Get Forever Lucky

As I mentioned before there were going to be changes. xposedfilm and Downbeach Design where two companies I ran with overlapping products and clients. It became a bit much and so I've combined them both into one company. That company is Forever Lucky Films.    All wedding and commercial  productions will be under one roof.

You can find us at the new site. www.foreverluckyfilms.com .   I've imported my blog to that sites blog.  I'm excited to add new clients and new features.

SEE EVERYONE THERE

Evelyn + John

Evelyn and John's wedding at Bonnett Island was a beautiful affair and selecting the right song to go with the highlight film can sometimes take hours or trying out various artists and genre's before finding one that fits. In this case I used music from the movie "The Assassination of Jesse James." If you haven't taken a listen to it I'd note it's worth download. I also used Adele's "Rollin in the Deep". Adele's voice is so rich and she knows how to arrange a song to build the excitement.


Evelyn + John from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Melissa + Carl

Fall in Pennslyvania sets the perfect backdrop for a wedding. Kris King shot this wedding held at the Manufacturers Golf and Country Club in Fort Washington. I hope to have the opportunity to shoot there myself. Check our Melissa and Carl

Melissa + Carl from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Amanda + Derick

A few months back I was watching Zombieland and I heard a song in the background when Wichita and Columbus were dancing,  Two of the Lucky Ones by The Droge and Summers Blend.    I've been wanting to use it for weeks and with Amanda and Derick's highlight film I saw the perfect opportunity. 


Married at the Centerton Country club, Amanda and Derick are two of the nicest people I've met in this business.   I hope I captured the love they have have for each other in this film.

Amanda + Derick from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Leeron + Matthew's - At the Ashford Estate.

When I arrived at Leeron's wedding, I wasn't even sure I arrived. There was no signage - just a massive iron gate and a long tree lined road to what I appeared to be a French provincial mansion. Turns out Leeron and Matthew's wedding was one of the first to be held there and the paint was all but wet. So their leap of faith was beyond the normal leap of faith that challenges a couple planning their wedding.

You can almost see the relief in Leeron's eyes as her planning gamble paid off and had the most incredible wedding.

Enjoy.


Leeron + Matthew from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Things are a Changing

Major changes are coming in the works that pertain to the business side of my work. The creative side of me was putting on what should have been done two years ago, which is a major rebrand of our product. With the move I have to re license my business entity and so its the perfect time to rename the business. New name, new website and some new products are planned. I'm basically combining the wedding and commercial side into one company/site. If all goes well the site should be launched by December 1st.

Melissa + Michael

I love Spring Lake. It is one of my favorite spots on the Jersey Shore; just a great combination of elegance and fun. You could say that about Melissa and Micheal's wedding as well. The ceremony was held at the beautiful St. Catherine's and the reception right down the street at the Spring Lake Country club.

I recently saw the opening credits to Juno again and was inspired to create something in that nature. I didn't have the 1,000 hours it took to create that but wanted it to be fun and whimsical and I think that was accomplished. Down the line that will be something I revisit again.

I used the Bright Eyes song - "The First Day of My Life". I thought I used it before but looking through the library it appears that I haven't. Its a short song so I ended up using Vampire Weekends cover of the Fleetwood Mac song "Everywhere".

Enjoy.

Melissa + Michael from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Maria + Michael

I am amazed that despite filming over two hundred weddings since 2006 every day is unique, even when the settings aren't. There are a hundred thousand variables to every wedding day. I get to add even more to the mix to create a wedding video as unique as the day itself.

Here is one such example of an amazing celebration of family.

Maria + Michael from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Meagan + Colin

My first wedding was filmed in DC but since then I haven't been down there to visit or film. So now that the Downbeach headquarters has moved south the Washington area is more assessable I'm looking forward to lots more shoots there. Although, I can't imagine too many couples being more welcoming than Meagan and Colin. When Meagan emailed me to let me know that her song she wanted for the highlight video was from the Icelandic band - Sigur Ros I knew it was going to be a good time. I love Sigur Ros and you will too.

Meagan + Colin from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Lindsay + Michael

Lindsay and Michael are maybe the most creative couple I've filmed. They met working on TV and Michael is the artist for a recently launched comic - Feeding Ground. Knowing his love of comics and the theme of his project, I used the Aunt Betty speech for the voice over and The Black Key's - Howin' for You. Enjoy!

Lindsay + Michael from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Alisa + Brian Part II

With 16 weddings in the last 2 and a half months I haven't had the the time to update blogs but that changes today.

Here is part two of Alisa and Brian's highlight. Turns out I went to college with Alisa and I only realized it through shared friends on facebook. Funny how that works. Her new husband, Brian, was a professional poker player at one point so I went with that and used Ben Lee's Gamble Everything for Love. I always liked the song but it worked for one of my short's - until now.

Again, filmed at Laurita Winery here is Part II.

Alisa + Brian Part II from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Alisa + Brian Part I

As I was editing Alisa and Brian's highlight film it was soon clear I had to break it up each half really stood out on their own.

Filmed on a glorious day at the end of August, the location was perfect; Laurita Winery in New Egypt, NJ. One of those spots in you can't believe you're in NJ. I have another film like that coming up and now that I'm not living the in the Garden State full time I appreciate it more.

Here is Part One....as romantic as it gets.

Alisa + Brian Highlight Film Part 1 from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Band of Horses Play Norwegian Wedding

A favorite band of mine, Band of Horses, did something pretty cool. They played a wedding. This couple were engage at a BOH show.

Diana + David

Hey y'all. With my move to the countryside nearly complete, I offer up my first film since the move. Although, it's not rural down here, it is more rustic and inspiring to me. I hope it shines through in my work. Here are the highlights from David and Diana's wedding. They were married at Ocean Place is Long Branch. It was perfect day for a beach wedding.

Diana + David from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

CNBC - Mad Money Shoot

A few weeks back, I helped out on a CNBC shoot and ended up in the commercial. Nothing crazy but it's always fun to see yourself. You'll find me at :21.

Headin' South

The Downbeach Design/XPOSEDFILM office is moving. After four years at the Jersey Shore we're heading to Southern Delaware. We'll still be by the beach but minus all the crowds and distractions that Jersey offers. So if you have anything to mail please email me or check out the sites for the new contact info.

The phone number remains the same. 856.979.3518

Victoria + Chris

Whenever NYC is the backdrop, you're off to a great start. Victoria and Chris are a fun couple with lots of fun friends and family. I'm looking forward on tackling their extended cut but in the meantime enjoy their highlights!

Victoria + Chris from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Heineken - Overachiever

I remember working on a series of Heineken ads, not so much the work but filling my apartment with cases upon cases of free Heineken upon the shoot's completion. Here is one of the ads. I'm pretty sure that's Steve Buscemi's brother playing the Overachiever. New work coming soon.

ellie + chris

I love doing weddings, and if I'm able to get out of Jersey for a couple days it's even better. When Chris said he was getting married in Harrisburg I was more than eager. Ellie's face was priceless all during the ceremony. I can't say I've seen a bride more happy than she. I hope I was able to capture even just a bit of that love they had for each other. Enjoy their highlight film below.

Ellie + Chris from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

corey + shawn

I've been looking forward to Corey and Shawn's wedding all year. I love shooting at different locations especially ones with such a history and landscape that the Winterthur Museum does.

Dollface was shooting photography so I knew we were in for a great day, lots of fun and amazing shots. That's exactly how it turned out. I was able to get creative with the video and do some pretty cool stuff in the intro.

Check it out.

corey + shawn from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Keithe + Brad

I love Ocean City weddings. Not just because it's close to home, but there's something about about the atmosphere that gaurantees fun. From the reception room at Flanders you can watch the log flume and ferris wheel without leaving your seat. Keithe and Brad's wedding at the St. Peters and the Flanders was no exception. My favorite moment was when Keithe's sister, the maid-of-honor, brought out the guitar and played a song she had written for the newlyweds. I had to use it on the video. Check it out.

Keithe + Brad from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Stacee + Jon

Stacee was really excited to have me film her wedding but not as much as I was. Both she and Jon were so much fun and pretty much game for anything. Photography was done by Andy Todes of Andy Todes Photography and I love shooting with him, his work goes well with my style so it's really a seamless day and editing was tough because there were so many ways to go with it. I heard the song "Letters from the Sky" by Civil Twilight a few months ago and new this was a song I'd use, but need really the perfect wedding. To match it. I found it and here it is.

Untitled from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Corey & Shawn - Love Story

Corey and Shawn will be married in two weeks time. I've been looking forward to their wedding for months. Here is part of a film we did for them in advance of that. The Love Story is really for any couple married or planning. There's no script or stress of the wedding day so creativity rules. Check out Corey & Shawn's

Corey + Shawn - A Love Story from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Karen + Kevin

It's going to be one hot summer and I'm looking forward to it after the long cold winter. We kicked off the wedding season in Philadelphia at Karen & Kevin's wedding at the Downtown Club. Although hot and humid outside, inside there was a different type of warmth. Kevin was overcome with emotion seeing Karen walk the aisle. It was really an amazing moment considering he already seen her in the dress during pre-ceremony photos.

Here are some of the highlights.

Karen + Kevin Highlight Sample from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Labatt Blue - Bear - America

I remember this being a crazy shoot. Lots of locations in little time. I worked on a number of these commercials. Here's one with the Labatt Blue Bear coming to the US.

Memories on Tape

The wonderful thing about YouTube is I get to see the TV commercials I worked on a decade ago. Living in NY, I never had a chance to see them the first time around and now they have have new life online. As I come across some I'll post a bunch that I worked on in some capacity.

Here's one I worked on as a 2nd Assistant Director (talent wrangler). It was directed by Johan Camitz. Johan, who was from Sweden, directed the famous one-take Spice Girls video "Wannabe"

Since I moved no California soon after I worked on this, I never learned that Johan had been hit by a car involved in a shootout outside the SoHo Club. He died from his injuries. He had no involvement in the shootout and just was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Johan was a great director and a former wedding videographer I learned after speaking to him. He changed my view of videographers back then and probably influenced my career moves ten years later.

So here is the commercial. We did about three of these VW commercials that week. This was the only one I could track down. Enjoy

Little Hero Capes Promo Videos

Allison Faunce of Little Hero Capes asked me to create a promo video that she can use to bring her product to a larger audience. She creates custom capes, mask and cuffs for kids. It's an awesome idea I was happy to help.

I create two versions, one a shorter up-tempo film that is a toe-tapper with a stylized intro and then a slower more folksy version. Both target different audiences allow for greater coverage.

Here's the up-tempo version.




And here is the longer version. It's hard for me to decide which one I like more.

Playing around with HDR

HDR is a way to extract all colors and exposures levels in a photograph using a number of photographs. I'm brand new to it and thought I'd share a few of my first from the around my home. Pretty nifty.

Liars: Scissor

If you think you're having a bad day at least you're not this guy.

Some pics

I recently spent a couple of days along the Delaware Coast. Cool area, especially in the offseason. Here are a couple shots from the trip. There's a few more on my flickr page.

A Rainy Day in March

It looks like 9pm outside this morning. A perfect blogging day. Wedding season is quickly approaching. I have a few weekends open and 2011 is actually booking fast as well, which surprised me. Videography always seems down towards the bottom of the to-do list with 7-9 months-out as the typical book date. Perhaps that means we're more optimistic about a future financial rebound. I'd like to hope so.

I shot my first wedding back in 2006 while I was still a casino exec. The couple was Allison and Paul and it was a blast. I knew that I was making the right choice to leave casino and haven't looked back. At the time Allison was starting home business and since then and it's really taken off. The company is Little Hero Capes and it's a neat idea. A little late in April, Downbeach will be shooting a commercial for them in and around the Philadelphia area. It's going to be a lot of fun to create.

We also have a few other deals in the works and sent out a few proposals in the past couple days so if all goes well April may end up being the best Month ever.

New Downbeach Design Spot

I've done about 140 weddings in the last three or four years. I've really been pushing the non-wedding work. I wanted an excuse to use the Insider/Deadwood song.

Sinatra at the Sands

As some of you know, I ran the marketing department at the Sands Casino before leaving the gaming industry to return to filmmaking. Before I left I managed to snag a video from our old ad agency. On the video are a couple versions of the the ad, a few outtakes with Sinatra and news reports from the Philadelphia news stations. I love Sinatra so I think it's pretty cool.

Sauvignon Media Creations

I'm wrapping up my edits this week for Sauvignon Media Creations out of Australia. They were recently voted one of the 50 Best Event Video Companies in the World, so it was an honor to work with them. If they post the my final video I'll be sure to post them. If you're in Australia and reading this check them out here.

Burlington Vermont

One of my favorite spots on the East Coast is Burlington Vermont. Great people, great food and lots of fun. Stowe is a short drive for good skiing and Ben & Jerry's comes from there. So I spent a weekend there recently.

I put a few shots on my flickr page.

Crew Call

Downbeach is seeking experienced videographers. Our 2010 wedding season is almost full and 2011 is now booking. If you're a seasoned shooter looking to pick up some extra bucks this may be good opportunity for you. I'd like to book multiple weddings on a weekend but need some talented people. You shoot, I edit and that's all there is to it.


Our weddings are concentrated around NJ, NY and PA but really we go anywhere.

Must shoot in HD!

Email me at jchrisrodgers@hotmail.com for more information.

Edit, Editing, Edited

I put every computer through the ringer attempting to pull every ounce of power. Overlapping projects are pretty much a daily occurrence. Today I'm editing one wedding, rendering another, working on a fun project and outlining a cool montage.

Downbeach Design also partnered up with an Australian Company to complete edits for them. Those will be rolling out soon and I'm happy to help.

So if you're reading this and are a videographer with a backlog or just someone with some raw footage I'm available and love to edit. It may be my favorite part of the whole process.

Email me for rates.

Autism Run-Walk in Sea Isle

My wife and I had the pleasure of taking part in the Autism Run-Walk held today in Sea Isle City. Yesterday was the polar plunge but somehow I was missed that. Karen works with Autistic Children as a Speech Therapist. Here are a couple shots.

You can see some more on my flickr site.

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge

There's not much to do around here in the Wintertime. While everyone waits for it to get warm I like to check out some of my favorite places without the crowds, such as the casinos and restaurants. One of my favorite places is the Edwin B Forsythe Wildlife Refuge. It's never crowded and there is some great hiking and birdwatching. My favorite aspect is the 8 mile drive out onto the water. There's bald eagles and hawks along with more common cranes and gulls. I made it out there on Thursday and snapped a couple shots.




You can see more on my flikr page

Anyone Can Make News

I found this pretty amusing. (Minor language)

Gerad's Florist & Decorator

If you are getting married down the shore or in and around Atlantic County check out Gerad's Florist, located in Pleasantville. Gerad and Eileen are really true artists and create some really unique pieces for weddings and casino events. I believe that Florists could be the most creatively demanding job in the wedding business.

I designed their website a few years back.

Check it out here.

New Client \ Old Client

*Downbeach's latest client is Atlantic City Dinettes and Barstools located in Northfield. We'll be launching their website in a few weeks.

*We've been working with Wardance Productions since the begining. They have been developing a roster of reality tv projects and we've been doing the edit. I threw up a quicky website for them wardance.biz and we'll be creating a new more dynamic one soon.

James Mercer + Danger Mouse

Put James Mercer in a room with Danger Mouse and the product is outstanding.


The High Road

Broken Bells | MySpace Music Videos

My Favorite Videos - Part 1

There are so many great videos out there. If you seen District 9 you're familiar with th director of this short film, Neill Blomkamp.

Natalie + Matt

Natalie and Matt where married two days into the new year and they kicked 2010 off with a bang. Both braved the bitter cold temps to make sure they had some outdoor shots before the sun set.

Natalie has a company that creates Flipbooks for wedding guests in only a couple minutes. It's a great process and worth checking out if you're looking for a great keepsake to give your guests. Her site is Go Festive.

I incorporated that into her wedding video. You can watch it here.

Newest Member of the Downbeach Team

Meet Milo - Office Mascot/Distraction. If you know me this is a huge deal as I dug my heels for years before relenting. He's a great dog and loves hanging out on the beach.

The Month so Far

I started out the month with a beautiful wedding and perhaps ending it filming a reality show. In between there's been lots of meetings, and rewrites and editing. 2010 is going to be a building year for Downbeach. A short film shoot in March and hopefully a Documentary begins in April or so. Therefore 2011 could be the festival year, or a least we should hope.

I can't count how many weddings I did last year, although I'll have a better picture next month when I do my taxes and way ahead of the pace for 2011. I would hope that is some type of economic indicator.

So yesterday I met with a producer/director of LA Law for which she has an Emmy and Sabrina the Teenage Witch- among scores of others. Awesome lady. Turns out she's a neighbor. She has some great ideas for shows scripted and unscripted in the works. Depending on availability I should behind the camera for a couple of those. Plus a TV commercial filming next month.

All in all 2010 is off to a crazy start.

50+ Weddings = 1 Video

I introduced all of my timelapsed wedding videos and turns out they get along quite well.

Music by Crystal Castles : Untrust Us

Fifty Weddings from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.

Charles Bukowski - The Poetry Reading

My brother gave me Charles Bukowski's book Pulp as a birthday present a few years back and it quickly became one of my favorites. Bukowski in general is devoid of subtlety, which is likely why I wanted to use one of this poems as a short film. Here I use his The Poetry Reading along with backing from The Antlers' Kettering with some footage from a cold day in Atlantic City.

2010 is going to be a creative year and I wanted it kick it off right.

Charles Bukowski - The Poetry Reading from J. Christopher Rodgers on Vimeo.