Its all gone foggy

The Film London debrief has just finished. The fog has lifted. We now know the reasons behind not getting the green light.

Two key reasons were that the core thread of the story was confusing and it was felt that it needed a bigger budget.
So with the fog lifting, its over to Dishad to do some re-writes to bring cohesion to the script and to consider a reduction in characters and locations to reduce the cost.

Will it get off the ground next year ? Time will tell but in the meantime I've got Making It In Hollywood to complete and the prominent politician documentary to be getting on with.

Show business. There is no business like it. Hope you're enjoying the journey.

Back to the drawing board

Right. Flat move over. I can hardly believe that's a year in London. And what a year!

Partnering with Bebo. Going to the Oscars and filming Clint Eastwood and Kate Winslet. Then off to Cannes and capturing Jude, Jake and Jessica. Then down to the last stages with BBC and Film London.

Where to next ? Well I have just received agreement from a prominent politician to do a documentary about his world. Sundance and Hollywood planning has started for January and February for Making It In Hollywood. No plans for Little India yet until the debrief this week. If some top filmmakers think its not possible to make for 100k, then making it for less than that may not be a wise move.

No broadband for a week, so apologies if I have not replied to your email. Click on 'Whats on' at the top of this page to read about the best in stage and screen where you are.


Douglas

Neon Bird at Royal Albert

Instant picture direct from the Royal Albert Hall where Darren Hayes is performing his last show of the UK tour. I was lucky enough to be in a box with free wine and beer.

The crowd loved every minute and were on their feet cheering a great entertainer. Robbie Williams' tour manager sat next to me taking notes. This is a refreshing production which has a concept, a story and a performance.


Darren is off to Australia on Tuesday for 3 weeks, then off to promote his album in the US over Xmas.

Time Machine Tour by Darren Hayes

I was delighted to be invited to the production rehearsals of Darren Hayes' Time Machine Tour last night where I took the photo above. It's just kicking off tonight in Glasgow and is heading around the UK.

The ex-Savage Garden singer has put together an incredible performance. Great music, great dancing and what a voice ?! Don't miss the fantastic laser and light show, as well as watching the story of the concept of The Time Machine unfold. A great production and a talented performer.

See UKGigs.TV for details of where he's performing over the next two weeks.

Life's A Pitch

Making a film on a micro budget has its challenges and this week I've shared with you some of the knowledge from the BBC/Film London "Microschool". As a producer it is critical to choose the right script in the first place. If locations are too many, actors in abundance and lots of special effects, choreography or fight scenes for example, then these all add to the expense of the film and increase the rehearsal and shooting time. These are all inhibitors to getting a film off the ground and obtaining buy-in and thus investment.

Show business is one of the most competitive businesses in the world, especially in independent film. Making an independent film which is entertaining, compelling, exciting and drives audiences to see it, is one thing. Making a profit on it is quite another story.

Take London To Brighton for example. The final day of the Microschool had an audience with the Producer. Private investors provided £65,000 to make the film. Then another £200,000 was required to deliver it to the cinemas. The box office receipts for a UK cinema release were £200,000 and DVD sales have reached 23,000. Yet it has still a long way to go before it breaks even. Apparently around 95% of cinemas income is generated from the popcorn, hotdogs and drinks that we have. The other 5% is from the showing of the film and even then most of that goes to the promotion, advertising and distribution. So, that film you've seen in the cinema that looks amazing and you've told your friends about, hasn't made any money. However if you have a successful UK film, it is likely to sell to other countries around the world and if it build up a significant interest in lots of countries, which each have loss leading cinematic releases, the ongoing DVD sales over the following 3-5 years, are what will ultimately make the return on investment.


Right now, Little India is sitting on the cusp of becoming one of those films. All it takes now is for a successful 15 minute pitch to four of the most powerful people in the UK film business.

On Monday. At lunchtime.

No pressure.

Making It In Hollywood - there's no business, like show business.

Script, locations, budget

Day 3 at Microschool

Script, script, script. Location, Location, Location. Budgets, budgets, budgets.

The writers were happier today. They had been challenged by experts who said their characters weren't strong enough, their locations were too many and they were creating massive budget challenges. They brainstormed, reviewed, discussed and then slept. In the morning they arrived with stronger convictions, characters with more depth and places where edits could be made.

The other sessions were discussing "how to work with creatives". Will you get along with your chosen team when the pressure mounts and the days become longer ? Will you support each other and build the team energy when it's low ? How can you entertain your audience if your cast and crew are not fired up ?

Other sessions included a talk on casting and it was nice to hear that one of the top tips for finding actors was "go to the theatre". Nice one. Producers, directors and casting people are visiting all the time, so if you are a performer, look out, it's not just critics you need to worry about, it's that potential next big film role !

The day ended with the screening of Extraordinary Rendition and writer/director James Threapleton was on hand to talk about it beforehand. A quick search of his name on google and I noticed he was married to Kate Winslet for a few years. His film features Andy "Gollum/Kong" Serkis as the ruthless interrogator. It's a great film and it has a screening today in London for UK distributors. I'm sure it will be a winner, it was a gripping film about the kidnapping and torture of terrorist suspects by CIA agents who transfer them from country to country. We see the story from an ordinary Londoner who is going about his daily business. Made on a budget of £65,000.

It can be done.


Douglas

Planning for success

Day 2 at the Microschool.

As you may know by now, I'm on the Film London assessment workshops which is called "Microschool", where four of the final ten selected films will be chosen next Monday and given a guaranteed screening on BBC and a 'micro' budget of £100,000.

Yesterday the writers and directors were split up from the producers in order to perform some of the scenes from the screenplays with professional actors. Additionally the scripts were critiqued by industry experts. Most writers looked a little brain-frazzled by the end of the day as they were given challenges of reducing characters and locations to reduce the budgets even further. What is the film about ? Who is it about ? Why should I care ? Were the focussed questions which demanded instant answers.

Meanwhile, I joined the other Producers for some exciting indepth presentations on the legal aspects, copyright and my favourite, insurance. Lovely. It's a real minefield as you can imagine but fortunately Film London provide all the forms and paperwork in a nice little pack if we are "greenlit". We also had a session with a top line producer who gave some hints and tips around scheduling the film and budgetting.

In the evening, we had arranged to meet David O'Donnell (pictured), from Cage Rage. We are looking to work with one of the fight organisations, as two of the key scenes include one of our hapless characters having to fight in Wembley Arena to save his mum from the bad guys.

When we met David he was in the middle of a conversation with Wolfman, of TV's Gladiator fame. A quick introduction and both of them were interested. Wolfman in a cameo role seemed like a possible option and getting access to the fight cage before and after the big night was seen as easy to provide. We left with an understanding that we have the option to work together if that big green light comes on for us on Monday.

Exciting times. The pieces of the jigsaw are falling into place nicely. Still a long way to go and six projects will be unsuccessful. Nevertheless, it's all good fun.


Douglas

Microschool - Serendipity leads the way

It's all happening.

Serendipity leads the way.

Dishad and I met for a coffee beforehand and we came up with some final suggestions on what we were going to say about the film. "It's a fast paced action comedy featuring three underdogs and their attempts to be successful".

We headed to the Shoreditch Town Hall but we couldn't find it and stopped next to an equally lost guy looking at a map who asked us for directions to the same place. He was the Sales Agent giving a pitch at today's session. A quick introduction and I realised that he was also from Glasgow. The first great connection of the day.

We eventually found the building on the opposite side of the road from where we were looking. I had brought my camera so we stopped outside to do a little piece to camera showing our first day excitement.

The Chairman of Film London, Sandy Lieberson made a surprise visit to talk about the pitch that we've to give next Monday. He headed up 20th Century Fox productions and launched the Star Wars films, among others. He opened up his talk by asking the audience to tell him about their film - "It's a fast paced action comedy featuring three underdogs and their attempts to be successful", I offered and he said that it was a more powerful pitch than others. Nice feedback.

The rest of the day went well, and finished with the screening of two of last years selections which are now in post-production. Shifty and Mum & Dad. Shifty looked interesting and reminded me of Sweet Sixteen with drug culture being at its core but this time based in Essex. Mum & Dad is a horror and this one shocked the entire audience and left me with a horrible feeling. Why audiences want to watch people being brutally murdered, I just don't know, but there's a market for it and it was well filmed.

Back home I caught up with my brother for a drink in the local and we ended up chatting to two of the cast of Life On Mars (pictured) who were filming a new series Ashes to Ashes locally. I told them about Microschool but as it was a low budget I couldn't afford highly paid actors. They said they would love to be part of the film for a low fee and also offered to come to the premiere. Nice.

Finally, I noticed in yesterday's newspaper that the cage fighting in Wembley Arena, which is core to the story of Little India and where we intend to film, is on this Saturday !! Two tickets bought.

What a day.


Douglas

Microschool - Getting ready for day one

Morning.

I'm ready. 7:30am and I've got enough time and I'm alert enough to write a note to you. It's a 10am start and like a good producer, I've got everything planned and ready. I worked all day yesterday to prepare the final packs and I've got them all neat and ready in some cool box files. Four copies each of the 90 page screenplay, 16 page budget and 9 page schedule, as well as copies of the answers to 10 questions on our submission.

The budget template provided by Film London made the job less complex. Each potential cost item was listed with some indicative costs and it was much like a shopping list. Two of those, six of them, and it was a great reminder to all the small costs that we often forget to budget for. Makeup, wardrobe, drivers, telephone costs are all included in a structured way. It soon burns a hole in the £100k budget. Fortunately we don't have any set design requirements, no music to pay royalties on and no Hollywood stars. If we did, the film just couldn't be made. £100,000 seemed a lot of money before I started this but now I feel it's a comfortable amount to make a film. This doesn't even include the marketing and distribution costs, this is just to make the film. It could lie in a cupboard somewhere if it doesn't get a distributor. Fortunately in this instance, the BBC will be showing the finished film on TV and supporting us in the sales cycle as well. Well, they've got to do something for their 60% ownership. The other 40% goes to the production and our top-up investors. The Film London scheme provides £50,000 so I've got some investors waiting in the wings to negotiate with if we get the deal.

There's no business like show business.

Here's the schedule (below) for today. I'll let you know how it goes. Thanks for continuing to be interested and your supportive feedback.

Douglas
_____________


10.00 Welcome/scheme overview: Maggie Ellis & Mia Bays
Introduction to Microschool: With Alexis Johnson & Mia Bays
10.30 The Market Place: Talk with Andrew Orr. The benefit of strong market positioning for micro-budget features, focusing on genre, treatment & log line.
11.30 The Business of Micro-Budget Films: Talk & Discussion with Mike Kelly.Introducing the fundamentals of Micro-Budgets, understanding cost drivers & the balance between expenditure and income. To make the case for entrepreneurship & being positive about your budget.
12.30 LUNCH
13.30 Introduction to Producer & Script Mentors: Teams divide into 3 groups & work in their assigned rooms.
14.00 Genre Group Project Analysis: Workshop with producer-mentor name & script-mentor name. Group discussion to introduce projects.
15.30 Genre Independent Study: Teams may book 1:1 sessions with their mentors. Booking sheet will be provided.
16.30 Debrief: With Alexis & Mia. Identify day 1 achievements, & day 2 prep.
17.00 Microwave 2006 Alumni: Discussion with Steven Sheil, Lisa Trnovski, Ben Pugh and Rani Creevy; chaired by Mia Bays. Sharing the challenges and successes of making micro-budget features, and their experiences of the first year of Microwave.
18.30 END

Alan Cumming now in London

You may have seen the review earlier this week from Jon Cuthbertson in Glasgow. Well, the National Theatre Of Scotland arrived in London with their production of The Bacchae starring Alan Cumming in the lead role as Dionysus the Greek God of wine and theatre.

At one hour fifty minutes long with no interval, coupled with the fact that it is a Greek tragedy, may put a lot of audiences off, but you'll be missing out.

Alan Cumming was made for the role. His own lifestyle, his stage presence, his cheeky smile and his choice of gold lame`kilt and waistcoat, is worth seeing alone. Add some sexy singers into the mix with Jesus Christ Superstar styled songs and you have a very different and ambitious production.

There are a number of fantastic visual effects which are best left to seeing rather than explaining here. Flowers, wine, fire and lights are the tools of The World Famous who did the special effects.

The Lyric in Hammersmith is a great looking theatre, having reconstructed the original nearby opera house inside a 70s styled building. Well worth a visit.

Www.lyric.co.uk

Meet Joe Wright

Joe Wright

A name you'll hear more of in the world of film. I thought I'd take a delve into his career to share with you. Here's the lowdown.

Director

2005 first feature film, Pride and Prejudice which won him the BAFTA best newcomer award, 4 Academy nominations and 6 BAFTA nominations. No less.

This year Atonement. Again with Keira Knightley and complimenting her nicely is top Scots actor James McAvoy.

Wright was born in London where his parents founded Little Angel Theatre, a puppet theatre in Islington.

His next film ?

The Soloist. With Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr.

A true rising star who is making some fantastic films.

Atonement opens in cinemas from this weekend.

The premiere was live while I was writing this and I had a look at the webcam and could see the crowds growing. It'll be all over by now but here's the link, save it in your favourites:-

Whats On > Whats On - London West End

UKFilm.TV - Angelina Jolie

64th Annual Venice Film Festival

The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford

Premiere - Day 5

Angelina Jolie wearing Bvlgari.

See the film trailer with husband Brad Pitt at http://www.ukfilm.tv

George Clooney and his partner in Venice

VENICE, ITALY - AUGUST 31: George Clooney and girlfriend, Sarah Larson, attend the Michael Clayton Cocktail Party held at the Cipriani Restaurant in Venice during Day 3 of the 64th Venice Film Festival on August 31, 2007 in Venice, Italy. (Photo by Jeff Vespa/WireImage)

Venice Film Festival opens with ATONEMENT

Here's one way that producers can get their movie sold around the world. Have it as the opening night at the oldest film festival.

The free publicity it generates around the world is invaluable and will certainly get international sales agents beating a path to your door.

Of course you need to get a great story to start with, add some of the today's top British actors, and get it directed by a rising star.

Director Joe Wright and his cast, including Keira Knightley and James McAvoy, were at the opening night of Atonement, based on the Ian McEwan novel of the same name.

Article in Screen International this week

.Net Magazine article on UKTheatre.Net

UKFilm.TV - The talents of Paul Greengrass (Bourne Ultimatum)

Paul Greengrass delivers again.

It's such a delight to see one of Britain's top directors competing with the best in Hollywood and pulling together yet another film worthy of awards. Too often we forget the mammoth like proportions taking on the task of creating great movies actually is.

Filmed in Madrid, Morocco, London and New York. With an international cast, crew and production team with hundreds of stunt people in each city, not to mention the immense travel arrangements needed to make it happen, makes a project like this a significant adventure and business proposition at the same time. Considering this as one of many of the career of Paul Greengrass, makes the feat even more significant.

Matt Damon delivers the goods again in the lead role as he defies attempts to wipe him out by the CIA. A place he thinks he used to work but he has no absolute recollection. As each piece of the story unfolds for him, he gains a little more knowledge, and so the energy to find out consumes every waking moment. Something that he has lots of in his insomniac world.

I loved the selection of Waterloo Station as the London venue. It's a place I've been in and out regularly this year and it brought a realism to it that I personally enjoyed. Julia Stiles plays one of his former CIA colleagues and is key to his support mechanism in finding the truth.

It's in choices of camera movements and angles followed up by hair-splitting accuracy in the editing that makes this film exciting. These are clear director choices working closely with an army of production resources.



Paul Greengrass.
5 STARS from UKFILM.TV

Join the UKFILM.tv celebration

Hi there

It seemed appropriate that you should join me tonight and share a bottle of virtual champagne. You have helped support, encourage and spread the news about the network and I am delighted to say that BBC/Film London have accepted 'little india' into the final stages of the funding scheme.

The next steps are to work with some top directors and producers over a three day period in September. Only three films get the funding but being part of the final stage is clearly a result in itself.

Look out for Friday's Screen International as well, for a mention of Making It In Hollywood.

What a great week. The lottery numbers are definitely going on this week :)


Douglas

Uktheatre for those not at the fringe

Hello again. If you are not at the fringe in Edinburgh then there are still lots going on. Among the best is Oxford Shakespeare Company with their performance at delightful Kensington Palace and soon at the amazing Hampton Court. Blankets provided for those not so sunny nights.

Midsummer Shakespeare

The cast of Oxford Shakespeare Company get into character before the start of the performance at Kensington Palace. Review coming soon but booking early is advised. Especially on HOT summer nights.

Fringe Opportunities, Reviews and Videos

Now on BEBO Channel 17.

UKTheatre.TV filmed the previews of eleven of the performances at 24:7 Theatre Festival in Manchester.

Visit them online at http://uktheatre.bebo.com


Also see some of the latest reviews of the Edinburgh Fringe.

Love Labour's Won

Chris Cox- Everything happens for a Reason

Paul Chowdhry- Lost in Confusion

Kitty Flanagan- A Festival of Me


OPPORTUNITIES FOR PERFORMERS

6 Performers required in Leicestershire/Warwickshire

Amateur Group requires a replacement actor for Edinburgh Fringe

Stunt man jumps off London Bridge

Caught in action during a film shoot at London Bridge. It was a major shoot with at least three 35mm film cameras capturing the action. It was well shot with great precision as the team controlled the action and the crowds from the South Bank. Various rescue teams were on hand to assist the stunt man in getting out of the Thames without drinking too much of it.

A nice way to watch film

Somerset House is the place to be. Film 4 show a number of films each year here. Tonight is a film appropriate from a Making It In Hollywood point of view. Ennio and Clint combine their movie making talents in The Good The Bad and The Ugly.

My WICKED slide show

Edinburgh prepares for the Fringe

Fringe 2007 5 - 27 August

TICKETS ON SALE NOW!

CLICK HERE OR CALL THE TIMES FRINGE BOX OFFICE ON: +44 (0) 131 226 0000

CLICK HERE TO ORDER YOUR FRINGE PROGRAMME 2007!!!

Pictured: Edinburgh gets ready for over a million visitors during August.

Title	Description	Date
This Sketch Show Belongs to Lionel Richie	LIONEL RICHIE SET TO OWN THE 2007 EDINBURGH COMEDY FESTIVAL	7/30/2007
Backpacker	Jody Kamali, the half-Iranian, Bristolian comedy actor; brings the comedic essence of travelling to the stage, in a one-man, character comedy show.	7/29/2007
Best of The Edinburgh Festival Fringe 07	Media releases and images from some of the shows UKTheatre will be reviewing at the Edinburgh Fringe	7/29/2007
DEBORAH FRANCES-WHITE'S "HOW TO GET ALMOST ANYONE TO WANT TO SLEEP WITH YOU"	Afternoon stand-up leaving you ready to pull tonight	7/29/2007
The Witching Hour III	The scariest late night show on the Fringe is back with Perrier nominee Stephen Harvey.	7/14/2007
Grasmere By Kristina Leach	Debuting at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe ‘07, RoaN Productions will be travelling from their home city of New York to present the European Premiere of GRASMERE, showing at C between 1 and 27 August.	7/14/2007
ASHES by Ali Muriel	Four actors, four fires, four darkly comic stories.	7/14/2007
The Maids'	Genet's 'The Maids' is a transgendered exploration of volatility, destruction, eroticism and murder.	7/14/2007
Real Circumstance makes its debut with LIMBO at the Edinburgh Festival!	LIMBO is the tender and compelling story of a young girl’s relationship with an older man. A young Catholic girl gives her confession from the edge of Camlough Lake.	7/14/2007
Dye Young / Stay Pretty	Before Madonna, blonde ambition had a different name: Debbie Harry.	7/7/2007
Paul Chowdhry’s ‘Lost in Confusion’	Edinburgh set to misunderstand confused comedian	7/7/2007
Kitty Flanagan’s Edinburgh ‘Festival of Me’	“Flanagan is one of the most subtle and perceptive of live performers regardless of gender”	7/7/2007
Jim Bowes has a complaint to make	On average, a person is likely to moan to more than twice as many people about a bad experience, than when praising a positive one.	7/7/2007
Dear Future Wife… in Edinburgh?	One man’s desperate search unfolds on stage	7/7/2007
SPREAD	A MOUTHWATERING PLAY FEASTING ON WOMEN'S FIGHT & FROLICS WITH FOOD.	7/7/2007
Doctor Deepak’s Edinburgh Festival Surgeries	A visit to your Doctor will never be the same again!	7/7/2007
BUTCH - A QUEEN’S STUGGLE TO BECOME A KING	Menno wants to ‘butch-up’, he wants to be less Graham Norton and more Vinnie Jones......	7/7/2007

Finding Kevin Spacey

It sounds like the title of a new movie, but in fact it is just my ongoing search for the elusive man to find out if he would be interested in 'K-PAX II: The Return Of Prot'.

I popped down to the Old Vic today to find out more about the 24 hour plays which he launches every year around September. These are for around 50 new and emerging performers who are taken under the wing of the 'Old Vic New Voices Team' and coached and developed. Many go on to bigger and better things.

Did I meet him ? No. The picture is from the publicity poster from the David Mamet play Speed-The-Plow which he is performing in next year but it had you going didnt it ?

Rachel Stevens, (no, not the S Club 7 star, the Old Vic New Voices one), told me more about the 24 hour plays and will be keeping me posted with the entry timetable. There will be regional auditions which will be sponsored by Red Bull and these will be coming your way in October.

Right, its back to calling Mr Spacey's agent John Fogelman tonight to see if Gene Brewer's latest script, coupled with my ideas around the fringe play have captured any initial interest.

Nothing ventured......

An actors best friend

BAFTA held a casting session tonight with four of the UK's top Casting Director's.

It was an interesting event listening to the trials and tribulations and varied experiences of those responsible for everyone selecting A-list actors to one line newcomers in the major films in the cinema today.

One of the UK's top film producers kept them on their toes and brought some honesty and humour to the evening.

I'll update you more on this and the Raindance session with a producer who got Ewan Mcgregor to work for Equity minimum in this weekend's newsletter.

Classical Busking on the South Bank

The arches under Southwark Bridge have great acoustics for impromptu buskers. Best of all is a quartet playing Vivaldi. The sound resonates nicely delighting the ears of passersby. This quartet didnt have a name when I asked them, but they did say they were from Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

Sunday on the South Bank. Do it !

Olivers Army storms the Tower of London

I had just read about Elvis Costello on the tube home. He is opening up the Tower Music Festival tonight at the Tower of London. He had just arrived the second I was passing and a polite 'hey Elvis' was enough for him to turn and give a mean stare as he headed for the stage for a sound check.

The Tower Music Festival ends on Monday with The Good The Bad and The Queen, Damon Alburn's Supergroup.

Bafta's Annual General Meeting

An interesting evening tonight with the people who run Bafta. Like most AGM's it had its fair share of angst ridden individuals with trivial points of detail which commanded more attention than the good news. Hilary Bevan Jones did a remarkable job of keeping the session in control and focussed. Her ideas for connecting with more people is a breath of fresh air and her final year as Chairperson will see some big changes, primarily using the Internet. I spoke to her afterwards in the bar and volunteered my services to help where I can.

As ever it was a great networking night with BBC execs and famous producers. Sitting behind me was Paul Antony Barber who you may remember was the first West End reviewers for UKTN. He didnt recognise me as I have grown a beard in the last few weeks and I am a slimmer chap from 5 year ago when we last met in person :)

I met a film financer from Glasgow would you believe. A well connected one. He liked K-pax ii.

Next steps is to call John Fogelman in Beverley Hills tonight. He is Kevin Spacey's agent, the William Morris contact in London advised me today. Tomorrow night is the budget planning course at Raindance.

Making It In Hollywood is becoming a way of life, rather than a documentary. There's no business like show business. For sure.

Douglas

Entertainment at its best

Helen Oakleigh invited me to Shakespeare's Globe tonight.

I won't preempt her review, but WOW. In the pub afterwards I noticed the Evening Standard critic gave it 2 stars, which makes a mockery of critics. What do they really know? Do they represent an audience ? No they don't. They seem to have an isolated ill educated view on what constitutes good theatre. I had a look around and saw everyone engrossed, amused, entertained.

Get some Shakespeare in your soul this summer. You will be glad you did.

Douglas

Coffee in London

Afternoon tea with Film London and then early evening coffee with Graham Norton, and his dogs, in my local Starbucks.

Tea time in London

Five minutes ago I took the latest jump into the world of filmmaking. 'Little India', a comedy feature was entered into Film London's Microwave scheme. The building in the picture, which looks as if it should have been demolished decades ago, is home to a wide range of companies including Film London on the 6th floor.

The deadline was today for applications and this week has been very stressful preparing the reams of paper required to justify why Little India should merit an award of 50 thousand big ones.

Not a lot of money for a feature film but given the backing of a great team at sponsors BBC, the award winners stand a better chance than most. I will keep you posted on progress in the coming months.

Look out for more filmmaking news tomorrow. An even bigger project is next up.

It IS all happening.

Douglas

An audience of one

I know. I know. I am a lucky guy.

Making It In Hollywood had a private screening this morning with the founder of London's Raindance festival, Elliot Grove. I arrived early so that he could watch it before the class started. By the time it had ended the whole class had arrived and it was exciting to hear a filmmaking audience enjoy it.

Elliot then said 'It's good. It'll sell' and asked to keep the dvd. I told him it was his personal copy and he asked me to write my mobile number on the back.

It's so true. There's no business like show business.


Douglas

Launching 4TALENT

Channel 4's Chief Exec, Andy Duncan (pictured), announced the launch of their 4talent website. It's a resource and opportunity website to provide much needed support and development of new talent in the UK. Much like we do at UKTN.

Members of the UK Theatre Network will recognise the lovely Claire Sweeney in the picture. You can see more of her on the UKTHEATRE.TV website. We filmed her last year for the launch of the Guys and Dolls tour, so it was nice to see her again looking fabulous.

It was a great night with great champagne, good company and celebrating 25 years of talent on Channel 4.

Douglas

Firing on all cylinders

Do you find that when you are in a creative frame of mind, that ideas connect and present themselves in front of your very eyes ?

This morning I received some emails about film financing and low budget filmmaking which Raindance are holding in the coming weeks. By 9:30, I had booked two courses, paid for them by paypal and submitted MAKING IT IN HOLLYWOOD into Raindance Film Festival !

Tomorrow is the deadline so I had to make a quick decision but it was made easier because I had done all the preparatory work on WITHOUTABOX.com for the Cannes Film Festival. All the press release information, production notes, stills from the film, credits, synopsis and other relevant information were completed last month, so it was one click to submit, and another to pay $42.

Easy when you know how, but if you'd said in February that this year I'd be submitting a film to Cannes and Raindance, I would've looked at you very confused and had no idea where to start looking. The power of the Internet delivers yet again.

I'm off to the launch of 4Talent tonight at Channel 4's offices in Horseferry Road tonight. I'll blog a picture or two tonight if I can.


Douglas

Mister Myspace

James Fabricant, Head Of Content and Marketing at Myspace.com. A very busy chap as you can imagine. See blog below.

Confusion at Channel 4

Ok, I admit. It's a headline to grab your attention and not a dig at the wonderful people at Channel 4. There is a reason I said it though, so read on.

I was delighted to be invited to the Channel 4 events this week and I decided the best one for me, was the 'making it multi media'. Apart from the fact that it fitted nicely with the 'Making It In Hollywood' theme which readers of this blog will be well aware of, the event was hosted by some of the top people in the new media business who I had been contacting for over 18 months via email. Tonight was a great chance to hear what they think and put a face to a name.

Adam Gee on the left. Channel 4 commissioning editor for factual entertainment. Emily Renshaw Smith, formerly of fourdocs but now with CURRENT.TV otherwise known as 'Al Gore's web tv station'.

Next to Emily is James Kirkham who heads up Holler, the creative company behind E4's SKINS marketing and promotion.

Out of picture, but will be on the blog above this, is James Fabricant, Head of Content at Myspace.

An exclusive and influential group of people in the world of new media I am sure you will agree.

The night was a very pleasant introduction to what each of them do and where they are successful. However it soon became clear that while they had cracked it for a few select projects, which used their collective online platforms wisely, there remained significant doubt (read opportunity) over how the commercial prospects of content producers were going to be sustained in this new world order. Enter 'Making It In Hollywood'. I dont have the answers either but I was somewhat reassured by their confusion by conveniently being half way through a journey with the traditional film festival route. While at the same time evolving an online experience through UKTHEATRE and UKFILM networks. Being in the eye of the storm is a nice place to be but that doesn't mean it will be easy. Understanding it and sharing it with you, is enough satisfaction for me, and perhaps at the same time I will stumble across, erm I mean, successfully create, some of the answers to REALLY 'Making It In Hollywood'. The new media way. Answers on a postcard please.

We live in interesting times.

Oh, and the lovely peeps at Channel 4, have invited me to their 4
Talent party tomorrow night. Yay.

Douglas

Cancer Victims' Anthem Of Hope

UKGigs.TV were pleased to produce the Indiana Gregg Home Concert at the North London Ovarian Cancer Support Group. The UK's press have featured the concert on their websites.

You can read more here:-

CANCER VICTIMS' ANTHEM OF HOPE

All the world's a stage

Hope you like the picture. Its from the Globe Theatre on the South Bank. Its a beautiful day in London and the South Bank is very busy with lots to see and do within a short stroll.

This morning I was with Lyn who has been reviewing in Glasgow and moved to London two weeks ago. She is keen to continue reviewing down here. A quick visit to The National Theatre and it looks like the new writing week in July will be Lyn's first project.

There are lots of new reviews this week at www.Uktheatre.net and some opportunities for producers and actors. Look out for an Indiana Gregg video on The Mirror site later this week. I am in the middle of editing as we speak.

My Bebo adventures continue and I am delighted and honoured to have a section on uk theatre in their new look video section. Email me your mpg video and I can include some footage in a 'whats on' feature.

Finally, all the world continues to be a uk theatre network stage. Members are connecting up in New York, Toronto, Hollywood and France. Long may it continue.

Have a great weekend.

Douglas

Good UK FILM advice

Good evening

One of the best places in Cannes is the UK Film Centre. Its a good place to meet others, get advice and listen to a panel of expert filmmakers on a wide variety of topics. Its right on the beach and has several internet screens to catch up on emails.

Wish I was there :)

Indiana Gregg first home concert was a success. Lots of press and The Herald photographer took a snap, so look out for that later this week. Glasgow based actress Vivienne Taylor had a great time interviewing and presenting with Mark Scott and Neil Hartop's cameras at the ready.

More tomorrow night in London.

Douglas

The Cannes Jungle Of Ladders

Good evening.

This is the scene in front of the red carpet on the hottest but closest seats in the house. Everyone is so good natured. When a major star arrives thousands of fans wait patiently to see their favourite performer. Its actually a lot of fun for everyone from teenagers to grandparents all cheering someone and looking to get that phone cam picture of their favourite performer. Many chain ladders in a prime position before the festival has opened and leave it there all week.


Back in London.

Wish I was there. :)

Douglas

Cinema On The Beach

Bon soir

When was the last time you watched a movie. . . on the beach ?

The screen folds down at night as the sun starts to set, and everyone chilling out on the beach is treated to some classic films. I noticed Laurence Olivier in Hamlet which I think is one of the centenary edition dvds I have to review when I get back.

I might have mentioned before that I met the editor of Screen International at the Ennio Morricone event in Hollywood this year. I noticed his name in the daily Cannes magazines and decided to call him and left a voicemail. Today I received a call from their UK representative and she wanted more details of Making It In Hollywood and what filming I was able to get in Cannes. We are meeting up next week in London.

So Cannes for me, now stands for Contacts, Appointments, News, Networking, Entertainment and Success.

There is a rumour about Jude Law and Jessica Simpson having a brief encounter at one of the premieres. Who knows where that one might lead but as I have them both on film it will certainly get a mention on the Cannes leg of Making It In Hollywood.

I watched Michael Moore's Sicko. Go see it is the bottom line. I also saw one of the funniest short films in Cannes. More on both of these tomorrow.

The theatre review team have been busy this week I see, and Cameron Lowe is running another ticket competition in glasgow. See www.uktheatre.net for details.

As ever, missing you and wish you were here :)

Douglas

Leonardo arrives at 11th hour

Bon jour

It took a two hour wait in the sun, and much jostling with photographers and camera crews around the world, but eventually Leonardo Dicaprio arrived to promote his latest venture called 11th Hour. Its a documentary about the status of our planet and many stars are backing the concept.

Shortly after, I bumped into UKTN member Alice De Sousa who is Artistic Director at Greenwich Theatre. She works in film as well as theatre and has a few projects on the go.

This morning I interviewed writer Sal Brown and she provided some great advice for getting the most out of Cannes.

Last day here for me but I will continue to bring you news and pics when I get back to London.

Wish you were here. Au revoir.

Douglas

Meeting A Major Movie Star

Bon jour

Ca va aujourdui ?

My high school French is slowly coming back and getting beyond the 'two beers please', but only just.

A chef on one of the yachts told us that Liz Hurley and James Blunt were in adjacent yachts to the one she was on. So we took a wander down and ended up being part of the press call for Jessica Simpson. Her new movie is called Major Movie Star. We waited two hours before she arrived but the footage was worth it.

Don Allen, a UK director was our interview today. His film Three Minute Moments is on the UK FILM COUNCIL sales list and he has been so busy that I had to stop his head from spinning first.
Having fun. Wish you were here.

Douglas

Red Balloons flying in Cannes

French films have a character of their own and The Flight Of The Red Balloon starring Juliet Binoche doesnt disappoint. I am not a fan of subtitles but I found this one easier as the dialogue is often interrupted with some visuals of a red balloon. Flying. Its strange how it works and at times you are wondering why the Director has indulged the audience in such basic imagery.

The script feels improvised as the trivial conversations feel like everyday banter made up on the spot, and often there are natural pauses and stumbling over words. I think it is more likely down to some excellent acting from the cast and the natural style of the filming.

On other fronts, I bumped into Sal Brown again. The last time was at Los Angeles check in on the way home. She gave me some good advice about Cannes. This time it was at a UK Film Council event for short film makers.

Anita Lewton sat next to me at a screening. She heads up the training at New Producers Alliance. So networking is going well and becoming the most valuable thing that Cannes has to offer.

Lots to share with you when I get back.

Wish you were here.

Douglas