#greyscreen

1. Mobile Phone or Camera

You’ve got to love the 21st Century. Most of us already have mobile phone that lets us shoot HD video. An iPhone is expensive, as is a Samsung but the image quality is superb and it auto-fucoses onto whatever is in front of the screen. A camcorder works just as well. You know the ones you see all those casting directors and their assistants use when you go to an audition? They’re relatively cheap in comparison to a modern mobile phone and you can even flip the LCD screen so that you can see yourself! Perfect for solo filming. They start at roughly £150 but you can get a second hand one on eBay. The best brands are Sony, Panasonic and Canon. If you really have the money and want to invest in a great photography camera as well, then you can get a DSLR. Just remember that your focusing skills are going to have to be on point, especially if you are filming alone.

2. Tripod

You’ve got the camera but balancing it on a 5ft stack of books and in-between two folders just isn’t cutting it. You need a tripod. They’re easily adjustable and can be used indoors and outdoors. You can get a really cheap on on Amazon for £14.99 or an expensive one from Manfrotto that’s made out of Titanium and other space age shuttle parts. They both do the same thing. If you are using a phone to film, make sure you get the appropriate mount for it. 

3. Grey Screen or Blue Screen

Slow down James Cameron. We’re not shooting Avatar 10. What we are doing is trying to hide all those Justin Bieber or Tupac Shakur posters in your bedroom. Or that dodgy painting your brother put up in the living room. Or just a plain, boring white background. These grey or blue screens usually come with a stand and provide a nice contrast on camera. Plus, it makes it your self-tape a little more professional. You don’t need to spend a fortune. I spent about £30 on mine.

4. Good Editing Software

If you are making a lot of these self-tapes then it’s probably time to invest in a decent video editing software. I use Final Cut because its straight forward, lets me make nice titles and I use it for other projects. If you have an iMac or MacBook then you get iMovie for free. Luckily in this day and age you probably will never have to pay for a video editing software. A quick Google search will bring up many free editing programs.

5. Laptop or Desktop

This is probably the most expensive item on the list. You don’t need to spend a silly amount of money though. You just need something that can handle the video editing software. 4GB of Ram and 2Ghz processor should do it. A big screen would also help. 13inches should be fine. Once again, eBay will save the day for those of us on a budget. There are various online video platforms that you can upload your self-tape too, like Vimeo and Youtube. You can also transfer your files to the casting director or your agent using WeTransfer.

GreyScreen live at Teminus Fest

I forgot to put up the initial listing for the show in Edmonton, but I thankfully did a little bit of documentation when it was there. All the Western Canadian chip pals showed up and ripped it. Very stoked to have been a part of it all.

GreyScreen (using the Powerglove)

GreyScreen

Boosh & Scatterpattern

PowerGrid was an incredible success. Thanks to all who came to Beakerhead’s events, specifically Beakernight, and experienced the installation.  PowerGrid was concieved as a combination of the ill-fated NES peripheral, the PowerPad, with the floor in Michael Jackson’s Bille Jean music video. At it’s simplest, PowerGrid is an elaborate midi-controller, with pressure sensitive squares ona 4x4 grid which, when activated light up a series of LED’s and controls one of 16 channels of a song I wrote. So, depending on which squares the audience stand, they will have created their own unique mix of the song. Check the videos below for some examples.  Giant thank you’s go to Craig Fahner, Harvey Hinton and Joe Reina for all their help and support during the building of this project;. Thank you to Beakerhead for the opportunity. Additional funding from Calgary Arts Development.