Filmmaker: Rich Castro
Pro or amateur: Amateur
Shoot location: Hermosa Beach, California
Production equipment used: Sigma 24-60mm f2.8, Sigma 70-300mm. No Lighting,  Polarizers used. Tripod: Manfrotto 190xprob, Head: Manfrotto 128RC
Editing software: Sony Vegas
Editing hardware: PC Q6600 Quad Core, 8GB Ram. Cheap ATI video card
Editing workflow: Converted to Cineform using Mpeg Stream Clip. Edited and lightly color graded in Vegas. Output to MP4
My favorite shot or clip in this film: My favorite scene is where the little girl gets pushed in her sled only to move a couple feet and come to an abrupt hault.
My tip for 5d MkII filmmakers: I’ve burned many hours testing NLE’s, codecs, proxy techniques, etc trying to get smooth playback on a timeline using both a PC and a Mac. Save yourself the headache and invest in Cineform. If you’re on a budget like me, get cineform’s neo scene. Also, turn down the contrast and saturation in the camera before shooting. Even better, make a custom picture style. If you upgrading to the 5dmk2, be prepared to spend a lot of cash on extras. My favorite crop sensor lenses didn’t work (hence the cheap glass I use). Invest in a tripod and more important; don’t leave the tripod at home!