First off – what a wild week. I caught a random virus that knocked me out for 2 days, and then the whole city of LA catches on fire.
Fortunately the fires (for now) seem far away enough that they won’t reach us, and I’m feeling back to 100%.
Tight on time this week, so here’s just a quick look at what got me through the chaos!
This issue of Friday Film Notes is sponsored by: Audiio
Audiio has been a game changer for finding stock music for my edits. Between their LinkMatch & Hans AI tools, you can find the perfect track for your scene faster than ever – I love it.
Use code fridayfilmnotes & get your 1st year of Pro for $59!
Favorites this week:
🍿 Movie: Absentia
Starting to do a deeper dive on writer/director Mike Flanagan – I’ve only seen a few of his films, but I haven’t been disappointed yet.
This one was his feature debut, and I was particularly interested to watch it because it was shot in Glendale, CA (where I used to live), on the same camera I shot my first feature Bad is Bad with (5d Mk ii), and for only $70k – partially funded with a Kickstarter. We love a homegrown filmmaker! 👏
Honestly, I didn’t love the film, but as someone interested in low-budget filmmaking, it was a fascinating case study and I had fun observing the strengths and weaknesses in his first feature. Especially since a couple years later he was directing the $5M film Oculus.
📖 Book: James
One of my favorite novels is Huckleberry Finn, I have a poster of it right next to my desk.
James: A Novel, by my old writing professor Percival Everett, reimagines the story of Huck Finn from the perspective of his raft-mate, Jim. It won Barnes & Noble’s book of the year, and captured the mix of page-turning adventure, humor, and depth that made me fall in love with Twain’s version.
By the way, I purchased the book in a Barnes & Noble while visiting my girlfriend Toni’s family. They had copies of it on display everywhere, so I had to name-drop the author to the cashiers. Immediately afterwards, I turned around and dropped something else – a table-full of books I bumped into. Toni’s family saw and still makes fun of me for it. That’s what happens when you fly too close to the sun at B&N.
🎞️ Show: Squid Games S2
Is it as exciting as season 1? Of course not.
🎮Game: Stray
This game isn’t new, but it only came out on the Switch recently.
You play as a stray cat dropped into a dystopian futuristic underground world, and have to make your way back to your cat friends on the surface, uncovering what went wrong underground along the way. The storytelling, puzzles, and uniquely feline POV won me over – a great time.
Let’s make some movies.
-Kent
PS – The January class of Wrapped in 30 Days has been so fun! We did a live table read of scripts last night, and I can’t wait to see these films come together this month.
Join the waitlist here if you want to sign up for our next session of Wrapped a little later this year!
✍️ Want to Write Your Next Short Today?
🎓 Film School for the Real World
Join +200 members of WRAPPED in 30 Days where I guide you through every step of writing, producing, & directing your own crowd-pleasing short film in a month.