Frame Rate

In my little part of the world, film fanatics just aren’t exposed to much independent cinema. So, they want to know, “Where can I go to find documentaries?” “Where can I go to find movies that aren’t part of the mainstream?” “Where can I find funny movies — comedies other than the usual films that play every weekend on TBS?”

I recently came across a website that offers filmmakers the chance to self-distribute their work. It’s called CreateSpace. I mentioned this site in an earlier post during a discussion on my efforts to self-distribute my short, Collection. However, the site also offers movie-lovers the chance to browse thousands of independent titles and make purchases. This is a great site if you’re interested in finding films that you just might not find anywhere else.

Thousands of films are made every year, but only a small fraction enjoy a wide release in theatres nationwide. Some enjoy limited release in major markets, meaning that people in Small Town, USA will probably never see them. Others go straight to DVD. Some find success on the film festival circuit, but go no further. Sometimes it’s difficult to find great, original films with summer blockbusters and Hollywood remakes taking up precious cinema space. However, Web 2.0 has made it possible for filmmakers to get their work out to audiences. The latest online service that I’ve come across is SnagFilms.

I first read about SnagFilms in The Birmingham News. In the Tech Report section I saw an article by Walter Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal giving readers the low-down on this website. Essentially, SnagFilms exposes the viewer to all kinds of documentary film that otherwise might never be seen. And it’s free to use. Viewers can even place these full-length docs onto their favorite social networking site, like Facebook. You can view the films full screen if you like and some provide links to external sites where you can purchase DVDs.

Being a movie fan is more than just catching the latest, most popular blockbuster that hits the theatre. It’s about immersing yourself in a variety of films. Some will be great. Most will be awful, but by viewing them one can learn a lot about the art of filmmaking. However, when you live in a smaller market, you are not always exposed to independent film, especially documentaries. But becoming involved in a local film festival can give you the opportunity to see films that may never hit the big screen. Every film festival needs screeners - people that watch submitted films and then rate them. You don’t have to hold a film degree from NYU to do this. You simply have to be a fan of movies. For the past three years I have been a documentary screener for the Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival here in Birmingham. I have seen a lot of horrible films, but I have also seen some great ones. And I am constantly learning about people, issues, cultures, and events that I never knew existing, which is pretty enlightening. If you are a fan of movies and want to see more than what Hollywood is turning out, volunteer at a film festival. It’s definitely worth the time.

Television viewers over the past few years have seen an impressive surge in the production quality of many shows. A generation ago, shows were stiff and unrealistic. Historical specials were extremely low budget and featured reenactments filled with poor costuming, unrealistic locations, no special effects, and bad acting. However, in recent years, this has all changed.

In my opinion, the History Channel and Discovery Channel are at the forefront of high quality television specials with great production value. The investments made in creating these shows have certainly paid off and the result is a more cinematic experience, that both informs and entertains.

Take, for example, Discovery Channel’s latest historical special - a two-hour look at the construction of the Great Wall of China. Titled, Behind the Great Wall, the documentary educates the viewer on the culture of 16th century China and discusses the socio-economic and political climate that necessitated the construction. But the film doesn’t merely focus on reciting historical fact. It gives the story a human touch by introducing us to the key players in this real-life drama. We learn about their families, their homes, their lifestyles, and personal ambitions. We learn of the personal sacrifice it took to complete this engineering feat.

But the viewer isn’t forced to listen to a stuffy historian talk about these facts. We are taken to 16th century China through powerful reenactments that are as authentic as anything in a big-budget blockbuster. Armies on horseback. Hand-to-hand combat. Cannon blasts. It’s all packed into this very educational and entertaining documentary. I came away from the film with a whole new wealth of knowledge about Chinese history, but felt that I still wanted to know more. In the end, the film was more about the people than the wall itself and was somewhat anticlimatic. I was eager to know more about the features behind the wall that gave the Chinese army such great advantages over their enemies. In all, Behind the Great Wall is another fine example of the great programming on right now at Discovery Channel. You can catch this special again on February 2 at 6/5pm central.

Bottom Line: 3 out of 5 stars

Here are a few quick items to update you on the daily goings on here at Parc Entertainment:

1. We’re in the process of completely redesigning our website. 2008 marks our 5th year, and so I wanted to re-tool everything and give it a more up-to-date look. The new site will be more streamlined and easier to navigate. It will have a different color scheme that flows better with the company logo. We will also be integrating Flash for all demo clips. Plus, this blog will be moving to the new site once it’s live. We should have everything up and running by mid-February.
2. To date, our short film projects have been self-financed. For a few years now I’ve had two documentary projects that are still in treatment form. The goal this year is to raise the funds necessary to give one or both of these projects the green light.
3. I just completed a short film in association with the Hoover Church of Christ entitled, Too Late. It’s a morality tale about the dangers of excluding fellow Christians from social circles. I should have it posted on MySpace the last week of March.
4. During the latter part of this month and throughout next month I will be working on a couple of corporate projects. One is for Lewis Communications, a local ad agency. The other is for the Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind. In October we began shooting a four commercial campaign for AIDB. Two of the commercials are now complete. We will soon be finalizing the remaining spots and will begin work on a long-format fundraising piece.

As always, thank you for checking in and taking time to read the blog.

While in one of my film classes during my college years, our professor treated us to probably the best documentary on filmmaking that I have ever seen. Entitled, Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse, the film chronicles the making of Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now and the struggles the crew endured to see this picture through to the big screen.

The origins of the film start with United Artists, the distributors for Apocalypse Now. They wanted someone to shoot a behind-the-scenes look at production in order to promote the film. Coppola recruited his own wife to make the film, since she had a background in art, photography, and short films. So, she picked up a camera, aimed it at the crew and began shooting a story as compelling as the film itself.

Today when someone watches the behind-the-scenes featurette of their favorite film, what they normally see is a glamorized, polished look at the process of filmmaking. The viewer is left to believe that creating a movie is nothing but good times and smiles, with little effort involved. These featurettes are nothing more than PR spin for the studios. However, Hearts of Darkness is completely different. It is a brutally honest look at how a movie is made. We see Coppola struggle with the Philipino government to secure locations and equipment. We see the crew pushed to the limits of their endurance as the number of shooting days balloons out of control. We see typhoons shut down production. We see Coppola struggle to write an ending to the movie and question his own decisions. In one portion of the film, Eleanor Coppola (Francis’ wife) records him without his knowledge as he proclaims over and over that his movie will be a complete failure.

It’s this kind of look into the process of filmmaking that I really appreciate, and I believe every aspoiring filmmaker should watch this documentary. If you still want to make movies after watching this film, then you’re in the right business.

For a while this documentary was hard to find, and if you could find a copy it was on VHS. However, I was able to purchase a DVD copy from Amazon and am excited to have this one in my collection.

Bottom Line: 4 1/2 out of 5 stars

This post is the first on a series of reviews from this year’s Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival. I had the opportunity to watch about 12 films, and this first review centers on the feature-length documentary Strictly Background.

Directed by Jason Connell and shot over a period of two years, Strictly Background illuminates the sub-culture world of the movie extra by profiling ten different actors who struggle to make their living as a background player. These people survive on $50/day up to $120/day and sometimes live in a converted storage space, all in an effort to make their acting dreams a reality.

This film succeeds for a number of different reasons. First, the characters are interesting. Each person profiled has a unique history and unique circumstances that brought them to Hollywood. The subjects represent a cross-section of society, from white men, to asian men, to hispanic men, to elderly women. The filmmakers strive to profile a diverse ethnic group who have only one thing in common - they love working in movies.

Second, the film has heart. The story is very well balanced, from the humorous tales of life on the set, to the disappointments of unemployment. The filmmaker’s treat each person with respect and take an objective view to the subject matter. The film refrains from exploiting or humiliating these individuals. It simply shares their stories in a balanced manner. The viewer becomes so invested in these characters that when one actor suffers a personal setback, the viewer immediately empathizes with his plight.

Strictly Background was both humorous and heartwarming, and the footage from actual movies in which these extras appear complete the story nicely. Overall, a very well-done documentary.

Bottom Line: 4 out of 5 stars.

Recently a friend of mine told me about a charming little documentary called My Date With Drew, but living in Birmingham often procludes my exposure to a lot of independent cinema. So, imagine my surprise when my local Blockbuster had the film for rent.

Brian Herzlinger is a man in his late twenties; a resident of LA who is in between jobs. He’s worked a lot of low-paying, entry level jobs in the film and TV industry and has made a lot of friends. He has a wonderful personality and a sense of innocence that makes him charming. He’s a guy you want to cheer for. He’s also a guy who has a big crush on Drew Barrymore - an infatuation that began when he was 10 years old.

It has always been his dream to meet the famous actress, so he devises a plan to shoot a documentary of his attempt to contact Drew Barrymore and convince her to go out on one date with him. With $1,100 he won from a game show and a video camera that he must return to Circuit City in 30 days, Herzlinger sets out to make his dream a reality.

From the outset this film is very entertaining. The production value may be low, but it’s Herzlinger’s personality that drives the story. Random people on the street, his family members, and his friends all offer opinions on whether or not they think he can pull it off. He interviews people who know Drew and he welcomes their advise on how he can increase his chances of success. His journey takes him on interviews with John August, Eric Roberts, Corey Feldman, Drew’s first cousin, and Drew’s dermatologist. Overall, a very charming documentary with high entertainment value.

Bottom Line: 4 out of 5 stars  

In a previous post I shared some tips on how to develop a strong, simple story for a documentary film. Once you have a nice, tight, compelling story in place, it’s time to write your proposal. This document will summarize major points within your film and can be used in an effort to get support and funding for your project. Through it all, however, you must be able to communicate how your idea differs from other films with the same, or similar subject matter. Your proposal should have the following elements:

1. SUMMARY - In one or two sentences, describe your film’s content.

2. EXPLANATION OF SUBJECT MATTER - Here is where you define your subject for readers who might be unfamiliar with certain terms, issues, and/or events. Should you wish to produce a documentary on stem cell research, you would need to educate your readers on the stem cell issue, from the current morality debate to key items of legislation.

3. GOAL OF THE FILM - Simple enough. What do you wish to accomplish with this project?

4. EXPLANATION OF THE NARRATIVE STRUCTURE - This is where you outline the course your film will take. How will it progress? How will you get from point “A” to point “B?” How do you plan to tell the story? Some documentaries have a definite chronological order. Others are more ambiguous and rely heavily on the editing process to tell a compelling story.

5. RATIONALE FOR MAKING THE FILM - In this section you must define for your potential investor why making this film is important. For example, if you have an idea to produce a documentary about a young musical prodigy in your city, your rationale for making this film might be centered on the publicity your city and state will receive as a result of producing the project. You reasoning for wanting to produce such a documentary might also be to heighten public awareness regarding the need for liberal arts programs in our nation’s schools.

6. DISTRIBUTION - Sometimes you might find a wealthy family member or friend who is willing to support your film financially. A majority of the time, however, potential investors want to know how they can make money from this particular film. So, do some research. Find out which TV networks run programs similar to your subject matter. Investigate film festivals, DVD distribution, online sales, anything.

Sometimes, getting the idea is easy, but it will take research, preparation, and hard work to see your film through to completion.

Everyone has a great idea for a movie. Whether it be the next blockbuster action-packed thriller, the next artistic love story, or the next great political documentary, everyone feels that he or she can make their story into silver screen reality. Dreams can be enormous. Practical application of those dreams can be a struggle.

I’ve met with some people over the last year who wanted to discuss their documentary ideas with me, and get my opinion on what it would take to make it happen. In every one of these meetings, there was one constant. These individuals had an idea, but they didn’t know what to do with it. I’ve met with some exicted individuals who talked endlessly for at least ten minutes before getting to the bottom line. So, if you have an idea for the next great documentary film, let me share with you a few tips that will help narrow your focus and get your proposal off the ground.

1. FIND THE CENTRAL STORY - Remember English class term papers? Remember how your teacher always reminded you to come up with a concise thesis statement? The same holds true with your documentary. You must find the central story on which your film will hinge. Documentary subjects can be incredibly broad, so you must find a way to simplify those subjects into a concise story.

2. FIND A COMPELLING REASON FOR US TO WATCH - The story you come up with for your film has to be one that will actively engage the viewer. As you write your ideas, always ask yourself, “Why should people watch this film?” Some documentaries call the viewer to action. Some simply want to make the viewer aware of certain issues. Others want to pay tribute to an individual’s life. Whatever your angle, it must be interesting. I remember screening a documentary for the Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival last year about two middle-aged women who went on a cruise. That was it. These ladies simply took their home movie of an Alaskan cruise, added some music and titles, and submitted it as a documentary.

As you continue to brainstorm, write your thoughts down in a central location. I like to keep a notebook handy in which I write down all of my narrative and documentary ideas. That keeps everything organized and I am able to revisit my notes months and years later. Some may become scripts. Others may be revised, rewritten, and then assembled into a script. In the next post, I will talk about organizing your documentary proposal.