If you get pleasure out of helping others, isn’t that technically considered a “selfish” act?
I don’t consider myself a selfish person, but before I started my production company, I used to do this every single day at Apple, as I trained my customers how to do use their Macs in ways that simplified their lives and blew their minds all at once!
There’s just something absolutely gratifying about seeing the lightbulb go off in people’s heads when you teach them a vital piece of knowledge that they’ve been trying to sort out themselves.
As such, I’ve been in development for the last 3 months on a video training series that I’ll be offering very soon for the world to learn how to do what I thought was once only a dream. The difference in this training content is that I reinforce the mistakes made every single day by most of the amateurs that I’ve run into and witnessed along this path to storytelling awesomeness-icity.
screenshot from my upcoming training series I’m doing entitled “The Storyteller’s Guide to Video Production”.
In the meantime, I started “Tutorial Tuesday (yeah!)” on Youtube a couple of months ago to entertain those questions that I get asked on a weekly basis via video editing in After Effects, Final Cut Pro, and Adobe Premiere.
If you’ve got a question, please feel free to ask me through Tumblr, email me, or even publicly question me on Twitter!
Stay tuned as “The Storyteller’s Guide…” launches later this month!
-@thejonacosta
It’s another marvelous day in our city by the bay.
Life definitely has been different since moving out to California.
Gas is a bit more expensive… but the air is much more breathable, produce is cheaper than water, I walk around my town more than I ever did in Atlanta, and every step I make outside is a photogenic moment.
Also, we live in bicycle distance of Washington Manor Park, a little public park that lies directly on the bay. I’ve been doing my morning runs around the track there lately.
Not a bad shift in lifestyle if you ask me.
As for my production company’s current affairs? Glad you asked…
New website for Acosta Productions (finally!), 2011 promo reel, me and Drew’s new Livid Ends album, a music video, and 3 new upcoming web-series are all on their way in April as we hash out all the casting /coding /editing / and creation details.
Man, I love my job. :)
CASE IN POINT:
As stated before, never bring yourself down with a place you hate or a situation that has you suffocated at the throat.
I’m living proof of what you can accomplish by getting your mind together, never giving up, and just doing something you’ve always wanted to accomplish.
for me, it was always moving to California. Why it took so long is beyond me… but I’m a better man for doing it later and learning what I DIDN’T want in my life anymore.
love and stuff,
@thejonacosta
P.S. Follow me right here on Tumblr or Twitter (@thejonacosta) to keep up with all the production goodness! There’s a LOT of good stuff coming soon…
A couple of weeks ago, I took a business trip to Atlanta to work on a production with Barry Gray, one of AP’s videographers, on location in the offices of a Wealth Management client (Russell E. Holcombe) who wrote a book on the process of staying wealthy entitled, “You Should Only Have To Get Rich Once”.
When our project was wrapped, the producer, Dennis Ross (who is also a highly successful writer and music producer), handed me a few notes to reference while editing.
As I was sifting through these bullet points earlier in the week, i suddenly discovered a monologue of writing that he had left binded in the pages of production notes…
Here’s a transcription of what he said:
How do you see yourself
Recently, a videographer visited our offices to film interviews on wealth management. He had one camera. I’m not a director, but I guess from all the movie sets i’ve seen, I was expecting this set to have heavy lighting and someone holding a boom-mic over my head that looks like a racoon. So I asked, “Where’s your camera”? He said, “this is it”, and pulled out a small photo taking professional camera. He then said, “It’s all about the lens!”.
Jon had an expensive lens, but a simple camera. He explained how movies are made now and that the glass determines the quality, it’s how you see yourself, it’s your filter.
What do you need to produce what you need to produce? Many wealth clients believe they need “wealthy stuff” when they really only need “quality stuff”. A bond can be like that simple camera, bonds just aren’t set like stocks, but they work, they lower risk and help you stay wealthy.
The trappings of wealth can be just that… trappings. I’m frequently advising clients to concentrate on what really matters. Put a $100,000 camera in the hands of an amateur filmmaker and a $1,000 camera in the hands of Steven Spielberg and the amateur doesn’t even have a shot. Experience makes much out of little.
—————————-
Very cool to know that I provoked some sense of metaphorical thought by my simplistic production nature.
I believe all things should be simple… and at the end of the day, it’s not about the tools you have anyway… it’s about the story you’re trying to convey, and the approach that you’re using in order to convey that story.
last friday, after traveling 6,800 miles in less than 10 days, i finally landed at the SFO airport from ATL for good!
I’m here for good. I’m finally home! And it feels so damn good to be in this new world where imagination and creativity can finally be fueled and released without any toxic entities to disrupt the process.
so good. and so much about to happen that i can hardly contain myself!
the wonderful Miss Kate Gervais picking up me and Alana from the SFO Airport!
Alana’s last morning in this god forsaken dungeon of a “hotlanta” condo. being “lazy pup” never looked so good.
As myself and my co-pilot, Drew Gibadlo, crossed through the northern sector of Arizona to get to San Francisco and start our company expansions last week, we decided to check into a hotel for the evening to catch some rest. However, once settled in our temporary room with the heater on full blast and untouched snow sitting outside of our window, we were somehow inspired to bring in 1/3rd of our studio equipment from the car and begin tracking a song that I wrote for our band, Livid Ends, a few weeks ago entitled “Method Actor”.
I did all of the midi creation, guitaring, and scratch vocals in Apple’s GarageBand using a midi keyboard/ drum pad and the ZOOM H4N just a few weeks prior to our trip. Once we established all of our setup in the hotel room, Drew began tracking our new vocals in the previous GarageBand session using a MacBook Pro and a makeshift sound booth made of pillows, curtain backings, and a “proliferation diffuser”… aka- a long sofa mattress.
The next morning, as we drove onward towards San Francisco, Drew spent the majority of the afternoon mixing “Method Actor” in Apple Logic, using his laptop and my car’s AUX speaker system.
The outcome was definitely great! This is a song that will absolutely catch on with our fans as it’s more of an evolved version of our past musical styles.
We’re one song closer to completing the Livid Ends album, LeCartney! As we finalize our new studio setup in San Francisco, we’ll be knocking out the rest of our jams in the next month, as well as shooting our music video.
Can’t wait for you guys to hear and see the new stuff!
We went for dinner and left Mandy, Drew’s dog, in the hotel bathroom… oops…
FOLLOW US!
TWITTER:
https://twitter.com/#!/thejonacosta
https://twitter.com/#!/gibadlo
YOUTUBE ACCOUNTS:
http://www.youtube.com/thejonacosta
http://www.youtube.com/user/gibadlo1
FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/jonhacosta
https://www.facebook.com/drewgibadlo
“How Not To Drive Cross Country”. Post 1
I’ve been slacking a bit in regards to my social media presence. I apologize. This move has got me going out of my mind.
Just to backtrack for two seconds… last weekend, myself and my production team (Drew Gibadlo, Barry Gary, & Kamran Habashi) shot a series of interviews for former “Miss America” and “The Apprentice” contestant, Marshawn Evans, at the super swank hotel in Downtown Atlanta, The Renaissance. Much more production will be coming from this new business relationship, as Marshawn has a lot of great things planned in the near future. We’re all very excited about what’s to come!
The last 4 days have been an absolute madhouse as I’ve finished gathering all of my valuables into a small, condensed pile of things worth traveling across the country with me and selling, donating, burning, or throwing away the rest. Tomorrow, myself, Drew, and two gorgeous pups begin our journey to a new life on the golden coast.
Finally. Time to go…
been doing it for the last 4 days… and there’s still SO much left to do! I lied last week. THIS is our last Monday here. Although, mentally, I checked out over 7 days ago.
it’s kind of sad to see this place go… but i’m better off without my dungeon of an Atlanta condo and all of the unwanted misery that lingers in these walls.
very excited for new beginnings in a city that i can pleasurably call my own.
And so, as the week begins to unravel its way back into itself, hinting closer at our moving date with every passing hour, myself and my co-pilot, Drew Gibadlo (of Downstairs Studios), have been on a manic dash to tie all loose ends here in Atlanta, Georgia before our big move to San Francisco, California next Monday!
After about 4 hours of extensive research through every viable option possible (including shipping my car to our new location and just grabbing a flight with our dogs), i do believe i’ve found the most economical and substantial way to move across the country with two people, my car, and our beautiful K9 companions, all for under $1000!
What have I learned? Well…
Hitches from UHAUL can be attached to most midsized cars… that would include my 2008 Nissan Sentra (note: if you own a 2006 or prior, your car is considered “compact” and you might need to consider other options)
um… TravelMath.com is flippin’ awesome.
esurance is now owned by ALLSTATE?!
Penske Truck Rentals hooks you up with a 20% discount if you’re a AAA member. Likewise, if you’re a student with an ID, they give you an additional 10% off….Round up a college kid and a friend with a AAA card if you need a truck!
And finally… Flo (from Progressive) isn’t the biggest fan of Erin (from esurance).
but i digress… 5 days!!!
I think i’m going to create a micro-series for the move as we roll along to the best coast next week… be on the lookout for that! And also, if you missed the launch of “Tutorial Tuesday” yesterday… check it out below!
In the past few months, I’ve had a ton of people asking me questions in regards to my productions and how I go about certain aspects of my editing such as workflow, shortcut keys, and project media management…
So, today I’m launching the first of a weekly youtube series called “Tutorial Tuesday”, where I go in depth with a tip or trick inside of prosumer video production apps like Final Cut Pro, Adobe After Effects, Adobe Premiere, etc.
In this first episode, I go in depth with the amazing audio/video synchronizing application called PluralEyes. I explain how to use it with Final Cut Pro 7 and show you how much time it saves by piecing together a multidevice shoot right on the fly!
As this month dwindles down, so do my creative projects. I seem to have taken on somewhere around 5 project at once with no room for breathing.
Why would I do such a thing? Well, as stated before, the move across the country is happening in Febraury… and with less than 2 weeks left here in “hotlanta”, cramming all of my client’s needs before we leave is the only option.
I’ve been on a mad dash to the finish with my latest motion graphics commercial which opens in a “typography style” manner, and then follows a website fly-thru to explain exactly how the service works. Very intricate stuff.
The last creation of the month is the development of “Tutorial Tuesdays”, where every week I’ll post a new youtube video dedicated to video tutorials from questions I’ve gathered throughout the past few months from people who have seen my work and wondered how I attack certain aspects of my productions.
the series begins tomorrow. stay tuned.
WE NEED YOUR HELP!
If you are a fellow artist of any kind- actor, writer, director, producer, musician, graphic artist- please take a second to view our Kickstarter campaign for Backalley Strut- a webseries that I am involved in that is trying to get funding to go into full swing production.Your small $1 donation will bring us just one step closer to all of us to be able to follow our dreams. If you are an artist, then you understand the struggle, and right now I need YOU, tumblr, to help us out! If you think anyone would enjoy something like this being produced, pass it on! Or if you haven’t fulfilled your good deed quote for the day, A REBLOG COUNTS. And if you donate a $1, your good deed quote for the next FORTY-EIGHT HOURS will be filled. And if you donate more than that, may the angels of heaven shine their glory on your soul.
No, but seriously, guys. I would really appreciate it alot. :)
The Blooper Reel of the first couple promo episodes we created is also lots of fun to watch if you so desire :)
And if I’ve really piqued your interest, check out the Cast Interviews for more info!
Again, thank you so much!
No time. NO TIME! I decided to do a video blog instead to tell you guys what I’ve been up to in the last few days of January. Check it out!
LINKS FROM YOUTUBE PAGE:
Check out our Backalley Strut Kickstarter Campaign here:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1531483571/web-series-based-on-cowboy-bebop
I talk (at hyper speed!) on what’s happening in the ream of Acosta Productions, what’s currently cooking in the editing lab, and our latest Kickstarter Production campaign!
For a full portfolio of my work, check out my site:
http://thejonacosta.tumblr.com/2011portfolio
Follow me on twitter:
http://twitter.com/#!/thejonacosta
And if you’d like to creep even harder, check out my personal blog here:
http://www.jonacosta.com
Also, check out and like my band on facebook here:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Livid-Ends/203682636376711
