The Michael Bay experience

Basically I am talking about this so I can be done with it and say, "read my note". When comes to film everybody seems to get convinced that they are an expert on it because they have an opinion. Some one was telling me that Transformers movies where garbage because they did not have good three act structure and that Michael Bay had no right to get behind a camera unless he was the head of some explosion shot.

Several people have gone on and on about how terrible a person MB is and just overall a famous person's son who "cheated" his way into the industry, blah blah blah.

You know what, maybe all of these critic's are right. I only know what my experience is and the little details about MB's personal life and what ever I could care less about.

2 things, one Michael Bay gave me a chance and I know that when I saw him at the wrap party for the Chicago Crew he was genuinely excited when I told him that myself and Rob got to work on the film for 11 days. He was excited to talk about the robots and the place that the film was coming from. He was talking to me not at me or over me. We had a conversation (Ian Bryce chiming in at the right spots) that if you heard it would sound like two geek's who loved Transformers as kids and got to see them come to life.

You may have to "run with a banana" on a MB set, but that is to me is an honor.

Besides I was in a Military Academy that was sponsored and run by JTF6 out of Panama, and a Heavy Industrial Painter's Apprentice I can work 99% of anybody I meet under the table. People complain because the can't handle the heat.

Yeah I know, it's not cool or whatever to be excited about working on a film, and I know the enthusiasm and a genuine desire to work my arse off on a set are usually looked down upon by all the cool kids because they are so "unimpressed by famous people".

For me I say "It would suck to not be excited" because that would mean I no longer love what I do and it is just a job. I have 3 jobs, and they will always be just a job. The first short film I ever wrote, took me 5 weeks dozens or rewrites. Josh(the director) and myself stayed up for 72 hours straight building set's and doing everything to make sure things where ready when the crew got there, during the shoot and after everybody left.

It was the beginning of my career and one of the best days of my life. I have been to Hollywood, I have sold everything for a film, I have been hung up on, blown meeting, and slept on the street for a networking opportunity. Yet on day 11 on MB set it was still like that first day painting sets and going over the script with a fellow film junkie at 2 in the morning.

I am not in film because "it's cool" or "it beat bar tending/or school". I am in film because I am addicted I love it it is part of what I am. Guess what, it's part of who Michael Bay is. When I met him and Ian on what Rob and I call "Day 0" I saw what I could become. The odds are good that I won't, that doing what I am doing now is as far as many people ever get.

The thing is I've already won, because I know that I am never going to stop. What ever the odds who ever tries to crush my career, or tell me I don't know how to light a shot, or my script "still needs work". It does not matter these are the same people who hate MB yet who have never Directed anything. When your talking in film, generally your not doing.

That said, I have work to do.

Originally posted on my facebook...

Be careful what you wish for.....contracts

Ok so the latest hurtle. "Two meeting's away from the money" is a great way to think of things until your actually getting close then you get to what I like to call "contract land".

What "contract land" or "contract hell" depending on how many you have to do is where your talking to legitimate persons with legitimate contacts to the money that want to invest serious amounts of cash into your property(script/production/whatever your selling).

Everything you do at this stage begins with the script, and how people percieve the overall viability of your property. Basically," will it sell". If they think yes then your in a great position, because what happens next is you actually get to do an initial pitch to the money yourself. Keeping in mind that often their are many many many "middle men(or women)" that you have to got through. As a producer your actually a middle person yourself.

As a rule the money does not like to talk to the talent at all except in social situations ie wrap parties or awards shows. Why you ask? Because someone spending millions of dollars on something went to a business school and is concerned about the bottom line not which scene is going to be shot entirely with a steady cam. Creative people usually want to talk about "vision" and "theme". That is a huge waste of time in ANY meeting with money. Never bring the director/writer to an initial meeting with with the money.

How do you do this you ask? This is where contracts come in.

Wikipedia sources the definition of a contract as:

"...a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties with mutual obligations, which may or may not have elements in writing. "

But they are so much more. A contract is the thing that keeps people who are not lawyers honest. It's what gets people to do things that they have changes there mind about.

Let's say you have a very paranoid writer who also wants to produce a film(mostly because he should have the balls to be a director but wont put the work in, but I digress) and has been tossed around the industry so does not trust anybody. How do you get him to relax and keep him away from the money initially? By the way you want to keep this guy away from the money because his paranoia will be contagious and the investor will then get spooked and you'll have wasted a ton of time and hope for nothing.

Your write a contract that the writer/producer signs that basically states that you won't leave him out and won't let him cut you out. So by nature of the contract if you go to the money and leave him out of the process he can sue you. Now actually enforcing that is very difficult to do even if the violation or "breach" of contract is obvious and blatant. The reality is that at the end of the day everybody wants to do business and nobody wants to get screwed. You establish your relationship with the talent early on and in writing then everybody gets to relax and just do business. Nobody has to worry about getting left out.

Now you go to the investor, you pitch the project. They either say yes and set up another meeting to discuss terms of the investment or they say no and you go to lunch early.

This is also where "Two meetings away from the money" comes in again. You still have to wait.
Many investment firms at this point will run a "due diligence" check. Which is basically where the do a sort of "corporate back round check" on you and your company. They go to see who has done what. If you've been convicted of securities fraud or bank robbery they may immediately bail. By contrast if you've got a dozen DUI's they may not. It just depends, mostly they want to know that your not running some sort of scam and that you are who you say you are. Often these meetings are facilitated by some sort of middle man that you've met somewhere coffee shop/gym, friend of a friend, so your being vouched for. So due diligence does not always happen. Especially now, when you might be dealing with a company that is owned by a famous rapper so the have a few felonies in their pot.

Mostly just go to the meeting being as ready as possible, go in ready to answer any question and treat each meeting as though you where getting the money that day.

NOW, having said that. I treat every meeting seriously but I also don't get over excited. Yes my pulse always races and I always am a little nervous. Which is good, but you should not go out and quit your day job until the check clears in your bank account.