I recently read a tweet from Melissa Dunphy that she had made it onto the Ripley’s Believe it or Not website. (Melissa plays Tanner in No Sanctuary.) Sure enough it featured a video of Melissa playing Bach upside down at the piano. I realize that she is a musical prodigy, but had I known that she had this stunt in her repertoire, I would have written it into the script… There could have definitely been a piano in the ruins of the church! (Now that I think about it, there should have been.)  Seriously though, she is a very talented musician and it was cool to check out the video.

That may have been the end of the story, but my wife saw that the video was featured on the Comcast homepage today. [Apparently it had also been featured on a national morning news program.]

Way to go, Mel!

Believe it or not…

My first completed short film was called Angels of the Twilight.  In that movie, I introduced two characters; “Shorty” the Bartender and a Patron called “Father”.  Larry Snyder played Shorty and Keith Stetler played Father. [Since he is actually my dad, this is very convenient.]  Since then these characters have turned up in several of my screenplays.  When writing No Sanctuary, my first produced feature film; I knew I had to find a place for them in the story.  [Besides, both of them are investors in the film.]  But how do I add a bar or tavern in a siege film set in the ruins of a church?  I know.  Add a sequence to accompany the Highwaymen myth, set in a tavern during colonial times.  The resulting scene turned out very well.  We shot in the Catacombs of Bube’s Brewery.  It doubled as Midnight Jack’s hideout.  Special thanks to all the cast & crew that helped that day.

Shorty [Larry Snyder] and a Patron [Keith Stetler]

I have only one dilemma, after Angels of the Twilight; the Patron wasn’t called “Father” anymore.  I have never really decided on a name for him.  I would welcome input.  In fact I think I will design a poll on the right sidebar for an audience vote.  Email any ideas of your own by clicking the “Contact Us” link at the top right of the main page.

By the way, I apologize for the late post.  This was supposed to go out Saturday.

Despite the photographic evidence that follows; the work environment on the set was rarely tense or antagonistic.  The cast and crew were professional, devoted, and great fun.  There were a few strained moments, but nothing compared to what could have happened between a group of fiercely creative individuals working with a limited budget in the sweltering heat of summer.  I am deeply grateful to everyone who participated.

Drew Whelpley [Midnight Jack] prepares to “shoot” the director [Jake Stetler]

Fred Waters Jr. [Bartimaeus] takes a hit from Melissa Dunphy [Tanner]. 

It has been awhile since an update.  I apologize.  I have been frantically working on finishing the film.  The visual effects artists are turning in some great sequences.  Postage FX in Lancaster is currently working on a few VFX shots.  Sarah Truesdell has been submitting some really strong sequences.  Duane Jay has completed a crucial shot.  Deeply happy with the quality of the work.  More to follow.

I am committed to updating the blog with more content.  I believe I will upload a new post every Saturday.  Looking at the numbers, about 17,000 people are currently viewing the website each month.  Many of those visitors are on Sunday.  I think a weekly Saturday installment is long over due.

Thank you for your continued support.

- Jake Stetler

Master Fred Waters Jr. was a featured guest at Armed Forces Day on City Island in Harrisburg this past Saturday. He demonstrated hand-to-hand combat and disarming weapons for the military. Master Waters played Bartimaeus and was Fight Choreographer on No Sanctuary. He is the president of the Institute of Self Defense. A fighting style he created. Check out the press release HERE.

Recently I added some additional info to the No Sanctuary movie listing on IMDB.com. Check it out here. Many new crew listings are included.  I also added the new tagline, “Stand and Deliver Us!”.

While casting No Sanctuary, I had a very clear vision of the character of Tanner. Both her “look” and her personality were strong elements in my imagination as I wrote the screenplay. The trouble was casting an actress that could live up to those expectations. I placed an ad on Mandy.com. The question was… Should I focus the description on exactly what I was looking for in the character or post a more general description and hope for the best? I chose the latter to receive the most submissions possible and allow for some traits that I may not have envisioned, but would complement the character. I received a huge amount of submissions and headshots. All electronically, I might add, as email attachments. There were many talented and capable actresses. A few I even separated from the rest as possible candidates. But I still hadn’t found the ideal one. I had only so much time in preproduction and I was about to make a decision, when I received a submission in the mail. It was the only submission to arrive by postal carrier. I was impressed with the professionalism and class that a hand prepared letter implied. I held my breath and opened the package. Providence smiled once again. Melissa Dunphy matched my vision of Tanner! We promptly set up a meeting. I was immediately drawn to Melissa’s energy and charm. Not to mention her passion for the project. [This is an unwritten prerequisite for all my cast and crew.] She exceeded my expectations for the character of Tanner. I remember that she asked if she needed to inflect an American accent for the role. [She has a very cool Australian accent.] I promptly said, “Not a chance.” The accent only added to the character. Melissa graciously agreed to the role.

Working with Melissa was a pleasure. She was professional, engaging, and fun to be around. She was always prompt and very gracious. She was never difficult or demanding. I would definitely be honored to work with her again.

Melissa has a very strong acting ability. I didn’t have to take multiple takes of any one performance, she knew every line, and she gave “life” to the character. Two strong memories on the set: We were often treated to her practicing music in between takes. She often had an instrument with her. And she also had the uncanny ability to sleep in between takes, sometimes in less than comfortable places, then immediately rise and go right into her performance without even a pause… [And still look great doing it.]

There was one very important lesson I learned from Melissa Dunphy: As director never say that you are “sorry”. This was a very painful lesson for me personally. [I was promptly slugged or given a look that shouted, "I am going to kick your ass!" by said actress.] Early in the production I had a habit of saying this seemingly innocent phrase when I was putting my actors through a particularly physical, emotion, or just plain uncomfortable scene. [I believe I may have been apprehensive due to the fact that I was asking them to work for deferred payment and credit. A necessity on our low budget production.] Melissa absolutely hated it. It didn’t sink in for me personally until she explained that if she didn’t trust me or believe in the project, that she would not have taken the role. Each cast and crew member of No Sanctuary wanted to be on set, working on this picture. She was absolutely correct in this regard. Thank you, Melissa. I am deeply grateful. [And not at all sorry...]

It has been awhile since the last post. Nose to the grindstone, what can I say? I have been working closely with two new members of the post production team, Sarah Treusdell and Josh Houtz. Sarah has come onboard as a Visual Effects Artist and Josh has become the Assistant Editor. Both are passionate, dedicated, and talented. With their assistance we are moving swiftly toward “picture lock”. From there we will be moving on to the sound mix. Dan Fissel, our Music Composer, is anxious to complete the score.

I am also excited to see the opening credit sequence being created by Nicholas Toth, a Motion Graphics Artist, and his brother Michael Toth, an Graphic Illustrator.