Sample Scene: I Don't Recall + other stuff

Hello Again,

Just wanted to keep everyone posted on how the new script is coming along. We have about 85 pages written. Probably have another 20-25 left. A scene here and there. The basic story is all there. Just need to tighten it up some and fill in some of the missing chunks. It will probably be about 110-120 pages by the time it's completed.

Below is a scene from the script. But before that I would like to give you a little context. Martin, a mild mannered pushover in his mid 30's, is meeting his long time girlfriend (Sara) for their anniversary dinner. He is going to propose to her. She has other ideas.

CLICK HERE to read the sample scene.

What else is going on?

Well, to help raise some money for I Don't Recall I am starting my own subscription channel.

https://mopedjones.pivotshare.com/

I am not "officially" launching the channel until May 1st. However, it is active now. So if you want to sign up, that would be awesome.

For $2.99 a month you will have unlimited access to our entire library. 

For $2.69 you can purchase downloads of The Truth About Average Guys, S.O.L., and Wingmen Incorporated. (if you subscribe to the channel, they are included into the subscription)

 

Here's a list of what we have currently have on the site...

Wingmen Incorporated              -  $2.69  (or part of the subscription package)
The Truth About Average Guys - $2.69  (or part of the subscription package)
10 Minute Abs: Episode 1          - $1.29  (or part of the subscription package)

 

The following are only available through a monthly subscription...

Wingmen Incorporated: Drunkenly Honest Commentary*
Wingmen Incorporated: BLOOPERS
Wingmen Incorporated: OUTTAKES
Wingmen Incorporated: Larry's Awesome Tattoo Story!
Wingmen Incorporated: Extended Sex Scene
Wingmen Incorporated: Extended Fight Scene
10 Minute Abs: Episode 1 Bloopers
The History of TTAAG: From The Beginning (18 minute documentary about TTAAG)
The Truth About Average Guys: BLOOPERS
The Truth About Average Guys: Alternate Ending
S.O.L. - BLOOPERS

 

Coming Soon...

S.O.L.
S.O.L.: Drunken Commentary*
Wingmen Incorporated: Sober Commentary Ken & Bethany*
Wingmen Incorporated: Original Drunken Commentary (unedited: Jason, Kate, and Evan)*
The Truth About Average Guys: Commentary with Jason & Ken*
No Regrets (short film)
No Regrets (short film) Commentary*

(*the commentaries are the video of the film with the commentary audio track)

And starting May 1st, new weekly episodes of The Moped Jones Drunken Podcast and we'll be doing Drunken Commentaries to popular films (like Titanic).

All proceeds from the channel will go towards I Don't Recall's budget. 

So that's what's going on right now. No Regrets will start up in April or May and will start shooting in May or June. It's a 4 day shoot (2 weekends). Hope it have it edited and ready to submit to festivals in August. Pretty pumped about that.

In the mean time, Kate and I will keep chugging along on the script. I say this a lot, but I can't believe how talented of a writer she is. I'm so used to bumping heads when I collaborate with someone, but she trusts me and I trust her, so writing with her has been a pleasant surprise.  Once the script is done we'll send it to a script consultant and get some feedback. Then we'll incorporate her notes and rewrite the script (hopefully we won't have to do too much).  Then from there we will start contacting some name talent and gauge their interest in the script as well as get a quote for what it would cost to have them in the film.

Pretty exciting times are ahead for Moped Jones.  Hope you enjoyed the sample scene!

Can't wait!

Jason W. Schaver
Moped Jones Entertainment
www.mopedjones.com

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Halfway Through The 730: 2013 Year In Review

This time last year I made a blog called "The Next 730 Days". It was about how I felt the 730 days from 1/1/13 to 12/31/14 will set the tone for the rest of my life. Feel free to read the link below to read it.

http://jasonwschaver.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-next-730-daysplus-video-clip.html

Are you back?  You didn't read it, but that's okay.

So here's my 2013 year in review & an update of how the first 365 days of that 730 have been going.

MARCH 2013- My film, Wingmen Incorporated, was finished 3/1/13. It was also brought to my attention shortly after that that my former partner (Ken) had went behind my back and edited out large chunks of my commentary. This was the final straw in a long string of shady behavior by him. I decided to cut ties with him because of this.  Somewhere along the way we went from me casting him in what would later be The Truth About Average Guys to us being 50/50 partners (which was fine with me) to him thinking I worked for him (without pay). He'd deny that, but that's what it felt like towards the end. Proof of that is him editing out my commentary without my knowledge. I wasn't given the chance to approve his commentary, which I wouldn't have because he said several things in it that weren't true. Oh well, I re-did my commentary and set the record straight on the things he said.

CLICK HERE To purchase a DVD that has the new commentary on it ($6.99) shirt ($9.99) shirt and DVD $14.99)

Sure, we did some good things, but I won't miss him telling me what to put in my blog, him telling me to lie to our fans, him telling me telling me who I can and can't have on my commentary, him casting people he's sleeping with in all our films, him editing out large chunks of my commentary, him telling me that we need to raise our prices b/c the reason people aren't buying it is b/c it's too cheap and they don't respect it, him telling me a Kickstarter campaign was stupid and it won't work (not helping at all on it) then when it worked him telling me what "we" should spend "our" money on b/c I only got it b/c I was under the "Adjusted Gratuity" banner. (WTF?)   Him giving me permission to film my own sketches that I wrote myself and use the money that I raised myself. (that was 10 Minute Abs)

(And I'm not even mentioning the shadiest thing he did in 2010 while we were shooting S.O.L. that violated my trust in the first place.)

Jason/Ken 2006-2013 R.I.P. 


APRIL 2013 - My lovely girlfriend Kate moved from Chicago to Fulton. We also started co-writing a book called Why She Left which is a book of quotes that I've actually said to her. I say some pretty fucked up stuff, luckily for me she thinks most of it is pretty funny. She's actually the one that suggested we start writing them all down.

MAY 2013 - got a letter from our landlord at the time that they were selling the building. The new landlord wanted to double the rent and wouldn't allow pets.  That first month or two was very stressful for us. There was just nothing jobs-wise out here for her.

JUNE 2013 - moved into our new apartment. It's not the best place, but it the rent is very reasonable, we live in a good neighborhood.  I also bought some editing software and taught myself how to edit. After parting ways with Ken I realized I would be the only one promoting the film and if I was going to be the only one submitting the film to festivals I wanted to submit a version that I was happy with. I cut out about 5 minutes of the film. Mostly boring stuff that slowed down the pacing. Really boring stuff. Felt like it was trying to be too cute and clever, and not working at all.

JULY 2013 - Helped my lovely girlfriend Kate start her business. She's doing really well and all her clients just adore her.   Also did a Indiegogo campaign for my short film No Regrets.  Raised $2202 from 51 donors from all over the world. Wanted to shoot that in the fall but life got in the way and before we knew it it was really cold outside. So we're thinking May of next year. I can't wait to see how it all turns out.

AUGUST THROUGH PRESENT - Submitted Wingmen Incorporated to nearly 50 film festivals.  Will have spent nearly $1750 when all is said and done.  We're 7 for 17 (.412%) with 34 festivals left to hear back from over the coming months (all the way up until October of 2014).  We've won 3 awards & been nominated for 5 others. We're just getting started though. I submitted to a lot of earlybird deadlines, so I'll start hearing back from lots of festivals in 2014.

NOVEMBER 2013 - won best feature at the 2013 East Lansing Film Festival.  Also, Kate and I started writing our next project, the feature comedy I Don't Recall. I came up with the idea nearly a year ago. Wrote a couple scenes back in January but then got busy with life. We started writing again back in early November and now have about 60 pages written. We're trying for 100, so we are 60% done with the first draft. It's turning out to be really good. Kate is a much better writer than I thought she was going to be. She really brings depth to our female characters. She also has no agenda. (No writing parts for whomever she's fucking or making secondary characters act a certain way so her character can be the hero. She isn't even remotely interested in acting in the film. If anything, her only agenda is writing an amazing screenplay).  This has been the most pleasant co-writing experience I've ever had and I look forward to writing many more screenplays with Kate after this.

DECEMBER 2013 - Well, it's not over yet, but so far so good. I have been battling a cold for the past couple weeks, but I seem to be on the mend.  Haven't started my Christmas shopping yet, but will start Thursday (pay day).  Mainly just looking forward to next year.

So what is in store for 2014?

1.  Finish first draft of I Don't Recall.
2. continue to submit and hear back from film festivals regarding Wingmen Incorporated
3. Send I Don't Recall to script consultant to help with final draft & submit it to contests
4. seek out investors to shoot I Don't Recall ourselves. I would like to shoot it for $50k and use some of that money to seek out name talent to play a few smaller roles (1 day shoots). 
5.  Start diet 1/1/14.  Get down to 180 by May when I shoot my short/drama No Regrets
6. Get No Regrets done and submit it to larger festivals.
7. save up my weekly incentive money (from work) to go towards I Don't Recall budget. Want to start filming in spring of 2015. 

All in all 2013 wasn't too bad. If my former partner hadn't bailed on Wingmen Incorporated (in lame ass attempt to con his way into a SAG card) more might have happened this year with it. But like I said above, I have submitted to over 50 festivals that I think will lead to bigger and better things for the film.  Since parting ways with my former partner, I feel like a huge weight as been lifted off my shoulders. I feel like I finally have control over my career. No bumping heads. No agendas. No shady behavior. I am very much enjoying the writing process again. Writing with Kate has been a breath of fresh air. She's even found some great music for the film. Writing with her has been so easy. And if the writing part has been easy, I can't wait to see how much better the filming part will be!

I think for 2014, the thing I am looking forward to the most is getting I Don't Recall done, getting a team together, raising the funds, and getting it ready to shoot. I think this will be a major step above my previous work.

That's all I got for now,

Jason W. Schaver
Moped Jones Entertainment
www.mopedjones.com

Long Time No Blog! (lots to catch up on)

Where to start?

1.  Wingmen Incorporated played its very first festival on April 6th out in Cedar Rapids, IA. It won the Silver Eddy in the Best Feature Pro-Am Category. To be eligible for this we needed to have someone associated with the state of Iowa (I was born in Clinton, IA) and to not make over 50% of our income as filmmakers.  Since it is way less than 50% we were eligible for Pro-Am status.  The screening went really well and people seemed to really enjoy the film. I was approached several times throughout the night because people recognized me from the film. It was pretty cool.  People in Iowa are so kind.  Not at all like those fucks in Delaware.*

*never been to Delaware, I'm just assuming this based on how boring it must be to live there.

2.  My lovely girlfriend Kate moved in with me.  On Easter Sunday I borrowed my dad's truck and headed out to Chicago to pick up a truckload of her stuff.  We got it loaded up with no problem. Some Asians almost took my dad's mirror off, but they swerved at the last second b/c not only are they good at math they are good swervers. Anyway, it's been going really well. It's nice having someone here. She's a great girl and I am really lucky.

3.  Updated the website, so feel free to check out the new layout.  I just think it flows better.  Be sure to check out our new promotion:  Buy The Truth About Average Guys AND Wingmen Incorporated for $19.99 and we'll throw in a FREE copy of S.O.L.  3 DVD's loaded with bonus material for less than twenty bucks?  Yep, it's real!

http://mopedjones.com/home.cfm


4.  The podcast is still going strong. Check that out as well. We look forward to having more guests as we feel those segments have gone really well. We have a lot of fun making the podcast and the feedback so far has been great. People seem to be enjoying it.  It's really cool watching this thing grow. Hopefully it continues.

http://mopedjones.com/drunkenpodcast.cfm


5. I have some other stuff, but I'm not really sure I'm ready to go public with it yet. I want to calm down and make sure I handle it properly. It involves my career path. Some slimey things have continued to happen and I will now be doing more projects on my own. I'm not naming any names, but for those of you that know me and my work you can probably guess who I am referring too. I may give more details in future blogs/podcasts/ect... but for time being this is all the info I am comfortable giving. I do have a list of all the slimey stuff though, and I'll probably share it at some point. Probably in blog form. We'll see.

Autobots, roll out!

Jason W. Schaver
Moped Jones Entertainment
www.mopedjones.com

Moped Jones Drunken Podcast: Episode 1 + pic

Dear Whomever is bored enough to read this,

http://mopedjonesentertainment.bandzoogle.com/podcastblog.cfm

Click the link and hit play. You can just play it or download it for free.  In the podcast we discuss the following...

Scott Weiland
how Evan's kids may or may not be amazing
a crazy girl I used to sleep with
Evan's upcoming date
Jason & Evan each recommend a song (and play it)
Jason & Evan each recommend a movie (and don't play it, just discuss it)
A very entertaining phone call from Evan's sister
love making tips for Evan

Feel free to email us any questions to info@mopedjones.com and we will try to answer them on the next podcast.

Also, please go to www.wingmenincorporated.com and pick up a DVD or download of my brand new film Wingmen Incorporated.  Downloads of the movie are $2.99 (film only) and/or buy a DVD of the film that is loaded with bonus material.


This is the DVD front and back cover.  Pretty slick, was designed by our buddy Kyle Clark.

Thank you for caring, I truly am humbled by all the kind words about the new film. And to those of you yet to check it out, give it a chance. I promise you'll like it.

Jason W. Schaver
Moped Jones Entertainment

Click here to follow me on Twitter.

Know Your Rights Kids!

Dear Whomever Is Bored Enough To Read This,

So I was at Walmart today and this kid (who looked to be about 4 or 5) was misbehaving a bit and his mother said to him "If you don't behave I'm going to leave you here."  Part of me really wanted the kid to say "From a legal standpoint you would be in a whole mess of trouble if you knowingly left me in a public place as you are legally responsible for my well being until I am 18 years of age".   Of course, little kids don't know the whole "I'm gonna leave you here!" is just an empty threat.  I wanted to pull the kid aside and explain this to him, but it's never wise to be a stranger and pull aside a child b/c then you look like a creepy weirdo perv, and that's not really what I was going for. 

This made me think of all the times as a child my parents tried to scare me with empty threats.  I wish we'd get to redo our childhoods with our adult brains inside our kid bodies so we could call adults on their bullshit just to see the looks on their lying faces.

Know your rights, Kids!

Anyway, now for the Wingmen Incorporated updates....

1.  My buddy Kyle is feverishly working on the DVD art work for the film.  I saw a rough sketch and I liked what I saw.

2.  Just sent out screeners to couple of Film Critics. We're hoping to get the reviews back in time to have some quotes in the trailer and on the DVD artwork.

3.  I sent out a copy to the Cedar Rapids film festival.  The festival is in April.  Hope we get in (I'm feeling optimistic about our chances b/c The Truth About Average Guys got in and won "Best Pro-Am" in 2011.  Wingmen Incorporated is a much better film and less controversial. But if the film industry has taught me anything it's that you should never take anything for granted and keep your expectations low.  Far less disappointment that way.

4.  Getting things ready so I can record my drunken commentary for the film.  It's looking like I'll be doing that next Friday night or Saturday during the day.  My friend Evan and my girlfriend Kate will be joining me for that. Should be a lot of fun.  Kate is pretty funny for a girl, and Evan is pretty funny for a guy that used to be a girl.

Anyway, that's all I got for now.  Still looking like we'll hit our March 1st deadline, but it will certainly not be easy.

Jason W. Schaver
Moped Jones Entertainment

Click here to follow me on Twitter

Haven't Blogged For While....

Dear Whomever Is Bored Enough To Read This,

Happy Super Bowl Sunday!  Oops, I mean Big Game Sunday since we're not allowed to say Super Bowl because of the Nazi's over at the No Fun League.  God, my sports teams suck right now.  The Cubs are rebuilding b/c of a century of losing. The Bears started 7-1 and didn't make the playoffs. The Illini suck at football and are in the middle of another 2nd half collapse in basketball.  What do I have to look forward to from a sports standpoint?   I wish I liked NASCAR or tennis or something stupid like that.

So it's been a while since my last post.  Felt like writing something, even if it wasn't very interesting. 

Wrote another scene for my new screenplay. So now I'm up to 7 pages.  Only 83 more to go! So far so good.  All kidding aside, I think this thing could be one of the best things I've ever written.



Yup, that's their logo!

Been working on the Wingmen Incorporated website. I'm really impressed with the website that we're doing the site through. It's mainly for bands, but people with films use it as well.  A lot of cool features, plus the sites look pretty sharp. I will be doing a Moped Jones website through them as well once I start that back up.  These sites even have a feature that allows you to do a podcast.  I'll be doing one for Moped Jones with my friend Evan.  So that should be fun.  And if it sucks we can always quit.  Anyway if you are a musician or filmmaker looking for a cheap way to have a professional looking website, I definitely recommend them.

 Also, will be getting a final cut of Wingmen Incorporated here within the next day or so.  I have to burn 3 copies of it to send out to some critics. We're hoping to have some nice quotes to put on our DVD cover and in the trailer. I need to also burn a copy to send to the Cedar Rapids Film Festival. They have to have it by the 8th so I need to get that out ASAP. My first film, The Truth About Average Guys, won Best Feature there in 2011. I will admit, I've been to many film festivals and have seen a lot of really bad indie films, but Cedar Rapids had some very entertaining films there in 2011.

So everything is still launching on March 1st. 

Website
Trailer
DVD's to sell
Downloads to sell

My buddy Kyle is working hard on getting the DVD artwork done.  Still a lot to do, but we should have it done in just the nick of time.  I have never been this optimistic about any of the film projects I've done and cannot wait to see/hear people's reactions to this film. I just have this feeling that it's going to take off and open a lot of doors for me.

Jason W. Schaver
Moped Jones Entertainment

Click here to follow me on Twitter

Started New Screenplay + Wingmen Incorporated News!

Dear Whomever is Bored Enough to Read This,

As of 1/1/13 I have officially started a new screenplay.  It's been a long time since I started a new one.  I co-wrote Wingmen Incorporated but that story wasn't my idea.  In 2009 I did start a comedy called Welcome To The Family, but that beginning ended up being used in Wingmen Incorporated. So that one never got finished (and probably won't be).   I may take some of those scenes and put them in my newest screenplay, which is tentatively called I Don't Recall.

I'm not sure how much of the plot I should give away, but the script involves my character getting into an accident and faking amnesia.  When my girlfriend (Kate) moves out here in the spring we'll get crankin' on the script. In the meantime I just wanted to start writing a few scenes here and there so we wouldn't have to start from scratch once she gets here.  I'm really anxious to see where the story takes us.  It has the potential to be very funny. I've let a few people read the scene I've written and the responses have been all very positive.  I like where it's heading.

In other news, Ken and I recently found out that there is a film coming out (with a much larger budget) called Wingman INC.  While it's not exactly the same title as Wingmen Incorporated, it's still a little too close for comfort.  We have no intention of changing our title. So we are discussing our best plan of action.  The last thing we want is to miss out on some film festivals because they don't want to accept two films with similar titles.  Their film does have some "name" talent (I put "name" in quotes because while some of their actors have done well known film and TV projects, they weren't the stars and aren't really all that well known) but that will still help them get into film festivals b/c festivals get huge boners for "name" talent.  So we may cut a few corners so we can get it out there sooner.  Nothing major.  The main thing is we may not wait until 2014 to start film festival run.  May start submitting to festivals immediately and hopefully start getting into some later in the spring/summer of 2013. To do this we may have to skip some "minor post production stuff" (that most non-filmmakers won't really notice or care about) in order to get it out there several months sooner. 

So our festival run may start this summer as opposed to next January.  This is actually what I wanted to do in the first place even before the film with the much bigger budget and similar title got on our "radar".  I just didn't want to push everything back for Sundance.  Don't get me wrong!  It would make my LIFE to get accepted.  I just didn't like our odds and didn't feel the time spent waiting would be worth it (meaning, I didn't think we'd get in.  Don't get me wrong again.... I think  Wingmen Incorporated is worthy of getting into Sundance, I just don't trust their selection process enough to warrant pushing everything back several months to save our "premier status" for them.)

If we decide quickly on what we're doing it's possible our festival run could start in April at the Cedar Rapids Film Festival.  My first film, The Truth About Average Guys, won best Pro-Am Feature there in 2011. Their early bird deadline is January 25th.  Their late deadline is February 8th.  So it's possible that could start our festival run.  Since I was born in Iowa that makes us eligible to submit as filmmakers need an "Iowa Connection".

So at the moment, I'm not sure if Wingmen Incorporated (not to be confused with Wingman INC) will be released in May like previously discussed or much sooner.  After Ken and I discuss this more we'll decide on the proper course of action. I think we both are leaning towards putting it out sooner, but we'll see!

Jason W. Schaver
Moped Jones Entertainment

Click here to follow me on Twitter.

The Next 730 Days...(plus video clip)

Dear Whomever Is Bored Enough To Read This,

As 2013 gets started, I can't help but think that the 730 days leading up to December 31st, 2014 will have a bigger impact on my life than any other 2 year stretch during my lifetime.  In those 730 days anything can happen.  Anything from "Nothing to Everything, and anything in between".  Does that even make sense? I like to think it does. Let me explain....

I tend to view things in 2 year increments.  The beginning of one year all the way up to the end of the following year (hence the 730 days, except if there is a leap year involved, then it's 731 days).  I started doing this in 2009 after my engagement was called off.   On 12/31/10 I just couldn't stop thinking about how 730 days ago I was incredibly happy and how quickly my life went to shit because of someone else's stupid decision (*the stupid decision was leaving me for a co-worker that had a girlfriend that he liked to cheat on, in case you were wondering, that little "fling" was over before I was even unpacked. It still amazes me that a thing that lasted 21 days tops could have such a huge impact on the rest of my life*).  So there's your brief history lesson on why the whole 730 days thing strikes such a chord with me.

Anyway, 2013-14 has the chance to be life changing.  In the first 5-6 months alone I will have my new film, Wingmen Incorporated, finished & my lovely girlfriend (Kate), will be moving from Chicago to Fulton (wtf? really?) to be with me.  I've never had a girl move for me before. I've moved twice in my life to be with girls (11/02/03 to Orlando, FL, and 11/02/07 to Rockford, IL).  Both ended up being huge mistakes that cost me dearly.  Maybe 11/2 is my unlucky moving date? Or maybe it had nothing to do with the date, but more to do with the type of girl I moved for?  Just to be safe I won't move on 11/2 ever again. I won't move for whores anymore either.   

Once Kate gets here I'll be saving quite a bit of money on rent and utilities.  Plus by May my car will be paid off  + changing my insurance to liability will save some $$$ also.  All in all, I'll be saving almost $800 a month by having her here.  Plus she's awesome.  Our personalities really mesh well together.  We can have a blast just doing nothing.  Never had that before. Would not be shocked at all if I were at the very least engaged by the time the 730 days are up.  My parents recently met her and really like her.  My dad even said he wouldn't mind having her for a daughter-in-law.  He's never said that about any of the girls I've dated before (even my ex fiancé).  Will also be good for my diet.  I have this habbit of getting down to 205, getting frustrated about something that has nothing to do with my diet, then going back up to 230 (which is where I'm at now).  Once she gets out here I won't be so bored + she's a bit of a health nut so I should be more active and be eating much better.  I hope to get down to 175-180 well before the end of the 730 days.

The money saved by having a hot "roommate" will be going towards my own film equipment (a decent camera, editing equipment/software, and possibly some sound equipment).  It sucks wanting to film things but having to plan a whole weekend around it by driving out to Chicago, having people available, ect...  Would love to be able to start doing my own stuff out here.  I have tons of little sketches written that I would be able to film out this way.  Am looking forward to starting 10 Minute Abs back up again now that I have more free time.  I might also shoot a short film I wrote back in the summer of 2011 called No Regrets.  I've never done a short before.  I've also never done a drama/thriller before either.  It's definitely something I want to try just to see if I have the chops.

Also, in or around May, I'll be having a fundraising screening in Clinton, IA. for Wingmen Incorporated.  I'll be going all out for this.  Buying radio-spots to help advertise, articles in the local paper & buying ad space as well.  My goal is to pack the 250 seat theater.   In January of 2011 I had about 100 people come out to a fundraising screening of my film, S.O.L., on a Wednesday night in the middle of January.  So I'm hoping with a little advertising and better weather, this thing will be a huge success.  *crosses fingers*

The rest of 2013 will be spent researching and submitting to film festivals across the country for the 2014 Film Festival Season that starts in January with Sundance & one of our personal favorites, the Trail Dance Film Festival (Duncan, OK).   We're saving our "World Premier" for Sundance.  Of course, there is no lock that we'll get in b/c they get over 10,000 submissions a year. But, we'll see.  You never know, the right people might think we're hilarious and want to "discover" us.  So we'll see how it goes.  Sundance's early bird deadline is in April/May of 2013.  Perfect timing b/c that's when our film should be done.  All money made from my Clinton screening will be going towards film festivals submission fees & travel expenses.  Film submission fees really add up quickly.  But once you get accepted, that's when things start to get pricey.  Plane tickets, gas, hotel rooms, food, ect... It adds up in a hurry.

Will be releasing the film, website, trailer, downloads (film only), DVD's with special features, when the film is completed.  Launching everything on the same day.  I'm excited to see how many people download the film & tell their friends about the film.  Downloads will be $2.99.  Not because the movie is shitty, but because we want people to try it.  Hopefully if they enjoy the film they will buy the DVD with all the special features.  "Drunken Commentary" with myself and Ken Gayton.  Loads of outtakes AND bloopers and whatever else we can cram on there!  I'm just really curious/excited to see how the word of mouth on this film goes.

Will also be starting a new screenplay in 2013.  So I'm very excited about that.  Been a while since I started a new one from scratch, let's hope I remember how!  I really like the premise.  Can't disclose too much, but it involves amnesia.  Not sure if it's going to be a full out comedy, or a more relaxed comedy, or a dramady.  We'll see where the story takes us (Kate is writing it with me, it's awesome having an English Major for a girlfriend) =)

2014 is when it could get amazing....

For example, starting off the year having our world premier at Sundance.  That all by itself could be life changing from a career standpoint.  Wouldn't even be 25 days into the 2nd half of the 730 days and we could have already sold the film for major $$$.  But like I said, if we don't get in, it's not the end of the world. We'll hopefully get into plenty of other festivals that could do some nice things for us.  Should know by late October/early November 2013 if we are going to Park City, UT in January of 2014.  I know the film is good and that people will really enjoy it. I just hope someone important feels the same way. *crosses fingers*

Anyway, as promised, here is a clip from my new film Wingmen Incorporated.  Enjoy!   If the clip made you smile, all we ask is that you "like" us on Facebook and "share" the video. We're not a big budget film.  Word of mouth is one of the few ways we can compete against the big boys.  So please like us and share us as much as possible.

Happy New Year!  I hope everyone's next 730 days go as well as hopefully mine do!

Jason W. Schaver
Moped Jones Entertainment

Click here to follow me on Twitter. 

As 2012 Winds Down...

Dear Whomever Is Bored Enough To Read This,

I honestly wasn't planning on doing this blog thing regularly, but I've been getting a decent number of reads so I may just keep doing this for a while.  Been getting quite a few reads from Germany.  So, yeah, HI GERMANY!  You guys behaving over there?  =)  That was probably offensive.

 I am trying to get more "likes" to the Wingmen Incorporated Facebook page.  As I type this we are up to 236.  Would love to see us get up to 500 or 1000 by the time the film is ready next spring.  So if you have yet to like the FB page I encourage you to take a moment and do so. It's the best way to keep in the loop with all things Wingmen Incorporated.  Plus it will really help us get out of the gate running next spring when we launch. 1000 fans will help us grow much faster than 200.  So please "like" and "share" the page.  We'd really appreciate it.

https://www.facebook.com/wingmenincorporated

We'll be posting a clip from the film on 1/1/13. I promise you it's a very funny clip.  You don't want to miss it. 

What else is going on?

As the year winds down I have to say this has been one of the best years in recent memory.  Possibly ever.

1.  Getting along really well with my father, I think it may be permanent this time.
2.  Met a wonderful girl that I love very much
3.  Made one of the best $5000 independent comedy films ever made (Fuck you.  I did. I'm not ashamed to say so.)
4.  Found out my ex fiancé got married this year and it didn't even phase me.  That was a great sign. It's a good feeling when you get over things and stop hating people for what they did.  I got really tired of being bitter all the time (although, I must admit, my comedy was razor sharp! Hopefully I don't lose that edge).

In closing, 2012 was the first year that hasn't sucked since 2008.  So bring on 2013. I've got some ass to kick.  Let's make it 2 great years in a row.  Time to see what that feels like!  (I usually have a good year and then 2-3 bad ones, definitely want that trend to stop).

Jason W. Schaver
Moped Jones Entertainment

Click here to follow me on Twitter.

Top 10 Movies I saw in 2012

Dear Whomever Is Bored Enough To Read This,

Here is a list of the Top 10 Movies I saw this year.  This does not necessarily mean that the film came out in 2012.  Just that I saw it for the first time in the year 2012.

10.  Bridesmaids (2011) -  I put off watching this for a long LONG time b/c I figured this would be just lame ass jokes about vaginas and about how men are stupid.  But it was extremely funny and lived up to the hype. It was like a guy movie made by women.  Kristen Wiig is the funniest woman in Hollywood right now.  Melissa McCarthy is also great in the film.  If you have Netflix, I suggest checking out SNL from when she hosted a couple years ago. 
 

9.  Inception (2010) - I was a little late for the party on this one too.  Always thought it looked interesting, but just kinda forgot about it.  Then one day I saw it for $5 at Walmart and picked up a copy.  Very entertaining film. Lots of layers to it. Kept my attention from start to finish. 


8.  Source Code (2011) -  Thought the premise sounded cool. Wasn't sure how I was going to like seeing the same scene being lived over and over, but the way they did it was really interesting.  Every so often I'll get in the mood to see a non-comedy.  This is definitely a good film to watch if you want a break from comedies.
 

7.  That's My Boy (2012) - I had really low expectations for this film.  Sandler has been hit or miss with me lately (mostly miss).  Grown Ups, Jack & Jill, Just Go With It, and Don't Mess with the Zohan were all terrible films.  So because of Sandler's recent track record I was a little hesitant about this film.  But much to my surprise it was actually pretty damn funny.  Sandler's accent is pretty annoying, but the laughs more than make up for that.  Some pretty funny cameos in here as well. 
 

6. Cabin in the Woods (2011) -  I rented this b/c I was told that it was more of a comedy than a horror film.  While I don't necessarily agree with that, I did enjoy the story very much.  It had several funny parts, but for the most part it was a horror movie.  Very interesting premise (a couple of plot holes, but what movie doesn't have at least one of those?). 
 

5. Wingmen Incorporated: rough cut (2013) - Yeah, my own movie is on here. Sue me. (Wait!Don't!  If you can sue McDonalds for making you fat then maybe you can sue me for having my own film on the list!).  All kidding aside, I couldn't think of 10 movies that I saw this year that I loved.  And I absolutely cannot wait to watch the final cut in a darkened theater packed with strangers.  I think people are really going to enjoy this film.  It's a really good sign when the rough cut of your new film is already as good or better than the final cuts of your previous work.
 

4 & 3  The Dark Knight (2008)  & The Dark Knight Rises (2012) -  I'm lumping these together since they are part of the same franchise.  I actually saw TDKR first.  Then had to go back and watch TDK for the first time.  I completely understand why these movies are so popular. For the longest time I just had no interest in the Batman franchise, however, now I think they are amazing films.  Heath Ledger was incredible as The Joker.  For the longest time I thought he was just getting all that praise because of his tragic death, but in my opinion all that praise is well deserved.
 

2.  Ted (2012) -  From the trailer you know exactly what this film is going to be.  And I was not disappointed at all.  With the exception of Team America: World Police (2004), I have never been in a theater that had so much laughter throughout a film.  I think I'm getting this for Christmas from either my sister or my mom and cannot wait to watch it again.  I have a feeling I missed a lot of jokes b/c of all the laughter in the theater the last time I saw it. 


1.  Tucker & Dale Vs. Evil (2010) -  As you can see, this movie has been out for a while.  I had seen it on the shelves at my local Family Video store for several months.  Picked it up a few times, but thought it sounded stupid.  You never know what you are getting into with indie films.  Some are amazing.  Some are awful.  When this film had gotten moved to the "$1 Nearly New" section I decided that it was worth the risk.  I went home and popped it in and was completely blown away at how funny this movie was.  In fact, I loved it so much that when I took the DVD back to Family Video I ended up buying the copy that I rented. 


So yeah, this is probably the most unconventional "Best Movies I saw in 2012" list out there since only a couple of them actually came out in 2012.  But these are movies I saw for the first time in 2012.

In closing, I would like to thank all the people that read my first blog. I honestly just wrote it on a whim, but saw nearly 100 people had read it.  So because of that I decided to write a few more.

Happy Holidays!

Jason W. Schaver
Moped Jones Entertainment


(PS- feel free to follow me on Twitter, by clicking here, occasionally I'll say something funny)

2012 in Review...

Dear Whomever Is Bored & Reads This,

It's been an interesting year.  When I think back to where I was 340+ days ago (or however many days ago 1/1/12 was), I can't help but feel a little bit blessed. 

So what did I accomplish this year? 

Am I famous yet?  No.  But I did some things this year that will get me much MUCH closer to that.

So let's see...

January 2012 - I released a sketch comedy show online called 10 Minute Abs.  It got over 12,000 views in the first few weeks.  I was surprised at how well it caught on.  I was planning on doing a show every month, but it was just such a huge pain in the ass to write all the sketches, get everything organized.  I didn't like driving out to Chicago in the middle of winter to do this, so I put the show on hiatus until the spring of 2012.  But then I got sidetracked with my upcoming feature comedy Wingmen Incorporated.   I will be starting 10 Minute Abs up again at some point in 2013, just not sure when yet.  I think it can gain quite a following if I stick with it for a half dozen episodes or so.


February 2012 - Got an email from my filmmaking partner, Ken Gayton, that changed the rest of my year (and possibly my life).  He had been talking about moving out to LA for some time, but hadn't been able to go yet.  He sent me an email and said "since the powers that be" were going to be keeping his ass in Chicago for a while longer he wanted to shoot another feature.  We decided on Wingmen Incorporated.


March 2012 - My father almost died.   He was off from work because he had a fracture in his foot.
One night he had severe chest pains and my mother had to rush him to the ER.  He had multiple blood clots in his heart and lungs.  Fortunately this happened in the middle of the night when my mother was home.  If it had happened during the day while she was at work, he may not have survived.  I visited him every day while he was in the hospital. We talked more in those 5 days than we had in the past 10 years.  He apologized for the way he treated me when I was a kid.  I accepted.  It's 8 months later and we're still getting along just fine.

April - May 2012 - We started a fundraiser for Wingmen Incorporated.  Fans of our previous two films (The Truth About Average Guys & S.O.L.) donated more than $5000 to the film.  That made us feel really good.  We had people all over the globe donate.  Donations came in from as far away as Germany, England and Australia.  We had one person give us $650, and half dozen people give us $500.  It was a very cool experience to see that all these people enjoyed our work enough to send us $$$ so that we can keep making movies.

End of June - early August 2012 - For the first time since my engagement was called off, in April of 2009, I was in an actual relationship.  I had dated a lot of girls in that time, but was never "official" with any of them.  It was nice to get that monkey off my back and have a girlfriend again.  The relationship wasn't all that great.  The girl was pretty, smart, and nice.  But she felt more like a friend. So I was looking for a way to end it halfway through it.  One night she was being a little shady on Facebook, so I saw my opportunity.  She took it very well.  Actually, too well, lol.  Which was proof that I did the right thing by ending it.  I'm not sure what was really going on behind my back, but it didn't matter.  We weren't right for each other.  But it was nice to have a girlfriend b/c I got so sick of my last girlfriend being my ex fiancé.

June - September 2012 - Filmed Wingmen Incorporated. It was a pretty fun experience.  We had a very talented cast.  The Wingmen (Matt, Josh, Heath, Andrew, Greg, Jeff) were all a pleasure to work with.  We had a lot of laughs on set.  We couldn't have asked for a better cast of Wingmen. The days were long, but they were never short on laughs.  This movie is going to surprise the hell out of people.  It's that funny!

November 2012 - In early November I met a girl named Kate. We clicked immediately and became exclusive almost right off the bat.  She lives in Chicago, but comes to see me every weekend.  I'm not used to the girl coming to see me.  I usually have to do 99% of the driving.  Luckily for me she really likes coming out here.  She is a small town girl (despite living in Chicago).  So she loves how stress free it is out here.   In fact, she loves it so much (and me) that she is planning on moving out here in May. 

December 2012 - It's only the 9th.  I may have started this "year in review" blog a little bit too early.  But so far so good in December.  Wingmen Incorporated is currently being edited.  Ken did end up moving to LA.  But he's out there editing away.  I like a lot of what I've seen so far.  The film should be ready in the Spring of 2013.  We're hoping around the 1st of April (no foolin'!)

7 things to look forward to in 2013.....

1.  Kate moving out in here in May.
2. Wingmen Incorporated being done in April.
3. Starting a new screenplay and writing it with Kate (who just so happens to be an English Major)
4. Writing and shooting more episodes of 10 Minute Abs.
5.  Buying my own film equipment (camera & sound, so I can shoot closer to home)
6.  Submitting Wingmen Incorporated to film festivals (Sundance, Toronto, SXSW, Phoenix, Trail Dance, East Lansing, Austin, Las Vegas, and a few dozen more!  I want this thing playing EVERYWHERE!!!)
7.  Just relaxing and not being so pissed off anymore.  Life is finally good again.  About fucking time.

Jason W. Schaver
Moped Jones Entertainment


(PS- feel free to follow me on Twitter, by clicking here, occasionally I'll say something funny)