ICEBREAKER: DAY 18

Just a skeleton crew today. Me, Chad, Mary setting up craft services and Randy as our PA. We shot at the Metro Transit Police HQ in Minneapolis with Justen Overlander as Keith and Matthew Feeney as Officer Hoffman. This was so much fun (even dealing with glare issues on the glass divider between the two). These guys are so talented and so funny. I'll refund anyone's money that sees this movie and doesn't laugh during this scene. Great wardrobe too Matthew!

The above only took a couple of hours and then we headed over to Bloomington to shoot Keith switching plates on the cars for the build up to the above scene (thanks again for the truck, Delo).

We did a few variations on it- some really over-the-top, so we'll see. It was fun and the actors were great. Thanks to Randy & Mary too.

This looks fantastic:

http://www.theblackdahliamovie.net/

SORRY FOR THE DELAY...

ICEBREAKER DAY 17 (part 2)

We have a lot of stuff to get done between the hours of 10:00 pm and 2:00 am. And we have to deal with 150 or so extras that are drinking FOR REAL (it didn't take long for the cast & crew to start drinking for real, either).

We set up the dolly track (about 75 feet) along the southern most end of the bar- to film Emily storming out of the bar. This went fairly well, except for a few extras hamming it up for the camera. Emily did a great job as always and I appreciate Phil working the dolly, Sarah setting lights and Brian wrangling all f'ing cords. Thanks guys, you did an awesome job.

Next up was a cutaway shot of Keri behind the bar getting drinks for people. Keri is a natural and this went awesomely fast. As did the cutaways following this, of Keri talking with her "co-workers" AKA the staff at brothers.

While flipping dolly track and lights, we shot an entrance shot of Justen coming down the stairs through the crowd. We used the jib arm and got at least one really good take. Justen did a great job, it was just getting the extras to do what we wanted them that was a challenge. Oh well, it turned out.

After the track was flipped to the otherside of the bar, we shot Sasha storming out followed by Sasha and the boys (Andy & Eric) coming down the stairs into the bar. These guys did a great job and we nailed it in only a few takes. We used the dolly for both set-ups.

Then we weaved the dolly through pool tables and booths for what we like to call- "THE BIG ASS DOLLY SHOT". This dolly shot was very complicated and had a lot of stuff going on in it. We follow "shot man" past "cell phone girls" curve past "dancing folk" to "hot pool girl (Aurelia Scheppers)" to "beer crotch guy (the adorable Tim Asp)" and end on Roach, Gary and Eric. We only did it a few times and I was very pleased with the outcome.

We wrapped just before 2:00 am! We nailed all our dolly shots in this precious window of time.

Our cast & crew were ON tonight. Thanks guys, if it weren't for all the professionalism we wouldn't have gotten done in time.

Thank you to Greg. You are a God. Thanks for the shots :)

After getting the gear loaded, moved & unpacked- I was sound asleep on Chad's couch at 5:30 am.

P.S. Phil- you should've kicked that guy's ass!

ICEBREAKER DAY 17 (part 1)

Day 17 is probably the most interesting day yet...

We needed a grip truck today, but all of Lights On's were spoken for, so we decided to rent a U-haul and piece together a lighting/grip package from Lights On (thanks Dave and Colin for working with us on this). Sounds simple enough.

So I go pick the U-haul up at about 4:00, and the guy working there was such an asshole. Anyway, I got the truck and made it up to Lights On by 5:00. We loaded up the dolly, 75 feet of track, 2 curves, the jib and two Arri light kits.

The shoot didn't start until 10:00pm, so I made my way down to Bloomington and stopped to grab a bite at BK at about 6:30pm. When I got out to the truck around 7:00, the F-er wouldn't start. I checked the battery- A-OK. I called the roadside insurance (thank god I paid for that)and they said a mechanic would be there within the hour. No problem, let's get this bitch fixed and on our way. Chad and Eric met up with me at about 8:30, and still no friggin mechanic. I called back- "yeah, yeah, sure. We'' call them back."

Then a truck approached us. A saint by the name of Kevin asked if we needed help. Apparently Kevin works for 24 hour towing, the same company that was supposed to be on their way for us- they have a contract with U-haul. Kevin made a call and they weren't even contacted by U-haul until after 8:00pm. AARRGGHH!!

Kevin got his tools out, started banging on some shit and voila! the trck started right up. He said that the starter was busted and that the vehicle would not start again if turned off. Shit. We need to park this beast in downtown Minneapolis until about 3:00am. Kevin said, no matter, just cal us back and we'll come out again for it. Rock on. So if you ever need anything- look up 24 HOUR TOWING out of Richfield- you won't be dissapointed.

Ok. The truck is running, it's 9:30, lets do this. We make it to Brothers in downtown at about 10:00, we have reserved parking so we're set. We unload the euipment and are ready to get this party started....

ICEBREAKER: DAY 16

Today we are shooting a very intense scene between the characters Keith (played by Justen Overlander) and Sam (played by Emily Fradenburgh). I don't want to give too much away regarding the scene, because it does involve a turning point in the story.

We shot this scene in a dorm room on the ** ****** campus in St Paul. The dorm is doubling as Keith's apartment. The set was bare, so we had to fill it to make it look like an apartment. Luckily, our location managers Randy and Mary were able to help us out by donating a couch, tv, tv stand, end table, coffee table, etc. Eric Lee also donated the use of his Playstation 2 and Randy was gracious enough to make a Target run to purchase a PS2 game and a Johan Santana poster. With all the stuff combined, it made the dorm look like...a dump basically. Which was what we were looking for anyway.

The shoot itself went great, and the actors were spot on with their performances. This scene is going to have a HUGE impact on the film, I can't wait until you all can see it.

We also shot some stuff with a toaster...

After the shoot, we had lunch at Davanis with Jeremiah (one of our investors) and his lovely girlfriend Marissa.

After lunch we cut the crew loose and returned some of Randy and Mary's stuff. Then we shot some driving around cutaways of Emily and Justen in the car. We tried rigging something up from the back of Eric's truck, but the road conditions in St Paul were less than favorable.

The next thing shot was in Bloomington. Chad, myself and Emily shot the remaining portions of the near car accident between Sam and Gary. It was tricky, but I think it will look convincing on screen.

Day 16 was a great day and we got some great work done. Kudos to all the cast and crew, and to Eric, an actor pretending to be a PA. Just kidding, you did a fine job sir.

We are now listed in Variety, the most wide-read publication in the entertainment industry.

http://www.streckfusonline.com/Variety_com%20-%20Film%20Production%20Detail.htm

"ICEBREAKER" DAY 15 OF PRODUCTION

Day 15 took place this past weekend in Rochester, MN at the manor of Sir Eric Lee. Call time was 10:00 PM with a skeleton crew of myself, Chad, Ben and Jay. Actors on hand included Sasha, Eric and Zeus.

The first scene shot would be the campfire conversation between Eric and Sasha. This was fun to setup, I think the lighting is pretty cool. We used the Lowel lights with some orange gels and a bit of red. After the scene was completed, we exchanged poop stories (did I mention this was a 'wet' set?) in Eric's workshop before hitting the hay.

In the morning, Eric's lovely wife Jackie prepared breakfast for everyone, and it was very good. Next up, we shot a small scene (1 shot, about 10 seconds long) of Eric talking on the phone in his kitchen. It was compelling stuff.

Next, we went outside to shoot Sasha approaching the house and watching Zeus eat the lasgna. Hilarious stuff. That dog has a future in showbiz!

Next cam the driving bit with Sasha. We used Chad's car, which is a stick. Sasha got a crash course in stick shift driving and we were off. I sat in the passenger seat and shot Sasha from as many angles as I could. Chad was in the back with the mic. I think Sasha only killed it 11 or 12 times. Good times.

"IceBreaker", Day 14 of Production

Day 14 was…interesting to say the least. We were scheduled to start shooting at the club Euphoria in downtown Minneapolis at noon. When Chad and I arrived at the front of the building, there were about 20 extras, Sasha, and crew members waiting on the sidewalk. From what we gathered, there was no one in the space to let us in. We walked around to the back of the building, found the back door, pounded on it, but nothing. We got screwed.

Randy arrived on scene and explained that he had great difficulty getting confirmation in the last week from Euphoria, even though we secured the spot 3 months ago. We tried making some phone calls, but nothing. We reassured the cast and crew that we were looking at some other options.

Randy hit Rosen's bar, explained our situation, and they agreed to let us shoot there. Meanwhile, I was talking to Tom down at The Loon. Half the bar was closed, so he said we could use it for whatever we wanted. Awesome.

We started at The Loon, shooting some stuff for the rejection montage. Kristen Richardson played our babe for one sequence, and Ashley Powell played the babe for another. Both were great scenes with great performances. We had The Loon cater our lunch, which was very good. Thank you to Tom and all his peeps at The Loon.

We then moved down to Rosen's for the goth and hooker bit. Sasha informed us that a Christian club around the corner, 3 Degrees, might be very cool for the goth bit so Chad and I ran over there quick to check it out. We made contact with Pastor Steve and let him in on our situation. He said that we had 30 minutes to get it, and that was all. We made a mad dash over to Rosen's, grabbed the gear and the Goths and darted back to 3 Degrees. We shot handheld, and fast. The scene is great and was probably one of the more fun shoots so far on the project- just because of the rush from working quickly.

After we wrapped 3 Degrees, it was back to Rosen's were Chad's computer crashed. No problem, we just went right to tape. We filmed a short sequence with Sasha and Angie Hauk then moved onto the more complicated hooker bit. Kristen Beyer played our 'lady of the night' and Sasha and Andy were on hand as Gary and Roach. Randy had another cameo as pimp daddy, but I don’t want to reveal too much, you’ll just have to wait.

It's too bad Euphoria doesn’t have their shit together. Their location was great, and would have worked for us. Oh well, everything worked out in the end.

Thanks to cast and crew, Mary for the food, Brian Casey for being a last minute PA, Rosen's, The Loon (Tom) and 3 Degrees (Pastor Steve).

"ICEBREAKER" PRODUCTION, DAYS 10-13

I apologize if this seems real generalized, but days 10-13 are kind of a blur now...

Days 10-13 were our four 'big' days at Brothers Bar and Grill in downtown Minneapolis. THIS IS THE BEST BAR IN THE TWIN CITIES. GO THERE, DRINK, HAVE FUN! Seriously though, Greg and his staff at Brothers were awesome. They accommodated us with everything we needed to make the shoot go smoothly as possible. And they had good food too.

Here are some highlights/thank yous:

We shot the scene between Sam (played by Emily Fradenburgh) and Steve (played by Corey Anderson). This was hilarious. Emily was spot on with her delivery and Corey is a comic genius. This scene will stand out for sure.

Another comedic genius is Andy Kraft, playing Roach in the film. We did a lot with him over these four days (including a long dolly shot that Andy totally improvised- he might steal the movie with this). It was a true pleasure working with him.

Our extra turnout was not in the numbers we hoped for, but we GREATLY appreciate everyone that did show up, and thanks to Anne for keeping everyone in line. And thanks to anyone we pulled off the street to help fill in spots of the bar- you did great.

Sasha got pink eye. It sucks, but what can you do? Nothing. That day ended early.

Eric Lee. The man is a maniac and we appreciate the job well done and all the extra help.

Justen Overlander, Keri Bunkers and Dawn Brodey- total professionals. We never have to worry about getting a great performance from you guys. Thanks.

Damon Barta- a fantastic job on a great cameo. Thanks for keeping me company in the grip truck.

Oh yeah, the GRIP TRUCK! We rented a grip truck from Lights On (rent all your film equipment there, they rock!) with lights, the dolly, grip shit...it was awesome.

We did a 'Vertigo" shot of Keri. It was hard.

Gus, thanks for wrangling cords. Not too many Executive Producers would do that.

Papa Jim, thanks for coming down. Be proud of Anne, she does a great job.

Thank you Tim, Mary and Randy for helping out with everything. You guys are always there for us and really appreciate all of your hard work!

Our crew- Narayanan, Ben, Jay, Phil, Brian, Sara, Tom- this movie is going to be awesome, and it is in part due to you guys. Thanks for getting up at 4:00 am ready to go.

Did I mention that Brothers is awesome? Thank you thank you thank you Greg. You are a rockstar and you really came through for us. Greg arranged for Bud and MGD to make up huge banners promoting the movie. (i will try and get a picture of one up soon). Thanks again, I will forever be indebted to you and your establishment!

Chad, you are my hetero-sexual life partner...bitch.

We got the majority of the stuff we needed to get done, done. We still need one night to get some dolly shots, and another to get some atmosphere shots. We are still working to get everyone scheduled for that, so hopefully we will have it soon.

Oh yeah, I ran over a sign with the grip truck in downtown Minneapolis (no damage, no worries) and a Minneapolis cop gave me the finger after cutting him off.

Score!

I ASSURE YOU- WE ARE STILL IN PRODUCTION!!!

I HAVE NOT BEEN DOING A VERY GOOD JOB AT KEEPING THE BLOG UPDATED, BUT I ASSURE YOU THAT "ICEBREAKER" IS STILL ALIVE AND KICKING...AND ALMOST DONE WITH PRINCIPLE PHOTOGRAPHY!

HOPEFULLY I WILL GET THINGS UPDATED VERY SOON, SO PLEASE DON'T BAIL ON US YET!