• Tonight, Bob Ray wraps up the West Coast leg of his “Down & Dirty Austin Tour” with a screening of his new doc TOTAL BADASS at the Alamo South Lamar. This is the “true Texas tale of hilarious, crazy-ass writer/publisher/singer/weed-dealer/sex addict/Guinea pig enthusiast/dad/pirate radio host/raconteur and general man-about-town Chad Holt.” Expect some fun road-stories about the tour from Bob & Chad in attendance.
• Tomorrow night sees the homecoming of Austin filmmaker Ben Steinbauer’s hilarious award-winning doc WINNEBAGO MAN, opening in Austin after rolling through theaters in New York, LA and many cities in between and many more to come. For the occasion, the Austin Chronicle has put Ben’s film on the cover.
• Sunday night is a special screening of Bob Byington’s RSO [Registered Sex Offender] at the Ritz, to celebrate the impending Netflix debut of both RSO and Bob’s more recent film HARMONY AND ME. If you’re an AFS member, or one of the first 50 people to buy an advance ticket, you’ll go home with your very own DVD of HARMONY.

Add to this the August 30th Alamo screening of Paul Gordon’s THE HAPPY POET in advance of its international premiere at the Venice Days side-bar of the Venice Film Festival, former Austinite Jenn Garrison’s doc PRIZEWHORES enjoying a 10th anniversary screening on Sept. 14th and Bradley Beesley’s acclaimed doc SWEETHEARTS OF THE PRISON RODEO opening on Sept 17th and it would seem that Austin filmmakers are kicking ass and the Alamo Drafthouse is taking names. And that’s a beautiful thing.

Susan Youssef's HABIBI RASAK KHARBAN

The IFP recently unveiled the 150 titles that will make up the Project Forum of Independent Film Week, which runs Sep. 19-23 in New York City. Selected filmmakers attend meetings with producers, financiers, distributors and consultants throughout the week to help them launch their new projects. There are quite a few TFPF Alumni and AFS-supported filmmakers in the mix:

• Steve Collins has a new script called THE GARDEN as part of the Emerging Narrative program. Steve got a TFPF grant in 2002 for his short GRETCHEN AND THE NIGHT DANGER, which later became the LA Film Festival-award winning feature GRETCHEN.
• PJ Raval (a TFPF recipient for his feature doc TRINIDAD, and for his new UNTITLED GAY RETIREE DOCUMENTARY) is attached to direct another script in the Emerging Narrative program entitled MANHANDLED, written by Krisy Gosney.
• Two projects that were part of the IFP Rough Cut Labs in June, Chris Ohlson’s MELVIN and Susan Youssef’s HABIBI RASAK KHARBAN will return for more mentoring and meetings.
• The “No-Borders” International Co-Production Market will include the new feature LOVE AND MONSTER TRUCKS from Cristina Ibarra, a TFPF recipient for a short film back in 1999.
• The Spotlight on Documentary section includes the new doc feature GIRL MODEL from David Redmon and Ashley Sabin, whose previous doc INTIMIDAD screened as a Doc-in-Progress at AFS.

Congrats to all these projects – fingers crossed you find some dough and/or connections in NYC!

Jay and Mark Duplass

A couple days ago, we got a major donation from former Austinites and current toasts of the town Jay & Mark Duplass, whose new film CYRUS has been racking up accolades and box office dollars since it premiered at Sundance in January (still playing at the Dobie, Alamo South, Metropolitan and Arbor – they voted with their dollars, you vote with yours and go see it!).

George Ratliff

Another big donation came in recently from George Ratliff, one of TFPF’s inaugural grantees for his feature PURGATORY COUNTY back in 1996. George made two excellent documentaries, PLUTONIUM CIRCUS and HELL HOUSE, before returning to features with the chilling and darkly funny evil-kid movie JOSHUA in 2007. His new feature SALVATION BOULEVARD hosts a hell of a cast (Jennifer Connelly, Pierce Brosnan, Marisa Tomei, Greg Kinnear) and will debut next year.

How else has stepped up the plate? Indie auteur Andrew Bujalski of BEESWAX, MUTUAL APPRECIATION and FUNNY HA HA fame; Multiple TFPF recipient Kyle Henry (UNIVERSITY INC, ROOM) currently making waves with his daring and uniquely distributed new project FOURPLAY; Another inaugural TFPF grantee Rahdi Taylor, now Associate Director of the Sundance Documentary Film Program; Karen Kocher, a TFPF recipient in 1997 and director of the AUSTIN PAST AND PRESENT history project; Susanne Mason, director of the twice TFPF-funded WRIT WRITER (her “TFPF story” just posted); Nancy Schiesari, director of the doc TATTOOED UNDER FIRE, also twice-funded by TFPF; and many other former TFPF alumni and filmmakers about Austin and Texas.

Filmmakers helping filmmakers – it’s a beautiful thing, isn’t it? Don’t you want to join these lovely people and make a donation?

Jef Greilich in Chris Ohlson's MELVIN

Our series of festival dispatches from filmmakers who take advantage of AFS’s Texas Filmmakers’ Travel Grant continues with an entry from Chris Ohlson, director of the feature MELVIN, which was 1 of ten films selected for the IFP Filmmakers Labs in June last month.

From Chris:

In early June I attended the IFP Narrative Filmmaker Labs.  My film, MELVIN, was selected as 1 of 10 work-in-progress narrative feature films chosen for its ‘creative promise and vision.’  MELVIN is a simmering road movie about a desperate young man beginning to unravel.

I’ve known about IFP and its programs for as long as I’ve been a part of the greater film community—which is to say about 10 years.  The day that I received my invitation to the Labs was a big day for me personally and professionally. What I didn’t realize, was that ‘invitation day’ was the first of MANY big days that IFP had arranged.

*The Labs’ initial phase is: “Five days of workshops that assist filmmakers with the technical, creative and strategic advice needed to complete their films.”

Now that it’s been a month or so, I can say those five days in New York were wonderful, exhausting, supportive, and overwhelming.  I can also say that I feel like a more-informed, better-supported and stronger filmmaker.  Here are some of the highlights of my week at the Labs.

Day One:

The first day began with the requisite meet and greet of 10 different filmmaking teams.  My writing partner, Gregory Collins, attended with me, and together we met all of the filmmakers and watched clips from all 10 films.  Right away, I was amazed by the wide spectrum of work and humbled by the quality of moments that other filmmakers had been able to capture.  Some have great acting, others have gorgeous cinematography. There were remote locales, widely varied filmmaking approaches and everywhere the feeling that people made their films “come hell or high water.”  I love this place.

Day Two:

The second day included notes on all of the films’ current edits along with feedback and dialogue from the group of new filmmakers and from established editors and filmmakers.  Gregory and I raised our hands first (we’d decided earlier to be the guinea pigs) so that MELVIN was first on the chopping block for critique and discussion.  What we received was honest, frank feedback that is painfully difficult to get sometimes.

The group debated the pros and cons of making big changes in the film and also the minutia—all the while complimenting us on our movie’s positive elements and reminding us how strong the 10-film slate really is.  Our editing mentor Tricia Cooke took the time to really talk to us about MELVIN and when she called the film, “a really brave one, made with a strong directorial voice”—she made my whole week.

Scott Macaulay (editor of Filmmaker Magazine and producer of such films as Gummo, Raising Victor Vargas and many others) and Amy Dotson (Deputy Director of IFP) talked about test screenings and consistently reiterated the mantra: make the film you want to make.  Simple advice, but essential to continuously hear throughout the (often lonely) filmmaking process from people who live it, love it and breathe it.  I jotted a note to myself that said, “Amy has a way of articulating thoughts about films that is so well-informed, with examples from comparable movies—she may now be at the top of my ‘cinephiles I know’ list.”  She is now at the top of it – officially.

Day Three:

Day three brought on some great discussions about music (which was incredibly enlightening, even though MELVIN has no music).  It was wonderful to hear composer Nathan Larson using his own sort of descriptive music language to talk about the films he has worked on. It was a reminder that you don’t necessarily need to understand music on a technical level to collaborate with a composer.

He talked about feeling the music—communicating and describing emotions in whatever way you can.  Barry Cole, a prolific music supervisor, discussed a whole slew of different ways to find the right music for your film.  With all the music readily available to us today, he made it clear that there is always a way to get what you want if you think creatively about your music choices.

Day Four:

Day four was a big one: we all gathered again to discuss marketing our films and finding our audiences.  “Start Simple” seemed to be the mantra for the day.  This was where the Labs really moved on from every filmmaker’s question: “How Do I Get My Film Made?” to the much harder question: “How Do I Get My Film Seen?”

We kicked off the discussion with this: “Think about the 10 people who love your film the most.  Start there.  That’s the center of your audience bull’s-eye.  Then think about the people around them on your audience target.  Who are they?  How do they receive information about films and entertainment? (not everyone is on Facebook and Twitter)  How do they consume media?”

This was the center of our discussion for most of the day. We analyzed each film for audience potential and discussed methods of connecting with them.

Day Five:

By day five—with overflowing to-do lists and heads spinning with all the work to be done—we waded into talks of Publicity, Sales Agents, Festivals and the like. But somehow, it all came full circle again.  We came all the way back around to: make the film you want to make.

And while you’re on your way to doing that, decide what you want your film to give back to you. Do you want it to further your career?  Do you want to make money?  Do you want press?  Decide what you’re really after (be truthful) and grab it.  All the tools and information given to us as Lab fellows really impressed upon us the simple imperative of taking the time to make the best possible film you can.  No truer words can be spoken.

I left the Labs last month completely exhausted and with a slew of new friends, colleagues and supporters. I also left with an endless to-do list and a heap of homework assignments.  You see, the IFP Labs begin again for me in September when all 10 films are included in IFP’s Independent Film Week.  Once again in December we’ll all reconvene for a Distribution Workshop as well.  It’s an altogether amazing experience: IFP seems bent on doing everything possible to help you succeed in making, finishing, and getting your film seen.  For their deep generosity and unfailing support, I am deeply grateful to IFP, to its staff, mentors, and advisors.

*Quick note to other filmmakers out there with works-in-progress: I can’t recommend the IFP Labs enough. The IFP Labs are the only workshops of their kind and they give you an amazing amount of support and resources.  For a film in-the-works, I can’t think of a better vehicle for advice and support.

I’m incredibly grateful to the Austin Film Society for providing me a with a Texas Filmmakers’ Travel Grant to attend the IFP Narrative Labs.  Without this financial support I may not have been able to attend and would have missed out on one of the most informative and supportive professional experiences I’ve ever had.  I give many thanks to AFS for providing this grant opportunity and helping me advance down my filmmaking path.

Chris Ohlson

July 20, 2010

Chris Ohlson is an Austin-based producer and director currently in post-production on his feature directorial debut film, MELVIN.  For more information, check out chrisohlson.com and melvinmovie.com.

An image from ATTENBERG

Athina Rachel Tsangari, former Austinite and UT lecturer, co-founder of the Cinematexas International Film Festival, and mentor to many film students and enthusiasts in Austin in the late 90′s (like yours truly), will premiere her new feature ATTENBERG in the main competition of the Venice Film Festival in September. Considered one of the top film festivals in the world, right up there with Cannes, Toronto and Sundance, Venice’s main competition will feature world premieres of new films by Darren Aronofsky, Julian Schnabel, Sofia Coppola, Vincent Gallo, Takashi Miike and Francois Ozon, among many other major international auteurs.

Tsangari’s first feature THE SLOW BUSINESS OF GOING was shot while she was a graduate student at UT and received a TFPF grant in 1997. It screened at SXSW, Thessaloniki, Rotterdam and the New York Underground Film Festival in 2000/2001. Since then, Tsangari returned to her native Greece and helped create the stunning Opening Ceremonies of the 2004 Athens Olympics and directed the opening ceremonies for the new Acropolis Museum in 2009. Feast your eyes on that. She was also involved as a producer on the films KINETTA (Toronto 2005) and DOGTOOTH (winner of Un Certain Regard at Cannes 2009) from a fellow rising star of Greek cinema, Yorgos Lanthimos, who plays one of the leads in ATTENBERG.

Also in the Venice line-up is Robert Rodriguez’s MACHETE, playing out of competition, and TFPF recipient Paul Gordon’s THE HAPPY POET, screening as the sole American entry in the Venice Days side-bar of independent cinema. The gondolas will be heaped with Austinites!

America Ferrara and Ryan O'Nan in THE DRY LAND

Ryan Piers Williams, a native of El Paso, received a grant from TFPF in 2004 for his short film MUERTAS, which had a very healthy festival circuit run. His first feature, THE DRY LAND, premiered to great acclaim in competition at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and will be released on Friday in NY, LA and Dallas from Maya Entertainment. The film was shot in New Mexico and West Texas and focuses on the crushing effects of post-traumatic stress disorder on a young soldier and his family and friends as he adjusts to civilian life. Great performances from lead Ryan O’Nan, America Ferrara, Jason Ritter and Wilmer Valderrama have made the film a favorite of the festival circuit, with stops at the Dallas, Seattle and Edinburgh, where it won Best International Feature. They’ve also been doing outreach screenings at military bases around the country. You can keep up with the progress of the film on Ryan’s blog.

The film opens at the Arbor on August 13th but will have a preview on August 10th at the Texas State History Museum courtesy of the Austin Film Festival. Ryan was a one-time staff member at the Austin Film Festival and they’re bringing him back to present the film and do a Q & A. Don’t miss it!

From his good friend Greg Gilpatrick, another former Austinite, another former TFPF recipient, here is a biography for Rene:

Born and raised in Mexico City, René Peñaloza-Galvan earned an undergraduate degree in Communications at the University of Texas at Austin, majoring in Radio-Television-Film. He later attended Mexico City’s prestigious Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica film school and earned an MFA degree in Dramatic Writing at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Rene’s award-winning narrative and documentary short films have screened in festivals all over the world, including South By Southwest Film Festival, the International Film Festival Rotterdam, IESAV in Beirut, the Carrefour de Cinemas Festival in Paris, and the Festival International Images du Nouveau Monde in Québec.  His thesis film at CCC, Huevos (Eggs), received a national theatrical release in Mexico.

He was a talented cinematographer, shooting many short films, documentaries, and videos.  His work for fellow University of Texas alum Heather Courtney – Los Trabajadores/The Workers (2003) andLetters From the Other Side (2006) – screened on PBS’s Independent Lens and at several film festivals.  He also worked as an assistant director and producer on film projects.

Rene’s talents went well beyond the arena of film, and he worked as a journalist for art and music magazines and did translations for publishing houses.  He was active as a musician and DJ, playing the jarana jarocha (a guitar-style Mexican instrument) and singing in the band Bachelor Sound Machín.  He co-founded El Mirador, a public exhibition space in Mexico City that sought to bring contemporary art to a wider audience.

Rene spent the past several years living in Brooklyn, New York where he taught video production to high school students in an after-school program.  He continued to direct short films and his last completed short, “Welcome To The World”, won a finishing grant from the Brooklyn Arts Council.

Rene was a great friend and collaborator to many in New York City, Austin, and Mexico.

Der Vater by James Moore

The Houston Film Commission always puts together a great collection of Texas-made shorts for the annual Texas Filmmakers’ Showcase in Los Angeles. This year, 4 of the 6 projects were made by previous TFPF recipients:

Kat Candler, TFPF recipient for her features CICADAS and JUMPING OFF BRIDGES, presents her newest short LOVE BUG. Keep up with her filmmaking adventures on her blog, which she’s been updating in various forms since the CICADAS days (and yes, I’ve been reading it that long).

Ya’Ke Smith received a TFPF grant in 2008 for his new short KATRINA’S SON. Ya’ke is a recent addition to the faculty at the University of Texas-Arlington.

Miguel Alvarez received a 2008 TFPF grant for MNEMOSYNE RISING, which premiered at SXSW this year. A two-time TFPF recipient, he had received one in 2006 for a short documentary.

Scott Rice presents the “viral video” spoof NEVER DO THIS. He previously received a TFPF grant for a short film in 2004.

Scott’s film played in this year’s SXSW AFS Member Showcase along James Moore’s DER VATER, another Texas Filmmakers’ Showcase selection.

The compilation will play at the Directors’ Guild of America Theater in LA on June 25th – always a great event that draws out a large contingent of LA-transplanted Texans.

Kyle Henry is seeking funds for part 3 of his 4-part omnibus feature FOURPLAY (a 2009 TFPF recipient), after a successful fundraising campaign for Part 1: SAN FRANCISCO. Kyle’s been keeping up a fascinating blog about the in-progress project for a while now.

PJ Raval also received a 2009 TFPF grant for his as-yet-untitled GAY RETIREE DOCUMENTARY, but the Kickstarter campaign is for a much… different project – the next two music videos from the self-described “Solider of Pleasure,” Christeene. Their first collaboration, Fix My Dick, screened in the Midnight Shorts program at SXSW this year, prompting the Hollywood Reporter to say it “fits neatly into that category of things you desperately wish you could unsee.” That video and two others can be found on Christeene’s website – they are hilarious and Not-Safe-For-Work-By-Any-Stretch-Of-The-Imagination.

Andrew Cockrum received TFPF grants for projects back in 1997 & 1999 and more recently screened his feature doc TEAM EVEREST as a Doc-in-Progress at AFS before it premiered at the 2007 Seattle Film Festival. His new documentary SHERPA STEW follows several climbing Sherpas of Nepal as they move to New York City as they seek their fortunes away from Everest.

The way it works is that you make a pledge to help the filmmakers reach their stated goal in time (for example, Kyle is trying to raise $3,500 by May 4th for FOURPLAY: TAMPA). Your credit card isn’t charged and the filmmaker doesn’t get the cash unless and until the goal is reached in the time allotted. If the goal is reached, the filmmaker get the dough and Kickstarter takes a small percentage. If the goal isn’t reached, no one is charged. It’s an intriguing new model that has been used with some success by not just filmmakers, but artists of all types.

Austin-based director and producer Chris Ohlson (producer on John Bryant’s THE OVERBROOK BROTHERS and Paul Gordon’s THE HAPPY POET) has already reached his $3,000 goal with 11 days to spare to fund the post-production of his directorial debut MELVIN.  And, Seth Caplan, producer of Austin-based projects THE CASSIDY KIDS, FLATLAND and THE 2 BOBS, has already reached his $5,000 goal with hours to spare for the new animated project PURIM: THE BOOK OF ESTHER.

Other on-going campaigns:

IndieGoGo has KNIFE, a short film by Fort-Worth-based James Johnston (producer of the TFPF-funded feature ST. NICK), and PAUL GOODNOW: MIMOSA DETECTIVE, a feature from Austin-based Craig Elrod, who recently won the SXSW Film Festival’s Texas Shorts award for PETTING SHARKS. And, Kickstarter has ECHOTONE, a feature doc about the Austin music scene that will have its world premiere at Marfa Film Festival next month.

If you have a few bucks to spare, give any of these projects a helping hand. You’ll be helping out a filmmaker and maybe even becoming part of a independent film funding revolution(?)

This deeply moving documentary premiered at the SXSW Film Festival last year and tracks Karen’s unplanned pregnancy and young motherhood while she reunites with her own birth mother.

The screening tomorrow is free and will feature a discussion with the director and producer Megan Gilbride as well as representatives from Planned Parenthood and Marywood Children and Family Services. Don’t miss this chance to see an incredible doc!