I’ve written & directed a few book trailers over the years, one of which was the successful preview for “The Four Fingers of Death” by Rick Moody.
So I figured, hell I got the filmic resources (and God knows the time…us filmmakers in Los Angeles often find ourselves with a surplus of time at our fingertips) I might as well shoot some stuff to promote my book.
I’ve shot three trailers for “No Alternative;” I guess you could say they’re trailers. “Book Trailers” are a funny thing, and by funny I mean just plain odd. A book trailer is a piece of filmed entertainment promoting something that is not filmed entertainment; something that, in many ways, is the antithesis of filmed entertainment. An actual movie trailer is a montage of “moments” from the film used as an advertisement for that film. Conversely, a book trailer is created from nothing but the imagination of the person creating it; in most cases, a vision that arises from his/her interpretation of the book.
That’s how I made “Four Fingers.” If it ever gets made into a movie, I wonder if the director of the adaptation will look back upon this book trailer for inspiration — perhaps he might use it to guide his/her casting decisions for the film — perhaps he might cast the actors from it?
All of this is unlikely.
This is just to say, I didn’t bother casting any actors, rewriting and otherwise reinterpreting the story of “No Alternative” to facilitate the making of a trailer. I just listed a bunch of shit that had to do with the 90’s, the era in which “No Alternative” takes place.
I also shot a rap video and edited some home-movie footage of the “Kurt Cobain Bridge” in Aberdeen, Washington, as other promos (or “trailers”) for the book.
I think they’re interesting, amusing, and maybe…thought-provoking? Not sure about the latter, but I had fun making them; and besides, if I started shooting scenes from the book…well I should probably keep shooting them and make the whole darned movie!
