Eclectic Views

    
It takes a village.  Or a village idiot.  Sometimes both.
  

    
Eleanor asked me to share some of my experiences making a film called
THE ACCIDENTAL ACTIVIST.  Well, okay.  It's fun to talk about.  Except
there are lots of embarrassing bits, where I explain what idiotic
things I've done, and how I'm tried to undo them, or tried to pretend I
meant to do them exactly that way in the first place.
  

    
I suppose I should mention right off the bat that you can view a
trailer for the film at

http://www.customflix.com/206262

Or if you're feeling flush, you can buy the film on DVD.  It's $19.95
plus shipping, which makes it, um... I'm not sure.  I think they charge
$2.99 for shipping, not to mention the proverbial 'handling.'

I know I should know exactly how much this costs.  But the film went
on sale just days ago, and thus many gaps in my knowledge will become
plain as you read on...
  

    
Anyway, because I am working (almost as we speak) on the press
release, here is what will likely be the first version of the formal
press:

THE ACCIDENTAL ACTIVIST:
A MOVIE FOR ANYONE WHO EVER WANTED TO SAVE THE WORLD

Tamzina Films and Mighty Ruckus present the feature film adaptation of
the critically-acclaimed New York show. Now available for worldwide
delivery from CustomFlix (www.customflix.com), the film is headed to
festivals around the world.

Written and performed by Kathryn Blume, co-founder of The Lysistrata
Project, THE ACCIDENTAL ACTIVIST is a SWIMMING TO CAMBODIA-style
treatment of The Lysistrata Project story, as well as Ms. Blume's pithy
observations about war and peace. The film was directed for the screen
by Telly-award-winning producer/director Kevin Morrison.

"Kathryn is an amazingly gifted actress," Morrison said. "Despite many
serious subjects, audiences don't go five minutes without a
belly-laugh." According to award-winning filmmaker Tamsin Orion,
founder of Tamzina Films and executive producer of THE ACCIDENTAL
ACTIVIST, "Kathryn's message is simple: get involved. Get active about
the things that matter to you. And have a good time while you're at
it."

THE ACCIDENTAL ACTIVIST begins with Ms. Blume's personal experience in
late 2002, capturing her sense of helplessness about America's
direction – a feeling made more acute by her stalled acting career and
dead-end job. Her despair launches an inspirational (and accidental)
journey onto a global stage. She leads an international protest called
The Lysistrata Project, galvanizing like-minded people in the single
largest anti-war event in theatrical history. In the aftermath, she
discovers that while she has not saved the world, she has activated a
transformation in herself.

The film is unrated, contains adult language, and runs 63 minutes. The
DVD offers bonus features, including a special message from Ms. Blume,
an interview with Mr. Morrison, a trailer, deleted scenes, and a short
film.

For additional information, contact Kevin Morrison at 310-801-8697 or
via email at kevinm@well.com. 
To see a trailer, visit http://www.customflix.com/206262. 
For more information about Kathryn Blume and the touring version of
the stage show, contact Ms. Blume at XXX-YYY-ZZZZ or via email at
kablume@gmavt.net.
For more information about Tamsin Orion, contact her at 415-200-9458
or via email at tamsino@earthlink.net.

Material in the movie THE ACCIDENTAL ACTIVIST is copyright ©2004,
Tamzina Films and Mighty Ruckus.
Material in the stage play THE ACCIDENTAL ACTIVIST is copyright ©2003,
Kathryn Blume.
  

    
Notice how Kathryn's telephone number is not Kathryn's telephone
number.  Did I mention this is a work in progress?

Okay.  So.  Any questions thus far?  (I have quite a few, but somehow
it doesn't seem fair for me to ask them, especially since the answer
will be, "Um, let me get back to you on that.")
  

    
Kevin, thanks for opening this topic - great stuff so far.
  

    

The trailer looked good. 

Should we start with all the obvious questions about how you got involved,
what the movie cost, what kind of distribution there is etc?
  

    
Welcome to <pre.vue.>, Kevin. 

I wasn't able to see the trailer, even though I have Quicktime 6.0.
But my computer is a little hinky, which is why I'm getting a new one
later this week. 

What is a Telly, and what did you win it for?
  

    
Thank you, Eleanor and Mike.  I'm having fun!

To answer your questions, Jerry, I got involved in August, 2003, when
a friend asked me to tape Kathryn's appearance at the Aurora in
Berkeley.  She and the show blew me away.  So much of what she said hit
home for me -- it was like she was speaking my mind for me.  I thought
we could do a screen-oriented adaptation of the show, talked to
Kathryn about it, and we proceeded from there.

The cost of the movie could be one of two numbers.  One is the actual
hard dollars spent, which includes things like tape stock, equipment
rental, airfare, food, etc.  That would be a smallish number, under
$5K.  Then there is the number which reflects the value of volunteer
labor, my own work, etc.  That would be a number somewhere around $85K.

There is no distribution except for the CustomFlix pipeline, which
itself has been in existence for exactly 6 days.  (Our title, not
CustomFlix.)  We are submitting to film festivals.  We will likely talk
to a distributor or two.  We will talk to cable and satellite
networks.  That said, we have a realistic expectation that there will
be no formal pick-up by any of those folks -- except for film
festivals, who we expect to be interested.
  

    
Eleanor, dunno what to say about the trailer.  Others have had the
same experience.  It's a small (1.1MB) QuickTime file which I uploaded
directly to the CF website.  Why it should present problems to any
modern computer, well...  who knows?  If you're sitting in front of an
Apple computer, the most likely cause of glitches is the CF website
itself, I guess.

The Tellys are, and I quote, awards "Honoring outstanding local, 
regional and cable television commercials and programs & the finest
video and film productions."
  

    
I should add that the Tellys are virtually unknown outside of
corporate video and film.  I have two of them back when they were
designed as ripoffs of the Oscars -- before the Academy asked them to
stop that -- and now they look like ripoffs of the Emmies!

http://www.telly.com/

...if you want to see the current award design...
  

    
Angelic!
  

    <scribbled by gail Mon 18 Oct 04 10:02>
  

    
Actually, my question presumes you had something to do with the script.
I realize you probably discovered the work when it was already being
performed.  So I'd ask whether the process of filming a stage piece
changed it.
  

    
Unlike your average politicians, I can offer a one-word answer to most
any question.  So:  yes.  The process of moving from stage to screen
affected the piece itself.  If I were to truly, thoroughly explain the
transformation process in this piece alone, there would be a very
interesting (to me!) 10,000 word essay at the end.

The stage has some delightful qualities that are indigenous to the
stage.  They are also, um... what's the word for meaning they don't
survive outside the stage?  Anyway, the experience of being in a
theatre with a performer and an audience and stage lights and house
sound and all sorts of other stuff is a thing unto itself.  Plus,
there's the context of the stage:  generally, you're a bit more patient
with the material, because it's understood that you are going to stay
seated for 90 minutes or so.  The expectation with something on the
screen is that you'll stay seated for 90 seconds, maybe, but after
that, well...

I exaggerate, but the point is, you have different expectations.  The
material changes to reflect those expectations.

Beyond expectations, there are logistics that are different.  You can
do things onstage you can't do onscreen and vice versa.  Generally, we
looked for ways to change the material to minimize the category of
"plays well onstage but not onscreen" and maximize the category of
"plays well onscreen."  In some cases, that meant making up new stuff. 
In others, that meant planning and developing and fussing with various
special effects.  In still others, that meant deleting material
entirely.  The show I saw at the Aurora Theatre in Berkeley ran about
85 minutes.  The show on CustomFlix runs 63 minutes.  

By the way, we put most of the excised material into a DVD special
feature called "Deleted Scenes."  It's kinda fun to look at them on
their own.  
  

    
By the way, I should point out that there wre two stages of fussing. 
The first stage involved Kathryn's material prior to production.  For
the most part, she did all of that fussing.  The second stage was the
post-production fussing.  While Kathryn was in the loop and we shared
decision-making, there was a certain amount that simply happened in the
post-production suite.  Naturally, Kathryn maintained createive
control.  It's her show, after all.  But for the most part, she was
down with all the stuff we added and/or subtracted.  It was and is a
great collaborative partnership between us.
  

    
Kevin, since I've just spent some quality time at the Apple store, I'm
curious about the technology you used to create The Accidental
Activist.  And please make your answer as geeky as possible. ;-)
  

    
If you're reading this from outside the Well, and you have a question
for Kevin about the making of The Accidental Activist, email us at
<prevue-hosts@well.com> and we'll post it here for you. Or better
still, take advantage of the special 2 months for $2 introductory offer
to join the Well, and come post your questions for Kevin directly.
Check out <pre.vue.96> for details on the special offer.
  

    
Yeah, what Eleanor said!

As for the geeky answer to <16> above, it's pretty simple.  The film
was shot on DV using two Sony PD-150s and a Canon XL1.  All these
cameras shoot in the 5:1 compression format that is DV video, although
the Sonys were used in DVCAM mode, which has exactly the same picutre
information but is slightly more robust because of higher tape speed
and wider track pitch.  We edited on Final Cut Pro HD, using a
combination of Macs, from a dual-450 G4 (vintage 1999) to a new
PowerBook 1.33GHz.  We color-corrected in FCP, which was a royal pain
in the ass, especially matching the Canon to the Sonys.  We finished on
DVD Studio Pro 3, where we continue to add minor functionality from
day to day!

Was that geeky enough?  I can get geekier, you betcha!
  

    

> I exaggerate, but the point is, you have different expectations.  The
> material changes to reflect those expectations.

Can you give an example of what you changed and how it was changed? I find
that part of the process very interesting since I've been studying acting
just for fun the past few years.
  

    
So, um, here's some news:  the film will be broadcast here in the Bay
Area tonight on Pirate Cat radio.  About 8:30pm.  That's 87.9 on your
FM dial.
  

    
Acting is such a fun thing.  If there is one art that every creative
video/film person should study, it is acting.  Not writing, directing,
or a technical craft.  Acting.

An example:  the front end of the stage show -- the very opening
moments -- utilized a blackout, spot effect, and the floor of the stage
(as a percussion instrument) in ways that simply could not be
duplicated with similar effect on the screen.  So we reenvisioned that
whole opening, using what the camera could do in production (motion)
and some appropriate special effects in FCP post-production.

Does that answer your question, Jerry?
  

    

Yes, thanks.
  

    
While I am perfectly ready for criticism of the film -- or at least, I
think I am ready -- it's gratifying to get emails like this, below,
which arrived today.  The sender is a new acquaintance who doesn't have
any reason to grease my rails...
  

    
 watched "the accidental activist" with my husband last night, and we
both loved it! it so reflects the fervor of our protests, before the
war, and then the total let-down afterward....Blume is wonderful in
this, and I am so glad to see her, after having read so much about the
Lysistrata project last year--would love to see some of the
performances...i especially loved her depiction of the Sudanese mother;
masterful...Blume is  fabulous woman and actor,,,thanks so much for
sending this to me, it's a great inspiration .... wonderful work!
  

    
How encouraging!

Is it too soon for "official" reviews yet?