HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Oh, wait, that was three months ago! It's been a busy first quarter! Sundance in January, produced a play in February, taught a two-day class in Atlanta
in March. Busy time for no-budget filmmakers, too. There's a whole host of new
no-budget films hitting the scene and I'm trying to keep up with as many as I can. I
report on a number of them here and on my web site, and will be writing more in the coming weeks and months. And let's not
forget NAB, which is right around the corner (April 16 - 19). I'll be there for a couple of days and will report back via
the web site. Enjoy!
IN THIS ISSUE:
1. 2007 Sundance Film Festival
- No-Budget Wrap-Up
2. NBFS on the Road
3. What's New on the Web Site
4. No Budget Bulletins From The
Front
5. No Budget Filmmakers in the
News
6. No Budget Film Resources Page
1. 2007 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL - NO-BUDGET WRAP-UP
As those of you who have diligently read my wrap-up
of indie film events know, I cover these affairs from a slightly different perspective than other traditional media or even
most film bloggers. When I go to a film festival like Sundance, I seek out films that could have been made by anyone, in terms
of resources and elements, and then look for those unique qualities that got them into the festival in the first place. Many
times, as I have so often mentioned in my classes, those qualities that enrich the film and make it special come out of the
way the films were made. In other words, if the film had been made with greater resources, it might not have made it into
Sundance. Some people call that "keepin' it real," something studio filmmakers (with the exception of Alfonso Cuaron and Paul
Greengrass, apparently) have a very hard time doing.
After spending 10 days at this year's festival and
seeing umpteen movies, I've decided to dub this festival "The Year of David Gordon Green," and not just because of his fine
Dramatic Competition film "Snow Angels," but rather because of the unique influence he had on several other films premiering
this year--films that are creating their own inimitable path and will hopefully be influencing many more would-be filmmakers
over the next couple of years.
As you probably know, Green got his career going
with the exceptional festival and critical fave "George Washington" back in 2000. Ironically that fine film did not make it
into Sundance, premiering instead at the equally distinguished Berlin Film Festival on its way to making just about every
serious critic's Top Ten List and winning a slew of awards once it was released theatrically. Ever since, Sundance has been
welcoming him home like a native son and this year was no exception with his fourth feature, "Snow Angels." To his credit,
"Snow Angels" shows a talented filmmaker evolving his form and stepping up his game, without losing any of the great qualities
of his previous films. Green will have a chance to further develop his craft with his next film, "Pineapple Express," a $30
million comedy for Columbia, which he is currently shooting in LA. Of course, "Snow Angels" was made for $5 million and doesn't
really belong in a no-budget wrap-up.
The real Green story, however, are the films he's
been helping shepherd over the last couple of years. Those of you who took my October 2006 class heard Green speak in person
alongside one of those disciples, former North Carolina School of the Arts (NCSOTA) classmate Jody Hill. Hill's $70,000 2006
Sundance feature "The Foot Fist Way," which will be opening this Summer theatrically, wasn't technically produced by Green,
but it was certainly influenced by him. And it shares certain key qualities with three new films that Green has put his stamp
on for this year: "Low And Behold," "Great World Of Sound," and "Shotgun Stories." These aspects--and listen up aspiring festival
filmmakers, because these are what every top programmer is searching for--are 1.) an aversion to cliché and convention (in
story, story-telling, and production technique); 2.) utter naturalism, (especially regarding performance); and 3.) regional
specificity (an exploration or and appreciation for regional stories, characters, customs and values). For a primer on this
kind of filmmaking, go back and rent "George Washington." To see how these qualities can be applied to a wide range of stories
and genres, get out and see the following films. And the good news for no-budget filmmakers is you don't need money to achieve
these elements; in fact, I would argue, films like these are much harder (or impossible) to make with big budgets. Stealing
a quote from the "Low And Behold" website that perfectly expresses some of what these films do so wonderfully:
"The films I most eagerly look forward to will not
be documentaries but works of pure fiction, played against, and into, and in collaboration with unrehearsed and univented
reality." - James Agee
LOW AND BEHOLD directed by Zach Godshall.
Though not produced by Green, his influence is all
over the film and his name was mentioned about 17 times during the Q&A afterwards. The post-Katrina New Orleans-set comedy/devastating
drama (you just can't call a film like this a "dramedy") utilized Green's New Orleans' offices, his pickup truck, his acting
friends, and a number of his connections. "Low And Behold" captures the insanity of post-Katrina New Orleans from a resident's
perspective. Writer Barlow Jacobs lived in New Orleans when the hurricane struck, and with Louisiana native Godshall, they
decided that the city would make an ideal, larger-than-life backdrop for a no-budget feature, with plenty of "free" production
value and a story behind every corner. "Low And Behold" follows Turner Stull (played by Jacobs), a naïve claims adjuster who
has come to town to work for his semi-slimy uncle (hilariously played by Robert Longstreet). Jacobs worked in Florida as an
actual claims adjuster following Katrina and realized it would make a great basis for a script--the stranger in a strange
land who becomes the eyes and ears of the audience, guiding them through all the madness. With the little money he had made
from claims adjusting, Jacobs purchased a Panasonic HVX200, some 8GB P2 cards, and an editing system and the script was written
no-budget style, around the things they had available to them. One of the most compelling aspects of the film is the participation
of many actual survivors of the storm. A key to success was getting good performances from these non-actors and natural performances
from real actors and making it all seamless. Zach knew from the beginning that he wanted an understated, truthful performance
that would blend in to the reality of the real-world backdrop. Much effort was made sculpting this kind of performance and
anything that was unauthentic was cut from the film. Longstreet, who was featured in the Green-produced "Great World Of Sound,"
"George Washington" actor Eddie Rouse, and Jacobs, (also featured in "Great World Of Sound") are exceptional. Don't worry
that you didn't hear about this film after Sundance--this one was a sleeper, and I think one of the best films of the Festival.
Oh, and the HVX 200, how did it perform? The film looks fucking amazing, (pardon my French, it is New Orleans after-all).
You really need to see it to believe it. (For the full story on the making of "Low And Behold," please visit my No Budget
Films Page).
GREAT WORLD OF SOUND directed by Craig Zobel.
Part of Green's North Carolina mafia (Zobel graduated
from NCSOTA a year or so after Green and has worked on nearly all of his films), Zobel's film was shot and set in Charleston,
NC and utilized a wonderfully sneaky way to capture "real" performances. The film deals with a shady music producing company
that preys on both its salesmen, who are recruited at the beginning of the film, and then on the hundreds of wannabes trying
to make it in the music business, in a practice commonly known as "song sharking." Zobel rented an office/warehouse building
throughout the course of his shoot and built elaborate sets with two-way mirrors. Behind the mirrors were Panasonic DVX100
cameras, two on dollies, one on a tripod. Star-struck locals who answered ads seeking aspiring musicians came in to audition,
unaware that their performances were being filmed or that they were really part of a feature film, rather than trying out
for a music label. Of course the 65 or so intrepid performers were eventually told that they were participating in a film
that was determined to expose the hideous practice of preying on hopeful wannabes, and nearly all signed releases to be part
of the project. In addition to being both hilarious and heartbreaking, these real performances set a high standard for the
rest of the acting in the film. Zobel went to great lengths to obtain utterly authentic performances from his talented cast
of real actors, insisting they make the words their own in an effort to achieve the required naturalism. Like Green, Zobel
doesn't hold his own written words too dearly; he doesn't care that the actors change the lines as long as it sounds authentic.
The triumph of the performances in GWS can not be overstated--many scenes involve real people who do not know they are being
filmed interacting with two actors "performing," and the line between the two types of performances is seamless. Kudos to
the two leads, Pat Healy and Kene Holliday (whom you may recognize from the late-70's sitcom "Carter Country"--if you're as
old as I am!), who give endearing and affecting performances as the two salesmen who are scammed into scamming poor souls
out of their money. Like "Low And Behold," GWS starts off hilarious, but then grabs you in the gut by the end.(For the full
story on the making of "Great World Of Sound," please visit my No Budget Films Page).
SHOTGUN STORIES directed by Jeff Nichols.
Another Green-influenced film that follows my edict
but didn't make it into Sundance, "Shotgun Stories," like "George Washington," instead premiered in this year's prestigious
Berlin Film Festival, receiving rave reviews from a variety of international critics. "Shotgun Stories'" regional setting
was Southeast Arkansas, where Nichols grew up. Heavily influenced by Green's seminal "George Washington," (Nichols, too, graduated
from NCSOTA a couple of years after Green), and David Lean's "Lawrence of Arabia," Nichols insisted on shooting his first
feature in anamorphic 35mm. Again, like "George Washington," the landscape defines who these characters are--it explains men
in the South and why they do the things they do. The fish farm at which the three lead characters work is very much a character
in the story. Of course, shooting on 35mm with no money has its problems. In this case, unprocessed film sat around for several
months until additional money was raised to develop it. This money and the money to shoot critical B-roll material a year
later came from a variety of friends and family sources in Arkansas--Jeff's parents and girlfriend, his grandmother, the owner
of the fish farm, a police officer--making "Shotgun Stories" regional filmmaking at its best. And to further extend the David
Gordon Green connection: Adam Stone, the DP, was in the same NCSOTA classes as Green's cinematographer Tim Orr, shot 2nd unit
on Green's "George Washington" and "All The Real Girls," and shot Green-produced "Great World Of Sound"; Barlow Jacobs, one
of the leads in "Shotgun Stories," was the lead in "Low And Behold," and was featured in and crewed on "Great World Of Sound";
editor Steven Gonzales edited Green's first three features; and Green came on board to produce "Shotgun Stories" with his
longtime producer Lisa Muskat. It doesn't get any more incestuous than that!
OTHER NOTES FROM PARK CITY
The big no-budget success story from Sundance this
year was the Atlanta-based "The Signal," co-directed by a trio of filmmakers and shot with the new Canon XL H1 HDV camera.
The film was picked up for a reported $2 million by Magnolia. Of course now that there is big money involved, everyone's getting
cagy about the film's no-budget origins, especially the distributor, (does no one remember that film set in the woods, you
know, with the sticks, did like $150 million domestic, cost like, nothing?). Anyway, I don't have to tell you that an Atlanta-made
horror film shot on a Canon with no stars wasn't made for a million dollars. And if you're reading this, you don't care. You'd
want to see it even more if you knew that it wasn't, right? Also go see it because it's scary and entertaining, and because
the script was designed with a low budget in mind, which actually is one reason it is scary. The production problem from the
beginning was how do you explain something apocalyptic on a small scale? You follow the characters closely; you don't show
what's around the corner unless the character sees it. Because there wasn't the money to "show everything," the question became,
is it better to see it and not believe it, or show nothing, or just glimpses, and let the audience's imagination do the rest?
I think you know the answer. The filmmakers (David Bruckner, who was a guest speaker in my March 2007 class in Atlanta, Dan
Bush and Jacob Gentry) shot long days on a tight schedule in order to capture the complex script. Much of the film is set
in and around Bruckner's apartment complex, because in Atlanta, they were able to do that for free, and so they created a
number of "games" within the geography of that environment. There was one unit and one story, but each director was in charge
of directing that story from a different perspective, that of a husband, a wife, and the wife's boyfriend. Each director shot
a different director's scenes in an incredibly unique and collaborative environment.
As is so often the case, this unique production methodology was born out of necessity. Tired of waiting around to make
a feature, the filmmakers were trying to make a quick-buck horror film and sell it straight to video and foreign markets.
They thought they could pull it off faster and easier if they each handled a part of the film, something they had done together
in film exercises as part of The Dailies Project, (a kind of testing ground for Atlanta filmmakers). The uniqueness of the production methodology transcends to the screen in a unique viewing experience. Magnolia
should be releasing the film in August of this year.
Sundance wasn't the only game in town for no-budgets;
Slamdance, too, had many to show and I caught a few. 1987 Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner Gary Walkow premiered his $10,000
film "Crashing," the sequel to his '87 winner "The Trouble With Dick," over at Treasure Mountain. Shot in less than 10 days
to accommodate lead actor Campbell Scott's busy schedule (he doesn't live in LA where the film was made), this incredibly
smart, sinisterly clever, and exceedingly funny film about a fallen-from-grace writer suffering from writer's block who temporarily
moves in with two sexy coeds who want to be writers, is sure to be a fixture on this year's festival scene. (For the full
profile of "Crashing," please visit the No Budget Films Page).
Visual effects supervisor Colin Drobnis' feature
"Bangkok" eschewed special effects for the real thing--Cambodia. Drobnis, his
two co-actors, and his DP traveled to Southeast Asia and shot in trains, planes, busy streets, massage parlors and back roads
to tell the story of a troubled man searching for is MIA father. The reported
budget was "something like the cost of a well-equipped Altima." At least he has his priorities straight. (For the full profile
of "Bangkok," please visit the No Budget Films Page).
And if you think they didn't get any smaller in
budget than $10k, "The Death of Michael Smith," which also World Premiered at Slamdance, was made for just $541! And proudly
so. Like "Crashing" and "Bangkok," "Smith" was shot on a DVX100 with a tiny 3-4 man crew. Director Daniel Casey shot the film
over 8 weekends, usually shooting Friday night and all day Saturday and Sunday, utilizing an all-Detroit cast and crew. While
some of this genre film feels derivative of higher budget fare, it is incredibly well put-together and the acting, usually
the Achilles heal in a film like this, is consistently excellent. "Smith" will be a wonderful calling card for Casey--its
writer, director, producer, editor and cinematographer--when he finishes his second year at AFI in the Spring.
A big congratulations to two filmmakers with whom I have had the pleasure
of working. Amir Bar-Lev's incisive documentary feature "My Kid Could Paint That" was a hit with audiences and buyers, with
Sony Pictures Classics paying nearly $2 million for domestic rights. The film follows child prodigy Marla Olmstead, the four
year old artist whose paintings have been selling for thousands of dollars. I worked with Bar-Lev on his first feature, the
award-winning "Fighter" when Next Wave Films gave him finishing funds in 2000. Another filmmaker supported by Next Wave with
a popular feature in this year's Documentary Competition was Judith Helfand. With her co-director Dan Gold, she premiered
"Everything's Cool", which examines the difficulty of raising the public's awareness about the issue of global warming over
the last 20 years. The film follows the same winning formula of irreverent humor and serious investigation that characterized
their 2002 Sundance feature "Blue Vinyl," which was repped by Next Wave.
2. NBFS ON THE ROAD
Having just returned from Atlanta, where I taught my two-day "The Art &
Science of No-Budget Filmmaking," I will be giving a couple of free mini no-budget presentations in the next couple of months. First, I will be a judge at this year's Kansas City Filmmakers Jubilee
and giving a seminar called "No Budget, No Problem!" on Saturday, April 14th, at 3:30 pm at the
Westport Coffee House. Then May 12th I will be giving a similar presentation
in Los Angeles as part of the Silver Lake Film Festival, (details to come).
3. WHAT'S NEW ON THE WEB SITE
As I do throughout the year, I have added a number of new profiles to my No
Budget Films page. Several of the longer profiles are the result of
extensive interviews with the filmmakers and you'll find information here about some films that you won't find anywhere else. All include links back to the film's web sites and many include trailers. Embedded in the collective experience of these filmmakers profiled are valuable lessons
for prospective no-budget filmmakers. Reading them together, a modern, dynamic
model for no-budget filmmaking emerges. You'll want to bookmark this page and return here often
to read new profiles or catch updates on existing films. And if you can, make
a point of supporting these films when (and if) they make it to your town; that's how we keep this kind of filmmaking alive.
Newer profiles to check out: "Low And Behold," "Great World Of Sound," "Shotgun
Stories," "The Signal," "Blood Car," "Bangkok," and "Crashing."
On my Classes page I've added a link to an extensive audio
interview I gave with filmmakers Paul Harrill and Lance Weiler for Lance's Workbook
Project site. The topic is DIY Production and we discuss various topics such as maintaining production value, fundraising, casting, working with crews, etc., all on little or no money.
My Sundance wrap-up story can be found with pictures and links on The No Budget Report page. I will next
be reviewing my findings at this year's NAB on this page, later in April.
As always, archived editions of this newsletter
are available exclusively to Newsletter subscribers. Click below if you missed
any earlier editions:
4. NO BUDGET BULLETINS FROM THE FRONT
Panasonic Advises: Throw Away Your Tapes
LOS ANGELES - Panasonic announced additions to its P2 line-up--a new camera,
new cards, and a new player. For filmmakers who love the idea of the HVX-200,
but wish it had 2/3" chips, Panasonic will soon be unveiling the new HPX-500, a shoulder-mounted 2/3" CCD camera which records
DVCPRO HD to up to four P2 cards at a time. Like the HVX, it supports multiple
formats and frame rates, but unlike the HVX, has interchangeable lenses. The
price is expected to be an affordable $14,000 (not including lens, I imagine). The
HPX begins shipping in May, along with new, higher-capacity P2 cards--16GB--effectively doubling the amount of footage you
can currently record to the handy, but expensive, solid-state memory cards. Panasonic
also promises to deliver a 32GB card by the end of the year. Finally, if you've
got an extra $4,000 for gear, you might be interested in the AG-HPG10 P2 player/recorder.
With its 3.5" screen, I can already imagine everyone huddled around it checking takes while the DP is setting the camera
up for the next shot. For more information, please visit:
http://www.studiodaily.com/filmandvideo/currentissue/7711.html
Panasonic And Canon Give Us Another Reason To Have Kids
LOS ANGELES - Panasonic and Canon are each unveiling extremely cool, extremely
portable "prosumer" HD camcorders that may have professional applications, depending on your project. The Panasonic AG-HSC1U is a 1.1 pound 3CCD 1080i camera that records up to 41
minutes of highest quality video onto tiny 4GB memory cards, (the size of a postage stamp) in the new AVCHD format. OK, this is an interframe format and there is currently no professional NLE that supports it yet, but the
damn thing records 5.1 audio and retails for only $2100! Not to be outdone, Canon's
HV20 is also tiny and it records true 24P from a single CMOS sensor for a list price of only $1,100! For more information,
please visit:
http://www.studiodaily.com/main/searchlist/7725.html
Doritos Super Bowl Ad Shot With HVX-200 For Under $1000
LOS ANGELES - Remember that Doritos ad that ran during the Super Bowl with the check-out girl getting all flirty with the customer who was buying all the different Doritos? That wasn't shot by pros, but was actually the winner of a contest that Frito-Lay
sponsored. It was shot by a recent AFI grad, James West, on his trusty Panasonic
HVX-200 for peanuts. Why companies spend millions of dollars on 30 second ads,
shot on 35mm or Vipers, I have no idea. For the full story, please visit:
http://www.studiodaily.com/hdstudio/searchlist/7729.html
New Short Film Competition Giving Away $5,000 Every Month
NEW YORK - OurStage, a new online venue, and ShootingPeople.com are sponsoring
a new video competition that pays big. All you have to do is upload your work
(10 minutes or less) on the OnStage site where fans view and judge the submissions.
Each month a winner is announced and receives $5000! Enough to make a no-budget feature! For more information, please visit:
http://www.ourstage.com/go/shootingpeople
5. NO BUDGET FILMMAKERS IN THE NEWS
Jody Hill, who was a guest speaker in my October 2006 class,
was recently named one of 10 Comics To Watch by Variety, along with his creative partners Danny McBride and Ben Best. The trio were discovered by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay following the success of their
2006 Sundance film "The Foot Fist Way," which Hill directed. Ferrell and McKay
convinced Paramount Vantage to release the film, which should be hitting theaters this Summer.
Students in my class were treated to a number of clips from the absolutely hilarious film about an obnoxious small
town martial arts instructor. Ferrell and McKay's company Gary Sanchez Prods.
is also producing an HBO pilot called "P.E." that Hill will be directing and McBride and Best will star in. The story revolves around Kenny Powers (McBride), an arrogant, washed-up major-league baseball player who returns to
his North Carolina hometown to teach physical education.
Filmmaker Lance Weiler learned
a lot self-releasing his two very successful feature films, 1998's "The Last Broadcast" and last year's "Head Trauma." But rather than horde this information, he's been spreading the gospel to everyone
that will listen. Following articles he'd written about his experiences for a
number of film magazines, including Filmmaker and MovieMaker, he's now created a web site devoted to DIY production and distribution. The Workbook Project includes extensive interviews with a number of filmmakers and
industry notables, frank insights into the DIY process, news stories, valuable links, and a host of new web tools to help
you market your wares. Plan to take a little to explore before you visit:
http://workbookproject.com/
