Trikefest Documentary - Need Help and Input

[Billy Golightly]

Hey guys,

I was talking with the other day, and just out of nothing more than BS at the time, I said to him that he should fly out to Trikefest and do a documentary one year since he puts together such awesome videos and footage. Well, things sort of snow balled from there, and before I knew it him and I were on the phone and we were seriously talking about doing this and the logistics of pulling it off, equipment involved, general focus of the movie, etc.

(For those of you that aren't familiar, a sampling at the list below of some of Doug's stuff:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Rm9Eknolzo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LM01ykTR25Q )


Joe @ ATVOnDemand does really awesome action videos, product and trike reviews, race/event coverage, and I think is working on one for Trikefest also. So that can be covered for the action junkies. What Doug and I are envisioning is a whole different animal basically.

What Doug and I talked about is more a documentary type setup focusing more on the people, and the adventure itself that Trikefest is - getting there, being a part of the group and why we all come back year after year. Something that would convey to the general population, someone not even interested at all in three-wheelers, why we all go and why we enjoy it so much. The friendships that have been forged there over the years, the real meat and potatoes of why it works and why we all love it so much. I think most will agree, the trikes and events are just a common denominator that brought us together to begin with - but not necessarily why we still go every year. That magic is what we are trying to capture. A lot of interviews and face to face talking with people, the different personalities of Trikefest.

Doug believes that there is serious potential for this to go to a film festival with the right work and time invested. He is definitely gifted at this type of stuff and enthusiastic about it. I'm enthusiastic as well, not nearly as talented, but I enjoy making my Hernando riding videos and I think we'll be able to work together on this well. I've already started acquiring a little more hardware although him and I have a pretty good assortment between us to start with.



Where you guys come in, is that we need a variety of footage, basically that can be used to tell the story from your shoes. You don't have to have any crazy camera hardware...this is going to be all done with cheap DSLR's, GoPros, and camera phones. You would be surprised how good you can make footage look with these in post process editing. If you have something like a GoPro newer than the original HD version (HD2, H3 Silver, H3 Black, H3+), and an iPhone 4s or newer, you can probably contribute to this. If you have better stuff like a DSLR that records video, or more, even better. And if not, again, the gear isn't really important.

It would be stuff like preparing the machines, loading, packing, the trip itself as your driving, if you're not too embarrassed to get in front of your own camera and yammer on about what your doing to get ready for trikefest, and why your excited for it, that'll work too probably. The biggest thing is, this can't be any old or recycled footage, it all has to be new, never before seen stuff. Doug has a few ideas in mind for specific things as well, he will be chiming in here shortly. So basically, if you're interested in participating in this, drop a reply here, and lets see what we can get started because its not going to work with just him and I

[ATC-Eric]

Im in, this could be fun. I will get some ideas on prep footage, travel stuff, ect.

[fabiodriven]

Count me in. Now I have to make it to Trikefest.

[Dammit!]

Sup fellas. Long time no post.

So Billy covered the basics of what we want to do. This will obviously have action footage in it but that will not be anywhere near the main point of what we're doing. My ultimate goal is something you could show to anybody, no knowledge of trikes or off roading at all, and they'd have at least some understanding of what makes us all tick, and why trikefest is such a unique event. The goals are being set really high with this. We might not be able to pull off everything we're going for but even if we only get half of it we'll still have something cool and unique to show for it. It's not even 100% fleshed out yet but the sooner we get an idea of who can contribute the better off we'll be.

Couple things you need to be aware of before volunteering your time and footage. As Billy said, this needs to be new and original material. You will not be allowed to use whatever footage you contribute for anything else. This is really important. Not even youtube. Odds are this won't be footage that will mean much to you outside of the context of what we want it for anyway, but you need to be very aware of this rule. You'll be required to sign a release as well. This is basically being done so we have our ducks in a row in case all the best case scenarios actually come to fruition. Once the final cut is done, any of your footage that we do not use is once again yours to do whatever you want with. In line with this type of pre-planning, no copyrighted music will be used. I know enough people that I can get all original music. I might even contribute a little here and there myself.

This is the majority of what I need and from as many trikefest attendees as possible.

Build footage. If you've got a nice build you want to show off, this would be a good way.

Loading footage. Can be as simple as leaving your go pro on the back of the truck while you're loading trikes.

Travel footage. Getting up and hitting the road. On the road. And arriving at haspin. Nothing specific. Just your experience in getting there.

Super fancy cameras not needed. Just needs to be 1080p. An iPhone 4s or better, GoPro HD, HD camcorder, something like that. I'll be giving you all some pointers on how to make sure the footage comes out decent and in some cases some specific instructions on what kind of shots we need.

Also need some help while at the event from anyone that has HD cameras that can help film the actual events and doesn't mind contributing said footage exclusively. Most notably we could really very much use the help of a few people that have HD camcorders that can zoom, and if you have tripods that would be awesome.

YOU SHOULD ONLY VOLUNTEER FOR THE ENJOYMENT OF IT. No promises can be made that your contributions will be used. No financial compensation can be promised. Everyone will of course get full credit for their contributions though. If your material does get used, this should be something you can be proud to be a part of.

If anybody going this year has any kind of unique and interesting story to tell get in touch with me. This is about not just Trikefest but about the people that go to Trikefest as well. I'd like to get all the core guys that are always involved in the planning and organizing the event on camera at some point also. We can do this at the event in an interview type scenario as well as some run and gun footage.

As I mentioned previously, it's not all fleshed out yet so things will change as we go but I'm excited about this. Haven't been excited about a video project in a while so I'm looking forward to doing something special here.

[Dammit!]

I'd LOVE footage from several people that will be in the events. Footage of getting your race trike ready, etc. Then put some GoPros on those people during their events.

We will be roaming around with cameras at night also. You've been warned. Hahaha

[captainweezy]

I would love to help. My 7 year old always helps me load my trailer full of parts and trikes. I could have my wife film a minute or two of us loading it full of parts/parts machines, riders etc...count me in.

[Daddio]

I would be glad to contribute what I can. I'll keep tabs on this thread.

[ditchmud]

You know I will help if I can. We have a HD digital video cam. I can start filming now onto a dedicated sd
card that I can mail to you after we return and unload from the trip.

[Billy Golightly]

Anybody that is willing to do some early footage of anything that could work (general wrenching on the machines, etc) definitely feel free to, if you want to record some and send it to Doug or I, that'd be great. It'll give us more time to work on tweaking the setups and making adjustments on capturing future things

[JasonB]

Awesome idea! I have to say I love watching both Billys and Damnit's videos on YouTube, the Florida hill climbs vids from billy are awesome but the imperial invasion video you made damnit is one of my favorites. I will try to shoot some random stuff of the prep, travel and event. Cool idea guys, def something you could roll out at a film festival with some good editing!

[MIK6]

I'll contribute too.. fleat TF shop prep, loading trailer, 11 hour drive from NY.. meet and greets ext..

cant wait! Its an awesome idea!

[Dammit!]

Quick note in case any of you want to get a head start on this. If you're filming with a smart phone, HOLD THE DAMN THING SIDEWAYS PLEASE! We don't need any vertical footage. lol.

Also, LIGHT. You guys don't have to put any more effort into this than you want to but you'll substantially increase the odds of providing good useable footage if you take a few minutes to set up and light your shots. Nothing crazy just remember that unless you're outside in sunlight (and even in that case if you want to get crazy) you should light the subject you're filming with more than one light source. You should have a Key light. This is your main light and the brightest. A fill light which will be not as bright and come from a different angle to fill in some of the dark shadows. If you want to get nutty add a back light as well. Hide the actual light sources. You don't want the lamps or whatever you're using in the shots. You can also use high temp wax or oven paper to diffuse the light. Avoid overhead lights. They cause bad shadows when used alone. Your key and fill light should be in front of the subject. Kind of like spot lights but closer and off to either side. Here just watch this lame video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AcMX1RcNRYA Just experiment a little if you're so inclined. Good lighting can make a lame camera look pretty good. Just be careful not to light everything so much that the details get blown out. If you're filming outside, the last hour before sunset will give you the nicest looking light. Mid day is the worst.

Also, if you plan to talk to the camera, leave it for close ups and when doing the close up move the camera, don't just zoom. Odds are none of you have separate microphones right? The reason for moving the camera close when talking is just so the camera can pick up the audio better.

Use tripods whenever possible. Cheaper digital cameras tend to have bad rolling shutter issues. You can minimize this jello cam effect by keeping the cameras as stationary as possible. They even make tripod attachments for phones now.

Remember, You don't HAVE to do any of that! I don't care if you're just holding a camera in your hand and talking to it while you go about your business. I'd rather have a BUNCH of people do that then two or three people go nuts and try and get pro looking footage. Just a camera and a relatively bright environment is all you really need. Everything above and beyond that is just icing on the cake. I'm looking for some simple contributions from as large a group as possible along with some people that want to do a little more so don't think the rest of you can't get involved in this. I don't really even need to know you're doing it. Just give it to me afterwards if you think you got some decent stuff.

Edit: feel free to get creative or humorous or whatever. No guarantees it gets used but you never know.

[Dammit!]

The piece we're talking about the most right now, the home made footage of preparations and travel are intended to look user submitted by the way. Especially travel footage. Don't think you have to get fancy. The tips I'm posting are just to help it look and sound as good as reasonably possible. I don't want anyone to think they can't contribute because their footage doesn't look professional. NOT TRUE! The bigger the selection I have to choose from when putting this together the better! Once we have a core group of people that we know for sure will be helping out we're going to do a private forum or a mailing list or something so we can get more specific because there is a handful of specific shots I need from some of you guys. However I want as much completely random stuff as possible from anyone and everyone. From before, DURING and even after but the after stuff is the least important. If you catch anything interesting or funny or whatever, let me check it out and see if it's something we can get in there. This whole thing is going to be very dependent on the community which is how it should be in my opinion. That's what this is all about. Get involved. Film what's going on in your camp. What we're hoping to capture is the entire Trikefest experience which goes far beyond trikes. Me and Billy will only be able to film so much ourselves.

Little tip that just popped in my head. If you guys could get in the habit of just stating your name and username at the beginning of your recordings that will help me keep track of who is doing what so I can credit you properly. It will obviously get edited out but it would be very helpful. No worries if you don't remember. We'll figure it out.

Just remember, any and all who wants to get involved in this in any way, it's not just about trikes. It's equally if not more so about the people behind them.

[slashfan7964]

I seriously look forward to this. I wish I could contribute.

[fabiodriven]

So my smart phone is an HTC 4G LTE. Is that good enough to film for this? Forgive my ignorance, but I'm not super tech savvy. I'd hate to do hours worth of filming only to find my footage couldn't be used.