THE EDINBURGH FILM FESTIVAL 2012

Universal
Univer
sal Film

Lovely Molly | Never To Late | The 99 | Tondor Beloved | Days of Flowers

ISSUE 3 OF 2012

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The only free film & festival magazine in the world

RED TAILS

FILMMAKERS
BLACKLISTED BY FILM FESTIVALS

BRAVE

killer joe

Matthew McConaughey

HOPE SPRINGS

FILM AND FESTIVAL NEWS AND REVIEWS FROM INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS THE WORLD OVER

Issue 3 of 2012

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Contents
FEATURED STORIES:

11

SALT GRABBERS
Director Jon Wrights film Salt Grabbers at
the Edinburgh Film Festival 2012

TO LATE
19 NEVER
Writer & Director: Ido Fluks film Never too

Late at the Edinburgh Film Festival 2012

Red Tails P.3

DAYS OF FLOWERS
21 BAFTA
winning Director John Roberts new film

Days of Flowers at Edinburgh Film Festival

23 VILLAINS
Interview with Director Robbie Mofat about
his new film Villains
GATTU

33 Produced by Childrens Film Society, India (CFSI)

and directed by Rajan Khosa at Edinburgh 2012
LOVELY MOLLY
37 Eduardo
Sanchez carries on the horror genre

he pioneered with The Blair Witch Project

PLANET OF SNAIL
41 New
film from Seung-Jun Yi one of Koreas

Disney/Pixar: Brave

P.7

emerging directors

43

THE FILM FESTIVALS THAT ARE

BLACKLISTING FILMMAKERS
Is a Film Festival Organizers group on Facebook
blacklisting filmmakers?

OF METHOD ACTING
53 PSYCHOLOGY
Part 2 of Penny Nobles close examination on

the psychological effects of Method acting

ELEMENTS TO PR
65 3Danielle
Freedman writes about the three ele-

ments to PR for your film.

MOON MONTLY HOROSCOPE
67 ZOE
Celebrity astrologist Zoe Moon gives her

monthly horoscope to UFM readers

Killer Joe P.27

ONLINE FILM DISTRIBUTION

71 An interesting look at online distribution by

Robert Licursi, COO MediaGrinder, Inc
GILBERTS MONTHLY COLUMN
73 RON
Actor, producer and journalist Ron Gilbert

writes about his exploits around the World

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g g

P.43

Blacklisted Films

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Red Tails is produced by Lucasfilm and released

by 20th Century Fox.The film is a fictionalized
portrayal of the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of
African American United States Army Air Force
(USAAF) servicemen during World War II

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Universal Film

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Issue 3 of 2012

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Red Tails was directed by Anthony Hemingway from a screenplay by John Ridley,
with additional material shot the following
year with executive producer George Lucas
as director and Aaron McGruder as writer
of the reshoots.
Red Tails is the first Lucasfilm production
since the 1994 film Radioland Murders
that is not associated with the Indiana
Jones or Star Wars franchises. The film
stars Cuba Gooding, Jr. (who previously
starred in The Tuskegee Airmen, an HBO
made-for-television film about the same
group of pilots) in his first theatrical film in
five years, and Terrence Howard (who had
also portrayed a Tuskegee pilot in Harts
War).
Plot
In 1944, after enduring racism throughout their recruitment and training in the
Tuskegee training program, the 332d
Fighter Group of young African American
USAAF fighter pilots are finally sent into
combat in Italy, although flying worn-out
Curtiss P-40 Warhawk aircraft. Chafing at
their ground attack missions against trains
and enemy ground transport, the Tuskegee Airmen recognize that they may never
fight the Luftwae in fighter-to-fighter
combat. The tight-knit group of Joe Lightning Little (David Oyelowo), Martin Easy
Julian (Nate Parker), Ray Ray Gun or Junior Gannon (Tristan Wilds), and Samuel
Joker George (Elijah Kelley) under the
guidance of Major Emanuel Stance (Cuba
Gooding, Jr.) and Col. A.J. Bullard (Terrence
Howard), face a white military bureaucracy
still resistant to accepting black flyers as
equals.
Strife develops between roommates and

best friends, Easy and Lightning, each of

whom are battling their own inner demons; Lightning is a hot-headed and reckless pilot who takes too many risks, while
Easy is an alcoholic prone to self doubt.
After returning to base from a mission,
Lightning spies a pretty Italian girl named
Sofia (Daniela Ruah), becomes instantly infatuated with her, and starts a relationship.
Meanwhile, Stance is able to secure a
chance to light up the board when the
Tuskegee Airmen are chosen to support
the allied landings at Anzio, Italy known
as Operation Shingle. There, they battle
Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters led by a
German ace pilot they nickname, Pretty
Boy (Lars van Riesen), scoring their first
aerial victories over the enemy, as well as
destroying a German airfield. However, Ray
Gun is injured during the battle and suers
impaired vision in one of his eyes. Ray Gun
begs Easy to keep him on the flight roster
who ultimately relents and allows him to
keep flying.
Bullard is then approached by the USAAF
Bomber Command, who are impressed
with the Tuskegee Airmens performance
and ask him to use his fighters as Boeing
B-17 Flying Fortress bomber escorts due
to unacceptably high casualties among
bomber crews. Bullard accepts on the condition that his unit be supplied with the
new North American P-51 Mustang.
The tails of the aircraft are painted bright
red and become the unocial name of the
outfit. Bullard noted that the flaw of previous escort fighters is that they would recklessly pursue German fighters at the cost
of protecting the bombers, so he orders his
pilots to stay with the bombers at all costs.
Their first escort mission is a success, with

the 332nd downing multiple Luftwae aircraft without the loss of a single bomber.
However, Ray Gun is shot down and captured while Deke crash lands and nearly
dies.
As a result of his injuries, Deke is discharged, and Ray Gun is assumed to be
dead. Easy realizes it was his fault Ray Gun
was allowed to fly, blames himself and
spirals deeper into alcoholism. Lightning,
worried about his friend, makes a deal
with Easy; he will follow orders and fly less
recklessly as long as Easy remains sober.
Meanwhile, attitudes against the Tuskegee
Airmen begin to change as they earn the
bomber crews respect, even being allowed into the whites only ocers club.
Ray Gun is sent to a POW camp, where he
is recruited by a group of POWs who are
planning to escape.
The escape attempt is successful, but some
of the POWs are spotted by a guard so Ray
Gun draws the Germans attention while
the other POWs escape. One of the POWs
manages to reach the 332nds base and
informs them about Ray Guns sacrifice,
assuming him to be dead. Later, Lightning
finally proposes to Sofia and she accepts.
The Tuskegee Airmen are then tasked with
escorting the first American bombers to
attack Berlin. However, despite their P51s having more than enough fuel for the
trip, the 332nd is only asked to escort the
bombers on the first leg of their journey
due to propaganda reasons. But the fighter squadron meant to relieve the 332nd
never arrives, and Easy makes the decision
to stay with bombers all the way. They are
then attacked by Pretty Boy, now leading
a flight of revolutionary Messerschmitt Me
262 jet fighters. Despite being outclassed

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Easy is then forced to inform Sofia about

Lightnings death and consequently
overcomes his alcoholism for good. At
Lightnings funeral, Ray Gun miraculously returns, having survived his escape
from German captivity.
Ultimately, the Tuskegee Airmen are
awarded the Presidential Unit Citation in
honor of their achievements.
Production
George Lucas began developing Red
Tails around 1988, after hearing of the
Tuskegee Airmen from his friend George
Hall, a photographer. At the time, the
film was scheduled for release in 1992,
with Kevin Sullivan writing the screenplay and Thomas Carter directing. Lucas
originally conceived of the film as a long,
detailed narrative similar to Lawrence of
Arabia, and as a trilogy, but after multiple script drafts, he decided to focus on
the combat portion of the story.
He compared it to Tucker: The Man and
His Dream as a story too good to be
true. In researching the film, Lucasfilm
invited some of the surviving Tuskegee
Airmen to Skywalker Ranch, where they
were interviewed about their experiences during World War II. Lucasfilm was
also given access to the original mission
logbooks used by some of the pilots. A

number of writers worked on the project

until John Ridley was hired in 2007 to
write the screenplay. Lucas held discussions with Samuel L. Jackson regarding
Jackson possibly directing and acting in
the film. Although Jackson praised the
script, he did not commit to either role.
Anthony Hemingway, a former production assistant for Lucas The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles TV series, was ultimately chosen to direct in 2008.
Pre-production began in January 2009,
with location scouting having taken place
in June 2008 in Prague, the Czech Republic, Italy and Croatia. Production began
in March 2009 with high-definition Sony
F35 cameras used for principal photography, which took place in the Czech Republic, Italy, Croatia and England over a
period from August to December. While
shooting in the Czech Republic, the actors also underwent a boot camp program, during which they lived in similar
conditions to the actual Tuskegee Airmen.
Harkening back to his early work on Star
Wars where he had studied World War II
aerial footage to create the space aerobatics performed by Rebel X-wings and
TIE fighters, Lucas was familiar with
World War II aerial combat. The Lucas
template for photographing computergenerated imagery (CGI) dogfighting involved lots of action, continuous motion,
moving camera, streaks, loops and rolls,
and all of the things aerial photography
allows you to do in live action.
Aerial scenes in Red Tails involved actors sitting in gimbal-mounted cockpits
(and mock-up fuselages and wings), in
front of a green screen, rocked back and
forth by production crew members. In or-

der to achieve a realistic reaction, actors

were flown in actual P-51 Mustangs at
the Planes of Fame in Chino, California,
to experience the forces involved in dogfighting. Editing began while the production was in Prague. Avid editing systems
were used simultaneously in a Prague
studio and at Lucasfilm. A vehicle was fitted with a technical center so that the
production could quickly move between
locations. In March 2010, Lucas took over
direction of reshoots, as Hemingway was
busy working on episodes of the HBO
series, Treme. The Boondocks creator
Aaron McGruder was brought in late in
production, after Hemingways principal
photography, to provide re-writes for the
Lucas-directed reshoots.
In April 2009, Tuskegee Airman Lt. Col.
Lee A. Archer Jr. was selected to be an advisor for Red Tails. He died in 2010 while
the film was in post-production and the
final credits bear a tribute to Archer.
Lucas covered the cost of production
with his own money, and provided a further $35 million for distribution. In an interview on The Daily Show on January 9,
2012, Lucas revealed that the long delay
in the production of the film was because
major film studios balked at financing
and marketing a film with an all-black
cast and no major white roles. He went
on to explain that studios receive 60%
of their profit from overseas, and the
studios feel there is no market there for
films with all-black casts.
Red Tails was the first film to use Barcos
Auro-3D 11.1 surround sound system.

by the jet fighters superior speed and 30

mm cannon, the Tuskegee Airmen are able
to shoot down some of the Me 262s. Pretty Boy manages to get on Easys tail and is
about to shoot him down, but at the last
moment, Lightning attacks and kills Pretty
Boy in a head-on attack. Victorious, but
mortally wounded, he eventually crashes.

Universal Film
Issue 3 - 2012

DISNEY PIXAR

BRAVE
S

ome say our destiny is tied to the land, as

much a part of us as we are of it. Others say
fate is woven together like a cloth, so that
ones destiny intertwines with many others.
Its the one thing we search for, or fight to change.
Some never find it. But there are some who are led.
~ Merida
Since ancient times, stories of epic battles and mystical legends have been passed through generations across the rugged and mysterious Highlands
of Scotland. Now, from Disney and Pixar, a new tale
joins the lore when the courageous Merida (voiced
by Kelly Macdonald) confronts tradition and challenges destiny to change her fate.
Brave follows the heroic journey of Merida, a
skilled archer and the headstrong daughter of King
Fergus (Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (Emma
Thompson). Determined to carve her own path in
life, Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the
unruly and uproarious lords of the land: massive
Lord MacGun (Kevin McKidd), surly Lord Macintosh (Craig Ferguson) and cantankerous Lord Dingwall (Robbie Coltrane). Meridas actions inadvertently unleash chaos and fury in the kingdom, and
when she turns to an eccentric Witch (Julie Walters)

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Brave is about a teenagers struggle with finding herself, with

creating her own destiny, says director Mark Andrews of this
13th full-length feature from DisneyPixar. More specifically,
its about Meridas struggle in reconciling how the world sees her
versus how she sees herself. True courage must be found on the
inside.
The main theme is being brave, finding the courage to let go. Merida is a very brave charactershe climbs clis, shoots arrows,
fights bearsbut its really that bravery of the heart thats the
hardest. ~ Mark Andrews, Director
Mark Andrews, who brings a life-long passion for Scotland, Scottish history and action-adventure films to his role, served as story
supervisor on the Oscar-winning animated features The Incredibles and Ratatouille. In bringing Brave to the big screen,
Chapman, a long established storyteller with credits including
Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King, was inspired by
her own relationship with her young daughter, as well as a love
of Scotland. Infusing drama, authenticity and spirit in Brave is
a phenomenal vocal ensemble comprised largely of actors with
Scottish roots. Kelly Macdonald (Boardwalk Empire, No Coun-

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try for Old Men, Harry Potter and the Deathly HallowsPart
2) brings heart to the tempestuous teenager Merida. Acclaimed
Oscar-winning actress Emma Thompson (Howards End, Sense
and Sensibility) gives a transformative performance as the regal
and proper Queen Elinor. Renowned Scottish comedian/actor Billy Connolly voices King Fergus, the jovial patriarch of the kingdom
and a heroic warrior who longs for a rematch with the demon bear
Mordu that took his leg.
Voicing the strapping Lord MacGun and his son, Young MacGuffin, is Scottish actor Kevin McKidd (Trainspotting, Greys Anatomy). Popular late-night talk-show host/actor Craig Ferguson
(The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Winnie the Pooh),
also a Scottish native, voices the boisterous, battle-ready Lord
Macintosh. Glasgow native Robbie Coltrane (Harry Potter films)
adds plenty of pluck to scrappy Lord Dingwall, and acclaimed British actress Julie Walters (Educating Rita, Billy Elliott, seven
Harry Potter films) conjures up some vocal magic as the mysterious Witch.
Directed by Andrews and Brenda Chapman, and produced by Katherine Sarafian, Brave is a grand adventure full of heart, memorable characters and the signature Pixar humour that audiences of
all ages have come to expect. Based on an original story by Chapman, Brave was written by Andrews, Steve Purcell and Chapman
and Irene Mecchi. The film is set for cinematic release on August
17th, 2012, and will be presented in Disney Digital 3D.

for help, she is granted an ill-fated wish. The ensuing peril forces Merida to harness all her skills and resourcesincluding her
clever and mischievous triplet brothersto undo a beastly curse
before its too late, and discover the meaning of true bravery.

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Free Spech
Film Festival
F

ree Speech: Not War! The Free Spech Film Festivals

Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, May 16th featured
celebrity presenters and the 2012 Award-winning films.
Filmmakers from 17 nations submitted movies about
censorship, resistance, inequality, courage, change, and
hope. Creative filmmakers from 17 nations around the
world entered their work in response to the subject of
Free Speech.
The Festival was created and developed over a period
of six years by founder and chairman, Margaret Chew
Barringer. Over fifteen university students based upon
their detailed research into the history of Free Speech,
enrolled in American INSIGHTs Internship Program,
We know the essence of Free Speech is self-expression.
We are the ones who give words power, and our voices
communicate our experiences to the world, says American INSIGHT Board member, Jake Paine.

The film the Iranian gove

American INSIGHTs Free Speech Film Festival is a goodwill, grassroots andsustainable program that unites
celebrity judges, students, scholars, educators and the
general public in conversations about the past, present
and future of Free Speech.
The mission of the Free Speech Film Festival is to promote Free Speech, Not War. Topics submitted in 2012
included censorship, resistance, inequality, courage,
change, and hope.
The Awards Ceremony took place at the American Philosophical Society in the Benjamin Franklin Hall, 427
Chestnut Street, Philadelphia PA. The building is adjacent to Independence Hall, and across the street from
the Liberty Bell. American INSIGHTs mission is to produce, promote and distribute historical documentaries, and to broaden exposure to historical information
through the use of emerging technologies.
The Free Speech Film Festival is an American INSIGHT
program developed to honor todays global Free Speech
movement. American INSIGHT is a nonprofit cultural
institution that has featured Free Speech and the Spoken Word since 1983.
This is a UFFO registered Film Festival www.uo.org

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Surviving The Dead

By Director Howard J Ford

While I was lying in the dirt in West Africa suering from severe dysentery as my lead actor from a Spielberg film I admired was steadily
dying of Malaria next to me, having been held up by corrupt border
police armed with AK47s parting with so much cash to keep shooting that our entire crew had to go without food or water for in heat so
relentless that our cans of 35mm were hot enough to have fried our
food on, if only we had some; I could never have imagined all this pain
would result in a film that would not only reach the number 1 spot in
its genre in the US, but Id also have a book on the shelves recounting all these traumatic happenings, and to top it all, a legendary writer
such as Irvine Welsh would read that very book and actually call it a
must read! But this is a strange world and an even stranger business. I
was just happy to have survived the shoot!
Howards book Surviving The Dead is out now on Amazon and as an
E-Book at www.surviving-the-dead.com and he has since been signed
by a Hollywood based production company to direct a $6Million dollar
supernatural thriller Indelible in the fall.

ernment doesnt want you to see...

n ordinary young woman

on the backdrop of extraor
dinary circumstances fearlessly
pursues the cause of freedom in
defiance of tyranny and oppression.

This film is centered on one ordinary yet courageous young woman on the backdrop of extraordinary circumstances, who has since
become the symbol and face of
this movement

From first time Director Nicole

Kian Sadighi who has written
and produced this award winning
movie I Am Neda the true story
of Neda Agha Soltan who fearlessly pursued the cause of freedom in defiance of tyranny and
oppression.

News reports regarding Neda

soon went viral across the globe
through leading news outlets and
online social media. Everyone
from CNN, Fox, BBC, Reuters, AP,
AFP, London Times, Life Magazine,
the musical group U2 and President Obama commented and paid
homage to Nedas story - the girl
whose face will always be remembered from YouTube.

June 2009 marked another turning point for Iranians, when mass
anti-government protests erupted across major cities in Iran, following the June 12 rigged Iranian
presidential election against the
disputed victory of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,
which came to be known as the
Green Movement. These events
provoked the government to declare war on its own people and
the world became a witness to
some of the most horrific acts
that were shown daily through
major news outlets as well as
Twitter, Facebook and YouTube
posting. Many innocent Iranians
were, imprisoned, tortured, raped
and killed for standing up for their
basic human rights in nonviolent
civil disobedience.

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She was one of the 2009 Time

Magazines Person of the Year,
2010 London Times Person of
the Year. Additionally The Neda
Agha Soltan Graduate Scholarship
is for post-graduate philosophy
students at The Queens College,
Oxford, with preference given to
students of Iranian citizenship or
heritage. Nedas impact on the
Green Movement in Iran which
launched the Arab Spring in the
Middle East, has made her the
face and symbol of Irans freedom
movement and with it a historical
legacy that must never be forgotten.

10

I Am Neda

Universal Film
Issue 3 - 2012

SALT

GRABBERS
11

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of2012

Directed by Jon Wright...

But strange doings are afoot: the crew of a fishing

boat disappears, whales start appearing dead on
the shore, a local lobsterman catches a strange tentacled creature in his trap. Soon it becomes clear
to OShea and Nolan that theres something big out
there, and that its hungry. Its time to rally the villagers, arm the troopsand head to the pub.
Irish-born screenwriter Kevin Lehane wrote Grabbers in 2007 and the inspiration came to him whilst
he was backpacking around the world the previous
year. While I was away travelling I kept getting bitten by mosquitoes and everyone gave me the advice to eat lots of Marmite, because the Vitamin B
makes you - what I guess youd call - inedible to
mosquitoes. I thought that was kind of fascinating,
so I made a note of it.
I continued on my travels, weeks passed and I was
still being savaged and bitten every night, then one
night while I was having a beer on a veranda on the
Cook Islands I noticed a mosquito on my knuckle
and I made one of those drunken jokes about hoping the mosquito got as drunk as me and flew into
a wall and killed itself. That was it, the two things
fused together and I made a note in my journal the
next morning: Get drunk to survive!
As far as influences from other films are concerned,
Lehane admits that Tremors was something of an
inspiration with regard to tone, Being sincere
about the story and focusing on the characters and
the charm of them and the place was a big influence, as were films like Gremlins and Jaws. But
Tremors really was the benchmark film that I kept

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as he feels many recent films coming out ofIreland

have, I wanted the characters in this to be natural
and clever and the solution they actually come up
with is the smartest one you could come up with.
Its not about being Irish, it just happens to take
place in Ireland and the characters just happen to
be Irish. Theyre just modern characters and no-one
ever mentions them being Irish or pays much attention to it. The look is also very natural; it doesnt
look stylised or false. I wanted it to be like a clash
of the serene with the obscene and sort of just play
o the dichotomy of that. It certainly looks as good
as I wanted it to be.
Tracy Brimm and Kate Myers at Forward Films received the script from Kevins agent. Myers and
Brimm recognised that Grabbers was an ambitious
project, but they loved the potential of it, When
we first read the script, we loved it because it had
such an original voice and was a very entertaining
concept recalls producer Kate Myers, and it had
heart, and its something thats really vital to the
final film.
There are references to other films but its original
and this kind of film hasnt been made in this part
of the world before notes Brimm, it was ambitious because we were making something theres
no track record for, so in terms of financing that can
be dicult. But its a universal story at heart and we
knew we could make it in a contained way.
For Brimm and Myers, the key to giving a project
momentum was bringing on board the right director from the start and they suspected this was exactly the kind of material Jon Wright would respond
to, having worked with him on teen British horror,
Tormented. And indeed he jumped at it.
The journey from script to production was an unusually speedy one. The film went into production
just over a year after Kevin Lehane met with Forward and Jon Wright.

12

n Erin Island, an idyllic fishing village

o the coast of Ireland, the charming
but somewhat work-shy Ciaran OShea,
is tasked with greeting Lisa Nolan, a
straight-laced young ocer who has arrived from the mainland. Not that there is much for
them to do, aside from dealing with the occasional
drunk, and thats usually OShea himself.

Universal Film
Issue 3 - 2012

The actual creation of the grabbers was

intrinsic to bringing Lehanes vision to
reality. London-based visual eects specialists, Nvizible were key partners on the
film and producer Kate Myers pays tribute to their invaluable contribution, Obviously digital technology has advanced
so much, thats what realistically makes a
film like this possible, and for us, it was
about our partners.
I knew that Nvizible were going to be
involved quite early on and I know I get
pretty descriptive in my language, so the
creature theyve brought to life looks
exactly as Id written it, so Im hugely
pleased about that. I visualised the monster as a black spidery, slimy tentacled
thing, like spaghetti rolling down walls
and the guys just latched on to that and
then director Jon Wright took it up a
notch notes Lehane.
Cameras finally rolled in Belfast, Northern Ireland in November 2010 during one
of the harshest winters the UK has seen
in many years, Ambitious is the recurring word of this production laughs producer Tracy Brimm and it would be ambitious to film in Ireland and not expect
rain, so the producers were prepared for
that, but on their tight budget and tight
schedule, they werent prepared for the
massive December 2010 snow storms
that hit the UK, We were on night shoots
and suddenly we had ten inches of snow
and there came a point where we just had
to say we cant carry on recalls Brimm.
The crew were just incredible but people were getting close to frost bite and
wed probably bought Belfast city centres entire stocks of winter and wet
weather clothing!
With the films ending being quite open
for a sequel, when asked if theyd endure
another winter in Ireland, most of the
cast and crew were attracted to the sequel being set in the Caribbean, Weve
been thinking exotic destination for the
next one jokes Brimm. Theres definitely a hint at the end of the film that theres
room for a sequel teases producer Kate
Myers.
Director Jon Wright
On Humour
We paid very close attention to tone
it was always a big issue from the start,
we wanted it to be very consistent. It is
a funny film but, we never chased the
laughs, we never break the reality of the
movie in order to get a laugh from the audience. We try to make it believable and
true to life, and that was something we
worked really hard on. Wed test jokes if
something was funny wed double check
it to see if we have strained it or gone too
hard after that, and as a result we lost a
few of the jokes.
If you look at one of my favourite mov-

ies, American Werewolf in London, for

example, its actually not that funny the
laughs when they come are big hearty
belly laughs, theyre almost the laughter of relief, but if you count the jokes
up there arent actually that many. Its
much more concerned about maintaining
a plausible world and having a realistic
romance.
On Inspirations
Our modern day Gremlins are in the bar
scene, but its dierent in that Gremlins
had a spoofy quality to it, you had them
breakdancing and a lot of little jokes that
took you out of the reality of the film,
which are great fun, but weve kept it
quite realistic. Weve worked out a little
personality for every baby grabber you
see in the sequence and I could give you
a back story on what theyve been drinking, what theyre thinking and Im sure
thats something for the IMDB message
board down the line something the future film student can look back on!
On Paddy E ason, VFX Supervisor
Paddy is a visual eects genius. Paddys
very bright and has a brilliant mind, and
hes probably, if Im being honest here,
the only person on set who actually understood exactly what we were shooting
when we were shooting it, so he was my
right hand man. In my view, visual effects supervisors should have a dierent
credit nowadays, they should probably
be called director of visual eects, or
something like that, because the role has
grown so much and theyre so involved
in the actual creative decision-making of
the movie, the framing and the energy of
the scene and how its working. Paddys a
good guy to have around, and hes worked
on some of the biggest movies in the UK
- lots of the Harry Potters and Sunshine
and he put his heart and soul into them. I
think its fair to say Paddy loves Grabbers
- its been a labour of love for him.
On Designing the Monsters
It was a collaborative process. We
worked with a concept artist, starting
out with an original sketch, which I asked
Kevin to do. I knew Kevin couldnt draw
but I wanted him to show me his best
representation of a grabber as he visualised it, which was basically a kind of
a scribbled black star with lines coming
out of it. I felt instinctively that the grabber shouldnt be too complicated or too
fussy something that belonged in an
H.P. Lovecraft world that was quite primal and you would just instinctively be
frightened of it a tentacled monster.
A lot of modern movies tend to overcomplicate and over-fuss about things. I
think weve gone for something simple
and bold, stark and primal, and weve not
been ashamed to have weird echoes of
bits of the body you wouldnt normally
get in a mainstream film. Our mission
statement when designing the creatures
in Grabbers was that they had to be to-

tally convincing. This film is absolutely

not a b movie, and so it is vital that the
monsters never look like a special eect.
Although the movie is a comedy horror,
the characters within the story are always
fully realised and whilst their actions are
sometimes humorous, they are always
believable. We had to make sure that the
creatures would also abide by these rules
or the audience would be taken out of the
story whenever they appeared. The creatures themselves are like nothing anyone
has seen before. A male adult grabber is
an 8 metre high, many tentacled black
beast with a huge retractable beak in the
centre of its body that is surrounded by
eight eyes on stalks. It is definitely an
alien, lets put it that way! The design of
the monster is only the tip of the iceberg
though. Also key is how these creatures
move and react ergonomically to their
surroundings.
Our goal was always to create this fully
believable 25ft intergalactic space monster and we knew instinctively when we
had nailed it. This thing needs to be scary,
and let me tell you, when you see a grabber slithering towards you; it triggers an
instinctive mechanism within the human
brain. Watching it on screen all you can
think is Get that thing the hell away from
me!
On What the Grabbers Are and Where
They Come From
They come from outer space, we know
they arrive in some sort of flaming meteor-like transport, but they remain quite
mysterious. Ive tried to view them with a
kind of intelligence akin to what I always
loved about Ridley Scotts Alien - you
had a certain sense that this thing was
quite enigmatic and clever. The grabber
is sneaky, and it doesnt rush in, it sneaks,
it grabs and it does a lot of thinking and
pondering and its quite hard to draw
it into a trap. Id like to think that when
people watch it, theyll see a personality
there and that its one of the big characters in the film.
There are obviously dierent variations
of the grabbers theres the big one who
is the daddy if you like, theres the smaller
grabber who is the female, and there are
the little squishy squashy grabbers who
are the babies, and they all have dierent
personalities the babies are childish, so
theyre not too bright, they like to muck
about, so they have a dierent agenda
again, and theyre hungry.
On Characters and Casting
With any film, theres always the pressure to cast famous people because they
help tremendously with the financing of
the film. As a result, you see a lot of films
and think, Whys actor x playing that
part? Theyre completely inappropriate
for that role but somehow theyve managed to get it. So, again it comes back to
me really wanting to cast the right

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

people for the roles, and went through

quite a long casting process and I stuck
to my guns quite doggedly about getting
people I thought were absolutely right for
the characters. I think weve got a lovely
ensemble of very talented actors who are
having a lot of fun and are doing excellent work. Im so pleased with the dierent faces and the dierent personalities
weve ended up with. They feel like such
a motley crew - theres a shot where we
pan across our band of brothers who are
going into battle against the grabbers and
they look like the most, unlikely rag-tag
assortment of misfits that you could ever
have, and I was quite pleased with that!
It felt like a sort of drunken Irish Kellys
Heroes!
Richard C oyle
Ciarn O Shea

On his character
I liked OShea as soon as I read the script.
I liked that sense of a man lost and washed
up and away before his time and finding
himself through saving his community.
He rises to the challenge, steps up to the
plate and becomes the man he should be
and he finds love. Its a great journey.
On researching and creating the character
w ho starts o as a grizzled, borderline
alcoholic
Well its true, we actors do spend a lot of
time drunk and bemoaning the fact that
we cant get any jobs, so yeah, there was
some real research going on.
On working with visual eects
As an actor, you cant do it [a visual eects
movie] half-heartedly and you cant do it
in any way self-consciously, you just have
to throw yourself into it, otherwise it looks
terrible. Its quite dicult when youve
got a tennis ball on the end of a stick with
some crew member running around motioning for you to look at this its quite
ridiculous but quite fun actually. Its the
magic of the movies.
On the s tunts
I love doing stunts, so I did as many as
Nick, the stunt co-ordinator would let me
do. I did push to let me do more because
I like doing them - I get a real thrill out of
it. The most dangerous one was probably
the pit at the end where we confront the
grabber. It was winter, it was very cold and
icy and your footing wasnt very secure so
Nick, the stunt co-ordinator, was very reluctant to let me do that more than twice
but I wanted to get it right, and I think it
works better for Jon the director with me

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think it works better for Jon the director

with me doing it.
On working outside in I reland during the
coldest w inter in years
It was bitter. I mean it it was Baltic! But
you just have to get on with it and as soon
as they shout cut, you get inside some
where warm.
On working w ith his co-stars
Ruth (Bradley)s fabulous. Shes brilliant,
shes very funny and easy to work with,
which is a joy. Shes got a great sense of
humour, shes great company, and I think
shes a terrific actress.
I had a ball with the whole cast, David
Pearse (Brian) was just hilarious, Pascal Scott (Dr. Gleeson) was brilliant, Lalor
Roddy (Paddy) was terrific, Russell Tovey
(Smith) was amazing and then we had
Bronagh Gallagher (Una), who of course
is a big fixture on the Irish acting circuit,
she was terrific too. It was an absolutely
magical job, partly because of the people
involved. We laughed a lot shooting this
movie, almost to the point where there
was a lot of corpsing going on and we had
to try and keep it together when the cameras were rolling. There were times when
Jon would have to cut because we were
just giggling too much.
Ruth Bradley
Lisa

have when youre drunk. It seemed like

a great idea beforehand, then we did it,
and I was sickened and I was like, I never
want to do that again! Every time I have
a drink now, I think God, am I doing that
again, its horrible, all the things you do,
just the mannerisms. It was certainly an
eye-opener! The day after when Jon and
I sat down and watched it, I said lets get
rid of the tape. He let me stamp on it actually - I stamped on the evidence its
gone! I hope he didnt make a cheeky copy
he didnt tell me about it but I hope not, I
would just die of embarrassment.
On the s tunts
I did my own stunts for the first time ever
really. In the first week I said I wanted to try
the stunts and theres a whole sequence
where Lisa gets dragged by the grabber
so it was a full day of mental stunts and I
was pretty black and blue afterward but I
thought, if I can do this, I can do the whole
film. I did ask Nick our stunt coordinator
how the professional stunt people avoid
getting black and blue and he said they
cant avoid it its just their job!
On the highlights of the shoot
Pretty much every second of the day was
hilarious, the whole thing was a highlight
being surrounded by all those people and
just having such a laugh. I particularly
enjoyed hanging out of a JCB screaming
obscenities over the hills - that was very
liberating

On her preparation f or the role

We did some horrific research to prepare
for it! Myself and Jon our director thought
it would be an interesting experiment to
set out with the intention of getting really
drunk, just like Lisa has to in the film. The
plan being, to film me drunk and see just
what kind of dierent mannerisms you

14

On the script
I thought it was fun. It was in the tradition
of the old school horror movies, like Jaws,
Gremlins and Tremors. I liked the fact it
was set on a holiday island, I liked that it
was Irish, because it brought a lovely set
of characters who fall into a communal
peril, which is always fun to play.

Universal Film
Issue 3 - 2012

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

CANNESMyth
and
Magic!
T

Cannes Film Festival, I literally jumped

for joy. Cannes is the Alpha and Omega, the Be All and End All of all film
festivals. The floodlights! The Paparazzi!
The red carpet! I would get to lounge on
the French Riviera, the most sophisticate
beach resort anywhere in the world. It
was time to pack my bikini and brush up
on my French! Ooh La La!
The wonderful thing about idealistic
dreams is that they can be realized, the
sense of satisfaction has no comparison.
As it is for many filmmakers, Cannes was
one of mine. Yes, there is glamour galore
and plenty of movie magic, but there was
something else about that dream. Lots
of work! Did I see that in my idolized
daydreamsabsolutely not!
Although my festival pass allowed me
into all areas of the Palais de Cannes, I
thought I would spend all my time visiting the various pavilions or basking in
the sun with directors falling over my
screenplay and producers wooing my fa-

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g g

vour. I set up my headquarters in the Canadian pavilion (good coee) of the Carlton Hotel Lobby where everyone whos
anyone stays and hopefuls attempt to
look important. I discovered after a day
or two of orientations, workshops and reality checks that filmmakers need to use
the time to network.
After crashing back to reality that is exactly what I did. I spent my time trolling
through the production company directories setting up meetings with companies and distributors. Oddly, most of the
film deals are made in suites across the
street from the film festival itself in various hotels where production companies
and distributors usually take up their
headquarters.

Another aspect of networking was getting into the RIGHT parties; a career in
itself. Who you know, not what you know
breathes the life into that clich and one
of the most important things I learned
about working a festival was to follow up
after the fact. This is actually the main
reason for filmmakers to attend. Your

Who-You-Know list becomes extensive

and useful for whatever future projects
may come along.

I also spent some time in the Film Market

where I received an education in world
markets, distribution and trends over
various platforms. This is where I started
to truly understand the business of filmmaking. My original idea of a movie deal
as a fuzzy kind of fairytale (write the
screenplay and then magically everything falls into place right up to the night
of the premiere) started to materialize
into a business model of taking a product
(the screenplay) from script to fruitionon-the-screen to distribution.
After having my Cannes Film Festival
bubble burst with the dusty subject of
business I did actually attend a premiere
with the Paparazzi lights flashing and
the Stars arriving on the red carpet. The
lights went down, the opening music and
credits began to roll, and it was truly and
unequivocallyMagic!
by Margaret Dane

16

hen I got the message my screenW play

had been selected to go to the

Universal Film

roy benson

Issue 3 of 2012

Post-production is, in fact, many dierent processes grouped

under one name. These typically include:
Editing the picture / television program
Writing, (re)recording, and editing the soundtrack.
Adding visual special eects - mainly computer-generated
imagery (CGI) and digital copy from which release prints will
be made (although this may be made obsolete by digital-cinema technologies).
Sound Design, Sound Eects, ADR, Foley and Music, culminating in a process known as sound re-recording or mixing.
Transfer of film to Video or Data with a telecine and Color
grading.

Film Technology Lectures

Roy Benson Producer, Director, Writer and Editor. ...

Typically, the post-production phase of a film takes longer

than the actual shooting of the movie, and can take several
months to complete.
Film editing

Film editing is part of the process of filmmaking. It involves

the selection and combining of shots into sequences, and ultimately creating a finished motion picture. It is an art of storytelling. Film editing is unique to cinema, separating film-making from other art forms that preceded it (such as photography,
theater, dance, writing, and directing). Although there are
close parallels to the editing process in other art forms
like poetry or literature. Film editing is often referred to
as the invisible art[citation needed] because when
lets look well-practiced, the viewer can become so engaged
at the basic that he or she is unaware of the editors work.

oys career has taken him though the entire scope

of the entertainment business as Producer, Director,
Writer and Editor. Working on a one to one basis, he
has gained hands on experience from some of the
most influential Producers and Directors in the
business, and the many countries he has worked including;
France, Spain, Germany, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore,
Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, and United States.

Roy has worked on the editing of some of the most

successful films ever made, including 7 Oscar winner Lawrence of Arabia directed by David Lean, Dr
process
On its most fundamental level, film editing is the art,
Strangelove directed by Stanley Kubrick, and Yentl ditechnique, and practice of assembling shots into a corected by Barbra Streisand. Other major Feature Films
herent whole. A film editor is a person who practices
he has worked on the editing are: The Bedford Incident,
film editing by assembling the footage. However, the job
(also Directed 2nd Unit battle scenes on war ship sailing from
of an editor isnt simply to mechanically put pieces of a film
Portsmouth to Gibralter), Saturn 3, The War Lover, Death Wish
together, cut o film slates, or edit dialogue scenes. A film
II, A Hard Days Night, The Wicked Lady, and An American
editor must creatively work with the layers of images, story,
Werewolf in London.
dialogue, music, pacing, as well as the actors performances
to eectively re-imagine and even rewrite the film to craft
The Beatles asked him to edit their film Magical Mystery Tour,
a cohesive whole. Editors usually play a dynamic role in the
which led to editing a number of musical promo films, workmaking of a film.
ing with Paul McCartney for some time. He was Post-Production Supervisor on the Goldcrest Films feature To End All
There are several editing stages and the editors cut is the first.
Wars, Until Death with Jean-Claude Van Damme, and worked
An editors cut (sometimes referred to as the Assembly edit
in Bangkok on Rambo with Sylvester Stallone.
or Rough cut) is normally the first pass of what the final film
will be when it reaches picture lock. The film editor usually
Roy has lectured Film Technology at The New York Film Acadstarts working while principal photography starts. Likely, prior
emy at Oxford University, The National Film & Television
to cutting, the editor and director will have seen and/or disSchool at Beaconsfield Studios, FDMX at Cambridge Universicussed dailies (raw footage shot each day) as shooting proty, The London Film Academy, SAE Institute, and London Colgresses. Screening dailies gives the editor a ballpark idea of
lege of Communication presenting special Stanley Kubrick
the directors intentions.
lectures under the auspices of the Kubrick Archives.
Post-production
Post-production is part of the filmmaking process. It occurs in
the making of motion pictures, television programs, radio programs, advertising, videos, audio recordings, photography and
digital art. It is a term for all stages of production occurring after the actual end of shooting and/or recording the completed
work.

Because it is the first pass, the editors cut may be longer than
the final film. The editor continues to refine the cut while
shooting is in process, and often the entire editing process
goes on for many months and sometimes more than a year, depending on the film.

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

tribeca Film Festival and 100 Years of Universal

ribeca Film Festival is many

things. Tribeca Film Festival has
tried to be too many things. From
the beginning, after the devastating
9/11 terrorist attacks of 2001, its intention, by co-founders Craig Hatko,
Jane Rosenthal and Robert De Niro, was
to entice a return of businesses to the
Tribeca neighborhood with a film festival boosting economic development for the area and
the community. It
was a good idea
at the time
because

film
industry has always
been a serious player
as an economic development factor in countless towns
and states in the last 100 years.
The last decade has brought millions
of dollars, along with radical change,
to the original Tribeca Film Festival
idea. Too much, too big but thats how
the story can go in the business. Feast
or famine, take the fame and money
and run, because it doesnt last. Thats
the movie business, and film festivals
are an integral part of the machine.
Therefore, it was appropriate for one of
this years Tribeca Film Festivals first
events one of the most highlighted
to reflect a theme of cinema history,
and then be followed by events that
look towards the future.
Over the years, more and more programs have been added under the
Tribeca Film Festival Tent Top, one
of which is Tribeca Talks, the panel
discussions. Tipping their hat to a
renewed interest in early cinema, the
panel theme, 100 Years of Universal,
generated enough interest to fill more
than half of the Borough of Manhattan
Community College (BMCC) auditorium
(which holds about 1,500 seats) on a
Thursday afternoon.

Once the trailer of movie titles was over,

however, the panel was a major disappointment, with an unprepared moderator who had no clue about Universals
rich history. Robert De Niro was sitting
and waiting for an intelligent question,
and a silly Judd Apatow was throwing
out lame commentary to cover the

largest East Coast studio. The facility

became one of the largest employers of
Fort Lee residents. It was considered the
most modern and, for a short time, the
largest studio in the country and in the
world. Thousands of overnight sensations became movie stars, and an economic development factor created Fort
Lee, a film town.
The Fort Lee studio opened in the fall
of 1915, a few months after
Laemmle built Universal
City in California. Universal Studios remained in Fort

ineptitude of panel host, Mike Fleming.

Its an unfortunate scenario that happens often at film festivals: theme programming and panel discussions are not
given enough time, thought or proper
research, and instead of being hosted
by a competent moderator, the discussion is moderated by the festival director or a high-profile media personality.
Universal is the last of three early cinema film studios that were established
100 years ago in Fort Lee, New Jersey.
The other two were Keystone (Mack
Sennett) and Solax, owned and operated
by the first woman filmmaker, Alice GuyBlach. Mark Dintenfass, who founded
the Champion Film Company, became
an executive in the new Universal Film
Manufacturing Company founded by
Carl Laemmle, and the Champion studio
became part of the Universal. Jules Brulatour, a businessman who helped bring
the film industry to Fort Lee, was also involved in the organization of Universal
Studios.

Lee until 1917, when Laemmle shut down because

it became too costly to operate
both facilities. Universal City executive
Samuel Goldwyn would lease the Fort
Lee studio that eventually fell into ruin
as the entire film industry moved out
to California. The building was razed in
1963. Too big, too much, and too hard
to keep up. Lessons learned, and only
time will tell what will be in store for
next years Tribeca Film Festival. Its a
great model for other film festivals to
pick and choose what works and what
doesnt, because theres a hell of a lot
happening in a town that never sleeps.
One thing that is certain: put together
a well-organized, well-programmed
schedule of film screenings and events,
and they will come to check it out, one
way or another. Heres to the next 100
years.
Christina Kotlar is a writer and blogger
for Film Festival reViews and doddleNEWS. Historic information taken from
the publications Fort Lee: The Film
Town by Richard Koszarski and Fort
Lee, Birthplace of the Motion Picture
Industry

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Laemmle bought the land to build the

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

NEVER TOO

Writer & Director: Ido Fluk..

fter spending eight years in the

farthest reaches of South America,
30-year-old Herzl (Nony Geen) returns home to Israel. With no ambitions
or prospects for the future, he finds a
job hanging posters across the country. Driving a 1985 Volvo, with a pile of
dusty Israeli folk tapes on the dashboard
and a worn copy of Robinson Crusoe by
his side, a young man journeys across
the Israeli landscape in a bid to come to
terms with the memories of what he left
behind.
Never Too Late represents quality
content for festivals that nurture challenging fare. The first Israeli feature
produced with crowd-sourced funding,
this minimalist indie is a good-looking,
formally-rigorous and utterly engaging road movie that marks Ido Fluk as
a writer to watch. As the protagonist
drives his late fathers battered Volvo
through varied landscapes rarely seen

in Israeli cinema, he must come to terms

with considerable emotional baggage as
well as the contents of his fathers old
suitcase. On his travels, which take him
north to Safed and south to Eilat, Herzl
also makes contact with an old army
buddy who is now married to his sexy
former girlfriend (Keren Berger), and a
philosophical stranger (Eyal Rozales)
whom he saves from drowning. But the
contents of the suitcase dictate the last
and most poignant stop.
After his army service, 30-year-old Herzl
spent eight years traveling throughout
South America avoiding the expectations of his stern father (Ami Weinberg).
His refusal to return home for his fathers funeral now haunts him, but its
never too late to make amends... Or is
it? Ever restless and lacking ambitions
or prospects, Herzl accepts solitary work
hanging advertising posters for a dating
service with the slogan Never Too Late.

As he crosses the country goesing about

his daily routine, his memories of his father become so intense that they take on
physical shape, which Fluk visualizes by
having the older man ride and converse
with his son.
Fluk doles out narrative information
sparingly, and sometimes not at all. Although some viewers may feel frustrated, those attentive to the films mood
and detail will find it truly moving. Produced on a micro-budget, the film sports
a mesmerizing score and an attractive
wide-screen created from the same
digital camera that Danny Boyle used to
shoot Slumdog Millionaire (a loan from
an Israeli-American businessman who
read about the productions fund drive
and wanted to help). Fluk, who studied
at NYU, already has a second feature
lined up with Christine Vachons Killer
Films that is in the casting stage.

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

LATE
Never Too Late has created a buzz in
Israel. Deciding that the film was ready
to be shot, and not willing to compromise the script or wait the many months
it often takes to receive funding through
the traditional streams in Israel, Ido Fluk
turned to the public in order to raise the
remaining capital. Understanding the
power of the internet,

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20

Fluk created a Facebook group encouraging friends and acquaintances to

each invest 100 NIS (roughly $25 US)
in the film. The request created a frenzy
amongst the Israeli film world as hundreds of interested investors began to
support. The open call also provided unprecedented media coverage of a script
in pre-production and attracted many
skilled professionals in the field to donate their time.

Universal Film

DAYS OF FLOWERS

Issue 3 - 2012

by Tyrone D Murphy

he romantic drama stars award winning actress EVA BIRTHISTLE (Ae Fond
Kiss, Breakfast on Pluto), emerging
talent CHARITY WAKEFIELD (Serena),
CHRISTOPHER SIMPSON (Brick Lane) and
introduces internationally acclaimed Cuban Royal Ballet dancer CARLOS ACOSTA
in his first leading feature film role.

The film has been nominated for the Michael Powell Award for Best British Feature and the Award for Best Performance
in a British Feature Film.
Directed by two-time BAFTA winner JOHN
ROBERTS (Paulie, War of the Buttons)
with a score by Oscar winning composer
STEPHEN WARBECK (Shakespeare in
Love), DAY OF THE FLOWERS is written
by EIRENE HOUSTON and produced by
JONATHAN RAE.
DAY OF THE FLOWERS is a romantic drama about two strong-willed sisters, on
a journey through Cuba, who find love
and misadventure in the most unusual of
places. Drenched in sunlight and with a
fabulous Cuban soundtrack, the film is
a colourful and wryly humorous tale of
cross-cultural misunderstandings and lost
illusions. DAY OF THE FLOWERS will lift
spirits and make hearts soar.
The film has also been selected for the
Breakthrough strand of the London UK
Film Focus (LUFF) to be held on from Monday 25th 28th June 2012. The London
UK Film Focus (LUFF) is an export initiative
showcasing UK films to international buyers and selected film festival directors/
programmers. A film industry event pre-

senting the best UK productions to international sales agents and distributors.

CARLOS ACOSTA rose from the streets of
Havana to become the worlds most indemand and recognisable principal ballet dancer. He has performed with all the
worlds leading ballet companies, receiving many awards and several box-oce
records including last years sell out performance at the 02 arena. DAY OF THE
FLOWERS is Carlos first leading role in a
feature film after featuring in a short segment of New York, I Love You, directed by
NATALIE PORTMAN.
EVA BIRTHISTLE received many accolades
for her lead role in KEN LOACHs Ae Fond
Kiss, including winning the London Film
Critics Circle Award for Best Actress. She
has also twice won the IFTA Best Actor in
a Leading Role (Film) Award. Her other
credits include TOM SHANKLANDs The
Children, NEIL JORDANs Breakfast on
Pluto, OL PARKERs Imagine Me and You
and BRIAN KIRKs Middletown.
One of the brightest young talents emerging from the UK, CHARITY WAKEFIELD followed in the footsteps of KATE WINSLET
by being cast as Marianne Dashwood in
the high profile BBC adaption of Sense
and Sensibility. In the US, producer DAVID E KELLEY (Ally McBeal) cast her in
the lead role for the NBC show Legally
Mad and most recently she has been cast
alongside EDDIE IZZARD in the new NBC
show Mockingbird Lane, directed by BRYAN SINGER. CHARITY is currently shooting
SUSANNE BIERs new film Serena.

CHRISTOPHER SIMPSON leapt in to the

public eye with his starring role in SARAH
GAVRONs Brick Lane and PENNY WOOLCOCKs Mischief Night. He has also appeared in MIRA FORNAYOVAs Little Foxes
and GURINDA CHADHAs Its a Wonderful
Afterlife and in television series including Spooks, State of Play, Shameless
and White Teeth.
Director JOHN ROBERTS award winning
films include the BAFTA winning feature
Paulie for Dreamworks (Best Childrens
Film 1998) and the Academy award winning featurette This Boys Story (Channel 4 Films). The films talented personnel
include Director of Photography, VERNON
LAYTON (The Englishman Who Went Up
a Hill But Came Down a Mountain), film
editors DAVID FREEMAN (The Full Monty,
Ill Manors) and JOHN WILSON (Billy Elliot) with production design by ANDREW
SANDERS (Spider).
EVA BIRTHISTLE, CARLOS ACOSTA, CHRIS
SIMPSON, JOHN ROBERTS (Director) and
JONATHAN RAE (Producer) will be attending the World Premiere screening at the
EIFF.

Director
Steven Spielberg

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Issue 3 of 2012

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

VILLAINS
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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Directed by Robbie Moffat...

Sebastian, well educated but still a crook, has been

to prison for fraud and deception. Younger, fitter
and in with Kitty, he wants Jackie out of the way
so he can take over his patch. When a factory heist
the two mobs commit together comes o well, they
get away and rendezvous to spilt the takings. Kitty tips Sebastian o that Jackie, and his ex-boxer
henchman Lenny, plans to deceive Eaton and his
boys Rupert, Max and Stinker, and cut them out
of their share. Kitty and Sebastian hatch a plan so
they can keep the money for themselves, and as the
story plays out in a chase through Newcastle and
the wilds of Northumberland, Kittys duplicity multiples to the extent that everyone else pays a price
for her double-dealing.
Film Director Robbie Moat has made over twenty feature films. His first feature film was made in
1999 called Love The One Youre With which was
nominated for best Scottish film at the Bowmore
Scottish Screen Awards in 2000 . Robbie went on
make many other films wanting to use the Scottish
landscape as much as possible, a great example
of this is in his films Winter Warrior, The Bone
Hunter and Axe Raiders a trilogy set in the 575
A.D. In 2004 Red Rose a film based on the life of
Robert Burns won the best actress award at the Monaco International Film Festival. Last year Robbie
was nominated for The Johnny Walker Great Scot
Award 2011 for outstanding contribution to Scottish culture.

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How did you come up with the story for Villains?

I was on holiday in the Canaries reading a book
about Ava Gardner . I was intrigued to find out she
had been in a film called Killers in 1946. I decided
I would like to make a British/ modern version with
a similar style.
How did the music contribute to the film?
The music created the ambience I wanted for the
film. I have worked with Pascal many times before.
He always has a great understanding for what I am
looking for and once again he delivered.
Was there any part of the filmmaking which you
found a major challenge?
Yes, the baby was our biggest challenge. Although
we had a real baby to filmsome scenes in London
we had to get a hand-made real life baby doll for
the rest of the shoot.
What were your fondest moments when making
Villains?
The fact that we were filming in the North East. I
know the area there very well as l lived there for
many years. It was great to be back.
Who is your favourite director and why?
David Lean, Alfred Hitchcock, Woody Allen and Client Eastwood. The are all independently minded
with a strong vision of what they want to achieve.
What keeps you motivated and inspired?
I enjoy making films and coming up with new stories, the whole film process keep me motivated and
alive!

24

ackie Shields, crook and villain, almost seventy, is at the end of this workingcareer. In and
out of prison for most of his adult years, he is
a poor father to his daughter Kitty, and violent
short-tempered with his girlfriend Nora. Kitty,
mixed up and selfish, is a product of foster homes
during her fathers times in prison. Despite her university education, she has not broken free of her
fathers villainous underground world. She has become amoral, scheming, and duplicitous- the only
way she knows how to survive. In flashback, we discover that she has a secret child by her fathers rival
Sebastian Eton, but passes it o as Noras baby.

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

TONDO, BELOVED:
TO WHAT ARE
THE POOR BORN?
A film by Jewel Maranan

25

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Today, its notoriety is well known but its communities continue to expand, keeping its place
as one of the most densely populated places in
the Philippines and in the world.
Tondo, Beloved: To What Are the Poor Born?
is an immersion into life before birth in the
seams of Manilas main international port. Virgie Simprons family feeds on the fishes that
lurk under the industrial ships of North Harbor.
Their alternatives are packs of tasteless gelatin
found in the same waters. Their entertainment
comes from imagining stories behind DVD inlays of Hollywood films and a tabloid article on
Hillary Clinton and a rats ass.
One morning when the fishes are dead, the
seas color is that of milk and the ships clanging are unusually bold; uncertainty is born on
the same floor where they eat, blood is spilt in

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the same bowl where they clean fish and an old

weary nation is revealed.
Tondo, Beloved: To What Are the Poor Born? Is a
full-length documentary about life before birth
in the seams of Manilas premier international
port.
It is a prelude to a continuing four-part documentary project, entitled Tondo, Beloved,
about neocolonialism and contemporary life in
Manila structured in the cycle of birth, youth,
adulthood and death.
Its production started in 2010 during the national elections in the Philippines, which seated the popular incumbent president Benigno
Aquino III, and is scheduled for completion in
2013 after another round of national elections.
Tondo, Beloved: To What Are the Poor Born?
was first screened at the Cinemalaya Film Festival and is scheduled for international release
in 2012. It is self-produced with the support of
the National Commission for Culture and the
Arts and the Goethe Institute-Philippines.

26

ondo holds a unique place in Philippine

culture and society. One of the nations
oldest extant districts, its existence recorded as early as the 9th century, the
current of national history is imprinted deep in
its everyday grind.

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

KILLER JOE
OGLINE twenty two year old CHRIS
SMITH is a drug dealer down on his
luck but things are about to go from
bad to worse when he hires the unexpectedly charming hit man, KILLER JOE,
to murder his own mother for her fifty
thousand dollar life insurance policy. With
barely a dollar to his name Chris agrees to
oer up his younger sister, DOTTIE, as sexual collateral in exchange for JOEs services until he receives the insurance money.
That is if it ever does come in.
SYNOPSIS.
Does every life have a price? That is the
question facing twenty two year old CHRIS
SMITH (Emile Hirsch: Into the Wild, Milk),
a small time drug peddler just struggling
for a break. When CHRIS has his entire
stash stolen by his very own mother, he
must come up with six thousand dollars
and fast, or hes dead. In desperation, he
enlists the help of his father, ANSEL (Thomas Haden Church: Sideways, Spiderman
3) and together they plot a hostile scheme.
The plan: CHRIS mother, a low life with no
redeeming qualities, has a life insurance
policy that would more than wipe out the
debt. The problem: shell need to be dead
for them to collect.
Enter Detective JOE COOPER (Matthew McConaughey: The Lincoln Lawyer, How to
Lose a Guy in 10 Days and A Time to Kill),
a sultry hit man with all the charm and manners of a Southern gentleman. KILLER JOE
is only too happy to take on the job but JOE
wont pull a trigger without his twenty five
thousand fee paid upfront and in full. Des-

peration quickly turns to despair for the father and son, as they agree to JOEs kind
oer to defer his fee in exchange for CHRIS
attractive and seemingly innocent younger sister, DOTTIE (Juno Temple: upcoming
Dirty Girl, The Dark Knight Rises, The
Three Muskateers). JOE will hold DOTTIE as
collateral until the insurance money is collected and his fee is paid in full. It all seems
so simple. It turns out to be anything but.
JOE becomes completely and utterly infatuated with DOTTIE and she reveals herself
not to be the sweet southern belle that everyone thought. Despite what can only be
described as a questionable family situation, JOE is determined to be with DOTTIE at
any cost and as their unlikely relationship
grows, so too, does CHRIS regret. Letting
his doubts get the better of him, CHRIS goes
to JOE, intending the call the whole thing
o, but he is too late.
After coming to terms with the ghastly consequences of his plan to kill his mother,
CHRIS goes about trying to collect the settlement and finally put an end to the mess
hes created. To his surprise, he discovers
that he has been fooled. His mothers boyfriend is actually the sole beneficiary of the
insurance policy not his sister. When JOE
comes to collect his fee and make away with
DOTTIE, he receives the less than welcome
news that there is, in fact, no money. Now
faced with an angry and increasingly sociopathic hit man, CHRIS would have been
wrong to think that things couldnt get any
worse for his family. It all ends with a family dinner and a single gunshot.

27

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28

Issue 3 of 2012

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

WILLIAM
states:
FRIEDKIN
Theres a thin line between
good and evil and there is the possibility of evil in all of us. With his new
project KILLER JOE, FRIEDKIN delights in
exploring the more sinister aspects that
lurk among our fellow mankind. From
the Pulitzer Prize winning playwright,
TRACY LETTS, the film portrays those
who are forced to face the truth about
themselves in close quarters and what
happens when theyd rather not. However, its an entirely heartless reflection.
Surprisingly, FRIEDKIN reveals: I myself
have felt all of the emotions in my films
at one time or another. I was drawn to
this project as its about innocence, vicand tenderness.
timhood, vengeance
g
In May of 2010, NICHOLAS CHARTIER of
Voltage Pictures received the script for
KILLER JOE from Anonymous Content,
the managers of BILLY FRIEDKIN. His interest was definitely piqued and not being one to shy away from controversial
material, CHARTIER seemed tailor made
to produce the project. When MATTHEW
McCONAUGHEY became attached to the
title role, CHARTIER became particularly
intrigued as he has always been fond of
McCONAUGHEYs films, especially titles
such as A Time to Kill and Amisted. He
also had been a huge fan of To Live and
Die in LA, directed by FRIEDKIN in 1985.
Given these existing elements, he quickly understood that KILLER JOE was the
perfect fit for him.
Before McCONAUGHEY accepted the
role, he realised that this film was not
going to be your average crowd pleaser.
The first time I read the script, I couldnt
quite see my character clearly. Then I
met with BILLY FRIEDKIN and his aection for the love story and blasphemous
humour within the wickedly dysfunctional family, helped me reread it with a
bone..
tickle bone
When McCONAUGHEY accepted the role,
FRIEDKIN knew that the contradiction of
the actors nice guy image would benefit the film. FRIEDKIN states: There
are only a select few actors who could
have played the part but there might
have been very strong resistance from
an audience if the actor wasnt someone
who had already established their relationship as a good guy, which MATTHEW
has.
Following the success of The Hurt
Locker, directed by KATHRYN BIGELOW,
CHARTIER saw another great opportunity to work with a great director. FRIEDKIN has an incredible sense of style and
is an iconic master. Hes just brilliant,
states CHARTIER. Fellow producer,
SCOTT EINBINDER, took notice
of FRIEDKINs precise directing style from early on.
He knows what he
wants and

how
to get
it.
The most amazing part was definitely
seeing his two takes only
rule. He really believed in allowing the actors to sink their teeth
into their character. BILLY really wanted to try
y to keep
p the camera invisible
and simply provide an atmosphere
where the actors could do their best
work in telling this story.
story

toward
casting such as
EMILIE HIRSCH as Chris
Smith, THOMAS HADEN CHURCH as Ansel Smith and GINA GERSHON as Sharla
Every day is exciting working with
Smith. The most dicult role to cast
BILLY; hes so energetic and hes so pasproved to be that of Dottie Smith, Chris
sionate. It really feels like youre part
younger sister, whose innocence Chris
of something, articulates HIRSCH. At
callously disregards, Eventually the role
the same time, he has this unbelievwent to starlet JUNO TEMPLE. FRIEDKIN
able attention to detail, its incredfought hard for TEMPLE to play the part
ible. Youll be doing a scene and hell
and subsequently won the actors
be clocking every little detail, even
admiration along the way. Workwithin your own character. He
ing with BILLY was extraordihas this extraordinary mind in
It
all
ends
nary, states TEMPLE. I estabthat way, where hes able to
lished a deep amount of trust
hold all the dierent parts of with a single
in the director, which allowed
production in his mind, every
gunshot
me to feel comfortable, regardlittle tiny detail, while at the
less of the scene. He made me
same time having this strong
feel like I was perfect for the role
thrust and vision for this movie
and I could just go for it. My perforin its entirety. He is a master and
mance really benefitted from that beworking with BILLY was an extraordicause I wasnt afraid to take a risk and to
nary experience.
take your clothes o or even shoot your
family! TEMPLE exclaimed.
The KILLER JOE team would soon face
the challenge of casting actors who
The next step for the producers would
could keep up with the directors debe choosing the perfect location.
cisive style. EINBINDER also explains:
Though the story was set in Texas, New
From my first meeting with BILLY, when
Orleans proved
to be ideal.
p
we discussed his vision of the movie,
Aside
from
the
tax
his interpretation of each character and
rebates, our
who he thought should be cast and why,
started bringing the movie to life in a
completely dierent way.
While CHARTIER spent that summer financing, FRIEDKIN was
hard at work, casting the
remainder of the film.
The directors clear,
unique
vision
steered the
film

29

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Universal
U
niversal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

filming
location had to
reflect the mood and tone
reflect
set in the story and New Orleans has
so many dierent faces it proved to be
the perfect backdrop for this story, explains EINBINDER. I love New Orleans!
I would happily move here. You get an
incredible feeling of freedom and lust
for life being here. Its alive and electric, declares JUNO TEMPLE.
Editing took place in Los Angeles where
BILLY breezed through his cut in six
weeks and then hired STEVE BOEDDEKER from Lucasfilm to do the sound
eects. BOEDDEKERs credits include
X-Men, Alice in Wonderland and
TRON: Legacy. The film is scored by
TYLER BATES, the composer of recent
films 300, Watchmen and Conan,
the Barbarian. CHARTIER knew TYLER
personally and called him asking if he
would be interested in doing something
a little dierent. TYLER had done The
Way for MARTIN SHEEN and 300, two
very dierent movies; hes also an extremely successful composer for games
soundtracks, so I knew he could do
something
and interg original
g
esting. BATES describes his

exp e rience
working
on
BILLY
the film:
gave me a near impossible challenge of imbuing
the score for KILLER JOE with
a south-western attitude, but without the conventional use of guitars. It
turned out that a plucked and bowed
acoustic guitarviol accompanied by a
tympani was the perfect foundation for
what became a dark, headspace, minimalist score. The addition of melodica,
marxophone and electric baritone guitar played through a talk box and completed our sonic palate. Each of these
instruments requires a fair degree of
physical eort to play, which made the
creation of music for the film a rather
visceral and tactile experience for me,
to say the least.

LETTS
went into a great
deal of detail with the producers,
cast and crew about the story and its
characters, so they could hear the influences directly from the horses mouth.
He even went as far as to create an
in-depth memo we could pass around
to everybody involved on the production. BILLY notes: We followed that
pretty closely and it was an eye opener
in terms of what was the driving force
underneath everything we were doing.
In my humble opinion, its that second
level that makes the performance in
this film so very rich and very real.
GERSHON elaborates on this when she
states: TRACYs uniqueness lies in the
creation of his super intense characters.
It becomes an amazing piece for actors
exploit. As a result
result, the filmmakers
filmmakers
to exploit
were sure to cast actors who could really sink their teeth into their characters.
UNO TEMPLE plays a young girl whose
brother and father want to pimp her
out to a professional killer while killing
their wife and mother. Cinderella wants
to get out of this family and the only viable solution she has is when she falls
in love with her prince, a cop whos
also a professional killer.

ABOUT THE STORY

From the beginning the qualThe Movie The movie is an actors dream.
ity of the screenplay was asis an actors The dialogue-rich scenes and
sured when TRACY LETTS
well-rounded characters crepenned the adaptation of his
dream
ated
the potential for amazing
own award winning play. On
performances which seemed
the stage, KILLER JOE originally
limitless, HIRSCH notes. I think
premiered at the Steppenwolf
thats whats so great about TRATheatre in 1998. Since then the play
CYs writing. You can have these moralKILLER JOE has performed in fifteen
ly dubious and questionable characters
countries and in twelve dierent lanand he still manages to maintain some
guages since its original Chicago debut.
kind of integrity in some corner of their
It won top honours at the Edinburgh,
souls. That is a very hard thing to do as
Scotland Fringe Theatre Festival in 94
a writer. EINBINDER agrees: BILLY saw
and the played to sellout audiences at
the characters as dreamers, all of whom
Londons The Buck and West Theatre
were searching for some sort of fulfilduring a four month run in which it won
individument.
Although problematic individu
the Time Out Award as the Best Play of
als, they each were rich and unique in
1995. In 1998 it found an o Broadway
their own way. TRACY LETTS dialogue
home at the two hundred seat Soho
i off course, amazing
is,
i but
b BILLY fi
fill
lled
d
Playhouse. TRACY LETTS received a
in
the
nuances
and
layers,
which
alPulitzer nomination for The Man from
lowed us to attract such a wonderful
Nebraska and more recently won the
cast.
2008 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and
Tony Award for Best Play for
With it being such a honed stage play
his screening family draand now adapted for the big screen,
ma: August: Osage
the pacing ends up helping you find the
County.
character living within you and to find
the vitality within it, explains CHURCH.
The audience may think they know
where somethings headed but due to
the organic nature of the relationships,
it could go askew at any moment.

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30

KILLER JOE is a pretty outrageous story, says McCONAUGHEY. This film

was a departure from any project
Ive ever worked on before

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

aves is the new transformational Movie by Woho!Productions, a peculiar love story between two
people (Mar and Juan) who live far away from each
other. They have never met before, but mysteriously they
start perceiving each other through energy waves. Suddenly their lives reveal mirror-like behaviors. Waves adventures into the dimension of the unseen and follows the
story of these two characters on their journey prior to their
encounter, a roller coaster of emotions beyond time and
space and surreal dimensions.
The movie is inspired by the Quantum physics theory of
entanglement, which contemplates the idea of a universal
matrix of energy that links us all. The locations chosen by
the Director Pilli Cortese are very contrasting: a gloomy
London opposed to a paradisiac La Digue, a remote island
of the Seychelles.
Filming on the Seychelles may seem like a fantastic adven-

ture, but filming on a remote island is not always easy

says Pilli Cortese. To begin with, the Director almost got
killed in a night bike ride on the island by crashing at high
speed against a palm tree! Let alone the Tropical virus
continues Cortese: Yes! We got it! All of us and I mean ALL,
apart from the costume designer. The bug will weaken you
and you will want to die. But you wont, because you need
to keep shooting and the days are counted.
Waves is a film about connections, but not the ones we
normally deal with in our daily routines. It really makes you
wonder: what would happen if we could have more faith
in our perceptions?
While waiting for the release of Waves this coming Autumn
in London, in the meantime you can visit their website:
http://www.wo-ho-productions.com/ where you can also
be part of the Waves movement. Be sure to check their
Wavesbook page. More exciting interactive ideas for and
from Waves supporters are expected in the coming weeks!

31

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

LEAVE IT ON THE TRACKS

ason Becker: Not Dead Yet is a feature-length documentary telling the extraordinary
story of Jason Becker, a musical prodigy and
guitar legend, who has been battling with ALS
(motor neurone disease) for 22 years. A
paralyzing terminal illness with no cure, the
disease has trapped Jason inside his body .
Using an eye communication system invented
by his father, Jason is able to escape these confines and release the music trapped inside his
mind. Jason Becker: Not Dead Yet is a story of
dreams, love and the strength of the human
spirit.
The year is 1989 and all the dreams of Jason
Becker, a down-to-earth teenager from California, have just come true as he lands himself the
biggest rock-guitar gig on the planet. Hes on
the cover of every music magazine and is being
hailed by critics as a prodigy in line to become
one of the all-time greats. Jason and his family
have found the American dream and are about
to start living it. One week from now, during an
examination of his leg, their dreams will turn
into a nightmare when Jason is diagnosed with
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and given just
3-5 years to live.
The condition, also known as Lou Gehrigs Disease, is an incurable and fatal neuro-degenerative disease. In just a short time, victims become
completely paralyzed while their minds remains 100% in tact; essentially trapping them
inside their own bodies. In most cases, ALS
aects people in older age but Jason was just
19 when he was diagnosed. There is neither a
cure nor any real treatment available. Jason
was diagnosed 22 years ago now and astonishingly, despite the majority of suerers dying
within 5 years, Jason is still going strong making
him is one of the longest known survivors.
FUNDING
The crowd-funded project built up a very strong
and supportive social network through Facebook, Twitter and online video channels such
as YouTube and Vimeo. The project received
donations from all over the world as far reaching
as Argentina, Indonesia, New Zealand and Iceland, raising over $70,000 in less than a year.
Fans blogs and the forwarding of news via
these networks has also helped to promote the
project all over the world. This truly is an independent film funded by a passionate and patient audience.
For more information please contact:

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32

DOGWOOF GLOBAL
211 Hatton Square Business Centre
16 Baldwins Gardens |London | EC1N 7RJ | UK
Tel: +44 20 7831 7252
Ana Vicente: ana@dogwoof.com
Vesna Cudic: vesna@dogwoof.com

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

GATTU
GATTU TO CHARM INDIAN AUDIENCES ON JULY 20TH

n a small town in central India, kids

and adults are equally obsessed with
kite-flying. The airspace is dominated by
a black kite called KALI with mysterious
origins. A street kid, GATTU dreams of defeating KALI but fails.
He discovers that the local school has a
roof which will give him a vantage point.
Impersonating as a student, he sneaks into
the school and must now pretend to study.
The only problem he is illiterate! None
the less, the little street urchin takes up
the challenge dreams are not impossible
when the desire is strong!
After winning over international audiences in film festivals, the film GATTU will
release in India as a childrens film but it
has truly managed to wow fans of all ages
across the world.
Produced by Childrens Film Society, India
(CFSI) and directed by RAJAN KHOSA, and
distributed by the Rajshri group, a name
synonymous with family entertainment,
GATTU will now release in India on July
20th 2012.
The movie stars MOHAMED SAMAD as
Gattu, NARESH KUMAR as Anees Bhai
and BHURA as Tiger, the sheep and the
music in the film is composed by SANDESH SHANDILYA.

The movie has already won awards at the

presitigious Berlin Film Festival and the
Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA).
After screening at the Toronto International Kids Film Festival (TIFF), it is now
slated to tour in festivals across China and
Europe through the summer.
About the change of release date, Director
RAJAN KHOSA says: I am overwhelmed at
the demand for the film from all corners of
the world and only just getting used to all
the awards coming our way. I am happy
that we have succeeded in making a movie
full of hope and happiness.
GATTU continues to make its presence
felt in the international festival circuit, but
we are most excited about the Indian release, the first CFSI film to be released all
over the country. We pushed the release
to July 20th as many schools have shown
interest in the film and would help us get
their participation in addition to parents
who are always on a lookout for a film that
it both entertaining and enriching.

filmmak-

CEO Rajshri Media adds: We are proud to

partner the CFSI and to be associated with
a film that has been made straight from
the heart. GATTU is all about the flight of
a child and the belief that dreams do come
true. We will do our best to make Gattus
dream a reality on July 20th 2012, when
it releases at select multiplexes and single
screens across India.
Childrens Film Society India (CFSI) is a
government body that produces, exhibits
and distributes childrens cinema. Since
its inception CFSI has given opportunities
to young and imaginative film-makers and
over the years some of the most delightful
childrens content has been produced by
the organisation.

During the release of the film, which is

now after the vacation, we have a strong
school outreach plan that will enable us to
reach to lot more children throughout the
country, says NANDITA DAS, Chairperson,
CFSI.
RAJJAT A BARJATYA, Managing Director and

GATTU

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34

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

NYC Doctor Produces

Documentary on Children
Affected with AIDS
by Tyrone D Murphy

r. Brian Mehling is a successful orthopedic surgeon practicing in New York

and New Jersey who has
dedicated himself to making a dierence in the world
through his groundbreaking work in the application
of stem cell therapy as well
as his work to help children worldwide, including
those aected by AIDs and
war. As well as being on call
for surgery, his endeavors
range from developing new
advances in stem cell therapy, producing documentary
films, travelling worldwide
for medical and charity
work, to attending special
events with world leaders
and organizations, including the United Nations and
amfAR.
Universal Film Magazine
caught up with Brian during the Cannes Film Festival
amfAR event.
UFM: Tell us what brings you
to Cannes this year.

BM: I wanted to have dinner

with Paris Hilton, and the
fact that she liked my shoes
made my night. Just kidding. Im here to promote
the sequel to my original
documentary, Tiny Tears,
which was shown at Cannes
in 2008. The sequel, A
Smile For Bow, will follow
one of the children from
the original film who is
an orphan born with AIDS
and facial deformation; we
brought her to the U.S. to
receive
life-transforming
treatments.
UFM: As a doctor from New

York City, you spend much

of your time working in
other countries across the
globe. Can you tell us about
your eorts internationally?
BM: I have created The Blue
Horizon Hospital Project,
which plans on developing 22 hospitals worldwide. Each hospital will
provide expert nursing, patient education, preventive
medicine, followup care and
community outreach programs to meet the needs
of the underserved. We
have dedicated 5 percent
of the hospital beds to charity care, with a special focus on meeting the health
care needs of children orphaned by disease and war.
There will also be a special
emphasis placed on training the local doctors in the
most advanced techniques,
including stem cell therapy,
as they work alongside the
experts from the United
States.
UFM: What is the Blue Horizon Foundation?
BM: The foundation was
created to raise money for
providing medical care to
children aected by disease
and war around the world.
In addition, it specializes
in the development of film
documentaries to increase
awareness of the key issues,
and thats what brings me to
Cannes.
UFM: How important was
the need to bring awareness
to the causes that you are
involved with?

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Tiny Tears

www.bluehorizonhospital.com

UFM: Please tell us about

the films.
BM: Tiny Tears does not
simply focus on children
dying from this disease,
but also on children living
with it. It does not pass over
their culture, but examines
how each of the contexts
into which they were born
has played a decisive role
in shaping the quality of
their lives. The documentary does not ignore the
help they have received, but
shows how their lives are
made possible by the kindness of those who have nurtured them.
The sequel, A Smile For
Bow, is in postproduction and will be ready for
Cannes next year. One child
from each orphanage we
visited was flown to the
United States to participate
in Camp Dreamcatcher. After camp we follow Bow,
the little girl from Thailand,
as she undergoes a dicult
and dangerous surgery to
reconstruct her face. Bow
was born with major facial
deformations due to fetal
alcohol syndrome. Doctors
in Thailand refuse to operate on her because of her
HIV status. They think shes
not worth it. We thought
otherwise.

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UFM: How did you and Robert Corna get together?

BM: Robert and I met at the
Winter Olympics in Italy in
2006. We both missed the
ski jump and began talking about his expertise,
and I wanted to work on a
film project to promote our
projects. We started brainstorming and Tiny Tears
was born.
UFM: What was it like to
work with him?
BM: Robert is amazing and
really committed himself
to the project in a very personal way, and that made
the film. Not to mention, he
has worked alongside the
likes of Mel Gibson, Martin
Scorsese, and Spike Lee on
films such as, Gangs of New
York, The Passion Of The
Christ and HBOs Rome.
He has directed three documentaries: Tsunami: The
Renewal, focusing on volunteers in Thailand, Mine,
focusing on landmine victims, and of course, Tiny
Tears.
UFM: It was great meeting
you and we wish you the
best of luck on all your endeavors.
BM: Thank you and I look
forward to seeing you here
next year.

To find out more, visit

www.bluehorizonhospital.
com.

Universal Film Magazine

supports this project

36

BM: Extremely important,

because many of the problems children face in the
world are not well known. I
felt the best way to address
this problem was to produce documentary films for
an international audience.
We formed the production
company, Industrial Motion
Pictures, and our first project was Tiny Tears, directed by Robert Corna and
narrated by Danny Glover.

Universal Film
Issue 3 - 2012

v
o

y
l
e

o
m

y
l
l

by Tyrone D Murphy

hen newly-wed Molly Reynolds returns to

her long-abandoned family home, reminders of a nightmarish childhood begin seeping
into her new life. A malevolent force, whether
her own haunted past or something supernatural, tirelessly seeks to overwhelm her. Alone and isolated in a
centuries-old manor, she soon begins an inexorable descent
into depravity. Somewhere in the house, in the terrible space between psychosis and possession, lies an evil that will pull Molly and
all those around her into darkness and death.

With the exquisite and haunting Lovely Molly, Eduardo Sanchez takes the
first-person video horror genre he pioneered with The Blair Witch Project and
evolves it into a modern personal horror film with the raw, intimate character exploration that evokes memories of early Polanski films like Repulsion or Rosemarys
Baby. Ten years ago, The Blair Witch phenomenon changed film-making, marketing and
the way consumers enjoy content. Although characteristically humble about being a cultural
icon, Sanchez notes, One thing in the Blair aftermath I liked seeing was it seemed to give permission to studios and other indie film-makers to experiment with first-person cinema where the
characters shoot the entire film through video cameras period. I thought three in particular worked
great: Cloverfield, Rec and Paranormal Activity.

In his own life, the culture-changing juggernaut of Blair allowed Sanchez and his producers Robin Cowie and
Gregg Hale to spread their wings both personally and professionally. Over the last dozen years movies, TV shows,
advertising and transmedia work became virtual side projects to the main business of getting married, settling down
and raising children. Unfortunately none of these media projects were nearly as successful as Blair. This fact was neither
lost on Sanchez, nor made it any easier for him to keep making movies. Sanchez considers the phenomenon that was Blair,
and its influence on another first-person horror hit, Paranormal Activity.

I was already writing Lovely Molly when Paranormal came out, Sanchez begins, and I have to confess: its success intensified
the frustrations I was feeling at the time about being a film-maker. I found myself looking into other careers, daydreaming about
working at Target or Toys R Us. Jobs I could turn o after my shift. A job that didnt control my feelings of self-worth the way
film-making does. I was feeling sorry for myself, becoming really negative. I began seeing a therapist and it really helped, says
Sanchez, candidly. It gave me perspective. I was reminded how lucky I was to be able to make movies at all.
With Lovely Molly, Sanchezs film-making has matured and evolved; heralding a new era of first-person film-making. Sanchezs
narrative approach for the film integrates a first- person video perspective into old-school genre storytelling for which the master perspective may be that of the house and anyone in it at any given time. There is no question that the film-maker has retained
many of his favorite tropes. Both Lovely Molly and The Blair Witch Project feature harrowing, naturalistic performances by
unknown actresses who won their respective parts after auditioning against hundreds, and both employ isolation as a film-making
device and psychological metaphor.
But However, with Lovely Molly, director Eduardo Sanchez puts the video camera not into the hands of an ambitious film student,
but those of a young woman who acquired a camera to document her recent wedding. And whereas Blair was constructed entirely
of footage shot by the filmss characters, Lovely Molly uses it sparingly, carefully weaving the video segments into a carefully
delicately crafted and beautifully cinematic whole. Mollys camera is a documentary tool, says director Eduardo Sanchez. But
its also like a divining rod within the story. It helps Molly find her truth. Recording everyday events or using video cameras like
a personal diary, whether thats on a phone or a web cam or whatever, is such an normal part of peoples lives that its almost
weird that more films dont use first-person video, he adds. But because of our use of it in Blair, I think some people might look
at our using it again a little more critically. And honestly, I was ready to try something new. Inspired, he and his film-making partners at Haxan dove headlong into developing the film. One of producer Robin Cowies first steps was to send an early draft of the
script to Mark Ordesky, the former New Line executive and Lord Of The Rings executive producer, who was just starting his new
venture, Amber Entertainment. It was incredibly serendipitous, explains Ordesky. Jane (Fleming) and I had taken this leap of
faith in starting our own company and this incredible script lands on our desks. A script from a group of guys I hadnt talked to in
over ten years.
At the 1999 Sundance Film Festival, as New Line Cinemas acquisitions chief, Ordesky had tried and failed to secure distribution
rights to The Blair Witch Project. But a relationship was formed that transcended business. We were the same kind of geeks,
says Ordesky. We realized we had been obsessed with the same interests as kids. We ended up talking more about Dungeons &
Dragons and The Legend Of Boggy Creek than we did about buying or selling movies. After losing out on Blair, I had promised
myself I would work with them some day. To have this be our first produced film as independent producers is beyond awesome.
Based on the strength of that early draft of the script, Ordesky and Fleming signed on almost immediately and, in a matter of just
a couple of days, the film went into pre- production with a definitive start date. We immediately broke that rule of not using your
own money, admits executive producer Andy Jenkins. We really went back to an old-school, DIY approach. We werent going to
wait on anybody. Not even investors. We just started making the movie. It was another leap of faith but one quickly validated
with the discovery of Gretchen Lodge, the young actress who would eventually portray the title character. We conducted the first
series of auditions ourselves, explains Sanchez. We saw hundreds of actresses, first online and then in person in New York.

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Shes the linchpin of the story. Absolutely the soul of the film, says Sanchez. If
the Molly character doesnt work on every level, you simply dont have a movie.
With Molly and Tim, we come into their
marriage after about a year, continues
Sanchez. Theyve had to move into her
parents old house to save money. Molly
thought she could put the memories of
the horrible things that had happened
there behind her. But shes wrong. And
then theres the possibility that its not
just memories in the house but some
thing, some force thats haunting her.

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That
ambiguity is what
makes the story so compelling. Balancing those two realities completely
hinges on Gretchens performance. The
role was demanding in every way: an
emotional roller coaster of incredible intensity with a character that fluctuates
between terrorized victim and calculating
predator.
There were extensive make-up eects,
lots of blood and a number of stunts for
which doubles were not practical. Several
scenes required full nudity and exposure
to the rain and the cold. I can relate to
Molly as a character, to her loneliness,
to the dignity she has in trying to retake
control of her life, Sanchez admits. And
I also relate to Gretchen as an actress putting herself in such a vulnerable position
as a human being. Maintaining that vulnerability depended on Lodges trust, not
only in Sanchez, but in the entire crew.
Giving an actress the space (physical and
emotional) to dig into such a role can be
challenging on the biggest of films. With
Lovely Molly, as with most low-budget
shoots, the crew was mostly young, inexperienced and working in mostly unpleasant conditions for very little money. The
schedule was brutal.

road,
the set was
a stone house built
by an Irish colonel at the end
of the French and Indian War. With no
trailers for cast or crew, the entire production was crammed into every nook
and cranny of the house. Former slave
quarters stued with years of trash had
to be cleared for use as sets. The homes
original owner left behind a legend built
on brutality, and every generation since
had imprinted its own ghost stories on
the rugged rock walls. Lodge and some of
the crew experienced sensations of being
watched and even touched in apparently
empty rooms. It was a cramped, cold, and
legitimately creepy location.
The production of Lovely Molly faced a
mix of challenges that could have yielded
disaster... or inspiration. Sanchez and his
team chose inspiration. Im coming into
this with both eyes open, concludes
Sanchez. And Im allowing myself to be
excited. Im really proud of Lovely Molly
and I think its a film thats going to resonate with audiences. I feel fortunate to
have made it.

And then there was the house. Sitting on a

small hill at the end of a mile of rutted dirt

38

Lodge was the

instant favorite of the film-making team.We were stunned, says Jane
Fleming. It was truly one of those revelatory moments when you see a star born.
Lovely Molly was one of the first movies Gretchen had auditioned for, and her
command of the camera in the audition
was breathtaking. Gretchen was everything I was looking for in Molly, Sanchez
says. We knew we needed unknowns for
the movie to work, but we also wanted
the person playing Molly to have the total support of seasoned professionals
who knew how to work on a fast- moving
shoot. Alexandra (Holden) and Johnny
(Lewis) were amazing supporting actors
in every sense. Lodges performance,
which channels a woman at the end of
her rope, had to be utterly compelling for
Lovely Molly to work.

UniversalUniversal
Film Film
Issue 2 of 2012

Issue 3 of 2012

THE 99 UNBOUND

rom the heartland of America to

the capitals of Europe and the
Middle-East,.From the jungles of
Indonesia and beyond; a young group
of international superheroes battles a
time-travelling megalomaniac in THE 99
Unbound, the new animated feature from
Endemol UK and Teshkeel Media. Based
on the acclaimed THE 99 comic book
series, the film presents the origin story
for the upcoming TV series of the same
name.
In THE 99 Unbound we begin to unravel
the story of THE 99, as we first meet
Dana (Noora the Light) and Nawaf (Jabbar the Powerful). Together they bring
Noor Stone bearer John Weller (Darr the
Aicter) into THE 99, who realizes he
has only discovered a small part of his
stones power as he undergoes his transformation to a fully fledged 99 member.

Meanwhile, the enigmatic duo of Ramzi

and Rughal, , spar over the mystical Noor
stones,who covet the stones at any cost.
But as the newly formed 99 try and recruit a new stone bearer, technology
wizard Miklos, we begin to understand
that evil mastermind Rughal will stop at
nothing to realise his ambition of world
domination.
THE 99 scramble together a plan and
travel to Cairo to recruit Catarina (Mumita the Destroyer), whose Noor Stone
makes her a fearsome martial artist. Formidable or not Cat cannot help THE 99
when they become trapped and Ramzi is
held hostage. Summoning their powers
the super-heroes unite to attempt a daring escape but theyve underestimated
the evil mastermind Rughal. THE 99 animated series will follow the adventures
of the comic books superhero characters from around the world. Each character is empowered with a derivative of
one of the 99 attributes of Allah; values such as wisdom, mercy, strength or
faithfulness. The team works together to
maximise their powers; Jabbar is a Hulklike figure of enormous strength, Noora
has power over light, and Darr is both the
cause and reliefof pain. Each member of
THE 99 embodies one of 99 global values and hail from 99 dierent countries
on six dierent continents.
According to legend, 99 gems of power
that were scattered across the earth hundreds of years agonow empower a select
few with superhuman abilities. These

lost Noor Stones are storehouses for

the knowledge of Dar Al-Hikma, the largest library in the great city of Baghdad. If
the gems can be contained and used for
good, humanity may once again be able
to usher in an age of peace and prosperity. Years of searching proved futile until now. Today the light begins to shine,
bringing the promise and power of THE
99 to the children of the world.
ABOUT DAVE OSBORNE (Director): Adirector for 20 years who has worked on
on numerous animated television shows
in UK and abroad. Among his most noted
credits is the television series, Wiggly
Park. In the last 10 years he has worked
mostly, though not exclusively with CGI
animation. He directed The Cubeez, one
of the first animated series made in the
UK using full CGI animation. Following
The Cubeez Dave worked at Cosgrove
Hall Films as a director on the series
Shadow of the Elves. Additionally, he
has directed 39 episodes of Friends and
Heroes, which was broadcast on the BBC
and in the United States.
ABOUT PETER GRIFFITHS (Series Producer): Peter is an award winning animation
producer whose experience includes
multiple animation series made for the
UK and US. Peter has further experience
in interactive content and games including Dora the Explora, Angelina Ballerina,
Postman Pat and Rupert the Bear.

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Universal Film

Issue 3 of 2012

Leveson Inquiry

100 Ways to Pop Corn

Americans eat over one billion pounds of popcorn a year
with about 20 -30% eaten at
the movies.
Popcorn kernels have a hard
moisture-sealed hull and a
dense starchy interior. This allows pressure to build inside
the kernel until an explosive pop results. A teacher
friend said she would sit her
elementary school class in a
circle and place an electric
popper in the center. Shed
leave the lid o while the
children guessed where the
farthest popped kernel would
land. Dont try this at home,
but the kids loved it.
Although popcorn or maize,
as it is known, was discovered by the Native Americans,
there is evidence of it in Peru
as early as 4200 BC. Some
strains of corn are now cultivated specifically as popping
corns.
Commercial popcorn machines were invented by
Charles Cretors in the late
19th century. Before that,
most individuals would pop
their corn in a wire basket
over a fire. Cretors invention
allowed for the corn to be
popped in oil. This is still the

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favorite of most. Many more

methods have been invented,
such as air poppers, electric
poppers and more recently
pre-packaged microwave
bags.
Over the years there have
been numerous ways to finish o the batch. The most
well-known is melted butter
and salt. This version started
being served in movie theaters as early as 1912. Still
the favorite, but there are so
many other ways to prepare
this snack:
Lauries Summer Pepper Corn
Cook in canola oil until completely popped. Top with
true oil, sea salt, summer
pepper blend (white pepper, cardamom, ground fennel seed and star anise), and
a small amount of brewers
yeast.
Hughs Gosomi Brocolli Popcorn
Air-popped kernels topped
with olive oil, Gosomi crackers, brewers yeast, powdered
organic cheddar cheese,
steamed broccoli flowerettes.
He calls that dinner for his
chil-dren.
I like to make a caramel rosemary version by melting butter and maple syrup together
with chopped rosemary.

Donna likes to add Pepper

Plant sauce to the cooked
corn, while Sally says the addition of chopped fresh garlic,
butter and salt is the only
way to go. There are literally
hundreds of toppings for popcorn, but this method hits the
jackpot:
Fran says her grandmas
stued turkey popcorn is the
best. Grandma says: Place a
couple handfuls of popcorn
with some chopped celery,
salt and pepper into the cavity of the turkey. Place it in
the oven and the popcorn is
done when it blows the ass
o the turkey.
Some other toppings include
brown sugar, melted caramel,
melted chocolate, Parmesan cheese, cayenne pepper,
spices and herbs. Keeping the
fat and sugar levels at a minimum will help make popcorn
a healthier snack. One thing
is for certain popcorn sure is
the perfect thing to chomp
on while snuggling up and
watching a movie.
Rosemary Febbo
Mama Roses Kitchen
www.roseskitchen.com
KZFR 90.1 FM
http://www.kzfr.org
UFM loves these recipies!

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100 Ways to Pop Corn

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

PLANET OF SNAIL
by Tyrone D Murphy

oung-Chan lost his vision and hearing

due to a serious illness when still very
young. He often describes himself as
a snail as he can only rely on his tactile
senses, as slowly as a snail, to communicate with others.
Being unable to speak other peoples language, he once believed he had been singled out from the world. But a woman of
an angel walked into his life. Soon-Ho, as
small as a little girl who is also disabled,
changed his life dramatically. Being married to her, he explores the things he can
neither see nor hear. The once lonely snail
now goes sleighing, swimming and writes
essays, poems and even a script for a play,
translating every experience into his own
unique words.
Although he does not get discouraged
easily, obstacles still linger around him.
He cannot go anywhere without Soon-Ho
who is his translator and guide. In a meeting with a social worker one-day, they realise they cannot be together forever and
how vulnerable Young-Chang is without
Soon-Ho.
Young-Chan begins to learn to walk with a
blind stick, precariously for the first time
in 40 years, while Soon-Ho stays home,
alone for the first time in their marriage.
Swimming in the middle of ocean, Youngchan says; Im closing my eyes for a while
to see the most precious thing. Im closing
my ears to hear the most beautiful sound.
And Im waiting in silence to speak out the
most truthful words

Young-Chang
My name is Young-Chan and I am deaf and
blind. Luckily, I was not born like this. I was
able to learn to speak and remember what
I have seen before I lost my vision and
hearing. Unlike many of my handicapped
friends, I refuse to be satisfied with what
life I have been given. I believe I have a lot
of potential not yet discovered. My dream
is to write a book that no one has ever
written before: A snails encyclopaedia,
the world through the eyes of a blind and
deaf man Soon-Ho is my wife.
I havent actually seen her with my own
eyes but I know she is the most beautiful
woman in the world. She has become my
lifeline ever since she came into my life.
She is my arms and legs that take me to
school, to the gym, to the sea and everywhere I want to go.
She is the eyes and the ears of me that
sees, hears and translates for me. I cannot
live a day without her and feel sorry for
that I cannot do much for her while she
has spine disability and often gets sick.
I come from a planet of snails where people communicate by touching each other.
We call ourselves snails because we cannot hear or see and our lives are as slow as
the snails. Now I live on earth where time
runs so fast which makes me hard to follow the life of the earthmen. When I first
came to the earth, I was desperate because there was nothing I could do. However, an angel came into my life and I discovered a beautiful world that I can read
under my fingers. Everything around me

started changing. Hopes started replacing

despairs and I started challenging for my
long delayed dream. Now my heart is full
of hope and I know their will be so much
more I can do in this world: The reason for
my life.
Director/Cinematographer
Seung-Jun Yi is one of Koreas emerging
directors in the world documentary scene.
Among a dozen TV length documentaries
and shorts, Seung Jun directed Children
of god (2008), a story about the children
living in the crematorium of Nepal, which
has travelled the world including Hotdocs
and is being distributed worldwide. His
interest in filmmaking has always focused
on the life of, the so called unseen minorities, which has become his signature
style of filmmaking. With his new feature length documentary Planet of Snail
Seung Jun teamed up with world class
creative talents from literally all over the
world including a Lebanese editor and a
Finnish sound designer let alone the international funders and broadcasters. Yis
experiments on this ambitious project in
every aspect of filmmaking broadened his
view on documentary as a filmmaker.
Producer
Min-Chul Kim was born into a family that
runs a record shop, a video rental store,
and a photo shop altogether in a-bit-ofeverything store in a small village of Korea. Thanks to the rich cultural environment of the family business, the country
boy spent his teens with American
and Hong Kong noir films while

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

In the beginning there was darkness and silence. The darkness and silence were with God.
When I came into existence, they came to me.

watching his father developing black

and white negatives in his kitchen
turned dark room. He worked for film
and TV productions to survive whilst living in Amsterdam studying communication management. After a number of jobs
including party promoter, literary agent
and running a one-man production, he is
now an independent producer based in
Seoul and Amsterdam while mixing and
crossing not only genres but also media and industries. Min-Chuls producer
filmography includes Bong-Nam Parks
2009 IDFA mid-length competition winner Iron Crows.

www.ufmag.org

42

cente: ana@dogwoof.com
For more information please contact:
DOGWOOF GLOBAL
Ana Vicente: ana@dogwoof.com

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Filmmakers blacklisted
film festival organizers " behind the screen"
Part 1 - by Tyrone D Murphy

Horror Movie The Killing Games

he first systematic Hollywood blacklist of filmmakers was instituted on November 25, 1947. The Hollywood blacklist, as it is generally known, was the
list of actors, directors, musicians, screenwriters and
other entertainment professionals who were denied
employment in the field because of their political beliefs or associations, real or suspected. Artists were barred from work
on the basis of their alleged membership in or sympathy
toward the American Communist Party.

Blacklisted Film Director Barry J Gillis

UFFO was a member of this forum and strongly objected to
such activity, although the filmmaker was unknown to us at
the time. We at UFFO believe that it is fundamentally wrong to
blacklist anyone, and even more so when such an act is based
on gossip or a comment with no evidence to suggest the allegation is true.

Prior to this incident there was strong opposition and hostility in the group towards UFFO and our remit of best
the entire
business practices, which at times reached an almost
cast,crew,
fever pitch. Over a period of almost a year, objections
Some were blacklisted simply because their names
distributors
were made by a few members of the group, about
came up at the wrong place and time. Even during the
and financiers everything related to UFFO. This included posts we
period of its strictest enforcement the late 1940s
made about new member festivals joining UFFO, the
through the late 1950s the blacklist was rarely made
now suer
new UFFO magazine, and changes to the organizational
explicit and verifiable, but it caused direct damage to
structure.
the careers of scores of American artists. The blacklist was
eectively broken in 1960 when Dalton Trumbo, an unrepentTo emphasize the hostility faced by UFFO by a small number of
ant member of the Hollywood Ten, was publicly acknowledged
members of this group, the following comments will sum it up.
as the screenwriter of the films Spartacus and Exodus.
Amy Ettinger is one of the forums members, and is also the Director of the Scottsdale International Film Festival. In a thread
Fast forward sixty years, and the dreaded blacklist is re-emergabout UFFO, she remarked, Hope it goes down in flames with
ing, this time via the Film Festival Organizers (FFO) group on
no takers. Another comment, by Matthew M. Foster, Director
the social networking site, Facebook. Recently, a Canadian
of the Dragon*Con Film Festival, read, And I second Amy. The
filmmaker, Barry J. Gillis, was purportedly blacklisted within
faster this dies the better. No good can come of it and so much
this closed and secretive group. A post on the groups Facetrouble. Its plain to see that UFFO was resented and was later
book page alleged that one of the festivals represented in the
harassed.
FFO group had received threats of violence from Gillis.
UFFO was later banned from the FFO forum for trying to bring
According to Gillis, his ordeal began when he submitted a horsome sanity to the situation, and to stop filmmakers being
ror film to the Edmonton Film Festival. A month before the
blacklisted. A small number of the group, including the modocial selection process began, the festival informed him that
erators, have no interest in listening to reason, and resented
his film was not selected; he was told that the film The Killing
any opposition to their biased beliefs.
Games is too violent for the Edmonton Film Festival. Frustrated that his film was rejected far too early, Gillis explained,
Some of the forum members feel so comfortable and proI wrote to the Edmonton Film Festival a number of times and
tected there that they can post anything at all. After UFFO was
was completely ignored. Out of frustration, he again wrote to
excluded from the group, another thread was created by the
the festival, saying that he was at war with them. Gillis has
moderator, Jon Gann, which contained a torrent of abusive
told UFFO, The context was a war of words, and they knew
comments in relation to UFFO and the blacklisting of Gillis.
this. We have seen the correspondence between Gillis and
It also included a video that contained extremely oensive,
the Edmonton Film Festival and although the correspondence
racist/anti-Jewish and homophobic content, posted for the
clearly demonstrates Gillis was annoyed there was no threats
groups entertainment by Charles Judson, a programmer of the
of violence.
Atlanta Film Festival.

The blacklist re-emerging

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Kerrie Long is a small-time filmmaker

who took the reins of the Edmonton
International Film Festival in 2004. In
a recent article on Canada.com she is
described as red-haired and feisty. She
has been quoted as saying, I had to get
home to milk 40 cows, and I also helped
butcher cows and chickens; I became a
certified cattle inseminator at the age
of 17. Can this really be the same person who is very very afraid because
of an email from a filmmaker to the director of the Edmonton Film Festival?
In stark contrast, Barry Gillis is a filmmaker who has made several films and
works in the Canadian wilderness, in
the oil industry. It all began for Gillis
when he contacted the Edmonton Film
Festival. He said, I thought I would receive support from a festival in a city I
lived in. According to Gillis, I wrote to
the Edmonton Film Festival a number
of times and was completely ignored
There were no threats or anything at
all like that to even suggest a hint of a
threat of violence. Although I am passionate about filmmaking and was annoyed at the way I was treated, I am not
violent. I later wrote to the festival and
apologised for my rude emails.
Sometime later Kerrie Long wrote this
reply to Barry Gillis: What a delightful
surprise! It takes a big soul to articulate
such a thoughtful response to a very
negative situation. I applaud you and
welcome your apology.
The Edmonton Film Festivals unique
jury system may provide a clue as to
why Kerrie Long could decide to refuse
Gillis film a month before the ocial
selection announcement. Instead of a
jury made up of industry professionals,
like most other juried festivals, the Edmonton Film Festival Jury is run by Kerrie Long herself, together with Sydney
Mould (an assistant festival programmer) and Vincent Brulotte, a 17-yearold intern. This would appear to be the
only likely explanation.
Recently the local Breakfast TV show in
Edmonton, Canada which was a major
sponsor of the Edmonton International
Film Festival also had problems with
Kerrie Long and have withdrawn their
support from the festival.

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In the case of Gillis, it would appear

that Kerrie Longs actions was a deliberate attempt to convince the other
festival organizers on the forum to
blacklist Barry Gillis, perhaps because
she was annoyed that Gillis rued her
feathers in same way. Her comments
posted to the group appear to have indeed blacklisted Gillis, and may have
damaged the careers of everyone who
was involved with Gillis horror film,
including the cast, crew, financiers and
distributors.
Although the incident also led to UFFO
being excluded from the forum because
of UFFOs objections to their blacklisting the filmmaker. Jon Gann, the forum
moderator, issued a statement. Here is
a snippet, in which he dramatically explains his actions by allowing and supporting the blacklisting of Gillis:
The thread concerned banning a filmmaker after making a credible violent
threat against a festival programmer
a behaviour so horrific, unprofessional,
and frightening that it is understandable (and I believe, justified) to ban ANYONE from an event. Film festivals are
not a right, but a public forum that is
curated, organized and produced by an
organization or individual for the benefit of an audience. NO ONE should be
subjected to such outright hate filmmaker or organizer alike.
The comments made by Kerrie Long
and the followupfollow-up comments
from the select few in the group that
supported Gillis blacklisting have now
been removed from the forum by Jon
Gann and the other moderators. So
it would seem that all we have left to
judge the facts of this travesty is Jon
Ganns own public and very dramatic
statement, which contains distortion
of facts and even complete fictions.
Gann has not only attempted to excuse
his own actions, but has spoken out in
support of Kerrie Long and taken an active part in blacklisting Gillis.
Jon Ganns statement includes this:
It Is my hope that anyone who reads
this Jon Ganns statement includes
this: It Is my hope that anyone who
reads this note investigate the situation before jumping to conclusions
since as is the case with all tales there
are two sides to the story.
Despite inviting members of the forum
to investigate the situation before
jumping to conclusions, Gann and the
other moderators removed the damning comments, so there was no evidence to make it possible for anyone
to know the facts or to investigate the
situation.

We took a snapshot of the complete

thread, which is published alongside
this article. This is the smoking gun that
clearly demonstrates how easily someone can be blacklisted, and the outright
hostility towards filmmakers or to anyone who speaks out about unfair practices is apparent.
Although we at UFFO attempted to
bring some semblance of sanity to the
forum, the hostility of the group toward UFFO and Barry Gillis was so great
that, even with no proof or evidence of
wrongdoing by Gillis, they proceeded
to blacklist him, and banned UFFO from
the forum. We must now ask, how
many other people, filmmakers or otherwise, have been blacklisted by this
group?
The result of being blacklisted can be
that blacklisted filmmakers suddenly
cant get work. The complete lack of regard by Kerrie Long and the other festival organizers for filmmakers careers
and legal procedure is reprehensible,
and must now be stopped.
We contacted all of the moderators
and some of the festival organizers
involved in the blacklisting of Gillis
so we could present two sides to this
article, and they have ignored our requests. Although they have had the
opportunity to comment on the issue
and/or apologise for their behaviour,
Jon Gann created another thread on
the forum in which he informed the
group that they do not need to make
any comments.
Such behaviour brings back memories
of days gone by, when the Hollywood
Ten the movie industry professionals convicted of contempt of Congress
were placed on the blacklist of authors, actors, and directors and were
refused work by the studio heads.
James F. Byrnes, the secretary of state
(1945-47) under Harry Truman and
chief legal counsel for the studios,
advised the film industry to deny that
there was a blacklist, because blacklisting was illegal.
Film festivals and filmmakers are one
community, not two; this is what we believe and promote at UFFO. We need to
bring awareness to the filmmaking and
festival community of how destructive
wrongful accusations and blacklisting
or cyber-bullying can be. The activity
in this particular case not only aects
the filmmaker, but the entire cast and
crew of a movie. The potential losses
to movie financiers and distributors
can also be catastrophic.

44

If we look closely at the evidence on

both sides of this issue, it would seem
that all is not what it seems. Comments
made by Kerrie Long seem to infer that
she is a helpless, terrified victim of a
disgruntled horror filmmaker (His actions since then make me very very
afraid). These comments have certain
a ring of drama to them; incidentally,
the similarity to the tagline on Barry J.
Gillis film poster (Be petrified very
petrified) is uncanny.

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

This is the thread on the Film Festival

Organizers Group on Facebook
Kerrie long - Edmonton International Film Festival

I apologize for repeating the thread about filmmaker feedback

(Its WAY down the line on this page) . We gave verbal feedback
to a filmmaker yesterday Who lives in our city -- as a courtesy
. .. BEFORE our ocial notification date in August. Lets just say
his actions since then make me very, very afraid. Please ... if ANY
of you receive a feature length, horror film from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada message me and Ill tell you whether its the same
guy or not. Hes crazy!
Like Comment Unfollow Post Wednesday at 9:34pm near Edmonton, Alberta
Mitch Davies Co Director The Fantasia Film Festival
That doesnt sound good at all. Just tried to message you, but
it doesnt look like your account allows non-friends to contact
you through it. Could you message me details? Wednesday at
11:04pm Like
Helen Stephenson, Executive Director, Prescott Film Festival
Sorry you had to go through that. ..
Wednesday at 11: 49pm Like
Matt Marxteny (Programmer) The Red Rock Film Festival
So sad that a few filmmakers cannot handle criticism - no coincidence that a lot of these filmmakers do not get into Cannes,
Sundance, Berlin, Toronto, SXSW and cannot understand why
.On a lighter note, a few years ago a filmmaker did not make
it into our festival. We thought the filmmaker would have a
sense of humor and invited their cheesy film to screen at our
bad dnema night. They entertained the idea. To our surprise,
they submitted their new film later on and the new film got in!
What a trooper -a true filmmaker. Filmmakers make note: its
not about winning or being the ocial selection; its all about
contacts and getting recognized. What was the age of this filmmaker? I know several school teachers from the 90s and more
recently who cant stand that they can never tell their students
the truth about how their students are doing.
Yesterday at 10:23am Like

Kerrie long - Edmonton International Film Festival

Thank-you ALL for your support and words of encouragement.

Im grateful to have this private space to share. The saga continues ... today he EMAILED the Chair of Board to Declare WAR on
EIFF. His exact words. Were discussing now with our lawyer to
determine if thats enough to alert the police. In truth, I am very
afraid right now ... I remember watching his movie, thinking
What kind of person thinks up these horrible acts of torture?.
Will keep you posted.
Yesterday at 5:01pm Like

Tyrone D Murphy Universal Film & Festival Organization

What you are now doing is fundamentally and profoundly

wrong. You are hijacking this filmmakers career Perhaps you
may have had a bad experience with a filmmaker or perhaps you
may be in the wrong. We do not know this without seeing the
evidence or all the facts (we only have your word). In saying that
you are in the business of taking submissions from filmmakers
and sometimes festivals do get one that could be considered
flakey We cannot say this for certain in this case as we do not
know the whole story. Relating the content of the filmmakers
film to emphasize your own predicament and stating that you
are afraid of a horror filmmaker because they make horror films
is simply nonsensical when there is no evidence at all to support this. You web site has a section explicitly geared at horror

filmmakers and has the following to entice submissions. EDGE

OF NIGHT. This series is lovingly tailored to the more adventurous festival-goer. Bizarre, scary, or just plain shocking
In addition, despite stating he is at war with the EIFF or on some
sort of vendetta, the posts you have made here have dearly
been made in an attempt to blacklist the filmmaker. This is completely out of line and unacceptable. You have a duty to protect
all the filmmakers reputations and private and personal details
who submit films to your festival. Perhaps you should confer
with the volunteer Board of Directors for the EIFF before you
make any further comments. If you have a genuine complaint
against a filmmaker then why not what the rest of the world
does do, report this to the authorities. I would strongly suggest
that this groups administrator should really not allow this type
of retaliation against a filmmaker when we have no idea of what
has transpired and we are not in possession of the facts
59 minutes ago Like

Je Ross - SF Indie Fest

How odd that I find myself disagreeing with you Tyrone, respectfully. I think a filmmaker who is abusive and threatening
to one fest based on a rejection could quite possibly react the
same way with another festival. All she is doing is warning people about an abusive individual. Some people have thin skin
and dont appredate that kind of thing. You run a film festival,
right? So youve said? Maybe you dont mind abuse from makers
but I can see that some fest organizers may want to avoid such
situations. (I on the other hand tend to get into it with them, as
you can probably imagine ... . )
51 minutes ago Like

Tyrone D Murphy
Universal Film & Festival Organization

Ah, Je my ond friend! Interesting as you are always the one to

disagree (as always) This is a serious issue. We have not seen
what this filmmaker has said, not one word! We also know that
are some festival directors who have attacked the filmmaking
community to fend o criticism of a shoddy and/or scam operation. What I am saying is you have a duty to protect a filmmakers
reputation as a festival and not blacklist them in such a way, its
just not right!. In any event such an attack is as bad if not worse
than the alleged oender. So who is worse here? the filmmaker
who is annoyed and retaliating or the festival director who is
annoyed and retaliating ? What I am saying is you have a duty to
protect a filmmakers reputation as a festival and not blacklist
them in such a way, its just not right!. In any event such an attack is as bad if not worse than the alleged oender. So who is
worse here? the filmmaker who is annoyed and retaliating And
yes1 (you do make me smile) I really could see that you would
be over excited and eager to get into it and be argumentative
with a disgruntle filmmaker. We all cope in our own way.

Je Ross - SF Indie Fest

Im gonna hold my tongue and see if any of ourcolleagues care

to comment before debating further .
35 minutes ago Unlike iJ 1

Tyrone D Murphy Universal Film & Festival Organization

Okay Je1 I understand you are hesitant. Good call! Another important point to factor into this issue that must be considered
is the Law. If this filmmaker is in litigation with the EIFF and this
does seem very likely then it is paramount that the subjudice
rule in Canada that restricts comments on an on-going case

45

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Charles Judson - Alanta Film Festival

If a festival organizer uses the words afraid and has to go so far
as contacting other festivals, I would take that seriously. When
we ran the 20 10 48 Hour Film Project one of the filmmakers
who didnt win any awards emailed all of our judges. He sent
a very long, nasty and accusary e mail, the judges were all cool
with it and shook it o
Right now we have to manage one of our volunteers who in
2008 started exhibiting odd behivour and ion a film shoot in
2009 got into a fist fight and he stormed o another local film
shoot in anger never to return. He hasnt got into any psychical altercations since then, but his constant threats to sue us
and shut us down and actions in general keep us on the alert.
Every time we have someone new on sta and he contacts them
its a major hassle. He still taunts me personally as least once a
month and often a weekly basis. He sent me yet another cryptic
tweet just this week (I had to unfriend him on FB)
9 m1nutes ago Like

Tyrone D Murphy Universal Film & Festival Organization

I would agree if there was any evidence at all, but there is no

threat here in this case, just a blacklisting exorcize insofar as
I can see. We somehow have gone on to former volunteer you
have had problems with. A question, why not apply the law to
stop this former volunteer? Also , you are aware of some festival
directors have been making threats to film-makers also?
2 minutes ago Like
Charles Judson - Alanta Film Festival
How do you know theres been no threat?
about a minute ago Like
Kerrie long - Edmonton International Film Festival
Oh my. I didnt mean to cause a stir. Your points are all duly
noted. I really believed this to be a SAFE place to share. Lesson
learned.
about a minute ago Like
Tyrone D Murphy
Universal Film & Festival Organization
How do you know there has? (re Charles)
a few seconds ago Like
Charles Judson - Alanta Film Festival
So a film festival opinion should live in fear instead and just
let the threats escalate? This could all blow over, which it does
99.99% of the time. But if someone genuinely feels afraid for
their safety, they should act on that. Again, Someones life is
not worth a filmmakers career. And a filmmaker should never
make statements that can cause any on to believe they may be
in harms way, even if the threat turns out to be empty. Its not
only dumb career wise, but potentially a good way to go to jail
a few seconds ago like
Je Ross - SF Indie Fest
Kerri I support you and hope that you do feel this is a safe space
for us to talk about our work. we just have to put up with this
interloper who looks for things to get hot and bothered about

www.ufmag.org

. his mission is to protect all filmmakers from evil film festivals.

hes like the NRA, always on the look out for a slippery slope.
there was a time, on the WAB film festival directors board, that
fest organizers could discuss INTERNAL issues amongst themselves without a self appointed defender of makers having to
turn the attack on those who just want to talk about their day.
Tyrone, seriously, this is not a court of law, this is a water cooler.
chill out.
19 minutes ago Like
Tyrone D Murphy Universal Film & Festival Organization
Je, I can always rely on you to say something like that. I am
not a self-appointed defender of anything. Interloper is an odd
word, it would seem you are getting hot under the collar again
Je, please refrain from personal attacks and childish remarks.
This is also my working day and I do have an opinion.
15 minutes ago Like
Je Ross - SF Indie Fest
do you not even care what kerrie said really believed this to
be a SAFE place to share. Lesson learned. id rather you not
stifle discussion here. stay your opinion and move on please.
i would hate it if people felt they couldnt talk about our work
here because of you.
12 minutes ago like
Quinten Bendigo Iraq International Film Festival
Listen here buddy! (Mr Murphy) I support Kerrie long and the
comments made by Je Ross. We are in business to make money and not to be pandering to filmmakers complaints about how
we operate, most of the complainers are just whiners and sore
losers, we get them all the time. Also, I have looked at this UFFO
and I for one do not intent on supporting best business practices, also I will say what I dame well please here and anywhere
else so you can take you high and mighty morals and remember
that old saying (where the sun dont shine) .
I will not be allowing this Whack job filmmakers film to go
through selection at our festival, any filmmaker who is dedaring war on a festival should be blacklisted by the festival community and I will be telling all my contacts about this nut case.
Also,(this is the interesting bit) are the same Tyrone D Murphy
who was an ocer in the French Foreign Legion and worked as
a counter surveillance operative for Hughes Aircraft, a company
owned by the CIA. (I am also a former investigator Mr Murphy
and I have looked at your background)
18 hours ago Like
Matt Marxteny (Programmer) The Red Rock Film Festival
Wow, a lot of comments here. I think none of us understand
what the abusive nature was in this case. We had a questionable filmmaker once that boasted about their violent acts and
simply called the police, and left it like that. We just figured Hollywood would love them like they do domestic abusers, paedophiles, drug addicts and all the others ...
13 hours ago Like
Quinten Bendigo Iraq International Film Festival
Mat you are a crazy kid!
13 hours a o Like
Tyrone D Murphy
Universal Film & Festival Organization
We are not talking about someones life, this is an extreme view.
All of a sudden now this filmmaker is a potential murderer. This
all reminds me of the movie 12 angry men, how quickly we
all judge someone and how we take someone word for everything simply because they say so. Should you not know all the
facts before you join in on this little blacklisting operation?
Both you and I do not know the full story here, if someone has
a problem go to the Police. We all love films, thats what we all
have in common and yes they are a few nut jobs but from all
walks of life. As a former fraud investigator and surveillance

46

that may aect the outcome is strictly adhered to. Kerrie Longs
comments have really attacked this filmmakers credibility as
not just only a filmmaker but his mental state1 Kerry even said
hes crazy. So we must all be really scared of this crazy horror
filmmaker because she says so. Come on Je! she is dearly attempting to blacklist him among other film festivals. How would
you feel of someone was attempting to blacklist your festival
among the filmmaking community because you had an issue
with them. So when you look at it from both points of view1
then you know it is wrong! Why just recently I was asked not to
comment on wrong doing on this group when I was accosted by
an individual with a dubious track record. As Jon Gann said at
the time1 this is not the place!

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

specialist I lived with threats many times, I know what its like
to receive a real threat and also know what veil threat is. But
what I have seen here today is disgusting, so quick to judge.
You are behaving like a jury in a kangaroo court, this guy is
guilty, no consideration for his or her career, his or her own
circumstances, no real thought or consideration if there may
be something else going on here. Why not reserve judgement
and not blacklist this filmmaker
8 minutes ago like
Tyrone D Murphy
Universal Film & Festival Organization
I would like to ask the admin to ask this person to refrain from
this kind of hostility and abuse
From
Je Ross - SF Indie Fest today :
you showed your true colors with that last exchange, mate.
have you noticed that no one in that group every takes your
side in anything? four people told me they just block you so
they dont have to read your posts, but i wont, because i want
to be able to continue to expose your bullshit whenever neccessary. youve done a good job of proving to all the folks on
that list that you do not have their interests at heart and are
just a troll. every one now knows which side your on, so good
job there, nicely done. we know exactly what to expct from tyrone murphy in any given conversation. if you want to actually
have an impact on the opinions of the people you are your org
are tying to influence, you might want to count to 10 before
letting fly another 200 word antagonistic post.
Like Comment Unfollow Post 24 minutes ago
Quinten Bendigo Iraq International Film Festival
Well done Jef
21 minutes ago Like

These are the moderators of Film Festival

Organizers Group on Facebook
Jon Gann:
Festival Director
DC Allience
& DC shorts Film Festival
Kerrie Long:
The Edmonton Film Festival
Anna Feder:
Festival Director
Boston Underground Film Festival
Jane Sage:
Manageing Director
Ashland Independent Film Festival
Jaimee Skippon-Volke:
Festival Director at
Byron Bay International Film Festival
Sarah Beresford:
Festival Director
Eco Focus Film Festival

Below
A poster from the 50s encourageing blacklisting

Tyrone D Murphy
Universal Film & Festival Organization
please stop making comments that are hostile and meaningless
20 minutes ago Like
Je Ross - SF Indie Fest
tyrone, please stop making comments that are hostile and
meaningless
20 minutes ago Like
Quinten Bendigo Iraq International Film Festival
gettig to much for you Mr UFFO man?
19 minutes ago Like
Jon Gann Moderator and DC Shorts Film Festival
And this is NOW CLOSED. I am done moderating. Tyrone - this
is a safe space for fest organizers to talk and discuss openly with one another and not judge. If you cannot follow this
simple rule, you will be removed. Je- stop fanning the fire,
please.
9 minutes ago Like .6 1
Tyrone D Murphy
Universal Film & Festival Organization
I would agree with that Jon , which is why I commented on
Kerries post which was judging film-makers and others jumping on the bandwagon and basically blacklisting a filmmaker.
I am saying that judging in such a way is wrong also but now I
cannot comment on this, I am not judging but question someone else judging. As Je is a moderator here he is really out
to cause trouble
4 m1nutes ago Like
Quinten Bendigo Iraq International Film Festival
Kick him o!
3 minutes ago Like
END

47

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

hope
springs
OPE SPRINGS, A David Frankel film is starring
Meryl Streep (in her first role since her Oscarwinning The Iron Lady), Tommy Lee Jones
and Steve Carell, will open at cinemas across
the UK and Ireland on September 14 through
Momentum Pictures.
Kay (Meryl Streep) and Arnold (Tommy Lee Jones) are
a devoted couple, but decades of marriage have left
Kay wanting to spice things up and reconnect with
her husband. When she hears of a renowned couples
specialist (Steve Carell) in the small town of Great
Hope Springs, she attempts to persuade her sceptical
husband, a steadfast man of routine, to get on a plane
for a week of marriage therapy. Just convincing the
stubborn Arnold to go on the retreat is hard enough
the real challenge for both of them comes as they
shed their hang-ups and try to re-ignite the spark that
caused them to fall for each other in the first place.
HOPE SPRINGS reunites Streep with David Frankel, director of The Devil Wears Prada. Television producer
and writer Vanessa Taylor (Alias, Game of Thrones)
wrote the script, her first for the big screen

49

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Universal Film

www.ufmag.org

50

Issue 3 of 2012

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

UFFO
UNIVERSAL FILM & FESTIVAL ORGANIZATION
promoting best business practices for film festivals www.uo.org

51

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Universal Film

www.ufmag.org

52

Issue 3 of 2012

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Scenes of The
Method-ological
Nature
by Penny Noble

53

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Contuined from last edition

n my previous article, Scenes of The Method-ological Nature: ACT ONE, I explored the
conception of the Method as an acting process/system by Constantin Stanislavki (18631938), how it related to other ideas from the
humanistic movement of the time, such as the development of person-centred counselling by Carl
Rogers (1902-87), and how it developed into what
it is today.
I suggested that there are two strands of Method
actors today. Strand 1: An actor works from his or
her own experiences and feelings. Strand 2: An actor finds the experiences and feelings of a character by living as closely as possible to how they live/
lived or would live.
I imagine many of our best and most believable actors fall into Strand 1: They courageously use their
own feelings and experiences for their work and so
show us truthful and highly emotive performances.
A very direct example of this can be seen in the film
Self Made, by Gillian Wearing. She employed the
services of Method acting coach Sam Rumbelow
(http://actingclasseslondon.co.uk/) to help her participants delve into their own memories, impulses, anxieties, fears, fantasies and inner resources
to create a series of individual vignettes (http://
selfmade.org.uk/), using the Method acting techniques of basic relaxation and sense memory.
The contributors were all lay people with no previous acting experience. The process was like a form
of therapy in which they either played themselves
or used a character through which to express their
own emotions and transformative work. The result
eectively combined psychotherapy and performance in an exceptionally powerful film.
The Method is still being used to teach at the Actors Studio in New York and Hollywood (http://
www.theactorsstudio.org/). Many big name actors
are alumni and/or have taken part in James Liptons
personal and insightful interviews on the acting
process, Inside the Actors Studio, for acting

www.ufmag.org

students and interested public alike, broadcast by

Bravo TV.
There are also well-known examples of directors
using the Method. As Alison Steadman explains
in About Acting, Mike Leigh asks his actors basic
questions about their characters and encourages
them to be that person in private with him and then
later in public. This allows the actor to grow into the
character by living lifes daily activities as that character would.
These ways of working can engender psychological
eects on the actor. I will explore several of these
below.
Some of my thoughts and ideas on this subject have
been gleaned from discussions with clients as well
as workshops or other events. As much of the material, even if expressed in public, is by nature personal, I have kept many of these sources anonymous to
protect their privacy.
Psychological Eects and Issues:
Living The Characters Life
In his book, The Transpersonal Actor, Manderino
reinterprets Stanislavskis acting process. He looks
at actors introjecting their characters and likens
it to the character possessing the actor; the actor
can summon the spirit of someone with the qualities needed for the part they are playing; the character takes the person over, leaving indelible marks
on the actors personality. An actor can constantly
think of or be around the person they are seeking to
emulate and that person can get inside and under
their skin. Its such a high level of empathy that the
actor literally feels and experiences as the character would feel. Actors who work this way describe
being out of themselves losing themselves even.
Method actor Daniel Day-Lewis is known for staying in character throughout an entire film shoot and

54

ACT TWO...

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

for doing whatever it takes, almost, to

live the life of that character in preparation for the work. Examples include living on prison rations and behind bars for
his role in In The Name of The Father,
and living without modern day conveniences and building his own house for
The Crucible. (http://submittedforyourperusal.com/2008/03/01/did-thejoker-kill-heath-ledger/) He makes few
films, which may also indicate that his recovery time between characters is long.
Committing to that degree to a character
who is so separate from himself would
understandably require time to shake it
o. In 1989, Day-Lewis played Hamlet for
the National Theatre. During the scene
in which Hamlet sees his fathers ghost,
Day-Lewis collapsed and had to leave the
stage. Ocially, it was attributed to exhaustion, but rumor had it that he had actually seen his own dead fathers ghost.
He has not acted on stage since.
There is speculation that Heath ledgers
work to portray the Joker living in isolation for three months, lack of sleep,
and taking on the Jokers mannerisms
and appearance, may have contributed
to his death (http://submittedforyourperusal.com/2008/03/01/did-the-jokerkill-heath-ledger/); and that Jack Nicholson, who puts a huge amount into all
his roles, contemplated suicide as a result of the same character. (http://www.
brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/j/jack_
nicholson.html)
Christian Bale lost weight for The Machinist, whilst Robert DeNiro and Charlize Theron both gained weight for their
roles in Raging Bull and Monster,
respectively. (http://voices.yahoo.com/
christian-bales-weight-loss-machinistthis-66659.html?cat=40) All describe
changes in manner and mood as a result.
Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams used
Method for their work on Blue Valentine, the highly emotional story of a couple falling in and out of love. To prepare,
they made home movies and really lived
together with the child of the story, and
then needed time to separate in order to
perform the falling out of love sequences. Williams described how dicult it
was as it all felt so real; she didnt want to
fall out of love with Gosling, having loved
him in such a real, though simulated, way.
Director Derek CianFrance, described
how he had them get to know each other
live on film. Ryan Gosling is known for
using Method in other roles too.
Kacey Ainsworth and Alex Ferns talked
about needing to listen to hard rock music to dispel the eects of playing scenes
of domestic violence between their characters Little Mo Slater and Trevor Morgan
in Eastenders.
Other actors talk about being in a bad

way for many months following playing, for example, psychologically challenged or violent characters, feeling that
their bodies have changed and that they
have inappropriate internal responses to
people outside of the work situation that
they can identify come from their characters, and from which they have to stop
themselves reacting.
Several actors describe how it is hard to
recover from some characters; that at
drama school, actors are taught how to
get into character but not how to disengage from them how to return to themselves or de-role.
Christopher Eccleston: I believe that I
do switch o, what Ive learned with television, film and stage is that you never
quite switch o. I think if you spend a
couple of hours, or an entire day, replicating somebody elses emotions, you
may well be having a conversation as
Chris Eccleston, but that character is still
around, and thats not a mystical thing,
or a pretentious thing, its just youve
been playing with your chemistry set of
your emotions, and as we all know, they
kind of work despite us. So I dont think I
ever switch o. Im usually when Im on
stage, Im thinking back to what the key
moments of the scenes Ive just done and
how that can influence what Im gonna
do later. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/
entertainment-arts-17487480)
Some actors do seem to go even further
and lose a sense of their own reality not
sure who they actually are when out of
character, or get very stuck playing the
role of the celebrity expected of them by
their public.
Use of Own Life Experiences
Life experience is our greatest teacher,
and whatever comes from that experience is most true for each of us. Creative
people, and many in other professions,
talk about it as having provided tools for
their work. It therefore stands to reason
that when we use that experience we are
going to be believable and convincing.
But what does that actually entail?
As a psychotherapist, I have worked with
many survivors of abuse. Almost all of
them have something in common: they
are also highly creative. That creativity is
often born as a coping strategy to keep
them sane in an awful situation; it helps
them survive. But with it they can also
thrive. What of the experience of abuse
itself, especially if by a parent? Most
children still love their parents whatever
has been done to them. Those conflicting
feelings can be used for a role if the actor
feels comfortable doing so.
It is natural to block emotionally unresolved events and shut o the emotions

that go with them. If using their own experiences, actors need to resolve these
feelings enough to enable their use for
a character or they may risk a trauma
on stage. The stage itself is not a safe
space for dramatherapy or psychodrama,
though the use of these to help someone
in his or her therapeutic process is highly
valuable. As Jones describes, an actors
interpretation is like a psychological projection. We project unconscious impulses
or desires onto others as though they are
the originators of those feelings rather
than ourselves. An actor will do that with
a character whether the feeling is good or
bad. Jones goes on to describe two interesting examples of this from the theatre:
Clare Higgins in an RSC rehearsal of
Hamlet: Mark took the knife out and
threatened me, a lot of things clicked I
was not expecting it It triggered something that had actually happened to me
in my life, which he could not possibly
have known.
The distress of the memory was used
within the rehearsal and creation of the
role of Gertrude, which Higgins was developing. The personal connection and
distress was mostly channelled into the
creativity rather than looking to engage
directly with the memory and experience
of being attacked. The therapeutic aspect
of this lay in the way in which the drama
evoked a powerful personal issue of trauma from the past. Even within the theatre
context Higgins says that she found the
expression of the memory and working it
into the role freeing and cathartic.
Brian Cox projected his own fears into
the role of Lear. The role amplified his
own unexpressed feelings. Even when
the role was dead to him he is still
left with the unresolved projection and
stuck.
In Brian Coxs case, he shared with Lear a
fear of rejection and isolation in old age.
He used this to create a relationship between himself and the character. He explored this for Lear but not for himself. So
he was left stuck with the feelings, without any insight as to how to resolve them
for himself. I am sure this made for an
impressive performance, but it illustrates
the possible dangers of using experiences and feelings of which you are unaware.
Use of Self: Open and Vulnerable
Most creative people come out with their
best work when they allow themselves to
be vulnerable giving open access to all
their feelings, experiences and emotions,
taking away all the blocks. I recall feeling
very concerned, when on my training as a
therapist during which many of my own
issues were stirred up that I would not
be in a fit state to be the best therapist
for another person. My concerns related

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Dame Judie Dench always seems to share

something so special of herself in her
roles to the point where she is tugging
at her audiences heart strings. In The
Many Faces of Dame Judi Dench, director John Madden talks about Denchs
work with Billy Connolly on Mrs. Brown,
particularly their first scene together.
Connolly knew there was a line he had to
get right and it took him a few times to hit
it correctly, so Dench was going through
the emotions over and over. How does
she do that?! Dench herself talks about
this private little person within her who
does all the work. We can tell this person
is highly emotionally articulate and intuitive. Dench herself feels she must keep
her private or else that intuition will disappear.
Directors try to protect their actors from
going through dicult feelings too many
times. In the accompanying episode of
Doctor Who Confidential, Doctor Who
director, Graeme Harper, talks about using Catherine Tates first take in the devastating scene from Doctor Who: Journeys End, in which her character, Donna
Noble, realises she has to not only leave
her journey with the Doctor, but also lose
all memory of it and him. Its crushing
almost worse than death. And CatherineDonnas emotional reaction is arguably
one of the most powerful and emotional
events in the whole series.
Noomi Rapace invested in title role Lisbeth Salander, for The Girl with the
Dragon Tattoo series of films, to such an
extent that she got all of Lisbeths body
piercings and tatoos, and she bravely also
lent her own insecurities and neuroses
to her character. Noomi describes vomiting Lisbeth out of her while everyone
else was enjoying the wrap party. I always try to put my characters as close to
my life as I possibly can, but its a high
price because I know it will take over
sometimes.
Trust
To delve to these levels of subconscious
feelings and highly charged emotional
expression, actors need to be able to trust
their fellow actors and crew (on a film or

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television shoot) to the nth degree. This

trust should be developed in rehearsals
if possible. Otherwise there is a kind of
leap of faith as though trusting for no
reason other than they need to feel it in
order to produce their best work. On film
the camera invades the actors personal
space. Actors and directors of photography (DOP) talk about the high level of
trust needed for an actor to eectively
have the DOP and the camera right up
in their faces to pick up every nuance of
the most sensitive work. Its not an easy
thing, especially on film, where so much
is going on around them. Actors are not
always looked after to enable this if the
director is not sensitive enough to the
conditions the actors require. Without
trust, problems will arise. Any actors who
have diculties in trusting due to life experiences are going to find sensitive work
like this very hard. Its not only others the
actors need to trust. They need to trust
themselves to produce their most instinctive work, rather than trying to secondguess themselves, and so blocking what
comes naturally.
Stage Fright and Reclusiveness
Many, though not all, very well-known
and experienced actors suer from stage
fright or performance anxiety. Impressively, the audience often has no idea
what is going on for them. Somehow they
hide it and convert that energy to something electric in their performance.
Kristin Scott-Thomas: The first time I
went on stage in London, I have never
been so scared in my life, she says. It
was Three Sisters, and I thought I was going to die, I just had so little faith in, in
myself, I suppose. But every time you
do something, and it works, youre getting braver and braver. Because the one
thing I am is brave. I mean, I may have
been terrified, but I still did it. I didnt run
out. I didnt fall over. I didnt pretend I
was sick! All of these things that were going through my head. What if I faint right
now? She laughs. I am quite a worried
person. But the braver you get, the more
interesting it becomes, and the possibilities become wider, and, she pauses,
well, youre less afraid of making a complete fool of yourself, I suppose. (http://
www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/dec/21/
kristin-scott-thomas-films)
Simon Callow talks about how his grandmother was one his first inspirations as
an actor and he acted out scenes with
her when he was a child. She has been
on stage herself briefly but was too nervous to continue. Sadly that is the case for
many. And unlike Kristin Scott- Thomas,
some never find the courage to combat
it. For her it got easier over time. For others it may get worse. Singer Annie Lennox
has talked about needing hypnotherapy
to overcome stage fright she felt when

trying to come back to the stage after a

period away she then came up with
her own technique: F It.(http://www.
contactmusic.com/news/annie-lennoxshares-stress-relieving-tips_1260871).
This performance anxiety can often be a
kind of cover for a deeper problem, some
highly traumatising previous event or life
experience. It can also lead to, or be a part
of a general, constant anxiety.
And for some, the stage fright, or public
attention and exposure, just becomes
too much and they become reclusive.
Examples include ABBA singer Agnetha
Fltskog, and also rumoured Daniel DayLewis, Marlon Brando, James Stewart and
Greta Garbo:
Ironically, her wariness of the spotlight
only made her that much more appealing
to the media. I feel able to express myself only through my roles, not in words,
and that is why I try to avoid talking to the
press, she once said during a rare statement to reporters in a plea for privacy. In
1941, at the age of 36, Garbo announced
a temporary retirement; it would last 49
years, until her death in 1990 in Manhattan, where she lived by herself she
never married and bore no children.
(http://www.time.com/time/specials/
packages/article/0,28804,1902376_190
2378_1902442,00.html)
Self-Esteem, Self-Belief, Failure and Rejection
For many, becoming an actor or public
performer is about a search for validation from the audience or public. Often,
though not at all always, the desire to do
this work is about boosting a low self-esteem, and trying to gain belief from others as self-belief is lacking. This can work,
and if the performer is good, can become
very rewarding for themselves and others, but reliance on external validation
in this way can be a risky and dangerous
business.
Actors often suer from self-doubt and
lack of confidence. Billie Piper talks about
having to concentrate like hell on stage
to fight the inner negative voices. Actors work hard to build their confidence
in a healthy way so they feel it internally
rather than seeking it from outside. For
those who have not had the healthy parental encouragement that tells them
they are a good person just for being
who they are, that is dicult. That said,
all encouragement needs to be grasped
firmly and valued. There will always be
more failure than success, and numerous
rejection letters all the way from drama
schools to agents and jobs. Statistics vary
but at any one time as many as around 88
percent of actors are unemployed. Dealing with the high level of rejection

56

to being too involved in my own process,

too vulnerable to hold them, and not
enough in control of the situation. But in
several instances, my being in that state
enabled the best work I have ever done
in that role. Clients felt helped to explore
at the same depth of emotion, allowed
themselves to let go, be fully open and
not worry about being out of control. And
from somewhere I still had that solidity
and holding to safely contain the process.
The use of self to that extent by any artist
usually produces their best work. It may
drive them a little nuts but itll be brilliant
and true!

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Kenneth Williams, Sir John Betjeman and

Maggie Smith conveyed the problem for
actors of the critics beautifully in one of
the Parkinson programmes. When allowed a word in edgeways, Maggie Smith
expressed the view that there is always
an element of truth in the critique and
so it can be helpful. Kenneth Williams
disagreed, as he felt critics are almost
always too negative. A critic should convey some sort of aection and love for
his subject to the reader. John Betjeman
said that he believed the bad comments
and the good ones were just flattery. I
never can believe that Im any good at
all, Kenneth Williams went on, all artists need reassurance from the outside of
their own worth, they havent got it within. Artists may appear to be people of
power and strength, but in actual fact the
reverse is true; they are the most vulnerable people in the world. (http://www.
youtube.com/watch?v=JkUyDr97NU4)
As Christopher Eccleston says failure is
all part of the process. On television and
film someone will tell you when a take
is good enough. However, Theatre is
about failure and living with failure over
a period of time, so its very dierent.
Its much more dicult I think. (http://
www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainmentarts-17487480)
Actors are at their best when relaxed
nerves get in the way of their flow. Some
talk about it being better not to know
when they are being assessed or having
an audition, otherwise it is far too nervewracking. A great way of dealing with this
is to be able to see any failures as gifts
of learning and convert them into a kind
of positive activation energy to do dierent or better rather than a block.
Feeling like a Fraud and Perfectionism
Along with their self-esteem and selfbelief issues many actors as well as others feel like frauds. Any moment they
will be discovered to be totally talentless,
false or worthless. Kristin Scott-Thomas
expressed this in a recent interview on
BBC Breakfast interview on 18th April
2012, and also earlier in her career following the disaster of her first big break
at age 26 in the film Under the Cherry
Moon. Its all a fluke, what am I doing
here, theyre going to find out in a minute. Her usual voice resumes: That actor thing, the fraud thing, the fear of be-

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ing found out. I had that in spades. So,

well, this was just proof that I was rubbish, basically. (http://www.guardian.
co.uk/film/2009/dec/21/kristin-scottthomas-films)
Often actors and again many of us catastrophise a situation, making it far worse
than it actually is. In a way, this relates to
the fraud feeling Kristin Scott-Thomas
describes. She may not be perfect none
of us is, of course but she takes that
feeling and turns it into being absolutely
rubbish, which is certainly not the case.
The majority of actors are perfectionists
their work is only good enough if it is
perfect theyll expect over 100 percent
of themselves! Unlike a sportsman, a
performer can never win. There are no
clear goals or finishing posts to tell them
they have perfected their performance;
its a constant pursuit. Yet often the imperfections produce the most amazing
work.
Depression and Bipolar Disorder/Manic
Depression
Many actors are completely healthy mentally and physically and are highly talented and natural in their work. Strange,
and perhaps controversial, as it may
seem to say this, in my opinion there are
also some mental health conditions, from
which some highly successful big name
actors and other performers have suffered, which I think enhance their natural
abilities and make them truly phenomenal.
One such condition is bipolar disorder,
also known as manic depression. I see
it as a condition, which provides people
with extremes on the emotion scale;
the highs can be excitingly high and the
lows can be devastatingly low. Stephen
Fry explored the eects of the condition
in my opinion highly justifiably so in
his personal documentary The Secret
Life of the Manic Depressive. He talked
about a breakdown he had had on stage
and how this was part of his own bipolar
disorder. He also went on to explain how
the disorder also enhanced his work giving him supremely high energy and enthusiastic creativity, which enabled high
levels of productive work. The downs
of the condition have the opposite eect.
Fry interviewed others with the condition
including Jo Brand, Richard Dreyfuss, Carrie Fisher and Robbie Williams. Fry asked
fellow suerers if they would choose to
switch o a button that would turn o
their bipolar if such a button existed.
His own reply to himself, in spite of the
trauma and diculties it could cause, was
no. It is part of who and how he is. I know
both poles can be dicult to manage but
I value extremes of emotion in people
and what that can contribute to their
work and expression creatively.

ence itself can make somebody a bit bipolar. There is elation on stage or screen
and then a post-performance depression.
Many have spoken publicly of this, including Mark Rylance, Robbie Williams
and those close to Lenny Henry. Chemically, an adrenaline rush from fear and
the excitement of the performance crashes down when the adrenaline stops.
Depression can also result in a naturally
reactive way as a result of some of the
issues mentioned already the criticisms,
rejections, unemployment, etc.
Multiple personality disorder is diagnosed when someone has the ability to
split into various distinctive personalities to cope with stressful experiences. It
often results from traumatic life experiences such as childhood sexual abuse. It
is rumoured that the gigantic personality
Robin Williams has been diagnosed with
this. It may actually be bipolar disorder
in his case. They are both potential responses to similar childhood traumas. I
have worked with highly creative people
with this condition. I am sceptical about
whether playing a wide range of characters could trigger this, as postulated
by some. I also feel that an actor would
need to integrate his or her personalities
so they had easier access to them for use
in their work.
Anxiety and Sensitivity
Another common set of actor issues
comes directly from the fact that they
are highly sensitive individuals. They
need to understand the entire range of
human emotions and be able to express
that to convince us to believe in the experiences of their characters. Concurrent
with that sensitivity can come acute selfconsciousness and insecurity. Again Kristin Scott-Thomas is an admirably honest
case in point:
The comment is typical of Scott-Thomas:
modest to the point of masochism. When
she cant remember a word she is reaching for, she groans, Im an actress and
have no brain. She has a nervous, selfconscious habit of appending her own
comments with she says, as in Youre
too young to have seen A Handful of
Dust, she says in a very grand dame
kind of way. Anxiety pulses through our
conversation. I just get really worried
about things. I think its my stage of life,
isnt it? she asks. Is it middle age? Im
just worried about people. I have a kind
of Rolodex of worries. She mimes flicking through it. Which one shall we have
today? Its my nature. But then I worry
about that too. It upsets me. (http://
www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/dec/21/
kristin-scott-thomas-films)

In my opinion the performance experi-

58

and unemployment is not easy. And the

constant bombardment of evaluations,
judgements and critiques, both of their
professional and their personal qualities
from director colleagues audience
critics arts and gossip columnists, can
be tough. Even success isnt always the
answer as the more you succeed the
more there is to lose.

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Issue 3 of 2012

As already explored a little in my previous article, Marilyn Monroe also had a

wealth of sensitivities and psychological
issues some acknowledged, many speculated on. She was portrayed superbly by
the beautifully sensitive actress Michelle
Williams in My Week with Marilyn, a
film which illustrates how Marilyn may
well have been.
These three actors are/were phenomenal,
in my opinion. And they are just three examples. Marilyn Monroe is known to have
had psychotherapy. She may have been
a survivor of abuse in childhood. Holding such a sensitivity of emotions both in
themselves and being a sponge for others feelings takes a lot of strength.
Another industry in which sensitivity of
emotional expression is a high asset is
the world of modelling. As Tyra Banks
Americas Next Top Model competition
shows us, the models need to be able to
smize to show all they are feeling in
the eyes and are encouraged to be honest and open in their emotional expression. Yet at the same time, too much fragility is considered to be a problem. Top
models need to be strong, and not crack
under the high pressure of perhaps an
even more highly critical and demanding industry than that of acting. Angelea
Preston had all the sensitivity from challenging life experiences but was possibly
too fragile to handle being a top model.
(It is rumoured she would have won the
All Stars season but was disqualified.)
Lisa DAmato, on the other hand, won;
she was healed enough from her abusive
childhood to have the strength to handle
herself under pressure, and yet still had
access to her emotions from that traumatic time.
Fear and Avoidance
As many directors and actors will tell you,
panic and fear are requisite parts of the
job of acting. That discomfort provides an
energy and vulnerability to the work, and
opens an actor up to being truthful to the
audience, especially if that audience is a
camera.
What is that fear? Mainly of exposing
themselves which is, of course, exactly
what they are doing if they are acting
well exposing their hearts and souls. For
many, that is scarier than exposing their
bodies. I have already written about the
fear of being found out to be a fraud. If, as
a result of being uninteresting, or worse,
unpleasant, an audience is not going to
like them, then for that actor the show is
literally over. Even more than that, there
can be a fear of finding out something
that they dont like about themselves. Its
a fine line between love and hate, in the
same way as the desire to act and fear of
acting are close companions.

Acting can also be an escape from the

person they perceive themselves to be,
so to do the opposite and use that same
person for the character, as Method acting asks, prevents all means of escape.
Method actors use themselves in their
entirety, withhold nothing, especially
those most intimate areas of themselves
the rest of us spend our lives trying to
keep well hidden and protected and to
do so to such an intense and intimate
degree.
Actors, like the rest of us, often want to
retreat to the safety of being in control,
yet risk and danger are the keys to the
depths of the essence of the work. They
may try to develop a thick skin, but that
can make them insensitive and unavailable. Those who do remain vulnerable
are potentially in a permanent state of
raw nerves.
A good balance of challenge and encouragement together with a safe space in
rehearsal, which allows for personal difficulties to be accepted and worked with
is the ideal for actors to explore and develop their characters, in a similar way to
the therapy experience for a client. Even
under these conditions, and quite understandably, actors can develop or use
avoidance tactics to prevent their emotional and psychological self-exposure,
and sabotage the work. Such tactics include the use of humour, being a know-itall, being teachers pet, avoiding conflict,
weeping, suering, being competitive, or
even performing a kind of self-destruction. Alfreds explores all these in Different Every Night, in a detailed and
helpful analysis of how those exhibiting
these behaviours can be helped by their
director. These are all natural human
strategies of self-protection, which crop
up more intensely in response to a perceived threat such as that from the Method acting process or counselling process,
which both require deep exploration of
the self.
If actors can overcome their own defences, the whole process can be empowering
and can enhance their own lives as well
as produce wonderful performances.
Coping Strategies
Performers and other celebrities are well
known for using various dierent types
of addictions to cope with the stresses
and pressures. Though of course, these
arent really coping strategies but more
like avoidance hiding or numbing the
pain, trying to enhance their energy and
are very often self-destructive. Examples
include eating disorders and heavy use of
drugs or alcohol.
Eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia are often, in addition to an attempt
at claiming control when feeling out of

control, a self-image issue. The pressure

is on, for young female actors especially,
to look good and be slim to the point of
skinniness. Fortunately, it seems plus
size is becoming more acceptable. Billie Piper poignantly describes her experience of anorexia in her autobiography, Growing Pains. She hid it from
everyone and lost friendships through
competing with them and pushing them
away. She found numerous ways to justify it and claim she was in control. Her
goal became to tick o the number of
hours without food even though she was
very ill and desperately needed to stop.
She was angry with herself and talked
about being consumed by the lack of
consumption. As she says, Anorexia is a
vapid soul with only itself as focus.
We are all too aware of the reliance of
other performers on drugs or alcohol.
Amy Winehouse was highly successful with her distinctive singing voice
and highly personal lyrics but, as those
same lyrics testify, her personal life was
not the success she needed. She was so
real and so exposed to the world. Maybe
that contributed to her use of drugs and
alcohol. Tragically, as we know, she was
finally detoxing, but it seems was killed
by a reaction of her drug/alcohol-abused
body. (http://uk.eonline.com/news/amy_
winehouses_cause_of_death/271628)
River Phoenix was a very promising
young actor. He died of a drug-induced
seizure.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
River_Phoenix#Death)
Sadly, there are many other famous examples and many also not so famous.
Actors speak of using drugs to deal with
the terror of auditions or stage fright, and
using alcohol to extinguish adrenaline
rushes. Both the work and the coping
strategies can aect their personalities.
Another very eective coping strategy, to
which many of us can relate, is the inner
critic. He/she is very good at preventing
any good work by blocking relaxation,
openness and blackening our light.
Eect on Real Life
Actors can become so obsessed with
the work that they can forget to live their
real lives. Or they become so cut o from
those they love because the work is their
great passion. Of course, the work can
become so much their passion too that
those involved in the work fellow cast
or crew become their passion. Nothing
necessarily wrong with that unless it is
also an escapism from real life, and once
they get to know the real other person,
the passion dies. As Billie Piper discusses, success can lead to bad behaviour and
selfishness, which can isolate and so lead
to loneliness. The latter can be highly destructive.

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Issue 3 of 2012

Actors need to stay young within themselves, but that can lead to other issues in
real life if they dont also grow up and mature. This idea is delightfully played out
in television series Slings and Arrows,
about a troupe of Shakespearean actors.
Lead actress Ellen Fanshaw, played by
Martha Burns, is so unable to be adult that
she cannot deal with her financial aairs.
Another possible, though not necessarily
very troublesome, issue is also explored
in Slings and Arrows. Artistic Director,
Georey Tennant, played by Paul Gross,
looks at who his private audience may
be, with the help of a therapist. Whom is
he doing this work to impress? The answer is often a parent.
Actors need to take breaks and holidays.
It is tiring work! Its important to eat, drink
and sleep healthily, and generally develop a good work/life balance and deal
with jobs being very temporary, and the
grief process when they finish.
Eect of Real Life
It probably goes without saying that anything tough going on in an actors real
life can impact on their acting work. The
same is true for all of us! That said, an actor could use that if it feels safe for them
to do so and not too raw. Stanislavski
warned that physical tiredness paralyses
our actions, and is bound up with our inner life. And Barkworth: Confidence and
concentration go hand in hand need to
work on that confidence if its an issue
Do remember to forget anger, worry
and regret you cant worry and think
clearly.
Psychotherapy
Dierent types of counselling and psychotherapy may help with all of the above
Acting is, by its very nature, emotional,
and as already noted, good Method actors make themselves constantly vulnerable. This takes tremendous courage and
involves emotional and psychological
exposure of raw and truthful emotions.
They make friends with their own feelings in order to be able to use them as
collaborators in their work. It is to these
qualities that audiences respond.
Psychotherapy can help to stretch an ac-

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tors emotional muscles, and help with

self-understanding and awareness by
getting in touch with buried experiences
and feelings. It can also help the connection between feelings and the expression
of them.
For some, life may have provided a multitude of experiences leading to a wide
range of feelings. The natural self-protective response may be to bury these. This
has been the case for many I worked with.
One particular client wished to work on
her emotion memory so she could safely
use her own experiences and feelings for
her work, and have it be a choice to do so
without trauma. In her case she decided
it would just be too much and decided
to work in another artistic area. That is
totally understandable. It is not an easy
process, though the rewards of realising
your full potential on stage/screen or in
the real world really are highly life-enhancing.
I think it is also important to note that
many stars have a great deal of support
through management, agents, personal
assistants, etc. Sadly, these people can
become Yes men, and dont challenge
their star when needed when it could
stop them on a self-destructive path. A
good therapist, and the best agents, also
have elements of this in them, and will
provide tough love in addition to enthusiastic and encouraging care.
Many feel a stigma around looking for
help or admitting they have an issue
or psychological problem. I would like to
suggest a reframing; this is about performance and life enhancement rather than
fixing or problem solving. And it is natural and not at all shameful to ask for help.

man beings, that this is how it feels to be

alive. (http://www.timeout.com/london/
theatre/article/3411/interview-christopher-eccleston)
And Id like to give the last words to Mike
Alfreds: Acting is about being childlike:
childs enthusiasm, endless energy, readiness to play, unfettered imagination, perennial innocence, healthy naivety (lack
of cynicism), curiosity ... and acting is an
ordinary human impulse and extraordinary phenomenon.
Penny has been writing original plays
for film, television, theatre and radio
since the early 1990s and has completed
around twenty-five plays both single
drama; short and feature-length and series episodes - as sole writer and collaborated with others on additional projects.
She is writing a novel, blogs, short stories
and developing other ideas for dierent
media. Her writing has been shortlisted
and earned critical acclaim.
Penny is an accredited humanistic counsellor. She has worked with performers
and others on the presenting issues described in this article as well as developing and implemented Character-Centred
Counselling, which assists actors work
on character development. She sees her
writing and counselling work as facilitating each other in relation to her creativity
and understanding of the human condition and so in helping others.

website and email:

www.pennynoblepsychotherapy.com
pennynobletherapy@gmail.com

So Why Act?!
I am aware that all of the above could be
very o-putting! Some actors have/may
experience(d) one or a few of the above.
But by no means all will at all, and acting
is an invitation to do a job, which arguably involves the most wonderful qualities of being a human being ...
Simon Callow: Oh, it is a wonderful job,
acting, a lovely and a terrible way of earning a living terrible because of the unending potential for rejection, wonderful
because at its best its a glorious celebration of what it is to be human. Its the
most natural thing in the world every
child does it and the hardest, because
the innocence of that childish instinct is
elusive. But, boy, is it worth the eort.
Acting is also about something so special and important to all of us as a social,
sharing species. Christopher Eccleston:
Now Im older Ive realised actings just
a desire to communicate with other hu-

60

Performers often experience social anxiety. The extreme of that, reclusiveness,

has already been mentioned. As an INFP
(http://www.enneagraminstitute.com/intro.asp) myself, I like social experiences
in smaller doses. I get the impression that
for many actors, they are kind of over-socialising with all the connection on stage,
with the audience, press, etc., so much
that it becomes too much and they want
that retreat time.

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

A
Rock'n Roll
Edge

Eyefish:
Connecting people to reduce
Production Costs and Carbon
Emissions

There was a time when Gods were walking our Earth

creating huge dough. I am talking about music stars of
course, making a song or an album to reach millions and
millions. Well, they still reach millions, but the money
flow has certainly drained out.
So, what has happened? The Future had come and hit the
music business fundamentally! Remember the eighties
and nineties? One song or album could do it for you or
your bandmillions of dollars on your bank account and
a more or less consequence free lifedestroyed hotel
rooms, insanely beautiful groupies, free drugs and alcohol and in the news constantly.
Now? Download is everywhere, the sales have broken in
massively and music stars are simply not rich music stars
anymorefor the most part at least. Is it fair to say Youtube and the New Media have created phenomena like
Justin Bieber or that fat Star Wars light saber kid fighting
with himself? The fat kid is gone, but it looks like that
Bieber dude is here to stay. Hypes like him will only work
with consequent cross media promoting on the merchandise, they need to be visible everywhere anytime
on every locationyou cant take a dump anywhere
without hearing, seeing or being bothered with those
Hypies.
So, where does this leave the fan? The New Medias are
in every part of our lives flooding our daily routine with
a constant stream of news and mind blowing facts. It
pretty much depends how true you are coming over as
a Hypie, if you dont, you will be gone faster than Bieber
can say I did Selena.
One part of music has more devoted fans than others,
take a look at the Rock and Metal businessthose festivals are more than successful, the Wacken Metal Open
Air attracts 75,000+ each year, it has been sold out for six
executive years. Metal bands are still Gods for their fans,
and they are giving them value! Not only an image or a
pretty face but a way of living, a Rockn Roll lifestyle so
to speak the fan can have a part of.
One band that is doing this expertly is the German Dark
Metal Band ATROCITY. They took a great leap with their
new DVD called Die Gottlosen Jahre (The Godless
Years), which was just released. They did not only film
their 25 Year band anniversary concert in Wacken last
year, but also put a 3 hours episode movie on it, interviewed 80 Rock and Metalstars and had the World Premiere of the DREATH Sidestories on the DVD!
THAT is what I call value! That is what I call devotion to
the fans! Take a look industry, that is how its done period!

Eyefish: Connecting people to reduce Production Costs

and Carbon Emissions
Eyefish is promoting a new approach to television production, the open sharing of information for the common good of the television production community, fostering local talent and services around the globe and a
reduction in the environmental impact of television programme making.
Recent figures show that up to that 70 per cent of a TV
productions carbon dioxide emissions are due to the
transport of sta and equipment. As governments come
closer to making carbon footprint calculation law, the TV
industry needs to be ready to address this new legislation.
Eyefish founder, Eric Huyton is a lighting cameraman
with over 25 years experience working in the industry.
He says that Eyefish has found a way of helping productions reduce their travel miles whilst taking the risk out
of using unknown local services.
Recent success stories include an Eyefish cameraman
filming in Argentina who sourced a high definition lens
from a locally based Argentinian camera operator recommended on Eyefish - it saved the money of the extra hire
and courier costs flying one from the UK. Another UK
based production found an experienced documentary
cameraman for a 5 day shoot in Sweden. Not only did it
save on travel, but the cameraman spoke fluent English
and Swedish, and as well as translation services he also
fixed the shoot. A French company visiting the UK used
Eyefish to find a local fixer to set up their filming trip.
Eyefish aims to extend beyond carbon footprint reduction and the knock on savings to your budget. The website will eventually lead to the transfer of skills and experience to developing countries, building-up local TV
and film industries. Countless production teams film in
the UK every year and Eyefish is here to connect foreign
producers with home-grown talent.
By allowing easy access to talented people around the
world, we can help to reduce your production costs and
your carbon footprint.
Its good for your budget, good for crew and good for the
planet too!
For more information see: www.eyefish.tv

by Konrad Hollenstein

61

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Universal Film

Production hub

Issue 3 of 2012

Interview with katherine Diomond MArketing Director

atrina Diamond is Marketing Director of ProductionHUB, the online

marketplace that connect users to production professionals, services, equipment & news.
Katrina is responsible for marketing and
partnership development, strategies, tactics, media relations, advertising, overall
brand management, social media eorts
and assists in business development initiatives.
UFM: What is the history or background
of this business?
14 years ago, our Founder / President
John Pokorny started ProductionHUB as
an online version of production guides
(since many were outdated by the time
they were printed). This was before social
media and before smartphonesobviously a lot has changed since then, and
we realized that stagnant directories were
essentially dead. Instead, we wanted
to showcase profiles, which are living,
breathing (constantly updated) portfolios
of work, so people can get hired directly
from their profile.
UFM: What makes your business special?
Every day we get people work & equipment rented. And everyday we help connect, agencies, businesses and studios to
qualified companies & professionals for

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production work. Indie filmmakers and

summer blockbusters alike crew their
production and find equipment through
ProductionHUB. They post jobs, buy & sell
equipment in classifieds, promote trailers and find film festivals to submit their
work.
Also, more than ever, businesses are realizing the value in video as a marketing
toolwhether online, as training tools,
commercials / PSAs or at special events.
We are always here for them, helping connect them to the production companies &
pros on our site who can get the job done.
UFM: What do you love the most about
what you do?
Its refreshing constantly running into
people at festivals and conferences who
say, ProductionHUB! Ive been looking
for you all day to say thank you for getting
me that last gig.
It makes you feel really good to know that
you are making a dierence in peoples
lives.
UFM: Are there any tips that you could
tell customers that would improve their
experience when they visit?
Actually, yeswhile most people already
recognize the value in our site and searching our profiles (by category, keyword or

location), we have another service, called

the Request Engine, which caters to the
busy professional who doesnt have time
to sift through profiles.
Its kind of like a concierge service for production: simply submit your free request
& qualified, available people and companies will respond directly to you. No more
calling and waiting for the phone to ring.
UFM: What is by far the most soughtafter service your company oers (and
how has it been aected by the economic
instability of the world economy?)
Obviously, the job board became increasingly popular as the economy suered.
What I didnt want happening was too
many people fighting in vain for the same
jobs.
So, as the Director of Marketing, I made
it my personal goal to increase employer relationships and grow our job board
service. The last few years it has steadily
grownup 45%, and this year we are on
track to blow it out of the water (meaning there are definitely enough jobs to go
around, so make sure to check back every
day!)
www.productionhub.com

62

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Carmarthen Bay
Film Festival 2012
T
The first
Carmarthen
Bay Film
Festival 2012
took place
in Llanelli
on the West
Wales coast
in the United
Kingdom

he first Carmarthen Bay Film Festival was a great success. Kelvin

Guy, the president of the first Carmarthen Bay Film Festival says
I was overwhealmed at the amount of films submitted to our
festival, the quality of the work was outstanding and I would like to
everyone who submitted films and attended our very first festival
in Llanelli, Wales UK, It has been a very successful first year for the
festival and we hope to go from strength to strength. We do need
the support of you the film-makers and fans to make the festival
an even bigger success next year. So please spread the word. The
festival is all about encouraging and supporting independent film
making and cinema in Wales, the UK and Internationally. The festival
is and will always be, a champion of independent film! Our motto is
This Festival is honest

Festival Winners
Feature Film- Over 60mins - Ham And The Piper - Mark Norfolk
Documentary Over 30 - Dinorwic Slate Quarry - Jason Jones
Short Documentary - Spirit of the Coliseum - Llinos Grin
Welsh Language Film - Llais Yr Andes - Llinos Grin
International Comedy - The Future -Venetia Taylor
International Short - To The Last Drop - Bill McMahon
Student Short Film - Closed Doors - James Button
Short Film - Hawk - Capture Production
Comedy - Gin And Dry - Capture Production
Welsh Based Short - Girl Abducted - Sally Martin
Directors Award For Future Star - Jed Darlington-Roberts
Screen Play - Carmichael: Villain - Samantha Louise Platt
Best of Festival - Spirit of the Coliseum
www.carmarthenbayfilmfestival.co.uk

63

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Above left: UFFO Volunteers - Above Right Festival Executive Director Tyrone D Murphy
Below Left: Iesten Jones Festival Director - Below Right Kelvin Guy Festival Founder and President

www.ufmag.org

64

Below: Kelvin Guy Festival Founder and President with the wining film-makers

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

3 elements to PR
by Danielle Freedman
here are three elements to PR for
T your
film. Here is a brief overview of
the services Freedman PR can provide.
PR Pre-Production Activity
- Devising and creating the press pack
which includes: imagery taken from the
shoot, cast and crew biographies, a film
synopsis, press release information
about the films content, and other useful
information such as running time, format,
distribution and release details.
- Distribution to the media (usually 2 two
weeks prior to filming) and telephoning
them & arranging interviews with principal cast & and crew.
-Website design for the film production,
acting as a source of knowledge about
the company and associated personnel.
This can be a one-page website or multiple pages with links to your company
website.
Poster design as the main source of imagery used for press promotion and as a
backdrop for the website.
-Social media strategy which will generate key interest and act as a feedback
resource.
Production PR Activity
- Utilising the press packs to generate
interviews with industry press and regional/national media, arranging for photographers &and journalists to attend
pre-agreed shooting days.
- Arranging principal photography whilst
the shoot is taking place and arranging
a behind the scenes shoot, where interviews with key crew members and members of the principal cast talk about their
experiences on set.
- Establishing YouTube and Vimeo accounts to run trailers and teasers on the
internet about the films forthcoming release, generating interest &and directing
trac to the website and social media
accounts.
- Following up media interviews and
sourcing articles, generating continued
press interest.

- Sending out DVD trailers of the film to

tease members of the press who have
not picked up on the project. This teaser
trailer can also be used at a later date for
film festivals to generate screening interest with potential distributors.

REAL LIFE
STORIES OF
STRUGGLE
AND COURAGE
FROM
AROUND
THE WORLD

Post-Production PR Activity
- Mailout of completed film to film review
magazines, websites and associated industry press/media
- Compiling interviews for use as a marketing tool for sales agents at film festivals.
- Organising for the film to be shown at
key UK & international festivals.
- Arranging and coordinating interviews
& any and recording associated media interest generated from the films screening at the festivals.
-Organising local and national UK screenings of the film for cast, & crew, potential
distributors/sales agents and potential
future sponsors. The screening can be
in accordance with/attended by UK film
bodies/professional organisations.
Not included: Theatre hire for screenings,
film photographic print (imagery) should
the film be picked up for a theatrical release, website costs, website management/maintenance, blog design/maintenance and social media maintenance. If
mailouts are included in the promotion
package then these will also be rechargeable to the client at cost. If you are located outside of the Northwest area please
make an allowance for travel expenses
and overnight accommodation.
All of the above will be chargeable separately on an invoice. You may wish to
budget for potential additional costs (as
outlined above) in your films overall
budget, along with any additional PR activity &and advertising you may wish to
undertake for your films promotion at
each festival.

THIS IS OMAR, A TEENAGE

REFUGEE FROM SOMALIA.

A LIFE ON HOLD

IS A NEW FILM ABOUT

OMARS LIFE IN A REFUGEE
CAMP IN TUNISIA.
WATCH AT
AMNESTY.ORG/REFUGEES

CHILDREN OF
THE JAGUAR

AN INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY IN
THE AMAZON JUNGLE TAKE ON
THE COMBINED MIGHT OF THE
GOVERNMENT AND AN OIL
COMPANY IN ORDER TO SAVE
THEIR WAY OF LIFE AND THE
RAINFOREST THEY LIVE IN.

WATCH AT
BIT.LY/JAGUAR-TRAILER

Find out more:

avproduction@amnesty.org

65

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Breaking and Entering:

by Lindsey Kennedy

admitted to myself that being a general

punch bag for a narcissistic fantasist with
too much pocket money is, in fact, souldestroyingly futile. Instead, I taught myself to edit, took a storyboarding course
and decided it was finally time to revisit
that childhood dream of becoming a film
director.

Being pretty clueless with no industry

ties or contacts, it was clear that I was
setting myself up for many years of abject poverty, general disappointment
and yapping at the heels of low-budget
indie outfits who may or may not turn out
to specialise in donkey porn for an East
Timor niche market. These facts I was
prepared for. Others I was not. For those
of you considering embarking upon a career as a teeny tiny unappreciated minnow in a vast nepotistic ocean, here are
my top four nuggets of wisdom to help
prepare you for your glorious quest.
1. Beware the Mentals.
My first job, as an Assistant Director on
a short film, consisted of disaster management for a delusional egoist who had
cast himself and his family members in a
film about a man who has an aair that
costs him his marriage. In the process,
he screwed up his own marriage so resoundingly that I spent most of my time
providing counselling and tissues to his
distraught better half.
He then asked me for feedback on his
next project: a short film about child molestation. This he described, with characteristic modesty, as the most powerful,
unflinching work about this issue ever to
be conceived. In fact, it turned out to be a
sick, incomprehensible and utterly oensive tirade that included lengthy stage
directions debating the existence of
God before inexplicably giving way to an

www.ufmag.org

eight-page poem dedicated to Elizabeth

Fritzl. My gentle suggestion that this was,
perhaps, not the most sensitive way of
approaching the subject matter led to a
torrent of abuse telling me that (1) our
friendship was over, (2) I was a silly little girl and (3) he hoped I would live out
my days in perpetual terror of my own
children being abused, as just reward for
failing to recognise his insurmountable
genius.
2. Its All About the Hierarchy.
Film is second only to the military in its
rigid upholding of professional hierarchies. It is probably no accident that the
Director of Photography on the last feature film I worked on still carries the bullet wounds from a previous stint in the
Italian Special Forces.
Occasionally, on small, no-budget shorts,
everyone pulls together in mutually respectful collaboration and harmony, suffusing the set with joyous enthusiasm
that prevents you caring that the shoot
has run over by seventeen hours, you
havent eaten since Tuesday and your
last tube left last week. Most of the time,
however, being at the bottom of the food
chain, your main purpose is to lurk miles
from the action in the freezing cold, luring wild animals away from the set by
feeding them strips of your own flesh,
whilst somewhere far away a psychotic
1st AD screams hysterical abuse down
a walkie talkie because you forgot to remind her to tie her shoelaces and the Focus Pullers sandwiches are cut into the
wrong geometric shapes.
If you can stick out the ritual humiliation
for long enough, you may be rewarded
with your very own minion to torment
and one day, maybe even a whole crew to
bully, threaten and cajole. This is called
making a film.

3. The FilmIdustry is a Breeding Ground

for Misogynistic Halfwits.
When I was nine, my grandfather told
me that I couldnt be a film director because I was a girl and girls dont get to
be film directors. Having never found this
biological quirk to have been much of a
hindrance before (and bearing in mind
that my grandfather was also an alcoholic who would frequently call at 4am to
garble lines from Macbeth over and over
until someone hung up on him) I decided
not to set too much store by his gin-addled career advice. Alarmingly, it seems
he was a little bit right.
For the first six super-keen months, I
found myself at industry networking
events where I was variously told that I
dont look like an editor that women
arent really seen as directors or, at best:
You mean you want to be a producer? It
used to be said that behind every great
man is a great woman; behind every
great director there is, necessarily, a formidable producer. Producers, as the allorganising, multi-tasking, non-limelightstealing backbone of film-making are,
according to this patriarchal logic, singularly permitted to be women. For other
roles: girls expect to fight tooth and
nail for every tiny grain of respect, and to
have any beginners gaps in your professional knowledge attributed to that glaring lack of a penis between your legs.
4. Do It for Love. Not for Money.
Theres nothing like that magical feeling
when it all falls miraculously into place,
better and more beautifully than you
ever imagined it would. Sadly, that feeling is rarely the herald of any real world
pecuniary relief. So dont get carried
away just yet: you might still need that
day job to pay the rent.

66

over a year ago, following a string

J ust
of disastrous graduate jobs, I finally

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

ZOE MOON ASTROLOGY JUNE MONTHLY FORECAST 2012

ARIES

TARUS

GEMINI

A trip, media, publishing, marketing, legal,

ceremonial, or educational matter peaks
by the 4th, big celebrations or endings! An
entire new Luck cycle begins this month
on the 11th opening the doors to new
ideas, meetings, talks, writing opportunities, agreements, and decisions that
expand your horizons, bring happiness,
and help you prosper in the year ahead.
You may also see luck come through
siblings, neighbors, moves, new vehicles
or electronics. The New Moon on the 19th
gives you the fuel behind all of this to seed
new intentions in any of these areas so
start fresh now

Big financial matters, sexual attractions or

issues, reproductive needs, or divorce
issues hit a high note by the 4th. This will
be a time of achievement or endings in
these areas. A brand new Luck cycle
begins on the 11th opening up the best
year in over 12 years to increase earnings,
expand your income making ideas, make
purchases, or deal with possessions. The
New Moon on the 19th gives you the
strongest two week window to really kick
this off with a fresh start so target this time
to go after money or make a major purchase.

You hit a high note with a romantic or

business partner, agent, attorney, specialist, advocate, competitor, or opponent by
the 4th. This may be about their big
moment, about the two of you achieving
a goal, and for some relationships there
will be an ending. If you are solo it may be
about putting your single life behind you.
A huge new Luck cycle begins on the 11th
which is happening in your sign! This is
the best news you could get because for
the next year you should find it so much
easier to find happiness and prosperity
and to expand on personal levels in ways
beyond your normal experience. You have
a New Moon on the 19th which will help
you launch new desires, image, identity,
or physical goals, so stretch your wings
and go after what you want.

FOLLOW ZOE ON TWITTER: HTTP://TWITTER.COM/ZOEMOON

LIBRA
SCORPIO
SAGITTARIUS
You should see a writing project or agreement, big talk or meeting, decision or idea,
short trip or vehicle, sibling or neighbor
interest, or local activity hit a peak by the
4th. This should be a time of celebrations,
achievement or endings. A brand new
Luck cycle kicks off on the 11th that will
open up huge opportunity for you to
expand through travel, education, legal
matters, media, publishing, marketing,
publicity, and ceremonies in the year
ahead. This is the best its been in 12 years
and the New Moon on the 19th is your 2
week window to seed this in the right way,
begin in the 2 weeks ahead to seed in
these areas.

Your personal income, a purchase or

possession will be the area of major culmination on the 4th as you reach your goal,
celebrate, see a source end, or wrap things
up. You enter a brand new Luck cycle on
the 11th that is going to open up big
opportunities to expand over the next
year in areas of sex and intimacy, reproduction, power, divorce, and any high
financial arena such as loans, inheritance,
settlements, insurance, bankruptcy, taxes,
alimony, child support, commissions,
royalties, or a partners money. These are
your growth areas, the best you have had
here in 12 years, offering protection, happiness and prosperity. The New Moon on
the 19th is giving you 2 strong weeks to
start it off right.

You are personally reaching a high point

on the 4th as you reach your goal physically or personally, end some issue that has
been bothering, or celebrate the image,
identity or personality peak. A new Luck
cycle begins on the 11th as your ruler
moves into the chatty sign of Gemini for
the next year and opens up major opportunity for you through romantic or business partners, agents, attorneys, specialists, advocates, and dealing with competitors. This is the best open door you have
had here to reach happiness or prosperity
through others in 12 years and the New
Moon on the 19th gives you 2 strong
weeks to seed your new beginning here.

67

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

ZOEMOONASTROLOGY@GMAIL.COM OR CALL 818-613-6067

LEO
VIRGO
CANCER
You reach a powerful peak at work, with
services, a co-worker, employee, health
matter, or pet by the 4th. This will be
about achievements, recognition or
endings. A brand new Luck cycle begins
on the 11th that will take you into big new
opportunities in the year ahead through
film, music, art, psychic, spiritual, or magic
interests, through retreats, hospitals, dealing with addictions, research, investigations, or love that you keep private. This is
a year-long trend that has not been this
strong in 12 years for you in these areas.
The New Moon on the 19th kicks off any
fresh starts you would like to make here
with cosmic support so initiate in these
areas over the next 2 weeks.

By the 4th you will see a major high point

with a lover, child or creative project as you
reach your goal, receive some form of
recognition, celebrate, or wrap things up.
A bold new Luck cycle begins on the 11th
that is going to open huge opportunities
to expand, find happiness and prosper
through friends, groups, the internet,
astrology, charities, and pursuing your
own aspirations. This is the best its been
here in 12 years and you have a year to
open up in these areas. The New Moon
on the 19th gives you a boost from the
universe to do just that so be proactive in
the 2 weeks forward.

Home matters, a celebration in the home,

renovation, roommate, family member,
move, real estate deal, or interest in land
hits a high point on the 4th as you wrap
things up or achieve your goals. A new
Luck cycle kicks off on the 11th that is
going to open up the best career opportunities to expand, more happiness and
prosperity through career, pursuit of ambitions or goals, through reputation, with
fame, and in dealings with authority
figures, than you have had in 12 years. You
have a year to broaden your life in these
areas and the New Moon on the 19th is
helping you get it going, plan accordingly.

FACEBOOK: HTTP://FACEBOOK.COM/ZOEMOONASTROLOGY
PISCES
CAPRICORN
AQUARIUS

www.ufmag.org

A high point is hit by the 4th with friends,

social occasions, group activities, the internet, astrology, charities, or aspirations.
You will be celebrating or noting the achievement or endings. A new Luck cycle kicks
off on the 11th that is going to show you
major growth and potential for more happiness and prosperity than you have seen
in 12 years. This cycle will last an entire
year and it comes through true love, kids
and creative projects. The New Moon on
the 19th is your 2 week open door to these
fresh starts in love, with kids or your creative potential.

A career high point comes by the 4th or

you may note that there is a celebration or
ending with a boss, authority figure, dad,
an ambition or goal you have been working on, or around reputation or fame. A
new Luck cycle begins on the 11th in your
home base that will last for a year. This is
the best growth period you have had here
in 12 years and it will help you expand, find
happiness and prosperity through what
you do at home, in moves, with real estate,
family, mom, roommates, renovations,
and towards your sense of security. The
New Moon on the 19th is in these areas
and gives you 2 strong weeks to seed
those fresh starts.

68

Time behind closed doors, at a hospital or

other institution, dealing with addictions,
strategies or development, on a film,
music or other artistic project, with a spiritual pursuit or clandestine affair, or in
research or investigations reaches a peak
by the 4th. This will mark an ending or
celebration. A new Luck cycle begins on
the 11th that is going to help you expand
and find happiness and prosperity in the
year ahead. This comes to you through
work, services you offer, co-workers,
employees, health, and pets so look for
ways to open these areas up, they are
growth oriented. The New Moon on the
19th gives you fresh starts in any of these
areas.

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Pre
Cannes
Event in
London

Simon Manley

Photography: S Dean & Karyn Louise

PILLI CORTESE

ANDREA CRISTINA,
KATIE RICHMOND, ANNA JOHNSON

Michele Kellerhals (Exec. Producer), Luciano Marigo-Spitaleri (Color

Grader), Elena Dapelo (PR and Marketing), Maurizio Di Antonio (Lead
Actor), Anthi Giannopoulou (Make Up and Costume Designer), Pilli
Cortese (Director and Producer), Claudio Napoli (DoP), Max Spera (PR
and Marketing).

Pre-Cannes Red Carpet

Film Business Social
Event organised by Paola
Berta on the 2nd of May
2012,
Sheepish PR & - Beverly
Hills UK Film Society and
Events www.sheepishproductions.
co.uk

Normski Anderson

69

TYRONE D MURPHY, PAOLA BERTA, JON DEVO

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

EMMA CONY & JOHNY PACH

VALERIA BANDINO

left
SUZANNE KENDALL, ROBBIE MOFFAT
below
MARK ELIE & SHIRLEY GRANA

Natasha Goulden
www.ufmag.org

70

above
ANDREA CRISTINA, ANNA JOHNSON,
HOWARD J FORD

ASIVE Films third feature

film to date is set to shock
and entertain, in equal
measures. A fast growing
and eclectic bunch of industry
professionals that simply do things
their own way and it looks like they
are set to continue to do so. With
films in 2010, (The Dinner Party) and
2011, (Speed Date) being followed
by Consequence in August of
2012, it looks like this small, but
dedicated group are not deterred
by evaporating budgets, tight
deadlines and a whole host of other
obstacles, but they seem to revel in
it and almost wouldnt have it any
other way. Producers Paul Dewdney
and Trevor Clarke are not your
stereotypical producers, as they get
involved not just in producing, but
in every aspect of production and
can often be found set-building,
driving, marketing and occasionally,
cooking for a full crew! Its this can
do mentality that sets them apart
from the recognized and more
traditional production companies
that are finding the going a bit tough
of late and will certainly stand
them in good stead for the future.
Director and founding member of
MASIVE Films, Si Wall, speaks highly
of his producers. Its a blessing to
have people that support you, but
to support you fully, to allow you
to make the film thats inside your
head and to believe in you so much,
that you are not asked to make
compromises; There are not many
film directors who can say this.
Without them both, Consequence
wouldnt be the film it is, if at all.

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Online Film Distribution:

Friend or Foe?
by Robert Licursi, COO MediaGrinder, Inc. Companies
like the age-old philosophiM uch
cal question, Which came first: the

chicken or the egg?, filmmakers and

technologists have something new to
ponder: Is innovative technology driving
business, or is business driving the need
for new technology?
Over the last decade, we have seen innovation that makes it possible to film,
edit, and distribute content via webcams,
laptops, and smartphones. The question
that many film industry professionals
are asking themselves is whether or not
to embrace this trend. This alternative
form of approaching filmmaking, marketing, distribution, credits, ownership, optioning, and all of yesterdays norms are
changing daily.
The real issues behind this Social Filmmaking are monetization, dilution of
content value, major studio business
model overhauls, and ensuring that technology is creating value to our industry.
The playing field between major studio
productions and anyone with a HD camera is rapidly reaching equilibrium.
Festivals, such as Tribeca, have embraced
social media. Its been over a year since
a Tribeca Panel Digital by Design discussed using Twitter as a promotional
distribution platform. During this Q&A,
Tom Lesinksi, President of Paramount
Digital Entertainment stated, I think the
social media sites are real destinations
for video consumption. That technology
will create even more opportunities for
movie consumption in places you would
have never guessed.
Twitter has also played a key role in marketing Kevin Smiths Red State, said John
Sloss, managing partner and founder of
entertainment law firm Sloss Eckhouse
and founder of Cinetic Media.
Smith has 1.8 million followers on Twitter, he pointed out. He has been saying
this to me for years -- that he doesnt
have to work for the studios, because he
works for his public, Sloss said. A number of people have 1.8 million followers
on Twitter, but I always say, with regard
to Kevin, he is the first person those 1.8
million people think about when they
wake up. They are really devoted to him.
Sloss said his firm oversees the windowing for Red State.
Conversely, according to Miramax CEO

Mike Lang, Whats holding back digital

content usage and availability for now
are such issues as consumers not being
sure if digital content will work on all devices.

REAL LIFE
STORIES OF
STRUGGLE
AND COURAGE
FROM
AROUND
THE WORLD

Delivery platforms and devices must be

easy to use and interoperable. Additionally, Lang suggested, content must be
available at a reasonable price and accessible anywhere. Without that, I dont
see how as an industry we will ever really
drive a digital purchase economy, he
said.
Digital by Design Tribeca panelists
were asked how Hollywood views the
new shift. Digital indeed is a great opportunity for Hollywood, but it wont immediately make up for lower home entertainment financials near-term,panelists
said. Already, though, VOD is becoming a
key part of deal-making in the indie film
sector, according to Sloss.
At Sundance this year, many movies were
sold with VOD in mind. Thats the business that IFC and Magnolia are in where
they can back-stop their purchases,
knowing that theyll get a VOD number
on it, and they can oer a certain amount
of money, Sloss explained. And I would
say 80% of the transactions that took
place at Sundance this year were driven
by that model.
So, back to the question: is film production driving technology, or is technology
driving how films are being approached?
Furthermore, is the overwhelming content being produced and distributed
through consumer-based online portals
diluting film value, lowering production
quality, and threatening current economic models?
These trends are gaining momentum,
yet both sides have valid concerns. Your
opinions, thoughts, and ideas on this issue would be of great value. As a followup to this article we respectfully ask for
you to share your thoughts and ideas with
us. The more input of your important
opinions we gather the better we will be
able to present data, which will keep you
ahead of the curve while preparing your
next project.
Please send us your feedback to:
editor@ufmag.org

THIS IS OMAR, A TEENAGE

REFUGEE FROM SOMALIA.

A LIFE ON HOLD

IS A NEW FILM ABOUT

OMARS LIFE IN A REFUGEE
CAMP IN TUNISIA.
WATCH AT
AMNESTY.ORG/REFUGEES

CHILDREN OF
THE JAGUAR

AN INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY IN
THE AMAZON JUNGLE TAKE ON
THE COMBINED MIGHT OF THE
GOVERNMENT AND AN OIL
COMPANY IN ORDER TO SAVE
THEIR WAY OF LIFE AND THE
RAINFOREST THEY LIVE IN.

WATCH AT
BIT.LY/JAGUAR-TRAILER

Find out more:

avproduction@amnesty.org

71

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

CANNESMyth and Magic!

Cannes Film Festival, I literally jumped
for joy. Cannes is the Alpha and Omega, the Be All and End All of all film
festivals. The floodlights! The Paparazzi!
The red carpet! I would get to lounge on
the French Riviera, the most sophisticate
beach resort anywhere in the world. It
was time to pack my bikini and brush up
on my French! Ooh La La!
The wonderful thing about idealistic
dreams is that they can be realized, the
sense of satisfaction has no comparison.
As it is for many filmmakers, Cannes was
one of mine. Yes, there is glamour galore
and plenty of movie magic, but there was
something else about that dream. Lots
of work! Did I see that in my idolized
daydreamsabsolutely not!
Although my festival pass allowed me
into all areas of the Palais de Cannes, I
thought I would spend all my time visiting the various pavilions or basking in
the sun with directors falling over my
screenplay and producers wooing my fa-

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vour. I set up my headquarters in the Canadian pavilion (good coee) of the Carlton Hotel Lobby where everyone whos
anyone stays and hopefuls attempt to
look important. I discovered after a day
or two of orientations, workshops and reality checks that filmmakers need to use
the time to network.
After crashing back to reality that is exactly what I did. I spent my time trolling
through the production company directories setting up meetings with companies and distributors. Oddly, most of the
film deals are made in suites across the
street from the film festival itself in various hotels where production companies
and distributors usually take up their
headquarters.
Another aspect of networking was getting into the RIGHT parties; a career in
itself. Who you know, not what you know
breathes the life into that clich and one
of the most important things I learned
about working a festival was to follow up
after the fact. This is actually the main
reason for filmmakers to attend. Your

Who-You-Know list becomes extensive

and useful for whatever future projects
may come along.
I also spent some time in the Film Market
where I received an education in world
markets, distribution and trends over
various platforms. This is where I started
to truly understand the business of filmmaking. My original idea of a movie deal
as a fuzzy kind of fairytale (write the
screenplay and then magically everything falls into place right up to the night
of the premiere) started to materialize
into a business model of taking a product
(the screenplay) from script to fruitionon-the-screen to distribution.
After having my Cannes Film Festival
bubble burst with the dusty subject of
business I did actually attend a premiere
with the Paparazzi lights flashing and
the Stars arriving on the red carpet. The
lights went down, the opening music and
credits began to roll, and it was truly and
unequivocallyMagic!
by Margaret Dane

72

hen I got the message my screenW play

had been selected to go to the

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

ron gilbert

column
Now back to the present day and his film ,Wilde Salome,
where we are drawn into this very creative actors quest to
share his theatrical vision of a play/film combo... His life intertwined with Oscar Wilde and King Herod and so here is his
journey in the play, the movie of the play and a documentary.
He shot this production in 5 days and adds footage about the
controversial life of Oscar Wilde We now we have this finished
film which has not been released but should be. One of the actors Jack Maxwell sent me an email asking me when will it be
released. Hopefully soon. Meanwhile Al is getting rave reviews
as Shylock in the theatrical production on Broadway in The
Merchant of Venice. Thanks Al, I share your vision.

Marina Abramovic
The Artist Is Present captivates the audience
In all honesty ,I must say that I was not familiar with the career
of the incredibly creative artist, Marina Abramovic, but after
seeing this documentary I would be the first in line to see her
live in action.

Actor, producer and journalist Ron Gilbert ..

finally had the privilege of watching Wilde Salome,

the film version of Salome aka Salome Maybe?, directed by Al. In a similar fashion which he explored in
Looking for Richard, Al digs into the depths of an Actors Studio member to give audiences the internal life
of how he works. Scraping the surface and peeling the layers
which make him the actor he is today. Always working from
the inside to reveal the inner workings of the play and
how to share this. Lucky us.

The advantage audiences will have in seeing this documentary

is that the film explores her 40 year career and traces her roots
in Yugoslavia, where she was raised by communist parents in a
home where love did not exist. with her mother but she mentions that her grandmother on the other hand poured aection
and supported her which allowed her to evolve into the artist
she is today.
Audiences will actually feel like they are watching through a
window Marina and her performance art as the film reflects
this in flashbacks.

Director Matthew Akers(who is also the DP) along with

co-director Je Dupre followed Abramovic for a year
prior to the biggest show of her career,as she prelets look pares for her March-to-May 2010 retrospective at the
So he begins rehearsals with the actors holding the at the basic Museum of Modern Art, organized by MoMA curator
scripts because he feels that the words of playwright
Klaus Biesenbach, the show includes key Abramovic
process
Oscar Wilde are the most important and will allow the
pieces performed by her and her 12-year partner,
audiences to focus on them. Estelle Parsons is the direcGerman performance artist Ulay who appears present
tor of the play while Al is the director of the film version.
day and discusses his relationship with Abramovic Very
When he did this on the New York stage he created controversy
much ground is covered in this documentary in which
which is what plays are all about .Conflict and more conflict
Marina shares from workshops at her Hudson Valley home
and where does it take you. He continued this journey in Holwith an ensemble of performers As I watched her techniques
lywood by doing another production of the play at the Wadsit reminded very much of Stanislavskys Moscow art Theatre
worth Theatre in Westwood but the only dierence was that
and the famous teachers Vakhtangov and Grotowski and their
he wanted it to be filmed at the same time which created many
work. At the MoMA show we see Abramovich seated in a chair
problems. Al likes to push buttons. I will now share some of my
and facing an audience member in silence and rarely moving.
info about Al that may not be known. In the 1960s in New York
They have lined up for hours to get a chance to face her and
City there was talk about this actor who was very talented and
are thrilled to be able to do that. as we see the direct opposite
the word spread around the acting community. This started the
of all her other works where there was always powerful movesaga of Al Pacino. His first o-Bway play was The Indian wants
ments.
the Bronx written by Israel Horovitz with co-stars John Casale
and Matthew Cowles which I saw . I watched this drama which
What we view first hand is a fully committed artist who relenttakes places at a bus stop with 2 New York thugs and an Indian,
lessly pushes her body to the limits of endurance, and beyond
Was Al an actor or was he a thug ? Why? Because he was real.
and she will make you laugh,cry and happy to be present.
I grew up with and knew guys like him and he was the picture
My words are not enough to describe this ,you see the docuimage of them, So Lee Strasberg the legendary artistic director
mentary. HBO Documentary Films produced by Je Dupre,
of the Actors Studio suggested that Al work on the ShakespearMaro Chermaye. Co-producers, Francesca Von Habsburg. Exean play Richard the 3rd . Some 30 years later he directed
ecutive producer, Sheila Nevins, Stanley Buchthal, Maja Hothe documentary Looking for Richard. So this kid from the
mann, David Koh. Directed by Matthew Akers. Co-director, Je
Bronx whose grandmother lived on my block in East Harlem
Dupre.
and where Al spent a lot of his youth while attending the High
School of Performing Arts while I was a juvenile delinquent...
With: Marina Abramovic, Ulay, Klaus Biesenbach, Davide
Al and I were never really close but we shared the screen in
Baliano, Chrissie Iles, Sean Kelly, Arthur Danto, David Blaine,
Godfather 1 and Dog Day Afternoon and I would see him at
James Franco.
The Actors Studio and I owned peanut machines in Knobbys
his Uncle Steves bar.,
http://marinafilm.com/view-trailer

73

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

Allience of womans Filmmakers

he Los Angeles Womens International Film Festival produced by
Alliance of Women Filmmakers is going
into its ninth year and has showcased
hundreds of films made by women of
diverse backgrounds from all over the
world. In addition to premiering films
made by women from around the world
the organization produces an annual
Filmmaker Symposium during the festival with panels and workshops presented by entertainment lawyers and industry executives. Our 2012 seminars were
presented by Women of Warner Bros
(WOW) and featured Warner Bros. distribution executives. Alliance of Women
Filmmakers is proud to welcome WOW
back for their 2013 Filmmaker Symposium.
The Alliance of Women Filmmakers mission is to empower women filmmakers to
create diverse roles for women, as well
as educate and inform audiences of social, political and health issues impacting women globally.
The Allience currently has two core programs, the Los Angeles Womens International Film Festival and the Filmmaker
Symposium. In 2004, we launched a one-

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day screening event that highlighted

films made by women residing in Los
Angeles and the surrounding areas. Today the Los Angeles Womens International Film Festival spans an entire week
and features films of all genres made by
women from around the world.

the Adrienne Shelly Foundation, which

was founded by Shellys husband to help
women achieve their own filmmaking
dreams. The film was followed by a reception and silent auction, with proceeds
donated to the Adrienne Shelly Foundation.

Many films showcased at the festival

have gained exposure and gone on to
receive distribution and win awards.
God Sleeps in Rwanda, presented in the
2005 short documentary category, was
nominated for an Oscar in 2006 for Best
Documentary Short Subject. The festivals 2007 opening film Open Window,
directed by Mia Goldman, was picked up
for distribution by Showtime. Damages,
presented in the 2008 feature category,
was picked up for TV distribution in Ireland and nominated for an IFTA award.

The 2010 centerpiece presentation,

Poto Mitan: Haitian Women, Pillars of
the Global Economy, was introduced by
a representative from Partners in Health
(PIP), a charity that provides medical care
and social services to countries in need.
The representative educated the audience about PIP and gave an update on
the Haiti crisis and Partners in Healths
PIP fundraising relief eorts.

In addition to showcasing women-made

movies from around the world, the festival has created awareness and raised
money for organizations that support
womens causes. The 2010 festival
opened with Serious Moonlight, written
by the late Adrienne Shelly. The films
director, Cheryl Hines, introduced the
film and informed the audience about

The 2011 festival kicked o with Pink

Skies, a documentary that covers an
incredible all-female skydiving team,
Jump for the Cause, and the journey of
181 women from 31 countries to create
a World Record All-Womens Skydiving
Formation. Ticket sales from the opening-night screening and reception were
donated to benefit Susan G. Komen for
the Cure Los Angeles County.

74

Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

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Universal Film
Issue 3 of 2012

The great content shift the demand for content anytime,

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options with unlimited business models. But only if you shift focus and
work with the right players. Broader-casting professionals are leading
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CONFERENCES April 1419, 2012 EXHIBITS April 16 19

Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada USA

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76

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