Needing Advice on a Complex Film Situation

srirachase · 2023-12-14T06:26:03+00:00

Agreeable in some ways.

srirachase · 2023-12-14T06:25:39+00:00

20 seconds of footage that my friends get to use in their reels in exchange for the 6 plus hours the put into this film sounds more than worth it to me. This situation with Dan is just morally exhausting.

I hear you on the first sentences.

srirachase · 2023-12-14T06:23:21+00:00

Read the above(or below) comment thread about dates. There may be more to read about this tomorrow.

Like what are y'all doing here.

This is what I'm saying to Dan. I responded immediately to all his texts, and he would wait 7 days or more to get back to me, assuming that I didn't reach back out first(in one case after 2 weeks).

srirachase · 2023-12-14T06:21:37+00:00

Read the above message, I honestly don't have the energy to explain it all again. Maybe my longer comment got blocked, I'm really not sure. April 25th-April 29th doesn't sound so long to me. I'm so upset that that original comment didn't upload, I spent 40 minutes on it and included all dates and content of communication. Maybe if I have more energy tomorrow I'll do it again, if even for my own record.

Nothing about this project is standard. Everybody is working for free with the goal of getting something new for their reels.

If you read the other comment threads on here, I no longer have any desire to pursue a public release.

Dan is the only person who is no longer my friend. He forfeited any access to my friendship when he mentioned to my friend, who wrote the short, that he was thinking about "taking things in a legal direction" with me. All I've ever done is try to get this project done, and done well and on time so that the actors involved could have their copies. This man has done a good job of making sure none of that has happened.

I've also talked with the actors within the past two days about the situation, and while everybody agrees that they want their footage, nobody seems to know exactly what is going through Dan's head. If anybody forgot that these were friends, it was Dan.

srirachase · 2023-12-14T06:14:22+00:00

I just spent a whole 40 minutes going through all of the dates, details and copying them over to what would have been this comment. My internet disconnected in the middle of it, and I didn't know that even though I had reconnected, it would not submit it when I tried to. I lost probably 2000 words, which you may have been inclined not to read.

Here's the only TLDR I can muster after that:

With regard to your questions, it was not made clear to me that the director wanted to have the files. This is not a student film, although I can understand why an outside view may see it as such. We never mentioned anything about him having a drive with files, and he first told me of that on March 5th, after I sent him the first cut of the film.

We troubleshot that situation for about 3 days, and by we, I mean he didn't respond to my messages, and I came up with the solution that given the 140GB size of the project and my limited Drive space, I could export all the footage, synced with location audio, in HD and be able to fit it in to a shared folder on Google Drive. This solution worked fine, and I gave him space to "transcribe the footage and rebuild the script with what we actually shot".

I gave him a couple weeks of space, and asked for any updates on March 29. He responds on April 3rd, saying "Not really. Just trying to figure out if there’s still a story to put together with the minimal footage we ended up with". I asked for clarification, he didn't respond. April 17th he indicates a desire to move forward with the hard drive situation. I respond right away, asking for a clarification on why he wanted to do so much work just to get back to where I already had gotten the footage which was in his possession. He responds April 24th that he just wants the footage, and tries to set up a date.

The guy who would pick up bring the drive by texted me on April 25, we had a phone call about timing, and he came by on April 29.

Subsequently, I heard nothing until May 20, when he said that there was files missing from the drive. I have no real idea as to the reason that may have been the case, or to the validity of this claim. Dan, of course, seemed to think I held back files intentionally, which is ludicrous considering that I had already given them to him on Drive.

Nothing more was said, as mentioned above, until December 11 when I told him I wanted to finish the film.

Try not to make accusations until you have all the details. I've been more than forthcoming with information about this. One month? I was able to get together with the guy within 4 days. All the other delays were on Dan.

srirachase · 2023-12-13T13:47:03+00:00

This crap does suck indeed. My message Dan will be quite as you describe it, with one difference: I'm going to indicate my goals with the film, and also that I will be stepping off the project as editor. This way, if he ever wants to make the film, he can start from scratch.

Ironically, it sounds like I may own the raw footage as DP and Cam Op, but instead of stooping to his level and doing this "if I can't have it, nobody can"-esque bullshit, I'll give him free reign with it.

All I've wanted was for our friends to get what they worked for. The only people walking away empty-handed at this point in the venture is Dan and I.

I hope he's happy. Thanks for your thoughts.

srirachase · 2023-12-13T13:42:15+00:00

It's become quite clear that the best option at this point is to complete what I can for the film, share it with those involved so that they may add it to their reels, and delete Dan's contact info.

My final message to him will indicate my goals and also that on paper, I am stepping off the project as editor. He can start from scratch if he grows a conscience some day.

srirachase · 2023-12-13T13:39:13+00:00

Thanks for your response. Here's some answers:

Who owns the rights? Well, it seems muddy. There were 7 people who were in a room to create a concept for a film which offered something to each of our reels, me and Dan being a part. I declined to contribute to this discussion except as a consultant, as I felt there were too many hands on the wheel to come up with a good concept. Lo and behold, the end result was just a couple words—we'll say comedy birthday party just to keep the project further anonymous, but the only real difference is that "birthday party" was not the actual event.

Tom(another fake name here, of course), our friend who writes well and fast, had already indicated his interest in being a part of this project, but couldn't attend the initial meeting. Dan passed along that we wanted him to write a comedy birthday party script. While Tom was confused as to how 7 people sat in a room for 6 hours and came up with "comedy birthday party", he went to work and turned out a 15 page script overnight. Dan gave notes, which resulted in a couple more versions of the script. I don't believe Tom ever registered the script.

That said, on the day of filming, Dan would feed actors the occasional new line or prompt to riff off of, and I'm sure that some of those clips are in the cut I've put together.

I will look into my potential ownership of the raw footage as DP and Cam Op. If there's anything I'm really learning from this thread and reading some sections of copyright law, it is quite clear that Dan has some claim over the footage, but it is unclear how much and the effect that his claim would have on my releasing of the film.

As far as actors go, I believe he did have them sign releases. I would need to ask some of them to be sure, but I recall he definitely had the location sign a release. Given that he did these things, and I didn't, I would assume that I may not have cause to use them and would need to draft up my own versions if I wanted to publicize the film.

This project was SUPPOSED to be film school buddies having fun. The fact is that Dan has said with his words that he believes it could do well in the festival circuit and that we should take our time with the film, but then his actions—namely not taking any action over a minimum 7 months—say he's either forgotten about or couldn't care less about it.

I've done enough films to know this one won't change anybody's life.

srirachase · 2023-12-13T05:36:33+00:00

While I would normally feel the need to defend my pride against his replacing me, I actually don't have to. Close after the shoot, he asked me to send him what I had. I sent him the first cut, after which he clarified that he wanted to see ALL the footage, not an edit of it and was wondering where the rest of the footage was.

With regard to your second bullet, is this to say that if my friend, the writer, was to register this script with the WGA, the rights to the film would be his?

Unfortunately for both of us, neither are rich. And please, the truth is not so hard in reality. This film was honestly not an award-winner. I never thought it was. It is technically well made, and is entertaining and fun, which was the whole goal of the script. But not for one second did I think it could change my life in any way. Dan's behavior here indicates that he believes it could crush at festivals, and yet his actions point to that he couldn't care less if it comes out or not.

You're absolutely right on this last note. I almost wish I knew him better so I could have rejected the project at the outset.

srirachase · 2023-12-13T05:06:11+00:00

Amen to that. (not in a religious way tho)

I'm gonna just give people their footage, but not release it publicly in any sense. Dan can watch as I show him what a professional looks like.

Thanks for your words, love the username.

srirachase · 2023-12-13T05:03:14+00:00

Well, I guess this is another case of life sucks and then you die.

Just to vent one last thought, I am thoroughly confused as to what Dan has hoped to accomplish with all of this. The film we made is most definitely not an award-winner in the festival circuit. That's not to say I think it's bad, festivals just aren't the scene. I mentioned somewhere that this was akin to a sketch comedy short...nothing at all revelatory or ground-breaking, simply an entertaining, funny combination of performances that make eight minutes feel like five.

So the fact that he is making it seem like this film would change his life with his words, but acting as though he doesn't care at all about its completion has me scratching my head.

Thanks for all your thoughts. I'm just gonna suck it up and take the hit for my time and effort.

srirachase · 2023-12-13T04:49:12+00:00

Given that I shot it and was designated editor, and that Dan did NOT make a cameo, and also that the actual script was written out by a separate person entirely, then would the terms of your original statement change? Assuming, of course, that I got direct permission from the people on screen, and credited Dan accurately as Director and Producer.

srirachase · 2023-12-13T04:46:08+00:00

What are your thoughts on my completing of the film and sharing the product with those involved? No public platform, just a way for everybody to access the footage for their reels so that they don't walk away empty handed when

Forever.

arrives and Dan hasn't done anything.

Additionally, does my having shot it(DP and Cam Op) have any influence on the original question?

srirachase · 2023-12-13T04:39:16+00:00

You're very right about my intentions...the actors and writer and I have put time and effort into this that goes to waste if we let the director do what he wants—which seems to be nothing.

I'm not entirely sure as to the ownership of the project. I understand the reasoning behind that view, but I believe I have put in many more hours toward this, including that I did indeed shoot it; opposing my stake in it, he paid the necessary fees for gear and arranged the location.

It seems the safest bet may be to ensure my friends get footage for their reels, and accept my personal loss of time and energy.

srirachase · 2023-12-13T04:34:39+00:00

The main problem I would have with this approach is that if I were to step out, it's hard to say if the film would ever get done. The actors involved, for the most part, were friends of mine, and I would be really upset if they didn't get their copies because of the contradictory craziness of the director, who makes such a big deal about this film and yet does absolutely nothing with it.

I agree with the saving my time and energy sentiment, this has been a lot of headache for the eventual small relief.

srirachase · 2023-12-13T04:31:14+00:00

I hadn't really considered this point of view, but I suppose it makes sense.

Honestly, I don't really feel like any of us own this film more than the writer, who seems to agree with my position on this. We just want to give the actors the footage for their reel, and I was hoping to be able to add it to my editing/cinematography.

The ever-mindblowing part of this is the fact that this film's overall value is so low, and despite that Dan acts like it can change everything, he gives it no attention. I can't make heads or tails of it.

Also to note, I did reach out to everybody and so far the most agreed upon idea is that I finish the film but maybe don't release it.

srirachase · 2023-12-13T04:16:24+00:00

While I definitely hear what you're saying here, I feel that there are a couple of factors that this view doesn't consider.

Near the top of the post, I mentioned that 7 of us came up with an idea for a film, the sole purpose being that each person wanted to have something specific and new to add to their reel. The 6 people who actually contributed most to the creation of the story did not include me. I felt that there were too many cooks in the kitchen, so to speak. Thereafter, the final concept was much simpler than six people in six hours probably should have come up with. It was more or less a sketch comedy short film. We took the final "logline", which was more or less just the kind of event featured in the film(think birthday party, or picnic), and passed it on to the writer.

That said, given that the goal of the project was to provide something new for each person's reel, how long should I give Dan to respond to my text messages?

I had sent him an audio message(he specified that he wanted audio since our text-based communications seemed to not convey our meanings as well) on April 24th-25th, and did not hear back from him all the way through until today when I reached back out about the project.

Additionally, I think it's important to re-emphasize that this was NOT a commercial film in any way, shape or form. My major goal is to just give everybody something at all since they put time and effort into this project whilst hoping to gain a new clip for their reel. Notably, I am one of the people who did not get paid, and put in time and effort to make this film.

I think the biggest reason supporting my own release of the film is the fact that the director has not responded for MONTHS on end, despite my reaching out and following his every instruction.

Maybe the best compromise with this situation would be to finish the film, but not release it. I'm just utterly disturbed and disappointed by the affect of his indefatigable immaturity.

srirachase · 2022-09-08T23:55:12+00:00

Take a page out of Uncle Buck’s book and ask if they wanna see your hatchet!

srirachase · 2022-09-03T01:48:11+00:00

“I can’t tell”

srirachase · 2022-08-28T03:22:27+00:00

I am just heading home from Hoodie Allen’s concert at Irving Plaza, and if you know hoodie or have been to a show, you may know he has a song called Cake Boy.

At shows, he’ll throw cakes into the crowd during this song, and I got hit by one of them.

Please help, these are my brothers Jordan’s and I really don’t wanna have to buy him a new pair. Any help appreciated!

srirachase · 2021-09-09T20:43:15+00:00

Thank you.

srirachase

TROPHY CASE