Although we may be filmmakers by trade, we are storytellers by nature. Venture into our world and let us weave a tale for you. We will tell you about life and love and fear and pain. We will show you laughter and tears, the devil and God. The story is the lifeblood of our world and nothing matters more.
…So lean close, and let us tell you a story.
8:12PM by Brandon McCormick | Cetagories: Blogs and Thoughts, Film
The following is an article written by Nick Kirk, composer at Whitestone Motion Pictures and co-author of songs like “Smiling Addiction”, “Off the Shelf”, “Consumerism the Musical”, “Awake O’Sleeper”, and what will soon be, “That’s Magic”.
“I have no pleasure in any man who despises music. It is no invention of ours: it is a gift of God. I place it next to theology. Satan hates music: he knows how it drives the evil spirit out of us.”
-Martin Luther
Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman. I’d be willing to bet my house that 99% of you have never heard of them. I’d also be willing to bet my house that the same percentage of you have heard of It’s a Small World, Mary Poppins and The Jungle Book.
Enter the Sherman Brothers.
They are responsible for more motion picture songs than any other songwriters in history. Their genius lies in their ability to tell a story through song, while at the same time, leave you humming the melody as you leave. No small feat. Our new film, That’s Magic, firmly plants us in the Disney camp of having songs play a key element in the story. We’re trying to tap into the ‘magic’ (for lack of a better word) that Walt Disney and The Sherman Brothers so effortlessly captured. As Whitestone branches out into these uncharted waters, a new team of brothers emerges…
Enter the Wright Brothers. Aw snap.
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9:27PM by Brandon McCormick | Cetagories: Blogs and Thoughts
We’re two days into the production of That’s Magic!, and what a couple of days it’s been. We’ve just wrapped filming at the beautiful Pearce Theatre, a 100 year old opera house in Gainsville. It was an epic shoot, with our very first, and hopefully our very last, 24 hour straight shoot. We’ve taken a day to recoup and then we’re back on schedule. The crew and cast for this project have been completely amazing and our new inters are getting right into the flow of things. Some of us are getting sick, all of us are exhausted, but the good news is the film is looking great! We couldn’t be more happy and proud of eachother for the hard work and dedication everyone in the Whitestone family brings. We can’t wait to share this film with all of you, so keep following the production and get ready, magic is in the air!
Behind the scenes photography by Luanne Dietz
10:07AM by Brandon McCormick | Cetagories: Blogs and Thoughts
“But it tastes good.”
That’s a quote from the back of my brain when standing in line at the supermarket, not a hunger pang in my entire body, looking longingly at the carnival of candy before me. The concept that they’re made to be eaten and ingested are the bare requirements to call these little packaged goods ‘food’. But it’s not food, it’s bad candy.
But it tastes good.
And that’s about it. Despite what the advertisements tell you, you can’t live off it. It puts nothing good into your body, and eat enough of it, and you get fat. Plain and simple. These rules apply in other places as well.
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Tags: bad, candy, joseph campbell, michael bay, tmz
12:27AM by Brandon McCormick | Cetagories: Blogs and Thoughts
Myth
“Myths are clues to the spiritual potentialities of the human life”
-Joseph Campbell
Since the dawn of mankind, we as humans have strived to understand and explain the ethos of our world. From the first scratches on a dark, damp cave to the religious texts of spirituality, people have conversed with God and beseeched muses to pour forth the song of life through myth. This tradition has been all but lost. For once the seat of honour was saved for the storyteller, who would weave a tale that set the cosmos in order. Today, that task has been handed to the artist. May we rise with the mantel of myth, not as merchants with gold in our eyes, but as priests and shamans, holding sacred the power to forever change lives through story.
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Tags: craft, joseph campbell, manifesto, story
8:46PM by Brandon McCormick | Cetagories: Blogs and Thoughts
It comes down to eyeballs really.
Let’s start by taking away all the current trends. All the Facebooks, Myspaces and Twitters. Get out of your head the Linkedins and Youtubes. Like it or not, today’s internet is not by any means tomorrow’s internet. So roll your eyeballs and get those specifics out of your head so we can have an intelligent conversation.
Social networking, by it’s definition is a network of individuals that connect to one another. I’m paraphrasing here, but you get the idea. A bunch of individuals all hanging out and connecting based on something they all have in common. This can by anything, from taste to music and film, down to the desire to just be connected.
Eyeballs looking at one another.
Speaking with each other, connecting and growing with one another. A sea of individuals giving one another their precious attention spans, sharing with each other likes and dislikes. The community has grown and continues to grow. Peoples real lives transcribed through ones and zeros and there for anyone to pick up, scrutinize and engage in.
Enter the artist.
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Tags: distribution, monopoly guy, social network
