... to shooting, that is. The latest word is, the Brothers Rios arrive in LA 4/24/10, do a week of pre-production strategizing, then out come the lights, cameras, and action! for principal photography beginning 5/1/10 (or therebouts).
And in typical indie fashion, Maurice got in touch with the writer (ahem) with a change for one of the key scenes. Turns out we couldn't get a locale for Mayor Doreen's office, but we COULD get a restaurant locale. (I would have thought it would be the other way around, but that's showbiz.) Change in script required.
Fired up the last version of the script (Draft 6, dated 2/25/10), changed the locale in the slugline. In a fit of inspiration, called Moe and asked if we could add a character. He said go for it. Back to work I went, and ended up with a scene that got more done, story-telling-wise, than before.
I love it when a spontaneous plan comes together.
Be back soon with on-set stills. As they become available, of course.
Showing posts with label zero-budget production. Show all posts
Showing posts with label zero-budget production. Show all posts
Friday, April 23, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
A new year, another pre-production update
Halloween. Thanksgiving. Christmas, New Years Eve. And Sixufus is still in pre-production. Like all things announced, it runs the risk of never happening.
Sometimes delays like these are staff-based, as in we can't find the folks to do the work. But that's not the case this time: Maurice has identified and recruited all his actors. And his production and post-production staff, a team that Moe has worked with before, are in place and eager to take on the challenges presented by Sixufus.
The problem in this case is the stereotypical indie problem: The almighty dollar. Or lack thereof.
So even though the script was written with a goal of being a zero-budget shoot, money must still be found for various and sundry items. To wit:
The Shoot
Locations, meals, props, time. Though Sixufus has a bare minimum of these, they still require an outlay. Even if someone is willing to turn their apartment over to wacky indie filmmakers for a couple of weeks, the talent and crew still need a burger and the accompanying fries. Let's say one meal for 8 people for 2 weeks: At the wildly unrealistic 5 bucks a head, you still need (8 * 14) * $5, or $560. Too bad that stuff doesn't grow on trees.
Sometimes delays like these are staff-based, as in we can't find the folks to do the work. But that's not the case this time: Maurice has identified and recruited all his actors. And his production and post-production staff, a team that Moe has worked with before, are in place and eager to take on the challenges presented by Sixufus.
The problem in this case is the stereotypical indie problem: The almighty dollar. Or lack thereof.
So even though the script was written with a goal of being a zero-budget shoot, money must still be found for various and sundry items. To wit:
The Shoot
Locations, meals, props, time. Though Sixufus has a bare minimum of these, they still require an outlay. Even if someone is willing to turn their apartment over to wacky indie filmmakers for a couple of weeks, the talent and crew still need a burger and the accompanying fries. Let's say one meal for 8 people for 2 weeks: At the wildly unrealistic 5 bucks a head, you still need (8 * 14) * $5, or $560. Too bad that stuff doesn't grow on trees.
The On-screen Talent
The actors in our production are undeniably talented, but also undeniably members of a union. The Screen Actors Guild, to be precise. If Maurice wants to work with the actors in his town, he has to pay cold hard cash to the on-screen talent of this production. That, or be blackballed for life; unable to hire a SAG actor again. (And just to be clear, most actors are, or are aspiring to be, SAG affiliated.) This is not an option, but a reality.
The Off-screen Talent
Maurice's team is made up from folks in Austin and Spain. Austin, as in Texas; and Spain, as in Europe. Getting to LA, on time and with all their gear in tow, is not going to be cheap.
Realistically? A 0-budget feature-length film needs some money. Sure, you hear of guys producing $70 movies, but that number is not an accurate accounting metric of the assets used to produce it. Cameras, lights, microphones, software, hardware; plus the time and expertise to use them, has a financial value. As an indie filmmaker, the question is "What can you trade to use them?" Burger King won't trade fries for video editing favors. Typically.
So, to tackle this goal, Maurice has generated a budget and is eliciting interest amongst his contacts in LA. Only a matter of time, really, until someone sees the value of the team and project, and ponies up for a slice of the pie.
Realistically? A 0-budget feature-length film needs some money. Sure, you hear of guys producing $70 movies, but that number is not an accurate accounting metric of the assets used to produce it. Cameras, lights, microphones, software, hardware; plus the time and expertise to use them, has a financial value. As an indie filmmaker, the question is "What can you trade to use them?" Burger King won't trade fries for video editing favors. Typically.
So, to tackle this goal, Maurice has generated a budget and is eliciting interest amongst his contacts in LA. Only a matter of time, really, until someone sees the value of the team and project, and ponies up for a slice of the pie.
Friday, October 2, 2009
I quit. But then -
We've made a few short movies here and there, and... it's a lot of work. Though we shot "I Am Jesus" in 3-4 hours, it took weeks to align everybody with our location and our time frame. And let's not forget the writing, preproduction, post production, the marketing, blah blah blah blah blah.
Extrapolate that out, 11 pages to 90 pages, and you're looking at a significant chunk of time. So faced with that, with Christmas coming up and other expenses on the horizon...
I quit.
Call me a coward. I just don't think making it half way to being done is the same as Success. So instead of pushing forward, with a very real possibility of not making it, I postponed shooting my zero-budget feature. It's not good form to get people involved, then pull the plug because of time or money or whatever.
So yeah, big quitter. That's me. But then?
Talked to Maurice Moore, a director/producer friend of mine in Los Angeles. Said "Hey, you know anyone that would be interested in shooting a zero-budget film?"
He said "Yeah. I would."
In the interest of making a long story short, I won't mentioned that he liked the script, that his people liked the script, etc. We'll just report that Maurice is now gathering a team of LA-based talent to shoot Sixufus.
And ya know? This may be a better ending than the one I had envisioned.
As we work through pre and post production, we'll be posting reports and film clips and whatnot here, so....
Extrapolate that out, 11 pages to 90 pages, and you're looking at a significant chunk of time. So faced with that, with Christmas coming up and other expenses on the horizon...
I quit.
Call me a coward. I just don't think making it half way to being done is the same as Success. So instead of pushing forward, with a very real possibility of not making it, I postponed shooting my zero-budget feature. It's not good form to get people involved, then pull the plug because of time or money or whatever.
So yeah, big quitter. That's me. But then?
Talked to Maurice Moore, a director/producer friend of mine in Los Angeles. Said "Hey, you know anyone that would be interested in shooting a zero-budget film?"
He said "Yeah. I would."
In the interest of making a long story short, I won't mentioned that he liked the script, that his people liked the script, etc. We'll just report that Maurice is now gathering a team of LA-based talent to shoot Sixufus.
And ya know? This may be a better ending than the one I had envisioned.
As we work through pre and post production, we'll be posting reports and film clips and whatnot here, so....
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Preproduction: Concept, Part 3
Getting back to concept. Thought about a lot of different things, but noir seems more my style, personally. Love Raymond Chandler's stuff, and look at Mind Reader 8.
So, where are we? 1) Zero budget (priority one), 2) Minimal locations and actors, 3) Compelling; never seen before.
If we think further along the lines of being minimal: Back in the old days (ie., Hellenistic Age), actors would cover their faces so they could play multiple parts. So what if we get people to play more than one role?
First, thought "is this like a variety show?" Our actor sings, then dances, then does a dramatic reading?
Hm. Doesn't really play to my strong suit, really. Meaning it would take me longer and I'd probably wish I'd spent my time doing something more interesting.
But the idea is compelling enough to explore a bit. How to get one actor to play a lot of roles...
Hey, what about split personality, a.k.a., "Dissociative identity disorder"?!
So there ya go. A noir-ish piece about a guy or gal with multiple personalities. Add something of value that our characters are willing to do ANYTHING for (ie, loads of cash), and now we've got... Sixufus.
Next: The script. (Or maybe something else. Don't hold me to that.)
So, where are we? 1) Zero budget (priority one), 2) Minimal locations and actors, 3) Compelling; never seen before.
If we think further along the lines of being minimal: Back in the old days (ie., Hellenistic Age), actors would cover their faces so they could play multiple parts. So what if we get people to play more than one role?
First, thought "is this like a variety show?" Our actor sings, then dances, then does a dramatic reading?
Hm. Doesn't really play to my strong suit, really. Meaning it would take me longer and I'd probably wish I'd spent my time doing something more interesting.
But the idea is compelling enough to explore a bit. How to get one actor to play a lot of roles...
Hey, what about split personality, a.k.a., "Dissociative identity disorder"?!
So there ya go. A noir-ish piece about a guy or gal with multiple personalities. Add something of value that our characters are willing to do ANYTHING for (ie, loads of cash), and now we've got... Sixufus.
Next: The script. (Or maybe something else. Don't hold me to that.)
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