Sold Out?!?!?

So, our theatre at Frank's seats 309... Today, we officially have sold out each and every seat. Now, this just means that the tickets have been reserved. There are a fair number of tickets that haven't been paid for yet. 

I have contacted all of the people who have yet to pay on the reserved list, and notified them that if they don't pay by 6:30pm on Thursday, their tickets will be up for grabs. I anticipate at least a few of the reserved tickets will become available again within the next few days, so don't lose hope. 

If you still want to see the screening, email me at RedScareMovie@gmail.com to be put on the wait list and you will be notified if a spot opens up. Alternatively, come to the screening before 6:30pm, and hope for the best. 

I am very excited right now. It's not just the fact that we have sold out, it is the fact that so many people are interested in seeing this movie... And we finally get to share this hilarious movie with a wide audience. The energy is so much better when there is a large audience, so I am very much looking forward to Thursday (with the appropriate amount of anxiety and terror reserved for events such as these where anything can go wrong at any time). 

Stay tuned!

Sam 

Actor, Writer, Producer

Red Scare

New Years & Screenings & DVD's... Oh my!

Happy New Year, Red Scare fans!!! 2012 is here, and with it, the first public screening of Red Scare! In just 8 days, people will have their first look at what my amazing team and I have been working on since last March. 

There are still some tickets left, so if you need to purchase them, they are $20/ticket and (as a reminder) a portion of ticket sales will be donated to the Simpson-Baber Foundation for the Autistic. 

Some more information about the event. It will begin at 7pm with an introduction by myself and the director of Red Scare, William Dautrick Jr. Please arrive early to secure your seats and purchase any refreshments that you might wish to purchase. The first guests to line up will receive a poster and autographed promotional picture for the movie (while supplies last).

At the screening, there will be a raffle for movie memorabilia. The way this will work is you will be given an envelope. You can put in it anywhere from $1 up as a donation to the movie to help us enter film festivals. After the screening the winning envelopes will be randomly selected and the winners will receive one of the random items that we will have up for the raffle.

In addition, DVD copies of the movie (with deleted scenes and a blooper reel) will be available for $25/copy after the screening. Big thanks to Greg Colletti of Triple Ace Productions for working so hard to make the copies in time for the screening. I can't recommend that company enough if you have DVD reproduction needs. 

I am happy to announce that the following trailers will play prior to the movie: 

Mating Dome directed by John Trigonis

Triple Play directed by Mike Castro

Dead Eye directed by Louis Affortunato

Dr. Pegg directed by Blake Zawadzki

Loster directed by Sam Platizky

Hopefully, we will also have the world premiere of the horror short, Dark Wings, directed by Joey Mosca. However, Joey put Dark Wings on hold and has spent the last two months or so finishing sound and recording, mixing, and getting all the music ready for Red Scare. So, while I appreciate that immensely, if the short is not ready to be screened it will be completely Red Scare's and my fault. I will post an update once I know definitively whether or not it will screen.

If you are looking for somewhere to eat in the area before or after the screening, in the same shopping center as the movie theatre there is: 

Houlihans (171 Lefante Way)

Subway (207 Lefante Way) 

Wendy's (181 Lefante Way)

Dunkin Donuts (171 Lefante Way)

Additionally, just a few minutes away in a different shopping center on the same road, there are: 

TGI Friday's (50 Bayonne Crossing Way)

Longhorn Steakhouse (907 Bayonne Crossing Way)

Panda Express (207 Bayonne Crossing Way) 

5 Guys Burgers & Fries (301 Bayonne Crossing Way) 

Sonic (100 Bayonne Crossing Way)  

Similarly, close by is the bar and restaurant where we had the Red Scare wrap party, and both food and drinks were delicious: 

Hendrickson's (671 Broadway)

I am very excited about this screening. I don't know if I have ever been as proud about something I have worked on. I have watched the film MANY times in all its different stages and I am still laughing throughout. I can't wait to be able to share that with a large group of people who don't know what they're in for. 

If you have any questions about the screening, or wish to purchase additional tickets please do not hesitate to contact me.

Stay tuned!

Sam
Actor, Writer, Producer

Red Scare

Reaching that finish line at the end of 2011...

 

The end of the world is almost here. 2012 is nearly upon us. 2011 brought us a lot of things. We wrapped everything on Blaming George Romero, dusted ourselves off, and started all over again with Red Scare. 

Last Friday, Joey came over to finish up the sound work on Red Scare. He came over at 6pm. By 6am, Red Scare was finished. Complete. Done! With music! I watched to make sure everything was okay, it was, and here we are. The DVD is in for reproductions now, so there should be copies of Red Scare available after the screening if you happen to be interested. 

We still have a little work left... Have to add the trailers for the screening, and have to make sure that Joey's movie Dark Wings is ready to go... But other then that, we are in a good place right now.

The screening, once again, is on Thursday, 1-12-12. Tickets are still on sale, but we do not have too many left. You can reserve yours by emailing me at redscaremovie@gmail.com. Tickets cost $20 each. 

If you did not know, we are donating a portion of ticket sales to the Simpson-Baber Foundation for the Autistic. 

I hope to see you at the screening. I just know you are going to fall in love with Red Scare. =)

Stay tuned, 

Sam

Actor, Writer, Producer

Red Scare

What the heck did we just do?

Bear with me, because I am not exactly sure what we just did. In the last blog, I talked about how I don't think many indie films are recording full orchestras for their scores. There is a reason for that. It is costly, it is difficult, and who wants to add to all that trouble after so much work, time, and money has been put into the film before the music?

I guess the answer to that question is: us. Because late last night, we successfully finished recording the Red Scare score. It was an incredible experience, and I still don't really know how it all came together so well. The music is awesome. Joey & I actually started putting some of the music into the movie earlier this week, and I am so excited about how it all looks and sounds. 

So, that is it... Another huge goal passed for the movie. We are literally days away from a finished product, and it will be such a relief. Don't get me wrong... I love everything about the movie, but this must be exactly how a pregnant woman feels 10 months into a pregnancy. You heard me!

So, I don't know how exactly it came together, but I do know it would not have come together if Temple Beth Am in Bayonne, NJ hadn't agreed to let us record in their space.

I know it would not have come together if Dan Granda hadn't whipped together an amazing score AND assembled an incredible orchestra in a short period of time.

If Joey Mosca didn't have a ridiculous amount of recording equipment/connections to get more equipment and the knowledge of how to use it all, we would have been screwed. 

If Tony Pineiro & Bill Dautrick didn't agree to do everything from transporting equipment/people, to helping to set up and break down, to going on dinner runs, and more, I don't think we could have done it. 

Loarina Gonzalez could have told me that she didn't want to help out, but then Joey would not have had a recording assistant who was so good at her job and both the movie and morale would have suffered and Joey might have gone crazy long ago. 

I could have paid for all of the meals for the orchestra, but I would have been beyond broke, so it is a good thing Isaac Platizky was generous enough to help me out with some extra cash from time to time. 

And then, we cannot forget the people who actually played the music so well. Here for the first time, I present to you, the Red Scare recording groups:

Red Scare Full Orchestra: 

John Fragasso (percussion)

Evan James Young (Horn)

Paul Campbell (Bassoon)

Paul Scott (tuba)

Peter Cruz (percussion)
Gregory Mueller (percussion)
Scott Porter (clarinet)
Emma C. Coleman (oboe)
William Newrock (bass trombone)
Jim McCaughey (trombone)
Leah Van Doornik (horn)
Herbert Foster (horn)
Steven Zagami (percussion)
Esther Novo (flute)
Elyse D'Agostino (flute)
Leah Garber (trumpet)
Bokyung Park (trombone)
John Cross (trumpet)
Donna Dixon (clarinet)
Hope Heredia (trombone)
Barbara Zacheis (French horn)
Robert Quinn (bassoon)  

Red Scare Chamber Group

Dan Granda (percussion)

Gregory Mueller (percussion)

Donna Dixon (clarinet)

Barbara Zacheis (French horn) 

Red Scare Jazz Combo

Dan Granda (percussion)

Asher LaBella (guitar)

Matthew Lepek (saxophone) 

Eric Walton (piano)

Matthew Quinones (bass)

Loarina Gonzalez, Dan Granda, Bill Dautrick, & Sam Platizky (Agent White backup singers) 

 

That is all... The screening is coming up very soon. If you haven't already, you are going to want to reserve tickets by emailing me at RedScareMovie@gmail.com. Tickets are $20 each, and a portion of the ticket sales will be donated to the Simpson-Baber Foundation for the Autistic. 

Stay Tuned!

Sam 

Actor, Writer, Producer

Red Scare

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