Joe Flood

  • New Article: Tips from Local Photographers

    On Monday night, I attended a panel discussion by local photographers at vitaminwater uncapped live, a popup arts/dance/music party in DC.

    Inspired by the stories of how these photogs got started, I wrote an article for the Pink Line Project on the talk. The photographers on the panel, who work for sites such as Brightest Young Things, DCist, Washingtonian and the Washington Post, all transitioned from amateurs to professionals. They did this not through traditional education but by following their passions. What started out as a hobby for them – taking pictures of things they loved – eventually became careers.

  • Friday Photo: Let's Bike

    in the bike lane at 15th and K

    Washington has done a wonderful job in adding bike lanes throughout the city. These bike-only thoroughfares, like this lane on 15th St NW, have made cycling easier and safer for riders. While I took this picture on Bike to Work Day, this could be any day in DC.

  • Overcoming Writer’s Block

    Mac users at SXSW

    Everyone writes. In this digital age, we’re creating more words than ever. Whether it’s an email to a client, a persuasive blog post or the Great American E-Book, the ability to explain yourself in writing is the critical skill of the Internet era.

    Despite this profusion of words, people often encounter writer’s block when attempting large or significant projects. They can fire off tweets and snarky Facebook comments all day long but their fingers stall when it comes to crafting something that really matters.

    After I wrote my novel Murder in Ocean Hall, the question I got most was, “How?”

    How did I muster up the patience to devote so much time to a single idea? How did I keep at it? How did I overcome the inertia of writer’s block to get started?

    Writer’s block happens to everyone. But it can be overcome. (more…)

  • The Two-Step Plan to Write a Screenplay

    My conclusion...

    I had a chance to speak at a DC Film Salon panel on screenwriting. It was a really interesting session, with lots of great questions from the audience. This is the advice I provided.

    I won the Film DC Screenwriting Competition in 2006 for my feature-length screenplay, Mount Pleasant. Since then, people have asked me about screenwriting, what software I use, if I took classes, etc… How’d I do it?

    It’s simple, really. Just two steps:

    1. Read
    2. Write

     

    (more…)

  • Friday Photo: The View from 5F

    Flying, especially on USAIR, is hellish. Sometimes, however, you get lucky and end up in seat 5F when your flight returns to DCA via the winding western route along the Potomac. It’s like a roller-coaster ride as you turn and bank along the river in the approach to the airport. The plane made a banking right turn, allowing me to capture this shot of Rosslyn from above. I shot this with an iPhone 4 on the HDR setting, then used the “punch” preset in Adobe Lightroom to make it more contrasty.

  • An Art Experiment Gone Wrong

    Agnes in the structure

    My good friend Philippa Hughes is hosting an artist in her home this week. It’s a project called Art is Fear.

    Here’s the description:

    This coming May 2011, for one week, the artist Agnes Bolt will move into the home of the very sociable and curious Philippa Hughes to playfully explore the dynamics between an artist and an art collector. With a naive optimism and subtle social critique the project will manifest itself with a large obtrusive structure situated within Philippa’s home in which the artist will live. The presence of the artist will be impossible to ignore. A series of rules, exercises, communication systems and bonding experiences will dictate the interactions between the two as will video cameras given to both parties. Both are required to follow the rules but mischief and expectations of an open spirited dynamic is highly encouraged.

    A woman living in a bubble? I was intrigued. (more…)

  • Friday Photo: Florida Edition

    New Smyrna Beach, FL. It’s a beautiful wide beach, with sand hard enough that you can ride a bike on.

  • Book Talk: Prohibition in DC

    It’s hard to imagine but booze was once outlawed in DC. The Prohibition era is the subject of a fascinating new book by local author Garret Peck.

    He’s an excellent speaker with an encyclopedic knowledge of the city. I wrote an article for the Pink Line Project about his book talk, where he shared what life was like when Washington was “dry.”

  • Judging the AU VISIONS Short Screenplay Competition

    Recently, I had the opportunity to be a judge for the American University VISIONS Short Screenplay Competition.

    As an AU grad myself, I was glad to help out. VISIONS is an annual competition that seeks the best in documentary, fiction, digital/new media production, screenwriting and photography from AU students and recent alumni. The theme for this year was, “Media That Matters.”

    Joining me in the judging the short screenplay portion of VISIONS were Jon Gann (DC Shorts) and Sheri Ratick Stroud (Women in Film and Video). We read more than 30 scripts, ranging in length from ten to 40 pages. Every script was reviewed by all three of us. We judged the scripts on the following criteria:

    • Originality of Premise
    • Visual Originality
    • Story
    • Dramatic Structure
    • Characterization
    • Dialogue
    • Style/Format
    • The screenplay fits within the theme “Making Media Matter”

    liberty road screenshot

    We selected Liberty Road by Jason Fraley as the winner. Set at a crab shack on the Eastern Shore, it’s a timely story about people on the margins of life. With its depiction of the economic struggles of ordinary folks, it fit in well with the “media that matters” theme. I liked the strong characterization in the script – these were real people – as well as the dialogue, which was punchy and original.

    I was glad to give back to my alma mater, as well as help out the “AU mafia” of filmmakers, several of whom have been finalists in DC Shorts. It makes this International Relations major happy to see AU students doing something fun and creative.

  • Cheating at Golf Published in Story Bleed Magazine

    The Great Recession has changed the lives of millions. Jobs have been lost, people have been kicked out of their homes, retirement nest eggs have disappeared. Worse than the economic damage, however, has been the loss of hope in the future. Optimism has been replaced by worry and fear.

    Which is what my short story, Cheating at Golf, is all about. Published in Story Bleed Magazine, an online literary journal, this is a dark tale set in sunny Florida. In it, an escape to a golf course brings no relief to a man’s troubles.