The Beginning.... I think...
Well... here we are...
To start with, let me fill you in on who I am...
First, I'm a kid from NJ... (BTW: Yes, I live near a highway, Yes I do glow in the dark, Yes I exist in diners and Yes... We don't like you either)
I am a Filmmaker that graduated from school about 2 years ago.
Currently, I am working on my first feature... A documentary about a private relief effort immediatly after Hurricane Katrina.
Now that we have that out of the way....
I am in the midst of Post-Production at the moment, and hoping to be in festivals later this year.
Anyway, so thats me.
I'm starting this in hopes that I can try and explain why film is the best and worst buisness that you could get into.
First of all...
Film can be a beautiful thing... the only problem is, that unlike writing, you need a shitload of money in order to make it work. And when you don't have money, or time (which you never really have much of either) you improvise.
This film is nothing if not an incredible learning experience.
This is how it all started.
I used to work at the filmschool I graduated from, in the editing room. Editing is where the movie is made... and if you disagree, remember this... without editing, there would only be dailies. I befriended a student there, and I ended up DPing her film. It was alot of fun, and she and i work well together. Then, Katrina happened. I new that I needed to be down there... as shitty as this sounds, I wanted to be there to get the entire breakdown of civilization on film, actually, i needed to get down there, and I was in the proccess of finding a way down there when I recieved a phone call. It was Sat. Sept 3rd, 2005.
It was my friend, and she had a proposition for me. I was just about to sit down to dinner with my family when she called me and said, "My Dad's going down to New Orleans to donate supplies and he wants someone to film the entire thing. Will you do it?" Before I even gave it a thought, I said yes. She put her father on the phone, and we began discussing the logistics of the trip.
After I got off of the phone with him, I immediately began gathering supplies, this was harder than you might think, considering the plan was, "We are going to get 1 or 2 trucks, fill them up with stuff, and go down there and distribute them." That was it.
The next day, I showed up at his place, preparing myself to leave immediately. 20 min later, he arrived, and said, "The plan has changed slightly..."
For the rest of the trip (sorry, you gotta see the movie for details) I woke up every morning and went to sleep every night exausted thinking, "I am in way over my head..."
Here's the thing though... if you really want to be in this buisness, get used to it. A very wise man once told me, "Being a director, the first thing that you should do every day is damage control and crisis management... everything else can and must come after that." The art will come by instinct, if you don't have it, get out.... now.
To start with, let me fill you in on who I am...
First, I'm a kid from NJ... (BTW: Yes, I live near a highway, Yes I do glow in the dark, Yes I exist in diners and Yes... We don't like you either)
I am a Filmmaker that graduated from school about 2 years ago.
Currently, I am working on my first feature... A documentary about a private relief effort immediatly after Hurricane Katrina.
Now that we have that out of the way....
I am in the midst of Post-Production at the moment, and hoping to be in festivals later this year.
Anyway, so thats me.
I'm starting this in hopes that I can try and explain why film is the best and worst buisness that you could get into.
First of all...
Film can be a beautiful thing... the only problem is, that unlike writing, you need a shitload of money in order to make it work. And when you don't have money, or time (which you never really have much of either) you improvise.
This film is nothing if not an incredible learning experience.
This is how it all started.
I used to work at the filmschool I graduated from, in the editing room. Editing is where the movie is made... and if you disagree, remember this... without editing, there would only be dailies. I befriended a student there, and I ended up DPing her film. It was alot of fun, and she and i work well together. Then, Katrina happened. I new that I needed to be down there... as shitty as this sounds, I wanted to be there to get the entire breakdown of civilization on film, actually, i needed to get down there, and I was in the proccess of finding a way down there when I recieved a phone call. It was Sat. Sept 3rd, 2005.
It was my friend, and she had a proposition for me. I was just about to sit down to dinner with my family when she called me and said, "My Dad's going down to New Orleans to donate supplies and he wants someone to film the entire thing. Will you do it?" Before I even gave it a thought, I said yes. She put her father on the phone, and we began discussing the logistics of the trip.
After I got off of the phone with him, I immediately began gathering supplies, this was harder than you might think, considering the plan was, "We are going to get 1 or 2 trucks, fill them up with stuff, and go down there and distribute them." That was it.
The next day, I showed up at his place, preparing myself to leave immediately. 20 min later, he arrived, and said, "The plan has changed slightly..."
For the rest of the trip (sorry, you gotta see the movie for details) I woke up every morning and went to sleep every night exausted thinking, "I am in way over my head..."
Here's the thing though... if you really want to be in this buisness, get used to it. A very wise man once told me, "Being a director, the first thing that you should do every day is damage control and crisis management... everything else can and must come after that." The art will come by instinct, if you don't have it, get out.... now.
posted by Casey K at 12:55 PM
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