EPK fun with Jim, Gary, Larry, Aaron, Danyale and ... moi!

We finished our EPK (electronic press kit) interviews (backstage stuff) for THE WHOLE TRUTH Thursday!

Actor Jim Holmes ("Brad Sanders" in TWT - you may recognize him from a hundred other roles he's had in projects like 24, Boston Legal, films galore), my business partner Gary Allen Tucci, producer Larry Estes and I each chatted about our experiences making the film, working with the entire cast and crew, and our impressions of the film itself.





My assistant, Aaron Heinzen, posed the questions as we sat on the hotseat for Dave Wilson's camera.

Aaron is a pro - in addition to working for radio stations in the past, he is also the color commentator for FOX Sports Northwest (FSN) television at all the Portland Timbers professional MLS soccer games.

There's a big game coming up between the Timbers and chief rival the Seattle Sounders Wednesday, July 1 in case you'd like to catch him in action.

Deal is - Aaron is a former professional soccer player. He played for the Timbers until injuries caught up with him. But he lives in Seattle. So of course as a color commentator for the Timbers if you hear any bias ... it's only because he carries a warm spot in his heart for the team with which he played.



Anyway, he did a great job tossing thoughtful questions at us, then following up on our answers. You'll see the results of our interviews over the next several weeks - but here are some photos of the EPK session I caught as the day progressed.



Here's Gary in the hair and make-up chair. He told us that as we age, little hairs we have in our ears fall out - and cause problems with our equilibrium.

That's why we have trouble negotiating gravity as we get into our senior years.

O...K. Thank you for sharing, Gary!

Fortunately, our hair and make-up artist Danyale Cook avoided cutting his ear hairs so his interview was very balanced.

The beautiful Danyale asked that I not take her picture because she wasn't feeling photogenic. I know I have days like that. But she was kind enough to let us use her Pure Alchemy Salon (completely green, too!) for our interviews. It's a lovely shoppe with a terrific ambiance; nothing pretentious, which is what we're all about.


Danyale puts a little make-up on Gary to bring out his eyes for the camera ... this is a rough and rugged self-made man. He started working at physical labor since he was 12 and does Iron Man competitions for fun.

But he was totally at ease with all the hair and make-up fussing it takes to look good on camera so he could talk about his experience as executive producer for THE WHOLE TRUTH.


"Did you see me in 24?"

"I think everyone did, Jim"

"Did you see me in Boston Legal?"

I actually did an improv sketch on camera with him! It took a lot of nerve performing with this guy - he's the master of timing!

Jim's also a drama teacher for the theater department at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles! Or is that theatre department, Jim? ;-)

Producer Larry Estes gets his hair washed .. Danyale gave him a haircut.

After the taping.

In his EPK interview you'll see Lar with his old do, which is long and mega curly!


Danyale's wanted to get her hands on those curls since she first met him!

Danyale did the brilliant hair work on THE WHOLE TRUTH. She creates phenomenal wigs one hair at a time - she's one of the few hair artists who can do the work she does. She has been with the Seattle Opera for years.




Here's producer Larry with his longer locks as he and executive producer Gary chat.


OK, I won't be insulted. Photographer Dave Wilson and Aaron look at the monitor trying to figure out how to frame me in the most attractive way.


"I don't know. What do you think?"


"Gosh. I don't know. What do you think?"


Guys. I can hear you! ;-)

A fun, productive day - I'll show you the results over the next few weeks!

THE WHOLE TRUTH World Premiere!

First, the private reception was a *blast!* Family, friends, crew and cast gathered at the 7 Salon with great food, conviviality and conversation.

Andy, our host at the magnificent, huge salon, created a perfect atmosphere - complete with a dj and music that he didn't play so loudly we could actually talk at a reasonable decibel, two bartenders, three film posters strategically placed, tables, glassware, the works.

The food was fantastic - it flew off the plates so we quickly ordered more!

Seattle's film industry folks are known for serving weak, meager, tasteless finger foods; we dished out substantial sustenance for our guests to show them the way to feed guests properly.

Don Woods from the Icicle Ridge Winery in Leavenworth brought his magnificent, award-winning wines for all to taste and drink. A beautiful backdrop graced his table as well.

I got many compliments on the make up job Danyale Cook did for me. Gosh, I hardly recognized myself .. ;-). Lots of photos will be coming soon - I ended up not taking pictures because I was running around so much, but our set photographer took lots of piccies, so I'll share them as soon as Frank sends them to me!

It was a genuine pleasure meeting you blog readers at the reception - Amanda, you looked FAB-ulous! As well as seeing so many of the crew members who made a qualitative and personal difference in making the film. Without them, not only would it not have the quality it does - it wouldn't have the heart. My partner Gary Allen Tucci put it well: we felt like a production family.

And we're all ready to do it over again on our next film THE LONELY GOATHERD as soon as we get the distribution situation taken care of with THE WHOLE TRUTH.

Several folks showed up expecting to buy a ticket when they arrived, only to find there were no more tickets on sale. See how it pays to read my blog? I said tickets were selling out, then sold out right here and they didn't read it.

Many people hoping for "rush" tickets did get seated, however. These are tickets that are sold if there are any seats empty left minutes before the screening.

Because of that, previews and other SIFF business - not to mention me introducing most of our guests - the film started late, and it was already a late screening. Which means it started a little TOO late for most working folks.

But, the comments after the film were wonderful - what a fine film it was; how much they enjoyed it from start to finish, how amazing the music was, how well written, how terrific the performances were, how great the casting, etc. It was all I could have hoped for. The cast, my partner executive producer Gary Allen Tucci, producer Larry Estes and composer Ragnar Rosinkranz all joined me at the front of the room to answer questions and whatever the folks left wanted to say.

Mireille and Caitlin - readers of my blog (you read their comments all the time) and HUGE SPF fans, who flew in from Montreal and the Midwest respectively for the film's WP and will see it again later today(!) at the Wednesday screening - loved the film, got *my* autograph for Louise, a friend of theirs in England and of course spent time with SPF who had a great time entertaining them.

Local folks were impressed with how down to earth Sean is - how fantastic and real all our actors are. But I tend to work with folks who are good people as well - I find them better performers for the very most part.

As for me - to be frank, I was so nervous about how the crowd would react, I was a little distracted - listening for every little chuckle, guffaw, belly laugh, giggle, snort. The thing I was most aware of: there was no fidgeting. This is a good thing.

In a crucial scene that required the audience be silent, a complete hush filled the room. I could not even hear anyone breathing.

I sat between Sean Patrick Flanery and Elisabeth Röhm. Since it was the first time he saw the film, Sean was of course a bit contemplative of his (fantastic) performance and has a soft laugh. Elisabeth was totally relaxed and laughed out loud many times, as did other cast members.

At the end, Sean told me he "Loved it;" that he was "Excited as hell" about the film and its future. Whew. He's a tough critic of his own work and (rightfully) others, so that means a lot to all of us working on and with the film and its distribution.

The audience applauded several times at the end of the film, and because of the late hour, many had to leave at its completion - but several troopers stayed for the q&a with the cast, Gary, Larry, Ragnar and me, which was a lot of fun. I shared a sample of the singing that went on during the shoot. Some of the stuff captured by our sound crew during the shoot will be featured on my blogs as time goes by as well as on the dvd's.

When we left, Elisabeth had to return to relieve her babysitter - she brought her 14-month old. The babysitter noted that Elisabeth's daughter Easton was "amazing." She had never met such a contented toddler - especially after flying! Elisabeth is a phenomenal mom! Easton's dad Ron Wooster was on hand, too for all the festivities - and he's another reason Easton is so well adjusted!

Editor Stephen Myers, Jim Holmes, Rick Overton and I had a sarsaparilla in the bar at their hotel to chat about the film. Everyone considered the film and its premiere a complete success. I think *that* is when I started to breathe again.

Coming home to so many laudatory emails was also rewarding!

OK, well it's going on 3am and I have to get up in just a few hours to rush around running errands with Elisabeth and my assistant Aaron - whose mom came all the way from Yakima to see the film - before the next screening!

To everyone in the audience who shared the world premiere and special evening with us - thank you from the bottom of my heard. You are, after all, the reason we do what we do!

The Whole Truth is screened!

I'll just say this: it was incredibly successful.

The response was so positive .. and of course we can actually *hear* people laugh, which is the biggest payoff for a comedy.

How difficult it is to sit through a drama you've filmed as the audience sits there tight-lipped - so you never know if they like it until they leave (or you read about it in tomorrow's newspaper).

Stephen Meyers, our editor supreme, and I locked the film today, cutting bits and scenes here and there to make it tighter, a better paced story and staying true to the characters.

I lost two of my favorite scenes. Ow. It hurt to make those decisions. But it has to be done for the sake of a better film. They were fine scenes but the created a small lull in the otherwise fast-paced story. One was just plain downright gorgeous. The other touching.

We'll include them as extras when we create the DVD.

Some of the comments:

"Elisabeth Röhm is phenomenal. She carries the story from the first frame of the film to the last."

"Eric Roberts was unbelievable. I had no idea he could be so f**king funny!"

"I loved Sean Patrick Flanery. He gave the film a real warmth."

"The film is hilarious - and the characters are still believable."

"Loved the music. It was perfect - in the parts where there was music." (The rest of the music is on its way from composer, who will finish scoring the locked film.)

"The film was actually logical. I liked that. Lots of comedies leave logic behind."

"The actors all felt like they were having a great time - like they were having so much fun performing their roles." ('tis true! We all had a wonderful time and want to work together again!)

There were many comments on the excellent acting - straight across the board, from beginning to end - not a weak link in the group.

The most wonderful comments revolved around how entertaining the whole film is - and how it felt like they were seeing a "real movie" - the first they've seen in a long, long time. Our budget may have been limited, but our imaginations and resourcefulness were not. It has the look of a film with a much greater budget - thanks to the whole cast and crew.

Folks left feeling like they were genuinely entertained by a film that didn't take shortcuts or "write down" to its audience or stupid-up the script to get a cheap laugh, even though there are many "over the top" moments.

Producer and hyper critic Larry Estes was in the audience and was *heard* laughing! Executive producer Gary Allen Tucci laughed all the way through the feature. That was *good* news!

Other things viewers loved:

The wardrobe! Rebecca Luke is the general of our clothing batallion in our "aesthetic army!"

The look of the film! Rachel Thomson is our production designer; Ted Barnes the gaffer (lights!)Paul Mailman the DP (camera!), and Greg Smith our grip (action! Moving and coordinating all the electrical cords and stuff).

We can only hope the audience we invite to the January screening feels the same with all the cuts and improvements we've made. We'll also have an elementary sound mix, the proper opening, color correction and special effects included. After that, we have one more go at the edit, proper sound mixing and the film is ready for you to see!

Whew.

Now back to work on pre-production for our next feature, The Lonely Goatherd!

Creative References

Now that the script for our Heart Break Productionz feature comedy The Whole Truth is locked and has scene numbers, we're flying into production action.

We're interviewing some terrific candidates for key crew positions (Director of Photography, Production Designer, local Casting Director, make-up, hair, wardrobe and so on). They've read an earlier incarnation of the script - it's better now - and come with ideas and questions for us as well.

Something that helps the technical/artistic crew members is called a "Creative Reference." I have in the past referred to it as my Film List, but now that I'm working in feature films, I discover the more accurate name is Creative Reference.

This is a list - comprehensive but not exhaustive - of films that have an element that would, IMO, serve our film well. Whether it's blocking (where/how characters move), design (scenery, background, colors, props), camera movement, symbolism or a number of other integral parts of scenes, scenery and style.

The idea is *not* to copy anyone - far from it. It is to recognize effective cinemagraphic techniques that could tell the story best.

So I watched about 40 films that I believed would have something that we (the production team) could use, update, twist or incorporate in a new or unusual way.

This is where knowing about films from the past and film history comes in handy.

From those, I selected nine for my list, writing what I saw in each that could lend effective creative elements - some minor, some major - to our film. Dramas and comedies are considered because, remember, we're looking for technical references as well as story telling techniques.

For example, one of the films I list on my Creative Reference sheet is Rob Reiner's classic, "This Is Spinal Tap."

Now, The Tap is *nothing* like The Whole Truth. Nothing.

The Whole Truth is tightly scripted, The Tap is mostly improv'ed by a cast of brilliant writer/actors. But what I see in The Tap that I believe will work for us? The sincerity of the characters; there's never one false note.

Those characters are simply who they are. None tries to be funny. They only react as their characters would honestly to the bizarre situations in which they find themselves, which are actually fairly realistic for show biz.

So, for our film, I listed: This Is Spinal Tap - the sincerity of the characters. No one tries to be funny, they are simply and honestly themselves. Billy Crystal tells the only joke (you'll have to see the film to find it) in the entire film.

The folks we're interviewing try to watch at least the top few films on my list to understand how I see an aspect of the acting or their technical make-up helping our project.

If the Creative Reference list is properly and well done - the crew folks who read it should immediately see what I see, the way I see it. It's written carefully, conscientiously.

Their job is to help me realize my vision as the director - but directing is a completely collaborative job. It takes a village of crew and cast to help bring that vision to life - what we directors do is, in the end, take credit for the work of The Whole Creative Village. ;-)

Now, by sharing my Creative Reference list, they can come up with notions that only enhance my concept and vision, bringing me ideas and creative choices to make that vision become a living, breathing reality in a way that, hopefully, you will enjoy on a number of levels.

This is a very layered film. You'll have the opportunity to enjoy it on a very simple level - from taking that roller coaster ride of "just" a funny film for a sheer escape from your day-to-day life, to an examination of the darker sub-stories, to many other levels of character analysis, story telling and subject matter.

Which is why casting is crucial. The folks cast in our film must be able to *act,* and well. We're working with some top casting folks in LA (who are amazing) and we'll be working side by side with a well-known Seattle casting director, too.

When all our crew is in place, I'll be listing them here.

Executive Producer Gary Allen Tucci and I have been so fortunate to hook up with, IMO, the best producer in the biz with the passing of Sydney Pollack, Larry Estes. His enthusiasm, vast knowledge and support for The Whole Truth are making certain we maintain our very high standards of quality and priority of doing the best job we possibly can to work on behalf of our real boss.

That's you.

Our audience.

Of dogs and wheels

Gary Allen Tucci, my business partner and executive producer of our Heart Break Productionz' film The Whole Truth and I were pondering some of the needlessly large egos in show biz.

We have what we call the Heart Break Productionz Way of working with people - not having people work "for" us. You gotta be professional and know your stuff - and once you're aboard? The CP/GAT/HBPz Way means respect, appreciation, good manners, consideration, a creative work environment, working hard, taking responsibility and a sense o' humor.

Although the ultimate buck stops with Gary and me, we do not consider ourselves "Big Wheels."

Nor would we ever want to.

Why?

As Gary puts it, "You know what dogs do to wheels, don't you?"

I'd just as soon stay out of that line of fire, thank you.

Heart Break Productionz supports:

Executive producer (and my biz partner in Heart Break Productionz) Gary Allen Tucci and I agreed: we want Heart Break Productionz to support in word and deed a special, terrific cause that deserves kudos, financial (and other) donations and media exposure.

After some research, we decided on First Place.

First Place is a school for homeless kids in Seattle - but the staff and volunteers provide so much more than readin', writin' and 'rithmetic for youngsters without a permanent home, kids on the run with a parent escaping domestic violence, and kids who are constantly moving for whatever reason.

Donations of money, clothes, books and all sorts of school supplies are always welcome.

Teachers, staff and volunteers work to keep classes limited to 14 - there are often as many as five adults in a classroom at once, which means these kids are getting a new and positive lease on life.

I'll be showing you photos of the school's interior. It's a secure large building whose location is supposed to be confidential, but I've seen the address disclosed in places when it's not supposed to be.

The kids - my assistant Matt and I took a tour just yesterday - are really well behaved, happy and excited about learning; excited about understanding how to deal with life. Before you think they were "told" to behave, the kids didn't even know we were there.

As I told our guide Melissa. The point of good child care is not to protect children against all pain because that's impossible, but to teach kids how to deal with pain in a way that is healthy and positive so they can create rewarding lives and relationships as they grow up and have children of their own.

She emphatically agreed.

There will be much more about First Place here - photos, stories and all sorts of good stuff - as well as on the Heart Break Productionz and The Whole Truth websites soon; we're also mentioning the school in media appearances and any other opportunity we get.

Later I'll be doing some special workshops for the kids regarding writing, acting and making films; Gary is not only a great father of three kids himself and loves kids, but has a number of skills I bet youngsters would love to hear about and see. He's into boats and cars and motorcycles and all sorts of other cool things he'd love to share with the students.

Ultimately -- when our films make a profit -- we will be donating a percentage of our proceeds to the school.

This school is making a phenomenal difference to kids who otherwise would not only be at extreme risk, but unhappy, dysfunctional and lost.

Most importantly, First Place is a private, non-profit establishment, which means it can't be politicized or influenced by government input or school district politics, its budget can't be juggled and the kids don't have to worry about unexpected changes or the physical state of the building eroding.

More, the school is scheduled to expand physically and include a curriculum that will feature pre-school and kindergarten classes in the future.

Hats off to all the staff, teachers and volunteers of First Place who work hard to right the wrongs done to innocent children who now have the chance for a new start.