FAT MONSTER FILMS presents "O2" ... Every. Breath. Counts.

Postmaster said:
It was the first one I downloaded and in the first minute I was blown away. When they put the girl on the table and bring her back to life that´s such a incredible scene.

Actually reminds my at "The Mumie" when Anchsenamun comes back to life with the same breath.

Was that a homage or did it just happen?
I was surprised when I found a "Angel Heart" homage in UNZEIT while editing.

Frank
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JDS, who helped with some wonderful script revisions came up with this scene and I do love it. I immediately thought of Pulp Fiction and we went to some lengths to avoid appearing to rip off Tarentino with the scene. To me, the scene is great as a dramatic opening right after the title sequence and it establishes that Sam and Natlia are married, which is obviously important to the story. It also puts Trevor as a sort of "third wheel" whose negligence in being asleep casts some culpability on him.

The problem of the piece, of course, is figuring out how to compress this story into 6 minutes. The first cut to the exterior view shows the horrible damage while the second cut outside the ship serves to suggest some passage of time from the confrontation until Natalia approaches Trevor alone. The limitations of time led to us having a minimum of time to work with the exterior views and when we do a new cut down the road we will render a nice slow view of the damage that should add some weight and help with the pacing.

Thanks again for these great comments guys.
 
Matty_g said:
seriously,
did you guys know barry green is funny?
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Ha! I wish we would've gotten a shot of the crappy little light rig that Barry and I concocted from the cage at Laurel Canyon. It was hideous and dangerous, but conveniently effective... sadly we didn't even use it in the end.

Did we get any pictures of that thing, Barry?
 
Matty is right about the aspect ratio. Tim gave some serious thought to cutting this for cinemascope but decided we couldn't afford the time given that there are several scenes that will need to be adjusted for proper framing.

I've also discussed with Raptor doing some new renders of the ship for the next cut given that we have a whole bunch of time still credited at the RenderFarm. It will be nice to stretch those exterior views a little bit more without worrying about the six minute time limit.
 
Mark Johnson said:
I don't have the figures because Bullis and Blaine were keeping the books. I've mentioned before on the thread that we got the location for the cost of the stage manager and power (stage manager was $300/day and I'm guessing the power was probably about the same from what we projected). We got a very good rate on the RED rental because we've done some favors and have pledged to help Sam Druckerman and Matty with promoting the rig down the road. In fairness I can't reveal the rate but it was definitely a good deal and one we won't expect to get again. We had very little grip rental because of all the donated gear but we did have to rent a Premiere dolly, some track and an electronic viewfinder for the RED (the one it came with was on the fritz).

The way we really leveraged our micro budget was by working out trades. As mentioned earlier, we were blessed to have Levie Isaacks ASC lens our film because we provided location, lights and crew for him to use on a 3rd party project. We got the set/location basically donated because we've agreed to help crew a production for them down the road. Similarly, Dragon Dronet and Renegade Effects Group gave us all the costumes and props in exchange for our agreeing to help them on a future project. It looks like it will be a Samurai short complete with period costumes and shot on 35mm that is being done as a feature pitch. Obviously, we'd be down to crew that without anything in return because of the opportunities it presents. However, by doing this on a "trade-out" basis we are now considered peers and compatriots by a number of pros. This has already resulted in our being included in various social gatherings, industry meetings and simple grab-a-beer-after-work invites. Truly, the benefits we are seeing make the whole O2 short seem a small matter in comparison with the big picture of what we've received.

I'm not trying to be evasive here by not stating a budget number because I truly don't know what it is. However, its going to be close to what we spent on prior shorts even though the production values are much higher because of all the good will and donated services/gear we got this time.

More importantly, while we got goods and services for a couple of days, we got HUGE connections, relationships and true friendships in this town that are going to be big assets for Fat Monster for years to come.
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Thanks for your response and good luck for you future projects , I really hope you win.
 
Mark Johnson said:
I echo Tim's comments. When we started Fat Monster Films less than a year ago we made a commitment to not only open our doors to the DVXUSER membership, but to work hard at making the experience of shooting with us a true shared experience. Luis, Matty G., Bullis and Blaine quickly became a core monster family that allowed us to start building a foundation to work from. When Arrik, Bosindy, JDS, Stebbs, Hudson, Dudley, DJ, Gettemeier, the Popaditches and Ted all came from out of town to help us I felt that our vision of making a truly cooperative film was proven to be a worthwhile pursuit. These guys wouldn't have come if they didn't feel strongly that they would be true partners who would be appreciated. Guys, we owe you big time and we hope to return the favor for every one of you in time. When you add the tireless efforts of Raptor 365 and Nate "RotoNinja" as well as the local boys (Brad, Justin, Zak, Matty G., Luis, Tom, Geoff, Kholi etc.) then it becomes so very clear that this is a group effort that shows just how much spirit, talent and unselfish love is available in this community.

We can't ever be perfect and we will, no doubt, always fall short in many ways. However, I can honestly say that our hearts are in the right place and that neither Tim nor I will ever forget that making a successful film requires much more than we can ever bring to the table by ourselves.

And, of course, I have to give my very highest respect, regard and appreciation to Barry Green who has provided more guidance than we could ever hope for, and who has been more patient than we deserved. Time and again Barry has shown that he cares so much about this community and that he wants us all to rise to levels of professional work that can become a basis to help those who are coming up from the ranks below. We have watched the wonderful work he's done with the Dream Team and we often hoped to have the chance to work with him. It was such an honor to have him assist us and to be able to get to know him as more than the DVX/HVX Maven Dude.
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I met Mark and Tim (finally) when they came down to San Diego with Barry Green

I knew from the first handshakes that these dudes were right up my alley.

And sides, Mark always buys the rad call girls.

Blaine and I have been wine dialing forever.
 
You know you guys really are an inspiration and a good example of what this site is really about and it's about forming the community and instead of being off in our own little worlds, out there helping each other to grow and getting the best possible film.

It's kind of the heart of independent film and if we could have similar groups form just to create films and take note of your example then we coudl really have something going. A bunch of little Fat Monsters running around ans shaping the face of independent film.

Now we're all just wondering when you guys are going to go out and make the first Fat Monster feature film... so get to it already!
 
puckthemad said:
Now we're all just wondering when you guys are going to go out and make the first Fat Monster feature film... so get to it already!
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We've been having preproduction meetings on our feature project for some time now and we're happy with our treatment and the progress of the script. We haven't been discussing it much because we're aware that it's all too easy to talk about "the feature we're going to shoot" without having any true substance behind those words. We've learned a great deal from carefully watching Barry Green's work with JDS to develop their feature project and, of course, have profited greatly from Adam Cultraro's example with regard to "Corrado." Adam has truly been a great mentor for all of us here at Fat Monster and we owe him a debt of gratitude.

We've been working on funding, as that's unquestionably the biggest obstacle that confronts most small production companies. Fortunately, my 14 years as a trial lawyer and 15 years doing forensic work have given us a pretty good rolodex with respect to income-earners who accept us as credible businessmen. Added to that are the considerable contacts and connections that Luis has brought to the table so that we've been able to get the first layer of funding covered. We hope to leverage that foundation to get the cast committed and to get more funding from our secondary targets. Frankly, our biggest concern is that we not f*ck up the first feature as we know its success is the key to the next bigger project (see, again, Adam Cultraro's Corrado thread).

So, thanks so much to all of you who have encouraged us and who believe in us. We don't have illusions that we're "there" yet. In fact, we're profoundly aware of our limitations. However, we do believe that our ability to put solid work on the screen with a tight budget will allow us to take the next step and give our investors a reasonable shot at a return. You can be sure that wherever the Monster goes, we will bring our DVXUSER supporters with us. In fact, we depend on you, literally, and we'll remember all the hard work that you've put in to help us succeed.
 
Just watched "O2." Outstanding job! I felt like I was watching a lost episode of "Firefly." Glad to see science fiction film making is alive and well. Especially loved the ending.... did not see it coming. Kudos to you all!

Don Riemer
 
Don, thanks so much. That means a lot to me after learning that you wrote The Small Multiple, which is among my top three films in this fest. Would it be possible for me to read your script?
 
All I can say is WOW.

.....I'll say more when I have a better internet connection and more time to search this thread. Terrific job guys!
 
Mark,

Delighted that you enjoyed the movie! And there is a pleasing symmetry to this endeavor. I wrote "The Small Multiple" for the January 2007 contest at MoviePoet.com. So seeing the film shot for another online contest feels just so right...

And of course you can see the script. (Actually, I would have missed your request if Daniel hadn't alerted me...) I've attached a copy to this post (I think....) but I'm a total newbie with this site. If the script doesn't end up attached, please email me directly, and I'll forward a PDF.

Thanks again!

Don
 

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