BLOG: Eating it

Joshua Ligairi » 12.23.08 »


I'm not really sure when this happened, but I'm just finding out about it now, so this is when I'm posting about it. Apparently, the film that I worked on two years ago (or was it three?) that premiered at Slamdance, and played at AFI and US Comedy Arts as well (yet was never released either theatrically or on DVD), has had a title change from American Fork to Humble Pie. Not huge news, but at least it is something. See, this movie has been in limbo for a while now. Something about a conflict between the two production companies that made it. Whatever is holding the film up from getting to you, I have to say that it is a real shame.

I'm a big fan of this movie. It has a great look and a unique vision. So unique, in fact, that it is hard to compare the film to anything else. The first thing that comes to mind is Napoleon Dynamite, but that's too easy. The films have the same producer (Jeremy Coon), a similar setting (although small town Idaho is swapped out for small town Utah), stars an offbeat lead character who is a not-so-endearing social outcast, who wears large thick glasses and whose wardrobe skews slightly poor and period. All that plus the fact that writer/star Hubbel Palmer was good friends with Nappy D director Jared Hess when they attended film school together (and collaborated on at least one short film that I know about). Still, the Napoleon comparison isn't quite right.

An excerpt from the review of the film (after it screened at AFI) by Scott Weinberg at Cinematical sums up a lot of my feelings:

"American Fork is not likely to copy the box office success (or eventual cult status) of Napoleon Dynamite, but in many ways it's actually a better film. Sure, it doesn't have the catch phrases or the funny hair of Napoleon, but American Fork does seem to have more affection for its characters than the other film does. And American Fork could take place in reality; I never once felt the same thing about the amusing but excessively broad Napoleon Dynamite. Best of all, the movie closes with a strangely satisfying ending that never comes across as sappy or unrealistic. As far as the title goes, I noticed two types of 'fork' within the movie: The eating utensil and the 'fork in the road' variety. Let's just say the title fits the flick ... even if both are a little weird."

Even though this guy clearly doesn't know his Utah geography, I think he is dead right about the specificity of tone. I learned that on-set when time and again I went for the funny prop and was shot down, guided to the more realistic prop. Director Chris Bowman was crafting a very specific world that even being there on set every day was hard to pinpoint.

The best comparison that I can come up with is some kind of combination between a Wes Anderson film and a David Gordon Green film. If you took Bottle Rocket or Rushmore and mixed it with All the Real Girls or George Washington, you'd be close to American For...er, Humble Pie.

The short synopsis from the 2006 Slamdance program:

"In a supermarket in the armpit of the Mountain West, an enormous grocery clerk scribbles poetry. Tracy Orbison (Hubbel Palmer) is a dreamer. His outsized sense of wonder fuels a series of tragicomic adventures. First Tracy enrolls in an acting class, falling under the spell of the arrogant instructor, a Z-list actor named Truman Hope (William Baldwin). Next he befriends a young bagboy, Kendis Cooley (Vincent Caso), and begins a new project: mentoring Kendis and his dead-end friends. He urges the teens to give up their surly ways and get high on life; the gang's mean-eyed ringleader, Shawn (Nick Lashaway), has entirely different plans. At home, Tracy fends off Agnes, his God-fearing, self-loathing mother (Academy Award nominee Kathleen Quinlan), while his sister Peggy (24's Mary Lynn Rajskub), a perennial lonely heart, at long last finds somebody to love. Through it all, Tracy struggles to pass his driver’s exam, lose "about ten pounds," and win fame beyond his working-class job."

For my money this film is worth your while just to discover director Chris Bowman and writer/star Hubbel Palmer--two guys that we can all expect interesting things from in the future. Personally, I had a great time working with Academy Award winner Kathleen Quinlan, who I had a childhood crush on from her role in the Twilight Zone movie. I also enjoyed getting to know Mary Lynn Rajskub a little (who had really caught my eye in Mysterious Skin) and Nick Lashaway (who I hope to be casting soon, myself). This is also the best performance I have ever seen from Billy Baldwin, save maybe only The Squid and the Whale. Basically, what this boils down to is me recommending that you keep an eye out for Humble Pie. But you are going to have to visit the official website yourself, because I'm just too busy to keep up with this stuff, and I've had my heart broken one too many times--much like Tracy Orbison.

Moderator's Update » 12.20.09 » Humble Pie is available on DVD at Amazon and other fine retailers. Also, Icarus A&E no longer endorses any criticism written by Scott Weinberg. He's not very observant.

BLOG: Pirate's booty call

Joshua Ligairi » 11.16.08 »

The quirky indie comedy Pirates of the Great Salt Lake, a flick I worked on several years ago, will finally make it's way to the public...maybe. See, the film has been scheduled for release several times. In fact, the original tagline on the poster was "Sailing Slowly to a Theater Near You." The producers flirted with several distributors over the past (let's call it four) years. The film played at loads of film festivals, winning best picture and audience awards almost everywhere it played and in doing so has built up a cult following with a lot of anticipation. For instance, every time I talk to anyone who knows I worked on it, they inevitably ask, "When is that Pirate movie coming out?" To which I responded, "Uh, pretty soon." This turned out to be a lie that I told over and over again for (what did we say? four?) years. Then, in early 2008, the film was purchased by The Weinstein Company (the guys that started Miramax) and it seemed as though the wait was over.

When the movie was purchased by ol' Bob and Harvey, I think the producers were hoping for a big summer release, but that didn't happen. Then, they told the director he could do a limited release in Utah, which they later backed out of. Finally, a DVD release was scheduled for September '08 in conjunction with the international "Talk Like a Pirate Day" which is an actual celebration throughout the world when pirate enthusiasts (you guessed it) talk like pirates. Anyway, I was amped for the DVD release. Not just because people kept asking me about it, but because I worked really hard on the grueling production, scouting locations, shooting behind-the-scenes, as the Property Master and Locations Manager, and even directing some of the 2nd unit shots for the film. When you work that hard on something, it is nice to see the fruits of your labor--especially when said fruits would be good Christmas gifts.

Talk Like a Pirate Day was fast approaching when I got this email to the POTGSL mailing list members:

Many moons ago Pirates of the Great Salt Lake signed a blood oath with The Weinstein Company. The DVD was scheduled to set sail this week, but as is often the case with projects as piratey as ours, the date was pushed.

The exact date of release fer Pirates of the Great Salt Lake be December 9, 2008. T'will be an exclusive rental at Blockbuster Video, and should be available fer sale at other major retail outlets. We’ve already seen a page dedicated to pre-order on Amazon.com.

It’s been a long road to be sure, and ye’ve been very patient as we’ve struggled to get our movie into yer hands. But we swear it’s finally going to happen and we can’t thank ye enough! We owe this success to every one of ye our fans! Soon, the whole world will know of this movie, but ye will always be the first. We promise to pass more news along to ye as soon as it develops. Pirate’s word!

And so, at long last, these Pirates of a landlocked sea will sail for distant shores and my buddy Eric (that's ER Nelson to you) joins the ranks of the Weinstein's tight knit group of directors that includes Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, Rob Zombie, and Kevin Smith and has included Gus Van Sant, Woody Allen, Anthony Minghella, Wes Caven, Michael Moore, and Guillermo del Toro. The films stars two friends, Trenton James (in a breakout performance) and Kirby Heyborne (in his best performance to date) and has some great performances in smaller roles by other friends like the incomperable Matt Mattson and the certifiable Tomek DeBowski. I got a chance to work on the film with a lot of my good friends like clothing designer Gigi Ashley Munns, Production Designer Anne Black and her awesome crew, my homies Brandon Christianson, Ty Arnold, and Brandon Smith on camera and a bunch of other cool people like my home-girl Amber Bollinger and my most frequent collaborator William Rowan Jr to name just a few. It was a great time and this release has been a long time coming. Let's just hope the flick is any good. Eric...

Moderator's update » 12.12.08 » Pirates of the Great Salt Lake was indeed released on DVD and is available on Amazon.

BLOG: A rough cut

Joshua Ligairi » 09.21.08 »

Production wrapped just over a week ago when Daniel Thompson, one of the subjects of the film, went to jail. We had roughly a week to complete the rough cut in time for submissions to the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, the deadline of which is today. Needless to say it has been a long week, but well worth the effort.

The end of filming was a bit anti-climactic for me. I couldn't really fathom that it was over. We've been in production--actually shooting the film--for almost two years. I've worked on several other films during that time that have come and gone. Cleanflix was always there. Of course, it is still there. First we have to finish cutting the film. Still holding out for a few interviews. Waiting on score and animations. A lot of tightening and finessing still to do. Then will come the film festival circuit. That could last a year. Who knows? God (and indie film marketplace) willing, we will sell the thing. So I may be living with this for a long time. But that wasn't the only thing bothering me.

You see, I'd always imagined that the moment I first submitted a feature film to Sundance would be a sort of life-defining moment for me. I'm not sure what I was expecting. Maybe some sort of instantaneous gratification where I'd hand the film over to the submissions board personally and they'd say, "We've heard about your film and can't wait to see it. Don't tell anyone we said this, but you're in!" Also I kind of imagined this playing out with me encircled by a sparkling cloud of fairy dust. Well, that didn't really happen. Instead, we rushed through a cut, editing almost 24 hours a day between the two of us, and had to turn in a project that is less than the best work we can do.

Ultimately, I'm not super confident that this cut will get us into Sundance. The film is still missing some crucial elements. They will come in time, but the rough cut is just that, very rough. Still, I’m proud of the strides we have made since wrapping only one week ago. Struggling for this deadline was a shot in the arm that has pushed the project to the next level and I am confident that we will do well at any other major festival we play at. It will just be a shame if we don’t play at Sundance because of Robert Redford’s involvement in the issue, the importance of this issue to the film industry, and the fact that there is so much local interest here in Utah.

All of the Producer's Reps we've spoken with say we're a shoe-in, but I've heard there is no such thing at Sundance. The process is confusing to even those who have had films play at the festival. Here's a small for instance: I live a ten minute drive away from Redford's Sundance Resort and 40 minutes from Park City--contemporary home of the festival. Can I swing by and drop our submission off there? No, it as to go to the LA office. Some say they only watch the first five minutes of the film. Some say they don't watch the submissions at all and only take films that are heavily represented. Then, there's the fact that we submitted a rough cut--and when I say rough, I mean rough. As Andrew (my co-director) says, "rough cuts don't get in to film festivals."

So, I'm hoping for the best and expecting the worst. I'm not keeping my fingers crossed, but okay, I really am keeping them crossed. There are other wonderful festivals out there and some that are viable independent film markets. I'm confident that the film will find an audience and a home no matter where it play. Still, I gained my love for film here in Utah--where film takes place. I've spent my years here going to the festival, working at the filmmakers lab, and for a time, living a stone's throw away from Bob Redford. As I honed my filmmaking skills, I always imagined being a part of this in some larger way. For all it's faults, Utah is my home. Sundance is a part of it and so is this film.

BLOG: Some healthy criticism

Joshua Ligairi » 08.01.08 »


It appears that my homey, Christian Vuissa, has a hit movie on his hands--at least within the LDS niche market. He has been getting great reviews, great word of mouth, and the distributor is spending large on advertising during...dum, dum, dum...The 2008 Olympic Games.

Yes, everything is peachy. Christian and I started pre-pro on his next film after forging a seemingly trusting relationship. He liked my work as a Production Designer and Associate Producer. I couldn't argue that he'd made another wonderfully rich film. Then, he dropped a bomb.

Apparently, he felt that the wardrobe choices I made (along with my famous clothing designer friend Gigi Ashley Munns) were a little over-the-top. Shocked and chagrined, I argued that the wardrobe was stunning, and if anything, underdone as a result of low budget. Christian responded that he felt it was distracting, and so ultimately bad. I'd take that as a valid criticism if the guy didn't like Tom Tykwer.

But, if you are going to survive in the film business then you have to develop some thick skin, so I conceded, "Okay, maybe some totally lame Molly Mormon sticklers will point out the wardrobe as a distraction, but I guarantee the average viewer won't even notice it." I even went so far as to suggest that if they were noticing the wardrobe he wasn't doing his job as a storyteller.

Then, Christian clued me in to a review by a guy named Joe Schmow (or something like that) with the byline, The Independent Critic. This guy loved Christian's movie. Like, LOVED it--and he isn't even LDS! However, he had some issues with one aspect of the film:

"Filmed on location in Vuissa's native Austria, The Errand of Angels is mesmerizingly vibrant largely owing to the stellar cinematography of Brian Wilcox (Touched by an Angel) and Joshua Ligairi's (Me and You and Everyone We Know) complementary production design, though I will confess that, on a couple of occasions, I found myself questioning Ligairi's costuming choices as being a bit 'sexy' for the mission field or minimally thinking 'Would they really be allowed to wear that?'"

So, it isn't that bad, but when you take into consideration that the rest of the review is nothing but a glowing love-fest, you have to wonder what factor would have made Joe Schmow give the flick an A- rather than a solid A. Let's just say Christian had a big "I told you so" for me.

Catch The Errand of Angels in theaters starting August 21st and on DVD around Thanksgiving. See Gigi's clothes (that are much cooler than anything in the movie) at her website.

Moderator's update » 11.24.08 » The Errand of Angels is now available on DVD at Deseret Book. You can hear an interview with filmmaker, Christian Vuissa, in Episode 1 of our podcast, 801 Underground.

BLOG: Pick it up

Joshua Ligairi » 07.23.08 »

I just saw one of the most nostalgic flicks I've ever seen. My friend, Brandon Smith, has put together an amazing retrospective on the cultural phenomenon that was pre-millennial Utah ska, The Up Beat.

Before the 2nd wave of ska flooded America, it washed up on Utah's landlocked shores. Provo was a national mecca for songs with an up beat. Seriously! Bands like No Doubt and The Mighty Mighty Bosstones thrived here in P-Town. Non-ska acts like Jimmy Eat World could be found opening for local ska bands like Stretch Armstrong. You don't believe me, do you?

Well, Brandon's documentary proves it to you nay-sayers while taking those of us cool (old) enough to have been there on a trip down memory lane. But he doesn't stop there. Brandon dissects Utah's current fledgling ska scene and gets to the heart of the obvious question: What happened?

Those of you unfortunate souls who missed the SLUG Magazine premiere of The Up Beat at the Tower Theater tonight can still catch the Utah County premiere on August 30th which will feature a live musical performance by living legends 2 1/2 White Guys. Check out Brandon's website or MySpace for future screenings. You can also view the trailer here and see why this film is a shoe-in for festivals like Slamdance and SXSW if there is any justice in the world. Check this movie out and support your local scene (haven't heard that for a while have you?)!

Moderator's update » 10.31.08 » The Up Beat is now available on DVD. Get it directly from the filmmaker at his website. You can also hear an interview with the filmmaker on Episode 1 of our podcast, 801 Underground.

VIDEO: Cool and not so cool

Joshua Ligairi» 06.18.08 »

I'm certainly not suggesting that anybody should vote for Barack Obama just because he is cool, but among many other much more important improvements to our country's image, it is fun to imagine what it would be like to have a cool President. David Letterman puts it in perspective as usual.


The Late Show's Cool/Not Cool Vol 1

PRESS: Cleanflix article in The Daily Herald

An article about Cleanflix by Jeremy Duda of The Daily Herald. Direct link to the original article at the Herald Extra website here.

Jeremy Duda » 04.28.08 »


COURT CASE EXTENDS DOCUMENTARY FILM PROJECT

When Josh Ligairi and Andrew James started filming their documentary about Utah's edited movie industry in the fall of 2006, one of the first people they met was Daniel Dean Thompson. The owner of the now-defunct Flix Club store in Orem eventually became the central figure in their film, and Ligairi and James got to know him well.

But as the filmmakers were finishing production several months ago, Thompson and his business partner, Isaac R. Lifferth, were arrested by Orem police and were charged with paying two 14-year-old girls for oral sex. According to an affidavit filed in 4th District Court, Thompson told the girls that they used Flix Club as a front for producing and distributing pornographic films, and Orem police reported finding many of the films when they searched Thompson's store.

The high-profile arrest added one more layer of complexity to a film already rife with nuance, and forced them to change the ending of their documentary. Where the original ending was to focus on edited movie rental businesses being forced to close their doors once again under the threat of legal action from Hollywood movie producers, Ligairi and James now plan to end with the conclusion of Thompson's and Lifferth's cases.

Ligairi and James said they have become close with Thompson since they began the documentary. On their first day of work on the film, they met him at his store, which had been closed due to a lawsuit by the Directors Guild of America. They were at his store when it was forced to close again after reopening. They even went to his house and met his family.

"We've been with Daniel nearly every day for two years," Ligairi said.

But as much as they liked him, they realized the story would not be complete without chronicling Thompson's legal troubles.

"We realized it would be irresponsible to not cover the story," Ligairi said. "At this point, I think it will kind of end with what happens to Daniel."

Thompson is charged with two counts of unlawful sexual activity with a minor and one count of patronizing a prostitute. Lifferth, whose attorney said he is in discussions with prosecutors over a potential plea deal, is charged with four counts of unlawful sexual activity with a minor and two counts of patronizing a prostitute.

According to an affidavit filed in 4th District Court, the two 14-year-olds asked a friend if she knew anyone who would be willing to pay for sex, and she put the girls in contact with Lifferth. The girls told police that he paid them $20 apiece for oral sex, and on another occasion he brought them to Flix Club to perform oral sex on Thompson for another $20.

The girls and Lifferth told police that Thompson was unaware that money was being exchanged for sexual favors, the affidavit said. Thompson also told police that he asked the girls if they were 18 years old, and they both said yes.

James described Thompson as a conflicted person who may have made some bad decisions.

"Not only is this film about edited movies from beginning to end, but it's also about this guy, Daniel, who is possibly living this double life," James said. "I think even good people make terrible mistakes. I think this might be one of those situations."

Thompson also faces a lawsuit from CleanFlicks, the godfather of the edited movie rental business in Utah County, which accused him of illegally capitalizing on the company's name. After Thompson's arrest in January, CleanFlicks emphatically stated that it had no connection with him.

The filmmakers did not originally intend for Thompson to be the focus of their documentary, but over the course of filming he became its central figure. As Thompson's role in the film evolved, so did the general theme and focus of the documentary.

As filmmakers themselves, Ligairi and James were sensitive to the arguments of movie producers who felt that their work was being destroyed by sanitizing them of R-rated content. Though both are practicing members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints -- they describe themselves as "progressive latter-day saints" and "liberal Mormons" -- neither were fans of family-friendly edited movies.

But after they started conducting interviews with filmmakers, proprietors of edited movie businesses and LDS Church officials, they saw that there were two sides to the story, and decided to present the debate as completely as possible.

"I'm not sure our objectives were to be totally objective at the beginning, to be honest. But they are now. We see good arguments on both sides of the story. We want to be fair to everybody. So the film is an exploration of the phenomenon of edited movies," James said.

"There's a lot of misunderstanding on both sides," Ligairi said.

They have watched more edited movies than they can count, and feel that some maintain their integrity after editing, while others are drastically changed. After watching an edited version of "The Passion of the Christ," James couldn't even tell which parts of the movie had been removed. Even the slasher-torture flick "Hostel" was able to maintain its disturbing theme without its goriest scenes, Ligairi said.

On the other hand, James said, is "Kill Bill," a martial arts-themed movie which overemphasizes blood with massive red gushers spouting from severed limbs, and uses a great deal of profanity.

"Any film with a lot of foul language is going to be really choppy [after being edited]," James said.

The pair plan to submit their documentary to the Sundance Film Festival in September, and several other festivals after that. They even plan to create an edited version of the documentary so it can be shown at the 2009 LDS Film Festival.

"The idea is to do a, quote-unquote, CleanFlicks version of our own movie, as a commentary but also as an experiment. It's a little tongue-in-cheek, but I think it's also a really good idea," said James, who anticipates that the documentary will get an R rating.

"There are a lot of people we'd like to show the film to that probably wouldn't go watch an R-rated movie. It's serving us as well," Ligairi said.

Creating a family-friendly version of a documentary about the heated debate over the edited movie business is just one of several ironies Ligairi and James see in their work. Also ironic, they said, is the fact that some of Utah's edited movie stores, which were founded on a bedrock of morality, are now operating illegally.

"Now, with Daniel, there's kind of a final irony," Ligairi said.

James emphasized that they are not judging Thompson, and said they still care about him.

"We want Daniel to have the last say," he said.

In a sense, that's what Ligairi and James want for all the subjects of their documentary -- to state their cases in a debate that is often defined by intense vilification and knee-jerk reactions on both sides.

"We want everyone to have their say, to be able to defend themselves," Ligairi said.

Direct link to the article at The Daily Herald.

PRESS: Zombies vs Mormons

An article from The Daily Herald's Cody Clark about the Joshua Ligairi directed short film, Through the Valley. Direct link to the Daily Herald website here.

Cody Clark » 01.13.08 »

Who hasn't looked at all of these movies about proselytizing missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints -- "God's Army," "The Best Two Years," "The R.M.," "States of Grace," "Return with Honor," "The Errand of Angels" -- and thought, "You know what we really need? A missionary movie with zombies in it."

Mission accomplished. (Pun intended.) Mitch Davis, 27, a publicist at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colo., served his own LDS mission to New Mexico. The first place he served was the tiny desert town of Polacca, on the Hopi Indian Reservation.

"I loved my own mission and I think about it often," Davis said.

One day he ended up discussing missions with a friend and the two of them wondered how the actions and responsibilities of missionaries would change in the event of a natural disaster, an earthquake, or maybe a tsunami. The idea stayed in his brain until suddenly the words "natural disaster" became "zombie attack."

"I love horror movies," he said, "and I'd never seen a Mormon horror movie."

Davis turned the idea into a 7-page script for the LDS Film Festival's annual script-writing competition almost overnight -- he'd meant to enter the competition but forgot about its deadline until the week before scripts were due.

He submitted his script for "Through the Valley" (of the shadow of death?) with no expectation that it would be selected for production by the festival. Which just goes to show that you never know what's going to hit a nerve.

Davis said that, though listed by the festival as a "horror" film, "Through the Valley," directed by Joshua Ligairi, has its share of humor. And it's not an out-and-out zombie movie, either. "This won't be missionaries running around with shotguns blowing zombies' heads off," he said. "My missionaries will follow all of the mission rules and try to help the people around them."

Though he hasn't yet seen the film of his own script -- weather-permitting, he'll catch it at the festival -- Davis is thrilled to be a filmmaker. And he's going to stick with it. "I honestly don't know what this will bring," he said. "Regardless of what happens, I'll continue to write.

Direct link to the article at The Daily Herald.

Moderator's update » 01.25.09 » Through the Valley was released on DVD at the 2009 LDS Film Festival as part of the Best of the LDS Film Festival DVD series. Also available is a short film co-directed by Cleanflix co-director Andrew James. That short is called Wrestling with God. Joshua Ligairi was the production designer on the film which stars Ligairi's friend Adam Johnson (mentioned in the post above). Both films are on the best of 2008 DVD which can be purchased online directly from the festival here.