AZ FILMMAKER Jan/Feb 2015
VOL. 2 ISSUE 1
THE X-MEN’S
BOOBOO STEWART ON THE
WARPATH
JEROME
FILM FESTIVAL
VOYAGE
TREKKERS the motion picture
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CONTENTS
AZ FILMMAKER AZ FILMMAKER 6
20
FILM SCHOOL ADVENTURE
OH, THE HORROR INSIDE THE MIND OF ROZE
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24
10
28
A WRITER’S JOURNEY
KNOWING THE SCORE
CONTRIBUTORS
CAST OUT ONTO EARTH
MORE POTAGON PLEASE
Dina Ide Brad Blane Helise Stamos
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WHAT’S THE PLAN STAN?
INQUIRIES AND SUBMISSIONS photoaddict@mac.com
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16
BOOBOO STEWART ON THE WARPATH
20
NOTICE Dina Ide edited content in the last issue and wasn’t mentioned. We’re sorry for the Omission 4 AZ FILMMAKER
(in order of appearance) Anthony Eid Scott Haskin Sean Kearnes Lynette Carrington Marcelo Dietrich Nicholas Spake Joseph D. Becker Holly Foreman Kel Stone II
PROOF READERS
DEADLY SANCTUARY
FRIDAY THE 13TH PART 3
PUBLISHER
Joseph D. Becker
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ARIZONA FILMMAKER MAGAZINE, LLC
Crevice Entertainment & NoWayOut Films MovieMaker Magazine Brother’s Ink Debbie Jennings Broadcast Rentals Character Crush Mi Amor Tires Dominic’s Auto Repair Stewart Brodian AZ Filmmaker Magazine David Ayres Nandar Entertainment Once Upon a Dream LLC Lightray Studios
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JOE’SCORNER
HELPFUL LINKS
YOU WILL FIND HELPFUL LINKS HERE AND THROUGHOUT THE MAGAZINE I like to think we’re providing good information on the tools, techniques, art and science of filmmaking. What I don’t know is the impact we’re having on the film community. I hope you’re reading the articles and applying what you learn. Here are some more resources for you. It’s up to you what you do with them. Remember, we do this for you. We hope you’ll make the best of it. Leave us some feedback. Arizona Filmmaker Magazine on Facebook http://facebook.com/azfilmmaker support SB1170 https://www.facebook.com/AZFilmNOW Arizona Filmmaker Magazine Online http://arizonafilmmakermagzine.com Arizona Filmmaker Magazine on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/AZfilmmaker Arizona Film Festivals http://phoenix.gov/econdev/filmphx/filmfestivals.html Arizona Crew Notices https://www.facebook.com/groups/1401465983403954 Arizona Actors https://www.facebook.com/groups/201645389874585 Arizona Film Crews https://www.facebook.com/groups/arizonafilmmakers The Arizona L.A. Film Connection https://www.facebook.com/groups/308838632561482 Rebel Filmmaker AZ https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rebel-FilmmakerAZ/342909125168 Phoenix Independent Filmmakers Group https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Phoenix-Independent-FilmMakers-Group-PIFMG/235489330905 Filmmaker.com http://filmmaker.com Rebel Filmmaker AZ https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rebel-FilmmakerAZ/342909125168 Phoenix Independent Filmmakers Group https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Phoenix-Independent-FilmMakers-Group-PIFMG/235489330905 Film Riot http://revision3.com/filmriot No Film School http://nofilmschool.com Crowd Funding for Indie Films http://Indiecrowdfunder.com Arizona Filmmaker Magazine
TEN BIG REASONS ARIZONA NEEDS AN ARIZONA FILM OFFICE JOBS More production means more High Wage Jobs for a workforce across the state STATEWIDE ECONOMIC IMPACT Tucson and Phoenix facilitate, on average, over 100 projects a year that leave millions of dollars in their regions. With a state film office, other cities, counties and rural communities would also benefit. ROI: TAX REVENUE GENERATOR Nearly every state and local tax is paid by a film company while filming here – income taxes, sales taxes, hotel and car rental, gas taxes, and more. SMALL BUSINESS While on location, film, TV and commercial productions spend much of their location budgets with local vendors. TOURISM A successful film or TV series can be the biggest billboard a state can have. OPEN FOR BUSINESS Without a state film office, studios and production companies assume Arizona is not open for business and go elsewhere. EDUCATION AND NETWORKING Film students at our state universities and community colleges would have more access to internships, jobs and vital connections to industry professionals. They may not have to leave the state to pursue careers RECESSION PROOF Film, TV and commercial production goes on even in a down economy. INDUSTRY WANTS TO BE HERE Arizona’s proximity to Los Angeles and the incredible diversity of our locations make Arizona a highly desirable place to film. REVIVES ARIZONA’S FILM LEGACY Arizona has a rich history in the film world. Let’s not let it end. From the Tucson Film Office
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AZ FILMMAKER 5
FILMSTUDENTS AWARDSEASON
THE FILM SCHOOL ADVENTURE By: Anthony Eid
Just like most people, I was always confused on what I wanted to do for a career growing up. My life took many turns and one of them led to the military. While I was in the Army I saw many things that most people, hopefully, will only ever see in movies. This got me to indulge in the idea of filmmaking. I have always enjoyed movies, television, and music videos. I decided to go to college for filmmaking and soon realized I was in for a ride that I hadn’t buckled up for. If I could compare film school and being a film student to anything; there would be no one thing. It’s a mix of an uneducated hierarchy, medieval loyalties, and high school gossip all rolled into one building with less than 50 people. That is just the students. The teachers, for the most part, were helpful, supportive, and sometimes more critical than a student would have originally foreseen. Students came into the school with different amounts of knowledge. Some students didn’t even realize there were lighting set ups for scenes. Others came in bolstering their personal resumes and accomplishments before film school. Then there were those, like me, that had a concept of what was going on, but were eager to learn more. No one told us the learning part would ruin films for us. As eager students, even those that knew more than others, we all became major film critics. We could tell when lights were in the shot, or audio was off. ADR became more apparent than any average moviegoer would ever want to realize. We could see the reflections of lights in people’s eyes and 180 jumps that occurred in a lot of blockbuster films. We all noticed these things in movies we watched, but we couldn’t catch our own mistakes in the films we were making. Our films turned out like home videos recorded with last year’s Smartphone. This changed for some of us during our terms in college, but for others, it was apparent it didn’t stick.
competitive. I’ve watched friendships end, because others wanted to excel regardless of the cost. This is an attitude that can be found throughout the film world with aspiring filmmakers. There was the attitude within some though that was to work together. Films are a collaborative effort and aren’t done by a single person, in most successful cases. As a film student I learned that there were many roles that I never paid attention to as the credits scrolled by. I dabbled in multiple areas to see which one I would attempt to master and those I’d try to find other people to do. As I progressed through school I drifted more towards the creative side of filmmaking and further from the technical side. This is when I realized even though some people wanted to do everything I wanted to thrive in writing. I always enjoyed writing and my experiences in school helped me to see I enjoy screenwriting as well. My personal growth, as well as others, was documented throughout school without ever realizing it. It was apparent as our knowledge of film and moviemaking grew, so too did our productions and the effort put into each project. I personally shot a video with a handheld camera with me as the main star, in front of a refrigerator when I started. When my time in film school ended I had a short film with establishing shots, actual actors, and a meaningful story. This led me to the realization that film is a visual art piece that speaks to the audience. Films are hard work and if done right can leave an audience with a new memory, a smile, or just a new appreciation for a story. My time in film school was an adventure that could be a movie all in itself. There were a lot of rough times with competitive students, dysfunctional group projects, and last minute edits, but I wouldn’t trade any of that for the world. Well, I could possibly trade it for a movie deal with a contract.
Everyone that wanted to make films was 6 AZ FILMMAKER
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RESOURCES FILM FESTIVALS http://azundergroundfilmfest.com http://azstudentfilmfestival.com http://filmfestivalarizona.com http://thea3f.net http://ifpphx.org http://horrorscifi.com http://jeromefilmfestival.com http://northernarizonastudentfilmfest. weebly.com http://phoenixfilmfestival.com http://prescottfilmfestival.com http://scottsdalefilmfestival.com http://sedonafilmfestival.org http://tucsonfilmandmusicfestival.com http://yumafilmfestival.com
FILM ORGANIZSATIONS http://azfilmandmedia.org/afmc http://azproduction.com http://film-in-arizona.com http://iatse-336.org http://ifpphx.org http://phoenixfilmfestival.com http://phxfilmsociety.com http://sagaftra.org http://zonie.com
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AZ FILMMAKER 7
FILMSTUDENTS AWARDSEASON
A Writer’s Journey By: Anthony Eid
Tony scribbles on a napkin. Other crumbled and folded napkins lay around him. A grilled cheese sits beside him with a glass of milk. Only a single bite is taken out of the sandwich. The napkin reads, “Red hair, pretty smile, pencil.” A red head female watches Tony writing from across the room.
Tony’s fingers gripping the phone, he questions, “Abby?” The redhead moves her hand from her mouth and smiles back at Tony.
“This isn’t what I ordered, “ is argued from another table. “I can’t believe you!“ A woman smacks the man she’s with and storms out of the restaurant. Tony ignores everyone around him. His waitress sets down the check without saying a word. Tony pulls out some cash ignoring the receipt. He puts down a twenty and leaves with all of the napkins
filling his pockets. Some fall out, but he insures he doesn’t lose a single one. He frantically grabs at them as people walk by. He pushes them out of the way so he wouldn’t miss a single one. The red head follows him with a pen and paper in her hands. She doesn’t say a word and no one seems to notice her. He gets on the bus dropping his coins in the slot without looking up. The redhead just follows behind with no change exiting her pockets. The bus driver doesn’t say a word. Tony pulls out his phone and types into a notepad. More 8 AZ FILMMAKER
jumbled words. He sits down with the redhead sitting directly across from him. No one else occupies any other seat. She looks out the window with a smile on her face. She still holds tightly the pen and paper, but hasn’t written a word. Tony reaches his destination and exits the bus. The redhead gets off the bus as well. The bus driver also exits the bus, leaving it on the side of the street. Tony is still typing on his phone. Both people follow directly behind him. Tony continues on towards his apartment door. As he reaches the door he stops. He smacks head first into an invisible wall. He tries walking forward again. He bangs his head into the wall again. This happens multiple times before he stops. The red head and the bus driver stare at him with confused smiles on their face. They don’t attempt to step past Tony through the invisible wall. Tony bangs his fist against the invisible wall and drops his phone with anger. The other two stare at each other. Their smiles fade as they see the frustration building in Tony. He pounds and kicks at the invisible wall without it giving an inch. The red head opens her mouth to say something, but nothing comes out. She grabs her mouth in shock almost dropping her writing utensils. Tony stops his banging on the wall and relaxes. He stares at the wall for a second and picks up the phone. He turns back towards the red head.
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
Tony nods and turns back towards the way he was walking. The other two follow suit on his heels. Tony walks into his apartment without notice of the invisible wall ever existing. Everyone enters Tony’s living room and takes a seat. The bus driver and red head sit on the couch watching Tony’s every move. Tony sits at his desk with the blank computer screen in front of him. The napkins that were originally in his pockets, now lay on his desktop. He stops typing on his phone and sets it down. Tony stops before he touches the keyboard and reaches over to grab the glass of milk off the desk. He takes a sip. He leaves the grilled cheese, with only one bite taken out of it, for later. Tony places his wrists on the desk and slowly sets his hands to the keys of the keyboard. The bus driver and red head smile as they watch. Tony types, A Writer’s Journey. The redhead writes the same thing in her note pad. The bus driver tips his hat as he exits the apartment. The red head smiles as she writes in her notepad and Tony frantically types away on the computer.
Locker 13 is a thriller anthology feature film, in the style of ‘The Twilight
Zone’, revolving around a mysterious locker 13. It’s the story of Skip (Jason Spisak, Piranha), a young ex-convict who takes a position as a night janitor at an old-west theme park. His supervisor Archie (Jon Gries, Napoleon Dynamite), teaches him the ropes, but more importantly attempts to convey critical philosophical messages through a series of four stories: a down and out boxer (Ricky Schroder, NYPD Blue, Silver Spoons, The Champ) is given the opportunity to become a real golden gloves killer; an assassin (Rick Hoffman, Suits, Battleship) kidnaps three people in order to find out who hired him for his latest hit; a new recruit (Bart Johnson, High School Musical) is initiated into a lodge of fezwearing businessmen where hazing can take a malevolent turn; and a member of a suicide club (Jason Marsden, Boy Meets World, White Squall) introduces real fear into a man about to jump to his death. The four stories suddenly come into play when Skip is faced with a life-or-death decision of his own.
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All Rights Reserved Copyright 2014 Brothers’ Ink Productions
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
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POSTPRODUCTION
Knowing the Score
The Power of Music in Film by Scott Haskin
On the screen, you see the vastness of the water. Three barrels pop up and start rushing towards you. You know something is coming. Then you begin to see the tip of the dorsal fin appear. The shark is coming for you. Faster and faster. Closer and closer. What do you hear in your head, the deep, rich, low register sound of a string being bowed? Duh-Da… Duh-Da… Duh-Da-Duh-Da… Of course you do. Why? Because that is the theme of the shark. The theme John Williams programmed us to hear so we would know when it was coming to get us. In Star Wars, Episode IV: A New Hope, when the long renewed battle between Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi ends, it might look like a Criss Angel magic trick. Fortunately, the music swelled up and told us what really just happened. It told us why young Luke Skywalker reacted the way he did. More importantly, it made us feel what happened at that moment and the emotion Luke carried with him as he hurried into the ship. Those were the types of scenes I wanted to help enhance with music. It all made such sense. Of course, when I saw a film, I would usually agree with what the composer wrote and I would have done something similar so I must have been meant to be a film composer, right? I thought so… until I received my first film with no music in it. I had even watched the film with the director as we talked about what the music should be. It wasn’t until I was alone in my studio that I realized the scope and the value music truly has in a film. Why? Because there simply was no music in the film. That was what I was there to do. But the film was so empty. Emotionless. It was just a bunch of 10 10 AZ AZ FILMMAKER FILMMAKER
things that happened. Who cared what happened to these characters? I wasn’t connected to the people at all. The main role music plays is simple yet complex. It is designed to move the film along and to make it personal. It is to be felt more than heard, except in certain cases such as a warning that a great white shark is on the way over for dinner. It is one thing to see someone on the screen crying. Perhaps they just learned their lover has been killed in a tragic accident. You can watch them and feel some level of empathy if you care about the character. With some somber violins playing, you can identify and
“If you think about the opening themes to The Shining or Halloween, you are automatically transported into feelings of apprehension...” care about their feelings and to take the sorrowful ride with them as if you were equally hurting. What if, suddenly, the music morphed into something playful as the character remembers a moment in their childhood shared with their lover and they smile at the memory. With music, you feel what they feel and you become a part of the character’s life. Another moment of realization I had that showed me the true depth of the power of film music was when I scored a student film. The director and I did not have a chance to sit down and review it together so they sent the film to me to review and send back my notes. When I first watched the film, I was unable to tell if it was a drama, a comedy or even a horror
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film. It was then I realized that I could take what was on screen and turn it into any of those three genres based on how I scored the film. Talk about power! I am sure this was more of a rarity than the norm, but it was more proof as to how the music can affect the visual medium. Music is also used to set the tone of a film. If you think about the opening themes to The Shining or Halloween, you are automatically transported into feelings of apprehension or nervousness, while the music played behind the opening battle sequence of Gladiator may bring feelings of empowerment or the desire to take on a challenge. These examples set the tone for their respective films by setting you in the right mood for the journey you are about to take through the film in dramatic fashion. If you really want to experience the way music affects film and happen to know someone (or know someone who knows someone) who has made a film that you have not yet seen, ask them to watch the movie without the benefit of the music. Then watch it with the music and feel the difference. If that is not an option for you, take a home movie of yours and try setting it to music and notice how different pieces alter the feelings you get from viewing the clips. Perhaps there is some grainy footage of your first birthday. Try setting it to happy, fun music and notice how you feel. Next, try setting it to something extremely sad. That, my friends, is the power of music in film. SCOTT HASKIN Editor & Producer @SCOREcast Owner/Composer/Audio Engineer @ScottHaskinMusicLLC
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WORTHYCAUSE
FRIDAY THE 13TH Part 3 Project by Sean Kearnes
to don the now iconic hockey mask. But more than that, he was a terrific human being & a friend to all. In addition the cabin that was used in that film burned to the ground in 2006 by some careless vagrants. These two events sparked me into action to do something with the on location video footage I shot of that location in 2003 & 2005.
intact, but never had the chance. I invite you to join me as I take you on a visit to the set of Friday the 13th part 3 prior to its destruction. The project has launched on kickstarter.com as of February 5th and the fundraising campaign will run through March 5th to raise the projected goal of $5,000 to properly produce the footage into a quality DVD. The
Hello vintage horror movie fans…my name is Sean Kearnes. Some of you may recognize my name from the David Grove’s book – Making Friday the 13th The Legend of Camp Blood. I contributed photos to the sections of the book covering parts 1 & 3 as I do on location photography& documentary. In April 2013, the Friday the 13th family
The idea behind this project is to professionally produce the on location footage I have so that the cabin featured in the film & Richard’s memory may live
money raised is also being to pay to clear the rights so the authentic Friday the 13th soundtrack can be used in the production. Thank you for your time.
suddenly lost Mr. Richard Brooker. He portrayed Jason in the fan favorite Friday the 13th part 3 & was the first individual
on. The DVD is for anyone who ever had an interest in the film & wanted to visit the property while it was still
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JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
PREPRODUCTION
WHAT’S THE PLAN STAN?
The Importance of Pre-Production by Laurel Way
There is a common misconception out there about the process of making a film. Most people think once a script is written and greenlit, the movie immediately goes into production. Like a missing link in the evolutionary chain, eager or inexperienced filmmakers tend to gloss over an important step; preproduction. Months of preparation can go into the process and the steps in it are crucial. The more organized you are in pre-production the more you can utilize the production and post production stages. Preproduction is foundation layer and whether you are building a skyscraper feature film or just a simple short, there are 10 steps that need to be taken before you walk on set.
characters better motivation. Others are to simply to improve dialogue or grammar or rework it to fit within a budget. After the final revision the screenplay is page locked and scene numbered. Page locking means that no pages can be added or removed to avoid confusion during the process. Of course things can be changed during storyboards or any time during production but the scene numbers stay the same. Any scenes created and put together with audio dialogue to create a more concise story board. If you are working on a smaller production then the storyboards can very simple but they should never be overlooked. They serve to give the first visuals of the script which help everyone to be on the same page when walking on set.
removed will keep the scene number attached to it and any scenes added in will have new sub-set numbers that wedge in between the two numbered scenes it is placed in. So if you remove scene 3 but add in a different scene between 2 & 4, the new scene will be Scene 2-1 (or 2-A), and won’t replace Scene 3. This will keep all of the scenes organized even when things are getting rearranged.
1. SCRIPT REVISIONS Every script goes through revisions, some scripts more than others. These revisions can take months and can be tedious and frustrating. Script revisions are an important key in the process though, and are done for several reasons. One reason is to give the story a solid arc, or give
2. STORYBOARDS Once the script has been revised to meet the needs of the production storyboards are created to create a visualization of the script. The numbered scenes are loosely drawn out on a story board including scene number, page numbers, and location. The drawings don’t have to be elaborate, just something that will give a visual interpretation to what is going on in the script. For certain productions, animatics are
3. BUDGET Making movies costs money, no matter which way you look at it. Independent films are usually productions that have a budget of one million dollars or less and are funded by smaller firms or independent investors. If you are the executive producer on a production your job is to create the budget for the film as well as find investors to finance the production. Setting the budget is done by reviewing the storyboards and the filming schedule and building a budget based on the needs of the production. The budget should consider all costs during the production and post production and any marketing done for the project. An initial budget can be determined before the locations and casting are complete but will be adjusted as things change. The initial budget is used to propose to investors with the disclosure that it can change based on the needs of the film. Once the budget is approved contracts
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PREPRODUCTION
WHAT’S THE PLAN STAN? continued that cannot be found then studio sets will need to be utilized. Location scouting can take weeks and must be factored into the budget if travel and hotel accommodations are required during the process. Once the location and sets are approved by the director and producers then the film schedule is created. This schedule is based on the availability of the locations and cast as well as what needs are required by the script. These needs can include the time of day or year, or during certain events. Most of the time these seasonalities can be constructed on set but there may be a need for additional outdoor footage.
“If you are doing a period piece or need specific types of costumes, there are a multitude of costume shops that can rent the costumes fairly inexpensively.”
can be drawn up for cast and crew, locations, and equipment rental. For independent projects, the cost of submission into film festivals and travel expenses should be also included. 4. LOCATION SCOUTING AND FILM SCHEDULE Once the initial budget is approved a precise filming schedule is needed. Before drafting a schedule, locations need to be scouted by a crew member and contracts for those locations need to be drawn. The Location Scout finds locations that suit the needs of the script. If there are certain locations 14 AZ FILMMAKER
5. CASTING This step in the process can sometimes be the ugliest. The casting director has to fulfill many different needs for both the actors and production. For smaller productions that are local, the film locations and casting process could be done directly by the production company. However, if it is a larger production or shot in various cities or locations, then usually an outside casting firm would be hired to cast the film. During a casting call actors are usually asked to perform a prepared monologue and then they are asked to do a sample of the script. Every actor that attends the casting calls needs to be filmed and the tapes are reviewed by the casting director, director, and producer. For smaller parts, the casting call can be done
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in a the span of a day. Leading parts need to be called back, sometimes several times. During these callbacks the actors will read parts of the scripts and meet with the director. This process sounds easy enough but when you work with SAG actors or actors with extensive experience, the contract negotiations can be brutal and sometimes even after an actor is cast, he or she just doesn’t fit the part. 6. COSTUMING, PROPS, & HAIR AND MAKEUP For low budget films this category is too frequently undercut. To me, asking the actors to do their own hair and makeup can seem unprofessional and look sloppy. It is always good to hire someone to oversee hair and makeup even if its a small production. For films that don’t require any special costuming, having the actors bring their own clothes can work fine. Just make sure there is a disclosure before shooting if anything that can stain is involved in the scene, like fake blood. If you are doing a period piece or need specific types of costumes, there are a multitude of costume shops that can rent the costumes fairly inexpensively. Another avenue to look into are costume designers for local theaters or dance troupes. If you are need of something unique, they may be able to put something together for a lower cost than renting. Props need to be handled in a similar fashion. In a way, the prop master is a treasure hunter. The director and producers give them a list of specific props needed and it is up to them to seek everything out any way they can. Antique or flea markets are a great way to find things, and there is always online as a last resort. Hair and makeup need to be done, no matter what type of film you are doing. If special effects makeup is needed, then a separate
FILMPRODUCTION
makeup artist will be required to build the effects and apply them on set. For larger productions special makeup is usually done by an outside firm contracted during the shoot. For a small production, look for individual artists or seek out colleges and universities to hire students for credits. So many small productions mistakenly overlook these three elements and it immediately shows through their film. 7. CRAFT SERVICES AND HOTEL ACCOMODATIONS I know it seems like a small detail in a large production but its important to have on set to keep things running smoothly. If any of your cast or crew are traveling to shoot on location, then hotel accommodations are provided by the production company if stipulated in their contracts. If it isn’t required by contract it is still a common courtesy for the production company to make those arrangements. Prior to filming on set craft services and scheduled breaks need to be arranged. There are certain state laws that require scheduled breaks for workers based on shift length and all film productions need to meet federal and state worker laws. If you are filming on a tight budget, you can arrange with the crew and cast to help pay for the craft services but no one should be left out. 8. EQUIPMENT & CREW LIST The week before filming begins a master list needs to be generated for the equipment being used as well as the cast and crew that will be on set. If you are renting the equipment from a production studio they will provide you with a detailed invoice of everything you take from them. Using this invoice you can create an
equipment checklist for the separate units that are filming. Each light kit, audio kit, and camera should be assigned to a specific crew member so when building the shot lists, you can include the crew member. To secure your set there needs to be a master list of all cast and crew and a sign in sheet for when they arrive and leave. This ensures that no one wanders onto the set that is not allowed and helps keep tabs on cast or crew that leave in between call times. Both of these lists add a sense of accountability to the production and need to be prepared before anyone steps foot on set. 9. SHOOTING SCHEDULE AND CALL TIMES The shooting schedule is a more detailed and precise version of the filming schedule. While the filming schedule gives you the dates and times when you can shoot, the shooting schedule breaks it down by scene and even possibly by shot. The shooting schedule helps keep the crew on track for each scene and allots time for set up and teardown between shots. Built into the shooting schedule should be call times for each actor to be on set. If there is a particularly intense scene or a complicated scene, its best to set the call times for the actors an hour before the the actual shooting time so the director can work with them to rehearse the scene while the crew sets up the shot. The call times allow the actors to take breaks in between scenes to practice their lines in the green room, or just grab something to eat.
10. SHOT LIST Once everything else is secured the last piece of the puzzle is creating a shot list for each shooting day. The director, unit directors, and cinematographer will sit down and map out each shot for each scene based on the shooting schedule, script, location, and cast. For a smaller production the shot list can be done a week before principal photography begins, for a larger film it can take weeks. Some directors do more documentary style of cinematography and therefore don’t create a specific shot list. None the less, they still need a sense of where they want the cameras and lighting placed for each scene, so a looser scene list would be used instead. I recommend no matter what the style of film your shooting, you have a clear and organized shot list to keep the production on schedule and make changes on set if a shot or scene just isn’t working. Each of these steps is important in their own way. Preproduction is like building the border of a puzzle, each piece fits together to create the framework for the overall picture. The more organized you are during pre-production, the easier it is during filming and post. Working on set should be a thrilling and enjoyable experience that shouldn’t be ruined by miscommunication and disorganization. By taking the extra time to execute all these details before walking on set, it elevates the production and shines through the finished film.
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INTERVIEW
ON THE WARPATH with Booboo Stewart by Lynette Carrington
Actor Booboo Stewart Visits UltraStar Multi-tainment Center X-Men: Days of Future Past Debuts with Assistance of Stewart In May ‘14, actor Booboo Stewart visited UltraStar Multi-tainment Center in Maricopa for the premier of “X-Men: Days of Future Past.” Stewart has an excellent relationship with UltraStar and “Arizona Filmmaker Magazine” was invited to interview the dynamic actor in one of the facility’s plush private suites. 16 AZ FILMMAKER
“I’ve been here four or five times,” says Stewart of Ultrastar. “I love it here. You can play laser tag… one of my favorite things to do, and in the arcade, I love the Terminator game. It’s addicting.” “X-Men: Days of Future Past” received rave reviews and Stewart was very excited to have snagged the role of “Warpath.” When he received the news that he had been cast in the film, he was overwhelmed. “It was mind-blowing. I was sitting in Golden Corral restaurant and
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I started crying. It was really cool and it’s a dream come true to be in X-Men.” Stewart cherished his time on set working with an incredible ensemble cast that includes Sir Ian McKellan, James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, Hugh Jackman and many other huge talents. “I remember I had a picture on my phone of all of us together at the premier. I was just looking at everybody and it’s kind of insane,” recalls Stewart.
INTERVIEW
The experience and camaraderie that Stewart had during the latest X-Men installment was nothing less than memorable. “The first time we got there, a bunch of the cast went to dinner. Ian McKellan and I talked the whole entire dinner. I was sitting with a legend. It was insane.”
“The first time we got there, a bunch of the cast went to dinner. Ian McKellan and I talked the whole entire dinner. I was sitting with a legend. It was insane.”
In his character as Warpath, Stewart had a chance to showcase his exceptional martial arts skills. “It played in to the role a lot. I got to do most of my own stunts… only two of them they didn’t let me do,” explained the actor. In fact, he got to show off his skills with some martial arts knives and during filming, he would practice twirling the props to get the look just right for the camera. “You can expect a characterdriven story. And because the situations they’re in… there is great action and huge moments. But you really feel for the JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
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INTERVIEW
ON THE WARPATH continued
information on Booboo Stewart, visit http://www.imdb.com/name/ nm1559927/?ref_=nv_sr_1. UltraStar Multi-tainment Center features a state-of-the art movie theatre with both general admission and private suites and offers a unique and upscale movie-going experience, just minutes outside of the valley. UltraStar also boasts laser tag, an arcade, an upscale bowling experience at Ten Pins Down, Luxe Lounge and beautiful restaurant, 347 Grill. For a list of upcoming events, contests and a movie schedule visit www.ultrastarakchin.com. characters, which when you’re making the movie is the most important thing… it’s making sure that you feel what the character is feeling and when something happens to the character you feel bad for them.” “This X-Men is more characterdriven and I think that’s why the previous X-Men films have done so well is because people really like the characters.” Will Stewart be open to doing another film in the successful franchise? “Honestly, all I know is that I’d love to be in a future X-Men movie. Just being part of this X-Men experience was mind-blowing. I would love, love, love to do it again,” finishes Stewart.
to UltraStar and watch the premier of the film with a small group of fans who won a contest sponsored by the massive entertainment complex. Stewart’s father, Nils Stewart is also a veteran stunt coordinator and actor who has hundreds of films to his credit. For additional
Booboo Stewart is a veteran of film and has also appeared as character “Seth” in the blockbuster “Twilight” film series. He took a short break in filming “Guardians of Luna” to come 18 AZ FILMMAKER
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
Lynette Carrington Freelance Features Writer twitter.com/LLCarrington.com lynettecarrington@hotmail.com
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INTERVIEW
OH, THE HORROR! Interview With Horror Film Director ROZE By Nicholas Spake
Nick: “Hi, this is Nick Spick with Arizona Filmmaker Magazine. Today we are here with writer, director and producer Roze. “How are you doing today Roze?” Roze: “I’m doing well.” Nick: “Great!” “Alright let’s jump right into business. “ “What did it take to get three films made in the Arizona film making community?” Roze: “It’s really, actually a pretty tough question. The best thing I can say is hard work and never giving up at it. There’s too many obstacles in the independent film scene really for any independent film maker, and so it comes down to just really hard work. Nick: Now how did you break into the film making industry? Roze: I will try to see if I can create a shorter version of this answer but, basically I was a musician for 10 years, ended up breaking my wrist, had surgery at a doctor who was willing to give me as many oxicotton as I could possibly handle, this had two years of just utter depression and lost. Then I found a film school in Scottsdale, actually Scottsdale Community College their film program there, they call it the film school at SCC. Really it just changed my life. When I jumped in I had no idea, I couldn’t tell the difference from Tom Cruise and Tom Hanks. A lot of people were talking about Quentin Tarantino and I knew I had seen his films but I could not make the connection between a director and their work. So I was very ignorant on this industry. I think that actually helped me out, it forced me into experimenting, forced me into trying something until I discovered 20 AZ FILMMAKER
my voice. I felt like a lot of film makers go into it idolizing there favorite voice rather than discovering their own. It was an experimental journey, I was constantly making mistakes. You never knew what was the thing to show people and what was the thing to hide it and call it education, so I just showed everything I did, and said I was an experimental film maker. One thing led to another and people urged me into music videos because of my experimentation. I just wasn’t interested.
Rose: We actually met in 2002 in film school. Her name is Candace Rose. With an S and I’m Roze ROZE, and when the teacher was doing role and called out Rose both us raised our hands, that is how we met, and we have basically been working together ever since. We didn’t actually work together in school, a couple of projects here and there. I don’t even remember transitioning from school projects to professional projects with her, it’s just something that happened, and she is still my partner to this day.
Nick: What can you tell us about Gas Mask Films?
Nick: Now on a more personal note is there a reason why you choose to go by the name of Roze?
Roze: Gas Mask Films honestly came about because when I was going to school I took a photo class. I believe you had to know how to master one image before you could do 24 images a second. So I was in a photo class and I just happen to have a gas mask around at the time. You know a young poor kid living out of my car, a warehouse from time to time, I did have a little place in Tempe for a little while. I just had this gas mask around. I started taking pictures in it, with it, around it, scratched a lot of the photography, scratched the negative and ended up with all these images of gas masks, I had a collection of them shot on film with the highest resolution images we had around. So at the time my wife and I were talking about what we were going to call our production company and just simply because we had all this stuff, all of these images of gas masks, we started to call it Gas Mask Films. Nick: Interesting, now how long have you been working with your wife in film?
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Roze: Chuckling, It was a nickname that started off when I was a kid, and when I was a professional musician like I said earlier it became my stage name, and then when I started to work in cinema for the first time written and I was about to get married to Candace I decided to go ahead and make a legal change, and now I go by Roze. I’ll tell ya it’s not easy for a poor kid out of Detroit Michigan to make it in the film industry. I knew I basically needed something that would grab people’s attention and so far it has, people don’t forget me. Nick: Based on your films “Deadbolt Trail” and “Speak No Evil”, it’s clear you have an attraction to the horror genre. What do you think is the appeal of horror for you at least as a film maker? Roze: Chuckling, I don’t know man. Horror films remind us of the value of life. What really grabs me about them there is a fighter flight instinct to help keep humans alive. Before we had any kind of
technology to help us we had our instincts, we heard noises, you know, in dark places, we ran, we fought them. Every human alive has it built in their DNA, its part of the group of people who live, its natural selection at work. People who do not have this instinct die, they got eaten (chuckle) we all have it. So what horror films do is pokes and irritates our fighter flight. We’re constantly on edge with a horror film. It really messes with us almost like from an instinctual, from a DNA level it’s built into us to respond to them, and that is addicting as a film maker. The only other thing I would love to tell is “Love Stories” I know that sounds so ridiculous, but I love when art can creates chemical reactions in our bodies. Nick: The horror love story that may be something we need to work on. Roze: That’s possible. Nick: Now what can you tell us about your latest film “Dead Quiet”? Roze: “Dead Quiet” honestly is was an experiment believe it or not. I was given a lot of creative freedom, I was for the first time the cinematographer and the director, I had never had that experience before. It was the most creative I feel I have ever been even though it was the lowest budget I have ever worked with. We really had the opportunities to really create and
build performances. We really had to focus on performance not just scary gags. We got plenty of scary gags in the film, but that was almost like this side note, there were other things that made it a horror film. There was this one cool shot we pulled off, it had a jump in it, but the human connection in this story really stands out and really excites me to be working in that direction. Nick: Now what do you think is the definitive horror movie of our time? Roze: The definitive horror movie of our time? Wow that’s a tough one. Like my mind immediately goes to some of the really violent films like “The Gorno”, I can’t help but immediately go to the extreme side of where and I feel we are coming
back from that right now. I feel like our producers liked Jason Blum who are bringing back the commercial horror film, but there’s no doubt we the horror film makers took a leap off to the side to do some very sexual, very violent films. “A Serbian Film” would be, I would hate to name it out as the defining film of our times, because I don’t think it is, but I do think “Brown Bunnies” is another ridiculous violent sexual film, why I bring it up is film makers responded and they wanted to out do it. I felt it was the wrong reason to approach a film, is to out do another for it’s violence, sexuality or shock value, so in that way I say it is a defining film, or these couple of films, these gornos. But then again I see something like “Human Centipede” and I love the humor, I love the craziness, I love how disgusting and ridiculous the film gets. So I am not even against the ultra violence and sexual content, it’s not what I do but I think film makers need to express. But theres no doubt like of our time our film makers were challenged and somebody stepped up and wanted to do something a little more riskier, so that’s interesting to me. Then of course you can’t deny the first person who found footage films, those are still to this day one of the
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INTERVIEW CONTINUED
most impact-full films to come out in a long damn time is “The Blair Witch Project”. It set the standard probably for the next 15, 20 years of found footage films, it created a genre. This genre did not exist before, but it’s interesting. But neither one of these versions of horror films am I interested in making. I don’t believe they are defining in the way they are definitely impacting film makers but I don’t think they’re impacting the culture of horror fans. I think horror fans they still love a good leather face. They love a Jason, a Freddie, a Michael, they still love the scary person, creature, human, demon whatever we want to call it. They love something that they can point at and know that it’s there. I think that’s really fascinating that we have gone way off and now we are coming back to something a little more classic. Then we get guys like Kane Hotter and Sid Haig they are the stars of our genre of our folk. That and the horror convention itself in a way is completely a defining thing adding to our culture. Horror fans are identifying themselves as horror fans, and I think our culture is stronger than it has ever been. I know I am way off the side of the question at this point, but I am fascinated by the horror culture and horror fan base. It’s a really interesting community and I am glad to be part of it. Nick: Now of all the films you have made which one would you say is your favorite or the one you are most proud of? Roze: You can’t help but love the one you are working on. I am currently working on “Dead Quiet”, I absolutely love the film. But at the 22 AZ FILMMAKER
same time “Speak No Evil” is about to be released by Lionsgate and we’re talking about sequels so I can’t help but be really excited about the film that I have been working on for two years straight from just treatment to now distribution it’s been quite the journey. Nick: So what’s your greatest fear? Roze: My greatest fear? Well it’s kinda interesting like I have been having an interesting relationship with the whole concept of fear now for like two years. I have this new theory and just living by it and that is I never make decisions based in it. Meaning like if I lose a job, oh my god we could lose our house, we could lose our lifestyle, our cars can’t get fixed, our dogs can’t go the vets, whatever thing that comes from me not making money induces fear. I have discovered that it’s pointless, like that whole emotion I have tried to erase from my life, because there is so much to worry about being an independent film maker that you can get yourself trapped in it. I guess I could go the basics, I don’t like heights, but I wouldn’t call that too much of a crazy fear, I just shot up onto a crazy roof for the last film so
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there were no problems doing that, I really don’t have any phobias. Actually I take that back, I ready do fear deep water, sometimes I really freak myself out in the pool. I honestly believe I died by sea creature at one point in a past life. HAHA! I guess if I have a real phobia If I am out in some deep water and I can’t tell what’s out there, you know there is stuff under there. It’s so dark and deep out there and that really whigs me out! I am not gonna lie. I am trying to think of that shark movie, Open Water, that really freaked me out, it was really well done. Nick: It was a pretty freaky movie, Open Water 2 not so much. Roze: I didn’t see it, I rarely catch sequels, and I find it ironic that I am about to make one. Nick: Now what’s your favorite horror clique and your least favorite horror clique? Roze: Wow you’ve asked a couple of good questions here. I personally am not a huge fan of the bad human, you know like the Jason, the Freddie, the Michael even though the fans love them. I like it when evil is more ambiguous. I like it when we can’t point at it, but we know it exists. But if I can clearly point out that’s the evil and we get rid of that, then we’re all safe, then that seems rather convenient doesn’t it. Evil is something that I think can travel from human to human, it just doesn’t just live in one place. Authentically I don’t really care for that character. But then that being said, where would we be without Dracula, Werewolf, Frankenstein, Jason, Freddie, leather face. It’s like we all have these weird icons and
we can look at them like we look at professional wrestlers. You know we love the characters, we love the weird things that they do and you become attached to them. So I guess the same thing that I don’t care for, I also was so excited to go over and meet Michael Berryman from “The Hills Have Eyes”, he’s an icon. Like I was so proud to have that picture put up on Facebook when Berryman showed up at to the Beverly Hills premiere of “Speak No Evil”. I was like wow man like that was just cool. At the same time as much as the icons take me out of the horror film they also are something that really brings our community together and I love them. Nick: Now what’s your greatest challenge in producing horror movies and movies in general? Roze: Budget! It’s real simple the budgets are getting smaller. I would say the influx of low budget film makers coming in and making films for next to nothing has not helped the industry, in that regard. I like the fact that more people have a voice in an art form that has been designed for the elite, in that regard I love it. On the flip side is now every single production I go to they don’t want to spend the money to make the movie. So we are forcing ourselves to keep doing what we do I have to ask friends to work for less and less. I refuse to work longer hours, I’m not going to go over a 12 hour day, I won’t put my crew that, so it forces me to make more compromises, and that pisses me off. Nick: Now if you were given an unlimited budget what kind of movie would you like to make?
Roze: A personal one. I am taking a new turn in my writing, I used to be very plot oriented when I wrote and now I am very character driven, and the characters that come to my story are the people in my life. They are also deep rooted pieces of me that i get to explore that would not be socially correct to explore. I think a lot of horror writers wouldn’t like to admit that a piece of them is that horrible human being that kills people and does horrible things in this world. But I am not going to lie, I have horrible thoughts, and I am glad they stay right there as thoughts and I have an outlet for them. I guess I want to do things that mean something more to me not just telling a story for the sake of its plot. Nick: Do you ever look back at some of your old scripts or projects that never got off the ground and feel bad about them? Roze: No! I don’t ever feel bad about projects that never got the light of day. There is one project that I am still holding onto and can’t wait to do one day and it is so unique that I am not afraid of somebody doing it before I get a chance to. Like I authentically have an idea that I don’t think is going to get stolen and it’s dark, very dark. I have William Morris Endeavor advise production
companies to stay so far away from this screenplay and that excited me actually, I framed that letter. Nick: Now what other projects to you currently have in the pipeline besides from your mystery project? Roze: I currently have a period piece, a horror film that takes place in 1857 in the Utah territory that I am really excited about. I have another horror film that takes place in prison that I am really intrigued by this story because it really gets to talk about evil and being set in a prison is a interesting place to discuss that topic. So I think thats going to be an interesting movie to explore. I got two different comedies actually in development. One is a horror comedy and the other a stoner comedy. If you know anything about me it’s like they both really fit me, I’m definitely a stoner, I am not going to hide it one bit. I have been wanting to do a stoner comedy for awhile, so I am really excited about that project. Right now I am writing treatments, I have one screenplay in the works, I am working on some possible new PSA’s that are coming out. I get tapped off in for anti smoking, anti meth or anywhere they want to have a darker Continued on pg 29
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INTERVIEW
CAST OUT ONTO EARTH by Joseph D. Becker
Alexzander : Hi, I’m Alex, I’m the Executive Producer, of Cast Down to Earth. I’m also the co-writer. I was one of three writers for this short feature film. Basically what we wanted to do was we wanted to touch on the supernatural world and add some biblical ties to the film to kind of draw the audience in. A lot of people are really infatuated with demons, angels, you know, the kind of mystery in the supernatural. What we wanted to do was put something together that would have a message in it. And also have… be entertaining to watch. And kind of a thriller type of film.
more and more a gets rare that people are actually able to put together a successful productions. So it’s really just dedication and hard work and raising money to get the budget to do these things.
Louanna : Absolutely and I’d have to agree with Alex. We had an awesome team that actually helped us out. We were fortunate to have some people that were already very successful in the industry. Peki Margaine?? is actually one of them. She was actually our costume designer, but also assisted with a lot of the production. We have had some individuals that have been in Okay so like I was saying we joined Louanna : And I actually am the Oscars. All types of things, on together to make this awesome Louanna I am the other Executive well-known athletes and well known Producer. And I jumped on board to film. It was a two-person job. It took DJs and a lot of our beginning actors actually help Alex with the resources more than that actually. and actresses definitely took over bringing the film together. a hold of the reins and I really liked the idea of really ran with it. We were what he was doing as far looking at the production as the spiritual context to be a three days. But it because right now there actually took about five is a lot of bad things that days to shoot the full Alexzander: it took a village literally, are happening now in the world and really to put this project together. I production. As far as a short film, and what we’re trying to do is let people we do want to take this on a whole definitely couldn’t have done this know that there is, you know, the way without the dedicated cast members another scale, a much larger scale. through God and this movie actually that I had. They didn’t just do the Alexzander: Definitely we’re actually states that. bare minimum, but actually stayed in the process of writing to the full and did whatever they feature of the film. The release date of could to make sure that this project is looking like it’s gonna we completed the film. be in the fall of 2014. Were currently It’s important in the writing a full-feature, like I said industry that we always in the full feature that we do we’re want to make sure that looking from $100 to $200 grand to were not just doing the successfully put that together. We are bare minimum, but we confident to have that within a year or want to do whatever two. And also we’re definitely going we can to make these to take Cast Down To The Earth to type of projects come the next level. It’s going to be about together, because a 90 minute feature and it’s gonna
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INTERVIEW
to be totally different from the short film. But I’m kind of jumping ahead. Yeah, I’m definitely proud to do this work we were able to put this together. It was very tedious sometimes and I just wanted to scream at the top of my lungs. But you know everything worth having is worth working hard for. So I’m definitely proud and I wouldn’t trade this experience for the world. Louanna : Definitely, and just to piggyback onto what Alex was doing. We had the opportunity to work with different individuals from churches that let us use their buildings. We had the opportunity to also work with a club entitled See’s that’s actually in downtown Phoenix. A lot of these people donated their spaces through some of the resources I was able to bring from my other ventures that I do. And in the entertainment industry, and through that we were able to make this look like, okay this is not a $10,000 budget film. This actually looks like a film that you will go and see. The word is definitely out and about as far as Cast Down to Earth because of how we are interacting on
social media, through pictures, through Facebook, through Twitter, and Instagram. And a lot of people are extremely excited. I do want to give out some props to my partner over here. Mr. Alex Rogers himself because he brought this idea and made it come to life. A lot of people that have an idea for a film, they. Don’t see it all the way through. Once you are looking at the budget,
what it’s costing you, as far as the time and energy. Through everybody
Looking at the actors and actresses I’ve got to give all of them a definite thank you on my end as an executive producer, because they continuously promoted the film. They got the extras to come out. You know, They put in 13 – 14 hour days just to get this film done and you know, we definitely do thank you guys for putting in that time. Because it’s not just a one-person thing. Just because we may put in the resources and money to get this film together, it takes a team. They always say it takes a village to raise a child. It takes a village to make a movie. A successful movie anyways. And we are definitely looking forward to the soundtrack. We’re having some very well -known people in the industry to actually jump on the sound track. We don’t want to give away any secrets yet. So you’ve got a stay tuned, for that aspect. But it was an awesome experience. And even with what I do in the industry from having a talk show and things like that I wouldn’t trade this experience for the world. Because It shows me what other talent I may have. And it also shows me what you can accomplish with a team that works together. Alexzander: definitely, yeah and that the executive producers of Cast Down to Earth… We are gonna let you guys go and talk now to the actors a little bit. But definitely look forward to the film for releasing in the fall of 2014. Yeah it’s looking like September of 2014 and the trailer
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is gonna be released before then. It will be released in a select AMC theater and it will be released available on DVD as well. And you will see some new talent. Louanna : oh and wait don’t forget. We’re working on a five city tour. So we will be having it in five different cities as far as it being released and things like that. Again this was a
Alexzander Entertainment And Real Talk Enterprise Production. That it took a whole village to do. Stay tuned we have two of our cast members that are going to come on here next and are going to speak. Toni Lee: hi I’m Tony Lee from Cast Out To Earth. I play Vanessa, Patricia’s mom. I just want to tell you this experience I had in this short feature film which is going to be amazing. You have to watch it, you have to see it! Everybody worked 26 AZ FILMMAKER
it’s hard to go into.
amazingly well together. Long hours, long days. The best experience of my life. I would not give it up for anything. God willing, he did amazing things with each and every one of us. And he’s taking this all to the next level. Here is RJ. RJ: hi everyone. My name is RJ Sarah. I play Damien. A little bit about my character. He is a demon who actually fell from Earth, from heaven I should say. And he was an angel in heaven who, Just like Lucifer, didn’t want to bow down to God’s creation, which is humans. Just like Lucifer himself, was cast down he has a year before he was to go down to hell. You’ll see kind of his struggles, of what he goes through and what he tries to do to manipulate, you know, certain individuals and see how evil he actually is. This film has been a great experience, and like everyone else has said, I would not trade it for anything else in the world. You know, I feel like I’ve made another family here on film and it’s been a blessing in disguise. I just want to say I am happy to be here. I hope you enjoy the film and please stay tuned because it’s gonna be an amazing film. You’re going to be stunned on how amazing it is. You’re just gonna be blown away. People are gonna say wow this was a low budget production, low production film like low-budget. I can’t believe that yes it’s can be amazing. Just stay tuned and thank you so much. A little bit of a struggle. I’m a method actor so
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Toni Lee: okay so some of the struggles I had playing the part of the Vanessa, is waiting a long day, there’s a lot of retakes, a lot of transferring from one position to another, places of filming and stuff like that. It wasn’t so much a struggle, it was just a lot of long days. And by the time we got to my situation it was almost midnight. And we were like okay were going to get this done. And we are gonna get out of here as quickly as possible. And I think I did the best that I could. This is my first film, so hopefully you will all enjoy it and see my face again. You are welcome. RJ: that was very entertaining. Toni Lee: thank you RJ RJ: a little bit of the struggle I had with my character Damien. He is a demon and I am a method actor so going into that mindset was, I wouldn’t say, yes it was very difficult because you have to embrace the character. You have to feel every emotion that he would have felt in this situation. So I’ve actually felt bad for Damien. Oh sorry I’ve actually felt bad for Damien just because, you know, he didn’t want to bow down to humans, which was the second creation of God. It’s like having your mom, having you of course, and then having your brother and saying you’re going to listen to whatever your brother has to say. That’s the type of feelings I endured as an actor. Like I said, It was hard because you are taking on all those feelings. It’s hard to turn it right back off. It was a challenge that I accepted and I loved playing him every single moment I loved playing him. Just
because I felt like we had a connection but I felt bad for him at the same time. So I mean what I liked about the film or character is that he was an angel a super natural, I love playing those types of characters. It was just amazing being an angel and then becoming a demon. It was like I got to play two different roles. That was my favorite part of it. Like I said it has just been such a great experience. I would do it again if I could, so thank you very much. 2014 fall 2014 please enjoy and please be there AMC. It’s gonna be at a selected AMC so please stay tuned thank you. Alexzander: This is like my cast. This’s not all of my cast there’s probably over 100 people in my cast. But these are my two late actors, and we are the two executive producers, me and Louanna. It’s been an excellent experience. Laughing… I mean… Do you guys have anything to say. You guys are kind of quiet over there. I don’t know… Louanna: It’s awesome! It’s awesome! Wooo! RJ: yes, it was an amazing. You didn’t explain your character. Alexzander: Yes, I am actually going to be kind of costarring in the film as well I kind of like to leave you guys with surprises, and stuff, so I’m not going to talk too much about it. But I am costarring in the film playing a pretty deep role. So
be looking forward to it and it’s gonna be awesome and we have Miss Louanna, the executive producer, doing a cameo as well, not that I’m gonna spill the beans for you guys. You guys have gotta come out and see the film. Louanna: Gotta see it. And we
something big. We want to help Eric and Arizona get on the map. There’s so many times in the industry knew that were not about supporting each other. We need to come together and support each other. See the bigger picture. Arizona is an awesome place a great place to shoot films. So if we actually come together and see the bigger picture we will all have success as one. Toni Lee: Arizona was originally the first place for filmmaking. Back in old, Tombstone, y’all think about that. Louanna: so definitely! So again we encourage you, definitely to keep up with us. You can check us out on Facebook, Twitter under Cast Down to Earth. Like our fan page and definitely check all of us out. Were doing a lot of big things. Again we have to give it up to Alex.
just wanted to say thank you again to anyone that is watching this interview. And thank you to everyone who has participated especially our main sponsors. They donated their buildings and things like that and provided us with food, whatever the case may be. No part was to little, no part was to big. And we appreciate it. I want to encourage you guys, you guys definitely want to check out this movie Cast Down to Earth. We will be selling DVDs and like I said we are looking into doing a five city tour. This is going to be
Alexzander: I don’t take all the credit, again it takes a village to put together something significant and definitely keep up with us on. Cast Down to Earth.com. Again it’s a beautiful website really awesome. The have an amazing soundtrack. Great music, a mixture of soft metal, orchestra, and a haunted piano. a little bit of hip-hop, just a nice mix from the soundtrack. So definitely keep up with us again the website is CastDowntoEarth.com and yeah, I guess that’s gonna be us signing off.
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APPREVIEW
MORE PLOTAGON PLEASE
Story and Story Boards in One App By: Anthony Eid
Plotagon is one of many new revolutionary software programs that are being released. It’s currently in its beta phase, but is a game changer for the future of independent filmmaking and, possibly, Hollywood style filmmaking. Plotagon is a free software program that allows the creation of video, albeit poor quality at the moment, to happen during the writing process. It’s a screenwriting program that has the screenwriting on one side and the video portion on the other side. This is an extreme advantage for many people when doing storyboards or basic ideas on shot layouts for future films. Plotagon may only have five characters and six settings at the moment, but nothing is stopping it from expanding. There are already new downloads for different characters available with many more promised to come. The characters may be low-end animation with stiff movements and robotic voices, but it’s also a great tool to see the look of a script without having multiple people spend time on something that could be scrapped anyway. The creators are working to have it display cinema quality footage. If this becomes possible, then the creation of movies can occur without ever 28 AZ FILMMAKER
leaving the computer screen. It may be a long way off, but these goals are ultimately reachable. Although no software will ever be able to compete with the same feeling and satisfaction as modern day filmmaking, Plotagon sure is a close second for those without a fully equipped Hollywood studio. For those that share the same desire to make films, but aren’t sure where to start, today, it’s a great stepping stone for aspiring filmmakers. It could one day be integrated into more high-end movies for everyone to enjoy and experience. As a writer myself, I can’t wait for this software to become even more mainstream and be on the market. With Plotagon, there will be no more worries about scripts being changed or altered by third parties. The writer will have full control of their scripts once this software hits its peak. Now, instead of reading, go out and download Plotagon and start writing. Who knows, your next script could be an award-winning feature done at home.
MONTHLY MOVIE MEETING WHEN: 1st Wednesday night of every month, most months TIME: 7pm – 9pm COST: FREE event – Open to the public WHERE: North Mountain Brewing Company IFP presents three FILMMAKER CHALLENGES each year that are designed to provide an opportunity for Arizona Filmmakers to increase their skills and abilities. Each challenge: Requires you and your team to create a short film (5 minutes or less). Allows you to submit your film in HD, and we’ll project it in HD. Screens all films submitted on the BIG screen- even those submitted AFTER the deadline (although only films submitted on time are eligible for competition. Offers remote Kickoff! Live in Sedona, Tucson, Flagstaff, or even Bisbee? Join us! Offers remote Submission! Save your gas, submit online digitally! SEMINARS Crowdfunding, Local Films... We cover lots of topics that interest filmmakers, local and otherwise. WEEKLY TABLE READS Mondays When: 7-9pm, every Monday night Cost: FREE to the public. Moderator: Richard Roth RSVP: Please email Richard Roth to RSVP FILMMAKER FUSION Blending the artistic talents of Writers, Directors, Producers, Cinematographers, Editors, Actors, and other filmmaking professionals in a monthly hybrid networking meeting with a panel of guests.
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edge to their commercial. I am the local director who does get tapped for that kind of work. Nick: So what do you prefer doing most directing, writing or producing? Roze: Directing, hands down, and it has nothing to do with power. So many people believe that it’s about being the one who gets to make choices. It’s gone beyond that, I don’t direct from opinion, I think that is the worst place to direct a film from, because you are surrounded by people on a film set that all have an opinion. But what is their knowledge about the screenplay, what do they know about it. More importantly how does it relate to something what anchors you to the script. That is what I get to explore when I read a screenplay, that is my personal connection to it. So I look at it as a really interesting opportunity to get to know humans better, and they really get to know me better. It’s crazy, I get less sleep, at the same time I lose weight, I’m healthier during film production and so many people just get sick, worn out, or beat up from film production. I thrive in that environment, it’s where I belong, I need to be doing it all the time, that’s my calling. Nick: Alright on one final note, you a lot of interesting trinkets here on display, is there a single one you
would like to show off here and share an interesting story about? Roze: I was not planning on this one bit, I’m glad for the question. This actually is the book from “Speak No Evil”, that my art department Erika Hood, was the artist who created this, I believe is was a combination of many different people. One person worked on the cover, to give it this necronomicon kind of vibe to it, the drawings on the inside were all played key moments in the film. This page I opened up to is featured in the film. I love keeping little trinkets. Here’s another trinket from my first feature film, actually it’s what the principal speaks into during the morning announcements in the movie now called “Moon Pie”. This was found in a basement out in Superior Arizona, and I could not just keep this, it was just too
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cool. I am definitely one of those film makers that keeps their little trinkets here and there, the little keepsakes. Here is one more thing I want to show you. It was a gift to me at the end of “Speak No Evil” they found this dead tarantula, they found a meth addict’s tooth, this was shot in Apache Junction, I hate to say that about AJ. But AJ’s got its problems man. They bought the frame at Goodwill , and on the final shot of the day, we called wrap, the art department came over to me and presented the tarantula with the meth addict’s tooth encased in plastic, a fun little thing from “Speak No Evil”, and it says “love you art department “Speak No Evil” 2012. Nick: That’s lovely. Roze: I agree with you, there is honestly a story about everything on this here shelf. I could do a whole other show just about all the trinkets we have. Nick: What we need is an interactive map for the website so you can tell the story behind everything. Some other time, but for now, thank you very much for talking with us today Roze. And we look forward to seeing what you do next. Roze: Thanks looking forward to it! 602-717-0806 480-924-2344
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INTERVIEW
DEADLY SANCTUARY
Arizona Prominently Featured in Exciting New Film by Lynette Carrington
Recently “Arizona Filmmaker Magazine” was invited to the set of exciting new film “Deadly Sanctuary.” The film is based on the popular mystery book by valley author, Sylvia Nobel. The movie recounts historical events from the ‘70s. The story takes many mysterious twists and turns. In “Deadly Sanctuary” the events were uncovered by the heroine and investigative reporter from the book, Kendall O’Dell. “Deadly Sanctuary” stars Eric Roberts, Dean Cain, Daniel Baldwin, Marco Dapper, Rebekah Kochan and a host of local actors. It filmed at various locales around Arizona and we caught up with the production when they were filming out at Bumble Bee Ranch in Bumble Bee, Arizona.
so it’s been really good. Between here and Colossal Studios and Black Canyon City and Wranglers’ Roost… it’s made it phenomenal,” Criss shares. Fiery-haired author and Phoenix resident Sylvia Nobel served not only as writer, but as producer on “Deadly Sanctuary.” Joined by her husband Jerry Williams (who also served as executive producer), the dynamic duo were embraced by everyone on-set. Having the author of the source material for the film during production was an asset.
Filming in Arizona has been a fantastic experience. “It’s been great, other than it’s been a little windy… It’s provided so many different locations for the film, 30 AZ FILMMAKER
“All of the Kendall O’Dell mystery stories (and I’m almost finished with story number five now), are based on actual stories that I’ve gotten from the newspaper or television and I weave them into each story so they all have a basis in fact. I take the character to different parts of the state and I want to showcase this beautiful state so that not only everyone in the United States can see how gorgeous it is, but everyone in the world,” Nobel says. As with many people in the filmmaking community, the first time on a movie set is often an unforgettable experience. “I’ll never look at a movie the same way having seen what it takes to make one,” Williams adds.
Director Nancy Criss took a break in filming to tell us a bit about the production. “Sylvia Nobel that wrote the novel came to visit me when we were filming ‘A Horse for Summer.’ I hadn’t met her before but she was friends with one of our actors. She asked if she could come and hang out on set. She loved the way I ran the set and how professional the crew all was,” states Criss. “Afterwards, she called me and she sent me her book ‘Deadly Sanctuary’ to read. I read it and said, ‘Yeah, this would make a great movie.” Meetings followed and seven months later, the film was in production. “Her book and this film is based off of true events that happened in Arizona. There were several of these books and she just intertwined them all and made this story wrap around all the true events. That’s why it was really important to film this in Arizona, too,” Criss notes.
diligently working with the Arizona Legislature to hopefully get film tax incentives reinstated. “What’ I’d like to do is get a lot of films into this state,” Nobel explains.
“This is our first production,” states Williams. “She wrote the book 15 years ago and it’s in its sixth printing,” he says of the ‘Deadly Sanctuary’ novel. “Technology keeps changing, so (Sylvia) has to keep updating the book.” “I think it’s going to be very important for bringing back the film industry to Arizona, which has been gone for quite a few years, since the tax incentives sunsetted,” states Nobel of “Deadly Sanctuary.” Nobel and Williams are
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Another instrumental person on “Deadly Sanctuary” is producer Harvey Lowry, who is known for his work on “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “A Beautiful Mind,” “Watchman” and many other wonderful films. “I’ve known Nancy for many years. This film came about pretty quickly for her and she asked me to come aboard and produce the film for her so that she could focus on the creative and directing duties,” explains Lowry. He has also been helpful in pushing the importance of a tax incentive in Arizona and the day prior to our set visit, Lowry spoke with Carl Seel, member of the Arizona House of Representatives. “I met with Representative Seel and we had a great conversation about bringing a film incentive program to the State of Arizona. I kind of explained to him that Arizona right now is sort of viewed upon in Hollywood, as everywhere
else, as a ‘flyover state.’ No one really wants to film here because it’s fiscally irresponsible to do that,” Lowry says. “You can go one state over where there’s a 25 percent incentive program. What that means for a filmmaker is for every dollar you spend in the state, they give you 25 cents back. You don’t have that in Arizona and I explained that to him. I showed him that I have 16 films in development right now that are coming up one after another. I showed him out of those 16 films guess how many are slated to film here? It was very eye-opening for him to show him the budgets…,” remarks Lowry. As producer, Lowry gets to wear many hats. “The producer handles all the dirty work behind the scenes… everything from hiring all the crew, to budgeting the film, figuring out what it will cost to make it, coordinating all the company moves, the staff… everything,” Lowry says. His duties, it seems are never finished, but this cast and crew is appreciative to have his expertise. Indeed, over and over again while we were on the Bumble Bee Ranch set, everyone kept remarking about how well-run and coordinated everything was on set. Arizona Filmmaker Magazine would like to give thanks and a special shoutout to actor Tank Jones for the set referral, Nancy Criss, Sylvia Nobel, Jerry Williams, Harvey Lowry, Dean Cain and Hollywood Catering for making our set visit an extra special experience.
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ARIZONA FILMMAKER MAGAZINE
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602-717-0806 480-924-2344
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AZ FILMMAKER 31
FILMFESTIVAL
JEROME FILM FEST by Holly Foreman
In 2013 something new happened in the historic town of Jerome. Filmmakers of every ilk collected on the hill for a weekend of film and music in the first ever Jerome Indie Film & Music Festival. 2014 saw many new things yet again happening in Jerome, but one thing stays constant: the dedication of this festival to promoting the work of independent artists and celebrating their success. “The concept is to showcase truly independent material, in a way that many indie film festivals no longer do.” Hal C F Astell, Apocalypse Later 2013’s Jerome Indie Film & Music 32 AZ FILMMAKER
Festival showed mostly Arizona talent to a mostly Arizona audience. As if the film and music talent wasn’t enough, there were launch parties, fundraisers, networking events, Q & As, panels and wine tastings. The spirit of the historic town of Jerome was present in every corner of the festival, and attendees celebrated the town’s funky vibe – a perfect accompaniment to the quirks of the artistic community. 2014’s Festival was June 12-15 in the hippy town on high. Jerome, Arizona is in the Black Hills of Yavapai County, and sits 5,000 feet above sea level on Cleopatra Hill. Originally the fourth largest town in the Arizona Territory, it
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reached its peak population in the 1920’s, and saw a drastic decline after the copper mine ceased operations in 1953. To this day, it exists as a ghost town – a haven for artists, craftsmen, musicians, writers, and the like. The Jerome Indie Film & Music Festival started as a hope and a prayer for film community member Toni Ross. Fueled by a love of film
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and the talents involved, Ross decided to honor the memory of her infant son Trey by making her dreams happen. A few years later, and even after hundreds of hours of labor, she hasn’t regretted the decision once. The JIF&MF is a place where Arizona talent shines, and that is the heart of what Ross was aiming for in its creation. Arizona artists will always have a home in the Jerome Festival, but it has gained international attention after the smashing success of the first year. This year it has received submissions from the UK, Chile, Cuba, Australia, France, Germany,
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Japan, and the Netherlands as well as a tremendous amount from right here in Arizona. Fewer films were shown this year to allow for multiple showings and panels. This festival is known for being edgy, purely by extension of its locale and the artists who participate, and this year it is breaking new boundaries. Some films are grittier and deal
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with socially impactful themes, while others are inspirational and uplifting. Having a film festival in Jerome means of course a heavy emphasis on horror films as well! Even the types of venues this year will be different, and details are being finalized on a much more intimate way of screening films in this hilltop town. Rounding out the upgrades this year is the addition of a Murder Mystery event and a campground option. The Gold King Mine, just up the hill from the venues, is available for camping with kegger parties and fireside ghost stories. Celebrations abounded, with something for everyone. Casual events mix with dress-to-the-nine evenings to give every attendee a chance to let loose in their own way. A Hangover Brunch was added too, sponsored by local sound professional James Alire of 5J Media.
Other sponsors include Brian Kiefling of Madu Productions, Luke Malone of Alone Wolf Productions, Broadcast Rentals, Reel Men, and Arizona Filmmaker Magazine Online along with the Jerome Historical Society and Caduceus Cellars. Several sponsors from 2013 have returned including Psychic Flyingmonkeyproductions and Rangelo Productions. A festival
like this doesn’t happen without the support of local business, and sponsorships are still available at many levels. When asked to describe the Jerome Indie Film & Music Festival, Ross has
said, “Imagine if Woodstock and Sundance had a love child and Alfred Hitchcock and Scooby Doo were the godparents. Sounds crazy,” she said, “but that’s the vibe!” Truly an eclectic mix of films and music, this festival is not to be missed. Visit www.jeromefilmfestival.com for more information. See you on the hill in June! Mark your calendars for June 12-14, 2015
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FILMFESTIVAL
PHOENIX FILM FESTIVAL 2014 by Nicholas Spake
The 2014 Phoenix Film Festival is having its opening night premiere on April 3rd at Harkins Scottsdale 101. In addition to screening films, the festival will include Geek Day, Kid’s Day, and numerous other events. This seven day long festival is being helmed by Jason Carney, the executive director of the Phoenix Film Foundation. Carney recently spoke with the AZ Filmmaker Magazine to discuss the significance of this annual celebration embracing the art of film. AZFM: Filmmaker Magazine: What’s your greatest responsibility as festival director? Jason Carney: Basically it’s the overall oversight of the festival and the organization. Anything that happens at the festival is up to me. AZFM: What kind of items will be available at the silent auction? JC: We got a few things lined up so far like a mini iPad, free airport parking for a year, a really cool yoga package, and a “Boss” poster signed by Kelsey Grammer. We’re still waiting on a lot of the memorabilia items. AZFM: What can you tell me about Kid’s Day? JC: It’s a really cool, free event geared at kids form 3 to 12. We have all these different film-related activity stations like a green screen station and a red carpet where they get their picture taken. AZFM: What distinguishes the Phoenix Film Festival from other film festivals? 36 AZ FILMMAKER
JC: There’s no other festival our size that takes place in one location. Everything happens on site at the Harkins Scottsdale 101 center. That’s a really nice benefit that creates a community feel for the festival. AZFM: How many of the films being screened at the festival have you seen? JC: I have seen probably about 40% of them. We have over 150 films and to watch all of them in such a short amount of time is impossible. That’s why we have different program directors for each of the categories. AZFM: Which film do you think is your personal favorite? JC: There’s a really cool documentary called “Missfire: The Rise and Fall of the Shooting Gallery.” It’s about this group of folks that turned into a movie company that made “Sling Blade” and several other independent films. It’s just a great story that I never heard before. AZFM: Will there be any big names attending the festival? JC: We’re still working on that. So far we got Dee Wallace aka the mom from “E.T.” and Leah Thompson from “Back to the Future.” AFM: What can you tell us about the seminars and middle/high school programs offered by the festival? Those are really great. It’s on four different days. On the first day, it’s all about the filmmakers we’ve brought in from around the world talking in panels. The second day is when we start the production process. There’s
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a screenwriting day where students break out into groups and they have a mentor who works with them to create a short script. The next day they start preproduction of the winning script. Then on the last day, they actually shoot that short film. AZFM: And what can you tell us about Geek Day? JC: That’s going to happen on Sunday and we got some really cool folks coming out like the Arizona Ghostbusters, the Phoenix Cupcake Company, local videogame developers, and various other comicrelated people. AZFM: Why do you think it’s important for people to attend the Phoenix Film Festival? JC: It’s just a great opportunity to see films you might not see otherwise. Film lovers can soak in what these films are all about and learn the back-stories of them. AZFM: Do you consider yourself a real moviegoer? JC: Oh yeah. I’m usually at the theater at least once a week. But this time of year I avoid the theater like the plague. AZFM: Any final thoughts on the festival? JC: It’s just a great event and when people come out they’ll get hooked. We look forward to having another great year. Be sure to attend the Phoenix Film Festival from April 3rd to April 10th at Harkins Scottsdale 101 7000 E. Mayo BLVD., Phoenix, AZ 85054.
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INTERREVIEW
VOYAGE TREKKERS
THE MOTION PICTURE By: Joseph D. Becker
Gabby (Laughing ) I did, for the holidays, I was in Michigan for a little bit and then went to San Simeon, where the Hearst Castle is. And then I ended up in San Francisco for the New Year. So it was a very fun trip. (Laughing ) Let’s see, so you asked me about my favorite episode to shoot. My favorite
episode to shoot would probably be the Choose Your Own Adventure. That was at the end of our first season. And we were at dinner with these aliens. They had a very interesting assortment of food. And during the course of that episode different things would happen and you could kind of pick where you wanted the characters to kind of go with the story. That was probably my favorite episode to shoot. Although, Nathan was never quite happy with one of my responses. I remember with one specific line that I had, where like a little creature was placed in front of me. He wanted a very specific response and I am pretty sure that we had to shoot that over 20 times. It was just once after another. But I loved it, so it’s okay. And I did it. But, was it 14? Are you sure? It felt like 20. (Laughing ) Ohmmm… let’s see what else. What other things should I talk about. Ok. Sure I can talk about my character. So Dr. Elaine Rena. Ooooh… I thought this was very cool. Nathan, when he was trying to come up with the first names of our characters, he kind of opened it up to us. And I actually got
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to pick that Elaine would be my first name. So I thought that was very cool. Ohmmm… But I kind of consider my character more of the straight man, so to speak. There is a lot of humor that comes from Adam, Capt. Son Stripe, as well as Cmdr. Powell and his own kind of awkward and uneasy way he holds
himself. But it’s kind of endearing. And so I feel like I’m kind of like the mother of the ship trying to keep people in line and getting completely annoyed with different things that take place. But something I really enjoyed with this past season is that there have been key moments where Dr. Rena kind of connects with Capt. Sunstrike. They have these moments of being friends. Because it typically has always been butting heads and her thinking that that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about and that he is just causing more trouble on top of more trouble. But it’s nice to have those kind of ups and downs with our relationship. It kind of adds those
layers to it. So that has been one of my favorite kind of character developments this season. It has been finding those kind of more intimate and friendly moments with Capt. Sunstrike. Logan I’m basically there to make everyone else in the show look good. Make Capt. Sunstrike look good in
comparison, like oh you think he’s terrible, but dear God at least we don’t give the ship over to Cmdr. Powell. Or you think Dr. Rena screwed up. But just imagine Powell handling this situation. And so, but people seem to enjoy what I do, so I keep doing it, and okay, you want to start over? I think my favorite couple episodes was one was where we were dressed up like we were in some Shakespeare play or something. I seem to remember just enjoying like making my little possessed face and kind of acting like I was possessed and doing different things on the show. And of course the one where I got to be in charge of the ship, even though it was only in my head. Just being able to kind of do, kind of being able to work through a range of scenes and emotions, even just using my weird little character, it’s all pretty enjoyable and enough to keep me on my toes.
series with my friend Craig Curtis, who I have been making movies with for, well just say, a long time. (Laughing) We started switching studios to really make some fun comedies. Usually what we do is take a genre that we really love, like you know, zombies or sci-fi and then we kind of do is make a comedic spin on it which we find really fun. That is the kind of movies we like to do. We started Voyage Trekkers really
Nathan All Right. My name is Nathan Blackwell. I am the writer /director of Voyage Trekkers. I co-created this JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
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INTERREVIEW
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because we have always been fans of sci-fi, of Star Wars and Star Trek. But Star Trek, it’s always about the best crew in the galaxy, like the top, the guys that were top in the class. And so just the way that our own kind of comedic minds work is like, so what would it be like with the bottom guys. I mean there’s gotta be like the worst ship right? You know. So it was our way of having fun with something that we love. The reason we wanted to do a movie like Voyage Trekkers is that we wanted to tell a larger story. You know. Web series are great. They allow us to tell a continuous story with characters. That’s one of the things we liked doing the web series over short films. But with a feature, we can really tell a bigger story. And that’s kind of where we wanted to go anyway. We really want to do feature films and things like that. One of the troubles with web series, for all their advantages, is that you know you really can’t pay
anyone on a web series. It’s difficult to monetize a web series. So everyone who works on Voyage Trekkers the web series is volunteering. I don’t make any money off Voyage Trekkers. And so one of the things, also, of us wanting to do a bigger story is to actually be able to pay some of the people that are involved in the project. When you are dealing, obviously, with a bigger project you have to go find investors, we have got to use a lot more favors and resources, but we also have the ability to raise the profile of the project and hopefully get more recognition for everyone involved. https://facebook.com/ VoyageTrekkers http://voyagetrekkers.com/
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