Monday, July 27, 2009
Creamtastic The Video Theory: Help Theory 8 Raise Money and They'll Shoot Your Band!
Posted by D. Patrick Rodgers on Mon, Jul 27, 2009 at 3:35 PM
Head of Theory 8 Records & Artist Management and champion cheerleader of the local rock community Aaron Hartley needs our help. Hartley has launched a Kickstarter donation campaign to raise $5,000 for new video equipment, editing software and a computer, which he and his associates will use to shoot performances and videos not only for Theory 8 artists, but also local bands of any affiliation. Visit that Kickstarter link to make a donation or to view a non-embeddable video that features Hartley pondering deeply.
And don't think you're going to walk away empty-handed. Not unlike a PBS donation drive, you'll get some sweet swag for your contributions. But, unlike a PBS donation drive, the swag isn't duffle-bag-and-a-golf-pencil grade rubbish. (You know, because knowing you've made a difference is your true reward.) The good stuff starts with donations as small as $5 (for which you get a Theory 8 release of your choice); then there you've got five releases for $10, 10 releases for $25 and the entire catalog for $50. Make a big enough donation, and Hartley will shoot any event you'd like, music-related or otherwise. Words from the man:
I believe that there is a very important promotional shift happening in music right now. New acts need to find ways to be online in a professional manner. I believe music videos are going to be very important in the future as tools to promote an act online and have everyone see them without leaving the comfort of their own home...I know that I cannot afford to have someone taping every show one of my artists performs. And I can't expect someone to spend their entire Saturday shooting a video and then the next two weeks, editing everything down, for free. So I've decided to teach myself how to do this.
Quite admirable. But here's the serious bit: If Hartley doesn't reach his $5,000 goal by Sept. 1, he doesn't see a penny of it. That's the Kickstart caveat. Help Theory 8 get paid, or the cash is just going to materialize in some corporate douchebag's pocket. Actually, that's not the case. Your donations won't go to Theory 8 if he collects $4,999 or less by September. You won't be charged at all. What's to lose? Nothing. Do it!
Comments (11)
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"Help Theory 8 get paid, or the cash is just going to materialize in some corporate douchebag's pocket. Actually, that's probably not the case."
You're right, that isn't the case. To clarify...if the total donation amount isn't received, then no one is charged for their pledge.
So if you donate 10 bucks and I can't pull this thing off, the money never leaves your bank account.
Hartley
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Not to rain on anyone's parade here, but $5000 is about what you need to purchase a nice prosumer HD camera...much less, everything else you mentioned. Plus, there are already a few folks in town that do this sort of thing. Why not support them instead of taking donations from people, so you can "learn how to produce videos." The learning curve may just be steeper than you expect...
Well you totally did just rain on it. My guess is Hartley will probably pay for quite a bit of the equipment out of his own pocket and the 5,000 will make up for the rest. That's the kind of dude Hartley is. Plus, in the long run, he'll expand Theory 8 to more than just a label AND he'll be spending less than if he paid people to film these shows/videos every time. I think it's a good idea.
This is a good idea. And Lake Fever + Tugboat are already doing this. High quality sound and video. For free. http://lakefeversessions.com ya'll.
Welcome to the dark side, friend.
I'll donate. Do you think it will be a close call? If you were a grand short, what stops you from putting a grand on a credit card and paying it off with one of the four grand while you simply keep three?
Onto the video:
The dissolves in your kickstarter video are awesome. That could be your thing.
What's that bent paper stuff behind you in the first shot? And is that a guilded red cardboard container that it's piled in?
My favorite mannerism is the accent on your bullet points by way of counting to four on your right hand.
The "through the looking glass" scene with camera-in-hand was dreamy. I felt transported, which is what made it okay for you to break the fourth wall.
Last, in the scene where the camera is turned to the left (revealing a window and the darkness beyond), you are seen contemplative and possibly drinking coffee. I didn't buy the concentration at all. A person thinking and a person showing concern are not the same thing. To end on another positive note, I did like the idea of coffee at night. Kinda diabolical.
Best,
M Robison
M,
I'm really offended you don't like my decorating style. I have gilded red boxes with shit stuffed in them all over the house.
I'm totally into that whole disorganized organization thing.
I'm assuming if he is given the $5,000, he won't be charging bands to record and edit their videos?
good luck hartley. everyone made fun of autovaughn for asking for donations and then they raised enough money to get to the UK and support a sold out tour with cage the elephant, so it can be done. in fact, we still have a badass 1975 harley davidson FLH electraglide that was donated to the band if anyone wants to buy it after you donate to help hartley get cameras and shit.
While I wish Brother Hartley the best in this endeavor, I'd reccomend finding some like-minded, video-makin' folks to partner up with, instead.
Back when the whole Lake Fever Sessions was just some juice in my mind grapes, needing to be squeezed, I thought that I could do all the video stuff on my own. While software advancements have made video editing easy to learn, I found out that it is not an easy skill to master. This lesson, unfortunately, took me a long time to learn.
Lake Fever found our salvation in Tugboat. I know there are other folks with video skills here in town. Might not be a bad idea to find them.
Otherwise, good luck, pal.
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