YouPlusDallas Director of Production, Brandon Carmichael, along with YouPlusDallas freelancers and Art Institute students Luke Boney, Junior Hernandez, Roni Rucker and Matthew P. Rojas, among others, forfeited their free time for seven straight days to put together a piece of art for which they truly loved.
The film entitled Static, was based on the Bible verse Matthew 6:6. Says Producer/AD Brandon Carmichael, “The cool thing for me was getting to work with all the Art Institute students. I got to work with people, who even though I work with day in and day out, on an outside project that was created out of a mutual passion.”
A special shout out to friends of YouPlusDallas, Chris Wiegand and Mark Blitch, who also received multiple nominations.
Check back on YouPlusDallas toward the end of March, when the film will be available for viewing on our site. Congratulations to our talented videographers!
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You+Dallas |
February 15th, 2012 at 10:04 pm
Could this happen to a family in Dallas? As we are known for our Texas hospitality, we sure hope not. The short film Snap was created for the contest “The Florida Industry Incubator”. The competition gives teams only 30 days from when the theme to follow is revealed. In this short time they must write, shoot, edit and deliver a 5 min. short film… all while spending no more than $500.
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Caitlin Clark |
December 20th, 2011 at 6:00 am
Jared Lyons, a web designer and developer, combines thousands of dominoes, bells and a classic song to bring a little holiday cheer. This creative video, a follow-up to another domino-oriented video by Lyons, shows how magical every little thing can be on Christmas.
Lyons said, “I specifically chose ‘Carol of the Bells’ because it’s not just a Christmas song. Believe it or not, its origin goes back to an old pagan New Year’s chant from the Ukraine.” Lyons’ fun twist on the classic holiday song will put you one step closer to Level 10 Holiday Spirit Mode.
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Caitlin Clark |
December 13th, 2011 at 6:00 am
Professor Philip Zimbardo, an American psychologist and professor at Stanford University, illustrates how our individual perspective of time can affect us in profound ways in the short film, The Secret Powers of Time. Essentially, we can choose to think in past-oriented, presented-oriented or future-oriented ways. Past-oriented thinkers choose to focus either on memories, family history and ritual or on regret and failure. Present-oriented thinkers choose to live hedonistically, in the moment or without plan because life is all up to fate. Most people tend to be future-oriented, believing in choosing work over play and resisting temptation. The purpose of schools, in Zimbardo’s opinion, is to take present-oriented “little beasts” and make them more future-oriented. (more…)
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Jeff Hinson |
October 1st, 2011 at 8:00 am
We continue through the month of October taking a look back at animated films from the 1940s and 1950s. Dan Coleman at www.openculture.com prepared the review of this Walt Disney short film that you will read below.
During World War II, Walt Disney entered into a contract with the US government to develop 32 animated shorts. Nearly bankrupted by Fantasia (1940), Disney needed to refill its coffers, and making American propaganda films didn’t seem like a bad way to do it. On numerous occasions, Donald Duck was called upon to deliver moral messages to domestic audiences (see The Spirit of ’43and Der Fuehrer’s Face). But that wasn’t the case with Education for Death: The Making of Nazi,a film shown in U.S. movie theaters in 1943.
Based on a book written by Gregor Ziemer, this animated short used a different lineup of characters to show how the Nazi party turned innocent youth into Hitler’s corrupted children. Unlike other topics addressed in Disney war films (e.g. taxes and the draft), this theme, the cultivation of young minds, hit awfully close to home.
You will find Education for Death permanently listed in the Animation section of the collection of Free Movies Online.
Posted by
Jeff Hinson |
September 26th, 2011 at 8:00 am
Validation is about a parking lot assistant, Hugh Newman, who takes the initiative to make people happy by complimenting each person who presents their parking ticket for validation. The effect is immediate as people from average folks to George Bush and Saddam Hussein queue up to validate their tickets because of Newman’s ability to make people smile. Newman meets his match when he meets Victoria, a drivers license photographer. Despite his efforts, Victoria will not smile, setting off a series of events that affects both of them.
To view this short film, Dallas viewers should go here.
Starring TJ Thyne & Vicki Davis.
Writer/Director/Composer – Kurt Kuenne.
Winner – Best Narrative Short, Cleveland Int’l Film Festival,
Winner – Jury Award, Gen Art Chicago Film Festival, Winner – Audience Award, Hawaii Int’l Film Festival, Winner – Best Short Comedy, Breckenridge Festival of Film,
Winner – Crystal Heart Award, Best Short Film & Audience Award, Heartland Film Festival,
Winner – Christopher & Dana Reeve Audience Award, Williamstown Film Festival,
Winner – Best Comedy, Dam Short Film Festival,
Winner – Best Short Film, Sedona Int’l Film Festival.
Posted by
Jeff Hinson |
September 24th, 2011 at 8:00 am
Every Saturday through December, we will present animated short films from the 1940s-1950s. The first, Duck and Cover, is a civil defense film created in 1951.
Dan Coleman at www.openculture.com prepared a nice review of this animated film that was presented at schools around the country in the early 1950s. Given what the government knew at the time and certainly what we know today, Duck and Cover is amazingly naïve as an instructional movie created to teach children a technique intended to save lives. An excerpt from his review follows.
The US government, working with Archer Productions and students from Queens, NY, produced a short instructional film given the no-frills title Duck and Cover. Shown to millions of children nationwide over many years, the film became a centerpiece of the government’s emergency preparedness program. Since then, the film has been entered into the National Film Registry (2004) and has inspired various parodies, including this recent goof from the “Australian Board of Civil Defence.”
Posted by
Jeff Hinson |
September 20th, 2011 at 8:00 am
We are not fans of talking head short films, but Julio Alalla is amazingly effective. We selected ‘Amo la Vida’ for the YouPlusDallas short film network because this short film is all about the message. Except for shooting this film in black and white, there is nothing about the method of shooting or special effects to talk about. ‘Amo la Vida’ and this short film confirm in my mind that Julio Olalla is someone worth listening to.
Today, we introduce short film maker Eliot Rausch and his short film, “Sermon on the Mound”. Over the coming weeks, we will be showcasing Rausch’s work because he is willing to tell stories that are difficult. He is intense. His work is forceful and yes, difficult at times to watch. He provokes, exposes, and shamefully reminds us that we are not doing enough to help our fellow man. Throughout most of his work lies a thread of faith and as he focuses on the human condition.
The pundits at YouPlusDallas agree that Rausch flat out brings it. In fact, if you don’t get upset, uncomfortable, angry, disturbed; if you don’t cry or look away in shame at some point in viewing his body of work, then you do not have a soul.
Directed and Edited by Eliot Rausch. Shot by Hunter Hampton Richards, and Matt B. Taylor. Music by Adam Taylor.
We received some exciting news today at YouPlusDallas; many members of our team were nominated for ten (10!) awards for their work on a short film at the 168 Film Project Festival. At the 168 Film Project, participants have exactly one week to conceptualize, film and edit a short film based on a single Bible verse.
