Mid South Con 33

RICHARD A LESTER APPEARS MARCH 20-21 2015

Richard A Lester will be a panelist at this year's MidSouth Con. He will be talking about Timid Monster's Afterlight short, teaching children how to write a super hero story, and giving advice on how to make a fan film. He will also be selling/signing copies of The Check Out.

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I have started an email list so that it is easier to keep up on specials, new releases, and appearances. If you would like to join, just fill out the form here.

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Latest Happenings

These past few months have been fairly busy ones for me. I am in the process of finishing post production of a short film that I directed in December. It's called "Stacked Deck," and is a noir inspired thriller. I am tweaking audio on it at the moment, and then we will do a couple of picture adjustments. I hope to begin submitting it to festivals later this year.

I have also started working on my next novel. It has been two years since The Check Out, but I haven't been sitting idly by. This is a different type of book, so I've been collecting ideas and outlining them in this time period. I'm very excited by this new project, but I am not far enough along in the process to really discuss it. I'll keep you all posted as I get further along.

I will be appearing at Midsouth Con again this year. I will be doing a couple of panels about film work, as well as teaching children how to write a story about super heroes! I will also be selling/signing copies of The Check Out and showing a "sizzle reel" of film projects that I have been working on with Azbest Films and Piano Man Productions. I hope to see some of you there!

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Television, Internet, and Video Association Award 2014

The Check Out has won an award!

The Television, Internet, and Video Association has awarded Steve Ember the 2014 Best Narration, Male  award for The Check Out!

You can watch the video of the presentation here: (Skip to 1:34:17)



TIVA Peer Awards 2014 from TIVA-DC on Vimeo.

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My Return To The Director's Chair

My first film, Night of the Snakehead Fish, was released 11 years ago. I made it without having any experience in movie making whatsoever. I credit my resilience, ability to research the process, and pure naivety for the film coming together. Though it has its flaws, Snakehead has steadily found an audience over this past decade. It keeps popping its head up in the most unexpected places. (It will be featured on the Weather Channel next year!)

This month has found me back in the director chair. I am directing a new short with Azbest Films and Piano Man Pictures. It is a noir inspired piece, and I am really excited by.

If you are reading this, you may be wondering why its taken me over 10 years to make another movie. Well, the short answer is: it has and it hasn't. After Snakehead Fish, I wrote half of a sequel that I never really felt lived up to the original. I abandoned that and spend the next several years working on a number of scripts with a writing partner. Though they were really great, they were just impossible to film. With no money, and no one around me really doing films, I just couldn't make them happen.

Eventually, I did begin another project entitled Whimsical. It was a psuedo/mock documentary of my friends' band. They were called The Whimsical Douche Bunnies and featured bass, drums, and vocals only. The movie followed them around in their day to day lives, and showcased their few gigs. The three of us wrote it as we went along, mixing fiction with reality. It was almost impossible to find the lines that separated reality from the staged. The plan was to film for almost a year, and set up certain events that would happen during their live shows. We had the story, the plan, and had 20 minutes of it shot and edited together. Unfortunately, the bass player's mother experienced a catastrophic injury that stopped the project all together. I've had the footage sitting around for a number of years. I did edit it into a short, but a lack of signed releases from certain audience members will probably ensure it is never released.

Following the aborted attempt at Whimsical, I decided to focus on writing short stories and novels. I did some tech work for plays and the occasional short for other directors, as well. It wasn't until just a couple of years ago that I fell in with two production companies, Azbest Films and Piano Man Pictures, that have reinvigorated my film interest. I have worked on a number of projects with these two, as well as other companies, that will mostly be released next year.

Next year should also see a documentary that I directed and edited. It is about Rusty's TV and Car Museum in Jackson, TN. While this would technically be my return to the director's chair, I felt that I needed to return to narrative to really make it count. Luckily, I have been given this chance with my noir short.

For now, that is all that I can say about the piece. I will definitely post more about it once it has wrapped and is ready for release. The cast and crew are all very excited about this project, and I can't wait to share it with you all.

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Pecha Kucha Memphis Vol 10: Monster Mash

On October 30, 2014 I participated in a night of Pecha Kucha presentations at Crosstown Arts. If you aren't familiar with the format (I wasn't), it's a style where you have 20 slides that show for 20 seconds each. The presentation lasts about 6 and a half minutes. It's a fun, if challenging endeavor.

Since it was the night before Halloween, each topic related to horror or science fiction. I spoke about the strange success of Night of the Snakehead Fish and what I have been doing since then. Here is the actual presentation from that evening.




PECHA KUCHA MEMPHIS VOLUME 10: RICHARD LESTER from Crosstown Arts on Vimeo.

The other speakers were fantastic. To watch their videos, click here.

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October Happenings

Well, the month of October turned out to be a very busy one, indeed. Here's a break down of projects I was involved with this month:

-The lastest short in the Shelby Staxx series from Azbest Films. Not only did I work behind the camera, I also had a small role!

-I helped Piano Man Pictures shoot three episodes of an upcoming vegan cooking show. Fun people and delicious food.

-I appeared at Crosstown Arts for their PechaKucha night 10: Monster Mash. I was given 20 slides for 20 seconds and spoke about Night of the Snakehead Fish, as well as other film and writing projects. 

-I attended a fundraiser for a short to begin production next month: Kissing River Phoenix. It was written by Kat Moore and is being produced by Polyphony Creative. 

-Indie Memphis 2014! Need I say more? 

-Time Warp Drive In wrapped for the year. Our Shelby Staxx short played. I also played a music set with David Virone and Jesse Davis before the films started. I believe there will be more to come in the following year. 

November is looking to be busy, as well. I will be directing a noir inspired short, and finishing up a documentary about Rusty's TV & Car Museum. 

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