filmmaker

Tempered Zealot Productions Interview on Indie FLIX

frightymcgee — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 18:10:43 +0000

We recently did an interview on a show called Indie FLIX with Dan Monroe. The show is airing this month on Cox Cable On Demand along with all of our movies.

If you're interested check out the interview on our website at:

http://www.temperedzealot.com

The video works fine in IE but for some reason not in Firefox. After researching it I think it has something to do with the updated version (9) of the Flash player for Firefox.

http://www.coxcleveland.com

New Interview on Dead Harvey

frightymcgee — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 14:26:20 +0000

Thanks to
Brad over at Dead Harvey for doing an interview with Jerod and myself.
He posted a brief entry about us and then a link to the interview in
PDF format. Though the bulk of the interview covers A Thousand Words: Bloodline, We're hopeing that it also helps to promote the new movie which we'll be shooting in August. Right now, things are on track for that so it's all good. He also put in the Myspace site for the new movie instead of the site for the Bloodline movie, but that's cool because it will help drive traffic to us hopefully. Anyway, enjoy my long wordy answer goodness along with Jerod's short sweet answer topping.

http://www.deadharvey.blogspot.com/

Thanks for the support!

-Justin

Making Progress - Production Update and More

frightymcgee — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 01:12:29 +0000

This is a good day, a very good day.

The pre-production meeting I had Sunday went well
enough. We got to work with the actors on wardrobe, FX, and some other
important details. We made some more changes to the screenplay which
should pump up the tension a bit and lead to a final shooting script!

Today was even better for me in a way because I finally secured the bulk of the budget and was able to purchase the HARPER'S UNION COLLEGE GEAR
for the movie. We will have some clothing show up as well as items like
clocks, mugs, books, bags, etc. Little details like that will really
make the movie better. People who would like a piece of the movie can
purchase these props too: http://www.cafepress.com/revelationmovie

Having
worked out the things we did with the principle cast makes me feel a
lot more at ease. We still have a couple things to iron out but that
will take time as the make-up crew gets put together and works out the
FX needed and how to pull them off. We have to follow that up with
working with the FX people and the actors to make sure everyone is
comfortable and safe.

We have pretty much all the props needed
for the movie from things purchased from previous movies and other
things we've collected over time. This will really cut down on the
budget. We'll still have a couple items to pick up like axes to grind
down and other little things to pull off some of the shots and the FX
stuff. The more I save on budget though, the more I find myself
changing where the freed up money will go.

Anyway, I think we
are all pretty pleased with how things are going at this point. We're
just over a month away from the production and I think we're on track
for being prepared. The only things standing out right now are a couple
locations which won't be hard to lock down and the Art Director needs
to see the main locations that she'll be working with.

Also,
things are going well moving into the COLUMBUS INDIECLUB SUMMER
GATHERING on SUNDAY JULY 13TH from 10AM - 4PM. I'm hoping to see a lot
of people there, this year there are some very cool things going on
like a little activity working with actual film stock and film cameras
generously brought to us by Sean McHenry. There's lots to do and it's a
family friendly event and you can bring pets - THEY MUST BE ON A LEASH!!! Also, unfortunately ABSOLUTELY NO ALCOHOL. Other than that bring yourself a picnic or something to grill and live it up with some cool people.

The
Mid-Ohio Comic Con Film Festival thing is going well. We have a real
and true local celebrity judge for the event and I'm hoping to lock
down a couple more here by tomorrow. I have a good team of people
helping to volunteer for working the event and managing the IndieClub
booth.

Things
are going well again so I'm in a much better place. Still dealing with
personal stuff with family so that's a little rough but I'm dealing and
time kind of got me used to how things are at the moment. There's not
anything I can do to change how things are and I need to just trust in
God that it's all going to work out the way it's supposed to.

Till next update,

Still Working It

frightymcgee — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 05:03:47 +0000

That's right, we're still working our movie 'A Thousand Words: Bloodline'. We just found out the movie is an official selection in the IUSB IVFF (Indiana University South Bend International Video & Film Festival).

This is very cool because this will be our third consecutive year getting something into this festival. We previously screened 'Support an Indie Filmmaker' in 2006 and 'Over Coffee' in 2007.

The film festival website is http://www.rpstudios.net/ivff/ivff08.html

Welcome Sea Dot

veenotph — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 15:08:23 +0000

I want to welcome Sea Dot. I met her once at a lab in New York, but had been running into her online for years.

She had a very good "OTL" entry, which was narrative, but I mostly know of here for her "Avant Garde" work. There are some fabulous pieces on her website - which she can post the URL of, and if she is so kind, perhaps she can upload some of her films here. they are an absolute visual and conceptual treat.

Like Riding a Bike made for a one legged orangutan

sonnyboo — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 02:52:06 +0000

I am tired. I mean exhausted. I've been working straight since my last blog with no days off. Lots and lots of editing. I even started bringing my work home with me and working off a portable 750 Gig Hard Drive. It makes me both happy and sad. I'm ecstatic because I'm hitting my goals for getting out of all debt and working towards a newer, nicer car, but I'm sad because I feel creatively drained and there's no time to dedicate to my artistic inclinations

Although… there was one exception. Even though I worked for 5 hours before, and a few after it…

I managed to work in a little shoot this past Sunday, which was part two of a shoot started the week or two before. I have always put to myself the challenge that if I don't learn something, or aspire to learn some new technique on each shoot, then I won't do it. On this little sidebar, I wanted to work with HD, lighting a set to look like a real location, and also therapeutically work with another editor, other than myself. All that, and of course because I was requested to make something by a real studio for their own needs. That's what really got me to get back into the making of….. a short.

I shan't divulge much, as I will uncharacteristically let the work unfold more or less on it's own and then talk about how and why it was made. All I really feel like saying, aside from the picture-poems from set, is that this was not an easy shoot, nor was it the most fun I ever had. I was tenser than normal and quite frankly, out of practice as a director.

The next stage, is the often over looked sound design, sound mix, recording stage of making a movie. I have very high standards when it comes to sound. That's why when it comes to HORRORS OF WAR there is a thorn in my side about the sound mix. I had a lengthy set of notes about what the movie needed and it was denied by the powers that be. I did manage to slip one past the goalie and make some sound additions on the final Stereo Dolby 2.0 mix, but the 5.1 surround mix is actually inferior because it's not full or rich enough to fill in the space as both myself and the sound studio themselves intended.

For this little project, I intend to put some real time into the sound mix, plus work on sound design as it's one of the most under-appreciated aspects of any movie. I'll wind up doing it myself because I don't want to shell out the $$$ to another sound designer, especially one I've never worked with and the ones I'd want are out of my price range.

I finally get to work with Arya, my friend from Cleveland doing a proper score for something I'm doing. He pre-wrote the music before we shot. It was important, so I needed it and it was there for me before we even shot.

I spent money on this short. Not a lot, but it's not as cheap as most of my movies, nor was it as flippant. I guess that's another reason I was under self imposed pressure. As well as missing the deadline that it was intended for. That sucked. My obsessive-compulsive nature has gone on vacation as I deal with the after-math of that.

Not much else to report. The local Columbus film scene is alive with rumors and goings on. Blissfully, I am not a part of any of it. I'm just a spectator, neither enjoying nor hating the activities, but rather just observing the behavior.

When your reputation starts to go down the toilet, you can only assume that maybe some aspect of what people are saying is true. I'd recommend a time of self reflection and ponder the mathematics. If 100 out of 100 people are saying that don't want to work with you, then you are probably faced with the reality that you're doing something wrong.

My Sexy Fiancé Veronica --'s car had its engine nearly fall out yesterday on I-270. I happened to be out getting color copies so I rushed in and had a real "Boyfriend" moment as I rescued her from oncoming traffic and got her to work. Now I'm loaning her my car for the next week as that whole ordeal is sorted out.

Why is it when MY car has issues, I'm on my own, but when she has issues and has to get to her minimum wage job, I have to give up my keys? I guess the obvious answer is that because I'm either a sucker or frankly because I'm not all that bothered by not having a car. Either that or there's some kind of relationship handbook I'm missing that dictates that fairness is not really applicable. Also, I didn't HAVE to give up my keys. I volunteered them, more so because I didn't want to wake up at 6:20AM 7 days a week to drive her to work. My Sexy Fiancé Veronica -- works a lot these days at 2 jobs.

More on the shoot and work methods after there's something more to show. I'm expecting to see a rough cut on Monday or so. Then some post-audio work shall begin and a re-edit for picture will ensue.

Till, then – stay at a regulated temperature and never talk to strangers that want money from you,
- Ross

Check out ATW: Bloodline!!!

frightymcgee — Sun, 16 Sep 2007 18:58:59 +0000

We are coming up on a good chunck of the festivals and conventions our movie will be showing at so we wanted to make another push for people to check it out. I'll be posting a few clips from the movie over the next couple days which is huge for us because we pretty much said this would never make it online. Even though it's only parts of the movie, we're still a little pensive about it. But to go along with that I compiled all the information about the movie into one post and here it is:

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If we haven't convinced you to check out our AWARD WINNING movie A Thousand Words: Bloodline, maybe you haven't been paying attention. So we thought we would post a couple clips from the movie to help people to get interested.

You've seen the trailer:

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=9035830

You've seen the reviews:

http://www.choppingblockfilms.com/reviews/thousandwords.html
http://www.horrorview.com/Reviews/A/ATWBloodlines.htm
http://thezombiereview.com/modules/article/view.article.php?76/p0/c6
http://www.fatally-yours.com/horror/a-thousand-words-bloodline/
http://www.bumscorner.com/bumnuke/index.php?module=ProdReviews&func=showcontent&id=707
http://www.killerreviews.com/display_review.asp?reviewtype=ur&id=5390

Even an interview with the cast:

http://www.myspace.com/www.choppingblockfilms.com/castcrewbloodline.html

And if we haven't given you enough to look at check out these links too:

ATW: Bloodline - Official Site: http://www.temperedzealot.com/films/atw2/

ATW: Bloodline - News: http://www.temperedzealot.com/bloodline.html

ATW: Bloodline - Official Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/atwbloodline

ATW: Bloodline - Presskit: http://films.temperedzealot.com/atw2/documents/atw2_presskit.pdf

ATW: Bloodline - Festivals:

WINNER:The Indie Gathering - http://theindiegathering.com/

Atlanta Horrorfest - http://www.atlantahorrorfest.com/home.htm

Frightmares Film Festival - http://www.myspace.com/frightmaresfest

Spooky Movie Film Festival - http://www.thespookymovie.com/

Fright Night Film Fest - http://www.frightnightfilmfest.com/

Sacramento Horror Fest - http://www.sachorrorfilmfest.com

Akron Independent Film Festival - http://gozips.uakron.edu/%7Ernh8/mainpage.html

Also we will be screening at Cinema Wasteland: http://www.cinemawasteland.com/show.html

Justin Lewis Directing Reel - Sort of

frightymcgee — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 18:48:53 +0000

Ok, so this is a bit off compared to the ones that have been posted here before me. I thought I would throw it up here with everyone posting their Reels. The thing is I didn't have a lot of examples of what a directing reel was, so this looks more like maybe a cinematography reel but it's not. I'll have to go back and edit this to more match a director's reel. Still I like the video and the clips I chose and the music.

Over Coffee Featured in South Bend Tribune

frightymcgee — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 17:19:24 +0000

Our short dark comedy Over Coffee (http://www.temperedzealot.com/films/oc/) has been featured in an article about short films which will be screening in the Midwest America Filmmaker's Evening of Comedy. You can check out the article online here http://www.southbendtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070826/Ent/708260508/1040/Ent .

You'll also find another Columbus filmmaker, John Whitney, has his film 'The Fixer' (http://www.gilwhitney.com/thefixer.htm) mentioned. Both films were in the Indiana University of South Bend International Video and Film Festival where they caught the interest of the people putting together this Midwest America Filmmaker's event. The Fixer actually won the Committee Choice Award in the IUSB IVFF.

I would urge people to check out http://www.temperedzealot.com/ just because there's a lot of good stuff on there in the links and resources section as well as lots of information on past, and present projects. We also have a nice talent section and some other cool pages. Also, be sure to hit the "films" page because it has a special section dedicated to each of our shorts.

Thanks!

Support An Indie Filmmaker

frightymcgee — Sun, 05 Aug 2007 10:06:00 +0000

The world of indie filmmaking is revealed by an out-of-work B-movie actor.