.:*~*:._.:*~*:._"Mordere" .:*~*:._.:*~*:._

[Beat Takeshi]

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Mordere_Poster.jpg

Link to movie:
http://www.dvxfest.com/timefest/direct_dl.php?id=1000179

if not working here is HD version:
http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Final_Edit_TimefestH246.mov

[Beat Takeshi]

BTS stuff:
http://mikeks.smugmug.com/Production%20shots/628763



Screen shots:

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Screenie01.jpg

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Screenie02.jpg

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Screenie03.jpg

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Screenie04.jpg

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Screenie05.jpg

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Screenie06.jpg

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Screenie07.jpg

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Screenie08.jpg

[Beat Takeshi]

Most Def Cast

Rachael: Rachael Hip Flores
http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Rachael_Hip_Flores_small.jpg

Natasha: Natasha Yannacanedo
http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Natasha_Yannacanedo_small.jpg

Barry:
http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Barry_Mcbrien.jpg

Final Outlaw:
http://www.puffinfilms.com/Final_Outlaw/Final_Outlaw20.jpg

Pegasus:
http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Pegasus.jpg


Crew:
Aram Bauman - Director
Mike Hechanova - Director of Photography
Johnny Tsang - Second camera
Billy Lappe - Special Effects makeup
Dana Verde - AD
Larry the accountant - AC
Steve "Slider" Mona - Human permit
Michael Simonitsch - Photographer
Anthony Cox - Line Producer
Barry crewed on day 1 also.

[Edgen]

Allllll rriiiiighhht! :)

The heat is on now!

/j

[Brandon Rice]

Most DEF!

[Emile Meyer -- FI]

Very nice!!!

Good luck, mate!

[Geoff_R]

Give us the inside scoop...what genre are you gunning for? Details?!

[Ted Arabian]

Woo Hoo! SWEEEEEEEET!

Aram doing the directing-deed! :thumbsup:

Not behind the camera... :(

But got Arrik working as DP... :)

Best guys.

[Mark Harris]

Uh-huh. So it's on, is it?

[Arrik]

WTH, I didnt sign up for this!!!???

:grin:

[Arrik]

Reserved for rants about Aram's directing style.

[Ted Arabian]

WTH, I didnt sign up for this!!!???

:grin:


Too Late now.... Once Aram has his grip, you cannot escape!

Have fun working together. Aram is a GREAT GUY!

Reserved for rants about Aram's directing style.

:grin: hahaha!!!

[Arrik]

Pointless post to get a jump on catching up with FATMONSTER's thread size.

Please help promote our film by posting any nonsense you'd like to share.

[Matt Sconce]

Well, knowing Aram is on board here makes me know the cinematography will be brilliant. I look forward to this!

[Arrik]

:crybaby:

[Beat Takeshi]

I'm letting Arrik take the shooting helm this time. He has been on a bunch of shoots with me and is down for shooting so I'm going to try not to get in his way.
The only requirement though is that he use the Brevis Flip :)

I don't have a directing style yet. Its been so long since I did one I'm going to feel like a no0ob.
I can't say what genre it is because that would kill the point of the movie but its one I have been wanting to do for a while. Script just needs some tweaking but have gotten really good responses so far with some minor changes to help people connect the dots. Oh, there you go, its a connect the dots movie. :)

I originally wanted to shoot this all in one shot because it takes place in real time but the main story defining shot needs to be dead on or else people will miss the idea. They may miss it anyways but trying to make it as clear as possible without dumbing it down.

I'm excited to be doing one for real again but I just hope my location doesn't get screwed up. It won't be around for too much longer.

[Jason Ramsey]

.:*~*:._.:*~*:._ Welcome to the Fest .:*~*:._.:*~*:._

I hope all those squigglies mean something.

[Beat Takeshi]

Yes they do actually. They help me find my post quicker.

[Matt Sconce]

I'm letting Arrik take the shooting helm this time. He has been on a bunch of shoots with me and is down for shooting so I'm going to try not to get in his way.
The only requirement though is that he use the Brevis Flip :)



oops...sorry Arrik. Didn't see you were shooting this. I am sure it will be brilliant as well!:engel017:

[Beat Takeshi]

Hey all, we are looking for insurance in NYC if anyone has some for rent.

[conrad_johnson]

Ah, you again. Can't wait. This is gonna be good.

[Beat Takeshi]

Yeah, I was waiting for you to come back before I entered again. Can't wait to see you and Mark's joint. I like the colors you used in the screenies.

[Arrik]

The only requirement though is that he use the Brevis Flip :)

No doubt. This is definitely going to be a cinevate joint. We need to contact Dennis about getting our MP1 unit upgrade. I'm really excited to use it on a shoot with all its features and ease of use. I'm also toying with the idea of getting my hands on the Ballare all terrain dolly, but we'll see how it goes.

I haven't decided on CF2Le or CF1Le. I think maybe both.

[Beat Takeshi]

I sent you a new version of the script. I added another layer to Rachael's messed up life.

[Beat Takeshi]

But I think I'm taking it out after a long talk with Tina today. She made some good comments.

[Chris Messineo]

Spike, good luck with it. I can't wait to see what you come up with.

[Beat Takeshi]

That reminds me. I was going to send you the script. Its on its 2nd draft and being changed again tonight.

[Chris Messineo]

Send it to me after you finish this draft. I'd be happy to check it out for you.

[Beat Takeshi]

Too late, sent it already.

[Chris Messineo]

Great script. Actresses look perfect.

I'm really looking forward to seeing the finished film.

[Beat Takeshi]

Poster added.

[Beat Takeshi]

Found out that my pops knows the owners of the area where we want to shoot. Hope they are willing to let us shoot there.

[Chris Messineo]

The location looks great.

[Beat Takeshi]

Yay, we got the location locked. So now for rehearsals and shooting.

[Arrik]

Yeah im really happy we have permission to shoot there. It's a tough location lighting-wise, and really didn't want to have to go guerilla-style with available light. We pumped gain in some of those shots on the first page just get it to expose.

Thanks for the signature, spike. I stole it. The poster looks awesome. You work pretty fast. You're going to have to show me how you did it this weekend.

[bosindy]

Hey Abomb,

Glad to see you putting the director hat back on. Maybe I'll mosey on down for the shoot depending on your schedule. Should be a fun shoot given the material. Go get em!

Jim

[Beat Takeshi]

We are shooting the beginning of May during the week sometime. Have to check all the schedules to see what matches up.

[Geoff_R]

That location reminds me of 'City of Violence'. Nice find.

[Dustin R. Rogan]

Wowzers! Love the poster!

[Beat Takeshi]

Thanks.
I just got a little update on whats happening with the whole tearing down Coney Island thing so I need to adjust some dialog.
Have our first meeting on Monday to get to know everyone.

[Beat Takeshi]

First meeting with the actresses today. Excited the shoot date is coming near. Its been so long since I did my own joint I feel like this is a first time again.

[Beat Takeshi]

I'm happy as hell. Casting was perfect on this I think. The readings alone brought forth the characters I see in my head. The only hitch that I over looked was wardrobe. DOH! Being a dark location I didn't really see anything descript for that. Took a quick ride to K-Mart and that didn't work so we are heading to Express this week.
My male actor also tore his achillies tendon so now I have to recast. Whats with the tearing of achillies tendons with shoots I'm on. Dale tore his when we did Check.

[Mark Johnson]

I love your enthusiasm, man. This is going to rock, sir.

[Beat Takeshi]

Thanks. Its been a while since my last film so I'm a little giddy that I'm actually doing something for myself again even though its a one location shoot. :)
I'm banking on the characters being strong enough to hold the attention of the viewers for 6 minutes. Then when you see the end I'm hoping viewers will rewind in their heads and connect the dots and then rewind the movie to see if there were any other clues and cues that were missed because at the time they seemed so mundane.

[Mark Harris]

hey good luck aram! Looking forward to it, man.

[Beat Takeshi]

Thanks Mark. I can't wait to see your joint too. I love that icy blue tinge you have on your images. I'm still trying to figure out whats going on with that. Looks like blue and a lavender without being too over powering.

[Mark Harris]

that's all Joe. All raw images so far too. We shot it like that. Still need some cc in there.

[Beat Takeshi]

I think they are fine the way they are. Not too contrasty and not too saturated, the edging isn't too pronounced...

[Troy Ruff]

sweet poster, very nice

[deedive]

cool poster, good luck dude

[Beat Takeshi]

Thanks.

[Beat Takeshi]

Little glitch with the location. They didn't want anything that would put the park in a bad light so there was an issue with something in the script. As much as I wanted to show off the park we may have to shoot it so its looks non-descript. Either that or move one of the scenes out to the street or down the ally the other direction. Sent them the script though and hopefully when they see the reason for the scene they will approve it. Fingers crossed.

[Beat Takeshi]

Barry McBrien will be playing the boyfriend. You all know him from CHECK. (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=94491)

[Mark Harris]

So what happened with the loc?

[Beat Takeshi]

The guy said that I can shoot and keep the Wonder wheel out of the shot and hes ok with that. I'm waiting on someone from NYU to get me permits for the street shots so we can use the new toys Dennis from CINEVATE is bringing tomorrow. I shoot for them and hope the favor can be returned. If everything falls through we are still shooting there. I have my cop friends coming down for to hold off the dogs anyways.

[Arrik]

Just concerns with the content of what we are shooting on the park. They dont want bad PR. I think we've convinced them otherwise since then and will do our best not to associate negativity to the landmark.

But the location is still secured.

[Mark Harris]

Yeah, because who ever heard of negativity associated with Coney? I mean, that's absurd...:evil:

[Arrik]

damn, aram is too fast....

[Arrik]

LOL, that's what I said.

[Beat Takeshi]

Yeah, there were pimps and hoes down there already. I mean...WTF.

[Beat Takeshi]

Mike, I don't remember everything we talked about last night. 4am was a little late for embedding information I think. :P

My shoot is canceled for tomorrow due to weather so I'm free earlier in the evening.

[Arrik]

Uh...... so does that mean our plan for insurance has gone down the drain?

Let's meet earlier to discuss schedules, shots, props, whatever.... Then meet up with D to pick up the weaponry. Hubert told me he watched Dennis lug a tank to the airport. :)

[Beat Takeshi]

No, I'm still on it. I just reminded him again.

Here is the first of the weapons that came in.

http://www.puffinfilms.com/Final_Outlaw/BTS/IMG_0880.jpg

[Mark Harris]

wait, is the weapon the sword thing, or the really nasty lookin dude?

[Simon Höfer]

That looks like a really nice sword :) Looking really forward to you entry!

[Beat Takeshi]

That looks like a really nice sword :) Looking really forward to you entry!


Look closer... its actually SUPER ghetto-home-made.

[Simon Höfer]

Damn it :D Maybe I need some other perspectives. Can't tell much from this picture, just that it looks nice. :) Did you make it?

[Beat Takeshi]

I don't know who made it but it looks like it will fly off the handle and stab a clown.

[Simon Höfer]

Send in the clowns :D

Well, I like it, because it has this video game vibe.

Could be a little bit bigger though.

http://www.square-enix.co.jp/ccff7/download/wp_feather_HD.jpg

[Beat Takeshi]

Damn, that looks just like one of our shots but with Coney Island in the background instead.

[bosindy]

Man that's sword is scary looking but I don't remember there being one in the script I read

[Arrik]

Send in the clowns :D

Well, I like it, because it has this video game vibe.

Could be a little bit bigger though.


Zack actually makes an appearance in our short. The "nasty" dude in the shot was just a stand-in :beer:

[Beat Takeshi]

Bo-zack

[Arrik]

Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyummmm im at work, and cant concentrate. Cant wait to meet with D and pick up those weapons!!!

[Beat Takeshi]

Weapons delivered. Now to learn how to use them.

[Simon Höfer]

Have fun :D

[Beat Takeshi]

Does it look fun? :happy:
http://www.puffinfilms.com/Final_Outlaw/Segway_cam.jpg

[Simon Höfer]

That definately does look like alot of fun! Is that thing cool? i would love to try it :)

[Beat Takeshi]

Yeah but the problem is that its illegal to use in the street in NY. Its really easy to ride too. The original ones where hard to ride at first. This one you just jump on and go.

[tommetass]

Hehe Mor'dere...

Mordere in norwegian means "Killers".. :P

[Beat Takeshi]

ah, but which language are we actually using :grin:

[Beat Takeshi]

Dang lost our location, they couldn't handle the violence in the script. No big deal. Moving on.

[Mark Harris]

Sucks man. Have you thought about Jersey Shore? Any old parks like that down there still?

[Beat Takeshi]

The problem with that is getting everyone over there. Its ok. I will just write another script and be able to use that location on another film in the future, they just didn't want the Wonder Wheel portrayed with violence because of the fight thats going on with the people trying to build condos and them trying to keep the park open.

It shouldn't be a problem finding another place and will get a permit from a friend for the new location. Just have to change some of the script that was specific to Coney Island.

[Kwan]

damn... damn

[Arrik]

Dang lost our location, they couldn't handle the violence in the script. No big deal. Moving on.

You move on! I'm still feeling burnt.:violent5:

[Beat Takeshi]

I have been racking my brains to figure out what to do to the point I need a nap.
Oh I think we have Final Outlaw and his friend to play the Thugs in the car.

[CLD]

im guessing this is your timefest project? im soooooo lost in the whole freakin thing.. hehe..

[Arrik]

Sup Johnny, watched your DVD. Good stuff man. I like how you organized everything on the menu. And your AE work on the mountains was cool. Good job.

Aram, Outlaw and his boys will be cool for the role. Though, I'm not sure how what you have in mind for the location. Anyways, we have that drive to CT to think about it I guess.

[Beat Takeshi]

Yeah, that drive is going to be long but will give us time to think about what to do. Arrik and I will be shooting a feature out there in August and September and going to meet the writer and director tomorrow. Should be fun and the script is really good. Cool back story on the script and why the writer decided not to take the offers he got from 5 major studios for it. Hopefully he will start a thread on the whole thing. Hes been a long time lurker here.

[Beat Takeshi]

This location thing is screwing up the story. We were going to guerrilla it down in Coney Island but decided not to in case there were repercussions from the people that were going to let us use the park. Its a hook up we may want to use later on at the end of the summer so we will save it and look else where. Changes the whole damn story but oh well, roll with the punches. Off to location scout tomorrow again.

[Mark Harris]

Dude, go for Rye Playland. People get killed up there all the time.

[Beat Takeshi]

I thought about there. When I was driving tow trucks I found 2 bodies under the over pass in a white caddy back in the early 90s. I used to work for the company that controlled the belt parkway and I was cruising through there and saw it parked and thought I was going to see a dude with a hooker which happens all the time there.

[Arrik]

Well, preproduction is really shaping up well. Off to Dye Playland.......

[Beat Takeshi]

My bad, it wasn't Rye playland, it was Nellie Bly right off the Belt.

[Mark Harris]

Nellie Bly is freaky scary, like if you go in Carnies will take your soul and the place will vanish for 100 yrs scary...

[Beat Takeshi]

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/79/209080741_7f00b584b2.jpg?v=0

[Beat Takeshi]

I think I'm going to take a ride down there and see whats up with it. I could see it being shot there too.

[Beat Takeshi]

New location kicks ass and is creepy also. Now just to get the permits and pick up the generator.

[Mark Harris]

where it be at?

[Kwan]

Nice

[Beat Takeshi]

Its actually better than the other place because of all the stuff we can see to add to the colors.

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Park01.jpg

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Park02.jpg

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Park03.jpg

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Park04.jpg

http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Park05.jpg

[Beat Takeshi]

Rehearsals tomorrow and some more props today. Starting to get nervous for some reason...

[conrad_johnson]

Rehearsals tomorrow and some more props today. Starting to get nervous for some reason...

No reason to be nervous. You will rock the house! I know it.:beer:
Unless you're nervous about that big dude with the sword, I'd be nervous too.

Wicked location, BTW.

:thumbup:

[Mark Harris]

I think you are nervous about the creepy carnies who are going to take your souls...

[conrad_johnson]

I hate carnies.

[Beat Takeshi]

I haven't directed my own flick in about a year or so. I'm feeling rusty. :P
The big teddy bear ride is giving me nightmares of Akira.

[Beat Takeshi]

Got the final prop, Fat monster has nothing on us. This weapon is so deadly no prop master from Cali can comprehend!!!

[ZazaCast]

I think you are nervous about the creepy carnies who are going to take your souls...


Yes... small hands and they smell of cabbage.....

[Beat Takeshi]

So rehearsals went well but some one called the cops on us. The door bells rings and so we just thought it was neighbors so when Barry opens the door 2 cops poke their head out from behind the doorway and said is everything ok here? When they found out we were just rehearsing they looked pissed. One of them gave that sarcastic "ok just be careful" line with a look that could kill. The change of location did effect all of our shots and we had to work that out too but I think we figured it out.

[Beat Takeshi]

updated poster and cast members.

[Beat Takeshi]

Everything is in place for tomorrows shoot. Got my cop buddies to buffer any cop problems we may have, going to pick up the generator and 2k from my shooting buddies out in Long Island, the main prop is working perfectly, have a small but cool crew, its not going to rain, got an extra mode of transportation, Mike got a nice lens for the money shot, actors are ready, what else is there...

[Ted Arabian]

Cool! Excellent! Happy Shooting!!!

[Mark Harris]

What do you need the cop buddy for? Aren't you shooting on private property? Isn't that what that park is?

[Beat Takeshi]

We are on the street next to the property. I didn't ask for permission this time. I supposedly have a permit for the area but until I have it in my hands I'm taking precautions.

[Beat Takeshi]

Got the permit and ready to go.

[Beat Takeshi]

After a long night of shooting outside in the cold we have day 1 in the can. Due to some camera issues we fell behind a few hours but everyone was willing to keep going to make up for it. We shoot again tomorrow night and hope to have everything we need.

[Mark Harris]

nice, good going! What happened with the camera? Was it the lens cap again, Aram? Come on, be honest.

[Kwan]

NNIce ...

[Beat Takeshi]

I roughed out what we have and it flows nice. We are already at 5 minutes so this is a non-compete joint. The actors and actresses did a great job with everything and I'm really happy.
:) We lost a lens cap actually but we a slight set up problem with the rails and stuff trying to put it together in the dark. We had my cam set up but Mike wanted to use his set up with the longer rails, shoulder pad and follow focus so he changed it out. The Proteus rail system has these clamp things where the bolt goes through and tightens to hold the rails but the thing we didn't know was that they are only threaded on one side and for some reason that stumped us for a bit when we put the bolt through the threaded side first leaving us trying to tighten it to an un-threaded side. We also were bullshitting around talking a bit longer than we should have now that I think about it. I guess it really didn't take that long to get it set up but it seemed like the next thing I knew it was 10pm and we hadn't shot yet so we went into over drive running around like crazy. I think we previewed one take for some reason but we put full trust that we were getting what we needed otherwise. Steve did a great job shooing the cops away and they did come often.

[CLD]

haha!! it should be fun tonight.. I cant wait.. my wife does not like the fact that I might be shooting late.. but hey.. married life right?

So hopefully there won't be any problems tonight.. well having a 3rd brevis owner tagging along wouldnt hurt right? hehe..

So my Z7U setup should be pretty cool.. I can make the colors really pop if you want.. So let's see what we should do.. I'm not sure if steadicaming tonight would be super great, since my whole body is shot from yesterday's shoot.. but I'll bring em anyway.. never know right?

So whats the movie about? HHAHAHAHHA dayam you for not sending me the script.. :P

[Beat Takeshi]

BTS photos added and crew list updated

[Ted Arabian]

114 pictures! Sheesh.... give me a few minutes then I'll comment! :)

[Ted Arabian]

Wow! Aram. That is great. You have a BUNCH of new toys!!!

First I saw the generator.... I'm like, that's cool.

Then I see the new rails from Cinevate... I'm like, yep.... looked at those. I like, I like.

THEN I see the Ballare Dolly and Seat! ... I was like, I want to play with those toys!!!

I also notice that you have the Flip for the Brevis now. Pretty sweet! Even got the Cinevate cap!

Handgrips, shoulder pad... what else?

Oh yeah! Is that YOUR monitor or did you rent?

.......

I can't wait to see your film. It was cool to visualize what shots you were setting up, having read the script.

Finally, I do hope that you had a football jersey on under that jacket!!! :grin:

Very cool, Aram and Arrik. Very cool, indeed.

[CLD]

oh crap.. i think i left my cap @ the studio that night... DOH!

I want to be cool and have a cap too.. dayamit..

Oh well.. life sucks sometimes...

[jasonthewho]

Fun BTS pictures! Looks like everyone was enjoying themselves. Maybe it was because they were around such awesome equipment!

[Beat Takeshi]

Well tonight went a little rushed since one of the actresses had to get up early so we went fast which probably made some things suffer. I have to look through the footage and see what we got but may be adding another day to get the stuff I know we missed.
Hey Ted, Yes fun stuff to play with but not so fun when you are zooming through your shot list and the dolly takes a ton of time to set up and get the shot right. We used it but not as many times as planned but the next shoot will probably be all the dolly shots we missed. I know Mike was not happy about having to work so fast. We need to slow it down big time for the next day.
Thats Mikes monitor and he just got it back from Nebtek with the new update with pixel to pixel zoom. Works great. I really wish we had a video camera like the BTS camera because man, it sees into the dark like a monster. It would have given the shots so much more life if it looked anything like the still camera.
No football jersey, I had a nylon joint on. Tonight I was pimping the Cinevate nylon I just got.
The crew is great, I can't ask for anything more from them. It was such a diverse group of people, expecially tonight. I wish we were shooting a feature so we could have more days to work.

[Beat Takeshi]

One thing that stands out from tonight was we were moving a light and some how it got hooked on a tripod and Johny camera took a dump...BUT Billy had some kind of ninja powers and caught the sh1t from behind his back, not looking. He said he felt something and just grabbed backwards and the next thing he knew he had the tripod in his hand. Freaking lucky. Oh, also someone tried to steal our generator while we were shooting. It was way down the block and this SUV passed it and then backed up and the guys got out to take it while it was running but the cop saw it and chased them away. WTF. Did they think we weren't going to notice when the lights all went out or something?

[Ted Arabian]

LOL! That generator anecdote is priceless! :grin:

That "ninja" anecdote is amazing! Yikes! I'd never shoot without Billy again! :)

[Kwan]

WTF???
Don't tell me .. ya'll let them bounce without ASS whoopin' (Ninja turtle style.... KOWABUNGAAAAAAAA...

[CLD]

yes yes.. you forgot to mention that the camera that dumped was about 1/2 inch off the ground when billy caught it.. WAHHHHHH!!!!

I have some behind the scene footages on steadicam.. I'll post that up soon..

Good shoot.. feels like old times.. rush rush.. LOL

[Ted Arabian]

yes yes.. you forgot to mention that the camera that dumped was about 1/2 inch off the ground when billy caught it.. WAHHHHHH!!!

Wow. The vein in my temple literally pulsated when I read this!

[Beat Takeshi]

Yeah, it was like right off the ground and a brand new Sony joint with the new Brevis set up. Would have been an expensive fall.
Kwan, I was off to a bathroom run with the actresses when they tried to take the genny.

[Beat Takeshi]

Screen shots up

[Kwan]

Very Nice Team Work

[Simon Höfer]

Screen shots looking really good!

[Mark Harris]

Hey Aram, what kind of light did you have on the car interior shot?

[Beat Takeshi]

It was a 500w floro bulb placed on the floor of the vehicle.

[Raptor365]

Yours and Mark H's look really good. Never missed a Mark Harris clip yet.

I must admit I've probably missed a lot of your past work Beat, not sure, I always watch all fest entries, but looking forward to this one in particular, knowing now a little of your background.

Anyways, rock on.

[Mark Harris]

It was a 500w floro bulb placed on the floor of the vehicle.

Yeah, I had done the same with some lower watt flouros powered off the car in CONSTANCE. but I had no adapter in that scene. Still I am impressed with the kind of light you can get in a car off those little guys.

[Mark Harris]

Yours and Mark H's look really good. Never missed a Mark Harris clip yet.

I must admit I've probably missed a lot of your past work Beat, not sure, I always watch all fest entries, but looking forward to this one in particular, knowing now a little of your background.

Anyways, rock on.

Ha ha, thanks man. You are making me feel a lot better about not having huge sets and fighter pilots and stuff. :)

[Beat Takeshi]

Yours and Mark H's look really good. Never missed a Mark Harris clip yet.

I must admit I've probably missed a lot of your past work Beat, not sure, I always watch all fest entries, but looking forward to this one in particular, knowing now a little of your background.

Anyways, rock on.
I haven't done my own since Herofest and have wound up shooting other peoples the last year and a half. All my old stuff is up on www.puffinfilms.com (http://www.puffinfilms.com) and some of the new stuff up at http://www.vimeo.com/puffinfilms/videos. Some of it I just shot though and others directed and I have some stuff I haven't put together yet to put up there.
It feels good to finally be doing my own thing again even though I'm stressed out. Its making it much easier though having a great team around me. I really wish Leslie wasn't so busy because she was needed to make things run smoother.

I hope people like this story. Probably not anything that anyone is expecting though which is a good thing.

[Raptor365]

Ha ha, thanks man. You are making me feel a lot better about not having huge sets and fighter pilots and stuff. :)

Woody Allen. Broadway baby. Nuff said

[Beat Takeshi]

So our one more day of shooting is confirmed thankfully and a full day at that this time. Whew, Mike is going to be happy with that.

[Ted Arabian]

I hope people like this story.

I like your story. It is pretty cool.

[jasonthewho]

Screen shots look great!

[Beat Takeshi]

Thanks J, added 2 more shots.

[Arrik]

Wow this thread has moved along alot since I last checked.

Yes, I was a bit upset with the rush work on the 2nd day. Was pretty much forced to shoot like it was event videography as opposed to narrative film making. I'm used to moving quickly, no bullsh@t but thursday was insane. Good news is that for as fast as we were flying we got some pretty decent shots. Aram and I were talking today and agreed that the only thing we are lacking is some "flavor." Last day we'll be able to take our time redoing some of the more ambitious shots as well as some pickup.

That flouro was awesome for the car interior. Shooting at 1/24 with brevis flip CF1Le I was able to get great exposure. I even had to move the flouro further under the dash because their faces were a little hot. We were happy as it created a nice ambient feel. Those guys were too funny.

Reading everyones recap I didnt realize how many things happened those two nights. It was a crazy, good time. One story I'll tell that hasnt been told yet was the fact that the only time a cop came by on thursday was exactly the moment when we pulled out the blank gun and Steve had the gun aimed showing the Barry the proper way to hold it and what not. The cop drove past stopped, put the car in reverse, started to back up, stopped, then drove away. Strange protocol.

All in all a fun night. I'd like to share some storyboard frames I drew sometime. Hopefully the AD didnt take our only copy with her.

Going to meet with Aram tomorrow to review the footy. Excited.

[Beat Takeshi]

Woooohoooo more BTS shots. Not sure if they are all uploaded yet though.

http://mikeks.smugmug.com/gallery/4961059_N8rby#296891917_WJnvy

[Beat Takeshi]

Rough cut looks good so far. Now we just need to get our cut aways and a few fix shots.

[Ted Arabian]

Very cool. Lovin' those bts shots. Looking great, guys!

[bosindy]

looking good Aram!

[Simon Höfer]

Yep, looking good! Great BTS shots. Really interesting.

[Beat Takeshi]

2 new screen shots up from tonight.

[Beat Takeshi]

Thanks guys. Hey Jim, you didn't call me when you came to the city. You don't love me anymore...

[jeremytuttle]

How'd you like the using that dolly? I've been looking at that one and love your opinion on it.

[Moojangles]

lookin good guys, the BTS stuff is a lot of fun to browse through. Goes great alongside the grabs. Can't wait to see the actual footage. :)

[Beat Takeshi]

How'd you like the using that dolly? I've been looking at that one and love your opinion on it.

The dolly is great. I love that you can sit on it with comfort and that it has articulating wheel trucks. For this joint we are using metal track but when its PVC time and the pipes are not straight, its going to come in handy. It breaks down pretty fast too. We may put a jib on it Thursday but that depends on if we think we can get the time and the transportation for it.

[Beat Takeshi]

Got the new permit for tomorrow night, got enough vehicles to transport everyone, got same crew...

[Arrik]

How'd you like the using that dolly? I've been looking at that one and love your opinion on it.

We'll be doing a review on it shortly after production wraps. So far I have nothing but good things to say. A couple of things that I can nitpick but nothing that isnt easily rectified on the manufacturer level. I think you'll like what you'll see/hear.

Looking forward to tomorrow's shoot. Aram, stop telling people that I was pissed last thursday!!! People are going to think I'm emo. :violin:

[Raptor365]

Disclaimer: I've only had 3 beer. That's 'American' beer, not 'Dutch'.

http://i179.photobucket.com/albums/w289/TheRaptor365/misc/dvx_joke.jpg

Ahhh, your another one of those busy guys.
I checked out your past stuff and I do recognize a few after all (Check, Red Meat & Let's Stay Together, ofcourse). That's still a catchy song.
I must say, if not for wearing headphones, Sekou Promo would have caused my sub woofers to blow out the windows. Maybe check the dials on that one. :)

The 'Most Beautiful Girl' promo looks really interesting. I honestly felt something real for that girl. Maybe it's her acting or personality or something.

Oh, the chick in 'Sorry4': I wish I were a few years younger. I'd come down there just to hang out with her for a couple days. Seems like a cool person.
And a chick rapper? And a good one at that? C'mon man. When can I come down? :)
Sigh, I'm dreaming again.

---
...because a drunk dude cleared the area for us and kept it clear til we got the shots. :)


Yo, thanks bro. I'm still waitin for that bottle ya know! Just cause they threw me in the can before the shot was over doesn't mean ya still don't owe me! And just for that, make it Russian, Imported, Vodka! Or, er, a good loaf of Russian Bread. Mmmm...with a vodka chaser.
---

Some personal crits ( hey now. I mean this nicely. Just a chat. ):

For what's it's worth, I think you should, and this is really hard to say, get more creative with your video compositing. The shooting end & lighting looks creative.

Not sure if it's all quite there yet. Something is missing. (?) I was expecting a little more DOF in several shots to help me focus on the subject.

A couple vids seemed too clean, as if they were shot 30-ish fps, almost. The 'Sorry4' video for example, but most are fine. Maybe experiment with a grit look a bit. Again, that's just my impression and a personal preference.

I shall be watching my friend.

---
Disclaimer: I'm now up to 5 beerskees. After this.
And while I'm here, this place is too big to keep tabs on everyone. I love it.
---

Oh yeah, The only competition is between you and yourself. But, yeah it's nice to have a bar to hit/pass.


//Ooops. I edited above: 'editing' to 'compositing' which is what I meant. The editing was great.

[Beat Takeshi]

Wrapped all the actor parts. Now for the establishing shots and small cut aways.

I'm too tired right now to respond homey.. manana.

[Ted Arabian]

Congrats on the wrap of Principal Shooting, guys!!!

[conrad_johnson]

Congrats fellas.

Fizzbitch.

[Simon Höfer]

Congratulations Aram!

[Raptor365]

Get well soon. I pulled a shoulder muscle recently reaching for a bottle of water. A friggin bottle of water.

Congrats on wrapping.

[bosindy]

hope it went well today, give me a buzz when you are back up and at em.

[Mark Harris]

What's up Aram? How you doing?

[Kwan]

i just spoke to Aram on the phone. He is recovering very well. He should be home tomorrow.

Get better TOUGHGUY you have a wonderful :kali: editing to do.

[MsManhattan]

...recuperating in New York City. He had his surgery today, and everything went great. Even just hours after the surgery (for a herniated disc), he has regained bicep strength in his left arm and has his grip back in his left hand. He's coming home from the hospital tomorrow (Wednesday), and I'm sure he'll be back on the board shortly after his arrival. Thanks to everyone for your calls and good wishes!

[bosindy]

I spoke to him yesterday and it sounded like he was hit in the neck with a blow dart, so at least he is getting good drugs. Send him my best Leslie and crack that whip when he tries to lift anything as you know he will.

[MsManhattan]

Beat T. is home. Hooray!

[Ted Arabian]

Excellent news, Leslie! If he is too woozy to look at a monitor, give him my best wishes... and let him know that I am going to steal Mike! :)

Seriously though, I had a blast working with Mike and can't wait to bring my toys down to NYC and play with you guys!!!

Cheers!

-Ted

[MsManhattan]

Well, we were home for about 10 hours, and then back to the ER. Aram was running a high fever. Eleven hours of shuffling between the ER and Radiology, and he was readmitted yesterday afternoon with an infection. He's doing better this morning but looks like he'll be in another night.

Heard you guys had an interesting time out in Cali. Ted, you can absolutely not have Milke; you cannot split up the Spike & Mike Show. But, come on down -- I'll schedule you for a guest appearance on the show.

Thanks again to everyone for your get well messages; I am passing them along.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Wow, wish him all the best. Sounds pretty rough.

Take care,

Mike

[wesley]

cool poster. Looks like this si shaping up to be a good one as well. Too bad you won't compete.

[MsManhattan]

He's still in the hospital but doing a lot better. The doc says he will probably get to come home on Wednesday. Fingers crossed.

[Mark Harris]

Yikes, best to Aram. Leslie, tell him if he needs any help getting his entry done, I will help with some editing or whatever.

[MsManhattan]

Thanks, Mark. I passed on your message. We've had a good turnaround in the last 24 hours, and the docs say he can come home this afternoon! He told me he wants to go straight to the computer to start editing... We'll see about that!

Again, thanks to everyone who has posted or sent me PMs while Aram has been laid up. We both appreciate it.

[Beat Takeshi]

I'm home in a Percocet haze, sort of like the last time I came home from an operation. They fused my C-5 and C-6 bones together in my neck and hopefully that will be the end of it. I was seriously petrified about getting spinal surgery but it seems to have worked. To all freelancers....get health insurance!!!

Ok now to start to try to edit if I can stand staring at the screen with the neck brace on.

[Beat Takeshi]

More BTS shots.


http://mikeks.smugmug.com/gallery/5017538_AMuW2#301189584_tDvNr

[Beat Takeshi]

got a first edit done and sending it to Justin so he can get a feel for the film. Still need like 3 cut away shots still and hopefully I can get someone to come around and shoot them for me. Either that or my daughters start to learn which I might just do. I really hate editing.

Mike if you are reading this, I tried calling that number but no answer.

Mark, you number seems to have changed.

[Edgen]

Aram! Great to see you are back in action. How was hospital food?

Looking forward to getting started on the score.

If you wanted to just leave a place holder for those extra needed shots, I can work around it.

[Beat Takeshi]

The food was the best hospital food ever actually. I left still shots where the shots should be. I wanted to get a little feedback before I tell you its locked. Mike had some ideas for things but I don't remember what they were. The fest cut may be different then the final cut I'm guessing.

[Mark Harris]

PMed you my number,

[bosindy]

Glad to hear you are out of the hospital Aram. I'll give you a buzz this week and If you want another opinion on the rough cut let me know.

Jim

[Beat Takeshi]

yeah no doubt. Let me know when you are ready.

[Beat Takeshi]

Rendering out the "TimeFest" cut for Justin and we are finished for this deadline. When Mike gets back we need to get the opening shots to finish the film for other fests.

[Mobie540]

More BTS shots.


http://mikeks.smugmug.com/gallery/5017538_AMuW2#301189584_tDvNr

Holy crap, how did you get a trained possum on set??:evil:

http://mikeks.smugmug.com/photos/301163402_7cW5u-XL.jpg

[Beat Takeshi]

Damn thing hissed at us and then one of the babies fell off and she ran. If she didn't come back i was going to take it home and raise it but they do this air puff thing to locate each other and she eventually came back for it.

Uploading final edit for Justin...

[sfoster]

How do you guys like the cinevate dolly??? I've been curious about this for a while. Also what is that you used for track???

[joshreluctant]

i love the stills.

[Arrik]

Used electrical conduit frome home depot. Like $6 for each 10 footer. We didnt couple them properly but considering the half ass job we did laying down the track the ballare is very forgiving.

I've been trying to find the time to do a short review on the ballare accompanied by pics and clips but havent gotten around to it. Hopefully soon.

I can tell you off the bat the ballare itself is smooth. Favorite features: telescopic center mast and how lightweight it is.

Aram, gimme a call. I'll email the number again. Are you still heavily drugged up? I think our convo's go in one ear out the other. I feel like I'm baked everytime we speak. haha. Anyways, I wanna know how the Anyone But Me pick ups went.

Justin, thanks for helping with the project. Cant wait to see what you do with it.

[Edgen]

hey hey! no problemo Arrik, i'm anxious to jam something out. I'll probably start it sometime today.

/j

[Beat Takeshi]

Color correction done for the most part. Just need to create some titles and credits.

[Beat Takeshi]

Bah, have a glitch in the CC but going to submit it anyways. One more render to go.

[Beat Takeshi]

re-uploading...internal server error screwed the first try.

[Beat Takeshi]

Where did our film status go? We were on the list for exhibition and now its gone.

[Tom Marshall]

That's really weird. PM Larry, he probably mistakenly deleted it from the list.

[Mark Johnson]

OhMyGod, Hechanova is going to be literally seething now. SEETHING I TELL YOU.

[Beat Takeshi]

We had a lot of cursing in this one but its still PG-13 R-ish maybe. No skin showing either. I can't imagine why something would not let it at least be shown as exhibition.

[Mark Johnson]

Hechanova is SEETHING I tell you... SEETHING!!!

[Beat Takeshi]

I just woke him up. He was like WTF and hung up on me.

[Mark Harris]

huh? What's the haps?

[Beat Takeshi]

Maybe we are going to be the first movie censored on DVXuser fests.
The line "were you enabling me or disabling me from getting the poosssy" was too much for them.

[Mark Harris]

I dunno man. I know you gots the language, but I mean, if they let mine in...know what I mean?

[Beat Takeshi]

Yours rocks though.

[Mark Harris]

But you know what I'm sayin' right? Maybe they didn't watch mine all the way to the end...:)

[Beat Takeshi]

Yeah. Maybe thats something thats more acceptable around these parts.

[Beat Takeshi]

Well... we did forget to shoot the watch at the bus stop...

[Tom Marshall]

Well... we did forget to shoot the watch at the bus stop...

But that would just make it a non-compete if you forgot a prop. They'd still show it.

As far as language, the one Ted did (I.D.) had the f-word about 15 times...

I dunno, man.

[Beat Takeshi]

Yeah, I watched it again and can't figure it out. Maybe the size, it was like 95 megs but almost 8 minutes long. I got no PMs about anything either.

[Beat Takeshi]

The weird thing is that it was approved originally for exhibition. I did kind of miss the upload time but that was because of a server error and I had to re-upload. Otherwise I would have made it with an hour or two to spare.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

The language in mine is seriously harsh at moments.
I'm sure it's just a mix up.

Unless the watch thing is a necessity even for exhibition entries?

[Mike Insane]

great grabs!

[Arrik]

Hahahahaha

Yo Aram, gotta run to the bank. I'll call later.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

But you know what I'm sayin' right? Maybe they didn't watch mine all the way to the end...:)

R.P.D.M

=

http://blog.wired.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/01/31/banned_list_2.jpg

[Beat Takeshi]

great grabs!

Thanks. Hope you like the flick if it ever makes it through.

[Simon Höfer]

That is strange dude. I am really looking forward to this one. I mean, if its not for exhibition, you can still show it here.

[Beat Takeshi]

Well... they said it doesn't fit Timefest. The whole thing was about she had to make a quick life or death decision to break a long time promise to their mother in order to save her sisters life. To everyone that worked on the film that was clear as day. They said it didn't feel like it was made for time fest and should just be in the user films section and that I didn't have a shout out to DVXuser in credits.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Well... they said it doesn't fit Timefest. The whole thing was about she had to make a quick life or death decision to break a long time promise to their mother in order to save her sisters life. To everyone that worked on the film that was clear as day. They said it didn't feel like it was made for time fest and should just be in the user films section and that I didn't have a shout out to DVXuser in credits.That sucks but you do have to follow their rules. Post a new thread in the user films section so we can all take a look! I really want to see it. Sorry about the non exhibition status.

Mike

[Kwan]

Wtf...

[Moojangles]

odd. I'd really like to see this. Let us know what happens.

[Edgen]

ahh man.. bummmmmmer...

I was wondering where the watch was in the film. Maybe if you had a clock ticking down sound that would make it seem more urgent... Which, I'm wondering how many of these films will have that tick tock sound.

Damn. again man, bummer. :(

/j

[Jason Ramsey]

Actually, I don't recall a final decision being made about this. I do recall you being approached and made aware of what we were (not) seeing, and asking for you to clarify.

I wish your explanation via pm was not so half baked... woulda helped :) Heck, even your vague explanation here in this thread (for need of not wanting to give away the story to those who haven't seen it, I'm sure) makes the case a lot better and lets us see where you are coming from a heck of a lot better than what you said via pm. You should be able to state the theme of your film precisely. It doesn't help us to make a decision when you say "well, it's the whole thing at the end where she...." Make sense? I'm not saying this with harsh tone by the way, if it's coming across that way. Just saying that when we asked you to clarify for us, and you didn't give us a strong response, it didn't exactly bode well.

The reason why we approached you privately and stated our feelings and asked you to clarify was to avoid this public silliness of people forming opinions when they don't know what's going on, but ah well....

Anyways... after hearing what you have said in this thread, we were able to put the pieces together and see where you were trying to come from... what your intentions were for the theme. Next time, might be helpful if you can give us a well-thought response when we request it, rather than a vague one and then making a decision final in public even when no decision had been made yet...

So, yes... this film will be included in the fest as exhibition.

And, to be clear to everyone, the content of this film had nothing to do with the discussion about whether or not it should be included. That's just people forming opinions. What we did see was confusion about whether or not this adhered or attempted to adhere to the theme of the fest. While exhibition only films have been welcomed in the past, they have always adhered to at least the theme of the fest and were generally not competing entries b/c of time or some other technicality.

Here we have a film that did not have the required element, did not have the dvxuser nod, and was nearly twice as long as the alloted runtime... The kicker was that we didn't see the theme coming through and that is why we requested your explanation of theme. But, that last part is best saved for a response to your film once viewing has opened :)

HOpe that clears things up a bit for everyone.

Later,
Jason

[Beat Takeshi]

Hey Jason, sorry about that. I was actually running out the door to my daughters graduation and literally brushing my teeth as I was trying to type. I may not have caught that it was still up in the air about being excepted. Again sorry about that. After reading Barry's PM just now I sent him a detailed one back clarifying what our intentions where. I actually don't remember what I wrote back to you this morning but I will check my sent box. I wrote back to Barry that if we need to fix anything to help us out we will. The DVXuser nod can be added like I added the last minute credits. I just made a quicktime of the credits real quick and then opened my finished render and dragged the credits into it which adds it to the end of the movie and then do a save. This effectively adds the credits without having to re-render. I can do the same with a DVXuser nod.

[Jason Ramsey]

no worries. now. viewing is open :)

Later,
Jason

[Beat Takeshi]

Oh I see we made the final cut.... YAY. Thanks guys.
I can't seem to log in to the dvxfest.com

[Jason Ramsey]

Larry will get you hooked up.

Later,
Jason

[Drew Ott]

Nice short man.

Lighting was very nice and the story was good.

Acting was good too. I liked the ending.

Audio levels were clipping during the screams which was a little distracting but other than than great job.

[Kwan]

yeeeeeahhhhhh...

[Beat Takeshi]

Thanks. Yeah, the mics couldn't handle her even though we made sure everything was turned down. Thats the downfall of lav mics. I was thinking of ADRing that part and when he yells to clean it up. Well, i was thinking of ADRing the whole thing.

[Chris Messineo]

Wonderful film. Visually, it looked fantastic. Strong performances. Good story with a great reveal at the end.

My only complaint (a small one), I wish we hadn't seen the younger sister smile after the gun is pulled out.

Very well done.

[Dustin R. Rogan]

Loved this one!

SPOILER!!

Totally didn't see the ending coming. I think you could have toned down the cursing (for one it wasn't too believable at points when the younger sister rattled off a few), I know you could have trimmed this one down to fit the 6 min. Cinematography was awesome. I found myself inside the story! Good job Sir!

Rogan

[bosindy]

Aram,

you are a great storyteller my friend. I really loved the pacing of this and the arc of the story played out nicely. You really got amazing performances from the 2 leads, very well grounded in the moment. The shots were really cinematic in the second half (loved the blood flowing) and the music worked extremely well. I really liked how the younger sister walked into shadow before the tone changed. Hetch did a great job dp-ing. He has some skills when he is not seathing.

Real nice use of camera speeds to build the drama and the twist at the end was done subtly where most would look to go over the top. You know your in good hands when the filmmaker uses that kind of restraint.

2 things: you could lose the opening sequence between the 2 guys in the truck, you mentioned that yesterday so no news there. I also liked the color grading in the second half better and would have that all the way through. You love that warm filter, and I know you are changing the cc to go with the change in mood, but the desat works better for the entire piece IMO.

Great work man. I really look forward to more collaborations between us in the future.

Jim

[Beat Takeshi]

Wonderful film. Visually, it looked fantastic. Strong performances. Good story with a great reveal at the end.

My only complaint (a small one), I wish we hadn't seen the younger sister smile after the gun is pulled out.

Very well done.

That scene was debated on because it may give away too much. I imagined it like an anime shot but yeah, it may be over kill. Glad you liked it Chris, I really respect what you have to say and any critiques you may give.

Loved this one!

SPOILER!!

Totally didn't see the ending coming. I think you could have toned down the cursing (for one it wasn't too believable at points when the younger sister rattled off a few), I know you could have trimmed this one down to fit the 6 min. Cinematography was awesome. I found myself inside the story! Good job Sir!

Rogan

Thank you much sir. Yes, tons of cursing but its who she is. A street rat basically...that apparently reads.. :) But I wanted to keep it urban and true to NY where I see people like this everyday. I could definitely see a sister rattling off like that to get under her sister or brothers skin. When it comes to sibling rivalry anything goes sometimes.

Aram,

you are a great storyteller my friend. I really loved the pacing of this and the arc of the story played out nicely. You really got amazing performances from the 2 leads, very well grounded in the moment. The shots were really cinematic in the second half (loved the blood flowing) and the music worked extremely well. I really liked how the younger sister walked into shadow before the tone changed. Hetch did a great job dp-ing. He has some skills when he is not seathing.

Real nice use of camera speeds to build the drama and the twist at the end was done subtly where most would look to go over the top. You know your in good hands when the filmmaker uses that kind of restraint.

2 things: you could lose the opening sequence between the 2 guys in the truck, you mentioned that yesterday so no news there. I also liked the color grading in the second half better and would have that all the way through. You love that warm filter, and I know you are changing the cc to go with the change in mood, but the desat works better for the entire piece IMO.

Great work man. I really look forward to more collaborations between us in the future.

Jim

Hey Jim, great talking to you last night. Thanks. The two guys will make more sense in the next installment of this story. I really thought hard about the characters this time around and glad its standing out to everyone so far. I paid attention to foreshadowing, arch, climax and anti-climax (but the edit changed that particular detail) and have little layers to hopefully make people go back to watch for them once they see the ending and say oh thats why this or that was said.

Good lcuk with your film also. It sounds like a winner.

[bosindy]

Hey Jim, great talking to you last night. Thanks. The two guys will make more sense in the next installment of this story. I really thought hard about the characters this time around and glad its standing out to everyone so far. I paid attention to foreshadowing, arch, climax and anti-climax (but the edit changed that particular detail) and have little layers to hopefully make people go back to watch for them once they see the ending and say oh thats why this or that was said.

Good lcuk with your film also. It sounds like a winner.

SPOILER: I was wondering about that, since these guys seem so unredeemable they would keep your heroine likable if she "cut her teeth" on them. Is the other stuff shot or is that planned for down the road?

[Chris Messineo]

I way more than liked it. It was truly great. Your directing skills are top notch and you clearly assembled a fantastic team (probably the most important job for the indie filmmaker).

Congratulations on a wonderful film.

p.s. I'll be calling you soon with some news on LtP.

[Arrik]

Thanks alot guys. You guys made my day. I respect each of your opinions and am happy to hear positive reviews (or neg. ones). This short was especially challenging for Aram and I. We've worked alot together, but this project in particular was plagued with everything from Aram's emergency surgery to busted locations to extremely tight shooting schedules and limited lighting capability. Aram and I were talking yesterday about how much time you spend on your own work that you cant tell if youre doing things right or youre drinking your own koolaid.

I wouldnt mind seeing how the whole piece plays out in cool desat. Rachels eclipse behind her sister played out well in our conversations but besides giving away alot in the story I think the shot turned out to be awkward because of the height difference of the girls. Rachel is simply alot shorter so the composition wasnt as strong as I think we envisioned it. I guess we could cheat the height but then it wouldnt make sense.

I was joking with Aram about uploading a version with a "F@CK" counter in the upper right hand corner of the screen.

Aram kicked ass directing this, and how bout that cast? Great people to work with. Jim, no seething today!

[Beat Takeshi]

Yes, it came out 100 times better because of the cast I think and also that Mike was able to keep track of things I was missing. Its funny how a shot sounds good in ear but doesn't look the same. From a famous line one of our kids said in our Kids show pilot..."Man...it looked much cooler in my head"
LOL, yeah wasn't sure about how much koolaid I was drinking.
The next joint will rock even more though because I won't put Mike through the mad man shooting shedule. And to think I was going to try to shoot it in one day. Not even...5 hours....Heh... I'm so used to working fast I really believed I could do it too. Lucky Mike stuck his foot up my ass and woke me up.

[conrad_johnson]

SPOILERS.

Nice work fellas.

I always like your directing Aram, you have a way of setting mood with shots and editing that I will never have. (thank god I don't direct)

The storytelling was fantastic, I was hooked from the beginning, and I didn't realize till I was done watching that it was double the length of the other films I've been watching....Awesome work!

On with the review:

I love the dudes in the pickup with the cock-blocking and the whatnots, good writing.

I love how cool-guy's hat falls off as he goes back in the window, funny stuff for such a cool guy.

I loved the cinematography, but thought some of the framing and compositions could be a little better. I realize it's tough when your actresses differ in height so much.

Yelling and slamming on the fence is very intense...Good work.

Nice dolly at 5:40

That was one scary ass shooting scene whoo. Love the shot of the boots kicking.

Oscar winning dying scene, 'nuff said.

Lighting in car at 8:50 kicks my ass, love it!

Cool ending, wouldn't have expected that.

Overall very nice work.

Can't wait to see the next one!

Thanks,
-Joe

[Beat Takeshi]

Joe,
thanks a ton for the compliments. I never thought of being considered a good director so your words are inspiring. This is the first time I really wanted to just direct and pay attention to the characters and for you to recognize it helps me to think I did something right. I really love that you didn't feel like you were watching a short that was twice as long as the others.

As far as the framing issues, we shot so damn fast we only got one take of some shots and I know Mike wanted to get more takes to fix up framing. I had to make sure we had enough coverage first since we had a time limit on one of the actresses so I was listening for performances first and if they got it on a first take we moved on. I gave them total freedom to act it as they felt it should be and I don't think I ever made them re-do anything unless it missed a mark on positioning.

The car scene we shot in front of my house and its basically 3 lights. 1k through the front off to the passenger side, 300 through the back off to the passenger side. We had to lift the back window up to get the highlights on the seats. And a 150 through the drivers side back door for highlights on the seat and side of head.
I'm glad you liked the ending and didn't say oh, its just a thrown in twist. :)

[Arrik]

Thanks Joe. Really glad you liked it.

There was a slight lack of communication between Aram and I. I ended up framing for 16x9 on the shoot, but we ended up cropping for anamorphic in the edit. Few shots actually suffered from this and we found the sacrifice worth the cinematic feel of the anamorphic screen. :thumbsup:

[Beat Takeshi]

Yeah, and I even wrote real big on top of the shot list "frame for anamorphic". DOH!!
I'm happy all the way around though. I can't wait to do our next one cause I know its going to be fire.

[Bryce A]

First off: I really dug the film.

First Impression: Your Credits TOTALLY BETRAY the quality of the film. I'm only being so overtly critical cause you pulled off the rest of the flick so well. But you have to haaave to do something about the opening titles. They were just way to... something looking. the rest of the film has quality lighting, acting, directing....

In my opinion they'd do a lot better running as small lower corner text over the car scene. Since it's kinda an introduction sequence....

Otherwise, I really liked it.

At first I didn't get why you had the opener in the car. Didn't seem to serve the larger story, until it realized it set up a "why the F is that girl chilling in this part of town" vibe. Dug it. The acting is great as well. Thought I was watching The Wire for a second.

I also liked the reveal. I think it took a little too long to get there (the flick could run a good 60 seconds shorter), but it was a very satisfying conclusion. LOVED the shots of the amusement park. Set the mood perfectly.

Just peeeeealse change the credits. It will take the movie up to another level. sorry i'm so hung up on that. I helped screen film festival entries for a san francisco fest and when sifting through hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of shorts, you need something in the first 30 seconds to get your attention. The film is great, you need to get that across earlier! :D

Great Work!

[Beat Takeshi]

Hey Bryce,
I totally know what you mean. We actually have a few establishing shots we need to get in the beginning and the credits will play over them when the film is finished. I'm really glad you liked this and hope you like future shorts from us. I think the wire is the only show that keeps it real in the streets as far as the language and demeanor of the characters. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment and I will take your advice when its time to do the credits over again. :)

[Bryce A]

Beat,

cool. I was worried I might have come off overly harsh. Good luck on the next draft of the film. Hope to see it.

[Matt Sconce]

I would kill the opening car shot even though it rocks. I thought the dialogue was well done and built up to the freakin awesomest and most poweful death scene I have scene in years. I actually teared up at it. The actors were GREAT and the ending was AMAZING! I literally sat there with my jaw dropping and saying "Whoah". Nice movie!

[Mobie540]

I've tried downloading this thing 4 times. I can't get the whole thing. I get to about minute 9 and it cuts out. I'll try again.

[Beat Takeshi]

Here is another link to it.

HD size:
http://www.puffinfilms.com/TimeFest/Final_Edit_TimefestH246.mov