From our archives: Hollywood no more & Blair Witch 2:
October 2009 by admin.
Recently, an actor friend of mine stated that as soon as he gets his guild card, he’s going to Hollywood. I asked him, “Why would you want to do that?” He seemed to feel that he would be able to be discovered amongst the sea of other out-of-towners looking for fame. While I’ll say he is an excellent actor, he has no idea about the business side of
Hollywood. Like many non-Los Angleans, my friend simply doesn’t understand how expensive, how difficult, and how heart-breaking it is. But more importantly, he doesn’t understand how the recession has crippled the town of cinematic fame.
He is not alone. Many Californians are delusional when it comes to Hollywood. They still cling to the notion that
Detroit makes cars, and
Hollywood makes movies. I’ve been known to say that very phrase to politicians when trying to stem off run-away production. But have you seen
Detroit looks lately??
Hollywood is headed the same way.
Apparently, the Politicians haven’t heard of the major project deficit in the city of Angels. Not only are studios laying people off, but production has been slashed, pushed, or awarded out of state. The lack of production in
Los Angeles has greatly impacted the local economy there. Clothing manufacturers, and other ancillary businesses are shutting their doors for good because they rely on productions for contract work. The state of CA is broke and they continue to NOT benefit from productions that shoot in other states or countries.
I asked my friend, “Where are you going to get your day job?” He looked back at me blankly, then said, “Well the recession won’t last forever!” And that’s when I went in for the kill. It wasn’t his dream of being a famous actor on the big screen that I was stalking. If anyone knows me, they know how I am a champion for Indie production and actors. No, what I was going to slaughter was his notion of Hollywood surviving the recession as the epicenter of the movie universe.
The recession has taught investors that movies can still be made for far less than the wasteful 80 million dollar budgets. Where do Indies get made?? Mostly outside of Hollywood. So the whole point is this: my friend and other actors thinking about moving to Hollywood should reconsider. Independent films get made everyday in your own back yard. Get a few more quality roles under your belt first. When you have exhausted your own market, then & only then should you consider leaving your small town for any promise of greater fame.
Sacramento, CA continues to grow as an independent town. I predict that in the next ten years, we will be a worldwide recognized city of Indie filmmaking. To learn more about what is going on in Northern CA, please visit CFAA
here.October 2009 by admin.
They said it couldn’t be done, soIndies took that as a challenge and came up with the next “Blair Witch” pnenomenon.
Paranormal is an Indie Ultra-low that is gaining not only momentum, but recognition for Indie again. Here is what I, Christina Marie of Cow Town Film Productions, have to say: “We are going to see another resurgence of Indie in the next couple of years. Not because of new media, not because of greater access to high-end digital equipment, but simply because of the recession.
The studios have cut back their slates drastically in an effort to ride out the storm in Hollywood, but
Indies have traditionally run a lean mean outfit and can produce decent films on micro-budgets in good times or bad. Add the constipation in content delivery to theatres and you have a door open to Indie. The media buyers are going to have to look at Indie very closely to fill the gap.
Independent scripts and films are truer to the concept and therefore more refreshing to watch and history does repeat itself. I am predicting another big surge for Independent film in the marketplace. Blair Witch is the perfect example for Paranormal in that they are bothIndies distributed after major recessions. Now all we have to do is hold the audience’s attention!”
To see how Paranormal is doing click
here.
