Muddy Water

N

n1c02

Well-known member
We have started working on our first movie, Muddy Water. This will be a suspense/thriller. I have been doing alot of research and reading to even just get started. The script seems to be the easiest part so far.. With everything going on I have decided to create a comany of my own in order to better get the name out there when this film is finished.
Dreamfade Entertainment
http://www.dreamfade.com

Story Title: "Muddy Water"
Story Logline:
Lacy is a small town who girl fights with her past as her new life brings old memories back to haunt her. The Physical and mental abuse is more than she can handle. Her journey from one nightmare leads to another as she is forced to face her demons and make a decision that will change her life forever


We are working on funding right now, which is harder than it sounds..
I have met with the mayor of the town being shot in and other officials. and have a green light for aynthing that I need here. so thats a huge plus.

I am watching the board here as I would like to film this on a HVX200 . I have a dvx100a. but I really like the footage and reviewws of the HVX.
I have been reading this board for a LONG time and have learned alot from here. I will keep everyone updated as this progresses.


Terry
 
Script is finished and we have held a few auditions so far, I believe we have most of the cast that we need. This is def a full time job.

Terry
 
Seems interesting i like the name for the film, I wish you luck terry and will be good to see how the film develops.
 
Thank you,. I came up with the name AND the idea driving one day and hear the song from toby keith. God loves her.. he was saying somethnig about she is baptised in dirty water..

well that got me thinknig and we are a riverside comunity,, small town.. I wanted to reach out to people with this film.. We are now working with help from the Cristina's HOuse.. thats a catholic charity shelter for abused women..

So the story revolves around this abused girl trying tostart her life again..

Hope it goes good... getting hectic now too..
 
Wow thought auditions were done.. Held three days.. Now doing call backs and readings but.... still have some coming in for more auditions..

Never thought just the auditioning could be so hectic. but.... on a really good note.. found my lead actress today... Will post some pics next week of the cast once they are all chosen and we can finally get started working..

Will keep this posted as I go..

Terry
 
Ok all auditions are done... Now to do some actual work...

local papers ran a story on us the other day..

WELLSVILLE A hit song by country artist Toby Keith could turn into a movie featuring the village if Terry Brown's dream comes true.
Auditions were recently held at the WKMX building, 1245 Main St., for "Muddy Water," an independent film being shot in the village by Brown's production company, DreamFade Entertainment.
Without giving away too much of the plot, Brown said the story revolves around 22-year-old Lacy Cramer, a small-town, down-to-earth girl comfortable with throwing on jeans and a shirt and jumping on the back of a four-wheeler for a ride in the pits outside town.
Lacy has a secret, though, an earlier life filled with abuse she tries to escape by starting over in a small town.
"But, she finds out she can't run away from her past and learns all men are equal," Brown said.
"Her journey from one nightmare leads to another as she is forced to face her demons and make a decision that will change her life forever," is the movie's premise.
The idea came to Brown while driving to Pittsburgh and Keith's song, "God Loves Her," came on the radio, talking about a girl baptized in dirty water.
"It hit me. I could just picture that girl," Brown said.
Although he had written songs as a child, Brown had never been a writer but always wanted to write a movie script, and he saw his chance.
"I'd be lying in bed at 3 in the morning, and I'd just jump up. I could picture a scene. I'd get up and have to write it," he said enthusiastically.
Since he didn't want to stop with just one film, Brown decided a production company was the way to go, and DreamFade Entertainment was born, based on a definition he saw on the Internet for "dream fade," meaning recollection of a dream in full detail, and a comment he made after his wife asked why he was jumping out of bed at all hours.
"I told her I have to write it right away or it fades," he smiled.
Wellsville fits the movie's small town setting, and Brown said, "When I envisioned it, I kept picturing a Saturday afternoon, all those guys hauling their dune buggies to Yellow Creek."
He spoke with Mayor Joe Surace, who welcomed the idea of Wellsville being the movie's backdrop, and Brown was encouraging local people to audition for not only the lead characters but a variety of minor roles and extras.
In addition to Lacy, other lead characters include her friends Becca and Linda; Lacy's love interest TJ a good-looking, rough biker-type; his brother, Mike, a beer-drinking pot smoker; Detective Grayson, who wants to find Lacy "for a reason; and Lacy's dad, the movie's protagonist.
And while he had calls from as far away as California and Utah from actors interested in the roles, Brown said, "I don't want actors and actresses. I know who I wanted, somebody able to fit the part without having to act."
He said he would rather not have someone walk in, take off a suit and don leathers to "act" like TJ.
"The more authentic you are, the better," he stressed. "I'd much rather prefer no acting experience."
Asked what makes him think his film will succeed when Hollywood is filled with producers making bombs, Brown said, "Any movie you write has to be original; five out of 10 movies are knockoffs of something else. This film is original."
He said the independent movie industry is "huge" and looking for those original scripts.
Although making money is obviously a goal, sending a message about the high incident of abuse is more important to Brown, who is seeking support from the Christina House and Mary Kay Foundation.
"It hits home with a lot of people, especially in this area," he said.
Local musicians are writing music for the film, which Brown will shoot himself.

Brown already has plans for his next DreamFade Entertainment production: "The Loch," a good, old-fashioned ghost story based on Gretchen's Lock.
"The last scary movie I saw was "The Exorcist." I want to bring back the eeriness and creepiness of that film."
 
Real-life couple will play opposite each other on screen




WELLSVILLE If the chemistry between the two lead characters in "Muddy Waters" seems realistic, it might be due to the off-screen relationship between cast members.
Lacy Cramer will be played by Sidni Livolsi, while her love interest, TJ, will be portrayed by Dustin Culp. Both are from Wellsville and, in real life, they are a couple.
Casting them for the leads in his movie came about somewhat by chance, according to producer Terry Brown.
Auditions were held in April at the KMQX station on Main Street and were filmed so Brown and other production people could review them, after which call-backs began.
At that point, potential cast members read the script with each other, and this week, scripts were handed out to those lucky enough to be chosen for parts.
Although Livolsi has no acting experience, Brown said, "I knew when she walked in the door that's who we were picking, even though we had another girl audition."
He added, "I wouldn't have picked anyone else for TJ." Culp also has no acting background but fits the bill of the "good-looking, rough biker type" Brown was seeking .
The couple wanted to audition but Brown was on the roof of his building, working.
"I got a text and (in the bright sunshine) couldn't read it very well. I thought it said they 'don't want to come now.' I climbed off the roof and saw a car sitting outside, and these two came in. The text said they wanted to 'come right now,'" Brown laughed.
He was on the phone when Livolsi and Culp came in and he told his caller, "TJ and Lacy just walked in the door."
"That was awesome," Brown said.
Boardman resident Joe Ezzo will play Mike, TJ's "beer drinking, pot smoking" brother and, although he also has no acting experience, brings with him a background working with a support group for abused people at Youngstown State University which will fit with the movie's theme.
Wellsville resident and businessman Michael Vinci will play Detective Grayson who "wants to find Lacy for a reason," and Brown said, "When he's reading, he's right on."
Vinci has played extras in some well-known films, including "Revenge of the Nerds."
Ian Braslawce of East Liverpool will play Lacy's dad, "the bad guy," and has done some acting, Brown said.
Supporting roles include Lacy's friends Linda, who will be played by East Liverpool resident Jessica Cooper, and Becca, who had not yet been cast at the time of this writing.
While he didn't cast those with a lot of acting experience, Brown said, "That's what I wanted, kinda local, the Joe next door, someone able to walk into the part."
He received a "ton of audition papers" for people interested in being extras and said anyone still interested should come to the studio on Main Street and complete a form.
"This was the big part, getting it cast. If everything goes right, we'll be filming by the end of May," Brown said.
Posters for the movie should be distributed soon, after local businessman Larry Merriman donated a color laser printer for that purpose.
 
Ok.. fiinally got a kickstart page up.. The main thing I am working on is putting up a video defining the film.. but other than that.. can anyone give me some suggestions on what I might add or change? or even remove?
Click to expand...

There are a few problems I can see right away. I don't think that image is doing you any justice at all. It looks like it was slapped together really quick with a cheap and nasty lens flair effect. The semi transparent pic of your actress looks squshed. It looks really cheap. That's something that could be fixed. You could pay a talented web design student or someone looking to get into web design full time a small amount (or free, if they're willing, for their portfolio) to design you a little website for your funding quest. And someone to do you a convincing poster.

If I had money to throw around at projects other than my own, I'd be looking at the ones that looked like they'd be going places. I know graphics have nothing to do with your final film - but it certainly helps with a first impression. If your poster is cheap, people might assume that your film will be too, as silly as it sounds. If anything, great visuals at first glance make people look harder at the things that really matter - story, concept, etc.

The website as with the images looks cheap. It's tacky. It's annoying. Make a simple website that doesn't open up extra windows. Just one page with headings like "Cast, news, crew" etc etc. You have 404 errors on your page! Not to mention when you click on "story" or "cast" etc, you're presented with this weird template and it just looks like it was hashed together in five minutes with a cheap template. Again, if you're willing to cut corners on this very crucial part of pre production, what else are you cutting corners on?

Pictures on several sources of your cast and crew look like myspace photos. It's amazing what you can do with a cheap digital camera and 15 minutes in photoshop.

Right now there's nothing going on with the kickstart page that would make me want to invest even $5. I don't know what your film is actually about. There's this summary on your page but it really doesn't sell your story at all. It goes on about this and that, but it's not what investors care about. I don't know what it's going to look like. Everything so far looks really unprofessional.

I'm not saying all this to be a prick - but these are all things you have the control to fix now. Even if you don't have a trailer or samples of footage, it's amazing how much people will be willing to invest IF they can see some kind of proof that you're on the top of your game. How? By knocking people out of the park with every single thing you show. Be it a photo or a website -- whatever. Don't get me wrong - you don't have to have amazing looking graphics and sites etc. Not at all. It just needs to look professional. Simple is best. Make it really simple. But effective.

You need to sell the film to us. Why is this film worth investing in? What's going to happen with it? What makes you think it's better than the other projects on the site? If you had 20 seconds to beg in desperation for money, what would you say?

Good luck with your film. Tighten your game plan up and I'm sure you'll get your funding. It's hard enough getting funding without a trailer or proof of concept -- so you really have to use everything else you've got to sell the idea.

I like the title, Muddy Water. :beer:
 
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Thank you... that was what I was looking for.. I agree..

When I created the site, I had to take what pics I could get.. We had everyone come in yesterday for new headshots.
THe design of the site, Yeah i wanted a simple one page site/ with maybe frames so everythign opens in the same screen or something.. Will def have to work on that.

I am puttign together a video of a descriptino of what we are doing and what Muddy Water erally stands for.. We have a alot of groups supporting us now and don't want to let anyone down .. So thanks for youre words and I WILL take them and run with it.. Will update more as we go on this



Terry
 
Ok everyone.. I am back at it.. We have started working on the film Muddy Water again ...
The entire script has taken a make-over. and is being shot in the horror genre...
The little girl Lacy was abused when she was young and created Rea as her protector... The film follows Rea as she is coming home..
Like I've stated in other posts we are working on a low to no budget and working with what we have.. Shooting on a DVX100a.. I have a Redrock M2.. but not sure if I'll be using that. Seems that I can get a much cleaner and better picture without it. For the shots that I need shallow DOF. I will either xzoom in or use my Canon T3..
Here are a few screen grabs of some footage shot yesterday. the cemetery one is one that will appear in her night terrors.... the others I call the act "Coming Home"...
I would love any and all comments from you guys here.. I have been reading and learning from most of you for a long time and I value all of your input...
　
the website is still http://www.muddywatermovie.com I know the site doesnt do alot of justice for a film website. but for now it's a place for information ... As I go I hope to be able to get someone to work with us to create a "Real" site...

I did a fast colorgrade on the grabs jsut to see what could be done with what I had so far
　
Thanks
Terry
 
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