Lm 5 13 web

LOUISIANA FILM & VIDEO MAGAZINE ISSUE FIVE 20132

ISSUE FIVE 2013 LOUISIANA FILM & VIDEO MAGAZINE 3

888-463-7953 or visit us anytime online at w w w.cameracopters.com

Our custom “BIG RIGS” deliver helicopter, camera systems,crew, even jet fuel anywhere in Louisiana and the USA! CALL FOR DETAILS!

Use your aerial budget for great shots......not shipping and ferry charges.

YOUR ONE STOP FOR EVERYTHING AERIAL.

NEW! with

Single & Twin Engine Helicopters

Airplanes & Seaplanes

Film, Video, & Print Photography

Location Scouting & Pre-Production

SAG/AFTRA Aerial Coordinators & Pilots

FAA Motion Picture & TV Manual

All Camera Mounts & Systems Available

SERVICES: RECENT CREDITS:“Grudge Match,” “American Heist,” “Yellow Hankerchief,” “Texas Killing Fields,” “Motel,“ “The Loft,” “Jonah Hex,” “12 Rounds,”“Spiderman,” “Superman,” "Pain & Gain,“ "Jack & Jill,” “Why Did I Get Married Too?,” “Get Smart,” “Burn Notice,” “Gumball 3000,” “Revolution,” “The Following,”“CSI: Miami/ NY/Las Vegas,” “Project Earth” (Discovery), “Top Gear,” “Detroit 1-8-7,” “Mississippi River Quest”(NatGeo), “The Amazing Race,” “Bullrun” (Spike TV),“Madfin on ESPN,” HBO, Fox,“Bass Masters,” NatGeo, ABC, Chevrolet, GMC, Honda, Mercedes,Volvo, Lincoln/Mercury, Kawasaki & Many More...

L O U I S I A N A T A X C R E D I T Q U A L I F I E D

CONTENTS


EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Andrew [email protected]

EDITOR-AT-LARGE

Shanna Forrestall

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

W.H. Bourne

ASSOCIATE EDITOR Katie [email protected]

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Abigail Levner, Odin Lindblom, Michael Mayhall, Jason Raymond, Carol Ann Scruggs

SALES MANAGER

Katie Higgins

SALES

Eric Iles

PRODUCTION MANAGER

John Rusnak

DESIGNERS

Dawn Carlson, Beth Harrison,

Christina Poisal

WEBMASTER

Jon Hines

OFFICE MANAGER

Audra Higgins

INFORMATION SERVICES MANAGER

Lois Sanborn

Louisiana Film & Video PublicationsA DIVISION OF

MEDIA INDEX PUBLISHING GROUP

P.O. Box 50036

New Orleans, LA 70150

(800) 332-1736

[email protected]

www.louisianafilmandvideo.com

www.louisianaproductionindex.com

Display Advertising: Call Media Index Publishing

Group for a current rate card. Discounts for

frequency advertising. All submitted materials

become the property of Media Index Publishing

Group and will not be returned. Subscriptions, call

(800) 332-1736 for information and rates.

Copyright © 2013 Media Index Publishing

Group. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publi-

cation may be used for solicitation or copied by

any means, electronic or mechanical, including

photocopying or recording by any information

storage or retrieval system, without the express

written permission of the publisher.

PRINTED IN THE USA

ISSUE FIVEVOLUME NINE

6 LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

8 12 YEARS A SLAVE DAZZLES AT FILM FESTIVALS AS IT GENERATES OSCAR BUZZ

14 LOUISIANA KREWE HOSTS TALENT &INCENTIVE SHOWCASE AT TORONTOINTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

18 THE ART OF THE TEASE

20 HATESHIP LOVESHIP TAKES ON TIFF

24 PRODUCING A GREAT ESCAPE PLAN

30 NOFF 2013: HIGHLIGHTING WIFT

32 SOUTHERN SCREEN FILM FEST: THE LF&VM OFFICIAL SELECTION

34 TALKING DOG PRODUCTIONS: “INDIE ALLTHE WAY”

36 JAKE’S ROAD: AN INDIE FILM’S JOURNEY

40 SHELL SHOCKED: EFFECTIVELY LIGHTINGINTERVIEWS ON A BUDGET

44 SIX QUESTIONS FOR LILY KEBER

46 SPOTLIGHT ON LOUISIANA PRODUCTIONSERVICES

48 BEHIND THE SCENES: FREIGHT FORWARDING

50 FEAR FETE

52 SIGGRAPH 2013 OFFERS NO CLEARFUTURE FOR VFX INDUSTRY

54 2013 FILM INDUSTRY EXPO

58 READY SET FILM!: A RECAP OF NOVAC PRACTICAL FX TRAINING

60 BRIEFS

ON THE COVER: Filmed by DP Sean Bobbitt and his crew, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Michael Fassbender (center) provide greatperformances in Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave.PHOTO BY FRANCOIS DUHAMEL

Filming a scene for 12 Years a Slave with actors Michael Fassbender, Lupita Nyong’o, and Chiwetel Ejiofor. PHOTO BY FRANCOIS DUHAMEL

Filming a scene for 12 Years a Slave with actors Michael Fassbender, Lupita Nyong’o, and Chiwetel Ejiofor. PHOTO BY FRANCOIS DUHAMEL

8

DIGITAL EDITION AVAILABLE AT: WWW.LOUISIANAFILMANDVIDEO.COM

24


LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

When actors or filmmakers from out of state ask me ifLouisiana is the place to be, which happens with increasingfrequency, my initial biased response is always a ‘yes.’ And

then I start to think about the reasons I feel this way. Sure, we have agreat incentive program that draws a high volume of film, television andcommercials, but other markets are rising to the occasion in that regard.So what is it that gives Louisiana the edge?

To me, one of the more overlooked aspects of the film industry ingeneral is a film community. I believe that the successful members ofour LA community have, in large part, become successful because ofthat very community. Opportunities to work, which of course LA has,are fantastic when they lead to actual work. But many of us know wellthat opportunities to work do not guarantee work. The Louisiana filmcommunity is a cohesive creative unit that proves essential when timesare tough. We can’t always work on a majornetwork show or a studio film, but we canusually work on any number of the other inde-pendent projects that are in production. And ifnot, we create our own independent projectswith friends we wouldn’t have if it weren’t forthe ample networking opportunities here.

One such opportunity was the annual FilmIndustry Expo, held on September 7 in New

Orleans. Shanda Quintal and the Expo team worked long hours formonths to put together what became a great success for our filmcommunity. Representing LF&VM, I held a booth in the exhibitors circleand was able to see firsthand just how appealing New Orleans hasbecome to outsiders. Most of the people I met were from other partsof the country and many from other parts of the world. They each hadtheir own reason for being there, but mainly it was to network and seewhat the LA hype was all about! Shanda and her team deserve all thecredit in the world, as it was their efforts that brought the major cast-ing directors, production companies, agents, teachers, speakers andcoaches to the event. See more on page 54.

As we are all aware, festival season is upon us. The 24th annual NewOrleans Film Festival is underway. Last year, the festival was namedone of the 25 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee by MovieMaker Maga-zine, and one of the Fifteen Fests You Should Enter by Premium Beat.The steady growth of the NOFF, in combination with the efforts of theNew Orleans Film Society, is a tremendous testament to the growthof our film industry as a whole. For all those in attendance, whetherforeign or domestic, I hope your experience is one rife with entertain-ment and, more importantly, opportunity.

All the best,Andrew Vogel, Executive Editor


their slate. Plan B Entertainment is Brad Pitt’scompany, which is one of several productioncompanies involved in 12 Years a Slave. Plan Bhas had an interesting and diverse slate withrecent offerings ranging from Tree of Life toKick-Ass to World War Z to 12 Years a Slave.

“I would think the commonality (of theslate) is simple,” explains Gardner. “Is it a storythat we love and feel is original, a story thathasn’t been told? Is it a filmmaker that we

“We had been talking to Steve McQueen,”says Dede Gardner, producer of 12 Years aSlave. “We were great admirers of his work,and he asked us fairly early on why therehadn’t been more movies that addressedAmerican slavery, in particular movies thatsurveyed the entire institution rather than tella singular story or event.”

In addition to producing, Gardner is presi-dent of Plan B Entertainment and oversees

admire, and we want to help get their moviemade and to protect that movie and its origi-nal intention from the point of its inceptionto its release? Can we help the project byletting its intention stay pure throughout andnot get corrupted by a process that often timesis corrupting? That truly is what’s behindeverything we do and what it does, of course,also affords a great deal of diversity… I thinkour endeavor was clear from the outset andthat it was all about protecting Steve and hisvision and doing whatever we could to facili-tate that.”

12 Years a Slave is a crown jewel to the PlanB slate. The film is sure to get Oscar nomi-nations for the outstanding performances,craft and attention to detail used to tell thisriveting true story.

“I have been working with Steve McQueenfor almost 12 years now,” says cinematogra-

12 YEARS A SLAVE DAZZLESAT FILM FESTIVALS AS ITGENERATES OSCAR BUZZSTORY BY W. H. BOURNE • PHOTOS BY FRANCOIS DUHAMEL AND JAAP BUTENDIJK

After receiving rave reviews at Telluride and Toronto Film Festivals,award-winning director Steve McQueen’s latest film, 12 Years a Slave,will make its Louisiana premiere opening night at New Orleans

Film Festival. Shot in Louisiana, McQueen’s gripping tale of a free manof color who is kidnapped and enslaved is based on the true story ofSolomon Northup and the book he wrote about surviving the ordeal.

Cinematographer Sean Bobbitt uses a dolly to capture a scene with Lupita Nyong’o andChiwetel Ejiofor for 12 Years a Slave.

Cinematographer Sean Bobbitt uses a dolly to capture a scene with Lupita Nyong’o andChiwetel Ejiofor for 12 Years a Slave.


pher Sean Bobbitt. “I started shooting someof his installation work, and then when hemoved into drama, I did Hunger and Shame.We have quite a close and long working rela-tionship. Soon after Shame, Steve started talk-ing about a book that his wife Bianca hadfound called 12 Years a Slave, which was outof print in Europe at the time.”

“Bianca was doing research on other first-hand accounts of people who had been slaves,and she just came upon the book,” says Gard-ner. “The book is a treasure... it’s really aremarkable document, but it’s also incrediblycinematic, both structurally as well as narra-tively. It was like a great fortune had befell us.We were really happy to hear about the storyand, frankly, quite embarrassed that we didn’tknow about it before.”

“It all happened very quickly after Shame,”explains Bobbitt. “Steve kept saying, ‘You must

read this book! You must read this book!’…and then he said, ‘Okay, this is going to be thenext film.’ Then, very, very quickly he cameup with a script while working with JohnRidley. Before we knew it, the money was thereand we were ready to go.”

“As with lots of projects, you have to try andfigure out how to put them together so they cangarner the financing they need,” says Gardner.“We had the script and (actors) Chiwetel Ejio-for and Michael Fassbender attached. Then wehad Brad Pitt attached and that was the pack-age that jump-started the financing in a bunch

of different ways. We did more traditional cast-ing for the rest of the parts...”

The process of making the film was power-ful, even for seasoned veterans like Bobbitt.

“I was so engrossed with the actual processand the physical making of the film,” explainsBobbitt. “I operate the camera as well, so Ireally don’t have the time to take in what’shappening... I am detached like an observer, soit’s just another day of work for me. That is oneof the great privileges of being an operator isthat you are there next to the actors. What theyare doing goes through your eyes first. Some ofthe performances were truly astounding that thehair would stand up on the back of my neck.Even though I’m trying to focus on framing...some of those scenes, it was undeniable thatsomething exceptional was happening.”

“Everyone (cast and crew) was very awareand conscious of the story we were telling andwhy we were telling it. They understood thecare in which we needed to tell it, and they alltook it very seriously,” explains Gardner.

The filming locations—primarily in andaround New Orleans—were another impact-ful aspect of creating 12 Years a Slave.

“We could not have made that filmanywhere else but Louisiana,” says Bobbitt.“The fact that the story itself takes placeprimarily in Louisiana and the locations—wewere on real plantations. There is a verisimil-itude there that could not have been re-created—just visually being in the right place.It makes your life so much easier in terms oftelling a story. (Ed. note: Spoiler alert) Thereare elements in there, like the scene where thetwo young lads are being hanged as SolomonNorthup is trying to make his first escape. Thattree that they’re hanging from is at the backof the plantation, and that tree was actuallyused to hang people. There’s something about

that truth, whether or not that comes throughin the film is irrelevant, that as you’re makingit, you feel that this is real and that this hashappened here. There’s something very eerieand thought-provoking about being in theactual place where something has happened.”

“It felt absolutely right to shoot it there,”explains Gardner. “I mean, obviously, you hadthe great benefit of the Louisiana tax rebate,and we needed every penny so I’m not goingto pretend that it didn’t matter. But in thisparticular case, it felt entirely correct that wemake this film where it took place. I think wereally benefited from working in New Orleansand benefited from working with people whowere very aware of the history of slavery inthat town.”

Filming in Louisiana did come with somechallenges.

“With Louisiana and the summer, particu-larly that summer, the weather was brutal,”says Bobbitt. “We had some exceptionally hotdays that were punctuated by some truly bibli-cal thunderstorms. On the last day of filming,the set got hit by lightning. We spent a lot oftime cowering from thunderstorms. It kind ofeats up your days... Every element of a film isa challenge. Cinematography is all about prob-lem-solving, so it’s always hard to say what isthe greatest challenge, but I guess weatherwould have been our greatest challenge.”

Overall, according to Gardner and Bobbitt,filming in the area was a great success.

“I’m an enormous fan of New Orleans,”says Gardner. “There’s something about NewOrleans... I think their response to Katrina wasin their DNA. I don’t think it was somethingthat just showed up after the storm. I thinkthere’s something about the music and lifecoming first...”

“My crew was almost completely local

12 Years a Slave director Steve McQueen watches a take.

12 Years a Slave director Steve McQueen watches a take.

Plan B Entertainment President and 12 Years a Slave producer Dede Gardner

discusses production on the set.

Plan B Entertainment President and 12 Years a Slave producer Dede Gardner

discusses production on the set.

Cinematographer Sean Bobbitt andDirector Steve McQueen discuss a shot

on the set of 12 Years a Slave.

Cinematographer Sean Bobbitt andDirector Steve McQueen discuss a shot

on the set of 12 Years a Slave.


hire,” explains Bobbitt. “The only person Ibrought was my camera focus puller. I wasreally impressed with what a great group (thecrew) were. Louisiana has a fantastic pool ofreally, really talented technicians who arequite unique. When you sit down for lunchwith a group of electricians and grips, theyusually talked about sports or other unsavorythings, but in Louisiana all they wanted to talkabout was food, which was really quite amus-ing and refreshing. It’s impossible not to get

some good food in Louisiana. I put on a hugeamount of weight, which has taken me almosthalf a year to get off again. That’s one of thebonuses of work in Louisiana.”

He continues, “When the crew wasn’t talkingabout food, they were talking about film. On topof that, they’re incredibly experienced, proba-bly due to the large number of films comingthrough Louisiana on a yearly basis now. It’sbuilding up a pool of uniquely qualified indi-viduals. I had a fantastic time with the crew.”

“The opportunity to make 12 Years a Slavewas such a privilege,” says Gardner. She adds,“Now I just want audiences to see it. That’ssort of why you do this (producing). Some-times it happens and sometimes it doesn’t, butthis one in particular means a lot to me thatit actually gets seen.”

“It’s been amazing how the film has beenreceived,” says Bobbitt. “I think that’s thegreatest reward of all—that people have seenwhat you have done and are somehow movedby it. If you can do that, then you havesucceeded, and everything you’ve done has

been worthwhile.”Concurs Gardner, “Producing is all about

narrative and story... I believe they have greatstaying power if they all are really dynamic. Ifyou love story, look for great stories to produce.”

Obviously Gardner found a fantastic storywith 12 Years a Slave, which will screen onOctober 10 at the New Orleans Film Festival.Be sure to catch it there so you’ll be in theknow come Oscar time! LFV

TALKING TECH FOR 12 YEARS A SLAVESTORY BY W. H. BOURNE AND ODIN LINDBLOM

“There are a lot of advantages to working with the same directorover a long period of time,” says Sean Bobbitt, cinematographer of12 Years a Slave. “The most important thing is that your relation-ship is mature. You know what each other likes and thinks... Youhave a language and trust that has developed over time. It reallyspeeds up the process dramatically, and it also lets the process growdeeper because you don’t spend time talking about trivialities andtrying to get to know each other. You just go to the heart of theproject and work out from there.”

Bobbitt was eager to talk about the heart of 12 Years a Slave andhis craft.

“We shot on film using 4 perf,” explains Bobbitt. “We were usingthe ARRICAM LT and the ARRICAM ST. We shot with Cooke SFlenses, which I am very fond of. In many ways, it was a traditionalfilm project. We shot on the Kodak Vision 350 Daylight, which isan astounding stock, the Kodak Vision 250 Daylight, which is notquite as astounding but it’s still a very good stock, and then theKodak 500 Tungsten, which again is an amazing stock. I’d push the(Kodak) 500 one stop so we were shooting at 1000 ASA.”

12 Years a Slave has a rich color palette and its night time scenes,in particular the candlelight scenes, really draw the viewer into thetime period.

“It was kind of important for me to feel the candlelight,” saysBobbitt. “I can remember years ago seeing Ang Lee’s film, Ride withthe Devil, and the exhibition prints of that were astounding. It wasso dark, and you really believed that you were in that era. It suddenlybrought home, my God, when it got dark all you had was candles...I really wanted you to sense the candles, which is why I rated it at1000 ASA because there’s just not that much more sensitive. Whenthe candles are actually close to someone, you can see the actualflickering of the candle on the individual’s face. I would’ve loved tohave gone much, much darker in the actual grade itself, but it kindof went against the overall feeling of the film, which was one of

simple beauty as a contrast to the horrors of what was really goingon. By pushing the stock, you also were getting an interesting grainstructure... it’s a shame it’s disappearing in the digital age. I thinkthat (the grain) gave us a texture.”

He continues, “In terms of the color, again, I thought it was quiteimportant and quite interesting because candles are not that brightand that if there was moonlight that you would actually feel themoonlight a bit, so we had the color contrast of that rich, rich, deeporange, almost gold, with a streaming blue-green moonlight thatcreeps in every once in a while. Since we were working with darkerflesh tones, it’s very important to see the expressions along withthe features of the actors, so the candles just don’t quite cut it. Iwas supplementing the candlelight with very simple china balls andsome Kinos, but mostly china balls run on a very, very low dimmerso you get the same color temperature of the candlelight. You canadjust it so it gives you just that little bit more so you can clearlysee the features of your actors.”

Unlike many U. S. cinematographers, Bobbitt is also a cameraoperator on 12 Years a Slave.

“In Europe and the rest of the world, there’s a greater and greaterdemand of camera operating cinematographers,” explains Bobbitt,“particularly in the lower-budget films. That’s sort of the worldwhere I come from. My background is in news and as a documen-tary cameraman, so I’ve always operated the camera. It’s just simplypart of the process. It’s the way I have grown up, and I can’t do itany other way. I’ve tried and I just get really bored having to sitbehind a monitor and stay engaged. If I’m there behind the lens,then I’m absolutely engrossed.”

“Shooting is a skill,” offers Bobbitt. “You only develop skillsthrough working on them. You just really need to keep shooting—shoot anything, shoot everything! Then look at what you’ve shotvery critically so you can progress and learn. Every job, I try to dosomething different so I learn something more so that my skill levelis increasing. That’s what I would recommend to any cinematog-rapher is to just get out there and do it... and try to make sure thatevery job is better than the job before.”

Steve McQueen discusses a scene with actors Lupita Nyong’o

and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

Steve McQueen discusses a scene with actors Lupita Nyong’o

and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

Steve McQueen and Chiwetel Ejiofor working in the summer heat in Louisiana for 12 Years a Slave.

Steve McQueen and Chiwetel Ejiofor working in the summer heat in Louisiana for 12 Years a Slave.


Krewe” at this year’s TIFF, complete with newtechnologies for mask-making demonstrations,film incentives and resources discussion, world-class visual effects, and hurricane drinks.

Ian Birnie, former programmer at TIFF andLIFF’s inaugural year program director, stated,

The Louisiana International Film Festival &Mentorship Program (LIFF), along withLafayette Entertainment Initiative (LEI),Louisiana Film & Video Magazine, CompositeEffects (CFX), Pixel Magic and Cox Channel 4,hosted a film business breakfast as the “Louisiana

“Inasmuch as Louisiana is a big productioncenter now, there is a lot of reasons for Louisianato have a visibility in Toronto. This festival isdevoted to the final product, but a lot of filmsthat were shot in Louisiana are here and thereare a lot of producers that may be interested inmaking a film in Louisiana and would like to seewhat talent and resources are there.”

Visiting filmmakers at TIFF had the oppor-tunity to meet the faces behind the masks withComposite Effects (CFX) artists Diana Bran-ton, Brett Morris and Scott Moore. TheLouisiana-born special effects studio and sili-cone mask company, which created FX for

LOUISIANA KREWE HOSTS TALENT &INCENTIVE SHOWCASE AT TORONTOINTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

With Louisiana-made films like Dallas Buyers Club, 12 Years a Slave andHateship Loveship premiering at Toronto International Film Festi-val (TIFF) to critical acclaim, Louisiana has a lot to celebrate.

Left to right: Shanna Forrestall,Producer Dallas Sonnier, Julie Bordelon

(LEI) and Shannon Sonnier.

Ian Birnie (LIFF) and guest atLouisiana Krewe event at TIFF.

15

Proudly Celebrating30 Years!

People Store/Hot Shot Kids provides the nation’s best talent for Film, Television, Commercial,

Corporate Video, Voice Over, Print and Live Entertainment.


Hollywood films like 2 Guns, AbrahamLincoln: Vampire Hunter and Red, specializesin crafting world-famous silicone masks,unparalleled in detail, durability and func-tionality. With a fully equipped makeup labwithin the facility, a full-service prop shop, afull staff of sculptors, mold-makers, painters,costumers and hair artists, as well as all of thenecessary equipment for 3D printing, fiber-glass, vacuum forming and rotational casting,their innovations seamlessly blur the linesbetween fantasy and reality. CFX created“Mask Lab™”, where clients can learn to usefree interactive software for masks that can beused as a storyboarding tool to help bringcharacter ideas to life. Their “Mac” mask wasin the September issue of Playboy.

Shanna Forrestall, from Louisiana Film &Video Magazine and an actress in the filmOlympus Has Fallen, recently had the broad-cast premiere of Investigation Discovery’snew series Southern Fried Homicide in Canadathis September.

“It was such a privilege to representLouisiana with the Louisiana Krewe at TIFF2013,” she said. “With the film industry in thestate staying strong and represented this year bysome of TIFF’s most outstanding films, I am

proud as ever to be a Louisiana native workingin the industry full-time in my home state.”

Representing Lafayette as a hotspot forindependent filmmaking, Julie Bordelon fromLafayette Entertainment Initiative (LEI)discussed the many additional incentives andresources for filming in Acadiana, with adiversity of vibrant locations and talent likevisual effects house Pixel Magic. Pixel Magic’sRay McIntyre, Jr., who serves as VFX super-visor and stereoscopic supervisor, recentlyprovided VFX for three number one films atthe box office in the last three months: Insid-ious 2, The Butler (number one for a total of

three weeks), and The Conjuring. CurrentlyPixel Magic is delivering VFX shots for theABC hit TV series Nashville and gettingstarted on creating VFX for the upcomingfeature film When the Game Stands Tall. Filmtax incentives are not limited to productionand may also be received for post-productionwork done in the state.

If you want to see any of the beautiful film-ing locations or meet the Louisiana Krewe, theLouisiana International Film Festival &Mentorship Program is a good time to explorethe state for filmmaking. With an excitinglaunch for its inaugural year, LIFF presentedfour days of screenings this April, includingover 50 films from around the world to acumulative crowd of over 4,000 excited atten-dees in Baton Rouge and New Orleans. Addi-tionally, LIFF hosted an Industry Expo,Mayor’s Lunch on the Lot, Filmmaker Recep-tion, “1963” Photography Exhibit by BobAdelman, special musical performances by

Merry Clayton (20 Feet From Stardom), HenryGray, and Jonathan Batiste & Stay Human,the popular 2013 Workshop Program, andawards ceremony. LFV

Currently, LIFF is developing this year’s Film Series Program

and planning the second Louisiana International Film Festival,

scheduled for May 8 – 11, 2014. For more information, visit

www.lifilmfest.org.

Ian Birnie & Chesley (LIFF) at the TIFF Bell Lightbox for a screening.

Guests listen to Diana Branton (CFX)discuss new technology for mask making

used at their Louisiana studio.

Filmmakers gatherfor the anticipated

Louisiana Krewetalk at TIFF.

Film industry guests enjoying the Louisianaincentives and resources discussion at TIFF.


The perfect location for ANY production.

St. John Center Soundstage

Visit film-louisiana.com or give us a call at 866.204.7782 for more information to start your production rolling today!


ciates, Sohini Sengupta and Scott Mitsui,about their company philosophy, and theirwork on two of this year’s biggest films.

The trio was in sync about the companyfocus. They don’t just make trailers. They seekto really understand the film, and then repre-sent that film in a truthful way.

Woollen put it well. “A lot of the movies we getto work on are movies that we are big fans of. Ourbasic philosophy is that we try to understand thefilm and then represent it honestly, being true towhat the filmmakers set out to do. The film-makers often work for years on their movies, andour trailer is often the first representation of thework, so we take that very seriously.”

When I pushed him to tell me what makes hiscompany and his work special, he was humble,stating simply that it comes down to taste.

“We understand and appreciate theirmovies, but it just comes down to taste,” hesaid. “You could give the same movie to halfa dozen places, and you will get different cuts,in terms of storytelling and the tone. People aresimply responding to the choices we make.”

The team went on to explain that their workis not easy to fit into a “formula.” They arealways trying to reinvent the way things aredone. In the past, film trailers have always hada three-act structure, but Woollen & Associateshave strayed away from that standard, and aremore focused on emphasizing the characters,

Louisiana was well represented at this year’sfestival with two of TIFF’s biggest buzzfilms—12 Years a Slave and Dallas BuyersClub—both shot here in the state, and myinvestigation into these two projects led me toan interesting discovery.

These two films, as well as many others shotin Louisiana over the past few years likerecent indie festival darlings Beasts of theSouthern Wild and Ain’t Them Bodies Saints,had something in common—their trailerswere all cut by Mark Woollen and Associates.

After meeting Woollen and his associateSohini Sengupta at a TIFF Industry Panel, Iwas able to talk them into a phone interviewto discuss their work and the future of theindustry. Their insights were very interesting,especially since it’s probably their work thatwill determine whether you see either of thesefilms once they’re released to the public.

Mark Woollen & Associates has been instru-mental in creating powerful and effectivemotion picture advertising since the company’sinception. What started as a one-man opera-tion has grown into a staff of over 20 highlyskilled producers, writers, editors and graphicdesigners focused on bringing a unique visionto films ranging from critically acclaimedindies to the year’s biggest blockbusters.

So I was pleased to have a few minutes tochat with Woollen himself, and two of his asso-

the plot, and the tone and feeling of the filmby accentuating the film’s positives.

And, as Sengupta pointed out, for indiefilmmakers the key to creating your owneffective trailer may be simply understandingyour audience and staying true to that. “Youcan be true to your film by understanding whoit’s for,” she said.

12 Years a Slave and Dallas Buyers Club maybe two different films, but the Woollen teamhas found unique ways to market both of them.

Sengupta noted, “Both of these films leave youwith a lot of hope, and it’s about connecting tothat hope in the promotional work. Both of thesefilms featured great performances, and heroeswith great strength of character, so the end resultwas an overwhelming feeling of triumph.”

Regarding the future, the Woollen team seesbright, but challenging days ahead.

Mitsui remarked, “Because we work in Avidand everything’s on computers, our clients’expectations are high, and they tend to wantthe work faster and faster. It’s tricky to deliverquickly, and we have to allocate a lot ofresources to each one to meet the demands.”

He also feels that the Internet has definitelyaffected the trailer industry.

Mitsui added, “Movie trailers being onlinehave affected the industry in a few ways. Firstof all, there is now a need for more trailerssince they can be tailored for different formatsand audiences. Also, there is now instantfeedback, and that can help impact choices inthe campaigns moving forward. It’s bothexciting and challenging.”

And I can say one thing for sure. This youngaggressive company has truly mastered “TheArt of the Tease” for the digital age. Theirtrailers have seduced me to see quite a fewfilms over the past few years, and I’ve rarelybeen disappointed. LFV

THE ART OF THE TEASESTORY BY SHANNA FORRESTALL

With the Toronto International Film Festival boasting its largest yearin history, I was privileged to attend this year’s festival on behalfof Louisiana Film & Video Magazine as a member of the “Louisiana

Krewe.” Our primary goal was to continue to spread the word about howLouisiana is the place to film, and we accomplished this through a LouisianaIncentive breakfast, free workshops, and hours and hours of networking.

AN UPDATE FROM TIFF


because those actors really are that soulful—Guy Pearce, Nick Nolte, Hailee Steinfeld,Jennifer Jason Leigh, Christine Lahti, SamiGayle—they truly have that level of depth, aspeople and as actors, and I think you can seeit on the screen.”

Johnson describes how she was initiallyattracted to the script.

“When I first read Mark Poirier’s script, I

Hateship Love-ship was adaptedfrom AliceMunro’s shortstory about a shy,unsophisticatedh o u s e k e e p e rnamed Johannawho falls victimto a cruel prankwith ultimately

surprising consequences. The film, directed by Liza Johnson who

most recently directed the critically-acclaimedReturn (2011), utilizes the talented KristenWiig to create a unique character who, inJohnson’s words, ranges from “empatheticand warm, to dark and painful.”

Johnson adds, “The performances are reallyspecial. I think people will be surprisedand delighted to see Kristen Wiig in adramatic role. We just premiered in Toronto,and there seems to be a consensus that she’spretty amazing in it. In fact, the whole cast iswonderful and subtle and soulful. That is

was attracted to it because I love how it letsJohanna develop her desire. Wanting some-thing always puts you at risk,” she explains.“Johanna is a caregiver by profession, and thestory tests the limits of that skill set—howmuch can she help, and is there such a thingas too much care?”

Although the film was set in the Midwest,producer Jamin O’Brien says Louisiana was a“great place to shoot,” and he found it “easyto accomplish his goals” in the state. The filmwas primarily shot in and around NewOrleans, but the project also utilized locationson the Northshore and in St. Bernard parish.

O’Brien adds, “I love it there. Louisiana’s themost film-friendly place in North America. We

HATESHIP LOVESHIPTAKES ON TIFF

STORY BY SHANNA FORRESTALL

With two larger studio films, 12 Years a Slave and Dallas Buyers Club,stealing many of the headlines at TIFF, another Louisiana-shotfilm showcased at the festival went for viewer’s hearts instead.

Director Liza JohnsonDirector Liza Johnson

Production still from Hateship Loveship.

Still from Hateship Loveship.


came primarily because of the tax credit, butI love shooting there. It offers great locations,great crews, and of course great food.”

Johnson echoes his praise. “I loved shootingin Louisiana. For one thing, I loved NewOrleans. I still have a picture on my phone ofmy favorite sandwich there and I show it topeople all the time, the way other people showpictures of their children or their pets. I reallylove that sandwich! New Orleans is the mostinteresting, regionally specific place I have

been in the U.S., and it was just so amazingto get to spend time in a place that is nothomogenized like so much of the country.

“But the best thing for filming really was thecrew base. I was so thrilled by the level of crewtalent that we were able to hire. I especiallyloved working so closely with Hannah Beach-ler, our amazing production designer. She livesin New Orleans but she’s from Ohio, and wewere able to convincingly take a city with areally specific built environment and make it

play for the Midwest.”Johnson continues, “The whole crew was

unbelievably talented and professional—thegrip and electric team, Hannah’s team, the driv-ers, everybody. Mad skills. And they also reallyhelped me keep the atmosphere of the setwarm and kind and hospitable for the actors.”

The film should secure distribution in thenext couple of weeks, so keep watch forannouncements on how you can view this littleindependent masterpiece. LFV

www.adamsandreese.com

800.725.1990 | 504.581.3234 | 225.336.5200

OUTINFRONT

ALABAMA | FLORIDA | LOUISIANA | MISSISSIPPI | SOUTH CAROLINA

TENNESSEE | TEXAS | WASHINGTON, DC

The Adams and Reese Entertainment and New Media team covers the legal arena within the entertainment, film, music, and book industries including intellectual property, technology, and newmedia. From concept to completion, we are advocates for our clients in contract preparation and negotiations as well as in purchasing, selling, licensing, protecting, and enforcing intellectual properties.

From concept to completion...

Meg Alsfeld Kaul New [email protected]

Tom ClarkBaton [email protected]

Contact Attorneys:

Attorney Advertising. No representation is made that the quality of the legal services to be performed is greater than

the quality of the legal services performed by other lawyers. Advertisement contains stock photography.

Contacts: Charles P. Adams, Jr. and Ralph H. Wall, 504.581.3234

Still from Hateship Loveship.


production, we began to talk about names thatwere a better fit for the film,” says Emmett. “Itwas always part of the conversation to changethe name of the movie to something that wasmore descriptive of the film without nailing iton the head.”

After three months’ time, Emmett and therest of the producers were shown Håfström’sfirst cut.

“When you see the first cut, it’s like remov-ing a blindfold, and you really understand thatit’s his baby. Having the distance helps youprocess it,” says Emmett. “When we saw thefirst cut, we were blown away. We were soexcited that it was in such great shape. Mikaeldid a phenomenal job. We were very lucky.”

“When you wrap a movie, if the director ispart of the Directors Guild, as per the Direc-tors Guild, he has somewhere around 12weeks for a true director’s cut where no oneelse (but the editor) can be involved. He hasthe right to show the studio or the producerssome footage, but you don’t really have a rightto see it unless the director invites you,” saysEmmett. “Mikael Håfström, our director,wasn’t like that; he was very inclusive.”

Emmett explains that while the director andeditor are off working on that first cut, theproducers are working on marketing anddistribution strategies. It was sometime duringthis period that The Tomb became Escape Plan.

“Early on in the edit, while we were in post-

He continues, “Somewhere around thistime, the studio said, ‘We’re going to date themovie,’ so they (the marketing department)pick a date. You’re involved in the discussion,but you are relying on their professional

PRODUCING A GREAT ESCAPE PLAN

STORY BY W. H. BOURNE • PHOTOS COURTESY OF SUMMIT ENTERTAINMENT

It seems like yesterday that The Tomb was wrapping shooting in NewOrleans. Now, almost a year later, the action thriller starring SylvesterStallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger is about to release under the title

Escape Plan. Producer Randall Emmett explains everything from the post-production process to the name change of the movie in an interestinginsider’s look into the role of a producer.

Filming a fight scene for Escape Planon set in New Orleans East.

Sylvester Stallonehas the upper hand

in a fight scenewith Arnold

Schwarzenegger.


expertise as far as determining what is a goodtime to get the maximum exposure and themost people out to see your movie. Part of thatis looking to see what else is coming up on thecalendar. October looked good for us, and wethought the weekend was a really good week-end. There are just so many factors, but on anymovie you also need to make sure that theactors are available and that they can go outand support your movie (at press junkets andpremieres around that opening weekend).”

After a release date is selected, there is stillmuch work to do on a film.

“Visual effects work often starts early, butonce you see the director’s cut, you go intooverdrive as far as creating those effects,”explains Emmett. “And you have a reallyspecific production schedule up until delivery.You have a limited amount of money thatyou’re spending on a weekly basis, so you haveto stay on top of it to stay within your budget.During this time, the director and editor willalso be making multiple passes on the film.The director will take notes from the produc-ers until he locks the picture, and then thereare no more changes. Once locked, they dothe dubbing, the music scoring, and all thatstuff. That usually takes about three to fourmonths, depending on what schedule you areon. Some movies take more time, some moviestake less.”

Typically at this point, a film undergoesmarket testing. If you’ve never been to amarket research screening for a film, it’s afascinating process. The audience is pre-screened to match the demographics that yourmovie should appeal to. For many films, theaudience’s response in the top two boxesdetermines if your film gets theatrical releaseor goes straight to DVD and VOD. AlthoughEscape Plan already had theatrical distribution,the film was still submitted to the marketresearch process.

“We test all of our films,”says Emmett. “Generallyevery film in Hollywood thatgets distribution market teststo get feedback from theaudience. Basically there’s aresearch company that doesthe testing for all the studios.They have test screenings invery random places all overthe country. They go out andrecruit an audience, and theaudience watches the movie,and they rate the moviebased on their own personalexperiences, and then there’sa little focus group afterward.Every test screening is a littlebit different. After testing, wego back and look at theresults. Sometimes the movie tests really goodand off the charts like Escape Plan did, andyou don’t have to do anything to it. I’ve hadmovies in the past that didn’t test well and thenyou have to go back and work on the moviesome more and make it better.”

In addition to testing, most studios handleall the marketing.

“They have really good executives in differ-ent divisions who do that,” explains Emmett.“They have specialists for online and socialmedia and all sorts of different groups. They’llcut together a bunch of trailers for everyoneto look at and weigh in on. We participate inthe process all the way through. As a producerand financier, we are really involved in everyaspect all the way until the movie opens. Theytreat us as a partner… We went down to (SanDiego) Comic Con together to screen themovie there with Arnold and Sly and thedirector. It was exciting. I remember I wassitting in the audience, and there were a bunchof fans all around and they didn’t know I was

the producer of the movie. And Arnold andSly spoke to the audience and the kids next tome said, ‘Man, they are so cool!’ They wereso pumped up to be there. As a producer anda financier, you’re sitting there going, ‘this isgreat! I hope all the fans who watch the movieare going to feel the same way.’”

Emmett continues, “Once the movie isfinished, it just becomes this whirlwind as youget to show your movie to the world. Andthat’s why we make movies. There’s really noother reason to make films other than to beable to give people some sort of entertainmentbased on the kind of movie you make or togive them an emotional experience. We don’tmake it for ourselves. And that’s the funpart—to watch how people experience it.”

Randall Emmett makes producing appeareasy. As an independent company (non-studio), he never appears to have difficultyfinding a home for his films. Currently he’sproducing and releasing about six movies ayear—a very impressive number. So how doeshe do it?

“The way I finance many of my movies arethat I pre-sell (distribution territories) and putthe equity up against the gap of what we don’tsell—mostly against the U.S.,” says Emmett.“In this case, Summit gave us a minimum guar-antee against the international sales, which Iused to finance the movie, and I put a substan-tial amount of equity against the U.S. (sales).”

Emmett explains, “In the last few years, I’veleaned towards movies that are already at thestudios because they already come withtheatrical distribution. 2 Guns, Lone Survivor,Everest and Escape Plan; these are all internalstudio-developed movies that I independentlyfinanced and that the studios will release. Eventhough you’re doing it independently, you havea built-in distribution partner.”

He continues, “Sometimes movies come tome, and they may have a bloated budget. Thisone did not. Sometimes they have not evengone into development; they’ve just been

Producer Randall Emmett problemsolves on the set of Escape Plan.

Sylvester Stallone, Mikael Håfström, and Arnold Schwarzenegger work out a scene of Escape Plan.


sitting around in turnaround because maybethe studio has other things going on and justdoesn’t have budgets for those films that year.I believe that when the studios have put a lotof money into a project and it’s in turnaround,and you want to come in and finance it, thestudios want to work with you as a partnerbecause they want the movie to get made, andthey will make a great deal so maybe they canrecoup their cost. I’ve had a really great expe-rience over the last six or seven studio part-

nerships. It’s been a real pleasure for me.”Escape Plan was a project collecting dust at

Summit Entertainment for quite some time.“They developed the project for many

years, and it was in turnaround,” says Emmett.“I had read the script, and I called them upand said that I’d love to do the movie and Iwill fully finance the movie. They said, ‘We willsell the international and give you the mini-mum guarantee.’ I used the minimum guar-antee, plus the equity I raised for the movie

and the tax credits from the state, and we wereable to make the film. This is a pretty tradi-tional model for our company and how wefinance our movies.”

While Emmett will be back in New Orleansin a few months to make more films, theprolific producer has great advice for localsinterested in producing.

“Don’t give up when trying to make amovie,” he says. “That’s the most importantthing—perseverance and persistence anddetermination. It’s very easy for people to tellyou no. To this day, people still tell me no. I’vemade 70 movies in my career, and on everysingle one of them, not everyone said yes. Ifit were that easy, I would have made 500movies. I think you just have to be determinedand passionate and not give up. Find a moviethat you really love and believe in it. Get otherpeople’s advice and input. I ask for people’sadvice and input all the time. Know yourbeliefs and make sure your voice is heard.Today, with digital technology, it’s so doable.You don’t have to raise $100 million to makea movie. You can make one with $5,000 or$10,000. And you don’t have to shoot it all inone week. You can shoot it over three monthsor six months on the weekends. Just find a wayto get it done.” LFV

The latest Emmett/Furla produced film, Escape Plan, opens in

theaters nationwide on October 18, 2013.

Director Mikael Håfström (center)explains an action sequence toactor Arnold Schwarzenegger.


Call Us - We Deliver Results Not Excuses

Amazing Animal Productions

www.amazinganimalproductions.com

Over 40 years industry experience providing affection trained domestic & exotic animals for

We own our own animals and provide trainers, wranglers, and coordinators.

Nola’s only movie Ranch - Call 877.254.8585


difficult social concern of homelessness in away that few filmed narratives have. The goalof Homelicide is to push the issue of home-lessness to the forefront of the audience’s mindas a topic of conversation, which the film-makers hope will lead to an opportunity forreal solutions.

New Guy Films’ David Kirtland was drawnto direct the story of Homelicide because of itsshrewd observation of the otherwise unseenplight of the homeless. “Maybe this film canoffer a voice to the homeless people of NewOrleans and the rest of these unfortunatepeople,” he said.

Homelicide is scheduled to premiere on

NOLA’s own WIFT (Women in Film andTelevision) shows up strong at this year’s NewOrleans Film Festival.

Learn from esteemed female directors,producers, distributors and funders at theWIFT Panel Discussion on Saturday, October12, from 2:30-3:30pm, led by Charlotte Cookof Hot Docs.

“At WIFT Louisiana we’re really commit-ted to celebrating and supporting the careersof women in film, television and new media,and this panel is a great way to do that,” saidHelen Krieger, president of the board, WIFTLouisiana. “It’s also a great way for us to part-ner with the New Orleans Film Festival andto help bring something really valuable to thecommunity. This panel will feature womenfrom the funding side of filmmaking, the distri-bution side, and of course the filmmaker side.Our own WIFT board member Lily Keberwill be on the panel talking about her award-winning feature documentary that will be theclosing film of the festival, Bayou Maharajah.”

Be on the lookout for these promising titlesbrought to you, in large part, by members ofWomen in Film New Orleans:

HOMELICIDEStarring/produced by Shanna ForrestallWhen several of New Orleans’ homeless arefound murdered, a local blogger reveals thatthe killer may be closer than we think.

Homelicide is a short film that deals with the

Sunday, October 13, at 12:30pm at the Pryta-nia Theatre.

BAYOU MAHARAJAHDirected by Lily Keber A feature-length documentary, BayouMaharajah explores the life and music of NewOrleans piano legend James Booker, the manDr. John described as “the best black, gay, one-eyed junkie piano genius New Orleans hasever produced.” A brilliant pianist, his eccen-tricities and showmanship belied a life ofstruggle, prejudice, and isolation. Illustratedwith never-before-seen concert footage, rarepersonal photos and exclusive interviews, thefilm paints a portrait of this overlooked genius.

Bayou Maharajah is scheduled to premiereon October 17 at the Civic Theater.

See Q&A with Lily Keber on page 44. LFV

NOFF 2013: HIGHLIGHTING WIFT

The New Orleans Film Festival (NOFF), running October 10through 17, is celebrating 24 years of showcasing the best films,panels, workshops, and networking opportunities in the region, and

the country. Below, Louisiana Film & Video has picked a few highlightsfrom this year’s fest. Check out the rest of the schedule atwww.neworleansfilmsociety.org/festival/full/.


in Portland, Oregon, is about an unspokentragedy and its effects on a house, its temporarycaretakers and the owners.

“Alan” (Randy Schulman) is a successfulclassical music critic. His wife “Sarah” (DianeDalton) is an obsessively grieving woman,struggling with an unspoken tragedy, evenafter months of institutionalized therapy.Upon Sarah’s release, Alan forces Sarah intoa trip to Italy. He has already arranged for ahouse sitter in “Kelly” (Lindsey Haun), whois quickly joined by her younger brother“Tim” (RJ Mitte), and her trashy boyfriend“Jesse” (Blake Berris). It’s not long before thetrio find themselves drawn into a web ofdisturbing revelations. LFV

Southern Screen will also feature a number of short films,

Not only does the festival include numerousscreenings of independent films from aroundthe world, but it also features discussionpanels, workshops and demonstrations forfilmmakers hosted by artists and professionalsin the entertainment industry.

One of the films Louisiana Film & VideoMagazine is excited about is House of LastThings, a feature from writer/director/producerMichael Bartlett. The mind-bending thriller set

documentaries, and music videos. To stay up to date on all

the latest festival information, including schedules, visit

www.southernscreen.org.

SOUTHERN SCREEN FILM FEST

Held in Lafayette, Louisiana, the Southern Screen Film Festival isa four-day event in November that aims to engage filmmakers andfilm enthusiasts in the art and education of filmmaking.

THE LF&VM OFFICIAL SELECTION


TOM D.MAY -President/Chief Operating Officer [email protected]

VICTOR BARRIENTOS - Rental Manager/[email protected]

www.tmequipmentrentals.com

TM Louisiana

1021 N. Al Davis Rd.New Orleans, LA 70123

Tel: (504) 734-3403Fax: (504) 734-3407

• “Green Lantern”• “Imagination Movers” • “Killer Joe” • “Contraband”• “Medallion”• “Looper”

• “Bullet to the Head”• “Pitch Perfect”• “Thunder Struck”• “Django Unchained”• “The Butler” • “Whiskey Bay”

Contact:

Grip and Lighting Supplied on The Following Projects:

GRIP • LIGHTING • GENERATORS • EXPENDABLES

New Orleans, LouisianaSecond Line Stages • Manhattan Beach Studios • The Culver Studios • Maui Film Studios

Louisiana


their own films independently, rather thanwork in production on a studio project. Popu-larly, Spike Lee and Sylvester Stallone, whohave both felt Hollywood’s big-budget love,have launched crowdsourcing campaigns forpersonal projects unaffiliated with any majorproduction studio. Zach Braff (Garden State,Scrubs) sums up the reasoning in his Wish IWas Here Kickstarter video: “There are moneyguys willing to finance the project, but in orderto protect their investment, they’re insisting onhaving final cut.”

“All these suits are telling you how to makea movie… but they’re in charge every step ofthe way, so you have to do what they say,” sheexplains. “You have this great idea that maybecome garbage. You sacrifice a lot.”

In January 2013, Jackson launched TalkingDog Productions alongside her musi-cian/screenwriter husband Jamie O’Keeffe andactor Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Jamie’s brother.

Jackson, whose credits include The DevilWears Prada, Hawaii Five-0, and Somewhere,is one of many filmmakers opting to create

Talking Dog has four projects on slate for2013 and 2014: Butterfly, a documentary onSerbian swimmer Milorad Cavic; the feature-length dramas Pono and The Tattoo; and analbum and music video for the band Suzy’sField, of which O’Keeffe is a member. For allthese projects, the team is bringing their ownnetwork and resources to the table.

The Tattoo, a script originally pursued byJames Franco, will feature director RichardGrey (The Lookalike, Summer Coda). Pono,produced in partnership with Yellow BrickFilms and Pueo Entertainment, will star ScottEastwood (Gran Torino, Trouble with theCurve) as the title character.

“Diana has personal relationships that we’vemanaged to secure for two excellent projects,”notes O’Keeffe. About his brother, he adds,“Anytime you have a Golden Globe winnerattached to your production company, let’s behonest, it makes it easier to get in the door tocertain people.”

But the freedom of control does not meanTalking Dog has broken away from all obsta-cles. For O’Keeffe, the struggle is finding theright project. For Jackson, it’s balancing busi-ness and pleasure. “One of the trickiest thingsI find for people in my age range is that youhave all this ambition but you also have to paythe rent,” she says. “You’re torn between ‘Howcan I sustain myself ?’ and ‘How can I followmy dreams?’”

“Eventually we’ll get there, where it’ll be afriendlier place for indie filmmakers,” O’Ke-effe predicts. “Because that’s really what it’s allabout. You have to help the small filmmakersrealize their dreams, the same way you helpthe big ones realize theirs.” LFV

TALKING DOG PRODUCTIONS:“INDIE ALL THE WAY”

STORY BY ABIGAIL LEVNER GUEST COLUMNIST • PHOTO BY JOSH BRASTED

Producer Diana Jackson is “indie all the way.”For Jackson, independence is about control—and control is hardto find when you’re working on a studio project.

Talking Dog’s Diana Jackson and Jamie O’Keeffe at home.

#18B.7


Which brings me to the story of how I wroteand directed Jake’s Road.

I was born and raised in Louisiana. Livedin New Orleans and then at some pointmoved to Mandeville. I studied theater andfilm in high school and college at NSU inNatchitoches, Louisiana. Only when I gradu-ated, I looked around and realized there wasno work.

I moved to Orlando, where I honed mycraft, then to Los Angeles because that’swhere you went as an actor and filmmaker...right? But all that time, I wanted to makemovies in my hometown. Enter Louisiana andthe Film Tax Incentive program.

So, back to New Orleans I came with onegoal in mind. To make movies! I got settledand made a mini-feature, A Good Night. It wona few awards at several festivals, played at theNew Orleans Film Festival, and gave me theconfidence that I could make a feature film.

I knew if I wanted to do a film, it had to besomething I could afford. I had worked on somany low- to no-budget films that didn’t goanywhere because they all bit off more thanthey could chew, and I didn’t want that to

happen to me. I started to focus on doing a thriller and

horror movie, thinking that those were withinan obtainable budget. But I wanted it to beintelligent and suspenseful, rather than hackand slash. I also wanted it to have personalmeaning beyond the story.

I spent many of my younger days at mystepfather’s hunting cabin out in the back-woods of Folsom. A place simply called, ‘TheCamp,’ it sits on 250 acres of land next to asmall stream—ideal for a horror movie. It’s aplace where your imagination can run wild. Itwas the site of some epic parties. It was anescape from the everyday and was filled withso many wild tales of the unexplainable thatthey bordered on supernatural.

It was also the birthplace of an old camp-fire story about a hired hand, named Jake, whowent crazy one night and took revenge on theformer owners of The Camp. So, I guess youcould say Jake’s Road is one half my twistedimagination and one half stories and eventsfrom my youth.

When writing, I usually live with the scriptand all its characters and scenes in my headfor an unhealthy amount of time, until I justhave to write it down. When I hit that point,the script flows out. Once down on paper, Ido what I always do—bring it to my friends,have a reading, and wait for them to tear it andall my hard work apart. ‘Wash and repeat asneeded.’ I finally had hit upon a script I feltwas good enough to do something with. I wasgoing to invest what I had into the film. I haveheard people say never put up your own

JAKE’S ROAD: AN INDIE FILM’S JOURNEY

STORY BY MICHAEL MAYHALL GUEST COLUMNIST

Iam sitting here, exactly where I want to be, thinking of how I arrived atthis point and simultaneously wondering: What is my next move in thiscrazy thing we call the entertainment business? I am an actor, a direc-

tor, a stuntman, a sword-fighter, a writer, a producer and a filmmaker. Inshort... I am a storyteller. Or, at least that’s how I think of myself when asked.I love to tell a good story. No matter the form it takes, it’s all about the story.

The hunting tower. Cast andcrew rest between stunts

where Kay (Leticia Jimenez)slips and falls from the tower.

Hopefully, Sam (Garrett Hines)can save her.

The hunting tower. Cast andcrew rest between stunts

where Kay (Leticia Jimenez)slips and falls from the tower.

Hopefully, Sam (Garrett Hines)can save her.

Cast and crew discuss the upcoming death scene.Jake’s Road writer/director Mike Mayhall is

pictured at far left in the blue shirt, and DP NateTape is second from right in the brown shirt.

Cast and crew discuss the upcoming death scene.Jake’s Road writer/director Mike Mayhall is

pictured at far left in the blue shirt, and DP NateTape is second from right in the brown shirt.

Actor Eric Robertstakes a momentbetween scenes.


money. ‘Find investors,’ they all say. But to behonest, I’ve always had issue with that. I mean,if you don’t think your project is worth invest-ing in financially, why would anyone else? Withsome funding in place, I set out and startedraising the rest.

At some point, I took my script to aproducer friend who has had some success indoing micro-budget films. He liked it andshowed it to a few distributors. That’s whereI lucked out... kinda. The distributioncompany said if we make it, they would sellit. So I said I’d make it. I said this in June of2012, and we decided to film in September of2012. Not much time.

From here on out, everything became awhirlwind juggling act and nothing couldstop me. I started collecting people.

I first turned to my girlfriend and partner,Leticia Jimenez. I told her I was gonna do this,and come hell or high water, it would be great.She jumped right on board and off we went.She was the direct connection to the cast oncewe were rolling. (Oh, did I mention she wasalso the female lead?) Leticia basically wouldcome on set, do her scenes where she had toeither cry or fight on cue, and then walkbehind us producers, pick up all the loose endswe were dropping and organize it for the nextday. She was amazing.

I got in touch with another friend andcolleague, Sam Sullivan. Sam has had yearsof experience in the film world as a scriptsupervisor and just seems to know everyone.I basically said, ‘We’re making a movie. Findme good people.’ He said ‘cool’... and goodpeople he did find.

Then, while looking for a sound man, I metJessy Cale Williamson. He said he wanted toproduce. I said great, find me a sound man.He did. Jessy worked behind the scenesmoving, running and doing all the things wecouldn’t get to because we were filming.

I also turned to a long-time good friend ofmine, Tim Bell. To say Tim was great wouldbe an understatement. He worked tirelessly.He’d still be working on set pieces well after we

finished filming for the day. He not only did thework of 10 different people (props, set dress-ing, stunt coordinator, and the list goes on andon), he also had a lead role in the movie. Butmost importantly, he came in at the last minuteand finished out the funding. He believed, asI did, this would be a great film. It really would-n’t have happened without him.

This was my core team. Each of us hadour own role and we went about it with acrazed tenacity.

I interviewed everyone personally. It wasimportant to me that everyone knew who wasmaking the film, and I was honest aboutmoney and the hours and workload.

Somehow, we ended up with an amazingcast and crew. True professionals through andthrough. Everyone knew it was going to be achallenge. Most everyone involved would bewearing more than one hat. Sometimes two orthree, and up to ten (Tim and I). But thank-fully, all those involved were positive andready for the challenge. Everyone had thatindie filmmaking spirit. It sounds corny, Iknow... but it’s the truth.

Everything was on track, and then twoweeks before we started shooting Jake’s Road,Hurricane Isaac rolled in and kicked the crapout of South Louisiana. We were withoutpower for 10 days. The Camp flooded. Youcould only get to it by boat. The other sectionof woods, at my mother’s house, was undertwo feet of water. I didn’t know what to do. Ihad to push the start date back two weeks. Any

more and we would lose more than 50 percentof our cast and crew. Any less and the groundwould still be a muddy wet mess.

Then we lost our costumer, our caterer andour DP, Nate Tape (who was awesome). Theuniverse was testing me. It was the completeopposite scenario I was expecting. How oftendo you hear about a fully funded film that can’tgo to camera because it has lost all its key play-ers, food and locations in a matter of 24 hours?Normally, you have everyone waiting aroundbecause you can’t get the money raised.

What could I do? Scrap the project when Iwas so close? Or do what I always do whenconfronted with the near impossible: Getstubborn and keep going. I just said, ‘It’s goingto happen. Just watch, it’s gonna happen.’ Ithink I actually willed this film into existencebecause suddenly, in the same amount of timewe lost everyone, we found more people. Wegot a great local caterer. A costumer justsuddenly appeared. And our DP found out hisshow got pushed. The filming areas more orless dried out and our last location that had yetto be filled came through. I couldn’t believe it.Just like that, Jake’s Road was back!

Once we started filming, it was as if we hitour lucky number. It was almost ridiculous. Forexample, our stand-in for Eric Roberts was, bytrade, a professional gaffer. He loaned us hislights and stuck around to help us light the nightshots. One of our PAs was a special effects artistout of college. He did most of the special effectsand was great at them. By the second day offilming, everyone was family. By the last day, thecast and crew were all saying how much biggerthis film felt than when we first started. Not onlyin the scope of things, but in the productionvalue. I think it’s because everyone worked theirbacksides off to make it the best they could. Ithought that was pretty cool.

I had no real idea what it was going to belike to make a full-length feature film. It was agreat experience and has made me hungry todo more here in Louisiana. Tim and I sat downbefore we started rolling and talked about howwe wanted everything to go during the filming.We had always said that when we make amovie, we’d do it right. Treat everyone the wayyou should be treated. With respect.

Even if we could not pay them what theywere worth, we wanted everyone involved toknow that we knew their worth and appreciatedthem for helping us. I like to think we succeeded.

When we set out to tell the tale of Jake’sRoad, we wanted to just simply tell a goodstory and I feel we did just that. It was likelightning in a bottle, and now that I thinkabout it, I believe we ended up with somethingmuch, much more.

So here I sit, film done and being looked atby a great sales and distribution companycalled Vision Films. We’ve come a long wayin a short amount of time and I can’t wait todo the next one! LFV

Mike Mayhall showing Eric Roberts’

stand-in how to hold the rifle.

Chris (Patrick Flanagan)confronts Mike (Tim Bell).Chris (Patrick Flanagan)confronts Mike (Tim Bell).


both Richie and Ryan wanted a cinematic lookfor their interviews.

As Ryan explained, “We wanted everythingto look like a 35mm still. Our reference wasalways narrative motion pictures with mini-malist, natural feel. To make that work, we hadto spend time thinking about the lighting.”The circumstances surrounding the produc-tion, however, didn’t allow for a large equip-ment list. (See sidebar for the completeequipment list used on Shell Shocked.)

Richie and Ryan did most of their interviewsbetween February and March 2010. Theyinterviewed people three days a week. Ryan hadonly 15 to 20 minutes to set up the lighting.

“You had to light on the fly, and we usednatural light less than 10 percent of the time,”said Ryan.

One of the challenges came from inter-viewing people not wearing professional make-

The results can be seen in the photo of LeonLewis above. Looking back at this particularinterview, both Richie and Ryan recall “chasingthe sun.” Filming took place late in the day, sothey had to redo their setup every 10 minutesor so. A daylight balance light (a 575 watt HMI)blasted the shadows off the graffiti wall.

For the key light, Ryan diffused directsunlight and used a large eight-foot bleachedmuslin bounce held 10 feet away for fill. A 4x4mirror bounce added additional light asdaylight waned. To keep the image sharp andallow the subject to move while remaining infocus, the aperture ranged between ƒ8 andƒ5.6 with the ISO set at 100 (the apertureopening as the interview progressed). Thosesettings kept image quality while still leavingthe background in soft focus to help separateinterview subject Leon Lewis.

From the initial planning for Shell Shocked,

up. “We had to keep it soft,” Ryan explained,“so we used a lot of bounce.” They used Nikonprime lenses, mainly a 50mm, and shot inRAW. With all the pre-planning, only minimal

SHELL SHOCKED: EFFECTIVELY LIGHTINGINTERVIEWS ON A BUDGET

STORY BY JASON RAYMOND GUEST COLUMNIST

The amazing documentary Shell Shocked strikes viewers not justbecause of its content about people coping with New Orleans’persistent violence. Director John Richie and cinematographer

Declan Ryan created beautiful, compelling images of people talkingabout, in Richie’s words, “the most horrific events in their lives.” To dothis on a limited budget, Richie and Ryan relied on a small amount ofequipment and their expertise.

THE EQUIPMENT USED TO MAKESHELL SHOCKED:Lacking the funds and equipment of amajor production, John Richie and DeclanRyan well utilized their time when rent-ing or borrowing the equipment to makeShell Shocked. Most of the interviewswere done in basically a 30-day span.Shooting in people’s houses restrictedthe number and power of the lightsused. At times, when direct a/c wasn’tavailable, Ryan could use his car inverterto power one light.

In addition to the key lightsdiscussed in the article, Ryan says hetried to use an eyelight at all timesduring interviews. He also used bouncesextensively, as discussed.

Richie had some of the interviewsubjects, themselves, use Canon Vixias(which cost roughly about $1,200 back in2010) to show their lives without acamera crew following them. Equippedwith little shotgun mics and inexpensivetripods, the subjects were able to capturefootage used in the final cut. Thatincludes student Matt Gray, who took alovely night sequence of himself playingbasketball alone.

Here’s the equipment list provided bycinematographer Declan Ryan:• Camera Body - RED ONE • Lenses - Nikon

24mm ƒ2.835 ƒ1.450mm 85mm80-200mm zoom for run and gun work

• Tripods - Libec and Satchler with fluidheads

• Interview Lights-Two 575 watt HMIsOne 1200 HMI that was rarely available

• Cutters, toppers, and diffusers• A white muslin bounce 250, opal diffusion• Quarter and Half Straw when appropriate

Leon Lewis, one ofthe subjects of the

documentary.


post-production and color-correction was done.While many children were filmed outside to

show viewers their environment, Richie choseto interview the mothers of murder victims intheir homes.

According to Richie, “Those interviewswould not have been as intimate if they wereout of the house. Mothers of victims tend toput forth an external façade when they gothrough that kind of trauma and I didn’t wantthe façade to come through.”

Nestled by the camera, Richie used all hisabilities to draw the mothers out about the deathof their children. The equipment often caughtmothers off-guard, as did having as many as fivecrewmembers present. Warm and entertainingby nature, Richie generally talked to them foran hour, with the first 15 minutes spent gettingthem to relax.

In the setup with Willow (pictured right),mother of David Ayo, she sat next to a largewindow. Natural light combined with a HMI575 placed outside the window to form the keylight. Ryan diffused the HMI with a Lee Opalor 250. A cutter and sider shaped the light toresemble sunlight. For inside work, Ryanopened the F-stop on the lens and raised theISO to 800. With Willow sitting for the inter-view, Richie also sat, but did so next to thecamera. Behind Richie and the camera wasa 4x4 foot bounce to reflect additional light.

Ryan framed each mother in a way that

showed how empty their houses were nowwith the loss of their children. Though not asstark as in other interviews, we can see anempty hallway over Willow’s right shoulder. Tohighlight the blue and cool space, Ryan usedhis second 575 watt HMI, bouncing its lightoff his 4x4 reflector.

With the film done, Ryan feels proud ofwhat he and Richie accomplished. Havingworked on When the Levees Broke, Richiewanted to use cinema-style lighting to show-case people society too often ignores.

Ryan added, “I knew that Spike Lee wasdoing the second leg of his documentary

about Katrina and I wanted Shell Shocked tolook better. I find many people are surprisedwhen I say we used a Red. We reallysucceeded to make it look like film.”

You can learn more about the documentaryShell Shocked at www.shellshockeddoc.com.John Richie has been conducting screeningsthroughout New Orleans. Declan Ryan’slatest project is called Anam Cara(www.anamcara.com). LFV

Jason Raymond provides research and creative services

through Raymond Creativity [www.raymondcreativity.com],

including access to his blog Raymond on Film & Photography.

A still from JohnRichie’s interviewwith Willow, the

mother of David Ayo.

http://raymondonfilm.wordpress.com/

Raymond on Film & Photography is a Raymond Creativity publication. Raymond Creativity offers research services, web design, lens-created imagery, and other

creative solutions for the new media world. Watch for our new audioseries “Merely Famous.” To find other publications, products, and services offered by

Raymond Creativity, see www.raymondcreativity.com.


seated says much about how the viewer will feelabout them. I’m not saying that you have tohave a guitar in the background if you’re inter-viewing a guitarist (you don’t have to be thatliteral about it), but it should be a consciousdecision on the behalf of the filmmaker.

3 Do you feel that you are developing aparticular style as a visual storyteller? Are

there particular techniques or approaches tomaterial that separate you from your colleagues?

That’s a question for the critics to decide.

4 When filmmaking, are you seekingparticular truths? Werner Herzog once

said he sought “emotional truth” when makingfilms and then described cinema verite as“filmmaking for accountants.” Are the truthsyou seek in your work that consistent?

With this film, I very much was seeking anemotional truth about James Booker. In fact, that’sthe only kind of truth that a figure like Booker canreveal. So much of his story is steeped in mysteryand mythology that at the end of the day, the onlything we know for sure is the emotional truthrevealed through his music. And that truth willbe slightly different for every listener. But that’s the

1 How do you view your work or filmmak-ing philosophy in relation to direct cinema

or cinema verite (accepting the incompletecongruity and the political charge of thosefrequently bandied terms)?

I have no problem with cinema verite in theory.Obviously nothing is true “verite.” The presenceof the camera inevitably changes the dynamicsof a room and any editing decision or choice incomposition adds a subjective element to the truthof the original scenario. But so long as the film-maker and the audience know that no film istruly objective, I have no beef with verite. Thatsaid, I’ve never made a verite film, so it’s not afilmmaking philosophy that I think about much.

2 When conducting interviews, do youhave specific criteria for where you place

your camera and yourself and the effect it willhave on your audience? For instance, do youencourage interview subjects to look at you ordirectly into the camera? Do you care what asubject does during an interview?

I am a stickler for composition and framing.Filmmakers should consider their framing justas carefully as a photographer or a painter does.As to specific criteria for where I place mycamera, it depends on the setting. I try to includeas much information in the background as Ican. The environment where the subject is

beauty of art: it’s the only element that can meansomething completely different to each person, yeteach truth is just as valid.

5 What are the present trends, styles, tech-niques or approaches to documentary

filmmaking that you despise or bore you?

Why despise? Why not ask which trends andtechniques I really love?

6 As a female professional making films, towhat extent is it important to make work

that touches upon or is about the role and pres-sures of women in our contemporary society?Do you have a particular obligation to makefilms about the struggles of American women?

Well, considering that I just made a film whereonly 3 out of 60 of my interviewees were women,I’d say that no, I evidently don’t have an obli-gation to make films about the struggles of Amer-ican women. It certainly is a very importantissue to me and one that I think about and haveto deal with every day. There is no mainstreamdiscussion of the ongoing struggle to expand andameliorate the role of women in our society. Thisneeds to change. That said, I am not anactivist filmmaker. I would prefer to fight forwhat I believe in in my personal life and makefilms that exist on their own as art. But I don’tthink it’s fair to say that just because I’m awoman, I should feel an obligation to make filmsabout women. As someone with a conscience, Ihave a moral obligation to help my fellowhuman beings. And that obligation transcendsgender or race or religion or citizenship. LFV

Information about Bayou Maharajah and future screenings

are available at www.bayoumaharajah.com.

SIX QUESTIONS FOR LILY KEBER

Since the successful March debut of Bayou Maharajah at the South bySouthwest Film Festival, Lily Keber has been busy screening her first featurefor audiences all over North America, in Australia at the Melbourne Film

Festival, and soon in Barcelona. A documentary about the life of legendary NewOrleans piano player James Booker, Bayou Maharajah shall close the NewOrleans Film Festival with a screening on October 17 at the Civic Theater. Asinterest about her grows, Jason Raymond posed on behalf of Louisiana Film& Video these six questions for the witty and charismatic filmmaker:

Lily Keber

James Booker, the subject of the documentary.


SPOTLIGHT ON LOUISIANAPRODUCTION SERVICES

MAGNOLIA MUSIC HOUSE

High Quality / Professional / New School / QuickBegan in 2010 by two aspiring young film composers, Joe Shirley and

BJ Blue, MMH has already become an award-winning, go-to optionfor music production and placements in film, TV, radio, and commer-cial spots. Providing music for clients in New Orleans, New York, L.A.and elsewhere, past clients include Louisiana Tourism, Maison Post,MSG New York TV, Spike, DDB, SyFy, XM Sirius, Falck Alford, andHonor Roll Music.

www.magnoliamusichouse.com

LOFTON STAFFING & SECURITY SERVICES

When timing is essential and experience matters, let Lofton be the solu-tion for all your security needs. Lofton has over 30 years of on-site secu-rity experience and understands that the film industry is unique anddemanding for everyone involved. It is this understanding that has givenLofton the competitive advantage, by being able to accommodate gruel-ing schedules and knowing how to roll with the punches. Let LoftonSecurity protect your next shoot, you’ll see the difference...because WeGet It!

www.loftonsecurity.com


RB Livestock CompanyProviding Wrangling and Livestock for the Movie Industry for over 32 Years. Whether it for Feature Films, Commercials, or Photo Shoots we have the knowledge and experi-ence to help with all your project needs. We supply both large and small animals plus some exotics. We offer wrangling, training, and rentals.

Call Roy Burger at 512-294-0231 or Melissa Burger at [email protected]

[email protected]

nidivorPIeivoMeFroffotiwstoohS

RB Livesto

r

ock CompanyoffokcotseviLdnagnilgnarWWrgn

tehW.sraeYYe23revoroffoyrtsudnhPro,slaicremmoC,smliFerutaepxednaegdelwonkehtevahew

e htr eho toire

wstoohSotecnepuseWWeossulpgniniart

Call Roy Burgeor Melissa Burg

.rblivRoyburgerMelissaburge

epxednaegdelwonkehtevaheweentcejorpruoyllahtiwpleh

minallamsdnaegralhtobylppilgnarwreffefffoeWWe.scitoxeemo

.slatnerdna,g

er at 512-294-0231ger at [email protected]

[email protected]

ire -. sdes lam, gn

Leonard ReynoldsLocation Manager

Positive One Productions

504.606.4110 Cell

New Orleans, La 70117

2 Guns • The end of the world • 21 Jump Street • Dallas Buyers Club

MagnoliaMusicHouse.com504.521.6640

• Film/TV scoring • Radio advertisements • Jingles• Commercial spots • Production music • Mockups/Specs

• Budgets large or small • Music Direction

VISIT US ONLINE! louisianafilmandvideo.com


A lot of our competitors began billing throughlocal companies so we wanted to take it onestep further and open an in-state office andbecome a true in-state vendor. That way ourclients receive an invoice from someone local.”

BTS has already made an impact here inthe state, working with major productions suchas American Horror Story, Selfless, OlympusHas Fallen, Contraband, and Looper.

The ever-expanding company sets itself apartfrom the competition by working directly withthe carriers, as opposed to farming out services.

“Our competitors aren’t making the investment

Opening their first office in 1996 in LosAngeles, BTS has since expanded into othernational and international markets, includingthe UK, Budapest, Georgia and Hawaii.

Two years ago, BTS found a home inLouisiana and officially became one of theonly true in-state vendors for their clients.

“There was a high demand in Louisianaand there still is,” says Rendon. “A lot of ourclients were going there for the tax incentives.As we were doing more shipping to and fromL.A., our clients were looking for local vendorsso they could take advantage of the tax credit.

into different states like we are. I can’t think of onecompetitor that has an office in Louisiana,” saysRendon. “They are doing the old practice wherethey bill through a local vendor, and that justdrives up the cost. We have the direct contact withthe carriers, which cuts out the middleman anddrastically cuts down the cost.”

He continues, “Other companies advertiseservices that they have to farm out and it ends upbeing more expensive for the client. For example,a truck company who is strictly a truck broker mayadvertise air freight, but they have to farm that out.They aren’t their own air freight forwarder.”

Managing directors RJay Rendon and BryanSweet each have over 15 years of experiencein both domestic and international freightforwarding and are certified for all methods oftransportation, including ground, air, rail,ocean, domestic and international. LFV

For more information, call 888-BTS-FILM, e-mail

[email protected], and check out the BTS transportation and

impact page at www.creativehandbook.com.

BEHIND THE SCENES: FREIGHT FORWARDING

“We are your shipping coordinator and project manager. Weunderstand your gear, what you need, the time sensitivity, thesensitivity of the freight itself. And we know how to handle

and route it securely and cost-effectively,” says co-owner RJay Rendon.

For those unfamiliar, a freight forwarding company organizes shipments for other companies.Forwarders contract with certain carriers to have goods shipped to a particular destination.

Boutique forwarding agencies, such as Behind The Scenes (BTS), specialize in a specific market,in this case the film industry.

FANTASY FRIGHTS 10 |18 |13 | 6 :00pm

THE ARTIFACT BLOODTRAFFICK

NIGHT OUT HUNTER

LA LLORONA KLAGGER

GRASSHOPPER TORTUROUS

THING IN THE SHED GAME

PROJECT Z HOME

PSYCHOVILLE10 |18 |13 | 8 :45pm

SPOOK SHOW10 |19 |13 | 6 :00pm

DIE LAUGHING10 |19 |13 | 8 :45pm

TERROR TIME10 |20 |13 | 2 :00pm

ZOMBIE INVASION10 |20 |13 | 5 :00pm

FRID

AY O

CT

18

SA

TU

RD

AY O

CT

19

SU

ND

AY O

CT

20

FEAR FETE 2013THE GRAND 18 D’IBERVILLE, MS | OCTOBER 17-20FFEARR FETTE 20113

10ANTFFA

T 1

8

TF

6 :00pm|0 |18 |13 ASY FRIGHTSTTA

THE GRAND 18FEAR

S

VILLE,8 D’IBERRVR FET

OBEROCT MS | TE 201

17-20R13

10PS

Y O

CT

AAYFR

ID

8 :45pm|0 |18 |13 VILLECHOSYYC

TIFTHE AR CTAFFA OODTRAFFICKBL

10SP

Y O

CT

19

m6:00pm|0 |19 |13 WPOOK SHO

NIGHT OOUT HUNTER

10DIE

YAAYT

UR

DS

AAT

m8:45pm|0 |19 |13 UGHINGE LA

GRASSHOP

OORLA LL

PPER

AON

OUSTURORT

GGERKLA

10TE

Y O

CT

20

AAY

m2:00pm|0 |20 |13 OR TIMEERR

THING IN THE SHED GAME

10ZOM

AS

UN

D

m5:00pm|0 |20 |13 ASIONMBIE INVVA N

OJECTPR T Z HOME

OTHER DEAD WEIGHT

THE CABIN PIECES OF TALENT

THE HOUSE THAT CRIED BLOOD THE TUNNEL

NIGHT OF THE PUMPKIN QUITE A CONUNDRUM

COLD TURKEY SILENT AGONY

FIST OF JESUS 2 HOURS

THE BASEMENT

FEAR EATS THE SEOUL

J. LA ROSEINSIDIOUS, SAW, NOW YOU SEE ME

RJ HADDYSYFY’S FACE OFF

LAR PARK LINCOLNFR IDAY THE 13TH

ADDY MILLERTHE WALKING DEAD

SPECIAL GUESTSTICKETS NOW AVAILABLE AT WWW.FEARFETE.COM OR AT

THE GRAND THEATRE 18 BOX OFFICE

TICKETS

AIVVAW AAVS NO

ILABLE

SPECIAL

GUESTS

GRANDTHE.T WWWAAT

BO 18TRETHEAATFEARFETE.COM

OFFICEXOTOR AAT

. LA RJ

OSER

THEO

ER

DEAD WEIGHT

ASYFY’S FHARJ

, NWINSIDIOUS, SA. LA RJ

ACE OFFYADD

NOW YOU SEE MEOSER

THE CA

ABIN

ALENTPIECES OF TTA

Y THFRIDAARKPPALAR

HE 13THLINCOLN

NIGHT OF THE

T THE HOUSE THAAT

QE PUMPKIN

OODCRIED BL

UMQUITE A CONUNDR

THE TUNNEL

ALKINTHE WMYADD

NG DEADMILLER

COLD TU

RKEY

GONYSILENT A

ASTHE B

EMENT

FIST OF J

JESUS

2 HOURS

TS TFEAR EAAT

THE SEOUL


VFX industry in America.In addition to the traditional abundance of

students applying for employment atSIGGRAPH’s job fair this year, many senior-level artists were also applying for the samepositions. With a smaller number of exhibitorslooking to hire, competition was fierce. Addi-tionally, many companies hiring were notanimation or VFX companies, but those look-ing for computer-savvy employees such asApple and Amazon.

While many hoped that the various states’film incentive programs, such as Louisiana’stax credits which include post-productionwork, would lure VFX work back to the U.S.,it remains to be seen if they can help revital-ize the industry in America.

In the past, SIGGRAPH’s exhibit floor andprogramming offered a clear view of things tocome in the VFX business. With few VFXcompanies exhibiting and the lack of a stateof the industry focus in programing, thisyear’s SIGGRAPH offered little insight intothe troubled VFX business and left manyindustry insiders with more questions thananswers. LFV

The 2013 SIGGRAPH keynote address wasa collaboration with the Academy of MotionPicture Arts and Sciences called “Giants’ FirstSteps,” a motivational panel discussion andpresentation by legendary animation directorsRon Clements, Pete Docter, Eric Goldberg,Kevin Lima, Mike Mitchell, Chris Sanders,Henry Selick, David Silverman and Kirk Wise,as they screened their first films, some of whichhadn’t been viewed in more than 30 years.“Giants’ First Steps” was encouraging andupbeat and appeared to appeal to the audience,which seemed to mostly consist of non-VFXworkers and students.

SIGGRAPH 2012 tried to portray theVFX industry as a global marketplace withplenty of jobs to go around for everyone, evenin America. After Rhythm and Hues’ Oscarwin this year for Life of Pi, the VFX giant laidoff more than 500 artists and filed for bank-ruptcy. In fact, many major U.S.-based VFXcompanies have closed in the last few years aswork continues to shift to foreign companies,leaving many skilled artists unemployed. Thiswake-up call to Hollywood has the entertain-ment industry questioning the future of the

SIGGRAPH 2013 OFFERS NO CLEARFUTURE FOR VFX INDUSTRYSTORY BY W. H. BOURNE AND ODIN LINDBLOM • PHOTO BY WELAND BOURNE

SIGGRAPH 2013, the world’s premier conference on computergraphics and interactive technologies, showed a marked absence ofLouisiana companies exhibiting at the event in Anaheim, Califor-

nia. Last year VFX giant Pixomondo and Game Loft exhibited, but manycompanies were absent this year, most notably Autodesk, one of the largestsuppliers of VFX software. The tradeshow reinforced the mixed messagesthat are reverberating through the post-production community about thehealth of the VFX industry in America.

Much tothe disap-pointmentof VFXartists,companieslike Esriwere attheSIGGRAPHjob fairsearchingfor soft-waredevelop-ers.


years. New this year were auditions by topcasting directors, and The Acting Studio,which featured workshops and presentationson acting technique, career development andhuman psychology.”

The Expo covered a wide variety of mediafor the novice and experienced actor, filmmakerand screenwriter, and was an all-day event witha free open-to-the-public exhibit area.

Among the many workshops were: • Headshot/Publicity/Marketing by FernOrenstein and Tiffany Smith-Anoa’i of theCBS Diversity Institute• Casting from A-Z with casting directors LizCoulon, Pam Dixon and Ryan Glorioso• Actors Access presentations with GaryMarsh and Jason Teresi• Casting Director Critique with casting direc-tors Lisa Marie Dupree and Anne Massey• Agents 101 with talent agents Tabitha Huff-

The Expo’s founder and CEO, ShandaQuintal, has been working in the Louisianafilm industry since 1991, before there wasreally an industry.

According to Quintal, “There were close to1,000 people in attendance this year, and theycame from all over the country. Almost 50percent of the actor and filmmaker attendeestraveled from New York, Northern and South-ern California, Illinois, Colorado, Ohio,Missouri, Michigan, Tennessee, the Carolinas,Maryland, Kansas, Georgia and New Jersey.Most were first-timers, but there were peoplewho have attended in previous years becausethey have come to trust the valuable insightsand reliable information that Expo panelistsand participants provide. And the other 50-plus percent came from throughout the GulfSouth, from Texas through Florida. Many hadbeen to The Expo three, four, and even all five

man, Lawrence Turner and Savannah Strachan• Branding Yourself with talent agents JorgeElizondo and Brenda Pauley• Chat, An Intimate Conversation with top LAcasting directors Pam Dixon, Laray Mayfieldand Sharon Bialy• Being Authentically You with casting directorsTracey “Twinkie” Byrd and Rhavynn Drummer• Casting a Wide Net: Regional Casting withcasting directors Michael Cassara, AllisonEstrin and Beth Sepko• The Acting Studio Presents, actor workshopswith actor/acting coaches Lance Nichols,Jerry Katz, Laura Cayouette, and TEDTalk

2013 FILM INDUSTRY EXPO

STORY BY CAROL ANN SCRUGGS GUEST COLUMNIST

On Saturday, September 7, the 2013 Film Industry Expo, the largestfilm industry conference in the Gulf South, was held at the Sher-aton in downtown New Orleans, marking its fifth anniversary.

Ruben Juarbe andLouisiana Film &

Video executiveeditor Andrew

Vogel man theLF&VM booth.

The Expo's founder and CEO Shanda Quintal with Tai Quintal Freeman and Nico Quintal Freeman.

Dr. Tina Thomas,TEDTalk speaker.

Securing Distribution panel withMelissa Wiseman, Jason Hewitt,Eric Thompson, and Laura Medina.

Film Finance Forum was hosted by Melissa Wiseman(center) and featured panelists (l to r) Diego Martinez,Rob Wollfarth, Will French, and Todd Lewis.

Film Finance Forum was hosted by Melissa Wiseman(center) and featured panelists (l to r) Diego Martinez,Rob Wollfarth, Will French, and Todd Lewis.

The Casting Director Critique with Lisa MarieDupree, Jason Teresi, and Anne Massey.The Casting Director Critique with Lisa MarieDupree, Jason Teresi, and Anne Massey.


speaker Dr. Tina Thomas, just to name a few.

Sponsored by Entertainment Partners, thefilmmaker track programming included:• Marketing and Social Media for Filmmak-ers, with Megan Hargroder• Budgeting for Your Project, presented byMelissa Wiseman and Ryan Broussard of Enter-

tainment Partners and EP Financial Solutions• Film Finance Forum, hosted by Ms. Wise-man, and featuring Will French, Esq., produc-ers Todd Lewis and Diego Martinez, and RobWollfarth, Esq.• Securing Distribution, featuring executiveproducer Jason Hewitt, producer LauraMedina and Eric Thompson, Esq.• Making the Pitch with executive producerMichael Arata, WGA writer/directors HenryGriffin and Steven Esteb

This was truly a one-stop shop for film-makers for sure. The quality and level ofexpertise offered here was invaluable andwell worth the nominal fees for the workshops,which ranged from $15-$35 each.

Thanks to the Film Industry Expo produc-

ers Shanda Quintal and Lolita Burrell, and allof the exhibitors, participants, panelists andcontributors for a job well done! LFV

BEING AUTHENTICALLY YOUBY CAROL ANN SCRUGGS

One of the many workshops offered at the 2013 Film Industry Expowas one called “Being Authentically You.” This was one I didn’twant to miss because I felt like it represented exactly what an actoris and the reason for “you” being cast versus another actor. “You”being “you” in the character.

The panel featured two top casting directors, Tracy “Twinkie” Byrd,who cast Sparkle, The Blind Side, and Fruitvale Station, to name afew, and Rhavynn Drummer with Tyler Perry Studios, who has caston Meet the Browns, House of Payne, and more. The panel wasmoderated by Louisiana’s own Lance Nichols, who has over 140 IMDbcredits in film and television. They each offered their words of wisdomand then opened the floor up for a question and answer session.

“Twinkie” Byrd was all that her name implied—full of person-ality with a large dose of reality wisdom. When asked how to be“authentically you,” she said, “By being yourself, meaning knowwho you are and to stand on the shoulders of other people beforeyou. Be well rounded and listen to who your ancestors are so it willhelp you become yourself.” Basically, know where you come fromand be that.

When asked about taping auditions, she said to “remember thetechnical, no background, good audio, ¾ shot in frame (her pref-erence), good lighting with no fluorescent lights, no dark circles, nowhite concealer, and to watch the raised eyebrows.” Byrd alsooffered words of advice when auditioning in person: “When you arein person auditioning, remember the reader is strategic. When read-ers are in the room, they are the type for the role, period. Never

dismiss them.” Very sound advice. Nichols’ response was that the audition was always about the

performance and not the whistles and bells. He was referring towearing costumes and props for auditioning. All three were not infavor of costumes and props at an audition, and if props are used,keep them to a minimum. It’s important not to let them distractfrom your performance.

Drummer said the worst auditions were the ones where they saythe lines and then have no response or reaction to them. In a tapedaudition, she looks for preparation and control of the visualatmosphere, such as the background with no mess, no house views,just plain background with good lighting and no dark shadows ordarkness. She prefers a ¾ shot as well. She said she looks for a greatperformance and a connection.

When asked about casting outside of Los Angeles, Byrd said towork the local market first and build up your reel, then consider theLos Angeles market.

They also had some advice for the young actor. Drummer advisedto “be your own age and enjoy yourself where you are. Do only asmuch acting as you want to because you love it.” Byrd first saidjokingly to “get out.” She admits when casting a child she does thinkabout the parent, so don’t be the “mom-ager” or “dad-ager,” justbe the parent. She said, “When the parents are the manager, therelationship between the child and parent changes. So, be sure toalways keep things in perspective, and be respectful and normal.”

What grounding viewpoints from all the panelists. How I wouldlove to have a whole day with them to tap into their expertise! Theyare truly an inspiration for all of us, both personally and profes-sionally. We were so very fortunate to have them here at our Expo.I, for one, hope we get the opportunity to have them again.

A workshop attendee asksthe panel a question.

The Expo crowd.

Breakdown Services' Jenna Pass,Jason Teresi and Gary Marsh.

Panelists Tracy “Twinkie” Byrd, Lance Nichols and Rhavynn Drummer.


low- and no-cost workforce training, andthat’s in addition to the 2,000-plus that haveattended our classes, educational programs,networking events, and received creativesupport services.”

Said Professor Willard, “Most seasonedeffects people are not teachers in any sense ofthe word. But I have some experience teach-ing and some experience teaching specialeffects. I taught management training beforeI even got in the business. I’ve been active inthe film business for 34 years. Right now, Iteach at a small university in Southern Utah,Dixie State University. I’m compressing intofive days what I do in a semester in college. I’mgiving them the nuts and bolts without all thefrill. This course is the only one I know of thathas been taught in this part of the country, andin Hollywood a course like this has only beentaught twice in the last 25 years. And I taughtone of them 25 years ago.

“Most everybody in the class has been onset here and there, but they have not done anyeffects. This gives them a real foot up. I don’tthink any of them will be able to come out ofhere and run their own show, but at least theywill be a good hand on a show with an effectscoordinator. I just finished publishing a bookcalled Special Effects: How They Are Done inHollywood. One whole section is just termi-nology. There are a lot of terms that are veryindustry specific and might be the same term

Twenty locals had the chance to learn fromthe acclaimed professor Robert Willard andtrain with veteran effects coordinator MattKutcher and his team at Spectrum FX (Beau-tiful Creatures, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,Bonnie & Clyde), and learn the basics of creat-ing the incredible effects in front of thecamera that make movies come to life.

“Through our Ready Set Film! workforceprogram, NOVAC connects local residents tothe economic opportunities of the film indus-try,” said Abigail Levner, membership anddevelopment coordinator at NOVAC. “Ourpractical effects trainees are already landingjobs with employers like Spectrum FX on 22Jump Street and American Horror Story, andthat is a direct effect of the training theyreceived with NOVAC. By the end of 2013,we’ll have trained over 130 locals through

that’s used someplace else, but in the industrythey mean something very specific. And youhave to know what’s what.”

The students learned a lot in five short days.Here’s what a few of them had to say:

Keith Charlet, Practical FX Trainee:“Robert covers a lot in a short amount of time. I’vebeen in professional video production for 15 yearsnow, but my experience is in live events. There area lot of similar concepts, but there is a lot of thingsthat are done differently for film. Film is all set upto capture an effect that you want, rather thancapturing what happens, like in a live event. Hereyou get to retake, but not for a live event.”

Allison Hilder, Practical FX Trainee: “This has been really fun. I’ve been working inthe industry for three years now and wanted toadd to my bag of tricks. I do a lot of art depart-ment and production designing, so it’s nice toactually know the mechanical and physicsaspect of the way things work. These are goodthings to know as a designer. I think it’s amaz-ing that NOVAC has put this on. I’m glad theyare around to give people a chance to get theirfoot in the door and see what it’s all about.”

Adrien Thelin, Practical FX Trainee: “I’m an indie filmmaker. A sound mixer. That’smy trade. But there are a lot of practical appli-cations for me since I have to wear many hatsas an indie filmmaker. Meeting some of theseguys who want to be in this department full-timeis great. The chance of these guys coming in andgetting involved with one of these big projects isslim. So some of them are eager to help me makeindie movies and get their chops up.” LFV

READY SET FILM!

PHOTOS BY ABIGAIL LEVNER

From July 29 through August 2, NOVAC, Film New Orleans, FilmJefferson, the UNO Foundation and Spectrum FX offered a free five-day hands-on seminar in feature film practical special effects to locals

interested in getting a foot in the booming production industry.

A RECAP OF NOVAC PRACTICAL FX TRAINING

Specialeffects

technicianRobertWillardleads asmokedemo.

NOVAC trainees learn how to safely build and detonate a dirt and air mortar.

Practicaleffects traineeMatthewGospodinovichpracticeshandling asnow hose.


ANIMAL TALENT

VISIT USONLINE!

louisianafilmandvideo.com


nizes Rep. Leger’s support for the entertain-ment industry in Louisiana.

“I am honored to be recognized for mysupport of Louisiana’s film and entertain-ment industry,” says Rep. Leger. “This indus-try is a jobs engine with a huge ripple effect.Not only does it create direct economic impact,

REP. LEGER RECEIVES LFEA’S FILM ANDENTERTAINMENT ADVOCACY AWARDRepresentative Walt Leger, III was honoredwith the inaugural 2013 Film and Entertain-ment Advocacy award by the Louisiana Filmand Entertainment Association (LFEA) onAugust 21 in New Orleans. The award recog-

it spurs a whole host of ancillary businesses.An industry that brings such large economicimpact to our state; one that allows us tocompete with top players in our country, is oneworth acknowledging, and I’m excited to be apart of that.”

LFEA also held a Louisiana LegislativeSession and Entertainment Incentives Paneldiscussion, gathering top government andindustry leaders that afternoon at the officesof Jones Walker, LLP in New Orleans. The panelfocused on the 2013 legislative session,Louisiana’s future with the success of the taxcredits, and LFEA’s role as an industry leader.Panelists included Rep. Leger; Chris Stelly,executive director of Louisiana Entertainment;David Tatman, executive director and lobbyistfor LFEA; Kimberly Lewis Robinson, partner intax and estates practices group, Jones Walker,LLP; and Sherri McConnell, principal atMcConnell & Associates Consulting and formerexecutive director of Louisiana Entertainment.The panel was moderated by William French,LFEA president and president of Film Produc-tion Capital.

Visit www.LFEA.org for more information.

BRIEFS

Wholesale - Retail - Commercial - Private

We will meet your needs!

Medical - Marine - Military

University & Corporate

Automotive & Heavy Machinery

Computers & Back-Up Systems

Digital Cameras & Camcorders

Smartphones, Mobile Devices, & PDA’s

JEFFERSON BATTERY COMPANYMOVIE PRODUCTION BATTERY SUPPLIES

Tel: (504) 835-1685 / Fax: (504) 835-5773 / E-mail: [email protected]

BRANDS: AC Delco, Exide, Universal Power Group, YUASA,

Motorcross, Gates Hawker, Poloroid, Sanyo, Duracell Procell,

Cyclone, Panasonic, Saft, Tadiran, Schumacher Chargers, Cadnica,

Hawker, Powersonic, Enersys, Eagle Picher, Ultra Life, Midtronics,

Autometer, DEKA, Associated Equipment, and many more!

700 Jefferson Highway Jefferson, LA 70121

Batteries for a Portable World

(Energizer Lithium AA)


‘DYNAMIC DUO’ RETURNS HOMEWITH TWO INTERNATIONAL MAGICTITLESLouisiana natives Michael Dardant, also knownas “Magic Mike,” and Shanna Lynn Forrestall,a film and television actress performing as“Velvet Marie,” joined forces to compete in theInternational Festival de Magie in Quebec Cityover Labor Day weekend.

The duo, who’ve been friends since 2004,were focused on acquiring another internationalcompetition award for Dardant, whose impres-sive record includes 13 awards in 2012 alone.

This was their first time performingtogether, and Forrestall had to learn fourroutines in two days. The pair performedseven times in two days. And Dardant, who’sCajun French, worked hard to translate more

than half of each routine into local French tohelp attendees understand the performances.

They returned home with two InternationalMagic titles—a 1st Place Award in the Close-upDivision, and also a 1st Place Award in theMentalist Division.

“Performing with Mike was such a challenge,and such a gift,” said Forrestall. “He is an amaz-ingly talented performer, not just in magic, butin comedy, improv and live performance. Thiswas a beautiful experience, and Quebecwelcomed us with open arms. I’d love to performand compete with him again in the future.”

Both Dardant and Forrestall are represented byOpen Range Management. For more informationabout Dardant, visit www.michaeldardant.com,and for more on Forrestall, visitwww.shannafromlouisiana.com.

NEW CROWDFUNDING PLATFORMFOR NOLA INDIE FILMS SEEKS TOFEATURE 10 FILMMAKERSThe film industry is booming in New Orleans,but independent filmmakers still struggle tofinance and distribute their films.

Indywood, Inc., a new crowdfunding forequity platform, is seeking 10 feature filmprojects for their site’s launch in October. Tointroduce the company to the New Orleans filmcommunity, Indywood™ will screen three hard -to-find indie films, including a short by Court13 (Beasts of the Southern Wild), on October 4at 7pm at the Saint Claude Ave Art House.

The co- founders will host a discussion onhow crowdfunding for equity could change theNOLA film industry and answer questions asto how to become a featured filmmaker.Discussion will include alcoholic beverages.

Featured filmmakers’ projects will beshopped around to interested investors oncethe site is completed. Indywood™ encouragesany and all filmmakers to become beta testersand apply to be featured.

Indywood™ is an online platform for inde-pendent films. It combines crowdfunding forfilm equity with a pay- per- view online movietheater. It’s basically a dating site whereNew Orleans indie filmmakers can meetinvestors, and where viewers can rent hard -to -find indie films.

For more info, visit www.indywood.org.

Lm 5 13 web

Documents

Transcript of Lm 5 13 web