So close and yet...

I recently came across this little snippet on Facebook and it speaks volumes. I've been working on the Hunted in one form or another for over ten years now. During that time, it's taken several sidetracks, mostly dealing with having to take a day job just to make a living. And unfortunately, it's that time once again.

When I decided to make the feature late last year, I spent months working crazy hours making as much money as I could to be able to take the summer off and make this happen. Unfortunately, we went through a major reboot on the script (which I still don't regret), we've gone through at least three drafts with three different writers, and the summer is quickly coming to an end with the ball in my court to finish the final draft.

I thought about borrowing from the Kickstarter fund to keep myself going, but that money is slated for the film itself and I'd like to keep it that way. The irony is that there is no production if I'm busy working on another job. But there's no telling how much longer the script will take, and you gotta do what you gotta do.

I'm more than a little bit bummed - especially since I was supposed to be in the process of editing by now. Everything else is set to go. Thanks to you guys and Kickstarter, we've got the money. Thanks to New Deal, we've got the studio. But like I've said before, a solid script is essential. If you don't have that, everything else can be a complete waste.

So how do you know when a script is done? A script can be very subjective, and you can get completely different notes from different readers. But when you get the same notes from different readers, that's when you know the script still needs work. And these aren't just any readers. In the film industry, there are professional readers that give you what is called "coverage", basically telling you what's wrong with your script. These folks have worked on tons of TV shows and feature films, so I trust they know what they're talking about. And I balance that with the knowledge I have from writing several of my own scripts including "Ring of Steel".

I plan to continue working on the script in my spare time. Unfortunately, I've taken a gig working as a visual effects artist, which can sometimes mean 10-12 hour days seven days a week, leaving little time for anything else. On the flip side, at least I'm not working as a waiter or bag boy and I can potentially make enough in the next month to jump back on the film full time. What's more, it's a pretty cool gig at one of my favorite studios, Zoic (which works on shows like Battlestar and True Blood), working on a feature called "The Grey" with Liam Neeson: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hfb0-U0ydj8

What's more, thanks to our editor extraordinaire, Jon Debiase, we're getting ready to release our latest epic episode of The Hunted, "SlayerCon". This two-part episode was shot this summer in Las Vegas at the first annual "Combat Con" convention and features a multitude of familiar faces including myself, Andrew Helm, Anthony DeLongis, Mary DeLongis, Jessica Cail, Kendall Wells, Derek Conley, and Kyle Rowling. If you haven't already seen it, check out the trailer at: http://youtu.be/xaTDQjpQ9eI

So The Hunted is still going strong and we're still moving forward, even though it feels like we're slowly pushing a big-ass boulder eighteen miles uphill in the snow... both ways! I just wanted to give you guys an update and thank you for your patience, understanding, and support.

Bob