Tony: Todd Norris Leads Kansas City’s New Crop Of Digital Movie Makers

It’s time to stop weeping over the corpse of the late-great Robert Altman and find something new. Kansas City is home to a vibrant movie making community as evidenced by the ongoing work of the local Independent Filmmaker’s Coalition.

Still, one dude is quickly making a name for himself in this new age digital image-making. Notice I don’t use the word “film” because nobody uses that stuff anymore. Anyway, by now, folks in the know realize that I’m referring to Todd Norris.

Here’s just a quick look at the local guy’s activity. He recently won a local Emmy for his work at NBC Action News. He conducted a seminar at the recent (and mostly digital) KC Filmfest and most of the local moviemakers in this town can’t wait to see his upcoming shortfilm “Candy Apple Red” which looks amazing.

In fact, I think this might be the first online video posted on KCC. Check it out:

For digital media enthusiasts, the recent upswing for the movie making career of Todd Norris can be attributed to theMicro-Four Thirds phenomenon that has made it possible for Independent Moviemakers to attain professional level looking images on a limited budget. This was the subject of the recent seminar put on by Norris and it’s also the cutting edge of Indie movie making. Still, it’s not just new tech that is responsible for the masterful work done my Norris. A quick look at his Flickr page reveals that he really knows his way around a camera.

Finally, as more visual artists discover this phenomenon, look for an increased number of filmmakers making a name for themselves in this cowtown. In fact, I don’t mind revealing that this summer could see Candy Apple Red Previewed at the AMC Downtown along with other short local movies. So, much like dead tree media, the decline of “film” is giving way to a new crop of artists embracing technology and using it to create content on a professional level.

Tony Botello