Series Pilot GurillaTV

I have posted the first two pilot episodes of GurillaTV. The series pilot showcases motifs, guerilla filmmaking, parody, and a collaboration effort of many artists working together. Any prospective interest in the series can contact me at matt@chapmanpictures.com This is the premiere episode from the pilot series GurillaTV. This episode features video segments from Daneboe, GreeenPro, and ChappyShowcase. This crazy episode features Tubemogul technology for video publishers. This is the second episode from the pilot series GurillaTV. This episode features video segments from Dick Jones, Nextraker, and Lucchina. This crazy episode features Young Conan learning sword fighting for stunt film action scenes.

What's Going On With GURILLATV?

After 6 years of the initial plan in late 2008, the GurillaTV story comes out in my first public offering via this blog post. This is an honest evaluation of GurillaTV and what has happened up to this point. It also reflects the nature of trying to start a visionary idea. Ideas are great, but making them happen is a different story. Although the video website part of the GurillaTV is no longer viable, i still feel the web series has a lot of potential and the two 'Lost" episodes can be viewed as pilots moving forward. If any production company, or platform, or whatever has interest in GurillaTV the web series, I am willing to listen as the sole owner in propriety. So what was GurillaTV supposed to be? GurillaTV was supposed to be a online media platform where video creators could use a integrated forum to discuss film making topics, a place to watch webisodes from GurillaTV where video producers could learn more about the online video making paradigm, and it also would have been a place to distribute videos via the Tubemogul.com distribution tools which were to be integrated right out of GurillaTV.com. We were going to build the number of producers on the site slowly partnering with 3 new producers every two weeks. We were only going to bring producers with a successful track record and a history of making original content to fight the large amount of video piracy that was rampant at the time. Our producer affiliates were to be called "Gurilla producers" and part of their participation required making a short video segment which would be integrated into the GurillaTV web series that would be released every two weeks along with their debut on the GurillaTV site. I had originally raised funding for the progressive idea and found a partner to move forward with as I could not produce enough seed money for the idea all on my own. I hired a marketing company who reviewed my proposal for the visionary idea. The marketing agency was also a website design company who specialized in SEO technology. The CEO of the marketing company accepted the proposal and we signed a contract to implement the idea in 3-6 months from the time we agreed on the contingencies of the contract. The idea was very unique and sparked the interest of some financial backing which would be put into effect in stages once milestones began to occur. The idea also had a backlog of producers who were ready and willing to join on as partners. The marketing company who was to build the site knew up front what the web portal was supposed to be and gave no indication that they would not be able to perform the task. They expressed that It could be a great learning experience. We filmed two pilots in early to mid 2009 for GurillaTV. We cast a few dozen people for the series and had developed "Roy" as the mascot who was a guy in a gorilla suit. The webisodes came out well and I was really excited for the future. After we finished the first two episodes we held off on the third episode as the website became our focus of concern. After almost six months the website had hardly anything to show for it, my partner and I had only received screen capture images of the site. Concerned with what was going on, we tried to make a effort to help speed things up by paying the marketing company more of the money owed even though our contract didn't require it. We hoped this may help. More months went by and we still had nothing to show for it. In the summer of 2009 I went to visit the company CEO in person to see what was the hold up. This individual was blaming drupal technology and saying that they had decided to scrap all the original design so they could implement word press instead for the back end of the website. Not being a web designer myself, I had no move but to trust this man and hope that he would have better luck with this new plan. Well the new word press site was not complete until nearly a year after our initial contract was signed. This was now 12 months instead of 3-6 months as promised. In early 2010 we finally were able to see the beta GurillaTV website. My initial reaction was that of total dismay. The site was very amateur looking, and had more technical problems with its functionality then anything I had ever seen. How on earth can I put this website out there as constructed? My reputation would be ruined. The website looked as if it had been designed by a 10 year old child who was just learning how to design websites. By this time my partner was ready to sue the marketing company for breach of contract. I was really hesitant to do such a thing, because that would seemingly make it so we would never get this GurillaTV project done, and I would have to scrap it. I had poured hours and hours into planning, had my reputation on the line, and just didn't want to go that route which would mean I would have to accept my vision was not going to happen. My partner and I had a falling out over my decision to not sue, and I eventually bought him out around mid 2010 to relieve him of the headache which was more mine than his. It was my brainchild after all. Now a year and half had passed since the original inception of the LLC. The webisodes we had shot had not been released for over a year, and no solution seemed to be in sight. At the beginning of 20111 I had tried everything I could to politically put my feelings aside and resolve this issue of incompetence with the GurillaTV beta website. The marketing agency at this point stopped giving me hope and trying to fix the beta site cause it was like trying to fix a disaster I suppose. They stopped answering my emails, phone calls, and attempts to communicate. Maybe I had made a mistake and should have just sued these guys when my partner wanted to, cause they seemingly were to incompetent to fix the problems and probably knew it in my estimation. In mid 2011 i took the marketing company to court. The defendant was unwilling to dialogue out of court and settle the problem. Although they had failed me, I would have been willing to pay them for the GurillTV logo which was awesome and the only thing they did well. I am a reasonable guy, but wanted the rest of my investment back. After litigation in small claims court the case was heard in front of a judge in Alameda County. A few weeks later I got the results in the mail to find I had won. Although it felt good to win, it really was anything but happiness. My idea never came to pass. A few months later when I thought this thing was finally all over, the marketing company appealed the decision and I was to have to go to appeals court. Now I was allowed to have a lawyer, but so was the defendant. So I hired a layer, we built up our case which was even stronger than the first hearing. In late 2011 we ha arrived at the appellate court with our lawyer, and prepared to battle the appeal. Our evidence in the case was very impressive. We had documented evidence of all the lies, incompetency, and bad business practices done by the defendant. After sitting in the court room for 10 minutes, It became apparent that the defendant had not even showed up at his own appeal. Wow, this was really frustrating. It was the perfect example for the judge as to why I was there in the first place. I had won yet again, but nearly all the compensation I got back went to the lawyer I had hired for the appeal hearing. What a difficult "win" to swallow. So that is the story in a nutshell. It is the truth and facts about GurillaTV's past. Now years later, after much thought I finally have released the two pilot episodes of GurillaTV. My co-founder who I have no ill will against, requested to remain anonymous which I respectfully have done by blotching out his face and changing his name in the webisodes. I won't rule out the GurillaTV series moving forward, but currently have no plans for it. I wanted to make sure It was distributed in honor of all those involved who gave their time and energy. Thank you, Matt Chapman Founder of GurillaTV

Make a $30 PVC Steadicam

Over the last year I have received numerous requests to make my $30 steadicam out of pvc rather than cast iron. So this video was my answer to those requests. I must say the the pvc version is a few pounds lighter, and it performed pretty well. I think the cast iron version is perhaps a little more stable, but considering the weight savings, it might be worth it.

This video pits plastic vs metal. Judge for yourself which version is better. To learn how to make your own version, click on the annotation i provide towards the beginning of the video.

Chappy

Video Lighting Trick Exposed

I really like teaching people how to do amazing things with no money. I really feel like this video is another one.

It all started from the need to create a lighting effect that payed homage to one of the shots in the Rick Astley video "Never Gonna Give You Up". The shot where Rick Astley is in the trench coat and the wall is water lit behind him is the one I am referring to. They looked like they shot a HMI into a pool and bounced the light to create the background effect.

So this video tutorial was my answer to that shot. If you like this video, please subscribe on youtube and let me know you would like to see more. This really helps motivate me.

This trick cost me about $10 bucks. $3 for the cups, $7 for the metal rod, and everything else i already had.

Check it out:


Here is the RickRoll Reloaded Vid:

Hot Water Bottle Car Prank Demo

I have been picking my brain for awhile on how to perform a really cool car prank. I came up with this idea.

Items needed:
1) Hot Water Bottle - $6
2) 2" to 3" hose clamp - $1
3) Some gaff tape - $10

All you have to do is secure the hot water bottle to the tail pipe of a car for this prank. It is important that the car is single exhaust (unless you want to double the cost and do it to both pipes) and the tail pipe has a diameter of approx. 2 to 3 inches. This is because all hot water bottles seem to have a 2 to 3 inch flap on the end. Once you get the clamp secured, fold the hot water bottle under and tape it to the exhaust. Make sure and only put a little tape as you want the bottle to come undone and pop up when it is pressurized.

Once the car is started, the victim should notice a lack of power immediately. Then when things look like they can't get any worse, a large explosion occurs.

The more gas that is given, the quicker the bottle will fill up and explode. At a idle, this video shows the bottle explode in about 30 seconds.

WARNING:
This video is for demonstration purposes only. Bodily harm might occur if this prank is performed wrong. Mechanical problems could occur if this prank is performed wrong.

Here is the video demonstration:

Cool Lighting Tip For Video Creators

My brother and i were supposed to make a video. Problem was none of our ideas were any good. The challenge of turning out a solid video once a week can be pretty daunting, and I think this week really reflected that. As a last resort I started brainstorming an idea for a new gurilla video and came up with this lighting tip. The first video is the "behind the scenes" and the second video is the actual video. If you like these tips or subjects, please connect with me on youtube, facebook and twitter and let me know. Maybe there are some ideas I can explore that I have not thought of. Ratings, comments, following, or becoming my fan really helps me stay motivated to do more.

cheers,
Chappy

Lighting Idea Gurilla Pwned:


Make a Gurilla Spotlight:

Learn how to make a Guerilla Dolly

I've been contemplating this idea for awhile now. Finally my buddy Darren and i just said screw it and thought we would see what would happen. I must say I was pretty pleased with the results.

I went down to the hardware store, and searched the aisles looking for something that might work as a low budget dolly. When i got to the rain gutter section, a lightbulb went off in my head. The results are pretty amazing when you consider that i spent $12.57 and used ordinary items in my garage to help put it together.

Parts list:
1) Plastic Rain gutter (came in 10 foot section)
2) Rain gutter screen that needs to be cut to around 12".
3) bungee cords
4) lubricant of some kind that doesn't eat plastic
5) soft cushion like a bean bag or folded up towel
6) some heavy sandbags or pillow cases full of rocks

Last you will need a flat service that is fairly level.

Enjoy and if you like this blog and my videos please subscribe, follow, rate, comment, etc,etc.

Make a Guerilla Dolly from Matt Chapman on Vimeo.

Make a quick change battery brick

All you need is two things.

1) Two camcorder batteries
2) Gaff tape

I can't think of a better tip for every person who shoots video or does photography. Simple and incredibly effective. This tip could really save the day in an event where your battery dies and you need to continue the shot as quickly as possible. Even fumbling around in your pockets to get a new battery could waste valuable time.

Here is the video I made as a demonstration.

Guerilla Battery Brick How-To from Matt Chapman on Vimeo.

Make A Doggy Cam

I really enjoy my dog Eli. So much so that I thought it would be fun to figure out a way to mount a camera on him and call it a doggy cam. My buddy Darren Schmidt (cinematographer for GurillaTV) generously donated his POV.1 made by VIO. It is a nice cigar camera that is supposed to be waterproof, dustproof, and shock resistant. All good things when putting a camera on a 90 pound beast like my four-legged goof ball.

Here is a fun video tutorial that shows the doggy cam below.



Here is my film entitled NAUGHTY PRIEST that contains a shot (it only lasts like 2 seconds) from the doggy cam footage above.

Simple Camera Trick

I made this video because I wanted to show this simple camera trick I coined the "dutch angle tilt". I don't know if anyone out there has thought up the same thing, but I'm pretty certain no one has ever made a tutorial video showing the technique. It's really easy, and only requires one to rotate the camera 90 degrees. Seriously..check it out!



Here is the film entitled "IN CASE OF EMERGENCY" that I referenced in the simple camera trick video. Check out how I used the camera trick to convey that "Joe" was spiraling out of control.

Make a $30 Steadicam

I have always wanted to make a video on how to make a cheap steadicam. I finally got around to it this week. It's really easy to make this thing and it improves the shot by about 50% over just shooting handheld.

Word of advice about making this steadicam. It is very important to know the weight of your camera so you can counterweight it accordingly. Using 3 3/4 pounds like I did might work, but if your camera only weighs one pound, then it would be out of balance for example. The other thing is it's very important to use 1/4" 20 hardware. I can see it already, if one was to use 1/4" fine thread hardware, the camera won't be able to screw on.

Enjoy! And remember, keep that camera rollin!

The HOW-TO video phenomenon

Lets talk about a new emerging online genre...HOW-TO. Sites like Instructables.com, WonderHowTo.com, Metacafe.com, and Videojug.com have business models that thrive off of this sort of content. Although there are no standards or written rules on what exactly they are supposed to consist of per say...the basic format consists of a person or creator narrating a video tutorial on how-to do something. The videos are usually straight foward, factual, and very niche based. They can be how-to on magic tricks, how-to prank videos, how-to cooking videos, how-to videos on just about anything you can think of.

The person who has made the most noise in this new arena and is partially responsible for the explosion of the genre is Metacafe's KIPKAY. With 3,500 subscribers and more than 2 million profile views he has made quite a name for himself. To this date, he has earned over $118,000 making him the most succesful producer on Metacafe. Below is his most succesful video entitled LASER FLASHLIGHT HACK


Laser Flashlight Hack! - Watch more funny videos here

Wonder how to do something? There is a good chance that a video is floating around on cyberspace with the answer your looking for. Start at one of the three sites I mentioned at the beginning of the article and see what you can find. You might just find something very helpful, and what is really cool is it's all free to the consumer.

Below is my first how-to video. It's located all over the internet and has had a good reception thus far. It's called HOW TO BUILD A POTATO LAUNCHER. It's a quick, easy tutorial based on the typical potato launcher archetype designs that I have seen over the years. It's fun and has a hilarious ending at the end.
Check it out...and remember, keep that camera rollin!


Gadgets:How To Build A Potato Launcher