Monster: The Ed Gein Story - a quick rant...

Season 3 of Netflix's true crime drama series from Ian Brennan and Ryan Murphy has appeared on our screens, and after detailing the life and crimes of Jeffrey Dahmer (season 1) and the Menendez Brothers (season 2), their sights have now been fixed upon the so-called Butcher of Plainfield, Ed Gein.

The excellent first episode suggests a less gaudy and in-your-face tone, something with a splash of relative class (helped in no small part by an excellent performance from Laurie Metcalf as Gein's ultra-religious and overbearing mother) ... but this brief flirtation with taking the material seriously rapidly devolves, to the point that already by episode four Ed Gein is stalking babysitters and chasing two lost hunters through the woods with a screaming chainsaw while wearing a flesh mask, which was most certainly something he never did. Such moments become increasingly common as it becomes crystal clear that hewing close to the horrifying truth is of no real interest to the showmakers...

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FWOAN - an official update...

I've mentioned bits here and there about working on the FWOAN project, but now's time for an official update...

After its successful festival run, our short film, ‘For Want Of A Nail’ was released in February 2020. Behind the scenes, Director Lucy Barnes, Writer Nick Thomson and Producer Ali Causon, were already developing the idea of progressing the film to a series and started pitching the idea… Then the pandemic hit.

 

Like many, it was a massive setback for us. With the world in chaos and no one really knowing how or when to move forward… we kept our creative minds busy. The 3 of us continued working on the series.... Almost a year and a half later, we are in a strong position to move to the next stage of production and get the green light.

 

Now feels like the right time to tell you a bit more about the proposed series, to raise awareness for the subject matter. To give the OCD community a voice and a more honest representation of a misunderstood mental health condition.

Thanks for your support. - Ali Causon [Producer Oakhill Productions]

Continues after the jump...

The OCD & Anxiety Podcast - FWOAN Interview...

I was recently interviewed for The OCD & Anxiety Podcast, covering the topics of the short film For Want Of A Nail (which I wrote the screenplay for) as well as my own experiences with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

You can listen or download the podcast HERE, or via the embed below:

Watch FWOAN now!

You can now view the short film "For Want Of A Nail" - for free - online via the OCD Action website: go HERE to view it now.

OCD Action were a great support when we were making the film, having officially endorsed us, and we are very pleased to have continued working with them, so it means a lot that we have been included as a part of the OCD Week of Action (#OCDwoa).

You can also watch it on Vimeo.

For Want Of A Nail from Oakhill Productions on Vimeo.

A little while ago, we spoke to writer Nick about what inspired him to write the film; here's what he said:

"The simple answer is my own experiences with OCD, but it was because I recognised that my various compulsions and routines were affecting me more and more – becoming more elaborate, requiring more attempts to get them ‘perfect’, and generally causing me more and more frustration. I’d been aware of my OCD for several years but, probably like most people do when they suspect something is ‘wrong’ with them, I dodged the issue for a long time. People with OCD tend to be quite embarrassed by the condition, especially as so much of it is internal – rolling around inside your head – so I kept it to myself and, naturally, it began to spiral. So, for me, writing “For Want Of A Nail” was a cathartic experience.

It was partly an expression of my own OCD and partly a warning to myself. around about the same time, I had seen a few of these ‘quizzes’ on social media – ‘How OCD Are You?’ type junk (oftentimes just pictures of messy rooms with a ‘how uncomfortable does this make you feel?’ one-to-ten scale underneath). I saw that not only were the quizzes themselves drowning in utter ignorance of what OCD is, but I saw that people taking the quizzes were either coming away with the completely wrong idea about the condition, or were actually convinced they had it – some going as far as boasting about it like it was something ‘cool’ to differentiate themselves on Facebook or Twitter. Trust me, an idiotic social media quiz won’t tell you that you’ve got OCD, having OCD will tell you that you’ve got OCD – and everyone who has OCD wishes they didn’t have it."

There were two core intensions for me when writing this film: 1) for the audience to come away with a better understanding of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and 2) for the audience to have also enjoyed the story, the characters, and the style of the film - to have been informed and entertained at the same time.

We are also in the process of pitching a 10-part television series adaptation of #FWOAN right now, so if you want to keep up-to-date with all things For Want Of A Nail by following us on Facebook.

FWOAN to Release Online Feb 21st...

Groovy news! "For Want Of A Nail", the short film I wrote about Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, will soon be getting released online for all to see.

Oakhill Productions to release the critically acclaimed, award winning short film For Want Of A Nail in conjunction with OCD ACTION as part of the ‘Week Of Action’ campaign.

We have said from the start, that we want our film to have purpose when it's released. Not for us as filmmakers to have a moment of appreciation but to really make a difference, highlight and raise awareness... so it is with great pleasure that I get to announce the Worldwide, Online Release Date of #FWOAN is happening on the 21st February 2020!!

Keep your eyes open on our own and OCD Action's social media pages from the 17th of Feb for more info, behind the scenes interviews, our further visions for the future development... and of course the OFFICIAL RELEASE!!!

You can follow the film on Facebook, and Oakhill Productions on Twitter.

Brighton Rocks Selects FWOAN...

"For Want Of A Nail" has been officially selected by the Brighton Rocks Film Festival as a finalist and has been entered into competition for the category of 'Best Drama'.

See the full list of finalists by visiting their website HERE.

The Indie Hour - FWOAN Review...

The Indie Hour has given For Want Of A Nail a glowing review.

One of the first things I liked when watching this film was that the filmmakers have not romanticised OCD or mental illness in anyway. Instead the team deliver a quirky and relatable character and plot line that highlight the realities of living with OCD. Clark Alexander’s performance as Marty was both believable and engaging. Alexander’s performance is complimented by co-stars Lisa Opara and Thomasin Lockwood who inject a very human element to the story. Their performances definitely heightened the emotional tension of the film in a way that made me as a viewer feel much more connected to the overall story.

Check out the full review HERE.

Indie Shorts Mag FWOAN Review...

Indie Shorts Mag have reviewed "For Want Of A Nail".

The paradoxes of thinking you rule the world when every little slip makes you swirl out of control is captured beautifully by Clark Alexander in his performance. Director Lucy Joan Barnes juxtaposes Marty’s past and present in smooth transitional shots. The screenplay (Nick Thomson) littered with voice-overs, makes it easy even for a layman to understand the complexities of an OCD inflicted individual’s world. As the title of the film aptly suggests; sometimes even seemingly unimportant acts or omissions can have grave consequences, especially for someone suffering from OCD.

You can check out the full review HERE - and don't forget to follow FWOAN on Facebook HERE.

First FWOAN News of 2019...

The Brighton Rocks International Film Festival has officially selected "For Want of a Nail".

To find out more you can visit their Facebook page HERE.

FWOAN Wins at Mindfield...

Some more great news from the festival circuit - For Want Of A Nail has received a Platinum Award for Best Short Film at the Mindfield Film Festival in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

There are five categories of award for Best Short - Diamond, Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze.

Find the full list of winners HERE.

FWOAN Nominated at Dublin IFF...

Super snazzy news from the Dublin International Film Festival (where we've been officially selected), as our Director - Lucy Joan Barnes - has been nominated for Best Director!

Check out the Dublin IFF website HERE.

FWOAN Wins at Changing Face IFF...

More decidedly groovy film fest news just in from Sydney, Austrailia - "For Want Of A Nail" has won Best Short Drama at the Changing Face International Film Festival in the monthly competition for September 2018!

Check out the full list of Changing Face winners for September 2018 at the fest's website HERE.

FWOAN at the UK Monthly Film Fest...

Following on from our Surrey screening last month, which raised a nice bit of money for the charity OCD Action, we've been officially selected for the UK Monthly Film Festival at the Norwich Puppet Theatre. In this latest round of selections we join other films not only from the UK, but from Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Mongolia, Peru, Turkey, and the United States of America.

More info HERE. Follow FWOAN on Facebook HERE.

The Last American Virgin (Boaz Davidson, 1982) – a quick review...

What's it about?

Raunchy comedy/drama about a group of L.A. teens trying to pop their cherry, but embarrassing misfortunes and harsh realities get in their way.

Who would I recognise in it?

Lawrence Monoson, Diane Franklin, Steve Antin, Kimmy Robertson.

Great/Good/Alright/Shite?

The summer of 1982 saw a glut of saucy teen comedies – chief among them being Bob Clark's Porky's and Amy Heckerling's Fast Times At Ridgemont High – but another, The Last American Virgin, stood out by daring to go different. Produced by the infamous Canon Film Group as their first entry into American filmmaking (check out the documentary Electric Boogaloo), TLAV was a remake of Davidson's hugely successful Israeli film Lemon Popsicle (like a proto American Pie franchise of the 70s and 80s), but it found itself somewhat swept aside in movie theatres by its populist competition. But while Porky's and Fast Times At Ridgemont High had memorable encounters (the shower scene, Phoebe Cates in the red bikini) mixed with sprinklings of seriousness (anti-Semitism, abortion), TLAV's similar mix of light and dark found a larger audience on home video and cable TV in the years that followed...

Click "READ MORE" below to continue the review...

For Want Of A Nail

I've alluded to a project called "For Want Of A Nail" for a while now on this blog, and finally I can say a bit more about it.

A year-and-a-bit ago I wrote a short screenplay (adapted from my short story), entered a competition, got short-listed, and ultimately my script was picked to be the one that was to be made into a short film by Oakhill Productions (one of their past projects is the award-winning short film All's Well, which most recently won the audience choice award at the Veteran's Film Festival for its portrayal of PTSD)...

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Space Station 76 - mini review...

What's it about?
Domestic drama and workplace comedy meet ... in outer space. A refuelling station somewhere in the vicinity of Earth in 1976, to be exact. A closeted Captain pines for his lost love, a down-trodden maintenance man struggles with marital disharmony, a young girl has to come to terms with death and her Valium-addicted mother, and the new girl on the scene finds herself stuck in-between it all. Infidelity, gossip, rampant materialism, and visits to a two-foot-tall robotic head-shrinker ensue.
Who would I recognise in it?
Liv Tyler, Patrick Wilson, Matt Bomer, Jerry O'Connell, Keir Dullea.

Great/Good/Alright/Shite?
Styled after the sci-fi greats of the 1960s and 1970s, from films like "2001: A Space Odyssey" and "Silent Running", to hand-crafted low-fi sci-fi TV shows like "Buck Rogers in the 25th Century", we find ourselves in an alternative 1976 (or thereabouts, we must assume) with all the kitsch fashion, facial hair, and smoking around children to match...

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"A Sideline In Vengeance" - update #4...

It's been a while since the last update (which was at the arse end of January), but here we are: another draft was completed towards the end of February, and now I'm cracking on with the next draft.

Just a few changes ... *ahem* ...

At this point it's all about small tweaks, nitty gritty details, and generally an awful lot of fettling and fiddling about. I love this point in the journey of writing - you've got a solid script a few drafts in and finally you can focus on all the small details that add extra layers and provide little details that flesh out the story, characters, and scenes even further...

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"A Sideline In Vengeance" is off to a good start...

A quick update on the screenwriting front: Four days into the process and already I've got the first act done - and tweaked into a third draft for good measure.

So things are off to a good start - hopefully this vibe continues! Thus far I'm pleased with how the scenes are coming out, I'm able to navigate (with the help of numbered record cards for clear reference) the myriad of hand-written pages of notes from December (which laid out all the characters, their journeys, and the overall plot), and I'm still feeling good about the whole endeavour.

Next week I'll be heading into the belly of the beast - Act II.

"Celebrityville" is getting there...

Planning out "Celebrityville" (my second book) is coming along very nicely indeed. Today, after a few weeks away due to another project I was working on, I finalised the layout of the story. The break was good though, as I could spread out the index cards for all the major beats of the story (something I talked about in an earlier post) and see it all with a fresh pair of eyes. I plugged a few plot holes and motivation gaps, so the events and pacing of the story is locked-in. Next up I'll be doing a rough map of each chapter (where it starts, where it ends, the basic beats of what happens when, and who says what to whom and why) ... and then it'll be time to getting my fingertips waggling.

Click "READ MORE" below for a teasy little tease...

Double Bill Mini Musings: Strange Cameras and Stolen Culture...

Time Lapse:
What's it about?
Three friends discover a bizarre camera, in the home of their recently deceased neighbour, which can take photographs of future events.
Who would I recognise in it?
Danielle Panabaker.
Great/Good/Alright/Shite?
The film wastes little time in convincing its protagonists in the existence or mechanics of this strange photographic device, preferring to get the setup done quick and then take time with what comes next. There are familiar themes relating to time travel, such as using it for greed or the mind-twisting workings of the concept itself, but the film still feels more fresh than you might initially expect. The characters aren't necessarily the deepest or most complex, but their wants and needs are clear, and the performances help bolster their curious predicament as believable. Inevitably things take darker and more troubling turns, and while some twists are relatively predictable, the climax is deliciously satisfying. Good.

Click "READ MORE" below for the art of war...