John Walter McClatchy is a video specialist, providing the services detailed in the left sidebar. I capture video and/or photography for any events you want captured and preserved for years to come. I also convert VHS tapes into DVD and digital media files for preservation and easy sharing.

I work in the Greensboro/Triad area; see the sidebar for more information!

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Lack of Creativity in Hollywood's Muse

I’m becoming more and more disappointed in the sources from which we find story material for films.

I’ve recently become aware of these trailers advertising a movie coming out by the name of Battleship.  Yes, it is based off of the game many of us have played back in the day (or currently).  This is a game that technically has no story to it, but at the very least insinuates that you are playing as two nations fighting each other.  The film, facing the lack of an existing story, must create one and even goes so far as to establish a scenario where a naval military is going against extra-terrestrial! 

How does a story like this come about?  Did a writer come up with an idea for a story about the Navy fighting aliens and perhaps have a movie executive decide “Hey, let’s take this story and slap the ‘Battleship’ brand name on it to attract attention!”?  Probably not, it was more likely the case that someone wanted a movie of Battleship to be made, and tried to find someone to “come up” with a story to fit the scenario.

Making movies based on toys that have no pre-established story is not new.  I enjoy the recent Transformers films as simple action movies that you see once in the theatres and then move on.  But one of the reasons those films work at all is that they do have a sort of pre-existing mythos established in cartoons and comics; granted, the films’ stories are still not that great.

Now I go on the Internet only to find that even more story-less toy lines are in the works for film adaptations.  Hasbro, the owners of the Transformers, Battleship, and G.I. Joe toy lines, are now “working with writers on moviesbased on Stretch Armstrong, Risk, Clue, Monopoly, Ouija, Micronauts andCandyland”. 

What’s next, should they have Michael Bay direct a My Little Pony adaptation?

I can only hope that films based on these toys and games are treated as well as the film based on Clue back in 1985.  Despite it’s mixed reviews, the film was funny, and actually seemed as though the writers cared about making a good, well-written story.

Oh, did I forget to mention Real Steele, which seems based on “Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots”?  Waaah, no; blah blah blah, Hugh Jackman, whine, moan.  Actually, I’ll be forgiving that one on account that it’s not actually using the franchise name so, at the very least, is not explicitly banking on the fame of the toy.  I also have not seen the film and cannot provide commentary.

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Film Series: a New Trend in How Hollywood Makes Sequels

In the film industry, it’s no longer new that we’ve been relying on sequels and remakes to provide a certain financial security in the films to be released. 

Lately, however, I’ve been more fascinated with the occasional practice wherein a set of several films is created to tell a longer story.  In a typical sequel situation, a move is created as a standalone story and later, depending on the success of that film, a sequel may be made as a way to bank on the success of the original film. 

In a film “series” scenario, which may include the Lord of the Rings trilogy or the Harry Potter series, the first film is created with the expectation and, perhaps, reliance on the fact that later films will come out to finish the story that the original film left untold. 

The sequel situation is more financially dependable because it banks on an already successful film.  In a series, the first film is banking on the possible success of a second film; by creating the first film with a cliffhanger or incomplete story, you are betting that future films will be made to tie up loose ends.  If this does not happen, then what story has been told so far will be considered incomplete and potentially not worth buying in the future.

Examples of films would first include the Lord of the Rings trilogy.  Just watching the first movie on it’s own will not be a complete experience.  If it weren’t successful enough to complete the series, then it would remain forever to be an incomplete film.  Even if all episodes of the series were shot at once to save time, it’s still a lot more investment than would be needed to invest in a single film. 

The Potter series played it safe in the beginning; the first film may be viewed as a single story on it’s own.  Later chapters have left more room and expectation for plot points to be resolved in the future.  Having kept this up for eight films is a huge investment.

Now there are the films based on Marvel Comics that lead up to the upcoming Avengers film.  In this unique situation, several films are created as seemingly unrelated storylines and, later on, are connected into one film that brings all of the characters together.  In each of the Marvel films (Iron Man, Thor, Incredible Hulk) there is a story element near the end of each film that makes you expect that there is more story ahead; this hints toward the future Avengers film.  This creates a commitment to make a future film in order to follow-through on that expectation, another risky investment.

I personally enjoy these film series, if not always for the stories themselves but also for the fact that someone found it worth investing in not just one expensive film, but also several at once.

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Freddie Wong Collaborates with Samsung and Youtube for Revenue Opportunity

Sometimes people can make a living by distributing entertainment content for FREE.   

Samsung Galaxy S II Viral Video

Freddie Wong, famed filmmaker on Youtube, makes several entertaining videos people subscribe to; yet, although no one has to pay to see these videos, he makes his living off of sponsorships, including his recent deal with Samsung!

Freddie “freddiew” Wong makes many videos on Youtube often based on videogame concepts.  He often acts out events only seen in video games to show how absurd it would be if these concepts applied to real life.  He makes use of Adobe After Effects to make these kinds of stories possible.  He’s mastered methods of using green-screen, digital effects and pyro-technics, making his short films comparable to Hollywood quality. 

His films have garnered popularity with gamers, film students and special effects enthusiasts who wish to learn how to do all that Wong is accomplishing.  For every video he creates, he releases alongside it a “making of” video to display his “gorilla filmmaking” at work.

He’s gained the attention of some big-name companies wanting to cash in on his success.  Jon Favreau, director of Cowboys and Aliens, asked Wong to make a short film with him in the same style as Cowboys, as a form of promotion.

 Companies like Valve and Google have let Wong and his friends tour their office and have provided them with free merchandise.

Most notably and recently, Samsung cashed in on a marketing opportunity in regards to their new camera phone, Galaxy S II.  Wong was in need of a camera that was lightweight enough to attach on top of a moving car (for an aerial shot) without it falling over.  It’s not known as to who contacted whom first, but Samsung sent them the Galaxy for free.  It was lightweight, yet, recorded in 1080p HD so it matched Wong’s quality.  This was a strategic move since thousands of viewers take note on how Wong accomplishes all of his shots and many have stated they were impressed by the quality of such a camera phone.  Samsung states in the above video that Wong has an audience that is very “technically aware, technically savvy” and that allowing him to make a movie with the phone in the way that he wants allows the brand to be seen in a way it could not have before.  This shows people the best of what is possible with this device through a filmmaker who’s working through passion, which, as stated in the video, is much more effective than typical advertising methods.

Check out Wong's Youtube clip as he uses the Samsung Galaxy to make dynamic shots!

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Netflix: on the Queue for disaster?

Dear John,
I messed up. I owe you an explanation.

This is the Email I’ve received from Netflix CEO, Reed Hastings.  Recent changes for Netflix this past year has been giving the company some bad rep.  July of this year, Netflix had warned its current customers that prices would be going up by about $6.  This is generally a separation of DVD and streaming services; anyone with a DVD + streaming subscription would have seen their price as being a combo of $7.99 streaming plus however much they’d be charged for DVDs.  Many people have claimed to be canceling their subscriptions as a result.

As if this wasn’t enough, Netflix is now making further changes to their subscriptions.  The company itself will no longer provide a DVD service, but only provide streaming.  The DVDs will still be shipped, however, but from another branch company called Qwikster.  Although there will be no more price changes (“We’re done with that”), this means that to modify one’s DVD queue, one must log into another site; this means having two accounts to manage.

These approaches have not been sitting well with investors.  “Netflix Inc. stock fell $13.72, or 9.5 percent, to close at $130.03 Tuesday. It is now down 55 percent since July 12”, July 12 being the date when the initial price hike was first announced.

Hastings’ biggest concern was that Netflix “wouldn't make the leap from success in DVDs to success in streaming. Most companies that are great at something – like AOL dialup or Borders bookstores – do not become great at new things people want (streaming for us)”.  As a result of this, Netflix decided to primarily embrace streaming as it will become the new demand.  His transition into this change is what knocked subscribers off guard.

When running a business that revolves around media, it’s important to keep up with the times so as to not be left behind like AOL or Borders.  I would have to say that Hastings handled this fairly well.  Creating a new company for DVD mail-ins might be a bit drastic, but if that’s the best way for his company to focus more on new technology, it may not be that bad of a move. 

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Attorney Ned McCleod Fights a Legal Storm

I’ve recently had the chance to interview a lawyer who works in Intellectual Property law.  Ned Mcleod is an attorney who works in Entertainment Law here in the Orlando area and I sought after him to discuss a case he worked on back in the mid 2000’s.  The case was involving a dispute with Time Warner regarding their movie, The Perfect Storm.  The movie was based upon a true story wherein fishermen, Billy Tyne and Dale Murphy, were lost at sea during a storm.  McLeod worked for the family members of the fishermen, collectively known as “Tyne”, as they disagreed with the method by which their husbands/fathers were portrayed by the film.  One of their main arguments was against the fact that the fishermen’s names were used in a commercial endeavor without any prior consent.  However, the court interpreted the definition of “commercial” product to not include motion pictures, as they are not technically advertisements.  McLeod and the Tyne family lost the case.

Speaking with McLeod in person, I’ve gotten a lot of insight into the situation that you typically miss in case documents.  He has related his experience in talking with the daughters of the fishermen and how they endured people’s anger towards their father as a result of him being portrayed in a false light.

McLeod has many years of experience both in the film industry and working in law; so he knows the strategies and philosophies of both.  He finds illogical the view, which dictates that a film in and of itself is not a commercial product.  He’s pointed out that film companies will hold industry conventions wherein they are proud to host their films as commercial tools to promote their companies and any products associated with them; they openly consider the films marketing vehicles in the marketplace but not in the courtroom.

Since my videography will mostly be making revenue from the stories of people or by the use of their image, I’m prepared to take release forms for any and all people involved with my video products.  For the most part, thankfully, any video I make will likely be commissioned by the person of whom it is about, so I should be able to avoid such issues as are reflected in this case.

It was very pleasant getting to meet the attorney in person; he was very interested in and glad about us making a presentation on his case.  He had materials related to the case ready for my partner and I the moment we got there.  He looks forward to a day when the laws will be clearer in describing films as commercial products and he seemed to hope that the issues of this case would eventually become better known.

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Assassination Picts.

My partner and I are currently organizing a videography business that we call Assassination Pictures. Under this name, we’ve made a number of funny stories on YouTube, including our web series, Roommates. Now that we’re branching into videography, this means we’ll be dealing with clients and doing what we can to make the best profit for ourselves.

I’ve been forming this business as part of my business plan that I’m developing for my Entertainment Business degree at Full Sail. This current semester is about negotiating; so, to see how negotiating comes into play in my industry, I found Joe DeBlasi from the Professional Videographers of Central Florida, and asked him some questions as to how negotiating comes into play in this business.

According to DeBlasi, his usual set price is determined mostly by his expertise, establishing his status as a skilled, professional videographer. Someone newer in the field would likely be considered a “budget” videographer until their status and reputation is built up. Despite his set fees, there are times when his clientele might be relatively low, leaving him with fewer choices in work, thus, reducing his BATNA. In times such as this, he’s admitted to occasionally lowering the prices of his services for the sake of securing a client.

There are also cases wherein a compromise can be reached between budget and services offered. A customer with little money might request a partial service to be rendered in exchange for a lower price. A newcomer videographer states in a support message board that some potential wedding clients were asking him to film less of the wedding, even to exclude the matrimony itself for the sake of paying a smaller price. At first suspecting that the clients were haggling him, the videographer was advised on the board that they were instead trying to reach a compromise to meet their budget.

Now is the time for us to branch out from our hobby-based, narrative film-making and dip into a solid business of shooting for clients. As we become more experienced, we’ll become more capable of asking for higher fees and, if we’re well known, will have more bargaining chips on the table.

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