WORKSHOPS ON SATURDAY AUGUST 28

Was It Good for You?
A candid discussion between an actor
and a director



Presenters: Becky Smith and Nicholas Downs

Saturday, August 28, 2010, 10:00 am - 1:00 pm
Location: Sheraton Carver Room
(with coffee break)

Emmy-nominated director and UCLA Professor of Film, Theater and Television Becky Smith will co-present this workshop with Nicholas Downs, star of Is It Just Me? Both worked together on indie feature 16 to Life (Landlocked Best Narrative Feature, 2009).

The workshop will cover topics including auditions, head shots, reels, breaking down a script, and many other elements touching on the relationship between actor and director. Each component will be analyzed in depth from both the actor's and the director's perspective. Questions from the audience will be encouraged.

The Writer's Direction, One Scene from Script to Screen



Presenter: Benjamin Busch
Saturday, August 28, 2010, 1:00 - 2:30 pm
Location: Sheraton Carver Room

A conversation with Writer/Director Benjamin Busch (The Wire, Generation Kill) will expose the chronology of drafts he wrote for the opening scene of his film Sympathetic Details (Landlocked Best Narrative Short, 2008), the incorporation of input from actor Domenick Lombardozzi (The Wire, Entourage) starring in the scene, how it was filmed, and the edit by Frank Reynolds (In The Bedroom). The audience will watch the scene and be encouraged to join the conversation. Think of it as a complete 90-minute film school.

WORKSHOPS ON SUNDAY AUGUST 29

Making the Anti-Hollywood Micro Budget Film



Presenter: John Putch

Sunday, August 29, 2010, 11:00 am to 2:00 pm
Location: Sheraton Carver Room
(Continental breakfast)

Are you a filmmaker and want to make your own independent film? Are you afraid of how much it will cost or lack the courage to just do it? This informal seminar will open your eyes to the possibility.

Veteran indie filmmaker John Putch candidly recounts how he has done just that with two of his award-winning productions, Mojave Phone Booth and Route 30.

Join John for a no BS, eye-opening session filled with real answers and insight on how he made Mojave Phone Booth and Route 30 for a fraction of what Hollywood could have done it for. A motivating and honest method. Come with questions for John.

This seminar has had great success at Kent Film Festival, Waterfront Film Festival, Oxford Film Festival, Rutger Hauer’s Film Factory - Rotterdam, Dallas Video Festival and AFI’s SAG Conservatory.

Post-Production: VFX



Presenters: Grasshorse Animation
Sunday, August 29, 2010, 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Location: Vetro Plaza Room

Grasshorse is an Iowa-based animation, design and technology company which services the motion picture television and new media markets. In 2009 Grasshorse worked on four feature films, providing opening title credits, VFX, and color correction services. Grasshorse has distinguished itself as a premium supplier of animated and VFX services and content.

Join us Sunday, August 29, 2010, from 2:00pm to 3:00 pm for an introduction into principles of animation and VFX. Questions will be welcomed.

Traveling with an Interpreter
How to get the most out of your composer



Presenter: Jay Vincent
Sunday, August 29, 2010, 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Location: Vetro Plaza Room

Music is often a scary part of the process for young directors, simply because it is unfamiliar.  The hands-on experience many directors have with screenwriting, acting, using a camera or editing makes it easier to communicate their artistic intent to the people fulfilling those roles in their production.  But when it comes time to pass the baton to the final runner... one of these "composer" guys... directors may feel as though they are in a foreign territory, know the exact location of their destination, but need to hire a shady interpreter in order to actually get them there.  

Young Hollywood composer Jay Vincent, who acted as Psych director David Crabtree's interpreter on Broken Dreams (Landlocked 2010's feature film finale), will host a fun, informal discussion with filmmakers and film fans about all things shady.  Don't forget that the right composer, like the right interpreter, will be able to fluently speak your language even if you don't speak a word of theirs; and this relationship can be one of the most rewarding--and creatively explosive--in all of filmmaking.  EVERYONE loves music, so come join the open forum about this exciting process of going into the unknown--and arriving at your destination in style.   

Self-financed Documentary Filmmaking



Presenter: Seth Camillo
Sunday, August 29, 2010, 4:30 pm - 5:30 pm
Location: Iowa City Public Library Room A

Seth Camillo will share his experiences making two self-financed feature length documentaries. This will be a broad talk ranging from subject selection to equipment to editing and everything in between.

He has shot two feature length documentaries on location. In Matchmaker, Seth and his friend traveled to Ireland in search of love at the world's largest matchmaking festival in Lisdoonvarna. Filmed over four summers, Down The Road documents the travels of Seth and his mom as they follow the world's largest tented circus.

Seth has been making films for over fifteen years. His films have been shown in more than twenty festivals around the country. He is an MFA candidate in production at the University of Iowa's department of Cinema and Comparative Literature.