Take one of my visual journalism heros, Zach Wise. When he started posting videos on his blog that had that little extra “something” in them, I wanted that in my pieces. Another cool kid at the time was Mediastorm. I’ll never forget watching RJD2 “1976″ on the Mediastorm website. It was jaw-dropping. That piece pushed me over the edge. I wanted some of that eye-candy in my pieces.

I was now ultra-sensitive to this kind of “presentation” and subsequently noticed more and more videos using motion graphics. More often than not, I would see something provocative and ask myself, “How did they do that?” After many hours Googling, everything pointed to After Effects. My journey of discovery was over, it was time to venture onto learning this program.

I’ve only been dabbling in AE for about 2 years. I’m nowhere near where I want to be, but I’m having a great time on the journey to mastery.

Despite the headline to this post, I’m not advocating you learn this program, just because I said so. Everyone gets excited about producing different stories on different levels, with different tools. BUT, if you are interested in exploring the power of AE and want to know how to get started and where to go first, then this post is for you.

Here’s how I’ve broken this post down. First I’ll give you the tongue-in-cheek reason why you should learn AE, then I’ll move onto inspiration, resources and tips.

WHY?

Ok maybe I’m like a cat with a new toy, swatting uncontrollably  in every direction, just becasue it’s there, but I think AE is the tool of the future for serious visual story tellers. Take that with a grain of salt, of course.

Many documentaries, and videos employ AE as a story telling tool. More and more of my freelance work is in the motion graphics sector. I’m seeing the economic value as well as an artistic value.

The somewhat tongue-in-cheek reason is because all the cool kids are doing it.  Just check out the screen shots below taken from the awesome blog http://www.innovativeinteractivity.com run by Tracy Boyer and her informative feature called  Innovative Individuals. This is what MANY of those cool kids interviewed by Tracy put on their to-do lists:

I rest my case.

Inspiration

Here are some of the many pieces that inspired me. Share your favs in the comments, please, I’m always looking for inspiration.

Demo reel of motiongraphic work for The New York Times. This demo reel is comprised of the following projects That use AE:

Choosing a President
nytimes.com/packages/html/politics/2008-election-overview/

War Without Borders
nytimes.com/packages/html/world/2009-mexican-cartel/index.html

Flipped: Inside the Private Equity Game
nytimes.com/packages/html/business/2009-private-equity/index.html

Toxic Waters: From Air to Water Waste
video.nytimes.com/video/2009/10/14/us/1247465176975/toxic-waters-from-air-to-water-waste.html

The Card Game: The Deal With Overdrafts
video.nytimes.com/video/2009/09/08/your-money/credit-and-debit-cards/1247464404191/the-card-game-the-deal-with-overdrafts.html

Resources

LYNDA.COM
I’ve been preaching the magical powers of Lynda.com for many many years. Nothing new here when it comes to AE. Worth every penny. (Disclaimer: In the near future I may have title on Lynda.com, stay tuned)

AETUTS
One of the best resources and sites for some amazing tutorials

Creative Cow
Another amazing site and not just for AE but FCP as well. Everytime I Google a question about motion graphics or a video problem I’m looking to solve, I always end up here.

Video Copilot

AEScripts
Something for the more advanced users of AE.

Tip

One of the best pieces of advice I received was to buy a professionally created AE template and study how a real pro puts the project together. I’ve learned tons by doing this. It was worth every penny I paid for the template just to see what was under the hood. I suggest you do the same. You can find some decent and somewhat inexpensive templates here:

Well, that’s all I’ve got for now. Please, if you have any tips or resources, please share in the comment section.

Anyway, if you know me, then you already know that my passion is to find inspiration EVERYWHERE. And yes even if it comes from “The Man.” Say what you like about the current crop of Mad Men and Women on Madison Ave. But I’m pretty inspired. I hope you find something here to help inspire you in your next creative endeavor. I know I have.

A story is a story no matter how you slice it.

I HUGE shout out to Ernesto Villalba for the assist on this post.

http://explore.levi.com/news/we-are-all-workers/

When the steel mills closed in Braddock, PA, they left behind a dwindling population living in near apocalyptic circumstances. Now, a new generation of urban pioneers has come with a mission- to create a new frontier from the ashes of the once vibrant town. Brought to you by Levi’s in partnership with IFC and Sundance Channel.

http://www.goforthnow.com/newamerican

Steve Berra (The Berrics) joins Mexican skaters Jesus Gonzalez, Eder Martinez, Mario Saenz, Angel Santiago and American Luis Tolentino for this Burn Ignite film, shot on location in Mexico City.

http://www.burn.com/en_GB/home/home.html

The Power of Dreams from Honda Watch the short films

Mutual of Omaha – proud sponsor of life’s aha moments
http://www.ahamoment.com/

Documentary – Stars Align in United’s ‘Heart’ Commercial

Nice post elsewhere:

Sustaining Big Projects through Small Gigs

A trend toward online documentary-style commercials might be a good source of supplemental income for filmmakers.

AND for a laugh:

I hope you enjoyed or smiled. If you know of a good or inspiring documercial, post a link in the comments.

I hope you enjoyed your time in the gallery. I hope to see you for the next openning. :)

-r*

There are five Mac laptops of various makes and models in our home, along with three iPods, two iPhones and one iPad, which makes it highly unlikely that you’ll believe my next statement.

I am not an Apple fanboy.
Also,
I’m pro-choice.

Let me explain.

I’ve always believed in the storyteller’s right to choose his or her own ‘paint brush’ to tell their story. Who wants a tube of titanium white shoved down their throat when what they really want to paint with is cadmium green.

Early in my photojournalism career I used Nikon gear, because it worked best for me. It fit my shooting style, despite everyone around me clamoring for a Leica M6. Years later when Canon made a better product I switched.

I mention all of the above because I am going to extol the virtues of the iPhone and I want you to know while I’m ‘on the bus’ I’d hop-off the second someone, anyone, offered me a better ride. I’m not trying to convince you to buy an iPhone. I expect you’ll find the tool that fits your lifestyle.

Remember it’s not about the tools or the technology, it’s about the story. I try to focus equally on both here at mms. My last post, was all about story.

As a profession we are in need of some serious attention to technology, especially in the mobile realm. Speaking for myself, I’m getting a strong feeling that to be truly successful as a journalist of the future everything I do must be viewed through the mobile lens. That said, let’s talk technology.

Internal conversation:

OMG isn’t the iPhone just the greatest device in the whole wide world?
Duh, yeah!

I’m as excited by the story consumption aspects of the iPhone as with its story creation ability. Today I’ll focus my attention on the story creation apps and gear I find most useful for story tellers and in a future post talk about the story consumption aspects.

Let’s get going. I’ve used all of the following apps and gear to create various stories for both personal use and professional outlets. I hope you find some of these as useful as I have. They get the mms seal of approval. Not that that means much! :)

POWER

Using the iPhone as a mobile journalism tool comes at the expense of battery life. These two products have saved me frustration in the the field.

juice pack air™   BUY

As the world’s thinnest rechargeable battery case, the mophie juice pack air™ is designed to
virtually double the time you have to Rock, Talk, Surf and Send with your iPhone 3G or 3GS.

The juice pack air™ is a rechargeable external battery concealed inside of a protective form-fitting case
for the iPhone 3G & iPhone 3GS. It offers you the full protection of a hard-shell case while providing
virtually twice the battery life of the iPhone alone; all in an ultra-thin, light-weight, low-profile design.

Whistler PI-400W 400 Watt Power Inverter BUY

This power inverter allows you to run AC appliances like  laptop or a phone charger  right from your car. It’s also great for emergencies and bringing the electric coffee maker on camping trips.

STABILITY

Nothing says amateur story teller  more than blurry images or shaky video. These are the tools I’ve found most useful for recording smooth video or creating panoramas with my iPhone.

Joby GM2 Gorillamobile Flexible Tripod BUY

Zacuto Z-ZG-IPJ Z-Grip iPhone Jr. Handgrip System BUY

Not only is this great for hand holding, but it has a tripod mount at the bottom of the grip and a mount on top to mount a mic adapter or external light.

What’s an OWLE? BUY

The OWLE Bubo is a camera mount that brings the best features of a camcorder to the iPhone 3GS: stability, optics, microphones and tripods! The OWLE Bubo is made of a solid piece of aluminum, making it virtually indestructible. The OWLE Bubo comes standard with 37mm lens threading, as well as a 0.45x wide angle/ macro lens combination. This is a real piece of optics, delivering stunning images with better color saturation, contrast and sharpness than is possible with the iPhone’s camera alone. The wide angle lens accepts 49mm screw in filters which are sold separately. The OWLE Bubo provides 4 x 1/4″-20 female threaded mounting holes (1 on top and bottom of each of the 2 hand grips), as well as having a cold shoe mount and recesses allowing access to important areas such as the 3.5mm jack and bottom port of your iPhone while the iPhone is docked within the Bubo. Unseating the iPhone from the OWLE Bubo is easy even for those the thickest fingers thanks to the ergonomic access port. Watch the videos below to learn more!

iPhone Adapter 3.5mm 4 conductor TRRS Male to 3.5mm Microphone Input Jack BUY

So you can do this!

Read More about the above set-up here.

ReelDirector

Description

BEST APP on APPLE’s Rewind 2009 List and also featured in Creative Editing Kit by Apple.

Full-blown video editing for iPhone and iPad.
Compatible with HD video on iPhone 4!

Note: iPhone 3G & iPod Touch can import video by copy paste.

Monle

Description

Monle works with all external microphones, both those that plug into the headphone/microphone jack and those that plug into the 30-pin data connector. iPhone users can also record with the iPhone’s internal microphone. Monle records WAVE files with sample rates from 8kHz to 44.1kHz, stereo or mono, in 16-bit. All file formats can be simultaneously mixed and edited together.

Most videos steadily lose viewers once “play” is clicked, with an average 10.39% of viewers clicking away after ten seconds and 53.56% leaving after one minute.

and a link to where I found this info. Tubemogul.com

Striking info none the less. I’m looking for more updated info, and will pass it on when I find it. I’m betting not much has changed.

[VIDEO: 35mins]

IPHONE/IPAD VERSION [VIDEO]

Here are the 9 ideas I think will improve your stories:

Note: You’ll have to watch to get more detail

1. Create a strong sense of place

2. Steal

3. Create some drama

4. Stop burying your lede

5. Be bold

6. What the hell?

7. Bait the hook

8. Add a dash of mystery

9. Keep them guessing

Links:

Manhattan (1979)

Photographer Lucas Oleniuk and columnist Jennifer Wells reflect on the Conrad Black trial.

Man on Wire

Apocalypse Now

This American Life on Showtime

LATimes.com Waiting for Death

NYTimes.com One in 8 Million

Wapo.com One Man, Two Worlds

ackermangruber.com/shortfilms/snowbirdsinquartzsite/

Life Unbarred

The Failure of Reform

Scarred by Abuse

Multimedia Immersion rap from News Photog on Vimeo.

In celebration of the kick off of the NPPA Multimedia Immersion workshop in Syracuse, N.Y., Evan Vucci and Matt Ford produced this silly music video about being multimedia journalists.

The video is a parody of Jay-Z’s On To The Next One.

Breaking News: Some Bullshit Happening Somewhere

And finally, Check it out yo…

Five Things
The Elements of a Short Story

This Flocabulary song teaches students the five elements in a short story (plot, character, conflict, theme, and setting). The song was comissioned by an after school program with the Chicago public schools.

California is a place is produced, directed, and shot by Drea Cooper & Zackary Canepari.

California is loaded. From Disneyland to farmland, we’ve got Scientology and superstars, Silicon and silicone, crips and bloods. The border. Krunkin’ Clownin’ Jerkin’. The surf and the turf. The boom and the bust. California is humanity run amuck and then packaged, branded and sold. California Cuisine, California Love, California Casual, California Gold, California Girls, and of course, California Dreams. If it exists in the world, it exists here and it does so with pizzaz.

Obviously, we love this stuff. That’s why we’re doing this project. Simply put, California is sensational. And the closer we look the better it gets: words and images, stories and songs, opinions and ideas. This project is ongoing. We hope you like what you see and say so. We plan to post often. So until that day, when we finally float off into the Pacific, California is a place. Stay tuned.

2. Prison Valley

4. Blue Velvet: re-deressing New Orleans in Katrina’s wake

It’s really hard to tell what this is, exactly.  There is some great design and programming going on here, lots of eye candy, it’s deep and takes time, but I enjoyed it.

5. The work of Adriano Morán

Madrid
adrianomoran.com

Periodista, videos.lainformacion.com

6. Finding the Frame

About Finding the Frame

Finding the Frame is a gathering spot where multimedia journalists can receive feedback on their videos, audio slideshows and multimedia projects from industry professionals and fellow visual journalists.

7. ZoneZero

ZoneZero ® is a site dedicated to image making & photography. Founded in 1994 by Pedro Meyer, ZoneZero ® has been both witness and active participant of the ongoing digital (r)evolution. ZoneZero ® first appeared online when the internet became a public resource, making it the oldest website dedicated to photography that is still standing and growing. We are proud to acknowledge that ZoneZero ® paved the way for thinking that viewing photography on a computer screen was a legitimate platform.

8. City of Memory

What is City of Memory?

City of Memory is an online community map of personal stories and memories organized on a physical geographical map of New York City.

9.  India in Motion

Exploring a distant land through sight and sound.

VIDEOS BY WHITNEY SHEFTE  |  DESIGN BY KAT DOWNS

10. KCET DEPARTURES

Departures is a meld of community, education, and professional multimedia experiences and voices

11. The work of Jim lo Scalzo

Twilight in New Orleans is especially meditative, dark, and creates a create sense of place.

12. LaInformacion.com Centelles El Cazador de Historias De La Guerra Civil

I love the clean and straight forward design. The videos are particularly well produced.

13. The [Un]Observed

Welcome to The [Un]Observed, a Radio Magazine of candid conversations and explorations, works in sound and produced pieces from around the world. We’re exploring the intimate, and sometimes surprising, moments of art, culture and life. We’re glad you’re here, please stay a while. Sign up and we’ll stay in touch.

Tania Ketenjian
Editor in Chief

Just pure audio goodness. Remember, it’s the foundation of ALL multimedia story telling, so soak it in.

I found this video very inspiring, what a great project!

Across the planet documentary filmmakers, students, and inspired citizens will record the human experience over a 24-hour period. By participating in this historic event you will help capture the diversity of experiences of life on this planet. Together we will create a document that is a gift to the world.

NPR: Intern Edition Remix

Intern Edition is a web-based radio and multimedia program from National Public Radio. Produced entirely by interns three times each year, IE serves as a storytelling lab for public radio’s next generation of contributors.

GREAT WORK AGAIN!!!!!! IMHO NPR is creating some of the best MM content across so many platforms it makes my head hurt. Keep it up.

Close to Home by Theo Rigby.

Close to Home follows the story of a father broken from the loss of his son, and a daughter waiting for the father that she once had. Through his passionate advocacy to find his son’s murderer, Luis Marquez has lost sight of his family. The Marquez family now suffers the absence of a father, along with the brutal loss of a son. Luis’ daughter, Norma, expounds on the fragile mind-state of her father, and their tenuous relationship, as she sets up an altar welcoming Brian’s spirit back into the house on the traditional Mexican holiday of the Day of the Dead. Close to Home employs a haunting score, combined with black and white imagery to frame this story of a father trying to find a way to continue with life, and become the father he has always wanted to be.

This all under the heading of:

Truly CA Podcasts: Shorts

Truly CA Shorts is KQED’s monthly podcast of short documentary films by California filmmakers. Serious to absurd, the truth is always stranger than fiction!

Unfinished business: Earth Day 40 years later

In celebration of Earth Day I bring you this little piece of inspiration.  This year marks the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, with events around the globe including a rally in Washington, D.C. The first Earth Day was organized by a small group of activists in Dupont Circle.
VIDEO: Megan Rossman – The Washington Post

Long March Home

Long March Home is a website that looks at veterans homelessness through articles, videos, and interactive graphics created by Charles Mostoller and Daniel Johnson-Kim, students at the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.

Multimedia Boot Camps

The Freedom Forum Diversity Institute will offer two Multimedia Boot Camps for Journalism Professionals and Educators in August, 2010.
Registration is available immediately and on a first-come, first-served basis for all classes scheduled in 2010.
The multimedia training is tailored for journalists but open to anyone with an interest in multimedia storytelling, regardless of the individual’s background. For an additional charge, successful participants can earn 3 college credits. The courses are accredited by the Media Studies Department of Belmont University, which awards the credits.
MULTIMEDIA CLASSES IN 2010:
•            Multimedia Boot Camp: Aug. 2-6, 2010
•            Multimedia Boot Camp: Aug. 11-15, 2010
•            Multimedia Boot Camp: Nov. 17-21, 2010

Obama’s Burden

Where were these hidding?! Come on you guys.  You gotta let me know about stuff like this. I just love these videos by Chris. Nice mood pieces.

Why should Canon get all the love? I thought this visual *poem* was a nice piece.

RICH ADDICKS:

Using the new Nikon D3s for the first time, I made this video of a friend who has taken on the craft/art of blacksmithing. I hope you enjoy watching it as much as I did shooting and editing it.

For a few thoughts on the process and using the D3s visit my blog richaddicks.wordpress.com/2010/03/18/mettle-on-metal/

THE FOLLOWING PIECES ARE JUST VISUAL PORN FOR YOUR ENJOYMENT

ShowCase: Create a slideshow in the palm of your hand.

Unite imagery and sound with ShowCase; our premier podcasting tool that combine’s still photography with audio. This simple to use smartphone software allows you to capture those newsworthy moments, pair them with narration or music for a compelling story, and share them instantly over WiFi or a cellular connection.

ShowCase slideshows can be created within 30 seconds and posted to podcasts, online newspapers, blogs and social media sites. The option of white labelling ShowCase is available for podcast hosting websites that require a fully customized product.

Whether for an online newspaper, or personal use, ShowCase offers a simple solution for capturing and sharing unforgettable and newsworthy events. ShowCase enables you to post automatically to podcast sites, RSS feeds, itunes, YouTube, or your own website(integrates with Podcast Producer or similar software).

IT’S AS SIMPLE AS 1.2.3.

1.RECORD VeriCorder microphones let you record highfidelity sound on your smartphone using the ShowCase recording software.
2.EDIT Combine multiple audio and image sources with the touch of a finger. Easily drag clips into the desired order, using our patent pending ‘Bungee Block ’ technology.
3.SEND Share your finished slideshow with the world in just seconds by secure FTP over WiFi or cellular network. Upload wirelessly to your PC or Mac or share files instantly with other iPhone or iPod Touch users. Enables you to post automatically to podcast sites, RSS feeds, itunes, YouTube, or your own website (integrates with Podcast Producer or similar software).

My quick and dirty video demo:

The end product:

My thoughts:

Overall this just rocks! I’m sure I’m still excited by the initial novelty that you can shoot/record and create an audio slide show on an iPhone, but I only see this getting more powerful and useful. It’s fairly crude and simple in its final product. But it’s the story that matters, right, not all the flash-bang stuff like the Ken Burn’s effect. PLEASE, DON’T EVER ADD THIS FEATURE, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! But some simple transitions like cross dissolve would be nice, oh and if it’s not to much to ask, how about the ability to add text or title cards. I have faith that this company will kick-ass with the development of this app. If you head over to their site, they’ve already cornered the market on multimedia mobile gear and apps. I expect a lot of future announcements from this company. This app gets five-stars in my book and worth every penny of the 7.99 price.

THE GOOD:

The multiple audio layers–notice the soundtrack under my voice in the above example– and the ability to create fades and control the volume is a nice and very useful feature. Very low learning curve. Very intuitive UI.

THE BAD:

Having to register for the manual seems bad, but actually makes sense, they say it’s to send email updates about the app. I buy that. I only mention it here because I was so impressed with this app I had to find something I didn’t like, otherwise it would look like I was just kissing the company’s ass. The truly bad thing is that the iPhone itself is so small, or my fingers are too chubby. Either way trying to produce on such a small form factor can be a bit frustrating. But once the iPad has a camera, then were talking.

View the destruction along a quarter-mile stretch of Boulevard Jean-Jacques Dessalines, one of the main commercial arteries in the heart of Port-au-Prince, Haiti.  By DAMIEN CAVE with photographs by MAGGIE STEBER for The New York Times.

I like this so much better than those panos that make me dizzy, looking up into the sky and down to the ground. All the extra *space* never has any good content for the most part.

Haiti has always been a land of beauty and pain, of light and darkness. When a catastrophic earthquake hit the island on Tuesday, January 12th, the world was shaken by the magnitude of the destruction and human suffering. In this story for VII The Magazine, photographers James Nachtwey, Ron Haviv, Lynsey Addario and Benjamin Lowy provide a heart-wrenching look at this disaster and its aftermath. Videos by Benjamin Lowy.
WARNING: CONTAINS GRAPHIC IMAGERY

NOTE: The web design on their site could use some help, it’s a little wonky and things don’t seem to be where you want the to be, eg, the play buttons and controls on top!? Bitchy I now, sorry. But it’s got what counts, some kick-ass stories/visuals.

Audio slide show: Triage at the airport

Doctors from the University of Miami’s Global Institute arrive in Haiti to assist at a makeshift hospital at the international airport in Port-au-Prince in the aftermath of the magnitude 7.0 earthquake.

Photography and audio by Rick Loomis Produced by Bryan Chan

The Economy of a Tent City

FRONTLINE and NPR Planet Money correspondent Adam Davidson team up to explore the new economies emerging from the rubble in Port-au-Prince.

Ten weeks after the earthquake, the temporary settlements where Haitians congregated have developed into rich, complex communities. Planet Money’s Adam Davidson visits Port-au-Prince’s largest tent city — spread out over what used to be an elite golf course — and finds a rich, complex economy with more small business competition than before the quake. (Produced by Travis Fox.)

This report is part of a special series on Haiti produced in partnership with NPR’s Planet Money. You can listen to a radio version of this story online at npr.org.

Choosing to Stay, Fighting to Rebuild

Produced by Lisa Iaboni, Todd Heisler and Patrick Witty

GDP

The National Film Board is at it again, damn they do great work! Another multimedia masterpiece.  Just go here and click on any of the projects  under the interactive menu tab.

As the country’s public producer, the National Film Board has been telling stories that reflect Canada back to Canadians for seven decades now. With GDP – Measuring the human side of the Canadian economic crisis (gdp.nfb.ca), we are launching the country’s first bilingual web documentary, a pan-Canadian project that bears witness to the far-reaching effects of the crisis in our lives and communities.

Memories of Sugar Hill

That Zach Wise is at it again. IMHO he’s one of the best multimediashooters in the country, nay, the world.

By ZACH WISE and DAVID GONZALEZ

In a time of discrimination and segregation, young people growing up in an area of Harlem known as Sugar Hill right before and after World War II found success and inspiration all around them. Explore the people who lived in Sugar Hill and hear the stories of those who grew up there. Read the related article »

The Refugee Syndrome

Six months in the making, The Refugee Syndrome is a 2010 Digital Media Master’s Thesis done by Lim Wui Liang and Nikolia Apostolou at Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. All material copyright Lim Wui Liang and Nikolia Apostolou unless otherwise stated.

Where Beauty Softens your Grief

“Other places you just look dead.” The multimedia of Gianni Cipriano.

Blue Whale by NatGeo

Just plain smart and fun interactive. Enjoy.

more soon!

-r

A Life Alone

Maisie is a graduate student in the School of Visual Communication at Ohio University. She is  currently living in New York City.

Check out her portfolio.

The Mystery of EVERYONE

You know I love a good mystery, well, I’m assuming the work of EVERYONE is the work of Daniel Mercadante. Who know? Who cares, all this work just blows me away. enjoy.

Moments from Everynone on Vimeo.

Parabolas (etc.) from Everynone on Vimeo.

Everyone Forever Now – “Stoop Sitting” from Everynone on Vimeo.

Everyone Forever Now – “Shooting a Gun” from Everynone on Vimeo.

Everyone Forever Now – “Tanning” from Everynone on Vimeo.

ROUTINES is a continuous series of short motions. It is an examination of the flow of pattern and repetition, in both shared common tasks and those that are a bit more personal. There is no planned ‘completion’ of this item as a whole, but varied ORDERS will be created by organizing sequences of individual parts.

From the MediaStorm Advanced Multimedia Workshops

Johnnie Footman, 90, may be the oldest cab driver in New York City. With a cigar hanging from his mouth, a plastic spider around his neck, and a cap that reads “Old Dude made of Achey Breaky Parts,” Johnnie still manages to make it to the shop five days a week.

Associated Press Interactive: Depth of Field

AP Photographer David Guttenfelder captures Afghanistan’s largest-scale military operation since 2001 using a unique lens – his iPhone camera coupled with a Polaroid film filter app.

Burberry: That art of the Trench

Ok, so it’s not exactly journalism or *storytelling* for that matter, but I find the navigation and presentation inspiring.

The Global Fund: Access to Life/Magnum Photos

Eight Magnum Photographers portray thirty people in nine countries during antiretroviral treatment for AIDS.

NPR: A Locksmith’s Tale And Other Health Care Stories

As the debate over health care overhaul goes on and on and on and on, we thought we’d slip off and visit some people who have strong opinions about insurance. Nobody’s elected them, nobody’s paying them to influence anybody. They’re just folks with their own notions. And, in some cases, rather odd notions.

Lemonde.fr Le corps incarcere

I don’t understand French, it looks and sounds great. I love the unique navigation.

Bedrooms of the Fallen by Ashley Gilbertson

These bedrooms once belonged to men and women who died fighting in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. These fallen men and women were blown up by IEDs, RPGs, hand grenades and suicide bombers. They were shot down in ambushes and by snipers. They died in helicopters, in humvees, and in tanks. It all took place thousands of miles away from home, and the country they fought to defend

The video work of Sean Dunne

The Archive is awesome, I highlighted it before on MMS, but I’ve also enjoyed Sean’s two more recent video portraits. Simple, straight forward storytelling.

The National presents Life in the UAE observed

FREEP: Carrier of the Economy

Through the eyes of a postal carrier, economic downturns can be measured through the types of mail that people receive: bank notices, lawyer advertisements, certified letters and the list goes on.

Kingsmead Eyes

Kingsmead Eyes is the result of a unique collaboration between photographer Gideon Mendel and 28 pupils from Kingsmead School in 
Hackney. The children documented their world over six months, photographing their friends, families, community and school to create an accomplished and vibrant body of work. At the same time, Mendel, working in parallel to the children made portraits of every child in the school as well as also documenting the life of the area.

Black Passport

A trailer to promote Stanley Greene’s new photo book: Black Passport. Black Passport is a visual biography. Compiled by Teun van der Heijden

A Mexican Toy Story by Alba Mora

What does a 65-year-old man do when he has one million toys in his personal collection? Mexican architect Roberto Shimizu opened an underground museum at his home in Mexico City.

Going West

A stunning an just plain fun animation. Film for NZ Book Council Produced by Colenso BBDO Animated by Andersen M Studio .

Stay tuned, there’s always more to come.

Bombay Flying Club

Another player is Duckrabbit. They, him, her, have always been a bit of a mystery to me. You can tell I’m not much of a sleuth, becauseI bet all the info I need is in their about section, just call me lazy, or just in need of a mystery to stay a mystery. you know what they say about meeting your idols. Anyway. I’ll never forget the first link I was sent to check out by duckrabbit, it was called:

CHUCKING OUT

a portrait of late night British drinking culture

for some reason this piece didn’t resonate with me. Now that I look back, there are some wonderful images and moments here. But I digress, because their recent project is fantastic and their twitter feed is worth following. They retain an edgy, almost crude but always passionate vision. See for yourself:

Duckrabbit presents:

Condition Critical

Finally, both have blogs worth checking out every now and then as well:

Bombay Flying Club blog

Duckrabbit blog

HIGHRISE, a multi-year, multi-media, collaborative documentary project about the human experience in global vertical suburbs. We will use the acclaimed interventionist and participatory approaches of the award-winning National Film Board of Canada’s Filmmaker-in-Residence (FIR) project. Our scale will be global, but rooted firmly in the FIR philosophy — putting people, process, creativity, collaboration, and innovation first.

2. Alabama’s Homeboys

LATimes Video Journalist Katy Newton delivers an beautifully produced and inspiring video about Homeboy Industries, a gang intervention organization.

3.William and the Windmill

His name is William Kamkwamba, and his story is nothing short of remarkable. Using scraps from a local junkyard in Malawi, he created something that harnessed the wind – and changed his life. By Lucas Oleniuk and Randy Risling.

4.Bangladesh is Drowning

160 million people live in Bangladesh. Extreme poverty and cheap labour have made the country one of the world’s major clothes producers. The large population means that Bangladesh can compete with countries such as China, India and Sri Lanka. But overpopulation also means that the country is extremely vulnerable when natural catastrophes hit. A seven part series by JONATHAN BJERG MØLLER

5.Journey To Zero

Beautiful design and elegant interface.

6.Adult Care

John Clanton, of the The Oklahoman delivers a thoughtful, straight-forward and touching set of audio slide shows.

7. I’m Alive by Megan Lange

8. Wait For Me

“Wait For Me” is the story of a mother’s spiritual and emotional search for her son—a ceaseless emotional trek, propelled by an unconditional love and an unwavering belief that he may still be alive.

9.PostSecret: Confessions on Life, Death and God

You may find the brave voices captured in this short film haunting, shocking and humorous. In some of their faces you’ll see joy, anguish and grace as they trust you with their confession. Don’t miss a Behind-The-Scenes Blog Post

1. Sports Illustrated – Tablet Demo 1.5

2.World Series Time-Lapse

By the time the Yankees rushed the field to celebrate their 27th World Series victory, Robert Caplin had photographed the action — 12,000 times. The result is a romantic and captivating time-lapse presentation.

3.The Annenberg Space for Photography: SPORT: Iooss & Leifer: thru March 7, 2010

Two of the world’s pre-eminent sports photographers, Walter Iooss and Neil Leifer, come together for their first ever two-man exhibit at the Annenberg Space for Photography in Los Angeles. Spanning the careers of both men, the exhibit features over 80 photographic prints, including the iconic images of Muhammad Ali’s victory over Sonny Liston, and Michael Jordan in full glory. SPORT: Iooss & Leifer will take you on a journey through some of the most memorable and inspiring moments in sports history. These images shine a light on the tremendous power, grace and strength it takes to be a top athlete, and showcase celebrated personalities from the sports world.

Okay, so it’s not multimedia, but looks like a great exhibit, if you’re in the LA area.

4.Keeneland blossoms into spring meet by David Stephenson

Before the sun is up, horses are on the track. Riders in thick jackets and leather chaps ease them up the stretch and gallop them back down, around the turn. Hooves pound. Puffs of steam pour from big nostrils. The grandstand casts a giant shadow, holding winter’s last chill.

This video was shot with the Canon 5D Mark II on a beautiful morning before the Keeneland Race Track 2009 spring meet was to open in Lexington. I used the 24-105 f/4 IS and the 70-200 f/2.8 with the TCEII teleconverter. All shot with a Gitzo tripod and 2180 fluid head – with one exception: there is a brief shot where I used a Glidecam 2000 steady cam. First time I’d used it – need to practice!!

David has two other sports related videos on his Vimeo page, The General and Youth Boxer, both worth watching.

5.The Fighter’s Mind by Craig Dilger

I can’t remember how I can across this, but I’m glad I did. Some really fantastic images, probing questions, nice production.

6. Arizona Daily Star: Cat Cards 2009

The design and the intuitive UI are what really caught my attention. And I loved the player signature effect. Well done.

7. Surfing Generations by Audrey Hill

A lot has changed during the twenty-year history of surfing on San Cristóbal. But a couple things remain the same – a passion for waves and undying love for the Galápagos.

8. USA Today Frame-by-Frame

Okay, I lied. I actually love tennis, so, non sports fan was a bit much. I loved this USA Today approach. The annimated sections of the video were very informative.

9. Six Man Football. Video by Jay Janner

The schools are tiny. The game is huge.

The small Texas towns of Gordon and Strawn, midway between Fort Worth and Abilene, are only eight miles apart. Their schools are so tiny they play six-man football because they don’t have enough boys to field regular 11-man teams. The townsfolk are crazy about football.  For decades the two teams have played each other in one of the greatest rivalries in Texas sports.

This was one of my favorite assignments of the year. It was so much fun to see all of the dedication and effort these boys put into the preparation for the annual Gordon-Strawn game. The action and emotions on game day were a photographer’s dream. It was Texas high school football at its purest.

10. Cardinal Culture

The Cardinals are threaded through St. Louisans’ lives like the red stitching on a horsehide ball. From young to old. Fans working or relaxing. In tuxedos and T-shirts. On the most important day of their life or any lazy Saturday afternoon. On Saturday, June, 27, 2009, the Post-Dispatch set out to chronicle the local community’s support for the St. Louis Cardinals. This is Cardinal Culture.

This is epic! I really love how this is framed around the game. All the stories are great! Whoever thought of this cinematic “framing” of the story, very Robert Altman of you,  genius.

enjoy,

-koci

ReminderFox

This is a sort of date planner extension.  Journalists have meetings and important deadlines all the time.  This extension helps any journalist to keep track of all deadlines and obligations so that their minds remain free to handle the journalism and not the minutiae of day to day life.

ScrapBook

This Firefox extension allows a user to collect snippets from various websites and to piece them together in such a way that each is appropriately catalogued and accessible.  One of its noteworthy features is that it supports multiple languages so that no journalist need be restricted to information in a single language.

Dictionary ToolTip

This extension is that always essential portable dictionary.  The exact definitions of words are crucial for serious journalists and this Firefox extension allows any such journalist to have precise meanings at his or her fingertips, or tooltip in this case.  This is an easy way to double check work and to improve vocabulary.

NowPublic

This Firefox extension was made for those with journalistic interests.  It serves as a means of noting any news items that has been found on the internet.  It allows for global communication and gives a way to tie these noted events into blog posts.  It also allows for images to be added from an expansive collection of stock photos.

Image ToolBar

This Firefox extension is for journalists who do not wish to be restricted exclusively to text.  This Image ToolBar allows anyone to save, copy, or edit images with ease.  The inclusion of images is an integral part of journalism these days even before mention is made of photojournalism as a distinct form of journalistic expression.  This extension allows for the manipulation and placement of images on websites or in articles.

Text Area Word Counter

For any journalist who has to keep an eye on word count, this is the perfect tool.  Every writer must stay within an allotted amount of words whether they must adhere to an upper limit, a lower limit, or both.  This counter just helps a writer to keep track.

Split Browser

This Firefox extension allows for the easy viewing of multiple web pages.  Comparing different articles on the same topic or simultaneously researching multiple topics is made simpler with this tool.  Or it can be used to alternate between reading the news and planning out a personal calendar of events.

These 7 free Firefox extensions for journalists help to make life as a journalist easier.  The management of deadlines, information, and images are all part of journalistic life and these Firefox extensions can assist with these tasks.  Take advantage of these extensions the next time you have an assignment.

Mary Ward writes about how get a degree in journalism

Beautiful interface, panos and strong storytelling.

2.Salt

SALT is the story of award winning and internationally renowned photo-artist, Murray Fredericks on his annual solo pilgrimage to the heart of Lake Eyre in the remote north corner of South Australia. It is a piece on the personal journey of the artist, the creative process and the landscape itself.

3.NPR In Other Words

Welcome to i.e., home of the creative musings and journalistic explorations of the forty-odd interns at National Public Radio. “In other words” means you can expect a few things. Fresh content — or experiments in things unexpected. Unique perspective — reporters early in their careers. And thanks to the internet, original delivery — mixed mediums and then some.

4.Jericos

5.VOLUPTAS

6. My Name is Dechen

A haunting meditative piece, you won’t soon forget.

7.Tracking Smugglers

Border agents in New Mexico rely on tracking skills borrowed from Native Americans to intercept drug smugglers who cross the border on foot. It’s a 75-mile walk to a drop point on Interstate 10. Photography and audio by Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times

8.American Poverty

TO USE VISUAL MEDIA TO RAISE AWARENESS ABOUT POVERTY IN THE UNITED STATES,  DISPEL INACCURATE AND DESTRUCTIVE STEREOTYPES ABOUT POOR PEOPLE AND ENCOURAGE ACTION ON THEIR BEHALF.

Which shotgun should I buy?

A good quality shotgun mic will zero in and “reach” a few feet directly in front of the mic while at the same time rejecting sound from the sides. This is great for picking out just the sounds you want and is the most desirable and common microphone for DV filmmakers. A question we hear from most new camcorder owners is, “Which shotgun mic should I buy?” This usually happens after they shot some awesome footage, but later found that they can’t quite make out the intriguing dialogue from what was a light breeze but somehow now burgeons whips, rumbles and howls like a tornado.

Ten Tips for Working With Music in Multimedia from MediaStorm

Music is an all too frequently overlooked facet of multimedia production. In this ongoing series of tutorials to improve your multimedia, I’ll explain 10 techniques that the MediaStorm team utilizes when working with music.First, though, a few definitions commonly used to describe musical attributes.

enjoy,

koci