Do It Again

For those of you eager to see “Do It Again” now that our film festival run is over, there is good news. American Public Television, which distributes programming to PBS station across the country, has agreed to take us on. That’s why we’ve been so busy. Rob and assistant editor Missy turned our 85-minute festival into a (cuss-free) hour-long version. We did this in anticipation of our big day. That day has arrived.

Later today, APT hosts its closed-circuit “offer” broadcast for the roughly 175 public stations in the world. Some programmers will watch this teleconference live. Others will tape and watch it later.

What hangs in the balance? For “Do It Again,” it’s the very chance to be seen on TV. We’re no lock. We have to get a number of PBS stations to sign on for the terms of our APT deal to kick in. How many? It’s hard to tell. Bigger stations are weighed more, money-wise, than smaller ones. But everybody counts.

Our hero, as of now, is a man named Eric Luskin. He’s the vice president of syndication and premium service for APT and the guy making our pitch. Eric has decades of experience in public television, several Emmys to his name and knows how to make a sale. For our purposes, we’re pleased to know he plays bass and saw the Kinks in Philadelphia in the ‘90s.

So what can you do to help? We’re told that a respectful note to your local public television station can make a difference. Tell them you heard that “Do It Again” is available and, as a fan of that era of music, the Kinks, and the film if you’ve seen it, you would love to see it shown locally. Most of these stations have a viewer services department that can be called or e-mailed. Sending a personal letter, not an e-mail, to a programmer might also be a cool idea. So few people take the time to actually send letters these days.

We should know by early May whether we’ve been successful. And “Do It Again” could be shown on TV as early as July. Sitting here tonight, a good part of me has no idea whether we’ll be successful and reach the right folks at PBS. But I also can’t help but think of just how lucky we’ve been so far, how resourceful and passionate our fans have been, and how impossible it is to imagine this train grounding to a halt when we’re so close to being seen by a wider audience.

It’s hard to know where to start our thank you. I came to Wichita for the first time in October. I found a small but growing film festival run by passionate, organized, fun people. I found a city that’s not so sure of itself but, if it were to step back, might find it has quite a bit going on. And I found an audience that loved our film, laughed at the right parts and gave us the kind of feedback we needed to realize that “Do It Again” would play well outside London, New York and Boston.

And that was before Tallgrass and Go Wichita!, sparked in part by the viral spread of my travel story, cooked up an innovative and inspiring plan to bring us back. That return came last week, as my family and I were flown to town, put up at the Courtyard Marriott Old Town, treated to the most delicious doughnuts we’ve ever had, bundt cakes, a special dinner, and a glorious, post-screening breakfast (and daily root beers) at the Tasty. Friday night, we showed “Do It Again” at the Orpheum, raising enough money to pay a chunk of our TV cut budget.

So today, when editor Missy called to ask about credits as she was making a final pass, I told her of a few folks to slice off the list and a couple of important entries to add. We’re going to thank the “Community of Wichita” and the Tallgrass Film Festival in those credits. And if I had more space, I’d thank, by name, Ann Keefer, Lela Meadow-Conner, Nick “Help!” Pope, Arietta Austin, Gretchen Mitchell, Mike Marlett, Shan Jabara, Marta McKim, Stephanie Galicia, Kathy Schlegel Deane, Jedd Beaudoin, Kari Schmidt, Marcia Scurfield, Jeff Emerson, Francine Fairweather…. I could go on. Wait. I will. I should thank Mary Turner for finding us Saturday night at Watermark Books without a ride and promptly popping us into her Scion for a return to the Doughnut Whole. Or Mark, in town visiting his cardiologist, who met us at the screening, took us to the zoo the next morning and hung with us all day. I could go on and on and on.

But I better stop. Because we’ve got an edit to finish. Rob tells me I’ve got to watch the 57-minute cut he’s created and, that, of course, we can’t add anything in. I’ve got to negotiate with National for a reasonable sound mix fee. And I’ve got to pop a couple of envelopes in the mail to the E & O dudes to make sure we can get our insurance policy in place before long. That’s the business side. I can’t imagine Carlene, Lila and I (Calvin gets a pass, he probably won’t remember much about the week) will ever forget the warmth and hospitality and just the chance to watch “Do It Again” one more time on that big screen. We may not be back for a while, but I’d like to think we’ve taken a bit of Wichita back home to Boston.

So with love and continued admiration, I say…

Thank you Wichita and if you visit Boston and need a place to stay, we’ve got a full second bathroom, and a futon on the third floor…

Geoff

Even if he hadn’t come to a single screening, Bruce MacQueen would deserve a special thanks from the home office of “Do It Again.” Bruce shot some key footage when yours truly either respected his hero or wussed out. No worries. Bruce was there, with his camera. Which isn’t surprising, because Bruce is almost everywhere. In fact, he has now informed me that he’s heading to Wichita this week for our special screening and karaoke party. Very cool. Or disturbing. Or both. No, really, we love Bruce. He lives in Arlington, Virginia, and will have now traveled to Cleveland, London, New York and Kansas to check out “Do It Again.” That’s pretty special. And it’s a perfect time for me to slap on my journalist hat and find out a bit more about superman Bruce.

Bruce MacQueen is 56 and works as a property manager just outside Washington, D.C.

Q: When did you first get into the Kinks?
A: I knew of the Kinks hits on AM radio growing up in Wilmington, Delaware but didn’t really listen to them until graduating high school in 1972. I borrowed my friend’s brother’s “Kinks Kronikles” and was hooked. The first proper album I bought was “Preservation Act I” and “The Great Lost Kinks Album.” (I still need to return “Kinks Kronikles.”)
Q: How many times have you seen them play and what was your most memorable memory from a show?
A: Not as many times as others I’m sure. But I’d guess I saw them at least once every tour since 1973. I followed Ray around for multiple shows in the past few years. Most memorable? My wife would say that it was when I handed her my watch, wedding ring and wallet at Cobo Arena and told her, “Hold these! I’ll probably meet you outside!” and jumped on-stage and bear-hugged Ray!
Q: How many times have you traveled to see the Kast-Off Kinks?
A: These guys are a lot of fun! Including four Konvention appearances, I’ve flown to the UK for 15 of their shows in the past four years.
Q: How do you explain yourself to your wife?
A: She is a Stones / Rod Stewart fan but is very understanding and knew of my preference for the Kinks before we were married.
Q: Why are you crazy enough to go see Do It Again a fourth time?
A: Besides the free tickets and beer, it’s a great movie and lots of fun to see the crowd reaction, whether or not they are fans.
Q: What are your most prized Kinks possessions?
A: That’s a toss up between a guitar & T-shirt I have had signed by almost everyone in the band. But Dave and Ray are not together on either!
Q: Will they or won’t they… do you hold out any hope Ray and Dave will play together again? If you were in charge, how would set up a reunion. Would it be a concert? Recordings? Tell us your master plan.
A: I think Ray is hopeful it could happen and realizes his age and mortality. That’s what I credit his creative spurt and fairly relentless touring of late to. I also think he talks about it to stir up media attention and to wind up Dave. I believe that Dave thinks and sees the world differently and doesn’t feel the need to get together for any reason.
If it were to plan a reunion, I’d do a limited number of dates and bring the whole range of band members from over the life of the band and cover the entire scope of their discography. I loved them all! Give the people what they want!!

Good news. We’ve been offered a chance to create a 57-minute version of the film for a nationally syndicated series of broadcasts. But there is a downside. This is for public television, which doesn’t pay very much. (But does offer us a chance to show the film to lots and lot of folks.)

Cutting an 85 minute documentary to 57 minutes will take some work. We anticipate two, very intense weeks of 20 hour days in the editing chamber. To broadcast, we also have to get something called error and omissions insurance and pay to lay our new cut onto an HDCam tape.

I estimate the whole thing will cost between $7,000 and $10,000.

I’m not going to create a Kickstarter campaign for this sum because I want to reserve that idea for a larger need. What’s that? Our major hope is to get approval from the record companies to license “Do It Again” for DVD/download and wider broadcast. We’re waiting on our request.

In the meantime, we want to create this shorter cut.

Can you help? If so, I’m going to accept paypal contributions at gedgers@mac.com or checks at my home address. (Write me at gedgers@mac.com for that.)

What can you gain? We’re going to offer a few of our collectibles and, much in the spirit of Kickstarter, an awards system.

$50 gets you a signed, 12-by-18 “Do It Again” poster OR a limited edition, signed 45 record (it plays!) of “Victoria/Big Sky” recorded by Figgs leader Mike Gent. The record also includes original art by our poster man Dave Plunkert.

$50 also gets you a signed DVD if “Do It Again” is released on DVD. I don’t want to mislead anybody. There is a chance it’ll come out on DVD. There’s a chance it won’t. If you contribute to this, you’ll have to accept there’s a chance we don’t get released. (And you can always turn your reward in for another gift.)

For $75, you get a signed copy of my Beatles or Elvis children’s books for kids, ages 8 to 12.

For $90, one of our remaining “Do It Again” t-shirts. I only have about three medium and two large left.

For $200, I’ll add your name to the credits for “Do It Again.” Just beware… we may not get long credits for our TV cut. If that’s the case, I’ll add you to our IMDB listing.

For $300, you get one of our 10 remaining, full-size “Do It Again” posters. I’ll sign it or I won’t. You decide.

For $1,000 – and airfare, lodging – I will bring “Do It Again” and outtakes from the film to your home for a private screening. We did this in Los Angeles earlier this year and it was great fun. I’ll even put you in touch with Steve, who hosted us, to give a full accounting of the experience.

For $1,000, you can get a one-of-a-kind, full size “Do It Again” poster signed by Sting and Zooey Deschanel.

For $1,500, you get the acoustic guitar that Dave Davies plays in “Do It Again.”

For whatever you can give – $1, $10, $100 – we remain eternally grateful.

This weekend, “Do It Again” plays six times at the Brattle Theater in Harvard Square. But if you have a choice, come to the Friday night, 7 p.m. show. Director Rob and I will be there to introduce the movie, conduct a post-screening Q & A and then I’ll be hanging around for what the Brattle is calling a Kinks party. It’s really a two-hour disc of super-hot Kinks clips as curated by St. Louis master collector Jim Napoli. The performances take us from the Cavern Club in the early ’60s to the video for “Do It Again,” one of my MTV-favorites.

I can’t say we’re going to sell out, but you never know. So go here to purchase tickets ahead of time.

Congratulations to master artist Dave Plunkert. His poster for “Do It Again” has been accepted into the 2010 Society of Illustrators exhibit in New York City. I’m sure this is just the first of several shows for his razorific image. So let’s give Dave some props. The exhibit runs from Feb. 12 – March 19 at the Society, which is at 128 E. 63rd St NY 10065.

For more Plunkert art, go here: SPUR Design

It is the million dollar question, or perhaps the $45,000 question. What is to become of “Do It Again?” The film has been on the festival circuit since late January. We’ve played about 50 cities and received some excellent reviews. But as you probably noticed, there’s no DVD, no broadcast deal, no theatrical release. First, let me assure you. We are working hard. We’ve had some bites and offers but we’re not yet ready to move forward. One major issue is licensing. If there were no Kinks songs in this film, we would have likely already released it. But when you use other people’s music, you need to pay for it. In our case, that’s complicated by the low budget of our film and the general risk that comes with an independent release. In brief, we ain’t “Juno,” capable of slapping down $10,000 for “Well Respected Man” or some other classic ditty.

After much wrangling and attempts at creative deals, we finally submitted our formal request to the record companies. They were kind enough to give us a deal which, if it goes through, will allow us worldwide licensing for around $40,000 to $50,000. But that’s a big if. First, the artist – and that’s Ray – has to allow us to spend that money. At the moment, a DVD and press packet (and button) is in his hands. We’re waiting for Ray.

If Ray says yes… then we’ve got to sell the film for enough to allow us to pay for the licensing. We’re grown men with families. We’re hesitant to go broker for this movie.

What can you do? Sit tight. Tell people how much you love our movie. Go to the IMDB website and post a few positive comments on there to make up for the cranky dude who said he didn’t like the film six times. And keep following. Because this process is pretty much like everything connected to “Do It Again.” We have no idea where we’ll end up, how we’ll do it and what it might mean. But we’re refusing to stop for any reason, be it financial, psychological, logistical. We are going to do everything within our means to get this film to a wider audience.

God Save the Kinks…

So much for “Duet Again.” No, Ray’s collaborations record will be called “See My Friends” and feature some heavy-duty talent. How good will it be? The Metallica clip on the album website tells me “See My Friends” will certainly be better than those Sinatra “Duets” albums, where Kenny G and Gloria Estefan were recruited to give ‘Ol Blue Eyes a past-his-prime, commercial boost.

I have high expectations for the title track, done with “Spoon,” who I don’t think have a bad song in their catalog. Alex Chilton, as a member of Big Star, did a solid version of “’Til the End of the Day” in the ‘70s. Nice that he and Ray, who must have hung in New Orleans, got to record another before Alex’s untimely death. Nobody could screw up “Better Things,” not even the blustery Boss Springsteen. And Black Francis or Frank Black or Charles Thompson or whatever he’s going by these days has always worn his love of Ray Davies on his sleeve. I’m glad he gets to sing with him.

What worries me on “See My Friends?” Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora. Will they turn “Celluloid Heroes,” handled so deftly by Ray, into cheese? (Remember, these guys brought us “Tommy used to work on the docks.”) I liked the Smashing Pumpkins in 1995. I’m not sure what head pumpkin Billy Corgan does for “All Day and All of the Night/Destroyer.” I don’t know squat about Amy Macdonald (“Dead End Street”) or Mumford & Sons (“Days/This Time Tomorrow”) or Paloma Faith (“Lola),” though I do know Jackson Browne, have never been a huge fan, but will reserve judgment.

Albums like this, of course, make you think of who else you want to hear with our hero. How about Paul Weller, Paul McCartney, Mick Jagger or David Bowie? Aimee Mann, Elvis Costello, Emmylou Harris or Jenny Lewis? Dare I bring up Chrissie Hynde? I also wouldn’t mind an entire new solo album backed by Yo La Tengo. Maybe that’s off point.

Lucinda Williams is a masterful duet singer. I have a hunch “Long Way from Home” will work. It’s a fantastic song choice, though it does make me think of another potential collaborator. What about a duet with a guy named Dave?

We’ve got very little time left and we’re oh-so-close to meeting our goal. So I approach you, the Kinksian public, with a simple offer.

You give, you get.

T-shirts – we’ve got small, medium and a few large left – are available as an award. They are supremely rare and very cool.

Posters are dropping in price as we head to the finish line, either $60 (12 by 18) or full-size for $180.

We’ve also got the Mike Gent record, which you can listen to, in part, below. If you buy the record but don’t want to play it – the 45 is collectible, after all – I’ll zap you the MP3’s so you can load Victoria and Big Sky onto your iTunes.

To those who have given, thank you. It makes a huge difference. To those who can spare $5, $10, $7,849… We appreciate even the smallest donation to our noble quest.

And I promise: No more begging after this!

We’ve only got three days left on our Kickstarter campaign, so I figured I’d make one more pitch. (And there may be another…)

You might think, “Hey Geoff, isn’t the movie done and playing in film festivals. And hasn’t everybody already been generous enough?” And I’d say, “True and true, but that doesn’t mean I’m done.”

Here are two examples: We were so pleased to be invited to show the film at the Reykjavik International Film Festival later in the year. But then, after chatting with one of the staffers there, I learned that we need to send a PAL formatted tape. We only have the NTSC format. That means heading over to National Boston today and paying them to dub a PAL tape. That’s $320. See, money!

(As you probably figured, even when we sell out a 1,000 seat hall, we don’t get paid. The film festival gets the cash, as it should… Those festivals are run on a shoe-string by dedicated people working way too many hours.)

Same goes for our screening in New Orleans in October. We’re thrilled to be showing the film there and wouldn’t consider pulling out. But they want the film transferred as a data file and sent on a hard-drive. Hence, I’ve got to buy another hard-drive.

I know, this couldn’t me a more boring blog entry. Who wants to hear about PAL and NTSC and data files, etc.? I don’t. Which is why you should help me reach my Kickstarter goal. Then I promise… I’ll shut up and talk Kinks!