Post-Cucalorus

To be completely honest, I was not expecting Cucalorus to be so much fun. I got the Film Pass and was not volunteering so I actually ended up seeing and experiencing a lot more than I had initially planned. One thing that I was not anticipating was the events. I found that people were very open to sparking conversation and it was interesting to talk to all the different creatives that Cucalorus attracted. At the Oyster Party, I went in expecting to see very few people I know but ended up seeing dozens of people who I had worked with in the past on different films and creative projects. My favorite event area was the filmmakers lounge because I could go whenever and there was always someone interesting to talk to. Also, I had no clue that the pass included free alcohol which I was extremely happy about. In my blog last week I said my goal was to talk to at least 5 people at each event. At the events I did not keep track of how many people I spoke with but I am sure that it was always at least 5 people and usually a lot more. One thing that really surprised me was the overall quality of the films. Other than the Eyeslicer screening, all of the films I attended were extremely well produced. The first film I saw was The Light of The Moon which was serious and had a great storyline. The film was about a girl who got sexually assaulted but it focused more on her emotions following the assault than the actual assault itself which differs from how the film would have most likely been made if it was a Hollywood production. Another film that I really enjoyed was Infinity Baby. The humor was very dry which is my personal favorite. I also liked that the film was entirely in black and white but it still seemed very contemporary. Overall, I loved the festival so much that it inspired me to start creating festival pieces so that when next year comes around I can be even more involved. If I was a filmmaker presenting at a festival I would now know that its important to be yourself and show your personality because it will affect how people interpret your film.

Cucalorus

   Since I have never attended Cucalorus before, I decided to buy the all access pass. My goal is to attend as many screenings as possible and meet as many people as possible. Since the majority of these films were made with fairly small budgets, I really want to learn about their production process and how they were able to pull it off. Every small budget production seems to have tips and tricks to help reduce production costs. Since I want to work in the production side of film, primarily as director of photography, I feel like learning from the process of others will help me gain knowledge that will help me out once I graduate. In order to make the most of the experience, I want to try and speak to as many filmmakers as possible. Another one of my goals is to talk to at least 5 filmmakers at each party/event. Since I don't know any filmmakers or films that will be playing in the festival, I want to go to as many as possible. After class on Thursday I want to go to the keynote with George Taylor and then see the film Mr.Roosevelt that evening. On Friday I have class all day but I want to see Barn Door Shorts: Southern Stories and I also want to attend the Oyster Party at the Bellamy Mansion. On Saturday I have to film in the morning but later in the day I want to see Dr. Brinks and Dr. Brinks as well as the Secret Screening that evening. On Sunday we are finishing up filming for our music video but I hope to see The Strange Ones as well as The Price. This will be my first film festival that I have ever intended so I am slightly nervous. I am hoping to see classmates at the events because a lot of people seem to have experience with Cucalorus. This will be a good chance for me to get out of my comfort zone and do something I have never done before.

Music Video Roles

For the music video my job is the assistant cameraman/grip. This role particularly challenging for me because I always seem to have a very strong opinion and with this role I am not really supposed to be voicing much of an opinion. I am a complete gear-head so that aspect of it should be fairly easy for me. My goal in film is to be a director of photography and that is basically the only thing I ever really do. I come from a photography background so being in charge of actually capturing the shots is most definitely my strong-suit. I am really excited for this project because I think our group seems to be very likeminded and excited to create a fun piece. One thing that I really want to incorporate in our video is long smooth movement shots that were taken with a gimbal. For music videos, these shots always seem to be the most dynamic and engaging. I also want to utilize the natural lighting underneath the forest canopy because it provides very cool textures and shadows on the subjects.