TV & FILM PRODUCTION
Our experience is your experience. Viewfinder founder and Producer/Director David Parks and his team bring years of experience in both scripted and non-scripted television and film production. Below are just a few of the notable shows in which the Viewfinder team has had a creative hand.
Nashville Star
Viewfinder founder David Parks served as Supervising Producer for Season One & Two of this breakout music series on USA Network and later on NBC. A search for the next great country music recording artist, Nashville Star broke new ground in music competition shows, being the first to feature a live-band performing with the contestants, original music performed by the artists and intimate insight into the daily pressures of trying to make it in the music industry. Nashville Star contestants performed not just on the stage for America, but also around the country, raising money for charitable causes, visiting and performing for patients at the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, performing the National Anthem in front of 200,000 NASCAR fans and much more. Among those discovered through Nashville Star are platinum selling Sony Music recording artist Miranda Lambert and country music star Buddy Jewell.
Murder In Small Town X
One of the most unique and revolutionary television shows ever produced, Murder In Small Town X was a hybrid series on Fox that combined a reality competition format with a scripted dramatic murder mystery. Placed in the ficticious town of Sunrise, Maine, a series of murders have devastated the usually tranquil hamlet. Ten real contestants are turned into investigators and dropped into this world where they must follow clues, interact with the townsfolk (some real, some actors) to try and solve the mystery before the murderer "kills" each of them. Groundbreaking and ambitious, this show was one of the first to utilize a website to enhance the viewing experience and provide additional information to viewers to help them solve the mystery at home. It was also one of the first shows to integrate sponsorship within the scripted storyline of a series for a more transparent approach to product placement.
As coordinating producer and one of the lead directors of the series, Viewfinder founder David Parks was an integral part of the team that designed the infrastructure for production, coordinating up to ten crews filming simultaneously around a real working town, following the investigators wherever their own investigative leads took them on an almost round-the-clock schedule. He also implemented a major product placement program that included the national launch of the new Jeep Liberty along with dozens of other major and secondary sponsors. As a director, he helped ensure the creative continuity of the story across a team of eight directors, each handling different aspects of each episode.
Fear
The first and original reality series to explore the depths of man's fear by placing people in haunted locations with nothing more than a camera to document their experience. This breakout hit on MTV spawned many imitators. It also was the first show to introduce a self-worn camera to film the reactions of the wearer. As Director of Photography on the pilot and DP/Director on the series, Viewfinder's David Parks was one of the creative forces and innovators of the series.
Death on the Mountain: Women of K2
As of 2004, of the 196 climbers who had reached the top of Pakistan's K2, the world's second highest mountain, only five were women. All have since died in climbing accidents. This award-winning documentary produced for National Geographic Television, executive produced and written by David Parks explores this riveting story. Revealing interviews, dazzling footage and rare, archival photographs tell the tales of these five fearless climbers while exploring a woman's place in the dangerous world of high-altitude mountaineering. As part of the project, the producers followed an expedition to K2 with world reknowned Spanish climber Ariceli Segara as she attemtped to become only the 6th woman to summit the mountain.
Star Dates
This hit series for E! Entertainment was a comedic twist on the dating show phenomenon, as "B" list celebrities looking for love went out on blind dates with people expecting stars of a slightly higher level. An instant sensation, Star Dates was spoofed after just two weeks by Saturday Night Live. As Co-Executive Producer, David Parks combined his production know-how with an important sense of humor.
The Sky is Falling
The Sky is Falling, a hit indie feature film, is the story of Emily Hall, a constantly rejected novelist with an out of control life. She's entertaining creative and amusing ways of offing herself when she befriends a crotchety old professor and suddenly finds true inspiration in the most unlikely places. With a breakout performance by Dedee Pheiffer as Emily, the film's cast includes Teri Garr, Howard Hessman, Eric Close, Sean Astin, Laura Leighton, Chris Elliott, Bert Remson and Lorraine Toussaint. The Sky is Falling premiered at the prestigeous SXSW FIlm Festival and was released as a Showtime Feature Presentation. It also enjoyed a world-wide theatrical release.