Indie film Calvin Marshall On Demand

I doubt this is my final word on this movie but I promise that day is coming soon.  Calvin Marshall is now officially on pay-per-view.  This little indie comedy I've been sporadically writing about for the past year and a half was shot on 35mm and is finally available to watch in the comfort of your own homes.

CM's a funny and bittersweet look at childhood dreams trying to survive the merciless hierarchy of sports.  It's a narrative that is mostly about some good people in a small town -- but it does feature some exciting junior college baseball, volleyball, softball, little league, air-hockey, billiards, street basketball, darts, skee-ball and amateur bowling.  You can get the movie on most platforms so check your local cable provider.

WATCH ON AMAZON VOD

GET ON iTUNES

Our cast includes: 

Alex Frost (Elephant, Drillbit Taylor)

Michelle Lombardo (Entourage, Californication)

Steve Zahn (Rescue Dawn, Saving Silverman)

Diedrich Bader (Office Space)

Darwin Barney (Chicago Cubs!)

Jane Adams (Eternal Sunshine, Hung)

Andrew Wilson (Bottle Rocket)

Abraham Benrubi (ER)

Cynthia Watros (Lost)

Josh Fadem (30 Rock, Reno 911)

Catherine E. Coulson (Eraserhead, Twin Peaks)

Rosie Thomas  (Sub Pop Records!)

Jeremy Sumpter (Peter Pan, Friday Night Lights)

The street date for our DVD and BLU-RAY is September 21st.  It has tons of extras and can be purchased directly from the filmmakers.

BUY THE BLU-RAY FROM PRODUCERS

This NEW YORKER REVIEW  beautifully summarizes my intent all along, even when it was a screenplay we pitched to reluctant, potential producers and financiers.  You can imagine how gratifying it is to see this review in one of America's best and most resilient magazines.

Thanks for reading and for your support.  

Calvin Marshall on VOD and iTunes in September

Here's a 30 second spot to promote the Calvin Marshall soundtrack and forthcoming VOD/DVD/BLU-RAY release. To support the filmmakers, you can pre-order a limited edition merchandise bundle right from the CALVIN MARSHALL WEBSITE. Merci! -Gary

"Lost Sight of their Original Goals"

Tom Bernard of Sony Pictures Classics makes an excellent point in a recent keynote address to the filmmaking community.


"As a group you need to reach out to all these organizations that say they are there to help indie filmmakers and urge them to come up with programs and resources to empower filmmakers with the information and tools to guide your films through the marketplace.  These organizations spend so much time looking for nonprofit grants they have lost sight of the original goals established when they were formed.  IFP, Sundance, F.I.N.D.,  Women in Film, DGA, etc., should all have mentor programs, data on deals, fees and feedback on sales agents, PR companies and distributors as well as programs that can explain the different distribution opportunities – the pluses, the minuses and the financials. They should create courses that can be taught at colleges that deal with and explain all these issues."


In terms of getting our film CALVIN MARSHALL produced and released over the past 4 years -- all of these organizations (and many more) have been completely irrelevant in our journey from pre-production through distribution.  


I know I don't speak for everyone, but I believe the system is not only a racket, but it's broken and won't be fixed any time soon.  Money drives 99.9% of any decision making which greatly effects the world's most expensive art form.  Any kind of altruism or mentorship in the independent film business is as difficult to find as financing.

Calvin Marshall opens in Grants Pass, Oregon

Tomorrow at Southgate Cinemas.  Stadium Seating.  Fri (5/21): (2:15, 4:40) 7:05, 9:30  Sat (5/22): (11:50, 2:15, 4:40) 7:05, 9:30  Sun (5/23): (11:50, 2:15, 4:40) 7:05, 9:30  Mon (5/24): (4:40) 7:05, 9:30  Tue (5/25): (4:40) 7:05, 9:30  Wed (5/26): (4:40) 7:05, 9:30

David Lynch

Sure he might draw from the same well, but his commitment to emotional truth keeps each new film fresh, funny and moving.

Calvin on Netflix

Place Calvin Marshall IN YOUR QUEUE right now.  DVD out September 21st.

Official Trailer on Apple.com

Calvin Marshall has been held over by Coming Attractions and will play another week at the Varsity Theater.  See it this week on the big screen if you're in the Rogue Valley.  More dates to be announced soon.

OFFICIAL TRAILER NOW ON APPLE.COM

Calvin Opens in Ashland, Oregon 4/30/10

Very excited about Calvin Marshall playing the Varsity Theater beginning tomorrow.  A big thank you to Coming Attractions, Southern Oregon Film and Television and the Ashland Independent Film Festival for their ongoing support.  

Q&A's from Cast/Crew will follow the evening screenings in this first week.

SHOWTIMES - This week at the Varsity Theater in Ashland, Oregon! 

Fri (4/30): (3:35) 6:00, 8:40 

Sat (5/1): (1:10, 3:35) 6:00, 8:40 

Sun (5/2): (1:10, 3:35) 6:00, 8:40 

Mon (5/3): (3:35) 6:00, 8:40 

Tue (5/4): (3:35) 6:00, 8:40 

Wed (5/5): (3:35) 6:00, 8:40 

Thu (5/6): (3:35) 6:00, 8:40

Wow and Flutter

If you missed it, here's a Hi-Res QuickTime of a short film I directed back in 2005.  Every now and then the Mediafire link must be reset.

WOW AND FLUTTER

Official Trailer!

Here it is in HD on YouTube.

OFFICIAL CALVIN MARSHALL TRAILER HD

Shutter Island

Saw it last week and it's been haunting me since.  I'm surprised people aren't raving more about this film and shocked at some of the backlash.

(SPOILERS)

I haven't read the book, but this is a brave movie.  It dives into dark places few films dare to explore.

While stylistically Shutter Island is "classic horror/suspense" that proudly borrows from Hitchcock, the story is more of a slow excavation of human tragedy.  The kind of minor catastrophe that regularly graces news.  Those "Breaking News Stories" that make you wince and label someone a monster in the next breath.  Stories that have become cliches and conceal the true complexity and pain of what happened.

Martin Scorsese has never really directed a true genre film.  His work has almost become a genre in itself, blending (and blurring) conventions at will.  Even his Cape Fear remake tackled drama, (comedy?), suspense and horror in equal doses and steered clear of simple classification.

Shutter Island is perhaps easy to dismiss because of it's refusal to do what audiences and critics might crave or expect.  It's a film that's unflinching and hard to watch at times -- but this aspect is critical to the narrative.  Just as Teddy Daniels can't side-step the truth, neither can Scorsese.  And the audience isn't off the hook either -- we also have to look and discover what happened that day.

Somehow, the narrative remains satisfying and hopeful in end.  I'm not sure exactly why, but I guess there's something brave about facing the truth and consequences of a terrible destiny.  And Teddy becomes a poor man's Sydney Carton in the end, fully able to make the ultimate sacrifice after resurfacing from madness.

And the wonderful final credits mashup of Max Richter and Dinah Washington may also have something to do with striking the right tone at the end.

Damien Jurado's Saint Bartlett

Comes out in May on Secretly Canadian (his ninth album) produced by label mate Richard Swift.  The first single Arkansas is highly recommended.  Download the free mp3 at Stereogum below.  I'm loving the sock-hop vibe and the fact we get to hear another stirring first person narrative from one of America's most talented, prolific and consistent songwriters.

Honestly, I recommend every single record he's put out without hesitation.  Each contains amazing songs and a cohesive aesthetic.  Sure you could collect his very best tracks on a long playlist, but I prefer to hear his albums from beginning to end the old fashioned way.  Often on vinyl.

ARKANSAS by DAMIEN JURADO

If you haven't seen my short film Wow and Flutter, please download a hi-res QT of it at the link below.  Damien's wonderful song Saturday plays during the last scene and credits.

WOW AND FLUTTER

New Calvin Marshall Behind the Scenes

Posted on YouTube today.  A reminder of how fun shooting is.  Sure it's also an agonizing grind, but it's still my absolute favorite thing to do.

I should be working on a new film this fall.  I have four different projects out there looking for financing and I'm expecting one of them to go!  The power of positive thinking at work.

Calvin Marshall Inside Look EP 04 (Behind the Scenes)

New Music 2010

A great year ahead -- so many new records to look forward to!
FRIGHTENED RABBIT Winter of Mixed Drinks

GORILLAZ Plastic Beach

TITUS ANDRONICUS The Monitor

LOVE IS ALL Two Thousand and Ten Injuries

BLACK FRANCIS NonStopErotik

MGMT Congratulations

NEW PORNOGRAPHERS Together

THE STREETS Computers and Blues

BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE  Forgivness Rock Record 

THE HOLD STEADY Heaven Is Whenever

CALVIN MARSHALL Official Soundtrack

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM

THE FALL Our Future, Your Clutter

INTERPOL

THE NATIONAL

THE CHOIR 

DEVO Fresh

SALEM (1st Official Longplayer??)

THE WALKMEN

THE WRENS

ARCADE FIRE

Coming to Phoenix

Calvin Marshall will play Arizona the last week of March.  This is an official theatrical engagement and we're excited to be partnering with charities during spring training.  Many more theatrical dates are in the works so look out for a firm calendar soon.

Calvin will screen around the country and eventually find it's way to bigger markets this summer. (NY, LA, BOSTON, SF, CHICAGO, ETC.)

You can FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER now to keep up with my personal day to day grind of making movies.

Cucalorus Film Festival Q & A

I had an awesome time in Wilmington back in November.  Here's the Q&A that Alex and I participated in after our second screening at the festival.  Lots of good information about Calvin discussed...

Q & A with Alex Frost and Gary Lundgren

New Scene on YouTube

CALVIN MARSHALL - TRYOUT SEQUENCE

Spoon's Metal Detektor

For years I wanted to use The Sound of Sinners by the Clash during a tryout sequence in Calvin Marshall.  Even just imagining the "judgement day" chorus to our storyboards seemed too good to be true.  Joe Strummer's ironic wail and that driving gospel-tinged rock 'n roll?  It was a perfect match for this pivotal sequence where Calvin's inflated view of his ability hits an all time high.

This time around in post, the sequence worked as well as I had hoped.  During test screenings, many Clash fans who ignored Sandinista! we're intrigued by the track and revisited this underrated opus.  I had a long history with this song and now that I could see and feel the finished sequence, it was devastating to be forced to choose another song.

I won't lie to you, money was the primary reason we had to let it go. Six figures has a nasty ring to it on a small movie.  And besides, we had already set up a favored nation structure for licensing songs from the majors.  Even if we could afford the huge price tag, we legally couldn't go against the structure we set up.  A structure that was implemented so we could license several major label songs at the same low rate and comfortably stay under budget. 

Usually in filmmaking, if you stay open minded and positive, a situation like this will become a blessing in disguise.  Enter SPOON. They've played driving jangle rock 'n roll for years and their growing catalog immediately presented us with a number of cool options. Funny, now that I think about it, even Britt Daniel's vocals are in the same universe as Joe's.  Both impassioned with a slight gravel...

After listening to every album obsessively, I had a short list right away; Don't Make Me A Target and Utilitarian -- but I was most smitten with Sister Jack.  Amazing song!  But there was just something about the connotations of the lyrics while watching Calvin play that I didn't quite love...    

And more importantly, I was hoping for a song that had a long enough bridge so the brief bits of dialogue (Coach, Calvin, Murphy) would fit better between the vocals.  (This was actually a problem with The Clash too)

Long story short, Metal Detektor became the song that not only replaced an irreplaceable song, but exceeded it in the end.  The tone and pace were made to order and the lyrics were less on the nose than The Clash's "Judgement Day" chorus.  Calvin was, in a way, getting away with a crime.  The Metal Detektor was ringing and he was doing all he could to get through the door.

Now, months later -- all of us working on the film love this sequence and would never replace Spoon.  Even if the The Clash was the same price.

Tomorrow the scene will be online and I will link to it from here.

The National

One of the thrilling things about making a movie is the process of choosing needle drop music.  In our volleyball sequence that recently posted to YouTube, I originally wanted to use  Disorder by Joy Division.

But this choice was brainstormed at the script stage, when your imagination can often be as misguided as intuitive.

When we had a rough cut in the editing room, we realized something wasn't right about this pairing.  While the sequence had the right feeling (sort of), the tempo and the anachronisms of Ian Curtis were more distracting than I anticipated.  I remember being shocked at the time because this was one of the song choices I was most confident about going into post.

My favorite record of 2007 was Boxer by The National.   It was my personal soundtrack that year and marked my life the way great albums do.  Also at the time, John Askew (our composer and music supervisor) put together four CD's of random tracks that might be good for the film.  He included some older tracks from their CHERRY TREE EP and also included the track that jumped out the most -- Abel from ALLIGATOR.

ABEL had an irresistible spark. When we laid it down, the whole sequence came to life - it was electrifying.  It was one of those cool filmmaking moments, where you knew you had it right.  The only obstacle at that point was whether it was affordable.

Watching The National perform, you realize quickly they are a true band, each member in sync with each other and fully aware of the subtlety and weight of their own contribution.  I love watching them perform, so cool and unassuming.

Check them out playing The Apartment Story from Boxer.

Calvin Marshall Scene on YouTube

Thanks for watching and sharing with your networks!
VOLLEYBALL SEQUENCE!
Clip features Alex Frost, Michelle Lombardo, Josh Fadem, Steve Zahn and Abraham Benrubi.

Hybrid Distribution

It's a much better description for what's happening now in Independent film.

When you consider all the people you must collaborate with to release a film? Multiple companies and pros need to be in your corner and doing what they do best.  "DIY" just isn't accurate in most cases.

It's an exciting time to produce and release an independent film. There are so many tools in this evolving landscape that a producer can actually keep control of a property from script through release. For the first time, producers can split up the rights to their films and make multiple non-exclusive deals with major distribution companies.

The most exciting part?  More films will get exposure and make profits without turning the reigns over completely to major studios.   This means more and more film investors will see returns on their investments.

I expect private equity to flow into independent film again over the next few years simply because there will be enough filmmakers out there taking advantage of this extraordinary time.  And you can bet the producers left standing will build distribution expenses into future production budgets.

I don't want to come off overly optimistic here, but I do think this is an exciting time and there will be a lot of success stories.

Our producers have been consulting with Peter Broderick on the Calvin Marshall release -- who is quoted in this recent NY Times article.

The Coming Revolution in Indie Distribution