A Strong Foundation

The walls are up, the windows are placed, and the wooden floors have been installed. Now, after months of hard work, it’s finally time to decorate.

We’re close to placing every component of the film and nearly finished with A Boy’s Life – and I couldn’t be more pleased. Let me digress for a second… the main reason for this blog was (and is) to keep everyone involved up-to-date with the progress of this short film. Whether you were part of the cast, crew, or a donor, every one of you helped make this film and I consider you part of this team.

A little tidbit about myself: Being a filmmaker is more than just making movies. It’s more than just expressing a vision. It’s sincerely about collaboration and working within a team to create something distinct and special. Sure, it’s always a great feeling when a story reaches an audience, though it digs deeper than that. A film builds a family. We’re the root foundation of this structure we’re creating. We’ve worked long hours sweating over bricks, cement, and plies of wood to create something that stands strong. I believe this film embodies that.

The music I’ve heard sounds amazing. The sound design is nearly completed. And the opening titles, created by Nipa Eason, are looking wonderful (a sneak peek above).

Now, as we’re deeply involved with the meticulous details of post-production, it’s nearly time to open the doors…

Stay tuned for our strategy for distribution.

The Race to the Big Screen

On your mark. Get set. COLOR!

With only a month left to go, we’re continuously plugging away with this little monster movie and anticipating the next phase of post-production. We’ve finally completed the coloring phase – our DP turned colorist, Aaron, further enhanced the stunning visuals and we couldn’t be more pleased.

Now that the "look” is approaching the finish line, it’s now time to focus on what’s “heard”. Sound and score are both incredibly important aspects of a film that ultimately threads the story and seamlessly connect the audience. The goal isn’t to overemphasize either of the components, but work together to properly fit every piece of aural artwork and fully enhance the story. Having worked with both Hamdija and Michaela, I’m fully confident of their talents and can’t wait for you to hear what they create.

We’re also currently creating the beginning titles of the film (welcome the talented Nipa Eason), and about to begin the publicity phase (press kit, poster, festival plan, etc.)

Now it's time to stretch those limbs, put on those running shoes, and anticipate that finish line. We're off.

All Locked Up

Is it me, or does the word “lock” often resonate a negative thought or idea? Locked out. Locked up. John Locke. It’s a smorgasbord of confined and damaging connotations. That holds true, however, until you’re finally at Picture Lock. For those not familiar with the cinematic vernacular, “picture lock” is the process of post-production where the Editor and Director have done everything humanly possible to conclude the edit and finally prepare the film for sound, music, visual effects, and color correction. Well, after eleven versions, two test screenings, and countless of notes later, Frank and I are happy to announce we’ve finally reached the coveted and relieving picture lock.

The feeling, however, is not as settling as I had hoped. Although I’m extremely happy where we are right now, picture lock seems so final. Like there’s no turning back. And no matter how confident we may be, there’s always that tiny hesitation leaking through the cracks of my brain – “did we cut it fast enough”? “Should we have kept that line?” “Why didn’t we speed up that take!?” It’s a never-ending battle between the self-contained confident director and the aspiring filmmaker who’s still trying to prove himself.

I guess filmmaking is always a battle. A battle of personalities. A battle of talents. A battle of ideas. And, like all battles, once the explosions subside and the dust settles, a calmness and peaceful sunlight will finally emerge.

And if that doesn’t happen, we can always call John Locke.

The 1st Test Screening

Sweaty palms, jittery legs, heavy breaths: No, I’m not talking about our imaginative main character, Max. Not this time. This time, I’m talking about me. More specifically, our very first test screening.

It’s never a calm feeling showing a work-in-progress to completely fresh eyes. In fact, the voices seem to speak louder and much more critical in the back of my head during this process. What do they think of the performances? Is the pacing too slow? Why did we put that shot in? It’s an invariable pooh-pooh platter of cinematic insecurity. This past weekend, we invited six professional (and very honest) viewers to watch the first audience screening of A Boy’s Life. The results -- amazing feedback, constructive criticism, and positive responses to enhance the quality of the film.

Now, back to the drawing board to strengthen the story and propel the performances, and ultimately get closer to that much sought-after picture lock.

To Edit or Not To Edit?

If Shakespeare was correct and all the world really is a stage… does that mean life in Los Angeles is a movie? And if that is, in fact, true… how great would it be to manipulate our everyday life with the help from a post-production team? Think about it. A bad interview could be edited out from memory, mundane conversation could be covered up with a rousing soundtrack, and mind-numbing errands could be contorted into a much more interesting montage. Life would be so much easier.

That’s exactly where we are with A Boy’s Life. Our post-production team has crashed through the proverbial gates and we’re amidst the illustrious and quite meticulous editing phase. Our editor, Frank Mohler, and I have been working closely together to make sure the pacing and tone of the film is consistently effective and our working relationship couldn’t be better. We have a little less than a month until picture lock and then it moves on to sound design and music.

On a different note, we’re still on the hunt for more production funds. Raising money for a short film is like shopping for a leather jacket in summer. Doesn’t seem possible – not even probable – but if you’re really lucky and relentlessly determined, you just might find the perfect jacket in the perfect store with the perfect fit. If you know of anybody… perfect... please send them our way. To refer back to my friend Shakespeare again – “Nothing can come of nothing”. (Though, if you know King Lear, please don’t condemn us to the same fate as Cordelia…)

Our Executive Producer, Luke Bishop, checking out the space with Director of Photography Aaron Moorhead.

Point-of-View from a Producer

It’s been a month since we wrapped A Boy’s Life and I’ve had a bit of time to reflect on the process and the outcome. While I think we bit off a lot in a short amount of time, we were able to pull it off because of our dedication, teamwork and our determination to get it done and do it right. We did hit a lot of roadblocks; I’m not going to lie. After leaving the set on the last day I said to myself, I wish I could tell people what really happened here…. And while I am not a very private person, some things are better left to the imagination. I don’t know if you’d actually believe all of the stories we have to tell from set. I do like to share some stories however so that other indie producers don’t feel like they are alone. Sometimes it feels that way.

We shot in my friend’s mother’s house. She’s in her 70s and she’s never seen a film shoot in full swing. My gut told me not to ask but I knew two things. The house was perfect and I had a good chance of getting a “yes.” What I also knew was, I needed to make sure I kept the house in one piece and that any film shoot in your friend’s house could jeopardize your relationship with them. A film crew is like a tornado and so no precaution is too small. Luckily, my friend is still speaking to me. After a day of patching, painting, and cleaning the house was almost back to normal…. Then a day later I find myself hauling trash (that we forgot about) out through the mud in a dress and heels… yeah, it happened… that was fun.

I guess you’d call us guerilla filmmakers… we shot without a film permit (until the last day when we were forced to do so). I’m not going to go into much detail however I will tell you, never in my life have I had to fib as much as I have in the last couple of years, just to get away with producing a low budget film project. If you can’t lie, then you better have the budget to back up your honesty. I’m not proud of my fibbing but I am proud of the films I produce.

We shot with a minor, Griffin Gluck. Given that our film is SAG, and being that we had a minor working for us, we had to make sure we followed not only the labor laws of employing a minor but also the SAG rules. Our schedule was extremely restricted because of this. There are rules about how many total hours he could be on set, how many hours of schooling he needs each day (yes, we hired studio teacher, Jan Citron) and how many hours of rest, play and turn around time is required. Working with Griffin was a blast – he was (dare I say it) even more professional than some of the adults on set!

What I’m most excited about is the final product. All of the time and energy put into A Boy’s Life resulted in beautiful footage and amazing performances from both Griffin and from our lead actress, Christie Lynn Smith. The expertise of our DP, Aaron Moorehead, and the creativity of our Production Designer, Melissa Low, make all the difference. Watching our Director, Eli, on set doing his thing was the biggest reward. He puts his all into each of his films and if he can keep doing what he doest best – we’re all in for a treat! I can’t wait to see a final cut of the film and to share it with all of you! I know you’ll be amazed!

- Allison Vanore, Producer

Fundraiser Part 2

Hello Monsters!

We’ve entered one of the most exciting phases of making a film – Post Production. This is the time where we’ve shot the footage and it’s now a jigsaw puzzle – essentially piecing together every artistic component to create something meaningful and beautiful. We have an amazing post team who acquire the talent and tenacity to enhance the film’s quality and entertainment.

As we enter this phase, we must also enter the second phase of fundraising as well. While making a short, there are tons of unforeseen costs and expenditures that are either overseen or unavoidable. This short makes no exception. We’re on a mission to raise an additional $4,000 – most of which is going towards deferred payments/loans. The remaining is going towards Post-Production.

I’m fully aware the amount of support we’ve received from so many people, and that support hasn’t gone overlooked. However, we humbly continue to ask for additional financial donations and hope, with your help, we can complete this wonderful film in its entirety.

To donate, please click on the tab above and make a fully tax-deductible donation to the film. Thank you.