Addovolt Explorations: Friends In High Places

old-school showmanship at the University of Chicago

"Why?"

Gargoyles are so wrong they're right.

mid-evil: do these party monsters look like they'd chase away malevolent forces or encourage them to join the fun?

For centuries, they've delighted and confused pretty much everyone who've noticed them and, yes, they do want to be noticed.

Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.--a sanctuary for traditional and not-so-traditional grotesques

But for being creations produced in order to promote virtue--in their own roundabout ways--they don't necessarily give off cuddly, moral feelings do they?

they seem nice....:  when they're not puking out rainwater, these concrete creatures provide nesting spots for birds

For this short doc, I want to thank my longtime collaborator, Stefanie Foresta Erdmann, for doing the narration duties.

Watch our latest edition of Addovolt Explorations right HERE

bloody heck

I put this on my Facebook page as well since it's a helpful formula. 

This is the mix that we used on Pale Horseman's "Conquistador" music video, on "A Murky Path Down Archer Avenue", and a couple of other projects.  In my opinion, this is the most no-joking-around "blood" effect to try out if you're going for realism.  A small scoop of the "Fresh Scab" gel will start you off.

enrobed

I have a new article on Paranormal Daily News which can be read right HERE.

Interesting costume choices can add a lot to films and an unusual one, from an unexpected source, was utilized in the "Someplace" short film that we did last year.  Not something that you stumble across every day, that's for sure....

them, me, and IMDB

It's been a busy decade.

Lots of short films and short documentaries and music videos for punk, metal, and goth bands.

And I wouldn't change a thing!

It's been such a whirlwind 10 years, as a matter of fact, that I just upload the content to YouTube, jot it down on this blog, promote some of those projects (while leaving other projects alone as they are and then moving on to the next thing), and that's that!

But it's time for me to be slightly more 2019, soon to be 2020, traditional.  Especially since I'll be having a feature-length horror/comedy film coming out next year.  I think that I need to keep the indie ethos--which is good--but also be a bit more "corporate".  Or, really, what my iteration/interpretation of "corporate" might be.  Which isn't heavy-handed by any stretch of the imagination.  Can you imagine a corporate-flavored Addovolt Productions?  Yeesh.....

For example, I need to get a Wikipedia page.  There are enough credits and enough articles at this point so, yeah, it's time to get a Wikipedia page.  I love Wikipedia--they just get right to the fucking point--so it'll be for the best.  Whenever I want to know about someone, some band, some place, or some company, I just jump over to their Wikipedia page if they have one and get down to business.  So having one would be nice.

Unlike a lot of filmmakers, I don't put all the stuff that I do on IMDB.  But maybe I should?

Those little Addovolt Explorations mini-documentaries that I do are just research/writing/shooting/editing drills usually.  Seriously.  That's pretty much all that they are so that I don't feel rusty when I'm doing more important projects.  Sure, "A Murky Path Down Archer Avenue" was a full production but that one was an exception.  It was, in truth, a gore and makeup test for this upcoming long horror film.

The last thing that I put on IMDB was the short film "Salome" from 10 years ago because I was just like, "Fuck it, who cares?  Who am I trying to impress?  I'm indie so why should I give a shit?".

Well.....I should probably start giving a shit about those types of things......

The upcoming horror/comedy that I'm working on will be a traditional media product--a business product!--available for purchase so there's that.  And then, coming after it, will be other products and some very fancy-schmancy short films (I love fancy-schmancy short films!) which should, really, be IMDB-able.

Not all the little Addovolt Explorations short docs should be on IMBD but should I have put "Danse Macabre" on there a decade ago?  Yeah, maybe.  The Pale Horseman music videos?  Yep, I should have.  The "Someplace" short film?  For sure, I should have done that.  That would've been the right thing to do for my company, the actors who worked on it, and the musicians who were part of that film.  Being indie is good but.....maybe there's such a thing as being a little too indie?  If you know what I mean?

I've managed to skip Twitter and Instagram all of these years which used to be an unthinkable thing to do if you were in the arts.  However.....  It seems like, over the last couple of years, it's become slightly more acceptable for some creative entities to mellow out when it comes to social media, especially the more "darksided" entities (the goths, the metal people, etc., etc.) because we're not expected to be as hypersocial, or communication-thirsty, as more pop-oriented entities.  We don't have to be cutesy on Instagram or Twitter as our more shiny happy creative sisters and brothers and that's okay.  Thank goodness!  Even though Addovolt Productions is a film company, we're definitely aligned with that more darksided temperament so not diving hard into social media feels honest.  Yes, I have a Facebook page but it's mainly a personal family and friends type of thing for me.  Anyone interested in what I do, film-wise, is totally encouraged to link up with me on Facebook.  That's fine.  Addovolt Productions is my thing, and it eats up a massive part of my life (oh, yes it does....) so having my projects just be part of my personal life profile feels correct.  It's a casual approach but I think that that's fine.  A lot of people don't do Facebook anymore so I'm not worried about it.  There are too many company-related Facebook pages and I've noticed, especially over the last 3 years or so, that the engagement between companies and individuals on Facebook has definitely cooled down so I feel okay with not creating a separate Facebook page dedicated to Addovolt Productions.  I think it's unnecessary.

There's definitely a "burning out" feeling, over the last 12 months especially, when it comes to social media.  Even some of the big players in social media (the magazine covers actresses, some of the rap stars, etc.), you can tell, are starting to post less on Instagram and the other outlets.  I think that everybody's getting a little bit tired and reprioritizing.  It's becoming noticeable.

I also think that, as the years go on, and more filmmakers completely accept and embrace their indie-ness--similar to how some bands are 100% indie, other bands are 100% big label-driven, and that's how it is--that it'll more and more okay to take a more natural, less thirsty, approach to digital presentation and engagement.  But that's just a theory!  I could be right, I could be wrong.  We'll see how that plays out as the years go on.

And, yes, I'll be around.

The systems that I use to get things done are better.  The production process, for me after all these years of experience, is slightly (not perfectly, but slightly) smoother.  It's somewhat easier for me to get press now.

The stories that I have to tell, the ones coming up, are....well....how do I put this....?.....

Let's just say that the best is yet to come.  I would love to give you hints but, sorry, I can't do that right now.  But there are plans.....  Darkly evil, delicious plans!  haha

And they're doable (i.e. $).  Which matters.

Basically, Addovolt Productions will continue to lean towards the odd and independent but, at the same time, I realize that I need to start driving down some of the same streets that others are driving down.  I need to start being able to do both and just make that a mandatory part of the process.  I think that that would be for the best.

Addovolt Explorations: plastic, fantastic

All that glitter$ is gold.

Riding--and always falling over--the line between garish and delightful are malls representing the very worst and very best in civilized striving.

Whether or not you could actually afford the stuff you were looking at wasn't the point.  It was the idea, as a shopper, that maybe--just maybe--you were going to buy it (whatever it was).  A trip to the mall is just as much of a piece of socioeconomic performance art as much as it's a consumer mission, typically.

Material World:  open to anyone and everyone, shopping centers can at least give the impression of flattened class structures.

If you weren't actually going to buy new headphones, for example, the chance of grabbing a mochafrappuccino while thinking about it was much more dependable (and by design).

Are malls just empty, glossy, disposable temples to rampant spending?

Yes, absolutely!  But, as you may expect, things are never that simple......

Off With Their Heads:  transforming markets and societies mean that what used to work yesterday doesn't necessarily work today.

This newest short documentary, narrated by Len Foote, demands that you smear on some frosted lip gloss, dig out an acid-washed denim jacket from somewhere in the house basement, and join us on a candy-colored meditation through one of your favorite places on earth (don't pretend that it isn't):

The Mall

Sometimes fun is healthy.  But not always.

Watch "Addovolt Explorations: plastic, fantastic" HERE on YouTube.  The other Addovolt Explorations are right HERE.

Addovolt Explorations: Resonance

As with the other Addovolt Explorations, we're taking a fast dive into different facets of culture and history.  For this video, we'll settle into 2 different time periods simultaneously:  Ancient Greece and today's America.

This newest video--a composite of archival movies and custom footage--is HERE on YouTube.  Going through free-use old films is always fascinating; there's plenty to learn and they give me ideas for how to approach upcoming projects.

Even though Athena's temples have been gone for quite a long time now, the tales and tactics of the Hellenic world still seep into the present, retaining a totally unique staying power.  That specific legacy has broken through borders, thoroughly embedding itself, bit by bit, in popular entertainment, kitsch, high art, politics, architecture, and language.

The past never completely vanished.

Perhaps Olympus has managed to stay up and running--on a more subdued, quiet basis--through all of these centuries?

Very Special Thanks to Eva Karakostas for narrating this project.

Addovolt Explorations: Cast Of Thousands

For this newest Addovolt Explorations quick doc, we jump over to C2E2 and take a look at the phenomenon of cosplay.

Watch the video right HERE on YouTube.

This is definitely one of the shortest Addovolt Explorations that I've done.  I should've shot a lot more footage than what I did so, if you're going to C2E2, Wizard World, or Comic-Con, etc., make sure that your cameras are fully charged beforehand (just a bit of advice).

Special Thanks to writer Edwin Nieves for doing the narration.  Mr. Nieves runs Geek/Food, a blog focusing on restaurants and geek culture here in Chicago which, inevitably, gives him a lot of material to work with!

Addovolt Explorations: Cereal Invaders

Because eating "the most important meal of the day" can take a little bit of convincing from a lot of strange voices.  

Why has that been the case for decades?  For some reason, oddness and breakfast go hand-in-hand better than they should.  Cultural Studies 101.

Get a glimpse at the super-weird world of food mascots in the new Addovolt Explorations video, "Cereal Invaders" right HERE on YouTube.

"Cereal Invaders" is one of the Addovolt Explorations quick documentaries which are listed HERE.

Special Thanks to my frequent and longtime collaboration buddy, Mary Beth Brennan, for doing the narration.

Addovolt Explorations "A Murky Path Down Archer Avenue" short documentary

The short documentary, "Murky Path Down Archer Avenue", has been uploaded.  This project--an addition to the Addovolt Explorations short documentary series--is a 13-minute long film exploring the very creepy folklore relating to Chicago's infamously haunted street.

And here is the video on YouTube:

Very Special Thanks to Michael Marius Massett for doing narration and music compositions.  And, also, Very Special Thanks to Andre Almaraz for the pitch-perfect original pipe organ main theme music used in variations throughout the film.  Some old music, some new music, some classical and rock and synthpop…..   Lots of good stuff.  After premiering online February 1st, 2019 through Paranormal Globe, "A Murky Path..." has been featured on  Paranormal Daily News, Creepy Americana, Haunt Jaunts, and Fun Size Horror among other publications.

This was a cold shoot and there was plenty of nature involved (expected and unexpected).  No one got pneumonia so that's always a plus.

More still images are below; all pics are via Addovolt Productions.

different poster image (charming)