A Lesson in Filmmaking for All

It has been a while since this blog has been updated, and to all those following the journey of Hotel Caledonia who have either been annoyed, disappointed, or otherwise frustrated at the lack of progress update, may I send my sincerest apologies. But there has been reason...........and over the course of this blog I shall try to enlighten a little, advise as much as posssible, and aspire to inspire everyone by the truckload, that despite the trials and tribulations we, and you, may experience in the journey to realise a dream there is absolutely no substitute for resilience and determination to suceed.

So, to events.......................

The end of 2007 was smooth-running with all the right noises emerging from distributors, sales agents, and financiers. The deals had been discussed, the script, schedule, and finance plan cogitated over, and in essence if not by signing of pens, agreed by all. Everything seemed to be heading for a Spring 2008 shoot with completion and premiering set for Cannes 2009.

Then the proverbial began to hit the fan!

Our distributor and co-financier, a large, well respected player in the horror genre (from Spain) seemingly got cold feet overnight about having to promote and distribute, to its Spanish and Portugese speaking territories (including Central and Southern America), a horror-comedy from England. Now whether that was because British humour just doesn't translate well into Spanish and Portugese, or because there was a distinct lack of Latino cast telling jokes in a Latino language, I know not. It may even have been the fact we were pitching the film as a Fawlty Towers mix of mayhem and horror without the presence of poor old Manuel that made them nervous. Regardless of reason they saw fit to pull the plug, and the finely woven carpet, from under our feet, leaving us £600k or so short on budget in the click of someone's pen. Ouch!

Then Kelly Brook's father died, and in her grief we thought she may just suspend any work commitments she had already made - and that included to us. We stuck by her and made it very clear that if she decided to withdraw we would try to hold open her role until we reached a point where we were ready to go into production. If she felt ready to come back we'd welcome her with open arms. If not, then we'd understand her position. Bless her if she didn't just brave up and confirm her commitment to us on the spot.

So with Xmas swiftly approaching and the whole industry about to shut down for a month, the Producers got together to try and decide upon a new, and bullet-proof strategy to raise the required funds. But as you'll already know, or will discover in the fullness of time, there is no such thing as a bullet-proof strategy in filmmaking. Like actors our job is all about reaction to events rather than the action itself.

Xmas came and went, and with it the New Year and most of January, as we began to hook up with a menagerie of other players, big and small, in our efforts to find a way out of the ever-tightening noose of project-never-off-the-ground failure. We pitched out to Cinema NX on the Isle of Man who read our pitch and script and really liked what we had to offer. But there was an issue - the budget was not large enough. Large enough? We cried! We'd been advised by sales agents to lower the budget, not to raise it. Without a major cast shift, that is to bigger names commanding bigger fees, there was no way we could simply raise the budget. We'd already spent an inordinate amount of time shaving costs off the budget over the last six months. It was disheartening to hear.

So we traipsed around some more of our contacts, including Ealing Studios. They too read and liked what we had to offer but "didn't fall in love with it enough to want to put equity into the project" being their ultimate response. We can all hazard a guess as to what that really means. Ealing Studios are an 'old school tie' firm with a proud history of in-house creation. St Trinians did well for them and they have witnessed a resurgence of interest in their films. So why would they want to support someone elses project if it ultimately doesn't benefit them as a production entity? Maybe I'm being a tad harsh but I was disappointed to say the least.

Things were looking bleak. As far as further development interest went the Producers were broke. Flat broke. We needed assistance from the regions to help us push ahead, but nothing was forthcoming in that respect either. Film London had nothing to give, especially as the project originated and was based outside of London. And this despite the primary Producer being a resident there. Northwest Vision continued to baulk the writer's applications for assistance, even when he submitted other short film projects in an effort to help reduce the financial burden. The inevitable day came when both Producers were forced to take second jobs in order to keep house and home. This of course had an immediate, and detrimental effect on project progress. It soon became clear that merely to keep momentum going, private assets needed to be stripped. Indeed I even sold my hard-bought PD170, lights, and grip just to keep going. and with those sad sales went any opportunity to invest time and learning in shooting music videos or short film. But needs must - short term sacrifice for hopefully long term gain.

We went in search of a new Director as well. Nicholas had decided to step back into 2nd Unit shoes (he's also a Producer, and the Writer - plenty to do he assures us) which was a sensible commercial decision on his part. We expect he'll get his directorial debut with Infected in any case. So the search proceeded with both Mel Smith and David Schwimmer firmly in the frame. Mel declined regretably and David, despite liking the pitch and asking for the script just never came back to us. Small fish in big pond springs to mind. A handful of other directors, including Chris Smith, were approached but due to work commitments were unavailable. Without a firm Director attachment the sales agencies had said they would never be able to give us decent estimates to help close finance. Everything just stacked up one upon the other as we fought with time and failure. And none of it stacked up favourably.

We also attended a meeting with the UKTI about possible asistance to get us to Cannes to help finalise finance but the meeting was not as productive as we had hoped. The mere fact we do not have a finished product precludes us from assitance. That to me is total madness. We have a commodity on paper - and strongly written it is too. Without assistance from central or regional bodies the project seems too large to get into motion independently. No wonder the British Film industry is so poor. Nobody wants to offer the hand of assistance when its needed. Only after the success has been earned and the assistance is no longer an issue do the hands of favour extend. Piggy-backing on the efforts of a minority few is what the people with money but little creative smarts seem to do. So whatever you do, don't ask for help. Do everything yourself. Keep head down. Mind in gear. Drive. And drive hard. That's my advice. Don't waste your time or effort on the regions, nor expect any help from central unless you are great at butt-kissing and want to be part of their inner circle of chosen ones. And even then your initiation will be a burden to them. Rant finally concluded.

We decided in mid-April to make a hard and fast break for Cannes and began preparations to take Hotel Caledonia as it stood and two other projects to the festival in an all-out effort to raise slate funding. The two other projects, Bastille and Infected, are primed, commercial horror hybrids with a defined audience, and interest already generated (as attachments) from A-list stars here in the UK. Even though neither projects are yet 'packaged' with finance we felt that they offered our best opportunity to resolve the Hotel Cal difficulties. Slate funding probably. £5m or so's worth possibly. So we have been preparing for the festival for most of March and April and are as ready now as we'll ever be.

Despite the bright focus of targeting and preparing, April also brought yet more bad news as Kris Marshall was hospitalised and temporarily comatosed after a car accident. We really felt the whole world was up against us by this stage. Things were pretty bad I can tell you. Both of the Producers were demoralised - three years solid of putting this baby together, trial after trial, is enough to steal anyone's drive and enthusiasm. We even considered, if only for a day, the possibility of us HAVING to shelve the project. But whether by sheer bulldog-like tenacity or just the unwillingness of first timers to admit defeat, we got back on the horse and continued to ride. We continue to ride to this day. We're closer to fulfilling the dream than we've ever been, but we still have a mighty way to go.

As of the date of this blog a possible investment angel has been located - discussions continue to this very moment as to whether and how much he is prepared to invest in us. There is no certainty merely the faintest glimmer of hope. That is enough for us. Everyone who began this journey with us - cast, crew, and supporters from far and near - are still with us. They believe in the project, believe in our commitment to make it happen no matter what obstacles are thrown in our path. The Producers thank you for that, with heartfelt sincerity. We also have an approach out to Colin Teague with a view to him agreeing to be Director on this project. We have a personal 'in' with him so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. There are a couple of 'wing-waiters' on this front but they'll have to stay under wraps for now until we know about Colin. There have been some cast discussions as well including the attachment of Leslie Philips and Gordon Ramsay - both yet to be confirmed but on our 'to do' list. Assuming confirmation of both I predict a very funny time making ths film.

We also have the project out to the UK Film Council for development funding at present. They are giving us every consideration. Cannes is only a week away. Both Producers are loaded up on credit cards just to get out there. The uncertainty of result makes us nervous (especially about settling the card bill when we get back). We are single-minded of purpose and we still believe in what we are trying to achieve.

I hope the next blog will be the one we all want to read - greenlight. But I won't count my chickens. I'll continue to work hard and to be enthused. After all I've lived with this baby for the last seven years. I've seen it grow and mature. And I sure as hell intend to see it walk down the red carpet - lets just hope we don't have to wait until its bar mitzvah to do so!

Nick