For the past four months I have worked on an insane amount of editing projects, working 16-18 hour days every single day, week after week, month after month, in order to make sure I have enough money to shoot the film. It was the most overwhelming stretch of work I have ever had in my life. But in the end of it all, I've made the budget - possibly at the ultimate cost of a year of my life, but what the hell. We get to shoot a feature film now. That is why I am doing this to myself. Exhaustion is not an option! Besides, that twitch in my lower lip vanished after I slept properly for a couple of nights in a row. So did that twitch in my upper eye.
"The Forest Is Red" is the story of Awkward, socially dysfunctional Nathan, who writes strange poems, buries jam in the park and converses with the voices. Voices that fight for his attention and demand his subordination. On his daily, semi-hypnotic journeys through his alienating, colorless city, he searches for companionship and happiness. He thinks he finds it when he meets the girl he loves - but to whom he never speaks. This surreal, magical and philosophically charged tale examines the life of an outcast as he struggles to blend into a world where everyone searches for their own uniqueness.
We are shooting the film under the SAG Ultra Low Budget agreement. And here is something I've learned - and this is maybe a "d-uh" statement for some of you but nevertheless: when your project is SAG, you attract higher quality submissions - "higher quality" meaning actors with more experience. It makes the project appear more serious. Going SAG involves some paperwork, it can be a big pain in the ass in some ways, and costs you a bit more money (not a ton, but some) but I decided it is worth it. Casting properly is the most important thing you can do in order to make a good film (that and a good sound mix.) You see so many hundreds of resumes and headshots that your face might spin off your neck. But the more attractive your project is, the more great talent it will attract. An attractive project in a casting notice is described by an intriguing, short synopsis such as the one above, and an attractive project pays its actors - union or not - at the very least SAG minimums like $100 per day. Offer that, and you will find some fabulous actors. We spent a little bit of extra money to rent a casting space as well ("Actors Alliance," in Manhattan) because we decided it was important to have a professional appearance when first meeting people who are going to work hard on our project. You can still opt to use very few to no SAG actors - but at least you have the option.
I can barely believe we are shooting in less than a month. It feels like nothing is ready, though many things are indeed prepared. Some locations are locked, DP's ticket to New York is purchased, casting is done. I am working feverishly on shot lists, I am about to begin the search for exterior locations, and rehearsals begin tomorrow. I have been having a tremendous amount of help from my co-producer Nicole Sudhaus, who is also playing one of the major roles in the film (note to anyone making a feature film: have a competent co-producer - don't do it alone - it is extremely difficult to do it alone.)
Our casting process was a challenging one because the roles in this film are anything but ordinary, and required finding some extraordinary, and extremely specific talents to fill them, and that we did indeed find. One of the roles was so difficult to find that after seeing 50 people without getting close, we brought on a casting director to help. Pete Konczal, a DP I've worked with a bunch lately as an editor, introduced me to casting director Amy Gossels from
Some of the excellent members of our cast are:
Dora Sacer
Kara Addington
Virginia Robinson
David AustinAnd others.
So if you happen see our tiny crew running around the city shooting, please stay out of the shot :)
Cheers for now!
David
PS
AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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