I've Been Tagged!

Fun Joel did it. He reached out to the scribosphere and they responded. Dave over at Man Bytes Hollywood tagged William of This Savage Art, who in turn called me out. Here are my quick answers which I'm sure will change once I submit them:

ONE (1) earliest film-related memory:
Sneaking out of my bedroom when I was 5 to catch a glimpse of Magic, a horror film starring Anthony Hopkins and one scary knife toting ventriloquist dummy. My parents, along with my Aunt and Uncle were watching it on HBO, and I watched it right with them, without their knowledge, hiding my eyes now and again.

TWO (2) favorite lines from movies:

"Here's to five miserable months on the wagon, and all the irreparable harm it has caused me." The Shining

"I wanna be just like you. I figure all I need, is a lobotomy and some tights." The Breakfast Club

THREE (3) jobs you’d do if you could not work in the “biz”:
1. Prog metal maestro
2. Football coach
3. Bounty Hunter

FOUR (4) jobs you actually have held outside the industry:
1. Construction worker/Carpenter
2. EA Sports Game Tester
3. Pizza Hut Delivery driver
4. Linen's N Things Backroom/Shipper

THREE (3) book authors I like:
1. Bret Easton Ellis
2. Anne Rice
3. Stephen King

TWO (2) movies youÂ’d like to remake or properties youÂ’d like to adapt:

1. I'd like to adapt the Poe Biography, Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-ending Remembrance by Kenneth Silverman.

2. I'd like to adapt Tale of the Body Thief by Anne Rice.

ONE (1) screenwriter you think is underrated:

I think John Hughes is underrated. If you look at his writing credits in the 80's, and the fact that he wrote Ferris in 6 days and Breakfast 24 hours, it's obvious he was a very skilled screenwriter. Too many people lump him in with the horrible eighties, but he was so much more than the others. There's a reason his films hold up today, and I think it's because of his understanding of character interaction, and universal themes that will never die.

Dutch (1991)
Career Opportunities (1991)
Home Alone (1990)
Christmas Vacation (1989)
Uncle Buck (1989)
The Great Outdoors (1988)
She's Having a Baby (1988)
Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987)
Some Kind of Wonderful (1987)
Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
Pretty in Pink (1986)
Weird Science (1985)
European Vacation (1985) (also story)
The Breakfast Club (1985)
Sixteen Candles (1984)
Nate and Hayes (1983)
Vacation (1983)
Mr. Mom (1983)
Class Reunion (1982)



THREE (3) people I'm tagging to answer this meme next:
MovieQuill, Could You Describe The Ruckus?, The Wildwoods!

Horror Too Much For White Collar Corpses

Listen to these nice comments about Hostel:

In a shocker that rivaled anything in the movie itself, Lionsgate's horror movie Hostel debuted at the top of the box office with an estimated $20.1 million over the weekend. It pushed the previous No. 1 film, Disney's The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe, which brought in about $15.4 million, into second place. Universal's King Kong dropped to third with about $12.5 million. The strong showing of Hostel, which played in only 2,195 theaters, left analysts aghast. "Hostel tops Narnia and we're all going to hell," headlined cinematical.com. The Associated Press described the box office results as "sheer torture." The British website monstersandcritics.com grudgingly remarked, "Not a bad bit of instant profit for a cheaply made splatter flick."

Horror gets no respect despite it's the easiest way to make a profit, and has been forever. Keep sending out your crappy Adam Sandler pics, your remakes and your Rom/Coms. You can spend under 1 million(Cabin Fever) and make a big chunk of change with a horror film. Get over it !

Blood And Guts-For A Fee

I wrote a certain special FX/Makeup company about my film, and sent them the script. Here's the response email, with some funny FX shots described. The **** represents my editing, as I didn't want to give certain shots away.


Jason,
Thanks for sending me the script for "Generator". As a horror fan, I really enjoyed the plot, and was very intrigued by the effects involved in the film. I broke the script down into most of the effects I would need to fabricate. There are a lot of prop pieces that can be casted off of the actors, and others that can be bought easily and dressed. Below is a list of the effects I saw in the script.

Prosthetic Neck
Tubing
Fake Sledgehammer
Fake Wrist and Hand
Bruised girl
Platter of meat?
Statue's arms
Fake Head for **** Drilled ***
Body Parts
Mary Hexan - Swollen Eye Piece
Scalp props
Miscellaneous Guts
Fake Torso - Circular Saw
Fake Arm
Metal Poker Prop
Rotted Face In Plastic Bag
Vomit
**** Wound in Thigh
Fingers and Eyeballs Props
Scalp of Mary Hexan - Wig
Fake ******** Leg - Sawzall
Severed Foot In ****
Screwdriver to ***
Pickaxe to head - Fake Head
Hatchet dismemberment ** ******** **** **********
Dagger to ****** back
Pickaxe through ****** *** **********

If there are any that are being handled by art department or wardrobe, please let me know. I can provide all of the effects listed below by March for the pre-production cost of **** ******** dollars. My day rate on set is **** ******* dollars per 12 hours of shooting, and this includes on set supplies. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me. This sounds like an awesome script, and would love to be a part of it.


Thanks again for the opportunity.

********

Atmosphere Vs Plot

Reading over my script for Generator, I can see how it may be underwhelming to readers. When I read it, I know in my head the shot, the lighting, the type of music...I have the finished project in my head. The story, or plot, is not a brand new one. Some of the scenes are a hodge podge, of a rehash, of some of my favorite films which I unwittingly emulated through my subconscious fandem. So when asked why did I choose this script to be my first film, I had to think about it. Was it the allure of knowing the horror audience so well? Was it that they will watch even the most ridiculous movies if they're entertaining, or gory, or both? Was it my bitterness and anger coming to a boiling point, and this is the spillage? I think a little of all these things led me to horror. I also think horror can be well represented even if it has no budget. The horror community is a forgiving one. We find the good in all the bad. And heap praise for effort. No other genre gets as many reprieves as horror, and I think it's because no other genre gets shit on more by the 'mainstream' than horror. So it's like being in a clique. We get it. You don't. And we're alright with that. I believe Eli Roth said it best on his solo commentary for Cabin Fever when he said, "If a horror film makes over $100 million, it's a thriller. And I think that's kind of bullshit. The Sixth Sense is horror. So is Silence of the Lambs." In other words, if it gains critical acclaim, and is accepted by the masses, the studios have such a bad connotation with horror, it immediately has to be repackaged under the horror pseudonym of thriller.

And I think that is bullshit. So anyway, back to plot vs atmosphere-I have decided that while the plot is solid, it's not all that mind blowing. There is no trick ending. It's a straight up 70's/80's style merge. I decided to use a Argento styled lighting scheme, such as Suspiria or Inferno. It's going to be draped in color. It's going to be draped in shadow. There are going to be long, steady tracking shots, and a lot of steadicam. No Mtv style here. More along the lines of Halloween and The Shining. I feel the atmosphere is most important. You take a slow buildup, with a unnerving atmosphere and score, and your success is almost assured. The plot is there, enough to warrant it's inclusion. But the movie itself is an experience I want people to feel. I don't need them to think and try to figure out the film. I just want them to feel like they may be next.

The World Is A Toilet Pt 2-The Nonbelievers Close To Home

YOU ARE DELUSIONAL! So says my girlfriend. Nice huh? Apparently I am so out of touch with the real world that I just assume support for my movie. For instance, she thinks I'm assuming the location will be granted to me. How dare I! I do assume that since the location is my stepfathers business/warehouse. I'm delusional because I wrote in a house location patterned after my best friend of 20 years home. I do assume he would allow me to film there for a couple of weekends, but any home would do. I am quite delusional because making a film while working during the week will be too taxing on me. I am only going to be filming on Sundays, and the odd Sat. night. I don't think that will hurt me too much. She says nobody makes it in this business. Nobody makes it in this business if they don't have the drive and passion to continue at all costs. You can't be a General, or a leader when you're not paying people. I can if I inspire people to believe in the project. That's what a good General, or any leader for that matter, does-inspires.

In other words, I am going up a snow covered mountain with none of the fancy survival gear. Interesting...that's how I would have described my life prior to this endeavor.

The Panasonic DVX100A is mine!

Bought it off a nice fellow from the DVXuser forums for $2100. Says it's in perfect condition, with low hours. We shall see. I saved about $1000, all told. I'm excited to get hands on with it. Next up-the Anamorphic adapter!

On another note, I was very depressed when I heard Dick Clark last night. He sounded awful, and has aged to...well...look his age. I hate mortality.