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Economies expand or shrink. They are never static. Creating a creative-friendly economic and cultural environment for filmmakers in Michigan and other arts has many long-term benefits to the locality where movies are shot. One of these is the possibility to change how we see ourselves, as well as how others from other regions perceive us. Rightly or wrongly, perception often becomes reality, economic as well as cultural. As one of the leading influences in modern civilization, film has been proven to have cultural value, cultural association and cultural impact.
Not only do we need to continue to change the perception of being merely a State that just makes cars for the bi-coastals to belittle, but we need to continue proactive measures so that our own talented young professionals in every industry, (this includes green energy, electric battery manufacturing)–have an increasingly positive view of their home region and themselves. Our talented younger generations need continued encouragement and reinforcement for staying here in Michigan to contribute here, and not to move off to either the West or East Coasts or the Sunbelt.
Seeing our State emerge as a leader for major motion picture productions is a great psychological reinforcement to our collective self-esteem. Otherwise, we risk “a talent drain” and the loss of many dollars in a variety of industries if our best and brightest decide rightly or wrongly that we are second-rate. Again, it’s about perception, and perception eventually becomes reality.
The irony of the film industry is that while it is all pretend, it still has very real impact in the real world of dollars and cents, and not just where the creation of the film is concerned. Because economics and film both deal with psychology, because ultimately wealth is not just the possession of dollar bills, but an expression of psychological value that we assign to various goods and services, film and economics are related. And in a greater and more profound way than has been discussed here heretofore.
Choices have consequences, and this includes our economic choices, our emotional and economic support or lack thereof. And this includes our tax incentives or disincentives. The old axiom is again indeed true in the film industry as with any and all industries, “If you want less of something, tax it. If you want more of something, subsidize it.”
Apparently, despite the best efforts of many talented people in Michigan, primarily from the Detroit areas to Grand Rapids, there is still much work to be done for us to, at last, close the gap of awareness and appreciation for film that early producers had to face and overcome by moving geographically. (Hollywood early on moved from New York City in the early 1920′s to Los Angeles; and when Walt Disney moved from Missouri to California due to the cultural indifferences to film making and arts.)
Michiganders and it’s leaders should make the 21st century an era in which the Motor City and the Great Lakes manufacturing region invest in the future Walt Disneys, Steven Spielbergs, and Warner Brothers. So that they won’t have to move away and bless other regions in order to success financially as they bless the entire world with their creative spirit and genius.
Again, economics and economic decisions by our leaders do have consequences. A new 21st century Michigan Renaissance is possible IF we have the vision, the courage, the deliberate intention and the right economic formulas and incentives to make it possible!
Written By: Jonathan Rayos | Category: News | Comments : 0 comments
If anyone has been following theangry rants of Christian Balevery closely since the first time I heard of it, and something doesn’t feel right.
It started with the video (well, audio, conveniently video-dubbed and posted on YouTube for maximum exposure) of the actual rant. Then, all possible angles of the event were explored by the thousands of tireless minds over at Digg, Reddit, and other social media sites. We learned about an “objective” view of the incident, we were introduced to the other party involved, director of photography Shane Hurlbut, and so on.
Wanna bet what we’ll start to see next on social media sites, at an increased pace? Terminator 4 hype, and lots of it.
Consider this. Christian Bale is a cool guy. That rant sounds a bit too embarrassing. Is it impossible that Christian Bale was hired, by spin doctors, to act out the rant? We know he can act, and once he dismisses the stunt as fake, he’ll get his coolness back instantly (and perhaps even earn some more.) Is it impossible that the entire thing was staged to create a huge amount of hype for the upcoming movie?
We’ve seen attempts at corporate viral marketing before, but they were relatively easy to spot. However, perhaps Hollywood has gotten smarter. Perhaps they have a social media spin doctor division now. Perhaps these spin doctors are really good.
I’m not claiming that this is what actually happened on this occasion; but I am claiming that in the future, the line between truth and fiction (with the help of social media) might become so blurred that no one will be able to tell the difference. Do you think it’s possible? cvs XTZ
As part of our commitment to promote Michigan talent in film, this month we have interviewed Jenny Januszewski, director of the upcoming 3D short film “The Shadower”. Jenny was born in Vietnam but raised in Michigan as part of Operation Babylift at the tail end of the Vietnam War. Since moving to Los Angeles two years ago, she has had feature-length screenplays as Official Selections at the Beverly Hills Film Festival (’10, ’11) and has directed four short films including her current 3D project. She hopes to film her next project, an official adaptation of a Stephen King story, in the midwest.
Tell us briefly about your film and your vision for the project.
About four months ago, Directv and Panasonic contacted Tribeca, Sundance, IFC, and IMDB to see who the emerging directors to watch were. Only 20 of us from around the country were invited to pitch a 3D short film concept to them in Beverly Hills. While mine was not chosen for the final piece to be greenlit, I was compelled to see my project through. So, within five seconds of getting the “Thanks but not this time” email, I went into pre-production.
Why a 3D short?
This has two answers…
First, the majority of the larger TVs being sold are coming 3D-ready and 3D is being shown at movie theatres more and more lately. Most of the 3D that is out there is action or animation. I wanted to create a beautiful art film that shows what 3D can do with an emotional arc. It’s important that we raise the bar for 3D moviemaking and the future of 3D TV programming before it’s too late. In order to do so, we need to show that 3D can be a genre and fine art as opposed to just an annoying gimmick.
Second, filming a 3D piece is at very least 2x more expensive than filming in 2D. It’s the cost of the camera rental, 3D monitor, higher end sound and then the 3D editing bays. I felt it was important to show that there are serious Indie Filmmakers that shouldn’t be shut out due to cost. Right now, there are consumer 3D cameras coming out and then it jumps to the huge $100k rigs that require two red cameras (or the equivalent). We used one of the few “in between” cameras that has fixed ocular distance, so, our staging was quite limited. For example, if you set anything closer than 11.5 feet to the camera, it would be extremely painful to the eyes—-trust me, it happened every time they put the slate up to the lens out of habit. Or, if you put anything past 25 feet, it would fall flat and turn into 2D or strain the eyes. So, we were left with 13.5 feet to play with and had to either have walls or blow out the sky in the background. It was a fun challenge. But I definitely feel we gave a strong impression of our intent as well as our potential as 3D filmmakers.
When do expect the film to be finished and where will we be able to view it?
We expect it to be finished mid-August (fingers crossed). We’re in the early stages of post. I just saw the rough cut and we’re going back and forth on that right now. This week, I’ll be sitting in with sound designers. We still have an entire scene with green screen to deal with. But I’m confident that we’ll be getting it done on time. We’re entering it into the major film festivals around the world and I’m making sure we enter a few in the midwest so the people back home can have the opportunity to view it as well.
What is your production budget?
The production budget came to about $50k. But a good amount of what we needed was donated. So, we were able to bring it down to having a more reasonable number for our cash expenditures.
How are you financing the project?
Most of the financing came from my meager savings. But we’re raising the last $5,500 on Kickstarter. We’re currently up to $800 and, if we can raise the difference by July 24 of 2011, then we get to collect the funds and can afford to finish our film. Any size donations are welcome. If you can afford to donate a lot because you believe in keeping Independent Filmmakers in the game and support diverse casting, please do so. If you can only afford $10-$20, those donations are very important and appreciated as well. If we can get 240 people to donate $20 each, we’re golden. http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/199150787/the-shadower-a-3d-short-film-about-love-and-circum
How have your Michigan roots influenced your filmmaking?
Michigan has been HUGE in my filmmaking and general artistic career. I grew up on a farm in Springport. So, sitting outside listening to the grasshoppers at night or noticing different flowers during the seasons has really helped me develop my eye and ear for detail. My parents also used to take me to The Barn Theatre in Augusta. I think my first play was either Annie or Oklahoma. We’d always see Tom Wopat in Oklahoma and then he’d sing at the cabaret bar that was part of the theatre grounds afterwards. Being close up and seeing someone you saw on stage sing in a more intimate setting, or even when he’d drive up on his motorcycle smiling at everyone, really put the idea of being in the arts not so distant.
I was pretty shy. Around the age of 17 I took an acting class at Jeff Daniel’s Purple Rose Theatre in Chelsea. Just being surrounded by artists really helped boost my confidence. Just a few years later, I was on Chicago stages performing and then toured the US in a musical.
But even more important than anything—as far as my Michigan roots influencing my career in a positive way, being raised in Michigan on a farm really prepared me for what being a director really is. While it’s considered an artistic position. It’s very much about hard work and taking responsibility for your crew and the overall project. When you’re in film school, you learn theory. But there is nothing like being on set and seeing the 50 faces of your cast and crew who are hoping you knew the way. It’s like going to war. They trust you; they don’t ask whats at the end; and you’re responsible if anything goes wrong. We’d have 12 hours of work on set and then I’d go home to do 6 more hours of paperwork for the next day. Never did I complain. You just know your duty and take responsibility for your team. It’s like when you’re a kid and your job is to go next door at 5am and pick rocks out of a field. You just get up and do it. Then, at the end of the day, you’re proud of how hard it was and how you got through it. I don’t know that I’d be the same director I am had I not had my Michigan experience.
Written By: Jonathan Rayos | Category: News | Comments : 0 comments
In the spirit of the 2010 Ryder Cup golf matches in Ireland, I would like to introduce the FilmEmerge Hollywood version of a Ryder Cup Team based on the history of filmography for the sport of golf.
Captains: Clint Eastwood – playing himself; and a Pebble Beach Golf Club owner;
Assistant Captains: Carl Spacklar – played by Bill Murray; George Lopez – as recommended by his BFF, the legendary Lee Trevino; Samuel L Jackson – a golfaholic, who has clause on all his contracts that he gets two rounds of golf per week, but would take on this Ryder Cup role instead.
Honarary Captains:
Rodney Dangerfield – Al Czervic – played by Rodney Dangerfield; and Judge Smails – played by Ted Knight
Now for the Hollywood Ryder Cup Team:
Leading off for the FilmEmerge Hollywood Ryder Cup Team:
1. Shia LaBeouf – playing Francis Quimet “The Greatest Game Ever Played” 2005
2. Matt Damon – playing Runolf Junuh in “The Legend of Bagger Vance” 2000
3. James Caviesel – playing Bobby Jones in “Bobby Jones Stroke of Genius” 2004
4. Kevin Costner – as Roy ‘Tin Cup’ McAvoy in “Tin Cup” 1996
5. Chevy Chase – as Ty Webb in “CaddyShack” 1980
6. Don Johnson – “Tin Cup” 1996
7. Michael Okeefe – as Danny Noonan in “CaddyShack” 1980
8. Will Smith – as Bagger Vance in “Legend of Bagger Vance” 2000
9. Steven Dillain – playing Harry Vardon in “The Greatest Game Ever Played” 2005
Matt Damon and Bruce McGill in Dreamworks’ The Legend of Bagger Vance – 2000
10. Bruce McGill – playing Walter Hagen in ”The Greatest Game Ever Played” 2005
Captains Picks was tough, as we had to select actual actors with their real home course handicaps. The selections were:
Jack Wagner (+2 handicapper, Bel Air Country Club)
Don Cheadle (+5 handicap – Bel Air Country Club)
Dennis Quiad (+8 handicap – Bell Air Country Club)
In honor of the Ryder Cup Opening Ceremonies, we have our ‘Hottie Wife/Girlfriends nominees:
Charlise Theron in “Legend of Bagger Vance” 2000,
Claire Forlani in “Bobby Jones Stroke of Genius”
Rene Russo in “Tin Cup” 1996
Finally, the Top Caddy goes to Cheech Marin in “Tin Cup”.
So there you have it, Hollywood golf fans. This is the 2010 FilmEmerge Hollywood Ryder Cup Team.
Written By: Jonathan Rayos | Category: News | Comments : 0 comments
Emagine Theater's D-Box seats
If you’ve been thinking about trying the D-Box action seats at one of your theatres, Expendables could be the film to see in a D-seat.
I liked the new D-Box special effects technology at the Emagine Theater in Canton, MI enough during the showing of “Expendables” an action adventure film. Expendables proved to be an excellent choice. Screen play written by, directed by, and starring Sylvester Stallone. Also starring more than half a dozen other big-name stars, including– Jason Stratham, Jet Li; with cameo appearances with Arnold Swartzennegger and Bruce Willis. The write-ups from the critics rate the film as acceptable; for an action adventure thriller movie that means it’s a really good movie. There are great write-ups on the internet by others who attended.
The film was well acted, directed, and produced. The stars worked well together without tripping over or elbowing each other. The scenic setting made it a visually pleasing film. Some of the action scenes are rough though, and there are severed limbs and heads along with blood and guts. The film is rated R due to strong action and bloody violence. But, except for the graphically depicted violence and possibly a scene where the star Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone) gets a tattoo, the film could have been PG-13. It’s a thriller in the tradition of The Magnificent Seven (1960). This film could make a great action adventure hero comic book.
D-Box special effects theater seats
The special effects seat accented the action scenes on the screen with energetic rolls, heaves and pitches. D-Box effects were realistic and nicely done during the plane flights, and vehicle rides, including a motorcycle ride. Gyrating in the D-Box seat, the combat scenes literally were rough and tumble. In all, the D-Box effects added to the thrill of this thriller action adventure.
Written By: Jonathan Rayos | Category: News | Comments : 0 comments
Plenty of movie fans think Hollywood fare has become too rote.
Now, some professors at U Penn’s Wharton School and NYU’s Stern School present a case for making it even more formulaic.
In their paper “Green Lighting Movie Scripts: Revenue Forecasting and Risk Management” Jehoshua Eliashberg, Sam K. Hui, and John Zhang show Hollywood how it’s done. Never mind the stars or directors hired— they say it’s possible to predict a movie’s eventual box-office success by simply applying their mathematical formula to the script.
The academics analyzed the scripts of 200 movies released between 1995 and 2006. They coded the scripts for different variables ranging from the percentage of interior scenes to whether they included a strong nemesis.
Their conclusion: the most important variables in predicting box-office performance are whether the film is in the action genre, how conflict builds, and whether the conflict is multidimensional.
They also looked at risk-adjusted return on capital, and conclude that the movies with the best returns are in what they call the family-movie genre, followed by comedy. The worst risk-adjusted returns are on horror movies, the academics say.
“Based on our interactions with industry executives, forecasting and risk management are the two capabilities that are sorely needed in the movie industry in order to transform it from an intuition and experience-based decision making into a more science-based decision making,” Eliashberg, Hui, and Zhang write. “A science-based approach can pay off handsomely.”
Maybe, just maybe, there’s hope for a little less greenlighting of the “Prince of Persias” of the future and a little more like “Toy Story 3.”
Written By: Jonathan Rayos | Category: News | Comments : 0 comments
As with “The Hobbit” films and the Bond movies, the fate of Dan Bradley’s directorial debut, the remake of “Red Dawn” (filmed entirely in the metro-Detroit, MI areas in 2009) currently hangs in limbo, all thanks to MGM’s money woes. Although the film itself has been in production for a while now up North, the current news is that the film’s initial November release date has disappeared in a puff of smoke, and the remake has now been cast into the land of TBA — To Be Announced.
The remake, which stars Chris Hemsworth (currently cast as “Thor” in upcoming Marvel studios movie)as a Middle East war vet who returns home only to discover that the Communist Chinese have teamed up with the Russkies to invade the homeland, recently came under fire by some Chinese media about its portrayal of China as the film’s main villains. That, basically, guarantees that you can forget about China and Hong Kong as potential markets for the film. Of course, considering MGM’s current financial straits, the Chinese is the last thing the film should worry about at the moment.
“Red Dawn” stars a list of notable young actors, including Hemsworth, Adrianne Palicki (recently in “Legion”), Josh Peck, Josh Hutcherson, Isabel Lucas, and Connor Cruise, son of Tom. It also marks the directorial debut of Bradley, who has done second unit work on the “Bourne” films, and word had him bringing the same kind of kinetic shooting style to his remake.
Written By: Jonathan Rayos | Category: News | Comments : 0 comments
:: The rising clout of international audiences is a sea change for Hollywood. Decades ago, a movie’s foreign box office barely registered with studio executives. Now, foreign ticket sales represent nearly 68% of the roughly $32 billion global film market, up from roughly 58% a decade ago, according to Screen Digest Cinema Intelligence Service.
:: The rise of the international box office has as much to do with a shifting global economy as with the evolution of the movie business. For years, Hollywood’s bottom line was propped up by double-digit growth in DVD sales. From 2000 to 2005, for example, home-video sales increased by 91% in the U.S. But during the tough economy of the past two years, home video—which used to account for the bulk of a film’s profits—fell more than 20%, according to Screen Digest U.S. Video Intelligence Service. Dwindling in-theater audiences in North America also have contributed to the shift.
Written By: Jonathan Rayos | Category: News | Comments : 0 comments
Twilight saga “Eclipse” stars Jackson Rathbone and Taylor Lautner both have their Michigan connections. Rathbone went to Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan and is close friends with Interlochen buds, Ben Graupner and Ben Johnson. …Lautner grew up as a kid in Hudsonville near Grand Rapids, Michigan until his family moved to L.A. to pursue his career.
Life for Hudsonville native Taylor Lautner has been in whirlwind. In seven months since he starred in New Moon he has hosted SNL, presented an academy award and become one of the highest paid teen actors.
Later this year in the fall, Lautner begins work on the 2-film series, “Breaking Dawn” directed by Bill Condon. “It would have been impossible to make a movie well, doing it as one,” he said. “There’s so much to cover. It’s hard enough condensing 500 pages into a movie, and it would have been impossible to condense 800. “(Shooting ‘Breaking Dawn’) is going to be sad for us,” he said of his camaraderie with the “Twilight Saga” cast. “It’ll be hard to say goodbye, so I’m glad it’ll be a nice, long experience.”
Lautner and his father have started their own film production company, named “Tailor Made Entertainment”. Their first two films, to be used as a vehicle for Taylor are “Abduction” directed by John Singelton and “Stretch Armstrong”.
In the interview Lautner talks about his very close family, who moved from Hudsonville(By Grand Rapids, MI) to Los Angeles in 2003 to allow him to pursue an acting career.
Some bit parts in movies and TV led to a supporting role in 2005’s “Cheaper by the Dozen 2,” and a lead in Robert Rodriguez’s “Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D,” also released in ‘05. “I remember back when I viagra 10 years old, and I told my parents for the first time that this is what I want to do. They said, ‘Taylor, we can’t do it from Michigan. We’d have to live in Los Angeles if you want to do that.’ And I was like, ‘Really? OK!’ And my parents packed the bags and made the very risky and supportive move to L.A. to pursue my dream.”
Written By: Jonathan Rayos | Category: News | Comments : 0 comments
One of the movies we watched was the highly anticipated production by Tic Toc Studios. Tic Toc Studios is a Holland, Michigan based movie production company headed by Hopwood Dupree.
“Tug” was filmed entirely in the Holland area in the summer of 2008. “Tug” was one of the first movies to start production in West Michigan after the the passing of the state film incentives April 7, 2008.
The movie – starring Sam Huntington, Haylie Duff, Sarah Drew, David Zellner, Maulik Pancholy, Wendi Mclendon-Covey, Yeardley Smith, and Zachary Knighton.
The plot synopsis from TicTock Studios: A small town Michigan guy (Sam Huntington) has his life begin to hilariously unravel as he is torn between staying with his current girlfriend (Sarah Drew), or bouncing back to his psycho ex (Haylie Duff). Life would be so much easier if he could just follow his better judgment. But he can’t.
The better judgment would have been if the selection committee of the Waterfront Film Festival, to have not shown the movie “Tug” to a sold-out audience of over 750.
We initially arrived to a nearly two block line outside of it’s venue screening, with a very lively crowd. Upon being seated, the primarily local partisan crowd was vocal and quite happy. Mr. Dupree addressed the sold out audience touting it’s first full feature production.
We were opened to a very surprising short film called “The Thong,” which took the audience into attention mode. “The Thong” set up “Tug” for a very fast downhill ride, and this was not a roller coaster.
“Tug” a directorial debut by Abram Makowka. The film is a nice little picture, that is a bit unfocused. Sam Huntington plays the film’s unnamed lead character, who is a wannabe screenwriter living in Michigan. He has a good relationship with his girlfriend, played by Sarah Drew, but his relationship is threatened by an ex-girlfriend who won’t leave him alone. This crazy ex-girlfriend only increases Huntington’s uncertain life and the film follows him as he tries to gets his life in order.
The best thing about the film is the performance of Sam Huntington. He is a very relatable presence on-screen. You do feel like you could be his character. Zachary King also delivers a good comedic performance as Huntington’s best friend in the film. One problem with the film is that I didn’t feel that there were any life changing stakes involved in the story. Some of the major plot changing scenes in the film are tired out; we have seen these scenes before in other films done better. Towards the end of the film I grew frustrated and just wanted this guy to make a decision and move on with his life. I liked the performances better than the film’s story.
It seems that the uncertainty in this movie is transferred to the audience, as most did not know how to clap upon it’s ending. I am hoping that Tic Toc Studios next production to be touted from Michigan has less uncertainty, and better judgment.
The movie made its premiere April 29th at the 2010 Newport Beach Film Festival in southern California. The movie also has a very limited website: http://www.tugmovie.com/.
