Audience, Withoutabox

SkipRobbins

1 ratings

7 blog entries

13 comments

0 calendar items

Joined: 2006-05-17 13:50

Last Online: APR 28 2008 08:23AM

  • My Friends
  • ebenkostbar
    Friend Since: October 18, 2006
    Last Online: 1:22 am, May 21, 2008
  • paulette
    Friend Since: September 26, 2006
    Last Online: 1:46 am, July 25, 2008
  • Daniel_Bowers
    Friend Since: September 24, 2006
    Last Online: 4:09 pm, September 13, 2007
  • CTHADDEUS
    Friend Since: August 23, 2006
    Last Online: 10:34 am, April 28, 2008

Film Production Blog "botnfilms"

Photos art work etc for FAITH Feb 23, 2007 06:34AM
We will post the new artwork etc within the next week. Please bear with us during this transition period. The existing photos and poster are from our first feature "The Devil's Diamond" www.botnfilms.com, www.imdb.com (TRUST). "The Devil's Diamond" will be released at Blockbuster on 7-10-07.
New short film: FAITH Feb 23, 2007 06:29AM
Bottom of the Net Filmworks has produced a new film. The name of the project is FAITH. It is a 7 minute short about a seven year old boy who is being raised by divorced parents. Troy's mother is Jewish and his father is Muslim. The film was shot in 24p as a submission for the reality show "the lot" which is being produced by Steven Speilberg and Mark Burnette. The show will air this June on Fox. Go to www.thelot.com for more information. The film was shot in 10 hours for about 300.00. Alfred Robbins is the writer/director. Sharlene Falls was the executive producer while Derrick Owens shot and editted the film which will be entered into many film festivals including the Cannes film festival which will take place this May in France.
2007 Untitled project aka "Grapes on a vine" Jan 25, 2007 03:21PM
It's been a while since I blogged so I 'll get to the point. "The Devil's Diamond" will be in Blockbuster on 7-10-07. The DVD will include cast and director interviews. We will shoot our second feature, "Grapes on a vine" in May here in Atlanta. The format will be super 16mm. We'll get back to you regarding the cast. There will be more recognizeable talent in this project. I'll post audition info asap. Lots of work to do!! Gotta go! Al
Trailer for The Devil's Diamond Sep 27, 2006 03:14PM
ABff 07- Deal for another film! Jul 24, 2006 11:07AM
Just got back from the Abff in South Beach. We had a good meeting with our distributor, Maverick Entertainment. We went down there thinking that we would just get a chance to meet everyone in person and that would be it. You can imagine that we were more than a little surprised when they proposed the idea of us doing a film for them! We should have a signed contract from them shortly. It really amounts to a first look deal which is definately a step in the right direction. They also sponsored an invite only event at a bowling alley and my wife and I had a great time. It was a nice gathering and we actually got to meet buyers from Net.flix, Blockbuster and HBO. The only bad thing was the weather. It rained everyday but we got to network and met quite a few people. So..looks like we'll shoot another film in the spring. The good thing is that we already have distribution so that is the one concern we don't have to stress about.
Urbanworld Film festival 2006 / American Black Film festival 2006 Jun 30, 2006 03:07PM
We were at the Urbanworld film fest last week, primarily to see Premium by Pete Chatmon. We got there a little early so my wife asked about the film screening in the theater where we were standing. The usher said it was a German film with subtitles. We had time to kill so we went to see it. The name of the film was "Wholetrain". I'm glad we decided to go in because we ended up giving the film the highest score possible and we found out the next day that the film took the top prize at the festival. The film is about a group of graffiti artists and their battle with a rival crew. Characters were well developed. It was shot in a gritty cinema verite style with a strong soundtrack featuring freddie Foxx and KRS1 which hip hop heads like myself will appreciate. Definately check it out.

Premium was also good. Excellent job by the lead Dorian Missick. Zoe Saldana was good as usual.

Next up for us is the ABFF in South Beach!! We have a meeting with our distributor in the afternoon on Friday. After that we'll hit Collins Ave. and mingle with the beautiful people! Hopefully we'll also snag some known talent for our next project. For those of you that have never had a film distributed, this is what distributors want to know:

1 ) Who's in your film?
2 ) What genre is the project?
3 ) Who's in your film?
4 ) What format did you shoot it in?
5 ) Who's in your film?

If you don't beleive me...you'll see.
UPDATE Jun 30, 2006 02:46PM
Well, here it is June 30, 2006 and we're still in the delivery process for TRUST . The master , trailer and cast interviews for the DVD must be re-done and sent back to the distributor. Our editor gave us a DVD as a master which we transferred to digi beta along with the trailer and special features. A DVD is compressed and will never copy well. So now our editor is giving us a mini-dv master which we'll use to make a digi-beta master. We'll do the same with the trailer and cast interviews.

Some of you are probably saying.. how could they not know that? We should have known but we didn't think about it. We just wanted to deliver the film so we could work on getting in front of the camera talent for our next project. This film was made almost 2 years ago and we really want to move on but...everything is a learning experience.

I really hope that some of you learn from our mistakes because one way or another, every mistake we have made will cost us money.
Moving forward  Jun 11, 2006 12:11PM
This week we will deliver the special features, trailer and a few other documents to our distributor and we will be done with the delivery process. It's been a long haul but we made it.

One of the most rewarding parts of making this little (20k) digital film (www.botnfilms.com, www.newfilmmakers.com- summer) is the fact that when we began shooting over a year ago our only goal was to become better filmmakers. We never really thought about distribution.

As we prepare to shoot our next project, a few things come to mind. I used to wonder why filmmakers don't turn out a film a year with the availability of digital technology. I think I now know the reason. If you have repspect for the art form and you don't want to be a "shooter" you have to wait until you feel that you have something to say. That's another way to say your script must be ready. I think that one of the reasons people fall prey to the sophmore jinx is that they forget about the painstaking crafting that was involved in the first project.

We thought we'd shoot another feature this summer but we are not ready.

We want there to be a progression from project to project. We have to completed scripts which are going throuth the re-write process where the real hard work is.

We'll keep you posted.

Those of you that will be in New York on 8-9-06, please come to a screening of TRUST at the newfilmmakers screening series held at the Anthology archives in Manhattan. See www.newfilmmakers.com- summer for more info.

Film Maker's Blog

Moving forward Aug 23, 2006 07:20AM
We met with our distributor at the ABFF in South Beach which went very well. They offered us a contract to distribute our next film. The script is already done and we'll shoot in early 07'. After that we'll take our time and prepare to shoot our third film in super 16mm or 35mm so we can attract a distributor who can give us a theatrical release. After our meeting we attended an invite only party at a bowling alley where we got to meet people from HBO, Netfilx and Blockbuster. It's really enlightening to learn about the business side of filmmaking. In a nutshell, you are in the business of entertainment and not the entertainment business. Commercially, your film only has value if a distributor can see how money can be made. The fact that your film is good is irrelavent if you don't have recognizable talent and a recognized genre. Just a little info!
Urbanworld Film festival 2006 / American Black Film Festival 2006 Jun 30, 2006 03:03PM
We were at the Urbanworld film fest last week, primarily to see Premium by Pete Chatmon. We got there a little early so my wife asked about the film screening in the theater where we were standing. The usher said it was a German film with subtitles. We had time to kill so we went to see it. The name of the film was "Wholetrain". I'm glad we decided to go in because we ended up giving the film the highest score possible and we found out the next day that the film took the top prize at the festival. The film is about a group of graffiti artists and their battle with a rival crew. Characters were well developed. It was shot in a gritty cinema verite style with a strong soundtrack featuring freddie Foxx and KRS1 which hip hop heads like myself will appreciate. Definately check it out.

Premium was also good. Excellent job by the lead Dorian Missick. Zoe Saldana was good as usual.

Next up for us is the ABFF in South Beach!! We have a meeting with our distributor in the afternoon on Friday. After that we'll hit Collins Ave. and mingle with the beautiful people! Hopefully we'll also snag some known talent for our next project. For those of you that have never had a film distributed, this is what distributors want to know:

1 ) Who's in your film?
2 ) What genre is the project?
3 ) Who's in your film?
4 ) What format did you shoot it in?
5 ) Who's in your film?

If you don't beleive me...you'll see.
FINALLY! Jun 02, 2006 08:43AM
We finally delivered the film to the distributor. What a process. In an earlier blog entry I talked about how expensive it is to deliver a film with the insurance etc. The good news is that today with the internet, self distribution is a viable option. The problem is that unless you are independently wealthy or you live with your mother you will have to do something to generate income. To self distribute you need to build an audience and some buzz which can take time.

You kind of have to make a decision about whether you want to be a filmmaker or a distributor. We sat down with a pen and paper and determined that we would make a alot more money if we self distributed but that would take away from pre-production on our next project which will be larger and will be shot in super 16. While we're happy with TRUST, it was just a start.

It was a tough decision not to self distribute but our distrutor will give us more of a national profile than we would have had if we did it ourselves.

Some of you that are very organized etc may want to do it yourself because you'll make alot more than you will on your first direct to video deal...trust me.
Contract May 19, 2006 10:26AM
We final sugned the contract today! What a releif. Now all we have to do is comply with all the delivery requirements and we will be done with TRUST.

The first table read was in February of 04. It's taken us just under two years from production to get this film out but it's finally on the way. Should be in stores by September.

We're in pre-production on another feature project that I am co-writing with Derrick Owens who was the DP on TRUST. We're looking to shoot here in Atlanta in August.

I'll keep you posted.

Film Delivery May 18, 2006 02:13PM
Today we are searching for the all contracts for the actors, crew and musicians. For those of you who have never delivered a film, you'll need this info for the distribution company and any insurance company who sells you E & O insurance. I hope through sharing info periodically someone will benefit.

Advice: Establish a good record keeping system. I did not and now I'm paying for it .. literally.
UPDATE! May 17, 2006 02:42PM
I just spoke with one of my business partners about AUDIENCE. I told her I signed up etc. Then I realized that I have no images for the film up. We should have some images on the film page within the next day or so.

The distribuor will probably change the box art and the name of the film. We ordered a few hundred copies from Discmaker before we secured distribution so if anyone wants a copy just visit www.botnfilms.com or e-mail us at info@botnfilms. You pay postage and handling and we'll send you a copy for 10 bucks.

Al
Hello! May 17, 2006 01:57PM
My name is Skip Robbins and I'm a writer / director. Check out our website at www.botnfilms.com.

We're in the process of delivering our film , TRUST, to a distributor which is both exciting and exhausting. For those of you who don't know, set aside as much money as possible to deliver your film. There are costs involved.

We're trying to get E & O insurance which is very expensive. I was broke before we made the film so now I'm beyond broke if that's possible. The weird thing is .. I'm excited and plan to shoot another feature in August 06' and I have $0 dollars. Am I crazy? no, I'm just an independent filmmaker.

Al

Upcoming Events

SkipRobbins has no upcoming events in their calendar.

Things SkipRobbins said...

FAITH | posted 2006-09-01 07:24 |
Stars

My Friends & Favorites

  • ebenkostbar
    Friend Since: October 18, 2006
    Last Online: 1:22 am, May 21, 2008
  • paulette
    Friend Since: September 26, 2006
    Last Online: 1:46 am, July 25, 2008
  • Daniel_Bowers
    Friend Since: September 24, 2006
    Last Online: 4:09 pm, September 13, 2007
  • CTHADDEUS
    Friend Since: August 23, 2006
    Last Online: 10:34 am, April 28, 2008
  • juice
    Friend Since: August 22, 2006
    Last Online: 11:16 am, February 07, 2007
  • blacktrack3
    Friend Since: May 31, 2006
    Last Online: 7:57 pm, September 29, 2007

    13 Comments about SkipRobbins

    Lonnie
    Oct 18, 2006 02:41PM

    Lonnie,
    Your a hard man to catch up with. Would love to hear from you. Holla back at Samuel3p@aol.com
    Sam

    blacktrack3
    Oct 12, 2006 06:14PM

    Oh really, I hope to see you, Cellies will be showing Friday at the Chastain screening room some time after 3:25 pm. At America Mart, 240 Peachtree St.

    paulette
    Sep 26, 2006 07:09AM

    Hi there,

    Just checked into your page and it looks cool. Wise words to be learnt. I'll be back to read everything...Good luck with the deal making

    P

    blacktrack3
    Sep 09, 2006 06:08PM

    Now you can check out CELLIES on YouTube.com and on my Audience page.

    CTHADDEUS
    Aug 22, 2006 05:08PM

    And also Skip, I see that you involved in the Urban World. I just wrote a script that perhaps you could be interested in. You probably hear that often, but this time I happen to be telling the truth. Anyway, love to chat it up with you.

    Christopher Banks

    CTHADDEUS
    Aug 22, 2006 05:05PM

    What's up Skip. Just curious, How is that you get up to that "Featured Filmmaker Status" if you don't mind hsaring, I would miind listening.

    Christopher Banks

    juice
    Aug 08, 2006 05:08PM

    my name is jimmie i am a screenwriter, intrested in selling my script.http://audience.withoutabox.com/users/juice

    esh82
    Jul 09, 2006 07:44PM

    Skip-Keep it up!!!

    Scott (esh82@aol.com)

    blacktrack3
    Jul 02, 2006 04:51PM

    I have a feature script that im trying to pitch.

    blacktrack3
    Jun 20, 2006 09:03PM

    It'll air later in September.

    SkipRobbins
    Jun 14, 2006 05:36AM

    Check out the NEWFILMMAKERS Website at www.newfilmmakers.com. Click on summer schedule. Look under 8-9-06. Also, see www.botnfilms.com.

    blacktrack3
    Jun 13, 2006 07:40PM

    Im waiting to be in a TV Show Directed by Robert Townsend, called SPOKEN.

    SkipRobbins
    May 18, 2006 02:20PM

    TRUST was selected for the NEW FILMMAKERS screening series which is held at the Anthology Film Archives. The screening will be August 9th at 8pm.

    Anthology film archives is located at 32 Second Avenue Manhattan N.Y.

    Leave a comment about SkipRobbins

    Welcome,
    Please login
    Forgot Password?
    Register for Free
    Recently Visited