The D-Word's life is one of glamour and riches, as only a documentary filmmaker can live it

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Date: Wed, 14 Oct 1998 23:52:38
From: jukka fors
To: dbblock@el.net
Subject: Justins dokument

Thank's you very intresting dokumet film, i see today finnish tv and i like it !

ps sorry my english.

--- Creetings Jukka Finland Europe


Date: Thu, 15 Oct 1998 00:12:12
To: dbblock@el.net
From: Sami Heinonen
Subject: Home Page

Hello there!

I just saw Your great document "Home page". I enjoyed it, and it was strange to see Justin figuring out his life.

It was also interesting to see behind Wired's "iron curtain", I realized that they've lost the point, they should create something new.

Who the he**ll am I? I'm finnish, 24 years 'old' guy, working nine-to-five with that "blessed" God damned web as a graphic designer or something.

Thank You for your document, and good night!
---------------------------
sami.heinonen@pandesign.com http://www.pandesign.com


As you can see, the world became a little smaller and friendlier for The D-Word the other week.

And not just for me-- Justin, Carl and Rebecca got multiple e-mails, too.

Lucy read the e-mails with me-- even as some were coming in-- and we enjoyed visiting the homes of our new far-flung friends. At 9, Lucy chats online with kids from Texas as if they're around the corner.

We look Finland up in the atlas-- gadzooks, it's right next to Russia!-- but it might as well be Texas to her.

Otherwise, there's not a whole lot to report on the distribution front. Everyone's waiting for the phone call from The Big Enchilada. I'm told if you've been selected they always let you know with a phone call.

So, along with everyone else, I wait. For the past few weeks, every time the phone rings I will it to be Sundance. But it's not. When I call my machine for messages, I will for there to be one from the festival staff. But there isn't.

Bob Hawk says if you haven't been called by Thanksgiving you haven't been picked. Three more days and this torture will be over one way or the other.

I remind myself over and over that Sundance isn't do-or-die. Home Page has been accepted at another good film festival in late February called Cinequest. Larry Locke had Pin Gods there and tells me they treat filmmakers really well. It's in San Jose, the heart of Silicon Valley, so it's a good setting for us. It's 45 minutes from San Francisco. Justin can drive down. We can try and get more sponsors.

So at the very worst we're going to Rotterdam and Cinequest. There's still interest from theatrical distributors. We have an American tv broadcast in place. ZDF and Arte will broadcast it in six more European countries on January 20.

And I have some new friends:

Date: Wed, 14 Oct 1998 23:46:52
From: Matti Hallapuro
To: dbblock@el.net

I see you just in my tv!
There is going document movie bout net people´s.

Nice that i found your site! Be welcome to mine.

-- Matti !

Meanwhile, we got a nice, but not exactly earthshaking, mention in Amy Taubin's Village Voice article about the IFFM.

Clearly, she's no mindreader.

She singled out Home Page as her favorite among the feature-length docs there, but described it as: "a wide-eyed, middle-aged person's guide to what the young folk are doing on the Internet."

Geez, Amy, me a guide?!? Which film were you (not) watching?

On top of that, we've lost Chris to a well-deserved producing gig at Court TV. She came in an intern, left as our Associate Producer. I already miss her.

Esther's been away a lot, too, with The Last Broadcast.

So, it's been lonely around here. But not uneventful.

A few weeks ago we had a special screening sponsored by DocuClub at The Screening Room, a gorgeous 120-seat theater and restaurant in Tribeca. Having gone through the ringer after showing the first rough cut there, this was more of a celebration of the finished product with a large invited guest list.

And as close to a premiere as we'll probably get.

Marjorie and my parents came not just as immediate family but as stars of the film. My step-son Josh, who has a smaller role, was there with his girlfriend. I invited a slew of personal friends who I hadn't seen in ages, busy boy that I am. And the rest of the house was spilling over with friends and compatriots from the New York documentary community.

The reaction was very strong. Lots of laughs, lots of quiet in the right places, lots of applause at the end. The theater was running late for another screening and there was no time for speeches, but I made one anyway, toasting Josh, my parents and finally Marjorie, and having each stand up for their own applause.

I figure you have only so many opportunities in life to publicly thank those who are special to you. Josh told me later my brief tribute made him cry.

The next day Debbie and I talked by phone and it was truly uncanny-- unlike Amy Taubin, Debbie is telepathic. We immediately dove into work mode.

It truly is never over (even if you've made your transfer to film).

I wondered how to break the news to Rebecca but, as fate would have it, I received an e-mail from her that gave me the perfect opening:

On a different note, I'm kinda nervous about 'Home Page' -- I know this sounds vain, but I just hate how I looked in the movie, and I worry about how that might affect the (much cleaner, crisper) image that I now project on zdtv (which, I might have told you, is how I make the greater part of my living).

Funny how fate works out, indeedy.

Date: Fri, 13 Nov 1998 23:52:38
From: dbblock@el.net
To: rebecca lynn eisenberg
Subject: Home Page

Hey Rebecca,

It's really funny you should write me about this because there's something I was gonna bring up soon and I thought it would upset you. But it seems it will all be for the best.

We've been hearing lots of great reaction to the film but one lingering negative... it's too long. We resisted and resisted because we love the material, but it's become clear that one area that's too long is getting the film towards the end once it starts to end.

So we've decided to make some cuts.

It turned out to be pretty easy once we put our minds to it (having seen it on the big screen with audiences 4 times now), and we've wound up cutting about 14 minutes out. But the biggest cut of all is that we're cutting out your scenes with Justin. As much as my editor and I LOVE those scenes (and the computer scene is one of my very favorites) we just can't introduce another character (ie. you) after we've started to wrap up the film. And we need to keep the focus tighter on Justin's relationship with Howard.

It's not like you're out completely, but you're now reduced to a cameo role-- two shots at the Cyborganic Halloween party.

So... I hope this is good news for the new, cleaner crisper Rebecca. And I'm really happy for you and proud of how far you've come professionally in the past few years. I don't think I've mentioned how great I think your writing is.

Anyway, you'll always have Finland. And I'll be happy to send you a cassette of the version with you in it to show your kiddies and grandkiddies. Who knows, maybe it'll become a collector's item.

Best...
Doug

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