29. April 2009 by admin.

Our adventure into the short script Chemical 12-D has officially begun at a fast pace.  David Wagenaar (my D.P/ producer) and I have decided to make this our most complete project thus far and make it something we can really show around to a lot of people and get into some fests.  David has some auditions to do tomorrow as I will be in Gurnee in a business meeting in order to try to build this movie a budget.  It is an exciting time right now and I hope things go accordingly (however I shouldn’t plan it because we are talking about making a movie).

So I will keep you all updated on the events that unfold to making this movie.  Currently, as of today, we are in figuring out which rental house to get our equipment from (we aren’t giving away what we’re renting, we rather have everyone surprised by the images) and we are also getting insurance for the film (another 1st for Water Cooler Productions).  As I said, David will be doing some auditioning tomorrow as I will be story boarding the rest of the short that I haven’t already done.  You should all be expecting a bit of a difference from our other shorts with this one partially because it is our first legit short horror film and also because of how I am changing my style of direction a bit.  I will keep you all updated.

-Mac Eldridge

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27. April 2009 by admin.

I just got back from wrapping on Messiah!  I can’t tell you how happy (and yet sad) I am to see that movie get finished.  As I said in a previous blog, it was something that I have taken on since late December to make sure it gets finished. And, as we wrapped today on the last insert we needed, I was a bit bummed.  I worked with some great actors and added some great crew to Water Cooler Productions because of this production and it really sucks to say we wrapped on the project.  However, I am so relieved to get it done because we have been shooting since the first week of February and because of scheduling, it took this long to get it done.  Anyway, I am pumped yet sad to see the production wrap but I am so happy to announce our next project:

Messiah II: Come Again?

Just fucking with you.  In all seriousness it will be the zombie film I wrote Chemical 12-D and it will star a whole cast that I have never worked with.  That is only because I wrote roles for ages that we have never worked with.  Hopefully we’ll take the next step up picture wise and it is something that is totally for internet/ film fest type of thing.  I’ll keep you updated on that and when Messiah will get an official release date (we are hoping for May 10th still, mind you).  Thanks to everyone who made this great production happen (even Billy).

 -Mac Eldridge

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26. April 2009 by admin.

The title of this blog is a little deceiving.

I am a big fucking fan of the guy since I first saw Slither opening weekend.  It is a movie I have grown to love even more since it’s release and I think it’s one of those movies that will never get as much praise as it should.  His PG-Porn stuff is also funny shit and man, who doesn’t love Scooby Doo?

Anyway, he is one of the few people who have a message board on his site where he has a forum dedicated to Q and A.  I was surprised by this and checked it out.  To my surprise, he actually answers every fucking question that goes up there!  I was stunned by how dedicated to the site he is and I was also surprised he has time to answer all of the questions due to the amount of series he has his hands in currently.  So, I decided to sign up to his webpage and ask him a question just to ask him a question.  I have provided the conversation below just for fellow up and coming film makers who are interested in the “pitching” proccess and what internships are all about in L.A.  I am relatively sure the conversation is now over so I am pasting it as far as it has gone.  If anything else happens, I’ll update my blog with what he says.  Its some pretty intersting shit.

___

Me:

Mr. Gunn,

Hello, my name is Mac Eldridge and I attend DePaul University majoring in cinema. To cut to the chase, I remember you saying you don’t have too much experience in finding agents and such like that as they had came to you. However, I am assuming you had to pitch the idea of Slither to the studio execs at Universal. If this is the case, I was wondering how you as the writer and director pitched the project to them. What did you have to show them and what did you do to get people in on the project and give you money to make Slither?. I have an interview/ pitch to a local production team to direct their full feature and the best thing I can think of is show them some of my past work and essentially just sell myself. Can you offer any better advice? I appreciate and thank you for your time. I hope to eventually collaborate with you one day.

Mac Eldridge

 JG:

Hey Mac -

No, I never pitched the idea of SLiTHER to anyone. I wrote the script on my own, and my agents sent it out on a Thursday night. But Friday morning, I had two places that wanted to make it, and I decided to go with Gold Circle/Universal.

However, I’ve had to do a LOT of pitches — but they’ve always been script pitches. I’ve never had to pitch myself as a director because I’ve only been attached to direct stuff I had written or was going to write (Slither, Pets, Belcoo, Super, essentially).

I’m guessing you’re just pitching yourself as a director. In that case, you need to show them your other work — that will likely be 80% of them deciding whether they want you or not, so remember that. After that, they mostly will want to see you as an intelligent, strong person whom they can trust. And, finally, you’ll want to describe to them accurately how you see the movie — what’s the tone, the shooting style, the color palette. Compare it to other films (and only other films that are extremely successful). If they like you’re work, your take, and you come off as competent, you stand a good chance of getting they job.

If you’re pitching them a script idea, it’s a completely different story. If you are, let me know, and I’ll give you that (Linda, try and leave this unlocked).

Me:

As I am not an arrogant ass, I know what I am good at and I am not a strong screenwriter. So, no, I never tried to pitch a script that I wrote beyond the confines of submitting a production packet where I wasn’t able to talk to the exec. producers of the project… It would seem as if getting an agent is my number one goal then based off of your response. I know how to talk to people but I enjoy the idea of someone else selling me and what I do. If you don’t mind me starting another question in this thread, can I ask how exactly did you get agents to come to you? Did you create a short film or script that sent shock waves through agencies?

JG:

First, you will ALWAYS need to sell yourself, no matter what. It’s a talent to cultivate. Talented people have lost good gigs to some doof who knows how to talk the talk many times — every day in fact.

As far as the agencies, yes, I wrote a script that acted virally. I gave it to some people who weren’t even in the industry, who gave it to others, than others, and so on, until I have all the major agencies trying to get me to sign. All you have to do is one really good thing. I, like most screenwriters, agents, and even screenwriting books (I just read it in SAVE THE CAT recently) think that the great, undiscovered screenplay is largely a myth. People are dying to find good screenplays, as they’re difficult to come by (and difficult to write).

All of the above could also be said about short films, too.

I also have to say I don’t really know what a “production packet” is. I get a lot of questions from people who are talking to people about making a film, and I don’t really understand who they’re talking to. Things are generally very simple. There are two ways to sell a script: you either write a spec script, send it out and sell it, or you go somewhere and pitch it, and you sell it. (For instance, I get a lot of questions about sending treatments to people — I’m sure it exists, but I don’t personally know a single person who has sold a script based on a synopsis or treatment. It’s always through a pitch or finished script.)

To get hired as a director, you have to take a meeting about a script, describe what you want to do with it, and get hired, or you get attached to it beforehand because you have a track record as a director (generally doesn’t happen with newby directors).

When I hear something that doesn’t fit into that system, then I wonder if there’s something else going on. Is there a “producer” who really doesn’t know what the fuck he or she is doing? Is there some mis-perception on the part of the writer or director? I really am not sure.

This is a good thread, Mac. If you have more questions, post them here.

Me:

I’ve assembled a production packet a few times to bring to meetings with me to show I did my homework on what I want to do. Generally, I bring the script that I made my notes in to go over everything, I bring some of my story boards, and, after hearing how Robert Rodriguez got Frank Miller to let him make Sin City, I try to shoot a small scene to show exactly what I want to do. It always works out as a “leave behind.” I guess what I try to do with all the shit I bring is to show I’m a responsible guy who has his life indulged in the project I am getting attached to. Sadly, I haven’t had the opportunity (partly due to my young age of 20 and partly due to the fact I live in Chicago, not LA) to really try to pitch my directing abilities and myself to anyone bigger than a small production team.

Since you’re letting me ask more questions, I want to ask about internships. If I remember correctly, I believe you started at Troma with an internship and ended up writing Tromeo and Juliet. If this is true, how did you get your internship? I want to get out to LA as soon as this summer to get out there and start making connections. Can you offer any advice on this?

Oh, and I read SAVE THE CAT last year for a screenwriting class. Good read, I don’t know how you feel about such tight structure like that, but it works for me whenever I have to write something.

JG:

No, I was never an intern at Troma. I was hired to write TROMEO & JULIET (for 150 bucks), and then was hired to be the head of production at Troma. My brother’s boss, a programmer at Cinemax, helped me to get an interview, and that’s how I got the writing job initially.

I don’t know how much things have changed in almost 15 years, but if you had a good resume that made you look intelligent, and you were willing to work for absolutely free, you had a chance at an internship. It’s difficult work, but I think it’s well worth it.

When you get out to L.A., just let everyone you know you’re willing to work for free. There’s a good chance you can get an internship somewhere. Internships are vastly undervalued in comparison to film school, but they give you the ability to actually be inside the business, see what it’s like, see if it’s actually for you - even if you’re just handing out mail or stacking boxes or making people’s phone calls.

I was just looking over STC - I didn’t read the whole thing, but plan on it. Even today, I think there’s little things I can pick up from a book like that, even if I don’t agree with most of it or some of it.

You’re 20. Be willing to take your time and sow your seeds. I know you’ll hate to hear what I have to say next, just like I did when someone said it to me, but you have to be willing to wait ten years to really do what you want. It might take less time then that, who knows. But people willing to really put in the time and effort are usually the people who make it. You seem to have a good start, just keep moving forward, one step at a time.

Me:

Being 20 I could not say how much things have changed since you were around my age. However, after speaking to a few people out in L.A, it seems that things have to had change a little bit. I say that because I sent my resume to someone who runs a production team in L.A so he can hand it off to get me on set as a P.A of a big production and he said my resume would do me no good. He stressed to me it was about who I knew and resumes won’t help anyone. Now, he could be wrong and totally off the wall but I found that to ring true. Regardless, I am ready to be poor for the next ten years (or even longer) and do anything to make things work out. I don’t really have any other general questions that I can ask you on here but thanks for your time. I really appreciate the detailed answers you provided and I thank you for all of the advice. I’m confident we’ll meet sometime down the road again (I met you at the Fangoria convention in Chicago when you were promoting Slither).

Oh, and I can see why you would disagree with some things in SAVE THE CAT. Its a template as to how to write a script but, for people like me who enjoy creating order within chaos, I dug it and what it was saying.

____

So, there you have it.  Just thought I’d share it with everyone because I think its a pretty cool thing for someone to talk to his fans, thats all.

-Mac Eldridge

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25. April 2009 by admin.

I have finally had to give up on getting my 16MM/HD project made.  It was a project that I really believed in but in the end, if I am unsure about something, I won’t do it.  In this project’s case, it was budget and I won’t get people involved and waste more time than they already have.  What will happen now is the writer and I will work together and make the script stronger and better until we have something amazing and will try our best to film it next fall.  I can’t really blame anyone in the project not coming to life as it was just a bad time to try to make our most expensive film.  I feel bad for having people spend time on essentially nothing however the project will eventually be done because it is something I truly believe in.

So what is next for Water Cooler Productions?  Well, we got a few things happening with crew members outside of Water Cooler Productions and we have a few things happening in association with other production teams throughout Chicago.  For one, I am trying to get myself attached to direct my first feature and I can’t say much beside that.  I’ll keep you all updated if anything transpires with that.  Also, we got a zombie film I wrote being produced right now called Chemical 12-D.  It is a script I’m starting to believe in more and more.  Outside of a few other small projects, we are doing some commercials and stuff for a few businesses throughout Chicago.  Keep in touch with us so we can update you all on what is going on.

-Mac Eldridge

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23. April 2009 by admin.

I was offered to do Messiah after Bob Sandoval (writer of Such As It Ends) and Billy Bitterman (writer of Messiah) watched one of the last cuts for Such As It Ends.  As we headed outside for Bob to smoke in the zero degree weather, Billy approached me to ask if I wanted to direct Messiah.  Being that we tried to shoot it twice previously in which both productions failed (once under Billy’s direction and once under mine) I jumped at the chance to do it.  That night around 2AM Billy sent me the draft of Messiah that hadn’t been touched for roughly a year and a half.

The first weekend in Janruary we had our auditions and had a cast by the end of that weekend.  Then, we moved forward with pre produciton as I started my storyboarding among securing shooting locations, creating production schedules, securing rehearsals, obtaining catering, and reserving equipment.  Director of photography David Wagenaar and I then discussed shooting HD.  After agreeing to shoot our first HD project,  I contacted friend of mine Jeremy Truelove so we can shoot how we envisioned it.  After working on pre-production throughout the month of January we started shooting the first weekend of February with Tommy Culhane.  Things went great as we were all pumped to be shooting a script waiting to be shot for so long and also because we were shooting HD.  Suddenly, we were shooting what felt like a feature film as we shot for three weeks straight with some smooth points and some rough points.  Regardless, after the last weekend in February, we were basically done with principal photography of Messiah.

Then, because of awful scheduling conflicts, we shot pick ups and missed shots for two months that were roughly 3 days of reshoots.  And Sunday will be the last day of prinicipal photography for the most ambitious project Water Cooler Productions have ever produced. 

I am happy the movie is getting done because of how slow pick ups went on for but I am upset it is ending because I love working with my crew and (most) of the actors I work with.  Maybe that is why I am always getting projects produced and shot; not because I am a workaholic, but maybe because I love working with my friends and working with (most) of the actors.  I am leaving this production with a lot more knowledge and experience under my belt and I can only hope my next two projects get better and better because of this (long) short film that turned into a web series.  I hope it gets Water Cooler Productions a bit more recongiton along with the crew members and I hope it gets us more people and businesses who want to work with us.  Most importantly, I hope people enjoy it just as much (and even more) than I do.  We had great people work on the project and I want people to know how good they are at that job and I sincerly mean that about both the crew and the actors.  We did a production that was daunting and we came out on top.  I hope we can get better from here on out and produce even higher quality shit. 

As we wrap this Sunday, the crew will clap for Tommy Culhane as he finishes the final bit of acting for the movie, but I can only hope they clap for themselves just as loudly and feel just as accomplished.  

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21. April 2009 by admin.

I’m not really sure what to do when I have nothing to really update on.  I enjoy blogging so I make myself write regardless of what is going on at Water Cooler Productions.  So, as when I come into some means of desperation for entertainment, I resort to my OCD: making lists.

 Top 5 Horror Films of All Time:

 Alien

Halloween

Night of the Living Dead

The Thing

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

As of right now, I have a feeling that it will change soon due to the fact that this is a rough list.  I gotta think more about it when I get time to sit down and think (like in class).  The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is an excellent film it is just I feel like there is something else that I have seen that effected the way I want to make movies more than that.  I’ll get back with this list eventually.  And I know everyone is going to ask me “Why did you put Night of the Living Dead above Dawn of the Dead? Dawn is so much better!” To put it quite simply, Dawn of the Dead is far less of a horror movie than it is an action movie.  Night of the Living Dead is more of a horror film and Romero effected not only the indepdent film genre with Night, but he also changed the landscape of cinema with that movie.  I can only imagine within the next few days I will come with a movie that is a bit more influential to me to fit that number 5 spot.  I was possibly thinking The Shining or even a brand new one, Funny Games.  Those are two films that really impacted me as well.  It is just hard for me to put Funny Games up on the top 5 because its not a movie I really want to pick up and watch again and again.

If I have no news to report tomorrow, then expect another list.  How about top 5 Bond movies of all time?

-Mac Eldridge

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19. April 2009 by admin.

Hey all,

I am not sure if any of you track the box office numbers or at least checks up on them like myself.  Personally, I feel like it is my job to see how the industry is doing being this is a business I am hoping to be a pivotal part of.  Also, I am a somewhat business orientated man and  believe the box office is just as important as any other aspect in cinema.  I fully believe the medium of film is an art and it should be seen as that however I am very aware that film is also a business am if I don’t understand that then I am only setting myself up for failure.  Sorry, I am starting to distant myself from what I was going to say.  Last week (Sunday or Monday I believe) I put down a little factoid at the the end of my blog that went a little something like this;

#1 at the box office last week: Fast and Furious

#1 at the box office this week: Hannah Montana: The Movie (brilliant title right?)

I said that to scare all of you and show you how fucking terrible the movies that are coming out right now are.  Well, all I can say this week is fuck because of what is projected (I am only saying projected politically because the box office numbers aren’t finalized) to come in at #1 at the box office.  The film 17 Again will be #1 at the box office for this week making it three weeks in a row a shit film has taken number one at the box office.  As humorous as this is to me, it is just as disgusting at the same time.  One can make the argument that this is the 4th shit movie in a row to be #1 at the box office (I am now talking about Monsters Vs. Aliens) but I would have to disagree.  Sure, some of the jokes sucked in the film but its not Fast and Furious or 17 Again bad.  I mean, those are fucking terrible films and  Monsters Vs. Aliens isn’t that bad.

We’re in another week of trouble next Friday.  We have two awful films coming out next week by the name of Obsessed and Fighting (perhaps studio execs decided to release two films with the most blunt and obnoxiously boring titles to battle it out one weekend) that will most likely be battling it out for first place.  The Soloist (another pretty fucking boring title) will be released next Friday as well but due to less advertisement and the typical ‘rags to riches’ drama, I cannot see it doing better than coming in at 4th or even 5th.  What could be a surprise next week is the release of Disney’s documentary Earth (dear fuck!  Another dry and boring title!  That is four in one week!).  I say it could be a surprise because I don’t see it coming in at #1 or #2 but, it is Disney, and they can make it happen.

Sorry I don’t have any updates on any projects.  We’re going through the boring meetings of pre production but soon enough I’ll be able to blog about whatever project we are doing fist (which actually, looks like it will be the zombie short Chemical 12-D).  Take care guys.

-Mac Eldridge

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17. April 2009 by admin.

Tomorrow is a big day for the upcoming web series Messiah.  Sound designer Rob Davis and I will be recording the voice over and post-sound work for the first webisode that stars Jake Perry and co-stars Nathan Polzin.  After the studio session is over tomorrow, the webisode gets a final trimming and then it is off to Rob Davis for post-sound mixing and scoring.  This is an exciting time and if all goes accordingly, the first webisode of Messiah will be coming online May 10th with the other 2 episodes following every Sunday.  We are planning on releasing the webisodes each Sunday at 6:30 and hoping to garner roughly around 1,000 views for each episode.  I am asking all of you to help us out by spreading the webisode around to your friends via facebook, myspace, or any other form of communication.

As for an update on future projects, it seems Water Cooler Productions may have an extremly busy May-June as we will be trying to produce two new 5 minute shorts.  The first that will be shot (most likely) is a short zombie script I wrote called Chemical 12-D.  Its a short 5-minute zombie flick that could be a lot of fun to shoot and could be a calling card for future horror film projects not funded by myself.  Also, the other one that I have been talking about (the 16MM/HD project) seems like it will be shot the last weekend of May to early June.  We are going through a casting session tomorrow so pre-production has officially started. 

I can’t wait to tell you guys about the updates.  Take it easy.

-Mac Eldridge

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15. April 2009 by admin.

I found out I wanted to be a director because I enjoyed working on the visual aspects of a project as well as crafting a performance and building a relationship with my actors.  I love the process still and I am finding out more and more tricks to becoming the best director I can possibly be.  And, as many indepdent film makers can attest to, I have worn many other hats to make sure a movie gets made.  I have been a screenwriter, an editor, a boom operator, a camera operator, a set designer, I did special effects before, and I’ve location scouted before among some other things my migraine currently won’t allow me to think of.  But the biggest job I have done next to directing is producing my own movies, and oh my God do I hate it.  No, fuck that, I loathe producing and directing at the same time.

I don’t have an issue with producers or what they do.  God, for having to do it myself I have nothing but respect for them.  But I can’t do it, or I at least feel like I can’t do it.  So far every production that I have directed I have had to assemble a crew, get a budget set, raise a budget, create a production schedule, and the list goes on.  Well, for this 16MM/HD project I am trying to get done, I feel like I can’t do it anymore.  This project will be our biggest project (although it runs only 5 pages) because we will be having a film crew and a digital crew.  On top of that, casting is getting bigger because of the amount of characters we need.  With all of this, I feel like I can’t fully engage in directing when I have a hundred things to take care of on set.

So, I think my biggest key additions to this film is getting a producer (can’t release the name QUITE yet), a casting director (Allison Nosek), a set designer (two people are fighting it out for this), a location manager (Quinn Wilson), and an AD (two canidates up for that position as well).  With all of these people helping out my work load, I feel like I can concentrate on directing and make this as strong of a movie as my directing abilities allow me to.  I think by about Saturday I will have everything solid and figured out.  I will make sure to keep you all updated

- Mac Eldridge

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13. April 2009 by admin.

If people couldn’t tell, I was pretty upset when I wrote the last blog.

There was this terrible thing going on where nothing was going the way I had hoped.  Well, thankfully since then, I have recieved phone calls, emails, and also am on track on getting a producer.  It would seem as if things might get good now and things might end up working out for a few projects.  However, I do think I want to start running ‘quiet sets’ so things could go a bit smoother.  We’ll see what happens.

Other than that, I don’t have too much to update on.  I will leave you all with some depressing stats about the last two weeks:

#1 at the box office last weekend: Fast and Furious

#1 at the box office this weekend: Hannah Montana: The Movie

Best of luck sleeping tonight.

- Mac Eldridge

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