Saxon!!

Oh my word. I have been super busy for the past month working with legendrary heavy metalers Saxon on two of their newest music videos to coincide with the release of their first single and their new album, A Call To Arms.
I have worked with fellow students and graduates from the University of Glamorgan and together we shot both videos in two days up north in Yorkshire.
I have directed and camera operated their first release - Hammer of The Gods and co-directed/ assisted and camera operated for their second video. I have also edited both videos together. It has been immense.

I have done my best to remain professional and not get starstruck by the presence of such giants, I have worked closely with the band to fine tune the final videos and have found the whole experience very rewarding.I've discovered the perils of syncing at times when reverb is introduced into a song and, as a director, have been evaluating my ability to lead people towards the final product.
Everyone involved in the project have been fantastic. Unfortunately I can't go into too much detail on the actual videos until they are released, but still it feels good to be able say that I have done it.

Its My Shout - Heads Up The Valleys

I have been working with Its My Shout on a new project in association with the Arts Council Wales.
As part of the Its My Shout team I have been documenting the process of community workshops in regards to encouraging community groups to get involved with the media in whatever form they choose.
We have worked with three groups since late 2010 and together we have created 2 short films and an animatic.
Each group had the opportunity to go through the entire process from pre production to final shoot. They came up with their own stories and concepts, visualised them, acted and were their own crew for each project.
Alongside documenting these projects I have also trained individuals interested in the craft of camera, basic camera operation and acted a DoP of kinds on the short films.
The experience has been very satisfying. It has also opened my mind up to a new multi platform approach to filming and documenting in encouraging and training others to create their own pieces and watching an idea evolve through the minds of those not formerly trained in a media environment.
The short films are currently in post and I can't wait to watch them with the groups.