"PLACEBO" - Piatt Films

[pia12254]

UPDATE: 01/27/2009

As I mentioned before we have finished shooting. We shot for a total of three days (Tuesday and then this past Saturday/Sunday). I've taken down the current poster as I will probably be designing a new one from some stills we were able to take during production.

Also, here are some screen grabs of the last day of shooting:

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233043344.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233043520.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233043552.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233043583.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233043631.jpg


Hope you like them and there will be more updates to come as we enter post-production. I have an idea for some promotional stuff but I'm not sure I'll have time to pull it together...might all be the last week before voting that I do it.

Night.

Daniel

UPDATE: 1/21/2009

Well, we had our first day of shooting yesterday and I am really pleased with what we got. We had about a 10-hour day which isn't bad but I was beat by the end of it! Our cast and crew did an OUTSTANDING job to get everything done. And the location we were shooting at was gracious and stuck around late to let us finish shooting. There was one scene where I didn't get everything I wanted and had to combine it into a single shot...but the DP, Eric Meisner, did such a phenomenal job lighting it that I don't even care anymore.

Now we've got a couple days to recuperate and get ready for the rest of the shoot this weekend. Best of luck to everyone else who is working on their films as well!

There is a lot more that we shot but I don't want to give away all the good stuff! Hope you enjoy the grabs.

SCREEN GRABS - DAY 1

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1232580541.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1232580625.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1232580655.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1232580686.jpg

UPDATE: 01/18/2009
So, we are going to have our first day of shooting on Tuesday! Originally we were not going to start until Friday but we had to move one of the shoot days up due to a scheduling conflict. No problem though...in fact it might work out better this way.

I've been running around like a chicken with his head cut off trying to get all the last minute details/props/equipment pulled together! But everything so far is coming along. Except for my boom pole. I have looked everywhere (and I mean EVERYWHERE) for that thing! I've torn through all the crap in the garage TWICE trying to find it. No luck. I'm sure it will turn up eventually. If not, I'll be duct taping the boom mic to a tree branch and hoping for the best!

UPDATE: 01/15/2009

Herman Witkam has signed on as composer for this project! He did an amazing job for "The Small Multiple" and I believe this film will give him even more creative freedom to help tell the story through the music.

If you have not heard his music before you need to check it out here:
http://www.herman-witkam.com/

Also, met for a rehearsal with the leads. Did some wardrobe tests. Working on whittling down the 57 items on my to-do list.

Lastly, found a PERFECT location for one of the scenes!!! I thought I was going to have to do an FX shot for it (which might have been unfortunate) but we happened to find this place that fit my mental picture better than I could have imagined. Sweet! I'm so pumped!

UPDATE: 01/09/2009
Locked our final location today. Went with the DP to scout it out and take some pics. They are very accommodating and the location has a lot of great potential. Apparently it has been used for a number of music videos...

Talked through a couple of effects shots with the DP. Trying to find a way to make them work. Did some high-level sketching on a napkin.

Also, took the shooting schedule I've been working on and started to put together the Call Sheets. Mind...going...numb... Not my favorite thing to do. But I had help so I managed to live through it.

That's about it for now. Going to bed. Night.

UPDATE: 01/08/2009
Things are chugging along quite nicely! Turns out my fiance makes a great UPM! She has been on several shoots and has seen the way things work. She called me this evening and had done a script breakdown, prop list, has catering planned, etc. Lucky me!

Anyway, worked with the Screenwriter, Martin Lancaster, to get some modifications to the script based on the location. He has been amazing to work with!

Got some other cast members on board that I am excited about!!!

Also, starting to get props, wardrobe, makeup etc. shipments coming in. (When I say shipments, I mean the UPS guy dropped off two small packages today...)

Still a lot of details to work out but so far so good! I'll try and post more pictures...maybe some of the cool props...when I get the chance.

Peace.

UPDATE:
So, I wanted to do this film for the last festival (Twilight Fest) but I got a job that took me on the road for three-months straight and I had to drop out. But, now that I am back I wanted to compete in this festival and I actually feel like the story fits this festival better in many ways.

Currently we are re-writing the script to fit the story to the actors/locations and we will be shooting in late January...23rd-25th.

Let's do it!


SYNOPSIS: In the wake of a clinical trial gone wrong, two members of the control group find themselves fighting for survival.

[pia12254]

PRODUCTION PROPS:

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1232323290.jpg

LOCATION PHOTOS:

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1230703471.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1230703399.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1230703360.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1230703290.jpg

NEW LOCATION PHOTOS! ADDED 01/09/2009

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1231562485.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1231562617.jpg

[pia12254]

CAST:

Cole Kinsella - Justin Arnold
*(Also starred in "The Small Multiple")
http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1208892976.jpg

Shannon - Crystal Pate
*(Also starred in "The Small Multiple")
http://www.lmtalent.com/userFiles/196/image_dufm2i.jpg

Dr. Savvin - Bill Flynn
http://www.lmtalent.com/userFiles/196/image_xjolbv.jpg

Eddie - Phil Vandermeer

Dr. Fanto - Matt Dickson

****** - Anthony Lyle

****** - Dustin Tilton

****** - Jacob Piatt

****** - Johnny Martin

****** - Josh Mills

****** - Daniel Matheny


CREW:

Writer - Martin Lancaster

Director - Daniel Piatt

DP - Eric Meisner

UPM - Bridgette Baima

Original Music - Herman Witkam

Sound Supervisor - Dustin Rains

1st AD - Mac Hernandez

Camera - Jim Millen/Eric Meisner

1st AC - Anthony Lyle

Makeup - Rachel Rains

Production Assistants/BTS - Adam Nottingham & Jacob Cox

____________________

[stinkpot]

This looks interesting. Cool location shots. I'm definitely looking forward to checking this out.

Welcome to the fest!

:beer:

[chaconkevin]

looks real good

im interested.

good luck

=)

[jasonthewho]

Glad to see this back on.

[Chris Messineo]

Daniel, I loved this script. I'm so psyched to see this film getting made. I'm sure you'll do an awesome job with it. Those location shots look fantastic.

[pia12254]

Thanks guys!

Thanks Chris and I'm currently working with Martin to do some re-writes on the script to adapt a couple of things...should be sweet! Thanks again for your MoviePoet.com resource...I still check it out frequently!

May have some more location photos and/or makeup tests coming soon.

Daniel

[Matias Caruso]

Awesome. I loved this script as well.

Best of luck. :thumbup:

[Lawsuit_Boy]

I'm keeping my eyes on this one. Interesting material so far, and welcome to the fest! :thumbsup:

[DerSpieler]

Hey Daniel,

Just discovered this thread.

The location looks great, as does the cast. Can't wait to see this!

Martin Lancaster

[pia12254]

A couple of quick things!

First of all, there is an update at the top of Page 1. Not a ton of stuff just a status update with a little progress report on the Pre-Pro side of things. Good times!

Also, I wanted to brag on Martin Lancaster (the above post) for a second. He is the gentleman who happened to write this amazing little story! The first time I read it I knew I wanted to turn it into a film! He has been so gracious as to entrust his work to someone he has never met in person before.

Not only that...but he has been willing to make changes to the script to accommodate some of the options the location has provided us. And he manages to stay true to the story/characters and still integrate some of my hair-brained thoughts... :D

So, thank you Martin! I hope we do your script justice.

And to the rest of you...I think you will enjoy this fabulous world Martin has created!

Daniel

[pia12254]

ANOTHER UPDATE:

Just locked another location today! They have been super helpful and are going to allow us to shoot on a day that works perfect with what we had scheduled at the other location! Here are a couple more "teaser" pics (also posted on the first page):

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1231562485.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1231562617.jpg

Also, added another headshot for Bill Flynn who will also be in this. He is a talented actor and a true gentleman. He played the British Butler in the "Commanche Moon" series among other things. We are pleased to have him on board!!!

You can check out his IMDB here:
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1418843/ (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1418843/)

And his headshot:
http://www.lmtalent.com/userFiles/196/image_xjolbv.jpg

More later...

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Great location pics!

Really looking forward to this. Thanks for the updates.

Cheers,

MAH

[DerSpieler]

Great stuff. The locations look incredible and it's good to see another quality actor involved.

For the record, Mr. Piatt's "hair-brained" thoughts are actually great improvements on the script. I did little more than give him a thumbs up :)

I've just been watching The Small Multiple again, and if this is anything close to the quality of that film I'll be a happy man.

[Maximus]

Looking forward to your film (I really enjoyed the script).

The Small Multiple was my favorite of Timefest, so I'm sure you'll do great again. Good luck.

[hazelwould]

Man this looks great! Love the locations.

Let me know if you guys need help on this one...

Also, might you be interested in some color correcting? I'm sure you probably crazy busy with this...

Tell Eric I said, sup. And were slowly making steady progress.

[pia12254]

Hey guys,

Been busy the last few days doing more location scouts, getting wardrobe together and so on. But, we have a big announcement to make!

Herman Witkam has agreed to compose the music for this film!!! He did the music for our last short, "The Small Multiple" and did a stellar job with that. I am so excited to see what he comes up with for this short as I think it will allow him more leeway with the music.

If you have not heard his music before you need to check it out here:
http://www.herman-witkam.com/

Other stuff going on that I will update later.

Looking forward to all the other entries as well! Seems like this thing just keeps growing by the day which is great!!!

Daniel

[GoodLuck]

That is a really cool poster! I always look forward to seeing your films Daniel, wish you the best!

[pia12254]

Thanks Anthony! Hopefully we don't disappoint! :-)

UPDATE: 01/18/2009
So, we are going to have our first day of shooting on Tuesday! Originally we were not going to start until Friday but we had to move one of the shoot days up due to a scheduling conflict. No problem though...in fact it might work out better this way.

I've been running around like a chicken with his head cut off trying to get all the last minute details/props/equipment pulled together! But everything so far is coming along. Except for my boom pole. I have looked everywhere (and I mean EVERYWHERE) for that thing! I've torn through all the crap in the garage TWICE trying to find it. No luck. I'm sure it will turn up eventually. If not, I'll be duct taping the boom mic to a tree branch and hoping for the best! :D

Here is a picture of one of the props for the film...I made some ID badges for the characters we have added to the story:
http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1232323290.jpg

This fantastic hi-res image was taken with my iPhone! ;-) There are a lot more cool props/elements we are going to integrate. Hopefully I'll get some pictures taken and put up there soon. I'm also going to try and have one of the PA's get some BTS footage from our first day of shooting and post it here!

Wish us luck!

Daniel

[GoodLuck]

You can borrow my boom and mic if you need one. Not sure if the shock mount will support your mic though, it's for an AT897. If you need any help with anything let me know, and I'll see what I can do, just message me on MySpace. :beer:

[pia12254]

Awesome! Thanks for the offer! I ended up remembering that I left it at a friends after a shoot we did. So, I'll be swinging by and pick that up tomorrow.

I do have a question about another piece of gear so I'll contact you on MySpace.

Thanks!

Daniel

[GoodLuck]

No problem man. Those location photos are really cool, should be a fun shoot!

[Robbie Comeau]

I think your sig is all messed up Daniel?

Lookin' forward to this man!

Robbie

[pia12254]

Good catch Robbie! Thanks for the heads up. Sig changed. :D

D

[pia12254]

UPDATE: 1/20/2009

Finished our first day of shooting! Ecstatic. Exhausted. Going to sleep. More later.

[Rodney V. Smith]

cool. how many more days to go?

[pia12254]

Hey Rodney,

Just two more...good thing! :D

We are shooting this Saturday/Sunday and then we should be done. Might have to record some VO, etc. after that but the shooting should be finished. And then it's time for a lot of post production which I enjoy!

I'll try and post some grabs today...

D

[Rodney V. Smith]

yay grabs... we likes grabs

[ZazaCast]

Any relation to this....
http://www.placebomovie.com/

[pia12254]

Haha! Wow! (Somebody likes the really wide angle lens) :D

No...not related to that film. Although it looks like they used almost the exact same font as I chose. Maybe that means something!

Out of curiosity (this is something I wondered before) if someone else has already made a film by the same name does that mean it cannot be used again? What if it is something generic like a number ("Seven") or a term (I don't know...like "Placebo")?

I'm sure there are much smarter people out there than me who could enlighten me in this area. I know a friend of mine made a film and when he was starting to promote it he got a cease and desist letter from some people who had a film with the same title...crazy.

-D

[pia12254]

UPDATE: 1/21/2009

There is a lot more that we shot but I don't want to give away all the good stuff! Hope you enjoy the grabs. :beer:

SCREEN GRABS - DAY 1

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1232580541.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1232580625.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1232580655.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1232580686.jpg

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Love the grabs!
Lighting looks natural and cool at the same time. Very nice.

MAH

[Rodney V. Smith]

wow. i love the lighting for those sequences. Makes me want to go play with my lights.

[Herman Witkam]

Awesome grabs!!! :)

[Chris Messineo]

Love it - this is going to be awesome.

[pia12254]

Thanks Herman! Glad you like them. Can't wait to see the finished film with your music behind it...I feel my skin creeping already! :D

Check your email. I sent you a link to some of the raw footage from Day 1.

Ciao.

Daniel

[pia12254]

UPDATE: 01/25/2008

Finished Day 2 of shooting. Got a lot of really great stuff! Can't wait to watch it back on my HD screen. But first I must go to sleep and get ready for Day 3 of shooting (and last day of shooting...hopefully).

We had a really great PA on set today who took some BTS video/stills so hopefully I will have plenty of stuff to post between now and the opening of the festival.

Sleepy time. More later.

Daniel

[kevinkshah]

AWESOME.:thumbup:

[QUOTE=pia12254;1527341]UPDATE: 1/21/2009

SCREEN GRABS - DAY 1

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1232580541.jpg

/QUOTE]

[jasonthewho]

I just found this, think it answers your question.

How do I copyright a name, title, slogan or logo?
Copyright does not protect names, titles, slogans, or short phrases. In some cases, these things may be protected as trademarks. Contact the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, 800-786-9199, for further information. However, copyright protection may be available for logo artwork that contains sufficient authorship. In some circumstances, an artistic logo may also be protected as a trademark.

[pia12254]

Thanks guys! I appreciate the feedback on the "name" stuff Jason! I had asked another filmmaker about that topic and they were not sure. So, I guess we should be ok?

Just finished Day 3...our last and final day of shooting! What a great feeling but I am TOTALLY EXHAUSTED. I am dozing off trying to import the footage from the P2 cards.

Hopefully in the next day or two I can post some more grabs as well as an awesome BTS clip!

Late,

Daniel

[Mark Harris]

stuff is looking good, Daniel. Cannot wait for this one.

[pia12254]

Thanks Mark!

I'm really looking forward to your entry as well!

D

[DerSpieler]

Hope the shoot went well. Can't wait to see some grabs :)

[pia12254]

UPDATE: 01/27/2009

As I mentioned before we have finished shooting. We shot for a total of three days (Tuesday and then this past Saturday/Sunday). Here are some screen grabs of the last day of shooting:

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233043344.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233043520.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233043552.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233043583.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233043607.jpg

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233043631.jpg


Hope you like them and there will be more updates to come as we enter post-production. I have an idea for some promotional stuff but I'm not sure I'll have time to pull it together...might all be the last week before voting that I do it. :D

Night.

Daniel

[jasonthewho]

Nice grabs! Looks like quite the epic film.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Looks like a thriller! Very nice.

I'm sure it is in the thread somewhere but what are you shooting with?

MAH

[Rodney V. Smith]

very nice grabs! Your film is looking pretty damn cool dude.

[pia12254]

Hey guys, here is our first BTS video! It is short but hopefully you enjoy... :beer:

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233160341.jpg (http://vimeo.com/2993842)

[Rodney V. Smith]

dammit, I didn't get a single cop even drive by or walk by my shoot. Pity we couldn;t see more of that encounter. Makes for a great story though.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Sweet! Why did the one guy want his face blurred out?
Can we do Vimeo here now? I guess we can.

Cool.

[Rodney V. Smith]

Sweet! Why did the one guy want his face blurred out?
Can we do Vimeo here now? I guess we can.

Cool.


there's always ONE guy on the crew who decides to be difficult and not want to be seen on the podcasts. Some can be coaxed into it and others are resolute killjoys.

[Chris Messineo]

Love the stills and the bts.

[pia12254]

:D First of all, I just added the blur to make it seem more mysterious...just kidding. That was the property owner who is probably the most chill, generous person I've met. He is also a pretty private person and so I did that just out of respect for his privacy. He didn't ask for it but I figured better safe than sorry! :beer:

Regarding putting Vimeo on here...I tried the Motionbox thing and I just didn't feel like doing the "free trial" in order to do an HD clip. So my "Vimeo" clip is actually just an image with a link attached to it...kind of like my signature. Hopefully that is not a violation! I just have everything on Vimeo already...

Ciao!

Daniel

[Richard J. Johnson]

Grabs look great and production value looks real solid. Can't wait to check it out.

[Rodney V. Smith]

well at least he wasn't a killjoy. Just bitching I guess about my own personal experiences... soem peopel just REFUSE to be on camera and ruin any BTS footage.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Regarding putting Vimeo on here...I tried the Motionbox thing and I just didn't feel like doing the "free trial" in order to do an HD clip. So my "Vimeo" clip is actually just an image with a link attached to it...kind of like my signature. Hopefully that is not a violation! I just have everything on Vimeo already...

Ciao!

DanielDuh! Of course, my bad. :) I just figured I double clicked it when I went to your Vimeo page.

I prefer Vimeo myself as well.

PS- Is that snow in your magic act clip partially CG elements mixed with real?

MAH

[pia12254]

Chris,

I can't thank you enough for your MoviePoet.com resource! It has really helped me to collaborate with talented writers (Don Riemer, Martin Lancaster) and find material that is worth turning into a film. Thanks!

Michael,

The snow is all CG. I did it all in After Effects but for some reason I did some of the snow layers using the "Particle Illusion" plug-in that comes standard with AE and some of them with Particular. I think I did it to speed up render times (as Particular can take a little while to render). But I think I should have done all of it in Particular because the Particle Illusion layers look like little triangles falling if you look closely! :huh:

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Michael,

The snow is all CG. I did it all in After Effects but for some reason I did some of the snow layers using the "Particle Illusion" plug-in that comes standard with AE and some of them with Particular. I think I did it to speed up render times (as Particular can take a little while to render). But I think I should have done all of it in Particular because the Particle Illusion layers look like little triangles falling if you look closely! :huh:Nice work. Looked like a fairy tale. :thumbup:

[pia12254]

So, finally getting to the point where I can hopefully start editing some of the stuff we shot last week. I had a gig I needed to go out of town for shortly after we wrapped production so I haven't had a chance to dive in yet. I decided it would help me to focus on the editing phase if I moved my computer out of the room I share with my brother and put it upstairs in a spare room. I decided to document where things are at now...almost two weeks after the shoot...because it looks like the aftermath of a tornado in my house. Thus, PODCAST #1 - AFTERMATH:

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233820933.jpg (http://vimeo.com/3090225)

More to come...

[Shawn Philip Nelson]

Wow! Screen grabs are awesome! I'm looking forward to seeing this!

[pia12254]

I guess I'm not the only one up at this ridiculous hour haunting the DVXUser forums. :D

Thanks Shawn and I'm glad to see you are back! After your epic film Aetas I'm excited to see what you come up with. Best of luck!

Daniel

[Shawn Philip Nelson]

I guess I'm not the only one up at this ridiculous hour haunting the DVXUser forums. :D

Thanks Shawn and I'm glad to see you are back! After your epic film Aetas I'm excited to see what you come up with. Best of luck!

Daniel

Thanks Daniel!

My next project is rather the opposite of 'epic', it's very intimate. One scene! Maybe I'll take first place or maybe get raked and raped over the coals :-) Given my track record, the later! lol

[Chris Messineo]

Great "Aftermath" video - I can't wait to see the finished film.

[Mark Harris]

I like the video. Sigh, a garage. What a luxury...can't wait to see it, Daniel.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233820933.jpg (http://vimeo.com/3090225)

More to come...I get "Sorry, this video no longer exists."
Anyone else?
:huh:

EDIT: Wait! It's back now.
Great stuff. What a mess... :)

[ZazaCast]

Dude... do yourself a favor and next time budget for a maid for a day. LOL!
Really looking forward to the film.

[Rodney V. Smith]

Man, I so miss my garage. the basement does not double very well as a workshop. damn carpet... great pod cast and update.

give us more!

[pia12254]

After I shot it and saw myself on camera (one of my least favorite things in the world) I was like, "Seriously, you look like you have been in some kind of prison camp for the past month!". Guess I need to get more sleep... :D

Time to get to editing!

Peace.

[Rodney V. Smith]

wait til you see my next podcast. You get to see my editing beard.

[pia12254]

I'm on my way out the door to go shoot a bunch of guns! The guy doing the sound design for the film (Dustin) and I are going out with some other people to record some original sound effects...and it is just a good excuse to shoot something! :beer:

I'll try and get some footage and make another Podcast out of it.

Later!

D

[jasonthewho]

and it is just a good excuse to shoot something! :beer:


Yup, you're a Texan!

[pia12254]

Hey guys,

Here is Production Update #2! Wanted to record some original sound effects...and shoot some stuff... :evil:

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1233965856.jpg (http://vimeo.com/3113148)

Enjoy!

[J. Erik Reese]

I love the screen shots! I can't wait to see the whole thing! Looks amazing! Keep it up!

[Erez Henya]

I love the screen shots! I can't wait to see the whole thing! Looks amazing! Keep it up!

Certainly doubled!

*excited*

[Mark Harris]

Um, there were no chicks in that video...but fun nonetheless. Makes me miss shooting...maybe I will hang the mic out the window tonight to get some gunshot sounds...

[ZazaCast]

Those were the ugliest chicks I've ever seen...that one with the camera really needs a shave!:):)

[Rodney V. Smith]

Those were the ugliest chicks I've ever seen...that one with the camera really needs a shave!:):)

i agree! talk about a tease. "chicks with guns" indeed...

[pia12254]

I added a little title at the beginning of the video that shows up at the bottom...but...unfortunately it gets covered up by the Vimeo play bar. It would have made the title make a little more sense! :evil:

So Mark...you live in a rough neighborhood?! :D

[Mark Harris]

Where at the details? You know, editing, sound mix, your girlfriend knocking you in the head for destroying the place?

[pia12254]

Hey Mark,

Thanks for checking in! I've been pretty smashed with some freelance work (a good thing) and helping a friend on a film. The guy who was the DP on Placebo is working on his own film to submit for Lossfest...I'll let him announce it in his own thread but it is going to be AWESOME! We finished shooting last night and it will be a beautiful film both visually as well as the story...

I'm about 1/3 of the way done with the rough edit of Placebo. I know...I'm slow! But hoping to get into it this week and get it knocked out!

[Sprocketboy]

This looks like it could be really good. Your cast looks great. One thing though, I think you have nothing to worry about down in Texas when it comes to waving guns around. In Connecticut or New York, they will shoot first and ask questions later. Its mandatory to report to the local police that you are filming a scene with fake guns.

Best of luck editing your project. I can't wait to see it.

[Herman Witkam]

Looking forward to that rough cut!

[pia12254]

Hey Herman,

I know, I know!!! :D My fiance is out of town for the next week so I plan on locking myself in my room with a bag of beef jerky and a bedpan... Hopefully that will get me through the rough cut!

It always seems when you finally get something you really want to work on that a million other jobs pop up. Maybe that is the secret to getting really consistent freelance work...just always be working on your own stuff and inevitably people will call and offer you something that will interrupt your personal project! :laugh:

[Eric Meisner]

Can't Wait to See this one.

[Herman Witkam]

Hey Herman,

I know, I know!!! :D My fiance is out of town for the next week so I plan on locking myself in my room with a bag of beef jerky and a bedpan... Hopefully that will get me through the rough cut!

haha - well, you have my understanding :beer:


It always seems when you finally get something you really want to work on that a million other jobs pop up. Maybe that is the secret to getting really consistent freelance work...just always be working on your own stuff and inevitably people will call and offer you something that will interrupt your personal project! :laugh:

I usually take on a lot of work because I know that 33% of it won't be finished at its original deadline (not including the fest stuff of course). At times I spend more time acquiring and networking than actual scoring, which makes me feel more of a businessman than a composer!

[Eric Meisner]

Get ready for the New Super Tuesday when we Chop your 20 minute version to 6. And yes, THERE WILL BE BLOOD...

[Herman Witkam]

20 to 6???? lol

[Rodney V. Smith]

Good luck with the chop. Seems like a lot of us are shooting big this time around. You;ve even made Herman go "wtf" on you.

[Mark Harris]

Get ready for the New Super Tuesday when we Chop your 20 minute version to 6. And yes, THERE WILL BE BLOOD...

I managed to get one scene down to 6 min. :)

[Beat Takeshi]

The screen shots look hot man. Definitely looks pro and can't wait to watch this one.

Good luck getting to 6

[Herman Witkam]

You;ve even made Herman go "wtf" on you.

Now that's a rarity :)

[pia12254]

Now, everyone just calm down....! (runs to window and dives out) ::shocked:

Just to put all of this wild rumor to rest the initial edit was not 20 minutes...it was 19:47. :laugh:

The version we are doing for Lossfest is based on the original script. We actually shot an expanded storyline for the longer version which will be submitted to other festivals. But for Lossfest we will do an edit based on the original version of the script which was about 5-pages.

But the rumor about me being the illegitimate stepson of Steven Spielberg IS true...

[Sprocketboy]

I can't imagine cutting 19:47 mins. to 6 mins. How much storyline are you losing? Are you removing a parallel storyline? Are you using the Ginsu knife?

[pia12254]

Hmm...I do like the Ginsu but for this I am using the Miracle Blade 3000 Bread Slicer. I seem to get better results with it (doesn't squish the footage as much).

On that note...I did get an 8-minute rough cut done last night. Had to work on a shoot all day today but I will be attempting the impossible tomorrow (cutting off another two minutes)...

:crybaby:

[YaBoyTopher]

Just started reading up on Lossfest and I am pumped you decided to do this project, I was bummed when you had to pull out of Twilight Fest because I really love this script.

I really cant wait to see this.

[Sprocketboy]

On that note...I did get an 8-minute rough cut done last night. Had to work on a shoot all day today but I will be attempting the impossible tomorrow (cutting off another two minutes)...

:crybaby:

I'm amazed you managed to whittle it down to 8 mins. Mine ended up 8 mins at full-length and I'm struggling to get it down to 6 mins. Currently, I'm at 6 mins and 15 secs. I'm sure, your last two minutes will be difficult. Good luck.

[Richard J. Johnson]

Both of my films actually came in under 6. I had to add some shots that I thought would not fit.

[pia12254]

Must...keep...editing... :)

I re-worked the opening last night and I think it is much better now. Currently working on streamlining the story and making the pacing better. Hoping to get it down to a locked 6-minute cut today or tomorrow morning.

Pray for me! :D

[ZazaCast]

I'm praying....but sure you'll enter a fine film! Hang in there.

[Eric Meisner]

Hurry Piattzo, We are all waiting for this Juggernaut of film to be finished

[Eric Meisner]

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/38654/1236033790.jpg

And Remember at the end of this ladder is 6 minute version to send Herman...

[pia12254]

Sqquuueeeeeeeeak! That's the sound of us squeezing in our 6-minute version right before the deadline! :smile:

Just about finished with the locked cut...will be sending it to Herman for music tonight or tomorrow (he has graciously agreed to work on it in spite of my horrible procrastination). I'll also be sending it to Dustin Rains, our Sound Supervisor, for the audio mix this week.

We are going to re-record some of the VO to drop in but that should be pretty minimal. Still have to complete a couple of effects shots and do color-correction this week but should be able to get it all done!

I wanted to give props to Eric Meisner who is not only an amazing DP but also has really great insight when it comes to editing! I was at an impasse and ready to throw in the towel. But he came over, we walked through the pieces we had and essentially did a paper edit. That really helped provide a structure to the story. We watched that version back today and will make a few more tweaks but I think it is working quite nicely now!

Gotta run and get this thing to Herman...

[Rodney V. Smith]

good to hear it. sometimes those paper edits really do help.

[pia12254]

Yeah dude! I was just kind of wallowing in the footage and it helped me get out of the fog and see the important elements of the story.

I'm really enjoying all of your BTS stuff by the way Rodney! I'm a huge sucker for any BTS videos/stills/making of etc. So, thanks for all of that and I can't wait to watch your films!!!

Daniel

[Tim Joy]

Glad you made it through the fog. I'm really excited to see this one.

[pia12254]

Thanks dude!

I am currently uploading the Quicktime for Herman to start working with. As soon as that finishes I'm grabbing the hard drive and heading over to Dustin's house to record some VO and start on sound design!

Hiya!

[pia12254]

UPDATE: 03/04/2009

Nothing like finishing a film at the last minute! :smile: But I think we are going to pull everything off and have a strong piece in the end (thanks to the collaboration of a LOT of individuals)!

Yesterday, met with the sound designer and went over the film. Talked about which sections need the most help, how to amp up certain scenes, the mix etc. We also re-recorded the VO that we had because we needed a cleaner version. I think it will really help the finished film!

Currently working on designing the opening title and then some color correction! Can't wait to show this and get some feedback...we will be doing a longer cut after the festival so any thoughts on story/character development, pacing, etc. will be very welcome!

[pia12254]

I CAN'T STOP POSTING! SOMEBODY HELP ME!

Just wanted to post a few more BTS photos since we have them...no one else will appreciate them so better put 'em up here!

When on set Meisner and I have a "Don't ask, don't tell" policy.
http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1236203035.jpg

Things got a little tense on set by the third day of shooting...
http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1236202944.jpg

The location sound guy's worst nightmare (the guy sold one while we were shooting and when they took it away all the rest of them went NUTS!)
http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1236203111.jpg

You can see Eric in the background on the phone..."Man this gig sucks! I'm gonna call around and see if I can get a real job. One that pays..."
http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1236203193.jpg

The requisite slate shot
http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1236203078.jpg

[Rodney V. Smith]

Your BTS has got sheep. I can;t possibly beat that. Time to play the Stripclub card...

[Eric Meisner]

When the Director puts a coat over head and says" I need to talk to you in Private", things get strange.

[Eric Meisner]

Piattzo, no witty response.

[pia12254]

Piattzo, no witty response.
Hmm...how is that march to 50 posts coming? :D

Just came back from meeting with the Sound Designer and doing a little ADR. The sound design is looking really cool and adds a LOT to the film!

Also, Herman said he would try and have a cut of the score to us sometime today! I'm like a kid at Christmas...keep refreshing the email on my iPhone every 15 seconds!

Almost there....

[pia12254]

Almost there! *nervous laughter*

It is now 1:20am, local time. The submission deadline is in less than 12 hours.

Got the final score from Herman Saturday. He is an absolute trooper for getting us a score turned around with only a couple days notice!!! I have sent that on to the sound designer who is currently working on a final mix. I'm excited to see what the final mix sounds like with all the FX layered in, etc.!

Once he finishes that (hopefully around 2:30-3:00am) he will upload it for me. I'll drop that in and finish any little video tweaks that bother me. At that point I will still need to export/encode the web version.

So, we are definitely cutting it close! :shocked:

But I think the finished piece will be worth it and will hopefully reflect the various talented people who put time into it! I think I'm slightly delirious but I still need to go create a title page while I wait for the audio...

See you guys later! :beer:

[Chris Messineo]

I can't wait to see your film.

Regarding music, Herman also got me my score this week-end. How funny would it be if he sent us all the same awesome score. :)

[Herman Witkam]

I can't wait to see your film.

Regarding music, Herman also got me my score this week-end. How funny would it be if he sent us all the same awesome score. :)

I guess you just found out how I did it :beer:

[pia12254]

Hmm...interesting possibility there Chris! We should definitely compare scores! :evil:

I'm excited about watching "One Saved Message"!

[pia12254]

Oops! Looks like Herman is on to us!!! :lipsrseal

[pia12254]

Time: 8:28am

I have now been up for more than 24 hours straight.

I had to create the credits page last night, redo some of the color correction and then get the final mix from the sound designer to drop in. Right now I am watching a little "Exporting" progress bar tease my delirious brain cells as it pretends to be making progress when in fact it is not. As soon as it is done I will upload it, make one last post of joy that shall be heard through the forum and then go to sleep.

The film is finished. So am I.

http://www.dvxuser6.com/uploaded/5811/1236604898.jpg
(This is me after staying up all night editing/finalizing the film...I call it, "Death Warmed Over")

[pia12254]

And for my next trick....

WE ARE UPLOADED!

I didn't think I was going to be able to stay awake. I kept half-dreaming that I fell asleep and woke up 10-minutes after submissions closed! :shocked:

I wanted to thank everyone involved but especially the sound designer, Dustin Rains. He worked 12 hour days Saturday/Sunday and then came back Sunday night and worked until about 6:30am to finish the sound on this thing. I really appreciate his dedication and hard work!

Good luck to all of the other films! I can't wait to watch them.

Off to bed...

[Tim Joy]

Congrats!
That looks how I feel too. SLLEEEPPP

[Shawn Philip Nelson]

First! :-)

Wow, GREAT atmosphere! Tons of great shots that I wanted to just pause on :-)

I missed the twist until credits, then had to go back and compare his name to the paper. Now I get it, cool!

Not sure how the tape recorder at the beginning fit in. I just saw Watchmen, so my thought was 'Rorschach's journal...' :-D.

Great work here!

On a side, small, teeny nitpicky thing...could you get your lead to not mumble so much when he narrates? :-)

[FDL film music composer]

On of the best movie ever seen until now

[Postmaster]

OHMYGAWD! I´m speechless.

I think you did just everything right.
Editing and Photography are phenomenal.

Like Shawn I got the twist when I looked at the credits.
The only thing I have to say is, that I whis the color grading would be a bit more subtil and consistant. Everything else is just great.

Frank

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Very nice.

First off, the score was incredible. Loved it! Herman outdid himself here.

I didn't feel that the twist came off as well as it should have but it still worked nonetheless.
Fantastic visuals throughout as usual. The sound design/editing was excellent.

The girl just seemed to be thrown in. I wish she had a little more to do.

Another solid entry though. I bet this does very well.

Best of luck!

MAH

[Chris Messineo]

Daniel, Congratulations, your film is excellent.

Obviously, I knew the story from MoviePoet, but I wasn't prepared for how powerful it would be as a film and I truly loved everything about this.

Your shots and the look of the film are wonderful. The location are fantastic. The editing is frenetic (when it needs to be) and slow when appropriate. The action scenes (not easy to do) are very well done. Even your actors are great. I even love the title card and the end credits, such a simple thing, but very well done.

In the end, it all combines for a fantastic mood, which Herman's score compliments perfectly.

I'll be very surprised if this doesn't end up in the winner's circle.

[pia12254]

Hey everyone,

Just checking in and getting ready to start watching some of these film. Yeehaw!

Thank you so much for the feedback guys! We will be cutting a longer version eventually so your feedback is really, really helpful to us!

Shawn/Frank: What do you think could have been done to make the reveal/twist clearer? I wondered if people would miss that or get it and the "test screenings" I did had people on both sides (too obvious, not obvious enough). And Frank, I totally agree on the color correction comment! Your thoughts are appreciated!

Michael: Thanks for watching...I greatly admire your ability as a visual storyteller so your opinion carries a lot of weight with me! Herman did do a fantastic job with the score. I absolutely love the musical theme he repeats throughout!
What do you think could have been done differently to give the reveal/twist more impact? And you are right about the girl...she has a larger role in the longer version but in this we didn't have time to fit it all in. :-)

Thank you for watching and hopefully I'll get a chance to watch ya'lls films and comment here soon!

Daniel

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Michael: Thanks for watching...I greatly admire your ability as a visual storyteller so your opinion carries a lot of weight with me! Herman did do a fantastic job with the score. I absolutely love the musical theme he repeats throughout!
What do you think could have been done differently to give the reveal/twist more impact? And you are right about the girl...she has a larger role in the longer version but in this we didn't have time to fit it all in. :-)

DanielThat explains the girl. I can't wait to see the longer cut! As for giving the ending more impact...

SPOILERS

I'm not sure. Maybe if the person he killed at the end meant more to him that may have helped?

Imagine if it was the girl and you had established a bit more of a relationship between them. If she was actually the one coming to the room to let him out but in his drug induced state he saw her as one of the infected. Or if he thought she turned into one of them while in the room with him.

In all honesty, I love this film and I'm rating it very highly. It still works very well.
Maybe after I watch it again I'll pick up more of its subtleties. And that's not a bad thing!! :beer:

MAH

[Eric Meisner]

This 6minute Cut Looks Amazing... Everything you left in works ... Cant wait to see the longer cut. There were so many great shots that we had to leave out, so I can't wait to see them all back in.

[Nick_Lee]

oh~! with only 2 seconds to spare! excellent. the title shot was awesome! so were the colors.

[Richard J. Johnson]

It looked great! Some of felt like I was watching a movie trailer though. In my opinion, You just needed more time. And that is good thing. I have no complaints here. Great film. great acting. great location. etc. nice job.

[DerSpieler]

Great to see the finished film. Thanks to everyone for all the hard work they put into this. The results are fantastic, and I think the longer version will be even better.

I've had a few scripts produced in the past but this is the best yet.

[jakestarkey]

Alright guys, watched both Placebo and The Things Between Us.

First off between the two of you Justin Arnold is gonna be a star, lol. Just keep putting him in everything you do.

Who knows, if I can get him down to my neck of the woods, he might be a regular player in 3 Texas Filmmaker Troupe's.

Second I'm gona start calling Piatt the Michael Bay of DVX User and mean it in a good way. Each film gets amped up a little more and a little more.

When's the feature length film coming?

And Meisner, if Piatt's Michael Bay I'm gonna have to call you the Godard of DVX User. An intimate story well told, well acted, well framed.

Heartbreaking and sincere, great job buddy.

Great job to both of you!

Jake

[vnguyen972]

Technically I see no problem on this film... man, it looks, sounds and feels awesome! The story is ok, nothing special about it but I thought the performance of the lead (Justin Arnold?) is excellent! I enjoyed watching it!

[Zak Forsman]

not bad guys. i have to admit to a bias/disinterest in extreme violence but there's no doubting it was well executed and that's what i'll base my rating on. i began to anticipate the overexposure/burnout edits and accompanying sound effect. my mind wandered to that and away from the story from time to time. i don't know if that's useful to you or not, just feedback on what was going thru my mind as i watched it. nice work!

[Lawsuit_Boy]

I'm also one that was slightly disconcerted by the burn flashes. Overall, I thought the piece was edited very well and some sequences were shot beautifully. As a whole, the piece really stands well on its own.

I think the story deserves commendation since psychological testing, experimentation, and torture are still prevalent today, although to varying degrees. I thought the lead's performance was quite excellent at times, especially his voice over. Voice over is a delicate subject and can ruin a film if not careful, but his voice was stern and soothing at the same time.

The music was tasteful and felt appropriate. The "tussle" sequence was very well crafted and performed well. The ending was a fair twist as well.

Really nice work! :beer:

[jasonthewho]

Fantastic work Daniel. Great consistency in tone from the lighting, performances, editing and music/sound design.

I think the actors and the work you did with them was even better than in The Small Multiple.

SPOILER



As for the twist, what if you repeated some of his earlier voice over (maybe with an echoey quality) where he says "We were in the B group, the control group." This way we would see/hear the direct contradiction.

Feels just like something that would be out in theaters. Can't wait to see what you do next.

[Sprocketboy]

What do you want me to say... it sucked! Its time for you to pack your bags and move to Beverly.

Outstanding job. Lots of work went into this and it deserves a round of applause. Every element worked in concert and I was totally involved, except I thought your film depended too much on effects work for transitions as seen in much of the films made today. Not that its bad. You have certainly mastered it. Much of my criticism here is subjective, not design for you to take offense. I am assuming that the sequences were cut so jarringly quick only because you had to get it in at 6 mins. Its really a longer film. I like the technique of the film, but I only like it in spoonfuls. 28 Weeks Later did a great job at doing this in the right amounts without putting me into an epileptic fit.

I would like to see the full version. Its really a superior production, from cinematography to music, from casting to directing and editing. Please make more.

[Marlon Ladd]

I really enjoyed this film! I like your style of directing and editing. A top-notch piece. I enjoyed the flashes. There could have been 1 or 2 or 3 less of them, but that's probably just nitpicking. The setup and everything was fantastic and your actors were excellent. What camera did you use and what type of color grading did you do?

[pia12254]

Hello all and thanks for watching! PLEASE KEEP THE FEEDBACK COMING!

Jason - LOVE your suggestion for helping reveal the twist at the end! I'm definitely going to play around with that idea...

Sprocketboy/Marlon/et al - You guys got me! :D I admit that I am a flash-a-holic... Actually, I think that is my lazy/default transition when I am fleshing stuff out in editing and then I usually run out of time and never go back and come up with something better. I think it might have been ok once or twice but when I was editing it I consistently made jokes about taking my seizure medication! In fact, at the last minute I went and took out quite a few of the transitions believe it or not! You're welcome... :beer:

If you guys have not watched "Red/White" yet they did an AWESOME job of incorporating flashbacks. Not much of a flash...just a quick cut in with a sound element to reinforce it. I'm gonna steal that technique for sure! :smile:

Since I was up for about 36 hours straight there are definitely things I would have tweaked had I had the time. But I am pretty happy with the overall result considering my tardiness in the matter and I hope everyone enjoys watching!

Thanks again for the input!

Daniel

[Deklun]

As a cine-noob I feel like I can speak as an outsider and say, WOW, soooo good. I love this genre of film and you definitely kept me on the edge of my seat... I will never use a Rosenthal product again. The visuals, dialogue, and score all worked in unison together to kick ass, and it was a very entertaining film. I'd love to see more of your work.

[darkrequiem1134]

Just checked out your flick. Very awesome entry one of my 2 favorite in the fest. Glad i got to see it. hope you make it further into the fest.

[Tim Joy]

Top notch editing, effects, cinematography, design, and acting. (and of course Music) I echo the raves of other comments, and will try to give some helpful criticism.

In my book, you told a complete story, and I got it, but it was a big pill to swallow, to use a little pun. :)

SPOILERS:::

It was either too much for 6 minutes or it was hard to believe this situation had transpired this way. Maybe more of the latter. The drug element was vague, because we had no idea what its intentions were. Psychotopic compound? Does that mean it makes people crazy? :)
Then there's the scared girl in the corner that is apparently unaffected by the drug, yet he keeps her safe? She doesn't seem to be important to the story.
When the guy comes after him and no amount of bullets even slow him down, it has a zombie feel to it, but he's really the good guy.
Then he says something about not leaving because "where would I go?" I think if i was in that situation, unless the doors are blocked by tanks, I'm gettin' the f out of dodge, you know? Unless he's crazy. :Drogar-Evil(DBG):

I hope you don't feel like I'm bashing. I'm a big fan of your work and there's a LOT to be VERY proud of here. Still one of the top entries. I eagerly await the longer version.
Your a real pro!

-tim

[pia12254]

Hey guys,

Thanks for dropping by!

Tim - Thanks for the thoughts! We actually started with a 5-page script and ended up expanding it to about 12-pages before we shot to answer some of the questions you raise. So, when we had to cut it down to 6 for the competition I figured it would leave some questions unanswered! :smile: For this we just tried to keep the very essential elements in there to tell a complete story as well as we could in the time allowed. That is why I really appreciate your thoughts on what could make this better...I hate to submit a piece and say, "Oh, it is part of a longer film we're working on so if it sucks..." If I didn't want this to be judged and evaluated as a standalone piece I would not have submitted it.

Thanks!!!

Daniel

[Blaine]

I'm not sure how I missed this one on day 1. Oh well, it gave me something good to watch on day 2.

I like what you did here. It was a good follow-up to "The Small Multiple." I didn't like it quite as much but it was still very good. I thought you handled the action scenes well and made them look real. The story was a tad forced to get to the place you got to in the ending but I'm sure that was probably a result of the time constraint. It was a lot of story to tell in 6 minutes but I think you did a fine job doing it.

I've got to say that Justin's VO sounded just like Michael Moriarty (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0605363/) to me.

I loved the opening title card as well as the end credits.

Good job on this one.

[ZazaCast]

Great job. Loved the edit style, acting and score. It just felt like too much story for 6 minutes to me...and I'm not sure I fully understand it. The Small Multiple is still one of my favorites & I'll always be a fan of your films!

Congrats to everyone involved...great gun shot sounds!

[pia12254]

Hey guys,

Blaine - Thanks for the kind words and feedback! I'll have to let Justin know that he sounds like Moriarty! :smile: And you are right...it is a LOT of story to fit into 6-minutes! Personally I thought The Small Multiple had a more complex storyline but it is hard for me to evaluate it being so close to the projects.

Zaza - I appreciate your input and thanks for watching! Glad you liked The Small Multiple. If you had to take a guess at the storyline what would your best guess be? I'm curious to hear what you picked up on and what seemed confusing/unclear.

Ciao!

Daniel

[Lost Skies]

Wow! Just... wow! I loved the cinematography and directing- especially with that cutout he looks through at about 3:29. I actually jumped when was attacked! I also loved the titles and end credits- nice design work.

[Geoff_R]

Daniel,

I liked this one. Nice setup and execution throughout. I can tell a lot of thought, time and planning went into this one. It's well edited coupled with some excellent cinematography and production design. From a tech perspective, there's not much for to critique on. It was well produced.

Story-wise, I dig it. It has an interesting set up with good beats therein. My favorite section is when that other guy attacks them and he's shooting/stabbing/etc. It's very visceral, very raw and I feel it's the most intense moment of the film.

Also... you have a distinct style in regards to storytelling. I did not remember that you made the Small Multiple but literally within two minutes of watching your film, I said "this is probably the same guy who made Small Multiple". It's good to have style, that's key for directors these days. You've gotta have a signature and you most certainly do.

One of my favorites so far! Thanks for sharing.

[pia12254]

Thank you so much for the very generous comments guys! I would like to say that I make my films without regard to what others think...but that would be a big fat lie! :laugh: I truly appreciate honest feedback whether critique or compliment (although compliments are always nice).

Geoff - I really love your work! In fact, about a day before submitting "Placebo" I went back and watched "Project 47: Chaos" and thought to myself, "Why am I even submitting this film if I can't pull off something like that?" I submitted anyway obviously but I really respect the quality of storytelling you present! Interesting storylines, characters and most of all they are entertaining to watch! So, thanks for commenting on our film...maybe I can get some more input from you when we get a longer version cut... :beer:

Ciao.

[FilmBoy77]

pia, top notch film brother....every aspect. nuff said. u got my vote.

[Norm Sanders]

Holy crap, Daniel! I'm sure there are some folks who'll rate their own films a '10', if nothing else because it's a competition, expecting others to do the same, etc. I've not done that ... and in fact, I've not rated ANY film a 10....

Until now.

I've got a folder that I dump everything into after watching it, and another reserved for films I want to show others, watch again myself, etc. It goes without saying yours goes into the latter.

Your editing, my friend, is AMAZING (great direction as well, obviously)! INCREDIBLE camera work as well, color grading, writing, acting, etc. Um, let's see ... anything I didn't like about this film???
.
.
.
.
.
Nope.


And to think, you've liked MY stuff, dude?? I'm flattered, to say the least.

When you can, I'd love nothing more than to have you PM me a link to a HD quality file of that, as well as a longer cut if you have one (I only ask that because it looks like I saw screen grabs that I can't recall if they were in this DVXuser cut or not).

[pia12254]

James - Thanks for checking it out bro! I'm glad you like it and of course your vote is always appreciated (gosh, I feel like a sleazy politician saying that)! :beer:

Norm - Man...I'm at a loss for words. Don't really know what to say to such nonsense! :grin: Your approval means a lot! I would LOVE to get your feedback on the longer version...I think pacing and story development will be paramount in that and I think having your outside perspective would be very beneficial!

Thanks guys!

Daniel

[Mercurialvenus]

PLACEBO IS AMAZING! Killer job Daniel and to all that worked on it! I can't wait to see the longer version of this. Just amazing. I'm a sci-fi/action girl so I totally dug it, but PLACEBO is fantastic in every way shape and form. Great directing, lighting, DP,great acting, great story, too many GREATS!!! I WANT MORE!!!!

[Norm Sanders]

Daniel, DEAL! I only ask that I can get my hands on HD files for it, THE SMALL MULTIPLE, and anything else you've done. I'm a huge fan now, what can I say?

BTW, I neglected to mention it before, but Herman DID do an outstanding job on the score (as he always does, the dude is nothing short of amazing) ... so much so that it was such a PART of the film, that I didn't even notice it ... which is perfect as opposed to standing out or getting in the way. Also, I remember being incredibly impressed with your set design, and specifically the attention to detail in your art direction/props, etc. Lastly, the title works is nothing short of pro & fun to look at. Again, I would have to really reach to try & critique any negatives on this ... I'm sure I could if I looked, but I just don't care to even try. Loved it.

[jessicalsin]

Holy Hell....I don't even know what else to tell you. I'm not a techno-dork like all the other guys on here. (you guys know who you are!)..but I liked what I saw! Excellent work!

[Rodney V. Smith]

Daniel, I just sat and watched your movie with my 10 month old. At first I thought it would be too violent for him, so I paused it... and he turned and gave ma a look... so I played it. totally enraptured. He refused to let me turn it off. Seems like he's inherited my good taste.

Placebo is one of the movies that I've burned on to DVD so I can watch while babysitting and it is one HELL of a ride. Kept me riveted to the screen just to see what else you were going to pull off. The sheer brutality of the attack still sticks with me since it wasn't so much action as it was so real... You've imbued this film with such a sense of reality that it's unreal. Top notch job on the editing, the shooting... the pure cinema of this piece.

Which is why I hate to ask this question of such an awesome fucking production. Where is the loss? I know this is a holdover from Twilightfest and you've made it for Lossfest, but I just want to be absolutely clear in my mind where the loss is in this movie.

I'm going to have to go watch it again.

[Richard J. Johnson]

After watching this film again, actually about 3 times. I have to say that it is really a great film on so many levels. One of the best of the fest for sure.

[Norm Sanders]

I hate to ask this question of such an awesome poo pooing production. Where is the loss? I know this is a holdover from Twilightfest and you've made it for Lossfest, but I just want to be absolutely clear in my mind where the loss is in this movie.

I wondered about that too, and for that VERY reason, I nominate this film to be DISQUALIFIED!!!! I mean seriously, Puck, do we really want this thing around for competition?? :nads: I think not. :banned:

HA! On a serious note, I didn't know this was a hold over from TwilightFest ... so was mine (script anyway).


Anyway, I DID ask myself that same question, but only briefly. In here, you could interpret any number of smaller things that may have been lost (freedom as they're prisoners for their own safety in that room, etc.) ... but the thing that really sunk in for me as to what he lost was his mind. He lost his sanity, and realized it only too late.

[Rodney V. Smith]

Okay I guess it was loss of sanity, self, humanity... quite a bit going on here.. it's like an onion: so many layers and when cooked right, very flavorful. One of my favs. And my son's absolute fav, pity he can't vote though.

[Rodney V. Smith]

I wondered about that too, and for that VERY reason, I nominate this film to be DISQUALIFIED!!!! I mean seriously, Puck, do we really want this thing around for competition?? :nads: I think not. :banned:

HA! On a serious note, I didn't know this was a hold over from TwilightFest ... so was mine (script anyway).


Anyway, I DID ask myself that same question, but only briefly. In here, you could interpret any number of smaller things that may have been lost (freedom as they're prisoners for their own safety in that room, etc.) ... but the thing that really sunk in for me as to what he lost was his mind. He lost his sanity, and realized it only too late.

Dammit Norman, you got here before I could finish watching again. Like I said it's subtle, but it's there and works on so many levels. Just because he's not up for most mentions (or any) of the word "loss", "lost" or "lose", doesn't lessen the impact.

I didn't watch it 4 times for nothing. Although the third time was with Jessica yelling "Holy SHIT" every 2 minutes...

[Norm Sanders]

One of my favs. And my son's absolute fav, pity he can't vote though.

Absolutely! EVERY young boy under the age of one-year-old should see the stabbing death of another person with a retractable ball point pen, lol.

[Rodney V. Smith]

Absolutely! EVERY young boy under the age of one-year-old should see the stabbing death of another person with a retractable ball point pen, lol.


Dude, he seriously fought with me to watch this film. I have NO idea what got into him. Usually he's so empathic that he hates to see anyone get hurt and looks concerned when someone is screaming on tv... but he was enraptured by the entire movie.... maybe it was the quick flashes....

[Rodney V. Smith]

Please don't take my comments the wrong way. I abso-fucking-lutely LOVED this film. I just want to be clear about that. The subject of loss and the interpretation that we all take of it can be so abstract. I'm glad there was depth to this film and that it made me want to watch it over and over again and to share it, and it wasn't just me searching for the "loss". I LOVE this movie.

[Noel Evans]

Well after watching, one thing is clearly evident, the amount of time and effort thats gone into every aspect of putting this piece together. In the first moments I thought bah another torture movie - that slid away a moment later.

IMO this could be a feature, and one that would attract an audience. Not just because you shot it so well, but the story has the depth to go that far. If I were you Id be out pimping this like hell. You dont need me to critique your piece.

Good luck with your future career.

Clear winner for me.

Oh and please dont add more info on the twist. It was clear enough.

[pia12254]

WARNING!!! LONGEST POST EVER COMING UP! (Please use the restroom before resuming reading)


WOW! Man, I go away and do jury duty for a day and I miss ALL THE ACTION! WTF?!?! :huh:

Norm - Dude, I'll get you HD copies of everything...to be honest, when I watch this in HD it blows my mind. Not because of anything I did but because the mind-boggling genius of Eric Meisner and his lighting is amazing to see in such detail! Seriously. He is amazing.

Puck - Man, no offense taken any which way man! I was actually laughing harder and harder as I went through and read the dialogue between you and Norm...but mostly the fact that your 10-month old kid watched it! :shocked: It is sad I know, but I thought that was hilarious. (Now, you should probably move to a different country under an assumed name before CPS comes after you).
The funny thing is that my parents would not even finish watching it because they thought it was too violent! My Mom watched half of it and then refused to show it to Dad because she knew he wouldn't like it. :laugh: In fact, when we were shooting it Dad came to the set to watch and we were viewing playback on some action shots at lunch. I turned around and he was just standing there shaking his head back and forth and muttering, "Ohhhh. Too violent."
As far as the Loss theme...when they announced it I actually thought to myself, "This is perfect for the theme" because it definitely had subtle aspects of Loss but it wasn't as they said in the rules "a bunch of people standing around feeling sorry for themselves". :smile: I saw it the same way Norm did. He has lost his reality, his grip on sanity as well as his freedom in a sense.

MercurialVenus - Thanks! Do I know you from somewhere? From the comment I feel like I should but I looked in my iPhone contacts under "M" for MercurialVenus and didn't find anything... ;)


Holy Hell....I don't even know what else to tell you. I'm not a techno-dork like all the other guys on here. (you guys know who you are!)..but I liked what I saw! Excellent work!

Glad you liked it Jessica! I really enjoyed your performances in both of Puck's films and I would love to see more of you in the future. (Did that just sound creepy?!?) I'm glad a non-techno-geek liked it! I really want to make films that appeal to a broad audience (read: selling my soul to "The Man" and making entertaining fluff). :laugh:


After watching this film again, actually about 3 times. I have to say that it is really a great film on so many levels. One of the best of the fest for sure.

Man, you know I loved your film as I have already mentioned. There are probably several things you used in your film that I'll probably adapt and use in a longer version of "Placebo"...please keep making movies (and then email me when you do)!


Well after watching, one thing is clearly evident, the amount of time and effort thats gone into every aspect of putting this piece together. In the first moments I thought bah another torture movie - that slid away a moment later.

IMO this could be a feature, and one that would attract an audience. Not just because you shot it so well, but the story has the depth to go that far. If I were you Id be out pimping this like hell. You dont need me to critique your piece.

Good luck with your future career.

Clear winner for me.

Oh and please dont add more info on the twist. It was clear enough.

Noel, thanks for watching and for your generous compliments! I actually talked with Martin (the writer of this piece) about developing this into a feature script. He had some fascinating ideas on it so we will see... (Placebo - The Feature, Fall 2010). :smile: I think it is interesting that you got the twist and don't think it needs anything added. I worried early on that people might not get the tie-in with his name. That is why we added in him saying "Entry ??. My name is Cole Kinsella" several times throughout the film. I actually thought it was too much and so we reduced it to only 2-3 which I still thought would work. But maybe part of the problem for some people is HEARING the name does not necessarily click when they SEE the name written. Not sure.

I definitely want the viewer to get the ending otherwise...what's the point? But I also don't want to hammer it in their face. I personally prefer a subtle reveal/realization that makes you kind of "look" for it. So, I'll have to play around with that before I settle on something.

I'm curious if PUCK and NORM understood the twist and what was going on when they watched it? Also, the others who have seen it or commented on it that did not specifically mention it...did you guys understand the ending/twist or was it confusing?

Well, now that I have reached the 10,000 word mark I'm going to print this off and use it as the first draft of my next feature film! :laugh:

THANKS EVERYONE!!!

[Rodney V. Smith]

Oh dude, i totally got the twist and it sent chills up my spine all 5 times.... well maybe 4 times. When we read the name and then he said it at the end, it was like "oh shit". Great twist especially since Eddie had been apparently so vicious... now has me thinking, was that in fact how it was, or just how HE saw it? How different was everything else from his perspective?

I got it... I got it GOOOD.

[Spear670]

Film looks great man, had a lot of fun watching this one. The whole genetic testing gone wrong thing has certainly been done but I loved this being from the angle of the control group in the experiments. Good stuff.

[pia12254]

Oh dude, i totally got the twist and it sent chills up my spine all 5 times.... well maybe 4 times. When we read the name and then he said it at the end, it was like "oh shi*". Great twist especially since Eddie had been apparently so vicious... now has me thinking, was that in fact how it was, or just how HE saw it? How different was everything else from his perspective?

I got it... I got it GOOOD.

Well I'm glad you "got it good"! :smile: And regarding your thoughts on what REALLY happened I like to think that what we see is basically his perspective...his reality of what happened. It would have been cool if we had shot everything "clean" and from the perspective of "reality" to be able to help with the reveal/realization but we didn't have time to shoot stuff two ways... Cest la vie! Thanks for your additional input!


Film looks great man, had a lot of fun watching this one. The whole genetic testing gone wrong thing has certainly been done but I loved this being from the angle of the control group in the experiments. Good stuff.

Thanks for watching! Yeah, the premise has definitely been used before but I really liked Martin's take on it. It felt like an intriguing storyline that was well executed in the writing (which makes my job as lot easier)! As I mentioned much earlier in this thread Martin is a true professional in every sense...an amazing writer and a pleasure to work with!

[Rodney V. Smith]

Its much cooler this way without the clean edit. His own savagery was real enough and that's the story point that is driven home. If it leaves us wondering exactly what happened, then even better. For all we know Eddie could've just been having a cup of tea when along comes this raging lunatic! Poor Eddie.

Now I'm creating a whole backstory for Eddie in my head and its all your doing.

[pia12254]

No...I think you are right! I think Eddie might well have enjoyed a cup of tea. And perhaps a scone or two. In fact, he's probably the nicest guy in the whole place! And now look what you have done to him!?! You've gone and killed him!

Sorry. It's late. I'm going to bed now.

For real.

So sleepy...







Must go to slee........

[johntwoods]

dug your film.

very much so.

well done.


john.

[armisiano]

Your production value was really fantastic. Great lighting. Costumes. Makeup. The quick and stylized editing really kept everything moving quite well. It seems like you know how to really shoot for the edit. Good work.

[Norm Sanders]

To be honest, I never really noticed him saying his name, or at least it never stuck with me on what his name was ... to the point that when he was scrolling through the names, and his finger landed on one in particular, I was saying to myself "That must be his name ... crap, HE is the one that's been taking the psycho pills, and they were NOT placebos!!!" ... so I FULL expected the dead black eyes to be revealed to be normal, etc. So yes, it was a great twist ... enough so that I fully understood what had happened, etc.

Now, since you got me thinking, I did finally start to ask myself "So if HE was the crazy one, then why is the girl still alive & he's not killed her? All along I though he was with her, protecting her, but in hindsight I see she was terrified of him. If he fired so many shots at the guy coming at him, then why didn't that guy die, if he was normal???" I could really stat to spin & try to unravel this thing, but as Puck said, it's from HIS perspective on reality that we were seeing all this from ... so perhaps the gun had already emptied, and he was dry firing at that point, etc.

If you do a feature, these are all great things you can reveal & dive into more at that time ... at which point of course you'll fly me down & house me, so that I can do who-knows-what. :)

[Lawsuit_Boy]

You know, I was reflecting on this film once again after a rewatch. All of my review from before still stands. I thought it was a very strong effort, but there's something about the story that feels overcooked and done to death to me. Now, like I said before, you freshened it up for sure, but it's not something that I feel I can really get into again, most likely because of the hyperactive use of chop-cut (derivative of jump cut) and flash editing. I just have difficulty watching things cut that way.

I'm sorry man, I didn't come back in here to rant about the film. It really is good work, but the real reason I came in here was to mention a term called, "nocebo." This is a real term coined in opposition of the placebo effect.

Essentially, it is the reverse of a placebo, creating a condition in a sense, where there wasn't one (similar to a hypochondriac's mentality), as opposed to a placebo, which actually is used to ease the mind and help it.

So my question is, with the title, did you intend to make people think that this was a film about HELPING the unfortunates that were picked, or a film in which the researchers were trying to evoke a NEGATIVE response with nocebos? Or is it merely something along the lines of Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment?

This just did not sit right with me the second time around and I can't get it out of my head. I hope this post doesn't come off as too much of a denigration of the film. I don't mean it that way. But it's just something to think about; kind of another angle of approach, you know?

Anyway, best of luck with the voting! And if this concern has already been raised in the thread, I do apologize. I haven't read the entire thing yet.

[DerSpieler]

So my question is, with the title, did you intend to make people think that this was a film about HELPING the unfortunates that were picked, or a film in which the researchers were trying to evoke a NEGATIVE response with nocebos? Or is it merely something along the lines of Zimbardo's Stanford Prison Experiment?


Hi, as the writer I should probably field this one. The answer is actually much simpler than what you suggest. I was inspired by the Stanford Prison Experiment, and I came across nocebos as I was researching the script but this story isn't really about either.

The "patients" are simply homeless people who were coerced into taking part in clinical trials, not because they had physical or psychological conditions that needed treatment, but because they would be desperate enough to sign up with few questions asked, and nobody would miss them if anything went wrong.

The Rosenthal Institute are testing psychotropic drugs to alter a subject's personality, perhaps to suppress fear or empathy in order to create more effective soldiers. I saw them as a sub-contractor or front for the military/CIA who would have full deniability if the project ever became public. Since it's a five-pager I didn't go anymore in-depth than this, but that's what I had in mind :)

So you essentially have half the subjects taking the mind altering drug, and half taking the placebo. The scientists monitor their behavior and interactions over a period of time, as well as conducting daily psychological tests to detect changes in personality etc

The premise is that Cole and the others on B wing become convinced that they are the control group. They don't notice any psychological effects from the drugs they are taking but they do notice a gradual change in the behavior of the other group. So they assume they are taking the dummy drug and that the other group are changing. This is in fact their own paranoia and a kind of shared psychosis that develops over time as they grow increasingly suspicious of the other group. This all escalates into a violent conflict which occurs before the film begins.

So that's the basic back story, nothing too clever, just a simple twist on a fairly well-worn premise.

I've been toying with a feature length version but I think the premise would need more depth and a stronger psychological angle to sustain interest over 2 hours.

Thanks everyone for the feedback, and the interesting discussion! :)

[Lawsuit_Boy]

Hi, as the writer I should probably field this one. The answer is actually much simpler than what you suggest. I was inspired by the Stanford Prison Experiment, and I came across nocebos as I was researching the script but this story isn't really about either.

The "patients" are simply homeless people who were coerced into taking part in clinical trials, not because they had physical or psychological conditions that needed treatment, but because they would be desperate enough to sign up with few questions asked, and nobody would miss them if anything went wrong.

The Rosenthal Institute are testing psychotropic drugs to alter a subject's personality, perhaps to suppress fear or empathy in order to create more effective soldiers. I saw them as a sub-contractor or front for the military/CIA who would have full deniability if the project ever became public. Since it's a five-pager I didn't go anymore in-depth than this, but that's what I had in mind :)

So you essentially have half the subjects taking the mind altering drug, and half taking the placebo. The scientists monitor their behavior and interactions over a period of time, as well as conducting daily psychological tests to detect changes in personality etc

The premise is that Cole and the others on B wing become convinced that they are the control group. They don't notice any psychological effects from the drugs they are taking but they do notice a gradual change in the behavior of the other group. So they assume they are taking the dummy drug and that the other group are changing. This is in fact their own paranoia and a kind of shared psychosis that develops over time as they grow increasingly suspicious of the other group. This all escalates into a violent conflict which occurs before the film begins.

So that's the basic back story, nothing too clever, just a simple twist on a fairly well-worn premise.

I've been toying with a feature length version but I think the premise would need more depth and a stronger psychological angle to sustain interest over 2 hours.

Thanks everyone for the feedback, and the interesting discussion! :)

Glad you did so much research! I've also looked into Rosenthal and the manipulation of psychotropic drugs. Interesting stuff!

Anyway, everything you said is evident in the film and quite clear to me, but I was simply referring to the title and trying to pull more info out of it, not to criticize the film, but just as analysis, a simple break down. Glad you took it the right way. I'm always worried about bringing some of these things up out of fear of offense.

And this type of "shared psychosis" would indeed develop among the group, as evident in a number of studies, namely Stanford P.E.

Very interesting subject matter to tackle. I don't think that this particular event would make a good feature film without an immense amount of political, cultural, and sociological commentary or even satire. It seems like a concept meaty enough for a short but not for a feature. I'm sure we've all seen films that try to carry these themes before, but the ones that use a similar twist as you did here often end with a sort of, "...oh" feeling and carry little weight. The films that do it well are the ones that use this type of study as supplementary material to the core story.

So I think that this could actually be expanded into an even better and longer short film easily.

In the end, my only real grip is with the presentation of the film in the editing and some of the cinematography. The DP did a fine job, but I think this could be a good project to spring-board from and make something really authentic and unique. :beer:

[ZazaCast]

OUCH... My brain is on fire!

[pia12254]

dug your film.

very much so.

well done.


john.

Woot woot! The great John T. Woods commented on our film! Seriously dude...everything I have ever seen you in has been ASTOUNDING! I don't know what you do but you have "got it". Thanks for watching!


Your production value was really fantastic. Great lighting. Costumes. Makeup. The quick and stylized editing really kept everything moving quite well. It seems like you know how to really shoot for the edit. Good work.

Coming from someone who has great taste/ability in all of these areas that means a lot!


... at which point of course you'll fly me down & house me, so that I can do who-knows-what. :)

We would love to work with you some day! Too bad the U.S.A. is so darn big...if we had a public transportation system like Europe and smaller states we could all collaborate with each other on every film! :laugh:


Hi, as the writer I should probably field this one.

Thanks for jumping in and answering that one Martin! I was going to take a stab at it and then realized I had no idea what your intentions were when you wrote it! :laugh: I appreciate the input...quite interesting and the research it is based in I think makes it even more fascinating!


OUCH... My brain is on fire!

ZaZa, I apologize but at this point management has specifically stated that we are to give no refunds (or money for seizure medication)!

[Lawsuit_Boy]

OUCH... My brain is on fire!

Heh, sorry ZaZa. I got a little carried away with my analysis for a minute.

[Rodney V. Smith]

OUCH... My brain is on fire!

Frist the Brown Acid, now the little Purple Pill... Somebody call a Medic!

[Gohanto]

Cool short and I liked it a lot . The twist was very interesting as well, although if it would've been a little more clearly stated, that would've helped.

Cinematography, performances, production value, and sound were all fantastic and very professional. Fit the story well and everything clicked.

The only thing I think could've been tweaked was that during the stabbing with the pen, you decided to edit back to the girl occasionally. While in some ways that helped add some tension, it also made the scene feel a little less focused to me considering the very short nature of the script and that we didn't really know much about the girl. Sticking solely on him might've worked better.

A minor idea though, and it really is an excellent short. Nice work.

[pia12254]

Gohanto,

Good input man! I actually know exactly what you mean about cutting away to the girl during the fight scene. It is a pretty subtle thing but I found myself wondering the exact same thing as I was editing. I appreciate you bringing it up because I had wondered myself if it took away from the intensity of the moment a little bit.

I'll probably play around with that in the longer version!

Thanks for watching.

Daniel

[pia12254]

The DP did a fine job, but I think this could be a good project to spring-board from and make something really authentic and unique. :beer:

Sorry, just seeing this one (missed it amongst the other posts). Obviously I am a huge fan of Eric's work so I am probably biased but I just wanted to see if you could clarify what you mean by doing something more "authentic and unique". Or were you referring to the story more than the DP work? If that is the case then I understand what you are saying from your previous posts. If I'm combining separate thoughts in my head then please ignore me! :smile:

I'm not very good at analyzing something unless I have specific examples to refer to. :beer:

Thanks for the feedback!

Daniel

[Norm Sanders]

I'm not sure I'd change cutting away. Since in the end this woman is a prisoner in there with him, it's important to see her reactions to what's going on, and also helps to break up the fight portion just a bit. If it was one of those over-in-an-instant Bourne Identity moments where in three shakes of a lamb's tail he's killed the dude & it's over, fine ... don't cut away. But this is a BUTCHER session he does on the guy with a ball point pen, and to just stay on that only the entire time may be a tad too much (hmmmm, ask your folks, lol), but also may make it seem like it drags on vs. the way you have it now gives the viewer a break, to keep the other character(s) involved in their mind during that as well.

Eh, just an opinion though.

[pia12254]

Ok, I think three posts in a row on your own thread is grounds for being banned...but I'm going for it anyway! :banned:

My mind just thought of something and I wanted to get some other opinions on it:

Several people have commented on the story of Placebo being something that has been done before. That is very true and I am not arguing that point at all!

The thought I have is that pretty much every story/genre has been done before...no? Just because certain genres/themes have been used more than others does that make them any less valuable/worthy/appropriate? Is it simply being "different" that makes something good? Of course, everyone wants to see a movie that is different but unless you are copying a script/film word for word or shot for shot it should be different than anything they've seen before.

Just wanted to get some thoughts on it because it is something I've wondered myself before!

I know there are a wide array of opinions on this board so I'm curious to see where people fall on this spectrum.

Ciao!

[Norm Sanders]

Whatever, dude, you're just trying to jack up the post count on your thread.

That's cool, I'll bite. :)

You're right. It's ALL been done before. I truly believe by this point there is NO story that anyone could ever tell, that hasn't for the most part been covered before. Heck, even when THE MATRIX came out, while mind blowing on so many levels, it too had been done before ... I've even heard people parallel that one to similarities of the story of Jesus, and in fact Neo was a figure of salvation for the other characters, the Chosen One, etc.

So, while EVERY story has been told before at some level, the trick is to see if you can tell it in a way that audiences like & feel entertained by. Even if your movie is literally a REMAKE, it doesn't matter, as long as the audience loves it.

The audience, for the most part, wants to be entertained. Period. They want to forget about their every day drudgery, and experience an escape, whether it's to mind numbing comedy, endorphin raising action, or cerebral dramas, it's still an escape from what they normally do, day in & day out.

So I personally don't care if what you've done HAS been done on every level, in every way, prior to this fest .... I still enjoyed it, and thought it was VERY well executed.

End of story. :thumbsup:

[Rakesh Jacob]

Ok, I think three posts in a row on your own thread is grounds for being banned...but I'm going for it anyway! :banned:

My mind just thought of something and I wanted to get some other opinions on it:

Several people have commented on the story of Placebo being something that has been done before. That is very true and I am not arguing that point at all!

The thought I have is that pretty much every story/genre has been done before...no? Just because certain genres/themes have been used more than others does that make them any less valuable/worthy/appropriate? Is it simply being "different" that makes something good? Of course, everyone wants to see a movie that is different but unless you are copying a script/film word for word or shot for shot it should be different than anything they've seen before.

Just wanted to get some thoughts on it because it is something I've wondered myself before!

I know there are a wide array of opinions on this board so I'm curious to see where people fall on this spectrum.

Ciao!


Dude every-freakin'-thing's been done before!!!!
There hasn't been an original thought since the first cavemen that discovered farts smell.
The talent is most often displayed in the execution and you ROCK!!!!!
That was very, very well done. You are good to go with this one. You earned my 10 stars.

On the pen shanking scene, not actually seeing the pen but hearing it and watching a reaction is very important IMHO.

[pia12254]

Norm - Thanks for biting! :laugh: (Dang it, he's on to me guys!!!)

Johnny - I appreciate your comments, feedback (and 10 stars)... :dankk2:

I think I tend to agree with you...here is my $.02 on the matter summed up rather nicely:

What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done,
and there is nothing new under the sun.
- The Bible


:beer:

[Norm Sanders]

What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done,
and there is nothing new under the sun.
- The Bible


:beer:

More specifically, wasn't that Solomon, the wisest man on the face of the earth, from the book of Ecclesiastes? :beer: :beer:

[Rakesh Jacob]

Norm - Thanks for biting! :laugh: (Dang it, he's on to me guys!!!)

Johnny - I appreciate your comments, feedback (and 10 stars)... :dankk2:

I think I tend to agree with you...here is my $.02 on the matter summed up rather nicely:

What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done,
and there is nothing new under the sun.
- The Bible


:beer:

WOW a Bible quote on how there are no new ideas and everything comes from a former source or is derivative in some way..... IRONIC!!!!

[TiJo]

This film was great! No complaints at all. One of the best. Editing, lighting, acting, all on point. The location was perfect. I didn't quite understand why the girl was there. But it made sense at the end.

[pia12254]

Tijo - Thanks man! The location we shot at is an old abandoned missile base...I have probably driven by it hundreds of times and thought it would be a perfect location for a film! I finally got in touch with the guy for this one and it worked out well for us. He was the coolest guy ever and let us pretty much have the run of the place!

:dankk2:

[chriscurl]

Great job with this! Look forward to seeing the longer version, you have created a world that I want to see more of.

[pia12254]

Chris - Sweet man! Glad you want to see more...we might be able to oblige you after the fest is over. :beer: I really enjoyed your film "Blackout"! I would like to see more of that as well! Loved the setting you created! Top notch.

- D

[Brandon Rice]

Hm ok... this film should EASILY take first place... I know it's my top film this fest, and it's going to be extremely hard for ANY other film to take that... this is brilliant... a perfect story for a short form, with an excellent twist. The performances work, the editing is FANTASTIC! Everything works... everything.

I have no suggestions or comments to give...

[pia12254]

Brandon - What the...!??! Thanks man!!! Sweet! Awesome! Ok...I'll calm down now... We appreciate you watching and commenting (especially since it is all positive). :laugh:

We are currently setting up to do a feature film and I would love to get some input from you on getting name actors/distribution/marketing etc. I have been watching the various projects you have been involved with, advised on, etc. (Smugglers Ransom, No Greater Love, Greyscale). I would love to be able to tap your experience before we make too many rookie mistakes! :)

Thanks!

- Daniel

[Brandon Rice]

Brandon - What the...!??! Thanks man!!! Sweet! Awesome! Ok...I'll calm down now... We appreciate you watching and commenting (especially since it is all positive). :laugh:

We are currently setting up to do a feature film and I would love to get some input from you on getting name actors/distribution/marketing etc. I have been watching the various projects you have been involved with, advised on, etc. (Smugglers Ransom, No Greater Love, Greyscale). I would love to be able to tap your experience before we make too many rookie mistakes! :)

Thanks!

- Daniel

Daniel, you know how to reach me, and I'd be glad to help you in any way I can! :beer:

Once again, LOVED the short!

[Kholi]

Win. That is all.

[Ryanrjack]

Good movie! I liked this one! Easily my one of my favs I've seen so far.

[orchidsofwrath]

in-frkn-credible. Nothing more to say.

[Lawsuit_Boy]

Watching it again, and I liked certain aspects a little more now, but there are a LOT of things still irking me. I was also thinking about the doctor dead in the lead and the woman's room. I was wondering, did the same thing that happened with the SPOILER!!!!!! zombi-fied guy who wasn't actually crazy happen with the doctor, and that's why he was killed? My reason for inquisition here is that I was curious as to why the lead didn't get a little more curious about the situation after some of the FIRST killings. Why did it take him so long, after the first killing (or killings), to decide to hunt for more information?

If he sought the information out in the end anyway, I don't see much reason for him not to look for it after the scientist/doctor was killed. It seems like the scientist was set up to be dead (and seen alive in flashbacks) as a set piece to build the atmosphere and show how wrong things went, but it sort of leaves a hole.

I was also wondering if you're a fan of Tony Scott? I don't mean that in a condescending way at all. I just really compared the flashcuts to some of the cuts in some of Scott's more recent work, namely Domino and Man on Fire. I feel like if this film would have utilized French New Wave-esque jump cuts instead of the Scott-ish flashcuts, it wouldn't have been as tough on the eyes. Or maybe just a little less flash, ya know? It just seems as if the more I think about it, the more it unravels and I can't find the motivation behind certain actions. I'm not sure why the doctor would be in the room. If everyone left him there, I have a hard time believing, in such an inhumane study, he actually wanted to stick around. Perhaps he went back for the data in the room? I feel like some of the flashbacking could have been put to good use and made the doctor's reasons a little more realistic. And I'm still bothered by him merely stumbling upon the info after the second killing. I just feel like someone who can manage to stay alive on the streets would be able to look in the file cabinet.

I know that the red flashbacks at the end portray him murdering people, and that it's just now coming around to his conscious mind, but I still don't buy the other portion not searching for the info. I guess it's a plot device to drive the story, and it works in that way. I'm just really being critical and picking it apart, haha. This almost borders on the psychotropic drug creating a bit of a disassociative personality disorder. I feel like all of this stuff could be answered in the longer cut you're working on, and that's why I'm offering these perspectives, as fuel for the creation of the longer cut.


The film just seems to have a really great concept with good execution that just doesn't maintain internal continuity. A good example of a film that does is The Sixth Sense.

Also, an interesting idea to pursue in the future is the prospect of doing some of these tests, but not having it go horribly wrong with death and violence involved (or maybe a little eventually) and instead, showing some of those in the study released and follow their re-instatement in society. It's certainly something to ponder.

[pia12254]

Win. That is all.

Kholi...man I really appreciate that! I know you are honest in your feedback/comments so I really appreciate the fact that you enjoyed it (and are not just being polite...right?). :laugh: I actually went and checked out the Rainfall Films website a couple days ago when I saw the link in another thread. I didn't realize it was you and Sam Balcomb and all those guys! WOW! Ya'll (excuse the Texan) are doing TOP NOTCH work! If you guys can ever use a laid back Texan to hold a boom pole or push a dolly on one of your projects let me know! Thanks again for watching!

Ryan/Orchids - Thanks for watching and your encouraging comments as well! Really liked your film Orchids of Wrath! (I feel weird typing that as a name...) :smile:

[pia12254]

I was wondering, did the same thing that happened with the SPOILER!!!!!! zombi-fied guy who wasn't actually crazy happen with the doctor, and that's why he was killed?

Because you have been very generous in offering specific feedback I wanted to start a separate post to respond to your thoughts in! :beer: As I mentioned before I wanted this short to stand on its own without using the excuse that we are doing a longer version later. That being the case I knew there would be a lot of unanswered questions that would be raised because of it. But because you are asking about specifics I will be glad to answer! :laugh:

There are several scenes involving the Doctor that we had to cut for times sake. We have a number of scenes with him working with the patients, etc. We also have a scene where everyone vacates the site, leaving him behind, locked in the facility (you see it in some of the shots we cut out but the place is surrounded by chain link/razor wire...like a prison). He encounters a guard that has been killed by the deranged patients and rather than suffer the same fate he decides to take his own life...thus the bullet wound in his head (another shot we had to cut shows Cole & Shannon finding him in the room and Cole pulls the gun from his hand...and later his suicide note).


I was also wondering if you're a fan of Tony Scott? I don't mean that in a condescending way at all. I just really compared the flashcuts to some of the cuts in some of Scott's more recent work, namely Domino and Man on Fire. I feel like if this film would have utilized French New Wave-esque jump cuts instead of the Scott-ish flashcuts, it wouldn't have been as arduous.

It is funny you would ask that! I wouldn't necessarily say I'm a fan...but I did like some of the editing techniques used in Man on Fire and I wanted to play around with it more than anything. In fact, I had heard there was some similar stuff done in Domino (which I heard also sucked) so I actually watched part of it streaming on Netflix yesterday! :) Regarding French New Wave...is that some sort of hair product? :evil: Actually, I would consider myself a bit of a film neanderthal in the sense that I don't watch a lot of movies...or at least not a broad array of films. If you could refer a couple examples of what you are talking about I would honestly LOVE to see what you mean! Now that I've been away from the film for a few days I think some of the flashiness needs to be reduced and/or eliminated from the longer version. So, I might be looking for an alternative "technique" for accomplishing the same thing.


And I'm still bothered by him merely stumbling upon the info after the second killing. I just feel like someone who can manage to stay alive on the streets would be able to look in the file cabinet.

I think some of the stuff in the longer version might make this a little clearer. In that setting you realize he has just stumbled upon this room in his effort to find a safe place for he and Shannon to barricade themselves. The Doctor is already dead. It is only a matter of minutes before he is attacked by the zombie-fied gentleman and during the attack the papers on the Doctors desk get knocked to the floor. So, after the tussle, when he is sitting on the ground re-grouping, he glances down and sees the paper. Something on that paper spurs him into looking through the drawers...

Not sure if that makes more sense but I think it should address a lot of what you are wondering... I guess that is one of the challenges of whittling a story down the barest of elements and keeping only the parts absolutely vital to the central theme. :)


I feel like all of this stuff could be answered in the longer cut you're working on, and that's why I'm offering these perspectives, as fuel for the creation of the longer cut.

Dude, I totally appreciate your insight! Raising questions like these helps me to know what needs more/less explanation in a longer version! Fortunately, most of the questions raised I think will be addressed more fully in the next version. But I hope even this 6-minute cut was at least entertaining for some people! :Drogar-Smoke(DBG):


Also, an interesting idea to pursue in the future is the prospect of doing some of these tests, but not having it go horribly wrong with death and violence involved (or maybe a little eventually) and instead, showing some of those in the study released and follow their re-instatement in society. It's certainly something to ponder.

Hmm, that is actually a really interesting idea! I've been kicking some ideas around with Martin (as well as a few in my head I haven't told him about :evil: ) regarding what a feature story might look like... So, that is an interesting angle!

[Lawsuit_Boy]

Thanks for getting back to me, pia! I do appreciate it. I figured that a lot of things were a time limit problem. Your responses most certainly make sense.

I also played around with some Tony Scott style editing techniques in a piece I made a few years back. I'm really not a big fan of the techniques (I kind of feel like it's just a result of the Mtv style generation) but I wanted to see if I could replicate it. Honestly...I'm much less annoyed by it in your film than in Scott's, haha. I'm watch TONS of films, especially those outside of the U.S., and I've just become accustomed to a lot of different periods of film and styles, so my taste has really changed over the years. Nothing against you for liking Scott, though. The guy can certainly direct action.

Yeah, I figured that they had just found the room, but it's unclear that the doctor was already dead and hadn't been killed by the lead because of the time crunch. And because of that crunch, we see the character in this room almost the entire time, which lead me to believe that the character was poorly developed, or just plain stupid for not searching the file cabinet. I think that if we saw him do a little more before entering that room and if you had the audience follow him in there, it would help make him look like less of a mind-warped slug. Because remember, he's on the psychotropic drugs, but he's not a stupid person. He's just become highly delusional and paranoid. So yeah, once again, more time for developing the situation out will NOT spoon feed the audience (I would NEVER advise that) but establish a more grounded and realistic scenario.

I really think that you all can make a really solid film with very tight internal continuity between the flashforwards, flashbacks, and present time with a longer cut that drops the right amount of little hints/clues as to how things happened at the right moments. It's just that after multiple viewings, the six minute cut doesn't really hold itself together.

Glad you like the idea! I just think that it would make for an interesting psycho-social study of the characters' behaviors and interactions with their environment and would raise a lot of interesting questions, both ethically and morally; even scientifically.

I'd definitely like to hear more about the project when it starts to grow. Once again, glad the comments didn't come off as snobbish or too invasive. :beer:

[Lawsuit_Boy]

Regarding French New Wave...is that some sort of hair product? :evil: Actually, I would consider myself a bit of a film neanderthal in the sense that I don't watch a lot of movies...or at least not a broad array of films. If you could refer a couple examples of what you are talking about I would honestly LOVE to see what you mean!




Sorry I didn't respond to this. Almost missed it (lilcaro pointed it out to me).

Well, I highly recommend checking out Breathless by Godard. It was one of the first films to implement jumpcutting (since the term was basically coined from that film). Godard originally shot the sequences they take place in as longer takes, but producers wanted him to chop it down. So he just hacked pieces out and made the "jump cuts."

Jump cuts can serve a number of different purposes, but most often they're used to establish some type of subtle change in the film, like a character's perspective, as used in Breathless.

The French New Wave was a result of Truffaut, Godard, Eric Rohmer, Claude Chabrol and Jacques Rivette primarily, who were critics for a film mag/journal called Cahiers du cinema. They were fed up with stagnant eras of french film and were highly influenced by Italian neorealism and decided to start breaking filmmaking conventions in editing, cinematography, acting, music, etc. They wanted to tell stories differently.

So, I recommend seeing Breathless, A Woman is a Woman, Contempt, Pierrot le fou, and Alphaville (all by Godard) and The 400 Blows, Shoot the Piano Player, Jules et Jim (all from Truffaut), and then start working your way through more French New Wave.

Heck, I'd also go back and check out some Italian Neorealism like Bicycle Thieves by Vittorio de Seca and I Vitelloni by Federico Fellini. Also, I HIGHLY recommend seeing "8 1/2" by Fellini.

That should be a good place to start. :thumbup:

[reem12]

Just got around to watching this and must say this is a sick peace. very intense and well thought out. Great direction and acting as well.

[abraham]

This was good fun. Thank you for jolting me outta my chair a bit here.

My biggest critique is just personal taste -- but if your editing effects (flashes, color changes etc) had been less frequent, I would've been much more engaged.

A good piece. Thanks.

[Norm Sanders]

Yikes, I must be on the same plane as Daniel then, because I've never even HEARD of any of the movies Lawsuit is referring to.

[Lawsuit_Boy]

Yikes, I must be on the same plane as Daniel then, because I've never even HEARD of any of the movies Lawsuit is referring to.

It's not too late for you, Norm! We need to broaden your horizons and introduce you to world cinema! You'll find inspiration in the most unlikely places. Japanese samurai films, French new wave (and now neo-realist films like La haine, which I HIGHLY recommend), German expressionism from Ingmar Bergman and the likes, some Italian works from Fellini, Antonioni, de Seca, etc. toss in some Hong Kong work, some Australian minimalist, and you cannot leave out out great Russian works like you'd find with Tarkovsky. I could go on all day about various film periods, norms and motifs indigenous to cultures, and general styles all day. I freaking love movies, haha.

[DerSpieler]

You'll find inspiration in the most unlikely places. Japanese samurai films, French new wave (and now neo-realist films like La haine, which I HIGHLY recommend), German expressionism from Ingmar Bergman and the likes, some Italian works from Fellini, Antonioni, de Seca, etc. toss in some Hong Kong work, some Australian minimalist, and you cannot leave out out great Russian works like you'd find with Tarkovsky. I could go on all day about various film periods, norms and motifs indigenous to cultures, and general styles all day. I freaking love movies, haha.

This man knows his stuff! I'll see your Bergman and raise you a Fritz Lang!

[Lawsuit_Boy]

M and Metropolis are two of my all-time favorite films. I'm so happy that the full cut of Metropolis was found! Cannot wait for that.

I'll see your Lang and raise you Robert Wiene!

[lilcaro]

It's not too late for you, Norm! We need to broaden your horizons and introduce you to world cinema! You'll find inspiration in the most unlikely places. Japanese samurai films, French new wave (and now neo-realist films like La haine, which I HIGHLY recommend), German expressionism from Ingmar Bergman and the likes, some Italian works from Fellini, Antonioni, de Seca, etc. toss in some Hong Kong work, some Australian minimalist, and you cannot leave out out great Russian works like you'd find with Tarkovsky. I could go on all day about various film periods, norms and motifs indigenous to cultures, and general styles all day. I freaking love movies, haha.


To make things a little simpler, I'd probably start with films by Truffaut, Bergman, and Kurosawa from the 60s. Kurosawa is arguably the best Japanese director of all time, and his stuff is relatively accessible. Lots of great samurai flicks :thumbup: Truffat made highly enjoyable French New Wave films, and Bergman may be a little harder to get into because he's rather bleak and metaphorical, but I think it's important for everyone to watch his best films like "The Seventh Seal" and "Persona".

And pia, if you want interesting and modern films that more fit your aesthetic and that you'll probably enjoy check out the Korean film "Oldboy", the Japanese film "Battle Royale", or any films by the director David Cronenberg. All of these are various mind-bending, violent, and entertaining as hell films that might give you some more inspiration :)

[Lawsuit_Boy]

To make things a little simpler, I'd probably start with films by Truffaut, Bergman, and Kurosawa from the 60s. Kurosawa is arguably the best Japanese director of all time, and his stuff is relatively accessible. Lots of great samurai flicks :thumbup: Truffat made highly enjoyable French New Wave films, and Bergman may be a little harder to get into because he's rather bleak and metaphorical, but I think it's important for everyone to watch his best films like "The Seventh Seal" and "Persona".

And pia, if you want interesting and modern films that more fit your aesthetic and that you'll probably enjoy check out the Korean film "Oldboy", the Japanese film "Battle Royale", or any films by the director David Cronenberg. All of these are various mind-bending, violent, and entertaining as hell films that might give you some more inspiration :)

Oh, snap! Caro with the goods. What she said = :thumbup:

[Norm Sanders]

It's not too late for you, Norm! We need to broaden your horizons and introduce you to world cinema! You'll find inspiration in the most unlikely places. Japanese samurai films, French new wave (and now neo-realist films like La haine, which I HIGHLY recommend), German expressionism from Ingmar Bergman and the likes, some Italian works from Fellini, Antonioni, de Seca, etc. toss in some Hong Kong work, some Australian minimalist, and you cannot leave out out great Russian works like you'd find with Tarkovsky. I could go on all day about various film periods, norms and motifs indigenous to cultures, and general styles all day. I freaking love movies, haha.

Man, you're not kidding! People are often surprised about certain movies I've not seen (heck, I don't think I've ever even watched Citizen Kane, original War Of The Worlds, Casablanca- even though I made BERLIN - go figure, and countless other classics). I guess I've been kind of a slave to the mainstream, Hollywood Blockbuster type movies ... I tend to also get VERY leery of independent & foreign cinema, although I have of course seen some good ones.

And I just realized, I hope this hasn't been too much of a thread jack for PLACEBO. And now back to our sponsor.....

[pia12254]

No worries guys! I'm actually quite entertained by all the dialogue (as Norm mentioned...I'm always willing to whore myself out if it increases my thread views). :laugh:

Last night I actually watched the first half of "Breathless" on Netflix. I can understand that for its time it was probably something quite out of the ordinary...but I wonder what application you guys see for it today? Possibly just being slow on the uptake I didn't see anything that made me sit up and go "Wow! Never seen that before!".

Do you watch these types of films primarily just to appreciate where certain things came from? I can appreciate certain things from certain French films for instance...I think they make some STUNNING use of imagery to tell stories that I can definitely learn from. But, I often don't care for the stories themselves.

Just curious what you attempt to absorb from the various world cinema styles you observe...

Thanks guys!

(And I'm glad you and I are on the same page Norm...!) :beer:

[Lawsuit_Boy]

Hmm...I'll probably need an entire page to explain what I get from films like that, haha. Breathless is nowhere near my favorite Godard film (one of my least favorites, actually), but it is such an influential film and I think it's absolutely necessary, as a true cineaste, to seek out influential films and learn how they changed the face of cinema in their own way.

there are a lot of great books around on European cinema, Asian, Russian...basically every type of cinema.

Personally, I'm inspired by almost every film I see. I was inspired by a number of fantastic shots in Breathless as well as some of the dialogue. BUT, you must know that Godard was a genius of manipulation and enjoyed testing the patience of his audiences. He was a very enigmatic guy.

If you like political satire, check out his film La chinoise. But otherwise, I'd say check out his later films I recommended. They're all shot in scope and are beautiful!

But you should definitely check out 60's Japanese cinema, especially samurai and even some exploitations films (which are closer in style to placebo than Godard).

I guess I just find a lot to admire about every good film I see, and I consider many of the good films of the world to come from sources outside of the U.S. Sure, we've produced amazing works here (Welles made Citizen Kane when he was 25! and we still have some of the best directors today), but there is a lot of fantastic stuff to find outside. Just search around for different genres of films, find out what countries delve into those genres, and seek out the "critically acclaimed" ones in that genre.

And, I hate to say it, but I think you'd probably just flat out enjoy more modern cinema. I also say that, as Caroline mentioned, you should check out Oldboy. It's visually arresting, highly exciting, and the subject matter is just as devious and gritty as Placebo (although times ten).

[Lawsuit_Boy]

N\

Just curious what you attempt to absorb from the various world cinema styles you observe...


Also, it's not what I attempt to absorb, but what I do absorb. I'm just in love with cinema all around the globe and I really find it all fascinating.

People might not guess it, but I'm a HUUUUGE martial art film fanatic. I also did some occasional obscure art house stuff (depending on who it's from) and I also really like straightforward stuff from anywhere. There are certain genres I'm not so crazy about, but I watch them anyway. It just gives me more information to work from, more inspiration, and more of a wealth of techniques and styles to build my own from.

Plus, many older films focused more on setting up situations, characters, motivations, and tension in a more careful, meticulous manner. The general public has become more and more desensitized and needs over-the-top action and violence in order to give them thrills. But thrills can still be given by careful building of character, atmosphere, etc. through camera work, sound design, and blocking/lighting.

That's one of my main reasons for seeing films all over.

And remember, there are tons of absolutely fantastic films in the world, and many that most critics will consider "great," but for you, it might not be so great. If you're attached to a certain style and genre, you might not want to go too deep. But I still think it's important to have a fair knowledge of the history of cinema, how it has changed over time, and why some older films (like Citizen Kane) are held to the same high standards today as they were when they were released.

Have you ever seen any old Frank Capra/Jimmy Cagney gangster films like White Heat? Do you watch many film noir type films? It's certainly a fun genre and most of the goods in that period are old films. Carol Reed has made a lot of amazing films in the genre.

But I get the feeling you want to stick to horror/action hybrids, am I right?

I have more to say on this and I'll get back to it later.

[jessicalsin]

I have a weird question....on the Id badge one of the names is Johnny Utah...is that a nod to Keanu Reeves' character in Point Break?...If it is...that's kinda cool....if it's not...just ignore the fact that I know that much about Point Break....

[Lawsuit_Boy]

I have a weird question....on the Id badge one of the names is Johnny Utah...is that a nod to Keanu Reeves' character in Point Break?...If it is...that's kinda cool....if it's not...just ignore the fact that I know that much about Point Break....

Heck yes, that had better be a Point Break reference! (awesome example of a good action film).

[Will Clegg]

Daniel, this was extraordinarily well done, but you don't need me to tell you that (so many others beat to it anyway). I would definitely like to see a longer cut when you are ready to release it. Congrats.

[pia12254]

I have a weird question....on the Id badge one of the names is Johnny Utah...is that a nod to Keanu Reeves' character in Point Break?...If it is...that's kinda cool....if it's not...just ignore the fact that I know that much about Point Break....

Haha! That is hilarious! I made that for a friend of ours who acted in the film named Johnny (who actually barely appears in this version of the film). His nickname at the last place he worked was "Johnny Utah" and so I decided to make that his name on the badge. I had no idea it was from Point Break...

But it is ok that you know that Jessica! They have therapy for people like you... :evil:

[pia12254]

Daniel, this was extraordinarily well done, but you don't need me to tell you that (so many others beat to it anyway). I would definitely like to see a longer cut when you are ready to release it. Congrats.

Will, I would love to get your feedback on the longer version (my list of people to PM is getting longer)! :) I totally dug your film and as I mentioned I might have to steal some of your editing techniques! ;)

- Daniel

[Will Clegg]

I might have to steal some of your editing techniques! ;)



haha, i would be honored!

[MrKilloran]

Just because he's not up for most mentions (or any) of the word "loss", "lost" or "lose", doesn't lessen the impact. I think Puck gave that award to me :grin:

This is ABSOF*CKINLUTELY insane. Everything is good (even what could have been obnoxious flash cuts but they held up fine.) Great editing techniques and It felt real and brutal, god was it brutal!

Great work, I've got no complaints :beer:

[singleframe]

superb editing! and score!
lead was solid. location as well.
all good from here buddy! made my top ten for sure.

best of luck!

[Chris_Keaton]

This was one of my 10 star shorts. Very well done. Certainly look professional. I would be happy if you ever filmed one of my scripts.

Hell, when are you filming a feature length horror?

Best of Luck!

[pia12254]

I think Puck gave that award to me :grin:

This is ABSOF*CKINLUTELY insane. Everything is good (even what could have been obnoxious flash cuts but they held up fine.) Great editing techniques and It felt real and brutal, god was it brutal!

Great work, I've got no complaints :beer:

Thanks man! I appreciate your film...reminds me a lot of films I've made with friends when we get the urge to shoot something! :) Glad the editing worked for you and I suppose it was a bit brutal...hope it doesn't force you into therapy! :shocked:



superb editing! and score!
lead was solid. location as well.
all good from here buddy! made my top ten for sure.

best of luck!

I would have to agree with you about Justin (the lead). I've worked with him on 4 films now and he is a true professional that brings 100% dedication to every project he works on. And the score of course was done by Herman "Genetically Enhanced" Witkam! Glad we made your Top 10!

When I started your film, LOL, I really thought it was a documentary! I figured it out eventually but I love the way you marketed it up front. Brilliant!


This was one of my 10 star shorts. Very well done. Certainly look professional. I would be happy if you ever filmed one of my scripts.

Hell, when are you filming a feature length horror?

Best of Luck!

Chris, sweet dude! I'm not sure if you know this but every time someone gives us 10 stars...an angel gets its wings! :grin: I think doing a horror film would be a blast but I don't think I could pull it off...I really think it takes a special set of skills to direct a good horror film and while I enjoy having maybe some horror "elements" in a film I think I'm more suited to the action side of things...

Thanks for the comments!

- Daniel

[Norm Sanders]

I'm not sure if you know this but every time someone gives us 10 stars...an angel gets its wings! :grin:

NICE! What a punk..... :nads: :)

[pia12254]

It is true!!! 10 stars = Angel with wings....I'm just sayin'!
















:grin:

[Brian Parker]

Man Daniel...This is coming from a guy who doesn't like horror movies. The only exceptions I make are for 28 Days Later, Shaun of the Dead, and the Resident Evil games. Your movie was awesome man. Super-professional, outstanding cinematography and lighting, frenetic editing, great story and actors....it had it all! Best thing is, it didn't telegraph the ending, at least not for me but maybe I'm a little slow. No complaints at all.

I had a lot of fun with this one. Def one of my favs of the fest. Easy. Great film man!

[pia12254]

Man Daniel...This is coming from a guy who doesn't like horror movies. The only exceptions I make are for 28 Days Later, Shaun of the Dead, and the Resident Evil games. Your movie was awesome man. Super-professional, outstanding cinematography and lighting, frenetic editing, great story and actors....it had it all! Best thing is, it didn't telegraph the ending, at least not for me but maybe I'm a little slow. No complaints at all.

I had a lot of fun with this one. Def one of my favs of the fest. Easy. Great film man!

Awesome man! You know, it is kind of funny (or perhaps ironic) but I'm really not a regular fan of zombie/horror/etc. I could probably count the number of horror films I've watched on one hand... But I do like telling stories that present some sort of challenge to me visually or creatively. I thought this one had a great story and would be a lot of fun to shoot...and it definitely was! Glad you liked it!

- Daniel

[MrKilloran]

Thanks man! I appreciate your film...reminds me a lot of films I've made with friends when we get the urge to shoot something! :) Glad the editing worked for you and I suppose it was a bit brutal...hope it doesn't force you into therapy! :shocked:

Nah, who would pay the bills?

besides I'll just turn the trauma into my next short - MrKilloran Watches DVXuser, it'll be even more self indulgent and absurd! :grin:

[Robbie Comeau]

The most professional film in this fest!

Great job on this, the editing was outstanding, and so was the sound.

Great acting.

Like all the films, the story was a bit confusing, so it's just another view away!

Loved the look and color grade on this.

This should do very well!

Robbie

[Eric Meisner]

First all, is it a little self indulgent and morally askew to comment and praise a film that you were so involved on.

Oh Well... Here we go...

This is a highly entertaining film.

Entertaining in the fact that Daniel Piatt is a hell of a Fllmmaker and storyteller. I'm constantly amazed with the amount effort and positive energy that he put into every aspect of his films. He is always vigilant and knows exactly what he wants in every frame. Also, need to give a North Texas shout out (trying to stay hip with the kids) to Anthony Lyle (AC, Grip, Actor) and Jim Millen (camera Op & sometimes dead body) these guys constantly make my job easier and have great attitude on set.

Thanks for all the comments on the cinematography. They are very much appreciated and I'm humbled by the praised. I work hard at getting better and know that I will Improve.

And remember what Henry Travers said " When you vote 10 stars for Placebo an Angel gets it's wings"

Please helps Angels fly :)

[pia12254]

The most professional film in this fest!

Great job on this, the editing was outstanding, and so was the sound.

Great acting.

Like all the films, the story was a bit confusing, so it's just another view away!

Loved the look and color grade on this.

This should do very well!

Robbie

Hey Robbie,

Thanks for checking this out! Glad you liked it...total props for the sound goes to Dustin "Madman" Rains. He worked all day on a gig, stayed up till 7am finishing the sound on this so we could submit it, slept for two hours and then went back to work...crazy! :2vrolijk_08:


First all, is it a little self indulgent and morally askew to comment and praise a film that you were so involved on.

Oh Well... Here we go...
_____________________

And remember what Henry Travers said " When you vote 10 stars for Placebo an Angel gets it's wings"

Please helps Angels fly :)

Uhm, I don't know this guy...so please don't hold it against me!!! :laugh:

Thanks Eric. If anyone ever gets a budget that would support flying out a DP...Eric is worth every penny (of course, I've never actually paid him but I'm pretty sure if I had it would have felt like it was worth it)...

Ciao!

[tykrusch]

Great job on this one man! Loved how the story played with the characters' differing perspectives, possibly a lesson to be learned. A joy to watch, thanks.

:thumbup::thumbup:

[pia12254]

Great job on this one man! Loved how the story played with the characters' differing perspectives, possibly a lesson to be learned. A joy to watch, thanks.

:thumbup::thumbup:

Thanks! And I love the Gretzky quote in your signature (not just because I like hockey but because it is true in pretty much every area of life)!

- Daniel

[Richard J. Johnson]

Congrats!

[Rodney V. Smith]

congrats dude

[Norm Sanders]

CONGRATS, not surprised in the least!

[Blaine]

Two finals in a row! You were very high on my list. Congrats.

[Zak Forsman]

well played, my friends. and well deserved. best of luck to you!

[Tim Joy]

Been waiting for this one since twilightfest. Congrats on making a top-notch flick yet again!

[Sprocketboy]

Sweet! I'm glad to see you in the finals. You achieved an exceptional film.

[Eric Meisner]

Congrats... I'm so excited to see how it plays out.

Now win us some gear.

[DerSpieler]

Congrats, Daniel. And thanks to everyone involved in the film for bringing this script to screen. You all did an awesome job.

[pia12254]

Sweet! Thanks for the well wishes everyone and of course credit for this really goes to the cast/crew!

I'm always amazed when I get a wild hair and decide to make a movie that anyone chooses to go along on this crazy, unpredictable (and unpaid) adventure...and yet they do. So, I hope they feel like their time invested in this was worth it.

Thanks everyone!

- Daniel

[Brian Parker]

Congrats Daniel! You earned it.

[Marlon Ladd]

Congrats! Glad you made it in. This was my type of film.