Dead Week

After Christmas and before New Year's Eve is what I've been calling Dead Week for many years. It's the time of the year when nothing happens. People go on vacation. Companies shut down. By all accounts, we could call this dead week. In truth, it's the time of year when the dead gives rise to life; when fertilizer feeds new green; and things once dormant (prepare to) come to life. It's the glue between the seams, or in this case, the years. Coincidentally, I've also been, well, I wouldn't call it obsessive, but preoccupied with "death." No, no, no, I'm not depressed, or in some sort of deep funk. It's so easy to intellectually accept the fact that I am going to die. But I'll admit it is difficult to believe that it's real.

This movie is about death, and the denial of it. We create diversions, vices, and justifications. We create a story for ourselves in order to do so. And within this story, we are the central heroic character that conquers, solves, or at least control the elements to give ourselves some sort of meaning and context to this thing called life. Death is coming. Death is real. And honestly, it is not unwelcome. It draws me, and comforts me. Like a train ride, I travel patiently because I know I will finally arrive at my destination. Yes, I am the central character in this life. The story I've created is the journey to making great films. This is what I've decided to do with my time. In order to make this story great, I've placed great obstacles in my path. I have to overcome my own character defects. I have to shut out a lot of criticism from industry, family, and friends. I have to believe in the invisible. I could call winning an Academy Award the completion of the story. But really, that's not the story at all. The story ends when I inhale, but cease to exhale.

So I take a deep breath while we finalize financing, paperwork, and logistics. This is the silence before the snow finally falls on this production.

SAG Meeting

We'll be attending the Screen Actors Guild contract workshop on Thursday. They canceled it last month because of their negotiations with the studios. Some rules have changed for certain budget contracts, so this will be a good time for us to connect with SAG and make sure we don't have any major hurdles amongst the pending strike.

YouTube pulls the trailer (Again!)

Apparently, we offended the "community standards" of YouTube. This is the 2nd trailer that has been pulled after we uploaded the newly edited version. Another trailer will not be posted on YouTube.

ILLEGAL EDITING & COPYING

Seems there are already illegal copies of the trailer floating around. C'mon folks. I don't mind that you guys share the trailer, but keep the original intact. Do NOT remove the company logo, do not edit or cut anything. http://rapidshare.com/files/163843021/Justify_Trailer_edited.avi

AFM 2008

Currently attending.

Trailer Picture Lock

Of course that term "picture lock" has to be used loosely. It is however, off to the races, or in this case post audio.

The Editing Cave & Marketing Materials

We were going to pull a stunt in West Hollywood tonight in latex gear and all. That would have caused some stir (well, maybe not THAT much-after all it IS West Hollywood). The idea was to have Rebecca in full latex and pink wig, with me in a business suit, chained at the neck with a dog collar which she would pull. I would have a suitcase full of these postcards to promote the film, but alas, the postcards were not expected to arrive til next week. They arrived today! We could have done it technically. But it wouldn't have worked anyway, as I was editing the trailer...for 13.5 hours (so far) today. The postcards and business cards look great. Sharpdots did a nice job. Looking forward to finishing the trailer.

New Key Art

As we move forward, the Key Art will reflect more and more of the finished film. This art is being printed up as postcards/sell sheets for AFM.

Final day for the trailer.

Wow, this is only the trailer, yet this week feels like a couple of months have gone by. The trailer should cut together pretty well. Ah, but time is of the essence as AFM is coming up very quickly.

One more day of shooting!

One more day and this thing is ready to be edited. So far so good. I'm pleased with the production value of the film. It's going to be a nice piece. Cast and crew are great. I always enjoy this part of the filmmaking process...working with enthusiastic people who love their craft.

First Day of Shoot!

The shoot went very well. This was a challenging scene in many ways. I was hoping to put this scene towards the latter part of the shoot. But as schedules would have it, it was first. I'm glad it did. Rebecca Larsen played Abby who did a great job. Yes, I DO remember the process of filmmaking a very energy-producing, highly collaborative medium. A great start!

Victoria, Tommy, and Dr. Chang cast!

Jaret Sacrey will play Tommy. Judy Waller will play Dr. Chang. Victoria will be played by Goddess Tessa. We are still casting for Abby.

Casting

We are casting four of the roles for the trailer: Abby, Victoria, Tommy, Dr. Chang. Let the fun begin.

Trailer to be shot, Prep for AFM

The trailer production for Justify is slated for the weekend of October 11-12. Casting to begin immediately. We will have this trailer, pitch packet, and sell sheet ready for AFM in Santa Monica this November. A soon-to-be revealed publicity stunt is on the near horizon.

Jayson Crothers on board as Director of Photography

Jayson Crothers is a graduate of the American Film Institute and comes to us with a passion for storytelling. His use of composition, color, light, and movement are all motivated by story and character. With many features already under his belt, we welcome his experience and artistic sensibilities.

72-hour film

I was part of the Canon 72-hour "Bring It" film competition. Sponsored by Fat Free Film and Duly Noted Inc (Real Women Have Curves). I was lucky enough to be picked as one of four filmmakers from the pool of Film Independent's Talent Development program. This was a great opportunity to try out some tools that I'd learned through Judith Weston's workshop before shooting the feature. See the short film here or enter "Fat Free Film" on iTunes.

Judith Weston's Directing Actors Workshop

Finished this workshop over the weekend in preparation for production. Some very valuable tools acquired. I highly recommend this to any director or writer in improving their craft.

First Location: Mansion

I was wondering where we were going to get a mansion for the shoot on our budget. This was going to be one of the more difficult locations to find. Talk about lucky! This is near Laguna Beach. Also, Aimee and I were both born in the year of the horse. I took this as a good sign.

First Production Meeting Held, Mopitz on Board

We met at La Creperie Café in Long Beach to get the basics organized. Yummy crepes by the way. Michelle Opitz comes on board to help produce the film. We have previously worked together on Aimee's doc about Amy Holden Jones. Michelle graduated from AFI in the directing program and went to Chapman for her undergrad. We're thrilled to have her.

Aimee Holguin comes on board as producer.

Aimee Holguin comes on board as producer. Aimee and I went to filmschool together and worked on the documentary about Amy Holden Jones when we interviewed Roger Corman. Principle Photography set for September.

"Baghead" gets picked by Sony Pictures Classics

My Project:Involve mentor Jay Duplass just sold his film to Sony Pictures Classics at Sundance. Congrats to the Duplass Brothers!

Hamlet 2 gets picked up.

Having previously collaborated on Donnie's Tree, Justin Pearson completed sound editing on Hamlet 2 which just got picked up at Sundance for $10 million. Congrats Justin!

RED completed

The camera test for Justify that turned into a short film is now complete and and submitted to a few festivals. Back onto Justify!