05.12.07
I've updated the gallery section, and it's well worth a look-see, but the big news here is that I will be traveling to Dayton, Ohio next weekend (May 19th) to shoot the opening scene of the movie... And I need your help! I know, I know, you say, "but Djuna, its an animation, what can we do to help?" Well, the opening scene is going to be different from the rest of the film in that it will be shot with live action footage, and we will use that footage to create a stylized two-dimensional animation. We need a multitude of extras to play the adults who busy up the street where our main character takes his fall. Because this is a very important shot, we are asking that volunteers let us know of their intentions by calling or emailing Lillian Peterson or Miranda Brooks (my Dayton casting correspondents) to confirm your participation. They'll also be able to answer any questions I don't cover here in the press release below. I do need a lot of people, so please consider joining us!
EXTRAS NEEDED FOR INDEPENDENT FILM!
_________________________· · 50–70 men and women needed
_________________________· · age twenty and up
_________________________· · fine business attire required
_________________________· · 9:30am, Saturday, May 19th
Courthouse Square, Downtown Dayton
Falling Up, Directed by Djuna Wahlrab, tells the story of a young man facing the adult world for the first time. The protagonist is confident and enthusiastic about his prospects, but the boy within him is bored and annoyed by his choices. The clash of ideals causes the boy within the man to literally tumble out of his adult body and its world, and fall into the land of childhood. Djuna, a Dayton native, currently resides in Brooklyn, NY, where most of the production for Falling Up takes place. She is returning to her hometown to shoot this opening scene in order to give homage to the city that helped ignite her passion for art, film, and adventure.
If you would like to be a part of this exciting project, or for more information, please contact:
Miranda at mirandalbrooks@gmail.com or 937.626.0070
or
Lillian at lillian.peterson@gmail.com or 937.684.2001
The opening scene is different from the rest of the movie, in that it is not stop-motion. It is going to be shot on video and later that video will be used as a reference to create a two-dimensional animation (hand drawn). For the final film, this scene will look like a combination of the live video we shoot and a cartoon animation.
The setting is a downtown urban area, in the middle of "rush hour." We will see a multitude of business men and women on their way to their very important careers. Walking amongst them is our main character.
All of the extras should be adults (preferably mid twenties and up) dressed in fine business attire. Mainly everyone will just be walking. You'll have start and end points for each take, and you may be asked to repeat that path more than a few times, in order for us to get the best shot possible.
25.02.07
And.... its a new year! And we're still here! We have some good news and sad. Our maverick Clem has returned to France to puruse his stop-motion animation career. We will miss him at Charged, but wish him the best of luck for the future. Also, we heard this past week that the Jerome Foundation grant was not accepted. This was disappointing news, but in the midst of our uncertainty, we had planned on not receiving it, so it does not feel like a major upset. We are progressing forward as planned. Perhaps this upset was softened by the generosity we've witnessed from our friends and family in the last few weeks. We'd especially like to thank Daniel and Alvera Miller for their generous contribution to Falling Up.
Since my departure for the real world of money and all things commercial, the Falling Up set has transformed itself in many ways. Adam (M.) has settled in nicely as an assistant director, and we've both improved greatly upon our telephone communication skills. We've expanded our animator roster, bringing on Eilleen Kohlhepp, who has extensive industry experience working on projects like Celebrity Deathmatch, Robot Chicken, Daria, Family Guy, and many others. She has already taught me quite a bit as a director. Not only does she have an excellent sense of motion and timing, beautifully graceful in those many many frames, but DAMN is she fast! We might just get this done before the next ice age rolls in.
As January came to a close, we had to give Will to a better gig, but its only temporary. He misses us and our broken puppets more than he can express (I'm sure), and we look forward to his return, just as soon as the weather warms. To keep things moving, we've called upon Cully again, and boy was that a fortuitous thing! In our first meeting to discuss the interior design and structure of the Tailor shop, Cully launched into a story about hanging out in such a place with his grandmother when he was a little boy. I won't say more, you'll have to wait for the DVD, but that just indicates all the heart being put into this project. We also got a visit from the wardrobe department. Though I'm sure they planned on playing the whole time, Adam and I cornered them one afternoon in the studio and put them to work! It was great to show them around our lives for a few days, and we look forward to doing it again! I couldn't have a better crew, and I thank all of you from the bottom of my heart.
Look for a picture update soon, we've just been too busy animating and building and sculpting and painting and drawing and rotoscoping and.... well, you get the picture.
12.24.06
I just updated the gallery section of the site. I'm sorry it is so messy, and I can almost guarantee some serious typos, but I wanted to get this out before the holidays really hit. The general update is pretty big here for Falling Up. About a month ago, we put together a pretty serious grant application. I want to thank everyone for their help putting that together, in particular... Alex Cohn, Daniel Poliner, and most especially, Julia Parshall, for helping me to poeticly clarify. Adam and I finally wrapped the end shot set, which was an oddly anti-climactic moment (as it happened after working for over 25 hours STRAIGHT....). As far as the shooting goes... that puts us about one seventh of the way there....cross your fingers for us folks.
I spent Thanksgiving contemplating how to deal with the situation of our quickly waning funds. I decided to go back to work (freelancing) to raise some more money. As I was thinking this, Elliot Alvin Pierce was being born, much football was being watched, and turkey being eaten. Next, a good friend serendipitously called me about some freelance work, and Adam P. suggested I pinch him in as the primary Falling Up animator. It all came together so perfectly, though I miss being on the set full time. My crew has been wonderful about it, soldiering on in my stead with bravery and gusto. Again, don't forget to check out the newest pics in the gallery section! Happy Holidays everyone!
11.06.06
I doubt I can even begin to let you all know what it means to me to receive your kind notes of encouragement. I thought this one worthy of a public viewing, so here it is. Thanks Mike!!
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10.24.06
Sorry it has been so long since the site has been updated...So now the weather is cooling, the routine feels established, shots have been "completed"... it kinda feels like we've started back to school again! Out teacher Adam "The Iceman" Pierce has been on our tails, lovingly pushing us along. Will has been braving the cool depths of the workshop, churning out cities and humans with the utmost precision and arful touch. Even our very own Adam Miller has stepped away from the comfort of numbers and gears of the digital camera, and softened his hands with some amazing animating, bringing our Willow to life! We are very happy with the shots completed thus far, but feel the pressure of time, even more so with the decreasing temperatures of each more bitter day. Thanks to everyone keeping up with our progress, and letting us know. The notes have been such a lift! Look for an updated Bio section very soon, we want to introduce you to our new classmates!
09.12.06
Though I'm very tired, I just couldn't keep the latest pics to myself anymore. I'm starting to wonder how much I'm giving away by showing these, but I think it's probably worth it. I'm terribly sorry that my pics leave much to be desired, I promise Adam's frames will far exceed all of our expectations. Feel free to let me know what you think. Special thanks to our newest crew; Molinda Laux-Miller, Ellenmarie Wahlrab, Frankie Cordero, Cully and Paul Yee!
09.03.06
Things are coming together rapidly for the crew of Falling Up, and so far so good! Thanks to everyone who has put so much energy in already!
Last Monday, the set design began full time with the arrival of Will Pike and Ken Berman. Back in Dayton, I've been getting regular updates from the wardrobe department, Ellenmarie (my mom) and her recently recruited partner Molinda (oh, thats right, Adam's mom!). Paul Yee stopped by Charged the other day, and has eagerly offered to build us a sky that will give us the necessary ambient light for the gigantic street scene, and will likely be uesd in all the other exterior shots. We now have the camera, the computer, the shooting stage... we are just in the last stages of collecting all the props. I'm curently looking for a plant that looks like a tree, something in the 17" to 20" range. Anyone have any ideas? email me if you do.
08.10.06
At 4:30 am this morning, Damian found a wonderful deal on the computer we needed for the production. He then performed a really cool magic trick and convinced the owner of the computer to sell to me rather than all the other nice folks bidding on it. Thanks Damian!! Now, anyone have a car to get me to Cortlandt Manor, NY to pick it up?
08.08.06
I've updated the site today, so be sure to check out the gallery section for some of Elliot's designs, and some location reference shots for the street scene.
08.01.06
I met Adam Pierce and Alex Cohn of Charged last month, and it seems I've won them over! They have offered their studio space and extensive expertise for the production of Falling Up, and I could not be happier! Not only does Charged bring years of experience, and a lot of talent to the production, but we also will have use of the resident basset alarm system. Not only will Dribbles alert us to strangers approaching, but she also sounds off at 6pm for a daily reminder of... well, it could be dinner, or it might be something more existential...However you look at it, it's official now, Falling Up is deep into pre-production, and will begin shooting in September!
07.20.06
Thanks to Isabel and Mark for tipping me off about Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts organization that has offered me a fiscal sponsorship for the fundraising process of the film. Their 501(c)(3) status allows donations to be made on behalf of Falling Up with a tax-deduction. For more information on how to donate, please visit the contact section of this site.