German director Nikias Chryssos has begun pre-production on a new feature film called DER BUNKER (The Bunker). The filmmaker’s previous project, Tower Block, was immensely successful in the film festival circuit. This earned him a chance to take part in the Residence Program of Cinefondation at the Cannes Film Festival.
“Daniel and his older brother Patrick live together in a tower block in Germany. Patrick forces Daniel to go around collecting money and plays sadistic games with him. Daniel escapes into fantasy worlds. As he suffers more and more from his brother’s tyranny, he believes to have found a friend in Bernd, a heroin junkie from the area.”
Check out the trailer for Tower Block:
NEXT UP: DER BUNKER
“Der Bunker” is Nikias Chryssos’ new project, dealing with education, excessive demands, mental overload. Nikias approaches these topics in his very own style – playful, artistic and at times bizarre.
” If you can’t spot the sucker in the first half hour at the table, then you ARE the sucker.”
ROUNDERS is THE poker movie. When I first saw the film, I had never played a real game of Texas Hold’em. It was late so I busted out a deck of cards and practiced on my own. A few days later I purchased a set of chips from the dollar store and got a couple games together. I discovered very quickly that my friends were also discovering poker for the first time and they also LOVED Rounders.
I still remember what it was like when poker exploded onto sports networks everywhere. For a newly obsessed poker player, it was easy to catch it on television and learn some new tricks… In college, we held tournaments with more than 20 people focused on the 200+ dollar ‘winner take all’ purse. (In college that pays for 2… maybe 3 entire nights at the bar!)
But… Here’s the thing.
I SUCK AT POKER…
I remember one hand specifically in the last ‘big’ tournament before I eventually lost interest. We were down to the final 5 and I was definitely 5th. I had a shot to double up with ace king. I stuck around, bluffing a remarkable hand but I had nothing. It wasn’t until the river that my ace appeared. I went all in. I was already spending that 200 bucks. The chip leader called my bet and turned over pocket aces. He was a much better poker player than I was.
He even quoted a famous scene from Rounders as he collected the remainder of my chips… and dreams…
“So… You hef my maaney?”
My interest in poker fizzled after I graduated but Rounders is still staple in my annual movie routine. Any movie that deals with passionate characters inspires me. I love a good story where someone with talent goes for it. It’s even more entertaining when the character is up against a villain like Teddy KGB! Beyond that, I loved Rounders because it was about a game I barely knew and ignited an interest in it’s subject matter. To me, that is impressive storytelling.
The idea of taking a game that the main stream didn’t embrace at the time and propelling it into the lime light fascinated me. I started thinking about games I loved and how I could make them relatable in a story. I focused on Cribbage. It’s my family’s GAME. It’s a game my dad and his father played non stop when Grandpa came to visit. The two of them had so many epic battles it was impossible not to learn and adore the game. Skunking someone in my family is like a badge of honor!
“15-2, 15-4, that’s all the rest don’t score”
Not long after a viewing of Rounders, I had written the first draft of a screenplay based on my families love of Cribbage and to this day, it’s one of my favorites. My grandfather passed away when I was 10 years old. I never got my chance to play him. So I wrote the story from the point of view of a 10 year old boy who gets to play his grandfather for the first time.
It felt like a true story as I wrote it and I cried when I typed ‘THE END’. When I finished that screenplay, I knew what it was like to sit down with my grandpa and play a game we both loved. I wrote that story for me. I included all of his catch phrases and smiled as I relived those precious childhood memories.
All that from a poker movie?
You never know when inspiration will strike. I’ll always be thankful that I discovered Rounders when I did. It inspired me to write a story that means the world to me. Before I saw Rounders, I never got to play Cribbage with my grandpa. Now I feel like I have and that’s a wonderful thing.
This is an image I made in my early Photoshop days. I taped it on the wall to the left of my computer so it was always in sight as I wrote my screenplay.
Chris Farley was a comedic genius. In just a few short years he gave SNL fans some of the best characters of all time. To me, Tommy Boy ranks as one of the funniest movies I’ve ever seen. I recently watched Tommy Boy for the first time in years and couldn’t stop thinking about what might have been had he not passed away so young. After all these years, I miss Chris Farley more than ever.
MATT FOLEY: MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER
The man who lived in a van down by the river was a legendary SNL character and represented Chris Farley at his absolute best. Of all the SNL movies that have come along, you have to assume that Matt Foley was near the top of the list to get his own film.
Imagine the story of a young man’s decent, hitting rock bottom the day he buys an old van and parks it next to a river. Would we then follow his journey to becoming one of the premiere motivational speakers on the planet turning his life around in the process?
According to Wikipedia, Chris was indeed planning a Matt Foley movie with David Spade. In all honesty, I think they would have had to tone the character down a bit in order to carry an entire film but I think he would have pulled it off. It’s sad to think about how many amazing characters and films he would have been a part of. Regardless, we can still celebrate the wonderful moments he gave us before he died.
Short filmmakers everywhere pour their heart and soul into their films. They are up in the middle of the night tweaking the script. They fill their weekends with meetings and location scouts. They stress over vital casting decisions and equipment needs. They lose sleeping worrying about the budget. They wonder if it will all work out and then they work even harder regardless.
These creative and talented people spend hours choosing fonts for the poster. They scrutinize every single cut. These people are passionate, dedicated and proud of their labor of love.
Have you watched a short film today?
I’ll be the first to admit that I’m guilty of not watching as many short films as I should. Yet as a filmmaker myself, I know how crucial it is to get your work out there for people to see. It’s vital for feedback on your progress as an artist. But more importantly, it’s the reason we make movies to begin with. It’s a never ending need to tell a story and reach an audience. It’s about finding your unique voice. No matter which position you hold on a film set, it’s about your hard work paying off.
WHERE DO YOU WATCH SHORT FILMS?
It’s an amazing time to be an independent filmmaker. Posting your work online has never been easier with sites like YouTube and especially Vimeo leading the way. But there are thousands of websites out there that feature short films.
Have some spare time? Explore these sites and watch a couple amazing shorts while you’re at it. More importantly, dig deeper and discover the incredible people behind the films.
There are plenty more out there (feel free to mention them) but these should keep you busy along with Youtube & Vimeo.
When I started interviewing people for this blog I called the feature Filmmakers/Fans for a reason. I’ve written and directed films and I know how much effort and time goes into them. But I’m also a fan. At it’s core, this blog is about movies, screenwriting & independent film but it’s also about what inspires creative people.
Do you have a short film you’d like to see featured on The Athletic Nerd? I may not be able to interview everyone but there are many ways you can promote your work here. Check out THE POST and THE RUNDOWN for other examples.
If you haven’t visited The Art of the Guillotine yet click the link and bookmark the site immediately.
What you’ll find on AOTG is the absolute best of the web as far as editing is concerned. The site is constantly being updated with articles about software, techniques, tips, tutorials, opinions, videos and more. I guarantee you WILL find something worth reading every single time you visit the site. I do.
Thanks to founder Gordon Burkell, I got an early look at their brand new app for iPhone which was released TODAY. It’s awesome. I can’t be the only nerd on the planet who isn’t thrilled to have new editing articles at my fingertips wherever I happen to be. All the articles are organized in an easy to read format so you’ll always have something interesting to read when the grocery lines are enormous.
