MIFF

Melbourne International Film Festival 2013 was as always an eclectic mix of film, talent and audience.

Its very hard to narrow down a small selection of films to actually attend so in the end I just narrowed my list down and based my choice on having friends to go with to discuss them films together afterwards.

The first film i saw was Frances Ha. A film set in New York focusing on a women in her late 20's struggling with her career and friendship with her dearest friend. Filmed entirely in black and white the lack of colour helps you really focus on the character and plot development but importantly look into life and the concept of viewing it in black and white or shades of grey. For half the film you kind of just wanted to throttle the main character Frances, or give her a big hug. it seemed quite dark for a huge section. By the time the film was over, as cliché as it may sound you felt warm inside. It made you smile and feel good. Although Frances Ha doesn't necessarily scream at you "this is a feel good film!" it really is in an almost deceiving way!

The second film was a documentary called Teenage, based on a novel by Jon Savage. Made up of a combination of archival footage and images, newly filmed footage created to look archival. focusing on the teenage years of youth across three nationality (British, American and German) the film starts at the beginning of the 1900's and ends as World War II comes to an end. The archival footage was fantastic and the newly created footage was cleverly done so you were aware it was new but it slotted in with the film beautifully. I really enjoy documentary films and this one was definitely on my list of films I have really really appreciated. It showed the struggles of a generation and how over time it has always been the same theories just put through different circumstances such as war and depression, struggles with rules and parents.

White Night Melbourne

As someone who suffers from a bit of wanderlust White Night reminded me why no matter where I go, why I go there or how long I stay Melbourne is always worth coming back to.

I had no idea what to expect going to White Night. A friend and I did what is typical of she and I and researched it, grabbed a guide book and circled a bunch of stuff in an attempt to basically see it all! Its what I do though: If I'm doing something I tend to want to do it right, properly whatever you want to call it.

There was so much to see it was almost overwhelming, but everywhere you turned there was something else. Walking into a crime scene, a concert, a water/light show, a concert and for when it all got too much a complete and utter chill out involving a harp in the State Library.The light shows on the buildings of Flinders Street have left me never able to quite look at them the same way again.

As time went by and I was wondering around (and surprisingly managing to find people I knew in the crowd of thousands and thousands of people) and I couldn't help but start thinking about the marketing and publicity for something like White Night. Organic growth for any social media fan bases would be guaranteed from the first tweet. The whole atmosphere was infectious. There is already thousands and thousands of people ready for next year purely from what they saw on social media alone. Bloggers, print journos, news reporters, radio hosts, photographers and videographers alike were all over the streets of Melbourne with the news threads still coming through 24 hours later. From a publicity perspective making sure the right people reported on Ted Baillieu raving about success of the event was obviously a strategic necessity in terms of sponsors, funding and post event reporting for the organisers however that aside I think the digital realm can do more for White night than any other reporter or platform.

Speaking of the infectious atmosphere the feeling I got while wandering the CBD that I thought I knew so well was hard to describe. Walking around in constant excitement and amazement is not something you often find. It even fought off the tireds in the wee hours of the morning! What this experience did teach me that no matter what path I am currently taking working with events like this has to be apart of my future. Re-creating the atmosphere that can inspire so man, put smiles on their faces and create or re-ignite their passion or love of something (such as a band, a city or make them think "who creates these visuals, how can I do that?") is what I want to be apart of. Its infectious and therefore motivating. Who wouldn't want to go to work for that?

Yes Guys, I got a Big Girls Job!

This post isn't going to focus all that much on the role I just got. I start Monday but to be honest I'm not entirely sure what the exact role is... What I want to focus on is how I came to get this role so in the future I know what my strengths are, what draws potential employers to make that initial contact and what I learnt during the process.

1) My online profile.
Its unique, moves away from boring black and white PDF's or pieces of paper and shows some personality. It can also allow for much more in depth and information to be given about myself and my professional skills and experiences. The whole notion of impress quickly is still key in the cover letter but I write in it early on to check out the online profile to try and direct people in the more memorable direction.

2) Dress not for the job you have, or are going for, but the one you want.
I had two interviews for this job and both were on days that were over 35 degrees. Its not easy to dress professionally in that weather! Not knowing exactly what direction you want to head in doesn't necessarily matter, I think you just have to dress as though you are the peer of the people interviewing you.  You will look sharp, intelligent and ready for the role.

3) Having to give a presentation as a second interview will kill your nerves!
Going into any interview you are nervous. As someone who hasn't done a lot of public speaking and doesn't particularly like it this is not a way to work into an interview oozing confidence! The key is obvious and simple, research and be prepared. Make it interesting, throw in a few facts and for me the cheat method of shove in some slides and pictures that are slightly different to what you are saying so they get a little distracted.

Antisocial Social Media Gen

It's interesting with a generation that has the ability to better communicate and socialise than any before is apparently unsocial according to this recent Age article.

It is fair to say that its common to see mobiles sitting on tables in restaurants and people on dance floor awkwardly swaying while the text, Instagram or check their news feed. It seems as though the more likes on something makes you social, but at the end of the day if there is no legitimate reason to be on your phone (EG friend needs to find you, need to check event details or something HILARIOUS has to be Instagrammed) it is antisocial behaviour.

Back in the day phone calls were where it was at. Now I rarely organise anything with a call rather a series of texts or even Facebook messages. I have no doubt that a simple phone call is 1000 times easier and more efficient, and yet it is still not the done thing.

American networking specialists have released a report studying the technology habits of Generation Y globally.Surveying 3600 Gen Yer's worldwide (including 200 Australians) found some very interesting statistics. The report found Gen y'ers rely in internet devices, such as smartphones, to "drive every facet of their lives".

• 88% of Australian participants had a morning routine that involved using their smartphone before leaving the house.
• 1/3 would continue to check their smartphones at least every hour.
• Some checked their phone and social media devices as on this schedule even if it meant during meal times or when they were with their friends and family.
• Many admitted they would feel anxious if they were separated from their phone, even admitting it felt like a part of them were missing.

 I'll admit I am guilty of some of these behaviours. A strong part of my morning routine is to read the newspaper online while I eat my breakfast. If nothing strikes my interest then I will flick to social media. It may not strike my interest either but it requires less brain power.

The article proves some pretty obvious home truths about Gen Y. The old phrase "you look better on Myspace" may not actually be so ridiculous even though Myspace isn't such a big deal anymore. The almost addiciton suffered that older generations can't understand is also a concern. I'll admit a certain part of me falls into this category. I have a wavering attention span and some experiences of my phone having been stolen or being left behind that mean I like to know where it is at all times.

There are reasons to embrace the smartphone culture: Global communications, staying connected to friends in far off lands (actual friends that you have met...), GPS/maps can be a saviour, internet banking for those of us bad at budgeting and of course social media. This old chestnut is actually something that can keep our generation in work so it pays to remember its becoming increasingly less frivolous as it begins to sign the paychecks.

All round interesting article, well worth the read for some obvious realisations we all probably need to here.

Microsoft and the 90's Nostalgia

Microsoft recently came up with this ad to reignite support for Internet Explorer.

Pulling on the heart strings of 90's kids it seems like an attempt to take them back to their PC childhoods as many are now becoming apart of the Apple/Firefox generation. I have entered both of these areas! Many years ago, while I was still on PC my brother (AKA my computer technician) told me if i used explorer and ended up with virus after virus he wouldn't help me out with my problems anymore.

As someone who lived her best, responsibility free, innocent years during the 90's, and someone who still has her Spice Girls t-shirt this ad certainly did the job. Even if I have a Macbook Pro and won't be heading back to Internet Explorer the ad certainly restored my faith. If  I was still a PC user this would have been advertising at its greatest work!

Nostalgia is a strong way of evoking emotion, it's certainly something that makes for strong effective advertising and marketing.

The other part of this I liked is the idea that fixing something and improving on it doesn't have to mean completely changing it. The classic example here being the Facebook transition to timeline. Making something unrecogniseable doesn't make it great, it makes it new. Change is a scary concept.

HMV 'Mass Execution': Be Kind to your Social Media Managers

I encountered an article on The Age website this morning that I think may come as a lesson to many.

The basic rundown is that British music retail chain HMV has lost much of their business to downloaded music and filed for bankruptcy in early January. As a result large numbers of jobs have been lost.

This particular incident saw 60 employees lose their jobs in what the anonymous hijacker described on Twitter as a "Mass Execution". The Twitter account was taken over and began with an introductory tweet claiming to be live from HMV's HR department.

The people who had taken over the account (which reaches out to over 60,000 followers) claimed to never normally behave like this, they simply wanted the loyal fans of the brand to understand what was happening. 

Further details can be read in the article, what I would like to discuss is how social media can be abused by employees. Its common for consumers to use it as a complaints department, however employees rarely "hijack" accounts like this. I understand redundancy is a horrible thing for anyone, however with a company in bankruptcy that has had to lay off over 190 staff in recent weeks should it really come as such a surprise?

The issue is password management. Naturally the social media team needs to have access to the accounts, and consequently passwords, however the wording of the tweets suggests that multiple people were using the account. There is of course a fine line in showing obvious distrust of employees by not allowing them access to the passwords creating a very grey and fragile area. Solutions are always easier said than done. With social media now playing such a huge role in marketing strong employee/management relations have become more important than ever when the image of the entire brand is on the line.

My thoughts on possible solutions:

• Have a strategic employee management plan that professionally explains security concerns without sounding as though no employees are trusted.
• Only give passwords to senior team members and specifically state who and how many (a very limited number) within the employee management plan.
• If deciding to allow access to passwords to the majority of relevant employees have regular password changes in place.
• Have a quick moving damage control plan in place so all accounts can be blocked quickly and smoothly should an incident occur.
• Treat employees with respect and always keep them informed of trying circumstances such as potential redundancy.

The Fashion Sections First Photo Shoot

Today marked the first photo shoot for the fashion blog I write for, The Fashion Section.
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TFS is working towards publishing its first online magazine, something which will be coming out seasonally to showcase the up and coming fashion season. I will be writing an article for the magazine (due out around the 4th of March, in time for LMFF) and will post about that closer to the date.

My involvement on the photo shoot was the first of a kind for me. My photo shoots with 2wo 7even 8ight were very different experiences. This shoot involved models, styling (both fashion and shot composition), working with often difficuly natural lighting at several outdoor locations across Melbourne.

I found a had quite a lot of confidence working with the models. I think it helped that none of us had really done this before! (The models were friends of the TFS editor) and I was working with another photographer. I was able to suggest movements and positions to the models and other photographer as we styled the photos on the various locations (including Docklands, Hosier Lane and The Botanical Gardens, locations that had been previously chosen). As the models were getting changed The other photographer, Molly, and I would move onto the next location to scout out angles, lighting and begin working on the composition of the images.

I was also able to comment and contribute to the fashion styling. The garments and outfits and previously been decided by the editor however I was able to contribute on suggestion to accessories, shoes, hair and extra items such as jackets as I used my creative eye to think about composition and making each photograph slightly different to previous ones.

All in all this was a fantastic experience! I have always had a passion for photography, however being scared of losing this passion I have never wanted to make it my living. This was the perfect trade off and I can't wait for the next TFS shoot as I learn more! (There will no doubt be a Photoshop post to come as I edit the photos also....)

Working on positioning and posing with the models

Styling one of the models

A Very Big Day Out as a Publicity Runner

I was fortunate enough to gain a fabulous experience working as a publicity runner at Melbourne Big Day Out 2013. Having done some volunteer work at Stereosonic 2012 in Melbourne this wasn't my first time experiencing the back end of a festival however this was a whole new experience for me.

This role started the day before the festival with some minor set up duties. It was great to get out to the site early and start orientating myself. It was all minor tasks such as setting up the media room and being briefed by our supervisors. There was a team of 6 of us and only two of us were on the site on this first day so it also became our role to brief the others come the morning of the festival.

On the festival day we arrived on site at 9am to finalise the media room. This was a pretty simple task, just making sure it was an enticing environment, setting up the refreshment area, putting set lists and site maps on the walls as well as any notifications about what bands could be photographed and when to make sure there was no confusion. All of this info was on the check in desk however to avoid any confusion (or sneaky illegal photos) this message was reiterated throughout the tent.

During the day I introduced myself to a number of music media professionals. I wanted to feel orientated in the room and be able to point anyone out should it be required of me. I was fortunate enough to meet journalists and photographers from a number of local and international publications including Beat Mag, Tonedeaf and Fairfax. I also chatted to a few people from overseas including a Canadian, based on Tokyo, working as a street style photographer for a New York webpage (Style Sight). Street style and this type of journalism is something I am really interested in so it was great to meet someone working in this field. It was also very motivating as she is obviously a very industrious person. She realised no one covered Australia for the sight so took it upon herself to make that happen.

The day was filled with a lot of errand running and general tasks like this. One task which was rather thrilling involved freshly signed instruments by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. Despite the obvious reasons for this being fantastic it was also a good lesson in having black up plans and thinking on your feet. The instruments had been given to the band in Sydney however they didn't get signed until the band had arrived in Melbourne. They needed to go to the Sydney head office for secure storage rather than finish off the tour the the band. Naturally it was hoped the instruments would be singed in Sydney and this wouldn't be a problem. As always things didn't go to plan. This meant working out the safest way of getting these instruments, worth a pretty penny, from Melbourne to Sydney. On a Saturday that happened to be the start of a long weekend. This mean hunting down information on accounts BDO have with a courier company, discussing options on delivery and pick up directly from the festival site, working out costs including weight (without scales) and size, packaging the instruments so they were secure, finding the least expensive option and looking at pick up options such as leaving them with the hotel staff to be picked up on the Tuesday after the long weekend once the staff have moved to the next state. Being apart of this process certainly taught me about thinking on your feet, covering all bases, asking the right questions and being able to think of realistic alternatives very quickly.

All in all Big Day Out was fantastic. Meeting many members of the media, being exposed to the back end of the festival, furthering me media relations and publicity skills and of course catching some of the festival!

278 Shoot Number 2: Aunty Donna

My second shoot with 278 happened on a fine and sunny morning and also showed the benefits of having a plan b!

The shoot featured the comedy trio known as Aunty Donna. Everything had been organised to take place at the back of a studio known to the producer and founder of 278, Britta. Sadly upon arrival things had changed and there was no way the shoot would be able to take place at this location. This meant a quick scouting of the area!

This was a good opportunity for me to spend a little more time being able to get to know the subjects. As they are comedians they all have strong but very different personalities. It also became very apparent to me that they are all very good mates. I think having this time to speak with them and watch them interact helped me understand what they were going to be like to work with a bit better, which in turn helped me to chat to them about what I wanted from them as we were taking the shots.

The new location was at a local park/sporting field...in front of a public toilet. Britta's line to me was "If you can make a public toilet look good I will be very happy with you!" I don't know if I did that or not, I really just tried to avoid it all together, or in one instance I got the comedians to make a joke out of it!

Working with a trio rather than one subject made for a different experience to the previous shoot. My confidence really improved and I was able to get the guys to interact with our surroundings and each other to try and come up with some interesting shot compositions that reflected their work and their relationships with each other.