Breaking down the script: the first step in generating the budget

 Whether for a film or television project, the next step after the competition of the script is to break it down into its primary elements so that a budget can be generated.  Although most script writing programs do automatically add some elements, such as the speaking character roles, each scene still needs to be manually checked so that the necessary information will appear on the reports.  Without knowing who, what, where, and for how long, it is impossible to generate the budget.  If done correctly, it will also collect and organized the information for the daily call logs.

The more detailed the breakdown of each scene, the more time you will save yourself in the long run.  Although some of these elements will be filled with generic responses, listing them will hold the place for the details to be added later.

Location

Each scene opens with the location bar that includes, the place, interior/exterior, and day part of the scene.   Although they are listed in the script, none of this information will appear in the reports unless it is manually entered.  Most places will host more than one scene;  listing the general location with the specific location and daypart will give additional details that will help determine how many days will be needed for that particular area.  By adding these details, it’s easier to group scenes to cut down on was of time and energy.

Construction

Scenes that are filmed on a soundstage or at locations where modifications will need to be done.  Would need to be noted in this category.  Extra time will need to be allotted for the building, setting, and striking the sets.

Electronics

Any special lighting, sound, or gadgets would be listed here.

Set dressing

Unless there are changes due to the script, the first scene will be sufficient to set the standard for the entire project. Any modifications would be needed to be noted and the scenes scheduled accordingly.

Props

Not every prop needs to be listed.  Only the ones that are required by the script or wouldn’t normally be found in the area.

VFX: makeup; digital, sound, mechanical

Visual effects take preplanning and are time-consuming.  Knowing what scenes and the specific effects are required to accurately budget time and resources. 

Characters

Most scriptwriting programs automatically list the speaking characters; however, characters without lines will need to be manually entered or they will not appear on the call sheets. 

Crew

Most crews are set for the entire project and don’t need to be listed.  This section would again be for the unusual or special crew members.

Wardrobe/Makeup/Hair

For continuity, these need to be listed according to the placement in the script timeline not according to the shooting schedule.  By listing them according to which day they represent in the script, it’s easier to coordinate and account for the time needed to make any changes.

Animals/children

Animals and children are unpredictable.  Additional time will need to be added.

 

Anything out of the ordinary that will consume time or resources

Having too many details is better than being caught off guard. 

 

I will be using scenes from my project Never Can Say Good-bye as examples.

 

Scene 8

INT. HIDDEN ROOM: DAY

Michael shines the flashlight around the room. The beam hits the cracked mirror and reflects onto a rocking chair. THE OBSERVER (camera showing the ghost's perspective) WATCHES Michael.  Michael tries to open the window; it's nailed shut.  SHANE SCOTT (A woman in her mid-20's who believes the world is her toy.) WALKS into the doorway.

SHANE

(angrily)

What did you do?  This isn't our house.

MICHAEL

(startled)

Amanda was happy I found it.

Shane nervously walks around. The Observer examines her. She sees her image in the mirror distort and morph; Shane screams and runs out.

 

 

Scene 8 Breakdown

        -

        INT.HIDDEN ROOM: DAY

Character

 

    * Michael

    * Shane

    * The Observer

 

Props

 

    * Flashlight

    * Bellows family pictures

 

Camera

 

    * The camera will represent the ghostly perspective

    * Drone camera

 

Location

 

    * Bellows House

    * Hidden room

    * Afternoon

 

Set Dressing

 

    * Table and chairs

    * Full side bed

    * Dressers

    * Wooden rocking chair

    * Curtains on the windows

    * Bedding

    * Family pictures

    * Needlework project

    * Old book on the nightstand

    * Rag rugs

    * needlepoint   samplers

    * Virgin Mary statue

    * Angel statues

 

Wardrobe

 

    * Women's clothing from the mid to late 1950s

    * DAY ONE

 

Greenery

 

    * Ivy on the outside of the window

 

Sound

 

    * Door creaking

 

Electrics

 

    * Drone camera

 

Crew

 

    * Drone camera operator

Optical FX

 

    * The Distorting image in a mirror

 

Scene 27

INT. LYNNE’S LIVING ROOM: NIGHT

Lynne and Elizabeth pleasantly chat after dinner. 

LYNNE

I only know two ways to end a residue haunting.  Change the energy by cleansing the space or by destroying the anchoring object.

ELIZABETH

What you think there it's residual, but there is actually a spirit.

LYNNE

I'm not sure what happens.  If they are ready to move on everything happens as it should have in the first place.

ELIZABETH

What if she or he wasn't ready.

LYNNE

Most likely limbo.

ELIZABETH

For how long?

Lynne shrugs.

ELIZABETH (CONT.)

Wouldn't it be easier to just move on?

LYNNE

It's not that easy.

ELIZABETH

It is if you let it be. 

(Walking to the window)

It's beautiful here.

LYNNE

(Studying Elizabeth)

This is my favorite spot.

ELIZABETH

I can see why.   

LYNNE

This whole neighborhood used to belong to the Ramsdell family. James wanted Rachael to have the same luxury she had in New Orleans.   The town just grew around it.

ELIZABETH

It must have been beautiful.

LYNNE

It broke Amanda's heart to sell it.  She had wanted the whole estate to become a combination museum and public park.

ELIZABETH

Hard times sometimes force hard decisions.

 

LYNNE

Amanda sold the land to keep the Bellows House.

ELIZABETH

Why? It's just a house.

LYNNE

It's a shrine to Sara Jane and Randolph's love.  That's why Audrey Bellows wanted to destroy it.  Amanda believes Sara Jane and Randolph will incarnate here.

ELIZABETH

Come on. Even if reincarnation was real, how would she know? 

LYNNE

She says she'll know. I believe her.  But they better make it soon.   Last year we nearly lost her to a stroke. 

ELIZABETH

I think I saw her on my way here.  She gave me the shivers.

LYNNE

She's a strong lady.

LYNNE

(Holding up the empty beer bottle) 

Another?

ELIZABETH

(Still looking out the window)

Please.   

Lynne returns to the kitchen. Elizabeth looks at the backyard. It transforms into the original estate.   RACHAEL RAMSDELL APPEARS. The distance between Elizabeth and Rachael vanishes.  Elizabeth becomes transfixed.

LYNNE

(Carrying two more beers)

What's the matter?

Lynne sees Elizabeth transforms into Sara Jane. She drops the bottles. Elizabeth becomes herself.

ELIZABETH

(nervously)

I should go.

LYNNE

I'll walk with you. 

 

 

Scene 27  Breakdown

        -

        INT. LYNNE'S LIVING ROOM: NIGHT

Character

 

    * Elizabeth

    * Lynne

    * Rachael

 

Special FX

 

    * The distance between Rachael and Elizabeth collapses on itself until the women are standing face to face.

    * Backyard transforms into front of Ramsdell house

 

Props

 

    * Beer

 

Set Dressing

 

    * Books

    * Computer printer

    * Fax machine

    * Family pictures

    * Rocking chair

    * Living room furniture

    * Shelves

    * Virgin Mary statue

    * Radio

    * Television

    * Magazines

    * Knitting

 

Greenery

 

    * Grass, trees, shrubs, garden

 

Sound

 

    * Radio playing

 

Location

 

    * Lynne's House

    * Original Ramsdell estate

    * Living room night

 

Wardrobe

 

    * DAY ONE

 

Optical FX

 

    * Elizabeth transforms into Sara Jane

 

In both examples, the scenes have been broken down into their individual elements.  This information will be used to prepare the spreadsheet that will determine the number of shoot days that will be needed to produce Never Can Say Good-bye.

Website

Dark Comedy Shines a light on Discrimination of Women and LBGTQ Community

  

Kaleidoscope Film and Television announces the development of the dark-comedy feature film, Completely Loyal to Me. Set in the 1950s, it depicts a time when people had to hide who they were to be accepted and safe. But that wasn't easy. McCarthyism made it difficult to keep secrets Neighbors spying on each other became the norm. Those who were different, even in private, were ostracized, especially women and the LBGTQ community.

More than just a dark comedy, Completely Loyal to Me will take the audiences on a wild ride of plot twists and turns which will end in a very unexpected place. As in Family Plot and Whose Afraid of Virginia Woolf, the two couples plot and scheme only to learn that even the best-laid plans can still go awry, especially when the person they believe to be an ally has an agenda of his own. Much like the surprise endings of Deathtrap and Honey Pot, the audience will be kept guessing until the final moment when the double doors close. Unlike most in the genre, greed is only a façade. The true motivations are revenge for a love unjustly stolen and societal pressures, which force people to conform.

Margaret and George were a team, who used their considerable charms to romance others out of their fortunes. Margaret marries Samuel to inherit his millions only to learn after his “untimely” death that the terms of his will have bound her to the estate and Samuel's manservant, William James. Changing their strategy, Margaret and George married. Instead of traveling the world to find new marks, they use the mansion to lure. them into their web. William James reluctantly agrees to help. When he meets Lennetta and Gary, William James realized that he has found who he had been seeking. Manipulating the meeting of the couples, he moves forward with each believing that he is their ally. It is only when their cons come to fruition that they realize he has another agenda.

Filmed in the Sacramento California area, Completely Loyal to Me will entertain, but it will also act as a reminder of the consequences of discrimination. By holding up a mirror and reflecting the true image of the decade, Completely Loyal to Me will help prevent those behaviors from once again becoming the norm. Currently, the production team is looking for funding to produce and distribute Completely Loyal to Me.

Kaleidoscope Film and Television is a new film and television production studio that will be producing projects based on age, gender, and ethnic diversity. It will be breaking stereotypes in front of and behind the cameras, especially for women, Native Americans, and veterans. To be located in Oklahoma, KFAT will be making full use of the film and business incentives the state has to offer.

Its creator and motivating force, Theresa Chaze started working in film and television in the mid-1980s at a small independent TV station. Moving to Traverse City, she worked at an ABC affiliate as a writer, producer, editor, and director. In the early 1990s, she was hired as a ghostwriter for two feature films and two shorts. Additionally, she worked on several independent films as part of the crew and as a producer. On the third project, she learned things about the production team that forced her to walk away from the industry. About ten years ago, she started the slow journey back only to find that starting a career as a writer and producer is easier than restarting one.

Website

Cross-Branding to Support Veterans

Horses and Heroes is a Reality TV series, which combines the highly effective Peer Support Therapy with Equine Therapy. Unlike most in the genre, it will focus on healing and positive growth rather than endorsing bad behavior. Each season will bring together veterans from WWII to the current conflicts. They will be sharing their challenges and supporting each other as they find new solutions to their physical and emotional challenges. They know the talk because they have walked the walk. They see the dodges and will be able to call each other on them. Sparks may fly. Tempers may flare, especially when they force each other to face their ghosts. But there will also be laughter and fun as they rebuild the comradery, which kept them safe and strong. The snarkiness and practical jokes between the branches don't simply end. There is always room for more. This interaction will help them rebuild that sense of brother and sisterhood they depended on while serving, which will help them reclaim their civilian lives. When it airs, it will reach into the homes of the veterans, who need to hear that they are not alone, and give them information as well as permission they need to also heal. They will help each other find their way back to the world. Veterans can’t go back and make a brand new start, but they can start from now and make a brand new end.

The casting of veterans is extremely important. They can make or break the series. Therefore we will be extremely cautious with each season's cast, but the first is particularly important. Each season of Horses and Heroes will host eight veterans, who will be representative of all veterans. Thus, the cast will be based on diversity and inclusivity for gender, age, ethnicity, and branches of the military. For these reasons, we will be excluding those who propagate religious and political extremism. Horses and Heroes is solely about helping veterans heal and reclaim their lives. Too many have used them as disposable parts of the war machine or as political footballs to further their agendas. Veterans are people. Pure and simple. Horses and Heroes' goal is to empower them to reclaim their lives by helping them face down their ghosts.

Horses and Heroes is not about pointing fingers or creating a political firestorm. It can’t fix the system nor will is it a cure-all. What it will do is show that there are alternatives, which effectively help military personnel and veterans to heal their way home.

#productplacement #veteransupport #littlecaesars #fordtrucks #equinetherapy #hiringveterans #TheresaChaze #HorsesandHeroes #marketingandadvertising #TVseries

 

New Film and Television Production Studio

 

Based in Oklahoma, Kaleidoscope Film and Television will be producing and distributing film, television, documentary, and video projects in both domestic and international marketplaces as well as in all current and future distribution platforms. Focusing on entertainment projects based on ethnic, gender, and age diversity, especially for women, Native Americans, and veterans, the studio will produce projects that will reflect the ever-changing and ever-expanding world.

Kaleidoscope Film and Television will combine the best of the old school with modern technologies. Based on the concept originally created by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks with United Artists, Kaleidoscope Film and Television intends to once again pull together the talent of producers, directors, actors, and crew, who want to take back their independence by having more financial and creative control of their careers. However, instead of focusing on only uniting individuals, Kaleidoscope will bring together the independent production companies to create a co-operative that will empower new voices, while producing quality and profitable entertainment.

More of a co-operative than a partnership, Kaleidoscope Film and Television will gather the talents of individuals and production companies together under one banner to create a choir of voices. Currently, it is seeking entertainment professionals, who would like to challenge the industry to become more inclusive.

Website

#filmmaking #productioncompany #televisionproduction #kaleidoscopefilmandtelevision #oklahoma #TheresaChaze

Kaleidoscope Film and Television announces development of Gothic Horror Feature

 Kaleidoscope Film and Television announces the development of the Gothic feature film Chalice Island.  Comparable to the original Dark Shadows TV series, it has the aura of suspense, horror, romance, and nail-biting cliffhangers. It will appeal to the tens of millions of Dark Shadows fans, that were disappointed by the 2012 movie, and the hundreds of millions of Gothic Horror fans worldwide. Although it is very much like the series, Chalice Island will be adding the gender and ethnic diversity that Dark Shadows lacked.

Jacqueline's capacity to love is only exceeded by her need for vengeance after she finds her mother raped and murdered. When a source of evil offers both her and her brother the means to gain revenge, she enthusiastically embraces the dark arts. After 150 years of blood sacrifices, she meets Morgan. His love heals her old wounds. Hiding the chalice she breaks the cycle of blood. Knowing the retribution she will face, Jacqueline and Morgan escape. Decades later, they are found by the evil one who created her Jacqueline is forced to chose. If she returns the chalice to save her son, she will release the evil. If she uses her power, she forfeits the grace she earned, erasing Morgan and her family. In breaking the cycle of blood, Jacqueline is forced to chose between cursing her son and releasing an ancient evil. 

Currently, the cast and crew have yet to be attached.

IMDB

Website

Magical Fantasy Novel Brings Romance to Your Summer

Alyssa attends a local Pagan festival to read Tarot Cards as a way of raising funds for a local animal rescue organization. When a group of drunken men invade the festival, attacking the attendee and destroying the booths, she and others stand up to them only to learn that they are off-duty deputy sheriffs. Unwilling to let their bad behavior slide, they file complaints only to learn that the leader of the pack is Justin Nevel, the Sheriff's nephew. Although she is one of many who complain, Nevel focuses his need for revenge on Alyssa. His harassment quickly escalates. When friends and co-workers stand up for her, his intimidation spreads to them. In an attempt to understand why she was singled out, Alyssa performs a magical ritual. But instead of receiving an answer, she is taken back to a Scottish parish and the life when she was known as Shannon Marie Cullen. The granddaughter and heir of Jacqueline Marie Katherine de Medici, Shannon Marie lived both in and out of clan tradition. However, unlike their older sisters, she and her younger sister, Rachael, were spared the limitations and intrigues of court. Raised more like sons than daughters, they were wild and free. Both saw life as a challenge to be met and conquered. Yet there was one sadness that Shannon Marie was forced to accept or so she thought.. Clan tradition stood between her and Michael being together, which led to him choosing the path of the Goddess. She loved him enough to honor his decision until the obstacles between them suddenly vanished. She selfishly agrees to the marriage. Instead of joy, their union brings about betrayal, bloodshed, and murder. As the memories of her past life awakened, Alyssa melds with her former self. Watching the events before her death unfolds, she began to understand how the manipulation of others followed them through the ages until they are forced to again meet. In the past, one man loved her, yet her selfishness betrayed his trust. One man hated her for who she was and for what he could never have. Both have again entered her life. Have they learned enough to put finally put the past to rest or will they again make the same choices that led to murder and revenge?

Amazon Link

When love is forever, death is only the beginning.

Imprisoned in her family's home, the spirit of a murdered child waits for her parents to free her. But they have reincarnated and have moved on to new lives as has her killer. Randi must bring them back together so that they can forgive themselves and make amends. If she succeeds, they will all heal and she will be freed to also reincarnate. If she fails and they seek the revenge they were denied in the past, they will all be damn.

The past and the present intertwine to create an innovative spin on the ghostly genre as the characters are led down a path of love, guilt, betrayal, revenge, and murder.

When love is forever,

death is only the beginning.

Visit the website to learn more by clicking here.

Producing Film and Television Projects Based on Age, Gender, and Ethnic Diversity

Kaleidoscope Film and Television has been registered in the State of Oklahoma and with the federal government. Its sole purpose is to produce and distribute film, television, documentary, and video projects in both domestic and international marketplaces as well as in all current and future distribution platforms. Focusing on entertainment projects based on ethnic, gender, and age diversity, the studio will produce projects that will reflect the ever-changing and ever-expanding world.

Focusing on low to medium-budgeted projects for film and television, Kaleidoscope Film and Television will gather the talents of individuals and production companies together under one banner to create a choir of voices. It will be located in southwest Oklahoma to maximize the talents from both coasts and receive the full benefit of their film incentives and temperate climate Currently, due to the financial challenges in the area, land and existing buildings are relatively inexpensive. The financial challenges will also make them more open to offering tax incentives for job creators. Additionally, the military bases and Native American populations will be huge assets to adding diversity to the studio projects.

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Understanding Elder Abuse

Messages from the Universe will be hosting author, filmmaker, and social advocate Pamela Glasner on Friday, July 24, 2020, at 3 pm eastern as she talks about her critically-acclaimed documentary about the financial exploitation of the elderly, starring the late Hollywood icon, Mickey Rooney. The show will be aired live https://www.blogtalkradio.com/messagesfromtheuniverse/2020/07/24/messages-from-the-universe or by calling into (845) 241-9942. The show will also be available for playback in the archives.

Inspired by true-life events in her own family, the film premièred in Manhattan in April 2012 to a standing-room-only house. It has since won international awards and has been screened at festivals, conferences, and symposiums all over the world.in addition to “Last Will and Embezzlement”, Ms. Glasner also produced a rockumentary called “Madder Than A Full Moon Dog”, a film based on her former company’s annual heavy-metal music festival in Leeds, England.

Ms. Glasner also wrote several short stories, including “The Calicoon,” a thriller set in a decaying old hotel in the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York, and “Wrong Side of the Pond”, a tale of sibling rivalry so extreme, it leads to kidnap and murder. Ms. Glasner plans to eventually publish an anthology of all her short stories. Her full-length novel, admittedly her favorite of all her works is “Finding Emmaus,” a historically and factually accurate fiction/fantasy which explores the treatment and mistreatment of the mentally ill over the course of about 350 years, and how society marginalizes and victimizes those deemed to be ‘different’ (aka ‘less than’). Ms. Glasner’s non-fiction book, “Silver and Gold” was written in honor of her deceased parents and released on what would have been her father’s 93rd birthday.

Originally from New York City, born in 1953, Ms. Glasner moved to Connecticut with her family at eighteen. A Dean’s List student, she graduated from Eastern Connecticut State University with a degree in English and secondary education, with concentrations in both psychology and sociology. She has also returned to the world of academia to work on her post-graduate degree in Literature and Creative Writing at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She attributes her love of architecture and antique restoration—two aspects of her life which are woven into the fabric of “Finding Emmaus” — to her grandfather who, after emigrating to the US from Austria in the 1920’s, became an iron worker and joined the ranks of those who left their legacy in the form of New York City’s incomparable skyline. But her real hero, though gone nearly forty years, is still her grandmother, whose strength, courage and unfailing faith taught her that “nothing andno one can keep you from your heart’s desire without your permission and your cooperation.” Ms. Glasner resides in rural Connecticut where she continues working on several new projects, including a musical play which has been endorsed by none other than one of the original Nederlander brothers, the world-famous Broadway producers. She is a proud member of the Writer’s Guild of America, the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films, and the CT Historical Society. Additionally, Ms. Glasner is a Registered Reader at the Royal Society of London and the British Library.

Links:

Watch an 8-minute version of the 20-minute film, free: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AB1JmA88KMM

“Last Will and Embezzlement” official website: http://www.lastwillandembezzlement.com/

Purchase the DVD: https://tinyurl.com/y5eax9tm

“Silver and Gold,” the companion workbook: https://tinyurl.com/yczyjcoy

Learn more about Pamela: https://tinyurl.com/y483ektb

Find Pamela on Facebook: https://tinyurl.com/ccywpza

To learn more about elder abuse and what signs to look for, tune at 3 pm eastern to listen to live show at https://www.blogtalkradio.com/messagesfromtheuniverse/2020/07/24/messages-from-the-universe or by calling into (845) 241-9942.

Horses and Heroes will tell veterans' stories as they work together t find new coping skills for their physical and emotional challenges. Veterans will be given priority for jobs both in front of and behind the cameras. Go to the website to learn more.

Horses and Heroes Website