Michael Conti Productions

Tag: film

  • The Unruly Mystic

    The Unruly Mystic

    The Unruly Mystic: Saint Hildegard von Bingen ~ An inspirational documentary of how the filmmaker reaffirms his life’s work when he fell in love with a 12th century Saint.

    Poster of The Unruly Mystic: Saint Hildegard
    Poster of The Unruly Mystic: Saint Hildegard

    Discover why Saint Hildegard von Bingen is considered to be the patron saint of creativity, and about her continued impact today. This 12th-century abbess became famous as a Christian Mystic and visionary, as well as a musical composer and writer, and whose natural medicine is still practiced in Europe today

    People ask me how I came to make a documentary about Saint Hildegard of Bingen. It all started two years ago when I decided to take my first ever pilgrimage to the Rhineland. I took a 10 day retreat which was billed as a Birthing Vision, coinciding with spring equinox in the Rhineland, and the opportunity to immerse into the Light and Greening Power of Hildegard. The result of that retreat was for me the start of a film entitled The Unruly Mystic: Saint Hildegard which is a prescriptive documentary of how I as the filmmaker reaffirms my life’s work when I fell in love with a 12th century Saint.  It is a journey that has now taken me to Germany several more times, and given me to the opportunity to meet artists, writers, musicians, theologians and doctors around the world that have found their life changed by Saint Hildegard.

    Included are other insightful interviews with Benedictine Sr. Lydia from the Abbey of St. Hildegard, Germany; Professor Beverly Mayne Kienzle at the Harvard Divinity School; Lynn Maxwell, a world-class mezzo soprano on her one-woman Hildegard show; Doctor Wighard Strelow’s healing work at the Hildegard Center in Allen Bach, Germany; and American Episcopal priest and theologian Matthew Fox.

    For me, Saint Hildegard of Bingen evokes a calling, that sweet spot of creativity that we all yearn to play in, which is also spiritual in nature. The film reveals how she is still venerated for her widely recognized impact on today’s theologians, artists, musicians, doctors and educators.

    She is indeed the unruly mystic. Her story, invites us all to embrace the connection between God, Nature and Art. This is the story of a powerful muse who invites us to create magic in our own lives by letting the ordinary touch the divine.

    It has been an amazing birthing process these past two years when I first took that pilgrimage, and now with the film’s birth, there is another journey about to begin for me in screening and promoting the film’s message.

    https://youtu.be/8AVNBelF5Pg

    Available on Amazon:
    The Unruly Mystic: Saint Hildegard of Bingen

  • 5 Things to Ask Yourself Before Picking a Video Professional Partner

    5 Things to Ask Yourself Before Picking a Video Professional Partner

    If producing videos is part of your overall strategy, one of the most important decisions you’re going to have to make is who to work with, for doing the actual heavy lifting, is picking the video professional partner. There are literally thousands of video production companies out there, and finding the perfect fit can be daunting. You could find yourself swimming with sharks, who are more interested in what you can spend budget-wise than one what you actually need done. If producing videos is part of your overall strategy, one of the most important decisions you’re going to have to make is who to work with, for doing the actual heavy lifting, is picking the video professional partner. There are literally thousands of video production companies out there, and finding the perfect fit can be daunting. You could find yourself swimming with sharks, who are more interested in what you can spend budget-wise than one what you actually need done.

    Your instinct may be to watch a few sample videos and make a decision, but you should take the time to mindfully consider what an ideal video partner might look like.

    Ideal video partner

    While we can’t find the perfect fit for you, we can throw a life preserver to help you get in the right direction. Here are 5 simple questions to ask yourself before making your selection.

    1. Do they care about my company?

    Give them a call.  Don’t depend upon email, chat or texting.  Speak in person.  You’ll get a pretty good idea within minutes how much they care about your business versus just your money.

    Do they ask relevant, specific questions about your video concept?  Are they actively interested in knowing who your audience is, how you intend to reach that customer with the video, what your expectation is to determine if the video worked or not, or is the person just trying to nail down how much money you have to spend? You want to make sure that the video professional you decide to work with is going to be passionate about your project and invested in making your video a success.

    2. Do they have innovative and creative ideas?

    With so many video companies out there, everything can start to look and sound the same after a while (especially among more recent companies). And if it appears “same old” to you, chances are it will look old to your customers.

    Try to find a video professional partner that strives to create truly unique work and has experience in a variety of different types of work.  It will make your video more memorable and help it stand out from the pack. If you’re not sure, ask the company to verbally pitch you a few ideas first. This simple exercise will probably show you if they have the ability to come up with something special or not.    Most video professionals are not too concerned with kicking around some creative concepts if asked during a call,  but be mindful if you expect them to develop additional creative concepts with storyboards and scripts on spec to win a potential job.

    3. What are their Relationships with Existing Clients?

    Nothing is more telling than relationships with existing clients.  Do you know these brands? Can they back it up with testimonials?

    4. What is the production value?

    Production value is that extra special sauce that a seasoned professional can bring to a final product, it is why you are will to spend more dining out at a nice restaurant than taking the same ingredients home, to make a home cooked meal.

    Ask specific questions about a video they did that you like , and find out how they added production value without adding additional costs to the customer.

    5. Do they fit my budget?

    So a homeowner needs to do a remodel on their bathroom before putting their house on the market. You know you need to hire a contractor who already has the experience with this type of labor.  He is there to help you envision the bathroom based upon the budget you are willing to spend. Either way, you decide if you want nickel or copper plated faucets.   The end result when working with the right person is a new bathroom that increases the overall value of your property.  It is your budget.

    But to make make money, you need to spend money. Ask what is possible.

    Hiring the right video professional partner for your unique needs can be stressful.  So before you jump in,  make sure you have clearly define your goals and your budget.  Look at samples of videos you like in our portfolio and take the time to ask us about our production process. These tips will help you identify the right match even if you don’t select Michael Conti Productions.

    video professional partner
  • Filmmakers who aren’t afraid to break new ground

    Filmmakers who aren’t afraid to break new ground

    While our inspirational documentary film, The Unruly Mystic: John Muir, indie budget pales in comparison to a Hollywood film, Boulder Colorado based Michael Conti Productions decision to use an integrated Adobe workflow with Adobe Premiere Pro at the hub, was a given for this tech-savvy and budget conscious producer, director and editor, Michael M. Conti.

    Adobe Premiere Pro was used to edit 21 films that will appear at the Sundance Film Festival this year, up from only 9 in 2014. After pairing up with Adobe After Effects CC, Premiere’s capabilities and ease of use noticeably improved, attracting more and more devoted users.

    Case in point:

    Gone Girl is the first Hollywood feature-length film cut entirely in Adobe Premiere Pro CC.

    This final tidbit of news was a welcome surprise to the independent film community.

    Much of the visual effects work was done in-house, which allowed the team to work iteratively, in parallel with the editing. For example, Michael Conti could edit in Adobe Premiere Pro while others worked on shots in After Effects. The saved compositions would automatically update in Conti’s timeline thanks to Adobe Dynamic Link. This integrated and interactive workflow kept shots looking cleaner and eliminated distracting back-and-forth discussions so the entire team could focus on the story as it took shape in the edit bay. This streamlined workflow was one of the main advantages for “The Unruly Mystic.”

    The process of editing this 105 minute movie with Premiere Pro from the ingest of assets (originally shot on two CANON XF100s), to individual scene editing (taking advantage of sub-clip and bin folders), to combining the multiple scenes in a single timeline (flatten) will be a subject of another post.

    Learn more about Adobe Creative Cloud