Films

The Power of stone

NOW SCREENING IN SELECT THEATERS. Please follow us on INSTAGRAM or FACEBOOK for upcoming screening/streaming info.

Though Lew French first appears as unyielding and imposing as the granite he works with, beneath this artist’s rigid exterior is a naturalist who has spent two decades building his dream home in the Brazilian rainforest, a father mourning the loss of his son, and a deeply spiritual man committed to the concept of karma. Despite waking up at 4am to meditate every day, Lew struggles to quiet his mind. In stone, Lew finds that which he longs for: stillness. As one of Lew’s friends puts it, “Don’t be tricked by the idea that he’s a stone mason. He’s sort of a philosopher, artist, spiritual guide who’s working with stone.”

A painter Who Farms

A Painter Who Farms premiered at the Martha's Vineyard Film Festival, which was the first of five sell-out screening events. See our PRESS page for articles about recent screenings as well as reviews. A Painter Who Farms is about Allen Whiting, a farmer who has been living off the land as his family has for 12 generations, though he is known more for his plein-air paintings, depictions of island landscapes that can be found in the collections of those lucky few who have been visiting his home gallery since the 70s. From his taciturn delivery to his creative expression of the beauty that surrounds him, Whiting is the human embodiment of Martha's Vineyard, the island in which his roots run deep, and from which he derives his inspiration.

from haarlem to harlem

Our short documentary film about emerging artist Alanna Airitam premiered at Museum of Photographic Arts on March 28, 2018, and is now available on The Artist Odyssey. See our PRESS page for an excellent review of this film by KPBS Film Reviewer Beth Accomando. Film Summary: Fatigued by incessant news of black people being shot and killed, and with the election as the final straw, artist Alanna Airitam decided create a body of work to portray black people as she knows them to be, which is far from the media's persistently negative narrative. “I was tired of the narrative that we aren’t worthy of being treated with respect, that we aren’t beautiful, that we don’t belong,” she says. Alanna set out to prove these negative messages false with images that reveal the “true grace, pride, beauty, power, and strength” of black people in the face of all they have suffered.

Tribal Baroque: Beingness

Here is a trailer for the award-winning short documentary film we made for The Artist Odyssey featuring two artists – one channeling a Pink Angel, the other an Egyptian God – who use operatic voices, violin, and dance to express life, love, death and what it means to BE. Our film follows Thoth & Lila’Angelique of Tribal Baroque behind the makeup and the stage and into their personal realm, an extraordinary land of their own making, where art and identity are one.

Visions of Home

There is beauty to be found in the pattern on a porcelain teacup, or the “patina of a working boat at rest.” In her nostalgic, lifelike, and sometimes whimsical paintings, artist Heather Neill pays homage to the ordinary — items that are likely overlooked before Neill captures their essence in luxuriant color and exquisite detail. Follow Neill as she finds inspiration for her latest painting, all the while expounding on her muses, which include her wife, Pat, and a handful of dear friends who are bastions of New England Yankee-ism. From the expansive blue of the Martha’s Vineyard coastline to the verdant green of her garden in rural Pennsylvania, see the world through this artist’s eyes, and get a peek into her process, as she explores what it really means to be “home.” Read more about this film and see pics from the premiere on the FILM PAGE HERE.

A New stellar order

This trailer is for our most recently released short film about NASA Science Illustrator turned fine artist Melissa Walter. This film was produced for The Artist Odyssey, where the entire film can be viewed. We premiered A New Stellar Order to a sell-out audience at Fleet Science Center in San Diego. Since then, it has also been screened at University California, Berkeley. 

J. Grant Brittain - 30 Years of Skate Photography

This clip is from a short documentary film we made for The Artist Odyssey in which J. Grant Brittain shares insights into his career of documenting a generation of skaters, from hanging out at Del Mar Skate Ranch in the 1980s, to the recreation of the famed photo of the Bones Brigade on the Chin Ramp (Tony Hawk, Steve Caballero, Lance Mountain, Mike McGill). This documentary also features legendary pro-skater Chris Miller — Brittain’s long-time subject, collaborator, and friend — and marks the first time the two have ever been interviewed together on film.  

“I tried to change skateboard photography from just being that, ‘capture the action,’ and giving it kind of a different look and looking at other elements in the scene…It was more showing the culture or the feeling of skateboarding, you know, the freedom we get out of skateboarding.” —Grant Brittain  

Frank Lee Drennen - More Love

A clip from the 39-minute documentary film "Frank Lee Drennen - More Love" we made for The Artist Odyssey.  In the film, singer/songwriter Frank Lee Drennen shares personal insights into his artistic journeys, including his thoughts on music helping him through tough times. Or, as Frank puts it, “You can talk about bad things with music, and feel good after you get done listening to it.”

Peter G. Kalivas - Body As Phenomenon

This is a clip from a short documentary film we made for The Artist Odyssey featuring dancer and choreographer Peter G. Kalivas of the PGK Dance Project.  In this film, centered around a single rehearsal and performance of one of Kalivas’ latest works, we get a brief glimpse into the mind and life of a world-class choreographer, leaving us with a deeper understanding of Kalivas’ art, and greater respect for the incredible skill and dedication of his professional dancers.

Honoring Life - The Work of Trinh Mai

This is a clip from the award-winning documentary film we made for The Artist Odyssey featuring mixed media artist, Trinh Mai.  In the film, Mai shares her inspirations, from nature to her Vietnamese heritage. Across oil, charcoal, photographs, ink, thread, and found objects, her underlying intention to honor life always shines through regardless of medium.

A Few of Our Favorite Things

We love partnering with creative-minded people, and have a particular interest in art, food, drink, design, and travel. Here are just a few of our current and past projects.   

The artist odyssey

As Executive Producers of this global arts network, we create and oversee the creation of artist documentary films, as well as educational content for art students at all levels. The first film we released on The Artist Odyssey was nominated for Best Short Film at the Viet Film Fest, and we took home the Audience Choice Award for Best Short Film.   

art pulse tv

We were hired by a non-profit arts organization to create this television show about "everything art in San Diego County and Baja." We handled all production, from concept to execution to the delivery of each half-hour episode to NBC7, on which it aired. Each episode was hosted at a different location (mostly restaurants) and contained four segments. We created 20 episodes in 22 weeks. This show earned us 7 regional Emmy Nominations, and an Emmy Award for Excellence in Arts & Entertainment Programming.  

5Q with barbarella

Back before we had all this fancy filming equipment, we were hired by NBC to create this segment that aired weekly on NBC's California Nonstop channel. Keep in mind, this was a long time ago. ;) 

Here are some of the folks we've had the pleasure of partnering with.