Schweitzer Lakedance is held in Sandpoint, Idaho, in what many have termed, “God’s Country.” According to the festivals’ bio “It is a chance for filmmakers, cast and crew to have fun with their film and actually take a vacation. Where we lack close proximity to the famous Hollywood sign, we also lack the smog, traffic, and concrete jungles. Sandpoint is a town of 6,800 surrounded on two sides by the large Lake Pend Oreille, and shadowed by the towering Schweitzer Mountain Resort. We at Lakedance, count ourselves blessed to be able to create an event that can encompass not only the high-culture of international cinema, but also these incredible outdoor areas with their limitless activities. In short, we invite your team to take a break from the hustle-and-bustle of production and screen your film in front of a enthusiastic albeit slower-paced crowd from the Inland Northwest. Lakedance will do our best to accommodate your team, beginning with passes to our acclaimed VIP Lounge and Film Festival, but also discounted room rates and access to all exclusive VIP events, including a special filmmaker cruise on Lake Pend Oreille. You will be allotted up to 10 tickets for your screening, and VIP passes or Festival Passes depending on requirements. Saturday night is our on-stage Soaring Eagle awards presentation, so make sure you plan accordingly.”

Sunlight plays as part of Film Block #7 Thursday September 11, 5-7:30PM

More info on the festival by clicking here

Hope to see you soon
Shawn

Yee-haw!

Please join me on Monday, September 1 to celebrate this accomplishment with a screening of this film in front of a few hundred of my closest friends… and plenty of strangers. “Sunlight” will screen in the “Made in Seattle” segment 2-3PM at the SIFF cinema in the Opera House.

This is the second year a film of mine has appeared at Bumbershoot. Last year was the world premier of my first film “Gimme Music, Gimme Shelter” the screening for which was one of the most exciting moments in the life of that movie.

Truly, 1 Reel is a remarkable festival. The audiences are enthusiastic, appreciative and very verbal. According to the Bumbershoot website “Extraordinary work is happening in our own backyard, and we are pleased to present some of the best.”

More information on “Made in Seattle” here.

Again, it’s Monday, September 1, 2-3 PM in the SIFF Cinema.

I hope to see you soon.

Cheers
Shawn

Also known as the “crossroads to discovery,” Washougal is a quiet community on the banks of the Columbia, just a short drive from Portland, Oregon; this year is also the town’s 100th anniversary. The festival itself will take place between August 20-23. The screenings will be right in the center of old town, in the new Washougal Town Center — both inside and outside in the courtyard. Any overflow will go to Washougal High School.

Winning filmmakers will be honored with the Mayor’s Medal and prizes in respective categories at the closing night awards ceremony. Films will be valued on merits such as creativity, ingenuity, story, attention to detail, and the ability to challenge and inspire audiences.

More information on the Washougal International Film Festival here.

Be well. Do good work. Keep in touch.

Cheers
Shawn

Sure, July 25th conflicts with the Capitol Hill Block Party, but “Light and Dark” doesn’t start until 8:45 in the eve. By then, you’ll be Block Partied out. So come on down to ACT Theatre, sit down, take a load off, get a beverage and enjoy 20 all new films, heavy with local filmmakers, including Calvin Reader’s Sundance short “Rambler.”

Tickets are $15 and available at the ACT box office or on-line at www.acttheatre.org. Doors open at 8, show starts 8:45.

More information right here!

See you soon

Cheers
Shawn

“A Night in the Sunlight” Trailer

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Behind the scenes with Elliot Greenleaf and Lenne Klingaman... And Darlene Sellers in the background.

Today we locked the picture. That means that all of the shots that tell this story are arranged in the order that they need to be. From here on out, these won’t change. The music and audio, however, will change. The audio will get cleaned, sweetened, balanced and music will be added.

Yes, yes, yes, that obnoxious laugh coming from the sidewalk outside our location will be evicted from the film. Certainly, it will not be missed. Dead zones and other audio potholes will be smoothed over. It will sound as pretty as it looks. And let me emphasize that “Sunlight” is visually stunning… it’s hi-def after all. And Jonathan Houser, a gifted cinematographer in his own right, has an amazing eye for composition and creating impressions that lent itself well to the telling of this story. Of course, there was also Tony Tibbetts, the editor, who did a marvelous job of dissecting then assembling the raw footage and Lenne Klingaman, who turned in a remarkable performance every single take; there’s not a shot or even a moment when she wasn’t giving 100%, which, to offer up a bit of insider information, also helped us to use outtakes and b-roll in the final edit of the film.

Carmen and Elliot listen to Shawn direct.

I’ve always believed in this story and now, looking at our final cut, I know we’ve made something very, very special. It’s beautiful to look at, the performances are strong, the story is sweet and it all comes together in a breathtaking ten-minutes. From start to finish, this is exactly the kind of movie I’ve always hoped to make; it’s elegant, ambitious, ambiguous, sensuous, impressionistic and deeply meaningful.

But that is the end of my feelings for the film. What matters now is that it speaks to others (although to do so, it must be SEEN by others, so that’s where we go next: a festival near you!)

Thanks for your continued support.

Cheers
S

Amanda Bontecou and Ken Smith make a fantastic crew.

I’m extremely happy with where the film now sits artistically and I cannot wait to show the finished product. in the meantime, please enjoy these two teasers.

Heart,
Shawn

“A Night in the Sunlight” teaser 1:

“A Night in the Sunlight” teaser 2:

Some good news: February 1st was the final deadline for the Seattle International Film Festival. On that day, I personally submitted a rough cut of “A Night in the Sunlight” to the festival offices where I asked if the submission fees could possibly be waived. The man who took my envelope and listened to my question furled his brow and asked me to describe the film, which I did. “It’s a haiku about love, loss, family and the impact we leave on one another.” Then he asked me where it was filmed. I told him “In Seattle, at the Sunlight cafe on Roosevelt with a Seattle crew and all Seattle actors.” He seemed to ponder this for a moment, then with a brush of his hand said “It’s waived.”

That little wave saved me $70.

I thanked him profusely, shook his hand and bounced out of the building.

I sat in my car for a while, elated. I take it as a good sign for the film: its first attempt to get out and the gatekeeper waved it through!

We’re off to a good start.

That said, the picture still isn’t locked. Once we lock it, we’ll balance the color, clean the audio, then add those finishing touches like original music compliments of songwriter and guitar virtuoso Kelli Rudick.

I’m also applying for an Artists Trust GAP grant to get some finishing funds. If won, I’ll use this money to pay for the posters, DVD production/transfer and submission fees to (hopefully) quite a few festivals. So far, I’ve spent more–lots more–on submitting “Gimme Music, Gimme Shelter” than I spent on the production of it. About five times as much.

Recently, I had a test screening of “Sunlight” with a friend and his insights were spot on. Everything we hoped to tell in this story is there. The details, even the smallest, most specific are visible and articulated.

Soon, very soon, this lovely little haiku will be available for all of y’alls enjoyment. And I can’t wait for you to see it.

Cheers
Shawn

Our temporary poster

It finally happened!

I wrangled the crew, the actors, actresses and most difficult of all, a splendid location!

All together, these bits and pieces turned my short script “27 Questions” into a lovely film that now goes by the name, “A Night in the Sunlight” (after a certain cafe that proved to be too magical and too inspirational to ignore.)

This haiku of a movie is about memory, imagination and family. It features Jonathan Houser’s amazing cinematographic eye; Lenne Klingaman’s Academy-ready acting skills; and Tony Tibbett’s divine gift for rhythm and pace (he’s the editor.) New to the family is Amanda Bontecou, a good friend who was willing to do anything to help but showed a certain proclivity for sound capture and recording.

The film is now in the can and a rough cut should be available in a few weeks. (Some choice snippets will be posted here, so please check back.)

I have to say, this is the most production value I’ve ever worked with. Sure, I have only “Gimme Music, Gimme Shelter” to show for myself but I’ve done a number of experimental slash “exercise” projects that will probably never see the light of day… well, except for “I met him in the night,” which I’m sure will surface somewhere at some point.

The point being, I pulled out all the stops to make this short as pretty as could be. That and Jon Houser is one of those rare collaborators who never says no; he’s always “Yes, and….” Which really means that we had all kinds of lights and all kinds of special effects (made, of course, with lots of lights!) When the shoot was done, I had a feeling in my gut that we had captured something quite special. What’s even better is, I wasn’t alone. There was a warmth that circulated the set at 9AM when we wrapped our 12 hour shoot. It was obvious, we had done something special. We had told a lovely little story!

This is a very good feeling since the story itself is deeply meaningful to me. Plus, I have absolute faith in the talented actors and crew that came together to make this picture happen. For the core group (Jon, Tony and myself,) this is our second piece together and I can see our film group improving and growing with each step. By “growing” I mean really mean leaping and bounding.

I really like working with these guys. We’re developing a common language, a work ethic and camaraderie I’ve never experienced before in this industry. My grand scheme is to continue working together as we move into feature-length projects. One I have in mind is called “High Fructose Corn Syrup” that will be a co-production with a company of first rate Seattle actors.

More details on that LATER.

In the meantime, please check out some of the production photos available on my gmail site.

"A Night in the Sunlight" production photos