MUTANTVILLE PRODUCTIONS

LOCATION! LOCATION! LOCATION

Johnny B With Gene Starnes

Many people have asked how we managed to get access to such an amazing location as the historic Albemarle Opera House for our current project G.H.O.S.T.. In truth it takes fineness, accountability and most of all relationship management skills.

I first met local business man and downtown Albemarle champion Gene Starnes many years ago. It was only last year that I discovered the amazing piece of history located above his place of business, Starnes Jewelers. Gene is a member of virtually every civic organization related to doing business in Albemarle and has a list of community contacts that boggles the mind. I began to ask him about the possibility of a tour of the opera house which his grand father originally built in 1908. Gene readily agreed and before you knew I was filming our walk through.

I, of course instantly realized the cinematic potential for the space, with it’s aged walls, circular French balcony windows and extremely high ceilings, but it wasn’t as simple as winning Mr. Starnes over to the cause. The space covers a neighboring building as well and is co-owned by the adjoining business underneath. There was the matter of establishing a certain rapport and illustrating that Mutantville Productions can be trusted. I really needed Gene to sell the idea to the co-owner of the space with whom we personally had no contact.

To satisfy certain insurance requirements a few ground rules had to be established. For instance, no smoking up there or out in front of the building. As far as I know this only inconvenienced one or two cast and crew members the whole time. As Dave Mustain of Megadeth  once said, “We don’t smoke in this band!”

Contact numbers in case of power failure had to be maintained. I think there are 6 – 8 numbers in that call chain for instance. It turned out that we needed these on the night of the black out so that preparation paid off.

I recall a solid 3 months of discussions before final approval was granted. Even after that through the 9 months of pre-production I kept in constant contact with Gene, say on a bi weekly basis at least, keeping him up to date on the productions progress.

Throughout the process and even in the face of what I’m sure must have been an annoyance to him personally, the night the power went out and it took us 4 hours to find the fuse in the 100 year old structure Gene has really been amazingly supportive of MVP. At this time he is reaching out to a few contacts to help us possibly locate a local resource where the civil war period dream sequence can be shot.

Jumping back into to our mammoth half decade horror film production C 4 Chaos, we actually managed a ton of real locations. If a bar was called for, we were shooting in a bar. If the script called for a bunch of scenes in a comic shop, of which there are precious few around these days, you betchya we were in a honest to goodness comic shop. This really, really elevated that production to be working in the great locations instead of sets.

Like they say, it really is all about LOCATION! LOCATION!LOCATION! Remember this above all else Mutantville Players, Johnny Brento loves ya!

P.S.

Visit the most amazing Jewelry Store in Stanly County. Gene Starnes wants to be your jeweler. Tell him MVP sent you.

My Band is Called Mutantville

This past week with the cancellation of one shoot and aggravation of some misunderstandings about a pickup shoot schedule have served to  remind me of just how much like a music band or even a family our group of merry guerrilla film makers really is. I can only speak for myself when I say that I love these guys I work with. They are my best friends on the planet Earth. I really do think that I have more in common with my partners than really anyone else. Sometimes, just like in a band, the singer might think that the guitar is walking all over his lead, or the bass player can’t hear himself and insists on turning up his amp until everyone gets nauseous.

The core members of MVP have been working together for the better part of a decade and that hard work is starting to pay dividends, but from time to time myself or one of the other fellas will slip into a little bit of burn out and get caught up in a quagmire of interpersonal B.S. I want to jump up like Valentine McKee , Kevin Bacon’s character in Tremors, and yell at the top of my lungs, “No! No! No! We HAVE GOT TO GET OUT.” Get out of the muck and drive on. Why? Because that’s what we do. Another shoot, another script, another project. I feel that remaining productive is the key to success as any sort of actor or film maker. George Romero himself advised Streebo this way. “Finish that first one and the rest will come.”

So, if any of you Mutantville Players are missing the invigorating G.H.O.S.T. shoots in the Albemarle Opera House, or feel your creative yen waining, remember this, if it was easy to make movies, anyone could do it. It’s not and and not just any group of people can hold the band together. You are a rock star already for being active creating your art!  Above all else remember that Johnny Brento loves ya BABY!

MVP Picks Up More G.H.O.S.T.S at Opera House.

Last night saw the Mutantville Players return to the opera house once more for another round of pick up shots.  Luckily we weren’t just shooting windows and door frames this week as we were able to suit up and get bloody for another cool special make-up FX shot.  Alan Whitley out his boomstick down and picked up the latex to play the part of our supernatural visitor.  Alan underwent a grueling 3 hour session at the hands of special make-up FX kingpin Todd A. Britt.  The air was chilly but Alan’s spirits were warm under layers of silicon, tubing and buckets of blood as he brought our ghostly friend to unatural life!  With this shot in the can – we have only two major FX shots left and G.H.O.S.T. will be complete.  This Sunday, the Mutantville Players are heading to the green and grassy hills of South Carolina for our final pick up shots with two of our leads – Kathy Sandvoss and Scott Thomas.  The journey to make G.H.O.S.T. has been an amazing one.  It will be sad to see it all come to an end.  Be sure to keep checking Mutantville.com for your up to the minute MVP news!

~~Streebo

G.H.O.S.T. Finale Ends With Whimpers And A Bang.

Make-up FX Maestro Todd A. Britt brings another ghostly creation to life during the wee hours of the night.

Last night, Mutantville Productions wrapped principle photography on G.H.O.S.T. after a long fifteen hour shoot.  Kathy Sandvoss earned her final Scream Queen stripes and Super Diva status by battling her way through another challenging shoot.  Thanks to our good friend, couture designer, Luis Machicao for lending his tremendous talents in supervising the filming of his costume designs for the finale of the movie.  Lead actor Scott Thomas persevered another bloody and bruising shoot to bring our central ghost to life.  Clint Jones showed his horror heart by enduring several make-up sessions.  Dave Tunik gave his all in taking another bloody bite out of his role and a gelatin prop.  Jason Wheely gave a heartwrenching performance as a haunted young TV producer.  Jack Stecher pulled out all the stops to give a bravura performance as the crazy caretaker of the opera house.

Special thanks goes out to MVP’S own maestro of make-up FX – Todd A. Britt for bringing all of his Sith talents to bear in creating several macabre make-ups over the course of the fifteen hour marathon.  Additional thanks goes to Sylvia and Sierra for lending their talents to the make-up department by resurrecting our supernatural visitors once more.  Thanks again to Allan Whitley for toughing out another long night to lend a strong hand and keep our boomstick steady for another night.  Special thanks goes out MVP’S own Costume Diva, seamstress and assistant to Mr. Machicao, Angela Pritchett  who although unable to attend our final shoot due to schedule conflicts, put in many a long night on the set of G.H.O.S.T., lending her considerable costuming talents to help bring the production to life.  Thanks to John R. Sexton for putting on a layered performance as Grandfather last month.  Thank you to Kayli Tolleson and her mom Janna for lending their talent, energy and support to G.H.O.S.T. over the course of the shoot.  And last but not least a very special thanks goes to my mom, Momma Streebo, for being a beacon of strength and inspiration to me over the years and for dusting off her sewing machine to create Johnny Reb’s jacket in whole – mere days before the first shoot.  And to anyone that helped that I may have overlooked here, thank you for your help, we could not have done it without you all.  Thank you.

This project has been an amazing journey and I thank you all for sharing it with me.  Production may be complete – but post-production begins immediately as we will continue with editing, sound design and shooting final make-up FX shots of the movie.  Be sure to keep tuning in to Mutantville.com and Mutant TV for your up to the minute news on G.H.O.S.T., C for Chaos, and MVP.

~~Streebo

G.H.O.S.T. Haunts The Opera House Once More.

Last night heralded yet another amazing day of filmmaking on the set of G.H.O.S.T..   We had an absolute blast shooting all of the elements that make horror fun – chases, ghosties, and other supernatural occurrences.   Kathy Sandvoss put on a bravura performance as our gutsy heroine enduring take after take and bump after bump like a seasoned pro.  Jack Stecher brought all of his years of experience to bear to imbue our creepy caretaker with a life of his own.  Clint Jones continued to put on a solid showing as the beleaguered Seth.  Dave Tunik and Jason Wheeley were able to survive a grueling make-up session to bring an amazing sequence of supernatural terror to vivid bloody life.  Scott Thomas had his moment to take the center stage and bring the spirit of our ghost into four colored action!  Thank you to Sylvia and Sierra for coming out and lending their talents as make up assistants again.  Props to our ever reliable boom stick operator Allan Whitley for his sure hand and attentive ear throughout the shoot.  Thanks to Jeremy for lending a hand shooting the behind the scenes segments.  Everyone would like to extend a hearty handshake to Anne Reid for lending her talents as a massage therapist to keep everyone relaxed and loosened up for the duration of the shoot.  Thanks to everyone for staying late and toughing it out.  We are on the home stretch now – with the end in sight.  Next Saturday will mark our final major shoot on the production of G.H.O.S.T. and we couldn’t be more pleased with the results.  This will be an amazing project and you will all be very proud of the final film.  Thank you all – because without you – our movie wouldn’t be possible.

~~Streebo

Blackout Sets G.H.O.S.T. Back By One Week.

We had a rather productive day of filming this past Saturday – productive that is – until we were set to roll the cameras on our finale scenes when we lost all power to the opera house.  We hoped it was nothing more than a tripped breaker or perhaps a blown fuse – but after three hours in the dark – we were worried that it was something a bit more serious.  We sent the cast and crew home only to discover to our pleasant surprise – that the problem was indeed a blown fuse which was easily fixed.  Before losing our power – we were able to shoot two scenes earlier in the day as well as an extended photo shoot featuring our full cast.

With help from assistants Sylvia and Sierra, our make-up FX expert Todd A. Britt was on hand to provide some amazing ghostly make-ups.  Their make-up efforts were not lost as we were able to catch the supernatural victims in an exhaustive series of photos and promo shots.  Expect to see those pop up as promotional posters somewhere down the line.

The producers of Mutantville Productions would like to extend a hearty thank you to our cast and crew.  You all dealt with the delay like real professionals and we were able to make the best out of what was potentially a disastrous situation.  Due to the set-back – we have extended the shooting schedule of G.H.O.S.T. to include November 14th and 21st – giving us just enough time to wrap before Turkey Day!  Thank you all for everything you do.  I look forward to seeing you back on the set for our finale this Saturday!

~~Streebo

G.H.O.S.T. Puts Another Great Week Six Feet Deep!

The Mutantville Players converged upon the haunted opera house in Albemarle, North Carolina for another amazing night of filmmaking last night. We filmed another encounter with something from the other side last night!  I can’t tell you what happened or to whom – but I will say that you will be scared out of your pants – so be sure to wear two pairs when you watch this.

I ran out of ways to describe the talent and enthusiasm we have for this project and find myself resorting to simply telling you that we are doing some of our best work ever. The cast and crew continue to impress with their dedication and professionalism. Please enjoy your rest for the day. We have one more major scene to shoot next week, then we break for Halloween in order to prep for the major finale at the first of November. I continue to feel blessed and honored to work with you all. You inspire me to keep pressing hard working day in and day out to make G.H.O.S.T. the best short horror film of the year. Thank you all.

~~Streebo

Week Two of G.H.O.S.T. In The Can!

I’m quickly running out of superlatives to describe our adventures on the set of G.H.O.S.T.. What can I say? We have an amazing found location with the opera house, we have a talented cast, and a dedicated crew. Everything is going nice and smooth. We had a few crew members forced to withdraw from this weekend’s shoot due to illness – but you were all there in spirit. We hope you recover fast because we need you right back on set next week! Those that were in attendance had a blast as we filmed several key sequences in the film including the creepy caretaker Maximilian’s warning speech as he tries to scare the G.H.O.S.T. team away from the haunted opera house. It wouldn’t be a haunted house movie without a crazy guy trying to scare everyone. Things are proceeding according to plan. There’s still a ton of pre-production, prop work, and designs to be completed before this coming weekend’s shoot – so catch your nap and get ready, G.H.O.S.T. is running ahead at full speed. Thank you all for your hard work. We’ll see you on Saturday!

~~Streebo

Lighting The Way For Another G.H.O.S.T.LY Saturday.

The producers at Mutantville Productions descended upon the historic opera house in downtown Albermarle again last night for another round of light tests and shot preparations.  We spent several hours dressing the various sets for use in this Saturday’s shoot.  We are up against a very tight shooting schedule this Saturday which will see us literally racing against the sun – but we are confident that the hours of preparation will pay off.  Our tests went off without a hitch and no one was possessed by otherworldly spirits or disappeared after dark – but one can hope.  Seriously, if we disappear in the opera house – can you imagine how much publicity we could generate in the media?  Just kidding.  We can’t let anyone disappear until all of our shots are in the can.  We’re looking forward to seeing our amazing cast and crew again this Saturday.  Stay tuned to Mutantville.com for more up to the minute MVP news!

First Day of Shooting G.H.O.S.T. In The Can!

Thank you all for an amazing night of filming last night.  Thanks for making the trip to the opera house to join us.  The opera house was a majestic location and the Mutantville Players couldn’t help but work their magic there.  Sorry that we had to run long – but you were all real troopers.  You were all great.  I couldn’t be happier with the footage.  Get some rest – I can’t wait to see you all again next week!!!