This short version of ‘man_in_a_hat’, contains one of the 3 stories from the original feature. For this short I re-edited the story to run in order, those who have seen the feature film will know that it is not a linear film. Hope you enjoy and the full feature is available to buy now via this site.
Tuesday 23rd August 2005
Things are really starting to take shape now that we have a full crew, they are, (in the order that they appear on the above photo): Stuart Hill-Sound, Rob Hudson -Writer & Actor, Andrew Forbes-Cinematography, David Hare-Director & Editor, Nick Lonsdale (No photo at the moment)-Producer.
Well today, we just went over the opening shot of the film, which is sounding pretty good, and a scene that involves a lot of running around in a wood. Everything is coming together now, but with only 43 days left until the shoot starts it should be.
More Soon.
Blue Screen Test
Well since many car scenes in Man are going to be blue screen, we went out and did some tests using different types of blue and green material. Above are the images of before with the blue screen in place and after when we have added in the background template.
Filming Started
We started principal photography on Man_in_a_Hat on Saturday October 1st. It has taken a long time to get the script to the screen, but finally we have started filming our first feature film. The film will be shot with the Canon XL2, and hopefully have a final run time of around 80 to 90 minutes.
We was meant to start filming at 2pm on Saturday but after several set backs we did not start until around 6ish. The scenes we managed to film involved the main character Owen (played by Rob Hudson, who also wrote the screenplay). The shoot will last until mid December and if all goes well we are hoping to have a rough, very rough cut of the film done by February. Editing Man will be David Hare with help from Andrew Forbes.
November is when the shooting goes into full pace mode, it is then when we will be filming with the three main actresses, who are Erin Thompson Cline, Tiffany Sullivan and Amy Mathieson (www.amym.co.uk), all of which are very talented actresses, who we are really looking forward to working with.
This page will be purely for the production of Man_in_a_hat, we shall be updating as and when new and exciting things within the project develop, so keep checking the site out for more photos, interviews and notes on how the production is coming along.
David
4 Weeks in
Well we are now 4 weeks into the filming of man, and it has not been an easy shoot so far. In the past 4 weeks, we have managed to shoot some where between 40 to 45 shots.
Above are pictures of Rob who is playing Owen, in his costume. One scene we have covered so far which looks fantastic is a scene in which the main character Owen is taking his frustration out on a punch bag in his garage. This scene to say the least didn't go smoothly, Rob (Owen) hit the bag so hard he dislocated his thumb and in the true hard man style he did another 4 takes with his thumb like that. However, the scene looks amazing, this is mainly down to the fact of way we are filming, using all natural lighting and that we have corrected the colour on the camera, so that we are filming more blue and green and the red is to a minimum.
Well Yesterday the 4th November we where joined by Erin, who is the first of three actors to come up and be part of man_ in_ a_ hat. Erin is playing the part of Emma.
Now for those who do not know the story for man_ in_ a_ hat. It is a story about Owen, a mid to late 20's person who befriends women on the internet and gains their trust. Once he has done that he arranges to meet them and then kill them. The story is a shocking one, but one that has happened several times in the past. Well Emma is the first girl we see Owen with, Erin is playing the part of Emma. Over the next week, it is going to be one hell of a shoot with Erin, but I think it will be worthwhile. When we did the auditions we held them for 12 actors, all of which where excellent, but we only had three places to fill. She just fit the role of Emma, and having talked to Erin today, I feel that she knows Emma so well it is actually scary.
Sorry for the delay
Well, sorry about the delay in the update of this web site, it has been a hectic past few months. Man_ in_ a_ hat is on hold at the moment, filming wise anyway, this is due to a number of things really, such as having one of the cameras stolen, the insurance company been very slow with our claim so we need to rebuild our funds.
We hope to start filming again very soon, but in the mean time, this break has given me an excellent chance to catch up with the editing, which I am doing using Adobe Premiere Pro 1.5, it is an editing system that I have used to edit the past four projects we have been involved in. So far, I have managed to put roughly 45% of the shoot footage on to the pc, and I have edited together 10 scenes so far, which look amazing, and I feel that if the rest of the footage turns out like this, the film could be one of the best things that we have ever filmed.
I am putting together a trailer for the film so if anybody is interested in seeing the trailer please email us and we can email you it once it is completed. Or if anybody is interested in helping out on Man_ in_a_ hat, in any aspect whether it be in the filming side or in the post production side please contact either David or Andrew as we would love to have more people involved in this project.
Update
Well guys at long last, after several months of editing the teaser trailer is up and running. I do have to say sorry for the beginning part of it, but the rest of it is awesome. I do have to say a massive thank you to Erin, Tiffany and Amy and of course Rob for this trailer. I hope you all enjoy the taster of the film to come and I shall keep updating it as and when we get more footage. As for now we are back on track, thank you insurance company and thanks to Nick for dealing with it. We should be back filming within the next month. I speak for us all when I say this film has been awesome to do, and I can’t wait to get into the editing studio with it completed.
March 24th 2006
Well after a few months break, we are back shooting again this evening. Over the course of this coming weekend we shall be shooting a big scene in a cemetery, and it looks as if the weather is not going to be on our side. Typical for the past few days we have had nice sunny weather but today the rain is coming down in buckets.
We have around 28 pages of dialogue to film over the next 3 nights, all of which contains just one actor, Rob. I think I am speaking for us all when I say that we cannot wait to get back on to set and start shooting again. Due to everything that has happened over the past few months the filming is behind schedule, this means that I am hoping to have a first cut of the film ready by the end of May. Principal photography is scheduled to wrap over the May bank holiday weekend, this is when we have Amy coming up to shoot her scenes. She is with us for 4 nights, within which we have to shoot all of her scenes due to her starting a new film the following week. So over the next month or so Man_in_a_Hat will be going into postproduction, this is when I will be editing. We shall be updating more (Promise) as the filming nears an end and the editing begins.
David
March 27th 2006
Well it has been a cracking weekend for the film, we have managed to finish shooting all of the grave yard scenes over this past weekend, it was hard going but we are NOW on track. The footage was all set at night, making it another night shoot. The weather once again wasn’t on our side, especially Saturday. The total amount of scenes shot over the weekend was two, and within these two scenes there are roughly 14 shots.
I strongly feel that we have a curse on this film, we have had cameras stolen, bad weather and the curse continues. On Sunday on his way back from the shoot David was involved in a car crash, luckily he’s ok and so is all the equipment, but Dave’s car we are afraid to report will not recover. With all this happening to us, it hasn’t dampened our spirits one bit, in fact it has made us more creative. With a film such as this (no money, outdoor settings etc) we all knew that it wasn’t going to be easy, but we are going to finish this film and hopefully the final product will be something that we are all proud of and that everyone who sees the film will notice the talent gone into it.
Filming Completed
May 2nd 2006
Principal photography on Man_ in_ a_ Hat has been completed, almost 8 months after we started the shoot. The final scenes that we shot all contained actress Amy Mathieson, who we only ended up having for 3 days. We managed to film in two different locations and film around 27 pages of script in the 3 days. It was a tough shoot consisting of many of the crew not getting any sleep at all. The scenes we shot over the 3 days contained a car scene, which was going to be shot using blue screen but when we actually started to shoot, it was pointless for what we needed to do. We also shot a scene that is in the original script but we have altered it for the film, in the script Amy’s character is meant to have been in a hole for several weeks (pretty much like the scene in Silence of the Lambs). After looking at the complications of having an actress down a hole we decided to change the hole into a room containing a mattress, barbwire and a chain (the picture above shows the room with Amy sat on the mattress also Amy with make up on). The result is something that I was blown away with, the colour of the set the lighting it has just added an extra layer of nastiness to the location.
The final scene to shoot was what is now going to be the opening to the film, it is a new scene that Rob and David came up with as they felt that the film needed a bang to kick it off. So the new scene now shows Amy running for her life after been stalked in the woods all night. The scene is only a small 45-50 second scene but within this one scene we have 5 gun shots, a leg been shot and a lot of rain (not planned).
So now what?
With the filming complete the editing side is now in full swing, we have a number of scenes fully edited but without music or sound effects. What will happen is that David is now putting together a rough first cut, which he is hoping to have completed by the end of May. We shall then watch the film in its rough-cut format and decide what we can cut out and what we shall keep. The thing with Man_in_a_Hat, is that it is a film heavy on dialogue so the pacing of the film has to be just right or we risk it becoming a very slow burning film. However, what is edited so far is surpassing my expectations, so fingers crossed.
Post-Production
Well a lot has happened since the last update to the site. Firstly, the film is entering the final stages of post-production now, the four producers Rob, Andrew, Nick and I have all sat down and watched various cuts of the films and it is really taking shape now. Having watched it again last night (17th July) with Rob, we decided that one scene did not work very well. The scene in question is scene 7, which all takes place within a car, but lasting at 13 minutes it seemed excessively long but did not seem to take the audience anywhere. Therefore, what we have decided to do is cut the scene down to just 4 minutes and shelf the rest, who knows maybe it will appear on the DVD. Instead of this scene, Rob and I have come up with a scene, which will introduce more of a back-story to Owen, a part of the film, which is missing. This scene will be shot within the next month. The past few months have seen two different re-shoots; these are mainly fillers that expand certain scenes to help them flow.
Well after almost 3 weeks of editing, I almost have a rough cut of the film to view. Its looking like it could have a run time of around 80 minutes plus credits. In whole, the rough cut of the film is looking pretty damn good, it is going to need a few things doing to it such as colour correcting, colour grading and sound remixing but will be done after we are happy with the run of the rough cut. As we are trying to keep all costs down, so far the film itself has cost us in the region on £3860 we are trying to get the film finished for £4000. With this in mind I am going to be doing all the grading and colour correction myself, this means that I have a lot of reading and practice to do. One bit of footage we are very impressed with is a new scene, well a reworking of scene 15. In the original script, this scene went on for over 30 pages, but due to problems we have had, we decided to shorten the scene and the scene now last 47 seconds. This is a scene now which only contains action and no dialogue, when Rob and myself discussed the scene and what we could do we said that having an action piece just before the opening title would not only give the film a great edge of your seat start but also keep people wanting to know more. So with this in mind scene 15 will now open the film in a cut down version and will later appear in whole. Well I shall keep the site and everyone updated as I go through the editing process and above are a few screen shots from the films for your enjoyment.
JUNE/JULY 2006
So what have I (David) been up to? Well I have been working what feels like 24/7 on the editing of Man. It appears that I have taken on more jobs then I thought I was going to when we started. Not only am I the editor of the video side of the film, but I have also had to take over sound editor. A job that I thought I was not going to have to do, but the sound person has left us in a bit of a pickle shall we say. However, saying this I do love a challenge and oh boy is the sound a challenge. I am still on track for the deadline that we set which is September for the film to be completed.
I am working on getting a trailer together so watch this space, but for now if you click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kD6ec4ap0rA and take a peak at some rough footage. Please feel free to email us and tell us what you think.
Dave
AUGUST 5th 2006
Just a quick update to let you all know how the editing is coming along. The film is entering into its final stages of postproduction now, mainly adding a Foley track and adding in sound effects. Rob and I were looking back on the first cut of the film from April and we were both shocked at how much the film has changed and how different it looks after almost 700 hours worth of editing. The main thing that has played such a massive part in how much different the film is looking is the sound. With the sound effects now getting into place the film is taking the nasty turn that we wanted it to have. The other factor is the music I have added; it adds an erieeness to the images. This coming week we are re-shooting one scene and shooting additional scenes that we need to replace the scene we have taken out. In addition, this week we are recording some ADR tracks to replace the original recordings made on set. This is mainly due to the original recording been of very low and poor quality and when I came to edit them, I found there was nothing I could do to them. After we have these new scenes and the ADR in place it’s a case polishing up the film and putting logos and titles on, then it is done. It will be finished in time for the screening to be held in Harrogate in September. One of the best feelings I have ever had is when I was watching the opening to Man and I couldn't believe that a crew of 5 people and a budget of £5000 could pull off what I was watching, it's such a rewarding feeling.
Anybody interested in seeing the film please feel free to email me and I’ll send you the required amount of tickets.
SEPTEMBER 3rd 2006
Well after what seems like a lifetime, we are entering the final stage of post-production now. The video is locked, meaning the filmed footage is all in place and Rob and I are happy with what we have. We have spent the last week creating sounds and adding music to the video footage. There is one scene, this is scene 3 with Erin that I’m very happy with for a number of reasons. These reasons mainly been that it took me weeks to edit the footage but then I had to recreate and remix the whole of the sound (this is down to the sound guy not really caring what he was doing, and wanted to be home rather then on set). The way that this scene now plays is to me the best footage I have ever shot, and with the added sound effects it packs a real punch. To be honest I think I can say this now, but a few months back I didn't think there was anything that could have been done to the scene at all, some of the footage was way to grainy and as I have said the sound was just awful. My advice to all you budding filmmakers out there SPEND THE MONEY and hire a professional sound person, trust me it will pay off.
With just a few extra sound effects to put in and one or two new short scenes to film, Man will be finished mid September with a premiere scheduled in for the end of September beginning of October. I speak for myself but I was nervous as anything, almost a year and a half I have been working on this project, I have multi tasked to the point where my name appears on the credits almost none stop. I all the film has turned out to be something I'm proud of, not just the film but also the whole experience of making a feature film and all the horrible things that have happened along the way, this would make a great film in itself. Everyone that has worked on the film has at one point been struck down with a case of very, very bad luck. But we have all struggled on and not for one second have we thought that this film wouldn’t get made. The bad luck hasn't ended yet though, the pc I’m editing on is 5 months old and keeps crashing as I edit, wonderful, maybe someone is trying to tell me something.
Right as the Post-production closes I shall update as to when the premiere will be, and if anybody out there fancies seeing the film email me and I shall see what I can do.
So Bye for now.
Dave.
The End Is Nigh
Well at long last, the film is complete, it's kind of sad to think that I’m not going to be editing or working on this film every day, as I have done over the past year or so. The crew had a screening last night, and reactions where very positive. But we need to start showing it to people other then our friends and family, we need some strong feed back from people. So anybody reading this fancy being a critic for us please email and we shall send you a copy to watch. I'm not sure that people are going to understand that we have made this with just 5 people in the crew, I watch it and I can’t believe it and to make it on just under £4000. I am now currently working on a number of different things towards the extras for the DVD, these will include 3 commentaries one from David (Director, Editor, Producer) one from Rob (Writer, Actor, Producer) and the third will be a crew commentary. The other features will be a behind the scenes collection, before and after on certain segments, Script to screen comparisons, Story board comparisons, and a still to be filmed documentary on the editing of Man. So the DVD will be bursting with extras. I am also working on a trailer for the film, this is something that we shall be sending out to various people to entice them into seeing the film, and maybe helping us with the next one. The menus are all been designed and created by David for the DVD, these are going to be motion menus.
So for now I shall leave you with some important information, the film will hopefully be shown at Harrogate Odeon on November 25th 2006. This is still yet to be confirmed but it’s looking hopeful. Any body interested should contact David either by email or phone for tickets.
THE REVIEWS SO FAR....AND THE DVD
Excellent work. It has a great tone throughout and I think you've worked miracles with the sound. Terrific Performances also, Rob was fantastic. All in all an inspiration Nick Thompson: Sydney International film school.
Outstanding acting, has a essence of a Tobe Hooper film. Not what I expected. Andy Topham
Dark and Gritty Harrogate Advertiser
Read 2 articles that have appeared in the local Harrogate newspaper here.
We are currently working on a 2 disk DVD set of Man_in_a_Hat, for anybody interested in buying a copy which will be completed early 2007 please email us to pre-order.
It’s been almost 2 months now since we had the premiere of Man, and we have had a lot of interest for the film. We are currently waiting to hear back from a number of distribution companies who have shown interest in the film and they are now looking at it, so fingers crossed.
Other news is that Rob has written a few new scripts and we are now looking at them to see which one will be the next project. We have been approached by a solo investor who is prepared to invest £10,000 into our next picture, so we shall keep you posted.
Along with this we are still waiting to hear back from a number of festivals to see if Man has made it into any of them. This would be a great thing to happen not only for us but also for the film itself. We have entered it into many so-called ‘Independent Film Festivals’ but we have found that we are competing against films with major backing and well-known stars. To us this isn’t really very fair that our £4,000 film which is very very independent, is not getting into festivals due to us not having major backing or any kind of major star. But you never get anywhere in life if you don’t try…right? So we shall keep pushing and working on our next film.
Dave
man_in_a_hat 1 and 2 DISC DVD
March 2007
Well at long last I think I can safely say that man_in_a_hat is completely finished. I have just completed the 2 disc DVD set, and it's packed with features. The features contained on the 2 disc set are:
Directors commentary
Original cut of the film
The sound of man_in_a_hat featurette
Storyboard to the screen featurette
Original audition footage
Outtakes
Hidden Easter egg
Scene selection
The 1 disc edition contains
Directors commentary
Hidden Easter egg
Scene selection
The DVD has been designed and created by David and also contains full motion menus.
To purchase please email info@harebrainedfilms.com, and all profits from the sale of this DVD are going towards our next feature film project ‘B-roads’. ‘B-roads’ is a screenplay by Rob Hudson and is based on a story by David Hare. We are currently in Pre-Production and we are looking at a summer 2007 shoot. More on ‘B-Roads’ as we progress.
David's Practical Digital Video Interview
Read David’s interview with Practical Digital Video in this months issues. He talks about the making of man_in_a_hat and the problems that faced the cast and crew whilst making the film. Practical Digital Video is on sale from June 14th.
