Everyman's War

As the seasoned infantry and tank units of the German 11th Panzer "Ghost" division move silently into position on the snow covered hills around Nennig Germany ,a battle weary GI and his unit stand ready to defend the small town, a key position in the Allied advance to win the war.

No one in high command believed that German forces would attack in the sub zero temperatures and near blizzard conditions. As the pre-dawn attack comes, with communications down Sgt. Smith is left with no choice but to make his way through enemy fire, unarmed and wounded, into town and warn of the coming attack.

Based on actual accounts "Everyman's War" explores the heroic events of this decorated veterans courage and the struggle between duty and desire. Between the prospect of the life and love, Dorine (Lauren Bair) that waits at home and the harsh realities of war which marks the pivotal epoch in his life as he discovers that the loss of hope can be worse than the loss of life. One man's courage...One man's hope...



LEARN MORE - http://www.everymanswarthemovie.com/site_index.html

The Blair Witch Remake Project?

Are Myrick and Sanchez planning a return to Burkittsville?

There's a casting call and a shooting schedule...

But will The Blair Witch Remake be a proper revisit to one of the greatest horror films ever made (yes, it is) or just a low-key side project?

Original directors Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez have recently been talking up the possibility of a third Blair Witch movie - to patch the holes opened up by the disappointing sequel Book Of Shadows.

READ MORE BY Andy Lowe - http://www.totalfilm.com/news/the-blair-witch-remake-project?cid=OTC-RSS&attr=news

Copyright 2006 - 2009 Future Publishing Limited

Are unpaid interships illegal ?

I see postings like this regularly on the job boards, UNPAID internships that aren't specified for students or even recent grads.

Essentially, "Work for us for free and we might hire you on our next gig - but we might not." Companies love interns for many reasons: a few are quoted from former "interns" who responded to posts, took jobs and were paid nothing.

1. You're free so they have an opportunity to make more money from your sweat.
2. You're off the books.
3. There is no paper work.
4. There is no government filing.
5. There is no proof that you even exist.
6. This is equal to tax evasion.
7. There is no employment tax.
8. They know you are financially frail, so you are probably not a legal threat.
9. It is easy to take advantage of you.
10. They can generally get you to use your car as if it belonged to the company and in that case, they have no vehicle insurance to pay and no driving liability. If you are involved in an accident, they don't have to even send you a balloon.

KNOW THE LAW!

http://laborlaw.typepad.com/labor_and_employment_law_/2007/11/unpaid-internsh.html
http://www.scrippsnews.com/node/23795
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/05/27/BUG0RQ19531.DTL

Don't devalue yourself in any industry by working for free.

THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX office

Much has been said and written about the current distribution crises of independent films. We are in the midst of a new world order or crisis;

NEW MEDIA demands NEW DISTRIBUTION

This is my own horror story: In 2007, I was at the Tribeca film festival where I was trying to sell my documentary “Bomb It.” We did everything by the old school book, kept the screeners a secret, we spent $20,000 launching the film at the festival, with the result of packed houses and hundreds of people turned away. After all the excitement, what we had were a few $10,000 all rights deals that we rejected. A week after Tribeca, our film was available for sale on Canal Street — as a bootleg.


READ MORE by Jon Reiss - http://www.indiewire.com/article/jon_reiss_we_are_in_the_midst_of_a_new_world_order_or_crisis/pem&urlhash=wqyv&trk=news_discuss/

fab four feature film

Everyone wants to be a star!
Everyone wants to make films!
Everyone wants to sing!

I've often said that "dead" celebrities will live again and star in new films thanks to CGI. Here's the latest: Impersonators and look-a-likes acting as dead celebrities! You fame and fortune seems assured if you are a dead ringer for someone famous!

OPEN CASTING CALL
DATE: Saturday 11/28/09 & Sunday 11/29/09

LOCATION: HOLIDAY INN STAMFORD
700 E. MAIN STREET
Stamford, CT 06901
Shippan Point Room

OPEN CALL TIMES: 10am - 6pm

AGES: 20yrs - 45yrs

* This opportunity is for an actor/artist to show us that they can embody the characters of JOHN, PAUL, GEORGE or RINGO.
* These are LEAD ROLES IN OUR FEATURE FILM.
* The film will be shot as a MOTION-CAPTURE feature like the current Disney release of A CHRISTMAS CAROL starring Jim Carrey.

LEARN MORE - http://fabfourcasting.blogspot.com/

NEW MEDIA: Everyone wants their 15 minutes of Fame

Singing doorman of E. 38th St. cuts a record and residents love it

'Elvis' is in the building: Barry Finer, a native of Ukraine and a doorman at 155 E. 38th St. for 24 years, swapped the lobby for a recording studio as he recorded 16 self-penned songs for his debut CD, "I'm in Love."

Read more BY Erica Pearson and Larry Mcshane: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/11/20/2009-11-20_elvis_is_in_the_building_singing_doorman_of_e_38th_st_cuts_a_record_and_resident.html#ixzz0XP1ECXXr

© Copyright 2009 NYDailyNews.com. All rights reserved.

How to Care and Love for Your Trademark Once It's Born

Entrepreneurs often have a mindset like a bear trap when it comes to trademarks. They see them as the legal gateway to competitive advantage. The logic goes: once you get a federal trademark registration, your competition is locked out.

While it never quite works that way, entrepreneurs often overlook the necessary steps to "care and love" for their trademark after it is registered. And failing to tend to a registration can cost them their rights and their competitive advantage. Below are the basic post registration filings and practices that are necessary to maintain your trademark...

READ MORE: http://www.bizmedialaw.net/2009/11/how-to-care-and-love-for-your-trademark.html

Copyright © 2008 Wahab & Medenica LLC Biz-Media-Law Blog.

Everyone’s a celebrity!

The 10 pop culture trends that defined the decade

Celebrity is no longer reserved for the select few that walk red carpet and get stalked by paparazzi. Tiday, the era of social celebrity is here and it continues to draw attention.

In a recent CBC News post, Greig Dymond highlighted 10 terrific examples of this trend — where, thanks to social media, anyone among us can reach celebrity status.

"This was the decade when everyone became a celebrity. Well, almost everyone…"
The iPod killed the CD star

Reality TV

Auto-Tune


YouTube and the art of the viral video

Guitar Hero/Rock Band


READ MORE by Avi Savar - http://www.contenttocommerce.com/fuel/industry-trends/everyones-a-celebrity-10-pop-culture-trends-that-defined-the-decade/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+contenttocommerce+%28Content+to+Commerce%29

American Film Market – Day 1

You can always tell when the American Film Market is in town.

Men and women in business garb walk briskly along the beach bluffs carrying matching canvas tote bags. A disproportionately high amount of cigarette smoke blends into the onshore breeze. And at least one disgruntled filmmaker will be picketing and/or distributing leaflets warning others about a foreign sales agent who has done them wrong.

This year, a new level of creativity emerged when one filmmaker hired a truck to drive back and forth in front of Lowe’s with ad panels on all sides: “WARNING: Epic Pictures offering Stolen Movie.” The allegations include burglary at the filmmaker’s office; a stolen negative; a renamed film; 31 individuals named in three separate lawsuits; and the obligatory investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department. Whether or not any of this is true, it certainly peaks curiosity to see this movie-worth-stealing.

READ MORE By Catherine Clinch - http://filmnewsbriefs.com/2009/11/fnb-special-feature-american-film-market-day-1/

Bubble Trubble The Movie (a work in progress)

More and more independent producers are using youTube to get the word out about their film and to build an audience for when the work is completed.

Directed by Sonia Arrubla, Bubble Trubble is an all children cast live action fx feature film - This Promo is a work in progress (unfinished or temporally fx).



-

Don’t-Miss Video:

Incredible Look at U.S. Airways Flight 1549

READ MORE By Jason Paur - http://www.wired.com/autopia/2009/11/incredible-new-look-at-us-airways-flight-1549/



This animation is based on all currently available data concerning the US Airways Flight 1549 crash (Cactus 1549). Satellite imagery, elevation models and robust GIS mapping methods are utilized to create a vegetation model, terrain model and ground clutter (3D buildings). Of all available audio tracks, only two are used, La Guardia Tower and New York TRACON Departure controller position. Radar data as well as the onboard Flight Data Recorder are utilized in constructing the flightpath of the aircraft.

http://www.exosphere3d.com/pubwww/pages/project_gallery/cactus_1549_hudson_river.html

Your phone is YOUR CAMCORDER and NOW...

Google is poised to become your phone company!

Seriously! And Google could reduce your phone bill to zilch in the process.

Google has bought Gizmo5, an online phone company that is akin to Skype and users could make and receive calls that bypass the per-minute billing on smartphones.

READ MORE By Ryan Singel, Wired.com - http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/11/13/google.phone.service/index.html?eref=igoogle_cnn

© 2009 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

FROM IDEAS TO SCRIPT

Let's walk through the process of creating ideas. I'd compare it to driving your car in the morning. You get a spark of imagination, but you have to let it warm up a bit. Then you take off with your ideas and a destination in mind. From then on it's coasting.

First, you have to come up with an idea. It's hard to find them because good ideas spring up when you're off guard. The idea may be for an entire story or a short part. If it's a short part of your story, you can usually expand on that idea. I recommend you carry writing material with you to keep ideas on paper because they can be easily forgotten. Once the idea is recorded, you should elaborate on it.

READ MORE by dduckett - http://forums.celtx.com/viewtopic.php?t=2744&sid=95f9ced6560b516f2f9d7ce1d8b00f23

© 2001, 2005 phpBB Group

Indies see hopeful signs in VOD debuts

Over at Variety, Dave McNary has the latest article examining the growing trend of specialty VOD releases. McNary chats with IFC and Magnolia about the increasing trend, and growing business, found in the realm of straight-to-VOD or day-and-date for VOD/theatrical. Currently, IFC has the titles Summer Hours and Pontypool available on cable VOD. Magnolia has Surveillance and The Girlfriend Experience. From McNary’s article:

Pessimists see trouble ahead with collapsing traditional distribution windows in this way. Optimists note that while the films and their grosses are relatively modest, the implications are huge for specialty films and indies—and even small-scale studio offerings fighting to hold onto screens in an increasingly competitive market.

READ MORE in Matt Dentler's Blog - http://blogs.indiewire.com/mattdentler/archives/indies_see_hopeful_signs_in_vod_debuts/

TORNO SUBITO

“TORNO SUBITO” is our movie.

It is the world’s first free movie on the web in HD! To watch it you don’t need to take your car, look for a park and neither get any ticket.

TRAILER:


Our movie is here: WATCH IT NOW ONLINE FOR FREE! - http://ilmiofilm.wordpress.com/scarica-il-film/

Torno Subito by Simone Damiani is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribuzione-Non commerciale 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at http://www.torno-subito.com

NEGOTIATING ACTORS DEALS

An Outline for the Independent Producer

I. INTRODUCTION

A. THE STAR DEAL Really Shapes the Picture

B. Triggers Financing, Distribution, and Release Date.

C. THE STAR DEAL will determine how the Picture can be marketed, publicized, and promoted as a result of restrictions which may be placed on the use of the Actor’s image, photograph, and his or her TIME for publicity and promotion.

II. THE START DATE

A. FIRST POINT OF NEGOTIATION other than the money is usually the window of the Actor’s availability or the START DATE.

B. Coordinating the availability of other Stars is important -- and sometimes a difficult balancing act.

Read more by entertainment lawyer Harris E. Tulchin - http://www.medialawyer.com/ACTOUT.htm

(c) Copyright 1998 by Harris E. Tulchin, Esq. All rights reserved

The Mind Chair

In a mecha-universe far, far away, Zen and Pike (the Seinfeld and George of the future) spoof the entire Sci-fi genre as they battle a frustrated super-villain slug for control of an ancient doomsday device.

THE MIND CHAIR is a fully animated independent 3D Movie that one of my extremely ambitious former students, Ian Tetrault has been working on for almost a decade. New media is available to everyone and many artists and filmmakers with great vision push the boundaries as far as possible. Those with dedication and purpose will persever.

Using Social Networking to Market Your Film

The moaning can be heard nearly every day.

“I spent two years of my life pouring all of my energy and money into making a really good film and now I can’t find a distributor willing to take it on,” or “The deals I am being offered are so low, it's impossible to break even on my production cost.”

While it is absolutely true that the state of independent film distribution has left many producers stunned and investors (family, friends and credit card companies) holding the bag on their investment funding, there are still acquisitions taking place for the proven product.

How do you know if you have a proven product? The audience you have gathered for your film is a good way to judge and one that will interest sales agents and distributors if you are looking for traditional distribution. It is my very strong belief that filmmakers must begin building their audience from the start of a project and stay engaged with them throughout the filmmaking process so at the end of post production, there is a dedicated group of followers waiting to see the film and tell others about it.

And, the most cost effective way to build an audience for low budget films is online.

Read More by Sheri Candler - http://www.microfilmmaker.com/tipstrick/Issue48/Filmmakers1.html

(c) 2009 Viking Productions Inc.

Planet 51 Movie Trailer

Featuring both Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Seann William Scott in a pairing we haven't seen since The Rundown, Planet 51 features a race of aliens who live in nigh-perpetual fear of an alien invasion.

Their fears, however, aren't so unfounded as a human astronaut crash-lands on Planet 51. Can the stranded astronaut get back to his ship and return home safely, with the help of a few of the planet's denizens? Or will he be captured and dissected?

E3 2009: Planet 51 Game Official Trailer

Official trailer for the game "Planet 51" for Playstation 3

Based on the sci-fi adventure CG family movie from Handmade Films International, which focuses on an alien invasion of a different kind: the human kind!

Astronaut Chuck Baker has landed on a planet that has always feared alien invasion, and now a few youngsters must strive to help this "spaceman" get off their planet before the populace goes crazy!

New Rules of Angel Investing

Angels still have wings, but they aren’t flying quite so high.

Angels are still financing deals, but at lower valuations and with more specific milestones. They have grown more picky and less tolerant of risk.

There has been a sea change in risk sensitivity; the more self-sufficiency a company demonstrates, the less risky it appears.

Entrepreneurs should find ways to finance their own growth: working without salary, moonlighting, seeking grants, running lean operations and focusing on an aspect of the business that can generate revenue.


READ MORE By KERMIT PATTISON - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/29/business/smallbusiness/29angels.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all

Copyright 2009 The New York Times Company