I am excited to announce that I have recently been offered, and have accepted, a job in the United States of America with a brand new company called Golden Gate 3D, based in the beautiful city of San Francisco. I will be fulfilling the roles of Director, Cinematographer and Stereographer and am very much looking forward to being part of what is sure to be a major new force in stereoscopic 3D production, not only in the Bay Area and West Coast of the US, but globally, being part of an amazing team of professionals with decades of experience in the industry.
It is with a certain amount of sadness that I will leave Japan, which has been my home for the past five years, because it means saying goodbye to many people I love, even though we will no doubt see each other again in the future as I come back for specific shoots etc. Japan is also the country that has given me my start in the industry, and one for which I will always be grateful. It has been an amazing ride - sometimes good, sometimes bad, but always interesting! As the pioneer of the Red camera here in Japan, I'm proud to have carved a niche here that has impacted forever the local industry. But that niche hasn't seen me evolve to where I really want to be, having been pigeon-holed mostly as the Red rental guy and not as the director and cinematographer I've been striving to be.
Golden Gate 3D is going to give me that opportunity to shine in a way I couldn't do here in Japan, as well as getting me a lot closer to my ultimate goal of being a Hollywood feature film director. As such it is the right decision for me and one I am really looking forward to over the coming years.
Golden Gate 3D also has strong ties to Japan through both myself and Christopher Frey, so we definitely intend to keep these ties going from San Francisco. We have projects lined up here already, and if you have any interest in shooting your productions in stereoscopic 3D in Japan, you needn't look any further as we will be only too happy to help take your work to the next level with the best 3D possible, operating both Epic-X and Canon C300 stereo rigs.
So far as my actual moving date goes, it is still up in the air but will likely be some time around the beginning to middle of June. A couple of you have jobs scheduled with me beyond that time frame. Rest assured I will be doing those jobs as planned with you; it just means I will fly back to Japan for them. I will contact you individually to answer any questions you may have.
I will most probably be traveling to the US in May for several jobs Golden Gate 3D has already got scheduled, but will be coming back before leaving permanently. Regarding farewells etc, I'd really like to catch up with as many as you as I can but may not be able to do so for everyone. That said, even half way across the world we have never been closer, what with all the social networks and internet connections, so naturally we won't lose touch!
No doubt many of you will have questions and comments, so please feel free to ask and speak your mind.
I will close with this simple note: Thank you to each and every one of you who has in some way been a part of my life here in Japan. You are the reason it is hard to leave, but it is also your words of encouragement and belief that I can reach the pinnacle of this industry, that has inspired me to take the next step. I very much look forward to rewarding your faith with my future work and hope to see you all again on the red carpet one day ;)
Onward and upward!
Cheers,
Paul :)
