Tag Archives: recycle

Videos by Me for You! Fall 2012

Videos 2012, Fall, Ponder Tree, Michelle-Yamasaki

Happy New Years to you! I wish you the very best for 2013. In this post I wanted to share all of the videos I shot and edited or just edited this fall of 2012. I had fun doing all five videos, put a lot of care and dedication into them and I would love for you to see them and tell me what you think!

My first and biggest project was “Deep Roots II – Days and Nights on the Farm“. This 25 minute documentary is about the art installation by Meei Ling Ng and farm festival that took place at one of Weavers Way’s farms and it focuses on the use of art on farms to spread the message of the importance of local urban farming and being conscious of how to support your community through collaboration…

Here is the short 5 minute version… or below you can watch the full awesome 25 minute video! For more about this, click here.

The following three projects I edited were done for my work study job with Temple Contemporary, the art gallery in the Tyler School of Art at Temple University. The first one was “Pittsburgh’s Greatest Living Artist: Jon Rubin“. Jon Rubin is not your ordinary artist and I truly enjoyed learning about his work which ranged from Cinematography to political theater to a Waffle Shop with a talk show, unheard of… https://vimeo.com/53122861

The second video I edited for them was “Candy Class with Franklin Fountain“. This was a very cool event where you learned how to make old fashion candy, with antique molds and more. There was also a fun musical introduction by spoon player Mark Alexander. https://vimeo.com/55114619

And the final video I edited for Temple Contemporary was “Mass Incarceration in America“. This 13 minute video squeezed the best snippets of nationally renowned scholar speakers of a day long event that lasted from early in the morning to about six in the afternoon. Believe me, they say very good and important things about the current carceral state and its eroding effects on urban communities, the economy and democracy. https://vimeo.com/55699650

And finally… just in time for Christmas Eve, I finished the new music video for the brand new song Jeremy Dean Harrison wrote called “Light“. Here is a quote from a blog post that talks about this song and video: “The imagery that Michelle presents throughout the video is both appropriate and thought provoking. Jeremy’s lyrics are deep and meaningful, once again calling for people to make a change in this world by BEING the change.” See the full blog post here.

… I put a lot of care, time and effort into these videos and it means a lot to me when people take the time to see them. It also means a lot to me when someone takes the time to tell me what they thought in a comment below the video or a “like”… or if you share it, it is so greatly appreciated.

And because the work I do is special to me, it is important for me to take the time to share with people who I feel would appreciate it… people who would be excited to see my progress… people who I not only want to share my work with, but people who I also want to hear from. I may not get the chance to ask you personally how you are or what you are up to, but please feel free to share with how you are and any of your work! I am also excited to see what is special to you and see you progress and would love to support you. It is all about connecting the dots…

Carpe Diem! (like Miss Holly Bliss says)

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Deep Roots II – Short 5min Version

Hello Everyone,

Did you see the full Deep Roots II documentary in my previous post? Well, if you haven’t gotten the chance to sit down for 25 minutes, it’s ok! Here is a short version I edited down to 5 minutes! Check it out, share it with your friends and maybe you’ll be intrigued to watch the full version, which truly is fun filled and educative. And some good news! The 5 minute version of Deep Roots II will be featured on a show by Bonnie MacAllister on the tv channel PhillyCAM. More on that soon.

Here is the full version:

You can go here to see Photo Albums on Facebook on the event Deep Roots II and the screening at The Bainbridge Club.

And you can go here for a page with all of the information about Deep Roots II.

Deep Roots II – Full Documentary Online!

Deep Roots 2, Meei Ling Ng, Michelle Saul-Yamasaki, Ponder Tree

“Deep Roots II – Days and Nights on the Farm” the Full Documentary is online! Thank you to those who made it to the premiere screening at The Bainbridge Club on December 1st. The hall was filled with more than fifty people and it was truly a wonderful experience to  see people who participated in the video, people who are dear to me and people who I did not know personally!

“Deep Roots II” focuses on the use of art on farms to spread the message of the importance of local urban farming and being conscious of how to support your community through collaboration…

“Deep Roots II — Days and Nights on the Farm” is a documentary produced by Michelle Saul-Yamasaki of the multi-media art installation by Meei-Ling Ng, that took place on October 6th and 7th, 2012 in collaboration with Weavers Way’s Mort Brooks Memorial Farm and their Farm Festival and in conjunction with the Philadelphia Open Studio Tours (POST) and lighting designer Jackson Kay. The aim of this event was to spread the message that urban farms by necessity need to be multi-use spaces not just for growing food. Meei-Ling Ng and her collaborators took a unique approach to raise awareness on the importance of farming by expanding the audience past foodies to art lovers and beyond. Meei-Ling’s multimedia art installation featured sculptures using repurposed and recycled farm materials that focus the viewers’ attention to the many facets of urban farm life. It included a multimedia bee keeper sculpture, a farmer sculpture, light shows (to see life on the farm at night) and functional art that the farmers utilize in their daily tasks such as the decorative chicken tractor.

Collaboration was another key theme of the event and of this documentary also. Meei-Ling collaborated with many, from light designer Jackson Kay to Farmer Rick, farm educators to high school students (Central and Friends Select), Anna the director of POST to photographer Sang Cun and Michelle Saul-Yamasaki, the videographer. This amazing collaboration resulted in a great turn out of people, an amazing art installation that everyone enjoyed and learned from, many became interested about becoming a part of Weavers Way Co-op and those involved met new friends while eating and enjoying music. And with the collaboration of Meei-Ling and Michelle Saul-Yamasaki, they were able to capture this great event and the people that made it happen to then share it with more communities and continue spreading this message to inspire other communities. It would have been impossible if it wasn’t for everyone collaborating in the name of something they believe in…

Please check it out, share it with people, groups and organizations who may find this meaningful and let us know what you think! Feel free to leave a comment below, comment on Ponder Tree’s Facebook Page or through email. (pondertreemedia@gmail.com)

List of Collaborators
Video production – Michelle Saul-Yamasaki www.pondertree.com
Artist/Event Producer – Meei-Ling Ng www.meeiling.com
Farm and Educators – Weavers Way Co-op and Weavers Way Community Program (WWCP) www.weaversway.coop
Philadelphia Open Studio Tours (POST) www.philaopenstudios.org
Location – Awbury Arboretum www.awbury.com
Lighting Designer – Jackson Kay www.facebook.com/JKConceptsDesign
Photographer – Sang Cun www.SangCun.blogspot.com
Music – Painted Blue www.myspace.com/PaintedBluegrass
Trailer used on the Bee Keeper Sculpture – “Vanishing of the Bees” www.vanishingbees.com
The Bainbridge Club – www.bainbridgeclub.yolasite.com/