New short film announcement!

This fall we're starting to shoot a short film with the kids and their friends. It's a learning experience for all of us, particularly since we're going to do all of the various parts ourselves. I know this isn't usual -- the common wisdom is to specialize and bring a team together for a better end product. Someday we will do that. But for now we're learning what our specialization is. So let's try a bit of everything, and see what we like the best!

Besides, I am the 1% of the population that doesn't enjoy specialization. For me, everything I learn reinforces and adds to other things I learn. My kids have different personalities from me, so this way they don't have to do everything.

Emmett wrote the story, in a typical three-act pattern. It's a sci-fi story set in the Star Wars galaxy. All the characters are original. His school friends will be the actors, and we will provide the final effects, editing and soundtrack.

I am not a filmmaker. I've never done anything like this before. For reference, we're following the the patterns set out by the behind-the scenes documentaries, and books like The Art of Star Wars, which describes the creative and writing process. Sometimes, however an amateur approach might bring something new - or it might stink! Who knows?

This is a practice run for learning how to write, direct and produce a movie. We've done some short stuff (1-5 minutes) telling simple stories, and we're ready for a longer production.

This blog is to record the process for us later, so we can look back and refine it, and also to share our ideas with others and get feedback as we go. Also, this way we can share teasers and ideas about the movie so you'll actually go watch it online when we release it.

Stay tuned!