‘California Feeling’ ~ Grammy Awards

"We are proud and thrilled to announce some wonderful news for the bCreative Poetry Ambassador, and my friend, Steven J. Kalinich regarding his "Steven Kalinich and Friends’ great compilation, ‘California Feeling’. 

This year’s Grammy Ballot is now in our hands and we are pleased to announce that ‘California Feeling’ has been placed on the Official Ballot for the 54th Annual Grammy Awards by the Recording Academy in several categories. It's an honor to be placed on the ballot and we need your help to get Steven and company into the Final Top 5 Nominees.

The CD was produced by Mark Linett and Alan Boyd, and executive produced by Carol Schofield for MsMusic Records.

‘California Feeling’ is on the ballot for Best Pop Vocal Album including recognition for tracks by Stacy Keach and Sarah Al-Mulla (‘The Magic Hand’), and Rachel & The Reindeerz (‘Child of Winter’), which includes the first-ever appearance on the Grammy ballot by Brian Wilson’s grandchildren, Lola & Luci Bonfiglio, and Leo, Beau, Jesse & Willem Knutson.

If you are a voting member of the Grammys, we ask for your consideration in voting for Steven Kalinich and Friends’ ‘California Feeling.’ The Grammy ballots have now been sent to all voting members and must be received by the Academy by Wednesday, November 2.

Also, if you know someone else who is casting their vote in this year's Grammys, please forward the following information and ask for their vote on Steven and Friends’ behalf.

And as always, please let us know if you’ve got something on the ballot that needs our attention as well.

Please note : Each category has an Official Three-digit Ballot Entry Number that Grammy members will need to vote for Steven and Company.

Welcome The Ambassadors of bCreative

At the bCreative Directory we see the role of the ‘Ambassador’ as an integral part of our team. This great collection of people with an awesome combined knowledge of ‘all things creative’ are here to help us get and stay on the right track. The ‘Ambassadors’ endorse our site. Whatever the creative field you are in, where ever your ‘muse’ takes you, we intend to have a support network of great people, who know what it is like to be where you are, and have succeeded. There wealth of experience is here to guide us at bCreative and to set the tone of our mentoring.

If you are interested in becoming an ‘Ambassador’ please contact me via bCreative, I'm Tony and you can view more details here 

Welcome to the Ambassadors of bCreative

          David Courtney -  Music, composer

                Stephen J. Kalinich - Writing, poetry

     Garry Bushell - Journalism

                        James Devis - Film, cinematoraphy

                           Des Michaels - Music, publishing

                   Joe Alvarez -  Photography

                                Tony Klinger -Film, production

David Courtney 
Composer and Record Producer

David Courtney and his current project My Band TV fulfils the cross partnership with bCreative offering wonderful opportunities to all our members for participation on this Global TV Network.

David Courtney is an international composer and record producer who has worked with some of the music industry’s legendary names such as Roger Daltrey - Eric Clapton - David Gilmour - Sir Paul McCartney - Ritchie Blackmore – Jimmy Page and Steve Cropper to name but a few. He was also the man behind the success of Leo Sayer and co-wrote many of his international hits including ‘ The Show Must Go On’ ‘One Man Band’ and ‘ Long Tall Glasses’. He also wrote ‘Giving it all away’ for Roger Daltrey and many other works such ‘Shooting Star’ and ‘Who Were you With In The Moonlight’ for UK 80’s pop duo ‘Dollar’.

David Courtney has numerous entrees in various "Rock Music Encyclopedias" and Platinum, Gold and Silver Disc awards representing the millions of records sold worldwide. He has also won ASCAP (The American Society of Composers, Authors & Publishers) awards, and a Grammy nomination.

For further information visit www.davidcourtney.co.uk

James Devis 
B.S.C. Director of Cinematography

“If you wish to become a cinematographer the best way to predict your future is to create it. People may doubt what you say but they will believe what you do .So by becoming a member of bCreative we can help you achieve your ambition.”

.James has worked in the film industry for over fifty years and on well over one hundred movies. He started out as a page boy at Gainsborough Studios, moving to the Camera Dept as central loader to all the films being made there. He then became a clapper boy before he was called up for National Service. James was in the RAF for two years. After the war he freelanced working at all the major studios. He moved from clapper boy to assistant cameraman working with Geff Unsworth and Dougie Slocombe along the way. James had many happy years at Pinewood Studios. Since then he has worked with some of the all time great directors. David Lean, John Huston, Stanley Kubrick , Don Segal , Frank Oz ,David Lynch ,Philip Noyce , Neil Jordan, Frank Schaffner and many more. Due to his vast experience James became a Director of Photography in 1980. For fifteen years after he was second unit director and D.O.P. on major movies all over the world.

James retired recently but hopes his experience will be helpful to others inspired to work in the film industry.

Joe Alvarez

Red Carpet Photographer

Joe is a showbusiness journalist / photographer based in London. He has covered showbiz news for the last 12 years. This has taken him to a host of events including film festivals in Cannes, Toronto, Venice. Where there is a red carpet event look out for Joe. Oscars, Brits, MTV Awards, Baftas, National TV Awards, Soap Awards and many more are all part of the regular year for Joe, he never stops.

You will have seen his photos in many newspapers and magazines worldwide. Joe Alvarez became part of the story when he was involved with a fracas with Colin Farrell at the Toronto Film Festival. That day, as an accredited photographer (not paparazzi) Joe fought fire with fire, and became the headline! He is use to dealing with artistic temperament but that day it got confrontational and Joe’s face got equal billing with Farrell. “It is the thing I love about this job, you never know what to expect or where in the world you will be doing it”.   

To contact Joe here on bCreative 

Stephen J.Kalinichi

Poet

“I would love to help others discover the poet within themselves and cultivate their ability to express their thoughts and creative feelings into allow them to open up to all the colours of their being”.

The great American poet and lyricist Stephen John Kalinich has been a profound voice of the rock ’n’ roll era for four decades. When Paul McCartney and Brian Wilson, two of the most prominent icons in rock history, recorded “A Friend Like You” by Kalinich and Wilson on an album featuring Elton John and Eric Clapton, it was a testament to the lyrical poet at the height of artistic achievement.

An originator of the California sound, Kalinich rose to fame as a young man. He went on to work with many of the ‘greats’ including P.F. Slone (Eve of Destruction),Mary Wilson of the Supremes, Odyssey and Randy Newman. Although he has risen to the highest echelons of the music industry, Kalinich considers himself a poet first. A voice of conscience comparable to Bob Dylan, he has inspired audiences around the world.

A performer whose spoken lines are as powerful as the music that carries them, Kalinich played to thousands on a recent European tour of his Galactic Symphonies, written with internationally acclaimed guitarist Richard Durrant and recorded on CD and DVD Kalinich’s poetry readings have an emotional impact comparable to that of poet Maya Angelou.

Kalinich continues to write poetry for films and music from Los Angeles, the city he loves. He is currently collaborating with Stacy Keach on the film ‘War Poems’ and David Marks, an original member of the Beach Boys, is producing The Circle Continues, a collection of songs with lyrics by Kalinich, slated for 2010 release.

Information about Stephen can be found at www.stephenjohnkalinichi.co.uk

Contact Stephen via bCreative

Garry Bushell
Journalism

Garry  is one of Britain’s best-known pundits. His hard-hitting column has been published in four national newspapers – The Sun, The Daily Star,  the People and the Daily Star Sunday - and he has appeared on more than 2,000 TV and radio shows.

Bob Monkhouse called him “a terrific writer.” Richard Littlejohn describes him as “the best one-liner merchant in Fleet Street.” While Howard Stern once dubbed him “my Ambassador in England.” 

The son of a fireman, Garry was born in Woolwich, South East London. He began his career as a rock writer and band manager. He managed the Cockney Rejects and the Blood, discovered Twisted Sister in a New York State bar and travelled the world with the likes of Ozzy Osbourne, Blondie and the Specials. In 1984, Garry wrote Iron Maiden’s authorized biography ‘Running Free’ (re-printed four times).

Finally me

Tony Klinger

Film Maker

The founder of the bCreativedirectory.com.

In 2010, based on my belief that the world needed a place for creative people to share their ideas, inspirations, dreams, frustration etc, The bCreative Directory was born.

But like everyone else with big ideas, an enormous amount of experience derived from working in many areas got me to this point.

My credits and awards are numerous.  Starting as a school boy winning two national writing competitions and by 18 I was making my own small professional films for public distribution. I went on to make films in various capacities including Writer, Director and Producer. Including ‘The Kids Are Alright’, ‘The Man Who Got Carter’, ‘Shout at the Devil’, ‘Deep Purple over Japan’. I have been extensively involved with education, as a course director and lecturer at 3 top British film schools.  My  book ‘Twilight Of The Gods’ (about Klinger producing the film ‘The Kids Are Alright’ with iconic rock group The Who) is currently available. I also have 2 novels scheduled for release in 2012, W.O.M.D. and The Butterfly Boy.

For my full credits please go to www.tonyklinger.com

'Computer Music' magazine & bCreative

Excellent piece on bCreative written in 'Computer Music' magazine this month.  Thank you!!

If you haven't yet been to thebCreativeDirectory now is your chance, it's not just for amateurs and it's not just for pros, we have both amateurs and pros sharing bCreative!! Making this one of the worlds most unique Social Network Talent Directory!

Join in, learn and gain, but most of all.....  bCreative!

To Your Dreams and Your Success

Tony

The Simon Round Interview with Tony

Article published with thanks to Simon Round.

The son of the producer of the classic British gangster movie owns up to his big mistake about its leading man.

Caine in a scene from Get Carter shot on a bridge over the River Tyne.

Many children of illustrious fathers hesitate before following their parent's career footsteps, but for Tony Klinger, son of film producer Michael Klinger, it happened the other way around.

Klinger decided at the age of nine that he wanted to be a film-maker and was furious that his father, who came from an engineering background, changed career in middle-age to become a cinema-owner and, later, a film-maker himself.

However, Klinger eventually made up with his father and participated with him in the making of one the seminal films of the '70s - Get Carter, starring Michael Caine as a gangster who heads north to Newcastle to settle scores.

Klinger says: "My dad was an inventor. He came up with a machine to test bombs without blowing them up, which was a vital breakthrough in the war. But because he was a government employee, he didn't make any money out of it - he got a six shilling pay increase."

Klinger with the star

Klinger the elder was desperate to make money. He worked for a while in East End markets until one day he was offered the chance to invest in a Soho cinema. He took it but soon realised that the major film distributors had a stranglehold over distribution. So he began to make movies he could show in his growing cinema chain - at first naturist romps, but later serious feature films including, in 1971, Get Carter.

Which is where son Tony comes in. Equally as ambitious as his father, he was already making films - in fact a feature called Extremes won a prize at the 1971 London Film Festival. But he was curious enough to become involved in Get Carter, notably in scouting locations. He found the flat used to film Carter's meeting with London gangsters. It did not, he recalls, take a great leap of the imagination. "That wasn't a set, it was an actual flat belonging to a real Jewish gangster. I didn't know anything about him but I was dating his niece and we spent some time there together. I said to her one day that I could imagine this being the flat of a real gangster. She said: 'Have you met Uncle Tony?'"

Klinger also helped scout some of the iconic Newcastle locations. He says: "I made suggestions. There were locations that anyone would have spotted, like the rows of back-to-back houses which led down to the River Tyne where we filmed a scene."

So why was the film such a huge hit? "It sums up an era and a place, a change of thinking, politics and culture. Some of it was good judgement but of course a lot of it was the luck to be making the right film at the right time."

Klinger feels that Caine's role as Carter was one of the greatest of his career. However, he recalls with a giggle that he was not so sure at the time. "I thought Caine was totally wrong for the part. As it turns out it was me who was totally wrong - he was wonderful. And the reason he was wonderful was because he was exactly how those guys are."

Klinger made his own reputation during the 1970s. He made pop promo films, the forerunners of pop videos. He was invited to make longer films with Deep Purple and The Who, with whom he made The Kids Are Alright, which was a huge hit in the United States. He recalls: "Imagine you're a rock fan and you've got probably the best live rock band in the world in the studio, and they are saying to you: 'What shall we play next?' It was so exciting." Notwithstanding the excitement, the experience also had a nightmarish element. "There were huge egos involved. We had terrible fights. I think I resigned about 12 times but I kept coming back because I was under contract."

Klinger has decided to revisit these films. He has filmed a documentary about the making of Get Carter, featuring interviews with Michael Caine, due for release later this year. And he has written a book about the making of The Kids are Alright called Twilight of the Gods.

He has also spent a decade making a documentary called Full Circle about a near-forgotten tragedy, the sinking of the Israeli submarine, INS Dakar.

Klinger was only dimly aware of the story until meeting his daughter's fiancé, Arnon, whose father Dan was on the doomed sub which set sail from Portsmouth in 1968 but never reached its destination of Haifa. The sinking remained a mystery for many years, but Klinger accompanied his son-in-law on the mission which eventually recovered the sub from the Mediterranean. "I became passionate about the project. Arnon never knew his dad and I wanted to find out what happened to him."

It is not the only shipping mystery he has been involved with recently. In a story which illustrates the fanaticism of Get Carter devotees, Klinger recalls being approached at a book signing.

"He said to me: 'Do you know what happened to the ship?' I said: 'What ship'? It turned out he was talking about the ship in the background when Carter was shot at the end of the film. He and his friends tracked it around the world and discovered that it was de-commissioned in 1995 or something. They're completely mad."

By Simon Round, July 14, 2011
http://www.thejc.com/users/simon-round

http://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/the-simon-round-interview/51627/interview-tony-klinger

bCreative in the News

16 June 2011
Published by
Pro Sound News 


Music producers and publishers are among the many different types of creative people to have signed up to a new social networking site, the bCreative Directory, reports David Davies.

Founded by film producer/director Tony Klinger (whose numerous credits include co-production of Deep Purple Over Japan, and a forthcoming BBC4 documentary on his filmmaker father Michael that will feature actor Michael Caine, pictured here with Tony), the bCreative Directory is designed to appeal to musicians, artists, actors, models, comedians, filmmakers and ‘all those working at the creative development of any art form’ – be they professionals or enthusiastic amateurs.

Speaking to PSNE, Klinger says that he recognised a need for this kind of shared information resource long before the invention of the internet – indeed, as far back as childhood: “I remember what it was like when I was a kid, trying to figure out how to make my dream come true, to take something I had written alone in my room, and turn it into a film that everyone could watch. That was how bCreative was really born, out of that little bedroom, when I was eight or nine years old and hadn’t got any answers. Now a lifetime later I know how, and via bCreative I want to share those answers with anyone with creative talent.

“[These days] there are a lot of degree courses in film and music which tell you to how create the artefact – produce a record, focus a camera, etc – but they don’t necessarily tell you how to put the [various elements] together. ‘How do I do a deal for my project?’ ‘Who do I speak to?’ Those are the sorts of questions that occur to everybody in the business when they start to thinking about becoming professional.”

The site also features ‘Ambassadors’ selected by Klinger from various areas of creative endeavour, including poetry/lyrics, cinematography, photography and music publishing. The music production Ambassador is composer/producer David Courtney, who is credited with discovering Leo Sayer and has also worked with artists including Roger Daltrey, Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page.

“Treat your career like travelling in a car down a motorway,” says Courtney. “The view through the rear window is where you’ve been – experience. The view through the front window is where you’re heading – the future – so keep your eye focused on the road ahead. But watch out for the speed cameras!”

The site has also linked up with Courtney’s MyBand TV website, which has been designed to provide an outlet for some of the best emerging bands and artists.New Ambassadors and features will continue to be added as the site evolves. Next up, says Klinger, is a virtual shop window – “a place from which people who create music, film, sculpture and so on will have the opportunity to sell the work they produce.”

For more information and to join for free, visit www.thebcreativedirectory.com

www.davidcourtney.co.uk  Ambassador to  ®bCreative


Remember when registering to make your profile as complete as possible, my scouting team are looking to talent to promote on Facebook, Twitter and MySpace!

Being a Film Maker

Loving your work as a film producer and director isn't hard. Someone comes along and gives you money to organize a large bunch of grown up children, (actors) get them into their costumes, make sure they say their lines more or less in order, emote all over the place at the mere mention of the word "Action" and generally one makes certain everyone is suitably in awe of your genius and incredibly artistic mind. . . most of which is bollocks because it's common knowledge in the movie business that most directors could be replaced by your average traffic cop and similarly most producers who are more into the business end of things, could easily be replaced by any used car salesman, in fact a few producers were in that profession until recently. Of course good producers do run their films well as do good directors, but they're the exception. What you're meant to do as a producer is gather all the elements of a film together, money, director, artists, distributors, scripts etc, and motivate, push, guide and manage them all. The director has to artistically run the picture from the moment he's hired until the film's finished editing.

My experiences as a "Governor" began at eighteen when I started to produce, direct and write documentaries with my best friend and partner, Mike Lytton. After a few successes, which were a mixture of luck, talent and bloody mindedness, we went our separate ways and by the time I was in my mid-twenties, I had worked with Roger Moore on two big action films and he had re—christened me "Tuts" after he had hugely enjoyed my discomfort whilst I sat in a dug out canoe in a wild African River after I'd been stung that morning by an anti-Semitic Scorpion. "You know you'll die from that Klinger. . . Scorpion bites are lethal; at least you'll loose the foot. How are you on wood?" Moore called out from his boat. My mother, who was anxiously visiting the set called out from the riverbank, "Don't take any notice Tutela!" It should be explained that Tutela is a Germanic Yiddish term of endearment from a parent to their child, meaning "Dear Little One". Once Moore knew this he was merciless and I became known as "Tuts". As Governors can, I ordered my boat to the shore whereupon my dear little arse was shot full of glutinous penicillin by a nurse with the biggest hypodermic known to man or horse in history.

We also had the wonderful and wild Lee Marvin starring in the same movie "Shout At The Devil" and we were filming a battle scene between a First World War German Cruiser and a British Vickers Gunbus Aircraft that we'd built on the River Umzimbubu. I had placed myself on a bluff to make sure no modern vehicles or people should unwittingly come into view of our cameras. Marvin was not required on set that day and as was his habit on occasions such as these, he had bent the elbow vigorously, testing the upper limits of a human's capacity to consume alcoholic beverages. Up to then he'd been working almost every day and was a pleasure to be with, but when the sauce flowed he became more than somewhat hard to handle. Marvin was certain we didn't have enough extras for the battle sequence and had therefore dressed himself as a crowd extra and decided in his drunken wisdom to go on board ship and lend his assistance. I tried to keep him back, but he became progressively more hostile, "Lee, hold on please, we can't have you on the ship, you're supposed to be somewhere else in the movie. If the camera picks you out it'll screw the film up!" Lee thought about this for a moment then said, "I'll bend over like this", and he bent toward me, "and no one will know it's me. It'll be O.K." He nodded a bit too hard and I had to prop him up. "Lee, it really isn't necessary." But he wouldn't let me finish. He eyeballed me from mean, rheumy eyes, "Tony, you're a good kid, but if you don't get out of my road, I'll bust your chops." I looked at that large, very tough man and realized that if I hit him, I could damage the priceless face and screw the next day's filming, and if he hit me, it could cause severe damage to my face, which I prize greatly. Therefore, pretending a change of opinion, I said, "You're right Lee, maybe they could use another sailor" I stepped aside, but before I could clear from his path, he grabbed me in a bear hug and kissed me. "You're a good kid", he stated. Marching off to the ship, I called ahead on the walkie talkie to the Director about their new arrival and he called back, "That's all I fucking well need. Why did you decide to send him here you bloody lunatic!" Such are the thanks you can expect from a sympathetic colleague.

On other films I had made, Vincent Price quoted poetry, Twiggy sang, as did Deep Purple and many others. Patrick McNee, star of the Avengers, on which I'd worked as an assistant director, had kindly given me several pairs of beautiful hand made shoes when I left the show, which unfortunately were all too long and narrow. One female star had give me even more, but this isn't a blog about her or that night; Michael Caine and Peter Finch had taught me respect for actors and their craft. Finch in particular, proved that you could raise hell at night and perform brilliantly in the morning.

At my wedding he handed me beautiful antique silver
edged mirror and said, "You look into this mirror and what you'll see is really you, not what anyone else says is you, but what Tony Klinger bloody well is, if he's ever going to be anything worth looking at in any event!"

I guess, with these blogs, I'm still looking in that mirror.

The bCreative Directory Blog - Welcome

The exciting free social networking site www.thebcreativedirectory.com is causing a stir, which started by word of mouth! It is now spreading via other internet sites, press, radio, TV and Social Media.

Attracting musicians, writers, artists, actors, models, film-makers and all those working at the creative development of any art form to join.
Be they well established connoisseurs of their art or students of their own creativity, hobbyists, wannabes, all are welcome at The bCreative Directory. By request ‘comedy’ is the latest category to be added.

The purpose is networking. It is the place to be to give, and get back. Anyone creative is welcome to join (free). You will find people who understand the highs and lows of working in an intense, stimulating career area, as well as those who desire to follow their heart and create. Paintbrush, guitar or camera in hand, they need to communicate with like-minded people.

Founded by me, Tony Klinger, (film producer, director – ‘Shout at the Devil’, ‘The Kids are Alright’, Author, Lecturer etc.) The bCreative Directory was my answer to the eternal questions asked by many students, friends and colleagues. ‘Who do I ask? Who might understand? Where do I start? Am I the only one?’ These and many others are the questions that roll around the heads of creative folk, and need fast answers.

I decided to bring in a few contacts as ‘Ambassadors’ to set the tone.  Currently they include luminaries in the fields of Poetry/lyrics, Music Publishing, Cinematography, Photography and Music Production. More Ambassadors will be added as the site develops.

The first big prize event for bCreative members is a Modelling Competition. The winner will be taken to a special location and be photographed by red carpet photographer 'Joe Alvarez'. If you are a model type, wanting to take part, all you need to do is become a member complete your profile and submit an entry.  You can Join Here


Already for the musicians and groups there is a tie up with MyBand TV creating an outlet for their sound and visuals on a world stage!

“Many events and services are being planned, and suggestions are always welcomed at this organic site. However the future develops at bCreative, the ethos will always be the same. How can we help you achieve your dreams?”

To join free just go to www.thebcreativedirectory.com and sign up.

Remember to keep learning, keep trying and you will succeed!!

Best Wishes