1001 Positively True Stories of An Indie Filmmaker

Angelo Bell's Painfully Exhilarating Adventures in Independent Filmmaking

Archive for the ‘Filmmaking’ Category

Excited About My New Film Project

Thursday, March 11th, 2010

Legend of Black Lotus is my new small-scale project. It’s small because it’s only a trailer. But it’s HUGE because making the trailer is the first step of the biggest endeavor I’ve ever attempted. The  trailer will be used as part of an investment package for potential investors. The amount of money I need to raise is 10x more than the combined total of all the films I’ve ever made or worked on. Then again, this script is the biggest and best script I’ve ever written. Even better than Broken Hearts Club, which received a glowing review for the screenplay.

Actors have begun submitting to my call for submissions on NowCasting. More details on that here. I’ve contacted a production designer, art director and costumer to see if they’re interested in collaborating. I haven’t chosen a DP yet because I’m not sure what the final visual style will be for the trailer.

The LEGEND OF BLACK LOTUS trailer needs to depict one very important aspect of the film: there will be NO computer graphics. All effects will be handled with practicals.

The first sixty seconds of the first “Avatar: The Last Airbender” trailer gives you a hint of what I’m going for visually, though I will have more dialog and less narration.

That’s pretty much all I can give away now about LEGEND OB BLACK LOTUS. If I said any more I’d have to kill you, and I don’t want to do that :)

Resurrection of Serious Rogers, my new neo noir action thriller web series is still in post. My editor, Jim Rhodimer (also the DP) is working hard on it. Having an editor has freed me to pursue other endeavors, so I’m very thankful for Jim’s hard work. Check out a sneak peek of RSR below…

SNEAK PEEK – Resurrection of Serious Rogers from Angelo Bell on Vimeo.

http://SeriousRogers.blogspot.com — this is a 15-minute behind-the-scenes video offering a sneak peek of the upcoming neo-noir action thriller web series , “Resurrection of Serious Rogers” created by Angelo Bell. If you like what you see, go to http://www.indiegogo.com/woman-on-fire and donate towards the production’s marketing and promotion cost.

Barry Jenkins Interview on NoFilmSchool

Thursday, March 11th, 2010

A Barry Jenkins Film

A truly informative interview with Barry Jenkins (Medicine for Melancholy) on NoFilmSchool.com.

http://nofilmschool.com/2010/03/questions-with-barry-jenkins/

Staying Busy

Sunday, March 7th, 2010

I’m staying busy. Very busy. There’s a lot going on in my personal life and professional life, and staying even more busy is the way I focus. I know…it sounds  weird.

First up: I’m looking for two African American actresses to help me shoot a spec trailer for a project  called, “Legend of Black Lotus.” It’s a BIG project: and epic martial arts fantasy. The biggest I’ve ever attempted. See the details here: http://www.AngeloBell.com/black-lotus/

I’ve decided to diversity and delegate. I’m now looking for guest directors for my upcoming web series, “Broken Hearts Club: On the Couch.” Interested parties in the LA area should hit me up. Since I’m doing On the Couch I’ve decided to push back Shadowkeeper for a while.

Speaking of “Broken Hearts Club” — I’m streaming the first episode of the series on the official website. Watch the 22-minute episode here: http://www.brokenheartsclubfilm.com/watch-first-episode/

Resurrection of Serious Rogers” is going strong in post. Watch a 15-minute sneak peek here. Leave a comment and you might get an even bigger sneak peak… Watch the sneak peek here: http://www.angelobell.com/sneak-peek/

So subscribe to my blog if you haven’t already. I’ll keep you up to date with all the glorious madness ;-)

Back to the Big Apple (NYC), Sorta

Saturday, March 6th, 2010

I’m very excited to be working with Mr. Miles Maker and the Directing Actor’s Gym in New York City at the National Comedy Theater in midtown Manhattan on March 21st.  New York is my hometown, but I’ve never shot a film there nor worked with NY actors. Hopefully someday soon.

The workshop is broadcast live, so at least I can see my work performed by the talented folks in NYC.  In fact, if you tune in to DirectingActors.tv you might hear me call in live from LA. The scene, “Verbal Tea” is a scene from my sci-fi script, Renascence Odyssey.

If you’re in NYC , register, attend and watch.

Directing Actors TV

Featuring New York’s talented and emerging Actors and Writers for stage and screen, Directing Actors TV is an episodic scene series at the National Comedy Theatre in Midtown Manhattan. Each event is videotaped in front of a live audience of casting Agents, Producers, Directors, Writers and Actors–then broadcast on Directing Actors TV (http://www.directingactors.tv), Directing Act…

Directing Actors Gym — Sunday, March 21, 2010
Sunday, March 21, 2010 at 2:00PM

The Directing Actors Gym features New York’s talented and emerging Actors and Writers for stage and screen in a scene performance workshop every third week at the National Comedy Theatre in Midtown Manhattan. Each event is broadcast LIVE on the Internet and to mobile devices at http://www.livestream.com/directingactors

Performing Actors select a role of from one of three scripts–then perform with random scene partners for a live audience of industry peers. Audience members are welcome to attend this event to support local talent, network with like-minds and join the burgeoning independent community of Artists in New York City.

$10.00 for ALL!

*** PERFORMING ACTOR SUBMISSIONS ARE NOW OPEN UNTIL MONDAY, MARCH 8th, 2010 ***
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES (MUST follow!):

1) Choose your SCRIPT:

MARCH 21st SCENES:

“Verbal Tea” Written by Angelo Bell
Available on Meetup Files

“Character Driven” Written by Seth Ruffer (revised by Miles Maker)
Available on Meetup Files

“War Games” Written by DL Sams
Available on Meetup Files

2) Attach your best headshot to your e-mail and indicate the sce…

Price: $10.00

See the full event details, including location, at http://www.meetup.com/DirectingActors/calendar/12797063/.

Check out what members are saying about Directing Actors TV:

“wonderful learning experience.” – shaun

“A great place to perform the craft they love and get great feedback!” – Keesha Nieda Ford

“It’s a chance to interact with People of all different levels of experience in every part of the industry, including casting, writers, actors, & more.” – MarcosLuis

“Great networking, feedback and direction” – Tiffany C. Williams

“So many reasons…you get to improve in your craft, you get to meet and work with other actors, and some of the industry exposure.” – Nancy Vazquez

Voices From The Beginning

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

I heard a voice from the beginning. A voice from the past. 2002:  the year I became a filmmaker and I made my first film, Get Spielberg.

Like most films from first-time filmmakers, Get Spielberg was a satire about –what else — the entertainment industry! In the film Vis Brown played a militant African American writer who prefers writing romantic comedies, unfortunately everyone expects hims to be the angry black man we often see in movies.

Vis saw me when I was green. I was a newbie. I’d never directed a film before. I’d never produced a film before. In fact, I’d only been on set once, for a UCLA student film production.

Vis called me after he’d watched the 15-minute sneak-peek video for Resurrection of Serious Rogers.  His compliments were mind blowing and inspiring. He said, “As far as you’ve come, you better not stop writing and making films.”

It’s good to look back. It’s good to measure your results by looking at your humble beginnings and then taking stock of all your accomplishments, both large and small. You might be surprised by what you’ve done.

Dead Ends, Labyrinths and Thick Skin

Saturday, February 27th, 2010

In seven years of doing this filmmaking thing, I’ve run into enough dead ends to give myself a concussion and a subdural hemotoma several times over. I’ve taken wrong turns, taken bad advice, jumped the gun, moved too slow, lacked confidence, had too much confidence and been promised the world, but delivered an I.O.U.

I was chatting on Facebook with my UK filmmaker friend, David Baker after reading his article about having thick skin. As of this blog post, David is 10-15 days away from knowing if he’s going to get the money to make his next film, Death Movie.  He wrote a blog about his state of mind titled, Counting Chickens. In a nutshell, David isn’t assuming a damn thing about the money. As he put it, the only time the answer is yes is when the cash ends up in your bank account.

labyrinth3

Life is a beautiful maze

This got me thinking about the challenges I mentioned above. I have resigned to expect, deal with and ultimately get over every disappointment that happens on this filmmaking journey. Sure, I’ll bump my head, piss someone off, miss an opportunity — but that’s all a part of the process. When you choose a direction I believe you’ve got to see it through. It how you learn. There’s no point in looking back, because either you’ve learned a lesson or you haven’t. My goal is to learn from every misstep and mistake.

However, there is one thing I won’t deal with. Empty Promises. I’ve been promised lots and lots of things. From money, to equipment, to introductions to millionaire investors — someone along the way has told me they would perform and provide in a way I had never asked them to perform and provide. Unfortunately, they were full of shit.

So like David, I don’t count my chickens before they’re hatched. I wait.

I don't really mean it

I don't really mean it

The bigger problem here is that quite often people offer to do things knowing full well they have no intention (or no ability) to follow through. Why? Why put me through it? Why put us through it? Not long ago a dood responded to my craigslist ad. I was selling something to raise money for my film. He responded and insinuated that he had some ideas about distribution and could possible help me get money. I contacted him, followed up, and did my due diligence to make sure I wasn’t missing an opportunity. However, in the back of my head I felt this was too good to be true. It was. When I pressed him to make a firm statement as to what service he was offering he feigned insult and dashed away.

The same thing goes for folks who offer services then pull out without a word. I had a guy recently who contacted me on Facebook about a composing opportunity. He told me all these wonderful things about what he could do. He never asked what the budget was. When I told him the payment arrangement I had in place and asked to hear samples of his work he never responded to my email. Naturally I assumed that he did not want to work for the specific payment arrangement. That’s cool. But why behave in such a manner? All he had to do was decline and offer to stay in touch for future assignments.

"I promise..."

"I promise..."

I’m pretty straightforward. Particularly when I’m making a film I try to lay it all out: what I can do, can afford, will try to do, etc. Too many people talk and talk and talk. All their sound and fury signifies nothing because they haven’t asked for what they need or haven’t clearly stated what they can do.

So, every time some awesome new opportunity presents itself I put my tongue in my cheek and think, “Let’s see how this plays out.” Then I smile and say, “”Sure, let’s talk.”

Crowdsourcing-Crowdfunding: Should We Believe the Hype?

Thursday, February 25th, 2010

Crowdsourcing/Crowdfunding: Should We Believe the Hype?

Except– The terms “crowdsourcing ” and “crowdfunding” have always annoyed me but until recently I wasn’t sure why the words made me cringe. Great sites like Indiegogo and Kickstarter have created a fundraising portal for indie filmmakers to raise money for their films. But is that enough?  Before I get into that let’s discuss what these terms actually mean.

An Article I wrote for Associated Content –

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2735117/crowdfunding_crowdsourcing_dont_believe.html?cat=40

Sneak Peek

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010

Want a sneak peek at behind the scenes footage from the neo-noir action thriller,  “Resurrection of Serious Rogers?”

Just register for this blog and post a comment below. You’ll receive an email with the location to a password protected URL. Without your correct email address the email won’t reach you.

Check out these YouTube Clips

*note– only valid email addresses will work. You’ll be given access to private footage on YouTube on Monday March 1st. Notification by email and this blog only.

The SNEAK PEEK ends 11:59PM March 1 – PST

LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW RIGHT NOW

Neo Noir Resurrected by “Serious Rogers”

Monday, February 22nd, 2010

What is Neo Noir?

Neo-noir (from the Greek neo, new; and the French noir, black) is a style often seen in modern motion pictures and other forms that prominently utilizes elements of film noir, but with updated themes, content, style, visual elements or media that were absent in films noir of the 1940s and 1950s.

Simplifying this, in this writer’s opinion there are several elements associated with a neo noir film that are similar to film noir:

  1. A crime or crimes are the central element of the film
  2. The crime is typically a crime of passion (anger, revenge, love)
  3. The film has a stylized lighting and shooting (cinematography) style
  4. A main character has a skewed sense of perspective about life, love and/or what’s right or wrong

This is why “Resurrection of Serious Rogers” is such a perfect fit to the neo noir niche genre. While the film follows a thriller format — and to a lessor extent, the action format –  it was conceived, written, shot and directed as a neo noir film.

We also coined two new phrases during production. Considering the amount of bloodshed in “Serious Rogers” we have a new sub-genre:

“Vicious Noir” — it’s your basic neo noir film with lots of angre killing and bloodshed

“Metal Noir” — it’s your basic neo noir film underscored by ass-kicking action-oriented heavy metal music (Trent Reznor style)

==============

Noir lighting and emotional context signify neo noir

Noir lighting and emotional context signify neo noir

Moody atmospheres, brooding people...neo noir

Moody atmospheres, brooding people...neo noir

Some better-known neo noir films are Blade Runner, Memento, Sin City, Basic Instinct, L.A. Confidential, and Chinatown

AMC has a list of what it considers the 10 best Neo Noir films  ever: http://blogs.amctv.com/photo-galleries/best-neo-noir-movies/introduction.php (opens in a new window – turn your popup blocker off)

These are the post 1980 films Netflix deems as Neo Noir: http://boxofficemojo.com/genres/chart/?id=neonoir.htm (opens in a new window – turn your popup blocker off)

Roughing the Resurrection

Monday, February 22nd, 2010

Today I watched 43 minutes of rough cut footage for my neo-noir action thriller web series/film “Resurrection of Serious Rogers.” We aimed to be bad-ass. We achieved maximum badassery. I’m pleased. I’m also tempted to show the very sexy first 3 mins of the film — but I won’t.

Oh, and here’s a news article you can feel free to read and share this PDF.

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