Producer of Avatar and Titanic Jon Landau attended the Mofilm press conference at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, yesterday.
He discussed the various challenges of filming in 3D as wells as the evolution of technology of films adaptable to mobile content.
Avatar has broken all records and went on to fross more than $667,000 000 in the US only and $2,400 600 000 wordwide since its release.
At the Mofilm Awards last night he admitted, he and James Cameron never ever expected to break Titanic records and were hoping to possibly reach the same level of success of big production as ”Lord of the rings” but the huge success of Avatar took them by surprise.
Anoop will be stopping by Anoopcast (virtually over the internet and phone lines) Thursday, February 18, 2010 at 8:00 PM EST to chat with the Anoopcast hosts and answer fan questions. Go to the Anoopcast website (click HERE) for more details. Be sure to follow @Anoopcast on Twitter.
I’m writing this to help me remember, but also as a guide for you to get some ideas on interviewing musicians.
1) Most indie musicians love writers b/c. it gives them more exposure, attention, contacts, etc. Knowing this will give you some confidence, be patient, positive, brief (don’t waste their time) – meaning, be direct and clear when you ask them for an interview.
2) You’re already at the show, you see the singer. Be proactive! You have to create your own breaks, stories…so go find them. Don’t waste a chance if your gut says go talk to THAT band.
3) At a show, you can approach in many ways, but always be respectful & handing over a nice looking business card, always looks good. State that you are writer, right off the bat, so they’ll probably get that you are there wanting to interview or get a quote for an article.
4) Nowadays, contacting a band through a website is actually a decent way to go. I have scored most of my interviews writing a direct e-mail to their official website, Myspace, Twitter, even Facebook. Social media does work for writers to connect with the artist….really!!
At first I would write comments & stuff on their site, and then the artists sometimes would comment back..huh? So, the more it happened, I thought, why not? E-mail directly and see if they want to talk, the worst they can do is say no or ignore your message. For example, if I get a response, I usually either try to meet when they next come to town, or I try to do a phone interview & set it up.
*The hardest thing about doing an interview is setting a suitable day & time. It can be frustrating if they have to re-schedule, etc., however, this comes back to the patience thing. If you want to interview an artist, it’s still awesome to have to interview, even if you have to wait a long time. But be persistent and patient. Remind yourself that musicians are busy, practicing, recording new stuff, so be prepared for example, if they say come to show I’ll talk with you after the show, and the show ends at 2am…you stay till 2am happily & do that interview to your best.
Now, I’m saying here that you shouldn’t go through their indie record label, that’s fine, you will probably have to go that route if they’re a big “indie artist”.
O.K. this blog is getting horrendously long, I could tell you a lot more things, so I might in a continuation blog.
Landing a job, while managing to differentiate yourself from fellow candidates, is not an easy task. The marketplace arena is becoming increasingly competitive and to stand out as a future asset for any company requires taking the extra step that can really make a good impression.
Actually, there are three important steps in the job application process, namely your resume, the interview and the thank you letter after the interview. Each of these steps requires careful consideration. Even though most job seekers realize the importance of having a nicely structured resume and performing well during the interview, they underestimate the importance of sending a follow-up thank you letter to thank their interviewer. Yet, this is very vital for their potential hiring to the job.
There are numerous reasons why a thank you letter after the interview is important. First of all, it is an effective way to thank your interviewer for the time spent on the meeting and discuss potential employment. Besides, it is proper business etiquette and you can use it to make a good impression and present yourself as a courteous candidate that can soon turn into a viable asset for the company.
However, apart from leaving a good impression to the interviewer and possibly increasing your chances to get the job, the thank you letter post-interview is vital because it sums up the reasons why your skills can bring value to the company. By writing a thank you letter, in effect, you remind to your potential employer the benefits derived by hiring you. However, to achieve that, you need to write a well-structured thank you letter in order to include all the necessary points that can really make you the ideal candidate for the job.
In particular:
Always thank your interviewer for their time
Briefly explain why you think you’d be an asset to the company
Recap on your skills which you believe match to their organizational needs
Explain why you have chosen their organization
Mention matters that you didn’t have the chance to do during the meeting, such as working overtime or taking over extra responsibilities
Let them know you look forward to hearing from them
Be at their disposal for any further information they may request
Keep it short and simple
Always remember that getting a job is stressful and sending an interview thank you letter can be your key to success. For instance, if you have similar skills and expertise with other candidates, a thank you letter will probably make your application more interesting and may just be the one thing to give you a competitive edge when the time for the final decision comes.
Besides, regardless if you feel that your interview was successful or a miserable failure, it is vital to remember that the interview thank you letter in effect completes your interview. So, don’t be one of those job seekers who disregard the necessity of sending out this vital piece of correspondence. Be the exceptional candidate who carries a strong resume, knows how to present own skills and competencies during the interview, but most importantly recognizes the value of a follow-up thank you letter after the interview to reiterate on the skills that can make you a real asset for the organization.
Selena Gomez was on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight, February 12. She talks about her music career, being super busy, her Seventeen prom cover, and more. Jimmy said when she comes back next he wants to throw her a prom since she hasn’t been to one. That’s so cute, I’d def like to see video of that prom.
Her helium voice is so cute! Such a cute interview. We’ll add vid of her performance when we find it.
This may just be the cutest thing ever! Tom Felton, who plays Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter movie series, told MTV all about his love for his girlfriend, Jade Olivia, and his plans for Valentine’s Day.
Tom and Jade just celebrated their two year anniversary on Wednesday (February 10) but they may not be able to spend the romantic holiday tgoether. Tom said “I’m keeping my fingers crossed that there may be a chance that Jade might be able to come out for the weekend so we can spend Valentine’s Day together and try to make the most of our two year anniversary.”
Tom also dished on his romantic tendencies, “I’d love to say I play it cool, but I am a young Casanova, my friend. I can’t help myself! What can you say? When you’re young and in love, what else can you do.”
Oh my gosh, that is so cute! He also talked about his go to present for the Love holiday: “I’m a big fan of the two dozen roses and the kind of cheesy card to go with it. I can’t help myself.”
So swoonworthy! You can tell he really loves Jade.
Last month I had an opportunity to interview DJ, producer, and Stones Throw Records label founder Peanut Butter Wolf in Brooklyn. For a person who is a friend a collaborator with the likes of Madlib, MF Doom, and the late J Dilla he betrays none of the affectations of fame. To start he switches off his Blackberry (yup, not the other one) during the interview. His consideration extends to the frankness with which he answers my questions many of which concern the music industry. He was also generous with his time in both granting the interview and time afterward to shoot still photographs. This same thoughtfulness in approach to an interview is most obviously present in the music label that he operates and the records it releases.
A week after I conducted this interview El-P announced the indefinite hiatus of Definitive Jux. This announcement alone puts paid to the notion that it’s only the major record labels who are wobbling. Few people buy music and many freeload it. This behavior has completely wiped out the financial model of major and indy labels alike. Stones Throw isn’t immune to the market either. Peanut Butter Wolf admits 2009 was a financially difficult year despite somehow managing to keep all ten of the label’s employees on staff. Difficult though it may have been they still managed twelve releases in 2009 including Mayer Hawthorne’s A Strange Arrangement, James Pants’s Seven Seals, and Madlib’s Beat Konducta Vol. 5-6: A Tribute to Dil Cosby & Dil Withers Suite to name just three. Twelve records in one year is alone impressive, but to put out strong records by a diverse roster of talented artists is one reason I believe the future looks bright for Stones Throw in an otherwise miserable market.
Below is the video interview that I conducted with Peanut Butter Wolf for Ford Models TV.
He discussed the various challenges of filming in 3D as wells as the evolution of technology of films adaptable to mobile content.
