advice | House of Sticks | Dallas Video Production Company

Like and Dislike vs Good and Bad

Be careful to not get into subjective (like vs dislike) conversations with clients. Keep your discussions about objective principles you can agree on.
Why Corporate America sucks for Creatives

Are you frustrated with your corporate job as a creative. Don’t give up, readjust your goals and understand your situation. The grass isn’t always greener, other people just might see your work differently than you do.
Making projects for the good of the team.

Sometimes its a good idea to invest in the team. It can come at a large expense to the company bottom line, but overall, the investment is worth it. In the video production world, coming into the industry at the level you want to be at is key.
Defining Success is Your Job

Knowing what you are ultimately striving for is important if you are to ever reach a goal. Make success attainable, enjoyable and if possible… eternal. [eightcolumns class=”centered”] Its probably the most important question you can answer Success is such a subjective idea. The success you desire may seem nothing like success at all to the…
Growing Your Craft Takes Time

Don’t be in such a hurry to get to the finish line. Its a hard lesson to learn, but in all situations the journey to get there provides more benefit than the destination. Remember its all about relationships. [eightcolumns class=”centered”] Dig in for the long haul As a boy, Leonardo DaVinci stole paper and headed…
An End to the Fear of Failure

Failure can be a good thing, but at some point if you want to succeed you need to be able to put an end to it and go on the next thing that will scare you. [eightcolumns class=”centered”] Aint nothin to be scared of Creative people are known for being hardwired differently. However, one way…
ASC Masterclass – Day 5

I can not believe its already over. What a great week. Great teaching, knowledge and even better friends made. Thank you ASC. [eightcolumns class=”centered”] All good things must come to an end. It was the final day of the American Society of Cinematographers masters class, hard to believe. Today proved to be the most insightful…
ASC Masterclass – Day 4

Day 4 was the best day yet. However this perspective was pretty unique. It was philosophical reinforcement for me. [eightcolumns class=”centered”] Guillermo Navarro ASC – Film Making Philosophy Today at the American Society of Cinematographers Master’s Class, we worked with Guillermo Navarro ASC, all day long. The same guy that made Hellboy, Pan’s Labyrinth, Pacific…
ASC Masterclass – Day 3

Day 3 was long. Lots of education and lots of great insights into Master Cinematographers work. [eightcolumns class=”centered”] Bill Bennett ASC – Hard surface lighting Today at the American Society of Cinematographer’s masters class we had a lot of technical information. In fact so much that my brain kind hurts. We had 4 ASC members…
ASC Masterclass – Day 2

Day 2 did not disappoint. It was very much a hands on opportunity which everyone took advantage of. All day in a sound stage with really expensive professional equipment just making normal stuff look beautiful. [eightcolumns class=”centered”] Roberto Schaefer ASC AIC Today in the cinematography masters class we spent the majority of the day, and…
ASC Masterclass 2015

So the American Society of Cinematographers puts on a Masterclass. I was fortunate to have been accepted to the program and attend. I have done my best and will continue to aggregate the immense amount of knowledge of the next few days here. [eightcolumns class=”centered”] The class taught by masters So the first day of…
Time with Dave

I have been on somewhat of an opportunistic streak lately by meeting with older men who have been through a career and have some great advice to offer in hindsight. This time I had less of a one-on-one opportunity but one where I was able to sit in on an interview and glean some great…