Cinematography

As we get ready to take in the Academy Awards this Sunday, I am tempted to think about some of my own memorable Oscar Moments and the lessons that those moments have taught me over the years. And, not only are they some of my fondest memories to date, but they read like a list of what to do and what not to do. As you can see below, I got to hoist Ernie Borgnine’s Best Actor Oscar from 1956 that he won for portraying the title character in Marty. That was nearly a decade ago. I am so grateful...

What’s up, Creative Army! Over the last few months, I’ve seen an uptick in questions sent to me here, on Instagram, and on Twitter revolving around the subject of overcoming imposter syndrome. As creatives – which, as I always say, makes us entrepreneurs – we are constantly dealing with executives and gatekeepers questioning our decisions and our creative choices. For those hanging out on broad based social media platforms, you deal with a constant barrage of “experts” and those more then will...

It is an honor and a privilege to bring you the worldwide virtual premiere of the 6th Annual Stage 32 Short Film Program! Below you will find nine amazing short films to watch that were carefully curated by Stage 32's panel of leading industry executives. Our esteemed panel of judges is made up of top producers, managers, development executives, and Oscar-winning filmmakers. Our winning filmmakers hail from all over the world, and we could not be more excited to share their undeniable talen...

Happy Sunday Creative Army! First of all, congratulations to all of you who have already participated in our monthly Introduce Yourself Weekend! Thousands of connections have been made between entertainment creatives and professionals from every corner of the globe. Whether you are a long-time member, or brand new to Stage 32, take a moment to pop over to the Introduce Yourself Lounge and say hello before the end of the weekend. Now, grab some fresh coffee and let's dive into this week's conte...

Happy Women’s History Month! Or, for anyone outside the United States, happy March! Are you sensing a theme? Perhaps one of unity through celebrating our differences? That is the goal of celebrating, after all. During the celebration, we put aside our grievances, our woes, and even our agendas to appreciate the good work that has already been done. Perhaps even a return to work? You can start your Women’s History Month celebration with our recent International Women’s Day Panel here! Leading u...

The 94th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, is scheduled to take place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood on Sunday, March 27. Below I have collected all of the original and adapted screenplays that have been nominated this year. What are the similarities in the nominations from previous nominations this year? The differences? What are your favorite scripts? Be sure to comment below!   Stage 32 Writers' Room Members already have early acces...

As creatives, we can all probably remember the first person who took notice of the unique turn of our minds and chose to affirm it – whether that was a teacher, a parent, a friend, a sibling, or an early fan of our work. This person’s words might have given us exactly the encouragement we needed at exactly the right time. The truth is, it’s very easy for the self-doubt, the self-criticism, Imposter Syndrome, fear, and the inner forces of Resistance to win the day. There’s a reason why there ar...

Happy Sunday Creative Army! Have you had a creative weekend so far? I have some content here for you that is sure to get the creative juices flowing, so grab your coffee and let's dive in. First up, the folks over at Film Riot have an awesome video about how to make the Bat-signal visual effect. With the newest addition to the Batman franchise in theaters now, I thought it would be fun to share this great After Effects tutorial on how to make the iconic Bat-signal. Better yet, this tutorial...

As the COVID pandemic started to wreak havoc around the world two years ago, the wheels of the film industry came to a grinding halt. This was a unanimous decision by the industry although not mandatory as film was deemed an “essential service.” Facing the challenges of the pandemic, the question for filmmakers was how to return to work in this brave new world? As a producer based in Vancouver, Canada, I worked on the last show here to complete principal photography before the shutdown. As...

I can see the first sunshine after days of rain so I’ll put off writing this blog. I want to go outside for a walk. But I’m also using a technique that harnesses the power of procrastination to get the blog in my head so I can ruminate on it while walking. The terms ‘rumination’ and ‘procrastination’ come with a lot of baggage. Procrastination is defined as: ‘the action of delaying or postponing something knowing full well the negative outcomes of doing so’. That can cause a lot of anxiety m...