DAY 16: TUNDRA!!!

Boy, this town has a major drug problem. The crack just pours from the sky here. 

It's Winter Storm Orko. Who comes up with these names? Is it one guy? Is it chosen by committee? Does it just come mysteriously in a dream and made into a Kickstarter project? Snowed in, I started looking at all the footage. It looks really good. Now comes the editing part, which is when all magic disappears. Watching the same clips over & over, tweaking it by fractions of a second. Luckily, this movie has alot of long takes which will make it easier but despite its charms, I'll be incredibly sick of it by the end of March. The sacrifices I make for you people to watch a decent flick. 

Here's some more media about me. From the SF Chronicle, a short blurb about Muppetless Movie:

http://www.sfgate.com/movies/industrybuzz/article/Roman-Coppola-Charlie-Sheen-team-up-4263373.php#src=fb

And here's two pictures the Duluth New Tribune posted from Day 1. Notice my model pose in the second one: http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/258207/property_id/36/

I rested last night and got even more today, being trapped in the house. It seems now is as good a time as any to post this clip from one of my all-time favorite shows, "The Mighty Boosh."

DAY 11: Filming Eve

I really hope my cast/crew appreciate me braving the elements to make sure we know exactly where we're shooting, even if it means making huge fashion fopas and getting Niagara-like amounts of mucus in my balaclava. But don't let's start.

We start shooting tomorrow and it will be the busiest day of all, doing almost twice as many shots than on Thu & Fri. The largest amount of cast will also be on hand. At one point, there will be 5 women dressed like this. Along with cast/crew, I'm told the local news is coming by as well as random fans & onlookers. It'll be a long, crazy night. I apologize now to the crew, but IT GETS BETTER the next two days. Why pack it all into three days? Purely financial reasons. In shoots like this, I use my "good enough" approach.

Today was jam packed getting ready for tomorrow. I stopped by Ace Hardware to get some supplies when I heard an old man complaining he had to come all the way from West Duluth! Buddy, I came all the way from California to go to this Ace Hardware. I went to the grocery store & Walgreens & the post office & ended the outdoor day, going along the lakewalk looking for "the bench" where our lead sings the title song. It was bloody cold.

I'm afraid I'm going to have cut tonight's entry short. Tomorrow will likely be short too. I have to finally do what I'm here to do and that requires rest. My curlers are in and my cucumber mask is on (Hey, I'm gonna be on tv ok!) Goodnight.

Coming Soon To Your Town...

It's a done deal. The town is expecting me. I made an offer to the Mayor that if he starred in the film, I'd change the title. He wanted to know if a cameo would do the trick. Maybe...it'd depend where. I can always hire a Don Ness impersonator and keep the title as is.

Most logistics are taken care of. I have my flight booked, an apartment (courtesy of Airbnb), a rental car, a cinematographer, and clothing that will make me look like an idiot. Have a location list and a casting list, though not officially posted just yet. Auditions and location scouting will be that first week I'm there and the shooting will be the next week. I believe all shooting can be all completed in 4 days.

I should be back on Feb. 14 because there is nothing more romantic than being on a 8 hour flight with one stop in Phoenix. This certainly will be an adventure. I'm excited to go somewhere, to meet new people, to have new experiences, and obviously make my next film. It'll be like Call Of The Wild without the dog and more open cases of clinical depression.

Back on the homefront, I lost a production gig because "I do comedy" and they're making a drama. Keep in mind, I would be the cinematographer. Can you frame for funny? Even if you can, it's a light chuckle. I hope "Duluth Is Horrible" will show I'm capable of producing more dramatic work. That said, I got my Carmen Miranda costumes in the mail today.