Here is the fruit of our October adventure. Zularian Pictures teamed up with Bald Melon Blaze to create our first music video. Enjoy!
Friday, November 16, 2007
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
American Psycho - Business Card Scene
Apparently everything is now on Youtube. I have included this clip here because I now work for a marketing company and one of the many things they do is print business cards. I have watched in disbelief as my co-workers have had interactions similar to this scene.
So much for that idea...
It would appear that the idea of creating weekly webcasts was beyond my reach. The truth is that I did start to make a week two episode and I found it very, very boring. The truth is that anything I am presently doing relating to making movies is in the pre-producion phase and consists mostly of writing. This is not really exciting stuff to put on video.
So rather than try and come up with exciting new ways to say the same thing each week I have decided to make the web casts only when there is something new to say (and when saying it visually is better than writing it).
I will be doing my best to post more frequently here and to take a more informal tone (which I hope is coming across now).
In addition to the music video that Bald Melon Blaze and I plan to shoot in October we are also planning on shooting a few fake PSA's. My hope is to also shoot the first of many shorts that will be similar in concept the the BMW films The Hire. For those of you unfamilar with the shorts I have embeded them above. There are more than these three, but these are my favorites of the bunch.
I do not plan on making a series of shorts based on a driver and a car but I am hoping to find a common element to connect a series of shorts together much like Clive Owen links these films together. More on this later.
John
So rather than try and come up with exciting new ways to say the same thing each week I have decided to make the web casts only when there is something new to say (and when saying it visually is better than writing it).
I will be doing my best to post more frequently here and to take a more informal tone (which I hope is coming across now).
In addition to the music video that Bald Melon Blaze and I plan to shoot in October we are also planning on shooting a few fake PSA's. My hope is to also shoot the first of many shorts that will be similar in concept the the BMW films The Hire. For those of you unfamilar with the shorts I have embeded them above. There are more than these three, but these are my favorites of the bunch.
I do not plan on making a series of shorts based on a driver and a car but I am hoping to find a common element to connect a series of shorts together much like Clive Owen links these films together. More on this later.
John
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Weekly Webcasts
In an attempt to light a fire under myself I have decided to start doing weekly webcasts for Zularian Pictures. I posted the first webcast yesterday on both the myspace and youtube pages for Zularian Pictures.
I am well aware that this may backfire and shame me terribly, at this point there is nothing much other than writing or talks for future projects in the works so the first few webcasts may be terribly dull. I am okay with that though, since I do not think may people will bother to watch them and that gives me a little time to figure out how I want to make them.
It was pointed out to me yesterday that this idea is not as novel as I had thought. I do not mean to say that I thought I had created something with the idea of a weekly webcast, I know many people have been doing that for quite some time. What I mean is, this is precisely what Walt Disney used to do for the vaious projects that his little company was in the process of working on. Mind you they did do a fair amount of work, and from what I hear, it even was somewhat successful.
Here's hoping that the webcasts will be weekly and will inspire me to get some worthwhile material together to share with whoever is watching!
I am well aware that this may backfire and shame me terribly, at this point there is nothing much other than writing or talks for future projects in the works so the first few webcasts may be terribly dull. I am okay with that though, since I do not think may people will bother to watch them and that gives me a little time to figure out how I want to make them.
It was pointed out to me yesterday that this idea is not as novel as I had thought. I do not mean to say that I thought I had created something with the idea of a weekly webcast, I know many people have been doing that for quite some time. What I mean is, this is precisely what Walt Disney used to do for the vaious projects that his little company was in the process of working on. Mind you they did do a fair amount of work, and from what I hear, it even was somewhat successful.
Here's hoping that the webcasts will be weekly and will inspire me to get some worthwhile material together to share with whoever is watching!
Friday, July 13, 2007
New Models
Like many aspiring filmmakers I find myself continually wondering how I am going to create inroads into an industry notorious for being coolly unavailable. My attempts at finding an agent who will read a screenplay (or even reply to an inquiry) have been altogether disheartening. Lately I have been seeing a number of promising articles on the web that offer, perhaps, a little light for those like me.
A few days ago an article in Wired magazine focused on a pair of filmmakers who now have the first ever Youtube feature-length narrative film on the site. Apparently this was made possible, partly, by their longstanding relationship with the site Spout and their scores of devoted fans.
What is truly impressive is that Spout has altered one of their services, just for Four Eyed Monsters, so that people have the option of referring the film with just one click. This click leads to Spout (as I understand it) then donating one dollar toward the film. At the two-week mark I believe the total is $34,383 that the film has made via this service. Not taking into account that the filmmakers spent $100,000 to make the movie, this is exciting news. So far my attempts to find out if Spout will be offering this referral service for other filmmakers have failed. The one email I have received was a miscommunication and nothing else has yet come in.
All in all, for those of us still operating on the principle of "don't spend anything" this model for marketing your film and making some cash looks promising indeed!
A few days ago an article in Wired magazine focused on a pair of filmmakers who now have the first ever Youtube feature-length narrative film on the site. Apparently this was made possible, partly, by their longstanding relationship with the site Spout and their scores of devoted fans.
What is truly impressive is that Spout has altered one of their services, just for Four Eyed Monsters, so that people have the option of referring the film with just one click. This click leads to Spout (as I understand it) then donating one dollar toward the film. At the two-week mark I believe the total is $34,383 that the film has made via this service. Not taking into account that the filmmakers spent $100,000 to make the movie, this is exciting news. So far my attempts to find out if Spout will be offering this referral service for other filmmakers have failed. The one email I have received was a miscommunication and nothing else has yet come in.
All in all, for those of us still operating on the principle of "don't spend anything" this model for marketing your film and making some cash looks promising indeed!
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Local projects
It occurred to me this morning that my previous post left out a few pieces of information. I wrote that I have not been doing much that is worth mentioning. This is not entirely true. Two things have happened since I started this blog that I think deserve a little attention.
The first is I met and briefly (oh so very briefly) assisted a local filmmaker with a documentary project he is working on. When we met he had already been working on the project for some time and had completed the majority of the shooting. I tagged along for two events that he shot and was given a glimpse of the project. To the best of my knowledge he is now locked away editing the footage he has been shooting. The subject of the film is immigration, in particular focusing on the immigration experiences of Ethopians to the DC area. Rather than try and sum up all that this ambitious project has set out to do I will paste two links below that should better explain the details.
The film is called Migration of Beauty and the official web site address is www.migrationofbeauty.com
Below is a sample of some footage that is posted on Youtube.
The newsworthy note I would like to make involves another local project, this one completed (sadly I was not even slightly involved in it). I came into contact with one of the producers of this film and although I have yet to see it the subject matter and sample clip on Youtube make it look like a movie not to miss! It looks like the DVD will be available in June.
The film is titled Abduction and you can visit the site at www.abductionfilm.com
Below is the trailer for the film.
The first is I met and briefly (oh so very briefly) assisted a local filmmaker with a documentary project he is working on. When we met he had already been working on the project for some time and had completed the majority of the shooting. I tagged along for two events that he shot and was given a glimpse of the project. To the best of my knowledge he is now locked away editing the footage he has been shooting. The subject of the film is immigration, in particular focusing on the immigration experiences of Ethopians to the DC area. Rather than try and sum up all that this ambitious project has set out to do I will paste two links below that should better explain the details.
The film is called Migration of Beauty and the official web site address is www.migrationofbeauty.com
Below is a sample of some footage that is posted on Youtube.
The newsworthy note I would like to make involves another local project, this one completed (sadly I was not even slightly involved in it). I came into contact with one of the producers of this film and although I have yet to see it the subject matter and sample clip on Youtube make it look like a movie not to miss! It looks like the DVD will be available in June.
The film is titled Abduction and you can visit the site at www.abductionfilm.com
Below is the trailer for the film.
Friday, May 11, 2007
A Virtual Community
A few months back I started stumbling upon all kinds of web sites and resources that I found to be very helpful. Many provided basic information about various digital video topics or links to sites that provide information or lighting, sound or production. Some were for gadgets like the Vod Pod on the right and others were focused solely on writing.
Since most anyone reading this blog knows nothing about me let me fill in this piece of information: first and foremost I consider myself a writer. I realize I made that seem like a grand statement but for me it shapes how I approach things and for the most part it is my movie-making experience so far.
I have yet to find a community of writers and because of this I have been very limited in who I show my work to. The consequence of this is poor feedback. Not that I dislike my Mother's comments mind you, they just are not all that helpful for improving a script (I should note that my Mother is the best proofreader I have ever met and her skills in that area keep me looking like a total fool).
Thanks to the author of the blog mentioned in my previous post (Diary of a Short Film) I found out about the community site that American Zoetrope has on their web site. For those of you who do not know, American Zoetrope is a company owned by Francis Ford Coppola and among many other things, publishes a magazine and holds a screenplay competition.
They also have a virtual community for writers, where you can post your work and have it critiqued by other writers. The system is set up in the following way, for every screenplay you submit you must read four screenplays posted on the site. How do they make sure you comply? You can only post the first script without having read anyone else's. Also, you cannot read the reviews of your script until you fulfill your requirement. It's a pretty clever way to get people to do the right thing and the people who are part of the community are quite vocal and best of all, they are writers.
You can visit the site here. Everything about their communities can be found in the Virtual Studio section.
Since most anyone reading this blog knows nothing about me let me fill in this piece of information: first and foremost I consider myself a writer. I realize I made that seem like a grand statement but for me it shapes how I approach things and for the most part it is my movie-making experience so far.
I have yet to find a community of writers and because of this I have been very limited in who I show my work to. The consequence of this is poor feedback. Not that I dislike my Mother's comments mind you, they just are not all that helpful for improving a script (I should note that my Mother is the best proofreader I have ever met and her skills in that area keep me looking like a total fool).
Thanks to the author of the blog mentioned in my previous post (Diary of a Short Film) I found out about the community site that American Zoetrope has on their web site. For those of you who do not know, American Zoetrope is a company owned by Francis Ford Coppola and among many other things, publishes a magazine and holds a screenplay competition.
They also have a virtual community for writers, where you can post your work and have it critiqued by other writers. The system is set up in the following way, for every screenplay you submit you must read four screenplays posted on the site. How do they make sure you comply? You can only post the first script without having read anyone else's. Also, you cannot read the reviews of your script until you fulfill your requirement. It's a pretty clever way to get people to do the right thing and the people who are part of the community are quite vocal and best of all, they are writers.
You can visit the site here. Everything about their communities can be found in the Virtual Studio section.
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Little activity
Not too much has been happening relating to any kind of movie-making. I have been tentatively working on a new feature-length script but for the most part I have just been working.
Last month I started an internship with a local company that does, among many other things, video production. So far there I have not been party to any video work but the people who run the company are very interested in making shorts, features and interestingly enough their own television programming. It's a good place for me at the moment because my knowledge of many film/video basics is pretty limited or non-existent and they do have quite a bit of equipment for lighting and sound. I do not mean to be crass and promote them here, but the company is really looking to work with all kinds of artists, and since the do web development and design, as well as print and digital advertising, putting a link for them may be of some help to people looking to get some media attention. If not please forgive me for being a shallow, corporate sellout.
The website for the company is: www.trivision.tv
The only other news I can report is that I came across a blog that I have really enjoyed, which is a rarity for me. The person who writes the blog is an aspiring filmmaker (movie-maker? Talking about this should be easier) who is learning as he goes along, and much of the blog contains his lessons learned in great detail. It's a fun read and the information is presented in a very helpful way which is so very refreshing.
The URL for the blog is: Diary of a Short Film
I also read Oliver Stapleton's guide for how the film industry works. If you haven't read it already take a look here. He himself admits that it is incomplete and at times a bit cheeky (the man is British after all) but it strikes me as a very earnest attempt to shed a little insight on the various jobs and what they entail. Reading this article led me to read his weekly column at IMDB which is titled, Ask A Cinematographer. I have greatly enjoyed reading these as well, although for the most part I think it is because I agree (or come to agree) with what he says.
In truth I find both cinematography and sound a bit intimidating and daunting at this point, which is part of the reason why I don't just take my camera and make the first thing I can. I see so many low-budget films, even the ones that go one to win film festivals and get distribution, and I am often unable to watch them past the ten minute mark.
Why?
Terrible cinematography and sound. Since I know that I must know less than the people who made these films it serves as a handy deterrent for making my own. Oh, to be a bit more courageous and accepting of failure...
Last month I started an internship with a local company that does, among many other things, video production. So far there I have not been party to any video work but the people who run the company are very interested in making shorts, features and interestingly enough their own television programming. It's a good place for me at the moment because my knowledge of many film/video basics is pretty limited or non-existent and they do have quite a bit of equipment for lighting and sound. I do not mean to be crass and promote them here, but the company is really looking to work with all kinds of artists, and since the do web development and design, as well as print and digital advertising, putting a link for them may be of some help to people looking to get some media attention. If not please forgive me for being a shallow, corporate sellout.
The website for the company is: www.trivision.tv
The only other news I can report is that I came across a blog that I have really enjoyed, which is a rarity for me. The person who writes the blog is an aspiring filmmaker (movie-maker? Talking about this should be easier) who is learning as he goes along, and much of the blog contains his lessons learned in great detail. It's a fun read and the information is presented in a very helpful way which is so very refreshing.
The URL for the blog is: Diary of a Short Film
I also read Oliver Stapleton's guide for how the film industry works. If you haven't read it already take a look here. He himself admits that it is incomplete and at times a bit cheeky (the man is British after all) but it strikes me as a very earnest attempt to shed a little insight on the various jobs and what they entail. Reading this article led me to read his weekly column at IMDB which is titled, Ask A Cinematographer. I have greatly enjoyed reading these as well, although for the most part I think it is because I agree (or come to agree) with what he says.
In truth I find both cinematography and sound a bit intimidating and daunting at this point, which is part of the reason why I don't just take my camera and make the first thing I can. I see so many low-budget films, even the ones that go one to win film festivals and get distribution, and I am often unable to watch them past the ten minute mark.
Why?
Terrible cinematography and sound. Since I know that I must know less than the people who made these films it serves as a handy deterrent for making my own. Oh, to be a bit more courageous and accepting of failure...
Monday, March 5, 2007
Getting even more organized
So after just a bit more searching I have found what I think will be a wonderful tool for this blog. I now have a sidebar that contains the videos I have on the web. Hopefully I will be able to put all of the videos on this sidebar in the next day or so. I think the quality is just as good and if this does work I believe it will make the blog much easier to use and certainly leaner.
If you click on the sidebar it opens a small window to view the video in. If you click within that small window it will open a larger window.
Happy viewing.
If you click on the sidebar it opens a small window to view the video in. If you click within that small window it will open a larger window.
Happy viewing.
Thursday, March 1, 2007
The Name Game
Hopefully no one will be confused about the two different spellings of Zularian (or Zoolarian). Some of the accounts created for Zularian Pictures (the proper way to spell it) were created some months ago when the more prosaic Zoolarian spelling held me in thrall.
So when you see the links or other pages related to this blog and Zularian Pictures just ignore the strange spellings.
Thank you!
So when you see the links or other pages related to this blog and Zularian Pictures just ignore the strange spellings.
Thank you!
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