VELFILM Blog
My name is Vadim Elkind and I am a freelance filmmaker and photographer living in Denver. This blog contains the latest news and information about my media projects, photography, travel stories and other creative pursuits.
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Category Archives: Events
Cinema Day
UPDATE: Be sure to check out this great recap video of CINEMA Day, which also includes several of my B-Roll shots:
On this cold morning, hundreds of people showed up in front of the Colorado State Capitol building in Denver to show their support for the new bill that would increase tax rebate incentives for film production in Colorado from the current measly 10 percent to 20 percent. This is a big deal for the Colorado film industry, which has been lagging behind other states like New Mexico, Louisiana and Georgia (and I’m not even talking about California) in film incentives.
But, the wheels are finally turning and things are looking up.
Check out this PSA put together several weeks ago by Colorado filmmakers in support of the new bill. There has also been a PSA video campaign, consisting of 8 videos that were released every day leading up to this morning’s rally at the Capitol, explaining things in a little bit more detail.
Today, I braved the freezing 15-degree cold and joined my fellow Colorado film industry professionals, filmmakers, students and local arts and entertainment scene supporters at a rally in front of the Capitol building. This day became known in Colorado as Cinema Day.
Unfortunately, I had to leave right after the rally and miss the official proceedings as the new bill was introduced because I had a previously scheduled video shoot to attend, but it was great to see some familiar faces in the crowd. I also briefly ran into Kirk Montgomery, the 9News entertainment reporter who also covered the event (check out his video report here). I had previously worked with Kirk at the 2011 Vail Film Festival and it was nice to see him again and to say hello.
Below is a short highlights video from the footage I filmed with my little Canon PowerShot SD780IS, whilst freezing my fingers off. I felt bad for all the shooters out there with their DSLRs, Sony FS100s and ENG news cameras – they must have REALLY been freezing!
Be sure to visit Colorado Film Incentives 2012 for more information and updates about about the new film incentives bill.
Also posted in Video
Tagged Cinema Day, Colorado, film production, tax incentives, Video
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Breaking Batter – Denver Art Event II
On Saturday, I came down to the Colorado Arts Center in Denver’s Santa Fe Arts District to check out an art show called Breaking Batter (because they had all-you-can-eat waffles at the event, and you know me – I can’t pass up free food)! Coupled with wine, beer, a DJ, live body painting and other shenanigans, it was a pretty fun show. Some of my buddy Greth Ligon’s artwork was on display, as well.
Because I didn’t feel like hauling a DSLR around, I just brought my little Canon SD780IS point-and-shoot camera. Sure, it’s grainy as hell in low-light and doesn’t shoot a particularly high-quality video. But, it’s so small and convenient that, in a pinch, I’m happy to use it for personal videos where bringing a larger camera would be a hassle. I really do love that little thing!
See the embedded video below, or check out the 720p HD version on Vimeo. Warning: some of the content may be slightly NSFW!
StarFest 2011
It makes me happy that every year at Starfest I get a chance to see in person some of the actors from my all-time favorite science fiction TV shows and movies. This year was no exception, with Morena Baccarin (Firefly, V), Mark Sheppard (Firefly, Battlestar Galactica), Luciana Carro (Battlestar Galactica), Peter Mayhew (Star Wars) and Jeffrey Combs (Re-Animator, Star Trek: The Next Generation) in attendance.
Meeting Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca himself), was definitely one of the highlights. It may not come as a surprise to most, but that man is very tall!
Luciana Carro (Kat from Battlestar Galactica) also seemed really nice and happily agreed to pose for a photo. It’s funny to see an actress who played a ragged, worn-out, battle-hardened pilot in BSG (who rarely appeared out of a flight suit on screen) wearing a pretty dress, looking beautiful and not having much resemblance to her tough-as-nails character :)
Jeffrey Combs was also very cool; it was an honor to meet such a cult character actor in the flesh. I told him that Re-Animator is one of my favorite horror films and is a true genre classic. I also remember Jeffrey as a star in the Lovecraft-inspired From Beyond, which scared the crap out of me when I was in my early teens.
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Also posted in Photography, Sci-Fi
Tagged Battlestar Galactica, convention, Firefly, Jeffrey Combs, Luciana Carro, Mark Sheppard, Morena Baccarin, Peter Mayhew, Photography, Sci-Fi, science fiction, Starfest
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Who’s Bad (the ultimate Michael Jackson tribute band) and more at the Electric Avenue Music and Arts Festival (9.4.10)
One of the perks of shooting for Examiner.com is the occasional hook up with press passes to cool events, which I otherwise may not have been able to attend. One of such events took place this Labor Day weekend at the historic Five Points neighborhood. It was called Electric Avenue Music and Arts Festival, and apparently it was the best-kept secret in Denver (many people seemed to opt for the more mainstream Taste of Colorado).
One of the highlights of the 2-day music festival was a performance by Who’s Bad, the Ultimate Michael Jackson Tribute Band. These guys put on a great show, definitely channeling the King of Pop’s energy and enthusiasm. The crowd was ecstatic.
Below are some of the photos from Who’s Bad’s performance on Saturday. For more photos from the concert and other images from Electric Avenue festival, check out my set on Flickr.
Also posted in Art, Music, Nightlife, Photography
Tagged arts, concert, Electric Avenue, festival, live, Michael Jackson, Music, Photography, Who's Bad
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ARTCRANK Bicycle-Themed Poster Art Showcase Opening
Read the article and view the slideshow on Examiner.com
There is a number of cool events taking place in Denver this Labor Day weekend. One of them is ARTCRANK, a bicycle-themed poster art showcase, which opened at the Lisa Kowalski gallery on Saturday. Local art, music, food, bikes and, of couse – PBR. Any event that contains those elements will definitely have my full appreciation. How about you?
ARTCRANK also served as kind of a pre-kickoff party for the Bicycle Film Festival, which will take place next weekend in Denver. Sadly, I will not be able to attend it due to some previously-made plans, but it is sure to be a blast. Perhaps, next year.
Check out the slideshow below for some of the photos from Denver’s ARTCRANK opening. Remember, you can always maximize the slideshow and view it full-screen, if you prefer, or go directly to Flickr to view individual photos.
Would you like me to shoot your upcoming arts or entertainment event? Contact me!
Also posted in Art, Photography
Tagged Art, ARTCRANK, bicycle, bikes, Photography, posters
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Starfest 2010
I haven’t taken many photos at this year’s Starfest, mainly because I just wanted to enjoy the event without feeling the pressure to cover it. It worked, to some extent — I still managed to take some snapshots and shoot a little bit of video.
The guests this year included actress Summer Glau (Firefly, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles), Marina Sirtis (Star Trek: The Next Generation), Gary Lockwood (2001: A Space Odyssey) and Tim Rose (Return of the Jedi, Howard the Duck), as well as some other sci-fi TV and entertainment personalities. It was particularly special to see Gary Lockwood, since I consider 2001 the most brilliant science fiction film of all time, and it was great to see him still active and sharing his time with the fans more than 40 years later. It was also fun to sit in on a Q&A with Tim Rose, who was the puppeteer of Admiral Ackbar and Salacious B. Crumb in Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. And, of course, Summer Glau was as gorgeous as ever.
In addition to the special events, discussion panels, Q&A’s, screenings and studio presentations, there was the usual onslaught of fans in costumes, props, scale models, art shows, vendors and much more. I was only able to attend the Saturday portion of the event, and as always — even spending the entire day at the convention wasn’t nearly enough time to take everything in.
Whenever I get a chance, I will edit a video with some of the highlights from this year’s Starfest. Meanwhile, enjoy these photos!
Marina Sirtis and Tim Rose signing autographs:
Summer Glau:
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Also posted in Photography, Sci-Fi
Tagged Gary Lockwood, Marina Sirtis, sci-fi convention, Starfest, Summer Glau, Tim Rose
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2010 Vail Film Festival
This blog post is a couple of weeks late, as I’ve been preoccupied on multiple fronts and didn’t get a chance to post it until now.
Vail Film Festival, now in its seventh year, has always been an adventure for me. I have been covering VFF with Michael Howard since 2007, and every year brought something new and exciting to the table — from meeting some of my favorite stars, filmmakers and musicians, to film screenings, panel discussions, exclusive parties and networking opportunities. And, even though it seems that I never get to spend enough time with everyone I’ve grown so fond of at the festival, both staff and guests, I’m starting to feel almost like they are all a part of my extended family.
I remember the first time I met Cary Brothers in 2007. Knowing him only from his contribution to the Garden State soundtrack, I was excited to discover the rest of his work and the work of other talented musicians from LA’s Hotel Cafe — Buddy, Laura Jansen, Jay Nash, Meiko, Anya Marina, Holly Conlan and others. I still get a little shy around them, but these guys are so genuinely nice and down to earth, it’s impossible not to fall in love with all of them. After my 4 years at the Vail Film Festival, some of them have become familiar faces and it’s always a pleasure to see them perform and to mingle with.
This year, I was fortunate to meet actress Jane Seymour (Dr. Quinn, Wedding Crashers, Somewhere in Time and this year’s VFF Audience Award winner – The Assistants). I also got to shoot one of my personal all-time favorite actors and filmmakers — Zach Braff, who received the 2010 Vail Film Festival Renegade Award for being a risk taker in Hollywood. Ever since Garden State, I’ve been a huge fan of everything Zach has done, and it was great to see him in person (though, unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to chat with him). And, seeing Zach Braff and Cary Brothers together, well… it just made everything come full-circle.
It would be impractical to post all of the photos I’ve taken at the festival this year (though, I might still do that sometime in the future), so I selected a few of the shots to share with all of you. For more photos, take a look at my 2010 Vail Film Festival album on Flickr.
Tate Hanyok from THE ASSISTANTS (2010 VFF Audience Award Winner)
Cary Brothers and Zach Braff
Jane Seymour with Zach Braff
Hotel Cafe musicians
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Also posted in Photography, Video
Tagged Buddy, Cary Brothers, Holly Conlan, Hotel Cafe, Jane Seymour, Jay Nash, Laura Jansen, Vail Film Festival, Zach Braff
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Westword Artopia 2010 (Feb. 20)
Artopia, an annual celebration of art, music, fashion and food, brought thousands of people to a two-block stretch along Broadway, just south of downtown Denver on Saturday. This year, the enormous party has outgrown the three floors and rooftop patio of Club Vinyl and sprawled into four additional venues – City Hall, The Living Room, Bar Standard and Mo’s. Check out the full story on Examiner.com.
Fashion shows, art, food, music (bands and DJs), B-Boys, belly dancing, burlesque, live painting, firemancers, acrobats and much more! See my full photo set from this year’s Artopia on Flickr, or just watch the slideshow at the bottom of this post.
Also posted in Nightlife, Photography
Tagged Artopia, Nightlife, Photography, westword
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Artopia Pre-Party at Bar Standard, Rockstar Aaron’s Carnival Birthday Bash, Denver Cruisers and more… Oh my!
As it seems to happen a lot lately, I had a pretty busy couple of weeks. And, as is usually the case when that happens, I’ve neglected updating this blog in a timely manner. Fear not, for with one swift entry I shall catch up on everything that has been going on in my not-so-exciting life. Ready?
Click on the links to see the exclusive articles and photos on Examiner.com, or check out the embedded slideshows below for a wider selection of shots on my Flickr stream.
February 10 – Artopia Pre-Party at Bar Standard
This year, Westword’s Artopia promises to be bigger and more exciting than ever, spanning 4 venues and pretty much taking over the entire city block for the annual art-food-fashion-and-music party. I’m in no way affiliated with Westword, but I had so much fun at last year’s Artopia that I couldn’t resist bringing my camera this time around.
February 12 – Rockstar Aaron’s Carnival Birthday Bash at the Rockbar
This was one hell of a fun event. DJ Rockstar Aaron is known for throwing crazy parties for his Birthday every year, and this time was no exception. The party was hosted by Naughty Pierre Jean-Pierre St. Pierre and featured stilt walkers, burlesque performances by Lannie’s cabaret dancers Midnight Martini and Peggy Tulane, cameos by Maris the Great, Faggoria, Sid Pink and a slew of other colorful characters. There were clowns, little people, Single Ladies flash mob, and much more. The entire night seems like a blur to me now, but thankfully I have photos as evidence that it did, in fact, happen.
February 13 – I (heart) Cruisers at Casselman’s Bar and Venue
I (heart) Cruisers was a cruiser bike-themed Valentine’s Day party hosted by Denver Cruisers, which featured a fine art photography exhibit by Todd Van Fleet, music by DJ Ginger Perry, face painting, cruiser bike show, giveaways, a silent auction, and other cool stuff.
Also posted in Nightlife, Photography
Tagged Artopia, Denver Cruisers, Events, gigs, Nightlife, Photography, Rockstar Aaron
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First Monday Art Talk at Dazzle Restaurant and Lounge (12/7/09)
View the article and photo slideshows from December 2009 First Monday Art Talk on Examiner.com (part 1) (part 2)
On Monday, Dazzle Restaurant and Lounge hosted a monthly entertainment event called First Monday Art Talk, which included an appetizer buffet, drink specials, live music and a fashion show.
First Monday Art Talk is hosted by Eric Mateliski, a Denver artist himself, and is always free to the public. It provides a look into the life of an artist or art group each month through a unique reproduction of their influences.
This month’s FMAT featured DJ Check One, live music by Vegas Witchcraft and a fashion show by FUNKLECTIC, featuring designs by Heidi B.
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Also posted in Nightlife, Photography
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