Film Strategy

Overnight | Tony Montana & Mark Brian Smith | 2003 | USA | Format: 16mm, Super 8, Video | 82 min Overnight  should be required viewing for every film student, not because it is the pinnacle of documentary filmmaking but because it is an eye-opening lesson in the dangers of hubris. In addition, it's a glimpse into the business, how political it can be and why you should read the contracts before signing (or have your lawyer read it for you). It's not just a lil luck and a lot of talent that you need to make it, you need a work ethic, some charm and a flexible strategy. The filmmaker is an artist and some vanity is to be expected when you are dealing with expressing a powerful and unique vision but film is also a collaborative art that requires the OTHER people to make that powerful and unique vision a reality. Too many directors forget that as they go into diva mode a la Troy Duffy. You can be eccentric but don't be an asshole. Besides as the history* of this docum

Yesterday, March 23, 2015, Akira Kurosawa would've turned105. Since it's never too late to learn from a master, here is famed novelist Gabriel Garcia Marquez interviewing Akira Kurosawa about the art and craft of cinema, filmmaking and screenwriting and most importantly, humanity. On June 23, 1991, a uthor Gabriel Garcia Marquez spoke with 81-year-old Japanese director Akira Kurosawa in Tokyo last October when the film maker was shooting his latest movie, "Rhapsody in August." The film, which is scheduled for release in this country in December, was recently shown at the Cannes Film Festival where, Marquez reports, it received public and critical acclaim but annoyed some U.S. journalists "who considered it hostile to their country." Marquez, a former film critic in Bogata, Colombia as well as the author of "A Hundred Years of Solitude," spoke with Kurosawa on a diverse range of topics for more than six hours. Gabriel García Márquez: I do

As soon as I read this  Film Industry Network article  headline:  CANNES FILM FESTIVAL BEING SUED BY A FILM DIRECTOR and started the first sentence: A French film director is suing the Cannes Film Festival for not accepting his film. plus saw the accompanying picture: I shook my head in disbelief, "This  young  director just ruined his career before it even started."  At least  this guy  got a deal and a movie bought and distributed before he nuked his career.  The lesson is clear : If you want a career in filmmaking, suing one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world because they did NOT choose your film is one of the worst things you can do.  Curious to know what legal loophole the director is trying to exploit to make his case, I read the article. And it turns out the young guy in that pic is NOT the director. That guy is one of the actors in the film. And the director's name is Paul Verhoeven. Now  Paul Verhoeven  is a  veteran  di

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari |  Robert Wiene | 1920 | Germany | Format: 35mm, Black and White, Silent  | 51-78 min (varies; different versions) The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari opened today almost 100 years ago in 1920. Gance loved it, Eisenstein hated it. Today it's considered a horror classic and a great experiment in Expressionism. Even though we live in the digital age, it is worth going back in time to study the story of how this movie was made in an era when film was still in its infancy. We stand to benefit from the making of The Cabinet of Dr. Calgari and learn things, such as: How the writers collaborated to combine their experiences and imagination in crafting the script. How the writers used their connections to their advantage even though they had never worked for a studio before. How their passion and unique "pitch" convinced the executive to buy the writers's script. Why it's important to know what rights you are signing away. How collaborati