My first thought was I wished I had an additional 10 percent of everything! As an independent filmmaker, I don’t think you ever feel like there’s enough time or money or resources. You always feel like you need just a little more. In the end it’s about finding creative ways to make what you do have go that extra 10 percent… and it’s about making choices and compromises that hopefully don’t hurt the film. As we traveled around the world filming I never felt ready to leave one location and go on to the next. You can’t help but wonder […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Jan 17, 2008Well it goes without saying that all first-time filmmakers would like 10 percent more budget, days, film, editing days, money for score, extras, lock up, 2K DI, mixing days… oh, you know, the little things. So for me it came down to 10 percent more time in my real life to hang out with Alan Alda. [PREMIERE SCREENING: Monday, Jan. 21, 6:15 pm — Eccles Theatre, Park City]
by Jason Guerrasio on Jan 17, 2008There isn’t a filmmaker I know who wouldn’t mind 10 percent more of absolutely anything he or she can get. The one thing we could all do with, probably, is 10 percent more sleep or rest because we seem to get just about none during a shoot. Somehow our bodies keep going until wrap and then we either collapse or go down with all the bugs we have managed to keep at bay for the duration of the shoot. To be serious about the question as far as The Yellow Handkerchief is concerned, I could have done with at least […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Jan 17, 2008CONTINGENCY… that was put away somewhere that no one could touch… stored behind glass that said, “Break in an emergency.” How did we survive without it? We got creative, tried to keep our sense of humor, and enjoyed the kindness of strangers. I do think that some really wonderful moments came out of it… that now, I would never trade for a slower heartbeat. [PREMIERE SCREENING: Friday, Jan. 18, 3:15 pm — Eccles Theatre, Park City]
by Jason Guerrasio on Jan 17, 2008I wish I had 10 percent more of the budget in my own pocket so that when it comes time to retire, I won’t have to work the dark alleys of Marseille. [PREMIERE SCREENING: Thursday, Jan. 24, 5:30 pm — Prosepector Square Theatre, Park City]
by Jason Guerrasio on Jan 17, 2008I suppose we always could have used 10 percent more daylight since we attempted to shoot as much of the film as possible during “the magic hour.” It seems that regardless of the production’s size, there’s never enough resources, financing, time. In spite of these obstacles our shoot went smoothly and was a really liberating, fun experience. This was in no small part due to our friends and collaborators who filled in the gaps otherwise created by our budget limitations. These limitations also forced us to be resourceful and creative in ways that positively contributed to the film’s overall aesthetic. […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Jan 17, 2008Ten percent more of 100 percent. [PREMIERE SCREENING: Friday, Jan. 18, 8:30 pm — Holiday Village Cinema II, Park City]
by Jason Guerrasio on Jan 17, 2008The obvious answer to that would be “cash flow.” But I would really like to combine it with organization. Our film Flow took us to many countries like India, South Africa and Bolivia… in the space of five years… I first started with a small crew for the first two trips abroad and before I knew it — and with the exception of the U.S., which I did with Yvette, our co-producer, it was a one-man show: me, the camera and the sound…. Basically it was either that or no film, so I tried to let go of the panic […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Jan 17, 2008It may be cliché to mention time as being something we’d all like more of, but it is a major factor once your film is up and running. It is also the one thing that is under relentless assault as you make your film. Every element of the process can benefit from more time, and every element can conspire to eat it up. Knowing this in advance is critical. The only guarantee is that time will go faster than you want it to. However you can make the most of your time on set by being as prepared as possible. […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Jan 16, 2008Easy enough: I definitely wished that I had 10 percent more head capacity. Call it intelligence, understanding, analytic ability, lateral thinking, insight into psychology or just mathematics. I felt a deficit. As a first-time feature director I went pretty fucking cockily into the process. I reckoned my vast experience in music videos, commercials and short films had prepared me for anything that would come my way, production-wise. I believed my life as a devoted reader had rendered me understanding about characters and stories and, finally, that my love for film had filled my mental archive to the brim of how […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Jan 16, 2008