A Shoot with Democracy Now!
1. What was the purpose of the live shoot in Telluride, and how did Democracy Now! become involved?
The purpose of the live shoot was to bring Democracy Now!’s broadcast to the Telluride Film Festival in Telluride. The show was screening a new film series at the festival. Democracy Now! is known for taking their show on the road to highlight stories in different communities, and Telluride was an ideal place because of its film festival and technical capacity to host live video streams. Our role was to make sure their live broadcast happen ed smoothly in a untested location.
2. What were your first impressions when you arrived on site — the location, the atmosphere, the people?
Telluride has this incredible combination of natural beauty and community energy. The location we were working in was a beautiful room at the Telluride Science and Innovation Center. It featured a lot of windows with blackout curtains. We turned the overhead lights off to fully control the light and temperature within the space. The room was had a lot of hard surfaces that make sound hollow and bounce. Thankfully the room and surrounding area was quiet. We got to work.
3. What made this production unique compared to your past shoots?
Not much was was new to us. We transformed the space into a fully functional live TV set. That meant everything from camera placement to managing audio in a room not designed for broadcast. Democracy Now! thankfully has an great field producer that was there to assist us with set up.
4. What technical or logistical challenges did you face in setting up for live TV in Telluride’s environment?
The biggest hurdle was finding the right people for the shoot. Telluride and Montrose (where our studio is based) are rural places without many full time video production professionals. With that said, we have enough to get the job done. I hired Telluride locals Stash Wislocki and Patrick Dyar to help with the production. Stash is a seasoned Filmmaker and audio engineer. He was overqualified for the role as audio engineer. Patrick Dyar acted as a camera operator, general AD, and helped with every aspect of production except audio. I hired another Montrose based camera operator as backup in case we needed a 3rd FX6 for a 3 person interview that ended up not happening.
Another complexity for this shoot was connectivity — making sure we had a stable and reliable stream signal out of the mountains. Power distribution and cable runs were easy, since the venue was designed with board electronic usage in mind. The provided encorder was set up for 1080i out, which meant that our cameras would ideally use SDI set at 1080i50fps. With the FX6 this is a simple process. Audio would be sent to the encoder as a separate audio channel. We turned off in camera audio to avoid complications for the downstream technicians at the studio in Washington D.C.
5. How did you and the team solve unexpected problems during the production?
As with any live event, unexpected things should not come up. Honestly, we did very well and had no issues on our side of the production. Everyone stayed calm and focused. It was a great team to be a part of.
6. Can you describe a behind-the-scenes moment that captures the spirit of the day?
There was this moment just before going live when the 5 of us were quietly sitting at our stations, monitoring our kit. Then Amy said “Good morning, this Democracy Now!"“ It reminded us why we do this work — bringing stories to places that matter.
7. What was the energy in the room (or at the event) once the cameras went live?
Once we went live, the room shifted instantly from setup stress to focus and excitement. I was aware that we were part of something being shared far beyond Telluride. For the crew, it was a mix of excitedment and satisfaction — knowing all the moving parts were in place in real time.
8. What was the outcome of the shoot — how did the final broadcast turn out?
The broadcast went off smoothly, which is always the ultimate goal for a live show. The production looked polished despite the challenges of the location, and Democracy Now! was able to deliver their message without technical distractions. Seeing it all come together confirmed the effort was worth it.
9. How did the organization and audience respond to the production?
The team at Democracy Now! was grateful for the technical support that made the broadcast possible in such a unique setting. We were proud to represent our local film community and help spotlight important stories on a national stage. Hearing that combination of appreciation — both from the organization and the viewers — was deeply rewarding.
10. Looking back, what did you personally take away from this experience — as a filmmaker, collaborator, or storyteller?
This project reminded me of the importance of flexibility and teamwork in live production. It was a technical challenge to implement successfully. No matter how much you plan, you always have to be ready to adapt in real time. It was a joy to work with such an experienced and talented team.
Day 2 - Adapted from a 3 FX6, 3 person interview back into a single FX6 shoot.
Our space in the Telluride Science and Innovation Center before set-up.
Our Camera Operator Patrick Dyar filling in for Amy during signal testing.
Local filmmaker and audio engineer Stash Wislocki testing sound and audio levels during set-up. Stash was our over-qualified audio engineer for the shoot.
Greg Cairns and Amy Goodman minutes before live production began on day 1.
The crew after the shoot. Left to right. Stash Winloski, Greg Cairns, Amy Goodman, Patrick Dyar, and Denis Moynihan.