http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/index/ Film, Video, Motion Graphics, Weddings, Websites, Blogs, Digital Storytellers. en gino@pixeldustfilms.com Copyright 2008 2008-03-28T22:35:01-05:00 http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/pixeldust_films_teams_up_with_surfjet_llc/ http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/pixeldust_films_teams_up_with_surfjet_llc/#When:22:35:01Z Pixeldust Films has teamed up with Surfjet, LLC, to provide their clients full production in conjunction with Surfjet’s offering of SEO services.  Currently, Pixeldust Films is involved in production on a series of videos that will be search-optimized using Surfjet’s proprietary and proven approach to finding digital content on the web.  Pixeldust Films continues to provide full pre-production and post-production services to the top organizations in the USA and is fast-becoming a leader in the area of digital content creation for web, CD-ROM, DVD and training presentations.  As well, Pixeldust Films web studio continues to build standards-compliant, browser-friendly websites that consistently perform in the entertainment, e-business, educational, transactional and financial industries. Why not take a look at some of our recent work, or, learn more about us. News 2008-03-28T22:35:01-05:00 http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/it_started_on_newbury/ http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/it_started_on_newbury/#When:23:02:00Z Client: Dave and Anna Work Performed: Custom Website, Custom Flash Development, CSS, XHTML, Custom Expression Engine installation, Web Hosting Dave and Anna are pulling out all the stops for their upcoming wedding.  They decided that in addition to sending out the standard invitation, they wanted a website that showed their personalities.  They also wanted a place where people could go and get information about the wedding, learn more about the bridesmaids, groomsmen, and Chuppah holders.  They approached Pixeldust Films with their ideas and let us roll with it! The site is an Expression Engine powered site that has been custom designed by Pixeldust Films.  The slideshow on the opening page was custom developed and features the randomization of their favorite photos.  We also did all the custom CSS work, graphic design, and integrated their Flickr photos using the flexible Flickr API.  Visitors can sign up on their mailing list, browse content that’s relevant to their guests, and just have an overall smashing good time. Just like I’m sure they’ll have at the actual wedding! The site was launched in March, 2008.  Congratulations, David and Anna!  Visit the site today! News, Case Studies 2008-03-24T23:02:00-05:00 http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/pixeldust_films_to_shoot_villanova_ncaa/ http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/pixeldust_films_to_shoot_villanova_ncaa/#When:19:43:01Z It’s nothin’ but net! Pixeldust Films is headed to Villanova this Saturday, February 9th to shoot some footage in support of Turn Here.com, who will be taking the footage and using it as a “sizzle” reel for CBS executives.  The game is between Villanova and Seton Hall, and Pixeldust Films has been asked to capture pre-game footage of rabid ‘Nova fans getting crazy in support of the home team.  With my camera on my shoulder, I’ll be hitting the bars, the tailgate parties, and any other place that is stockpiled with crazed Villanova fans.  I became a Turn Here filmmaker a number of years ago, and one of my earliest “infomericals” was acquired by them as the basis for many of the films they were trying to make in their start-up days. I’ll post some short clips on my return! News 2008-02-06T19:43:01-05:00 http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/pixeldust_films_on_you_tube/ http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/pixeldust_films_on_you_tube/#When:15:31:00Z Pixeldust Films bit the bullet and actually signed up for a You Tube account a couple of years ago.  For the most part, I’ve always felt that a lot of my stuff didn’t belong there as You Tube has been a place for novelty videos.  I believe, however, that this is starting to change, and there is some really viable content on there if you are willing to sift through the junk.  Hopefully, our entry into the world of You Tube will be viewed as more of the viable content! Anyway, in spite of the fact that you can see all the films here on Pixeldust Films.com, now we’re broadcasting some select pieces over there as well.  If there’s one thing You Tube brings to the table, it’s a lot of eyeballs… Check out my channel and watch it grow. News 2008-02-02T15:31:00-05:00 http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/the_high_street_caffe/ http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/the_high_street_caffe/#When:04:33:00Z Client: The High Street Caffe Work Performed: Website, Photography, Video “Infomercial,” Web Hosting The High Street Caffe has the kind of food that makes you want to continue to eat long after you’re full.  I know, as I do it every time I go there.  Don Syracuse, owner of the now-famous West Chester eatery needed a website so he could post all the info that you find on most restaurant sites:  hours, menus, directions, etc.  But what he really wanted to accomplish was to mimic the “look and feel” of the restaurant on his website.  The High Street is straight out of Louisiana Cajun:  purple walls, beads all over the place, dimly lit, the constant smell of crawfish, spices, fresh seafood, and all this being underpinned by live jazz or blues (and, in my day, a little classical, as I was the house entertainment for the first couple of years). Don also wanted a video so people could further get the “flavor” of the restaurant right on the website.  We did a one camera shoot, and I conducted the interview while my DP shot the footage.  The outtakes on the film represent some of the funniest stuff you’ll ever hear (well, you probably won’t hear it), and we just laughed and laughed in between takes trying to get it right.  In the end, we did… This film was eventually acquired by Turn Here.com, who believed that my style of editing was in alignment with the kinds of films they wanted to make, at least at that time.  Visit the Site or Watch the movie we produced below Case Studies 2008-01-27T04:33:00-05:00 http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/new_website/ http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/new_website/#When:14:54:00Z I’m pleased to announce the relaunch of Pixeldust Films.com!  After 2 years of building out the business, I finally figured out what I wanted to do here on the web not only to show the work, but to show the person behind the work.  This new site has a lot of cool features, for sure, but mostly, I hope it allows you to get to know more about me and my approach to the services my company provides.  I’m excited to talk about all the cool stuff here, and whether you’re a first time visitor or somebody who’s been here again and again (we have our share of repeat stopovers), I’ll hope you’ll find something interesting to do. For starters, I should say that the entire site has been built in Expression Engine. I'm no stranger to content management systems, but this was my first project using this powerful CMS. I gotta tell ya that I've done more with Expression Engine in 2 weeks than I've done with Wordpress or Joomla in 2 years. In fact, I'm trying to figure out why I'd even use those tools (except that they're free) for any of my clients going forward. The other thing that's significant is that I've decided to pretty much abandon my personal blog and start blogging over here at Pixeldust Films. Bloggers know that it's hard enough to keep one blog up-to-date, but keeping up 2 will be pretty much impossible. Given the fact that Pixeldust Films generates a fair amount of traffic, I'm going to dedicate my time to blogging over here. I'm currently migrating all my blog posts from there and moving them over to here. Shouldn't take too long to complete. Other significant additions and changes... The new front page has lots more to do than the old one! Watch a film, sign up on the new mailing list, check out my Flickr pictures, read news or blog entries, and get random testimony from my customers. The front page is a digital playground for those who drink their coffee slowly. Pixeldust Films is primarily a one-person shop (I'm the one). Although we I staff people as necessary, I wanted it to be clear that you're pretty much hiring me. The entire site has been rewritten to reflect that the work here is being done by a single entity. I'm a small studio and I'm proud of it. Every element you see on this website, including the site itself, the films, the motion graphics (did I say everything?), was done by me personally. I'm planning on blogging like a maniac this year, and I hope to help others in the field understand more powerful ways to use their website as a tool to do more than simply showing off their work. The new "tell a friend" feature goes across most of the site and makes it easy for you to share this content with others. You can see it at the bottom of this post. Go ahead and click it. You know you want to! Sign Up! This new site invites you to be a contributor! Do you have a comment on one of my films? Perhaps you're a client and you'd like to comment on a project I've done for you? Maybe you just want to chime in on my blog. No sweat! Signing up is easy, free, and calling your name right now! Lastly, and for me, most importantly, this site is about more than just showcasing my work. It's about getting to know you, and giving you chance to get to know me (don't worry, I'm married, so get your mind out of the gutter). It's about doing by example what I try to do for each of my clients: tell their "digital" story. Pixeldust Films is mine. Thanks for your visit! News 2008-01-26T14:54:00-05:00 http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/winter_solstice/ http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/winter_solstice/#When:23:31:01Z "Winter Solstice" represents my first at-home studio recording. The album was initially recorded for the purpose of testing mic placement in a grand piano, but, it also served as an opportunity to try some other things. For starters, using microphones on a grand piano and getting good results takes a little practice. In fact, the better the piano, the more important this becomes. Then, of course, there was the actual selection of the pieces and reworking them into arrangements (many of the pieces were improvised). Then there was the post-production process, which was all about getting the piano to still sound like it should, but giving it a little bit of depth using Apple Logic Pro. "It wasn't until I listened to the first day's recording session that I actually decided this album would make a decent Christmas present." -Gino One of the final experiments was to work with the fine folks over at discmakers.com to get the entire product packaged using custom-designed DVD jewel cases. Using their templates, we were able to do the entire project at their online "self service" kiosk, and there was no need to send any hard-copy media to Discmakers whatsoever. Gino, still awaiting the copies, is excited to see and hold the final product. We'll be using similar packaging going forward for all our Pixel-Produced video biographies, audio projects and just about everything else. "...The mp3s above represent the entire album. A little classical, some ragtime, holiday music, it's all there. Many of the songs I chose were the ones my family would ask me to play when I was just learning the piano, and I tried to pick out some of the ones I was asked to play again and again. It's cool to look back to the days when I was just learning, and compare it to what I was able to create after all the years of formal training, music school, and the insight that comes with experience." -Gino Fast Facts Pixeldust Films is starting to move into live music event coverage, and this project was done in part to learn the art of mic'ing a grand piano. The recording was done on my Steinway model "B." The piano was purchased new in 1995 and took 8 years to pay off. I was lucky enough to buy it when I was too stupid to know I couldn't afford it. The recording was captured with a pair of Audio Technica AT-4050 mics placed about 7 feet in the air. The piano was open to "full stick." It wasn't until I listened to the first day's recording session that I actually decided this album would make a decent Christmas present. Since the premiere of this album went online before Christmas day, I'm largely banking on the fact that the potential recipients of the gift won't find this area of my website until December, 26th, 2007. Many of the pieces were largely improvised arrangements. The classical music was largely read from the score, except in the case of the Beethoven sonata. Although the score for the Beethoven was never consulted, I know I'm playing parts of it incorrectly as I learned that sonata in his mid-teens. I'm ok with that. The Beethoven sonata was meant to be a test to make sure I wasn't clipping the mics, but it was kept in although it's only an excerpt. News 2008-01-01T23:31:01-05:00 http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/pixeldust_films_launches_we_train_petscom/ http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/pixeldust_films_launches_we_train_petscom/#When:23:27:00Z Pixeldust Films recently handed over a great new website to a very talented dog trainer. We Train Pets.com is a custom Wordpress blog that allowed Christine the opportunity to update her site quickly and easily. Over there you'll find some great podcasts that we produced that give dog owners some real-world tips from a person who spends more time with animals than with humans (and she was one of the nicest people we've ever met). Maybe we should all start hanging out with dogs... Stop over to We Train Pets.com and have a look and a listen! Pixeldust Films launched the site in October, 2007. News 2007-12-20T23:27:00-05:00 http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/pixeldust_films_launches_podcasting_services/ http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/pixeldust_films_launches_podcasting_services/#When:01:01:00Z Podcasting. It's become such a buzzword. And, just like when it was fashionable to be a "webmaster," now it's fashionable to be a "podcaster." The problem is always the same: a technology becomes accessible to everybody and suddenly there are all sorts of traffic jams on the information superhighway...Don't worry, we're here to help you sort it all out. We not only have the technology to make you sound like you mean business, but we have the marketing and analytics background to make sure you're actually connecting to your target audience. What we can do for you We can produce your podcast. If you have a script, we'll do the rest (we bring our own voice talent, too). Don't have a script? We can write it. We can host your podcasts. We can help you Market your podcasts. We can tell you if anybody is actually listening to your podcasts. We can create bumpers, intros, and endings for your existing podcasts. Check out our Podcasting page to learn more and hear some examples! News 2007-09-02T01:01:00-05:00 http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/collegeville_dental/ http://www.pixeldustfilms.com/index.php/main/news/collegeville_dental/#When:23:41:00Z Pixeldust Films is pleased to announce the launch of Collegeville Dental.com. The website features a profile of the highly successful Collegeville dental practice, owned and operated by Dr. Ryan A. Estelle and his amazing staff. As well, Pixeldust Films was responsible for all the digital photography, web content, user experience, and of course, the fantastic film we created that features the patients and staff. We appreciated the opportunity to create this end-to-end solution for Collegeville Dental. It reminds us of how versatile we are, and how we can empower our clients through well-crafted solutions that speak to their business needs. Visit Collegeville Dental now! News 2007-08-01T23:41:00-05:00