Though his part in each film changes, most noticeably between the first and second, the filmmaker obviously sees himself as a character in the story. Even in the first film, where he is operating the camera, there is the little bit where he reads the letter from Don as he drives to the town. Clearly he sees himself as more than an impartial observer. In many ways, he is the reason the story happens. In the second two films, it is implied that the reason the show is put on at all is because Don thinks he is going to be on television. Throughout the second and third films you can see the filmmaker develop this idea, as he makes himself a literal character in the film. He has almost become an impartial observer this way. While the first film is filmed live, essentially bringing the filmmaker into the story, in the second two the actual filmmaker is unseen and his doppelganger is on camera, with a prop camera of his own.
As for Don himself, his "character" changes quite a bit throughout the three films. In the first film, he's not a character at all, he's an actual, strange person. The second film brings out his supposed sense of isolation from the community and his fear that people will not accept him, which is not very present in the first film. Don's character in the third film is very different from the first. The real Don seems like a normal, masculine guy, and you would never guess that he likes to dress up like Olivia Newton John unless he told you (which he probably would). Crispin Glover's Don, on the other hand, is very effeminate, and is definitely sort of the person who you would think would dress as a woman. I thought that this change, while not bad outright, did get rid of some of the more interesting parts of the original Don's character.
As for the secondary characters, the first and second films do not really have any. The only people we see Don interacting with are the filmmaker and the woman doing his makeup, and the woman barely says anything. We also see the other performers in the variety show, but they never drive the story forward or ever interact with Don. Their purpose seems to be to give us a feel for the other occupants of Beaver. In the third film, all these characters are fleshed out, and their interactions with Don are shown. This gives us a sense of Don's isolation from the community. The woman doing the makeup is obviously weirded out; the father of some of the performers voices his displeasure with Don's act; the host of the show is shown to be the school's principal. New characters are also introduced, such as Don's best friend and the other kids at the high school, who pick on Don. These characters all serve to show us how Don does not fit in with the rest of the town, and how he seeks to escape through his impersonations. This theme is not at all apparent in the first film, which is almost entirely nothing but Don. It is interesting that, though the story is told from Don's perspective in all the films, we learn the most about him through his interactions with other characters.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Observational Notebook - Snow!
Apparently they don't salt roads in New Mexico. I already knew this because I knew that classic cars from New Mexico are usually in better condition than in other areas, because salt makes cars rust faster. What I didn't know was that this also makes it really hard to drive here when it does snow.
Concept Worksheet 5 - The Treasure of Garbanzo Pass
Feature Film – 90 minutes – for festivals, the internet
Story Statement: Three friends find a treasure hidden in the desert, and their greed slowly tears them apart.
Visual Style: It would be shot like a classic western.
Story: While walking home from a party, three friends, Nathan, Sam, and John, are almost hit by a drunk driver. The driver, Rene, tells them about a hidden Confederate treasure. They decide to set out to find the treasure.
The next day, while shopping for supplies, each friend sees something expensive that want. They each realize that they would have to scam the others out of the treasure in order to afford it.
They all set out to find the treasure. It is exactly where the drunk man said. On the way back, Nathan slips away with the treasure. He runs to the road, where he hitchhikes. He is picked up by a car full of girls. They figure out that he has a box full of treasure, so they take it and kick him out of the car. Sam and John drive up behind him and pick him up. He apologizes and they set off after the treasure.
The girls take it to an all-girls school. They each sneak into the school their own way; Nathan sneaks around, John climbs the outside of the building, and Sam just asks a group of girls nicely where they went. They find the treasure and leave.
While walking away, Sam takes the treasure and jumps into the bed of a pickup truck. John and Nathan lose him, so they return to campus. There they meet Sarah, who mentions that her Grandmother is sick and needs an expensive surgery, but John and Nathan aren’t paying attention. They get a call from Sam, who asks that they come pick him up. They drive to where he tells them, and he comes running out of the woods only in his underwear. He refuses to talk about what happened.
As they drive through the desert, John’s car runs out of gas. Nathan mentions that the town is just on the other side of the desert, so John grabs the treasure and makes a run for it. They chase him across the desert. Eventually, John tires and gives up. As they get back to their car, Sarah comes to pick them up.
They drive to a pawn shop, whose owner explains to them that the treasure is actually worth millions. He also known’s someone who would buy the treasure for that amount, but they have to be at the pawn shop the next day at 5 exactly.
Unfortunately, on the way back to campus, they get run off the road by Rene. Rene is apparently part of a Mexican drug cartel, and they want the treasure. They are attacked by Rene’s gang, and they run into a canyon. As they get chased through the canyon, Sarah is captured and the gang members get the treasure, but the three guys escape in Rene’s car.
They discover that Rene’s trunk is full of guns, so they decide to take back the treasure. They raid the gang’s headquarters and find Sarah. Rene tries to escape with the treasure, but Sarah shoots him. Nathan, John, Sam, and Sarah have a classic Western standoff over the treasure, but when they fire they realize that their guns don’t have any bullets left.
Sarah remembers that they have to get back to the pawn shop before 5. They all frantically return to the pawn shop, getting there just in time. The buyer turns out to be a former western actor. He writes them a check and then walks off into the sunset.
Audience Appeal: Should be a fun and funny adventure. Also, everyone can relate to being a goofy college student.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Observational Notebook - Old Family
I saw what was obviously a large family - there was a mom and dad and several kids - except that they all seemed to be elderly. Also none of the sons (they were all boys) seemed to be married. And they all had Beatles-style haircuts.
Concept Worksheet 4 - Midnight Coffee
Short Film – 20 minutes – for festivals
Story Statement: After driving for hours to visit his dying mother, Tim stops for a cup of coffee and finds himself trying to drive a pregnant woman to the hospital without passing out.
Visual Style: Dark, with a lot of fantasy sequences/hallucinations.
Story: An older, grizzled mountain man has been driving his Camaro across the desert for almost 20 hours straight. His mother is on her deathbed, and he is trying to get to her before she goes. It is late at night, and the strain is beginning to get to him. He starts having trouble staying awake, so he decides to pull into a fast-food place to get some coffee. He goes through the drive-thru line, but when he pulls up to the speaker something is wrong. He hears the sound of some sort of fight through the speaker. Suddenly a pregnant woman runs out of the restaurant, screaming. She runs down the road. Then several police cars pull up, and the police run into the building. He drives away, still very tired.
As he drives down the road, he sees the pregnant woman. He drives past her. He watches her in his rearview mirror. She suddenly clutches her stomach and collapses. The man stops his car, then reverses it to the pregnant woman. He opens the door, and asks if she needs any help. She is Hispanic, and does not speak much English, but he understands the words hospital and baby. He helps her in the backseat, and drives off.
Unfortunately for him and her, the hospital is across town. He struggles to stay awake as the woman screams and yells at him. He eventually begins to hallucinate, and almost falls asleep at the wheel. After almost crashing his car, he decides that he needs some coffee in order to make it to the hospital. Against the protests of the young woman, he pulls into a parking lot and runs into the coffee shop.
Inside the coffee shop the employees are all closing down the store. The man orders the strongest coffee they have, but the barista refuses to make it for him. They argue for a bit, and eventually the man pulls a gun on the barista. Under threats of death, the barista quickly makes a cup of coffee for the man. The man takes and chugs it in one gulp, throws away the cup, then pays the barista. Refreshed, he runs back into the car where the young woman is struggling with her baby. They drive off.
They make it to the hospital with seconds to spare. The woman goes into the emergency room, and the man collapses into a chair and falls asleep. When he wakes up, he learns his mother passed away, and that the young woman successfully had a healthy baby.
As he drives down the road, he sees the pregnant woman. He drives past her. He watches her in his rearview mirror. She suddenly clutches her stomach and collapses. The man stops his car, then reverses it to the pregnant woman. He opens the door, and asks if she needs any help. She is Hispanic, and does not speak much English, but he understands the words hospital and baby. He helps her in the backseat, and drives off.
Unfortunately for him and her, the hospital is across town. He struggles to stay awake as the woman screams and yells at him. He eventually begins to hallucinate, and almost falls asleep at the wheel. After almost crashing his car, he decides that he needs some coffee in order to make it to the hospital. Against the protests of the young woman, he pulls into a parking lot and runs into the coffee shop.
Inside the coffee shop the employees are all closing down the store. The man orders the strongest coffee they have, but the barista refuses to make it for him. They argue for a bit, and eventually the man pulls a gun on the barista. Under threats of death, the barista quickly makes a cup of coffee for the man. The man takes and chugs it in one gulp, throws away the cup, then pays the barista. Refreshed, he runs back into the car where the young woman is struggling with her baby. They drive off.
They make it to the hospital with seconds to spare. The woman goes into the emergency room, and the man collapses into a chair and falls asleep. When he wakes up, he learns his mother passed away, and that the young woman successfully had a healthy baby.
Audience Appeal: Will be both funny and thrilling. Everyone can relate to being really tired while also having to do something.
Fresh Eyes: The Power of an Audience
When coming up with an idea for a movie, and then making that movie, I think it is important to remember that I am not unique. There are many other people with life experiences that are very similar to mine, and therefore they probably have similar tastes as me. I make movies that I think I would like to watch. At the same time, one of the great things about film is that it is a collaborative medium, and movies rarely conform to only one person's viewpoints.
Friday, November 11, 2011
Instant Story - Midnight Coffee
An older, grizzled mountain man has been driving his Camaro across the desert for almost 20 hours straight. His mother is on her deathbed, and he is trying to get to her before she goes. It is late at night, and the strain is beginning to get to him. He starts having trouble staying awake, so he decides to pull into a fast-food place to get some coffee. He goes through the drive-thru line, but when he pulls up to the speaker something is wrong. He hears the sound of some sort of fight through the speaker. Suddenly a pregnant woman runs out of the restaurant, screaming. She runs down the road. Then several police cars pull up, and the police run into the building. He drives away, still very tired.
As he drives down the road, he sees the pregnant woman. He drives past her. He watches her in his rearview mirror. She suddenly clutches her stomach and collapses. The man stops his car, then reverses it to the pregnant woman. He opens the door, and asks if she needs any help. She is Hispanic, and does not speak much English, but he understands the words hospital and baby. He helps her in the backseat, and drives off.
Unfortunately for him and her, the hospital is across town. He struggles to stay awake as the woman screams and yells at him. He eventually begins to hallucinate, and almost falls asleep at the wheel. After almost crashing his car, he decides that he needs some coffee in order to make it to the hospital. Against the protests of the young woman, he pulls into a parking lot and runs into the coffee shop.
Inside the coffee shop the employees are all closing down the store. The man orders the strongest coffee they have, but the barista refuses to make it for him. They argue for a bit, and eventually the man pulls a gun on the barista. Under threats of death, the barista quickly makes a cup of coffee for the man. The man takes and chugs it in one gulp, throws away the cup, then pays the barista. Refreshed, he runs back into the car where the young woman is struggling with her baby. They drive off.
They make it to the hospital with seconds to spare. The woman goes into the emergency room, and the man collapses into a chair and falls asleep. When he wakes up, he learns his mother passed away, and that the young woman successfully had a healthy baby.
As he drives down the road, he sees the pregnant woman. He drives past her. He watches her in his rearview mirror. She suddenly clutches her stomach and collapses. The man stops his car, then reverses it to the pregnant woman. He opens the door, and asks if she needs any help. She is Hispanic, and does not speak much English, but he understands the words hospital and baby. He helps her in the backseat, and drives off.
Unfortunately for him and her, the hospital is across town. He struggles to stay awake as the woman screams and yells at him. He eventually begins to hallucinate, and almost falls asleep at the wheel. After almost crashing his car, he decides that he needs some coffee in order to make it to the hospital. Against the protests of the young woman, he pulls into a parking lot and runs into the coffee shop.
Inside the coffee shop the employees are all closing down the store. The man orders the strongest coffee they have, but the barista refuses to make it for him. They argue for a bit, and eventually the man pulls a gun on the barista. Under threats of death, the barista quickly makes a cup of coffee for the man. The man takes and chugs it in one gulp, throws away the cup, then pays the barista. Refreshed, he runs back into the car where the young woman is struggling with her baby. They drive off.
They make it to the hospital with seconds to spare. The woman goes into the emergency room, and the man collapses into a chair and falls asleep. When he wakes up, he learns his mother passed away, and that the young woman successfully had a healthy baby.
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