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December 10 2009
NEW BREED: A LOVELY Test Screening
By Gary King For background history on the film project – visit my previous New Breed Article: “A LOVELY Filmmaking Process”
Having achieved picture lock with WHAT’S UP LOVELY, I feel that I am now able to fully cover the details of the decision-making process during the editing stage — and how engaging with test audiences affected its final outcome. Mind you, we are still in post-production as of this writing (currently getting the score and sound work done) so never say never, but I’m 99.9% sure that the edit is locked.
After wrapping production in May 2009, I began the task of putting together an assembly cut based on the treatment that I had developed with Jenn Dees (who plays the main character “Luci”). Since I was editing the project myself, I took the very unorthodox approach of not slating a single take as we shot. I knew that I was going to personally log and organize all the footage — which meant watching every single frame that was shot (in addition to already having seen it “live on the set”). Becoming very familiar with the footage — every nuance and performance — would be my goal before beginning the creative edit. Would I do this again? It depends on the project. For something with a concrete script with scene numbers — no way. For another improv-based project such as this — probably.
The Editing Begins
Here is my LOVELY Editing Roadmap. I managed to sketch it out (during about Week 6 of the editing phase) while waiting to meet a friend at a hotel in New York’s Union Square. Yes, my mind works at the oddest times which is why I try to bring a notebook me wherever I go.
(CLICK THE PICTURE TO ENLARGE — there are spoliers in there, but I wouldn’t worry about it. Good for you if you can read my chicken scratch let alone make sense of anything. I think I’m insane.)
As you can see (or more likely as you CAN’T see) — my mind was going all over the place as I ordered out every single scene of the film. I also added little notes for new ideas to try out. Then I shuffled scenes around a bit as I was sketching the roadmap as things became clearer on the order they needed to appear.
I am sure this method is pretty unusual, but it definitely helped me since there was no formal script. And having edited for several weeks I finally could feel what was working and what was not in terms of storytelling and pacing.
In early August 2009, a preliminary cut was finished and in enough shape to share with an audience for feedback. Not having access to an affordable public venue, I invited people over to my apartment. Ideally for my next project(s) – I will be able to locate someplace in New York within my budget to hold test screenings. Many non-traditional places willing to let you use their space require the projector and screen – which I do not own. Researching such venues with the necessary equipment is on my To-Do list.
Anonymous surveys were handed out to the audience members (comprised of close friends and colleagues — and friends of friends) after the screening. I also extended an invitation to stay afterward and discuss the film should they wish to share their thoughts in an open forum with others. Following the model provided by Zak Forsman, I informed everyone that I would not defend anything in the film during the talk. I was simply there to listen and address specific questions — which I turned back on them if at all possible to see how their initial reactions from the screening influenced their thoughts and conclusions about the film.
ASSEMBLY CUT SCREENING – 76 mins – Initial reactions were mainly confusions and dislikes around three specific scenes (thankfully, it was consistently these three scenes or I would have been in trouble trying to figure out where to begin). To my relief everyone liked the main character “Luci” and actually wanted more of her — even though she already occupied about 90% of the screen time. This was a very good sign we were on the right track — as both Jenn and I felt it was crucial to create a likable character if the audience was to spend as much time with her as they do. For this cut, the original ending was entirely omitted and a new (more open-ended) one was created. This film leaves much to interpretation and I was concerned it was too out there for its own good. I am aware of the motto that “It’s good to be ambiguous…but you have to be clearly ambiguous.” The good news was everyone seemed ok with the ending. It should be noted that the crowd invited consisted of people who enjoy arthouse cinema and therefore my target audience.
Before the next screening, I met with Jenn to discuss the audience reaction. We talked about the changes needed and some voiceover work that had to be revised to match the evolving storyline.
ROUGH CUT 1 SCREENING - 71 mins – Original ending reinstated (but now placed in Act 1 of the film). Shaved off a few minutes by tightening every scene in the film (removed extraneous dialogue, added additional voiceover sequences). Anonymous surveys later revealed that now only one scene (of the original three unclear scenes identified at the previous screening) still needed some work. Additionally, post-screening conversations revealed that a few viewers picked up on the story elements loosely based on a literary classic (which shall remain nameless) which I was happy to hear — but I was encouraged to be more “clearly ambiguous” for the next cut should I wish viewers to really pick up on it. The talk also sparked a healthy debate in the room regarding the film’s symbolism and themes (I just sat back and smiled knowing the film had done its job in that respect).
Before the next rough cut screening, I decided to get a few pick up shots (which was now 5 months later from the original shoot) with Jenn Dees and Aidan Kane (a supporting character) — mainly to create a newly found storyline that needed a few shots to set up. Luckily they had not changed their appearance drastically. Additionally, some major plot points in the original written treatment were not as important anymore and were dropped or trimmed down. Jenn also recorded some new voiceover material to replace previous content in light of some new story developments. We were both really encouraged in what we were discovering and shaping.
ROUGH CUT 2 SCREENING – 70 mins – Deleted 2 voiceover sequences, re-edited others. Original ending now shifted to Act 2 of the film with the newly created storyline. Added a new shot for the ending. Feedback was very positive and encouraging. Although not an all-time favorite director of mine, it was nice to hear someone say “it’s like a good David Lynch film.” I also bit my lip and held back wanting to say to the group as the film ended, “it looks like you all want to say WTF?” Maybe that’s a new genre? Instead of “arthouse cinema” it should be called “wtf cinema” — meant in a good way.
The most positive aspect of the last test screening was the questions raised were exactly the ones I wanted to hear — but did not wish the film to answer. It had achieved its goal and I was a proud father.
I went out with Jenn for a last round of pick up shots to help flesh out visually the final voiceover work. I also tinkered with swapping a few shots around — but nothing major was changed. I should also point out that in between these formal test audience screenings, I was creating multiple versions of the film and sharing them with Jenn and a few other close people for feedback.
So here we are. At Picture Lock.
As they say, a movie is written 3 times:
#1 – script (when you write it)
#2 – filming (when you shoot it)
#3 – editing (when you edit it)
For this improv based project, the whole movie ultimately comes down to the editing. Stories could be added, deleted or shaped based on the direction we wanted to go. And luckily, the way it was shot we had some flexibility to do it. We were not always locked in to one plot point. We had some options.
From the 30+ hours of footage, LOVELY has been shaped into a nice 69-minute film. You can read about how I feel regarding its running time on my blog entry titled “Size Doesn’t Matter”.
I love the test screening process. If nothing else, it gets an extra set of eyes on your film to gauge how it is working (or not). Sometimes a filmmaker can be too connected to the material and not realize that important elements can be lost in translation to others. Of course, it would be impossible to please every viewer in the room and that should never be the goal. Think of it as just another tool — a very valuable one — to help determine if you are connecting with your audience the way you want to.
Next Up: Scoring the Film With 2 Composers
Here is the Official Trailer:
WHAT’S UP LOVELY – Official Trailer from Gary King on Vimeo.
For more stories from the front lines visit the New Breed.
Gary King is an independent filmmaker based in New York whose work is recognized for powerful performances with an emphasis on a strong, visual style. He made his feature film debut with the critically acclaimed drama “New York Lately”. His ability to skillfully apply his filmmaking craft across genres led him to direct the grisly indie horror film “Dismal” from Fearmakers. He is currently in post-production with his latest DIY feature film “What’s Up Lovely” which already has film websites buzzing about its visual style and elegance. It will be released in 2010.
November 30 2009
10 Lessons Learned – The New Year Parade
By Tom Quinn – In the fall of 2003 I began work on The New Year Parade with my co-producer, Steve Beal. Steve was a high school biology teacher with no film background and I was the building AV tech who would stop in at lunch to talk about my screenplay, which followed a South Philadelphia family through the first year of a divorce. It was loosely based on interviews I had filmed with friends about their parents’ divorces and set against the backdrop of Mummery, a centuries old tradition in South Philadelphia where the working class holds a parade on January first. The film concept was not entirely practical: in addition to the core cast we would need a hundred musicians in costume, thousands of extras, and permission to close Broad Street to film the parade sequences.
A Bit of History
The Mummers began strutting during pre-Revolutionary times and grew until the city organized an official parade in 1901. Popularity peaked in the 1960’s when thousands upon thousands would crowd the streets and bands like Quaker City and Ferko were nationally known. Like the rest of the country, the Mummers have been hit by hard times and the city was forced to cut funding in 2008. This past year, Philadelphia natives Kevin and Michael Bacon got involved with the Save the Mummers foundation www.savethemummers.com, organizing a Bacon Brothers benefit concert on December 5.
Lesson 1: Turn Your Perceived Weaknesses into Strengths
When Steve and I told friends about our script, they thought we were crazy: We had no money to speak of and could not afford seasoned actors, permits to shut down Broad Street, or props and costumes to create the parade. Inspired by Jim McKay’s Our Song we approached The South Philadelphia String Band to see if they would permit usage of their club and costumes for two weeks. Instead, we were welcomed in for three years as the band acted in the film; incorporated our cast and crew into rehearsals; gave us old costumes and keys to their club; and obtained press passes so we could shoot the 2005 Mummers parade with five cameras. Before we began shooting, I joined the Mummers’ Grapevine (a message board for members) and submitted sections of the script for feedback. We were also fortunate enough to work with The Quaker City String Band who acted as South Philadelphia’s chief competitor in the film. Because of the community’s endless support our film captures the Mummer world to an unprecedented degree.
Lesson 2: A Small, Dedicated Group Can Do Wonders
While we were fortunate to have a few professional young actors aboard, the majority of our cast had never acted before. To build the nonactors’ confidence we spent four months rehearsing and rewriting the script – shaping it to their personalities. Many scenes were shot as long improvisations, riffing off the screenplay while allowing the cast to tap into their own raw feelings and experiences. To keep our costs down, we filmed on nights and weekends over the course of three years while most of the team kept their full time jobs or were enrolled in school. This was a tremendous commitment for all involved – particularly the cast (who could not cut their hair for three years). For instance, Jennifer Welsh was in college and working full time while Greg Lyons moved to LA when his band Eastern Conference Champions was signed. Despite their busy schedules, the entire cast was professional and focused – always ready to perform, dress the sets, or pack up gear. Our crew was very small: typically the ever-talented Mark Doyle would run sound, light the set, set up the video monitor and occasionally act. Meanwhile, I shot and worked with the actors. On larger days we were lucky to have one or two extra hands (including the extremely loyal PA Grant Gaudry), but the crew was never more than five. It was a wonderful atmosphere and really did feel like a family by the end.
Lesson 3: You Don’t Need $$$ to Connect With An Audience
By 2007, we had shot 160 hours of tape, including 80 hours of documentary footage of Mummer practices, parades, and concerts. Our cut was progressing slowly when we were accepted into the amazing IFP Narrative Rough Cut Lab. Coming off the Lab we hit the pavement with new momentum and premiered at Slamdance in 2008. To our surprise we were awarded The Grand Jury prize for Best Narrative and followed it up with a great week at SXSW and 7 additional festival awards. 2008 ended with a Gotham Award nomination for The Best Film Not Playing in a Theater Near You, which brought the film to MOMA for an exclusive run. All of this for a film that was shot on digital video for $7,000!
Lesson 4: Find Passionate Partners
Steve and I briefly considered a theatrical run to coincide with the 2009 parade, but knew our release would benefit from time to plan. Fortunately, Carnivalesque Films were interested in releasing a DVD. Carnivalesque is a fairly new independent label we’re pretty psyched about. They are releasing exciting independent work like Mardi Gras: Made in China, Orphans, and Woodpecker. Owners David Redmon and Ashley Sabin are both filmmaker friendly and very hard working. We decided on a November 24 release to coincide with “Mum Season” in Philadelphia and began work on the DVD design and content.
Lesson 5: Create a Final Product With Audience in Mind
Based on our festival experience we felt there were three core audiences who would buy the DVD: Aspiring filmmakers, Mummer fans, and family counselors. Our aim was to create a DVD they would want to own rather than rent so we created eighty minutes of bonus features we thought they would enjoy. For aspiring filmmakers, we shot interviews with most of the major cast and crew and cut a “Making Of” that is unusually detailed for a low-budget film. Our hope was that, by including footage of auditions, rehearsals, and deleted scenes, other filmmakers could learn from our successes and failures.
I spoke to the friends I interviewed before shooting the film, and they were all supportive of including their discussions on divorce. During our festival run we had met many family counselors who thought the film could be useful to their profession because it explored the problem in a realistic way. We also met so many wonderful people, from the 68-year old woman in Ashland, Oregon to the 20-year old in Torino, Italy who had experienced divorce first hand and connected to the characters’ experiences. My hope had always been to generate discussion about divorce because, while it is a topic we often consider understood, many people have unresolved feelings toward it.
Finally, we created a “Behind-The-Sequins” section of the DVD, which provides a glimpse into Mummery. Everywhere we have screened, people have wanted to know more about the Mummers. We reached out to The Mummers’ String Band Association, who provided oral history interviews they had taped. We included three that related to the film. We also shot a History of The South Philadelphia String Band as a thanks for all they had given. The short documentary piece covers the band from their inception in 1946 through present day and includes interviews with 14 members, including Jim Donaghy, who had been their highly respected captain for 30 years.
For design, we turned to Matt Hanemann, a Philadelphia based designer and musician who had created our poster artwork. We both felt the design needed to be recognizable at a very small size as the DVD would often be a thumbnail online. Matt shifted the proportions from the poster concept to create greater emphasis on the title and created a beautiful back cover full of quotes and images. For the inside booklet, we used a photo from Charlie Roetz, a mummer from Quaker City String Band who tells the real story behind the photo in the film. Finally, we were fortunate to have Steven Rea, a respected critic with the Philadelphia Inquirer, write our liner notes.
Lesson 6: Theaters Will Work With You
To build awareness for the DVD release, Steve and I booked a theatrical run in Philadelphia through Landmark Theaters. We had reached out to Landmark in February and while they loved the film, they had concerns as to whether we could fill the theater for a week. Steve continued the conversation all summer while we simultaneously reached out to our press contacts in the Philadelphia area. Throughout our festival run, we had been contacted by reporters interested in a story, but we asked them to hold off until a release. We asked if they were still interested and went back to Landmark with confirmations from The Philadelphia Inquirer, City Paper, Daily News, and Philadelphia Weekly. In early October, they agreed to open the film on October 30 at their Ritz Bourse Theatre with five screenings per day. This all proved….
Lesson 7: Print is Not Dead
When Landmark first requested we buy an ad in The Inquirer we wondered whether that money could be better spent online. So much has been written in the past few years about the death of print and we did not have the funds to waste. Yet when it came time to premiere the film we found a very high percentage of our audience had discovered the film in print, despite a heavier online presence. The best answer I have is that the print audience is a paying culture and more likely to go to a theater and purchase a ticket whereas the online folks appear rabid at times, but may be more likely to wait for DVD on Amazon, Netflix, or bit torrent.
Lesson 8: Regional Filmmaking = Regional Release
Since we only had 4 weeks to promote and $300 left for P&A, Steve and I began work on a grassroots campaign to build awareness. We printed 200 mini-posters and I e-mailed the 18 string band presidents. Over the next 2 weeks I visited every club I could to talk directly to the members about our film. Meanwhile, Steve connected with Save The Mummers, who began promoting the run through their website (in exchange, we donated a portion of our Saturday night box). I also cut a new trailer geared toward the Philadelphia region, which featured the Vet and more obscure Mummer references. In the two weeks prior to the premiere our Facebook fans went from 220 to 2000! The excitement was electric!
Lesson 9: Free Beer Can’t Hurt
To kick off our run, Steve organized an event at Top Hat, a bar within walking distance to the theater who offered a free beer to each ticket holder. Then, 2nd Street Annie’s (owned by one of the Mummers in the film) offered a free drink to any ticket holder all week! Finally, we paired up with the amazing marketing agency 95 North, who sponsored a free happy hour mid-week! There, we projected bonus materials from the DVD, had a chance to meet fans of the film, and 95 North auctioned off free tickets to the screening! All of these events gave the audience a chance to interact with the cast and crew, and to meet other fans of the film.
Lesson 9: An Event Brings Press & People
After a year of traveling without The South Philadelphia String Band we were thrilled to include them in the premiere. Nobody brings a good time like the Mummers and this was certainly the case as they piled off the bus to play outside the theater.
Within minutes a crowd had gathered and was dancing in the street, cars were stopped, and the press showed up. Fox 29 interviewed me as the band played in the background, and then shared the footage with other area networks! Afterwards, three members from the band participated in the Q&A with the cast, allowing the audience to learn more about Mummery and their unique involvement in the film first hand.
Lesson 10: The Yankees Hate Independent Film
We knew from the get go it would be difficult to go up against Halloween, but never expected the Phils to be playing The World Series that weekend. It was tough competition, but fortunately our grassroots campaign paid off and Landmark extended the film for a second week! Word of mouth began catching on beyond the Mummer and art house crowd that second week and many new fans were disappointed the run ended before their friends could make it. All in all, the theatrical run brought in $6,766.50 on one screen and 1900 new Facebook fans just in time for the DVD release!
So Now What?
Our DVD was released through Carnivalesque Films this week and sales have been incredible! Netflix is backed up and word of mouth has been crazy good. We never expected any of this and are thrilled by the results. I’m especially grateful for the e-mails, hugs, and handshakes I’ve gotten from Mummers in Philadelphia thrilled to see their tradition respected and taken to a larger audience. Meanwhile, Carnivalesque has been helping with additional theatrical events. Next up is a week at Facets Cinematheque in Chicago from December 11 – 17.
When not wearing the many hats of distribution, I’ve begun working on a new screenplay set in the suburbs of Philadelphia where I can apply these 10 lessons. I look forward to learning 10 more.
Tom Quinn’s debut feature, The New Year Parade, was selected for the IFP Narrative Rough Cut Labs, won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Narrative at Slamdance, and was a Gotham Award nominee for “Best Film Not Playing in a Theater Near You.” Tom has been listed one of the “25 New Faces of Independent Film” by Filmmaker Magazine and “Ten Young Writer-Directors to Watch,” by MovieMaker Magazine. He was fortunate to be the first American filmmaker accepted to the Toronto International Film Festival Talent Lab and is currently working toward his MFA at Temple University.
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