My first experience with remote production work over the Internet was during the Sundance Film Festival.The Hollywood Reporter invited me to a live Sundance Google^® Hangout with four other filmmakers to chat with Oscar^® winning documentary writer/director Frieda Lee Mock about her new filmAnita. The hangout session was broadcasted live on the first day of Sundance 2013.

Yesterday, I had my second experience with distance production work. I directed a promotional spot in Orlando from Chicago (due to schedule conflicts). The production was shot at a Full Sail sound stage, while I directed from my study via a Google^® Hangout.

The camera that was set up to be my eyes was positioned so I could see the set, actor and the camera monitor. My microphone output went through a speaker so the entire cast and crew could hear my direction. The experience was not much different than my live broadcast television days at ABC, when I directed from the booth and communicated via headset to the talent and crew on stage.

The key element that made the television process work was the floor director who represented my physical presence on set. In the same manner, I used an assistant director to be my hands and feet at the sound stage.

To improve on the experience going forward, I would want to set up a second simultaneous Google^® Hangout with a direct feed from the camera. This would give me a more accurate assessment of the image being captured and give me peace of mind. Without the second feed, I had to rely on the cinematographer to fully understand the look and visual style I had in mind and for him to judge the visual details accordingly.

Once the shoot was complete, we tested the uploading of the dailies to an ftp site so I could access it. Within fifteen minutes I had the test footage and completed the first rough cut of the show. Since there was a bandwidth problem on the Orlando side, we decided to overnight the footage on a flash drive. Had the bandwidth on both sides been high enough, we would have completed the entire transfer within an hour.

The experience for the talent was unique. Since my connection was through the Google^® Hangout, they were able to see my expressions on the monitor. This enabled us to have a direct “face-to-face” conversation and bounce creative ideas back and forth. When someone had a question, instead of relaying it through the assistant director, they could just ask me directly.

The entire cast and crew were very accommodating. When I needed the lights moved or adjusted, the crew quickly responded to my request. The talent also responded quickly, making whatever adjustments needed to fit the vision I had for the promotional piece. We were even able to rehearse a walking pullback shot to get the perfect camera to talent position.

© 2013 by CJ Powers

Hollywood blacklisting was run amuck from 1947 – 1960. It blocked screenwriters, producers and actors who were considered sympathetic to communists from getting jobs. The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) investigated alleged disloyalties, which blocked 151 people from working, even though they were not convicted. The mere investigation based on someone alleging their possibility of being sympathetic was enough to shut the person down – Although the smart ones continued working under an assumed name.

While there is no active HUAC group in Hollywood today, there seems to be a new kind of blacklist running rampant in the media. It is the type that forces major corporations to make decisions based on image, rather than facts or logic. And, instead of being policed by the media, it is being driven by the media.

Last week Paula Deen lost her entire career including multiple book, television and other media deals because she chose not to allow a disgruntled employee to blackmail her. Since the employee did not receive her long sought after settlement, she released information on June 26th that 26 years earlier Deen had used the “N” word, which today is considered a racial slur.

Since that word is politically incorrect, the media used it to generate enough negative press against Deen that all of her sponsors walked away from her, blacklisting the entertainer from any future in the entertainment business.

Also last week, Facebook “accidentally” removed several “politically incorrect” entries by conservatives including Todd Starnes who had posted:

“I’m about as politically incorrect as you can get. I’m wearing an NRA ball cap, eating a Chick-fil-A sandwich, reading a Paula Deen cookbook, and sipping on a 20-ounce sweet tea while sitting in my Cracker Barrel rocking chair with the Gaither Vocal Band singing “Jesus Saves” on the stereo and a Gideon Bible in my pocket. Yessir, I’m politically incorrect – and happy as a june bug.”

When I was a child, everyone was able to say whatever suited his or her fancy. Freedom of speech meant that a person could voice or publish any thoughts without filtering. Everyone could easily understand all the positions on an issue and respect each view, while choosing the one they would stand behind.

Today, it seems that if you aren’t on the side of the media, whether a person or corporation, you might be shunned by the masses as the media instructs them to judge you as being politically incorrect.

I find it disturbing that Deen lost her career based on something she said 26 years earlier. And worse yet, she used a word that our society didn’t understand was hurtful at the time. Thankfully our society got smarter and stopped using the “N” word, but I’m sad to learn that our past can be used out of context against us.

Last week’s issues made me think about words I used years ago like “G.I. Joe.” Today there are movies by the same title, which suggests it’s an acceptable word to use “today.” But, what would happen 20 years from now if that term became politically incorrect because women in the military took offence to it? Could I lose my career because I used the word as a small child playing with my G.I. Joe action figures?

I preferred the time in America when you could say whatever you felt was important without people blacklisting you. It was a time when freedom of speech meant we were free to voice all of our views, whether positive or negative. It was a time when Journalists sought after the truth and shared both sides of every issue equally, so their audience could draw their own conclusion.

So you tell me, has media blacklisting returned?

Paying points is a typical offering to cast and crew on low budget projects. However, most independent production companies never payout points because they never have it contracted – Just offered by word of mouth. Those companies that actually contract the points may have little left over to pay it.

I’ve used points for several film projects and it works well as long as the film has multiple release venues including video and television distribution. The only unfortunate thing the producer has to deal with is a lot of paperwork for years. To reduce the tracking efforts, many times a date will be picked to offer the cast and crew an opportunity to sell their points back to the production company for a certain dollar amount or for product.

Sometimes the payment is made with excess DVDs based on a discounted value. This allows the cast member to sell the DVDs for cash or give them away to friends and family during the holidays or for birthday gifts. I was involved in a points based project that paid me 300 VHS tapes. I sold some, but you can guess what my kids gave at every birthday party they attended for an entire year. Had I sold all the tapes at 50% off retail, I would have made 3X my normal production rate.

Points vary greatly between projects and so does the amount of cash involved. One project paid 20% of a person’s rate in cash and the rest in points. Another project paid 10% in cash, 50% in points, and 40% in DVDs. The variations to financial packages are endless, but the key concept to understand up front is that eventually the production company will want the points off of the books and will either have a cut-off date or a buyout date for the points.

Here is a made up breakdown of dollars to clarify what is available for point payouts:

Film Revenue

$140,000,000   Actual Box Office Receipts

$100,000,000   Reported Box Office Receipts (after counting errors)

– $20,000,000   House Nut – Negotiated amount to cover concessions for film

$80,000,000   Theaters pay to distributors

– $20,000,000   Deduction to cover P&A (prints and advertising)

– $40,000,000   Distributor fees/margins

$20,000,000   Gross payment to producer

– $6,000,000   Production costs (cash returned to investors)

– $9,000,000   Investor payback agreement

– $1,000,000   LLC Operations

$4,000,000   Net Profits

– $3,000,000   Investor profits

$1,000,000   Point payout (all points total to 100%)

Please note that in the above scenario the people on the point system are the last ones paid. It should also be noted that the film scenario brings the point people to breakeven, which means their payout for DVD and television sales will be much higher as the investor payouts will be much smaller going forward. This is due largely to the producer scaling the payback structure to reward himself should he make a hit. On the above scenario the investors’ payout schedule declines after they reach 2.5X their original investment.

Every monetary exchange percentage is highly negotiable. The general rule of thumb for the producer is to get as much cash up front from the distributor as possible since creative accounting can reduce payback after the film’s release. The same rule applies for cast and crew. However, if the only way to be a part of a certain picture is to be on the point system, make sure it is in writing and the film has multiple venues. Also make sure alternative payouts or buyout programs are in writing.

There is one other concern about the point system and that is the 100% ceiling. Since it is against the law to promise more than 100% of profits for payout, the total number of points given out will always equal 100%. So if the production company offers you 10 points and they give out 20 points in total, you own 50% of the payouts. If however, you are promised 80 points and they give out 1,000,000 points, then your percentage isn’t worth talking about, as it isn’t even high enough to be considered a rounding error.

Even if you get the estimated number of points in writing, there is a consideration clause for going over budget. So lets say you sign an agreement for 120 points out of 10,000 points and the film goes over budget. There might be additional points paid out to bring a new stunt team in for the mass explosion scene. The new total number of points rises to 12,000 changing your 1.2% payout to 1%. According to the above scenario, your $12,000 payout just dropped to $10,000.

Also, the above scenario of an independent film bringing in $140MM at the box office is a great scenario to spell out how the points work, but consider that the average independent film only makes $6MM at the box office. This puts approximately $6,000 into the points kitty for the cast and crew. Now your 1% equates to a nice dinner or a dozen DVDs. However, the additional venues of release will increase your payout.

Copyright © 2013 by CJ Powers

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