Stickleback Productions Blog

I’m planning to shoot Trouble At My Door – a 30 minute family wake drama over the Bank Holiday Weekend at a single location I have secured in Moseley, Birmingham. There will be a cast of about 17 including child actors.

I’m looking for experienced volunteer cast and crew as at present due to funding difficulties its a no budget, un-expensed shoot though I am hoping to feed everybody.

Roles needed

Producer/co-producer

DoP
Sound
Gaffer (I have lights and autopoles)
1st AD / Production Manager

plus  if possible

Production Designer
Script Supervisor

and

Editor/Grader/Post production sound

Please let me now if you can help or know of anyone for the above roles plus actors who might be interested in auditioning mid-August.

A draft of the script can be downloaded here.

I’m aiming to get it into the Rotterdam Film Festival which deadlines 1st October for films made after 1st July. Will be shooting in HD and hope to be able to make you look good.

Please get in touch if you’re interested in helping out.

Brendan

0789 16 12345

info@

Stickleback Productions – Winner of 2 Weeks 2 Make It 2010 for TV Dinner Lady.

I’ve just been interviewed by a horror blog in America about the Stickleback Productions 2 Weeks 2 Make It win. You can read the piece here

Dead Harvey Horror Blog

I am pleased to announce that Stickleback Productions and Wise Blood are the winners of the inaugural Birmingham version of the 2 Weeks 2 Make It music promo competition.

Up against some stiff opposition from other established filmmakers we won the day -  at the same time earning some great praise from the 3 competition judges for our efforts.

Well done everybody. Here’s the winning video

Wise Blood “TV Dinner Lady” by Stickleback Productions from Brendan O’Neill on Vimeo.

Brendan

UNCLE HANS-PETER PARTY at FLATPACK 24.03.10

Into my second week of horrible phasey ‘flu that just comes and goes and seems particularly virulent at present. Its really impacting on making much progress with the play I’m supposed to have ready for 20th April for the Royal Court’s Critical Mass scheme.

I had a very busy week last week as I attended the Engine Room Pitch documentary workshop on Tuesday and Wednesday which was excellent followed by 3 nights Front of House volunteering for the Flatpack Festival. Tuesday was also the last taught bit of the Royal Court’s Critical Mass playwriting scheme I have been doing since January

The Doc workshop was given by Christine Burnett, Charlie Phillips and the wonderfully named Floury Crum from the Sheffield International Documentary Festival. It was really informative and useful and has encouraged me to think about making my own documentary.

Flatpack was its usual eclectic brilliance and I made some new friends. The highlight for me was the Uncle Hans Peter party event which is one of the strangest arts experiences I have ever had!

Finally last night there was an excellent debate on the future of  television drama in the region which I feel will hopefully lead to some cages being rattled at the BBC and other places.

We came joint 3rd out of 24 entries which was disappointing but I’m probably not as disappointed as Robert Williams and his team who made a great film and didn’t even place!

This is the winning entry.

This came second

and we were joint 3rd with the Junction Zero team who made a nice film.

This is what the judges said about Seconds Out.

Kate Leys said this: “Ambitious, and a great central idea, but with an ambitious story you do need a really strong ending.  Stories are all about their endings, and this one just wasn’t very clear.  Very good central performance.”

Catherine Bray said this: “For my third choice I would pick Seconds Out for setting out to tell a straightforward little narrative in a limited time and having done a bit of script work.”

C’est la vie.

Positives to draw from the experience were working with actors Elexi Walker and Elli Middleton who I and a lot of other people thought were great. Real champion boxer Bertrand and sparring partner Hatim who were real sports and without whose help and first time acting we couldn’t have made the film plus the ever reliable Steve Rylands who has the dubious distinction of being in very film I’ve ever made. Thanks to all the other folk who helped in some way too.

Last but not least it was nice to work with collaborator John Hill-Daniel again and also for the first time with DoP James Stoneley and Russell Hill whose technical skills and equipment bought so much to the overall quality of  the film – all underpinned by Matthew Cotterill’s great score.

In other news my Haiti Fundraiser on Saturday went very well from an entertainment point of view but could have done with more customers though the door! The Flickr stream is here and a big thanks to all the film makers who let me show their films, Sandra and Lee at Friction for the venue and my small army of volunteers – Martina, Dominika, Joe, Ifti and Andy without whose help I couldn’t have made it happen.

A busy past two weeks. Just have to write my play for the Royal Court theatre scheme now and I’m done for a bit!!!

TAFN

Brendan