This Savage Art

After five years of being MIA the conference returns March 7th and 8th. Get your pass now.

Popularity: 4% [?]

September 14th-19th kicks off the meeting of the minds in independent film. I will only be attending this Sunday of the Conference which in my opinion looks like the better day to go.  Panels. Networking. You know the deal. A good week to get reenergized and bump into some old friends and hopefully make some new ones. The schedule can be viewed here. Anyone going? Drop me an e-mail.

Popularity: 14% [?]

I submitted my screenplay Dyre Avenue to the Emerging Narrative section of Independent Film Week on Thursday. It’s billed as an event for “writers and writer/directors seeking producers.” Guess that’s me.

I’ve been frustrated by competitions and contests in the past even when I’ve gotten good feedback. I think you get to a point where you just need to move on and create new work which I’ve done but for some reason I thought I would give this a shot. I’ll probably attend the week as a participant at the Conference like I did last year. It’s a good way to make new connections and catch up with some old ones. It’s like a battery recharge.

If I was going with a selected screenplay this year, well, that’s a whole other story. Maybe it will be the boost I need. Just maybe. Let’s leave it at that.

Popularity: 26% [?]

Like I promised, here are my notes from the IFP Conference. I’ve attended the Conference in the past and I have to say this was one of the better ones. I’m still not sure if it’s because I’m a little older, a little wiser or the IFP just started tuning in and listening to the attendees more. Some things can improve, they always can. One thought that kept rolling through my mind is here you have a room full of writers, directors and producers with projects in the works or looking for someone to help them get from A to B. It would be a great feature of the Conference if the IFP could arrange some sort of matchmaking scenario for these participants in the future. Another observation was that the average age of attendees seemed to be older where I remember a few years back the age was about twenty-something.

Overall I felt that there is one consistent feeling for the filmmaker attending the Conference — you’re always walking the line of optimism/pessimism. Being wrapped in the climate of this independent world feels empowering. Hearing people speak about projects, running into colleagues. It’s an energy boost for the individual who feels tapped out, disconnected or just temporarily lacking in creative drive. Its a place for intelligent swapping of ideas and an open dialogue.

The downside, we’re all broke. We’re all in the same boat, pushing our projects, saving our pennies and jonesing to make the next or first film. Now with more product, choice and options for exhibition the real estate for new films is harder and harder to attain. Fighting through the clutter has become more of a challenge. It’s a long haul. The obvious thought on everyone’s mind is the validity of internet and how is it going to serve us.

So these are some fast and loose notes regarding the panels I attended. You can refer to the Conference link above for more information on each panel. The panelists listed on the site aren’t all accurate, some speakers were subbed out for others. Like the title says Filmmaker Conference, the following information deals with the world of producing films independently. That word has many different meanings but I think one theme that everyone who attended this Conference agrees upon is we are the driving force, the inertia that will get our films made. Do It Yourself.

There’s a lot of information here and I encourage those who are reading this post and/or attended the Conference to leave comments about what these speakers had to say and/or how it reflects your own experience as a filmmaker. Also, go to the Filmmaker Magazine Blog and CinemaTech and search for more coverage of this event. Read more »

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One thing that I and many other’s who attended the IFP Conference¹ [ending today] got slapped in the face with constantly was how the film watching experience has changed and will continue to change. With new platforms for exhibition and distribution [my head is still spinning] the future is surely up for grabs. I don’t think theaters are going anywhere but a change in New York would definitely be welcome. Thing is, I live next a great theater, technically speaking. Audio is up to par, video projection is available. Films that play there, well, that’s another issue.

I’ve been hearing about the wonders of the Alamo Drafthouse for a couple of years now even though I haven’t been there and have myself had fantasies of building the ultimate film experience for discernible tastes. Feeding the masses has been catered to by the multiplexes but this corner of the market isn’t really getting served properly. I have been enjoying what the IFC Center has been doing. I’ve always been a big supporter of the Film Forum and even the Angelica whose been kind of slacking off lately. But, this is New York City! Cinephile capital of the world!

Just days after I was asserting this opinion [bitching] to a couple of collaborators of mine at the Conference about the shitty state of movie going it looks like Texas has come to save the day for New York.² The Alamo is looking to open up a theater in New York by 2008.

Popularity: 14% [?]

1. At some point next week I will post an entry on all my notes and musings on what I got from the IFP Conference this time around.[↩]
2. I’m not even going to touch that one.[↩]

It begins tomorrow September 16th and runs through the 21st. Looks like a solid lineup of panelists. I’ll be there Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.

Popularity: 16% [?]

In an attempt to reconnect with the industry and hopefully create some new alliances I’ve purchased three separate day passes to the IFP Conference running the week of September 16th – 21st. Each day addresses a specific area of filmmaking. I will be attending the 16th [Making Your First Feature], the 17th [Filmmaking 2.0] and the 19th [Real Deal on Deals]. It runs parallel with the IFP Market which I have attended in the past; twice as a volunteer with the Market, once as a screenwriter with a project entered and once just attending the Conference. What’s the key to getting the most out of this week?

• Prepare to network. Networking can be extremely exhausting so try not to take it or yourself too seriously. Meet people, learn, talk up a project if you have one. Everyone is there to push so find what your approach will be to the social aspect of it all.
• Pace yourself. Again, it’s only five days but…Years back when I had my screenplay [what eventually became gearing up too.

  If anyone is attending the Conference this week and wants to meet up and talk shop feel free to contact me.

  Popularity: 18% [?]

Panelists have been announced for the 3rd annual premier New York networking event and conference that coincides with the IFP Market, September 16th – 21st.

Popularity: 5% [?]