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The UK has Gone Property TV Show Crazy!

There are now shows about developing, buying, doing up and selling your home on every channel nearly every day. TV show presenters have become celebrities and household names.Some TV stations have had property show weekends purely dedicated to property TV shows. The UK has got an insatiable appetite for the shows.

Why property TV crazy?

The UK has experienced some unsustainable house price rises. This has resulted in property owners having huge amounts of equity in their homes. The majority of people who have owned a home for the last 5 years now have a huge asset. Looking after your home and achieving the best from it has become paramount.Those looking to benefit from their profits are seeking to invest in property overseas or buy second homes to rent. No wonder the UK has gone Property TV crazy.

We have reviewed some of the most popular shows.

Channel 4 Property Ladder. Channel 4

Presented by Sarah Beeney this programme charts the highs and lows of new property developers. Typically each show demonstrates that Budget is king. Developers shed a few tears whilst making their first attempt at making money from property development. It’s certainly not a task for the feint hearted. Sarah Beeney is an experienced developer herself and gives some invaluable advice.

Our Review: Sarah Beeney can come across as a know it all and “I told you so” is so often on the tip of her tongue. However it’s great watching other people’s mistakes and she does make some very valuable points. We found ourselves shouting ‘don’t argue with her just listen

Location Location Location Channel 4 UK style

Two knowledgeable, young and successful London property finders Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer face the weekly challenge of finding someone their ideal home to buy – in just a few days! Filmed at locations all over the UK.

Our Review: Some good tips on looking for your new home. Some of the home seekers can be a bit over ambitious and annoying. The programme is repeated on some satellite channels so some of the house prices are very historic.

Selling Houses Channel 4

Estate agent Andrew Winter tours some of the UK’s hardest-to-sell homes, he meets stressed homeowners whose properties have been stuck on the market for months.

Anxious for a sale and unable to work out why no one wants to buy their home, they are desperate for a solution. Andrew gives his frank opinion and recommended course of action. His critical appraisal is often met with opposition… until the owner accepts his advice is vital if they want to sell their house. And sell they do.

Our Review: Andrew Winton is cutting with his comments on those hard to sell houses and there owners. No delicate comments from this man. Some of the owners are subject to his frank honest opinions.9 times out of 10 he is right. It is for us his brutal honesty makes the show more enjoyable. Andrew Winton does get those homes sold. His firm but fair manner makes him a must to watch.

A Place in the Sun

Amanda Lamb presents A place in the sun the show that helps buyers find their dream home in exotic overseas locations. Amanda (Scottish widow advert) finds a wide range of the best properties available and guides potential buyers through the peculiarities and pitfalls of the local market.

Our Review: An excellent show that has extensively researched housing market trends in various sunny locations. It’s a must if you are thinking of buying abroad

House Doctor

Anne Maurice is the domestic interiors equivalent of Anne Robinson. She’s quick-witted, quick-tongued and quick-fire with her prognosis. If she isn’t lightening it, stripping it or painting it white, she’s ruthlessly depersonalising it – wrapping it all up in a big black bin bag and dispatching it with a crisp “goodbye”

Our Review: Anne Maurice points out the obvious to these homes sellers and if they don’t believe her they are given frank views by potential home buyers. Her shows can become a bit repetitive. However a must watch show

Other People’s Houses Channel 4

Providing an excellent opportunity to peer behind other people’s curtains each week Naomi Cleaver follows a couple as they attempt to renovate a property and uses this as an excuse to see what other people have done with similar style buildings

Our Review: This programme provides a wonderful opportunity to see ordinary peoples ideas of how they think a home should look. Some useful ideas but it lacks the sparkle of similar shows.

Relocation Relocation Channel 4

Could you re-launch your life, selling your home to fund a new double existence; buying both a place in the country and a pied-a-terre in town? Professional property hunters Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer present a brand new series, Relocation Relocation, helping six couples find the ideal balance: urban energy and rural relaxation.

Our Review: If you can afford two homes one for work the other for the weekends this may be for you. Some of the participants can come across as a bit smug.

Safe as houses

Safe as Houses: ‘Tracy and Stephen Gibbs’

Moving house is high on the list of the most stressful things you can do and this property show explores that fact? with estate agent Emma Basden and builder Jason Maloney. Steve and Tracy plan to relocate from Cheshunt to St Austell in Cornwall? where Tracy is bowled over by the sea and fields and the kind of property they can afford. But things don’t quite go to plan.

The UK has experienced some unsustainable house price rises. This has resulted in property owners having huge amounts of equity in their homes. The majority of people who have owned a home for the last 5 years now have a huge asset. Looking after your home and achieving the best from it has become paramount.Those looking to benefit from their profits are seeking to invest in property overseas or buy second homes to rent. No wonder the UK has gone Property TV crazy…

-By: Nicholas Marr

Nicholas Marr
Marr International Ltd
Selling property on behalf of private sellers and estate agents worldwide
http://www.homesgofast.com

Are You Afraid of Using Video For Your Business?

Without the right steps, the process of having a professional video produced can be overwhelming, but relax and I will take you through a simple step-by-step process. If you have been in the business world for longer than 25 seconds, you already know how highly effective website videos are. A well-produced video delivers your message in a way that engages and persuades visitors to take action.

Preliminary advice: Albert Einstein said it best, “If I had an hour to solve a problem I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.” It’s paramount that enough thought and planning go into the production, to keep everything cohesive and free-flowing. Unfortunately, some people dive in headfirst and end up with a complete, ineffective mess. Planning may not be the most enjoyable part of the process, but it is the most critical. Here’s a simple, 10-step process you can follow to ensure an effective Web video:

STEP 1: Scriptwriting. The story is one of the most important parts of the video. It is the story evokes emotions and drives people to action. Remember the movie, Where The Red Fern Grows? A properly developed script is very different from properly written copy. One of the pitfalls of the success of a video is having a copywriter try to develop a video script.

STEP 2: Target audience. You can have a great script, but if you aren’t appealing to your target market, you risk the chance of loosing sales. It’s important to understand who your customer is. There must be an understanding in advance about what kind of music is preferred, what color scheme is preferred, what style of text is preferred, and how the story should be told: as a documentary, a drama, comedy, simply and/or with a cinematic style (Episode XI Studio’s style). No one buys with a rational mind, so it’s important to appeal to both the emotions, through scene interactions, and to the intellect, through factual entertainment.

STEP 3: Storyboarding. A successful video enlists the assistance of both the video production company and their client. A storyboard should be developed by the production company to allow the client a chance to see the vision of the finished product before the cameras begin to roll. The storyboard gives everyone a chance to make changes to the scenes before the entire production staff arrives on set, saving time and money. The production staff will use the approved storyboard as a road map to shoot each scene, by giving camera angles, camera movements, and scripting for each actor/presenter.

STEP 4: Visualize the finished product. It’s critical to know your vision, when planning each shot. Will there be any slow-motion shots? Will it be deployed on the web, or in dvd format, or both? Camera-frame-rate is a vital part of the shooting process, and that rate determines what effects can be implemented during the editing process. Because video is “resolution dependent”, it’s important to discuss your vision with the production company before the shoot.

STEP 5: The shooting day. The day of shooting is an exciting time for the client. This day(s) give the client a second preview of what the finished product will look like. By using the storyboard as a guide for shooting, the production team captures exactly what the client is expecting. The use of dollies and cranes give the production a cinematic appeal that is rivaled by the huge Hollywood production companies.

STEP 6: Video editing. The editing process is where the magic happens. After shooting the many scenes on set, the editor takes the collection of film/digital tape into the editing bay and begins the lengthy process of “putting it all together”. The editor will sort through the many takes of each scene, along with the storyboard, and pieces each video clip into its proper place. Not only do the video clips need to be in order, but the clips sound recordings must be processed, to ensure that no background noise or any other unwanted sound makes it to the final cut.

STEP 7: Soundtrack. The video experience is only 50% visual; the other 50% is audible, making the soundtrack just as important as the rest of the production. As stated earlier, it’s paramount that the target audience is well understood. The editor needs to understand the music that is expected by your target market, in order to envelop in a total emotional experience.

STEP 8: Sound effects. Starwars

Los Angeles – The City of the Movies

As the city of Los Angeles, located in California enjoys a warm climate and beautiful all year round, it attracts many visitors. Obviously, among these, many are hoping the curious cross a star in downtown LA.

With the tourism industry that is naturally of temporary quarters, including the rental of villas, the LA vacations are a dream for more and more people. Of course, nothing is surprising if prices are high, because everyone is playing its little place in this great city. However, some apartments may be found in the longer term, it said at a reasonably affordable price (and more!). LA is also distinguished by features such as Walt Disney Concert Hall, completed in 2003, recalling strongly the Vitra Design Museum in Germany, near Basel, the same architect (Frank Gehry).

Most of all, Los Angeles is known for the film industry and people fly from all over the world in order to visit the birthplace of the movie masterpieces that have delighted generations of film lovers. The years 1920, 1930 and 1940 represent a kind of golden age for Hollywood cinema.

Immediately after the First World War, the first major movie company was founded, paramount Pictures, directed by Adolph Zukor. The work and the organization of production are subject to the rules of profitability to be called very soon the dream factories, the “dream factories”. Hollywood then employed nearly 28 000 people, including 170 directors and 350 writers that provided 500 to 700 scripts a year.

Soon the market will find shared between five major “dream factories” that dominate the world of cinema. The MGM (Metro Goldwyn Mayer) collects the stars, faithful to its motto “More stars than there are in heaven.” Greta Garbo, Clark Gable, Marion Davies, Joan Crawford, Norman Shearer played for MGM. At the paramount, there is the irresistible Mae West, the sprightly Gary Cooper, the Marx Brothers, Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Tyrone Power and the divine Marlene Dietrich. Warner Bros., directed by Warner Brothers, had not as many stars, but nothing that is not brilliant: Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney or Bette Davis. Twentieth Century Fox is reborn from its ashes in 1935, becoming the fourth of the Big Five majors. Finally, RKO will produce the genius work of Orson Welles, “Citizen Kane”.

Thus, the movie industry is the main reason people choose LA vacations. The history of the city is mixed with the one of the movies and this is a spectacular thing.

Formerly occupied by Amerindian and Spanish, LA has been since the arrival of Westerners, a place of exchange between cultures inevitable British (quickly become American) and Spanish (which is mainly present, Mexico). The climate of the city gives it its fabulous touch, and despite the frenzy of Hollywood, it is a relaxing place after all.

What distinguish this city from other cities are undoubtedly the growing oranges, which will soon have his fame of a benchmark citrus! Even the great New York envied LA for its tasty fruit. On top of that, the city overlooks the Pacific Ocean; this is useful to recall how difficult it is to miss a photo of the city! In very good note, therefore, Los Angeles is the city of oranges, trade, warm climate and, of course, movies.

-By: Moses Kettle

Los Angeles vacations are fun for the whole family. When looking at vacation packages and travel deals to LA make sure to bundle and save your vacations. Buying the car, flight, hotel, and activities all at once will increase the savings on your trip.

Looking for another destination? I would suggest also looking at Las Vegas vacations for some fun in party city.

Friday the 13th Film Review

Perhaps the only film that one can recognize from its whispering sounds; yes, the legacy of the Friday the 13th is one gem for any horror film buff that needs no introduction. The first (the series showed up in 1980) movie featured Kevin Bacon (and people wondered who he is) but not Sally Field; instead it was Adrienne King who got the lead role. Sally, in the meantime, chose the Norma Rae gig instead of spending at Camp Crystal Lake the summer; this is what that got her the Oscar. After that, 10 successful sequels followed and paramount decided to travel backwards to introduce the current generation the things on Jason Voorhees.

This time, it starts with a short prologue narrating Jason’s legend that fades into the words 20 years later. Up come five shiny and happy campers heading the old Camp Crystal Lake grounds. It was the greed for good times and wild marijuana that drags them towards a hulking Jason in interestingly creative ways.

Enter Clay Miller; his search for his absconding sister Whitney is an outcome of the dissatisfaction stirred up by the incapability of the local police. His method is a unique one, as is evident from his missing person notice on his motorcycle. His confrontation with another camping group at a local convenient store earns him Jenna’s sympathy and help, after which, her entire group heads their cabin for some unrestrained weekend revelry. Next, it is Chi chi chi chi. Ha ha ha ha!

Those who remember the original Friday the 13th must agree that it’s a horror film that’s above average and a milestone that have set the standard to measure the gore in mainstream movies. But this time, such stuff are not going to deliver much of a shock value and it’s our mindset to blame; the world has made us witness much gore and violence than paramount could even think of. However, the same formula still holds on as much as the hockey-masked Jason, yet it delivers the chills and the terrors of what was witnessed in the originals. Director Nispel sure has learnt a lot from his earlier The Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake and this time, he uses his experiences here; it’s evident from his use of camera that replaced the former staple of the standard angles.

The cast is an even combination of attractive, fun loving actors and actresses that sways between emotions and genuine laughter and sometimes, they take the audience deep into the terrors without uttering even a single word! Well done are the special effects; they are precise and imaginative, but impaling of heads should have had a few more means for the sake of creativity.

So, does Friday the 13th enjoy a start status? Yes; even if we mark it low, then definitely not below 7.5 stars out of 10.

-By: Jason M Jones

Jason M. Jones is a movie enthusiast and a creative writer on Action Movies. You can watch movies and buy them from his website.