Club Universe was the first short mobile movie I wrote and directed. Years have passed since then, but I look back on this project with a smile. It marks the point in my life when I decided that I wanted the dialogue and scenes that I wrote to be produced and shown to viewers. Not just remain a script in a drawer or saved on a computer. It was the first time I was able to call the shots independently to get a shoot done.
It was a good time and experience for me. It was filmed in Reseda, California in a local night spot. We shot during the day before the place opened. The cast and crew were excellent across the board in either talent or positive attitude. In some cases a person had both. This was before the reality series America’s Wildest Bachelor Parties took off and put me in a better position to be involved with independent filmmaking.
During casting was when I first realized how hard it can be to select talent. There are very charismatic people that the camera loves. As luck would have it for my first short mobile movie Supermodel Joanna Krupa auditioned and was cast for Club Universe. She had looks and personality without bringing attitude on set, which is always a plus for a first time filmmaker. I hired a seasoned director of photography and sound mixer not only to get the best product for my budget, but to also learn from them by watching what they did. Everything I learned would only make a better filmmaker in the future.
Where I was living was too far to make the commute during shooting, so I booked a hotel in Woodlands Hills. A friend I grew up with nicknamed Hollywood Ruben, who later got parts in my feature films, wanted to see what was happening with the movie. He booked a room in the same hotel and we took in the night life with some really cool crew people that were from that area. We hit local joints for a “Slice of Americana” and I will admit a few strip clubs. But every day I was on set to take care of business.
Like with any shoot, there were problems that had to be fixed and rewrites that had to be done to massage scenes. Hollywood Ruben ended up playing the bouncer and an extra. Technology is making digital movie distribution so much easier for indie producers and studios that I decided to offer Club Universe as a digital download for mobile devices. It is my first work, but I am still proud of the results because it represents that all in moment in life when you decide if you are going make movies or not. This is indie filmmaker Sid Kali typing CUT TO
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