Red Scare Recording Session

There are a lot of unknowns in making a movie. You can try to plan all you want, but in the end there is a lot you just can't control. So, when we first started talking about recording a live orchestra, I kind of stepped back and let the thing come together. With the exception of securing the location, I really had very little input at all. 

Dan Granda is our composer/conductor. I met with him once to discuss a few things about the movie and the score, but make no mistake, the score is 100% his. And I didn't know what we were going to get... I like what we talked about, but without hearing it, how could I know? So, I trusted Dan. 

Today, I got to see if that trust paid off in our first orchestra session... 

I am not sure if I could adequately put it into words... I wish I had a picture of me and Bill's faces as we listened to the opening of the movie's score... the Russian theme... the American theme... etc. I really do... Because we had the biggest smiles on our faces the entire time. I am sure the orchestra thought we were crazy. It was amazing. This was the first time that this orchestra played together, and they were amazing. The best way I could describe it is somewhere between that feeling you get when you were a kid and you opened a present that you really wanted but didn't know you were going to get... and the feeling of being part of something that has become much bigger than you intended. 

Everyone knows how important the score is to a movie... A movie can live or die by its score. And boy will this one live. It is huge... It is epic... It is funny where it needs to be. I have that same goofy smile plastered on my face just thinking about it. 

So, big thanks to Dan Granda for composing this magic... the orchestra who I will credit and acknowledge by name and instrument once we finish with the recording... Thanks to Joey for once again risking his sanity for me as he records a larger group of musicians than he ever has before... Tony for being his usual calm and ever helpful self..... Loarina for doing whatever she can to help and showing once again why she has probably the most credits in the movie... Billy for his equipment help and just being there for this process to help wherever he can. 

Also have to thank Bayonne's Temple Beth Am for being so accomodating. When we were at a loss for where to record, they stepped up in a big way. 

We had a lot of help from people who provided stands and mics: "All around class act" Keith McCord, supporter and zombie in the movie Mike Castro, the guy who is going to be reproducing our DVDs Greg Colletti, Ryan Shumacher, and probably a bunch of people that got Joey some stuff that I don't know. 

Billy & I talked during the session about how big this is. Not only how epic the score is... But how often does an independent film record a live orchestra? Not often. And how often does that live orchestra sound as good as ours? I have no idea. I would say never, but I am not sure. All's I know is we are doing something that few, if any, indie filmmakers are doing. 

Yesterday, Red Scare was a very funny movie that I was insanely proud of... Today, I am kind of in awe of the whole thing. It's way bigger than any of us had any idea it could be. This is gonna be awesome. 

Stay Tuned!

Sam 

Red Scare Screening: Thursday, January 12, 2012 @ 7PM

Well, here we are... We are here. I can finally announce that the Red Scare screening will take place on Thursday, January 12 at 7pm at Frank Theaters (191 Lefante Way, Bayonne, NJ).

When we first started out on this journey by raising money on indiegogo, I said that cast, crew, and donors would be comped. Now, because of the largeness of our cast/crew, and the number of people who generously donated, there are quite a few comp tickets. 

That means that there are an extremely limited amount of tickets available. If you would like to purchase a ticket, please contact me at RedScareMovie@gmail.com with the number of tickets you want. Tickets are $20 each, and I can only accept cash at this time. I realize that may seem like a lot but, as I said, we have a limited number of tickets available... and I did say that tickets would be more expensive for people who didn't donate... Plus, you will be getting so much more than just the first ever viewing of the finished product of Red Scare. You will also be getting:

*Introduction from the Director and Myself
*Trailers for some pretty great upcoming projects
*The world premiere of the short film, Dark Wings
*A Q&A session with the cast & crew
*Raffles for some awesome movie memorabillia
*And if you like Red Scare, well, there just may be the opportunity to purchase a DVD of it with special features... 

So, make sure you reserve your ticket(s) today. They will be going fast.

Stay tuned,

Sam
Actor, Writer, Producer
Red Scare

One Crisis Averted... How many more to go?

It is an awful thing, but I am usually thinking that whatever can go wrong will probably go wrong. So, it should come as little surprise that earlier this week the place I thought we had to record the orchestra? We didn't have it anymore.

I was in full-on panic mode. There were times when I thought, will we actually be able to finish this movie? We already gave the musicians a set of dates... would we be able to reschedule them if worse came to worse?

Thankfully, I don't have to worry about the answer to that question, because this morning we found our replacement space, and it looks like everything should work out (so it will be fun to see what goes wrong next).

Big thanks to Temple Beth Am in Bayonne, NJ for agreeing to let us use their space to record the score for Red Scare. That means special thanks to Rabbi Gordon Gladstone, President of the Temple Don Miller, and his wife Sue for helping us in our time of need.

I also gotta thank everyone who reached out to me this week to try and offer suggestions and possibilities (and who I reached out to as well): Miriam Cortez, Julio Rodriguez, Matt Hojnacki, Donna Connolly, Min Kim, Dennis Degnan, Tim Craig, Melissa Welz, Christina Garced, Dr. Patricia McGeehan, and Leo Smith.

Who knows what will happen next, but right now, we are back on track with Red Scare. And that is a wonderful feeling.

I have also been talking with Frank's Theatre in Bayonne about the first Red Scare screening, and everything looks good there. I will have more information on that soon, but keep your first two weeks of January open, because that is what it looks like for us.

Have a fantastic Thanksgiving and...

Stay Tuned!

Sam Platizky
Actor, Writer, Producer
Red Scare

Audio and Wrapping up Red Scare

Red Scare is done!


More or less... The final edit is done and we come in somewhere between 90 and 100 minutes. I don't know the exact time. All that's left for us now is the sound stuff. Joey Mosca has been hard at work on fixing any lingering issues that we have with the audio (background noise stuff, balancing issues, etc) and our composer, Dan Granda is working on the score.

At the end of this month, we will be recording the score... live recording the score... live recording a full orchestra. A terrifying prospect, but an exciting one too. Going into this, we knew we wanted to try and capture a live orchestra to fit with the time period... and that is what we are doing. We, at Red Scare, pride ourselves on trying crazy, impossible sounding things that most indie movies would not do, and this is no exception. Fingers crossed and all of that.

Because of the work that still needs to go into the film, my dreams of having the screening in 2011 were shattered... But it is better this way. As much as I wanted to have something before the holidays, it wouldn't do to rush the finished product. So, we will be having the screening in early January 2012... I am working out the details of where and when exactly, but should have a date for you soon.

The screening should be loads of fun. On top of a great movie, there will be previews (from us and other independent film crews), the short film Dark Wings, a chance to win some one-of-a-kind Red Scare memorabilia, and maybe.... just maybe... a few surprises as well.

Stay tuned!

Sam
Actor, Writer, Producer
Red Scare