Filmmaking… With All the Extras

When we filmed Oh Crappy Day, we had almost 140 background performers. We needed background action at eleven of our locations around Raleigh, including the Church of the Good Shepherd, the North Carolina Museum of History, and D.H. Hill Library on the campus of North Carolina State University. The majority of performers appeared in restaurant scenes, which we filmed at Hayes Barton Cafe & Dessertery, Caffe Luna, and Third Place.

The person responsible for coordinating everyone was Duane Therriault, our 2nd Assistant Director. He recruited the performers, scheduled the days and times they would come to set, checked them in, and kept them motivated. What’s more, he created maps of the various locations, to help us place performers where they needed to sit or stand for the camera. It took months of preparation and long days during the shoot, but Duane made it all go smoothly.

As for the performers themselves, they were incredibly upbeat and always professional. More than anything, though, they were patient. A film shoot involves lots and lots of waiting, as the crew dresses the set, lights the space, and gets the sound equipment ready. Our performers stayed engaged throughout. In fact, some of them went above and beyond, appearing in more than one scene, at more than one location.

Oh Crappy Day benefits immeasurably from the contributions of Duane and our background performers. They’re the ones who populated our fictional world, helping us bring it to life.

— Jon Lance Bacon

At Hayes Barton CrossFit, across the street from Hayes Barton Cafe & Dessertery, background performers wait to be called for their first scene on Day 6.

Duane Therriault, our 2nd AD, double checks the list of background performers for Day 1 of the shoot.

Between shots on Day 6, background performers hang out with Jon Lance Bacon, writer-director, and Steven P. Neilson, producer.

All photos by Jonathan Okafo. Copyright © 2019 Dagtype Films, LLC.

Messages of Hope

For the fourth year in a row, the International OCD Foundation is sending holiday messages to those receiving professional treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder.

At any time of the year, OCD can feel isolating, but the holidays are especially difficult. For this reason, the IOCDF offers an easy way for people to create inspiring cards. Using a template like the one above, they can add artwork or write some personal words of encouragement.

These cards can have a real impact — on children and teenagers, as well as adults. For more information, visit the IOCDF website. Cards must be postmarked by Wednesday, December 4.

Prepping for Crowdfunding

This afternoon, we had our first group session to plan crowdfunding strategy for Oh Crappy Day. Leading the meeting was Camden Watts, who made a seamless transition from First Assistant Director (and Marketing Manager) to Associate Producer. In her new role, Camden draws on her longtime experience in crowdfunding for independent films — including her 2015 documentary, Brewconomy. We’re excited to have her manage our crowdfunding effort, and we’re confident that she’ll help us reach our goal. More details about that, later!

Camden Watts breaks it all down!

Meet Our Music Team!

Now that editing is complete, work is underway on the musical score for Oh Crappy Day. We have a crack team of composers and musicians, spanning the globe from Los Angeles to London. Their mission: convey the emotions of a young man with OCD, as he searches for love and acceptance. Fortunately, our team has all the skills and experience necessary:

Trevor Bumgarner is a North Carolina composer, living in Los Angeles. He studied at UNC-Greensboro, as well as The Juilliard School, where he was the inaugural recipient of the Juilliard Career Advancement Fellowship. He has created music for films, off-Broadway shows, and the Choreographic Institute of the New York City Ballet. He has also served as a teaching artist at Juilliard and the Bridge Composition Program of the New York Philharmonic.

Andre DiMuzio is a multi-instrumental artist and arranger from Tokyo. Utilizing his degree in music theory and composition, he has worked as a producer under the moniker Odd Cardinal. Now living in London, he performs and arranges music for a multitude of independent artists. Since 2005, he has maintained a musical partnership with Chris Hendricks, as members of a band called Castle Wild.

Chris Hendricks, a performer since the age of four, has shared the stage with artists such as Amy Grant, Daughtry and Dave Matthews. This North Carolinian has written music for television, web series, and films, not to mention Major League Soccer and the National Hockey League. In addition, he has a prolific speaking career and does community outreach through his non-profit organization, Perfectly Afflicted.

Along with original music, the score for Oh Crappy Day will incorporate a classical piece by Franz Schubert and the melody from the nineteenth-century hymn, "Oh Happy Day." (New lyrics for this hymn have been created by Jon Lance Bacon, our writer-director.) Trevor, Andre, and Chris are already working on arrangements that unify these various pieces of music. We can't wait to hear what they create — and to share it with all of you!

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For more information about our team, check out the following websites:

castlewild.bandcamp.com

oddcardinal.bandcamp.com

iamchrishendricks.com

the-hourglass.bandcamp.com

An Editing Milestone

We're proud to announce that we just “locked picture” on our Oh Crappy Day feature. Or, to put it another way, we completed the final edit!

We had a great team working together to get us this far. Teddy Leinbach served as editor, with input from Ned Phillips, consulting editor and director of photography; Sarah Iseley, assistant editor and data wrangler; Duane Therriault, creative consultant and second assistant director; and Jon Lance Bacon, writer-director.

Also providing their feedback were Steven P. Neilson, producer; Camden Watts, first assistant director; Ruth Bryan, production designer and wardrobe supervisor; and Jonathan Okafo, still photographer.

Now, we send the edited film to our music team -- so they can get started on the score. Stay tuned!

Our editor, Teddy Leinbach, celebrates “picture lock.”

Turning A Page

Jon Lance Bacon, the screenwriter of our upcoming Oh Crappy Day feature, has just published an essay in a collection called Approaches to Teaching the Works of Flannery O’Connor.

In his essay, “Restoring Connections: An Interdisciplinary Perspective on Wise Blood,” Lance discusses the portrayal of World War II veterans in O’Connor’s 1952 novel and a 1946 film drama called Till the End of Time. Over the years, Lance has written many works of literary criticism and cultural analysis, including his 1993 book, Flannery O’Connor and Cold War Culture, published by Cambridge University Press.

The new essay collection, published by the Modern Language Association (MLA), is now available on Amazon.

Dressed for Success

As we near the end of the editing process, we’re gratified to see the many parts of our film coming together. One of the key elements, naturally, is wardrobe. Luckily, we found a great wardrobe supervisor in Ruth Bryan.

In addition to designing and sewing costumes, Ruth put us in touch with Cheryl Fraser, owner of Galatea Boutique in Raleigh. We needed a funky, bohemian look for the character of Meghan, played by Jaime Wallace, and Cheryl lent us several outfits that worked perfectly.

We can’t thank Cheryl enough for her kindness and generosity. Whenever Meghan appears onscreen, we’re reminded of Galatea — one of many local businesses who helped us bring Oh Crappy Day to life!

In a scene from Oh Crappy Day, Jaime Wallace (Meghan) wears an embroidered jacket provided by Galatea Boutique of Raleigh. With her, from left to right, are Loosha Jones (Marcus) and Jordan Estes (Jared).

Our Tribute to Classic Hollywood

When you make a movie, you focus primarily on the big picture — the most effective combination of characters, actions, dialogue, and imagery. At the same time, though, you have to be aware of a thousand small details — everything from the style of a shirt to the type of car a character drives.

In the case of Oh Crappy Day, the script called for a diner with photos of old-time movie stars covering its walls. We had a filming location that fit the bill perfectly — a Raleigh favorite called Hayes Barton Café & Dessertery, which already had a collection of Hollywood headshots. 

There was just one problem: if we planned to film these specific headshots, we would have to get permission for each and every image, from whatever estate or company held the rights. The cost would have been prohibitive, in terms of time as well as money. 

So, instead, we decided to create our own “movie stars.” We started searching for models with a “look” that suggested classic Hollywood. We studied movie-star portraits from the 1920s to the 1960s, to familiarize ourselves with changing styles of clothing, hair, and lighting. We rummaged through attics and costume shops for vintage clothes and jewelry. Most importantly, we found a talented young photographer, Jonathan Okafo.

Finally, we met the models at a Durham studio, where we styled them and Jonathan worked his magic. It took several weekends in 2018, and more time afterwards for digital touch-ups, but we had all the headshots we needed to dress  our set — long before we started principal photography in February 2019.

All in all, we had a lot of fun creating our “movie stars,” and the photos look great in the scenes we filmed at Hayes-Barton Café!

In the photos above and below, you can see how we transformed two of our friends. Ryan Headley became a star of the 1940s, while Mayerlin Muñoz became a star of the 1950s.

And here’s how their headshots looked on one of the walls at our filming location, Hayes Barton Café and Dessertery.

Goodbye, Mission Valley

As part of the Raleigh filmmaking (and filmgoing) community, we’re saddened to hear that Mission Valley Cinema has closed after almost half a century.

We have a special connection with Mission Valley, which opened in March 1973. Earlier this year, we had the honor of filming a scene in the lobby for our upcoming Oh Crappy Day feature. It was the perfect location, filled with cinematic history, including film reels and a vintage 35mm projector.

We’re proud we could preserve a bit of that history, in a scene depicting the colorful decor of the lobby. We’ll always be grateful to the manager and employees of Mission Valley for helping us with our filmshoot.

In the lobby of Mission Valley Cinema, Loosha Jones (left) and Jordan Estes rehearse a key scene for the Oh Crappy Day feature. Photo by Jonathan Okafo. Copyright © 2019 Dagtype Films, LLC.

Left to right: Steven P. Neilson, executive producer of Oh Crappy Day, checks out the lobby of Mission Valley Cinema, while Duane Therriault, our 2nd assistant director, gets extras ready for the next shot. Photo by Jonathan Okafo. Copyright © 2019 Dagtype Films, LLC.

Deep in the Heart of Texas

This weekend, Writer-Director Jon Lance Bacon is representing "Oh Crappy Day" at the 26th Annual OCD Conference. It took him 13 hours to get from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Austin, Texas, but all the flight delays were worth the trouble -- considering the work the International OCD Foundation does to raise OCD awareness.

Tonight at 8 PM, the short that inspired our "OCD" feature will screen as part of an event called "Film Fights Back: An OCD Short Film Festival." The festival includes another love story, “Misdirection,” and two documentaries: “OCD Is Not Me” and “UNSTUCK: An OCD Kids Movie,” produced by our friend, Chris Baier. Following the screening, Lance and Chris will answer questions from the audience.

Extras Needed for the “Oh Crappy Day” Feature

In just a few weeks, we’ll start shooting our Oh Crappy Day feature in Raleigh, and we need background extras for scenes in restaurants, museums, etc. The shoot for this romantic comedy runs from Sunday, February 24, to Thursday, March 14. We’ll need people of all ages, well-dressed, in winter clothing. Extras will get food and refreshments, credit in the finished film, and admission to our local premiere. If you’re interested, please contact Duane at dagtypefilms@ymail.com and attach a full-length photo of yourself. We’ll be listing specific days and locations in another post, but you can go ahead and get on our list now. And be sure to share this announcement with any friends or family who might be interested, too!

Dagtype Films Helps Bring Acclaimed Short Film Concert to Raleigh

January 13, 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE USE

Raleigh, NC – Dagtype Films and the Longleaf Film Festival have partnered to bring Asbury Shorts, New York City’s longest-running short-film exhibition and travel show, to North Carolina for the first time in the film concert's 35-year history. As part of the North Carolina Museum of History's First Fridays series, the film concert will take place at the museum on March 3rd, 7:30 PM. Film producer Steven Neilson will be the guest host. Tickets are $15 and available at LongleafFilmFestival.com. 

Asbury Shorts concerts combine award-winning films from the past with new global festival honorees, creating a rare opportunity for audiences to watch world-class short films on the big screen. Academy Award–nominated director Jason Reitman calls Asbury Shorts, “the best short-film show I’ve ever seen.”

The program on March 3rd will feature multiple short films from among the best in comedy, drama, and animation. Among the films to be screened are three that were nominated for Oscars.

"This is truly a unique opportunity for local filmmakers and film lovers to come together to see some of the best short films in a fantastic venue," says host and film producer Steven Neilson. 

Neilson and writer-director Jon Lance Bacon founded Dagtype Films in 2005. Their short film "Oh Crappy Day" was filmed in Raleigh and has played at more than 35 film festivals, winning 11 awards along the way. "Oh Crappy Day" will also be featured among the films screening at the Asbury Shorts film concert on March 3rd.  

“We are excited to partner with Dagtype Films to host the North Carolina premiere of the Asbury Short film concert,” says Sally Bloom, Longleaf Film Festival organizer. “We believe that our home base, the North Carolina Museum of History, is a terrific place for these stories in film to be shared.”

In addition to the Asbury Shorts at 7:30 PM, the museum's lobby-level exhibits will be open from 5 to 9, and local band Castle Wild will be playing live from 6:30 to 7:30. Craft beer and concessions will be available for purchase throughout the evening.

Neilson is looking forward to a fun event and an engaged crowd. "We're thrilled to be partnering with Longleaf for this exciting event. And we hope we can bring more great programs like Asbury Shorts to Raleigh in the future." 

For more information, contact Steven Neilson, Dagtype Films, 919-673-2402; Sally Bloom, Longleaf Film Festival, 919-807-7965; or Doug LeClaire, Asbury Shorts USA, 718-510- 6929.