Season's Greetings from the Staff of GCTV!

Scott, Philippe, Alicia, & Owen:



(Outtakes from the making of this promo can be found by clicking the link to our youtube channel, found on the right-hand side of this blog!) :)

More Tips & Tricks!

As promised, here is more information on producer's bags (see blog post from October 17th). What is a producer's bag? A producer's bag is a collection of helpful items that you always keep ready to take with you when you go on a shoot. Contents vary based on individual producers' requirements but some good pieces of equipment to have are: extra batteries for your camera and any microphones you use, lens cleaner, a flashlight, canned air, your camera's manual, gaffer's tape, headphones, white paper (for white balancing as well as taking notes), a pen or Sharpie marker, a Leatherman or other multi-tool, zip ties, and a bad weather cover for your camera. It's a lot better to have this stuff and not need it, then need it and not have it. :) Have a great weekend!

A few more words of gratitude.

Thanks to our intern, Philippe Simon, who put this together. Apologies as well because, due to illness & some technical difficulties, we were unable to air this prior to Thanksgiving.

Fun things to do with your in computer camera...

Having trouble coming up with an idea for a show? How about just sitting down in front of your computer and recording the first thing that comes to mind? That's how independent producer Shawn Cromack came up with this comedic short. (Blog editor's note: no producers were harmed in the making of this production)

Another expression of gratitude.

These are great, you guys! Please keep them coming!

David Roulston, host of Franklin County Matters, recorded this today while he was in our office:

New show on GCTV!

Things are definitely hopping around here! Beth Adams has begun taping a new show, in our studio, called "We Are the Ones...". She describes the show as a "program to help increase Earth consciousness and to promote local solutions for helping to co-create a post-carbon, sustainable future for all Earth's children, grandchildren, and succeeding generations." It will be a one hour show, once a month, featuring interviews with state & local environmental activists, naturalists, & conservationists. The first episode of this new series will air on Tuesday, November 24th, at 7PM and features David Tallpine of the Nipmuck tribe.

Beth also recorded her thoughts on gratitude when she was here this morning:

What are you grateful for?

We had a lot of fun at the Rag Shag!

We'll post more pics on Monday, and the parade will be rebroadcast per the schedule below, but in the meantime we want to send a big "THANK YOU!" out to Brent Eaton producer of the show "Silly Wizard". Brent airbrushed the great backdrop that we used for the Rag Shag parade (as seen behind me* in this photo). Doesn't it look awesome? If you'd like to see him painting the backdrop, tune into "Windchanger" at 6:30PM on Monday, November 10th.

Rag Shag Parade rebroadcast shedule:
Monday 11/3 at 9PM
Tuesday 11/4 at 6PM
More times, TBA.

*Yes, I am wearing a costume! :) I call it "Austin Powers Wannabe". ---Alicia

Come have some fun with us!

What do you think of when you think of Halloween? Scary haunted houses? Yummy candy? Great costumes? How about the annual Rag Shag Parade? This year the parade starts at 5:30PM on the common, downtown. We will be broadcasting the parade live and filming some of the additional festivities. This is a great chance to celebrate Halloween and see your favorite GCTV staff people in costume. Oh, and did I mention we'll be handing out treats? Please join us this Friday for all the Halloween fun.

P. S.---If any of you would like to help us with this shoot, please let us know. Thanks!

Tips & Tricks!

Every so often we will attempt to provide you with nifty bits of info. that can improve your productions. Today's tip of the day: always carry a flashlight in your producer's bag. Why? You never know when you may find yourself in the dark on a shoot. They are also handy for seeing dust on the camera lens. Don't know what else a producer's bag should contain? Stay tuned to this blog for more info. Have a great weekend! ---Alicia

Whew, it's been a busy day!

All four of our cameras have been checked out for the long weekend and five of our six computers were in use today. Producers have been in and out of the office all day long working on some interesting programs. Drew Hutchison interviewed Mark Maloni, of Community Action, this morning about Ballot Question #1. That interview will begin airing next week. Don't forget, if you have an idea you want to turn into a program, pick up the phone and call us or come on by. We'll teach you what you need to know to get started.

Help us to make this blog even better!

We hope you like the changes that have been made. Please let us know what you think and if there is anything you'd like added to this blog.

Also, speaking of comments, if you are one of our regular producers please fill out our survey the next time you are in our office. We want to make sure we've been doing well by you for the last 20 years and how we can keep going strong for the next 20.

In other office news, a lot of editing has been going on here this week so you can look forward to more new programming on Channel 15. "Elmer & the Elder Tree", a play for children, premiered today; a new musical comedy special featuring Drew Hutchison & Lenny Zarcone should be completed soon; and a show about district heating in Greenfield is being produced by Wendy Marsden, a volunteer for both Co-op Power and Greening Greenfield, with the kind assistance of Tom Roulston the producer of "Franklin County Matters".

One interesting thing that happened at our office.

On Thursday morning, the crews for "Local Bias" and "Last Stop, Bingville" arrived at our studio for their shoots. They were joined by Robert Tobey, host of "Bread & Roses" on Valley Free Radio down in Northampton. Robert was here to observe part of the shoots and to pick the brain of "Local Bias" host/producer, and WMCB Board member, Drew Hutchison. "Bread & Roses" will, hopefully, soon be televised on both Northampton Community Television (NCTV) & GCTV. Drew, along with our Technical Director---Scott, acted as great sources of advice and encouragement. For those of you unfamiliar with Robert Tobey, he is also a photographer and writer for the Valley Advocate. I caught him snapping some photos of us working and it made me smile. ---Alicia

SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETING CANCELLED

The Greenfield School Committee Meeting scheduled for this Thursday, September 25th, has been CANCELLED.

The next scheduled meeting will take place on Thursday, October 9th at 6PM.

The Greenfield Town Council Meeting will go on as scheduled tonight, September 24th at 7PM.

Change in School Committee Meeting Time

The School Committee Meeting this Thursday, September 25th, will begin at 7:30PM, not 6PM, due to the school open houses taking place that evening. Please join us in our studios for this important meeting.