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Devil's Vein Update

It's been busy lately. Along with editing, writing, and planning to shoot the flashback scene now that the leaves are back out, I've been meeting with other filmmakers, discussing their projects as well as Devil's Vein. I'm considering making the rounds to numerous horror film conventions to promote our movie and that's exciting. Not only do I believe in our movie but I love to be on the road, meeting new people, experiencing places I've never been. There are contacts to be made.

Lately, in post production, I've raised more money for our movie than I did in pre-production. I guess the fact that we have most of the principle photography behind us is a major attraction to those looking to support an independent movie. It's a reality as opposed to a dream.

I'm very optimistic regarding the potential of the movie. I really believe we could get a distribution deal from a horror distribution company out there once we get it into the world. But I want to be patient and be certain that it's all it can be before giving it legs. Rushing any piece of art into the world is not only counter productive to your original creative vision but bad management of a product also.

I continue to raise money for post production and film festivals, and look forward to releasing it when the time is right.. 

A month ago we wrapped...

Here we are a month after the curtains closed on Devil's Vein 3-day movie shoot in the woods on WNC. I've had a lot of time to reflect, determine what worked and what didn't, and why. Obviously, more time would have been ideal, translating to more money, of course, to buy more time.

I continue to schedule pick-up shots and scenes or shots here and there that could not be acquired during our 3-day shoot. I have a lot more to shoot. It's tricky with Spring springing but since most of the shots are at night, it can be accomplished. We still have a flashback scene to film but I prefer waiting until Spring for a different look and feel from the core footage.

It's a dreary day and I'm coffee-shopping at the local bean dive. Nice day actually. I'm not opposed to a drop or two of rain here and there. I'm still working on cleaning out our 3 extra bedrooms to make an imminent move easier when the time arrives. It's a long process deciding what I might or might not need for future productions but at the same time, it is liberating to get rid of all the crap that has collected mysteriously over the years.

I just emailed a friend/colleague regarding the ins and outs of producing a production because I will probably go that route with my next movie.  Regardless - I love it all.

3-day shoot in the books.

This past weekend we had our 3-day horror shoot in the woods of WNC. The cast showed up extremely prepared and the crew was as efficient as any crew could possibly be. We busted our butts for 3 days and completed what we had to have with just minutes to spare before sunrise. I won't lie. I didn't get all the shots I wanted. In the end I had to cut corners to ensure all scenes were represented.  I plan to see what I can do to patch up spots here and there where I feel that we were unable to spend the time necessary to capture what I originally had in mind. But all I can say is if I didn't have the wonderful, talented cast that I had, there is no way in hell we would have gotten this thing this close to completion. And the crew deserves equal credit. They hustled around setting up locations, placing lights high into trees, cutting bramble and such, problem solving, and simply were there whenever I needed them. Cast and crew were amazing. This  was my first production with a production manager and I must say that I can never go back now. Terry, serving as my assistant director also, was a diamond during this three days, I shutter to think what might have transpired without him on the set. He allowed me to focus of the cast only, ensuring that I got the dialog delivered as I needed.

On the set my fingers were numb from the cold and the tips hurt like hell. I fell I think a total of 3 times, once when running backwards with the camera, another time when I tripped into a culvert and a third time when I was just so tired I'm not sure what happened but suddenly I was rolling around on the ground like a drunken fool. Camera was never harmed.

I only got 2 hours of sleep the night before the production began and then only a couple of hours per day until it was all over Monday morning. Each day when I got home I had to prepare props and such for that day's shoot and then I was at the cabin until after 5pm Monday cleaning.

The following day I visited a coffee shop in town with my wife and kid and when my wife took the little one to play on the stairs at his request, I moved from a table to the plush area. Probably not a great choice because I ended up falling asleep reading a magazine article. I awoke ten minutes or so later to a teenager in an opposite chair watching me from the corners of his eyes. I don't know if I was drooling or what but apparently he was intrigued.

Then today at my little boys favorite toy store I sat on the floor like I always do while he played with the large train set. Again, somehow, I fell asleep, this time sitting on the floor. He awoke me when he ordered me out of his way as he was navigating a long succession of train cars around the track so I figured I must have been out for only a minute or so. And no one was staring at me this time.

After he and I got home today my wife met us at the door for hugs then asked him what we did today. I wanted to listen to his version so I sat on the floor and listened just inside the door. Soon I decided it was more comfortable to lay down and the next thing I know I awoke about an hour later lying with the shoes and door stopper.

I've watched some of the footage and am mostly pleased with what I saw. I still have a lot of footage of review. My camera had been acting up from time to time during the shoot and someone said it was probably due to the extreme cold. At times when it acted up, apparently the footage kind of weirded out so fortunately I took a number of takes during each scene.

Now comes the very long task of editing. It is one of my favorite parts of filmmaking. Just me and my computer, piecing together another cool project. I am not sure when I will actually begin that stage of the process, but it will be when I'm fully refreshed in mind, body and soul. That is what it deserves.

Just over 2 days before we begin...

Here it is already, around 9pm on Wednesday night. This coming Saturday the cast & crew of Devil's Vein will assemble at 9am, head to the cabin, rehearse and have a meeting at noon. Then at 12:30pm I head out with the core 6 to begin filming Devil's Vein, kicking off a 3-day film shoot.

I have scheduled little time to breathe during the production, realizing that this 3-day shoot won't afford us the time for a lot of casual conversations, elaborate shots setups, and casual food breaks as a team. It will be hustle, hustle. The cast will have times when they can relax, talk, eat, rest, or whatever between their scenes and the crew will be able to alternate at times.

We will not shoot all scenes during this 3-day shoot. Remaining will be a few minor shots that will take less than a day to capture. Practically none of the special effects will be shot during this weekend. The setup for each effect would take too long and since time is so valuable I plan to use it on the talent present and not a bunch of dummies, as in stunt double dummies for some of the actors.

My back is beginning to hurt somewhat and I'm very tired. I have a lot to do tomorrow and Friday. A lot. I'll be glad when I have a prep team to work with because I should be concentrating entirely on shots and aesthetics at this point in time. I definitely won't post again until after the shoot.

It's time to set sail.

Less than 3 weeks...

Today I got into gear and made progress on a stunt dummy double for the movie. I think 'she' will work just fine for the movie. Regarding a different matter, I had to cut a key actor from the cast today for lack of responding to requests regarding his availability for rehearsals. It was not really a tough decision even though we are less than 3 weeks from production because I had given every opportunity for this individual to contact me. He gave a great audition but failed to reassure my mind that he would be prepared on day one. I couldn't risk it. I have too many wonderful actors on this project to let any one person let them down.

We may now have a cabin for the movie. I checked it out briefly the other day but plan to walk some of the property in a day or two and take notes. I feel confident about this location.

I meet with an actor tomorrow regarding the role of Mr. Canton. I feel good about this lead.

I ordered an extra battery for the camera last night, and some master tapes, then today I ordered a couple of rolls of film stock for some of the flashback scenes to be captured on an older film camera. I think the contrast in appearance will be interesting for the movie.

I have a lot to do before March 3rd. I'm a little nervous. I mean, I have a LOT to do. I will be prepared to do each special effect once. If it doesn't fly, I will re-shoot it at a later date. I won't have time to re-shoot a shot over and over. Especially when you're dealing with blood. It's messy. It's time consuming.

It's late, I'm tired, but I will inevitably lie in bed and wonder how the hell I will get all this stuff done before March 3rd. A couple of day ago, I had to go to Greenville, today to Hendersonville, tomorrow to Asheville, the next day back to the cabin. How can I get things done when I'm running around all day. I really need an active pre-production crew to delegate some of these tasks too but don't have the budget.

Perhaps next time.

First rehearsal.

Our first rehearsal is behind us. It went well. I shot some casual tripod footage of some of the rehearsal to include in our behind-the-scenes feature for our DVD. I wasn't too concerned with perfect delivery this afternoon. This was the first time the cast and crew had been present together in the same room so it was much about allowing each piece of the puzzle to discover and get comfortable with its place in the big picture alongside the other pieces. I include myself in that analogy. I too am but a small piece of the larger picture. Each piece is important. Each is needed to deliver this project across the finish line.

I appreciate everyone's willingness to set aside time from their busy lives to come together to create something - with me - with each other. The cast and crew of Devil's Vein is not merely a group of talented individuals but wonderful individuals too. I am honored to work beside them in this fascinating and challenging process.

I can't wait to progress down the tracks with them.