Happy birthday to us.

Happy birthday to us.

Happy birthday, little Kfink blog.

Happy Birthday to us!

Snow Bunny.  One year ago (according to our blog, without which we’d have NO RECORD of what we’ve done) we’d just finished shooting.  Jessica was in the process of editing.  We were working with our musical director Jeffrey Bouthiette.  We were picking festivals to submit to.  We were happy.

WHAT DID SNOW BUNNY LEAD TO?

• Fun Screening for Family & Friends in Chicago.

• Film Festivals. So far, Snow Bunny has been an official selection of the Queens International Film Festival, EgoFest, and Lakedance Film Festival, where it was nominated for Best Drama.  The movie is still being considered by a handful of other fests, but if you can’t wait for Snow Bunny to show up in your neck of the woods, feel free to buy it or stream it from IndieFlix.

Talking with Eren at QIFF Screening

• Fabulous Friendships. In November at the Queens International Film Festival we met director Matt Shea, producer Maria Lokken, and Eren Gulfidan of the Film Annex.  Since then we’ve contributed to Maria’s blog and posted our short film Sound Sleeper on Film Annex.

Kfink Crew at Cinekink NYC

• Fabulous Friendships – Part Deux: Our friendship with Matt blossomed into a love affair with a whole group of NYC/NJ filmmakers and writers, many of whom went to see our short LIBIDOLAND when it played at Cinekink NYC in February. Their attendance at Cinekink resulted in us receiving an award for “Outstanding Viral Achievement,” and now LIBIDOLAND is a part of Cinekink’s national tour. Sweet.

Adam & Jessica

• Fake Boyfriend. We didn’t get to go to Lakedance, which really bummed us out, but Adam Bronstein contacted us after the fest and told us that he liked our movie, that it was well-received at the fest, and that he wanted to do a movie swap.  We were very flattered, because Adam’s film (My Movie Girl) won several awards at Lakedance, including Best Feature.  We were lucky enough to meet Adam when MMG came to the Lake County Film Fest in March, and we have plans to see him again in July. Any thoughts on what we should wear for the second date?

• Film Snobbery. As a result of our Twitter conversation with Matt about the highs (and lows) of QIFF, we ended up doing an interview on Film Snobbery Live with Nic Baisley.  Nic subsequently gave us some very helpful advice for our blog.  Now we’re slated to write a column for the Film Snobbery site.

Silly Philly

• Phil Holbrook. Phil got our jokes about QIFF on Twitter and in the Film Snobbery chatroom.  We clicked and started talking. We watched his hilarious short (HONEST WORK), we submitted our movies to his film festival, and, eventually, we started talking about a feature project that had been knocking around in his brain for a few years.  This project was TILT, and now we’re writing it for (and producing it with) Phil.

A year ago we never could have predicted where we are now. The past year has been filled with great new friendships, exciting new projects, and a whole lot of fun. Any predictions about what April 2011 has in store?

In case you missed it, here’s what happened on Day #1.  Here’s what happened on Day #2.

DAY THREE, SUNDAY, 2/21

Jessica was a lumberjack in a previous life

• Another morning in Brainerd. After the marathon movie viewing and subsequent excited conversing on Saturday, we slept like babies.  When we woke up on Sunday, we were happy and starving, which was perfect, because we had a breakfast meeting schedule with our TILT collaborators Phil Holbrook and Jeremy Doyle.  And, of course, we asked to go back to the Sawmill Cafe. Wild rice omelet, anyone?

Tilt Power Breakfast: Phil, Jeremy, Jessica

• Had our first official TILT team meeting.  We were a little nervous.  This was the first time Phil (TILT director/producer), Jeremy (cinematographer), Jessica (writer/producer), and I (Julie, writer) were gathering in person.  We’d clicked with Phil and Jeremy online and used email, Twitter, Skype, and GoogleWave to lay the groundwork and work out issues, but what was it going to be like face to face?  What if we didn’t get each others’ jokes?  What if they’d hated the first act of the TILT screenplay and wanted to break the news to us in person?  What if Jeremy and Julie wore the same hoodie?  (I shudder to think…)  Of course, everything went just fine. We had fun chatting about EgoFest, sharing stories about our families, and getting to know each others’ quirks.

• Sidenote: Phil has such an electrifying personality that he burnt out the heating device on the breakfast buffet just by looking at it.  The waitress might have been a bit miffed, but we were impressed.

Phil & Jessica talk TILT

Jeremy picks his vlog weapon

Phil pulls a Gary King.

• Filmed a vlog. We’ve been a little secretive about TILT so far, so we decided to do a video blog during EgoFest weekend to give our friends a little taste of what we’re up to, what TILT is about, who our audience is, and what our team dynamics are like. The vlog is scheduled to go up on our TILT website on Thursday, 2/25.

Scouting for TILT locations

Yeah, that's right.

It's so hard to say goodbye...to EgoFest

• Location scouting + lunch + goodbyes. After we were finished shooting the vlog, Jeremy left to reunite with his family, while Phil, Jessica, and I headed out to scout TILT locations and grab lunch.  With all of its great locations and friendly people, Brainerd seems like the perfect place to film a movie.  The downtown area is great, and the outlying areas are beautiful. To make it even better, Phil seems to know everyone.  We stopped by a bar that was closed for the day, and the owner opened the doors for us to let us take a look around.  Small town film shoots = where it’s at, folks.

Jess writing her EgoFest reviews

DAY TWO, SATURDAY, 2/20

Good morning, Brainerd!

• Woke up. Got out of bed. In Brainerd. I (Julie) hadn’t gotten much sleep for two reasons: one, we were excited about EgoFest; two, Jessica had insisted on keeping the light on all night (if confused, see our first impressions about our hotel from Day #1).  If we’d turned out the light, it would have been her lying awake all night instead of me, so, you know…no big whoop.  Jessica made it up to me by telling me I looked pretty and promising to take me out for a wholesome Brainerd breakfast.

Dogs Love Brainerd!

• Before we left the motel, one of the weirdest sights ever. Just outside of our motel was a man, 2 small children, a big truck with lots of crates, and a million dogs.  If you squint at the picture above, you can see two dogs in the top row of crates, but we swear, there were at least 500 there.  Okay, 400.  Fine, maybe just 50 or so, but it seemed like A LOT of dogs not on leashes.  They all looked happy, though, and devoted: none of them strayed from their owner’s side.

Um, are we at EgoFest or Cinekink?

The Sawmill Cafe

Mmm...coffee

• Scored sustenance at the delightful Sawmill Cafe. Got coffee.  Hobnobbed with the friendly breakfast crowd.  Checked out the menu.  And then Jessica asked me why I was making such a weird face:

What the what?

Best omelet ever.

• My answer: wild rice and mushroom omelet.  With cinnamon coffee cake on the side?  Yes, Brainerd, I will marry you.  Or eat you.  Probably the latter.

Franklin Arts Center

• Time for EgoFest. Just before 9am we arrived at the Franklin Arts Center, which is an old school (the one where Phil went, actually) that’s been converted into a unique, sprawling art space.  Of course, there was a huge EgoFest-sized auditorium, but there were also classrooms converted into studio spaces, galleries, shops, and even artist apartments.  We also spied a small yoga studio.  The whole place, in concept as well as in reality, was incredible.

We're with the band. Or...maybe we ARE the band.

Phil kicks off the show!

• Saw Phil right before the fest started. He was busy doing film festival organizerly things, but he still took time to greet us and make sure we were taken care of.  We met some great people.  We got some filmmaker passes.  Then we headed into the auditorium and settled in for a long winter’s movie marathon. 40 short films by 30 filmmakers shown over the course of 12 hours.  Word.

EgoFest Lunch: Friend, Phil, Jeremy & Jess

Between film blocks

EgoFest meals provided by the E Squared Cafe

• Did we sit there for 12 hours straight? No.  We saw most of the films, but not all.  We took turns checking Twitter, getting refreshments, and stretching our legs.  Honestly, every time I left the auditorium, I regretted it, because there were so many wonderful and unique movies.  So…wanna hear about ‘em?

Where all the magic happened...

• Jessica’s Review of EgoFest – The Films. While I’d love to talk about all of the films we saw at EgoFest, it simply isn’t feasible.  Watching 40 films in one day is one thing;  writing about them all is something else entirely.  The following is a quick look at some of the highlights and gems of the fest – in our humble opinion.

• Highlights:

Alex Lamburini‘s short (Meeting Mr. Williams) kicked off the whole event, and we were happy to see this.  We’d crossed paths with this young filmmaker when we were at the Queens International Film Festival back in November, and we’re happy to see him doing so well.

Brian Durkin’s shorts (Mind Over Matter Man & Don’t Listen to the Cookie Franklin) featured the acting talent of Karen Worden (we weren’t expecting that pleasant surprise – “Is that Karen of Film Courage?  What is she doing up there?!”) and cinematography by David Branin of Film Courage on LA Talk Radio. They all represented LA well.

Jeremy Doyle’s films (Expiration Dates, Consensus, & Bishop: a Tale of Gene Harris) were incredibly well shot and meticulously edited, which was especially impressive because all three were created for 48-hour films races.  Jeremy’s skills are hardcore: we feel fortunate to be working with him on TILT.

4D4 Films‘ shorts (In the Event of a Zombie Attack & Love Sick) were definite crowd-pleasers.  People loved the zombies in the first film and the hyper-masochistic ex-boyfriend drama (this is putting it lightly) in the second.

We also saw shorts by Lee Bishop, Gia Milani, Gregory Pitts. Bishop’s  shorts were super-short and super-sweet.  We’re very curious to see what she’ll come up with next.  Someone called Gia Milani’s A Dark Radius “an alt-alt-Jackie Brown.”  As for Pitts, his short All Rapped Up especially caught Julie’s attention with its use of Pitts’ own family members as actors.  Rapped serves as a PSA for parents who allow tv, movies, and popular music raise their kids.

• Gems:

The Beekeeper by Sean J.S. Jourdan: A beautifully shot, well-paced, and perfectly acted film about a family in crisis.  Jourdan’s ability to portray intense drama with such restraint was impressive.

The Carwash by James Kicklighter: First of all, how did this guy get the best last name ever?  As for the film, this was a timely story about the disconnect between the aging, baby boomer generation and the younger, tech savvy generation.   I appreciated the subtly with which it explored how we communicate, how technology effects communication, and, ultimately, the content of our communications with one another. This was my favorite movie of the day.

To Get to the Other Side by Ted Fisher: This wry documentary explores the phenomenon of people trying to cross the street during the New York Marathon.  Fisher’s eye for detail and sense of humor make this film a poignant and amusing look at human behavior.

Ai by Raffi Asdourian: A technically brilliant and visually stunning film about a warrior and her master.  I was blown away by how well this short simulates many higher budget samurai/martial arts films. Raffi did a livestreamed Q&A with the EgoFest from his NYC apartment, and Ai swept the EgoFest awards.

Speed Musing by John T. Trigonis: A clever blend of the high and the low brow, this old school silent film follows an uninspired poet who seeks a suitable muse in a poetry-generating activity that the surrealists would have loved.  Very funny.

How to Live Better by Mark Ehling: A very funny tale about a secret book, a gang of Mafiosos in fezzes (whose leader did NOT like “tough guy talk”), and an angry group of cooks headed by a sassy waitress.  This beautifully shot film created it’s own quirky universe (one both sinister and absurd) and made us completely  forget where we were for 20 minutes. This was Julie’s favorite film of the day.

Isaac being worshipped by Julie + "Friend of Isaac"

• And finally, an anecdote. The film Dinner Date, a dark tale about a man seeking the perfect female companion for a consensual cannibalistic arrangement, inspired 13 year-old Isaac Overland (pictured above, whose own extremely entertaining freshman film Spy Strike featured his baby sister and brother playing a set of Mothers and Fathers whose babies kept getting stolen) to jump out of his seat (followed by his sidekick, “Friend of Isaac”), trample Julie, and fall down in worship at filmmaker Paul von Stoetzl’s feet.  Von Stoetzl was only too happy to feed the flames of his fan’s instant fandom; he happily signed Isaac’s copy of John Reiss’ new book Thinking Outside the Box Office with the message, “Never, ever, ever give up…and f*ck ‘em if they can’t take a joke,” which also happens to be the motto on his business card.

Phil & Jess at the after-party

Julie + the Brainerd Power Couple

• Julie’s Wrap-Up: The After-Party. At the end of the night, we were all tired but happy.   We’d seen so many fun movies, so many different points of view, so many different ways of doing things.  Each filmmaker had gone through and extraordinary process.  Sure, we each had favorites, but we also had questions.  Where did these directors find their actors?  Where did they get their equipment?  How did they find their music?  Did they enjoy making their films?  Are they going to make more?
• In the end, we just feel lucky to have gotten a seat at EgoFest, and we definitely plan to go again next year.  and we hope you will, too.  And don’t worry, Phil: we’ll save our badges…

That’s it for Day #2.  Ready for Day #3?  It’s a doozy, but we don’t want to give everything away.  What we CAN tell you is that we spent most of the day with Phil and Jeremy.  What we CAN’T tell you…even better.

Jessica loves Brainerd...especially on Day #3!

DAY ONE, FRIDAY, 2/19

Kfink Roadtrip Supplies

• Woke up bright and early; drove to Brainerd. Jessica made sure we had clean underpants and film festival swag.  I (Julie) made sure we had bottled water, fake vitamins, and fruit to pretend to eat on the road.  (Because everyone knows the only respectable road trip food includes Twizzlers, Doritos, and gas station coffee.  Duh.)

Brainerd's on Julie's radar, yo.

• As usual, I drove. Jessica printed out maps and directions, which I promptly ignored. We might have gotten a teensy bit lost before we got out of the city, but it was only because I was thinking a step ahead. The wrong step, but anyway…

• Sidenote: I might move to Wisconsin or Minnesota. Why? Because the highway speed limit in those states is often 75mph.  Flying AND legal.  Fun.

Brainerd!

• After 10 hours, 1 fight, and 0 stops for Wisconsin cheese (look at that will power!), we rolled into Brainerd.

Where we stayed...

• First thing we did in Brainerd: checked into our motel. Being city girls, we have to say we were a little freaked out by our accommodations.  It’s not that our room was bad – quite the contrary: it was clean, cozy, and even had wifi.  So what was our issue?  Well, it sort of had a Bates motel vibe.

Anybody work here?

• Now you’ll have to believe us when we say we’re not princesses. But there’s something about not having someone at the front desk that can make a couple of girls in a strange town in the middle of the frozen tundra a teensy bit nervous.  For a moment, we wondered if this internet-arranged meeting with Phil was a set-up…but we got over that pretty quick.

Jess documents our pet mosquito.

Our friend 'Squito

• Luckily, we had a friend in our room. Encased in one of the picture frames was a dead mosquito.  Jessica became quite fond of it.  We’re pretty sure Phil planted it in our room on purpose.  Why?  Two possible reasons.

Possibility #1: The mosquito (which was just pretending to be sleeping) was supposed to get samples of our blood so that Phil could create a King is a Fink-themed amusement park in Brainerd (opening Summer 2011).  “Keep your hands in the car, kids.”

Possibility #2: Because Phil wanted to remind us that Brainerd is nice and warm in the summer, not always as toe-freezingly cold as it was this weekend.  You had us at ‘Squito, Phil. You had us at ‘Squito.

The Blue Ox Bar of FARGO fame

Jess = a tad nervous

• Before the EgoFest pre-party, we had a little time to kill. It was the perfect opportunity to sight-see, grab coffee, and calm our nerves.  We’re not gonna lie: we were a little anxious about our first face-to-face meeting with Phil, so we took some deep breaths, reminded ourselves that everything was going to be okay, and practiced our firm, confident handshakes.

Phil = all smiles

• Of course, handshakes went out the window as soon as we walked into the EgoFest pre-party at E Squared Cafe. Big hugs all around.  For anyone who has not yet had the pleasure of meeting Phil, rest assured that he’s as funny, welcoming, and engaging in person as he is on Twitter. Or on Skype.  Or in the Film Snobbery Live Chat (every Tues night at 9pm EST).

Julie + Chip (from Honest Work)

• The pre-party was wonderful. The food was great.  But the best part?  We found out that everyone who’s anyone in Brainerd LOVES Phil Holbrook.  We met the best group of people, many of whom have worked with him on films or on EgoFest.  I was a little starstruck when I met some of the cast members from Honest Work.

On the right: Jeremy D. & his lovely wife

• One of the most important people that we met that night, besides Phil, was Jeremy Doyle. Jeremy has worked with Phil on several shorts, makes his own shorts (several of which showed at EgoFest), and is going to be the cinematographer for TILT.  Jeremy and Phil have a great rapport, and it’s easy to see why they make a great team.  More on Jeremy and his many talents tomorrow…

Secret Time!

• Within an hour or so, we were thick as thieves. But, eventually, we had to head back to the motel.  A full night’s rest was essential if we were going to survive the next day.  12 hours, 40 films, 30 filmmakers – EGOFEST!

On EgoFest Day #2, find out about the movies we saw, the filmmakers who attended, how Phil did as a festival organizer, and what Julie saw on a Brainerd menu that made her make this face:

What the what?

That being said, it wasn’t easy. Sitting in one spot for almost half a day? Yes, there are way worse things to do on a chilly Saturday, but that doesn’t mean we didn’t have to plan ahead.  Here’s how we survived EgoFest:

Rule #1 – Stay hydrated and fed. You can’t concentrate on anything, not even awesome short films, for 12 hours if you’re hungry or thirsty.  As Bertolt Brecht (almost) said, “Food is the first thing, morals (and everything else) follow on.”  The concessions at EgoFest were great.  There was water, soda, coffee, and, of course, freshly popped popcorn.

Popcorn + Phil's Mom!

While we didn’t consume any popcorn, there were some audience members who ate 3 or 4 bags full.  (Hey, don’t judge, a 12 hour movie marathon warrants a lot of popcorn eating – each block ran the length of a feature film, a long one.)  Further, the food was catered by E Squared Cafe , and it was delicious.  Hot dogs (and NOT dogs) + vegetarian chili for lunch followed by pasta and asparagus for dinner. Brainerd food = yummy & nourishing. Yes, we might have had seconds.

Egofest: Now with more dinner!

Rule #2 – Don’t be a masochist: it’s okay to get up and move around when you need to. I know our teachers spent 12 years (or more) teaching us to stay in our seats, but at Egofest…that was impossible.  Neither one of us sat through every single film, though some audience members did.  Sometimes you have to get up, and that’s okay.  Go outside, get some fresh air, or do some stretching in the lobby.  Our bodies need to move so that our minds stay alert.  I even stood in the back to watch a few of the films because at some point I just didn’t want to miss anything.

Exploring the Franklin Arts Center

Rule #3 – Be open-minded. In a 12 hour movie marathon, you’re going to see some films that you would probably flip past if you were sitting in your living room or making a choice at the local cineplex.  However, actually sitting through everything (or almost everything) was delightful.  Even though I saw some films that, if I were in a critical mode, I might classify as outright bad or poorly done, every film has the capacity to be fascinating if you’re watching in the right way.  Every film is the expression of someone’s mind, of someone’s thoughts, neuroses, or point of view.  And often it is the most clumsy films that reveal this in the strongest way.  Film is fantasy and our fantasies reveal the deepest aspects of our psyches, of what it means to be human. So we’re happy we weren’t allowed to fast forward through anything.

For more on EgoFest, stay tuned. Don’t you want to know about some of the short films we saw (The Beekeeper, Car Wash, Ai, Speed Musings, and To Get to the Other Side)? Don’t you want to find out about The Power Couple of Brainerd? And don’t you want the skinny on fest organizer Phil Holbrook? Of course, you do. So come back soon.

• TILT BLOG! This week the blog for our new feature-length movie project (TILT) was launched.  Be sure to check out the very first post, a great introductory video by director Phil Holbrook, and our post on the basics of the project.

• GUEST BLOG: MultiHyphenate! We also made our 2nd appearance on Tyler Weaver’s blog-o-zine MultiHyphenate.  Check out our article on what Steven Soderbergh said to rile everyone up, why the American movie-goers prefer blockbusters, and what indie movie makers can do to get more attention: “Soderbergh’s Lament: A Little Whining + A Little History + A Possible Solution“

• GUEST BLOG for Maria Lokken! Just in case you missed it, we also wrote a post for dear friend Maria Lokken recently: ” Shared Storytelling: A Bicycle Built for 2…or 2 Million.”

• NYC SCREENING! We still can’t believe it, but Libidoland is screening at Cinekink NYC on 2/18 in the “Kind of Kinky” block.  Tickets can be purchased online, but you’d better be quick – quite a few of our Twitter friends are going (Gary King, Matt Shea, Marinell Montales, John Trigonis, Jerry Cavallero, and more…) Should be a blast!

• ROAD TRIP! Next week we’re headed to EgoFest.  Snow Bunny and Libidoland are screening on 2/20.  12 hours. 40 short films. 30 filmmakers.  Should be a blast.  Plus, we’re very excited to finally meet Phil.

• Hooray!  Our short movie LIBIDOLAND has been accepted into the 2010 Cinekink NYC Film Festival. We’re so honored. When we learned about this festival through Twitter, we knew that it could be a great fit for our kinky, quirky short about a loving couple stepping into the world of bondage for the first time. Many thanks to Cinekink co-founder and director Lisa Vandever for taking such good care of us.  Cinekink often takes their show on the road, so we’re hoping we can talk Lisa into making a stop in Chicago.  You know…for our moms.

• We’re headed to 2010 EgoFest Short Film Festival in Brainerd, Minnesota, to meet festival organizer and filmmaker Phil Holbrook face-to-face.  We’ve already met with Phil a few times via Skype to discuss the feature-length dramatic thriller we’re writing for him; he plans to direct it later this year.  Phil is in the process of setting up a website to which we will all post progress reports on the script-writing, fund-raising, and the overall collaboration process. More on that soon!

• We’ve finished the first draft of our 3rd feature length screenplay, a dark comedy called THE UNLOVABLES. Logline: A jaded single woman drags her unwitting family to Vegas to track down the serial killer who passed her by for her hotter, blonder best friend. Yes, this one’s pretty dark, but it’s also very funny.  In it we explore single life, married expectations, skewed relationship goals, interactions between adult siblings, and the very basic desire just to be chosen by someone.  We’re currently collecting feedback and suggestions from trusted friends and readers.  We’re also working with Script Dr. Eric, who is giving us valuable tips about our query letter.  The next step: getting feedback from the helpful readers at BlueCat Screenwriting Competition (deadline = 3/1/10 & they give GREAT notes), revising, and then trying to find a home for our newest endeavor.  Click here to learn more about THE UNLOVABLES or to read the first 15 pages.

• Lastly, next week filmmaker Tyler Weaver, is relaunching his website Multi-Hyphenate (here’s the old version) and turning it into more of a blog-o-zine.  His first celebrity guest is Frederick Marx of Warrior Films.  Frederick is 1/2 of the team responsible for the documentary HOOP DREAMS.  When Tyler asked us to contribute a post to his maiden week, we happily said yes.  We did a piece about collaboration, which we’re doing a lot of these days.  We’ll keep you posted about when our entry is up!