Well, here it is:
The Fashion of the Christ - end
William | MySpace Video
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Post Production
The shooting of this film, let alone casting and rehearsing, had its fits and starts to such an extent that I felt self-concious (if I spelled that wrong I'm unaware of it) chronicalling it all as it happened. I didn't want to curse anything.
Jay Ould (Porno the Clown) played Abe the homeless guy, formerly written as Gabriel the Archangel posing as a camera man or producer or or whatever I happened to type as a placeholder for a character that was heavy with backstory and exposition and now actually as a homeless man had some actual genuine anger issues to provide a foil for J.C.
AuBrey Friesner played Jesus Christ. Jay knew him through Burning Man.
Kirsten Harvey played Penny Hennessay the hooker. The character had in earlier drafts been a TV journalist, because that was handy for throwing questions at Jesus, but something always bothered me about it as a script idea for that reason. Again, the character should be someone coming from a lowly place, although I refused to write down to the character just because of her presumed social caste. Also, despite being described in the final script as dressed in skimpy clothes, she ended up using a big fur coat (which I will say was faux. to put people at ease and I'm pretty sure that is correct although it reads well on camera) because in February when we shot it was pretty cold. Jay knew her from the local comedy and performing community, a Ryerson Acting student on the rise.
We almost cast Kirsten for an earlier shoot, but then she had to back out because a friend had fallen ill and between that and the crunch of school the time wasn't right. But in the interim of asking other actresses I cane around to the big rewrite and enough time apparently passed before there was again another window to possibly shoot.
I did one partial shoot when AuBey and Kirsten were available but Jay wasn't, and I put on a producer hat to make the most of it and shoot - according to the storyboards - whatever shots Jay's character Abe wasn't in. We got some usable stuff, but in general I think that producer pragmatism approach leaves out the element of energy that the full cast dynamic has. Even if Jay is crusty or impatient with interjections moving the shoot along, ultimately he is first contact with with other two and has about him a way of putting people at ease in general. I as a director may or may not have that quality in the same degree. Maybe because I don't have the gift of gab and I might be focused on this process of directing that I have done before many times but which I don't do often enough.
At one point in the middle of a take Kirsten slipped coming down. There was more mud on the hill than it appeared. Oddly my camera didn't get the fall, only the line leading up to it and the recovery. Maybe my thumb twitched on the button in reflex. I then fell on my way up the slope. Went to the library washroom at lunch to wipe off whatever mud I could.
The last stuff shot in the day, after lunch, oddly has the most relaxed and appropriate tone, especially for AuBrey as Jesus. Jay loved the first cut, but for a few shots that were too fast (easily corrected) but it was obvious on Jay's TV that I had a spot on the lens that was not so dramatic in the viewfinder or in my editing software. Much of the middle of the short had this piece of dirt or snow or dust or whatever giving us a plain as the nose on your face blemish, or "dot-nose" to use a term from the guys on The Sarah Silverman Program. I don't know if it can be gotten rid of. I'm an idiot. I would put the cap on the lens between moves but I didn't dust off the lens until AuBrey noticed it in a los close-up and wiped it off with Jesus' cloak. We don't have Industrial Light and Magic to go through it frame by frame and replace the spec with background.
I've made a smaller version, cut from 11 minutes to 6:22 without credits, trimming the opening and eliminating the middle segment. Hard to lose. But that is mainly because a ten minute short wouldn't survive on Funny or Die without big names. Also because now I could give some sort of version to Jay's animator friend filmmaker Chris Minz who has agreed to add some things to the ending which was shot as a great leap of faith that effects would fill it in. We have cold sweats about compression going from different formats, but that might be solved and it'll be a kick any way to see those shots completed.
Just found out about that now. It's Palm Sunday today. Next weekend is Easter.
We shot the movie at a park across Yonge Street from Blessed Sacrament church, south of Lawrence subway station on the Saturday before Ash Wednesday and I did my first big edit the weekend after Ash Wednsday. So Post Production has pretty much been Lent. My Mom had e-mailed me when I told her about the shoot and sent her a photo that she had given up bread for Lent. I had missed Ash Wednesday. I must have dragged my ass from work and through the subway without noticing one person with tell-tale ash forgotten on their forehead. I had kind of wanted to do that this year, just to look crazy (or crazier) on the subway. But you know something, I decided to follow my mom's lead on this one issue and give up eating bread as well. Except for two occasions of faltering (a hamburger at one point and a visit to Red Lobster where they set down two biscuits and I didn't want them to go to waste) I've managed to keep off bread. ** Knock on wood ** and that might have something to do with losing ten pounds since my last doctor's appointment (my diabetes doctor; I still don't have a GP since - well that's another story), and it has been easier to walk let alone climb stairs without pain. It would be nice to go home skinny for Easter, and shock everyone in North Bay, but I'm afraid it won't be that dramatic. Ten pounds on my frame is hardly noticable unless people notice I can tie my shoes now without getting winded.
Anyway, we'll see how it goes. I had put out feelers about music, both to a friend from college I hardly hear from, Peter, and to Lorne who composed for Porno the Clown. Both are always busy. Haven't heard a music-specific reply from Lorne, and Peter said he was too busy (right before going onto Facebook and posting a status update that he was going to get an ipod to waste more time). For the time being the temp music is generic cleared stuff just in case.
Happy Palm Sunday and Holy Week leading to Easter.
-- William
Jay Ould (Porno the Clown) played Abe the homeless guy, formerly written as Gabriel the Archangel posing as a camera man or producer or or whatever I happened to type as a placeholder for a character that was heavy with backstory and exposition and now actually as a homeless man had some actual genuine anger issues to provide a foil for J.C.
AuBrey Friesner played Jesus Christ. Jay knew him through Burning Man.
Kirsten Harvey played Penny Hennessay the hooker. The character had in earlier drafts been a TV journalist, because that was handy for throwing questions at Jesus, but something always bothered me about it as a script idea for that reason. Again, the character should be someone coming from a lowly place, although I refused to write down to the character just because of her presumed social caste. Also, despite being described in the final script as dressed in skimpy clothes, she ended up using a big fur coat (which I will say was faux. to put people at ease and I'm pretty sure that is correct although it reads well on camera) because in February when we shot it was pretty cold. Jay knew her from the local comedy and performing community, a Ryerson Acting student on the rise.
We almost cast Kirsten for an earlier shoot, but then she had to back out because a friend had fallen ill and between that and the crunch of school the time wasn't right. But in the interim of asking other actresses I cane around to the big rewrite and enough time apparently passed before there was again another window to possibly shoot.
I did one partial shoot when AuBey and Kirsten were available but Jay wasn't, and I put on a producer hat to make the most of it and shoot - according to the storyboards - whatever shots Jay's character Abe wasn't in. We got some usable stuff, but in general I think that producer pragmatism approach leaves out the element of energy that the full cast dynamic has. Even if Jay is crusty or impatient with interjections moving the shoot along, ultimately he is first contact with with other two and has about him a way of putting people at ease in general. I as a director may or may not have that quality in the same degree. Maybe because I don't have the gift of gab and I might be focused on this process of directing that I have done before many times but which I don't do often enough.
At one point in the middle of a take Kirsten slipped coming down. There was more mud on the hill than it appeared. Oddly my camera didn't get the fall, only the line leading up to it and the recovery. Maybe my thumb twitched on the button in reflex. I then fell on my way up the slope. Went to the library washroom at lunch to wipe off whatever mud I could.
The last stuff shot in the day, after lunch, oddly has the most relaxed and appropriate tone, especially for AuBrey as Jesus. Jay loved the first cut, but for a few shots that were too fast (easily corrected) but it was obvious on Jay's TV that I had a spot on the lens that was not so dramatic in the viewfinder or in my editing software. Much of the middle of the short had this piece of dirt or snow or dust or whatever giving us a plain as the nose on your face blemish, or "dot-nose" to use a term from the guys on The Sarah Silverman Program. I don't know if it can be gotten rid of. I'm an idiot. I would put the cap on the lens between moves but I didn't dust off the lens until AuBrey noticed it in a los close-up and wiped it off with Jesus' cloak. We don't have Industrial Light and Magic to go through it frame by frame and replace the spec with background.
I've made a smaller version, cut from 11 minutes to 6:22 without credits, trimming the opening and eliminating the middle segment. Hard to lose. But that is mainly because a ten minute short wouldn't survive on Funny or Die without big names. Also because now I could give some sort of version to Jay's animator friend filmmaker Chris Minz who has agreed to add some things to the ending which was shot as a great leap of faith that effects would fill it in. We have cold sweats about compression going from different formats, but that might be solved and it'll be a kick any way to see those shots completed.
Just found out about that now. It's Palm Sunday today. Next weekend is Easter.
We shot the movie at a park across Yonge Street from Blessed Sacrament church, south of Lawrence subway station on the Saturday before Ash Wednesday and I did my first big edit the weekend after Ash Wednsday. So Post Production has pretty much been Lent. My Mom had e-mailed me when I told her about the shoot and sent her a photo that she had given up bread for Lent. I had missed Ash Wednesday. I must have dragged my ass from work and through the subway without noticing one person with tell-tale ash forgotten on their forehead. I had kind of wanted to do that this year, just to look crazy (or crazier) on the subway. But you know something, I decided to follow my mom's lead on this one issue and give up eating bread as well. Except for two occasions of faltering (a hamburger at one point and a visit to Red Lobster where they set down two biscuits and I didn't want them to go to waste) I've managed to keep off bread. ** Knock on wood ** and that might have something to do with losing ten pounds since my last doctor's appointment (my diabetes doctor; I still don't have a GP since - well that's another story), and it has been easier to walk let alone climb stairs without pain. It would be nice to go home skinny for Easter, and shock everyone in North Bay, but I'm afraid it won't be that dramatic. Ten pounds on my frame is hardly noticable unless people notice I can tie my shoes now without getting winded.
Anyway, we'll see how it goes. I had put out feelers about music, both to a friend from college I hardly hear from, Peter, and to Lorne who composed for Porno the Clown. Both are always busy. Haven't heard a music-specific reply from Lorne, and Peter said he was too busy (right before going onto Facebook and posting a status update that he was going to get an ipod to waste more time). For the time being the temp music is generic cleared stuff just in case.
Happy Palm Sunday and Holy Week leading to Easter.
-- William
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Saturday, November 8, 2008
happy election
The days after Obama's election felt like the opposite of 9/11 walking around, a sort of cheesy lack of tension in the air. My only problem with it is that my script may not feel so fresh or daring anymore. It may feel like I'm following a trend by having a black Jesus or I'm implying something is wrong with Obama. Maybe I will have to scrap that idea.
I'm not so sure how I feel about it now that the new interpretation is possible.
I'm not so sure how I feel about it now that the new interpretation is possible.
Friday, September 26, 2008
the script
I think it's as good as it'll get. Gotta shoot. But also have to fight the inexplicable chemical apathy I seem to have about movies - right when I need to be more motivated than ever.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
lowest-rated on imdb is Disaster Movie !
Memo to the studio -- Who green-lit this ??????? Does anyone over-see the writing process and say "Hey, how about a story with more of a disaster movie premise driving everything?" Or "How about something actually funny?"Context: Yes, I have seen every prerequisite movie or TV item being referenced, so it's not like I don't get it. Some of those items were themselves a waste of time and attention, and it's not like these filmmakers have much to say about them anyway. They have nothing to say about disasters, about movies nor about disaster movies.I saw this movie on-line for free and I still feel owed something for the time it cost me. If it gets a 1 out of ten the single nugget of goodness might be the marketing. The posters did a great job in promising something that might be the last word on the Disaster Movie genre. The Irwin Allen era was pretty much covered by Airplane! Funny thing that. . .even young viewers who haven't seen Airport '77 let alone Zero Hour GET Airplane! and laugh with it. So it's not even a generational thing. This movie could have explored the late 90's preoccupation with the end. I have wanted to do something about competing asteroids reminiscent of Deep Impact and Armegeddon, certainly there is room for Titanic, Poseidon and various versions possibly clashing. One thing you EXPECT from that kind of premise is built-in tension. But Disaster Movie has none, mainly because it doesn't bother laying out any story really. It reminds me of kids with their first video camera running around and being this and being that - one pop culture reference after another - except without the charm. This is not a Mad TV or SNL skit fest either. Disaster Movie is the worst thing this team has come out with. It is bad in a why bother sort of way. They start with a spoof about 10, 000 B.C. merely because that is a current movie. It's not a hook or inciting incident or insight into the lead character. A prehistoric man of sorts gets stopped by someone referencing a Gladiator TV show, so they fight and "Amy Winehouse" pops up and burps for awhile. It's like each scene has the feeling that someone said "Okay, pad the running time." Imagine the most inept and uninformed improv group taking suggestions from an audience full of ten year-olds. Then imagine someone filmed that and got it into thousands of theaters. Disaster Movie does not play as a movie at all except in two scenes - or maybe I should call them beats: Out of nowhere, someone poorly imitating a fad pop singer is apparently killed and someone says, "She was a national treasure." Or a Manhatten loft modeled after the party scene of Cloverfield is full of young preppy types listening to radio or TV (which provides most of the movie's claim to disaster theme relevance) and a reporter says something like, "The ghetto has just been destroyed. But we're okay about that." That's the extent of the movie's edge. The movie insults Juno and Sex and the City without having anything valid to say about them. Diablo Cody's dialog sounds even better now after hearing some hack(s) attempt it. I mean, spoofing a comedy is uninspired enough. But someone (Is David Zucker still credited as having something to do with them? Tell me no) should tell them that having a character simply show up isn't a comment, a satire, a spoof, nor much of a reference to that character. Whichever actors IMDb lists as playing many walk-ons in different costumes haven't given the estate of Peter Sellers anything to worry about. In fact, they haven't given Leslie Neilsen and Charlie Sheen anything to worry about. Except that certain suits may decide spoofs are "bad box office" now, and for a few years, without looking at how this unnecessary marketing project came to be and why it fails. Now seriously before watching this be sure to watch No Country for Old Men, Juno, Cloverfield, Iron Man, Indiana Jones, Batman, High School Musical, Sex and the City, Armageddon, and even lesser movies like Jumper and LOTS of disposable TV not as preparation to understand this movie but so you won't be able to spare the 80 minutes or whatever it is that I sadly lost watching it.I don't mind having to take more time to compose this blurb if it will spare one other human being this example of splintered fingernails on the chalkboard of cinema.
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