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I was recently interviewed by Dana Unger for the amazingly thorough New Hampshire arts blog, 18 miles. It is thorough look at what I’ve been up too lately. Click the image to read the whole story. Thanks Dana!
Tags: 18miles, arts, comedy, danaunger, gravityland, johnherman, stranger than fiction, web video
The reality TV show pilot that I hosted has a great write up in today’s Christian Science Monitor. The first official season starts taping very soon! Click the headline below to read the article:
Tags: energy smackdown
This is a still from the first ever live web video broadcast of Stranger Than Fiction improv comedy. Suggestions for scenes were taken exclusively through live audience interaction in a chat room. My experiment was a big success. We used Mogulus to produce the show. We are pretty sure this is the first time the web has been used in this way by improv comedians. Everyone in the cast was excited by the positive response. The audience demanded we do it again soon!
Tags: improv comedy, John Herman, mogulus, web video
I recently did a phone interview with the delightful entertainment gossip columnist and artist Jeanné McCartin. Click the image to read the whole bit:
Tags: gossip, gravityland, John Herman, new media, vlog
The Center for the Book at the NH State Library awarded “The Future” for best capturing the essence of the novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. I directed the movie with improv comedians Stranger Than Fiction for the 451 Degree Filmmaker Challenge hosted by the Somewhat North of Boston Film Festival.
UPDATE: Steve Garfield featured “The Future” in his latest episode of Vlog Soup. Steve’s take on the future is a must see!
Tags: 451, filmmaking challenge, steve garfield, stranger than ficiton, vlog soup
In honor of Ray Bradbury’s novel, Fahrenheit 451, and in association with the Somewhat North of Boston Film Festival, I directed a new video last night with the improv comedians of Stranger Than Fiction. It is called “The Future” and I get to wear my favorite costume again! Look closely for two books by excellent New Hampshire authors (James Patrick Kelly and Ernest Hebert). Enjoy!
And here is a response video from the vlogfather Steve Garfield!
Tags: 451, ernest hebert, improv comedy, james patrick kelly, ray bradbury, steve garfield, stranger than fiction, youtube
As a director for the NH Film Festival, I get to be involved in quite a bunch of cool stuff. This year not only am I leading the annual Young Filmmakers Workshop, but I am also leading a new media panel discussion called FUTURE NOW: New Media and the Modern Filmmaker. Follow those links for times and locations. I hope you can join me in these two exciting events!
The Young Filmmakers Workshop (YFW) is the featured youth program for the New Hampshire Film Festival. For the past six years, young filmmakers have joined for an intensive full weekend study of the movie making process. The program is one part film school and one part film making challenge. The is an exciting line up of special guests. Some are coming all the way from New York and LA!
Future Now: New Media and the Modern Filmmaker will be a discussion on the changing world of cinema with regards to interactive technologies. Topics may include social media, remix culture, the evolving potential of web distribution and promotion, convergence of media devices, the evolving standards of production values, and the closing gap between filmmaker and audience. Joining me for this discussion will be David Tamés (Filmmaker & Media Technologist, www.Kino-Eye.com), Kevin Anderton (Filmmaker, Midnight Chimes Productions, www.midnightchimesproductions.com), and Steve Garfield (Media Maker
www.stevegarfield.com).
Tags: david tames, John Herman, kevin anderton, new hampshire film festival, new media, steve garfield, video on the net, young filmmakers workshop
The energy conservation reality TV pilot I am hosting will begin streaming online at The Energy Smackdown site and on Myspace. The Boston Herald printed an article entitled Cameras roll as Medford residents strive to conserve ‘Energy’ today covering the documentary series.
Tags: climate change, energy smackdown, reality tv, video on the net
In my continuing work with New Hampshire Public Radio and the Primary Place weekly segment
, I will be leading a team of video bloggers through the streets of Exeter to interview citizens on the Presidential Primary. Here is an excerpt from an article in today’s Boston Herald called Candidates for Change: ‘Vlog Squad’ puts NH in online election spotlight:
It’s citizen journalism at its best - though learning how to vlog still takes a little know-how. That part’s been left to Exeter and Epping High School teacher and new-media guru John Herman.
“The first stage was teaching residents - young and old . . . some very, very old - how to shoot video and upload it to the Internet,” said Herman, who’s volunteering his services to NPR. “The philosophy is that if New Hampshire is to retain the first-in-the-nation primary, then the residents need to earn it. But it is really paving the way for future elections and how people will communicate their opinions.”
Tags: boston herald, exeter, John Herman, new hampshire, presidential primary, video on the net, vlog
I will be joining fellow presenters David Tames (Filmmaker & Media Technologist, Kino-Eye.com) and Anna van Someren (Media Producer, MIT Comparative Media Studies) for a Woods Hole Film Festival seminar called Media Literacy in the 21st Century. The seminar is August 1st at 4PM. For more information, click the image below. Come join us!
Here is a description of the event:
This seminar introduces media makers to the process of critically analyzing popular media including broadcast television, film, and internet video. Much of the media we consume reinforces stereotypes, distorts the news, and distracts from the critical issues of the day. By learning how to look at the media we consume as well as make critically, we can develop an enhanced awareness of how the messages delivered through media influence ourselves, others, and the society we live in. We can harness media to make positive contributors to society, challenge cynicism and apathy, and serve as agents of social change.
Tags: anna van someren, david tames, education, media literacy, woods hole film festival
This year I worked on the winning 48 Hour Film Project film “Eleanor Stops By for a Bite.” Along with an Audience Award, we won Best Use of Genre and Best Special Effects. Congrats to all who worked on a project this year!
Tags: 48 hour film project, art, filmmaking
I have been working with Jon Greenberg of New Hampshire Public Radio on bringing user generated content to his wonderful Primary Place segment. The goal is give a national voice to NH citizens that have the extraordinary opportunity to meet and greet candidates for the presidency.
Here is an article covering our efforts:
From New Hampshire Public Radio hosts presidential forum in Exeter
“It’s really neat to see that people, community members, will actually get to voice their opinions about a presidential primary in a whole new way. Four years ago no one had this opportunity and four years from now, every state will be doing this,” (John) Herman said. “It’s a once in a lifetime thing, from a historical perspective in technology. It’s not exactly Alexander Graham Bell using the phone, but it’s a milestone seeing people use technology that can affect real things.”
From a Letter to the Editor from Jon Greenberg:
Exeter resident John Herman deserves special thanks for single-handedly coordinating the video portion of the program.
Tags: jon greenberg, nhpr, presidential primary, public radio, user generated media, video on the net
I am the host of an upcoming reality TV show called The Energy Smackdown.
This eco-conscious take on the reality TV genre is sponsored by Medford TV3, The Brainshift Foundation, and the National Grid. We will join three families in a fun filled competition to reduce their energy use. I met with the producers this week to shoot a quick promo for the show so we could attract families to the program. It was extremely cold outside. Very cold. Did I mention the cold? It was cold. Click the image to view the promo:
Tags: energy smackdown, reality tv
New songs are just around the corner! Until then, read about the inspiration for the project in this article just published in The Wire in association with the RPM Challenge. Also, I will participating in RPM ‘07 with a hip hop side project called The Secret People. Yes, I will be rapping on the album. More on that soon!
If you missed The Man Who Was Thursday release party, then watch the video below for the band playing live at AXIOM:
Tags: AXIOM, music, new media, rpm challenge, the man who was thursday, the wire
This year I performed in Hatchling’s animated short, The Toll. The movie has now won five awards, four for animation and one for Best Comedy. Pretty exciting! The studio was recently featured on an episode of Boston’s Chronicle television program linked below. Listen closely and you will hear my voice.
This week on my video blog The Eye I interviewed Jennifer Omand of Squarecat Comics. Since 2003, Jennifer has recorded her daily life in the form of a whimsical web comic strip. She is a cat. Her boyfriend Matt is a bird. She covers her life with honesty and charm. And now, I am a comic strip character! Check out the interview from Jennifer’s perspective, as well as her reaction to watching the video. I can’t believe I’m in a comic strip producing a video blog interview about a comic strip. Here is a sneak peak:
By the way, the second volume of Squarecat Comics was just released in print form by JetPack Press. I own both volumes. They are great!
Tags: jennifer omand, jetpack press, squarecatcomics, The Eye, video blog, web comics
Neutrino Boston aims to revolutionize the Saturday night movie viewing experience. With three camera crews racing around with three sets of actors, the multi-media improv comedy troupe literally produces a movie while the audience watches it. The show debuts a new monthly late night slot at ImprovBoston this Saturday, November 11th at 11:20 PM. This is a show shouldn’t be missed. I produce this experimental group, and the director tells me that I will be running too. Be there for the entertainment revolution!
Tags: improvboston, neutrinoboston, neutrinonation, neutrinovideoprojects
How cool does this sound? Beginning on January 1st, Jonas Mekas will post one short film a day for a year. According to Wikipedia, Mekas “is a Lithuanian filmmaker, writer, and curator who has often been called ‘the godfather of American avant-garde cinema.’ He was the founder of the Anthology Film Archives, The Film Makers Cooperative and Film Culture magazine. Mekas has written film reviews for the Village Voice since 1958. He was heavily involved with artists such as Andy Warhol, Nico, Allen Ginsberg, Yoko Ono, John Lennon, Salvador Dalí, and fellow Lithuanian George Maciunas.” For more info, check out this report from NPR.
Tags: avant garde, filmmaking, jonas mekas, notable video on the net, vlog, wikipedia
Boston Media Makers are an exciting group of people talking about exciting new media projects. Here are some image links to video from the meeting earlier this month.
And here is a thorough play-by-play of the October 1st meeting from Steve Garfield that includes links to more photos! If you are interested in the changing world of media, then this is the monthly meetup that you need to check out. Again, I can’t wait until next month!
Tags: boston media makers, MIT, new media, new media literacies, steve garfield, steve schultze
I will regularly post links to notable video on the net. Here are three you should check out:
I’m a Gangsta — The Motivation and The Regret - With the Conscious Youth Media Crew, 16 year old filmmaker Ruben City Palomares explores what motivates young people to join gangs. Scary, powerful.
Alive in Baghdad - American and Iraqi correspondents post testimonies from individual Iraqis, footage of daily life in Iraq, and short news segments from Iraq to you. Created by Brian Conley. Inspiring work.
Something to be Desired - A comedic web series that follows a group of twenty-something deejays at the fictitious WANT FM in Pittsburgh, PA. STBD has been posting episodes since the summer of 2003 under the direction of Justin Kownacki.
Also check out the amazing new resource Network2.tv for more shows exclusively found on the net!
Tags: alive in baghdad, Brian Conley, conscious youth media crew, iraq, justin kownacki, pittsburgh, ruben city palomares, something to be desired, video blog, video on the net
With the archive of my video blog The Eye growing, people increasingly ask: What is the purpose of video blogging? Is it to make money? Is it an attempt at fame? What possesses one to take a camera and decide that he or she is going to create his or her own show? What is the charge of online user generated content? Here is my response.
When I first started video blogging, my motto was lifted from public television. I worked for NHPTV for several years, starting as a production intern and leaving after a season as a game show co-host and floor director for a nightly news magazine program. I left the station to become a teacher but the motto -Entertain, Educate, and Enrich- stayed with me. It was a worthy mantra as I dipped into the world of video on the net.
As I recently told my students, we are involved in a media revolution. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: andrew baron, cbs news, jared spool, katie couric, new media, nhptv, podcamp, revolution, rocketboom, sayittokatie, steve garfield, user interface engineering, video blog, video on the net, vlog, VON, ze frank
Steve Garfield invited me to speak at a fantastic monthly meetup called Boston Media Makers. Boston Media Makers is a group of local video producers, video bloggers, podcasters, artists, and creative people who want to get together and share what they are doing over coffee on a Sunday morning. This past Sunday I spoke about a project I’m producing called Boston Neutrino. The Neutrino Video Project was started in NYC by a daring troupe of improvisational theater performers. With three cameras and a large technical crew, Neutrino takes to the streets to shoot, edit, score, and mix a completely improvised movie in the time it takes for you to watch it. The show has been heralded in New York, Chicago, Seattle, Detroit, San Francisco, Toronto, and Washington, D.C. You will hear more about the project as we get closer to the troupe’s performance at ImprovBoston in November. In the meantime, check out Boston Media Makers. There is a play-by-play of yesterday’s meeting on the site. And I can’t wait until next month!
Tags: boston media makers, improvboston, neutrino, steve garfield