Watch my Movie!

[Tim Simmons]

Some of you know that a few months back, the gang and I entered ExtremeFilmmaker’s 48 hour film fest. For those that don’t, here’s the scoop:

Contract is a short film (9min give or take) that was written, produced, casted, ect.ect. in a little under a month. It was then shot and edited in the span of 48 very sleep deprived hours.
It was then entered for submission at the ExtremeFilmmaker’s 48hour film fest and was selected to be screened at the Arclight Cinema in Hollywood, where it took home awards for Outstanding Cinematography and Directing.

Now it’s up at Undergroundfilm.org, so all of you who are bored at work or home have the chance to watch it at your leisure!

Here’s the link:
http://www.undergroundfilm.org/films/detail.tcl?wid=1020108

It’s a little film, but we had a ton of fun making it- and, as always, I’m very interested to hear what you think of it!!

[Tim Simmons]

Bump for the evening folks...

Comments? Anyone?

[citizenDave]

Man, that was excellent! Very well crafted and damned entertaining, too. Nice pacing, good camera work and lighting and a nice and creepy score at the end. The acting was very good, I could feel one man's nerves and I got a chill from the other.

Shot and edited in 48 hours? That's amazing.

[Tim Simmons]

Many thanks Dave!!

Yeah, that score at the end was a total ripoff of Bernard Herrmann, the guy Hitchcock used alot- He also wrote the "Whistling Theme" in Kill Bill...

Really glad you enjoyed it!!

[citizenDave]

I remember from college how much work it takes to make a film. You should be really proud of this.

[The Roman Candle]

Nice little film. I love the lighting. Better acted than most films of this type.

[Tim Simmons]

Nice little film. I love the lighting. Better acted than most films of this type.

Thanks very much!
It's funny, going into it we had a totally different lighting scheme- one much more X-files influenced due to our lack of lights (basically, I had 2 big lights, and a handful of photofills). Then (after a very long story), I ended up hanging out with Laszlo Kovacs, the DP of Easy Rider, Ghostbusters, and about a thousand other movies- After showing him the lighting plot and a few animatics, he basically gave me a walkthru of "what he'd do"...it was pretty amazing- in 3 hours I learned more about lighting then I did in 4 years of film school!

As far as the acting, yeah- we got really lucky with that. Our "Main" guy we actually found off of Craig's list- and the "Other" guy turned out to be Michael Vartan's stunt double! -I'm still kicking myself for not writing in a huge explosion where the dude has to jump off a building...

Sometimes, living in Hollywood is very, very, strange.

[Tim Simmons]

I remember from college how much work it takes to make a film. You should be really proud of this.

Thanks Dave! And actually, I remember from a number of failed attempts how hard it is to draw a comic!

Y'know, I'm always curious regarding comic artists and films: How much of an effect on your art did you feel that your film class had on you?
And when you watch movies, do you feel that you're a little more critical of the composition and/or lighting because of your comic work?

[citizenDave]

Thanks Dave! And actually, I remember from a number of failed attempts how hard it is to draw a comic!

Y'know, I'm always curious regarding comic artists and films: How much of an effect on your art did you feel that your film class had on you?
And when you watch movies, do you feel that you're a little more critical of the composition and/or lighting because of your comic work?

Interesting. I never worked on comics and film simultaneously. College was in the middle of my decade long hiatus from comics. I remember I got a lot of compliments for my camera work and lighting. I thought, for a bit, of becoming a cinematographer. I never studied it very academically, but I always knew immediately what kind of pan or track, angle, and depth of field I wanted. I use that same part of my brain when I set up panels and scenes in comics. When planning a scene for film, I pretty much made the same kind of sketches I do now when planning a page.

I know watching a lot of films has helped me, especially older films where, due to slower edits, it's easier to absorb the composition of a scene. Often when I watch tv or movies I think of how it would be handeled as a comic. I find in comics, that I have to add a lot more shots and angles. In a scene with two speakers, I can't just keep going back and forth between over the shoulder shots. Taking note of editing rhythms has also helped my art.

What I like a lot more about doing comics is that I can do it with a lot less management. I mostly only have to worry about myself. I don't have to rely on a large crew of people to show up on time, work with dedication and take direction, especially actors!

[Genius J]

I find in comics, that I have to add a lot more shots and angles. In a scene with two speakers, I can't just keep going back and forth between over the shoulder shots. Taking note of editing rhythms has also helped my art.

This is probably what I like most about your work.