I just got off the phone with Erin. The website and logos will be done by next Thursday. That's great news. As well, she's super excited by the Penrose Tile design that C & K found. So the whole project from logo to site to poster to catalog to architecture to interior design will be cohered around equations and designs that come out of Penrose.
Erin is also going to be working on a business card for 23E, an investor's pamphlet, a catalogue, and posters. The posters will be a series of coming soon types and a final, Now Playing version. All very exciting.
Last night I got the bad news that the director, Chadwick, is not going to be able to stay onboard. Here's his email:
Lee,
I got some nasty news. Due to a number of projects I have going on and the unexpectedly shortened shooting schedule of my video project in minneapolis, I don't think I'm going to be able to give your project the attention it needs. My friend andrew and i received funding for a video project last august and we need to knock it out over the summer. originally this was not the case but due to changes in his life and mine, it has to be this way. but, I know how important this project is to you so I don't want to leave you hanging and I will still to what I can to help but I think you'd be much happier with someone who could devote more time and energy to the project. I wont leave you hanging if you really need me and we can talk about this more but if you had someone else in mind, they would probably serve you better.
sorry about this, my life is just getting far too complicated right now and I'm barely able to juggle the things I have.
i hope your solitude is productive in LA. I never made it down like I thought I would.
You can see why I work with the people I do. They are the most amazingly stand up bunch of folks ever.
I read this last night after spending 8 hours stuck at the SF airport. This morning I'm re-org'ing. As it stands now, I think Skye will be stepping into the director's role. I spoke with him and Elise today, and they both feel like that is a logical move. He'll give the project a very different flavor, but given that, like Chadwick, I've seen a good deal of Skye's work, and loved every bit of it, I'm very confident that Skye will craft a brilliant and engaging film. Elise will probably be the sole editor. Skye and others will assist her, but there won't be the tag team editing earlier envisioned.
I always knew these sorts of changes were going to be constantly taking place. And at this point, with such a large crew, I am hoping to move people around as folks drop out, rather than bringing in new people. I think I need to use this as an opportunity to start getting Disembody more in sync with the budget we have. I am confident we will find more investors, but at this stage I am beginning the process of bringing budget and project in line. And then I will regrow aspects of the film as we find new investors.
Anyway, that's this morning's big news. I have a 2pm meeting with Erin, the project designer, to look at the website and logos and other promotional materials.
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.
Okay, I don't even want to talk about how little time I have put in to working on that proposal for the distributor today.
But I do want to tell you how excited I am that we have a new crewmember,
Erin Brooke Grindstaff
Okay, so she's a fucking genius and everything. She's Jonathan's wife. It's like I have Marie Curie and Pierre Curie as my GP, right? Know what I'm saying?
And we've just embarked on discussing the upgrades for this site. So, in a flash, it's going to go from my totally dated 1999 sensibility to something a little more respectable.
Oh My Heck!
And I'm about to get all cleaned up to go to a dinner at California College of the Arts, where I was the recipient of a cash award last year when I graduated from the MFA Fine Arts program. I'm going to this dinner to meet the donors who fund scholarships and awards. I am going to show my appreciation. And I am going to pitch Disembody to everyone who will listen.
With any luck, that new cleaned up proposal I'm supposed to be working on will be needed for more than just the distributor.
image from http://condellpark.com/kd/quasig.htm
