Peerless ProdThe Disappearing Act

Creation Time: About three months.

Software Used: Final Cut Pro, After Effects, MatchMover Pro, Shake, ProTools, Blender, and MagicBullet Looks

Equipment Used: MovieCam SuperAmerica, Panther Dolly, a bunch of "C-47"s, lenses and lights and gels and K-stands and C-Stands and Mambo stands and various audio equipment, monitors, etc., etc.. It was a big production!

Throughline

The Disappearance Act is about a talented stage magician who uses Diet Coke to misdirect his audience from a somewhat sloppy and obvious trick that's happening onstage.

Description

Wow. I guess I'll start off by saying that this is probably the coolest thing I've ever done. Although the finished film is just 50 seconds, it represents the biggest, most professional, and most well-planned and organized project I've worked on so far.

Here's how the contest works. Coca Cola provides a theme. Students from 13 film schools across the country submit a script, storyboard, production plan, and budget. The scripts are judged, and 10 finalists are chosen - and each one is given a $7500 grant to make their film. The winner is awarded $10,000 - and their film will go on to be shown in over 20,000 theaters this summer.

Well, in October my friend Roque and I came up with our idea and submitted our materials, and then in November we found out that we were finalists!

We worked on the film from November up until January. We spent about a month in preproduction planning the shots, building the trap door, gathering props, organizing crew, casting the magician, coming up with a shooting schedule, etc.. Production lasted just three days (which sounds like it should have been plenty for a 50 second film, but this stuff takes time!), and then we had about three to four weeks for post.

It was interesting because postproduction was the most familiar and comfortable phase of the process for me. I edited it and did the visual effects work myself. (The trap door and crowd duplication shots took me about three weeks to complete. Check out the VFX BREAKDOWN.) I had a great experience collaboriting with Kyle Newmaster and Gordy Haab on the soundtrack.

I'm really really pleased with how everything came out. Unfortunately we did not win the contest, and of course it could have always been better (there are tons of things that in retrospect I wish we had done), but we really made the best film that we could and we had a great deal of help and support from a lot of talented and dedicated people. Overall it was an amazing experience and I certainly learned a lot.

I hope you enjoy the film!