Quoddy Workshop - Lewiston, Maine on Vimeo

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59. Hisham's Hope

by Oliver Wilkins

4 months ago

58. Quoddy Workshop - Lewiston, Maine

by Oliver Wilkins

6 months ago

57. DURHAM - A Living World Heritage Site

by Oliver Wilkins

7 months ago

56. Missing Ingredient

by Oliver Wilkins

11 months ago

55. Return to Tahrir

by Oliver Wilkins

1 year ago

54. Tahrir Square, Cairo, Feb 1 2011

by Oliver Wilkins

1 year ago

53. Fergus & Sharmin

by Oliver Wilkins

1 year ago

52. Handle with Care

by Oliver Wilkins

1 year ago

51. Hassan Fathy's New Gourna

by Oliver Wilkins

1 year ago

50. Bread is Life

by Oliver Wilkins

1 year ago

49. Souk

by Oliver Wilkins

1 year ago

48. Employer Engagement in Cairo

by Oliver Wilkins

1 year ago

47. Um Hashem's Story

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

46. A Look in The Mirror - Planning for School Improvement

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

45. Nagla's Story

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

44. Child Rights Party in Cairo

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

43. Skills for Employability - Cairo

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

42. Masri Mayhem

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

41. Our Health in Our Hands - 2min edit

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

40. Tracing The Past Building Anew - Reviving the Craf…

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

39. Think Twice

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

38. Avian Influenza PSA

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

37. Avian Influenza PSA

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

36. Avian Influenza PSA

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

35. Break the Silence

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

34. Making Of Sotna

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

33. Microstart

by Oliver Wilkins

2 years ago

The Quoddy workshop in Maine is an amazing place, the craftsman are extremely skilled and very friendly and open. Special thanks to Dan for giving such a great insight.

Filmed with a skeleton kit of the 5D with 24-70mm and gorilla pod. Audio recorded onto my iphone with the surprisingly good irig mic. Edited on the Mac book air 11".

quoddy.com

oliverwilkins.com

Credits

957 Likes

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Tags

DevuzData 6 months ago

Excellent work !!
Christopher Morris 6 months ago

Very nice indeed...
karim shaaban 6 months ago

Excellent man Great work as usual
MFD 6 months ago

Incredible, love it!
Matt Brass 6 months ago

Great piece! Great story!
abdelrahman hussien 6 months ago

i like it :)
Kaushik 6 months ago

Great Craftsmanship! Enjoyed this watching. Thanks for sharing.
Rabi Abonour 6 months ago

I really enjoyed the interviews. Good clips, and good audio quality. You got some nice looking shots as well, but I really think you should have shot on a tripod. I shoot handheld a lot in the field, but with a calmer project like this I think it's worth using sticks. You have good shots, but they would look a lot better if they were steady.

I liked the piece a lot overall, but that is the one complaint I have.
Anies Hassan 6 months ago

I understand what you mean but I actually really like the mix between handheld and locked down shots, it works really well. Matter of taste I guess.
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Thanks Rabi and Anies. Unfortunately I'm on the road with minimal kit so no proper tripod. Usually I would probably lock down most of these shots. I quite enjoy the freedom and speed of shooting hand held though, even is shaky.
Rabi Abonour 6 months ago

If you're on the road, then that's perfectly understandable. I actually don't like using tripods, either (especially coming from a photojournalism background where tripods are useless), but I try to force myself to use them because I think it makes a big difference in quality.

Anyways, I did quite like the video. I appreciate that you are willing to accept honest criticism without getting overly defensive.
Vanessa Workman 6 months ago

Great composition and color-correction, but just a little shaky. By the way, although there's plenty of interesting stuff going on in the States, I'm curious, what happened to the International Development work in Egypt?
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Hi Vanessa, I'm just having a summer/ ramadan break from Egypt. I will be back there in september. Really enjoying a bit of travel around the US, hoping to shoot something in SF next week.
David Beglinger 6 months ago

Quite a change from Africa, same deft hand, though. Well done, Oliver.
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Thanks David, it's great to be exploring another part of the world... heading to Reno for breakfast
Chris Allen 6 months ago

WOW that was very inspiring... I've been keen to do some videos on craftsman like this!
Jyri 6 months ago

Excellent short doc again, Oliver!
Olaf Henze 6 months ago

job well done! like it!
Stefan Geens 6 months ago

Makes me want to buy those shoes...
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

they're damn nice shoes
Daniel Gustafsson 6 months ago

I enjoyed it! Good work! :)
Mark Rigler 6 months ago

nice one
Ilyas Curtis 6 months ago

Great Work, makes me want to buy my next pair from them.
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

do, they are worth it
Uli Hesse 6 months ago

Nice one! Love the composition, colours and atmosphere. Very well done!
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Thanks Uli, hope all good
Andonis Anthony 6 months ago

Brilliant!
Visiontime 6 months ago

Very nicely done Oliver. Incredible how in the hands of a talented film maker, even the simplest stories come to life and become all that more interesting.

It's heart warming to see that there are still some craft shops still surviving in the West and that not everything has been relegated to cheap, outsourced, polluting, abusive mass production. Thank you for capturing that and sharing it.
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Thanks Aymen. I agree, it was a real pleasure to walk into a place where such values remain alive. A very vibrant and warm atmosphere. Dan is also a great character and hopefully his sense of humour comes across...
Anies Hassan 6 months ago

I really enjoyed that one. It's refreshing to see a short doc that doesn't need to use music to hide the fact that it is, essentially, boring; just use the natural sounds and voices. Also, shows that you really don't need a super fancy rig to tell a good story and get lovely images. Good job, mate!
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Thanks mate, it definitely would have been nice to spend more time collecting up different sounds. I would have liked to make the start a bit more mysterious with no obvious references to what they do, just curious sounds and images. Unfortunatley beaten by the clock.
Amr Hassanein 6 months ago

very nice, well done
alembic.tv 6 months ago

Hi Oliver - Well i'd totally agree with what Anies said just above. I have to say I just watched the piece and was amazed at the amount of work that goes into making these shoes. Any more stories to come out from the filming you did? It had the feel of a beginning. The filming style was natural and it looks great.
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Hey, thanks for the comment. I would love to return and do a longer piece, Lewiston seemed like a great town with lots of stories. Unfortunately I was in a bit of a rush and had to drive to Montreal in the afternoon. I probably shot for three hours with my very basic travelling kit. I hadn't got any audio kit with me so I bought an irig mic for my iphone - seemed to work OK although not very directional. Gorilla pod pretty good although a bit fiddly to set up, it kind of helps with the hand held too...
alembic.tv 6 months ago

So- what's the story behind the piece - did you get commissioned to make it? Do you know someone who works there?

It's just amazing to see all the work being done by hand in this day and age in Western cultures.

best

mark
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Hey Mark,

No commission - I was passing through Maine and wanted to do a quick short film. I remembered the Quoddy factory was close so dropped them a line - they were very helpful and accommodating. Wish I'd had longer than a morning.
Maha Bazzy 6 months ago

You do such great work Oliver! Always a great pleasure to watch.
33hirtz 6 months ago

Awesome job Oliver, I really enjoyed watching this!
:-))
Yahyia Mahmoud 6 months ago

Nicely done :-) I really liked the low angle shot . As usual you impress :-)
So you back in Septemeber huh ! There is a lot of work in Egypt these days do you want to team up again?
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

cool, thanks. you back in Egypt now?
James Waldron Design 6 months ago

Oliver,
I've been in that workshop, and seen the fascinating detail and craftsmanship that those sewers have. I think your short is fantastic. It duplicated the sensation I get when I'm there, and that is pretty hard to communicate. You did a wonderful job.
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Many thanks James, great to hear that
Jennifer Leigh Peterson 6 months ago

lovely. so inspiring to see craftsmen so patiently, professionally, lovingly creating goods. i'm so thankful to know that people still do that!!! thank you for sharing...
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

So glad you enjoyed it. It is really inspiring to think that this type of craft and skill still has enormous value.
PIX IN MOTION by Leo Bar 6 months ago

Good interview and enlightening conversation about a disappearing craft.
mr. jeff allen 6 months ago

Second watch. Nicely done letting Dan start with his personal attachment to the job then letting his narration expand to wider shots of the factory and other lads. Angle looking up at him from a shoe’s perspective works too. Personally, I never buy handmade American—only mechanized and mass produced, especially if job-stealing robots are involved, the larger the factory the better too. The Red Sox Nation lives at Quoddy, you might want to make a Fenway Park film next year for the 100th anniversary.
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Glad you enjoyed it. Red Sox Nation, indeed...
Micah Donahue 6 months ago

Terrific docu, Oliver. We here at Mechanica know Quoddy's owner, and love your work on this film.

And as you said, they're damn nice shoes to boot!
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

agreed, they are beautiful things to hold in the hand. thanks for the support.
Jamie Gallant 6 months ago

Great job on this doc Oliver! Felt organic and genuine, doing New England proud!
Mostafa Naguib 6 months ago

great job, i really did love it.
makbethi 6 months ago

thnx man you just gave me the idea about my graduation
film.
i am going with smth simple....but effective
beautiful work-
Marko Visual 6 months ago

Ollie, found this by scoping out staff picks and it was #1, did you shoot this before or after the Maine workshop? Good job btw, watched the whole thing before I looked up and saw it was you. Haha, be good my friend!
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Hey Bobby! I shot this just after the Maine workshop on the monday morning before driving up to Montreal. Glad you enjoyed it, it definitely helps being picked up by staff picks. I periodically send them a hamper to keep them sweet. Hope all good. O
Santo W 6 months ago

Very well done, Oliver! Nice pace and great cuts to the B-rolls.
The Film Artist 6 months ago

For some strange reason I feel the urge to take a needle and thread and sew something. The skills and craftsmanship in the western world are quickly dissapearing as they become outpriced by the cheaper nations, the youths meanwhile unable to find employment as government debts increases. Great film Oliver, love it! :)
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Ha, that's great. I know exactly how you feel. I really feel like using my hands more myself.
Andrew Pearson 6 months ago

Great job! Quoddy shoes are hard to come by in the UK. A few shops sell them which is good.
david romero laure 6 months ago

Fantastic work, Oliver!!
Antonio Caldeira 6 months ago

Good work. Thanks for sharing it with us Oliver.
Amit Jain 6 months ago

Really amazing. Customized and hand made goods are getting as rare as ever.
Isla Hansen 6 months ago

YES! I am from Lewiston, Maine and had no idea this existed. But check out the shoes I made... vimeo.com/27487308
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Ha, very interesting. You Lewiston folk really have a thing for shoes.
Turker Mutlu 6 months ago

I know it is really hard to shoot people working in their working area, it is really hard to reflect that hard working environment and the serious mood.. great job there, congratulations.
Fares Abdel Kerim 6 months ago

Great piece. As usual
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Cheers Fares, hope all good
Chris Koelsch 6 months ago

My grandpa was a shoemaker and had his own little studio in his garage. This really brings back some good memories. Shared on my blog, This 'n That: tandtfy.blogspot.com
Oliver Wilkins 6 months ago

Thanks Chris, great to hear it brings back memories and thanks for posting.
Fares Abdel Kerim 6 months ago

Nice promotion for Apple products as well. It's time you started looking into some serious sponsor contracts with them.
thinkforward.™ 6 months ago

excellent piece on a great brand.
Deny Chang 6 months ago

What happens when you get a phone call or message on your iphone while recording the audio? An H4N would have been handy.
Oliver Wilkins 5 months ago

Good question, I guess putting it in airplane mode would solve that...
Ferlon Webster Jr 6 months ago

very very nice, beautiful shots!!!
kliot ryzon 6 months ago

i enjoyed the film but even more i love shoes, thank you very much for sharing; i will do my best to save towards a shoe from your company.
little films 5 months ago

Love your work Oliver! Quoddy Workshop reminds me of a little vignette we just made for a sustainable Seattle coffee roaster - vimeo.com/28064966 - Really like your international footage as well, which is also something we aim to do more of. Would love to stay in touch!
Oliver Wilkins 5 months ago

Thanks, love your coffee film, awesome jib shots...
BaltasMykolas 5 months ago

wow, fantastic. Can you do FCP edit on MBA? I didn't know. How is it. It was the only reason I bought MBP (old one), so I could early edit video and photo. How's the MBA standing up? If it's good I'm gonna buy next mac an air.

Thanks!
Oliver Wilkins 5 months ago

Yep, I've got FCP 7 running happily on the MBA 11" 1.6 ghz and 4g ram.

I'm editing files in XDCamEx 1080p off USB drives. All good including color correction with MBL.

I get a few pauses when it struggles to catch up, nothing too bad. Would be interesting to see how if new thunderbolt connection helps.

I gotta say I love my MDA - an unbelievably mobile editing set up. Saved my ass.
Officine Macadam 5 months ago

nice!
Bougalou 5 months ago

where can I buy those shoes?
Oliver Wilkins 5 months ago

quoddy.com/
Jon Bryant 5 months ago

Absolute quality Oliver.
Amenon 5 months ago

Beautiful work - yours and theirs.
I was wondering how you got the inspiration and opportunity to shoot and produce this - then saw it explained above.
Oliver Wilkins 4 months ago

Yep, I'd seen their beautifully made shoes and happened to be passing through Maine and dropped them a line. They were very open to the idea of me popping in. That's something I noticed about the US generally... people are very open to being filmed and helping each other out gratis.

Very refreshing compared to some people/ places that will remain nameless...
Jefferis Gray 5 months ago

Great job! Those shoes are really pieces of art.
What iphone app did you use with your irig mic?
julio Gomez Trevilla 5 months ago

it´s inspirational
Duke de Silver 5 months ago

Fantastic shoot and interview.
Hairs on the back of my neck stood up.
Attention to detail is amazing.
I'm pleased I bought those Quoddy now.
Oliver Wilkins 4 months ago

Thanks Duke, there's something about the way Dan weaves the language around the shoes that I find very compelling. He has a very unique turn of phrase to my English ears...
Elliot Nolten 5 months ago

Like the whole authentic feel
Mattias Burling 5 months ago

Super!
Matthew Lovein 4 months ago

Very well made, Just like the shoes!
Simone Bissolati 3 months ago

Added to "Men at work" channel
vimeo.com/channels/248480
Ian Bennet 3 months ago

Great work, I think the only thing would be to get a consistent room tone for the audio track. Images are great, machine hum in the background is great, I just wish the room tone for the audio was just as great. Good luck with future projects, and I enjoyed this very much.