Luke's Day at Orchard School

On Thursday, Feb 28 Luke showed "Swords & Shields" and spoke to all the 2nd graders at The Orchard School. It went so well that the Administrator asked if Luke could stay and do the same for all the 1st graders, which he did. He was even more comfortable and polished than the first round; answering questions about making movies, casting, props, the creative process, etc. How fun!

Luke Hired to Make a Film

Luke has been hired to make a film for "KidsCrossing", the Children's Ministry department of Church at the Crossing in Indianapolis. Luke recently wrote to Pastor Samme Rousopoulos asking if she would like a film interviewing people about their favorite Bible story. Pastor Samme called Luke and said that "No" she didn't need that film BUT she would like a film that would be a tour of the Children's Ministry areas; something that could be on the web-site and DVD. Luke captured the vision immediately, and said "Oh, maybe 3-5 minutes? I can do that!" Luke and Pastor Samme have since met and created their plans. Luke will produce his first contracted production this spring! The goal is to premier it Children's Weekend May 17-18, 2008. see http://kids.churchatthecrossing.org/Welcome.htm for more about KidsCrossing.

Luke speaks to Orchard School

Luke will be speaking to and showing "Swords & Shields" to Second graders at The Orchard School, a highly esteemed private school here in Indianapolis. Several of Orchard's teachers and administrators were at the Premier in December and promptly invited Luke to share with their students. He will be with the class later in February and will offer some thoughts and insights on movie-making. How exciting! See http://www.orchard.org for info on The Orchard School.

Film Pioneers

Do you know Georges Melies? No? Donna got a huge novel for Luke for Christmas,"The Invention of Hugo Cabret". It is the story of an inventive boy who works/lives in a Paris train station ~1930. Hugo helps a broken-down toy-shop owner "Papa Georges" reconnect with the fame of his youth as a magician, inventor, and pioneer filmmaker. While the book is a novel, the main character is based on Georges Melies who made over 500 films between 1899-1912 and is credited to be the first to use film to capture the immagination with illusions and special effects; works of fiction. He is recognized as one of the great pioneers of film. This book was SO much about Luke: trains, inventions, movie-making, robotic inventions. We read all 500+ pages of this "graphic novel" over two nights.. .staying up til 2am to finish it. Oh well, it IS his Christmas break! For more info on George Melies, go to http://www.filmsdefrance.com/FDF_gmelies.html

about the book, go to: http://theinventionofhugocabret.com/intro_flash.htm

By the way, the photo above is from Melies' most famous film, the first Science-fiction film, "A Voyage to the Moon".

The Sequel

Within hours of the Premier, Luke was telling us about plans for a sequel. "It includes catapults" he said. "Afterall, they invented catapults by that time." He has plans to make a movie each year for the next several years: writing and pre-production in the winter/spring, filming in summer, and post-production in the fall. We are looking into obtaining the software so that Luke can edit movies on his own... and a camera to film them himself. During this Christmas break, he has storyboarded TEN of the scenes already, some with as many as 15 shots. He has definitely learned from the first experience and is well on his way to the sequel of "Swords and Shields". We will keep you apprised movie lovers!

Successful Premier!

Luke, smiling enthusiastically and dressed in his tuxedo, personally welcomed most of the 150 guests in the the packed-out theatre for the Premier Dec. 9. Cast members, corporate sponsors, teachers, families and friends all joined in the fun. Luke emceed with door prizes and then awards for all the actors. He introduced the film and the audience roared as the words "A Luke Broyles' Film" scrolled across the screen. They cheered and applauded as the story played out and as everyone watched their favorite actors in the outtakes and credits. The theatre lobby was decorated with props and costumes from the movie. Most of the audience signed a matted frame around a cast picture; a congratulations for Luke. We all couldn't have been prouder of our Luke and of all the cast of "Swords and Shields"!

Behind the Scenes

Some of the contributing influences for Luke's ideas were all the "Behind the Scenes" special features that we often watch on DVDs. It was here that he learned initially about storyboarding, special effects, filming, and more. In this spirit, he decided that "Swords & Shields" should also have a "Behind the Scenes". We have filmed Luke in 6 ~5 minute segments discussing such topics as: story concept, pre-production, making & buying props, filming, editing, and other interviews. While this didn't make into the Premier DVD, you can have a copy of the "Behind The Scenes" if you will reply to this entry with a comment with your contact info..