Welcoming onboard a second editor

Today I met with Elise, our current editor, her boyfriend Ben, and our friend Skye. Skye is a frickin' amazing. He's a faboo artist and incredibly skilled editor. He's also a whiz with special fx in aftereffects. We've collaborated a bit and it is always a joy.

Skye has agreed to come onboard Disembody as co-editor. The more I think about it, the more I've been thinking that I would need more than one editor. Elise will need to sleep sooner or later. And because the nature of this project is to be generating footage, from two cameras, almost non-stop, the editor is going to be swamped day and night. Add in the confessional booth and Elise was going to be broken on the rack of my vision by Day 3 or 4.

Bringing Skye onboard, and safely assuming that Chadwick will be heavily involved in the editing suggests that maybe we can actually get footage rendered, edited, soundtracked, etc in the time we have.

So, today we moved another step closer to pulling this whole thing together and making a Hollywood flick.

Production Beards/Solidarity Beards

A quick note that I spoke with the director of Disembody today. Chadwick is going to grow a production beard (as best he can) for the shoot.

Mine is a month into its solidarity with the WGA. It will be a big bad beard by the time we get to production.

Phil also is working on his already fabulous beard, with the production approaching.

Spending money to make money

That's Hollywood's mantra, and so it is ours!

Well, maybe not entirely.

But I just met with Chris (at Quetzal in Polk Gulch) and his designs are developing beautifully. The sketch-up animation is looking great, you can really get a sense of the gallery, and as the theater is built up in stages you can actually feel the piece coming together. It's fabulous. The studs go up one at a time and then the skin and the other elements, ending with a number of polygonal bodies filling the space.

The fly-through animation is even better. All the same elements, the studs going up one by one, the skin going on, the curtain falling into place, the wheelchair door/emergency exit...

Oh yeah, you read right, we added an emergency exit to the side of the screen. And it doubles as a wheelchair entrance. 23E Studios does not mess around when we build a theater.

So, I'm very excited about this. Saturday I should have a rough to post here. And then a finished sketch-up and a final fly-through.
OMFG, this project is going to sooo bring in the box office. We are going to totally win the weekend we open! At least for Chung King Road.

I'm Back!

Yeah, well, I hope so anyway.

Many apologies folks. The move out of our SOMA offices to the new Richmond District facilities was hectic. That married to the holiday season, a recent spate of stormy weather, and limited internet connectivity in our new studio (the telco should be here today to install the dsl) drew us away from the web and our faithful blogging.

Hmm, truth be told, my distaste for all things computer while my thesis writing hangs over my neck was a bigger issue.

The pix are the old 23E Studios, btw.


Anyway, a catch up note now:

Susan and I spoke via email a few times over the break and I should have the dates for the show soon.
I am meeting Chris, the architect, tomorrow to look at his renderings and fly-through. Below is a few seconds of the fly-through, which looks very good. I think we will have a very strong package for marketing and raising funds in the coming months.



As well, Stel Valavanis is on board (to my great honor, he really liked the idea) to design and install the audio and video elements. He has much of the gear we'll need. And though it's probably not worth shipping from Chicago, he does know what we'll need to rent, and most importantly, knows how to get it all up and running smoothly and beautifully.

As well, I spoke with David G today, and the one thing I will just keep coming back to about Disembody is the incredible quality of the crew we have assembled. This film is going to be superb.

So, though we are behind schedule on fundraising, everything is looking up otherwise. The coming months will be all about marketing and investments.
In early Feb or late January I will be holding the first full crew meeting to go over everything.
Oh, and there should be a new, better website by then, as well. Erin and Johnny visited over the holiday and they are fucking geniuses. Hiring them was a real coup.

So, as '08 slips into our hands, 23E is looking forward to a stunning new project come Summer/Fall.

Ciao