Posts Tagged ‘Blue Christmas’

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Cedar Rapids Film Festival & True Noir

Tuesday, April 2nd, 2024

This week we have our only film festival screening (to date, anyway) for Blue Christmas. It’s at the Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival, which holds its 21st edition April 5-7, 2024 at the Collins Road Theatres, 1462 Twixt Town Road, Marion, Iowa. CRIFF (in their words) will celebrate the work of filmmakers from across the state, throughout the country, and around the world, all with connections to Iowa.

Here’s the festival’s official listing:

Blue Christmas
Professional Narrative Feature | 1h:20m
Sat 9:00am & 1:05pm

Max Allan Collins – Writer/Director
Chad Thomas Bishop – Producer
Phillip W. Dingeldein – Director of Photography
Muscatine

Synopsis:
In 1942 Chicago, private eye Richard Stone is visited on Christmas Eve by the ghost of his late partner on the anniversary of the murder. Escorted by three spirits, Stone must visit his past, present and future to find the killer…and redemption.
Iowa Connection: The entire cast and crew is from Iowa… wow!

Star Rob Merritt will be in attendance for the 9 a.m. screening, and Barb and I will be there for the 1:05 p.m. screening. Other cast and crew members may surprise us at one or both screenings, and I will be there for the awards on Saturday night at 9:30 p.m., hoping to take home some gold or silver.

We are also entered in the Iowa Motion Picture Awards, which are presented May 4 at Forest City, Iowa, at the awards event. That is a competition but not a film festival. My films have done well at this event in the past, and just last year I won Best Director for Mickey Spillane’s Encore for Murder. Barb and I plan to attend.

We are considering a few other regional festivals, but the reality is that we already have our home video distributor in VCI, whose partner label MVD will be taking us out to streaming services.

And the Iowa-based Fridley chain, as well as the Collins Road Theatre in Cedar Rapids and the Last Picture House in Davenport, have expressed interest in running Blue Christmas this coming holiday season. So further festivals, if we choose to enter any, will be for fun and a little recognition; but it’s the Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival and the Iowa Motion Picture Awards that could prove beneficial to marketing. Every indie film likes to have a few Laurel Wreaths for bragging rights.

The support we’ve received from the Fridley chain, Bruce Taylor at the Collins Road Theatre, and our pals Beck and Woods at the Last Picture House has been enormously gratifying, as has been the audience response to our little movie. As I’ve said before, I am well aware that we have a certain home court advantage here in Iowa. But it feels good nonetheless.

Seeing Blue Christmas on huge movie-theater screens, as opposed to at home screening or on physical media, has been an unexpected treat.

As the news regarding Blue Christmas will be taking up less of my weekly updates – at least till Christmas season 2024 – I want to take this opportunity to thank my talented cast (toplined by Rob Merritt and Alisabeth Von Presley) and my key partners, producer/editor Chad Bishop and Director of Photography Phil Dingeldein, for making this $14,000 production look like a million bucks.

Also, thanks to my bride Barb, who swore she would have nothing to do with this one, and then at the last minute dug in and did her usual stellar job.

* * *

I am about to begin scripting our fully immersive audio production (calling it a podcast doesn’t quite cut it) of True Noir: The Nathan Heller Casebooks, based on the first Heller novel, True Detective. This will be ten scripts designed to run around forty minutes or so each. I’ve already broken the book down into those ten episodes in an outline/synopsis that runs 70 pages.

So it’s a massive project.

Director Robert Meyer Burnett – whose Robservations, among much else on YouTube is well worth following (I do) – did a fantastic job with an exemplary voice cast in doing a sort of pilot (a twelve-minute version of the opening of Stolen Away) that will be part of a crowd-funding campaign launching soon. Rob (who, among much else, directed the cult-fave Free Enterprise with William Shatner) created in the pilot a virtual movie for the ears.

Starring as Nate Heller is Todd Stashwick, who appeared memorably on the recent third season of Picard as Captain Liam Shaw. A fan favorite among Star Trek enthusiasts (of which I am one), Todd is a Chicagoan who brings a great grasp of that key city to the proceedings. His casting, both for his Chicago and Trek cred, is a masterstroke on Rob Burnett’s part.

Barb and I have been Star Trek fans since college days (original series and, later Next Generation), and I cast Majel Barrett Roddenberry (Gene’s widow) in Mommy, knowing the value of Star Trek to then vital cast listings on video boxes (we were a chain-wide buy at the then-dominate Blockbuster). I knew Majel through Big Entertainment, the comic book company where she and Leonard Nimoy were doing titles when I was doing Mike Danger with Mickey Spillane. We also had Mickey in the cast and scream queen Brinke Stevens (who I knew from the San Diego Comic Con, where we became friends) as well as Jason Miller for his Exorcist value (and acting talent). Miller came on board because he liked the Mommy script, and since he was a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, that was a hell of a compliment.

By the way, if you’ve read Spillane – King of Pulp Fiction by Jim Traylor and me, you may recall that Gene Roddenberry and Mickey Spillane were pals and planned several projects together (that unfortunately did not come to pass).

Anyway, I want to share with you this fabulous poster for the upcoming audio drama, which I feel represents Heller better than most of the original cover art ever did (excepting the excellent recent Hard Case Crime packages).

More about the crowd-funding effort will be shared here in the days and months ahead. But for now feast your eyes on this….

True Noir poster

M.A.C.

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Blue Christmas at The Last Picture House

Tuesday, March 26th, 2024

Today I’m sharing a few photos from our Muscatine, Iowa, premiere screening of Blue Christmas and more than just a few pics from the last stop on our premiere tour, The Last Picture House.

Karlyn Larson, MAC, and my old friend from band days, Charlie Koenigsaecker
Karlyn Larson, MAC, and my old friend from band days, Charlie Koenigsaecker
Sheila Miller, Dave Juering (who plays the
Sheila Miller, Dave Juering (who plays the “snake” Larry Turner in BLUE CHRISTMAS), Rob Merritt (Richard Stone) on the red carpet at the Muscatine Premiere showing of BLUE CHRISTMAS at the Palms 10.
Charlie Koenigsaecker, Karlyn Larson, Christ Causey (Jake Marley in BLUE CHRISTMAS) Barbara Collins and Sheila Miller at the Muscatine, Iowa, Premiere of BLUE CHRISTMAS at the Palms 10.
Charlie Koenigsaecker, Karlyn Larson, Christ Causey (Jake Marley in BLUE CHRISTMAS) Barbara Collins and Sheila Miller at the Muscatine, Iowa, Premiere of BLUE CHRISTMAS at the Palms 10.
Sheila Miller, Linda Annis, Karlyn Larsen and MAC at the BLUE CHRISTMAS Premiere at Muscatine's Palms 10.
Sheila Miller, Linda Annis, Karlyn Larsen and MAC at the BLUE CHRISTMAS Premiere at Muscatine’s Palms 10.

All of these theaters – the Fleur in Des Moines and the Palms in Muscatine (both of which are Fridley Chain venues), as well Bruce Taylor’s Collins Road Theatre in Cedar Rapids and Davenport’s Last Picture House – have been incredibly supportive, and the turnouts have been stellar. Cedar Rapids, Muscatine and Davenport were all sold out, strictly capacity crowds with tickets at a premium.

First A.D. Jodi Hanson watches from the sidelines at the packed house for BLUE CHRISTMAS at the Last Picture House.
First A.D. Jodi Hanson watches from the sidelines at the packed house for BLUE CHRISTMAS at the Last Picture House.
The capacity crowd at the Last Picture House in Davenport prior to the Premiere screening.
The capacity crowd at the Last Picture House in Davenport prior to the Premiere screening.

The response from the audiences has been great, but of course we are careful not to get too full of ourselves, as we are well aware we have a home court advantage. Still, it feels very good. As I’ve said here before, Blue Christmas was designed for streaming and home video, and seeing it up on these huge movie screens, with booming movie-theater sound, has been frankly thrilling to our little army of actors and crew who turned six days and $14,000 into a credible movie – in a world where Hollywood thinks $5 mil is low budget.

I was blessed with a terrific cast, all from here in Iowa, and a crew that included my producer (and editor and much else) Chad Bishop, longtime partner and D.P. Phil Dingeldein (aided by First Camera Assistant Liz Toal), and our lead actors Rob Merritt, Alisabeth Von Presley and Chris Causey. But really everyone in our cast of 24 (!) and tiny crew of half a dozen (!) hearty souls came through for me and for the production.

At the Last Picture House, Director of Photography Phil Dingeldein schmoozes with First Assistant Director Jodi Hanson and Set Design/Props Mistress Meg McCarthy.
At the Last Picture House, Director of Photography Phil Dingeldein schmoozes with First Assistant Director Jodi Hanson and Set Design/Props Mistress Meg McCarthy.
Brian Linderman – Eddie Marley himself in BLUE CHRISTMAS – gears up for the Quad Cities Premiere at the Last Picture House.
Brian Linderman – Eddie Marley himself in BLUE CHRISTMAS – gears up for the Quad Cities Premiere at the Last Picture House.
Chris Causey (Jake Marley in BLUE CHRISTMAS) answers a query at the post-screening Q and A at the Last Picture House in Davenport.
Chris Causey (Jake Marley in BLUE CHRISTMAS) answers a query at the post-screening Q and A at the Last Picture House in Davenport.
The beautiful Barb Collins with unknown attendee at the Last Picture House premiere.
The beautiful Barb Collins with unknown attendee at the Last Picture House premiere.

We have one more stop on this mini-tour – Blue Christmas is an official selection of the Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival and will be shown at 9 a.m. and at 1:05 p.m. on Saturday April 6, again at the Collins Road Theater (1462 Twixt Town Rd, Marion, IA 52302 – Marion runs side by side with Cedar Rapids). Tickets are $10 advance and $12 after April 4. I will be there for the 1 p.m. screening.

This will be the last opportunity to see the film before this year’s holiday season, when we’ll be in a number of Iowa theaters as well as available on Blu-ray from VCI Home Entertainment (MVD is handling streaming marketing, but it’s too early days to know what streamer or streamers will make it available).

The real final stop of our mini-tour will be for the Iowa Motion Picture Association Awards, an event held in Forest City, Iowa, on May 4. But this is a competition, not a festival.

My apologies to my readers and friends (not exclusive groups) who have been subjected here of late to pretty much nothing but news of this indie film production. We’ll be back to our regularly scheduled Heller, Quarry, Antiques news very soon.

And serious work on True Noir the Nate Heller podcast starting with a 10-episode adaptation of the first novel, True Detective, begins this week.

* * *

According to this excellent article on Road to Perdition (the movie), James Bond was not Daniel Craig’s best role!

Finally, here’s a video about the upcoming Nate Heller podcast series. Check it out!

M.A.C.

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Packed Houses for the Blue Christmas Premieres

Tuesday, March 19th, 2024

Again I must apologize to my out-of-state friends, but just the same, you may enjoy this mostly pictorial update about our various premieres of my little comeback film, Blue Christmas.

Blue Christmas @ The Last Picture House promo

First, let me mention the upcoming final premiere event, which is in Davenport at the great Last Picture House (325 E 2nd St), the brainchild of Quiet Place creators (and local boys made very good) Beck and Woods. Thank you, guys!

It’s this coming Friday, March 22, and as I write this only 17 seats remain. Again, much of the cast and crew will be there, including Director of Photography Phil Dingeldein, Producer/Editor Chad Bishop, and the Writer/Director (me). Cast members who’ve confirmed appearing include stars Rob Merritt, Alisabeth Von Presley, and Chris Causey. Quad Cities actors Tommy Ratkiewicz-Stierwalt, Scot Gehret and Dave Juehring are expected to be present as well as a number of Muscatine actors in our talented cast of 24 (!).

This will be the last of our advance screenings of Blue Christmas until the holiday season later this year – with the notable exception of two screenings at the Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival, at which Blue Christmas is an official selection (that’s coming up on Saturday April 6, again at the Collins Road Theatre in Cedar Rapids) (info here). The VCI Blu-ray and DVD should be out by November of this year, and we hope to be on several streaming services as well.

These premieres have been thrilling for this rapidly aging sometime filmmaker. Rob and Alisabeth are genuine Iowa celebrities – with Rob having appeared in over 100 films (shorts and features) and Alisabeth famously appearing on American Idol and The American Songwriting Competition – which guaranteed a packed house in Cedar Rapids.

Producer/editor Chad Bishop and M.A.C. at the Cedar Rapids premiere.
Producer/editor Chad Bishop and M.A.C. at the Cedar Rapids premiere.
Alisabeth Von Presley, MAC and Barbara Collins at the Cedar Rapids Premiere.
Alisabeth Von Presley, MAC and Barbara Collins at the Cedar Rapids Premiere.
MAC and Collins Road Theatre manager/owner, Bruce Taylor at the Cedar Rapids premiere.
MAC and Collins Road Theatre manager/owner, Bruce Taylor at the Cedar Rapids premiere.
M.A.C. with Alisabeth Von Presley at the Des Moines premiere.
M.A.C. with Alisabeth Von Presley at the Des Moines premiere.

Considering the fact that seeing me in person is hardly a rarity in Muscatine, since I’ve been playing gigs locally with my band Crusin’ since 1974 (and with the Daybreakers from 1966-1971), I could not have anticipated the packed, sold-out house Blue Christmas attracted at the Palms last Saturday night. Honestly, it was so crowded that it wasn’t till after the fact that I discovered any number of my friends and acquaintances were there and I hadn’t seen them. If you’re in that unacknowledged group, please know you were not snubbed – I was a bit overwhelmed by the response, and also I have notoriously poor eyesight.

The support we got from the Palms 10 staff and from the Fridley Theater chain, especially Chris Kottman, was absolutely incredible. And we are in serious talks with Iowa’s major theater chain to bring Blue Christmas into all of their theaters in the 2024 holiday season.

Seeing the film on a big screen (and it was huge at the Palms 10) was overwhelming. You have to understand that all of my filmmaking over the years – I don’t mean Road to Perdition or other things I’ve written that have gone out theatrically – has always been intended for television, both physical media and broadcast (now, streaming). Mommy hit the ball out of the park in 1995 by landing a chain-wide Blockbuster deal as well as a movie-of-the-week slot on Lifetime cable. Never did we even seriously consider having our Bad Seed tribute seen in theaters, and our premieres were at the local high school auditorium (and later ones were at Muscatine Community College).

My only regret is that my father, Max A. Collins Sr., didn’t live to share the experience with me. An investor in Mommy, he was frustrated that we didn’t take it out to theaters, didn’t understand why it couldn’t play there. He did know about the Road to Perdition sale to DreamWorks, but did not live to see the film…including the well-known father-and-son driving scene that was based on his first driving lesson to me on a country road (the only time I ever scared the man). Well, Blue Christmas is a ghost story. Maybe Pop attended one of the premieres, after all.

My grandson Sam was there and I’m told by my son Nate that Sam was excited and kept telling people, “My grandpa made this movie!”

Now that’s a review.

M.A.C.

Question and answer session after the Muscatine screening with much of the cast and crew.
Question and answer session after the Muscatine screening with much of the cast and crew.
The lobby of the Palms 10 with red carpet before the crowd was let in.
The lobby of the Palms 10 with red carpet before the crowd was let in.
The executive producers of Blue Christmas (left to right, Chad Bishop, MAC, Phil Dingeldein and Brian Wright.)
The executive producers of Blue Christmas (left to right, Chad Bishop, MAC, Phil Dingeldein and Brian Wright.)
Chad, MAC, and the three lovely Baker women: Claire, Rece and Jennifer.
Chad, MAC, and the three lovely Baker women: Claire, Rece and Jennifer.
The lobby of the Palms pre-screening.
The lobby of the Palms pre-screening.
Budding star Sam Collins and entourage.
Budding star Sam Collins and entourage.
The writer/director picked up by 2nd camera assistant Jeremy Ferguson for deliver to the premiere by Rolls Royce.
The writer/director picked up by 2nd camera assistant Jeremy Ferguson for deliver to the premiere by Rolls Royce.
A packed house at the Muscatine premiere at the Palms 10.
A packed house at the Muscatine premiere at the Palms 10.
Blue Christmas on the big screen at the Palms 10.
Blue Christmas on the big screen at the Palms 10.

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It’s Christmas (Blue) in March!

Tuesday, March 12th, 2024

This is a big week for us, with two Iowa premiere showings of Blue Christmas, first this Wednesday March 13 at the Collins Road Theatre in Cedar Rapids (technically at 1462 Twixt Town Rd, Marion, IA 52302) and on Saturday, March 16 in our hometown Muscatine at the Palms 10 (at 3611 Palms Dr, Muscatine, IA 52761). Both showings start at 7 p.m. and will be followed by a Q and A by myself and various cast and crew members.

There’s good news and bad news about these two screenings, and both are the same news. The Cedar Rapids event is essentially sold out – two seats remain available on their website. The Muscatine event is 70% full. Both events are reserved seating. The Muscatine event’s remaining seating is in the area closest to the screen.

I have to say I was blown away by how great the movie looked (okay, I’m a tad biased) on the huge screen at the Palms in one of its two largest theaters.

The final premiere event will be on Friday, March 22, at the Last Picture House in Davenport at 325 East 2nd Street, the fabulous new theater brought to the Quad Cities area by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods of A Quiet Place fame. As I write this, fifty seats are remaining (about 40% of the seating).

Two screenings will be part of the Cedar Rapids Independent Film Festival on Saturday April 6, again at the Collins Rd Theater in Cedar Rapids. Showings will be at 9 a.m. and 1:05 p.m. I will be attending the second of those and we may have a Q and A after that screening with myself and cast and crew (haven’t confirmed that yet).

Blue Christmas will be playing in twenty-some theaters in Iowa in December of this year, exact dates to be announced. The physical media (Blu-ray and DVD, from VCI Home Entertainment) will be available starting November 1 of this year. It’ll be offered to the streaming services for the 2024 holiday season as well, but it’s too early to know where and when Blue Christmas will be available in the streaming world.

If you are a cast or crew member, and want to reserve one of our limited set-aside seats at one of these remaining premieres, let me know. Same goes for our indiegogo donors whose level of support promises an advance ticket. (If no seats are available at any of the three remaining premieres, your seats will be provided at one of the 2024 holiday season screenings at the Iowa theater most convenient to you.)

And we hope to avoid any inconvenience, so if you are a cast/crew member or indiegogo contributor, do check with the theater websites to see what’s still available, and in any case check with me at macphilms@hotmail.com or producer Chad Bishop at dreampost@machlink.com to see if we have a seat set aside for you (we were provided a limited number from the theaters who booked the film for the premieres).

We do not want to make anyone unhappy at these happy events, including ourselves! The last thing we want is someone who’s been promised a seat only arrives to discover no seats remain. Barb and I and Chad will give up our seats if necessary, but that’s only three seats, after all.

* * *

Here is an excellent write-up about Blue Christmas from the Cedar Rapids Gazette.

Here’s another article about Tom Hanks extolling the virtues of our film Road to Perdition. Tom, you never call! You never write! Hope all is well.

Here’s an article about the Mike Danger comic strip that I wrote (What? You did?).

Check out this essay on Road to Perdition, focusing on the graphic novel more than the movie.

You may not know this, but Brash Books has all three Perdition prose novels (Road to Perdition, Purgatory and Paradise) in one reasonable e-book package.

Finally, my frequent collaborator, Phil Dingeldein, is a prime mover in the newly revitalized Quad Cities Film Office. A nice article is right here, with a shot of us at work on the set of Blue Christmas last October.

M.A.C.

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