A Year in Review

So much has happened this past year it's hard to believe we're only a few weeks away from 2012. The sheer amount of work I've put in as an artist and filmmaker is mind-blowing when I think about the strides I've made.

I've done a lot and I'd like to share it with you.

My newest DP Reel does not include Alpha Kappa Alpha Probate which I believe will be one of the strongest non-narrative pieces I've put together. 

Still, let me take you back in time and give you a review of everything that has led to this point. Last semester I won Best Drama at The University of Alabama's Campusmoviefest with my film Bottom of a Glass. 

This led to me being invited out to California to participate in the International Grand Finale for Campus Moviefest. Also, I was asked if I would like to make a 3D film the International 3D Society Competition being held through CMF. It would be the first ever student 3D film competition. 

I said yes immediately. As I worked on putting together my 3D piece April 27th tornado hit Tuscaloosa devastating it's population. 

This completely destroyed finishing all of the projects I was working on at the moment, but I was given another opportunity. CMF allowed me to use the 3D gear to shoot a documentary highlighting the storm that hit my town. The film, Portrait of the Storm: Tuscaloosa, AL, would go on to win at The International 3D Society Competition and I earned a $5,000 cash grant for my efforts. 

When I was out in California I met a plethora of other students doing amazing work.  Sparks and Tick Tock were two in particular that stood out. They would both go on to win top prize alongside Portrait of the Storm. 

While I was in California I visited some of the schools I was interested in attending for graduate school again. After review my list expanded to five schools: AFI, USC, UCLA, Columbia, and NYU. 

When I came back to Alabama I was overwhelmed with the amount of work I was asked to do, but I stepped up to the challenge. These are a few samples of the finished products. 

This does not even include the amount of work I did for The College of Arts and Sciences at Alabama.

Beyond all of this my biggest worry for the semester was the dilemma I had been tackling since I began this blog. It was time to start applying for graduate schools. I needed to pull all of my work together while shooting new pieces for my classes. I shot this piece, The 15th Lake, with a Sony HDV. I've always been a DSLR snob, but this made me realize the potential of alternative cameras. 

I sat down with Dr. Raimist, a teacher I have mentioned on numerous occasions, to go over my work as a filmmaker. She let me know, that with as much I have done, I still needed to do more. So I began planning to shoot my next short film which would exemplify everything I have learned so far. The product ended up being my latest work, And Goodbye.

You can also read my Personal Narrative as a filmmaker and my Mission Statement, two pieces I wrote to convey who I am as an artist, as well as inform the individuals who will be critiquing my work for admissions into graduate school.

This does not include the amount of photography work I've done over the past year (the biggest being my work for The New York Times), but you can find it in the archives of my blog as well as checking my Flickr. The path I've chosen has yielded some amazing results but I am nowhere near the level of competency I wish for myself. I'm still hungry to do better.

I'm looking to make this last semester at The University of Alabama amazing.

Campus Moviefest: International Grand Finale

It's an interesting phenomena when you find yourself in a situation which embodies itself as the culmination of an entire year's worth of work. It feels as if I've been gradually building up to the moment I made it back to California..

June 17 passed a few days ago. This marked the one year anniversary of Que The Lights. From the beginning I set a simple, yet honest goal, establish myself as a legitimate filmmaker. What do I mean by legitimate?

Honestly striving to create a powerful body of work uniquely my own. I wanted to produce my own web of artistic design which displays a quality of work capable of standing on its own.

I believe I've done this to a degree. I still have a bevvy of work left to finish, start, and create, but this year has been a significant kick-start. Where I am gives validation to the words I set forth over a year ago.

Two of my films are in competition at CMF's International Grand Finale. The first is "Bottom of a Glass" and the second is "Portrait of the Storm: Tuscaloosa, AL."

"Bottom of a Glass" will be competing in the Best Drama section while "Portrait of the Storm" will be competing in the 3D competition.

Along with my own, others films from Alabama such as "Sugarbaby", "Blue Barry", and "A Certain Woman" will be in competition and screened. You can find more info here.

CMF is also providing student's with another great opportunity, the ability to meet with Hollywood executives, agents, and directors. This does not guarantee any individual a ticket into the inner-workings of the industry, but it does carry the potential of garnering valuable experience when we're thrown into the real world.

This is why they asked us to not only bring our resumes, but be ready to show our demo reel if asked. A demo reel is essentially a compilation of your best work edited into a single piece. It's your calling card to the industry and signifies the strength of your work as a filmmaker.

Check out mine and let me know what you think,


Director/DP Reel 2011 from Xavier Burgin on Vimeo.

This is why this moment truly signifies a round-up of this year. All of my best work tightly wrapped in about two minutes. It seems so small, yet every drop of sweat, long night story-boarding, headache induced irritation via shot listing, and carpal tunnel-esque bout while revising a script is somewhere simmering within this reel forming my hopes for a successful future.

Wish me luck this weekend. Hopefully my work won't need it.