Fat Monster Films Blog

Monster News

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 03:11:00 +0000

Hola. ... And you thought this blog was dead, eh?

Fat Monster has been hard at it with shoots in Washington DC, Nashville, Key West and, of course, L.A. We've got several television projects in the works and will hopefully be able to discuss some of them soon.

Probably the biggest news of late is the announcement that Fat Monster will be shooting the feature film "Cross" for Morningstar Films this summer. The film stars Michael Madsen, Ling Bai, Tim Abell and Amber Benson. We'll be shooting the first test scenes next month at Taran Butler's ranch.

Additionally, on Monday April 27th we had an impromptu meeting at the famous pub, Molly Malone's, in Hollywood where we heard one of the most impressive young singers of recent memory: Amie Miriello. Trust me when I tell you that this girl is going to be huge. Amie performed some songs from her first album as well as some new stuff that blew us away. Check out her site at www.AmieMiriello.com where you can hear why.

Midway through the evening Amie called up Nick Lachey, who also performed a couple of stunning numbers. As if that was not enough, Mitch Allan and a couple of his friends completely rocked the place.

Joining us for the evening were our good friends Tim Abell and Patrick Durham. We were especially delighted to be joined by the lovely Kelly Hu (The Scorpion King, X2). By the end of the evening we polled the delegates and reached a consensus decision that Molly Malone's will be the Official Pub of Fat Monster Films.

Rounder Records releases Vienna Teng's GRAVITY video

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 06:56:00 +0000

Rounder Records has released the FAT MONSTER FILMS music video of her single "GRAVITY" on YouTUBE (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8nypWKa_aU&feature=channel_page) Be sure and click the "Watch in High Quality" button in the lower right corner of the page!

The MONSTER shot this video on Whidbey Island last year. Vienna has a new album being released this spring called "Inland Territory" that you can pre-order now on her website: www.viennateng.com. We've heard several cuts from the album and we can assure you that it is magical and wonderful beyond measure!

The 12-year Old Foul-Mouthed Boy in All of Us

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 15:11:00 +0000

Studies have shown that a majority of American men suffer from arrested development with respect to certain elements of personality and maturity. In matters involving football, firearms, females and remote-controlled gadgets many U.S. males are essentially distinguished from twelve-year-old boys only by their proclivity to use expletives and to consume alcoholic beverages. Witness, for example, the antics of the men of Fat Monster Films who recently became enmeshed in a wager over an evening of bloodsport (bowling). Mark (the Dude) Johnson challenged Luis (SuperLuis) Sinibaldi to a match, the loser of which had to purchase an $85 RC Helicopter. Given the fact that, as a bowler Johnson is a very good golfer, SuperLuis spotted him 40 pins. The original wager was documented by our good friend Zak Forsman of SABI FILMS on his recent podcast .

Finally, Luis ponied up the cash for the spoils of the battle and Mark and Tim hit the liquor store and turned on the camera to document the maiden voyage HERE.

Monster Profile: Tim Hyten

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 08:54:00 +0000

As Fat Monster nears the end of 2008 we decided it would be a good idea to begin a series of profiles for the various members of the Monster family and crew. After a brutal beer pong competition, Mr. Tim Hyten won the honor of having the first profile done:

Tim hails from what Angelinos refer to as "the high desert" -- a.k.a. Apple Valley, California. At 25, Tim has achieved enough recognition and buzz to make many professionals' lists for young directors worth watching in the L.A. basin.

Tim was front man and guitarist for the band Something From Nothing, which toured nationally and was courted by major labels including Fat Wreck Chords, arguably the most successful indie label in the world. His experience and contacts from the music industry gave Tim a solid basis from which to begin developing music videos.

Tim recalls that the very first time he saw a DVD with a "making of" feature he became hooked on learning as much as he could about the process of making films. From that day forward Tim made most of his DVD purchases based on the content of the "extra" features and he sought as much information as he could find on the technical and artistic aspects of filmmaking.

Without funds to attend film school, Tim told anyone who would listen that he would be willing to work on any film set or music video shoot for the experience alone. Within a month, word got out about the young guy who would bust his butt on set for nothing other than a few donuts from the craft services table. Tim was literally working every day on progressively larger shoots and he soaked in information like a sponge.

It was during this period when Tim found himself working as unpaid crew on an independent film being directed by the legendary Curtis Harrington. Harrington began his career in the 40's as an author and film critic before he began directing a series of avant-garde films that gained him notice in Hollywood. He even played several cameo rolls in pictures for Orson Welles and Bill Condon. Harrington also gave Dennis Hopper his first feature role in a 1961 film called Night Tide that is now considered to be a classic.

While working on Harrington's crew, Tim became friends with the great director, who said he saw a lot of himself in the young protege. Harrington befriended Tim and agreed to act as his mentor and confidant. Harrington was particularly fascinated with the digital technology that Tim was using for his own experimental films.

Sadly, Mr. Harrington passed away in 2007 and he was never able to see Fat Monster Films come to fruition.

Tim flirted briefly with acting, but decided that his talents were better spent behind the camera. Nevertheless, he has appeared as a fireman in an episode of "24."

He also has shown remarkable skill as an editor and most recently Tim has been representing Fat Monster while editing on the Warner Bros. studio lot for a project being produced by HDFILMS. Recently Tim directed a pitch piece set in Iraq during the recent war with a cast that included Tom Sizemore, Tim Abell and Will Estes.

At this writing we are negotiating several projects that Tim will be featured as director or as lead editor.

What Happened to October?

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 17:07:00 +0000

We try to update this blog every week but somehow almost two months have passed. Thus, we'll try to update what the Monsters have been doing and get back on track with regular posts.

FAT MONSTER spent much of October on the Warner Bros. studio lot working on a pilot for a new series that will be pitched in early 2009. The episode starred Jeffrey Combs, Steve Hytner and Brian Thompson -- all consummate actors and wonderful pros to work with. Jeffrey is well known to film buffs as Dr. Herbert West from Re-Animator and also has played some of the most popular alien characters on the modern Star Trek series beginning with Deep Space 9. Seinfeld fans will recognize Steve Hytner from his role as Kenny Bania on that series and he's got an impressive list of credits in both film and television. Brian Thompson has played marvelous thugs and villains since the first Terminator film. His 6'3" frame and distinctive look got him the role as The Night Slasher opposite Sylvester Stallone in Cobra.

Our short film "O2" was featured at the TALLGRASS FILM FESTIVAL in Wichita, Kansas in October and writer/producer Mark Johnson gave a Q and A session at the historic Orpheum Theater to a full house.

Shooting was completed for the final scenes of our Iraqi war film. The project is currently being pitched to several networks and producers with very good responses so far.

We finally got to shoot the long awaited music video for the band MIGGS. The song for the video is "Perfect", which has been getting tremendous airplay nationally. The video was shot with two RED ONE cameras using anamorphic lenses.

In addition to all of this the principals of FAT MONSTER FILMS attended the Dooley County Pig Jig in Vienna, Georgia where we were pressed into service on the Prime Time Swine championship barbecue cooking team:

New Project for Fat Monster Films

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 16:48:00 +0000

The FAT MONSTER principals met at Warner Bros. studios again this week to work out details for a new project slated for production in October. The monster crew will be working with Gary Graham (Alien Nation, Star Trek Enterprise) and Carl Weathers (Rocky, Predator) to produce the pilot for a new series. Gary wrote the episode and Carl will be directing the project.

We also took the opportunity to screen some footage from our Iraq war film project and it received glowing responses from the execs who viewed it. Plans are in place to shoot a new intro and conclusion for the short film version of the piece. A completely separate pitch piece will be edited for the project and it will be shepherded through the Hollywood pitch pipe by Julz Chavez, who has become an essential cog in the monster wheel of late. More details to come soon!

Fat Monster Wraps Iraq War Film

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 12:48:00 +0000

On August 24th Fat Monster Films completed a two-day shoot at the Blue Cloud Movie Ranch for a series pitch project set in Iraq involving an embedded news reporter. The working title for the series is "Fogg of War" with the plot centered on a fictitious newsman named Mack Fogg, who is a former Marine veteran of the first Iraq conflict.

The footage is currently being edited in several versions to be used for pitch purposes. The project was designed to showcase FAT MONSTER's ability to achieve extremely high production values on a limited budget. Accordingly, the script called for numerous explosions and pyrotechnical effects as well as a large contingent of Marines in full body armor. To maximize the efficiency of the shoot we used two RED ONE digital cinema cameras shooting at 4K resolution operated by co-DPs Geoff Reisner and Matt Garrett. Conditions were brutal in terms of heat and dust, but we were able to maintain very quick setups by using ice packs on the cameras and makeshift dust covers.

The shoot was co-produced with GUNMETAL GROUP, who provided a full contingent of Marines with weapons, uniforms and equipment and who were experienced with stunts. GUNMETAL's own CEO, Matt Sigloch, coordinated the fight sequences and experienced pyro technician Paul Staples headed up the practical effects. Additionally, noted stunt coordinator Bobby King choreographed a beautifully shot hand-to-hand knife fight for the piece that truly shows off his skills.

New Project Underway

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 09:24:00 +0000

FAT MONSTER FILMS is completing pre-production for an ambitious project that commences on August 23rd. We aren't at liberty to release details just yet, but we can disclose that we will be filming at the BLUE CLOUD MOVIE RANCH that recently was used for the Afghanistan scenes in the blockbuster "IRON MAN." Suffice it to say that we're going to be pushing our personal envelope for this production and we have high expectations for what shows up on the screen.

In other MONSTER news, our short film "O2" screened at the LOUISVILLE FILM FESTIVAL this month and it will be shown this fall at the DENVER STARZ festival as well as the TALLGRASS FILM FESTIVAL in Wichita. More festival dates and locations to be announced soon.

The Hollywood Biz - Taking Meetings and Doing Lunch

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 01:19:00 +0000

The fans and friends of Fat Monster Films are very aware that we're still very much the "new boys on the block" who have yet to reach our first birthday (We officially opened our doors in September 2007). Therefore, a lot of what may be "business as usual" for other production companies is exciting and novel stuff for us.

This week we have been taking meetings with producers and agents and find ourselves needing to hire an entertainment lawyer. Tomorrow we're traveling to Warner Bros. Studio in Burbank to discuss a production deal that will, frankly, be a huge step for the Monster. Moreover, we are also in preliminary negotiations for the sale of our short film "O2." Needless to say, these are exciting times at the Monster shack. Hopefully, we'll have lots more to report soon.

The Rough Cut for the Vienna Teng Video is Finished

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 07:03:00 +0000

Last week, at long last, Tim finished the rough cut for the Vienna Teng music video. The amount of footage we shot for the project was staggering and the beautiful framing by Steven Dempsey meant that choosing the clips to use was a difficult task.

We were considering seeking outside assistance for the video's color grading until Tim developed some settings that were, quite frankly, perfect. Because light conditions changed over the three days we shot on Whidbey Island, we were concerned about matching several of the segments. However, the grading Tim came up with (a wintry desaturated look) solved the problem and resulted in a look that we feel is precisely what the piece needed.

Last week we sent a link for the rough cut to a few selected critics that we trust, along with sending the video to Vienna and her management. We were delighted to hear back from Vienna herself almost immediately with her appreciation and approval of the results. Ms. Teng also gave us some notes that were astute and useful for refining the edit. If all goes well, we should have a final edit this week and it will then be up to Rounder and Vienna to determine when and how the video will be released.

Frankly, we believe the Gravity video is going to turn a lot of heads in the industry. Hopefully, the video will be a springboard that will introduce many new fans to this very talented artist. In our humble opinion, she deserves to be in the top tier of performing songwriters working today.

Mark

FAT MONSTER FILMS WINS AWARDS

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 07:19:00 +0000

FAT MONSTER FILMS swept both top awards at the International DVXUSER Film Festival for its short film "O2" in Hollywood this past Friday. More than 70 shorts were entered internationally and FAT MONSTER took both the international voting for FIRST PLACE as well as being chosen BEST FILM by a blue ribbon industry panel of industry professionals that was led by the oscar winning producer of Schindler's List, Rain Man and Jurassic Park.

Numerous industry pros were in attendance at the screening and all three founding partners of FAT MONSTER FILMS were interviewed by the REEL CHANNEL during the event. This week we have been receiving calls offering us production opportunities from representatives that saw our film. It has been quite a ride and is particularly appreciated given the fact that we are still less than one year old as a company. Many thanks to all our friends who came out to the screening to make it such a success.

Fat Monster Hosts Film Fest in Hollywood

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 17:33:00 +0000

This Friday (July 11th) FAT MONSTER FILMS will be acting as local host for the DVXUSER International Film Festival and Party to be held at CINESPACE in Hollywood (6356 Hollywood Blvd, at the corner of Ivar and Hollywood). Any of you fans in Los Angeles Friday should definitely e-mail us for an e-vite (write us at huh@fatmonsterfilms.com).

The evening will include hors deouvres, a full bar and some of the best short films produced in the past couple years. FAT MONSTER also has an entry in competition for the DVXUSER 2008 TIMEFEST and winners of the event will be announced Friday evening (wish us luck).

So far the RSVP list has swollen and there are already some very well known industry professionals planning to attend. As the event gets more buzz expect a healthy collection of actors, producers and agents in the crowd as well as all the usual suspects in Monster Land.

Doors open at 6:00 and the festival culminates at 10 p.m. From that point on expect a night of champagne and celebration. .... Be there.

More Monster Shooting ...

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 15:54:00 +0000

We've temporarily removed this day's post due to concern that some information included in it could possibly be a violation of the rules for a short film contest we are entered in. After June we shall repost the full contents of this post.

Thanks - Mark & Tim

FAT MONSTER IN SPACE

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 06:56:00 +0000

Thanks - Mark & Tim

Like Kids in a Candy Store ...

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Thu, 08 May 2008 13:39:00 +0000

Thanks - Mark & Tim

I HATE KATE REDUX

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Thu, 01 May 2008 02:21:00 +0000

After a frantic week of nailing down actors and equipment, FAT MONSTER was able to shoot the second video for the massively popular band I HATE KATE. The band's label (Glassnote Records) has announced the release of the album EMBRACE THE CURSE for June 24th.

Monster fans will recall that we shot the music video for the band's song Bed of Black Roses two months ago. Since then, Glassnote has decided to make Always Something the lead single to accompany the album release. Head Monster Hyten applied his considerable brain power to developing a concept for the shoot with the result being a mix of neuroses and ambivalent imagery that provides a disturbing porthole into the young director's mind.

In other MONSTER news, a rough cut has been completed for the WAITING FOR DECAY video with rave responses from the client and selected focus audiences. Additionally, preproduction for a short film project we're working on is proceeding with principal photography scheduled for May 24-25. We've been especially pleased to have signed Tim Abell to play the lead. Tim has numerous film and television credits, including a starring role in Soldier of Fortune. More details on that project will be coming soon.

Waiting For Decay Video Shoot

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 17:39:00 +0000

Last weekend the Fat Monster crew travelled to the high desert to shoot the performance portion of a music video for the band Waiting For Decay. The band is extremely popular in Southern California and has been getting a lot of buzz on the net. We will be shooting the story part of the video at a location in Hollywood that should dovetail nicely with the set we built for the performance.

In other news, negotiations are almost wrapped up to finalize a music video shoot for the band Fighting Chance. We've been able to hear unreleased cuts from their new CD and several of the songs are simply awesome. Tim has been working on a concept for the video that should be stunning if we can pull it off.

The first video for the band I Hate Kate is expected to be released any day now. We'll post a link here when we get the go-ahead. Both the band and the label have given enthusiastic approval for the finished product and we're planning to shoot a second video for IHK within the next month.

Fat Monster will be attending another "invite only" Hollywood party this coming Wednesday. This one is sponsored by the incredibly cool New York humor magazine HEEB. We have very good friends and sometimes crew members who are producers for the magazine and we keep copies on our coffee table permanently. Though we're gentiles, we love the mag. In fact, it is our sworn aspiration to become the official Shabbos Goys for Oliver Noble and his posse.

I Hate Kate Music Video Shoot

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 15:32:00 +0000

This past weekend Fat Monster Films shot footage for the music video "Bed of Black Roses" with Glassnote recording artists I HATE KATE. The shoot took place near Victorville on a set built for the occasion. We used a large wind machine (Ritter Fan) that we towed up to the desert from Special Effects Unlimited in Los Angeles. Front man Justin Mauriello took the brunt of the gale force wind as the crew threw shredded newspapers and any other handy debris.

Justin founded I HATE KATE while he was still the lead singer of the wildly popular band Zebrahead, Glassnote plans to heavily promote I HATE KATE along with SECOND HAND SERENADE this summer and have commissioned FAT MONSTER to shoot two music videos for the cause.

In other FAT MONSTER news, the band WAITING FOR DECAY has hired the hardest working production company in show business to shoot the music video for the single "Savannah Rose." Shooting is expected to begin within the next two weeks. BooYaa.

Another Sunny Day in Los Angeles

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 19:27:00 +0000

Our short film "Where The Heart Lies" placed third in its first festival submission for the dvxuser "love fest" on line festival. Approximately 50 films were entered and we missed second place by two points and first place by seven. We are busily editing a longer festival version that will compete in several short film festivals from coast to coast.

Meanwhile, we are also working on a new short film project that we are very enthused about. We've got a first draft of the script and have already attached some serious talent to the cast and crew. More details to be released in time. Suffice it to say that we're happiest when we're making films and we feel particularly good about this new project.

We are constantly reminded why we love living out here in the Los Angeles basin with so many resources. Tim was seeking some assistance with art direction on one of our upcoming music videos and pulled up one of the many long lists of contacts that you can find on L.A. websites. He found a listing for a gentleman who simply had "production designer" next to his name. Tim called him and started asking about helping with art direction and the guy politely said, "Well, I'm probably not able to work in your budget but perhaps I can help you on the phone with some ideas." They discussed some issues and the man was really helpful and spent a lot of time on the call. Before they hung up he told Tim to call back if he wanted to run some more stuff by him. Only then did we look him up on line to find that he's the Production Designer who did "12 Monkeys", David Fincher's "The Game" and was nominated for an academy award for his work on "Dances with Wolves." Sometimes Hollywood can really surprise you when you find people who REALLY care about helping others and especially helping the little indie film makers who often get overlooked.

I had a similar experience as I was running down some prop assistance for our new short film project. While scouting some locations a studio manager gave me a number for a prop designer, who I was told might be able to help us. Not having any idea who he was, I called him and had a remarkable conversation along with his commitment to help us figure out how to shoot our concept on a tight budget. I later learned that he has done everything from Alien: Resurrection, Star Trek: Voyager, The X-Files and Independence Day. I dissolved into fanboy mode when he mentioned that he did all five years of Babylon 5 and still has a ton of the props and costumes in his garage. The guy was as friendly as though I'd known him for years and he invited us to come over this weekend to look through his stuff. As I said, sometimes Hollywood can surprise you.

Fat Monster Short Film Begins Festival Run

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 14:45:00 +0000

The FatMonster short film Where The Heart Lies will be competing in several film festivals this spring and summer. The film is a modern "noir" piece involving deception and betrayal within a marriage. The lead role is played by Ana Alexander, who has numerous film and television credits including starring roles in Vegas, CSI Miami, Two and a Half Men, Sleeper Cell and many others.

Early responses have been very positive and we are optimistic that the short film will receive recognition for its production values and script. A short six-minute version of the film was recently entered in one of the largest on-line film festivals (the DVXUSER fest) along with approximately 50 other entries and winners for the festival are expected to be announced today (Monday February 25). Wish us luck!

Return to Hollywood

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 23:34:00 +0000

After five days on Whidbey Island shooting the Vienna Teng video it was spectacular to get back home. Shortly after returning, Tim and I received an invitation to attend a true hollywood glitz party at Social Hollywood for the launch of the nicole Khristine jewelry line. Lots of celebrities and hoi polloi in attendance. Brooke Mueller, Billy Morrison, Jane Kaczmarek, Cheryl Hines, Rachel Hunter, Jerry Rice, Hanson and Diedra Hall to name some. Given that we're not tabloid worthy (yet) it was nice to get a chance to step into the tinsel world for a look-see. As soon as we walked in Tim bumped into Snoop Dogg and we realized this was definitely more up-scale than our usual bud-light and chips soirees.

While there we were able to network with Don Miggs and his manager to discuss the upcoming music video that Fat Monster will be doing to accompany the release of the new MIGGS album. Best guess is that we will commence production in March.

Back in California

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 20:18:00 +0000

It took twelve hours, but we finally rolled in last night around 11 p.m. only to find that Southwest lost our bags. Although we had archived our footage onto a terrabyte hard drive and had it with us, the thought of losing all our gear made going to sleep a little tough. Fortunately, around 2 a.m. a courier brought everything to the studio.

We just got a little clip from Steven Dempsey, the DP on the project. He was running a camcorder on the next to last night on the island when Vienna played a few songs for the crew and local friends at Huckleberry Hill. Here's an excerpt of The Tower. Our host, Dean Petrich, apologized profusely for not eliminating the squeak on the sustain pedal! http://www.pinelakefilms.com/fatmonster/vienna2.mp4

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 04:15:00 +0000

The Fat Monster Films credo is "We depend upon the kindness of strangers and the science of happy accidents." Time and again it seems that Fortuna has smiled on us when the odds were against any reasonable hope for success. On this particular shoot we started out by being pulled over by a Washington State Trooper as we were speeding down Interstate 5. When he gave us a warning along with cheerful directions to the ferry we felt it was an omen that karma was still in place.

Now that the weekend shoot is over we can see that the omen was accurate. Everything fell into place for what was one of our best outings to date. One of the best happy accidents this time was our finding Dean Petrich -- a professional clown, talented piano technician and our host for the weekend. Dean gave us the run of Huckleberry Hill with its beautiful wooded land, zip lines, hot tubs and trampolines. We actually used two locations on his property for the Vienna video.

We have learned that Whidbey Island (at least the south side) is intensely populated by artists, musicians, writers, poets and various refugees from the 60's who all have a "building-codes-be-damned" attitude. On this trip alone we saw houses with tunnels between rooms, a living room with a trapeze installed in the ceiling, a tetrahedral swing contraption and a collection of stilts that filled a warehouse. However, the king of eclectic is Dean Petrich who has built a rambling compound from found materials without paying a cent. The place has multi levels with all sorts of personal touches, including a high tower that you can reach only by climbing a narrow metal ladder in the dark (at night). Vienna chose to sleep there the last night she stayed. As an aside, the next morning when she came to breakfast I commented, "Hey V.T., I guess the tower was pretty rough last night, huh?" She replied "maybe a little rushed." You see, the night before she played an impromptu concert for the crew and friends and she thought I was referring to her song "The Tower."

Dean Petrich will always be special to us because we could not have pulled off the shoot without him. He helped us pick out the piano we used on the beach by allowing us to sort through all 150+ pianos he keeps on his property. When we found one with a beautiful case and decent keys he got it in playing order by taking apart the beast and drying out each key/hammer assembly with a hair dryer. Finally, he used his truck to get the piano to the beach where we muscled the damn thing all the way to the isolated spot that Tim had chosen.

Right now Tim and I are in Sacramento trying to get home to L.A. The flights have been delayed and we've been hitting the airport bars while running up prodigious bar tabs. We can only hope that Vienna is safely home in New York now and that she's catching up on much needed sleep after a hard weekend in the brutal weather of February.

Mark Johnson - Fat Monster Films

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 04:09:00 +0000

On Whidbey Island with Vienna Teng

noreply@blogger.com (Fat Monster Films) — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 18:00:00 +0000

Our small, but truculent Fat Monster crew arrived at the Seattle Airport on the morning of January 31 and rented an overpriced SUV for the trek to Whidbey Island. We then hooked up with Director of Photography Steven Dempsey at the ferry to the island and found ourselves scouting locations before noon had arrived. We soon split up into two groups and combed the island to find the best shooting spot.

Our intent was to lug a piano to the chosen location even though we weren't exactly sure how we would accomplish that. When we all convened at Cozy's Roadhouse back by the ferry we all agreed that the beach at Double Bluffs was the pick of the litter. Never mind that to get a piano to the precise spot director Tim Hyten selected would mean a portage over soft sand and driftwood and traversing some private property.

Having identified the problem we progressed to the first step of a solution: ordering more pitchers of beer (a quaint local brew named "Dead Man's Ale.") By 8:00 p.m. we were devising ever more elaborate Rube Goldberg-ish schemes to transport the piano as we were graced by the appearance of the lovely Vienna Teng herself. Thus ensued additional eating of indigenous Whidbey foods (nachos and onion rings.)

After some post prandial Dead Men, we convoyed to the home of our host for the weekend - Dean Petrich. Sadly, I cannot even approach justice for the description of either the man or his home-grown architecture. Dean has built an amazing homestead that he calls Huckleberry Hill. I'll quote Dean's website: "The basic premises for this house were: To construct an entire house out of garbage; To incorporate non-toxic and net-energey efficient components; to incorporate three primary components - EVERYTHING must be 1) Pragmatic, Aesthetic and Playful.

I'll write more about Dean's abode and some of the events that have occurred here during the shoot. Right now we are about to depart for the third shooting day of this trip so I'll close this post for now.