http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/ The pen and paper aspects of DV -- put it in writing! en Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:34:57 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/images/misc/rss.jpg http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/ http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/468092-can-client-tamper-edit-without-directors-producers-consent.html Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:51:44 GMT Hi, I have a lagal/ethical question.

Here's the scenario: I made a music video for a friend, I did the concept, shoot, edit, master. Handed it to him. He was very happy at that time.

He's then gone and omitted the title slide with my name and logo on it and also removed the scrolling end credits and put in his own text without my consent or approval and uploaded that version to his youtube and facebook page. Its even uploaded in the wrong aspect ratio! I'm furious!

What my question is that can a client even do that? True, its HIS video and he can do whatever he wants with it. But does he also have ownership of the edit????

There were no contracts or written agreements signed so I can't take him to court or anything, but I don't want to look like a fool when I tell him that he cannot change the edit when ethically and legally he can.

Any insights to this issue? ]]> Taking Care of Business Ali Jafri http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/468092-can-client-tamper-edit-without-directors-producers-consent.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467718-how-do-i-pitch-show-cable-network.html Sat, 14 Nov 2009 14:02:09 GMT Not sure if I phrased this properly, but if, as a Producer/Production Comany, I want to sell a not yet produced series to a cable network such as Discovery, A&E, etc, what are the general steps that one would take?

Thanks in advance. ]]> Taking Care of Business Paul Cascio http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467718-how-do-i-pitch-show-cable-network.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467596-proposal-request.html Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:51:39 GMT I just had an existing client call me. This company is medium sized with many departments, and from what I gather, each department operates pretty much independently from the others. We've done work in the recent past for two other departments (some training videos and some design work) and now I'm contacted by a third.

He wants me to put together some storyboards and design ideas and present them at a meeting with two other competitors to (his words) "give them some ideas". I asked if they had a budget for this project. No. I asked if they had written a request for proposal. No.

From his brief description, I could see this being as small as a $2,000 project. I don't want to go through so much work and drive 45 miles to attend a meeting where I have only a 33% chance of getting a piddly little project.

The problem is we already have a relationship with this company (but not this department) and they are very good to work for. Always pay the bill on time, never complain about the price. But I think this guy is way out of line asking for this much up front.

What would you do? Tell him we don't work that way? Just do it and hope for the best? ]]> Taking Care of Business Chris Davis http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467596-proposal-request.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467526-selling-out-my-half-company-dvd-library-sales-valuation-help.html Wed, 11 Nov 2009 17:56:18 GMT Here's the deal... I own half of a company (corporation) with a partner.
This company owns and sells 10 different DVD/CD products that we've produced over the last 3 years. It's time for me to move on to different things, so I'd like to make him an offer to buy me out. The company has no debt, and makes about 99% profit off sales (yes, after marketing/shipping/website costs, etc...) Beyond the intellectual property, the company owns nothing else of significance.

How should I value the company in order to set my asking price for my half of it? Sales are growing maybe 20% a year... I'm thinking of a value based on X months/years of sales, but don't know what number that X should be.

What do you guys think? ]]> Taking Care of Business Dylan Couper http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467526-selling-out-my-half-company-dvd-library-sales-valuation-help.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467440-any-paypal-gurus-house.html Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:06:32 GMT Here is my scenario, Pay Pal took money from my bank account even though the transaction was cancelled. I sent money to a friend, he rejected it and was showing cancelled on my account history, 3 days later PayPal took the money. I have spent hours trying to file a dispute but can't find the right category for my complain. It is like a maze.

Any help will be greatly appreciated. ]]> Taking Care of Business Noel Lising http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467440-any-paypal-gurus-house.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467364-how-pitch-movie-idea.html Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:36:41 GMT I'm not sure if this should go in the writing section or the open discussion section of the forum, so I've posted it in both. Hopefully that's allowed.

In any case, I have a movie idea that's...well...really good. So good in fact that I honestly believe that it could easily make for a blockbuster. I realize that people say this all the time, but I truly feel that my idea far surpasses anything I've seen or read about in recent times.

My question is this: if I were to write a synopsis and then pay a professional writer to rewrite it properly for me, to whom do I contact to pitch the idea? Or rather, what steps do I take in hopes of making this idea become a reality?

My apologies for clearly knowing nothing about this sort of thing. I'm a small time producer of sports based content. I know absolutely nothing about scripts and such.

Thanks again. :) ]]> Taking Care of Business Nathan DuMoulin http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467364-how-pitch-movie-idea.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467328-business-business-am-i-freelancer-my-own-company.html Sun, 08 Nov 2009 18:33:03 GMT I have a question to all those in my shoes, or have been there. This all came about when I was designing a business card for myself. Some background info: By day I work at a TV station doing Videography and Editing and such. On the side I have been dabbling with some freelance projects,... I have a question to all those in my shoes, or have been there. This all came about when I was designing a business card for myself.

Some background info:

By day I work at a TV station doing Videography and Editing and such.

On the side I have been dabbling with some freelance projects, weddings, and events.

My questions is, as I pursue this Freelance/extra work, should I sell myself as Alden Miller, video freelancer? Or build a small production company name for myself?

So far I have a company name and a website being built. Nothing legal or paperwork done yet. I do have a separate bank account for this work though. ]]> Taking Care of Business Alden Miller http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467328-business-business-am-i-freelancer-my-own-company.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467272-tv-commercials.html Sat, 07 Nov 2009 09:04:27 GMT I live in an area that has it's own TV market, though much smaller than neighboring areas (like L.A.). I've been watching some horrible TV commercials for local companies and have wondered how the companies that produced those commercials go about obtaining those jobs. Can anyone point me in the right direction as to how to market my company as available to do commercials and/or to seek out prospective clients for that purpose? ]]> Taking Care of Business Craig Coston http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467272-tv-commercials.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467050-first-professional-quote-help.html Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:29:39 GMT I'm in the process of starting up a small video production studio (emphasis on small). We have a couple of amateur projects under our belts (done for free) and we are hoping to start getting paid so we can upgrade our equipment/systems.

We have a call with a potential client soon and I would like to have a ballpark idea what we should quote him for our services, but I'm not sure what comparable rates are and how I should structure the quote..

Here are the details that I have:

- We are based in the Chicagoland area.
- We are not professional, at this point. We have produced solid products, but we are still learning our craft. Our equipment is just below prosumer-level.
- The project will likely involve us shooting, editing, and producing short (15-30 min?) videos to be shown on the web or distributed on DVD on a monthly basis.
- This will be extra-curricular activity for us. We all have day-jobs at this point.

I'm sorry I don't have more details to include, but we haven't heard a whole lot of specifics from the potential client at this point. I do know that this would involve regular, probably monthly, production of short videos.

The structure I am leaning towards is developing a flat fee based on an estimated amount of hours and expenses for the first installment. If we keep track of hours and see how closely our expenditures match up with our estimates, we can possibly switch to hourly rates in successive projects? Does that sound like a good idea?

Can anyone help me get an idea what we should be charging for an hourly rate? I don't have any idea what professional production companies charge for this type of work, so I can't extrapolate what we should be charging as entry-level producers.

Any help that you can offer would be appreciated! ]]> Taking Care of Business Luke Hamilton http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/467050-first-professional-quote-help.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466951-recommendations-places-buy-promotional-pens.html Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:37:23 GMT I'd like to get some inexpensive pens (think cheap ball-point pens) printed with my production company's name/web address. Has anyone had experience using an online service for this?
Thanks
Greg ]]> Taking Care of Business Greg Quinn http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466951-recommendations-places-buy-promotional-pens.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466933-website-videographer.html Sun, 01 Nov 2009 19:17:37 GMT I am looking to change my website look tt the xml style.
Especially because I am looking for a better way to display my movies.
At this point I embed from exposure room and vimeo but I don't think it looks professional.
I would like the thumbnails and a screen.
The problem is that I don't want to spend much money and rather do it my self.
The biggest problem is that I don't know flash or xml.
Does anyone knows on a build yourself website or can give tips of how to create my dream website. ]]> Taking Care of Business Dror Levi http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466933-website-videographer.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466722-question-about-location-permits-releases.html Thu, 29 Oct 2009 04:39:58 GMT Summary at the bottom

Hey guys... so I'm going home this winter to shoot a no budget feature with my friends. When I say no budget, I mean.... NO budget. I can't afford insurance for this shoot. BUT I do HAVE insurance-- my school requires me to purchase a student insurance which covers all equipment and property under my control up to $25k. (and not just for school purposes, it's private insurance that covers ANY of my property... even my automobiles, for instance... or my camera equipment)
Now, I don't really want to shoot the ENTIRE movie on my back porch, so I've actually got some friends who are managers at local stores to let me shoot there after hours. I always want to shoot my characters on the street or a park. Now, as I understand it, without an official location release (for the private businesses) or permit (for the parks/streets), I'll never be able to show this movie at any festivals, and definitely can't even hope for distribution (not that I really expect it, but it'd be nice to dream).
However, I'm pretty sure my managers won't be able to get the head of the companies that own the stores to sign a location release, at least not without better insurance and a fee, and I'm pretty sure I need more insurance (for workers comp., etc.) to get a permit to shoot at parks.

SO

essentially, I'm allowed to shoot at some locations, but I don't have "permission" to shoot at these places. You know? My question is...
If I were to shoot my characters at these places, but keep the background out of focus so it's blurred and not recognizable... can I use the footage? Because, I just want my characters to be sitting at a table, you don't have to know it's starbucks. And I want them walking down a street, no reason to see what street it is.


SUMMARY
If the location is unrecognizable do I still legally need a permit or release to use footage of it? ]]> Taking Care of Business Alex Payne http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466722-question-about-location-permits-releases.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466508-how-i-sell-my-greatest-dvd.html Mon, 26 Oct 2009 22:04:58 GMT Next week, I will be receiving one thousand DVD's of my first film. It is a picture post card of birds of Florida, called Birds Gone Wild. I have several small stores around where I live that will buy 20 or so at a time.
I think that the work has just started. So my questions is how do I get a rep to help me sell BGW all over Florida? I thought that Taking Care of Business might have some ideas. Any help will be wonderful. I have told all my friends that if BGW doesn't sell well, they will be getting a copy for their birthday and Christmas for the next 40 years.

Ken. ]]> Taking Care of Business Kenneth Burgener http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466508-how-i-sell-my-greatest-dvd.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466462-freelance-photographer-rates.html Mon, 26 Oct 2009 05:18:07 GMT I know it's not video, but a local small town paper is looking for freelance photojournalists - I've got still gear, and just wondering what a "going rate" for photos might be in a "local market"? Any ideas?

I know I've seen some photographers shooting for them, using higher end consumer cameras I retired several years ago... so I figure there's not a "high bar", and a little extra $$ couldn't hurt, just scratching my head as to what is a fair rate to quote? ]]> Taking Care of Business Dave Blackhurst http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466462-freelance-photographer-rates.html http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466361-potential-client-wants-past-clients-phone-numbers.html Sat, 24 Oct 2009 03:11:46 GMT I do weddings. I have a potential client who wants some of my past clients' phone numbers to ask them about their satisfaction.

To me, this is a boundaries issue. I don't feel right releasing my valued client's contact information to someone who may or may not hire me. To me that's selling them out.

Yet the potential client is a big CEO, and perhaps this is common practice. I told her I'd think on it. Thoughts? ]]> Taking Care of Business Dana Salsbury http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/taking-care-business/466361-potential-client-wants-past-clients-phone-numbers.html