Blog Seven

2011-09-18T23:41:00.000-07:00

This concludes Blog 7 (2003-2011). Thank you for attending.

For those interested, the Blog 7 archives can be found down the page, and to your right.

Lee's new blog, "Seven Thoughts" can be found here -

Seven Thoughts.

2011-09-17T11:21:00.001-07:00

Drafting LA Entertainment Industry Plan 2.0. It's time to take this game to the next level.

2011-09-09T17:48:00.001-07:00

US Military Plane Forced Down By NKorean Electronic Attack. We should start blasting them with episodes of Jersey Shore.

2011-09-09T11:12:00.001-07:00

Coming in November 2011 .... My Immortal: The Vampires of Berlin, the bookstore edition. More chaos, more vampires, more photography, and enough blood to fill a swimming pool.

2011-09-08T10:15:00.001-07:00

Hope everyone is Pennsylvania is okay ... this flood looks like it might be ugly. We lost our house in Kingston in 1972 after Hurricane Agnes, hopefully this flood is not the sequel.

2011-09-07T16:47:00.000-07:00

Facebook changed its News Feed, so by default, updates are only shown to people from Lichtenstein with whom you've recently exchanged explicit photos. To change this, click 'Account', lick your monitor, click 'Edit friends', pound your mouse on the desk, click "All Friends" until Farmville surrenders, read this week's privacy policy to your cat and poke the first 17 friends you don't recognize. Most Importantly... Re-Post this. Otherwise, only a few of your friends will actually get annoyed.

2011-09-06T18:15:00.001-07:00

Congratulations to the San Francisco Renegades for a successful 2011 season. The Renegades have become a fixture in DCA Finals. Genius!

2011-08-30T17:53:00.001-07:00

Coming Soon ...

2011-08-29T18:19:00.000-07:00

Reality Television Producer Consideration.

A production company or network nearly always owns the titles to its television shows. This means that a reality show based upon an actual business (i.e., the business owner must retain the rights to his or her TM) inherently has a significant incentive for the production company NOT to name the show after the actual business.

2011-08-24T14:42:00.001-07:00

Life After Frank Gore?

Frank Gore is an outstanding player, worth every penny of a better deal.

But I find it a little silly to ponder what would happen without any one player on the team. When was the 49ers last season in the playoffs? 1963? It sure feels like it. If we had one player capable of carrying the entire team, we would have been in the playoffs last year. By definition, we don’t.

As a fan and a decade of no playoffs for the 49ers, I guess I’m tired of hearing about individual players needs. That probably happened a few years ago when the second coming of Jerry Rice held out for a star contract while the team was getting its ass kicked in the opening weeks of the season. Crabtree still has yet to contribute anything above mediocrity on the field, and we’re still not in the playoffs.

But at least the fans are having a safe and fun time at the games, no? Ugh.

I think this whole 49ers organization — players, coaches and owners — needs to get a grip, look around, and realize where it’s really at.

We’re not at the very bottom, but you can see it from here. Wake up.

2011-08-23T10:47:00.001-07:00

Still hyping over the deal we closed yesterday for a very talented producer client. Being a lawyer can definitely be "not fun" sometimes, but there are also amazing moments like yesterday, when you're working to help people chase a dream they've held onto their whole life, and it suddenly happens. Rock-n-Roll.

2011-08-22T11:19:00.000-07:00

Very amused ... a television deal came to a complete standstill on Friday, because both the network's lawyer and the producer's lawyer (aka me) had to report for jury duty on the same day.

That's poetic justice, somehow.

2011-08-18T11:30:00.001-07:00

I'm carving out time to write every day again, and it makes the day a lot more fun. Right now, I'm finishing up Tale of a Drum Line and draft 2.0 of My Immortal (screenplay).

2011-08-03T19:07:00.000-07:00

Hyping ... 4.5 hours meeting, and a major step forward taken today for the film My Immortal: The Vampires of Berlin.

2011-08-02T11:11:00.001-07:00

Project Note: The release of the second edition of My Immortal: The Vampires of Berlin is tentatively set for November.

2011-08-02T10:54:00.001-07:00

Project Note - VOD Release

Yesterday, THE HARIMAYA BRIDGE appeared over 100 million homes with cable, satellite and telco operators, including Comcast, Time Warner, AT&T, DirecTV, Amazon, Best Buy, X-Box, Playstation etc. If you haven't seen this film yet, now's your chance. Congratulations to Director Aaron Woolfolk, Producer Ko Mori and everyone on the team.

2011-07-31T20:30:00.001-07:00

2011-07-30T12:23:00.001-07:00

I'm really into the show Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares right now, and not because of any interest or ability I have in cooking, which is zero. I'm interested in the marketing formula for each restaurant, which I think is brilliant. Bonus points for the chef being the only person I know who throws f-bombs more in day-to-day conversation more than I do. lol

2011-07-25T15:11:00.001-07:00

Too funny ... my horoscope today starts with this -

"Get all agreements in writing."

2011-07-22T13:47:00.001-07:00

2011-07-20T13:52:00.000-07:00

The 1st edition of My Immortal: The Vampires of Berlin is good, but I feel like I really became a writer in the 2nd. It was a great learning experience to walk away from the story for 6 months, then come back and look at the book (and some not-so-great writing) with fresh eyes. After My Immortal got in Entertainment Weekly, and publishers would finally talk to me, the one thing I kept hearing was ... "we want more." So, the 2nd edition took on a life of its own .... there are more vampires, more CIA, the Second Korean War, all sorts of crazy stuff ... a take which then knocked test readers on their collective ass. :) One item of note - the story has not changed since Day 1 - it's just fleshed out, especially Act 3, present day Berlin. The story gets really intense

2011-07-19T16:35:00.001-07:00

Life should be fun. Avoid doom and gloom attitudes at all costs.

2011-07-12T18:16:00.001-07:00

Today's Genius quote, from the Wall Street Journal.

7. Position yourself as a renegade. That's part of the hoodie ethic in tech. In music everybody dresses up in finery and kisses the butt of anybody who might get them ahead, radio, the press, the guy at the label. These people should be afraid of you, they should not understand you, they should be your friend last.

2011-07-08T09:28:00.001-07:00

TGIF ... I could not have possibly could have fit any more meetings, contracts and chaos into the last five days ... it was productive, for sure, but weekend, hurry up and get here ... it's time to ... errrr ... do nothing.

2011-07-06T14:14:00.001-07:00

I'm going to save the announcement for the official press release ... but thanks to a meeting we had in Cannes, the film 1,001 Ways to Enjoy the Missionary Position is now represented by a killer, killer European sales agent. Let's roll!!

2011-07-05T22:16:00.001-07:00

9:59 PM. My Immortal Screenplay = done.

2011-07-04T21:04:00.001-07:00

Putting the final touches on the My Immortal screenplay.

2011-07-04T21:03:00.000-07:00

2011-07-02T11:49:00.000-07:00

Tale of a Drum Line II: The 1986 Garfield Cadets (excerpt)

Fairleigh Dickinson College, New Jersey - Week One

Tom Aungst gives us a comprehensive drum line rehearsal plan for each week. Basically, the drum line will be its own during the weekdays while Tom finishes up the school year. But, we have a ton of experience and we have a plan, so we should be good to go.

Our drum line’s first week of self-supervised rehearsal goes well. We stick with the plan, and by the end of the week, we’re drumming considerably better than when we were on Monday. When Tom arrives for the weekend, he is happy with our progress. Unfortunately, monsoon rain pours down on us throughout the entire weekend as we learn drill. Since had winter camps canceled due to snow, we don't have time to stop for a torrential downpour if we’re going to even have a prayer to get On the Waterfront on the field by the first show.

Most of put on brown garbage bags to try to protect ourselves from the incessant rain, but a homemade rag-tag blue-light-special garbage bag rain suit will only protect you so much in a monsoon of Biblical proportions. Drill sheets and the chalk lines on the cement literally dissolve in the rain. The rawhide “guts” of our beautiful new silver disco-ball snare drums have not been waterproofed, and the garbage bags don’t stop the rain from soaking them. We are a New Jersey drum corps of miserable wet rats … and the drill is not even close to being complete. Not good.

Fairleigh Dickinson - Week Two

On Monday morning, we wearily trudge across the Fairleigh Dickinson campus to start our second week of rehearsals. Unfortunately, the rain made most of our snares fall apart and snare strands hang down from our drums like spaghetti. We’re demoralized and a few of us are sick from standing outside in the rain all weekend. We are all playing on horrible-sounding "tenor drums" that have ridiculous-looking snares sticking out of the bottom in all directions. Despite the bad drums, we try to stick to the rehearsal plan. Unfortunately, things fall apart quickly, and The Plan stays in place for approximately eight hours.

On Tuesday, Plan B. Frustrated from pointless hours spent practicing on crummy-sounding drums, we decide to go check out the local mall. None of us have money to buy anything more than a pizza slice, but we have fun anyway. Over the course of the week, we rehearse less and less. By Thursday, we don’t rehearse at all. Most of the drum line hangs out at the mall or runs amok near the dorms playing basketball. Occasionally, someone will pick up a practice pad to play through the show, but that is about it.

Isolated from the majority of the staff and almost all aspects of so-called real life, our existence in the dorms starts to resemble a sitcom rather than an intense drum corps preseason. One night, a few drummers make a field trip to New York City and stealthily return with a bunch of … errrr … junk food. Chaos results and a berserk member of our pit actually nails a dead frog to his dorm room door. Crunchy Frog theory is born.

On Friday afternoon, the realization that that the staff is due back in town this evening suddenly dawns on us. Uh-oh. This was a crazy-fun week, but we’re definitely not ready for them—or anything else for that matter. We’ve accomplished about one of the ten items on Tom’s list. Maybe.

The drum line convenes an emergency meeting in the dorms and we nervously try to come up with a scheme to get through the weekend. We decide to act like we practiced hard—we’ll fake our way through the weekend. The general consensus is that if we act the part, the drum staff will never know that we didn't do anything this week. Someone jokes that if they catch on, our excuse will be … “Lee has never been to the mall. We had to go.” Wonderful.

On Friday night, the drum staff meets us for rehearsal at a vocational school in Teterboro. As rehearsal begins in the dimly lit parking lot, we look at one another and try not to smile as we play through the drum warm-ups. Here we go again. It does not take long for Tom Aungst and Thom Hannum to figure out that we didn’t practice all week—not by the amused and perplexed look on our faces, but by the look of our hands, and the sound being produced. Our drumming sucks!

Tom stands in front of us and says “You didn’t practice, did you?” No one says anything, but the charade is over. We smile. This is still kinda-sorta funny at this point. Rod breaks the silence and says “Lee has never been to the mall.”

Drummers giggle at Rod’s smart-ass comment, but the drum staff is not amused. We rehearse until 3:30 a.m. without a break. As we put our drums away, no one is thinking about another trip to the mall.

The Season Begins

After weeks of hard work, we manage to get the field show together. Our first competition is in Lynn, Massachusetts, and our closest competitor is the 27th Lancers, a popular corps from Revere, Mass. Some guy who got cut from our tenor line (and our cymbal line), walks by as he randomly buzzes a contra mouthpiece. “The six-pack is back!” he yells, referencing the small size of our snare line. The drum line murmurs at the dumb nickname invented by the ex-drummer soon-to-be horn player. Although we’re insecure about the fact that our drum line is small, we’re pleasantly surprised to see that the 27th Lancers also have six snares. Let the games begin.

Announcer: Garfield Cadets, you may enter the field for competition!!

Our show starts with the entire corps facing backfield in a tight block, except for Rod, who faces forward to count off after a cue from drum major Rich Armstrong, and a mellophone soloist who stands in the front of the field facing the audience. Unfortunately, Rod misses the drum major's cue for the music to On the Waterfront to begin. The mellophone player starts her solo, but we aren’t marching backwards. We are, in fact, standing still and listening to her.

Thought: Hmmmm. The show just started, and we are standing around doing absolutely nothing. This is not good. Interesting maybe, but not good.

Rod yells, “Sh*t!” and the 1986 Garfield Cadets’ season officially starts with mass panic on the field. Rod starts the count on “five” (but the soloist is actually on count nine) and we all march

stumble and hop backwards as we try to catch up to the soloist.

Somehow, we pull the show back together and barely win the show. What will eventually become a great and wonderful season of drum corps starts with panic, chaos … and maybe just a little bit of humor.

To be continued…

2011-07-02T11:42:00.001-07:00

Project Note - My Immortal

A few hours of work today should result in today being be the last day of getting all of the content from the My Immortal bookstore 2.0 novel into the script. Then, I have three days to refine.

After that, the novel and script are in the right hands, and off we go.

2011-07-02T11:40:00.001-07:00

Former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn may be about to teach the USA a little bit about our "innocent until proven guilty" concept. No matter what happens, I think we should adopt the French law where photos of criminal defendants in handcuffs or jail clothes can not be published until they are actually convicted of something. Seriously.

2011-07-01T13:00:00.001-07:00

Entertainment Principle 603(f) - The more that you develop an entertainment property (film, TV show, play, whatever) before you sell or option it, the more it will be worth, and the more control you will have over its eventual production.

2011-06-29T14:49:00.001-07:00

I'm going to make a great fucking vampire movie.

2011-06-29T11:13:00.000-07:00

Project Note - My Immortal

With the novel 2.0 in the publisher's hands, it's time to knock out the screenplay.

Actually, the My Immortal screenplay has been done for a few years; it's earlier incarnation won the Best Screenplay Award at the Terror Film Festival. But, screenplay 1.0 was set in 1945, and the novel and the film are set in the near future in Berlin (7 years from now) and also 1945. So, the writing is not quite done.

Last night I started turning the screenplay-turned novel-turned novel 2.0 back into a screenplay again. I worked on it last night until about 1:00 am., and I am happy to report that it's coming together faster than I anticipated, perhaps the result of a billion brutal hours spent refining the novel. I'll have it done by Tuesday, which is when I am supposed to turn it in to the other producers.

The mission continues ...

Lee

http://www.drumlaw80.com

2011-06-29T08:53:00.001-07:00

North Korea just shut down all of its universities and sent all the students to work in factories and on farms for the next 10 months. True story. Now, maybe all of those people who doubted that communism works will finally believe in its greatness.

Sarcasm: off

2011-06-27T22:23:00.001-07:00

2011-06-27T15:56:00.000-07:00

As of just now, the second bookstore edition of My Immortal is in the hands of the publisher. It took a week longer than I thought it would to get the final draft done, including working on it until 4:30 am last night ... but it's done, done and done. Tonight will be spent on the couch. :)

2011-06-24T10:13:00.001-07:00

Over the last two weeks, I taught myself how to edit a book. I thought that I knew how to do it before this week, but I didn't. It was brutal, and I put another 100 hours into the second edition of My Immortal. But when the dust settled ... look out.

2011-06-22T11:33:00.000-07:00

2011-06-21T17:54:00.001-07:00

I saw a kid spill a Coke today in a booth, and it might have been a world record ... he covered five (5) people with soda. I don't even see how that much chaos is even possible with one beverage. It was Genius. I could have used that skill set in my food-fighting days at West Chester University.

2011-06-21T10:05:00.001-07:00

Project Note - The Harimaya Bridge will premiere on Warner Bros. video on demand on August 1st. The DVD (with special features, including a director's commentary) will be released in the United States on October 25th. Rock-n-Roll.

2011-06-19T11:12:00.001-07:00

Keeping in the theme of the weekend, I'm spending the entire day writing, editing and fine tuning. Tomorrow, the second edition of My Immortal goes to the publisher ... and then I turn to the script, and away we go.

2011-06-17T09:10:00.001-07:00

2011-06-16T11:47:00.000-07:00

How to solve an NFL 18 game season = every player gets two (2) mandatory bye weeks during the season.

Records stay relevant, players survive

2011-06-16T10:11:00.001-07:00

Networking - the Seven Rule.

When I first moved to LA and figured out that networking was probably the key to working in the entertainment industry, one of the components of my personal business plan was the "7 Rule".

Basically, I committed myself to a minimum of 7 networking/business development "events" every month.

What counts as an event?

Anything that does not make money, but that expands my network and/or knowledge of the industry.

Taking a producer to lunch ... attending a bar seminar on music law ... calling an actor I haven't talked to in a year to chat about football ... anything and everything, as long it is not a commercial endeavor. By quantifying the networking, I devised a more or less objective standard to track and evaluate my business development efforts as a producer and as a lawyer, it I ensured that I didn't lose focus in this area.

Truth be told, sometimes it's hard to get out of the house or office to a film screening, party, lunch or whatever. But doing so, in my opinion, is absolutely essential to working in the entertainment industry.

Just my .07 -

Lee

http://www.drumlaw80.com

2011-06-15T13:42:00.001-07:00

“Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.”

- Dr. Seuss

2011-06-14T14:47:00.000-07:00

I am the worst basketball player in the history of basketball, and the rudest lawyer in 15 years. Nice to meet you. :)

2011-06-14T08:43:00.000-07:00

Seven Random Notes on a Tuesday morning

1. The second "bookstore" edition of My Immortal heads to the publisher on Monday. This version does not have a lot of changes to the original story but it does have a lot of new content, including the previously untold history of the Second Korean War. There will not be a third edition .... this is the version that we run with until it ends up on the big screen.

2. The one benefit of an NFL lockout this fall is that Alex Smith has re-signed with the SF 49ers. I could do without another season of watching a guy who has a genius QB skill set on paper never win.

3. Entertainment law extern class today in Beverly Hills. Today, we dive into music law and also go through film contracts. Hopefully, these guys will get up to speed quickly, as I need the reinforcements.

4. Weeks after Cannes and a producer's beach party that ended with the sun coming up over the sea, I still have the Jay-Z song "Empire State of Mind" still stuck in my head (genius, BTW). All hype aside, Cannes 2011 was one of the greatest time of my life, 10 incredible days I will never forget. I am humbled and honored to have been part of an incredible team.

5. A bit of boo -- Failing is no big deal. The list of things that I have failed at the first 10,000 times is a very, very long list. But truth be told, I'm tired of people blaming their failure or lack of progress on the economy when they can't be bothered to give up a few hours in front of the TV to get something done. If you want it bad enough you will find a way. If not, you won't. But don't blame the economy if you stay on the couch.

6. There is an incredible amount of energy and people both in Europe and the US lining up behind the film version of My Immortal. For the first time in my career, I had an investor track me down about a film ... it's getting scary, in a good way. I was asked me a hypothetical question on Friday, if I would take two million dollars for the My Immortal script from a studio and walk away. My answer ... No fucking way. The reason is that there will always be more money or more movies, but there will never be another My Immortal. I'm seeing it through to the end in Germany, no matter what. Apparently, that was the right answer. The nightmare scenario for me is to take the money and run, and then have my life's work result in a crap film ... not going to happen.

7. Seven

OK cats, this concludes my rambling note.

Have a nice day, thanks for reading!

Lee

http://www.drumlaw80.com/

2011-06-13T21:05:00.000-07:00

Margarine Wars is moving into post production. Today, we retained someone who I think is one of the best post-production supervisors in Hollywood to help us finish the film. I'm very excited to help put together the music package for this film - it should be dynamite!

2011-06-09T17:21:00.001-07:00

Casting Director's Guidelines for Zina, Dumitra, Rodika and Eva? Simple. Find the four most beautiful and evil creatures that exist in Eastern Europe.

2011-06-02T10:00:00.000-07:00

Great preproduction meeting last night ... the journey to make a really [bleep] scary werewolf movie has begun

2011-05-31T19:23:00.001-07:00

Last night, I watched a film on Netflix about what I thought was the fictitious heavy metal band Anvil. I thought I was watching a film like Spinal Tap, where the band is imaginary, formed for the purpose of making the film. I really enjoyed the film, and I thought I was watching a genius comedy, amazing film. With a brilliant script. A+

So anyway, just as the final credits roll, Rumiko searched the film and band on the website, and told me that the band Anvil is a real band. R-E-A-L. I had been watching a documentary, not a comedy. KABOOM!

I instantly realized that I had watched an entirely different film that I thought I was watching. My film world was turned upside down in a split second -- I laughed so hard that I cried.

This was truly one of the (unintentionally) fantastic experiences of watching a film.

Kinda. :)

True story.

Lee

2011-05-26T18:49:00.001-07:00

This has been a strange but nice week back in LA. Technically, I'm still kinda sorta on Cannes time, which means the latest I started work this week was 6:00 AM. I know that the early morning-version of me won't last, lol, but it's nice to have a few hours to get work done before the phone can even think about ringing.

I interviewed externs today. Two selected, one to go. Basically, the interview consisted of me honestly telling them how hard they were going to work to learn entertainment transactions, and if they were just looking for easy credits, run away now.

Sooner or later, drum corps will discover Kickstarter.com

2011-05-23T11:33:00.001-07:00

I think we're going to see a lot more in the press about this in the coming days -- Cannes 64 was a huge shot in the arm for the film industry, and hopefully a good sign for the world economy.

Unlike last year's doom and gloom in the marketplace, the deals seemed to be flying for just about everyone. And Americans won gold, for the first time in years. Which is cool.

2011-05-23T06:10:00.001-07:00

I am holding interviews for two summer entertainment law externship spots this week. Must be a law student.

2011-05-22T15:46:00.001-07:00

P hotos from Cannes 64

2011-05-19T04:22:00.001-07:00

Cannes Film Festival bans Danish director Lars von Trier after he says that he admires Adolf Hitler. Ta-da! ...

I am thinking that he and/or his publicist would be hard pressed to have picked a worse country in which to make such an idiotic announcement.

2011-05-19T04:03:00.000-07:00

The Cannes Producers Network came to a formal end last night with the "sunrise party" at the American Pavilion.

If someone would have told me in law school that my degree would one day result in dancing on a beach in the French Riviera with 200 other producers and filmmakers from all over the world to 80s music until the sun came up, I would have laughed out loud. Last night, that's exactly what happened.

This years Cannes festival has been another incredible and amazing learning experience ... a far cry from 2003, when I once upon a time had to drive three hours in the pouring rain to attend a 5-minute court hearing in front of an antagonized judge regarding liability for mold on shower doors in a housing development ... aka the days I literally cursed getting a law degree as the worst mistake of my life (true story).

Film gives all of us a gift, whether you are a viewer or a participant in any stage of the process.

The gift that film brought into my life was that it finally allowed me to truly enjoy being a lawyer. For that, I will always be grateful.

Lee

http://www.drumlaw80.com

2011-05-18T08:35:00.001-07:00

Still recovering from last night's festivities ... and then I find out that the final official event of the Cannes producer's network is a "sunrise party" tonight at the American Pavilion that doesn't even START until 1:00 AM. The "I-never-got-out-of-college" theory is looking less and less like a theory this week. Good thing I'm a vampire. ;-p

2011-05-15T09:19:00.000-07:00

It took about a million hours longer than I expected it would, but I'm starting to figure out that writing a novel can help you in ways that you never envision when you are creating the story.

I highly recommend to any of you who ever considered going on such a journey, don't spend another minute wondering whether or not you can pull it off -- Write!!!

2011-05-13T10:56:00.000-07:00

Producer's Network

The Cannes Producer's Network started yesterday. Basically, the network consists of a two-hour breakfast meeting every day for a week with producers from all over the world, and a late afternoon happy hour. I missed most of the happy hour today, as a Russian producer and a Reuters reporter-turned Czech producer dragged me over to the Czech Republic party ... and of course, they had Becherovka ... one thing led to another, and a few shots later I was prepared to negotiate an international treaty with the Czech Republic. Concerning what, I have no idea, lol.

This afternoon was the so-called speed-dating session, which is a lot like Dinner Club 7, but all producers and no dinner. Suffice it to say, My Immortal is starting to generate a little buzz here in Cannes, as directors are starting to approach us about the project instead of the other way around.

Now that I have a publisher for the novel, it's time to assemble the financing, finalize our European production partners and roll. I've resisted putting a time line on the production so far, as I've never tried to do anything even remotely close to raising 7-10 million dollars to produce a film in Germany, and I don't want to add unnecessary stress in the event that the learning curve turns out to be longer than anticipated. Frankly, I'm confident -- maybe too confident sometimes, lol -- but, regardless of how long it takes, the My Immortal plan is to stay organized, calm and focused, take each step as it comes, and learn from each mistake along the way. Above all, we don't stop ... no matter what.

2011-05-12T06:24:00.000-07:00

The reaction from the German distributors and production companies to My Immortal: The Vampires of Berlin is much more positive and enthusiastic this year ... very little if any of --"Not-another-WWII-story-from-America..." reaction so far.

In any event, the evil My Immortal business cards turned out to be a genius idea ... they definitely are not subtle. Then again, neither is the project. Watching the reaction to them when we exchange business cards is cool.

In a few hours, the first screening of a Royal We Film. Hopefully, we get a good turnout and can celebrate over a nice glass of wine or two. Our new sales agent form Paris is working his *ss off right to sell the films -- a very good fit with our team.

2011-05-11T09:44:00.000-07:00

2011-05-11T08:05:00.001-07:00

"The Royal We," a new European/American company that I work with held our first meeting today in the European Pavilion with our French sales agent, Reel Suspects. We are pushing hard and doing several screenings of the two Royal We films in Cannes, and I hope will leave here with some if not all of the rights sold to those films, so we can focus on the next one. I'm also here with Eleven Arts as well, which has a booth in the Palais and a fantastic slate of films this year.

Since the Producer's Network starts early tomorrow morning, and Cannes usually ends up being an experiment in sleep deprivation by day 4, I went to sleep relatively early last night (1:30 AM) compliments of Nyquil, and slept for a good nine hours. Might as well give myself a fighting chance to make it through this week, lol.

I tried hard to not bring too much work with me, but one of my clients is starting a radio show/soon to be reality television program, so I have a few talent agreements to knock out today before dinner.

Thanks for checking in - more random thoughts later --

2011-05-11T03:23:00.001-07:00

It is wonderful start to be back in Cannes ... for this drum corps fan, it's like DCI or DCA all rolled into one, but for two weeks. It is amazing how many friends, clients and colleagues I have from all over the world because of this festival .... a festival that my mother, of all people, was the first to suggest I incorporate into my business.

Last night got off to a fast start ... dinner in old town, and the third and probably final main producer of My Immortal signed on to the team. Following that, it was off to the annual bar/street party at Le Petite Majestic, where I have spent many an evening talking film over a beer or twelve. Hehehe.

2011-05-10T11:54:00.001-07:00

I am back in France .... commence chaos. :)

2011-05-09T09:10:00.000-07:00

Here we go Again.

Headed to LAX airport soon ... then plan to bury myself in a window seat and work on the new additions to the novel My Immortal all the way to London. And also the script, which is still approximately 400,000 pages too long. Or something like that.

The trip this year in to Cannes is exciting - a few years ago, it felt like a trip to Disneyland. Now, it's work -- albeit a fun element of work -- but it feels more like an international mission this year, the two teams I'm working with have members from Switzerland, Austria, Japan and the United States, all of whom are converging on Southern France with the rest of the film world in the next few days.

With a little bit of luck, we will come out of Cannes with a few films sold and more of the European portion of the My Immortal team in place. And I will hopefully have a killer second edition of the novel.

One other informal mission of Cannes this year is to actually sleep once in a while, so I don't end up completely out of commission for two weeks when I get back to LA this year. This festival is like a fast moving river, once you get swept up in it, it's hard to find time to rest. We'll see how it goes.

2011-05-08T22:28:00.000-07:00

Hi there. Thank you for attending. Welcome to a two-week long Special Edition of Blog 7.

For the next two weeks, I'm in lawyer, producer and writer-mode in Cannes. Blog 7 might look different every day until I find a template that I don't hate, lol, but I hope you enjoy this daily journal and creative writing outlet, which will mostly be about film, film, film and more film. And probably some chaos and mayhem. And vampires, of course. But mostly film.

2011-05-08T21:48:00.000-07:00

2011-05-08T21:34:00.001-07:00

HATED - Cannes Market Premiere on Saturday, May 15 19:30 GRAY 2

2011-05-08T20:21:00.000-07:00

2011-05-08T12:15:00.000-07:00

Book Trivia

I'm a firm believer in a theory I first heard at UCLA that where you write dramatically affects what you write. Probably many of you who write subscribe to that theory as well. So, as the theory goes -- for strategic reasons, the first edition of My Immortal was finished in Cannes last year. Basically, I was hoping that as a first time novel writer, some magic from that little balcony in Cannes could somehow seep into the book. I like to think it did - it was definitely an amazing place to write.

Now that we have a publisher, I'm working on a second "bookstore" edition. The timing worked out, so my plan is to put the final touches on it while sitting, once again, on that magical balcony.

For the record, I don't consider myself a great or prolific writer. At my book signing, I met Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, a woman who sold over 80 books in her career. Now, she's a writer. My client who writes for Rolling Stone. He's a writer. I've written a few good things, but that doesn't make me a writer.

But, as I was telling Rumiko last night, I know that My Immortal is going to the top. I have no doubt, in fact. Zero. I can't explain why, and I almost feel silly saying it, but I have the same feeling that I had when I saw Vanguard in 1982 as a kid. I just know. It's not confidence, and it's not arrogance, I hope. Maybe I am deluding myself, but that's what I think.

Anyway ... enough of that nonsense. lol. It's time to fly, and it's time to write. Thank you my friend for checking in to Blog 7 -- I'm going to write every day on Blog 7 in Cannes, random thoughts etc.

Stay tuned -

Lee

http://www.drumlaw80.com

2011-05-07T11:52:00.000-07:00

Stay tuned ...

photos, updates, and ramblings from Cannes 64.

2011-05-01T12:19:00.001-07:00

One benefit about setting a life or career goal for yourself that you will strive to achieve "no matter what," is that any failures along the way become a lot less important. Instead, each failure becomes an opportunity to learn and refine the plan. Which if you think about it, makes that event technically "not" a failure anymore.

As long as you stay focused on your goal and remain completely indifferent about failing or components of your plan not working along the way ... you will succeed.

Nobody cares that Babe Ruth struck out a lot. Keep swinging the bat.

Just my .07

2011-04-19T15:14:00.001-07:00

Breaking News: Austrian producer Melitta Fitzer formally joins the production team of My Immortal: The Vampires of Berlin.

2011-04-18T11:47:00.000-07:00

With a little effort, the amount of people who you can meet in film or television in Los Angeles is amazing.

2011-04-15T08:52:00.000-07:00

In LA this Weekend? I'm speaking on Sunday at a film event called "Happy Independents Day."

More information here -

http://www.happyindependentsday.com

2011-04-14T11:50:00.001-07:00

The National Assn. of Theater Owners = NATO. Amusing.

2011-04-12T17:31:00.000-07:00

2011-04-12T10:04:00.001-07:00

2011-04-10T12:27:00.000-07:00

Heard the first tune from the Vampires of Berlin soundtrack yet?

http://www.VampiresofBerlin.com/soundtrack.html

2011-04-06T22:56:00.001-07:00

Red Sox fall to 0-5. Detroit Lions not impressed.

2011-04-06T13:03:00.000-07:00

Film Safety Tip - If you're working on your very first film, your fees are the absolute last thing you should be concerned about.

2011-04-06T10:05:00.001-07:00

Candidates are gearing up for reelection when we can't even pass a budget? Stop worrying about your job and create some - BOTH parties.

2011-04-05T17:24:00.000-07:00

“As an artist ... you don’t need anyone’s permission to create your own work."

- Producer Dana Offenbach

2011-04-01T18:17:00.000-07:00

My Immortal got mentioned in Entertainment Weekly as the #3 best seller at the famous horror bookstore, Dark Delicacies. Cool

2011-04-01T10:59:00.001-07:00

LA Entertainment Plan. Principle 4: The 150% Rule. Give every project 150% with zero consideration of the possibility of failure. If you cannot give a project 150%, don't take it on. If you are afraid of failure, you will fail. Self Fulfilling Prophecy 101.

2011-04-01T10:00:00.001-07:00

TRIVIA: The main reason I found confidence in life as a kid, is simply because I managed to get good at snare drumming. I was horrible at sports and everything else at school ... drumming finally gave me an activity that made me feel good about myself. This is why band programs are so important in schools and it all has ZERO to do with drum rudiments, a drill spot, or finding middle C on a piano.

2011-03-31T15:33:00.001-07:00

Producer Rule # 2(f) - Ignore any and all market data, box office sales, trends, sound advice and predictions when determining what type of film you want to work on. No one knows anything, especially in regards to what will be hot a year from now.

2011-03-30T22:02:00.001-07:00

In the midst of a nuclear catastrophe, three wars and a mass multinational uprising ... the Drudge Report lead story is Judge Judy. Genius.

2011-03-30T11:35:00.001-07:00

2011-03-30T10:02:00.001-07:00

Finally going through my Facebook emails, a feature that I regularly forget exists (true story). If you ever need to get a hold of me, dixie cups with a string or carrier pigeon might be significantly faster then FB email.

2011-03-29T19:51:00.000-07:00

My Immortal: The Vampires of Berlin

2011-03-27T09:46:00.001-07:00

At work at 9:00 am on Sunday .... catching up on the new contracts and clients that came in last week. Be careful what you wish for. :)

2011-03-24T08:43:00.000-07:00

The Harimaya Bridge will be shown in the KANSAS CITY area on Sunday, March 27th on a day of film screenings to benefit victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, in an event sponsored by the Consulate General of Japan, the local JET Alumni Association chapter, and other organizations. If you are in the American Heartland or you know folks there, please share this info and link with them.

http://www.theharimayabridge.com

2011-03-23T14:58:00.001-07:00

Next Dinner Club 7 film event, Saturday, April 9 in Hollywood -

Details here http://www.1001waystoenjoythemissionaryposition.com/

2011-03-23T10:02:00.000-07:00

Bring the Vampires of Berlin home with you via Kindle today. http://tinyurl.com/3962z5j

2011-03-23T09:33:00.001-07:00

TRIVIA: As a matter of policy, my law firm does not represent entertainers who hurt or degrade people in the name of ratings.

2011-03-23T09:06:00.000-07:00

2011-03-22T18:47:00.001-07:00

Capitalism may be to blame for the lack of life on the planet Mars, Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez said on Tuesday. WINNING