The Man From Hollywood - BrianV, Profnoxin

[BrianV]

http://homepage.mac.com/brianv1983/themanfromhollywood/hollywoodheader.jpg

http://homepage.mac.com/brianv1983/themanfromhollywood/thumb1.jpg

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE MAN FROM HOLLYWOOD (http://64.38.14.46/scifest/BrianV-BrianVoelkerding-TheManFromHollywood.wmv)

Sean, a gifted man of former stardom, runs into his oldest foe. But who's the skirt?


the players
MICHAEL ARNETTE as sean
DALE D. MOORE as eric
DUSTIN MILES as kirk
SARAH SHIPKOWSKI as sylvia
LANDON SHAW as darby the bartender
MADELINE STRAATMANN as glam blonde

the videomakers
BRIAN VOELKERDING was director, editor, associate producer, co-story, co-screenplay
JUSTIN TALLEY was director of photography, producer, co-story, co-screenplay
MELISSA LEONARD was gaffer, co-screenplay
ADAM GOLOMSKI was assistant camera

special thanks to
DAN FULTON for the use of a prop or two
CORNERSTONE MULTIMEDIA ASSOCIATES for some extra lights

shot on the DVX-100a
cut on FINAL CUT PRO 5.0.4

Shot on location in both LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA and in SAINT LOUIS, MISSOURI.

running time: a shave under 6 minutes

questions/comments/critique? all most appreciated.

[FabioRafael]

Really liked the way it was edited, pretty cool.

[BrianV]

Thanks, man. Glad someone could see the unglitchy version. Thanks :)

[Brandon Rice]

Brian, once I get to VA, I'll be sure to download the fixed version and watch again. Then I'll post a full review for ya.

[BrianV]

Rock on. Looking forward to it. :)

Enjoy your flight.

[Kaz]

Damn, since that was the only glitchy one I watched, I thought you were going for that effect! Will definitely rewatch.

[BrianV]

Hmmmm...

So if that WAS the effect I was going for, would you like it? :) If not, does it lose something?

Oooooo... subjectivity! :)

[MojoTrancer]

I'm eagerly awaiting the non-glitchy version. I liked what I was seeing, but couldn't get into it with all the technical issues.

[BrianV]

Awesome, man. Yeah, I'm looking forward to seeing it, too. Reason being that I haven't really watched it since uploading it (wanting to, say, "get away from it all"). Hope you like it :)

[BrianV]

I hope the recompression is working out :( I'm Captain McAnxious over here.

[ZFarms Productions]

i thought this was pretty good. i don't give very long reviews sorry. all you need to know is that i thought it was interesting.

[BrianV]

i thought this was pretty good. i don't give very long reviews sorry. all you need to know is that i thought it was interesting.

Wow... thanks. Wonder how you saw it... as its not currently on the server because Jarred has to reencode/recompress it.

Hmmm... let's hope it's not much longer.

*fingers crossed*

[ZFarms Productions]

i saw it earlier today around 11... i'll go back and watch it when its back on

[Daniel Skubal]

I'm gonna wait until it's fixed before I comment, but the part I saw looked pretty good.

[BrianV]

I'm gonna wait until it's fixed before I comment, but the part I saw looked pretty good.

Thanks, man. I'm having a heartattack of excitement here. Seems like they are uploading another batch, so hopefully the new file for THE MAN FROM HOLLYWOOD will be in there.

Heeeere's hoping.

[profnoxin]

Hmm... I think we're still not up... any mods know what's happenin' with our film? Hurgh... nerves killing me.

[BrianV]

I think its somewhere in the new batch currently uploading. Been sending PMs to them, and they assure me it's on its way. I believe them, but my nerves... my nerves! :)

[BrianV]

The Man From Hollywood is now online!!! w00t! Let's hope people care to rewatch it :)

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE MAN FROM HOLLYWOOD (http://64.38.14.46/scifest/BrianV-BrianVoelkerding-TheManFromHollywood.wmv)

[ZFarms Productions]

i just rewatched it. a lot better than the version i first saw. thought it was a pretty neat idea. the actor who played dean sorry can't remember the last name, was pretty good.

if you haven't watched it yet don't read past here:







so i'm assuming the guy has some power to control people's minds?

[BrianV]

Yeah, that's the gist. Our main concern was how clear that was, or how clear it really NEEDED to be. But if people can get the gist of it and enjoy the short, then I guess it's clear enough.

Or would it say it could use more clarification?

[Brandon Rice]

I watched it again, with the right version. I really liked the actors you got. The story was a bit confusing, and I still don't know quite to make of it. I really liked the third guy, he had a sort of David Caruso feel to him. Cool stuff. Definitley one of the better pieces in this competition.

[BrianV]

Yeah, the very condensed story was a concern of ours, and our own private preferred version has more "breathing room" for the story, but we think ultimately if people can get the basic gists of what's going on and have a good time by the end, then I suppose that's all we can ask for.

And we hope that's the case. :) What does everyone else think?

[BrianV]

I really liked the third guy, he had a sort of David Caruso feel to him. Cool stuff.

By the by, we like to call him a mix of David Caruso and Kevin Spacey. I hope he likes David Caruso. :)

*shrug*

[profnoxin]

Sexy! We're up! F**k yeah!!!

When I downloaded there was some jitter... kind of odd... but from what I heard the old version was far less intact. When we are allowed to, we're going to have the less condensed version for viewing. We'll post our site up after voting is completed. Dig that hacked out DVX look.

I love taking a camera that produces such clean images, and just digging my hands in there and creating harsh messy, Cross Process reversal looking shit. Who says you can't get by without Magic Bullet?

Dig.

[Blaine]

I liked what you did here and how you were able to work it into a Sci-Fi theme. My only complaint would be that this was supposed to be a heart throb from the 50s. In the flashback scene, give him an appropriate hairstyle. It seems like such a small thing but it was a deal breaker when it came to suspension of disbelief. Other than that you had a nice short.

[Z B Brox]

Hmm, for some reason I had some real problems making out the dialogue at times. The sound mxiing seemed a bit off. The story itself was interesting, and I thought the performances were a storng point. I would've liked to know more, though. You mentioned the compressed story, but I think it's really important to at least give the audience a reason to care about what's going on from the start. I thought the editing and the way the story mvoed back and forth in time were all interesting, I just had a problem getting involved in the story. I know it's short, but I think you could've done more in the time with some different choices.

[Norm Sanders]

Just watched it & was smiling by the end. It's cool with the powers that he had ... very cool. I also liked the back & forth of how one scene would run into the next via dialogue, etc.

However, the sound mix on this was pretty poor, as I had a difficult time making out what they were saying, more than one time ... when those were issues, it was usually when the background sound/hiss was too loud ... like you had poor gain in the mic during production and had to boost the heck out of it in post to get any audible at all.

Aside from the audio issue, there was pretty severe interlacing in this, but perhaps it's also due to this compression. BTW, I did TRY watching the original version that was all jacked up by the compression, then quit to wait until I could watch this one. It was a mixed bag, that other version, as there were some parts that it jumped back and forth SO fast, or stuttered, that I really wondered if it was on purpose ... and if so, then it was somewhat amazing editing ... very edgy, etc. But, since I'd read that there were issues, I realized it probably shouldn't be that way & waited for this one.

But I'm off topic ...

The acting, in parts, really bothered me, while in other spots it felt dead on and was great. Just wasn't super consistant, though it was UP more than it was down, if that makes sense.

The style and your marketing (i.e. font choices, layout of graphics, etc.) is great.

Oh, but like the others, I was lost with the story in the middle, as it wasn't making sense. Even at the end, there are still parts in there that don't make sense to me, though I got the gist of the overall story.

[Jimmy John Worley]

Cool man. I didn't quite understand the guys powers, but it was really neat to watch. What did the villian do to become the guys advesary? I really liked it.

[BrianV]

Thanks all. Luckily alot of these comments we were expecting. We were walking a knife-edge between "explain everything" or "twilight zone atmosphere," whereas the audience only needs one thread of a gist of story to satisfy one part of the brain while the rest enjoys the neatness the short has.

As for sound issues.... yeah, the production sound turned out quite raw, and we did what we could. Hopefully it didn't kill it too much, but it's certainly something that is what it is.

In the end, I'm just happy that despite poor points given, people still ultimately enjoy the short, and give us good marks for being entertained in general.....which I suppose ultimately is the goal.

Thanks for the comments, all! Keep em coming! Keep watching!

Envision, I'm just curious which parts of the acting you felt were lax compared to other (for future directorial reference, depending on what precisely it pertains to).

Again, thank you all. Keep it coming :)

[kimko]

man i can't wait to download these shorts on something faster than my dialup.... but anyways .....I LIKE THE TITLE !!!

[Norm Sanders]

Okay, I'm going back to watch it now ... as I am, I've got additional Q's:

What's he doing with his hands at 1:24? We cut to a few CU's, so I assume he's doing something important, but I never realize what.

At 1:58, what's the guy doing to him? Just carving him up like a Christmas Turkey? I never see the importance of this later, nor any wounds to make me think/remember it later.

Acting: They've grown on me the second time viewing, but for some reason 2:12-2:35, I'm just not digging the antagonists performance ... then improves.

At 3:44, I can't stand the way the protagonist says the line "You made me an offer", but he's probably supposed to sound flat, and uninterested in the scene, I'm assuming? At least it's how it came across to me.

Sheesh, those were nit pick comments ... I'm kind of embarrassed now.

Oh, and I see that he was untying his hands, as after the antagonist shot his side-kick/goon, the protagonist just stood up, dropping the rope. I also see the blood running down his arm from the carving ... which I still don't know why it was taking place exactly.

[profnoxin]

The simplest answers are often the best - The goon's reason for cutting him up? He's a dick. Or a masochist. Etc. The wounds do persist, we just don't show the side of his arms all that often. Lastly, the goon is breaking his fingers, and he's living it in the bar and in the room. Not terribly important to the plot, just showing that Dean is existing in a couple of different times at once.

Lastly, you answered your own question, Dean is disinterested by the villain's shtick.

[Norm Sanders]

Ah, there's something I didn't get ... was that Dean was experiencing that pain in two different times ... I thought he was hullicinating (find a happy place, find a happy place) while he's getting the crap kicked out of him, then brought back into reality every so often, the first time I watched it.

Also, I still wouldn't have known it was the goon breaking the fingers, as it was too much of a CU ... should have pulled back more to see the goon reaching back there. Maybe you did, but I sure missed it. Again, in hindsight, I thought Dean was working on the ropes, since they just fall off at the end.

[BrianV]

As far as knowing he was breaking his finger, there was this sound effect that was of bones breaking, but maybe that didn't come across well in the compression.

Oh, and everything Profnoxin said, I agree on :) *high five*

Thanks for the good and constructive word, all. Keep it coming :)

[Norm Sanders]

I heard the SFX of bones breaking ... just didn't know that was the goon's hand back there doing the work. Thought, hmmm, maybe it's a Houdini thing ... if I break all the bones in my hands, then I can slip the mushy bag of skin that's holding it altogether through the ropes more easily.

Certainly wasn't a hang up for me ... just wasn't clear.

[CallaghanFilms]

Ok, I finally got to view this one...

I thought the concept was sound, and the stylized look worked well.

The actors overall turned in respectable performances. Your main antagonist (Spacey-Caruso) has a great look about him...the camera really liked him. The lead also did well. The goon's performance may not have been quite up to par, however IMHO. I must say, however, that he did resemble Matthew Perry in certain shots.

The music selection was dead on. Cheers on that wise creative choice.

As far as the edit...
I must say that the cuts was noticeable at times, especially early on. I also was left with some plotline questions. I caught the "Highlander"-like vibe of Sean, in that he is an ageless journeyman through the centuries. What I didn't catch however, was the following:
Does the antagonist share Sean's "gift"? If he does, would Sean's powers affect him? If he doesn't, why would he get close enough to Sean to let his mind be controled...why not kill him from afar? His "dialogging" (to borrow a phrase from The Incredibles) with Sean is ultimately his undoing...something that he should have known would happen.

I am not trying to nitpick by any means...and I throughly enjoyed your film (especially as a self-proclaimed Twilight Zone fiend myself.);)

:beer: Cheers Fellas

[spencer]

I liked it, but when I started watching it, I expected Quentin Tarantino to open the door and start talking franticly to the camera.

But seriously, it was a cool movie, I liked the actors and the quirks of the guys powers. When he lit the cigarette with his finger... Well, needless to say it was badass.

And the ending was cool. I liked the performance by the antagonist.

[BrianV]

As far as the edit...
I must say that the cuts was noticeable at times, especially early on. I also was left with some plotline questions.

By that do you mean you could tell that were were trying hard to trim it down?

Oh, and as for David Caruso's level of powers, I'd think of it as a man trying to bridge the gap between normal man and "more than man," so not only is his ability not as strong as Sean's (true breed), but as such he's not impervious to having it dealt back at him.

Granted, it's more important that people accept that while watching instead of after I explain it, but for what it's worth that's what we were getting at. :)

As far as the performance of the "meat puncher," I dig it because it sounds like a square trying to be a tough guy... a guy who shows up in a tweed jacket that is trying hard to be intimidating...

...only to decorate the wall with his brains by story's end (ummm... hope you watched it before reading this).

Thanks again, all. Don't stop there, guys! Onward! :D

[BrianV]

I liked it, but when I started watching it, I expected Quentin Tarantino to open the door and start talking franticly to the camera..

Hehe... this comment intrigues me. :) By that do you mean you detected a Tarantino-esque vibe to the movie (or de Palma, as they can be more or less identical), or that Dustin ("kirk kingman") reminded you of him?

Though I'm not exactly a de Palma fan myself, there are no wrong answers :)

;)

[Beat Takeshi]

This story was confusing for a little while but when I finally got it near the end I wished the middle was as clear. I liked the edits and the grittiness but the audio killed it for me. The sound track worked I thought though. I think the ending would have been a little stronger if the guy just said the line and shot himself instead of squinting from not wanting to do it.

[profnoxin]

Callaghan - I liked the Highlander comment. I hadn't really even put that one together myself. Heh. Maybe he should have been Dean McCleod of the Clan McCleod. Anyway....

Aram and Callaghan (.... and possibly Spencer?) - Thank you for the comments about the camera work/look.

One thing I've wanted to find out however.... as a film guy myself, I try often to create a look with video that could not have been achieved easily with film. In other words, a uniquely video look. In this way, I stop people from trying to compare my work to "what it would have looked like on film". In the case of The Man From Hollywood, this look was done for the motel room scene. So, enter the clipped/blown whites, the condensed color latitude, the crushed and writhing blacks, etc. What did everyone else think? I know how I feel about it, but I'd love to know how others interpreted it.

Lastly, can you put elipses in parentheses? (..... so, anyway.)

[BrianV]

This story was confusing for a little while but when I finally got it near the end I wished the middle was as clear. I liked the edits and the grittiness but the audio killed it for me. The sound track worked I thought though. I think the ending would have been a little stronger if the guy just said the line and shot himself instead of squinting from not wanting to do it.

Actually, there was originally no pause between "you're a real son of a bitch, you know that?" and "say goodnight, jack." Easier for me to say, I guess, but it was so weak. It was like throwing away a good acting beat, or just kinda tossing the concept... half-conceived and such. I like that there's remorse or fear or at least "something" in the guy, as opposed to his "i'm playing it cool because i'm so cool in this suit" attitude. His character is laid naked, now having lost all control of not only the situation, but of his body, mind... then BOOM. Hence why we chose to keep the beat before he blows his brains out.

Good comments. Keep it rocking. :)

[BrianV]

Hey Profnoxin,

Does it seem kinda odd to you that there's a voting category for sound design but not for editing?

[BrianV]

Ummm... Profnoxin? :)

[darkfader]

Solid peice, I really liked the editing. I watched the version from your link is that the right version. Anywho I liked it keep up the good work.

[Blaine]

Hey Profnoxin,

Does it seem kinda odd to you that there's a voting category for sound design but not for editing?

This is from Barry_S voting instructions:

Cinematography - How well does the filmmaker use the language of film? Camera movement, mise en scène. You can include editing in this category as well.

[profnoxin]

Yeah, I posted elsewhere about the editing/cinematography thing, so I wont go into detail on this board. The tough part is, the editor's work gets slammed if the photography was bad and vice versa. But, you take it as it comes I guess.

[EditPhish]

Gotta agree with some others on the sound mix... it was really pretty bad... there was so much noise at times it was hard to hear the dialogue.

I found some of the edits a bit awkward, too quick or confusing at times. With the lousy audio and the way it was cut, I thought it made the story harder to follow.

Lighting was okay... thought the bar looked pretty good. I liked the cinematography, but the editing took away from it.

This isn't your fault really, but the soundtrack distracted me -- and that's because you seemed to be using Apple Loops, some of which I've used in my own personal projects... so it took me out of the story.

I though the acting was good for the most part.

I really did find the story hard to follow. I was able to figure it out by the end, but it only made me wish it had been clearer earlier on. Your film was one of the ones I felt had a lot of potential, but that the idea you had in your mind didn't get translated out to the audience as well as it could have. It's hard to watch a film you create and be objective about the story telling, since YOU know what it's about... but it's important to get that out to an audience who has no mind reading capabilities themselves ;)

Thanks for sharing it! I know getting a story into six minutes isn't easy!

[BrianV]

This is from Barry_S voting instructions:

I read it. That's what we're discussing ;) I understand that's where you will vote for it... but just seems odd.

[edit: hey, sorry... read it again and it sounded like i was being snappy. didn't mean to, just had to post a quick response. *cheers*]

[BrianV]

Gotta agree with some others on the sound mix... it was really pretty bad... there was so much noise at times it was hard to hear the dialogue.

I found some of the edits a bit awkward, too quick or confusing at times. With the lousy audio and the way it was cut, I thought it made the story harder to follow.

Lighting was okay... thought the bar looked pretty good. I liked the cinematography, but the editing took away from it.

This isn't your fault really, but the soundtrack distracted me -- and that's because you seemed to be using Apple Loops, some of which I've used in my own personal projects... so it took me out of the story.

I though the acting was good for the most part.

I really did find the story hard to follow. I was able to figure it out by the end, but it only made me wish it had been clearer earlier on. Your film was one of the ones I felt had a lot of potential, but that the idea you had in your mind didn't get translated out to the audience as well as it could have. It's hard to watch a film you create and be objective about the story telling, since YOU know what it's about... but it's important to get that out to an audience who has no mind reading capabilities themselves ;)

Thanks for sharing it! I know getting a story into six minutes isn't easy!

Thanks for the comments, man. Once again, as I mentioned in an earlier post, there was a knife's edge we were walking between coherent versus atmosphere... how much of one versus the other, etc.

Which cuts did you find awkward, for future reference?

[BrianV]

Solid peice, I really liked the editing. I watched the version from your link is that the right version. Anywho I liked it keep up the good work.

Thanks, sir ;) (and it IS the right version... hopefully people are watching the correct version before they critique it)

[profnoxin]

EditPhish - Thank you for the critiques. I'm glad you dug my photography. My favorite part about the bar scene is that both the Black and White bar and the Color one were the same... and lighting the color bar was achieved through working with the excellent practical lighting, and one 150 fresnel with a bit of Opal on it.

The tough part about the sound on this film was that the equipment we were using for the most part was what I had brought to St. Louis from L.A. This meant that we were working off of the shotgun that I had camera mounted. Further, and those of you who know me in real life already know this, that at the beginning of the last week before uploading, I landed the D.P. gig on two T.V. series. This, needless to say, severly cut down on how much help I could give during post. Subsequently, BrianV was brought on board as the Editor on these projects, and they are now destroying our lives, and all of our time for personal projects.

Lastly, on a more bizarre note, the reason I was in St. Louis at the time of filming "The Man From Hollywood", is that I had been hired to shoot a film in St. Louis on the SDX900. During the shooting of that film, I became incredibly ill, and was delirious for quite some time. I like to think that this added to the frenetically charged and harsh look of the film.

Talking to your director for two hours at 5 in the morning, only to realize that you were in fact talking to yourself, and that the actual director is standing there watching you is great fun. Ah, illness. Keep on truckin'.

[BrianV]

Yeah, you were quite in a bad way. For at least a part of it you could have been declared legally insane :)

[pastywhiteboy]

Disclaimer: whether your short is good, great, or grand, I will still be mostly pointing out things that I feel to be negative aspects.

As far as strengths, you had some good shots, some excellent acting, and you had what seemed to be a great idea for the film, although the idea was unclear at many points.

Weaknesses seemed to be most apparent in the script and the audio. Because of the way the script was written, it was unclear as to what was going on... the plot was somewhat incoherent. The audio needed to be far clearer for the dialog. There were several lines that I just couldn't hear at all. Some of the audio transitions were a bit rough as well.

I had trouble believing that the agent(?) didn't know the name of the man he was beating up. Usually when interrogating someone, you know their name.

Overall, some really good ideas that just need some tweaking. I loved the credits!

[profnoxin]

Very good point Pasty... this is something that got left on the editing room floor. He is originally referenced as Sean Oliver by the agent, and then later, the "Boss" calls him Olivet, which leads the Agent to recognize him as Dean Olivet, the 50's actor. We dropped the bit with Sean Oliver because it wasn't necessary for the plot that you know him going under an assumed name. The only trace of this is that the Bartender references hims as Sean, not Dean.

In the end, even though you noticed it, it doesn't really matter. The Agent could just as easily have been handed a photo and an adress, and been told to "Keep this guy busy."

Thanks for giving me an opportunity to let you all in a little bit of behind the scenes action.

[THX-1138]

Bar Scene Folley...

what are you poring into that glass.

It looks like votka but sounded like soda or beer all fizzy.


What gives?

[BrianV]

Bar Scene Folley...

what are you poring into that glass.

It looks like votka but sounded like soda or beer all fizzy.


What gives?

What gives is that Soundtrack Pro is a dry campus ;) hehe

[edit: that or the bartender is cheap and has vodka and soda already mixed. what a jerk ;) ]


I had trouble believing that the agent(?) didn't know the name of the man he was beating up. Usually when interrogating someone, you know their name.

I'd have to confer with profnoxin... he never really interrogates him, or asks any questions other than the general goon phrases. Kirk the goon is really just a meat tenderizer for when the real talker comes in: Eric.

A game of bad cop, bad cop... bad in their different ways.

But still, a very good point... and I'm glad that by the end you enjoyed the short. We definately have some good notes for focus for next time... and there WILL be a next time :)

Thanks all, and we'd love more comments! Critique is good! :)

[granny]

I am very confused. I thought of your short as a broken piece of pottery on the floor. "I wish I could have seen that before it fell off that mantle up there and shattered into hundreds of little pieces." It's sad because you had some nice camera work in what is other wise an overwhelmingly confusing story. I don't want to be negative, I want to be constructively critical...but if that's negative so be it.

[BrianV]

I am very confused. I thought of your short as a broken piece of pottery on the floor. "I wish I could have seen that before it fell off that mantle up there and shattered into hundreds of little pieces." It's sad because you had some nice camera work in what is other wise an overwhelmingly confusing story. I don't want to be negative, I want to be constructively critical...but if that's negative so be it.

Indeed. And very well understood. Good analogy, by the way :) Thanks.

[Ought2bCommitted]

Hey Brian.

Overall I enjoyed your short. There was a nice look and feel to it at times. Liked the credits. Felt the acting was pretty strong. Your lead had a good look and presence to him.

The biggest drawback technically for me was the uneven audio. I know what a bitch getting clean audio can be, but it really makes a huge difference. Levels were off, there was hiss, there wasn't hiss. Takes you out of it.

The execution could have been a little tighter. It seemed to drag a little here and there as I felt we weren't really getting important information at times.

Very nice cinematography throughout. Really enjoyed your DPs work.

My last negative is just a pet peeve of mine...the smoking. Ug.

Overall a solid effort with some real potential. Nice work!

-Robert

[arielman]

At first I didn't get the story . Came back later and re-watched .
I now understand the story you were trying to tell.
The main character of this story was very good . The man in the white shirt ,I felt was not convincing enough in his role .The only line I like was when the gun was pointed in his face , the look and Fuck said it all.
The 2nd man was.
The audio fell short in spots as in hard to hear . I think this is why I was lost the first time .I just turned up the volume the 2nd time.
When the 2nd man says" You're a real S.O.B , you know that " The look (smirk) on the main characters face was great .
All in all I liked it . Wish the audio was much better .
And the B/W bit was a nice touch as well .

Ian

[BrianV]

Once again, good points all. Unfortunately we didn't have a dedicated sound guy like we originally planned, so level-watching was put so much on the back-burner as we were all on our primary tasks (the results of which people seemed to have liked). However, be that as it may, the thing we neglected definately gave us some pain amidst what people seem to think overall is a very enjoyable short.

We have definately learned from this (what more can anyone ask?) and hindsight is 20/20... and has only given me the gumption (a good word... GUMPTION!) to come back next time... wisened.

So yes, thanks again for the support and critique, and they are definately not falling onto deaf ears. It makes it even harder to take the audio problems, because most people site that as their primary criticism of the film (other than story confusing and ambiguities). Makes it even harder... and keeps making me think of the pottery analogy from a couple posts back.

Rings true. :)

Keep 'em coming, ladies and gents! And thanks again.

[BrianV]

My last negative is just a pet peeve of mine...the smoking. Ug.

Overall a solid effort with some real potential. Nice work!

-Robert

As in you, as an anti-smoker, not being fond of smoking in films/videos/media, or that the smoking seemed out of place? :)

[Ought2bCommitted]

As in you, as an anti-smoker, not being fond of smoking in films/videos/media, or that the smoking seemed out of place? :)

Hmmm good question... I guess I just felt it unnecessary. I kind of get the mood/atmosphere you were going for with it, but I think it can be achieved without it.

[BrianV]

I think we just thought "50s, twilight zone, etc" and that means smoking deluxe. But if you think about it, only half of our characters smoke and its only in three scenes, briefly... the beginning, and he only takes one drag... the bar scene and only one drag each for he and she... then the ending and he takes one drag. *shrug* :)

But fair comment, and definately taken to heart, sir. :) Thanks again

[profnoxin]

Granny and Ought2 - Thanks for the positive feedback on my camera wrangling.

Ought2 - The smoking is actually kind of a funny thing for me. As a smoker myself, I find myself somewhat frustrated by the new media portrayal of all smokers on Film/TV (especially TV) to be bad people. I also find the 50's portrayal of non-smokers as shifty people that you cannot trust to be frustrating... though far more funny.

It felt to me that in a 50's style short, if one was to choose, one would choose to have the good guys smoke, and the bad guys not. There was a recurring theme in a good number of John Huston films that if you smoked hand-rolled or pre-rolled cigarettes straight, you were an ok guy, probably one of the heroes of the film - A real working man. If you smoked cigars, or used a cigarette holder, pipe etc, you were probably a B*stard. If you didn't smoke at all... well... who knows what kind of people don't smoke. I find it funny in retrospect, and thought it was well apt in our short.

The long and the short of it is this - we shouldn't judge. There are good and bad smokers and non smokers... but the non smokers are just damned shifty! ...sorry. I promise not to judge anymore. :)

[spencer]

Hehe... this comment intrigues me. :) By that do you mean you detected a Tarantino-esque vibe to the movie (or de Palma, as they can be more or less identical), or that Dustin ("kirk kingman") reminded you of him?

Though I'm not exactly a de Palma fan myself, there are no wrong answers :)

;)

Yeah, I'd say it had a tarantino-esque vibe to it. The dilaogue was pretty smooth and natural sounding, which is a plus. The storytelling, in my opinion, also kind a had a vibe of Tarantino, just because of it's non-linear style and the weird moments. I can't really describe. I liked it though. The directorial style wasn't really the same, but to try and emulate tarantino's style would be a cop out and very hard. It's best to make your own style, methinks.

[BrianV]

I agree... especially since alot of Tarantino's style is a mix soup of other styles.

Generation loss, if one wanted to mimic his style outright before trying to develop his or her own.

Perhaps :)

[Peter Murphy]

I think its been said, you had some nice shots and the actors were better than average, but the movie just left me confused. Enigmatic is good, but I felt like there was a lot that I was supposed to know before I watched it. I had no idea why anyone was doing what they were doing or who they were, and not in a mysterious way, more like their actions seemed rather empty and meaningless and I didn't have any reason to wonder about them. I'm sure there was a good idea behind this, I just had trouble seeing it. Very good camera work though!

[krestofre]

I really liked this one. I thought the editing was super sharp, esspecially how scenes would blend with one another. Like the goon shouting at the bar scene and then cutting to the goon shouting in the appartment. I love cuts like that.

I also thought that Dean had a great David Duchovney vibe going which really added to the piece.

The sound was really the only negative that I saw, and that's been addressed by other people.

[BrianV]

I really liked this one. I thought the editing was super sharp, esspecially how scenes would blend with one another. Like the goon shouting at the bar scene and then cutting to the goon shouting in the appartment. I love cuts like that.

I also thought that Dean had a great David Duchovney vibe going which really added to the piece.

The sound was really the only negative that I saw, and that's been addressed by other people.

Thanks, man. I'm sure the lead (Michael Arnette) will totally dig the comment.

And I totally dig the rest. Audio is definately something that always seems least important to us... and with the original raw recordings left lacking when we recorded, we shot ourselves maybe not in the foot, but at least blew a toe off.

So hopefully everything else people find positive about the film acts as a sort of sock, and maybe people may in the end not find the toe necessary to have an entertaining short.

Here's hoping. Toes crossed.

Thanks again! :)

[profnoxin]

Duchovny. Nice. Mike definately would like that. Right on, brotha' man.

[NotTheGoonFromTheMovie]

Man on man...gee willikers...Ya, the lead looks like Duchovney but he's got nothin' on the goon in this. He totally looks like Brad Pitt. I mean, or a young Matthew P. Damon. Jebus Christmas, this kid is goin' somewhere.

[BrianV]

Man on man...gee willikers...Ya, the lead looks like Duchovney but he's got nothin' on the goon in this. He totally looks like Brad Pitt. I mean, or a young Matthew P. Damon. Jebus Christmas, this kid is goin' somewhere.

Hmmm... a bit suspect ;)

[NotTheGoonFromTheMovie]

suspect? I have no idea what you mean, sir. And as an edit to my previous posting, it was meant to read "man oh man" not "man on man." However, after seeing the goon in this...I would consider a little man on man action with him. He's just that phenomenal. ;)

[iSTy]

I thought the acting in this was acceptable. The sound at the end wasn't too great but I did like the twist.

[BrianV]

suspect? I have no idea what you mean, sir. And as an edit to my previous posting, it was meant to read "man oh man" not "man on man." However, after seeing the goon in this...I would consider a little man on man action with him. He's just that phenomenal. ;)

Hmmmm... now it's suspect and just plain silly :D

[BrianV]

I thought the acting in this was acceptable. The sound at the end wasn't too great but I did like the twist.

Thanks, man. Personally, I thought the acting was good overall (biased, yes, but still). There aren't too many "showy" moments, so the performances are more subtle... but that's the piece.

Never thought I'd refer to anything I've done as "the piece," but there it is :)

Thanks again for the comments.

[NotTheGoonFromTheMovie]

Okay okay, I realize that I'm not fooling anyone...despite my clever handle, I did play the goon in this film. GASP! That said, I thought I'd throw my two cents into the arena on this piece. First off, lemme say that it was an absolute blast to be a part of. It's always fun to reconnect with a team of people you've worked with and feel completely comfortable around. Overall, I think the piece turned out just as it was meant to.

I'd also like to give an insiders opinion on the performances...I'll come right out in the open and say that I'm definitely the weakest performance in this film. And this isn't an actor's attempt at fishing for compliments. I know when I do good work, but this one just wasn't my strongest. It was difficult for me to play a character that was so deceivingly one dimensional. I tried to add some character quirks to the roll, but unfortunatly due to the speed at which the shot occured and the fact that I was the lead in something else going on at the same time that had much more prep time, I missed the mark on this one. I didn't give enough time to discovering things about Kirk, and just sorta hammed my way through the scenes.

But dear Jesus did I have fun. :) And, imho, the lead and the Caruso character do quite exemplary work. The Duchovney-Zach Braff lead really stands out playing his character SO very low-key. It makes him seem so disconnected, which really works for a guy that's a zillion years old with magical powers.

As for Caruso, he has some really very sad moments. But they are completely smart in execution. He puts a melancholy to his sinister delivery that is really fantastic, very dishearteningly pathetic. He is indeed a "pathetic old man."

In conclusion, thanks alot for the comments guys, and keep 'em comin'. I love to hear what you all have to say. I love working with profnoxin and BrianV, but who knows...maybe someday I'll audition for your next big thing. Hopefully then you can see what I can really do. :)

keep up the good work,
dustin.

[BrianV]

I still say your character isn't one dimensional, but more of a guy who has but one part to play... a character who's playing a character.

and at the end that shell is stripped off, and all we're left with is a pathetic man, or maybe not pathetic... HOPELESS man saying "fuck."

BLAM!

*shrug* $0.02

[Captain KickAss]

While I was not really fond of this film as a whole, I must definitely compliment you on the casting of your two lead actors. I thought both were very good, and the lead really reminded me of Cilliam Murphy.

As for the rest of the film...I'm not entirely sure I understand what was going on. I had to spend way too much time piecing everything together to really care about what was going on. In the end, I think it all came together, but by then, I was just too apathetic to really be interested any longer.

Visually though, I very much enjoyed your style of shooting, lighting and editing.

[BrianV]

While I was not really fond of this film as a whole, I must definitely compliment you on the casting of your two lead actors. I thought both were very good, and the lead really reminded me of Cilliam Murphy.

As for the rest of the film...I'm not entirely sure I understand what was going on. I had to spend way too much time piecing everything together to really care about what was going on. In the end, I think it all came together, but by then, I was just too apathetic to really be interested any longer.

Visually though, I very much enjoyed your style of shooting, lighting and editing.

Fair enough, man. I'm glad you liked the technical things about the film, even if the story and such wasn't your cup of tea. Cheers anyhow.

Hey, are you a Saint Louis guy? You sound familiar...

:)

[Captain KickAss]

Yep, I am a St. Louis guy.

[NotTheGoonFromTheMovie]

brianv,
you and i both know that i wasnt saying that kirk was one dimensional. he's not at all, but easily pigeonholed into the "goon" category as so many have politely pointed out, he IS decievingly one dimensional. meaning that kirk is at first glance as you stated earlier the meat puncher. But, due to wonderful script writing *wink wink*, if you investigate further, there's alot more to him. I was just stating that I wish I would have brought more out of that. But again, imo.

[profnoxin]

And that about wraps it up. Thank you everyone who commented, and thank you everyone who participated. Stay tuned for the next installment from Profnoxin and BrianV over in the Hero Fest section.

Rock, rock on.

[BrianV]

Yes. Thank you all for your constructive comments. Lessons learned. Appreciated and accounted for.

Thanks, and we'll see you next time!