Although we may be filmmakers by trade, we are storytellers by nature. Venture into our world and let us weave a tale for you. We will tell you about life and love and fear and pain. We will show you laughter and tears, the devil and God. The story is the lifeblood of our world and nothing matters more.
…So lean close, and let us tell you a story.
1:49PM by Brandon McCormick | Cetagories: Blogs and Thoughts, News and Updates
The Whitestone protégé program that launched last year has been very successful. Protégés have been involved in nearly every aspect of film production and have made impressive contributions to Whitestone’s recent films and have helped to take the preproduction and on-set experiences to the next level.
Applications are being reopened for candidates desiring to become part of the protégé program as screenwriters. Under the direction and guidance of filmmaker Brandon McCormick and writer Charlie Wetzel, protégés will be given assignments to write and revise scripts for short films. Writers whose scripts are chosen to be produced will receive opportunities to receive notes from and make changes for a protégé director. Protégés will be expected to attend regularly scheduled meetings in the Lawrenceville, GA, or surrounding area.
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4:01PM by Brandon McCormick | Cetagories: Uncategorized
Whitestone is proud to announce it’s next short film in development. “Heartless: The Story of the Tin Man’ is an adaptation true to Frank L. Baum’s original story from his book ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’. This film is one of our most ambitious yet, and represents a milestone in Whitestone’s filmmaking journey.
We’re excited to bring this incredibly profound origin story to life over the next few months. The story of how the Tin Man came to be is a myth that speaks to a culture in a modern age. This tragedy story is of a young ambitious Woodsman falling in love then losing his heart in his work and his own efficiency. This story has captivated our imaginations as both a morality tale and a love story. If you’ve not had a chance to read the story in it’s original form, you can find it here.
Preproduction and pre-visualization has already begun on this project. The above examples of the logo and design are simply mock-ups and not final designs. They are first and second drafts to hint at what direction we’re headed for the project.
While trying to stay true to the source material, we have re-imagined the world of Oz and it’s inhabitants from our own creativity and style. Also, as much as we love the film “Wizard of Oz” we have chosen not to borrow from its production design. We’re excited to be bringing this film to you in the coming months.
A completion date is not yet set, and we are still moving through the development stage and beginning preproduction. We will bring you updates along the way, as well as delivering informative tutorials on the creation process of the film. Our next post will be on the subject of storyboards and how they go from concept to finished product. There we will show some of the Tin Man storyboards, how they’re broken down into their parts, and how they get filmed.
Stay tuned for more news on the film and keep checking back to the site and our twitter feed for updates. We can’t wait to share this film with you!
semper ad melora
7:30AM by Brandon McCormick | Cetagories: Film, News and Updates
That’s a wrap! After four days of principal photography Bobby Watkins is officially in the can. The teams have operated like a finely tuned machine, allowing this to be one of the most efficient and creative shoots yet.
We’ve been shooting inside and outside of a cottage, which means that our entire team has been in close quarters, and have found a way to make it work. We’ve completly built out the back yard to create “Bobby Watkins” birthday party and worked within all departments to make sure the scenes we are shooting are exactly as designed from the storyboards.
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5:36AM by Brandon McCormick | Cetagories: Uncategorized
Today marks day one of production for our next short film “Bobby Watkins”. The team has been working diligently in their individual departments for the past few weeks to pull all preproduction together. Unlike other films where we would find the perfect set and then tweak it, we have gone into this shoot starting at scratch. We’ve brought a team in to build the entire back yard that will work as the set for Bobby Watkins birthday party. From building fences and a picnic table to potting plants and painting, our team has been working day in and day out to get our set ready for principle photography.
We’ve also dressed an entire house to fit the 1950’s style that the film will be taking place in. That coupled with amazing costume and production design from our team means we’re in for one great week and one heck of a short film.
Bobby Watkins Pre-Production from Brandon McCormick on Vimeo.
This morning with a crew time of 7am, our team will file onto set and be ready to film for the next four days. So stay tuned for more footage from set along with a live stream from our first production day in the afternoon.
Stay tuned!
