Tips from a Colorist Assistant

Those who met with Dan "G-Rock" Goslee got some great advice on shooting, coloring, and moving to Los Angeles. Here's some of the points Dan made:

- Shoot Clean. Especially with DV! The signal is so compressed, it is best to shoot so the whites aren't "blowing-out" and the blacks are not "crushed".

- Correcting: Make your whites "White" and your blacks "Black" using the scopes. Yes, keep it that simple.

- Literal isn't storytelling: If you what a dark scene, shoot it clean (so you can see it and the picture doesn't pixilated due to poor lighting), then correct the white/black range, THEN manipulate the look. Shooting too dark or too bright means you have no room to be creative...you'll bascially be correcting your poorly shot footage instead of being creative with your properly shot footage. Also, if you eventually want to create a night scene, avoid warmth. Shoot clean, or just a bit cool.

- Color Theory: If you don't know it, don't mess with it! Get a book, look on wikipedia, or even talk with Professor Biddle and/or Professor Smith.

- Fly a couch, or just stay home: LA is already flooded with people who want to be editors, directors, producers, VFX artists, etc. You can't sit at home and expect LA (or NYC, or Atlanta, or Toronto, etc.) to come to you. People are already there sleeping on friend's couches, knocking on doors, and doing what they have to in order to learn and make it in the business. If you want to take big, you better go big! That means taking risks. Dan Goslee moved to LA with enough money to survive, slept on friends' couches, worked "crappy" jobs until he moved up to be a Colorist Assistant. He's been in LA three years. It takes time. He's willing to put in the sweat, time, and sacrifice. If you aren't, then places like LA might not be for you.