Today My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ and I went to see BACK TO THE FUTURE at the Ohio Theatre as part of the CAPA summer movie series today. Last night we saw the 1968 PLANET OF THE APES last night. Any chance to see some classics on a 35mm film print at 2,000+ seat theatre never can be bad. Now on the 40th anniversary of PLANET OF THE APE was bit more of a farce as it has aged poorly, especially in the acting department. The script was still solid, as the social commentary still resonates today. The matinée of BACK TO THE FUTURE however showed that 23 years later, the movie still had legs.
Now I was already sentimental about the film, as Robert Zemeckis’ real masterpiece always appealed to me, even more so as I became a filmmaker. Now BACK TO THE FUTURE represents one of THE most perfect screenplays and also the art direction/continuity are sheer perfection.
There are so many minute details that appear to be innocuous, but layer the movie so rich in the world they created. Here are the trivial tidbits I have picked up on this movie:
1. Eric Stoltz was originally cast and had even filmed for over 2 weeks before being replaced by Michael J. Fox. I can’t even imagine the tone the film would have had with Stoltz.
2. My single most favorite little detail is that the Mall where the test the DeLorean time machine starts off being called “TWIN PINES MALL”, and even has a giant lit marquee, but after Marty McFly goes back in time to “Old Man Peabody’s farmland…had this crazy idea bout breeding pine trees…” and Marty runs over one of the two pine trees. When he returns to 1985, the mall and marquee call the mall “LONE PINE MALL”.
3. The opening shot gives so many minor clues and character/plot details that seeing it on the big screen in 35mm make them all the more visible.
A few other things about the film and specifically the screenplay that stand out for excellence:
The original intent was for the big action scene of sending Marty back to the future with the clock tower was originally going to be an atomic bomb test site. Lack of budget caused them to re-write it for the Universal studio city square set (now burned down). That sequence is one of the most well edited/directed action set pieces ever filmed. The old trick of showing the “plan” the characters set up and how several steps go wrong along the way as it actually “happens” was so brilliantly played out that most audiences can’t help but feel the tension and be into the movie at that point. Brilliant.
A film that is essentially about time travelling incest was acceptable to the audience as a comedy because of the masterful direction and editing, controlling the tone.
Virtually everything that occurs in the movie has a purpose that either furthers the plot or the character development. Things like Marty’s desire to play at the homecoming dance, then being able to in 1955, the brief glimpse of newspaper articles referring to Doc Brown’s estate and selling 154 acres to developers, explaining how he had money. Even for a brief shot as Marty McFly awaits the alarm to go off to start his car, the sign for the Motel is impeccably made as period and relating to the fictional world.
Since I recently watched RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK and FIRST BLOOD, I can’t help but say I wish they hadn’t sequelized a lot of these movies. When I was young, I wanted to see further adventures of the characters I enjoyed seeing. Now, I think they bastardized and devalued the amazing vision and uniqueness of the originals. With BACK TO THE FUTURE, I really didn’t find either sequel that appealing. PART II relied far too much on the moments of the first film for emotion. With PART III, it was the 3rd or 4th time of seeing the exact same storyline with a different setting. Ugh! By then it’s really really boring.
As for PLANET OF THE APES (1968), My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ found it to be very comical. It didn’t hold up well at all, even with the 35mm film print. The Gaudi inspired set designs amazed me, but I did have to point out that there was one way as a filmmaker that I had to point out that they brilliantly accomplished one thing: During Chuck Heston’s big escape from the apes, they got out the exposition of an Ape funeral and their museum. A lot of films I see, they have a flimsy excuse to give exposition, and here it was interwoven so casually and seamlessly into the narrative. Combine that with the amazing contributions of Rod Serling’s, who always had killer cool concepts.
Coming up, I can’t wait to see THE THIRD MAN on a 35mm film print. I’ve only seen it once, but any chance to see a chunky Orson Welles makes me feel better. Tomorrow I’m acting in a piece for Louie Cowan (although I suspect it was more to get use of the studio than for any ability). I am not an actor and I have no real desire to be an actor. 8:00AM on a Sunday will suck.
Just keep making it real kids,
Peter John Ross
Your friend indeed
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Back to the Future
Monday, June 09, 2008
the Legalities of Pummeling Futility
Yup. I'm still working a lot. I'm not even getting weekends off at all either. Not a lot of break in the routines. Last night I could have stopped working when I got home from the studio or I could finish the oft ignored ETERNAL teaser trailer for the Derek . I chose to work through it. I got 'er done. I just screened the full 1080 file to the Derek and he was pleased. It's just a teaser trailer, but I enjoyed the graphics work and some of the new FX work I put into it.
I purchased some software and tutorials from VideoCopilot.net and it has greatly modernized my After Effects work. I have not gone flare crazy with some of the specific elements, but I definitely got into the style of these because there are some graphics and animation styles I greatly admire and it's easier to do now. I highly recommend VideoCopilot.net for anyone doing animation or titles (or any basic after effects/compositing) work.
Well, each day my prediction for the economy starts to move eerily closer to being reality. With $5 a gallon gas being predicted by July and the job market puckering up like a buttocks holding roll of quarters in a fraternity pledge initiation – we can expect things have not yet bottomed out.
Yesterday I shot the behind the scenes interviews with George for UNCLE PETE . By some fluke I asked him during the questioning if he wanted to do more and he said yes. I'm the one that wants to retire UNCLE PETE and not do anymore, but one thing I wanted in the originals that we never did was a sidekick character. I really wanted a puppet co-host and there just wasn't the time to make that a reality. Now… that may be more possible than I thought, and in a way that will shake the foundations of the online movie world.
I stumbled on an idea that would take the UNCLE PETE series into a very very dark, scary place where most comedians won't tread. Maybe we'll do it, maybe we won't but I ordered a puppet online today, so maybe we will. This idea might get national attention, not all of it good, but what the hell. Why not? I'm deeply inspired by Family Guy and South Park, so going in the direction of those fearless steps; I just might go for it. Stay tuned and maybe you'll get wind of the new idea. Then again, I might not do it at all if something else enters my depth of field.
I have these two friends, Bret and Linda, who have always been on the cutting edge of discovering the new trends and obscure comedy, especially from the British Isles. One of the things they showed me from 2-3 years ago was GARTH MARENGHI's DARKPLACE. I stumbled on some YouTube vids of this and it got me through a long day of mundane editing this past weekend. I've GOT to get the DVD's of the whole series. It's the most perfect spoof of 1980's television I've ever seen. Classic, great humor. In the late 1990's and the last few years, UK television has been more accessible to US audiences, whereas in the 1980's and before that, it always seemed to be very niche and specific to colloquialisms and internal. With SPACED, THE OFFICE, SMOKING ROOM, and a few others, the universal humor has been cutting edge and very relatable.
The documentary looks to be finishing ahead of schedule in some areas, and a lot more work in others. I think we'll be shooting "dramatic re-enactments" for some of the holes created by the edit and to make the story more visual. TJ's animated stills in 3D are breathtaking. Even with over a hundred stills, it won't be nearly enough. I'm hoping to have a 3-4 minute version to demo for the author in the next month or so. We've already got music from Arya of Chopin and with the first few animated stills, I feel confident that we'll knock her socks off. I can feel the Emmy ™ in my hands within a year or so. Won't that be a hoot? So I'll be able to change my post script to Emmy™ Award Winning Filmmaker. I'm not a Cylon, but I still have a plan….I want an Emmy™ and I think I can get one for this project. I've already got a few thousand dollars invested in My Fiancé's project and I am producing it with her.
I worked in a viewing of the original RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK. I wish they had never made any sequels to this. The first one was perfection. So many real locations, and when they were on a sound stage, Norman Reynolds added so much realism to the production design (nonetheless Dougie Slocombe's lighting of said stages). I have seen this movie hundreds of times (literally) and I only got "out" of the movie on one occasion where I realized how much they were cutting a scene months apart on 2 continents back and forth. It was seamless and perfect. I wish Hollywood would go more towards the "realism" of this first film and divert away from the overly fantastical elements like LARA CROFT or NATIONAL TREASURE crapfests.
I need some time off soon. If for nothing else than to relax and let my mind ease off the "work mode" of editing for other people. I'm not doing enough to keep my creativity alive. I have to start feeding the muse or she might starve. I have so much to write and prep, but I'm so convinced the economy is going to drop, that I keep putting it all off. Combine that with financially supporting my Sexy Fiancé, and that makes one hard workin' narrator. At least money isn't as much an issue as it once had been.
I'm still working and digitizing. I happened to have a break where one machine was burning DVD's and the other was capturing a 79 minute tape. So I was able to jot these thoughts and ideas down for a bloggy blog.
Peace my friends. And may the good news be yours!
Peter John Ross
Sweating in the heat
Sunday, June 01, 2008
POSTULATING THE PENULTIMATE AXIOM
I forgot to mention that at the Johnny Wu premiere part for THE RAPTURE, someone approached me and asked if it was true that I had been investigated by the FBI during Horrors of War for making death threats…. After a belly laugh, I had to dispel this myth. I have not been investigated by the FBI for making death threats or anything else. Aside from the lunacy of such rumors, all I can say is that I am really amused by how nutso some people can get.
Well, I predict the U.S. economy will bottom out this coming July-August. Based on what I have seen of the market and the real estate/mortgage world -> we can expect a fallow time, quite possibly as bad as the Great Depression. I’m saving up to stave off bad economic times. Also, I’m stocking up on movies to rent in my Netflix queue so that when my unplanned summer vacation begins, I’ll have plenty of visual stimuli.
I’m way behind on watching movies. I did work in a Blu-Ray viewing of Francis Ford Coppola’s YOUTH WITHOUT YOUTH. It was not as arty as I thought it would be and much more comic book-y. It was shot HD and also film.
Now I’ve been working a lot. I serve basically three masters. I have my regular workload of editing, and then I have two freelance gigs that I dedicate a lot of time to as an editor. I generally work 75+ hours a week now. As mentioned, I’m saving up for the crashing economy. When it hits, I may be able to survive without working at McDonald’s. If it never hits, I’ll have a nest egg for when I start the next feature.
Having to work this much wreaks havoc with my little buddy, the cat named “V”. He acts out when I’m home because he wants my undivided attention, and a tired, worn out Boo apparently is unacceptable to him. So this past Friday, I decided I would take him to work with me. As anyone who has a cat must know, this is the start of a terrible story…
I put his body brace and leash on and took my boy out to the car. He was fine until we got in the door. He got very unhappy very fast. He climbed under the passenger seat and let it be known for the entire 10 minute drive that he hated travel. He cried and moaned a bit. I think it’s a combination of negative association – his only two previous car rides ended in visits to the vets, once for shots, and the 2nd to be snipped. Either that or cats just hate travel.
I have been a dog guy my entire life. These past few years I’m getting to know how felines are. Cats and dogs really are different. Dogs have the “pack” mentality, whereas if the people/family are there – everything is cool no matter where they are. Cats have terrible short term memory and they “rub” their oils all over the furniture and people to mark them as both theirs and also to be able to remember where they are going. Move a chair or wash things and the cats look at you like you are killing their friends.
Taking “V” out of his familiar territory and putting him in my edit suite at work was a mistake. My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ told me this was a bad idea and she was right. He not only hated the drive, he just sat beside the leather couch and would not move. He didn’t cry, but he was unhappy. My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ came up to pick him up within the hour. We took him for a walk outside in the grass and that seemed to calm him a lot. Then he had another car ride.
I’m told by My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ that it took over 45 minutes to get him out from under her passenger seat when she got home. She had to squirt him with a water bottle until he finally came out. He was a Velcro ™ kitty clawing into the floor of the car.
By the time I got in late on Friday night, “V” seemed fine. He doesn’t beg to go outside as much now, nor does he complain as much when I get in late since he experienced the alternative.
Since George is in town, we’re going to tape the BEHIND THE SCENES for the UNCLE PETE videos. It will be short, but I think something cool to go on the DVD’s. There are plenty of outtakes and the full length theme song might get me investigated by the FBI….
Sorry I have nothing more interesting to discuss. Not a lot going on whilst I work to the bone. Maybe next month…
Peace,
PJR, your faithful narrator
Well, I predict the U.S. economy will bottom out this coming July-August. Based on what I have seen of the market and the real estate/mortgage world -> we can expect a fallow time, quite possibly as bad as the Great Depression. I’m saving up to stave off bad economic times. Also, I’m stocking up on movies to rent in my Netflix queue so that when my unplanned summer vacation begins, I’ll have plenty of visual stimuli.
I’m way behind on watching movies. I did work in a Blu-Ray viewing of Francis Ford Coppola’s YOUTH WITHOUT YOUTH. It was not as arty as I thought it would be and much more comic book-y. It was shot HD and also film.
Now I’ve been working a lot. I serve basically three masters. I have my regular workload of editing, and then I have two freelance gigs that I dedicate a lot of time to as an editor. I generally work 75+ hours a week now. As mentioned, I’m saving up for the crashing economy. When it hits, I may be able to survive without working at McDonald’s. If it never hits, I’ll have a nest egg for when I start the next feature.
Having to work this much wreaks havoc with my little buddy, the cat named “V”. He acts out when I’m home because he wants my undivided attention, and a tired, worn out Boo apparently is unacceptable to him. So this past Friday, I decided I would take him to work with me. As anyone who has a cat must know, this is the start of a terrible story…
I put his body brace and leash on and took my boy out to the car. He was fine until we got in the door. He got very unhappy very fast. He climbed under the passenger seat and let it be known for the entire 10 minute drive that he hated travel. He cried and moaned a bit. I think it’s a combination of negative association – his only two previous car rides ended in visits to the vets, once for shots, and the 2nd to be snipped. Either that or cats just hate travel.
I have been a dog guy my entire life. These past few years I’m getting to know how felines are. Cats and dogs really are different. Dogs have the “pack” mentality, whereas if the people/family are there – everything is cool no matter where they are. Cats have terrible short term memory and they “rub” their oils all over the furniture and people to mark them as both theirs and also to be able to remember where they are going. Move a chair or wash things and the cats look at you like you are killing their friends.
Taking “V” out of his familiar territory and putting him in my edit suite at work was a mistake. My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ told me this was a bad idea and she was right. He not only hated the drive, he just sat beside the leather couch and would not move. He didn’t cry, but he was unhappy. My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ came up to pick him up within the hour. We took him for a walk outside in the grass and that seemed to calm him a lot. Then he had another car ride.
I’m told by My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ that it took over 45 minutes to get him out from under her passenger seat when she got home. She had to squirt him with a water bottle until he finally came out. He was a Velcro ™ kitty clawing into the floor of the car.
By the time I got in late on Friday night, “V” seemed fine. He doesn’t beg to go outside as much now, nor does he complain as much when I get in late since he experienced the alternative.
Since George is in town, we’re going to tape the BEHIND THE SCENES for the UNCLE PETE videos. It will be short, but I think something cool to go on the DVD’s. There are plenty of outtakes and the full length theme song might get me investigated by the FBI….
Sorry I have nothing more interesting to discuss. Not a lot going on whilst I work to the bone. Maybe next month…
Peace,
PJR, your faithful narrator
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Origami and the Evils of Saki
I may get to go to Japan this summer. I’ve been invited to participate as an instructor in a Japanese Film Boot Camp type event. An all expenses paid trip to Japan…. Yeah, I might be interested in that. My book has made waves with the English speaking film-peeps in Japan. How cool will that be if we can get the deal ironed out? Let’s say I’m not going to be too picky in my salary demands.
Well, we’re working on the footage now for the documentary for My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ and the footage looks amazing thanks to Gil . Time to geek out on ya’ll and let’s say that choosing to shoot on the portable hard drive recorder paid off in spades. No lengthy real time digitizing of footage. I bought a firewire card for my laptop and transferred everything over to a portable USB drive and we then kept it on that drive for back up as I moved it to my main editing machine at home. Then I did the converting to the Cineform Aspect HD codec with their little stand alone program. It uprezzed the footage from 1280x720 to 1920x1080 and removed the 3:2 pulldown automatically as it conformed it to the new AVI format from M2T. The process took about 8 hours, but it was a batch process and we didn’t have to baby-sit it (except when “V” pressed the space bar to get attention).
Now we’re into the “Logging” portion of the edit. That is we went very non-linear in the storytelling and questions with out subject. We jumped around a lot and even asked clarification questions on the 2nd day from the 1st day’s shoot. Now we’re organizing every frame of footage of the interview into bins and naming the sub-clips appropriately. My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ has been dutifully accommodating and she’s doing the first few passes of the edits from Assembly to Fine Cut. We may consider making an hour long version of this for PBS, both regionally and possibly nationally. We’ll have a full 1080P final version by the end, so it’s possible to get it done.
One more Uncle Pete short to complete. I’ve had the backgrounds for this one since we did episode 1, but I still don’t have the free time I once had to dedicate to personal projects. Making money and giving so much of my time and skills can kill the inspirado. I just feel like the economy crashing has not bottomed out and we don’t have any idea how long this might last. The film/video business gets cut first on most company’s budgets. We have few projects on the horizon and that’s both good and bad. I can finally get back to what I WANT to do, but at the cost of financial stability. There are some big pay days coming in soon from recent gigs and I intend on paying the bills ahead. I think I’ll pay the condo fees for most of the rest of the year in one shot. I have been over paying on all the utilities lately, but I will still try to do that because it just feels like we’re waiting for the other shoe to drop.
I got the video from my appearance on INDIEFLIX , a TV show on Cox Cable in Cleveland. It was a fun show to do and the interviewers were good. I don’t really promote anything in particular, but it was cool to plug the books and the DVD’s. For anyone looking to promote their filmmaking, this show makes a nice promo piece for yourself... if you’re into that sort of thing… like getting press and your work seen by more people. Not everyone is into that, but hey who am I to judge (aside from having common sense). When I see this, I can’t focus on a single word being said because I fixate on the burly man beard I sport therein. What a dork!
Last weekend we went to the big premiere of JOHNNY WU’s THE RAPTURE at the Ohio Independent Film Festival and the reception afterwards. I had a blast as I know more people in Cleveland than I remember. Johnny throws a classy soirée and we crashed at a Motel 6 on the way home since we closed out the party at 3:30AM.
Not much else of relevance going on. The cats are doing their own thing. “V” seems to be handling our weekends away much better. Maybe he’s maturing, or maybe not. The other night he let me hold him for over 20 minutes, which is maybe an all time record. Ever since we had him snipped, he hasn’t let anyone hold him consistently for more than 2-3 minutes. Not since the young days when he would pass out on my shoulder has be been so docile and loving towards anything. He’s my pal even though he scratches the hell out of everything including our skin.
I’ve got three edit sessions tomorrow with paid clients. Very unlikely I’ll get to Uncle Pete #8. Maybe next week. So far I have very little work to do next week, but then again I didn’t have anything scheduled this week either. Is it selfish of me to hope for a temporary crash of the economy so I can get caught up on watching movies and writing scripts? I dunno…
As always,
Your faithful narrator
Thursday, May 08, 2008
Vermont and the Turpitude of Others
Vermont and the Turpitude of Others
Well we went to Vermont last weekend and did the shoot. A 12+ hour drive in an oversized SUV that guzzles over $75 of gas in a tank will make John Mayer songs more strangely appealing as the cabin goes crazy.
I have never been to Vermont. It’s beautiful, but not that different than Ohio especially in the Hocking Hills area. One tidbit learned on the trip was that Vermont supposedly is not that well off. They have a lower gas tax so people from the neighboring states like to fill up on their side of the border.
We setup and shot on Friday morning. Gil Whitney was my shooter and he lit the show too. Meredith gripped then got started on a scanning of photos that are over 60 years old. The subject matter was not “up”. We were dealing with the Holocaust and being a Jew in Germany and Poland under the Nazi’s with one of the precious few survivors, and one of the very few ones with us today.
I helped mostly as a “producer”, or as that job’s capacity more commonly gets done. Brandy AKA My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ directed. We stayed in a motel only a couple miles away from the shoot. Shockingly, at the end of the first days shooting, we had a lot more footage than I had anticipated. We wrapped at about 5:30PM and decided to see IRON MAN. Brandy was none too pleased, but everyone else was jazzed about seeing IRON MAN. We had a nice dinner out in Hanover New Hampshire on the campus of Dartmouth. It was only 6 minutes away from the motel. I loved IRON MAN. Jon Favreau rocks as does Robert Downey Jr.
Saturday equally went smooth. We started at 10:00AM and went on until about 5:30PM again. We pretty much had everything I thought we needed and Brandy agreed. We tore down lights and duvetyn that was blocking out natural light from the windows. We covered all the war years of this German Jew’s life and her years hiding in Poland. Somehow, I find the story uplifting in many ways. All I can say is that hope exists in the human spirit.
That night, we saw a Woody Allen film from 2007 I had never even heard of called Cassandra’s Dream with Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell. It reminded me of Match Point in many ways, but Woody is in his UK phase where he’s making movies set in and shot in England. It’s revitalized his creativity in many ways. The movie was average for a Woody Allen film, but his average represents better than most people’s best movies.
We set off home a whole day early which was nice. Saved money and had bonus time, except immediately upon arrival I was bombarded with edit work. My freelance work has not subsided, but increased.
After buying a new car recently, I spent more on it than I had intended and it has drained my savings. Now the economy appears to be crashing hard. As burned out as I am right now, I need to take as much paid work as I can because I see some hard times for everyone on the horizon.
In between gigs, I found the time to finish Uncle Pete #7. I like these. I think they are funny, but as I mentioned before, they still have not found their audience. In many ways I think some conservative folks really don’t like the pot shots. Go figure, but still, it’s just a joke and everyone needs to lighten up. What’s even stranger is when people watch it & think I have these ultra conservative values, and then they react poorly to the shorts… Now that is surreal.
The organization of the 9+ hours of footage for the documentary is being sorted through. We’ve got months of work to go on this. Brandy has a project that means something to her, so it carries weight with me and I have a lot of that to spare still.
Your faithful narrator,
Peter John Ross
Well we went to Vermont last weekend and did the shoot. A 12+ hour drive in an oversized SUV that guzzles over $75 of gas in a tank will make John Mayer songs more strangely appealing as the cabin goes crazy.
I have never been to Vermont. It’s beautiful, but not that different than Ohio especially in the Hocking Hills area. One tidbit learned on the trip was that Vermont supposedly is not that well off. They have a lower gas tax so people from the neighboring states like to fill up on their side of the border.
We setup and shot on Friday morning. Gil Whitney was my shooter and he lit the show too. Meredith gripped then got started on a scanning of photos that are over 60 years old. The subject matter was not “up”. We were dealing with the Holocaust and being a Jew in Germany and Poland under the Nazi’s with one of the precious few survivors, and one of the very few ones with us today.
I helped mostly as a “producer”, or as that job’s capacity more commonly gets done. Brandy AKA My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ directed. We stayed in a motel only a couple miles away from the shoot. Shockingly, at the end of the first days shooting, we had a lot more footage than I had anticipated. We wrapped at about 5:30PM and decided to see IRON MAN. Brandy was none too pleased, but everyone else was jazzed about seeing IRON MAN. We had a nice dinner out in Hanover New Hampshire on the campus of Dartmouth. It was only 6 minutes away from the motel. I loved IRON MAN. Jon Favreau rocks as does Robert Downey Jr.
Saturday equally went smooth. We started at 10:00AM and went on until about 5:30PM again. We pretty much had everything I thought we needed and Brandy agreed. We tore down lights and duvetyn that was blocking out natural light from the windows. We covered all the war years of this German Jew’s life and her years hiding in Poland. Somehow, I find the story uplifting in many ways. All I can say is that hope exists in the human spirit.
That night, we saw a Woody Allen film from 2007 I had never even heard of called Cassandra’s Dream with Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell. It reminded me of Match Point in many ways, but Woody is in his UK phase where he’s making movies set in and shot in England. It’s revitalized his creativity in many ways. The movie was average for a Woody Allen film, but his average represents better than most people’s best movies.
We set off home a whole day early which was nice. Saved money and had bonus time, except immediately upon arrival I was bombarded with edit work. My freelance work has not subsided, but increased.
After buying a new car recently, I spent more on it than I had intended and it has drained my savings. Now the economy appears to be crashing hard. As burned out as I am right now, I need to take as much paid work as I can because I see some hard times for everyone on the horizon.
In between gigs, I found the time to finish Uncle Pete #7. I like these. I think they are funny, but as I mentioned before, they still have not found their audience. In many ways I think some conservative folks really don’t like the pot shots. Go figure, but still, it’s just a joke and everyone needs to lighten up. What’s even stranger is when people watch it & think I have these ultra conservative values, and then they react poorly to the shorts… Now that is surreal.
The organization of the 9+ hours of footage for the documentary is being sorted through. We’ve got months of work to go on this. Brandy has a project that means something to her, so it carries weight with me and I have a lot of that to spare still.
Your faithful narrator,
Peter John Ross
Sunday, April 27, 2008
AN AFECTATION FOR ASSUMPTION
I have an idol. Without a doubt, Alan Shore, the fictional character from The Practice and Boston Legal created by David E. Kelley (married to Michelle Pfeiffer) represents everything I dig. I have been without an idol for a while. It all started last year on the way to Poland when the flight had Video on Demand. I watched THE DEPARTED and then gave an episode of BOSTON LEGAL a shot. I haven’t watched a David E. Kelley show since the first year or two of Ally McBeal. I loved that quirky sense of humor set in a law firm. Knowing that James Spader started this character on the drama THE PRACTICE, I didn’t really give this much of a chance.
When I saw this episode on the plane, I got very interested. It was the perfect blend of comedy and drama. It was reminiscent of the first thing David E. Kelley did which was a feature film FROM THE HIP with Judd Nelson in the 1980’s. I have since rented every season of BOSTON LEGAL on DVD, plus I recently acquired the entire last season of THE PRACTICE to see how this show was spun off from a purely dramatic premise.
I love James Spader’s performance. He plays off his 80’s John Hughes/Brat Pack acting of a kind of ass, but adding the heart of gold. The politics of the character also plays pretty much into my belief structure with precision. Combine that a character with a level of self loathing, arrogance, and a penchant for pissing off people with little to no effort, and let’s just say I relate to the character. All I need is a law degree and a Harvard education, and this might even be me. Also, I’d need my life scripted by David E. Kelley, but basically that’s it.
LOST this year has been consistently paying off. They may not have started with a plan (I highly doubt it), but they have mapped out the rest of the series. So far, I am very happy to see that they are going to stick to a plan. I prefer a storyline to fads. They used to react to fan discussions on their official website. How ridiculous!
Now we’re crewed up and ready to roll for the documentary shoot. I finished the non-fiction autobiography and we’ll be prepared for this. My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ has all the ducks in a row, and I hired a cinematographer. We’re driving since SkyBus went out of business. I got my refund already, but that sucked.
Here’s something that happens a lot with online movies that are supposed to be “funny”. I’ve had some experience, albeit not as much as some, but more than others, so my opinion, not really an “expert” opinion is that shorter is better when it comes to funny videos on the Internet.
The empirical data clearly demonstrates this to be true. The videos that get the most views are the short ones. Generally under 2 minutes, rarely ever over 5 minute long clips get any kind of real play. The audience online has the shortest attention span in pop culture history.
What I see a lot of are either 20 minute epics that either aren’t funny, nor well made, and a ton of multi-part series that equate to about 30-40 minutes of material that would have been funny if it was 3-4 minutes of the only funny bits. Everyone thinks they are clever or funny, but only a handful really are. Those are the ones that are famous one way or another. I’m not one of those yet, but maybe I will be some day. I need to keep practicing and getting better.
I’m treading a fine line with my Uncle Pete series. Luckily, they are very short, as in under 2 minutes each or so. Total will be under 20 minutes, and I’m even considering dropping one of them entirely because it might be too similar to one that I already put out there. So far, I am disappointed in the numbers. I had well over 200,000 views for the TELEMARKETERS shorts, and I think the Uncle Pete series is vastly superior in a lot of ways. I may have already said this, but my hope will be that in time, these will catch on in a big way. I just don’t have the time I used to have to market and promote.
Well, another Uncle Pete will be coming out soon. I just have to edit it. I’m going to compile the outtakes into a “making of” and put that out too. In some ways, I’m looking most forward to. I’m still so busy with work. Commercials, industrial videos, documentaries, and other miscellaneous production work has me swamped. Luckily, I took the entire weekend off. I haven’t had a day off in a while. I’m rested and ready to tackle the week.
Peace Kids!
Peter John Ross
When I saw this episode on the plane, I got very interested. It was the perfect blend of comedy and drama. It was reminiscent of the first thing David E. Kelley did which was a feature film FROM THE HIP with Judd Nelson in the 1980’s. I have since rented every season of BOSTON LEGAL on DVD, plus I recently acquired the entire last season of THE PRACTICE to see how this show was spun off from a purely dramatic premise.
I love James Spader’s performance. He plays off his 80’s John Hughes/Brat Pack acting of a kind of ass, but adding the heart of gold. The politics of the character also plays pretty much into my belief structure with precision. Combine that a character with a level of self loathing, arrogance, and a penchant for pissing off people with little to no effort, and let’s just say I relate to the character. All I need is a law degree and a Harvard education, and this might even be me. Also, I’d need my life scripted by David E. Kelley, but basically that’s it.
LOST this year has been consistently paying off. They may not have started with a plan (I highly doubt it), but they have mapped out the rest of the series. So far, I am very happy to see that they are going to stick to a plan. I prefer a storyline to fads. They used to react to fan discussions on their official website. How ridiculous!
Now we’re crewed up and ready to roll for the documentary shoot. I finished the non-fiction autobiography and we’ll be prepared for this. My Sexy Fiancé Veronica ™ has all the ducks in a row, and I hired a cinematographer. We’re driving since SkyBus went out of business. I got my refund already, but that sucked.
Here’s something that happens a lot with online movies that are supposed to be “funny”. I’ve had some experience, albeit not as much as some, but more than others, so my opinion, not really an “expert” opinion is that shorter is better when it comes to funny videos on the Internet.
The empirical data clearly demonstrates this to be true. The videos that get the most views are the short ones. Generally under 2 minutes, rarely ever over 5 minute long clips get any kind of real play. The audience online has the shortest attention span in pop culture history.
What I see a lot of are either 20 minute epics that either aren’t funny, nor well made, and a ton of multi-part series that equate to about 30-40 minutes of material that would have been funny if it was 3-4 minutes of the only funny bits. Everyone thinks they are clever or funny, but only a handful really are. Those are the ones that are famous one way or another. I’m not one of those yet, but maybe I will be some day. I need to keep practicing and getting better.
I’m treading a fine line with my Uncle Pete series. Luckily, they are very short, as in under 2 minutes each or so. Total will be under 20 minutes, and I’m even considering dropping one of them entirely because it might be too similar to one that I already put out there. So far, I am disappointed in the numbers. I had well over 200,000 views for the TELEMARKETERS shorts, and I think the Uncle Pete series is vastly superior in a lot of ways. I may have already said this, but my hope will be that in time, these will catch on in a big way. I just don’t have the time I used to have to market and promote.
Well, another Uncle Pete will be coming out soon. I just have to edit it. I’m going to compile the outtakes into a “making of” and put that out too. In some ways, I’m looking most forward to. I’m still so busy with work. Commercials, industrial videos, documentaries, and other miscellaneous production work has me swamped. Luckily, I took the entire weekend off. I haven’t had a day off in a while. I’m rested and ready to tackle the week.
Peace Kids!
Peter John Ross
Thursday, April 17, 2008
THRICE UPON THE DOOR
I have been busy again. I’ve been wrapping up a few projects, and nor Uncle Pete is on way hold for a short time while I finish up the paying work. Not the least of which placed upon hold will be the continuation of work on my next feature. We’re only a few weeks away from the big trip to do the documentary on the weighty subject of the Holocaust and a survivor’s story. I’ve been plugging away finishing off the non-fiction book and I can say I’m floored. I’m gripped and to hear the real life person tell her tale will put my best foot forward.
In the world of UNCLE PETE, the big news is that I got featured on the main page twice in one day on Will Ferrell’s FUNNY OR DIE, and then the next day I got my notice that the first installment will be featured on their Verizon VCAST on the mobile devices. These are big scores and a boon for a comedy short.
One of the stipulations for getting selected for the mobile devices was that there must be no cursing, which lead me to the real meat of this blog entry.
I tend to go against having cursing in most of my movies. Early on, I had a few scripts and then movies that had a lot of cursing, but in the years since, I tend to tone it down to the point of nonexistence. I curse like a horny sailor in New Orleans Parish in real life, but not so much in my scripts. If I allow a curse word, it had better be pretty intense or appropriate. I’m a stickler for making my movies not only accessible, but curse words are a weapon and they have to be used sparingly and to effect.
At the very least use of profanity had better be perfectly in character for the person saying them, or the potency of the language is lost to minutiae. Some people have a character swear up and down and so the power of those words becomes meaningless, and there was no reason for that character to even use the bad words.
How many times have we seen a movie or video online and the people swear… and swear, and then you realize it’s almost every other word? It’s numbing to the point that you wonder if they have any clue how much they are using profanity. If the choice of words doesn’t emphasize anything, then where do you go with the language?
I’m not against the use of profanity in movies, just against their OVERUSE. I cannot emphasize enough the potency of WORDS…
That leads to nudity in film. I have always maintained that at the stage where I’m at, and have been at, that it would be a failure if I had to resort to nudity to sell a movie I’m doing. Again, I’m not against nudity in film, and have no problem with other people using sex to sell their own movies. Anyone else can do whatever they want and my respect level doesn’t raise or lower – I can only put this mandate on myself and my own movies.
It was suggested in my first feature, HORRORS OF WAR in case you didn’t know the name, that we have a nude scene… in a World War II Sci-Fi-Horror-Action movie. Sure, that’s the kind of movie that has a gratuitous sex scene in it. This set my mind ablaze. I was dead set against it, but knew it might effect whether or not we get the money and distribution, so I decided I would give them their nudity and sex scene all right… but I made it a rape scene. The cliché in horror films is a gratuitous and plotless sex scene, so I made it a plot important, and unsexy, unappealing rape scene. No one will watch this and jerk off, and I placated the nudity mandate, and I got to deal with weighty, dramatic fodder. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever directed and the emotional repercussions weighed in on me.
Nudity in film is fine. I have no problems with it when other directors or films have them, but for myself, I can only use it if it’s truly essential to story, character, or plot. In movies like THE ENGLISH PATIENT or hell even PORKY’S, nudity and sex were used eloquently in their respective genres and films, but I’m not ready to make a film like that yet. Maybe, even soon perhaps, I might have a tasteful sex scene, or a shot of a naked person, but I’m still in the learning phase of filmmaking. I don’t want to use something like nudity as a crutch or titillating sellable element until I know it’s something I can control the situation and work very very very comfortably with the actors with a great deal of discretion, maturity, and sensitivity – none of which am I capable of yet.
Am I still raising the bar on myself as a filmmaker?
Both elements, cursing and nudity also relate directly to marketability. In the realm of short films, if I have a single curse word, or even the slightest edge of a nipple, I can kiss several opportunities for distribution or exhibition goodbye. There are several far “better”, or funnier shorts on FUNNYORDIE.COM, but why did Uncle Pete get selected to be on their Verizon VCAST? Because it was “clean”. I was aware of those elements as a producer, and as a director, I found it more challenging to make a dark, intense, very adult series without cursing. No one really wanted to see George nude, except maybe Micah, but still… I am making the choice to sparingly use profanity and not use nudity as artistic decisions, actually challenges to myself, but they have the side benefit for marketability.
I can’t speak for anyone else, nor am I passing judgment on anyone else’s films, choices. Believe me, I could not have made it through puberty without some of the finest Cinemax movies on after 11:00PM. God bless Shannon Tweed and Andrew Stevens!
Something should also be said about filmmakers waiving around Non Disclosure Agreements as if their ideas are sacred and have such value that they are desperate to keep a lid on it.... then have their cast/crew already telling everyone about specifics. It's a waste of time to do NDA's if you don't have any significant money involved in the process. Who will really be scared by a contract if the filmmakers can't afford to pay anyone $5 a day or $10 a day to participate? Then they obviously can't sue anyone and the NDA is worth less than the paper it was ink jet printed on.
Come on kids! If you aren’t investing money in an attorney to draft the specific Non Disclosure Agreement and you’re using the free one from SONNYBOO.COM (your source for free paperwork for filmmakers), then it’s very much the fodder for giggles behind your back. What can you do about it if someone breaches the contract? Write a blog about them? That’s about as intense as the retribution can possibly be when you have NO MONEY.
Seriously, if no one has ever paid you for your ideas or movies, then you can pretty much be assured, they aren’t actually worth anything… YET. That’s not to say that you won’t later need one, but not when making a DV short that has made no money and probably won’t. No reason to get ahead of yourself and pretend to be someone and somewhere you are not. When you have an investment that goes beyond buying people a few pizza’s to be on set, like maybe when you get beyond the tens of dollars and into the tens of thousands of dollars, the Non Disclosure Agreement might be a good idea, and make sure that a real attorney makes revisions specific to your needs. If you can’t afford an attorney, then do NOT waive a NDA in front of an actor with an ounce of experience and expect them to take it or you seriously.
The whole point of the Non Disclosure Agreement is that it represents consequences if the contract gets broken. If you can’t do anything to anyone that breaches the contract, then all you are doing is masturbating to your own ingenuity for having an NDA, but then everyone will blab anyway, long before your epic DV short gets on YouTube.
Who are you protecting the idea from? Other DV wannabes? Stop acting a fool! Get over yourself. Who are these idea thieves wanting the incredibly valuable movie ideas from unknown filmmakers that have never made anyone, anywhere a penny? If you can’t sell anyone the idea for your movie, then no one is stealing the idea and making it themselves. Spend these precious moments on an aspect of the film that might actually mean something… like investors, or a post production workflow, or casting or anything else that might be of more use than a Non Disclosure Agreement that has no teeth.
-=-=-=-=-=-=
Well my droogies, the Boo must rest. He hits the gym early in the A.M. I’m sustaining my 4 times a week at the gym and I haven’t failed to maintain, so I intend to keep at it. I only have 51 pounds to lose till I am happy. That sounds like a lot, but it’s really even more than it sounds. It feels more like 100 pounds, and looks like 150.
Peace and harmony, plus a side order of ham!
Peter John Ross
In the world of UNCLE PETE, the big news is that I got featured on the main page twice in one day on Will Ferrell’s FUNNY OR DIE, and then the next day I got my notice that the first installment will be featured on their Verizon VCAST on the mobile devices. These are big scores and a boon for a comedy short.
One of the stipulations for getting selected for the mobile devices was that there must be no cursing, which lead me to the real meat of this blog entry.
I tend to go against having cursing in most of my movies. Early on, I had a few scripts and then movies that had a lot of cursing, but in the years since, I tend to tone it down to the point of nonexistence. I curse like a horny sailor in New Orleans Parish in real life, but not so much in my scripts. If I allow a curse word, it had better be pretty intense or appropriate. I’m a stickler for making my movies not only accessible, but curse words are a weapon and they have to be used sparingly and to effect.
At the very least use of profanity had better be perfectly in character for the person saying them, or the potency of the language is lost to minutiae. Some people have a character swear up and down and so the power of those words becomes meaningless, and there was no reason for that character to even use the bad words.
How many times have we seen a movie or video online and the people swear… and swear, and then you realize it’s almost every other word? It’s numbing to the point that you wonder if they have any clue how much they are using profanity. If the choice of words doesn’t emphasize anything, then where do you go with the language?
I’m not against the use of profanity in movies, just against their OVERUSE. I cannot emphasize enough the potency of WORDS…
That leads to nudity in film. I have always maintained that at the stage where I’m at, and have been at, that it would be a failure if I had to resort to nudity to sell a movie I’m doing. Again, I’m not against nudity in film, and have no problem with other people using sex to sell their own movies. Anyone else can do whatever they want and my respect level doesn’t raise or lower – I can only put this mandate on myself and my own movies.
It was suggested in my first feature, HORRORS OF WAR in case you didn’t know the name, that we have a nude scene… in a World War II Sci-Fi-Horror-Action movie. Sure, that’s the kind of movie that has a gratuitous sex scene in it. This set my mind ablaze. I was dead set against it, but knew it might effect whether or not we get the money and distribution, so I decided I would give them their nudity and sex scene all right… but I made it a rape scene. The cliché in horror films is a gratuitous and plotless sex scene, so I made it a plot important, and unsexy, unappealing rape scene. No one will watch this and jerk off, and I placated the nudity mandate, and I got to deal with weighty, dramatic fodder. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever directed and the emotional repercussions weighed in on me.
Nudity in film is fine. I have no problems with it when other directors or films have them, but for myself, I can only use it if it’s truly essential to story, character, or plot. In movies like THE ENGLISH PATIENT or hell even PORKY’S, nudity and sex were used eloquently in their respective genres and films, but I’m not ready to make a film like that yet. Maybe, even soon perhaps, I might have a tasteful sex scene, or a shot of a naked person, but I’m still in the learning phase of filmmaking. I don’t want to use something like nudity as a crutch or titillating sellable element until I know it’s something I can control the situation and work very very very comfortably with the actors with a great deal of discretion, maturity, and sensitivity – none of which am I capable of yet.
Am I still raising the bar on myself as a filmmaker?
Both elements, cursing and nudity also relate directly to marketability. In the realm of short films, if I have a single curse word, or even the slightest edge of a nipple, I can kiss several opportunities for distribution or exhibition goodbye. There are several far “better”, or funnier shorts on FUNNYORDIE.COM, but why did Uncle Pete get selected to be on their Verizon VCAST? Because it was “clean”. I was aware of those elements as a producer, and as a director, I found it more challenging to make a dark, intense, very adult series without cursing. No one really wanted to see George nude, except maybe Micah, but still… I am making the choice to sparingly use profanity and not use nudity as artistic decisions, actually challenges to myself, but they have the side benefit for marketability.
I can’t speak for anyone else, nor am I passing judgment on anyone else’s films, choices. Believe me, I could not have made it through puberty without some of the finest Cinemax movies on after 11:00PM. God bless Shannon Tweed and Andrew Stevens!
Something should also be said about filmmakers waiving around Non Disclosure Agreements as if their ideas are sacred and have such value that they are desperate to keep a lid on it.... then have their cast/crew already telling everyone about specifics. It's a waste of time to do NDA's if you don't have any significant money involved in the process. Who will really be scared by a contract if the filmmakers can't afford to pay anyone $5 a day or $10 a day to participate? Then they obviously can't sue anyone and the NDA is worth less than the paper it was ink jet printed on.
Come on kids! If you aren’t investing money in an attorney to draft the specific Non Disclosure Agreement and you’re using the free one from SONNYBOO.COM (your source for free paperwork for filmmakers), then it’s very much the fodder for giggles behind your back. What can you do about it if someone breaches the contract? Write a blog about them? That’s about as intense as the retribution can possibly be when you have NO MONEY.
Seriously, if no one has ever paid you for your ideas or movies, then you can pretty much be assured, they aren’t actually worth anything… YET. That’s not to say that you won’t later need one, but not when making a DV short that has made no money and probably won’t. No reason to get ahead of yourself and pretend to be someone and somewhere you are not. When you have an investment that goes beyond buying people a few pizza’s to be on set, like maybe when you get beyond the tens of dollars and into the tens of thousands of dollars, the Non Disclosure Agreement might be a good idea, and make sure that a real attorney makes revisions specific to your needs. If you can’t afford an attorney, then do NOT waive a NDA in front of an actor with an ounce of experience and expect them to take it or you seriously.
The whole point of the Non Disclosure Agreement is that it represents consequences if the contract gets broken. If you can’t do anything to anyone that breaches the contract, then all you are doing is masturbating to your own ingenuity for having an NDA, but then everyone will blab anyway, long before your epic DV short gets on YouTube.
Who are you protecting the idea from? Other DV wannabes? Stop acting a fool! Get over yourself. Who are these idea thieves wanting the incredibly valuable movie ideas from unknown filmmakers that have never made anyone, anywhere a penny? If you can’t sell anyone the idea for your movie, then no one is stealing the idea and making it themselves. Spend these precious moments on an aspect of the film that might actually mean something… like investors, or a post production workflow, or casting or anything else that might be of more use than a Non Disclosure Agreement that has no teeth.
-=-=-=-=-=-=
Well my droogies, the Boo must rest. He hits the gym early in the A.M. I’m sustaining my 4 times a week at the gym and I haven’t failed to maintain, so I intend to keep at it. I only have 51 pounds to lose till I am happy. That sounds like a lot, but it’s really even more than it sounds. It feels more like 100 pounds, and looks like 150.
Peace and harmony, plus a side order of ham!
Peter John Ross
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Things in the Category of “Never Thought THAT would happen”….
I held off on mentioning this before, but since it’s now happened THRICE, I feel comfortable saying so. I went to the gym. Thrice. This is something your narrator has never done before. I have gotten huge, and I’m definitely seeing a lot of weight on my personage. I’m long overdue in taking care of it. My obsessive compulsive disorder has prevented me from being more active physically because I would set goals and in the middle of trying to achieve them, I’d set some other goal thus perpetuating a situation where I never did anything.
I’ve cracked the nut. I found the one physical activity outside of sex that I enjoy and its swimming. Getting in the pool and swimming laps or even just getting under the water and swimming without a care in the world. I can’t stand jogging or even walking because I get bored, so that has never helped me. With swimming I don’t get bored, and even stranger I get a sense-memory flashback to a time when I spent my childhood at the Steiner Youth Recreation Center in Wadsworth Ohio like a fish all year round. Let’s face it; I’m in piss poor shape right now. I get worn out after a few short laps, but 5 nights a week of this I’ll be in better shape in no time.
The new UNCLE PETE short is done and online. It’s the 4th one of 8 and to me they get better as they go. My prediction? It may take 6 months, but these will pick up steam as they sit out there. Someone will discover them and send it to someone; they will send it to 3-4 someone’s; next thing you know it’ll go wide. The audiences are people in the 30’s with kids that hate children’s programming because they have to watch that crap all the time. There’s also the college crowd that appreciate the sarcasm. These are NOT for everyone. So far, the most unique responses were a group of liberals AND conservatives on one site that took the video series way too seriously. The other most unique one was this from AIN’T IT COOL NEWS:
Dude, I clicked on this with my 4 year old daughter standing behind me.
She was with Uncle Petey until he said Sharing was bad,
Then she had this look on her face like I just slapped her momma.
To which I was both horrified and equally amused. I have a few other marketing surprises once I get all 8 completed. I have an “in” with Stephen Colbert, so I’ll do what I can to get these in his hands. I have a few ideas of what that can do. Maybe I should send these to Rush Limbaugh or Bill O. to see if they’ll endorse Uncle Pete’s Play Time…
Someone recently called me a “fag”. I’m just curious, is this supposed to be an insult? Seems more like a lifestyle choice or something you’re born with, not really a tear down. I’m not a homosexual, but if I were, I’d be pretty open about my cocksucking or anal sex adventures with hairy men. I think my blog would have a different timbre, but basically the same. When I was in junior high, being called a “fag” seemed to carry more weight. In the world we live in today, it seems like some prejudice person calling me that says more about their own insecurities than it does insult me. I look at it as such a foreign thing that I liken it to saying “Hey, you like the color orange!” or “Hey you were born with blonde hair.” So I don’t find it to be insulting, just confusing.
Aside from these things, not much else to report. I’m behind on my edits for work. I’m still plugging away on a teaser trailer for ETERNAL, and I’m editing the stuff from Birmingham Alabama. FYI to those readers who want to know, Darell D-Day is a great cameraman. His stuff was exactly what I asked for, plus the other camera op named Hunter came through, so I have a good looking lot of footage.
My brain is fried and the body is taking a punishment it’s never had before. Three times to the gym in 4 days when you’ve never been to the gym before in your life has a pretty interesting set of side effects. I’m way sleepier at an earlier time. Meals seem more like a necessity rather than a fun, tasty thing to do. My arms are sore and it hurts to pick up simple objects like a pencil or a cable, or a Brandy-Weasel.
In the name of Allah, lick the lesbian love spot in the name of Sonnyboo,
Peter John Ross
I’ve cracked the nut. I found the one physical activity outside of sex that I enjoy and its swimming. Getting in the pool and swimming laps or even just getting under the water and swimming without a care in the world. I can’t stand jogging or even walking because I get bored, so that has never helped me. With swimming I don’t get bored, and even stranger I get a sense-memory flashback to a time when I spent my childhood at the Steiner Youth Recreation Center in Wadsworth Ohio like a fish all year round. Let’s face it; I’m in piss poor shape right now. I get worn out after a few short laps, but 5 nights a week of this I’ll be in better shape in no time.
The new UNCLE PETE short is done and online. It’s the 4th one of 8 and to me they get better as they go. My prediction? It may take 6 months, but these will pick up steam as they sit out there. Someone will discover them and send it to someone; they will send it to 3-4 someone’s; next thing you know it’ll go wide. The audiences are people in the 30’s with kids that hate children’s programming because they have to watch that crap all the time. There’s also the college crowd that appreciate the sarcasm. These are NOT for everyone. So far, the most unique responses were a group of liberals AND conservatives on one site that took the video series way too seriously. The other most unique one was this from AIN’T IT COOL NEWS:
Dude, I clicked on this with my 4 year old daughter standing behind me.
She was with Uncle Petey until he said Sharing was bad,
Then she had this look on her face like I just slapped her momma.
To which I was both horrified and equally amused. I have a few other marketing surprises once I get all 8 completed. I have an “in” with Stephen Colbert, so I’ll do what I can to get these in his hands. I have a few ideas of what that can do. Maybe I should send these to Rush Limbaugh or Bill O. to see if they’ll endorse Uncle Pete’s Play Time…
Someone recently called me a “fag”. I’m just curious, is this supposed to be an insult? Seems more like a lifestyle choice or something you’re born with, not really a tear down. I’m not a homosexual, but if I were, I’d be pretty open about my cocksucking or anal sex adventures with hairy men. I think my blog would have a different timbre, but basically the same. When I was in junior high, being called a “fag” seemed to carry more weight. In the world we live in today, it seems like some prejudice person calling me that says more about their own insecurities than it does insult me. I look at it as such a foreign thing that I liken it to saying “Hey, you like the color orange!” or “Hey you were born with blonde hair.” So I don’t find it to be insulting, just confusing.
Aside from these things, not much else to report. I’m behind on my edits for work. I’m still plugging away on a teaser trailer for ETERNAL, and I’m editing the stuff from Birmingham Alabama. FYI to those readers who want to know, Darell D-Day is a great cameraman. His stuff was exactly what I asked for, plus the other camera op named Hunter came through, so I have a good looking lot of footage.
My brain is fried and the body is taking a punishment it’s never had before. Three times to the gym in 4 days when you’ve never been to the gym before in your life has a pretty interesting set of side effects. I’m way sleepier at an earlier time. Meals seem more like a necessity rather than a fun, tasty thing to do. My arms are sore and it hurts to pick up simple objects like a pencil or a cable, or a Brandy-Weasel.
In the name of Allah, lick the lesbian love spot in the name of Sonnyboo,
Peter John Ross
Friday, March 28, 2008
The Confederates Conspiring to Confiscate the Votes
In life, there are ups and downs. Is the goal to spend more time up than down or to find as even a keel as possible? Without a doubt, I find myself riding the waves, undulating like a fat guy’s gut during turbulence.
Your faithful narrator inspires a lot of emotion in people. It seems I’m either loved or hated. What rarely happens is that I am ignored or causing an ambivalent “eh…” in most people. With some, I recognize that I am seen as some kind of antagonist, whether it be because of what little successes I’ve gotten or as some core principal that acts in the opposite of their beliefs. Either way, I don’t care too much, except when I get fascinated with the obsessive ones. I am staggered by their inability to see that their interest in me goes into a place of dementia that only the truly psychotic exist in.
When people take the amount of time it takes to write about me or post blogs, etc. I experience genuine awe. Lately, I’ve been buried in work so it’s less likely to hold my attention. I’d rather create than spend time on this other nonsense. I’ll let my work do its own thing.
On the flipside and what makes me even more fascinated are examples of the opposite. I received two emails with links that are far more compelling than anything negative said or done about me.
First, a film forum in Dallas/Fort Worth emailed me because a discussion was going on about me. When people talk about you like this:
Quote:
He seems to really care about the indie community unlike a lot of other directors out there.
I was invited to participate in their forum and post links, etc. When you make videos and have the intent to have them go “viral”, meaning get them out there and other people pass the links on and several other people pass the links on, etc. until it becomes a self perpetuating marketing. This is certainly true of my “moviemaking techniques” videos of last year. They do a lot of good and many people like them. The statistics don’t lie, and these are promoting themselves more than I am at this point. Everyday more links go to the videos and more and more requests come in for copies of the videos.
CLICK HERE TO READ THREAD
I’ve even been requested to make DVD’s for various film schools in at least 6 states so far, which leads me to the 2nd example. On INDIETALK.COM, a good online pal send me THIS LINK to a blog by Norman Hollyn, not only a professional editor by trade, but also the HEAD OF the University of Southern California’s (USC’s) Editing track at the School of Cinematic Arts. He quoted my article/book on “Editing Your Own Film”.
Now I’ve never been to film school, and I’m hardly a member of academia, nor did I ever make any significant grades at any level. How freakin’ cool is it that the head of the editing department at USC quoted me and my writing?
CLICK HERE TO READ BLOG ENTRY
It’s all humbling. It makes you wonder if you’re worthy of such praise. I don’t think I am. As much as I am accused of arrogance, I am not quite that full of myself. I am no where near where I want to be at. The only critic that truly matters to me is me. I haven’t satiated that one, so I still have the drive to try harder and harder every day.
I appreciate the praise, from the high and mighty to the most common variety. In the grand scheme of things, suddenly all these naysayers start to turn into static on a channel I can change in the click of a button.
A few weeks ago, I made a conscious decision to ignore the hate mongering and focus on the positives. Combine all the above with the recent Wikipedia interview, and your narrator has a lot to be proud of and no one can really affect that. All I can do is proceed with my plans and keep on succeeding, albeit in very small ways, but I feel great about what few things do go my way. Does anyone really believe they will make me feel bad? There are always fools.
CLICK HERE TO PLAY
Part 3 of the UNCLE PETE’S PLAY TIME is online now. As each one goes, they get raunchier and more politically incorrect. George dared to take this journey with me and his participating elevates what I had in mind. Combine that with the contributions of TJ Cooley on the backgrounds and my new found friend J.D. Larabee for character designs, and The Boo is quite pleased.
When I later reveal how these are a piece of a puzzle that won’t be grasped until nearly a year and half from now, it will be even more significant. Just when people I know expect me to zig, I then zag, and when I zag, the next move will invariably be a zog, just because I had no idea what I was supposed to do. These UNCLE PETE clips feel like a kind of homecoming for me in my filmmaking endeavors. I started with these kinds of movies and I’ve come back to doing them and it plays a part in my master plan for the next 24 moons.
This should be enough, Charles. Surely, I’ve made my point.
- Peter John Ross
Sometimes known as Sonnyboo
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Wiki This and Somethin’ Else That
The big news of today? Wikipedia did an interview with me this past weekend and it’s already online. What an honor! I thought it was a big deal getting a Wikipedia entry at all, even though it’s on the verge of being removed for lack of relevance, but then they interview me. I love this kind of irony.
I haven’t even been doing much lately, and I certainly wasn’t trying to get an interview with Wikipedia, but hot damn! This rocks.
I’m finishing post on another Uncle Pete segment. J.D. Larabee did some art work for me and I’ve never even met the guy. Jason Morris said he was good and I emailed him on MySpace. He sent me some artwork and it was pretty much spot on from the git-go. I’m digging these bits. It’s some of the best writing I’ve done for satire.
Soon I will finish the latest one and get it online. Each one successively gets more out there. It’s nice to see the public reaction to these get better as each one comes out. I think the best is yet to come. Once I get 2-3 more put out, the real marketing can begin. I haven’t even started yet and I’m already at over 45,000 views on combined sites.
Until next time….
- PJR
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Downtown Venus and the Statue of Vulcan
What a strange week it has been since your narrator last wrote to you. I’ve been to Birmingham Alabama for a shoot where I directed a pilot for a reality show. I don’t know which is more obtuse; the fact that I got sick 10 minutes after entering Alabama or that the Discovery Channel referred me for the job. Regardless, it was very difficult to work when my head was pounding and my sinuses acted like they were at the circus.
[[this week’s pics by Darell (D-)Day]]
We shot a lot with my HV20 underwater to get HD footage underwater since the housings and camera controls would be far simpler than the manual cameras. The footage is acceptable, but I think I have to get certified as a diver to be able to operate camera underwater for any future work like this.
I hired The Derek and D-Day to work on my crew and it’s always good to spread the wealth. I’m a big believer in trying to get the best people and when I’m making money, I want other people to make money too. People have done this for me, so I love continuing the good will. It’s like karma in that I feel that if I put money in other people’s pocket, others will continue to do the same for me, or maybe my payback will come in another form. Hording money and selfishness in that regard can only skew the way it’s all going to play out.
So I bought a new car, a nice new Ford Mustang. Let’s just say all the work I’ve been doing has paid off in spades. Success remains subjective, but in most people’s minds it relates to monetary compensation. I guess in other people’s view, I’m getting more and more successful, but why is it no where near enough for me? I don’t care too much about money for myself. I have modest needs and wants, but the "success" as defined by me lies in another realm, one that is purely creative and standards set forth by my own muse. I am not successful, nor do I ever feel I will attain the level I desire, but then again, that is why filmmaking will be a life long endeavor.
I love the fact that my sole income for the last 8 years has been from filmmaking and it took time, but it’s paying off. I am proud of what I have accomplished, even though it’s not enough to satiate my desire to get better and improve, but the comfort of a few luxuries and the security of regular income to make life a bit easier day to day. The trick is to not give up the artistic end for the profitable endeavors. I was able to find a balance during the busiest time of the year and slip in these new shorts.
UNCLE PETE’S PLAY TIME has started to be unveiled. For the most part people like it. As with all comedic films, some people don’t think it’s funny or take what you’re saying too seriously. I’m okay with that. That’s what happens with every joke or comedy – someone doesn’t think it’s funny. Get used to it. Negative comments or posts don’t really affect me. I’ve been reading that kind of stuff since January 2000 and you tune out the nonsense. I guess I get confused by the intent. Am I supposed to read "You suck!", then suddenly go "Oh my god, I thought this rocked, but now someone told me it doesn’t, and I should really quit! I know there was no intelligent discourse or reasonable criticism, but I suddenly changed my mind and my confidence is shaken so I should just delete this and never pick up a camera again. Thank you anonymous poster on the Internet, you just saved me a lot of hassle having to deal with criticism and putting effort into finding my audience. I’m done now…." I just don’t see that happening.
I have self confidence and I like something in every piece I’ve made. That’s not to say every single thing I’ve made is not flawed. I think I could probably write massive amounts of criticism of each movie I’ve ever been a part of, especially ones I wrote or directed. Being self critical allows you to handle when other people want to tear it apart. As my opinion stands, this is the line in the sand or the edge of the abyss. Time to look in and decide what kind of man or woman you are. Will you still love your art even though you recognize the flaws? Will you be swayed into disliking your art because many people, even the majority don’t like it? Are you going to stand tall in the face of adversity or cower under the weight of your own inadequacies?
I don’t fear these things. I believe in myself and what I’ve made. If people want to attack or tear down what I’ve done, I say do as you will. I’m just on my own path and climbing my own mountain. Nothing has deterred me yet, nor has anything even distracted me long enough to keep me from doing exactly what I’ve wanted to so far.
While in Alabama, we stayed at a Lake House the production secured for us and that was nice. The last day of the shoot, we had a mini-wrap party and chilled out with the Beer, darts, and Stewart/Colbert on the tube. I can say in all confidence there really is a thing called "Southern Hospitality" and that this is instilled into most citizens in the South. People were super cool and nothing like expected. I haven’t been to Alabama since the 1980’s, but it’s a cool place.
Before I left, I did some serious 12-14 hour days working on 3 projects. Now that I’m back home, I’ve got another 2 big projects staring me down, nonetheless post production on the Birmingham gig. I am looking to hire a few part time assistants. Not a permanent position, but kind of the A/V temp job as it were. Anyone interested in making some mediocre hourly to work on film/video production rather than delivering pizza?
Be at peace acolytes of Boo.
Peter John Ross
[[this week’s pics by Darell (D-)Day]]
We shot a lot with my HV20 underwater to get HD footage underwater since the housings and camera controls would be far simpler than the manual cameras. The footage is acceptable, but I think I have to get certified as a diver to be able to operate camera underwater for any future work like this.
I hired The Derek and D-Day to work on my crew and it’s always good to spread the wealth. I’m a big believer in trying to get the best people and when I’m making money, I want other people to make money too. People have done this for me, so I love continuing the good will. It’s like karma in that I feel that if I put money in other people’s pocket, others will continue to do the same for me, or maybe my payback will come in another form. Hording money and selfishness in that regard can only skew the way it’s all going to play out.
So I bought a new car, a nice new Ford Mustang. Let’s just say all the work I’ve been doing has paid off in spades. Success remains subjective, but in most people’s minds it relates to monetary compensation. I guess in other people’s view, I’m getting more and more successful, but why is it no where near enough for me? I don’t care too much about money for myself. I have modest needs and wants, but the "success" as defined by me lies in another realm, one that is purely creative and standards set forth by my own muse. I am not successful, nor do I ever feel I will attain the level I desire, but then again, that is why filmmaking will be a life long endeavor.
I love the fact that my sole income for the last 8 years has been from filmmaking and it took time, but it’s paying off. I am proud of what I have accomplished, even though it’s not enough to satiate my desire to get better and improve, but the comfort of a few luxuries and the security of regular income to make life a bit easier day to day. The trick is to not give up the artistic end for the profitable endeavors. I was able to find a balance during the busiest time of the year and slip in these new shorts.
UNCLE PETE’S PLAY TIME has started to be unveiled. For the most part people like it. As with all comedic films, some people don’t think it’s funny or take what you’re saying too seriously. I’m okay with that. That’s what happens with every joke or comedy – someone doesn’t think it’s funny. Get used to it. Negative comments or posts don’t really affect me. I’ve been reading that kind of stuff since January 2000 and you tune out the nonsense. I guess I get confused by the intent. Am I supposed to read "You suck!", then suddenly go "Oh my god, I thought this rocked, but now someone told me it doesn’t, and I should really quit! I know there was no intelligent discourse or reasonable criticism, but I suddenly changed my mind and my confidence is shaken so I should just delete this and never pick up a camera again. Thank you anonymous poster on the Internet, you just saved me a lot of hassle having to deal with criticism and putting effort into finding my audience. I’m done now…." I just don’t see that happening.
I have self confidence and I like something in every piece I’ve made. That’s not to say every single thing I’ve made is not flawed. I think I could probably write massive amounts of criticism of each movie I’ve ever been a part of, especially ones I wrote or directed. Being self critical allows you to handle when other people want to tear it apart. As my opinion stands, this is the line in the sand or the edge of the abyss. Time to look in and decide what kind of man or woman you are. Will you still love your art even though you recognize the flaws? Will you be swayed into disliking your art because many people, even the majority don’t like it? Are you going to stand tall in the face of adversity or cower under the weight of your own inadequacies?
I don’t fear these things. I believe in myself and what I’ve made. If people want to attack or tear down what I’ve done, I say do as you will. I’m just on my own path and climbing my own mountain. Nothing has deterred me yet, nor has anything even distracted me long enough to keep me from doing exactly what I’ve wanted to so far.
While in Alabama, we stayed at a Lake House the production secured for us and that was nice. The last day of the shoot, we had a mini-wrap party and chilled out with the Beer, darts, and Stewart/Colbert on the tube. I can say in all confidence there really is a thing called "Southern Hospitality" and that this is instilled into most citizens in the South. People were super cool and nothing like expected. I haven’t been to Alabama since the 1980’s, but it’s a cool place.
Before I left, I did some serious 12-14 hour days working on 3 projects. Now that I’m back home, I’ve got another 2 big projects staring me down, nonetheless post production on the Birmingham gig. I am looking to hire a few part time assistants. Not a permanent position, but kind of the A/V temp job as it were. Anyone interested in making some mediocre hourly to work on film/video production rather than delivering pizza?
Be at peace acolytes of Boo.
Peter John Ross
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Uncle Pete's Play Time!
From Crackle:
This is a clip from a Children's show I'm working on for Channel 19. I think it's more of a show for Bill O Reilly or Stephen Colbert would show to their kids. This one's theme is SHARING.
Sunday, March 09, 2008
Patience for the Pleiad
Tomorrow I shoot another short. I've only waited around 5 years to get this one shot. I have to recast one nephew for another one because the original choice is too old now. I just have to tell the little guy "Tough Titty, it's the movie business, kid. Now get out of my shot. Maybe you can get the PA's some coffee. It's called show business, not show family. Scram."
We're inundated with the snow. Lots of it. A record breaking amount for Columbus Ohio. We beat the record set in 1910 for the most snow accumulated in one night by getting 20+ inches as opposed to the record 15+ inches 98 years ago. The snow covers up to 3 feet surrounding my car on 3 sides. It be ugly. Except that I needed this much snow to do a short I've had in mind for 5 long years. This was the only time I could count on snow being on the ground for at least 3 days. I hope to pull this off tomorrow.
Owning my own little "indie run-n-gun package" will pay off in spades tomorrow. My poor man's steadicam, the jib arm, the HD camera, and people owing me favors will come into play. Along with my parents being out of town so I can use their front lawn and house as a set. I bought the necessary props and equipment tonight, so I think we can pull this off.
Did I mention that I am finally getting some film work done again? Oh yeah. After the marathon shooting with George last weekend, this week I'll get this baby shot out and have a plethora of new Sonnyboo movies to infest the web, only they will all be mastered in HD and ready for the new HD outlets my distributors have let me know about.
This past Thursday I drove up to Cleveland to do a TV interview for Cox cable. It wasn't public access, but a cool On Demand show they have put together. The weather and roads were great on Thursday, and then Friday everything went to hell, if hell is actually freezing cold and full of high wind and constant snow. Actually that's just Ohio. In mid-March.
On the way up, I enjoyed a brief respite at the fabled Marie's Pizza. Twice in one week? Oh yeah, life is good. Real good it is. Wadsworth Ohio's pride and joy still delivers and I had leftovers for lunch the next day. I tell you, this pizza is worth the side trip on I-76 to and fro.
After the TV interview, I met up with Johnny Wu and friends for a nice dinner at an Indian place. I had Tandoori Chicken for the first time. Surprisingly, I loved it. I don't normally get into exotic foods, but this was fantastic. The company equally enjoyable.
Music score has started to arrive from Arya for my new project. More animated backgrounds and other goodies for the greenscreen extravaganza are also arriving daily. Ian Ross assures me that a theme song is imminent. They scheduled the studio time to record it Friday night, but then the storm swept through Ohio and all was cancelled. They rescheduled for tonight, so hopefully Cincinnati recovered as well as Columbus did.
My Fiancé and I spent the weekend cooped up in Rossdonia with the cats. I cooked a LOT. She did dishes, which is more of a tri-annual event, so I cooked more. I had inadvertently prepared for this weekend with several kinds of food, etc. so we didn't have repeats at all. We breaded chicken strips ourselves, always fun and tasty. My trick is to add minced onions into the breading for a more unique flavor. Marzetti's Honey Mustard rounds that dish out well.
Tonight I went to Meijer and got the most important element for tomorrow's shoot. Red fruit punch. It's crucial to the ending of this short piece. People will understand when this one gets done. I hope to be done early, but you can never tell with a shoot.
The world moves pretty fast and I hope to continue my rotations while the inspiration is strong.
As always, may you find what you are looking for, but hopefully it isn't just in this blog. Seek your answers elsewhere too.
Peter John Ross
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Viagra of the Divine Muse
I recently shed a lot of inner turmoil. About 2 weeks ago, I decided that I wanted to focus on a few issues and not be worried about what may or may not affect me; let's only worry about what is in front of me, not hiding in the bushes nearby. One thing at a time, that's all I can care about. My time is getting more and more precious as I commit to gigs and projects. I don't have time to be worried about little things. Surprisingly, I have honored that commitment, plus the one to get off my lazy ass and get more physical in my daily routines.
I'm still on a high from this past Saturday's shoot. It was exhilarating to shoot. The execution matched the intent, and with George, it surpasses expectations. I haven't felt like this in a few years. Has it been that long? I guess so. I entrenched myself in HORRORS OF WAR for a time, then the marketing of it. Then for the past 12 months, I've been in money making mode more than personal storytelling endeavors with movies. As much as the itch was there, I could not scratch it. It feels as though the stars have realigned themselves and delivered unto me the will and the path to the future.
Sunday, as God's day, was a day of rest. I did nothing filmmaking related, besides all my footage was digitized on the computer at the office in a codec that is hard ware reliant with the Matrox RTX2 card & software. I cannot edit this on any machine without the same hardware and codec. My obsessive compulsive disorder has gone crazy, although not on Sunday. I watched CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND on Blu-Ray in the original theatrical cut of the film. Then I made out with my woman when she got home from work. It was a great follow up day to Saturday.
Yesterday, after completing my meager editorial jobs, I plunged headlong into the edits of my latest project. Now, the original intent was to edit all the greenscreen footage raw, and worry about post production and compositing until after I had final cut the picture. That makes sense. I can surmise what I need for each background, any character animations, and even make DVD's for the illustrious inner circle of people who will help me complete these mini-pieces of movie magic. This is the most efficient and logical way to do it.
So of course, I decide to go ahead and do an entire rough cut of the first piece, composite it with the test images I asked TJ to make, and then I added a temp music track along with a first pass at the title sequence. I chuckled to myself as I watched the semi-finished bit. My hopes and dreams are coming closer to being a reality with this.
Today, I had more edit jobs to do for work before I could start to tinker and play in the new world I'm creating. I diligently complete my tasks, complete with a spell check and verification on the 2 Suzuki spots I worked on, then I dived into the next clip. Again, TJ sends me backgrounds that match the piece I'm working on, so I composite and try to complete this 2nd one as well. Now I have 2 semi-finished clips.
Tomorrow, I intend to do the other 7 green screen clips and stick to the original plan. Edit for picture, composite and finalize later. I'm already in touch with a composer (Arya) for the score and my cousin Ian to do write and perform the theme song. Some of the remaining pieces will require character design and animation, so those will take longer to post. My impatience to want to share these ASAP kills my OCD, but it will be worth the wait for me to make them perfect before a public showing of any kind. It might take several weeks, but I don't want to put something sub par out there, not where these are concerned. I have to learn patience, especially where film work is involved. My passion for getting things seen sometimes supersedes completion of said work.
If this is any indication of how the rest of the feature will be, I'm in for one hell of a year…
I feel like I'm on fire again. It was a cold day, but the flames of inspiration kept me so jubilant that nothing can stop me. I'm on top of the world and I love the view. I'm not going to let myself get dragged down; besides, my freelance has quadrupled this month. With the Suzuki gig, some high school basketball championship games, my regular workload, and a shoot in Birmingham Alabama – your faithful narrator will have to finish these new movies in between cat naps on the paying work. I may be able to get a new Mustang. I love the 2005's and I found one used that I may snag up as the new Boo-mobile! If everything comes through, I will have made more in the month of March than I did in all of 2006.
I got another big royalty check on my short films today from cell phone distribution. That rocks. Whenever I get a check for over $1,000 for one quarter, I get blown away. I never planned on these things to make money when I made them. They were my self taught film school, nothing more. Now I'm raking in some extra dough from them and getting them seen by thousands of cell phone video watchers.
That's all I got for now, my friends. Peace be with you wherever you go.
Peter John Ross
Sunday, March 02, 2008
Conjoined Epigraphs on the Nightstand
Yesterday kicked ass. I mean all kinds of ass, big ass, little ass, fat ass – ALL KINDS OF ASS was kicked. Knowing my friend George Caleodis was coming back to Columbus for a few days, I came up with an idea to shoot him on the greenscreen stage with a bit I have that is both for my upcoming feature film and can also stand on it's own for the web for now. It's not hard to shoot, as I planned on 2 cameras and no moving shots so the keying and tracking will be easy sleazy cover girl.
So all I needed to do was write something. I sketched out a few ideas and hand wrote the random assemblage of ideas as I wrote in a previous bloggy blog. Well, that's as far as I got. I scheduled everyone to be at the studio at 12 Noon. I got there at 11:15AM and STARTED to write the scripts for the day. I am generally not a procrastinator, but the writer's block has been a bitch, so I strangled her at got busy. When it rains, it pours, as they say and I got 4-5 new ideas as I furiously typed them out and proceeded to print them.
The shoot was skedded (using Daily Variety terminology) from Noon to 4:00 PM. We got started at 1:20PM and wrapped at 3:15PM. Everything was shot, we improvised ("we" meaning George) a few things at the tail that work out perfectly as interstitials, or opening teases. George is a professional improviser, currently teaching and directing at the Improv Olympics in LA. Working with George is effortless and simple. I ruined 2 takes by laughing out loud at some of his improv's that took my by surprise.
I have studied several forms of comedy as a hobby for many years. It's not an exact science by any stretch, and in the end all you can do is know what makes you laugh and what you personally find funny. There is so much intangible in the form of "comedy". Laughing is an unnatural act. Literally, laughing resembles a seizure and makes your body react in a form of involuntary convulsion – but in a good way. Making people laugh is probably one of the hardest things you can attempt to do, especially as a stand up comedian where all you have is your words, or in the case of Carrot Top, cheap props, which is why he's not the most respected comedian because he can't do his act without the crutches. Most stand ups are armed with words and wit, which feels kind of naked on a stage. Making a comedic film is not easy either, but you have tools and things that you can use, so it's more comforting. Sitting in an audience, lights dimmed and the flickering images and sounds emanating represent the truest test of a comedy film. Luckily, I have been in the audience when my own alleged comedies have succeeded and failed to cause the desired reaction of laughing. You learn a lot from the experience of being in a room full of strangers and as a filmmaker you attempt to manipulate the audience into the communal response. What bombs with one audience, may work well with another group of people. Sooner or later you just have to form your own opinion of what is funny and go with that, not worrying whether it plays in Peoria. Be true to your own sense of humor and be content if you find it funny.
I will never "master" this, but I hope to get better each time. That's all I can ever ask. At best, you can predict what you think is funny and hope that audiences agree. Strangely, I can say I found what we made yesterday to be very funny to me, if no one else. I haven't laughed this hard in many months. It was such a visceral release for me and I was even light headed by the end due to a lack of oxygen, which my Fiancé says is something I should be used to by now. George makes me laugh. My words, reinterpreted and improvised by George always play out better than what I come up with on my own. Yesterday was no exception. I think if I turn on the marketing machine in a way I haven't in a while, this could get George seen a lot. We'll see…
Now the post production end of things lies heavy on me. With footage of George and a sea of green nothing behind him, it will take a lot longer than usual to finish post on this project. So much of what we're doing with this one is in that green nothing. I will have to supervise a design, character creation, music, and sound design with a far more professional touch than my previous clips to date. I am not going to do it all myself. I love to collaborate with artisans that are far better than me so that the whole equals more than the parts. Since it's a green nothing, other people's contributions can shape the whole piece beyond my limited vision.
Immediately following the shoot, since we were way early, I started digitizing footage and got both cameras set before My Sexy Fiancé Veronica-- arrived and we departed for the legendary MARIE's PIZZA in Wadsworth Ohio whence I came. My lifelong friend Maurice was in Ohio from Seattle for a funeral and since I have a fresh set of wheels, we drove up to have a nice dinner. My brother was already there and we waited out the extra long Saturday night dinner rush, but good conversation doesn't care if you're waiting in line or sitting at the table.
Since the day's shooting was so successful, I was on cloud 9. What I failed to realize is that by comparison to the last shoot I directed, this was a much more pleasant experience. I think I might have been demoralized by the overall experience of the last shoot. Some parts were good, some parts were disappointing, but mostly it was a bland experience as opposed to the excitement and energy I had almost universally experienced on ever previous shoot. What's even weirder was that this shoot had the smallest crew since my original BACK OFFICE days, as it was on a pre-lit greenscreen stage with wired mics and a mixer/video village already set up. Micah ran sound, slated, and also shot Behind the Scenes footage. The D.P. merely pressed record on the 2 JVC HD-110's and walked away since there can't be any camera movement. I still had a blast, and I don't have that ego of having too many people on set. I'd rather have what we need and I only care about the final product, not the way a set "should" be. Some of my dearest friends feel they have to have a big crew, but it feeds their egos more than the story at hand. I will never compare myself to Kubrick, but sometimes once the stage was lit, the mics were checked, and the camera was loaded, there was no one else on set but him and the actors as he operated the camera himself and kicked everyone else out entirely. What a hack! He must be a loser.
I just finished eating leftover Marie's Pizza and I am stuffed again. We got home late last night, but it was a fun time. I haven't seen Maurice since the Horrors of War screening in Seattle in 2006. I hadn't seen his nephew since 2003. Time flies and I'm in the vortex.
Saturday, February 23, 2008
HD, HDV, HDMI, HV20 and 42 Inches of Acronyms
The past few nights I worked late on a moonlighting edit gig. I made some extra money, but they were some seriously long days. I took Friday off and I had one or two things in mind to do. Mostly I wanted to watch movies, but that didn’t really ever happen, which has been the norm for the past few months when I get free time. I had no Sexy Fiancé tonight, which is usually when I get to watch movies. She’s an actress who doesn’t like to watch TV or movies or plays. Weird.
I wanted to experiment with some HD footage and HD clips I have done in the past year and see what they look like coming out of the HDMI port of my camera, the Canon HV20. So I loaded up some footage on a timeline that was shot 1280x720 on the JVC HD110 camera. I needed to up-rez it to 1920x1080 because the Canon HV20 doesn’t take any form of the 1280x720 (aka 720P) variety of HD. I chose the Red Giant software called INSTANT HD and set it to the highest possible quality settings. It took 2 hours to convert all of 7 minute worth of footage.
The first clips were a title sequence to a new instructional video I did for a cable access show playing in Dayton, Cleveland, and soon to be Cincinnati. I used background shots from a recent trip to Manhattan by a friend who took my HV20. I have only ever played clips on a computer in HD, and usually highly compressed Windows Media Video (WMV) HD files. I wanted to see what the HDMI port from the camera did and how it looks.
Problem one came from the EXPORT TO TAPE when I tried to get my newly created 1920x1080 (aka 1080P) footage back out to tape. I use the CINEFORM ASPECT HD codec and plug in for Adobe Premiere Pro and it has worked flawlessly for me in the past, but today it just didn’t want to go out to tape. I had to convert them all to M2T files, the MPEG2 for HD file format. Then I used the HDLINK program to lay it out to tape.
So I finally got footage in HD (thought technically HDV) onto tape and it was now time to plug it in HDMI to the big screen and take a look….
WHOA. Staggering quality of images. It looked like the HD broadcasts I’m getting off the air it was so sharp, clear, and the text (my favorite part of high end HD footage) was crisp and perfect. This is why HD is the future. I love film and the grain of real celluloid, but this IS the future. It has arrived.
I made the right choice with this simple little camera, and I love my HV20. It will serve me well for the next few years as a BEHIND THE SCENES camera et al. The JVC HD110 camera footage up-rez’d to 1080 looked just as good. This is proof that a good piece of glass and manual controls in the right hands will create superior images.
If I had any doubts about what I am about to do with my shorts, going HD and the various formats, cameras, etc. – I do not have those doubts now.
A few other tidbits…
I judged another Dublin High School film festival last week. That was fun and the quality gets better every year. There was one standout short, one called “Delineation”. The two kids who made it knew who I was and had seen some of my stuff online. The best compliment I ever got as a judge came from them. They had had seminars and speakers all day and they told me they wished I had been one of them. They said I was the only “filmmaker” they had heard of in Columbus and that they weren’t interested in people from broadcast. That was high praise. I then proceeded to tell them that I make my real money from broadcast commercial work.
Sony Picture’s CRACKLE.COM™ came through with an interview they did with me for their site. That was cool. I love their site. They’re playing with some new things and I hope to ride their wave a bit. They did however do a server change and I lost 21 million views in the reset. It only reads 240,000 views. I never thought I would ever write “only 240,000 views” and sound disappointed. Surprisingly, YouTube™ has been the breadwinner in terms of stats. Although as I write this, Yahoo Video™ has brought me a spike of 37,000 views in one day yesterday, so maybe I shouldn’t pick a winner just yet…
I can’t think of anything else relevant to talk about. That’s all.
-= PJR
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