Writing Update for those who give a dump.
CRICKET HILL Pilot - Waiting for final notes. It's a half-hour of comedy gold!
FOOD FIGHT - Manager has sent it out to agents. The big boys. We're talking ICM, Willy Morris, Endeavor, Gersch, and that upstart CAA, plus a couple smaller ones. Of course, they have to like it. Keep you posted.
ZUCKER - ALMOST done! I love this script, it's a fun comedy about a 40 year old realtor who falls in love with a 19 year old hottie. There's much more to it than that, at this point he's trying to outwit a hotman in the sewers of Mexico. Been tied up with FF & CH to properly finish it but since they're done for now, I'd like to end Zucker.
Westville -Formerly titled Skid Marks, I changed it because I realized it wasn't as broad or "gross-out." although it does have certain elements of that stuff, and as for the main plot, I must keep that underwraps.
Got some other ideas/partially written scripts in the works but I want to finish Zucker & Westville first.
Entourage Note - I loved this season, but got a bit pissed during the last episode - Drama was the only one making sense. Why fire Ari? Just for the "shock" of it (story-wise?)? He's been behind Vince all the way. And when he went behind "Bob's" back, he did so for the best of the project, and for Vince. He couldn't have that loser tagging along with them, killing his mojo during their meetings. Eric knew this, and witnessed Ari's magic when he landed them an offer. So to go and say "Oh let's fire Ari" in the final episode of this season, I thought it was kinda out of leftfield.
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Saturday, August 26, 2006
Flickmaking - Dealing With Editors
First, movie news:
28 WEEKS LATER - coming 2007.
Invincible - 14-16 Million.
DVD Review: V For Vendetta
Snooze. Quite boring. It thought it was a bit more important than it was. Script was lazy. V simply looked ridiculous, especially cooking eggs.
And now, about editors..........
My main suggestion to anyone about to make a flick, get signed contracts. This might be obvious, but some of y'all out there might be thinking about skipping this detail. Don't.
I got burned twice by editors, 2 different situations. Here's the 1st. We'll call this editor Bob. 'Cause that's his first name. Nice enough dude, good at cutting the scenes together (in his defense, I really gave him a lot of crap to work with). We verbally agreed on a price for the edit, but we never had a contract. And as the edit grew longer, the price went up. And he had me really, because, well, he had 75% of the movie edited at that point, and what was I gonna do, tell him to pound sand? Finding another editor (and paying them) at that point didn't seem worth it. So the price went up, I paid him in installments and finally the movie was done. This was 5 years ago now.
2nd bad experience was 2 years after. For this tale, we'll call this editor JD. 'Cause that's his initials. This situation was the opposite. He was hungry, fresh out of college, and eager to edit his 1st feature. Started off well, then he talked about needing $$. I was ok with that, the guy was putting a lot of time & effort so I paid him what he asked (wasn't much). Then he talked about moving to NY. He finally finished the rough cut. It had some things that needed fixing, but not too much. So it went back to him for the final cut.
Time passed, he was in NY at that point, working full time as an editor. But I was in no real rush so I let him work on it when he could. But he didn't. And the final cut that I eventually got STILL HAD 4 noticeably edits that needed to be completed. I left messages for him, no reply. E-mails. Nothing. Then his phone # changed and was unlisted. E-mails were returned as undeliverable. I've never even gone to another editor to finish this project, mainly due to the fact that I knew the thing wouldn't ever get sold anyway (it was a feature, ultra-low budget, and it showed) so I gave up on it.
So draw up some contracts if you're heading into production. We always had them, even for PAs, but for some reason those pesky editors slipped through my fingers. Never again!
And one thing you should do in order to make your editor's life easier - ORGANIZE. Countle$$ hours were spent (on that 1st project) sifting through footage trying to find the right shots, etc. Get yourself a great Script supervisor on-set, and BEFORE you go to your editor, you have all of your footage logged in great detail. It'll save you, trust me.
Some of this crap most of you will know, I just figured to post about it for those who might not think of it.
28 WEEKS LATER - coming 2007.
Invincible - 14-16 Million.
DVD Review: V For Vendetta
Snooze. Quite boring. It thought it was a bit more important than it was. Script was lazy. V simply looked ridiculous, especially cooking eggs.
And now, about editors..........
My main suggestion to anyone about to make a flick, get signed contracts. This might be obvious, but some of y'all out there might be thinking about skipping this detail. Don't.
I got burned twice by editors, 2 different situations. Here's the 1st. We'll call this editor Bob. 'Cause that's his first name. Nice enough dude, good at cutting the scenes together (in his defense, I really gave him a lot of crap to work with). We verbally agreed on a price for the edit, but we never had a contract. And as the edit grew longer, the price went up. And he had me really, because, well, he had 75% of the movie edited at that point, and what was I gonna do, tell him to pound sand? Finding another editor (and paying them) at that point didn't seem worth it. So the price went up, I paid him in installments and finally the movie was done. This was 5 years ago now.
2nd bad experience was 2 years after. For this tale, we'll call this editor JD. 'Cause that's his initials. This situation was the opposite. He was hungry, fresh out of college, and eager to edit his 1st feature. Started off well, then he talked about needing $$. I was ok with that, the guy was putting a lot of time & effort so I paid him what he asked (wasn't much). Then he talked about moving to NY. He finally finished the rough cut. It had some things that needed fixing, but not too much. So it went back to him for the final cut.
Time passed, he was in NY at that point, working full time as an editor. But I was in no real rush so I let him work on it when he could. But he didn't. And the final cut that I eventually got STILL HAD 4 noticeably edits that needed to be completed. I left messages for him, no reply. E-mails. Nothing. Then his phone # changed and was unlisted. E-mails were returned as undeliverable. I've never even gone to another editor to finish this project, mainly due to the fact that I knew the thing wouldn't ever get sold anyway (it was a feature, ultra-low budget, and it showed) so I gave up on it.
So draw up some contracts if you're heading into production. We always had them, even for PAs, but for some reason those pesky editors slipped through my fingers. Never again!
And one thing you should do in order to make your editor's life easier - ORGANIZE. Countle$$ hours were spent (on that 1st project) sifting through footage trying to find the right shots, etc. Get yourself a great Script supervisor on-set, and BEFORE you go to your editor, you have all of your footage logged in great detail. It'll save you, trust me.
Some of this crap most of you will know, I just figured to post about it for those who might not think of it.
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Little Children
Children of Men (among a handful of others) is certainly on my list of MUST-SEES for this year. And now this, Todd Field's next movie, called Little Children. Talk about a great, great trailer. Perfect.
Check out the site, and click on the trailer.
Check out the site, and click on the trailer.
Pluto Will Always Be A Planet To Me
They can't just take away one of our planets. Can they? I mean, growing up, going to ol' Roosevelt School, I learned about those 9. The 9, man! This is bullshit. Don't these spacenerds have anything better to do? Go find another solar system, or build Hubble 2. I don't care. Just not Pluto. You fuckers already messed me up years back when you said Saturn wasn't the only planet with rings. And now this?
Oh well. I could always write a script about it. Hmm, titles. Pluto Rising? Pluto & Me? Saving Pluto? Fisting Pluto? Pluto Attacks? 'Cause it's pissed off at Earth, get it? And it wants some payback.
Excuse the lame post. Long day at work, and the Phillies lost today (Cole Hamels got crushed!).
Oh well. I could always write a script about it. Hmm, titles. Pluto Rising? Pluto & Me? Saving Pluto? Fisting Pluto? Pluto Attacks? 'Cause it's pissed off at Earth, get it? And it wants some payback.
Excuse the lame post. Long day at work, and the Phillies lost today (Cole Hamels got crushed!).
Sunday, August 20, 2006
A Pleasant Surpise
So I'm flipping through the channels on Saturday night, licking my wounds from another Red Sox loss (yeah, and another loss tonight. If only Big Papi could pitch, too) and I come across Stander, starring Thomas Jane. It got good reviews when it "came out" last year, although it was nowhere to be seen around NJ and was quickly gone from any theaters in the US as far as I know.
What a great freakin' film. Damn. Thomas Jane was amazing, and the rest of the cast was equally as kick-ass. Go find this movie and see it. But there's an exchange between Thomas Jane and one of his partners-in-crime toward the end of the movie (Jane is a cop in South Africa but has been robbing banks) that blew me away. They're escaping from the police in this scene and are speeding down endless highways at dawn. The writing here, and their performances, made the movie for me. Seek it out if you haven't already seen it. Great stuff.
Ever come across a movie that you had little or no info. about it, and it just blew you away?
What a great freakin' film. Damn. Thomas Jane was amazing, and the rest of the cast was equally as kick-ass. Go find this movie and see it. But there's an exchange between Thomas Jane and one of his partners-in-crime toward the end of the movie (Jane is a cop in South Africa but has been robbing banks) that blew me away. They're escaping from the police in this scene and are speeding down endless highways at dawn. The writing here, and their performances, made the movie for me. Seek it out if you haven't already seen it. Great stuff.
Ever come across a movie that you had little or no info. about it, and it just blew you away?
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Told Ya
Well, Snakes is on the loose and is tearing up the box office, ok, maybe not. Like I figured, after all the hype, people have figured out that it's still a dumb movie with a dumb title (still, a fun title, yes) and it should make UP TO 21 million (they're figuring 18-21) for the weekend.
Figure next week as most horror/action flicks do it'll lose 60% of the box office and make 8-10, and by the end it'll be lucky to clear 50-60 million. Look, that ain't bad really, but after all these reports of Snakes bloggers/internet buzz changing the face of movies? Nah. Not with this one, anyway.
Figure next week as most horror/action flicks do it'll lose 60% of the box office and make 8-10, and by the end it'll be lucky to clear 50-60 million. Look, that ain't bad really, but after all these reports of Snakes bloggers/internet buzz changing the face of movies? Nah. Not with this one, anyway.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Best Picture....2007?
Production begins in December on The Darjeeling Limited, starring Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, and Adrien Brody in a comedy/adventure (across India) directed by Wes Anderson. Sweet.
Don't Tell Me What To Do, H'Wood!
They went and did it again, ol' Hollywood, trying to tell us what to do.
And they think I'll fall for it. STEP UP? Why the hell should I? I certainly didn't TAKE THE LEAD when you asked me to. And while we're on the subject, I didn't listen when you said RAISE YOUR VOICE. So there! And when you requested me to SAVE THE LAST DANCE, well, I didn't. And I did not, absolutely did not SING!
And they think I'll fall for it. STEP UP? Why the hell should I? I certainly didn't TAKE THE LEAD when you asked me to. And while we're on the subject, I didn't listen when you said RAISE YOUR VOICE. So there! And when you requested me to SAVE THE LAST DANCE, well, I didn't. And I did not, absolutely did not SING!
Friday, August 11, 2006
Scripts/DVD/Music/Johnny Drama/Mel
Well, it's official, Food Fight is el completo. Next step is selling the mofo. My manager rode me on this, a very good thing, his notes were amazing and right on. And now I feel great about it. So, we'll see. I'll let you know its progress through the ranks of H'wood. It's going out this weekend so maybe by next week I'll have news. Of course, it could take months now for any news to surface, either way I'll keep y'all posted.
Cricket Hill tv pilot is next. I'm finishing my re-write of that this weekend. The director is in Canada this weekend, doing some re-shoots of his next movie.
As for my next original scripts, I've got 2 comedies coming. One is called Zucker - This has been almost done now for months, but I've been too busy with Cricket Hill & Food Fight to work on it seriously. It's been at page 80 since March! Also, I'm starting a fresh one called Skid Marks. I'll post a logline for it at a later date, all I can tell you is that it's gonna be funny as hell.
On the music front, I bought the new Youth Group album (Ebay) and eagerly awaits its arrival. They're Aussies, go buy their last album (Skeleton Jar). It's amazing. I'm also loving the new Killers' single.
On DVD, I saw Brick (awesome) and The Matador (terrific). Both worth a peek.
In TV land, Entourage is about the only thing I follow, along with baseball. Entourage is having a great season. Each episode has been solid. Kevin Dillon & Jeremy Piven rock.
Haven't seen any flicks in the theater lately, I'd like to see Ricky Bobby & WTC. My wife & kids saw Barnyard, said it was just ok. They skipped The Ant Bully (apparently so did everyone else).
Also, in my previous post regarding Melly Gibson I wrote that Sugartits was a good line (in the comments section). Got some flack for that (WG). I still think it's funny, but understand why it might be taken as offensive, however, it's such a ridiculous term/word, that I think it's hilarious. Sugartits. I mean, c'mon, what is a sugartit exactly? And as WG asked, what if I was called Needledick? Well, honestly, I'd laugh just as hard.
Cricket Hill tv pilot is next. I'm finishing my re-write of that this weekend. The director is in Canada this weekend, doing some re-shoots of his next movie.
As for my next original scripts, I've got 2 comedies coming. One is called Zucker - This has been almost done now for months, but I've been too busy with Cricket Hill & Food Fight to work on it seriously. It's been at page 80 since March! Also, I'm starting a fresh one called Skid Marks. I'll post a logline for it at a later date, all I can tell you is that it's gonna be funny as hell.
On the music front, I bought the new Youth Group album (Ebay) and eagerly awaits its arrival. They're Aussies, go buy their last album (Skeleton Jar). It's amazing. I'm also loving the new Killers' single.
On DVD, I saw Brick (awesome) and The Matador (terrific). Both worth a peek.
In TV land, Entourage is about the only thing I follow, along with baseball. Entourage is having a great season. Each episode has been solid. Kevin Dillon & Jeremy Piven rock.
Haven't seen any flicks in the theater lately, I'd like to see Ricky Bobby & WTC. My wife & kids saw Barnyard, said it was just ok. They skipped The Ant Bully (apparently so did everyone else).
Also, in my previous post regarding Melly Gibson I wrote that Sugartits was a good line (in the comments section). Got some flack for that (WG). I still think it's funny, but understand why it might be taken as offensive, however, it's such a ridiculous term/word, that I think it's hilarious. Sugartits. I mean, c'mon, what is a sugartit exactly? And as WG asked, what if I was called Needledick? Well, honestly, I'd laugh just as hard.
Saturday, August 05, 2006
CHILDREN OF MEN
I've got a new movie to add to the coming-soon must-see list (that now includes The Fountain, The Prestige, The Science Of Sleep, Stranger Than Fiction, and The Departed).
Children of Men - this is one of those trailers that gives you the chills. Wow, can't freaking wait for this one. Click this to experience it. (The Sigor Ros music certainly helps, but still, it looks amazing).
In other news, my last draft of Food Fight went over wonderfully, just a few more weeks and we're going to get it to some agents (bigtime agents, Endeavor, ICM, we'll see) and after that? Who knows. I've got a damn good feeling about it though. Cricket Hill Pilot is just about lokced down, I'm finishing Act 4 this weekend.
By the way, I love the idea of Heath Ledger as The Joker in the upcoming gonna-kick ass movie, The Dark Knight. Nolan knows what he's doing.
Children of Men - this is one of those trailers that gives you the chills. Wow, can't freaking wait for this one. Click this to experience it. (The Sigor Ros music certainly helps, but still, it looks amazing).
In other news, my last draft of Food Fight went over wonderfully, just a few more weeks and we're going to get it to some agents (bigtime agents, Endeavor, ICM, we'll see) and after that? Who knows. I've got a damn good feeling about it though. Cricket Hill Pilot is just about lokced down, I'm finishing Act 4 this weekend.
By the way, I love the idea of Heath Ledger as The Joker in the upcoming gonna-kick ass movie, The Dark Knight. Nolan knows what he's doing.
Thursday, August 03, 2006
I finally done it
I'm on myspace.com, yeah I did it. I'm on it for the networking angle, so if you're a spammer/pornsite/whore/pimp/webcam slut/Mel Gibson, don't make me your "friend."
Okay, that Mel comment may have been uncalled for. Maybe not. I've always liked Mel, but it's hard to at this point. After Passion he seemed to sorta lose his mind. And Apoca-lame-o just isn't doing it for me. I mean, dude, your life is handed to you on a gold plate (he's loaded, in other words) the least he could do is NOT fuck it up.
And no, Dr. Phil, there was more than alcohol going on with Mel. You don't just start throwing around racial slurs 'cause you're drunk, sure, I'd buy him being an asshole and calling the cops "dicks" or whatever, but not lobbying out racial slurs (while slurring, no doubt). Plus I've seen footage of his ultra-racist Dad rambling on about how the Holocaust never happened, blah, blah, blah, so I'm sure this stuff was in Mel's head for quite some time.
Just got back from Virginia Beach, we were there a week. Good times, hit the ocean a lot with the fam, the kiddies had a blast checking out the dolphins that seemed to swim by constantly. A bit trashy though tourist-wise, I actually prefer the Outer Banks (Kitty Hawk) that we went to last Summer, but overall stilll a good time, and much better than most Jersey Shores (although Cape May rocks pretty hard).
So, check me out on myspace, add me as a friend or whatever and I'll do the same: http://www.myspace.com/pjrodio
Okay, that Mel comment may have been uncalled for. Maybe not. I've always liked Mel, but it's hard to at this point. After Passion he seemed to sorta lose his mind. And Apoca-lame-o just isn't doing it for me. I mean, dude, your life is handed to you on a gold plate (he's loaded, in other words) the least he could do is NOT fuck it up.
And no, Dr. Phil, there was more than alcohol going on with Mel. You don't just start throwing around racial slurs 'cause you're drunk, sure, I'd buy him being an asshole and calling the cops "dicks" or whatever, but not lobbying out racial slurs (while slurring, no doubt). Plus I've seen footage of his ultra-racist Dad rambling on about how the Holocaust never happened, blah, blah, blah, so I'm sure this stuff was in Mel's head for quite some time.
Just got back from Virginia Beach, we were there a week. Good times, hit the ocean a lot with the fam, the kiddies had a blast checking out the dolphins that seemed to swim by constantly. A bit trashy though tourist-wise, I actually prefer the Outer Banks (Kitty Hawk) that we went to last Summer, but overall stilll a good time, and much better than most Jersey Shores (although Cape May rocks pretty hard).
So, check me out on myspace, add me as a friend or whatever and I'll do the same: http://www.myspace.com/pjrodio
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