LAIR LINES

The Wraith: Eyes of Judgment director/co-writer Stephen J. Semones (as well as the occasional other member of the cast/crew) will keep everyone up-to-date in a regular journal/blog re-counting his experiences working on directing this exciting new film... March 24 2005 Feeling much better about the upcoming night shoot, I decided to take it easy and capture Tuesdays footage for Alex Riback (editor). Anyway, as I captured, I noticed something. We are making a REALLY GOOD movie here. Playing it back I could see how much the cast were enjoying their roles. I could see it in their eyes. Though they're not professional actors, they were enjoying the freedom of the roles and it shows through. We got to the location, but this time with Nathan. We had to wait a bit on the Coopers to arrive, but once they did, it was the same tension again. Can we pull this off again? Between my wonderful comments of the previous shoot, and Nathan there to fulfill his acting and dialogue coaching duties, it wasn't long before we were off filming and half-way done. We flew through it with a vengeance. After the initial few rough takes at the beginning of the night, it was nailed take after take after take to a golden perfection. It got to the point where all of us were throwing out ideas for the shots\scenes\dialogue inflections\etc... and we were all enjoying it. The fear of bringing these emotions out scared us all. We were scared of the result we could get. Looking back, I'm glad I was scared. I'm glad David and Stacie were scared. It allowed us to step outside the box and deliver a non-traditional look at a love story. It also allowed us to explore ourselves and collaborate as a group. We went through group therapy in two nights, but at 1:30 Friday morning, I called "wrap". That was it. Before we knew it, we were done. Great footage, awesome performances, and we achieved what we thought we may not be able to do. We're all proud now of what it took from us to do these 6.5 pages of script. Thursday night was also kind of a sad time for us all. We're now finished with everything Nathan and Stacie are in, so they're no longer required for filming. They're done and just going to sit back and wait for the premiere. Well, Nathan won't because he'll be there coaching dialogue and throwing out his patented "Nathanisms". I'd like to take a minute and say that it was my pleasure filming these two actors and I can't wait to show them all their hard work. That goes to show you how close we are to wrapping this thing up. We are literally thisclose to finishing this baby up and releasing it upon the world. I'll be releasing another webdoc really soon. I know about every Lair Line I say that, but I've got one in progress now and hope to have it finished within a week. I hope everyone is looking close to seeing this film. We'll be sending out a press release for the premiere at the Abingdon Cinemall, so be sure to mark your calenders. Until Then............ Stephen March 22 2005 I'm not ready for this. That's exactly what I said Tuesday morning. I spent Monday night reviewing the script and making my little infamous storyboards. I was about to (over the course of two nights) film what was the emotional explosion in the film. Taking place at the climax, our beloved Michael Reeve and Leena Patterson come to a cross-road in their relationship. Was I ready to film this? No. Did I have to? Yes. My problem isn't because of lack of faith in the script/actors/crew etc... It was because this is the first time filming something so emotionally deep as these 6.5 pages from the script. I feel somewhat uncomfortable trying to (as the director) pull such emotions from my cast. I'm used to comedic dialogue, or shooting people, etc... and this was a complete opposite shoot from what I'm used to. We were only able to shoot basically after 8pm on Tuesday and Thursday nights. If we didn't get done Thursday, we'd carry it over to Saturday and wrap then. Luckily, we got it in two days. The cast called for David and Stacie Cooper and Nathan Blevins. Nathan comes and goes throughout these 6.5 pages, so naturally we broke it up. Nathan could only be there Thursday night, so Tuesday we shot as much as possible without him. The scene originally called for the location to be in a bedroom. Well, late last week I decided we really couldn't get a bedroom that would suit us all without shooting on a greenscreen. I've already gave Marc Kimball (the FX Wizard!-- He's like Gandalf -- makes magic happen!) enough greenscreen headache, so the probable solution was to change the location. I thought about it and realized my parents were going out of town. They have a nice living room that could work... so... hey mom? Can I use your house? Needless to say, when the Cooper's arrived Tuesday night at my parents house, they were also nervous about what we were about to film. It's because we're all used to a different style of filmmaking. These two nights of filming were about to whip our asses and we knew it. Ty was with me both nights easing my burden. He kept assuring me that we had nothing to worry about and I kept assuring him I had my concerns. I can write emotional, but can I direct it? That was it. That was what I kept thinking about. Then we started. After a few rough takes, we got through the first two shots with ease. Then we started rolling with the environment, each other, and the script. We created greatness out of fear. Stephen March 13 2005 A few more Film Stills have been added to that section of the site. More coolness to come soon :) Frank March 1 2005 Well, right now I'm watching the Oscars and I'm suffering the second hour blahs. Anyway, this sparks some thought in me as I sit and watch this brainless brown-nosing. Anyhow, apparently there are short film achievements at the Academy Awards. This brings me to thinking back over the course of filming The Wraith, and though not Oscar-worthy, we have achieved more than we ever set out to and will be delivering a tremendous film. This brings me to thinking... will we win any awards for the film? Will it bring a cult following? Will people love/hate it? I don't have the answers to these questions, but what I can tell you from having this week off from my real job to play "catch up" and get more of this film done, we're going to break the boundaries of no-budget filmmaking. Is this deserving of an Academy Award? Honestly? Yes it is. I plan on breaking boundaries with this film. There shouldn't be a line drawn by Hollywood in the sand. I believe I'm put here to help filmmakers prove that creativity will prevail over the system. Well, maybe not, but it's gonna be a fun battle. I started my "vacation" on Monday and immediately started planning the next two months out. Though it's now Sunday and I still don't have all the holes filled, I know exactly what I have left to shoot and how I want to shoot. This week I spent two 12 hour days back to back in front of my camera and computer. I went through 15 tapes (that's 15 hours) worth of footage and compiled it down to two and a half tapes for Alex the editor and about half a tape for Marc the fx guru. I went through every shot and copied each take I thought we could use. This is VERY VERY time consuming and can lead to goggle eyes, cramped eyebrows, and wrist crackling. I suffered through it and in about 3 or 4 days, these guys are going to have everything we've shot thus far. I've seen some stuff already from Marc and Alex I must say, everyone is going to be SHOCKED!!! Yesterday we were scheduled to shoot on top of an 8 story building. The maintenance man whom I spoke to twice this week assured me he'd show up to let us in so we'd have access to the roof. Guess what?? He never showed. I called him 1 hour after he was supposed to show up and basically he had no excuse other than laziness. This screwed up my shot, but as always, I had a contingency plan. I took external shots of the building in hopes that our fx wizard, Marc, can use it somehow for what we had planned. We were shooting two scenes and two different "shots" for the film. One scene was scheduled for on top of the building, which I had to change to alley-level, and I was honestly pissed at this point. I had David Cooper in costume. It was literally about 30 degrees at 10 pm and I had my four year old son Sean with me visiting the shoot. A building and it's warmth were far from us at this point. The last shoot we were on we were asked to leave the alley. We had a backup anyway, but still. It's the trials of no-budget filmmaking. Now, what I did shoot was wonderful. I had done the voice-overs for these scenes on Thursday with Nathan Blevins (Max), so I shaped our changed location scene around the dialogue Nathan done. It worked perfectly and will blend very well into the next part once edited. My only real gripe is the lack of rooftop scenery, but the new location is very creepy and gothic in apperance and will blend smoothly into the next scene. The last scene we shot was another voice-over scene that I did part of with Nathan on Thursday as well. It's basically of The Wraith prowling the streets and alleys and recieves a call from Max. This scene will take place near the end of the film (hint, hint) and the angle is just perfect to blend with the music and impending climax. It's a scene that will be one single shot\angle and will look VERY cool when edited together. We basically have five shoots left and we're done. This could be like five or six weeks, but we're almost there. Tomorrow I'm mailing off everything we've shot thus far so post-production will be short once we wrap. I'll be sending more footage as we go and hopefully by June or July, all our questions will be answered. The Wraith is coming very soon and I assure everyone that this will suprise you. Reviewing everything we've done so far in shooting this week has opened my eyes to what all the hard work has gone to. I'm proud to have been a part of this filmmaking endeavor and I'm proud of everyone involved. It's been a tough road, but worth every step of the way so far. Thanks to everyone involved and who has worked so hard in making this fanboys dream come true. I can't wait to see you all on the "red carpet"... ha! Until Next Time........ Stephen February 28 2005 While Stephen and the team work continue working on the film over the weekend (with updates on said filming coming up shortly), 2 new fx test shots have been added to page 4 of the Film Stills section of the site. Make sure to head there to get a preliminary sneak peak at The Wraith's Lair. Still just test footage at the moment, but even in this rough state, our visual effects supervisor Marc Kimball is creating some stellar work. Just wait until you see the finished, end product... you'll be astounded at the quality we're creating here. Frank February 13 2005 Sacrifice. It not only describes the story of the newest superhero film, The Wraith: Eyes of Judgment, but the story behind it as well. I met with the director, Stephen Semones, at his home, in Bristol, Tennessee, late the Friday before last. Stephen sacrifices a large portion of his paycheck to see that this film gets made, all the while having enough to pay the bills and put food on the table. We spent the first part of the night looking at The Wraith costume, eating very good pizza, and talking about comic book movies. Then it was time to get down to the business of the day that lay ahead. Stephen showed me his work area, a cozy kind of office that shared room with his hall of fame (pictures and memorabilia of famous people). We then started looking at several pieces from the still unfinished film. We went through some very good scenes between Robert Latham, played by Rick McVey and Charlie Grieco, played by David Semones; scenes between The Wraith (David Cooper, who is referred to as Coop) and Leena Patterson (Stacie Cooper); as well as bloopers (very funny). However, for these pieces, it wasn’t just the acting and script that stood out. It was the lighting and camera positions; it was the little things that were found by paying close attention to the film. Things that can separate a good film from a bad one, things that make movies spectacular. After the prep work was done, Stephen showed his generosity again by setting me up in a hotel room. During my time spent at his house, I also had the honor of meeting his wife and young son. At the age of four, his knowledge of superheroes could easily put many to shame. As Stephen showed me around the next day, I realized why Bristol was the perfect location for filming. At first glance we see a city that tries to put on a bright and shiny face. A city that builds new, technologically innovative libraries, a city that is on the move, a city that reinvents itself. However, underneath that bright and shiny makeup is a city that is falling apart. You can’t see it at first, the little empty buildings, the crumbling separating brick, the homeless, and the despair, but it slowly creeps into your system and soon it is the only thing that you see. This city (like the one in the Eyes of Judgment) needs saving. After going around a bit, Stephen took me to the local comic book shop. This is where we met Dietrich Adetayo (the special effects coordinator). We then went to the locations that he was going to shoot later that night. As we were going about from location to location, we finally met up with his assistant director (Tyrell Kelsey) and his assistant (who Stephen lovingly refers to as Bitch 1 and Bitch 2). As we continued our journey, I had the great time of talking to Tyrell. Tyrell, like Stephen, is making sacrifices for this film. His dedication to this project far succeeds that of his education. In order to make this film, he is taking a semester off of school. More on Tyrell later. After Tyrell and his assistant talked to me for a while we met up with Otto played by Joey Hale. Joey was not originally cast to play Otto, but was picked at the last minute after Stephen had some disagreements with the original actor. Now it was time for the rehearsing/shooting, which we spent all day on. On this day, I looked past the script, the acting, and the special effects. I truly wish that this was the story that the audiences were going to see. This was not one man directing a movie, but a whole cast. They conversed, disagreed, and most importantly showed their passion for this film. A passion that puts even the greatest directors in Hollywood to shame. What if, I thought to myself, all movies could be filmed like this? If stupid egos and that damn money were put aside and then passion would be the only thing to guide a film. I say this especially of Tyrell. As I saw him spout out ideas (which some we took and others we didn’t), show me the quaintness of sound as he ate potato chips in front of the camera (I had earphones on, listening on what sounds the camera’s microphone picked up), and direct several scenes I noticed a glimmer of genius. A glimmer of genius I hope is recognized one day. It was during rehearsal/shooting where Joey made his sacrifice. Even though he wasn’t originally cast, Joey made a point of making his character stand out. For Stephen, perhaps it was this opening scene that his whole film was to ride on, if this first scene fails it may prove disaster for the whole film. In order to make this character, The Wraith, believable (the whole movie counted on the believability of a “ghost like” superhero scaring the crap out of criminals and their mob bosses) the reaction of these first characters that The Wraith meets has to be believable. Realizing this, Joey gained cuts, scrapes, bruises, and a busted toe (he accidentally ran into a wall and had to limp throughout the rest of the shoot). After the main scenes were shot, it was almost time for The Wraith to show up. For me, I couldn’t wait, after seeing footage of how well the costume turned out. . . I just had to see this for myself. The Wraith showed up around eight or nine in the evening (with his friend Randy Stout—who plays Eight Ball in the film). I couldn’t have met a more down to earth actor in my life. David Cooper has the rare talent of turning his Wraith character on and off at will. While the camera was rolling David Cooper was The Wraith and while they were off, he entertained us with several Rodney Dangerfield jokes. He had made his own sacrifices as well, but what they were, he would never tell. With him, the cast and crew began filming their final scenes. As the final scenes were being shot the cast and crew had to deal with the cold weather, their weary bodies, farts, and sexual advances from The Wraith himself (whether they were wanted or unwanted remains to be seen. . . lol). There I was, after all of the handshakes and “thank yous”, in my hotel room thinking on the whole day. I began my set report as things still remained fresh in my memory. And now it has come down to the sad facts. Now it has come down to the harsh reality. It would be a nice world where hard workers could get their way; however, it is not that kind of world. One question lingered in my mind, is this film going to be successful? By that I mean financially successful. There is a great chance that it won’t. The odds are stacked against it, heavily. Or are they? Stephen Semones is planning to show this film at conventions in England and here in the states (and getting a cinema release - Frank). Even Hollywood is going to have a look at his latest invention. Hellboy and Blade II director, Guillermo del Toro, is going to receive a copy of this film. Once again, for those of you who skipped the line above, Guillermo del Toro IS going to see this film. That fact alone is enough to get some people excited. However, Stephen, can’t think of that right now. I mentioned to him that this film could explode into something much bigger. He admits when he looks at this little project he doesn’t think of that possibility - well he better start. So perhaps a better question is this - will all of these sacrifices be for naught? Perhaps that is the easiest question to answer. I would like to thank Stephen for asking to me to come up to visit with him as he filmed his movie, a movie that has taken more than just time out of this young director. The Wraith: Eyes of Judgment comes out in June, 2005. I, for one, wish it all the best. Adam Oravec aka Mikey aka Seven February 7 2005 Well well well. The opening semi-action sequence to the film is shot and bagged. What a blast the past two days have been. Mucho thanks goes out to SEVEN for driving up SEVEN hours to have TWO whole lines in this film. This guy believed so much in this film from the beginning that we had to take care of him. And that's exactly what we did. Then we beat the complete and total crap out of him. Literally. Let me explain..... Wednesday, the guy originally playing the thug Otto in the opening sequence and I had an altercation and I basically told him where to go. I was desperate. I had backups but couldn't get ahold of them and prepare them in enough time. Seven was all ready to come up from Birmingham, everything was all planned with the rest of the cast and crew. Then this total jerk off decides he wants to sever ties with Sir Reel and I. Ok, no big deal, but I was concerned for a minute. Now, my good buddy and Sir Reel regular Dietrich Adetayo suggested his friend Joey Hale for the role of Otto. I had met Joey and knew him through Big D, but that was it. The only thing I really remember about him is that he said if I ever needed someone's ass kicked on camera, give him a call. I called him. Joey agreed, saw the script just 5 hours before shooting, got into character, and totally surprised us all with his understanding of acting and filmmaking. I was shocked and glad the original guy left because now I can't see Otto played by anyone else. He was fantastic. Thanks Joey! Now, Seven came in yesterday, and was early even. Earlier yesterday I booked him a hotel, and in fact the same hotel we shot Cobra scenes in last year. Ah... memories... Anyway, Seven showed up at my house last night and was entertained from the start. First off, I showed him the costume and watched as his eyes lit up like a child at Christmas. Then I showed him a cut of 'Home of Darkness' and various scenes and clips from the film. He was totally shocked and will tell you his own thoughts himself, so I won't go into anymore details there. We ate some pizza and talked about movies and basically got to know one another better. Turns out, he's a really cool guy and was glad he came up. I wish I could have given him a bigger part, but the one he had really took it's toll on him physically. For those who don't know, he's a small guy and soft-spoken. Imagining him as a thug was hard at first, but he immediately started throwing ideas out to me and I could see him as the thug Mikey. A LOT of ideas he came up with will make it into the final film, so he should be proud we gave him the freedom to collaborate with us on his character development. Subtle nuances he came up with really brought a two-dimensional character into reality. Great job man! Very proud of you! Now, I picked him up at the motel about noon and from there we went downtown to the locations. We had an hour before Joey met up with us, and Ty Kelsey and Rob Nelson were running a little late. Ty is always late and will be late for his own wedding and funeral. I've come to realize to plan early with Ty so we can start on time. Love ya man, but you're a tardy fool! Anyway, Rob was our light technician for the day, and after today, will be asked back quite frequently. He's more than a gaffer to me. Before Seven got to meet Joey, Ty, & Rob; I took him around the corner to the local comic book shop where I dwell. It was literally a block in front of where we shot part of the sequence, we had time to kill, so we went in. Who was there you ask? None other than my man Dietrich playing Hero Clix against a ten year old. After about 5 minutes in the store, we left and met up with Ty and Rob. Then Joey showed about 10 minutes after that and we were off to rehearsals. We rehearsed part of the sequence numerous times and these guys ran their butts off. Over and over, Joey and Seven kept doing this sequence and really pulling it together creatively based on the original shot synopsis I gave. They had good chemistry together too which made for easy adaptation in the alleys. They really gave rehearsals their all and I was very happy going into the night shoot. Basically we started filming about 6:15 and had about 3-4 hours before David Cooper would even be on set. So we set out to get everything shot that we could before The Wraith showed himself. When he came, he brought fellow partner in crime Randy Stout (8-Ball) with him. It was good to see Randy on set again. He was there mainly for moral support, but added his input as well and helped shape the action part of the sequence to what it is now. We basically followed the script verbatim in the shots we took, but improvised some of it to fit the actors and what they had previously shot. All in all, I'm very pleased and proud of the hard work that went into tonights shoot. We shot basically the first three pages of the script and I can say that this is one opening to a comic book film nobody will see coming. It's impressive to say the least and the performances given were truly spectacular. Now, some injuries did occur. While rehearsing one shot, Joey basically ran straight into a wall and jammed his toe up really good. After that, he kind of limped, but still gave 100 percent of everything he had to give. This took place before Cooper even made it to set, so we still had enough left to shoot to really take a toll on him. He let us know his foot was hurting but urged us he was ok and to continue on. Seven's character was pushed around by Joey repeatedly before even facing The Wraith. I could tell it was wearing him down, so we took a pizza break and then Cooper showed up. Once David got there, he proceeded to throw both of the thugs repeatedly into a metal garage door. He slammed them both around and really let them have it, BUT this is all the magic of filmmaking. Though these guys did their own stunts, they toughed it out and got through it and gave top-notch performances, even though they were bruised and beaten up. Seven took some really hard knocks into the door, so expect his stuff to look really sick onscreen. Well, the shoot is done for this week. Next week we're taking off and the week after that Scott Leva should be in town to help us nail the final fight sequence. Each shoot keeps getting better and better, and this film is really taking a life of it's own. I want to personally thank Ty, Rob, Randy, Cooper, and last but certainly not least, I want to thank Joey and Seven for their excellent performances and for the heart they put into these roles. I know they're just thugs, but these thugs have names and are portrayed with such realism that it's almost scary. I can't wait for everyone to see this stuff and just know it's not going to be much longer. Until Next Time......... Stephen February 3 2005 Fixed some broken links in the Downloads sections. Get set for another major update from Stephen this coming week. Frank January 31 2005 Well, we're getting closer. Closer to finishing up filming. Closer to seeing our film as a whole. And last but not least, closer to showing you all The Wraith: Eyes of Judgment. Right now as I take a break from compiling footage from Friday's shoot, I thought I should go ahead and do another Lair Line and update everyone on what's going on. Friday we shot a crucial scene in the film. One of my personal favorites from the script as well. The scene: the Cobra visits Latham for a deal of a lifetime. We had to rush into getting this scene shot actually. The office was going to close down today actually, and we had limited time to pull Rick McVey and Ryan Basham together and prepare for this scene. With limited time, we were able to pull it off indeed, and pull it off beyond my expectations. The scene went very well, and the two performances in this scene are nothing short of breathtaking. I wish I could go into detail about the content of the scene, but I can't. I can say that this is a pivotal moment in the film, and Rick and Ryan achieved greatness together. Hitchcock said that a film is only as good as it's villain. Well in this little baby we have two villains, and they are both superb and very evil. When I think of the characteristics of a villain, I think someone who has no soul, forgiveness, or heart. Someone who is evil to the bone and has no remorse for his or her actions. Rick and Ryan both bring this across in their roles. I'm not going to lie when I say you will be surprised at how the slightest body movement from either of these actors coveys how truly evil they are. Both guys did a phenomenal job and I can't wait to work with them again. Last week, Assistant Director and Producer, Ty Kelsey and I went out and got some exterior shots. We had planned another pickup shot with David and Stacie Cooper, but snow and cold weather hindered those plans, which was the same as today. Apparently, we're in the middle of a winter storm. Take out the snow and the overall look to our city is perfect for shooting now. We're getting a lot of rain too, which washes away the snow pretty fast and leaves a grayish look to everything. With the overcast sky, we're able to get awesome shots this time a year. Today while I compile footage for Alex Riback, the Editor, and more fx shots to send off to the FX Supervisor, I figured I'd update everyone really quick on what the next month holds. Next week, we're filming the whole opening sequence to the film. The Wraith Online's Forum member "Seven" is driving up next weekend to help us out. Expect some sort of news update or set report from him soon thereafter. The week after that we'll probably just do some small pickup shots we need to get done. The third week in February, Scott Leva will be coming out to help us get the final fight scene shot. Expect a lot of cool stuff to surface after that shoot. After that, we'll resume filming in March and by the end of March, we should be done with the film. I've sent footage off to be worked on already, and I'll be sending even more out this week, while preparing for the shoot with Seven. Also on the horizon is a second and full length trailor, a couple more web documentaries, and pictures galore. Everything is shaping up nicely on the film now, and we're heading into the home stretch. We're at about 80-85% complete on the shooting, so not much longer now. I'm really excited to get this film done. I need a break from filming and want to focus on the promotion for this film for starters, but more imprortantly, I can't wait to see this thing come to life and watch it from beginning to end. I have high expectations for this film, and once you all see it you'll understand why. I predict a pretty good sized buzz about this film once it's released. Remember, you heard that from here first. Another Lair Line next weekend, so until then........... Stephen January 9 2005 Happy New Year everyone! While Stephen and the team continue working on the film (shooting is finally due to tentatively finish in March), a few more behind the scenes photos have been released for public viewing here on the website. Please click here to see them (scroll down for the newest shots). Frank December 11 2004 A new documentary has been added to the Dowloads-Documentaries section, this time an interview with star David Cooper, in which he talks about the intricacies of working on a comic book film and just how uncomfortable that suit really is... don't dare miss it. Frank December 6 2004 First off I'd like to say Happy Birthday today to my Dad. His birthday is today and I missed seeing him today, but I gave him a card yesterday and will see him tomorrow. Sorry I couldn't swing by today. Happy Birthday Dad!! Love ya man! ;) Today was VERY crazy indeed. I have a confession to make. I'm an addict. I've been playing Halo 2 every spare moment I can and chose to play it last night instead of going straight to bed. I had to work from 7 to 3 today at my paying job, which meant I got about three hours sleep. You all could care less, but as soon as I got off work, I headed straight to the warehouse for the remainder of our shoot. Being the Director and all, I couldn't make the first hour of the shoot because of work, but I got there as quick as I could. Luckily Assistant Director Ty Kelsey was there to get the ball rolling in my brief abscense. My son (he's four by the way) and I went to the warehouse yesterday to get the set ready. En route with us was The Wraith costume, makeup, lights, 2 green screens, fog machine (never leave without this baby!), power cords, etc. Needless to say, my car was filled to the brim yesterday. The warehouse is about a thirty to forty minute drive from here, so after twice yesterday and twice today, I AM TIRED. I got there just before four o'clock because we thought I had left Leena's glasses at my house. After detouring back and forth for a minute (including changing clothes while driving), I finally made my way to the warehouse. The glasses were already there waiting. When I arrived Tyrell was pacing frantically back and forth trying to set up shots while Zek Hensley helped him. Stacie Cooper was walking around rehearsing lines and reading over the scenes. Nathan Blevins was applying theatrical makeup to "age" himself for the Max role, and David Cooper, The Wraith himself, was walking around in costume just hanging out. We began filming after a few short minutes and realized Nathan had to leave shortly to go to his paying job. We only had like thirty minutes to get all of his shots done, which wasn't going to be easy. Because of the rehearsal time and el cheapo storyboards I drew in my script, the cast was ready and nailed it within a few takes. Awesome job from these guys!!! We wrapped around 9pm and headed back home. Car full of equipment plus the whole cast and crew poked up the road to finish the day unloading the vehicle at my house. I must say, I really enjoy filmmaking at this level. Though I dream of having a studio backing us, right now the whole independence factor really makes it worthwhile. While filming tonight I noticed how much the cast and crew go back and forth over the dialogue and camera shots. I was faced tonight with a lot of input from everyone and it paid off. It made a crucial scene in the film that much better. Just little character mannerisms these guys add bring soooo much depth to the film. If this were a BIG studio production, we wouldn't be able to work a scene out like we did without some committee poking their noses in. As of today we stand at about 80% complete shooting the film. This doesn't count for reshoots or post production, so overall completion on the film is right about 60%. Not much but not bad either. If you do the math, most of the work to do now is in post production. Hopefully by February we'll be done shooting and the film will have already hit post. I am really pleased with how far everyone has come on this film and look forward to showcasing it to the world. Until Next Time........... Stephen November 9 2004 Bear with me, I'm going on very little sleep. We re-visited Rick McVey's (Robert Latham) office building to do a small shoot involving the Leena, Paul, and Max characters. The scene turned out very, very well. I guess what caught my eye about this location was the checkered tile floor. Actually an office building, this hallway was converted into an apartment building hallway for the scene. The scene is basically this - Leena comes out of Michael Reeve's apartment and sees someone at the end of the hall. Very little dialogue, but the scenery is awesome in this scene. The hallway was long enough for us to do a Stanley Kubrick shot. Rick was kind enough to lend us his dolly so we could pull it in front of Stacie (Leena) as she came down the hall. I tried it several ways standing on it while Zek Hensley pulled me down the hall, but I found the best shot overall (and the one I want in the final cut) by accident. Holding camera equipment any length of time will tire your arms. I was already tired and stretching holding my arms up in the air. I held the camera up over my head and as I was stretching my neck, I looked up and found my shot on the camera monitor. When you see the shot onscreen, it will appear as if the camera is on a track that is mounted on the ceiling aiming down at Leena as she comes down the hallway. At the end of the hall, the camera drops down as she runs offscreen. Very cool shot. I highly recommend a dolly for people just starting out and they are not hard to build or aquire. I've used one before on A Good Place to Live, but unless the shot really needs a dolly, then I don't usually like to use one. Tonight I got to work with Nathan Blevins, Stacie Cooper, and David Cooper. Once again, it was my complete pleasure to work with these guys again. Stacie and Nathan did exceptionally well and I would mention David's role (which was done very well too), but don't want to spoil the film for you. This is a pivotal scene in the film, and albeit short, the scene was shot perfectly and this will be one of those scenes that stand out. Every actor on this film is giving absolutely one-hundred percent that they have to bring you the best possible film we can deliver. They've all matured as actors on this film and it will show in comparison to our earlier works. This has been a great learning experience for everyone, and hey, this is only the beginning of it all. Until Next Time........ Stephen October 27 2004 What a great night of filmmaking we had last weekend. It's been a hectic week and our shoot was a good way to cap off the week before a relaxing day off. Finally. However, I'll spend most of it compiling Wraith footage, but hey, I enjoy it and it relaxes me. Last weekend's filming session was to have been the shooting of three seperate scenes, but we only were able to get to two. Stacie Cooper was unable to make the shoot, so we dropped that scene and focused on the other two instead. We'll be able to pick up that scene later, but I was happy just to have been behind the camera. The two scenes we shot were kind of odd in comparison to shoot in one night. One was a very small scene in The Wraith car between Max Horton and The Wraith himself. Not "THE WRAITH CAR", but the one in the film. Actually the car is my new '04 Mitsubishi Outlander that has a similar body style to the one in the comic. Neat huh? I know, I know. Enough about the car. Ok, this was the first time so far that Nathan Blevins has got to shoot any scenes as Max. Being real good friends with David Cooper himself, Nathan was able to just sink right into Max and bring him from page to screen with ease. The Irish accent was great and he has such charisma that it's really a joy to work with him. Nathan is so laid back and reserved that his acting style just takes you completely off gaurd. The scene we shot just before that was with Robert Latham and his right hand man Charlie aka Rick McVey and David Semones. The scene we shot was not in the original script and I'll explain why. When discussing ideas for the DVD with Frank, I had an idea to give more character scenes as bonus footage. Rick had been idle for a while and I wanted to work with him again. What I decided to do was flesh out an outline script and give some key ideas I wanted to present and let them have at it. The result of this improv hybrid method of filmmaking was strictly brilliant. Not on my part, but Rick and David's. They pulled out all the stops and delivered two of the best performances I think I've ever seen either of them do. They were totally with it in this scene. I'd like to add this scene into the actual film as their introduction scene, but if it doesn't make it there, it will definately be on the DVD. We'll see how Frank likes it and go from there. If it doesn't make the final cut, ah well, everyone will still get to see this awesome villain scene. Working with Rick and my brother David is always a pleasure and honor. Their chemistry is so good onscreen and offscreen that I can't wait to shoot more with them. Today also marked the first day that actor Nathan Blevins worked as a Talent Coach on the film. His job: assist the other actors with dialogue and body language techniques and suggestions. Nathan is a great stage actor and will really help bring the best out of our already stellar cast!!!! Everyone has really pulled together lately to help make this the best film possible and I can't wait to show everyone exactly how hard we've all worked. I have plenty of pictures and a new interview\web documentary coming your way this week!!! Also, there should be a second trailor by Christmas, so everyone keep a look out. Expect this to be a full length trailor with completed footage and shots of The Wraith in action!!!! Also Mandi Leigh has asked me to direct another music video for her song called Provocative. I would personally like to thank her for the opportunity and look forward to working with this very talented gal again soon. It has been my privilege and honor to work with everyone involved in this film so far and would like to thank everyone for all their hard work. Until Next Time....... Peace! Stephen October 20 2004 Well, it's been a little over a month since you got a Lair Line from me, and I'm sorry. I finished editing the video for 'Home of Darkness', and right now it's in the hands of Alex Riback (editor) who's currently working on the chromakey in the video. The video is going to be completely awesome and I can't wait to unveil it on the world. Today we shot quite a bit at a local motel here in town. We were shooting various Cobra shots (the first time cameras have rolled on this character so far!) and actually got something like five different scenes done and bagged. Ryan Basham is great as always and a pleasure to work with. He brings so much diversity to The Cobra character, and I'm hoping everyone loves his performance. He's done his villain research and it will show. He's a natural actor and I can't say enough good things about him. Anyway, Ryan totally got into his character and blew us away. Because of Derik Nutters unfortunate accident a week or so back, he was unable to be with us this week. He was here in spirit and he is taking some time off to recover so he can come back stress free. In his place, Ty Kelsey stepped up to the plate with his new Assistant Director promotion and worked very close with me to ensure all bases were covered. Ty has a great mind for what looks and feels good in a scene and it's a blessing having him on set. By the time we started rolling cameras it was well after 8pm and probably getting close to 9. We wrapped at 1am and left the motel feeling like we had a productive evening. Two fellow co-workers of mine stopped by because they are HUGE fans of ours and wanted to see some filming in action. After a few takes, they as fans, immediately started giving us input based on what we were already shooting. Since this is aimed towards The Wraith fans, listening to these two was a great help and inspired Ty, Ryan, and myself as to why we're making this film. It may not be the best film, but it will be well worth watching just to see how much collaboration went into it's making. Having some outside input and advice seemed to push us to succeed for the fans and not just ourselves. So, believe it when we say, this film is for everyone. It's for the fans and the soon to be fans. The actual filming went very well. With Derik out indefinately, Ty and I had to really push Ryan to get these scenes done so we would not fall farther behind and so we could get as much done in one night without having to rent a motel room again. Needless to say, the room got semi-trashed as an air unit and smoke detector fell apart (with some tinkering of course) and I believe a couple of phones got thrown around, but hey, it's all for the good of the film. Due to a prop issue, part of the Cobra origin has been slightly modified to fit, but what we have now actually adds a little more mysticism to The Cobra character and doesn't spoil everything in the scene like it originally did. We trimmed it down slightly to allow the end of the film to have a little more shock value. I think everyone will be impressed and will love Ryan's interpretation of The Cobra. He may not look exactly like the character from the comic, but he's close enough. Some minor modifications were made to allow Ryan to portray him and it be believable, but believable is how he comes across and I swear you all will love the transformation that takes place. Well, I'm extremely tired now and need to catch up on some sleep. Look for some stills from the motel here. The 'Home of Darkness' music video is aiming for a December release, but it depends on how long the post production fx will take, so please bear with us. When the video is released, all I will say is that YOU WILL see The Wraith in action as well as other shots never seen before from the film. I look forward to showing you guys really soon, so be patient and good things will come. I guarantee it! Until Next Time......... Stephen September 20 2004 While Stephen continues working on the music video and the film, some new stills have been added from both. Use the menu to your left to check them out. Frank September 7 2004 "I have something to do before the end. I must see it through, sir, if you understand." - J.R.R. Tolkien That is a quote I now live by. This weekend was by far one of the best, if not the best, experience I've ever had making a film. Mandi Leigh came in Saturday the 4th and was with us for two days. We shot a scene for the film with her both nights and during the day worked on a music video for the song Home of Darkness. The music video is being edited now and will be on The Wraith DVD. Before I continue, I'd like to personally address Mandi Leigh. It was an honor to shoot her music video and a pleasure having her in this film. Mandi was an absolute joy to work with both personally and professionally. I've never done a music video before and she worked so hard with me to make it a success, and I garantee that it will be. Mandi is such a beautiful and talented individual and I know she is going to go very far. It was a wonderful experience having her here for the weekend and I hope I get to work with her again soon. I shot a small video diary for her fans that should be available soon at www.mandileigh.com You'll get to see some clips from her scene in the film and music video as well as the usual Sir Reel hilarity. We shot the music video in a warehouse putting Mandi in front of 2 greenscreens. We have a 20 foot tall by 11 foot wide greenscreen that she was standing in front of with a 9 foot tall by 6 foot wide one to her left boxing her in. It took us a while to get the lighting right, but once we did, we were ready to roll and Mandi sang her heart out for us. We worked in front of the greenscreen most of Saturday and Sunday afternoon. The last thing we shot for the video was on the actual film location. It all turned out very well and I can't wait for everyone to see it. The film shoot both nights went very well. We had some slight casting issues that we had arise at the very last minute, but thanks to a loyal friend and Sir Reel follower, we replaced someone last minute and everything worked out fine. Once again, Mandi was very cool to work with, and this being her first actual speaking role on film, she was very patient and allowed us to do our thing. I say patient because on film sets there are ALWAYS delays and we had our share, but we worked through it and everyones patience paid off. The last thing we did Sunday night was watch both daily reels and everyone was happy at the end of the weekend, so that's all that mattered. The film shoots were grueling because of the nature of the scene. It's a fight scene, and we had dialogue, plus multiple angles to get. Lighting was an issue at first, but we worked through that. Let me stop and say this: Lighting an entire alley way evenly for each shot is not easy and should not be attempted unless you're willing to waste an hour of time each night blending light for each shot. We did it, but it was cumbersome and tiring. Overall, everything matches up VERY well and I'm pleased with how everything has turned out. The actual fight isn't that long, but by blending angles and shots and timing some things when I edit, this will look extremely cool!!! I will however state that the set got a little bloody, so take that for what it's worth ;) Also, Sir Reel films is like a fellowship. The Fellowship of the Wraith. LOL I want to personally thank everyone who was involved this weekend with the long shoots. Everyone banded together to make this the best damn shoot we could and we pulled it off with ease. Everyone believes in The Wraith and what this film means. When I was on set Sunday afternoon I looked around and saw all these people working together, including Mandi and I, and I almost got all emotional. The whole cast and crew were all busting their asses and working hard to make sure this project is top notch. The level of enthusiasm and dedication to this film is overwhelming. Thank you everyone who worked this weekend. Thank you for making this a truly wonderful experience. Mandi, Ryan, Cooper, Randy, Zek, Derik, Ty, Blake, Janet, Lisa, Christie, and Frank (who was there in spirit)...... Thank you all for the hard work and dedication. Expect in the coming weeks a couple of new web documentaries, the Home of Darkness video, a new trailor, Mandi's video diary, and plenty of pictures. I hope you all enjoy...... Until Next Time......... Stephen A Video Diary featuring a look at the shooting of Mandi Leigh's superb music video for the love song from The Wraith, 'Home of Darkness' has been added to the Documentaries section of the site. Don't dare miss it! We're so thankful and blessed to Mandi and her team for participating in making The Wraith: Eyes of Judgment all it can be, and rest assured it's people like them, committed to excellence, that stir us on to even greater heights :) Here's also your first look at our first teaser, prelim movie poster... we'll have a few variants appearing over the months, before the final version you'll see at the Cinemall (for our cinematic premiere) and on video/DVD boxes. But for now, check this out... Frank MORE LAIR LINES

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