My Video Rental Store Documentary (Full)
 

At the recommendation of The Phantom Stranger:


So, after months of working, editing, shaping, and getting the bugs worked out, here's my documentary on the 3 independent video rental stores where I live:

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/IF8mRefOejU?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>


It's 13.5 minutes long. Please let me know what you think!

Re: My Video Rental Store Documentary (Full)
 

I thought it was great. Well-made and an interesting subject matter. Everyone I have talked to (old timers over 35 like myself) says they miss browsing the video store. Blockbuster & Hollywood drove most of the indies out of business, then shut down. I wondered if an independent store could make a go of it in this day and age now that the behemoths are gone.

Good job!

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Terrific job, you put everything together in a very professional manner.

I loved seeing the footage of the 80's era store. I love seeing the old shelves and posters, I wish more footage of this kind of stuff was out there.

The last video store guy is right on the money when he points out our embrace of streaming and non-physical media will mean the consumer having loses control over what they want to watch.

Great job.

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I'm only halfway through, but :up: really good stuff.

edit: finished it. :(

I know it may sound silly, but you should submit it to some film festivals. Specifically ones that embrace short films. My local fest (no, I'm not affiliated with them) has about 5 or 6 "short film" screenings each year in addition to all the feature-length stuff. Each screening contains 6 or 7 shorts. Yours would fit right in with that type of thing.

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Wow. Sad ending. I teared up.

Good piece. Thanks for sharing it with us.

What's astounding to me is how big those three stores are. And all in one town. With its thousands of film buffs, Manhattan can't even support a big video store like that anymore.

Also: lots of middle-aged customers. Young people clearly don't patronize these places anymore.

Re: My Video Rental Store Documentary (Full)
 

very nicely done.

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I was SHOCKED yo see footage of people lined up in front of a video store, waiting for it to open, like it was 1985 again or something.

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That was fun. I miss the old days before Blockbuster and Hollywood Video.
Not many can remember a time when you HAD to wait in a line like that to be first. They only had 1 copy, 2 copies if they were lucky. I remember waiting hours in stores, waiting for returns to come in.

I can admit that the digital age is here. It wont be far from now when everything is streamed online. There wont be a need for cable TV. Just high speed internet. I see movie theaters vanishing as well.

I'm sure some of these nostalgia video stores will be around for years to come. They're quirky and fun and bring back a time that can pass along memories to a younger generation.

Great documentary. Should definitely submit to a film festival.

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PatD, that was really good - you've got some talent. I hope you get this in front of some eyes - it's well-made.

"Remember the good times..." a very SOPRANOS-like ending. :)

Re: My Video Rental Store Documentary (Full)
 

Thanks for posting. I really enjoyed it.

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Very well done!

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Yes, and one's going non-profit to stay open.

Thank you everyone for your kind words! This movie was a labor of love. Video rental stores have been my sanctuary for the majority of my life and source of a semi-livelihood for a smaller portion.

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I don't know if you purposely framed it this way because you knew the eventual outcome, but just from the footage, the first two stores did seem a lot busier than the third.

Anyway, nice piece, thanks.

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No, I tried to show all three stores at their busiest. I strived to make of them them look the best I could.

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That was excellent. I hope you find success at festivals as it would be well deserved.

This would be great as a pre-show screening at an art house theater like Film Forum or Angelika here in NYC. Definitely would be appreciated by those patrons at least.

Re: My Video Rental Store Documentary (Full)
 

Very good subject. Very well executed. The second store has an outstanding location. If anything could be improved I think you could tell the audience more about that location (looks like an historic building), and if that is the store that's going non-profit it would be interesting to know how that business model works.

All the big record stores went out of business but there are still small indie record shops. I'm sure it will be the same for video stores. But if/when the studios stop releasing physical product then that will be the end.

What did you shoot and edit with?

Re: My Video Rental Store Documentary (Full)
 

Scarecrow Video In Seattle did just that, they ran a kickstarter to become a place to preserve and capture physical film media. I hope they have success.

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Nice work man. Thanks for sharing.

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Great work. I posted the link on my facebook page to hopefully get some more views. It brought back a lot of memories of going to the video store to find a movie for the weekend.

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Loved the older footage- how did you even find that and how much more was there that wasn't used?

I'm still waiting for a 'definitive' historical documentary about home video, from its inception (open-reel black and white tape machines in the 60s) up til now- ideally it'd be several hours long.

Right now I think streaming has its positives and negatives. Netflix really is a bargain, as the cost per movie ends up being pennies if you watch several per day; sadly I don't have time to do that myself. The main thing though is the technical quality still can't match Blu-Ray, and some of Netflix's early stuff looked worse than VHS. I haven't rented a movie myself since the 90s- low-priced DVDs and clearance laserdiscs turned me into a buyer, and I'd patronize stores that sold movies a lot more than ones that just rented them. If I lived near Scarecrow Video or a similar store, I'd likely just use them for long out of print stuff.

Re: My Video Rental Store Documentary (Full)
 

Great short , I really enjoyed it. But please do not let Alan Smithee watch this

edit: too late!!

Re: My Video Rental Store Documentary (Full)
 

Fantastic documentary! Great job, it brought back so many memories of visiting, and later managing a video store chain in a small town. Dare I say I got a little teary eyed at the end, simply because it reminded me of so many mom & pop stores that vanished over the years.

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There was an hour long tape lent to me by the third store owner. It was footage of the last night of the theater/video store (in the late 80s/early 90s) before it was just the video store in another location.

The "real snotty clerk" at the beginning of my film is him as a young man.

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Hey, thanks a lot. Any exposure I can get for it is greatly appreciated.

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The behemoths aren't gone. They've just changed.

Re: My Video Rental Store Documentary (Full)
 

That was great. Awesome job!

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Good stuff man. I live just across the border from Bellingham in Ladner(A suburb just outside Vancouver) I'm down there a couple times a month for cheap gas, groceries and blu rays that don't have bilingual writing lol. Haven't been to those stores myself but I used to frequent the Blockbusters there for cheap used Blu's/dvd's. Might have to check those remaining stores out!

Re: My Video Rental Store Documentary (Full)
 

Great job putting this together! Congrats!

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This was good watch -it should definitely have a place on the festival circuit. My favorite phrase was "happy accident" - there were countless films and filmmakers that I literally ran into that would never happen in this brave new world. We're getting to a place where watching film is no longer a passion, or even a lifestyle, but an empty ritual.

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I was able to watch my movie on the big screen this last Saturday as well as all the films of my fellow Documentary Center students--and it was a PACKED house! It was a thrill of a lifetime!

If you want to watch the works of the other students they are here: http://www.thedocumentarycenter.org/student-films.html

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Manhattan cannot support a video store because the real estate is insanely expensive. It is no coincidence the few surviving, non-corporate media outlets left in the US are in areas with very cheap land.

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During my entire childhood I loved the weekly trip to the video store with my mother or father. During weekends my friends and I would ride our bikes to various video stores miles away to see what was in. Seeing them all close one by one has been upsetting.

The current generation didn't grow up with them, and thus lack nostalgic feelings as many of us do. Can't really blame them though, can't argue with getting things quick and easy.

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Regarding those "Happy Accidents" those casual conversations with strangers that would lead us to discover a new film or director. They are still happening right here right now through this very forum.

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This hits a sentimental spot since, down in San Diego, we're about to lose the hallowed Ken Video.

Otherwise, great stuff.