Never thought I'd be into this

I’ve always been sort of a movie buff, but I never thought it would go any further than that. I was introduced to this site that lets you go behind the scenes and help to create a movie. Since I’ve been signed up, I’ve been having a blast and thought I’d share my experience.

My parents knew that I liked movies and wanted to think of a gift that was different from the usual gift cards and snowboarding gear. They heard about this website that not only teaches you about the movie making process, but lets you have a say in how things are done. So for Christmas, they bought me access to the site and told me to have a look around. So I went to scope it out at: www.imadeamovie.com and read up on how it worked. At first, I didn’t think it was gonna be something that I’d get use out of, but I tried it out anyway. I’m almost embarrassed to say that I’ve been going on every day to check my profile and stay connected with the other people on the site.

The first movie that I chose to work on was a movie called “Terminal,” by director Francisco Beltran y Puga. I’m not really into indie films, but this one was actually pretty cool. I felt more involved than I would’ve on a big blockbuster film. From the beginning of the shooting, I was able to watch audition tapes of the actors and actresses and vote on who I thought should be included in the cast. It was actually a lot of fun voting on filming locations and cast members. It was cool cuz I got to talk with the director, the cast members and even other movie buffs to give my input. They would talk to us right from the set and then ask us questions on the next scene being shot. It made me completely feel like I was always in the loop. I really did feel like I was an associate producer on the movie. Another perk was that they sent me some movie merchandise. I’m not gonna lie, I only wear the shirt when I go snowboarding haha. But in this case, it’s definitely the thought that counts.

I also got to meet and connect with people who shared my interest in movies and see what they were working on. Not only was I working on my movie, but I got to hear about what kinds of things other people were voting on and doing for their movies. I felt like I got dropped on the lot of a Hollywood movie studio and was able to get a glimpse of all of these films in their production state. It's cool cuz I don't know anybody else who knows more about how to make a movie than I do now.

I think the most rewarding part of all was seeing my name in the movie credits on my DVD and getting to show it off to all my friends. It’s funny cuz I was out there promoting the movie and trying to get it as much attention as possible. I was proud to say that I had a critical role in a new movie being released. I’m a little bummed that the movie is finished now, but can’t wait to start another project. Honestly I’m shocked to hear myself say this, but this is probably the best gift idea my parents had in a while and if you haven’t been to the site at least check it out at http://www.imadeamovie.com and let me know what you think. I’d definitely recommend it over the average regular boring stuff that I or anybody else usually ends up with.

Hope you liked reading about my experience and look for my next post - Max