Film Strategy

Captain's Log Star Date: 9.16.13 Almost 50 years ago today, A Fistful of Dollars was released in 1964. On September 16, 1964, a new kind of Western hero arrived on the scene… in Italy. On that day the first of Sergio Leone’s “Man with No Name” westerns, Fistful of Dollars, opened there, three years before it would arrive in the United States. Casting an American actor, Clint Eastwood, best known for his stint on the TV series Rawhide, Leone reinvented the American Western by not only shooting the film dubbed in Italy but also by creating an operatic style that favored wide screens and epic landscapes, emotional and unusually arranged music by Ennio Morricone, and morally ambiguous characters. At the center of Morricone’s movie was Eastwood, with his side-slung poncho, cigarette and a serenely unyielding visage. Of his star, Leone famously commented, "I like Clint Eastwood because he has only two facial expressions: one with the hat, and one without it.”

Picking your cast is one of the most important decisions you will make as a filmmaker, probably only second to the script you choose to shoot.  Not taking anything away from the beautiful shots, inspired soundtrack and rhythmic edits but it will be the cast embodying the characters and saying their lines that will be what audiences remember most about your movie.  People may say an actor was "born to play that role" and refuse to believe that anyone else could've played that role but actors don't just show up at the filmmaker's doorstep as if delivered by the stork readymade to act as the character.  A director needs to make that vital decision.   A big budget director has the luxury of a team and a casting agency to help him with the decision.  Furthermore, he has access to some of the top actors in the biz vying to be in the film.  An indie director rarely has those advantages.  Because the low budget director does not have the money to cast with the he

Captain's Log. Star date: 9.11.13 A sad day to commemorate, especially when one remembers the helplessness we felt as only a few could actually do something helpful and concrete while the rest of us could only watch. We, artists, came in after the fact... to provide entertainment. Or solace. Or ruminations. Or fantasy. Or revelations. Or reflections.  When confronted with the horrible reality of a tragedy like 9/11 (and let's not forget that all around the world, other people are suffering or have suffered tragedies worse than our 9/11), the artists might feel impotent to do anything compared to the rescue worker or the soldier or even the politician who can move men and mountains in response. But our response comes later after the rescue workers or the soldier or the politicians have played their part.  And we play our part by doing what we do best... providing escapist entertainment.  Or moments of beautiful solace.  Or profound ruminations.  Or scientific, h

Captain's Log. Star Date: 9.9.13 September 9, 1980 - The Third Generation opens "Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s terrorist comedy The Third Generation exploded when it opened in New York City in September 1980. In the New York Times , Vincent Canby raved, “There no longer can be any doubt about it: Rainer Werner Fassbinder is the most dazzling, talented, provocative, original, puzzling, prolific and exhilarating film maker of his generation. Anywhere.” Following on the heels of his international success The Marriage of Maria Braun , The Third Generation mock-heroically takes on the problem of domestic terrorism in Germany. Fassbinder explained the title’s relation to contemporary Germany politics in the following way: “The first generation was that of '68. Idealists, who wanted to change the world and imagined they could do that with words and demonstrations. The second, the Baader-Meinhof Group, went from legality to armed struggle and total ill

For me, there is nothing like directing; the rush of arriving on the set at the crack of dawn, the anticipation to get that first shot in as the crew sets up, the anxiety that creeps in when a scene takes longer to shoot then you expected and the AD looks at her watch for the third time, the high you get when a camera moves gracefully and your actors convince you the world they inhabit in the scene actually exists and the numb exhaustion at the end of a very long intense, decision-filled day.  Directors can relate to this regardless if what they are making is a shlock horror flick, an art-house drama, a hard-hitting documentary expose, a funny commercial, a psychedelic music video or a corporate industrial.  In fact, directors love the work so much they would do it for free (ok, for deferred payment) in the hopes that they can actually make a living, day in and day out, directing.  And the only way to get there is by directing more and more stuff and getting better and better. Thr

Captain's Log. Star Date: 9.4.13 Sep. 4, 1934 - Jan Švankmajer born In Jan Švankmajer’s film 2000 Little Otik , the titular character is a stump of wood who comes to life when treated like a baby; Švankmajer himself, though, arrived into the world in the traditional manner on September 4, 1934, in the Czechoslovakian capital, Prague. In the history of animation, few people have been more influential than Švankmajer, as his strikingly original perspective and painstaking eye for detail have led the way for figures such as Terry Gilliam, Tim Burton and the Quay Brothers. While mainstream animation tends to focus on happy, colorful antics, Švankmajer has presented a view of the world that is more sinister and macabre, filtered through a tradition of dark Eastern European fairy tales. Most famous for his stop motion work (which often has a slight jerkiness that adds to the viewers unease), Švankmajer came to prominence first in the 1960s with a series of sh

Cuz screenwriters can relate to this on the one hand... Captain's Log. Star Date - 9.2.13 Today is Labor Day and what better way to spend the day off then to spend it working on your script.  'Nuff said. What would Oscar-winning producer, Edward Saxon, advise his 18 year-old self ? How many feature length scripts should you write before you're 'ready' for Hollywood? What are 10 rules for writing the screenplay ? What are 7 rules for writing shorts ? How do you make a TV drama in the Twitter age ? What are some screenwriting tips from Simon Pegg, Edgar Wright and Nick Frost ? Who are some female screenwriters and screenwriters of color to inspire you? And why you shouldn't let rejection of your script/work/project get you down ? Bonus: Two podcasts for screenwriters and filmmakers: OnStory and ScriptNotes ...but also relate to this on the other hand.