Stro

[Greg]

TL;dr

Getting into Burbank IFF

I was in a cranky mood Friday. It probably had a lot to do with scrubbing off dried cat poop from the floor of the studio, I was in no good frame of mind to receive a notification email from Film Freeway. Especially since I wasn’t supposed to get any messages from them until May 31. That is the final day for Munich to tell me if I made it into their festival. The one I’m really hoping for is San Francisco Doc Fest. Their last day to notify is June 1. To get a letter on May 22 was a little puzzling.

I’ll be honest, the first response I had when I saw the email was fear. If you go 0 for however many film festivals I entered for the Last Captain, you get a little gun shy. I had begun to think that failure was my only state and here was another email to confirm it.

When I saw the word congratulations in the email, I became very happy. Maybe I wasn’t a failure after all. I showed it to tQ. She didn’t have her glasses on, so I read it to her. She was excited as well. It seemed like the email was real and not some terrible joke.

I immediately emailed everyone I knew and posted it every where I could online. No one stopped me when I made the laurel leafs for the website. Laurel leafs are a big deal in the Film Festival world. It’s the official stamp of approval. Since, I made it myself via the Film Freeway website, it feels a little fake, but I did get the invitation from Film Freeway to make it.

I was buzzy for a good hour or two on Friday. Maybe longer. It was great seeing the congratulations coming in on FB.

Yes, it was tempered by the constant poison, thought. I did email the partner. And he was equally excited. The poison comes from the fact he takes credit for things he had no hand in doing, directing the film would be one of those examples.

I fully give him credit for getting us the money for the film. He also had the idea for the film. His argument is he has been trying to get this film made for ten years. But the physical construction of this film was me. If he had been happy being a producer on the film , I would have been overjoyed.

But producers don’t get credit at Film Festivals, only directors.

I’m trying to lance this boil. I try to keep in mind that without him there wouldn’t be any money. Although, there hasn’t been any money for sixteen months now. But still, the money got the ball rolling. See? I’m trying. It just stings when I see people congratulate him.

I also emailed my mother. The first and only email I have ever sent her. Later in the day, my sister Stephanie texted congratulations to me and wanted to know if I had told my mother. I said I had told her. She then, in her indubitable fashion, asked “Today?” What other day would there have been?

My mother called about an hour later. She was losing her mind with excitement. I tried to temper her excitement as well. For whatever reason, she had decided this was a big festival worthy of huge praise and accolades. She was already making plans to attend. I had nightmare visions of getting her down to Los Angeles and to the festival.

I was also receiving emails on the opposite spectrum from mother’s from Carl Borack. He was of the mind that I had obviously blown all my chances for big festivals by entering this little festival. Sundance wouldn’t accept me because I had already premiered at Burbank.

This is completely accurate. But, Sundance doesn’t start accepting until August. They don’t announce until October. And they don’t screen until next January. If I wait for Sundance, I have to delay everything for at least another year. I’m kind of ready to be in festivals. Plus, I did the Sundance route with the last one. It would be great to be at Sundance. It’s also great to be in any festival.

I talked to both sisters on Saturday. They both had over enthusiastic responses. Which is good, but maybe a bit disproportionate. Ask me again at the end of the summer.

I’ve started getting the actual film to the festival. I think once they have the film in their hot little hands, I’ll feel a lot better. The imposter syndrome will subside a tad.

In the digital age, films are submitted via Digital Cinema Package or DCP. When I saw the quick turn around between acceptance and screening for the Anatolia Film Festival, I went and had one made via SimpleDCP. I’m using their leasing program. When a film festival accepts the film, I call SimpleDCP and they ship encrypted hard drives to the festival. It costs $100 every time I send the film, $150 if it goes international.

A lot of filmmakers wait on this step, so festivals have companies in place to take the films and convert them to DCP. The Burbank IFF (BIFF) festival uses a company called Cinesend. All films need to go through Cinesend for Quality Control before they are sent on to the BIFF. They actually would like me to upload the DCP to them. Ha!. The festival will have come and gone by the time I finish uploading the film. That is if it even uploads at all without crashing.

I’m going back and forth with the people at Cinesend. The person there seems to have no information about BIFF, because he keeps telling me that I won’t have to do anything for a couple of months. Meanwhile, I have a letter saying the films have to be in by July 7. I’m going to make calls on Tuesday, actually talk to physical humans. I’ll feel better once this is resolved.

Yes, I’m happy. Yes, my anger keeps me warm