All day tomorrow we will be posting “congrats and thank you” videos from many of our friends who are thankful, like we are, that you are making Blue Like Jazz a historical movie. Steve sent me thirty donors phone numbers today and I loved making the calls. I am sure I’ll make thirty more tomorrow. And at that pace, we should be done thanking everybody within a month or so! Anyway, here’s the video Steve sent in to say thanks! Thank You From Steve Taylor from Save Blue Like Jazz on Vimeo. Donate today to make Blue Like Jazz make history!
Marshall Allman will be playing the part of Don Miller in the movie Blue Like Jazz. Marshall got his break in the movie Hostage with Bruce Willis, then had a recurring role on Prison Break before appearing in a few episodes of Mad Men. Now he has a recurring role on HBO’s True Blood. Marshall read the script a couple years ago and called Steve Taylor to tell him to stop looking for his lead character. Steve rolled his eyes until he watched Marshall’s body of work. He’s an amazing actor, and I’m glad we got him. Thank You From Marshall Allman from Save Blue Like Jazz on Vimeo. This campaign is making history. If we get over $200k we will be the largest project ever funded on Kickstarter. If you haven’t donated, donate today.
12Oct, 2010
Yesterday morning I caught the news story that the miners trapped in a Chilean mine will likely be rescued this week. It has been two months since the accident that trapped the miners more than a mile beneath the earth. They’ve been living in tight, extremely uncomfortable quarters ever since, while multiple attempts to rescue them have been underway. Families of the trapped men have set up camps around the rescue effort, cooking food that is sent down in small tubes through tiny shafts drilled for supplies. If everything goes as hopes, the men will be freed this week. A small rescue vessel will be lowered so the men can be freed one at a time. There will no doubt be difficulties, and likely their rescue will take days, perhaps even weeks. And yet according to reports, the men have not been arguing and fighting about who will go first, but rather, who will go last. The news report said the men have bonded in their time together, and a brotherhood has been created amongst the workers. It reminded me of that age-old truth in narrative, that character is only molded in conflict, and if you want your characters to [...]
Once again, we are beyond grateful for your contribution to save Blue Like Jazz, the movie. It’s done. The movie is saved, and we are moving forward! Steve is busy calling all donors to thank them, along with choosing the supporting cast and lining up production. We will start filming on October 28th, in Nashville, TN. We will likely also film in Portland, Houston and Los Angeles. If you’ve donated, you will be on an exclusive, behind-the-scenes e-mail newsletter that tells you where we will be and when, along with constant updates about how things are going. You will truly be in the production loop, along with all the principal cast and crew. If it weren’t for your contributions, the movie would have been dead. It’s amazing to think what can be done in two weeks. That said, we are still a very low-budget movie. None of the principals who have been involved with this movie, from the very beginning of the writing stages, have been paid anything. We are rolling everything into the film with you. In the industry, it’s called “putting the money on the screen.” With our film, the more money we bring in, the more well-known [...]
10Oct, 2010
It’s been a while since I’ve created a Sunday Morning Music spotlight, but driving toward town yesterday I saw The Weepies on the billboard at The Aladdin in Portland. Just bought my tickets this morning. I see a lot of bands on that billboard, but that’s the fastest I’ve picked up tickets. I don’t want to miss them. If you’re not familiar with The Weepies as a band, there’s a good chance you’ve heard their music anyway. The married couple stopped touring in 2008 when their son was born, but their music was all over television and the Obama campaign even picked up one of their songs for an ad, growing their underground following. As songrwriters, they seem more interested in creating a soundtrack to their pleasant, simple life than in becoming famous. Their commitment to stay off the road for two years is proof of this, and that simplicity and disinterest in things show-business plays out in their songs. It’s sunday morning music. Here are The Weepies.
