|
Archive Four
June 2, 2005
- One for the Hunter -
A stairway to the stars?
...
Back in the early/mid-'70's in college I worked part time as a
bartender at a lake resort outside of Austin. Usually I
worked conventions or private parties. On one particular
weekend when there was a journalist convention, I worked one of
their big parties (more like drunken brawl). There were a
number of famous journalists there, but I didn't pay it too much
attention, as my bar station was outside on the veranda where most
of them weren't. As the evening wore on, they pretty much
left me alone out there. Just as I started to shut my area
down, a guy stumbled out and lit up. He stared out over the
lake, looked up at the starry night, and silently smoked his
cigarette, paying me no heed ...
Finally
after several silent minutes, he slid over to the bar and ordered
a drink. We had a few moments of small talk, of which he
mostly complained about the sorry state of the world, and then he
got silent and reflective again. I went back to packing up
my bar, and just as I was about finished he wanted to know what my
aspirations were. When I informed him that I wanted to be a
writer, he blurted out into a cynical, hysterical laugh. I
wasn't amused ...
Then an
odd thing happened. He went soft on me. Guess I didn't
hide my hurt feelings too well, even though I thought I'd shrugged
it off. Just as I was about to leave, he clumsily grabs my
arm, and says very softly and poignantly, 'Write as if you're
building a stairway to the stars'. I found that very odd
coming from someone who seemed so cynical. Once I was almost
out of earshot range, he went back to his other self and yelled
back to finish his remark, 'Because you're going to need a way off
this lousy planet some day!' Whatever, I thought ...
I later
learned who he was, Hunter
Thompson, the wacked-out gonzo journalist himself. Most
of you probably know that he went the way of Hemingway (with a gun
to his head) a few months ago. Anyway, as there have been
several tributes to him of late, it reminded me of my chance
meeting with him that late, lonely night thirty years ago. I
hope he found that stairway. I think he really needed it ...
473 days and counting ...
J-Alden
Comments --
Dear REAL Filmmaker: -- 6/4
Now that you have embarked upon the journey - you can tell anyone
you meet that you are indeed a "filmmaker." "Fake it - until you
Make it" - and you have made it. I have to catch up on your Blog
but I simply came across it taking a break from yet another
Saturday Night of work and I wanted to wish you luck. I am an
entertainment attorney and help run a small but prolific indie
film studio that also distributes genre low-budget films. So, I
will be watching with interest and if you have any questions,
please feel free to touch base. I will do my best to get back to
you promptly but things are a bit crazed at the moment.
Anonymous
June 6, 2005
- Updates -
A little of that, more of this and some bits in between
...
Thought I'd let
you all know what progress, if any, I'd actually made on my little
project ...
Director - I'm still talking to potentials, but also heavily
weighting the idea of directing this myself. Some things are
going on that should help me decide within the next couple weeks,
even though in my own mind I had wanted to decide by now (and I
think I think I already know I know) ...
Script
- I'm prepping the third draft and will be in solitude next month
(or two) to crank out this latest edition. The characters
have cooled down some, and know where their place is, but they
still don't know what's completely in store for them. Ha,
ha, it'll be fun ...
Cinematographer - I've seen some pretty cool reels and had a
couple good conversations. I will continue to explore this,
but I'm happy with where this is headed. I've got my own
ideas about the look I want, and we'll see how (if?) I can get the
right guy (or gal) on board who can dial into my vision ...
Casting
- Yeah, right. I'm really leaning towards going non-union.
Talked to SAG once and will one more time before I decide, but I'm
looking for a casting director who's willing to help search for
the best non-union talent on the planet. I got five roles
that most good actors would love to get their hands on, but I'm
not giving them to anyone ...
Music
- Wow, I've gotten some great stuff. Seems to be some really
talented musicians out there. And I'm getting closer to
figuring out where I need to go musically with this, which may
seem weird but I'm hearing it in my head now in several of the
scenes (no, it's not a musical - but it could be). Anyway, trying to communicate in words about music is
what, like dancing about architecture? ...
Other
- Not much other right now, other than the dough, but I'll let my
executive producer worry about that. Yes, I have one, and I
have faith in her, so we'll leave it at that for now. C'mon
woman, show me the money! ...
469 days and counting ...
J-Alden
June 10, 2005
- Experimental Exploration -
Shading advant-gardeism
...
I
recently embarked on a journey I really didn't get finish in my
youth, one into the usually inaccessable and sometimes
intimidating worlds of experimental film. Rediscovering the
dreamy constructs of
Maya Deren, the allegorical meta-mythology of
Jean Cocteau, the supernatural complexity of
Curtis Harrington,
the neo-poetic imagery of
Kenneth Anger, the complicated abstractness of
James Whitney, the musical symbology of
Stan Brakhage, and the ...
Uh, sorry,
guess I could keep going on about this, but there's a newfound
richness in this alternative cinematic world that I had forgot
about, and of course seems so sorely lacking in our modern
mass-media world. Oh well, I suddenly feel at a loss of
words, and now see words will not serve this too intellectualized moment. I'm
going back to more of these images, and will check back in, when I
can find the words (not!) worthy of worlds I am rediscovering and
exploring once again ...
465 days and counting ...
J-Alden
Comments --
About Maya Deren: -- 6/13
Just wanted to pass on that when I was a young man I had the
privilege of meeting Maya back in the early fifties, and feel
fortunate that I was able to do so, even though I would not call
her a good friend or anything. I think she preferred her work to
people anyway, though I certainly don't mean anything by that.
It's actually too bad she left us so soon, as I'm sure she had a
lot of good work left in her. Being around her was almost an
out-of-body experience. Anyway, just happened to come across your blog
thing a while back. Good luck.
L. Gray
June 14, 2005
- Our Lucky 13 -
Verbs, images, events, facts and physical activities, all dandy
tools to dig up that storytelling imagination
...
I
have never been one easily swayed by the so available crutches of
superstition, even though I'd be the first to admit to be easily
seduced by its distant cousin (arguably for sure) of the human
imagination. The superstition I refer to is of the discourse
of black cats, the number 13, being called 'lucky or 'jinxed' and sundry other oddities of misused
imagination. The truer and purer use of imagination has no
such constructs, I would imagine ...
What does
this have to do with anything? Well, since you asked, or
actually I asked for you, I am compelled to respond in an
imaginative way. This past weekend I spent an enjoyable
three days with a dozen other filmmakers exploring the illusive
world of storytelling at one of
Judith Weston's
Workshops in L.A., specifically the one,
Acting for
Directors. Making us all, of course, a baker's dozen of
filmmakers ...
After
having read both of Ms. Weston's very informative books,
Directing Actors and
The Film Directors' Intuition, I was drawn to the
material and decided to check out her workshops. Now over
the years I've been to my share of film workshops and seminars,
and I don't usually rate or rank my experiences since it seems
more productive to allow the uniqueness of of each one to 'cast its
own shadow', yet I have to honestly say this was one of the more
enjoyable film workshops/classes/seminars I have ever attended.
All who participated were great, smart and talented, plus the
agenda, material and experiential happening were more than
expected, and of course Judith was delightful, fun and inspiring.
I highly recommend her to any level of director (and of course
actor, writer, producer, etc.) ...
Afterwards,
after driving back to my humble abode in Ventura County, I began
thinking about the widely diverse group of people (several were
from outside the US) who had participated in the event, how
well everyone seemed to get along and of the passion they carried. And that led me to
considering the general state of the world today, which didn't
lead me to a good place ...
Now, I'm
not much of a political animal these days, and actually haven't
been for quite a while, even though I was a product of the sixties
and seventies and participated in plenty of the happenings of that
era. I grew a bit cynical of all that, and probably escaped
a bit into the imaginary worlds created by own writings (and
certainly of others) over the years. And this weekend I was
partially reminded why, because of this grand paradox of reality
and illusion, a bit of a cosmic joke it seems. The closer
you look at reality (the obvious outer world), the less unreal it
can seem, but the more you dive into the illusionary world (the
imagination?) the more real that can actually seem. It's as
if the forces of creation have actually placed us all in the midst
of a cosmic puzzle for us to figure our way out of, and our only
real tool for finding the solution is our imagination, the thing
most of us in the real world only think as a being a figment of
something rather illusive and unreal. Maybe if only we could
turn one world inside on the other, there would be a way out? ...
And even
though it is something we all have, it is different in each of us
all. It is why I can say if I have faith in anything in this
crazy world, it is not nations, governments, corporations, organized religions,
marching armies, or social movements, because they exist with
little or no
imagination, usually only for their narrow self-serving agendas. Since it is only in each individual where
imagination exists, it is only where any hope can lie, and where
the real power seems to exist. Every once in awhile I feel
lucky when I get to see that possibility in each of us, and I was
reminded of that once again this weekend. Maybe me feeling
'lucky' might suggest I could actually be a bit superstitious.
More correctly, it's me feeling that 'magic' can happen sometimes,
especially when imagination is the prime ingredient and
individuals are allowed to thrive ...
So to all
those individual-filmmakers I got to meet this weekend, good luck
in all your present and future endeavors! We might
be the people we have been waiting for (figuratively speaking), as
maybe it takes others seeing us in their imagination for us to see
how and who we really are? A bit metaphysical for sure, but
hey I'm just trying to have a little fun here, and possibly I'll
stumble upon some simple, honest truth ...
Tidbits:
Check out this
Onion Article for a bit of a chuckle, and this intriguing
Film Road Show, coming out of my old stomping grounds in
Austin. Have fun, and be well ...
461 days and counting ...
J-Alden
June 19, 2005
- A Discourse -
Good
for him, a reader speaks up ...
I should do this more often.
Every once in a while a reader of this blog takes me to task and
challenges my seemingly humble words that I periodically slap out
into the cyber world. Anyway, below is our recent exchange.
And if you'd like to chime in, be my guest ...
In reference to my June 6
post, Ty wrote (about my casting comments):
"I'm looking for a casting director
who's willing to help search for the best non-union talent on the
planet."
What an odd thought. I can see the professional casting person's
eyes roll now. (I'm thinking of ones I know.) How much time will
that take? The savvy casting person can actually make a nice
income at that. "Gee, we're really having a problem with these
roles, but we'll keep trying........" (the meter is still
running).
That's like saying you want the best non-certified doctor to
perform your prostate surgery. The best unlicensed electrician to
wire up your new house. The best legal aid person to try your
case.
I find most of the time, the yearning for non-union talent has
more to do with hiring actors who will eat time spent on your
on-set ponderings and not charge you for it. Of course, the rest
of the crew (many of whom could also be union) have to eat them
too.
So why pick on union actors? It hardly seems fair. What has guided
you to this decision?
BTW, you'll also need a good sound person.
My response to Ty:
Ty, thanks for your note.
Hopefully I can address your concerns.
I can see from your remarks, that either I mis-communicated
myself, you didn’t understand, or you haven’t read my earlier
posts in describing my position more (or a combination of these).
I understand (or think I do) where you are coming from as these
are legitimate concerns, but the argument that seems to be shaping
up is the stereotypical one of the big time money-grubbing
producer taking advantage of the oppressed worker bees. I for one
have no trouble with unions protecting the interests of their
members against the mean-spirited, bottom-lined agents of our
corporate dominated world. I’ve certainly fallen prey to that
mentality. No, I am more of a blue-collar (sorry for the
stereotype) kind of guy myself than one of the corporate
suit-dweebs (even though I have worked in that world too). But
what I see that's sometimes common in both worlds is a narrow
mindedness that closes doors of opportunities for both.
I am basically a maverick of
sorts, not for its own sake, but probably because I have trouble
with authority and authority figures. When someone tells me I
‘need’ or ‘have’ to do something a certain way, my impulse is
always to do it another way, even if it’s wrong. They
say ‘because those are the rules’, or ‘that’s the way it’s always
been done’, or ‘that’s what everyone else does’. Now of course,
after my initial reaction, I usually more rationally consider what
my choices are, but I never bow in the beginning to do something a
certain way because I’m ‘supposed’ to.
Now back to the points at
hand. I have worked on both union and non-union shoots and have
had various good and bad experiences with both. I have seen SAG
shut down productions for the most minor of reasons, and I think
it’s obvious that SAG actors for the most part are more talented
and professional than the alternative. I am not a big time
producer. I wrote a simple drama that I want to produce, and have
limited funds to see it through. I have no big corporation or
studio behind me. I know SAGindie has created some
budget-friendly situations for low budget productions such as
mine. I think they had to, because for many of us the previous
ones priced us out of the market. But for me, it just wasn’t just
about the money, but the other conditions that place such a burden
on a low budget producer such as myself. When I went to speak to
them, I was somewhat surprised about their attitude. Though
initially friendly, they had a so-what attitude about my concerns.
Basically a take it or leave it, our way or the highway approach,
such a Gestapo-like, superior than-thou attitude. Not exactly an
eye-opener because I’ve seem some bizarre behavior of SAG reps on
shoots. But yes, my maverick-ism came to the surface and I was a
bit miffed.
For a moment, look at it from
my viewpoint. I have written a script that I have labored over
for a couple years, long days and long nights of tearing my hair
out (and I don’t have much left), beating my head against the wall
(I’m running out bandages) and spending very little quality time
with my wife and kids (who think I’m crazier than a mad hatter).
Then I go out among friends, relatives, everyone else I know and
everyone they all know and try to scrape up enough mullah to
actually get this into production, and hopefully on some kind of
screen somewhere (because if it doesn’t I could lose my friends,
and my relatives may not speak to me for awhile). But to get into
production, I’ve got to go and get the project ‘approved’ by a
group of people who have made certain rules I am supposed to
follow, or else, and have no concern for my concerns. Wait a
minute, I took the initiative, created the project, raised the
money, am not paying myself, and am taking all the risk, but if I
want to this, I have to do it their way, by their rules. And not
only that, if I play by their rules, I will always be under the
subject of their rules for the life of the project in perpetuity,
even though they had nothing to do with the creation and
exploitation of said ‘product’. Wow, is this America? Guess what
people, there are no guarantees in life. I am perfectly willing
to take on the risk of doing this project, because that’s how
things work in this world, but to sign over guarantees to other
forces that could make it harder on the success of the project?
God, I’ve already got all the forces against me. Why would I
want to take on another? And hey, if there’s going to be a payout
here, how about sharing some of the risk then? Huh? Boy SAG
didn’t like that. ‘Sorry, your problems don’t concern us’.
The bottom line for me is
about serving the project. All my decisions are based on that,
not how much money or fame, or anything else is out there. I am a
storyteller by nature, and all I am trying to do is tell an
engaging, intriguing story in an original way. All the rest is
fluff and irrelevant.
Sorry Ty, gotten a bit
long-winded here. Now, to address some of your particular
questions. Actually not ‘an odd thought’, more common than
you seem to think, as I have talked to some casting directors
about non-union routes. While most have tried to talk me into the
union route, some are intrigued by the project enough to consider
it, and understand where I’m coming from. And guess what, there
is a lot of unrecognized talent all across this country. I’ve
traveled around a bit and seen some amazing undiscovered talent in
community theater, and a number of others have also told me the
same. What could be more grassroots indie than using talented
complete unknowns and giving them a shot? I heard it estimated by
several people that there are about 5,000 or more indie
productions a year under the Hollywood radar, and that about
70-90% of them are non-union. Sure a lot of them are crap and
basically home movies, but a few break out and get distributed.
Boy, you’re really into the
certified thing, aren’t you? I’ve been around long enough to know
that doesn’t guarantee a thing. The best thing here is just to
use some common horse sense, not be enamored by set of plaques on
the wall. Jeez, it just takes some thinking for yourself, seeing
what people have done, getting referrals, talking to them and
others, not some robotic glaze because some established
bureaucratic agency has said this guy (or gal) is okay. (plus I
think getting a doc to operate on you is a bit more severe than
getting an actor in a film, let’s have some reality here)
As far as picking on union
actors, huh? I think SAG is protecting their interests pretty
well, so do I need to? Who’s protecting mine? No one, and that’s
perfectly fine. I’ve taken that on, and will be as responsible as
I can be with that. Fair? Life is fair? Did I miss that
contract when I was born? Where do I sign? I think you’ve
possibly hit on the crux of your dilemma. Because life can be
inherently unfair, especially for those who have become its
victim, for some there seems to be a need or motivation to try and
square that up somehow, which may lead one to search out for the
people in society who have more power, wealth, influence, etc. to
get some kind of retribution for their sense of injustice the
world has placed on them. Hey look, don’t take yourself so
seriously, get over it, and move on. Life is too short (as they
say) to get too hung up in all this minutiae.
Anyway, let me tell you where
I’m coming from on my particular project. I don’t believe in not
paying people something. Everyone’s lodging, food and
transportation will be taken care of, and there will be a weekly
rate, probably lower than their normal rate. For that
consideration, everyone will get a piece of the film, from first
dollar in, not the typical deferment deal. In other words, the
first money into us (as producers), all will get a percentage of
that, along with us and the investors, not behind them all. This
is similar to Indigent (and some other small companies) does.
As a final note of concern, I
am usually a bit skeptical working with someone who is much more
concerned up front about their job and what they are paid, rather
than whether they want to work on a particular project or not (I
know some of you have been treated poorly by
unscrupulous producers, but I don’t operate that way). I am
serving the project and its vision, and I want people who buy into
that, want to participate and truly help add something to the
project. I’m actually a decent and fair guy to work with, and
always try to do the right thing, because that’s how I want people
to treat me and would like to world to be (even if I may recognize
it as not being fair, that doesn’t mean I won’t try to make my
little world as fair as I can). But the minute I sense someone is
trying to take unfair advantage of the situation and is taking
away from the project instead of adding to it, then they’re gone.
They’ve breached my trust, which I have honestly and graciously
extended to them. I like to have fun when I’m working (I do both
hard), but will not tolerate being undermined. I don’t take it
personally, but take it as a threat to the success of the project.
The bottom line is I’m looking for ‘partners’ rather than
‘employees’ to see this project reach its full potential, because
the quality of the finished ‘product’ will determine both how much
we all make long term, and whether we’re proud enough of it to
brag that we actually got to work on this project.
And yes Ty, I will need a
good sound guy. It’s something that many indies don’t address
well enough, but I will not make that mistake. Hope you stayed
around to read this damn long-winded rant. But you shouldn’t have
got me going ;-) Good luck on your future endeavors.
Make sure they all sound right!
And Ty responded back (my
words he's responding to are in italics):
Like myself, you have spent time on
many sides of the fences. There are pluses and minuses at each
location. At worst, unionism creates mediocrity. At best, it
attempts to provide stability and, therefore, a happier work
force. We also share the impulse to question authority.
:)
What were your concerns? I too am
miffed by some o what they think is reasonable, btw, and I'm a
member of AFTRA and SAG.
I am a
storyteller by nature, and all I am trying to do is tell an
engaging, intriguing story in an original way. All the rest is
fluff and irrelevant.
Dreams can be as
oppressive as the corporate world, no?
While most have tried to talk me
into the union route, some are intrigued by the project enough to
consider it, and understand where I’m coming from.
More to the point,
those casting people make a lot more money off of non-union actors
than from union actors. On something as simple as a narration, the
average non-union may make $250, $50 of which goes right back in
the pocket of the casting company. It's very easy for them to
position themselves with you because of their profit motive.
Sure a lot of them are crap and
basically home movies, but a few break out and get distributed.
Well there are some
long odds there. Also, as I'm sure you have found out, stage
acting and acting for film are very different crafts.
(plus I think
getting a doc to operate on you is a bit more severe than
getting an actor in a film, let’s have some reality here)
Mine were just off
hand examples, but I do think that there is an order to things.
As far as picking on union actors, huh?
I think SAG is protecting their interests pretty well, so do I
need to?
No, but you're indirectly and very strongly dissing them (us) by
your stated preferences.
Hey look, don’t take yourself so
seriously, get over it, and move on. Life is too short (as they
say) to get too hung up in all this minutiae.
Well you sound
pretty serious in the paragraph above.
I am serving the project and its
vision, and I want people who buy into that, want to
participate and truly help add something to the project.
Well serving the
project and its vision is you being committed to you and selling
it to others. So you'd be the boss.
The bottom
line is I’m looking for ‘partners’ rather than ‘employees’ to see
this project reach its full potential, because the quality of the
finished ‘product’ will determine both how much we all make long
term, and whether we’re proud enough of it to brag that we
actually got to work on this project.
At a certain level that business plans works, but it's difficult
to extend it down all the way to worker bees. "Everyone is equal,
but some are more equal than others"..was that in Animal Farm?
Hope you
stayed around to read this damn long-winded rant. But you
shouldn’t have got me going. ;-)
I see I've
achieved my purpose, which was to engage you. :)
Well, next time, maybe I
should respond? (or some of you?) ...
456 days and counting ...
J-Alden
June 24, 2005
- A Discourse, Part 2 -
Yes,
a little bit more of it ...
As a continuation of the
previous post on the 19th, here's one more exchange between my new
buddy Ty and myself ...
TY: What were your concerns? I too
am miffed by some on what they (SAG) think is reasonable, btw, and
I'm a member of AFTRA and SAG.
JA: See April 19th posting & read the low budget agreements (I
will get into more detail in a later posting on the blog)
- - - - - - - -
TY: Dreams can be as oppressive as
the corporate world, no?
JA: Touche. Of course with dreams (and my imagination) at least
they’re mine (or at least I’m deluded that they are, but ignorance
is bliss, huh?), but the other (corporate world), well, who really
owns that?
- - - - - - - -
TY: More to the point, those casting
people make a lot more money off of non-union actors than from
union actors. On something as simple as a narration, the average
non-union may make $250, $50 of which goes right back in the
pocket of the casting company. It's very easy for them to position
themselves with you because of their profit motive.
JA: Well maybe so, but I hope to alleviate that by flat rates.
TY: How's that work? Show up to act and regardless of how
long it takes, I pay you $X?
JA: Of course not. We'll work out a weekly rate and a
schedule that lays out how long the days will be, pretty straight
forward stuff. And sure, we may have to haggle, but if we're
not both (all) happy with the situation then we just won't move
forward together (meaning I'll have to find someone else who wants
to actually do this).
- - - - - - - -
TY: Well there are some long odds
there. Also, as I'm sure you have found out, stage acting and
acting for film are very different crafts.
JA: Sure, different in some obvious ways, but most actors tell me
they use the same basic techniques to get into the skin of their
characters.
TY: Well don't believe what they tell you ;)
- - - - - - - -
TY: Mine were just off hand
examples, but I do think that there is an order to things.
JA: Well, as far as taking up the ‘order of things’, we could
probably get into a long philosophical argument about that. I
think in a left-brain world we can make or perceive order in
anything, but things get a bit more complex and abstract in a
right-brain world (and less order). I only make that comparison
because film seems to be a great example of integrating both to
achieve something that neither can do alone, a type of balance if
you will. It is where the creatives and technicals seem to get
tied up, and hopefully a competent director can pull both together
and make sense of it all in a filmic way. (I know your point had
to do with union vs. non-union as far as order, but we could go on
and on about that the way people have been going on for decades,
so just went in a different direction with that, as there isn’t
always an apparent order to things for everyone).
- - - - - - - -
TY: You're indirectly and very
strongly dissing them (us) (SAG) by your stated preferences.
JA: Actually, I don’t feel I’m dissing them at all (at least the
actors themselves, more the authority of SAG), just playing in a
different sandbox. It’s like having the kid down the block have
all these rules and conditions to play in his big sandbox. That’s
fine, it’s his and he has the right. I’m just playing in a
different (probably smaller) sandbox (my own?). Do I have to play
in his? Am I required to? If so, why? Because they say so? If
true, is that not fascist?
TY: About as fascist as demanding work from people without telling
them how much work and expecting them to take a fixed fee.
JA: See comments above. There will be a schedule and an hour
limit per day. It will all be spelled out in a pretty
standard, normal way (in writing) before we proceed. I
really don't see what the problem is, as it'll just be a contract
between two consenting adults.
- - - - - - - -
TY: Well you sound pretty serious in
the paragraph above.
JA: Touche again. Well maybe I did get too serious, but to tell
you the truth I usually don’t take myself or the world too
seriously. In fact, I prefer my work to be my play. I’ve had a
number of people who previously worked for (with) me tell me I was
the most fun boss (co-worker) they ever had. I actually work to
monitor how serious I get, because work goes a lot better when
levity is a strong factor.
TY: I'm trying to do the same thing.
- - - - - - - -
TY: Well serving the project and its
vision is you being committed to you and selling it to others. So
you'd be the boss.
JA: Doesn’t someone need to be? I feel I’m better than any boss
I’ve ever had. In fact, I’d be willing to share that
responsibility with others, as I do plan to have a couple
co-producers working with me. Are you volunteering? Actually,
I’ve seen a number of times when people who complain about their
bosses, refuse to take that on when asked to do so. Many don’t
want the responsibility, but still complain. Go figure.
TY: hahahaha!
- - - - - - - -
TY: At a certain level that business
plans works, but it's difficult to extend it down all the way to
worker bees. "Everyone is equal, but some are more equal than
others" …was that in Animal Farm?
JA: Yes, of course it’s difficult. Anything worthwhile is, but
that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to make that happen. Intent
and effort is worth a lot. Your quote, it’s in the mind of the
believer. If you believe you’re not equal, then you certainly
won’t be. If you believe you are, maybe you still aren’t, but you
can strive for it. Why not try? We’re not static, we grow,
we improve, we evolve. No one’s ever in the same place as anyone
else, but so what? Maybe next year I’ll be close to where you are
today, and ad infinitum …
TY: Yah, maybe. The quote was more about who dominates whom. Who's
the boss. I know you hate being other than the boss.
JA: Actually, that's not true. I've not been the boss more
than I have. It's just that many of my previous bosses
weren't very good (in my estimation) at what they did. But
now, the ones who were I had no problem with them being my boss.
In a way I feel I've been lucky having so many lousy bosses
because I learned a lot ways not to be, and that's helped me play
that game better. Now some people just hate bosses, but I'm
not that way. I think people can command respect and
authority, but they have to earn it. Its the ones who grab
and grasp for it that I usually have the problem with. It
seems you feel someone has to dominate others in this
relationship, but I view it as more a team concept not an
adversarial one. I have seen it work, and when it does it's
a thing of beauty.
- - - - - - - -
TY: I see I've achieved my purpose,
which was to engage you. :)
JA: Jeez, does that mean I need to get you a ring? ;-)
TY: Nah, that would be too establishment.
And thanks, Ty. You've
been a good sport in all of this. Next time we'll be moving
onto something else ...
Tidbits: Check out the
Los Angeles Film
Festival going on right now (thru Sun.), and the
Low
Budget Summit I plan to attend, or the
Finance
Conference I hope to attend ...
451 days and counting ...
J-Alden
June 25, 2005
- News Flash! -
SAG
is starting to see the light ...
At the
Low
Budget Summit I was at today (at the LA Film Festival), SAG
Indie announced to the public for the first time that they've
redone their low budget contracts to make them more producer
friendly (and also bowing to market conditions) -- meaning they
may be more flexible than I ever realized. They go into
effect on July 1. For more details go to
SAG Indie. More on
that here later (maybe I'm going SAG now?!) ...
450 days and counting ...
J-Alden
June 29, 2005
- Competing Paradigms? -
This
on the left, that on the right, and never shall they meet? ...
Serving on a jury all week
through my life into a bit of a spin, but then we must do our
civic duty when called upon, right? Anyway, I didn't get to
do all I wanted at the LA Film Festival, but I was fortunate
enough to attend a couple of the seminar/panels. One of the
more inspiring, Selling Your Film/Maximizing Distribution
(as part if the Financing Conference), was hosted by Peter
Broderick. Actually, he was the only one on the panel, which
was just as well. I had already met him several years ago,
and have followed his career for the better part of a decade.
He has been a steady voice on the leading edge of indie filmmaking
(especially the digital world), not just as a filmmaker but as one
who stretches (and helps create) a possible new paradigm for
indies to buy into and operate within ...
The details of his position
were articulately spelled out in an
article
in the DGA Magazine last year. He also has a
website (films to see before you vote), which ties his
filmmaking world into his political leanings (which is of less
interest to me, since I personally don't see political solutions
as really viable - both sides, or whatever number of sides, seem
to inherently have their problems, limitations and axes to grind,
and thus seem narrow and visionless). Nonetheless, many of
the films referred to on the site are obviously worth seeing.
Anyway, on to more important things, like filmmaking, illusion and
imagination ...
From the reaction of the
audience, I could tell that Mr. Broderick instilled a lot
excitement about the future possibilities of indie filmmakers
keeping distribution control of their films, and how that could
happen. Very empowering. Now obviously, the
gatekeepers of the industry don't agree, and even if they saw it
happening might not go so gentle into that night. Which
brings me to the next panel I attended right after this one,
Meet the Buyers and Distributors, basicially the indie/classics/arthouse
divisions of the studios (except for Roadside Attractions, a small
indie distributor), which was the complete opposite of what was
previously discussed. What a juxtaposition ...
These gatekeepers of course
expressed how if we filmmakers made our films the way they wanted
us to, that they would take our films and take care of it all for
us. The benevolent parent, so to speak. Hhhmmm, a
scenario for a future abused child? There was such a crock
of crap being laid out here I wanted to hurl big time, but I got
the feeling that the younger, more naive crowd was eating it up.
I made eye contact with a few who had been at the previous panel
and watched them roll their eyes way back in their heads as well.
Guess some us got what a con job this was ...
Tidbits: Just
wanted to mention a couple other characters I crossed paths with
at the goings on in LA. At one of the Low Budget Summit panels,
Bang for Your Buck: Guerilla Marketing, producer rep
Jeff Dowd was one of the
panelists, who I had already met last year (we actually had a past
connection - Blood Simple was the first film he ever repped, and
the first feature I ever worked on). He is of course, "The
Dude", immortalized in the Cohen film, The Big Lebowski,
and played by Jeff Bridges. And as usual, he's quite
informed and very entertaining. Another guy to check out,
who was on the same panel, is
Tim Greene, a real
guerilla filmmaker, and sometimes referred to as the 'Disney' of
hip-hop. Very funny, entertaining and passionate guy ...
446 days and counting ...
J-Alden
|
|
Want to comment?
Email me and I will put it up, along with name, handle or
anonymous. (No email address will be posted)
Archives
3/15/05
- 3/31/05
4/01/05 - 4/30/05
5/01/05 - 5/31/05
6/01/05 - 6/30/05
7/01/05 - 7/31/05
8/01/05 - 8/31/05
9/01/05 - 9/30/05
10/01/05 - 10/31/05
11/01/05 - 11/30/05
12/01/05 - 12/31/05
1/01/06 - 1/31/06
2/01/06 - 2/28/06
Mar-06
Apr-06
May-06
Jun-06
Jul-06
Aug-06
Sep-06
Oct-06
Nov-06
Dec-06
Jan-07
Feb-07
Mar-07
Apr-07
May-07
Jun-07
Jul-Sep-07
Oct-Dec-07
Jan-Mar-08
Apr-Jun-08
Home
Other Film Blogs
Blogumentary
Brian Flemming
Cinema Minima
Cinematical
Esoteric Rabbit Films
Filmmaker
Green Cine
HD for Indies
Hollywood Lib Army
IFC Blogs
Indiewire Blogs
Lesson In Mediocrity
Metaphilm
Mindjack Film
Movie Marketing
The Movie Blog
Other Film
Sites
Ain't It Cool News
AIVF
Creative Screenwriting
IFC
IFP
Film Threat
Filmmaker
HFI
HW Scriptwriter
IDA
IMDB
IndieWire
Indie Slate
ITVS
Mandy
Microcinema Int'l
Moviemaker
Mt. Shasta Film
Festival
NY Film Academy
Production Hub
Script Mag
Spiritual Cinema
Circle
Withoutabox
Writer's Store
|
