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Pre-Color Correction

Post-Color Correction

More to follow soon!

Ryan

I trust that everyone is well and had a lovely new year! Mine was quite lovely – I went up north to visit my family and our fearless director, Ryan Pomeranz (btw, the fearless part – not true… i’ve seen him scream at spiders). Ryan and I got to sit down and watch a new whole cut of the film together and start to pare down the 3 hr cut into something less resembling Ben Hur (4 hours) and more like Disney’s Aladdin (90 minutes). For those who follow our Twitter – you may have seen this photo of us clearly working diligently. If you didn’t see that picture, you should consider following us on twitter.

The type of gem you're missing out by not following us on twitter!

Anyways it was great to get to work in the same location as Ryan for a bit- and we are continuing this new year with this good momentum that I imparted upon you in December and carrying over with the new work that I have already seen and the good things that are coming.

Summarizing our plan of attack:

Ryan is in NYC editing.

Dan is in Indiana editing.

Scott is in California color correcting.

Jason is in Orlando beginning to compose music.

And Allie is in Miami working on TID post and trying to figure out where the rest of the people are.

Thank god for the internet or else none of this would be possible. FTP servers, Dropbox, and Google Docs are powering this operation and making this incredible feat possible. Without these things, we would never be able to sync different copies of these all over the country without shipping drives with gigs of files back and forth. Plus it is much faster and cheaper (see: nearly free) to use these instead of multiple cloned hard drives.

OK, more about TID in a sec…

but now is the time of the month when I visit Dharma Studio Yoga and learn about aligning your personal energies through focus on the 7 chakras with Veronica Vidal in her workshops. Last month’s focus was on the Heart Chakras which I was working on this past month as part of the workshop. As part of our lesson – Veronica had talked about doing things with love, but also guides in understanding, acceptance, respect and all kinds of good ideals along that vein. Continuing my pattern of applying this to our TID progress, it was nice to actually get a chance to talk with Ryan about the scenes, characters, and dialogue that have evaded us in prior conversations because we have not physically been in the same place to watch the full cut. Sure, we go through and talk about these things satellitely but it is an entirely different thing to be physically able to look at a scene together and decide that even though we may like something or that it may have been tremendously difficult to do, that it may get cut or that character may get less screen time, or we can’t use the beauty shots all the time just cause they look nice.

Sooo now, this month, our lesson focuses on the Throat Chakra. It was another lovely lesson led by Veronica, reviewing last month’s chakra, introducing us to the Throat Chakra its relation to the other chakras, its effects when imbalanced, and how to stimulate our Throat Chakras. As usual, I shall decline to cheapen the lessen here, but I still strongly encourage anyone with an interest in personal energies to come out for the next chakra workshop focusing on the Third Eye Chakra on February 18th. And you can apply them not just to the self – but to something like, I don’t know – a MOVIE – or something….

The Throat Chakra as you may have guessed has a lot to do with your abilities to articulate and understand as well as understating and using non-verbal communications. We shall check back and see how these truths can help us to progress with editing as we are making tough decisions about overall structure, trying to keep within a shorter total running time and in general continue with the progress.

We shall see if this can help us tell a better story – or to help us find the best story.

Namaste,

Allie

Hello all. Hope everyone is doing spiffy as they prepare for the holidays. I am now up in Syracuse, NY with the family to hang out, celebrate and slowly freeze to death. This morning I woke up to find my first bit of snow in 2 YEARS! This blinding, icy cold development can only mean 1 thing…… RYAN CERI POMERANZ is arriving in Syracuse today. Yes, I am no meteorologist, but I do believe that his arrival is scientifically linked to this bit of disdainful precipitation. Thanks Ryan. But on a higher note, he is here for the TID Summit to discuss, work on, and watch the current cut of Theodore is Dying… so yey!

It could be worse?

Aside from the cold, and the snow, and the visitors, I am pleased to tell you guys that Allie & I went to the Center for Cinematography in Arts & Television in Miami last Wednesday and guest spoke about green filmmaking. The class was small and full of new filmmakers and photographers who were very eager to get some insight on saving money and resources. YIPPEE! They asked great questions and we covered a range of topics including preparing for your shoot to most energy efficient lights and how to save on expendables. This was a group of people who had just found their interest in filmmaking and cinematography so perhaps we have given them a new perspective on how they can operate. And now I have some new Facebook friends! Big thanks to Allie’s work friend, Corrina who set up the engagement for us. We are always more than happy to answer any questions or to come and speak about greenness! Do you have a class, group, or just have a question? BRING IT!! Email ME! Rebecca@MovingPictureParty.com or Allie@MovingPictureParty.com

Thanks for having us!

We are just always thrilled when people want to take an interest. We have gotten calls and emails asking very specific things, and even just to talk one-on-one about what we did. I would love to help anyone realize their green potential (…and save some green too)!

SPEAKING OF GREEN THINGS….. (awkward conversation transition)

Before Allie and I could pack our bags and jet away from the beautiful Miami sun, to the frozen Syracuse tundra, we had some planning to do. I know a lot of us are traveling for the holidays and we can forget about and hit these little snags when leaving our homes for a little while…. ya know like PETS AND PLANTS!

Pets, first! Pets can be the most beloved members of our family and we love to travel with them and bring them to meet our far-away families. Although sometimes unavoidable, I fervently believe PETS ARE NOT CARGO! I would not want to be stuffed in a box and thrown below a loud plane to be cold, with pitiful air quality. Thereby, Reggie the cat, travels with me… under my seat. He just barely fits in his bag but it works out. Whenever possible, try to travel with your pets with you, if not possible maybe a babysitter? Or do your homework very thoroughly regarding how your pet will be handled during travel and where he/she will be kept. (DISCLAIMER: THIS IS MY PERSONAL OPINION)

Reggie vs. Snow

Aside from the ReggieMonster, Allie and I have a rather large collection of plants, and just about everyone we know is traveling for the holidays so what do we do with all of them? Sadly, my best friend -The Internet, let me down when it came time to formulate a plan. Thereby we made one up. That’s right folks, when in doubt, MAKE SOMETHING UP!

So the first thing we did was bring all the plants inside and position them on towels and sheets in front of the sliding glass doors. I can’t predict the weather while I’m gone and thought they would be best indoors, since it might get really cold, or very windy and my apt gets plenty of sun. Chris will water the plants for the first week- THANKS CHRIS, then they will be using our handy boozy plant system.

We have found a NEW WAY TO RECYCLE! We have taken the empty glass bottles from our recycling bin from cider, champagne and even hot sauce and fashioned a time release water system for the plants. We filled the bottles all the way with water, quickly flipped them upside-down and shoved them right into the soil of the plants. It works like a vacuum, the plant takes the proper amount of water from the bottle when it needs! Each bottle will last a couple days. It won’t last the whole time but it’s something!! Check out the photos! I really hope it works out, and I’ll keep you posted!

Boozy plants behind door #2

I hope you all travel safely and greenly to your holiday destinations! HAPPY EVERYTHING-YOU-CELEBRATE!

Hugs!

Becca

******** Please see this list of tips regarding how to safely travel with your furry friends. There are some things I didn’t even think about, such as getting nails clipped so they don’t get stuck in carriers.

http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/traveling_tips_pets_ships_planes_trains.html

Again we have arrived at that time of the month where I visit the good people of Dharma Studio Yoga for a yoga/chakra workshop lead by the wonderful Veronica Vidal. After hearing about the chakra workshops from myself and our resident green freak, Becca, our dear friend and TID art dept. PA Chelsy Barwick was seduced down to Miami for the weekend to experience the workshop firsthand.

Another lovely surprise for the course this month was the beautiful art on display at the Dharma Studio. Playing host to some beautiful Tibetan Thangka Art by Karma Phuntsok, there was amazing, colorful depictions of Buddha surrounding the studio just waiting for us to sit amongst them.

So before we get into this month’s focus on the Heart Chakra…. the Solar Plexus Chakra.

This is how TID looks lately - with a giant glowing ball focused at our Solar Plexus Chakra! Just kidding! That'd be ridiculous - everybody knows that's the Heart Chakra!

If the Solar Plexus Chakra is about focusing on what it is that you want, and going out and accomplishing it, then Theodore is Dying and Moving Picture would look like this as of recently…

Anyways as you may gather from my brash statement and picture of Ironman, we have been making some tremendous progress as of late.

Ryan and I will be meeting up in Syracuse, NY next weekend to watch and make notes on a full pass of the film by our fantastic editor Dan Brown (not the novelist!). He has been our secret weapon for the past couple months, silently slaving away through the footage, cutting away at scenes and working with Ryan to try make the movie. Dan’s been great, finding things in the footage that we have not been able to see and most importantly having the skill, motivation, and time to do the job well.

For those inquiring minds that want to know, Dan was a co-worker of Ryan at the Florida Branch of New York Film Academy (NYFA), and lives out in Indiana. He also is a scorpio and enjoys the smell of fresh cut grass and tunes by Burt Bacharach. (Disclaimer: I only know the first sentence to be true.)

Additionally as we near picture-lock, we are working closely with composer Jason Kupfer. Some of you may be familiar with Jason’s work with the indie rock band The Pauses. Jason is an accomplished filmmaker in his own right with a highly successful short film The Sleuth Incident that has played at dozens of film festivals around the world. We are grateful and excited to have Jason onboard.

(L) Dan Brown, EDITOR (R) Jason Kupfer, COMPOSER

So, TID has been chugging along recently in very positive directions, we are hoping to have picture lock by the my birthday at the end of January. Oh, what a wonderful birthday gift it shall be!

So we have indeed been working hard to accomplish what we want, I think to great success. So to bring this back around – we have had a very positive Solar Plexus Chakra experience this month. Accomplishing goals, burning candles and incense, working on our inner fulfillment – good stuff.

And FINALLY we move on to our Heart Chakra experience. Our Heart Chakra is of course centered over our heart and is characterized by universal love and as it is the mid-way point of our chakras, helps transition between the lower more earth-based chakras to our upper spiritual chakras. Working on the Heart Chakra helps to make us feel more compassionate and benefits our relationships with others.

The workshop of the class was much like the others, but this time to a smaller group which made for a more intimate class which was good for when she shared a video with us about gratitude.

The class was again a really nice lesson that I will not attempt to simplify or cheapen but a nice lesson for the holidays that is very fitting to where I am at in my Theodore is Dying progress.

Ryan will post in the next couple days with another update for the Theodore is Dying cuts. So be on the lookout for screen caps. As well as a blog from Becca this week about GREEN 101 news.

Becca Kenyon and Allie Kenyon will be visiting the Center of Cinematography in Miami tomorrow Wednesday, December 14th to talk about green filmmaking practices with students. Thanks to Corinna Moebius for making this happen! We look forward to sharing some of our green knowledge with other filmmakers.

Namaste.

Allie

So little known fact: TID’s own Hollis Witherspoon (Laura) hosts a show on WBAI Radio (99.5) in NYC, which is both appropriately and frankly awesomely titled “The Artsy Fartsy Show“. (Rejected show title idea: The Farts and Craps Hour)

The show airs every Tuesday @2pm.

Last weeks show celebrated their one year anniversary and so they got all fancy and had Sir Jesse Eisenberg on.

It’s a great listen, especially if you’re into both art and farting (which I am). It looks like it will be available in the WBAI Online Archive for the next 7 days, so let’s get on this people!

Congrats Hollis on your first year!

This weekend was yet another interlude in green living with a visit to the Dharma Yoga Studio in Coconut Grove for another Yoga/Chakra Workshop with Veronica Vidal.

Dharma Studio Yoga in Coconut Grove

As some may know, this is the third in seven workshops hosted by Dharma Studio to help focus and align the seven main chakras of the human body. The more aligned and centered a person’s chakras, the more balanced and peaceful a person feels.

The last time we talked about chakras, I had returned from a workshop focusing on the second, Sacral Chakra. Over this past month I have been working on multiple lessons Veronica taught in the workshop with varying success. I think that this one is a bit tough to vocalize in this format the progress, but i did notice that i had an unusual amount of pain in my lower back, above the center of the Sacral Chakra. I think that the progress of this one will be evaluated later too when I have a better perspective and when i evaluate my progress with the three lower chakras as a group.

Anyways, this month’s lesson was my favorite one thus far: SOLAR PLEXUS CHAKRA. As you may have already extrapolated, it is centered at your solar pexus (that sensitive spot below the ribs but above the belly button). Anyways, this chakra can be associated with wisdom, willpower, stomach problems and all kinds of good stuff like that, as well as you overall feelings of personal power. So this month i shall be using my solar plexus chakra to focus my energies as they relate to Theodore is Dying. If this chakra is about personal power and using it to get ahat you want, my deepest desire is indeed completeing Theodore is Dying.
So we go from chakra that is a bit of an abstraction to evaluate progress to one that we will be able easily identify for everyone.

This class has been my favorite of all then chakras. Maybe its because of the energies of that chakra, and the fact that remedying an angry stomach and using your persnal power to achieve the things you want, but i found it the coolest.

So this lesson, after a nice review of last month’s sacral chakra we dove right into learning about the Solar Plexus Chakra. Which if you are interested in learning more about chakras, instead of my feeble attempt to distill information inaccuratly, you should study your personal energies. But after a great lesson that included passing out incense (incense stimulates the Solar Plexus Chakra) and yellow wristbands (to act as our daily dose of wearable yellow for the month) followed by a group communion of crunchy granola (complex carbs a good for the SP Chakra), we got into the yoga.

This Month's Special Dose of Yellow

One of the most interesting things about this class was that we seemed to up the intensity of the stretches, either that or I found them particularly intense. But as part of the physical aspect of pur class, there is an exercise which the name escapes me, but I am hoping Veronica may post the name of in the comments, that is fantastic for your overall feeling of vitality and acts as a massage for all of your internal organs from your stomach, intestines, lungs, and heart. The goal, after releasing all the air from your lungs, is to bring all of these things up into your rib cage and hold. This exercise surprisingly feels quite nice in spite of the way it sounds. However, unfortunatly, it also can cause heartburn and other feelings of indegestion for people like myself with stomach problems. But barring that aspect of the yoga, whic maded me feel like I was digesting a rock for some parts of the remaining yoga lesson, i look forward to continuing to massage my organs this month as long as the heartburn disappates…
. I am not a yoga master by any stretch of the imagination (heheh stetch heheh pun) but I really enjoyed being physically challanged and this lesson did it. I shall not embarass myself by displaying my ignorance for the name of posesby describing them, but i highly recommend anyone who has any interest at all in yoga, chakras, personal wellbeing, green lifestyles, etc ANYTHING really, check out these great workshops.

And on that nonpaid plug, I look forward to chronicling this month’s workshop lessons on the blog for you best to see. Where else could there be a better forum for documenting my progress on TID…. Oh wait, ON THE BLOG.

REMEMBER WHAT IT IS THAT YOU REALLY WANT.

Namaste-
Allie

Continuing our pattern of co-opting the work other blogs are doing for our own gain, I ran across this post on Indiewire that I really connected with. Presented as part of their Toolkit Case Study series, it tells the story of Cameron Marron, whose film, Go For It!, was picked up earlier this year by Lionsgate and released theatrically in May.

There are certainly plenty of parallels in her story to our own, and (although the film didn’t profit from its theatrical release) it serves, to me, as another great example of how ultra-low budget filmmaking isn’t the dead end, just for your parents, exercise in vanity that it may have been only 5-10 years ago.

Here’s the Link!

Go For It! is out now on DVD. Pick up a copy and support truly entrepreneurial filmmaking!

Enjoy.

Ryan

Thanks to Mike Laibson for the link.

The Real Theodore

Here’s a link to the Original Article.

CENTERVILLE, IOWA — We have obtained a copy of the complaint filed with the court. We have removed the complaint’s name and addresses.
Click here to view the court document.

———————————-

Centerville Police said they have arrested an 83-year-old man on charges of prostitution.

The investigation of Ben Clifford Dawson of Centerville began on October 22.

Dawson is listed as a candidate for Centerville City Council.

According to police, they received a complaint that Dawson had offered to perform sex acts on a woman in exchange for repayment of a loan.

Dawson allegedly grabbed the victim and began kissing her neck without consent.

As a result, Dawson faces two aggravated misdemeanor charges: prostitution and intent to commit sexual abuse.

He was released from the Appanoose County Jail after posting $2,000 bond.