Rhea's Doug & Doc
by Karen Pecota
The documentary we have all been waiting for takes on a little setback. Filmmaker and friend, Rhea Gavry announces that her documentary on former Salt Lake City mayor Rocky Anderson will take on a new twist--Rocky is running for President of the United States. The campaign trail will be a grueling one but Rocky is ready to take on the challenge with the hope that his name will be on the ballot for the national presidential election, November 2012. Rocky is convinced that the American people need a change from Obama's broken promises. Rocky is ready to be the change for America. Is Rhea ready to follow this guy to the outer ends of the American territories for the sake of a story? Absolutely! Rocky's story is worth telling and Rhea's account of Rocky's journey will be one to keep on our radar.
The art of following film principles connected to compelling stories is a big part of a documentarian‘s life. While following Rocky, another man Rhea is ready to follow and support is her husband, Doug Monroe. Though love is a major part of their unique couple equation, she is especially invested in his latest invention that will hit the market this spring called The Dougmon. Rhea currently manages the business aspect for The Dougmon, incorporating business plans, marketing, photos and video training, etc. Doug handles the product development. The business is rapidly growing so together they discuss what each are doing for the week in order to have a proper consensus for good teamwork. Rhea is proud of Doug's newest invention and sees it as an extension of his accomplishments as a 30-year-veteran cameraman in the film industry. Doug is currently filming the TLC top rated show, Sister Wives--soon to be filming its fourth season.
The Dougmon is a tool made to assist the hand held camera buff and professional. It will soon be one of the hottest items on the market for the ultimate steadiness necessary for clear cinematography. Inventor, Doug Monroe says, "The Dougmon allows me to get shots I used to dream about." Monroe has used all shapes and sizes of cameras depending on the job and with The Dougmon he says, "It makes my job a whole lot more fun."
The beauty of Doug's invention is that it gives the hand held cameraman more flexibility with different size cameras and limits horrendous arm and shoulder fatigue that plague quality filming, i.e., shooting long interviews. The Dougmon is a system that supports the cameraman's arm, hand and wrist to get those strange angles for fabulous shots most attractive to great filming. Monroe describes, “The Dougmon is the swiss utility knife of hand held camera support systems."
As if The Dougmon was not enough of a hot invention, Monroe goes one step further to design a sling system for the profi's. The Slingmon support system allows both hands to be on the camera and supports heavier weighted cameras and DSLRs. Hmm! I can see that Doug's fascinating inventions will need to be on our radar as much as Rhea's documentary about Rocky.
