Panels & the B Movie

Yesterday I made the trek to Indiana for the "B" Movie Celebration. First up, a Director's Panel with Tom Savini, Lloyd Kaufman, Jim Wynorski, Dan Hall, & Jim O'Rear. It was moderated by ___ and I had a blast. I have met Lloyd Kaufman several times, although every time I introduce myself, I never mention it because this guy meets several thousand filmmakers, nonetheless people, every year, so I don't expect myself to make that much of an impression on him. I finally met Tom Savini face to face, which after meeting and working with so many people who worked with him, that was nice.



During the panel, the moderator, Steve "Papaw" Pyatte, aimed questions at us and make sure that HORRORS OF WAR got mentioned prominently, to which I am shocked given the resume of the other people on the panel. Jim Wynorski just directed another feature for the Sci Fi Channel, Tom Savini directed Dawn of the Dead + starred in From Dusk Till Dawn and Grindhouse, and then there's me. I'm not in the same league with these guys. I was supposed to be representing the "B" Movie Director of Tomorrow, with the "B" movie directors of yesterday and today. One thing that cannot be denied is that Lloyd Kaufman is not only a marketing whore (like myself), but his passion is unparalleled. Tom Savini spoke much the artistry and his sincerity came through clearly.



After the panel, the first and most important comment made to me was from Tom Savini who asked a lot about HORRORS OF WAR. He really wanted to see it, and I felt flattery. I then talked to Lloyd and thanked him for his honesty to many a filmmaker to whom he will not lie and say, "I'll distribute your first movie, but you're not going to make any money on it. No one makes any money on their first feature." I've heard that from several first time directors and read this in interviews, etc. and for many people it's true, but unlike shyster companies, he's upfront and clear.


The screening went well. I still can't sit in on HORRORS OF WAR anymore. I can't watch the movie again yet. Still not distant enough. I did an intro, and of course the customary Q&A. I love Q&A. It's like trying out material as a stand up, only it's a niche audience and with this movie, I've been trying out my routine for 2 years now. I have an idea what stories amuse and interest people about the movie, but truthfully I love talking about making movies. This part never bores me. What WE accomplished on this film does not fall short of amazing. I feel like our story should be told which is where the WebDocs & the documentary come from. People seem interested in these stories MAKING the film more than the movie itself.



Afterwards, one of the things you do at a festival is hang out & talk to people. Normally, I don't do this. Contrary to how open I appear on a blog, I'm actually not that into personal appearances. They make me uncomfortable. So my faux confidence results from compensating for my short comings in social settings. So, after a screening and a Q&A, my instinct is to go home or hide in a dark corner by myself and over analyze how people felt about the movie and my talk. Last night was a rare exception where I went to a bar and talked with some of the festival organizers and other filmmakers. We chatted for hours. As I expected, the film scene in Indianapolis is the same as Columbus and Cleveland and Cincinnati, and everywhere. There are always these egos and misunderstandings from the Internet. I think it's the new web-culture more than anything that causes all this nonsense.



I did finally get Windows Vista -- off of my new main editor. Thank god. It was using 700-800 MEG of RAM just sitting there. Now it hovers more around 200-300, and the rest can blissfully be used in my actual video editing endeavors. Damn Microsoft --. I love the new speed of the dual core processing from Intel -- and how it rips through my basic processing like butter. Unfortunately, I haven't had the time to really do much with it though. I've been juggling 800 gigs of files from the basement to the upstairs computer and vice versa. Everything is wacky in terms of my file management. My OCD has tweaked out and I'm in denial, so I basically shut down my thought process.

I vacuumed Friday. This is momentous since our vacuum cleaner died. "V" freaked out. If you don't know anything about cats, they are all about their environment. They rub their oils on furniture (and people) to mark their territory. So when you vacuum or clean, you're nuking their markings and basically offending them. Combine that with the oppressive sounds and you're torturing your feline family members. Of course, I derive much amusement from this. Cousette and "V" look at me like I just killed their friend.



I was happy that my most recent debate online never delved into the realm of name calling. It was frustrating for several people to try to fight our own pig-headedness, but it never got misunderstood as a fight. Although, truth be told in a private email, personal statements, assumptions, and I even got a single name calling on me – but by addressing it by saying, "let's not go there, it's not personal." We got through it unscathed, albeit no one changed their minds about anything, but ironically, I'll bet we all think that the peanut gallery believes we "won" the debate. No one changed their minds. I fought hard for no other reason than the fact that I believe in all aspects of life that there is no such thing as "better" except for our own personal beliefs. It's no different than debating which religion is right. It can only be "better" for yourself.

I detest competition because of this belief. For all that people might assume or believe that I am arrogant, I think it's important to notate that my belief structure does not allow me to think I am "better" than anyone. There is no such thing for me. It's like comparing apples and a Cadillac, it's so different. I hate sports because I don't really like the idea of trying to "beat" other people as that seems futile to me. Can you really compare two athletes and say one is truly "better" than another one? Some people can, and I think they are entitled to their opinion. I myself cannot. I don't see the comparison between two people and their own separate physicality's, experiences, and skill sets and making a valid reconciliation.



I guess that's why so many filmmakers view filmmaking as a form of sport, as if there are winners and losers. Too many people spend time trying to be "better" than another filmmaker as opposed to just trying to be "better" than their last film. It's hard (impossible) for me to relate since I am singularly concerned with making myself better and I don't rate myself against other filmmakers per se. I can think someone like John Whitney is "better" than me, but that draws no inspiration for me. It never occurs to me to think about what someone else is doing or has done and then try to top it or even factor it in to what I am doing. At best, I can draw inspiration in someone's success, wish them well in their endeavors and apply maybe a technique, like using more dolly/crane shots that were effectively used or even start uploading videos to a website.

This idea of filmmaking as a competition even goes into the realm of keeping film festivals, websites, or other resources to themselves. Either because they don't want to share or just to play the odds of having less people to compete with, regardless for me, I generally share my resources. What have I got to be afraid of? If someone else gets "picked" or discovered, I'd find a way to use that to my advantage. If John Whitney had made it on ON THE LOT and I didn't, all I could think was how cool it would have been. I'd have even sat through the entire first episode if someone I knew got that chance. I'm not saying it wouldn't have been hard (really really really really hard), but I'd have stomached it. I'd have been his biggest cheerleader no less. Luckily, fate likes me enough that I did not have to test my ability to avert blood pouring out of my eyes and my soul sucked into the void of reality TV.



I need more hours in a day. I can do so much more if somehow more hours were added to a day. My list of THINGS TO DO slowly compiles into a heap of Tomorrow's. Not for long. Things will slow down and all shall be well. I did some jogging. That was hard for me. I haven't done much of that since junior high, but lord knows I needed it. I won't be Kevin Smith. I cannot allow myself to procrastinate, plus my luck isn't as good as his. I don't mean the hot wife, or even the film career – I mean in the realm of health. He's luckier than me. As for hot wife, I've got my Sexy Fiancé Veronica sleeping next to me all nuded up as I type, so I feel that a fat bastard like me does in fact have some luck (a lot actually).

Like a dream long forgotten, Maverick Entertainment handed me an official release date of the HORRORS OF WAR DVD. November 6th, 2007 will be a day long remembered. First the death of Obi Wan Kenobi, and soon the end of the rebellion… wrong movie. Now maybe I can get excited about the movie again, even for a short while. Maybe then I can stomach editing on the documentary too. It's hard to work on it myself. It's yesterday to me and I'm trying to get into tomorrow.

Monday starts another work week. I have a stockpile of movies unwatched, so I'd like to see something. HOT FUZZ remains the top movies I'm struggling to find time for. I still dig SPACED far more from the same writer/star (Simon Pegg) and writer/director (Edgar Wright). That UK TV series was top notch writing/directing/acting and thank god Bret & Linda got me into that. What an effect that had on my eyes. More people should look into SPACED.

This was a big one, so enough of my yakking. Let's boogie.

Peter John Ross,
Undeserving of the Panel I was on

Hot Love on the Hot Love Highway

I survived the Indie Gathering yet again this year. I was on 5 panels for indie filmmaking with some of the usual suspects and some new filmmakers. It seems this year had the widest reach in terms of the number of people from all over the country. I met some filmmakers from Houston Texas with dirt on Robert Rodriguez and a guy from Florida whose movie looked fantastic via the trailer, so I'm hoping to get a copy in the mail.

I was actually asked to watch a movie so that they can use my quote. He said, "Everybody knows Sonnyboo" and that was a staggering moment for me. I wore my "Sonnyboo" hat more out of a need to use hair gel and less about promotion, so this brought me recognition unexpected. Even as My Sexy Fiancé Veronica -- and I were leaving, someone asked me if I was that guy from the Sonnyboo website and said thank you for all the forms on the site. That felt great. I enjoy giving out the free stuff. Sure, it's a promotion to get people on the site, recognize the name, but then again I don't really ask for anything in return, so I feel just fine. I just remember needing things like location agreements, actor contracts, storyboard templates, and stuff like that when I first started and there wasn't anything like that, so I am providing for other filmmakers what I always wished for myself.



In terms of sales, I sold a few books, including a couple of the Horrors of War Illustrated Screenplay. I think it's really groovy. It's not only a promotional item, it has some educational elements to it, dealing with screenplay development and pre-production, as well as post production and editing effects on the screenplay. It will sell better once the movie comes out on DVD… whenever that might be. I got a few compliments on innovative marketing techniques for my films.

I don't really enjoy the panels too much. They tend to be about the filmmakers themselves and not filmmaking/general topics. I always try to maintain a difference between facts and my personal opinion. I put out a disclaimer that "this is my personal preference, not a law". The editing panel was interesting because everyone seemed to want to know about editing in general, so I showed clips from my editing class DVD instead of things from my movies. I had more offers to buy my Editing Class DVD than the Sonnyboo short film DVD.



Johnny Wu is the greatest, there's no 2 ways about it. He is the godfather of cinema in Cleveland, regardless of any film czars or friends of executive producers of the Lord of the Rings. Johnny Wu knows everyone and most people love him. Even though he may or may not be my illegitimate father, I think he's got it going on.

I am incredibly sentimental about my youth in a small town called Wadsworth, Ohio, home of the blue tip matches. It seems every small town has some claim to fame, theirs is being the original home of the blue tip matches, and they continue to have a blue tip parade every summer even though the factory moved to some other city nearly 30 years ago. I lived there from age 5 to 12 and my time there remains the best in my life.

I make a trek to Wadsworth about once a year. Usually en route to or from Cleveland, I make the side step over to Wadsworth off of I-76. After the Indie Gathering, I made it a point to go to Marie's Pizza with My Sexy Fiancé Veronica -- so we scheduled our return home with dinner. When I was a kid we had Marie's Pizza in Wadsworth all the time.

Marie's Pizza is a small mom & pop restaurant in downtown Wadsworth, off the beaten path. It had maybe 12 tables and one of the reasons I adore this place, aside from great pizza, is that it seemed untouched by the hand of time. Their menu had only changed once in 30 years and that was directly due to my friend Maurice. They had chocolate pudding listed as a dessert and every time he ordered it, they would tell them they don't have it anymore and his response was that, "it's on the menu!" so at some point right after that, they removed the pudding from the menu, but everything else remained the same. If you read my blogs, I have mentioned this place at least 5-6 times. I ate there en route to Manhattan to meet with investors; I ate there after numerous trips to Cleveland.

My Sexy Fiancé Veronica -- and I head out from Cleveland and arrive in Wadsworth at about 3:45PM. I drive through the downtown area of Wadsworth, passing the Lutheran church I attended as a boy with it's large spires puncturing the sky. The old downtown remains very similar to how it always has, and we drive up to the little restaurant and there is a giant sign on the door reading "Business For Sale". The place was dark inside and there was no sign of anything in there. My heart was crushed. I had a flurry of emotions from anger, to disappointment, to hunger, and near depression. The anger was at how it seemed that the giant mega-corporations took down a small business, and I was depressed because a part of my youth just died before my eyes. We pulled out of the parking lot and decided to look for alternate food, but in my mind all I could think was no matter what I eat at that moment, it wasn't going to satisfy me.

We drove back north towards I-76 where the newer section of town was in search of alternate dining. There was an Applebee's on the left… God that sounded awful, but what else was there? As I get in the turn lane, My Sexy Fiancé Veronica -- says, "Isn't that a Marie's right there?" and I thought it was just some kind of coincidence. Then my eyes spot the same logo of a woman from the 1970's holding a pizza over her head. It was like a mirage, so I pull out of the turn lane and go to this strange site. It was the same logo. The stand alone building looked brand new and it was huge, I mean bigger than most places.

We go in and it is the exact same layout as the old place, but greatly increased in size. There's still a pickup window in front of the kitchen for carry out, and they even have a pinball machine and 2 arcade games. Then the actual restaurant has a bar now and probably 100 tables now. At 4:00PM on a Sunday, they were packed to the hilt. Our server was a 7 year veteran, unusual since everyone else looked like they were 16 years old, and she said they moved to this location in January, and the menu (which was brand new and 6 pages long now) was very different, but the pizza was the same. We ordered a large pep, and tried it out. It was the same, meaning it was excellent.



I was floored by everything. Normally, I would hate change, but this was a nice place. It was still a small business, but they were contending with the big corporations and kicking their asses. Not only that, but at its core, it's still the same food and that's more important than the geographical location. I had a broad range of strange emotions in a 10 minute period in that I felt my childhood got killed in some small way, only to see that it grew up & moved away.

I ate my leftover pizza this morning right before typing this up. I am already full again, and they say that your sense of taste and smell are the ones most tied to memory because sight and sound are used more often, so when you taste something you remember, it's more powerful to the memories, and never is that more true for me than with Marie's Pizza and my years as a rambunctious youth in Wadsworth Ohio. I think the reason I make a trek there and eat this cholesterol grenade of grease and tomato is because it reminds me of happy times and a more naïve mindset I once had.

Well, I'm off to edit some TV spots of the Family Channel. Yeeeee hhaaaaaawwww!

- Peter John Ross

Fantastic Plastic Machine!

Fantastic Plastic Machine!
Aug 1st, 2007

Ahhhhhh, I am beginning to feel some serenity. Scott has returned and I am no longer minding the store. The hours were mad crazy, but the pay was decent, so the Ross is content. I still have trouble wrapping my mind around the idea of having semi-steady income again. Being a freelancer, money comes, and money goes, and money sometimes comes in big and other times small. Regular money in regular intervals makes for a more reliable schedule.

My Sexy Fiancé Veronica started not one but two jobs. We see each other sporadically, but our time is Quality Time when we do. I'm glad she's back at work because now I can save up for a newer car. I'll save for about 6 months, and then shop around a bit.




Since Saturday's are more likely for My Sexy Fiancé Veronica to be off work, we've been catching the CAPA SUMMER MOVIES to see some classics on the big screen at the Ohio Theater, a kick ass 1920's theatre that's been refurbed and preserved. We dig it lots. I took her to see NORTH BY NORTHWEST, the great Hitchcock film from 1959. The 35mm film print was in great shape considering its age. I hate old movies, but seeing CITIZEN KANE for the first time on a pristine 35mm print at the Ohio 8-9 years ago got me into a bunch of films I normally would never have seen. My old roommate Shannon dragged me to that screening and I've been going every year since. This past weekend we saw DR. NO, the first ever James Bond film and Sean Connery's first performance as Bond. I've seen this flick about 40 times in my life since my father is a huge Bond fan, and I still saw more detail and image than ever before. This week is another Hitchcock, this one being ROPE, the movie that takes place in one single take. Unfortunately, My Sexy Fiancé Veronica is working, so I'll be taking my mistress, another hottie and an even younger one. Sadly, my commitment to the INDIE GATHERING this weekend will prevent me from seeing CADDYSHACK on Friday night. It's a one time screening so I'll miss it this year.

I am being pulled hard to do some more shorts. Since it's for a studio, I'm wavering on my lack of desire to do anything. I might choose to produce and not direct. I've got too much editing work to do. There is The Derek's feature, a commercial, some actor's reels, and my own feature documentary, and that's just THIS Month's extracurricular editing outside of the full time job editing for a production company. I've been tagging spots for MTV2 and the FOOD NETWORK en masse. It's not thrilling, but there are far worse ways to make a living. I rather enjoy the process and thank god (wherever she is) that I don't have to work a day job or live with my parents which turns out psychopaths like Cho from Virginia Tech.



ZO WESSON, the host & producer of Cincinnati's VIEWFINDER show on PBS, on which I have made 2 appearances, has been selected as a contestant on the reality-game show PRODUCER for TV GUIDE's channel. I wish Zo a ton of luck. He deserves it. He was at the regional Emmy's recently on the gig I had to cancel on for camera op several weeks ago. If I had known, I might have left the E.R. and gone to see him on stage because he's hilarious. When I had first met him, he knew all about DIRECTOR's COMMENTARY and director Peter DeLane, my own personal inspiration as a director. Peter DeLane represents everything I aspire to as a director, more than Spielberg, Lucas, Ridley Scott, Peter Jackson, Kubrick, etc.

I have a few copies of my book printed up for this weekend to see if anyone's interested. Should be fun. My Sexy Fiancé Veronica has arranged to be with me, so I'm sure with some provocative outfits, and when I'm hosting panels, the boys (and possibly girls) will flock to the Sonnyboo both to purchase items and hit on the pretty girl. I have to remember to order a Sonnyboo Thong for My Sexy Fiancé Veronica before we leave.



My health appears to be on the rise. I have to learn to stop wavering on my habits and create a routine. So far, so good, but it's not really that far. Sleep schedules getting mucked up wreak the most havoc on the energy levels. I wish I were more like my pal "V".

"V" is a demon. No two ways about it. We spoilt him. That's not in question. After Spaz died, we lavished "V" with attention and love. Now that we're trying to work more and not be at home as much, he's acting out. "V" already broke my red neon "open" sign that My Sexy Fiancé Veronica gave me for Xmas a few years ago. He chews on My Sexy Fiancé Veronica's clothes and whines and cries at the door when he wants to go out on a leash, but that's pretty much 24-7. I don't really know how to satiate him whilst also trying to discipline the guy. It's like mini-parenting with an unreasonable and wicked smart creature. Cousette just sleeps a lot. No change there.

Two guys from the Ohio State University's REEL BUCKEYE have been editing a few nights a week here at Rossdonia. I only met them once before, and they asked if they could use my AVID to cut their documentary and I said sure. They are editing a documentary on the Columbus Film scene. It's history, its current climate, the things going for it and against it; these are all subject to examination. I got interviewed for it almost a year ago, and since then they contacted several other relevant/important figures in the community to round it out. It started out solely as a "behind the scenes" of the Reel Buckeye feature film THREE EASY PAYMENTS. Ohio State University used to have a film school, but it was disbanded in 1991. Local fixtures like Scott Spears, John Whitney, Tom Bauman, and more all attended the OSU film school. In the last 2-3 years, the OSU students took it upon themselves to do more than just make a little hobby club, they made a "design your own Film Major", and then created a group that produces feature length movies. They started out as "Buckeye Searchlight" and mimicked the process of Project Greenlight to chose their script, and after that, it became the more palatable Reel Buckeye group. Officially, OSU now has a Film Major due to their collective efforts, but there still is no graduate program or true film production classes. Maybe they will continue to chip away at the bureaucratic bricks until that wall comes down too.



Seeing that their feature switched over to the controversial Columbus Film scene, a recurring topic is about how it sucks to be a filmmaker in Columbus, Ohio. Some people are "glass is half full" and others are "glass is a cynical object that is somehow preventing me from succeeding in the film industry". I do have to say that it's not the city that's a problem, it's you. All opportunities in life are what YOU make of them, not the geography and not someone else's fault. YOU can make anything happen, and no city or other imaginary obstacles can stop you from achieving all of your dreams. Blaming the city you live in is just some pussy cop out because you don't want to accept responsibility for your own failings. If you oppose this point of view, then all I can offer is one amazingly simple answer to the query – If you do think that Columbus sucks, then LEAVE. Move somewhere else. If you aren't willing to work hard enough, save the dough, and go to some other city where supposedly your filmmaking talents will miraculously be recognized, then stop complaining, losers. I still firmly believe that you can't blame a map for your lack of recognition. Maybe filmmaking isn't for these whiners.

I'm just sitting upstairs while they edit away in the basement. I have a new main editing computer, but it came with Windows Vista which is hardly a usable OS for video editing. It's like a MAC OS for PC users. It's a resource hog from hell and none of my video editing programs work well in it. It's like trying to fly a jet engine with a kite string. I can't even get rid of the partition and install Windows XP again. It's frustrating, but at some point soon when I work out the bugs. I just want to edit, and I want this fast machine to keep up with me, not slow me down. Argh.


Peace and love + good happiness stuff for my acolytes,
The Ross of Rossdonia