The five latest videos Steve and I finished uploading today bring the total to just over 375. Among them is the ‘Ringtail Possum’ resulting from the Showrunner email (see 72 Cutest Animals below). We passed the 350 mark nine months ago. The reason it has taken so long to add the 25 plus to reach the newest milestone is that Steve and I have been busy re-titling the videos so that they can be included in my National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA) footage. We went from 300 to 350 in the space of a little over 3 months. After sorting out anomalies we have 215 HD videos ready to be delivered to the NFSA once Steve has sourced a hard drive and loaded it with data files. Lately we have been working our way through the SD videos, of which we have re-titled 50 or so.
Two days ago I received a vimeo message from Showrunner Productions in Perth asking permission to use my Brushtail Possum footage for ’72 Cutest Animals’ a follow-up series to their 2014 ’72 Dangerous Animals Australia’ which included footage by me. That series has been airing on Foxtel for the past year and a half, my contribution being “really appreciated”. I won’t repeat the mistake of last time in falling for Showrunner’s no budget, but being credited for my material ploy while actually incurring costs to provide uncompressed footage for the programme. I have two possum videos on vimeo, one featuring mothers and young. The request fortuitously reminded me of having filmed a Ringtail Possum three years ago feeding on leaves that, for reasons now completely beyond my fathoming, I had not made into a species video. Today, on the way to shot-selecting the possum footage, I found material for four more videos on the same tape. The one video I had selected from the tape was from footage which ended around the 19 minute mark and was the last of the HD Species Videos 2. We uploaded it to vimeo in December 2014. In starting HD Species Videos 3, I… Read Complete Text
After Steve and then Jaap set up the spreadsheet listing the data files of the re-titled High Definition species videos for the National Film & Sound Archive, earlier in the week, I entered the last video on it today. There are 219 videos, though I could not identify one that Steve named and it unexpectedly transpired that another three had not been uploaded to vimeo. There were some technical issues with incomplete copying from vimeo to excel which Jaap has offered to work on next week. Also, I need to check with Steve that I have entered the correct information for the few videos with the same title which appear together in alphabetical order as here, though not when in date order as on vimeo and my website. This was my first spreadsheet.
Although a map showing the world’s ant species was launched by the University of Hong Kong last August, I feel it is opportune to now bask in the reflected glory of Queensland being home to the highest number of native species, 1,458 out of approximately 15,000 globally. You can find out more at antmaps.org The diversity view makes fascinating studying. The UK has 62 native species, France 224.
At last I received an email from Karga 7 Pictures accepting my refusal to allow them the use of Arachnophobia 2009, after they had resisted taking no for an answer for nearly a week. Between first contact and now, emails were batted to and fro, including an agreement to pay me for providing the uncompressed version of the footage and its use. What decided me against proceeding were the potentially dire consequences of signing the Materials Release and the fact that the production house was not able to guarantee me being credited for my work.
I collected the letter with the Queensland Museum Network Gift Agreement for my Image Library from my mail box (as opposed to my PO box). It is a rather flimsy affair compared with the State Library Deed of Gift and at first reading appears to vest copyright with the Museum. There are other issues I need to raise before signing.
An email arrived from a television production company in Los Angeles requesting permission to use my Arachnophobia 2009 video of an aggregation of Golden Orb-weaving Spiders for a TV series for the Science Channel. All well and good. In July last year we provided Showrunner Productions in Perth footage from various videos for a series they were making for ABC TV here in Australia. To date there has been no sign of it and perhaps it always was a speculative project. Needless to say they balked at the idea of paying me. Will Karga 7 Pictures? These production companies are in business to make money but seem to rely on not having to pay the likes of me. Don’t get me wrong, it is always flattering to be asked.
This evening I worked with Steve on re-titling videos after a four week break because he and Paulina went on an overseas holiday to Thailand. It was the first opportunity to view his daughter Taylah’s finished video about me and my work for her school project about Australian identity. The video is titled ‘Home is where the heart is’ and at five minutes, is a minute over the required duration. Taylah filmed heaps of footage to choose from. Her shot selection was most assured. I enjoyed the video which consisted of me talking to camera inter-cut with shots of Steve and I working in his editing suite, me filming and a selection of the subjects I was filming. I hope she gets a good mark for her enterprise.
This evening Steve’s sixteen year old daughter Taylah finished filming me for a school project on Australian identity for which she chose me and my very Australian biodiversity video archive. Taylah filmed Steve and I working on retitling videos for the National Film & Sound Archive and then interviewed me about how my work is being preserved for present and future generations of Australians. She and Steve came to my place on Saturday the 15th to film and interview me at my computer and filming at the Botanic Gardens where Taylah interviewed me some more. I saw some of Saturday’s footage which looked very good and eagerly anticipate viewing the completed video.