Need any more incentive to organize your home videos into something watchable to pass on to future generations (within the family?)

Check out this Thursday night’s Found Footage Festival at the Coolidge Theater in Brookline.

If you’re not careful, your life could be mocked in front of strangers on the big screen.

The Found Footage Festival uses clips from home movies and corporate films salvaged from yard sales, Goodwill and other unlikely peddlers of private memories. Curators Joe Pickett and Nick Prueher go the extra mile and track down the real people in the videos and occasionally book them for live appearances.

Here’s their official MySpace bio:

“Joe Pickett and Nick Prueher began collecting found videotapes in 1991 after stumbling across a training video entitled, “Inside and Outside Custodial Duties” in a McDonald’s break room. Since then, they have compiled an impressive collection of strange, outrageous and profoundly stupid videos. Pickett and Prueher, whose credits include The Onion and the Late Show with David Letterman, recently directed the feature-length documentary, Dirty Country, which won the 24 Beats Per Second Audience Award at the 2007 South By Southwest Film Festival.”

The evening combines live comedy with obscure footage, promising “Stuff You’ll See Nowhere Else.” Their trailer is absolutely hilarious:

Found Footage Festival 2008 Trailer

The 7th Annual Boston Latino International Film Festival kicks off this weekend, focused on themes of “identity, immigration, and industry.” The six-day fest features 60 films from 17 countries at the following venues:

* Harvard Film Archive (24 Quincy Street, Cambridge) from October 3-5;
* Boston University — free screenings October 8, 9 & 12;
* Border Street Cultural Exchange Center (80 Border Street, East Boston) from October 10-11

Festival highlights include:

Maldeamores (pictured above) — a Puerto Rico set film starring Luis Guzmán (Magnolia, Boogie Nights) and Luis Gonzaga (Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights) that weaves together three ironic tales of maddening infatuation: a divorced elderly couple in a love triangle, a young boy coming of age, and a hostage situation.

Used Parts — A teenager lives with his uncle, a dealer of used car parts, in Mexico. When the uncle realizes he needs more money to pay the “Coyote” who will help them cross the border, he introduces his nephew to the world of car-part theft. With the help of his best friend, he becomes skillful at his new trade until everything is called into question by his uncle’s shifting intentions.

Panel Discussion: Self Distribution, Technology and Film — With evolving technologies such as the Internet and DVDs, emerging filmmakers must constantly update their toolboxes and consider such options as self-distribution. This conversation will explore the changing landscape of the film industry.

The Women of Brukman — During the 2001 economic collapse in Argentina, the seamstresses at Brukman’s clothing factory took over when the owners abandoned the operation. The film follows these courageous women over many years.

Quarta B — A group of parents and school officials discuss the discovery of drugs in a fourth grade classroom. Accusations and revelations fly, especially after one parent proposes they all smoke a joint.

Eréndira the Indomitable — Eréndira, a young Purépecha woman living in what is now Mexico, became an icon of bravery during the Conquest of the 16th century.

Cubanos: Life and Death of a Revolution — A colorful documentary portrait of the Cuban community featuring sincere interviews and stunning sequence shots. Catuey, a Cuban musician, takes the viewer on a journey through his homeland as the film explores a complex history and a fragmented national identity. Director Yan Giroux will be present for Q&A

Individual tickets are $8, $6 for students and seniors, and can be purchased at the Harvard Film Archive box office on the day of the show. Festival passes are $70, which includes admission to all festival films and parties. Party admission is $10.

For more information and a complete film schedule, visit www.bliff.org

Emerson College filmmaker Nicole Prowell, who chronicled her cross-country search for happiness earlier this year for the New England Film Junkie, has emerged alive from the edit room!

Check out tonight’s free screening of her “Happy Hunting” documentary short, along with some intriguing films made by her classmates:

Master’s Project Screening
Friday, September 26th
7:00pm
Billy Bordy Auditorium
216 Tremont Street
Free

Here’s the scheduled line-up:

Happy Hunting by Nicole Prowell (running time: 15 minutes)
A short, personal documentary about a quarter-life crisis journey
across the US to find a true definition of happiness. Director Nicole
Prowell travelled from Boston-Seattle and Portland, Oregon back in May
and interviewed a variety of people she encountered along the way,
while discovering that sometimes happiness is best left undefined.

Nuclear Climate Change by Summers Henderson (running time: 55 minutes)
A documentary examining the debate over nuclear power in a time when
the need for alternative energy sources is more urgent than ever.
While some see nuclear power as part of a solution to global climate
change, there are persistent questions about its safety, security and
affordability. Anti-nuclear activists in Massachusetts and New
Hampshire and students and faculty from MIT address this complex,
pressing issue.

Drawn by Adam Shonkoff (running time: 20 minutes)
A comedy about a twenty-something who meets the girl of his dreams in a
psychology experiment where they aren’t allowed to speak to each
other. After the experiment he is determined to find her.

Franchising “Friday Night Lights”:The Challenge of Transmedia
Storytelling for Realist Drama by Jonelle Lonergan (running time: 10
minutes)
A multimedia media studies thesis that explores the concept of
transmedia storytelling and, using NBC’s Friday Night Lights as a case
study, proposes a model for applying the concept to realist television
texts. http://www.jonellelonergan.com/thesis/

While McCain and Obama debate how to move troops between Iraq and Afghanistan like chess pieces, keeping focused on how we care for soldiers once they come back home becomes all the more vital.

Here’s another chance to catch “Hidden Wounds,” the New England Cable News documentary about local soldiers coping with post-traumatic stress disorder.  The film, written and produced by NECN executive editor Iris Adler, screens at 3 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 28, at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

Adler says the movie continues to make an impact long after its 2006 broadcast, screening at college campuses, mental health facilities and for veterans’ organizations. Here’s the film synopsis from the distributor, Boston-based Fanlight Productions:

The psychological wounds suffered by veterans returning from war may be as hard to overcome and as difficult to cope with as the physical injuries of combat. Veterans may experience severe anxiety, depression, substance abuse, and suicidal feelings. It’s estimated that one in five of the troops returning from the current war in Iraq will suffer some form of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD.) Their symptoms may include intrusive memories and dreams, flashbacks, hypervigilance, impaired memory, diminished affect, and feelings of estrangement from others that interfere with their return to civilian work and family.

A powerful documentary, Hidden Wounds, explores this painful reality through the stories of three veterans and their struggles to overcome the trauma of their experiences. Nate Fick, a Dartmouth College graduate, was a platoon commander in the elite Marine “Recon” unit. He fought in Afghanistan, and then Iraq, but on his return to the United States, he became seriously depressed for close to a year. In dealing with his feelings he turned to writing, resulting in the book, One Bullet Away.

Sgt. Russell Anderson served in the Army for four years after graduating from high school in the late sixties. However, he remained in the Army Reserve, and in 2004 he volunteered to go to Iraq. Hostile and depressed after his return, he refused to seek counseling, considering it a sign of weakness.

Jeff Lucey joined the Marine Reserves as a high school senior, then spent a year as a truck driver in Iraq. Returning home, he began drinking heavily, experienced panic attacks, and became increasingly despondent. Despite his parents’ pleas, the Veterans Administration would not agree to commit him for treatment of his post-traumatic stress disorder until he stopped drinking. He committed suicide at the age of twenty-three. His parents have become activists in the campaign to ensure adequate government funding for PTSD treatment.

Anderson is from Norton, Mass. Lucey was from Belchertown, Mass.

“Hidden Wounds” is the closing film at this year’s United Nations Association Traveling Film Festival Boston, which highlights human rights films around the world. Filmmaker Iris Adler will lead a group discussion following the screening.

Writers, filmmakers, artists and other assorted creative types who ignore the business side of things inevitably perish. So check out this free “Do It Yourself” distribution-funding-creativity workshop at the Mass College of Art on Oct. 3-4.

The official announcement and registration info:

How do we sustain ourselves as filmmakers and storytellers in this day of shifting film distribution systems? How do we monetize our film and get the word out without studio support? Presented by Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Professional and Continuing Education, From Here to Awesome and The Workbook Project - DIY DAYS aims to answer these questions with a day of roundtable discussions, workshops, case studies: A look at how to fund, create, and distribute and sustain. For more info - http://www.diydays.com

ALL EVENTS ARE FREE BUT SPACE IS LIMITED – SECURE YOUR SPACE TODAY
http://diydaysboston.eventbrite.com

SPECIAL FREE OPENING NIGHT SCREENINGS
SPECIAL SCREENING of FROM HERE TO AWESOME FILMS
Friday, October 3, 2008
Tower Auditorium
Massachusetts College of Art and Design
621 Huntington Avenue, Boston
Directions Link: http://massart.edu/x474.xml
7pm to 9:30pm

DIY DAYS CONFERENCE
Workshops, Case Studies, and Panels
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Trustees Room, 11th Floor Tower Building
Massachusetts College of Art and Design
621 Huntington Avenue, Boston
Directions Link:: http://massart.edu/x474.xml
10am to 6:30pm

DIY DAYS was founded by Lance Weiler (The Last Broadcast, Head Trauma), Arin Crumley (Four Eyed Monsters), and M dot Strange. It is an extension of the Workbook Project http://workbookproject.com an open source project for filmmakers. DIY DAYS events are being held in LA, San Francisco, Boston, NYC, and London. 

Yellow ribbon magnets and “Support the Troops” bumperstickers have good intentions, but a heartwarming group of Maine senior citizens have kicked gratitude up a notch.  They’re offering friendly eye contact, a handshake and smile for many of the weary U.S. soldiers shipped out to and from Iraq.

Bangor, Maine — best known for an enormous Paul Bunyan statue — is perhaps the unlikeliest place to focus on bloody international conflicts. But its international airport is where hundreds of thousands of troops say hello and goodbye to the United States.

Independent filmmakers Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly have been chronicling these troop greeters’ 24/7 mission, achieving the near impossible feat of creating an Iraq movie that will resonate with both anti-war Code Pinkers and the most devoted supporters of the Patreaus surge.

A glimpse at their movie trailer for “The Way We Get By” reveals a theme even more universal than war. It’s aging and how we all will eventually have to cope with its inevitable heartaches. Gaudet and Pullapilly might have another “Young @ Heart” on their hands — and you can now see their special rough cut presentation before they go national.

“The Way We Get By” screens at 7 p.m., Thursday, October 2, at the Coolidge Corner Theater in Brookline. The screening kicks off the new Rough Cuts series sponsored by the New England Institute of Art.

Nothing like a national conservative boycott to stir up buzz for a movie — free PR, right?

The producers of “Hounddog,” the Sundance Film Festival selection about a young Elvis Presley fan who is sexually abused, say their Boston debut has been delayed a week due to theaters feeling the pressure from the Concerned Women for America.

The CWA, which seeks to “bring Biblical principles into all levels of public policy,” calls the movie “child pornography” and urges its members to ask the US Attorney General’s office to investigate if child exploitation laws have been violated. The organization also aims to pressure local theaters to not show the film.

Here’s how the producers describe their film in a press release:

“Hounddog, starring Dakota Fanning and Robin Wright Penn, details the story of one girl’s profound journey to turn tragedy into triumph. Set in rural Alabama in the late 1950s, the spirited, but troubled Lewellen (Fanning) struggles to rise above her repression. The precocious Lewellen finds refuge from an abusive father (David Morse) and religious zealot grandmother (Piper Laurie) in the raw power of Elvis Presley’s music.

“When Elvis comes to town, Lewellen - in her desperate attempt for tickets - is lured away and attacked by a local teenager. The assault leaves Lewellen more alone and helpless than ever, and it is with the help of her caretaker (Afemo Omilami) that Lewellen rebuilds her life and revives her spirit.”

Regardless of which characterization you side with, “Hounddog” represents a quantum leap in innocence for Fanning, who just wrapped up the lead in Charlotte’s Web when this movie began production.

For what it’s worth, the New York Post claims the statutory rape scene is “extremely brief and nongraphic.”

Hounddog, originally scheduled to premiere in Boston on Sept. 19, will open on Friday, Sept. 26 at the AMC Loews Harvard Square and the AMC Loews Boston Common. The producers say a second wave of screenings in the Boston area will launch at additional theaters on October 3rd.

Workshops and seminars make all kinds of promises, but just how helpful would a screenwriting course be in my ongoing quest to perfect my first script? — Guest blog by screenwriter Karen Sampson.

***

As an aspiring screenwriter currently working on my first script, I know inherently that there are many things I have yet to learn about the art of screenwriting. I have, of course, already learned a lot about what (and what not) to do from the painstaking process of hammering out my first draft.

My screenplay is an adaptation based on a novel, and let’s just say I have already put a significant amount of time — and money — into its development. Which is why I am always searching for any and all learning experiences that may help me to attain my ultimate goal: writing a script that is good enough to enable me to get it made into a movie.

After doing some research earlier this year, I came up with a few options for screenwriting workshops/conferences that looked promising. Rather than a basic screenwriting conference covering broad topics related to screenwriting (the kind of info, I feel, you can get from books), what I was really looking for was an experience that would provide me with valuable, concrete tools and/or guidance that I could actually utilize (ideally during the event itself) to improve my script.

I started at the top by submitting my project to the Holy Grail of screenwriting workshops — the Sundance Screenwriting Lab. Ever the realist and knowing full well how slim my chances of being accepted at Sundance were/are, I decided it would be wise to explore my options so that I could have a solid back-up in place. (I was informed in early July that my project made it through the first round of the very competitive selection process at Sundance; the handful of writers accepted to the January 2009 Screenwriting Lab will be selected in December).

I seriously considered applying to the Screenwriting Workshop at Squaw Valley in California, as well as the Screenwriter Master Class at the Maine Media Workshops, both of which aim to help screenwriters develop and hone a script-in-progress. The cost for both of these programs was, however, beyond my reach. So I opted for a less expensive yet comparable option, and applied for, and was accepted to, the first annual Southampton Screenwriting Conference.

The conference took place at Stony Brook University’s campus in Southampton, New York, over five days at the end of July. In addition to the fact that the Hamptons seemed like a great place to be for a few days in the summer, the Southampton Screenwriting Conference was run by the same folks who have organized the renowned Southampton Writer’s Conference for more than 30 years.

The lineup for the inaugural Screenwriting Conference featured some heavy hitters in the screenwriting world, including script consultants Linda Seger and Michael Hauge, both of whom have authored well-respected books on screenwriting.

Notables from filmmaking academia were also on hand, including Ken Friedman, professor of screenwriting at New York University’s Tisch School for the Arts, who led a two-part panel about how to deal with time in a feature-length script. Professor Friedman also generously offered half-hour, one-on-one script consults to a few very lucky, randomly chosen conference attendees. (Sadly, I was not one of them.)

Overall, the conference schedule was sufficiently impressive. There were interesting panels on a variety of topics, receptions, nightly screenings, and special events – including a lively discussion with three-time Academy Award-winner and veteran screenwriter/director Robert Benton , and an emotional tribute to the late, great director Alan Pakula . As entrancing as it was to listen to Benton’s charming tales of working with industry giants like Warren Beatty and Paul Newman, however, the highlight of the conference for me was the small group workshop I enrolled in that allowed me to actually work on — and improve — a scene from my script.

My interest in attending the conference was largely based on the fact that one of the workshops was being led by Andrew Bienen, who, in addition to teaching screenwriting at Columbia’s graduate film division, is also the co-writer of Boys Don’t Cry.

Luckily, I was accepted into his workshop, which, for me, made the conference well worth the price of admission ($1,200, which included room, board, the workshop, and all panels and events).

There were a total of six students enrolled in Bienen’s “Creating Stronger Scenes” workshop, which was held for three hours a day for three consecutive days. Things got off to somewhat of a slow start the first day (due mostly to the fact that writers completely unfamiliar with screenplays were placed in the workshop alongside writers with completed scripts), but Bienen offered useful analysis of dramatic scenes from selected films, and also provided informative handouts and numerous references to helpful resources and materials (a detailed list of which he thoughtfully sent via e-mail after the conference had ended).

On the second day, each participant brought in a scene from their script, which was read aloud then critiqued by Bienen and the other students. Based on the comments and advice that was received, scenes were rewritten and revised that evening, then read aloud again on the workshop’s third, and final, day.

Having a scene you’ve written read aloud by other people who know nothing about the story or the characters is a highly educational experience in and of itself. It gives you a perspective on your written words that you are simply incapable of having otherwise. By far the best thing I got out of the workshop, however, was a simplistic approach to writing individual scenes that is designed to increase dramatic tension.

Shared by Bienen, this technique is extremely basic, but also very effective, as I am (I hope) about to demonstrate.

Here’s the general gist: Within every dramatic scene of a script, one character is always trying to get or attain something; he or she is in pursuit of a goal. This is, in essence, human nature; the things people do or say are always the direct result of something they want or are trying to accomplish.

A character in a scene will try again and again, in a variety of ways, to get what he or she wants, and will either succeed or give up (which brings the scene to an end). If you keep this in mind, and make an effort to allow your characters to engage in this struggle, you will increase the dramatic tension of, and ultimately improve, the scenes in your screenplay.

As an example, I’ve included below the scene (from the rough, first draft of my script “Sugar Bush”) I chose to share in the workshop. Below you’ll see the scene as it read both before and after I used Bienen’s approach to improving dramatic tension. Using this technique has guided my forward motion in terms of the continued development of my script. Hope you find it useful, too.

BEFORE

EXT. CRYSTAL’S CAR - NIGHT

Arms crossed, Crystal leans against the car.

RAM
What happened? We were just joking around.
No hard feelings, right?

CRYSTAL
What do you want, Ram?

RAM
You’re mad.
(beat)
I’ll tell you what. Let me make it up to you. I have some
great weed… You seem like you could use a lift.

He smiles charmingly.
CRYSTAL
I don’t have the money for that, Ram, and you know it.
(gesturing to Harry)
And I’ve got the baby with me. You seen his father around?

Ram’s smile disintegrates.
RAM
He’s probably holed up with his rich boyfriend.

CRYSTAL
Huh?

RAM
Wait, you didn’t you hear? He’s staying up in Whisper Notch
with some guy who rolled into town in a Porsche.

CRYSTAL
Really?

RAM
Yeah, you believe that? I don’t know what’s up with him lately…

Ram watches with annoyance as a dreamy look washes across Crystal’s face.

RAM (CONT’D)
You know what I think? I think he’s losing it. I think
He’s going schizo, just like his old man.

Crystal’s brow furrows at the idea.

RAM (CONT’D)
Anyway, enough about him. Why don’t you come
over to my truck and take a few tokes? C’mon…
I’m parked right here, and this weed is so mellow,
You’re going love it.

He tugs at Crystal’s sleeve. She takes one last look at the sleeping baby, then follows.

AFTER

EXT. CRYSTAL’S CAR - NIGHT

Arms crossed, Crystal leans against the car facing Ram. Her hair is disheveled; dark circles ring her eyes.

RAM
Hey, what happened? We were just joking around.

CRYSTAL
What do you want, Ram?

RAM
You’re mad.
(beat)
Look, I’m sorry.

He takes a step toward her.

RAM (CONT’D)
Why don’t you let me make it up to you?
I have some great weed…

He grins at her charmingly.

CRYSTAL
I don’t have the money for that, Ram, and you know it.
And besides, I’ve got the baby with me.

RAM
You do?

Ram leans down, peers in at the sleeping baby, then begins tapping on the car window.

RAM (CONT’D)
Harry! Hey, Harry!

Crystal grabs his arm.

CRYSTAL
Stop it, you’ll wake him up!

Crystal eyes the baby, who spits out his pacifier and begins to stir.

She opens the car door, kneels on the seat, and plugs the pacifier firmly in between the baby’s plump lips. He instantly begins to suck, his eyes closing peacefully, his head drooping to the side. Crystal carefully eases out of the car and gently closes the car door.

She turns and glares at Ram.

CRYSTAL
Thanks a lot!

Ram holds his hands up as if surrendering.

RAM
Jeez, sorry! I didn’t mean to wake him.

He looks at her sheepishly.

RAM (CONT’D)
I just wanted to see him.

Crystal’s face softens, a small smile on her lips.

RAM
He’s getting big.

CRYSTAL
Yeah, he is.

Crystal stares off in the baby’s direction. She rakes her fingers through her hair, her demeanor slowly cracking as she struggles to fight back tears.

RAM
Hey, what’s wrong?

He moves toward her. She turns away, shrugging him off.

CRYSTAL
Nothing.

Ram follows on her heels as she paces beside the car.

RAM
C’mon, Crystal. You can talk to me.

Crystal stops, looks Ram square in the eye.

CRYSTAL
It’s just that I’m so God damn tired! I’ve been
driving around for hours trying to get him
to fall asleep. He’s teething, and he hasn’t
slept hardly at all the past few days.
Neither have I…

RAM
Wow, that must suck.

CRYSTAL
Yeah, it kind of does.

RAM
You must be exhausted.

Crystal’s face crumples.

CRYSTAL
I am.

Her tears flow freely now. Ram moves in, draping his arm around her.

RAM
Hey, hey, it’s okay.

Crystal lets her head fall onto his shoulder. He strokes her hair, a look of pleasure on his face.

RAM (CONT’D)
Listen, I don’t know much about baby stuff but
it seems to me that you could really use a lift.
Which is why you should let me do this one little
favor for you. Just come on over to my car
and take a few tokes.

CRYSTAL
I don’t know, Ram.

RAM
C’mon… The baby will be fine. I’m parked right here.
We’ll be able to hear him if he wakes up.

Crystal looks around indecisively, swipes at her tears.

RAM (CONT’D)
You’ll only be gone for a couple of minutes.

She looks at him, considering.

RAM (CONT’D)
I’m telling you, this weed is so mellow, you’re going
to love it. Trust me, it’s just what you need.

Crystal sighs.

RAM (CONT’D)
Come on, sweetheart.

He grabs her hand, tugs at it gently.

RAM (CONT’D)
You deserve it.

Hesitating, she takes one last look at the sleeping baby, then follows.

**
Karen Sampson, an independent writer/producer, is currently cowriting the script for
her feature-length project, “Sugar Bush” — an adaptation of the novel, “The Book of Hard Things,” which she recently brought to the Independent Producer’s Conference at the Sundance Institute.

She is also the associate producer of The Sensation of Sight, an independent
film starring Academy Award-nominated actor David Strathairn that launched its theatrical release in August.

Milton filmmaker Richard Tilkin, of Boston Digital Productions, just unveiled a series of public service announcements aimed at military veterans in need of counseling for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

The PSA spots, launched nationally by the Pentagon this month, follows Tilkin’s recent documentary called “A Different Kind of Courage” — which is being distributed free to military bases, family groups and vet organizations. You can also watch it on-line by clicking here.

Tilkin says because of the serious nature of the testimony, he let his interviewees stay on camera instead of going with the editor’s urge to cover long stretches with b-roll images. One of his previous documentaries, the Emmy-winning “On Thin Ice,” was also distributed by the Pentagon to raise awareness about substance abuse.

If you are a military veteran in possible need of counseling, the Defense Department offers an anonymous, free assessment test at www.MilitaryMentalHealth.org.

When Dom Portalla started getting credit cards in the mail at age 21, he was psyched. He knew exactly what he was going to do with them. Rack them up and make his first movie.

(Filmmaker Mini-Profile by guest blogger Lynn Tryba)

Portalla, of Malden, knew about camera work and film editing because he had graduated with an associate’s degree from the New England Institute of Art in Brookline. He had been writing stories since he was a kid and already knew script format because he read so many scripts for fun. That’s just the type of “movie geek” he’s always been, he says.

Finding a way to fund his first film was the final piece of the puzzle.

Portalla threw himself into creating “Duality,” a gangster comedy with some nice twists and acting that revolves around a case of mistaken identity. (Hats off to actor Ken Flott, who plays identical twins in the film.)

You can watch the “Duality” trailer, ripe with salty language and heavy Boston accents, by clicking here.

Not only did Portalla write the film, he also directed it, edited it on Adobe Premiere, and, of course, helped fund it. Whenever Door Eleven Productions (the video production company he co-founded with producer Dennis Pinto and music composer and graphic designer Mirza Causevic) needed something, whether it was sound gear or a camera, out came the plastic.

The credit card debt was shared mostly by Portalla and Pinto, but actors Flott and Anthony Cogliandro also worked for free and helped out “quite a bit,” Portalla says.The film was shot on weekends over the course of nine months in 2006 and, by the end, Portalla had a movie, about $7,000 worth of debt, and enough equipment to make movies. Not a bad price for a priceless experience.

The feature-length film premiered in June 2007 in Revere to a crowd of 250. Portalla’s proud of the movie, but he’s looking forward to incorporating what he learned (primarily the importance of storyboarding every scene and doing your homework to make sure things look realistic) into his second film, which begins shooting in September. He spent the past year writing the psychological thriller—tentatively called “Darkness”—and thoroughly freaked himself out in the process. The fact that the creepy movie will be shot in his apartment probably won’t help his nerves any.

He still hasn’t paid off his credit card debt, but that doesn’t deter him.

“I’m basically going more into debt with this second one,” admits Portalla, who works full time in a corporate mail fulfillment department. “Some people have plasma TVs and a cool wardrobe. I’m making an investment in myself.”

Door Eleven’s goal is to recoup enough money to fund the next project and be able to self distribute.

“It’s a risk because the minimum payment on the credit cards keeps going up every month. At the same time, I’m either going to be a filmmaker or nothing else,” Portalla says. “There’s nothing else I want to do.”

His goal is to finish editing the film in time for his 25th birthday in June, 2009.

**

Guest blogger Lynn Tryba is a New Hampshire-based writer and filmmaker currently researching a documentary about the traditional craftsmanship of wooden boats.