After a few months in the post production oven…VAMLET is almost ready to be unleashed on the world…

Look for VAMLET in FILM FESTIVALS in 2012!

“WHEN LIFE WAS GOOD” is back for a few more days.

http://www.superchannel.ca/movies/view/43772895/When-Life-was-Good

See it again, for the first time.

CASEY, TIJANA, and DAN in “VAMLET”

Thursday/Friday were spent polishing four scripts.

NOW it’s full on editing VAMLET. I’d like to get a rough assembly finished by the end of the week. SO MUCH left to slog through.

Back to it!

DAN and WES

UPDATES ON THE FILMS:

A NIGHT FOR DYING TIGERS

Still waiting to hear about any sales.

VAMLET

I’ve taken a week off from editing. I was really burnt out and needed the break. I’m looking forward to getting back into it with a clear and inspired head. Hmmm the words inspired and insipid aren’t that far apart…

UPDATES ON THE SCRIPTS:

CINEMANOVEL

Working on a rewrite/polish. Planning on shooting Summer 2011.

I THINK WE SHOULD SEE YOUNGER PEOPLE

63 pages in and I know the ending! Now I just need to work on the last half of the middle bit (what some folks might call the second act).

FAKERS

70 pages in and, because a caper film has so much more plot, a lot of work to do. However, I know what happens next…and I know how it ends!

I think I’ve watched just about every crime/caper film ever made this week. Whew.

PORTSIDE & ABEL

A complete re-imagining of my 2004 script. Now, I’m writing it as a one hour television pilot. Come on cable. Let’s do this.

OTHER STUFF:

Rob Leickner’s (very funny) film Everything Louder than Everything Else screens at the Whistler Film Festival on Dec 2nd!

Iron Bowl starts in twenty minutes…

“Jesus Christ, Alison, he doesn’t look remotely Swedish!”

FIRST RESHOOT required. A little out of focus action means a quick reshoot. Should only take an hour or two, only one main character involved. If you have to do a reshoot, this is the type you want.

EDITING

Editing is getting tough. No end to the chaos. No end to the footage. I have SO MUCH writing I need to do, and it’s impossible with all of this editing to get done.

This is the most editing I’ve ever had to do on a film. This is the “roughest” audio, the “roughest” picture, the “roughest” everything. This just means the film has a long way to go. I’ll get it there, for sure, but it’s going to take a LOT of time and work.

I may have to take a break from the edit and run away for a week or so to write. This writing needs to be done!

TIGERS

No word on anything on the tigers front as far as distribution, etc…but we’re hopeful something will come through soon.

Kathleen and Pyper at the premiere of A NIGHT FOR DYING TIGERS at TIFF 2010.

The seemingly endless VAMLET edit continues.

It was so great to have two cameras and have Gaelle working the second camera. She did a great job, and I am using second camera footage…however…

I’m not sure about two cameras for the future. It’s A LOT of footage to slog through, and a lot to keep in your mind while editing.

It’s much easier to edit as you shoot with one camera, and editing while I’m shooting is VERY important to me.

I would have had the entire film roughly edited on the last day of shooting had I shot with one camera.

Tough call.

Using two cameras allows you to capture great improvised moments on both sides, however, if the lighting isn’t right on the other side it’s useless AND there is just so much footage!

I had one camera for a few scenes and one camera on WHEN LIFE WAS GOOD, and there were no moments/scenes where I felt I’d sacrificed quality by having one camera.

But it was great having Gaelle on set and she framed some shots so well that I just had to use them in the film.

Tough call.

I think it depends on the film. For my next film, I’m looking at a different visual style, a very cinematic, stylized camera. I’m Probably not going handheld for a while! My shoulder is still killing me from the last shoot. Tripods and Dollies!

JESSE and ROB C.

“Mist!”

Almost finished the rough edit of the GYM and the SAUNA.

Then it’s THE DRESS SHOP.

I had hoped to work quicker than one scene a day, but one scene a day seems to be the max.

It’s been interesting following Ed burns and his approach with Nice Guy Johnny. I think there may be hope for day and date VOD. I plan on targeting this type of approach with this film.

Our sales agent is hoping something will happen with A Night For Dying Tigers at AFM.

Back to work!

RENEE ST CYR is THE CATERPILLAR in VAMLET

This picture we’re currently calling VAMLET is wrapped as far as principal photography goes. It’s so funny to use terms like “principal photography” to describe what just happened, but technically, that is what it was. When you run and gun and make films for no money, it’s kind of funny to discuss those films in traditional industry terms. But, hey, it’s a movie and production is over!

NOW PLAYING (classic)

On an unrelated note, it’s interesting that, as far as North American English language works go, the best writing and most accomplished storytelling continues to appear on television rather than on the big screen. Dramas like Mad Men, Friday Night Lights, Breaking Bad, and Boardwalk Empire deliver so much more than their watered-down, made by committee, theatrical counterparts. The same is true of comedy (perhaps even more so). Yet, filmmakers working outside of North America continue to deliver theatrical work that equals, or in many cases, transcends the best television has to offer. It would be nice to see a shift back from shit to shine in North American cinema.

IT’S OUR LAST SCHEDULED DAY OF SHOOTING ON “VAMLET”

Whew. It’s been a long time since we hopped into Katie’s car and shot that first day. We’ve seen Dan, we’ve been to TIFF, CIFF, VIFF, and I’ve been sitting in front of this screen editing as much as possible. I’ve made it through 27 minutes up to this point. Normally I would have cut the film as we shot, but with two cameras that just wasn’t possible. Syncing and plowing through all that footage each night after shooting wasn’t possible.

THE NEW. THE NEXT.

There’s something happening, it’s going to be a lot of work and it’s going to take a lot of “attention,” but it could be a big deal after a while. We’re still working out the logistics, but it’s probably the biggest thing you could attempt in the world of entertainment with no money and a dream. It will start “smallish” and grow. More news very soon.