I had such a great time working on this latest piece.  The subject, Phil, is such an interesting and compelling guy to listen to and watch.  When I was filming I was of course focused on making sure everything was working properly and keeping an ear out for background noise inducing machines, wind, etc.

It was only after I got home and started editing that I realized how inherently watchable Phil is on camera.  It was so much fun to watch I was cackling to myself.  The mission of this project was to help Phil create a meaningful explanation of his latest book,  The End.  Phil Torres is a very intriguing guy whose critical thinking is at the very edge of what humanity is up to here on Earth.  Google this guy…it’s worth a look.  Another of his many noteworthy sites is Risks and Religion.

The shoot itself was downright hilarious.  To those who are not videographers or sound techs, you would be surprised at how many everyday sounds infiltrate and disturb things when one is trying to make a video.   On the day of shooting we battled: Refrigerators, telephones, dogs barking, chainsaws, numerous airplanes, and window rattling wind.

I love the final product that resulted and couldn’t be happier with how it all came together.  Tantamount to completion was working with consultant Brad Bethel (@BradleyBethel).  He made the overall vision a breeze to keep track of and it wouldn’t have come together without him.

The biggest surprise of all though was in a local sound guy and musician named Saman Khoujianan.  We lost our original soundtrack person and needed a new one in a pinch.  Saman stepped up to the plate and delivered a home run in my opinion.  I was thinking along the lines of “somber piano with a building tension” but we gave him free reign to just do whatever occurred to him.  In an early response he mentioned using a vibraphone patch.  I read the email, bleary eyed late at night no doubt and chuckled as I said it sounded fine…because I had no idea what the heck he was talking about. I still don’t know what a vibraphone patch is, but if that is what he used for the original score, then I think I like them.  I didn’t think sound would have a place as a character in a promotional video for a book.  But Saman’s score is interactive, playful and sometimes I listen to it just to hear it all over again.

Anyway, if you can’t tell…I am very psyched to have had the chance to be a part of this little project and hope you like it too.  If you watch the video and enjoy it…and furthermore…if you find the subject matter Phil is speaking about tantalizing..then share this posting (or at least the video) with others who might enjoy it.