Graham Steele
Producer/Cameraman, Steele Media
Written by Jessica Steele on 2009-10-09
Graham Steele has over 22 years experience in international film and television production. Graham recently finished a 12 year stint in New York, where he has worked with some of the biggest names in entertainment, fashion, politics, art and journalism and for companies such as The BBC, Discovery Channel, E! Entertainment, Reuters, NIKE, IMG and Conde Naste. Graham’s most recent role was Director of Photography on one of Discovery Channel USA’s biggest shows, Future Weapons
What has been a memorable achievement or experience working as part of the global media community?
There has been many memorable experiences, particularly going to Africa and filming in the Kenyan slums. As a film and television student at high school, one of my dreams was to film a social awareness documentary in Africa. 15 years later I was doing a documentary in the Mathari slums in Kenya on the Mathari Sporting Club. The principle goal of the club was to use sport to get the kids out of slum and criminal life; the film we made raised a lot of money for those kids. Another memorable achievement was filming a documentary in Chile in 1987 about General Pinochet’s exit from his 30 year dictatorship.
What are the most important/valuable skills that graduates can bring to the film and television industry?
I think the most important skills or attributes that graduates bring to the film and television industry is their fresh approach; they have new ideas and ways of doing things. Someone like myself may be fixated on a particular way of doing things – after over 20 years in the business, you can get stuck on the same ideas. When young film makers, directors, journalists and documentary film makers come to the fore, they bring a new set of eyes and their own vision of the world, popular culture, politics and visual style.
What features, both positive and negative, differentiate Brisbane-based media organisations to other national and international media hubs?
I have only been in Brisbane for a short time and I can only compare it to New York which is the opposite end of the scale – New York being one of the top media hubs in the world, but what Brisbane has is a unique freshness about it. Brisbane is great location for films and commercials and I think there’s an energy here. In a country like Australia, that’s overshadowed by a media capital like Sydney, Brisbane brings a fresh approach and I think there is an underground swell of groovy, hip and fresh film makers and media personnel that could become standouts in the industry. I think Brisbane has a location that is, not in a negative way, but it’s non iconic; Sydney perhaps suffers because it is too iconic and relies on three main locations. Whereas Brisbane has a range of sub icons that are not particular standouts, whether it is the light, the inner city location, or the Brisbane River.
In your opinion, what is the most prominent trend in the film and television production industry at the moment?
The most prominent trend is the shift from actual taped media or analogue to digital media. This shift is very important in a workflow sense; when a documentary is being produced digitally, the workflow, production technique and thought processes become inevitably different. When making a feature film using the latest digital camera, called a red camera, which is a box that sends red, green and blue signals to a computer, it records the signal on set and editing can begin almost immediately. Digital technology allows the playback of scenes, and the editor can do an assemble edit, which is a rough cut. With more films using visual effects and computer graphics, using digital technology is more efficient as the director can immediately see whether a scene or actor is working or not, and how well the story is flowing.
What do you think about the relationship between traditional media and new media?
I think that new media is extremely interesting in that it is being driven by a completely different generation than the generation in control of the media. I think the dictation of new media is coming from people in their teens and 20’s. The relationship is that people working at the craft and technical level in traditional media are still relevant in the new media realm, being broadcast format and whether you are comparing YouTube to television, or an Ipod to a 50 inch plasma. Something that will remain the same is the expectation of quality; there will always be high quality audio, visual and lighting in the acquisition stage. Generally if it is a music video, documentary or feature film, the technical quality must be high.
What changes do you see happening over the next five years in your industry?
I think there is going to be massive changes in the industry through the internet. The commercial networks, the gatekeepers, as they’re known are not going to hold as much prominence or power because the 30 second commercial spot is becoming less and less relevant. I believe that internet and mobile viewing will become more relevant. We haven’t yet seen the explosion of mobile entertainment and news because the telecommunication companies need to work out how to profit from it; however that will be the explosion. More phones will be WAP enabled, and PDA type phones, so when the majority of the population has this technology, in whatever form that may take, and the companies have worked out how to get commercials through these devices, that is going to be the shift and it’s coming very quickly.
What would be your dream job, or where do you see your career in the coming years?
My dream job would be to make my own movies. I have started writing films and short films; and I want to make television commercials. In the future, it will be a matter of digital internet style commercials and hopefully in five years time you will see me at the Oscars winning an award for Best Film and Best Director!