Free Screening!

Yes, one of my New Year's resolutions looks set to happen.

My DDR T-Shirt will receive its first ever public screening on Tuesday 17th June, 2008. It'll take place in a bar called Fuel in Withington, Manchester.

A dedicated email notification has been sent to a select list (you can view it here if you like). A poster campaign is also underway and will be visible in suitable places throughout Manchester.

It's free so come along if you can.

That's it!

New website launched

A re-design of the My DDR T-Shirt website is now live.

Now that the film is finished, it is hoped that the new site will provide an improved platform for the busy months of activity ahead.

The new site will also eventually feature feedback forms and maybe a forum.

Nods so far...

So, discs are flying out left, right and centre! Well, almost. I've sent preview DVDs to all the interviewees and a couple of friends and family.

So far, feedback has been generally very positive. More importantly, I've had replies from two interviewees, Johnny Tarver and Ian Sanders. Both have stated that they have no objection to the way they have been represented and the way I have used their words and opinions in the film.

This has always been important to me. I don't mind if people dislike the film, or the way it expresses my feelings, but I'd hate to people to feel I'd distorted their words. I await feedback from the other interviewees.

For the record, I have not sent discs to the following interviewees:

• Lutz Bergerman/Bergman
• Sasha Ritter
• A dude called Conrad
• An un-named student

These were un-arranged, man-on-the-street, vox-pop interviews. We did quite of few of them but these four people made it into the final cut. I would like to offer these people chance to 'approve' their interviews but unlike the other interviewees, they only gave verbal permission to being filmed. This means they didn't fill in the full release form - therefore, no contact details.

Work is still being done to re-design the website and there's also a poster design in the pipeline to fulfil any future screenings.

The next stage

Over the last week or so I have dispatched around 20 rough cut preview
discs of My DDR T-Shirt. These were mainly sent to the people I actually
interviewed. For me, this is the first stage of the process. As these
people gave their time and discussed their experiences for my benefit, I
owe them (at the very least) the chance to see the film before others.

Here's an update on some other plans:

1. As promised many months ago, I intend to organise a very low-key My
DDR T-Shirt 'premiere' in Withington. I hope to have a date for this
soon. I am also looking at other venues for similar 'events' but will be
trying to avoid screenings in empty rooms. If you know of a suitable
venue, please let me know.

2. Now that the film is ready, we are looking at other ways to get My
DDR T-Shirt screened. A list of potentially suitable film festivals in
the UK and mainland Europe has been drawn up. I expect to spend lots of
time in Post Office queues over the next few months.

3. As we start to pro-actively promote the film, we'll need a new
website. We need something new and fresh with a consistent look and feel
for the project. We also need to look into streaming technology and
other methods to get the film 'out there'.

4. A variety of audio and visual tweaks have taken place since these
first rough cut preview discs were made. Around 30 seconds has been
trimmed away and some project file export problems have been solved.

If you'd like to see one of these preview DVD-Rs, email
info@ianhawkins.co.uk.