CNN iReport teams up with iReporters and Vimeo filmmakers at South by Southwest

Here's the CNN press release for the collaborative video project I worked with them on at SXSW:

CNN iReport teams up with Vimeo at South by Southwest

CNN iReport, CNN’s participatory news community, and online video sharing site Vimeo®, an operating business of IAC [NASDAQ: IACI], have tapped into their extensive online communities to produce creative, personalized reporting of the 2011 South by Southwest (SXSW) Conferences and Festivals.

During the first four days of SXSW, March 11th – 14th, 2011, hand-selected iReporters and Vimeo filmmakers, and CNN and Vimeo staff covered the SXSW Conferences and Festivals from their own unique perspectives, and shared their daily video footage with the iReport editorial team. CNN condensed the collective footage into a compelling visual diary of SXSW to share with global audiences.

“This project demonstrates what news can look like when it is opened up to communities that include some of the most creative, visionary filmmakers in the world, all collaborating to cover an event that is known globally for celebrating tomorrow’s ideas,” said Lila King, participation director for CNN.com.

The collaborative visual diary, available at http://on.cnn.com/gEOkSR, was revealed for the first time at a press event held at the CNN Grill on Monday, March 14, at SXSW. The diary also will air on CNN International during iReport for CNN on Thursday, March 17, at 11:30 p.m. ET, and during the show’s replays this weekend.

Vimeo will also present the filmmakers’ unique visions of SXSW through their own self-produced work on Vimeo.com and Vimeo’s official SXSW Groups Page (www.vimeo.com/sxsw).

“Vimeo is so excited to partner with world news leader CNN on this new initiative designed to present news seen through a wide variety of creative lenses and individual points of view,” said Blake Whitman, Vice President of Creative Development at Vimeo.

I am so excited to have been part of this project with CNN. For such a long time I've been trying to get news organizations to see the value in working with, as Jay Rosen says, "The people formerly known as the audience."

Here's the video:



My shots:


This shot features Thomas Edwards @URWingman. I placed my camera on the ping pong table, knowing that this would be a good shot and Thomas' partner wanted to make sure that I would be ok if my camera got destroyed while they were playing. IN fact he said to me, "you can't put that camera on the table." Well, I was already recording and just wanted one shot of the ball going over the net, so I grabbed the ball and tossed it over. Got the shot. ;-)


For this show I was farther away from the window than the shot shows, but zoomed in to get the close shot inside the food truck window. I held the shot until the transaction was completed.


One of the themes of the video was food trucks, When I saw this little girl on the swing in front of the food truck, I knew I wanted to frame the shot with her in it. So I squared off the truck in the background, and then squared off the girl swinging in the foreground, and held the camera steady and let the people walk into the line. Love this shot.


It's so col that all the shooters are credited by NAME in the video, rather than the regular TV way of crediting things, "From YouTube," "From Vimeo," or "Viewer Video."

Thanks CNN.

I'm looking forward to working with you again in the future.

Here's my iReport with containing the Food Truck shots:


For readers of this blog, head over to CNN iReport and share a story.

Learn how to put video on line. Read my book, Get Seen: