the new building

Hello Grinner. It looks like you scored with that location but that promo video looked like it was shot and thrown together in an hour or less. :p What's up with all the shaky handheld shots? Do you not have a friend with a Steadicam or similar stabilizer to get better tracking shots? You could have sat in a chair with wheels and gotten better shots than what's there now. You are pushing quality production services but that's not what was depicted in my opinion. I think you could do alot better if you took the time to use the right tools and techniques. ;)
 
I don't have anything personal against Grinner. From what I've read and seen, he is definitely a friendly, interesting and colorful person. Probably the most optimistic person I've seen in this crazy business. He seems very knowledgeable about the industry but his work just doesn't seem to be consistent with all the talk. I was just being logical and expressing my opinion about what I saw. Other than the shakey camera style, I also think he excessively uses dissolves as soft cuts. I did that in one of my first multi-camera projects and I irritates me to watch it to this day. I'm gonna fix it with cuts someday. Anyway, I think any kind of editing style is open to interpretation so it doesn't really matter what I or anyone else thinks, unless we're paying for it. If his shooting style for any given project is intentional, then that's the effect he wanted. I happen to believe it was done on the fly without much planning and he's using that to promote his business. I can't stand watching some reality shows because of the shakey shooting whether it's intentional or not.

iHD said:
. . . As for the comments everyone else is making, there's obviously plenty of clients out there who like your work or you wouldn't be able to afford a setup like you have. . . .
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Either that or there's very few post houses to choose from in that area. :p Sorry, I couldn't resist. As he said in this thread, he's sharing the overhead with several others which means the client list doesn't have to be that extensive. But like you said, the fact is he does have clients so they must be content.

iHD said:
. . . I'm sure most guys on here don't have a location like you have and are probably a bit jealous so I would ignore them. . . .
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You are correct about that, at least for me and would I like to have that workspace environment? Heck yeah! But when all you need is a small workstation, why pay for any extra overhead when you don't have to. But since he's part of a creative team I guess it makes more sense for it all be at a single location.

I have a question for you iHD, based on what you saw in that promo, would you pay $150 / hour to have your project cut there? Well that's what he charges and that's the reduced rate since the merger. See the details here.
 
Cool place. Nice to see the gentrification of that neighborhood. It would be ideal of Ted Drewe's, Steak 'n Shake, Rigazzi's or White Castle were nearby.

"Thank You And Here's My Address."
 
iHD said:
To be 100% honest, no. I would want a higher quality product. Sorry Grinner. I watched every demo on his website and most of the videos don't meet my standard. I could go through each video and explain what I would do differently but I'm not going to do that. I have nothing against grinner. However, like I said before, there must be a pretty big market for his work for him to be able to have a location like that, even if he's sub-leasing. Its very impressive.

I was impressed that he was hired by the Hillstrands from Deadliest Catch to follow them around on their Budweiser stops and shoot a documentary. One of the Hillstrands even provided him a testimonial where he seems happy with grinner's work.

It doesn't matter what me, you, Nino, or Chicago Dog thinks of his work, it only matters what the client thinks and he's still in business so they must be happy and that's what counts.
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Laugh out loud! Thanks for your honesty, seriously. It's funny how most of the people that see his work all come to the same conclusion but if that's his style then so be it. As I said, he seems very knowledgeable but his product is not consistent with the talk. How he's getting that rate and making it in that area is beyond me but as far as we know, he is. There must be some kind of magic vortex or cloud hanging over that city to create those unique conditions. :D If you'll re-read my post, you'll see that I agreed with most of what you said. But I think I made some valid points too along with the fact that I like Mr Grinner just fine. I just don't understand his logic or work. I also don't have much use for testimonials either. I'm not saying he's done this but you never know what kind of a deal the testimonee has been given to compel that response. Don't worry, I meant what you knew.
 
iHD said:
That's a pretty short sighted and ridiculous statement. Having a business location instead of working out of your home will legitimize your business in the eyes of most local clients, especially if you offer post-production services. If a local car dealership is wanting a commercial shot and edited and knows nothing about producing a commercial, who is that dealership going to go with, the company with a nice location that looks legite or the guy working out of his/her basement? It makes a difference in the eyes of some and is a must if you have staff on a payroll. You're a smart guy Nino so I know you understand what I'm saying. You've got to put your hatred of me and grinner aside and look at it objectively.
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Let me give you some sobering statistical information. I spent 28 years in the Northeast and 12 years here in Tampa.

Every production company in both the Northeast and here in Florida, those who had impressive facilities, went out of business, a few are still around but have revolving door ownership. They all stiffed several colleagues before shutting down.

Every editing facilities also went out of business or those few that are left keep changing ownership in order to infuse new capital.

Most independent producers that I know (and I know many) and work with have installed an editing station in their house and hire freelance editors as needed.

On the other side of the coin, every freelance (I mean well educated and skilled freelancers) that I've known for the last 40 years they either retired comfortably or the younger ones are still in business, they all worked from their home.

One of the keys of staying profitable in this business is to maintain the lowest overhead possible.

Granted that if the business requires clients to come to your place of business then I wouldn't want strangers to come to my house.

One of the most enjoyable part of my business is that I'm at home, go on location and back home.

None of my client knows where I live and they have no reason to know. All they have is my phone number and the routing number of my bank account so payment go into a direct deposit. 32% of my house is dedicated to my business, meaning that I can tax deduct 32% of all my house expenses, plus more.

This is the enviable advantage of being a freelancer.

Lastly, I hate nobody, I have a very low tolerance for stupidity and brainless big mouth idiots, if the shoe fits.........
 
iHD said:
That's a pretty short sighted and ridiculous statement. Having a business location instead of working out of your home will legitimize your business in the eyes of most local clients, especially if you offer post-production services. If a local car dealership is wanting a commercial shot and edited and knows nothing about producing a commercial, who is that dealership going to go with, the company with a nice location that looks legite or the guy working out of his/her basement? It makes a difference in the eyes of some and is a must if you have staff on a payroll. You're a smart guy Nino so I know you understand what I'm saying. You've got to put your hatred of me and grinner aside and look at it objectively.
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Times have changed and as Nino said, alot of the big boys with facilities have gone under for various reasons. There was a two story complex in my nearest big city that had nothing but five different post facilities in it that produced and cut regional and network content. They've all been gone for years but there are four big ones left that in addition to post offer many more production services such as SAT trucks, production trucks, audio trucks, stages, etc..

I think anybody would love to have an impressive facility but that's all cosmetic and costly if you don't really need it. As you mentioned, if you have a creative team, like Grinner, all offering different components for a final product and custom spaces like green screen, stages, etc., then yes, a facility would be the thing to have. But to answer your question about who a client would choose, the home or facility professional? I think they would choose the one with the best reel/resume. Because the internet allows for proofs to be viewed virtually anywhere, a client doesn't even have to leave their location to approve or request changes. Finally, when an entire edit suite can fit on a small table and sometimes in your lap, why have all that extra overhead, except for the scenerio above?
 
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