Monday Movie Meme - Plan B

As I work to complete a final version of my “Abyss” movie -- one that is suitable for film festival submissions -- the deadlines for (festival) review continue to fly by. Coming up against setbacks such as exporting files that don’t play properly, crossing off potential festivals to submit to and being in a frenzy over the steep learning curves of features within post-production software programs, I find myself having to constantly readjust my end goal for this project. That brings us to the theme of this week’s Monday Movie Meme: Plan B.

Share on your blog or in the comments section, movies where the main characters have to make one or more backup plans. They are in a situation where their first plan is either no longer available or it has become a liability that will put them at risk for undesirable results.

Here are my selections for this week’s Plan B theme.

World War Z

When one man and his wounded guard are abandoned by their private aircraft, they board a commercial flight to remain safe from zombies in this action horror starring Brad Pitt and Matthew Fox. It’s one of those situations where you have no time to compare and contrast alternative options – you have to be quick on your feet or else…it won’t be pretty!

Heat

A bank robber makes last minute changes to his itinerary, after believing that his initial getaway plan might be compromised. I recently watched this crime thriller, starring Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino, Ashley Judd, Val Kilmer and Amy Brenneman, in its entirety and know of few other movies where the characters are so thorough that they can put together a Plan B, C -- and D if necessary -- at a moment’s notice.

Bad Boys II

A detective instructs other members of his squad to “Go to Plan B,” after realizing that he and two other law enforcement agents won’t making it back to an escape tunnel in enough time to ensure everyone’s safety. His decision seems like a good strategy, except for one important factor -- the squad is not aware of any existing Plan B. In fact, one of them asks “Plan B? What the hell is Plan B?”

What movies, featuring characters who need a backup plan, would YOU add to this list?

What Freaks Me Out – Playing the Waiting Game with My Movie #indiefilm

One of the things I’m most afraid of is not finishing my movie in enough time to make the deadlines for any of the 40+ film festivals where I want to submit it for a premiere screening; and completing this flick at all.

Post-production is taking longer than it took me to shoot this project, partly because I’m currently trying to shorten it up and make a version that meets my vision for it as closely as possible within the right amount of time. In the last few days, I’ve been back and forth through that old mindset of wanting to just throw a project aside and move on to the next thing – but -- there likely won’t be a next anything if I don’t first finish the one I’m working on now.

Speaking of the next best thing, there’s also nothing else for me to do if I’m not involved in some capacity of filmmaking. I mean, I went to school to study it, then started writing about it on the path to becoming one – or so I thought. No one can be a filmmaker without having made one, which means, until I actually have a movie in my hands that I can show to people, I suppose I’m just a writer – after all – that is what I do.

Today’s post is a mash-up of two prompts from Jenni, who wants participants in the 'Blog Everyday in May Challenge' to answer the question “What do you do?” and share the thing(s) you’re most afraid of. I could’ve just as easily written about other fears such as watching “Requiem for a Dream” or witnessing animals -- or people -- get hit by cars in oncoming traffic, but those things didn’t come to mind until I finished writing this post.

What do YOU do and what are the thing(s) you're most afraid of?

Making Movies with Lyssa Roberts – The Worker’s Union #indiefilm

Lyssa Roberts plays Mariah, a kindhearted city girl who depends on public transportation to get to her job in the short film, “Abyss.”

Lyssa was cast for this role because she fit the majority of what I had in mind while writing the screenplay. Her audition footage also received high remarks from members of the casting team who reviewed all of the actors and actresses interested in being a part of this movie.

She shares screen time with Mark Johnson, who plays Manny and is involved in a decision that sends Rodney Benson’s character over the edge. Here are some comments that a few casting team members had to say about Lyssa’s audition…

“She gave the role a bit more spunk” and “Plays the character smart.  Great departure from the rest”

We shall find out if viewers agree, when “Abyss” is ready for its movie premiere!