Patrick Hyde - Writer/Director

Pre-production

Things get rolling when SAG comes out with ultra-low budget agreement. Enlist actor friends Cali Ross & Mike Breyer for key roles. I decide to cast the Latina part with a model/actress. Start looking for Latina models with websites and a fanbase. I get the idea to create a special behind the scenes DVD for the model/actress to sell to her fans to boost income for her and the movie.

Meet Jim Thalman at a Film Independent event before Xmas 2005. He impresses me with his enthusiasm and intelligence especially when he asks to read the script. JIm loves script. Cast him as Nick. He generously offers to help me audition actresses.

Formed Dream State, Inc. at the begiinning of 2006. Put breakdown on SAG indie. Get 500 submissions for five parts.

Schedule auditions for Lili, Dazzle & Misty roles March 4. Sherry, Jim and I spend all day at the Film Independent casting suite seeing actors. Great having Jim there. Kelli Nordhus comes in and nails Dazzle. Quite exciting to see. Still searching for a Latina model/actress. Decide to open other roles to model/actresses.

Discover Amanda Carrier & Julia Beatty on imodel.com. They agree to read script. They like it and want to audition. When I meet with Amanda I know immediately I want her in the movie. She comes up with great idea to play the Latina Misty as Serbian who was Russian TV star.

At the next audition Kelsa Kinsly nails role of Lili’s mom. Julia impresses us all. I meet with Julia again the following week to discuss her role in the film. We agree she’s perfect for Sterling’s sexy assistant Amanda. She points out the character has only six lines. I promise to expand the part. I mention I’m looking for swimwear & lingerie companies to contribute outfits and help promote the movie. She says she has contacts and can arrange it. (and does an awesome job).

Jim recommends friends Kym Jackson & Heidi Johanningmeier for parts. Meet with Kym and she’s like a New Age goddess. Immediately cast her for Minister Holly. Cast Heidi as Lili. Cast terrific actors Tim Abell as Trent, and Ian Paul Cassidy (another friend of Jim’s) as Nathan.

Make a deal with a dp to provide camera & crew. One more role to cast, Dazzle’s haircut client. Cast newcomer Joe Gugel. Sherry recruits her sister Cindy for craft service and her brother Rick and they fly in from Pennsylvania to complete the crew. Ready to roll.

Production highlights

Beginning

Crew sets up so fast it becomes clear I scheduled Julia’s call time too late for the first scene. Luckily, Cali is cool about ad-libbing a telephone monologue for us to shoot instead. It works out great. The rest of the day goes well. We crank out scene after scene. Our make-up artist Nune is terrific and the cast is always ready. They know their lines & characters. Heidi looks cute with the charisma meter on her head. Amanda’s accent is so perfect. Rick becomes Mr. Everything man. My good friend Andrew Cunningham joins the crew. It’s an unexpected pleasure to have him on board. Sherry becomes the it girl, do it, get it, find it.

We start two days on location at the home of Cali & her husband Chris. They make everyone feel welcome. We have new make-up artists, Gabriella & Kiki. The actresses look great all day.

Middle

It’s Tim’s first day on set and he has scenes with just about everyone. He has a terrific flair for ad-libbing. The scene with Mike & Tim is hilarious. There’s been great chemistry among all the actors since day 1 and it continues. Kelli improvs a funny scene with Tim. It’s cool to watch because that’s how I originally envisioned the movie, having the cast improvise everything like in a Mike Leigh film. Maybe next time.

Mike’s been doing extra duty on the behind scenes tapes helping Sherry. Unfortunately I don’t have any time to devote to that but I trust Mike & Sherry to get the material needed for Julia and Amanda.

Today we’re in the community room for the church scenes. We’re under the gun because we weren’t allowed to rent the room for more than 7 hours, including set up and tear down. Kym does an awesome job with her very long and dramatic sermon. Tim, Cali, Kym, & Mike are wrapped. They were so much fun to work with.

Lots of set-ups to shoot today all inside Deanna’s apartment. Last scene of the day is one of my favorites, nearly 3 pages of dialogue. Kelli and Amanda nail it on the first take. It’s a wrap on the movie for Amanda, Kelli, Julia, Jim & Joe. All were amazing.

End

Ian arrives early and we get to spend extra time talking about his character, Nathan, the director of the community theatre. He does an awsome job of bringing depth to a character who has only one line in the script. Cindy makes a delicious baked eggs & bacon dish for breakfast. Kelsa works well with Heidi, they're a great mother & daughter team.

Wrap

A whirlwind shoot. A dream come true. Thanks to everyone who helped make it happen.