10 Pro Video Reads for October 23, 2012

  • Chris PotterChris Potter
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Here are some of the most interesting articles I've read over the last week on film & video production and post-production. I usually do these posts on weekends, but this week I thought that I'd mix things up a bit.

  • Hollywood Accounting: How A $19 Million Movie Makes $150 Million... And Still Isn't Profitable. I'm not sure why this criminal accounting can persist in Hollywood when so many companies like Enron, Nortel, and Worldcom that practiced "creative accounting" have been vaporized. Here's hoping for change and new business models.

  • Photoshop for 4K Video? It's Coming and It Will Blow Your Mind. Not that the world really needs more airbrushed models, but the tech behind this is pretty amazing. If it works as advertised, this will have plenty of practical applications. It could make a good acquisition target for an NLE vendor that wants to round out its suite.

  • B2B Video Marketing Best Practices and Tips from Cisco. I like the categorization of the types of videos by stage of the sales process. This one could come in handy when working with clients on setting objectives for their videos. I also like the stats that highlight the importance of B2B video, "96 percent of IT decision makers and tech buyers watch videos for business. Even more impressive are high share-through rates: a whopping 84 percent either forward, share, or post tech-related videos".

  • GoPro Hero 3 - Changing the Publics Relationship With Cameras. The new GoPro cameras were released last week. There have been tons of posts about the specs. This post is different in that it highlights how GoPro is pushing experience over just the raw specs. It's cameras are fun to use, have limited but useful settings, and are cheap enough to be used in different ways. Bottom line it frees people to enjoy the moment and capture it in ways we wouldn't have dreamed about a couple of years ago. For bonus points, Scott Simmons expresses a similar viewpoint.

  • A Complete Guide to Turning Your Garage into a Video Studio for Under $500. Instead of building that man cave or filling your garage up with cars, why don't you take a page out of this guy's book. Lots of ideas in here about how to get more done with less.

  • A New Season for the SNL Film Unit with Adobe CS6. An interesting account of how editor Adam Epstein manages insane deadlines of the iconic show and how he managed the switch from Final Cut. Looks like Dynamic Link between After Effects and Premiere Pro was the key. Best quote: the challenge is finding the balance between "producing the best stuff possible with the understanding that there's basically a gun to your head. That can be a huge challenge but also an amazing, addictive rush."

  • Behind the scenes of Looper. This one has an interesting look at the new VFX business model that Atomic Fiction used on the job. Particularly interesting to me is their heavy use of Amazon for rendering effects and their ability to get studios to embrace their low-cost and nible business model.

  • The Sound of Argo. This post from SoundWorks Collection has a great overview of how the sound supervisor and sound designer of Ben Affleck's ARGO realistically captured the raw sounds of the times during a covert operation to ex-filtrate six US Embassy workers from Iran right after the revolution in 1979.

  • Jordan Goldman on Editing Homeland. A good overview of his editorial techniques and the creative strategies that were used to keep viewers guessing in the first season. I find it amazing that great television like this manages to keep the tension running through an entire season. Great stories and great editing.

  • Do You Have Spec Obsessive Disorder? I like this post because it's a good reminder that technology is an enabler, but shouldn't define what you do. The key point here is to define yourself by your ability to tell a story and not by the tools you use. Some of the gadget time may be better spent building your personal brand through social media.

  • 46 Tutorials to Learn Final Cut Pro X. If you are making the switch to Final Cut Pro X, this series of free tutorials could come in handy.

P.S. - We published a post that details 6 reasons Apple could abandon the pro-video market.