Yellow Rose Films ... in the press.

East Valley Tribune Sunday, March 23, 2003
Heidi Huber Tribune
TEAM EFFORT: Actor Tony Provost and videographer Tom Proctor discuss ideas between takes of "Phoenix Underground," filmed primarily in East Valley nightclubs.

reel struggle: ARIZONA'S INDIE FILM MOVEMENT IS SLOW TO DEVELOP
By Jennifer Wood, Tribune
Each person who arrives is asked to fill out a name tag. Name first, then occupation. The tags don’t tell the whole story, though. Only questions, asked among stranger, do that. What are you working on? And, how is that going? I’m an actress, currently out of work. I’ve been asked to direct a movie, I’m not sure what it is about. We’ve written a screenplay together, just trying to get some financial backing. I’m an acting coach, been in the business for years. Here’s my headshot, portfolio, business card, check out my film’s Web site. As easily as this scene could have taken place in Los Angeles, it didn’t. It’s a Monday night in Scottsdale and about 250 members of the Phoenix Film Project have assembled at Farrelli’s Cinema Supper Club to meet fellow directors, producers, actors and crew members who are trying to break ground in a Valley industry that — despite growth — still struggles to make a name for itself. It’s true that the Valley, and the Arizona desert in particular, has provided the background to many a Hollywood blockbuster. But when a person like George Clooney shoots scenes at the Arizona-Mexico border for "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind," local talent, other than extras and a catering company, is rarely offered any work. "Local businesses like hotels and restaurants, and maybe even an occassional strip club, are going to make more money from the influx of work before local crew are," said Brandon Ladd Burkey, president of Crossroads Entertainment in Scottsdale. Along with Phoenix Film Festival director Chris LaMont, Burkey founded the Phoenix Film Project, a networking group, in October 2002. One of the group’s goals is to help improve the image of filmmakers in Arizona. Burkey and LaMont hope that by giving filmmakers an opportunity to pool their resources, better movies will be made. "Film is a collaboration," LaMont likes to say. To get the attention of big names in Los Angeles, a locally produced film has to hit it big on a national level. According to LaMont, it’s only a matter of time before that happens. "There’s an independent film movement here right now," he said. "Arizona is poised to become a great filmmaking presence." LaMont points to good weather, proximity to L.A., low permit costs, and scenery as reasons why the Valley can be ‘‘the next Austin, Texas" (a city highly regarded for its indie film scene). And the birth of digital cameras means local filmmakers no longer have to ship film to L.A., a costly extra step. "It is very possible that someone could do an independent film here and market it and go someplace with it," said Lewis Alquist, a professor with Arizona State University’s School of Art. Alquist founded the university’s film production program 10 years ago. "There was no filmmaking at all at this university and I just couldn’t believe that was the case," he said. "If the independent filmmakers are going to come from anywhere in this area, they’re going to come from the schools." ASU has yet to upgrade filmmaking to a major, which keeps it from competing with well-known programs in California and at the University of Texas. "I really do wish the university would allow it to be a bigger program," Alquist said. Many aspiring Valley filmmakers take classes at Scottsdale Community College. In the past four years, the school’s motion picture/ television program (MPTV) has grown to include more faculty and a new building. "This area is a growing area not just for entertainment companies but for lots of companies who now do their own training films," said John Ne ibling, dean of instruction at SCC. Although MPTV is a two-year program, Neibling said that "for better or worse, we get people hired right out of the middle of it. Typically, once they get proficient in some of these skills, it is difficult to keep them in school. We try to beg them to stay." The growth of the local filmmaking scene will attract more people to existing events, like the ASU Art Museum Short Film and Video Festival, and encourage the creation of new venues to showcase local films — a positive for East Valley filmgoers and the economy. But for many local filmmakers, talk of improvement is little consolation. "I’m really frustrated as a filmmaker living here," said Chandler resident Matt Ligman. Although his first movie, "Training Wheels," was screened at Centerpoint Theatre in Tempe last November — a big accomplishment for a local production — Ligman said he battled for two years to get the movie from script to film. "Training Wheels," set mostly in Tempe, explores the transition from adolescence to adulthood. "Nobody was giving us the time of day as far as funding. It is my belief that people should support endeavors like this. In order to be a city and offer some kind of cultural diversity, you have to support the arts," Ligman said. "I hit up everybody." Ligman’s complaint is common among local directors and producers who are responsible for a movie’s fundraising. Burkey, who is working to finance a movie that he describes as a "crossgenre Western," said potential sponsors are often hesitant to back something they can’t "touch or taste." "They don’t speak the language or see the value or understand the movie-making possibilities," Burkey said. "Everyone here locally is dealing with that pretty hard, the reality of that." So why not move to L.A.? For one, Burkey said, even big-name Hollywood directors run into problems securing adequate financial backing for their films. "That’s the same problem anywhere," said 25-year-old filmmaker Sam Benavidas of Mesa. "There’s never enough money to produce a movie. Period." Plus, because L.A. is overrun with people trying to break into the movie industry, it’s a huge risk for an unknown East Valley filmmaker to move there. "You are putting yourself up against the creme de la creme," Burkey said. Lastly, many of the people involved in local filmmaking love living in the Valley. They are optimistic. They don’t want to miss out. "It’s such an exciting time because there’s a scene developing and growing," Benavidas said. Benavidas’ movie about three desperate college filmmakers, "None Left Standing," was shown at two East Valley theaters in March 2002 and again in January. Since then, Benavidas has been granted $15,000 by a private investor to produce a short film. One of the stars on "None Left Standing," Gilbert resident Michael Heistand, was recently hired to act in "Spin," a film directed by Jaime Redford, son of Robert.

Such successes, often preceded by months of struggle, are typical to the local filmmaking process — a world of ups and downs Tempe residents Tom Proctor and Margie Rogers know well. When the pair moved to the Valley in 1995 to pursue their film careers, Rogers said, "the bottom fell out of the local film world." Local crewmembers had just entered a strike and as she put it, "if you had a 602 area code, you were blackballed by L.A. It was such a bad, bad rep for our entire state. You didn’t see any more big productions here. That’s when we started our own production company," she said. "It was time to get a camera and make our own."

Through their company, Dark Horse Productions, Proctor and Rogers are working on a film about two guys who pretend to be part of a camera crew to attract girls. Titled "Phoenix Underground," the movie is being filmed primarily in East Valley nightclubs, including Sanctuary and Sugar Daddy’s in Scottsdale. Crew members and actors are, for the most part, local. "I think ever since we took the reins, it didn’t matter what L.A. did anymore," Rogers said. "I would never say ‘Oh, we don’t need L.A.’ But we can be a really nice next door neighbor. I think Phoenix and Arizona in general, we’ve got really great people and talent here."

Contact Jennifer Wood by email, or phone (480) 898-6531

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