MONSTERS BEWARE - A film by J. Anthony Gonzales

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MonstersBeware_poster.jpg





Cine Alma Pictures presents

MONSTERS BEWARE!

A film by
J. ANTHONY GONZALES



CAST

SIMONE ALEX as Alex
TOM MARSHALL as Ron
JASON BOGART as Jimmy
SAM P. WHITEHEAD as The Werewolf
ALLEN B. RUSSELL III as Fresh Meat


FILMMAKERS

J. ANTHONY GONZALES Director
KATHY GONZALES Producer
J. ANTHONY GONZALES Story by
J. ANTHONY GONZALES, CHARLI GULLEY Screenplay

CAT ELROD Makeup Artist


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PRODUCTION JOURNAL


10.05.09

Hired on a makeup effects artist. This will free up a LOT of my time, so I'm very happy about that.

We'll be shooting on Saturday, October 17. A LONG day of shooting, but should be a blast!

Still looking for an HVX shooter with a camera. I've got some feelers out. I'd LOVE it if I didn't have to shoot this one myself. We'll see.

Script revision is coming along nicely. Hope to have a good workable draft in the next day or two to start with.

* * *

10.06.09

Finished a good draft of the script. God, I hate the six minute time limit. Kudos to those who can write a great script in such a small number of pages.

* * *

10.08.09

We got the green light on the location. A big relief.

I'll be tweaking the script some more. The new ending doesn't seem to work out as well as the original. Decisions, decisions. Have some work to do, here.

I probably should start working on a poster, too. Looks like it's one of the requirements.

* * *

10.10.09

One week until the shoot. Getting jazzed up and raring to go!

Title of the film has been changed to MONSTERS BEWARE! The script has changed a bit from the original, so a new title was needed that better reflects the story.

Starting to work with our terrific makeup artist, Cat Elrod, on some design ideas. If you want to check out some of her really cool work, go to: www.1881zombies.com. She did all the creature/gore stuff on that project.

More script work today. I think I finally figured out how to tie some things together that have bugging the crap out of me for a while.

Special shout out to Charli Gulley. She's been kind enough to give me some script feedback and let me bounce some ideas back and forth her way.

Still looking for somebody to shoot this thing. I can do it myself, but I'd rather focus strictly on directing and general production management. I don't have a lot of budget in the camera department, so hoping someone comes along who is into the "art of it" and wants to have a blast shooting a fun movie.

* * *

10.12.09

Charli Gulley is officially on board as co-screenwriter.

Herman Witkam is now on board for the score.

The script is 100% there story-wise. Just tightening up the dialogue a bit.

18 days until the deadline. This is going to be quite the adventure.

* * *

10.13.09

Crazy day so far. Shooting four days; adrenaline is flowing.

Script is just about locked. Going to be sending the draft out to everybody today. They've been chomping at the bit, so I look forward to their feedback.

Unfortunately, I've decided that Herman Witkam will not be doing the score after all. I 110% know he'd do a kick-ass job on this, and it's SO much in his wheelhouse. But the scheduling is just way too tight to allow him the time he needs to work on the project. And I don't want to kill him just to get it done. If I had shot this much earlier, it would be a no-brainer: Herman's the man!

I've been on the phone talking to DeWolfe in regards to music licensing. They have some stuff that is the style I'm looking for. If the licensing is cheap, I may just take it.

I'm waiting to hear back from a couple of DP's. Please, oh please, oh please, oh please....

STILL need a classic/vintage car for the shoot. Doesn't have to be cherry, just fit in the 50's/60's period. I'm stressing!

* * *

10.14.09

Spending the day working on and finishing up pre-pro paperwork. Breakdown of the script completed. Getting my shot lists together this evening.

Weather is going to be a little crazy, 95 degrees and sunny according to the weatherman.

Not much else, everything's rolling along.

* * *

10.16.09

Long day of running around, tying up loose ends, picking up odds and ends, etc. I'm exhausted (L.A. traffic really wears you out).

Our shooting day is tomorrow. I'm pretty jazzed! Look forward to a fantastic day of making movie magic!

Going to TRY and get to bed at a decent hour, but I know that ain't going to happen. Hopefully will get SOME sleep tonight.

* * *

10.18.09

Trying to recover from yesterday's 18 hour shoot. I swear to God I'll never do that again. (Yeah, right.) Well, my mind and heart may be willing, but this body's getting too old do stuff like that.

All in all, a good shoot. Need to do a couple of pick ups.

We ran a little behind schedule and so I wound up missing a shot I think I need. That one will be a tough one to get because of various reasons. Going to try and do a quick and dirty cut of that sequence and see how it plays without that shot. We'll see.

The actors were absolutely fantastic and really hung in there in the heat, especially in our makeshift "sound stage".

Going to go into post almost immediately, dead line approaching fast.

* * *

10.22.09

Looks like another crazy and jam-packed post for this one. 8 days until the deadline!

I'm going to have to re-shoot a scene and also pick-up a couple of shots. This late in the game, it's going to really kick my ass time-wise, but it needs to be done.

I'm pleased to announce that the poster for the film has been completed. I've posted it up on the first page.

Other "marketing" chores to do: sig banner, Facebook page, web page.

* * *

10.26.09

About 96 hours until the deadline. I was laid out with a cold all day yesterday. Squeezed in a few hours of editing before I crashed last night. Finishing this mutha up is going to be a real chore. Pedal to the metal until Friday morning!

I re-shot the final couple of shots on Satuday and they still didn't come out the way I'd like. Going to have to figure it out in the cut. I tried a couple of things that seem to work, but not the way I envisioned.

I have a couple of pick-up shots to do this week. Simple stuff that's quick and will just cut right in. I'll probably do that tomorrow.

I've approached the VFX as a kind of mix between classic 50's style and modern. I've completed one of the scenes and it came out pretty good I think. I'll get to the fun stuff tonight.

There's a long ass dialogue scene that I need to edit. I'm procrastinating. It will be THE biggest editing chore of the film. Planning to cut that on Wednesday when my head will hopefully be cleared up a bit.

I'll try and get some stills up and stuff in the next day or two.

* * *

10.29.09

It's about 24 hours before the deadline and still much to do.

I tested out some .mp4 renders last night and I've got the settings down, so I should be able to nail a <= 50mb file in one or two tries. That's a BIG relief knowing I won't have to deal with that part of the biz too much at the end.

I've got the cut just under 6 minutes, without having to sacrifice too much, so a big relief there.

The majority of what's left to do is sound work--a LOT of it.

It's going to be a LONG night. :zombie_smiley:

* * *

10.30.09

Uploaded the film this morning. I'm sitting here half-dead in my cube at work but looking forward to our annual Halloween potluck to pump in some needed energy (although I'm sure afterward, I'll be ready for a nap).

I'm happy with the cut I submitted. Not too bad for what amounts to a 13 day project. This is going to be the last "let's make a film at the last minute" adventure for a while. That kind of stuff is for the younger folks.

Got the sound about 80% mixed. A few minor issues here and there, but the story flows well enough for them not to distract too much. A few VFX glitches but, again, nothing earth-shattering.

This actually has been one of my favorite projects to work on in a while. I've been pretty much camped away in my hole over the last week-and-a-half so I haven't got a chance to thank all the great and talented people involved in the project. A very BIG shout out to my makeup artist, Cat Elrod, who did an amazing job on what was a truly crazy one-day shoot. This film would not have been possible without her. If you need a great MUA, look her up!

Now that I can breathe a little, I'll try and post some production stuff.

Hope everybody enjoys the film!

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The Making of MONSTERS BEWARE!
----------------------------------------------------------------


PHOTOS


locationScouting_1.jpg


Location Scouting #1



locationScouting_2.jpg


Location Scouting #2



locationScouting_3.jpg


Location Scouting #3



CatAtWork.jpg


5:30am: Cat Elrod, make-up artist extraordinaire, goes to work on actor Jason Bogart. Actress Simone Alex wonders what the hell she's got herself into... again!



JasonInProgress.jpg


Monster-In-Progress



TomAndPaul.jpg


11:00pm: Actors Tom Marshall and Sam P. Whitehead... after 18 hours, the meth and coke hit the craft services table :shocked:



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And away we go. I've decided to throw a film in the hat. This horror/comedy project started off as a 48 hour film festival project I did last year. I've rewritten the script and will be re-shooting the film for a Monster Fest premiere!

This film will be a galaxy away from the usual art house fare I usually create. Trying to work on something a little bit more mainstream, so to speak.

More later...
 
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10.05.09

Hired on a makeup effects artist. This will free up a LOT of my time, so I'm very happy about that.

We'll be shooting on Saturday, October 17. A LONG day of shooting, but should be a blast!

Still looking for an HVX shooter with a camera. I've got some feelers out. I'd LOVE it if I didn't have to shoot this one myself. We'll see.

Script revision is coming along nicely. Hope to have a good workable draft in the next day or two to start with.


That's all for now. Cheers!


John G.
 
Does "Dead Fellows" have any relation to the "Thin Man" for I could swear they were cousins. Good Luck!
 
10.06.09

Finished a good draft of the script. God, I hate the six minute time limit. Kudos to those who can write a great script in such a small number of pages.
 
Marlon Ladd said:
YES!! Glad to see you in. Got shoot dates scheduled?
Click to expand...

Thanks, Marlon. Yep, main shooting day is next Saturday, the 17th. I'll probably have a night or two to pick up a couple of shots, but will try to get 99% of it done on that Saturday. Then it's balls to the wall post.

Cheers!


John G.
 
Hey, John. Thanks for dropping by my thread.
You know I love your work as well. :)
I read that you're going a little more mainstream this time. I hope you still keep some of your artistic touch that makes your work stand out. Especially visually.

I'm sure you will.
Best of luck!

MAH
 
cinealma said:
10.06.09

Finished a good draft of the script. God, I hate the six minute time limit. Kudos to those who can write a great script in such a small number of pages.
Click to expand...

I always have that problem. The script for the original werewolf version of "Flower" ended up being 15 pages. So i underwrote my next two scripts becasue I figured out that I shoot long fo pacing and such, so it all comes out in the wash. Just depends on how you shoot and how much action you have.

Is your script action based or more dialog? You'l find it easier to make the cuts in editign anyway.

BTW: welcome!
 
Michael Anthony Horrigan said:
Hey, John. Thanks for dropping by my thread.
You know I love your work as well. :)
I read that you're going a little more mainstream this time. I hope you still keep some of your artistic touch that makes your work stand out. Especially visually.

I'm sure you will.
Best of luck!

MAH
Click to expand...

Well, I'll try. :happy:

However, you must know that my "other side" is outlandish, campy comedy that usually only I laugh at. So might be a little, um, different than the usual fare.

But I'll get some artsy stuff in there, just for you my friend. :laugh:

Cheers!


John G.
 
Rodney V. Smith said:
I always have that problem. The script for the original werewolf version of "Flower" ended up being 15 pages. So i underwrote my next two scripts becasue I figured out that I shoot long fo pacing and such, so it all comes out in the wash. Just depends on how you shoot and how much action you have.

Is your script action based or more dialog? You'l find it easier to make the cuts in editign anyway.

BTW: welcome!
Click to expand...

It's a bit of both, actually. However, it's kind of set up as a lot of dialog with bookend action. If that makes sense.

My biggest "challenge" is that I can never approach writing with a page or word limit. I just write and wherever it ends up, wherever the story takes me, that's how long it is.
 
10.08.09

We got the green light on the location. A big relief.

I'll be tweaking the script some more. The new ending doesn't seem to work out as well as the original. Decisions, decisions. Have some work to do, here.

I probably should start working on a poster, too. Looks like it's one of the requirements.

That's all for now. Cheers!


John G.
 
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