June update
June 12, 2011
Hunting Blind got into the upcoming Detroit Windsor International Film Festival that runs June 22 – 26th. It will be screening at 9:00 on Saturday, June 25th. If you’d like to attend the opening night film and party on the 22nd, One of Us Films has four passes available. So, email at clezotte@oneofusfilms.org, first come first serve.
Also, if you can’t make the screening and would LOVE to get your hands on a copy of the film, please take a look at the project we have running at Indiegogo. If you contribute at the $10 level, we will also send you a DVD copy of Hunting Blind.
In Development
The Reimagining Detroit doc project keeps plugging along, with another grant just awarded from Quicken Loans – thanks, Quicken! If you think someone you may know would be interested in getting involved as a sponsor please send them along to this page where they can download our partners kit.
DPTV
As some of you may know, Carrie LeZotte has started moonlighting at Detroit Public Television. Her title there is Executive Producer, Content and Community Engagement, and she’s been charged with managing the content and relationships around education. Those projects currently include Great Teachers, American Graduate and Early Childhood.
Lora Probert has already been called in to support one of these projects and One of Us Films will tap into our network as needed. It’s a terrific place for the “content with a conscious” philosophy that One of Us Films includes in its mission. LeZotte also supported the coverage of the Mackinac Policy Conference, which was broadcast for the first time. All of the content, as public media, was shared for free with other organizations across the state. You can see over 30 hours of on-demand content, here.
Interns
We’re always looking for good interns, especially those with an interest in marketing and design. See our employment opportunities for more details.
Hunting Blind – Cleveland Festival Feedback
May 16, 2011
May 16th, 2011 – by Carrie LeZotte
Hunting Blind has been submitted and rejected from several festivals. Most don’t provide feedback, but thanks to the Cleveland Film Festival, who did! Of the three judges, the last one didn’t “get it” and probably kept us from getting accepted.
Congratulations to all involved in creating the work. The process was well worth it. Here’s what the judges said:
1. A classic mexican stand off! Right out of The Good, The Bad, and The
Ugly. The characters are very well portrayed by very good acting and a
good short concept style script. The film’s tension-filled short conflict
captures the viewers interest and holds it until the final ending
“shot”-pun intended. Technically the film looks good and is edited to hold
all of the unpredictable results. My one negative comment is that the film
ends unresolved, although some viewers may love this. This was a very
enjoyable, exciting and gripping short drama, which will make a nice
addition to any festival.
2.The foreshadowing at the beginning, along with the soundtrack set the
mood very well. I went back and forth between sympathizing with the main
character and fearing him. The altercation in the woods was confusing and
the end was shocking with where it cut off. I felt like it could have been
longer, or the main characters’ backstories could have been better
developed. The viewer gets a shallow background, but I don’t think it was
enough to make the viewer care what happened to him in the end.
3.This was a tough story to follow. I didn’t get that they were brothers,
and couldn’t really understand the backstory. Dialogue was weak, and the
music wasn’t given too much thought. Need to pay attention to detail, too:
they were too clean-shaven to be believable as ‘long weekend’ hunters.
Maybe providing more of a backstory would help develop the characters, and
this film.
Parents’ Choice Recommends Daisy Tells a Secret
April 21, 2011
“Daisy Tells A Secret is an invaluable resource to help young children learn crucial lessons about personal safety and body ownership,” said the review for the DVD One of Us Films produced for HAVEN. Daisy Tells a Secret was awarded a recommendation from Parents’ Choice, who provides Children’s Media & Toy Reviews. You can see the entire review here.
Reimagining Detroit Design Project
April 15, 2011
by Carrie LeZotte
Back in early March, One of Us Films was invited to a special showcase of student work at the College for Creative Studies, held by the Department of Entertainment Arts; Animation + Live Action + Game Art. The students presented samples of their work in progress in addition to a one-hour compilation reel from the department. WOW.
Over the years, we have hosted several interns at One of Us Films, many being from CCS, which is just a few miles from our downtown office. I was so impressed by the work I saw, I immediately was trying to think of a way I could provide an internship to ALL of them! Knowing that we have the documentary Reimagining Detroit in development, I came up with the idea to have interns riff on the themes of the book.
While our current intern has developed the book jacket into t-shirts, hoodies and tote bags - Reimagining Detroit can go in so many directions, and how fun would it be to showcase the work of young designers and engage the community early in the process of developing the film? So that’s what we’re doing, which has been a fun creative break for me from writing grants and knocking on doors for financing.
We held our first meeting and will be really getting to work once the school year wraps up. To follow the work and support the project visit our indiegogo page.
