When 2015 started I had no job, no regular projects, I had been working for a couple of years as a video-maker in the travel industry, did a crazy web-documentary project in Australia and I was just taking a timid step into the music business, not really knowing what I was doing. But mostly, after a year of travelling through Australia, United States and Italy in 2014, I gave up trying to become a (video) digital nomad and decided to focus on my video skills and be a professional filmmaker, director, videographer, – call it whatever you want – and be recognized in the industry as someone who can make high-end videos with a creative and unique style.

To do that, I had to take everything I knew to the next level: filming-wise – upgrading to high quality 1080p or 4K -, and editing-wise, trying to get more creative with slow-motion, cuts, transitions, motion graphics and sound design. There were new cameras out there, much better than the Canon 5Dm3, which was great of course, but couldn’t stand the ground against the new Sony a7s and Panasonic GH4. Also, everybody was asking for more and more of aerial footage and I decided to become a drone pilot (still work in progress).

It started really slowly, and I have to thank many people who helped me along the way, but now as I’m recalling all the crazy adventurous experiences of this year, I can smile and say that I made a big step forward. But the most incredible fact, is that out of curiosity, I counted all the video I’ve made or that were edited using my footage and the result is… insane!

97 VIDEOS! Yes that’s right, ninety-seven! 🙂

And if you don’t believe me… I ‘m going to try to list all of them. The ones that I consider my most memorable videos of this years are also embedded with some backstage photos as well, so you can take this page as some sort of 2015 show reel. Plus, and this was far beyond any expectations that I had at the beginning, I had 2 videos reaching over 100K views, and one of these actually just made it over 200K.
So, let’s start from it…

Everything good that happened this year started from there: Costa Brava, and Pyrenees. It was just pure magic, the trip that convinced me I had something to say about making travel videos. This video got 16K views in the first 2 months after release on my Vimeo channel, and then I gave it to Visit Costa Brava to be uploaded on their YouTube channel where is currently over 200K. In December I flew to Girona to receive the G! Award as Best Digital Media 2015 on Costa Brava. [Photos: Sherry Ott, Gemma Suñer]

My trip to Crete with other 5 Italian bloggers was just wonderful! We travelled for four days to discover the secrets of this Greek island, thanks to Volagratis, Aegean Airlines and Visit Greece. [Photos: Silvia Cartotto, Luca Vivan]

I love Istanbul, I love Turkey. So when Walks of Turkey asked me to film and edit 5 promo videos of their tours the answer was istantly “when do I leave?”. 🙂 This one up here is about the Istanbul in a day tour, but you can find all of them on Walks of Turkey Youtube Channel.

The idea of making a documentary about Italians in Australia came at the end of 2012 and took a year to produce 4 demo videos to persuade partners like Cathay Pacific, Lonely Planet and Australia.com to jump on board. In 2014 a team of 5 professional in the digital world (videographers, photographers and blogger) travelled to Australia for 4 months, pretty much everywhere, and filmed more than 40 interviews and a lot of backstage footage.

In 2015 we released the Web Series “Sognando l’Australia” (Australia Dreaming) of 16 episodes and launched the project during a film festival in Milan with a 40-min documentary film. The official website for the projects is www.italiandreamtime.com (in Italian).

For Italian Dreamtime I edited and published 35 videos in 2015:

• 14 episodes (+ at least 3 interview-short-extracts for each)
• 1 Official Trailer
• 1 Official Recap
• 1 40-min Documentary Film
• 7 Backstage Travel videos
• 11 Shorts (called “Italian Dreamtime Moments”)

My work with Friuli Venezia Giulia Turismo and the biggest travel website in Italy – aka Turisti per Caso – this year counted 3 videos. Special thanks to Stefania & Valerio, Elisa & Luca and Edoardo Massimo Del Mastro. All the videos are on FVG YouTube channel or their Facebook page.

Into the Music

2015 is also the year when I started working in the music business. It came unexpected, I wasn’t really looking forward to it. But I love it! Love the backstage moments with the bands and love the great artists I’m working with. I should thank Concerto Management for everything they are doing for me.

The Savoretti Effect

I am a huge fan of the talented Jack Savoretti. I know I was lucky to be in the right place at the right time. That’s how it all started and in January 2015 they promoted the new record Written in Scars on Amazon UK with the first video I did about him.
Then, after following him on 2 dates – opening the very famous Italian singer Elisa in Milan and Rome – I edited this acoustic live clip of his single “Home” and I followed him in pretty much all of his gigs in Italy in 2015.
On October 15th I ended up filming at the Roundhouse in London, but the most amazing venue was up in the mountains near Tarvisio in August. You can see the video down here.

So for Savoretti I did 22 videos this year:

• 18 Short videos: Italian Tour (April 2015) promo, “Fall” (with Zibba), “Not Worthy” Acoustic, Treviso short, Bologna short, Genova short, Roma short, “Back where I Belong” Live No Borders Festival in Tarvisio, “Back where I Belong” Live Estathè Market Sound in Milan, “Back where I Belong” Live Deejay On Stage Riccione, European Tour – Italy (October 2015) promo, Coin Store promo, Meet & Greet Coin, European Tour – Italy 2015 recap “Fight ’til the end”, “Catapult” new single Promo, “Catapult” Live at Roundhouse, “Crazy Fool” Live in Italy (with Violetta Zironi)
• 2 videos with Elisa that are unreleased: Changes, Hallelujah
• 2 Official Videos: “Home” Live in Italy, “Back Where I Belong” Official music video (filming only)

Last but not least. A lot of the footage from Jack Savoretti’s Italian tour in April 2015 was used to edit this on the road video, which is… the Official Music Video of his single “Back Where I Belong“. So my footage made it to VEVO and the video hit 100K views.

Italian Artists

Also, if you are Italian, you can understand how honoured I am to work with such music icons like Paolo Conte and Francesco Guccini. I filmed 7 of Conte’s concerts this year and edited 2 short videos you can see on his official website and Facebook page; Asti, Perugia, Roma, Reggio Emilia, Torino and two of them outside Italy, in London and Montecarlo. In December, I edited the promo video of the new Guccini’s anthology record for Universal Music, and this is the second video I have on VEVO for this year! Yeeeah!

Also, I just started working with a talented singer-songwriter who did 3rd on X-Factor Italy 2 years ago and now is starting her own music carrier, her name is Violetta Zironi and you can see her here in a very intense duet with Jack Savoretti.

This is a list of all the other videos I produced in 2015. Some of them are done, but will be released next year.

TRAVEL

• Costa Brava: Spinning Garrotxa, Slomo Goat, G&T – A short and slow film about Gin and Tonic, In Costa Brava (out in 2016)
• Comano Terme: Mercatini di Natale di Rango
• InGarda: e-Biker (out in 2016, hopefully!)
• Surf Segnana: 6 shorts + “A Perfect Holiday” Promo
• Brindisi is my destination: X-LABs (2 shorts, editing only)

MUSIC

• Enrico Giaretta’s “Big Bamboo” official music video
• POV Music Contest (3 videos)
• Violetta Zironi “Mule Skinner Blues”
• Didjin’Oz Festival in Forlimpopoli (2nd night)

OTHER

• WWF (2 short docs + “The Nature of Food” for EXPO 2015)
• H24 production (“L’ultimo Stadio” for SKY Cinema, out in 2016)

I really hope you enjoyed this journey through my year! Wish you a wonderful and adventurous 2016!

Emiliano