Who's that kid with his face stuck in a camera?
Here are some clues:
-
WCAU is now NBC
Channel Ten in Pennsylvania
-
Our current mystery kid was born and raised in Philadelphia
-
He still lives in
the “city of brotherly love"
-
He's "guided" thousands of
people on how to properly align a camera
If you haven't guessed him yet, this picture from one
of his books should help!
Yes, it's
Robert Goodman
Best known as the author of the “Goodman’s Guides,”
the original field references for HD and digital cinematography
cameras. Spotlight now turns the tables on him - in this:
M
odest, humorous, energetic, versatile, articulate, artistic and
very technical. These words aptly describe Robert Goodman - you can
also add award-winning producer, director and DP to the list!
As
a prolific journalist, Robert has written articles for
cinematographers, editors, and independent filmmakers, but is best
known for the Goodman’s Guides. They're tremendously
popular, because they enable cinematographers to understand how to
get the best performance from what are complex tools. The
“Goodman’s Guides” are the latest chapter in Robert Goodman’s varied
and productive career.
Unlike
many of us who sort of fell into the industry, Robert Goodman knew
what he wanted to do from a very early age. The eldest of three
boys, he loved after school movies and grew up with horror films
like Frankenstein and Dracula and other movies from the 30s and
40s. When he was 9 years old, Robert and his buddy Steve called a
Hollywood studio to ask for instructions on “how to make monsters.”
The
lad liked cameras -
Robert's early fascination with TV cameras led him to summer
concerts and other broadcast events just to get close to the great
gear. During high school, he developed an interest in black and
white still photography. Inspired by the lives and work of
photographic masters Edward Weston, Eugene Smith, and Henri
Cartier-Bresson, Robert’s early work was mostly in 35mm, and of
people and landscapes.
The
first real job -
After two years in pre-med at the University of Pittsburgh and
working part time as a freelance photographer, Robert became a
stringer for the Associated Press. While working in Europe and the
Mid-East, for two years he lived in a tiny rented house in Athens,
Greece, directly below the Acropolis. He enjoyed a carefree
existence during this period of political turmoil in Greece snapping
photos to cover his rent and other expenses. This was a time when
getting $9 per photo went a long way.
Back to the States -
In the mid 70s, Robert returned to the US, and spent several
years working at Berry and Homer in Philadelphia, one of the first
Photo Labs in America (a venerable institution founded in 1898).
Between 1976 and 1978, Robert completed a Bachelor's Degree in
Writing at Vermont’s Goddard College.
After
leaving Goddard, one of Robert’s first jobs was photographing an ad
campaign for RCA’s first “portable” video camera. Back then
“portable” meant 30-40 lbs., and the insides of the camera had to be
removed so that the shapely model could actually lift the camera.
The
Goodman Family -
Robert married a painter/sculptor in the late 70s. The young
couple pondered where they would live to pursue their careers,
interests and vocations; they decided to stay in Philadelphia. They
had a son in 1981.
In the
early 80s, Robert spent five years as a Producer/Director for
Philadelphia’s Temple University. Using the college's ancient
equipment was great training (it dated from before the ¾”
revolution) - while there he recorded 2500 hours of TV/year.
Wanting to use more "current" equipment Robert became Operations
Manager at Philly's “Videosmith”, the first post facility in town to
install a Quantel PaintBox. But, it was a “tough year”, because
Robert really wanted to be in production.
Freelance
again -
Working as a writer/producer/shooter and director, Robert was
heavily into corporate marketing and public relations. He also spent
a lot of time doing business theater for “Insight Productions”.
“The
80s were a very creative era, many new tools with no hard-and-fast
rules yet” a little insane, but lots of fun at midnight
brainstorming sessions.
Careers highlights –
1989 - Emmy-nominated series of PSAs aimed at changing people’s
views about disabilities shot on 35mm.
1990 -
produced "America's Dream Highway" a documentary about the first
superhighway in the US broadcast on PBS.
1994 –
wrote and co-produced “The Road Taken” a 40 minute documentary that
traced the history of non-broadcast television from its birth in the
20s.
2001 -
friend and filmmaker Mark Moskowitz asked Robert to help produce the
feature documentary he was making - chronicling Moskowitz’s quest to
find out what happened to the author of a critically acclaimed
novel, long out-of-print because he was deeply involved in
the indie film community and was presenting workshops at film
festivals throughout North America.
It
paid off, “Stone Reader” won the Audience Award for Best Feature and
Special Grand Jury Honor at the Slamdance Film Festival in 2002 and
was critically acclaimed during its theatrical release, appearing on
Roger Ebert's, Andrew Sarris, John Anderson and many other critic's
top ten film lists for 2003.
Robert After Hours 
As a family man Robert has been a big
time “Soccer Dad”, involved in coaching and refereeing youth soccer
for most of the 90s. His hobbies are sailing and travel.
Goodman's Guides -
In 2004 – to take advantage of his writing talents and practical
camera experience, Robert pitched the idea of producing quick and
easy to use camera guides to camera manufacturers, and Panasonic
said “yes”.
Now
completing his seventh “Goodman’s Guide”, Robert's celebrity status
is on the rise and he is genuinely amused when his guide fans
recognize him at international events. Robert still lives in and
works from William Penn’s historic town.
So
what’s next for this talented and versatile individual? With so
many strings to his bow, who knows? Please, stay tuned.
