Behind-the-Scenes Saturdays: A Beach Break

Sometimes, you just need to take a break from it all and stare at the sunset (it doesn't hurt to be a 5 minute drive from the beach either). Aaahhhh. Breathe.

MDF Mascot: What a Romeo!

Doesn't every film company need a mascot? Our thoughts exactly! Well, here's ours. And yes, his name is 'Romeo' as hinted in the post heading. He goes most everywhere with us. And this particular weekend was no different when MDF did a submission piece for The Travel Channel on Dog Friendly Carmel. In fact, our little Romeo was such a hit at this shoot that he scored a dog-friendly cottage for some of the crew! (Doesn't he look proud in front of the 'Ocean Avenue Room?'). Note to self - must take the dog on all future travel shoots!

MDF Crew Hits the Hollywood Bowl Sing-a-Long

When the going gets tough, the tough head to a Sound of Music Sing-a-Long! And when the boss is a major fan of the movie, you go too (with champagne in hand of course) and put on a happy face. So, suffice it to say, that not all of the MDF crew was on board for this team-building outing for this Hollywood tradition.  But, with friends and a neighbor in tow, it turned out to be a pretty good night! (Next year, we are so dressing up so that some 4 year old dressed as a 'drop of golden sun' doesn't win a week's cruise!).

MDF Heads to Sweden

On her second trip to Sweden, MDF's fearless leader headed to this beautiful Scandinavian country to see an ailing family member. And although it was a very personal trip, the time here in the Land of the Midnight Sun was again, one to remember. With food of course always at the top of the list, the cousins came through once again in the culinary department. Picking wild chanterelle mushrooms in the forest, joining in on the summer Nordic crayfish celebration and eating the scrumptious dishes from the cousins made this trip both special and one to remember. Sure beats the last visit when a big moose leaped on the car and a taxi had to be hailed from Norway to Sweden!

MDF + Up With People = Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy

OK, so this 3 day event UP WITH PEOPLE, will forever go down in MDF history as the happiest one we've ever attended! To say that this was a fun-filled and delightful weekend full of happiness and joy is a complete understatement. These people hold up to their happy little reputation as Sue Sylvester so pointedly said on a Season 1 GLEE episode. So, let us help paint a visual for you  - 3 days..... 1,000 smiling people from all over the world.... alumni from the 60's - 2005.... current casts performances.... alumni cast performances.... and of course.... several suite and ballroom soirees. In all, a swell-of-a-good-time filming for a Cast from 1980. "What a great organization" (says one of the crew members who just happens to be an alumni herself!)

Behind-the-Scenes Saturdays: Sawdust Art Festival!

This shoot at the Sawdust Art Festival in Laguna Beach, California felt less like a job and more like a really fun jaunt.  Arriving at our usual early morning hour with gear in hand, we quickly re-scouted the area before heading to our first shoot of the day with glass artist, Marcus Thesing. Making our way towards the  'Artist's cage' in this gazillion-degree's space, only our fearless leader could fit in there to film while Marcus demonstrated and created this impressive display piece.  After sweating it out for an hour we made our way onward to more than a hundred booths to capture the fine art that comes out of this local-only, art festival. Eventually, we found our way to the toe ring booth and you guessed it, scored some toe-bling (which we are still sporting today!). So, check out the final video (3rd one down on our 'media projects' page) for a small sample of this annual summer must-do!

Dog-Friendly Carmel

This submission piece for The Travel Channel just goes to prove that what you THINK you have in mind doesn't always end up being the final product. And this little lesson in flexibility took the MDF crew all of 10 minutes walking the streets of quaint and beautiful Carmel, California to figure that one out. With gear in hand heading to our first location for this 'Quaint Weekend Getaway' we quickly ditched that notion after dodging several dogs and storefront doggy bowls. Stopping in our tracks, looking at all the dogs and each other, we just started laughing and said our favorite meeting shout-out - "Time to re-group!" And 10 hours later, we hit the canine jackpot after filming a doggy spa, two dog-friendly hotels, interviewed several doggy owners, dined with our own MDF mascot Romeo and attended a doggy-happy-hour with several other pooches in tow. Pant, Pant, Woof, Woof! (Check out the final travel short on our MDF Media Projects page).

What's that Smell at The Huntington Gardens?

Reflecting back to last year at this time brings us all at MDF to our 'happy place.'  After unexpectedly receiving a call from a friend atThe Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens in early June of 2009, we hopped into the van and headed down to the Pasadena area to see what all of the fuss was about. When we arrived, there was a definite buzz in the air  at 'The H' about a rare and huge plant that most couldn't pronounce, the Amorphophallus Titanum, which we later learned, was aptly named 'Stinky.'  After a couple of weeks of hitting the highway, late nights and way-too-early-mornings, we were hooked! Checking the chart, anticipating the brief, two-day bloom we all kept our phones nearby when we finally received the call - "It's blooming tommorow!" Up at 4:00am alongside several networks, we were ready for the stench. Walking up to the Conservatory, we were already getting a whiff of what smelled like 2-day-boiled cauliflower, and then it hit us as we entered the second level. Whoa! With thousands of people already waiting in line, we filmed a piece on that stinky but beautiful, 7-foot tall rare Indonesian flower for which The Travel Channel was delighted. And after nearly 22,000 hits on our YouTube interview piece with the head Botanist, we too jumped onto the Corpse Flower train!

WELCOME to MDF!

Simply said, WELCOME! We hope you'll visit us here behind-the-scenes at Modern Day Films often. A production company that aims to both inspire and be inspired and a crew that seeks to educate and be educated. Each project is carefully selected and is done so with a deliberate decision for a high quality end product. But, the most fun in the process and this business is what happens behind-the-scenes. There's always a story, morsels of delight, a dog in a tutu and the often hilarious happenings that never make it on film. So, this blog aspires to open our doors and share our digital adventures from behind the camera and this is your formal invitation to come along, sit back and enjoy the journey with us.