We're in yet another obscure town, this one in the northern part of Alabama, and we've just wrapped principal photography on HIDE AND CREEP. And the crew is a little sad.

I'm sad because, even though it's been hard work, bordering on grueling at times, shooting HIDE AND CREEP has been a big part of my life over the last few months. But even sadder is the fact that it's Sunday, and the blue laws in this particular town bar the sales of alcohol on the Sabbath. Which means no post-wrap beer.

Oh, the humanity.

This last day of shooting couldn't have gone much better. Our location was a little independent video store called "Movies Unlimited," and Crystal, the lady in charge, was great. She pretty much gave us the run of the place, asking only for a copy of the finished movie when it's available. Being she runs a video store, I figure I'll send her more than one. Maybe she can talk some kind customers into renting it.

We also had what I'd call our "A" crew this day. Chuck and I directing, Robb Rugan shooting, and Stacey Sessions, Jimbo Roberson and Mike Benson taking care of everything else. Our crew varied throughout the HIDE AND CREEP shoot, depending on everyone's availability, but we had still managed to develop a pretty good rhythm by production's end. Chuck was actually doing more acting than directing on this particular day -- most of the video store shots consisted of his side of telephone conversations.

And, as I might have mentioned in a previous column, the last shot of the day would be the first shot seen in the finished movie. Funny how those things work out.

Counting Down

Well, gang, I think it's finally happened. I've just about run out of things to say about HIDE AND CREEP. Obviously, I'm not at a complete loss for words -- I'm writing this column. It's just that the only big thing left to write about is the final fate of HIDE AND CREEP -- whether it gets some kind of "professional" distribution or we end up selling it ourselves over the Internet. And it looks like it's going to be several months before that final fate is revealed.

So rather than try to come up with who knows how many "filler" columns, I think I'll bow out gracefully, with the majority of the HIDE AND CREEP story told. Before I go, though, I'll attempt to tie up a few loose ends.

The Numbers

I've tried to be as up-front as possible when discussing the money spent making HIDE AND CREEP, if for no other reason than most folks making movies are very hush-hush about financing. I figure anyone reading this column who plans to make his or her own movie might as well know what they're getting into, dollar-wise.

So, here is the HIDE AND CREEP budget breakdown as it stands today, courtesy of producer and number-cruncher Stacey Sessions. Even these numbers are not final, though. I expect to spend more money on promoting the movie, and we might possibly end up paying for some technical post-production services, like audio work.

HIDE AND CREEP Budget Breakdown
Legal Expenses:	$ 176.00
General Production Costs: (props, wardrobe, equipment, etc.)	$ 2,815.85
Location Fees:	$ 1,340.00
"Catering":	$ 570.16
Film Stock and Processing:	$ 14,412.29
Post Production: (Editing software and hardware, etc.)	$ 1,658.71
Promotional: (Film fest entries, DVD screeners, promotional kits, shipping, etc.)	$ 1,384.55
Total HIDE AND CREEP budget as of 1/24/2005:	$ 22,357.56

Best Foot Forward Revisited

I recently received an e-mail from Eric Schmitt, who reviews movies for the web site Horrorview.com. He wrote:

"Got the HIDE AND CREEP package in the mail yesterday and I'm very impressed by the press kit and packaging. To date, you guys at Crewless have won the 'Innovation Award' for best presentation of an Independent Film through the mail.

Hopefully, I'll be able to get a look at the film in its entirety this week and have a review up on Horrorview.com either Friday or early next week. Being you guys took the time to put together such a great package I want to give the film the attention it deserves."

Now Eric hasn't reviewed the movie yet -- hopefully, he'll dig it. Regardless, our presentation got his attention, and that's the first step to getting press, be it good or bad.

I'm happy to see all the work we've been putting into DVD covers and press kits is paying off.

Film Versus Video Revisited

I'd like to apologize to anyone out there who e-mailed me but didn't receive a response. I always make it a point to read any e-mails I receive, but things got hectic there for a while, and I didn't get around to responding to them all.

A particular question from one of those lost e-mails I feel needs answering: "Why waste money shooting on film when you can shoot on one of those snazzy 24p video cameras and just TELL everybody it's film?"

Well, to bastardize an old saying: You can fool some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time. But if you try to pass off video as film, no matter how good said video looks, somebody's gonna bust you on it.

There are plenty of successful movies shot in part or totally on video. If you've made a good movie and somebody is interested in buying it or watching it, I just don't see the point in lying about the format. I mean, what if a distributor is hot for your flick and asks for the original 16mm negative to do a blow-up print for theatrical release? Better he knows up front what he's getting.

Lie about the budget, lie about how many gallons of fake blood you used in the movie's climactic final battle, but be straight with people where the technical stuff is concerned.

Passing the Torch

As I'm winding down my "This Movie Ain't Gonna Shoot Itself" gig, there's nothing I'd like more than to see someone working on another indie flick take over the column with a different point of view on the filmmaking process.

If you've got any ideas for 20 or 30 new "This Movie Ain't Gonna Shoot Itself" installments, please pass them along to Chris Ryall. If you can win his approval, I could go from writing the column to being a fan of the column, which would be pretty darn groovy.

Speaking of Mr. Ryall, I'd like to thank him for giving me the great opportunity to bend your ears (or eyes, I guess) twice a month for the last year or so. I approached him about writing the column simply as a fan of MOVIEPOOPSHOOT.COM and was both surprised and impressed with his enthusiasm for my ideas and his tireless work ethic. If you enjoy the stuff you read on this web site, take a minute to drop Chris an e-mail with a word or two of thanks. I think MOVIEPOOPSHOOT.COM is a terrific web site, and Chris Ryall is the guy at the top who keeps it all together.

Of course, Chris can't do it all by himself, and he's lucky to have a talented group of writers and artists contributing great material to MOVIEPOOPSHOOT.COM on a regular basis. And not only are the contributors talented, they're good people, too. I've received much kind feedback from the 'SHOOT staff, and the fact that feedback comes from people whose work I am a fan of makes me appreciate it that much more.

Lastly, but definitely not least-ly, I'd like to thank all you guys for reading. I knew I'd have a good time making HIDE AND CREEP, but I was surprised to find out how much fun I had documenting it. Writing "This Movie Ain't Gonna Shoot Itself" has truly been a pleasure and a privilege, and I could not have asked for a better audience.

If you'd like follow the goings-on with HIDE AND CREEP, or anything else I end up working on for that matter, please keep an eye on the "News" page at http://www.Crewless.com. Or just drop me an e-mail to ask, "What's up?" I will always be happy to hear from 'SHOOT readers, even when I'm not a 'SHOOT writer.

With any luck, I'll get to revisit "This Movie Ain't Gonna Shoot Itself" at some point in the future with an "epilogue" column, explaining how and why HIDE AND CREEP did or did not land a distribution deal [Let's hope for the former--Ed.]. Until then...

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