the village film

Postponed Indefinitely

2007-01-07T17:50:00.000-06:00

I am sorry to say that the VillageFilm must be postponed indefinitely due to lack of participation.

All the current work/comments have been archived for possible future use. Thanks for all your help.

Keep an eye out for new developments in this space in the near future...we're retooling the whole concept of "VillageFilm" and hopefully we'll be back with a vengeance in no time!

[p.s. - Those that donated: You will receive a full refund of your money in a short time.]

Rough Storyboards for Story 2 finished

2007-01-07T16:12:00.000-06:00

I just finished the rough storyboards for story 2. Please make some comments and suggestions on them so I won't have to take all of the cinematography credit. Nobody wants that.

-Tyson

Scene 7 and 8 of story 2

2007-01-03T14:35:00.000-06:00

Some new storyboards are located here.

-Tyson

Version one of story 2 scene 6

2007-01-02T23:48:00.000-06:00

I've posted one version of the storyboards for scene 6 of story 2. I think I'm going to storyboard this out two different ways, but you can go ahead and check out my first idea of it here.

-Tyson

Storyboards for Story 3 Scene 4

2006-12-28T22:09:00.000-06:00

It is posted and located here.

-Tyson

Storyboards for Story 2 Scene 5

2006-12-27T12:34:00.001-06:00

They start here.

-Tyson

Storyboards for Story 2 Scene 4

2006-12-25T21:47:00.000-06:00

The storyboards for Scene 4 of Story 2 start here. Have a merry Christmas.

-Tyson

Storyboards for Story 2 Scene 3

2006-12-23T23:30:00.000-06:00

The storyboards for scene 3 of story 2 are up now. They are located here.

Assignments: Small Time Commitment, Huge Help

2006-12-22T21:04:00.000-06:00

I think I made a mistake.

When I started this project, I began asking people to help out (obviously). In my mind, each person I asked had at least one part of the process that they would excel at.

Problem is, it was all in my head.

I'm not saying that there aren't great people involved in this project, I'm saying I made a big assumption that I shouldn't have. I assumed that people would naturally involve themselves in a small part of the project, understanding that it was necessary to the overall whole. So I just said, "Hey, here's a film project! Let's make it!" and didn't give any direction whatsoever.

I'm realizing now that I've probably alienated some excellent help. It seems that several people logged on, excited about the project, but had NO IDEA where to start or where they could be helpful. There is just too much to be done.

So I'm going to try and rectify that situation.

I've begun making assignments. This is not to allow me to exercise power over any person or step in the process, it is simply to try to help people find a place where they can use their strengths and passions to help the overall goal. Obviously, no one is forced to accept an assignment, and accepting one doesn't mean you can't help with anything else. General participation is definitely encouraged.

Below I have a partial list of the assignments I have made and those that have agreed to help complete them. There are some open assignments as well, in case you're interested in helping out. I tried to split up assignments to minimize time-impact, limited to about 30 minutes a day in most cases.

As always, anybody can help with any step at any time.

SCRIPT

Aaron: Edit 1 scene of dialogue per day.
Nic: Edit 1 scene of dialogue per day. Comment on Storyboards daily. Blog every other day. Work your butt off.
Julie: Write two character descriptions (names/clothing/backgrounds/etc) per week. Comment on script as desired.

WEBSITE

Dustin: Daily website "checkup". Brainstorm, code, and migrate to new website.
Ben: Help with website ideas/design.

STORYBOARDS

Tyson: Storyboard 1 scene per day.
Ben: Comment on Storyboards daily.
Mark: Comment on Storyboards twice weekly. Comment on script as desired.

PUBLICITY

Amy: Visit and comment in at least one relevant forum/blog daily. Look for new outlets to submit our idea to.
???: Develop advertising for audition video submissions, and distribute by January 4th.
???: Actively seek actors online and on the telephone (look for casting agencies, troupes, drama teams, etc).

MISCELLANY

???: Scout 3 locations weekly.

Script Changes Afoot

2006-12-22T20:54:00.000-06:00

I've begun implementing some of the suggestions made on the comments blog into the actual script. This process should pick up in the next couple weeks as I am now able to devote more quality time to the project.

If you want to see the changes in action, check out the script. The recently updated portions are in bold.

Please don't forget to keep making your comments and critiques.

[plus: thanks to Tyson for all the sweet new storyboards!]

Storyboards for Story 2 Scene 2

2006-12-21T03:11:00.000-06:00

Story 2 Scene 2 is now up. Check that out here. I also created individual Picasa folders for each individual scene for easier access. I hope that helps us.

-Tyson

EDIT - We're trying out a new format for the albums. This way you can see the entire story in one glance, and its easier to jump around scenes making comments.

Storyboards for Story 2 Scene 1

2006-12-18T13:56:00.000-06:00

I've just posted storyboards for scene 1 of story 2. They're located here .

-Tyson

Storyboards for Story 3 Scene 3

2006-12-18T00:24:00.000-06:00

I just uploaded some rough storyboards for story 3, scene 3 . Please check them out, comment on them and even make some of your own.

-Tyson

An Open Letter to Professors in Attendance of my Senior Seminar Project Presentation: VillageFilm

2006-12-08T14:25:00.000-06:00

Doctors and Professors,

I wanted to let you know how much I appreciate all of your questions and feedback regarding my VillageFilm project. Your questions were insightful, and your collective comments have already resulted in a brainstorming session with some of the VillageFilmmakers, discussing some ways we can continue to improve the project.

The amount and flavor of our lively discussion yesterday is indicative of just the kind of participation the VillageFilm project can generate. One of the reasons that I wanted to pursue this project is because it meant taking a risk. There is no "blazed trail" to follow when it comes to internet-community-driven filmmaking. There is a part of this project that is trying to avoid ending up like the other projects listed here, and another part that we're kind of having to develop as we go along. Discussions like the one you participated in are vital to our team as we continue to develop our vision and method.

I will say that I believe our conversation suffered somewhat from my own involvement in it. I am so close to and caught up in this project that I sometimes neglect to appropriately communicate my assumptions and explain my positions. Though I do not believe that this ruined our discussion in any way, I do believe that my inability to effectively communicate the VillageFilm's goals caused our session to blow certain elements of the project a little out of proportion.

I am referring to the indication that some of you got the impression that the VillageFilm is meant to be a "completely new way" of making a film, or to "democratize" the filmmaking process. Let me assert here that this is in no way what we are trying to do. "Open-sourcing" a project does not mean that it ends up being built any differently than it normally would. It just means that the process is open to discussion, criticism, and even development from people that would normally not be allowed to work on it.

Let us take, for example, the Mozilla Project. Firefox is an open-source browser. This means that anyone can see the source code at any time, compile it, change it, edit it, make suggestions, even build their own version with it (see Flock for an example of a Firefox-based browser). This does NOT mean, however, that Mozilla accepts *all* source code submissions, or accepts *every* applicant that wants to be a programmer with them. In fact, they have a team of programmers just like any other browser project, and that team is responsible for culling the user feedback and submissions and creating the best possible browser based on those inputs.

Don't think Mozilla is doing this purely out of the "goodness of their heart", either. They are a business, and they make boodles of money giving away their browser. How? The built-in "Google" search bar, for one thing. Every time you search directly from the Firefox browser, Mozilla gets paid real money. And they don't give it back to those thousands of users who have made suggestions, submitted code, written extensions...at least, they don't give it back in the form of cold, hard cash. The money goes into their salaries as they continue to develop a project that is revolutionizing the way people use the internet.

I hope this gives some context that I neglected to provide yesterday. The VillageFilm, I believe, is very similar in many ways to the Firefox project. The source-code (script) is freely accessible, any user can make suggestions at any time, or even take the whole script and write their own version, users can submit their own "extensions" (storyboards, audition videos, etc.), and the end result is made freely available to anyone with an internet connection.

In that sense, then, we are not "revolutionizing" the way films are made, at least not anymore than Mozilla "revolutionizes" the way Interenet Explorer is made, or blogs "revolutionize" the way writing is performed; not even anymore than Adobe Illustrator "revolutionizes" how you do art--in the end, it always comes down to a small team or even one artist who has a dream and the dedication to see it realized. All the rest is nothing more than a tool or a distribution scheme.

This is all that is different about the VillageFilm. As far as is physically possible, our "tools" are not restricted to an operating system, they are available, multi-platform, on the internet. Our "team" is not limited to a geographic location, they are widely dispersed. Our "distribution scheme" does not involve huge amounts of money put into advertising and physical DVD production, it is a simple "Upload to YouTube" link.

I fully believe that these elements make the VillageFilm unique among filmmaking projects. I also believe that the end result will be far better than any one of us could have made on our own.

And that is a good feeling indeed.

Sincerely,
Nic Pfost

Chat tomorrow night: Everyone's invited!

2006-12-04T17:36:00.001-06:00

Thanks to everyone who has been making comments and input in the last several days. I think we're off to a good start.

I want to remind you of the upcoming chat session, tomorrow [Tuesday, December 5th] at 10pm EST [that's 9pm for us Central Folks...if you happen to be chronologically challenged].

We're going to discuss some generalities about the schedule, when the due dates should be, etc. We'll also be looking at the storyboards for the first couple scenes of Story 3, and talking about how best to proceed with the storyboarding process.

Hope to see you there!

--you may click here to chat.

Take 3 minutes and help improve my chances

2006-12-01T21:53:00.000-06:00

I have to give a presentation about the VillageFilm in less than one week.

I'd really like for there to be more user-generated content (comments, suggestions, etc.) on the site before then.

If you could take a couple minutes to Enter the Village, look at the script or the storyboards, and pick one thing to praise or criticize, that would be very helpful.

[The truly brave among you could even audition for a role...but that's probably not very realistic. It's that time of the semester.]

VillageFilm Video Tour!

2006-11-29T22:30:00.000-06:00

Video Goodness.

VillageFilm website simplified

2006-11-17T17:18:00.000-06:00

Finally, it's easy to understand. The VillageFilm website has been updated to include:

An expanded splash page (access different tools DIRECTLY from villagefilm.googlepages.com! )
A new, slicker tour of the site
A link tour of the Village (to explain that navigation bar on the left)
A simple way to add the site to your social bookmarking site, or the blog to your favorite RSS reader.

I keep making these changes for two reasons: I want it to be easier for you to access the different tools needed to make this project happen, and because we really need some publicity to find the people that actually want to help. Even if you don't have time to help yourself, please try to publicize a little. For example:

Send a link to your friends
Post it on your blog
Make a link your away message in Google Talk or AIM
Digg it
Add it to del.icio.us
Whatever else you can think of

It's all helpful. Thanks!

Chat with Filmmakers

2006-11-17T17:17:00.000-06:00

The VillageFilm just added chat capability to its ever-evolving website. Head on over to the Village to see the new chat link.

There is a chat schedule posted on the Google Calendar, as well. Chat capability is available 24/7, but the schedule should give you an idea of when at least someone else will be there. Chats are so much more fun when its more than just you!

Tuesdays at 10pm EST [9pm for us Central folks] is the best time to find us. That's when the story team and I will be there hashing out different ideas. We would love to hear your input directly! Of course you can always simply make a comment from the Village for everyone to see.

VillageFilm adds Ads, chooses Chat

2006-11-12T19:57:00.000-06:00

The website is now ad-supported (through Google's AdSense, what else?). Now when you invite people to visit the site, you're supporting the project with people and money. Sweet!

After some discussion and wrangling, we decided to go ahead and switch to a javascript chat module. Soon, we'll be removing the old chat functionality in the Village's right frame, and instead we'll add a link to a chat module in the navigation bar on the left. The chat module is provided by Gabbly.com , and it's freeking awesome.

Chat will become an important feature of our experience in the near future. The asynchronous communication we've set up is slick (considering that it costs us nothing), but I think it's important to exchange ideas in real time. Hopefully this will help drive traffic to the site as well. Also, it could help increase participation--most people seem to think helping the VillageFilm project will take hours and hours, time they cannot spare. The chat sessions will hopefully show that you can help with the project even if you only have a few minutes to spare.

ACTIONS

Visit the website, check out our new ad-supported goodness.
Make a comment about something in story 1, scene 1 [click on script in the Village]. I'll leave the specifics up to you.

Editors to begin work on RS&P

2006-11-02T18:11:00.000-06:00

It's about time.

The Story Team decided on a storyline, and now it's time for the real work to begin.

We will use Google Docs & Spreadsheets to write the script. We're starting by developing a solid outline of all three story lines, which will make the script writing process that much easier.

For those of you not invited to the actual edit board (you'll receive an email if you are), feel free to make comments/suggestions/criticisms/etc. from within the Village. I've built two forms, one that allows you to comment on the script, and one that comments on the outline.

Below are some key definitions and links.

VillageFilm: the accurate way of spelling/referring to this project, as a whole.
Village Filmmakers : Anyone involved in the process of creating this film.
Editors: Key people with significant power over a specific step they have expertise in.
The Village: the frameset that allows easy access to all the tools we will use in this project.
RSP: Religion, Sex, and Politics (the working title of the film we are making).

To read/comment on the outline: Enter The Village and click "Outline".
To read/comment on the script: Enter The Village and click "Script".
To read other people's comments on either: Enter The Village and click "Comments".

[ps: the website colors are (maybe?) decided. I went with a Google color scheme, since that seemed to make sense. Notice the similarity to Gmail, Groups, Docs, and several other Google products. Let me know what you think.]

Storyline Chosen!

2006-11-01T21:42:00.000-06:00

NEWS

• the Story Team finally decided on a story idea to work on. again,
just for reference, i am not on the story team, and did not influence
their decision. they've decided that "Religion, Sex, and Politics" is
the concept that seems to have the most potential for our purposes.

• so it's time to start writing! i'll send out instructions and links
tomorrow. if you want to read up on the storyline as it stands, check
out the forum.

ACTIONS

• read the synopsis for Religion, Sex and Politics here.

Website Updated

2006-10-31T01:48:00.000-06:00

NEWS
• made some serious behind-the-scenes updates to the website. anyone may now leave a comment about the script, while reading it. they don't even have to have a Google account. all the comments will be hosted on another blogger blog.

• in that vein, the Story team has assured me that the script WILL be chosen by Wednesday night at 9pm. so i'm holding them to that. then we can actually start writing this beast.

• i figured out a simple way to help us browse the comments on the comment blog, if it happens that a lot of people start participating. basically, you find a comment about a scene you're interested in, then click a link at the bottom of the comment, and voila! all the other comments on the subject appear before your very eyes.

ACTION

• nothing. sleep in. if you want, you can check out the updated Village Frames site. try clicking the "Script" link, and see what happens.

Logo chosen! New Storyline! Participation Tip!

2006-10-26T17:01:00.000-05:00

Things have been awfully slow around here. But that's OK. A good break, time to regather our strength (at least, it was for me), and now we get to attack it anew!

NEWS

• We finally picked a logo. I've been pushing for new ideas since our graphics team wanted me to, but due to a lack of second-round participation, they've assured me that the " Filmstrip with the boy/girl 'i's" is the best choice from the current possibilities.

• There is a new story idea posted on the Village Forum. It's very relevant to our project. Check it out!

• Don't have time for VillageFilm? Try this tip to participate: set a timer for 20 minutes, read the story ideas and vote. When the timer goes off, stop. Then move on with your day. Easy, huh? I promise, this will make me very happy.

ACTIONS

• Read the new story idea.

Website draft complete, Google gets an update

2006-10-09T16:59:00.000-05:00

NEWS

• a version of the official website is pretty much complete. WARNING--the site is NOT fully designed yet. the colors and logo have yet to be decided. i put in a placeholder logo that fit in the logo space, but we will NOT be using that logo as our branding. ALSO -- the random logo images on the right are to give you an idea of what we will do with that space: we'll put other logos in there, screen shots, audition screen shots, storyboard concepts, etc. OK, you can go look at it now. please let me know what you think, and what i should change (beside the colors. i know that already).

• still up in the air about the logo and script. i've been thinking all week about new ideas, but i haven't implemented any of them yet since i've been creating that website (no small task, i assure you).

• also, Google Groups got a major face lift recently, which means our "script ideas" site looks A LOT better. check it out!

• PERSONAL NOTE: i spent 30 or 40 hours this week building that website for several reasons, but the biggest is this: i want you to KNOW, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that i am committed to this thing. this WILL happen. i will break my back and burn out my eyeballs making it so. i'm not asking you to give that of yourself, but i hope that knowing my commitment will inspire you to take another stab at this project. this thing ain't gonna be easy. but it will be good.

ACTIONS

• look at the website.

• check out the script ideas (in a shiny new box!).

Website construction begins, Story team ponders

2006-10-02T16:57:00.000-05:00

NEWS

• major website construction begins this week. since we are still sans logo, i'm leaving lots of room. but we really need to get a public face.

• script ideas are being bantered around by our Story Team while the rest of us worry about logo designs. if you have either, send them my way.

ACTIONS

• submit ideas or drawings of logos to this email address.

• read and comment on story ideas at the village forum.

WHY YOU SHOULD BE INVOLVED
i thought this would be a good time to tell you why you should continue with this project. the reasons include (but are not limited to):

• an adventure. something noone has EVER done before.

• national recognition. when we have a first draft of the script ready, we're going into high-publicity mode. not to mention your name in the credits.

• you (especially you) get to be a part from the very beginning. not a johnny-come-lately among you.

• possible monetary rewards. we haven't worked out the details, but if we do make any profits on this project, those of you that put significant time/effort into this will see monetary benefits.

• accomplishment. when its complete, you will be proud to have been a part. that's a good feeling, let me tell you.

i'm serious about this thing. we are blazing a new trail. others will follow and look to us for lessons and wisdom.
it's not going to be easy.
but it is going to be worth it.

now lets make it happen.

Are we unoriginal?

2006-09-23T16:17:00.000-05:00

Katie M. pointed out in a comment recently that there is already a "open, collaborative film project" on the market right now. Well, sort of.

You can check out this website to see what it's all about. I think it smacks more of a marketing ploy. The last update to the website (as far as I could see after registering and digging around) was February. It seems the project must have be having trouble finding distribution (a problem that we have already solved).

Also, the project was purely democratic, but only on minor issues: members were asked questions like, "What breed of dog should "Buddy" be?" and "Who should be cut from the story: Billy, Johnny, or Timmy?" and whatever members voted, the filmmakers followed. Our project is the other way around: instead of the filmmakers deciding what decisions the "people" should be able to make and giving them a few options, this project lets you make direct input and comments every step of the way, and then the filmmakers (or Village Editors) make the final decisions. I think our way is a whole lot more interesting.

There are two other "collaborative film" projects that i'm watching closely. One is called "NOW!" film, and relies on people to send in footage that they shoot themselves to create a worldwide filmic "snapshot". Interesting concept, if you ask me. But not the same as ours by a long shot.

The other is the "XIFilm", which purports to be the first ever film project created entirely online. It looks as though people will be able to participate as Audio/Visual Technicians, or they may donate their computer's "Idle" time to rendering the project, or they may donate man-hours to promote the film. In any case, I don't think this project is even fully thought out yet (I found it through a "back door", not the official site), and its definitely a different kind of project than ours. Also, it's being directed by the guy who made a feature-length documentary-ish film based on "The Purpose Driven Life" by Rick Warren. So that's...interesting.

Oh, one more: this Dogberry & Bob project that lets you see the production process and pay some money to become a "producer" of the film. They rely on a centralized website, and there' really no easy way to make comments on anything. But they do let you see a lot of what's going on with the shoot (I couldn't find any videos, which I think will be a plus to our project).

Anyhow, after some more research, I think its fair to say that ours is still the first project of its kind in several ways:

1 - Participants can actually make suggestions and critiques at any point, not just vote on minor issues. Since all the critiques are public, one may make suggestions building off of other suggestions, and so forth.

2 - We're not trying to make any money doing it, not even for the participants. The other projects purport that they will pay their participants in some way for their involvement. Since we plan a free, online release anyway, the reward for working with the project is, well, the project.

3 - We're the only ones using online collaborative software for each step. And, while we're at it, we're the only ones using Google apps.

I hope this clears up any questions or concerns anyone may have had about the originality of the project. Keep your ears and eyes open for any other projects that may start up in the coming months.

Logos....well...um...

2006-09-23T15:42:00.000-05:00

Today is, if you look at the calendar, the final day for voting on your favorite logo...and it should mean that we'd have an official logo soon. Except for one problem: our graphics people are not ready to move forward with ANY of the options currently available. They listed several problems with each attempt, and so I am going to try to sum up the issues:

1 - Too many reels. Our design people think the Film Reel is not immediately recognizable (most people have never seen one), which detracts from the impact of the logo.

2 - Too much tiny details/texture. Our graphics people say that modern logos are simple, and work well on any medium. Many of the logos submitted rely too heavily on details and textures, which won't translate well in one-color operations such as business cards and t-shirts.

3 - Too cliche / unimaginative. I had to agree when they pointed this out. We all pretty much put people and filmstrips (or reels) together with some text. Not that this is bad, but it just means we haven't really explored enough. Our graphics people feel we should try to incorporate the Internet aspect into the logo -- this project is cutting edge, its Web 2.0, and they feel the logo should reflect that somehow. Or at least we should explore it.

4 - Not enough LOGOS. This was also hard to hear, yet difficult to contest. Few of our logos actually implemented a good font choice for the Project Title with an accompanying logo (like McDonald's and the Golden Arches--the words and logo are separate, but look good together). They think we should definitely try this direction.

5 - Too Big. This sort of ties in with the "texture and detail" one, but it hits on something they wanted to emphasize. Our final logo needs to be able to work as a small printout, not only as a splash screen to a website. Also, our graphics team reminded me that a strong logo will fit into a square--not that it has to be a square, but that it will fit well within one (again, think the McDonald's "M", the General Electric "GE", the Shell Station's, well, Shell).

So thats the logo situation. I hope noone is offended. I personally think this is proof of concept for the last post I made (regarding the Philosophy). Every step of this project is completely open to input and suggestions and critiques, but we rely on the people that "know their stuff" to make final decisions based on the popular input.

Let's think more graphically, more representationally, and more simply. I'm looking forward to new submissions. We're gonna get this down. Send me new submissions at: villagefilm@gmail.com.

The Village Philosophy

2006-09-18T04:33:00.000-05:00

This village of ours is an experiment, to be sure. But it is NOT an experiment in democracy. It is an experiment in filmmaking.

Thoughts on this are comprised by what I like to refer to as: the Village Philosophy.

We will allow anyone to make comments/suggestions/critiques at any point throughout the entire process, regardless of their expertise or level of involvment. We believe that the collaborative efforts of many minds will outshine what any one of us could do on our own.

We recognize that some are gifted in ways that others are not--for example, some are excellent story writers, some are excellent drawers, some are excellent musicians, some are excellent cinematographers, etc. We believe that these people, though they will not be given special treatment, ought to make the important decisions directly related to their expertise, providing that they consider thoroughly and objectively the varied suggestions of the rest of us. We also hope to have at least two "experts" making each major decision along the way, weighing the options and input and arriving at a unanimous conclusion.

We also realize that at some point someone has to make a decision. When no expert is available and the Village Public cannot agree on a direction, or when two or more experts drag on their decision making unnecessarily, it will be up to the VillageFilm Editors to make a final decision.

We also realize the importance of deadlines. Thus, if we miss a deadline as defined in the Village Calendar, we forfeit our right to speak on or contribute to the subject whose deadline we missed. The Calendar, of course, may be updated at the discretion of the Editors, though they probably won't make any deadlines any earlier than they currently stand, since the Editors recognize that would be Mean and Unhelpful.

That's all I have right now. Feel free to suggest, add, comment, rebuke, joke, whatever. As always, your input is the key to this entire project.

In other news:
The Village (side)Bar <-- Check out how helpful THIS is!
The Village Calendar <-- Deadlines are posted!

Storyline Concepts! Finally! [edit]

2006-09-15T18:51:00.000-05:00

Finally, friends, the first step in the actual film project creation. [though don't forget to check the new logo ideas out at picasaweb.google.com/villagefilm. there are some mighty good ones.]

I realized (again) that the Blogger format just isn't set up the way we need it to be for voting/submitting ideas for scripts. Google Groups, however, is. So I set a group just for us, invited most everybody, and moved the script ideas over there. I'm calling the Village Forum. Check it out.

You can read through them at your own pace and in a format that makes sense. You may then respond/comment/criticize/make suggestions to any of the posts currently available. You may start a new topic with your own synopsis of another script idea (or send it to villagefilm@gmail.com if you want it to be posted anonymously). And, best of all, you can vote on EACH film idea using the 1-5 star rating system built in to Google Group's posting structure.

I intentionally left out the names of the creators of these stories (except one), so that you may vote for your own without fear. I wrote each of the synopses to promote continuity between the descriptions of each.

Got another storyline idea? Post it at the Village Forum or send it to us at villagefilm@gmail.com.

Storylines and new logos are posted

2006-09-15T16:55:00.000-05:00

NEWS
• i've been sick. but i'm better now, thank you.

• www.villagefilm.com is taken. : ( its a group called "village srl". they produce some movies, but not the way we do. oh well. our website will continue to be http://villagefilm.googlepages.com, and we are considering registering www.villagefilm.org, since that strikes at the more non-commercial, community aspect of this project anyway.

• storylines are FINALLY up at the villagefilm.blogspot.com. there are four as of right now, but i'm hoping for a couple others soon. you may vote for ONE storyline idea.

• the logo ideas have continued to grow. i think there are about 15 separate ideas up right now on the picasaweb album. check 'em out!

ACTIONS

• look at the storylines (and vote) at http://villagefilm.blogspot.com. you DO NOT have to sign in to blogger (or even have an account) to leave a comment/vote.

• look at the new logos (and vote for two) at http://picasaweb.google.com/villagefilm. you DO have to sign in to your Google account to leave a vote/comment.

• feel free to tell your friends/colleagues about this project and send them to the websites. the more input the better!

Logo Relocation

2006-09-14T01:01:00.000-05:00

I can't tell you how thrilled I am to see all this input so early on. You guys are coming up with some fascinating ideas, and I can't wait to finalize the concept.

But it's getting really hard to scroll all the way down to remind myself what has been posted, not to mention to see what other people are saying about it. so i've officially relocated the logo ideas to this picasaweb album.

hopefully the format will allow for more interaction and an easier time "flipping through" the ideas.

please, vote for your favorites. but don't vote for more than two. yes, i want to make it hard on you. also, if you have suggestions about specific ideas, comment on the relevant picture.

by the way, you'll have to sign in to your Google account to leave a comment. the sign-in link will be in the upper right corner.

next up: story ideas. my story people keep backing out of meetings, but i promise i'll get some ideas up here very soon, and then just add to them when i pin these people down.

have at it!

Master Plan and Marketing

2006-09-08T16:35:00.000-05:00

This is exciting, kids.

I hope everyone is OK with the name. I really wanted to get started with the meat of this project, and 5 votes for "village film" was enough for me.

This is the first "open source film project" that i am aware of, and i think that is the kind of thing that will earn us media coverage. The process here is at least as important (if not more so) than the product.

So here's an overview of the whole plan. Let me know what you think.

1. Story Ideas
everyone will have the opportunity to submit and comment on story ideas from everyone else. this will be done on this blog.

2. Scriptwriting
the script will be written with Writely. you can subscribe to an RSS feed to keep you updated with its progress. i'm guessing that only a few of you will actually help with the first draft (just because it takes so long). but after the first draft is complete, we'll move to the next step.

3. Editing
the script will be available to edit with Writely. anyone i invite will be allowed to edit the file directly (you may suggest people for me to invite, and i will likely ask everyone before including new people). however, anyone in the world will be able to see the entire script, subscribe to the update feed, and make comments and suggestions of their own (these will be sent to the villagefilm@gmail.com addresss, and i will post them here). thus, we keep the number of actual editors small, but the possibility of input wide open.

4. Storyboarding
once we have a script that we like, we will use Picasa and Picasaweb to post storyboard ideas. anyone can comment on any storyboarding concept throughout the site. i will probably handle the physical uploading myself, but anyone will be allowed to send me concepts that they want posted. we may also create a separate blog for this step, and link to people's individual picasaweb accounts, so that they can control their own ideas and make changes more quickly.

5. Final Pre-Production
this will happen alongside step 4, and will use Google Spreadsheets. we will build prop lists, equipment lists, location scouts (which we may also post to picasaweb), etc. this will also be a publicly viewable set of files, and anyone may comment and/or make suggestions.

6. Casting
along with step 4 and 5. this will happen in jackson, tn. we will advertise online, as well as in memphis and nashville. good talent will be very important.

7. Production
we would like to begin production in mid-december, just after the close of the semester. it will continue into january, and perhaps into the spring semester.

8. Dailies
will occur with step 7. scene possibilities and basic edits will be posted on Google Video using a pre-determined filenaming structure. these will be publicly viewable, and anyone may make comments and suggestions, or post their own versions, or whatever.

9. Editing and Post-Production
this will occur in jackson, tn. dailies will be regularly posted to Google Video. due to the constraints of transmitting high-res video, we will do all actual editing in house. people will be free to make comments and suggestions and share tips and tricks at any time.

That's the master plan right now. What follows is our current marketing strategies.

1. Google
Google is an integral part of this production, obviously. We will alert them to our intentions as we get into step 3 above. Hopefully, they will like the idea enough to post about it and give us a little attention. If so, we will need to be ready for the volume of attention we might recieve.

2. News Outlets, Web magazines
Web 2.0 is a hot topic these days (think social sites that allow "tagging" and create "community"). We are making full use of Web 2.0 to finish a film project. In a sense, this is Film 2.0. I believe that this project will be a popular one, at least for a while, with news magazines and social sites that are always looking for something new and interesting to cover.

3. Logo and Taglines
We need to design a logo and create some taglines for this project. This will create some continuity across our mediums, and it's just plain fun.

4. Trinkets
We will need to design T-shirts, mugs, stickers, whatever, using our logo and taglines (to be developed). These will be sold from the website with Google Checkout. The idea will be to raise a little support money, as well as interest in the project and just for something fun to have.

5. Film Release and Credits
First of all, we will release the film, in its entirety, on Google Video for free. Of course, this will be a low-res version with no special features. But for users who just want to see the finish product, I think it will be perfect. Hey, everyone helped make it, they should be able to see it.
Also, everyone who has any input (even if its not used) will have their name in the credits. We will keep a running list of everyone who makes a comment on any of our community sites (the instructions will be to sign their comments, but if they don't we'll include their username), and we will include their name in the credit sequence. We will create some rules about this (obvious ones like no comment spam and "you actually have to say something about the thing you are commenting on"), but beyond the sophomoric abusers I don't foresee too much trouble with this. And it might spur some to actually share their comments.

6. Making of Documentary
Since the process is as least as important as the product (in this case, anyway), we will be creating a documentary as we go. This will be a separate project from the villagefilm, but will obviously work in tandem with it. You may be contacted and asked to capture a photo or video of yourself working on the project, or perhaps some audio to explain a certain segment...who knows? The more you work on this, the more likely it is you will end up in the documentary.

7. DVD and personalization
We will release a DVD with special features (making of..., gag reel, commentary, etc.). This will be for sale on the website. We may also try to gain a public release through a vendor...more on that later. In any case, the DVD will be sold at a reasonable price, simply to recoup some costs and cover the cost of shipping and materials. We are considering selling "personalized" copies of the DVD to people that appear in the credits--basically DVD's that include a little paper plaque inside with their name on it and a recognition of their contribution. The personalized version would sell for only slightly more than the regular DVD, to cover extra time and materials. We are not in this to make lots of money. This is an IDEA, a PROJECT, a CONCEPT. I want to treat it that way.

That's it. There are a lot of details not present here, and I'm sure we'll get around to those later.

ACTIONS:
we need a logo. and taglines. any ideas?
we need storyline concepts. i have about 4 right now, some fully developed. anyone else?

Let's get started!