Licence to view Bond

Hi Mediadreamerz

OMG! I looked at when my last post was and saw it was back in May, how the time has flown by. Yes I have been hibernating or rather waiting and waiting for my next event or Media activity to come along. I would have shared an event back in August whee I would have met an executive Producer who works on animation shows, such as Dangermouse (work hindered me going). Nothing has hindered me for the events of last night. I will start by saying it is SO good to be back at a place where beautiful people create beautiful things. I am gonna be honest and say that I have lost track of the number of times I have been to my favourite place- Pinewood Studios. When I was driving to my accommodation I noticed across from the main site that Pinewood has extended its facilities across the road- I especially saw a Sir Roger Moore East stage has been built; really hope I can set foot in there in the future.

My reasons for heading down to the bottom of Buckinghamshire were to attend a charity screening night of On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. This is in aid of UNICEF, and it was a brilliant night. Only annoying thing is when fun things happen they end so fast that you don’t have enough time to take it all in.

Well I made it to Pinewood in plenty of time and its a good thing I did, security checks and all that, but I got through. Once at the John Barry Theatre- a place I have never been into when I have been on set but at least I have been inside now. Lots of people were there to support the nights funding raising and to see an all time classic. I was even more surprised to see some of my friends there that I didn’t know were gonna be there, so a really great chance for us to catch up.

We were all give the green light to go in the cinema where the Q The Music Bond Tribute Band were playing some of the great Bond songs. The cinema was a huge and spacious room and it really puts our typical cinemas to shame. Before the screening of the film started there was a Q&A with the special guest attending-Dickie Bamber, Peter Lamont, Terry Bamber, Terry Mountain (played a character called Raphael), Slyvana Henriques (the girl who ate Bananas at the dinner table scene) and Michael Redding. The Q&A was really interesting hearing about the experiences of crew and actors and all the funny stories from there time working on OHMSS. The Q&A was followed by an auction of James Bond merchandise ranging from t-shirts and hoodies to records and signed poster boards. It was immensely exciting when a bidding war erupted between a man and woman in the audience. I thought that that this was gonna turn into an event that was gonna last all night, but didn’t.

 

 

 

 

After sitting for nearly three hours there was a 10 minute break before the time started and I used that time to mingle and hobnob with the special guest. One of my James Bond Facebook friends had bought a programme so I asked if he was going to get his programme autographed. He said no because he didn’t think they would sign it, so I offered to try on his behalf and was given an o.k you can try. So I went round the room and managed to get several signatures and I got chatting to Terry M who was a really nice guy to talk to and asked me about myself even got a photo with Terry Mountain.

 

 

The film started and at the sound in the cinema was incredible crisp and clear. Many people have said and probably will continue to say that OHMMS is the Best Bond film and that George Lazenby was the Best Bond followed by Sean Connery. The time went by really fast and it was time to vacate the cinema and head off the production company site. I managed to say bye to lots of people and before I went the person who organised the whole event said that there is another Bond event in the New Year that I should come to and that it would be an all night glitz and glamour night, so I am hoping to attend that too. Would be something to look forward to come the New Year.

I am not sure what my next event will be before the 2019 event but I look forward to sharing with you all, I think I maybe hibernating for a bit at a guess well as I said earlier until my next event.

 

Nunquam Deditioneum

Ready, set get Bond In Motion

Hey Mediadreamzers

 

It’s been awhile since I wrote a post, granted it isn’t media production related but it is media related. Have had a few days going round London seeing sights and shows, but the most fun and important was going to the London Film Museum, to see the ‘Bond in Motion’ exhibition. I had been meaning to go for ages and finally managed to find time to go and during a week where the temperature was in the 30’s, so my mission, which I accepted for Queen and Country in the spirit of British duty, and because I wanted to go. My driver’s licence was at the ready, just a shame that I couldn’t drive any of the cars, though if I was to pick one I would find it really difficult as they are all so cool and have there own signature mark from each featuring in their own film.

 

There were two floors to the exhibition; upstairs there were sketches and some of the props from the films, and of course on the lower level all the cars and devices used/ featured in the film. There were also cabinet displays of a mixture of things in, clapper board, passports etc. Next to the cars were TV screens playing snippets from the films & info screens with ‘did you know’ facts, and it got a lot more interesting.

There was a photo booth where you could be 007; wearing a tuxedo top and bow tie standing in the background frame of a barrel of a gun making the Bond pose. In answer to any question here yes I had some fun and had a few shots taken, just for a laugh. At the end of the exhibition you could sit in the cafe before going to the gift shop and of course it would be rude not to leave without getting something, so of course I got what everyone usually gets when they say ‘been there, done that’; a t-shirt. Something else to add to my Bond collection. I suggest if you haven’t been go it is a brilliant exhibition to go to and if your passing through Borough market then go for it.

Have a few events coming up this month but the most important one is at the end of the month and it is at my second-home; Pinewood, so keep your eyes on my blog and you will see something in about three from today. Also I had fun taking a selfie shot on the London Tour bus.

 

Nunquam Deditionem

Gallery Shadow

Hey Mediadreamzers

Feels like I have been away for an eternity, have missed having something media related to share. Now the wait is over as Friday I did something fun; Friday was spent in the production gallery with an Assistant Producer, Director, Graphics guy, Screen Controller, EVS guy and finally Sound. I will be honest being an AP in a gallery with LIVE broadcasting makes you feel like an Octopus; need lots of hands to be doing so many things all at once and trying to get everything so precise I guess takes practice. And that is where my work shadowing started at the front desk and working my way to the back of the room and then into the Sound room.

The role for an AP from what I have seen so far is looking at bulletin schedules, filling in sheets about music and medias used in broadcasting that has copyright clearance, calculating the times for programs to start, end, subtracting advert showing times, cuing when each media piece is gonna be shown and counting down from beginning to end. I also got to see and use the control panel and there were more buttons there than on a spaceship would have. This is why they have three stopwatches in order to work this out and to also workout airtime to avoid over running. There is so much more that I saw but there is a lot more to see so this is one area in the gallery that interests me to see more about.

Graphics was using a specific program to get the shots of the afternoons broadcasting which is a mixture of being simple but hard with the process of creating them, but was fun all the same. This combined with the seeing how they are found and added to the TV screens during broadcasting was clever, fast and in a way pretty easy.

Eventually I was at the back of the room with the EVS guy and as a second place job that looks hard this has to be it. As this roles you have two computers screens to find media footage, two box controls for selecting and broadcasting clips, four screens showing a prev and a current broadcasting on what is happening live. The key thing in this role is to have very good hears when the AP or Director shouts out what clip or piece they want to show next. I have been told that there is a user manual you can download for this, so I will have a lot of reading to do there.

Finally, the Sound room, which in itself is like a private box at Ascot; spacious, private and quiet too. Again looks simple but when your in the seat you wonder which fader is set to control what if not marked, taking calls ready for phone in interview and making sure that sound doesn’t peak 7 decibels. Day end really fast and the AP and Direcotr of the day said that I am welcome back anytime, just come through to the gallery and take it from there. So definitely gonna go back but will of course give an advanced heads up.

Next media posting will be that of the Summer Film Fringe Fest.

Nunquam Deditioneum

Christmas Cheering Round One

Hey Mediadreamzers

Festive season is soon to be upon us, of course and one thing, rather strike that two things that have shocked me so far, one is that I got my Christmas shopping done by the end of November, normally I get it done on second or third week. The second is that I have been invited to three media Christmas parties and my first one was last night in where other than the capital.

So after playing dress up and trying to make myself look pretty, heading to the station and getting to the Capital, specifically Farringdon to Dado54. I am surprised I found it without getting lost and once in it was free champagne and photo shoot A-list style. It was nice to meet one of my media producer contacts face to face; Jonathan. Soon more guests arrived and I admit it was not just people that work in media; lawyers, people who work with politicians, photographers, event organisers and lots more. One thing that gets me down is time is on overdrive when I am in the Capital or at a party and in my guess it was double the speed being in Capital.

I eventually drag my ass back home after midnight and all I can say is what an ace party definitely a 10/10, I just hope that my next party on the 15th is gonna be as awesome as this one. Back to the Capital again today to take Christmas treats to my other media friends and I don’t know how I did it but I got there without any of the stuff getting crushed or destroyed on the train. miracles do exist.

Next to come- Curry Nite.

In the chair- Peter Nicholson

Hey Mediadreamzers

I still cannot believe that it was a weeks ago that I was attending a James Bond dinner and then walking down the red carpet for the premiere of Spectre. Lots of people were bombarding me with comments and all my photos from the nights events. One thing that made me smile was a day or two after the premiere I went to pick something up for the house and got chatting to the guy in the office and after telling him about Spectre, he told me that a member of his family was a set dresser on 6 James Bond films, one of which was ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service’. Basically, Pinewood Studios was like a second home to him, like it is to me. It was a shame to hear that he passed away 8 years ago, would have been nice to meet him as I’m guessing this guy’s life would have been interesting to hear about.

Tonight, with being off this week, I decided to attend my first Media networking event since I moved house, and it was a Q&A session with Peter Nicholson. Question; who is he, answer; he is a director who has credited programs and films such as Casualty, Pompeii: The Last Day, The Queen which was a program on Channel 4, and more recently ‘Kiss’ and ‘Dartmoor Killing’.
The session was really interesting, learning why Peter became a director, how he got into the industry, what films and people inspire him, all that jazz. I was also surprised to see someone I had worked on an indie film last year; Ciall Kennett and how he had been out of the UK for months working in Malta as a AD. Now he is back and has moved back to Milton Keynes, so we got to have a catch up. I enjoyed watching the clips that Peter showed us, one of which was from a doc-drama that I saw back in 2006 at the Nuremberg trials, specifically Goering and how he cheated the gallows. The best was saved for last seeing the trailer to Dartmoor Killing and an upcoming thriller called Swilly Girl, and the trailer got me and other people guessing what the plot was going to be.

Before I left I got to speak to Peter, where we exchanged business cards so I am hoping that if there are future projects in the pipeline and he is looking for crew, even if its for a few days I would so love to get involved, especially in a thriller as that genre is one of my favourites, you can’t beat the classic horror- My favourite is the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. What is next on the cards I do not know but I am constantly plugging away and I am so psyched that in the New Year I get to do more and work in the different departments at the Media company I work at. Hoping to move forward at some point next year, but first lets get Christmas out of the way.

 

Nunquam Deditioneum

I’ve been expected you Miss Smith, for Dinner

Hi Mediadreamzers

As promised I said I would tell you about my very exciting and wonderful news. My day wasn’t anything special, but the evening was worth the wait. Having gotten changed, it was a case of driving to the place I call my second home, well maybe an extension of that is the Pinewood Hotel.

 

 

 

Why? Answer to attend a dinner and music event in honor of the Bond franchise. The event was called Q the Music, a night listening to and appreciating the music composed and played for the James Bond films. Although I had to work in the morning, the event definitely got me through my shift, and I admit I nearly missed the dinner because of being stuck at three congestion points on the M1, 2 breakdowns and an accident, but I didn’t give up and I made it. Once I got in I was greeted by a group of other James Bond enthusiasts have the privilege of trying meals that have featured in the Bond films; it was a three course dinner. For me stater was Salmon, Watercress and creme Fraiche from Tomorrow Never Dies, Main Chicken Supreme, potato rosti and red wine jus from Casino Royale and Desert Chocolate Torte with Hazelnut cream (normally I don’t eat sweets, but it was amazing). It was great catching up with people I have met before and those I have worked with as it has been ages. One thing I also did that I have never done before was try a cigar and my initial thoughts were that it was not bad. Once dinner was over the room was transformed into a venue for enjoying the Q the Music team; there were two singers and I have to say that some of the theme songs they song were way better than what some of the artists have produced over the years (not wanting to name names but you can probably guess). In between the music there was Terry Bamber’s stand up comedy and commentary on the facts about the various Bond films, songs and his and his dad’s experience in the film industry. Both witty and interesting. I couldn’t believe how quickly the night had come to an end, and I had the honor of meeting so many great people and catching up with others I had met and have known for a longtime. It was so good that I got back at 2.15am and was still wide awake from all the excitement.

 

The night was one I will not be forgetting in a hurry and it is also a pre treat for me considering I will be where most of the world’s media will be tomorrow night, the capital for a mind-blowing event. I hope you have all guessed correctly. You will see anyway, especially me all dressed for the nights fun.

Here is my score for the whole night

 

Nunquam Deditioneum

Productive with Pinewood & PROCAM

Hi Mediadreamzers

I now sit and write about the past couple of weeks, much of which has been filled with great excitement. The first is an event I had the privilege of attending at Pinewood Studios; a friend of mine put on a one man comedy show at Pinewood Studios last Friday and I and about 150 other people were blown away by the humour. I now make this my 6th visit to Pinewood and as I keep saying it is like my 2nd home, it is always nice to head down to the greatest place in the world. Once there I was directed to the John Barry Theatre and as soon as I entered I was greeting by an enormous room and suddenly one of my Facebook friends saw me and called me over, and it was great catching up with other people I know in the industry. The show was amazing, which was mirrored by the fact that it was a sell out! It was so funny that my cheeks were hurting at the end of the hour and half and my sides ached from pain of laughter. There was a scene that was re-enacted by my friend Terry and a SFX guy I know called Alex involved trick wire, a pair of glasses and a fake treadmill, and the was funny, especially the reaction from the other people in the gym. Soon the time went by and it was time for us to leave John Barry’s theatre, not before  One thing that did knock me for 6 was some of the people that attended came up to me after the show and said ‘Hi’ something I did not expect, but it made my day, or in this case evening. The rest of the night and the early hours of Saturday morning was spent at a restaurant called ‘Palm Suite’, not only was the food great (if your ever down at Pinewood go for the Piri Piri Chicken, it does not disappoint), but the company was bloody marvellous, especially when a friend I met and know on Facebook bought his dog in just as the restaurant were closing and there were all a handful of us left; Shelby, a very affectionate dog and very photogenic/ affectionate dog. Eventually it was time to leave as the owners of the suite needed to go home. Great event, wonderful night, brilliant people.

Following the event, I then packed my case again to travel to Manchester for 2 days working shadowing with a company that hires  camera and sound equipment. I traveled up the day before ready for the 2 days arranged, and after a 45mins walk I found the location, and after meeting the crew in the warehouse on the Tuesday I spent the 1st part of the day working with a guy called Jake who showed me how to set up a camera that is commonly used in the industry, checking equipment back in from production companies that were returning equipment from shoots. I was then rotated to another area of the warehouse with a guy called Rich. I learnt a lot from Rich and I learnt that there are no stupid questions as I had so many about camera, sound, their system checking in and out, usage of equipment and anything else that sprung to mind. First day a lot was covered and the first ended quickly, then 2nd day was just was fast and I surprised remembered a majority of what I had been taught and I was trusted enough to set up lighting panels for testing and how to check and set up a monitor. Sadly I had to leave to catch my train and during the 2hr 30mins train journey, I reflected on everything I had learned and hoping that everything I have learned helps me progress further forward and hoping to put what I have learned to good use. Maybe my next opportunity will let me show of my training and experience.

 

Nunquam Deditioneum

Cosmopolitan Carnival Creativity

Hi Mediadreamz readers

What a day I have had, luckily not stuck on a checkout but something much more interesting. A few weeks back I was contacted by a company, through a recommendation, to help film an event happening in Leicester this weekend. The event is as you see above the Cosmopolitan Carnival and the purpose of the event is and was to Celebrate Leicester’s culturally diverse city through every imaginable art form. Everything from dancing of all forms to graffiti art, to music to singing and I along with a friend of mine, Raj, who I have worked with before on episodes of ‘Dickinson’s Real Deal’ were given the role of filming the setting up of the events, the reactions of people, the performances throughout the day and the closing aftermath of the events on the day.

 

                                    

 

Prior to the event starting all the people involved we all met at Red Hot World Buffet where everyone had a complimentary lunch before getting ready to work. After getting the cameras Raj and I started filming, though the first half hour the cameras died so whilst they were charging we improvised (I used a spare Flip camera that I bought with me, and Raj used his phone). When all cameras had died it was a case of taking shifts to monitor the charging and guarding the tripods in half hourly intervals, in order to get some incredible footage. The main stage was mainly musical acts and the high st was dedicated to a mixture of dancing everything from tribal to zumba that encouraged other people to get involved too. I also thought the people on stilts was very creative. I made a couple of trips to st. Martin’s sq to listen to the random musical acts too, as well as getting people’s reactions. Personally my favourite bit was the dancing Chinese dragon, it was certainly something the children who came to the event found really interesting).

Areas were designated for the following
– Jubilee Square MAIN STAGE- MUSIC
– High Street DANCE ZONE
– St Martin’s Sq PERFORMANCE AREA-MUSIC

and not forgetting the Silver Arcade ARTS HUB & WORKSHOP DISPLAYS

Soon time grew closer to the fact that the dancing had finished and that everything was to end at Jubilee Sq with a few final acts before it all ended with a film projection on the wall of BBC Radio Leicester, so of the members of staff I met during the days events, and the footage was very interesting and cleverly constructed. And as usual the day went by so fast, this one of the disadvantages I have when involved in media work, that when I am enjoying something so much time just goes by, that is why it is so precious to any and all productions.

I am also having fun working on the feature film I mentioned before, which I resume work on in the next few days.

Baton Battle Day The Grand Final

Well fellow Mediadreamzers readers

The day has come for the final of the world baton twirling championship, and although I missed the actual performances of the finalists because I work (through the rest of the production crew told me the best highlight moments, one of which was Keisuke Komada, of Japan scoring a perfect 10 across the board again)  I made it in time for the team event and I made sure I did not miss it. Luckily I arrived just as the last few senior men were performing their routines and then work started. The team performances from each country were spectacular, it got to the point where I tried not to blink for fear of missing anything. After the last performance from France there was a break so the judges could total up all the scores for each country and I guess for everyone to stretch their legs, and it was dying this time I was sent on a secret mission by Myra Kirk, Head of the Baton Biz, that the rest of the crew could not know about; and all was revealed 20mins later- I was instructed to go and get 7 little batons with the UK flag on as a souvenir from us all working on recording and streaming the event.

Though one thing that surprised me was the announcer for the championship did a thank you shout out the production crew- Owen Tooth- Director, David Wayman-Camera operator, Ola Meser-Camera operator, Phil Arnold-Camera operator, Brett Turner-Editor (who heard the announcement and got up and  raised his arms in the air, and I was very surpassed that they announced my name- Production runner WOW.

Soon the winners were announced for each country and to show who won I have included pictures

Junior Women Winners- 1st Japan, 2nd Japan, 3rd Japan

Junior Men Winners- 1st Japan, 2nd France, 3rd Italy

Senior Women Winners- 1st Japan, 2nd USA, 3rd Japan

             

 

Senior Men Winners (though I think you can guess the winner on this one)

Winners-1st Japan, 2nd-France, 3rd-Japan

 

Junior Pairs Winners- 1st Japan, 2nd Italy, 3rd USA, 4th France

 

Senior Pairs Winners-1st USA, 2nd Japan, 3rd France

 

World Team Event Winners-1st France, 2nd Japan, 3rd USA

The country that won the World Baton Twirling Championship 2014 cup and trophy

1st Japan, 2nd France, 3rd USA

 

Before the championship was officially closed there were additional certificates and merits handed out to those competing for 5 years and 10 years as well as some members being given lifetime achievement awards. Then the party really got started for the athletes as I heard it was a tradition that they celebrate by dancing to great tracks- traditional song of Nottingham ‘Robin Hood’, the Macarena (and at one point I thought our director when he got up and walked round the desk was gonna go onto the floor to dance, unfortunately not), Cotton-Eye Joe, Gangnam Style and YMCA and a few other tracks. And it was a wrap for us, taking equipment apart of packing it away and doing all the usual things after a production. One thing that I got for Myra that was from all the team was a box of chocolates, that she was surprised about. One cool thing we all got was a photo was the Senior Men’s winner (courtesy of Owen’s phone)

 

A fitting way to end the 5 days filming such a cool and breath-taking championship. Next years tournament will be in Canada and the following year will be in Sweden, I hope we are lucky enough to be chosen to go to these countries to capture it on film and stream it LIVE.

I hope I work with everyone again soon, as I had a blast and it certainly kept me fit, forget gym membership

Next on the production list is Line Producer with LightFilms, which I am looking forward to.

 

Baton Battle Day 2- Freestyle

Well Friday seems to one a lot better for me with the main task I was set; labelling the tapes and to make sure they went into the right cases and given to Brett in one piece I put loom bands round the case. I think I cracked it and I felt more on the ball, as well as the other tasks I was set to complete. Because I won’t be there on Saturday till late afternoon I put plans into motion for everyone ( ordering lunch, sourcing emergency tapes encase we run out and pre-labelling ready until I arrive to take over). I was a favourite person Friday morning with the supplies I bought in for the day and more I brought in Saturday ready for Sunday. I really enjoyed the preliminary freestyle performances of all the groups