Movie journal (Feb 22)
Posted on February 23, 2008
Filed Under Dallas Jenkins |
My last two journal entries–forgot to post them here after I wrote them! For shame…
From a week ago:
Still working through the deal with these guys for financing of Mountain. Nothing indicates the money isn’t real, but we have to figure out all the particulars of how it’s going to be distributed, who’s in charge of what, etc. The least interesting and most frustrating part of making a movie by far.
In the meantime, I finetune the script and prepare for making the film. I’m currently reading the book “Our Southern Highlanders,” a book about the Appalachians written in the 1920’s. I remember when I made Hometown Legend, I read a book called “Friday Night Lights” (which inspired the best show on TV) while we were already in pre-production. A regret of mine on that film is that I didn’t read that book sooner. I underestimated how valuable “color” is to a film, the little facts and figures and characterizations that go into creating a world that people want to see. If you as a filmmaker become an expert about the topic that you’re telling a story about, then all the “color” that you understand will make its way into the film and add authenticity. For instance, you can tell when watching a sports film if the director didn’t understand the sport.
I’m making a film about the Appalachian mountains in the 1920’s, so I want to know as much as I can. And in reading this book, I’ve already read a few things that I’ve added into the film, whether it’s an interesting anecdote, a description of a cabin or a custom that the people performed. These things can provide cool background to the main story, and as a director, understanding these things will allow me to better supervise the production design, accents, even the accuracy of the dialogue. If I read something in a book that makes me think, “Oh, cool! Very interesting! That’s something I didn’t know, and now that I know it, I’m a better human for it!” two things will result–one, I’ll wonder why I started talking like a moron, and two, the audience will probably have a similar reaction when I portray it on screen.
Few days ago:
I think we’re pretty much done with the script. I can’t think of any more things I need to do to it; or, at least, I can’t think of anything I CAN do to fix any of its needs. At some point you get to close to it and don’t know what works and what doesn’t. I feel like I’ve addressed most of the problems that my friends and advisors have pointed out, so I’m feeling pretty good. Right now the script comes in at 111 pages, which I think is too long. Page count is usually equal to minute-count. If the movie came in at exactly 111 minutes, that wouldn’t be awful, but I’d prefer to get it down to 100. Just not sure how to do that at this point.
I had a good talk with a production studio in Georgia that might end up being our shooting location. Nothing has come from Virginia, and with the money we’ll save shooting at one location, along with the fact that Georgia offers a 10% or so tax rebate (meaning you get 10% of all the money you spend in Georgia returned to you at the end of shooting), I’m leaning in that direction. I should be flying out there to check it out in a month or so.
Just watched “Badlands” for the first time, the Terence Malick film with Marty Sheen (I can call him Marty because I’m in the biz) and Sissy Spacek, made back in the 70’s. I’m trying to watch as many great films as I can, of course, but I’m concentrating on films that have a lot of exterior locations, made by directors known for the visual brilliance. The film really was gorgeous. As I’ve said, I plan on shooting the first half of the film, when things are rough and raw, with a loose, rougher style, and the second half of the film more composed and pretty. I already do loose pretty well (although I’ll get better), but I’m not as great at the composed, pretty stuff. It’s not my tendency, but it sometimes needs to be. After watching some Wim Wenders, Kurosawa, and Terence Malick films, I feel like I’m getting better versed on the subject.
Finishing up “Our Southern Highlanders,” which will help me understand the setting better, and then I’ll read “On Filmmaking,” by Alexander MacKendrick, which will help me shoot said setting. Hopefully.
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