Time Lapse

One of the difficult parts about making any movie is the process of deciding what stays and what goes. Ultimately you want to make a tight, cohesive film that keeps your viewers interested & engaged — for “Off Season” that’s meant cutting out certain scenes and shots that just don’t have a home in the film, despite how much we love them.

One of the more interesting shots that won’t be making it to the big screen (though it will be an extra on our DVD) is below, a time lapse shot of Sylvie Stone puttering around the beach house:

Here’s what our rig looked like:

This was one of the more labor intensive shots we did, as it involved myself and 2nd camera unit operator (and all around super awesome human) Scott Cipu sitting on the floor for an hour, gently moving the camera an inch every couple of seconds as Sylvie moved from one part of the house to the other. We were able to coordinate the dolly movements by using a metronome app on Scott’s Iphone along with pre-determined marks on the floor that told us where each ‘stop’ should be. Once we started rolling,  I gave direction to Liz on what actions to do and where to move through the space while viewing it through the monitor.

I’m disappointed we didn’t get to include it in the actual film, but lucky to have such great memories (and evidence!) of a fun afternoon making a movie with friends.

We know you’re all very anxiously waiting the release of the film, and trust me, there are no two people more anxious than myself and my co-producer Elizabeth Lee. We’re hoping to have the film finished now by March, and will try our best to keep you all posted with the progress!

Sea Song, by Doves

There are some bands & musicians that carry with them a really particular mood and feeling. It’s why I love Neil Finn, and consider some of his music to be the most influential for me (with the exception of his new project, The Pajama Club. Sadly boring and un-Neil like in it’s efforts). I grew up listening to his moody, minor chords and they played soundtrack to some of the first stories and visual concepts I ever conjured.
As my musical tastes have grown, my love of music in the minor chords has stuck. I was in love with “Sea Song” by English band Doves, way before OFF SEASON was even a concept in our heads. But the moment it popped onto my iTunes soundtrack as I scribbled away on my storyboards, I knew it was a perfect fit:

It’s extremely cinematic, provoking feelings of claustrophobia, emptiness, longing. As it turns out, even the lyrics seem to mirror Sylvie’s plight and internal processes:
Drive with meDo the things you won’t believeDrive with mePast the city and down to sea
Crushing dreamsLeave me be, I cannot sleep
Drown with mePast the city, down to seaRush of dreamLeave in peace, let me be
Oh, it’s the painIt’s ingrained i meOh, I soothe my painit’s ingrained in me
Drive with meDrive with me…

So Far, by The Occasion

I’ve always found music to be highly inspirational to what I create. Sometimes the music precedes and directly inspires the idea. Other times it magically fits into something already created, making the mood feel even more complete. With OFF SEASON, our script was pretty much done before I jumped into the storyboarding and writing of shot lists, and having the right soundtrack to mirror the mood of the film helped immensely.

The Finish Line

Summer has begun to fade and the air is just starting to hint of the coming chills ahead. The timing, one might say, is just about right for the release of an equal chilling indie thriller.

OFF SEASON is in the final stage of post-production. Our spine-tingling score is currently being produced by the uber-talented west coaster Justin Schornstein, and the color correction and fine-tuning of visual effects is being orchestrated by our very talented and capable friend Scott Cipu.

Once we have all these beautiful pieces completed, our movie will be finished. What was once an idea, formed into words on a page, given to actors to make real, captured by skilled technicians, cut and sliced into coherence, polished, and set to music, will soon be a movie. It’s like Magic, but really, it’s just lots of people doing what they love and doing it well.

We cannot wait to share this movie with you. That moment draws ever so near…

OFF SEASON Teaser Trailer!

With principal photography wrapped just a scant two months ago, we’re delighted to share a first glimpse of OFF SEASON.

We’re very excited about how the editing is progressing, and watching a story that once existed only on paper come to life in vivid color and motion (and sound, of course) is truly thrilling.

Keep checking back in. This is only the first of many great things we have to share with you in anticipation of our release later this year.

Production wrapped — onto post-production!

It’s incredible how time flies when you’re producing a film. Just a little over a month ago we were starting our first day of shooting at the beach house. Today, we’re fully wrapped and getting ready to begin post-production, or the editing and sound mixing & design of the film.

We definitely finished our filming with a “bang” so to speak. Last Saturday was spent mostly inside a Manhattan high rise while Sunday we were out shooting all day on the street, with nearly a dozen extras for one scene - our big paparazzi, angry crowd scene. The crew was totally blown away by our extras’ enthusiasm and willingness to become so vocal and physical with one another. Take after take they brought their A-game, contributing so much to a scene that could’ve otherwise been quite passive. All in all, it was a great weekend wrapping up a great month of shooting.

Now begins the process of going through the footage and editing it all down into one cohesive piece of movie magic. It’s going to take some time, but we’ll keep you posted with updates throughout the process to let you know how things are going.

Until then, have some happy holidays!

-The OS Crew

Filming almost wrapped!

It’s been a very hectic 2 weeks for the OFF SEASON crew. Principal photography started at our beach house location on October 16th, and we just finished shooting yesterday, with a few scenes remaining to be filmed in November. It’s been a lot of hard work, with early morning shoots and many late nights, but the rewards have made it worth it.

Our location itself has become a huge part of our production — for both it’s
photogenic-ness, and it’s ability to relieve stress. It’s been a surreal experience to be able to live on set while we’re working, with the crashing waves just outside our windows.

There have also been all sorts of wildlife perusing the neighborhood as we shoot. Monarch butterflies passing through on their migration, families of deer that come to feed in our yard each dawn and sunset. We’ve seen a few fisherman surf casting and catching giant Sea Bass right on the beach in back of our house, though we haven’t had the chance to try and wrangle one ourselves yet.

As for the film itself, our talented lead actors Liz Lee and Kimani Shillingford brought their A-game to every scene. Our supporting cast of actors, Abe Koogler, Dan Odell, Mchale Bright, Jun Naito, Chesley Calloway and Kimberley Shoniker, were no less entertaining to watch, and lovely to work with.

Production Update - Week 1

Our first week of production for OFF SEASON went exceedingly well! We started off nice & slowly on Thursday, with an afternoon of still photography shot by the talented Chris Vongsawat of Chamber Images.

Then we rounded out the long weekend on Sunday filming our Newscasters, both on location and in the studio in front of a green-screen.

Casting updates, scheduling begins!

It’s been another hectic week here at Cold Hands HQ. Scheduling is always a difficult task, but thankfully our cast has been very patient and supportive through the process so far. We’ve also pretty much confirmed talent for every single role in our film, save for a few additional voice-overs and extras for crowd scenes (email us if you’re interested!)

Here are a few more additions to our cast. Stay tuned for more announcements in the next few weeks.

Director Katie Carman on Big Daddy Horror and more cast announcements…

More cast announcements…

Off Season update