make mine a robbery, straight up, with a twist

Two days before Christmas, the postman delivered a surprise gift to me: the finished product from the hands of the Reichard brothers. Hallelujah!!!
Totally unexpected.
After all, the last message they had written to their kickstarter backers (including me in those ranks) was in March of this year, alluding to the shipment soon of the rewards of our investments.
Originally, the forecast had called for rewards to be mailed in December 2012.
However, this isn't my first rodeo.
I know things take longer than one thinks they will, so I bided my time.
Then the thought of waiting for the postman slipped to the back of my mind and got lost in the shuffle.
And now? Now the time - and the film! - is here!!!
A Christmas gift to brighten my holidays!
I couldn't be any prouder of these fine young men and their crew.

This evening, I was finally able to carve out a hunk of time to again watch the film.
Again? I had already had the privilege of seeing it?
Yes, I had. On a much larger screen than the 15" of my television screen, too.
It had been shown at "16 x 9 Revealed", a competitive student showcase of films, at the Trustees Theatre. That was in late spring of 2012, May 30 and 31; right in time for my 54th birthday.
This film was not the only one of the kickstarter projects that I've backed which screened on that occasion. The other contenders with my support: "Chalk Talk", "12:15 Sunday", "Crucifaxe 2", "The Flight", and "Gypped".
This film, "The Restaurant Job", walked away with the 2012 Best Editing for an Undergraduate Film Award.
Nicely done!
The film is so tightly constructed, with miles of high energy, no wasted moments - and an ending that will leave you both thrilled and completely satisfied.
Tommy Pietch, Louis Vanaria, and John McGlothlin masterfully draw us into their heist, from the initial planning to the actual performance of the robbery. Nothing is given away about the ending. No foreshadowing, no knowing glances.
Perfect surprise.
I do so enjoy a good surprise, too.
I see many films, as well as many movies, and, yes, there is definitely a difference. It isn't that often anymore that a plot manages to pull a fast one on me.
This one did.
My kudos, and thanks, to all.

I do hope you will some day be able to enjoy these twelve minutes of footage.
And I do hope I will soon see more works from these two brothers.

Hint, hint, Nicholas and Brandon.
And many thanks for making my Christmas brighter.

bewitched love

more soon...

god help the girl in her sundance

The last update from Stuart Murdoch to his kickstarter collaborators was on October 18 of this year. I had referenced that update in one of the comments of my earlier post about "God Help The Girl".
As of October, the filming was completed, the musical had been scored, the film had been edited. Our GTH Girl was ready to sing and strut!
Whew!
At last, she was ready to fill her dance card on the festival circuit.
Who would be the first to twirl her in front of the world???
No less than Sundance... wow!
I am so excited for her!!!
Here's the update!

Update #41
Dec 4 2013
World Premiere at Sundance!

Hello Backers!

We are delighted to announce that 'God Help The Girl' will have its World Premiere at The Sundance Film Festival in January 2014. It's a perfect start to what will be a packed year of festival screenings, previews and a commercial release.

We know you have all been waiting a LONG time to see this film you so generously supported and are excited that will be a reality in 2014.

In other news - we have t-shirts and posters at the printers, guitars in the post and lots of other rewards in progress. It's all happening, SLOWLY but SURELY.

Once again, many thanks for your support which has taken us to this very exciting place that I'm not sure we ever imagined possible. Premiering at one of our favourite international film festivals.

We'll be in touch soon with more details for the festival and some reward updates.

Once again, so many thanks for your support from the very beginning.

GHTG HQ

How very exciting!
Her debut will be at Mr. Robert Redford's esteemed event!

support your local sheriff! I mean, film rustler!

Tonight was my last night with Jim Reed's Wednesday night features at one of Savannah's local coffeehouses.
Well, for this year, I mean.
I do hope his Psychotronic Film Society of Savannah will continue to bring to the table the lost films of yesterday, those which never made it to video in this country, or those which have been tied up in legal battles or other obscurity.
After all, we hunger for fare different from the buffets served at the commercial cineplexes. Not that their offerings don't, or cannot, sustain us, but the nutritional value is... well, mostly lacking.
You know I'm right.

Earlier this year, I had purchased advance tickets for the Wednesday screenings.
Doesn't he tend to choose horror films, which you do not consume, more times than not?
I do admit that he does lean in that direction, but he also brings comedies, action, film noir, and suspense (which he sometimes mislabels as horror). Oh, and musicals!
But wait! Don't you work on Wednesday evenings?
Well, yes, I do. Most Wednesdays, in fact, except in the summer.
Then why would you purchase a bunch of advance tickets for events you know you will not be attending?
Let me tell you why.
If he doesn't have the funds to procure the rights to show the films, then those films remain unseen. The good films, the bad films, and the ugly films - they could never be brought to town without the aid of advance funding.
Sure, the weekly tickey sales help keep the venture afloat, for the most part. But that revenue source is fairly slight some weeks and cannot be relied upon.
So, I gladly support PFS by purchasing advance tickets.
Even when it turns out that I have a few left over at year's end.