Filmmaking | Reports

From Short to Feature: ‘Italian Lessons’

1 Sep , 1998  

Written by Bob Hebert | Posted by:

New York director and writer Vincent Sassone shares his experience marketing the short film and feature script for 'Italian Lessons' for the Massachusetts organization, Paradise City Media Collaborative.

This past June, at a monthly networking meeting, the Paradise City Media Collaborative (PCMC) of Northampton, MA, welcomed the area’s premiere screening of "Italian Lessons." The 36-minute, 16mm film was presented by New York director and writer Vincent Sassone and production manager and PCMC member Charles Burke.

The film follows the exploits of a young and hip Italian Romeo in Yonkers, New York, who practices his tango and his Italian with lovely young widow Caterina. When a friend from the Old Country shows up, Caterina must decide to follow her heart and her lust with the young Romeo or follow tradition and the expectation of others in this Little Italy neighborhood and marry the family friend from Sicily. "Italian Lessons" is a colorful look at the lives and hopes and failures of a small slice of (Italian)-American culture.

In discussion with Charles and Vincent after the screening, Vincent mentioned that he started out trying to sell his feature script "Great Caruso." A lawyer friend suggested that he do a trailer film for "Great Caruso." But Vincent didn’t want to take it off of the screenplay market, and he convinced his friend that he should do a short first. That was an important act of persuasion, because this was the guy with the funding. "I wanted something that would be a calling card," Vincent said, "to get ‘Great Caruso’ picked up."

Once Vincent pitched the idea for a short and got a green light from his friend for investment funds, he wrote the screenplay for "Italian Lessons." "I pitched it in June 1996, wrote the script in October, and we were shooting by June 21, 1997. It was an eight-day shoot, and we were very lucky with the weather, though it was a little hot to have almost 12 people in a small kitchen shooting. With the lights and equipment and people, it wasn’t very comfortable for anyone." Vincent screened "Italian Lessons" at the Tribeca screening room in New York last October and Miramax representative Jennifer Burnham asked if he had a feature screenplay for the short. Vincent said he was surprised by the question. It hadn’t occured to him. So he, of course, immediately sat down to write the feature-length "Italian Lessons."

Vincent is pitching the short with a feature-length screenplay attached, seeking funding in Los Angeles and New York for feature production. "Raising the money is the hardest thing I’ve ever

done but I’m not jaded by it. "Italian Lessons" cost $50,000 and only $14,000 of it was for shooting." Vincent said he pulled in all favors to shoot "Italian Lesson." "Plus other people’s favors. I used those, too. Plus some trades and friends and family chipped in. Right now, we are trying to raise $400,000 for the feature production of "Italian Lessons." If we can get the above-the-line talent, we are looking for the budget may need to go up. But once you get past $500,000 for a budget, the SAG rates jump from say $800 per week to $1500 per week. So there is a margin there. If you are looking to produce a $500,000 film you would really need to raise $750,000."

According to production manager, Charles Burke, "It’s a big shell game. Once some investors and talent are interested, it tends to build from there." Vincent and Charles said they are raising money primarily through investors and they will form a limited liability corporation to receive the funds for production. "That’s the way it’s done now," Vincent added. "You’ve kind of got to force everybody’s hand. Things should play out in the next month, and we hope to start shooting by September."

Since that first discussion, Vincent and Charles have raised over $250,000, more than half of their anticipated budget. Apparently the short is helping to sell the feature. What a great visual aid for investors. Charles recently mentioned that they still have some talent issues to take care of. "I don’t think we will be shooting this fall. I think it will be more like next spring." They have formed the LLC and have raised a significant amount of cash. Making the leap from short to feature isn’t a game of connect the dots, but it would seem that Charles and Vincent have managed to draw a nearly straight line from point A to point B. For more information regarding the production and progress of "Italian Lessons" email Charles at cburke@crocker.com

The Film in Brief
"Italian Lessons" was shot by Jeri Sopanen, a DP best known for his stylish work on "My Dinner with Andre." When Vincent came to Western Massachusetts to meet Charles for the first time, they drove out to Boston to meet Jeri, who was working on another film. Vincent said they all hit it off right away, and Vincent and Charles wound up working for him as Second AD’s for the day. On "Italian Lessons," Jeri was very finicky about the lighting," Vincent said. "He would wear this t-shirt to the set nearly every day that said "Almost Ready" on the back of it."

The Budget
Shooting & Preproduction $14,000
Post Production, including subtitles, negative and prints $18,000
Avid Editing $6,000
Sound $5,000
Misc/Taxes/Insurance/Festivals and Screenings $7,000
TOTAL $50,000