Matt's Blog

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 18 April 2013

The 2013 Gold Coast Film Festival kicked off tonight and a few stars are in town for the opening weekend of films.  I caught up with writer-director Jason Trost and star Lucas Till (X-Men: First Class) to talk about a film they've put together, All Superheroes Must Die, which screens on Friday night.

Matt:  Jason, this is your baby – you wrote it, directed it, produced it and starred in it.

Jason:  It’s definitely my bastard child.  It’s my fault one way or the other.

Matt:  You’ve come all the way to Australia.  What’s the purpose?  What are you trying to get out of the experience here at the Gold Coast Film Festival?

Jason:  It’s to raise awareness for the movie and to get our Australian DVD release in order. 

Lucas:  And we get a free Australian trip too! (laughs)  This film is the little engine that could and we never really had any huge expectations.  It had such a low budget.

Matt:  So when you’re making a film like this do you know that this is the path you’re going to take – trying to build a bit of interest through the film festival circuit and hope to get a bit of cash out of DVD sales?

Jason:  Yeah, you never really know what’s going to happen until it happens.  It never happens the same twice – that’s the best way I can sum up independent movies.

Matt:  What budget were you working with on this film?  How much did you raise?

Jason:  We shot it for $20,000.

Lucas:  I don’t know what the union laws are like here in Australia but you can get into some real binds with low-budget independent filmmaking that make it impossible to shoot.  $20,000 would be your craft service budget on any other film.  This was a bare bones, “money in our pocket” movie.

Jason:  The term “sweat equity” comes to mind.

Matt:  Lucas, you’re a producer on this film as well.  For someone who’s 22, that’s pretty impressive.  What did that entail?

Lucas:  Not to toot my own horn but I was actually 19 at the time. (laughs)

Matt:  Well that shows how long it’s taken for us to see this film.

Lucas:  It’s been a hell of a journey.  Back then, I was frustrated with where my career was going.  I was auditioning for a lot of superhero things and not getting very far.  Jason then came to me with this idea and the rest moved from there.  We got a release in America and we were able to pay ourselves back so I guess the gamble paid off.

Matt:  Comic book and superhero movies are so popular the moment.  There are so many of them.  What’s happened?  Where has the sudden interest come from within Hollywood?

Jason:  I think there’s always been an interest in them.  The reason they make so many now is because they make money and are marketable.  There’s a huge demand out there and they’re still only making a small number each year.  It’s not a lot if you’re a huge comic book fan.  I think that’s why there’s such a thirst, even when they happen.

Matt:  So what are the plans with the film going forward?  Are there other film festivals you are trying to target?

Jason:  I wish I had a firm answer.  We’re trying to lock up our distribution deal at the moment for Australia, New Zealand and the UK right now.  Beyond that is all up in the air.

Matt:  Lucas, I have to ask a question about Stoker.  I heard a lot of raves coming out of the Sundance Film Festival and the film has a big Aussie connection with Nicole Kidman, Mia Wasikowska and Jacki Weaver.  Can you tell us a little about the film?

Lucas:  Is it not out here?

Matt:  No, we don’t get it until August.

Lucas:  Wow, that’s insane.  Are you a fan of Park Chan-wook’s movies?

Matt:  Everyone keeps telling me to watch it but I’ve never seen Oldboy.

Lucas:  Oh man.  Don’t watch it with the dubbed English.  Make sure you put yourself through the hard work of reading the subtitles.  The performances are phenomenal.

As for Stoker, it was fantastic to be a part of it.  I worked with Mia but I didn’t have a lot to do with Jacki Weaver or Nicole Kidman.  How can I describe it without spoiling it?  A lot of people will assume that it has something to do with Bram Stoker but that’s not the case.  It’s about a girl who loses her father and her mysterious uncle comes to town and helps her out.  I’ll be honest – the less you know, the better.
 

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 07 April 2013

I awoke at 6:45am last Friday and a text message was waiting for me from a good friend.  It said “EVERT’S DEAD! :o” followed by “Ebert!”  The delivery may not have been perfect but the shock was still tough to take.  The world’s most notable film critic, Roger Ebert, had passed away at the age of 70.

My first job was in a video store back in 1995 and that’s where my love of movies began.  Within a year, I was grading all the films I’d seen and keeping the details in a spreadsheet.  I’m still using that same spreadsheet today.

Back then, I didn’t have access to the internet.  The only film critic I read regularly was Des Partridge in The Courier Mail.  I’d also check out reviews in magazines like Who Weekly when I found the time.

While my access to the world was limited, I still knew the names Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert.  They were regular guests on The Late Show With David Letterman and their quotes could be found on many film posters and in many trailers.

Since 1986, they were the two guys who headlined a successful television show in which they reviewed the latest movies each week (similar to what Margaret and David do today in Australia with At The Movies).  Their grading system was simple – a film either got the thumbs up or the thumbs down.  There was no in-between.

I never got to see their show (since it didn’t air here in Australia) but once the internet finally arrived in my household, I was able to read transcripts of their on-air reviews at a particular website.  I even kept clippings of my favourite Siskel & Ebert reviews in a scrapbook (I’m a nerd, I do realise that).

These guys were the pinnacle of film criticism.  While you could argue that other critics were better writers, these guys were the most influential.  They had a sizeable audience and hence could do huge things for a small film.  I remember reading their raves for Fargo back in 1996.  Ebert called it the best film of the year.  Siskel said the same of The Ice Storm in 1997.  It’s possible many would not have heard of these two remarkable films if not for the glowing praise of Siskel and Ebert.

Sadly, Gene Siskel died in 1999.  I remember reading a news story stating that he was taking a short break from the show to recover after surgery to remove a brain tumour.  He died a few weeks later at the age of 53.  It was sad news and at that year’s Academy Awards, host Whoopi Goldberg paid a nice tribute by raising her hand in the air and giving him the thumbs up.

The television show carried on with Ebert using guest critics each week.  I’ve watched a few clips on Youtube and I’m particularly fond of this one from late 1999 – see here.  It features Ebert staunchly defending Paul Thomas Anderson’s Magnolia – a film I regard as one of the greatest of all time.

Ebert was never afraid to be forthright and honest.  This video is popular on Youtube and shows Ebert voicing/yelling his opinion to refute someone else in the audience at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival.  There was also a humorous incident at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival when Ebert called The Brown Bunny the worst film to ever screen at Cannes.  Director Vincent Gallo responded by calling Ebert “a fat pig with the physique of a slave trader.”  Ebert’s retort – “one day I will be thin but Vincent Gallo will always be the director of The Brown Bunny.”

Ebert battled thyroid cancer for a number of years and in 2006, nearly died during surgery.  He lost the ability to speak and would require a feeding tube to be able to eat and drink.  It didn’t slow him down though.  While he no longer appeared on his television show, Ebert kept churning out reviews for The Chicago Sun-Times, where he had been the film critic since 1967.  In fact, he became the first film critic to win the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism back in 1975.  All of these reviews were available online and his website had a permanent place in my Favourites folder.  If I ever wondered if a film was any good, the first review I’d read would be that of Roger Ebert.

In 2011, I attended the Toronto Film Festival for the first time.  On the Wednesday afternoon of the second week, I heard that Roger Ebert was doing a book signing for his recently released autobiography, Life Itself.  I cleared my calendar, got a taxi uptown and made sure I was there.  I would finally get the chance to see my “idol” in person.  I listened to his stories for about an hour (told through his wife, Chaz) and bought a copy of his book which he later autographed for me.  It was one of the highlights of my trip and the book will forever sit on the shelf in my living room.

Roger Ebert was very active on Twitter and amassed over 800,000 followers.  That’s not bad for someone who critiques film and only further highlights his influence and popularity.  Early last week, he announced he was scaling back the number of reviews while he was undergoing radiation treatment for cancer in his hip.  In his final blog, he finished by saying “Thank you for going on this journey with me. I’ll see you at the movies.”  Then came the sad news of his passing last Friday morning.  His final review was posted over the weekend – for Terrence Malick’s To The Wonder.

Twitter has been flooded with tributes and retrospectives.  President Obama said that “The movies won’t be the same without Roger”.  Albert Brooks noted that “the importance of Siskel/Ebert to independent filmmakers like myself cannot be overstated”.  Fellow critic Leonard Maltin said “he had indomitable spirit and was one of the gutsiest people I knew.”

While I never knew Roger Ebert personally, he has been a big influence in my life.  I’ve always been jealous of his reviews and they’ve made me strive to be a more insightful critic and a better writer.  His legacy will live on and his past reviews will always be there to read.  It’s just sad to think that we’ll never get to hear his thoughts on any future releases.  I’m particularly moved by this photo of Roger’s favourite chair at a theatrette in Chicago.

There was so much more to admire about Roger Ebert (such as the way he founded his own film festival) and I could write another 10,000 words but alas, time is pressing.  I need to keep following his footsteps and do the best I can to promote the movies I love.  RIP Roger Ebert.

Roger Ebert signing autographs at the 2011 Toronto Film Festival.

Roger Ebert telling stories at the 2011 Toronto Film Festival.

My autographed copy of Roger Ebert's autobiography, Life Itself.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 18 March 2013

If you’re not familiar, Veronica Mars was a television series that started out back in 2004.  The show was headlined by Kristen Bell and ran for 3 years with a total of 64 episodes.

Given that it screened on a relatively small network (UPN), it was never going to be a ratings bonanza.  It pulled in roughly 2.5 million viewers in each of its 3 seasons.  To put that into perspective, a show like American Idol had roughly 10 times as many viewers during the same period.

Anyway, the plug was pulled in 2007 and that was that.  Fans could always watch repeats in syndication or buy the DVDs for their own collection.

Last week, Veronica Mars made a sudden reappearance on Kickstarter – a website that allows people to pitch ideas and try to attract funding from the general public.  There are obvious pros & cons but it’s a funding medium that’s growing in popularity.

Rob Thomas, the creator of the Veronica Mars, posted a request on Kickstarter for donations towards a movie version of the show.  He knew there was still a loyal fan base and he thought that if 80,000 people could donate $25 each, that’d give them $2 million to get it off the ground.  Permission would still be required from Warner Bros. (since they own the rights) but that kind of money could be very persuasive.

A few perks have also been offered through Kickstarter depending on the size of the donation.  If you donate $25, you’ll get a Veronica Mars t-shirt.  If you donate $50, you’ll get a copy of the DVD.  But wait, there’s more…

If you donate $500, Kirsten Bell will record an outgoing voicemail message for you.  If you donate $1,000, you get tickets to the premiere and after party in Los Angeles.  If you donate $2,500, you can be an extra in one of the scenes.  If you donate $6,500, you get to name a character in the movie.  The top shelf donation was $10,000 and that gets you a speaking role in the movie!

It’s already become one of the most successful Kickstarters of all time.  As of this afternoon, over 55,000 people have donated a combined total of $3.6 million – almost double the target.  It’s open for another 4 weeks and so there’s potential for a lot more money too.

It now seems assured that the film will be shot later this year and released in 2014.  All the funds have gone into an account created by Warner Bros. which can be used on the film.

This begs the inevitable question – is this the future of cinema?  Are we now living in a world where the public has the power to decide what films end up on the big screen?  Someone said it best on Twitter – I’d rather pay $40 to see a movie I want to see rather than $15 to see a movie I don’t want to see.

The studios must be loving the idea.  For starters, it reduces their capital outlay.  They’ve already got $3.6 million sitting in the bank earning interest (well perhaps not given current interest rates in United States).  Secondly, they get to keep any profit.  If Veronica Mars pulls in $100m in box-office revenue and DVD sales, that’ll all be going back to Warner Bros.

How many more Kickstarters will we see in the near future?  Will this be a quick fad that will die away once a big movie goes pear-shaped (i.e. never gets off the ground and people lose their cash)?  Or will the public embrace the concept and be prepared to donate $25 to help ensure another TV show turned movie gets off the ground?  I don’t have the answers but I’ll be watching this space.
 

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 02 March 2013

Zach Braff was recently in Australia to promote the new Sam Raimi film, Oz: The Great & The Powerful, and I was lucky enough to spend a few minutes with him to talk about the film, Twitter and his plans for the future. You can listen to / download the full audio by clicking here.

Matt:  I’m speaking this morning with Mr Zach Braff.  How’s it going?

Zach:  Hello.  How are you?

Matt:  I’m very well.  I’ve got to start quickly by mentioning Scrubs – an incredibly successful television show that ran for 9 seasons and finished a few years ago.  When you’re involved in a big show like that and playing the same role again and again, do you worry about getting typecast?  Being able to forge a career beyond that in feature films?

Zach:  Of course it crosses your mind but it’s such a lightning-in-a-bottle, once-in-a-lifetime chance to have a show that goes 9 years so as an actor, you can’t really complain when that happens.  The onus is on you to rise above it and to show people that you can do other things.

Matt:  I’m more of a film person so I know you more as the director of Garden State which I thought was a great film and featured some terrific characters.  It’s been almost 10 years since that so are we likely to see you behind the camera of another feature film any time soon?

Zach:  Yeah.  It’s tricky.  There’s so much I want to do and when you’re trying to accomplish so much, it’s hard to focus on all of it at once but I can’t wait to get back in the director’s chair and I have a new film that I’m trying to direct this year that would be my second film.

Matt:  Sensational.  And I didn’t know this until I was doing my research but of all the awards you could possibly win – Emmys, Oscars, Tonys and so forth – a Grammy wasn’t the one that came to my mind but you did win a Grammy for Garden State.

Zach:  Yeah, for the Garden State soundtrack.  It is pretty bizarre.  It’s the award I never thought I’d have a chance of winning.

Matt:  Where do you keep it?  Do you keep it at home?

Zach:  It’s on my bookshelf and I have a lot of musician friends who like to walk by it and give it the “evil eye”.

Matt:  Now I think about Garden State and it had a small budget of about $2.5m and now we’ve got Oz The Great & Powerful that comes with a $200m budget.  Try to describe for us – what’s it like working on a movie of that magnitude?

Zach:  It’s like going from a row boat to a cruise ship!  I’ve never even visited a set this large and so for me, it was really cool to be involved with something this epic and with really cool people.  There’s the director, Sam Raimi and there’s James Franco who plays Oz.  The witches are played by Mila Kunis, Michelle Williams and Rachel Weisz.  It’s a really great cast and the story is a prequel to The Wizard Of Oz.  It’s an origin story about how Oz become Oz.

Matt:  It is one of my favourite stories, the whole Wizard Of Oz story, which I read as a kid and I’ve seen movies made about it before.  What was it for you that made you really want to get involved with this film?

Zach:  Well, Sam Raimi said he wanted to meet me so that was a no brainer.  The movie is live action but I play a sort of animated character named Finley – a little flying monkey who is James’s sidekick.  He said he wanted someone who could kind of riff with James and make jokes and improvise along the Yellow Brick Road.  We got along famously and I got the gig.

Matt:  So how did you shoot the film if you’re playing this computer generated flying monkey?  Are you on set or in a studio?

Zach:  I’m mostly on the set.  The character is 36 inches tall and so there were a lot of different ways we could do it.  Sometimes I would crouch down on my butt and get into whatever position I could get into.  We also had a puppet that was eventual size of what the computer generated character would be so I’d operate that some times.  They would put these video cameras on 3 sides of my face and by cutting that together, the animators would animate off the gestures that I made in addition to taking my voice.

Matt:  You’ve already mentioned the great cast.  Did you get a chance to hang out a lot on set or was it mainly James since you interact with him so much in the film?

Zach:  I do scenes with all the pretty ladies but most of my scenes were with James as my storyline is kind of a “buddy quest” alongside him.

Matt:  The way they’ve brought this colourful world to live looks so beautiful.  How much of what we’re seeing is a set or is it just you guys in front of a green screen?

Zach:  There were actually a lot of sets.  We shot on these 6 sound stages and I think were 24 sets in total.  They were enormous!  The way to think about it is… whatever we were interacting on, what we’re standing on and the things that are around us – those are all real.  It’s beyond that which is computer generated. 

Matt:  Now I haven’t been lucky enough yet to see the film so I have to ask if you’ve had a chance to see the finished product yet?

Zach:  I haven’t either!  I’ve seen little clips in 3D which looks really, really powerful.  The production designer was the same guy from Avatar and so it has a photo-real, unbelievable quality but it’s in the land of Oz and it’s in 3D and it’s happening all around.  I’ve only seen a 15 minute chunk and it got me so excited.

Matt:  I can’t help but notice on Twitter that you’re closing in on the 1,000,000 followers mark.

Zach:  Yes!  I was thinking I might hit the 1,000,000 followers mark while in Australia but it looks like I’ll have to wait a few more days.

Matt:  Look, I get excited when I get mentioned in just one tweet but I’m guessing you get hundreds of mentions every day.  How easy is that to manage?  Do you get time to read any of the replies?

Zach:  My girlfriend is so tired of the damn phone she wishes that I’d throw it out the window.  It’s fun for me because I like being outspoken and making people laugh. 

Matt:  Do you think more about what you tweet knowing that 1,000,000 people are going to see it?

Zach:  I should think more!  If I looked out my window and saw 1,000,000 people and had to step up to a microphone in front of them, I’m sure I’d think a lot more about what I’d say.

Matt:  You’ve touched on a possible director’s gig but I should finish up by asking what’s in the works?  Where are we going to see you in next?

Zach:  I’m not sure yet.  I’m up for a couple of things at the moment and I love theatre so I’d really love to do a Broadway play.  Of course I want to direct another movie this year so I’m trying to figure it all out right now. 

Matt:  Thanks for speaking with us this morning.

Zach:  I appreciate it.  Thank-you.