The Plot's The Thing

First, a little business: We’ve been having some computer trouble, so we haven’t gotten second tier letters out as quickly as we like.  If something changes about your movie’s status, feel free to drop us an e-mail.  If nothing else, we’ll be glad to hear the good news.

In the screenings, we’re seeing some non-traditional storytelling films.  By that I mean, surreal, non-linear, in and out of dreams, etc.  Nothing wrong with that when it’s done right – but when it isn’t, these films miss the mark by an extra mile. 

I thought of a nice exercise for filmmakers who want to get into non-traditional structure.  Give your script, or the finished film, to friends, family, screeners, etc.  Don’t tell them anything about it.  Once they’ve read it or screened it, ask them to tell you what the story is about.  Not how it made them feel; not what it reminded them of, just a simple re-telling of the plot.  Remember to listen to them.  They can’t get this wrong, since it’s what they got from your story. 

If they don’t tell you the story you thought you told them, then you’ve failed on the most basic level.

We watched more than one short last night where a room full of people who have watched hundreds, or in some cases thousands, of movies and opinions differed on the plot.  Sure, we might not agree on motivations, moods, emotions, etc. but if we can’t agree on what actually happened, then there’s a big problem.  And it’s not our fault.

In both features and shorts, we’ve had our usual collection of pee scenes.  Last night there was one where it was entirely relevant (and hilarious) and one that wasn’t needed at all.   Do a search on this blog for “pee” to see how creative and edgy it is to have a character pee in your movie.

And finally, I want to give a shout out to the most overlooked aspect of indie film – the Art Department.  I mean, sets, set dressing, props, etc.  Of course, we’re not going to pass on a well-written, well-acted, film with boring set-ups against blank walls, but when the picture is lifeless, your cast has to work so much harder to infuse interest in the scene. 

We see so many restaurants that are nothing but someone’s kitchen table shoved up against a blank wall.  Too many characters live in apartments that look like they belong to a starving artist filmmaker.  Before you roll, take a look at your shot without the cast in it.  Is it interesting?  No?  Then fix it.

Thanks for reading.

Longer Festival: More Movies, More Fun, More Decisions To Make

First of all, apologies for being a little late with this blog.  I'm trying to get it out every Monday, but we are crazy busy around here. 

For those who haven't heard, we are expanding the festival to 11 days to get in another weekend of movies and more.  That's making for a lot of advanced planning – like, when should we do the awards party?  Sunday will be the last day of the festival, so do we do Sunday Night?  Sunday Brunch?  Sunday afternoon pool party, followed by a special screening?

Any ideas?  Post them in the comments.

People often ask us how we like to have films delivered, packaged on the DVD, etc.  I generally don't care a lot except for a couple of things:

First, we need DVDs.  It's friggin' impossible to track submissions if you can't stack them in piles on the floor.  Yeah, yeah, we could do something else – but really?  Watching your movie on line means I'll probably watch on my 17" laptop with slow downloads, high compression, etc. etc.  Wouldn't you rather I watch it on my 60+" plasma TV with 5.1 surround sound?  I would!  I need the tax write-off.

And – nothing that would make us pass on your movie but – it's a good idea to NOT have your movie automatically re-start once it's over.  We screeners are often trying to collect our thoughts about your film right at that moment.  There is nothing worse than a bunch of us yelling, "NO!" to the TV when your film starts again. 

About this week's shorts screening, we saw nothing good – which is actually a shout out to a particularly brilliant film that I hope has not blown its world premiere.  You would not believe how hard it is to fight for a film that has already screened, particularly in the LA area.  When faced with two good movies, and only one open screening slot, the world premiere will get it every time.  I hate it.  You hate it.  But that's life in the festival world.  We try more than most to help you guys decide on your World Premiere, so if you have any questions, please, please, please, ask.

Trends.  We're seeing a lot of nudity this year.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining.  I'd rather see natural nudity than the unnatural wrapping up in a sheet.  That always sticks out like a 555 phone number.  So nudity rocks!  Love it.  But it won't turn a bad story into a good one.  It won't make a bad film good.  It does make a bad film a little more fun to watch... but not nearly as much fun as a good movie, with or without naked people.

Okay... done giggling?

Can we retire the "This or That?" dialogue of couples meeting for the first time and falling in love? 

"Beatles or Stones?"
"Stones."
"Oh, I love you."

Stop it!  And if you think I just quoted your film verbatim, I have.  And ten others.  Stop.  Love is a valuable commodity.  Make your characters earn it.

So many times beginning writers are told, "write what you know."  It occurred to me while watching yet another movie about actors, that writers need to learn more.  Let's turn that lesson into, "write what you know that other's will find interesting."

I hope that you've found this interesting, and that you'll post some ideas about what you'd like to see during our extra days this year.

And So It Begins... Again

Work for year 16 of the festival unofficially began about a week after year 15, but things have started in earnest now that we are screening submissions.  And that means I'm firing up the blog for another season of behind-the-scenes action from the defiant fest of raw talent.

Okay, "action" might not be the right word.  "Insights" might be better, but you know how it is... marketing.

For those of you not familiar with this blog, here's how it works.  I hate watching bad movies.  I want – in fact, every film festival screener wants – each submission to be a fantastic film.  Good movies are a joy.  Bad ones are painful to endure. 

And the painful stuff seems to run in cycles.  When I started it was the countless Romantic Comedies that were neither.  Then there were the endless Mocumentaries.  This blog is an attempt to tell filmmakers, if you're thinking of making a movie like the 57 horrible ones with the exact same style and plot points I've had to watch – DON'T!

At least, that was the intent.  Naturally, it has become a place for nervous submitters to obsess over their movies and to hell with anyone else.  Okay.  I understand that.  Human nature.  So some rules have evolved.

First, no film will be mentioned by name.  Good or bad, it's just not fair.

When I talk about stuff that doesn't work, I'm never talking about just one film, but a trend we're seeing in a lot of movies.  So if you think I've just told the world your movie sucks, you're absolutely, 100% wrong.  Your movie might suck, but I didn't tell anyone.  If you decide to post an angry comment about how I said bad things about your movie, go ahead – but you'll be outing yourself, not me.

Not all of my comments are negative.  Sometimes I have good things to say about a movie, and when I do, I think it's nice for the filmmaker to know I'm talking about their movie.  After all, you've worked too hard and faced too many rejections, for a compliment to fly under the radar.  In these cases, I will drop a hint that only people who have seen the movie will get.  My way of saying, "Hey, you done good, kid," without causing a riot over who is in and who is out.

That brings me to another point.  Every year we have more good films than we have spots to fill.  Every year my heart is broken because a movie I love and fought for didn't make the cut.  So if you recognize that I've said good things about your movie, that only means you've made a good film.  You'll probably get one of those "You've made it to the second round" letters, but it doesn't mean you're in.  I know, that sucks.  I've been on both sides of submissions and it all sucks – right up until your movie premieres.

Speaking of premieres: should you get one of those "you've made it to the second round" e-mails, then your premiere status becomes even more important, so stay in touch with us.  If you get offered a premiere at a festival by the beach, we won't tell you not to do it, but we might be able to put you in touch with some filmmakers who have done both and you can compare notes.

Okay, on to the screenings. 

We get together once a week to watch short films, then take home features to watch and review.  Each film is seen by at least three screeners, sometimes more, and each film is watched all the way through.  This blog tends to be more about the shorts, but I will chime in with feature comments when I see something worth mentioning.

Tonight we started off with the Florida State University logo.  Always nice to see.  I don't know what they put in the water down there, but it's working.  You kids – and in this case, I mean kids literally – are doing some great work.  It's gotten to where we set aside FSU submissions to pop in after a string of bad movies.  Something to cleanse the pallet.  We used to do that with Chapman University films, but haven't seen as many of those lately.  What's up with that?

After FSU, we had a string of movies with great visual effects, but little else.  I lost count at three of four films with stunningly good graphics, and equally stunning - in a bad way -  writing, casting, etc. 

Folks, we human beings have been presenting narrative stories as entertainment for as long as we have been human.  We have over 3,000 years of written history on the art of storytelling.  I suggest you all master those skills before you start playing with software.  If you want to build a visual effect reel, great.  Find a storyteller to work with so your reel will be worth watching. 

Case in point – one of the best films of the night had family members holding up dolls and talking about coffee.  The story was brilliant.  It was suited to the art of short filmmaking, and not a feature script cut down to a confusing mess.  The cast was fantastic; the writing, subtle.  The photography and sound matched the story in skill. 

I think if I were to teach a class in visual effects, I would require first year students to make films without them.  Graphics are easy.  Emotions are hard.

On that bastardization of Edmund Gwenn's last words, I will make them mine.  For this week, at least.

Thanks for reading.

Before March 6th: a Pre-Submission Checklist

Our regular deadline is March 6^th.  If you're going to submit to Dances WithFilms, hopefully, you're at the point now where you think you're done.  You think you're ready to submit, but are you?  Here are some common mistakes we see that you still have time to fix before the late fees kick in.

·         PRE-SCREENINGS  There are two types of screenings: Vanity and Professional, and both have their merits. 

The vanity screening is the one you do for friends and family who you know are going to say nice things no matter what.  This is a lot like getting compliments from a stripper; you know the truth, but it's good to live the fantasy, if just for a little while.  And there's nothing wrong with taking a break from the exhausting, thankless, work of finishing a film to enjoy a pat on the back from an easy mark.  Just understand that, if you're going to get anything besides an ego stroke out of this experience, you have to work for it.  Ask them if anything took them out of the movie.  If they thought it felt slow.  If it was their film, would they change anything.  Don't lead them toward answers – push, but don't get specific.  You want to hear what they have to say, not have them say what they think you want to hear.

The professional screening does not mean the cast & crew.  Save that for the festival.  It also doesn't mean a screening for distributors.  You're not ready for that yet.  A professional screening means showing the movie to people who understand the business.  They know what's good and bad, and more importantly, they know how to convey that to you.  You need people who will give you the cold hard truth.

As you get more of these "beta testers," think of their criticisms as dots on the graph that is your movie.  Don't try to respond to every single comment, that's impossible, but look for patterns.  If the dots collect around a certain subplot, take a look at it.  Maybe you can cut it.  Maybe you can tighten it up.  If people say it dragged in spots, see if they agree on where those spots are.  You need to please all of the people some of the time in this business, not the other way around.

·         SOUND:  Sound is 50% of your movie.  Not giving it as much loving care and attention as you do the picture, means you'll get an F.  If nothing else, take it to a professional post production facility for an assessment.  Remember, you're not making an internet video here.  The speakers behind the big screen at the Chinese Theatre are the size of a house and crystal clear.  One tiny drop out, one clip, one bad hum, and you literally sound like you're not ready for prime time.

·         STUPID SUBPLOTS:  Every night we screen, we see shorts with subplots that just don't fit the main story.  I say shorts shouldn't have subplots at all, which is debatable.  Having one that doesn't fit, is not.  This holds true of features as well.  Do you really need that serial killer chasing the young lovers?  Couldn't they just be alone to collect their thoughts and get away from it all?  Cut, cut, add an ADR line here and there, and before you know it, your story is tighter and based on your solid characters, not some stupid dance contest/football bet.

·         MAKE IT SHORTER!  Two things I'm constantly shouting at the screen are, "BE OVER!" and "IT'S A SHORT!"   Shorts are an art form in and of themselves.  Part of that art is an economy of words.  Every year we have films that begin with a brilliant scene.  As that scene concludes, I'm thinking – or more often saying – "Be over!"  But, noooooooo... that was just the pre-credits teaser.  Twenty painful minutes later, the movie concludes, even though the story finished before the credits.  Be like George Kastanza.  When you peak, make your exit.

·         LISTEN TO ADVICE:  Hopefully, you have a team of people who have been where you are now.  They will tell you the mistakes they made.  They will tell you what they would have done if they could do it over again.  Listen.  Learn.  Apply.

·         READ MY PAST BLOGS:  I have a selfish reason for doing this blog.  I want to watch better movies.  Filmmakers are always asking Festival Directors, "what kind of movies are you looking for?" and the answer is always the same, "Good ones."  I've try to tell you all what we mean by that, so please take advantage of it.

For your sake, and ours.

I have a new short story coming out.  The Last Performance of the Neighborhood Summer Theatre Festival, published in an anthology called THE FALL.  This collection is a follow-up to SPRING FEVERS , where I had a story called The Idea Exchange.  Regular readers might recall an earlier blog on short stories being good source material for films.  It still holds true.

All of this publishing has my mind working on the subject of promotion, marketing, and the other I-I-I, Me-Me-Me stuff that so many artists, myself included, kind of hate.

Or at least, we pretend to hate it.

In the American South, where I grew up, it's called "blowing your own horn," and it is the height of self-aggrandizing rudeness.  Ask any Southerner who has moved to Los Angeles and you'll hear the same thing, "I just can't get into this talking about myself all the time the way people do out here."

If Southerners in LA are smart, they'll listen to their friends from other parts of the world.  "You've done good work.  You should be proud of it.  There's nothing wrong with letting people know what you're doing and how they can enjoy it."

And let's face it, the spotlight is a big part of the Arts.  Somewhere, deep down inside, we all got into this business because of our desire for that light.  For some this might be all ego-driven.  For others it might be a need to get our message out into the world.  Whatever the case, in many cultures wanting to be in the spotlight is considered a bad thing.

But in a world with nuclear weapons, starvation, drug abuse, genocide, rude drivers, hang nails, Congressional Representatives who won't compromise with each other, and the cancellation of good TV shows, is it really such a bad thing for an artist who has worked hard on something they feel is worth your time – and money – to say, "Hey, put the spotlight on me for a second."

Hopefully, that will take the spotlight off Honey Boo-Boo for a while.

None my above musings help with how to promote your work.  I think each project has its own special needs.  What I am suggesting is that, if you have a hesitation about self-promotion, then get over it.  If you think you don't care about the spotlight, then stop living in denial.  Art is made to entertain.  If you've created something you're proud of, then you're doing the work an injustice if you don't get out there and sell it.

And if you really struggle with self-promotion, then try rolling it into something else – like the opening paragraph of a blog on an entirely different subject.

THE FALL and SPRING FEVERS are available for download from your favorite e-book providers.  If you'd like an old-fashioned printed version, then you can get SPRING FEVERS here.  Look for a POD verson of THE FALL soon.

Suddenly, Subplots

During this off season, I'm reminded of 2001.  Having won in 2000, I returned to judge in 2001 and a few months after the festival found myself at a party.  When someone found out I'd been a judge, I got an ear-full about "how could you not give the award to such-&-such film?"

I was a little in shock, and couldn't remember the movie right way, except that I liked it.  A few minutes later, the reason it didn't win came to me: a completely stupid, improbable, sub-plot.  In the middle of a wonderful, well-written, well-acted, well-directed film, there was a subplot from hell that belonged on the cutting room floor.  Unfortunately, the subplot was so bad, it dragged the rest of the film down with it.

So whether you're facing picture lock, or the final draft of your script, keep an eye out for that tacked on storyline that doesn't belong.  Trust your characters.  Trust the emotional engine of the story.  If you feel the need to introduce some kind of outside influence on your characters, try cutting it and see if the story still stands up.  If it does, then keep the cuts on the floor. 

Your film will fly higher without the extra weight.

No, Really, Just Tell Us The Plot

We have a long, long wait until we're open for submissions for 2013.  I'll probably repost this when we call for entries, but in the meantime the information should help programmers for other festivals – and filmmakers as well.

When you're filling out your submission forms, there is a section for summaries.  I'm going to let you guys in on the reason why that's included.

After months and months of cramming movies into our brains, writing critiques, having our favorites, etc. etc., we sit down to figure out who is in and who isn't.  Inevitably, a title will be mentioned, followed by a room full of blank looks. 

"What did I write about it?" I'll ask.

Leslee will look up my notes on our absolutely fabulous title tracking program.  "You liked it.  You gave it a Must See and wrote, 'Great cast.  Good filmmaking in all departments.'"

"F*#k me!  Why didn't I say what the movie was about?"  I don't know why I'm surprised, my notes are always like that.

So we look up the summary from the submission form. 

This sweeping low-budget epic tale is a discussion about the inner meaning of the symbolism of life as depicted by the intricate handheld camera work and natural acting style fused with classical influences of Comedia International. 

Crap.  We have to dig out the DVD and watch the movie again.  Two minutes in, we say "Oh, yeah, the one about the unemployed PHD who has to take a job at McDonalds to pay the bills.  Yeah, we like this one."

So when it says "Summary," that's what it means.  Just remind us what the movie is about.  Save the film school stuff for ... film school.

Thanks for reading.