Native American Documentary Producer Creates Polished DVDS for Broadcast and Retail with DVD Workshop

A renown Native American flutist and composer of contemporary ethnic music, and a 2000 Grammy Award winner for Best Native American Music Album, Douglas Spotted Eagle started exploring video production nine years ago. He is now a well-known videographer and produces Native American documentaries and lifestyle pieces for PBS and the retail channel, as well as his own music videos.

Douglas uses Ulead's advanced DVD authoring software DVD Workshop, to create DVDs of his work. He is currently working on a project called "The Way of the Powwow" for the HoChunk Nation, which will air on World Indigenous Network (WIN-TV) and be available for retail purchase. Douglas is also doing a project called "Azee' Choo'n'nii'gii' (The Healing Way) which is one of the first documentaries ever produced in the Dine' or Navaho language. It is scheduled for release in mid August 2002 and will be broadcast on PBS in December 2002.

Douglas finds that DVD Workshop offers high-end features that are easier to use than expensive high-end products at a much lower price point. "It makes you want to look at competing companies and ask why they make DVD authoring software so ridiculous," says Spotted Eagle, who has won DuPont, Peabody, Telly and Nanny Awards - along with producing 2 Emmy winning productions. "For $299 you expect a toy, but DVD Workshop has everything I need to quickly create polished DVDs for review or to sell in retail."

He likes the fact that DVD Workshop lets him both customize his work and use templates. "Ulead has done such a great job with the templates - we use many of the templates provided and add our own customization," says Douglas. "With most DVD authoring software you spend more time outside the application than in it. For example, I typically would spend days in PhotoImpact, PhotoShop or Cool 3D to create the look I wanted and then import it into the DVD authoring software. With DVD Workshop, we no longer have to do this and can use the excellent templates provided within the software."