YEAR IN REVIEW 2016 - MEGA CITY ONE EDITION PART 1

Oh hello there. Bet you thought I decided to ditch the whole blog idea?  Not a chance.  Reason being?  It’s been a busy mofo of a year, so what better time to review the whole year and work load at the tail-end of 2016.

What you'll read is the attempt to get a short film made, festival runs, meetings, and I'll throw some films in at the same time. Hope you enjoy.

PART 1

So first thing first...my short movie.

December 2015. Application thrown in for the Creative England BFI Ishorts funding. Why not, hey? It’s free. Did I learn from the last time i did it? Nope. Did I try?  Yeah. I needed a producer, a bit of clout. But sadly, and not entirely their fault as they actually got the funding, it didn’t work out.

Well, time to basically put up or shut up. No one is going to just give you money to make your little flight of fancy, so why don't you do it yourself?

January 2016. Plan was in motion. Saving, planning, schedules, different avenues to go down. Crowdfund or not? Mindfield. So what you have to do is just listen to people. Lay out the plan, your problems, and where you want to go then listen to what people have to say. It’s then your informed decision. Whether it falls on its arse or not at least you listened and you made your decision. As this was happening I was still writing and refining the script. I was watching shorts, figuring what worked, what didn’t, and above all what I really like.

Tracks in place but I'm still building the train. I get writer friends to look at the script - genre fans and non-genre fans - just to get the feeling that the core ideas and themes worked. Script was non-linear too, a problem I felt that was down to the amount of information and character work within a short 10 minute time frame. But while doing this I was thinking two steps ahead. I needed visuals, pre-production material just to give people that idea of the project I'm was trying to do.

This then tumbled into a juggling act of re-writes, visuals, and locking down a location. My thinking was to lock a location then everything will fall around it as that is your safety net. It gives you an end game for your production, something people can free themselves to work on as you have that concrete date. 

Which leads down to casting. There’s only a general net you can cast with independent films, so unless you've got the money to get the talent you have to put the graft in. Luckily enough I happened to find people that were a cut-above what I thought I could even draw to the film, but the graft was still needed. I met every actor and talked to them about the project, what I wanted from it, and where I think it could go just so they could be heavily invested as much as I was. This is where your script, your vision, and your planning comes in as they're tangible aspects people can invest in.

The same applies to the crew. As this was a low budget affair, you have to get picky with who you want to get what you need. You also have to try and get the best people. As with the cast side of the production, I was lucky to get some amazingly talented people.  This was not without a few panic moments (3 make-up artists), but these things can be fixed with a bit of time, perseverance, and knowing what you want (the end game).

July 2016. We started shooting. 

TO BE CONTINUED.....

GIVE THE GUY(S) A HAND!!!

Yo! Just a quick update on a couple of things over the last few weeks.

Big releases for the bands I've made music videos for showcasing their new albums.

First up - BLACK NEON KNIGHTS

The band dropped with first album 'RISE UP' on the 19th February. And yes, while I could be very biased about it, I still like to think I know bad music from good.  As for this album?  Its a belter full of riffs and energy.  It's a must listen if you're a fan of Pearl Jam, Black Sabbath, and Alice in Chains.  The band are tight, the songs well written, and chock full of great riffs.

I'm genuinely happy with the work I did for the band.  I tried to give them something new and original than the usual rock music videos, to try and show the energy the songs have while being visually arresting to the viewer.

I honestly feel the band can take that next step and hopefully get signed up.  So if you like any of the videos and more importantly the music, show some love and buy the album from the links below to help em out and keep them going.

Buy on AMAZON
Buy on iTunes
Buy the CD

Follow the guys below -
TWITTER
FACEBOOK

And here's my contribution below.  You can check out behind the scenes photo's and promotional guff over on our FACEBOOK page.

Next up - MERRIN

I've known the band since my University days and see them go from strength to strength.  Their second EP is called 'MIDNIGHT MOVIES' that was released 1st March.

Again, could not be more impressed.  In the genre of bands that emerge from movie soundtracks of the 80's heavily influenced by Tangerine Dream, John Carpenter, Goblin, MERRIN have moved up a gear with this album.

The album is more focused and balanced than their previous release 'DOOM CINEMA'.  With the added percussion and synth arrangements widening the scope, the album has a lot of prog-rock influences behind it with the likes of Mogwai being a major influence for me.

As for my input you can read about the history HERE.  It's a video that is dirty, grimy, and not for everyone as it's very uncomfortable. This is something that fits the band and the new album, especially with the redux version of the song Henry Kane.

Again, show the band some love and pick up a copy of the album.  And for you budding filmmakers, if you love the sound and want them to work on your films, give them a shout!

Buy the ALBUM

Follow them here -

TWITTER

FACEBOOK

Here's some publicity from SLAUGHTERED BIRD too

Enjoy the video!

Stay tuned for more new updates for a few projects we've got lined up!

See ya on the flip side...Danny

HENRY KANE (AND MERRIN) ARE BACK...

Howdy folks!

Nice surprise this week in regards to a little favourite of mine.

The music video for Henry Kane by MERRIN has been re-released! Revamped!

Check out a little background and festival runs in previous blogs (HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE)

Overall, I'm such a massive fan of the music that I just had to post about where it started to where it is now.  Also, I've been meaning to update the Facebook page with behind the scenes info about my work, so what better time to start?

So...

I originally approached the band (Chris Purdie) as he was gigging in London around 2012. He was recording a few songs for an EP and I asked if he had a song I could play around with.  He threw 'Henry Kane' at me and said "have fun"

So off I went and shot the thing solo over a few months, generally playing around and thinking of creepy/strange imagery.  Influenced by Michael Mann's 'Manhunter' and  David Fincher's 'Girl with a Dragon Tattoo' opening credit sequence, the tone was set.

After shooting a load of footage and jumping into editing, a story began to emerge that brought the whole thing to life. The run-through of following a murderer and getting inside his head as he commits a crime gave me a goal over the runtime.  

The Goblin-inspired song added to the already disturbing sense of fear through the 7 minute piece. There was a deliberate slow pace and pay off - a beginning, middle (a trippy one), and end -  that hopefully made you feel you went through an "experience".

That was then.

Now, in 2016, it's taken to another level.

CLICK FOR THE NEW HENRY KANE VIDEO

A few years later and the song has added more from a composition stand point.   It's now a John Murphy/Goblin/John Carpenter/Mogwai fused monster.  Chris said it's took him years to finally nail the song (the drums taking the song to a definitive place) and it really feels that way.

It's given the video a new life.  The visuals still embrace the song but now it has more urgency imposed on to it.  The video as a whole feels unsafe, less trippy, and something that's hard to watch as the tension through the narrative builds.  It now has a thriller-pace to it much like a closing or opening credit sequence that inspired the video in the first place.

I'm very proud of the video as it's pretty effective.  The song as it is now is better, more complete, and has a clear style that the band has perfected.  I'm happy its a part of the new EP 'Midnight Movies' and I hope it helps give it more exposure.

To pre-order the new EP and show some support, head over to the below:

MERRIN FACEBOOK
BANDCAMP
NEW VIDEO

'Midnight Movies' will be released 1st March 2016.  

See ya on the flip side...Danny

Year in Review...PART ONE

Well, well, well.  Its the end of 2014.

Whatcha got to show for it?  For me it's a case of a few steps forward, one or two back.

The whole thing kicked off with the release of the music video "My Little Fantasy" by Braver Than Fiction in January. Check it below.

   

Read the previous blogs about it HERE

Responses to it were very good.  It seemed to give the band a little boost and something they could use going forward.  They've gone from strength to strength (tours, gigs, playing Sheffield's Tramlines festival) and hopefully will get better in 2015.  Check their OFFICIAL WEBSITE

The video did a few screenings.  Sheffield's Showroom Shorts and Manchester's Kino Shorts where it received some favourable responses.  Mainly a lot of "That was nice" than anything else.  Below is a link to a QnA from Kino Shorts -



Another nice little story came from hearing the progress of a friends band - MERRIN

They released an EP which received some great feedback and reviews called "Doom Cinema" which was accompanied by a trilogy of short films - which you can watch here HERE.

The big news was he received some some mad props on BLOODY DISGUSTING. The website putting them in the Top 10 movie influenced bands to listen to in 2014.

Chris and MERRIN have been gigging lots in London.  So if ya daaaarn saaarf try and check em out. Meanwhile, he's a video I made for them a few year ago.

   
HENRY KANE by -M E R R I N- from Danny Naylor on Vimeo.

Good stuff.  But, all in all...were people kicking down my door for a music video?  Nope.  Should they?  Probably not.  But as I was gearing up to pimp myself out...a few opportunities sprouted their pretty little heads.

The first was to work on Arthur & Merlin being shot in the Peak District.  I applied for a 2nd or 3rd  Assistant Director role not really knowing how big or small the budget of the film was to be.  If its small enough, they don't pay and you help out.  If it's has a fair budget then you're gonna have to be there on time, every day.

It just didn't pan out for me.   Holiday's from my 9 to 5, availability of my car, and funds were its downfall.  Am I sad about it?  Yeah, because I wanted to work on it.  I could've took the gamble but at the moment I have to play it safe.  I've too much on the line.

Then the Creative England Talent Centre happened.  Major coup on this one to a point where I even thought...why am I here?  You had award winning writers, directors, academy award nominated producers...then me - a guy who's highest budget he's ever worked on was £300.00.

I blogged a little about it HERE.  It span over about 6 months or so and overall was a great chance to network and understand the UK industry as a whole.  I got to meet Paul Fraser, who wrote one of my favourite films in 'A Room for Romeo Brass', as well as producers, sales agents, and buyers.

I also got to meet some great people - writers, producers, and directors - all wanting to make things happen.  It was a nice bubble to be in (as well as the ale).

It was all well and good.  Got me interested in applying for iShorts, the short film incentive they have.  Failed miserably as I expected but the feeling that it "maybe" could've crept through was a bonus.

So a load of ifs, buts, and maybe.  But there's a shining light on the horizon.

I'll hopefully get a few meetings up and running and see where it takes me based on the Talent Scheme.  There's always the music video and short angle I'm going to tackle if things begin to dry up.

But a big thing was hitting the Black List and getting some feedback from some industry professionals.  Basically it validated the writing.  Some ridiculous praise for certain aspects of it. Really mindblowing stuff that just pushed me further.

I've got some options now when I could've just gave up.  Lets see where it goes.

Oh....Check out PART 2 for my flicks and movie going of 2014 me arle china plates....

Kino Screening and MERRIN buzz

Bonjourno kiddies.

Wednesday night I attended Kino Shorts monthly film screening in Manchester's Three Minute Theatre.

The place was full, around 40-50 people in there I think, so it was a good turn out.

The video was 2nd shown and went down pretty well.  

Did a brief QnA after the screening.  As usual I rambled on that there was no room for audience questions (which their weren't any anyway).  The video should be up at some point in the next few weeks.

A few people commented and enjoyed it after the screening but after that it ended up being a normal short film night.

Had an eclectic bunch of videos ranging in quality.  But I have to say there were a couple of crackers on there.  One a mock documentary about an actor called Randolph Tempest (played by comedian Peter Slater).  A very witty character so worth checking out.

The other was a horror called a Long Way Back (I think).  Had some good scares and an interesting story. It was written to be ambiguous but there's a great ghost story in there involving the elderly.  The idea that the lead character could be suffering from dementia or some mental illness interested me - something they could develop.

Anyway, it was a good night but nothing overally productive. Hence a can of Jamaica's finest.

In other news, good friend of mine and his band MERRIN who I directed a music video for his song HENRY KANE a year or so ago, has been getting some big props from the horor website Bloody Disgusting. Check out the articles HERE. Pretty cool and hope it gives them a step up.

 See ya on the flip side, Danny.

Cahiers du Short Flick Review

Hey again!  Bet you never saw this one coming.

We've been hit by our first review folks.

The blog SHORTS AND SHIRTS reviews shorts on a regular basis.

Lee Hamilton watches a LOT of shorts and gives brief, sweet, and honest reviews by request. This time he gave his once over on Another Film in the Woods.

What did it say? Well, head HERE to read it in full with the film embedded into the blog.

Skipping to the end...he gave it a respectable 3 stars out of 5. Basically hit that Michael Bay/Paul WS Anderson benchmark they get from your mainstream critics. And with that comparison it would probably be a 2 star review if it were from the Guardian or troll movie website.  Tee-hee.

Anyway, as for its content...well, its very honest. As me and Chris knew, it notes the technical downfalls mainly from the sound recording of the dialogue. Personally, it seems fine but I'm that attached to it I can't separate myself from it. I know every line, so when a line is quiet I hear it clearer that normal (if that makes any sense). I think its more down to the fact its not clean enough than being decipherable.

It gives Amber Brookes a good overall review. It says she's very natural but notes her "lack of confidence on screen". For her first ever short film, its pretty good and she takes positives from it. She's already mentioned to me that she was nervous etc and takes the review on board. End of the day, this was my fault as there are only so many hats me and Chris could wear. We regret not taken more time with her and the other actresses more but the fact the acting overall is very good, this is a testament to how good they are themselves. The fact they stepped up, understood the characters, the direction and the rush for time - I can't thank them enough.

The biggest part I took from it was just clarity of the story. There's a fine line between very exposition centric, on the nose, or very subtle to explain plot points. I think I went too subtle. The review says the audio didn't help it, which can distract viewers, but I think that the big plot points aren't focused enough when presented.

Case in point from the review is why Mandy end's up in the woods and is chased. The reason was that she cheated on her fiancé. Its her sin. It's not on the nose, its a brief one line in her dialogue. This should have been focussed on, clarified more. Maybe a few more lines or dialogue to give it emphasis before she hits the woods.

The other point was how Mandy gets back home. Well, she begs forgiveness and says she's sorry. Repenting gets you home it seems. There's too big a gap from when she says this to when she gets back home. I think the Vicar character could've explained a theory about wanting forgiveness but they have to mean it (which the Vicar can't). That would've just added to the plot more.

Overall, for its faults he seemed to enjoy it. I take encouragement from that. I see it more like loving The Evil Dead. You can slate that film for its continuity, FX, etc some big technical basics but the film is great because its an experience - its fun, outlandish, and something different.

I tried to make our film fun, something from left field in terms of style (a dance music fuelled, 90's European tongue in cheek horror), as well as a change from dark, moody, horror/thriller's I tend to make. There was some ambition. 1 day shoot, 90+ shots, actions scenes, 2 man crew etc so with it came pitfalls. But also learning curves for next time.

And with that...some reminders.

-MERRIN- and the music video HENRY KANE.is going to get a screening at the SUPERNORMAL FESTIVAL the 9th - 11th August (clicky the link) in Oxfordshire.  Keep your mince-pies open drop us a message if you're going.

And don't forget you can still vote for the online festival that its currently doing the rounds here at the Shorts Non Stop Online Festival. Click the link, skip to the end, and click VOTE. Helpful tip...do it twice. Once over your phone data and once on your internet connection (it'll recognise your IP but not from your phone). Pass it on for others to vote and give it a push online via Twitter or Bookface.

Till next time. See ya on the flip side

Festival Season kicking off...

Heyo folks.  Hitting you with a quick update faster than a Jim Kelly (RIP) pimp roundhouse.

While I nurse a badly sprained ankle and float about high on painkillers, my good buddy Chris Purdie dropped some great news about his band -MERRIN- and the music video HENRY KANE.

The video is going to get a screening at the SUPERNORMAL FESTIVAL the 9th - 11th August (clicky the link) in Oxfordshire.

A breakdown of the programme is on the link. Below is a brief of the fest...

Supernormal is a festival like no other, providing a powerful antidote to the current malaise of festivals-as-big-business. Blurring the boundaries between art and music, performer and audience, it champions the iconoclastic and the experimental, allowing risks to be taken and leaps of imagination to occur. Somewhere in spirit between the original Glastonbury Fayre and an eccentric village fete, Supernormal is the alternative's alternative.

Pretty chuffed but slightly gutted as I know Chris has been trying to play that festival for a few years rather than screen a music video.

So, if you're out and about in toff-land or going the festival anyway, drop us a message and let me know what you think.
HENRY KANE by -M E R R I N- from Danny Naylor on Vimeo.

See ya on the flip side

-MERRIN- Screening

What a busy week. Always a good thing as it generally improves the monotony of the week, but as it drains the life out of you I've been taking shares out of Red Bull and Maxwell House.

My last blog I told you that there's was a screening of the music video Henry Kane -MERRIN- at the Black
Lion in Manchester on Wednesday

.

"Cut to the chase you blub, how did it go?" Well...Where were you? Just joking. In answer to the question, it went well. But it's an odd thing to gauge

It was only a small turn out, about 30 at a push in a upstairs screening room above a nice boozer not too far from Piccadilly station. There was some great music video's and experimental pieces that were shown throughout the night with most of the filmmakers there who took part in a Q and A after each screening.

As with most of these screenings I generally turn up to, something odd happens when I bump into someone I know or at least have working/know someone who has worked with them. In this case it was a director called Lee Bolton who runs Elerby Studios in Bolton. He had directed a music video for the band Blackheart who are, surprisingly enough, close friends of my wife's family and are currently on tour in Europe. Anyway, it was a good to break the ice so to speak, especially when I was flying solo with the worry that my video was going to make me look like a sadist.

As mentioned, there were some good videos. A short by Jason Wingard-Hasford who animates the rants of Artist Taxi Driver had me in stitches. A big highlight was screening of Biting Elbows video for Bad Motherfucker. Never seen it before and while its an already done concept, its execution is golden.

Anyway, back to Henry Kane. It was the last one of the night. Don't know if it was because of the tone and it suited a late night show, but hey, it meant I was getting home at half 1 in the morning after missing my train anyway so I was beyond caring.

The titles came up and those first bars kicked in....

 

I said before it was hard to gauge the reaction. It was similar to my Univeristy screening of Random at the Showroom Cinema, Sheffield in 2005. As the tone is dark, there's never any vocal reaction. There's no gasp, shock, or jumps (something I thought I'd get with Random back in the day) just pure silence. I can't even remember if it got a round of applause. I'm sure it did as everyone elses did, I just can't remember as I was going up for the Q and A and thinking out how to deflect the idea that I'm not some kind of fetish sex offender.

It was only in the Q and A that I got an idea that the video worked.

The Q and A was with another director from the night, his a far more personal and experimental series of films. I gave a brief overview of myself, what I've done, and the film itself. Hopefully the interviews get put up online as I'm sure I'll get rinsed for the blatant movie nerd cock-up (saying Henry Kane was a character in Phantasm rather than Poltergeist) as well as coming across like a whinging wannabe. 

Why do I say that? Well, I mentioned I want to get away from Horror genre and do something different because...I don't think I'm very good at it. The reply and consensus was? "It was pretty scary, mate."

And with that, I know it worked.  Silence can mean engagement, can mean they're "getting" it.  The biggest thing I'm enjoying with these screenings seems to be the fact that elements are working. Sure, there's loads to improve, but when you set out with a goal and it generally pulls it out the bag, you know you're on the right track.

Big thanks to Chris Purdie for letting me do the track, John Kino for putting the night on and showing the film, and everyone else that watched and "enjoyed" it.

And as for thanks...it always surprises me the amount of readers each post is getting. So if you're reading this, I say thank you. I seriously expected it to be about 5 people accidentally reading it. But no, 2000 views so far, nearly 300 of them last month. The short films too getting an insane amount of hits recently. Henry Kane hitting 500 views, Another Film in Woods 300. Imidiwan 800...True, its no Gangdam Style or Panda Sneezing hits, but its a start.

And you're from all over the world. So you American, Canadian, Russian, and European readers...drop a few comments, leave a message or two, good or bad. Its 2013 so social interaction won't get you convicted of abuse charges 30 odd years down the line, Opertation Yewtree style (Google it). And on that note...

See ya on the flip side...Danny

Mr Kane Returns....

Hello folks. Very long time since my last blog post.

You wanna know a reason? Well...nothing's been happening. Oh, apart from the personal life of getting married to my beautiful wife, honeymoon, work etc - you know, the non-interesting stuff that you didn't want to read on here.

Anyway, mixed in with all the jubilations, I haven't been slacking. In fact I've been getting up to speed with my festival submissions for...well, everything worthwhile. It may burn a hole in the pocket but I'm being selective on where I send them. The plus side of this is...

The music video HENRY KANE I directed for the atomsphereic, instrumental metal soloist -MERRIN- is going to get a screening in the city of Manchester next Wednesday.

"Where, you utter tusk!" I hear you say? Well, its for the KINO SHORTS 33 for this month (clicky the link). The venue is the THE BLACK LION in Salford and it kicks off at 7:15pm till 10:15pm.

My North Western buddies, come along. You've gotta pay for a ticket but you'll get to see me (worth the admission of course) because I'll be there. There's even a QNA session so if you do come, you can heckle the shit out of me and call me a sadist (I'm prepped for that question by the way, so come at me bro). If you're lazy, here's directions and it should be a stormer of a night.

Pretty cool and always a good feeling to get a flick shown as it makes it worthwhile. Will be throwing shout-outs to my good buddy Chris Purdie and his band and having a few mild-ales.  But if you can't make it, spend a few minutes checking the video below out and feel free to comment and support (if not boo to you). 

Hoping this is a good omen for other festivals later this year. I'll keep you all posted.

 
HENRY KANE by -M E R R I N- from Danny Naylor on Vimeo.

See ya on the flip side

Another Blatant Promotional Push...

Another day, another amazing sales pitch for the short film for people who haven't seen it and a few more updates.

Just like to say thanks to the people who have watched the short and given some good feedback. Hey, people enjoy it. Made me a happy bunny. The cast are happy with the film too which is always a good feeling. (shout out to the lead actress Amber Brookes, follow her on TWITTER).

Bad news first...the film didn't get into the 2 Days Later film competition that the film was made for.

Now, there's a variety of reasons as to why I think this happened, and I take full responsibility. The DVD screener I sent isn't the final version for one, and it wasn't rendered correctly. It had a jittery effect due to a interlace problem (tech geek bollocks) that was eventually fixed for the version you see online and sent to the cast & crew. My mistake for running out of time and not being able to fix it.

Another reason? The film is sound heavy. A lot of scene transitions and dialogue scenes are linked with a lot of sound FX. The screener I sent wasn't 100% with these tracks and therefore is rather jolting and amateurish. Not to say the final version is on a level to David Fincher, but its a difference that sets a level of watchable and unwatchable.

Yet another? They may have collared that it wasn't shot slightly within the 2 day timeline? It was shot in a day, but had a couple of days of pre-production and a couple for post. Sue me.

Final reason? They may have thought it was shite? More than likely this one...but compared to what was screened and won last year...ah, well, its all subjective.

Semi-good news...Even though I've missed the deadline for halloween film festivals this year, I'll be sending this out for next year so hopefully it has a life in the future.

Good news...we're on the IMDB. Yey! Check it out and vote/leave comments/whatever. Another Film In The Woods IMDB 

Another plus point was seeing my good buddie Chris Purdie aka MERRIN playing a live set at the Playhouse in Northampton. In his set-list he played Henry Kane with the MUSIC VIDEO I directed for him as the visuals for his stage show. Check it out HERE.

Anyway, its time to wind-down preparing for Christmas. Will be attending the Celluloid Screams festival at the end of the month to check out some horror flicks and shorts. Followed up by a trip back to Liverpool and seeing Rob Zombie in Manchester at the end of November. In-between that will be writing and movie watching.

Anyway, as the title suggests, below is another blatant promotional push. We're also on VIMEO. Thanks.

ANOTHER FILM IN THE WOODS from Danny Naylor on Vimeo.
See ya on the flip side, Danny.

Not the face...please...

Well, hello young roughiuns.

Punt a blog time while I sup a cup of Twinings Rich & Velvity smooth cwwwooofee and reflect on viewing a few depressing films over the weekend (Killer Joe, Tyrannosaurs, Inside Job)...

Anyway, updates smashed up on Vimeo. So if you're bored of watching blokes with snazzy camera lenses rendering shit in slow-mo on FCPro, check it out. Add me, slate me, do whatever that takes your mind from knowing you've wasted brain-cells commenting on something so meaningless.

Also, I've done a few promo posters for a couple of scripts, being that its apparently the "in thing" to do nowadays. Check out the Flickr stream to the right.

Back on to ventures of the month. I've been eying this for a few years, the 2dayslater film competition. Basically, they set out a brief which mainly involves certain items that the film has to have or a saying and you make a 10 minute short film in 2 days (supposidly, although there will be some cheating bastards). So, I've roped in Chris Earl again to see if we can bang something up together. I've got an idea...but keep thinking there's gonna be shit-loads of films set in the woods (its simple, its convenient, I get it) where shit goes off. So I dunno where to go...brainstorming is needed.

In other news...another rejection from Bath Film Festival IMDb Script to Screen competition. One maybe thinks about pulling out the most offensive thing I've ever written (if I can find it) and maybe put it forward for something.

There's still a few more in the wings (Amazon Studios, Back In the Box, etc) so when someone once asked me if I've ever paid my dues, I said; "Paid my dues? Yes, sir. The cheque is in the mail."

See ya on the flip side...Danny

-M E R R I N - Unleashed

As mentioned in the previous blog, here's the music video for 'Henry Kane' by -M E R R IN - on the night he smashes up the Nambucca live in London.

Enjoy.

See ya on the flip side...Danny

Derek and Merrin Enjoyed Their Time Together...

Its 'bin a whiiiile... Bad flashbacks to that song by Stained out of the way, but its true...its been sometime since the last blog and announcement of doing a new music video for -MERRIN-.

Its gone well...slow, but well. Took a while to get an idea with inspiration from Michael Mann's 'Manhunter' as a jumping off point and David Fincher's awesome credit sequence to the 'Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' remake to get the ball rolling. It evolved as the process went along and a story from beginning, middle, and end revealed itself.

But away from that pretentious guff, the bottom line is, its finished. Done. And the feedback? Well...the artist likes it. He loves it in fact. I nailed the mood, the tone, whilst adding that little bit of nightmarish spice and upsetting his girlfriend he said. Not too shabby if you ask me, and its always good to get a response like that.

Anyway, "where/when can I see this masterpiece?" you may not be asking. Answer to that is...I'm holding it back. "You twat!" I'll get in reply (well, I get called that all the time but that's another matter). -MERRIN- want to premier it at the their latest gig at the NAMBUCCA, in London this Sunday the 22nd April. So go check it out of you're in the Big Smoke and enjoy some prog-rock metal while you're there.

If you cant make it? The video will be unleashed Sunday night for all to enjoy (or not). Check back here or most social-twatworks that I'll spam on the back of it and other treats.

IN OTHER NEWS...I've threw out a few short scripts to a couple of festivals to see WTF may (or most probably not) happen. A horror short called 'Last Night Stand' sent to the The National Irish Science Fiction Film Awards which is around October. And the other, a drama/thriller called 'Before I go Away' from a story by me and a friend Michael Ellis, to the Bath Film Festival which is around November - and to which there's no hope in that one.

WOW, just reading over that it seems like a very productive few months which nice so here's to the next few months.  Need. To. Do. More.  I'll be back soon.

See ya on the flip side...Danny

When Derek met Merrin....

Easy now!

Having reconfirmed my ultimate disbelief in humanity and society in general (thank you Monday), its time to dive into some Music Video business.

A good friend of mine Chris Purdie has a rather tidy Doom/Metal band called MERRIN. Check out some tracks on the link and get all moody and shizntis as the band is ripping up some gigs daaarn saaarf.

Anyway, I dropped him a message to see if he needed or wanted any visual/music video pieces doing for any tracks. He said he has so Bob's your Monkhouse, Derek's are getting it done. Should be good fun and unconventional, which is how we like it, and a good piece to get back into the swing of things for 2012.

Also, if you've got some love to give, go check out MERRIN on Facebook for tours and gig stuff (give it the like, what harm can that do?). And also Chris' BLOG to check out some of his performances and video work.

See ya on the flip side...Danny