Table Read Cinema-Episode 1: Death Stone
Pilot episode of Table Read Cinema, where a group of Screenwriter's casting pages prepare to read a short script, however once they begin, they quickly transform into the characters they're reading in the Comedy/Horror short script, DEATH STONE.
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Margina SissonWriterThe Doll
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Margina SissonDirectorThe Doll
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Margina SissonProducerThe Doll
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Gary SissonProducer
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Mitch BechtoldKey Cast"Jimmy"
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Hannah FalknerKey Cast"Abigail"
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David SmullenKey Cast"Narrator"
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Jeff WrightKey Cast"Pawn Shop Owner"
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Mark ChandleyKey Cast"Pawn Shop Customer"
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Pamela TorranceKey Cast"Table Reader"
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Margina SissonKey Cast"Table Reader"
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Mitch BechtoldAssistant Director
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Dillon Sisson2nd Assistant Director
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Kyle CowgillDirector of Photography
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Matt HasselbladSound Production
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Alfredo RodriguezProduction Assistants
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Jonathan SmithProduction Assistants
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John JohnsonProps/Special Effects/Makeup
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Katie DraperProps/Special Effects/Makeup
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Abbigale McCarthyProps/Special Effects/Makeup
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Project Type:Short, Web / New Media
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Genres:Comedy, Horror, webseries, webisode
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Runtime:5 minutes 30 seconds
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Completion Date:June 28, 2020
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Production Budget:2,500 USD
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Country of Origin:United States
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Country of Filming:United States
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Language:English
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Shooting Format:Red
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
Margina Sisson is an Independent Filmmaker from Southern California. Even with a late start it hasn’t slowed her down. While working full time for a company (almost 30 years) she attended UCLA Extension night classes and received the Feature Film Writing Certificate. After that, she joined the South Bay Screenwriters, a MeetUp group that has been instrumental in her growth as a screenwriter. With currently 19 screenplays (6 features and 13 shorts) in which several have been selected by film festivals as an Official Selection or Award Winner, including one red carpet event. From writer to indie filmmaker her Directing debut was her short film, Hot Spot (A Wi-Fi love story). Now with 3 short films, she sets her sights on Directing future content and creating a Web Series platform to debut short films of the horror genre. She directed episode one this past January 2020 and hopes to resume filming after Covid 19. Her ultimate goal…to have a major actor say her written words on the big screen.
My concept for Table Read Cinema was inspired by my weekly screenwriting group where we cast pages and read the scripts out loud. My vision for Table Read Cinema is like bookends to a short story, showing the screenwriters arriving, setting up and beginning the cold read of (Episode 1) Death Stone. A few moments in, the actors morph into the characters they are portraying and the story plays out. At the end of the short film they return back to the table read, looking as if they just stepped out from the film. At the end, the moderator asks, "Who's next?"
Table Read Cinema: Death Stone is the pilot to my Web Series I hope to launch, debuting short films with a Horror or Dark Comedy vibe.
Death Stone (the short) was inspired by our screenwriting groups yearly Halloween log line challenge where we write up to 10 pages, something on the darker side. When writing Death Stone, I imagined how horrible it would be to dig up a grave for profit and even worse, the grave of a recently past relative. Well, that’s exactly what Abigail and Jimmy do. They are after the priceless stone around Aunt Bitty’s neck and they don’t see a problem getting it. Except one of them may have an ulterior motive which could spoil the plan. Or not. This story deals with greed, revenge and just plain stupidity.
I hadn’t planned on filming it so soon until an opportunity arose that I just couldn’t resist. See, we were in the midst of our backyard renovation this past January 2020 when I realized we had one weekend where it was all dirt and no contractors. And I thought, “What better time to film the graveyard scene, right?” Plus, I had recently purchased a 10 x 12 green screen and was anxious to use it so it was a win win!
I was able to get an amazing cast and crew (14) on short notice, most from my screenwriting group. My DP was able to get the camera equipment at no charge (which was amazing!). We stuck closely to our schedule and shot interior and exterior in the back yard in front of the green screen, all in one day. We did go a bit over budget which was due to the stock media I bought in post.
Luckily we finished filming before Covid 19 hit but it did present challenges in the editing process and with our ultimate premiere which we ended up doing via Zoom and it was still great!
I'm excited to say we have a few more short scripts in the queue from fellow screenwriters for this project, so hopefully once Covid is controlled, we can go back to filming and safely create more content for Table Read Cinema.