posted on April 6th, 2011
To effectively communicate with the public you need to successfully manage your online identity. That is what I told Chuck Weaver, a local Peoria businessman, after he told me his interest being a Peoria City Council at-large member. He then asked me to do just that.
Chuck and I met at a business competition held by Bradley University. My group – pitching an online alternative to the current music industry – was one of six that had made it into the final round. In the finals we presented our ideas to the handful of judges that would ultimately determine the winner. While we did not win the competition, we won the heart of Chuck.
Chuck told us that when it came to business he didn’t believe in ideas, he believed in people. He believed in our team. He believed in my long time friend Austin Brandt for his skills as a salesman and he believed in me for my knowledge of the Internet. It was this knowledge that he wanted to tap and utilize in his campaign for City Council.
Weaver for Peoria
I began by thoroughly searching Google for information in his name, as well as his existing LinkedIn and Facebook accounts. I prepared a report that explained what I thought he should do with these accounts as well as [......]
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Posted in Web Design
posted on April 4th, 2011
8am on a Saturday. Here we go again.
Friday’s post, Day 1 of America Live! Filming, spoke about the first of two ten hour days of filming for a Bradley University production titled America Live! It detailed the production, my role in the shoot, and a few roadblocks we overcame. Three commercials, one hosed 5D Mark II, and ten hours later Day 1 was a wrap. Not for long, however, as we found ourselves back in the studio at 8am the next morning.
Director Jim Ferolo briefing everyone involved
On Saturday we shot the last of our five commercials and a music video. The commercial went well but we were only left with about 5 hours to shoot a full length music video. This was the smallest gap of time – director Jim Ferolo explained to the talent – that he had ever worked with. His strategy was to first worry about coverage, or having enough usable footage to cover the timeline, before dealing with anything extra.
I had an added interest in this music video because I was going to be the one to edit it. Not to mention, we had prepared very little for this shot, making staying focused and taking solid notes even more important for post-production. I spent a majority of the [......]
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Posted in Video
posted on April 2nd, 2011
I typically spend my Fridays like every other college student. Well, maybe not. This particular Friday I woke up at 6:15am to prepare for the first of two consecutive 10+ hour video shoots. I arrived at Chroma Studio in Peoria, IL at 8am and didn’t see the outdoors again until 6 o’clock at night. Not quite the typical college Friday, I’d imagine.
The shoots are for 5 commercials and 1 music video to be shown during America Live! The production, a collaboration between the Theatre and Interactive Media Departments at Bradley University, is a mock television show featuring a live audience. It relies on participation from audience members in many ways: from important on stage roles to live voting via text messaging. Not to mention, the entire production can be seen live streaming via the Web.
Shooting one of the five commercials
We spent today shooting 3 of the commercials. I initially found it hard to believe that 3 commercials would take us 10 hours. That is, until I arrived on the set. Time after time, however, I come to learn that when Interactive Media Department Chair Jim Ferolo doesn’t go home without going big first.
We shot everything on a professional set with a Canon EOS 5D Mark II. From giant white backdrops to [......]
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Posted in Video
