To see photos from the 2023 Goldie Awards Banquet, follow this link to the Video Club’s Google Photos account — https://photos.app.goo.gl/3ftNa7p4U9YVKUz78
The 211 images include photo portraits of guests with a Video Club backdrop taken by club member and professional photographer Faro Motahedi. (Check out his website at https://farophoto.com.) Other banquet photos are by Marsha Berman, Stephanie Brasher, and Lucy Parker. Prints may be ordered via Google from the site — or you may download and print them yourself.
2nd Place, “WASTE NOT” by Nancy Klann-Moren (right)
3rd Place, “SERVICE TO ONE OF THE LEAST” by James Lau (left).
Awards were presented (at top) by Vice Tom Nash, Banquet Co-Chair Marsha Berman, and President Steve Carman.
AWARD WINNERS
A capacity crowd enjoyed good food and fellowship — along with 10 short, creative, member-produced videos — at the Video Club’s 12th Annual Goldie Awards Banquet on February 9, 2023, at the 19 Restaurant. As usual, it was a star-studded, dress-up event, with portrait photos taken of all attending and lots of door prizes donated by local restaurants and merchants. (See list below.) The 10 videos, all four minutes or less in length, were chosen by the Video Acceptance Committee from entries in the club’s 12th Annual Short Video Contest. Members present at the banquet voted to select the top three winners (shown below).
AWARD WINNERS
A
1st Place, “EVERYTHING DRIPS” by Stephanie Brasher
2nd Place, “WASTE NOT” by Nancy Klann-Moren
3rd Place, “SERVICE TO ONE OF THE LEAST” by James Lau
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To see an online version (2/19/23) of the first-page coverage given to the banquet in The Globe with a story by writer and resident Daniella Welsh, click below:
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Stephanie Brasher‘s hilarious, yet ultimately wise video features two 90-year-old Video Club members, Don Hill and Lucy Parker, talking about the pitfalls and privileges of age. “If you’re not dead,” the two conclude, “you’re not done!”
For her send-up of high fashion, Nancy Klann-Moren used toilet paper rolls, big-name department store bags, and other cast-off materials to create 10 “lovely gowns” for life-sized mannequins. Her totally-straight narration as viewers meet each model and view their outfit adds to the off-beat humor.
In his video, James Lau, a retired orthopedic surgeon, introduces viewers to children about to receive life-changing operations at a clinic in northern Iraq and follows them through surgery and into recovery.
STILLS FROM THE TEN CONTEST VIDEOS
(Starting at top, from left) “Once Upon A Garden” by Norma Benner, “Service to One of the Least” by James Lau (third place winner), “Art — What Is It?” by Marsha Berman, “Waste Not” by Nancy Klann-Moren (second place winner), “Life on the Edge — of the Amazon River” by Starkey, “The Commercial Packer” by Fred Harshbarger, “My Search for Love” by Katharine Holland, “Coastal Fire” by John Glassco, “Our Creek” by Tom Nash, and (bottom) “Everything Drips” by Stephanie Brasher (first place winner).
ABOUT THE WINNING VIDEOS
“Everything Drips”
A 70’s sitcom, “The Brady Bunch,” was the visual inspiration for Stephanie Brasher‘s first-place video, “Everything Drips.” “I remembered the family’s faces in picture frames,” she recalls. Stephanie wrote a full script for her video, describing both funny and serious sides of being a senior. To cast the video, she called on two longtime, club members, Don Hill and Lucy Parker, both over 90. Shooting on her iPhone to keep production as simple as possible, she recorded the two nonagenarians separately in the Video Studio, with both reading all the lines. She then edited the video on her Mac, alternating between the speakers to create a livel give-and-take. Old photos of Don and Lucy in their twenties added a final touch.
The recipient of many past Goldie awards, Stephanie teaches Video Club classes on using iPhones, iPads, and Macs to create different kinds of videos. She originated and continues to contribute to the club’s quarterly “Short Film Showcase” series. She also co-leads the club’s popular new “Video Shooting Expedition” activity with Tom Nash.
“Waste Not”
Following a career in advertising and marketing, Nancy Klann-Moren moved to Laguna Woods Village from San Deigo with her ceramist husband Richard Moren 12 years ago. She has since become a published novelist and an installation artist. She describes her artist-self as “a gatherer and builder.” When the idea of making “high fashion” gowns out of discarded materials began to fascinate Nancy, she turned to water bottles, egg cartons, Keurig pods, lottery tickets, and – her favorite – pages from her 2012 novel, The Clock of Life. To display her creations, she recalls, “I scored life-sized mannequins on Craig’s list. Everything was second-hand. And,” she adds, “each dress has its own story.”
Seeking venues to exhibit her somewhat-unwieldy artwork, Nancy initially shot a video of it as a marketing tool. But her second-place win in the Video Club contest shows that her video, “Waste Not,” narrated by Nancy in flowery fashion-show style, is itself a work of art. Nancy credits the Video Club with teaching her how to make videos. Currently, Veronica, Olivia, Monica, and their mannequin sisters are boxed with their gowns in a storage unit, awaiting further exhibition, but Nancy continues to create new fashions for them. Her latest? Used teabags.
“Service to One of the Least”
Quoted from the February 16, 2023, front-page Globe coverage of the banquet by Daniella Walsh…
“Retired orthopedic surgeon James Lau took third place with his video “Service to One of the Least,” documenting volunteer surgeries he performed in northern Iraq, specifically for members of the Yazidi minority who were violently persecuted by ISIS, he explained.
“In conjunction with his Holistic Integrated Services Foundation, he has also performed surgeries in China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Africa.
“‘I’ve been doing this for three years now, having started in China. I have been volunteering in some way since high school, but medical volunteering became my passion,’ Lau said. ‘If there was a need somewhere, it came naturally for me to go.'”
BANQUET CO-CHAIRS
Banquet co-chairs Marsha Berman, left, and Joan Carman welcome guests. Shown above, they pose for portraits with husbands, Larry Berman and Video Club President Steve Carman. . A million thanks to Marsha and Joan for the long hours of planning and coordinating that went into the successful event!!
Thanks to all for a wonderful evening…
videocluboflagunawoods.com 
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