Given the state of the economy, the collapse of the housing market, and dizzying rise in unemployment over the past few years, I'm sure many of you have found yourselves "up to your eyeballs in debt." And, no doubt if you're one who has found yourself drowning in debt, you've been the recipient of more than a few debt collection calls. But how many of you have been told you're "worth more dead than alive?" That's an eye-opener isn't it? That's exactly what happened to Benjamin Dover when he found himself on the other end of a phone conversation with an unscrupulous bill collector. Ben's father, Bruce Blumen of Gold Creek Productions in Grass Valley, CA decided to write a novel based on the experiences of his son's interactions with bill collectors. That novel was later adapted into a screenplay and is now a full-length independent feature film, The Bill Collector, premiering at The Crest Theatre in downtown Sacramento May 21, 2010 at 7:30pm.
Independent filmmakers often find themselves spending a ton of money with little or no monetary return and without the reward of actually seeing their film in major distribution. Despite the Sundance Film Festival opening a new category for low to no budget films, filmmakers face daunting odds of ever making it through the gauntlet. For example, with feature-length films and shorts combined, there were over 10,000 submissions to the Sundance Film Festival January 2010. Of the thousands of features submitted, only 113 were selected for screening. And of the 6,092 shorts submitted, only 70 won the honors of a Sundance showing. And of those finalists only eight (yes eight!) were chosen for distribution to other cities.
So what's a 77 year old first time filmmaker with a $60,000 budget to do? Blumen was tenacious and determined to bring his story to the big screen. After writing the novel over ten years ago and shopping the 
screenplay around to various producers he finally met with Bret Allen of Forrest Hill, CA. As a Director of Photography and member of the prestigious Society of Camera Operators, Allen brings decades of experience to the table having been involved in feature films, episodic TV, national commercial spots, and reality TV. Allen wasn't a true believer at first. He didn't think a $60,000 budget was going to make much of a short, and certainly not a full length feature. But Blumen wasn't going to let go of his dream. Negotiations continued and Peter Oakes of Pacific Crest Media in Loomis, CA was tapped to direct and produce the film. With a skeleton crew and a lot of determination, the magic started to happen.
Working closely with Beverly Lewis, Director of the Placer County-Lake Tahoe Film Office, Blumen was able to work deals with several set locations including the now demolished DeWitt Center in Auburn, CA, Mary Belle's Restaurant and Auburn Jewelry & Loan Pawn Shop also in Auburn, The West House Bar in Roseville, and The Wild Chicken in Loomis to name just a few. Once locations were established and casting calls were completed principal photography was underway in May 2008.
The crew was able to complete principal photography in less than the allotted 23 days and under-budget. Two achievements practically unheard of in the film industry. After almost two years in post-production with a final cut of the film in hand, what now? The Bill Collector was shown to a few Los Angeles executives in the film industry, who provided very positive feedback and were astonished at the high quality and the very low (no) budget. Studio distribution offers were on the table, but Blumen and Oakes politely declined the opportunity of distribution through more traditional channels, because anyone who's been through this knows that the traditional studio distribution route is extremely unfavorable to independent filmmakers. And remember the Sundance Film festival examples I mentioned earlier?
These scenarios beg the question, or the thought at least - there has to be a better way! Peter Oakes, thinks he's found the answer. It begins with a forward-thinking concept of internet TV, digital content, and video on demand. The idea moves forward with a partnership with Google-owned YouTube. YouTube announced it's new YouTube Rentals Beta earlier this year. The Bill Collector Movie has been accepted into the YouTube Rentals program and will be available for rent within the week.
Note: I was also on the crew of The Bill Collector. As Production Supervisor and Second Assistant Director, I was involved starting with the casting call process through principal photography and I assisted in post-production editing, so there will be more articles forthcoming about the making of this indie.
Think felons and ex-cons only work as debt collectors in the movies? Think again. Here are just a few stories of real life ex-cons and felons working as bill collectors. Remember, these felons have access to your most personal information including your social security number, home address and work information.
Photos by Peter Oakes and Angela L Gibson
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