DEUCE OF SPADES HOTROD FILM UPDATES - photos from the Saugus and dry lake shoots

Just because it's not posted doesn't mean there aren't people working or donating behind the scenes. Not everyone speaks out when they do things.

Sorry about the rant, just got caught up.

 

need news on the soundtrack!!

 

Can someone post a quick link to the donation instructions? Mail a check? PayPal? Donate a quart of blood? Sorry, swamped at work and just wanted to check in but don't have time to search for the info. If nobody posts it, I'll search and post it later tonight.

Hey there Don, I understand funds are tight... I have ELEVEN kids!

 

Go to one of Faith's post and then to her site. Follow the tabs.

Better yet, go to her sig.

 

Hi Guys, I'm back. Head spinning, too much on my plate as always.

Ok to donate it is easy. I do have it set up with paypal, they take credit cards or a paypal account and it is fast and easy.

http://www.bettatalk.com/donations.htm

Above is the short cut to the donation page on my film website.

I was so touched when I found that some of you donated some money over the last day... Currently I have received $400 total, just enough to cover the rental of the wardrobe for the jail scene. Boy did that give me a warm feeling at the pit of my stomach... Cause when I went to rent the wardrobe, I almost walked out without it. I kept thinking to myself: "what the F%# are you doing Faith/ are you CRAZY? You are commiting financial suicide to make this film..." I was really stressing. Then I thought: This film is my legacy to the hotrod world, I got to do it and I got to do it right so I went back in and told them I would go ahead and rent the wardrobe and thought: " Don't think about it, just DO IT and it will all work out in the end just have faith."

So now I know the little voice was right. Faith did pay off.

It's great to know I am not battling all alone, that some of you out there feel for me and want to do something to help me see this through. I know money is tight for everyone so I appreciate all the donations, no matter how little.

THANK YOU and I hope for just enough to get me by so we can continue rolling somehow...

All my gratitude to you guys...

below: this prison set is what you guys are pitchin in to help me pay.




And these uniforms:











I know how much you guys like action so, following an ultimate act of defiance, Johnny gets his ass beat up to a pulp by both correctional officers, which resulted in a very intense, violent and painfully realistic graphic scene. Guess the film is going to be no flick chick .

 

You need to talk to me.

Just sent you a message.

I think I can help you.

 

Thought I saw a note here from KIRK!... now it's gone?
Anyway, this flick is gonna be a classic so let's do what it takes to get it to the screen....

 

Yes, Faith - do what the nice prop man says, and answer his PM ASAP!

And fix these picture links, will ya? LOL!

~Jason

 

Yea, Meee toooo!! Faith.

 

Sent you 25 hope that helps
Dave
with the 3 window at the drag strip

 

hey Dave! I was just looking at new photos one of the hambers sent me from that Saugus dragstrip shoot... what a day that was! what a huge undertaking and yet it all went so smoothly... the scene came out truly awesome... I showed it to a few hotrodders at Bob's Big Boy last week and they had GRINS all the way up their foreheads the entire time they were watching... I think one of them even started drooling LOL...



Way cool.

 

Notes about the jail set / scene.

One of my very good friend, a local hottrodder / old timer, happened to have spent a few weeks in Lincoln heights Jail, back in the fifties. So you bet I was ALL EARS. I drilled him with questions. every detail was reproduced to make the scene as close to historically correct as possible.

1. walls were grye with a greenish tint (and I quote)
2. bars were grey
3. bunks were grey, with a thin matress.
4. no pillow or sheets were provided.
5. you got a thin grey blanket, that's it.
6. prisoners wore blue no brand denims, made of thinner fabric.
7. they also wore brown high top shoes.
8. sink and toilets were white porcelain
9. in isolation, you would receive a roll of TP
10. Guards wore beige uniforms with no hats
11. plates and cups were made out of tin.
12. you only got out one hour a week, up to the roof to 'exercise' on wednesdays.

Look at my photos and you will see I matched all the above, despite my no budget status:
















In order to create the letter, I obtained that an original 1940's typewritter be pulled out of a museum (special thanks to the Automobile Driving Museum for trusting us with the typewriter and making this happen for us!) so I could type the letter. Even the ribbon was original and to our surprise, there was just enough ink left in it for to type the 3 prop letters needed for the shoot.

Below: I carefully type the letters, bringing the ol' lady back to life. the typewriter was in deed happy to see some action again!!





As you see, although I am certain that there will be mitakes and some inaccuracies in the film, we are indeed, doing our very best to try to get it as close to period correct as we possibly can, with the meager means at hand.

 

Now THAT rules!

~Jason

 

I may be the only one ... but I find that paragraph humorous!

 

Hey, she's from France. How 'bout you start posting in French!!!

But I get what you're sayin'--pretty damn funny "in deed."

 

Ben oui quoi, c'est dur de parler trois langues!!

Wehl, my spalling is not two good thease dayz. I am two buzy two prooph reed my text, hoh wel, suie me!



It was funny though, in DEAD.

 

Il est probablement juste comme dur de jouer tous ces instruments!

~Jason

 

GUESS WHAT ?

I'm heading back out to El Mirage this week-end to film pick up shots and a new scene.

And guess what I found and am bringing with me as a prop?

Remember this SCTA timer machine, seen in most 40's and 50's home footage of SCTA time trials? Not even the SCTA has one of those lying around anymore. Seems they are all gone, extinct. Replaced by electronic gismos and computers...

But now it's back!

IT'S SITTING IN MY GARAGE RIGHT NOW. I found it and I am taking it back to El Mirage to do a cameo appearance in my film. Oh, and we made a replica of black board with all the times too.

This is going to rock!

 

Why am I not surprised?

 

That's even more awesome than the typewriter!

This IS gonna rock!!!!! There's GOT to be a story behind this thing - where's you dig it up?

~Jason

 

HMMMM, I think I'll make a movie too

Grouch's Slouches

 

C'mon guys, give her a break. Try to make a flick on the cheap, It's hell man!
I'm glad to know her..

 

Absolutely tremendous Faith! Looking forward to seeing more of this film in your future posts. I'll definitely buy a DVD copy when it comes out. Right now, before I forget, I'm going to donate something to your Movie Fund too. Good luck!

 

Go get 'em girl!

I kicked in $50 to the cause... 'cause, I can't wait to see this flick!!!!

 

I AM BACK

First, wanted to say thank you for the continued support and all of you who are contributing to this thread and needless to say, to the cause.

El Mirage was as awesome as ever. Course got windy on Sat, resulting in SCTA shutting course down early. Sunday, the course was way too soft and there were quite a few bad wipe outs amongs the motorcyclists, one of which was airlifted up to hospital. Another one wiped out right in front of us while we were filming a scene with Gene Winfield. The camera was pointing the other way though, so I only caught the arrival of ambulance and many SCTA officials. No, this will not be in the film. I was amazed at how fast these guys are at flying to the rescue when a crash occurs. There were also numerous spins, but I didn't catch any of those. All in all a pretty eventful Sunday on the dry lake bed.

Having now completed all my flashbacks, I am starting to film the modern day section of the film. It was so easy to film because I did not have to worry about being "period correct". All I had to do is be in eth middle of the action and run and gun to my heart's content. I never had to stop if modern clothed people walked through my frame, if a modern car passed by or if a jet plane crossed the sky. Wow! Such freedom! Didn't even feel like working/filming at all LOL.

It was really cool to bump into Gene again and we decided, on the fly, to have him be modern days "El Mirage George" in the film. I gave him his side (print out of the scene) and within 15 minutes we were rolling. Gene is a natural. He also rounded up for me, (in about 10 minutes) some of the coolest streamliners and belly tankers on the lake that day, to be part of the master shot of that scene. Gene knows EVERYBODY.

We filmed at "magic hour" from 3PM to sundown, which basically happened in about 2.5 seconds , so we went back at it the next day, rigth after gene made his last run, clocking at just slightly under 200mph with his blue and white roadster, which is now also in the film, both running down the course, and of course, in the master shot of the "El Mirage George" scene.

I also filmed a few pick up shots for my 1955 SCTA flashback scene: I got a few cool shots of the High Desert Roadster club cool ol' school roadsters so they are going to end up in the film (briefly). The SCTA officials did shit in their pants when they heard I had a crocker timer machine in my truck. I was able to place it on the original SCTA 40's bleachers and do one establishing shot that way. The bleachers are still sitting in the backyard of my dear friend SCTA old timer George Callaway, (another miracle from God) so imagine just how thrilled I was to have access to that piece of history and bring it back to life for a brief moment.



Life is good...

 

Nope, but it looks pretty rad!

 

HEY GUYS, I AM IN NEED OF TECHNICAL ADVICE. Please see this thread:

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=3307046#post3307046

Thank you for any help / advice / input / photos.

 

Back from my SCTA 2008 scene shoot out in the desert .

It was pretty darn awesome. It was a great pleasure to team up with Gene Winfield again for a new scene, which was filmed over two sunsets sat and sun.

Here are some screngrabs from footage. NOTE THAT THIS IS NOT A FLASHBACK the scene takes place in 2008 - modern days - so don't bugg me with comments about these cars looking too modern for 1955, OK ?


Gene Winfield is "El Mirage George" an old timer who helps the girl in her desperate attempt to find Johnny Callaway.




Here we see the girl looking for george and asking an SCTA inspection official to point her in the right direction. Note the interesting shot of two deuces, one from the past and one from the present, side by side.. How times have changed since Johnny's days.... Yes, this IS a real SCTA official and dear friend Dan Warner.




the girl tries to spot George and his blue roadster at start line and watches the cars take off





she zips down to his pit area (notice the cool cars gene lined up for the shoot - it took him all of 10 minutes to do it LOL - the orange belly tanker belongs to friends of mine so I lined that one myself. thanks you guys!! I love that car!)




"El Mirage George" is working on his roadster




Follows a brief conversation with the girl regarding Johnny and his current whereabouts (if any at all) - "Is he still alive?"




The pistachio van in the background snuck in on us without my knowing it. that's what happens when you film live on location, run and gun you can't control your environment 100% - but it makes for a more realistic scene - since it IS real. Here you can see the expression on the girl's face... She is carrying a heavy burden: Knowledge of the truth and the responsability that will come with it. (Don't they say: "Ignorance is blessed?")





Notice the big ass wire coming out of my trunk. well, the deuce died on me when we left and I was stranded in the middle of a four lane road. I immediately figured out it was the electrical wire going to my fuel pump that was having issues under the dashboard. Since my wiring is a total NIGHTMARE and noone knows what all this magma of wires are and where they go or what they do and why they oftentime stop working, I figured it was easier, to get back on the road pronto, to simply hotwire my fuel pump.

So here I am, laying under my car at 9PM in the center divider of Sherman Way, cutting through my wires , then I used my jumper cable to conect the power terminal of my battery (in my trunk) to my fuel pump wire (by my feet).. And drove 3 hours to El mirage and 3 hours back that way...

Fun stuff. but the thing is: the deuce worked like a champ after that and we could face the 75 mph gusts of headwind on the 14 freeway that night, without a windshield... yeah baby!


Below: It's a wrap!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Great Screen Grabs Faith! Your modern day scenes are looking beautiful. This Movie is destined to be a Winner!