Thursday, July 23, 2009

Kids Journal - 07/27/02

Before I started this blog, I would send myself emails about funny or important moments in the kids lives. Here's one from July 2002...

***

July 27, 2002

Today was a cool day... a day which, as a father, I never anticipated. Today, my daughter, Dorothea, and I went over her lines in the script. I got a degree in acting (add appropriate "you're an idiot" insult here) and I performed for quite a few years, but I never thought any of my kids would participate in the field. And when I wrote the first draft of The Box the child character was named Lil' Jimmy. But when I realized that the only child actor I could count on and be relatively certain she'd be available when I needed was my own daughter, well, the character quickly became Lil'Jenny.

So we sat on our family room floor and I went through each of her scenes with her, going over her lines, explaining her specific choices, etc. But, she wanted to understand the big picture... she wanted to understand why Dan was sacrificing himself for his family. I kept telling her it was a long story, because it'd mean I'd have to verbally go over the entire script. She didn't care. She was full of youthful exhuberance, so I went through it.

So, I go through the whole story, basically scene by scene, but it felt like a camp fire story. I'm leaning forwarding, acting everything out, she's leaning forward, listening intently. And the cool part was that she was totally into it, cringing when The Box got moved from one location to the other, etc. It was pretty neat, actually. I hope the audience responds with as much interest as she did when I told her the entire story.

So, I continue on and when I get to Plot Point II, my daughter does the sweetest thing... I get to the point where Lil' Jenny inadvertently lets Anderson know where The Box is located and my daughter quickly leans back, gasps and grabs her chest as if the wind had been knocked out of her. Tears start to form in her eyes and I ask, "what's wrong?" She said "It's all my fault that Dan dies!" She was so into the story that she felt personally responsible for her character doing an action that utlimately leads to Dan's death. It was so sweet.

She then started laughing at herself for getting so emotional, yet still crying at how her character's action impacted Dan. It lasted until we got through the rest of the story.

It was so sweet because, not only did she understand the story, but she truly cared about the characters. It was a very special, nice little moment between a writer Dad and his interested daughter... one I'll never forget.

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Listen to My Interview!

I've known Jon Ashby online for 10 years. He ran a website a long time ago called REwind Video. It was THE hub for the microcinema revolution in the late 90's. Over the years Jon has continued his altruistic support approach to the low budget filmmaker and now runs a website called CommonFilm.org.

He was kind enough to interview me about our recent Club God award, Sonlight Pictures and our future project Forgiven. So, check it out at the links below...

Main Page - http://www.commonfilm.org

Direct link to Interview - http://www.commonfilm.org/media/podcasts/CFInterview-PeteBauer.mp3

Funny thing... having known Jon online for 10 years, this was the first time we actually spoke to each other. Amazing how technology has changed relationships and communication.

In any event, it was very kind of Jon to take the time to allow me to talk up Sonlight Pictures. Please check it out.

Monday, July 20, 2009

Come What May (2009)

A couple of people in Virginia came up with an idea of training Christian home-schoolers in the ways of film making in order to take back the entertainment industry for Jesus. They formed a company called the Advent Film Group and put together their first project, a pro-life film called Come What May.

The behind-the-scenes story is very inspirational. Feeling the push of divine influence, they approached a small Christian college called Patrick Henry College and proposed using their moot court setting (where students debate issues in a court setting with retired judges) in preparation for debating moral issues in the real world and suggested writing a story about two college students assigned to argue to overthrow Roe v. Wade.

They formulated a budget and were astounded that the financial needs of the film were funded within a few weeks. Not one investor that they approached said No. Not one! That's an amazing thing!

The film itself follows a young man named Caleb who joins the college and is assigned to work with the beautiful and chaste Rachel. They are tasked with coming up with arguments to overturn the legal event in the Supreme Court which allowed abortion to become legal in this country. A nearly impossible argument to win now-a-days.

Caleb's home life is struggling as his parents are on opposite ends of the abortion debate. The father is about to publish a book on the science behind the pro-life movement and the mother is a lawyer defending a Supreme Court case that hopes to continue to allow children to obtain abortions without parental consent.

Over the course of their studies, Caleb and Rachel draw closer to each other, but her high standards of relationships and her own self-respect cause Caleb to reconsider his own approach to intimacy.

The film's success is hit and miss. It suffers from the consequence of low-budget scars. Acting his inconsistent. Lighting and audio vary in quality. And the story, for the most part, is very good. Out of the 90 or so minutes of the film, there is an excellent 60 minutes worth of material in there. The other 30 minutes are not bad, but not nearly as strong and concise as the rest of the story.

The lead actors (Austin Kearney as Caleb and Victoria Emmons as Rachel) are very good for the most part. There are a few times where they dip below the believability scale... in the smaller moments, in the throw away lines, that take you out of the film for a moment, but they have screen presence and a certain charm.

Come What May is enjoyable to see a film with strong pro-life standards, with college relationships based on faith and chastity and with real questions being asked about such a sensitive subject which are handled with respect and include numerous opportunities to discuss both sides of the issue. In many ways, it's as fair and balanced as a pro-life movie can get.

Finally, Come What May was extremely fortunate to have garnered massive amount of support from pro-life and pro-family organizations. Not since Sherwood Pictures (Flywheel, Facing the Giants, Fireproof) have a I seen such an strong grassroots effort to get a film seen. I think if the acting would have been better and the production value higher, this film would have been as big as any of the Sherwood Pictures flicks.

I think this is a film people see because they believe in the message and want to support the filmmakers for exploring it, but I think the film could have been much, much more financially successful.

I applaud Advent Film Group for the intent and dedication to training the next generation of filmmakers that will be steeped in Christian values and traditions. I can't wait to see their next film.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Live Alligator Wrestling Review Flashback

I was cleaning out some old email and came across this review of the last (and final) play that I was in at the Florida Players called Live Alligator Wrestling. This may already be posted on the website, but just in case, here's a snippet of the review...

***

The plays, touted by LiveArts as "world premieres" (accurate but a bit pretentious), are David F. Smith's Wallace Stevens at Key West, Doug Cooney's Live Alligator Wrestling and Jeff Whipple's The Cutting Edge of Amenities. They're billed as "The Floridians 2005," part of LiveArts' occasional series of Florida-influenced work.

Only one of the pieces works.

Cooney is an immensely charming and insightful writer and performer whose works combine quirky, low-key comedy and subtle poignancy. Live Alligator Wrestling, based on the story of Owen and Pearl Godwin, the founders of Orlando's Gatorland, doesn't have the emotional depth of some of his best work, but it's still clever, amusing and quietly poignant.

Cooney gives us the Godwins (played wonderfully by Pete Bauer and Susan Alexander) from early adulthood into middle age. Owen Godwin surprises his young wife by turning their back yard into an alligator pit, the beginning of Gatorland. She is not amused. But Florida is crawling with gators and tourists, he argues, so it makes sense to bring the two together.

As a devoted wife, Pearl dutifully runs the attraction while her husband travels the country acquiring exotic animals. In the end, Owen seems to know more about alligators than his wife and reacts awkwardly to her plea for warmblooded companionship.

The story gets a big charge from three local theater talents whose work hasn't been seen much on professional stages of late. Alexander and Bauer show a real fondness for their characters, and director Roz Potenza displays a nice touch with the delicate material.