The Confluence

Introducing New OMPA Board President

The Oregon Media Production Association board of directors met last month and elected its 2012 officers, including new president, Michael Bard, owner of recording and post-production facility StudioBard. The board president oversees the activities of the 29-year-old organization to support the mission of growing the commercial, film and television industry in Oregon.

“I am pleased and honored to help direct the OMPA board’s activities to better serve and promote all those involved in Oregon’s vibrant media production industry,” says Michael Bard.

Essential NW Film: That Blade Just Don’t Stop

The process that delivers the furniture into our homes is often as grim as the process that delivers the food onto our plates. Aerial vistas of butchered landscapes look like ecological crime scenes, the brown swathes of mowed hillsides replacing the chalk outlines. The murder weapons drip with water instead of blood, freshly bathed for the next sanctioned slaughter. The morbid din of strained cedars slit at their mammoth bases, tipping over, their broad tops exploding on impact could just as easily have been confused with an animal’s death throes.

At Sony Pictures “A Greener World” even The Wheel Is Green…..

We have already blogged about the Wheel of Fortune shooting a week’s worth of shows this week end and early next in Portland for their up-coming “green week” but I also wanted to take the opportunity to give a shout out to Sony Pictures Entertainment and their sustainability efforts.

Like other studios, Sony Pictures has in place it’s best practices and green policies; such as their “Road to Zero” (zero waste) and “A Greener World” vision, on set, in studio offices, stages and across all corporate operations.

Hollywood Theatre Hiring for Summer Youth Documentary Program!

Project Youth Doc Instructor Job Description

Background: The Hollywood Theatre’s Project Youth Doc (“PYD”) program provides youth the opportunity to produce short documentary films of personal and social relevance, cultivating a heightened sense of community awareness/involvement and nurturing the development of students’ artistic voices in a positive peer-to-peer environment. By using documentary film as a vehicle for creative self-expression, students who participate in PYD become better connected to their peers, the community in which they live and, most importantly, themselves. Since the program’s inception in 2004, over 200 youth have worked in teams to produce more than 50 thought-provoking documentaries on topics ranging from the juvenile justice system to the dangers of drunk driving.

People’s Portlandia Premiere at the Hollywood Theatre!

Thursday, March 29th at 7:30 p.m. – Tickets $10

Portland filmmakers! If 200+ people can show up for the premiere of the IFC’s Portlandia, then our locally sourced version should draw an even bigger crowd so come one come all to The People’s Portlandia. Hosted by comic (and sometimes Portlandia cast member) Mikey Kampmann, the evening will feature videos and PRIZES! Not to be missed, let’s show our true Portland spirit.

New and Improved “Roads of Oregon” Website Goes Live Today

How many times over the past few years have you seen a road in Oregon featured in a car commercial? The truth is that car commercials are filmed in our state quite a few more times than you would think. For that reason we created a “Roads of Oregon” micro-site featuring photos of roads across the state a few years ago. Today we are unveiling a new and improved site with more photos, higher quality images and a new interface that also organizes the roads by region.

BENT Does Coke in Europe

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/38529219[/vimeo]

Football (Soccer) insanity is personified in a new 3D collaboration between Santo, (Buenos Aires, London, Milan) and Bent Image Lab, (Portland Oregon). Helmed by mixed-media maestro Carlos Lascano, “Spirit of the Euro” is an outrageous romp through stylized landscapes of Eastern Europe with an eccentric cast of chameleonic characters. The Coke-drinking, silly dancing, trumpet blowing, costume wearing, song chanting, stranger hugging football fans are a unique combination of CG animation and real actors’ eyes—a first for Coca-Cola, and a ground breaking technique for cinema 3D stereo.

A Place Called Home Lecture this Sunday 3/25

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/38574569[/vimeo]

On Sunday, March 25th, the Dill Pickle Club kicks off of A Place Called Home: Lectures on Filmmaking in Portland, a monthly lecture series focused on the history of movie-making in the city, at Cinema 21 with guests David Cress, Walt Curtis, Shawn Levy and David Walker.

DAVID CRESS will talk about Portland’s tradition of advertising and how it’s nourished the film community. Cress is best known as Producer for Independent Film Channel’s Portlandia, although he has been active as a maker in Portland for several decades.

Great Film Festival Programming in Ashland and Eugene Coming in April

Once again in April Oregon is home to a series of great film festivals in consecutive weeks. The eleventh annual Ashland Independent Film Festival is happening April 12-16. This year the festival is honoring acclaimed director Julie Taymor. With Ms. Taymor’s experience in both live theater and film, it makes perfect sense that Oregon Shakespeare Festival Artistic Director Bill Rauch will join Ms. Taymor on stage for a certain lively and engaging discussion. Other filmmakers expected to be in attendance include documentarian Ondi Timor and director Lynn Shelton.

Ashland Producer Gary Kout Talks About His Work on Oscar Winning Film “Rango”

Behind the scenes footage from the making of “Rango”:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-Bc43WVoL0[/youtube]

Many of you may know Gary Kout as the president of Southern Oregon Film and Television (SOFAT) and producer of films like “Walk In,” “Calvin Marshal,” “Conversations With God” as well as many commercials. A few years back, he was contacted by Gore Verbinski’s team on the Academy Award winning film “Rango” to be the production supervisor on the live action performance capture shoot for the film. The process was unique to animated feature films, but helped the film makers create something special.

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Behind the scenes footage from the making of “Rango”: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-Bc43WVoL0[/youtube]

Behind the scenes footage from the making of “Rango”:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-Bc43WVoL0[/youtube]