IN[FOCUS]

Hi Everyone. Well – In[Focus[ is nearly upon us. Over two hundred filmmakers and videographers and people who make wedding videos of all kinds are going to descend on a historical city that will be abuzz with the focus on picking a new republican leader. Clearly they don't know that Steve Moses will be too busy taking notes from Ray Roman, to be considered for a presidential nomination. (Moses/Palin in 2016!!)

I can't put into words how much attending In[Focus] in 2010 did for our business. Over three days in that hotel ballroom we formed relationships that we will probably have for life. Before that first In[Focus], we owned one HDV camera, we did all our editing using Final Cut Express and we were lucky to get 100 blog visits PER MONTH!!!!

We set some massive goals at In[Focus] that were huge! It was the middle of Winter (in Canada) and we told ourselves that we would be doing Same Day Edits using DSLRs before the end of the year. Well, we sold our XH-A1 (at a profit) a few weeks later. We leased a 5D and three prime lenses. We then bought a MacBook Pro and Final Cut Pro.  I have no idea how and where we got the money (ahem: thanks God) – but needless to say – things started to explode for us. We started to do things right. The number of visits to our blog went through the roof. We have In[Focus] to thank for our business being as successful as it is today and I can’t tell you enough how excited that makes me feel.

Now it’s your turn.  You might be just getting started (like we were a few years ago). Or maybe you’re a veteran and you want a jolt.  This is what I believe to be an incredibly unique opportunity for you and there are a few things you can do to make it as amazing as it was for us.

1) This is an education (not just a great excuse to party). Treat it that way. Make sure you get your butt out of bed after your late night karaoke and show up for the presentations. So many people missed out because they would sleep in past the first set of speakers.  Trust me when I say -as a speaker – you notice the people who show up late – and when you have questions later that were discussed while you were snuggling your hotel pillow – it might be hard for someone to spare time for your questions, when you didn’t spare time for their presentation. (don’t worry – there will still be plenty of time to party)

2) This is an opportunity for YOU. You need to muster up the courage and confidence in yourself to introduce yourself to others. Yes we have all met most each other online – but go up to people and make new friends. Be intentional about it. Set a goal that by the end of the day to have a meaningful discussion with at least 5 people. It’s one thing to exchange business cards – but it’s another to be able to get to know people so well that you can count on each other for support.

3) Be honest and admit areas you suck at. This is huge. You will be waisting your trip if you don’t attack issues head on that you’re facing and seek out advice from others. And listen when people give you advice, even if you do not agree with them, show them the respect and take it all in. Then decide when you get back what you’ll act on.

4) Leave the laptops closed. Honestly – this is big for me. When I walk around rooms at conferences regardless of the content (we film a few for others and I also speak at our local college once or twice each year) – I see people with their laptops open browsing either Facebook or Twitter or MSN or GMAIL or Yahoo Sports or Victoria’s Secret – all of these are not allowing you to focus on the education being provided. If you must use your laptop to take notes because you can’t read your own hand-writing, promise that you’ll leave WIFI off and not turn it back on even on breaks – as these are perfect times to do items 2 and 3.

5) Make a to-do list. I picked this tip up from our Business Coach and friend Donna Douglas. This will be a list of items you will accomplish over the next few months. On a sheet of paper write down #1 to #10 (or #50, or #100 if you are being really ambitious) then during presentations, if you hear a great business or filmmaking tip that makes you think “man I gotta do that as soon as I get home!” write it on your list. This way you will collect all your great ideas and inspirations in one place. Then when you get back to your office, post that list up beside your computer and get to work on accomplishing as many of those things as possible.

6) As much as you can – stick with the group. Invite yourselves to the group dinners. If you hear of people saying they are going somewhere in the evening, invite yourself along! This is how you will also do items 2 and 3 – just don’t forget about #1 and get back in time for a few hours of sleep BEFORE the presentations start (not during).

7) Don’t get arrested or do anything too liberal around the republicans because there will be secret service, and they likely will shoot you.

Please stop us and say hello because we can’t wait to meet all of you!

Andrew Sorlie

Andrew and Emily Sorlie are the owners of Honey & Dear, a successful Toronto, Canada - based wedding cinematography company. They attended their first [In]Focus conference in Austin, Texas in 2010, and it radically changed the direction of their company. With the knowledge and experience they gained, the Sorlies rebranded their now-flourishing business from Sorlie Arts to Honey & Dear. Together, they have filmed more than 80 weddings all over the world including Australia, Dominican Republic, Singapore & Canada.

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First. Yes. I think I’m hilarious. Second – this post does have relevant information for you to connote. Ok. That was the last one.

Contra deals are simply trading your services for someone else’s product or services so that both parties are happy – and typically actual money is not involved in the deal.

Contra can help when you need something and might not be able to afford it. It can also help when someone else wants what you offer but can’t pay you in actual cash – but can do something for you that could be useful to you or your business.

Contra can also be good for connecting with potential partners which will help to grow your network.

We have had both good and bad experiences with Contra deals.  We have had some deals that have worked out very well for both parties and we have also had experiences where we have felt that we didn’t get the best outcome or even what we had hoped to get out of the deal.

As a video professional – you have the ability to create some pretty awesome resources for just about anyone which is a huge asset for you. The important thing to remember with Contra is that you need to ask ‘what’s in it for me?’  You also have to ensure that ‘what’s in it’ is actually equally beneficial for your business as money would be had you charged it.

A very important part of the Contra process is to accurately value what is being traded on both sides.  This is where you can get into trouble if you’re not specific.  An example of this is if you’re getting something with a price tag on it – but creating a video in exchange without putting a price tag on it.  The person you’re trading with may not understand that changes to your video equal more editing time which equals more value. And then you’ll be frustrated because you’re not getting more for the extra time you’re putting in.

The first example of Contra I can give you is regarding… diapers.  My sister Jen is expecting her first child in February of 2012. She is very excited about cloth diapering. She showed me the website for a new company called Glowbug Diapers and I noticed the company had place-holders saying ‘video coming soon’. So I emailed and said – “hey – can we make you a video or two in exchange for some free diapers?” We set up a meeting and discussed what our videos were worth and the price tag of the diapers. In the end – we agreed on 5 sets of 12 cloth diapers – so now we have some ammo for future baby showers! Here’s the video if you’re interested. The owners of Glowbug recently had a baby trade show and said our video alone helped them sell 15 cases of their diapers and they were pleased! Everyone wins!

A more business oriented Contra exchange that has benefited us is with the organizer of a local high-end wedding show called The Wedding Co. The owner of the show recently announced that she was about to publish a high-end Toronto based wedding magazine and enter the world of wedding publishing in print. She asked if we would create a series of short teaser videos to promote the launch of the magazine in exchange for ad space in the magazine and on their blog.

We have worked hard on the four videos for this upcoming magazine launch – but being featured in this magazine and more prominently on their blog will really help us and only cost us our time.

Here’s an example of a contra deal that isn’t written in stone – but still works for us and is an example of relationship building as well. We have a relationship with a high-end wedding gown designer in Toronto where we will make videos for her in-store television as well as for her trade shows and website. Her end of the deal is not exactly tangible for us – but every single one of her clients sees our work and we have actually booked 4 weddings as a result of simply having our work play in her store. We have also received over 20 inquiries from this relationship. So we give a little but we gain a little too.

And finally- another form of contra can be creating a video for a charity. In these types of deals – you often don’t get money back – but you can get both charitable donation receipts for your work as well as the recognition from the charity as helping out your community. We have done that at times in the past – a good example is this video we made for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.

So in conclusion – Contra deals are a good thing as long as both parties are clear about what they want out of the deal and providing you not only deliver – but get what you want in the end!

What are some examples of your Contra deals – those that have worked for you, and those that have blown up in your face!

Andrew Sorlie

Andrew and Emily Sorlie are the owners of Honey & Dear, a successful Toronto, Canada - based wedding cinematography company. They attended their first [In]Focus conference in Austin, Texas in 2010, and it radically changed the direction of their company. With the knowledge and experience they gained, the Sorlies rebranded their now-flourishing business from Sorlie Arts to Honey & Dear. Together, they have filmed more than 80 weddings all over the world including Australia, Dominican Republic, Singapore & Canada.

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One of the historically awful things our industry has been known for in the past is using bad music. It’s right up there with slow-motion and cheesy graphics. I think even today, there are remnants of that and the evidence is when a bride asks if she can pick her own music!

A few years ago, our English friends Coldplay arrived and we all breathed a sigh of relief and began using their music. But then Coldplay became cheesy. And now it’s a race to be the first one to use the newest Bruno Mars or One Republic single in your SDE – kind of staking ‘claim’ to that song (I honestly can’t get that whistle tune out of my head – you know the one). There’s also another looming problem which is the record companies. I believe it was Jason Magbanua who received a letter from Warner Brother’s lawyers for using a Jason Mraz song in one of his edits.

I can remember a forum discussion a few years ago. Someone – a new-comer to the forum just getting started in this world of event filmmaking – put up an edit using the famous (in our circles) Amy Seeley song ‘Gravel Lines‘ (which most will agree is from the first StillMotion piece that really got people’s attention). I can recall someone saying – ‘Don’t use that song – that’s StillMotion’s territory. Now – that’s not exactly true – but the song was pretty unique and instantly people thought of SM when the song began to play. Using one of ‘their songs’ made this new film seem almost not relevant or worth watching just because it used an iconic song…

People started to realize – we need music that people like. Let’s try licensing it. I personally put in a call back then to Universal Music inquiring about using a popular song at the time.  The response I got was if you want to use our music – you’ll be paying upwards of $4,000 for single DVD home use. “You want to use it online??” they asked, “Well… you can start by giving us the title to your home and we’ll go from there”.

So you can’t use cheesy music (and please don’t). You can’t use popular recorded music (at least online anyways) for fear of either law suit, bankruptcy or simply just not standing out from the crowd. And you can’t use a song that you’ve heard someone else in our industry use (well – that is another discussion for another day – but you get where i’m going). You’ve got to use some form of music!

In 2010, StillMotion launched a new business that aimed to solve all of your problems for just $99. The deal was that the artist would get 50% of the fee and the website would take the other 50% for all of the admin side of things.  WithEtiquette.com was (and still is) a great resource for us in the wedding filmmaking world. When they launched – they had a catalog of about 30 or 40 songs. You pay them – they pay the artist – you get to use the song and everyone is happy! WE is still growing and adding to their catalog – which is probably the only downside to the website (size of catalog). 

In 2011, TheMusicBed.com a royalty-free music site was launched with a massive catalog of resources for production music for not only the wedding world – but also for the non-profit and church video production world – but their songs are just $49 each. I happen to like TMB for a few reasons other than the obvious financial difference.  The website is very easy to use and has all kinds of ways to find new music. They have categorized each song by style, length, mood and intended application.  There is a ‘wish list’ feature that allows you to add a song that you may use another time. They also do a very good job of recommending new music and keeping the site fresh. Every time I log in there is a new artist on the homepage. I also really liked that they sent us a hand-written card in the mail inviting us to use their website and I have also had emails and calls from the site’s owners thanking me for the business.  Maybe I’m old-fashioned – but I kind of like that. Anyways – two thumbs up for the TheMusicBed.com.

We used a song for a Same Day Edit this past summer by an artist we found on TMB named Luke Huch. I sent him an email just letting him know we found and used his music through the website. From that little email – Luke  wrote us back and even blogged our SDE on his site and we’ve connected several times through email about possibly filming a concert of his one day.  Another cool little reason to hook up with a website like TMB.

And if that wasn’t enough – Vimeo.com just announced that they now have a Music Store – boasting over 45,000 tracks.  The cool thing about the vimeo store is you can license music for your own personal projects for just $1.99!  (It’s $98 for commercial use songs).

My conclusion is that finding good music is hard work. It does take time – but it’s worth it to do it the right way.  $50 or even $100 to use a song and knowing the artist actually gets a large (often 50%) cut of that fee is a good feeling deep down. Music is a very important part of any film and I hope this will help you make music an important part of yours moving forward.

Andrew Sorlie

Andrew and Emily Sorlie are the owners of Honey & Dear, a successful Toronto, Canada - based wedding cinematography company. They attended their first [In]Focus conference in Austin, Texas in 2010, and it radically changed the direction of their company. With the knowledge and experience they gained, the Sorlies rebranded their now-flourishing business from Sorlie Arts to Honey & Dear. Together, they have filmed more than 80 weddings all over the world including Australia, Dominican Republic, Singapore & Canada.

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