written by Julia Morizawa

I'm not going to lie. After spending 2012 editing "JesusCat" and 2013 doing the whole film festival thing, I was feeling pretty burned out by the time 2014 came around. Since I'm really just an actor, all this producing and editing and distribution stuff has all been self-taught through trial and error and the help of the World Wide Web. Which means it's been quite slow-going and challenging. But the final chapter in this do-it-yourself journey is what the industry calls... distribution. 

Of course, distribution for this type of project through, say, a distribution company, is not really an option. No names, no budget, no nudity. Which led us to the prospect of self-distribution. And fortunately for us, Amazon's CreateSpace, will allow us to do just that.

So I've spent 2014 preparing the movie for DVD and streaming release. First I re-watched just about all of the original footage. Yep, that's right. I re-watched and re-edited 12 hours of improvised footage. Which took a very, very, very long time. But the result is some totally awesome DVD bonus features showcasing footage that didn't make it into the final film and a hilarious blooper reel. This additional editing was followed by learning some basics in DVD authoring to create a menu. Using Sony Vegas, Sony DVD Architect Pro, free online tutorials (most thanks to www.moviestudiozen.com), and again, a lot of trial and error, I was able to piece together a simple but creative DVD menu for your enjoyment.

I think the most valuable thing I learned in this process is how to use a bitrate calculator to render video down to the appropriate size in my editing software. And to NOT use the DVD authoring software to compress video. I did that the first time and it took over 24 hours for the DVD to burn. I guess that's what happens when you're compressing approximately 150 gigs of high-definition footage down to fit on a 4.7 gig disc.

The next step from here is to send all the necessary files to CreateSpace and to approve a proof. We're really looking forward to sharing "JesusCat" on a wider-scale and hope that the response continues to be positive. We expect the DVD will be available online somewhere between the end of October and mid-November. We'll announce of the official release here!

Written by Shaina Vorspan

Last week, we had the pleasure of screening at the Action on Film Festival in Monrovia, California (a lovely city near Pasadena with a quaint downtown area).  Although we enjoyed our experience at the L.A. Comedy Fest, there's something even more special about screening in an actual movie theater!  Julia and I sat at the top in our comfy seats, hoping not to throw up, as we prayed our film would play with no problems (because that's something you have intense nightmares about when you're screening at a festival).

As soon as I heard "Hello world!" chime on the screen by Elise Lee Kim Park (you really have to make it to a screening so you know what I'm talking about), my hands unclenched and I sat back and enjoyed the experience.  The sound was great, the picture was amazing, and we had many new audience members viewing that weren't at our premiere.  

The entire Action On experience made me feel lucky.  The festival had an overwhelming feeling of support due to the hard work of Del Weston (the creator of AOF) and his team, not to mention the encouragement of other filmmakers (I only wish I had more time to see their projects!).  Julia and I attended a few seminars and had the pleasure of networking with some great people, including Matthew Chandler and Craig Lewis who screened their hilarious pilot Don't Take this the Wrong Way in our block.  

Our feeling of support was furthered by our nominations for Best Comedy Feature, the Xristos Award, and our Movie Heroes Rising Star Award win (thank you Matt Sconce and Keith Walker)!  It's always nice to feel validated, and the Action on Film Fest did just that.

Thank you to everyone who made it to the screening, everyone at the festival, and all of our supporters!  

Written by Shaina Vorspan

So there we were, snorting coke off of cheap mirrors and dancing on tables when we realized stuff was getting way too serious and we needed some comic relief.

For those of you who are worried I'm a coke addict, I am referring to the original play Twenty-Two which Julia wrote and we co-produced and co-starred in (which you'd know if you read Julia's post below...which I recommend).  

I have always loved working on my own projects, because in my experience those seem to be the projects I really enjoy working on and feel the most proud of....and then there's the fact that sometimes the only way to "make it" as an actor in L.A. is to create your own opportunities...instead of sitting around in uncomfortable rooms with twenty girls wearing shirts they think are dresses, apparently auditioning for the same role as you which you had no idea was a prostitute (hint: it's not)...but I digress...

The point is, I like working on projects where I don't have to sit in those rooms feeling sorry for myself, but where I can sit in those rooms knowing that no matter what, I have my own amazing project I'm taking control of (with little, to no "prostitutes").

JesusCat came to life over several Denny's pre-production meetings, shoot days spread out over a few months, and "Editing Thursdays" at Julia's apartment.  We owe much of our success to Google Drive (which at the time was Google Docs), Costco's cheap bulk snack items, and of course the amazing talent and support of our friends and family.

We wanted to work on a film where we'd get to "play" with our funny friends. JesusCat is the result.  And along the way, we realized we might even have a good story to tell.

I could go into grave detail about the ups and downs (not too many downs, luckily...but if you work for Final Cut Pro 7, I have both a "thank you" gift and a sternly worded letter for you), but that might be best served during a Q & A at one of our large screenings we will be having (let's be optimistic, right?).  

And now, I'd like to take a moment and be completely immodest in saying I am extremely proud of the work Julia and I have done over the past couple of years. JesusCat may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I hope you'll at least take a sip....(sorry, I set myself up for that one).

Written by Julia Morizawa

I can't believe it's been, like, two years that we've been working on "JesusCat (or How I Accidentally Joined a Cult)." Oh, wait. Yes, I can. In fact, two years is really quite nothing in the world if independent film. I guess I'm just anxious to get it out there, and maybe even seen by people other than our significant others. But I wanted to take a moment to sort of, reminisce about this whole process - or at least how I remember it.

In 2010 my original play, "Twenty-Two" premiered in Los Angeles. This was Shaina and my first collaboration, which we also co-produced and co-starred in. It was extremely heavy and largely autobiographical, and somewhere during that process we voiced that our next collaboration certainly needed to be a comedy. And voila! Somewhere between then and the following year, we agreed upon an idea that involved Shaina playing a cult leader and me playing a documentary filmmaker that followed her around. And like many good mockumentaries, we figured it should be improvised. But mainly we just wanted to have fun. We specifically wanted a "side" project that we wouldn't have to get severe anxiety over. We figured - no script, no budget, no crew - no stress! I'm sure this concept could be easily argued, but we just wanted to be able to shoot most of the project with no one but the two of us, cast our friends in all the supporting roles, and just do this in our "spare time." 

Well, what started as a "side" project, quickly became my "primary" project (and often my "only" project). Shaina and I spent a few months, maybe, drafting a story outline so we'd have some sort of structure to improvise around. Also, we needed some kind of "script" to submit to SAG (now SAG-AFTRA). We chose a "New Media" contract for this project, because it's really the only union contract that actors can afford, and our original plan was to create a webseries. I mean, everyone's doing it, right? I had attended a seminar on creating new media content a while back and was advised that even if you're releasing a webseries, you should plan to shoot and cut it like a feature film that runs about 88 minutes because that's how you get distribution overseas or something. So we decided to follow that advice. Well, lo and behold, somewhere in this process, it dawned on us that the story could really work as an awesome feature-length film. And that we should submit it to festivals and stuff. And, if anything, we can still always chop it up and release it episodically on You Tube down the line.

During pre-production we went to Denny's a lot, polished the story outline, drafted contracts, worked on scheduling and budgeting and watched some Christopher Guest movies. Our schedule consisted of twenty-two shoot days (we also had twenty-two line items in our budget), but those shoot days were spread out over approximately one year. Since we cast all our friends and did not pay them, we had to work around people's day-jobs and other endeavors. This proved difficult as some of us worked 9-to-5, while others waited tables or worked weekends mostly. We had to be flexible (a character trait I continue to struggle with), because sometimes at the last minute a cast-member had to work and just couldn't be at the shoot. So we'd have to come up with some way to explain why people were missing from scenes. One of my favorite "cover-ups" was the fact that we'd been shooting primarily in my apartment, and somewhere mid-way through production, my partner and I had purchased a fancy HD TV and replaced my old-school TV. So we had to work the new TV into the story, which ultimately served us well. Now that I think about it, I actually don't know if we ever see my old TV in the current cut of the film. Oh well.

After about 6 months of production, say, once or twice a week, Shaina and I started editing. We had about 12 hours of footage and we slowly shaved it down to 8 hours, then 6 hours, then 3 and so on. We had to work around a lot of breaks - meaning, breaking of character because we'd start laughing. After another 6 months of editing, we had trimmed the film down to about 90 minutes and scheduled some pick-ups with the primary ensemble cast to help us fill in some gaps in the storyline or clarify specific points. And tomorrow (literally), Shaina and I will be incorporating some editing ideas given to us from our test audience into the final cut. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Well, it's not, actually, because it's today and tomorrow is in the future so it can't technically be "history" - or can it?