On the first floor of the Coykendall Science Building, nestled in the auditorium just above the on -campus mecca for digital media production majors, there is a rough cut movie screening taking place. The air smells of buttered popcorn and at the front of the room stands director of this feature film, SUNY New Paltz professor Gregory Bray.
The screening of Bray’s work–in–progress- production, “Liner Notes,” played on Dec. 3 and the audience consisted of students, friends, family, fans and members of the cast and crew. Media and Journalism Society hosted the event, and afterwards the club encouraged attendees to fill out a questionnaire to provide their feedback for the project. The evening ended with a Q&A led by Bray.
“It’s my pleasure to be here tonight, thank you so much for coming out here,” Bray said, welcoming the crowd to the screening.
“Liner Notes” divulges the fictional story of Alice, who after learning about her father’s suicide, embarks on a quest to reclaim information about her estranged rock star dad named Jake. She travels alone to Georgia to reconnect with one of his band mates, George, in the hopes of putting the pieces of Jake’s life back together.
Bray defines the film’s genre as an indie drama with some quirk. His major cinematic influences consist of John Cassavettes, Jim Jarmusch, Wes Anderson, Miranda July and Guy Maddin.
“Chris Rock once said music is a ‘here today, gone today’ industry, and he’s absolutely right. So this is a love letter to them. To the fading legends and loved ones left behind,” he said.
According to Bray, the mastermind behind this tantalizing tale was none other than his own twin brother, John Patrick Bray. The playwright’s script premiered on the stage and after seeing two of John’s productions, Bray devised the idea of adapting it to the big screen.
Succeeding the initial brainstorming and preproduction process, shooting started off with a bang in August 2014 and the tentatively planned release date is for sometime in Spring 2016. The crew consisted of various SUNY New Paltz students and alumni.
“Juniors and seniors working on set learned from people that had graduated. They were able to learn from paid professionals,” he said.
According to Bray, students were able to not only obtain good hands–on experience, but the film also created a networking opportunity. A student went on to work for Sesame Street and another for James Franco’s new production, “King Cobra.”
Overall, the audience appeared to be delighted by this Bray Brothers Production and when the lights flickered on everyone gave a roaring round of applause. Bray believes that the positive feedback will provide some helpful guidelines for the next edit.
“I thought it was a good film,” said third–year digital media programming and management major Ryan Percy. “It was incredibly entertaining and an interesting look at the genre.”
Bray said that the crew hopes to lock picture by February, lock sound by March and then the submission process to film festivals will commence.
If you would like to contribute to the funding of this film, please check out the link below:
(https://www.fracturedatlas.org/site/fiscal/profile?id=10263)