ADULT ANNIE - THE CAST IS COMING TOGETHER!

We are jolly excited about our new thang, ADULT ANNIE. The rewrite is finished, the casting is coming together, Including the addition of the talented, warm and so damn funny actor DAVID BURR.

David joins the cast as STAN SKINNER, a likable conservative Republican who loves his country and believes in life, limited liberty, and the pursuit of happiness - translation, the right-wing way.

David's audition was a standout, someone who brings it the first time and goes with the flow. WE are delighted to have him join us.

Here's a little snippet of STAN and daughter Annie:

STAN 

You sure you really gotta go? 

ANNIE 

I wish I didn't have to Daddy, but 

I'm on deadline for a project. 

STAN 

I remember. That chicken ranch 

fiasco in Nevada you were telling 

me about. I don't know why you 

can't fix it up from here. 

ANNIE 

I need to be home, Daddy. 

Everything I need is there. My 

computer - 

STAN 

You brought your laptop. 

ANNIE 

My files - 

STAN 

Isn't that what that cloud thing 

you have is for? 

ANNIE 

You know I would if I could. 

STAN 

So do. Just through the weekend. 

AND IT'S A NO

Yep - the ATX TV festival pitch contest opted to not advance our pitch EAST OF THE 405 to the final round. We were devastated? No. Disappointed? No. Are we pumped up? YES!!!
The great thing about our project, is we love it. We loved pitching it, loved the concept and can't wait to finish the pilot!

So stay tuned for the results! We're hoping to have the first draft done this month (along with a million other things)

AND IN TRIBUTE TO THE OSCARS...

THE best Oscar moment ever, with some commentary. And I'm old enough (Cary isn't) to have watched it on TV as it happened,

WSSW - WRITE/SHOOT, SUBMIT, WAIT -  THE CONTEST COMPETITION GAME

Last year, Cary and I were fortunate enough to be able to pitch our web projects to Yahoo Digital. It was a great experience, made better when they actually were interested in some of our work, interested enough to ask us for the pilot episode of our yet un-shot series. So in less than 24 hours we put together an 10 page pilot pitch. They ultimately passed but said the door was always open for other projects.

For some, the rejection is a pick-up-your-toys and go home moment, but for Cary and I the resilient thing was we both felt we had a solid project even though they had passed. So we moved forward with the concept and ended up shooting a ninety-second pitch piece (see in previous blog) that we submitted into a TV pitch competition early in January. The early part of next week is when we find out if we've moved on to the next round. Or knot -

No that wasn't a typo. It is "or knot," cause knots are always what you get in your stomach, in your heart and your head while you wait for the word, the letter, and nowadays the email, where in a single missive you get the news that all the work you've done is either worthless or "worthy" enough to move on to the next round of judging.

I was lucky back when I began my writing career. The very first script I wrote placed third in the American Screenwriters International Screenwriting Competition in 2001. The luck was that my first foray was a "hey, you CAN write" endorsement of sorts. Of course, all the other nothing that happened as a result of it was also an endorsement - of my naiveté. But jumping in and having a validation of my writing so quickly was fortunate. Because the waiting and the knots, and the almost made its and the "I didn't connect with it at all" comments of my scripts that came later, would have had an even more devastating effect on my tender little ego if I hadn't begun my journey with a third place win.

So here we are again, waiting to hear if the person or persons deciding on our TV pilot project's fate connected enough with it to ask us back for a second round of judging.  We will keep you posted either way, although if a "death to all contest judges' post appears on this page, I guess you'll probably know how it went.

MORE ERIN HOLT

Actor ERIN HOLT, a SPENT TV fan favorite will be performing at SERIAL KILLERS tomorrow night here in Los Angeles. A mastress of improv and comedy, it's certain to be a great night of subversive and sinful fun. Check it out! Only $7! Show starts at 11pm.

http://www.sacredfools.org/misc/serialkillers/

LOOKING FOR A LOCATION!

We are looking for a basement or garage that can sub for a basement for one of our upcoming shoots. Call us at 310-535-7985 if you know of a place we can use!

WRITING TRADER JOES

The most wonderful thing for a writer is when someone reads your words on a page or a screen and relates to them. When they enter the verbal world you've created and jump on the story ride. Of course once they've read your story and they tell you they love it, or that they couldn't put it down, or that it is unique and brilliant, that totally rocks. It's the ultimate connection. But what it doesn't do, is pay the bills. You may have written a great film, or a great play, even a box office gem or an award winner. But all the compliments, all the pats on the back, don't appease your landlord, the gas company, or Trader Joe's.

I tried it. I had a basket full of goodies at the Trader Joe's in Silverlake. When it came time to pay, I said, I'm a brilliant writer - thank you, and picked up my bags. When I turned to leave the pseudo-shocked cashier reminded me of the balance. I reiterated my brilliance. She reiterated my $27.72 grocery total. The others waiting in line enjoyed the humor. Maybe even concurred that I was brilliant.

But I still had to pay.

The most difficult part of being creative, of living a creatively centered life, is still having to pay the bills and rarely being paid for your 'brilliance."

WATCH OUR TV PILOT PITCH - EAST OF THE 405!

Speaking of brilliance, brilliant writer/director CARY TUSAN and brilliant writer/director me, LAURA BUTLER, are working on our new TV project EAST OF THE 405. We shot the pilot pitch, helped by a generous group of actors - JOSHUA EVANS, CHYNA CHUU, JOSH HELLER, CORY GLUCK, and ERIN HOLT. GIVE IT A WATCH!

THE MOMS AND POPS JOURNEY: SUNDANCE

Some go to Sundance for the movies, others for the parties ( I'm talking about you James "Come-out-of-the-closet" Franco), and others like me, for the creative submersion that the Sundance experience is. The parties this year were ones where the people sitting next to you actually made films, shot films, and directed films. Cards were exchanged, lunches have already taken place back in LA, and the possibility of getting MOMS AND POPS made seems more real and brighter than ever. And for me, that's why it is worth the ten-plus hour car drive and the minus-eight degree temperature. It's the hope. The hope and the movies. And the thermal shirt and flannel pajama bottom swag I got too.

Cary likes the good food, or in some cases, not so good food, the movies, and the cute girls, as well he should (he's single and a wonderful man, so listen up ladies). He is so connected even Harvey Weinstein asks him who people are when they are at the same party. People love Cary, so it's so much fun to go to events with him and see how others connect with him and respect him the way I do. But he's been in the industry longer than me, seen so much,  sometimes when I get pumped up and full of that YES WE CAN fervor upon our return,  he's like yeah, uhum. We'll see.

And I'm sure that comes from his years as a writer and former development executive and going through the "please read our script thing." That's where we are at now, the read it and will you please give us money thing.  The read it thing always, always, always, comes with notes. For me the writer, that means it's rewrite time - try this, punch up that, are you sure about that ending? Just when you think you're going to get to the next step, you have to cement your butt to an uncomfortable chair again and ---gulp--REWRITE.

My goal now is to "tighten it up a bit" (translation - loose ten pages to get it under 100), make it grittier, and a bit less commercial. Now personally, I am happy with these current set of notes, the ones that came with a comment that it has the potential to be a great film. The funny part is and always, always is, is that these newest set of notes are 360 degrees different than the first set of notes we got, in other words, it was grittier, it was a bit less commercial, it was under a hundred pages, lolo,  a few drafts back.

And that is what writing and getting a feature made is - it is the luck of landing at that exact moment, with that exact reader, with that exact draft, and getting that exactly perfect answer, that - YES. Let's go with this. Until that day, a writer's work is never, never, ne-verrrrr, done. Period.

LIKE OUR FACEBOOK PAGE!

As we pack up 2012 and blaze our way into 2013, we are hoping to spread the word about SPENT TV and get more eyes on our content. So please, like our SPENT TV FACEBOOK PAGE and post our FB page link on your FB page. Or Tweet us. Or Path us (sounds oddly like pathos). Or make your own SPENT TV flyers at home and distribute them in your neighborhood! (Was that too much to ask? Sorry.)

In return for your generosity, come late January we will be bringing you a great new season with your fan favorites LLA and FAST TRACK as well as two new shows, one a reboot of one of our classics and the other a SPENT TV foray into cooking.

Thanks in advance!!!!!

Dorian Martin, Gerarad Marizilli, Waide Riddle and David Holst in LLA

Jeannie Boulet in FAST TRACK

SPEAKING OF FAN FAVORITE - 

CHECK OUT MASSELIN HOUSE #4

This month our most viewed SPENT TV webisode is Masselin House. CHUCK COUDRAIN stars as the drug addled son of a woman who runs a halfway house. It's one of our oldie but goodie classics, so give it a watch and share with your friends.

MOMS AND POPS and "RED 2"

Besides 'stealing' the actors we'd love to have in our project MOMS AND POPS, what else do we have in common with the RED 2? The smarts to know that audiences old AND YOUNG want to see older people that are active, engaged and not just cookie making senior citizens who lawn bowl and watch the food network. RED, the original shocked the box office (and the critics) by raking in the cash. Helped by a comic book fan base, the film quietly exploded at the box office (hence RED 2). Our MOMS AND POPS project is strong in it's action, and rich in character as well. It's layered, thoughtful, funny and tragic at the same time.

In case you missed the pitch piece (not the trailer -just a pitch piece) here it be:

We're building out the MOMS AND POPS web page now and hope once it's up, you'll want to meet the characters in our film, and get to know them a little.

THE CART BEFORE THE HORSE

For indie filmmakers there is a shell game that has existed since the beginning, we're talking long before the Island Pictures and Harvey-Harvey-Miramax days - it's the money and talent thing. The fact no one will give you money to make your project until you have a profitable director or acting talent attached and no profitable director or actor will attach to your project (rather their CAA agent won't allow them) until they see mean bunches of green in a bank account, enough at the very least to pay them.

So what do you do? Crowd sourcing our not, the truth is it is a rare thing for an indie director/writer/producer to be handed a million dollars to go shoot a film with George Clooney, Angelina Jolie or Meryl Streep. Period. So what you often do is lie.

Yep. You tell the assistant who tells the agent who tells their client that there's money in the bank. At the same time you tell the production company and the potential distributor and of course the potential sales agent that the A- list actor's agent loves the script and is reading it now. Or better yet, that the A-list actor is "interested." Or yep, even better still, sometimes= you tell the big whopper and say the A-list actor wants to do it and is ready to attach.

Then you cross your fingers and hope that it all works out.

Most of the time it doesn't. Sometimes it does, but who's going to cop to the lying?

It's a frustrating game to be sure. Even more frustrating when you don't want to pick up a phone, schedule a meeting or sit down at a table and play it. It's a tough game when all you want to do is make your dang movie!

That said, we are now on the hunt for great talent. We are on the beg and plead search for the managers that are not too jaded, and the agents that have yet to grow too greedy, People that will read our not fully-funded script and tell their talented clients that they must-must-must work with us.

We'll keep you posted on how that goes.

WE ARE NOT ALONE

At our meetings at AFM everyone seemed interested in our project. Several articles the past two years reflect that same sentiment,  the interest in projects targeting an older, broader audiences. During AFM THR reported on one such film sale.  We are not alone!

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/michael-douglas-diane-keaton-movie-386286

SPENT TV:  THE CLASSICS

Speaking of oldies, if you haven't checked out our CLASSICS section on the SPENT TV webnet. One of our viewer favorites is PORN KING - hold on, hold on, it's not what you think. You'll get a kick out of it's campy style and in fact - it's coming back bigger and better.  LOL.

THE VIEW FROM BELOW THE SUITES

Cary and I have been at this for a few years now. Forever riding the roller-coaster of writing, directing, producing and hope. This week, we found ourselves at AFM, the American Film Market, pitching our first feature project. First in the sense, that our other 'first' feature project "Secrets of the Son" fell apart when the financier dropped out a few years back.

So, we've been down this road before, like all the other indie filmmakers out there. You get close, you fall back, you get closer, you fall back, you get right to the precipice and are about to take the leap, and yep, again, you fall back. It isn't a creative ride for those weak at heart, nor for those nay-sayers who give up easily. It is a ride for those who believe in the stories they tell, in the visions they dream and are intellectually insane on some level.

AFM is an interesting place because it brings the hopefuls and heathens from all over the world together. It is a melting pot of creativity and a scammers heaven all at the same time.

We did the research before hand, which was helpful. Our associate producer DANIELLE FLORES, Cary and I put together a list of companies that worked with our budget range, at least dabbled in our action/drama/thriller genre, and then we did the six-degrees- of separation thing, trying to email those whom we had six-degree business relationships with.

Success! We got three meetings. Three meetings to beg, plead and cajole someone into giving us money. And at all three, the answer was yes to reading the script. The people we met with were diverse in age, and all related to the concept. In fact all loved the concept of our project.

And I will tell you, when someone who has the potential to give you the 1.7 million benjamins you are asking for says they love the concept and want to read your script, you about piss your pants.

It was a great day on Tuesday. We felt good, like creative people do when the stories they create connect with he total strangers of the world.

And now the next part. They wait game. The stretch of time never juts right, always to long, never predictable that you wait for that one person you met in a stuffy suite on a hot day (or that person's assistant) to say yes or no. Or even maybe.

That's where we are with Mops now.

THE ELECTION

Yeah, besides AFM this week there was an a election. Funny thing is there was no screens  at all at AFM in the bar or restaurant showing election coverage. No CNN, MSNBC or Fox.  Guess the organizers didn't want any brawls or broken deals for that mater.

Congrats to all of those who voted for the candidate of your choice. At least we can all agree that we showed up for ourselves and our country by exercising our right to vote. For all those who didn't, the official rule is you don't get to bitch about anything until the next election you vote in.

SPENT TV COOKING

With AFM over, and the new year close at hand, SPENT TV will finally be able to share it's first venture into reality cooking with our Cucina Clarissa show. 

Stay tuned for our update. Webisodes will be available on Spent TV and Youtube.

AFM AND SUCH

Greetings from the part of the country that is free from hurricane Sandy's wrath!

Wishing our east coast family, friends and supporters a safe next forty-eight hours. We are thinking of you!

INDIEGOGO UPDATE

We completed our Indiegogo fundraising campaign for our first feature MOMS AND POPS and thanks to the generosity of some wonderful people, we we're able to put together a small amount of money to move forward on the project. While it was not as much as we had hoped, we most definitely learned from the experience and are blazing ahead to get our project in front of the camera for our March 2013 start date.

We originally thought we might shoot in New York, but the great incentives in VIRGINIA and PITTSBURGH are options we are exploring. Both have neighborhoods that can sub for New York and also have locations that are a great fit for our bus station and trailer park needs,

What do you think of these Pittsburgh locations? Look like NYV enough for you?

Ahh, the struggles when you have no financing and a great project!

AFM

Next week, our MOMS AND POPS  journey takes us to the American Film Market in Santa Monica.

We've set up some meetings to pitch our project and to get the word out on our amazing web network as well. We'll keep you posted on what happens. Send some good vibes our way if you can spare some!

 SPENT TV

We're cooking up the cooking BUENA CUCINA show for youze. Yah, yah, yah, you've heard it before. But it's in its final simmering stages and should be on You Tube and our on SPENT WEBNET soon - just in time for the holidays!

In the mean time, click on and explore our webnet HERE!