This evening was the opening night premiere of the film festival. The organizers did a great job of getting a ton of press to attend and the AMC movie theater at Lincoln Square was packed with about 500 attendees.

The evening started off with the press interviewing some of the filmmakers. The marketing manager did a good job of getting the shrinking violets in front of the press, talking about their films. Pitching my film on camera was an excellent learning experience.

And then we waited for the opening film, Hope And A Little Sugar (HAALS), to start. And waited. And waited. The organizers were having technical difficulties with the projector and seemed to be working furiously to fix it. But when the 8:30 PM screening time eventually became 10PM, they cancelled the screening and offered to refund everyone their money.

It was a very tough situation for the organizers. Everyone was tired and hungry and this seemed to be an issue that was truly beyond their control. I’ve heard that the festivals last year and the year before were superbly run so I am sure they’ll get past this glitch and have smooth and timely showings going forward.

Update (Oct 5): Here’s the skinny. SAIFF required filmmakers to submit in one of three formats – Beta SP, DVD and 35mm. Apparently HAALS was in digibeta. So SAIFF had organized a special projector, making an exception for this film. Apparently the first lens was not the right one, so they got another lens. With the new lens, apparently the film, instead of taking up 100% of the screen, took up only 75% of the screen. So it was not that the film was distorted in any way, it would have been like seeing the film on a smaller screen. Okay then. But no, not okay. Apparently the director, Tanuja Chandra, was ready to move forward. Great news, smart lady — there are 500 people who are getting grumpier by the minute! Oh, not so quick — the producers refused to let the film be shown.

Are you kidding me?? You are getting to be the opening night premiere of SAIFF. The organizers have done a ton of marketing and you have 500 people who will see your film. And you refuse to let them screen it? Bad, bad call. The producers, Glenn Russow and Scott Pardo, don’t seem to have produced before (per IMDB). To me, the cardinal rule of producing is to do what’s best for the film. In my opinion, it would have been so much better to let 500 people see the film on a slightly smaller screen size than to have no one see it.
[Note: the surfeit of “apparently”s is due to the fact that this is one version of events and I didn’t get a chance to confirm this with the filmmakers]

It’s my guess that it was fully within SAIFF’s legal rights to force them to screen the film, but they played nice. Not sure they should have – most people left for the night annoyed that SAIFF didn’t have its act together. If the reality was different, it is in SAIFF’s best interests to protect its brand name – festivals are the ones that dictate the rules, not the filmmakers.

The South Asian International Film Festival (SAIFF) is one of two South Asian film festivals in New York. They pride themselves on focusing on emerging directors who are not yet famous.

I certainly fall squarely into that demographic. I’d like to think I am “emerging” and I am definitely “not yet famous”. And so, it was with excitement that I learned a few weeks ago that my film got into SAIFF 2006.

UNTITLED was made as my final project of the 12-week Intensive Filmmaking program at NYU. It was shot in 3 days, with a crew of just 4, on 16mm film. It was a complete blast. My experience with the course and that film is what got me to quit my day job and to do this full time (my experience with the course is fodder for another post).

But I digress. When I finished the film, I put it away thinking that I’d got what I wanted from it — the learning of how to write, direct, produce and edit a film under severe constraints. [Well, that is not quite true, I did submit it to Ms Films in North Carolina where it got accepted and one other festival where it got dinged, but I did not spray it around to every festival in sight]. But when one of my cast sent me the SAIFF request for submissions, I tossed it in the mail on a lark.

Lo and behold, it got selected! This will be the first time I see my work in a real theater. That is exciting and scary all at the same time. Exciting because this is what filmmakers live for – to see their film released (or screened). And I am nervous as all heck because it was a class project – an experiment, a learning exercise, an amazing experience. And now it will be shown to friends and strangers. I feel the desperate need to yell out — “Don’t expect it to be amazing, it is just my first little short”. But I am doing my best not to. I want it to be judged. That’s the only way I’ll get better.

So, here we go!

SAIFF got underway today for filmmakers with the press conference. The key feature-length films were highlighted and it was fun to mingle and meet other aspiring filmmakers. It is great to see the energy and passion for film in the South Asian community.

Since I am now self-employed (ahem, no, no, not unemployed!), I am looking forward to seeing as many of the films as possible, starting with tomorrow’s opening night premiere.

— To see UNTITLED on the SAIFF site, click here and scroll towards the end of the page.

— Synopsis: Sanjay and his wife lead a cookie cutter existence in Manhattan. One day, as he returns home, he is handed a flyer to a gallery opening and on a whim, decides to attend. Siddharth, the gallery owner, educates Sanjay on art and introduces him to a captivating painting. With Siddharth, as his bodhisattva, leading the way, Sanjay is more ensnared with each successive visit. Has Sanjay found what he has always been looking for?

— Note: UNTITLED will be uploaded to this site shortly

I had the fortune of seeing Little Miss Sunshine before it opened wide and this movie has stayed with me for months! Written by Michael Arndt and directed by the husband and wife pair of Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, the movie starts off seeming like it may be a standard road trip flick. But before they even get on the road, it does an excellent job of introducing us to the quirky cast of characters that make up the Hoover family.

Sheryl (Toni Collette) is married to Richard Hoover (Greg Kinnear) and you are immediately exposed to the friction between them. Richard, an unsuccessful motivational speaker, tries to get his book published while Sheryl tires of waiting for his ship to come home as she carries the load of providing for the family and holding it all together. Sheryl’s son from her prior marriage, Dwayne (Paul Dano) is rebelling against the family by taking a vow of silence. He quotes Nietzsche on his little notepad as he prepares to achieve his life’s ambition of flying fighter jets. Richard’s father, the drug snorting, over-sexed, quirky grandfather (Alan Arkin) lives with the family and his sole role seems to be training Olive (Abigail Breslin) to dance in her quest to become Little Miss Sunshine. Throw in Sheryl’s suicidal, gay, Number-One-Proust-Scholar-In-The-World brother Frank (played brilliantly by Steve Carell) and you have all the elements to make a really great movie.

Or not. They key to making a movie like this successful is a light touch and here the directors excel. The movie rolls along at the perfect pace. Character flaws are dealt with without apology. The small confines of the road trip VW van (a character in itself) provide the perfect location for lots of stress and lots of humor. As the movie progresses, your feelings for the characters evolve. You think of Grandpa’s drug snorting as funny while in the beginning you feared for little Olive’s safety. You sympathize with Frank’s attempted suicide when you see the beautiful young man who jilted him for the Number Two Proust Scholar In The World. And you even start to feel warm and fuzzy towards the annoying Frank who won’t let Olive believe failure is an option, despite never having succeeded himself.

Directing can be a singularly lonely job. In addition to figuring out the shots and angles, every department (lighting, sound, etc.) needs the director’s input on key decisions. Often the director can’t do much thinking on the set. Co-directing is a great solution. You can brainstorm with your partner, share the stress and burden and the little victories. Working with your spouse, which can be a challenge for many couples, provides the most trust worthy co-director you could pick! Dayton and Faris have had a long and successful career working together, primarily in music videos and advertisements. In the Hollywood world of going after the brightest new shiny object, their first feature will guarantee them several offers.

Credit also goes to the producers for pulling together such a wonderful ensemble cast – something that is very hard to do. In addition to each of them being excellent individually, they combine really well to make even the very few forced, over-the-top, kooky scenes amusing. Greg Kinnear has the same quirky, earnest, but somehow-not-all-together characteristics of his roles from As Good As It Gets and Sabrina. His transition from the always positive to the more realistic and down to earth is endearing. Steve Carell, after his super-hot run in the TV series The Office, plays the dry and cynical Frank to perfection. While Toni Collette and Alan Arkin live up to their reputations, Paul Dano was a pleasant surprise for me — I had never seen his work before and despite being completely silent for 90% of the film, he did an incredible job conveying Dwayne’s teenage angst. And Abigail Breslin? She’s such an adorable tyke – standing next to the super-made up little beauty contestants, she embodied the normal child we all hope to have.

The film is a tale of a family that, by accepting their limitations and recognizing life is not just about success, draws closer together through their misadventures. This brilliant flick premiered at the 2006 Sundance festival and sold for $10 million to Fox Searchlight – the highest price tag ever at Sundance. It was well worth it. The film has already recouped $60 million in the box office. This movie left me feeling happy and hopeful. It is a rare movie that does that any more.

Tatvam means reality or inner truth in Sanskrit. Tatvam Productions tells stories that reach for the truth, share the reality and communicate the inner meaning.

Please join the ride!