Pre production is one of the key elements of film making and one that is very difficult to find out about. Those of you studying Warp Films or Working Title will find the following very useful. Shynola are a production company who have made music videos for Coldplay, Radiohead, Beck etc as well as special effects for feature films like 'Hitchikers Guide'. They are currently in preproduction for a film they are attempting to make, using a novel as their inspiration. They have a blog tracking their progress so I emailed them and got the following response.
“Hi Mr Smith
sorry for this slow reply. We've been frantically trying to finish our script. Our deadline is this week. We've one (long) scene left to write and then we'll have our official first draft.
Thanks a lot for your interest. In terms of explaining how exactly we get our project off the ground, all I can say is - watch this space - as we haven't started yet. Normally all our work (commercial) comes to us, we do not seek it. We'll be given a script or a song, and they already have the airtime booked, dates and a budget. We are just film/video directors.
Our script however, is a completely different kettle of fish. We are living off the money in our company account while we write our script. We also bought the rights to the book ourselves. No-one, currently, has any stake in what we are doing, it is completely unsolicited. I'm not sure this is the orthodox approach, and seeing as we've been writing for well over two years, it is rather a gamble. However, it has been fun, a learning experience, and we've enjoyed complete artistic freedom.
Whether or not this has produced a script that anyone will give two hoots about will be revealed shortly. Our plan is to show our draft to friends in December, to get an outsider's perspective and also that of the layman. Hopefully any shortcomings of the script can be tweaked and fixed in January, at which point we will print our first draft 'proper' and mail it out to the short list of people we have in our rollerdex.
Firstly this will be our two production companies, here and in the US, who have affiliations with Ridley Scott's and Francis Ford Coppola's film production companies. We also know the main chap at Warp films, though it is very debateable that they could summon the required funds to make it. We also have a few contacts in America, and I imagine we will start to consider US agents to represent us in Hollywood. The film is set in London, and would hopefully remain so. So personally, I imagine that we'll end up getting money from France, say Canal+, somehow.
No idea where the money will come from though, or if it will at all. The blog, which is at the moment a warts and all scrapbook, will evolve into a production diary once things start to happen. We are trying to show, as transparently as possible, a truer side of filmmaking. Which sounds grand - but all I mean is: when I look at other director's blogs, they usually consist of poor digital photos taken on set, or meeting famous people at comic-con. I am sure it will prove hard not to be sucked into this, but as a fan I find these blogs very disappointing. I want to know how something is made, where the ideas come from and how they develop, and all the trials and tribulations. Outside of manipulating audience expectation and spoilers, I see no reason for secrecy.
Anyway, back to it. Hope this is of some interest, but as I say, keep an eye on the blog for forthcoming developments. And keep your fingers crossed for us.
best
Kenny”
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