The Spider That Could

I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts from KCRW, The Business, yesterday that talked about how Spiderman 3 might be the most expensive movie in history.

The Most Expensive Movie Ever Made

If you don't get to click on the link above, they key to the story, according to Radar Online is that Spidey 3 cost a whopping $500 MILLION DOLLARS. Yes, half a billion dollars.

Analysts speculate that this will mean great things for studios who have been itching to dump money into films, but have decided against it because they don't want to be looked on as the ones who started the trend.

Isn't that something? So there it is. Now, when a studio wants to spend $350 million on a film, they can say, "Hey, at least we're not spending $500."

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Where is it going?

I love to write. Screenplays took over my life about 10 years ago when I decided to try and write my first. It was a full feature length script about two brothers and a heist. I still think of rewriting it and sculpting off the rough edges. It has possibilities. But I so often become terrified that I'm not telling a real story.

There are just some movies that you can either tell where the story might take you or you can tell where the plot is going to end up. Is there a difference? Yeah, I'd say so. If you have an idea where the story might lead you, then you haven't been given all the information. It keeps you invested in what the characters are doing and you want to see how the story will develop. Are you wrong about Mrs. Hackenburger's involvement in the murder of Count DeMonay? Many movies make the tragic, and now seemingly formula, mistake of setting up the movie in the first 30 minutes and dragging you along until it's predictable end.

Like that piece of crap movie that my son and I saw, Hills Have Eyes 2. I let my son make that mistake. Will he make it again? Probably so, but not with his own money. That floating turd of a movie didn't even meet the previously stated requirement of taking 30 minutes to set up the gag we'd eventually be drug through. We already knew what it was about. It was about deformed, mutant people killing innocent, yet stupid, trespassers in visually horrific ways. The premise, hardly enough to be considered a plot, has been set. Insert gore and shock value. There should be a new category for movies like this. Because they don't fit in horror. Maybe just calling them gore. Not even good for a grindhouse type experience because they aren't slasher films.

I was recently on a website that I really enjoy called First Showing where I read a post about the site's creator/writer experience when he saw Disturbia. Seems he went to an art house cinema and found himself with a Dollar Movie nightmare. Here's the link: Film Projection Movie Quality.

Anyhow, it spurred me to find a review of Disturbia. Normally, I read a few of them, just to see what critics have to say. I don't live and die by a critic's review of a movie, but I do admit it has some bearing on whether or not I go see it. Most critics found that Disturbia, while well made and well paced, was a cinch to figure out after 30 minutes. Slated at 106 minutes running time, that leaves 76 minutes, not including the 4 to 6 minutes of credit time to basically try and get your seat's worth out of the 8 to 10 bucks you just plopped down to see it.

My wife wants to see the movie, so we'll most likely go. I actually still have some desire to see it, despite my belief that it's a mall-bunny adaptation of Rear Window. You never really know until you go and see it, you know?

I've spent the last week thinking about how critical the writing process is. About how there are some people out there who don't just want to be given the entire story. About the real movie experience that my kids and even people my age, never got or don't remember. About what a real movie, despite how crappy the production value or shitty the acting, can bring.

I remember lobby cards and murals and the big to-do that meant you were at the movies. I remember drive-ins, the first 3D movies and when a bucket of popcorn cost $1.25. But I remember when a story was what you got when you saw a movie. Not a set-up. And they use millions of dollars to do it.

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Stalled

Well, after my bid for The Lot was nixed, I feel I have stalled out. My resolve has failed me. My fire isn't dead, but I've just been lax in my work ethic.

My road picture isn't moving at all. I think I may put the breaks on that one until I can come back to it. I might end up reshooting everything. I don't know. Feels like it needs another tweak.

I have two other projects, maybe even four, that I can work on. Two of them are done and can be shot in one location and be wrapped in a day or two. There's another that will take some traveling to find just the right location, but that's not really complicated and could be shot in a week, spaced out over a period of about two months.

Writing I don't ever stop. I write all the time. I just need to get moving on my next project. I feel like I'm getting rusty as we speak.

I'm going to try and shoot something on my own, I think. Something to see if I can just write a story on the spot and film it with my Panasonic.

I need to move.

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Vindication

Martin Scorsese has finally won an Oscar!!!! I was nearly at the brink of tears watching him step up there and hold the statue in his hand.

If it hadn't been for the fact that I was at work, I would have cried. I still may.

My wife called me as Marty took the stage.

TONYA: Are you watching?
ME: Yes.
TONYA: When I heard them say his name, I thought, 'Oh, my God, he's going to be so excited.'

And I was. I am.

And while I know that it wasn't an Oscar for Gangs of New York, Goodfellas, Casino, Raging Bull, Taxi Driver or any of the other wonderful films this man has given to the world, the Oscar is well deserved.

If they had tried to play him off stage, I would have been forced to catch a red eye down to LA and personally beat the crap out of every one of the musicians in the orchestra pit. But I think Jack Nicholson, MarkWahlberg and Leonardo DiCaprio would have already jumped in there to defend Marty's honor.

I'll post a picture of Marty with his Oscar just as soon as I can. I know it will be around the net, but damn it, it's gonna be on my blog!!!

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Get Busy

The Lot project taught me something important about telling a story. Especially with it being under 5 minutes. Be quick about it. I guess that's the thing about editing that I'm still getting use to. I get lots of coverage for safety's sake, but I don't have to use every bleedin' second of it. Sometimes less is more. Particularly when you're shackled by time constraints.

Thankfully, the project I'm returning to, my "road" picture, leaves me some room to breathe. I think the weather will cooperate well enough for me to start back up with production. We don't have a great deal more to shoot for that project, so I'm hoping to be done with it in a couple of weeks. I say "couple of weeks" meaning four days tops.

My brother is working on a Motion version of the production company logo. An animated version of the atom above the company name. I think what I have is actually not bad, but I'd love to have a spicy version of for subsequent films.

I'm also working on a script that one of my other brothers, Lyon, and I had spun while we were at the Austin Film Festival a few years ago. It a comedy about the film business that we started brainstorming on one night. I've been working on it now for three years and I think it's come into fruition. I'm hoping to have it ready for contest in October for submission at the Austin Film Festival.

There are so many other projects that I have lined up after I finish this next film. One I wrote with hopes to enter it The Lot and another that my buddy, Greg, is working on. The Greg collaboration has such great potential; it's a drama about the Iraq war. Greg really has a good handle on dialogue and description that I feel we can really sink our teeth into that one and make it strong.

I'm trying my best to keep my momentum going from film to film. With my new schedule coming up next week, it will be interesting to see just how I'm gonna get it all done.

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Last Minute

I'm way behind. I should have gotten that damn short for The Lot done a long time ago.

I helped Hank get his entry onto DVD on Tuesday night. It was edited, but he needed to get his intro dumped into my machine and he wanted my opinion on the two clips he had for submission.

I had already seen both of them at a small film viewing that my friend Eric had put on at a local pizza place. I don't think I knew they were Hank's clips. Both are part of a larger work he said he sort of slapped togehter.

I should have started this short sooner. I've been going through a few more films on The Lot and I have to say, they have far greater production value. At least they seem to. There was a guy who only had one set, if I'm not mistaken. It was shot nicely, but it was missing something.

Ugh, I'm getting off track. I'm going to sit down tonight, a big bottle of water by the trackball and my new Sony headphones strapped to my head to finish this off and upload it to the site. Then I've got to get my paperwork done, burn the DVD and sent it all in.

I know I don't stand a chance in Hell, but I'm gonna try it. This will mark my second film contest. IFMASA's film showcase last year was my first. This, however, is something of greater proportions.

As soon as this is in the can, off we go, back to the film I was making before all this madness began. On the road again.

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A Lot of Feelings about The Lot

I've viewed a few entries on The Lot's website. I have to say, some of them are high quality. By that I mean that they've spent a few dollars on equipment and their production value is high. I've seen others that are just as good and they seem to have almost no budget.

While I don't have a doubt about how talented some of these higher end indie filmmakers are, their films lead me to one question: how underdog are these contestants for this reality TV show going to be?

I mean, if you've got the ability to not only come up with recognizable film props (one film used the DeLorean from Back To The Future), does that make you a more viable candidate for the show? Or are they looking to see if you can make do with almost nothing and turn that raw talent into a film? I definitely have the latter. I've got all kinds of ideas that I think would make great shorts and can pull them off on a zero budget. Well, almost zero, but you get the idea.

I'm worried that projects like mine will be overshadowed by outfits who have great cameras and great sets and a sharper look and feel. Still, I think that with the great performances we have and the fairly decent story, it might fair up well.

Taking a positive approach to all this is definitely the way I need to go. Regardless of how I fair up, I've done a great job and I feel great about it. My skills will only improve and one day I'll be playing in the major leagues. That's all there is to it.

Right now, my other thought about The Lot is whether or not I'll have time to shoot another project. One of the three projects that I wrote for The Lot is a cast intensive one that could, potentially, be shot in one evening. Sixteen people with a line or three in one house.

I've spoken to my wife, Hank and a few others about the possibility of trying to shoot this script Saturday night. But I have my reservations about it. I have to cast sixteen parts tomorrow and film the next day. Sounds tough, doesn't it? I could be. Or it could be the greatest film ever made. Well, okay, maybe it's just a tough shoot.

I guess we'll find out tonight when I begin editing the first short. I hope we can pull the second film off.

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The Lot Shoot, Day 2: A Quiet Evening At Home

I like shooting in closed sets. The controlled atmosphere gives me a little more room to think.

We shot last night at Christopher & Monica's apartment. Monica, Chris' girlfriend, played the part of his...girlfriend. Yes, it was a stretch for her.

We had only planned on shooting a couple of hours, but it quickly stretched to about four hours and change. I enjoy working with Hank, my DP, for several reasons. One, he's really good about working on the fly. With no storyboards or pre-visualizations, we can usually end up on the same page as far as the look and feel of a shot. Two, he's doesn't take the first shot he frames up. He likes to move around and look at the shot from all angles. He's a joy to work with.

Given that the shoot was so impromptu, Monica had a little trouble getting started. I had cast Christopher a while back and he's usually really good about learning his lines. Her role was up in the air for a while, so it was natural for her to stumble a little through the lines. To her credit, she did a great job of getting through it. Looking at the script last night, I kinda made a few sections a bit harder than they should have been. Some parts seemed to be similar and I think that's what caused the problem. But she was impressive in her delivery, especially at the part of the script where she had to be more expressive with her body language and her eyes.

I realized when I got home that we missed one shot, but I don't think it's going to hurt the finished product. If nothing else, it will give me a little extra time I can use to make it really pop.

I begin editing tonight and will look for music as well. Another Chris, a friend from Arkansas, gave me permission to use his band's music for another project, so I may look through the material he's given me to see if it's possible to use one of Blind Punch's songs for the end credits.

I feel good about this shoot. I think it's got a lot of potential. I need to be mindful of letting it lag too much, a mistake that I made with my first offering, "A Matter of Time."

This project has unexpectedly become my sophomore offering, so I have to be sure it's not just gonna cut the mustard for The Lot, but that it shows I'm not a complete hack.

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New Shoot, Day 1: I Can See For Miles and Miles and Miles...

ITS WHO YOU KNOW
My buddy Theo knows a few people in town. So I asked him to help me find a building we could use for my TheLot.com project. He came through with flying colors.

I was put in contact with a guy named Laurence, who is part of a real estate brokerage firm here in San Antonio. His firm has quite a few buildings in the downtown area and agreed to let us come on one of their properties to film our movie. At first, we assumed that it would be like pulling teeth to get access to a rooftop in downtown San Antonio, but Laurence was incredibly helpful and worked well with us.

We had originally selected a more modern building adjacent to the property management company's offices, but when we met with Laurence, he gave us a tour of his building. It worked out much better than I had thought it would. So we signed off on the liability release and set up a time to come shoot.

UP UP IN THE SKY
We got there a bit early to block the shots and to make sure that we gave the crew the same safety precautions that Laurence had given Hank and I.

We had scheduled a block of 4 hours to shoot and managed to finish with 45 minutes to spare. Hank makes my job so much easier. He's been my DP for the last 2 films. We work well together. Admittedly, I'm not as knowledgeable as I should be about f-stops and camera tech. Hank doesn't mind answering my questions. He's full of great ideas too.

The actor, Christopher, is also working on another film with me. I've posted stuff about it on this blog. He's very professional and insightful. He likes to explore stuff about his character and takes direction very well. I enjoy working with him.

Along with some last minute crew, my son, Terrance, another actor, Raven & Christopher's girlfriend, Monica, we went through and knocked out the shoot with very few problems.

On one of the last shots of the day, we had to walk over to Travis Park and film our actor from the ground. It was about a block away and we'd watch him looking over the edge of our building. While we were standing there, setting up, a guy walked up to us and looking for another production company. Turns out another indie film group shooting a love story in the park that day, not too far from where we were. Their director, Greg, came over to say hello when they saw Hank.

After we walked by to the building, we set up our last shot and wrapped for the day.

It was a fun shoot and it seemed to go by very fast. I love this job.

Our next shoot will wrap this movie and we'll move on to the second project for TheLot.com. I can't wait.

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A New Year

Well, it's been some time since my last post, so I guess I better get on with it.

ALMOST GOT IT
The Bar Trilogy, that ever present script in the back of my head, is still far from my grasp.

I don't know what it is about that storyline that just evades capture. I started casting and before I knew it, I turned to find the movies had escaped. Its a hard bunch of movies to cast, not just in terms of volume, but of the types of characters I want. I have to find very specific personalities. The format for each film has also been troubling. My 30 minute films turned into 45 and then into 90 before the first script had even reached 20 pages. Now I'm dabbling with the idea of making them all 25 minutes a piece and piecing together some segue to make them all one, feature length movie.

Either way, I don't think we'll see these fully realized for some time. It makes me sad, but I'm also happy I didn't compromise myself just to get them out.

ROLLING THUNDER
The film I started in December is still in production. I just edited the first four minutes and it shows a lot of promise. I think when we finally finish it, it's going to be very good. I've got two great actors who are doing such a good job that it can't go wrong.

We put the breaks on production for the holidays and after that, the weather decided to have some fun with us. I think we'll end up finishing it late in February. Fortunately, it won't be too late for some local film festivals. And it will definitely be ready for some later festivals this year.

SWEET SIXTEEN
I've registered with The Lot and hope to put up a good couple of projects. You can click on the link to see more, but in case you just want the lowdown. Fox is putting together a reality-type show where 16 underdog filmmakers compete for a million dollar development deal with Dreamworks. Steven Spielberg is involved and its very exciting.

I've spun two new projects special for the contest. Two five minute shorts that will hopefully showcase a little of what I've learned. One is kind of a dark love story and the other is a big ensemble piece featuring a nasty habit. What am I talking about? You'll see.

I've been watching some offerings on the site and am a little nervous. Some of these people have gigantic crews and all kinds of expensive props and equipment. Not to mention special effects and all sorts of eye candy. What I have noticed is that some of these directors aren't really playing with their real talents. I mean, there's some great stuff out there, really original stuff. But some of these guys are just regurgitating what so many others have spit up before them. I know some of my ideas aren't 100% original, but I think that I've got something real to offer. Something that was born of a love that has never been compromised and has never faltered. I love movies. And all I want is to make one kid, just one kid, feel the same way I did when I was a youngster, digging myself into a movie seat hoping to get lost for a couple of hours. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe they all feel the same way. Maybe I'm not the only one. But sometimes you can tell from what you're watching that there's skill, lots of talent, but lack of love.

I'll be shooting this weekend and next weekend and editing and scoring in between. Here goes nothing.

PARTNERS IN CRIME
I've recently started another collaboration. I had started writing a script with a fellow director, Eric, whom I haven't really spoken to in a while. I've still got the script in working condition, but I've been so busy with other stuff that I haven't gotten back at it.

When I decided to throw my hat in the ring for The Lot, I called on a fellow writer, Greg, to help me with an idea I had planned to shoot for The Lot. It was a short about a kid going to Iraq. I thought it would be timely and powerful, but feared I was biting off more than I could chew by writing four shorts. So I handed it off to Greg and he ran with it. What resulted was better than I could have imagined. He wrote a story with great characters, detailed scenes and real feeling. I told him to keep writing, even if it went past five pages. I feel like it's gonna be something good. Something that will not just showcase his writing ability, but that I can sink my teeth into as a director. We're gonna sit down again when he's gotten more writing in, but what he's got right now is gold. I hope we can get it done in April, it won't take us long. One set and a handful of actors. I think he's definitely got talent. He let me read a few of his other works and they're just as good. I don't think he sees it, though. But I hope I can help him in any way I can.

I'd been reticent about getting into collaborations, but I feel like the people I've gotten to work with are genuine and more importantly, friends. I hope I don't get proven wrong. I'm just trying to be a realist about it all.

GUTS
I've got a lot of scripts planned for this year. I made it my New Years resolution to sell one. Just one. I figure that if I write my ass off this year, I can sell just one. I'm not going to quit my job and start planning my Oscar speech if I do, but I'll certainly write more.

I'm at a point in my life, with this, that I want more than anything to finally do all those things I swore I would do when I was 20. I want to write movies. I want to direct them. I think I've started to succeed already. I can call myself a director. I can call myself a writer. I've got one project out there with my name plastered on it that proves I've got the mettle. Now I just have to finish what I started. I'll be honest. I'm scared. But I've been told I've got talent and I know I have heart.

This is my year. Hope you come along for the ride.

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Thank God For No Budget

Well, once again, the bar trilogy eludes me.

I found out, yesterday, that my schedule at work will change come next year. I expected it to happen. I mean, I expected there to be a shake up eventually. I just didn't figure it would be as bad as what I was told.

So, having given it some time to sink in, I've come to the conclusion that I have to postpone the bar trilogy until after my schedule change, which will come sometime in January.

I had to tell most of the people who I recruited for the project and hope that they understand. Fortunately, they did.

What hasn't changed is my work on my current project. In fact, I think it's given it greater life and power. It started as 15 minutes, grew to 20 and is now inching to 30. I have a great feeling about it and I hope that the cast & crew does too. With more time to fine tune the bar trilogy, I'll also have more time to dedicate to my current film.

I'm glad I don't have a budget or a studio to answer to. This would be a fucking mess.

One door closes, one door opens.

The chase for the bar trilogy continues...

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Day 1: Play It Again, Sam

Our first day of reshoots for the car film went off fantastic.

Both Chris and Mike gave me lots of great footage to work with. And with Hank behind the camera, it really gave me a chance to work with the actors. My all purpose hand, Greg, was also key to putting it all together.

We called the cops this time and let them know we were shooting. Our weapon is now black and glossy, so it will most definitely attract attention. And not the good kind.

With Hank doing the cinematography, this film is going to look fantastic.

Even if I wanted to, there was really nothing bad to say about the night. With both our actors on top of their lines, we only needed to tweak the motivations behind them. This made the shoot go much, much, much faster.

The next shooting day might not be until Dec. 9th, but even if it work out we can shoot beforehand, the film is gonna be great.

The first photo is of the car, through the XL1's eye piece. Below it, Christopher persuades Mike to do his bidding. The last photo is of Hank and Greg between takes.

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Reloaded & Rehearsed

After a couple of weeks off from shooting my latest project, I recast a role and have gotten back on track. With a vengeance.

Christopher, an actor who will be working with me on my bar trilogy, has come on to take over the car jacker role for the gritty little drama I wrote. He's a talented guy who came in script in hand and ready to read. I can still see some fine tuning is needed to get the same feeling we had with Quinn. Tonya, my wife, pointed out that Chris didn't seem unsure. In fact, his interpretation was a little to polished. We both agreed that what made Quinn's performance stand out was that the shaky, unsure performance he delivered wasn't contrived. It was real. He didn't have the script memorized, he couldn't get in character and he was just generally unsure.

Thankfully, Chris takes direction well and has a real strong work ethic. He's turning himself over for the first installment for the bar trilogy out right. I have a great feeling about this guy.

Chris is the guy to the left. Mike, his victim, is on the right.

We're on the road again!

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Lending A Hand

Tonya and I went to help another film maker Saturday. It was really interesting.

I hadn't read the script, but I managed to jump right in there. Theo was helping a first time director, Hope, shoot a sequence in a car lot.

It was a great experience, helping someone else do their film. I even managed to chip in an idea or three along the way.

It felt really good to get out there and help someone else achieve their dream.

That's Theo and Hope, above, reading through the script as Hank prepared the camera.

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Lost Another Great One

Robert Altman, one of the most unique voices in film history, died November 20th. He was 81 years old.

Altman directed "M.A.S.H.", "The Player", "Short Cuts", and "Nashville", among many. I think my first introduction to Altman was with "M.A.S.H" and later "Nashville."

I remember watching "The Player" and being blown away by it. I don't know if it was the direction or the acting or the editing, but it was so smooth.

"M.A.S.H." was so fucking good. There was so much missing when it changed format and ended up on the boob tube. I like the series, but it was nothing like the movie.

He will be missed.

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Gotta Do What You Gotta Do

I've never had to "fire" someone. Not that I recollect. But yesterday, I released Quinn from his obligations to my film.

It was tough because I really do think the guy has some talent, but as I told him last night on the phone, I think I caught him at the wrong time. I believe, in all honesty, that he's got some real talent, but he still needs to find himself. To get in touch with his roots. He's incomplete and I think that's hurting him right now.

So, I spoke to the others and let them know, before I spoke to Quinn, about my intentions. My wife was surprised that I went through with it. I kind of am too. But I made my decision, as I told Quinn, for the good of the film.

I made a call early yesterday to line up another audition. A guy who had previously expressed interest and who I was lining up for December's project. I'm hoping that after Christopher, the new audition, we won't have to look anymore.

Of course, that means that I'll have to recast his sister. Ugh.

All this movement has prompted me to push back my start date for the next project by nearly two weeks. I figure that with the extra time, I can get pick up shots and any additional material. I hope that's enough time.

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Day 2: On The Road

We managed to go back and reshoot the walking scene with Mike. I may have not mentioned it before, but he looked like he'd just committed a crime in the first run from the previous night.

We went back and reshot it with the help of Theo, his daughter and my old garage sale wheel chair. The shot looked much better with the wheel chair as a dolly.

While we did that, I had a new crew member, Greg, come in and work with Quinn as script supervisor. He helped him rehearse while we got the leftovers done.

Then we took the last couple of shots of the pair driving out before heading to the location of the end sequence.

We took out time blocking things out and working out the lines to conserve battery time since I DIDN'T CHARGE MY CAMERA and all we had was Hank's. My camera, which seems prone to failure from time to time, was finally working and I didn't have it charged. Ugh.

Still we went through it as best we could. The location was underneath a freeway exchange blocks down the first location. Lots of freeway support columns, dirt and darkness. Too much darkness. We had a bitch of a time lighting the actors. The camera kept trying to adjust and several times, I had to call cut because everything was out of focus.

Quinn was working much better, but still asked a million questions and offered a thousand a apologies. He managed to get through the night with very few serious flubs and fewer excuses.

Along the way, we managed to come to our first really cool story of the shoot. Almost getting shot by cops.

This marks the second occasion that armed, police officers have halted things during a shoot.

Theo saw the cop car from Broadway. It had the spotlight on and was scanning us. When he came around from the N. Alamo side of our location, he had a friend and was how flooding the area with lots of blinding, white light.

Theo says, "Damn, we need to see if they'll let us borrow that light." We laughed.

The lead officer walked up to us and drew his gun. He kept it behind him, but we could see it. His partner had unsnapped his holster and had his hand on his weapon.

We were told to sit down on the floor.

Officer 1: What are ya'll doing here?
Theo: Filming a movie. (chuckles)
Officer 1: You all got a permit for that?
Me: I didn't know we needed one.
Theo: (chuckling) We're just filming a movie.
Officer 2: (to Theo) You think this is funny?
Officer 1: (to me) Put the camera down.
Me: Sure.
Officer: We got a call that someone had a gun. Is there a toy gun around here?
Mike: It's in the car.

I put the camera on the top of the car and went back to take my seat. Quinn had been laying down on the ground, playing the victim and was now sitting up and had his hands raised. So did Greg. Theo was still chuckling. The first cop went to the car and searched for the gun. Satisfied that it was fake, he returned to our impromptu line up.

Officer 2: This isn't funny. Someone could get hurt.
Officer 1: What are ya'll filming a movie for?
Me: For contest.
Officer 1: Alright, let's see some ID's.
Theo: (offering the script) Wanna read the script?

So, with that, we were told to notify them of our activities and we proceeded to finish up the last shot of the film.

Looking at the dailies, I'm not happy. We had lots of light and camera issues. It was quite frustrating. Not to mention that Quinn still wasn't on the mark. His blank expression came right through his mask. Never mind that he didn't know where to look when Mike wasn't at his mark.

Right now, I'm wondering when this film will get done and if a certain actor will be around to play his part. The wife suggests I reshoot everything with Hank, but I'm not sure when he'll be free. Never mind that "CODE" is coming up in just a couple of weeks. I still have so much to do for that.

I have to make some tough choices here in the next day or two.

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Day 1: First Night

I'd like to say that everything about the first night of filming went fantastic and that we got a lot done.

The reality of the matter is that we had camera issues and actor issues.

Quinn, the actor who had promised to give me his best performances and a great work ethic, launched into apologized and stumbled over lines and stopped takes several times to inform me that he could do better.

Thanks to Hank, we had a camera. But, as he'd informed me when he gave it to me, he wasn't entirely sure what the life of the battery would be. Once camera batteries get old, they're ability to hold a charge just isn't the same. We managed to get two good takes from inside the car.

Having watched dailies, I went from angry to frustrated to feeling triumphant for getting two great takes in a four hour shoot. Two.

Once Quinn gets going, I think he's right on the money. But if I have to wait that long to get him going, there might not be a place for him in this film. And then I'll really be pissed.

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Happiness Is A Warm Gun

I spent the latter part of the afternoon painting a gun. With interior latex paint. Yes, house paint, you heard me.

Earlier that day, Tonya and I watched dailies from the previous night's rehearsal.

I've never really done rehearsal. Not for movie stuff. I remember doing it when I was an actor in junior high. It has to help. It just has to. Last night's events left me a little frustrated.

Quinn, the young kid whom I saved a really important role for, was ill or uncomfortable or I don't know what all through last night's lines. He started off well, but quickly took a turn for the worst.

He struggled all night with his material. He was unprepared. Thing is, I know he can do it, he just needs to convince himself. He mumbled. He stuttered. He apologized. He repeated.

For a brief moment, I was unsatisfied enough to call in a backup. Tonya and I talked about it. He would simply be notified of this.

I called him early in the morning and let him know, in no uncertain terms, that I had made concessions for him to be in the film and that if his performance didn't improve, he would be replaced.

I have a really good feeling about this film. Despite the slap-dash way I'm throwing it all together, I think it has a lot going for it.

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Rehearsals, Day 1

We had a good, but short, rehearsal last night. At least it seemed short to me. Still, it was productive and I think that both Quinn (left, black shirt) and Mike understand more of the motivations their characters.

Hank, who I had lined up for cinematography, wasn't able to shoot this for me, but he did lend me his 1 CCD camera to shoot it myself. So, camera crisis is over. My camera is still in working order, for the moment, so I'm going to devise a way to use it, for as long as it's not glitchey.

Quinn has read very well. I have, and continue, to have a good feeling about him. When he reads, he picks up on little nuances and inflections that I've put into his lines. I expected that from Mike and he's come through. Mike has a very good work ethic. He likes to get his hands dirty and get in there to work out prop problems or anything that might come along.

This being my first real rehearsal since "Time", it's going to take some getting use to as far as letting the actors take the reins and read without any serious direction from my end. I have to tell myself, "They're not fully into the script. They're just rehearsing. Can't distract them from the lines. At least, not yet."

I think everything is going to work out well. Better even. As my sophomore offering, The Road has a lot riding on it. And most of it is for me.

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