Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Michael Mannix (posted by Brian Yang)

I wish we had kept a production blog while we were filming, but the truth is, if you have time to do so while you're in physical production, you're a) a sleepless monster - your 5-6 hours away from set should be spent unconscious to the world, b) you're not doing your job during the shoot as you should be way too preoccupied from doing anything social media related other than the occasional tweet or FB post as those are quicky and dirty (even checking friends' statuses and newsfeed in general is off limits.)

12 hours before shooting, Caleb was 1 of our 3 confirmed boys.
There were so many stories about the filming of NDB that should be shared.  Perhaps they'll continue to keep coming out after the fact in this blog in due time now that we've decompressed from it a bit.  There were challenges, triumphs, improvisations, laughter, tears, wins, losses, dented trucks and anything and everything else you might imagine that could happen during a shoot that all made the journey of the experience blogworthy.

Today, I want to share the one story that stood out the most in my mind from the entire shoot.  When I look back on the filming of NDB, I will never forget the story of Michael Mannix. 

One of the challenges of our shoot was wrangling extras for certain scenes.  Not uncommon to a lot of small budgeted indies, calling upon your friends and their friends and any randoms you come across to come spend a day on a film set for nothing other than some food was met with a lot empty stares and unresponded emails and Facebook posts as the day to shoot a big soccer scene approached us.

As the scene called for young boys around the age of 10-12 and as a regulation soccer game is comprised of 22 people in total and as the week leading up to this scene we had a grand total of exactly 3 boys, we were, in a word, screwed.

Our scene was set to start at 11am on a Sunday morning and I distinctly recall that at about 9-10pm the night before, in doing a last minute check in with one of our producers, we had a grand total of...those same 3 boys.  There were a couple of, "Oh, so and so's son may come, but there is no confirmation" and that was about 2 additional kids.  So, we were looking at about 5 kids, 2 of them maybe's in about 12 hours.

Well, then.

Our director Nadine, who is always as calm and cool as the other side of a pillow, didn't seem to be worried.  A good filmmaker works with what she has.  If we only had 5 kids, we'd find a way to make the scene work.  Tighter shots, doubling kids somehow in different uniforms running around to cheat the footage to make it seem like there were more kids, finding a real soccer game going on somewhere and shooting b-roll coverage of it and matching our actors to it somehow, whatever we had to do, we'd make it work.  Somehow, we were going to make 3-5 kids look like they were in a real game.

I love the spirit.  But I had an ulcer.

As we went to sleep (did we sleep?), we decided that in the morning, we were going to go out to surrounding soccer fields to look for kids and just ask them on the spot to partake.  Hopefully, we could wrangle a few more and get our kids up to 10-11 to make the cheating a bit more manageable?

Michael Mannix made this happen.
The problem with this, other than the obvious, was that the soccer field we secured was in the middle of nowhere.  We were shooting at a park in somewhere east, way east, of LA.  I can't even remember the name of the city right now, but suffice it to say, we didn't know the area at all, we couldn't go to fields we knew closer to LA and then ask people to drive an hour east to do this, and, well, just who was going to go out and scout all these parks, people, etc.?  A lot of time, good ideas fail to materialize because people talk about it, but then no one actually goes out and does it, thinking someone else has it handled.

Enter Michael Mannix.

Right before production began, we were doing some location scouting for something else, and, in a scramble, my own mother wound up introducing me to one of her best friends and her husband, Michael, who live in Rancho Cucomonga (I'm not spell checking that one), which is as far from central LA as it sounds.  We took a ride out to their place to examine something, but we wound up deciding not to go with the location for various reasons, one of which was the fact that we'd have to spend 2+ hours/day commuting out there if we went with their location.

After I hung up the phone with Michael a couple days later to thank him for allowing us to consider his place but that we weren't going to use it, little did I think that I'd be calling Michael again a few days later for something else.

8:00 something that soccer Sunday morning, not as calm as the other side of the pillow, I knew I had to make something happen.  Something, anything.  Yes, go down to fields around to try to pull kids, but for some reason, Michael popped into my head.  I didn't think about this before, but the park we were shooting at was within spittin' distance to Rancho Cucamango (I'm still not spell checking).  Michael?  Does Michael Mannix maybe know neighbors, relatives in the area who have young kids who might be able to pop in to film?  I mean, at this point, every single one counted.  If Michael maybe could get 1, 2, 3 kids to come, it all helped.  We could pull 1, 2, or 3 ourselves and suddenly we'd get to our 10-11 we were at best hoping for.

Michael was a very friendly Englishman which is why it occurred to me, albeit so last minute, that he just might be willing to help.  Well, to my dismay, Michael personally knew of no such kids in his area, but he instantly said he knew of a couple fields in his area and that he'd go check them for kids, just as we were going to do.  Thank you, Michael.  It's all I could ask at this 11th hour.  We were just lucky to have another set of eyes pounding the pavement for us.  Was I expecting anything though?  I'd be lying if I said yes.

Within the hour, Michael Mannix called me back and told me (not verbatim), "Brian, so I came down to the park near my home and it was empty save for this one man who was cleaning out a shed.   I went up to him and explained to him your situation.  It turns out he is a soccer coach in the area.  I'm going to connect you guys.  He's already making some calls to his soccer friends in the area to get the chain going."

(If I could insert a happy shocked face here, I would.)

Coach Dave in yellow breaking things down.
Another 30 minutes passed and I was on the phone with soccer coach Dave.  Details were passed and he said he would do the best he could, but that he didn't know what to expect as we had about an hour to go until 11am when we had to start.

Totally fair, Dave.  The fact that he already assured me he could bring at least a few kids was good enough for me at this point.  We definitely had more than our 3!  He also felt confident that at least several more would show up.  He knew all the soccer parents in the area, he knew exactly the field we were shooting at, and he thought on this lazy Sunday (they played AYSO on Saturdays so Sundays were an off day), kids would be up for it - to get out on the field and run around some more.

60 minutes later, I pulled into the parking lot of the field, exactly at the same time as Coach Dave who I figured was Coach Dave because who else would be pulling into this lot on a Sunday morning that wasn't part of our crew?

"I don't know how many are going to show up, but the calls are out and I think we'll get several more."

I wanted to hug the man.  I think I may have.

As the 11:00 hour rolled onwards, in a scene out of Field of Dreams, slowly but surely, cars kept rolling up into the parking lot, out of which rolled bouncy boys in soccer uniforms with their smiley parents, all curious as to what this film thing was all about in their hometown.  (LA is Hollywood, but somewhere near Rancho Kokomo is most certainly not.)  I kid you not, by the time all the cars stopped rolling, we had a full count of 20-some odd kids (I lost count) to simulate a real game of 11 on 11.  I think we actually had more than enough as some kids didn't even get into the shot.

The kids were just happy to get in their cleats again to kick a ball around.  The fact that there was a camera on them was secondary.  Parents filled the seats on the sidelines, sipping coffee, eating snacks, and taking in the wonderment of having their children be in a movie.

Off to the side was Michael Mannix.

Nadine works with talent we didn't know we'd have just hours prior.
Remember, 2 hours prior, Michael didn't know Dave, much less any of these soccer parents.  He barely knew me.  And he certainly didn't know West Liang, our writer, who was talking his ear off upon finding out who this facilitator of a man was.

Michael's gesture was so simple and yet it had such a huge impact.  I'm not sure he even knew the magnitude of what it meant to me and our team.  The production value of having all these kids present meant the world to us.

I had to cut out early to catch a flight that afternoon and couldn't see everyone off until the end, but I think I skipped out of there with a smile on my face (and probably a bit of a knot in my throat), understanding that Michael Mannix made me believe and have faith again in mankind.

Don't get me wrong, Coach Dave did a lot too.  A TON in fact as he turned into our de facto set soccer consultant (with gracious help from his soccer dad friends too), but Michael was our angel who nudged our hopes into reality.

Rancho Cucamonga.  That's how it's spelled.  In that great town lives one Michael Mannix, my hero who saved us one Sunday in September of 2011.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

A Call For Bands!


Trust us. You want to share your music with us. ; )



Be in a film - Win a music video shoot!


Calling all bands!

Music makes the world go round. Music also makes a movie go forward. We need your music to help make our movie go round and move forward!

The NIGHTDREAMBLUES team is putting out a call for indie bands to submit your songs for our soundtrack. If you’ve ever thought you’d like to hear your song in a film, this is your chance!

Now, we are looking for music that inspires us and fits the theme and mood of the film, so hopefully you will put your best foot forward with something you’ve got already that works, or, even be inspired to pen and create something new that matches what NIGHTDREAMBLUES is all about. : )

Our view from the hills.
What is it about?

NDB is a dramedy about three childhood friends who reunite for an impromptu birthday celebration when their midsummer night of delirious abandon and reminiscence explodes into a daring search for hope and deliverance from the burden of their dreams. As we go on a journey about the struggle to keep our eyes open when we lose our way, this contemporary feature-length film centers on one summer night in Los Angeles and examines the strained relationship between three high school friends, now in their 30s, whose lives have turned out to be nothing like they had imagined.

How do they reconcile the reality of their lives with the burden of their dreams?

The story begins with high stakes, when life hangs in the balance, with a fateful event that ultimately pulls three old friends back together. Soon, their reunion crashes them into the paths of three entertaining strangers, each a colorful mixture of unbridled enthusiasm for life and a unique perspective of the world around them.

But as the dark and knowing night goes, so go their guards and expectations.

À la great, classic ensemble motion pictures like, THE BREAKFAST CLUB, ANNIVERSARY PARTY, LESS THAN ZERO, ST. ELMO’S FIRE, GARDEN STATE, BEAUTIFUL GIRLS and THE BIG CHILL, this feature film bears the impressive ingredients for an unforgettable movie experience, with an urgent heart, a reckless sense of humor, a vibrant and moving soundtrack, and certainly a clear thirst for redemption and meaning in an uncertain world.

A couple of our leading men.
The Details

Our film was one made of passion and an indie level budget, so we are looking for songwriters who are willing to contribute generously their talents to our story. And while we are a small engine that could, we were fortunate enough to have some amazing and accomplished talent work on our film including the likes of Rex Lee (Entourage) and Tzi Ma (Rush Hour, 24). This is our director, Nadine Truong’s feature directorial debut and as a recent graduate of the American Film Institute, she has been billed as one to watch. : )

Speaking of watch, here’s something to help inspire you to see what may work for NDB - please check out this test trailer:


This isn’t actual footage from the film, but it will hopefully give you some direction and flavor as to what NDB is about. We don’t have any restrictions with regards to genre of music, lyrics, anything. Give us what you think could work well with a story about friendship, catharsis, partying, love, laughter, tears, loss, burden, night, dreams, and the blues.

While we can’t promise you the stars, we can promise you that your music will be an instrumental part of the ride that will help us to frame a story that we are extremely proud to eventually share with the world. Who knows, if things go well, we may make a soundtrack album out of it yet. Music definitely matters here so we are really looking to showcase your work.

And, just to further entice you talented singer/songwriters, if your work is picked, not only will your band be invited to any screenings we may have in your area, but if you are ever in the Los Angeles area, our director will do a photoshoot with you and your band for your own promo art and to top it off, for one lucky band, we will shoot and produce a music video for the film in LA or NYC with your song we use. (Sorry, we cannot transport you out or house you, so if don’t live in these areas, get there and we’ll make it worth your while!)

So, send us your sounds with a cover email to: info@408films.com. We’re eager to hear them. There is no hard deadline, but let's say by the end of this year, and the sooner the better. If it spills a little over into 2012, we forgive you. You create music from the heart to share with the world and we made a film to do the same. Let’s share our art together!

Sincerely,

The NDB Team
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Keep your eye on this one. She's going places.