Latest Update Letter from N3rd Writer/Director

 This was sent out a few days ago to The Nocturnal Third cast and crew, as well as to recipients of the Wonder Mill Films newsletter:

"Hi, guys-

I just wanted to give a brief update of where The Nocturnal Third is in its lengthy post-production phase. Things are coming along very well, considering the various "real life" challenges we've been dealing with this past year. Things to be smoothing out for us personally as the film's finish has begun to gain momentum. While we won't be relying on much film festival exposure for the N3rd distribution strategy, we do hope to make this week's deadline for Birmingham's Sidewalk Film Festival. Many of you are familiar with this Fest, so we'll see how that goes. Obviously, we wouldn't submit an ugly movie to a film festival, so that should tell you about how far along we are. Kevin has delivered some fantastic animation and Jesse is awaiting word from me on the final score mix. Danielle, Lee, and myself are continuing to work hard on compiling DVD extras, and Jessica is always working on more awesome promotional materials.

As we mentioned a few weeks ago, the film's April 15th release date has definitely budged. This is less because of a lack of a finished film, and more because of the "day-and-date" strategy we've established. We could conceivably premiere the film in its Festival Screener status, but I think it will be all the more satisfying to wait for a big, final reveal. Of course, please give us feedback if you disagree.

In other news, we're quietly making ground on some very cool possibilities on the future home of our first feature, A Genesis Found. Lee has been putting himself through the wringer (in the most enjoyable possible way, I assure you) during the Campus Tour of the last 9 months or so, and we've introduced many new eyeballs to the world of John Patton, Jr. and his kin. We're currently looking at some exciting ways to expand the film's audience, and hopefully we can provide some details in the coming months.

As the summer movie season approaches, you're sure to be asked the question, "seen anything good lately?" If you enjoyed A Genesis Found, bring it up! If you're looking forward to The Nocturnal Third, bring it up! It's important for regional films to be lumped into the same group as those great big spectacles we all enjoy.

Speaking of which, take a look at the trailer for Missing Pieces, directed by Birmingham native Kenton Bartlett. Its production has run parallel to that of The Nocturnal Third, and it looks like a high-quality ensemble drama.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udQ0i9AYJ_0

That's about it! Stay tuned for news on the Nocturnal Third premiere as a date becomes easier to determine.

-Ben Stark
Writer/Director, The Nocturnal Third"

The Man in the High Castle

"We Germans aren't all smiles and sunshine."

 N3rd writer/director Benjamin Stark gets a chance to vent on a certain New Hollywood legend's vision for the future of film-making in the latest Speculatin' a Hypothesis!

Trailer 2!

It's the newest trailer for The Nocturnal Third! Check it out at IndieGoGo, where you'll also find info about the new fund-raising campaign!

http://www.indiegogo.com/The-Nocturnal-Third

The Nocturnal Third - Poster 1

Big thanks to Inkmatter's Jessica Twilbeck. More to come... stay tuned.

-Ben Stark, Writer/Director

"You and Harold in there... you're sitters. Bumps on a log. No movement, no thought."

The words of The Nocturnal Third's enigmatic Jeffrey, played by Luke Weaver, must be echoing in the skull of N3rd writer/director Ben Stark. He discusses maintaining a healthy pace in life, movie-making, and movie-watching in the latest edition of Speculatin' a Hypothesis!

http://filmnerds.com/blog/2010/10/06/life-aint-a-track-meet/

The Summer Date Night Screening Series Wrap-Up

N3rd Writer/Director Ben Stark takes us through the land of popcorn and explosions as he and his wife institutionalize the Summer Movie Season experience.

Take a look at the latest Speculatin' A Hypothesis over at filmnerds.com!

http://filmnerds.com/blog/2010/10/01/the-summer-date-night-screening-series-wrap-up/

How I Spent My Summer Vacation

From Speculatin' a Hypothesis, the filmnerds.com blog from Benjamin Stark...

It seems like I start every blog entry with "boy, I haven't written one of these in a while."
In March, the company I worked for over the past 3 years as head video editor closed. I have a wife and a dog that demand food, but since one of those is healthily employed, and because I'm a member of the Dave Ramsey cult, we were never in danger of starving.

However, the American spirit and my German breeding wouldn't allow me to bum off of my wife and our savings account, and I had to be honest with myself and admit that the fear spread by the media about our nation's economic situation had officially reached our little City of Tomorrow. So, I was looking a grim situation in the face, and I knew this was going to be an interesting couple of months.

We were going to have to boil things down to essentials for the second time in our young marriage, and I realized there were two ships to keep afloat - my relationship with my wife, and The Nocturnal Third.

When faced with adversity, it seems like two easy coping mechanisms are to punish those closest to you and to drop long-term goals for the sake of short-term solutions. To ensure quality time together, we organized a Summer Date Night Screening Series, the results of which I hope to post soon, and I joined in on her triathlon training (periodically). Add to that, I never entertained any job options that would jeopardize any forward movement on the film (working an oil rig in Alaska, taking out a loan and going to grad school, etc.)

Consequently, we enjoyed a lean summer full of fun and productivity, but the entire time I felt I was performing a high-wire act, as God seemingly provided the right amount of work right when we needed it to meet our budget. It was pretty amazing, and now I feel like I've been taught that ever-elusive virtue that this fiscally conservative dorkus has been missing for so long - flexibility. The killer schedule of A Genesis Found and the directorial experience of The Nocturnal Third went a long way in keeping me guessing, but now I feel like we could survive anything.

In the midst of "struggling" (let it not be said that I'm not aware of the real hardships many families are facing here and abroad), I had a few tools, beyond a great family, ever-evolving faith, and the aforementioned dog. I've finally picked back up the amazing Neal Gabler biography Walt Disney: Triumph of the American Imagination. My mom got it for me for Christmas 3 years ago, and after reading a few pages in 2007, I quickly realized this was going to be less of a breezy read and more of a side project. At 880 pages, it functions as a comprehensive history of early Hollywood, the art of animation, and global pop culture. My renewed journey through the book is complemented by my mission to fill gaps and watch every animated Disney feature I've missed over the years. What strikes me about Disney and the principles he was able to establish is the idea of enacting almost subliminal social change through positivity and shared experiential joy. Intentional or not, a Mickey Mouse cartoon is constructed in such a way that it immediately triggers endorphin release. I've even been listening to tracks from the various Disney musicals in an almost therapeutic way. It's hard to have a bad day if you're jamming "Whistle While You Work", or "Prince Ali", or "When You Wish Upon A Star".

I also spent much of the summer reading up on the Space Race, and revisiting films like The Right Stuff and Apollo 13. Again, NASA in the late 50's exudes optimism and stubborn bravado.

This interest in progressive-thinking genius (or at least the image thereof) is definitely informing a burgeoning concept for my second feature-length screenplay, but it's also reflected in The Nocturnal Third. In addition to learning resourcefulness in my personal life, the themes of utilitarianism in your surroundings that surface in N3rd are also becoming more and more clear and clean to me as I mold each scene in sound editing and in examining the film from a "marketing" perspective. Producer Lee and I were recently talking about how refreshing it is to have a story still speak to you in its various stages of development, despite being conceived of three years ago.

I'm currently enjoying the bizarre process of recording foley, basically acting out the aural consequences of decisions our actors made a year ago. It's a slow-moving process, as it's location-based, which is harder to schedule, and dependent on location operations and weather. In the meantime, I'm working on writing copy for marketing materials, prepping the glitzy web site, and chatting with the other artists working on the film.

Let's not forget that there's plenty to be done for the upcoming Southeastern Campus Tour of A Genesis Found... Follow director Lee Fanning's blog (http://sonofarkie.blogspot.com/) to get the latest info on that, as well as some great insight from him.

So, that's how I spent my summer. I'm now working part time at a job with one of the best companies on the planet, as well as working with some great freelance clients doing interesting work. It really does feel like school is back in session, as balance seems to have been restored. Above all, we have a release date set for The Nocturnal Third... April 2011.

Myself and the other filmmakers working on the project are excited about the ever-approaching day when the world can see our movie.

In the meantime, I'm looking forward to getting in Melody Time from Netflix... the last of the post-war anthology features in the Disney line-up. Watch out for my blogging activity to hopefully increase now that I can afford to make a bit more time for such "distractions", including an entry into the "Great Scenes" Film Nerds series, a look at our Summer Date Night movies, and a comprehensive look at the ENTIRE Animated Disney canon (expect that 4th quarter 2014).

Also, if you're not already, come follow @WonderMillFilms on Twitter. It's a little less formal and more abstract than much of our dialogue on Facebook. www.twitter.com/wondermillfilms

Thanks for reading, guys, and for letting me indulge.

God Bless,
Ben Stark
Writer/Director, The Nocturnal Third