“Shake The Hippie” by THE 39 CLOCKS from their Pain It Dark LP, released in 1981 on the Independent No Fun Records label out of Germany.
The 39 Clocks are one of the most magnificent bands ever to have emerged from Germany; Diedrich Diederichsen, German pop boffin, considers them to be the nation's best band of the 1980s. The legendary duo from Hanover broke every rule in the music business, without exception. And -- above all -- with attitude. They are elusive, incapable of being categorized, unless the category is a little bit weird. Their real names have been eradicated ("never had one" -- Clocks), replaced by cryptic initials (CH-39, JG-39), less than randomly reminiscent of molecular chains like LSD-25. The weirdness is reflected in their music: sizzling irradiated, repetitive. The outrageous rumors surrounding the duo are the stuff of legend: strung-out live performances with vacuum cleaners instead of guitars, frequently facing a throng of concertgoers with a tendency to boo, flee the venue or threaten them with physical violence. The Clocks project really began to take shape in 1979 when they turned away from punk and created "psycho beat", positioning themselves as the antithesis of the emerging NDW/German New Wave movement. Their music is a futuristic, definitively urban, evolution of American garage punk from the 1960s. Their stylistic modus operandi: expressionless voice, English lyrics with an intentionally heavy German accent, dirty sound, cool monochrome image. Those lacking in imagination might identify touches of the Velvet Underground and stop right there, but many other influences were also at work: from Salvador Dali via the Troggs, Suicide, Peter Handke's Offending The Audience (1966), Antoine to Tiny Tim, Kurt Schwitters, Can, and NEU! The Clocks themselves spoke of "at least 123" sources of inspiration. In early 1980s Germany, the 39 Clocks were, at one and the same time, a panoply of discernible influences and a singular phenomenon with a clear, inimitable sonic identity. Time and again, the 39 Clocks succeeded in pushing back the borders of experimentation a little further: barely tolerable, protracted live improvisations, atonal passages, background noises, extreme lo-fi and a tinny beatbox test the listener's receptivity to the limit. And their sonic experiments popped up in various film soundtracks and on television series, like Halt and Catch Fire in the US. The Next Dimension Transfer box set, authorized by the band, provides the ultimate overview of the Clocks' output -- a phantom of the German music underground, enshrouded in myth.
This a great reminder of what it takes to make a movie and the miracle we experience when creativity, hard work and the stars all align to make it a reality :)
Excellent checklist, especially the points on how to get funding, which always seems to be main sticking point on developing the project. I always used to do little 1-2 person stop motion shorts and, even on little projects, there were many of these things to take into account.
Something I perceive is the necessary coupling of patience and tenacity. A sort of tireless commitment to progress while actively resisting the urge to “rush to nowhere”. And I suppose to do that well, one must truly believe in what they’re selling.... which must come from a commitment to your stated creative principles. Thanks Ted as always!
I’m sorry to be a contrarian but I completely disagree with this article and find it to be willfully misleading to aspiring filmmakers.
Some of the steps are good steps to practice but insofar as no. 8 goes, oh brother! Love for the film industry? Seriously? To borrow a metaphor, the film industry is A CLOSED SET, a royal court for which only money, connections and/or influence will get you entree. Additionally, you have to kowtow to the current narratives/ideologies in order to be considered. The film industry is completely controlled; this is no secret; and all the related courses, classes and contests are just cul de sacs to keep you spinning in a fairy tale of hope that you will be discovered.
I’ve got news for you--you won’t. No one gives a crap about good movies, movies that make you think, feel good about life, inspire you to greatness. A Sundance programmer once said that they want dark movies to bring down the people. Think about that! Why would you want to do that?! Huh?! That example is just the tip of the iceberg as to the people that really run the film industry, their true nature. It’s all built on lies, deception, of literally selling your souls to the devil (you think I’m kidding?!)
If you’re willing to do/go through all that, it’s your call. Outside of that, the only way you can make your movies is by sheer force of will to go against this corrupt deceptive industry.
I love contrarians, so thank you for disagreeing VP. I throw a lot of bricks at the film industry, but I have a great deal of love for it. It moves far too slow for me, but I recognize it is in constant change. The walls always have cracks and light gets in and flowers bloom. No one generally wants to develop my projects, act in, fund, program, buy, distribute, or perserve them. And I can only ever find one person to direct them. Yet somehow I have made many. If you don't maintain love, I don't know how you stay in the relationship. I still find those that want to do something different. I find someone bold. We only ever need one other to have a team. As I said, such lists aren't for all -- but at least you can rebel. I hope you find a method and practice that yields results that you are as satisfied with as I am with mine. And find ways to keep on keeping on. Assuming you will, please share with all of us and welcome the contrarians to that too!
Appreciate your comment and perspective; at least you're not blind to the realities of the business. I congratulate you on your ability to get your projects done in spite of all that, and I hope to complete something of mine that's been in production for...are you ready?...almost 20 years!
Thank you for the list! I will be sharing it with my collaborators!
I invite you and your readers here to my new series “Nonlinear Film School” where I write from the trenches : ) with the idea to celebrate this great art form, learn from and support each other.
I shared this on Twitter so if you see that, sorry for the repetition.
Last week you asked for comments on an ideal environment to support filmmakers. I asked for a map. This is the map I asked for. Thank you! It’s specific enough to give direction but vague enough to facilitate almost any project.
The 39 Clocks, their Independent career and songs, serve as metaphor and shining example for the 57 Steps To Getting Your Movie Made. Also their “Psycho Beat” rhythms make you dance funny, which is never a bad thing.
Honestly, reading this list (five years into what is essentially a solo feature-length project), I just feel exhausted. A big part is not having found my community, having moved to a country where I don't speak the language well. Is there a way to see the list as energizing, rather than insurmountably daunting?
I think love and devotion is the answer to most things. We can't turn away when things get difficult or when we are unhappy, even in the doing. To me the mountain of work required is something positive, reinforcing our commitment in the knowing of. As wonderful as a beginner's mind is, it is only so once. In knowing, including the knowing/acceptance of the unkown, we stay humble enough to confront and see the difficulties for what they are. You are supposed to be exhausted. And you are growing stronger. You are no longer who you were five years ago when you started the journey. Mark the time, and be grateful that you've devoted so much to your love.
This is how we use to prepare for a film. My late husband was a wonderful director and storyboard illustrator. However, whenever we had a studio behind us, in-house production did much of the work in advance. Storyboards are CRUCIAL!
Hi Ted, thanks for this thorough and inspiring list. I'm a Montreal-based UPM trying to get my first features going in our artist friendly yet cash starved system. A couple questions: what do you mean by 'covering agents' in point 44? Is it still best practice to insist on a signed NDA from all potential financiers/distributors before sharing the script/deck? And finally, I have begun shopping one project to some select funders with only a pitch deck and detailed (6+ pg) outline, both to gauge interest and also in the hopes of some seed money to accelerate completion of the script, which is not ready. Is there any sense in continuing this way, or does my director need to suck it up and finish the script on spec? For what it's worth the treatment and story beats are into their 12th+ drafts, but I don't want to be seen as jumping the gun, especially if the odds of a bit of development cash are slim to none in this climate, as you seem to suggest in other posts. Thanks
The song in the Youtube link posted here is in desperate need of an Avant-Garde music video to replace the washed out still image of the guys in sunglasses. Great and thoughtful list Ted...
“Shake The Hippie” by THE 39 CLOCKS from their Pain It Dark LP, released in 1981 on the Independent No Fun Records label out of Germany.
The 39 Clocks are one of the most magnificent bands ever to have emerged from Germany; Diedrich Diederichsen, German pop boffin, considers them to be the nation's best band of the 1980s. The legendary duo from Hanover broke every rule in the music business, without exception. And -- above all -- with attitude. They are elusive, incapable of being categorized, unless the category is a little bit weird. Their real names have been eradicated ("never had one" -- Clocks), replaced by cryptic initials (CH-39, JG-39), less than randomly reminiscent of molecular chains like LSD-25. The weirdness is reflected in their music: sizzling irradiated, repetitive. The outrageous rumors surrounding the duo are the stuff of legend: strung-out live performances with vacuum cleaners instead of guitars, frequently facing a throng of concertgoers with a tendency to boo, flee the venue or threaten them with physical violence. The Clocks project really began to take shape in 1979 when they turned away from punk and created "psycho beat", positioning themselves as the antithesis of the emerging NDW/German New Wave movement. Their music is a futuristic, definitively urban, evolution of American garage punk from the 1960s. Their stylistic modus operandi: expressionless voice, English lyrics with an intentionally heavy German accent, dirty sound, cool monochrome image. Those lacking in imagination might identify touches of the Velvet Underground and stop right there, but many other influences were also at work: from Salvador Dali via the Troggs, Suicide, Peter Handke's Offending The Audience (1966), Antoine to Tiny Tim, Kurt Schwitters, Can, and NEU! The Clocks themselves spoke of "at least 123" sources of inspiration. In early 1980s Germany, the 39 Clocks were, at one and the same time, a panoply of discernible influences and a singular phenomenon with a clear, inimitable sonic identity. Time and again, the 39 Clocks succeeded in pushing back the borders of experimentation a little further: barely tolerable, protracted live improvisations, atonal passages, background noises, extreme lo-fi and a tinny beatbox test the listener's receptivity to the limit. And their sonic experiments popped up in various film soundtracks and on television series, like Halt and Catch Fire in the US. The Next Dimension Transfer box set, authorized by the band, provides the ultimate overview of the Clocks' output -- a phantom of the German music underground, enshrouded in myth.
https://youtu.be/-KouIva357M?si=ll840ufQNtWxSrkC
And explain the connection to me of the song to the post?
This a great reminder of what it takes to make a movie and the miracle we experience when creativity, hard work and the stars all align to make it a reality :)
Excellent checklist, especially the points on how to get funding, which always seems to be main sticking point on developing the project. I always used to do little 1-2 person stop motion shorts and, even on little projects, there were many of these things to take into account.
Kudos on the Bela Tarr shout out.
Cheers
A primer for film students and film makers.
Cosigned.
Something I perceive is the necessary coupling of patience and tenacity. A sort of tireless commitment to progress while actively resisting the urge to “rush to nowhere”. And I suppose to do that well, one must truly believe in what they’re selling.... which must come from a commitment to your stated creative principles. Thanks Ted as always!
Excellent point! Or rather two!! Thanks Mwxz.
Wow that list would keep me very busy
I’m sorry to be a contrarian but I completely disagree with this article and find it to be willfully misleading to aspiring filmmakers.
Some of the steps are good steps to practice but insofar as no. 8 goes, oh brother! Love for the film industry? Seriously? To borrow a metaphor, the film industry is A CLOSED SET, a royal court for which only money, connections and/or influence will get you entree. Additionally, you have to kowtow to the current narratives/ideologies in order to be considered. The film industry is completely controlled; this is no secret; and all the related courses, classes and contests are just cul de sacs to keep you spinning in a fairy tale of hope that you will be discovered.
I’ve got news for you--you won’t. No one gives a crap about good movies, movies that make you think, feel good about life, inspire you to greatness. A Sundance programmer once said that they want dark movies to bring down the people. Think about that! Why would you want to do that?! Huh?! That example is just the tip of the iceberg as to the people that really run the film industry, their true nature. It’s all built on lies, deception, of literally selling your souls to the devil (you think I’m kidding?!)
If you’re willing to do/go through all that, it’s your call. Outside of that, the only way you can make your movies is by sheer force of will to go against this corrupt deceptive industry.
I love contrarians, so thank you for disagreeing VP. I throw a lot of bricks at the film industry, but I have a great deal of love for it. It moves far too slow for me, but I recognize it is in constant change. The walls always have cracks and light gets in and flowers bloom. No one generally wants to develop my projects, act in, fund, program, buy, distribute, or perserve them. And I can only ever find one person to direct them. Yet somehow I have made many. If you don't maintain love, I don't know how you stay in the relationship. I still find those that want to do something different. I find someone bold. We only ever need one other to have a team. As I said, such lists aren't for all -- but at least you can rebel. I hope you find a method and practice that yields results that you are as satisfied with as I am with mine. And find ways to keep on keeping on. Assuming you will, please share with all of us and welcome the contrarians to that too!
Appreciate your comment and perspective; at least you're not blind to the realities of the business. I congratulate you on your ability to get your projects done in spite of all that, and I hope to complete something of mine that's been in production for...are you ready?...almost 20 years!
Thank you for the list! I will be sharing it with my collaborators!
I invite you and your readers here to my new series “Nonlinear Film School” where I write from the trenches : ) with the idea to celebrate this great art form, learn from and support each other.
https://www.followthepen.com/p/a-wonder-is-born
Greetings from Bulgaria!
Move to substacks? So we don't have to subscribe to ANOTHER platform doing the same thing.... Interesting read.
Thanks for reading. I'm on Substack and loving it. They allow you to have your own domain in the name of the publicaiton.
I shared this on Twitter so if you see that, sorry for the repetition.
Last week you asked for comments on an ideal environment to support filmmakers. I asked for a map. This is the map I asked for. Thank you! It’s specific enough to give direction but vague enough to facilitate almost any project.
The 39 Clocks, their Independent career and songs, serve as metaphor and shining example for the 57 Steps To Getting Your Movie Made. Also their “Psycho Beat” rhythms make you dance funny, which is never a bad thing.
Honestly, reading this list (five years into what is essentially a solo feature-length project), I just feel exhausted. A big part is not having found my community, having moved to a country where I don't speak the language well. Is there a way to see the list as energizing, rather than insurmountably daunting?
I think love and devotion is the answer to most things. We can't turn away when things get difficult or when we are unhappy, even in the doing. To me the mountain of work required is something positive, reinforcing our commitment in the knowing of. As wonderful as a beginner's mind is, it is only so once. In knowing, including the knowing/acceptance of the unkown, we stay humble enough to confront and see the difficulties for what they are. You are supposed to be exhausted. And you are growing stronger. You are no longer who you were five years ago when you started the journey. Mark the time, and be grateful that you've devoted so much to your love.
How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time
It, too, apparently required a community.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/ancient-humans-in-israel-once-ate-elephants-when-they-disappeared-weapons-improved/
See! The eating of elephants gave us the AK47. The NRA mascot should be an elephant.
There's apparently a significant overlap between NRA membership and the party that already has that mascot.
Ha! Well played. I’m Canadian so I missed that connection...
love this list
This is great. Thanks Ted.
This is how we use to prepare for a film. My late husband was a wonderful director and storyboard illustrator. However, whenever we had a studio behind us, in-house production did much of the work in advance. Storyboards are CRUCIAL!
Fail better is my favorite step.
Hi Ted, thanks for this thorough and inspiring list. I'm a Montreal-based UPM trying to get my first features going in our artist friendly yet cash starved system. A couple questions: what do you mean by 'covering agents' in point 44? Is it still best practice to insist on a signed NDA from all potential financiers/distributors before sharing the script/deck? And finally, I have begun shopping one project to some select funders with only a pitch deck and detailed (6+ pg) outline, both to gauge interest and also in the hopes of some seed money to accelerate completion of the script, which is not ready. Is there any sense in continuing this way, or does my director need to suck it up and finish the script on spec? For what it's worth the treatment and story beats are into their 12th+ drafts, but I don't want to be seen as jumping the gun, especially if the odds of a bit of development cash are slim to none in this climate, as you seem to suggest in other posts. Thanks
The song in the Youtube link posted here is in desperate need of an Avant-Garde music video to replace the washed out still image of the guys in sunglasses. Great and thoughtful list Ted...
Gives me HOPE! lol