Film Awards for Heart & Soul

1. MMTB 2010:               Best Drama Film Award, Best Overall Film Award.
2. Silicon Valley Film Festival:     2010 Official Selection.

Making Movies in The Bay Area (MMTB)

Before I talk about the film let me introduce MMTB(Making Movies Throughout the Bay Area). This is a group that has created a collaborative environment for filmmakers and industry professionals interested in independent films. Founded in 2010 by Elena Altman, the group has quickly grown to over 3000 members on facebook. The group typically meets once a month. Meet up locations are rotated around various Bay Area cities. Teams are built by grouping a director and a script writer with actors and other supporting crew. The selection is based on a random drawing of names. Team members in each group decide on the theme and story. Each group has four to six hours to complete the filming on location. The footage is then taken through post-production and previewed at the next monthly meet up.

The Making of Heart & Soul

One of the challenges with this film was the limited filming time. We were given about four hours on location. All shots presented in this movie were captured in that time. While scouting the location I noticed the presence of the piano. Although I did not have the complete story, I wanted this piano to take center stage in the film.

The entire team discussed the possibilities for the story. Finally we decided to use the popular song “Heart & Soul” by Hoagy Carmichael & Frank Loesser as the inspiration for the film. Since this is a duet, I then decided to focus the movie on the friendship of two women.

The film follows the traditional three-act structure. The tea cups are used to create a simple symbolism.

I enjoyed the opportunity to collaborate with an all women cast and crew. The passion of the entire team made this a magical experience for us.

What do you think of the film – Please leave your comments below.