To the knights of the new and future republic: Often times, when I have told people the title of this project, their first response is for me to clarify the meaning of the term “fandom”. As someone who has taught English at both the high school and college level, my response is simple, think of a fan, and then think of an adjective that describes their collective enthusiasm and devotion, and then turn it into a noun again. After that, usually they are with me – though most have still never heard the word. But that is another story. I have been a fan of George Lucas’ myth, since, oh, before many of you were born. Now that isn’t saying much. I am only 32 years old. But like so many of this generation, it was this film, that single-handedly inspired me to become a filmmaker, and I have developed this piece, not so much as an exploitative piggy-back, but as a tribute to one of my own personal heroes and mentors who I have come to know without actually knowing. It is important for me to specify that George Lucas has not endorsed this project, and that as of the date of writing this liner note, he has not even seen it. But it is also important for me to note that this is a project that would not have been possible, had it not been for George Lucas inspiring me to become a filmmaker, way back when I was 5 years old. (Though I saw the film in ’77, films stayed in the theater much longer back then, and it was not until my second or third viewing that I finally caught the filmmaking bug in ’78 in conjunction with Kenner’s line of toys.) But I digress. What you now hold in your hand is a very special piece of student filmmaking. Though I am not certain, I believe that I read somewhere that the term “jedi” came to Lucas through film school, referring to a particular style of Japanese filmmaking. That would be fitting, because from a certain point of view, I believe that filmmakers are like Lucas’ legendary knights. Only instead of wielding sabers with crystals that they have either discovered or been given and hilts that they have hand-crafted for the purposes of manipulating light; these knights have wielded crystal-synced cameras to produce hand-crafted editing footage for the purposes of manipulating light. And the world has never been the same. . . In the late 60’s arose a group of filmmakers that Michael Pye and Lynda Myles labeled “The Movie Brats”, later to be known as “The Film School Generation”. This was the first crop of young American directors who all knew each other, and were actually graduating from mostly graduate-level film schools to not only find work in Hollywood, but to go on to change the way that Hollywood understood itself. These filmmakers included Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, Brian De Palma, John Milius, and, of course, George Lucas. (Spielberg was also included among them, though he never went to film school – rather beginning his career in television at Universal on the strength of an amateur film he had made.) These filmmakers went on to invent the blockbuster (a film that makes over $100 million; though now that number is estimated at $200 million) with such classics as The Godfather, Jaws, and Star Wars. And ever since then, the success of these films has forever dominated the destiny of any movie made in the business. And I would go on to say as any movie…period. Since it seems to me that all films are made either in conjunction or contention with Hollywood stylistics. Very rare is the filmmaker who can make a project indifferent to Hollywood, or even oblivious of it. But anyway, in my mind, these guys that I just named were kind of like Jedi Knights, who defended the cinema culture against the old tyrannical ways of the old and decrepit studio system which was fast fading into oblivion, but still boasted the power to bring life or death to a star. Coppola – with his five Oscar run beginning with the screenplay for Patton in 1970 – really deserves a great deal of credit for his vision and maverick approach to filmmaking, culminating with his company America Zoetrope. As the Qui Gon of those special knights, and mentor to the chosen one, George Lucas, his influence on American filmmaking cannot be underestimated. (And the influence of The Godfather on American culture probably best referenced by Tom Hanks in You’ve Got Mail, or a USA Today poll which named it as the Best Movie Ever Made is a strong indicator of this.) But there is another name in all of this who cannot and should not be forgotten. This obscure, almost reclusive and unassuming filmmaker, is in my opinion the smartest and wisest filmmaker the American film industry has ever seen. And though his legacy has directly led to the discovery of such giants as Francis Ford Coppola, Martin Scorsese, James Cameron, Peter Bogdanovich, Johnathan Demme, Ron Howard, John Sayles, most young filmmakers today are barely aware of his enduring influence. Of course, I am speaking of Roger Corman. The yoda-like filmmaking sage, who understood the value of the student filmmaker long before mainstream Hollywood did. In addition to this, Corman offers a strategy for making independent films that is even more relevant today than perhaps even in his generation. That is, any movie can make money no matter how bad. And any good movie can lose money, no matter how good. The mitigating factor is and always will be how much was spent in the first place. As both a filmmaker and a professor at a cinema school myself, I believe Corman’s biography How I Made 100 Movies in Hollywood and Never Lost a Dime is worth more than even a film school education, which I never technically had myself – and it only costs sixteen bucks! Talk about cost effective education. Though I majored in film studies at the University of Pittsburgh, graduating in 1997, this is not a production oriented program, but a more theory based one. I did take a couple classes at Pittsburgh Filmmakers, probably the best choice for anybody who wants to learn about making movies but can’t afford a four-year college. But I decided to drop out of my last production class so that I could, believe it or not . . .make a movie! And I have been making movies ever since – not as a big-shot Hollywood studio head with money to burn – but as a film teacher and film student who, like Corman, takes on aspiring filmmaking students in low-budget endeavors through an organization I developed with some friends called The Sprocket Guild. This organization has been going strong since the year 2000, and I believe is a very practical way for the up and coming film student to get experience in filmmaking without going deep into debt, or deep into their own pockets. In the 60’s, it was the studios who had lost touch with the audiences, and become tyrannical in their exploitation of their biggest supporters – the filmmakers and fans. Well, though I may get in trouble for saying it, today in 2005, it is the film schools who have taken the studios tyrannical place. More fiercely competitive than the Sith Academies of Korriban, many of these institutions have become big business themselves where the only real customer is the wide-eyed film student dead set on “making it in Hollywood”. In exchange for sometimes outrageous tuition fees, lab costs, and the price of making a film, these students expect to be on Hollywood A lists, but this is an ambition as elusive as becoming the most powerful Jedi is for a Sith. It won’t happen. It can’t happen, because most film schools are designed to merely reinforce the value systems of Hollywood. And ironically, even after the student has spent all that money, the film school still owns the film anyway. What a scam! As a film professor, I am not against a solid film education. But most kids don’t go to film school for a film education. Most go to become the next Steven Spielberg or George Lucas. But, contrary to what many film scholars believe, what makes Spielberg and Lucas special as filmmakers is that they discovered their voices and their artistic sensibilities independent of Hollywood ambitions. This is a strange, but undeniable reality. And this is why it is scarcely imaginable that film schools alone can produce the next Spielberg or Lucas. Just yesterday a former student of mine came to me with a script and wanted my advice. I told him that if he wanted to make it in Hollywood, I couldn’t help him do that. I cannot give what I don’t have. But I told him if he wanted to make movies, that is, to learn the secret of staying in the business of making movies many, many years after graduation without putting the wife and kids at risk, he should do two things. So for now, while those two things will remain anonymous, I am convinced that if he does them, in no time at all he will be able to look at a movie that he has written and be proud of it – even with an audience if that is his desire. I know this because I have done it for other now-filmmakers, and I am committed to doing it for as many will-be filmmakers as heaven will allow. It cost $10,000 to make this movie. Truly, it should not have been possible to make this movie so inexpensively. But when you have the multi-talented group of students that I had, with a little bit of luck, and a whole lot of determination, anything is possible. I mean this was the most rewarding teaching and learning experience as a filmmaker I have had to date. Most of my principal actors were filmmakers, not actors, so literally in certain driving scenes they would say their lines, and then be passed the camera and have to shoot the other actors. They also worked as production assistants, assistant directors, and even directors, in certain instances. I remember one day in early March while we were shooting, crossing the desert and attempting to chase the sun to keep our light as consistent as possible for a driving scene, thinking that five years ago this mode of moviemaking would not have been possible. The canisters of film alone for the amount of footage that we got would have taken up all of the trunk space we had, if not more! (Let alone room for the other people in a vehicle that was both transportation and prop.) But as it was, the seven of us: myself, Frank, Steve, Mike, Chris, Mia, and Dan were able to pile into an SUV at these gas prices and shoot a road trip movie that took us from Pittsburgh to Cleveland to Phoenix to Vegas to Los Angeles and back again. That is amazing! Thanks to the technology of the Panasonic DVX-100 and its 24p capabilities, and the editing software of both Premiere and Final Cut Pro, and the infrastructure of The Sprocket Guild and my own independent production company this movie has been made. My intent here is not to overhype our efforts, but to state the realities. If you look at this film as a Star Wars fan or a film student and say you can do better, then I say go for it. Make it happen! That’s what this is all about. If you can pay a screenwriter; get a group of about 30 or so people to commit to a project with hardly any pay and long, grueling hours; and schedule it in the middle of a school semester for some; and then convince them to follow you across the country; stay in hotels and hit desert roadsides for shots, etc.; pay for the flights, the hotel rooms; secure the equipment, and the vehicles, and pay for what little food we had; all to shoot and edit a 210 page script in 4 months for $10,000; and still keep your sanity and make an even better project, then I couldn’t be more inspired. To be able do all this while simultaneously teaching at two universities, taking care of a wife, a 3 year old son, and newborn baby daughter, and still get the outline for your dissertation done on the same day as the roughcut screening, then I would be very inspired. Truly, on the day that occurs, the “jedi” will have truly returned. But until that day, I offer this film series as a gift, to all of those aspiring filmmakers who don’t hate Hollywood, but hate the fact, that it seems like Hollywood hates them. I love making movies, plain and simple. And I love helping other people achieve their dreams. Being a filmmaker is a bit like chasing the sun. If you understand that you won’t catch it, and don’t end up getting burned like Icarus, you might just embark on a journey that is very well lit. These are exciting times in cinema, and I look forward to the future. Make the movie that you’ve always dreamed of, and “May the Force be with you.” The saga continues. . . Gregory Allen May 19, 2005
Posted on: Mon, 29 Dec 2014 18:55:55 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015