business?  I hope in this case and in future cases it’s the later because I’m kinda liking this new leaf I’ve turned.   Marketing, Small Business 2010-03-11T18:28:32+00:00 http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/can-you-pitch-new-business-in-flip-flops/ http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/can-you-pitch-new-business-in-flip-flops/#When:23:42:53Z It's pitch time. Quick put on your suit and tie, hook up the powerpoint and memorize those talking points.... Not for us. We love our direct clients in need of intriguing videos, but also recognize the benefit of working with agencies who have built-in client rosters and could use our production skills. These agencies don't just come to you, so a-pitchin' we shall go. But I think the nature of the pitch has changed. Is it still necessary to button yourself up when new business hunting. We had a recent meeting at a mid-sized B2B Ad Agency in Chicago. Rather than deliver a "talk at you" Powerpoint presentation, we decided to just go in and chat. This way we could ask them questions about their business practices and what video needs they may have, and they could grill us on what our shooting methods were, editing style, how we do estimates, past experiences etc. We did no slick pitch, just chatted about our respective companies, and then pulled up our website so they could look at some samples of our work and let us walk them through the choices we made. Some might think this way of doing it appears too casual and shows a lack of preparation (and in some cases with larger companies it might not be the best approach) but I argue that after an hour-plus of this type of meeting, we walked away thinking this is the type of company we would be happy to do work with because the people we met, who would be our direct contacts, all seemed nice and approachable and appreciate the type of work we do. It appeared that they felt the same about us, and will very likely come calling next time a video project comes up. After all, isn't that what makes for successful working situations; the relationships? As unique as all businesses think they are, there are usually others who can do similar work, so wouldn't you rather work with someone you know you can talk to and trust... even if they wear flip flops instead of loafers? note: Any flip flops referred to in above post were strictly metaphorical. All toes were concealed, but nice jeans may have been worn.   Clients, Marketing 2010-03-04T23:42:53+00:00 http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/movieclips.com-what-is-it-and-what-isnt-it/ http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/movieclips.com-what-is-it-and-what-isnt-it/#When:06:18:14Z In a recent completely unscientific survey of web video usage, I estimated that people watch and share video clips online no less than 1 billion times a day. Most of these are via YouTube, but now there's a new player in town, Movieclips.com. According to "Fierce Online Video," Movieclips.com online video service is seeing growth, which leads me to wonder... What the hell does Movieclips.com do? What does Movieclips.com not do that it should. WHAT IS MOVIECLIPS.COM Movieclips.com is an online video site that has,"... over 12,000 movie clips, [where] you can search, find, view, discuss and share scenes from your favorite movies." Of course, once you find these clips you can watch them on the site and embed them on the usual suspects of movie embeddom. Another big difference is that this is apparently all legal and above the board with Hollywood giving it's hard-earned permission. Movieclips.com is set up to make money by having affiliate links to buy products related to the clips you watch. There are links to iTunes, amazon.com, allposters.com, Fandango and more. Presumably you watch the clip and then have to have the movie poster. Maybe hearing "Go ahead make my day" isn't enough, you need a full "Dirty Harry" fix streamed to your laptop. WHAT COULD MOVIECLIPS.COM BE THAT IT IS NOT With all the iphone/blackberry zombies out there who can't have a single thought without internet backup, having a warehouse of one-liners and scenes at your fingertips definitely has some value. Where the site is lacking is the usability for video content creators. Think about all the people putting video up on the web. Those who make a living at it, like we do, but also the ones who create mash-ups, film their kids hopped up on novocaine, re-subtitle Hitler movies etc. These are the ones who would love to have access to high quality clips to use for their video projects, and might well be willing to pay a reasonable fee for it, but again are shut out. I'm not suggesting some way to open the door for video pirates to swashbuckle their way into easier stealing, but think about all the fun videos people love to create in homage to their favorites - why not allow them to download these files and use them for non-nefarious purposes? It's fun to be able to watch scenes from all these movies, but had they gone a step further and made this more inclusive and useful, we'd be stepping in a much better and more interesting direction. What do you think? Is Movieclips.com good enough just showing you the clips, or do you agree that we should have the chance to borrow some Hollywood magic if it's used for the purposes of good and not evil? New Media, Online Video 2010-03-03T06:18:14+00:00 http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/new-media-revolution-from-no-tube-to-youtube-in-5-years/ http://www.bigteeth.tv/blog/new-media-revolution-from-no-tube-to-youtube-in-5-years/#When:04:39:27Z YouTube was founded in February of 2005. This became slightly significant to me as I was unearthing video samples that I created and came across the first short films that I wrote and directed from, you guessed it, February 2005. Five years ago what did New Media mean to us? I'm guessing not a whole lot. Blogs existed but not everyone on the planet had three of them. How many podcasts did you download in 2005? I listened to more this week than I did that year. We didn't tag photos on Facebook, we didn't converse in tweets, and we certainly didn't upload high quality videos that could be played back in real time on every computer in the world. On a personal note these videos are also the first collaboration between Elise and I production-wise. She produced three shorts that I wrote and directed. Now in 2010, every day of our lives involves Elise producing video that I write, direct or edit. The emergence of YouTube and New Media/Social Media has essentially allowed us to be in business and had things not progressed how they did, Big Teeth Productions might not be around today - perish the thought of course. Here's one of the videos that I'm referring to titled, "All In." (full disclosure, this one was actually done in March 2005, not February): Not exactly a cinematic masterpiece but in terms of story and production value right up there with most of what you see on YouTube. Had there been a YouTube like it is today in 2005, its possible that I would have been able to show these videos to more than the few friends and mentors that actually saw it. Then maybe some of those people would have embedded it into their blogs or Facebook pages and thousands more might have seen it. Maybe PETA would have insisted I take it down because I encouraged dogs to gamble, which would have led to some PR for me and more eyes on the video. Then I would have been signed to a 3 picture deal at Dreamworks and become a filmmaking superstar... Then again, maybe I'd be right here where I am. Either way, my life is a totally different one thanks to the New Media Revolution. Has the New Media Revolution effected what you do in your personal life or your career? Do you think we are better off with YouTube and other New Media outlets or worse? Online Video, Personal, Social Media 2010-02-24T04:39:27+00:00