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Deborah S. Patz – Author

Author of film books for industry pros and youth

Dec102010

How Do You Take Your Film Industry News?

You can pick up a copy of a trade mag in the store. You can have it mailed to you. You can access them on your mobile. You can subscribe to their newsletters. You can like them on Facebook. You can follow them on Twitter. The choices seem to go on and on. How do you access the film industry news? Do you even know the options available? Here’s a rundown on the majors for you.

Legend of current rates:
$ = less than $100
$$ = $101 to $200
$$$ = $201 & up
free = uh… you should know what this one means!
– = I couldn’t find the option for this trade mag

DELIVERY OPTION Variety Hollywood Reporter Screen Daily (UK)

Playback Online (Can.)
Email newsletter Free Newsltr Free Newsltr Free Newsltr Free Newsltr
RSS Free RSS Free RSS Free RSS Free RSS
Online full access – $$ – $$
Print (by mail) – $ – –
Print & online $$$ $$ – $$$ $$$ –
Facebook page Free FB page Free FB page FB friend Free FB page
Twitter Free Twitter Free Twitter Free Twitter Free Twitter
You Tube Free You Tube Free You Tube – –
Other(s) iPhone, Widget, WAP iPad – –

And to confuse things even more, the options change and evolve all the time. Companies are setting up “company pages” on LinkedIn now, for example (company pages are still in beta). And what was once free becomes a paid subscription… and then a few months or a year later it becomes free again, or free in a new format. Ahhh… the speedy evolution of modern delivery channels!

Festive cheers & happy reading – in whatever format(s) you prefer,
Deb

Dec32010

Inspiration at the Movies: The Polar Express

“The thing about trains… it doesn’t matter where they’re going. What matters is deciding to get on.”
– The Conductor (The Polar Express, 2004)

These words make me think about making decisions. Getting on – the choosing to act – is certainly a decision… an active decision. And yet not getting on – the choosing not to act – is also a decision… a more passive decision. How many passive decisions do we make in our career, really? The Conductor sagely reminds us that it’s all about getting onboard. Though you may not know exactly where you are going, or end up wher you originally planned to go, you’re bound to have an adventure and really live life if you make the choice actively.

Festive cheer to you & active production decisions,
Deb

Nov192010

Ciné-Surfer: Career Intelligence & Networking

The season of parties approaches… be it a wrap parties, office parties or Christmas parties. Are you ready for all that networking?

I’ve been ciné-surfing lately, and found some cool information on the Career-Intelligence.com site. It’s called the “smart women’s online career resource” but it’s certainly readable by any gender! Some of the latest items I’ve found of interest to read include:

  • How to Avoid a Typical Conversation
    (and you know what they mean, don’t you!)
  • How Do You Accept an Award
    (beyond the obvious awards shows, this can include kudos given to you publicly at the wrap of any production)

What elements catch your ciné-surfing eye?

Cheers & a great festive season to you!
Deb

Nov122010

Memorable Movie Moment: Harold & Maude Zoom Shot

Remembrance Day made me think of this shot (again): during a montage there’s an amazing shot in a military graveyard:

Frame of Harold & Maude picnicking amid a few gravestones – the gravestones making a pattern around them… then zoom out… and zoom out… and zoom out… and zoom out… to an extreme wide shot of the same picnic – now minute in the frame and the gravestones now make a new pattern around them.

Wow! What an expensive zoom lens that must have been! Boy did they know where to spend the production money to maximize the budgeting “getting to the screen.”

And it was so much more than “just a nice shot.” It added another unique layer of meaning to the story. You need to see the reveal from cosy (?) picnic to Harold & Maude being dwarfed by the sheer number of gravestones around them… and living the picnic there in perfect harmony with their surroundings. How do they each feel about death? Can we feel them finding life as they look at and for death? A powerful shot indeed. I’m chilled at how this shot reaches me. The true magic of this storytelling medium.

Cheers & a good shoot to you!
Deb

Nov52010

Hour Changes & Midnight Call Times

The Dilemma: Call time for the first day of the shooting week is at midnight on Sunday and daylight savings ends this weekend… how do you ensure the crew shows up for set on the right day and at the right time?

The Answer: Well, it’s a 2-part answer.

(1) How to Set a Midnight Call Time –
First of all… do not use 12:00 a.m. as your call time. Though the crew will understand the time to show up, they’ll find the date confusing: “Do they mean 12 midnight between Saturday & Sunday…. or… 12 midnight between Sunday and Monday??” Use a call time of 11:59 p.m. or 12:01 a.m. and then both time and date will be clear. Considering you’ll probably also have a number of pre-calls, I recommend using 11:59 p.m.

(2) How to Set a Call Time Around the Daylight Savings Time Change –
DST time changes happen at 2:00 a.m. so give clear notice on the call sheet (that the crew receives the night or day before) that there is a time change, exactly when it happens (2am), and what happens to the hour (clocks back or clocks forward):

**REMEMBER – CLOCKS FALL BACK 1 HOUR AT 2AM SUNDAY MORNING**

If your shoot day takes place during the time change (like when you  have a midnight call), then things get a little tricky. In the spring you lose an hour springing forward – that’s not as confusing as in the fall where you “repeat” an hour. If you call someone to set at 1:30 a.m… which 1:30 a.m. is it?

The easiest solution in the fall is to declare the time change to happen at least 1 hour before your shoot starts that night and so you can have consecutive hours for the entire night’s shoot.

**REMEMBER – CLOCKS FALL BACK 1 HOUR AT 10PM SATURDAY NIGHT**

Alternatively, you could declare the time change on your set will happen 1 hour after wrap. In either case, you’ll have to be very clear on the call sheet and message this unique “set time zone” to all involved. Considering, however, you’re shooting at night, you should know every single person who will be showing up to set anyway!

Cheers & a good shoot to you!
Deb

P.S. Oh yes… don’t forget to change your clocks this weekend. 🙂