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Black & White Silent Film Era Music Video

Hey Everyone! Tim Cash Oregon Filmmaker here. I had the wonderful pleasure of concepting and executing this piece for Canadian singer/songwriter Pennan Brae as one of our 4 videos we did together last month. The prep involved wasn’t too bad. Our lead actress has an afinity for that period and did her own wardrobe and makeup which really blew me away! Jared’s outfit was a mishmash of period and JC Penny’s shirt & vest which I returned right after the shoot. We could only find a red hat for him but thats the great thing about Black & White. In the end everything is Black & White! and I purchased the piano for $125 and we just ripped the top off to expose the innards . I was stressing a bit on the location leading up to the shoot but at the last minute my grip Robert Slaney found this place…which we poached till the owner showed. He was actually quite grateful and wondered if anyone ever really noticed his turn of the 20th century town he had set up for passers by.

On a side note; in order to acheive the old projector speed we shot the singing shots to the song at 75% then sped it up in post to 150%. In fact the whole video is sped up to 150% to give it the “LOOK”! Back then I don’t think you could control the speed of projectors or they weren’t constant so they would speed up and slow down. that or maybe they shot at 18 frames a second back then which also gives the sped up look when moving through a projector at 24 frames. Anyway, I didn’t do any research on that. just tried to recapture the look. Hope you all enjoy!!

PENNAN BRAE “FLING” MUSIC VIDEO
http://vimeo.com/36041859

Some of you asked for more Behind The Scenes so here it is. shot by my grip Robert Slaney

Is the RED ONE a prehistoric dinosaur already?

YES! Tim Cash Oregon Filmmaker here! Lets talk about the RED ONE! I’ve had the opportunity to rent and work with the RED ONE on several shoots and honestly except for the fact that it really impresses clients; not by the final product but during production is not a reason to use it. It really looks like a real movie camera! Awesome right! yeah I guess. I’ve been working with the Canon DSLR’S now for the past 2 or so years and love how small they are.(keep in mind when the RED ONE came out DSLR’S werent really shooting video yet) You can go almost anywhere and shoot and not cause a big scene. definitely a poachers camera(canon DSLR). And in my personal opinion which is my own and I’m sharing ….I feel as though I wasted time and money when I shot on the RED ONE. Setups seem to take so much longer and there wasn’t a noticeable enough picture change to warrant the use of it again. (These were notes from my clients).You can’t put it on a crane, atleast not an affordable one. My 5D flies like a bird on the Kessler Crane(5K for a turn key setup). I’d be afraid to put a RED on the end of it for fear that the crane may break in half under the weight. I’m not saying the Canon’s are perfect but think of the value. whats the RED ONE cost with all the fixings. $60,000. Somehwere in the neighborhood with lenses,cards,batteries,matte box,veiwfinder, follow focus and on and on and on. I did sound on a few shoots with the RED direct to the camera without a mixer and you’d think they would have put some audio levels outside somewhere on the thing.They didn’t! You have to press about 8 buttons to even get to the audio levels. arghhhh.

As far as ease of use. well it takes a few minutes to power the thing up. and run and gun…well you can’t really say RED and run and gun in the same sentence. Its like carrying an anvil. Handheld? Bring a back brace! Now I know if you’re shooting a feature film which I’ve never done its the way to go. especially for a 4k projection. I mean even in film festivals though the biggest they go is 1080p digital projection. maybe a few IMAX’s in there somewhere. So unless you have a Blockbuster you’re shooting with a heft budget I just don’t see the point. I’m sure its only a matter of time before we start seeing empty RED ONE shells on the walls of production houses. Like a taxidermy’d bass on the wall of a everglades swamp bar.

Anyway, save your money! I know RED has all new Scarlets and Epics coming out but at this point I’m just so thrilled with how well my Canon 5d is shooting I couldn’t think about replacing her. and what would the step up be?? The Scarlet for 8 times the price. thats a pretty huge jump. I’m not saying there aren’t things I dont like about the Canon’s. I could go on and on..but I only paid $2,200 for it. I’ll leave you with a music video I recently finished shooting on the canon 7D and the 5D. I’ve had a few people ask if it was shot on the RED or on another 4K camera. Nope just my little DSLR’S

UPDATE: I just read this on Philip Bloom’s blog about his experience with the EPIC. YIKES!
http://philipbloom.net/2011/12/10/nomoreepic/
I have to say there is nothing that sucks more than gear not working on a shoot.

MUSIC VIDEO FOR PENNAN BRAE SHOT ON CANON DSLR’S
http://vimeo.com/35805276

Oregon Filmmaker at NAB in Las Vegas

Tim Cash Oregon Filmmaker here. ok, I’m doing it . I’m buying my ticket to Vegas and I’m hoping to meet the who’s who of the industry. test some new gear and make a bunch of new friends. Who’s coming with me??? anyway, just throwing it out there. Hoping to meet reps from Kino Flo, Dynamic Perception, Kessler Crane, Sony,canon,Panasonic,Arri and many many more. Especially all the other filmmakers like myself. See you in April!

Please check out my professional site as well FARfromEARTH Films and SLAMSTOCK Our free Stock Footage Website.

Dynamic Perception Stage Zero Dolly Review

Hello Again everyone! Tim Cash Oregon Filmmaker here! Sorry I’ve been crazy busy editing these 4 music videos for canadian artist Pennan Brae so I haven’t had a spare second to put together much of a show or tutorial. But…while I’ve been plugged up editing in the bay. I have been gathering some timelapses with my new Dynamic Perception and I have to say this is one of the most amazing pieces of equipment I’ve ever had the chance to use!! I purchased it for around $950 plus when you add on the 2 tripods they recommend and a mount for the camera you are in the $1500 range which in the scheme of things is really nothing at all. I remember when I first saw motion timelapse it was in the film Baraka and I was blown away! It was my favorite film for a while after that. At the time I’m sure the system they used cost a million dollars or somewhere near there. They also shot the film on 70mm with giant cameras. funny how far we’ve come in 10 years. You can do the same thing with a canon 5d (stills in 4k) and dynamic perception stage zero dolly (total cost $4,000) as they did with a millions 10 years back!

As a review; I tell you what I love and what I don’t love but overall this thing is about 100 stars out of 5 in my book.

Lets start with the Cons (there aren’t many):
CONS
1.the battery they provided arrived and was dead dead after 2 days(however the customer service is amazing and had a new one in 2 days! thx for that! Hey there is a Lemon in every batch no matter what you get. the fact that replaced it instantly is a PRO!
2. I’ve somehow managed to get the settings I want even though I still feel a bit lost. maybe the menu pages could be a bit more simple. a slightly bigger screen with everything lined up on the left. Sometimes you think you have it right but then the camera dosn’t gp off. so you change your setting but as it turns out the engine may take a few cycles to get the camera and dolly in line. which adds a bit more confusion to my settings. All this said without the Dynamic Perception Instructional Video I would have been way more lost.
PROS
1. As far as the service goes I love talking to a company on the phone and really having the person on the other end who understands the questions and what they are selling. These guys are still very mom and pop and it shows. The guy that answers the phone is probably the guy that built and designed it. What they have created is magic and affordable. its only a matter of time before they get so big that we’ll be talking to Bombay customer service agents and these guys will be chillin on small islands sipping Pina Colada’s and shit! kudos to them! Yet another amazing invention that has done what the canon dslr’s did for filmmaking. take us all to another level of production.
2. You can create shots that see the world unlike our eyes. A World under or beside this one we never see or pay any attention to, shadows and all!
3. It really is amazing! I bow down before the incredibly creative feet of the Dynamic Perception team! I’m already thinking I should get another one so I can double down.

Please checkout this quick little test drive of the Dynamic Perception I did while editing other projects. next stop Crater Lake National Park.
http://vimeo.com/36034515

Also please lookout for our future tutorial on the Dynamic Perception Stage Zero Dolly and some things I’ve learned while shooting on it that can save you time and shots. Which in the timelapse game is everything!

prepping for the new Mini-Soundstage

Hey everyone! Tim Cash Oregon Filmmaker here! I’ve dreamt for many years of having my own studio to shoot in. Something big enough for full body green,black,white screen shooting and a grid to hang lights from. Typically I rent from another company in town who has a great spot for shooting. but I shoot so much that it doesnt make since for me to rent a studio anymore. Plus I want to be able to shoot in a studio at the drop of a hat. As well as for personal projects where i don’t have a budget for a studio. When I did the math it would cost me the same to build my own studio as it would to rent one for 20 days.
Oh yeah and ofcourse think about all the room we’ll have for future Oregon Filmmaker blog shows and more involved lighting techniques.
So there you go! we start excavating in the next week and hope to get a slab in before the California Music Video tour. then return and spend all of April building it!

Well the future has come and today we started clearing the site! I’m so lucky that my grip Robert Slaney is an accomplished builder and craftsman and is working with me on my vision for this 500 sqft. mini-soundstage! Plus I get to learn how to frame and be his assistant! so that works for me!

Mini-Soundstage will go to the right of the lounge & edit bay

NEW MUSIC VIDEO: Pennan Brae The First of 4

Hey Everyone! Tim Cash Oregon Filmmaker here! Alot going on since the beginning of the week. We started shooting our 4 music videos for Pennan Brae on Sunday the 22nd and now its Saturday the 28th and we’ve actually released one music video! I sent Pennan my first cut and he said; “this one came out of the oven just right!” which meant it was done and ready for prime time. Typically the videos have to go back in the oven for 1 or 2 more times to get it just right but hey! Cant beat that!

“Signs” is a tribute the vastness of the western United States and its historical Americana style! Pennan Brae came to me with a 50 state license plate collection and a license plated piece of guitar art and said “I want to make a music video with these!”. Ok, Pennan! Ofcourse we can do that! For this video we headed east of Bend Oregon about 24 miles to a place called Millican where the sage brush flats appear to go on forever. The basic theme of the video is: A woman is on the lamb and she is using up her license plates as she goes. Eventually she is left with none and her journey must come to an end……well, I’ll just let you watch and figure it out!
Anyway big thanks to my grip Robert Slaney and my lovely wife Yuvia Storm who plays the cute little gangster vixen! 18 ft Kessler Crane in action quite a bit!

Shot on the canon 5D & 7D

http://vimeo.com/35805276

Announcing FARfromEARTH Films Westcoast Spring Tour

Hey Everyone! Tim Cash Oregon Filmmaker here. I just booked quite a few music videos in California and decided to go ahead and make a tour of it. So March 10th we head out on the open road for a month to shoot 7 music videos as of right now and possibly adding more to the roster. Tons of incredible artist to capture in a short period of time. I’ve always wanted to go on tour! Tour goes as follows:

Portland Oregon
Acoustic Minds

Arcata, California
Mykal Somer

Ukiah, California
I-Taweh

San Francisco, California
Jah Sun & Peetah Morgan
Pennan Brae

Oakland, California
MC Hammer,Too Short & E40

Santa Barbara, California
Saritah

San Diego, California
Mexichronic

Still getting all the dates set in stone!

If you ‘d like to add your band’s music video to the list please contact: timcash@farfromearthfilms.com

The Week in Review: 4 Music Videos in 4 days w/ Pennan Brae

What do I say! Tim Cash here! Oregon Filmmaker. I promised to give you all the dirt, well here’s how it went. First off didn’t find out till the last minute but the Anthony B music video shoot was cancelled! Bummer! I had already spent that money on some new gear but whatever. onward and forward!

On Saturday the 21st Pennan Brae arrived in Bend Oregon from Vancouver BC. to shoot 4 music videos in only 4 days. I spent a few weeks prepping and most everything was going pretty easy. Except for one place. Our “Blind Love” video takes place in a strip club but the only one in town isn’t getting back to me. Eventually I got through just days before the shoot and greased the palm of the manager’s hand with some more Benjamins. that Money was already spent but whatever. and luckily the shoot went off without a hitch. We had some amazing and ridiculously hot dancers in Nicole Minteins and Stephanie Gilstrap. They did a great job and I havent seen bikinis that small since 60 minutes did a special on that Brazilian beach town.
Anyway, We were in and out in 4 hours and had a great time. My intern Kylee nailed it on the props and was super organized. That was her first shoot with FARfromEARTH Films. I went home after the shoot and prepped for the following day. Printed my notes. and started compressing the footage. and went to bed.

day 2; I woke up at 6 and in 2 hours had edited a rough cut of yesterdays video for Pennan Brae to see. Pennan Brae “Fling” music video shoot. I think this was my favorite of the 4 videos. before and after we shot it. I’ve never had the chance to try a Black & White Silent film style before but always wanted to. We poached the location till the owner came over but turned out to be super-nice ad was really excited about us being there. which really surprised me considering we had to open and close a gate to sneak in. Anyway, AWESOME! we had a wonderful shoot. great actors and the whole nine! I shot all the singing sequences to a 75% slowed down version of the song. then sped the footage up to 150% to match. this also gives the old film look of the early 20th century stuff where the film moved through the projector at faster speeds. I thought the shoot was a super success! I love the one-location music videos. again we were in and out in 4 hours. Headed home downloaded footage charged batteries and prepped for the following days shoot.

day3:The worst day by far but still a success. I could do no Right! “The Forgotten Man” is a music video dealing with the effects of alzeimers. We were set to film up on Awbrey Butte in Bend Oregon. As I drove towards the location the snow got wetter and wetter and eventually got to the point where I couldn’t get up the hill to the location. Luckily my grip Rob Slaney was towing the piano for the singing shots behind his huge 4 wheel drive truck and I was able to put most equipment in his trailer. off we headed a half an hour late. Talent would be arriving in a few minutes and we don’t have anything setup at all. Big wet flakes were coming down and Rob had to setup the crane outside while I began setting up lights inside. We had so much natural light coming in I just decided to fill with 2 250’s w/ blue gels and balance for daylight. Then POP! A light blows and I realized just how much I needed it. So I spent the next 20 minutes trying to pry what was left of the light out of the can with a heavy set of plyers. It was frustrating. If I had more lights I coulda just popped another in there. Plus I’ve been wanting to pick up 3 Arri 150’s they are great for beaming in small bursts of light from a distance. By this point Rob had the crane ready for our window shot. and I realized as soon as i looked through the monitor it wasn’t going to work. I needed a polarizer to cut through the glare of the window. add that to the wishlist. We moved inside and shot our big scene and our actors nailed it and really had me tearing up. We wraped the location and eaded to a park i bend right on the deschutes in downtown. we got our feet soaked in standing water getting our crane and a heavy piano to the spot to film. I setup my shot and ad suddenly the crane monitor went dead. I thought it was the moisture and just couldnt seem to a get a signal from camera to the monitor. I got livid at this point and began to throw what psychiatrist would call a bit of a tantrum. We flew blind for a few shots then wrapped it up and went home.

note: in real weather you can always get the most epic shots but almost always you have gear malfunctions. thats just te way it is when you mix electronics ad wet weather.

day 4: The “Signs” music video shoot. Had the chance to sleep in a bit on the 4th and last day. On this one my beautiful wife Yuvia Storm would be playing the starlet along side Pennan Brae. We headed east into the high desert. setup the crane in a giant sagebrush flat ad started filming. we got some amazing stuff right off the bat and everything was going just perfect. one little thing wet wrong. the crane! again! not so much the crae but the little HDMI to mini-HDMI cable seems to be having an issue. same problem as yesterday but we’ve now troubleshot it to this one little cable from BEST BUY! Add tat one to the gear list and we are set. We wrapped this one just after sunset and headed home with excitement welling up to edit!

So thats pretty much it. It was a pleasure to work with Pennan Brae again. and we plan on doing more projects together in the near future! I’m deep in the editing session now and will be posting the videos to the blog here very soon. Stay tuned to for my first motion timelapse test. thanks everyone for following!

On location at Jim’s Junction outside of Redmond Oregon shooting “Fling” music video

Me with my talented actors for the “Fling” music video

On Location in Bend Oregon for “The Forgotten Man” music video shoot

My grip Robert Slaney and I On location in Millican Oregon for the “Signs’ music video shoot

The “Not So Easy” Art of Music Video Making

Tim Cash Oregon Filmmaker here! This week for me has been a bit of a stressful one! I’ve been prepping for 5 music videos all to be shot this week. 4 of which are for Canadian artist Pennan Brae. And 1 for reggae superstar Anthony B and northwest local Essential I. The prep involved for the 4 Pennan Brae shoots has been extra difficult with tons of props,locations and one is even a 1920’s b&w silent film style; so throw period piece in there as well. One of the videos is to be shot in a local strip club but do to some scheduling issues is now up in the air as they are looking for an employee to look over the place while we’re shooting.and ofcourse no one wants to work on Sunday morning especially in a strip club. so I’m crossing my fingers at this point. Alot is riding on that one employee. I’ve got over a 1,500 dollars in talent and props invested in the day and at this point it might not happen. Argghh!

The other 3 Pennan Brae videos seem to be set in stone and ready to rock.

As far as the Anthony B video, well thats a whole other story. Anthony B is famous in the reggae world and is on tour right now. Its hard for him to give us a time when he is available, which I totally understand. So for the past few days its been a scheduling issue as we only get one chance. Shooting in Portland on Saturday. but dont know when. could be a night shoot(lights and generators…more setup time)…could be a day shoot(hoping for). Both would require different locations and another crux: we may only have Anthony B for 15 minutes. double arghhh! Also been trying to arrange some extras(Portland Ocuppiers) but not knowing when the talent is going to be available makes it hard to schedule tons of extras holding picket signs. Its hard to give a video production value when you have no idea when or how long. and I’ve gotten to work in this situation a few times before so I am a bit familiar. but I never get used to it!

All that said, I’m super thankful for my life as a Music Video Director and the opportunities I’ve had to work with such incredible talent. Sometimes it can just get a little stressful.

here are 3 examples:

2009: Swedish Grammy Award Winner Promoe on the left with the red scarf. we had him for 15 minutes

http://vimeo.com/8088430

2010: Italian Reggae Sensation Alborosie: maybe had him for a hour and a half between 2 cities in total

2007: waited outside Kymani Marley’ tour bus for 2 hours at a festival for 2 minutes with him.