Casting, Casting, Casting...

http://withherfilm.blogspot.com/p/casting.html

Well... after three weeks of posting our open casting call,  'With Her' has received 403 submissions! Now it's time to hunker down, and sift through the piles of head shots and cv's and find the best of the bunch for the upcoming audition day. We certainly have a lot of work to do!

Gerson has very specific characters in mind, and finding the right people to create the mood and chemistry that we're looking for is not going to be easy. We wish that everyone could have a role in the film, but unfortunately we're only making a short film with a few scenes and the selection is going to take the four hundred submissions and reduce them to the final three major characters, two supporting characters, and about a dozen background.

If you wanted to be considered for auditions and didn't get your cv/headshot in for the end of the deadline, we regretfully have to decline your entry out of fairness to those who did submit in time. Please continue to follow along as we come closer and closer to shooting in June! There's rarely a dull moment with Producing 'With Her', and Gerson has been hard at work creating storyboards and floor plans for the script. This coming week we will see new blogs from Gerson, keep an eye on the Blog!

Till next week,

Kristopher Finnigan
Producer

The Party: finding the spot

As some of you may have heard, we're arranging to throw a party!! We want to hold an event where we can showcase the creative talents of our friends, give folks a taste of some of the great things we're doing with 'With Her', and hopefully to add a few dollars to the film budget. Emer, Gerson and I hit the road and check out a few of the potential locations.

We want a spot that's large enough, but not too large. It needs to be nice and clean, but not too nice and clean. We're hoping for a stage for musicians, but not a full theater. It needs to have a bar, or at least a place for us to set one up. It needs to be just right. Bathrooms, lighting, seating, location, cost, magicicity (amount of magic in the air), and sound are just a few of the things we're looking out for. Here are three of the spots we checked out:

The Annex Live
Something of a famous location in the Annex, this is in the spot where the Poor Alex Theater was for ages and ages. This 'new' outlet has a nice, clean and sparse inside. Their food menu had us drooling, and when we came in to visit there was a jazz band playing to a happy crowd. Once past the bar, the space opens up and the stage is viewable from anywhere in the dining room. We left the space feeling like it would be a great spot to go for some good food and live music. But is it up to snuff for the party? The jury is still out...

Tranzac
An event space infused with the spirit of the land down under, Tranzac was the next stop on our journey. This feels a little more like 'our kinda place'... just a few steps above gritty. There is a larger footprint to the space, and right away we noticed a small bar near the front door, leading back to a larger space in the back with a stage. While we were looking, there was a bluegrass seminar going on in the main space and although we felt like we might be intruding, they were more than happy to have us listen. If a 'great vibe' can be had in an event space, the Tranzac has it. It's just a stones roll away from two subway stations as well as the bustling Bloor St strip and it's a relatively affordable spot too. We like the Transac... but do we like it enough?

918
This space is a former Buddhist temple turned into an event space. When we walked up to it, they were hosting auditions for the upcoming Woody Harrelson play. We figured this was a good sign... if Woody likes it, we probably will. The tour brought us through the large space (pictured above), and it is just about as perfect as they come! Sound is/was amazing in there, and the stage is just right for a band or dj set-up. We continued through the building, noticing great spaces for coat-check, bar set-up, and even a convenient kitchen. 918 costs a little more than the other places, but it seems to back up the price tag with a few more features. We were especially awful when our guide showed us an Antique piano that was used my none other than Oscar Peterson. I took a quick photo (shown below), and brought my attention back to the event space. We all had a really good feeling after seeing 918... could it be the one?

After the 'event space tour', we were full of cool ideas for the party! Having seen the spaces, it was starting to come together visually and we had a great time dreaming up an artists showcase, guest lists, food ideas, entertainment plans and all of those things that run through your mind when planning a party!! Heads full of ideas, and excited to bring this whole thing together we're looking forward to the next scout. And so... we continue to scour Toronto for the perfect event space. The party is fast approaching and there is much to do!

If you're an artist and have something to show, please let us know! We would like to showcase your work alongside ours (: Email us at With Her Film to get involved!

Kristopher Finnigan
Producer

"Cinema Is The Most Beautiful Fraud In The World..."

That quote, one of my favourites, was said by Jean-Luc Godard. The first time I saw that quote I was immediately captivated by it. It reigns true. Think about the words for a second...okay?...one more second. Now think about the most recent film you watched and how it made you feel. Do you see the connection? That's the power of cinema and why I am so passionate about it. It's unlike any other art form, in that it stirs such emotion in someone. Don't get me wrong, other art forms do this as well, paintings, sculptures, sketches, writings et cetera. Cinema, though, is something living, breathing, it's tangible. It makes you laugh and cry, it makes you angry and happy, it excites you and arouses. Sometimes it creates all of those emotions and feelings in one sitting! Isn't that incredible!? It's an art form that allows someone to convey points of views, whether they be social or political or both. It creates controversy. It allows us to enter worlds, where love can start and end instantaneously. Where strange creatures can be seen as beautiful and have feelings. Where the paranormal exists and frightens us. It can take us back in time and witness moments in history. It allows us to relate and be able to say I've felt like that or That's happened to me. All these things are the reason why we as filmmakers and cinephiles spend the long hours writing and prepping. Getting a crew together, waking up at five in the morning to make to the set. Why actors go through rigorous training for months at a time. Why filmmakers spend years (sometimes) pushing to get their films made. It is the reason why myself,along with Kris and Emer, want to make With Her. It is why I don't want to do anything else. Jean-Luc Godard as great as he is, had never been so right about cinema. It is..."the most beautiful fraud in the world."

Gerson
Writer/Director
With Her

What is Love?

Love Bit(e) from With Her on Vimeo.

Here it is...Emer's search for what is love, vlog style! Enjoy!

A Little Bit on Love...And A Little More on Music

Apologies for the blog subject being about amour again. Perhaps the inundation of red and pink colours and the smell of sickly sweet chocolates have succeeded in creating a sensory overload?

I must confess, I’m getting the sense that I may have sent myself on a fool’s mission. The search to find the definition of love – the love that William and Sophia find in With Her (as opposed to the lust women pay Matthew for) – has proven to be infinitely harder than initially thought. Despite consisting of only four Scrabble tiles (achieve a single digit score of merely seven), the meaning doesn’t seem to fit neatly on a board. Even some people who have found that love find it difficult to put into words…but don’t worry, I said some…others have been caught on camera giving wonderful responses…stay tuned…

Love in Lee's Loo

And moving on to the title track contest. There have been multiple questions regarding the contest and what exactly we’re looking for. So here’s some more direction from With Her writer/director Gerson Peña.

The title song for With Her should embody the essence of the idea behind the film.  What is the idea? Well, the idea is this...The things we do to search for love or to at least have something as close to love as possible.  This would be the case in the world in which Matthew (the male escort) is a part.  These women pay him to give them what they desire - to be wanted, to be told they're beautiful, to have a romantic dinner, to make love.  Yes, in some cases these women pay these men because they have no time to date or they're being neglected by someone they're involved with.  Whatever the reason, the important thing is that they have that same deep-rooted need that we all do and that's the desire to feel loved, even if it's for one night and not real.  Now, if we look at the other part of the idea of the film, which is, how incredible love feels when it is real and you know it's real.  There's that connection that is undeniable between two people, it's that feeling when you look at that other person, something deep inside just says yes, yes, yes.  It goes beyond the physical and the mental, it stems from the soul.  The title song should encapsulate these things and bring them to life musically.

If you still have questions please don’t hesitate to send them to withherfilm@gmail.com, which is also where you can send your With Her songs to in either .WAV or .MP3 formats. And don’t forget, because it’s the title track it must be called “With Her”  :)

Emer Schlosser

Associate Producer

How to Score a Solid Soundtrack

What is the recipe for a scrumptious soundtrack? I think it goes something a little like this...

          3 parts solid songs

          1 part proper mood

          1 part emotion

          A pinch of timing (the music’s got to compliment a scene, not distract from it)

So how are we going to create the perfect score for With Her? Hopefully with YOUR help! We’re calling out to singers, songwriters, musicians, bands, orchestras, etc…if you’ve ever wanted to be included on a score, why not try your hand at writing the With Her title track? That’s right, we’re asking you to submit a song that captures our story (find an outline in the Film section). Send an .MP3 or .WAV file with your interpretation of “With Her” to withherthefilm@gmail.com. We’ll post our favourites and then announce the winner, who will be included in the film.

To help get you in the mood, here’s a list of my Top 10 Cine Soundtracks:

• Dazed and Confused
• Dirty Dancing
• Juno
• Forrest Gump
• The Big Chill
• Once
• Once Upon a Time in Mexico
• Monsoon Wedding
• In the Name of the Father
• The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

N.B. the above are in no particular order, and even though I’m a HUGE fan of musicals, I refrained from including them...and to anyone who disagrees with my selection, bring it on, there's a comment box to debate below  :)

Emer Schlosser

Associate Producer

Love Bit(e)

Love. This seemingly unassuming little word - perhaps the ultimate four-letter word - spurred Shakespeare to compose amorous sonnets, gave heartfelt soul to Etta James’s “At Last”, and prompted Gerson Peña to pen With Her. But beyond a muse for the arts, what exactly is love?

In Gerson’s first blog entry (The Idea of "With Her" and Three Films That Were An Inspiration) he wrote:

“I knew that everybody who would see this film would have been in love at some point or had loved someone but possibly never receiving that same love in return.”

This sentence led me to a realization: I’m working on a film about love, but have never actually been in love. Sure there are different definitions: a feeling of warm personal attachment or deep affection that exists between good friends and family (check); sexual passion or desire (lust? check); strong predilection, enthusiasm or liking for anything (as in I absolutely love Häagen-Dazs coffee ice cream! Double check)…but when it came to that other definition, the one more commonly meant, the one that has a its own looming Hallmark holiday – a profoundly tender, passionate affection for another person, a person toward whom love is felt, beloved person, sweetheart – for that definition my check box remained empty.

And so, in order to work whole-heartedly on With Her without feeling like a phony, I felt I needed to get a better understanding of what love is. Since I’m too much of a realistic-romantic to believe I can decide to find love today and then fall into Mr Darcy’s lap tomorrow, I decided to take a more methodical approach and do research to discover what other people think love is…stay tuned for the results…

Emer Schlosser

Associate Producer

From Coming Soon to Now Showing: The Journey Begins

Have you every actually watched the credits for a film? You'll see the names of Actors, the Director(s), the Producers and a litany of other folks sailing on by on the big screen. What do they do? As I've been putting together this short film (With Her), I've been thinking back to the days before I got into the Tv and Film business and I've realized that although people know quite a bit about Directors, and Actors; they don't know very much about what everyone else does. So without further adieu, this is how we're going from first draft, to finished product... and how we're going to fill those credits with artists, technicians, Actors and people passionate for film.

Day one involves a chat with Gerson... he's been working on a script for a feature film for some time now and I'm anxiously awaiting the finished draft. "I wrote a few more pages yesterday..." we chat about the film and he tells me about the characters and the way that the whole thing is weaving together. With each meeting, each discussion, there is more and more story. Gerson wrote a short script a few years ago, a story of a boy going through his first romance, called 'Hugito'. We shot the film with 'real' kids, Actors with very little experience. He earned his stripes by pulling the best performance from them, and in the end, we had a very charming film. This time the ante has been upped, the characters more complex, and a storyline that is going to demand the best out of the performances of the Actors, as well as incorporate a style and polish that we've been striving for. 'With Her' was in it's inception and once the first draft was done I found a quiet place to hunker down and really soak it in. From here, everything changed.


What I was reading was a multiplexed storyline, with deep characters involving relationships and revealing discussions. Each player in the story exudes a wisdom or at least emotional complication. The story wove together vignette-like scenes to create a tapestry tale that take you in and out of the psyche of each person. It was going to be a daunting first film. Immediately I began looking for in and out points. Places where Gerson could extract a series of scenes, expand, and create something potent out of a smaller selection. In other words, make it into a short. When we met up and began talking about it, it was obvious that we were thinking the same thing and we had both been making notes and looking at ways to be able to make it... in a different way.


Enter Emer. Gerson had worked with her before on another project and knew he wanted her to story edit the script and make it into something smooth and accessible. A story that came from a longer story, but one that stands alone as it's own. A few revisions, and it was beginning to look like we could plan to make the film. Break it down and put it together. Time for Gerson, Emer, and I to sit down and see if we could make a film together. Form the first coffee, at the first meeting, we knew the chemistry was right. Ideas flew around like four in a bakery, and we gelled into EKG. Together we're monitoring the pulse of the project, keeping up the pace, and motivating each other to get it all done.


From here... I'm making calendars, scratching out budgets, conferring on locations, mocking up crew lists, creating web content, designing graphics, and generally getting the ball rolling. Thank goodness for having an amazing team! Once the site was live, the twitter account created, the email address initialized all three of us dove into maintaining it and spreading the word. Gerson had the first week for blog postings, myself second, and next week Emer will post. We're hoping it's going to be a fun way to have people follow along and possibly, get involved. While we do this, we're calling sponsors for our upcoming event, looking for the perfect space, arranging the audition/rehearsal area, and setting the stage for what's to come.


There are so many things to consider! The best thing that I can do as a Producer is to bring it all together, and in this part of film making, I feel the most joy! We're going to be incorporating as many of our friends and contemporaries as we can... in order to give the most people a mode to display their work. Sergio from Dos Mundos Radio is written into the script as the Radio Dj heard in the background of a few scenes,  we have a few artists who are contributing to set dressing and props, passionate emerging Actors will be given a showcase for their talents and nearly every crew member is excited to show off their tricks in order to have this film finish with a polish that will be surprising! The dream is to bring together all of these creative people, have them work together in a copacetic team, and create the best possible film.

Emer, Kris, and Gerson at the Mod Club Toronto.

Above is a photo of the three of us, excitedly waiting to hear Babe. They're an emerging Toronto music act, with a killer sound, and we'd love to have them involved in the film! Our policy is to reach for what we really want, and if we can't get it, we can be happy that we've tried. We're hoping that Babe will play the launch event, and if luck has our side, they'll even contribute towards the soundtrack. 


So with the film in production, casting call posted and word spreading fast it's becoming apparent that we have a film in our hands and within the next few months it will be made. Before now and then we have a lot to do, this team of three. It will grow to include the contributors, technicians, Actors, and audience members that like the project and are looking forward to to day that the curtain rolls up. I sincerely hope that if you've ever wanted to be involved in a film, to let us know! 'With Her', is a story about love between people, relationships and friendships and the level of visceral engagement that any of us give towards others. Making a film is similar. Passionate people, who do what they love are coming together to put together the film. Think 'all-star team of artists'. Overture, hit the lights. Film sucks you in and immerses you in the process. Before you know it, it's all that's on your mind, all that takes up your time, and all that you ever want to do. "I couldn't sleep one night and I was sitting in my office and I realized that I was an independent filmmaker... " Darren Aronofsky. I'm very happy to be bringing you Gerson's new film. It's brilliant and together Emer, Gerson and I are going to amaze you!


Kristopher Finnigan
Producer

How We Do It

This is my first blog since the first blog and I'd like to start off by thanking Gerson for kicking off the site with some really insightful posts. He's a passionate film maker and it's my pleasure to be working with him on 'With Her'. I'm something of a creative producer, and Gerson is great at taking some of my more abstract ideas and creatively finding places for them in his stories. Not all of them make it in, but it's a dynamic that's getting both of us to push boundaries and think even more than usual, outside of the box. Saying this, I should probably tell you how this is all going to happen. 

We are ‘crowd funded’ and to sum it up nicely, it means we fund raise and use the proceeds to make a film. The crowd is you! This isn't a new idea, quite a few films sell 'Associate Producer' credits or fund raise online via email or mass messaging, and in some sort of way entice folks to get behind the film and help to make it happen. We're doing this in (hopefully) the least obtrusive way possible. For us the ideal film supporter follows along in the process of making the film, gets involved when they feel like it's something that they can offer to enrich the film, and lastly comes to see it when it's all finished. You might jump in on one, two or all three of those steps... and that's really cool with us. Frankly I'm jazzed you're reading this blog right now. Donating towards the film gives it the means to be made, and if you’re into credits you will enjoy seeing your name sail by on the big screen under the heading:

“Our most sincere thanks to our supporters”.

It’ll make you feel all warm and nice inside. Seriously, it’s awesome.

We also have an interactive option. This one is arguably more fun, and we strongly suggest that you try it out. We will throw a party. A party in a unique location. A party with great entertainment. A party that doesn’t feel like a fundraiser. A party that’ll be a good time!

So that’s pretty much it. We are going to keep people in the loop about things that are coming up on this blog site, through Twitter, and on our Facebook page. We're going for content, and if we're talking about something you enjoy, let us know! If there's something you've always wanted to know, or if there's a suggestion you have, let us have it! Film making is an interesting process, from casting and rehearsing, to planning out the shots, and leaping the hurdles that come up along the way. If you like the direction we’re taking, please spread the word! Grow the crowd, and have some fun. In the end, we are making a film, and when all of the fundraising, production, and promotion are done we’d really like it if you came to see the finished product. So tell your friends, come to a party, feed a film maker, clothe an actor, watch a movie.

Kristopher Finnigan
Producer