Tag: Mhairi Morrison

Time to Shove This Snowball Down The Mountain

Holly Payberg

Home_1I started this blog with the bold prediction that its followers would essentially be first hand witnesses to Mhairi & I’s story of “How We Went From Youtube to a Television Deal” and now we are at the point in the journey where its time to hunker down into what I’m gonna call Phase 2 in order to make that prediction a reality.

As a recap for anybody new, we started this journey with a great character (Tallulah Grace) and team, built a web series around our character (Feathers and Toast), produced 2 seasons of Feathers and Toast (as well as bonus content), put it all up on Youtube, went deep into social media promotion, went to festivals, won awards, bonded with our fans, learned from our fans, and then used all that we learned as the fuel to expand the concept into a 1/2 hour show. I’ll call that Phase 1.

And now here we are in Phase 2 and what lies ahead is more good ole fashioned hard work. Our battle plan is threefold: 1) continue to tweak our pilot script to make it the best it can possibly be 2) practice our pitch until it is fun, alive and an accurate reflection of the story we are intending to tell and 3) dive deep into research and networking to discover which companies/distribution outlets would be the right fit for us.

Now because I do like to sleep from time to time, Phase 2 is going to require me to make some adjustments. I’ve realized in order to accomplish all I am setting out to do, my social media efforts are going to have to shift to a plan that’s a little more fast and loose.

Rather than 3 official blogs a week, I’ll be doing 1 a week and keeping you posted in between with shorter tweet/instagram style updates, often times from the “field” (for e.g. the festival we will be attending this week). I’m thinking I’ll even start including some quick videos as well so make sure to follow me @hollypayberg for all the fun. Which leads me to…

Industry Tip #30
Staying balanced mentally, physically and spiritually is the key to long term success. Always be prepared to readjust your daily and weekly goals as needed in order to maintain a healthy balance.

And without further ado I leave you with a little holiday Tip from Tallulah.

Join Feathers and Toast at The Women & Fashion FilmFest

Holly Payberg

WFF15 Flyer Festival 30 Off FINALIn case you haven’t heard, Feathers and Toast, has been given the opportunity to be a part of this years Women & Fashion FilmFest in NYC (and the online portion of their She Webfest) and we couldn’t be more excited to be part of a festival doing so much to support women.

“WFF is founded on the principles of mentorship. We’re gathering leaders to share their knowledge and stories to inspire younger generations. We’re also focused on creating real opportunities for women and diverse artists, and working to open new channels of distribution and promotion,” states WFF Founder Jeanine Jeo-Hi Kim, emphasizing the social responsibility mission of the festival.

Attendees will include such fascinating folks as Ambassador Henry MacDonald (the UN Spokesperson for He for She), Patricia Field (Oscar Nominated Costume Designer Sex in The City), and Maye Musk (Supermodel, Nutritionist and Mother of Elon Musk)

Needless to say we are packing the hats and are ready to do some serious mingling, so if you’re in the New York area, we would love to see you! Here’s our itinerary so far:

Thursday November 12th
6:00 – 8:00 pm Red Carpet Benefit (Seaport Studio 19 Fulton Street, downtown NYC)

Friday November 13th
6:50 pm Panel on Art & Commerce: Finding Balance (Seaport Studio 19 Fulton Street, downtown NYC)

Saturday November 14th
12:00 pm – 9:30 pm – We will be in and out of panels and screenings all day (Symphony Space – Thalia Theatre 2537 Broadway at 95th)
9:55 pm Screening of Velvet Karma (a film I Edited and Associate Produced)
11:30 pm Live Taping of SNL

Oh alright I just made up that part up about the live taping of SNL, but it looks good on our schedule doesn’t it? If any of you New Yorker’s with connections to Lorne want to hook us up we have made room on our schedule and are happy to arrive in style.

Which leads me to…

Industry Tip # 29
If you don’t ask, you don’t get.

So we’re asking, wouldn’t it be funny if we got? In honor of that possibility I leave you with a past open letter from Tallulah to Lorne Michaels where she was offering to help him out with his challenge when he was be accused of lack of diversity. 🙂

We hope to see you at the Festival!!!

A Word About Fashion From The Girl Who Wears Flip Flops

Holly Payberg

Meme_S2E4_1Admittedly, what I know about fashion is not much. In fact, up until about 2 years ago, I sort of saw it as a nuisance. I was the girl who secretly envied Einstein for his choice to not deal with it by purchasing 5 of the exact same suits and essentially wearing the same thing every day. I was “busy” and if I’m really really honest, didn’t see the point in spending so much time on a pursuit I saw as shallow and meaningless.

But yet here we are, 2 years later, and I am about to leave for New York to attend the Women & Fashion FilmFest and She Webfest where, not one, but, two of the projects I’m involved with (Feathers and Toast & Velvet Karma) are being honored. And yes, you heard me correctly, its the Women & Fashion FilmFest. LOL.

How did that happen? Why did they let me, the imposter, in? Well, it all started with the influence of two very lovely ladies.

First there was our own Mhairi Morrison, who, through Tallulah, showed me repeatedly by example that fashion has the power to lift the spirits of not only yourself, but those around you. I have been a first hand witness to the countless joy that has been shared with perfect strangers simply because Mhairi is willing to take the time to pick out and then wear so many beautiful and bold hats.

And then second, I had the opportunity this past year to work closely with my dear friend, jewelry designer Tarina Tarantino. After witnessing the love and creativity Tarina puts into every piece she creates, my view on fashion changed forever.

Not only does Tarina care deeply about what she creates, she also cares about where she gets her materials (she opts to purchase top quality materials from local vendors), cares about her employees (who work directly with her at the Sparkle Factory), and most especially she cares about her customers, whom she genuinely wants to help feel beautiful by offering them a myriad of unique, and eye catching ways to express themselves.

Through Mhairi and Tarina I have learned that fashion can be fun, creative, conscious, giving and inspiring. I now understand that designers and fashion enthusiasts are fellow creatives like me, who are constantly looking for unique ways to express themselves and make the world a more inspiring place. And I have learned that my purchases are far more powerful than I had ever imagined, that where I put my money is essentially placing my vote towards which designers, corporations and practices I want to support. Shallow and meaningless? Not by a long shot.

Don’t get me wrong, I still walk into stores and panic, feeling a bit clueless about where to even begin. So many years of neglect do not get remedied over night. But I would classify myself now, as a student, eager and willing to learn about this thing called Fashion. I might even let go of a few of my flip flops. (But don’t tell Tallulah 🙂 )

Which leads me to…

Industry Tip #28

Always be open to learning new things. Inspiration can come from the places you’d least suspect.

In the next blog I will share more about some of our itinerary for our trip to NYC (Nov 12th – 14th) including which panels and screenings we will be attending at the Women & Fashion Film Fest, in case of any of you want to join us. We would love to see you there.

And without further ado, for your viewing pleasure, here’s a #TBT Tallulah Talks Back episode where Tallulah warns our viewers that she doesn’t want any of them wearing crocs while watching our show.

Stop What You’re Doing and Eat a Sandwich

Holly Payberg

Meme_S1E6_9Alright so I was going to write to you today about how excited Mhairi and I are for our upcoming trip to the Big Apple, but as it turns out that is going to have to wait because it’s National Sandwich Day people!!!

This day is our opportunity to show our support and wrap a proverbial hug around all our sandwich loving friends and those who make the sandwiches for them. These are the people who will help us in our mission to “Save The World One Sandwich at a Time” and we simply can not just gloss by that.

Not after all the effort Tallulah has put in to helping people prepare themselves a proper sandwich and look good while doing it. I mean, look at all the sandwiches she has shared with us. There was the good ole PB & J with neon, the travel Pita with a pencil skirt, the left handed banana sandwich with a side of gloating, the Ham Sandwich thwarted by a Can Can dancer, and who could forget the classic Tomato Soup Sandwich in the style of melodrama (she researched that).

No darling, Tallulah would want us to stop whatever we were doing, pop open the champagne and take the proper time to offer up a toast to all the well dressed, peace spreading, sandwich lovers everywhere! And so that is what we are doing. To all you glorious sandwich makers and eaters across the country, we salute you! Happy #NationalSandwichDay

Which leads me to…

Industry Tip #27

In the social media game, if you can find an organic way to jump in on what is trending, then do it. Trends come and go quick, and if you don’t make a few quick adjustments once in awhile, you’re gonna miss out.

So now we have to ask: what sandwich will you be eating today? And what outfit will you be wearing while eating it?

And without further ado, in honor of #NationalSandwichDay we leave you with the Classic Tomato Soup Sandwich in the style of Melodrama.

This Gifs For You, Kid

Holly Payberg

Happy HalloweenIt seems emoticons and gifs, and gifs acting as emoticons, are all the rage these days so Mhairi and I decided, why not get in on the action? Sounds like fun right?

 

 

 

 

Espresso dance

 

 

We toasted to the whole brilliant idea, giving ourselves verbal high fives and then I was off and running.

 

 

Laughing2

 

 

Figured I’d just whip a few of them out that afternoon and be off to the rest of my to do list. How hard could it be right?

 

 

Swimming

 

Yeah it was kinda hard. The next thing I knew I was literally swimming in choices on the web of different ways to go about making an animated gif using video.

 

 

 

 

Chicken

 

I was definitely not the eagle, more like a chicken with my head cut off, as I jumped back and forth from one tutorial to the other. Some apps had audio, some had the ability for captions, some you could only use via a social media site. None had everything.

 

 

Shocked

 

For a moment there I was shocked. Nothing seemed to be the exact tool that I wanted. Can I really not figure this out. A whole day and 1/2 was chewed up and I still didn’t have the results I wanted.

 

 

 

 

ughhh copy

I got down right pissed when I realized that, even though there were plenty of apps that made it is easy to make gifs (like Make a Gif – which allows you to create gifs straight from your youtube videos) the only way to accomplish what I really wanted (which was to brand these gifs in a certain way) I was gonna have to go back to the drawing board and make them myself in premiere.

 

 

 

Melodrama

 

This was gonna take so much longer than I had planned on. Why me?

 

 

 

 

 

Elevator
But I got over it. Decided to just dive on in there and do it.

 

 

 

 

 

Bow of course

 

 

And the next thing you know I couldn’t stop myself. I had a treasure trove of new gifs to share. It was totally worth the effort as it was gonna be so much fun!

 

 

Which leads me to…

Industry Tip #26
Branded, shareable gifs are a win win in the game of promotion because they offer a fun way for your fans to express themselves, while still promoting yourself as well.

And without further ado, I leave with the good news that all these gifs are yours to use as you wish. If you want to tweet them or upload them to a blog, all you have to do is click on them individually, and then right click on them to save as to your computer, then you upload them whenever and where ever you want.

Or if you want to use them on facebook then simply click on the one you want and then copy the url that appears above on your browser window, then paste the URL into your FB post and you got it.

 

 

Thanks_Darling
We can’t wait to see the gifs spread out into the world. Happy sharing!

 

 

 

 

 

Excuse me

 

Although next time I might make Mhairi do it on her own.

 

 
Melodrama cat shortWith a cat. 🙂

How to Meme Your Way To Success: Halloween Edition

Holly Payberg

Meme_3_SquareI honestly can not stress enough the importance of having a great Photographer on your team.

As independent content creators fighting your way to be seen amidst an overcrowded marketplace of amazing talent, sometimes an image is the only shot you’ve got at getting your potential audiences attention, so that image better be good. And if its share worthy, you’re in business.

Luckily for us we have the amazing Katie Nolan on our team. As often is the case with us, Katie walked right into our lives at the exact moment we needed her. Fresh from Australia she became the photographer behind images I truly believe will become iconic collector’s items someday. I realize I may be biased, but these images genuinely blow me away and I feel fortunate every time I get to post them.

While I am gushing on Katie, I just have to say, not only is she an amazing photographer, but she also understands the unique needs of independent web content creators, and has an eye for both set and graphic design. She was instrumental in helping us create all the collateral we have needed over time from Memes, to Movie posters, to social media headers and even greeting cards. I guess what I’m saying is, if you have a budget and need a stills photographer who gets it, hire Katie. Her work is the gift that keeps on giving.

We started working with Katie right around this time 2 years ago when Mhairi and I had decided that Tallulah really should do a series sharing her Top 10 Tidbits of advice for getting through the Holiday Season. I mean, who can get through the holidays without the help of Tallulah, right? 😉

Anyway, Katie was amazing. She came in and helped us transform the infamous kitchen multiple times over to reflect all the holidays of the season and then tirelessly weeded through the bounty of images we got, and turned them into the Memes and greeting cards we will be sharing with you again over the next couple months. (as well as all the photos we have ever shared with you.)

And this leads me to…

Industry Tip #25

Often times you only have a literal second to grab a potential audience members attention, therefore share worthy Memes are a necessity for independent content creators, and to pull them off properly you are going to need an excellent photographer.

And now, in honor of Halloween, I give you a one minute tip from Tallulah on how to carve a pumpkin. Happy Halloween everybody. We love you!!

Sometimes Its Good To Eat a Little Humble Pie, with a Poached Egg

feathersandtoast

Meme_S2E7_1Sometimes as artists, we can get so consumed by the difficulty of our chosen path, so deep in the pain of just wanting to get our work out into the world the way we want it, that we forget that the executives are not just some crazy gate keeper trolls wielding their judgements and standing in the way of our ultimate success, but rather are just people, with their own expertise to share, difficulties to face and goals to achieve.

It’s kind of like that phenomena that occurs between parents of young children, where each is working so hard in their own way and is so exhausted, that all they can see is what the other is not doing. They get caught up in the never ending spin cycle of trying to prove who is doing the “most”, or whose contribution is more important, instead of what is really needed, which is to turn to each other and just say “hey, I know this is hard, but you’re doing a great job.”

Which leads me to…

Industry Tip #22

Give an entertainment exec a hug. I’m kidding. You might frighten them. You weird creatives running around giving everyone a hug. The real tip is to make friends with the executives. Get to know them. Take an interest in their goals, hopes, dreams, concerns. Familiarize yourself with the challenges they face and be the solution. Make it fun. Be willing to learn something.

The age old battle between art and commerce doesn’t have to be a battle. We are creatives. If we’re doing our job right we should be able to create the art we want while still considering the legitimate concerns of commerce. If we can’t do it, then maybe its just not the right fit is all.

So without further ado, I leave you with Episode 7 of Season 2. The one where Tallulah starts to realize maybe Holster and her ideas weren’t so bad after all, and that maybe its time to eat a little humble pie and woo her back.