michael prestage

User Bio

First off, I'd like to say hi and thanks for dropping by my profile. I hope this day finds you in good health and temperament. As for me, not much to tell. I grew up in south Florida, where I still reside, and do my best not to take it for granted.

Hobbies:
When I'm not painting, I pretty much spend all of my spare time either making movies (shorts), watching movies, or reading books about movies. Whew!

Favorite Books:
Of course, non-fiction books about movies, especially concerning the production of classic movies. Art direction, cinematography, and visual effects are some of my favorite subjects.

Favorite Movies:
The Maltese Falcon, Sullivan's Travels, Ed Wood, Wizard of Oz, Invaders from Mars (1953), Gone with the Wind, King Kong (1933), Night of the Hunter, Casino Royale (1966), Army of Darkness, Pee Wee's Big Adventure, 2001: A Space Odyssey, and anything by the late, great Orson Welles.

Favorite Music/Bands:
I like all genres of music, everything from the Smashing Pumpkins and Third Eye Blind to Ralph Vaughan Williams and Gustav Mahler. But, I'm especially fond of motion picture orchestral scores by such composers as Enrico Morricone, John Barry, Bernard Herrmann, Max Steiner, and the weird, wonderful electronica of Les Baxter.

Favorite TV Shows:
Not a big fan of the tube, or the LCD for that matter. Cartoon Network or TCM is where I usually end up if I have the time.

Then, Now, and Beyond...
Although my accomplishments pale next to the aforementioned films and directors, several of my short films have received awards of merit. In 2002, while attending my 1st year at Indian River State College I was awarded Best of Show, along with the grand prize scholarship for outstanding design work at the annual Graphic Design Expo, which featured the works of hundreds of students from 4 campuses in 3 surrounding counties.

The following year, my two short films, Atlas & The Weird, Weird World Around Us won Best of Show and runner-up. Unfortunately, having won the previous year, I was ineligible for a 2nd scholarship. I did however get some pretty spiffy ribbons!

Fast forward: After a great deal of preparation, I'm now in the midst of building props & shooting test footage for my 1st feature production; an offbeat homage to 1950s giant-bugs-run-amok films. I've recently acquired an Eclair CM3 motion picture camera, and the test footage I've lensed thus far appears to be favorable.

The last 35mm feature film shot in our town was 34 years ago, it, coincidently, featured giant bugs. Hmm...history repeats itself???