Mark Devin, Tripeg Studios, and Synthetic Cinema

Glowing Screen compadre Mark Devin recently launched his very own website: Go here to experience his world.

Mark, of course, shot MAGDALENA'S BRAIN, as well as the upcoming film, EXPOSURE. We've known Mark for years here at Glowing Screen, and have always consdiered him to be one of the best shooters around. I'm so happy to see him continuing to DP features and short films, as his talent is too good for him to exist only in the industrial/corporate world.

Go to his site, hire him for your film, and let the accolades come your way. Accolades such as:

DVDSavant: "Cameraman Mark Devin invests the visuals with atmospheric qualities unexpected in such a low budget effort."

Ain't It Cool News: "What was the most striking thing about the movie was the cinematography. Usually indie or amateur films look bad but this guy – Mark Devin – has got it going on. The shots are clear, crisp, and poetic."

And...uh, this one from 10KBullets.com: "Upon reflecting on Magdalena’s Brain, it’s my firm belief that the Director of Photography Mark Devin salvaged this production from becoming a complete disaster."

Thank God for Mark Devin!

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Glowing Screen buddy, Scott Kittredge and I swung by the Hampden, CT home of Tripeg Studios last Friday afternoon and spent a good two hours picking the brain of Tripeg's Synthetic Cinema's Andrew Gernhard, the executive producer of several successful, low budget genre films, including the upcoming Synthetic release, LYCAN.

Andrew was gracious with his time and his knowledge-base concerning low budget filmmaking, and Scott and I both heard what he had to say about the realities of the industry. According to Andrew, there does seem to be a "formula" for this type of filmmaking, and it's somewhat dependant on the popularity of the mainstream. THE WOLF MAN, starring Benecio Del Toro is coming out soon, so distributors are clamoring for werewolf movies. Makes sense. This attitude, however potentially successful it may be, scares me a bit, and I'm unwilling to blindly embrace it. I want to make good movies first, hoping that it translates into success later. Naive? Yeah, I'm sure it is. And though I don't think I'd have a hard time making a pretty good werewolf movie, I don't know if I'd risk making one just because I think the market would bear it.

Andrew was a great guy to meet and someone you can bet we'll be keeping in touch with, as his consultation skills could be a huge asset to any independent filmmaker.

All we need now is the world to clamor for killer barnyard animal movies, and we'll be all set.

¿Magdalena?

How odd is this? While surfing the 'net for MAGDALENA'S BRAIN reveiws and info, I came across a very strange thing. Over at mySubtitles.com some enterprising soul has taken the time to translate the film into Portuguese and create subtitles for it. Here's an example:

447
00:46:45,969 --> 00:46:47,097
...Andrew necesito hablar contigo

448
00:46:54,246 --> 00:46:55,371
- Hey

449
00:46:56,046 --> 00:46:57,793
- Cielos me asustaste

450
00:46:58,259 --> 00:46:59,427
- Lo siento

Wow. If you're so inclined, follow this link to download your very own Portuguese subtitle file.

Chiller Theater

Man, do I love a good convention. And Chiller hasn't let me down once. If you're going to be visiting the Parsippany, NJ show this weekend, then drop us a line before you head down. I've been attending Chiller and Fango cons for the past 20 years or so, but since I've become more active in filmMAKING (as opposed to just filmWATCHING, or filmAPPRECIATING), these shows have taken on a whole new dynamic. Instead of just making the rounds of the dealer rooms and rubbernecking to catch a glimpse of Tom Savini, I've been actively reaching out to fellow filmmakers and trying to create relationships that could benefit us both.

So, if you're a filmmaker, or just a fan with the passion to engage in intelligent dialogue about the craft we all love, then drop me an e-mail. I'd love to hook up. See you there!

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls...

...welcome to Fenway Park.*

Though it has nothing to do with filmmaking, and here at Glowing Screen we're all about filmamking, I would be remiss in my obligations to Red Sox Nation if I didn't
commemorate this date, April 2, 2007 as the official date of the Red Sox 2007 Major League Baseball campaign.

Go Sox.

*(The public address reference at the head of the his post was for effect only. I realize the game is in Kansas City today. I realize this because next Tuesday, when those words are actually spoken for the first time, I'll be sitting at Fenway Park, awaiting Josh Beckett's first pitch).