How To Proceed

After a bit of pondering (read as deflated disappointment), I think the answer is in the "What do I have to lose?" If the only thing you have to lose is being rejected, then you have nothing to lose if you reward yourself with the pride of having tried.

Having Tried > Being Rejected.

Meaning, you get more points for having tried than you lose for being rejected - so your net sum points is greater even if you are rejected after trying. This rule applies for all things. I wish I'd learned it when I was 10 years old. Actually I learned and knew a lot of things at ten. Perhaps I should say "believed this when I was ten."

I am not expecting to get a yes. The people who profess that you create your own existence by what you believe have not spent much time in Hollywood. Actors always get the parts they think they wouldn't get and never get the parts from auditions they "nailed." I think the rule is - if you believe enough to try, then you believe enough to make it happen.

Anyway - Since I'm not expecting to get a yes from the talent for whom I (and I semi-alone) have deemed worthy of the investment, I am going to push the start date to allow the actors 1 full month (2 weeks per actor ideally) to read it. So, new start date would be may 15th. Blah, but takes off the stress. I will say that it is negotiable. I need six weeks to prepare the movie minimum. In the meantime, I will pick one of four projects to create, develop, finish, or push. I've started that process today.

Tomorrow and the next day I will focus on finishing a rewrite of this movie and then just send it off and wait... but not count on anything. Move forward in other directions.

Friend Declined

Apparently my friend just did a movie where the character had the same major event in a similar movie and has another ongoing offer on the table for another similar path... So she felt three would be too many. Open to doing another film, but not this one.

I just finished all that work I had to do and was hoping to jump full force into this film now, but the new goal this weekend will be to evaluate if I think without anyone attached I'll be taken seriously by any actors. I guess I could always toss my hat into the circle to find out.

I only slept 3 hours last night due to finishing up "the other job's work" and clearing my schedule... So now isn't the best time for blogging or decision making. But I thought it was important to put this into the chronicles.

Right now I'm thinking of everything from abandoning this project for doing a much more unique and specific type of film, geared specifically for actors I know I could cast (and check in advance that they'd do it)... and make sure the locations are not impossible for me to find.

There are plenty of projects to do... The problem is that I can't afford to do most of them without getting investors and I was really trying to avoid that.

Maybe I'll just go out to the other cast people anyway and hope that I get a response. I don't know. My concern with that would be to get just one of the actors... Then I'm in a bind if I can't get another one. We'll see. I do know I need a cast to justify the investment though. I have another friend I could ask - doesn't fit the profile I had in mind when I thought up the whole scheme though.

I think maybe in my over tired weary state I'll drift into thoughts and see if some new project magically materializes in my head. And if not, I'll get practical tomorrow and figure out how to go forward.

Reading went well

The reading went very well. I felt like people did like the script, enjoyed the read and I also got a couple good ideas that I'm going to incorporate. Plus a few things came to light that I need to fix. Nothing major.

There were also a couple ideas which were good, but I'm not going to incorporate them because at some point, you're just making another movie. Even if ideas seem like they'll enhance this movie, sometimes they'll just make it different. And sometimes good ideas can break a script and I don't have the time to break the script down entirely especially when all it would add is one cool moment as a pay off in actuality.

My friend has not responded yet. Grrr... if it takes this long for a friend to respond... how long will it take the other actors to respond. I may have to push the entire shoot a couple weeks, but that would be the limit. No leeway after that.

I need to get people to start working on this.

Setting things up

Helped friends with their network auditions a lot this week. That kind of stuff hopefully pays off down the line.

"Famous Friend" will give me a yay or nay by next Monday.

Sunday I am having a reading for the script. This is sort of "last looks" for the script. "Speak now or forever hold your piece" on the go ahead. I have a few friends coming to this in addition to the readers. I'm hoping of course everyone gets excited and goes "great! this will be awesome." I'm open to them going... "hm... not sure this is ready." Honestly, if people are mediocre on it and my friend doesn't want to do it, I may cancel it. It's okay - I will then just do something else instead. Maybe prepare the "other film" and plan to shoot the super low budget one instead. Or, as I warned my best friend, stop doing film all together and finish that crazy performance art piece I've always been working on. I think she is secretly hoping I do that. :)

Tonight I am doing the script breakdown (finally) which will give me a sense of the EXACT number of days all the talent will need to be there. Also shows me where character balances might be out of whack. It's a very interesting way of looking at your script. For example, I'm realizing one important character practically disappears in the middle. Seems wrong now that I see it this way. I will need to fix that.

This also acts as the base for the budgeting process - though in the case of this film, it won't affect the budget that much.

The Script

Strange. I'm having a lot of insecurity about the script right around now. I had a couple tiny changes I wanted to make to it before sending it out to talent - but then I suddenly started worrying that it was too static, the scenes were too long, there was too much dialogue - etc. I'm considering doing a table read just so I can heart it out loud. Perhaps I should try to do that this weekend. Nothing fancy - just some people in a room speaking it out loud.

It's really amazing how much tenacity fear has. At some point you'd think I'd be able to stop questioning everything. Perhaps when there are more people involved in the project this will start to be the case.

Hoping to schedule and breakdown the script this weekend. I'd like to know exactly how many days I'm going to be asking these actors to work rather than just tossing out a guess.

Facing Challenges

I'm being totally distracted. I have to say it, because I have to admit it. This is a wake up call entry for myself. Say the true state of things so I can address them.

Currently:

• I'm doing too much work that is not related to this movie. Yes, it's great that it seems my other company (which does involve directing) is going to have a great year. However, it is terrible that it is distracting me from doing important things to prepare this movie and I'd better learn to discipline myself now.
• I'm helping my "famous friend" on her pilot auditions, she's going to network on one apparently. She can't read my script until this coming weekend. I decided to wait on her response just because I felt (and confirmed with one of my producer consultants) that since I have literally nothing else in my corner (no agent, production company, distributor), I should have something that makes me seem like not a total outsider. (Actually I do have a manager who is well connected and such, but that is not related to this project really. I suppose I could ask him to make some calls on my behalf, but that would turn him into a producer and I'm not sure he wants that and I'm not sure I need that. I'll surely use him as a reference if need be.)
• I'm concerned about the time it might take these other actors to read the script and commit and will that allow me enough time prepare the production - more so, will it allow enough time for my production team to prepare. Also - if it takes a month to get a "no." That's going to be an issue as it will leave me very little time to find someone new. I should probably decide at some point what my minimum "name" requirement for going into production will be. I believe this script will make a good movie. I cannot market it as "the grossest" or "sexiest" or "blackest" or "gayest" or "religious" or "anti-religious" or... "cheapest" or... "most expensive" or... "most surreal" "most punk" "most conservative" "most liberal" - etc. There is no exploitable angle on it. This makes me feel like I need a name cast. A name cast will substitute as the exploitable angle. Note to people who can't get a cast for their film. Ask yourself what your exploitable angle is.
  

My attention in the next few days for this project is to start getting a really solid break down on the script from a production point of view. This is something someone else could do, but I don't have anyone on staff yet to do it, so it's something I will do.

For "the other project" - I mentioned a friend of my "famous friend" to her and she agreed to take the script to him. I want to bounce him off a couple people, but I think it's totally unique casting and a part he would never get normally and thus might be interested.

I still need to do this movie first.... though... as a back up option, it wouldn't hurt. If not a back-up, it becomes a follow-up.

and even more Meetings

Met with another LP. I didn't feel he was the right match for the project. Wrote up the offer letter (based on friend's existing one).

I'm concerned that my "other work" continues to distract me most of the day... even real life stuff is getting post-poned and ignored... It should be done by the end of this week - the distracting part of it at least. I'm taking a big chunk of Wednesday off to regain sanity though.

Top of my current to do lists are:

• Add scenes I've sketched to the script
• Breakdown all the Sets / Props / Art / Costumes for people to have a sense
• Talk to Art Dept person who I'm interested in doing this more
• On Tuesday talk to friend about her attaching herself to the movie

2 months, 8 days away.

Meetings and Meetings

Met with a set (and prop) builder today. Turns out we know a lot of the same people. Not a surprise I suppose. Boy - set labor could be an issue. I'm going to sketch out the sets, but he wants an idea of what I have for the budget. I always want to say. "I have $500, what can you do?" :)

Meeting with another LP/AD option tomorrow night.

I really need to get something together ready to send out to actors on Tuesday. Still feel unprepared for that.

Still finishing other job work too and the fact that this is taking up so much time is a major concern.

Assembling Assets

Oh - lets just do a bullet point list...

• I contacted a friendly stage (I've known the people who run it for a while). They offered a very nice deal. It's still very expensive.
• Tomorrow I should be talking to my first option of set builders - a recommendation from the friendly stage.
• The LP/AD (Line Producer/Assistant Director) I spoke with and liked is unable to schedule this project into his life, but is going to do his best to provide some help - he should be sending me some photos of an alternate (and cheaper) location tomorrow.... HOPING that it works.
• I've decided to NOT WAIT to approach actors. Even for my famous friend... actually - I'm waiting until Tuesday for her because she may read on Monday.
• I'm meeting with another LP/AD option and there is someone else who doesn't have all the experience, but could add to the family atmosphere of the shoot which would be nice.

About money. If I can get this talent, I should really not worry about the money as much. I have to remember that a major part of this exercise is to make me realize that these things happen. People make movies. Then they sell them. It's not something reserved for the very very lucky. And if I'm wrong... well, it will probably be worth the money to find out!

Next week should be very interesting. I will try to document my experience approaching these actors very closely because I have a feeling that this will be something that most of the filmmaker who might be reading this will be most interested in.

Waiting and Money

Feel like I'm just waiting on everyone. Need to start trying to contact people before I am ready. Is that possible? But waiting on word from Logistical types, Crew types, Actors types.

In the meantime, sketching and making budget adjustments. Seems like everytime I find a way to make something cheaper, another expense shows up. When things get expensive I, of course, start thinking "Well, geeze, maybe I should do another movie with less of that [whatever seems expensive]." But I'm sticking to the plan. Supposed to be shooting in two months and 13 days from now! I should make some sort of day countdown on this site.

Depression before the Storm

I wasn't going to write anything today - but then I realized today is EXACTLY the day I need to write something.... if not for anyone else, for myself to remember this.

For no apparent reason - no bad news. Suddenly, my momentum feels like it totally dropped.

I think this is where other people come into the mix. Even a very independent person like myself still relies on the excitement of other people. It's why actors still love theater. The live response.

What this is telling me is that I need to start including some people in the project and give them a reason to care.

Probably I got some disinterested reactions from people in an almost so-casual-I-didn't-notice way - but I did feel it. And it brought me down. It's not that anything went wrong.

Maybe it's also just coming to see the greater picture of what a huge project this will be and maybe the last week of pushing this project and attending to my regular job just wore me out. This won't be the last time. I should make sure though that I keep some people around who encourage me. And some other people who may have something at stake in this as well. Starting to understand why groups of people make movies a lot more often than solo efforts.

Gathering My Thoughts

So - the work from last week spilled into this week, but I feel like I was pretty well able to keep things moving forward. Even had a chance to do a little design work. I am trying to figure out the lay out of certain locations according to how they would be work with the dolly shots. Nothing worse than getting to a location with a shot in mind and then realizing "There's no room for the dolly here."

So here is a random catch up list for "where everything is at:"

• Asked my "famous friend" to be in the movie. Need to push her to commit soon as I want her confirmation prior to approaching the TV Actors (I'm starting to hate using these generic labels - it's sort of demeaning seeming.) Lesson Learned - approach sooner.
• Talk to the line producer type about his interest. I feel he could be an asset and would like to know his involvement level.
• I've figured out a backend offer for the actors.
  
• I really need to find someone who can talk to me about the expense for building and painting sets. This is information I'm lacking.
• I'm very much eyeing renting a studio or warehouse and building sets since they are so simple and plain verses finding the right location - unless someone brings something great to my attention.
  
• Going to keep the whole shoot to 3 weeks instead of adding on a weekend for the other location. Mentally keeps the shoot so much shorter. (LP's advice)
• Going to add a little short action scene which wasn't in the script before - but I think it needs a punch near the end - something fun to watch to break up the suspense.
• Going to add another scene which has been on my mind lately.
• Going to cut off the last scene as it locks me into a particular sequel and has extra actors and FX and props that don't help tell the story necessarily. As tempted as I am to shoot it anyway - it will get expensive.
• Going to start storyboarding it and breaking it down under the assumption that the actors will sign on. I'm being warned the actor signing can take a month - this could become an issue as if I cannot get the people I want, I need to make sure that have a cast I feel makes it work.
• I need to include rehearsal into the schedule for the major scenes even if I have to pay for the time. I need to make sure the performances work. This movie is made or lost on the performances - 'cause it's not a blood splattering horror film.

Inspiration and Insecurity

The meeting today was great. This guy very much knew what he was talking about. Lots of great information which I will write about as it becomes relevant. He is reviewing the project and my limitations now to see where he feels he can fit in. I liked that he understood where I am at and respected it.

That was the inspiration.

The insecurity is just those constant second guessings. "Is this really the movie I should be doing? Is it the right time? Will it work? What will happen if it doesn't work? Shouldn't I really be following my heart and making something strange? Wouldn't I really be better at something with a lot more youth fashion in it - something a little more designed, a little more artsy surreal? What if I don't understand my audience? What if..."

What if is probably a natural question for people who tell stories. It is obviously something we think about a lot. It may, however, account for the neurosis of most filmmakers and artists. Being so close to the "what if" and so responsive to it can be as destructive as it can be constructive.

One thing actors must learn is how to stay in the moment - not consider everything - stop thinking about the lights and crew or audience or anything other than the scene or what the character would be distracted by. People could do the same, but consider their entire life the stage. Staying present in the moment.

All those good thoughts spoken. I still am second guessing myself a lot. It's a lot of money - I don't think it's unnatural to be afraid of losing it. I think this is an advantage of youth. When I was just out of college, I hadn't quite yet had the really lousy experiences which earn a good deal of second guessing. Until you've been really incredibly slammed a few times by bad choices - you don't quite have the degree of insecurity that you gain later on. Some caution is maturity. Too much is perhaps heading back in the other direction. Awareness and caution are decent things - but not when they freeze you from taking action.

There is power just in the making of a decision regardless of the end result.

Tidbits

Renamed the movie! The new title sounds so much less B-movie horror and much more like a drama. I like it that way. Never cared for the other title. There was meant to be a slight irony in it which was lost on... everyone... including me after a while.

Starting to talk to people to potentially get involved now. Sticking to my minimalist crew plan.

Spoke to someone today about a potential presales plan - but the logistics seem wrong. Wouldn't mind selling a country or two - but the whole point of self-financing was to push the project forward. Still, not bad to have some distributors aware of the project. It did, actually, make me start thinking that maybe I should put a package together for "the other" film which would be salable at Cannes based on the package alone. I would need to make a couple more attachments. But that might be the thing to put together. Could cut some existing footage with some new bits of sample art and make a little presentation for it. Hmmmmm... Doesn't help this film much - but I'm adamantly non-myopic on this. I don't want to make this movie my career - it's just the first step. As I said early on, I want to move into preproduction on movie 2 immediately after finishing movie 1.

Whatever the artist working on concepts can come up with in time, we can include those into the package as well.

One thing about Cannes... would have been nice to have enough footage to cut a trailer together - but I don't really see that as possible if I start shooting in mid April verses April 1. Unless I let someone else edit while I'm shooting and then just use whatever we shoot in the first 2 weeks.

Budget Round One

Today is the first day I've had enough information that I could assemble a budget that had any sense of reality. It's about twice what I'd like it to be which means - it probably can't be what I'd like it to be.

I am budgeting in an unusual way this time. Normally I follow the standard budget form, but this time I wanted to organize it in a way that made sense for this kind of production so what I've done is make four categories which I felt would be equal parts. I'm doing this to make sure the film is balanced. I don't think it is a good idea to spend 50,000 on your set and then shoot on DV because the equipment rental becomes 5,000. That seems imbalanced to me. So, the logic behind finding four separate categories is to think if you can get your set for 5,000... then it makes sense to get your camera for 5,000 too.

I've never seen anyone think of a budget this way - but somehow it is making sense to me on this project.

My categories are:

• Cast & Crew & Workers Comp
• Equipment & Stock & Processing
• Art Department & Sets
• Post Production & Legal & Insurance

Within a reasonable margin - they are the equal parts. Currently, somehow, I need to lower the expense of ALL of them. At least by 30%. Hopefully backend incentives might help in this effort. A shorter shoot might help as well. But there is a limit to how short of a shoot makes sense. There is no point in doing this at all if I don't get a movie that works.

InDigEnt

I'm going to talk about an article I read because it applies to what I'm doing. The article is here:

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,70074-0.html?tw=rss.index

The basic premise is that it is impossible to make money of DV movies and they are using InDigEnt as an example. However, there is a logic gap in the conclusion. First of all, Pieces of April made 2 million at the box office - plus whatever it brought in on video. That movie alone probably paid for the other 16 movies - and I thought that this was the whole concept. You make a lot of money hoping for one or two of them to break out. And other would have seemingly made profit. I can't imagine "Tape" cost that much to make and it's boxoffice was in the hundreds of thousands - again, just domestic box office.

The largest logic gap is this: Part of their model was to allow celebrities or established people make their own films that no one else would make. But just do it cheaply. Wait, roll back the tape. These are movies that apparently despite a celebrity attachment - a bunch of other financial sources deemed would not make enough money to be worth financing.

So... where's the shock? The whole strategy therefore is that you're making a niche market movie. A movie that is really meant to be of interest to one particular audience. And, if you're lucky, it will crossover. "Paris Is Burning" is a great example of a cross-over movie. I'm sure the filmmakers weren't thinking "Oh boy, this will be a national hit" as they were documenting the drag queen competitions in New York.

And "Pieces of April" did just that - it crossed over and even earned an Academy Award nomination for one of it's actors. Hello! This sounds like a success. Maybe they were hoping for more crossovers. In order to do that, they would have to start aiming at more mass appealing material at which point they will be competing with larger studios and their charter will be broken.

Last point on this. I have see a few InDigEnt movies and I will say that all of them have a very "indie" feel to them. Hand held cameras, nothing slick. Seems like that is the style. Tape, notably, seems like it was shot live with just a guy sitting in the room with a camera. But that's sort of what seemed to make it cool. But that's not a big popcorn audience movie.

There's an audience for that... just not a big one.

Myself, I like well designed, solid movies. I see movies as the modern form of opera. I want the grandeur. Even in a simple story - I want every sense touched. Unless the story calls for it, I don't want a film looking like a home movie. By breaking established film style with a cinema verite, you are not avoiding artifice - you are making a definite statement. A strong one.

So, what am I doing differently?

Good question. First - I'm picking an established genre. I feel like Hitchcock was making "art films" in established genres. I like to think that just as you can choose to make a movie verses a novel, you can pick a genre which is an established form of communication to tell your story. People obsess over Shakespeare's greatness, but rarely mention what a genre writer he was. He just did it well and put some heart into it. That's the key. Don't get hung up on the labels, and don't RELY on the label either. Second - I plan to shoot it like a "real film." It's not a cinema verite. I'm going to use one of my cheats and bring in the ability to make things looks "cinematic" (and I don't mean make video look like film... I mean make anything look like "cinema.") Thirdly - I'm also trying to go for a niche audience with my casting.

I read a book a couple years back that I recommend called "Cult of Marketing." One of it's points was that even if your base/core audience/customer might not be the largest - they are the most dedicated and you must feed that because they are the ones who provide the base for the rest of the customers. Many other good points in that book.

Will all of this thinking work?

Tune in to find out.

Another Producer's Perspective

Just spoke with the prolific producer and he had a few interesting thoughts. I'll keep them bullet pointed and simple:

• Horror is good now despite what anyone says.
• Currently in the industry the middle ground stars are starting to go away. It's a big pay day star and then everyone else. Backend offers are becoming more and more common.
• I should call agents myself and not even worry about a lawyer's work on it. The deal will be the deal. A one page memo deal - the rest will be the SAG contract and that's not negotiable anyway. (I thought this was interesting actually.) He is emailing me over a pay or play offer deal which I can base my offer on.
  
• Expect weeks of trouble getting a response from an agency. They are not super excited about scale offers despite the back end. That's going to be the hurdle.
• Absolutely focus on name talent. Non name talent movies are very difficult in today's market. He thought the names were okay - not super strong. Wanted me to put my "famous friends" in as much as possible.

So - obviously - some different thoughts than other people. That'll happen. No one has all the answers.

I'm still working on how much backend to offer and how to work backend offers in to crew.

Just Researching and a Delay

Just doing more research today. Find new location options. Find out how much sets and flats would cost. Starting to look for team members. Starting to figure out compensation methods. Will be speaking to a very prolific producer tomorrow about some things and that ought to be enlightening.

Started sketching out set and prop pieces.

I'm doing double duty this week with the other job and keeping this moving forward. It's a lot of work.

I heard a rumor that one of my TV actors might be doing a movie with a huge actress - this would not bode well for my chances of getting her. We shall see. Probably the sooner the better for contacting them, but I cannot contact them until I have all my elements lined up or I'll seem to flimsy.

That said, I think I'm going to delay the movie 2 weeks. If I'm having to build a set, I need to have some extra time or face a lot of additional expense from the production trinity ("Fast, Good, Cheap - pick two").

Location 01 review

Saw the first option for locations this morning.

I don't think it will work. It didn't seem like there was a good way of making it cheaper and, frankly, I'm not sure it is healthy to be there. Lots of lead paint chipping everywhere. Too many strikes, it's out. The cost of california security is ridiculous. It makes any free locations expensive.

I am going to call realitors and ask about the basements of any empty retail spaces. Also now contacting people about the cost of building on a stage or warehouse. It's a pretty simple set, but large.

I am going to push my start date by 2 weeks to April 15.

I don't want to approach cast until I have several things figure out.

1. Who will negotiate the contracts. I have used a lawyer in the past, I need to touch base with him.
2. I need to set up an LLC for liability, so will need to have that started at least.
3. I need to know I will be able to afford the dang location without outbalancing the movie.

The Crew

How few people can I shoot with?

Well, there will be about 2 to 5 cast members at any point in time...

Director - Me
Line Producer/AD/Production Manager
Art Department/Costumes/Props
Make Up/Hair... hm... that might not be enough for one job all the time.
DP
Grip/Electric/Swing
AC/Swing
Sound/Boom (doubling his job.)
Production Assistant/Catering

Totally crazy thought... I wonder if my make-up or Art person could hold a boom. :)

No, I'm not kidding.

I think people like having things to do. I want everyone there to be a part of the team and I'd rather pay one person more than pay for two people if it comes down to that.

The PA (who I'll give a better credit) is the person who can leave the set. You always need someone who can leave. And him or her handling catering will be enough of a job. I imagine that my Line Producer will also be able to leave the set if necessary.

Nine people. It costs to have people on the set. In addition to paying them, you have to feed them. You have to have a place for them to park. Now... pay... this will be interesting to figure out. It's going to have to be the lowest possible or it will rock the balance.

One thing I know for sure. I will know these people before the first day of shooting. Even one person can totally throw off the vibe of a production. And the vibe is very important.

Behind the scenes there will be prop makers and other specialists. A lighting crew for the first couple days. A strike crew. Set Dressers and Art Department for a couple days in the start (especially for on location... about five people on that).