Sunday, December 28, 2008

thumbsucker



boy oh, boy, when it rains it pours. (and it is actually raining tonight outside my window) first, www.squigglebooth.com , the hip and cool playground for film lovers posts our thumb short, and an hour later i hear from starkville, ms that they are going to screen "boy with the wet thumb" at their 12th annual "magnolia film festival" this coming february. the mag has been a sell out for many years, so i am looking forward to seeing it on a big screen with oodles of folks.

thank you, these are two nice presents for www.beerymedia.com and that boy with the moist digit.

Sunday, November 23, 2008

best editing for thumb



Today I was honored with the "Best Editing" award for my short, "The boy with the wet thumb" at the Carrboro Film Festival in sunny North Carolina. Thank you CFF committee!

Friday, November 21, 2008

Melancholy Video


Secretly Sorry -The Crowd Scene Version from nic beery on Vimeo.

Well, I got back into the music video biz. My friends, Anne Rogers, Grahame Davies and Evan Pollack had Bill Elias, Chris Kittilstad and I over for an evening of fun, and while there we shot this music vid. They live in Washington, DC, so it was a five hour drive. But well worth it. I love this song, Secretly Sorry, and the mood we all created for the video fits very nicely.

I highly recommend you pick up their new CD, "*With Complete Glossary for Squares". More info at www.TheCrowdScene.com

Enjoy, and spread the word, especially if you are square.

Friday, November 7, 2008

Election, DC style

photos by Bill Elias and Larry VanDerVeen

Bill Elias and I went to DC to work election week. Bill behind a camera and i directing some of the three camera news programs. It was a blast. The foreign bureaus we worked for were from England, Ireland, Spain, Romania, Germany and a few other spots around this blue globe of ours.





The White House is the magnet that draws everyone to the same spot on the roof of my former employer, Mobile Video Services. It was nice to go back and be with old friends.









In other news, "Boy with the wet thumb" has been selected to screen at this years Carrboro Film Festival. I am excited about this, since it is the first year I have not been directly involved with the fest and am eligible to have one of my shorts in this really cool fest. Come out to the Century Center on November 23rd!

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Nuts!


"Veronica Always wins again!

After a win at Secret City, we were surprised again with the "Bronze Pecan Award" at last weekends Seguin Film and Arts Festival in Texas. We are honored and happy that our film, "Veronica Always" is getting all this attention.

Thursday, October 23, 2008




We were happy to hear that the Secret City Film Festival in TN selected our very own “Veronica Always” as this years “Best Family Film”. This is such a nice recognition of a beautiful short film. Secret City is gaining in reputation as one of the nation’s best film festivals. We will definitely continue to make films that have strong stories and production values. Of course, everyone involved with “V. Always” made this film so special. Especially the fine acting and dancing by Fallon, Sarah and Jon.

In other festival news, “V. Always” and “Boy with the wet thumb” have been selected for this years “Seguin Film Festival” in Texas.

We are finishing post production on Anita Mills short “Where There’s Smoke” and Mark Cornell’s “Sweet Dreams for Maisie”. Both films are spectacular and VERY different. It’s a pleasure to work with such creative folks. I can’t wait to see these on the big screen.

As for BeeryMedia productions, we just finished a short “song film” titled, “Which Way?” which will premiere at the Flicker film festival, Nov. 9th at 8pm in Chapel hill at the NightLight club on Rosemary. This film uses found 8mm footage and super 8 footage I shot in NYC back in 1997. It’s also on youtube and vimeo for you to enjoy online.

Our next short, “Frame”, will go before the camera in mid-November. This one stars my own kids, Kelly and Simon, so it’s a special family event.

As for other news, BeeryMedia has been tapped to produce from soup to nuts the new video for the popular english indie band, “The Crowd Scene”. All development ideas are under wraps until the label releases it, but I can say, this will not be your mother’s music video!

See you all at the Carrboro Film Festival November 23rd.

Friday, October 17, 2008

America in the old days


Which Way? from nic beery on Vimeo.

This is a song film. It's the story of one woman's search for a friend and for herself. She looks many, many places, over many decades. Some of the places she looks are the Grand Canyon, Kalamazoo College, New York City and a native american reservation. The footage spans many decades from the last century.

The song was written in 1983 by Anne Rogers and recorded in 2008 by her band, "The Crowd Scene". 8mm films were shot by a Falls Church, VA family while on a U.S. vacation in the 1940's. Sold at an estate sale in 2003. NYC footage shot by the filmmaker, circa 1997. Song film produced in 2008. All together it's almost 70 years in the making...and worth the wait."

visit TheCrowdScene.com and BeeryMedia.com

song ©2008 Anne Rogers. Film ©2008 Nic Beery

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Artists of Orange


Orange County Artists Guild Profile from nic beery on Vimeo.

This is a wonderfully produced profile of the Orange County Artists Guild. Located in North Carolina, OCAG is a nurturing, talented and inspiring group of artists.

This profile touches on all that OCAG is and feels.

Visit orangecountyartistsguild.com/ for more info.

Digital film profile produced by Nic Beery for BeeryMedia.com

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Tom Maxwell performs "Walsh Jones"



This is "Walsh Jones". written and performed by Tom Maxwell at the Bynun, NC General Store. July 18th, 2008. With Mark Simonsen

Friday, September 12, 2008

I love my girlfriend trailer



Kopeki searches for just the right birthday gift for his girlfriend. The quest is on for a present that uniquely expresses his profound love for her, & his ever-lasting commitment to their relationship. Despite her request for no more intense, crazy offerings, Kopeki may have gone overboard with this effort, & blown it. Or has he?

The girlfriend, & the audience of this independent short will appreciate the passion, love, creativity & humor that is offered up in this eternal romantic comedy. Original score by Velvet.

for more info, visit www.beerymedia.com

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

2004 festival favorite


Ted's 12 - 2007 redux from nic beery on Vimeo.

Enjoy this re-edit of the classic "Ted's 12". Christine Kittilstad and I produced this in 2004 and despite its technical limitations, the story, written by my cousin Ted Kopulos, and the acting is wonderful.

Cheers,
Nic

Monday, September 8, 2008

my buddy steve's blast from the past



i am not usually one to post other folks videos, but this blast from the past came to me via my old clown buddy, steve marshall. steve and i were in the ringling circus together way back when. actually, when this video was on the tube. i forgot about it, but loved it. now i think i love it again. watching it, i forgive tracey for giving the world "the simpsons", which began as a sketch on tracey's weekly tv show in the late '80's.

enjoy!

Thursday, September 4, 2008

Veronica gets around


Veronica Always from nic beery on Vimeo.

Short Film - 9 minutes 52 seconds

Written, Directed and Edited By Nic Beery

"Best Family Film" at the 2008 Secret City Film Festival.

Synopsis Elliot's wife Veronica died in 2006 and he misses her. She was his
fearless leader for 53 years. Laura, 22, works at Elliot's assisted living home and
goes to school. Laura and Elliot have become friends. He knows she has dreams
of being a dancer, just like Veronica was. An old 78 record Elliot gives Laura
combines one memory and one dream. Together, the possibilities are endless.

Production Notes "Uncle Gene" My uncle Gene was living in an assisted living
home in rural Texas. He was in the final throes of pulmonary fibrosis, living on
tanks of oxygen. After visiting him, I drove by an ugly old repair shop carport and
the thought occurred to me, how can I take something so ugly and make it
beautiful? With my uncle weighing on my mind, I almost instantly combined
ballet, ugly carport and uncle Gene, who I love. The result is this short.

more at www.beerymedia.com

Friday, August 29, 2008

Prostate Check up time


PCCNC - Public Service Announcement #8 - Our Problem (long) from nic beery on Vimeo.

I recently completed 8 public service announcements for the Prostate Cancer Coalition of North Carolina. The video above is a sample. Please, guys, if you are forty or over, go get your prostate checked. It is painless and takes about an hour from arriving at the doctors office to leaving. Simple. Men younger and younger are getting prostate cancer, so it really is worth your time. Thanks.
-nic

Saturday, August 9, 2008

Boy does he have a wet thumb!


Boy with the wet thumb from nic beery on Vimeo.

Have you ever noticed what you put your thumb through each day? What do we get our thumbs into? Where do our thumbs lead us? The narrative explodes & experiments with the life of a boy with opposable digits. Simple on the surface, quixotically many layers deep.

An entertaining film that leaves the door open for thought and discussion in an era of safe, seen it all before, blockbusters. Driven by a soundtrack from The Fierce Tibetan Gods . Two wet thumbs up!

running time: 4 minutes
visit the "film" page at beerymedia.com for more.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Tom Maxwell Loves Ham a lot!



i think it was subconscious because not all Tom Maxwell songs are about pigs. But I just happened to select these two first. This one is about the three lil pigs. Again, this is from the Bynum General Store friday, july 17th, 2008. I have been listening to this show at work this week. Really a nice group of songs Tom.

-nic

Monday, July 7, 2008

Tom Maxwell Loves Ham



Tom Maxwell, former Squirrel Nut Zipper, performs at The Bynum General Store on July 18th, 2008. This song is about a woman, a ham and linoleum. Genius! I will be posting more from this great show as I catch a chance between editing gigs. I know you will enjoy this, Tom is a strong songwriter and performer. In fact, one of the songs he wrote for the Zippers, "Hell", went pretty high on the charts.

Cheers,
Nic

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

the boss


Point Blank , Antwerpen from Willem on Vimeo.

love it. great video quality also. thinking of posting on this for better quality. enjoy.

Monday, May 19, 2008

Mad Tea Party Doc, Part 6 of 6



Well this is it, the final installment of the Mad Tea Party Documentary.

Cheers,
Nic

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Mad Tea Party Doc, Part 5 of 6



this is the fifth part. some great campers at the outdoor shakori hills festival make this episode a keeper. check out the "tick" song.

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Mad Tea Party Doc, Part 4 of 6



part 4 of 6. features mike gray and the xbox story, firecracker jazz band and more.

Sunday, April 27, 2008

The Mad Tea Party Doc (Part 3 of 6)



Third installment, this is getting to be like a weekly TV series. This week we get to meet and enjoy the accordion playing MONKEY MAN. I should release a DVD of this series...
-nic

Monday, April 21, 2008

Mad Tea Party Part two of six



Here is part two of the Mad Tea Party Documentary. Enjoy!
-nic

Monday, April 7, 2008

Mad Tea Party Doc, Part 1



Part 1 of 6
In 2006 I was looking for a topic for a new and
different documentary. I found a fun, irreverent band
out of Asheville, NC. I saw them perform a few times
and then asked them if I could produce a one hour
documentary on them. After spending several months
following them from gig to gig and radio station's to
their day jobs, I settled into the edit suite for a
couple months of editing. What I came out with was a
great portrait of three folks who live a wonderful and
creative lifestyle in and out of the band.

I am posting this doc in its entirety on youtube. I
will post this in 6 segments over the course of two
months, April and May 2008.

The band has had a few iterations since I made this
doc. As of this writing, Lora Pendleton is no longer
in the band. Ami and Jason are now a duo. I feel
very lucky to have captured The Mad Tea Party in this
particular trio configuration. The characters are
interesting, compelling, quirky. Enjoy The Mad Tea
Party circa 2006. If they are playing near you, go see
the live version.

Some of the friends featured in this documentary are Ami Worthen, Jason Krekel, Lora Pendleton, Sean Foley, Todd E. Gaul, Snake Oil Medicine Show, Firecracker Jazz Band, Berkley Grimbal.

Mentions of Donna the Buffalo, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Asheville, Carrboro, Shakori Hills Music Festival, The Cave, Chapel Hill.

Special thanks to Ismail Abdelkhalek, Chris Johnson, Todd Tinkham.

Monday, March 31, 2008

My 2006 Documentary is coming.

Hi. I made a documentary about an incredible band out of Asheville, NC back in 2006. Their name is The Mad Tea Party. My buddy Ish and I followed them around for a few months and made a really nice portrait of a great band. Unfortunately personnel changes made it hard to distribute. But I now see someone has posted the promo I made for it on Youttube. Embedding is disabled, but you can see it here; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2kys-uYDjs

I am seriously thinking about posting the whole doc in 6 parts over the next few months on youtube. I think it will be well received. And the group, The Mad tea Party is still cranking in a modified form, and this doc will only help boost their exposure. So be on the look-out for it. In the meantime, enjoy the promo.

cheers,
Nic

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Budddayy Remix gets a retro Video

So the interview i cut up and made into a dance track was screaming for a video to go with it. Kip Reynolds, my old circus buddy granted me permish to use this 1985 VHS footage of him doing the dance of the pink feline. He was out of costume of course for this one. Helping him out is Bobby "circus boy" Hunt. Both were freshly shaven, the kind of thing you do on a bet. Thank god for youtube!

You will either get it or you won't, there is no in between on this video. It's a wonderfully funny memory lane thing for many of us old circus farts. Enjoy!

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Velvet @ the cradle

check it, great pop band from NC...