Audience and the creative process

A couple questions came up in my
On-Line Mentorship Program: aBetterFilm.com
and I’m reposting my answers here….

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#1 how much do I think of my audience when I create?
and
#2 what do I do with my ideas once I get them?

The answer to #1 for me, now, is “always.”
I always keep the audience in mind with every choice.
And I also keep myself in mind. My goal is to look for
solutions that seem to fit for both myself and the audience.

BUT, I’ve been doing this for 20 years and I feel very
comfortable and satisfied with my creative voice.
The first 10 years I spent thinking mostly
of finding and clarifying my voice. I wanted people
to like the work, but it was secondary.
I was making money in other ways and
not THAT concerned with connecting with large audiences.
The process satisfied me and the response was icing.

“Schooled” was the first film where I began to care
about how the information was landing on people.
I wasn’t going for a blockbuster, but I did want to
provoke a certain type of response with the audience,
and I was successful in that. When it world premiered
at The MethodFest it was one of the most satisfying
experiences I’ve ever had because after doing so many script
readings and then later on — a bunch of rough cut screenings,
I knew how it landed, I loved the reactions it got,
and I was at peace with the people who weren’t crazy about it.
So I sat back enjoyed the screening, and the reactions.

With the scripts and the TV show I’ve developed since then,
I’ve opened up the scope of my target even wider.
My early work was seen by hundreds of people.
“Schooled” has been seen by thousands.
The intention of my future work is to reach tens of millions.

And to do that I still have to stay true to my voice.
Which means I have to find the “true” choices
that happen to appeal to larger amounts of people.

So the second question is:
what do I do with the ideas once I have them?
I package them. When an idea hits that seems deep enough
to sustain interest in a feature film or a TV show,
I’ll jot down notes about the idea.
Later, if I’m still feeling it, I’ll develop it into a
logline and then to a 3 page outline.

Sometimes I’ll have ideas for shorts too,
and if they’re REALLY compelling to me,
I’ll write them down. But for the most part,
I stay focused on larger scale work.

I have a handful of loglines that I’m ready to pitch
when I have meetings with people interested in my work.
I’ve got a 3 page outline of a film I’d love to direct next.
And I’m working on another outline of a sci-fi action
(triology!) that I’d love to co-write next.

So to specifically answer the question, I take the idea
and I craft it into a package that’s ready to deliver
– as long as it seems there is enough audience interest.

The Watchman

On a scale of: 10-high, 0=low,
I rate it a 7.

At times, I was stunned and moved at the same time.
Like the opening sequence when the classic Bob Dylan song played.
The exploratory movement of the frame, the chock-full layers
of staging within the shots, and the flow of the whole sequence,
— was delightfully staggering to me.

As a visual director, he’s doing things that are at
the level of guys like Terry Gilliam
and Tim Burton
But he’s got a down and dirty sensibility that’s more
like John Milius
Very intriguing.

But while the shot making was at times, astounding,
the over-all story was WAY too long for me.
I would have preferred it to be 50% shorter. Plus, it seemed
mistakenly beholden to the graphic novel’s plot lines
which I know was likely a deliberate choice to
play to the die hard fans of that classic book.
But the sprawl of story threads just confused
and bored me, and I would have much preferred
a stream-lined re-visioned adaption of the story.
I think that would have had a BETTER chance at
delivering the spirit of the book, which is what matters more.

In terms of storytelling craft, I think it was awesome
that they set up The Comedian to have empathy
right from the jump (by him getting whacked).
And yet the rest of the movie goes on to reveal
what a rat-bastard he was, which is a lovely twist!
I was personally thrilled to see that shot of him
supposedly being the one that killed JFK.
It was such a sad and creepy and inventive idea!

Last two things: I got to see the movie in a theater by myself!!
I was the only one in the place.
In the thousands of times I’ve been to the movies,
I think I’ve only had that experience one other time,
and that was during a matinee, this was at night.
But that doesn’t speak well for the revenue flow
for these filmmakers. I think the movie is too dense
for most and that’s why it’s having trouble crossing-over.
Here are the numbers…

And the last thing is that I have a real sweet spot
for Billy Crudup because I used to, sort of, know him
back at NYU. He was in the Grad Acting Dept then
and we played pick-up basketball together a few times.
Really nice guy. I actually invited him and several of his classmates
to audition for my senior thesis film. I never heard back
from him, but did make it with two of his classmates
and it won me the Best Screenplay Award at the NYU Film Fest.

“Serious Moonlight” at TriBeCa FF

One of my favorite friends and collaborators, composer Andy Hollander, has a film that’s premiering at the ‘09 TriBeCa Film Fest, “Serious Moonlight.” It’s starring Meg Ryan as a bigshot lawyer who stumbles upon her husband (Timothy Hutton) cheating on her with a younger woman.

It’s directed by Cheryl Hines from a script by the late Adrienne Shelly, who was a close friend of Andy’s. He also scored Adrienne’s films, the last one being “Waitress.”

The first feature Andy scored was my first feature “Snapshots from a .500 Season” and we’ve been great friends ever since.

Andy is pumped up about “Serious Moonlight,” so check it out if you happen to be in Bigtown during the end of April.

HERE is the link to the NY Times article about the announcement…

Negotiation Hardball

Here’s a link to a post from efficiency guru Tim Ferriss, the best-selling author of “The 4-Hour Work Week.” I’m a fan of his fierce day-to-day innovation tactics. I share a lot of his values, admire his guts, and by coincidence, through a recent e-mail exchange, we discovered we both grew up in the same tiny town, a few years apart.

Anyway, here’s his take on playing the negotiation game at the big boy’s table. It strikes me to be as funny as it is informative, and a delight to read for anybody who loves the nuances of negotiation strategy.

My favorite part is Principle 3: “The Flinch,” and how he checks his e-mail during the gaping holes of pregnant pauses. LOL
Go Tim!

What’s Next?

My friend and colleague David Brownstein of Hollywood Coaching
just sent out his newsletter and it’s got an insightful article about
the on-going process of being in the business, and how there
is ALWAYS a next level, no matter how high or low we are
on the “ladder.”

Another point he makes is how that ladder is quite different
to people inside and outside the business. It’s even different
within the business, depending on a person’s ambitions.
For example, many value the money-makers,
while others value the critics’ darlings and cult favorites.

The article comes at a good time for me as I’m beginning
my On-line Mentorship Program for Maverick Filmmakers
and realizing that the mentees are at a different place
on the ladder than I am, but our process of getting to
our own next step is exactly the same. And that’s going
to make this program even more fun and satisfying for me
than I originally realized!

Anyway, here’s a series of questions in the middle of
Brownstein’s article and a link to the rest of
it on his excellent site:

———————–

“We in the entertainment industry are always wondering “What’s next?”

What’s around the corner?
What’s going to sell in the current market?
Have I made enough money to get out of the business?
Have I made enough money to get INTO the business?
Have I written a good enough project to sell?
Have I written a good enough project to direct it?
Have I made amassed enough power to make a project I really truly love? “

Read the rest of the article HERE.

Crowd Funding for Films

My friend recently ran across another model for getting the
crowd financially involved in the film BEFORE it’s made,
as a way of raising money to actually finance the film:
www.ownafilmcompany.com/

I think these guys will have way too much trouble hitting
their target numbers: getting 100,000 people to pay about
50 US Dollars each. And I don’t think the plan to
make a film at that budget level is the right match
for the experience level they seem to have.

Although SOMEBODY is going to make this model work soon.
Known entertainers are doing it already. I heard an
established director in Korea did it successfully.
Here’s a known musician who nailed it:
www.jillsnextrecord.com/home.asp

And I bet Kevin Smith could do it easily, right now,
with his rabid fan-base of on-line savvy dudes.

But for an unknown to finally do it, will be very special.

I think it will take:
– the right concept(clean, easy to “get,”probably horror or comedy)
– the right budget level (low: 500K or micro: under 100K )
– the right marketing art (striking, iconic)
– an insightful viral marketing campaign
– crazy persistence
– AND luck

But it’s going to be very exciting when it happens
because it could open the door much wider
for the next ones in line. Giving more power
and control to the creators.

And if a project like this doesn’t generate enough
interest to get funded by the crowd ahead of time,
maybe the concept wasn’t developed enough,
or the timing wasn’t strong enough?