Dec 20, 2008
Book of Caleb now on netflix!
http://www.netflix.com/Movie/The_Book_of_Caleb/70111976?lnkctr=srchrd-sr&strkid=287838504_0_0
bam!
Dec 4, 2008
Balls....Watch the movie for free online!
It's tottally free, but for some reason the audio is replaced with our DVD commentary track
Oct 10, 2008
New York Times Square screening!!!
Oct 1, 2008
Discounted DVD's and Posters
HERE
So if you were thinking about maybe seeing the movie, now would be a good time because they are cheap.
Best,
Matt
Sep 23, 2008
Free screening of "The Book of Caleb" in Boston next friday!
Come out and see the film here:
Friday, October 3, 2008
Tower Auditorium
Massachusetts College of Art and Design
621 Huntington Avenue, Boston
Directions Link: http://massart. edu/x474. xml
7pm to 9:30pm
It's a free event in a 450 seat theater, and me and Montag will be there for a Q and A afterwards as part of diydays. com
Here's the trailer:
http://alupiani. blip. tv/file/1017528/
If you want more info feel free to write me back.
Hope you can make it out!
Best,
MM
Aug 31, 2008
Ourstage update
Ourstage has decided to extend the promotion till the end of Sept.
See post below for details on how you can help me get out of the basement!
Aug 1, 2008
Ourstage Promotion
It's pretty awesome, but basically if you use this address and register for OURSTAGE.com
http://www.ourstage.com/banner/charity_bookmark/bookofcaleb
or click here:
HERE
Sponsership runs Aug 1 - Aug 31 at midnight
see how it's going with the counter on
http://www.myspace.com/thebookofcaleb
COUNTER
Book of Caleb will make 4 dollars to help pay the marketing and travel costs of our theatrical tour.
It's a music site, and if you sign up you get 30 free mp3 downloads, so it seems like a win-win for everyone.
So take a second and register through the link.
Thanks,
Matt
Jul 29, 2008
Sitting in LAX
http://showcase.fromheretoawesome.com/2008/07/the-book-of-caleb/
It was cool, although I must admit I expected a bit more glamour out of the event. We like met in some abadoned Factory. At first I thought we were in the wrong place and walked into an arms deal.
LA was pretty great. The sun is there everyday. We gave out some movies to the crew because I couldn't afford all the shipping:
Swank was pretty angry about it taking so long to get his copy. Moments later Grant had to lay him out in the parking garage to calm him down.
It was composer johnny Boyd's birthday. It was just a coincidence we were able to give him anything at all. He was happy about the dvd's and even deepthroated a sausage in front of his boss.
I'll post some more pics later.
Here are two places you can see the movie:
for digital download or a dvd:
http://indieflix.com/FilmDetail.aspx?tid=17066
For your video I-Pod:
http://www.caachi.com/Members/FHTA/the_book_of_caleb/view
Jul 10, 2008
DVD's Now in Stock
Jun 30, 2008
DVD's available July 9th
opening menu alone gets you pumped up.
Here is what you can look forward to seeing on it.
1. Widescreen format of the film:
-Which is cool if you have a rectangle TV, but whatever.
2. Behind-the-Scenes Featurette.
-See how some of your favorite scenes came about. It’s not how you expect.
3. Commentary track with director
Matthew Von Manahan, plus actors Michael Hampton (Montag) and Jeff Berg
(Scar).
-We basically just laugh at Jeff for an hour and a half.
4. Bonus extras include short films with characters from "The
Book of Caleb", still gallery, and original trailer.
-Yeah, some of these are my student films from FSU. It’s neat to watch the
story evolve. The earliest one was shot in November of 2001.
Jun 3, 2008
Thank you to everyone that has been voting for the "The Book of Caleb"
film in the "From Here to Awesome" film festival.
Maybe a day after I sent that "Last Chance to vote" newsletter I was
informed the voting deadline was extended.
The final deadline for voting for the film is now this FRIDAY, JUNE 6.
I was hesitant to write another one of these, but I figured there were a
few of you that maybe wanted to vote and got distracted or something and
then thought the contest was over.
Again, sorry to hassel you with this, but I hate to lose and honestly, my
only other alternative was spending my next two days off creating fake
e-mail address and voting for the film myself.
I'm a grown man and the idea of me sitting in a bathrobe doing that while
the rest of the world was at work was just too ridiculous. So please,
vote and spare me a little less humiliation.
Every vote counts so please take and time to at least do one of the
following, and if you have already done one, now would probably be the
time to do the other.
VOTE
You'll want to got to two sites:
Site 1:
http://www.fromheretoawesome.com/bookofcaleb
You will need to register before you can vote. Have a pen handy. The site
doesn't
let you pick your own password.
Vote by clicking “this film seems awesome” and following instructions
Site #2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0upLEBV3as
You have to create a youtube account.
then:
1. rate it five stars: click the red ones
2. add a text comment
3. favorite: click the heart--most important.
4. subscribe to the channel, by clicking subscribe button in top right
corner.
Thanks
---
"DVD IS DONE"
Thanks to Justin at www.strikeanywherefilms.com
Yes, the long anticipated DVD is finally locked.
Keep in mind this is just the Master, or original. All the copies for
everyone to hold, well that's another story, but soon.
If you are interested in getting one of the DVD's at a lower price you can
pre-order here:
http://www.bookofcaleb.com/index.php?left=store&right=store&nav=on&title=on
---
"THE BOOK OF CALEB ON YOUTUBE"
If you want to see more videos about the making of the film you can always
check out our youtube channel at:
http://www.youtube.com/user/montag98pg
if you subscribe to the channel all the updates will come to you.
Grant made a fun one recently about the unique collaboration between the
cast and myself.
----
"THE BOOK OF CALEB NOW ON FACEBOOK"
Yes, it's true.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Book-of-Caleb/13447867099
become a fan if you want...
---
"STORIES FROM THE WINTER FRONT"
Cast and Crew remember to keep sending your production stories in.
Today I wanted to take a great story from Producer Grant Fenster. Grant
who has always kind of the unspoken hero of the project, and obviously the
film never would have gotten made without his personality being involved.
What does a producer do exactly?
well to sum it up he eats all the shit and never gets thanked.
Not that everybody else didn't accomplish great things, which I continue
to want to share, but all the other jobs on the production are kind of
temporal. You come in and do your job, eat some shit for awhile, and then
move on to something else.
Grant's been eating shit since he dropped out of North Carolina School of
the Arts in 2004 to produce this thing.
Obviously, it would be impossible to thank him for all he's done in one
mass e-mail ( especially since neither one of us are pussies, and we both
tend to take emotion as a sign of weakness more then whatever it's intent)
but I figured it'd be a good chance to hear a story from his point of
view.
So here is one of my favorite Fenster stories from Pre-production of THE
BOOK OF CALEB
----
The great thing about 35mm is not only its look but all the additional
costs associated with it. Being extremely low-budget, we had counted on
shooting with a more cost effective 16mm stock run on a camera we were
going to borrow from our alma matter, Florida State University.
Our start date kept shifting around, and when we finally had our dates
set, the FSU students' shooting schedule conflicted with ours. FSU could
not secure us with a 16mm camera package but could let us use their 35mm
camera instead. This just messed with the already strapped budget, and we
didn't know how we would afford the 35mm film to put into the camera and
pay to get it processed. We were bankrupt.
After an immediate food binge, with an attendance of director of
photography, line producer, producer, and director, followed by a slight
nap, we all brainstormed what we could cut and what each department was
willing to sacrifice to make the movie. How dare we get forced to shoot on
35mm? The industry standard of the medium.
With a lot of sacrifice and Line Producer Taylor Feltner's knack of
stretching a dollar, we had a game plan and a working budget. All we had
to do now was get the camera from the panhandle of Florida up to
Philadelphia.
I knew there was one man perfect for the task, our 2nd AD Joe Chang.
Not only is he a close personal friend I can ask a favor of, he also owns
a truck. On his way from North Carolina to Florida, traffic was smooth,
the vast majority of it heading northbound and leaving Joe a straight shot
to Florida. We soon learned that a tropical storm named ‘Katrina’ was
headed for the Gulf.
Joe was going to have to haul ass the rest of the way there and back to
North Carolina if he was going to make it in time to meet up with the
second part of our relay team, our three lead actors. Luno, Hampton, and
Nic were sent from Philly to North Carolina to pick up the camera gear
from Joe. They had to go because the rest of us were busy doing
pre-production work, and in any case, they needed some time to bond if
they were going to play childhood friends.
The idea was great in theory, but the experience actually turned out to be
a 20-hour awkward silence between three complete strangers shoved into the
DP's small pick-up truck.
-----
Thinking about the stress from those few days still makes me want to
vomit. It still physically puts a vice on my stomach, but that was the
nature of this production.
We would continually get ourselves into these hopeless situations and then
more often then any other, Grant at the last possible second would figure
a way to get our heads back above the water.
Best,
MM
May 29, 2008
Siskel and Ebert gave "Die Hard" a negative review when it first came out.
Yeah... what about this Deputy Police Chief? played by BOC actor Paul Gleason?
I dunno, pretty much as long as I remember DIE HARD was one the of the best movies I've ever scene. I try and watch it every christmas.
Weren't these two supposed to be the best critics? which I guess brings me to my next point, what's so bad about making your own mind up about something?
I love how they completely switch their opinions after it turns out to be a smash hit... Listen to the fat one's last comment.
May 21, 2008
Last Chance to Vote for "The Book of Caleb"
OK, everyone... some of you I am meeting for the first time and some of
you lived
with me in a basement for 6 months.
Need to call in a favor.
I know what you're thinking "another favor?! you've been nothing but an
emotional/financial and social black hole as long as I've known you"
I don't want to argue over the small points. I'm sorry if I've offended
anyone when my
"initial prediction" for finishing the film ended up being off by about
half a decade.
I'm a filmmaker, not a mathematician.
I've gotten a fair share of hate mail about the process taking so long,
and it's funny because some of them make it seem like I've been
deliberately putting off finishing the film... Like, I sit around thinking
of ways to draw things out just so that I can live with my parents in a
room with no windows a little longer.
It's taken so long because, unfortunately we want to do it right.
If you haven't already, this is your LAST CHANCE to support the film in
the "From
Here to Awesome" film festival.
Which basically, among other things, would give the film a limited theatrical
release on three continents.
Oh, but "that doesn't count as a real release because it won a popularity
contest and
wasn't hand picked by some 50 year urban art critique...with long purple
hair and
filed canines"
Blow. popularity contest = audience = people actually see the film.
The release strategy Grant and I have put together really hinges upon this
as its fulcrum. We don't win and win big here and now, the train gets
derailed.
Help. This goes double for Cast and Crew. Our credit list is close to 300
people deep.
I know who hasn't voted yet. Sure, this voting thing is a pain, but wasn't
standing in snow 14 hours a day?
Don't run 25 miles of a marathon just to go chase some butterflies in last
ten feet.
VOTE
Here's how:
You'll want to got to two sites:
Site 1:
http://www.fromheretoawesome.com/bookofcaleb
You will need to register before you can vote. Have a pen handy. The site
doesn't
let you pick your own password.
Vote by clicking “this film seems awesome” and following instructions
Site #2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0upLEBV3as
You have to create a youtube account.
then:
1. rate it five stars: click the red ones
2. add a text comment
3. favorite: click the heart--most important.
4. subscribe to the channel, by clicking subscribe button in top right
corner.
You are not just supporting one film, you are supporting a worldwide
experiment that uses the
internet as a way to democratize the distribution of content we watch.
It's a contest for anyone who has ever left a movie theater wondering,
"why was that
so dumb?" or clicked off primetime network television after 30 seconds
because it “sucks so bad”.
It's the beginning of letting people decide for themselves what content
they would
like to view. It's the new age of entertainment, and it's going to be
personalized,
direct and very very addictive.
Please, ride the crest of the wave with us.
If you have any problems with the voting sites you can contact me
directly.
mmanahan@bookofcaleb.com
--------------
“SNEAK SCREENING AT LUTHER COLLEGE IN IOWA”
I wouldn’t call it a premiere, but we showed the finished film to a bunch
of college kids to see how it played to an audience…
It played well check out the highlights on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofLYrYu07CQ
Read what the student paper had to say about it:
http://chips.luther.edu/2008/05/08/alum-screens-film-receives-rave-reviews.html
----------------
"DVD UPDATE"
Justin Barber is working on the DVD, Grant and I have viewed the first
draft of it and all we can say is…
It’s hot. Like not in the “noble effort” kind of way we expected a small
little film like this to have.
It’s hot. like it’s better then any DVD I’ve seen in a long time. The
opening menu alone gets you pumped up.
Here is what you can look forward to seeing on it.
1. Widescreen format of the film:
-Which is cool if you have a rectangle TV, but whatever.
2. Behind-the-Scenes Featurette.
-See how some of your favorite scenes came about. It’s not how you expect.
3. Commentary track with director
Matthew Von Manahan, plus actors Michael Hampton (Montag) and Jeff Berg
(Scar).
-We basically just laugh at Jeff for an hour and a half.
4. Bonus extras include short films with characters from "The
Book of Caleb", still gallery, and original trailer.
-Yeah, some of these are my student films from FSU. It’s neat to watch the
story evolve. The earliest one was shot in November of 2001.
You can pre-order your copy here:
http://www.bookofcaleb.com/index.php?left=store&right=store&nav=on&title=on
What's great about pre-ordering your copy, is first of all they are about
5 dollars cheaper, but also the more dvd's we sell by pre-order the faster
we will be able to get them out because we use the money from the
pre-orders to make the actual discs.
----
"ANOTHER STORY FROM THE WINTER FRONT"
Remember Cast and Crew. Send in a production story. The more points of
view we have
the more interesting the story the making of BOC is.
Here is a good one from Set Decorator Inna Levin on her blog:
http://honeyspider16.livejournal.com/65740.html
She writes:
----
...I mean, I was doing this thing for three months. That’s a fucking long
time. That’s
the span of my average dating-type relationship. So as you can imagine [or
perhaps
you can’t], I grew pretty close to some of these people…
…And now, sadly, it is over. I must return to my daily toil. “Can I tell
you about
our specials this evening?” will be my warrior cry, instead of “Duct tape!
We need
more duct tape!” or some such...
...And I really can’t explain vividly enough what it’s like, working with
so many people on the same project. I mean, it was a lot of people. Just
our art department alone was what? Around ten people. Usually, I only
associated w/ the other art department ladies. But when I ran into anyone
from any of the other departments, it was like a treat. 'Cause you knew
that all these people were doing their little part and you were doing your
little part and at the end, when we added them all up, all those hundreds
of little parts, it would result in this one giant movie. That people
could actually go and see...
---
Yeah, so please vote and more people will see it.
Thanks,
MM
Apr 23, 2008
Came across this blog from our Script Supervisor Elissa Cohn at:
http://theladysrevenge.wordpress.com/
She writes:
--
""Way back in the fall of 2005 I left the comforts of my parents house in
warm, sunny south Florida to spend the winter in the cold of Bucks County,
Pennsylvania. I drove over twenty hours in order to work on my very first
feature film. I was to be the script supervisor on the ultra low budget
indie The Book Of Caleb. Written and directed by FSU alum Matt Manahan,
The Book of Caleb was a production unlike any I’ve seen or been a part of
since."
It was run incredibly professionally, crewed with immense talent, fueled
by passion. And done on a tiny budget that shouldn’t have allowed most of
the things we accomplished to occur.
Now, after a long wait and much anticipation, The Book of Caleb is
finished. I’m incredibly excited for Matt and everyone else who has spent
countless hours putting this thing together. And I just wanted to share my
excitement and spread the love.""
--
It kind of got me thinking. It's crazy we wrapped production over two
years ago, but I think the scars from the trauma still run deep in much of
the crew.
SO, what I'd like to do is start collecting stories from the Cast and
Crew, and then post them on the Blarf in the countdown leading up to the
DVD release of the film.
It's an open invitation to anyone that worked on to film to share a story
from the production. The crazier the better. You can e-mail me at
mmanahan@bookofcaleb.com
------
"AWESOME"
So we are making a real campaign to make the top ten in this "From Here to
Awesome" Film Festival. It's kinda difficult to explain what makes this
event so important, but please support the film.
Here's how:
You'll want to got to two sites:
site 1:
http://www.fromheretoawesome.com/bookofcaleb
you will need to register before you can vote. have a pen handy. The site
doesn't let you pick your own password.
Then go to youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0upLEBV3as
you have to create a youtube account.
then:
1. rate it five stars: click the red ones
2. add a comment
3. favorite: click the heart--most important.
4. subscribe to the channel.
I totally understand this is the pain in the ass. It's best if you can
vote in both places, but if you can only do one that is fine too.
every vote counts so thanks.
---------
"DVD UPDATE"
I've gotten alot of questions about when people can actually watch the
movie. Here's what I can say...soon.
Barber is working on the DVD, and the rough timeline we have worked out is
that they will be available for shipping sometime in mid May.
Here is what you can look forward to seeing on it.
1. Widescreen format of the film
2. Behind-the-Scenes Featurette.
3. Commentary track with director
Matthew Von Manahan, plus actors Michael Hampton (Montag) and Jeff Berg
(Scar).
4. Bonus extras include short films with characters from "The
Book of Caleb", still gallery, and original trailer.
You can pre-order your copy here:
http://www.bookofcaleb.com/index.php?left=store&right=store&nav=on&title=on
What's great about pre-ordering your copy, is first of all they are about
5 dollars cheaper, but also the more dvd's we sell by pre-order the faster
we will be able to get them out.
---
FINAL TRAILER NOW ONLINE
Josh Rosenfield and Justin Barber did some great work getting this trailer
updated and ready to rock. Be the first to see it here in top quality:
The Book of Caleb Theatrical Trailer from Joshua Rosenfield on Vimeo.
Later we will put it on some other sites including the main BOC one.
-----
Thanks,
MM
Apr 8, 2008
Book of Caleb DONE!
Well, it's been a crazy crazy ride so far, but I can say with confidence
that after 7 years "THE BOOK OF CALEB" is finally done. I was 19 when I
started writing it and now that I'm 27 I really can't believe it that the
story is finally told, and why did it have to take so long? Jesus, that is
almost a quarter of my entire life.
Thanks to the host families, cast, crew, extras, investors and everyone
else (Shooters Post and Transfer) that made this film possible. At the end
of the day it's really a strange feeling to watch something on the screen
that came out of your head, and I feel that together we all accomplished
something significant, and when you watch the film I'm pretty sure you
will say you've never seen anything quite like it before.
DVD"S AND SCREENINGS:
We all worked very hard on the project and now comes the time for people
to see it. DVD's will be coming soon, hopefully by the end of the month.
As far as public screenings go. One great way to see the film in theaters
is through this new online film festival called "From Here To Awesome". I
don't want to get to wordy but basically, it's a new thing that really
takes advantage of the ways the internet can help an independent film find
it's audience. The top ten films have screenings in Paris, London, NYC,
and LA.
What's great about this fest is it's programmed by the audience.
Here's how you can help. first you want to watch this video about the
making of the film:
If it pleases you then rate it and leave a comment.
or just go to:
http://fromheretoawesome.com/bookofcaleb/
and click "THIS FILM SEEMS AWESOME"
----
ANYBODY STILL IN THE PHILADELPHIA AREA?
I worked on this great film that is premiering at the Philadelphia FIlm
Festival Sat. April 12th at 7pm at the international house called "Rocky
Jumped a Park Bench" which was directed by James Rolfe.
http://www.cinemassacre.com.
James is a great talent and a good friend, so if you are around come
check it out. His youtube channel is currently ranked 5th in the world
with 118 thousand subscribers.
check out the trailer:
check out: phillyfests.com for more info.
It's a great film for anyone that likes Rocky and Philadelphia.
Best,
MM
Apr 2, 2008
From Here to Awesome
So there is a new online film festival around the corner. If you can spare a few minutes check out this video below.
The judging the best I can tell right now is one big popularity contest. So please for the love of God, support this film in this contest.
If it makes the top ten the film will screen in Paris France. Yes, that means that french audiences are going to meet Tanner and Scar. I think watching the reactions to Tanner puking all over himself is going to take the humor of the film to a new level.
Mar 29, 2008
Mar 2, 2008
Marketing numbers in! Results astound !
all kinds of great stuff about demographics, and the inner reaches of human
psychology. From all of our test screening research we've been able to compile a
profile of the people most likely to enjoy "The Book of Caleb".
I've spent hours studying the results and will now do my best to share what we have
learned.
1. 70% College enrolled White Males: age 18-24 with a moderate to strong interest
in film, as well as academics, social organizations, and pussy.
2. 20% Suburban White Males raised without a positive male role model: age 12-14
3. 08% People named Caleb
4. 02% The parents and grandparents of people directly involved with the
making of the film.
To think I used to hate math. Please see this pie chart below:
Well anyhow if any of that info applies to you I'm gonna say check out the store. There is a pretty good chance you will enjoy this film.
Feb 18, 2008
don't worry it's almost over...
Feb 7, 2008
news...
the calender. So here is some stuff to read to help ease the SAD.
We are very pleased to have the film featured in the "In Focus" section of the
winter issue of FILMMAKER MAGAZINE, which is currently on newstands now.
1. The long awaited trailer is finally available on the website as part of our new
"Video Page" as well a few clips from the film and this weird kind of "Spotlight on
Tanner". At dinner with your families tonight make sure you "give thanks" to Josh
Rosenfield and James Ciccarello.
You could also see the trailer on our myspace page with a link provided at
www.bookofcaleb.com
2. Premiere date... still up in the air but we are hoping to have our philadelphia
premiere party in April of this year, Sorry for the delay, we're not dead, but you
can only move things along so quickly on an hourly wage.
3. DVD's. The film will be available on DVD roughly around the same time as the
premiere. Anybody that worked on the film is entitled to a free copy of that dvd.
Just make sure to e-mail me at mmanahan@bookofcaleb.com with "Caleb DVD" in the
subject.
4. Poster: 2nd AC/Poster designer/DVD authorizer Justin Barber has put together a
great poster which I want to start getting out to cast and crew as soon as we get
the money together to cover the printing costs. They are going to be pretty cool,
I'm usually pretty pesimistic about things too, but everyone seems to agree Justin
made a fine f*cking poster. Cast and crew, if you e-mail me for "Caleb DVD" and you
would like a poster just add "and POSTER"
5. Audience participation: Your personal homework assignment... Well we have two of
them.
SMALL THING YOU CAN DO TO HELP #ONE: update your info with us. On the main page of
our website, please do us a favor and add your zip code. Small thing, I don't wanna
bore you with the details of why we want your zip code, but it would make my life a
lot easier to organize things.
SMALL THING YOU CAN DO TO HELP #TWO: It'd be great if you could refer someone to the
newsletter that you think would be interested in learning more about this film. Just
drop their e-mail in on our mainpage and they will get the updates on screenings and
things. If they decide they don't want it there later, we will just take it off.
----------
FOR PRESS-- please see the top two links of our video page to view our text and
video EPKS. Thanks to Nora and shortendmagazine.
Jan 21, 2008
You Actually Have a Trailer?
“You finally got off your dead asses and pulled a trailer together. Wow, what an amazing surprise. Good for you. This is a website for a movie, so why would anyone actually expect to see video upon visiting? I for one would rather look at still photos and read boring bios.”
Yeah. Yeah. That seems to be the consensus as of late, but we got some good stuff in the works. The movie got stalled pretty hard due to a penis measuring contest, but we got it all worked out and full steam ahead.
Matt and I have some talented people helping us out right now and you can thank them for the trailer and the other gems you will be seeing soon on the site and MySpace. Hats off to Joshua Rosenfield for the hardcore job on the trailer. Be sure to check out the "Spotlight on Tanner" by James Ciccarello; learn more about the legend behind the myth. Also, Justin Barber has some kick ass work coming your way and thanks to Stewart Hopewell for cleaning up the site. Matt and I are Neanderthals when it comes to anything technical related so utmost thanks to the talented and tech savvy individuals willing to help us out; much appreciated gentlemen.
Keep checking out the site and MySpace. We have some great stuff coming down the pipeline and are getting ever closer to finishing the film. “Bout time, you lazy assholes”. Yeah, well... back to blue collar work to pay off the debt from the sound design.
--grant