This last year has been a whirlwind. We had a year filled with incredible projects for artists such as Keith Urban, several more with teen superstar Taylor Swift, and the opportunity to work with some terrific actors such as John Corbett of Sex and the City, Stephen Baldwin best known for the neo-noir classic and Academy Award-winning Usual Suspects and several others. It was a fun year full of award shows and nominations. Among them an MTV nomination for Taylor Swift’s – Teardrops on My Guitar, a Country Music Association nomination for Alan Jackson’s mega-hit Good Time and two ACM nominations for Taylor Swift’s Love Story and country icon, George’s Strait’s career reflective Troubadour. We took home the coveted Video of The Year award at the 2008 CMT Awards with Taylor for Our Song. Joe Walsh and Timothy B. Schmidt from The Eagles presented us with the award. Our collaboration with Taylor for the first release on her multi-platinum new CD Fearless called Love Story reached #1 on VH-1 and all the major channels.

Taylor’s Love Story is also nominated for the Video of the Year in the upcoming 2009 CMT Awards, which will be televised live on June 17. We have a total of seven nominations including Keith Urban’s Sweet Thing, Lee Ann Womack’s Last Call and Alan Jackson’s Good Time. This marks my fifth nomination with Alan. This piece featured celebrity cameos from the Tonight Show’s Jay Leno and country legend George Jones. We’re nominated in the best new artist “breakthrough” category, with hot newcomer Julianne Hough of ABC’s hit show Dancing With The Stars. The two-time dance champion’s love interest is played by hunk Travis Van Winkle of Transformers and Michael Bay’s Friday the 13th remake. I’m also nominated in the Director of the Year category. Should be a fun night!

Multi-platinum chanteuse, Jewel, was also scheduled to appear on the hit celebrity ballroom dance show this season. A knee injury prevented her from joining the cast as planned. Ironically, we collaborated with her on her single Stronger Woman. She is amazingly beautiful and a very strong woman. Her husband, pro rodeo cowboy Ty Murray, is still on the show and blowing us all away with his mad skills on the ballroom dance floor. There must be some thread in working with Dancing With The Stars alumni.

No stranger to the dance floor, we had the chance to work with Billy Ray Cyrus again, who is better known for his role both on and off the screen as dad to Hannah Montana and real life daughter Miley Cyrus. Our video was for a rocking cover on the Sheryl Crow track Real Gone from the animated Disney film Cars. The song is featured on Country Sings Disney, a cool compilation of music that also includes Rascal Flatts, who we’ve done a couple of projects with as well. A great Trivial Pursuit trick question, “What was Paul Newman’s highest grossing film in his career?” The answer: Cars. Newman was the voice of Doc. My son watches that film weekly in our house.

The recent 2009 ACM Awards held this April in Las Vegas were televised live on CBS and hosted by our friend Reba McEntire. We had two nominations for Taylor’s Love Story and George Strait’s Troubadour. The following day after the awards there was a Strait Tribute concert where country music elite turned out to honor “The King of Country Music.” He certainly is music royalty as the man holds the record for the most #1 singles in the history of recorded music…with 57 number ones. Strait has had more number one records than Elvis! With all of this unprecedented success, George has done only two music videos in the last thirteen years…and we’ve done both of them. All hail to “The King!”

It has been a year of legends and rising stars. We had the chance recently to work with Dolly Parton for a fourth, amazing time. I love her! Steel Magnolias remains one of my favorite films of all time. She’s an international icon in five letters and the most gracious woman you’ll ever meet. Celebrity blogger, Perez Hilton, visited us on set and made an impromptu cameo. We created an emotional clip for the title cut of her latest CD Backwoods Barbie. The song is also featured in Dolly’s new Broadway show for 9 to 5 which opens in New York on April 30. We’ll be there!

And speaking of gracious icons, we’re currently in pre-production on Reba McEntire’s Strange. This will also make my fourth collaboration with Reba. This will debut in May 09.

Currently on air and topping the charts is our most recent Taylor Swift clip for the intensely heartbreaking song White Horse. The video features actor Stephen Colletti from the hit show One Tree Hill and Laguna Hills. Taylor continues her rise and is quickly claiming the top spot on all the major music video outlets. This was our seventh collaboration with the teen phenomenon and gifted Miss Swift.

Our third video for Trace Adkins was for his soulful ballad Muddy Water, about a prodigal son who leaves Los Angeles to return to his small hometown to find redemption and the life he left behind. This emotionally complex lead role was perfectly played by Stephen Baldwin. The two men became good friends while working together on NBC’s hit show Celebrity Apprentice with Donald Trump.

2009 shows no signs of letting up. With several film and television projects currently in development things are rocking for us at Big Feather Films. Thanks for watching! Trey