Christmas Is The Time To Say I Love You

This is the music video I directed/edited for the featured single on ‘A Holiday Benefit Vol. 3.’

Behind The Video
My former boss at MTV News (he’s also a musician and inspiring multitasker) Benjamin Wagner contacted me in early November, asking if I would donate my time to direct and edit the music video for ‘A Holiday Benefit Vol. 3.’

I wanted to help but I didn’t have time to shoot anything for free or come up with a concept that he could get someone else to do. We worked out a compromise — the singers would shoot flipcam footage at the studio of THEMSELVES and somehow I would make it look like a music video.

A few weeks later, I received a hard drive in the mail with a lot of unlabeled clips. I faced the fun/stressful challenge of creating something entertaining that made sense. Unfortunately, most of the footage was unusable. I didn’t want to make another video that looked like its predecessor. After some brainstorming, I came up with the idea for a music video that looks like a holiday home movie.

I found a lot of cleared home movie and vintage clips online and interwove that with the flipcam footage from the studio. Thankfully, they had enough shots of the artists singing the lyrics that it worked out.

I think that this video is a cool example of what can be done with zero budget, little time and a collaborative effort to create something that supports a great cause.

All album proceeds benefit 826NYC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6-18 with their creative and expository writing skills.

You can purchase the album and find out more information about the organization at aholidaybenefit.org.

Artists: Bess Rogers, Casey Shea, Paula Valstein, Chris Cubeta, Emily Easterly, Andy Mac, Martin Rivas, Ruby Rivers, Amber Rubarth, Chris Abad, Bryan Dunn, Benjamin Wagner and Emily Zuzik, plus album art by Emily Raw

Goodbye (but not forever) to MTV News Lady Megan Warner

I am going to miss a lot of people who were forced to leave MTV, especially my pal Megan.

Aside from being a kick ass digital producer, she was (still is) a friend who always had my back. She is intelligent, reliable, dedicated and a creative person who brought a lot of positive energy to each work day. She’s also a great writer and would be fantastic for any on air or online correspondent position.

But enough trying to sell my friend (although seriously, you’re lucky if you get her), here are some photo memories…

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On My Radar: Jonathan Ames & “Bored to Death”

I recently spoke (through the interwebs) with Brooklyn writer Jonathan Ames about his debut graphic novel, “The Alcoholic”.

You can read the full interview and check out a six-page preview of the comic on the Splash Page blog.

Jonathan Ames is an interesting author to me because he writes about topics like love, addiction, identity and sexuality in a way I have never experienced before. All of that is reflected in his debut graphic novel “The Alcoholic”, which was a collaboration with his friend and comic artist vet Dean Haspiel.

Ames is also the exec producer and writer for his HBO pilot “Bored to Death” (which will star Jason Schwartzman). His website is filled with funny content and you can tell he’s the kind of guy who isn’t afraid to try new things.

“The Alcoholic” hits stores on Sept. 24 and I highly recommend you check it out. If you want to preview it in advance, visit the link I mentioned above or you could just come hang out with me in Brooklyn and flip through my copy.

🙂