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Doug Brandon

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Everything posted by Doug Brandon

  1. My deepest condolences, Jeff. Will be thinking of you...
  2. WARNING: all about me... Voted, and proud of it! Thanks to those of you who stood up at the meetings and spoke your mind (I've thanked some of you in person at those meetings). Had to leave early for work at the last one, sorry. Some very intelligent people in the union. Glad I can be there to learn from them. UNION is worth it, even if it takes time to network. Only need a few days to cover the year's dues. One year, I might even get my benefits!
  3. I'm feeling ya JZ! Had a total hip replacement on my right side last year and I'm back looking for work too. Just two years ago I could barely make it across the street, let alone follow a simple walk n talk (injury from when I was a kid came back to haunt me). But I'm back runnin around camera guys again! Hope it works out—sorry I don't have any jobs right now or I'd throw ya a bone.
  4. Is this a purposeful reference to Jeff Wexler and Don Coufal on 'Being There'? Jeff has a good story about not seeing his name in the credits at the end of the movie. Not mine to repeat, but maybe I've said too much already.
  5. I generally don't enjoy working with people who survive through these means: Fraud - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraud In criminal law, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain... Lie / Define Lie at Dictionary.com dictionary.reference.com/browse/lie a false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive; an intentional untruth; a falsehood. 2. something intended or serving to convey a false impression; ... Deception - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deception Deception, beguilement, deceit, bluff, mystification, bad faith, and subterfuge are acts to propagate beliefs that are not true, or not the whole truth
  6. Don't sweat it too much Michael, this opportunity was posted over a month ago.
  7. Oldsmobile 442. A great way to be on time (equipment in trunk?)
  8. I actually enjoyed the five days (yes, I was there every day!) I spent on the picket line against the '1000 ways to die' TV show a couple of weeks ago. I learned quite a bit about what it is we do, and what we as a collective represent. We go to the movies for the past; we go to work for the present; and we go to picket lines for the future! Thanks for the link, Jeff. Doug
  9. I hear you MFA. Those guys are out there, and unfortunately they seem to be everywhere working in every aspect of our lives. One of my biggest personal peeves is the parts guy at an upscale auto dealership that simply doesn't have a clue of how to find parts on the computer. I've accepted that that's just how some people are, they con their way into jobs they don't really know, and I would guess that those individuals probably apply themselves in the same manner all day long, in every aspect of their lives—too bad (a good time for the saying, they rise to their level of incompetence). I try not to let these guys bother me. Unfortunately, however, I do find myself working with them more often than I'd like. I handle it by keeping in mind to constantly outdo myself, and eventually those guys slip behind and fall to the wayside. In regards to these kinds if people taking jobs they're not ready for, I think this 'phenomenon' is never really going to end. And its everywhere! Like an epidemic out there in public. The saving grace for the rest of us (in film sound), I believe, is that their success falls into a kind of Darwinian scenario: for anyone who hires without doing proper research is only asking for trouble. The project will either sound poor, or the guy'll slip on standard protocol and find him/herself being called out (I seen this, and know boom-ops who refuse to work with certain mixers because of the mixer's lack of [fill in the blank]). Eventually, these guys that never do 'get it' weed themselves out of the game (or work a frustrating career). As well, I'm pretty sure these people asking rudimentary questions aren't competing with the A-list sound teams (or are they?). Are they competing for B-list jobs? Here I believe there're reasons why B films/projects are what they are in the first place—but there are too many to list (one of my personal favorite quotes: If you can't afford to make a film right, you shouldn't be making films!). But like RPS said/did, there are guys out there with competence who need the work and just haven't done it yet. And if they're a good study, they can make it through relative unscathed. On the other hand, I've often pondered how some workers (I use the term loosely) managed to get on some of these set, especially union gigs. Too bad we don't have competence requirements for membership, only days worked. Sorry, but I tried coming up with a good zoo-animal analogy to close with here, something like "even a zoo animal shows up for food...," but that just doesn't make any sense. Doug
  10. For recreational use of maryjohoochie (that's what my mailman used to call it), I see no problems. Although when used as self-medication, the scenario probably aligns somewhere within the usefulness of representing oneself in a court of law. And as you can easily seek a doctor to write you a prescription, you can also easily procure legal counsel to bow to your every desire (transl: bow to your money). That doesn't necessarily mean they're looking out for your best interest. Should you ask me if I've ever used, I'd not hesitate and have no embarrassment in telling you... ...hold on, someone's at the door...
  11. A+ for the warrior's reference! I think I'm getting old.
  12. Thanks Jeff, That's a little encouraging. Many of us wondered if we didn't get paid, would we still get our time toward our benefits. Maybe so. Doug
  13. Greetings all, I recently worked on a 'two week of pick-ups' job where the union came in and forced the production to organize, being that they owed labor cost from last year's principal shooting. On our last day of shooting, the IA entered the scene and strongly suggested we strike touting reasons to believe we wouldn't be paid. I and the utility sound guy were paid for the first week, but the mixer wasn't. Nobody has been paid for the second week. Tonight I received an e-mail from the line producer apologizing for the situation, pointing the finger at the Exec.producer. The LP went on to say, "The IA are working hard to ensure that the PHW for the IA crew is being taken care of as we do have an IA deposit with Cast & Crew." Does anyone know what the 'PHW' refers to? And what are the implications of the so called 'IA deposit' with the payroll company? Save the recent SAG situation, it's my first walk-off strike. How exciting--not! Doug p.s I plan on stopping by the 695 office and asking Scott Bernard but I thought I would give it a shout here first so I might know a little something going in.
  14. "Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds." --Einstein
  15. Hello LKO, Check out the link John recomended, these seemed like good suggestions. I was the boom op on the replacement sound team (first sound team had a prior engagement) for the to be released surfer film 'endless bummer'. Most of the surfing scenes had been shot by the time we got there. I strongly recomended my mixer use the lectro 400 and b6 with the 'condom'. A few days before the shoot we found out they were only doing a few lines with no 'hard action' surfing, more or less just sitting on the boards. The mixer decided he didn't want to put any equipment in harms way unless he had to. We ended up booming all the scenes with me balancing in a nearby raft (my very own boom operator's raft complete with union marine-grip operator and personal diver to keep the boat positioned and steady while shooting. I've got a photo somewhere, I'll post it when I find it). A mixer from one of the bay-watch years recomended I keep the antennea's high on the body to limit its time under the water plane when they did go in. You might want to do this: just in case we decided to use the transmitters, I purchased a torn, used wet suit earlier that week ($25) and cut out many different sized strips and pocket sized patches. Because the studio costume dept owned the actor's suits, we were given permission to glue pockets into the inside back of the wetsuits between the shoulder blade area (I purchased some black neoprene cement made for wet suit repair). We were also thinking of gluing a small strip on the inside of the front after pushing the mic through a small cut, thus securing the mic in place while all the surfing/moving around takes place. It would have made the mic kind of permanent until we cut it out in the end. We never had to do this as the boom was working out just fine, successfully positioning out the coast guard hellicopter training up the coast to the north, and LAX airport to the south. I recently attended a crew/friends test preview without any ADR or color correction and was amazed at how well the boom worked. BTW, I called K-tek (I had recently purchased a new long pole) and the rep assured me there would be no problems with the pole regarding the sea water and corrosion. She went so far as to say, send it in and they would re-furbish it if necessary. Nonetheless, I took it entirely apart within an hour after shooting and washed it thoroughly. No problems so far. I wish you the best, let us know how things go down (not into the ocean, I hope-ar ar ar). Doug
  16. Dan, I went to a scuba/surf shop and bought a used wetsuit for twenty five bucks and then cut out the strips I needed to make some straps and such for a surfing movie. Doug
  17. Does this mean we are going to have to start paying dues now? I like the look. Very sharp. Doug
  18. I know what you mean Ron, The end does seem to be near for film, especially in theatre. I'm on another forum where they discuss film collecting. I recently learned some labs may still have the capabilities to make 16mm prints of new releases, although I don't think there are any rentals houses purchasing them. Meant for other parts of the world I guess. My friend in Portland just bought a theatre (he has been renting the space for the last decade or so) and they are installing ONLY digital projection. He has been assisting other theatres in the area now installing digital with new 3D technology. Doug
  19. Hello friends, I have a hobby of collecting 16mm films. Mostly disney, children's classics, cinemascope etc. I have a few different projectors both here and at my parents house. It is great fun to observe an audience of kids laughing. At the last showing, in December, we had around 30 kids and twelve adult volunteers while the kids parents went holliday shoping (kind of a free community babysitting service). We watched pinochio and aladin as the features, and many shorts in-between. Popcorn, lunch, cookie decorating, games etc. Film is not dead yet! Doug
  20. BVS, I had responded, and then realized I was reading your initial post the wrong way. I have since removed the response. I wish I had some insight to the situation. Tomorrow I will be with a friend mine who is a nuclear medicine MD, practicing long enough that his daughter is now in med school. I will mention the situation to him. I suppose your doctors could have some insight as well. Doug
  21. Thanks Marc and Jeff, The things you say ring loud with truth. Marc, I don't want to mention names. It almost feels like throwing a rock at a beehive. I don't 'dislike' one machine over the next. I recall every presenter said something to the effect of "I'm not sure why they did it that way... but that's the way it is." Some presenters said it more than others. I'm a boom operator and don't spend much time 'inside' any of the recording devices. But I feel it's my duty to be ready and able to jump in if the mixer is sick for two hours from a bad lunch. I need to learn/practice more on some of the devices out there. Doug
  22. When not working on films, my income mostly comes from the construction industry. Consider; we all drive cars. If we stepped into a car with no labels, all we really need is a key to start the engine... and we could drive across town. In construction, driving different peices of heavy equipment is, well, kinda like driving different cars. They all generally have four wheels, an engine, means of steering, and different gears for forward and reverse, and lastly, some form of speed control and braking (of course levers and such for their particular task). Unfortunately, the means of controlling the different functions change slightly from one machine to the next. The problem: from general use, the labels wear off in a matter of a few years, and if you are required to step into a machine and do something in a hurry, and you have never been in that machine before, Good Luck! It is difficult without proper labeling (and an intuitive layout). A foreman asked me one time to hotwire a very large forklift that belonged to the ironworkers (I was working for a steel-stud framing company constructing an office building in Santa Anna). It was five thirty in the morning and the iron guys usually got there at six thirty. We needed to move one of our scissor-lifts over to the next building but the parking lot had not been laid and was nothing but mud. The enormous fork-lift could do the job, but it didn't belong to us and our boss didn't want to wait for permission. We had to start it, use it and put it back in less than an hour. The foreman knew I had driven one before and could probably get it started. It was old and well used. When I stepped into the cockpit, the first thing I noticed was... all the labels were gone. Blank ignition, blank levers for the lift, extension, tilt, forward/reverse etc. And to top it off, the levers all looked the same. Fortunately, there was no UPM, Director, executives and the like standing around waiting, only a couple of curious co-workers. Had I not driven the same make and model before, it never would have happened. I got the thing started, spent a couple of minutes re-aquainting, and drove away. The Iron workers never knew. At the survival training at Bexel today, those in attendance were given an opportunity to learn MANY basic features of five recording devices. They all kinda do the same bottom-line thing. Odd, though, there was one device standing out from the others. It was certainly a fantastic machine, but what's with those labels? So many empty buttons. Numbers and letters and unusual looking glyphs kept you aware that somewhere inside was great functionality. I wasn't sure how to react. One mixer quietly told me (a 'been around a while' mixer), "If anyone called me and said I had to use that, I wouldn't even consider it... I'd turn it down and save myself the headache." C'mon Mr./Ms. Manufacturer, finish the job! You get a great grade on the project. Heck, give it an 'A-' or an 'A'. With a little more effort you could have earned an A+. Sure it's a great machine, but...but...but...I just don't know what else to say. It's probably been said before. Doug p.s. okay, I probably didn't need such a long story to bring about the point. p.p.s. I hope I reached a point.
  23. (Maybe this is old news in which case, sorry to clutter the pages) However, As I was reading something from TAYLORMADEAUDIO I noticed the familiar quote tag at the bottom of his reply which read: In the biginning God said 'Let there be light'. [...and then there was light...] Think about that ladies and gents. Whatever your religious/(or not) perspective, the quote comes out the same. And it is clear, God 'SAID' before God 'SHOWED'. Can't wait to lay this one on my Camera friends! Thank's taylormadeaudio, Doug BTW, Q) How many boom-ops does it take to change a light bulb? A) Not our problem.
  24. Hey all, Everyday I drive past Sony studios and feel compelled to lean on my horn in support of the WGA strikers lined out front. So what do you say we take a few swings in their defense? Anyone have any good producer jokes to share? Q: How many producers does it take to screw in a light bulb? A: Actually, a producer will screw in just about anything. Q: How many Studio Executives does it take to screw in a light bulb? A: We don't know. Light bulbs last longer than studio executives. (thats all I've got) Doug
  25. Thanks all for the input. It would make sense the government was using wireless tech first, like wikipedia suggests. And It would alse make sense that an originator like Orson Wells would use it in a film as Courtney says, which so far is the first mention of wireless being used in film, albeit 'story' and not necessarily for recording (Wells' 'Touch of Evil' was released in 1958, four years before wikipedia's 'My fair lady' claim) Thanks Eric, 'Mutiny on the Bounty' (released 1962) also comes earlier. Hey Joecrabb. One of my favorite shirts from way back in the eighties (gettin' old here, boss) was from 'Joe's Crab Shack'. I don't know where that is, I just happen to come across the shirt and it was really comfortable. Relation? Anyhow, you mentioned Donald O'conner ('singing in the rain, '52). He was always in something being shot during the time in question so he very well could have been involved with it's inception. Somewhere out there is a picture of an actor being wired, probably in the late fifties. Doug ps. I ruined one of my great fantasies by looking up 'takev', which I always hoped stood for Dave Brubeck/Paul Desmond's 'Take Five'. Vos is your last name? Thanks for all your dedication and support. I know with 'BoomRecorder' (and then some) you've helped a great number of people through this forum and elswhere.
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