Three Blind Artists: How The Indie Ethos Can Change Commercial Filmmaking for the Better
How do you look at the film industry and discover new needs and niches? How do you create innovative fare that will find an audience? And how do you turn your first indie feature into an online phenomenon? In this interview, Chris Elston of Three Blind Artists shares his expertise, experience, and insights into these and other questions.3BA is dedicated to becoming the go-to company for family and commercial-friendly fare, but are doing it outside of the mainstream. Putting the indie ethos of tenacity, integrity, community, and vision to work, 3BA recently completed its first feature, Shelter. A character drama set in a bomb shelter on the eve of apocalypse, Shelter is already generating internet buzz with its intriguing trailer. With a sophomore effort already well under way, and almost a dozen equally buzz-worthy projects in the pipeline, things are looking bright for this family-run enterprise.
'Shelter' - Produced by Three Blind Artists
IPEX: You have years of experience in every aspect of the film industry, would you like to say a few words about your background and the various work you have done?
Chris Elston: I’ve always been a writer – from the time I learned to read. But, I started out as an actor, doing theater in college. My first real experience outside of acting was also in college. I wrote, produced and directed a play called The Art of Love. It was a romantic-comedy/fantasy. We performed it in a drama showcase and it ended up winning the top award. That’s when I really got hooked. After college, I moved to L.A. and I have since done everything from extra and production assistant work to camera operating and editing.
I’ve been hired to write several feature films now, which is an entirely different experience than writing on spec. Spec writing is a much freer experience because you’re your own boss – which means you get to tell the story you want to tell with few limitations.
Writing for a producer who has to worry about budget, stars, investors, etc. means that you, as the writer, will have to worry about them, too. However, writing for someone else has also been a great education for what I’m doing now with 3BA. Everything I have done - working as an extra, a production assistant, a writer, a camera operator, a field producer, a director, an editor – all of this has prepared me to be a complete filmmaker. I’m still learning; I will be until my time on earth is up. Every single job I’ve had in this industry has made me a better writer, a better producer, a better director, a better actor, a better editor, etc. Even sitting on a set and observing what other people do – right or wrong – is an education.
IPEX: Based on your experiences, what did you find was missing from the industry? What space is your company, Three Blind Artists, filling?
Chris Elston: There is a lot of waste in this industry. Wasted time. Wasted money. Wasted emotion. 3BA is about efficiency. We strive to economize. We surround ourselves with people we enjoy working with and who are really great at what they do. That relieves stress and removes some of the tension that seems to run rampant on most sets.
We’ve got a solid group of people that are innovative and find ways to save time without compromising the quality of the project, saving time saves money, leaving a bigger profit margin at the end. We like to see that – so do our investors – if we keep turning profits, we’ll keep getting to do what we want to do: make films and television shows that entertain us and hopefully a lot of other people as well.
IPEX: What is the most important thing a potential film investor should know about Three Blind Artists?
Chris Elston: We do our homework because there are over 5 billion potential moviegoers worldwide; 3BA’s goal is to focus on making commercial material rather than art-house fare, which is different from many of the other independent filmmakers. This is the same strategy that Miramax used successfully to become a major player and to rise to nearly the same level as the studios before the Weinsteins sold it to Disney and started The Weinstein Company.
3BA seeks to make films that are viewed by companies such as Buena Vista and Paramount Pictures as being worthy of a wide release. The majority of our projects will feature characters and story-lines that appeal to the largest segment of the film-going audience, which is the 15 to 49 year-old demographic. Most of 3BA’s film projects will target both male and female viewers. This will be accomplished by adding elements of film genres that appeal to both sexes as well as multiple ethnic groups.
IPEX: What is the process at 3BA, what are you looking for in potential projects and how do you go about lining them up?
Obviously this does not mean that R rated films are not successful. However, it does signal strong potential for significant success and financial gain with films rated PG-13, PG, and G. Although 3BA is not limiting itself, the majority of its projects are projected to be rated PG or PG-13. These ratings will place them in a potentially more successful audience bracket, thereby improving chances for profitability. This is a business, which makes us responsible to turn a profit on our projects. We’re responsible to our investors and we’re also responsible to ourselves because we want to keep making movies.
However, what would be the point of doing this if we weren’t choosing projects that speak to us in some way? We got into this because we love it--if it were just about making money we would have chosen a different track. 3BA looks for stories that strike us in some way. It’s different for every project. Some tug at our heartstrings. Others give us that felling of: “I haven’t seen this on screen yet.” It’s different every time.
Most of the projects we currently have in the pipeline are scripts that I’ve written, whether solo or with someone else. My dad and I have written several feature-length scripts together; I’ve co-authored a couple of sit-com pilots, etc. We also have a number of books by different authors that we want to adapt to film. We’re currently in the negotiation process with one author and have completed the adaptation of another’s book.
IPEX: The first completed feature from 3BA is one you directed: Shelter. The film is a look at the brink of apocalypse and what happens when 18 people end up vying for the 10 spaces in the town’s only bomb shelter. Shelter has a huge online presence, especially for an independent production. How have you made online networking tools work for your film promotion?
Chris Elston: 3BA feels that utilizing sites like MySpace (check out Shelter on MySpace), YouTube, IPEX View, Crackle, Funny Or Die (for comedy) is a total no-brainer. It’s free marketing. Any way to get the word out there. We’ve been blessed with a very positive reaction online. In fact, Shelter’s theatrical trailer and three out of the five clips we promoted online have won Editor’s Choice Awards on Crackle. One clip we used spent several months listed among the 25 highest rated clips on its Screen Bites channel, joining the ranks of films like Spider-Man, A Few Good Men, In the Pursuit of Happyness, Jerry Maguire, Taxi Driver, Snatch, Stand By Me, and Men In Black. That’s great company to be in and generates excellent buzz for not only Shelter, but also for 3BA as a brand name that means quality.
IPEX: Making an independent feature is an incredible and incredibly challenging undertaking. Would you like to talk about your experience making Shelter?
Chris Elston: I’d be lying if I didn’t start out by acknowledging that making Shelter was absolutely tough. My job as a producer and director is to surround myself with people I enjoy being around, people I can trust (they are gong to see me at both my best and my worst) and people who will do their jobs better than I could myself.
I accomplished that in most areas on Shelter. For example, I had a very talented cast. People like Jennifer Pennington, Alan Cassman, D.C. Douglas, Grant McKaskle, James Casey, Kelsey and Kendall Sanders, Sarah Genevieve Green…these are people full of talent and are a joy to be around. I can’t wait to work with them again. The same is true for a lot of the crew. My cinematographers were stellar. Casey Brooks (who is also a partner at 3BA along with my dad, Doug Elston) and Juan Santos are back for my sophomore effort, In A Parallel Universe (so are cast members Jennifer Pennington and Alan Cassman).
IPEX: What were the personal highlights of the shoot for you?
Chris Elston: Becoming like a family with the people on the set is a major highlight. Seeing it all come together is another one. Plus, we really like to stand out and that often means trying new things. We shot Shelter in high def but with 35mm film lenses. That was a whole new experience for all of us. Doing something for the first time is exciting. Sharing all of the emotions and experiences with people you enjoy being around is part of the bonding experience. That’s one of the top priorities for me - finding people I trust and who trust me and wanting to keep each other around on future projects.
IPEX: What words of advice do you have for a filmmaker who wants to get started in the industry?
Chris Elston: Are you passionate about anything outside of the entertainment industry? If so, go do that. Otherwise, the key is tenacity. This is a cut-throat industry with a huge turn-over rate. If you’re tenacious enough, eventually you’ll get your shot. At that point, it is about what you have to bring to the table. I was talking to a distributor recently who had just watched Shelter and he was blown away by the fact that we were able to make such a high quality film on such a low budget. He said he couldn’t wait to see what we were able to do with more money.
That’s something that 3BA and I can bring to the table. None of us had an uncle green-lighting projects at Dreamworks. Over the last ten years, we have been patient and tenacious. We had to gain the necessary experience and get Shelter finished before the right opportunity presented itself. We’ve worked the fields, and now we’re taking our seat at the table—and we’re ready to enjoy the meal.
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