It has been approximately a week since the gang from Killer Goose Films packed up and headed out West to show their first film, “The Call” at the 14th annual HP Lovecraft Film Festival and an update is in order.
Travelling to see the country is one thing. Travelling to show a sci-fi film in front of some of the most educated sci-fi& horror film geeks (I use the word with the utmost reverence and respect) in the world is a daunting and intimidating task. However, after showing “The Call” to packed audiences twice over the weekend I can safely (and proudly) report that we walked out of there unscathed with some excellent feedback and a few decent contacts in our pockets.
It’s taken us just about a year to finish a 16 minute movie. That statement seems incredible and perhaps laughable. There were so many problems and obstacles that popped up at every phase of this production (car accidents and color mainly) that when I boarded my plane for Oregon it seemed surreal. That was a sentiment repeated constantly throughout the trip as in, “I can’t believe we’re here right now.” Despite all the problems we’ve endured, our focus never left the end goal: get to Portland.
This festival was always the goal. The HP Lovecraft Fest was our Golden Globes and Oscars rolled into one. It was the festival we wanted to get into because, honestly, it’s where we thought we had the best shot. I mean, the festival is named after the man who inspired “The Call” to begin with. If we couldn’t show there it was time to put the film out to stud or euthanize it right there on the track. But luckily Andrew and the good people who run the festival felt we were worthy enough to show and now, as far as I’m concerned, everything else is gravy.
As great as getting into the festival was for us, there was still the daunting task of actually going and screening this thing for a bunch of people we’d never met before. And while most people are nice and cordial, who knows what might happen. All I could envision was the crowd turning on the film, tossing movie house concessions at the screen and screaming obscenities from the dark theatre. Alas, that didn’t happen but the moments leading up to our first screening certainly didn’t make it easy.
Picture this. You’re film is going to screen in the 7 o’clock hour on Saturday night and you figure it’s a good idea to check out some of the other movies from the block just before yours. You walk through the theatre, which is littered with people but not overly crowded. So in your mind you think, maybe 100, 150 people will be in the theatre. You get to the main theatre doors, grab the greasy handle and pull only to find yourself staring at someones back. What the hell?? Jesus, it’s standing room only and the auditorium holds 500. So now you know what you’re in for. But 7 o’clock rolls around and everything is fine. Sure the theatre is packed but the screening goes off without a hitch except of course when you watch your Director sprint from his seat and almost bust his ass when he thinks the movie is about to start so he can watch safely from the rear of the theatre.
Up until that moment, “The Call” had only screened for cast, crew and family members. What a difference watching it with a huge amount of strangers. You really get a feeling for what works and what doesn’t. The reaction is almost tangible. The flick played again on Sunday to a slightly smaller crowd but was still received well.
So we survived our first festival experience and now we move on to some other submissions so hopefully we can have screenings closer to home. DVD’s will be available soon and maybe, just maybe a t-shirt.
Just a quick note regarding Portland itself. While I will not speak directly about Portland or its people I will refer you to South Park Season 11: Episode 7 – Night of the Living Homeless. While this is not an indictment of Portland or the wonderfully nice inhabitants of Oregon, it is merely a glimpse into what life is like in Downtown Portland.
Also a quick shoutout to a filmmaker we met, Steve Daniels. The guy is wicked talented and a dead ringer for Kevin Smith. No, really he is. Check out his YouTube page HERE. Don’t miss the trailer for “The Dirt Dauber, ” which won best short at the festival & “The Gibbering Horror of Howard Ghormely.”
