October, 2009

Halloween Haunts

Thursday, October 1st, 2009

michellegabrieleharrellBy Joseph J. O’Donnell
Photos by Daniel C. Harrell

ED- We are interviewing Michelle Gabriele -Harrell, Producer for both Radio and Television in Norfolk, Virginia.

ED- Michelle, Tell us something about yourself, your career, and the people that you work with.

MGH- My father worked over 40 years in the radio broadcasting industry. I went in the opposite direction and decided I liked the TV aspect of the broadcast world. Later, I ended up with the Best of both worlds. Fresh out of college after majoring in television and journalism, I landed my first job at one of the Greatest stations, the local PBS affiliate here in Norfolk, WHRO TV 15. I started out in Master Control, what I like to call the heartbeat of the station. Then I moved on to production and learned every aspect I could. I found the technical side fascinating, and challenging. I couldn’t get enough and the passion to create took over. I had the strong desire to take the visions that were in my mind and capture them through the lens of a camera or straight into a microphone in a recording studio. There are no words to describe when you put something together and see or hear it for the first time. The idea you once envisioned then becomes a full-blown reality. For me the “motivation” is when someone comes up to me and says that they were touched by my work, moved by it, or even spooked by it, then I receive the most gracious reward.

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Follow-Up to September’s Ghost Writer Interview with Heather Hale

Thursday, October 1st, 2009

Producer

Producer

By Joseph J. O’Donnell

ED: Last month’s issue of Eerie Digest featured Heather Hale Director/Writer/Producer of Ghost Writer. Heather tell us more about yourself and your career.

HH: I wear a lot of hats in the industry (you have to in order to survive).  Of course, my bread and butter has always been writing. Writing screenplays on assignment, ghost writing (ironically) manuscripts and helping private clients articulate their family’s true life stories on the page – then bringing those stories to life on the big or little screen is a huge part of my work. I’m now taking my career to the next level by expanding into directing, with Ghost Writer as the critical vehicle in that launch sequence marathon! You really have to balance your creative right brain (“show”) with your logical left brain (“biz”), so I also write independent film business plans, break down shoot schedules and production budgets and I do A TON of producing. I get hired out to produce everything from films and TV to infomercials, industrials, educational DVDs, streaming media web-based campaigns, in-flight programming to events. To make ends meet in this fluctuating business, I also do a lot of script consulting, project analysis and entertainment industry career consulting – it’s all overlapping and keeps my finger on the pulse of what’s going on in all the different arenas. Perhaps most fun, I  am brought to venues all around the globe to lecture at film festivals, writers workshops, college campuses. Thus, the travel bug pilot! I even parlay the glamour and glitz – and humor of – Hollywood, Wall Street and Madison Avenue to inspire non-profit and corporate retreats! Whatever keeps the lights on, you know!

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Interview with Jon F. Merz for ‘The Fixer TV Series’

Thursday, October 1st, 2009

“The Fixer TV Series”By Joseph J. O’Donnell

ED – We are talking with Jon F. Merz about his new venture “The Fixer TV Series”

ED: Jon, congratulations on this new venture. I understand that the show will be based on the Lawson Vampire Series. Can you tell us something about it?

JFM: THE FIXER tells the story of Lawson, a jaded and cynical member of a race of living vampires.  Destined from birth to be part of an elite cadre known as Fixer, Lawson must protect the secret existence of vampires, track down criminals, unravel conspiracies, and hunt a motley assortment of rogues.  Part spy, part commando, Lawson does his work dispensing sarcastic comments and lots of bullets.

ED: Tell us something about the characters, the setting, and how you created the theme.

JFM: When I determined that I wanted to write a vampire novel, I knew I had to do something different than what everyone else was doing.  So the vampires in my universe aren’t undead, but a separately evolving race that has coexisted in secret alongside humanity for tens of thousands of years.  They live and breathe and eat garlic and are fairly indistinguishable from humans.  As a result of the ingestion of the life force energy (what Asian cultures would call Ki or Chi) from those they borrow from, vampires have elongated life spans and better-than-average strength, eyesight, and reflexes. (more…)