Attack of the Yeti Hand (2009) from Karyn Ben Singer on Vimeo.

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Bad news:  No response from the B Movie Film Fest.  This is sad, because it was a major inspiration in the initial making of Yeti Hand.  But, have no fear, there's still a chance at Tromadance! 

Good news: Attack of the Yeti Hand will be out on DVD in time for the holiday season!  No word on which holiday, just yet.  But we're getting there. 

I'm hoping for a DVD release party before or around Halloween.  SPOOKY!

I case you're not BFFs with Felicia Day on Twitter, you may not have yet heard about the changes being made to the Emmy Telecast. In short, they're pre-taping certain segments that they may be edited and trimmed down in order to "streamline" the broadcast, thus leaving more airtime for "entertainment".

The show's producer, Don Mischer, and host, Neil Patrick Harris issued a response explaining the need for such changes, the main point being that they want to entertain the viewership.

This suggests that writers are not worthy of the viewership. This suggests that writers are boring, that they hold no interest with the public. That time Tina Fey told her dweeby interweb critics to "suck it"? Super boring. Nobody even remembered that the next day. Oh, no wait. They did.

Writers make this business go 'round. Even reality television employs writers to help construct story elements that enable viewers to become more invested in the shows. Actors do not just show up on set and make up their lines. Directors do not simply tell the actors what the story is and guide them through it. They work with scripts. Those scripts are written by writers.

If you love shows like Buffy, Angel, Firefly, Battlestar Galactica, True Blood, Veronica Mars, 30 Rock, Better Off Ted, Friends, Seinfeld, Will & Grace, Law & Order, Burn Notice, The Sopranos, Sex in the City... then you, friend, are a fan of great writing.

If the public viewership doesn't care about writers, it's only because writers are consistently pushed below the radar where they're expected to produce great works for everyone else to use. It's somewhat akin to being the smart kid on the playground, consistently approached to do everyone else's homework, but never invited to eat lunch with the other kids.

If the concern is one of streamlining, why not tape the entire show or run it on some kind of longer delay? Better yet, LEAVE THE SHOW ALONE. If it's too streamlined, when will we have time to use the bathroom or get up for another beer?

Personally, I don't watch the Emmys or Oscars or any award show for the entertainment acts that come between the awards. I watch it FOR the awards. And, as a writer, I want to see my colleagues LIVE and IN REAL TIME waiting and hoping and winning and crying and accepting, just like everyone else.

(If you're into the Twitter, in support of this movement, please use hashtag #emmysfail today)

Attack of the Yeti Hand was accepted to the Broad Humor Film Festival!

It  will screen on Saturday night, June 13th at 10:30pm.  Tickets are now available through the festival website and should be available at the venue (The Electric Lodge in Venice, CA). 

Please, come out and support us!

Today's issue of the AV Press features an article about the movie.  For those of you not local to the AV or if you're reading this after June 7th, 2009, here's a link.

Today, we did a special screening of the movie for the creative writing class at Knight High School.  Overall, it was well received.  They laughed a lot and even caught a few contemporary references that the other audience seemed to miss.  They were the first group to see the movie since the premiere screening, and it really is an experience to see how different groups react.

Most importantly, they really appeared to enjoy themselves.

Of course, I gave them free stuff, so maybe they were biased.

Still no word from the Broad Humor Film Festival.  They said they'd notify, either way, by the end of this week.

Just wanted to put a blip back on the radar.  I'm still trying to get a few technical details sorted out so I can start entering the festival circuit.

The first on the list is the Broad Humor Film Festival and the deadline is next week.  So, I'd best get a move on.

Also, here's a shout out to the KHS Creative Writing Class who will be spending the month of April knee-deep in the Script Frenzy.  The were kind enough to let me talk to them about format and they were an awesome audience.

For some reason, the link to the trailer isn't working.  Until I can get home and fix it, I'll embed it here.

I met Chris Hernandez back in 1997. It was the height of indie fever in the Antelope Valley. Everyone I knew was working on a screenplay or talking about the movie they wanted to shoot. It was a lot like now, but with more flannel. Actually, flannel's back, so it was just a lot like now.

It's been over a decade since those long nights in Carrow's (back when they were open 24 hours) where a notorious game of Star Wars Monopoly resulted in broken friendships. The details are hazy, now. And we've all since grown up.

When I first mentioned my plan for this movie, it was in passing, at a party. I didn't even have a script ready. But Chris immediately said he'd love to work on it. I knew he'd been working for some fancy shmancy shows, doing something related to editing and the fact that he offered up his services for free excited me. It was probably one of the earliest moments in the course of the production where I felt like it just might happen.

A year later, I'd written the script, started pre-production, and Chris was still on board. Although, it was around this time that he realized it was a feature and not a short. I'm glad he still stuck around.

After filming, I handed over my envelope full of MiniDV tapes and entrusted him with what was the biggest personal achievement of my adult life. I say “was” because it has since been overshadowed by the finished product.

And, getting to that finished product meant working with an understanding and professional editor. I think, if I hadn't known Chris all these years, it would have been a great experience, but the fact that he's known me for so long and understands what I like, even just as a moviegoer, everything fell easily into place.

The only downside to our dynamic duo is our amazing powers of procrastination. Had we really buckled down, this movie probably could have cut together a month after production wrapped.

But all things happen in time, and I'm proud of what's come out of it, yeti hand and all.