And Now Introducing...

Since last we checked in, a number of newcomers have jumped aboard the "Paradise" production team, which is filling out quite nicely. Here they are, talented folks, all:


Nick French, a fellow Thesis student, extremely talented and dedicated filmmaker, and close friend, has agreed to join the crew as our key grip (for those of you that are film illiterate and have always scratched your head when seeing this credit scroll by, it basically means he'll be in charge of lighting). Both John and I served diligently, if at times deliriously, on Nick's shoot this past weekend, and are thrilled to see how "Don't Let Me Fall" turns out. Check out the teaser trailer for his last directorial effort, "Dysfunctional," on Youtube.


Scott Fowler, another Thesis student/great friend combination, has agreed (as of thirty seconds ago) to be Assistant Director for the film. He's also workin' on a slick-sounding character-driven chamber piece about "two guys, a girl, and another girl" that we're excited to assist with in whatever capacity he'll have us for!


Mikey Heller, a very funny and talented comic artist and television-radio Junior at Ithaca, has tentatively agreed to collaborate with us on a brief animated sequence for the film's opening credits. Check out some of Mikey's work at http://timetrabble.com/


And last but not least, we have one more cast member to introduce: Josh Turk as Fred Lancaster

In addition to all this jazz, I received the aforementioned prop t-shirt in the mail today, and it looks great.

Cheers,
Bryan

You Gotta Have Style

Though I've hinted in sometimes convoluted language about the general sort of tone we're shooting for with 'Jimmy Paradise,' nothing states a case like some moving pictures. Here's a few brief scenes from movies that were on the mind during writing.


A brief sequence from last year's Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, directed by Edgar Wright.


A montage from Wes Anderson's 1998 film, Rushmore.

Both of these capture the rapid, whimsical sort of comedic tone and pacing I hope our film will feature.

Progress is Progress

Things are starting to come together. This week we made several steps toward preparing ourselves for production, including firming up the cast, reserving equipment, securing locations, and spendin' some cash.

As for that last little detail, thanks to the fine folks (you know who you are) who donated through IndieGoGo, we were able to begin paying for some integral props (most notably a few customized t-shirts whose content I won't spoil until the movie's screened). I also passed the test to become certified on the Aaton XTR film camera, for which we will be shooting a few select scenes at the beginning and end of the movie. This, of course, also meant purchasing some B&W and color film, which we managed to get a really good deal on through the Kodak Education Store online.

Also wanted to take the opportunity to formally announce the participation of a few people in the production who haven't necessarily been mentioned by name.


David Reynolds, a close friend and frequent collaborator will be our Director of Photography, as well as a producer. Dave shot John's ACP: Fiction film, Lucky Penny, in the fall of 2009, and mine, The Watcher, this past November. To my knowledge, he doesn't have a DP Reel available online, but is experienced with the camera and equipment involved, and we're pumped to have someone we trust handling that responsibility.


Mike Ladouceur, an Ithaca College music student, has agreed to collaborate with us to compose some music for the film. He's done some great work in the past year on a couple of other student films, some samples of which can be found on his website at http://mladouceurmusic.com/Mike_Ladouceur_Music/Home.html

More updates as they come!

Meet the Cast

After a successful casting call two weekends ago, I can now proudly announce that our cast is very close to complete. While we are still securing a handful of brief, cameo-length roles, the core cast of four roommates are all locked in. John and I are both very excited to be working with all four of them, because they're all pretty awesome.

They are:

Dave Travers as Jimmy Paradise

Andrew Stone as Calvin Spritzer

Bonnie Lawrence as Emma Bugg

and George Chammas as Max Gibbles

All are gonna knock it out of the park. We'll be holding rehearsals sporadically over the next couple of weeks, to help develop the chemistry between the four roommates that lends the film its energy and emotion. Stay tuned.

Reference Points

When writing the 'Jimmy Paradise' script last semester, I had a bunch of semi to blatant touchstones for what I imagined the eventual tone and style would be. Mainly for kicks, but also to help nail those down for myself and our Director of Photography, I made up a few little collages with screenshots from films that influenced my thought process in some way while writing.

In other words, I'm gonna be consciously stealing the stuff that made these images/films/moments/whatever so powerful for me personally. Feast 'yer eyes:

Eternally Grateful

"Wow."

It was only a week and a half ago that we launched our fundraising efforts through IndieGoGo. After setting the monetary goal at $1,000 dollars, I waffled for a while over how long to leave the campaign - would two months even be enough? Well, shows what I know. Each day over the last week and a half I'd check in on the site, and each time I'd witness the kindness and generosity of others willing to donate towards our project.

I'm happy to announce that as of this past Sunday, we have officially reached our fundraising goal of $1,000 (and then some), with a grand total of $1,220! Looking at that figure still floors me, and now the ball is firmly in our court, to make good on your vows of confidence.

For all those of you who donated, shared the project on Facebook, or even just told somebody about it and helped get the word out there, we cannot thank you enough. We're in the thick of pre-production now, and are putting all of ourselves into this film, to make it the best it can be for ourselves, our hopefully future employers, and now, all of you.

Over the next couple of weeks, I'll post regular updates regarding the continued development of our film, including Cast and Crew profiles, photos, and assorted other inspirational oddities that relate to the project in some way. I'll also continue to spruce up the blog's structure - I'm still feeling out the blogger system.

Stay Tuned,
Bryan

THANK YOU, Robert Cwiklik & Julie Sochalski!

John and I would like to extend our deepest gratification and thanks to Robert Cwiklik & Julie Sochalski for their generous donation! They did not wish to have the specific amount known, but their contribution will go a long way towards the success of the film.

Thank you for helping us reach our goal!
Bryan