Payne & Redemption – An Independent Film Inspired By The Works Of Sam Lake

For those of you who don’t follow me on Twitter, or Facebook, I am currently reviewing a fantastic little electronic viewfinder / monitoring solution, made by North Carolina based company SmallHD, called the DP4-EVF. I plan to use the DP4-EVF on Payne & Redemption — alongside a RED Scarlet-X — to help maintain critical focus throughout the production.

Here is a 720p screencap from one of the tests I’m doing for my review, of a rather familiar looking character, enacted (for this purpose) by the one and only Antonio Geezahrelli…

Click the image to view in 1280×720.

Ant also portrayed this eccentrically dressed individual in a test I shot for my review on the Kessler Crane Pocket Jib a couple years back, which you can view here. In case any of you were wondering, Ant will not be replacing Nigel Billing’s role in Payne & Redemption, despite Patrick Streutjens (Cypress) from Payne Reactor trying to persuade me. Sorry, dude!

Fergle “That Max Payne Guy” Gibson,
Writer, Director & Executive Producer.

As this project has matured and I’ve become a more experienced Film Producer, I’ve made a point in not making announcements unless I’m 100% sure that whatever I’m talking about in that announcement is either ready, or about to be. People often misinterpret enthusiasm for promises, and become upset when you can’t deliver on time. However, because I class the following announcement in the latter category, I thought I’d let you guys in on it…

Back in 2007, I shot a bunch of interviews with Nigel Billing, Kylie Cushman and John Mangan. Up until now, the tapes I shot on were just gathering dust. Luckily, I was recently able to transfer the interview tapes to my PC, and begin working on a new “Interview Series”, which will be a three part series, equalling around ninety minutes of total footage, released apart from each other, and starting with John’s.

The interviews provide an insightful look into the actors, their characters in Payne & Redemption, the work that went into Payne & Redemption at the time, and what Payne & Redemption means to them. I won’t give a release date yet, but rest assured, I am cutting the interviews together as we speak, so I will keep everyone up to date as and when.

On a different note, I picked up a copy of Alan Wake on Steam when it was released on February 16th, and my God, what an awesome game that is! Writers Sam Lake and Mikko Rautalahti have really out done themselves on this one. Here’s hoping the sequel, Alan Wake’s American Nightmare, also sees a PC release in the not-too-distant future, as I already crave more of Bright Falls, and I haven’t even finished the first one yet. Remedy, you guys have been gone too long. Welcome back!

If any of you guys haven’t yet played Alan Wake, but own a PC, I urge you to get it NOW! At £22.99, it’s a deal, it’s a steal, it’s the sale of the fucking century!

http://store.steampowered.com/app/108710

Fergle “That Max Payne Guy” Gibson,
Writer, Director & Executive Producer.

Today marks the day of Payne & Redemption’s FOURTH trailer, and third fundraising campaign to help take this film one step towards the finishing line.

Gone is the idea to turn this project into a music video. Now, Payne & Redemption will be a FEATURE LENGTH FILM, and here’s how it’s going to work…

I’m currently writing a film treatment for Payne & Redemption, which serves as the scaffolding for the film’s feature length screenplay. From that, I’m going to select a handful of scenes to churn into a short, promotional film, using the footage we shot back in ’06, with a projected runtime of 45 minutes. This promotional film will be used to seek funding for the feature length production, or to attract the interest of potential movie studios. Also, it will be released online, to you guys, in high-definition. So, in the event that we aren’t able to raise the required funds for the feature length film, or no movie studios are interested, YOU guys will still have something for your patience and loyalty towards Payne & Redemption.

Before we get to that point, one of the steps we must take is to transfer the master tapes containing the footage we shot in ’06 to hard-drive, so that I can access that footage on my PC in its original, RAW, 1080p format, and use it to support the remainder of this film’s architecture.

That is what this particular fundraising campaign is for, and this is where I once again need to recruit YOUR help…

http://www.indiegogo.com/payneandredemption

Oh, and did I mention something about a new trailer? Check out the link above.

UPDATE – Anyone who donated to the last IndieGoGo fundraising campaign, is entitled to a higher perk if they donate again. For example, if you donated $50 last time, you will receive the $100 perk if you donate another $50 this time.

Fergle “The Tank” Gibson,
Writer, Director & Executive Producer.

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Luke Morgan-Rowe, who co-produced Payne & Redemption with Writer, Director & Executive Producer Fergle Gibson since its inception, has officially stepped down from his role as Producer for the remainder of the film’s production, as his medical career no longer offers him the flexibility required to dedicate to the project. For those who don’t know, Luke is a London based Doctor, whose job is very time consuming and is often accompanied by an unpredictable schedule. Luke Morgan-Rowe’s successor will be annouced at a later date.

Payne & Redemption will not suffer any set-backs as a result of this alteration.

And in other news, I’ve an exciting new annoucement for you guys very soon, so stay frosty.

Fergle “Who else but me?” Gibson,
Writer, Director & Executive Producer.

After I posted my first impressions of the Max Payne 3 trailer, citing the game’s terrible graphics and lack of “Max Payne” atmosphere, quite a few higher-res textured images of Max Payne 3 that DO convey the “Max Payne” atmosphere have found their way on the net, and it looks like it’s shaping up quite nicely.

As many of you know from the post I made about Max Payne 3 on June 10th, 2009, I welcomed the new setting of São Paulo, Max’s new look and the new direction the franchise was heading… And I still do. I’m not worried about change, and you guys shouldn’t, either. Especially when Rockstar Games is at the helm.

For those who believe Rockstar has butchered their favourite character, in favour of some generic action hero clone, check out this collection of screens I compiled from Max Payne 3, and tell me that ain’t Max Payne…

I still believe that Rockstar needs to sort out its own rendition of the Max Payne theme we all know so well, as the piano and cello iterations are associated with the first two video-games, so we need something to associate with the third instalment, and I still dislike the writing of Max’s dialogue and the overall atmosphere from the trailer, but trailers quite often don’t reflect the product they’re promoting, even though that’s what they’re supposed to do. I understand that, though, and I’m giving it a chance.

As we get closer to the release date of Max Payne 3, more and more media will be released, and it looks like it’s only going to get better. I think I can speak for all of us, however, when I say we want to see some IN-GAME footage, as that’s going to seal the deal. Rockstar Games are showcasing Max Payne 3 at the New York Comic Con NOW, until October 16th, so if you’re in the area, check it out!

Fergle “Larry David” Gibson,
Writer, Director & Executive Producer.