KICK KICK PUNCH YO! | KKP Production Blog

Ira Glass on Storytelling

2011-06-11T17:26:00.001+10:00

Check out this awesome kinetic typography animation created by David as part of his #30daysofcreativity.

Going Away Song - Video Online

2011-02-17T06:50:00.002+11:00

A visual accompaniment to "Going Away Song" by Melbourne band Watson/Liow (featuring award winning jazz pianist, composer and producer Nathan Liow and vocalist Nicola Watson). Starring Irene Chen (The Home Song Stories) and Megan Gigacz. Directed by Chris Pahlow for KICK KICK PUNCH.

Premiered on Your Music Today:
yourmusictoday.com/2011/02/14/watsonliow-going-away-song

DIRECTOR & PRODUCER: Chris Pahlow
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Jaque Fisher
EDITOR & SOUND DESIGNER: Maia Tarrell
ART DIRECTOR: Jennifer Wong
ASSISTANT DIRECTORS: Maia Tarrell & Mitch Forrester
STARRING: Irene Chen & Megan Gigacz
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: Nathan Liow

SPECIAL THANKS: Clayton Jacobson, Vicki Musso, David Recht, Craig Adams, Nathan Liow, Alan Lam, David Shiyang Liu, and Jack White.

Going Away Song - Stills

2011-01-26T17:21:00.005+11:00

Our video collaboration with Melbourne band Watson/Liow featuring actress Irene Chen is almost finished. Check out some stills from the video below:

Two Bright Lakes - Warehouse Party Featuring Collarbones

2011-01-07T11:01:00.004+11:00

Our friends at Two Bright Lakes are having a huge warehouse party on Saturday the 15th of January. In anticipation of their debut LP, the very excellent Collarbones are headlining. Also on hand for the night are the wonderful Super Melody, Wintercoats, The Townhouses, and Two Bright Lakes DJs playing music to waltz and jack to.

LOCATION: KIPL 136 Roden Street West Melbourne
DATE: Saturday 15/01/11
TIME: 7:00PM - 3:00AM
PRICE: $10

It will be an awesome night. Numbers are limited so get there early.

Going Away Song - Behind The Scenes Stills

2011-01-03T09:03:00.003+11:00

Yesterday we shot a bunch of stuff around Sandringham, Beaumaris, and Mentone for our video for "Going Away Song" by our good friends Watson/Liow. The clip stars AFI nominated actress Irene Chen and Megan Gigacz who both did an amazing job. Yesterday was our most physically challenging day of shooting so far. Many thanks to the whole cast and crew who performed above and beyond the call of duty on a very tricky shoot. Here's a few behind the scenes stills:

Weather - Video Online

2011-01-01T16:58:00.001+11:00

Wake Your Soul - Video Online

2011-01-01T16:57:00.002+11:00

We Are The Knife - Video Online

2010-11-17T07:50:00.005+11:00

"We Are The Knife", the new single from Patinka Cha Cha's "Planets" EP, out December 2nd 2010.

VIEW ALTERNATE: YouTube

ARTIST: Patinka Cha Cha
TRACK: We Are The Knife

DIRECTOR / PRODUCER / ANIMATOR: Chris Pahlow
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jennifer Wong
EDITOR: Maia Tarrell
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Jaque Fisher
CHOREOGRAPHER: Sid Mathur
HAIR: Jo Barber
ARTWORK: Elise Pahlow

DANCERS:
Sid Mathur, Martin Sedgfield & Rieko Uesaki for The Collektive
Anna Medling for The Funk Factory Dance Studio

PRODUCTION ASSISTANTS:
Annie Pham
Michael Ciarlo
Josh Barr

SPECIAL THANKS:
Woodrow Wilson
Katie Pahlow
Ashley Barnett
Kit

We Are The Knife - Behind The Scenes Video

2010-11-01T21:35:00.004+11:00

Check out the behind the scenes video for Patinka Cha Cha's clip for "We Are The Knife". Thanks to Annie Pham, Michael Ciarlo and Josh Barr for filming the BTS video.

Dancing Skeleton Girl - Missing Link Digital Media (Video Online)

2010-09-30T07:32:00.005+10:00

Today marks the launch of our first promo video for Missing Link Digital Media. This clip was directed by the one and only David Shiyang Liu, with production being undertaken by the entire KKP crew including Maia dancing as the skeleton (named "Skeletor the Grim Leaper", just "Skeletor" to friends).

If you like the clip, pass it on to your friends, family, acquaintances, and enemies! You can also watch it on vimeo here.

Tali Meets Mr Ricketts - SCL Album & Video Launch

2010-09-13T11:47:00.007+10:00

September is a big month for Spacecadet Lullabies. His second album, titled "Ghost Songs", was just released last week, and the album + our video for lead single "Tali Meets Mr Ricketts" are going to be officially launched in a little over two weeks.

The launch will be at Loop Bar (23 Meyers Place, Melbourne, Vic, 3000) from 8:00PM on Thursday the 23rd of of September. It's $10 on the door. The KKP crew will be out in force so come on down and say hi. (Check out the Facebook page for the launch here.)

In the meantime you can head on over to the official Spacecadet Lullabies site and pick up the new album. The CD digipack is $22.50 shipped anywhere in Australia, and $25 shipped worldwide. If you prefer your music digital, you can also grab it from iTunes and Amzon. It's an astounding piece of work, and I strongly recommend you check it out.

Slow Clap presents The Hermitude of Angus, Ecstatic

2010-09-13T11:30:00.005+10:00

Our friends Steph & Vachel of Slow Clap Productions are opening their debut show "The Hermitude of Angus, Ecstatic" at the Melbourne Fringe Festival next Friday (the 24th of September).

Steph & Vachel started working together as part of the critically acclaimed comedy group Vigilantelope who performed sold out shows at both the the Melbourne Comedy Festival and Fringe Festival two years in a row!

No doubt "Angus, Estatic" will be another amazing show so get down there and check it out! Opening Night (24th September) is two-for-one, and groups of four get the concession price of $14, so get your friends together and book ahead!

Book here!

Synopsis:

Combining dance, music, clowning and books, this is a story show about Angus: an odd boy with a murmuring heart.

A new visual comedy by Steph Brotchie & Vachel Spirason (Vigilantelope), this curious composition is darkly funny, tragically enthusiastic, weirdly inappropriate and strangely moving.

Missing Link Digital Media - Behind The Scenes Stills

2010-09-13T09:43:00.009+10:00

Last weekend Dave directed not one but two web promos for our friends at Missing Link Digital Media. Both shoots were loads of fun and, as you will see, feature a bit of skull theme...

Some stills from the first shoot, which involved the entire KKP crew driving circles around Canning St for hours on a Sunday morning (actually a lot more fun that it sounds). Everyone did an awesome job, including Maia who almost killed herself dancing in that Skeleton mask (it was totally worth it though!).

Photos by Chloe Gordon, Jennifer Wong, & myself.

The second shoot took place on a very stormy Melbourne day and involved contributions from a whole bunch of different people, including Ron Rude and his band. Many thanks to everyone who helped out on this shoot, especially Simone & everyone at Missing Link for teaming up with us for these awesome projects. Here's the photos:

Missing Link Digital Media - Launch Party

2010-09-11T14:21:00.006+10:00

Our friends at Missing Link Records are having an awesome party to celebrate the launch of their online distribution service. The KKP crew will be out in force and we'll be showing a couple of cool videos we did in collaboration with Missing Link.

The party is on Wednesday September 22nd, from 7:30-11:30PM, at Ding Dong Lounge (18 Market Lane, Chinatown Melbourne, Australia). There's only 100 tickets available, so grab one soon!

Tali Meets Mr Ricketts - Video Online

2010-09-01T18:02:00.005+10:00

VIEW ALTERNATE: YOUTUBE / QUICKTIME / VIMEO

ARTIST: SPACECADET LULLABIES
TRACK: TALI MEETS MR RICKETTS

DIRECTED & EDITED BY: CHRIS PAHLOW & MAIA TARRELL
PRODUCER: CHRIS PAHLOW
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY:JAQUE FISHER
ART DIRECTORS: JENNIFER WONG & MAIA TARRELL
POST-PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR: DAVID SHIYANG LIU
FOCUS PULLER: MARCUS ALLEMAN
CAMERA ASSISTANT / DOCUMENTARY: MICHAEL CIARLO
CAMERA ASSISTANT: GUS GEORGE

ART DEPTARTMENT:
SHIRRAH COMEADOW
CARRIE MCGRATH
VERENA TAN
LAURA CASHMAN
CHLOE GORDON
JESSICA BARRY
KAY LI YEOH
ELISE PAHLOW
AMANDA CHONG
ANNIE PHAM

STILLS:
RYAN HUMPHREYS
CHLOE GORDON

SPECIAL THANKS:
KATIE PAHLOW
WOODROW WILSON
DEBORAH KOL
MITCH FORRESTER
LEAH HALLIS

Tali Meets Mr Ricketts - Abstract Stills (by Ryan Humphreys)

2010-08-26T10:06:00.006+10:00

While we were on set shooting the new video for Spacecadet Lullabies our good friend Ryan Humphreys took a bunch of great stills, including these incredible soft focus ones. Enjoy:

Thanks again to Ryan for his help on the day. Make sure you check out his other work here!

Miss Sunshine - Video Online

2010-08-13T21:16:00.017+10:00

VIEW ALTERNATE: YOUTUBE / QUICKTIME / VIMEO

ARTIST: DELAMARE
TRACK: MISS SUNSHINE

DIRECTOR: MITCH FORRESTER
PRODUCER: LEAH HALLIS
DP: JOSH FLAVELL
EDITOR: WARREN DOWLEY
COLOUR: SAL KENNEDY
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR: ASTER CAPLAN
PRODUCTION MANAGER: CHRIS PAHLOW
UNIT MANAGER: JENNIFER WONG
FOCUS PULLER: ASHLEY KOEK
CLAPPER/LOADER: CORINNE MAUNDER
GAFFER: MATT RICHARDS
GAFFER'S ASSISTANT: FRASER PILKINGTON
MAKEUP ARTIST: DOMINIQUE MATHERSON
COSTUME DESIGNER: NICOLE COLLINS
COSTUME ASSISTANT: HOLLY PRESTON
SET DESIGNER: BOB SHEA
DOCUMENTARY / PRODUCTION ASSIST.: MICHAEL CIARLO
PRODUCTION ASSIST.: GUS GEORGE
STILLS: LENA WANG

Miss Sunshine - Rage Indie Video of the Week

2010-08-13T17:10:00.013+10:00

Mitch's brand new clip for Delamare's debut single "Miss Sunshine" makes its broadcast debut on Rage tomorrow morning (Saturday August the 14th) at approximately 9:02AM. Excitingly the video has been chosen for Rage's Indie Video of the Week! A big congratulations to Mitch and the boys from Delamare!

Check out the clip on TV tomorrow morning and online very very soon.

Tali Meets Mr Ricketts - Behind The Scenes (Stills by Ryan Humphreys)

2010-08-05T11:19:00.005+10:00

Here's a bunch more photos from the Spacecadet Lullabies shoot we did a couple of weeks back. These lovely shots were taken by award winning photographer Ryan Humphreys. Many thanks to Ryan for helping us out. Click here to check out more of his work.

And, just for fun, here's a few extra shots taken at a test shoot we did a week before principal photography.

Tali Meets Mr Ricketts - Behind The Scenes (Stills by Chloe Gordon)

2010-07-29T11:03:00.007+10:00

Last Sunday KKP wrapped up principal photography for the new Spacecadet Lullabies video. Many thanks to the entire cast & crew for doing such an amazing job. We got some incredible footage, and I couldn't have hoped for things to go better.

Here's some behind the scenes stills from the day, captured by the one and only Chloe Gordon:

Tali Meets Mr Ricketts - Final Art Direction & Lighting Tests

2010-07-22T10:29:00.003+10:00

Over the last couple of days our wonderful art department has been working overtime on the props for the Spacecadet Lullabies clip, and Maia, Jen, & I did the first lighting test on location last night. Dig it:

Tali Meets Mr Ricketts - Art Direction & Location Scouting

2010-07-12T17:27:00.009+10:00

Maia & I are currently in pre-production on the debut music video for Spacecadet Lullabies. The track is "Tali Meets Mr Ricketts", from the soon to be released album, "Ghost Songs". Here's a little taste of what we've been working on so far...

LOCATION SCOUTING

Test shots taken by the one and only Jaque Fisher.

ART DIRECTION

Miss Sunshine - Behind The Scenes (Stills by Lena Wang)

2010-07-12T13:47:00.009+10:00

Here's a few more stills from Mitch's shoot for Delamare on Saturday. These photos were all taken by Lena Wang. Many thanks to Lena for coming down on Saturday.

Miss Sunshine - Behind The Scenes (Stills 01)

2010-07-11T12:27:00.008+10:00

Mitch is currently working on the new clip for Delamare's debut single "Miss Sunshine", and the KKP crew was up and on location at the crack of dawn (actually we were up before dawn). The band did a great job and the footage is looking incredible. Many thanks to all our cast and crew for putting in an amazing effort yesterday!

Check out some stills of the action. More pics coming soon.

All photos taken by me.

Missing Link Digital - New Website Now Online

2010-07-07T17:28:00.009+10:00

Our friends at MISSING LINK DIGITAL MEDIA have just launched their brand new website. They are now selling downloads of tracks and albums online as well as physical records, CDs, and tapes at their store on Bourke St. They already have a great selection of new music (from labels like Obese, & HobbledeHoy) as well as a bunch of classics. The collection will continue to grow over the coming months and MISSING LINK DIGITAL will soon become the go-to source for Australian music from the 70s and 80s.

Get over there and check out the selection!

Ripping a DVD & Adding Subtitles on the Mac

2010-07-06T18:57:00.008+10:00

I don't normally post this kind of thing on the blog, but after working through a problem over a couple of days I figured some of you filmmakers out there (or just people who want to watch foreign DVDs) might find it useful. I had to read through a large number of blog & forum posts to get to this solution so I figured it might be handy to have it all in one place.

Leave a comment if you have any questions. I'll update the post with new info if I have any.

THE SCENARIO

I'm in the middle of researching a new film project and I had to get my hands on a Japanese DVD. American versions are out of print and the only version I could find was produced by a French distribution company. I read some reviews saying it contained both French & English subtitles. After ordering it from Amazon.fr I discovered, to my dismay, that there were no English subtitles on the disc. I don't speak French, and I only know about three words of Japanese so I was in quite the pickle.

After a couple of days of googling it turns out it's not the end of the world. It's just annoying. So if you ever want to get your hands on some anime or a foreign DVD that probably doesn't have subtitles in your native language, here's a possible solution.

To summarise, here's what I did. Firstly I ripped the film from the DVD (basically, just copied the movie off the disc and onto my computer). I then transcoded it (i.e. changed it) into a more palatable format (some of you may not have to do this depending on what you use to rip the DVD). I downloaded some English subtitles after a little bit of googling. And, finally, I used a great little piece of software called Subler to add the subtitles to my movie file.

EQUIPMENT

Here's the hardware and software I used in the following instructions.

- PowerMac G5 (PPC, running Mac OS 10.4 Tiger)

- iMac 27" i7 (Intel, running Mac OS 10.6 Snow Leopard)

- Mac The Ripper 2.6.6

- MPEG Streamclip 1.9.2

- Subler 0.9.9

- Googling

INSTRUCTIONS

0.1 Rip The DVD

There are a boatload of apps out there that will rip DVDs to your hard disk. I ended up going with Mac The Ripper 2.6.6.

I had to use my old PowerMac G5 to do the rip for a number of reasons. Firstly, the region locking on newer macs seems to be far more rigorous than on older ones. On my G5 I can play DVDs from any region. When I insert the disk the DVD Player application pops up asking me if I want to change region. I just quit the program from the dock and then I'm free to do as I please. I can watch it using VLC, or rip it using Handbrake or Mac the Ripper. For whatever reason my new iMac will not allow me to do this. I googled the reason why but I can't remember it right now.

If you have a newer mac and you're trying to rip a DVD from a different region I'm afraid I don't have a solution as of yet. I am considering looking into external DVD drives to see if I can get a multiregion one. I will update this if I get one. Please let me know if you have any solutions or ideas.

The second reason I'm using the old PowerMac is because apparently Mac The Ripper 2.6.6 doesn't work well on Snow Leopard (or maybe even on Leopard). I haven't tested it myself. There are higher versions but apparently they're hard to come by and you have to make a donation.

You could use Handbrake or another type of ripping software. Both Handbrake and Mac The Ripper are free. The reason I chose Mac The Ripper is because it ripped the video at full quality whereas the version of Handbrake I've got will not rip it at full resolution. (Maybe a newer version will, I'm not sure, but a newer version won't run on my G5).

If you don't particularly care about maintaing the best video quality then you can use handbrake to rip the movie straight to an mp4 file using the h264 codec and save yourself the next step.

Mac The Ripper 2.6.6 looks confusing but there's not that much to it. The instructional PDF that comes with it explains things very well. The main thing you have to do is just select whether you want to rip the entire disk, or just the main feature, etc. On my old Mac it only took around 11 minutes to rip an hour long feature which is much faster than what Handbrake was giving me (of course Mac The Ripper isn't doing the transcoding like Handbrake is, but still it's quite fast).

You will come out with a folder full of confusing gunk. You should see a "VIDEO_TS" folder. In there will be some different types of files (maybe some .BUPs & .IPOs). The files you need are .VOBs. You should be able to open those in VLC.

0.2 Transcode the VOB to an mp4

It's now time for you to open up your VOB file (or files) in MPEG Streamclip.

For the DVDs I've done so far the feature got spread across three VOB files. I'm not sure if this will happen with all disks, but don't be shocked if it does. There's nothing to worry about. Work out which file has the start of the movie and open it up in MPEG Streamclip. (You should be able to open the VOB files in VLC so you can check what's what.)

After dragging it into MPEG Streamclip in the dock I get a dialog saying "Do you want to open this stream as a DVD?". Click "Yes".

For the ones I've done so far it has then warned me that there are timecode breaks (the multiple VOB files). Click "Fix Now".

Another dialog pops up. Check "Do not skip any frame" and click "Proceed".

You should then be able to watch the file. You might want to scrub through the video to make sure that the whole movie is there. For some reason no sound plays when I do this. When converting other types of files I can hear sound when I play or scrub through the video at this point. But there's nothing to worry about, even though there didn't seem to be sound it was there in the final file.

In the menu bar select "File">"Export to MPEG-4..."

I set the compression to "H.264", frame size to "1024x576", and quality to maximum. I also selected "Interlaced Scaling", "Reinterlace Chroma", and "Deinterlace Video". The most important one here is "Deinterlace Video".

You can change the other settings if you like (and if you know what you're doing).

When you're done, click "Make MP4".

0.3 Add In the Subtitles

Once your MP4 file has been created, change the extension from "mp4" to "m4v".

Now you have to actually find the right subtitles for your film. I haven't had much trouble so far. Try googling [film name] + [subtitles] + [required language]. You're looking for an ".srt" file. Once you've downloaded a file you can open it up in text edit to see if it looks ok.

Now you should have one file for the video and one file for subtitles. Put them both in the same folder and name them the same thing. For example, "mymovie.m4v" and "mymovie.srt".

You can test if the subtitles work by opening the m4v file in VLC. The subtitles should show up automatically.

If you're happy using VLC then you can stop here. However VLC doesn't always work perfectly, and you might want to play the file in Quicktime or iTunes, or on an iPod, iPad, etc.

Load up "Subler" and open up your m4v file. You should see that there is already a Video Track and an Audio track (assuming your clip has both audio and video). You now need to add a subtitles track.

Hit the "+" button and select the srt file. Here you can add a delay if you have to (if the subtitles come too early or late) and do a couple of other things. You can try and change the subtitle size but it hasn't made a difference for me so far, no matter what I put in.

Once you're done hit "Add". Now go "File">"Save".

0.4 It's Over!

That's it, it's all done. You can now watch the m4v file in Quicktime or iTunes etc with the subtitles on. In Quicktime just make you check "View">"Subtitles" to make sure they're turned on.

This type of subtitles are called "Soft Subtitles" as you can turn them on and off. If you want "Hard Subtitles" (or "Burnt In Subtitles") you can open your m4v in Quicktime Pro with the subtitles turned on and export it to another file. If you're using Snow Leopard you'll need to install Quicktime 7 and upgrade to Pro.

I hope some of that was useful (and coherent). If I find any more solutions or answers to the issues I brought up I will update this post. Feel free to leave any questions or other options/solutions in the comments.

"Fraught" & "Supermarket Musical Massacre" Now Online!

2010-06-28T08:48:00.013+10:00

The 10th Anniversary of the Melbourne International Animation Festival wrapped up last night with a fantastic "Best of the Fest" screening and plenty of partying afterwards. We were lucky enough to have "Fraught" (a film created by Maia Tarrell, Steph Brotchie, & myself as the D.I.Y Art Films collective back in 2006) screen as part of the "10 Years of Australian Highlights" program on Saturday night.

In was an amazing honour for Fraught to be chosen as one of the best Australian animations of the last ten years, and to celebrate we are releasing both Fraught & Supermarket Musical Massacre online for the first time ever!

You can watch them both below, or view them on their YouTube or Vimeo pages for full quality versions. Enjoy, and tell all your friends.

FRAUGHT 8”00 / 2006 / DOCUMENTARY ANIMATION

VIEW ALTERNATE: YOUTUBE / VIMEO

When it all goes horribly wrong, there is only one word that can adequately describe the horror: Fraught. A documentary animation exploring people's most awkward, embarrassing moments.

Fraught is an animated short film created by D.I.Y Art Films (Steph Brotchie, Chris Pahlow, & Maia Tarrell) in 2006. Fraught has screened at festivals around the world and won Best Australian Film at the 2007 Melbourne International Animation Festival.

SUPERMARKET MUSICAL MASSACRE: THE FEEL-GOOD HOMICIDE OF THE CENTURY!
7”20 / 2008 / ANIMATION

VIEW ALTERNATE: YOUTUBE / VIMEO

An everyday trip to the supermarket takes a turn for the bizarre when a suburban housewife is pushed too far. Music, Mayhem, Murder… Mayonnaise?

Supermarket Musical Massacre is an animated short film created by D.I.Y Art Films (Steph Brotchie, Chris Pahlow, & Maia Tarrell) in 2008. SMM has screened at festivals around the world including the Melbourne International Animation Festival (Australia), Istanbul Animation Festival (Turkey), and the Women’s International Film Festival (Miami, USA).

Many thanks once again to Malcolm, Helen, Andrew and everyone at MIAF for supporting us and screening our films over the years.

Fraught @ MIAF (6:00PM, Saturday 26 June, 2010)

2010-06-18T15:59:00.011+10:00

The Melbourne International Animation is always an exciting time for KKP. Maia and myself have a long history with the festival, starting with our first production company D.I.Y Art Films. This year is MIAF's tenth anniversary and they are screening a bunch of highlights and retrospective sessions, including "10 Years of Australian Highlights" which features our short documentary animation "Fraught".

Maia, Steph Brotchie, & myself created Fraught back while we were at uni, and it went on to win Best Australian Film at the 2007 Melbourne International Animation Festival before screening at a bunch of other festivals around the world. It was an amazing experience for us back then and it's an great honour now to be featured in a screening of the best Australian animations from the past decade.

The KKP crew will be out in force for that screening (and many others), so if you're free come on down and check it out! The festival opens tomorrow night, and the screening with Fraught is the following Saturday (the 26th of June) at 6:00PM.

Check out the festival's trailer below:

Hunch - Video Online

2010-06-16T09:25:00.011+10:00

VIEW ALTERNATE: YOUTUBE / QUICKTIME

ARTIST: SKYE HARBOUR
TRACK: HUNCH

DIRECTOR / EDITOR: DAVID SHIYANG LIU
PRODUCER: WOODROW WILSON
DP: JAQUE FISHER
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR: CHRIS PAHLOW

Distance Is A Gun - Video Hits (06/06/10)

2010-06-05T13:00:00.005+10:00

Mitch's video for Celadore's "Distance is a Gun" screens on Video Hits tomorrow morning. If you're up and about then check it out.

We Are The Knife - Raw Stills

2010-06-04T16:23:00.008+10:00

My clip for Patinka Cha Cha's "We Are The Knife" will be wrapping soon. I'm really happy with how it's looking so far. Here's some ungraded stills from the current edit...

Wake Your Soul - Raw Stills

2010-06-04T11:58:00.009+10:00

We've just wrapped up another edit of Maia's video for Brad Treeby and the Simplists. The video is animated using pixilation (essentially stop motion with people). So far the clip is turning out to be absolutely amazing. The final video should be online very soon so keep your eyes peeled for it. Here's a few stills from the work in progress:

KICK KICK PUNCH Goes To AIAF (Photos)

2010-05-21T12:11:00.038+10:00

Last weekend KICK KICK PUNCH headed up to Wagga Wagga for the start of the Australian International Animation Festival. This year I was invited to come up and do a talk about combining live action & animation, and I screened a rough offline edit of the new Patinka Cha Cha clip (currently in post production). Representing the KKP was Studio Manager Jennifer Wong, Director Maia Tarrell, and myself. Steph Brotchie (D.I.Y Art, Vigilantelope) and Shirrah Comeadow also joined us for the roadtrip.

AIAF is always a big weekend on our calander and this year's festival didn't dissapoint. We saw a lot of great films and were lucky enough to hang out with some really great animators too. Many thanks to the AIAF team for having us, especially Malcolm, Andrew, and Helen.

Some of the sights along the way into Wagga...

AIAF was held at the local "Forum 6" cinema in Wagga Wagga.We arrived on Friday night via our trusty (although uncomfortable) steed, we dubbed "The Weevil".

Festival directors Andrew Hagan & Malcolm Turner opened the festival. We watched the first international programme, and then enjoyed the ensuing festivities...

We woke up early the next morning for breakfast at Scribbles Cafe.
Scribbles serves a great hot breakfast as well as letting you draw on the table. They're also home to the one and only "Disco Duck". Who knew? (For clarification, I actually do not love golfers. Thanks Maia...)

After breakfast we headed off to the Wagga Wagga Winery for the annual filmmakers lunch (it's a hard life on the festival circuit).
If you like cooking your own barbecued meat and you don't mind fishes with heads on then this is the place for you. The winery is on a beautiful property and the good food, weather, and lovely people made for an excellent afternoon.

We stopped off a couple of times on the way back in to town to do some sightseeing...

Only a few hours later were the 101 sessions. Malcolm gave his talk at 4pm, and mine was at 5pm. Here's Malcolm doing some last minute preparations.

And here's me doing my last minute preparations...

Malcolm showcased a bunch of really great new animations as well as a classic episode of Felix the Cat from 1922. Felix sure was different from what I remembered. Back in the day he fought in a war, won the war with the help of sausages (?) who traveled through radio waves, and finally had his bride stolen (which for him was a lucky escape apparently). Good times. After that it was time for my talk. Malcolm gave me a great intro and away I went. KKP Studio Manager Jen was a big help, deftly navigating the mess of slides I had neglected to properly organise.

Right after the talks was the Australian Panorama screening. It was a really great session, lots of wonderful films this year! We hit up Wagga's Mexican restaurant for a celebratory dinner. As you can see, the place has amazing decore.

After that I caught the end of the Late Night Bizarre, and caught up with Helen, Malcolm, and Andrew for one last photo.

Sunday was all food, breaks, and driving. And then we were home.

The end. Photos by Maia Tarrell, Jennifer Wong, Steph Brotchie, & myself.

Introducing DAVID SHIYANG LIU

2010-05-20T22:15:00.005+10:00

KICK KICK PUNCH is very excited to announce the introduction of our newest director DAVID SHIYANG LIU.

Dave and I first crossed paths during our first year at university. Everything I knew about film, Dave knew more. Anything I could do in Photoshop, Dave could do better. Since then not a lot has changed. David Shiyang is an absolute professional, and the quality & ingenuity of his work never ceases to astound me. As the saying goes, if you can’t beat the join them. Or as the case may be, get them to join KICK KICK PUNCH!

David began his creative career early in life. He wrote his first masterpiece of fiction at age seven during science class about anthropomorphic volcanos destroying the world and enslaving human beings. (His mother still keeps that story in her drawer.)

These days Dave works as a commercial director, and his work garners praise from more than just his mum. His short “4444” took out both the Audience Choice Award and Special Mention Prize at the 2005 Singapore Shorts Film Festival. His honours project “5 Films” achieved even greater heights, winning Best Cinematography at the 22nd Singapore International Film Festival, and Best Editing at the 2009 Singapore Short Film Awards. The film has since screened at a number of international festivals including the 2009 Cannes Short Film Corner.

Dave currently divides his time between Singapore and Melbourne. He is represented by KICK KICK PUNCH for music videos in Australia, and he is currently wrapping up his first music video for KKP. Stay tuned for details on that project coming soon. In the meanwhile, check out some of his older work:

Distance Is A Gun - EP Launch (Photos)

2010-05-09T19:01:00.010+10:00

The KKP crew was out in force for Celadore's EP launch last Friday and we had a smashing good time. If you haven't already, check out the new video now!

Here's a couple of pics from the night:

Mitch Forrester & Leah Hallis

(Director & Producer for the "Distance Is A Gun" video).

Mitch with the boys from Celadore.

Distance Is A Gun - EP Launch (07/05/10)

2010-05-06T11:57:00.003+10:00

Celadore launches their debut EP "Distance Is A Gun" tomorrow night (Friday the 7th of May) at the Evelyn. The KKP crew will be there in force so come on down and join the party.

Distance Is A Gun - Video Online

2010-05-04T15:33:00.009+10:00

VIEW ALTERNATE: YOUTUBE / QUICKTIME

ARTIST: CELADORE
TRACK: DISTANCE IS A GUN
LABEL: POPBOOMERANG

DIRECTOR: MITCH FORRESTER
PRODUCER: LEAH HALLIS

KICK KICK PUNCH Goes to AIAF

2010-04-22T17:49:00.010+10:00

It's official! The KKP crew will be hitting up the Australian International Animation Festival in Wagga Wagga in just under a month. I will be giving a talk on the We Are The Knife clip on Saturday the 15th of May. If you're in town come on down and grab a peek at the video's unofficial festival premiere.

Many thanks to festival director Malcolm Turner for inviting me along. This will be the third time I've attended and presented there and I'm really looking forward to it. For anyone interested in animation, this is one of the year's highlights! Great films and great people, what more could you ask for?

Here's some info on my presentation:

Distance Is A Gun - Raw Stills

2010-04-20T15:58:00.009+10:00

I just spent a couple of hours with Mitch logging footage from the Celadore clip he shot over the weekend. The material is simply breathtaking. Here's a few stills from the raw footage. Keep in mind that these stills are straight out of the camera with absolutely no post work or grading. The final video will look even more beautiful.

(Click images to view larger versions.)

Stay tuned for more stills, behind the scenes shot, and the launch of the video over the next few weeks.

We Are The Knife - Shoot (Stills)

2010-04-11T20:57:00.049+10:00

THE LOCATION - The new home of Bludo studios just above Beat Magazine in Richmond.

SETTING UP

PATINKA CHA CHA - Setup, rehearsals, and tests...

FINE TUNING THE SETUP - Director of Photography, Jaque Fisher, went the extra mile and really nailed the lighting and camera setup. The footage looks amazing.

PREPARING THE DANCERS - Sid, Rieko, Martin, & Anna (from The Collektive) showed up right on time. Jo Barber (of Rakis Geisha) did an absolutely amazing job on their hair!

SHOOTING THE DANCERS - From first take to last, the dancers killed it. Myself and the rest of the crew watched on in awe as they made every move look completely effortless. A special shout out goes to our Director of Choreography, Sid, for coming up with some absolutely incredible sequences (and also for rapping to a dove, but more on that later).

SHOOTING THE MAGICIAN - Special thanks to Ash & Kit (plus their assortment of trained animals) for coming down to shoot some additional segments.

IT'S OVER! - Thanks to Michael, Annie, & Josh for helping out all day. You were indispensable!

Stills by Michael Ciarlo, Annie Pham, Josh Barr, & myself. Thanks to everyone involved! Full shoot credits coming soon.

We Are The Knife - Shot List

2010-04-09T16:15:00.006+10:00

Just wrapped up the shot list for the PCC shoot. (Only two sleeps to go!) Here's what we don't show the clients:

From the demented scratchings of a madman to something a lot more legible. Thank god for colour coding in google docs...

We Are The Knife - Dancers

2010-04-07T10:08:00.008+10:00

Last night I caught up with Melbourne dance crew The Collektive. A bunch of these guys will be performing in the video for We Are The Knife so we had a little brainstorming session and came up with some great ideas for the video. I was also lucky enough to get to watch them rehearsing for a new set they're debuting on Saturday. Dope stuff! Check out a couple of shots of them in action:

We Are The Knife - Test Shoot (Footage)

2010-03-28T13:49:00.008+11:00

Here's the results of the Patinka Cha Cha test shoot. Some shots are quite dark so click on them to see the full size version. And yes, it's me behind the screen...

We Are The Knife - Test Shoot

2010-03-28T13:00:00.009+11:00

Last Friday I did a test shoot for the new Patinka Cha Cha single "We Are The Knife". We'll be shooting the real thing in a couple of weeks. I'll post some actual shots from the tests soon. For now here's some stills from the day:

Director of Photography, Jaque Fisher, doing his thing.

Me standing in.

Many thanks to Woody (above) for letting us use his studio and for taking some of these shots.

KICK KICK PUNCH YO!

2010-03-21T20:29:00.001+11:00

Hi there. Welcome to the official blog for directing collective KICK KICK PUNCH. KKP is Mitch Forrester, Chris Pahlow, & Maia Tarrell. We make music videos, and sometimes t-shirts. Give us a shout at hello@kickkickpunch.com. More coming soon!

KICK KICK PUNCH YO!