Back on the horse.

Happy New Year, everybody. And I hope you had a good Christmas/Chanukah/Saturnalia. I spent the last days of 2010 recovering from surgery (hernia repair). Then I got the flu. So, yeah, good times.

But it's the first Monday of 2011, so it's time to get back on the horse, ready or not. I am actually excited about 2011, as it is the year Interplanetary will finally hit DVD (and VOD). Also, one of my bands (Delicate Cutters) has a new album coming out (probably around the same time as the Interplanetary DVD). And I'm planning to shoot a feature with Trap, finish up that anthology thing from last year, and write a story for non-filmic media (though I'll probably turn that story into a screenplay at some point).


On top of all of that, I'm going to try to watch more movies and blog more. Or at least mention the movies I watch on this blog. In that spirit...

Watched on January 1...

Femme Fatale: mostly inconsequential/completely entertaining noir homage from Brian DePalma.

Passenger 57: both worse (some of the dialog) and better (some of the action set pieces) than I remembered. Also: always bet on black.

Wild Wild West: didn't finish this one. It's about as bad as everybody says, though even a bad Sonnenfield movie has some visual charms.

Watched on January 2...

Cyrus: I guess Greenberg and Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World didn't kill mumblecore. Cyrus isn't terrible, but that "indie dramedy" aesthetic just irritates the hell out of me.

Stones in Exile: by the numbers examination of the making of an incredible album (the Stones' Exile on Main Street). The subject matter easily trumps the filmic shortcomings.

Poltergeist: hadn't seen this one in years. And the Netflix streaming version was cropped from 'scope to 1.78:1. Still, a fun 80s Spielberg (he produced, apparently in a very hands-on manner) flick. And I love the 80s cinematography and special effects.

If you're a Netflix fan (and you should be--at $8/month it's the best entertainment value out there), check out InstantWatcher.com. It's a great site for keeping track of what's available to "Watch Instantly."

Four days in...

New movie.

We started working on a new short last weekend, Overtime. It's going to be part of that anthology movie I mentioned a while back.

It's been interesting so far for many reasons. A couple of big ones: we're shooting on the relatively new Canon 7D, and we're working with cinematographer David Brower for the first time. David has forgotten more about filmmaking than I'll ever know, and watching him do his thing has been educational to say the least. Also, since he's taking care of the camera, I've actually been spending more time with the actors.

David even managed to find time to take some behind-the-scenes photos with his iPhone. Like this one...


Also, that Reel Blood I mentioned lives up to the hype. Looks great, cleans up easy. Woot.

Pre-production.

Man, I'm beat. It was a jam-packed weekend of pre-production for the anthology movie. Trap and I scouted a location Friday night, and Chuck and I (and Kelly Marshall and John) held auditions on Saturday.


On Sunday, Trap and I fine-tuned the awesome dolly he built. I also played a show with one band on Saturday night and had rehearsal with another on Sunday, but I guess that's neither here nor there.

Here's a little camera dolly test footage, via Vimeo. First shot features Trap as star and dolly grip, me riding the dolly and keeping an eye on the camera. Second shot features Trap as star, me as dolly grip, camera riding with no operator.

UPDATE: Embedded version of dolly test footage...

Anthological.

Did I mention I'm getting ready to direct another feature? Well, at least part of a feature.


My good pal Arik Sokol is putting together a horror/science fiction anthology movie. It will consist of five short films by five different directors, including Chuck Hartsell (co-director of Hide and Creep, star of Interplanetary), Robb Rugan (director of Alice's Misadventures in Wonderland, DP of Hide and Creep), and Mike Harring (director of The Mountain, the River, and the Road). And me.

After Interplanetary, I'm looking forward to tackling something a little more... well, simple. Not that a movie with five directors will be simple. But I'm hoping to have my piece of it shot by mid-April. (Yes, mid-April of 2010.)