Projectpedal Videos

Amanda and I just launched a brand new Kickstarter campaign to help fund the last stages of post-production: ksr.projectpedal.com Help support 'For Thousands of Miles', plus get awesome stuff like Pedal buttons, posters, autographed scripts, a 64 Days DVD with audio commentary and even my personal typewriter. Here's a snippet from our campaign page: Help keep FToM independent and on schedule! Each dollar goes towards creating something that we hope will be beautiful and inspiring to audiences - and you'll be a part of it! If you're new to this project, take a quick moment to check out our "hi, hello" intro page hi.projectpedal.com :) it's a very informal, brief recap of the last 6 years. Please consider backing our film with a $1 donation, or help spread the word by liking this video, sharing our KSR project with your followers on Twitter or your friends on Facebook. We are really excited about the next stages in post - and we are very, very grateful for all of your support! Cast: mike ambs ☂, amanda walker and Larry McKurtis

I was up late last night working - and decided a video update was long, long overdue. I've been finished up on a huge step of post-production for almost two weeks now, and I've been waiting to make that announcement on video. Also - and more importantly, I need people's input on what the next step for me should be. new? hi.projectpedal.com blog: blog.projectpedal.com film: forthousandsofmiles.com Cast: mike ambs ☂

I've mainly been using instrumental music for these teasers - but to be honest, I've always wanted to use music more in line with this teaser. If I can help it, at least half of the soundtrack will be music you're used to hearing in these teasers, and the other half will be more... old, lonely, love-related. There's a good reason for that - but one I'll save for the film. Until then - here's a shot of Larry pushing slowly back against the winds in ND... alone on the road with nothing left to do but think about everything his life has been, and everything he wants it to be. forthousandsofmiles.com projectpedal.com Cast: mike ambs ☂, Larry McKurtis and amanda walker

Maybe someone better with words could explain why it is abandoned houses always feel so fascinating when on the road. I used to spend hours in them on my first bike trip... Tim and I would drag our bikes off the road, make lunch while sitting on a dirty, glass-covered floor. I would poke through old dressers, look for things that used to be important to someone. Baseball cards. Magazines with notes scribbled on the margins. It was late when Larry came across this old farm-house - he stopped, took a few pictures, wandered around the back and peaked inside... but there wasn't enough light to really find your way around. He was only there a few minutes, and then he was back on his bike... I wondered when I was filming this when the last time anyone payed any attention to this empty home. forthousandsofmiles.com projectpedal.com Cast: mike ambs ☂, amanda walker and Larry McKurtis

So, people have been asking me to post a FToM teaser that had a little bit of dialog in it for a while now :) And I don't really have an excuse as to what took me so long to actually picking one out. But, I have to give Erica some credit here... I had yet *another* quiet biking shot picked out and ready to go and she strong-armed me into saving that for another time and picking out something "different". This group was one of the first people Larry ran into after having to say goodbye to his best-friend Jay earlier this morning. I know it must have been hard on Larry to carry on as if nothing was wrong or out-of-place. projectpedal.com forthousandsofmiles.com Cast: mike ambs ☂, Larry McKurtis

Sorry this took so long to upload - I recorded this friday afternoon, and wasn't able to edit it while in Kentucky like I'd hoped :P But here it is - just an update on how I've been combing through the footage for the trip and making sense of it. It's a basic approach, but the baby-step process seems to be helping. projectpedal.com forthousandsofmiles.com Cast: mike ambs ☂

FToM focuses strongly on the idea of being connected by the places we've traveled. Rooted in the maze of back-roads stretching from small-town to small-town... all of us who've traveled by bike share in a personal experience that is difficult to put into words. Stockpile is a element of our feature film, an out-reach campaign to collect a pool of raw media from other travelers and with it, help visually express that our experiences on the road are intertwined in ways we often over-look. We can't tell this side of our film's story without your help - submitting is fast and easy to do, go to stockpile.projectpedal.com to learn more. Cast: mike ambs ☂ , Eric Hittinger, Merten and Larry McKurtis

Nothing to see here - move along :) I recorded my screen for an hour while editing the film on Friday. Sped it up 2,000%, slapped a song under it and that's it. Not sure what the crazy flickering is about - seemed to not want to go away on any speed under 1,500%. *shrug* Cast: mike ambs ☂

This was taken in Glacier Park Montana - it poured there for about two days. At this point in the trip Larry didn't even own a tent, I'm not quite sure how he managed to sleep and stay dry. He used a tarp and a picnic table to create a kind of make-shift tent. It's a strange thing to be so cold and so wet in weather like this - and not have a real roof over your head. Not only for just a few hours, but for days. When the sun finally comes out and hits your skin - it's an amazing feeling to be back on your bike. projectpedal.com forthousandsofmiles.com Cast: mike ambs ☂ , Larry McKurtis and Olivier Boonjing

This is a very big announcement... and it was a decision that was more than difficult for me to make. I don't know what else to say... :) except that I'm prepared to work harder than I've ever worked to make it all come together as planned. projectpedal.com forthousandsofmiles.com Cast: mike ambs ☂

This video is part of a "virtual panel" discussion for the New Breed section of the Workbook Project. The current topic is around: 1) How do YOU manage your expectations for the festival circuit and how do festivals fit into your overall strategy for getting your film out into the world. 2) What are the TOP industry festivals, conferences, etc – that are “must-attend” events for the purpose of networking and fostering new relationships and creative partnerships? If you have anything to add you can do so either here or at newbreed.workbookproject.com :) Cast: mike ambs ☂

Larry shared a pretty personal and emotional letter recently - and I asked if he would mind my sharing it on the site. I realize that many people might find his words in the letter a bit strange - but that was half the point of me reading it... I'm curious how these feelings come across to other people. For me, the letter makes perfect sense, all the emotions seems right in line with what I went through... with what I'm still going through - but I know that won't be the case for everyone. projectpedal.com forthousandsofmiles.com

This is the first teaser from the 16mm footage we took during the trip. This is probably my favorite shot out of all four reels... the speed and feel to it is very beautiful. All the 16 was shot with the intention of acting as a "memory" for Larry. I just wish I had more than the 15 minutes I have - it intercuts very powerfully next to the HD footage. http://forthousandsofmiles.com http://projectpedal.com

happy new year! we can't believe it's 2008 already! this week we look at some of the most libelous, disparaging, weird, insulting, and wonderful comments we received in 2007, as interpreted by a calvacade of online video peeps at our epic-fu holiday party! EPICFU.com - art+tech+music for geeks, the EPIC-FU BLOG!, MIX - the EPIC-FU community!, comment impresarios in order of appearance: vu bui, jarrod gorbel, tim street, sarah atwood, kent nichols, amanda congdon, jeff macpherson, brian lerner, lan bui, paul dateh, annie tsai, mike ambs, angela sauceda, rick rey, bonny pierzina, doug bresler, john holden