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Deborah S. Patz – Author

Author of film books for industry pros and youth

Sep182009

Virtual Travel: Production Management 101

So, it appears I have travelled virtually through my books to more countries than I have gone in person! How cool!

Between “Production Management 101” and “Surviving Production“, my books are in bookstores and libraries in at least 20 countries, including: Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Morocco, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, UK, and the USA! I especially love the Amazon Japan site – seeing my book in English whereas the rest of the screen text in Japanese.

Bit of a shame I don’t have any travel memories from this virtual travel. I guess I’ve got a few plane rides to catch in order to catch up…

Cheers,
Deb

Sep112009

Inspiration at the Movies: Romancing the Stone

[Her publisher declares Joan to be a world-class hopeless romantic…]
“No. Hopeful. Hopeful romantic.”
  – Joan Wilder (Romancing The Stone – 1984)

Yes, Joan shows us we need to hang on to hope in life, but she also shows us that we need to live our lives to the fullest and not just wait around for our dreams to come true. Life’s adventure has taught Joan to blossom out of the shy author she was and to become the best Joan she can be – even without the one man that she dreams of sharing life with. And while she’s living, it’s not an empty existance… she still has hope. May we all hang on to and never lose that hope.

Cheers,
Deb

Sep42009

Unique festival opening shots?

As festival season is about to begin, I can’t help but remember back to one of the first times I attended TIFF. I only managed to see nine films that year, but oddly, three of those nine films started with the same opening shot. Yup. Thee completely different films in three different languages and from three totally different countries from around the world came up with:

Fade in to full frame water. Camera pulls out and boat enters shot. Protagonist is on bow of boat. Camera moves in to Protagonist.

Just think. Three different directors in three different countries all thought they came up with an original way to open their respective movies. It goes to show then, doesn’t it? Whatever we think of creatively, it’s probably been done before.

Cheers,
Deb

Aug282009

Industry News Sites

So where do you gather your news about the film industry? There are so many sources, you could spend all day reading and tracking down information in the trades, blogs, newspapers, magazines, journals and so on. You can find them on Facebook, Twitter, through enewsletters, print subscriptions, the list goes on. Sticking with free enewsletters, these are my favourites:

Variety (variety.com) – Not only do they have an excellent enewsletter that covers USA and international news, but they also have an super “Slanguage Dictionary” so you can understand phrases like: Prexy inks a skein in Gotham.

Hollywood Reporter (hollywoodreporter.com) – Another great enewsletter for USA and international industry news.

ShowbizData (showbizdata.com) – Super for to-the-point news, and lots of stats.

Playback (playbackonline.ca) – This is the trade to follow for Canadian industry news, and they highlight career postings on each enewsletter, as well as the front page. Nice touch.

Screen International (screendaily.com) – This enewsletter is from another premiere magazine, and rounds out perspectives perfectly for me, with the UK point of view.

After a healthy dose of the trades, I also include Mediapost Publications (mediapost.com). You need to be a bit selective with your choice of news and blogs or you will overload on information and emails in your intray.  With the convergence of technologies and medias, the information these fellows provide is a much needed, wider, different perspective, and often a glimpse (or guess?) at trends as they are evolving.

So… where do you read your industry news?

Cheers,
Deb

Aug212009

IMAX 3D brings the past into the present

Having worked with the one of the first IMAX 3D cameras ever made, I have to say that prototype equipment has a unique way of transporting us into the past.

The IMAX 3D camera being the size of a small desk requires four strapping folk to lift it. The size of the crane allowing camera movement demands fly-away walls on the set, and therefore preventing you from much location shooting. And then there is the sound – most obviously so, because depsite all baffling attempts, the camera whirs loud enough that one would consider building a small sound-proof room around it so the Recordist would actually be able to capture location sound instead of guide track.

In some ways, one is transported back in time to the birth of sound movies, seeing film crews trying to solve similar challenges with prototype equipment then as now. With such a glimpse bringing the past into the present, you know that somehow you too taking part in movie history. Cool.

Cheers,
Deb

Aug142009

3 Things I Learned About Filmmaking from… My Grandmother

Life can teach you about filmmaking even when you’re not making films… here are 3 things I learned from my Grandmother… a unique fireball of a woman who knew nothing about the film industry:

1. If you can’t do it, keep trying
My grandmother didn’t have much education – nor access to education. She was a single mother when social norms looked down on such a situation, and though she was far from being a good cook, she spend most of her life making a living from cooking. She learned by doing, and never gave up. No education? No excuses. That’s a work ethic worth importing into a film career.

2. Make and eat dessert
Though she couldn’t really cook, my grandmother sure could bake. She collected a veritable ton of dessert recipes and her desserts were fabulous. Cooking was survival to her, but baking was colour of life. May we remember to taste the dessert of life as we slog through the survival of a film career.

3. Always wear clean underwear
She never lived to see blogs and Facebook, but her insistance of always wearing clean underwear is a good reminder for today’s e-world. Whatever we post on the web, or say to each other on the set is remembered for a long time, often searchable, and sometimes poorly interpretted. Make it clean. Don’t air any dirty laundry that could embarrass you later in your career.

Tasty desserts and a good shoot to you!

Cheers,
Deb