Movie Lovers Only

I’ve got a few things on the horizon I wanted to let you know about.

First of all, a lot of people want to know what the big delay is on making my directorial debut public, especially since the movie has been complete since November.  Well, there are two things keeping it under wraps.  First, the ending credits are incomplete.  Some credits were thrown onto the current copy just so we could make the deadline on a couple of film festivals; we planned to correct them before exhibition.  I worked with a lot of great people for free, so the least I can do is ensure that they’re credited correctly.  So my producer is fixing that the first chance she gets.  I shouldn’t detail the second reason publicly, but I can tell you that there’s just a bit of remaining red tape that it takes time to cut through before we’re allowed to exhibit the film.

In short, we plan to have the film online anytime now.  Hopefully, it won’t stay in limbo for more than a few more days.

Currently, I’m in the midst of a much smaller project I’m directing and co-producing from my own script.  It’s an experimental horror short told through “found footage,” a technique used in independent films The Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity. We’ll shoot it next weekend, and it will be cut and released online in mid-March.  I have another short film project that I’m starting to put together to shoot in the spring, but I’m keeping a lid on details until we’re closer to shooting (hint: it’s really exciting).

Finally, I’ve been hired by a local studio to write the screenplay for a feature (maybe?) film from a producer’s outline.  He and I have had a few conversations about the story and characters, but we’re still in the early stages of figuring this thing out.  Needless to say, it’s a very cool project being made by some very talented people, and I can’t wait to delve deeper into it.

So that’s what’s on the schedule for the next few months.  And if anybody’s wondering, YES, I AM AVAILABLE FOR PAID WORK.  Trust me, I’ll make time.  I’m very flexible.

That’s what I’m going through until April.  A barren wasteland.

Oh, there was promise.  It came in the form of Martin Campbell’s Edge of Darkness, Pierre Morel’s From Paris with Love, and Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island.  2010 could actually have the strongest start for event films in a long time, I said.  Directors of such films as Casino Royale, Taken, and The Departed (among others) kicking off the year?  Who could ask for more?

But these were mirages: the first brought down by lukewarm reactions and a waning star, the second rolling into theaters with little to recommend it based on the marketing, and the third now clinging to its third announced release date.  Why was a film featuring the one-two punch of Scorsese-DiCaprio pushed out of Oscar contention into Low Expectation Land?  That doesn’t bode well for this one, despite a powerful cast.

So far, the only taste of quality has come from a surprisingly fresh The Book of Eli, which has defied critics to carry good box-office numbers and decent word-of-mouth.  I confess that this is the only one I’ve actually seen of those listed above, but I get the impression that I’ve seen the best and done well to avoid the rest.

What’s left to keep me going until blockbuster season?  Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland debuts in a month, but it’s hardly going to replace an action-packed thriller.  Paul Greengrass directs Matt Damon again in de-facto Bourne 4 under the moniker Green Zone the following weekend, but without the franchise behind it, this looks to be little more than a brief distraction, watching Damon defying authority and breaking nameless people’s bones (though I pray I’m wrong).

Truly, the action/thriller genre is in a sad state at the moment.  We have a lot to look forward to once the summer rolls around, but until then, I’m counting on Louis Leterrier’s Clash of the Titans remake to be the oasis I need.  If not, I’m afraid I’m going to run out of adrenaline by the time Iron Man 2 hits theaters.  And that would just be sad.

Clash of the Titans trailers