A night at the Saturn Awards…

I should start off by saying that, sadly, “Not Forgotten” came home from the 36th Annual Saturn Awards empty-handed on Thursday night. Sorry…

But one of the things I learned about attending my first big-time award show (as a nominee!) is that it really is an honor just to be nominated. I know that sounds cheesy, but it’s true. And seeing as the folks who put on the Saturn Awards are some of the coolest, geekiest, sci-fi, fantasy and horror fans imaginable (people like me!) I was even doubly honored.

Seriously, I have never felt more at home in a room full of Hollywood phonies, and that’s because these people were not your everyday Hollywood phonies.

No way, man, these folks were the real deal. That Starlight Ballroom was busting at the seams with talented, creative, film-loving freaks and geeks of every shape and size…and those people know how to party, yo!

This year, the Saturn Awards were held at the Castaway Restaurant in the hills overlooking Burbank…and if there was any doubt as to where you were when you got out of your car, the scads of little alien heads at the bar and the life size astronaut suit on the red carpet totally clued you in.

Still wondering what award show you were at? Well, perhaps you should ask that fellow over there in the Samurai Stormtrooper costume, or the man driving the moon buggy in a grungy space suit. I swear, amigos, I never stopped smiling all night…that place was fanboy heaven.

Rubbing shoulders with people like Sam Raimi, Leonard Nimoy, Billy Dee Williams, Guillermo Del Toro, Malcolm McDowell, the lovely Anna Torv from “Fringe”, cast members from “Heroes”, “Chuck” and “Breaking Bad”, iconic “The Greatest American Hero” star himself, William Katt, and actually being touched by the dude who played touch-happy Jacob on “Lost” (Mark Pellegrino)…I mean, shit, who needs an award with a line-up like that?

Of course, we would have loved to have won our category — we lost to Rod Lurie’s “Nothing But The Truth”, which includes no sci-fi, fantasy or horror to speak of — but, we were having too much fun to dwell on the loss for long. I mean, the food was great, the bar was wide open — Daddy had three mojitos and a chocolate vodka martini, but who’s counting? — and the vibe at the Castaway was awesome, so, what’s to complain about?

And on top of all that coolness, I managed to score two gift bags at the end of the night. Sure, I felt a little greedy lugging them around the after-party in the courtyard, but what can I say, I loves me some free shit. And when that free shit involves “King Kong” and “Avatar” DVD’s, well, all the better!

Thanks again for the nomination, guys…long live the Saturn Awards! To see a full list of this year’s Saturn Award winners, please click here.

And to see more of my super-nerdy pics please click here.

“Not Forgotten” nominated for 2010 Saturn Award

Speaking of Sci-Fi…a few weeks back I got the super cool news that “Not Forgotten” had been nominated by the Academy of Science Fiction Fantasy & Horror for a 2010 Saturn Award for Best DVD Release. Yay! I didn’t blog about it then, because I wanted to make sure I got invited to the show first…and guess what? I did! So, whoo-hoo…let the celebrating commence!

If, like most non-hard-core sci-fi geeks, you have no idea what the Saturn Awards are, please allow me to fill you in. The Saturn Awards have been given out to the best of the best sci-fi, fantasy and horror films, TV shows, plays and home video for the past 36 years, and unlike the Oscars who traditionally shun such genres, these guys are true fans of the first order.

This is the organization that in the past has given Best Film Awards to “The Empire Strikes Back”, “Aliens”, “Poltergeist”, “A.I. Artificial Intelligence” and “Children of Men”…smart, bold genre movies that more staid institutions completely shut out. I used to read about these rocking, underground award gatherings in Starlog and Fangoria magazines when I was a geeky kid…so, to have something I co-wrote and associate produced be nominated at all, in any category is kind of mind-blowing.

And the fact that I will actually be attending the show tonight, rubbing elbows with the creators and cast of “Lost”, “Avatar”, “Star Trek”, “Harry Potter” and the like…well, shit…I might just explode!

However, in the highly-unlikely event that I actually do make it through the show tonight intact, I promise to post some pics soon, so, stay tuned. To see a list of all this year’s Saturn Award nominees, click here.

“Not Forgotten” on Showtime

Just found out that “Not Forgotten” had it’s pay-cable debut last night on Showtime. Yay! We don’t have Showtime, but, for those who do, “Not Forgotten” plays several times over the next couple of weeks on the networks of Showtime and will be available at Showtime On Demand through the end of the month.

Finally, those of you who missed “Not Forgotten” on the big screen and on DVD and Blu-Ray will have one more chance to see my movie. Whew! 🙂 Oh yeah, and if you really don’t know anyone with Showtime, you could always watch it on NetFlix On Demand, like my brother-in-law did today. Thanks, Rob!

To see the complete schedule of “NF” air dates on Showtime, click here. And if I could just say one last super nerdy thing before I sign off…how cool is it that my movie was the lead-in tonight for groovy, award-magnet shows like “Nurse Jackie” and “United States of Tara”? Awesome!!

“Not Forgotten” is on sale now!

That’s right, amigos…after premiering at the 2009 Slamdance Film Festival and playing to packed houses and rave reviews across the Southwest and in Los Angeles and New York City, “Not Forgotten” is finally available on DVD and Blu Ray wherever DVD’s are sold. If you’re looking for a deal, Amazon has the best online price ($14.99) but I bought mine this week at Best Buy for the same price.

“Not Forgotten” is also for sale at Wal-Mart — thanks for the heads up, Minnesota kinfolks! — and available to purchase and rent at Blockbuster Stores nationwide. So, check it out today!

Oh yeah, and aside from the audio commentary that I mentioned before, and my brief cameo in the movie, you can also catch a glimpse or two of my sweaty mug in the “Making Of Featurette” in the special features. I’m the dude with the gigantic head that says “awesome” a lot, you can’t miss me…

“Not Forgotten” to debut on DVD and Blu Ray 11/3

Just wanted to remind you guys that my movie “Not Forgotten” is debuting on DVD and Blu Ray next Tuesday, the 3rd of November. You can rent or buy the movie anywhere DVDs are rented or sold or you can even, as I just discovered, burn an illegal bootleg copy of your very own on a number of sites online.

Hmm…I guess I should be honored that someone took the time to upload a bootleg copy of the DVD (complete with the bootleg cover art pictured on the Blu Ray box below) but, I think I’d rather have you guys buy a regular copy instead. Besides, I think the new cover art is much cooler.

Ooo…and if you do buy a real copy next week, not only will you get to see “Not Forgotten” in a beautiful widescreen transfer, but you will also be able to listen to the super cool feature commentary I recorded with the movie’s director, my co-writer, Dror Soref. We had an awesome time recording it this past summer, and let me tell ya, we kept it very real. So, it should make for a pretty good listen.

Either way, mark your calendars, amigos, because next Tuesday is truly a day NOT to be FORGOTTEN. Urgh. Sorry, I couldn’t resist…

“Not Forgotten” to open in NYC!

Got word earlier this week that my movie “Not Forgotten” will be opening in New York City and three theatres in El Paso, Texas this Friday, September 11th, 2009. Which is like, tomorrow…so, yay!

Not sure what triggered this late-game release strategy, but I do know that “Not Forgotten” will be playing in the heart of New York’s legendary theatre district at the AMC Empire 25 on 42nd Street. If it does as well in the big apple as it did in Los Angeles, Austin, and Phoenix, “Not Forgotten” could expand into other markets, which would be very cool. No word yet on which markets we’re talking about, but, I’m still pulling for you, Santa Cruz!

In the meantime, to make way for the expanded theatrical release, our distributor (Anchor Bay) has pushed the DVD release date back from October to November 3rd. Sorry, Dad…you’ll have to wait a little longer.

But as for the rest of you, if any of y’all know anyone in NYC or El Paso…spread the word. Because starting tomorrow, “Not Forgotten” is back on the big screen, amigos! For complete ticket and showtime information check out the movie’s official website at: www.notforgottenmovie.com

“Not Forgotten” at the Beverly Center 13

No word yet on future distribution plans, but according to our friends at Boxofficemojo.com, “Not Forgotten” is still pulling in some pretty decent bank. Last time I checked (and I check almost hourly) the per screen average for the movie on only four screens was almost $3,000.00. Not bad for a little movie with almost no marketing, huh?

Even cooler than the numbers the movie has been pulling in have been the audiences themselves. I went to see “Not Forgotten” this past weekend at the Beverly Center 13 with my stepmom Wendy, my sister Courtney and our longtime family friends, Jan, Les and Brooke Wright and the crowd in our theatre seemed to really dig the movie.

Of course, it was a small theatre and we were kinda taking up half the seats in the joint, but still, the rest of the folks in that theatre were very much along for the ride. In fact, a woman and a man who were watching the movie with their elderly mother actually stopped me on my way out to ask me a few questions.

I’m guessing they knew I had something to do with the movie since our whole row cheered every time my name came up in the credits, but either way, once they heard that I had co-written the movie, they were on me like eager fanboys on J.J. Abrams at ComicCon.

Seriously, they were so excited to meet me and have me answer their questions (in person!) that I kept joking with Les that he must have paid them beforehand to make me feel good or something. It was kinda crazy, but totally fun and they were really, really impressed with the movie, so…how could I not enjoy my first real encounter with my “fans”? Ha!

Anyway, I’ll post more details on where “Not Forgotten” will land next when I get them and in the meantime, enjoy the pics from weekend number two in LA.!

“Not Forgotten” night at the Mann’s Chinese!

Friday night was the Hollywood premiere of my new movie “Not Forgotten” at the Mann’s Chinese and let me tell ya, it rocked! We had an awesome audience, great food and drinks at the after party at The Grill, and best of all, the movie played to packed houses all weekend long. Yay!

No official word on what that means for future distribution plans, but according to the fine folks at BoxOfficeMojo.com, “Not Forgotten” did manage to beat the pants off heavy-hitters like “17 Again”, “Hannah Montana” and even “Wolverine” (again!) on a per screen average, so, I’d say we kicked ass!

Also, I just found out that we will be moving to the Mann Beverly Center 13 on Friday, so, if you missed us last week at the Chinese, check us out this weekend at the Beverly Center by clicking here.

In the meantime, back to the premiere! After mingling with the cast and crew in the lobby, I walked the press line outside the theatre for a few pics and then Christine and I headed upstairs to our sweet-ass leather seats in the VIP section. Yep, I said leather seats, amigos. Honestly, I didn’t even know the Mann’s had a VIP section, but it was awesome.

The funniest thing was that Christine and I — who have both seen the movie a gazillion times — were completely freaked out by the kidnapping stuff this time around. I know it sounds crazy, but we both kept looking at each other like: “Should we call home just to make sure Greta wasn’t taken by Santa Muerte?” Wow, I guess that’s what being a parent is all about, huh? Weird…

Without giving too much away, all I can say is that if any of that spooky shit ever happens to my daughter…I might just go “mental” too. Yikes!

Immediately following the screening there was a super cool party just around the corner at the swanky Hollywood Grill. In keeping with the Tex-Mex setting of the movie, the food was all Mexican — right down to the never-ending bottles of Corona with lime! — and though the chicken tostadas were kinda weird, the carne asada was out-of-this-world fantastic. My brother, Ryan, and I went back for that like, three times. Awesome!

Of course, the company was even better. Although neither Simon Baker or Paz Vega could make the premiere — she’s eight-and-a-half months pregnant and lives in Spain, and Simon is supposedly filming a movie in Australia, although he appeared on both “Regis & Kelly” and “Jimmy Fallon” on Monday night, so, who knows? — the rest of mi buen amigos from the supporting cast were there in spades and we had a blast.

And though there were several cool celebrity sightings — Marion Ross from “Happy Days” came with her son, Jim Meskimen, who is the nicest guy in the world, even if he plays a child molester in our movie! — my favorite had to be Oscar-nominee and 70’s icon, Karen Black.

Miss Black was supposed to appear in an AFI student film of mine, “The Lone Star Letters”, way back in the day and I had always wanted to meet her in person. So, when I saw her noshing on tacos near the bar, I stumbled over. Being the geek that I am, I started with: “Are you Karen Black?” Lame…I know, but I was completely starstruck.

She was beyond cool and of course had no memory of my nerdy student film or why she couldn’t appear in it, but really, who cared at that point…I mean, I was talking about my movie with Karen-freaking-Black, how cool and totally Hollywood is that? Crazy!

Anyway, we all stayed way too late and drank and ate way too much, but, wow, what a party! Thanks to everyone who came to the premiere to party down with us and most of all to those of you who went out and actually paid to see “Not Forgotten” on it’s opening weekend in Los Angeles. My Aunt Linda and Uncle George actually drove down from the Fresno area to see the movie on Sunday afternoon. Wow!

So, thanks again for all the “Not Forgotten” love, amigos. You guys rock!!

My “Not Forgotten” interview with the Pop Culture Nerd…

When my fellow Pop Culture Nerd (also known as my friend Elyse) heard that “Not Forgotten” was premiering in Los Angeles this weekend, she asked me to do an interview for her blog. Yes, amigos, sometimes people actually interview the co-writer/associate producers on movies too. Crazy, huh?

Anyway, her questions were hilarious and we had a lot of fun, so, muchas gracias to Elyse for the rocking good time…and here’s hoping the buzz from your blog gets a few more seats in theatres this weekend! To read our nerdy interview in it’s entirety, click here.

And to pre-order tickets for “Not Forgotten” this weekend at the Mann’s Chinese in Hollywood of the Mann’s Plant 16 in Van Nuys, please visit the Mann’s website here. From the looks of it, all the afternoon and evening showings on Friday are sold out (yay!) so, get your tickets soon, yo!

“The Mentalist” goes mental!

OK, I am so not the “leaker” on this one, but someone leaked this super-cool, super-gory scene from our movie, “Not Forgotten”, to YouTube today and it’s been popping up on cool horror movie sites ever since.

So, seeing as you can already watch the scene in all it’s blood-soaked glory online, I thought I’d post a few of my favorite behind-the-scenes pics from this awesome fight scene exclusively for you.

Oh, and, don’t worry, amigos, nothing you’ll see below is as gory as the clip. The first couple of shots are of mi buen amigo, badass actor Zahn McLarnon (Calvo) rehearsing his fight with an unseen Simon Baker.

These pics were taken from my cushy co-writer/associate producer chair behind the monitor in “video village”, so, forgive the quality…

The next couple of pics are of the amazing set designed by our Production Designer Craig Stearns and his top-notch team. We shot this scene in a former high school gym in Santa Fe and as you can see, there is the fake mirror Zahn is so memorably thrown up against before having his head smashed against the filthy toilet pictured below. Cool, huh?

And yes, that is fake grime on that toilet…I checked. The final three shots are of the stuntman who pinch hit for Zahn, complete with his rocking, full-chest Santa Muerte tattoo. Zahn himself in his gore makeup and myself with Zahn just before he left for the night.

If you look real close in the picture with me, Zahn still has fake blood stains around his eyes and oozing from his ear. Now, if that shit doesn’t get people in the theatre, I don’t know what will…

“Not Forgotten” is now playing in Austin and Phoenix and opens on May 15th-17th in Los Angeles at the Mann’s Chinese in Hollywood and the Mann’s Plant 16 in Van Nuys. Check it out!

“Not Forgotten” beats “Wolverine”!!

OK, technically, the fine print should read…”at one theatre in Austin“, but still, how freaking cool is that? And not only did “Not Forgotten” rake in the dough on a per screen average, but we managed to double the combined box office take of the other three movies playing at the complex. Yee-haw!

That means that we beat the pants off X-MEN: ORIGINS WOLVERINE, GHOSTS OF GIRLFRIENDS PAST, and ADVENTURELAND. Crazy, huh? But even cooler still is the fact that we more than tripled the performance of the current worldwide, number one blockbuster, X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE, in its opening weekend at the Dobie. So, yay for us!

And thank you to everyone in Austin who got out there on opening weekend to support our film! Looking forward to seeing you this week at the AMC Deer Valley in Phoenix and most of all, next weekend, May 15-17th in Los Angeles. As you probably remember by  now, “Not Forgotten” opens at the Mann’s Chinese in Hollywood and the Mann’s Plant 16 in Van Nuys on May 15th…so, if you don’t wanna incurr the wrath of Santa Muerte, you best show up!

See ya at the movies…

“Not Forgotten” Santa Muerte contest!

OK, I’m pretty sure that no one I know is even remotely eligible for this cool “Not Forgotten” promotional contest — especially since you kinda have to live in Phoenix, Arizona to win — but just in case, I wanted to let you know about it.

Here’s how it works. Register at the super cool website TxtMovieClub.com, leave a comment detailing exactly what favor you would ask of Santa Muerte (Saint Death, who is featured rather prominently in “Not Forgotten”) and if your favor stands out you win two free VIP tickets to the 7PM screening at the AMC Deer Valley on May 14th, 2009. Cool, huh?

So, if you live anywhere near Phoenix, start thinking up some creepy-ass favors to ask for! I can’t guarantee that Santa Muerte will grant your wishes, but I do know that two free movie tickets are nothing to scoff at in this economy. And remember that “Not Forgotten” opens today in Austin, Texas at Landmark’s Dobie Theatre. Wish us luck, amigos!

Daily Texan review of “Not Forgotten”

With “Not Forgotten” set to open in Austin, Texas on Friday, we were all very excited to see the first local review of the movie appear the other day in The University of Texas’ Daily Texan. We were even more excited to see that they loved the movie…so, yay!

I won’t reprint the entire review here, but the highlights are pretty cool:

“NOT FORGOTTEN is not a typical crime thriller. Plunging into the mysteries of the occult on the Texas-Mexico border, it pulls the audience into a world of seedy streets, whorehouses and death-worshipping rituals. [Simon] Baker carries the film with his portrayal of a man leading a troubled double life. With the kind of story that keeps you constantly guessing, NOT FORGOTTEN is a truly unconventional revenge tale and the movie is worth watching for the ending and lead-up alone.”

Awesome! To read Priscilla Totiyapungprasert’s review in its entirety, click here. And in the meantime, enjoy some of my favorite behind-the-scenes pics of the “seedy streets and whorehouses” of “Not Forgotten”.

“Not Forgotten” to open at Chinese Theatre in Hollywood!

Just found out that my movie, “Not Forgotten”, will be opening theatrically in Los Angeles on May 15th at the Mann’s Chinese in Hollywood. Wow, from Slamdance to the Chinese…who knew?

No word yet on when the premiere will be, but I do know that the movie will open next week (May 1st) in Austin, Texas at Landmark’s legendary Dobie Theatre near the University of Texas. This is the same theatre were a young Richard Linklater launched his career with the indie sensation “Slacker”, so, I’m hoping some of the good vibes in the joint rub off on our movie too.

After opening in Austin, “Not Forgotten” will slowly roll out in a number of cities across the Southwest before landing in Los Angeles on the 15th. Aside from screening at the Chinese, the movie will also be playing in the Valley at the Mann’s Plant 16 in Van Nuys.

For updated information on screenings near you or to read our rocking-good reviews from the Hollywood Reporter and Variety, check out our homepage at: NotForgottenmovie.com. And in the meantime, pictured below, is the final theatrical poster for “Not Forgotten”. Enjoy!

“Not Forgotten” Teaser Poster

While he is probably best known for his work on the Golden Globe-nominated CBS series, “The Guardian” and his more recent turn in “The Devil Wears Prada”, our lead actor, Simon Baker also has a rabid, über-geeky “fanboy” following based on his work in “Red Planet”, “The Ring II” and “George A. Romero’s Land of the Dead”.

So, because of that, our distributor recently released a pretty rocking international teaser poster for our movie to the nerd-tastically awesome magazine, Fangoria. When Ryan and I were kids we used to live for Fangoria magazine…it was totally geeky, totally gory and totally awesome! So, needless to say, I was kind of stoked that the first leak of the poster was to them…

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And, hey, if our international teaser poster is good enough for the horror and sci-fi fans of the world, than I figure it’s probably good enough for you guys too. So, here it is…enjoy!

The Hollywood Reporter!

OK, totally knock on wood…but eight crazy years after my co-writer Dror and I began writing our screenplay “Not Forgotten”, we are finally — at long, long last — in the home stretch.

We have the financing in place, we recently snared a really cool lead actor: “The Devil Wears Prada’s” baddie Simon Baker, and production is set to begin just after New Years in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Yeah!

Featured above is a screenshot of an article that appears in today’s Hollywood Reporter announcing the casting of Mr. Baker as our lead.

The Reporter got a few of the major plot details wrong — Simon’s daughter is kidnapped in the movie, NOT dead — but overall, it’s a pretty cool write-up. And at the end of the day, who cares what they write as long as this movie gets made?!

After eight years and far too many rewrites to count, you’d think I’d be dancing around a giant sombrero on the floor right about now — the movie is set partially in Mexico, I’m not just randomly hating on dancing Mexicans — but honestly, I’m still kind of in shock that this is finally happening.

Hmm…guess I’ll have to save the drunken Mexican hat dancing for Santa Fe.

You can read the entire Reporter write-up at: “www.hollywoodreporter.com”
Or check out the shorter Reuter’s blurb at: “www.reuters.com”