Taking it to the next level...

In January I attended a gathering of professional wedding filmmakers in Austin, Texas. It was called In[Focus] and I went prepared to do nothing but enjoy the opportunity to connect with other creative types who loved what they do for a living. I got that, but I got so much more, that it has taken me nearly a month to really absorb everything I learned about our industry. First of all, our industry is changing, everything from the equipment we use to the way our product is delivered. Secondly, we can't be anyone but ourselves. We do what we do, and we can improve on our skills and our equipment, but our style is our own. Thirdly, we don't charge enough. However, I've also worked in corporate America enough to understand Fair Market Value, so we're adjusting accordingly.

After In[Focus] Rob and I created a plan. Thanks to Ron Dawson we've finally accepted that we really need to separate our corporate and bridal businesses. Diva MultiMedia will be launched later this year as the portal for our corporate clients. Diva Productions will be looking at it's third redesign in three years, and will continue to serve our bridal clients.

Thanks to Bill Gaff we realized we need to put more emphasis on selling our documentary wedding films. Sometimes I forget, because I get bogged down in the business side of running Diva, but with my journalism background, interviewing and storytelling through the interviews we conduct is one of our strongest skills. And I love it. Loyd Calomay's energy and enthusiasm for what he produces, really reminded me we need to do what we love to be fulfilled. When you're fulfilled your able to contribute, and David Perry reinforced how important corporate philanthropy is and I really respected the focus of his presentation. It made me think of the Winston Churchill quote "We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give." Words to live by.

Nearly everyone who presented referenced some piece of equipment that went onto what I'm calling our "In[Focus] Wish List." Slowly over last month, we've been reworking the Diva finances so that we can afford most of the equipment on our list. The wish list has two colums - "Nice to Have" and "Need to Have." Some of the things in the "Need to Have" column like the Glidecam 2000 and the Canon 7D have already been bought. Other things like the Tiffen filter suite will have to come later.

It's funny, even though I worked on my first wedding video in 1992, in some ways I almost feel like I'm just starting out. In[Focus] gave me the chance to fall in love with our industry again. It reaffirmed what we are doing right, and helped steer us in a better direction for the future. I'm so excited and so grateful for all the talented, supportive filmmakers who make up our little community that I get teary eyed just thinking about them and the few days I spent in Austin. Those three short days have had an impact on our entire year, and the direction of our little production company.