Indies Need a Reboot

Ted Hope and Jeff Lipsky recently spoke during IFP Film Week:

Hope and Lipsky warned that independent film today is increasingly aimed at older audiences, namely white women over the age of 45. He wants to counter the shift with his latest film, “Super” (which was just sold to IFC Films at the Toronto fest).

“How do we make sure we are not relegated to the land of dance and chamber orchestras?” asked Hope, “That’s where indie film is heading.”

...Where are the movies that connect sex, drugs, rock-n-roll, anger and rebellion? How come independent film has nothing that represents Public Enemy or The Clash?”

Hell to the yes, it's about time someone pointed this out (not that there's anything wrong with white women over 45). You can read the whole recap here from Indiewire.


We've been told that TWM isn't a "real" indie film because it's genre. The project has been noted as "youthful" and "weird." We've even been advised to produce with an older age demographic in mind (because that's who is going to art houses these days). We appreciated these notes, thinking long and hard about them. In the end, that would be a movie none of us wants to make.

Move along people...We're making something fun, poignant and poppy. Thanks for the encouragement, Ted and Jeff.

Recommended Viewing: Never Let Me Go

Over the course of many development meetings, one film was consistently mentioned as an off-the-cuff comparison to TWM called Never Let Me Go. We read the acclaimed book by Kazuo Ishiguru, we followed the talent that was attached and couldn't wait to see how this would be translated for the screen by director Mark Romanek. It's quite different from TWM, but at its core, there are underlying themes that are shared when dealing with characters who are clones. Now in theaters, it's one of the best films of the year thus far, a touching tearjerker that is stark and austere as only British school children do best.



Romanek is so restrained, he deftly allows Ishiguru's story to shine. The film really is the novel through and through. For those who didn't read the book, some of the reveals may be confusing. Nevertheless, it is haunting and beautiful and so very, very sad. Never Let Me Go proves there is such a rich depth to the characters because of what they are and the performance by the cast is outstanding.

Don't miss this one.

Watch BBC's Humans v2.0

One aspect of TWM discusses Transhumanism. For some, this concept seems far-fetched -- more science fiction than what is in reality in our world today. Back in 2006, the BBC aired a program titled Humans v2.0 and I just found the full episode on Google Video. It's a probing look at what lies in the future -- not coming soon to a theater near you, but what your children's children will face.

Here's what the BBC said about Humans v2.0 when it was first broadcast:

Meet the scientific prophets who claim we are on the verge of creating a new type of human - a human v2.0.

It's predicted that by 2029 computer intelligence will equal the power of the human brain. Some believe this will revolutionise humanity - we will be able to download our minds to computers extending our lives indefinitely. Others fear this will lead to oblivion by giving rise to destructive ultra intelligent machines.

One thing they all agree on is that the coming of this moment - and whatever it brings - is inevitable.

Where Computers Go To Die

Ever wonder where that bulky PC you got rid of ended up when you bought the laptop? From the time it left your desk and was donated, it has changed many hands and logged many miles. Its final destination was most likely on another continent in a dump where some of the world's poorest people dissected it for the precious metals inside. We recently saw this sobering photo essay by Pieter Hugo titled "A Global Graveyard for Dead Computers in Ghana" during our research for the TWM hotspot scene.  

The majority of the e-waste comes from the U.S. and Europe, where it is exported to developing countries. At the end of the line, people scavenge dumps to recover components with great risk to their health simply to survive. Hard drives are sometimes sold to gangs who mine them for info such as Social Security numbers and credit card information. These are visuals for the setting of a post-apocalyptic movie, but sadly, it's a reality today in the Third World.

National Geographic also did an article titled "High Tech Trash" in 2008 with images of the staggering number of electronics that have become disposable. It's a horrific problem with no quick, easy answer. Programs like E-Stewards are trying to put a stop to these exploitative practices but it will take much more for consumers to stem the tide of forgotten gadgetry.

Yasmin Gate "Go On Remix" Video

Keith Ruggiero, our mega-talented ally in sound design and music composition for Things We've Made, just finished a remix for Yasmin Gate under the Le Rouge moniker. Titled "Go On," the song is a sparkly dance track depicted in this video with candy-colored lights and star-filtered dancers. Keith also directed the video with Charles Roxburgh. Take a look and listen...

Discovery Magazine Finds Cloning Has Terrible Trade-offs

The UK beef scare in the news is admittedly worrisome, but many forget that cloning does take place naturally in species. The aspen tree, for example, can reproduce by growing clones of itself. Discovery magazine talks about a recent study of the species that have remarkably created "large stands of trees of more than 100 acres that are essentially the same tree grown over and over again. Some aspens may have used this tactic to survive up to a million years..."

With this ability to duplicate itself over and over again, these trees do experience fundamental changes in the DNA.

Perhaps the biggest disadvantage is mutations, or genetic errors, that gradually and steadily build up in the genetic material of the plants' cells. "The longer you clone yourself the more mutations you build up," California State University, San Diego biologist Dilara Ally explained.

Read the full article here.

More Experimenting Thru the FIND Screenwriting Lab

Just wanted to report that Things We've Made has been accepted into Film Independent's 2010 Screenwriters Lab. For an intense five weeks lab mentor Meg LeFauve will tear apart the latest draft of my script! Meg produced The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys, which I'm a big fan of. I'm looking forward to fine tuning some more even though I'm really happy with where the script is at. 

I'm off to Austin tomorrow for some location scouting and meetings. We'll be looking at an e-waste recycling center, laboratories and some other fun stuff. 

I'll call you when I get back.