My favorite sticker at Wizard Con this year.

Jake Lloyd was on the floor (imagine young Anakin with a stubble–no, I’m not joking). The poor kid looked so unhappy to be there–unlike Richard LeParmentier (a.k.a Admiral Motti), who’s clearly an old pro at this. If my memory serves me well, their booths faced each other, and they were flanked by a bunch of retired Playboy bunnies, porn stars, and pro wrestlers. Adam West and William Shatner were there. Even Rod Blagojevich made an impromptu appearance to sign autographs for $100 a pop. I must admit, comic conventions never cease to amaze me. They’re not really about comics–more like the proverbial box of chocolates: you never know who you’re going to see.

This guy must have a Mothra or two in his closet.

Introducing... the Maui Trooper.

The screening itself was a blast. This was our first non-theatrical screening, and it was a refreshing experience. Convention ballrooms certainly aren’t as cool as, say, the Bloor Cinema in Toronto or The Paramount in Austin; but if you fill them up with hundreds of fanboys and fangirls, they somehow come to life in unexpected ways. The evening started with a George Lucas debate, moderated by Ain’t It Cool’s own Capone, and concluded with possibly our longest Q&A to date. Jason Seiler, the amazing creator of our official poster, came to see the film for the first time; and so did Michael Ramova, whose SW Grindhouse short (‘Don’t Go In The Endor Woods’) is featured in our film. We also had the pleasure of meeting Mike Stoklasa (a.k.a. Plinkett–creator of the wonderful SW Episode I-II reviews that were all the rage on YouTube a few months ago), who apparently drove a considerable distance just to see our film and say hi. Overall, the evening was ‘aces!’, as they say in England.

Recreating the PvG poster with artist Jason Seiler and the actual model used for his 'angry fan'.

The Wizard Con audience during the Q&A.

Mike Stoklasa (a.k.a. Plinkett), who drove all the way from Michigan to watch the film, came to say hi after the screening.

I caught another redeye flight to San Francisco the following day, and drove to Los Angeles in the middle of the night. Arrived at 10am absolutely destroyed, and slept most of the afternoon. After a few days in LA catching up with old friends and PvG participants, we capped our mini-tour with a killer screening at Kevin Smith’s own Smodcastle–easily the most awesome black box theater I’ve ever been to. It might be that I’m slightly biased, because Kevin Smith did show up to introduce and watch the film, and he was SUCH a gracious host! But let’s be honest here: do you know of another theater in LA where you’re welcome in your jammies on Saturday mornings to watch cartoons and eat cereal in the company of Kevin Smith?! I mean, seriously!

The site of the crime.

Darth Cohen, who made it all happen.

The Smith & Mosier Troopers.

Several familiar faces showed up to the screening. Daryl Frazetti was there, and so were Hot Waffles. Without a shadow of a doubt, the highlight of the evening was their live acoustic performance of ‘George Lucas Raped Our Childhood’, with a little comedy number by Kevin. Our good friend Matt Walsh shot the performance for us (along with the three other songs they performed), and we fully intend to post that slice of improvisational stage magic on YouTube and on our website in the near future for everyone to enjoy.

All together now: George-Lucas-Raped-Our-Childhood/George-Lucas-Raped-Our-Childhood/George-Lucas-Raped-Our-Child--Hood..!

Bear hug. Way nicer than Lotso.

The following day, Matt Walsh (and his wife Kerri) treated us to John Williams’s annual performance at the Hollywood Bowl, and what a perfect day to end the trip! We could see the Ford Amphitheater (site of our Los Angeles Film Festival screening) in the distance, and I got the chills before the show even started. Matt kept telling me that every true Star Wars fan had to experience this at least once; and now that I’ve seen the show, I understand exactly what he meant.

Lightsabers in the night.

The program, ranging from themes to Sunset Boulevard, Jaws and Psycho to Raiders and Superman, was capped off by several popular pieces from the Star Wars Saga. Hundreds of lightsabers suddenly lit up the darkened auditorium, and started moving to the rhythm of the music. The Imperial March encore, if you can imagine it, was nothing short of spectacular.

The Imperial March finale at the Hollywood Bowl.

Not everyone came for Star Wars, of course; but, as Matt put it, people came armed with their lightsabers to watch a classical concert primarily featuring songs from other movies. There were no whips there, no Norman Bates costumes. It wasn’t about Star Wars, but the spirit of the saga (The Force, if you will) permeated the entire evening, and all 17,376 of us felt its energy. It was unmistakable and inescapable. And that, right there, is the amazing legacy of George Lucas and his once perfect team of collaborators, who graced us with a strip of celluloid that I’ll argue any day is far, far more than just a movie.

A giant Luxo stands vigil outside the main entrance at Pixar Animation Studios.

When Dave Mullins (Directing Animator, UP) emailed to let me know that the Pixar team had watched our trailers and wanted to see our film, that was pretty much all the convincing we needed to whip out a brand-new HDCAM master, hop in the car, and drive to the Bay Area. I had already had the privilege of touring Pixar Studios a few years ago on a Sunday; but seeing the place buzzing with the energy of their 1,200 employees (yes, we even saw John Lasseter) was quite a different experience.

Lifesize Lego recreations of Woody and Buzz Lightyear greeting visitors inside the main lobby.

PU stands for Pixar University, by the way.

What’s even cooler than hanging out at Pixar..? Seeing our poster plastered all over the place, that’s what! There was a definite feeling of anticipation, and I suppose they were looking forward to the screening as much as we were. The lovely Michelle Radcliffe (who’s in charge of programming the PU screenings) and Dave Mullins told us when we entered the building that they were in the midst of a big production emergency, and we feared for a little while that only a handful of Pixar employees would be off the hook and allowed to watch our film.

Shiny Happy People (the Hegel Brothers and I outside the entrance to the Pixar theater).

The tag says it all.

Emergency or not, approximately 150 people showed up (many of them had worked for Lucasfilm in the past), and they stuck around for an engaging Q&A (I think we may have asked as many questions as they did). The screening, by the way, was probably the best looking and sounding we’ve ever had–at least comparable to the AFI Silver Theater in Silver Spring, MD and Dreamworks Animation Studios, which were both technically flawless.

The Exhibit A action pack. Limited Edition. AFA graded U90.

Thinking, thinking...

We had to leave around mid-afternoon to catch a red-eye flight to Chicago; but before we did, Michelle graciously gave each one of us a goodie bag (as if screening our film at Pixar wasn’t enough of a treat). Included in mine: a gorgeous book on 20 years of animation at Pixar, and a strawberry-scented stuffed Lotso Bear, which I secretly hug when no one’s watching.

AOP

The 2010 PiFan banner, plastered all over the city of Puchon.

The 14th Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival (known perhaps more widely and affectionately as PiFan) was the host of our film’s Asian premiere a couple of weeks ago. I was fortunate to attend PiFan for the first time in 2003. It was the world premiere of my very first film, and I always hoped I’d be invited again–partly for nostalgic reasons, but primarily because (as every filmmaker who ever showed up there will tell you) it’s one of the most all-out fun, well-run and superbly programmed film festivals anywhere in the world. Period. And this year was no exception. It totally felt like putting on an old pair of shoes, or riding a bike for the first time in seven years (I actually never learned to ride a bike, but that’s another story entirely…) More than a film festival, PiFan is an experience. Puchon is located a stone’s throw away from the heart of Seoul; and while it’s nowhere near as exciting as the Republic of Korea’s capital city on a normal day, it literally springs to life every year in July, with tens of thousands of avid filmgoers flocking to the multiplexes to catch previews of the world’s hottest genre films.

Robert and I on opening night (jetlagged and--in retrospect--perhaps too casually dressed for a red carpet event).

Why am I saying that..? Here's the reverse angle.

To say that volunteers are at the core of any festival’s success is an understatement when it comes to PiFan. Its army of 290 uniformed volunteers is, by far, the most dedicated and enthusiastic I’ve ever seen. It’s literally impossible to walk anywhere in the city without bumping into several of them. You’ll often find them at their desk after hours, sometimes asleep after a long day of work, but always ready and willing to help, and always smiling. PiFan volunteers: you ROCK!

The Great Wall of Volunteers, guarding the Korean stars from rabid fans and stalkers (I don't think that documentary filmmakers like ourselves had anything to worry about).

Then, there are the parties, with plenty of traditional Korean food (including endless variations on kimchi) and drinks (like soju and makgeolli, which apparently can be made from rice or potatoes). Yes, dog can be eaten there, and I hear it’s a real delicacy, but I just didn’t have the heart to try. Robert (our vegetarian producer) gives me enough s**t as it is when I eat bacon in front of him, so dog would be off the charts, I think! But I digress. Anyway, after the parties, well, that’s when the fun really begins. There’s karaoke every night until 4 or 5am with the programming team, and an unlimited supply of beer and soju. Let’s just say it gets a little crazy.

Enjoying a bulgogi dinner with filmmakers Gareth Edwards (MONSTERS) and David Kaplan (PLAY), and Stockholm IFF programmer Johannes Palmroos.

And then… then, there’s the programming! As a huge fan of horror, sci-fi and fantasy, I think I watched more movies at PiFan than at any of the other festivals I attended this year. Personal highlights included MONSTERS by Gareth Edwards (UK’s response to DISTRICT 9 and CLOVERFIELD, and an incredibly clever low-budget suspense thriller with stunning special effects and a well-developed love story), THE COLLECTOR (which was released in the US last year under the radar, but made a tremendous impression on me–that ambulance shot is worth the price of admission), and Gaspar Noé’s latest shocker ENTER THE VOID (not enjoyable to watch, but a visual tour de force). It was also a great privilege to have the opportunity to watch four restored Korean kung-fu films from the seventies by genre master Lee Doo-Young, who made more than 60 features during his prolific career, and actually showed up unannounced at one of the screenings. If you like kung-fu movies, even just a little, I beg you to pressure the Korean Film Archive to release those films on DVD. I really haven’t seen anything remotely like them anywhere. They’re a perfect blend of seventies cheese, Spaghetti Western sentimentality (complete with Ennio Morricone-style music), really fun action scenes, far-fetched smash cuts, and laugh-out-loud foley work. And I mean this with all the profound affection I quickly developed for those movies and their filmmaker in just a few days. But then again, that’s exactly the type of retrospective I was hoping to find this year at PiFan–seven years ago, I was introduced to the Shaw Brothers films, particularly the GOLDEN SWALLOW and ONE-ARMED SWORDSMAN series, which are now available on DVD, and which I’d recommend without hesitation.

The Shaw Brothers rocked my world in 2003...

... and so did Lee Doo-Young this year. I mean, come on, Bruce Lee Fights Back from the Grave!! Does it get any better than this?

It was, of course, a thrill to watch our film with Korean subtitles; and the experience turned out to be quite similar to that of previous film festivals for PvG: packed screenings, plenty of laughter, and enthusiastic, lengthy Q&As–even a couple of lightsabers in the house! And just like everywhere we’ve been to date, several fans in the audience had been following our film’s progress since 2007. It’s such a thrill and a privilege to fly halfway around the world to bring them the film, and get to discuss it with them afterward.

At the Gundam exhibit before our first screening.

Hell hath no fury like the Puchon Sith.

What was that question, Robert? He didn't really ask me to talk about the Expanded Universe, did he..?

Of course, we have many more exciting plans up our sleeve–most of which, unfortunately, we can’t announce just yet. Next on our agenda: an event screening at Wizard World’s Chicago Comic-Con (complete with a George Lucas look-alike contest and video ‘therapy booth’), a special private screening in California (which I’ll tell you all about in my next blog entry), a French premiere in Strasbourg (where I will also be on the jury), and our Spanish premiere at the famed Sitges Film Festival, leading to another series of premiere screenings I’m not at liberty to mention. Distribution plans are also taking shape in a number of territories, and you’ll be the first to know when we’re ready to make official announcements.

Our film's title, written in Korean (so we're told).

And that’s the scoop from PiFan. I’ll write again after our Chicago screening. Hope to see many of you there!

AOP