This Beautiful Book...aka Ondaatje in my edit suite

Last Wednesday was a rather unique day of editing for me. Michael Ondaatje came over to my house to watch a new edit of my film and give me notes. While having an internationally renowned author pay a visit to my humble basement abode is cause for celebration on any day, I was particularly elated because Michael's book The Conversations has had a huge impact on me as an editor and filmmaker.

I had met Michael a number of times over the years and after seeing him regularly while a part of the Talent Lab at TIFF 05 I felt like I should see if he'd be willing to offer some feedback on This Beautiful City. Sure enough, he watched the film and was very enthusiastic. I continued working away and then a month later he came over to watch the new edit.

I first read the Conversations in 2002 while editing my short film Pink...I had been a big fan of the Coppola film The Conversation and was intrigued by the idea of reading a book about the editor of the film. The Conversations is essentially a series of conversations between Michael and editor/sound designer/filmmaker Walter Murch. The topics of conversation, however, run the gamut of art, life, science, music, passion, as well as the art of editing and anecdotal tales about the making of some of the most celebrated films of the 20th century (Godfather, Apocalypse Now, etc).

The book became an inspiring beacon that encouraged and challenged me to aspire to the magnificent possibilities of art and cinema. This book, alongside Walter's book on editing In The Blink of an Eye, became my film school while editing that short film.

When it came time to begin editing my first feature, I thought it would be fun to reread the book that influenced me so greatly when cutting my first short (as editor). Once again, I was amazed at how inspiring and compelling the book was. I was largely working on my own so it became an invisible editing partner with whom I could embark on meaningful and tangential conversations that simply kept my editorial mind fresh and invigorated.

So having a conversation with Michael in my living room about my film that was heavily influenced by conversations he had with Walter Murch about his films...was a rather unique experience. It suddenly felt like I had come full circle (albeit a rather small circle since I'm on ly at the beginning of my filmmaking career...more like an English roundabout than a world tour). After he left, I dove back into the edit suite (basically my living room except with the monitor point towards my desk instead of my armchair) and emerged with a new and improved version influenced in part by a host of keen observations and suggestions.

I have found that one of the most critical parts of editing is knowing which feedback to accept, and which to to go. Everyone has an opinion and everyone is influences by a myriad of sources...and often people's suggestions are far less helpful than the clues that they offer into how they responded to the film emotionally (ie they suggest cutting a scene, but really this is just a clue...the problem is that they feel disconnected from a character and bored but that can be fixed by extending the scene that happened 5 minutes beforehand). It is very similar to the way I feel that half of photography is simply knowing which photographs to select and which to discard.

Michael's comments, however, were concise, effective, and quite effortless to employ. Yay Michael!

(NOTE: Since photography is becoming a consistent part of this blog, I wanted to take a photo of Michael watching my film. But I chickened out. It's not like me to be shy, and I'm sure he would have said yes, but I don't know him very well and....so I just took a snapshot of the book cover instead...hopefully this will inspire someone, somewhere to buy it).

This Beautiful Drum Solo

(Blake Howard warming up on drums)

Today was a fun, odd, and inspiring day at the Junkshop (the FemBots' studio). Rock Plaza Central drummer Blake Howard sat down with us an did a live recording of a 93 minute improvised drum score to the entire film.

As an editor, one of the biggest influences on my creative approach was Michael Ondaatje's book The Conversations. The book is essentially a series of transcribed conversations between Michael and brilliant film & sound editor, Walter Murch (Godfather, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation). I was captivated not only by Murch's ideas about editing, but also by the stimulating tangential conversation he and Michael got up to.

At one point, Murch related how on Apocalypse Now they had a team of kodo drummers perform improvised sets while watching the film. When I saw Rock Plaza Central play Lee's Palace I can honestly say it was the first time I've seen a band and simply been blown away by the drummer. He was so organic and passionate...I instantly thought of the Murch reference to Apocalypse and thought "This is the guy to do a live score to my film".

I gave Blake a copy of the film on DVD to view in advance so he could get a basic feel for the film then invited him into the studio to score the film live, simply responding organically to the scenes before him. He had complete freedom to drown out the dialogue or be subtle and quiet. The results were pretty astounding.

(Blake playing along to a DVD of the film, Dave mixing in the background)

The sounds he was able to wrench from that measly set of drums was utterly impressive. He used everything from sticks to his hands to what looked like a pair of giant cocoa beans.

Although several sections will be completely unusable where they were placed (because the dialogue is, of course, important) what we have captured is an organic percussive response to the film. Even if it is taken out of sync or out of context, at its essence it follows the natural rhythms of the film. So a section could become a the basis for a song or simply an element of score to be manipulated and placed elsewhere. Or it could work perfectly as is. Either way, we've captured something unique, organic, and beautiful...and I'm excited and inspired to start experimenting with how to add it to the film.

To Test or Not To Test

(Ed Gass-Donnelly on set directing the killing of Dirty Steve)

We're getting close to a picture lock. Inching towards it anyway. We originally planned for May 1, but because we need to get feedback from our distributor, it may not be locked until the end of May (which is not big deal, our schedule definitely has padding).

Beyond feedback, one of the things slowing down the process is the possibility of holding a couple of small test screenings. These would be kind of like hybrids between REAL test screenings arranged by large companies (which cost upwards of $5000) and a FRIEND screenings (which is an entirely boased audience). We're trying to find a way to solicit strangers who fall within our potential audience (ie people who actually pay to go see indie fare at theatres) but it can be hard to know for sure what a strangers tastes are. In the same way friends are likely to be more forgiving, a stranger who only likes big Hollywood comedies could offer a disproportionalely negative response.

I have mixed feelings about the whole idea. Obviously if the film screens well I will be happy because that is good ammunition increased marketing/release etc. However, if I don;t hold a negative test with much validity, the same shoudl be said about the postive response.

Ultimately I believe wholeheartedly in the film. Beyond my own ability to offer geneuine critical objectivity, the rsposne from folks n the industry has been phenomenal. I mean there really is no question that the performances are stunning, that the film looks beautiful and unique, and that the connecting storylines are masterfully woven. It really just comes down to now whether an audience will connect with the story on a meaningful level. I certainly think/hope so.

But only time will tell.

Sunparlour in the Studio

(left to right: me, Dave, Andrew)

Another couple of notches were made on the bedpost of our soundtrack today. Sunparlour Players aka Andrew Penner spent the day in studio with Dave MacKinnon and myself, recording two new songs for the soundtrack, Bless This City and We Want What's Right.


(Andrew Penner on banjo and organ)

When I heard the demo of Bless This City a few weeks ago I knew it was a keeper. It has a rich passionate build and will ultimately feature a swell of brass, strings, and a choir (which we'll be recording in Factory Theatre's cavernous mainspace theatre for full effect). We Want What's Right, on the other hand, I was a lot less sure of; the demo felt a little like the ugly kid sister to the epic Bless This City. But once we got into the studio, several of the elements that I had felt were odd or awkward about the song were suddenly thrown centre stage and embraced...and it quickly grew on me. The heavy bass line and bass drum are complemented by the deep churning of the vibraphone, accented by glockenspiel and two interweaving dobro tracks. I can't say for certain whether the track will end up in the film itself, but I'm really diggin the way the song panned out. It's a tight, rich, grooving tune that ends quickly and leaves you wanting more.


(Andrew Penner on bass drum and Tambourine, Dave MacKinnon on the ProTools)

We're back in the studio tomorrow evening to add some harmonies and textures. Once we get some rough mixes I'll find a way to stream short samples of the music to give folks a taste of what we're working on.

OTHER NEWS: I just heard from Sebastien Grainger and Josh Reichman who have been collaborating on a song at Sebastien's East End super studio. The news: the song is done. I'm chomping at bit to hear as I haven't heard anything, not even a demo. So with Josh & Sebastien's track, plus Bry Webb's two, and the two we just recorded with Sunparlour Players...that brings us to a total of 5 tracks. (That's like half an album already!) And we're not even close to being done.

UPCOMING: Blake Howard from Rock Plaza Central is coming in on Friday to do a live improvised drums score to the whole film as an experiment. And next week, hip hop artist Shad should be stopping by the studio as well. Busy busy busy!

Two In The Can

The first two songs from the soundtrack have officially been recorded!

A few weeks back, Bry Webb from The Constantines came by Dave MacKinnon's studio (FemBots) and recorded two new songs, Positive People and Big Smoke. Back in October while we were still in pre-production on the film, Bry sent me a demo of Positive People within 3 days of reading the script. I was blown away. We hadn't even started shooting yet and we already had a theme song. The lyric, "Postures of defeat", became an iconic anthem for the way I viewed several of the scenes.

Over the next couple of months Bry also sent me demos for two other new tunes, Big Smoke and AM Blues (which may also end up on the soundtrack). I liked the demos so much I'm thinking of using a mix of both the demo of Big Smoke as well as the newly recorded version.




(Bry Webb recording Big Smoke at Junkshop)

I'm hoping we'll be able to get The Constantines to write a song for the film as well...we'll have to see how things progress with their new record though.

I plan on shooting Behind The Scenes footage for all of these recording sessions. I have no idea what it will amount to, but the calibre of artists we're working is just stunning...I feel compelled to document it. Maybe it'll end up a DVD or companion to the soundtrack. Who knows.

COMING UP NEXT WEEK: The Sunparlour Players will be coming into the studio to record a great new song, Bless This City, full of revival tent fervour, that Andrew Penner wrote for us. The FemBots are also making progress with the scoring of the film. I just received a demo for a chase scene that was really exciting. We're also doing a bit of an experiment with drummer Blake Howard from Rock Plaza Central. We're going to record him doing a live improvised score to the ENTIRE FILM. Some will be crap. Some will be brilliant. Can't wait to see what's what!

A Train With No Brakes

So this 'little' film we'd been trying to get off the ground has exploded into our lives. A year ago at The Drake we set down and made a blood oath (the blood was figurative but it sounds better that way) that we would move forward, NO MATTER WHAT, on Oct. 16, 2006 with my film called THIS BEAUTIFUL CITY. We were to be a train with no brakes that would (we hoped) build a momentum fueled by our blind determination.

Adapted from a play I wrote years ago called DESCENT, the film is cataclysmic weaving through five lives that connect when a woman plummets from her balcony in Queen West. Not exactly the most marketable fare, but we felt there was an uncompromising truth to the voices of the characters and a unique style and structure that separated from some it's peers.

This is my first attempt at a blog so I'm sure I'll elaborate later about how we pulled it off. In the meantime I hope to use this space to give updates and info about how the film progresses.

But for the here and now, this is where we're at:

The film was shot in Oct/Nov 2006 with an exceptional cast that includes KRISTIN BOOTH, CAROLINE CAVE, STUART HUGHES, NOAM JENKINS, and AARON POOLE.

It was written, directed, edited by myself (ED GASS-DONNELLY)

It was produced by myself, LEE KIM, and AARON POOLE and was beautiful photographed by MICHA DAHAN.

We've also putting together a KILLER original soundtrack of new music by the likes of FEMBOTS, BRY WEBB (The Constantines), BUCK 65, HOLY FUCK, SEBASTIEN GRAINGER (Death From Above 1979), AMY MILLAN (Stars, Broken Social Scene), JOSH REICHMAN, ANDRE ETHIER, SUNPARLOUR PLAYERS, SHAD, and many more.

We plan to premiere the film in the FALL 2007 and have a theatrical release in 2008. The film has been picked up for distribution so hopefully you'll come out to see it in a theatre near you.

YOU CAN FIND MORE INFO AT www.thisbeautifulcity.ca or join or FACE BOOK group at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2262356579