Kevin Davidson
“As a young child, I possessed a vivid imagination, which seemed to sometimes present challenges focussing on the normal everyday matters. For a time, I was obsessed with classic WWII movies like “The Guns of Navarone” and “The Longest Day.” My father was a reservist with the Lincoln and Welland Regiment and I therefore was fortunate to acquire an authentic collection of WWII clothing, including utility items.”
“With this in hand, a vivid imagination and now forced to the confines of the city, I would often be found crawling through a neighbour’s bushes stalking the imaginary enemy and defending my high ground positions. I was perplexed when others did not share my enthusiasm for WWII memorabilia and army fatigues, one of those individuals being a certain math teacher. I was quickly nicknamed “Army Boy” and my vivid imagination, combined with a well planned out smuggling of G.I. Joes in my socks into class, appeared to ensure that my desk was placed in the school hallway, a place that only bolstered my imagination.”
“I made a promise to myself at a very young age that I would never lose my prized imagination, this may be why the specific creative field I work in has been an absolute necessity in keeping that promise...well at least in my opinion!
“As a product of growing up in the 1980s, our family was one of the first in my immediate circle to experience a split and, at a young age, I was surrounded by two sets of parents.”
“My father who goes by his initials, K.R., is retired from the police service. He was extremely focussed and displayed an enthusiasm for his work that was unparalleled. As such, my view of my father and his work was not unlike what one would imagine by watching Mel Gibson in “Lethal Weapon”. The stories of my father’s work always left me in awe and the stories of these adventures remain with me to this day.”
“My biological mother, Janet, although starting out as a “stay-at-home” Mom, entered the workforce first as a hairdresser and went onto acquire her real estate licence. She also ventured on a myriad of occasions into business.”
“I am forever grateful to my stepmother Gail and my stepfather Terry. They showed great patience in raising and supporting me, the fact that we were not related by blood was not integrated into our mentality of family. I have learnt what I believe are many social strengths that help me in personal life and in the workplace, because of the proper handling of these dynamic by all my parents.”
“I started off by going to a number of elementary schools in Niagara Falls and St. Catharines, and eventually settled back in Niagara Falls at Saint Paul Secondary School. Schooling was challenging for me and I left high school in grade ten to enter the workforce. While most of my schooling failed to capture my interest, the late Ferdinado Bilanzola was instrumental in setting a foundation for my entry into my current vocation. Mr. Bilanzola’s film class deployed a cutting edge non-linear computer editing suite (I believe it was the Avid/1 Media Composer) and my interest was instantly ignited. I brokered a deal whereby Mr. Bilanzola would teach me the program after hours and I would tutor other students thereafter. For the first time in my life, school was interesting. I was able to marry my imagination with technology and I was enthralled, to say the least, something that to this day, has not departed.”
“I have never attended university, but it is still in the cards. I have returned to school and am one credit shy of achieving my high school diploma. I am actually an avid learner and I am looking to attend university in the not so distant future, more for pleasures than practicality.”
“As for education with respect to film and media production, I have not received any formal training and would be considered ‘self-taught.’ I would, however, not discourage others from taking what I suspect may be an easier path attending film school, as the hours I have invested learning informally possibly may outweighed what can be gleaned from a formal education. Regardless I think any format of education, coupled with ingenuity, perseverance, and passion will produce an eye for conveying story to the world in an unhindered fashion.”
“Since high school, I desired to be a part of film production but to be frank, I did not know how to enter the field. In my thirties, while working in an unrelated field, I was invited to attend as part of a road tour with a band to capture the events. Armed with VHS camcorders, while touring Canada’s east coast, I met two guys with a Canon XL1. The camera system seemed quite advanced to me and I began to understand that I was desperately in need of learning more about current technology and the techniques to adequately convey the narratives I wished to produce. Since that time, I have been on a journey of pursuing advancements in technology and story telling techniques as a means to further impart what I see and think to others. Through this, I have eventually gained a reputation for my creative work and I am enjoying making that as both my career and passion.”
“Unfortunately, I did not enter the profession until my thirties due to unfocused lifestyle and behaviours that were established in my teens. I think my family's faith and belief in me was crucial in providing an encouraging base that eventually supported my own desire to change for the better.”
“My parents all displayed the importance of faith and trust in core Christian values, this approach clearly showed me strong expressions of love when it was anything but deserved. I came to understand that love is not necessarily a feeling or something you can really receive. Love is something to be witnessed, as it is a sacrificial choice made regardless of the recipients understanding of that choice and its impacts.”
“My favorite movies can range from “Doctor Zhivago” to the “The Dollars Trilogy” to the “Matrix”. I love the deep and meaningful execution of Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai but can also enjoy eye candy filled sci-fi action flicks. Many movies like Citizen Cain and Metropolis I watch ritualistically. I also want to mention the fact that I can’t get enough of Stanley Kubrick films, as well as trying to find any behind the scene documentaries I can get my hands on.”
“Regarding Cinematographers I think Roger Deakins is beyond a force to be reckoned with and the late Vilmos Zsigmond brought a wonderful form of realism to the industries approach to coverage and lighting.”
“In a nutshell, this is just a small fraction of the influences and content I admire, I think the studying and absorbing of the vast reservoir of talent we have access to provides amazing opportunities to develop as storytellers.”
“My entrance into the field was challenging. I started by applying for a small business grant which required me to embark in areas that I had no familiarity, like developing business plans and understanding financial statements. After meeting with a business mentor for over a year, I began the long road of developing a business in this field. I am sure if I had known what was required regarding hours and personal sacrifices from inception, I may have had second thoughts...but probably not.”
“I was able to navigate these times by being reinforced with some great friends. My business partners over the years, Nathan Warriner and Julie Angle supported and encouraged me to no end. These types of ventures are best experienced with like minded people, I believe healthy relationships are crucial in overcoming compounded challenges.”
My first year entailed renovating a workspace that was aptly called the “Work House”. I was not alone in this venture, I teamed up with two other struggling artists, Adam Buller and Wayne Corlis, to turn an old store front that served a dual role as our work place and living accommodations. During this time, I continued to hone my skills necessary to begin actively marketing my services and products to the public.”
“I initially forayed into this business in partnership with Nathan Warriner who was friends with an extremely talented band, The Trews. I flew to New York City and filmed the band as they recorded a new album. I did not own any equipment at that time and The Trews provided a handycam for the recording.”
“One thing that was really interesting about that first trip and something I would learn from was the fact that, I had made the wrong assumption that googling the studio’s address was going to be a no brainer...well it was a no brainer alright, my lack of wisdom in the matter left me a few hours before a 5am flight finding out that the studio is not listed anywhere by the name I was given. I literally flew to the one of the biggest cities on our planet only knowing that the studio was in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. I soldiered on hopeful that things would work out and after taking the subway to Williamsburg, I step foot onto the street and at that moment the bands guitarist John-Angus MacDonald calls me letting me know the studio is a block away from where I was. Needless to say, my respect for the detailing of operations have drastically improved from that time!”
“Currently I operate a small media production company “Untangled Digital” with a talented producer Julie Angle. We have collaborated by pairing contrasting skill sets, Julie has fantastic public relation skills and extremely well organized when it comes to making sure production moves from inception to distribution. Meanwhile I maintain a strong handle of technical execution of our production shoots and post production procedures, as well as constant development of story telling perspectives and formats.”
“I am working towards a number of goals regarding media production. On one front I would like to take our corporate products and services to a higher caliper. A second front is to develop an effective documentary team for building engaging informational content. A third front is advancing narrative story telling with a strong focus on world building through art direction, lighting, camera motion and editing. I feel as we build and develop each front the experience and skill sets acquired will congruently support other fronts.”