Flat Tires and Wrong Turns.

(140 DVDs)

I've had a considerable lack of energy this last month. Perhaps it's the high pressure in the weather. I think it might be to do with the fact that I've just completed to major projects, 140 and Iscariot. Of course, we had the premiere of 140 in May, which was a huge deal. I came home feeling energised. I had the kickstarter money in hand and print material, DVDs and everything else to get organised.

While I was doing that I was also finishing Iscariot with Thomas, a project (I'm sure you know by now) we've been working on for 2 years. We finished it, at least well enough to give it to people to consider. And luckily we found a producer who is strongly considering it, maybe even more then that, but nothing is official yet, so no point talking anymore about it until it is.

So two major finish lines cross, both in the same week and right now I feel like the flat tire of a bike that's just completed the Tour De France! I'm exhausted and drained.

I have several projects I want to move onto. I'd love to get back to Ghoster and apply the new techniques I've learn on Iscariot to that and even try to put it into production. I'd love to get back to Nevermore and bring that up to scratch. Bad Moon too. I've love to finish Cats of the Crescent. I have new ideas I want to start and I'm even talking to a friend about a five day feature to shoot later this year. But honestly, I don't have the energy for any of it.

Every time I sit down to start writing some I find myself on Facebook without remembering the turn. I don't drive, but the late night drive home from work has often been described to me, how you look up and realise you're nearly home and you have no recollection of the last 6 miles! You wonder if you were asleep, or at least the conscious part of your brain was asleep and somehow your subconscious drove the car! I feel like that.

I suppose the Ridley Scott film knocked it out of me a bit. While I've remained philisophical about it, it certainly knocked the wind out of me. After a year and a half of work to suddenly realise one of the seminal directors of our time is doing the same thing, kinda takes the shine off it. With Iscariot too, the producer we spoke to wasn't willing to back the script with us as directors, which is why we wrote it, to direct. But we came to realise to stand a chance of getting it made anytime soon, if at all, we need to let someone else take the reigns, take the writing credit and hope for another opportunity further down the road. After we get some legit feature film credits to our names. I think both events have made me realise how far down the pecking order I am, and after 10/11 years of trying to get films made, it doesn't feel like I've gotten very far!

Isn't it interesting though, I have a feature doc sharing press with Ridley Scott and Kevin MacDonald, that people seem to want to see and by all accounts is a success, at least in terms of the project that was set out. I have a feature script in the hands of a producer who wants to make it, and seems excited about it, yet I still feel unfulfilled, disappointed. Strange. I guess it's all part of the journey.

But whatever about all that. I need to get back to work. I have a film half completed on my hard drive that involves the work and commitment of others, so I need to get on that! I am excited about the other projects, especially the prospect of shooting before the end of the year. So I need to pick myself up and dust myself off and get on with the job at hand.

Sharing Press with Ridley Scott:

AJ Schnack Blog

Movieviral.com

Moving Pictures Magazine

I've also started uploading the 140 clips in full on Vimeo. Check them out to the 140 Vimeo Page.

Strange Days!

To say the least!

I've had a very interesting couple of days. Yesterday I had planned on going to Dublin to finally drop off 140 for DVD duplication (which I did, eventually). I awoke to find the little red light of my blackberry flashing. Nothing unusual about that. I often get a few emails during the course of the night. But not like this. Not with such interest news attached.

(Ridley Scott)

This link lead to an article about Ridley Scott's new film, something called 'Life in a Day', with him producing and Kevin MacDonald (Last King of Scotland) directing and editing. The film is a social media experiment, a crowd sourced, user-generated, internet film that requires people from all over the world to capture their day and send in footage to be edited into a visual montage of personal moments that will become an experimental documentary... sound familiar at all? I can give you 140 reasons why it might!

Alot of people have been outraged on my behalf, Click Here to see what Movie Line said about it. I also commend the loyalty and spirit of friends and family, but I think this is a positive. Hey, I'm excited I'm getting some press, that 140 is being talked about and that my name is side by side with the likes of Ridley Scott! I never thought that would happen.

It's fantastic that someone like Ridley Scott is experimenting with this kind of filmmaking. And if he's doing it then maybe I'm on the right track! With digital filmmaking, technology and what the internet has become, people are exploring these avenues. There are bound to be similarities early on. I wonder how many films there were about trains pulling into stations when the Lumiere Brothers started?!

I do hope Life in a Day doesn't over shadow 140. I'm not sure it will. But you never know. But then again, it just might shine a light on my little film, and that's only a good thing!

But talk about David and Goliath!

Poster Quotes!

Thanks to everyone for watching Slán over the weekend, I appreciate you taking the time out and I really appreciate your comments. So much so I thought I would share then here!

"...so powerful Frank. I have to say I shed a few tears. It definitely represents and illustrates something that is happening in Ireland right now..." Justina Cowley.

"...enjoyed every secound of it..." John Black.

"One word.. brilliant! more words... Totally reflects an increasingly growing and worrying element of society, and also documents how within a generation things have changed so much. Great work Frank, you are someone this town should be very proud of." Keith Byrne.

"...sharp acting, cinematography & writing! "Progress is a speeding train, Pat..." "I'd rather walk, thank you." Beautifully written, well-told story. (Excellent music selection as well.)" Christine Reynolds.

"...once again a poignant story told with such heart." Rachel McEeaneny.

"...truly great!" Laurie Leech.

"Fantastic work. Great character study and commentary on changing times. As relevant here in the States and I imagine around the world." Robert Zappia.

"Watched your film twice this morning; listened to the closing credits, like, 15 times. Seriously, brother, awesome." John Burton.

"Rubbish!.......is not a word i would use to describe it." Rob Kearney.

Maybe I should put them on the poster!!! Thanks Guys, very much appreciated.

Addressing Some Issues.

The screening of Slán agus Beannacht over the weekend raised a couple of interesting points since going live yesterday. One, the loss of a more traditional ways of doing things and the loss of one on one human interaction. Also the portrayal of teens as being dangerous thugs.

I'll address the first point first. It's weird to say, only being in my 30s, but I look back on my childhood as a completely different era. Makes me sound old but that was before the advent of the internet, mobile phones, electronic telephone service and the home computer to a large extent. It was a simpler time, where imagination was our play toy and the world outside, the fields and the forests was where we let it run wild... not a computer console and the worn out carpet in front of the TV! I clearly remember the day my childhood changed forever and I was set on my path. It was the summer of 89 and my best friend got a second hand Commodore 64.

I remember calling to his house one Saturday morning thinking we were going to set off on our day long adventure out the old tracks to a forrest some miles away as per usual, but it was not to be. He was loading a game he wanted to play. And as we sat for what seemed hours in his small shaded room, north facing with the sun cascading down some distance away, waiting for this tape to load, I got bored and decided to head off on my own. I didn't realise then but I would be making that journey on my own from then on, as one by one my childhood friends would succumb to the radioactive green glow of digitized computer graphics and the soft blip-blop of supposed alien space craft laser beams. Computer games stole my childhood adventures, and that's probably why I have never played them, not to this day.

I'm a slight contradiction though. I do actually love modern computers. I love my iMac and love what it has enabled my to do and how it has empowered me as a filmmaker. I love programs like photoshop, final cut and final draft. I love gadgets, I own a blackberry and I will get the iPhone 4 and possibly, hopefully, the next generation of the iPad and more then likely, whatever new iMac is on the way!

But I still like the old traditions, I like the one on one Human way of doing things. In our endeavour to make thinks more convenient we've become more complication and alienated and we've fogotten whats most important, human connection. In large part 140 was a continuation of this idea. I wanted to break the barrier the internet provides and make people reconnect and use the internet as a tool, almost against itself, to do that.

I miss Bosco (my rent collector) calling to the door to collect the rent. I miss chatting with him for 5 minutes before he moves on. I hate HATE calling eircom (or whatever company) to fix a problem and being sent in circles for 20 minutes before I get to talk to someone who inevitably puts me on hold. I miss the old glass countered sweet shop, I miss the leather smelling shoes shop with boxes pilled to the ceiling, I miss the barbers on the second floor with the old man reading the newspaper and the radio playing some diddly-i tune, I miss the cattle walking through town and the random shops down crocked cobble stone alleys, I miss the small dusty book shop and the cafe that served tea and coffee, and just tea and coffee. I guess it's a longing for simpler times in a world that seems to have over complicated itself.

When Bosco was taken off the streets after 35 years, on a route that had him see 500 people a week, and put behind a desk to sit in front of a computer until retirement, I was sad for him and I mourned the passing of an age. This film was a dedication to that age, and to Bosco. You'll see that the film is for Sheila. Sheila was my Grandmother, who died two years ago this month. I live in her house now. Bosco would have collected rent from her for the 35 year she lived in this house, and I'm kind of glad she didn't live to see his passing. the final nail in the coffin for that generation, now gone.

The other issue raised was how youth is portrayed in the film. A marauding teen gang stalk the rent collectors and the film opens with a beating and a mugging. I suppose what this gang symbolises is what's modern, and how there is a general distain by the new for the old, and how it pushes aside the old without care and consideration. Traditions are lost. Respect is not even considered.

I can understand the point being made, that youth gets a bad rap in films. That may be the case, but I don't think it's a misrepresentation. I think, I know, that side of society exists. There are people out there who have no consideration, no only for old traditions, but anything. People who would stab you as soon as look at you. Steal from you without a moments hesitation. Even while making this film I had some strange encounters, things which never happen me. When I was scouting the park where Pat is attacked I heard a voice call out, "What are you fuckin doing?" I look around a saw three teens, two girls and a boy, 15/16 years-old, standing near the water drinking Budweiser, "I'll fuckin slap the head of ye" he went on to say. I shook my head and moved on.

I was tempted to continue the conversation in a less cordial manner, but I didn't see the point. This area had been in the newspapers recently because of kids with knives and air guns threatening and attacking people walking their dogs. So regardless of the fact that I was twice the age and size of the kid I didn't really want a knife in my side! Bear in mind too that this area is right beside my parents house, I grew up there, played there everyday as a kid, and now I'm being threatened in it.

Another incident happened when we were shooting the first scene where the teens attack Liam. We were in an area that again has been in the news for incidents like this. I thought we'd be safe going down there mid afternoon on a sunny day. But then some kids started to arrive, a bit annoyed that we were in there spot, but they moved on, great I thought, fair play to them, feeling a little guilty that I was portraying them in such a bad light... until they started throwing rocks at us, almost hitting us and the equipment, including a case of lenses worth ten grand!

The fact is that this is an element of society, it always has been and always will be. You just have to go back to films like Clockwork Orange, or even as far back as the slightly more naive The Wild Ones, or even Rebel Without a Cause. It's nothing new. It's rebellious youth raging against whatever they can. Unfortunately, perhaps more now, the level of violence has escalated and people are being badly beaten and sometimes stabbed. It's just a fact. I'm not going to shy away from it to spare feelings if that's what the story is about. And it is just one story about one incident, it's not suppose to be a representation of all teens, you have take the film on it's own terms.

Another fact is that this is actually based on true events. In my research I asked Bosco if he had ever been mugged and he said no, but a colleague of his had and been so badly beaten that he was left in intensive care, which is what sparked the decision to take the rent collectors off the streets.

I don't think all teens are like this, of course I don't, I work with them! I cast them in this film! And I think that shows that I do have respect for youth, but a creative, intelligent and constructive youth who put the energy into creating rather than destroying. I've worked with Shane and Eric twice now, they played the kids in Emily's Song and I loved working with them. I love their energy and creative spark. I hope to work with them again in the future and I hope to be able to work with other kids and teens in future projects because they bring so much positive energy and fun to set.

There is a moment in the film which offers some hope I think. When the teens run after mugging Pat, the camera catches Andy before he runs and we see his shock and regret. He plays a character who has fallen in with the wrong crowd and just gets caught up in the moment, never expecting it to end in such a violent manner. Which I think is often the case, while teens can be load, boisterous, sometimes intimidating, there not all bad, but in certain gangs, in certain situations it's one bad apple who can push things that little too far.

Well, I hope that clears a couple of things up. I really appreciate people watching and leaving comments on my facebook page. The film will be taken down tomorrow, so catch it while you can. Thanks.

Slán agus Beannacht Goes LIVE!

You know I figured I made a film, it's sitting on my computer and no one's watching it so I'm bloody-well going to show it!

I've been holding off because I still want to enter some festivals and hopefully find distribution and maybe make some sales for broadcast, but I also want people to see it. So I'm going to have my cake and eat it too. So I'll abide by the rules of most festivals and distribution deals and only have up for two days, this weekend, until Monday morning.

It will go live at 7pm... that in one hour! And be up until 11 AM monday morn. So if you want to catch it head on over to Vimeo http://vimeo.com/12871495 and enjoy. Do leave a comment and let me know what you thought, great thing about the internet that, you can be interactive with your audience. I'll be available to answer any questions you have or discuss any thoughts or be really ANGRY if you don't like it... nah, not really, I'm far too diplomatic!!!

Enjoy!

IT'S ALIVE!

Courtesy of Shannon Mullins.

Coming Soon...

Done.

Well that only took two years!

Why did it take so long?! Lots of reason. We're not slow writers, honest! But we have limited time together to write. Thomas has a job a fair distance away and a wife and two kids! I have my own family now, though I didn't when we started this!

We first discussed this script when I was visiting my wife, then girlfriend in America on the trip when I asked her to marry me. We later got married got married. My grandmother died. And Thomas and I decided we would write Iscariot (then Night) together after a conversation at my grandmother's funeral. We got to writing it coming up to my wedding. I took a break for that obviously. Then in 2009 I shot a short films, Slán agus Beannacht and a feature Doc, 140! They kinda got in the way. Thomas went off to try and make an animated short based on a screenplay we had both written years earlier, to no avail. During this time I fell on one of the most difficult financial periods of my life, we had to close Pale Stone Productions after 4 years and my health was becoming effected. Also my wife became pregnant. We then had a baby! Things got a little better after that and we managed to get away for a vacation for the first time in two years, which also included the world premiere of my film!

We wrote during all of this, grabbing mornings and evenings when we could. And if you look at all the different drafts you might even see how all those things effected the writing. I know during my financial difficulties Thomas was also facing losing his job (which didn't happen thankfully) but the anxiety was there for both of us. That draft was very dark and violent. It's less so now, a bit more fun I think... well, actually - it's still pretty dark and violent!

We never thought about abandoning the script though. We were enjoying it. And I think we knew there was a good story there. We came a an impasse last year when I think we thought we had finished, but I think we just became stuck. We were ignoring major problems in the script. Issues with character development, holes in the plot and some major coincidences. With guidance and advice by some trusted friends and colleagues, Elliot Kotek, Paul Freany and Brendan McCarthy we were able to move forward with clarity. And I think this is a much better draft because of that.

After a reading at the Attic Studio and conversations with Brendan and Paul we began work on a Beat Sheet, something we had never done before but which prove invaluable. Immediately we were able to see where we were going wrong, where characters were repeating themselves, acting schizo, not participating, doing odd things, and all the plot holes, leaps of faith and coincidences came screaming out at us. We then spent 3 month writing a brand new beat sheet where we kept much of the story, restructered the events and brought many new elements and some new characters to the pot.

From that we began working on this draft. But even in the writing of this things changed. We didn't stick entirely to the beat sheet we had spent all that time working out. And I think by allowing ourselves to be creative and allow the characters to take shape more, things changed and it gave us much stronger draft. We're excited about it anyway!

So now the next steps is to get out into the world and into the hands of the right people who can help us make it the way we want to make it, helps us realise our vision. I'm not entirely sure how we're going to do that, but rest assured absolutely everything possible will be done to make it happen... watch this space.

Shadows

(Out of the Past: Nicholas Musaraca)

Welcome to my new-look blog! Thanks Blogger for you cool new designs! Things have been fairly quiet since I last posted, pretty much the same stuff going on, the big break hasn't happened yet!!! I just got the posters done for 140 and I've ordered postcards. I'm in the trying to get DVD duplications done but it's proving difficult, for some reason businesses in Ireland don't seem to want any business. I've been in touch with 3 companies in the last week and not one has returned my calls or emails! Whereas with a company in America I rang out of curiosity has fallen over backwards to give me all the information I need to get my business. I wish I could go with them but it's proving too expensive. Of course I would like to keep it local, but the locals don't seem to care! Frustrating!

Thomas and I are maybe 2 days away from finishing Iscariot. 2 years in the writing and we're coming close to the end! I'm sure there will be more development, and if we find a producer and get money to make it Im' sure the script will change again, but that's only natural. But for now, this is the draft we're sending out into the world to see if we can find that producer, find that money.

I'm really happy with it. We spent a long time and put a lot into it. And I've learned more about writing on this script, employing as many writing techniques as I could find to make it better. I honest don't think I'll ever be afforded the time we've had on this script again. But hopefully we wont have to take this long, hopefully we've learned enough that when the next one comes along we can apply all those new skills immediately and pump it out much faster. Hopefully we'll also be paid for it too and we can work on it full time! Not grabbing 2 hours here and there, mornings when possible, evenings when not! But we'll see. Maybe this script will tell us if we're good enough to actually make a career out of this, or if we're just fooling ourselves!

I think I've mentioned before that it's a dark action thriller, a throw-back to 1940s Hollywood film noir. And we want to shoot it that way. Our hopes for this project are to shoot it ourselves, to co-direct. To shoot it in a highly stylised and highly lit fashion and in black & white. If possible we've even talked about shooting in 1.37:1, or Academy. Which is the format film noir was shot in. It's unused now, everything is wide screen, but there is something special about 4:3, and something that lends itself to thrillers, particularly noir. It's smaller frame, so everything is forced to be closer. It creates a claustrophobic feeling. There's an oppression and buildings and rooms are allowed to rise higher, pressing down on the characters. Of course that'll probably never happen, it'll be a miracle if we get to shoot Black & White!

Most audiences, other then cinephiles, see Black & White as outdated, like VHS. They fail to see it as an extension of the art form. Another way of seeing and portraying things. They don't realise that some films could actually work better in Black & White, some stories are Black & White stories and perhaps they might actually enjoy them more if they saw them in Black & White because story would do a better job of communicated it's tone. What's so special about Black & White is that it creates a heightened reality that is purely and truly cinematic.

Look at the films of Nicholas Musaraca, cinematographer with RKO in the 40s who, with his lighting and shadows, largely influenced by German expressionism, shaped the look of the films that were to become known as film noir. This highly stylised look could only worked in Black & White and lends itself perfectly to the tones and themes of noir. This is the kind of thing we're after. I hope we can pull it off.

Hands Up... Punk!

(Clint Eastwood)

Things have been fairly quiet since I got home. Not much going on. Well, Thomas and I got straight back to work on Iscariot and we had the broadcast of Emily's Song on Channel 4, which was quite a big deal. I had a bit of a struggle to get the money from kickstarter transfered, my own fault. I click deposit instead of withdraw, so my account went into overdraft! But the money didn't show up anywhere else, so when I hit withdraw and the money went into the bank it wiped out the overdraft and my account went to '0' - the money disappeared!!!

Luckily it was sorted out, but I panicked a bit for a couple of days... can't really afford to lose $2,200 dollars at the moment! You'll also notice I wrote $2,200 and not $2,580 as is on the kickstarter page. Unfortunately not all the funds came through, for whatever reason, maxed out credit cards, expired cards, I'm not sure, but a few donors were unable to complete the transaction. Kickstarter are following it up, so hopefully we can sort it out. But in the meantime it's a substantial some and I'm read, willing and able to spend it!

On the shopping list are: Posters and postcards, always useful for promotion at festival, screenings and markets. DVD duplications, essential. Beta tapes, specialised tapes for projection at festival. I already have an NTSC copy, which I will most likely count as my own donation to the cause, rather then seek to be reimbursed from everyone else's donations. And some of the money will also go toward entering festivals. Fees can add up, they can be anywhere from $15 to $100! I'm going to be very selective and do my research. It's always a risk paying entry fees, they are nonrefundable and I don't want to squander any money, but sometimes it is a risk worth taking.

So we'll keep 140 rolling and see how we go. We're also going to be looking different options in terms of making the film available after it's festival run, more on that later.

In other news:

On Monday I start, or complete, a new project, the working title of which is Hands. It is based on a collection of photography by New York based photographer Scott McDermott. The film will be a montage of his Mandela Day project. In it are photographs of hands of famous people, all of whom gave 67 minutes of the time to help improve the world in some way, on July 18th, Nelson Mandela's birthday. People like Robert DeNiro, Sharon Stone, Will.I.Am, Morgan Freeman and Clint Eastwood.

The exhibition was originally curated by Elliot Kotek with Nation of Artists. I saw it on the website and while chatting with Elliot on facebook chat I mentioned that it reminded me of an idea I once had for a short film, and wouldn't it be cool to do it with a cast list like that! He suggested mentioning it to Scott, and did, and while we were unable to utilise those people again, we were able to utilise Scott's images - and it went from there.

Elliot wrote a piece of narration, Scott provided his amazing work and I'm going to put it all together. I don't know where the film will go once complete, but it should be an interesting project. So watch this space.

This project also has special significance for me. Clint Eastwood is one of my heroes you see! I always wanted to meet him, and in my idle moments often daydreamed about working with him - that may never happen, but at least this is a little way there (if not still a million miles away!) - and I start the project on his 80th birthday! So that's kinda cool! But who knows, maybe someday - this'll do for now.

Tonight

Emily's Song, tonight (well, tomorrow morning!) at 3:45am on Channel 4.

And just in case you can't stay up tonight to watch it, don't worry, it will be on again on RTE 2 on June 14th.

Way Out West

My poor blog has been feeling somewhat neglected of late! I've been travelling you see, with not much access to the internet, I'm currently suffering from withdrawal symptoms, so needed a fix! Luckily I've landed somewhere I have some access!

As you know I've been travelling. Newport Beach, as reported below, a great fest with a continuing great responce to the film. From Newport Beach and a couple of days in LA I flew to Denver where I met my wife and daughter, which has been the highlight of the trip so far, watching them walk through the gate and have my little daughter recognise me imidiately and give me a huge smile and a riggle of excitment was better then any premiere!

We hung out in Denver for a few days, which was fun, among other things I screened 140 at the Starz Film Centre for the Denver Film Society. It went really well. Good crowd and the film was warmly recieved. There was a long Q&A afterwards with Ron Henderson. People were intrigued and fascinated about the film and the idea behind it. So that was fun.

Following that we met my wife's parents and drove from Denver to Bozeman in one day. That's a 14 hour drive, so you know, that goes through Colorado, Wyoming and into Montana. It wasn't too bad I must say, in terms of length. We broke it up well enough, taking a break every two hours or so and stopping for meals. We stopped in Cheyenne and bought Irish Whiskey! We drove along to original Oregon Trail, where you can actually still see some of the old wagon tracks. We passed through Laramie, Little Big Horn, the site of Custars infamous battle, the hide out of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, as well as the Crow Nation Indian reservation.

It got a bit hairy as we drove out of Billings. A rain storm came out of nowhere and got stronger the further we drove. It was dark by now and as we moved toward Bozeman to enter the Bozeman Mountain pass the rain got heavier, the wind bullied the car and in the dark distance lightening crackled on the horizon. We were in the 13th hour and tired. It wasn't a pleasent experience. But thanks to the solid driving of Maryann's Dad we were fine and came out the other side unscathed. Having left Denver at 9:30am we pulled into my wife's parents house at 11:30pm... exhausted! But happy!

Today I'm meeting with one of the lecturers of the film department of the Montana State University (MSU) to chat about all things film in Montana and elsewhere state side. I had hope to have a screening here in Bozeman, but my contact here seems to have disappeared, so nothing is set unfortunately. Too bad.

While I was traveling my kickstarter account reached it's target, which is fantasic, so my sincerest and heartfelt thanks to everyone who supported it and the film!

Well, that's been my western adventure so far. I'm looking forward to getting home next week and getting back to work - not before a long rest though, a pint in Clarkes!

Talk soon!

From Newport Beach

(The Gang: Charis Tobias, Kevin Marron, Elliot Kotek, Victoria Charters, me, Rachel Rath)

Well, I managed to get out to Newport Beach, thanks largely to the efforts of Elliot Kotek and of course the generosity of those who were kind enough to donate money toward my ticket! You people are amazing! Thank you again!

As I type I'm actually sitting in my friend Trampas' apartment in Los Angeles, looking out over an incredible view of the buildings of down town LA. Nice to be able to get down to visit friends. But of course the trip was about the World Premiere of 140, so I should mention a little something about that!

I arrived late on Thursday night and caught the end of the opening party, which was huge. But I was so tired from traveling that kinda just wanted to go back to the hotel and sleep! But then I bumped into Leslie Feibleman, who is one of the programmers and who selected 140. So she introduced me around to a lot of people. I met some of the other filmmakers.

Next day Elliot arrived, I did an interview with Journey Pod and hung out in the hospitality lounge chatting to other filmmakers. I managed to get back to hotel to lie down before the bug night, didn't sleep, but lying down helped! Ugh, jetlag! Then I got dressed and headed out for a meal before the big event! Of course I couldn't eat - a little nervous! Just a beer to calm the nerves slightly!

Afterwards we had a tech-check, everything was fine and then just a wait for people to arrive. It wasn't sold out or anything, but we had a nice crowd. They seemed to respond well to the film and all the right reactions played out as the film ran - looking great on the big screen, something I was slightly concerned about considering the varying quality of clips, but there were no real issues.

(Elliot and I doing the Q&A)

Afterwards there was a Q&A, hosted by Elliot, and we both talked about the film. It's available to see here. Some people came up to me afterwards and talked about how much they enjoyed and all the filmmakers who came were really happy and enthusiastic about it! So overall I think it was a great success and I was thrilled to be able to get out here and attend!

I go back to Newport Beach this evening and spend tomorrow there before heading on to Denver to meet the fam, and of course attend another screening of the film.

So all good and exciting to be on the road with 140! It's going to interesting to see what comes next.

NO Celluloid Journey

...as may be the case!!! I hope not, but the giant ash cloud over Europe means all flights are still grounded this Monday, and looking likely to be grounded until Wednesday at the earliest! I fly out on Thursday - I hope!!!

The Volcano has already directly affected me in one small way, I had planned to see Philip Pullman talk in Dublin on Saturday, but he cancelled because he couldn't fly. I was disappointed, but it was no big deal compared to what might happen in the week and weeks to come.

It may have a much greater affect on me. Aer lingus are cancelling flights on a day by day basis, they had planned to fly today at 1pm, that was extended to 6pm and may be extended as far as Wednesday. Depending on weather and wind that could go further. If it does I'm going to miss my flight to the Newport Beach premiere of 140! After how much effort everyone put in to get me there it would be a real let down! But I guess I wont know for sure until Thursday morning in the airport bags in hand! - And if flights do go on Thursday, following the week of delays, the Airport is going to be absolute chaos!!! A very cramped, emotional place!!!

If it extends any further it may ruin further plans for our family vacations! After Newport I'm meeting my wife and daughter elsewhere in the states, at a central location where her parents, sister with her husband and kids and best friends are all flying to meet us. Flights and hotels are booked. So if we can't make it, it ruins the plans of all those people... not to mention costing a fortune! And considering it's been over 2 years since my wife has been home, and it's the first time any of her family will meet our daughter, it could be extremely upsetting for all involved!

Hopefully it will clear up soon, or at least a gap in the cloud will open. I guess looking on the positive, better to be safe, and if stranded, better to be stranded at home and together!

CA CO MT

Looks like I'm going to be attending the 140 World Premiere after all!!! Thanks to the efforts of my co-producer Elliot Kotek and the generosity of many of the 140 filmmakers. I hadn't planned on going, there was just no way I could afford it, especially as I already had a family trip planned to another area of the states and I had to pay for a NTSC conversion of a digibeta (€211!) So any further plans were out!

But as it happened Elliot had plans of his own and he wasn't taking "No" for an answer. While I was a way from the computer for a day he set to raising the cash for my trip!

Along with the fundraiser on Kickstarter for the promotion of 140 I've just been bowled over by how generous people have been lately... especially in these continued difficult financial times. So thank you all.

So that means I'm starting to get excited, and nervous! I usually have more than a week to psyche myself up for these things! While I tend to look calm on the outside, I'm usually freaking-out on the inside! Especially at screenings! And this one is a big deal, not only do I have to hope the audience like it, but the filmmakers too - none of whom have seen it yet!!!

Then it's on to Denver and a screening with the Denver Film Society at the Starz Film Centre! Which is fantastic. I mentioned that I would be in town, with the film and with the possibility of doing a Q&A and they said yes! So April 29th, 7pm, Starz Film Centre Denver, if you're around, come on down and say hello!

After that, on to Bozeman Montana for a screening in association Hatch Fest (who of course held a special preview screening of the unfinished movie back in October 2009) at a yet tbd time and place! I'll post details when I know more.

So it's going to be something of an American Tour!!! Not really, but... you know - sounds good! I guess it's a tour of the West! California, Colorado and Montana!!! Places I've wanted to see since I was a kid. I'm manage California a lot. Been to Montana once now. But Colorado is a first, so really looking forward to it!

Meantime, catching whatever time I can with Thomas to work on the new draft of Iscariot, that's going well. We're hoping to finish in time to enter the Nichol Fellowship, late Deadline being May 1st. Honestly, with the premiere now, it's not looking good... but we'll give a lash!

And lastly, If you're interested in helping support 140 your donation would be hugely appreciated at the Kickstarter page! Thank you so much!

More soon! I promise to post pics and vids from the America trip, when I get the chance! Should be loads of fun!!!

It's all Kicking off!

As you all know 140 is complete and heading off into the world, with a great entrance, a World Premiere at the Newport Beach Film Festival. But this is at a crucial stage. Now, more then ever I really need to get behind this film and push it to keep the momentum going. This is the part were so many films fail, the filmmakers run out of steam, energy, enthusiasm and of course - Money! I'm not short on energy or enthusiasm, but money is something this project never had, just alot of belief from 140 filmmakers who had never met before. I'm asking you to have the same belief, and help get this film out to the public, into festivals, theaters and seen.

So I've set up a Kickstarter account. This is a site were folks like me can pitch ideas to raise funds for their projects. It's not for nothing mind you, apart from supporting this film, you also get rewards for your pledge: T-Shirts, DVDs, Posters and more. So if you want to help then head on over to The 140 Project on Kickstarter and check it out!

Promoting a film is a timely and expensive business on your own, I've done it before! I will use the money I raise for essential things needed to help get 140 seen. First advertising, print: Posters, fliers, postcards, presskits. Then DVD duplication to get the film to festivals, journalist and anyone who can help spread the word. Also festival entry fees, they can add up fast! There are specialized tapes needed for screening at festival Beta SP, Digibeta, DVcam etc. they're usually quite expensive, especially if converting to other regions. Some will go toward travel expenses, I will need to be there on occasion to talk about the film, tell people about it, and make sure they know what it's all about. This will also be important as I will use this opportunity to talk about and recruit other filmmakers for my next project, an extension of 140, called The 140 Nation, where I want to set up 140 filmmakers in every country to shoot a 140 for that country - 140 USA, 140 Canada, 140 France and so on... but that's a whole other thing!

I've taken 140 this far, but now I need your help to take it the rest of the way! Thanks so much! You support means everything.

Welcome to the 140 NATION.

First On-Air interview for 140 this morning at LMFM, a radio station here in Drogheda that cover the entire North-East of Ireland, broadcasting to upwards of 300,000 people I believe! Eek! If I had have known that before I went on I might have been a little more nervous!!! - Probably not though, Daire Nelson always makes me film welcome and comfortable. It was a short interview, but great to start getting the word out and nice to talk about the film. hopefully it's the first of many! (I will be posting a recording soon - stay tuned!)

I've done some new designs for the 140 logo, the flag design (pictured above). I will be making it available on the T-shirts soon, one for each of the 23 countries that took part in the film. It has also reminded me of the idea I had to continue the 140 project and I suppose I can announce it here for the first time!

I want make a 140 film in as many countries as possible. I want 140 filmmakers in every country to shoot a 140 film for that specific country - 140 USA, 140 Canada, 140 Australia, 140 France and so on. A huge undertaken, yes, but I think it good be fun and interesting. Obviously Impossible for me to do it alone, especially if we can organise a global 140 day, were each of the 140 countries shoot their footage on the same day... can you imagine?! With 195 countries in the world that could potentially be 27,300 filmmakers shooting at the same moment worldwide! How mind-bogglingly awesome would that be!!!

To do it I would need to set up one producer per-country to do exactly what I did for the original 140. It would be their job to recruit from their own country and then co-ordinate and edit the footage, or at least work with an editor. I would set them up with a process plan, press kits, designs etc. I would over see it as the main producer to keep quality control in check!

To be quite honest I'm not sure this would be possible without some money. It's a huge commitment to the main producer involved, we're talking 6 months of nearly full-time, day to day work. Recruiting is difficult, getting the clips in is fun, but hard to chase people down and editing takes a lot of thought, time, you also have music to consider (It would be a great opportunity for local indy bands to get in on the action and get their music out to the world - that's what I did)

So that's my idea for the future of 140. It's in it's early stages, and still may of may not happen, but there it is. I call it 140 NATION © Frank W Kelly 2010.

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I also want to give a shout out to a young and talented actor and Drogheda-man, Colin O'Donoghue, who recently landed a role in the new movie The Rite (based on the Matt Baglio book), starring alongside Anthony Hopkins. I've been acquainted with Colin for a few years and always thought he had what it took to become a star (That's why I was always getting him to read my scripts!) he's an exceptional actor. Well done Colin and best of luck!

Recent Activity

Here's a recent Article from my local Newspaper, the Drogheda Independent, giving a mention about the Newport Beach Film festival Premiere! Great, always a little moment of pride when the local paper picks up on your work!

Also, received my 140 T-shirt from Cafe-press this morning, it's great! I love it!!! Nice quality fabric and the logo came out great! I'm excited! I'd recommend one ;) You can show all your friends how cool you are if you buy one!!! I have to admit, the profit margin on these things is miniscule, I won't be getting rich! But I thought it'd be a fun and cool thing to have and make available - and it is! Very happy.
Any other news... the fanpage is tipping 1,400 fans! Which is great! I've started a new thing, each day I'll mention a new 140 filmmaker and link to their website, so if you become a fan and check in each day, you'll find out more about the talent involved. And there's a lot of talent there, believe me!

Away from 140 I've started a new project with Elliot Kotek (once again) and photographer Scott McDermott. It's quite different and very unique. And it's got one hell of a cast list!!! I'm really excited about it. It's going to be good, but I wont say too much about it yet. We're just getting started and we have a few lose ends to tie up - watch this space!

Writing Exercise

As I've mentioned on several occasions here in the blog Thomas and I have been working on a script for a while now, first entitled Night then Iscariot. Often thought to have been finished, only to have been proven otherwise upon further probing and through several different writing exercises, all of which revealed there was a lot more to do.

It all began with a simple, if not somewhat incomplete, idea from Thomas. I came on board and together we completed the idea and began the script, adding several new characters and situations. The blast draft (to coin a phrase - ie. the first draft is usually just blasted onto the page without too much thought and couldn't really be considered a draft, rather a platform to work from) took a couple of months - Thomas and I don't write together on a regular basis, we grab a day, a morning, an afternoon, an hour, wherever whenever we can. I guess we're lucky though, we've been writing together almost 10 years, so we know each other and each other habits very well, we can always pick up where we left off very quickly and we're very intuitive when it comes to writing, often finishing each other sentences and one saying what the other is thinking - happens a lot, where I'll suddenly light on something and Thomas will say exactly what's in my head before I get a chance, or visa versa. We're usually on the same wave length, which is great.

Then we began work on the first draft, this probably took 6 months and when we got to the end we were very proud and happy with it. We sent it out to some people to read. The reviews were mixed, and it seemed to divide the readers right down the middle - some people loved it, were thrilled and utterly excited by it, others - HATED it! They were reviled by it, and they seemed to me anyway to be at pains to hold back insults! But that was fine, we actually quite enjoyed the fact that it effected people so much! We knew then it was a very specified audience we were aiming at, people would either love this film or hate it, get it, or not. And that was fine with us. Forget the people who hated it in that case, we knew we were never going to please them. So we went with what the people who loved it and probed them a little more. They still thought there were holes and mechanical faults within.

Next we held a rehearsed reading of that draft at the Attic studio with a cast of about 13 actors. It was interesting, insightful, very useful and of course loads of fun. We began to understand very quickly what was working, where we were repeating ourselves and how characters were standing up. The audience reaction was equally useful, they spoke at length about what they liked and disliked. Again, certain mechanical faults began to emerge, character's whose presence and actions made no sense, repetition, tone - some people found it very funny! Something we didn't aim to do. We were writing a harsh dark thriller after all. But in all honesty, the writing of it was loads of fun and we spent most of the time laughing with glee as we wrote these scenes, perhaps that came across?!

We came away with some thoughts, but I think I was more confused and muddled then I was before. I had started to get too close to the project and could no longer see the wood from the trees. I needed distance. And that's what I got, about 4/5 months. I went off to finish 140 and have a baby!

We eventually came back to it and upon the suggestion of another reader, who also enjoyed it immensely, we sat down to write of a Beat Sheet. Honestly I had never heard of one, or at least I had, but never knew what one looked like. It's basically the script broken down beat by beat, or action by action. Every time a new action happens you bullet point it. I did this, single spaced, paragraphed for each sequence, it worked out at about 1 page of beats to every 10 pages of script and it was incredibly helpful, perhaps even more so than the reading (though the distance probably helped as well)

Straight away I could see repetition. I could see were characters were not taking part in the action, for example, one of the main characters hardly featured in the beat sheet, even though they were only almost every page - because they weren't taking part, they were just spectating. I began to see character flaws in the main characters, his actions were schizophrenic when broken into points, one minute he was clear and focused, next he was angry and unpredictable. Didn't make any sense. From this we began to work on characters and their relationship. But even so, there was something not quite working, an elephant in the room we were ignoring, without realising we were doing so.

At this stage we had been on this script for 1 1/2 years! Longest I've ever spent on a script. But I never felt like walking away. I enjoyed every moment of writing it, even when it got frustrating, I figured it was worth sticking with. But we were stuck, no question. We began trying to restructure the script to make it work. But we had written ourselves into a corner and every time we tried to move scenes around, the whole thing fell apart. We had given ourselves to many restrictions. We began to see that there was something severely wrong, deep inside and we were skating on very thin ice. A turn in any direction could spell disaster!

So Thomas gave the script to a colleague of his, Paul Freeny, the head of the Masters in Screenwriting in the National Film School IADT. He's observations and thoughts turned everything on it's head. He questioned everything, and asked the simplest questions we hadn't even thought about asking, things that just got to the heart of the script. Like "What's it about?" and "Whose story is it?" - simple, yes, but fundamental and essential to know and be aware of every step of the way. I think we had been meandering somewhat, we knew what it was about, but we had taken detours with other characters. We needed to refocus everything toward what the film was about, the journey of our main character.

He pointed out that the main premise, the set up within the film, didn't hold water - this was our elephant, what we had avoided looking at, when we were forced to look at it the scale of the problem became very clear. The script could have fallen apart at that stage, except for one very simple suggestion by Paul, to change one specific characters actions. Once we did that, everything slotted back into place and the script worked beautifully, better than before! It was incredibly freeing! - There's a reason Mr. Paul Freeny is the head of the Masters in Screenwriting at the National Film School! His observations were clear, concise, honest and cut to the heart of the script, but they were also positive and constructive. It really is hard to come across good advice when it comes to work like this, people are so subjective and often base their thoughts on their emotional reaction to a piece and come back with what they would write, which is never helpful, they're different people with different views and tastes who want to tell a different story (I've done it myself!) But Paul's advice was invaluable.

We started again, with new verve. We restructured the script, we changed characters, motivation and their relationship to one another. It quickly became a much richer piece. The ending changed and yesterday, to make it better, we added a new character, who's added a whole other dimension. This new found clarity has given us the freedom to get creative again and every scene has been given an added depth, texture and flavour because of it. I'm loving writing this script now and I love the script. I really do think it's good, perhaps the best thing Thomas and I have done.

Right now were completing the new beat sheet, based on these changes we've made, making sure we're clear on them before we start the script. That way we'll only have one more draft to do. We still have the climax of the film to write - it take place in a different location and is somewhat more exciting then it had been. So that needs a total rewrite. The plan is to do that on Friday, then complete the beat sheet and then start the real first draft, the one we'll be sending into the world and asking people to invest in! Easy! Only took two years!

What I've learned from this experience is that there are many different ways to write a script, and every new avenue you explore opens up new possibilities. But what's important is to remain focused of the what kind of story you're trying to tell. Figure out what it's about and stick to it. Who's story is it? And tell that story! As tempting as it is to meander and explore other stories along the way, you have to stay focused on the job in hand, maybe those stories will make other scripts someday!

It's also important to stick with it and push it. If you feel it's not working, never say "it'll do," push it, find a way to distance yourself from the material, whether that's by staging a reading, doing a beat sheet, having trusted people read it, taking time away from or all of those, then do it, it's worth it and your script and the work you've put it should be worthy of it. If you know you're onto a good thing then don't give up on it. Do whatever you have to do to make it work.

Ps. Sorry to be so vague about what it is we're writing, I'm sure all this would be a lot more interesting if I could actually refer to the script and specific examples, but I'm sure you can understand why I'm not divulging! Hopefully someday, when it gets made, I can delve deeper into the process of writing the script and pick specific examples! Thanks for reading.

Exciting News!!!

I'm excited to to announce that the World Premiere of 140 will be held at the Newport Beach Film Festival in California, USA, at the end of April. This is a fantastic festival and a great honour to have it be the first official screening of our film.

The festival is 11 years old and has premiered some great films, Crash and Dogtown and Z-Boys among them. It runs from April 22nd to 29th and I hope to be able to attend... still not sure on that one though. But I'm sure all of the California filmmakers will be able to make it down and represent!

This is a great platform to launch 140 into the world. I've already had interest from other festivals, so I'm hoping this is the start of many good things to come for 140.

Here's an article from Australia's number one film magazine Film Ink: A Film Worth Tweeting About!

Hurray for the Internet!

I'm finding it hard to keep up with my blog at the moment, because every time I sit down to my computer I keep getting bowled over! I'm talking about the response for the 140 fan page on facebook! This day last week 140 had 123 fans. I think it had been at that for a few weeks. I decided it was time to do something about that so I emailed links to the filmmakers, asking them to ask their friends. Today, 6 days after I sent that request out, the 140 fan page has 1,152 fans!

It was quite something watching it shoot up to 300 and 400 in a day. When it got over 800 by Wednesday I thought, first: Whoa! and then - why not try for 1000 by Friday - and so we did. So thanks to everyone who are spreading the word.

It's an interesting process, making and marketing a movie online. I watched Julie & Julia last night, enjoyable film, but it was interesting to watch the journey of a new blogger, I mean before blogging even took off to the extent that it did. Internet-wise 2003 seems like age ago. I suppose it is in terms of how far technology has come. So much has changed. I can't imagine quite being able to do what I'm doing now back then... Maybe. I didn't own a computer until 2003 - with limited internet access. It wasn't until 2004 I had full use of the internet. How it changed my life! I remember when all this was farmland! Now look where I am, 140 certainly wouldn't exist without out it. I don't think I'd have a lot of the friends and connections I have now and I'm sure a lot of the opportunities I've had would not have happened.

However I do sometimes feel chained to the thing with this whole other online existence! It does become tiring, I do occasionally suffer online fatigue and suddenly feel like my head is about to fall off or pop. I know I'm over doing it when my online world start invading my dreams, when I start to dream tweet, or update my facebook dream status. In those moments I need to get out, leave, no matter what I'm in the middle on. Take a walk. See the world. Have a coffee in a cafe and remember what it's like to write with a pen on paper.

But the thing is, as I explained to a friend who wasn't quite down with acquiring fans before they've seen the film, I have no other avenue to market my work, at least not this piece. Being an independent filmmaker, one who struggles alone and is unemployed and broke, it is nearly impossible to get my films out to the world. Unfortunately I can't afford to promote my films, I can't afford festival entry fees, many of which are just crazy! Entry fees are anything from $15 all the way to $100, usually around the $50 mark though. At the moment even buying envelopes, blank DVDs and postage is out of my reach! The best I can hope to do is ask my friends to help spread the word, get people interested and get them wanting to see it.

But thankfully, with the internet and the likes of twitter and facebook, there are ways of doing that. In the way digital technology put the art of cinema into the hands of the poor, the internet has done the same for getting those films out, letting the world know they exist and enticing an audience to watch it. It's an amazing thing. I feel lucky to live in this age. Even as I finish writing this I've noticed 140 has gone up 7 fans to 1159!

Hurray for the Internet!