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July 27, 2005
InterCreativePersonal Skills
All of us have interpersonal skills, some more so than others… Some people are good at communicating and “reading” other people while...
...some aren’t and prefer to be left alone.
As a director, though, dealing with creative people from the actors down through the production assistants who have their own future stories dancing around in their heads, interpersonal skills takes on new meaning… thus my new term; InterCreativePersonal Skills.
All creative people work differently and it’s up to me, as the director, to learn how each person on my crew works best. First and foremost, I’m talking about the actors but please note that this way of working starts with them to the DP and then follows through straight down to the interns.
Being what I consider an actor’s director, I know that actors work differently and use various techniques to get to where they need to be in any given scene. It’s up to me as the director to learn each individual actor’s preferred way of working almost as if I’m learning a new musical instrument with every actor that I work with. One suggestion will work with one actor while that same suggestion could make another actor very upset. It’s up to me to use my InterCreativePersonal skills, there’s that word again, to learn and understand how each actor works. EB
Posted by ethan at 05:16 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 26, 2005
Why Direct?
To be honest, when I first moved to New York City in ’96 to work as a PA on “Addicted To Love”, I didn’t really have a clue as to what filmmaking was all about.
I had a cheap place to stay in New York, some money from graduation saved up, I was young so I figured, “Why not check it out?”… at least I have a job, right? As I got a chance to watch Griffin Dunne, the director, work with his actors, usually in very hushed tones apart and away from the crew, I thought to myself, “I want to know what that’s all about.”
After studying acting at Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute for over a year and then working for a bit bull of a Key Grip as his “best boy grip” on a few independent feature films, I realized that directing is where I saw my career heading. Why, you may ask?...
Directing is the most collaborative art form, that’s why. As this definition says, “All the director's efforts are aimed at creating a fully unified aesthetic experience.” Now to achieve that, the director needs to work effectively with the actors, DP, Gaffer, Key Grip, Locations head, Production Designer, Sound Mixer, Props department and every other person involved with producing a film.
Not only does the director have to answer every question that come his way from the actors about the script, story and motivations for each character, he needs to work; with the DP about where to put/how to move the camera, how to light each scene; with the production designer about how he wants Jimmy’s room to be decorated/look; with the costume designer about what Jimmy needs to wear for scene 32… you get the picture.
It might not sound like a lot of fun to you but being on set, in production, answering all those questions and solving the various problems that arise is exactly where I want to be… the center of the storm, the captain of the ship. Now, since I don’t have a feature film on my resume yet, the only person who’s gonna give me a shot with a great script is ME with the great script I’m re-writing… my least favorite part of the process. EB
Posted by ethan at 04:16 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 19, 2005
Another filmmaker blogging who's worth checking out…
Rob McKittrick gives a hilarious account of how his debut film “Waiting…” came to be on his blog. From starting in the trench’s at a chain restaurant to...
...writing, re-writing and re-writing, to dealing with a sleazy producer to finally getting a name producer and Lion’s Gate Films involved, this is a great tale told that’s sure to make you laugh and cry at the world that some of us are trying to break into.
Lion’s Gate takes blogging into the fold to help promote a number of their films. As I wrote back to Rob in one of my posts, it’s Project Greenlight on the web. While Rob recounts his various ups and downs while looking back at the long journey, we on the other hand hope to share our trials and tribulations in real time as it happens… now instead of procrastinating on my re-write with this post, I’m getting back at it. EB
P.S.- due to immersing myself in the above said re-write, please bear with the infrequency of my blog posts. Not to worry, when the script is ready, you’ll be the first people we tell and you can read all about it right here.
Posted by ethan at 02:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 08, 2005
MAJOR tax incentives for film investors…
When I was finishing the first draft of “Produced By…” and planning the creation of CREATEABULL FILMS LLC along with this site, I came across the Jobs Creation Act of 2004… and I fell off my chair…
After picking myself up off the floor and reading for a second time that any film produced in the United States for up to $15 million is allowed to write off 100% of its production budget the year it is incurred instead of deducting it over a number of years, I was floored again but managed to stay seated. After conducting further research, I realized 1. That this is legit and I’m not dreaming and 2. This is a MAJOR incentive for any investor thinking about making a play in film... just our luck.
“Runaway production” (productions made in Canada due to their tax incentives and favorable exchange rate) was driving productions out of the country throughout the ‘90s and into the beginning of this century, costing the country jobs and local businesses revenue. This legislation was enacted to stop runaway production.
From a company in our position, it gives us a great incentive to offer our investors from day one of physical production. Who’s to say how much easier raising money for our production will be due to this incentive but I know it will help in at least opening the door for consideration. Also, in addition to this Federal incentive, New York State/City also offers another tax incentive that amounts up to a 10% state tax break and a 5% city tax break. Bring ‘em on!
Additional links for information on this incentive are here, here and here. EB
Posted by ethan at 03:30 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
