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To be honest, not really. But with over two thousand views on facebook, and a little over five hundred views on Youtube, On the Right Track is soaring ever higher. If you haven’t seen it yet, which is highly doubtful (no, seriously, I hate to be one to brag, but it’s really good), I’ve just uploaded it to the Video section of this portfolio. On the Right Track has been featured on two online news sites, Ovar News and Urbi. It has also been mentioned on Vontade de Viajar’s twitter feed, with quite a few retweets and mentions to its name. Vontade de Viajar, or Will to Travel, is a Brazilian blog about, you guessed it, travelling. On occasion, I’ve written a few guest posts for Vontade de Viajar, and I’m working on one right now about a less known side of Amsterdam. Be sure to check it out!
Our first anniversary, well, kind of
It’s been one year since this online portfolio has been online. Well, actually this domain has been around for over four years, however, for most of that time it was a dead url with little, to no updates. Last year, I decided it was time to build a professional looking online portfolio. With a new design, a more organized feel to it, and brand new sections, this portfolio has become my main source of employment over the last year. It’s been a great tool to promote my work, doubling as an archive for past publications, and personal news clipping. Too Much Information… …is the title of my latest article on Her Ideal. This time, I’ve decided to put the matters of the heart a side for a little bit and focus on the overwhelming stream of personal and pointless information that drowns us on facebook. How many times have you found yourself thinking: Is he really posting that on facebook? Don’t they realize anyone can see this? Do they have no self-respect? Since finding new friends can be a hassle, why not share my article with them? Maybe they’ll learn a thing or two about privacy settings and about self-control of what they publish online. I will be visiting London over the next few days. Hopefully I’ll find some time to promote my portfolio. Who knows? It’s always a great asset to have around if you ever need it.
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Adapting to a new job takes a lot of free time away from you, especially when it means moving to a new town. It isn’t easy to get used to the new schedule and the slower rhythm of living on the mountainside, but I’m getting there. The last few weeks have had a few ups and downs, both literally and figuratively. RTP fits in the second category. Last summer I was part of a project called 100 Seconds of Science. Since we were full on focused on Reação Espontânea’s and 1+1’s pre-production stages, this extra project ended up being more of nuisance than anything. We had to go to Lisbon to interview a researcher in the field of molecular biochemistry about the blending of metal nanoparticles in graphene molecules. The first interview went ok but we had a little problem with the sound. They told us to go back and redo it. I was busy scouting locations for 1+1 so they asked me to edit the interview since the previous editor had to take my place as cameraman. I did it in about two days and uploaded the rough cut and the rest of the material to their in-house server. Months went by and we never got the official green light from the company that ordered this video. Last month, RTP decided to air the full range of 100 Seconds of Science videos as public service adds. I was surprised to see that the video that ended up on TV had nothing to do with the version I submitted. They used footage from the first interview and did a poor job editing the video. The graphics were appalling and the b-roll made no sense. Unfortunately, due to legal issues I am unable to publish my version of this video. I will try to find a way around it, but until then you can watch the aired version here and see for yourself. Not all news from RTP are bad, they’ve just announced that they’ll be re-airing Magneto. Starting this Saturday at 19h30 on RTP 2 you can rewatch your favourite episodes of Reação Espontânea and 1+1. For those of you with short memory, don’t forget to check out these shows first episode overview. Living Portugal A new month is ahead of us and Her Ideal’s latest edition is already out and making some noise. This May, Her Ideal is celebrating their first birthday and my article “Living Portugal” has the honour to showcase in the front cover of this month’s edition. Be sure to read it! I will do my best to keep you up to date on my new life in Covilhã and with any new developments relevant to my current and previous positions. Until then, don’t forget to rewatch Magneto. This time it’s on a friendlier schedule.
“Whether it is impossible or laughable, great men open up paths of battle!” After a long walk through the desert I finally found my promised land on the steep landscape of Serra da Estrela’s Mountain range. Unlikely as it may seem I’ve managed to find work in one of the inner districts of Portugal. Ovar will forever be my home but for the next six months Covilhã is where I’m living. I could say I came for the view, the great food or the picturesque charm of a small college town caught between the mountains and plains of eastern Portugal. I could, and believe me, these things actually helped sway my decision, however, I owe this recent life event to a successful job interview at LabCom (Laboratory for Online Communication) where I’m currently working. I’m part of a project called Communicating science and publication cultures in the humanities. Long title, isn’t it? I’ve been here for over a week and, for now, there isn’t much more to add about this project other than what’s already been published on its website. Her Ideal, Your Ideal, My Ideal Some of my facebook followers may already know, but I’ve recently started writing for a fashion magazine called Her Ideal. My first opinion article “First Impressions” was published on page 57 of this month’s edition. You can check it out right here or read it straight from the source on the magazine’s website. I’ll be writing similar articles forHer Ideal in the near future, so don’t forget to have a look at each month’s new edition.
New job, new personal project, and a bit of a writer’s block. I’m guessing this April will not go easy on me. I know, I know. It’s been a while since my last entry. I’ve been a bit busy with some personal projects over the last couple of weeks. I also decided to put my free time into good use and got around to doing some spring cleaning that I’ve been putting off for a few years now. You can’t imagine the ton of cool stuff I had stored away in the attic. Fortunately, my long-term neglect didn’t do much damage other than the occasional pile of dust. All this journey down memory lane got me thinking about old projects that for one reason or the other just didn’t made it to my portfolio’s latest version. As some of you may know I enjoy writing fiction. Mostly they’re just romantic short stories that end up mirroring some episodes of my love life. I have some ideas to write a book one day but I haven’t found the right motivation to getting round to do it. However, my exploits into fiction writing have not gone unnoticed and I did manage to get one of my short stories published in a magazine called 9páginas (9 pages) back in 2009. I completely forgot about this until a few days ago when I came across a copy of that magazine. At the time they sent me a PDF version of my short story and here it is for all of you to enjoy. Sadly it is written in Portuguese and there’s no translation available. To sum it up it’s a story about a high school crush. The protagonist walks his crush home after school every day, however he’s unable to tell her how he really feels. It’s written in a somewhat poetic way and I believe the scenery description is one of the best work I’ve done in this regard. Anyway, don’t take my word for it, just read it and see for yourself.
This other blast from the past is actually a bit of clipping from my old English School’s newsletter. I was asked to write a short essay about my experience in Windsor School and my teacher, Andy Murphy, wrote a short profile about me. It’s all on page 6 of this newsletter. As for the season finale of Magneto, what can I say? It was a good run, I can’t really describe the feeling one gets after watching six months of hard work premiere on national television. It’s simply breathtaking. That aside, I still feel the show wasn’t publicized in the right way. Mixing together five segments that had nothing to do with one another was simply an amateur move from the network. In my opinion, the five shows should’ve been split individually and as some have suggested, they should’ve aired a few minutes before or after RTP’s main news section on week days at eight o’clock in the evening. Unfortunately, I wasn’t the one in charge of such a decision and in the end all that matters is that we’ve done an excellent job and that our work got the recognition it deserved. I have a few surprises in stored for you this April. Stay tuned and don’t forget to check out this section for further details. 
This update is at least a couple of weeks behind schedule. As some of you may or may not know, Reação Espontânea and 1+1 have premiered on January 26th and are already releasing their third episode this Saturday at 11 a.m. on RTP 1.
Don’t miss Reação Espontânea’s and 1+1’s third episodes this Saturday, February 9th at 11 a.m. on RTP 1. This week Reação Espontânea will let you know how IPATIMUP’s researchers are contributing to improve breast cancer diagnosis. As for 1+1, Marta challenges Rui to solve a riddle: How to slice a cake in eight parts with only three cuts? I’ve been a little busy over the last few weeks and have been unable to write this post. However, I did update the RTP section of my portfolio with links to Reação Espontânea’s and 1+1’s episodes. Both shows are part of Magneto, a half-hour show that airs on Saturdays at 11 a.m. on RTP 1, Portugal’s public television. Magneto is divided into five parts under the labels Sustainability, Tolerance, Knowledge (1+1), Coolture and Science (Reação Espontânea). Roughly 10 minutes in, you can tune in to watch 1+1 under the label Knowledge. Reação Espontânea closes the show 20 minutes in, just after Mau Maria, under the label Science. I’ll be posting detailed updates with in-depth info on all the episodes that have aired so far. For those of you who haven’t seen them yet, you can find the links on the RTP section of my online portfolio, or just by clicking on one of these links: Magneto Episode 1; Magneto Episode 2. Unfortunately, RTP doesn’t post links for the shows independently so the best I can do is link you to Magneto’s video podcast and remind you that 1+1 begins at about 10 minutes in, and Reação Espontânea at 20 minutes. And now something completely different Zut Alors! That’s right, I’ve decided to freshen-up on my French and I’ve just finished a three week intensive course in Front Desk French. Basically it’s a business level French course that focuses on vocabulary for people who are looking for work in customer service. Not necessarily my area of expertise, but it was a good way to get me talking in French, something that I haven’t done out loud in a while. I finished the course top of my class with an A. Yay, for me. My classmates were great and I really feel that I’ve learned a lot over those three weeks. Will I get to put it into practice? Who knows, I might just pack my bags and fly off to Paris, Lyon or Marseille in the next couple of weeks. My future is now, like never before, utterly unpredictable. Remember to check out this page for any further updates, until then, à bientôt! “Whether it's impossible or laughable, great men open up paths of battle. If there's a wall we break it down, if there's no path we make one with our bare hands.” I don’t think there is any better way to describe last weekend’s reshoot of 1+1. There’s nothing quite like the feeling you get after going against all odds and still managing to come out a winner.
Even though a lot of people were betting against us, we managed to reshoot two and a half episodes in two days with practically no delays. Like I said the last time around, the team was simply fantastic, managing to overturn all of the obstacles that crossed our path, while maintaining a cohesive work environment. Thanks again to our great cast, Rui Spranger, Mikaela Lupo and Salvador Nery, their experience and skilled acting were what made it possible for us to wrap everything up in the short time that we had. After this past week of editing the results are looking promising. All six episodes will be finished and ready to air by November 23rd. Sources close to the big bosses are whispering about a February 2013 premiere. I’ll be sure to post any further developments as soon as the show’s air date is green lit. We’re already getting some feedback on national magazines, thanks to Mikaela Lupo’s agency, Glam. You can check out their press release right here. Reação Espontânea is on tracks for a successful November 23rd wrap-up as well. After finishing up the last set of interviews, all six episodes are now in an advanced editing stage. The first episode is already good to go, with four more on the way. Funny enough it’s the pilot episode that’s giving us a bit of a headache. One of its interviews is scheduled for November 18th! That’s right just five days before the due date. I hope it goes smoothly, I don’t want to lose any sleep over this. If everything goes according to plan I hope to have all of the other five episodes ready for post-production by the end of next week. Back to the editing room I go to get ready for the final stage. If you don’t hear from me over the next few weeks, no need to worry, I promise I’ve been eating and getting at least eight hours of sleep. Just remember, whatever problem comes your way the solution is always as simple as one plus one! |
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