News
Press Release
Dates: September 29, 2007 / October 7, 2007
Maxine Davis’ newest documentary short, “We Never Talked About It,” is included in a select group of filmmakers whose work will be seen on:
The “Greatest Generation Showcase,” a 60-minute program which was developed in conjunction with the TPT broadcast of the Ken Burns documentary “The War.”
Maxine’s short will premiere with four others, on TPT 17 on Saturday, September 29 at 8 pm. and TPT 2 on Sunday, October 7 at 10:00 pm.
Date: June 2007
Publication: Minneapolis-St. Paul Magazine
Maxine Davis
By Katie Derdoski
Who: Maxine Davis, documentarian. After working in TV news, film-location management, and information science, she launched Every Life Is a Story, a company that makes documentary-style movies to record family histories. She won the Best Exploration of an Intergenerational Legacy award in the Minnesota Historical Society competition and a Telly for her first short documentary, A Good Doctor, which was shown at the Mpls./St. Paul International Film Festival.
Action: “The Minnesota Historical Society held an open competition for a ten-minute documentary on the ‘Greatest Generation.’ I chose my mother’s doctor, Raymond Scallen. He’s a remarkable gentleman who saved my mother’s life. I asked him to do a video, but he declined. So I bought a bottle of Irish whiskey, knocked on his door, and asked, ‘Now will you do the movie?’ ”
Behind the Scenes: “It turned into a treasure trove when I started digging. His father’s hobby was photography, and there were thousands of gorgeous photos—he even shot film back in the 1930s!”
Backstory: “History is always important. It has a great value to me, and I think I’m not alone … . I have faith in history.”
Cast of Characters: “I always get attached! Sometimes initially I don’t know how we’re going to tell the story, but if you listen, there’s always something. People’s lives, no matter how small or grand, lived a life of humor, pain, hope, grief—a full life.”
Lights: “When I won the Minnesota Historical Society award, I was bewildered and very happy. I thought, ‘Maybe I can tell people’s stories.’ It made me sort of authentic.”
Camera: “I think I had my calling—my research background and intense interest in history makes a great visual story. I love to find pictures the family doesn’t even have or know exists. I got my master’s in information science and I love to do research.”
Tellyvision: “I sent A Good Doctor in to sort of see if it was up to the quality I wanted it to be. I won the bronze Telly, and now my goal, of course, is to get the gold!”
Happy Ending: “The Greatest Generation has a lot of meaning to people, and we are losing their stories. The baby boomers are suddenly seeing the importance of their elders or their own traditions. The triple generation thing is happening, and that won’t happen again for a while.”
To inquire about Every Life Is a Story, contact Davis at 612-871-5610 or tellyourhistory.com.
Website:
Mpls-St. Paul Magazine
Maxine Davis’ film “A Good Doctor” to be shown as part of the Documentaries Program in the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Film Festival
Time: Monday, April 23rd - 7:15 pm
Location: Oak Street Cinema
Website:
Minneapolis/Saint Paul International Film Festival
For immediate release
Contact: Maxine W. Davis,
maxinedavism@aol.com
Phone: 612-871-5610
Maxine W. Davis, of Every Life is a Story LLC, Minneapolis, MN wins award in 28th Annual Telly Awards from a record breaking pool of entries
Minneapolis, MN (March 27, 2007) The Winners of the 28th Annual Telly Awards have been announced. With a record 13,379 entries from all 50 states and around the world, this year’s competition has been the most competitive and successful in the long history of the Telly Awards.
Again, Maxine Davis, of Every Life is a Story LLC, has been awarded for “A Good Doctor,” a video produced for the Minnesota Historical Society.
Founded in 1979, the Telly Awards is the premier award honoring outstanding local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions
This year’s Winners include companies, agencies and organizations of all sizes, from large multinational media companies to small ad agencies and local production houses.
A prestigious judging panel of 27 accomplished industry professionals, each a past Winner of a Silver Telly, the top honor, upholds the historical standard of excellence that Telly represents.
Chairman of the judging panel, Richard Friley, the Emmy and Telly Award winning President of Friley Productions noted, “I am honored to have overseen this year’s judging and privileged to review such diverse and incredible work. It is a remarkable achievement for all of the Winners to be recognized from such an outstanding pool of entries.”
For more information on Every Life is a Story LLC, check the web at:
www.tellyourhistory.com
Nov 17, 2006
Piecing it all together
By Dan Haugen
featured in the Southwest Journal
Linden Hills filmmaker documents personal histories for families
A gray photo of a young boy, necktie wildly flapping across his white collar shirt, gravitates toward the screen.
As his shoulders fill the frame, a soft fade brings viewers to the same boy seven decades later, in full color, recalling his younger days for an interviewer.
His tie now neatly hung between sides of a gray sport coat, Dr. Raymond Scallen tells the camera about growing up in Southwest, going off to fight in World War II and coming home to practice medicine.
Scallen, born in 1925, is the subject of a new short, personal history documentary by Linden Hills resident Maxine Davis called “A Good Doctor.” The Minnesota Historical Society recently awarded the film “Best Exploration of an Intergenerational Legacy” in an annual contest as part of its Minnesota’s Greatest Generation Project.
“A Good Doctor” is also an example of what Davis, a longtime film production and location manager, hopes to cultivate into a successful small businesses: the family video biography.
“Once our elders are gone, some of these stories are just going to be gone,” Davis said.
She interviewed her 90-year-old mother a couple of years ago about her life growing up in Sioux Falls, S.D. for her first video biography.
“I thought, you know, I’d like to keep my mother’s story alive,” she said.
She then collected family photographs and sought out historical images to accompany her mother’s words.
The finished product, a short, television-style biography of her mother, was eventually circulated to family and friends, whose reactions were enthusiastic.
“People came to me and said, ‘This is really cool.’,” Davis said. “Then I thought, this could be a good business, telling people’s histories.”
Her fledgling film company, Every Life Is a Story, has produced four more since then.
Barbara Rubin-Greenberg watched the video Davis produced about her mother and decided to hire Davis to tell her own parents’ story.
“We wanted their story for ourselves and future generations,” Rubin-Greenberg said.
“She interviewed them both intensely about their history, how they met, their values, their stories,” Rubin-Greenberg said.
It was research after the interviews that made the film “extraordinarily unique,” she said.
Davis collected old family photos and movies, interviewed Rubin-Greenberg and her siblings, and then sought out more images from historical societies and museums.
She found photos of places her parents lived and worked, maps of tiny towns where grandparents came from, a photo of a shoe store where her mother worked.
“It was really pretty amazing, and all in 18 minutes,” Rubin-Greenberg said. “My kids said when they watched that it’s like watching a documentary on PBS. It is so professional and so like what you would see on television.”
Rubin-Greenberg, her siblings and parents split the cost of the production, which includes filming, research, writing time as well as fees for obtaining music and photos.
Even though digital video equipment has become more available, producing films is still a laborious effort, from shooting to writing and editing to manufacturing. Davis said people should expect to pay at least $1,000 for a small project.
Video biographies have existed for decades, but the accessibility of digital video cameras and editing equipment has helped spawn a new generation of personal history producers.
Perry Cowen, owner of Once Upon a Time Video Productions of Maple Grove, said he’s been producing video biographies for about two decades. He estimated there were at least 20 companies in Minnesota doing some kind of family history video projects.
“The less expensive companies sometimes put a photo montage to music and call it a biography,” Cowen said.
It’s also possible to do it yourself with a basic digital camcorder and free editing software.
“If you just want the basics, you can do it yourself,” Cowen said.
Written family histories can provide more detail, but video biographies allow an entire family to share an experience at the same time, children and grandparents gathered around a television.
“I feel it’s a privilege to be able to connect these generations,” Davis said.
Dan Haugen can be reached at dhaugen@mnpubs.com or 436-5088.
Nov 9, 2006
Linden Hills film wins award
featured in the Southwest Journal
An award-winning short film by Linden Hills resident Maxine Davis will be shown at 7 p.m. Nov. 15 at the Southdale Public Library.
The video, called “A Good Doctor,” is about Dr. Raymond Scallen, who was born in 1925, grew up in Southwest Minneapolis and is still a practicing physician.
Davis, of Every Life Is a Story LLC, won the Minnesota Historical Society’s award for “Best Exploration of an Intergenerational Legacy.”
Applications are already being accepted for next year’s film competition.
Davis recently started a company to produce family video biographies, ranging from short video interviews to longer productions. She will answer questions at the event about the film and the competition.
“A Good Doctor” plays Nov. 15, 7:00 pm
Southdale Library. 7001 York Ave. S.
Library: 952-847-5900.
Contact Maxine: http://www.tellyourhistory.com