The official blog of Denise M. Baran-Unland, author. Discover her books for all ages at bryonyseries.com.
Showing posts with label book trailer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book trailer. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 21, 2018
Thursday, September 7, 2017
BryonySeries Throwback Thursday: Making the Bryony Video, Step Three: Finding Melissa Marchellis
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Making the Bryony Video, Step Three: Finding Melissa Marchellis
Up until this month, Bryony filmmaker Stephen Tuplin had an actress interested in playing Melissa. After we set a production date, the actress had a conflict of interest, so Stephen asked my seventeen year old daughter Rebekah to portray Bryony's main character. He liked her "look," for the role, he said.
I thought Rebekah would refuse. She is very shy, preferring to hang out with one friend at a time rather than a room full of people. To my surprise, she agreed to do it, so I copied the script, and she began practicing "swaying and swooning."
Five hundred miles away, her older sister, Sarah Stegall, Bryony web administrator, was seeking someone to "makeover" Rebekah. Sarah found two people. Vanna Fleetwood to cut and style Rebekah's hair, and Jennifer Wesolowski to do her makeup.
On the Sunday afternoon before the April 20 shoot, Jennifer, Rebekah, her friend, and I huddled in a department store bathroom experimenting. Jennifer strove for a natural look, since "Melissa" would be on her way to bed, but wanted to highlight Rebekah's large, blue eyes.
Meeting in a department store had its advantages. Not only was it a location for us, we had a ready supply of product just waiting to be purchased and tried out on Rebekah's face. Fortunately, Rebekah had brought her own makeup with her, so few additional items were acquired.
Conversation was mostly, "Watch how I put this one and now you try it," and, "No, we're not line for the bathroom." Rebekah's friend took "before" and "after" pictures with her camera phone to send to Sarah for posting on the Bryony blog and Facebook pages. (We've haven't gotten that far yet, oops!).
Although she exhorted Rebekah to practice at home, Jennifer had so much fun, she offered to come out to the Magosky mansion the night of filming and do Rebekah's makeup. Good thing, too, because Rebekah came down with a nasty cold later that day and didn't feel up to playing with cosmetics.
While we were playing with eyeliner and mascara, Rebekah's older brother, Timothy, was looking for 70s-style pajamas. He had taken Rebekah shopping the other day, found a couple of possibilities, and sent, after having received permission from an employee, photographs from the floor to me for critiquing. ("Excuse me, ma'am, may I please take pictures of women's nightwear?").
Again, we found two pairs that might work, so we sent the images to Stephen and dug through a bin of DVDs waiting for his reply. He suggested buying both. That way, if one didn't work well under the lights, we had options. We paid eighteen dollars total and left the store, feeling like we had an MGM budget.
Now all we needed were a couple of Victorian men's suits and a blond wig. How difficult could that be?
I thought Rebekah would refuse. She is very shy, preferring to hang out with one friend at a time rather than a room full of people. To my surprise, she agreed to do it, so I copied the script, and she began practicing "swaying and swooning."
Five hundred miles away, her older sister, Sarah Stegall, Bryony web administrator, was seeking someone to "makeover" Rebekah. Sarah found two people. Vanna Fleetwood to cut and style Rebekah's hair, and Jennifer Wesolowski to do her makeup.
On the Sunday afternoon before the April 20 shoot, Jennifer, Rebekah, her friend, and I huddled in a department store bathroom experimenting. Jennifer strove for a natural look, since "Melissa" would be on her way to bed, but wanted to highlight Rebekah's large, blue eyes.
Meeting in a department store had its advantages. Not only was it a location for us, we had a ready supply of product just waiting to be purchased and tried out on Rebekah's face. Fortunately, Rebekah had brought her own makeup with her, so few additional items were acquired.
Conversation was mostly, "Watch how I put this one and now you try it," and, "No, we're not line for the bathroom." Rebekah's friend took "before" and "after" pictures with her camera phone to send to Sarah for posting on the Bryony blog and Facebook pages. (We've haven't gotten that far yet, oops!).
Although she exhorted Rebekah to practice at home, Jennifer had so much fun, she offered to come out to the Magosky mansion the night of filming and do Rebekah's makeup. Good thing, too, because Rebekah came down with a nasty cold later that day and didn't feel up to playing with cosmetics.
While we were playing with eyeliner and mascara, Rebekah's older brother, Timothy, was looking for 70s-style pajamas. He had taken Rebekah shopping the other day, found a couple of possibilities, and sent, after having received permission from an employee, photographs from the floor to me for critiquing. ("Excuse me, ma'am, may I please take pictures of women's nightwear?").
Again, we found two pairs that might work, so we sent the images to Stephen and dug through a bin of DVDs waiting for his reply. He suggested buying both. That way, if one didn't work well under the lights, we had options. We paid eighteen dollars total and left the store, feeling like we had an MGM budget.
Now all we needed were a couple of Victorian men's suits and a blond wig. How difficult could that be?
Wednesday, June 7, 2017
Monday, February 20, 2012
"A Day at Joliet West High School"
Last Thursday, with Rebekah and her homework in tow to assist with book sales and generally entertain me between sessions, I talked to four freshman English classes at Joliet West High School about Bryony, the writing process, and the hard work required to make your dreams come true. It was the very first time I had talked to a large group since college speech classes, which I never relished. Did I say I'm fifty?
I anticipated being nervous, but when I awakened last Sunday, eager to talk at the writer's workshop, I began to think it wouldn't be so bad and it wasn't. Not only had I thoroughly enjoyed speaking to the women, the English teacher had emailed a list of questions the students had compiled, which provided an idea of what everyone wanted to hear.
So, after a brief introduction, we showed the book trailer and music video and then I talked about and read from Bryony, letting the students randomly pick the selection. Then, I turned to their questions.
And what did they want to know?
They wanted to hear what else I do during the day besides writing books, where I like to write, if I prefer typing to longhand, my opinions on Twilight and The Hunger Games, the length of time I need to write a book (including revisions), a glimpse into my childhood along with the first book I ever read, and do I want more children?
Well, who wouldn't want more children?
When possible, I let the teens talk, too. Several of the girls and some of the boys liked writing poetry. A few wrote short stories. One boy, a rapper, was shooting a music video with his friends.
During lunch, the teacher was pleased the students were so attentive during my presentations and shared with me some of hte demographics of the students. The majority received supplemental or free lunches. A good percentage were homeless. Five gangs had a presence in the school. Her words were sobering and humbling and made me glad I had encouraged the students in their creative pursuits.
At the end of each talk, we passed out Bryony cards. Nearly every student accepted one, and Rebekah and I stumbled over just three of those cards in the halls. And wouldn't you know it? We had such a wonderful time, we forgot the box of books and have to return this week to pick it up.
I anticipated being nervous, but when I awakened last Sunday, eager to talk at the writer's workshop, I began to think it wouldn't be so bad and it wasn't. Not only had I thoroughly enjoyed speaking to the women, the English teacher had emailed a list of questions the students had compiled, which provided an idea of what everyone wanted to hear.
So, after a brief introduction, we showed the book trailer and music video and then I talked about and read from Bryony, letting the students randomly pick the selection. Then, I turned to their questions.
And what did they want to know?
They wanted to hear what else I do during the day besides writing books, where I like to write, if I prefer typing to longhand, my opinions on Twilight and The Hunger Games, the length of time I need to write a book (including revisions), a glimpse into my childhood along with the first book I ever read, and do I want more children?
Well, who wouldn't want more children?
When possible, I let the teens talk, too. Several of the girls and some of the boys liked writing poetry. A few wrote short stories. One boy, a rapper, was shooting a music video with his friends.
During lunch, the teacher was pleased the students were so attentive during my presentations and shared with me some of hte demographics of the students. The majority received supplemental or free lunches. A good percentage were homeless. Five gangs had a presence in the school. Her words were sobering and humbling and made me glad I had encouraged the students in their creative pursuits.
At the end of each talk, we passed out Bryony cards. Nearly every student accepted one, and Rebekah and I stumbled over just three of those cards in the halls. And wouldn't you know it? We had such a wonderful time, we forgot the box of books and have to return this week to pick it up.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Stay Tuned! Bryony Official Book Trailer Goes Live Today
In January, Stephen Tuplin, Bryony's director of video media, Dulcinea Hawksworth, Bryony's director of marketing, and I discussed the vision for the trailer.
In February Stephen presented his script, and we casted the roles. In April, a dozen of us met on a chilly night to film the trailer and music video at the P. Seth Magosky Museum of Victorian Life and Joliet History.
By June we had a silent, rough cut, which, if I timed the mp3 right, I could watch the trailer with sound.
Since then, our media focus group has been reviewing rough cuts of both the Bryony book trailer and Brony music video.
We discussed the elements we liked and did not like, what worked and what did not, the smoothing of cuts, the brightening of darks, the elimination of sections and room noise, and the adding of credits and specialized sounds, until we reached a version that satisfied everyone.
The day of the trailer's release is here. Enjoy!
In February Stephen presented his script, and we casted the roles. In April, a dozen of us met on a chilly night to film the trailer and music video at the P. Seth Magosky Museum of Victorian Life and Joliet History.
By June we had a silent, rough cut, which, if I timed the mp3 right, I could watch the trailer with sound.
Since then, our media focus group has been reviewing rough cuts of both the Bryony book trailer and Brony music video.
We discussed the elements we liked and did not like, what worked and what did not, the smoothing of cuts, the brightening of darks, the elimination of sections and room noise, and the adding of credits and specialized sounds, until we reached a version that satisfied everyone.
The day of the trailer's release is here. Enjoy!
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