(An A to Z 2014 Challenge Entry)
Jamin Winans is one of my favorite independent filmmakers. He has a handful of shorts under his belt, but so far only two full-length features. And I’ve only see one. This isn’t to say I haven’t tried to find his first film online. The movie I have seen, via Netflix, is Ink. Winans wrote the script and musical score to Ink, as well as directed and edited the film. I’m kind of surprised he didn’t act in it. Ink was produced by Double Edge Films, which is an independent production company created by Jamin and his wife. His wife was also heavily involved in making this movie become a reality.
I love when an artist is so involved in their work, as mentioned in Video Games. Here is one of the trailers:
I fell in love with this movie upon my first viewing. That may seem awkward, or rather logical, but sometimes it can take a few exposures to a movie, TV show, or even a song, to develop an appreciation for it. I instantly felt the desire to try to get various friends and family members to watch the movie. I get that way at times…
Originally, I would always warn people about the movies budget, which is fairly evident — even somewhat from the trailer. I learned Jamin had somewhere between 200-250k to produce this movie, which isn’t a lot. For some reason he couldn’t get backing beyond that. What he created on that budget, however, I find amazing. In some ways, I think it helps the movie focus more on the story than special effects. For what Ink may lack in production theatrics, it more than makes up for in heart. It’s a very character driven piece, and those are my favorite kind.
From time to time I listen to the soundtrack, which has helped kick-start my creative motivation. In fact, I just mentioned I have various “work in progress” (WiP) playlists on my Spotify. The one song appearing on each playlist is “The City Surf”:
In all honesty, I love the entire soundtrack, but that is my favorite song from it. I almost freaked out when I heard it being used in The Grey, another movie I recommend — especially if you are a Liam Neeson fan!
Currently, Jamin’s third film, titled The Frame, is in post-production. I’m highly looking forward to finally be able to experience another of his creations. It can’t come soon enough!
A random fun fact: During my first viewing of Ink, there was a scene that was so reminiscent of a short I saw on Youtube (one I really liked) just weeks before that I became upset that the director had blatantly ripped it off. There were too many similarities to be a coincidence for me to believe it was unintentional. I ranted about this for some time, but I couldn’t recall the title of the video to compare. Eventually, I found the video and come to find out it was a short by none other than Jamin Winans. I thought it was hilarious, and understood why he would use something so similar in such a pivotal scene in Ink. And then all was right with the world once again…
Here is that short, Spin:
If ever having the time to, I highly recommend checking out Ink. If you do, or if you’ve seen it before, what are your thoughts on the movie (sans spoilers, of course!)? Do you have a favorite independent director? If so, who and what movies did they direct? Any favorite motion picture soundtrack? If you watched Spin, what did you think?
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