dianafilms

All About Diana Films: Who we are, what we do and how we do it

Who We Are
Established by Francesca Prada, Diana Films was founded to provide high quality talent to creative projects in the advertising and entertainment industry.  Diana Films also remains committed to creating more opportunities for women, emerging talent, and self-identified minorities.

The award winning independent film work, as well the multi-award winning ad campaigns we've produced have all benefited from the judicious and well timed deployment of resources, talent and content.  On message, on time and on budget for 18 years.

What We Do
We serve as a part-incubator and creative engine for most media centric projects, as well as serving production, agency and start-up clients in the film, advertising, gaming, digital media and TV industry.  Our bilingual staff can handle the full cycle of production, supporting clients in need of production services for English and Spanish language projects.

We also develop and produce independent films, advertising campaigns, integrated branding initiatives, documentaries and transmedia projects that put technology in the service of art and the brand story.

How We Do it
Our productions embrace the triple bottom line and make every effort to deploy best practices involving: green production methods, value engineering, effective workflows, leadership development and mentoring.  Many of the projects we've managed had "many tentacles" and in addition to relying on traditional media, we have also used social and earned media (free media) to both promote and in some instances execute the work.

How can we help your next great project exceed expectations?

Services:

• Project Consulting: Production, Marketing and Content Strategy for Media & Entertainment Start Ups, Independent Filmmakers, Documentary Projects, Non-Traditional Marketing Campaigns, Mid-Sized Branding Consultancies
  
  
• Content strategy for Online Ventures including digital content programming initiatives, curatorial services; as well as talent & member acquisition, community engagement and retention strategy 
  
  
• Agency Producing for TV/Radio/Integrated Campaigns in the General and Hispanic Market. We can take your campaign from as early as the research & pitch phase all the way through to QC and site launch and/or shipping/uploading for air 
  

• Producing & Production Services for Commercial Production Companies (Union & Non)

• Script & Story: Consulting & Editing, as well as subject area research & dramaturgy
  
  
• Proposal drafting, bidding, budgeting & scheduling, P & L, marketing and film festival outreach for independent films and documentaries

• Spanish Language Production

• Internationalization
  
  
• Mentoring, Training, Teaching and coaching
  
  
• Directing talent for audio sessions, on camera, live performance or public speaking
  

 

 

 

The Last Express has been voted #7 of the top 100 Adventure Games of All Time

This Highly Cinematic Game has just been listed on the top 100 adventure games of all time,
#7:

Where do the accolades start for Smoking Car Productions’ The Last Express? Is it the rotoscoped graphics that give the game a uniquely classy sense of style? Is it the painstaking historical recreation of the final voyage of the Orient Express before World War I? Is it the stunningly immersive real-time progression of gameplay? Or is it the thrilling and extraordinarily literate writing? Why choose? There really isn't anything quite like Jordan Mechner’s 1997 adventure. While the story of American doctor Robert Cath and the international intrigue he encounters on a train journey from Paris to Constantinople does head to some pretty fantastical places, it is equally balanced by a genuine sense of realism and authenticity. Mechner's team went to great lengths to portray everything from foreign languages to daily weather patterns with historical accuracy. The characters portray the broad and tumultuous sociopolitical climate of the era, as Cath encounters everyone from German businessmen to Serbian militants. And in a still-unparalleled design decision, live actors were filmed and then hand-traced in a style reminiscent of early 20th century illustration.

Making things feel even more authentic is the game’s real-time progression: The Last Express doesn't wait for you. The train barrels relentlessly toward Constantinople, stopping at several famous locales along the way. Similarly, the other passengers have their own agendas to attend to; they move around the train, have conversations, go to sleep, eat dinner, conduct secret meetings, and so on. As Cath, players have more or less total freedom to explore the train and observe, interact with fellow passengers, or sneak around trying to find information. This gives the game an astounding level of replayability for an adventure game, since you'll never be able to see everything in a given playthrough; while you're off exploring one car, something else (something probably very interesting) is going on in another. And if you don’t like the direction your recent choices have taken, rather than simply restore an old save file, simply rewind time and begin that segment of the journey all over again. It all adds up to a tense, immersive, and innovative adventure that few other games have equaled.

Read about the other great games here

http://www.adventuregamers.com/article/id,1401/p,20

conflict resolution

Remove blame, present the problem, express the goal and ask for the best way to go about achieving it collectively and co-responsibly.

 

Rethink Breast cancer, ad that really works!

 

This is a great reminder, very sexy PSA and totally works as a viral on so many levels.  Great work and so good to see things like this.  Know your audience and give them what they need in ways they would not expect. 

Film Incentives and Production Activity Map (US based)

this is a pretty handy tool brought to you by Credit Scouts

crowdsourced film, Life In A Day

 

Just in case you haven't see this yet, wow, Life in A Day is a crowdsourced documentary that covers 192 countries, used almost 4500 hours of footage, and was whittled down to 90 essential minutes.  As a concept it works incredibly well.  I would love to see more projects like this, this is a genre that has much more to offer than meets the eye.

how to make your mobile site? just google it!

HowToGoMo.com

Do you need a mobile site? Google has case studies to show you how & why you might need one.

What will it look like?  They made an 'emulator' to show you what things look like on a mobile device.

Google has pre-selected a handful of vendors and ad agencies that can do the work for the brand.

So, they are offering free advice, tools and resources.  The three things you really need to offer if you want to do business with people these days.  Think of it as freemium luxe, smart marketing, web 2.5 etc...

And once the site is built, google would like to handle your marketing.

hmm, thoughts?  Has the time for mobile sites finally arrived?  Most mobile sites I've seen really suck, except for the ones relating to sports and stock info, at least the info is right there, front & center.

Is there a way to build a site that can do both tablets and mobiles, or am I being a typical producer? 

the platform agnostic in me likes the idea of creative approaches to this branding game, so I offer this freebie piece of digital strategy.  Websites are so 1997, mobile sites are so 2006, and tablet sites are just getting started.  So why not leapfrog and just make a hybrid site that is good for a tablet and good for a phone?  Make the website the mothership of all information and make the tablet the "to go" version, and the mobile site can tag along.   

francesca

why photographers need producers who know how to shoot video

Here's the deal, editorials and ads on tablets are going to start moving because they have to. Video, even without sound, is far more compelling than a still image on a screen.  Ok, I'm a little biased, I work as a producer, my job is making pictures dance. That being said, I did start out as a photographer before moving to film, video and digital media. As much as I LOVE stills and evocative art, and I really do love them, the tablet is a screen and screens are far more interesting when the pictures are moving.  They just are.  I would love to see that proven wrong, I really would.  But things are progressing towards movement, motion.  For fearless established photographers who wish to adapt, its vital that you pick up video skills and a trursworthy sidekick who can produce with you so that all you do is shoot and ramp up to edit.  Let the producer handle the rest.  Your clients will love the ability to call on you to do both and your accountant will love the fact that you're working more.

"The latest Mobile Mix report from Millennial Media took a look at the iOS over the third quarter of 2011 and found that mobile impressions grew 60% year-over-year across all iOS devices.

In fact, iPad impressions alone grew 456% on Millennial's platform. Other findings from the report include:

The iPhone accounted for 54% of iOS impressions on Millennial's platform.

Android was the leading operating system across smartphones and connected devices as it grabbed 56% of impressions.

In terms of ad spend on applications, Android apps had a 49% share, which is a growth of 20% quarter-over-quarter."  repost from Cynopsis digital edition

What is the most important screenwriting tool?

Genre Hacks: What is the most important screenwriting tool?.

Great article by Sean Hood that elaborates on the maxim that "all writing is rewriting" and provides writers with a very simple illustration of 'the process', simple & concise.

Piri Thomas, Rest In Power 1928-2011

Beloved Puerto Rican-American author and poet Piri Thomas died Monday, October 17, 2011, in his home in El Cerrito, CA surrounded by his loving wife, Suzie, his children and caregivers, after succumbing to pneumonia.

Born September 30, 1928, in Harlem Hospital, New York City, of a Puerto Rican mother and Cuban father, his early years were documented in 1967 in his bestselling book, Down These Mean Streets, for which he was best known. He later wrote two other novels, Savior Savior Hold My Hand and Seven Long Times, several plays (The Golden Streets and Ole Ole Oy Vey), a book of short stories (Stories from El Barrio) , many poems, and recorded two CDs of poetry and music (Sounds of the Streets and No Mo' Barrio Blues). Three award-winning films (Petey and Johnny, The World of Piri Thomas, and Every Child is Born a Poet) were made about him. He spoke and performed at countless events at colleges, high schools, middle schools, senior centers, community gatherings, political rallies for peace and justice causes, and many more, while encouraging several generations of young people to be socially responsible in their career choices, and to write and perform poetry, which subsequently birthed the new wave of "spoken word" that has appeared throughout the country. His intuitive grasp of identity, race, and class issues inspired everyone he touched as his ideas were grounded in his moral authority and personal sense of dignity. He was sincere and generous to a fault.

He is survived by his wife, Suzie Dod Thomas, of El Cerrito, CA, six children, Peter Stacker of Chicago, Ricardo Thomas and SanDee Thomas of Orlando, FL, Raina Thomas and Tanee Thomas of Columbia, SC, and Renee Shank of Seattle; and 7 grandchildren, Megan, Brenann and Eryn Stacker, AJ Linares, Arielle and Kristen Thomas, and Sahali Shively, three stepchildren, Michael and Laura Olenick of NY, and David Elder of Los Angeles, and two step granchildren, Jacob and Lily Olenick.

The family requests no flowers or gifts. Written sentiments may be sent to Cheverote@aol.com or 2503 Edwards Ave. El Cerrito, CA 94530. Tax deductible donations (payable to Social Justice, earmarked for the Piri Thomas fund) maybe made in his name and sent to:

Piri Thomas Memorial Fund

C/O Social Justice/Global Options
PO Box 40601
San Francisco, CA 94140

To date, memorials are being planned for the Bay Area, New York, and Orlando, Florida. Dates to be announced.

 

For more information, please e-mail:

 

Suzie Dod Thomas at Cheverote@aol.com

here's a link to the New York Times Obituary:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/20/books/piri-thomas-author-of-down-these-mean-streets-dies.html

Big question about Branding, positioning for Start Ups

hey start-ups, do you want to build tools for your community or do you want to build a community around your tools? Do you want to position your brand as a resource and a place to grow and co-create a vision, or do you just want to have people buy your stuff?