GREYSCALE - feature film - OFFICIAL THREAD

Got everything, thanking you kindly! The caps are extremely stylish, very noir. Dougie had a ball making the film, and don't feel guilty about casting him as the bad guy - he does 'bad' very well, and got a real kick out of it. Do we have any idea of a release date?

HM
 
Just out of curiousity...was your Alma Mater the Tulsa University Golden Hurricanes or the ORU Golden Eagles?! :D

I was a graduate of ORU back in '01...spent my fair number of years in Tulsa.

Best of luck on the project! Super inspiring man!

Daniel Piatt
 
pia12254 said:
Just out of curiousity...was your Alma Mater the Tulsa University Golden Hurricanes or the ORU Golden Eagles?! :D

I was a graduate of ORU back in '01...spent my fair number of years in Tulsa.

Best of luck on the project! Super inspiring man!

Daniel Piatt
Click to expand...

Ryan has been very busy working on the movie, but to answer your question, he went to Tulsa University.
 
Wow, didn't mean to let this fall by the wayside... been busy editing and getting things lined up for post production.

A slight update, we're still 85% finished with shooting and I'm 35% finished with the first assembly edit (it's a lot of fun seeing things coming together).

@pia12254 - Joseph's right, I'm a TU alum and have some very strong ties to the film department that has allowed me access to the campus for several very important locations. We have a few ORU alum on crew and helping out though.

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Chapter 6 - Actors

As stated before, when I originally wrote the screenplay, I only wrote roles for actors I personally knew and was assured that I could convince to work on the movie. Once the crew was in place, one LA producer we brought on tossed in the idea of going SAG for my first project. He said that a 2nd feature is harder to sell than your first because you have baggage after your first flick. If you made a movie that didn't sell well, had poor acting, etc, it's harder to convince a hollywood actor's manager to trust you that your next movie will be better.

So, I took his advice and boosted my budget (read: looked for more funding) to handle getting a recognizeable name/face attached to the project. Since we were shooting primarily nights and weekends and there aren't exactly any famous names that hang out in Tulsa, the role would have to be something that could be shot in an extended weekend. I'll elaborate on how we got our name/face talent in the next post, but right now I want to talk a little about what it was like dealing with the 4 camps of actors that were onboard on this project.

6.1 - The 4 Types

6.2.1 - Non-professional actors I've worked with before

These were people I've acted with in college and beyond. I knew they could handle the roles I wrote for them, and yes, most of the main cast roles were originally written for these kinds of actors. Granted, not everyone I had in mind wound up with their specified role, but starting primarily with these actors allowed me the right constraints to not try to pull off something I couldn't produce.

Many of the characters weren't written into the story until I had spoken with the actor to see if they would be interested/available. Most notably was the inclusion of the femme fatale character in the 2nd draft after I found out that she was still in town (hadn't spoken/worked with her for 3 years)

6.2.2 - Directing non-professional actors

Many of these actors were my friends (be it friendships created by working together previously or otherwise), and after they would sign on for a role, I would meet with them personally before we began and would run through every bit of dialogue with them. If it didn't sound natural coming out of their mouth, it was rewritten for their cadence. Many scenes were improved this way, and when working with actors of limited experience, I want to work within their comfort zone or it's going to come off horribly on screen.

After lines were ironed out, we would try to run equipment tests and practice the scenes. For those with more stage experience than screen, it allowed them to see how the camera caught them, or little things they did on screen they weren't aware of (be it a twitch or unsteady footing, etc).

The one advantage of working with someone that you've known for a while is that you can pull up things from their past to evoke the exact emotion you are looking for.

Lastly, I've discovered that each actor is different. Some nail it on the first take and bring the most natural energy to it, and then each take loses steam. Some have to break through the awkwardness to get into full swing after a few takes. So, I recommend finding out which of your actors are which, and wisely pointing your camera accordingly.

So, say I have a guy who nails it on the first take and a girl that warms into their role. I'll try to shoot the guy's closeups first, because he nails them. I'll back up, do his medium shots, then capture the master, then go to the medium of the girl, who has gotten comfortable with the scene by the time the master rolled around, and finally the close-ups for the best takes of her.

It obviously differs with everyone, but finding that sweet spot has been the difference between having the best takes versus wishing you could match the off-screen audio with something workable when the actor was onscreen.

6.3.1 - Non-professional actors that came to the casting call

When we held our casting call for 7 of the roles, we had 55 people come out to fill out every 5 minute slot we had available (and then even a little spillover). We had a cast of interesting people, some with loads of experience, and some that just didn't quite understand the art.

But, I've learned starting out that it is unwise to burn any bridges this early in my career. If there was a guy that came out and read and I could tell wasn't going to work out within the first sentence uttered, I wouldn't cut them off... even if they had picked up the sides for 3 other roles... because some of these guys had driven 2 hours to come to the casting call and I wasn't going to instantly give them a bad taste about me by playing Simon Cowell.

But, all in all, I knew that I could expand my cast, because I knew that I wanted to use more people than I had roles, so my film instantly became much larger in scope (and began to feel less like a little indie flick).

6.3.2 - Directing non-professional actors that came to the casting call

There is a mild level of discomfort working with people you're new to working with. They may have done well in the audition, but it's tough to tell how well they'll take direction when the lights are on them. There's no personal history to dredge up to evoke emotions, and so a more traditional approach is required.

6.4.1 - Professional actors that came to the casting call

We definitely found a few gems at the casting call. One was a small waitress role that just nailed what we were looking for in the audition in her first take. We asked her to try something different (with specific instructions), and she nailed that too (also, she was SAG) Everybody else took some time to decide (and one callback for a certain character).

Although I'm pretty sure that every SAG actor that came to the casting call wound up finding a role somewhere (with exception of one who went back to LA before we began shooting), it was a pleasure to work with people that have been on set a few times and knew that acting was a waiting game when it came to setting up scenes and switching lighting, etc.

6.4.2 - Directing local professionals

I rarely would have to run a scene more than 3-4 times per angle with the camera pointed at them. Often times we would catch it in 2. They came prepared, lines fully memorized, and needed very little direction. I would discuss the role, the motives, and the backstory of that character and how they fit into the whole story, and most of them would understand instantly and bring their A game.

6.5.1 - Hollywood professionals that we offered roles to

This would be Anthony Tyler Quinn, Tim Russ, and Doug Jones. I'll discuss each seperately.

6.5.2 - Anthony Tyler Quinn

Tony was our first seasoned pro to come on set during the production. From arranging his flights/hotel/car and making sure that we had everything on set that he would like to eat, etc, it was a fun ordeal to get everything in order.

Truth be told, it was mildly surreal to be working with a guy that I used to watch on Boy Meets World, (and again, major thanks to Brandon Rice for hooking up the relationship). I figured that if I behaved starstruck with any of my actors, I would make a rather poor director... so I worked on showing a large amount of respect without gushing over their past work (same for Tim and Doug).

The role that he played was one I knew needed an emotional heavy hitter. I originally didn't flesh out the character (or even show their face since they were primarily flashback driven) because if that actor didn't sell the role, the main arc of the main protagonist would falter. So, it was a mild epiphany after talking with Brandon about bringing Tony in for 1 day. I expanded the character's scenes and Tony agreed to take on the role.

Tony was prepared, and even though we only had him for 4 scenes, he nailed the performance. He was the first example of how a seasoned pro can bring out a better performance from other actors... and thankfully he came in early enough that the lessons learned were applied to the rest of the film. He was incredibly easy to work with, and after we finished, he wanted to hang around and spend some time getting to know the crew and we chatted until it was late and I took him back to his hotel to prep for his flight the next morning. I highly recommend working with Tony if you have the chance.

6.5.3 - Tim Russ

From the beginning of bringing on our LA producer, he kept telling me how well he knew Tim and that if there was a role that would fit him, that he was pretty sure we could get him out to be in the movie.

There were several roles that were available, but I needed to find one that had enough face time (but not too much to the point where we couldn't afford that much time, and not too little to act like a selling point was having someone int he film that was in it for only a few minutes). It quickly became apparent what role would fit, and we sent out the script and our offer to Tim, and to our delight, he accepted.

Once we had him out to Tulsa, I'd have to say he was one of the most helpful when it came to efficiency and getting the scenes set up properly (being a director himself, he had many tips for a first time feature director). He nailed all his takes, so we took 2 runs at every camera angle, and spent 2 days running through all of his scenes. Now that I'm in the edit bay, I can see the gravitas that he brought to that role. It's definitely something to behold. He brought a presence to the role that I'm sure would have been lacking if I had gone with my original local actor I had in mind for the role.

6.5.4 - Doug Jones

When Dougie (yes, we call him Dougie) signed on, I couldn't believe that an actor that I saw on opening night of a summer blockbuster was going to be in the movie. It fit in perfectly with his schedule (between doing press and traveling to France for another project). We had him out for 3 full days, since he had the largest of the 3 roles when it came to screen time (and also that his character was much more mobile and was in many different location as opposed to Tony and Tim which had 2 locations they stuck to). I think Dougie had 9 or so locations in the movie since he is primarily chasing the protagonist.

At any rate, Dougie was one of the nicest people I've ever met, period. He fell in love with the crew, giving them all nicknames, joking with them often, and just being a great sport in general.

Directing him was the most collaborative of the three. We discussed the role before we began shooting, and he took about 80% of what I had described and added a wonderful twist to the last 20% of the character that I didn't expect, but loved nevertheless.

6.6 - Overview

Directing each type of actor has brought its own challenges and rewards, but until I got the chance to work with all 4, I wouldn't have called myself a well rounded director. I'm obviously still learning, but I'm very happy with many of my choices now that I'm in the edit bay.
 
Looks like we will have plenty of "Bonus Feauture" material. I am still learning a lot about the film I have been a part of for the past 6 months.
 
Hi Ryan,
I was reading your blog and I zeroed in on this para and these lines.

Ryan Dunlap said:
4.1 - The Look

Noir obviously had a very stylized look to it. Well before I got any names/faces
attached, I realized that if I wanted to get noticed in the sea of indie features,
I had to grab attention at first glance ...
...
...
... After a loving kick in the pants, he told me that nothing about the black and
white imagery grabbed him. Nothing popped. Nothing sizzled.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure I understand the gist of this and I really want to know.

I'm guessing that it was the black/white concept that you decided on as
an 'attention grabber' and when your LA writer/producer friend said
'it's not popping' you added the blue eye bit.
Can you clarify?

Thanks!
 
Well, we originally did some equipment tests with the idea of them being something like the River Tam Sessions from Serenity... something interview styled. We lit the scene, used a lot of our new equipment for the first time, but what wasn't working was that there was little contrast. It looked more like the noir when everything is decently lit (a lot of inside scenes in old noirs have this look), instead of something harsh and Sin City-esque.

So, that was what 'didn't pop.' The lighting wasn't giving us a distinguishable style alone. It just looked like we lit it regularly and then desaturated it.

Adding in little bits of color here and there will hopefully help things along, but it's been done before (what hasn't? (actually, keep the answer to yourself and you'll have a great film idea...)).

So we went a little more extreme with something like this:
attachment.php


Instead of this: (a framegrab from the original tests that we took down)
 

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