As you may know, we’ve brought our film production from Grand Rapids, Michigan down to Saltillo to assist our friend and director, Joel Vallie, in producing a feature film, a microbudget experience with a hundred headaches but a thousand grins. So when he writes a scene that has 100 demons in make-up running down Mexican streets, I might be tempted to say, “Oh, Joel. That ain’t gonna work. How are we gonna feed them? Where are they going to make their water? No one is going to show up anyway…and if they do who is going to do the demon make-up?” And his response was always the same, “Don’t worry about it. I’ll get on it.” So we didn’t worry, trusted his favor, and sure enough, he delivered by bringing Hawgfly Productions on to set last week.

This movie has some intense special effects make-up and we needed a team that was up for the challenge. Meredith Johns (co-owner) recently finished up working on “Spy Kids 4″, this year’s Coen Brother’s movie “True Grit”, and last year, she was the head make-up artist on Robert Rodriguez’s “Machete” (which by the way, if you haven’t seen, is a 2010 gem that was overlooked). So what is she doing on a film where we’re paying people in tacos? Cause she loves film and helping directors reach their vision…on any level.

So, she brought down three amazingly talented, patient, hard working make-up artists with her and they worked magic on a very small budget, utilizing freaky contact lens, patented Hawgfly blood, tattoos of veins, and dentures that would scare even your father. We would’ve loved to have spent $5,000 dollars on face molds and all that good stuff but unfortunately it’ll have to wait for the next time.

See a very brief picture show of the process here:

A relatively clean Ben Chamberlain

Applying some vein tattoos h'yeah!

He passes it to the man...

And BOOM goes the dynamite!

Pretty cool, huh? And we also had to make up our 27-year old production assistant as an old lady demon:

Ah, yes. It’s been good times down here. We’re on Day 19 of 20 today and everybody’s about to roll out of here tired and exhausted but, we think, rewarded. We have 5 days of film production for this movie scheduled in Michigan in April that we will need some help on (and by help, I do mean “free labor”). So who’s interested?!

More later.

PS. Somewhere on this trip, our little Gorilla van that can has developed a new rattling somewhere in the undercarriage, but she’s still running like Prefontaine. 2,800 miles and counting on this trip…

Well, we just about made it through week one before the press showed up. See the article here: VANGUARDIA NOTICIAS

Joel (our director) claimed that he wanted to shoot this film on the down low, not attracting any attention – especially that of the press. But my gutty parts tell me otherwise. Look at that “working pose” he strikes in the Vanguardia article. Something tells me he’s enjoying this. And here are some more photos from the week!!

Actors Ben Chamberlain and Kristen Barrett

Kaelin (actor) getting bloody ...

Gabe, Eric, Joel, and Mike involved in man talk

We didn't know how to film the scene where the car hits Ben without making it cheesy. So we just hit him.

We're filming with this stud, Ernesto D'Alessio. The senoritas love him.

Ernesto's adoring fans show up all the time and he delivers autographs like I deliver high fives. Quite freely.

More soon. Thanks for tuning in.

After 27 hours, 160 gallons of fuel, eight pounds of fast food, and a jumbo bucket of David’s sunflower seeds, Eric Machiela got the Gorilla van to the Tex/Mex border …

– and met up with Mexican superstar Joel Vallie who guided him over the Rio Grande. We drove a nice three + hours through the mountains, across untouched terrain, on down to Saltillo, Coahuila. (Click below for the lowest quality video of all time.)

Drive to Saltillo — In Video Form!

Why embark on such an adventure? Well, for the next 6 weeks, Gorilla — in partnership with Joel Vallie … and basically the whole town of Saltillo — is going to be heading up perhaps the most all intensive film production that we have ever undertaken. We love the work that we’ve been blessed with over the past few years (and we will continue to partner with clients in our life long goal of world domination), but as filmmakers, we’ve always wanted to produce and be a part of feature films, that is, long-form narrative storytelling.

As life goes, a few years back, we met a missionary/speaker/drug rehab leader/filmmaker, Joel Vallie, living in Mexico who had already directed a feature film, Corazon de Campeon. It was (how to be nice here…?) a quality effort but was limited by low production value in what it could do. In where it could go. Joel told Gorilla about another script he was developing and we jumped at the chance to partner with him, to make this film come alive.

Eric Machiela is first to arrive, laying the tracks for the other guys when they arrive. The other guys being Eric Johnson, Chad Terpstra, Derek Street, Gabe Berghuis, Ben Chamberlain, and Michael Amman. Everyone who is a part of this production is giving so much time and effort, working for tacos, and sacrificing a lot so let’s give them a digital round of applause!

More photos and info will be showing up here on this blog as the production goes along. And just cause she’s adorable, a picture of our makeup lady:

We have Updated the St Michael’s Abbey piece with a great new VO by Dave Pettitt. Details are copied below:

Round about two months ago, our friends at Mpower Pictures contacted us about flying out to California to capture the beautiful life of the Norbertine community at St. Michael’s Abbey. (Scroll down a few entries to read all the details and see some pics.) We are pleased to present the finished film just below! (If you have time to watch it, make sure you turn the HD on and pop it full screen.)

This experience/film production/idea was different from what Gorilla usually produces — and that’s what made the process of creating it so refreshing and rewarding. Again, kudos to cinematographer Tanner Wolfe for bringing his RED camera skills to the film production and to David Michael Phelps for his brilliant scribing of the script. Also, a big round of applause goes to Kyle Campbell for scoring the music. His tones always inspire a little party in my ears.

And lastly, all the thanks goes to the Fathers of St. Michael’s Abbey who displayed nothing but trust, patience, and incredible humility in helping us produce this film for them.

Round about two months ago, our friends at Mpower Pictures contacted us about flying out to California to capture the beautiful life of the Norbertine community at St. Michael’s Abbey. (Scroll down a few entries to read all the details and see some pics.) We are pleased to present the finished film just below! (If you have time to watch it, make sure you turn the HD on and pop it full screen.)

This experience/film production/idea was different from what Gorilla usually produces — and that’s what made the process of creating it so refreshing and rewarding. Again, kudos to cinematographer Tanner Wolfe for bringing his RED camera skills to the film production and to David Michael Phelps for his brilliant scribing of the script and his voice-over work. Also, a big round of applause goes to Kyle Campbell for scoring the music. His tones always inspire a little party in my ears.

And lastly, all the thanks goes to the Fathers of St. Michael’s Abbey who displayed nothing but trust, patience, and incredible humility in helping us produce this film for them.

It’s cliché, but where in the H does time go? We’re nearly in the smack dab middle of 2010 and I feel as though I just cracked the New Year’s cork a few weeks ago. C’est la vie. But the mid-year point got us to discussing, why shouldn’t we blog about five things that have very little to do with Gorilla film production? No reason not to!

1.) A small rant here but where have all the good movies gone this year? Disappointing films (e.g. Iron Man 2, Alice in Wonderland) and flat-out flops (e.g. MacGruber, Cop Out) have reigned supreme. Box-office receipts seem okay, considering, but that’s only because they’re gouging our wallets with sharpened spears, turning everything into 3-D and expecting us to pay for it. We’re forced to digest remakes (e.g. The Crazies, Clash of the Titans) and this weekend is giving us two 80’s remakes: The Karate Kid and The A-Team – do we really think these are going to be any good? The one shining moment in the first half of ’10 has to be How to Train Your Dragon. A delightful romp and guaranteed to be near the top of this guy’s best movies of the year list. Especially the way things are going. Come on, Hollywood. If you won’t make OUR movies, make something we want to watch, eh?

2.) The Waterfront Film Festival starts tonight in Saugatuck, Michigan. It celebrates some of the best filmmakers in this here state and beyond. Two such filmmakers being Alexander Caleb Slain and Jared Rummel, whose relentless efforts alongside us scrappers at Gorilla, brought to life “The Lost & Found Shop” – showing this weekend at the festival. Since this is about the 83rd time we’ve blogged about this movie, you’ll know we’re mighty proud of this little film that could and the collaboration that happened to make it so stinkin’ neat. (I realize that this has more than “very little” to do with Gorilla film production but I promise from here on out…nothing but nonsense.)

3.) Speaking of short films, the guys at Gorilla Pictures were recently exposed to this YOUTUBE TRAILER for a movie called (simply) “Movie Title”. It’s a trailer that celebrates all movie previews clichés … and I wish I had made it. Kudos to the minds behind this. Funny stuff.

4.) Coincidence? Fate? For all the dreamers out there, check this STORY out. Guy meets girl. They fall in love; they get engaged. Then, looking through photos for the wedding day, they realize that they had been in the same place, at the same time … 15 years before. Even the filmmakers at Gorilla have a soft spot for this balderdash.

5.) And last but not least, World Cup Soccer begins tomorrow!! Get your red, white and blue on (or whatever colors you bleed), grab a noisemaker, and turn it to ESPN because this once in a four-year event only happens every … well, four years. Eric Johnson and Eric Machiela have a soft spot for the World Cup and the immense popularity of it. Four years ago, just before the 2006 World Cup, they worked with Athletes in Action in seven (7) different countries, capturing the stories of several international soccer players. If you care – and you should, go back to the home page, click on the Project Map and navigate your mouse to Cote D’Ivoire (West Africa for the geographically illiterate), Germany, South Korea, Spain, or the U.K. and catch an excerpt. This is the world’s greatest sporting event, as evidenced by THIS PHOTO. No but seriously…it’s sweet.

That’s all for now. Enjoy the rest of 2010!

So if you’re familiar with all things Gorilla, you know that in January we partnered with writer/director Caleb Slain and producer Jared Rummel to help bring to life THE LOST & FOUND SHOP. A copy of the Press Release can be seen here: Press Release – Lost and Found Shop

The 8-minute film did very well in an online film festival and is just now beginning its rounds in “real-life” film festivals, starting this weekend at the Waterfront Film Festival in Saugatuck, Michigan. It’s playing both Saturday and Sunday. If you’re in the area and want to come support the film, click this link for more information on the when and where: Film Festival Favorites Short Film Program

And if you can’t make it out for our showing, well then a.) Shame on you and b.) come on down at any rate and support film production and exhibition in the oft-great state of Michigan! Hope to see someone besides us there!

And check another one off the list of things to do before we die: Filming the serene, beautiful life of Norbertine monks.

We recently got back from the picturesque hills (or mountains…I don’t know the difference) of Orange County, California, after capturing the happenings of St. Michael’s Abbey, a Norbertine community. Gorilla Pictures sent Eric Machiela and David Michael Phelps to Los Angeles, where they met up with cinematographer Tanner Wolfe. The three of them piled copious amounts of film gear into a Dodge Journey (no wonder the American car companies are having a problem selling vehicles) and drove east to Silverado CA, where they spent four days filming the Norbertine fathers in all their glory. The piece was concepted by Dave Phelps (along with the tutelage of the Norbertines) to be a “visual poem” of sorts, heavily reliant on its images and music. What we saw through the viewfinder looked great — now it’s just a matter of piecing it together. And crossing our fingers.

BONUS: Photos below! As you can see, it’s always amazing where film production takes us.

Hey reader – hope you enjoyed your transition into Daylight Savings Time as much as we did! A few bits of info regarding Gorilla Pictures and its band of merry men:

1.) Gorilla Pictures’ film production “The Lost and Found Shop” has made the top 20 films at the online film festival, The Doorpost. Congratulations to writer/director Caleb Slain and producers Jared Rummel and Aaron Smith for their tireless efforts. But before you start high fiving your neighbor, understand that it is just the first step of the competition, which is a multi-tiered operation. The next step is for all 20 filmmakers who passed the first round to draft a brand new screenplay on a specific topic (i.e. Truth, Hope, Sacrifice, etc.), of which only 5 will be chosen to be produced with a $40,000 budget. Fingers crossed (and under the creative endeavors of Caleb Slain & Co.), Gorilla will be informing you of great news within the next month or two.

2.) Gorilla also recently wrapped up post-production on a job for Crowe Horwath, LLP. The collaboration and partnership with them went great, as they entrusted us to tell their recent success story. We will be posting the work on our website shortly. Special thanks to Crowe’s client, Miami-Dade County Juvenile Services Department, for letting us take over their offices for a few days over the first week of March. And for all the patience and understanding they had while being so new to the oddity of film production.

3.) In case you don’t yet know, Gorilla Pictures now has its very own App! You can get it at the iTunes store. Just search: “Gorilla Production Reel”. We had someone download it from Taiwan earlier today. I guess this means we can finally put “internationally renowned” on our business cards.

4.) And lastly, we are happy to announce that we were recognized as one of the top production companies in film and television in the Grand Rapids Business Journal. Thanks to everyone who has partnered with us and trusted us to tell their story. More great things in 2010, we’re sure…

Adventures and mayhem loom on the horizon but we’ll get to them as they approach. Enjoy the opening rounds of March Madness! (And yet, because I’m aware that no one in film, video, or television production ever watches sports, I’m assuming that that phrase meant nothing to you.)

Last week, Gorilla filmmakers had good reason to rejoice. Our most recent project, produced for Grand Rapids’ own Crowe Horwath, took place at the Miami-Dade Juvenile Assessment Center in Miami, Florida. Although far from a vacation, it turns out that just working in a climate opposite to freezing Michigan is reason to celebrate.

The film will document Crowe’s successful implementation of “Quest,” a powerful software program designed to bring data organization and advanced analytics capabilities to Miami-Dade’s internationally recognized Juvenile System. The tale we’ve captured is somewhat surprising, as it is not a story of data analytics but rather of an organization empowered to influence the lives of the children struggling in their community.

It’s an interesting story to tell, and it reflects our desire to the discover the humanity in all of the projects we undertake – Commercial, Corporate, and Entertainment alike.

An especially big thanks to Derek Street, Tyler Garret and Ryan P. Photography for joining Gorilla on the project and working far beyond expectations.