Here is a great video interview from The Economist with Ed Catmull.  When Clayton and I first sat down and started talking about ReCinema, Pixar and some of Ed’s talks were a source of inspiration and guidance.  At the time, we had only referenced a couple of articles.  Its interesting, inspiring, and exciting to watch more of these talks, with more and more information revealed about the Pixar process, and how similar our approaches are, and there are things Ed says that reminds me that we need to double-check some of our assumptions, but more importantly, for me anyone, is how much they still continue to inspire me.

If you really want to know what ReCinema is about (and I mean ReCinema, not any particular project), watch this video.

Link

Graphics Novellist? Animator? Illustrator? Sketch Artist? Storyboard Artist? Whatever you want to call them, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that we NEED YOU!!

We are in dire need of an artist who can draw quickly (rather than perfectly) and who is competent conveying a story within a series of those drawings. Don’t worry, you’ll still get a chance to fill in the details and color your masterpiece, but that will come later. Right now, we just need someone who can quickly rough out relateable sketches on the order of one every 3-5 minutes. While not necessary, it would be ideal if you live along the Utah, Wasatch-Front area. We will need a commitment of 5-10 hours a week, and students are strongly encouraged to apply.  This will a great portfolio and experience-building opportunity for the right individuals. If you or someone you know may be a good fit, please email us a resume and include examples of your work.

ReCinema is a group of independent filmmakers who work regularly in a truly collaborative environment, on a broad range of projects in a variety of genres.  We aim to discover and develop new methodologies for effective story development, film production, marketing and distribution.

Last nights meeting was a good one. I had hoped to be out by around 9pm, so I could get home and pack for my trip to LA. I finally got home at 11pm. Delayed, once again. But, true to form, worth very minute. At the heart of our “post-script” discussion was a number of topics dealing a variety of issues. Some which we’ve all been feeling, some that Clayton and I have been struggling with for a while.

Right now ReCinema is a purely volunteer endeavor. Its not a business, and no one makes any money. Given that there a certain hard costs associated with ReCinema, and while very small (rent, website hosting, domain names, Celtx accounts, Vimeo accounts, etc.), ReCinema still runs in the red.

We’ve struggled with finding a commitment from people in a number of areas. I believe, while there is a real draw for writers and directors to collaborate and develop projects in a quid-pro-quo environment, there has been a lot of resistance from others to commit to contributing to the effort. I believe this is a result of collaborators wanting to commit to their own projects, rather than someone elses. Understandable. But how then do you find the collaborators necessary to move projects forward, projects which may not be their own. It takes a special kind of people. People who believe not in a particular project, but rather believe in the concept and the ideas that ReCinema represents. People must believe in ReCinema, and the desire to see any and all projects that are developed within the ReCinema model succeed. I could go on and on about our discussions regarding finding collaborators, but I think I’ll let Clayton cover that one… ;-)

These two seemingly disparate thoughts, for me, conclude at the same point: Sustainability and Cash-Flow.

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