Mike in “Operation Cupcake”!

Heads up, everyone!  Mike McCafferty will be starring in the upcoming Hallmark Channel movie Operation Cupcake!  It premieres this coming Saturday at 8:00 p.m. Pacific Time.

We all know that Mike has a heart of gold, but here he’ll get to play the bad guy.

The movie also stars Dean Cain, Kristy Swanson, and Donna Pescow.

If you miss it, don’t fret.  Operation Cupcake will have an encore at 10:00 p.m. as well as a few other times.  Just check the new event calendar right here on Shoom Zone for the times; and don’t forget to factor in your own time zone because I’m on Pacific Time here in California.

Be sure to check out the preview video on the Operation Cupcake website page to catch a sneak peak of Mike in action.  This looks like it’s going to be a fun movie!

 

“Should’ve Been Romeo” is Premiering This Weekend!

Hey, folks, many of you have already heard the news, but for those of you who haven’t yet, I’m excited to tell you that Paul Ben-Victor’s film Should’ve Been Romeo is having its world premiere this Saturday, April 28, 2012, at the Newport Beach Film Festival!  I remember Paul talking about this movie back when The Invisible Man was airing and it is wonderful to finally get to see his dream for this project fulfilled!  And if seeing Paul act isn’t enough, Vince also has a small part in it!

So if you are in the LA area or are going to be this weekend, please take note.  The show starts at 8:00 p.m. at the Regency Lido Theatre, 3459 Via Lido, Newport Beach, CA.  There will be a party after the screening for an additional cost.

Click here to purchase tickets

Official Should’ve Been Romeo Website

 


Filming in San Francisco

Back in July I had the priviledge of listening to a presentation by Susannah Greason Robbins, the Executive Director of the San Francisco Film Commission.  The presentation was hosted by Renaissance SF, a group I belong to that is working to promote the arts in San Francisco.

In her speech Susannah talked about the state of filmmaking in San Francisco, the rebate program, and other perks and programs for filmmakers. Thankfully, her presentation was filmed, giving you the opportunity to listen to it if you are interested.  Her speech was split into two videos, which I’ve imbedded below.  Each video is about 30 minutes long.  (You can hear my voice briefly in the question and answer session near the end.)

It’s serendipitious for our feature film that I have set the story in San Francisco because, not only is it a beautiful city and conveniently close to where I am located, but, also, because San Francisco is one of only two cities in the state of California that has a rebate program for filmmakers.  If I get lucky enough to score the State’s rebate also, it could be a double win…and all without having to leave the state to get a tax rebate.

News From Julie Ben-Victor

Paul and Julie Ben-Victor

Paul Ben-Victor’s wife, Julie, has given us a heads up about a couple of projects. Here’s what she has to say:

Hey Everyone!  It’s a great week for the BV’!  Sunday is the Season Finale of In Plain Sight where I have one cute little line, and my hubbie tries his hardest to save the day…once again! Check it out on USA Network at 10 PST.  Also Should’ve Been Romeo is finally a locked picture…where I play Dr Wonder and Paul plays a grouchy actor (stretch I know…).  Starring my hubbie, Carol Kane, Ed Asner, and lots and lots of other great talent!  Stay tuned for more info on that!

So please show your support for this fantastic couple and tune in tomorrow to In Plain Sight on USA!  I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait for Should’ve Been Romeo!

 

 

Countdown to Monday

Recently, I had pretty much resigned myself to not getting into the finals of the contest.  The deadline for turning in the releases and other paperwork had come and gone and I had heard nothing from Dockers.  So I went back and read the rules again trying to see if maybe I missed something.  (The rules are written rather loosely and open to interpretation.)  Well, in parentheses there are two words: “if requested” that could be interpreted as meaning that Dockers might choose not to ask for upfront paperwork.  If that was so, I still had a chance.

I’ve been monitoring the conversations on Facebook and Twitter and other semi-finalists have also been wondering if the top five had been notified yet, but there was no answer from Dockers.  The only reply we’ve been getting from Dockers is that they would let everyone know who the top five were on Monday the 25th.

Until recently. 

The other day one semi-finalist asked on Twitter if “the top 5 already know they are in the top 5?”  The answer back from Dockers:  “No they do not.”

Whew!  That’s great news!  That means I still have a shot of being in the top five!

In two days we will find out for sure.  If I do make it, please be prepared to vote again because we will only have five days to vote and each person will only be able to vote once per day.  That means only five votes per person!  Yikes!

So please stay tuned for this coming Monday (April 25) for the results.  Let’s hope that Dockers thinks that reuniting the cast of The Invisible Man is as great a project as we think it is!

The Waiting Game

Wow, it’s been an extremely hectic few weeks since I last updated you about the contest and my submission.  I didn’t mean to let my blogging updates go this long, but it’s been crazy busy.  Fortunately, things are starting to wind down a bit, although I’m still wrapping up loose ends from the shoot.  The cast’s and crew’s jobs may have ended already, but producers are still on the job long after wrap is called.  Yep, no rest for the producer!

I already posted the big news on Facebook and Twitter a few weeks ago, but have been too freakin’ busy to post it here so, if for some reason you haven’t heard the big news yet, here it is:  I am definitely a semi-finalist in the Dockers Wear the Pants contest! 

I have all of you to thank for that.  Seriously, I couldn’t have gotten this far without all of you who tirelessly voted for me daily for all those weeks.  You guys totally rock!  And I’m making sure to let the cast know that it was your support that got me into this position.  Fans from not only the US, but, also, the UK, France, Italy, Serbia, the Netherlands, the Ukraine, Russia, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, etc. all supported the project with their votes.  We are very much an international group!  How cool is that?!

So what’s next?

Well, according to the rules, Dockers should pick their top five by around April 6 or so and send them releases and other paperwork to fill out.  Now I haven’t heard anything from them yet, but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything at this point.  They’ve been running a few days late this entire contest, so I’m still holding out hope that I’m one of the top five.  The judges are judging the submissions based on the criteria of originality, creativity, and suitability to represent the Dockers Brand.  Based on what I’ve seen from the other contestants, I definitely have one of the top projects when it comes to originality and creativity.  As far as suitability to represent the Dockers Brand…well, that’s subjective and only the judges really know what they are looking for.

Now if I was a major company like Dockers, I would definitely be looking at projects that have the possibility of worldwide exposure, which this project has.  Movie audiences are worldwide and we already know that millions watched The Invisible Man around the globe.  Tapping into that audience by partnering with a movie could be a smart move for them. 

But is a sci-fi movie produced by a fan the kind of image they want?  Hard to say.  The video we shot definitely had more of a fun and humorous tone to it and I love it.  But in the back of my mind I keep thinking, are they looking for something with more of a cool sophisticated vibe?  Is what we shot too geeky?  Yeah, I can drive myself crazy second guessing myself.  But when it comes right down to it, I’m proud of what we shot.  My director, Sandra Myers, and the entire cast and crew all did a fantastic job and poured their hearts into it.  It shows in the quality of their work!  I can’t begin to thank them for their help with this shoot.  Filmmaking is definitely a team sport and I had an awesome team!  I’d be more than happy to work with any of them again in the future.

Whatever happens with this contest, I now know that, if need be, I can pull together a quality shoot on a low budget and a tight timeline.  And I did it on my very first shoot!  That said, I hope I never have to pull a shoot together that quickly.  Seriously.  It’s exhausting.  I was literally getting three or four hours of sleep most nights.  I’m way too old for that kind of physical abuse.  But, if I can produce a small shoot under those circumstances, I know I can definitely handle a bigger project…like a feature film.

I can’t show you the video we shot just yet.  I wish I could, but Dockers requires that submissions be original and not previously published, so I have to wait and see what the outcome of this competition will be before I can share that with you.  At this point, I’ve put too much into the project to risk being disqualified.

I’ve got a lot of blogging to do to catch all of you up on the details of what’s been happening these past few weeks.  We, also, took behind-the-scenes footage and photos that I still need to get and share with all of you.  I mean we’ve got some really cool stuff.  I can’t wait to show you.  So stay tuned!

Countdown: One Week!

We’re in the final stretch, folks!  Less than a week till Round 1 ends!  Now Dockers gave the impression that they were going to post the vote leaders, but they never did.  So I decided to take matters into my own hands and find out where we stand in this contest.  I risked carpal tunnel syndrome and went through all 3,000 entries!  Whew!  And I have the sore neck, shoulder, arm, and wrist to prove it!  So what’s the verdict?

Well, it’s good news and bad news.  The good news is that we are definitely in the top 50!  Out of 3,000  or so entries that’s something to be very proud of!  And it’s because of all of you voting every day and trying to help spread the word, and, heck, even recruiting your family to vote!  So where are we?  Currently, we are number 32.  That’s the bad news, because as I went through each entry, I found more entries that had more votes than we have and it pushed us down the list.  But it’s not terrible news and I’m certainly not going to complain about where we are in this contest.  Do I wish we were in the top five?  Of course.  But considering all the problems we’ve had trying to get the word out to other fans (with the broken fan club mailing list and Facebook blocking me from friending other I-Man fans), I’d say we’re doing pretty good.

But this last week is especially dangerous for us.  The most motivated contestants and their supporters are in this top 50 and they are pushing very hard, so we need to keep pushing just as hard lest we keep dropping and fall out of the top 50.  I’m afraid to say it could happen.  Behind us there are contestants who have more voters than we have and could theoretically pass us by.  One contestant, another filmmaker no less, has been right on our tail for several days now.  Today he passed us up…not because he has a better project or a loyal established fan base, he doesn’t; but because he’s been vote trading with other contestants.  In fact, a lot of contestants have been vote trading. 

It’s not against the rules (I checked), but it is a flawed strategy because they are voting for the very people they are competing against.  Also, the way the app is designed, someone could vote once for someone just to get their picture on their page and then come back every day and leave a message on their page saying they voted again when they really didn’t.  The contestant would really have no way of knowing for sure.  I’d like to think that all the contestants are honorable, but I live in the real world and wouldn’t be surprised if some honorable contestants are being suckered by less honorable contestants.  So I’m not playing the vote trading game. 

Besides, when I contact the cast and tell them we made it into the top 50, I’ll be able to proudly say that it was the I-Man fans who got us there and not because I was trading votes with the competition.  And I do have to, also, give a shout out of thanks to all my family members, friends, and fellow filmmakers who have also been tirelessly voting every day.  All of you have been wonderful in your support!  Thank you so much!

Contest Submissions Progress

Friday, my director and I sat down and hammered out the cast list, which is basically a list of all the roles in the video and what type of actor we were looking to cast in each role.  The next day I posted the roles on SF Casting and, after being approved, they went live on Monday morning.  Within hours I literally had hundreds of submissions from actors!  So I’ve been combing through them trying to find actors who fit what we are looking for.  Tomorrow I’m going to finish that up and then contact the chosen actors and invite them to the audition, which is being held in Pleasanton, California, this Saturday.

Monday afternoon, my director and I visited the studio we are planning on using.  It’s also located in Pleasanton and run by some really nice people.  We’re shooting in a studio because I wanted a plain white backdrop for the video.  This will put the focus on the actors without the distraction of any background and give the video a clean uncluttered look.  To get that kind of background you need to use a studio with a cyclorama, which is basically a wall with rounded corners, so you don’t see any hard edges.  Another advantage of using a studio is that we won’t have to move from location to location.  We’ll be able to do all the scenes on one sound stage and just change a few props, actors, and lights. 

With a small low-budget production like this, I’m doing much more than just producing.  I’m also playing financier, accountant, casting director, costumer, and prop master; and I’m sure my roles will expand even more in the days to come.  Today I ran around to various businesses looking for the costumes and props that we will need.  I struck out at a few places, but managed to find a couple of places that can give me just what I am looking for.

It’s getting late and I need to sign off now but, remember, keep voting!

Two Weeks to Go!

Can you believe there are only two weeks left of voting for Round 1 of this competition?  Yikes!  So how are we doing?  Well, in one week we went from 40 people voting and 95 votes to 111 people voting and 341 votes!  We more than doubled the number of voters we have and we more than tripled the number of votes!  Way to go!

But the big question is, how are we stacking up against the competition?  Last week I found 33 entries with more votes than we have.  We plowed right past about a dozen or so entries that seemed to have started out pretty strong, but then fizzled out.  And we are getting very close to passing by four more.  But then I found a few more entries that were in front of us.  So as of today, there are 25 entries that I know of with more votes than us.  While it is very encouraging that we appear to be moving up, please keep in mind that I haven’t seen all the entries and have no idea how many that I haven’t seen have more votes than us.  Also, I’ve found at least three entries that started after us and have passed us by.  So we need to keep voting every single day and we need to keep finding more voters! 

To see how we stack up against the top players, here’s how the top ten entries (that I know of) are doing:

  • 3,235 votes, 706 voters
  • 1,334 votes, 299 voters
  • 1,283 votes, 156 voters
  • 1,025 votes, 269 voters
  • 958 votes, 145 voters
  • 898 votes, 111 voters
  • 895 votes, 196 voters
  • 863 votes, 181 voters
  • 722 votes, 96 voters
  • 721 votes, 151 voters

So please don’t get complacent!  We’ve got a ways to go yet!  We need every vote!

Joyce, our I-Maniac fan club president, is currently moving the fan club mailing list to a more reliable program.  So if you get an email from her, be sure you opt in.  She’ll be sending out an announcement about this contest as folks opt in.  Some of the email addresses no longer work, so if you have contact with an I-Maniac that may not be aware of this contest, please lend a hand and let them know about it.

I attended a United Filmmakers Association mixer over a week ago and was able to get a free copy of the Reel Directory, which is the Northern California version of the Hollywood Creative Directory.  Basically, it’s a directory of services and everyone in the business from audio post facilities to production equipment to stunt equipment rentals to traffic and crowd control services…virtually everything you could possibly think of and would need to make a movie.  I’ve used it to start calling around to studios and getting rental rates for the video we’re shooting.  My director is prepping for another shoot right now, but we’ll be meeting again on Friday.  I’m happy to say that my financing came through, so this video is officially green lit!

I’m also starting to get quotes from artists and will be commissioning some custom artwork as part of my submission.  Exciting stuff!

The contest requires that if I use any third party’s name, I must have a signed release from them.  This weekend, I got emails from Paul Ben-Victor, Eddie Jones, and Mike McCafferty and I talked on the phone to Vincent Ventresca on Sunday.  All these wonderful guys are very willing to sign a release so that I can use their names when entering my submissions into the contest!  Vince is contacting Shannon for me and I’m still waiting to hear from her.  Do you realize how lucky we are to have such a supportive cast?  I can’t think of another cast that would do what these guys do.    

There is still so much to do and it’s going to get crazy.  Please don’t mind me if you see me wearing a straight jacket in the near future!