SOCIETY of CANADIAN CINE AMATEURS
for Amateur, Student, and Professional Film and Video Makers
SCCA 2003 AGM CONVENTION
BRANTFORD,
ONTARIO
July 25th, 26th, and 27th, 2003
The 2003 Convention of the Society of Canadian
Cine Amateurs will be held July 25th, 26th, and 27th, 2003, at Brantford, Ontario, and you’ll want
to be there if you possibly can! This convention promises something
for everybody, with a good mix of fun, entertainment, and advancement
of the hobby of film and video making.
There will be tours on Friday afternoon and Sunday
afternoon, with indoor lectures, demonstrations, and speakers, as
well as the screening of films and videos, and our Annual General Meeting,
taking place from Friday evening to Sunday at noon. The SCCA and the
Brant Video Makers, under the direction of Convention Chairman Keith
Gloster, have made every effort to provide a first class program at bargain
rates, with a great deal of flexibility built in so that you can decide
which tours interest you, and how much you will spend for food and lodgings.
And this time we have provided that freedom of choice while also greatly
simplifying the Advance Registration.
This convention won’t be held at a hotel,
and you can make your own arrangement to stay wherever you wish.
Our meetings will be held in the beautiful and historic Sanderson Centre
for the Performing Arts, (at 88 Dalhousie Street, right downtown,
just a few short blocks from the Brantford Charity Casino), where Michael
Grit, the General Manager, will personally take us on a tour of this
historic old building. Originally built in 1919 as a vaudeville house,
the Temple Theatre was renamed the Capitol Theatre in 1930 and entertained
movie-goers for the next six decades before being purchased in 1985
by the City of Brantford. It was extensively restored to its original
splendour in 1990. The Sanderson Centre is home to the Brantford Symphony
Orchestra, the Telephone City Musical Society, Brantford Music Club, Brantford
School of Instrumental Music, the Grand River Chorus, and Downtown Jazz,
among others, and hosts a variety of other events. On the evening of
July 25th, Robert Klein will open the Fourth Annual Comedy Festival in
the Main Hall, and the Phil Hartman Comedy Gala will continue on the Saturday
evening.
Meanwhile, we will enjoy our own program in
the smaller, but still spacious and ornate, Lower Lobby.
Those of us who will be taking the Friday afternoon tour
will meet outside the Sanderson Centre at one o’clock. We may car pool,
or we may have to make some other arrangements, depending
on the number indicating their intention to attend.
Our first stop will be the Bell Homestead, where Alexander
Graham Bell invented the telephone on July 26th, 1874. Built in 1858,
this handsome mid-Victorian home served as the first North American
residence of the Bell family from 1870 – 1881. The site also includes
Henderson Home, built in 1845, which served as Canada's first telephone
business office from 1877 - 1880. We will take a guided tour of the houses.
Our second stop will be the Woodland Cultural Centre’s
Museum. This modern museum displays the history of the First Nation
Peoples. While located in the heart of the former Six Nations Grand
River Land Grant, near the place where Mohawk Chief Joseph Brant established
a village where he forded the river, this is not purely a Six Nation
undertaking. It is supported by the Mississaugas of the New Credit First
Nation, the Wahtah Mohawks of Kanesatake and later the Bala area, and
the Tyendinaga Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte, as well as the Six Nations
Council of the Grand River, consisting of the Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida,
Onondaga, Seneca and Tuscarora Nations. The museum takes you on a journey
through time, beginning with an exploration of the Iroquoian and Algonkian
prehistoric past, from early Neutral-Iroquoian origins through the first
contact with European nations and up to the present, showing the events
and people which have impacted the First nations of the Eastern Woodlands.
The museum has collected, since 1972, 25,000 artifacts, include archaeological
specimens, historical material culture, documents, furniture, clothing,
traditional and contemporary art in all media, prints, graphics, sculptures,
photographs, and multimedia installations, as well as an extensive photograph
and slide collection. While not everything is on display, of course, you
will see the collection of Neutral Iroquoian pipes, the 19th century Cree
and Ojibway bandolier bags, and ceramic discoveries from across Southern
Ontario, as well as many powerful paintings and photographs. This is an absolutely
stunning display and not to be missed!
There will be admittance charges for the Woodland
Cultural Centre Museum ($5.00 for Adults, $4.00 for Seniors over 65) and
the Bell Homestead Tour ($3.50 and $3.25 for Seniors). In the effort to
keep the Registration Form simple, and not have to collect your money weeks
in advance, we have arranged no Group Tours or Group Rates. Please pay
at the door at both locations.
We will have you back in downtown Brantford in time
to get some supper and return to the Sanderson by 7:00 PM. Our program
on Friday evening will include a Welcome to Brantford mixer,
speakers, demonstrations, and films.
The Saturday morning program will include the tour
of the Sanderson Centre, and our Annual General Meeting. For lunch,
we will be walking a short distance to Purdy’s,
Brantford’s Finest Irish Pub, at 89 Colborne Street, where you can order
from the menu and have some control over the cost of your meal. The afternoon
program will feature demonstrations and speakers. And how does Paris for
Supper sound? That’s Paris, Ontario,
or course, just a few miles up the Grand River. But we will be car pooling
the short distance to a collection of three restaurants very near to each
other: The Trading Post, a typical small Chinese Restaurant, The White
Horse, a Buffet Restaurant, with Seafood added Saturday night, and Camp 31,
with Alabama’s Finest Real Barbeque. Menus from the three restaurants
will be available throughout the day so you can decide in advance where
you would prefer to dine, or chow down, whichever fits! Again, it’s your
choice. Power to the People!
The evening program will include the Presentation
of Awards and the screening of the winning SCCA Annual Competition videos.
The Sunday morning program will feature more speakers,
with their videos, and the program will close by noon, for those with
a long trip home. Those who wish to continue with the Sunday afternoon
tour will start with a stop at the Sherwood
Restaurant at 799 Colborne Street East. Those who prefer a light
lunch can order from the regular restaurant menu, but the hungry among
us may enter the large Buffet Room for the Brunch. In fact, even those
not joining us on the afternoon tour might like to join us for Brunch on
their way home!
We will then proceed to St. Paul’s Anglican
Church, better known as Her Majesty’s Chapel of
the Mohawks. This church is the oldest Protestant Church in Ontario,
and the only Royal Chapel outside of the United Kingdom. It was built
in 1785 in the reign of George III, but the bible and Communion Silver
dates back to a gift from Queen Anne for the first Chapel of the Mohawks,
built in the Mohawk Valley in 1712. This chapel was burned after the American
Revolution, and the Bible and Silver were buried for safe-keeping, and
recovered and returned to the Mohawk Chapel on its completion in 1785.
At that time the silver was divided between the Grand River Mohawks
and the Bay of Quinte Mohawks, and the Communion Silver was used for
regular Communion Services. Rather than continue with a poor retelling
of the history, we will let the Chaplain tell it. This is not a museum,
but an active Church and an important part of the lives of the Grand
River Mohawks, and usually entry is restricted. We have made special arrangements
for a tour, but please don’t bring your camcorders into the Chapel, as
photography is forbidden inside. You may use your camcorders freely outside,
however, and there is much of interest there. In 1850 the remains of Captain
Joseph Brant were moved from the original burial site in Burlington to
a tomb at the Mohawk Chapel, and the remains of his son, John Brant, also
rest in the tomb. Next to Brant’s tomb there is a boulder bearing a memorial
to the Indian poetess, E. Pauline Johnson, who was born at Chiefswood on
the Six Nations Reserve, and who attended services in the Chapel. At the
rear of the Chapel there is an observation deck that allows a view of the
ox-bow in the Grand River, where the native people disembarked from their
canoes when they came to the Chapel Services. While there is no admittance
charge at the Chapel, donations are expected.
From the chapel we will go on to the Grand
River “Champion of Champions” Powwow at Chiefswood
Park, where there will be a charge of $10 per Adult, or $8 for Seniors
65 and over. Please pay on entering. Here’s where you will really get
a chance to shoot some colourful and dynamic footage! Over 400 First
Nation and Native American dancers from all over North America will be
competing for honours! But please remember, they are here to practice
their cultural pursuits for their own reasons. They are not here for
your entertainment, or to put on a show for you. This isn’t the Kodak
Hula Show at Waikiki Beach or the Ballet Folklórico in Mexico
City. While they charge admittance, you will be just tolerated, as long
as you behave yourself. You won’t have the freedom to move around for
a better shot as you might like, and when the announcer asks you not to
shoot something of a religious nature, please heed their wishes!
We know that some will happily shot until dark, while
others will have seen and heard enough in an hour. That’s why we haven’t
provided a bus or car pool. Since this is the last point on the tour,
and the end of our convention, you’re free to head on home when it
suits you. There won’t be any need to return to Brantford to pick up
your car, and this could be especially important if you’re currently
closer to home than you would be if you first returned to Brantford.
And since it’s not Waikiki or Mexico City, but the middle of summer in
southern Ontario, we have absolutely no control over the weather. It
could be pouring rain or blazing hot. Either way, your car is right there
in the parking lot. Flexibility and freedom!
We’ve outlined the weekend and covered the tours.
Now we turn our attention to the convention Speakers and Program. We have
arranged for three people with broad experience to pass on advice on “shooting
the competition or other event that you can’t control”.
Jon Soyka is a veteran videographer with experience
in shooting parades, golf tournaments, bicycle races, seminars, dance,
theatre, etc., to name just a few, and with a great deal of practice
shooting ice boating!
Harold Cosgrove, who
formerly competed in motorcycle races on the Isle of Man, now just
shoots them. “Just” indicates that he no longer races personally, but
it doesn’t mean that there is a limit to his experience! He has also
shots mountain bike trials, dirt bike races, and even skate board competitions,
not to mention hot air balloon meets and kite flying competitions.
Paul Nopper
is much newer to video making, but he is an experienced pilot who has
recently made some beautiful video while flying over such varied places
as Toronto and Montreal and Baffin Island and Labrador. As this is written
he is preparing for an 8,600 km trans-Canada flight to trace the route
of explorer Alexander McKenzie from Quebec City to Bella Coola, and will
probably be freezing en route with his door off as you are reading this,
ensconced in the lap of luxury.
While we can expect all three of these Speakers to
impart good advice and inside tips about how to get better shots and
make a better video, most will probably relate specifically to one
or more of their successes, and it will be up to you to generalize from
the specific, and then make the leap from the general to your own specific
requirements or situation. And your first opportunity to internalize
and apply their advice will be at the Pow-Wow!
Part Two of “The Quest For The Perfect Film to Video
Transfer” (Part One was in Kinmount in 2001. Please see the article
on Page 15 in the Spring 2002 Issue of PANORAMA)
will be presented by George Gerula, who has approached the problem from
a completely different direction. George has been working long and hard
on a series of experiments getting the bugs out, one by one, and will
explain the theory and the software, and demonstrate the innovative equipment
he has built. George has been concentrating on Super8 Sound film, and
hopes to be ready to show off the perfect transfer. And if it works, there’s
no reason why the principle shouldn’t work for 8 mm., Super8, or 16 mm.,
shot at any speed!
Don “Tinker” Svob will be back!
Don has been doing so much
with so little for so long
that he is now perfectly qualified
to do anything, with nothing, immediately!
We’re all anxiously waiting to see
what Don can come up with next!
Gregory Lowes of Virtual Training Company Canada
will be coming from Toronto to demonstrate a few of their training courses.
Please see the review on this company's products on Page 14 in the Spring
2003 Issue of PANORAMA.
And finally, everybody is waiting impatiently
for more information on HDTV. When will it be available in Canada,
and when do we have to throw away our present equipment? Ron Graff,
Sales and Marketing Manager of the Professional Division of JVC Canada
will be demonstrating JVC’s new HDTV consumer camcorder, and the even
newer professional model.
The GR-HD1 can record in three video formats: 720 horizontal
line resolution at 30 frames progressive, 480 horizontal line resolution
at 60 fields progressive or 480 horizontal line resolution at 60 fields
interlaced. The video is recorded to MiniDV tape via MPEG2 compression.
The large, 1/3 in. 1.18 million pixel CCD is not the normal 4:3 aspect
ratio, but the widescreen 16:9 ration. This allows the camcorder to record
true 16:9 video, instead of stretching or letterboxing as other camcorders
have in the past.
These camcorders are compatible with a new JVC Standard called
D-Theatre (a system for the release of HDTV compatible movies) which
includes the HM-DH30000U digital VHS (D-VHS) recorder which will record
HDTV from the television (please see page 10 in the Summer 2002 PANORAMA).
This system records in MPEG2 (like DVD’s) and JVC will bundle it with
third-party editing software. Ron will be bringing HDTV projection equipment
to show off the above components, so this is your chance to be among
the first in your club to see and evaluate the future of our hobby.
For the past two years we have screened some of the
past winners in the CIAFF, and these films
were greatly appreciated by those who attended. This year we will be
able to screen some of the winning 16 mm. films made by amateurs, and
particularly by amateur clubs, thanks to Vic Adams’ generous donation
to the SCCA of a Bolex 421 16 mm. magnetic sound projector.
Also on the program, as time allows, will be a short
presentation on Band-in-a-Box (please see the
review on this product on Page 20 in the Spring 2003 Issue of PANORAMA) and a chance to hear some samples of
the music in the SCCA Music Library.
By now I hope you are thinking “I’ve got to get there!”
and expect you’re also wondering “How much will all this cost?” More
GOOD NEWS! The Registration for the 2003 SCCA Convention in whole of
for any part, will only be $20. That is to defray the cost of the Room
Rentals, Equipment Rentals, and the many incidental expenses associated
with holding a Convention. Attendance on the Friday afternoon tour will
cost you $8.50 ($7.25 for Seniors) at the entrances to the Bell Homestead
and the Woodlands Cultural Centre Museum. Attendance at the Sunday afternoon
tour will cost you $10 ($8 for Seniors) plus parking charges at Chiefwood
Park, and a donation at Her Majesty’s Chapel of the Mohawks. The cost of
food is up to you, and depends on when you arrive and leave, how far you
have to travel, and how much you choose to spend. We have built in no banquets,
breakfast, etc., and while we have chosen where we will all eat two meals
Saturday, and perhaps one on Sunday, all allow you discretion as to how
much you spend.
You also have control of the cost of lodgings. We
hope everyone can attend all three days, for some that will mean lodgings
for two night’s (or more). You can find information about the many establishments
available (hotels, motels, bed and breakfast, and campgrounds) at
http://city.brantford.on.ca/tourism,
as well as a clear map showing how to reach Brantford from London,
Toronto, and Niagara Falls. (Click on “Maps” for great maps of the
city. E4 is the downtown area where you will find the Sanderson Centre,
and the landmark Casino). Those who are able to commute will put their
money into the gas tank.
We make no recommendations about where you stay. However,
the Holiday Inn - Brantford,
664 Colborne St., has offered us a Corporate Discount for a Rate of
$89 per night, plus taxes, and there is no requirement that we book any
number of rooms. To receive this rate, please book ahead (519-758-9999)
and tell them that you are attending the SCCA Convention. They are holding a block of 10 rooms for us until June
25th. After that you may find no room at the Inn, or anywhere else, with
the Pow-Wow and the Phil Hartman Comedy Festival that weekend. The Holiday
Inn is already (May 9th) completely booked for that weekend, except for
our small block!
More discounts may be negotiated with other Brantford
hotels. Before making your reservations you might want to check with
Keith Gloster by email (keithgloster1@rogers.com)
We will post more information, links, etc., as it becomes available.
Meanwhile, how about sending in that Registration now, before you forget!