Friday, April 10, 2015

Case Study No. 1886: The Librarian (Collective Fedora Films)

The Librarian (2014)
1:51
Collective Fedora's GRAND PRIZE WINNING entry in the Brattle Theatre's 2014 Trailer Smackdown competition! In a town where bibliophobia is the law of the land, one bad mother delivers a long-overdue ass-whupping!

Starring Webster Batista-Lin, Oscar Goff, Scott Grant, Jackie Dunham, Andy Sellars, Darien Valentine, James Rossi, Gretchen Lewis, and Darien Valentine. Written and directed by Oscar Goff and Webster Batista-Lin. Produced and scored by Andy Sellars. Cinematography by Molly Richard. Edited by Oscar Goff. Sound Design by James Rossi. Visual effects by Webster Batista-Lin.
Tags: Collective Fedora Films The Librarian Trailer Brattle Theatre (Theater) Trailer Smackdown
Added: 8 months ago
From: CollectiveFedora
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["Collective Fedora Films" appears on screen, as a funky "Shaft"-esque theme song plays in the background]
NARRATOR: In a town where reading is a crime ...
[cut to a police officer searching a tough-looking punk, when he unzips his backpack to reveal a large number of books inside]
COP: Book 'em ...
[cut to a male librarian (long frizzy hair, sunglasses, trenchcoat) walking down the sidewalk with his back to the camera]
NARRATOR: One man hits between the lines!
[cut to the librarian opening up his trenchcoat, revealing several books hanging from the inner lining]
NARRATOR: The Librarian!
[cut to the librarian leaning up against a brick wall (next to some "Snitches Get Late Fees" graffiti), when the punk approaches him]
NARRATOR: He's givin' out books, and those pigs hate it!
[cut to the librarian handing the punk a copy of William S. Burrough's "Junky" for some cash]
[cut to a woman (wearing a grey-haired wig and horn-rimmed glasses) slamming a copy of "The Norton Shakespeare" down on a table]
OLD LADY: Look at the filth this librarian is distributing!
[she slams down two more books ("Grimm's Tales for Young and Old" and "How to Burn Books" by R. Sun and A. Blaise), then cut back to the librarian on the sidwalk, as he spins around towards the camera in slow motion]
NARRATOR: Soon they'll be Dewey Decimated!
[cut to a man wearing an eye-patch (and a sash reading "Mayor") picking up the phone on his desk]
MAYOR: Get me the chief of police!
[cut to the police chief speaking at a podium in front of several microphones]
CHIEF: This librarian is wantonly books-ploiting our children!
[cut to the librarian fending off a ninja's attacks with one hand (while he reads a copy of "Karate for Beginners" with the other)]
NARRATOR: He wrote the book on mean right hooks!
[cut back to the mayor picking up his phone, as the split screen shows several other people on the line (a police officer, a disco dancer, a man lifting weights, a guy with a mohawk)]
MAYOR: Get me Father Macreedy!
[cut to a priest speaking to his congregation]
PRIEST: The only book we need is right here!
[he holds up "The Holy Bible", as the congregation applauds ... but he opens it to reveal it's been hollowed out and a gun has been placed inside, then cut to the priest firing into the crowd (who are still applauding)]
[cut to the librarian repeatedly bashing a book against the head of what appears to be the old lady lying on the ground (there's a blue dress and the grey-haired wig, but the head is nothing but a pile of red mush and a lone eyeball)]
NARRATOR: If you don't read, he'll make you bleed!
[he stops and holds the book up in the air (revealing it to be a copy of Norman Vincent Peale's "Power of Positive Thinking" covered in blood)]
NARRATOR: But do it in silence, or there's gonna be violence!
[cut to the punk handing a book to the librarian (while nervously rubbing his neck with the other hand)]
NARRATOR: And return it on time, or he'll have you cryin'!
[the librarian checks the date due slip, then shakes with anger before punching the punk in the face]
[cut to the punk falling through a wall of books in slow motion, then cut to the librarian standing over him and gritting his teeth]
LIBRARIAN: That'll be twenty cents!
[cut to a woman pushing her glasses down the brige of her nose and speaking to the librarian]
WOMAN: Are you checking me out?
LIBRARIAN: I'm checking you out, taking you home, and reading you cover to cover ...
[cut to the punk putting a "Fiends of the Library" leather jacket on in slow motion]
CHIEF: [in voice over] Savage readers and underground book clubs are holding the city hostage!
[cut to the woman swinging a book at the end of a steel chain (like a mace) in slow motion]
CHIEF: [in voice over] The library card is the match ...
[cut to a man wearing a graduation cap and gown, with his face painted yellow and brandishing a baseball bat (like in a scene from "The Warriors"]
CHIEF: [in voice over] Imagination is the fuse ...
[cut to a closeup of the librarian adjusting the lapels on his trenchcoat, featuring buttons with portraits of several "literary" figures (Twain, Shakespeare, etc.)]
CHIEF: [in voice over] And literacy is the bomb!
[cut to the four of them walking down the street in slow motion]
NARRATOR: See that butterfly in the sky! This mother fucker goes twice as high! So take a look, 'cause it's in the book!
[cut to a shot of the librarian staring menacingly into the camera]
LIBRARIAN: You don't hafta take my word for it ...
[cut back to the mayor picking up his phone]
MAYOR: Get me the President! Get me the National Guard! Get me that librarian!
[cut to the librarian walking away from an explosion ... instead of looking behind him, he simply starts reading a copy of "The Art and Craft of Not Giving a Fuck" by T. Givafuq PhD]
NARRATOR: The Librarian!
["Rated X by an all-illiterate jury" appears on screen]

Collective Fedora Films
in association with The Brattle Theatre presents

Webster Batista-Lin
"The Librarian" Jackie Dunham
Oscar Goff
Scott Grant
Gretchen Lewis
Stacey Robarge
James Rossi
Andy Sellars
and Darien Valentine

Director of Photography
Molly Richard

Original Music by
Andy Sellars

Visual effects by
Webster Batista-Lin

Technical Supervisor
Stacey Robarge

In Association with
Sarah Hogan & Scott Dunham

Make Up Artist
Molly Richard

Sound Effects Supervisor
James Rossi

Edited by
Oscar Goff

Produced by
Andy Sellars

Written and Directed by
Oscar Goff & Webster Batista-Lin

---

From brattlefilm.org:

Thursday, July 17, 2014
Special Events Archive
Trailer Smackdown 2014 Registration

General Info

Attention aspiring filmmakers: Do you have what it takes? One winning team will triumph in the 11th annual TRAILER SMACKDOWN, an honor bestowed by a jury of discerning peers—the audience at Trailer Treats!

Register your team today and create something that will wow the audience at this year's contest, and be sure to bring your team to Trailer Treats for a night of raucous fun. Check out some of the entries from previous competitions on our YouTube channel, then plan your attack!

You must register by Thursday, July 3, 2014 and all entries must be received by Monday, July 14. Accepted entries will be screened in the competition at the 12th annual TRAILER TREATS on Thursday, July 17—see below for complete rules and registration.

TRAILER REQUIREMENTS:
* The goal of the Brattle's Trailer Smackdown is for teams or individuals to create an original trailer for a fictional movie entitled THE LIBRARIAN.
* Each trailer must include one item from each Category column listed on the entry form ("Genre", "Location", "Character", and "Action"). One write-in "Wild Card" will be allowed per entry. Please note: selecting one item does not preclude using other items from the same list
* All films submitted must be less than two (2) minutes long
* The films may contain violence or nudity, but we cannot allow anything that would be deemed pornography. You may not harm real animals or unwilling people in the making of your video

ENTRY DEADLINES:
Every team/filmmaker must fill out the online registration form located at brattlefilm.org no later than 11:59pm on July 3, 2014. You will be asked to pay the registration fee at that time. You will also be asked to select the Categories that you are using in your entry film.
All completed films must ARRIVE no later than Monday, July 14, 2014 to the Brattle Theatre (Attn: Smackdown, 40 Brattle St., Cambridge, MA 02138).

ENTRY FEE: An entry fee of $10 is required to participate. Entry fee must be received at the same time as the registration form. A portion of the entry fee contributes to final cash prizes to be awarded at the Trailer Treats 2014 event.

FORMAT: All films must be submitted on Thumb Drive (USB) or DVD media. Entries should be 1920×1080 HD resolution. DVD media need not be auto-play, just the movie file is fine. At the discretion of the organizers, an alternate USB/DVD copy may be requested if technical problems are apparent.

LABEL: Each film must be labeled with YEAR, TEAM/FILMMAKER NAME, RUNNING TIME, CONTACT INFO (phone or email).

ASPECT RATIO: All films will be screened in 16:9 aspect ratio. Teams may shoot in widescreen or other aspect ratios, but it is highly recommend letterboxing the film to 16:9 so it won't appear distorted at the screenings.

CREDITS:
* Written credits for key technical and talent positions should be provided to organizers (i.e. director, cinematographer, editor, writer, actors/actresses) including any music and/or footage sources. On-screen credits for technical and talent positions are not required.
* If on-screen credits are included, they should be listed on one screen at the end, trailer-style, and not rolling for minutes like they would at the end of a feature.
* All films MUST include both a title treatment for the film and a separate card credit reading:

Created for the Brattle Theatre's Trailer Smackdown 2014
www.brattlefilm.org

JUDGES & JUDGING:
* A preliminary judging round will determine a number of finalists to be screened at Trailer Treats for Audience Award consideration. A maximum of 20 films will be screened.
* The judges of the preliminary round shall be individuals with experience in the motion picture industry, such that they are qualified to select winning films, as determined by the organizer in its sole discretion. The judges will be the sole arbiters deciding which entries are screened for Audience Award consideration. No one will be allowed to be a Judge if he/she has any demonstrable bias or conflict of interest with respect to any of the Contest Entrants, as determined by the organizer in its sole discretion.
* Final awards will be determined by audience ballot after the screening of the finalist films at the Trailer Treats event. An announcement of the winner and any runner-ups will be made at that time.

JUDGING CRITERIA: Entries will be judged on creativity, technical merit, adherence to criteria, and "How badly they make us want to see the movie." These are clearly subjective categories and will be treated as such. The judges will not use a point system. The final Audience Award and any runner-ups will be awarded based solely on a score obtained by averaging all scores awarded by audience ballot.

OWNERSHIP OF MOVIES: The filmmakers maintain the rights to their finished trailers. However, The Brattle Theatre and Brattle Film Foundation reserve the right to broadcast the trailers, post them on the internet, include scenes from trailers in future promotional materials, and include trailers in compilations on DVD or other media.

ONLINE DISTRIBUTION: No movies may be posted online prior to the contest. If we find your movie online (YouTube, Vimeo, etc) before the screening, you will be ineligible for the competition. After the screening, however, filmmakers are free to post their trailers online. The Brattle may feature the winning trailer as well as runner-ups on brattlefilm.org.

DISQUALIFICATION: The organizer reserves the right to disqualify any Team, Contributor, Entrant, or Entered Film that does not comply with the Official Rules and other Contest requirements communicated by the organizer.

ELIGIBILITY: Anyone can enter the Trailer Smackdown contest. There are no age restrictions and entry is open to amateurs and professionals alike. No one working on the film, however, can be paid. The screenings and award ceremonies will be held at the Brattle Theatre in Cambridge, MA, but you can still participate even if you aren't a Cambridge local. If you don't live in the area and still want to participate, just make sure your movie in our hands by July 14, 2014.

Paid employees of the Brattle Film Foundation and their immediate family are welcome to participate in the contest but are not eligible for the Audience Award cash prize. A special Staff Section of the screening will be set aside for any such entries and a special prize may be awarded.

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