on the road: SXSW

PHEW.  I returned from SXSW a week ago and only now feel like I've recovered. It was my first time and I went during the film and interactive portion.  Why you ask? To do some learning from some killer presenters and because... we had a film premier there! Yes, my team made a film called THE HOME TEAM for one of our client's last year and we decided to submit it to SXSW and it was selected.  We were very excited and I was excited to attend.  Check out the trailer:



But boy, was I exhausted.  There are so many things happening that you're racing around from one event to the next and you're not really sleeping much and there's so much to do and it's just GO GO GO.  But it was a great time, the film was received well (we didn't win, but oh well), I met some great new friends and caught up with old ones, and I even snuck in some awesome barbecue.  Here's some fun shots from the trip:

 (a friend was part of the Game of Thrones exhibit, so Mike and I snuck in on the first day and I had to pretend to be Joffrey. Mike doesn't watch the show, but I think he got it).

 (really fun beer garden over on Rainey St. It's been two years since I've been to Austin and this whole neighborhood has been built up).

 (damn I miss Jo's breakfast tacos...)

 (THE HOME TEAM team - well, those of us that were in Austin - at the premiere)

 (director's Q&A at our short doc screening)

 (oh hey, our poster out in Austin!)

 (a great NPR #Storied event we got invited to)

 (incredible barbecue at La Barbecue...take me back)

(Silicon Valley screening and Q&A with creators and cast - it was hilarious)

screen inspiration: mildred pierce

Over the weekend, I finally finished the HBO mini series event, MILDRED PIERCE.  The story of a complicated relationship between a mother and daughter during depression-era California has many dark twists and turns and is a great story.  Here's the trailer:




As Kate Winslet said in an interview, there was nothing mini about it.  Five parts, approximately an hour each, were shot over a 16 week period.  It takes about 10 weeks to make a movie, longer for a period piece.  This was like shooting two and a half movies.  And it was incredible.  Kate Winslet is a favorite of mine and I think no one else could have played this part as well.  And the sets and costuming (by the legendary Ann Roth) made the whole thing truly spectacular.  I can't say enough about the costuming and production design.

One thing that struck me when doing the research was how much inspiration the crew got out of photographer Saul Leiter.  Leiter liked to use windows and reflective surfaces to capture image and the inspiration of his work is clearly seen throughout this series.  The crew even normally used the term "Leiter-y" to define a shot.

Look at a couple shots from the series:

And now some great photos from Saul Leiter:

Isn't it fantastic when we inspire each other?

Check out the series on HBO on demand before it goes away!