Open House 1-4
In America, Open Houses are a cultural milestone. Every Sunday, realtors fan out across the country planting Open House signs, inviting prospective buyers into private residences. But when a snooty realtor suspects a Latino couple is there to rob her and informs her other guests, all hell breaks loose.
Interview with Writer/Director Brad Holloway
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
I was a working screenwriter for many years but I was writing 'tweeners', thrillers in the 20-60 million dollar budget range, while the studios were moving towards a model where they either made tentpoles or low budget horror. My work also has an irreverent sense of humor that appealed to development execs but made the final decision-makers nervous. That said, I was lucky enough to collaborate with some incredibly talented directors, spend a lot of time on set, and that gave me the confidence to direct something myself. I can honestly say that making this short has been more gratifying than any script sale. Instead of a blueprint, I have an actual film to show people, and the joy of entertaining an audience is why I embarked on this journey in the first place.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
It's very difficult to make a 'complete' film in under ten minutes, a story with an interesting concept, unique characters, and a satisfying conclusion. I believe I've accomplished that with Open House 1-4.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
Robberies at open houses are a big concern, especially in a place like Florida where so many people carry concealed weapons. I've also heard countless stories about snooty realtors and the horrible assumptions they make about 'tire kickers', people they don't think are valid buyers. First and foremost, Open House 1-4 is a dark comedy, a comedy of errors that leads to pure chaos, but thematically the film also touches on much deeper issues.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
I wrote several different drafts of the script over the course of three months. In earlier drafts, the wealthy couple turned out to be the robbers, but I ultimately decided they worked better as a red herring. I didn't come up with the realtor pov buzzer/ding device until the very last draft and now it's probably my favorite element of the film.
The open house was supposed to take place at a beachside mansion but we couldn't find a homeowner who would let use their home. This nearly derailed the film. Then fate intervened two days before production and we found a fantastic house a few miles inland. I used a green screen for the balcony shots with a separate drone shot to show the beach in the background.
Another challenge was the sequence where the realtor and wealthy wife tumbled down the stairs. There was no room in the budget to hire two stunt doubles but I felt it was essential to show the fall since we cut away from the shootout later. The solution I came up with during filming was to shoot the two actresses in slow motion climbing down the stairs then speed the shot up in post. I also inserted a twirling POV shot of the railing we picked up a few weeks later to help 'sell' the fall.
The first cut was much longer, around fifteen minutes, but I felt this would limit our audience. So we dug in and cut a significant amount of the dialogue while keeping the essential story elements. The final cut came in at a little over nine minutes, nice and tight.
The sound/score is often what separates a good short from a great one. I was able to hire Danielle Furst, an experienced composer who has worked with Netflix/Hulu, but this put me over budget when it came to color correction. A friend of mine from LA owns his own post-production company and was interested in one of my feature scripts. I worked out a deal where he optioned my script for a year in exchange for doing the color correction in Los Angeles. This was essential given the intermittent cloud cover which led to different color temperatures for different takes.
So was the process challenging? Absolutely. But I think the film speaks for itself!
What type of feedback have you received so far?
The feedback thus far has been excellent. I was worried realtors would be offended by my portrayal of the profession but they've been my most enthusiastic audience. It's funny because these same realtors always tell me they know someone just like the lead but never see any of these qualities in themselves! Haha.
The only challenge thus far, and this is something I didn't anticipate at all, is that I'm learning 'open houses' aren't really a thing outside of North America. For instance, I shared the film with a Brazilian production company and they assumed I'd made up the entire concept of 'open houses.' They simply couldn't believe that anyone would let total strangers into their home off the street! I told them that this is very much a thing stateside. So moving forward, I think a big part of marketing the film will be educating international audiences about 'open houses' in general.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
At the end of the day, if the film isn't entertaining then I haven't done my job as a filmmaker. But if a realtor (or anyone doing high-end sales with a big ego) takes a second to reconsider their behavior towards a customer, that'd also be a big plus.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
Like any filmmaker, I want as many people to see the film (and hopefully enjoy it!) as possible.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
All of the above!
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I'm hoping the film does well on the festival circuit and this generates interest. I'd also love to get real estate professionals and journalists who cover that field onboard because I think the film will spark a healthy discussion within the industry. All of the realtors who've seen the film think it's hilarious and has shared it with their colleagues. As far as a sales agent, the concept does have the potential to be explored further with a feature-length film, so that's another avenue to explore at some point in the future.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
I don't want to ruin the ending but it's been somewhat controversial here in Naples, Florida. Suffice to say, things don't end well for the realtor in question, and how audiences interpret the ending varies widely. If the film gets people talking, generates any sort of emotional response, I see that as a net positive.
Would you like to add anything else?
Nothing off the top of my head (haha).
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I just finished a pilot for RT Features (Call Me By Your Name, Ad Astra) and I have several feature films in active development back in Los Angeles. I also wrote a feature-length script called The Snowbird that I'd like to shoot locally in Naples. If Open House 1-4 continues to generate enthusiasm, my immediate goal is to lock down the financing for this project.
Interview: February 2020
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
Open House 1-4
In America, Open Houses are a cultural milestone. Every Sunday, realtors fan out across the country planting Open House signs, inviting prospective buyers into private residences. But when a snooty realtor suspects a Latino couple is there to rob her and informs her other guests, all hell breaks loose.
Length: 9:05
Director: Brad Holloway
Producer: Demitri Blanco, Chuck Ardezzone
Writer: Brad Holloway
About the writer, director and producer:
Writer/Director BRAD HOLLOWAY has been a working screenwriter for twelve years. He sold his first feature script Black Box to Warner Brothers with Lorenzo Di Bonaventura (Transformers) attached to produce and Oscar-winning director Stefan Ruzowitzky (Counterfeiters) attached to direct. He went on to write feature-length scripts and pilots for Warners and other major studios (Paramount, Lionsgate), producers (Jason Blum, Michael De Luca, Rodrigo Teixeira) and directors (James Mangold). Current projects include The Games of 1940 with RT Features (Ad Astra, Call Me Your Name) based on an original idea by David Seidler (won Oscar for Kings Speech), Conception with producer Dylan Russell (Touristas, Love in the Time of Cholera, the upcoming Station Eleven) and director Fulvio Sestito (Beyond the Sky), Swine with producer Nikki Stranghetti (Legend of Hercules, Graceland), and Carnival with Robert Lawrence (the upcoming Kingkiller Chronicle with Lin Manuel Miranda, Clueless, Die Hard with a Vengeance).
DEMITRI BLANCO is a producer & co-founder of GrindUp Films and a principle at ITZ Productions. Demitri has been in the film & TV industry since 2013 and has worked on over 200 productions in many different departments. Some of the companies he has worked for include NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, A&E, NBC, CARNIVAL CRUISE LINES and TBS.
CHUCK ARDEZZONE is a SAG actor who has appeared in over 200 TV commercials, 40 TV shows and 30 movies. Chuck has been on hit TV shows Law & Order, As The World Turns, Average Joe, Third Watch, Burn Notice, Law & Order SVU, to name a few. Chuck has worked with such stars as Ryan Gosling, Sara Jessica Parker, Uma Thurman, Joe Pantalioni, Burt Young, Paul Sorvino, Brian Cox, Paul Danno, & Ed Burns, and others. In 2020, Chuck is the casting producer for History Channel’s TV show Guardians of the Glades, is producing a wine series called Winemakers UnCorked, just completed the TV pilot for a medical cannabis series called Masters of Cannabis and is in pre-production on a feature titled Miami Lies and a documentary, Breathless Fighter.
Key cast: Brian Ballance (Tourist Husband), Mauricio Bemudez (Latino Husband), Tanya Christiansen (Realtor), JJ Crowne (Rich Husband), Chellie Garcia (Latino Wife), Jamie Molina (Tourist Wife), Donna Rae Allen (Wealthy Wife), Keila Rosado (Passing Wife), LJ Ugarte (Passing Husband)
Looking for: sales agents, journalists, distributors, film festival directors, producers, buyers
Facebook: Openhousethefilm
Instagram: @openhousethefilm
Hashtags used: #openhouse #realestatemovie #realtor #realestate #homeforsale #shortfilm
Website: www.openhousethefilm.com
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? The film is currently on the festival circuit and has been submitted to several international festivals, including the Short Film Corner in Cannes and French Riviera Film Festival.