WHAT ARE WE DOING?

What am I working on right now?

I am hacking away at the shot list. One of the great tools a director has in his arsenal is the often underestimated shot list. I say underestimated because a.) many directors have their AD do it and b.) some prefer only using storyboards. Not I. I believe the shot list is absolutely essential and I prefer to do it myself.

I am not as flashy as some. I use a simple spreadsheet (created from several spreadsheets) to organize my shots. I then turn it over to the creative producer (Bren) who looks it over and sometimes comes back with suggestions. Bren then gives the shot list to the storyboard artist. We then (the storyboard artist and I) have a conversation in which we painstakingly go through each shot and discuss what the shot is all about.

If you are interested, below is a picture of my shot list header. Click it for full size.



It is pretty self explanatory but if you are interested, here is what each column means.

SCENE: The number of the scene in which the shot appears.
EXT/INT: Whether the shot is interior or exterior.
TIME OF DAY: morning, noon, night… etc.
SPECIAL: This I use to note if it is a special type of sequence/shot. Jump cut, Flashback… etc.
SHOT: The actual shot number. I use the scene number and a letter to denote the shot number. Shot the first shot in scene 1 would be shot 1A.
PAGE: Which page in the script the shot occurs on.
DESCRIPTION/ACTION: What is going on in the scene?
DIALOGUE: What dialogue is taking place in the scene?
ANGLE: Low to the ground, high, direct… etc.
PERSPECTIVE: What can you see in the shot? Is it a wide shot? A CU?
OTHER: I use this column to note special items, atmosphere… etc. I sometimes use it to note camera movement. For instance: if the camera follows a specific action in the scene.
3-D ELEMENT: On 1.8 Days, I added a 3-D column to the shot list because the movie is going to be shot in 3-D and as I am going through the script, I note what I want to see coming off the screen.

One of my biggest challenges as a writer is that I think in terms of editing, camera placement and shots. So, transferring those ideas to script version can be frustrating.
Even though this is a lot of work (SPOILER: One sequence has almost 120 shots in it… thank god for digital), creating a shot list is one of the things I most look forward to doing

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Mmmm, yummie pre-production goodness

I think the best thing about this production so far is the great people we've met along the way. Of course, confidentiality agreements keep me from naming anyone specifically, but the wonderfulness just keeps on coming. So far, we have met with (name redacted) Post production company in Atlanta, GA. They not only put in a fair bid, but their vision for the outcome of the film is very parallel to that of mine and the director's. Plus, they earned a place in my heart forever for taking me to a late lunch in Buckhead to demonstrate their work and picking up the bill.

Then, we phone conferenced with (name redacted), a 20+ year veteran in the field of stunts who has worked with the likes of Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ray Liota, and Mark Dacascos, to name a few. This guy was not only cool as hell, but sans an inflated ego and enjoyed the script so much that he called me on my personal cell phone to express his extreme interest in working on our project.

Moving on, we got to visit the studio of (name redacted) who worked on The Signal as well as a host of other awesome films in the special effects make-up department. It was so cool touring his shop & seeing casts of famous people's faces hanging from his walls. Though we haven't formally signed contracts with him, he has become a close friend and worked on concept drawings for our creature at no cost. What a terrific guy!

On a weekend not long ago, the CEO and CFO of a huge movie studio met with the director, Caspar, Hawk, and I, and gave us a personally guided grand tour of their sound stages, back lot, and green space. I never thought I'd see the day when we could schedule a private tour like that! Not only were the facilities state-of-the-art, but their prop shop was the bomb! It was like being on the sets of Hollywood blockbusters as they were being filmed.

Then, (name redacted) Post in Atlanta got us in touch with the CGI guys with (name redacted) company in the mid-west, whose overall special effects resume include such films as Star Wars and The Mummy. The president of that company, (name redacted), in fact, just flew to Atlanta a couple of days ago on business and took me to lunch to hash out some script details and negotiate their fees. He ponied up the cash for two yummy cocktails and buffalo chicken strips, then gabbed like like an old friend with me for over an hour.

Finally, we landed an awesome cinematographer whose work I've been a fan of for years, (name redacted), who is also working on spec for us until contracts are signed. I'm sitting here thinking, I remember when I first saw the film that turned me on to her work and making a goal to get on a project with her one day. Now, that day is here and I'm just thrilled to have her on board, as is Josh and the director, who both immediately took a shining to her wonderful personality and camera know-how.

What a blessing it is to be able to talk with these film professionals and know that our next movie is going to rock so hard our grand kids will get queasy. Plus, the free meals aren't bad, either. :)

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1.8 Days in Pre-Production

Hi all, I'm Creative Producer of 1.8 Days with Movie Tao Productions. I'm excited to get the ball rolling with another southeastern film production, marking our second endeavor in as many years. Movie Tao is committed to bringing quality filmmaking to our region, and this production will be no different.

While still filming our first feature together "6 Degrees of Desperation," Chuck came up with a great idea to write a film featuring a classic horror-genre creature. Seems this was just the push we needed to catch the industry's eye.

Please understand that at this time we are not accepting queries for talent. We're currently wrapping up our finances and distibution, which is very work-intensive. We will make a big announcement that you won't be able to miss once we're ready to hold casting calls. So we ask that you please wait for that announcement before sending us your headshots and resumes, so we can concentrate on one important factor of pre-production at a time.

We thank you for your interest and continuing support of southeastern filmmakers!

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So... the word is getting out

Slowly but surely, the volume of email I receive is picking up. I am sure the same is happening for Bren. It is all a little crazy. We just want to make a great movie and we are very thankful that people liked it enough to get behind it. Hopefully the audiences will too.

We should be releasing cast info shortly. You know how that stuff goes... gotta make sure the lawyers give us their blessing.

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A POSSIBLE POSTER

As we are getting ready to shoot this thing, I have been playing around with visuals and ideas. Toby created a fantastic monster for us and I used the basis for that one and some other zombies to come up with this poster. This is no where near what the final one will be but it gives you an idea for the tone. Of course click it for full size goodness.

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