Since I don't update this nearly as continuously as I used to you can follow me on Twitter (or just look on the right side of the page) and see what I'm up to.
Things are going well with Sinecure Industries, we'll be coming out with our second app in a week or two. I am also continuing to work out the details for The Last Sermon (my 15 minute drama) with the people that would help me make it/star in it.
Other than that, things are pretty busy! Once I make some time to dive headlong into my ghost story I'll post some updates about what it takes to really get into a good horror film that doesn't really show much (and not like Paranormal).
Friday, November 13, 2009
Friday, October 9, 2009
Holy Crap, Where Have I Been?
Good question, my apologies for not posting for the past few months! Instead of my usual ramblings I'll make a handy list of what I've been working on:
1. Finished the outline and am working on a first draft of a traditional ghost story
2. Wrote a short (15 minutes or so) drama that I plan to film in late November or early December.
3. Started a business developing iPhone apps Direct purchase link and you can follow us at twitter.com/sinecureind there's also more info on our website at Sinecureindustries.com
5. Had my romantic comedy viewed by Village Filmworks, Big Picture Studios, Crandall Productions, LA Feature Film Academy, Ryan Spindell and Sunipa Pictures. Unfortunately I haven't heard back from any of them but you never know.
6. Ling Pan has had 350 views on youtube without me really pushing it, so that's kind of a cool feeling, I should really look into getting that in a short film festival somewhere
7. Today's my birthday, yay.
I'm hoping this new business venture will pan out so that I have both the free time and money to keep filming my own films. Why focus on selling a screenplay (though it would be nice) when I can make the films myself exactly how I envision them? Ling Pan was such a wonderful experience that I'd love to keep doing it. Here's hoping! And hey, for $0.99 you can contribute to my dream :p
P.S. - I'll be looking for actors for my drama in the next month or so; if you're in the NJ area, like working for free and keep weird hours, drop me a line
1. Finished the outline and am working on a first draft of a traditional ghost story
2. Wrote a short (15 minutes or so) drama that I plan to film in late November or early December.
3. Started a business developing iPhone apps Direct purchase link and you can follow us at twitter.com/sinecureind there's also more info on our website at Sinecureindustries.com
5. Had my romantic comedy viewed by Village Filmworks, Big Picture Studios, Crandall Productions, LA Feature Film Academy, Ryan Spindell and Sunipa Pictures. Unfortunately I haven't heard back from any of them but you never know.
6. Ling Pan has had 350 views on youtube without me really pushing it, so that's kind of a cool feeling, I should really look into getting that in a short film festival somewhere
7. Today's my birthday, yay.
I'm hoping this new business venture will pan out so that I have both the free time and money to keep filming my own films. Why focus on selling a screenplay (though it would be nice) when I can make the films myself exactly how I envision them? Ling Pan was such a wonderful experience that I'd love to keep doing it. Here's hoping! And hey, for $0.99 you can contribute to my dream :p
P.S. - I'll be looking for actors for my drama in the next month or so; if you're in the NJ area, like working for free and keep weird hours, drop me a line
Sunday, May 31, 2009
48 Hour Film Project Film, "Ling Pan and the Keys of Deception"
This is a short film entitled "Ling Pan and the Keys of Deception" as created for the 48hour Film Project 5/29-5/31 2009. For the project our genre was "Martial Arts" the object was "Keys" the character was "Bethany Grimes, professional organizer" and the line was "You're not going to believe what I just heard" so we put all those in there! For contact info for anyone involved, please find my e-mail to the right!
Friday, April 10, 2009
The 48 Hour Film Project
Hiya folks. I signed up on Monday for the 48 Hour Film Project in New York and am currently getting my team together. After reading about it and watching a few of the videos it looks like it's going to be a ton of fun.
I'm always open for different ideas and if you're going to be free the last weekend in May, drop me a line and we'll see about finding something for you to do. I've got almost ten people so far to help out, a plan for renting equipment and a few people that actually might know what they're doing, so that's a plus.
Also more fun news, my FINDING DAVID short film will be up on Amazon soon, so that's fun. I'll have more info on that as it comes. Whee!
I'm always open for different ideas and if you're going to be free the last weekend in May, drop me a line and we'll see about finding something for you to do. I've got almost ten people so far to help out, a plan for renting equipment and a few people that actually might know what they're doing, so that's a plus.
Also more fun news, my FINDING DAVID short film will be up on Amazon soon, so that's fun. I'll have more info on that as it comes. Whee!
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Horror: Seeing vs. Imagining
I've been working on an outline for a new horror screenplay the past couple of weeks (and neglecting my updates) and I've decided to take a different approach from my slasher/gore fest.
I got to thinking about what is scarier, what someone else thinks is scary, or what you personally think is scary. The answer is obvious of course, which is why when you're laying in your bed late at night you're way better at giving yourself the heebie jeebies than any movie could muster.
That lead me to come up with a list of movies that don't really show you anything scary but instead let your imagination run wild - and really create a much more memorable experience because of it. The monster isn't the star such as a slasher movie, but the location, the feel; the sense that something is wrong and you want to get the hell out of there.
The Haunting (1963)
This movie doesn't show a thing in terms of monsters/ghosts/etc. It merely sets up the scares, increases the tension and then lets you do the rest. You watch the characters reactions to what's going on around them and they're just as in the dark as you are. One scene that really sticks out is when the large, wooden door is being pressed in, almost to the point of breaking - you're sure that whatever is on the other side is about to burst through and do something awful... and then it leaves. It was a very tense moment because the stomping through the halls had been building and building to that moment. The women were safe for now, but, what if it came back?
The Changeling (1980)
The scariest thing you see in this movie is George C. Scott, by and far. The only real representation of the "ghost" in this story is a wheelchair in a hidden room in the attic, other than that it's the house that is the real scary character. There was no need for special effects (or if it were made now, a weird CGI ghost) to represent what was scary, it was just the atmosphere and the sense of something being wrong that built the tension through the story. What I love about the movie is when things finally seem to be calming down, the problem had been solved and things feel like they're going to be okay, one of the biggest scares of almost any movie ever comes. All it has in it is a mirror and a quick cut - and it was perfect.
I got to thinking about what is scarier, what someone else thinks is scary, or what you personally think is scary. The answer is obvious of course, which is why when you're laying in your bed late at night you're way better at giving yourself the heebie jeebies than any movie could muster.
That lead me to come up with a list of movies that don't really show you anything scary but instead let your imagination run wild - and really create a much more memorable experience because of it. The monster isn't the star such as a slasher movie, but the location, the feel; the sense that something is wrong and you want to get the hell out of there.
The Haunting (1963)
This movie doesn't show a thing in terms of monsters/ghosts/etc. It merely sets up the scares, increases the tension and then lets you do the rest. You watch the characters reactions to what's going on around them and they're just as in the dark as you are. One scene that really sticks out is when the large, wooden door is being pressed in, almost to the point of breaking - you're sure that whatever is on the other side is about to burst through and do something awful... and then it leaves. It was a very tense moment because the stomping through the halls had been building and building to that moment. The women were safe for now, but, what if it came back?
The Changeling (1980)
The scariest thing you see in this movie is George C. Scott, by and far. The only real representation of the "ghost" in this story is a wheelchair in a hidden room in the attic, other than that it's the house that is the real scary character. There was no need for special effects (or if it were made now, a weird CGI ghost) to represent what was scary, it was just the atmosphere and the sense of something being wrong that built the tension through the story. What I love about the movie is when things finally seem to be calming down, the problem had been solved and things feel like they're going to be okay, one of the biggest scares of almost any movie ever comes. All it has in it is a mirror and a quick cut - and it was perfect.
From the moment Woodward arrives at Summersisle you know that something is wrong with that place but you can't quite put your finger on what. I wanted him very much to just get out and leave that place but I also had an interest in him finding in the missing girl, so he couldn't leave until his mission was fulfilled, one way or the other. There is a definite eerie atmosphere throughout the film that starts to get to the main character and the audience as well. Even though the remake has Nicolas Cage punching women while wearing a bear suit, this one is superior.
Les Diaboliques (1955)A man's wife and mistress conspire to kill him, and they do so fairly quick into the film... but did they really kill him? This story deals with guilt and deception and is very tense as the main character seems to be losing her mind over the course of the story. I wouldn't say this is a straight horror film but it certainly delves down that path with the supposed haunting and hallucinations and it has a fantastic story taking place in a French boarding school.
--
It really comes down to what you don't show in these films and the general discomfort the audience feels when watching the film. A good ghost story doesn't have to have any ghosts in it, it just has to have the right feel, the right atmosphere, and some people that stick around to get to the bottom of things instead of getting the hell out of there.
There are a lot of other films that don't reveal who is doing the killing/haunting until the end such as Psycho but I was looking more into the haunted house/place stories that really struck a chord with me. I've got my location all worked out and I'll be starting on the first draft soon enough, and I'm really going to work on the feel of the story and the deteriorating mindset of my poor protagonist.
As for my query letters, I've been pretty slow about getting that in motion but I signed up for my logline to appear in the Inktip paper newsletter that is going out the end of April (I think), so that's a good step. Also through a friend of a friend I managed to get my slasher film in the hands of a reader for the Yari Film Group. They have some great credits but I don't think a slasher is really their style... but hey, you never know!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
The Great Query Blitz
I've been going through my Screenwriter's Marketplace book and I've been finding a ton of producers and agencies to send my query letters out to. They say that only a small fraction of queries get replies, and of those, even fewer with a positive response so I think by sending out a crapload of them, I'm upping my chances.
Of course that's lottery mentality, it's really important to have a strong logline and query letter. In my last post I put up the logline for NO REFUGE and thanks to the help of an anonymous commentator that has a great deal of insight and advice regarding loglines it has since morphed into this:
"After accidentally killing his best friend, a small-town popular teen makes a deal with the cops to set up his troublemaking friends. This leads to him uncovering a dark secret: the cops have been appeasing a group of cannibals with the town's undesirables"
Which tells way more of what the story is actually about. I think my problem was that I was basing my loglines off of blurbs when you press the info button on your cable box as opposed to a detailed, albeit brief, line about what the work is exactly about.
Of course this is still a work in progress logline and I'm always open to new suggestions. It's funny having to sum up 117 pages into two sentences and having them make sense, but I think I've finally got it here. I think.
Regardless, my list is up to over forty places and I'm not even halfway through the alphabet, so that's a good sign. These are all places that are interested in new people and horror features. I have a separate list going for my romantic comedy, but I think I'll just focus on NO REFUGE for now. Hopefully if one place likes it they'll be interested in my other work as well. I may even have a chance to break out my noir thriller PERFECT ENDING, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.
I've also been receiving e-mails from readers and that's really motivating. It's nice to know people are in the same situation as me. I'm always up for reading people's screenplays and having mine read, so please shoot me an e-mail if you'd like to talk, my address is on the side.
I'll post again once the letters start flying - and I'll also be posting some of my thought process as I work on the outline for my new screenplay: a traditional ghost story, sans gore. Should be fun.
Of course that's lottery mentality, it's really important to have a strong logline and query letter. In my last post I put up the logline for NO REFUGE and thanks to the help of an anonymous commentator that has a great deal of insight and advice regarding loglines it has since morphed into this:
"After accidentally killing his best friend, a small-town popular teen makes a deal with the cops to set up his troublemaking friends. This leads to him uncovering a dark secret: the cops have been appeasing a group of cannibals with the town's undesirables"
Which tells way more of what the story is actually about. I think my problem was that I was basing my loglines off of blurbs when you press the info button on your cable box as opposed to a detailed, albeit brief, line about what the work is exactly about.
Of course this is still a work in progress logline and I'm always open to new suggestions. It's funny having to sum up 117 pages into two sentences and having them make sense, but I think I've finally got it here. I think.
Regardless, my list is up to over forty places and I'm not even halfway through the alphabet, so that's a good sign. These are all places that are interested in new people and horror features. I have a separate list going for my romantic comedy, but I think I'll just focus on NO REFUGE for now. Hopefully if one place likes it they'll be interested in my other work as well. I may even have a chance to break out my noir thriller PERFECT ENDING, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.
I've also been receiving e-mails from readers and that's really motivating. It's nice to know people are in the same situation as me. I'm always up for reading people's screenplays and having mine read, so please shoot me an e-mail if you'd like to talk, my address is on the side.
I'll post again once the letters start flying - and I'll also be posting some of my thought process as I work on the outline for my new screenplay: a traditional ghost story, sans gore. Should be fun.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Up and Running (and post #50!)
Hard to believe I've made 50 posts here - guess I wrote a little more than I thought. At any rate I have two versions of a query letter and a whole lot of determination at this point. My first version is the quick "here's the logline, here's my name, kthx" while the other has a small synopsis and a little bit about me. After much debate, changes, alterations, cursing and whatnot I decided to run with the logline as so:
"Strange things are happening in the picturesque town of Pine Falls—the local trouble making teens are going missing and showing up dead."
So - we've got a perfect town in which teenagers are getting killed... little bit of conspiracy? How are the teens troublemakers? Who's behind it all? Strange indeed. Hopefully that will be enough to entice some agents and/or production companies to want to read the entire thing and fall in love with it. Or something.
I ordered the 2009 Screenwriter's and Playwright's Marketplace so I can look up some contact info for people that might be interested in my screenplays. My romantic comedy is good to go as well in case they want to look at more of my work, so I got that going for me.
While waiting for the book to come in I've taken it upon myself to submit to three different places I've found through google the production companies Paradiso Picture, Newlove Films, and the agents of Greyline Entertainment. I did not see them on any of the "beware" lists I checked and I always get a little antsy, haha.
The wheels are in motion, I just have to keep going. Consequently if any production companies or agencies are reading this, feel free to shoot me a line!
"Strange things are happening in the picturesque town of Pine Falls—the local trouble making teens are going missing and showing up dead."
So - we've got a perfect town in which teenagers are getting killed... little bit of conspiracy? How are the teens troublemakers? Who's behind it all? Strange indeed. Hopefully that will be enough to entice some agents and/or production companies to want to read the entire thing and fall in love with it. Or something.
I ordered the 2009 Screenwriter's and Playwright's Marketplace so I can look up some contact info for people that might be interested in my screenplays. My romantic comedy is good to go as well in case they want to look at more of my work, so I got that going for me.
While waiting for the book to come in I've taken it upon myself to submit to three different places I've found through google the production companies Paradiso Picture, Newlove Films, and the agents of Greyline Entertainment. I did not see them on any of the "beware" lists I checked and I always get a little antsy, haha.
The wheels are in motion, I just have to keep going. Consequently if any production companies or agencies are reading this, feel free to shoot me a line!
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