TOKYO BELOW

A few weeks ago I found a website for an independent DV documentary called TOKYO BELOW. I ordered a copy of the DVD from the director, James R. Petix, and finally got my copy yesterday. The short takes a look at the Tokyo underground rock scene, and we are introduced to a few bands. The documentary itself is nice, and I like how a lot of it is presented in splitscreen, which gives us lots of visuals to look at. It’s a nice little walkthrough of Tokyo. The DVD itself has the documentary (around 24 minutes I think), plus a commentary track, band videos, outakes, which all makes for a nice package. What really impresses me is how all this was done independently, which shows how the DV age is really giving us access to quality video packaging. I’ve also been interested in producing short documentaries, but right now it’s mostly the computer side of things that’s preventing me from editing anything I tape (lack of HD space mostly, but a new iMac with a Superdrive that lets me burn DVDs is what I’m really looking at to replace my iBook as soon as I can afford it).

Check out the site for more info on the video, short clips, and contact info to order it.