Oz Magazine July/August 2017 by Oz Publishing, Inc

film. tv. entertainment.

[ ON LOCATION ]

Valdosta is a community that offers a variety of location possibilities. You can find historic architecture, lakes, pecan orchards, farmland, wineries, an olive oil farm, a championship golf course, multiple city parks, a railroad switching station, and the friendliest people in the South.

Getting to and from Valdosta is a easy with six exits off Interstate 75. Valdosta is in

close proximity to Jacksonville International Airport , Orlando International Airport and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The Valdosta Regional Airport also offers connecting flights to Atlanta.

Valdostafilm.com

MAGAZINE

STAFF Publishers:

Tia Powell (Group Publisher) Gary Powell

Editor-in-Chief: Gary Powell

JULY / AUGUST 2017

CONTRIBUTORS Christine Bunish

Feature Story: Been There, Done That, p. 36

Christine Bunish has been a writer and editor covering the professional film, video, broadcast and advertising industries for more than 25 years. She was a writer at Broadcast Management/Engineering and World Broadcast News and an editor at Millimeter before going freelance. cbunish@gmail.com

Associate Editor:

Zachary Vaudo

Sales:

Michael R. Eilers Martha Ronske Kris Thimmesch

Contributors:

Christine Bunish Christopher Campbell Dianna Edwards

Creative Director:

Christopher Campbell

Feature Story: Rev Me Up, Savannah!, p.42

Christopher Campbell is a writer specializing in nonfiction film and television. He is the creator of the documentary review website Nonfics and an editor for Film School Rejects and Movies.com. He has also contributed to Indiewire, MTV News, Paste, New York magazine and Documentary Magazine. He has a Master’s degree in Cinema Studies from NYU and now resides in Georgia with his wife and children. www.nonfics.com

Kelvin Lee

Production and Design:

Kelvin Lee Michael R. Eilers Ted Fabella (Oz Logo Design)

Cover Image:

Mercedes Crespo

Dianna Edwards

Cover Story: Above the Line with Tom Luse, p.28

Edwards was one of the OZ family’s first feature writers under her former byline, Thorington. She continues to author books and columns from her Historic Register farm in Cave Spring, GA. During the writing of this story, Edwards and Luse discovered their paths crossed many times during Luse’s career in commercial films. Big city, small town.

Mercedes Crespo

Cover Artist

Mercedes (aka Yema) is an independent 2D and 3D illustrator who specializes in character designs (the very odd ones). She studied the art of animation at the Savannah College of Art and design. Besides adding to the world of extravagant creatures and spending quality time with the computer, Yema enjoys spending time with her two little Yemas biking and watching movies. www.yemayema.myportfolio.com

www.ozmagazine.com www.facebook.com/ozmagazine www.twitter.com/ozpublishing www.instagram.com/ozmagazine (404) 633-1779 Oz Magazine is published bi-monthly by Oz Publishing, Inc. 2566 Shallowford Road Suite 104, #302 Atlanta, GA 30345 Copyright © 2017 Oz Publishing Incorporated, all rights reserved. Reproductions in whole or in part without express written permission of the publisher is strictly prohibited. This magazine is printed on recyclable paper.

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Oz Magazine

Seeks Next Generation of Artists

See page 58

JULY / AUGUST 2017

CONTENTS

Ozcetera

Feature Story

A compilation of recent news and hot projects, from and about industry leaders.

Oz Scene

How I Got Into The Business

48 Women In Production Summit 50 Creative + Investor Summit 51 The 10 Luncheon

Cover Story

Above the Line with Tom Luse: Light from the Dead A conversation with Tom Luse...

Rev Me Up, Savannah! The Impact of Film Production on Georgia’s Oldest City

52 Goo-Con 53 SCAD 2017 Spring Commencement 53 AJFF Selects: The Wedding Plan

Feature Story Been There, Done That Words and Wisdom from Industry Trailblazers

Let Me Give You My Card

Next Generation

Presenting Georgia’s emerging artists

July / August 2017

OZCETERA

2016 Film Study Chart via FilmLA

Georgia Rules the Big Budget Landscape By Zachary Vaudo 2016 Film Budgets Chart via FilmLA

ccording to FilmLA’s 2016 Feature Film Study, Georgia filmed the most feature films last year, making it 2016’s number one filming location worldwide. Georgia tops the list with 17 films, barely beating out the United Kingdom’s 16. Canada, California, and a tie between Louisiana and New York round out the top five with 13, 12, and 6 respectively. FilmLA’s study highlights the 100 highest-performing U.S. feature films released theatrically last year, identifying where they were filmed and how much was spent to produce them. Georgia’s film industry not only shot the most movies, but had some of the highest grossing films in the state as well. 2016’s Georgia-made films include blockbusters like Passengers, Hidden Figures, Allegiant, and Captain America: Civil War. Other films shot in 2016 but released in 2017

include Spider-Man: Homecoming, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, The Fate of the Furious, and Hangman. $2.02 billion was spent on film and TV production combined in Georgia, while Georgia spent $606 million to fund the tax credits. While Georgia takes the top with number of films, the budget value and amount

spent per location for Georgia is lower than its competitors (see chart). For example, while Georgia’s percentage of budget spent in-state equals roughly 50%, California’s is closer to 86%. Additionally, the United States as a whole makes up 57% of the films worldwide, which is the lowest percentage for the country in five years.

Kees van Oostrum to Serve Second Term as President of American Society of Cinematographers

he American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) has reappointed Kees van Oostrum to a second term as president of the organization. The ASC Board also elected its officers for the 2017-2018 term, including Bill Bennett, John Simmons and Cynthia Pusheck as vice presidents; Levie Isaacks as treasurer; David Darby as secretary; and Isidore Mankofsky as sergeant-at-arms. “As an organization, we are focused on education, international outreach, diversity and preservation of our heritage,” van Oostrum says. “Over the past year, we expanded our Master Class program internationally to Toronto and China. We launched a Chinese version of American Cinematographer maga-

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Kees van Oostrum

zine. We are preparing for a third International Cinematography Summit, which sees attendees from several other societies around the world. And our Vision Committee has many initiatives planned after presenting two very successful ‘Day of Inspiration’ events in Los

Angeles and New York, which were designed to inspire female cinematographers and crewmembers.” Van Oostrum is also the chairman and originator of the renowned ASC Master Classes, which take place several times a year with sell-out enrollment. Inaugurated in 2013, the Master Classes are taught exclusively by ASC members, designed for cinematographers with an intermediate-to-advanced skill set, incorporating practical, hands-on demonstrations of lighting and camera techniques with essential instruction in current workflow practices.

OZCETERA

Only one company does it all under one roof. Serving the community since 1983, we are Atlanta’s only one stop shop for all of your production needs

• CAMERAS

• DOLLIES

• LIGHTING

• GENERATORS

• GRIP TRUCKS

• EXPENDABLES

• SOUNDS STAGES

Atlanta’s most comprehensive production equipment supplier for over 30 years.

www.pce-atlanta.com 800-537-4021 404-609-9001 2235 DeFoor Hills Road, Atlanta, GA 30318

An employee owned company

July / August 2017

OZCETERA

Still from The Founder

Founder Feud By Nicola Breslauer

he Weinstein Co. is being sued for breaking contractual obligations regarding the distribution of The Founder. FilmNation filed their charges in the Supreme Court of Manhattan, claiming their subsidiary Speedee Distribution, which had financed much of the films budget, had created an agreement with TWC not to release any film by the studio a week before or after the release of The Founder. The Weinstein Co. is being accused of releasing Gold (starring Matthew McConaughey) just a week after the release of The Founder. Both films are biopics

with a similar target audience, creating dismay for FilmNation. Speedee Distribution and FilmNation are suing for $15 million in damages as well as costs and interest. With the releases only seven days apart from January 20th to January 27th, they believe TWC breached their agreement. “The Weinstein Company did not breach its contract and it will defend itself vigorously in court,” says attorney Evan Chesler in defense of TWC. The suit states: “In the event of a breach, the agreement required TWC

to pay Speedee liquidated damages in the amount equal to the greater of…the amount TWC actually spent on any post-production Prints and Advertising (P&A) commitment, and $15,000,000. The $15,000,000 amount of liquidated damages was derived based on TWC’s obligation under the agreement to spend a minimum of $10,000,000 on P&A cost.” The Founder was filmed in Atlanta in 2016, and stars Michael Keaton and Nick Offerman.

Film Industry Brings $9.5 Billion to Georgia Economy

Phoenix Air Freefly Alta

eature film and television productions shot in Georgia have generated an economic impact of $9.5 billion during Fiscal Year 2017, according to Governor Deal. The combined 320 productions shot in Georgia represent $2.7 billion in direct spending in the state. “Georgia’s film industry supports thousands of jobs, boosts small business growth and expands offerings for tourists,” said Deal. “These productions mean new economic opportunities and real investments in local communities. We are committed to further establishing Georgia as a top film destination and introducing film companies to the Camera Ready backdrops available across Georgia.” “Literally hundreds of new businesses have relocated or expanded in Georgia to support this burgeoning industry, creating jobs for Georgians as well as economic opportunities for communities and small businesses,” added Georgia Department of Economic Development commissioner Pat Wilson. Craig Miller, chair of the Film, Music, and Digital Entertainment Commission, says, “$9.5 billion represents booming business and more jobs for Georgians, not only for those involved on set, but for the countless industries that are benefiting from the increased business film and television brings to the state.” 8

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Phoenix Air Takes Gold By Zachary Vaudo

RGUS International, Inc. has named Cartersville’s Phoenix Air Unmanned as the first ARGUS Gold Rated unmanned operator. “Our pursuit of safe and reliable unmanned aerial systems (UAS) operations in complex flight environments led us to the standards, tools and applications provided by ARGUS Unmanned,” said William Lovett, managing direc tor of Phoenix Air Unmanned. “The ARGUS Gold Rating plays a critical role in our mission to provide the highest standard of safety to our customers.” The ARGUS Audit Standard is the first of

its kind, designed for commercial unmanned aircraft operations to assess their operational safety and create a fully-vetted registry of commercial UAS operators. The registry supports end-customer sourcing and due-diligence requirements for internal operations and external vendor qualification. “The achievement by Phoenix Air demonstrates their high regard for safety in the UAS industry,” said Joe Moeggenberg, ARGUS CEO and founder. Phoenix Air is known for its aerial cinematography work in films including Insurgent, Allegiant, and Dirty Grandpa.

OZCETERA

July / August 2017

OZCETERA

LightBlade Unveiled

ALPHA, Dead Men, Friends to the End

BCUniversal unveiled its latest innovation in LED production lighting, NBCUniversal LightBlade. In partnership with Cineo Lighting, NBCUniversal LightBlade products feature reference-quality variable white light from 2700K to 6500K, with typical color rendering CRI>90, R9>95 and a saturated color engine that works creatively with high-CRI white light. “Advancements in LED technology are allowing greater capabilities in production lighting, and we’re excited to be at the forefront of that movement,” said Jamie Crosbie, vice president of studio services at NBCUniversal. “NBCUniversal LightBlade LED production lighting provides outstanding color, along with the ability to have each NBCUniversal LightBlade individually DMX controlled.” “From its inception, Cineo’s charter has been advancing the art of motion picture, television and broadcast production through application of innovative lighting technologies,” said Rich Pierceall, CEO of Cineo Lighting. “Working with NBCUniversal to achieve this goal is both an honor and great opportunity to actively integrate lighting into the production process.”

Thrills and Chills Triple Feature!

onolopolous Productions, in association with Global Film Conspiracy, presented the world premiere of three Atlanta-made films: ALPHA, Dead Men, and Friends to the End at the Plaza Theater. Guests experienced a thrilling combination of neo-western, action, sci-fi, and dramatic films, along with live puppetry, screenings of local Atlanta filmmaker trailers, live musical performances, pre-party and after party celebrations, a red carpet walk, and an entertainment industry mixer. Films screened include ALPHA, navigating a government project that pits three genetically altered soldiers against one another: only

one can become the new alpha. Dead Men follows three men attempting to deliver a mysterious message while they are being pursued by a dangerous man through the southeastern wilderness. Friends to the End explores an imaginary friendship that helps a middle-aged under-achiever stuck at a dead-end job, with a family who doesn’t appreciate him. All three films are the work of local writer/director Ryan Monolopolus’s collaborations with members of the expansive Atlanta f ilm communit y, including Jeremy Cournyea, Michael Kam, Nina Marinov, Josiah Morgan, Josh Saideman, Cameron Garrity, Siete, and Carlos A Velasco.

Sumptuous Media Signs Nathan Lee Nathan Lee

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

xecutive producer David Warren and director Nigel Rowe at tabletop production company Sumptuous Media welcome director Nathan Lee for stop-motion animation. Over the past several years, Lee has directed and produced content for major brands like Whole Foods Market, Mutual of Omaha, and Habitat for Humanity. Lee began his career shooting documentaries and has also worked extensively in post-production. Once he discovered the magic of stop motion animation he was hooked. “Sumptuous Media’s resources

and skills are going to allow me to take stop motion in a more refined direction,” Lee says. Lee is a native of Georgia and is returning to America after a successful stint working in Italy. Looking to the future with Lee onboard, Rowe and Warren are highly enthusiastic. “Stop-motion animation is a natural extension of our current offerings shooting precision motion pictures on a stage with motion control. The tools required to do so are the same, but the resulting work is a fresh addition,” says Warren.

OZCETERA

“Productions & Events are our Speciality, Customer Service is our Pleasure.”

Power & Equipment Rentals:

100 ton and 200 ton Chillers Generators (Sound Attenuated) & Studio Units Power Distribution Temperature Controls Light Towers/Globugs

NEW

Services:

Turn Key Service - Power & Climate Controls Tech Support Available 24/7 Staffed Licensed Electricians-Electrical Permits Power & HVAC Logistics-Pre-Site Consultation On Site Diesel Fuel Service (Diesel & Bio-Diesel) Stand-by Electricians & Experienced Techs “We are Local and Family owned & operated” Visit our website for a complete listing of equipment (service page) & credits (event page)

www.harrisdiversifiedllc.com

230 Summerhill Rd., Dallas, GA 30132 (Main Office) 770-445-8722

Rick Harris (c) 404-550-6432 Owner & Sales / Service / Licensed Electrician Delores Harris (A/P Office) 770-794-6668 Owner & Bookkeeper Lindsey Harris Morrison (C) 770-722-6669 Office Manager / Film Accounting

July / August 2017

OZCETERA Susan G. Reid

Susan Reid Joins Fox Casting

ox Casting has appointed Susan G. Reid, formerly vice president of TV and film at Atlanta Models and Talent, as the company’s second casting director. Founder/owner Jessica Fox-Thigpen expressed her excitement: “Susan brings to our team an unparalleled depth of experience in the entertainment industry. She has been an agent, an acting coach and a director, a mix of skills that will allow us to continue building our business in accordance with our goals while keeping pace with the dynamism of the industry. Susan’s expertise will allow Fox Casting to expand its efforts in attracting and mentoring new as well as existing accounts in projects for both television and the film industry.” Reid said, “I am thrilled to join the team at Fox Casting, particularly at such a pivotal point in the growth of the TV and film industry in the Southeast.” Pictures Up Catering Truck

Pictures Up in Atlanta

eteran chef Rob Smith has taken his decades of experience catering to the LA and New York film markets and launched Pictures Up Catering in Atlanta. Pictures Up offers full-service truck catering, van service for small-budget films, and drop-off service with a variety of menu items.

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

OZCETERA

July / August 2017

OZCETERA Walter J. Biscardi

GP Studios

New Look for Georgia-Pacific

eorgia-Pacific opens a new chapter in GP Studios by renovating its studio facility and hiring Walter Biscardi, Jr. as the communications creative director. Biscardi is a familiar name in the Atlanta and national production communities due to running his own companies and through his knowledge sharing on creative blogging sites. “I’m thrilled to be a part of this creative team and I feel like I’m coming to GeorgiaPacific at just the right time,” said Biscardi. “I’ve

Podcast Celebrates Three Years

tlanta Film Chat celebrates its third anniversary this year, marking over 150 episodes released. The podcast, which has featured writers, directors and actors as well as costumers, art designers and sound mixers from all over the city, first began as a way for producer and host Chuck Thomas and co-host Molly Coffee to network and interact with professionals they normally wouldn’t encounter. Thomas said, “Molly and I both listen to a lot of podcasts and thought the format would suit our needs as we weren’t interested in doing short, trite interviews. Since it’s more of a ‘chat’ we can really get to know these people and what makes them tick.” Besides the original series of episodes focusing on one interviewee or subject, the show also has three spin-offs. The Pitch features Coffee and her struggles to make her first feature film from start to finish. Chattin’ with Chuck features Thomas discussing screenwriting issues and tips. The Roundtable includes several people from the same trade (acting, producing, costuming) discussing the craft amongst themselves. Notable guests include Rebecca Shrager, president of The People Store talent agency who outlined how actors can acquire an agent; Adam Pinney, director of SXSW winning film The Arbalest briefly after his win; and Tom Luse, executive producer of The Walking Dead.

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

lived in the area over 25 years and honestly didn’t even know the studios existed until I came for my interview. It’s an amazing hidden gem right in the heart of Atlanta.” GP Studios director of operations Brad Hinton says the addition of Biscardi has elevated the creative output for the entire team. “With Walter coming on-board, he brings an agency mindset and a fresh creative perspective.” Having worked on many national projects, including Good Eats, Biscardi feels GP

Studios is well positioned to serve both local and national clients. “This caliber of studio space, in this location on Peachtree Street, next to so many hotels and with easy drive-in access, is well suited for so many projects. We’re excited to open the doors to a thriving production community.” GP Studios will host an open house for the renovated studio at the end of August.

Elle Richardson

Richardson (bottom right) & guests at WIFTI Conference 2007

Remembering Elle Richardson By Monique McGlockton

n May 28, 2017, the Georgia film community lost Sherry “Elle” Richardson: former WIFTA president (2003-2004), WIFTI chair (2008), actress, writer, producer, director and coach. With over 20 years of industry experience, Elle was adored by many. Here are a few reflections from those who knew her as a professional and personally. Dwayne Boyd: “When I first met Elle, we instantly connected. We both possessed the same ideas and energy for film and TV. I truly respected her views and ideas regarding the craft. She had an infectious energy that no matter what she was working on, she automatically persuaded you to get on board. She would definitely illuminate a room with her positive energy and warm, inviting smile. The world is a different place without her.” Lorna Wilson: “Because of our acquaintance through WIFTA, she hired me as a contractor to assist her in the video department at the world headquarters for UPS, where she had started as an in-house production coordinator

and eventually went on to write and produce projects. I worked side-by-side with Sherry for two years where I witnessed her exceptional work ethic, and attention to detail. It was no surprise to see Sherry accomplish many of the things we discussed from our days in the ‘dungeon’ (our windowless work space adjacent to the UPS studios). She was skillful, professional, reliable and very passionate about working in media and entertainment…a visionary who went beyond ideas and took action, she will truly be missed.” Doug Lehman: “You can’t just def ine Sherry as an actress, director, producer, writer, coach etc. Her true calling was encouraging and uplifting others to pursue their dreams and tell stories. I feel her legacy reaches beyond all her tremendous accomplishments and awards in film and entertainment. Just ask her family members, sorority sisters, co-workers, friends, actors and producers. Her carefree creative spirit is in all of us.”

OZCETERA

July / August 2017

OZCETERA Zayden Wright and Cmdr. LeRoy Chiao

VR Wish for Zayden

D animation and VR studio TRICK 3D partnered with Make-A-Wish Georgia, Dobbins Air Force Base, OneOrbit and UP TV to grant the first-ever virtual reality wish. Inspired by the imaginative wish of Zayden Wright, a seven-year-old Georgia native with lifelong congenital heart disease, TRICK 3D produced a VR short that takes the young astronaut on a fantastical expedition to outer space–all based on Zayden’s own creative vision. Enter tainment industr y veterans and Zayden’s Wish executive producers Candice Alger and Veronica Sheehan, in partnership with Craig Heyl of Pinewood Atlanta Studios, conceived that virtual reality could be harnessed to grant wishes, and the three shared the concept with Make-A-Wish Georgia CEO Tim Earley. From there, Alger tapped TRICK 3D to bring Zayden’s space expedition to life using VR. Drawing from more than a decade of storytelling, world-building and filmmaking experience, including the Number One hit animated special, An Elf’s Story, Chad Eikhoff directed the Zayden’s Wish VR experience alongside

Still from Zayden’s Wish

a studio team of producers, developers and artists. “This wish is huge, and it could only come from a brain like Zayden’s, which is so imaginative and inspiring,” said Eikhoff. “Virtual reality is inherently built for wishes and dreams, and this is a great example of VR making something possible that was previously unattainable. For us at TRICK 3D, building a world and experience for such a meaningful use at such a high level of production is 100 percent why we create.”

Zayden Wright boarded his VR rocket ship and “blasted off” from Dobbins Air Force Base in Marietta to much fanfare from more than 40 U.S. Air Force air men and women, family, friends and volunteers. He was guided by former NASA astronaut Commander LeRoy Chiao along his journey. The on-site Zayden’s Wish VR experience took place using the HTC Vive virtual reality headset. Zayden and his family will be able to experience his wish again and again with a take-home version on the Samsung Gear VR headset.

Valdosta-Lowndes Film Initiative Gets a Digital Makeover

he Valdosta-Lowndes Film Initiative (VLFI) unveiled a new website to focus on promoting the community as a destination for the media industry. “Our new website really captures the magic of the South Georgia region,” said Myrna Ballard of the Valdosta Chamber of Commerce. “It’s a major advance in our game plan to promote film & media productions in and around Valdosta.” “I have been working with the VLFI since its inception and I am very excited about the steps we have taken to promote VLFI as a film destination in Southwest Georgia,” said Amanda Peacock, regional tourism manager for the Georgia Department of Economic

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Development. “The roll-out of the new website will be a great addition to the work VLFI has done. I am excited about this opportunity for this area to increase its presence in film and tourism.” The new website, valdos taf ilm.com, showcases locations near the Valdosta and Lowndes County area that shows viewers what the region has to offer for a film production. The site also features a directory of local businesses, and it will be adding social media channels and newsletters to keep the community up-todate with news related to film and media industry in the region.

OZCETERA

July / August 2017

OZCETERA Via airbusaerial.com

Airbus Launches Atlanta Drones

erospace giant Airbus has launched an Atlanta-based commercial drone business. Airbus Aerial will initially focus on developing imagery services using drones, satellites and high altitude aircraft. The unit will target various industries, including insurance, agriculture, oil and gas, utilities, and state and federal governments, Airbus said in a statement. “Drones are only a piece of a much larger picture for us,” said Jesse Kallman of Airbus. “Airbus Aerial brings together a variety of aerospace technologies – including drones and satellites – combines them in a common software infrastructure, and applies industry-specific analytics to deliver tailored solutions to our customers’ biggest challenges.”

Rentals Chairs • Stools • Tables • Desk Task lamps • Flat files • Easels • many more!

Production Supplies Foamboard • Gatorboard • Seamless Paper Wide format printing paper • Gaffer tape Masking tape • Markers • Dulling spray Adhesives • Spray Paint

1 74 5 P e a c h t r e e S t r e e t - 4 0 4 . 3 5 2 . 72 0 0 - s a m f l a x s o u t h . c o m 18

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

OZCETERA

Alpha Trivette

Cameron Griggs-Posey Gail Tassell

Jock McKissic

rtist Entertainment Management (AEM) is expanding operations, adding Misha Mask-Helms as marketing manager. She will be responsible for implementing marketing and strategic communications for AEM and its clients. Mask-Helms is a seasoned communications professional with more than 20 years of experience in corporate marketing, advertising agencies and experiential marketing firms. In addition to helping co-found Atlanta-based event marketing firm Fusion Creative, LLC in 2006 and acting as its primary marketing and business development executive, she has also worked with global organizations such as Equifax, Iron Mountain and TMP Worldwide. Cameron Griggs-Posey joins as executive assistant/manager-in-training. She will oversee day-to-day support including social media management and engagement. A 2015 graduate of Belmont University, Griggs-Posey served as a marketing, publicity and artist management intern for entertainment giants Warner Bros. and Lionsgate while in school. Her

Elizabeth Ludlow

Kyanna Simone Simson

Misha Mask-Helms

AEM Expands hands-on experience afforded her the opportunity to assist with public relations efforts for such major motion pictures as Divergent, Transcendence and 300: Rise of an Empire. AEM clients have made waves with recent projects, as well: Kyanna Simone Simpson, a 20-year-old University of Georgia college student, landed a role in White Boy Rick, a major motion picture also starring Matthew McConaughey, Bruce Dern, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Piper Laurie. Simpson can also be seen in the HBO film The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks along with fellow AEM clients Patrick Walker, Jock McKissic and Alpha Trivette. Walker has made appearances in several television shows and movies including Greenleaf, Iron Fist and Scream as well as the new Rings movie. McKissic has appeared on the ever-popular NBC series Blindspot, and recurs on several other television shows including 24: Legacy, The Quad and Saints and Sinners. Trivet te, half of the former long-time

Patrick Walker

Atlanta radio show Kelly and Alpha, is one of the series regulars in Too Close to Home on the TLC Network, and also plays a retired physician battling dementia in Happy, Alabama. Season two is currently airing, and the show films in Atlanta, Georgia. Another AEM client, Elizabeth Ludlow, recurs in The Walking Dead, playing Arat. She has also recently finished filming a new pilot for the CW and can be seen in the new Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 movie. As life imitates art, AEM principals, Gail Tassell and John Brooks Klingenbeck also make appearances on Lifetime’s reality TV show, Little Women Atlanta, with their clients, Amanda and Andrea Salinas. “This year is off to a great and busy start—from booking new client projects to our appearance on Little Women Atlanta,” says Klingenbeck. “We believe we will continue to expand rapidly over the coming months as the industry experiences meteoric growth in the Southeast and filmmakers and television producers will learn more about the vast talent pool right in their own backyard.”

July / August 2017

OZCETERA

Stills from Sway ATL

ATL Sways

tlanta production company Full Lock Media presents Sway ATL, a video series chronicling true stories of creatives in Atlanta. “Sway ATL lets you get to know the people in the city of Atlanta—the creative individuals who make things happen and influence our city with their authenticity and application of imagination,” says Full Lock founder Kapil Gandhi. “Sway is a drawback to the curtain. We are an attempt at a cure. Welcome home Atlanta.”Sway ATL will be releasing at least one micro-documentary a month about a specific chosen creative in Atlanta that is authentically influencing the direction of the city, along with investigative micro-documentaries of various “needto-know” local stories. Cypress Trees at George L. Smith Park in Twin City, Georgia. Photo by Philip Wages

Craig Miller Productions Loves This State

raig Miller Productions has launched welovethisstate.com to showcase their work for the Georgia Department of Economic Development, the Columbus and Henry County Convention and Visitors Bureau, and more. “Over the last three years of production, we’ve shot hundreds of photos and videos throughout Georgia,” says the Craig Miller team. “So, we are inspired to share more of the state we love with you.” CMP will be adding more locations to the site.

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

OZCETERA Peter Mattson

Peter Mattson Joins Fizz City

izz City Films welcomes a new addition to their directing team. Peter Mattson, who directs live action, animation, visual effects, and motion graphics, has joined the Fizz roster, adding to the variety of an already rich list of directors at the company. Mattsonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s career began with editing and creating motion graphics for long-format documentaries on the Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Smithsonian Channel, and truTV. He started his own company, Taquet Film, where he served as head writer, director, editor, and animator on projects for clients including Disney, Marvel, Warner Brothers, TaylorMade, Kobe Bryant, and others. He is an award-winning artist who creates innovatively striking and unique imagery, while carefully maintaining focus on impactful storytelling. Mattson is an iconoclast who works relentlessly and is truly an inspired filmmaker.

July / August 2017

OZCETERA Digby Davies

VER Taps Digby

ER has named Digby Davies its new CEO. Davies brings nearly 30 years’ industry experience, including a total of 11 years as COO and then CEO of technology services provider, PSAV. “It was the experience I had as a ten-year VER customer that enticed me to be part of this global, growing company. For me, what sets VER apart is its culture of above and beyond service, relentless problem solving, consistently hiring the best people in the industry, and always providing added value. My goal is to preserve this culture for our 1,600 employees and our clients,” says Davies.

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

OZCETERA

Col. Bruce Hampton The Fox Theatre on May 1, 2017 - Photo by Paul R Giunta/Getty Images

Passionate Pursuits Honors Col. Bruce Hampton

he AIB-TV Network kicked off its new series Passionate Pursuits w/Bruce Kay, chronicling artists, actors, musicians, and creatives who have made a successful career doing what they love. The inaugural episodes of Passionate Pursuits highlight the legendary musician, Col. Bruce Hampton. On the evening of May 1, Hampton died during the encore of his own tribute concert at the Fox Theatre, alongside 27 legendary musicians from The Allman Brothers, REM, The Rolling Stones, Widespread Panic and more. Passionate Pursuitsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; first two half-hour shows use footage from the concert to honor the Godfather of the Atlanta jam band scene.

July / August 2017

OZCETERA Amanda Peet and Hank Azaria. Photo by Erika Doss/IFC

Behind Brockmire: An Interview By Nicola Breslauer

rockmire, the first television show from the popular parody site Funny or Die, wrapped its first season last month. The show stars Amanda Peet and Hank Azaria, and follows a major league baseball announcer as he attempts to reclaim his career a decade after he had a major on-air meltdown. Season one filmed in Georgia, specifically Atlanta and Macon. Oz got the opportunity to speak with some of the major players: Michael Levy, vice president of business development at Chainsaw (SIM Group LA division, which provided camera rentals, dailies, and more); Elizabeth Baquet, production executive at Funny or Die; and James Spies, producer/production manager of Brockmire. Tell us about the process of transforming a web video into a television series? Michael Levy: The scale of what you’re dealing with is much larger when working on a television series compared to working on a comedy short, or group of comedy shorts, like webisodes. The shoots are much longer, both the number of days per episode and the total amount of shooting involved. Also, as part of the process, you typically have multiple episodes in production and post-production at the same time. They used a technique called cross-boarding, where rather than shooting a specific number of days per episode, they spread the scenes across multiple days so that in the course of a week, they could be shooting scenes in different episodes, not just one. Elizabeth Baquet: The process varies depending on each project, but for Brockmire t h e m ai n ch a l l e n g e w a s d e ci d i n g w h a t direction to take the story. Once our creative team, led by executive producers Joel ChurchCooper, Hank Azaria and Tim Kirkby, knew how they wanted to see the characters evolve,

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

they were able to craft the full series arc. From there, we took the normal steps of producing a television series in terms of assembling the creative and production teams to pull everything off. James Spies: It involves both the creative and production sides of the process. The Brockmire character created by Hank Azaria had to be developed and a full season of scripts written. Joel Church-Cooper wrote the scripts and came up with the character arc for the first season. Once we had the scripts the challenge started on the production side. Shooting a season of scripted television is very different than doing a video and posting it on a web page. There is structure and a system that gets followed. You can’t just grab a

Tyrel Jackson Williams. Photo by Erika Doss/IFC

video camera and say “let’s go here and film this today.” There are permits, contracts, unions, locations, cast and crew to be hired, etc. One of the challenges was to keep the spirit of making a video alive while having the structure of doing scripted television in a “studio system” and following process and rules that we all do things by and understand. What was the biggest challenge? Spies: The biggest challenge on the production side was finding the right stadium creatively. Early on I had discovered Luther Williams stadium down in Macon, which was perfect, but because of the distance didn’t fit in our budget. The solution I came up with was to cross-board the entire season so that we had all the baseball work together in the schedule. This, along with some other budget cuts gave us the resources to be able to put the crew up in Macon and film the baseball scenes in the location with the best creative look for the show. Levy: When scaling a project up from a short to a multi-episode series, it comes with the issue of having multiple episodes in both production and in post at the same time. Several people involved in the series, while being very experienced in feature films and in shorts, hadn’t previously been through the process of working on an episodic series. All of the companies that make up SIM Group have worked on many episodic series over many years so we were in a really good position to offer lots of advice in terms of how to plan a workflow strategy, how to document things properly and how to coordinate getting their camera media from the set to the digital dailies office. We took care of moving the media digitally from Atlanta to Los Angeles and other similar issues so they didn’t have to worry about them.

OZCETERA Hank Azaria and Amanda Peet. Photo by Erika Doss/IFC

Baquet: We had a very short window to shoot all eight episodes but everyone really pulled together to create such a great show. Levy: One of the series co-stars, Amanda Peet, accidentally got hit in the head with a beer can, which is such a Brockmire moment. They were filming using the cross-board technique, working on multiple episodes in the course of a week, so the fact that she had a visible blemish on her forehead presented all kinds of continuity challenges. It was terrific in that once we became aware of the problem; we were immediately strategizing how to deal with it and how to get the material we needed to take a look at. Bling pulled the needed shots from camera dailies and got the material to us right away. We then worked with our Chainsaw visual effects crew to try out different techniques to fix the problem. The director was in Atlanta, the producers were at Funny or Die’s Hollywood offices, and the Brockmire editorial team and Chainsaw’s Brockmire finishing crew

extensively amongst ourselves. Spies: The people you meet each day when you go to a new location or work with a new crew. Every day is different.

were all together at the SIM Group headquarters in Hollywood. It was an instance where having a whole team working so closely together really helped out our client a lot. What is your favorite part about being in this industry and involved in an Atlantabased project? Baquet: I love getting to work with so many different people and Atlanta has a lot of talented crew members. Lev y: During shooting the SIM Group Atlanta team came to LA so we had an opportunity to meet face-to-face on several occasions. It was fun for me to get to know our Atlantabased teammates more personally and work closely with our Atlanta team. We had to coordinate having the dailies function and the post editorial function working so closely together: we avoided many potential conflicts, (e.g. finger-pointing situations, “Why did your dailies crew do it this way?”) by doing so and talking

What inspired you to get into the film industry? Levy: Over the course of my career, I have particularly enjoyed learning about new technology and finding new and better ways to get things done for our clients. That’s something I specialize in and hope that I’m known for. When we meet with manufacturers to talk about their new products, it’s one thing to see a technical advancement take place and talk about the latest and greatest camera, new editorial platform or visual effects system, but I really enjoy saying, “How is this going to help a particular client? How can they take advantage of it?” That’s one of the things that turns me on in the process. Baquet: In high school I started making my own small projects for fun and really enjoyed the challenge of bringing big creative ideas to life. Now I get to do that on a daily basis and it’s been really rewarding. Spies: I was inspired because I loved film and television and figuring out how things were done. I love the whole process, and I have been on both the creative side in development and as producer, and on the production side as line producer and production manager. I love figuring out how to get the show made and made well.

July / August 2017

OZCETERA

SAG-AFTRA Strike Narrowly Averted By Zachary Vaudo

ith threat of strike looming overhead, SAG-AFTRA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) recently ratified a new three-year deal. The new deal will generate an additional $256 million for performers over the next three years, according to SAG-AFTRA representatives. The agreement includes wage increases, funding increases, improved residuals, better pay regulations for background actors, and more. SAG-AFTRA president and negotiating committee chair Gabrielle Carteris said, “This is a forward-looking package with meaningful gains across our entire membership…Over the last 18 months, I’ve met and talked extensively with members throughout the country. Those conversations, along with our comprehensive

Wages and Working Conditions meetings, guided our bargaining strategy and helped build strength and unity. I am grateful to our members for their input and steadfast support which helped us achieve this excellent result.” David White, SAG-AFTRA national executive director and chief negotiator, added, “This negotiation was a heavy lift. We addressed several critical concerns related to travel pay and option periods as well as improving the residuals structure for streaming new media. We also achieved historic gains for our background community and additional enhancements affecting the general membership.” SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP clashed for months over the renewed agreement, with SAG-AFTRA representatives calling AMPTP’s

proposed rollbacks “outrageous” and “unacceptable.” Carteris and White had sent a message to guild members at the end of June announcing strike authorization, following continued clash with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, with an ultimatum for the end of the month. AMPTP and SAG-AFTRA agreed to a three-day extension, upon which the agreement was met. SAG-AFTRA is currently in the midst of its video game voice actor strike since the end of 2016. Union strikes have occurred as far back as the 1950s, most notably the Emmy boycott and strike that spanned nearly 100 days in the 1980s fronted by Ed Asner.

Rifleman The

Georgia's Premier Firearms Movie Rental Facility

We offer:

Antique, foreign, domestic and exotic weapons Military vehicles Ammunition (blanks, tracer, etc.) Ranges Destructive devices Silencers Training Consulting for film industry Video-game production

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Contact:

7209 Hawkinsville Road Macon, GA 31216

Store: 478-784-2767 Cell: 478-957-2767 Credits available upon request

theriflemanoffice@gmail.com

HOW I GOT INTO THE BUSINESS How did you get into the business?

Brian McGee Storyboard Artist / Concept Illustrator B.R.E. Productions International, Inc. breproductionsinternational@gmail.com

www.BREProductionsInternational.com

Kimberly Crocker Film/Media Production Make-up Artist kim@kimberlycrocker.com www.kimberlycrocker.com

Russ Jamieson CTO/Partner Broadcast Solutions russ@broadcastsolutions.tv www.broadcastsolutions.tv/

My passion after graduating the High School of Art and Design was to become a comic book artist. However, the silver screen always seemed to beckon, as I was always a cinephile so I decided to marry my love for film making with comic books. Hence, the introduction to the world of storyboards. My first professional experience in the business came in 2001 when I worked on Biker Boyz in Los Angeles, California. This was an amazing opportunity for me to work with some of the most prolific artists such as Lisa Bonet, Lawrence Fishburne and Derek Luke as well as working closely with the directors/producer couple Reggie “Rock” and Lisa Blythewood. A month later, a good friend of mine introduced me to John Singleton from my days of toy design. I convinced Mr. Singleton of my dedication to my craft and, to my surprise, he took a chance on me and hired me for the movie 2 Fast, 2 Furious. I had just been recently laid off from Disney so this opportunity forged the way for an incredible life change.

Do you have a word or quote or mantra you live by? “All Walls Have Cracks in Them.” Any seemingly impenetrable obstacle has hidden weak spot, which can be found through perseverance and persistence.

What’s the best advice you can offer to young people in your profession? My best advice for any young person who has a yearning to break into the business would be to expose themselves to as many diverse forms of art as possible by traveling, visiting these establishments, reading books and staying open minded. As my evolution as a storyboard artist progressed, I was able to analyze and understand the language of film making, the hows and the whys behind what is used to convey emotions and information to the audience. My advice to the storyboard newbies is this. Make it your business to understand what makes a good film director and, more importantly, a film editor. Movies are actually made in the editing room. Editors are a critical aspect of the filmmaking process. Study these individuals, the work they do, and HOW they do it. One of the ways that I was able to make this connection was by buying DVDs of my favorite film which include filmmaker commentaries, doing side by side comparison from storyboards to finished product, and thereby developing an understanding of how storyboards fit into the fabric of a production. Study the “Greats” like Hitchcock, Kurosawa, Orson Welles, David Fincher, Steven Spielberg and George Lucas to name but a few. Also, watch films with the sound turned off so that you can study and analyze the sequence of actions without the distraction of audio. Pick up a textbook called Shot by Shot by Steven Katz, this is a storyboard artist’s handbook.

How did you get into the business?

Do you have a word or quote or mantra you live by?

My first “real” paying job was in 1998 doing hair and makeup for a fashion show in Atlanta, that is where I would meet Jacque Carder, who would then become a mentor to me, in which I would work as her assistant for years on photoshoots, commercials and a couple independent films. I still work with Jacque on occasion and never mind taking on the assistant role at times. I am so grateful for her!

“Be Fearless in the Pursuit of what sets your Soul on Fire” —unknown

What’s the best advice you can offer to young people in your profession?

If you weren’t doing this, what would be your dream job? At one time I almost put Makeup to the back burner to pursue the Culinary Arts (I was touring schools), I still hope to one day own a quaint bed & breakfast and serve my cuisine! I LOVE to cook!

Answer your emails and voicemails ASAP, even if you are not available for a job, you must respond! I was taught this valuable lesson early on. And make sure your contact info (Email, website & phone) is current. Clients will move on to the next available artist and may never consider you for a future project if you are not accessible. Same goes for new artists wanting to work with a seasoned artist, I want a reliable and professional person on my team.

What makes your job cool or fun for you?

How did you get into the business?

hard in those areas to make our business successful. He’s so much better than me with clients and networking… and for my part, I’m more technically adept than he is. It’s been a great partnership. In this and my previous life as a journalist I loved the adventures and the people I met day after day after day. Some days can be a bummer… but nearly everyone I meet has a nugget I find interesting or informative. We have a huge aerial stock footage library… and I’ve enjoyed working together with the helicopter crew and DP acquiring spectacular footage of Atlanta and Georgia. Understand that on this journey through the universe you’ll need to continuously learn and adapt to it…it won’t adapt to you. My dream job is what I’m doing right now… working with my partner and my friends on documentaries. We’ve done two now, and having the opportunity to work in depth on a topic is wonderful. We typically work with a familiar group of very talented individuals, and it very comforting to know they are giving us 200% and more; it makes my job so much easier.

Well, I came in through the side door, I guess. The first part of my career was as a journalist. I was a general assignment reporter for WAGA-TV from 1981-1994 and then a freelance correspondent for CNN’s SE Bureau from 1996-1999 (loved it). The range of experiences was enormous… following the Braves in a World Series run, flew Shamu the blimp, racing across a field in Germany in an M1 tank in the fog. I got tear gassed… shot at and was in the eye of Hugo and a handful of other hurricanes (loved it all), Then I exited news and decided to give video production a try. I connected with anyone I knew or had met within the market, and began working with friends at Panther Productions (Herb Kossover, Jack English). Eventually, Jack and I partnered and formed Broadcast Solutions… and we have been partners in this venture (and others) for over 20 years

What’s the best advice you can offer to young people in your profession?

Working with great talent and an amazing crew makes the long days so worth it!

Find someone you trust and who shares your energy and vision. Jack and I are good at different things and we work

July / August 2017

Executive Producer Tom LuseÂ The Walking Dead Season 8 Photo Credit: Jackson Lee

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Tom Luse (center) may not have Andrew Lincoln’s rugged appeal, but he can make even a zombie smile. Photo credit: Gene Page/AMC

e will laugh when he reads this. Because Tom Luse assigns magic to those around him. He can name the names of men and women 47 years in his past who gifted him with this or that opportunity, taught him this or that wondrous lesson. Luse assigns credit to anyone other than himself. He seems unaware that he, like Robert McCammon’s hero in Boy’s Life, was born knowing magic and never, ever, lost that bright-eyed boy’s gift. Even to the cognoscenti, “Tom Luse” may not be the first name that staggers to mind on the thermonuclear force that

is The Walking Dead. Actors, walkers, brilliant aesthetics and wrenching despair–the sheer emotional freight of the show doesn’t push the question: “How does all this come together?” How has The Walking Dead become the number one drama on television for 18-49-yearolds not just today, but for the past five years? That’s television history, per the researchers at AMC, dear hearts. Even following season seven, when the series’ live-plus-same day average ratings posted its lowest since 2012, the show stood head and shoulders over every entertainment show on television on

broadcast as well as cable, per Variety. So much for the question of who sits on the Iron Throne. Luse is an executive producer for The Walking Dead. He was the company’s first freelance hire as its line producer, but there was no production department to manage when he came aboard. He was literally Sheriff Rick Grimes clip-clopping alone into the haunted streets of Atlanta when he signed with the television company side of The Walking Dead project’s original group of legendary film and television writer/producer/directors: Frank Darabont and Gale Anne Hurd.

July / August 2017

At that time, Darabont’s credits included The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, and The Mist. Hurd’s included all three Terminator films, Aliens, and The Abyss. For such luminaires to seek out Luse to set up their operation speaks volumes about him that he won’t say about himself. “Gale Anne and Frank were already working together at the time, and then they hired me,” said Luse. “Before we even shot the pilot, they ended up negotiating a budget and schedule for the first six

Andrew Lincoln (as Rick Grimes) is one of the most familiar faces in America today. Even with Zombies on screen, he commands attention. Photo credit: Gene Page/AMC

episodes. We thought to ourselves, ‘this is great. We have six episodes!’ Not one of us ever dreamed the show would be the success it has been. The standard thinking was that a genre TV show would be the kiss of death.” Luse was by no means new to the worlds of film and television production in Georgia or anywhere else by the time he met with Darabont and Hurd in late 2009. His filmography as a producer, production manager, or executive producer dates back to 1995 with titles such as Blue River, Remembering the Titans, Jeepers Creepers 1&2, One Tree Hill, The Joneses, and The Collection. But in a very real sense, Luse’s film career began years before that, here in Atlanta, on paths of learning he carved out with the help of friends. Most of those friends are still his friends. And like Luse, most of those friends would come to be known as legends—even giants—in the Atlanta film community. But at the time, it was mostly a lot of hard work and fun. You know: just like it is now.

There Are Schools. And There Are Teachers. Though Luse isn’t Georgia-born, he’s Georgia-bred. But he’s of an age that he predated Georgia’s film school programs, much less its awareness of film as a career path. After spending a few years postcollege working with disabled children, he headed to Georgia State University planning on a master’s in psychology. “Growing up in Atlanta in the 60s and 70s, we never really thought we’d have actual real filmmaking to do,” he pointed out. “I’d made a couple of homemovie type things, but never seriously thought about filmmaking until I went back to graduate school.” That’s when he met Kay Beck. Beck was launching GSU’s film program with just a handful of courses and a few curious students. GSU’s embryonic film program is where Luse met lensman Lee Blasingame (then on GSU's staff), and independent filmmaker Gary Moss (in GSU's Educational Media Department). Luse also soon met independent filmmaker Bill VanDerKloot through Image Film and Video (founded in 1977 with Moss and

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

When Jayan opened its doors in the 1970s, his gift for humanity and visual storytelling was a first in advertising. He was an artist working in a sales medium (one that could not be twiddled on still to be invented editing equipment, thank you very much) and creative people came to Jimmy Collins because he made their work better. Photo credit: Film Tribe/Atlanta

Of course the man who started Atlanta’s first film equipment support company would have a cool car. The late Jerry Crowder’s PS-A offered it all: Dollies, cranes, and state of the art equipment. Even distribution on the feature side. Even if you didn’t know how to make a film, you could make a film. Photo credit: Oz Archives

Bill VanDerKloot and Gary Moss founded Image Film and Video in 1977 to support Georgia’s media artists and producers. Over time, Image evolved into the Atlanta Film Festival we know today—with Bill VanDerKloot as its founding director. Today, he heads his own company, VanDerKloot Film & Television, with hundreds of awards (including a Peabody) and thousands of projects from all over the world. Photo Credit: Oz Archives

later to become the Atlanta Film Society.) Luse and Blasingame partnered to become the official videographers for the Atlanta Hawks games. With fellow GSU students Gary Anderson and Kelly Mills, Luse produced videos for the still-famous “Love Shacking” B-52s from Athens. “We each gained a lot of experience from those side ventures,” says Luse. Indeed: Lee Blasingame became one of the most respected camera assistants in

the business. His credits include Dances with Wolves, Crash, and Captain America: Civil War. Moss earned a 1988 Oscar nomination for the documentary Gullah Tales. Bill VanDerKloot heads his own film company and counts a Peabody among his hundreds of awards. Luse’s GSU master’s thesis, an award-winning documentary titled Who’s Killing the Cities? earned him an AFI Film Director’s internship at Paramount Pictures in Hollywood. “But when I came home from Los Angeles, I had to make a living. So I got a great internship with Jayan Films. Jimmy Collins was a major influence on me. He was—is—a great filmmaker. I worked with Jayan in so many different departments. I did everything.” Commercials were big business in Atlanta in the early 1980s and Jayan Films was perhaps Atlanta’s top house for television production. With Collins behind the lens and bon vivant John Reichard strutting a stellar reel, the work rolled in. But the winds of change were blowing by the end of the 1980s and television production (and advertising in general) was slowing down. By 1988, Luse was applying his experience to feature films in Georgia—specifically, a film that was nominated for five Academy Awards and took home three: Glory. Luse was typically understated about his assistant unit production manager work on that groundbreaking film. “All of my experience merged to the point that I started production managing a film shooting in McDonough, Savannah, and Jekyll Island. It wasn’t long afterwards that I joined the Director’s Guild,” he said. The slowdown in the South’s production community continued. There were many reasons for this but among the most pertinent was the cold north wind coming in from Canada. A wind by the name of “incentives.” Simply put, Canada was offering tax incentives to attract film and television production and Georgia was not. So Luse and craftspeople like him followed film work wherever it led them. To Utah. To Los Angeles. Even overseas. For the next several years, while clever Georgia production professionals were working with the government to put the right incentive packages in place, Luse and men and women like him were on the road. With Georgia always on their minds.

There‘s No Place Like Home

George Ellis

Bestoink Dooley and Real Popcorn Tom Luse’s first job in legitimate film was—wait for it—popping the famous real popcorn available at George Ellis Film Forum in Ansley Mall. “I went there every week with my then-girlfriend in the 1970s,” he says. “I worked in the Buckhead theatre as well, on and off for years. In a sense, that’s where my love for classic film and the finer points of filmmaking began.” In the Atlanta market, actor and classic film impresario George Ellis was known to a whole generation as Bestoink Dooley, host of the Friday night frightfest Big Movie Shocker. According to the Oxford American, Dooley was among the first of horror film hosts across America that would include names like Vampira, Morgus the Magnificent, Count Gore De Vol, and more. Wearing a crushed Derby hat, bedraggled magician’s coat, and a drooping daisy, Bestoink Dooley was a sensation. Adults may have been alarmed by his antics and horror films like The Mummy (1932), but children were thrilled. Fan clubs mushroomed. Crowds flocked to him at drive-in showings of The Wolf Man (1941). Bestoink Dooley hosted poetry readings, opened shopping centers, made horror films of his own. After his death in 1983, reporters such as then-Atlanta Journal-Constitution film critic Eleanor Ringel wrote of Ellis’ contributions to introducing serious film to Atlanta. As Ringel put it, “George let there be light in Atlanta.” Bestoink Dooley Fan Club Button, Photo Credit: Horror Host Graveyard

Luse never saw George Ellis [see Bestoink Dooley insert] in his Bestoink Dooley persona. But he did have the bejeezus scared out of him at Saturday matinees showing 50s and 60s classics like Them! (atomic-sized ants) and William Castle’s Mr. Sardonicus (with “Punishment Poll!”). “I was terrified! I was soooooo scared. I’m still sensitive—I’m not squeamish. But Horror is hard for me.” Given Luse’s filmography that has scared the pants off millions, he not only mastered those childhood fears but also learned how to use them on film. His return to Georgia in 2009 was as executive producer on the Demi Moore/ Michael Duchovny life-as-productplacement nightmare film The Joneses. The Vampire Diaries television series also hit Georgia then, both drawn in part by strong film incentives and the talent of available crew. So when Frank Darabont and Gale Anne Hurd called sensitive Tom Luse— who has never forgotten either a kindness or the squeeze of fear that rises in a dark theatre and disappears like mist when the Sheriff rides in—Luse was ready.

What IS IT About This Show? The Walking Dead has antecedents in rich classic elements. Like the canon of classic and later horror films, from The Mummy to Psycho and Silence of the Lambs, it reflects what society fears most at any given time. As Luse put it, “Somehow this show—well, it isn’t just about zombies. It’s captured the zeitgeist: The spirit of the times. I think a lot of people are concerned. About what’s right and wrong. About what happens when all of this goes bad. If you are afraid about what’s right and wrong; about where you’d stand if you had to make hard choices. How would you survive in a crazy world? This theme—of testing or measuring ourselves against whatever forces there are—is what our writers have explored so well. That, with the quality of our actors and production brings it home.” July / August 2017

Archeologist Pat Garrow agrees with that assessment. Garrow falls well outside the series normal demographic and his 51-year career in archeology (prehistoric, urban, historic cemetery, Native American, and Caribbean) gives him a unique perspective. “It appears there has been fascination with the dead since recognizable humans evolved. Most often the dead are feared, although they might also be revered at the same time,” says Garrow. “The zombies of the Caribbean appear to be people who have been heavily drugged and are kept that

way, so they are really not parallels to the zombies of The Walking Dead.” Garrow has been watching the series since its premiere. He was intrigued by the believable premise of a disaster of that scale originating in Atlanta— because of an escaped engineered virus at the CDC that may have been created for biological warfare—and he’s been watching ever since. It’s not about the zombies for Garrow. Just as Luse explained, Garrow is drawn to the human dynamics of survival. “I watch it for the character study. The way

Co-Exec Producer Denise Huth gets down with a crawler. Photo credit: Gene Page/AMC

people react to stress that is unexpected and unparalleled. Characters have had to adapt, adjust, and justify their actions. They have each had to change in order to survive. If we lost all of our friends at once, it would normally have a paralyzing effect on us.” When inevitable comparisons to real-world situations he’s investigated are brought up (such as the Cherokee Trail of Tears), Garrow responds, “There was more hope there. Hope for survival, hope that someone would intervene. Characters on this show know that won’t happen. No external force can bail them out. Their adversaries are living sets of teeth without humanity and they know they can become one of them.” Garrow sees the show’s violence as essential to its narrative. “They are depicting a post-apocalyptic world where people sacrifice anything to survive. This sets the stage for the character changes. I think they do it pretty well. That team really has it together.”

The Business of the Dead

Director of Photography Stephen Campbell talks Michael Cudlitz (Sgt. Abraham Ford) through a Season 7 action sequence. Photo credit: Gene Page/AMC

“We process locally, we use interns from Georgia State and SCAD-make it a whole Georgia thing. We‘re a community member and proud of that.” Tom Luse

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Given the number of new production studios and the explosion of film and television projects around Atlanta these days, it isn’t surprising to hear that Georgia has more work now than it has crew. Sometimes the sheer amount of work in specialist driven craft positions— such as camera assistant jobs—exceeds the number of talented crew available. The Walking Dead’s 150-person crew is mostly from Atlanta, says Luse. “Our crew may change over time, but it is still primarily southeast.” Each of those people has to do their jobs precisely well so that every shot taken is successful. The Walking Dead defines success in part as creating a fictional world so rich in detail that it comes to life for everyone involved—especially the audience. Much of that work takes place long before the cameras roll. It takes sensitivity and attention to detail to build empathy with an audience. To move beyond merely building a prison set to conveying its claustrophobia, hopelessness, and the stink of fear. Sweating details such as rusted toilets, aged walls, concertina wire, and the debris of holocaust hits hard for

Sonequa Martin-Green (Sasha) has the last word for Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Negan) and it’s not “You had me at hello.” Photo credit: Gene Page/AMC

actors, camera crews, and eventually, the audience. “We build sets to be as realistic as possible,” says Luse. “It’s good for the look of the show and it’s good for the performers to make the world we live in look and feel as gritty as it would be as if everything had really just stopped. When every element has a heightened sense of reality, it helps not just the actors in the scene, but our camera crew capture the best possible images.” More than one reviewer has noticed. The painterly composition of individual scenes in The Walking Dead is the result of craftsmanship on many levels. “We choose the film grade that works best for the particular scene. We shoot mostly in 16mm for its cinematic look but if the scene works better in 35mm, we’ll use that. It all works toward the same end: The look and the feel.” Every detail matters. The quality of the actors and the quality of production. The skill of the camera crew and skill of the zombie trainers. Without good craft service and medics and honey wagons in southern heat—walkers would be the least of your worries.

“Zombies are not great conversationalists. They're not great with a quip.” Tom Luse

Exec Producer Greg Nicotero fell in love with makeup and special effects after seeing Jaws in 1975. His team’s work here on Sonequa Martin-Green (Sasha Williams) set the stage for one of Season 7’s most powerful self-sacrifices. Photo credit: Gene Page/AMC

July / August 2017

When presented with a beautiful Georgian staircase, even villains and heroes join hands to make the best of the opportunity. BTF: Lauren Cohan (Maggie Greene), Andrew Lincoln (Rick Grimes), Danai Girora (Michonne), Norman Reedus (Daryl Dixon), Sonequa Martin-Green (Sasha Williams), Tom Payne (Paul â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Jesusâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Rovia), Alanna Masterson (Tara Chambler), Chandler Riggs (Carl Grimes), Katelyn Nacon (Enid). Photo credit: Gene Page/AMC

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

The nostalgic colors and textures of this long lost country carnival approach folk art in their complexity. Cinematographers on the show have produced some of the most emotionally eloquent visuals on television under demanding conditions of extreme dark or saturated light. Over time, DPs have included Michael E. Satrazemis, Greg Melton, and David Boyd. Photo credit: Gene Page/AMC

“What you learn about film is that it is very archaic. It is its own world. It is very much like a carnival or something in that we have our own language. We have our own structure. It‘s not a business that fits any kind of outside model; it has its own interior model. People who are trained in business and try to apply that business model to the film business notoriously fail.” Tom Luse

But the magic starts in the writer’s room, and must be protected by a showrunner and supported at the network level. “The writer-as-showrunner came about in the last 15 years or so,” says Luse. “Writers are trained to do that in a sense, because they create the story arc for the actors and are best equipped to protect it. The story arc is critical for the overall success of any show. Managing that on a show like ours—over five years and 100 episodes—is essential. On The Walking Dead, that responsibility falls to executive producer/showrunner Scott Gimple. He works hard every day to keep our show fresh, vital, and ever changing.”

The Dead Community How has the beautiful little town of Senoia, Georgia reacted to being in

The Walking Dead’s reflected glow? With delight. But then, it did the same when Sam Waterson and Regina Taylor were in town shooting I’ll Fly Away and when the cast of Fried Green Tomatoes visited for that filming. Today’s fans, however, are more likely to visit filming locations, so Senoia has made them welcome with tour buses and a few gift shops among its historic museums and stately homes. “We have a great relationship with the town of Senoia. It has grown so much since we’ve been there. It was pretty sleepy when we started. We try to keep things quiet, keep a low profile. A lot of our show is very sensitive. The group that knows the storyline is very small and we want to keep it that way.” Luse is a happy man, a family man, and he pokes fun at himself by saying he has trouble paying attention to any one thing for very long. But the truth is, Luse

Executive Producers Greg Nicotero (left) and Scott Gimble work closely together. As Showrunner, Gimble spends every day keeping the storyline and anything that visually punctuates it on track. Photo credit: Gene Page/AMC

is a walking archive of detail. That’s his job. That’s part of his nature. That’s why he can name so many people in Atlanta who contributed to making it the film and television community it is today. Kay Beck. Lee Blasingame. Fran Burst. Jimmy Collins. Jesse Crawford. Jerry Crowder. Linda Dubler. Shay Griffin. George Ellis. Gayla Jamison. Bill Thompson. Gary Moss. Bill VanDerKloot. More names than a reporter’s pitiful recorder could catch. Some still with us. Some not. All luminous. Of himself he says only this: “And I, not knowing what I was doing, bounced around all the worlds of feature film and television production, just trying to find my way.” Tom Luse found his way. And the light he holds up now illuminates a path others will follow for years to come.

July / August 2017

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Photos courtesy of PC&E

GARY DUNCAN:

President, LongShadow Productions, Inc. (Picture Car Supplier)

What it was like then: We started in 1973 as a fabrication shop painting racecars and rebuilding and selling wrecked Corvettes. My introduction to film came through my Yellow Pages ad: I got a call late one night from someone who needed three cars painted overnight for a movie. It turned out to be Smokey and the Bandit. Then my name got passed along to the transportation coordinator for The Dukes of Hazzard. Between Burt Reynolds, Kenny Rogers, a lot of independent commercial houses and Turner we started to slowly build business. We kept the shop until 1978, when Doug Smith and I began designing and building camera insert cars. What it’s like now: It’s so different now due to the success of the tax incentives. Georgia is number three in film production behind LA and New York. There’s so much more infrastructure here and a local talent base. It’s a true industry now. Mistakes I won’t make again: I was very fortunate to get that lucky phone call and start in the business almost at the top. I haven’t made any major mistakes. Everyone I worked for taught me to watch and listen, which was great advice, especially when

we started building camera insert cars and wanted people’s input. Advice to those starting out: If you have the opportunity to go to film school you should take advantage of that. But what you learn in school is minimal compared to the reality of being involved in the industry with people who have been around a lot longer than you. The best teachers are industry veterans – listen and learn from them. If I was 22 again I’d go into visual effects. I believe it’s the future. We just worked on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and I was amazed at the final edit. Your business milestones: My first opportunity, Smokey and the Bandit. Then, in 1983, I was involved with Burbankbased Mitchell Insert Systems and Brianne

Murphy, ASC, in designing a completely new style camera insert car, which won an Academy Award for technical achievement. Georgia’s turning point: The incentives and everyone who had the forethought to lay the groundwork to bring incentives before the state legislature. It was a grass roots effort. Georgia’s future: We need to make sure that the incentives are always advantageous to producers and studios. They will always go where they can get the best deal and are treated fairly.

Haven’t been there, done that yet:

We’re in the preliminary planning stages of opening an automotive museum in North Atlanta with a section dedicated to famous movie cars. It’s something I’ve been thinking about for the past few years.

Gary Duncan & The General Lee

July / August 2017

Rebecca Shrager

REBECCA SHRAGER:

President & CEO, People Store, Inc. (Talent Agency)

What it was like then: The business was completely different! I didn’t realize what I was getting into. I went to art school, then into advertising, was a stylist for six years, then started hiring models and coordinating photo shoots for big companies. A commercial print firm hadn’t been able to find the talent they were looking for; they needed more diversity. There was a demand for something different here, so I went out and found real people. When I decided to open this company it was me and a phone in an office. I had a book of headshots I took myself and used couriers to deliver them. We became a franchised SAG-AFTRA agency from the beginning, and now we are ATA. Film work started to come in, then the series In The Heat of the Night and I’ll Fly Away. What it’s like now: We’re the oldest, original-founder agency around. We do film, TV and a lot of commercials throughout the southeast and represent actors in different markets. It used to be that when [local] actors reached a certain level they all wanted to move to LA. But we began to get LA to look at our actors, and now LA is calling us every day. Everything’s digital now, and casting directors can easily reach out everywhere. It’s an exciting time because so much is going on, but it’s challenging, too. Mistakes I won’t make again: I can’t think of many, but I’ve learned from everything I’ve done. I originally thought I’d do this for ten years and then do something else. But it’s been 34 years now!

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

I’ve always tried to make good decisions for our actors, to be there for them. I’ve created a nice environment to work in every day—all the employees like each other and our two resident dogs. Brenda Pauley, who runs the film and TV department, is my right hand. We’re like sisters and give each other a lot of moral support. Advice to those starting out: You have to be passionate about this business, it has to be something you absolutely love—it’s not for everybody. And it is a business on all sides, for the agent and the actor. Actors have to take responsibility for their websites, tapes, email—there has to be constant follow through. You can’t have old headshots and be non-responsive. Actors compete against more people today, but talent does win out and persistence pays off. Your business milestones: My first [TV] series regular was the five-year old who played Sam Waterston’s son on I’ll Fly Away. I’m still excited when we book people as series regulars—in Stranger Things and The Walking Dead—or in movies. Georgia’s turning point: There’s been an ebb and flow of business over the years, but all the tax incentives—and the infrastructure that happened because of them—have been the big change for sure. Georgia’s future: The challenge now is to have content created and produced here— it needs to be more than producers coming from LA to shoot in Georgia. There are no writers’ rooms here, except for Tyler Perry’s. More Georgia-created content will provide bigger and better opportunities for actors throughout the southeast. Haven’t been there, done that yet: Our VP, Rick Estimond, and myself are working with a small group of actors who are also writers to help them create content. We want to be more involved in that.

GARY LEWIS:

President, Lightnin’ Production Rentals, Inc. (Transportation Rentals)

What it was like then: Our first movie was Little Darlings in 1979. We were just a small truck rental company. Production companies brought most of their gear from California. But that opened the door for us to become a local vendor [of hair/ makeup and wardrobe trailers, star trailers, honeywagons, camera trucks]; we built equipment so they didn’t have to bring it from LA.

Gary Lewis & his fleet of production trucks. Photos courtesy of Lightnin’ Production Rentals, Inc.

What it’s like now: The first four months of 2017 had the most business we’ve ever seen in Georgia. We now have 80 employees, a 20-acre facility, more than 24 service bays and mobile service technicians. We’re capable of handling 3040 projects on the East Coast at any given time, but we’re fortunate that a lot of projects are in Georgia. Mistakes I won’t make again:

It wasn’t a mistake, but in the beginning a lot of equipment was makeshift for the movie industry. That’s just the way things used to be. Now, we design and build our own equipment from the ground up, so we’re able to cater to all kinds of needs. Everything is totally customized. Advice to those starting out: Always follow through with what you promise. Stand by your word. That’s overlooked sometimes. But if you do what you say you’ll do people will respect you for it and keep coming back. Your business milestones: We were able to service In the Heat of the Night for multiple years. It was our first big project; we built our first production van for them and provided motor homes, honeywagons – we grew with enough equipment to handle all the different departments. Then, we did Driving Miss Daisy and Forrest Gump, and, recently, we’ve spent eight years with The Walking Dead. Georgia’s turning point: The tax incentives put Georgia on the map even though we’ve always had a film business and crew base able to handle four or five projects at a time. But the incentives made us one of the premier states for production. Georgia’s future: We need to continue to cement the tax incentives with the legislature for the foreseeable future. We also need to continue to build the crew

base and to get the whole state involved in the business. Beaches, mountains, cities, farmland – Georgia can provide most of the locations needed.

Haven’t been there, done that yet:

This is a truly exciting and engaging business. We’re always trying to innovate by talking to crews so we can build equipment that meets their changing needs. We’re now a third-generation company: My mom and dad started it, and my sons are very involved in all aspects of the business. It’s great to see multiple generations of crew in the industry, just like we’re doing in our company.

RANDY NAPPIER:

Operations Manager, PC&E Atlanta (Lighting, Grip, Camera and Stage Rentals)

What it was like then: When I started working here more than 30 years ago it was me and gaffer/DP Doug Smith, 20 lights, a generator and a truck. We were doing commercials or business meetings because there were few features or TV shows in town. Then, other freelancers wanted to chip in and purchase equipment, so we

formed a co-op. That went by the wayside a year or two later. What it’s like now: Business is booming in Georgia! There are features galore and competitors galore, so it’s a double-edged sword. We do bits and pieces of features with cameras, some dollies and expendables. But our mainstay is still commercials, which fluctuate month to month but have remained steady the past couple of years. Mistakes I won’t make again: There haven’t been that many. We bought mister fans that squirt water and event generators for parties and outdoor events, and both did not go well. A real learning experience happened years ago when there was a pyro shoot on one of our stages. Nobody noticed that some pyro landed in the insulation. Fifteen hours later it caught fire and set off the sprinklers. No one was notified, even with our fire alarms. So the water

The Georgia Film Academy has the right idea: putting students on set to show them what others do.

ran for hours and gutted the stage, offices and some of the warehouse. It took eight months to put the stage back in order. Now, we make sure everyone takes proper precautions with pyro. Advice to those starting out: It’s really smart to learn as many different jobs as you can without stepping on people’s toes. It helps you down the road to know what everyone else is doing. The Georgia Film Academy has the right idea: putting students on set to show them what others do. Also, listen to the veterans. They can give you tips you won’t learn elsewhere. Your business milestones: We made the move with CPT to start renting cameras, which have become a vital part of the company. And we relocated to a big enough building where we could build some soundstages. Our deals with vendors such as Arriflex, Fisher and Chapman made us feel more legitimate – and we no longer had to go to our competitors to get dollies. Georgia’s turning point: The tax incentives. We feel part of that since some initial meetings of the group initiating the incentives were held here; we were on the ground floor with that. Georgia’s future: Studios are popping up, there’s a huge amount of equipment here, people are moving in and buying houses, new people are being trained. I understand we lack post production facilities, and that would be the thing for us to get into in the future.

Haven’t been there, done that yet: We’re looking for other avenues of

growth so we’re looking to expand beyond this building and collaborate on post production. In a few years we will be fully employee-owned and operated, or ESOP, with more funds available for expansion. 3 Camera Setup on Green Screen Photo courytesy of PC&E

Randy Nappier

July / August 2017

MICHAEL CHASE:

Owner/DP, ChaseLight (Video Production Company)

What it was like then: I started in Atlanta in 1993 primarily servicing national news outlets and syndicated shows. I was shooting Beta SP for the most part. There was a smattering of production companies, but they were mostly in the commercials business. What it’s like now: Technology has come a long way in 25 years. In some ways it’s made business a lot easier and enabled us to deliver a far superior product. We also serve a more diverse client base today: the film industry, Fortune 500s, documentary filmmakers. The corporate sector set the tone for us to ramp up and move to digital around 2003. Mistakes I won’t make again:

Mistakes are all learning experiences. We’re still here so I must have blocked them from my mind! We’ve been smart about equipment purchases, but I probably should have skipped Digital Betacam and gone straight from analog to HD. Digi Beta didn’t lead the pack as I thought it would. Advice to those starting out: Always bring your A-game, because you’re only as good as your last job. Read your call sheet and go in prepared. On the equipment side, being very meticulous is key. Your business milestones: We won a 2015 Emmy Award for the documentary, Hank Aaron: Still Hitting Homers, produced by Andrew Young Presents. It’s nice when something you have a passion for is recognized by your peers. Andrew Young Presents is an ongoing series; we produce and shoot four a year for national syndication. We just finished the episode, Strong Medicine, comparing traditional African medicine with western medicine. Georgia’s turning point: When the recession hit things slowed and corporate business almost dried up completely. But when the new tax incentives kicked in people discovered Georgia, its good crew base and great locations. Now, corporate is growing—companies with an international presence, like Home Depot, State Farm and IHG, have helped boost Georgia. Georgia’s future: It’s important for Georgia’s business and residential communities to share our traditional southern hospitality with companies coming here. Conversely, production teams need to be mindful and respectful of 40

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Michael Chase - On location for The Daily Show with Jordan Klepper

property and be cordial with neighbors. When this happens production does only good things for Georgia.

Haven’t been there, done that yet:

“I’m a gear nerd, so I’m excited about technology advancements like 8K, drones, and camera stabilization. On the production side, we are ramping up our in-house documentary production and hope to have our first ChaseLight release in 2018.

DAN PHILIPP:

Gaffer, Danny Boy Services (Lighting and Grip Rentals)

What it was like then: When I bought my first truck, a three-ton grip truck, in 1994 it seemed the big movies had gone, but we still had the odd movie-of-the-week and I did some indie films that needed a small truck. But commercials and TV for industry were the customers I was cultivating at the time. What it’s like now: There are far more kinds of media projects now. We’re producing TV for the web and commercials that go straight to the Internet, which need a polished, professional look. We do programs for the CDC and the Medscape series of news shows for doctors. 2017 is our first year with two trucks working—we added a one ton van— and we’ve been very busy. We’ve done

Dan Phillip with Oprah Winfrey after wrapping TV interview with cast of Greenleaf. Photo courtesy of Danny Boy Services

EPKs for The Walking Dead, Halt and Catch Fire and [the IFC series] Stan Against Evil. This is new business we didn’t expect in the 1990s. We’ve continued to do commercials and TV. They don’t need bigger trucks; they want you to be fast, nimble and small. Mistakes I won’t make again: Once or twice I’ve bought a camera I’ve regretted, especially during the Mini DV years. It was tempting to throw a little money at a small camera package, but I should have stayed in my own lane! I‘m grateful that I never lost a lot of money in that department. Advice to those starting out: Once you’re out of film school with your degree and a nice student reel, the best move you can make is to get a job in a rental house. It’s like a paid post-grad program. It’s handson; you learn by osmosis. It taught me the business—customer expectations, how to treat customers, even to wear a button down collar when bringing equipment into an office environment. Remember to be pleasant and fun to deal with: Difficult personalities don’t get very far. Your business milestones: No one thing stands out. We’ve experienced consistent growth throughout the years. We do one or two high-profile projects a year that are good marquee [value] for the Danny Boy brand, but the majority of our work is small to medium-sized projects that we get through positive word of mouth. We’re

producers recognize the potential for full post production here in Atlanta. Advice to those starting out: Network. My oldest son is deep into this business and has a network of extraordinarily talented friends he works with, and I imagine my youngest will too. Networking seems to be the number one thing that gets them work. Get involved with Film Bar Monday here in town; it’s a Facebook group of likeminded professionals that meets in a different bar in and around Atlanta every week to network. They say, ‘no headshots, no resumes, no desperation.’ The 48-Hour Film Festival is also a good way to meet people and show off your skills. These are the people I’m going to be working for one day! Your business milestones: We have worked on dozens of Academy and EMMY Award-winning projects, which is cool considering we are in Atlanta. Our earlier milestones would be a toss-up between the series In the Heat of the Night and the first original program on TNT: The Making of a Legend: Gone With The Wind. We worked with Jeffrey Selznick over a year on that; we did the edit, audio, color correction, graphics and assisted in making a new version of the print. Georgia’s turning point: When the tax incentives took effect. After that the very first show in was Drop Dead Diva. Then Vampire Diaries built some incredible stages and literally grew roots here—we were eight years with them. Next came The Walking Dead. It just hasn’t stopped. We’re lucky that we have the history we do because we were the first call when work started to come to town. Georgia’s future: We have some of the nicest stages in the world—Pinewood is beautiful and Eagle Rock is great, too. Filming is rampant. The missing link is on the post production side. We’re still waiting for the moment when producers decide to make Atlanta their home, when content providers make the investment in post here.

shooting. I’d like to teach. I’m looking forward to the day when I can put what I’ve learned to work for the people who’ll be on sets for the next 20 years. I’ve also acquired a new truck: a 14-foot van packed with production value and new battery-driven LEDs. So that will make us a good fit for a lot more projects that don’t need a 26-foot box truck.

GREG CRAWFORD:

Audio Mixer/Sound Designer, Crawford Media Services, Inc. (ADR)

known for a string of well put together projects where nothing terrible happens! That’s how you keep the business. We’re blessed with repeat customers and working with crews who are our friends, too. Georgia’s turning point: Obviously, it was the tax incentives. When we were trying to get the Georgia Production Partnership to influence lawmakers, I participated in a big way with other shops to show the kind of commerce associated with the production community. Tax incentives are not a giveaway but an invitation for enterprise and commerce of all kinds.” Georgia’s future: Universities are starting to ratchet up film studies’ programs on the technical side. I’d like to see curricula featuring filmmaking programs staffed by people with dirty fingernails, people who’ve done it—editors, gaffers and sound, lighting and camera people. But schools are mostly doing the job now; they’re better at it than when I graduated with almost no technical knowledge. The young people I rub elbows with have technical book knowledge, which is good; all they’re lacking is onset experience.

What it was like then: When electronic post production started the cost of entry was so extreme that we did everything: records, boatloads of commercials, film and TV. Even after a lot of production fled to Canada we still had all of the post work for In the Heat of the Night for a number of seasons, TNT, CNN, CocaCola—it really didn’t impact us that much. There weren’t many places like Crawford around. What it’s like now: Business has been unprecedented: Last year we had over 100 unique IMDb entries. Our big service is ADR; we’ve built incredible relationships with the major studios, and we can’t stop the faucet—we get the lion’s share of any dialogue work done in town. Every studio says they do ADR, but you need a certain size room, the software, and the ability to interface with studios around the world and maintain the comfort level of the actors. Mistakes I won’t make again: We’ve really hustled the ADR business. I wish we’d hustled full audio post as much to get shows to mix here. We’re waiting for the day when

Haven’t been there, done that yet:

I’m thinking about organizing a weekend clinic for student filmmakers showing them the basics of electricity so they don’t make the whole block turn dark when they’re

The missing link is on the post production side.

Haven’t been there, done that yet: I want to do this job long enough to

Greg Crawford

get to work for my son and his friends. Then, when I go, I’d like one of those “In Memoriam” show mentions. I’d hope people would think enough of me to include me!

July / August 2017

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Photo Courtesy of Savannah Area Film Office

eth Nelson, executive director of the Savannah Area Film Office, has the data: “Last year, we had a direct local spend from film production of $61 million, which translates to an economic impact of $130 million,” she reports. And that was an improvement on 2015’s record, which saw a direct spend equivalent to the previous five years combined, according to the Savannah Economic Development Authority (SEDA). “Film production is definitely making a huge financial impact on our city, and we’re very happy about that.”

Production has grown substantially in Savannah and Chatham County: outsiders may see these locations all the time in film and television without even realizing it. Recent movies filming in and around Savannah include Baywatch, The Birth of a Nation, Gifted, and Magic Mike XXL, none of which were set there. Meanwhile, television shows and student films are regularly being shot in the region. Locally, the increase in production has been a boom to the economy and is felt positively by all. One of the factors in the growth is, of course, the incentives, including the Georgia-wide tax credits and Savannah-specific rebates and relocation reimbursements for experienced crew.

“If this isn’t a perfect storm, I don’t know what is,” says IATSE Local 491 business agent Jason Rosin about these breaks. He commends the state for being quick to establish both an enticement and an assurance for the studios that he believes will lead to long and healthy relationships. “What used to happen is Savannah would get one significant film every 18 months, and we would do everything we could to staff and support the production,” Rosin recalls. But now thanks to the tax incentives, the city is going from being a destination location to a production center. “Locations rise and fall based on crew size. Savannah has grown out of that. There are vendors in Savannah, exceptionally talented

July / August 2017

Scott Warner on set

crew, department heads—there are more department heads moving to Savannah every month.” Scott Warner, a member of 491 who has worked on pretty much every major film shot in Savannah from Forrest Gump through Baywatch, has also noticed big changes in recent years. “I’ve seen a lot of vendors coming to Savannah,” he says, recognizing some of them relocating from other places he’s done work, such as Louisiana, and noticing that many are now dedicating equipment specifically for use in the movies. “You’ll see man baskets that the grip department uses for putting in lighting. These baskets disappear when they fly people up because they’re painted black. In the past they’d have been factory colors, bright orange or yellow.” Rosin believes the city is the natural first choice even within the state of

Joseph Marinelli

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Georgia because of the growing workforce, services, and facilities, but particularly for the reputation of the crew base he represents. “We have history. We’ve been making movies in Savannah for a long time. Producers have a familiarity with 491. They know our department heads. They know our work ethic. They know we’re the kind of crew they want to hire when they go on location.”

PERKY & ATTRACTIVE Any state and city can offer perks that will attract productions and crews, but Savannah is doing much more to build itself up as not just an attractive place to make a movie but one where there is constant production. Shepherded by SEDA and veteran Hollywood producer (and Savannah native) Stratton Leopold, a proper infrastructure for a local film industry has been established alongside the creation of the exclusive local incentives. For Leopold, the interest was part hometown pride, wanting to see the area prosper, and part first-hand knowledge of what the production industry wanted. One of his movies, The General’s Daughter, was shot in Savannah before the tax credits existed solely because the look was right, though Leopold brought in outside crew. “If I’m doing a big studio picture, yes I can bring anybody from anywhere because typically we’re budgeted for that, but we always try to save money. Then you can do more with the picture. You can afford more visual effects, you can afford more shooting days, you can do more to help the film.” Meanwhile, the city benefits from those movies seeking out such savings and then spending that money in Savannah. “Entertainment production was a real

Entertainment production was a real opportunity for us...” opportunity for us,” says Brynn Grant, SEDA’s chief operation officer. “We had seen some periodic success. We had hosted movies like Glory and Forrest Gump and others, but the idea that we could create and maintain a sustainable, healthy film industry, keeping a film crew or two or three working year-round right here without having to travel away from their families is what intrigued us so much.” Compared to other industries, film production offers employment to people of all levels of education. It is viewed as a positive not just for job growth but, because the incomes of these jobs are substantial, for a promise of career prosperity. And once the professionals are there, that helps the filmmakers. “We wanted to not only grow our crew base because we want our citizens employed and making a good living,” Grant says, “but so we can attract films and have it not cost them more to produce here.” While much of the crew base is relocated industry veterans, others are coming up through training programs like those at Savannah Technical College in partnership with the Georgia Film Academy.

Photo Courtesy of Savannah Economic Development Authority

They include both fresh young students and craftspeople looking to change fields, as Warner, a former tugboat captain, did decades ago. “It’s an art form, a challenge,” he says of the attraction to film work, which he acknowledges is becoming even more diverse and appealing as the industry grows. “Every movie has something different to it. It’s very interesting to do that and not just go in and punch a clock and push the same paper across a desk or go to some subdivision where you’re building 200 houses in seven variations.” “Naturally you’re going to have crew expansion. You’re naturally going to have people want to move to Savannah. You’re naturally going to have students wanting to stay after graduation and participate in the jobs they’re trained for,” Rosin states of the perks for the workers. But the incentives alone wouldn’t have been enough. “Jobs create crew. You can’t build your crew base without a job. If I had to promise somebody a job that isn’t there, that’s ridiculous.” To keep production in Savannah going and to maintain consistent jobs for the crew base, the Film Office—with help from SEDA—markets the area’s diversity at location shows in Los Angeles. It also holds workshops and forums in town designed to attract and foster businesses that can benefit from film shoots or from the general boost to the economy and in turn cater to a production’s needs. “When a film crew comes in, it’s really like a small army,” Nelson states. “They need everything that a community needs. They’re utilizing yoga studios and shops and restaurants and really any kind of business you can think of. We’ve really seen our local businesses step up to the plate and want to learn what they can do to attract

this business.” Regarding the outward expansion of interest, she affirms, “We have so much more here than the historic district. There are a lot of things that are different. We have every era of neighborhood. We also have farmland, we have a lot of swamps, and we obviously have the beach and the marshes. That’s the message we’re trying to get out now.” “A production that was here in the fall, they were so impressed with the diversity of Savannah,” Nelson adds. “For the show they were doing, Savannah was London, Philadelphia, Ohio, and rural Georgia. They were able to get all of those looks, which was very beneficial to them. And it helps us to sell it to the community that film is not just impacting one area.” Not everyone in Savannah realizes the advantages, but there are efforts to educate them. “I don’t think a lot of people understand how it benefits the whole community,” says Nelson. “There was a tiny little florist who was upset about a production coming in. She said, ‘We don’t benefit.’ She had never really thought about how a production needs flowers. So, we connected the production company with her, and they bought a bunch of flowers from her. Because, of course, a lot of sets use flowers, they send flowers to some of their talent. So a little florist can benefit.”

INVESTING IN THE BIZ Most importantly, Savannah is listening and learning. Shawn A. Kachmar, a partner at the law firm HunterMaclean, has seen more business with the increase in production, but he’s also invested in the growth of the local infrastructure by helping to facilitate relationships between

Beth Nelson

productions and vendors as well as sponsor forums where people from the film industry discuss their needs and make requests for improvements. Some of the issues addressed through those constructive meetings have been the shortages of sound studios and qualified vendors. “The feedback is, they’re willing to pay for it,” Kachmar says. “They’ll pay for good service.” And such forums lead to results. “There are now vendors out there providing the services that we heard three, four, five years ago Savannah needed. We’re actively trying to learn with every production and make it even easier and more efficient for companies to do business here,” Kachmar professes. “We know several people in town who have gone out and invested in production facilities, sound stages, etc. We’ve helped open people’s eyes to the possibilities. It’s a little bit of an ‘if you build it, they will come’ mentality, but we’ve seen people come.” Not all experiences have been positive: July / August 2017

Underground Season 2 - Photo Courtesy of Savannah Area Film Office

the making of Forrest Gump reportedly hurt some businesses back in 1993. Twenty years later, The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water was notorious for issues regarding poor planning and coordination on the part of the city. And nearby, in 2014, there was the tragic death of camera assistant Sarah Jones during the making of the canceled Gregg Allman biopic Midnight Rider. But all have led to changes for the better. “This market has been through hell and come back,” Rosin recognizes while citing the temporary negative impact of the Midnight Rider incident on the Savannah area crew base. “And it’s come back stronger. The crew are stronger. They’re better trained. They’re more interested in safety. They’ve learned from the mistakes of the past.”

FOCUSING ON THE BIGGER PICTURE Nelson admits there are times when the people of Savannah are going to be inconvenienced. “You’ve got to sometimes block traffic and that kind of thing. But we’re mainly trying to make it a good experience for everybody.” Her office is regularly in communication with the people of Savannah and working to improve any issues they have. “It’s really working with the neighborhoods and letting them know what is going on. Giving them advance notice. Keeping them updated on what’s happening. Answering questions, and listening to them and what their issues are. If people know what’s going to come, it’s not such a negative impact. That is the secret to success.” Communication is key. Educating people on what short-term inconveniences 46

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

mean for the long term economic growth is important. “As often as we can, and as many ways as we can, we’re telling that story, the benefits of this industry,” assures Grant. “We’re speaking to Rotary clubs and Kiwanis clubs and every chance we have an opportunity through emails or events. We’re doing our best to have people know that they’re contributing to our economy when they allow that inconvenience. It is a cost of commerce, and that commerce contributes economically to our community, which increases the quality of life and standard of living.” “Having movie and television productions in town can present some challenges for locals,” adds Joseph Marinelli, President of Visit Savannah, the marketing organization for the city’s tourism industry. “Road closures, late hours, traffic tie-ups can be frustrating at times, but the reality is most are only temporary and people tend to be very understanding— especially if they get to meet a movie star!” The success of the Savannah film

industry also helps the growth of the city’s other industries, such as the higher education sector and most notably the tourism trade. “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and Forrest Gump are what really changed Savannah and made it a tourist destination,” claims Dawn Martin, the General Manager of Savannah Movie Tours. She acknowledges that it’s specifically the Downtown Historic District that has been of interest because of those famous films, alleging it has an aura that beckons people. “Most people who come, that’s where they want to go. They want to hear the stories. And of course Bonaventure Cemetery was also made famous not just by Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil but Dawn Martin, Savannah Movie Tours

It’s the tourists who are keeping the downtown historic district going.” also Now and Then.” When there is pushback from the residents of that part of Savannah regarding the invasion of privacy that tourism brings, they are constantly reminded that there’s a system in place that contributes favorably to their lives. Tourists see the historic squares in the movies, they visit Savannah, go on tours, and proceeds from those tours go toward preservation, according to Martin. “It’s a cycle that we have to feed,” she says. “It’s the tourists who are keeping the downtown historic district going.” Martin also stresses the synergy of tourism by way of the movies, how people are turned on to learning more about Savannah’s past as well as its reputation as a haunted city by way of historical films including Glory and reality TV programs such as Ghost Hunters. “The movies have brought in and carried over into not just the Civil War and the history and the glamor but the paranormal side of Savannah that people seek out,” she says. Basically, every sort of tour of Savannah has been served by its representation on the big and small screen. Newer movies continue the symbiosis, even if they’re not direct representations of Savannah as a setting. This year’s Gifted, for instance, takes place in Tampa, Florida, but still shows off the sights of Savannah and Tybee Island in a positive way. “Gorgeous! Beautiful!” Grant exclaims of that film’s

Brynn Grant

Photo Courtesy of - Savannah Economic Development Authority

depiction of the area. “Even the locals here look at a film like that and say, ‘Gosh, we live in a gorgeous place.’ The Last Song, which was filmed on Tybee Island? Beautiful. I think the synergy and tourism is perfect, especially when the productions are so well done.” As for data aligning the movies and TV with tourism success, Marinelli can’t confirm there’s any hard proof but does think there’s a connection. “We have visitors every day asking about specific movie scene locations,” he explains, “but it is hard to know how many visitors come for that reason or just want to explore while they are here. However, having said that, the numbers of hotel rooms sold was up last year almost 2% and visitor spending was up another 4.5%, so I’m sure that productions play a role in these positive numbers.” How much Savannah’s film industry will grow and how long it will last is still an unknown, but those invested in its success are more than optimistic. “How could you not have a positive outlook?” Rosin asks. “By the end of the year, Savannah’s going to have two stage/studio complexes. By the end of the year, Savannah is potentially going to have provided jobs to women and men in four or five television series. Optimistic? That’s an understatement. I just don’t know a word to explain how positive I think it’s going to be moving forward.” Still, he’s also realistic and recognizes

that there’s always a chance the tax breaks could go away or that production heads might stop chasing financial incentives that have made Wilmington and Louisiana and Vancouver and now Georgia the latest film hotspot. “The industry is about ups and downs,” Rosin states. “The industry is about getting the dream job and then not getting the dream job. There is a process that women and men go through when they commit themselves to this industry. They know to prepare for the lean times when they’re in the good times, and they know in the lean times there’s a good time just around the corner.” Fortunately, there have been consistent good times of late and that will continue to be the case for the foreseeable future and could endure even if something happened to the tax breaks. Because of the incentive, businesses have started or relocated or expanded into Georgia that are supportive of the industry, Grant points out. “At some point we will reach a sweet spot for capacity for a region of our size,” she says. “It will be an interesting evolution, and it’s something we’re really excited to watch happen.” “But we’ve been excited about the numbers so far,” she adds, “and we’re working really hard to make sure we can sustain that, and we’re continuing to do all the things we need to do to put the infrastructure in place to really serve the productions when they come here. That infrastructure in and of itself, that expertise, those people who have chosen to live here because it’s a great place to live, that is going to drive business to some extent. So the future is bright for Georgia and for Savannah.” July / August 2017

OZ SCENE Angela Gomes, Fran Burst-Terranella, Dr. Judith Williams, Lydia Dean Pilcher, Suzan Satterfield, Susan Moss

June 17

Women In Production Summit

collaboration of five women’s organizations in the film and television industry, the second annual Women in Production Summit was held at the Georgia State Auditorium. The event was created to inform and empower women filmmakers who work in all aspects of the business, from writers, producers, and directors to technicians, craftspeople, and artists. The organizers want women and minorities to have a strong influence over the development of Georgia’s booming film & television production, particularly when it comes to content. “We believe Georgia is in a unique position right now to be a leader in content that reflects the depth and diversity of our

market. We’ve long offered diverse locations, and talent of all kinds – crews, actors, and musicians – but the success of our industry here inspires us to originate content that reflects who we are. We have an opportunity to be our own market – not just a carbon copy of existing markets,” Suzan Satterfield said, speaking for the Summit group. Dr. Judith Williams, former Head of Global Diversity at Dropbox, opened the conference with her keynote address on “Unconscious Bias,” the attitudes and stereotypes that affect our decisions outside of our awareness – and how to work with that bias. Atlanta attorneys Deborah Gonzalez & Laura Lundy Wheale, and producer Gabrielle Pickle with moderator Angela Gomes, led

a discussion “Safety Shot,” an emerging initiative to handle incidents of sexual harassment in the industry. Producer’s Guild of America WIN (Women’s Impact Network) producer Lydia Dean Pilcher talked about barrier-breaking research in the “Ms. Factor Toolkit,” an initiative by the PGA WIN, that debunks the myths that have impeded the progress of women in Hollywood and gives filmmakers tools to move women-centric projects forward. The afternoon culminated in a networking reception for attendees at the GSU Senate Salon. Catering for the event was headed by Fran Burst and provided by Epting Events and Luv at First Bite.

Safety Shot Panel: Laura Lundy Wheale, Gabrielle Pickle, Deborah Gonzalez, Angela Gomes

Jahan Washington, Luv at First Bite Catering, with volunteers (front row) Jasmine Jewet, Natalia Tureta, Grace Jordan (back row) volunteer, Lisa Roberts, Brittany Wilkins 48

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Angela Edmonds & Jenna Kanell

OZ SCENE Dr. Judith Williams, Keynote Speaker Suzan Satterfield & Deidre McDonald, Tribute to Sherry “Elle” Richardson

Lou S, Lynne Hylden, Suzan Satterfield, Nancy Prager

Dana Kimbrough

Dr. J. Parker, Jr, Valerie Sue Love, Krystal Keith, Jean Young (seated)

June Neely, Michelle Rubenstein, Jazzy Ellis, Amy McGary, Kristen McGary

Raven Printz, Lynne Hansen

Lisa Thompson Rubin, Anita Williams

Bonnie Brooks, Jane Klingmeyer

Ebony Blanding

Mignon Baker, Mocha Murchison, Megan Trezise, Cassie Short, Hilary Ament

Lydia Dean Pilcher July / August 2017

OZ SCENE Diversity Panel (From L to R) Lorielle Broussard, Fran Burst, Deborah Gonzalez, Esq., Redge Green, Melissa Rivera, Melissa Goodman, Ray Benitez, Actor. Photo by Ray Bengston

Business of Industry Panel (From L to R) Noah Scammon, Barbara Divisek, Drew Sawyer, Ramahan Faulk, Taylor Owenby, Auric Steele, Alexander White. Photo by Ray Bengston

June 8

Creative + Investor Summit

Dave DiPietro

ndustry leadership from Georgia to California gathered at Eagle Rock Studios to learn, grow and connect at the 2017 Creative + Investor Summit. The Summit, presented this year by the Ritz Group and produced by Matchbook Media Group, proved to be a success with filmmakers and investors alike. The day began with VIP Studio Tours of Eagle Rock Studios with shuttle service provided by Enterprise, followed by a welcome and state of the industry address by keynote speaker Ric Reitz, Atlanta City Council President Ceasar Mitchell, Studio Executive Beth Talbert, Randall Franks, Patricia Taylor and Clark Cofer. Panels included the Diversity Panel sponsored by

Letterbox Legal with Leadership from WIFTA, SAG-AFTRA and the Atlanta Film Society; a Pitch Workshop with Cindy Hogan to train creatives on how to launch their projects, led by Dave Drabik; and a live Entertainment Shark Attack, where six participants were able to pitch their projects. During the event, VIP Guests were able to relax and network in a Green Room sponsored by MatchKey Consulting and M&M Event Rentals. The night ended with a Finance and Distribution Panel where investors and creatives could ask questions and learn how to launch successful projects.

Clark Cofer (GPP)

Atlanta City Council President Ceasar Mitchell with the team from re:imagine/ATL

Mandy Fason & Kelly Nettles

Larry White & Alpha Trivette

Chris Escobar & Bernadette Boas

John Joseph, Deborah Moore & Chad Hagan

Jobi Tyson & Simone Edwards

Alfonso Curry Beth Talbert (Eagle Rock Studios)

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Ric Reitz

Sue Keeton

OZ SCENE Speakers - Lou Simon, Maggie Gallant & Valerie Meraz

(From L to R) Cheryl Jenkins, Sheri Riley, Alex Ebanks, April Love, Keshia Knight Pulliam, Valerie Meraz, Provi Ramphal

June 10

The 10 Luncheon

W Shilla Benning

omen in Film and Television hosted its inaugural luncheon, “The 10,” an exclusive luncheon for women who have been in the entertainment industry for 10 years or more. The 10 is designed to bring together these women to network with their peers as well as with special invited high level executive guests to further them in their careers in the

Ashley Kohler & Keisha Burnette

film and television industry. The luncheon was hosted by the Four Seasons Atlanta and Board Member, Kat Phillips. Valerie Meraz, SVP of Content Acquisitions & Strategy for Turner, Lou Simon, feature film director and producer and Maggie Gallant, EVP of APA PR, were guest speakers.

Cheryl Jenkins (President)

Tammi Jones Tanaka (Social Media Director) & Kat Phillips (Board Member)

Michelle Rivera Huckaby & Amy McGary

Morgan Lawley & Guest

Lorielle Broussard (Exec. Director) & Keshia Knight Pulliam

Deidre McDonald & Terri Vaughn

Terri Vaughn & Angela Gomes

Keisha Burnette July / August 2017

OZ SCENE “Working With Plaster” with American Gypsum representative Michael Intorcia

May 20-21

Goo-Con

Godzilla sculpt by Kyle Yaklin

tlanta’s gathering of the makeup and FX makeup tribe took place at its home stomping grounds of The Engineer Guy in Hapeville for two days of sculpting, casting, makeup tutorials attended by professional and enthusiastic aficionados.. Among the notables in the effects community were SyFy channel Face Off contenders and winners Roy Wooley, Todd Debreceni and Connor McCullough. Cartoon Network’s Shane Morton regaled the

crowd with tales of his rock-and-roll approach to tackling effects and mascot building. Along with the effects crowd, companies such as Auburn Avenue Films, AFX, and others gave the production side advice to aspiring film professionals. A major highlight was a foam latex curing oven hand built by Die Hard 2’s Todd Debracini that was won in a giveaway by a 15-year-old aspiring effects prodigy.

Nosferatu sculpt by Kyle Yaklin

Syfy channel Face Off star Conor McCullough leads a bald cap application seminar

The Film Industry Panel Anthony Taylor & artist Clay Sayre promoting Monsterama

Prosthetic sculpting seminar with Rob Burns and Jason Cope of “Cutting edge sculpture” Diorama artist Steve Bugg Model Beverly “Psycho” Provost being scarred by the Wigley FX team

Skin prosthetics seminar Todd Debreceni throws up “Googang” signs 52

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

Attendee showing off a helmet they made

Todd Debreceni & Conor McCullough

Die Hard 2 effects master Todd Debreceni

OZ SCENE John Malkovich

June 3

Andra Day

SCAD 2017 Spring Commencement

he Savannah College of Art and Design held its 2017 commencement on June 3, with keynote speaker John Malkovich addressing the graduating class. “Actor, director, clothing designer, storyteller. John Malkovich lives a life of distinct brilliance and intentional artistry,” said SCAD President and Founder Paula Wallace. “His knowledge and experience is vast, his achievements multiform. SCAD is overjoyed to welcome

John as our 2017 SCAD Commencement speaker.” This marks Malkovich’s first time delivering a commencement address to a university. Malkovich also received an honorary doctorate of humane letters and the SCAD Étoile award, in recognition of his work across a spectrum of creative disciplines including fashion, film, television, and performing arts.

AJFF community engagement co-chair Judy Marx

AJFF executive director Kenny Blank

May 11

AJFF Selects: The Wedding Plan

he Atlanta Jewish Film Festival kicked off its newest programming initiative, AJFF Selects, with the sold-out Israeli romantic comedy, The Wedding Plan at Lefont Sandy Springs. After an introduction of the AJFF Selects series by AJFF executive director Kenny Blank, the film was introduced by AJFF community engagement co-chair, Judy Marx. After the film, the audience was treated to cupcakes provided by Icing Cake Design & Sweets Boutique.

Icing Cake Design & Sweets Boutique

July / August 2017

LET ME GIVE YOU MY CARD

Risk Management Associates Security & Investigations

• Local, national, and global services • Extremely confidential circumstances • Short-term and long-term contracts

info@rmagainc.com www.rmagainc.com

CONYERS

EATON

THE SHOW MUST GO ON No matter how reliable your actors, directors and audiences, you can’t put on a show without the sets, costumes or props. Penske Trucks are clean, reliable and guaranteed to be there when you need them.

Visit pensketruckrental.com or call 800-GO-PENSKE.

Big savings for safe drivers. Joe Dion CLU ChFC CASL LUTCF, Agent Get a discount up to 50%. Bus: 770-460-0132 I can help lower your premium through Drive www.dionagency.com

Safe & Save™. Get to a better State®. Get State Farm. CALL ME TODAY.

1301900

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, State Farm Indemnity Company, Bloomington, IL

D GONZALEZ LAW GROUP PRESENTS

Counsel as Creative as YOU Inspired. Affordable. Effective. *attorney advertising

letterboxlegal.com

@LetterboxLegal

LetterboxLegal

Atlanta’s Only Christie’s International Real Estate Luxury Specialist Jim Suss, REALTOR® 678-357-7683 770-422-6005

Jim.Suss@HarryNorman.com www.JimSuss.HarryNorman.com

July / August 2017

LET ME GIVE YOU MY CARD

Custom Quick Turn Around Fabrication: Film Industry Friendly Sets & Props

706-658-4203 accounts@rdprecision.com www.rdprecision.com

Exhibits Precision Machine Shop Since 1994

Risk Management Associates Security & Investigations

RMA has been providing security for the Television and Film industry since 1997. Our guards are equipped to handle specific production needs, including 24/7 monitoring and protection of the location, equipment, and cast/crew. Our guards are trained to handle crowds on location, as well as assess and react to any suspicious activity. CONYERS

info@rmagainc.com www.rmagainc.com

EATON

Multimedia Production Makeup Artists Stylists & Designers Office/Studio (877-HelpMe2) 877-435-7632 Mobile/Text (404-HelpMe2) 404-435-7632 Rhonda@HelpMeRhonda.com Rhonda Barrymore, Founder

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

www.HelpMeRhonda.com

July / August 2017

NEXT GENERATION

Yema Yema Yema (real name Mercedes) is an independent 2D and 3D illustrator. She studied the art of animation at Savannah College of Art and Design, to help her understand form and illustration to further her true passion of character designâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the very odd ones. Besides adding to the world of extravagant creatures and spending quality time with the computer, Yema enjoys spending time with her husband and two little Yemas biking and watching movies. www.yemayema.myportfolio.com

Victoria Allen Victoria Allen is a 2015 Savannah College of Art and Design graduate with a BFA in Illustration. Her portfolio is diverse with a range of concentrations from dynamic poster design and narrative book illustration, to her current focus in fashion illustration. Her work comprises a combination of traditional and digital, with strong concept, design, and use of line, taking inspiration from the vibrant and colorful city of New Orleans and from her English heritage.Â www.victoria-samantha.com 58

Oz Magazine - film. tv. entertainment.

! t n e l a T t o G e v ’ e W

ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE!

New Oz Magazine’s TALENT

Trainers Massage Headshots Attorneys Chiropractor Spa Services

Acting School Hair & Make-Up Cosmetic Surgery Cosmetic Dentistry Ear, Nose & Throat

SECTION

BEGINNING JANUARY

Thousands of actors in Atlanta read Oz Magazine, the oldest and most respected magazine covering the #1 production market in the world.

Want more talent ? Contact Tia Powell, Publisher (404) 633-1779 tia@ozonline.tv