Finally Upgraded Wordpress

Thanks to my buddy Stewie, upgrading to 2.6 was a breeze. He suggested installing the automatic upgrade plugin, and it didn't disappoint. The process couldn't have been easier.  On the upgrade page, just click through each step, and after about 5 clicks (and two downloads--the site and database backups), you're done. Wow! :yay:

Oh, and Stewie, Custom Smilies has been updated. The new version is here.

Timewarp at Horrorfind this weekend

Don't miss Horrorfind Weekend 10 Aug 15-17 at the UMUC Marriott Inn & Conference Center Adelphi, MD.

There are some cool, first-time guests: Michael Biehn (The Terminator, Aliens), Chris Sarandon (Princess Bride, Fright Night), and William Forsythe (Devil's Rejects). Plus, many returning favorites like Tony Todd and, Tom Savini, and Ken Foree.

And stop by the Timewarp table and say hello!

Free 3D adds another contender: trueSpace

trueSpace was one of the first 3D applications I tried, way back in 2000. It was version 4 back then, and while its interface was a little different and it didn't have all of the state-of-the-art features, it was quite capable and got me through a few projects.

Now on version 7.6, trueSpace has quite a lot to offer, based on the features page. And to make that deal sweeter, it's completely free! Seems Microsoft purchased Caligari, the creators of trueSpace. I guess they want to compete with other free 3D apps, particularly Google SketchUp. Gee, I wonder why?

There's only a PC version, so Mac users are SOL in terms of trueSpace.

Sealed Fates Begins Shooting

We've been chomping at the bit to film a new feature for over a year now. We're finally getting our chance this summer. The cast is set, the locations (sort of) secured -- any micro-budget company knows what I mean -- and the shooting schedule is done (for the next couple of weeks, anyway).

Now, we start rolling.

This is the first time I'll be behind the camera, other than for the Horrorfind commercial in March. So, I made a checklist for the set:

• Charged battery...check.


• Tape in, queued up...check.


• White balance set...check.


• XL1 set to interlaced mode...check (we're converting to 24p, but that's a whole, upcoming, post in itself).


• Subject framed...check.


• Lights set properly...check.

And, um, anything else?

Oh yeah,

• Focused? ...check. Whew!

If Adobe Products Have a Twitchy Interface, Remove Intellipoint 6

For months I've been trying to figure out why all of my state-of-the-art Adobe products -- Premiere, After Effects, Encore, and Photoshop -- have been, for lack of a better term, twitching. The screen would shake and redraw, menus would disappear, and only show when I moused over them. It was maddening! Sure, the programs would work, but productivity was at a crawl.

I tried everything I could think of: uninstalling old programs, cleaning the registry, updating video drivers (I was convinced it was a video thing), and I scoured the internet. Nothing.

Finally, after using every search combination I could think of, I found the answer on the Adobe Forums (duh). Here's the link.

Quote from user tl_woods:

This is what I did to fix this.

Uninstall all microsoft intellimouse driver versions. Export your registry settings and then search in registry for intellimouse and delete all references.
I dont think this is necessary but thats what I did.

Reinstall with IntelliPoint 5.5...

http://www.download.com/IntelliPoint-5-5-64-bit-/3000-2110_4-10734878.html

Its as easy as that.

The problem solved, at last.

And here's the 32-bit version of the driver:

 http://www.download.com/IntelliPoint-5-5-32-bit-/3000-2110_4-10734867.html?tag=lst-2&cdlPid=10734866

Cast Set for Sealed Fates

Photo provided by Robert Long II

We finished auditions for our next feature last weekend. We didn't get as large a turnout as we expected, but the quality of those that did show up was surprisingly high. Usually, about 5-10% are really good, another 10% we can work with, and the rest should look for a new career, but this time we must have gotten at least 15% that were excellent, and another 20% that were workable. I'll take that kind of quality over quantity any day.

After viewing the tape and mulling over the choices, we decided--with very little disagreement--on our cast of choice. It was comforting to see that most of the parts had solid backups in case the first choice didn't work out.

This week we called the actors and made the offers. Nearly everyone accepted-- excitedly. While we had to go for a couple of backups, we don't feel like we settled in the least.

Now we're gearing up for production, which should begin in July. There's a lot left to do before then. Final script tweaking, prop gathering/crafting, scheduling, scouting a few more locations, purchasing equipment, and drafting all kinds of lists.

Whew, that's a lot. And I wouldn't miss it.

Celtx 1.0 Now Available

I've been following the Celtx software for some time. I currently use Final Draft for screenwriting, but I have a soft spot for free/open source projects.

Celtx has now released their version 1.0, which usually means it's ready for prime time. I can't say for certain that is true, but they have tweaked a lot of their features and added some new ones. I'm personally interested in the production tools: call sheets, prop lists, storyboard organization, etc.  I plan to try out the production features on our upcoming project. I'll post my results.