Special Video Post: Jim Pagiamtzis shares insights on why Your Expertise Matters!

 This is short yet impactful video to watch where I share my insights on how your expertise matters!

 We are entering a new chapter in a new decade and I want everyone to succeed in their ventures



                                                     

What learning doing Crossword puzzles

 I started doing the Metro News crossword puzzle on daily basis in late October 2017.

  It has been amazing experience doing crosswords it has been challenging and amazing experience to figure them out.

    At first it was very frustrating I was only geting a few words, as the days and week passed I began to get 30% complete then 50%.  I was getting really good at it.

     Crosswords are great to do because it works on so many skills.

      Brain function
      Memory
      Word Analysis
      Experiences
      Trial and error
       Guessing and having fun

       All the above showcase the experience you wil go through doing crosswords.

     Take it easy and go with flow. Before you know it will get done!

                                               

Restaurant Review: Nando's (Pape and Danforth) Toronto

            On Thursday March 9,2017 I visited Nando's restaurant on the Danforth for evening dinner with friend.

    It was busy evening with lots of people waiting to buy food and look to get seats! It's not massive place but it feel cozy and warm. You can either purchase food and go or dine in.

       We chose to have a seat. They have interested system. You go and order the food and then share you number at your table and they bring the food to you! Simple and to the point. You go have as many refills as you like and enjoy your food.

      Highly recommend checking it out!

      Give it 9 out of 10
    The minus. The seats very close to each other, You feel you to close you neighbors

        Learn more

                                        

Event Review: Podcamp 2017 Feb 25th & 26th

  It was an amazing weekend of learning, sharing and socializing at Podcamp 2017 at Ryerson univeristy Communications building.

 There were numerous sessions to choose from over the course of two days.

  I had opportunity to do breakout session on Sunday at 12pm and blogtalk interview on Sunday at 4pm

  learn more

  Look forward to next year

Jim Pagiamtzis arriving at Podcamp 2017

open session of Podcamp 2017

left to right Tim Hodges, 2 guest, Mo Waja and Jim Pagiamtzis

Jim Pagiamtzis, Mo Waja and guest

Jim Pagiamtzis and Tim Hodges

Robin McRae session at 10:00am

Building your own digital workplace, the tools, tricks and techniques

Your work is the creation and application of knowhow and expertise and a digital workplace is both the essential infrastructure and the toolset. It’s the way to produce, manage and deliver work productively and reliably in a mobile, cloud and connected world.
Learn how an information architect, CMS consultant, content marketer and front-end developer uses a methodology of professional work that is all digital all the time.
You’ll see examples of the work flow, the modular content components and templates, the digital tools and services and the way work is organized in his digital workplace.
Blaze your own digital trail with these insights and recommendations.

Key Take Aways

• a workflow for providing consulting and other professional services
• authoring, editing and publishing tool recommendations
• how to use CSS to make work/content semantic
• ways to make your work/content findable and reusable
• integration for work and external uses (e.g., WordPress) and users (e.g., collaborators on Slack)

   feedback: not what I expected! I left and went networking

Ronald Mandziak session at 11:00am

Podcasting: debunking myths and getting started

With so many myths and misleading information, it can be hard to start or know where to go or even what equipment you need. Maybe you’ve been told you need to use this, maybe you’ve been told otherwise. What is a new podcaster to do?!
MY goal is to help you figure out:
1.Why you want to do this and what your passion is,
2. Equipment: what you need to start and make a great podcast,
3. Hosting: free vs. paid or self hosting,
4. Myths about Apple, including the New and Noteworthy section,
5.How the bumps I ran into along my road can help you figure out easier ways to podcast.
By the time we cover all this you should be ready to record your own show and take the world by storm.

Key Take Aways

• passion for starting a podcast
• tools of the trade
• Free podcasting Vs Paid
• Tips and tricks
• Debunking myths about news and Noteworthy

 Feedback: Plagued by technical issues to start with.Eventually got started Margueritte from Ryerson saved the day and got the powerpoint to work Overall session had great information on what you need to do a podcast

 Dianne Ojar Ali Session at 12:00pm

Becoming CEO of your company

What skills are needed to be the CEO of your company and how to balance the 3 skills: Entrepreneurship, Technical and Management Skills.
– How to operate and network within a budget.
– Myths of businesses why it does not work. What have you heard?
– The Digital world we live in 2017.
– How to position yourself and gain visibility and exposure
– Challenges we face everyday
– Creating a strong team

Key Take Aways

• How to start a business on a budget
• The skills needed to run your business
• The resources and tools needed
• How to gain visibility and exposure
• Be the CEO of your company

feedback. Technical glitches again with Powerpoint, I stepped in to share to delay until Margueritte came in to save the day again!  She deserves an award! Overall it great information share and great Q&A discussion happened.

Podcamp 2017 shirt for sale

hashtag sign at Meet Vibe booth

Meetvibe booth showcasing new app at the conference

     Upsana Sharma 2:00pm session        
    

The Secrets of a Successful Social Media Photo Contest

       Telling the institution/companies/ organization’s story is of the utmost importance – however, collecting and showcasing these stories in a compelling way can present some interesting challenges. At our on-campus launch of Impact: The Campaign for York University, York used a social media photo contest that allowed us to seamlessly create a bank of succinct, shareable stories by directly engaging with students (millennials and Gen Z), staff, faculty and alumni and inviting them to participate in the campaign conversation. The success of this initiative established a new, more effective strategy for telling York’s story of impact moving forward.

Key Take Aways

• Keys to a great photo contest idea
• Learn how to successfully engage your audience to share your message (or "the hustle").
• Software to use when curating and displaying content.
• Measuring the success of your photo contest.
• How to make your content last beyond the duration of the contest

 Feedback: Amazing session with great case study on thow

Upsana Sharma sharing

Upsana Sharma sharing powerpoint

   
Session at 3:00pm on Sunday by Will Spaetzel

Getting started editing Video with Final Cut Pro X

                                  

Final Cut Pro can be a very intimidating piece of software. But, once you learn your way around, it can be a very powerful, quick way to edit great videos.
I will demonstrate putting together a quick video: importing files, editing, adding titles & exporting

Key Take Aways

• Editing Video with Final Cut Pro
• Working with Multi Camera Video
• Adding titles & audio
• Shortcuts to make editing easier
• Exporting video for sharing on the web 

Feedback: Awesome session wtih example of video done within the class and answered questions from the audience.

 Day 2 on Sunday Feb 26th

Mark Evans session at 11:00am

Creating Compelling Stories in Ultra-Competitive World

There is a growing appreciation of brand storytelling. But how do brand create stories that resonate with target audiences? What are the keys to crafting stories that drive connections? This presentation will provide people with a framework that lets brands tell stories that make an impact. It includes real-world examples, as well as interactivity, to help people understand what’s involved in good storytelling and how they can create stories that make a difference.

Key Take Aways

• the value of storytelling
• how to create stories,
• a storytelling framework
• real-world examples of storytelling in action
• how to create their own brand stories.

       Feedback, An amaizng session with insights on storytelling and case studies to share the power of stories

Mark Evans sharing at podcamp 2017

    Breakout Session at 12:00pm

    There was a room available for breakout session so I took the opporutnity to share insight on Get Connectd 21st Century online and offline strategies that work. Talk about the power of putting a program together to teaching clients and individuals on any topic

Jim pagiamtzis shairing insigth at Breakout session

 Session at 1:00pm with Natalia Kantor and Jan Keck

Look F*cking Amazing on Camera – How to be charismatic on video

No matter what you look like or how much money you have, charisma gives you the ability to captivate absolutely anyone – a sort of magnetism that inspires confidence and adoration. Charisma is not something you have to be born with – you can cultivate it. The surest way to develop effective communication known as charisma is by being on video.
We combined the best body language practices and voice techniques, with neuro linguistic programming methodology to help you develop confidence, charisma and perform flawlessly on camera, so you can build instant connection with your audience. Plus we’ll share our 3 proven steps to overcome performance anxiety, so you can make an impact with your voice and message.

Key Take Aways

• How to overcome the fear of video
• 3 proven steps to overcome performance anxiety
• How to build instant connection with your audience in 3 easy ways
• Learn body language tricks that make you look very confident

 Feedback: Awesmone session that was interactive and educational.

bonue: I got to share my expereince taking their course in December 2016

Natalia Kantor Sharing

 Session at 2:00pm with Rashni Bindra

Social Media and Fashion is the New Eye Candy

Pearls & Sequence is a strategic project coordination company that focuses on social media for start-ups and small businesses.
In this session, we will cover how bloggers now are considered to have higher market value than exclusive fashion industry professionals, and why top brands prefer to work with those influencers. Social media has changed how fashion weeks are presented, how their collections are sold and why the industry is in a bit of a chaos. This session will help industry specialists go the extra mile. We will cover in-depth on how fashion brands demonstrate substantial success with the use of social media channels. These strategies have allowed them to establish a more personal relationship with their consumers than ever before. Such brands such as Burberry, Tiffany & Co., DKNY, Michael Kors and Nike have used social media to change the way brands interact with their clients.
You will learn about the many social media tools and platforms to achieve social media success while identifying what is suitable for your fashion brand. Furthermore, you will learn that you don’t just have to be a blogger to be a person of influence in the fashion industry, you will learn all the fundamental tools. If you do decide to take the path of wanting social media success in a highly competitive industry, you will learn to become a role model in this session.

Key Take Aways

• To be a Fashion Influence
• Enhance your Brand Image
• Master in Becoming Visually Creative
• How to dominate your industry with these platforms
• Become More Reputable and Respected in Global Fashion Industry

 Feedback, Great sessionon strategies and stories from the fashion world. She also shared insight on have a great looking business card

            

Get Connected 21st Century Success Skills shared with Podcamp group live! at the Imperial Pub with great audience.

 Thanks to Tim Hodges for the interview Listen to show 

                              

Blogttalk interview: Instant Chemistry: How to attract and keep your soulmate in 21st Century with Carmelia Ray

 An amazing conversation with Award winning dating coach Carmelia Ray
 Learn more

  Listen

Carmelia Ray




          Amazing interview I did with Carmelia Ray at business  event in 2014

                           

Journey to be Ad man smoking cigarettes for the day.

I have had my adventures getting into  the world of acting in September 2014. From being a choking victim, bad teacher, writer with to an attitude. Fast forward to May 2016 having a speaking role in upcoming movie Downsized with Matt Damon and Kristine Wigg to do background work recently for Handmaids Tale (Tv) and Shape of Water (fox movie) Directed by Guillermo Del Toro in Hamilton, Ont.

Saturday October 15^th

I get an email on 10:30am with information for the next day. Where I had to be and what time. The shuttle bus would be waiting for us on Booth ave (Near Lakeshore) at 7:00am Sunday morning with call time being 8:15am to be on set.

Sunday October 16^th

Woke up at 5:30am and I was excited about the day! 

I had prepared most of what I need the night before so by 6:00am I was on the go..

                                                          Cycling adventure    

The streets were empty with hardly and cars on the road. I headed across Bloor street West using the new bike lanes installed in August and then south on Bathurst on my way down to the Martin Goodman trail. 

The only interesting  thing that I was the preparations for the Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon that was happening in a few hours. I reached the Front and Bathurst and got on the trail and began to ride, it was little colder being close to the lake but I was well covered and very warm.

                                                                 The Police officer situation   

Being that early in the morning I was moving very fast across the trail and not really stop at all the necessary points along the path. That was until I crossed paths with a police officer and her cruiser!

I stopped at the light and she pulled in front of me and asked “where are you going?”  I was little surprised and said to her “I have to catch a bus to get to an acting gig in Hamilton. Can I go now!” 

She didn’t say a word and kept driving. There was a woman walking over nearby and she looked at me little perplexed at the office had said to me. I shrugged it off and kept cycling.

The rest of the ride was very smooth and I was moving a good pace. I reached Cherry Street and took the path below the Don Valley on way to very tricky part of the path. It got very dark all over sudden and my headlight was not that bright to show me the way, I cycled little slow until a reached a sign which said  Path closed.  I freaked out!  Now what do a I do?

I turned around and tried to figure out how to get to my destination, I knew the name of the street was Booth Avenue so I went back to Cherry Street and went North until I reached Front Street East and turned right and continued to cycle. I crossed over the Don Valley and continued to cycle for a few blocks until I reached Booth avenue and then south to the end of the street and on my right I saw the shuttle bus waiting for us.

I locked my bike and hat and walked over to the bus. There were about 10 people there already and they were still waiting for more people to show up.  About ten minutes later gentleman walk up said “ I am Ambros your AD (assistant director) for today, we will be leaving shortly” 

At 7:00am the bus door closed and we headed out of the parking lot. Just at the bus was going to be make a right a shadowy figure showed up and the bus doors opened and a young millennial comes and a few people said “ Just in the nick of time!”

The bus started its journey towards Hamilton. We reached Hamilton at 7:54am.  I told my friend Alessandro who I had met on Thursday in Oshawa on the Handmaid Tales set “He was moving fast and furious for a Sunday morning”

We were directed to Background Holding area which was the Football Hall of Fame. It was completely empty of all the trophies and memorabilia and transformed into wardrobe, make and change rooms.

I had met some actors from a previous set we were on in Oshawa for Tv show Handmaids Tale, as we were getting settled we were given instructions to get registered and receive our Actra voucher for the day, which was the usual process.

                                                             Picture will not be permitted

Until the end when one of the Assistant Directors made this statement. “Please leave your cellphone here in the staging area, they are not permitted on set. If they are found you will be escorted out and you will be relieved for the day. If any pictures are posted online on this movie you will be found and dealt with!”

I looking at my friend Alessandra Pena and said “ Wow there serious!  This is the 21^st century last time a check, I am very sure the rule will be broken!”  he responded “ it will be!”

                                                         Getting changed

I went and got my Ad man Pant, shirts, shoes and tie and proceeded to find a change room. We were told to go downstairs and change. So a few of us went downstairs and found this small washroom that can only fit 1 person. 

We turned around went down 15 steps and changed in the hallway.  I said “this is what happened on Thursday in Oshawa! We changed in the basement hallway.”   We all went back to holding and got settled. 

Part of being a background actor is the hurry up and wait mantra, I had heard we were doing an outside scene in the morning and inside scene in the afternoon and perhaps some additional scene in the evening if needed.

As we waited hair and makeup came to use to inspect our hair and faces to see if we need to make any adjustments. We were dressed as Ad men in the 1960, short hair and clean shaven is what was needed.

They came back and said I was okay and continued my conversations with fellow actors around me. Half our later we were called to go back to wardrobe for some final additions to be made. It was a great experience to see all the men lined up and dressed in 1960’s clothing. It became even more interesting to see the women transform into their styles. Many of the women had their redone and some of them even wore wigs!  Some were painting the finger nails red and have a party doing so. They would come up to us for fun and say “What do you thing?”  I would says“ very nice, still smell little strong” They would run away laughing!

All the men were given a pocket square to our suit ensemble and we were beginning to look the part.

Another hour past and we were told to go back to wardrobe to get our hat and jackets for the outdoor we were going to do first. Back in line we went to get additional clothing, the energy and excitement was beginning to build amongst the actors.

                                                               The Background journey begins

We were asked to line-up for a final check to make sure everything was in order. Attention to detail is very important aspect in film and tv shows.

This is when I encountered my first big problem of the day. The shoes I had were very narrow and small and it was beginning to bothersome, I decided to grin and bear it for the morning.

We went outside in a single line and this is where things got really interesting.  The director of this filme is  Guilermo Del Toro who has recent films The Strain (tv show) Pacific Rim (2015)  Blade 2 and Pans Labrynth to his movie  portfolio.

We were then separated by the various AD (assistant directors) to various area in the huge court yard which was being watered down by city works to dampen the ground to make it look like 1960’s. It was great experience to see Hamilton City Hall transform make it look like the 1960’s, the inside didn’t need much change, it  looked like the 1960’s!

                                                          The Cigarette smoking man

  While we were outside we were also given suitcase to hold and 1960 type glasses to wear, we were official in the 60’s!

 I was put in a group with 4 men really close to where the camera was set up to doing a panning scene across the yard. My new AD was Liza who was going to give me instructions what do during the scene.

And then funny thing happened…

Another AD come to us with a packet of smokes and said “We need everyone to smoke so grab one”

 I said “well. I don’t smoke!”

 He responded “ Really. We can you learn how to do it”

Proceeded to give smokes and lighter and walked away.

I said “Excuse me can you back I can’t turn on the lighter” He said “seriously you not lying, you are not smoker!”

The rest of the background actors we laughing too!

He then said “no time to waste I will light for you for now and just smoke and exhale!” Can you do that!

I said “okay I will try!”

So my journey began, I literally not touch smoke since high school. So I took a few puffs and started to cough and feel very weird. I go this huge head rush for the next half hour”

                                                         Waiting to Exhale

Lisa came up to me and said “are you ready?” I said “sort of” she look at me little bewildered and then said “Jim you have to exhale the smoke!” 

I was responded “Oh that’s a great idea!”  She started to laugh herself!

The first scene was going to get started and Liz game me the following instructions “Take a 12 count and walk straight and then turn left”  I responded “ just to make sure count to 12 then walk”  She looks at me and said “yes and I will give you hand gesture to go!”

We were all set

                                                              Ready. Set & Action (then redo)

 The first scene went well and I came to my starting position and then second scene and back to my original point.

The most interested part of film is the amount of times they do shoot scenes. It get very repetitious and you have to use to it, sometimes small changes are made as what the actors are saying, where they are walking and how they are interacting.

As I mentioned earlier my shoes we really beginning to bother me and I had made a decision to speak to wardrobe when we went back later in the morning.

                                                      The Second scene and meeting Michelle

    

 We took a break and then we switch places in the scene. I got sent far back in the scene which was inside Hamilton City Hall, where I got to meet some new background actors and Michelle. She had transformed into a 1960’s dressed woman and looking fantastic. In between all the retake scene I began to start small conversations with her. Where they finally end was very funny and interesting.

We share our movies passions and history of why we started in this business. That’s where the conversation got interesting.

I told her I has worked in the video store business for Video 99 and Blockbuster Video store in the early 2000’s and had attended few conferences. In 2014 I did six months of acting and had a journey that I did various types of roles.

The in May 2016 I get involved again and did background work for upcoming film Downsized with Matt Damon and Kristine Wigg coming out in December 2017. During production I got picked by Director Alexander Payne to do a brief speaker role of a few words, due to that I got upgraded to Actra Apprentice for the day and nice paycheck of $1800 a few weeks later.

This is when she said “Really interested Jim, but I can beat that story!” At this point some of the other background actor joined the conversation interested in the rest of conversation.

Some of the had heard about it already and said “ You have not heard about American Gods yet?”

She started her story and it ended very quickly. “I did an orgy scene with 2 other guys and got SSE (Special Skill experience) and $2000 for it, it was closed set with only few people in the room. Nothing really happened special happen, one guy rubbed against the side of breast”

My response “now that’s a story!”

The day continued with retakes for half hour more and then we gave back our glasses and briefcase and  we retreated back to the stage area for a break. 

                                                                         Transformation continues

 We got back and rested for a bit before we were given our next instructions for the day.

I went and spoke to Amy in wardrobe about my shoe situation and she gave me two other shoes to try. Unfortunately one set was too big and the set was way too small. So in the end I had just rest my feet throughout the day.

About hour later we got summoned to get in line in wardrobe to get ready for our next scene which was going to take place indoors.

We headed back outside and then inside Hamilton City Hall which looked exactly like the 1960’s!  We were separated in various groups by the AD (assistant directors) I ended upstairs really close to the scene they were shooting, I was grouped with 2 other gentlemen.

We great each other and waited for our cues. It was great to Guillermo Del Toro go through rehearsal with the actor and tell them where to stand and deliver their lines.

Watching all the productions pieces come into play is a fascinating part of movie making to watch. From the moment the director yelled “Action” (very loud by the way) The synchronicity of the background actors movie in the scene, the actors saying their line, the camera moving with them, the AD and other production staff watching every move.

The scene and retakes continues for 1 hr and then we were escorted outside for a bit.

                                                               When is lunch!

The next though on everyone mind was when is lunch! The AD’s advised us we were going to get Subs delivered to us on set. The mood seemed somber because many of the actors didn’t believe it.

I sat down to guess how Michelle!

She seemed happy to engage in the continued conversation about the movie industry. One of the background actors asked? “What your favourite movie of all time?” I said “I don’t have to think about that!” on the other hand Michelle struggled for the answer. 

I literally don’t remember what it was, probably for the fact it was very boring and not true. By the way is Aliens director by James Cameron.

We then started talking about movies in 2016 and which one we had like the most so far. This is where I thought Michelle was going to turn into She-hulk!

I said I know which is the worst!  “Suicide Squad”  Michelle turned around in anger and said “what are you talking about!”  I said “ it was great trailer (best of all time I had very seen) but a very thin storyline”

She got angrier. “don’t you read the comics!” I said “I do!”

This discussion continued she continued to poking me and really getting agitated. The other background actors seemed to be enjoy our interaction!

A few minutes later a jug of water arrived with some beef and vegetable patties.  We started saying “I thought we were getting subs” The AD said “they are coming for the mean time have these” They were gone very fast!  I reached over and got Michelle a vegetarian beef patty and she smiled and said “thanks” very softly. She was still angry!

                                                                 The final scene Cigarette smoking man returns!

 For the late afternoon scene were inside on the second floor of the Hamilton City Hall. They had coined this glass enclosure “The Aquarium” for the day.  I put in there with three other gentlemen and was given more cigarettes to smoke, by this time in the day the AD was really having fun with me. “How is the smoking coming along today?  Feeling better now?  I have gift for you when we are done.” The other extras were having fun with it too.

We were instructed to smoke and have conversations while miming (saying no words) I must have gone through another 5 cigarettes with all the retakes we were doing.

The day final ended as they yelled “that’s a wrap”

We all headed back to the background area to get changed get paperwork in order and get on the bus.

It was amazing experience to learn more about the movie industry, share insights with background actors and make new friends that I hope to see in future sets in the days and years to come.

Book Review: Aspects of Nature

                                                                

        Book Review:
     

“It was a great experience to read the various stories of Aspects of Nature, as each of the stories had a powerful message to share.  We should all appreciate the people we meet and learn from them.  It was a magical experience of thoughtful and inspiring stories from beginning to the end.”  Jim Pagiamtzis, Author, Book Reviewer and speaker.

    
Like the many surfaces of a gemstone, the varied aspects of human experience link the short stories in this collection, titled Aspects of Nature. Themes of finding one’s identity; conflicts of family, career and romance; loneliness, death, loss, and feelings of displacement; youth and aging; courage and fear; human frailty; spirituality; compassion and manifestations of evil, all are at the heart of this collection. Of the eleven stories, the one bearing the collection’s name presents a satirical microcosm of our fragmented contemporary society, a candle-lit dinner party of six disparate guests at a Canadian cottage on an isolated island in the middle of a lake at the height of a Gothic storm.

 The remaining stories show aspects of nature in their diverse guises: a brilliant concert pianist courageously asserts life over evil; in a satirical affirmation of self, a middle-aged woman confronts a plastic surgeon urging a face lift; an elderly woman, trapped in her role as a mother and grandmother, offers an amusing, account of her inability to assert to her family what it is she desires; a seventy-year-old woman on her death bed makes plans for her next dinner party; a Holocaust survivor fashions random natural objects into sculptures, determined to impose order out of chaos; a forty-something woman finally confronts her doctor and, by extension, the male medical profession; an aging woman laments her loss of memory, her home, independence, youth, beauty; another, faces societal changes she no longer understands; a young pianist is conflicted by love for her master teacher; a young mother, forever explaining her husband and sons each to the other, seeks to fathom where her own self has disappeared.



        Learn more/ buy book