Ashley Dean Myles

Just to clear a bit up - I posted that the AC wouldn't be needed for prep because the DP was going to be performing the prep. At the time, we didn't know if we would find anyone on time and so were making the appropriate arrangements. Stating that check-in/check-out weren't required was a concession of time, as my previous AC had to bow out for family reasons 36 hours prior to picking up the camera. Naturally, if the prospective candidate was available on that short a notice he would have been more than welcome at the prep and would have been paid for it. If anything, the lesson learned here is not to immediately jump to the conclusion that a poster is somehow misinformed or not knowledgeable in his or her field. I believe that's what upset me the most and also upset Saw. Well, that and the fact that you were questioning his wife and producer in the middle of an extremely stressful and challengeing project. It was just a job posting for goodness sakes!

Honestly, I can't believe that my little cry for help caused such a ruckus. We needed a 1st A.C. and had no other alternatives other than casting a wide net and hoping we found someone capable given the time and budget constraints. I added the bit about the DP being 'very demanding' as a bit of humor which brightened the mood at our production office after a very, very trying day. I've learned my lesson to never post anything on this forum ever again. :D Downix, the situation ended up working itself out in a beneficial, positive manner. We hired an ex-student of my husband and my gaffer who was more than capable of doing the job. The shoot went as well as possible given the budget constraints and weather. Most importantly, the client is exceedingly happy. :huh: Mr. Nash, you really must have been looking to find fault with my post. I tried to make it as straightforward as possible so that I wouldn't waste anyones valuable time. It was a simple job post, not something that was meant to be up for discussion and debate. :blink: Mr. Patio, you cannot fault my husband for coming to my defense. And honestly, who cares what his nickname is. His entire crew calls him by that name and has for years.

My 1st A.C. had to back out of an upcoming shoot due to personal/family issues. I'm in urgent need of a replacement. If you are capable, and interested, please email your resume to info@cagexxi.com . -35mm TV Commercial shoot -Must be local to central or south Florida -5 day shoot - June 29th-July 3rd, 2006 -Paid position - pay will reflect your level of experience -Camera is an Arri 35-III -AC is only needed for shoot dates, not for camera prep or gear return. -Be warned: DP is very demanding Chainsaw Ashley Dean Myles Producer Cage XXI Enterprises, Inc.

Ah fond memories... my own wedding was shot on S16mm Kodak Vision2 with an Arri SRII just a few short months ago. Of course, it's fitting since my husband and I got engaged in the telecine suite. Nothing like having your proposal on Kodak 7222 with a yellow/green filter :) It was hard for our 1st AC (who shot the wedding for us) to change mags quickly and not miss too much of the ceremony. Of course, we were using 400' loads and not 100' daylight loads. What time of day and how long will the ceremony be? The Vision2 stocks were very forgiving for our sunset ceremony and evening reception. By the middle of the reception we couldn't even pull a meter reading but somehow we still got an exposure (albeit at 6fps). I would definitely go for hand held, just as a personal preference as a bride. You'll be more manuverable and be able to come in close to the bride and groom. Trust me, those closeups are priceless to a bride. Happy shooting, Ashley Dean Myles Producer Cage XXI Enterprises, Inc.

A few months ago I was at a music showcase in Gainesville, Florida and these two guys come up to me at the bar. One of them opens with (drunkenly), " You're beautiful. I'm a documentary filmmaker working on a piece about some starving kids in Africa." and then launches into some daitribe about a feature he worked on (The Hawks are Dying) as a second assistant editor. I let him go on for a few minutes, highly amused. He even introduced his friend, an actor, as having starred in the aformentioned film. When he was done, I looked him square in the eye and said, "Pleased to meet you. I own a film production company." He promptly shut up and walked away, dejected. This was, of course, after he asked if he could send me his demo reel. Ashley Dean

Heh....John, I think you had my partner as a teacher. Small world. Ashley Dean Cage XXI Enterprises, Inc. www.cagexxi.com

Chainsaw and I recently hired a RIT graduate as our assistant. Sounds like a top notch program. You do get to shoot s16 there still, don't you? Ashley Dean

I'm currently looking for a good publicist for an upcoming feature film. Anyone know of one in the South Eastern U.S.? We're located in South Florida but are willing to hire from out of town. Thanks! Ashley Dean Cage XXI Enterprises, Inc. www.cagexxi.com

Sorry, shared computer. That was, of course, me. Just reset options so that won't happen again. Ashley dean

Ok, so two guys walk into our office last week with a finished script and complete financing for a feature film. It's a small but reasonable budget but they're going to take care of talent. They just want a production company to film and produce it for them. They've already spoken with distributors and and ready to go. Does this happen in the real world? Ever? Or is this just some wonderful fluke? We're currently working on budgeting everything out for them. Resumes are welcome :) Especially for grip/electric and art department. Talk about manna from heaven.... Ashley Dean Cage XXI Enterprises, Inc. www.cagexxi.com

OK, I finally got the links up. http://www.cagexxi.com/flattransfer.html Ashley Dean

Sure! I'll post them on Monday (they're at the office and I'm at home). I hope you have a large monitor, because they almost fill up our 30"... Ashley Dean

Ok! The uncorrected images are on my website now. Next week I'll upload the corrected stills and final cut as per the final edit handed to the client today. They loved it, thank goodness. http://www.cagexxi.com/flattransfer.html Ashley Dean

This just goes to show how much humanity has degraded. An indie production in our area just had all of their HD camera and equipment stolen from their location. This includes an entire days worth of footage. http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar...1/50914001/1075 If anyone can help them you can reach them from http://www.uncoveredproductions.com. I offered our s16mm camera and equipment, but they've been using HD. Ah well. Ashley Dean

I emailed tiff's to both of you from the un-corrected, 10-bit uncompressed anamorphic flat transfer. As to the DVCPro HD codec... we also had them send some test footage to us with that codec a while back. It's more than suitable and if you're going back out to D5 for broadcast, etc. that's the codec you would use. Bono Labs requires that new customers do a 'test drive'. They'll send you a portable drive with various examples of their transferred footage, both 10-bit uncompressed and DVCPro HD. Of course, you'll have to provide them with a credit card for a refundable deposit plus a few bucks for shipping and handling. By doing this you can compare the footage directly and find out if your editing system can handle it. Let me know if you've got any more questions :) Ashley Dean

Sure, Mike. What's your email address? Ashley Dean

It appears that they are too large to post. I'll email them to you instead. Ashley Dean

Jaan, here's a frame grab from the 10-bit uncompressed anamorphic flat transfer of our super 16mm footage. If you'd like to see more, I'll email them to you. I figured with the grey card you could al least see how much color correction is needed. Ashley Dean Cage XXI Enterprises, Inc.

Ooops. Sorry about that, but Chainsaw and I always post from my laptop and I sometimes forget who's logged in. Ashley Dean

We recently used them for a commercial project. Kodak 7245 and 7212 transferred direct to hard drive. Tim Bono is great to work with and very informative. Excellent service and so much better than BetaSP or Digibeta. Four main guidelines: 1) You must make absolutely sure your editing system can handle the 10-bit uncompressed footage. It will not play in realtime without a server array with a fiber channel card (like the Xserve RAID). We're running an Apple system with Dual 2.7 GHz and 8 GB of RAM and an Aja Kona2 card. You'll have to downcovert the footage otherwise. They also offer a DVCPro HD codec. 2) If you get the flat transfer, make sure you have a good color correction program and plenty of time to spare. From experience, I'd have them do a best light and match to a grey card. You get more information from the flat transfer, but it's a trade off. 3) Make sure you have plenty of time to complete your project. They do not rush their services and only conduct business through the mail and UPS/FedEx. 4) Read EVERYTHING on their website. It really answers every question and is highly informative. Take note of their policies and procedures. He's got a great history of HD on there, too. Best regards, Ashley Dean Cage XXI Enterprises, Inc. www.cagexxi.com

That's precisely what I mean, Grimmett. We only do 16mm and 35mm film productions, but yet keep attracting these low budget projects that the client wants on video and we turn them away because it's not what we do. I feel like a parrot trying to explain to perspective clients that we do not shoot video nor deal with budgets under $15k. We're located in SW Florida and even the ad agencies don't seem to comprehend the difference, hence my frustration. I understand that most productions shot in Florida originate out of state, and I'd like some veteran advice on how to market ourselves with this in mind. There aren't exactly a lot of people to ask for advice around here. . . Now it's dark... Ashley Dean Cage XXI Enterprises, Inc. www.cagexxi.com

Oops forgot to sign my post. Ashley Dean Producer/Director Cage XXI Enterprises, Inc. www.cagexxi.com

I'm really just venting here, but any input would be much appreciated. How does one gain a solid client base? I own a film-dedicated production company in Florida. We just shoot film, absolutely no video. Our production quality is high, we own our own equipment including a s16 camera, and the company is co-owned by a talented DP. Our film productions often cost less than most beta or video shoots in our market. For example, we just completed a series of 5 commercials for a client on s16mm for under $18k. Our camera is the only professional film camera in our region. However, we've recently been hearing about another local company (who sub-contracts everything out and is in fact owned by a former dolly grip) that has landed a huge contract for a series of 35mm commercials for a local real estate conglomerate. Here's the kicker, they called us about hiring a crew! We do not hire ourserlves out, except for my co-owner/DP on larger non-local jobs. However, they already have a DP (who is coming in from California and bringing equipment hired from there) and still continue to call us for advice. I feel that it is unfair to the client, as they will be paying well above and beyond what they should be. This really isn't a project they should be tackling, but such is life. Is there a tactful way to approach this? And does anyone have any advice about marketing a production company that is so specialized? We're really only limited in what we can do by budget (aren't we all?) as we have copious amounts of experience in green-screen work, black and white cinematography, color reversal, etc. etc. etc. There are so few people who do what we do, especially being film-dedicated. In fact, as far as we've been informed, we're the only film-dedicated production company in Florida. Cinematography is our highest priority and most of our local competition couldn't care less. We have been fortunate to have several clients who are concerned about how their commercials look and are eager to try new and high-concept projects. We do have a high-profile project/client coming up shortly, but it seems like the market is just so complacent and happy with their medicore products. I'm sure that some of you have stories about clients who could just care less about how their end product looks. It's really rather disheartening. Our clients are genuinely surprised when we show up with an 11+ person crew and all of our gear because they are so accustomed to a 1 person videography shoot. Another problem I've been encountering recently is the number of clients who assume that everything is shot on HD now! Some of them don't even realize that most movies and national commercials are still shot on 35mm. When they see the "Broadcast in HD" logo on their favorite network dramas, they assume that it was also shot in HD. The marketing departments of digital camera manufacturers have really been doing a stellar job. They've got the entire US population brainwashed to think that film is obsolete on all levels. It's a real thrill though when the client sees digital footage side-by-side with our film footage that's been transferred uncompressed 10-bit HD to a hard drive, though. Even the most inexpereinced client can still tell the difference. I'm really just looking for encouragement and some good advice about how to market ourselves better. We've pretty much tackled everything but a feature film at this point but I'd like to have a larger client base.

We actually cut three versions of "Martyr": a 30-second english, a 30-second spanish and the 60-second. "Faust" was also cut to both 30- and 60-seconds. So, five commercials were conceived, shot, transferred and aired by us within 15 days. No ad agency on these projects. Not bad for a $17k budget. I'll put the 30-second spots up later this evening. Thanks for the feedback Wendell. Ashley Dean

The only two working links are the"Martyr" and the "Faust" pieces. The others are not currently active as we are redoing our demo reels. Both were shot on an Arri SRII s16mm with Zeiss prime lenses. Shiny boards, mirrors and some gold boards.