Thank You Fuel TV

For years I did tons of work for Fuel TV. It was a lovely place to do freelance film work. I got to direct 1/2 half hour TV shows, shorter TV segments, shoot events like the Roxy Chicken Jam, work on the legendary Camp Woodward show and do a bunch of cool commercials for them. They also gave me $100,000 to do documentary about skateboarding and trusted me to do whatever I wanted, that was fun. I love these people and will thank them over and over, it was a barrel of fun. I felt at home there because I was able to take the stuff I did as a kid (like skateboarding, bike riding and stuff like that) and combine it with my interest in nonfiction filmmaking and it was a perfect fit. I got to work with great creative people and so many great athletes. Fuel TV is still going but they have changed and do less action sports stuff and more UFC stuff, they are changing from a “kid’s” (sort of) network to a network with an older audience. The network is not as much a hub for skaters, surfers and action sports folks like it use to be. So I just want to say “Thank you Fuel TV” and to all of you that have left Fuel TV, we will fly again, there will be more project to do in the future.
Thank you!
Thank you!
Thank you!
Here is sample of some of the stuff I directed at Fuel TV.
Happy Leap Year day everybody!

Jeremy Jones

Got to work with the legendary Jeramy Jones about a year ago on this project. Jeremy is a funky guy and a good family man. I think he is a good role model for young athletes and anyone really. Happy Tuesday we got about 8 inches of snow last night.

The Color Run - Las Vegas

Friday producer Rich Patch called with a possible job, film The Color Run in Las Vegas. Think, OK, it sounds like a lot of fun.
It was fun, super fun. What a joyous celebration, you run a 5k with no clock and people throw color powder on you and you laugh and smile and act like a kid and wow, just celebrate being alive with thousands of other humans. At the end you dance in the street and throw your own colored powder and smile.
**The video I shot will be out in a day or two, I will post it for sure**
(photo: jacked from a random twitter feed-thanks)

Night Skiing Park City, Utah

Night skiing it sounds cold, I use to think that- then my kids made me go. It was so much fun and now it is our favorite after school activity haha! I laughed so hard as we skied fast and hit all the jumps, and then we had pizza. I can't wait to go again next week. I have heard that Park City has the longest lit run for night skiing in the country, I googled it and someone said it was the longest lit run in the Rockies, it doesn't matter, it rules. Anyway it was fun and there are a few lifts open and Payday is a high speed lift so you get lots of runs.
Have a good weekend, off to Las Vegas for a last minute job that will be fun, more details on that later.

Documentary Book

I am in development on another documentary series and have been in meetings. I just e-mailed the people on the project a few pages of one of my favorite documentary books, Writing, Directing, and Producing Documentary Films and Videos by Alan Rosenthal. The book is a good nuts and bolts look at documentary filmmaking and a good place to start thinking. When I am writing for a new project I love to reread the chapter on proposals, but in the end you just have to start making films, it is not rocket science, you just have to do, do, do, also I believe that there is not at right or wrong way to do it. One more thing I really love the idea of learning everyday- from your good choices and your mistakes. Happy Thursday!

Kathy P.

I worked on this piece over a year ago. Kathy is a lovely person and has a great family.

Tuesday feels like Monday

Happy Monday, no it's Tuesday.
Spend the weekend with my boy at a soccer tournament out to town.
Watched him and his team win.
Did a little editing of my art series.
Relaxed.
Ready for a new week.
I'm thankful for an amazing family and that I get to be a full-time filmmaker.
(photo:breakfast around here most days)

Sparkly and Fantastic

Here is a web promo for the film "Gentlemen Bronco." I loved working with Sam Rockwell on this project. He was always thinking of goofy things we could film. There is always the best vibe on Jared Hess' productions.

Happy Valentine's Day

Enjoy, Peace, and Happy Day.
Today's artwork Utah friend Adam Bateman .

"Nothing to Say"

This is perfect, there is a lot for me to think about here. An Ed Fisher cartoon from our coffee table book "The Complete Cartoons of The New Yorker."

for my sailing friends

A little piece for my sailing friends, they do food and they sail Lasers and Snipes. See you soon on the lake O's.

Art in Ephraim

After hours and hours days and days in the edit room I had a change of pace today. I shoot interviews with artists and then took the night off to enjoy some art at Central Utah Art Center and the Pizza Gallery- saw lots of old friends and new friends. Tonight's discovery: I like where I fit in the art world, I like it a lot---I can explain later if you want.

Random Screen Grab of the Day

A photo hiding in the end credits of the "Turning Point" about "The Circus Project". It was a great team (THANK YOU ALL!) and what a cool snap shot of Charlotte playing her banjo on the trapeze. She was singing Lakes of Pontchartrain.

Jay-Z at Carnegie Hall and Kory Katseanes

Jay-Z played at Carnegie Hall this last Monday with the Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra. That would of been a show to see. I live on a different planet than Jay-Z but I am a part-time fan and I respect the man. Here is a lovely clip from the conductor of the Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra. (above photo by Chad Batka for the New York Times)

Hanging out with Kory Katseanes of BYU's Chamber Orchestra in China gave be big respect for the art of conducting. I could watch Kory all day. There is something about a man in a tuxedo channeling his passion for music through (while jumping around like a crazy man-in a good way) a room full of unplugged musicians...pretty rad! Kory and the China trip is part of the series I am directing and shooting right now.

(disclaimer-blog is disjointed, but Jay-Z got me thinking of the Chamber Orchestra, that got me thinking of Kory, then China and it all reminded me that I have a deadline, gotta go! Peace)
(photo by trumpet man Spencer of Kory and me clowning in China-or maybe I just had it coming to me because I got my camera too close)

Ace Hotel, Portland, Oregon

Ace Hotel, Portland, OR
As a documentary filmmaker I spend a lot of days on the road. I have slept on floors, in tents, couches, motorhomes, hostels, and in a million hotels, some good and some bad. I do love the adventure of this kind of filmmaking, but I must admit the there is nothing like shutting the door on your own hotel room and getting some good quiet time. Recently while on a production in Portland Orgeon legendary producer Rich Patch treated me to a lovely surprise, the Ace Hotel.
This place was epic, it was super trendy and so hip it hurt, but I was all about it. I loved the art on the wall, the bed on the floor and a big window over looking downtown Portland only a block from Powell’s Bookstore- and did I mention the turntable?---that was a brilliant touch. I took off my shoes listened to records, read some really great art magazines left for me in the room, and relaxed. I could of stayed there a month. It really would of been a lovely work space, art studio or office.
If in Portland I highly recommend it and also check out their super hip blog -- art, music and all things hip haha!

Marina Abramovic: The Artist is Present

I saw a second art film at the Sundance Film Festival, “Marina Abramovic: The Artist is Present.” Marina is a performance artist from Yugoslavia. It is sometimes nice to jump into someone’s subculture and really look around. That is one of my favorite things about being a documentary filmmaker. When you film it is days, weeks or months -and almost everybody I have ever filmed has changed how I see the world.
The amazing thing about watching a documentary is that you only need to give a hour or so and sometimes it can really alter your world view.
I guess that is why I have dedicated my life to this thing called documentary or nonfiction filmmaking. It is rewarding, creatively satisfying and always gets me thinking.
Oh Yeah, “The Artist is Present” is worth seeing, another great reference for films about art. Matthew Akers does a nice work as a director/cinematographer (that is the way I have been doing it lately---2 hats is all good)...
Happy Monday!

Cam my neighbor

Drawing in Church. Cam my neighbor. His wife wrote Sexy, I said Fun, and Noelle said Awesome. I need to draw more, or maybe I should just focus on filmmaking, I get off track easy. Anyway right now I am working with visual arts students doing a print exchange with the University of Hawaii (and BYU).

Deer Valley Ski Freestyle World Cup

I will have to admit that I love Park City, that is one of the reasons we moved to Midway around the corner. Park City has good food, good skiing, good art, good festivals, and the World Cup tonight was just one more reason to go to Park City and party. While the moguls event was going tonight, hundreds of people were dancing around, watching skiing and there was some crazy sled action going on. Big Fun and a nice break from editing my art series.

Spike Lee at Sundance (Interviewed by my buddy Wyatt)

Okay Spike Lee is one my favorite personalities in film. He was at Sundance this year with a film. Wyatt, my sailing buddy Buster's kid, interviewed him on the street of Park City. Good job Wyatt. Good questions and I love the respect that Spike gave to the kids. Check it out! (Wyatt is the first kid*****FYI, I had nothing to do with this video, I just thinks it's cool)