We could use your support in attending our next script to screen this
Sunday. As an experiment this time around, we are using audio and visual
cues:

SAG Script to Screen Team presents Returning Champion Film Script

TV Writers Michele Gendelman and Ursula Ziegler test the film waters

The Austin Script to Screen Team presents a LIVE film script reading
event with Michele Gendelman and Ursula Ziegler’s Returning Champion.

The general public is invited to join actors, writers, producers,
directors, and film aficionados at 4 p.m. Sunday, August 30, at St.
Edwards University Jones Hall, 3001 S. Congress Avenue, Austin, Texas.

Admission is free.

Returning Champion is an off the wall comedy about a college freshman
who is booted out of school and has to move back home to his has-been
game-show host parents. The only way out of answering relentless trivia
questions and guessing which door breakfast is behind is to get his
out-of work parents back on the air.

An ever-growing independent film market has enticed these two TV writing
pros to submit Returning Champion to area investors, directors and
producers.

Michele Gendelman has written for TV shows: Newhart and
Facts of Life and is the author of What the Other Mothers Know
published by HarperCollins and contributor to What Was I Thinking? -
Bad Boyfriend Stories from St. Martin’s Press.

Ursula Ziegler has written and produced TV’s Empty Nest and also written for Head of the
Class, Sister-Sister, and Larroquette. She has developed TV pilots
for CBS, Fox and Castle Rock when not appearing as a contestant on TV
game shows.

Where: Jones Hall in the Ragsdale Center, St. Edwards University

When: Sunday, August 30 – 4 p.m.

How Much: Free

Today, I’m going to post some ‘bonus’ footage, footage I don’t include on my demo now…deleted footage from the David Lynch film, WILD AT HEART. This scene is from a grainy work print but in the current context, I think the imperfections in the media add to the experience of seeing something that was for so long unavailable.

I no longer have the WAH footage on my demo because it’s just way too old. There was a time when I thought it helped my reel, even as a deleted scene, because of the other people involved. But time marches on and it’s time to leave this one off the newer reel.

After WAH played at Cannes, the film was trimmed substantially, so I’m told and mine is one of the scenes that did not make the final cut. David Lynch was kind enough to provide me with the footage on 3/4″ tape, state of the art for that time. Until recently I had never seen the footage in another form. Actually, the quality of the 3/4″ footage that I have is a bit better than the DVD version on Lynch’s Lime Green Set. No doubt due to compression of the footage for the DVD. I’m posting the deleted footage here because I think it might be of interest to Lynch fans and to actors who may or may not have been eliminated from a film. It’s always a let down to get cut from a project (this was not my first time and not my last) but this is the only time I’ve actually gotten to see the raw footage that we shot. Sorta fun to look back on this one.

This is a rare opportunity to see a truly landmark independent film in venue other than PBS. Check it out and you won’t be sorry!

Screen Door Film, THE WHOLE SHOOTIN’ MATCH
WHEN: Fri May 22, 7 PM (Doors open at 6:30 PM)
WHERE: Jones Auditorium, St. Edward’s University (3001 S. Congress Ave)
COST: FREE
INFO: www.screendoorfilm.com

A landmark of American independent film from 1978, THE WHOLE SHOOTIN’ MATCH is a rapturous rediscovery. Eagle Pennell’s first feature details the tragi-comic struggles of two small-time schemers, Loyd (Lou Perryman) and Frank (Sonny Carl Davis), desperate to land their big break. Through its anecdotal narrative and fresh, honest observation of its characters, the film intimately captures a time and place (Austin, Texas, 1977) with its atmospheric photography and rough-hewn charm, making it an inspiration for filmmakers everywhere since its release. A panel following the film will discuss THE WHOLE SHOOTIN’ MATCH and it’s place in American independent cinema.

EaglelPinnell 1978
Categories: Narrative Feature
Pictures 1 picture
Run time: 108 min. | USA | Language: English

No wonder this is the film that prompted Robert Redford to start the Sundance Institute. The film has been missing in action for close to 25 years.

“Feather in the Rain”
by Alex Conrad
Monday, March 30
6:00-6:15pm Network
6:15-9:00pm Script Read

State Theater
719 Congress Ave.
Austin, TX 78701
512.472.5470

To be sure I’m well beyond the demographic that THE 2 BOBS targets, 15-25 year olds. The ones who get off on edgy video games, F-bomb humor and copious amounts of exposed flesh…real, illustrated or animated. You know, the age group that actually spends a lot of money on movies AND video games.

THE 2 BOBS starts at an almost frenetic pace that sucks in even the ‘old farts’ like me (I guess I didn’t really need the quotes around ‘old farts’, but I’m still coming to grips with being one) with clever graphics and effects work that give the film an initial visual style and appeal that seems opposed to the reality that this movie was shot for well under one million dollars on a SAG modified low budget agreement. Score one for the writer-director and his post-production team.

The film rocks along as we are introduced to the two Bobs – Horizontal Bob (Devin Ratray – the shorter, heavier one) and Vertical Bob (Tyler Francavilla - the taller, thinner one). Nerds to the core, these two otherwise complete losers discovered computer programming in high school, created their own video game and were transformed from a couple of loser, high school dweebs into a couple of loser, ex-high school dweebs…with money.

Here’s the story according to Voodoo Cowboy Entertainment and Texas Avenue Films:

The 2 Bobs is a video game geek comedy based in Austin, Texas. The story follows two gaming legends known as The 2 Bobs. But just as they finish their ground-breaking violent video game masterpiece, these gaming gurus discover their precious game software has been stolen – and with it, their livelihoods, genius reputations, and everything they own. To get back their game – and their lives -The 2 Bobs and their fellow-geek employees Munch, Doofus and The Dark Prince are forced to ‘turn detective’ and plunge into the strange world of Christian Venture Capitalists, aged Dixie Mafia hoodlums, and bizarre Internet Spammers that inhabit Austin.

The cast, a mixture of Texas pros and L.A. and NY actors all give enthusiastic, ‘can you believe we’re actually getting paid to do this?’ performances. But what the hey…this movie is a lot more PORKY’S than PATTON…uhhh, actually there is no PATTON here, but you get the picture…and the cast delivers the required goods. A particularly strong performance was turned in by Leonardo Nam as The Dark Prince, the most complete and interesting character in the ensemble.

Overall, THE 2 BOBS works as a broad comedy with a ‘keep Austin weird’ mentality. While it will be interesting to see how THE 2 BOBS plays at the upcoming AFI Dallas Film Festival, the full crowd at the SXSW screening I attended found no shortage of laugh out loud moments.

McCanlies’ fans who might be drawn to a film by the director of SECONDHAND LIONS or DANCER, TX POP. 81, should probably skip THE 2 BOBS if they’re expecting similar fare. Instead wait for the release of his next film, the more family friendly, ALABAMA MOON.

TIME: 7:15am

LOCATION: The South Steps of the Capitol Building

WARDROBE: Wear Red. Look nice.

AGENDA:

· 7:15am – CALL TIME! Be on the South Steps of the Capitol Building in
your snazzy red outfits! There will be a table set up where you can get
information, pick up a Rally Fan, and be directed to the Rally area.

· 7:30am to 8:30am – Governor Rick Perry and other film bigwigs will
address our group while we RALLY and make a big show for the press

· 8:30am to 9:15am – Skits based on popular Texas films will be
performed for our entertainment and encouragement

· 9:15am to 11:15am – Rally on the steps OR walk the halls of the
Capitol wearing your red and carrying a sign or fan

· 11:30am to 1:30pm – Form a receiving line into and out of the lunch
tent so we can thank the legislators for their time and attention to our
issue (NOTE: Lunch is being served only to the legislators, their staff,
and TXMPA members who are taking meetings with them, not all in attendance!)

You are not REQUIRED to stay for any length of time for the Rally, but
we’d love to have the largest group possible earlier in the day to make
the best impression on the Governor and the press. If you can only come
for an hour or two, plan to be there right at CALL TIME!

Our legislative rallying cry/ kickoff mixer & information session will be Monday, January 26 from 6-9 at:

Roux Restaurant
214 E. 6th St, Austin 78701
512 479 0474
just a couple of doors down from the Alamo Ritz.

Special Guests:
Bob Hudgins, Texas Film Commissioner
Brandon Aghamalian, TXMPA lobbyist with Hillco Partners

Come early for networking Happy Hour (till 7) with great food & drink

This is a very important meeting for all of us.

WE HAVE A BILL. WE HAVE BILL SPONSORS IN HOUSE & SENATE.

We have a new speaker of the house. The legislature is in full swing, and we will know who all the power players are- committee chairs, etc. The past few months have been about raising money & membership numbers (which we do still need.) Now we turn our focus to action. At this meeting we will talk about what to do when to whom. Brandon & Bob can answer questions about our legislation, and best tactics for getting it passed & funded. We’ll talk about lobby day. Bring ideas you have for how to make our message heard. We’ll have volunteer assignments, letters to sign, etc. As most of you know, there has been a lot of bad press lately regarding incentives.

Now more than ever, WE NEED EVERYONE TO COME TOGETHER. We’ll have special guests & plenty of networking time, so we promise it will be fun as well as informative. If you are concerned about the state of the moving image industry in Texas, COME TO THIS MEETING! NOW IS OUR MOMENT! BE PART OF THE SOLUTION!

WHAT YOU CAN DO THIS WEEK & NEXT.

1. Recruit 5 new people. An antique dealer, a film buff, an aunt, your neighbor, or anyone else you can get to care. If you can get them to join, great. If not, at least get their emails, go to website, & add them to email list. 20 seconds total. We need to build outreach so when it’s time for letter avalanche we reach as many people as possible.

2. FIND OUT WHO REPRESENTS YOU. WRITE THEM.
Go to this link to find your legislators.  http://www.fyi.legis.state.tx.us Scroll down to your Texas State Senator & Representative. Then, write them.

It can literally be done in 2 minutes. You just check email, fill in your information, and then enter a brief message. Please support the Moving Image Industry Incentives. Add a brief personal comment like “Thanks for your support. I’m an actor. We need this legislation! Our jobs have left the state. We have families too.” You get the picture.

If you are concerned about the state of the moving image industry in Texas, COME TO THIS MEETING! NOW IS OUR MOMENT!
BE PART OF THE SOLUTION!

December 04, 2008
By Mark Dundas Wood
Recently, Drew Barrymore directed and starred in a feature called Whip It!, set in Austin, Texas, and based on a novel by a former Austinite, Shauna Cross. The film was shot in…Ann Arbor, Mich.

Say what? Why would a town with a rich film culture and at least two major favorite-son film directors — Robert Rodriguez and Richard Linklater — miss out on hosting a project that’s such an obvious fit?

As usual, it’s a money thing. Michigan — along with such states as New Mexico, Massachusetts, and Louisiana — currently offers producers hefty incentive packages to shoot on its soil. As Gary Bond, director of the Austin Film Commission, points out, the 8.25 percent sales-tax exemption and other incentives that Texas offers to filmmakers don’t add up to the same breaks available elsewhere.

Nevertheless, last January, Austin was named the No. 1 American movie city by MovieMaker magazine, beating out such incentives-rich locales as Albuquerque, N.M., and Shreveport, La., not to mention Los Angeles and New York. Austin may not be getting the same kind of commercial projects as other states, but apparently it is doing some things very well.

A (Lone) Star Is Born
The first Hollywood-size project that lensed in Austin, says Bond, was 1977′s Outlaw Blues. In subsequent years, a handful of TV movies and occasional theatrical features (1982′s The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, for instance) shot in the area, but no cinematic stampede to the city ensued. Things began to change in the mid-1980s when the first sequel to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and the Jeff Bridges-Kim Basinger vehicle Nadine were shot back to back in Austin, with both films employing many of the same personnel. Gradually, says Bond, local crew — especially members of art departments — amassed impressive production credits and reputations.

At the same time, Austin was becoming a major music hub. The city’s famous South by Southwest (SXSW) festival actually began as a music event in 1987 but soon incorporated film and other media. “We were sort of a two-headed calf,” says Bond. “People wanted to come here and see what this buzz was all about.”

Filmmakers venturing to Austin found a city surrounded by a wide range of physical terrains: hills and lake chains to the west, rolling prairie to the east. “It’s always been an excellent place to do a road movie,” says Bond, noting that the bulk of the cattle-drive miniseries Lonesome Dove (1989) was shot within 30 miles of Austin, with the countryside standing in for Canadian and Mexican locales.

In the 1990s, the scene grew, especially with the emergence of Linklater and Rodriguez and the latter’s then wife, producer Elizabeth Avellan. Other Austin-based filmmakers include Tim McCanlies (Secondhand Lions) and Mike Judge (Office Space).

Rodriguez and Avellan developed Troublemaker Studios at the site of Austin’s former municipal airport. Meanwhile, Linklater had founded the Austin Film Society. What began as a film-appreciation organization eventually expanded, assuming management of Austin Studios: other refurbished, city-owned airport property that became “production central” for projects coming into town.

The Actor Factor
But what about human infrastructure? What does Austin provide to filmmakers in the way of an actor workforce?

Beth Sepko, who operates Beth Sepko Casting, as well as an affiliated company, Third Coast Extras, began her career as an agent in San Antonio, returning to her native Austin in 1994. Sepko has worked on several films with Rodriguez. She also casts Austin’s first major network series, NBC’s Friday Night Lights, for which she won a 2007 Emmy. “We have a really strong talent pool,” she says, “but it’s sort of shallow. If I have a film project that has, like, 90 roles on it, then I definitely have to pull from other markets.”

Read the FULL BACKSTAGE ARTICLE HERE.

September 29, 2008

Dear Gentlemen:

We believe it is clear that our members would fail to ratify your proposal of June 30, 2008. It would serve no productive purpose, therefore, to send our membership a proposal that SAG’s National Negotiating Committee and National Board have rejected and that our membership would not ratify.

It is our fervent hope that this news will encourage you and your colleagues to reengage in formal bargaining, with the exchange of proposals and compromise by both sides necessary to reach an agreement.

Our discussions with you and many of your colleagues since formal talks ended have educated both of our teams about our respective priorities and flexibilities. As we have said to SAG members, if we can reach agreement on three threshold issues, we believe we can finish these negotiations. One issue you brought to the table: force majeure protection for actors held by contract to a suspended production. Two issues we have identified as core principles: coverage for all new media productions (including those below $15,000/minute) and residuals for made-for new media productions re-used on new media. Other issues divide us, certainly, but we believe those other issues can be successfully addressed once we have resolved these three threshold issues. We have approached these contract negotiations reasonably and with a realistic and informed view of the state of the industry.

We are prepared to meet formally and continuously until we reach agreement. We owe it to our constituencies and the thousands of others in this industry that depend on a productive, stable and uninterrupted relationship between Screen Actors Guild and the networks and studios.

The alternative to reaching an agreement as soon as possible is unnecessary and destructive uncertainty. If your intransigence continues, however, our choices become harder and fewer. We would prefer the more complicated and productive choices that compromise will make necessary. But we can’t make those choices that lead to agreement working alone.

What do you say; when can our committees meet face-to-face?

Sincerely,

Alan Rosenberg
National President

Doug Allen
National Executive Director and Chief Negotiator