Tokyo Cowboys

My good friend Jeremy

2011-05-02T05:58:00.001+01:00

is holding the Tokyo Cowboys tapes for us.
All 500+ of them.
He is storing them somewhere.
He is our good friend.

I need those tapes.

If you are flying from London to the States,
let me know.
Perhaps you can take twenty or so tapes.
In this way,
perhaps it will take a year,
perhaps two,
but, in this way,
I can get the tapes back.

Hugs,

Daneeta

The Modern Day Samurai

2010-06-27T23:10:00.003+01:00

Tokyo Cowboys in Saiyouken Video

2010-04-03T04:56:00.001+01:00

Does Tokyo Cowboys have Legs?

2010-02-16T19:13:00.002Z

"Tokyo Cowboys" has been haunting me these days. Maybe it is finished, but I don't think so. Maybe I'm crazy and just can't let it go at that.

Paul hooked me up with a producer turned distributor out in La La Land. He said TC could have legs. Cut everyone out except Ken, he says. I like the idea. Ken likes the idea. There is good YouTube footage, and I want to do another trip.

Everybody thinks I'm crazy. Including my business partner.

Robert thinks I should break it into Webisodes. I'm not a hundred percent sure what that is, but it sounds good. We shot over 500 hours of footage. A lot of interviews with a lot of guys. We shot some Japanese people. Lots and lots of people.

Anyway...

Where to go from here?

Tokyo Cowboys at Lusher Charter School

2008-11-22T02:55:00.005Z

Tokyo Cowboys had its New Orleans premiere yesterday at Lusher Charter School Uptown. Head of Media Studies and fellow Loyola Alumnus, Christopher Jeansonne invited me to speak about Elektrik Zoo's debut feature documentary, working as an independent filmmaker and how I got from Big Branch to Tokyo to London and back home again.

I was quite impressed with the students. They were engaged and informed, aware of the world around them, not afraid to formulate their own opinions and not afraid to call each other on faulty logic. I was also impressed with Christopher's curriculum. This term he is screening Ozu, Kurosawa, Kitano, Lynch, and Wenders among others. I was quite proud to have TC screen along side films by these great filmmakers.

Tokyo Cowboys does Naperville

2008-09-03T09:44:00.001+01:00

This from the Elektrik Zoo Blog:

Tokyo Cowboys will screen at the Naperville Independent Film Festival in Naperville, Illinois in September. In addition, Elektrik Zoo's debut documentary feature about the trials and tribulations of life on the post-modern urban frontier has been nominated for best documentary feature.

Read the rest on the Elektrik Zoo Blog.

Death by Overwork

2008-07-21T22:28:00.006+01:00

The Mainichi Shinbun reports today on a 32 year-old man who has died from Karoshi, or overwork. Granted, I read a few of the Japan blogs, but this is the second Karoshi incident I've read about today.

We mention Karoshi in "Tokyo Cowboys"...how the Salaryman sacrifices everything for work...how the sacrifice can take years of training and can sometimes result in death by overwork. Some people think this line is funny, but it's not meant to be. The kids train from a very early age. I've worked in the schools. Freezing, no coats allowed...study, study, study....then sports and after school activities...then juku (cram school)...then studying until late at night. I have never seen kids so exhausted.

I have seen them...the Salarymen and women falling asleep standing up on the trains. I have worked in their offices. I couldn't do it. I would leave every day at 5 p.m. with an "o-saki ni..." (I'm going before you...I'm committing a great rudeness). I felt ashamed abandoning them. But I was not a modern day samurai.

There is always a bit of an outcry for something to be done. But this kind of work-yourself-to-death ethic is almost a part of the cultural heritage of the Japanese who, during Samurai days, would rather gut themselves than lose face.

Why didn't the young man just quit? Why didn't he just say: "Take this job and shove it!"

It's just not done.

There is another bit in Cowboys where our mysterious J-lady commentator says that the Japanese don't like to say "no" because it is rude. But asking too much can be a burden. So the responsibility lies on the person who asks and not the one who answers (as is typical in Western culture).

There is some kind of Catch-22 thing going on here, but I can't work it out in my head.

Thanks to TokyoMango for the heads up. Also pinched the .gif and following quote from them: "The image shows a placard that reads: Death from overwork. Be careful not to work too much."

Interview on Directors Notes

2008-07-16T18:37:00.002+01:00

Yay! This from the Elektrik Zoo Blog:

Elektrik Zoo co-founder Daneeta Loretta Saft was interviewed on Directors Notes last week (link here). She discusses the joys of independent filmmaking, her career as a writer and her feature documentary "Tokyo Cowboys," which she co-directed and co-produced with Elektrik Zoo partner Patrick Jackson.

Tokyo Cowboys Does Atlanta

2008-07-08T10:11:00.001+01:00

Yay! This from the Elektrik Zoo Blog:

The Elektrik Zoo's debut feature documentary "Tokyo Cowboys" will screen at the 5th Annual Atlanta Underground Film Festival on Thursday, August 21st at 7 p.m. "We are quite excited to screen alongside 'Wiener Takes All' and '1000 Journals,' some of the best storytelling documentaries of this year," said director Daneeta Loretta Saft.

For more information about the film, please visit the Tokyo Cowboys website.

Anita Green

Tokyo Cowboys European Premiere

2008-06-15T11:49:00.001+01:00

Yay! This from the Elektrik Zoo blog:

The Elektrik Zoo's debut feature documentary "Tokyo Cowboys" will have it's European premiere at the Ischia Film Festival in Italy. The festival celebrates the use of location as a character in the film.

Co-director Daneeta Loretta Saft said "We always had the notion that Tokyo was the 5th character in the film. The film is called Tokyo Cowboys after all. So, when Ischia contacted us about screening the film, we were delighted. It means that we have succeeded in that respect."

The festival will take place from the 22nd to the 29th of June. The filmmakers are currently seeking sponsorship to attend. For more information, contact info "at" tokyocowboys "dot" com.

Tokyo Cowboys at STIFF

2008-06-06T23:37:00.002+01:00

Yay! This from the Elektrik Zoo Website.

Feature documentary "Tokyo Cowboys" directed and produced by The Elektrik Zoo's Patrick Jackson and Daneeta Loretta Saft will screen at the Seattle True Independent Film Festival in June.

"Screening at STIFF is a special treat for us," said Daneeta Saft. "We hope to pack out the cinema and get this puppy sold."

Saft and Jackson are in the process of selling the film and setting up their next project, "Down in the Parish" (working title).

Tokyo Cowboys in the Telegraph

2008-05-23T16:30:00.003+01:00

Tokyo Cowboys has been ever so briefly mentioned in the Daily Telegraph. Yay! Our first mainstream press.

Online is a Place in Hell

2008-05-02T14:28:00.003+01:00

Spent days and days onlining the film only to discover after exporting to digi that there are two mistakes in the subtitles. They are very minor mistakes, but Patrick's brain sings out "I didn't work on this effing film for 6 years to let slide 2 minor mistakes."

This is the project that never ends. This is the project that eats all of our money. This is the project that threatens to break both of us in two.

Is it worth it?

If you believe that this world is just an illusion, then no. Nothing is really worth it. If you believe that our sole/soul purpose in this world is to create, then maybe. It's hard for me to tell because I am so sick of it all at the moment that I just want to vomit.

Actually, I just want to go home. But it's always a question of money...should I throw all of the money I have into the bottomless pit that has become "Tokyo Cowboys," or should I spend it on something as frivolous as going home to visit my family whom I haven't seen in a year and a half.

Tough choice.

This is not bitching. This is honesty for all of you bright-eyed and bushy tailed people out there who are thinking about getting into filmmaking. This is the reality. And, sometimes it sucks. I hope to bring you good news next time so that you know it doesn't always suck.

P.S. I just had a falafel, and I feel a little better.

Graphic Tedium

2008-04-24T00:12:00.003+01:00

I have just spent the past 4 hours exporting all of the graphics of the film, one of which you see on your left converted to a jpg so it looks crappy. It was a nightmare, and I hope I never have to do it again but instead can hire someone to do it for me.

ahahahahahaahha.

I'm going mad.

Little Rock Film Festival

2008-04-16T19:19:00.001+01:00

Just got confirmation that we are in competition at the Little Rock Film Festival, which takes place in May. We've got two really good slots: Saturday May 17th at 4:30 p.m. and Sunday May 18th at 1:00 p.m. You can see our festival page here. I should remind all you NOLA buddies that Little Rock is just a day's drive from New Orleans. How about it? Shall we have ourselves a convoy?

The Tokyo Cowboys Premiere

2008-04-15T17:22:00.002+01:00

This morning of the premiere, I got up too early and started drinking way too much coffee, which lead to a full-fledged panic attack. Cassie's flatmate Brendan talked me back from the ledge. The film screened at 2:40 p.m. so spent the day pacing and practicing my speech.

This is me doing last minute changes on my speech:

The rental car place had a drop off service, so it was like getting chauffeured to the premiere. The screening was held at the Imaginasian Center in downtown L.A., which is very nice. I hung out in the lobby with the J-crew eating their onigiri and drinking their tea until Kevin and Dave arrived. I was afraid they were going to be the only ones to show up, but pretty soon people started to arrive, and we went into the cinema.

This is Kevin and Dave and Me after the screening:

The cinema was really nice. Good comfy seats with lots of leg room, nice speakers and a nice sized screen. There were about 20 people there, which I thought was pretty good for a Monday afternoon at 2:40 p.m.

I got up and gave my speech, which went really well mostly because I couldn't see a damn thing with the spot light in my eyes. On the way back to my seat, I was approached by another festival programmer, and we swapped cards.

I stayed for the whole film. Thank god we did the sound mix (which wasn't in time for this screening) because the sound is ropey. Something we hadn't noticed on the home speakers or even on the LFS speakers. But you really notice it on a good set of speakers like at the Imaginasian Center.

People laughed right the way through. Some people came up afterwards and said they really enjoyed it and that they really could relate to the characters...that they felt like they were sharing a part of their lives through the film. I was sad that Patrick wasn't there for the first public screening.

Kevin and Dave drove me back to Cassie's place, and I crashed a bit. Too much excitement for one day.

Gayla

2008-04-11T16:06:00.004+01:00

Last night I went to the Japan Film Festival Gayla at the Japan American Museum in downtown L.A. Not having Patrick with me, Cassie went as my date. We got all dolled up, and I obsessed about my speech, which, according to Takahashi-san was supposed to go on for 5 minutes.

You never know what to expect at J-events. There was pizza and sushi and oolong-cha. At first we thought there was no beer, but we found that too, and I started drinking right away.

The festivities started with a J-girl duo:

But it was weird. No one was listening. They just kept on eating and chatting. Then the programmer got up, and the same thing. Then I got up to do my speech and realized that I shouldn't have stressed so much about it because no one was listening. No one cared. L.A. is a weird town. The filmmaker does not rule.

After, went for sushi in Little Tokyo. I don't think we picked a good place, though. What we thought were J-people sitting at the sushi bar turned out not to be. Cassie says there's better sushi in Silverlake. Still, it was fun to hang out with Cassie and get dressed up.

Here in L.A.

2008-04-10T20:53:00.004+01:00

After the longest day ever (time expands when you travel from London to L.A.), I have arrived. Met Cassie and her canine companion Gordon at Union Station last night. Will be attending the opening Gala tonight. Takahashi-san has asked that I give a speech, but my brain is mush from the jet lag. Haven't heard from P.J. yet, so if you're reading this from London, can you call him and tell him to call his girlfriend, already. The picture is from Cassie's side garden. She has a back garden as well. It's so warm that I can sit out here in a spaghetti strap dress and nothing else. I love southern California.

California Dreamin': The Japan Film Festival

2008-04-06T18:35:00.003+01:00

Oh my gosh, I am seriously about to pee myself. Thanks to the support of some very fine people at the London Film School, I have just booked the tickets to L.A. to attend the Tokyo Cowboys world premiere at the Japan Film Festival. You can't imagine the amount of financial footwork that was involved, but, whatever...

Do I call this the world premiere? The film isn't technically finished yet. What we're screening at the JFF doesn't have the final sound mix or the grade.

A moment of silence for Patrick who is not going. He has graciously stepped aside to send me to represent the film.

I will be staying with good friend and fellow LFS alumni Cassie Destino whom I met at the film school. Looking forward to meeting her dog. Looking forward to being in the California sunshine, and looking forward to seeing some very old friends that I have not seen in ages.

New York-Tokyo Press

2008-04-04T09:10:00.002+01:00

"Tokyo Cowboys" has just been mentioned on the New York-Tokyo website. Awesome!

Dubbing Theatre Footage

2008-04-02T18:52:00.003+01:00

Here's a little clip I shot in the dubbing theater today on my mobile phone of Alexej doing his stuff.

Tokyo Cowboys in the Dubbing Theatre

2008-04-01T08:43:00.000+01:00

I thought yesterday was going to be more of the same shit...filling in forms, sending out stuff to festivals, trying to sort out the last clearances hell. Sometimes I feel like Tokyo Cowboys' bitch. But, at 10:30 a.m., I got a call from Alexeij, our illustrious sound mixer. He'd done the first pass on the film, and could we come in at noon to have a listen. Yes, yes, yes.

Sitting in the dubbing theatre, I began to feel like a real filmmaker again. These past few months I started to believe that filmmaking was just an expensive hobby for us. It was really getting me down. But, then, there was the Japan Film Festival, and that got me on the way to believing in us again. But, being in the dubbing theatre, and listening to the film, and giving direction to Alexeij...that brought it home for me.

Do you have to make your entire living as a filmmaker to be one? Patrick is in this camp...you are a filmmaker when you earn a living as a filmmaker. I'm more of the namby-pamby "you are a filmmaker when you feel like you are...when you believe you are."

Comments?

Oh, P.S. Here are my notes for the sound:

Kick Ass Disc Design

2008-03-30T15:29:00.000+01:00

This is what we've been working so hard on these past few days. We wanted to have a more consistent branding strategy for Tokyo Cowboys. So, this design is on the DVD, the Website and the Blog.

Japundit Press

2008-03-29T13:59:00.000Z

Carlos over at the Japan Film Festival got us a nice bit of press by getting us mentioned on the Japundit Blog. Japundit has a large readership of people who are the main audience for a film like ours. Way to go Carlos! Thanks!

Tokyo Cowboys World Premiere in Los Angeles

2008-03-27T08:53:00.000Z

Hello friends of Tokyo Cowboys!

This is more than just a update as we are announcing big news:

Tokyo Cowboys World Premiere

Tokyo Cowboys will have its world premiere at the Japan Film Festival in Los Angeles on April 14th. We will be screening alongside two of our Japanese filmmaking heroes: Akira Kurosawa and Hirokazu Koreeda ("Afterlife" and "Nobody Knows"). "Tokyo Cowboys" is the only film in the festival directed by a non-Asian and the only film in the festival to deal with the subject of gaijin (outsider) experience in Japan. Visit the website here:

http://www.jffla.org

Tell your Friends

Getting a premiere is all well and good. But we need your help to pack out the cinema. You can do this by forwarding the blurb (copied at the end of this email) to your mates in California and by encouraging them to go and see the film.

Tell the Press

If you know any newspaper people, blog people or people with muscle or celebrity, send them the press release attached to this email. Raising the profile of the film helps it to get into festivals and gets it distributed, which means YOU can watch it in cinemas and on DVD.

Watch the New Teaser

We've updated the website with a new teaser. Visit the site and have a look:

www.tokyocowboys.com

Steal our Teaser

If you have a blog, embed our teaser into a post. You can find the embedding code here:

http://www.tokyocowboys.com/embed.html

That's it for now, folks. Hope to see you soon in a city near you!

Hugs,

Daneeta and Patrick
www.tokyocowboys.com
www.tokyocowboys.blogspot.com

The Blurb

Thought you guys might be interested in this bit of news. Some friends of mine have just finished their feature documentary "Tokyo Cowboys." The film is having its world premiere in your neck of the woods at the Japan Film Festival. Check out their website at www.tokyocowboys.com.

The festival website is here:

http://www.jffla.org. Help them out by spreading the news.

Here's their blurb:

Tokyo Cowboys: a new feature length documentary tells the stories of a group of westerners who gave up their jobs, homes and countries to pursue their dreams in the cut throat world of Tokyo.The film's delicate and humorous portrait illuminates the price some pay for a taste of Tokyo's success. Shot over a two year period, the film follows the trial and errors of its heroes' quest for opportunity on this post-modern urban frontier.

New Teaser

2008-03-19T13:24:00.007Z

Press the play button below to view the new Tokyo Cowboys Teaser. Hope you like it. Also, give us a shout in comments to let us know you're out there.

TC Investors Invest Time Too

2008-03-15T19:20:00.001Z

Met up with two of the Tokyo Cowboys investors for coffee to update them on the project. These guys aren't film people like some of our other investors, but they loved the project so much that they put down some of their hard earned cash to support us.

Now, they are asking what they can do to help us to sell the project. These are the kinds of investors that indy filmmakers need.

They are both sending out word to their networks about the film, and Shani, who works for a big University, is trying to organize a special sneak preview screening through their film society. Cool.

Gareth is coming over on Monday to have a look at our track laying to get everything organized for the Dub. We've finished the credits, yeah, so that's the film basically done for the festivals. Whew!

Photo from Ordinary Investing.

"I think that's his penis" and other Subtitling tales

2008-03-11T20:13:00.001Z

Aoi came by last night to give us her final advice on subtitling. I've mentioned before that Aoi is a professional Subtitle Artist who came to me via a FEW contact, Christina. You gotta love the Japan network.

Subtitling is a complicated mathematical business as well as one of rhythm. You have to find the most concise way of saying things and also not leave the screen empty while the character natters on in his native language.

We joked about translating the Japanese into English. There are a lot of "verbal pauses" in Japanese similar to our "ums" and "ahs." And when Japanese people are speaking on screen, they tend to use the most polite form of the language, which can take about twice as long as the more base form (literally). Joking aside, Aoi is a true professional. We sorted it all out quickly and then spent the rest of the night drinking tea and chatting about Japanese cinema. As she does a lot of the subtitling of Japanese films entering the British market, she knows her stuff. Two films that she suggested we all see are: "Uchouten Hoteru" and "Kamome Shokudo" or "Seagul Diner. Happy hunting.

Oh, the "penis" reference in the title of this entry is one of the subtitles in Tokyo Cowboys. I guess you'll have to watch the film to find out more. And, get your minds out of the gutter, it's not what you think.

Picture from Here.

Tokyo Cowboys Screening Feedback

2008-03-05T16:14:00.001Z

Two weeks ago we did a screening on the little big screen for three people. One of these was fellow filmmaker Tony Ukpo. Tony's just got back to me with feedback, and I thought I'd share it with you guys.

From what you'd told me and from reading the blog and all, I had a certain idea of what the film might be like. Any film about Japan is something I would always be happy to see, but it was so much more than that. And, in fact, it sort of gave me the feeling (one that is quite prevalent in the film): the draw that Tokyo has. Watching it I kept thinking: "now i really want to go live in Japan...even if just for a few years" (something I have contemplated in the past and again recently before I saw the film, funnily enough).

I thought it was not invasive as some personal documentaries seem to be, and even the history between you and...Mark is it? didn't seem to be overly dramatic or calling for sympathy; it just helped to encapsulate the feeling that the country, or the city rather, is all consuming in all possible ways.

I think your mini pitch of "lost in translation for real" is even more clear after watching the film because it does showcase all those things foreigners associate with Japan and the Japanese experience, as well as the Japanese reaction to foreigners. But, at the same time, it felt so open. Even though, of course, the Japanese are indeed quite an exclusive bunch to some degree, you really get that sense of openness to one and all, which is kind of a parallel to what America used to offer or aspire to offer: a country that accepts all. In contrast, however, the Japanese don't try to change the foreigners. They just let them be. Yet there is this great movement by some foreigners to try to fit in, and, conversely, succeeding because of their difference. I really felt that watching the film.

I liked the kind of disconnected voice over that was a lot more poetic and speaking about things in a different context from the stories we were following. The passage of time works really well and fluidly. And it all looks really good too! So go Patrick!

I'm kind of rambling a bit and possibly repeating myself, but the summary of it all is that I really like the film and I really feel it's going to work well for you once it gets out, so congrats in advance for all the rewards you should be receiving in the near future. I always respect people who really try to do things without waiting for the perfect conditions and make films from the heart and not just following some formula or audience numbers, and I hope to see more of that in the coming years.

Subtitles are Next

2008-02-29T21:57:00.000Z

Screened the film to Aoi and Bruce tonight. Aoi is a Japanese lady who is living over here in the U.K. And, her job is...well doing subtitles.

Firstly, they really liked the film. And, they got all of the little subtleties and nuances. Aoi reckons that it will play well to Japanese audiences who have lived abroad or who are interested in foreign cultures. Bruce reckons it will play well to anyone who has lived abroad. There are some universal truths that will hit home for expatriates.

Secondly, Aoi says that the subtitles are fine for the most part. She says there are rules that need to be followed like only feeding people 15 characters per second and not having more than 37 characters on a line, so some work needs to be done here. She has kindly offered to help us out with this, so we're moving forward on this front as well.

Sound Mixer on Board

2008-02-25T21:48:00.000Z

Finally, finally, finally. We have finally managed to get a sound mixer on board. Jaime hooked us up with a company that LFS uses who, in turn, introduced us to one of the sound mixers.

Getting a mix for Tokyo Cowboys could cost in excess of £3000. Our sound mixer mate who gave TC a listen a few weeks back says there are no serious issues with the sound. It's just that the film is 75 minutes long, which translates into hours of work, which translates into money by the hour. I was disheartened by the reality of paying this big chunk of change, but we must soldier on.

So, I dropped the TC disc off with Jaime's contact hoping he could help us out in some way.

He likes it.

He likes it so much that he's willing to do the mix during his down time for a fraction of what it would otherwise cost.

This is why it takes so long for you musicians to get your royalty checks:

2008-02-23T17:52:00.001Z

I can't tell you how fed up I am over EFFING clearances. I am cursing and kicking things and I can feel that tightness inside of my chest. Frustration is banging around in my brain, and the deep breathing is not effing helping.

Here's just one example:

Mid November: I make an application to MCPS for the rights to "Tevye's Dream" (in one of the scenes Kanya is at play practice for a production of "Fiddler on the Roof" with the Tokyo International Players).
Two days later: I get a message back from MCPS. "Boy, they are quick," I think. "This is gonna be a snap!" They say I need to contact THE RECORD COMPANY directly. They kindly give me the number.

The next day: I call THE RECORD COMPANY. They give me the name of THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR CLEARING RIGHTS, however, THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR CLEARING RIGHTS is on holiday for a week. "Can I have her email?" "Yes." So I email her and wait.

Seven days later: The email bounces back with a bunch of computer speak and this human speak: "Despite repeated attempts, this message could not be delivered."
The next day: I call to check that the email I've taken down is correct. It is. I ask to speak with THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR CLEARING RIGHTS as, by this point, she is back from holiday (I hope she went somewhere sunny). I explain myself to her. She says to put everything I have just explained in an email, which I do and send to her again.
Seven days later: The email bounces back with much the same message as above. I call, but by this time, everyone is on their Christmas break.
Early January: I call THE RECORD COMPANY again. THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR CLEARING RIGHTS is out of the office sick. I'm begging the receptionist to help me. She gives me the contact number of THE SECOND IN COMMAND to THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR CLEARING RIGHTS. She is even kind enough to transfer me to him. Alas, he's not at his desk, so I leave a voice mail.
Throughout the Month of January: I call, leaving several messages for THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR CLEARING RIGHTS and THE SECOND IN COMMAND to THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR CLEARING RIGHTS. No one calls me back. I have noticed (through Facebook's friend finder) that THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR CLEARING RIGHTS is on Facebook, and I entertain the thought of contacting her via the network. But, this somehow seems like an invasion of privacy, and I talk myself out of it.
February: Frustrated, I go onto THE RECORD COMPANY's website and use their contact form to make my inquiry. The next day, I get an email from THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR CLEARING RIGHTS saying that THE RECORD COMPANY does not own the rights to this song. She doesn't know what I'm on about. I ring her just to make sure. "Nope, we don't own it. I've just checked the database. It's not there." I want to scream down the phone at her. Why couldn't she have checked the effing database when I called back in December if it was that easy to do? Time doesn't grow on effing trees, you know.
One week ago: I write MCPS again explaining all of the above. They have not written me back.
Today: I use the email form on the MCPS website to explain above. Heck, if it worked for THE RECORD COMPANY, maybe it will work for MCPS.

I mean, I have tried...I have really tried to do this properly. But, what else can I do? Jerry Bock wrote the music and Sheldon Harnick wrote the lyrics for "Fiddler on the Roof." If any of you know either one of these fellas, please email me and put me out of my misery.

And here's my lesson: it's really time to work with a production company because this SUCKS and I SUCK AT IT.

Tokyo Cowboys on the Big Screen

2008-02-19T21:43:00.000Z

Well almost...I screened Tokyo Cowboys for a whopping big audience of 3 on the little big screen of Cinema B at the London Film School. Attending were Diane Morris (one of our investors and all around Asia Pacific expert), Margaret Glover (my writing mentor) and Tony Upko (filmmaker and publisher of "This is a Magazine").

It was absolutely thrilling to see the film on "the big screen." I was putting this off as I was afraid that, having shot in video, the picture quality would degrade. Well, it didn't. And the response from our little audience was outstanding. So, yeah!

Tokyo Cowboys Press

2008-02-14T23:34:00.002Z

in "This is a Magazine"

"Tokyo Cowboys encapsulates the wonder that the city holds. The desires it creates, and the stories that evolve from it."

Japanese Sleeping

2008-02-10T23:26:00.001Z

There is a whole photo gallery dedicated to Japanese people sleeping in public. I don't see what the big deal is. These people work really hard. They should be allowed to sleep on the train, at the bus stop or in the middle of Shibuya Crossing. As long as they're not a danger to themselves or others...

We have only one shot of a sleeping beauty in the final cut of Tokyo Cowboys, although we shot so many.

You can tell by her uniform that she is an elementary school student. Clutching her school bag, she is conked out on the Yamanote Line in the middle of the day. It must have been the volley ball. Or the Kanji workout. English lesson or Juku.

It's not just being tired, though. Some of the cars on that line are still old. No one speaks, and the gently rocking of the train and hypnotic metallic noises make you feel like you are in the belly of the great warm mother machine.

Mixin' it up

2008-02-04T22:57:00.000Z

Met with a sound mixer today. We had lunch at The Breakfast Club in Soho. Apart from the fact that Hippies must exit at the rear (no exceptions), the food was pretty good. Got in 2 servings of fruit and veg, so that was also good.

She gave me some good advice, the sound mixer, that is. And she said she'd have a look and a listen to the film.

Simon sent the final music over this weekend, and PJ cut it in. I haven't had a chance to listen to it yet, but PJ says it's finished.

Typed in some credits. This is going to take steady and continuous work for about a week.

Entered contacts into the database.

Packaged and mailed off some festival submissions.

Emailed Ken and Kerry Kennedy about clearances.

Spoke to Dave about the title graphics and about creating an ident for The Elektrik Zoo. We have to send him over a QT of the opening sequence.

This evening, worked a little on the script.

Sales Agents, Distributors and Exhibitors...oh my!

2008-01-17T21:23:00.000Z

Did the second part of the Sales, Marketing and Distribution course with Mia Bays. Good stuff all around. She brought in the Managing Diretor and Sales Agent Andrew Orr from Independent Film Company, distributor Soda Pictures' Ed Fletcher and Jason Woods from Picturehouse - one of the UK's leading cinema bookers.

I was quick with the meishi and the 30 second pitch. Ed Fletcher gave me the best advice about the pitch, which was that when you are pitching to distributors, they are most interested to know the selling points of your film to specific territories.

This is what I've come up with so far: I think that there is definitely an audience in Japan amongst the nearly one million foreigners living in Tokyo alone and amongst the Japanese themselves as we've got two big stars who appear regularly on Japanese TV and in videos (Patrick Harlan's career has skyrocketed since filming). And, of course, there is America. I think the fascination with all things Japan is there and there is a sort of "Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" appeal.

As for the UK, I was thinking of the "look what those crazy Americans are doing over in Japan" appeal might be there. That having been said, the film does not focus on the sensational aspects of Japan as so many films about the area do. It's about normal guys finding themselves in extraordinary circumstances. Our main character, Jewish boy from New York Ken, for example, finds himself performing Christian weddings in order to make a buck while he tries to kick start his career on Japanese TV.

There was a bit of a nuisance with the website going down and email crashing. This right after the workshop, so, of course, I was obsessing about how one of the workshop people might try to hit the site, and how it would be down, and how they would think I was a total looser, but I got over that.

Emailed all of the festivals we submitted to and informed them of the changes.

I'm boring myself to tears now.

Photo is a self portrait of Kimiko Yoshida.

Hello Kitty ii ka na?

2008-01-14T20:04:00.001Z

Spent the day at the Mia Bays Sales, Marketing & Distribution Workshop put on by my mate Saskia at the London Film School (the old alma mater). Highlights were:

Meeting and swapping cards with the Head of Programming for the London Film Festival, Michael Hayden. Did the 30 second pitch: "Tokyo Cowboys is permanent lost in translation...for real: an intimate look into the lives of 5 western men living long term in the wild, wild East."

Learning that you can ask smaller festivals for something called a "screening fee," which is essentially a box office percentage. According to Mia, not all festivals have a screening fee policy, but a lot of the smaller ones do.

And...learning that "The Lives of Others" was rejected by all major festivals, yet it was in the top ten grossing films of 9 of the top 10 territories. (This is to make me feel better in the event of a worst case scenario.)

Another session tomorrow with a Sales Agent, top Booker in the U.K., and a distributor. Must print out some more TC meishi.

Photo thanks to Tokyo Mango.

Breathing New Life

2008-01-12T20:28:00.000Z

Spent several hours yesterday with Jaime Estrada-Torres, who gave us amazingly thorough advice on how to professionally polish Tokyo Cowboys. He went through the film scene by scene and pointed out specific action items. Patrick reckons that he can finish the whole edit by next week.

We also laid all of Simon's music over the film, and it is just brilliant. Spoke to him on the phone, and we'll take the new edit round to his studio after the edit is done for polishing.

Spent several hours this evening researching distribution models. Of particular interest was Peter Broderick's Distribution Bulletins, specifically his one on using Radiohead's online model. Got a bit freaked out by Film Specific's Podcast about how to position your film for distribution in 2008. Deliverables? "You're gonna have to spend a bit of money?" Help!

The photo above is by Altus. He's using some cool technology to manga-fy his stills.

Tokyo Cowboys New Year Update (in case you didn't get the email)

2008-01-07T21:31:00.000Z

Dear All,

Patrick and I would like to wish all of you a happy and prosperous New Year. It's been a while since we sent out an update, and there's a good reason. Patrick and I have been busy FINISHING the film. Well...almost.

What's the Score

Our composer, Simon Rogers, has been working hard to give us an incredibly beautiful score. It's been a pleasure and a great journey working with Simon who brings years of experience and loads of talent to the project. Patrick and I have both learned so much from him. Simon studied at the prestigious Royal College of Music and has been a success as both a Musician and Producer. You can see his CV and visit his profile on Wikipedia.

Clearances

What a palaver. This is where filmmaking gets really boring. We've got to clear every song sung in karaoke, every musical performance and every one of the TV shows we filmed. It adds up to about 30 individual clearances. We've been lucky, though. Three of the big songs will only be about £300 each to clear for festivals. The folks at Universal and Carlin Music have been very helpful, and we are making progress.

Other Bits

The remaining work on Tokyo Cowboys includes finishing the credits, grading and the sound mix. A mate is letting us use his online suite for the grade, so we have been very fortunate. The credits are going to be as long as the film, and the sound mix will be hairy. We've been listening on the mini speakers on our editing suite, but, when Patrick screened the film on Graham's home cinema system, he could hear every little finger tap on the camera. Loads to do here, but we've got some good leads on affordable sound mixers.

Festivals

So far, we've been sending off the Work-in-Progress to festivals. It is crucial to the success of the film to get a good run as festivals are where we can flog the film in various territories. This month is when we start to hear back, so please send us good vibrations. Also, a successful festival run often times depends on who you know. So, if any of you good folks out there have any connections to festivals for which Tokyo Cowboys qualifies, please do get in touch (Tokyo Cowboys is classified as a feature-length independent Documentary).

New Technologies

I have been following various blogs about emerging technologies in online film distribution. Online, we can find and exploit (in the best possible sense) audiences that may not be able to access Tokyo Cowboys elsewhere. I know there are some techies and marketing geniuses out there, and I would like to open a dialog about how we can get Tokyo Cowboys to the online market. Please email me if you'd like to participate.

That's it from TC headquarters. Patrick and I would like to thank all of you for your continuing support. We are almost there!

Hugs,

Daneeta

Festivals Again...

2008-01-06T13:25:00.000Z

Spent all day yesterday on festivals. The process is searching out the festivals that TC qualifies for, filling out all the paper work, packaging up everything and posting. Doing one festival can take upwards of 2 hours. Insanity. It's also quite expensive, but it's our career and at least it's tax deductible. This is the most boring bit about filmmaking, and, if we weren't independent, we would have some little worker bee doing this for us. Another reason to align yourself with a production company. Oh, how much we have learned on this project.

Thanks to http://www.nataliedee.com for the image.

Clearances

2008-01-04T13:13:00.000Z

Spent all day working on clearances. A bit of good news in that some of the major tracks will only cost about £300 to clear. We lucked out with "Just a Girl," "Wherever you will go," and "Linus and Lucy" in that we only need the publishing rights. Because characters are singing, and we are not using the recording (mechanical rights), the fee is much cheaper. Things get complicated with the karaoke tracks. Not only do we have to get the publishing rights, but we have to get those cleared through the karaoke company as well. Katsura is working hard on those. There are a couple of tracks owned by Victor Entertainment in Japan, so my Japanese skills will be tested to the limit when I do the calls on Tuesday. Then, there's all the Japanese TV stuff. All of this is tedious, but it will be so worth it in the end.

You can blow your independent spirit up my ass...

2007-12-21T21:18:00.000Z

I have spent the last few days and nights trawling WAB, BritFilms and the like for appropriate festivals for Tokyo Cowboys. I figure the festivals specializing in "independent" films are the ones for us. I mean, we are the epitome of independent. We raised the money ourselves, we shot it, we edited it and we are selling it...all without the aid of a production company. Here's how most festivals define independent: "made with less than 50% participation by a major studio or television broadcaster." What the hell does that mean? Budget? Publicity? Marketing?

But, OK, whatever. That's not the thing. The thing...the real thing...the thing that gets up my butt is that the films specializing in independent films...the festivals that are filled with the independent spirit (whatever the fuck that means) charge outrageous fees. I just came accross one that is charging $110. And, that's the early bird deadline...AND, it's a European film festival. For shame! You greedy bastards. European film festivals are subsidized by tax euro...your's and mine. Outrageous!

P.S. The picture above is not my ass. Would that it were.

Tokyo Cowboys Press

2007-12-18T17:00:00.000Z

Check out the interview about Tokyo Cowboys over at Broken Projector.

Minding my P's and Q's

2007-12-12T22:33:00.000Z

Ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod...Simon is going to fahlippin' kill us. Well, it's Patrick's fault anyway. He keeps tweaking when I'm not looking. But this is it, this is truly it. Tonight is truly the end. All of the tweaking has been done, and Patrick is burning for festivals. Now I just have to call Simon to let him know that all of the music Q's I sent him last week are now completely changed!

Music to My Ears

2007-12-07T18:51:00.000Z

Last week I met with Simon, our composer and certified Japanophile. We had a listen to some ideas he's been working on for the score. The stuff he did for the Salaryman/Samurai bit and for the Ask/Answer bit are so kickass that I nearly cried with joy that it's all coming together. We've given him notes, and he's in the studio as I write creating magic.

Today, we watched the cut, yet again. It's clocking in at 83 minutes without credits. Patrick has got a last minute inspiration and wants to cut in a 30 second sequence that brings Daneeta the character back into the film. I'm not sold on the idea, but I'm going with it. Patrick's ideas are usually pretty much on the money. I think my luke-warm reaction to the idea might have more to do with the fact that I'm really tired of the cut, and I just want it to be over. Is that bad to say?

Other than that, I've been dealing with clearances all day, which is the worst possible thing you can do with a hang over.

Jesus save me from myself!

Linus and Lucy

2007-11-30T19:23:00.000Z

Spoke to Lish over at Warner Chapell about getting rights for Lunus and Lucy. It's the song in the film that introduces Mark. He plays the piece on the piano at one of the EWC events. Lish says it's going to cost us £500 just for festival rights. I've written her a teary email explaining that we're broke and how we've been working on the film for ages and how we haven't been paid and that we would share the wealth if we had any. She hasn't responded yet.

Also put in a request to Universal for "Wherever you will Go." They also own the rights to "I'm just a Girl," which we requested earlier and are still waiting to hear back on. "Wherever you will Go basically ends the film as Aki sings it in Karaoke (hope I'm not giving away the ending here).

Doing all of these clearances sucks. Next time, it will be different.

Festivals...again

2007-11-26T17:44:00.000Z

Spent the whole day checking festivals. It is mind-numbing work and requires someone about a thousand times more meticulous than me, but there is no one like that around my place, so it's all down to me (poor me!).

I really f*@ked up on Rotterdam and missed the festival deadline, so now I'm all paranoid and have to check all my lists on, like, a daily basis. this can take hours.

Anyway, packaged and posted three festival entries and realized I missed the one in Montana. This sucks.

More Feedback and Paperwork

2007-11-21T22:14:00.000Z

Received more feedback yesterday and today from two more viewers, and it was good all round with some minor suggestions. Simon says that we can fiddle a bit with the picture until the 30th when he will need everything done and dusted for real. This is how I feel about the project today.

Been working at the day job yesterday, today and tomorrow, so haven't had much time to do much, but I have gotten info back on three sets of clearances we are after. So, on Friday, I will make the calls.

Also sending to Festivals on Friday as well. Two well-known "women's" festivals and a few others. As an aside, "Liza" was accepted to the 21st Stuttgart Film Festival in competition. This is an experimental documentary that Patrick directed in February. I Exec. Produced it, and it is an Elektrik Zoo production, so we're quite chuffed.

Tagged and Bagged

2007-11-20T19:12:00.000Z

This is a pre-announcement ahead of the official TC Update to be sent out next week. We have locked the picture...tagged and bagged. Now on to sound. Simon is taking a 1st pass at the music as I write. It's all happening.

Is Cinema Dead?

2007-11-19T18:48:00.000Z

And, if so, what is replacing it?

Thursday night...9 p.m. Central London...Robert Rodriguez's "Planet Terror"...10 people in the cinema.

Big trouble in the cinemas, and the online world is taking over. In an article in this week's "Screen International" ("Film's New World Order") producer Ira Deutchman suggests that studios are struggling to adapt to the online explosion and that this is a good opportunity for independents.

I know he's right I just have no idea what to do...how to exploit the markets and audience streams on the Internet. The thing is that I'm not really interested in that part of filmmaking. I just want to make the films and have someone else exploit those markets. But, it's still the frontier.

What People Said

2007-11-18T18:29:00.000Z

The other day I received feedback from one of our viewers. He said some pretty cool things about his experience watching the film. Soooo, I thought I'd post a few comments from him and others.

"Satisfying...Gripping...There is something about Mark that is darkly sexy. I think he's on his way to becoming a gay icon."

"Engaging...the Cowboys are fascinating characters. I actually missed them when the film was over."

"A tremendous work that precisely captures the reality of the post-modern world of cowboys in Japan."

I'll post more as they come in.

I'm Just a Girl

2007-10-31T11:01:00.000Z

Trying to clear the rights for "I'm just a Girl" by No Doubt. Called Universal Music who hold the rights, and they told me that No Doubt songs are notoriously difficult to clear, but I'm hoping that the fact that Gwen Stafani has a strong connection with Japan will bode well. I've sent off an email with all of the relevent information. Now we wait.

In the meantime, Katsura has been working hard on her end to get clearances for all of the Karaoke songs. She's cleared "Ue o Muite," which is the song we plan to use at the end of the film. You can see it performed below by the wonderful Ningyoko. She's also got tentative agreements with some of the other rights holders.

Katsura kicks ass. She was a few years below me at The London Film School and is a director/writer as well as doing fab camera work. Her film Zekuu has been quite successful on the festival circuit. So melancholic and so beautiful...it's very skillfully directed. Check it out if you get a chance.

Oh yeah...the Marketing

2007-10-28T23:47:00.000Z

Spent most of the day researching on WAB and BritFilms for all of the free festivals. I'm looking for November deadlines. I also have a "Top 40" list from Shooting People. Some of those are free...mostly the European ones. Patrick says this is because in Europe Film Making is subsidized by the Government. In America, it's not, so the festivals have to charge. It's a Capitalist State, remember? For the ones with fees, I have to weigh the cost over the festivals advantages.

Even with sites like WAB and ReelPort, it's bloody hard work. Waaaaaah!

Cloudy's Website

2007-10-27T23:44:00.000+01:00

Cloudy has a new website: http://web.mac.com/cloudyb/iWeb/s/Mates..html. Check it out to see photos of his life in Japan and beyond.

Thinking Ahead

2007-10-25T22:35:00.000+01:00

Met up with Silvia Cambie today. She runs Chanda Communications, and was introduced to us by one of our investors. She is getting us to think about marketing the film, which is good. For literally years, I have not been able to see beyond finishing the film. But, now that we are so close to finishing, we have to start thinking ahead, and I'm thankful that Silvia came along at the right moment.

We've inter-cut all of the characters, and Patrick had a huge epiphany last night about how to slice and dice them more. He's like one of those Japanese jujitsu knives that they used to sell on late night TV in America. He slices, he dices, he can even cut through corn on the cob. He's finishing off cut 7.3 to hand over to two viewers tomorrow. We're supposed to have the film as close to picture lock as possible by Wednesday. That's when it goes to Simon, our composer. Then it's off to Sweden for 11 days.

Silvia was asking me to think about which bits people will remember when they leave the film. For her, it was Ken...the Jewish boy from New York performing Christmas Mass in his role as rent-a-priest. But, it's funny. Each person that watches the film picks their own stand-out scene. One person said it was Christmas morning with Ken, Aki and the newborn Taiga. The family celebrated a hybrid of Christmas and Hanukkah. Another said it was Hiromi changing Dave's diaper after his butt operation...her devotion to him almost fanatical. And yet another said it was Cloudy, after performing in one of his shows, dropping a tiny girl off his lap. She squealed with laughter even after hitting the ground with a thud.

Of course I like all of the scenes in the film. But, I have to say that I am partial to the pauses...those sort of in between scenes that show Tokyo...complex, ineffable, dense...hiding secrets right on the surface of everything. Shhhh...

Tokyo Guts

2007-10-03T22:57:00.000+01:00

Oh, yes. The guts of Tokyo Cowboys. But, if you look closer, there is some order to this.

We are well in the middle of inter-cutting the characters. It is a head f@ck. Patrick will have cut 7.0 done sometime tonight. He says he only has 3 notes. I'm holding my breath. We are so close.

Now, if we can just get around this damn postal strike, we might even make the Slamdance deadline.

As it is Now

2007-09-25T22:50:00.000+01:00

Lots of ups and downs over the past few weeks. We finished cut 6.3 and screened it around. I mostly refer to Jaime's crit. He thinks we need to inter cut the stories. This is something that Patrick and I have been kicking around for a while, but we've avoided doing it. Not so much avoiding, just trying to get to a point where we can actually inter cut. We're at that stage now. So, we've put all the cards up on the wall and are trying to fit the pieces together.

In the meantime, our composer Simon is working on some ideas for the film. Before getting Jaime's feedback, I went through the film with him to show him music Q's. I seems a bit premature now. I know we are close, but I had hoped that we were closer.

Today

2007-08-17T21:52:00.000+01:00

PJ and I worked a 16 hour day yesterday shooting a corporate gig in Rochester, so, today, we were a bit disinclined to get out of bed, rush to the computer and start on Tokyo Cowboys. But, after returning equipment and a nice walk back to our neighborhood, a coffee and some leisurely paper reading, we were finally ready to give it a go.

This is the first time we've watched the whole film through without the voice over, and, my God, it's working. There is still loads of work to be done, but it is really coming together. We both made more notes, and PJ is incorporating them into the cut.

We also compared the order of the scenes to the chronological order. PJ was expecting some kind of revelation, but nothing was forthcoming. We're swapping a few scenes around to see what happens.

The ending is still eluding us.

Got asked the question the other day "Sooooooo...what's happening with Tokyo Cowboys." Normally I don't mind this question, but I detected a hint of pity in the questioners voice. Like we've been effing about this whole time and why is it taking us so long and the like. I just want to set the record straight now...neither of us gets paid for any of our work on Tokyo Cowboys. I'm not saying this to bitch about things. It's my fault for not budgeting properly in the first place. It's just that sometimes things move slowly because we actually have to stop occasionally and earn a living. And, as all of you know, earning a living takes a lot of creative energy. No matter how much you love your labor of love, it is difficult to get your ass to the editing suite when you've just worked at 16 hour day. That's pretty much why we are taking so long.

Birthday

2007-08-13T10:10:00.000+01:00

Well, here we are again...at my birthday, and it's actually quite depressing. If I got the idea to shoot this thing in March of 2002, then this is my 6th birthday spent working on this film. But, some of the footage is home video stuff from 1997, so...well...you do the math.

Actually, it's coming along wonderfully. The new direction devoid of personal voice over is like a fresh new start. But, there is that nagging feeling in the back of my mind that if I've spent this long on the film, I should really pull off a masterpiece. The pressure is tremendous. I try to release some of it by thinking that I've done other things in the mean time...I've produced a few shorts, published a few things, worked on a couple of features, etc.

Must not let any of this negativity get in the way of finishing this thing.

So...off to writing, and off to re-visiting interviews, which, by the way, make me very home sick for Tokyo and how easy it is to get by there. I'm a bit fed up with the whole money situation. It's not funny anymore, and I'm getting too old to be living hand to mouth. Enough all ready.

Constructive Criticism

2007-08-07T16:42:00.000+01:00

MG came over yesterday to give us feedback on the film. She basically picked the whole thing apart and left us bleeding on the floor (but in a nice way). We were devastated at first. But then... slowly...during a twilight walk along the Thames Southbank, we started to digest her critique...talk about it...formulate ideas of how to carry on. And, you know what, it's gonna be alright...better than alright.

Getting criticism is difficult...especially when you think that you are almost at the end. But, all of this has been good for us...not just with regards to Tokyo Cowboys, but as writers/directors in general. It's good to be able to take criticism and use it for all its worth...for the betterment of your art. And, we've been lucky so far. None of our critics have been mean. They've just told it like it is.

Patrick says that, in a sense, we are going back to some original concepts that sort of got lost during the long cutting process. So, we are stripping out all of the voice over, which was problematic anyway, and going back to basics. MG says "Trust the footage," and that was genius. Let the guys tell their own stories. We are not getting rid of the voice over entirely, though. From very early on, we had these sort of post card style voice over bits...bits about Tokyo and her relationship with gaijin. Those will stay and serve as breaths in the film. But there will be only about six of them and probably recorded by a professional voice over artist. My first choice, of course, would be Alexandra Stewart...the most sublime voice of Sans Soleil. But, that might be just too much to ask for...

A pile of shit

2007-07-25T23:26:00.000+01:00

Tried to write today, but nothing was forthcoming. Sometimes I just write shit for hours and hours. Shit, shit, shit. The thing is working without hardly any narration, which is really good. But, that means the narration that's in there has to be perfect. And, here's me writing a load of shit.

Saw "Running Stumbled" last night at LFS. It was made by a native Louisianian...a documentary about his fucked up family. He was there to give a Q&A, and I had a brief chat with him. But, I was so tired that I couldn't do proper networking.

I am certain that if guys had periods, weed would be legal.

Fighting it through:

2007-07-21T22:46:00.000+01:00

Patrick and I are fighting every day now about the film, so I guess that means we're getting close to finishing. Today we pretty much finished Cloudy. There are some tiny details to work on, but he's basically finished (for this cut, at least).

I think I mentioned before that, after the last feedback session with Martin, Francois, Claire, Barney and Val, we cut out all of the V.O. to see if we really needed so much. It turns out that we hardly need any of it at all. This prompted Patrick to ask the question that's been on both of our minds: Do we need voice over at all? I kind of think we do. But, I'm thinking maybe we don't need it for exposition. We need it for the poetry. That tells a story as well.

Tried...

2007-07-20T00:33:00.000+01:00

tried, tried so hard to write some new voice over for Cloudy this evening. Patrick has re cut Cloudy's bit, and it is really working. It's more like a story now instead of some bizarre collage. We've removed all of the V.O. from his bit as well, and there was a lot of it. It just needs three bits. The first bit is already written, but I want to re do it...so tired, I'm not making any sense....

Meltdown

2007-07-17T23:04:00.000+01:00

Yesterday we had an editing meltdown. Patrick was all "This fucking thing is driving me insane." And I was all: "Shut up and get back to editing." The thing is that, after the last round of feedback, we decided to put the film on the table, slice it open and take everything out. Once all of the guts are out on the table, though, you start to worry if you are every going to put everything back together.

Today was better. Went to the day job and chilled out. It's funny. Most people get stressed when they go to their day job. But mine is like a vacation. I don't have to think too hard, the people are cool, and there's usually lots of free biscuits and coffee. Sometimes they give us liquor. Where was I?

Oh, yes....the edit. So, Patrick calls me up at the day job and says: "I have an idea." He luanches into it, and, yes, it is the most brilliant idea on how to re-cut Cloudy. He's the one that our test viewers are having the most trouble with. They like him, but he doesn't have an story arc. It makes people wonder why they are watching him. Patrick's brilliant idea gives him an arc.

The beginning is still problematic, but we've left it for now. I like what Patrick has cut for it, but I need to re-work the Voice Over a bit. It's a more personal beginning, and that is making me a bit uncomfortable. It's not that I have a problem with laying my life out for everyone to see. That's what I do with my filmmaking and with my writing. I just have a problem if it's stupid and self-indulgent. But, I guess that's what the test viewers are there for. Trusted people who will tell you if you are being stupid or not.

Random unrelated Thoughts

2007-07-15T00:42:00.000+01:00

Naoko says that Patrick Harlan is the most famous gaijin on Japanese T.V.
Gagan says he saw my post on Fucked Gaijin.
In the background, Patrick is recording my memories off the TV screen.
My voice is so annoying.
Note to self: get rid of some of the voice over.

Time Tripping Again

2007-07-14T15:16:00.000+01:00

So, I'm time tripping through the latter part of the late 20th century. Patrick has suggested that I look through old tapes from my time in Japan before coming to London. He's doing an experimental cut now using footage of those early years for a beginning montage. I'm not convinced, but, as the judge says, I'll allow it for now. He's thinking that, instead of the wall of text at the beginning of the film, a montage would be more appropriate.

It's a bit freaky and sad watching the footage...especially the stuff with Mark and myself. This was all before we knew things were going to break down between us. On an interesting note, there's a bit of Mark and me in Kansas city. I was talking about making films...Mark would make porno videos and fund my more "legitimate" films.

Pretty trippy.

Pictures from Brent

2007-07-13T19:04:00.000+01:00

Here is the lovely Brent who we shot for Tokyo Cowboys. Brent is not in the final cut because, honestly, he is just too big for film. He will, however, feature on the DVD special features.

Cutting and Trimming

2007-07-11T22:37:00.000+01:00

In the past few days, we've gotten great feedback from several viewers. One big thing is that the film is too long. I think we knew that, but we were just so in love with everything, that it was difficult to cut. But, it definitely needs to be cut down from 1 hr. 53 mins. to 90 mins.

There's also way too much narration, so we did an experiment and took all of it out. Patrick is trimming now, and we are going to watch the whole thing without VO tomorrow. It's quite exciting. We had a peek at the first 5 minutes without VO, and it was startling how little you can get away with. I think this shakes things up a lot, and it's infusing us both with excitement.

Tokyo Cowboys Summer Update

2007-07-02T22:26:00.000+01:00

Hello from the Tokyo Cowboys homestead. Hope you are all well and ready for the hot summer months ahead. Work progresses on the film, and we are getting very close to finishing. Below is the summer update. Please get in touch if you need further info or just want to chat.

Hugs,

Daneeta & Patrick

1) HOW DID I GET ON THIS LIST, and WHAT THE HECK IS TOKYO COWBOYS?

2) CUT 4.0

3) SOUND

4) CLEARANCES

5) MARKETING

6) FESTIVALS

1) HOW DID I GET ON THIS LIST, and WHAT THE HECK IS TOKYO COWBOYS?

"Tokyo Cowboys" is a wholly independent feature-length documentary shot over a two year period. The film provides a fascinating insight into the lives of ambitious Westerners trying to make it "big in Japan." The film was written and directed by Daneeta Loretta Saft. It was photographed and edited by Patrick Jackson. And it was co-produced by Saft and Jackson.

I (Daneeta) have consolidated all of my email addresses from various accounts to compile this master list of interested parties. If you still do not know how you got on this mail out and want to get off this ride, please let us know. Or, perhaps, you'd like to know more. If so, then email me or visit our website at www.tokyocowboys.com or our blog at www.tokyocowboys.blogspot.com, and read on brothers and sisters, read on.

2) CUT 4.0

It's hard to believe, but we have made it to cut 4.0. We are presently distributing this cut to our merry band of test viewers for feedback. Our random sampling of viewers includes fellow filmmakers, film technicians, professional critics, keen cinema goers, and a couple of Joe's off the street.

3) SOUND

As you might have guessed, after we lock the picture, we will be turning our ears to sorting the sound. Sound is extremely important in a low budget documentary. It can make or break the sale. We are therefore looking for a super talented Sound Editor to come on board. We have our sources, of course, but if any of you would like to nominate a friend or colleague (or yourself, even), please email me with details.

4) CLEARANCES

For those of you reading the blog, you know that obtaining clearances has become the focus of my life. We have issues ranging from people singing Karaoke to music playing in the background at a party...from TV footage to home video footage. There are 67 separate issues to deal with.

5) MARKETING

As all of you know, we are wholly independent. That means we were funded by investors, angels and lay people, most of whom are not in the film industry (a big thanks to all of them). We are not attached to a production company or a broadcaster. Because of this we are free. We are also responsible for our own marketing. Online marketing will be key to our strategy to get the word out, and we hope that we can count on you all to publicize the film on your blogs, websites and through the power of email when the time comes. We need you to create a buzz. Your voices are our biggest asset!

6) FESTIVALS

We will be sending the film out to the first festival in September. For Tokyo Cowboys, the festival year will kick off in January of 2008.

Thank you all for your generous support over these past 5 (count 'em 5) years. We are almost at the end of our journey, and we are so happy that you have all elected to come along. Please don't hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions. And, as always, you can visit us at the blog for day to day updates. We have been blogging since this whole thing began in March of 2002.

Hugs Again,

Daneeta & Patrick

3 Lousy Sentences

2007-06-27T23:13:00.000+01:00

It happened again. Last night I was at a networking event, and the dreaded question was asked: "So what's your documentary about?" I could go on for hours. But, that's not what people want to hear, and that's not how to sell a documentary. I need a snappy three sentence this-is-what-the-thing-is-about. Funny thing is that I've struggled with this since I started making the film. It makes me think that maybe even I don't know what the film is about.

Imagine: Tokyo...Early 21st Century
The city is flooded with gaijin...
foreign men seeking their fortunes
in the wild, wild east.

Most will crash out or cash out within three or four years
Tokyo Cowboys is about those who stayed.

That's the best I've come up with so far.

Emailed the music rights company to get advice.
Continued to build the TC network (this is my secret marketing weapon to be revealed later)
Worked the day job.
Rice and beans...

2007-06-26T22:53:00.000+01:00

Finally managed to compress the film onto one disc using Compressor...yeah. I've started to distribute the disc around again. I'm just ready to move on to the next step, which is locking the picture and sorting out the sound. But, as Orson Welles said, "We will sell no wine before its time."

Half Empty...Half Full...

2007-06-22T16:50:00.000+01:00

This is the glass half empty:

I'm just getting so frustrated. We finished the 4th cut on Wednesday and were going to burn the DVDs on Thursday. After spending hours exporting the Quicktime file and importing into DVD Studio Pro, we find out that the film won't fit on one disc. Not, we have to figure out how to compress (read picture quality suffers) or burn it onto two DVDs (really inconvenient for the viewers) or burn it onto a dual layer disc, which is about 5 times the price of a regular DVD. I won't even go into the nightmare it has been to try to source these discs. Give me an effing break!

The glass is half full:

Hurrah! We've finished the 4th cut. It will take us a few days to iron out the technical issues of burning it onto DVDs (we are becoming tech wizards!), and then we can send it off to our viewers. We are so so close to a picture lock.

4th Circle of Hell: Can anyone else smell that?

2007-06-17T22:51:00.001+01:00

We've got the 4th cut, or pretty much near the 4th cut. Patrick is in Sweden for a few days, so I watched the whole thing over again and made notes. My notes are getting shorter and shorter, which, I guess, is a good thing.

The rights could be an absolute nightmare. Coppe and Terminal11 have been so cool. They have given me permission to use "Bird's Midair Heatstroke" at the beginning of the film, so that's one down and 67 more to go. Been doing a lot of research on Fair Use and have found some good stuff at Center for Social Media. Also went to Borders today and read a bit of the The Documentary Film Makers Handbook: A Guerilla Guide, which clarified a few points...mostly that I should have raised more money and hired a music supervisor. Live and learn.

But, still...there are some things that I have no idea about. For example:

Home video Mark took years ago at EWC (permission was verbally granted at the time)
Video of a live Sumo event that we shot
Video of a Baptist revival that we shot

Well, onwards anyway...haven't gotten a paid gig in ages so back on the rice and beans:

"rice and beans, rice and beans, we love rice and beans!"

which means some wicked farts are coming out of my butt.

Recent Stuff

2007-06-10T22:46:00.000+01:00

OK, so we're almost at cut 4, and I think that might be a picture lock (although we will remain relatively fluid until the Online). Patrick has been fast forwarding through all of the tapes (500+ of them, as you might remember). He's looking for possible shots that he might have missed. At first I thought this was a big waste of time, but it's really paying off. The last time he looked at all of the footage was 2 years ago. At that time, we didn't really have a film. Now we do...we have a context. The bits and pieces he's extracting from his breakneck revisitation are adding richness to the film.

I've been tweaking the voice over, researching rights, and trying not to get overly excited. I have a festival wheel on my fridge. Sometimes I just look at it and dream of that future...that very near future.

We've been showing a few people cut 3.2. And, we are getting extremely good feedback. We showed it to MK the other day. He's Japanese, so I was very keen to get his take on the film. He really liked it, and he thinks that it will have a market in Japan amongst the Japanese. That is fab. I just hope the cowboys are ready for that eventuality.

After this cut, we are going to show it to some really hard critics...just to see if the film and the two of us can stand up to it.

Rights

2007-06-01T22:37:00.001+01:00

Just got the wedding video from Mark. It's actually better than I expected as I wasn't expecting a TV Infomercial featuring their wedding. It's fab! Patrick quickly cut it together, and I wrote the voice over. New he's laying it over the scene and popping it in. That will bring us to cut 4.

Spoke to DJ a few days ago. He watched cut 3.1, and he really liked it. He biggest criticism was that the film seemed to end too abruptly. He wanted to see a "where are you now" bit for each cowoby. Actually S & M mentioned that when they watched it as well. So, I've written all of the cowboys to see where they are now, and I've got the scoop. So, we'll cut that in to 4.0 as well.

Rights are giving me a headache. Where do I start? There's all of Ken's TV stuff, the Patrick Harlan TV & Radio stuff, "I'm just a Girl" (I've heard that Gwen Stefani never gives rights). And, I would need them given as I don't have any money.

Tired now.

It's Hard to Believe

2007-05-30T22:42:00.001+01:00

I know! We are so close to a picture lock. We're just cutting in bits of Mark's wedding video then sending it out to our test audience. After feedback from them and some adjustments, we can finally move on to the next step, which is sound design. Yeah.

Thanks, thanks and thanks again.

2007-05-08T23:59:00.000+01:00

Tony comes up to me today and says that he's read the blog all the way through. I am chuffed. Didn't think anyone was reading except Rob and Nat. He inspired me to go back through and read it myself. So, I got through about half of it, and, you know what, there were some really important things that it reminded me of. So thanks for that Tony!

Before that, got up early and worked on a short story about Tokyo, which I'm entering into a contest in June. The prize is £5000. Imagine wild success and just a little bit of partying if I won that. Then went into LFS and worked. Came home and watched Sans Soliel again. I just love that film, and it inspired me again. That was Patrick's suggestion. He's also put all of the Tokyo footage onto two DVDs (3 hours worth) for more inspiration, so that's my remit for tomorrow.

Gave the film to Alan for a crit. Thursday is the day. Hopefully.

I have so much to be thankful for, and sometimes I forget it.

Joe is in hospital, and I am thankful that he is getting better.

Thanks to the universe and to "the man upstairs" for looking after us all.

Screening

2007-04-24T23:41:00.000+01:00

Screened the cut of Tokyo Cowboys to one of our investors on Friday. I think it went well. He really liked it and gave us some good feedback, which we are now incorporating for the next private screening tomorrow night...another investor. I think in about a week, we'll have the next big cut. Then we'll start to screen it to a wider audience.

Tired, but happy.

High Quality Trailer

2007-04-18T18:57:00.000+01:00

You can now see a high quality version of the Trailer here. Enjoy!

We burned a copy of the whole film last night. On Friday we will have our first screening, so here we go!

Show Cut!

2007-04-16T21:18:00.000+01:00

Have made tremendous progress since the last blog entry. Yesterday, we finished the "show cut." We watched the whole thing through, and, like a daft cow, I cried. I guess it's just the stress of it all, but it did not motivate Patrick, the poor thing.

In any case, we're doing our first screening to investors on Friday. I'm shitting myself. We still have a few bits and bobs to sort out before then. After the screening, the next step will be to cut in the Japanese sequences, so we'll be watching some Japanese footage over the weekend.

I think we must be about 3 weeks behind schedule, but I can't really tell anymore. Just plug on through until we are finished. That's the way to go.

Unblocked

2007-03-23T00:39:00.000Z

After three days of being blocked, blocked, blocked, I have finally finished Nice Guyjin for the screening cut. Not really blocked...really. Just writing a load of crap. But...finally...today...not crap. You ever wonder why writers use their bowels as a metaphore for their writing?

T-Shirts

2007-03-19T22:03:00.000Z

Was looking through my notes trying to write the final VO for Nice Guyjin when I found this: a post card detailing quotes I had seen on T-Shirts on the final trip to Japan.

And here they are:

Thank you for your Continued Efforts
Bad Ass Yellow Boy
I have never been to the moon.
Unauthorized entry punishable by law
I'm Cookie
We can Know various truths
No one has ever seen the future
Rip Ass

You have to totally love the Japanese to pieces!

Today

2007-03-17T02:04:00.000Z

Worked on Nice Guyjin all day today including writing the introductory DVO. This is a very tricky bit, but Patrick and I outlined a plan of attack today. So, it's more voice over writing and recording for me and more editing for Patrick.

It's midnight on a Friday night. I'm still working. Patrick says we need to push it harder. OK. A little more yoga...a little more stretching...a little more massage.
I feel like a Japanese Salaliman.

Tokyo Porno

2007-03-13T23:17:00.000Z

So, I've re-recorded all of the voice over, and Patrick has almost finished re-digitizing everything. Whew! Now we get back to the editing. I think we just want to be done with it.

On an aside, JA emailed today that he'd seen the first two minutes of Tokyo Cowboys in a prono. We suspect that it's been ripped off from the Youtube site. JA is investigating and will get back to us with more details soon.

Bummer

2007-03-12T22:41:00.000Z

Haven't actually been able to blog for the past few days. A terrible, terrible thing happened on Friday, and I'm still recovering.

Well, it wasn't actually the whole project. It was only that the whole project got made "offline." For those of you in the know, you know that our life has been a living hell. For those of you who don't know what offline is, just trust me that our lives have been a living hell. But, PJ and I decided to try to do the "glass is half full thing." Spending days digitizing has allowed PJ some much needed time for writing, and I've been writing and working from the paper cut. It's all coming together, but we're now nearly 2 weeks behind schedule for our May 31st completion. Bummer, but at least we're not dead.

Warranty is Cool

2007-02-28T20:25:00.000Z

Spoke to the guy who repaired Bruce, and (there is a God), Bruce is still under his warranty. Luckily, the drive contained only media, which can be re-captured. We've freed up space on Nobuko and Big Mamma by deleting old render files and making some stuff offline, so we can carry on with the work, which, by the way, is going swimmingly.

Spent the day writing Voice Over for Mark's bit, and I think it is in really good shape. Now working on Act 2 where Aki gets pregnant, Ken quits headhunting and we meet the weird and wonderful Cloudy B. Bongwater.

The Mighty Bruce

2007-02-28T12:53:00.000Z

Oh, for f*&k's sake

2007-02-26T23:30:00.000Z

I am so sick and tired of these stupid hard drives. Bruce, who you may recall was repaired for a whopping £125, has gone down again. I have spent the evening searching on the Interent to see if there is anything I can do. I've swapped the cables, repaired permissions, shut off everything and waited for 15 minutes and have done a little witchy dance. But it still doesn't work. What is frustrating is that things were going really well. We were moving quickly, and we are on tract to finish the show cut within the week. Now I don't know what to do other than curse and then go to bed.

Call to Action

2007-02-21T17:17:00.000Z

The UK Govt are about to propose restrictions on photography in public places which could make street photography and documentary photography against the law. There's a petition on the Downing St website against the Government's proposals to restrict the use of photography in public areas. Sign up to the petition now......

http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Photography/

And then please forward this email.

Another Process

2007-02-19T20:56:00.000Z

This is a process I like to use sometimes when I write voice over. First I just write things in a stream of consiousness style, then I just let things formulate from there. This piece is not finished yet, but it is something I can work with to create the final voice over.

I feel the most comfortable with the writing bit because I've been doing that longer, however, I've started to use my writing editing method as a map for editing the film. I think it's working. This was another good suggestion from my mentor.

A Sample of the Process

2007-02-19T20:09:00.000Z

These are some of the notes I took from the cut. I guess you would call this my process, but I don't do it this way always. On this occasion, this seemed the right way to go.

This too Shall Pass

2007-02-17T14:41:00.000Z

Watched the whole thing again and took notes. Sometimes I think it's gonna work, and sometimes I think the whole thing is shit. Today I think it's shit. But I'm sure that this will pass.

In the afternoon I did some marketing exercises from the marketing book. I was supposed to brainstorm all of the words that describe the film. Then I was supposed to watch the film again, but I just couldn't manage it.

Watching the Cut

2007-02-16T20:08:00.000Z

Set up the DVD player here and watched the cut all the way through. I'll be watching it everyday while I'm here. Last night I did some stream of consciousness writing about the nature of the relationship between Japanese Woman and Gaijin Man. Some weird stuff came out of that, and I'm still thinking about whether I'm going to post it or not.

Actually, watching the cut was good. I saw where it could be improved. Still, there is no ending, and this is worrying me. I want to have a cut we can show to people by the end of this month, and still no ending. I can't show a cut to people if it has no ending.

My mentor says to meditate upon it and the ending will come to me. So, here I am...meditating and dreaming and thinking.

The Importance of Thinking

2007-02-15T16:52:00.000Z

We arrived in Sweden last night under the cover of darkness. Patrick is here to shoot a music video for Kirmann, and I'm here to "think" about Tokyo Cowboys. I've brought a bunch of blank paper and the DVD of the "first cut." (I call it a first cut, but I think it's much further than that. It's the first cut that we're going to show to people.)

As Gören drove us back to Askersund,
we all sat mostly in silence, and I let my mind wander into a dream about Tokyo Cowboys. It was the first "quite time" I've had in I-don't-know-when, and this is good.

Today, I went out with Patrick while he shot. Mostly I just held the extra camera for him and thought some more. It is so quiet here...I've forgotton how quiet.

Monday, Monday...

2007-02-12T22:04:00.000Z

Worked a little on voice over for Mark yesterday, but nothing was forthcoming. Just got an email from Shuri, one of my girl mates from Tokyo. Well, I knew her in Tokyo, but she hooked up with a Swiss dude and moved to Switzerland a few years back. Anyway, she was doing some research on MHS and saw that he is now in charge of membership at the American Club. Wow. Small world.

Today, I was working at the day job so didn't get much done on TC. That always depresses me a bit...not because it's a bad gig, it's just not what I want to be doing with my days. Patrick ripped a copy of the whole cut for me to take to Sweden. Awesome.

A Tokyo Story

2007-02-10T15:41:00.000Z

Tokyo...flipping 5 a.m. We start on the trains so that we can record the Tokyo squash...millions of people trying to cram into a tiny cars...sardines. Only these aren't the commuters. They come later. These are the party people catching the first train home.

From here we cross the length of the city three times to chase up our characters, stopping on the way to shoot impressions of Tokyo. No lunch. It's genki drinks and a.m./p.m. onigiri with a side of ebi flavored crisps.

9 p.m. and we haven't stopped. We're meeting with a potential investor and his rich wife. Maybe they will give us £500. Maybe £4000. You never know. We spend hours...obsequious, just this side of begging. OK. I beg. They say they still need time to think about it. Goodbye, they say. Our flat is just around the corner.

Emerging from the smoke-filled bar, I realize that it is past last train. It is Friday night in Azabujuuban. Getting a taxi is difficult enough for the locals, but, for foreigners like us, it is impossible. Well-dressed Japanese couples line the street, waving their hands in the air. Mr. Taxi-man is not stopping.

"Let's walk a ways," I say to Patrick. "After we clear the crowd, maybe we'll get lucky."

We walk up Gaien Nishi Dori...all the way to the Haagen Dazs shop. Couples still line the streets, and it is 1 a.m. We stop off at a favorite izakaya of mine on Aoyama Dori. It is shit. I realize this is the first time I've been here sober. Food has a different quality when you've been drinking.

We start our walk again, turning right on Omotesando Dori. We are carrying all of our equipment, lights, camera, tripod. It starts to snow. We walk all the way up Omotesando Dori...pass Harajuku Eki, pass Yoyogi Koen...to the corner at the top of the park (is it Komazawa Kosaten?).

Finally we make it to Sandra's house. It is 2 a.m. when we stumble in. And, even though she needs to be up for work in 4 hours, she makes us tea and asks us how shooting has gone.

As I drink my tea, and warm my toes, I think about filmmaking. It is my absolute favorite thing to do, and I can't, for the life of me, figure out why.

Mark Segerlund

2007-02-09T15:23:00.000Z

Looking for an ending, so we looked at Mark Segerlund footage today. Mark is one of those guys who really believes in all of that positive attitude, life-is-beautiful gris gris. Some people might think that, well yes, he does have a wonderful life, so it's easy to believe in that kind of stuff. But, I think that his life is so wonderful because of his Pollyanna philosophy. Personally, I'd rather people running around thinking that they can use their imaginations to make the world a more beautiful place than people running around bombing the shit out of each other. What an utter lack of imagination. But, anyway, that's another story.

The structure is coming together. It all hinges on Ken's story arc inter cut with a collage of other cowboy stories. It seems to work, but we are just so close to it now. We're pushing to have a first cut before we leave for Sweden on Wednesday. Then, I'll hand it out to a group of viewers and see what they think.

The Dreaded World of English Teaching

2007-02-08T15:14:00.000Z

I know I'm going to get shit about uploading this draft of the voice over about English teaching. But just remember, everything is out of context. Hopefully it will make perfect sense within the context of the film.

Very Close

2007-02-07T00:31:00.000Z

OH HAPPY DAY!!! It works. PJ intercut all of the stories yesterday, and the cut works. There are several areas that need to be ironed out, but, jumping juniper, it works!

We watched the whole thing, which clocks in at 1 hour 38 minutes. I've made a list of the next steps:

Write Voice Over about English Teaching
Write Voice Over introducing Mark
Review Nice Guyjin Interviews
Review the Securities company bits (Ken)

Then PJ cuts it all in, and presto, a first cut.

We are very, very close. I'm hoping to get it done before going to Sweden on the 14th (which was our goal!).