Remember, simply telling your friends and family about the project is a huge, huge help. Please "like" our page on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/
Also, I was interviewed on Rex Sikes' Movie Beat a little over a month ago. If you enjoy this blog, it's really a fun listen and covers things I haven't really gone into here. It's a great show, and Rex has several other guests that may interest you. Here's a direct link to my interview if you're curious to hear more about me and the project: http://www.rexsikes.com/Rex_
Okay, linked out? Me too. Now, with all that business out of the way, I thought I'd write about my early days in college... no, that's NOT where this is going... I'm talking about my film school days. Every college/university is different, and this was about 10 years ago, but it may apply to you or someone you know. Not much has changed in football, that's for sure. The Giants were also in the Super Bowl then, too. (Shameless G-Men Super Bowl 46 plug). Anyways, the way it worked for us my senior year in film school was we had a crew of about five. Yup, FIVE! That means I got the chance to be the writer/producer/editor/gopher on my own film. Sounds great, right? Hell no!
I've always said that quitters make awful writers, directors, producers, actors, and whatever else. You know why? Not only are you dealing with rejection and emotional/physical exhaustion, but you also have to deal with the horrible fact that persevering is crazy expensive. The majority of the people I know left the business for the most unexpected reason of all: money. This is no joke. Making a short film, and back when I was in college it was film, is probably the most expensive thing you can do in college besides pay your annual tuition. In fact, in some cases, that's a real contest. Why are films so expensive? Ask any student: film, film development, equipment rentals, insurance... it never ends! And this is with cast and crew working for free! Post-production alone... the negative cut, color correction... it'll blow your mind how expensive that is. I did two short films before Trust Us became my life, which I produced and directed myself. I don't recommend doing that AND directing at the same time. You can truly go nuts! Luckily, these days you can get by with an HD video instead of 16mm film which helps... but that's not so cheap either.
I'll never forget the first day of shooting on my short, "Get the Hell Out of Heaven." This is about a cop and criminal who accidentally kill each other during a chase, and Death makes a mistake and sends them each to the wrong place in the afterlife. I was prepared for everything. I had everything storyboarded, I thought about what I needed on screen and when, and I had a solid crew to back me up with the technical stuff. I really, truly, was as ready as I could be.... nothing could go wrong...
So we're shooting hell on day one of sync sound shooting, and it was so, so, sooooo symbolic. Murphy's Law happened: an actor went missing (he was watching another film he did in another building and forgot to tell me), we ran out of film, one crew member didn't show up... it was not a good first day. I really, truly thought I was going to stick to writing. I said to myself in all seriousness when I was 22 years old, "I'll never make another movie." I meant every word of it; I was completely broken that day. But you know what? I didn't quit, and it's the closest I've ever come to doing so. That was 10 years ago. I haven't had that feeling since. And you know what? I got through that day: I ran across campus to find that actor, and he did a phenomenal job in the film. We called an emergency film lab and we got our film (though it cost a fortune), and we found a replacement for the missing crew member... a friend who was helping as a PA. In my experience, that's how it works. You come prepared as possible and expect issues. You can't hope they won't happen because you'll be disappointed. They always do happen at all levels.
The next two days of shooting weren't as bad or hard, but they had their bumps. We got through it. Honestly, even after I wrapped I was still on the fence about whether I wanted to do this again. Then I got into post and saw the footage. That's when I became a madman and got obsessed with it. The film did pretty well! I got Runner Up at our school's film festival and the Editing Award. Even after I graduated it was screened at some film festivals, and with no names in the cast or crew, that's a difficult thing to do.
I guess my point is not quitting is easier said than done, and I know how it feels to want to take the easy road and just do it. Don't... not if this is what you want to do. I remember starting film school with something like 40 people my age. Only about 20 stuck with it. Only about 10 actually finished their films to answer print. It's just like writing. You have to not just come with an idea or even start writing, you have to finish. Producers want to see your finished work, not your half finished idea. Who can blame them? And my short films are what grabbed important people on my project's interest. It's close to impossible for a first time director to be given the opportunity to make their film. A first time director with a couple of short films under his or her belt... well, it raises your chances to not quite totally impossible. I've always liked those odds, because there is a chance, and that's all any of us dreamers need to stay with it.
So, please don't forget: "We're terrible quitters!" It's the one thing I'll encourage you to be really bad at. People like us rank in the bottom thousands out of billions in this world at being a quitter. Don't rise up those ranks!
And again, because I'm a bad quitter, I'd like to say one more time, please help support and spread the word at: http://www.kickstarter.com/
How about that! Until next time... trust me, trust you, trust us!
No comments:
Post a Comment