T-minus 2 Days, 4 hous and Counting...

In the 20 days since my last blog post, I've been fairly excessive in the pre-planning and wrangling of last details. I have gotten permission slips signed for both locations and music release, and my cast and crew are just finally starting to feel overwhelmed by emails. If anything, I err to the side of "over communication" with the film shoots I coordinate. But some people (even on my team) don't even freakin' read their emails, so I have to be careful not to over-correspond. There has even been question amongst the staff this week about WHO was editing. Which was really Funny to me, since I had earmarked our editors early. I even constructed the team in such a way that the editors didn't even have to be on set all weekend, choosing instead to put them to work sorting and logging footage early in the day. I thought that was perfectly clear, but apparently it wasn't. So, even the best communicator can have troubles getting the word out. And if you OVER communicate, nobody responds at all. Such is the fun of managing different people, with differing styles and modes of communication. The trick is "blending" all those personalities into one seamless team. Such is the mark of "good producing." I learn more and more about that with each project, and especially with each 48.

So, in 2 DAYS and 4 HOURS, I will know Genre and Required Elements. I will then scramble through story brain-storming with a small crew, then go outside with my Fire Crew to shoot some footage for StumbleMuse graphics, credits and the like. My crew will be scrambling, I'll be frantic, and everything will be out of control for the first 5 hours of the Project. The competition cannot be WON entirely in the first 12 hours, but it surely can be LOST. I've added some layers to the Friday production for the first time this year, and I hope that it proves to be workable and beneficial. I am adding credits footage and editing to the Friday workload and hoping we'll have more time to "fine tune" the 4 to 7 minutes of actual movie on Sunday. Credits always seem to be an afterhought in the last hours of each 48, and then something inevitably goes Awry. So, I'm hoping to avoid that this year.

But there's always Something... Something always goes awry during the 48. And that adds an edge, an adrenalin rush, a surge of dopamine like no other, once your movie is turned in. Turning a 48 Hour Film Project movie in, on time, is quite a rewarding experience. I hope I have that feeling Sunday, June 26th at 7:30. I wish all the filmmakers good luck during the competition weekend.

22 Days Until the 48

June must have risen from volcanic ash, as it was the hottest May of my Greensboro memory. It reminds me that Summer is here, and as I sit here, 22 days away from the next 48 Hour Film Project, I marvel on how busy the last two weeks have been. When I last signed off, I was anticipating a 4 day film shoot to bring Hot Pink Jesus 3 to light. That proved to be an ambitious workload, and an incredibly tiring 4 days of shooting. However, I have to hand it to our cast and crew. Everyone showed up, did their jobs, and had great attitudes. We got some amazing footage, and minus one technical glitch that has necessitated a "re-shoot" on June 12th, the weekend went without a hitch. The "Max Diablo's Tits-n-TacoRama" footage was incredibly fun to shoot, and looks excellent so far. Our boy Mikey Cordes (who is directing the StumbleMuse 48 for 2011) has already pieced together a 3 to 4 minute teaser trailer that we'll unveil this weekend at ConCarolinas. Excellent!

So, we wrapped about 85% of HPJ3 in one four day weekend, and have pickup shots scheduled for June 12th. We could make a 24 minute polished movie out of the current footage. We'll still need to do some flashback footage in July sometime, but the Inmates will be putting their karate chops on the footage. Jaysen and I are both very excited to see the newest installment of his obsession. With 1 part of the trilody "done" and 1 "in the can" awaiting editing, we are about 50% done with production of a feature length "grindhouse" movie. No matter what comes of my aspirations in cinema, even if I never make a dime, I'll always be proud of the Mad Ones. We are the ultimate grassroots film-making group. Tomorrow we go to Con Carolinas to screen the Missionary Man, and will also screen "Krampus" as part of the Film Fest. With a reshoot pending and the 48 scheduled later this month, the month of June is going to be Crazy.

I'm Ready for the 48, minus getting signatures for my music and location releases. Early bird registration ended last night, and there were 31 teams registered by then. That's a nice turnout, and there are always a few straggler teams who register closer to the competition. There's a ton of great film makers in Greensboro and someone invariably comes out of nowhere to charm the crowd. I would love for that to be us this year. I'm really excited for what I have dialed up with music, locations, actors, and crew. Hopefully, we'll draw some meaty genre that utilizes these ingredients nicely. If that happens, my crew will bust their ass, and we'll make a film that we're all proud of. If we do that within 48 hours, the rest will take care of itself.