For the Record Critical Reflection

Now that you've seen the piece, listen to how it came to be.

For the Record

Well folks, here it is. I hope you enjoy.

Acting or: How I Ended Up Being in Front of the Camera

Scheduling's a bitch, that's all I can say. Scheduling the shoot at Radio Active Records has been a pain in my side since day one. Between their limited schedule, my work schedule, our actress's Spring Break plans, and our actor's shifting parental custody, I wasn't completely sure that we would be filming until about five hours before we did so. And then my lead actor said he couldn't make it.

After some thinking I came to the conclusion that I would need to star in the movie, and have Alex direct. More on that next time.

Location Scouting or: How I Will Be Bartering With Mike in Five Hours

When I first wrote my script, I had a very particular location in mind: Revolution Live in Fort Lauderdale. It was perfect; it had multiple levels, cool lighting, stair, a couple of bars. The only problem was getting permission to film there.

Revolution Live

After numerous emails and phone calls went unanswered, I got the message. I had to start looking for a new venue. After contacting multiple local clubs and music venues, I got a few responses. The only problem was that they all wanted some kind of financial reimbursement. I understand why they want money, and to be honest they deserve it, but the problem is I simply cant afford it. I'm a high school student, and even though I work two jobs, I cant afford to pay $1,000 to make a project. I was out of options, so I had to change my script.

At first I considered setting it in a deli or convenience store, as I know people who would let me use their stores for free. But this idea seemed a little to close to "Clerks" for me to be comfortable.

I decided that the only way to cheer myself up was a trip to my local record store, Radio Active Records. So I drove out there and started flipping through the new arrivals (I ended up leaving with the Sleater-Kinney's "No Cities to Love" and Dinosaur Jr.'s "Dinosaur"). When I went to check out, I looked around the store, and it clicked. The open floor-plan and cool aesthetic of the store would be perfect for my film.

Radio Active Records

This gave me two problems:

1. I would still need to get permission to use the space
2. I would need to change my script so the new setting works

The second one wouldn't be that much of a problem. The opening scene could take place in any business, and the later scenes could be modified later. The first problem was the major one. So the next day I went to class and started working on an email. But not just any email, I was working on the most persuasive email ever written. This email would be so good, the owner of Radio Active (who is named Mike) would pay me to film in his store.

Well, it didn't quite end like that. The next day I got a call from Mike. He told me he had had people film in his tore, but had always charged them ($500 for friends, $1,000 for everyone else). Prepared for failure, I readied my "well thank you for your time," but then he told me something wonderful. He said that because we were high school students, he would let us film in his store in exchange for us doing something to promote it at our school. This was his form of bartering. 

So we arranged a meeting (6 pm today), and will be discussing specifics soon. Hopefully I can get the space without selling my soul.

Casting or: How I Realized My "Final Draft" Needed a Serious Re-Write

Allow me to set the scene: My self and my male lead Paul Prezzemolo are sitting in our school's auditorium a few minutes after school let out. A week prior I had sent everyone involved with the project the final draft of the script.

The first girl (Val) comes in and auditions. While she does a good job (her blocking was off, but she memorized the script), I felt terribly. As each subsequent audition came and went, my confidence kept slipping. Not because of the competence of the actresses, but because of my writing. It wasn't until I heard my words coming out of an actor's mouth that I realized my dialogue was completely unnatural.

Paul and Val Auditioning

The only time my words seemed like a real conversation was when the actors screwed up. This gave me two options: either make the script more of a loose guideline rather than a strict set of rules, or write a bunch of "um"s, "ah"s, and "like"s. 

Paul and Gillian Auditioning

I chose to try both. I will add as many natural filler words as it takes to naturalize the script. Once I've gotten the film cast, I'll do table reads with both the modified and the original script. Whichever feels and sounds better will be the one that I'll use. The only problem with the loose ad lib style would be logistics, as I hope to do the entire opening as a long take. Having a two minute take in which every single second is not planned out will make the filming process extremely difficult. I guess I'll cross that bridge when we come to it. For now I just need to schedule one last audition, cast the roles, and get permission to film in  my desired location. Easier said than done.

Writing or: How I Accidentally Made My First Title a Dick Joke

Three Feet of Oak.

That was my first title for the film. It was perfect. Because my film is to focus mainly on a bartender, it was the perfect double entendre: three feet of oak separated him from the customers not only physically, but emotionally. I then told my friend about it, and I learned it was actually a triple entendre.

Apparently, in the minds of some immature high schoolers, my genius title was actually a joke about the length of our hero's genitalia. Naturally, I could not send a dick joke to Cambridge, even if it was unintentional. I needed a new title, and I needed it fast.

So I sat down with pen and paper a scrawled off a list of titles while my psychology teacher prattled on about something I probably already knew. I though of some of thr tropes of recent movie titles; many of them are one word descriptors of the film.

Boyhood

Interstellar

Selma

Some had titles that were long and somewhat convoluted.

Birdman or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

And then others were names of the main protagonist/antagonist.

Thor

Maleficent

Godzilla

So with this in mind, I made my list:

• Bar
• Venue
• Live
• Stage
• The Boredom and Interest of Bar-tending
• Following the Weirdos
• The Wonderful, Awful, Sleep-Deprived Life
• Dominic

And then it came to me: Raspberry Vignette.

A title even better than "Three Feet of Oak," it worked on so many levels. My movie will be a series of vignettes; the characters are sweet yet somewhat sour, much like raspberries; like a vinaigrette, my vignettes are loosely held together by a common thread.

I'm happy with my new title, but I am sad that a few dirty birds ruined my original plan.

UPDATE

Upon further reflection and thought, we have changed the name to "For the Record," as the film now takes place in a record store.

Writing or: How I Became Indebted to WriterDuet.com

I'm going to keep this post short and sweet.

I chose to write my script using the website WriterDuet.com, and I cannot recommend the service enough.

It allows two people to work on the same script at once, it saves everything in the cloud, it lets me save everything as a PDF. I can even annotate my script and even dictate it. But best of all, everything is auto-formatted; characters, dialogue, actions, scenes, shots. everything is formatted to look perfect and professional.

This is what my formatted script looks like

Even better than that, the basic version is free. I really, truly can't recommend WriterDuet.com enough.