Let Them Eat Static #2
The Flood and The Fawn
Welcome to Let Them Eat Static, my monthly newsletter. Balancing a family with three kids, and oodles of creative pursuits means there’s never a dull moment. Here’s what I’ve been up to…
🍃Personal Stuff
We got back from vacation last week to find our house flooded. It seems we brought the water park home with us. We’ve spent a lot of time over the last few days talking with our insurance company and vendors to help with the damage. We’re still in the middle of the process, but our friends and family stepped up to help in a big way, so a huge thank you to them.
Prior to the flooding, I was playing with my new phone a lot, the Samsung Galaxy s25 Ultra. I never upgrade until I have to, but my six year old OnePlus finally gave up the ghost. I feel like we're almost at the point where filmmakers can shoot something serious with a phone. I don't like to admit it. I wouldn't do it unless I had to. However, if it's the only choice, a creative person could make it work. The s25 Ultra shoots 8k log for crying out loud! I actually did use it for one shot in my upcoming short, The Fawn. Which shot? I'll keep that a secret for now. But speaking of film…
🎥Film
ARC Team
Many of you are familiar with the concept of authors having an ARC Team for their books. ARC stands for “advance reader copy.” Team members receive pre-release copies in exchange for early reviews that help generate buzz. I want to experiment with a similar process for my films. We'll call it an Advance Review Copy Team, so I don't have to change the acronym. :) I will provide early access to the movie on YouTube and if you enjoy it, leave a positive comment that I can quote later on social media. Later, when I release the movie publicly, I may bug you to share it on social media as well. If you would like early access to my films and writing progress, click the button and drop your email address. The link takes you to my Ten Wing Media site since I can’t embed an email form here. If you have any thoughts or ideas for this process, feel free to leave a comment below. It’s an evolving idea.
The Fawn
I locked the edit last week and sent it off to composer Ryan Aldrich. My sources tell me he is deep in the woods of New Jersey, writing creepy folk horror music. On the second major shoot, my wife did a great job playing a witch. My friend, Chris Hutson, played a role that I cannot talk about. Chris and I have collaborated on projects for a long time. Don’t believe me? Here I am shaving his chest for the sake of art in 2006.
ANYWAY- I’m currently working to finish the VFX for The Fawn. On my last film, I dedicated a lot of time to getting one impactful shot just right (the monster). This time I put together the most complex VFX shot I’ve ever done. I watched gobs of After Effects tutorials to pull it off. I can't wait for everyone to see it.
I finished the poster too. It will all come out in due time, according to my meticulous master plan.
Beyond the Basement Door
Yup, the movie is 12 years old. Back in the days of physical media, we put a director commentary track on the DVD. I remembered it the other day and thought: why not put it on YouTube? So here it is.
If you’ve seen the film, enjoy hearing how we made the sausage. If not, you can check out the real deal movie HERE. I’m still proud of it.
🎙️Podcasting
The Mythos Minute Podcast
I’m not gonna lie. I’m a little behind on recording The Mythos Minute episodes. I got a ton of great submissions from the last open call, but our family vacation and the flood has knocked me back a bit. It’s the next item on my plate though.
✍️Writing
I don’t have a ton of new writing news. All my time has gone to finishing The Fawn. I did get a short story accepted into a summer anthology but I can't talk about it yet.
📺Watching
Killing of a Sacred Deer - This one wasn’t for me. Probably my least favorite Yorgos movie.
Invincible - Incredible show. I binged the hell out of all three seasons and the Atom Eve movie.
Resident Alien - This is a comfy watch but I’m still in the middle of season 2.
Andor - Wow. The best Star Wars product since the original trilogy. It made me like Rogue One more.
John Wick 4 - The first half I was like “Ok, this is a standard John Wick movie.” Then in the second half I was like “This might be one of the best action movies I’ve ever seen.” THREE separate mind-blowing sequences.
Pee-Wee as Himself - Today’s secret word is fascinating.
Bound - The Wachowski’s second best movie? If you haven’t seen it, I recommend it.
Love and Monsters - Light and fun. I could see this being a series.
The Rehearsal - Nathan Fielder is a mad genius.
Predator: Killer of Killers - Loved it. I really dig what Dan Trachtenberg is doing with the Yautja lore. I feel like the franchise is safe in his hands.
📖 Reading
Fevre Dream by George R.R. Martin. My dad sent me this book a few weeks ago. He said it was his favorite. I didn’t even know he knew who George was. I am only a few pages in but I dig the set up. I’ve never actually read a GRRM book. I don’t tend to start a series if the completion is in question, so I never began ASOIAF. Fevre Dream is my first foray into Georgeworld.
🎵 Listening
I love 90s alternative and grunge, but I’ve been listening to the major bands for most of my life. I started hunting for something new and came across Crobot. They fit that 90s rock vibe and I enjoy almost every song I’ve heard by them. Here’s a taste.
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