the really useful media company » video

Programming visuals with Wiley Wiggins for The Octopus Project

emily — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 16:07:07 +0000

We can’t wait to see video from The Octopus Project‘s show in Dallas last night!

Dan was happy to help out again for this latest round on some behind-the-scenes design and programming to sync the lighting with the theremin-controlled colorsynth.

It’s always a pleasure to work with visualist Wiley Wiggins. He and Dan first collaborated last March for the Hexadecagon show at SXSW, which was a very ambitious, multi-channel audio and multi-channel video performance under a tent in the Whole Foods parking lot in Austin. Dan pitched in with some design and technical problem solving, like performance tuning (i.e., making all the video software run efficiently), making a multi-animation playback system so that different animations could pop up on the screen in different places, and most exciting of all, making a theremin colorsynth. The band and Wiley wanted a visualizer that would take the audio feed from the theremin and turn it into big, glorious fields of color. Watch the video below to get a feel for the show. For more of the nitty gritty technical details, read Wiley’s Hexadecagon wrap-up post.

HEXADECAGON – The Octopus Project from Zellner Bros. on Vimeo.

For anyone who wants to check all of this out live, The Octopus Project will be playing their next show in Austin on December 3rd.

FORA.tv – Branding Democracy: Barack Obama and American Void

dan — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 18:55:23 +0000

A video we shot for the Vera List Center for Art and Politics at the New School is in esteemed company, having been selected as one of ten videos for FORA.tv’s Best of 2009 series. This was a fun event to shoot — Professor Simon Critchley spoke to a full house, keeping the audience engaged while putting forth a lot of big picture, cultural studies ideas about Barack Obama and democracy. See for yourself:

FORA.tv – Branding Democracy: Barack Obama and American Void.

Recent videography for The New School

dan — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 16:29:29 +0000

Some of our favorite events we have shot this year for our biggest client, The New School, were Sandra Day O’Connor at the Games 4 Change Festival, Jeffrey Toobin on the Supreme Court, and a panel of food writers remembering Julia Child. Here’s a funny excerpt from the last one, Molly O’Neill’s dead-on impression of Julia Child responding to criticism from PETA.

We have a number of clients at The New School, including the India China Institute, the Graduate Program in International Affairs, The New School for General Studies, the Vera List Center for Art and Politics, and the Wolfson Center for National Affairs. The New School makes most of their filmed events available online through Fora.tv, an interactive video sharing site that presents thought and discourse from some of the world’s foremost think tanks, conferences and institutions. Follow the last link for many hours of fascinating debates, lectures and interviews.

Post-production: I Dig Tanzania

dan — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 00:12:00 +0000

In July and August, we wrote and edited a promo trailer for I Dig Tanzania, a novel summer camp organized by Global Kids, the Field Museum of Chicago, and the Encyclopedia of Life. In collaboration with Global Kids and the other funders, we collaboratively scripted the trailer based on footage and photos shot by the teachers, students and researchers in the field in Tanzania. The footage and photos were of varying quality and size, from Flip cameras to consumer HD cameras, with on-board microphones, and all handheld. We had to massage and sweeten some of the audio and video considerably to make them easy on the eyes and ears, and the clients were happy with the results.

You will need to install or update the Flash Player to see this video. It’s free and only takes a minute.

Bastianello and Lucrezia

dan — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:07:40 +0000

On March 15th, 2008 the Really Useful Media Company did a live, two-camera, high-definition shoot of the operas Bastianello and Lucrezia, presented by the New York Festival of Song at Caramoor, a performing arts center in Katonah, New York. After intensive post-production (editing, color correction, DVD authoring), the operas are now up for all to enjoy the performers’ world-class musicianship. ~~Here below is a custom player we made for NYFOS to put on their site, showcasing the two operas.~~ The videos have yet to be released by NYFOS. Many thanks to Benton-C, whose experience, expertise and all-around-nice-guy-ness shines through in the videography (wide shots) and color correction. Thanks also to Adam Abeshouse, the audio engineer and recordist who mixed the superb recording you can hear in these videos. The full credits are after the jump.

Bastianello by John Musto and Mark Campbell
Lucrezia by William Bolcom and Mark Campbell

presented by New York Festival of Song

recorded at Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, March 15, 2008

Cast:

tenor Paul Appleby
bass Matt Boehler
mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke
baritone Patrick Mason
soprano Lisa Vroman

pianists Michael Barrett and Steven Blier
director Leon Major
stage manager Kate Scott

Commission, first performances, recording and audio broadcast of Bastianello by John Musto and Mark Campbell and Lucrezia by William Bolcom and Mark Campbell by New York Festival of Song, Inc. was supported by the New York State Music Fund, established by the New York State Attorney General at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors.

Additional funding for first performance of Bastianello/Lucrezia is provided by generous grants from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Fazioli pianos supplied by Klavierhaus

Videography and post-production by the really useful media company

Audio recording and post-production by Adam Abeshouse

New York Festival of Song
Steven Blier, Artistic Director
Michael Barrett, Associate Artistic Director
Elizabeth Hurwitt, Executive Director
Charles McKay, Managing Director

Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts
Chief Executive/General Director
Paul Rosenblum, Managing Director