FEATURE: Stricken the Feature - A Matt Sconce Film

Matt Sconce said:
In the future I will probably have smaller font and less spacing between names. I also will not have contract for TWO songs. I will have the composer full in the time after the first song so I have more control. Thanks guys.
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Excellent.

That is exactly what I meant by growth. Look, there is a LOT of my previous work that I hate, because I KNOW it is bad. The only way to grow is to be honest with yourself, and not think it's great, because it's your "opinion". Remember the majority opinion, in the end, is what matters. There are some things we will change with our next feature based on the majority opinion.

Obviously a good story is first, but even that can be affected by how we can tell the majority will feel while watching it.

Hope that makes sense!
 
Rant mode: ON

Funny (and not so funny) about the musician credits. I've done many feature films as a scoring mixer/engineer and am constantly annoyed that my talented musician friends rarely get individual credit for their enormous creative contributions, while people whose work has little or nothing to do with the actual film itself (drivers, caterers, etc.) do. I don't mean to diminish the importance of the latter, and if they really want screen credit for it then fine (although I think if I were one of those drivers or caterers I'd actually be a little embarrassed by it - I mean when was the last time you heard a theatergoer comment "wow - that film must've had great catering!"). But *not* crediting the members of the orchestra (all too often) who *performed brilliantly throughout the film* seems like an outrage. I believe it's actually about different unions and all (musicians have their own, and it's always been notoriously weak), but it really rankles me.

I should add that I've always gotten credited on screen for my contributions (even though I'm not a member of any union), but the wonderful musicians I work with deserve it at least as much as I do, and quite arguably more. It's blatantly unfair to their extraordinary talent, hard work and the many, many years of training it took for them to be skilled enough to get hired for a studio feature film score.

Argggh...

Rant mode: OFF
 
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Hey Matt,
I don't know if this is helpful at all at this point, but I fully agree with Brandon and can report that there were grumblings around me in the theatre from people I don't know as well - with a big burst when the second song started. I think that's about when the house lights in the theatre went up, too. Scrolling but leaving the whole screen between each name is pretty unbelievable. I'm sure you've covered this already, but did the contracts say both songs had to play in entirety? Even big name artists often only get half of their song in the credits - just enough for the studio to get it on a soundtrack album.
 
randin said:
Hey Matt,
I don't know if this is helpful at all at this point, but I fully agree with Brandon and can report that there were grumblings around me in the theatre from people I don't know as well - with a big burst when the second song started. I think that's about when the house lights in the theatre went up, too. Scrolling but leaving the whole screen between each name is pretty unbelievable. I'm sure you've covered this already, but did the contracts say both songs had to play in entirety? Even big name artists often only get half of their song in the credits - just enough for the studio to get it on a soundtrack album.
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Point taken gentlemen. Thanks! :thumbsup:
 
Hey, I also wanted to throw up a quick note on one of my earlier comments... I want to make sure everyone here understands I was not accusing Matt, Gary, or any of the Stricken team of being "self-important".

I have since modified my post to read "they felt (to me) obnoxious and self-important".

I don't want to judge the motives or intentions of these guys, because I KNOW that was not, and is not their goal. Thanks.
 
randin said:
did the contracts say both songs had to play in entirety? Even big name artists often only get half of their song in the credits - just enough for the studio to get it on a soundtrack album.
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Right. Licensed songs are often faded out or edited in the crawl to a couple of minutes or so, then on to the next. Could be a good way to solve the issue.

About 95% of actual theater crowds bolt as soon as the credits start of course, but it's completely different in a festival or screening where professional courtesy dictates that almost everybody sits them out. Going way long there will not endear you to many, and critics in particular could be troublesome.

Walter Murch (editor of The Conversation, Apocalypse Now, many others) once said "the two most important parts of a film are the beginning and the ending...and the beginning isn't very important". By his metric, you certainly wouldn't want to turn people off with the credits...
 
So maybe in the future besides tightening up credits I should have a different credit role for festivals so people don't wait as long. Good advice. I wanted the musicians to have their due and am fine with the credits though I may have changed them for the festival which makes sense. We do not have a soundtrack planned so I wanted the artists to show their music. If someone wants the change for distribution I am good..but if not, I can change for the future. Thanks!:thumbsup:
 
A local Irish musician named Hugh Lehane came down to LA to see Stricken. I was interested to get his take on the film and recently he posted a blog about it and mentioned his thoughts on Stricken. I was very excited to read them because I felt he "got" what we were trying to do and that is very rewarding. Here are the comments about Stricken by Hugh Lehane:


"Well last Tuesday night at the' Action On Film' film festival in Pasadena I finally got to see this movie 'Stricken'. I have put picture stills and movie trailers from this movie in my blogs before so many of you maybe familiar with it already, for those of you who are not let me briefly tell you about it.

Stricken is a horror film that tells the story of a young woman (Sarah Black) who after the death of her Mother and the brutal suicide of her father finds herself losing grip on reality, haunted by horrific visions and dreams Sarah cannot escape the feeling that something evil is reaching out to her.

I don't want to give too much away about the movie here but for all my blog readers who love all things Irish I think you'll especially love the Irish folklore twist to the story.

Personally I f**king LOVED IT. This movie KICKS all types of A**!! In my opinion the horror movie genre has a certain structure, dimensions, if you will, a box that all horror movies are in a sense confined into style wise, but somehow 'Stricken' without excessive gore or predictable shock moments to me really stretches those un spoken boundaries of the horror movie genre while remaining true to the horror genre formula that works. Filled with tension and dread 'Stricken' director Matt Sconce and his cast and crew have truly created a psychologically terrifying, movie.

When you see this movie you'll find it hard to believe that it was made without major studio backing. The cast and the acting is top notch and the special effects are nothing short of extraordinary. Stephanie French who plays the main character, Sarah Black, is incredible. This is her first motion picture yet she gives the kind of performance you'd expect from a seasoned movie star. Her fellow star David Fine (The Pursuit Of Happiness, Rent) is also outstanding and gives a subtle yet very deep and emotionally layered performance. Christina Tellifson who plays Sarah Blacks best friend in the movie also does brilliantly showing a great range of dramatic and comedic moments in her performance.

A few days after I saw 'Stricken', at the conclusion of the 'Action On Film festival' the movie won two awards at the festival. Best Horror Film and Best Visual Effects! I am not surprised it really is a great movie. Congrats to Matt Sconce and all the cast and crew...I can't wait to see it again! I'll let you all know all the latest news on this as it happens.


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I so cant wait to see it Matt...have it right here to watch this weekend...hearing all these wonderful things makes me impatient...!
 
Hey Matt, is there any chance us poor crew that don't live near the LA/Fresno region anymore will get to see a copy of the finished film?

Back to the credits (since I know that Matt and Gary are so eager to continue talking about them… hehe) I would like to personally thank you guys for giving us sound folk individual single card credits. It's probably the only time in any of our lives where people will actually be able to see our names clearly in the credits!
 
stan harrington said:
I so cant wait to see it Matt...have it right here to watch this weekend...hearing all these wonderful things makes me impatient...!
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Thanks Stan! I am excited to hear your thoughts. Speaking of thoughts, here is a video of some people's reactions after coming out of the Stricken screenings. Enjoy!:




Brad S. said:
Hey Matt, is there any chance us poor crew that don't live near the LA/Fresno region anymore will get to see a copy of the finished film?

Back to the credits (since I know that Matt and Gary are so eager to continue talking about them… hehe) I would like to personally thank you guys for giving us sound folk individual single card credits. It's probably the only time in any of our lives where people will actually be able to see our names clearly in the credits!
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No Problem Brad! We wanted everyone who worked so hard over this year and a half to be recognized for what they did. We will figure out a way to show you the movie soon. :thumbsup:
 
Well, this distribution road is interesting. There are many things I had no idea about that I am now learning. I am glad we never settled on our quality because it is helping. HD Cam SR master, Digibeta masters, etc. Look into it and include it in the budget. We have several options for Foreign sales representation and I am trying to figure out which way to go. I am anxiously waiting to hear news from someone who will be seeing the movie this week as it may lead to a domestic deal. Also, Stricken is entering another festival. Details to come soon.
 
Full Scene from Stricken- Letting go:
Choose 720p on youtube for best visual results



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Please post this everywhere. More to come!
-Matt Sconce
 
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