Studio Update

Stations 2 and 3 have been operational and two producers so far have been assisted. One was a new producer doing their show for the first time. This producer wanted to video an event for his first show coming up on Access and missed the regularly scheduled workshop (second Monday of each month at Lincoln Library Bicentennial Room) so he made an appointment at Studio 2 for a special workshop to use the Camera remote kit to video his first show.

The second producer made an appointment at Studio 3 at the public library to go over the use of Sony Vegas and all went well.

In each case, be it the library Station 3 or Station 2 at 619 S. 4th, it is necessary to take the remote kit workshop and/or to have an appropriate individual go over basic details of editing with Vegas. Without this knowledge (which includes the password for getting on the computer at station 3) you will find it difficult to do your show. A4PG requires that you take the remote kit workshop before you check out the camera, but going over use of the computer at Station 3 at the public library is necessary in order to log on as you need the password and need to know where to create your show folder.

Access Magazine

We took some time off working on Access magazine during the holidays but production has resumed and new shows will be airing in the coming weeks. They will include coverage of the Music for Manning in Douglas Park from October 20th and several musical performances, and interview with Secretary General Rasmussen of NATO, and 3T: Glaze (which includes an interview with Chanell Bradbury).

Second Camera Purchased

We purchased a second Kodak Playtouch camera in case something happens to the main one in the remote kit and so that either two can be checked out or while one is being checked out the other can be used for Access Magazine. The next purchases will be made in order to put together a new remote kit so that there will be two complete kits. In each will be a wide angle lens and two lavalier mics, so this means we will be purchasing another wide angle lens and three more lavaliers.

New Calendar 

A new calendar has been set up so that everyone can check on the dates for future fundraisers, workshops, and when the remote kit is checked out. To go to the calendar, click here or at the top left of the page where it says “calendar.”

Board Meeting

We held our annual board meeting in January and ideas were had regarding the next fundraiser which will possibly happen in March, stay tuned.

__

As always, to set up an appointment or to ask questions, please call (217)691-1301 or email to info[at]a4pg[dot]org

At our last few meetings we have amended the by-laws and made progress on the use of the remote kit. We have formulated rules for using the kit and have held two hands-on sessions with the kit directly after the last two meetings. At the last hands-on session, board member Brian Crowdson properly attached the wide-angle lens to the camera and surveyed the equipment for the first time since itemizing it for purchase last winter. Now that we have the kit, a bag and a tripod, we are ready to learn how it integrates with the editing station.

Logo designed by Matt Schultz.

Brian will be bringing the iMac from the editing station to the August meeting. After the business meeting at 6pm, we will go over shooting video with the camera and getting it over to iMovie and Final Cut right there in the Bicentennial Room at the Lincoln Public Library. The public is welcome.

We also approved the proposal for our next fundraiser now that we have sorted things with the Attorney General’s office and are legal and registered to solicit funds and donations in the State of Illinois. The fundraiser will be at Tin Can Pub on Saturday, August 25th. There is a FaceBook Event Page for the event if you are on FaceBook and you can get there by clicking this link.

Editing Station

A4PG Board Member Brian Crowdson of Crowdson and Company has the editing equipment set up along with the pieces that we needed to purchase: an external hard drive and an editing table for the computer and hard drive to be placed on. The station is set up in Brian’s office on 1999 Wabash Ave. Suite 203, Springfield, IL 62704.

(Website: http://www.IMakeTV.com)

Here is a word from Brian:

“For now, the editing station will be by appointment only, and there is no guarantee of availability. It will be available only when I or one of my employees is scheduled to be in my office. Email me for an appointment - brian[at]imaketv[dot]com.”

By-Laws Amended

Several details have been voted on regerding slight changes in our by-laws, namely that officers will hold their positions for three years before elections. Other details include issues regarding the Board and the Officers, membership dues, and how the elections are handled. Essentially, the membership nominates candidsates and the current Board elects the new Officers and they in turn appoint new Board Members.

A4PG Hour Long Show

Approval has been given by the city to schedule an hour long program produced by the A4PG. Portions of the content plus various PSAs will be available on the editing station hard drive for other producers to use.

More at the next meeting . . .

STAy tUNed!

…………

Annual Election

This year’s officers have been elected and are as follows:

Ted Keylon – President
Cameron Counts – Vice President
Meredith Dumyahn – Secretary
Danny Hicks – Treasurer
Irma Wallace – Assistant Secretary
Bhikkhu Mahunda – Assistant Treasurer

Meeting Night Changed to Second Monday of Each Month

In the time left after the election, the general group expessed interest in changing the meeting night to the second Monday of each month instead of the second Wednesday to allow for more of the church producers to come since Wednesday night is a church night for many. The first meeting on Mondays will be in July on July 11th in the Bicentennial room.

Production Committee

Brian Crowdson, Lisa Hensley, and Darryl Moore are making plans to set up the editing station at Brian’s place of business. It was suggested at the last meeting that we set up a workshop on how to use the editing softeare on that station as well as how to go about acquiring a camera and editing software for PCs for producers that want to have a cheap personal alternative and a workshop will be set up for that as well.

More at the next meeting . . .

STAy tUNed!

…………

501c3 Status Acquired

Congratulations Producers! We finally have our 501 c3 Determination Letter! The IRS has finished the final approval of our status and we are very happy to say we are now a full-fledged 501 c3!

Public Posting of By-laws

There has been some interest in knowing the content of our by-laws so at the last meeting it was agreed to post them publicly on the site so here they are: By-laws.

Editing Station Set-up

Brian Crowdson has offered to set up an editing station at his business with the equipment received from the old Comcast studio. It will be available during daily business hours and there will be no support or instruction provided by Brian or his employees so in order to use the station, you will have to possess some knowledge of video editing.

More information on the type of software you need to learn about and which producers that will assist you will be posted here when the information is available.

Brian is working on testing the equipment and setting up the station and will have the results when he is finished and it will be posted here.

STAy tUNed!

…………

Fundraiser 5 UPDATE

The FUNraiser was a big success. We raised $361 after expenses.

For the first fundraiser of the season it was very well attended and everyone had a blast. A4PG would like to thank Babbling Brooke for the Hula Hooping and the Hula Hoops, Steve Sowers and everyone at Maldaner’s, Casey Cantrall for doing sound, Mandy Saia Magill for bringing bake sale bags full of chocolate and homemade “healthy” chocolate chip cookies, her own photographs for donation and sale, and watching the space while artists dropped off their artwork.

Thanks to artists Chris Martin, Matt Schultz, Melanie Edmonson, Michael LaFrance, Tom Kelly, and Jenifer Snopko. Thanks to the Legendary Clampetts, Long Story Short, and Hot Bag O’ Donuts (you all know who you all are), thanks to community producers Tom Schafer (for donating a huge spread of free food), Pamela Woodson (for handing the 50/50 raffle), and Archer Logan (for running the donation box at the entrance).

If we have left anyone out, please let us know.

Below are the details about the show . . .

The next fundraiser is going to be at 7:00 P.M. to Midnight on Friday, February 25th at Maldaner’s Upstairs in downtown Springfield. The entertainment will be provided byHot Bag O’ Donuts , Long Story Short, Bük and The Legendary Clampetts. There will be a cash bar. There will be no cover and all ages are welcome.

Thanks to Greg Bishop and Kirk Farah of WMAY, John Reynolds at the State Journal-Register, Patrick Yeagle and Tom Irwin of Illinois Times for all helping get the word out in local media about public media.

Thanks to Tom Schafer of the Shooting Sport for chipping in with some Maldaner’s catering for the first 50 people to show up!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

***

Access 4 Producers Group FUNraiser 5 
Date: Friday 2/25/11, 7pm to midnight
Place: Maldaner’s Upstairs, 222 S. 6th St., Springfield, IL
Contact: Ted Keylon, (217)691-1301

Admission is FREE
The Access 4 Producers Group FUNraiser 5 will be held to help raise funds for the community producer’s non profit organization to assist them in their quest to provide production and advocacy for the producers.

There will be a lot of room so many events are planned. There will be a Hula Hoop Workshop by Babbling Brooke during the music, a 50/50 raffle, a silent auction, and an art sale and exhibit featuring a number of local artists.

The restaurant will be open downstairs, but there will also be food for sale upstairs by Cameron Counts and perhaps some potluck items as well including Maldaner’s catering for the first 50 people to arrive courtesy of Tom Schafer of the Shooting Sport.

The music schedule will feature The Legendary Clampetts at 8pm, Long Story Short at 9pm, Hot Bag O’ Donuts at 10pm and Bük at 11pm.

All sales of food, the raffle, and silent auction will go to the FUNraiser with the exhibiting artists giving 20% of their sales to the cause.

For more information please go to http://www.access4.tv/ or email toinfo@a4pg.org or call event organizer Ted Keylon if you have any questions at (217) 691-1301.

***

Equipment

The Equipment Comittee was authorized at the last meeting to sell a pice of equipment that we do not need for productions but was included with the equipment we received. The money from this sale will go towards the purchase of the piece wil still need to do productions.

PO Box

A Post Office box was purchased for six months. This will go on our letterhead. Now we have the ability to accept donations in check form written to “Access 4 Producers Group” (no apostrophé) and sent to:

Access 4 Producers group
POB 5214
Springfield, IL 62705

STAy tUNed!

…………

Round Up

At recent full group meetings it was agreed upon to wait until after the New Year to plan any further fundraising events. In the meantime we are open to suggestions for venue possibilities. We have some in mind that offer accessibility and some that are not in bars. We could still use some more suggestions.

The equipment is still being stored by Brian Crowdson and an Equipment Committee was formed to look into the exact cost of what we still need as well as to put together a simple set of instructions for producers on the least expensive and complicated way to set up your own home studios.

The 501 c3 paperwork and final fees were submitted which left us with $777 in our account. By the New Year we should know whether or not we were accepted and possibly what else we need to do. With the certification we will be privy to many more fundraising opportunities as well as looking forward to another year of our events where we spotlight local talent.

We encourage other producers with cameras to be on site for as many of these events as possible to get footage that can be used for fundraising DVDs and as material for other producer’s shows.

Please come to the next meeting the first Wednesday of January and let us know your ideas and what you might be able to do to help. The master list of producers is being put together so that we can keep as many producers informed as possible. We also do not want to give out anyone’s personal contact information without permission so we are trying to be careful with the list.

We know we have a pool of talents within the community producers and if we can work together we can get some more shows produced until we can get a down payment on a year’s lease for a studio.

Please also know that you do not have to be a producer to come to a meeting and help out with this cause. Whether you want to become a full member of our group or just help, your ideas and concerns are welcome at our full group meetings.

STAy tUNed!

…………

The 501 c3 process for the Access 4 Producers Group is currently stalled but well in the process. Due to problems related to the flood and other issues involving some members of the newly elected board here in Springfield, we have stalled on meetings, web maintenance, and the 501 c3 application submission.

However, the Secretary has the $50 filing fee and has gone through the arduous task of filling out the application form which will all be turned in next. The President and the Treasurer will then go to the bank which we have chosen (US Bank downtown) and submit a copy of our minutes from the meeting wherein the principle officers were elected, along with our FEIN number and open a bank account for the group.

The Treasurer will then deposit all the money from the previous two fundraisers, which amounts to the better part of a thousand dollars at this point–prior to the main payment for the 501 c3 status–and the group will be able to accept checks in the name: Access 4 Producers Group (no apostrophé) as well as be able to pay out of the account for expenses.

Fundraisers

The fundraisers were very successful in terms of what we could do before getting our non-profit status. Another thanks to all who helped at both of them, especially to Alan Perry who is stepping it up a notch in the planning of the next fundraiser, coming up faster than expected on July 24th upstairs at Broadway Nites.

Alan hosts a comedy showcase every Wednesday at Broadway downstairs, and was responsible for the comedians at the first fundraiser upstairs. This time he has planned a runway show with models ranging in age from 11 to 30-something, strutting there stuff in between sets by local bands and musicians who support cable access. There will be a 50/50 drawing and other raffles including a possible “spin” painting by local painter, Michael J. Mayosky.

Here is the press release, schedule, and poster text and graphic on this HTML page and in various formats below for your convenience:

[Press Release - PDF] – [Schedule - PDF]
[Press Release - Word Doc] – [Schedule - Word Doc]
[Press Release - Rich Text] – [Schedule - Rich Text]

[Poster - JPG] [Poster - PDF]

***

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Access 4 Producers Group Fundraiser 3

Runway Show/Art Exhibition/Concert/Comedy Show
Date: Saturday, July 24th, 2010
Place: Broadway Nites, Upstairs, 210 Broadway, Springfield, IL
Contact: Phone (217) 691-1301

This will be the third fundraiser that the Access 4 Producers group has held to raise funds for a physical space and for 501 c3 filing fees. It will be hosted by Alan Perry and held upstairs at Broadway Nites at 210 Broadway in Springfield, IL, and will feature a runway show with models, comedians, musicians and artists.

The comedians performing include (in this order) Tree Sanchez from St. Louis, Sarah Smertz from Springfield (Local WDBR personality), Kathy Zeman from St. Louis, Rich Mansfield.

There will be 3 runway segments by Shawnee Studios Model and Talent Management featuring vintage clothing, Asian styles and the original designs of Lisa Clemons and Amy Walden. Among the many fine models that have passed an audition and grueling rehearsal schedule will be Prairie Art Alliance Gallery II Assistant, Gallery Girl Jennifer Snopko.

The musicians featured include Hat Trick featuring Dave Leach, Hot Bag O’ Donuts, The Missing Muse, and Molten Crunch (featured on Arjuna Records’ compilation).

The art exhibit will be curated by Gallery Girl Jennifer Snopko and each artist will donate 40% of any sales to the Producers Group. Artists Felicia Olin and Melanie Edmonson will both be painting live at the event and their paintings will be sold as well.

Michael J. Mayosky will create one of his famous “spin-paintings” on site which will be raffled off. The other raffles will include a 50/50 raffle and an Arbonne Basket of skin care products donated by Shawnee.

Below is the tentative schedule of events:

8:00 PM to 8:30 PM
Alan Perry Intro (30 minutes) 10 minutes of songs. Musical Number with Libby Roth (last 5 Minutes) 8:30 PM to 8:35 PM Runway segment #1 (5 minutes)

8:35 PM to 8:45 PM
Comedian #1 Tree Sanchez [St. Louis] (10 Minutes)

8:45 PM to 8:55 PM
Comedian #2 Sarah Smertz (10 Minutes)

8:55 PM to 9:00 PM
50/50 RAFFLE (5 minutes)

9:00 PM to 9:05 PM
Runway segment #2 (5 minutes)

9:05 PM to 9:35 PM
Comedian #3 Kathy Zemon [St. Louis] (30 Minutes)

9:35 PM to 9:40 PM
Runway segment #3 (5 minutes)

9:40 PM to 10:10 PM
Comedian #4 Rich Mansfield [Chatham] (30 Minutes)

10:10 PM to 10:20 PM
Alan Perry: Announcements and 50/50 drawing.

10:20 PM to 11:20 PM
Hat Trick (1 Hour)

11:20 PM-11:30 PM
Alan Perry/Announcements/raffle (10 Minutes)

11:30 PM to 12:30 AM
Hot Bag of Donuts (1 Hour)

12:30 AM-12:40 AM
Alan Perry/Announcements/raffle (10 Minutes)

12:40 AM to 1:40 AM
The Missing Muse (1 Hour)

1:40 PM to 1:50 PM
Alan Perry/Announcements/raffle (10 Minutes)

1:50 AM to 2:50 AM
Molten Crunch (1 Hour)

2:50 AM to 3:00 AM
Alan Perry/Announcements/raffle (10 Minutes)

http://www.access4.tv/

(217)691-1301

***

The Equipment and Programing

Everyone who stops along the dial at channel 4 knows the programming has not yet resumed. At our last meeting with Ernie Slottag at the Municipal Building, he estimated that the time until the channel would be running again would be two weeks, and since that amount of time has more than elasped, the city is reported to have said the time is now “this Summer.”

To the city’s credit, the equipment was not in tip top shape when they got it. The dismantling and hauling couldn’t have helped the gear at all, but the techs said the equipment was not in working order when they hooked it up and tried to go live. Those who watched the channel during the tests heard the audio fizzle out and finally go away leaving only the images.

Ernie assured us in a delegation meeting that the data was backed up and the equipment was then decommissioned. The Council approved a request for budget appropriation and then bids were taken to replace the live server. A bid was selected, the server configuration meeting the needs of the channel was decided upon, and the order was placed.

But still no programming yet.

At the time of our last delegation meeting with Ernie, they were expecting the equipment to arrive in two weeks. We have not heard yet if it has arrived.

Speaking of equipment, the fate of that which was given to the city by Comcast, then given to CACC by the city, still remains to be seen. CACC Director Cindy Stover says that she feels that we should have it for our studio–if we can secure a physical space–and that, pending board approval, they would just give it to us. If the board does not agree, she says they reserve the right to keep the equipment even if we decide not to continue production at CACC TV studio.

The insurance requirements needed to continue the use of CACC TV are far out of reach for any single producer and doubtful for the Producers Group. A copy of the requirements will be read and discussed at the next A4PG board meeting, yet to be announced.

In our meeting with Ernie, he said the equipment would have to be returned to them if we cannot continue production at CACC TV.

…………