"Corrado" - A production blog

Status
Not open for further replies.
John, SS ran a test showing in Texas (?) before the Jaws release, it wasn't too great. That's in an interview with SS somewhere ( I don't archive these things, but maybe I should) it might have been in the DVD behind the scenes or director comments, book, I honestly can't remember where, but his comment was about the score making such a huge difference. Williams 2 note motif score is famous because we know what it means: danger, shark! The music is a vital cinematic signal causing anticipation.

You might watch the making of for Star Wars, there are plenty of interviews with actors, Lucas, the studio ( he didn't even have enough cash for decent aliens, that's why they look pretty bad in the bar scene) The ILM guys had much to say about it also, ha ha ha. It's great to see the adversity Lucas faced and came out on top of. He didn't even know if he'd get it completed.
 
The documentary, "Empire of Dreams" has a segment discussing how bad things looked after the first edit. The film didn't work at all, at first, but once editors Paul Hirsch and Richard Chew were brought on board, they really turned things around. They fixed pacing problems, reworked the story, and made the sections that needed it a bit more visceral.

Star Wars was really a beautiful disaster early in the post phase. More info on this can be found in the book, "Skywalking" (a great read), and of course the doc on the DVD, "Empire of Dreams".

Most filmmakers panic after they wrap the film "This is the worst film ever shot.", then soon calm down, get some distance, and see the film for what it truly is. This is extremely necessary. Especially if you're editing the film you directed. I think it's advisable to let the film sit on the shelf for a while. Go on vacation, etc. Then come back to it with fresh eyes. Either that, or send it to a separate editor, and use their fresh eyes.

This isn't aimed at you Adam, just general advice. I know this may not work for you since time is of the essence. Not all films can afford to incubate for too long. Plus you may not have an editor you trust. That's really important.

I didn't get a chance to see the trailer, but good luck in the final edit. Looking forward to buying the DVD.
 
watched the trailer/clip reel on youtube. my impression is that as a producer, you're a bulldog, adam. but as a filmmaker, the caliber of the work here is serviceable at best. not "betting against you" because I know damn well that the latter is not as important as the former when it comes to the business of movies. i sincerely wish you the best of luck in your career.
 
taormina said:
Brandon, I know.

It's just for you guys, although frankly, I'm beginning to regret posting it here. You would think DVXUsers would have a little more experience dealing with rough work. It's as if the multitude of disclaimers I put up were completely ignored by people who should really know better.

Just talk to me about the movie, not the technical side that not only I am aware of, but I pointed out first.

I'm doing this for you guys as part of the thread, but now I know why you never see pre-release studio stuff and why it's so tightly guarded.

Not singling you out personally, Brandon!

Click to expand...

Hey buddy, I understand, absolutely! Just wanted to verify that you'd be doing that :) I understand rough work... I see my own all the time...

No worries bro.
 
oh man. i got to be honest. i was following this thread with great anticipation but seeing the footage is a HUGE disappointment. i had no idea it was going to be such a trite, hackneyed, run of the mill mafia picture. just goes to show that anyone can get a picture made, but not everyone can make a picture.
 
Damn - looks like I'm too late to the party.
Sorry I missed it.

Hang in there - and don't let the early comments get you down.
I'm really looking forward to seeing a trailer at some point.
 
Okay, tell you guys what:

You saw 2:59 of rough cut footage with no post audio or color correction. If you remove the titles, it's maybe 2:20.

So now your judgments are based on a little over two minutes of footage in a 90 minute film. Part of the fault lies with me perhaps for showing you those two minutes - maybe they weren't the right ones.

But honestly, hearing comments like the ones above makes me throw down the gauntlet:

I can handle constructive criticism very well. As a matter of fact, I'd love to hear it.

But now the line's been crossed and the bullshit stops.

If you have some conctructive criticism, please share it. But here's the caveat: I only want to hear it from those of you that have actually shot a feature and had it distributed. It's the only way the feedback will be meaningful to me. I don't care how many user fests you've won with your shorts or how many little regional fests you've received accolades in . It's all a steaming pile of bullshit if you've never made a feature. And had it distributed.

You know why? Because only those that have done this will have anything meaningful to add as far as advice goes. Because those precious few of you out there that have done it know what works in a film, and know what sells to a distrib.

Shot a feature but no distrib? Sorry - not listening. You don't know what works either until you have distrib.

I don't want to sound like a pompous ass, but come on people. Static, why don't you show me your extensive list of feature film credits....Mr "anyone can get a film made".

This is definitely the downside of giving people too much information. Apparently way too much.

Anyways - I mean what I say. Haven't made and distributed a feature? Don't want to hear it. Put a sock in it. Have made and distributed a feature? I'm all ears. Please educate me.

So go ahead - let me know what to do...and please supply me with a list of your distributed feature film credits.
 
I searched it and found it on YouTube. I hate when people sugarcoat things (I even created a post a while back about too many people doing it), but I honestly didn't think it was as bad as everyone made it out to be.

It didn't look like a TRAILER to me, so much as a montage of clips from the movie (which might be what I saw?). I ignored the audio and little things and tried to focus on the acting/cinematography, etc.

I see some good scenes, but I also see some poor ones (the walk and talk with the cop? near the end). I like Messner better than Siezemore, 100% from what I saw.

Just my thoughts,

Kegan

EDIT: I posted right after you. If you'd like, I can delete my post.
 
hey sorry, dude. i'm just saying i don't know who the audience would be for something so uninspired and lacking in sophisticated filmmaking technique. i heard the DP was a bit of an arrogant prick on set and i'm not sure he has the goods to back it up.

but f*ck it, the truth is i don't know much about film distribution. i had two short docs distributed but really i don't know nearly as much as you man. so don't listen to a word i say. i know music distribution. and have sold over 1.5 million records.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYLudz5ZU-M

peace and good luck to you.
 
Last edited:
taormina said:
I only want to hear it from those of you that have actually shot a feature and had it distributed. It's the only way the feedback will be meaningful to me.
Click to expand...

Ok, well I have actually done that... so yay, I get to give feedback...

I actually gave it back a few pages, never got a reply to it, was trying to be constructive...

One of the things I think you should discover is how you want to market the film... the trailer is a HUGE part of that... with something like Corrado, I think infusing some faster cuts and energy into it would help a lot... I think having an action slant on this would be the winner... just my thoughts :)
 
Hey Adam,

Thanks for being so open with your information. I think being so open and confident in your post will set you up for trouble no matter how good the film is or isn't....but I think it's great that you created such a memorable thread. In reality very few people will ever get the chance to do what you've done....good or bad.

As a filmmaker with a distributed film I guess I'm allowed to chime in. :) Forget the fact that my film was a faux-art-house piece of ****....but hey I've been distributed and my film is still out there, so I'll go ahead and speak. Plus, I've learned more from my failures than anything I've every done. Very costly, but effective. :)

Watching the footage I have to say I'm a bit let down, but at the same time it's a rough draft with rough elements created by the writer, producer, director, set-decorator :) of the film, so it's really hard to get a good gauge of what you have. Every filmmaker thinks that they are the only ones to truly bring the story from writing through production and into a final form.

From a writing standpoint, I think there are some overly "trite" elements in the dialogue, accented by some sub-par acting. That said, it still amazes me what can be done by the time a good editor cuts a few frames, inserts a cut-away and then the sound editor does some magic.

From a directing standpoint, I think it's lacking just a bit in the visual power that you give to the characters. There are many times in the "montage" where I felt that the camera opp was just about 6 inches too tall. I wanted to be a bit lower to give the characters power and presence, but we were watching much of it from a normal persons sight-line. Adding in some of the wide shots and cut-aways will help even this out a bit.

I won't even talk to sound or color correction, because it would be stupid at this stage of the game.

In summary, I don't think it was overly intriguing to me, but if that's just two minutes of what you have to pull from you can mull something together that will intrigue distributors, because it's a genre piece, even if it's a genre piece by the numbers ( not saying it is, because I haven't seen enough). We like to think on these forums that we're above genre and soooo unique, but in essence if you can master the mundane (not to say that's what Corrado is) and make it watchable, that will go further than most will achieve with trying to be unique and finding they don't have a unique voice.

If I may be so bold as to make a suggestion I would suggest to detach yourself from the "filmmaker" badge and pick a side. Are you a writer? Are you a director? Are you a producer? Are you an editor? Keep in mind that very, very few successful filmmakers are all of these things very well at the same time. In this world of digital technology and no-budgets we are forced to wear multiple hats. And sometimes because of ego, we won't share our hats, but rarely does that work out well. Take a step back, forget about the trailer for the moment and server the movie as a whole. Find yourself a professional editor, who can step back subjectively with the script and footage and approach the story from a masters-perspective. This is not to say that you don't know how to edit, it's just to say that the most successful movies are always a collaboration.

I would think that if you can communicate your vision to the right people and step back just long enough to get a different perspective, that you will come out just fine.

I wish you the best,

Jason
 
Brandon Rice said:
Ok, well I have actually done that... so yay, I get to give feedback...

I actually gave it back a few pages, never got a reply to it, was trying to be constructive...

One of the things I think you should discover is how you want to market the film... the trailer is a HUGE part of that... with something like Corrado, I think infusing some faster cuts and energy into it would help a lot... I think having an action slant on this would be the winner... just my thoughts :)
Click to expand...

You did, and I appreciated it. I am listening - thanks Brandon.
 
staticrevenger said:
hey sorry, dude. i'm just saying i don't know who the audience would be for something so uninspired and lacking in sophisticated filmmaking technique. i heard the DP was a bit of an arrogant prick on set and i'm not sure he has the goods to back it up.

but f*ck it, the truth is i don't know much about film distribution. i had two short docs distributed but really i don't know nearly as much as you man. so don't listen to a word i say. i know music distribution. and have sold over 1.5 million records.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYLudz5ZU-M

peace and good luck to you.
Click to expand...


I'll show you the market in about 60 days.
 
Finally - good feedback. What parts of the acting didn't you like?

thanks again!





insanityfw said:
Hey Adam,

Thanks for being so open with your information. I think being so open and confident in your post will set you up for trouble no matter how good the film is or isn't....but I think it's great that you created such a memorable thread. In reality very few people will ever get the chance to do what you've done....good or bad.

As a filmmaker with a distributed film I guess I'm allowed to chime in. :) Forget the fact that my film was a faux-art-house piece of shi*....but hey I've been distributed and my film is still out there, so I'll go ahead and speak. Plus, I've learned more from my failures than anything I've every done. Very costly, but effective. :)

Watching the footage I have to say I'm a bit let down, but at the same time it's a rough draft with rough elements created by the writer, producer, director, set-decorator :) of the film, so it's really hard to get a good gauge of what you have. Every filmmaker thinks that they are the only ones to truly bring the story from writing through production and into a final form.

From a writing standpoint, I think there are some overly "trite" elements in the dialogue, accented by some sub-par acting. That said, it still amazes me what can be done by the time a good editor cuts a few frames, inserts a cut-away and then the sound editor does some magic.

From a directing standpoint, I think it's lacking just a bit in the visual power that you give to the characters. There are many times in the "montage" where I felt that the camera opp was just about 6 inches too tall. I wanted to be a bit lower to give the characters power and presence, but we were watching much of it from a normal persons sight-line. Adding in some of the wide shots and cut-aways will help even this out a bit.

I won't even talk to sound or color correction, because it would be stupid at this stage of the game.

In summary, I don't think it was overly intriguing to me, but if that's just two minutes of what you have to pull from you can mull something together that will intrigue distributors, because it's a genre piece, even if it's a genre piece by the numbers ( not saying it is, because I haven't seen enough). We like to think on these forums that we're above genre and soooo unique, but in essence if you can master the mundane (not to say that's what Corrado is) and make it watchable, that will go further than most will achieve with trying to be unique and finding they don't have a unique voice.

If I may be so bold as to make a suggestion I would suggest to detach yourself from the "filmmaker" badge and pick a side. Are you a writer? Are you a director? Are you a producer? Are you an editor? Keep in mind that very, very few successful filmmakers are all of these things very well at the same time. In this world of digital technology and no-budgets we are forced to wear multiple hats. And sometimes because of ego, we won't share our hats, but rarely does that work out well. Take a step back, forget about the trailer for the moment and server the movie as a whole. Find yourself a professional editor, who can step back subjectively with the script and footage and approach the story from a masters-perspective. This is not to say that you don't know how to edit, it's just to say that the most successful movies are always a collaboration.

I would think that if you can communicate your vision to the right people and step back just long enough to get a different perspective, that you will come out just fine.

I wish you the best,

Jason
Click to expand...
 
Hey Adam. I don't know if it really helps to split hairs at this point, but from what I can remember there was a woman in a couple of shots that gave a very canned or static performance. I went back to watch it again (my memory buffer is only about 3 mins. these days) but the video is off of youtube now.

I think she might have been red-headed or auburn-haired. Sorry, but with two toddlers my memory is shot right now, due to sleep-deprivation. :) I just remember that she was very "staggie" in her delivery....and I know that JAWS was about a really big shark.

I do a lot of judging now for a film festival series (more than making movies), so if you ever want my opinion, for what it's worth, send me your cuts and I'll be happy to dig in. :)

Best,

Jason
 
taormina said:
Okay, tell you guys what:

You saw 2:59 of rough cut footage with no post audio or color correction. If you remove the titles, it's maybe 2:20.

So now your judgments are based on a little over two minutes of footage in a 90 minute film. Part of the fault lies with me perhaps for showing you those two minutes - maybe they weren't the right ones.

But honestly, hearing comments like the ones above makes me throw down the gauntlet:

I can handle constructive criticism very well. As a matter of fact, I'd love to hear it.

But now the line's been crossed and the bullshi* stops.

If you have some conctructive criticism, please share it. But here's the caveat: I only want to hear it from those of you that have actually shot a feature and had it distributed. It's the only way the feedback will be meaningful to me. I don't care how many user fests you've won with your shorts or how many little regional fests you've received accolades in . It's all a steaming pile of bullshi* if you've never made a feature. And had it distributed.

You know why? Because only those that have done this will have anything meaningful to add as far as advice goes. Because those precious few of you out there that have done it know what works in a film, and know what sells to a distrib.

Shot a feature but no distrib? Sorry - not listening. You don't know what works either until you have distrib.

I don't want to sound like a pompous ass, but come on people. Static, why don't you show me your extensive list of feature film credits....Mr "anyone can get a film made".

This is definitely the downside of giving people too much information. Apparently way too much.

Anyways - I mean what I say. Haven't made and distributed a feature? Don't want to hear it. Put a sock in it. Have made and distributed a feature? I'm all ears. Please educate me.

So go ahead - let me know what to do...and please supply me with a list of your distributed feature film credits.
Click to expand...

Interesting.

Never... ever... ever.. let anyone on Aint it Cool News see your film then. They will tear you a new one if you think the calm and collected feedback here is problematic.

EDIT: Then again, anyone basing their final decision of a film solely on a trailer usually means the trailer is doing its job one way or the other.
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top