Freyburg

That fine piece of work above is Gallifrey Academy, my latest short Doctor Who film. Every year I try to make a short film in advance of Gallifrey One, the biggest Doctor Who convention in North America (more on that later.) This year I was lucky enough to run it ahead of our Radio Free Skaro live show in front of a big crowd, and it got a pretty decent reception. Kyle Anderson, a friend and writer for The Nerdist, also featured the short in his Gallifrey One wrap up.

The film featured the talents of Eric Fell, Joanna Gaskell and Shaun Stewart in front of the camera, as well as a certain Time Lord whose identity I’m not at liberty to disclose. All those named can be seen here in Vancouver at the Critical Hit Show, a hilarious live Dungeons and Dragons improv that happens every month at the Rio Theatre. Laurel Brown, Vanessa Driveness (who also played an apathetic Shobogan) and Mel Siermaczeski also helped out behind the scenes.

And how was Gallifrey One (or Gally, as its know to its many fans)? Simply amazing. I’ve been for five years running now, and the sheer amount of Whocentric content never ceases to amaze me. Shaun Lyon and the other hard-working people who have been putting on the convention for a quarter-century(!) pour their heart and souls into this yearly event, and it shows. Now matter what you’re into in the Whoniverse, there’s someone else at the convention who digs what you dig.

What’s next? Well, it’s a guarantee I’ll be at Gallifrey One next year, and I’ve got a few ideas for the next short film. I try to be more ambitious with each film, so next year, expect ILM quality visuals and a 6 hour running time. No pressure.

If there’s one thing I love more than film it’s films about film. Here’s a few documentaries it would behoove you to check out.

Side by Side is all about film, the medium of choice for crafters of cinema over the last 100 years, is slowly but surely being usurped by high-resolution digital cameras. The film is ably hosted by Keanu Reeves, who goes through a bevy of Hollywood heavy hitters both for and against digital. It’s worth it just to hear David Fincher’s epic rant about the Panavision Genesis.

http://youtu.be/j7DzpCqi4Js

Not Quite Hollywood is a loving tribute to Australian exploitation films, ranging from the sex comedies of the early Seventies that put Ozploitation on the map to gore-soaked horror romps and the uniquely Australian genre of post-apocalyptic car films best exemplified by Mad Max. The entire film is viewable on Youtube (surprisingly) so check it out before it gets pulled.

These Amazing Shadows is a documentary about film preservation, and it goes into pretty serious detail about the importance of preserving film along with just how much work it takes to keep cinematic treasures alive for generations to come.

Other than Side by Side, all these films are on Netflix. Even though Netflix doesn’t have the latest and greatest hits, it does have a lot of hidden gems, especially for film nerds. Have you found any great obscure documentaries (or otherwise) via Netflix? Let me know in the comments!

In this exciting episode of Video Free Skaro, Warren talks to Joanna Gaskell, creator, writer and star of Standard Action, a web series shot in Vancouver but set in a Dungeons and Dragons world of high adventure and hilarity. We also welcome another special guest to Tom Baker Tonight, and Tom is once again in fine form. All this and the latest Who news!

If you like the shirt Warren is wearing, head to http://www.damask.ca for all your Whovian sartorial needs!

Following up on my previous Portal posts, here’s Escape from City 17 part 2, a Half Life which boasts a city in ruins, striders, zombies, headcrabs and more. THe creators of this film claim they spent less than $1,000, which sounds doubtful given what’s on screen.

Portal is a fantastic series of games, and it’s built up such an interesting world that several fan films have sprung up to expand upon its themes of imprisonment, quantum physics and puzzle solving.

Dan Trachtenberg of Totally Rad Show fame has upped the bar with his Portal fan film, entitled “The Escape,” which you can see below:

Others have also put together Portal fan films. My favorite is this one, which eschews action for something a little more moody and introspective:

I’m sure there are more fine fan films out there, but these, in my opinion, are the true standouts.

Jim Munroe is the multimedia genius behind No Media Kings, which started as a way for him to self-publish his work but has since morphed into a DIY mini-empire featuring comics, games, film and books.

A few years ago he and several collaborators made “Infest Wisely“, a lo-fi sci-fi film that they broke into chapters and filmed separately with a overarching story written by Munroe. You could watch it online in segments or as a feature.

Jump to several years later and Munroe and friends have created
“Ghosts with Shit Jobs,” a near-future extrapolation of what happens when North America goes bankrupt and China outsources all the jobs they don’t want to us. It’s being done with the same low-fi ethos as Infest Wisely but with better equipment and a little more money ($4,000 this time as opposed to the $700 they spent on the previous film.)

I’m looking forward to seeing what Munroe hss in store with this latest film…it looks like they’ve upped their game visually while hewing to the same approach of ideas over pointless spectacle. Keep watching here and nomediakings.org for further news on the film.

Lately I’ve been looking into the web series phenomenon, given my proclivities towards sticking it to the man and/or making cool things with video and computers. Here’s a few good ones to whet your appetite.

First of, here’s the Guild, the gold standard by which all other web series are judged….

and here’s Standard Action, which is filmed right here in Vancouver…

and for something a little less fantasy-oriented, here’s Andy and Chaz Bugger Off to America, a sort of Guy Ritchie meets Entourage tale of two hapless and murderous criminals from the UK who cause trouble in LA…

And finally here’s some sci-fi goodness in the form of the Mercury Men. Unfortunately, you can’t watch the series unless you’re in the US or have a proxy, so here’s the trailer.

Got any more favourites? Tell me about them in the comments!

Despite a dearth of interesting news this week, Warren, Todd and Chip all managed to ponder such important matters as the legacy of LCD Game n’ Watch systems, Amiga fanaticism, and Apple’s possible alliance with Square. They also delved into the quite serious matter of where our gadgets come from, given the recent explosion in a Foxconn factory in China. Also, Chip has reached near OCD levels of Infinity Blade.

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Our first episode shot on my new iPhone 4 wherein Todd and Warren discuss media creation, replacing your Xbox 360 with Boot Camp, the Verizon iPhone, and much much more!

note: the sound on this episode could be better, but hey, it was shot on an iPhone 4.

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Precisely none of you may be wondering how we make FruityGamer here at Freyburg Media. Well, I’m here to tell you the thinking, process and methodology I used. My methods and tools may differ from what’s available to you, but you’ll at least get a general idea as to how to pull of your own video podcasts.

When myself and my business partner made “This is Yaletown” we did so thinking the internet would soon push up its production values to the levels of television, and that we’d better be ahead of the curve. But in fact this has not proven to be the case. People watch internet shows for many reasons, but slick production values (to a point) doesn’t seem to be a necessary part of the equation.

I figured that given my experience creating Radio Free Skaro there was no reason I couldn’t create similar podcasts on video and in audio form, and do so in such a way that they’re quick and easy to make.

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