Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Workshops teach video biography techniques for fun & business

Tucson’s Family Legacy Video, Inc., a pioneer in the personal video biography field, is holding two unique video biography workshops in Tucson in April, 2008.

From April 25 to 27, a three-day workshop entitled “Create Your Own Video Biography” ushers attendees through the process of creating their own family history video projects. Participants will learn how to draft questions, light, shoot and conduct interviews and prepare for editing.

On April 28, Family Legacy Video presents “The Business of Video Biographies.” This one-day workshop is aimed at budding video biographers interested in starting or growing their own businesses. Topics ranging from the kinds (and costs) of video gear required, to marketing and pricing services will be discussed.

Family Legacy Video president Steve Pender hosts the two workshops, which will also feature presentations by the Phoenix production team of Dan Crapsi and Ginny Temple and Tucson-based marketing expert Dan Blumenthal. Pender is an award-winning scriptwriter, video editor, director and producer with over 29 years of experience. He is the author of the Family Legacy Video Producer’s Guide. Pender and Family Legacy Video have been featured in both print and broadcast. Print: The Explorer News, the Arizona Daily Star, EventDV, a leading video industry trade magazine, and Miami Monthly Magazine. Broadcast: “Arizona Spotlight” on KUAZ AM/FM and Fox News in Arizona.

Discounted “early bird” workshop registration is being offered until February 29, 2008. The final registration deadline is April 1, 2008. Complete workshop details are available on the workshop page of the Family Legacy Video Web site, or by calling 520.743.4090.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Use old family music recordings to score your video

Music can lend emotion and a sense of time and place to any video biography. And if any of the subjects of your video biographies are musicians, you may be able to use some of the music of their lives to lend a very personal touch to their video life stories.

Here are two examples:

A Family Legacy Video Workshop veteran recently finished a video biography that featured her father. Her dad had been a mandolin player and had belonged to a mandolin club during his college days. Years later, he was recorded playing and discussing his favorite tunes. This reel-to-reel audio tape was eventually copied to CD. His daughter then incorporated the words and music from this wonderful family keepsake as a featured element in her family history video.

The father of a current video biography client was an amateur musician. He wrote a tune that his daughter, an accomplished pianist, later recorded. The song, and the story behind it, will be included in the daughter's video biography, preserving it for generations to come.

So while you're considering what to include in a video biography, don't overlook the opportunity to use some of those vintage family audio recordings that have been gathering dust for years. You'll give those audio tapes new life. In turn, they'll bring an added dimension to your production - and help you "score" with your family.