[08/09/2010 21:50:26] Twilight In Versailles: my movie is punk as fuck, baby
-I still believe this is true. I made one of the most "indie" movies of all time. Complete DIY (do-it-yourself).
[08/09/2010 21:51:00] Twilight In Versailles: I don't need money or people to make my movie good
[08/09/2010 21:51:11] Twilight In Versailles: I need me and my creativity and intelligence
[08/09/2010 21:51:18] Twilight In Versailles: Money doesn't make good art or tell a good story
[08/09/2010 21:51:27] Twilight In Versailles: I am going to make a good film.
-I still believe this is true. I did not and I do not mean that I could make a movie all by myself. When it comes down to it, I'm the person in charge of making the movie the best it can be. Money buys time and luxury, not talent.
[08/09/2010 21:51:49] Twilight In Versailles: I will thank you in my credits
-In regards to Lorena's help throughout the process of casting. Her credit was supposed to be a surprise so I can't believe I told her that I'd put her in the credits before we even began production.
[08/09/2010 21:52:05] lore creamer: ooow so cute i luv youuu
[08/09/2010 21:52:06] lore creamer: :D
[08/09/2010 21:52:07] Twilight In Versailles: I want to hold you to that
-Crazy times.
-Ryan.
Documenting the experience of making a feature film.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Friday, April 29, 2011
Amusing Joke and a Reassuring Quote
-"Your stupid"
-My stupid what?
This has to be one of the greatest written jokes I've ever seen. It's a travesty that the American education system makes it incomprehensible to a large percentage of the country.
"The only reason you make a movie is not to make or set out to do a good or a bad movie, it's just to see what you learn for the next one." -Alfonso Cuarón
-Ryan.
-My stupid what?
This has to be one of the greatest written jokes I've ever seen. It's a travesty that the American education system makes it incomprehensible to a large percentage of the country.
"The only reason you make a movie is not to make or set out to do a good or a bad movie, it's just to see what you learn for the next one." -Alfonso Cuarón
-Ryan.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Happy Birthday Ryan!!!
Happy Birthday Ryan!!!
I have to say filming the ending in Malibu was so much fun! The weather and scenery was beautiful! (I still can't find my camera)
I still remember talking to you on the phone about meeting with you at your apartment. "OK" the word creeper did come to mind...lol. Here I am new to Hollywood and a producer wants to meet me at his apartment...."yeah right"!! You sounded pretty normal but, I've been told watch out for stuff like that. So I almost didn't go. My roommate said that producers do that a lot and just go with my gut. "Well my gut said check it out. But just in case my gut was wrong. I had my trusty teaser gun in my boot. I feel its safe to tell you that now :)
After seeing the beautiful work you had done with the movie thus far. I was just amazed! I wanted to be apart of this movie. You made me send my reels and wait a month. But then you emailed me the good news!
I feel very honored that you had chosen me to be Elizabeth. Everyone was wonderful to work with and it was my pleasure to be apart of Turning point.
Lori Nore
I have to say filming the ending in Malibu was so much fun! The weather and scenery was beautiful! (I still can't find my camera)
I still remember talking to you on the phone about meeting with you at your apartment. "OK" the word creeper did come to mind...lol. Here I am new to Hollywood and a producer wants to meet me at his apartment...."yeah right"!! You sounded pretty normal but, I've been told watch out for stuff like that. So I almost didn't go. My roommate said that producers do that a lot and just go with my gut. "Well my gut said check it out. But just in case my gut was wrong. I had my trusty teaser gun in my boot. I feel its safe to tell you that now :)
After seeing the beautiful work you had done with the movie thus far. I was just amazed! I wanted to be apart of this movie. You made me send my reels and wait a month. But then you emailed me the good news!
I feel very honored that you had chosen me to be Elizabeth. Everyone was wonderful to work with and it was my pleasure to be apart of Turning point.
Lori Nore
Milestones
Props to you Ryan on finishing the film! I am so excited to see it! I feel very honored that I was able to be a part of it, even though it was a very tiny part. As I told you when we first met, I was truly touched and moved by the trailer and although yor said it was a non-speaking part, I wanted to be involved in your artistic process. Being a mom, and having both a son and a daughter may have predisposed me to liking a coming of age film; but as I also told you, I felt that just the human story would reach anyone. Also, it seemed like you captured some of the challenges of growing up male in this society at this time...obviously I can't know that; but raising a son, and watching that trailer gave me a sense of that. Anyway, I can't wait to see the entire film. I know that it will be amazing, not only because of your artistic vision, but because of the wonderful cast and crew you assembled. My time on set was brief but I felt totally at home w/an awesome group of people. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to work with you...my first film...therefore a milestone for us both :) I know you will have a long, successful career and I hope we will be able to work together down the road!
xox,
Susan
Touching Up The Paintings
"The riders in a race do not stop when they reach the goal. There is a little finishing canter before coming to a standstill. There is time to hear the kind voices of friends and say to oneself, the work is done."
-Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
What does it mean to 'finish', 'complete' or to finally 'end' a piece of art? When is it finished? When is it completed? When is the process of creation officially ended? Moreover, where does the journey begin? At what point do we step back, take a breath, and consider the item in question as a whole; something that's separate from other works, something that stands alone by itself, speaks for itself? When does a piece of art take on a life of it's own, separate from the people who made it?
The (in)famous painter Georgia O'Keefe was known to wander around the gallery before the opening of a show demonstrating her work. She would be caught by the gallery's entrepreneur with a paintbrush and palate, touching up the paintings where they were hanged, sometimes only minutes before the public was allowed to view them for the first time. When asked what she was doing, she replied plainly, matter-of-factly, that they simply were not finished.
I don't mention the story of Georgia O'Keefe to suggest that Ryan's film Turning Point could use more work. I mention it because it suggests that the painting, the writing, the music, the film as a finished product is only viewed as 'art' by the individual who had no part in the creating of it. The creator, the artist, views the 'work' itself as the real art. This is why they refer to it as a work of art. To the artist; the work itself, the process of creation, is the real thing of beauty.
The 'work', however, is held at a disadvantage to the art. The art can be hung on a wall, it can be projected on a screen. It can be published in a book or listened to through speakers, where it can be considered by the individual; shown in it's entirety in a convenient, single-sitting serving. The work cannot be demonstrated in this way. The work requires the voyeur to sit with the artist through all the many hours of weighing options and careful thought; not very marketable mediums. The work requires the voyeur to watch the artist try, to fail, to adjust, and to begin again--to develop, slowly, a technique that works, over time. The process of 'working' as art is a piece that can only be truly appreciated by the people who take part in that process. Everyone else only gets the painting to look at.
However, work has one advantage over art. It's virtue is that the joy of creating has no total and complete end, the way an individual piece of art may be completed, or how someone can be 'finished' looking at it. The work, however, is never done. The process was not about finishing the one item so that it can finally be done; it's about finishing the item so that the entire process of it's creation can be considered, as it unfolded from beginning to end, so that something can be learned about the process and applied to make the work on the next piece of art better. But what does 'better' mean, anyway?
Turning Point is not just an hour and a half of movie. Ryan has contributed (x) amount of hours of life into it, and I have contributed my own (x) amount of hours, and so has the actors, and the crew, and so on; until the film is a piece of art that totals all of those countless hours of life experience, and can now be seen anytime you wish. But the movie will now be seen by countless other people, who had no hand in the making of it. They will each contribute their own hours of life in order to watch it, and hopefully they watch it more than once. Ryan is the only person who can honestly guess how many hours of life Turning Point has accumulated. After it's released and given out to for the world to enjoy, no one will ever honestly be able to say how many total hours of life have been invested into the movie, ever again.
Maybe that's when the art takes on a life of it's own; when it no longer belongs the artist(s). When it can belong to anybody. When anyone can contribute their own lives to it, invest their thoughts and their emotions into it. Then, perhaps, it stands a chance of becoming 'finished'. Georgia O'Keefe may have known this. Perhaps her wandering through the gallery, touching-up her paintings one-by-one, was her own way of saying goodbye to old friends, who would no longer belong to her alone.
-K.S.Z.
-Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
What does it mean to 'finish', 'complete' or to finally 'end' a piece of art? When is it finished? When is it completed? When is the process of creation officially ended? Moreover, where does the journey begin? At what point do we step back, take a breath, and consider the item in question as a whole; something that's separate from other works, something that stands alone by itself, speaks for itself? When does a piece of art take on a life of it's own, separate from the people who made it?
The (in)famous painter Georgia O'Keefe was known to wander around the gallery before the opening of a show demonstrating her work. She would be caught by the gallery's entrepreneur with a paintbrush and palate, touching up the paintings where they were hanged, sometimes only minutes before the public was allowed to view them for the first time. When asked what she was doing, she replied plainly, matter-of-factly, that they simply were not finished.
I don't mention the story of Georgia O'Keefe to suggest that Ryan's film Turning Point could use more work. I mention it because it suggests that the painting, the writing, the music, the film as a finished product is only viewed as 'art' by the individual who had no part in the creating of it. The creator, the artist, views the 'work' itself as the real art. This is why they refer to it as a work of art. To the artist; the work itself, the process of creation, is the real thing of beauty.
The 'work', however, is held at a disadvantage to the art. The art can be hung on a wall, it can be projected on a screen. It can be published in a book or listened to through speakers, where it can be considered by the individual; shown in it's entirety in a convenient, single-sitting serving. The work cannot be demonstrated in this way. The work requires the voyeur to sit with the artist through all the many hours of weighing options and careful thought; not very marketable mediums. The work requires the voyeur to watch the artist try, to fail, to adjust, and to begin again--to develop, slowly, a technique that works, over time. The process of 'working' as art is a piece that can only be truly appreciated by the people who take part in that process. Everyone else only gets the painting to look at.
However, work has one advantage over art. It's virtue is that the joy of creating has no total and complete end, the way an individual piece of art may be completed, or how someone can be 'finished' looking at it. The work, however, is never done. The process was not about finishing the one item so that it can finally be done; it's about finishing the item so that the entire process of it's creation can be considered, as it unfolded from beginning to end, so that something can be learned about the process and applied to make the work on the next piece of art better. But what does 'better' mean, anyway?
Turning Point is not just an hour and a half of movie. Ryan has contributed (x) amount of hours of life into it, and I have contributed my own (x) amount of hours, and so has the actors, and the crew, and so on; until the film is a piece of art that totals all of those countless hours of life experience, and can now be seen anytime you wish. But the movie will now be seen by countless other people, who had no hand in the making of it. They will each contribute their own hours of life in order to watch it, and hopefully they watch it more than once. Ryan is the only person who can honestly guess how many hours of life Turning Point has accumulated. After it's released and given out to for the world to enjoy, no one will ever honestly be able to say how many total hours of life have been invested into the movie, ever again.
Maybe that's when the art takes on a life of it's own; when it no longer belongs the artist(s). When it can belong to anybody. When anyone can contribute their own lives to it, invest their thoughts and their emotions into it. Then, perhaps, it stands a chance of becoming 'finished'. Georgia O'Keefe may have known this. Perhaps her wandering through the gallery, touching-up her paintings one-by-one, was her own way of saying goodbye to old friends, who would no longer belong to her alone.
-K.S.Z.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
It's Finally..... Done? Not quite :)
True, Ryan may be done with his first feature film "Turning Point", but I don't believe it's done. Not really. We all still keep in contact, much like the family seen in the film, and I doubt we will ever really lose touch, so in reality.. the movie may be "done", but it's never truly gonna be the end of it.
The road-trip to San Francisco was a blast. I remember the night we were looking for a place to stay, I was freaking out a little because it was really late and we were still driving by the coast- it looked really creepy. We stopped by the side of the road and some of us came out to talk and see what was gonna happen. It was freezing cold, and I had to pee- REALLY badly, but then I looked up. I can't remember if Ryan pointed it out, or if I just looked up just because. Above us all shined the most beautiful sight of stars I've ever seen. I'd never seen so many stars in my life. It was breath-taking- for me anyway. It might not have been that big a deal for anyone else, but I've lived in LA all my life, true in the valley, but still it's very hard to see any stars at night, and I've always had a secret fascination with stars and the universe. I'd been to Big Bear before, and seen stars but.. I was 11 years old and it wasn't nearly as beautiful as what I've seen that night by the coast.
I have enjoyed working with everyone involved with the film- cast, crew, and friends. You all have made this project very special , and all the hard work put into this work will be paid off, I'm sure of it.
Ryan, you're insane, out there, and a bit scary sometimes(in a funny/strange way), but you are a great artist.
Happy Birthday and thank you for giving this "Youngin" a chance to be in your film.
Best Wishes to you and your "baby".
Let us all shine like the stars seen that one cold night.. always,
Melanie Manooki
(Lindsay)
The road-trip to San Francisco was a blast. I remember the night we were looking for a place to stay, I was freaking out a little because it was really late and we were still driving by the coast- it looked really creepy. We stopped by the side of the road and some of us came out to talk and see what was gonna happen. It was freezing cold, and I had to pee- REALLY badly, but then I looked up. I can't remember if Ryan pointed it out, or if I just looked up just because. Above us all shined the most beautiful sight of stars I've ever seen. I'd never seen so many stars in my life. It was breath-taking- for me anyway. It might not have been that big a deal for anyone else, but I've lived in LA all my life, true in the valley, but still it's very hard to see any stars at night, and I've always had a secret fascination with stars and the universe. I'd been to Big Bear before, and seen stars but.. I was 11 years old and it wasn't nearly as beautiful as what I've seen that night by the coast.
I have enjoyed working with everyone involved with the film- cast, crew, and friends. You all have made this project very special , and all the hard work put into this work will be paid off, I'm sure of it.
Ryan, you're insane, out there, and a bit scary sometimes(in a funny/strange way), but you are a great artist.
Happy Birthday and thank you for giving this "Youngin" a chance to be in your film.
Best Wishes to you and your "baby".
Let us all shine like the stars seen that one cold night.. always,
Melanie Manooki
(Lindsay)
Swen's long awaited blog entry
Hello to the many followers of this blog :),
It is finally my turn to write on the blog. I have procrastinated way to long to write something and it’s made Ryan pretty sad, so I thought what better day to make him happy than on his special day.
Where to even began with this amazing journey. I joined this project sometime around August of last year, when Ryan decided that I would be playing the roll of James. At first it started out with it started out with doing rehearsals and really finding out who our characters are through out the story and our fantastic director helped us with this process. There were a few times that we had to walk places, like Good Will to get our wardrobe for the movie were someone complained about a 4 block walk, I don’t want to mention any names ;). It was also a time for Tyler, Ashton and I to form a real friendship since that’s what we played in the movie.
We now pack our bags, fill up the car, peepee before we leavy(rule number 1 of road trips) and head down to San Diego to start shooting the first parts of the film. We didn’t need snacks along the way down because there was an ant farm that had taken over Bailey’s car, which supplied us with the right amount of nutrition to get there. His parents were also kind enough to let us use their house. San diego was an interesting 4 days as I remember or don’t remember. We worked some pretty long hours but I enjoyed every moment of it. From everyone being so delusional they couldn’t stop laughing to our own Ashton (Gay King) being a little mouse with the food. We had a few downs like Tyler and I having the wrong cloths on for one of the most dreaded scenes haha. Now it’s time to head back home for a couple of days to gain back our energy.
Next it’s time to drive to the wonderful desert, which has probably been a highlight of my life. I don’t think I have ever in my entire life camped next to the 10 freeway. We must have cut down half the tree next to us to use for firewood. What I also figured out that night is that if you pee on a campfire it smelled so god-awful I learned my lesson haha. I also learned from Bailey that a good way to stabilizing the camera on the hood of a car is by not to strap it down but to lay yourself on the car while holding the camera. We only stayed two days in the desert but it was so much fun.
Traveling up the coast to get to this secret waterfall that Ryan somehow found was beautiful. Then going even further up we hit San Francisco. Where we filmed our opening scene. If you are wondering yes we drove all the way to San Francisco to film a 15 sec scene but it was worth it. When we came back to the car we found out that baileys car had a flat tire but we managed to kind of fix it until it popped about 2 hours from home. While they were changing the tire I thought it would be a smart idea to run across the 101 in the fog, not one of my proudest moments. We did make it home in one piece even though we drove 65 mph on a donut.
After hundreds of miles and hours of filming behind us most of the project was complete. We filmed some more stuff around town were we managed to get pulled over by the police for no reason at all. In total I think we had a police encounter about 6 or 7 times but the best ones was when I was sitting in a car at the top of the hill in Burbank when a helicopter started circling around with a spotlight on. I thought they were looking for a robber or murder, nope it was just ryan, bailey, tyler and ashton.
There are sooooo many more great memories that I have of being a part of this project that I could write a book about it. Well maybe not me but Ryan could.
It was the greatest experience of my life so far. I grew so much not only as an actor but as a person as well.
I want to thank you Ryan for giving me the opportunity to be in your project and for having faith in me. You are great filmmaker and know what you are doing. It was such honor to meet you. Then of course there is Matt Bailey who can make anyone laugh and works magic with his camera. Our very own Chase who I can’t explain because it’s Chase, he’s probably one of the goofiest people I’ve yet to meet but he still gets his work done and knows how to do it while making people laugh. And of course there is Sean. There is no place he can’t go to get the best audio for the shot we are doing weather its on a ladder or under a car he gets it done. Jason you work miracles and without you this movie wouldn’t be what it is today. Guido the Italian that was a part of this project too thanks for being there and helping with the project. And I cant forget the special K Keton(sorry if I killed ur name) I’ve never seen a person make himself laugh more than you do. You are a great person and it was great to meet you. You held thoughs lights in San Diego like there was no tomorrow.
To my fellow actors Tyler, Ashton, Blake, Melanie, Kesia and Jacqueline it was such a pleasure to work with you guys on this project. You guys were a great group of people to work with and I hope that we all shall work together again.
After writing this it makes me sad that it’s all over but I’m sure knowing you guys I’ll have plenty more great memories.
That’s the end of my novel. Happy birthday Ryan I hope that this makes it so much better. If I think of anything else to add I will. At first it was just me in the wolf pack and now there’s a lot more hhaha.
Sincerely,
Swen Temmel (James)
It is finally my turn to write on the blog. I have procrastinated way to long to write something and it’s made Ryan pretty sad, so I thought what better day to make him happy than on his special day.
Where to even began with this amazing journey. I joined this project sometime around August of last year, when Ryan decided that I would be playing the roll of James. At first it started out with it started out with doing rehearsals and really finding out who our characters are through out the story and our fantastic director helped us with this process. There were a few times that we had to walk places, like Good Will to get our wardrobe for the movie were someone complained about a 4 block walk, I don’t want to mention any names ;). It was also a time for Tyler, Ashton and I to form a real friendship since that’s what we played in the movie.
We now pack our bags, fill up the car, peepee before we leavy(rule number 1 of road trips) and head down to San Diego to start shooting the first parts of the film. We didn’t need snacks along the way down because there was an ant farm that had taken over Bailey’s car, which supplied us with the right amount of nutrition to get there. His parents were also kind enough to let us use their house. San diego was an interesting 4 days as I remember or don’t remember. We worked some pretty long hours but I enjoyed every moment of it. From everyone being so delusional they couldn’t stop laughing to our own Ashton (Gay King) being a little mouse with the food. We had a few downs like Tyler and I having the wrong cloths on for one of the most dreaded scenes haha. Now it’s time to head back home for a couple of days to gain back our energy.
Next it’s time to drive to the wonderful desert, which has probably been a highlight of my life. I don’t think I have ever in my entire life camped next to the 10 freeway. We must have cut down half the tree next to us to use for firewood. What I also figured out that night is that if you pee on a campfire it smelled so god-awful I learned my lesson haha. I also learned from Bailey that a good way to stabilizing the camera on the hood of a car is by not to strap it down but to lay yourself on the car while holding the camera. We only stayed two days in the desert but it was so much fun.
Traveling up the coast to get to this secret waterfall that Ryan somehow found was beautiful. Then going even further up we hit San Francisco. Where we filmed our opening scene. If you are wondering yes we drove all the way to San Francisco to film a 15 sec scene but it was worth it. When we came back to the car we found out that baileys car had a flat tire but we managed to kind of fix it until it popped about 2 hours from home. While they were changing the tire I thought it would be a smart idea to run across the 101 in the fog, not one of my proudest moments. We did make it home in one piece even though we drove 65 mph on a donut.
After hundreds of miles and hours of filming behind us most of the project was complete. We filmed some more stuff around town were we managed to get pulled over by the police for no reason at all. In total I think we had a police encounter about 6 or 7 times but the best ones was when I was sitting in a car at the top of the hill in Burbank when a helicopter started circling around with a spotlight on. I thought they were looking for a robber or murder, nope it was just ryan, bailey, tyler and ashton.
There are sooooo many more great memories that I have of being a part of this project that I could write a book about it. Well maybe not me but Ryan could.
It was the greatest experience of my life so far. I grew so much not only as an actor but as a person as well.
I want to thank you Ryan for giving me the opportunity to be in your project and for having faith in me. You are great filmmaker and know what you are doing. It was such honor to meet you. Then of course there is Matt Bailey who can make anyone laugh and works magic with his camera. Our very own Chase who I can’t explain because it’s Chase, he’s probably one of the goofiest people I’ve yet to meet but he still gets his work done and knows how to do it while making people laugh. And of course there is Sean. There is no place he can’t go to get the best audio for the shot we are doing weather its on a ladder or under a car he gets it done. Jason you work miracles and without you this movie wouldn’t be what it is today. Guido the Italian that was a part of this project too thanks for being there and helping with the project. And I cant forget the special K Keton(sorry if I killed ur name) I’ve never seen a person make himself laugh more than you do. You are a great person and it was great to meet you. You held thoughs lights in San Diego like there was no tomorrow.
To my fellow actors Tyler, Ashton, Blake, Melanie, Kesia and Jacqueline it was such a pleasure to work with you guys on this project. You guys were a great group of people to work with and I hope that we all shall work together again.
After writing this it makes me sad that it’s all over but I’m sure knowing you guys I’ll have plenty more great memories.
That’s the end of my novel. Happy birthday Ryan I hope that this makes it so much better. If I think of anything else to add I will. At first it was just me in the wolf pack and now there’s a lot more hhaha.
Sincerely,
Swen Temmel (James)
A Day in LA, a turning point.
So I get a call.....".you want to be in my movie? Uh, ya, sure. Where, when, what do I wear?" I jump in my truck and drive to LA. A big truck in LA, not a good idea. (Parking you know.) A place to accommodate the vehicle was found and after a small hike, I meet "the guys". We walk. drive to a location and the shooting begins. Everyone is so nice. Really, so nice. I just did not know what to expect. I am new to this, well not so much now, I have done a few things since, but still pretty new to the "business". Ryan gave me direction and off I went in my "over acting" mode.....theatre, damn theatre. Soon that was fixed and other than almost getting run over by the vehicle a few times, things went smoothly....again and again! Had a great day with everyone. I am really looking forward to seeing the final cut and I think Ryan and all those working so hard behind the scenes will have a top rate movie to show for all their work! Happy Birthday Ryan, you young man, from your older "mom". Laurie (sorry, I did not know my picture would be so big.)
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
The Deed is Done!
It's been an exciting adventure for my brother and fellow man. From what I've gathered from my sources, the movie is now complete. I believe that this is only the beginning of the journey. When one is faced with expectations that few would understand it's difficult to understand. I'm glad that only the brave have to face such hardships. Once in a great while a film of such magnitude will come along and the people will give back as much as it gave. I hope only the best for the future of everyone involved with the making and watching of this masterpiece. Good night and good luck!
Sincerely,
Jason Moser
Sincerely,
Jason Moser
Perfection of Means
When I was little my uncle once told me: "If you are going to do something, do it right". I pretty much think that phrase applies to Ryan. Over the course of the year that I've known him, this has been a constant in the Turning Point project. And as cheesy as it is going to sound, at the end it was all worth it; the sound, the acting, the footage, everything came in harmony and developed this remarkable/special/olympian/grand/bonzer film.
It's been a pleasure being part of this project, and a delight meeting you all.
I'm so proud of you Ryan, you're a man of your word and you should win an award.
Lore C.
¡FELIZ CUMPLEAÑOS!
Boom Goes the Dynamite
That was all she wrote. The filmmaking process of "Turning Point" is now officially complete. I just got back from the post office and the film is on its way to the submissions offices of the Telluride Film Festival. What does fate have in store? I suppose only time will tell.
I truly hope this is not the end of the story and there will be plenty more to document on "Turning Point's" journey of finding its audience.
I have now officially completed my goal of finishing my first feature film at the age of 25. Tomorrow I will be birthday boy but today I am still 25 years old. I can also proudly say that I have accomplished falling into the same category as Orson Welles. If all goes well, I can plan on having my first film be my masterpiece, lose my looks, gain weight and lose my mind in the process. Come to think of it, I may have already accomplished all of those things during the course of making this film.
The first ever Turning Point DVD.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Baby Bear Feels Left Out
So the sound is close to completion. The dialogue track is clean. Now it's time for the final mix with the music and maybe sprinkling in a few more sound effects if needed.
I was informed today that a very special someone has been feeling left out. She's been the special scene behind the scenes operator. If it weren't for her I would not have had the patience to wait for the final cast that I finally arrived upon. Little Miss Lore working her magic touch as I would audition actor upon actor and she would review them and give me her honest opinion. Any time I wanted to go against my gut, her gut feeling was the same as mine and reinforced the fact that I needed to be true to my instincts.
She kept me motivated to continue during the tough times and she kept me patient during the stressful times.
Not much else to say besides the fact that if it were not for this very special person in my life the quality of my first feature film would not be at the level that it is at.
-Ryan.
I was informed today that a very special someone has been feeling left out. She's been the special scene behind the scenes operator. If it weren't for her I would not have had the patience to wait for the final cast that I finally arrived upon. Little Miss Lore working her magic touch as I would audition actor upon actor and she would review them and give me her honest opinion. Any time I wanted to go against my gut, her gut feeling was the same as mine and reinforced the fact that I needed to be true to my instincts.
She kept me motivated to continue during the tough times and she kept me patient during the stressful times.
Not much else to say besides the fact that if it were not for this very special person in my life the quality of my first feature film would not be at the level that it is at.
-Ryan.
Mr. Tough Guy
Close to finished!
I just got back from my friend Jason Rudd's (or as I like to refer to him "Father Rudd") house and we are currently finishing up the final touches on the sound of the film. We have more work to do but we're so close.
It was a bit heartbreaking when I left tonight and said "I'll see you tomorrow, buddy" and Jason responded with a discouraged "Yeah." This is his first time doing sound for a film and I'm sure he had no idea what he signed himself up for. I'm sure he's kicked himself many times for his interest in doing it. He went to recording school and even he didn't seem to know the amount of work that goes into making a film sound like a film instead of a YouTube or porno video. He's been working on the sound since December. If there was anybody involved with this project that's put in close to the amount of hours of work that I have it would be Jason, for which I am eternally grateful.
Just like my other friend Jason (Downer), I've pushed Father Rudd as well as all my actors and every other member of the crew close to their breaking points in order to get their work to the level that I needed it to be. Everybody involved with the project is relatively young and inexperienced so it has been a great learning experience for all.
There's the old adage that "if you're not going to do something the best that you can than there's really no point in doing it at all." This is such a true statement and no matter how uncomfortable it can be to push people to their breaking points I feel proud that I am getting the very best out of my team.
I'm pretty sure I've driven almost every person involved with the film to a point of insanity (myself included) at some point during this project. If it were not for that push the film would not and will not end up with the quality that will be present in the final version.
I feel confident that everybody involved with the project will not be disappointed and will be incredibly proud and feel rewarded for all of their work and efforts contributed to this film.
I'm anxious to see what the world thinks of what we created!
-Ryan.
I just got back from my friend Jason Rudd's (or as I like to refer to him "Father Rudd") house and we are currently finishing up the final touches on the sound of the film. We have more work to do but we're so close.
It was a bit heartbreaking when I left tonight and said "I'll see you tomorrow, buddy" and Jason responded with a discouraged "Yeah." This is his first time doing sound for a film and I'm sure he had no idea what he signed himself up for. I'm sure he's kicked himself many times for his interest in doing it. He went to recording school and even he didn't seem to know the amount of work that goes into making a film sound like a film instead of a YouTube or porno video. He's been working on the sound since December. If there was anybody involved with this project that's put in close to the amount of hours of work that I have it would be Jason, for which I am eternally grateful.
Just like my other friend Jason (Downer), I've pushed Father Rudd as well as all my actors and every other member of the crew close to their breaking points in order to get their work to the level that I needed it to be. Everybody involved with the project is relatively young and inexperienced so it has been a great learning experience for all.
There's the old adage that "if you're not going to do something the best that you can than there's really no point in doing it at all." This is such a true statement and no matter how uncomfortable it can be to push people to their breaking points I feel proud that I am getting the very best out of my team.
I'm pretty sure I've driven almost every person involved with the film to a point of insanity (myself included) at some point during this project. If it were not for that push the film would not and will not end up with the quality that will be present in the final version.
I feel confident that everybody involved with the project will not be disappointed and will be incredibly proud and feel rewarded for all of their work and efforts contributed to this film.
I'm anxious to see what the world thinks of what we created!
-Ryan.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Another Turning Point Blog
I've been writing music for years, and I'm a bit embarrassed to say, I still have no idea where it comes from. Some days it flows, on others it's like, well something that doesn't flow at all, or does but in a disgusting manner, like mayonnaise or that odd stuff old milk turns into.
I've been lucky that the film projects I've worked on have always required some style or technique I'd never used in a film before. When I was talking to Ryan about his vision of Turning Point's sound, I mentioned that I hoped we could be a little experimental in what went into the score.
I have since wanted to kick myself repeatedly for that.
He had a list of stuff I'd never heard of. A whole new vista of post rock, retro minimalist synth and shoegazing opened up to me thanks to him. It wasn't just a couple new techniques or styles, it was dozens. I had hoped I might finally get some use out of my ebow. Man, I was naive; I used that sucker almost every day.
A lot of random demo pieces were written, with none of them really similar, but the creation of which felt so... exciting and fresh. Each one seemed like an experiment that you had no idea what the outcome might be. Thankfully Ryan was there evaluating each one as they came, where they might fit, what needed to be changed, what kind of vibe he needed for a specific shot. Between lavish praise and brutal honesty, the starting from scratch, and sometimes fruitless rewrites, the cues began to take form.
I had started writing for this film in the formulaic industry mindset I'd tried to hard to master: the composer as a proxy for the audience writing what the story makes him feel. When something happens on screen, a few seconds after, when it has started to sink in emotionally, the music should follow.
The first experiment Ryan had for me was to throw that concept out. It was after repeated viewings of the rough cut that I began to get a flickering understanding of his Dogme-like vision:
* Let the audience decide what it feels, don't tell them.
* Set the mood with something cool yet appropriate for the scene, the kind of sound you'd expect to be there in real life.
* Be different but honest.
Watching the film again and again, I found that I was entertained each time. I knew how the story went, how the clean but simple plot flowed. What gets you is that each character is real. They're not there as a plot device or to deliver an important snippet of dialog. Rather the story exists to let you see different sides of them, that these are ordinary but still individually unique people. You're not waiting for a big chase, explosion or sex scene; you're sharing the experience, documentary like, of a bunch of kids' first road trip. I remember being 17, driving with friends, being young and stupid, and it was AWESOME.
"Nostalgia," Ryan kept saying.
We simulated battered FM radio, tape compression and hiss, the unstable pitch of analog synths. There's even some horrible 70s and 80s homage source music.
A lot of different people and memories went into making this flick happen. I'm glad I was able to contribute. I'm glad I was able to finally "get it", and maybe help others to remember the feeling of our first long tired drives, the jokes made funny by exhaustion, and the weird noises you never noticed your car made before.
See this movie, it's beautiful and fun.
Jason Downer
I've been lucky that the film projects I've worked on have always required some style or technique I'd never used in a film before. When I was talking to Ryan about his vision of Turning Point's sound, I mentioned that I hoped we could be a little experimental in what went into the score.
I have since wanted to kick myself repeatedly for that.
He had a list of stuff I'd never heard of. A whole new vista of post rock, retro minimalist synth and shoegazing opened up to me thanks to him. It wasn't just a couple new techniques or styles, it was dozens. I had hoped I might finally get some use out of my ebow. Man, I was naive; I used that sucker almost every day.
A lot of random demo pieces were written, with none of them really similar, but the creation of which felt so... exciting and fresh. Each one seemed like an experiment that you had no idea what the outcome might be. Thankfully Ryan was there evaluating each one as they came, where they might fit, what needed to be changed, what kind of vibe he needed for a specific shot. Between lavish praise and brutal honesty, the starting from scratch, and sometimes fruitless rewrites, the cues began to take form.
I had started writing for this film in the formulaic industry mindset I'd tried to hard to master: the composer as a proxy for the audience writing what the story makes him feel. When something happens on screen, a few seconds after, when it has started to sink in emotionally, the music should follow.
The first experiment Ryan had for me was to throw that concept out. It was after repeated viewings of the rough cut that I began to get a flickering understanding of his Dogme-like vision:
* Let the audience decide what it feels, don't tell them.
* Set the mood with something cool yet appropriate for the scene, the kind of sound you'd expect to be there in real life.
* Be different but honest.
Watching the film again and again, I found that I was entertained each time. I knew how the story went, how the clean but simple plot flowed. What gets you is that each character is real. They're not there as a plot device or to deliver an important snippet of dialog. Rather the story exists to let you see different sides of them, that these are ordinary but still individually unique people. You're not waiting for a big chase, explosion or sex scene; you're sharing the experience, documentary like, of a bunch of kids' first road trip. I remember being 17, driving with friends, being young and stupid, and it was AWESOME.
"Nostalgia," Ryan kept saying.
We simulated battered FM radio, tape compression and hiss, the unstable pitch of analog synths. There's even some horrible 70s and 80s homage source music.
A lot of different people and memories went into making this flick happen. I'm glad I was able to contribute. I'm glad I was able to finally "get it", and maybe help others to remember the feeling of our first long tired drives, the jokes made funny by exhaustion, and the weird noises you never noticed your car made before.
See this movie, it's beautiful and fun.
Jason Downer
Thursday, April 7, 2011
It's April
Crazy to think that I moved to LA for the second time last year on my 25th birthday. Time sure flies. On April 20th it will be a year when Matt Bailey, myself and my friend Zeus, visiting from Holland, were sitting in Won Kok in Chinatown eating dinner and me setting my goal of producing my first feature film at the age of 25.
I knew it was not going to be an easy feat so I wanted to set a realistic deadline. I remember them asking me when I thought it would be done, I said April 15th. It was five days before my birthday. It is my mom's birthday. And it is the first day the Telluride Film Festival begins accepting submissions. So it was a very memorable date.
Now it's almost a year later and it's mindblowing to think that I might be hitting my exact personal deadline on the dot. All that is left is some final sound polishes and then the final mix.
The project was such a roller coaster of emotion. Pretty much the same process I've had with any film. Have a dream. Begin creating the dream. Dream kind of creates itself. You begin editing and you're unsure if your dream will work. You edit some more and then magically the film begins creating itself and takes on a new life. It sounds like new-age/metaphysical bullshit but it's kind of what happens.
In retrospect I had a really good time making this film and it was definitely an experience. I look forward to the new experiences it leads me to.
Below is one of my favorite pictures from the production. It was the first night and you can see me reviewing the footage, scared shitless about whether or not this will all work out and come together.
Amazingly enough it has come together better than I could've ever imagined. I'm happy to say that I did not commit suicide because of this project. I have survived and I look forward to showing my creation to the world.
-Ryan.
I knew it was not going to be an easy feat so I wanted to set a realistic deadline. I remember them asking me when I thought it would be done, I said April 15th. It was five days before my birthday. It is my mom's birthday. And it is the first day the Telluride Film Festival begins accepting submissions. So it was a very memorable date.
Now it's almost a year later and it's mindblowing to think that I might be hitting my exact personal deadline on the dot. All that is left is some final sound polishes and then the final mix.
The project was such a roller coaster of emotion. Pretty much the same process I've had with any film. Have a dream. Begin creating the dream. Dream kind of creates itself. You begin editing and you're unsure if your dream will work. You edit some more and then magically the film begins creating itself and takes on a new life. It sounds like new-age/metaphysical bullshit but it's kind of what happens.
In retrospect I had a really good time making this film and it was definitely an experience. I look forward to the new experiences it leads me to.
Below is one of my favorite pictures from the production. It was the first night and you can see me reviewing the footage, scared shitless about whether or not this will all work out and come together.
Amazingly enough it has come together better than I could've ever imagined. I'm happy to say that I did not commit suicide because of this project. I have survived and I look forward to showing my creation to the world.
-Ryan.
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