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When you have worked on a set with a group of highly dysfunctional people that end up sometimes becoming your family, you are bound to develop a lot of inside jokes. Get Reelisms was born after spending copious amount of time laughing at these inside jokes on set and on a Facebook group (that most veteran filmmakers know about) called Movie Set Memes. We loved the humor on the page and how no one took themselves too seriously. We realized there was a severe lack of literature that exists that can educate the general public about the basics of a film set. Yes, there are plenty of text books, but nothing that fit “film set humor.” I wanted something that was easy to flip through and understand, filled with a lot of pictures. I wanted any Old Joe, mom, sister, non-filmmaker to be able to walk onto set and know enough to not be yelled at. I wanted something that could sit on a coffee table book or in a restroom and any person could pick it up and find themselves lost in the art and humor. I’m a big fan of “adult” children’s books like “Everyone Poops” or “All my Friends are Dead.” So I took this idea to Kellie… and it went something like this.
EXT. UNKNOWN FILM SET – HOT ASS F*&K TEXAS DAY
CHRISTINE CHEN, early 30s, nerdy Asian female approaches KELLIE PENNA, early 30s, strong, will kick your ass production designer. Both ladies are sweaty, tired, and borderline about to strangle someone on set
CHRISTINE
We should make a book that helps filmmakers.
KELLIE
Hm… I like, keep going.
CHRISTINE
But it’ll be funny. Like a coffee table book full of pictures.
You should do all the drawings!
KELLIEWait, what?
Kellie looks at Christine, unsure and weary. Christine is listening to something over the walkie talkie.
CHRISTINE
(to radio)
What are we waiting on guys?
(to Kellie)
Don’t worry! I’ll put it together.
KELLIE
(to Christine)
Great, well if I am going to do a lot of work,
we might as well rope in Jason too.
He can do his visual poetry --
(to radio)
Go for Kellie. Ya, I’m coming.
Kellie walks away. Christine beams in happiness.
CHRISTINE(to no one in particular)Awesome! We will finally make money now!(to PA)Hey, go make sure people have enough water.
Together, for 2 years we worked together, Kellie, Jason, and I, to gather film set terms and design the book. Kellie painstakingly drew every single piece of art in the book, scanned into Photoshop and edited. I designed and structured the layout of Get Reelisms in Illustrator and added in Jason’s awesome poetry art.
Watercolor drawings by Kellie Penna
First Edition of Get Reelisms
This was a labor of love. We learned a lot in the process. Our main goal (besides making a lot of money to fund future film projects) is to be able to affect the film community we love so much, in a positive way. We hope Get Reelisms will be able to:
- bridge the gap between non-filmmakers and filmmakers
- provide entertainment for households all over the world
- help wannabe filmmakers from getting yelled at on their first days on set
PEOPLE LOVE US
This is a great book for anybody. Sometimes it can be really hard to talk to my friends and family who aren't in the industry about what I do since we use so much jargon, but I can throw Get Reelisms at them and in an afternoon they've got the lingo down. I would get this for anybody interested in either going into film or being able to talk about film like they are in it already.
Calvin Carlsen, Script Supervisor
This book is a powerful and entertaining tool that teaches aspiring filmmakers the vocabulary and etiquette of their desired field. My students enjoy the book, and our class culture is benefiting greatly from its inclusion in our library.
Dr. Jay Schaertl, Teacher
This book is the real deal and a must for everyone in the film/tv business.
Bruce Nahin, Hollywood Producer
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