THE CATARACS

This past Thurs (Mar. 4), my buddy Jon Foreman of www.tighthelluv.com introduced me to a technohop duo from the Bay called, The Cataracs. Foreman invited me and Trey Billie to join him for an art/music event at the Vanguard in Hollywood and since I hadn't seen him or Trey in quite a while, I was on my way. The fact that a good amount of artists that were showcasing at the event were from the Bay didn't hinder my interest either. :) Needless to say, the DJ's were off the hook! Especially Jon's friend, DJ Havoc, who transitioned down to LA from the city recently. After a few beers, the three of us headed out to parking lot to call it a night where we got a chance to talk to some guy named Cyrano from this group called 'The Cataracs'. Friends/Collaborators with DJ Havoc & an artist named Bobby Brackins (one of Trey's boys), Cyrano was instantly on the A-List as far as we were concerned. I heard their song, 'Bass Down Low' on the Power 106 recently and was hooked. Getting a chance to touch base with him and let him know that we're spreading the word about The Catarac movement was a great opportunity. He is a genuinely cool dude and obviously very talented. So we exchanged emails and now the Mahfia production crew is going to shoot a docu of their upcoming show this weekend in Oakland at 'The New Parish'. Needless to say, we're all VERY stoked to work with these guys. We love their music, love their beats, and can't wait to make some cool shi* for all of our crews. They're goofy, but super sick. Can't wait to help them blow up their movement. Here's some of their stuff:
Cataracs' Myspace

Grip/DIT on Hoist Fitness ROC-iT Series Videos

This is a video we produced for the always-awesome fitness company, HOIST. I was a Grip/DIT on set for the shoot and actually got to work on a bunch of lighting, too. As always, our crew was top-notch and the video turned out fantastic. Gotta give props to the director/my buddy, Robert Watkins, and of course, Jeremy from Hoist, for having us out year after year. I believe this is the 3rd year in a row we have done an HD video for the company and I would say the best part of the gig is getting to work with the same great people year after year. From Max Wettstein, the fitness model/guru, over to Dave Stewart, the jib-jedi, and Greg Smith, the GOC president, to Frank Wells & Nick Calabria; working with these guys makes the shoot flow like water. GREAT VIDEO, GUYS!

Kyle & Kristine

Here's a Wedding Video I just finished up for my friends Kyle & Kristine. They (and I) wanted to make something that was a bit more unconventional than the average wedding video you are forced to watch at a friend's cocktail party. I think I did it decent justice and I hope that others really enjoy watching it. We shot using 3 cameras: A Sony HD HandyCam w/ a wide fisheye (thanks Woozy!), a Sony DV, and a Panasonic DV. The three cameras helped to catch everything that was going on and having my buddy Kelly Weaver there to help proved to be a complete save, too. Considering how the final draft turned out, I would say... SUCCESS.

Kyle & Kristine from mike jines on Vimeo.

What's been catching my eyes/ears lately?

Here's three videos I found through some searches and some help from friends that should freshen things up for you. Kid Cudi has a style of music that everyone should consider as an everyday listen. And better yet, his videos match his cleanly delivery as well. Check em out!
"Pursuit of Happiness"


"Make Her Say"


And here's the last one, "Jam Session", which is a digital collaboration of many different artists from around the world. It is actually really amazing how crisp the blend of so many different disciplines and arts can be sometimes. The video maker gets extra credit for keeping the bar just as high on his end as the musical artists did on theirs. Tip of the hat, indeed.

Jam Session 2.0 from Cain Mosni on Vimeo.

ENJOY!

Hoist Fitness Shoot

This will be the 3rd year in a row that I have had the pleasure of working with the folks from Hoist Fitness & Groovy Like A Movie. By now, most of us know each other by first name, last name, and by some ridiculous thing we've done on set. The best part of working with the same group of clients and crew is that a certain level of coercion is always present on each of the shoots. Everyone from the producer down to the PA's are working on all cylinders the entire shoot. And without this high-intensity cooperation, the level of efficiency necessary to crank out a large-content production like this wouldn't be possible. In other words, it really pays off to surround yourself with awesome people. And it wasn't bad laughing most of the shoot, too. Here's some production photo's courtesy of Greg Smith's camera.