"BEASTS" Receives Rooftop Films Filmmakers Fund Grant!

A great day in Court 13 land! It has come to our attention that the Court's new project "BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD" has been blessed with the generosity of Rooftop Films and bestowed their Filmmakers Fund Eastern Effects Equipment Grant!


What does this mean? It means that during production we will be given use of one whole grip truck's worth of equipment (courtesy of Eastern Effects) for free-- a load off our back, for sure.

Rooftop Films is a longtime friend of Court 13, with this only being the latest case of their benevolence. Rooftop saw "GLORY AT SEA" through hard times, awarding us a life-saving grant when money was short, and they've been kind enough to screen many a Court 13 film on many a New York rooftop--including "EGG," "I GET WET," and "GLORY AT SEA." Check out what they're up to at www.rooftopfilms.com.

If you live in New York, you have no excuse not to go see a compelling, hard-to-see movie on a starlit rooftop in Brooklyn. Plus, it's officially Fall now! Outdoor movie weather!

The C13 Acting and Moviemaking School for Young People

In the tradition of our unique community approach to filmmaking, this spring we have introduced the inaugural class of the Court 13 Acting and Moviemaking School for Young People... aka the Court 13 After School Program, aka COURT THIRTEENIES: THE NEXT GENERATION.

Through grass roots outreach into Orleans and Jefferson Parish schools (not to mention flyers at po' boy shops and radio shout-outs on Q93), Court 13 garnered the interest of over 300 young, aspiring actors who came in to audition. From these we selected just 19 who will not only appear in our upcoming feature film "BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD" (in which kids feature prominently), but who have also been attending weekly acting and moviemaking classes at Colton, taught by Court 13. Not only do they get to flex their acting muscles, but they get to learn first hand what it takes to make movies, so they know what's going on when it's shoot time.


Included are a couple exercises we did with the Tuesday class. In the first, we came up with a line for each child, and practiced the idea of multiple takes by having them act the line out in multiple ways. What's included is each of their best takes. The second exercise gave each of them a chance to direct their own scenes: they would tell the actor what they wanted, decide what would happen in each shot, as well as where to place the camera and when to cut.

The classes will culminate with the creation of short films borne of the kids' own ideas--much like the Zeitlin micro-classic "I GET WET." We hope to premiere these short films in a few weeks at Colton with the friends and family of the kids, and share them with you shortly thereafter!