FIND October Newsletter by Film Independent

OCTOBER 2008 Volume 17, Number 10

The Secret Life of Bees An interview with writer/director Gina Prince-Bythewood PAGE 6

Writer/director Charlie Kaufman on Synecdoche, New York PAGE 55 PAGE

Courses & Workshops PAGE 11 11 PAGE

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Board of Directors Vondie Curtis Hall, President Michael Helfant, Executive Vice President Kasi Lemmons, Secretary Tom Ortenberg, Treasurer Bill Condon Rebecca Yeldham Stephanie Allain Gregory Laemmle Randy Barbato Allan Mayer Adriene Bowles Gail Mutrux Effie T. Brown Elizabeth Peña Tony Bui Alan Poul Don Cheadle Peter Rice Laura Dern Peter Schlessel Sid Ganis Jonathan Sehring Rodrigo García Mary Sweeney Marcus Hu Laura Kim Forest Whitaker

Preview Screening:

Synecdoche, New York See page 5 for details

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in this issue... FEATURES

DEPAR TMENT S

Interview: Synecdoche, New York

Preview Screening Highlights

Charlie Kaufman delves into the missed opportunities, lost relationships, illnesses and deaths that come with middle life.

Event Locations

Interview: The Secret Life of Bees

Thanks to our sponsors

Gina Prince-Bythewood brings Sue Monk Kidd’s best selling novel about a young girl in search of her mother and her own identity, to life.

Classes & Workshops

Fellows Update

Event Calendar

Screenings, workshops, expert discussions and much more for filmmakers, film lovers, and film leaders alike.

E V ENT HI G H L I G HTS

1 Directors Sean Christensen, Casey Stangl, and Mike Ott attend Film Independent’s Cinema Lounge at The W Los Angeles – Westwood on August 19. 2 Guests enjoying Film Independent’s Cinema Lounge at The W Los Angeles–Westwood on August 19.

3 Director/Producers Carl Deal and Tia Lessin at Film Independent’s Screening of Trouble The Water at the DGA Theater on August 13. 4 Scott Roberts and Kim Rivers Roberts are the subjects of the documentary Trouble The Water.

VOLUNTEER FOR THE

SPIRIT AWARDS 2009 CALL FOR ENTRIES Final Deadline: Tuesday, October 7, 2008 For a complete list of eligibility requirements, guidelines, submission fees, frequently asked questions, and entry forms, please visit SpiritAwards.com.

Nominations announced: Tuesday, December 2, 2008 Awards ceremony: Saturday, February 21, 2009

Seeking volunteers and interns for the pre-production and production of the 2009 event. To Volunteer or Intern with us, you need to: • Submit the Volunteer/Intern application form found at SpiritAwards.com • Attend one Volunteer Orientation meeting on Wednesday, December 10 or Thursday, December 11 • Application must be received by December 8, 2008 • Be available ALL DAY on February 20th and 21st

BE A PART OF THE SHOW!

INTER V IE W :

Charlie kaufman (Synecdoche, New York)

B Y : L O REN Z A MUN O Z

Three years after winning an Oscar for his screenplay, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Charlie Kaufman makes his directorial debut by delving into the sad realities of mid-life. Synecdoche, New York deals with missed opportunities, relationships, illness and death—issues that Kaufman has been pondering for the past few years. He says he welcomed the opportunity to direct and found it a relief from the solitary discipline of writing. He was fortunate in directing an all-star cast including Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Samantha Morton, Michelle Williams, Emily Watson and Dianne Wiest.

How was directing different from writing? It’s pretty clear cut. I directed it. I don’t know what to say. It’s having an autonomous experience and taking it from its inception to completion. I had been involved in most of the aspects of the production previously but here it was flying solo and being on my own.

because you have to motivate yourself. When you are in the machine of a movie you don’t have to do that. You have to make decisions at every moment. In that sense it is easier in a way than writing. You write about ideas that interest you. So what ideas were you thinking about when you penned Synecdoche, New York?

How was that? I liked it and I wanted to do it. It’s a different job than writing. Directing is much more social and managerial and pragmatic at the same time. How is it pragmatic? When you are writing you are not dealing with ‘how do we do this?’ ‘can we afford this?’ In directing you make aesthetic decisions based on practical concerns. There are a lot of those kinds of concerns and discussions. But I enjoyed it. It is a real world operation as opposed to something that takes place in your brain. I like getting out of the house and meeting people. It can get lonely writing… Yes, it can get lonely. And, there is a real discipline to working on your own

I was thinking about aging and illness and mortality and relationships and guilt and remorse and ambition. I was doing a full experience of this part of a person’s life. I’m pretty firmly placed in middle age for the moment. Time starts to move really quickly, I’ve noticed as I get older. That is something I tried to get in the movie as well. As you get older, the people that you are involved with also get older and so there is the introduction of other issues that come with that. Loss and death and illness can be a very sort of daunting and scary thing. There is always uncertainty in every point of your life but the vulnerability becomes apparent as you get older. I try to write where I am. So explain what synecdoche means to the film… It’s using part of the general to char-

acterize the specific or the specific to characterize the general. For instance, calling your car your wheels is a synecdoche. Calling a policeman the law is another. In the film I think it means a lot of things. I do want people to have their own experience so I shy away from describing what it means. In a larger sense any work of art is by definition taking a part of something to describe the whole of something. It is describing only a certain aspect of a human being. Like a biography for instance… Yes. It’s interesting I just read an essay by (Jorge Luis) Borges as an introduction to a book review. Borges points out that (Thomas) Carlyle once suggested that somebody write a biography of Michelangelo that doesn’t say he is a painter… There is a lie to biography, it’s not necessarily a lie but a limitation. Did winning an Oscar affect your ability to write or increase expectations and pressure on you? It’s never my goal to win an award or to write a screenplay that people will really enjoy. It is about a subject that I am exploring and to do it in a truthful way. I am not looking for awards. That is a dangerous way to work and not

terribly interesting. You told Charlie Rose that film is a dead medium in that it doesn’t change or live and breathe as you are watching it. Can you elaborate on that and how that affects the way you envision a film and a screenplay? I think there is an opportunity for change in a live performance like theater. If things are done right, they change in every performance and by the reaction of the audience. There is an opportunity for mistakes that adds an edge. In film you can sit back and it is very passive. What you see is what everyone else will see in the movie. There is not a chance for it to change or for it to be raw. Knowing that, I try to figure out ways to make the film experience live, to add enough layers and openness so that things can be interpreted in different ways. So that seeing it once you will get one experience out of it, but seeing it twice you will see things that you had not seen. That makes it something that the audience can interact with and to have a complicated experience with.

Continue reading our interview with Charlie Kaufman at FilmIndependent.org (click on “News”)

INTER V IE W :

G i n a P r i Nc e - by t h e woo d ( T h e s e c r e t l i f e o f b e e s )

How did you get on this project? It was sent to me seven years ago in manuscript form just after I had finished making Disappearing Acts. I was completely burned out and I knew I was not up for writing the script from scratch, so I didn’t even read it. I tossed it in the closet. As the years passed, everyone from my mother to my cousins said it was a great book and I should read it. And then I was talking with an actor friend of mine who said she was reading for the film. It was going to be directed by a male director. I just got incredibly jealous. In my mind I said, ‘that is supposed to be my movie.’ At that point I was so pissed off with myself. I realized I had really blown a chance. But then, miraculously I got a call from my agent who said that Focus Features had decided to put the project in turn around. Did I want to direct it? It went back to Fox Searchlight. I was so connected with the material that it was an easy sell.

I’ve had two boys in between that time. There is so much about nurturing and motherhood and loving yourself in the movie. I have grown as a woman by having children. Also, I connected to Lily’s story. I was adopted. There is a line in the film, “there was a hole in me.” I felt the same way. I wanted to find my birth mother and find out why I was given up. What was wrong with me? What could make a mother give up her child? I searched a long time for my birth mother and finally tracked her down. It was great for a moment but then I found out disturbing news about how I had come into the world. It really messed with my head. How could anything good come out of anything so horrible? Another line I connected with in the film was “I’m un-loveable.” That is how I felt in my 20s. Now I have been able to come out of that. One of the ideas in the film is also how to love yourself. Can you tell me what was so horrible?

So it was fate.

It’s too personal.

You know, over the years, I have come to believe that everything happens for a reason. Five or six years ago I don’t think I was emotionally ready to make this movie. Dakota Fanning was certainly not ready, Jennifer Hudson was not on the scene. Queen Latifah was in a different place. It’s so rare that a movie gets made anyway and now that these elements came together I like to think it’s fate.

Have you kept in touch with your birth mother?

Why do you think you were not ready emotionally five years ago to do this film?

up in. My (adoptive) parents were worried that I would attach myself to her and forget them. But meeting her did the opposite. It made me grateful for them and it brought us closer together. It sounds like the women at Searchlight were the force behind making this movie finally happen after so many years. That is definitely what I was told. Nancy Utley, their head of marketing, was a big proponent of this and she pushed it hard. She loved the book tremendously. You read Disappearing Acts 10 times. How about Secret Life of Bees? My process for adaptation is just reading the book and start highlighting key lines for characters, key structure points. The hardest thing is figuring out what not to put in, how to condense it and give it the same amount of depth as the book. In a book, the characters speak to you, but I didn’t want to do a lot of voice over. Why not?

That is another hard thing. The amazing thing is that I am grateful that she gave me up. She was not in a good place to have had a kid. She was going to have an abortion and her best friend, who was very religious, said ‘no, you can’t do this.’ So I am grateful she didn’t have an abortion. She is white and her parents didn’t want her to have me. So it would have been a pretty bad environment to grow

I’m not averse to voice over at all but I wanted people to be completely enveloped in the story. Hearing her talk might make an audience feel like you were watching instead of living with the characters. What are some of the other challenges of adapting one medium to another?

It took many years for writer/director Gina Prince-Bythewood to commit to making Sue Monk Kidd’s best selling novel, The Secret Life of Bees, into a movie. In between she had two boys, directed an HBO feature based on Terry McMillan’s book, Disappearing Acts, and produced a film for her husband Reggie Rock Bythewood. When she finally decided to plunge into The Secret Life of Bees, it was a natural and seamless fit. The story of a young girl searching for her mother resonated deeply with Prince-Bythewood, who is adopted and had been on a similar search for her own birth mother. Once on the project, she found her dream cast. The film, which debuted at the Toronto Film Festival, stars Dakota Fanning, Queen Latifah, Jennifer Hudson, Sophie Okonedo and Alicia Keys. Prince-Bythewood says Fox Searchlight, the studio label behind the film, is targeting the women who helped make the book a best seller and who have made Mamma Mia and Sex and the City big at the box office.

OCTOBER 2008

B Y : L O REN Z A MUN O Z

The hardest thing is how do you visualize the things that are talked about in the book. In the book Lily is telling us her feelings. That is probably the hardest thing to show. Giving yourself the freedom to break apart from the book is also difficult. It is my bible not my blue print. Did Sue Monk Kidd collaborate with you on the screenplay? I sent her an e-mail telling her why her book meant so much to me and that I would take care of her women. She wrote me back and said she had seen Love & Basketball and she loved it. The scariest thing for me to do was sending a script to Sue. But I got a beautiful e-mail from her three days later. She said she was scared to pick it up because she feared she was going to hate it. But we had a great back and forth. I would ask her character questions. This whole thing started in her head and so it was great for us to have a mind-meld and create a new medium for the story.

Dakota has been attached for about four years. She was another reason I wanted to do it. She was so brilliant in Man on Fire. My biggest fear was that I didn’t know what she looked like, where she was going through in that awkward pre-teen stage. Did she look too young? But the second I saw her I knew we are all good. I wanted the roles of the black women to be filled with Academy Award caliber actors. We went after Queen Latifah first. I sat down with her and she agreed to do it right there. There was a budget threshold that we agreed not to go over ($11 million) and she agreed to go below her usual pay. She set the tone. When I was writing, Jennifer Hudson had just won the Oscar and that was just a no-brainer. I had seen Sophie Okonedo in Hotel Rwanda and there was nobody else I wanted for the part of May. It is a very tricky part and in the wrong hands it could tank the film. I met Alicia and really liked her but her schedule was too busy… But we had to figure out a way to get her in the film. Paul Bettany was on my short list early on. It was just magic. I couldn’t have dreamed early on that we would get everybody.

Have you met her? Yes. She came on set about three or four weeks into filming. It was a really great moment for us to be face to face. It was also great for her to see the rock wall, the pink house even the mirrors that covered one wall—a small line in the book—were all there. Was the cast already in place when you got the job?

Are you at all involved in the marketing of the film? That is the great thing about Searchlight. They really want the directors input. I have had input on everything from the trailer to the TV spot to the poster. Ultimately they went with my first choice for the poster. It was amazing. It is always frustrating, as the director/writer, to hand the movie over and

just have no say in anything. But Searchlight has been pretty amazing. Do you believe there are unique challenges to marketing a film with African American leads or is it just as hard as any moderately budgeted, character-driven film? No one thinks of this as a black book and that is how we are viewing the film. It is a true ensemble film. The core audience is women. In this day and age people may assume this is a black film but it shouldn’t matter. When audiences are asked the question “is this a commercial film or an art house film?” they think it is a commercial film. We are hoping to ride on the tailcoats of Mamma Mia and Sex and the City. Women are rediscovering going to movies with their friends and family. So what is next for you? Go back to a love story set in 2008. It’s an original screenplay. At this point I won’t write something I won’t direct. It is too hard to pour that much into something and hand it over to someone else.

Happy Go Lucky

BossMonster

Itsy Bitsy

How My Dad Killed Dracula

Bump in the Night

A Juicy Turkey

M O N D AY

T U E S D AY

Introduction to Screenwriting 7:00 pm Film Independent office

Directors Lab Deadline (early)

Membership Orientation 6:00 pm Film Independent office

Late Library until 9:30 pm

Shop Talk: Ovation TV 7:30 pm Film Independent office

Tech Talk: Kodak Focus on Eric Steelberg 7:30 pm Kodak

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IndieLink: Cinematographers, Directors and Producers 7:30 pm Film Independent office

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PREVIEW SCREENING: Happy Go Lucky 7:30 pm Laemmle’s Sunset 5 – West Hollywood

Become a Film Independent member and you will be eligible to vote for the 2009 Spirit Awards winners. FilmIndependent.org

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oc t ob e r

PREVIEW SCREENING: Synecdoche, New York 7:30 pm The Landmark – West Los Angeles

W E D N E S D AY

American Film Market Orientation 7:00 pm Film Independent office

PREVIEW SCREENING: The Secret Life of Bees 8:00 pm The Landmark – West Los Angeles

Introducing the Canon XL-H1s 6:00 pm Film Independent office

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film independent

Introducing the Canon XL-H1s

Membership Orientation 6:00 pm

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Tech Talk: Tapeless Workflow with Adobe and RED

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Where: Laemmle’s Sunset 5 – West Hollywood Price: Free for Film Independent members and one guest. Reservations: Not required–first come, first served.

Poppy is an irrepressible free-spirited school teacher who brings an infectious laugh and an unsinkable sense of optimism to every situation she encounters, offering us a touching, truthful and deeply life-affirming exploration of one of the most mysterious and often the most elusive of all human qualities: happiness. Poppy’s ability to maintain her perspective is tested when her bike is stolen. She enthusiastically signs up for driving lessons with Scott, a fuming, uptight cynic. As the tension of their weekly lessons builds, Poppy encounters even more challenges to her positive state of mind. Starring Sally Hawkins, Eddie Marsan, Alexis Zegerman, Sylvestra Le Touzel, Stanley Townsend, Kate O’Flynn, Caroline Martin, Oliver Maltman, Sarah Niles, Samuel Roukin, Karina Fernandez, Nonso Anozie, Sinéad Matthews, and Andrea Riseborough. 118 minutes; a Miramax Films release.

Director/Writer Mike Leigh. Producer Simon Channing Williams.

PREVIEW SCREENING: Happy Go Lucky

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We’ll cover the organization’s events, policies, and resources. It’s also a great way to meet fellow filmmakers and film lovers.

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PREVIEW SCREENING: 8:00 pm The Secret Life of Bees

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Where: Film Independent office Price: Free to members only Reservations: Required–call 310.432.1222 or email Reservations@FilmIndependent.org See page 11 for more information.

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Q & A with director Gina Prince-Bythewood

Set in South Carolina during the turbulent Civil Rights era, the home of the intelligent and independent honey-making Boatwright sisters is suddenly thrust into upheaval with the arrival of fourteen year-old Lily Owens and her caretaker Rosaleen. Surrounded by the unexpected comforts, grace and deep rooted spirituality Lily encounters in the Boatwright home, she forms a maternal bond with each of these women whose unique and special gifts help reconcile the loss of her mother. Lily ultimately comes to the realization that sometimes you must leave home in order to find it. Starring Queen Latifah, Dakota Fanning, Jennifer Hudson, Alicia Keys, Sophie Okonedo, Nate Parker, Tristan Wilds, Hilarie Burton, and Paul Bettany. 110 minutes; a Fox Searchlight Pictures release.

Writer/Director Gina Prince-Bythewood. Based upon the novel by Sue Monk Kidd. Producers Lauren Shuler Donner, James Lassiter, Will Smith, Joe Pichirallo

NOTE LATE START TIME

9 7:30 pm

PREVIEW SCREENING: 7:30 pm Synecdoche, New York

Theater director Caden Cotard is mounting a new play. His life catering to suburban blue-hairs at the local regional theater in Schenectady, New York is looking bleak. His wife Adele has left him, taking their young daughter Olive with her. His therapist, Madeleine Gravis, is better at plugging her best-seller than she

Writer/Director Charlie Kaufman. Producers Anthony Bregman, Spike Jonze, Charlie Kaufman and Sidney Kimmel

Sponsored by

Where: Whiskey Blue at W Los Angeles – Westwood Price: Free for Film Independent members and their guests. Reservations: Not required–first come, first served.

Filmmakers will be on hand for a Q&A after the screening.

BossMonster: Directed and written by Ryan Peterson, Andrea Peterson; produced by Ryan Peterson, Andrea Peterson, Nate Dickens, Elizabeth Hannah. Janet’s boss is a monster. Before this hellish day is over, she must stand up to him…or die trying. 6 minutes

Bump in the Night: Directed by Tantri Wija; written by Tantri Wija, Jerry G. Angelo; produced by Free. Max’s neat, orderly life gets turned upside down as his closet begins to misbehave in an old familiar way. 16 minutes

Itsy Bitsy: Directed, written and produced by David Mays. Before tonight, David’s only fear was marriage. 10 minutes

A Juicy Turkey: Directed by Benoît Ameil; written by Benoît Ameil, Laurent Freynet; produced Benoît Ameil, Myrtille Saint-Martin. Imagine what your life could be if your wife became George Clooney dependent!...13 minutes

How My Dad Killed Dracula: Directed, written and produced by Sky Soleil. A Halloween practical joke turns a family tradition into a night of terror when two precocious teens don’t believe that their cousins’ dad killed Dracula.14 minutes

This month’s line-up of socializing and great short films includes:

Don’t forget your Halloween costume! The winner of our “Best Halloween Costume Contest” will receive a commemorative 2008 Spirit Awards gift bag loaded with prizes and will be instantly entered into a drawing to win a ticket to the 2009 Film Independent’s Spirit Awards.

Halloween Cinema Lounge

Shop Talk: Ovation TV

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OCTOBER 2008

15, 16 Budgeting Workshop

COMING IN NOVEMBER

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7:00 pm Where: Film Independent office Price: Free for members and one guest Reservations: Required–call 310.432.1222 or email Reservations@FilmIndependent.org See page 11 for more information.

23 American Film Market Orientation

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is at counseling him. A new relationship with the alluringly candid Hazel has prematurely run aground. And, a mysterious condition is systematically shutting down each of his autonomic functions, one by one. The years rapidly fold into each other, and Caden buries himself deeper into his masterpiece. As he pushes the limits of his relationships, both personally and professionally, a change in creative direction arrives in Millicent Weems, a celebrated theater actress who may offer Caden the break he needs. Starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Samantha Morton, Michelle Williams, Catherine Keener, Emily Watson, Dianne Wiest, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Hope Davis, and Tom Noonan. 124 minutes; a Sony Pictures Classics release.

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conference cancellations must be made in writing no later than 48 hours before the start of the event. Cancellations made in writing no later than 24 hours after the first session. An administrative fee equivalent to 15% of the total cost of course/series will apply to all cancellations and refunds. You will receive a pro-rated refund based on when you cancel minus the administrative fee. If your course is canceled or rescheduled, we will issue a full refund.

Seating Policy for Free Education Events Seating for our Filmmaker Tuesdays and other free events is limited and reservations are usually required. Due to a large percentage of no-shows and the high demand for seating, we will only hold reservations for free events until 15 minutes prior to start time. You must check in for the event 15 minutes before the scheduled start or your seat may be given away to other waiting members. No one will be seated more than 30 minutes after the event has begun.

Junior Partners Adobe, Ambush Entertainment, Shelly Bennecke, BMI, Bright Idea Entertainment, Capital Markets Advisors, Dattner Dispoto and Associates, Deluxe, Elysian Entertainment, Fotokem Film and Video, Fugu Films, Giant Robot, Gracie Films, Greenberg Traurig, Hollywood Backlot, Innovative Artist, Hoy, Jim Jacks, Liberation Entertainment, Metromix, Odd Lot Entertainment, Ole Madrid, Guy Michael Ruffin, Sidney Kimmel Entertainment, Johnny Sneed, Fernando Sulichin, Surpin & Mayerson, LLP, Moviola, Universal Studios, Volume One Entertainment, Xenon Pictures

To view our list of Corporate members and learn more about the benefits of sponsoring Film Independent, visit FilmIndependent.org and click on “Partners”.

OCTOBER 2008

C L ASSES

W O RKSH O P S

Introducing the Canon XL-H1s

We are happy to announce Film Independent’s rental program now includes the Canon XL-H1s! The Canon XL-H1s is the latest in the Canon U.S.A. series of progressive high definition cameras. There’s no better way to discover the Canon XL-H1s than to stop by for this candid discussion on its capabilities. Whether you’re new to high definition or a previous user, a Canon representative will walk you through the distinct features that make the Canon XL-H1s an exciting addition to the filmmaker community. When: Thursday, October 2, 6:00 pm Where: Film Independent office

American Film Market Orientation

The business of motion picture production and distribution – a truly collaborative process - reaches its peak every year at the American Film Market. Over 300 motion picture companies and 7,000 film executives - acquisition and development execs, producers, distributors, agents, attorneys, buyers and film financiers - convene to pursue the business of film. Each year over a quarter billion dollars in deals are closed for films in active development and pre-production. Hundreds of films are financed, packaged, licensed and greenlit. Learn how to “work” the AFM and capitalize on its opportunities. The 2008 AFM runs Nov 5 – Nov 12.

Introduction to Screenwriting

Film Independent’s Screenwriting Program is once again offering our Introduction to Screenwriting Workshop beginning this fall. This workshop will focus on the process of writing exploring the development of ideas and experiences into a story. Through short exercises and in-class commentary, students will learn the basics of the writing process and will develop the treatment for a screenplay. Class is geared to students who do not have previous screenwriting experience who would like to explore different approaches to writing. Class will be taught by filmmaker Josslyn Lucket. FREE FINAL DRAFT SOFTWARE!

Price: Free for Film Independent members only

PANELIST: Jonathan Wolf, Executive Vice President, IFTA and Managing Director of the AFM

Reservations: Required–call 310.432.1222 or email reservations@filmindependent.org.

When: Thursday, October 23, 7:00 pm

Tech Talk: Tapeless Workflow with Adobe and RED

Price: Free for members and one guest

The first five students to enroll will receive a free copy of Final Draft screenwriting software. Other participants in the class will be eligible for several surprise drawings to be held during the course of the ten-week class.

Reservations: Required–call 310.432.1222 or email reservations@filmindependent.org.

When: October 6 – December 8 (Mondays), 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm 10 week course

Come see how Adobe and RED are bringing a truly native, color-rich, 4K tapeless workflow to desktop tools, allowing filmmakers to harness the full potential of high-resolution raw digital cinematography. Importing R3D files directly into Adobe Premiere Pro, Adobe After Effects and Adobe Encore without conversion delivers a faster, color-rich workflow that gives users control of the look when they edit. When: Tuesday, October 7, 7:30 pm Where: Film Independent office Price: Free for Film Independent members Reservations: Required–call 310.432.1222 or email reservations@filmindependent.org.

Where: Film Independent office

Ovation TV is starting a new partnership with Film Independent and our Cinema Lounge program to distribute shorts via their video-on-demand services. Learn about VOD and how it is changing distribution for independent filmmakers and how to go about getting your film on Ovation TV. When: Tuesday, October 28, 7:30 pm Where: Film Independent office Price: Required–call 310.432.1222 or email reservations@filmindependent.org.

IndieLink: Cinematographers, Directors and Producers

Where: Film Independent office Doug Lloyd

Reservations: Required–call 310.432.1222 or email reservations@filmindependent.org.

Scheduling and Budgeting Worshop Neoveber 15 & 16 For reservations, call 310.432.1222 or email Reservations@FilmIndependent.org. More details and updates can always be found at FilmIndependent.org.

The film has won “Best Narrative Feature” at the New England Film/ Video Festival and the “Spirit of Independence – Best Ensemble Cast” award at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival. Find out more at FilmThreat.com

In production:

Inside the Butterfly Net is a feature based on a script by Georgia Menides. This drama weighs the pros and cons of genetic engineering, in an extremely personal story of a scientist whose family is torn apart by leukemia.

Tech Talk: Kodak Focus on Eric Steelberg

Lorette Bayle of Kodak hosts this discussion with noted indie cinematographer Eric Steelberg, focusing on the technical aspects that allow him to achieve his innovative look. Eric’s body of work includes the feature films Juno, Quinceanera, the upcoming Age of Kali and 500 Days of Summer, plus countless commercials, documentary’s and shorts.

BE INDEPENDENT. NOT ALONE Join us at FilmIndependent.org

When: Tuesday, October 21, 7:30 pm Where: Kodak Reservations: Required–call 310.432.1222 or email reservations@filmindependent.org.

COMING IN NOVEMBER

Doug Lloyd and Georgia Menides are the co-owners of Uncovered Productions, the company that recently completed the feature film, Still Green. Still Green is a controversial coming of age film starring Sarah Jones (Big Love), Noah Segan (Brick), Ryan Kelley (Mean Creek), and Douglas Spain (Band of Brothers).

When: Tuesday, October 14, 7:30 pm

Price: Free to members only

Price: $350 for FIND members; $400 for general public Reservations: Required—call 310.432.1222 or email Reservations@FilmIndependent.org (space is limited)

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Its time for the cinematographers to show their talents. 30 cinematographers will be selected to present their reels. Directors and Producers are invited to watch and find new filmmaking partners. This was one of our most successful IndieLinks last year, don’t miss out on the opportunity. A networking reception will follow. Cinematographers wishing to participate will need to fill out a form and submit it to Film Independent.

Price: Free for Film Independent Members

Where: Film Independent office

Shop Talk: Ovation TV

Georgia Menides

f il m

inde pendent

Tal e n t

D e v e lop m e n t

f e llow s

At Film Independent, several of our programs—the Filmmaker Labs, Project:Involve (P:I), Fast Track, and the Spirit Awards filmmaker grants— were established with the goal of helping filmmakers develop their talent and get their projects made. We’ve brought these programs together under one umbrella: the Film Independent Talent Development Program. Participants are recognized as “Film Independent Fellows” and become members of Film Independent. Here’s the latest on what some of our Fellows are up to.

FE L L O W S NE W S FILM INDEPENDENT’S 2008 SCREENWRITERS LAB The following projects were selected to participate in Film Independent’s 2008 Screenwriters Lab, which was taught by Meg LeFauve. Sponsored by the Writers Guild of America, West, and Final Draft, the Lab is designed to help screenwriters working in independent film improve their craft and develop unique voices as writers while taking their current feature scripts to the next level. For more information on the Lab or the projects that have been developed in it, please contact Director of Talent Development, Josh Welsh, at 310.432.1219.

Bust Writers: John Benton (top) and Alexandra Brodsky Genre: Crime Comedy Logline: A wealthy businessman hires a killer to off his wife so he can be with his sexy secretary; unbeknownst to him, the secretary has bigger plans.

Half Truth Writer: Wade Gasque Genre: Comedy Logline: In the backwoods of South Carolina, a charming but reckless adolescent attracts the help of some outcast friends and races cross-country to find his inheritance money before his mysterious past and a loosening grip on reality threaten to take it away.

The (Mostly) True Story of the Crazy, Fu*%ked up Sh*% I Did at Uni High Writers: Xochitl Gonzalez (left) and Ramon Gonzalez Genre: High School Comedy Logline: A hard partying stud’s secret life as the class valedictorian threatens to explode when he falls for a sophisticated foreign exchange student.

Close to Me Writer: Jonathan V. Hludzinski Genre: Drama Logline: A high school teacher and one of his female students find comfort in each other as they weather the pain of the loss of his wife.

Kalfou (A Crossroads Tale) Writers: Desha (top) and Darian Dauchan Genre: Supernatural Drama Logline: A desperate man trades his soul for the gift of extraordinary musical talent, and embarks on a fantastical journey with his ambitious guitarist brother and a beautiful young singer in this modern day retelling of the Robert Johnson crossroads myth.

Untitled “Biscuit” Project Writer: Cedar Sherbert Genre: Drama Logline: When a single Native American mother and her teenage daughter come to Los Angeles fleeing scandal on the reservation, they find themselves homeless and facing a new set of challenges.

Difficult Child Writer: Michael Urban Genre: Dark Comedy Logline: A fourteen-year-old outcast sent to live with his estranged mother at a central Florida RV park tries desperately to get to know the intellectual girl next door while simultaneously distancing himself from his mom’s earnest but misguided attempts at reconciliation. Groupie Writer: Soo-Hyun Chung Genre: Rock ‘n Roll Adventure Logline: A music-obsessed 15year-old initiates her sexually innocent best friend into the world of sex, drugs, and rock and roll.

Otherwise Pandemonium Writer: David Zeiger Genre: Pre-Apocalyptic Love Story Logline: What is a fifteenyear-old kid supposed to do when his magical future-telling VCR that helped him win the girl of his dreams suddenly shows the world coming to an end in six weeks?

What Remains Writer: Mia Trachinger Genre: Psychological Thriller Logline: When a forensic pathologist discovers family members as specimens at the FBI Body Farm where he teaches, he is forced to take on a rogue investigation that brings him closer to home than he could possibly imagine.

Sponsored by

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: 2009 DIRECTORS LAB Film Independent is now accepting submissions for its 2009 Directors Lab. A maximum of ten directors will be chosen for this intensive program designed to help directors working in independent film improve their craft. The primary focus of the Lab is on learning to work with actors and the rehearsal process. Under the guidance of the lab instructor, Directors Lab Fellows select short scenes from their script to workshop. Additionally, Fellows go through a mini-production, learning how to break down a script into a shot list, collaborate with cinematographers, and construct a scene in the editing process. Film Independent provides the Lab participants with camera and sound packages to shoot their scenes. A secondary goal of the program is to help advance the careers of the Lab Fellows by introducing them to film professionals who can advise them on both the craft and business of directing. Lab Fellows have oneon-one meetings with established directors and other industry professionals who act as advisors on the participant’s projects. Past Lab Instructors include Allison Anders (Gas Food Lodging, Things Behind the Sun), Anthony Drazan (Hurlyburly), Rodrigo García (Passengers, Nine Lives), Keith Gordon (The Singing Detective, Waking the Dead), Vondie Curtis Hall (Gridlock’d, Waist Deep), Charles Herman-Wurmfeld (Kissing Jessica Stein, Legally Blonde), Nicole Holofcener (Friends With Money, Lovely and Amazing), Jeremy Podeswa (Fugitive Pieces The Five Senses), and Andrew Wagner (Starting Out In The Evening). 2009 Directors Lab, February 2–March 30, 7:00 pm (Every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday) Early Deadline: October 6, 2008 (postmarked) $35 Film Independent members $55 Non-members

Late Deadline: November 3, 2008 (postmarked) $55 Film Independent members $75 Non-members

Sponsored by

For an application visit www.FilmIndependent.org

THE SECRET TO ATTENDING FILM INDEPENDENT’S SPIRIT AWARDS... …Get Nominated Or Get In The Circle! FILM INDEPENDENT’S SPIRIT AWARDS | FEBRUARY 21, 2009 The annual awards show for the best independent films of the year. Enjoy the sun, sand, and a toast to the 2009 nominees!

Join Film Independent’s Spirit Circle with a contribution of $5,000 and receive: •Two tickets to the Spirit Awards

•Subscription to FIND magazine

•Two tickets to pre-Spirit Award events

•Two passes to the LA Film Festival and more

•*Voting privileges

JOIN BY DECEMBER 15, 2008 TO GUARANTEE YOUR SEAT For more information contact Irma Barrios, Development Manager, 310.432.1253 or email: IBarrios@FilmIndependent.org. Film Independent is a 501 ( c ) (3) non-profit organization. * Voting privileges if join by November 1, 2008

WE’RE GOING GREEN! New FIND E-Magazine Starting December, the FIND magazine will go green to eliminate waste and increase efficiency for our members. Every month an electronic version of the magazine will be included in our email blast, one week prior to the following month. We’ll still have the same great interviews with filmmakers and detailed updates on our events and services—only a whole lot quicker! Plus, Select Special-Edition Issues of FIND Magazine will be printed and published to highlight key annual programs. If you miss an issue or would like to revisit a previous copy, just visit FilmIndependent.org, where we have electronic issues dating back to March 2008.

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AMERICAN FILM MARKET 2008 ®

November 5-12 • Santa Monica, California

develop • package • finance • license • acquire • distribute THE FILM

C ATALOGUE

Canadian Film Commissions & Agencies

www.AmericanFilmMarket.com • www.TheFilmCatalogue.com • The AFM is produced by the Independent Film & Television Alliance

In the unpredictable climate of the entertainment business, one thing remains certain: Every year Film Independentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Spirit Awards celebrates the very best in independent film and only members decide the winners. Join or renew your membership today and get instantly registered to vote for the 2009 Spirit Awards.

JOIN US AT WWW.FilmIndependent.org

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