SpencerWorks- Film and Theatre

One year later in Development Hell

2010-09-01T21:21:00.000-07:00

My last post said I would rest for a bit. In actually, I did not rest at all! What happened was that I went to couple of film conferences and found out the state of raising capital for a larger scale production of a documentary was not present, due to global cash crunch. And many, many producers, whom I was counting on on advice and leads to funding, were themselves having development issues.

One of the things that I had to was rethink the scale and scope of Bike by World. So instead of a feature length film of 80-90 minutes, which required a production budget of about $50-60K and a post production budget of about $25K (!), I will make a short, for about the fraction of the production price, to use as an introduction card of sorts...and of course to entertain!

So (Huge breath) I will start filming this fall. FOR REAL THIS TIME. Which is most exciting!

Please do watch this space for more info- and I will be starting a blog for my documentary in the next few days!

Pre Production research is done.

2009-12-07T21:48:00.000-08:00

Holy cow, that was forever- and it was fast.

I have nearly 150 pages of notes, diagrams and hyperlinks to bike related pages all over the world. In addition, I got information on filming in Germany, Denmark, South Africa, Botswana, China and Japan, to say nothing of filming in Davis California, Portland Oregon and New York City.

I am going to rest a bit for the winter holiday season, and pick up again for January. I should get info for starting a trailer in Spring 2010. I made some contacts at the "What is Film" seminar series a few weeks ago, and I will be following some advice given there from real pros.

Possible pre- production start?

2009-10-07T14:54:00.000-07:00

Slowly, but ever so slowly, I have been getting the permits and letters of inquiry in, and I have been getting some really good responses from people concerning legal stuff, like music, stock photos and prior video coverage. I also think that I should use both digital and film video shooting on this work. The 24p protocol is a good on eand loops extremely well, but after playing with remnants of Kodak and Fuji film, I have to say that for establishing shots nothing beats the color saturation quality of film.

Sop,. I am going to go ahead with preproduction, as of Friday, October 9th. I should have a more developed blog posting then, and it will have ads (sorry!) but hopefully the design of the ads will not interfere with the overall scope of the blog, which is to provide you with a going on of how Bike By World will develop.

Okay- Deep Breath: Action!

2009-09-24T14:54:00.000-07:00

I will be starting Portland interviews in ten days!

It's kinda nerve wracking, to be sure, but I am starting the interviewing process in about 10 days and I am writing up questions to pose that would be appropiate. After that- le deluge for Portland.

What I will be looking for:

1) Why biking in Portland? What is the mood in Portland (and the metro area) that makes it so amenable to biking?

2) Bike lanes- how many are in use? Is there an increase or decrease in tough time and good times?

3) Neighborhoods- does biking make a difference in how a neighborhood is perceived?

4) Class/ethnicity issues:( also pertinent for Chicago): Is the choice of riding a bike one of class, philosophy or availability? Or is it all three?

If you live in Portland and bike, or know someone who does, go ahead and have them email me at edithspencer at gmail dot com.

Shot list, revised script

2009-06-07T13:15:00.000-07:00

So, I have revised my script- more showing less blabbing until we get to interviews- and I am now composing a shot list.

The shot list is forcing to me to be economical with where I want to go for World by Bike. It should mean exacttly that - all of the inhabited continents. Everyone uses bikes. And thee plenty of stories.

But paring down the stories, and doing that shot list- now I remember why screenwriters and directors can get into hissy fights.

More work.,

A bit on film production

2009-05-22T15:04:00.000-07:00

I am doing research into possible shared office, post production studios in Portland and am checking out my camera options.

Shared office space- renting by the hour or by a limited lease, say, of three months- is a really affordable way to set up a post production/pre-production hub and have a space to do storyboards and a shoot list, if possible.

Older cameras are available for a very good price, but there is the risk of grainy shooting quality and possible expense in transferance from VHS to HD- CD format fo rediting purposes. The new video cameras much more expensive, but offer ease for shooting and editing.

What's your opinion on shooting cameras?

World by Bike brief

2009-05-06T17:41:00.000-07:00

Edith Spencer

Grant Writing

Project Title: World by Bike
Applicant’s role: Director/Screenwriter
Film Genre: Documentary
Production: Digital/35 MM
Distribution: Video/ 35 MM

Project Stage: Production

Amount requested: 55000 USD

Brief production description: World by Bike chronicles how bikes are used in five different countries around the world.

World by Bike is a film that seeks to explore how bicycles are used in five countries.
These five countries are:
United States
Canada,
Holland,
Botswana
Japan.

There will interviews with both politicians and local citizens using bikes, footage of bikes in use and discussions with bike and vehicle manufacturers, as available.

The shoot itself should take about 6 weeks, using both digital video and film stock for establishment shots, action shots and interviews. Editing itself should take no more than two to three weeks maximum. Because of the use of digital video, editing can be done in situ at various shoot locations.

The shoot itself will done in style of Moore, et al- using clear local light and a minimum of enhancement to show locations and action shots. This will be melded with film stock using a Kurosawa film wipe. By using the very action of turning wheels on a bicycle, the film will progress from country to country showing the positives of bike usage and the overall shift in transportation options.

The film itself will undergo final editing in Portland, Oregon. There is a marketing plan set in place for various film festivals in Oregon, New York , Texas and Italy, as well as cross marketing with PBS, BBC and CBC.

World by Bike will be a film that can be seen in theatres at home via public broadcasting or primary cable. There will enough material to have a discussion book and additional video produced for the classroom or for private home use.

Budget Brief:

$6200 ( x3) travel to five countries, covers expenses for primary crew

$5190 (x3) salary paid to primary crew ( via Taft Hartley agreement, DGA –west), covers six weeks for filming and sound.

$8000 – film stock and licensing fees for stock footage

$8000- Post production and music licenses.

$5000- Fees for entry into festivals, marketing materials and commercial setup.

First Post

2009-05-05T00:17:00.000-07:00

Hello! Welcome to Spencerworks, a writing and production company that is dedicated to exploration of cultural and environmental actors in our world. I'm your host, Edie Spencer.

Here you will find weekly updates on projects currently in progress. Currently, there are three projects:

World by Bike: a proposed documentary about the role of bikes in our modern world.

Cicero at Naples: a play about the last days of Cicero. Written for the stage.

Anne More: A play about the life of Anne More. Proposed for the screen.

A word about copyright:

I will be placing selected quotes and posting about progress on the projects; however I cannot place the entire scripts, as much I would like to, on the web until I have registered the scripts with WGA-West and obtained my copyright. Now, I do know that simply using self publishing confers copyright; still it's a better idea to register my scripts first. Then, I will be more than happy to share as much as I can on the blog!

Please, do leave comments, gossip, suggestions on the blog. And as ever, welcome!