LIVING IN MISSOURI

FREE Screening in Kansas City

2007-07-15T10:59:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since there has been any news relating to our movie. It's still out there on DVD, and available to rent via Netflix. Meanwhile, Shaun and I are still working on our next film (after a few "next" films that haven't come to fruition or have been put on the back burner, we finally have a project in the works that we think will actually get made. It's very funny/scary/intense, and we'll have more details about that once there is actual news to report.)

But as far as Living In Missouri news: The Kansas City Filmmakers Jubilee has included LIM as one of seven indie films to be screened as part of the KC Fringe Festival.

Here are the details:

SUNDAY, JULY 28 - 5:00 PM

Stanley H. Durwood Film Vault
Central Library - 14 W. 10th St.

ADMISSION FREE

(As indicated on the KC Fringe website, the film is "MA", meaning "Mature Audiences." This is because of some occasional profane language, as well as some mildly "Adult Situations.")

So, for anyone looking to see it on a big screen, this might be your last chance, at least for a while. And for those of you who are interested, the film is still for sale via Film Threat's website for $10, while eBay currently has it for $1.99 (plus $6 shipping).

$9.99!

2005-11-26T18:41:00.000-08:00

Okay, it's that time of the year, people are buying each other presents, and it looks like the Film Threat Store has a massive DVD sale, offering all of their titles, including Living In Missouri, for the low, low price of 9 dollars and 99 cents. Go here to buy it.

BUY OUR LAST COPY at AMAZON!!!

2005-10-29T14:37:00.000-07:00

So I checked our Amazon page (hoping to see the return of some of their unintentionally hilarious "similar items") and what do I find? This:

Only 1 left in stock--order soon (more on the way).

I don't know how many they sold, but apparently they only have ONE COPY left. ONE COPY! Somebody out there, buy it so I can see what happens when they sell out.

For Real, This Time: The DVD is available!

2005-08-15T16:45:00.000-07:00

Despite all the delays, the DVD is officially out and available now. I have mine, which I received last week from the Film Threat store. And Amazon and Barnes & Noble both have copies now, so any others that still have it listed as "on backorder" should quickly follow suit. (Netflix will have it soon too, for those who are curious but don't want to purchase.)

There is a LOT of bonus material on this thing, much of which I haven't even seen yet. It will take ME a while to wade through it all, so I find it hard to imagine who among the general population will actually be interested in all of it. The phenomenon of the "Special Edition DVD" has meant basically meant that I get very excited about all the Bonus Features on the DVDs of my favorite movies, but it's rare that I actually get around to watching most of them.

As promised, here is a list of movies I WISH that Amazon would include in their "similar items" listings (which, incidentally, have once again vanished from our movie's page):

DONNIE DARKO-- this film doesn't really have too many similarities to our film, admittedly. But it does have one BIG connection in that it also features a terrific performance by Holmes Osborne as Eddie Darko (Donnie Darko's dad). Holmes plays Uncle Roy in our film, and it is worth checking out for his characterization alone....

SIDEWAYS-- another dark and funny comedy about two friends whose lives are spinning out of control. Plus Paul Giamatti sports a similar beard to the one I have in the film....

CHUCK & BUCK-- Variety mentioned this film when reviewing ours, which I was very happy about. I think it's a wonderful movie, and it has a similarly bleak and awkward tension from start to finish. The first time I saw this film, I knew almost nothing about the storyline, and there is moment in the first half hour that contains one of the most surprising developments I've ever seen in a movie.

AMERICAN JOB-- Chris Smith directed the terrific documentary American Movie, and I happened to catch this earlier feature of his on late night television in Great Britain some years back. I assumed it was also a documentary, and was convinced it WAS one for the first ten or twenty minutes, until I suddently realized that there was NO WAY they could have had so many cameras set up to capture everywhere the main character was going (out of his car, into a building, into an office-- they were ready for him anywhere.) The slow realization that this was a scripted film with actors was both disorienting and exciting, as the film is so painfully real and completely convincing in its portrait of an awkward young man shuffling from job to job in a haze of dissatisfaction and gloom. It is one of the best films I've ever seen, and it is a crime that it isn't available on DVD. (Only on VHS from the website at Americanmovie.com)

MODERN ROMANCE-- Albert Brooks has written and directed some of the Greatest Films Ever Made, and this one might be his finest achievement. Yet it remains his only film to never be released on DVD. Stanley Kubrick loved it, and went so far as to call Brooks personally to ask him how he did it, saying he had wanted to make a film like this for years. In a just world, there would be a Criterion DVD release featuring audio commentary by Brooks and his writing partner, Monica Johnson. In the meantime, it is only available on VHS.

THE OFFICE (UK version) -- This BBC phenomenon is a cult sensation in the US and is one of the great comedies of all time. 12 episodes and a two-part finale are all available in one DVD box set, and if you haven't seen this yet, rush out and buy it immediately.

Other titles I wish our film was linked to? Election (one of the best films of the past ten years, featuring Holmes Osborne in a small role), Husbands & Wives, Of Mice & Men (Sinise/Malkovich version), Arrested Development (just because it might be the best thing EVER), Wonderland (Michael Winterbottom film), and Shampoo. I guess this list has sort of evolved into a list of some of my favorite things rather than "items" which might be" similar." Oh well. Any of these is closer to our movie than Girls Gone Wild: Endless Spring Break Volume One...

Sigh....

2005-08-05T14:55:00.000-07:00

It's hard to know what to think. Almost a month has passed since our initial "release date." It has been 10 days since our second "release date." And still: the DVD is MIA.

I ordered one myself, on July 26th. That order is still "pending" and has not shipped. Others have e-mailed me with similar complaints. Those who attempt to order the film via the numerous retailers like Amazon and B&N will find it is on "backorder," meaning it will take 3 to 5 weeks to arrive. (The truth is, they don't have any copies in their warehouses, and they provide the "3 to 5 weeks" timeframe armed with nothing but blind hope. If, for whatever reason, they still don't have the DVDs by then, they will simply add another 3 to 5 weeks to the delay and continue to keep their fingers crossed....)

So what does all this mean? The good news is that the DVD will be available soon, for real. The only disapointing part is that most of the press coverage that we have received, such as full write-ups in the St. Louis Post-Dipatch and Kansas City Star, will be long forgotten by the time the DVD is actually available. To those who are frustrated, I offer my apologies. These things happen, and hopefully you will feel that it was worth the wait.

In the meantime, the good news is that Amazon has resumed their comically inept "Similar Items" listing for Living In Missouri. The latest additions:

JERKBEAST: okay, so this one is a Film Threat DVD, so at least there is SOME logic to it. I know next to nothing about this film, but I'm intrigued. Here, visit their website: www.jerkbeast.com

GIRLS GONE WILD: ENDLESS SPRING BREAK VOLUME 1: I give up. I have no earthly idea how video footage of drunken college girls on spring break is in any way similar to a 90 minute film about two best friends who have grown apart. Here is the official product description:

"Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the beach, the hottest Girls Gone Wild action continues, with The Best Of Endless Spring Break Volume 1! It's what everyone has come to love from Spring Break - the wildest parties, the hottest nightlife, and the sexiest young coeds out there.

"Whether they're showing it all off on the sand, or getting wild in the clubs, the girls don't get any sexier than they do on Spring Break. Watch all the uncensored action, raw, real, and uncut!"

In our film, there is really only one character who comes close to "going wild" and he doesn't do it by lifting up his shirt:

BEYOND DESIRE: Spanish period drama set against the backdrop of the Spanish Civil War, so this one is a natural choice. In fact, I suspect that they ripped us off. The story of Elvira, Julio, and Pablo is practically a mirror image of the torrid love triangle formed by Amy, Ryan and Todd....

Finally, there is HEMINGWAY, the 1988 television mini-series starring Stacy Keach. I guess they must have thought the cover art looked kind of close.

For my next post, I think I'll suggest a list of films I wish they would include in their list of similar or related movies. (Hopefully I'll have my DVD by then...)

NOW AVAILABLE!

2005-07-26T11:13:00.000-07:00

The wait is over! Living In Missouri is now available on DVD. You can buy it right here.

Plus, you can read an interview with director Shaun Peterson at the Film Threat website.

Of course, it still appears to be on "backorder" at all the major e-tailers like Amazon and BN.com. I'm guessing that will change over the course of the next week, as the discs start showing up in their warehouses. In any case, it's better to just order it from the Film Threat store.

On day of release, Amazon featured a list of "Similar Items" on DVD. It's a fascinating bunch of films, and based on the available descriptions, none of them are in ANY way similar to Living In Missouri....

Die Todesgöttin des Liebescamps-- known in the US as Love Camp or Divine Emanuelle, this is described by one user on IMDB as "Hair in a cult prison camp-- one of those hippie/"free love"-type films that were big in the early 1970's (complete with some truly insipid musical numbers) except that it was made in 1980 and was also obviously influenced by the very unpleasant series of Nazi prison camp movies that were big in the mid-to-late 70's."

The Stone Raft - "The Spanish peninsula tears away from the rest of continental Europe and is propelled like a huge stone raft toward a catastrophic collision."

Mardi Gras Massacre - "Police try to capture someone who is committing ritual murders of women during Mardi Gras in New Orleans."

The Stairway To The Distant Past - "The unlucky private detective, Mike Hama, again treads the gray streets of Yokohama in this sequel to The Most Terrible Time in My Life. The adventure begins in Maiku Hama's office, located above a run-down cinema that is so desperate for cash, they charge admission to Hama's potential clients. For this case, the clumsy and nattily dressed detective begins investigating the true identity of the enigmatic crimelord of the waterfront, the White Man. He must also deal with the sudden reappearance of his estranged mother who abandoned him and his sister many years before. She works as a stripper and bills herself as Dynamite Sexy Lily. "

Mimino - "In this outrageous cult comedy, Valiko Mizandari – nicknamed "Mimino" (the falcon) – services small villages in the mountains of Georgia with his helicopter. The pilot is loved by everyone and dreams of piloting a large international airlines aircraft, so he leaves for Moscow, only to find his dream more complicated than he could have imagined. Filled with charming local color, warm and humorous characters, and brilliant acting, this offbeat gem is bound to tickle your funny bone!"

No Witness - "A recently indicted senator hires a professional hit man to rid him of an underage girl who's obsessed with becoming his wife." Featuring Corey Feldman.

I Exist - "Gay people exist in Armenia, Syria, Iran, Egypt and Sudan too. They are Christians, Muslims and Jews, belonging to and rejected by their own cultures. In this series of interview we learn a bit about their lives and hear a few critiques of western media and its oversimplified, often negative depictions of these peoples and cultures. "

Different - "The German industrial music scene has produced some highly influential music over the years. Bands such as Nine Inch Nails and Skinny Puppy undoubtably owe a sizeable debt to trailblazers such as Einsturzende Neubauten and DAF. Different aims to shine a light on some of the bands who have come to the forefront of Germany's industrial scene at the beginning of the 21st century. Seventeen live tracks are featured, all coming from bands signed to labels affiliated with the COP organization."

Refuge of Fear - (UK video title: Survivors of the Last Race) "Time... The not too distant future. Place... The USA. Problem... Nuclear war. Effect... A society with no rules."

Of course, the very next day, Amazon's list of "similar items" vanished. They now say they can find "no similar items" in any category. Honestly, I have no idea what their system is for determining this stuff, maybe once more people start buying it, some kind of pattern will emerge. Hopefully, over time, a more accurate list of related items will be featured. Other stores like Netflix and Tower Records list films like Donnie Darko and Election, which aren't exactly "similar" but at least they also feature the wonderful Holmes Osborne ("Eddie Darko"), who plays "Uncle Roy" in our film....

NEW RELEASE DATE: JULY 26

2005-07-10T19:35:00.000-07:00

Don't go lining up at your local retailer for some sort of midnight release party Monday evening, because it ain't gonna happen. That's right folks: there has been a DELAY.

We just received word from Film Threat that there was a problem at the DVD replication facility, and the short version is that the discs just won't be ready by Tuesday. They'll probably be ready in time for the following Tuesday, but they've pushed the release back two weeks just to be safe.

So July 26th it is. Oh well. At least it's still a July release. I had planned to post a little something about how we were set to come out on the same day as last year's Oscar-winner for Best Picture, and how perhaps that was good luck for our film. I haven't even looked yet to see what else comes out on the 26th....

The Columbia Daily Tribune has an article about the DVD. And Joe Williams, critic for the Post-Dispatch, ran a nice capsule review in his round-up of new releases:

Living in Missouri *** (NR: 1:30): Directed by Shaun Peterson, a 1993 Wentzville High grad, this bittersweet comedy stars writer and co-producer Connor Ratliff as an unhappy dad in mid-Missouri who neglects his wife (Christina Puzzo) to go to movies with sad-sack pal (Ian McConnel). Like a Jefferson City "Jules and Jim" (another love triangle new on DVD), it turns a friendship between perpetual adolescents into a bittersweet parable about growing up. (www.livinginmissouri.com) (Joe Williams)

People who enjoyed Living In Missouri....

2005-07-07T20:47:00.000-07:00

Netflix now has a list of movies "Enjoyed By Members Who Enjoyed ..." Living In Missouri. I imagine this listing will change as more people put the movie in their queue, but here's what we have for the time being:

Dogma - There isn't really any similarity between this film and ours, although a couple of reviewers pointed out a kinship with films like Clerks and Chasing Amy. Personally, while I understand people making the connection (low-budget movie with characters with fixated on Star Wars and comic books), I think that our movie has a very different tone and feel. Kevin Smith's biggest strength is that he makes very witty observations about things, particularly certain kinds of pop culture. The characters in Living In Missouri might share similar obsessions, but they aren't particularly witty or clever people, and they take things extremely seriously.

There is one tiny Dogma connection. We were supposed to film a scene in the parking lot of a massive AMC multiplex in Kansas, but the theater chain had recently had problems dealing with protesters picketing the controversial Dogma. "Is your film Anti-Catholic?" the paranoid theater manager barked just before she withdrew permission to film there. No matter how much we begged, we could not convince her that our film was completely devoid of religious content, and we ended up using a (much smaller) movie theater in Jefferson City instead.

Igby Goes Down - I like this film. I particularly enjoyed the pleasure Jeff Goldblum seemed to derive from saying the name "Igby", as he seemed to repeat it every chance he got.

Welcome to the Dollhouse - I think this is a good match for our film. It is sad and painful and awkward and comical all at the same time, which is a large part of what we were aiming for.

But I'm a Cheerleader - I have not seen this one and know very little about it. But I'm slightly curious now, if only to discover what kind of a connection this film could possibly have to ours.

The Dish - I have not seen this one, either. It's an Australian film, and has something to do with the moon landing, a satellite and sheep.

Roger Dodger - A very strong film, dialogue-driven and held in place by Campbell Scott's hypnotic peformance.

Scotland, PA - A modern re-telling of Macbeth, set in the world of fast food restaurants. It has some clever bits here and there, and features a strong cast of actors I like, but it didn't really work for me overall.

SLC Punk - Haven't seen it.

Previously, Netflix had included Mike Judge's very funny Office Space among the recommendations, but it's not currently listed. I wish it was still there, as I feel there is a greater connection to that film than to some of these other movies.

As for genres, Netflix has us listed in three completely appropriate categories: Comedy, Dark Humor & Black Comedies, and Indie Comedies.

FACETS and NETFLIX

2005-07-05T19:34:00.000-07:00

I am very happy to report our two newest links: FACETS Video and NETFLIX.

What's nice about them is not just that they are very significant links for us, but that they seem to have written their own descriptions of the film. You see, there is the "official" synopsis, which is what you will find on the website and on the back of the DVD box. We wrote that, and it is something that a retailer can use as part of the "Product Description" when they are selling the DVD. But FACETS and NETFLIX are both using synopses which are completely different from the provided text, which would indicate that someone, an actual person, took the time to either watch the movie, or to artfully paraphrase what was given to them.

FACETS Video has been around for a while. When I was a kid, I remember ordering their enormous phone book-sized catalog of obscure and hard-to-find home videos, and circling all the titles I wanted to order from them. (I never actually ordered anything, but I did enjoy perusing that catalog and dreaming of all the movies I could own if I had the money.)

They are based in Chicago, but they sell and rent movies by mail, on both DVD and VHS. And now they will be carrying our film. It looks like they still publish those huge catalogs (for purchase) which I guess means by this time next year, I'll be able to order one with our film listed in it.

Here are the very kind words they wrote about the movie in their description:

Missouri rhymes with misery in this shrewd piece of independent filmmaking about the lives of career losers in suburban St. Louis. Connor Ratliff and Ian McConnel star as 30-something friends with dead-end jobs, estranged families, and and a lingering love for Star Wars memorabilia. As their circumstances go from bad to worse, director Shaun Peterson hones in on the emotional complexity of his characters' torpor, offering up a darkly comic, acutely observed piece of "Low-to-no budget filmmaking at its best" (Kansas City Star).

Of course, back in the day, FACETS was pretty much the only place to go unless you were lucky enough to live in a big city with a world class video store. Now, of course, people have a lot more options, the most popular of which is NETFLIX. I was a subscriber for about a year, and I found it was an easy way to burn through a lot of movies that I probably wouldn't pick out on a trip to an actual video store. (For instance, I have passed over classics like Rio Bravo or The Seven Samurai many times in favor of some new release or obscurity that half the time turns out to be a disappointment.) Having unlimited rentals mailed to you means you can take a lot more chances, and it is a great way to discover all kinds of great films.

The only reason I'm not a current subscriber is that after 12 months of non-stop DVD rentals, week in and week out, I started to get burned out on DVDs. But I'll no doubt resubscribe at some point, because it really is a terrific way to rent movies. And for those of you who want to see Living In Missouri without buying it first, it really makes things easy, particularly if you are already a Netflix subscriber. (Of course, deep down, we hope that some of the people who rent it will enjoy it enough to want to buy a copy to keep. But some people are more into renting than owning....)

Comedy / Drama / Family Entertainment....

2005-07-02T16:57:00.000-07:00

Living In Missouri continues to show up in more and more online stores. It is amusing to see the slight variations from one shop to the next. Some places seem to have the correct information and a few details about who directed the film and who's in it, as well as what category the film should be placed in. One store has us listed as "Comedies & Family Entertainment" which I must stress is only partly accurate. I certainly wouldn't classify it as fun for the whole family. It's a dark comedy, and there is some occasional profanity along with a few adult situations. More significantly, content aside, kids probably just wouldn't enjoy it-- the tone and humor of the situations isn't geared towards younger viewers.

Amazon, Buy Innovations, and Things From Another Wolrd all have us listed as a Drama. Video Universe wisely puts the film in two categories, Dramas and Comedies. Best Prices abstains, choosing not to categorize the film at this time. Barnes & Noble also has no category, but does go so far as to specify that the movie is in English. Tower Records, which previously had listed the DVD, now has forgotten all about it, saying "We do not know when this title will be available to order." They also refer to it as a Drama. Hopefully their memory will soon be restored with regards to our movie. Mr. Skin, Video American, and West Coast Video (which all have similar-looking store designs and would appear to be somehow affiliated with one another) all have us correctly listed as a Comedy, and get extra points for adding an additional (accurate) category, "Independent." Movie Gold Mine also gets a gold star, for listing us in what appears to be a single category called "Drama Comedy." I think this might be my favorite of the bunch, and I also like that they have listed more cast members than any other site. Of course, these distinctions are subject to change, and may already be different by the time I've posted all this. Such is the nature of commerce in the high speed world of the Internet.

I don't really have a problem with people categorizing it as a drama. It isn't an Airplane-style spoof or anything-- the film is rooted in human behavior and real emotion. When I was writing the script, I didn't give much thought to what "kind" of story it was, I just let it unfold the way I imagined it should. But I thought it was mostly funny, and when I would tell people what I was working on, I would always describe it as "a comedy about two best friends who have grown tired of one another."

When we were filming, we weren't generally concerned with playing scenes as "funny" or "serious", but tried to just approach the characters honestly and hope that the humor would come out naturally. I can think of a few instances where we really focused on emphasizing the comedy, and all of those scenes ended up on the cutting room floor, as they were simply played too broadly. By the time Shaun and Ford had edited it all into a rough cut, we weren't really sure if any of it was funny at all. To be honest, the first time we screened it in front of an audience, I had no idea if anyone would laugh at anything. I was convinced that we had filmed the most depressing movie of all time, and that people would sit there in stony silence watching this heavy, miserable drama unfold.

But the audience laughed. In a good way. And that was pretty much the case at every screening from then on-- the film played very well to a crowd, and there was always a generous amount of laughter in almost all the right places, which was very satisfying. After that, I finally felt comfortable calling it a Comedy again. A little while later, I was writing up a press release for the film and it suddenly occurred to me to describe the film as "a comedy of manners." Yeah, I thought, that sounds good. I then realized that perhaps I was misusing the phrase-- perhaps a "comedy of manners" had all sorts of specific rules which had to be followed in order for something to qualify as one. Maybe it had to take place in a Victorian sitting room with doilies and cups of tea. I decided to look up a proper definition:

Comedy Of Manners
witty, cerebral form of dramatic comedy that depicts and often satirizes the manners and affectations of a contemporary society. A comedy of manners is concerned with social usage and the question of whether or not characters meet certain social standards. Often the governing social standard is morally trivial but exacting. The plot of such a comedy, usually concerned with an illicit love affair or similarly scandalous matter, is subordinate to the play's brittle atmosphere, witty dialogue, and pungent commentary on human foibles.

I almost fell out of my chair-- it was a perfect description of Living In Missouri. I don't know if I can describe the film as "witty" and "cerebral" without sounding arrogant, but that's certainly what I was aiming for, and I believe that's what Shaun and the cast & crew managed to capture. It is certainly a "dramatic" comedy and its main focus is primarily on the customs and social mores of Ryan & Todd, the two central characters who find themselves in terribly unhappy lives as they reach their mid- to late-20s in Middle America. Everything that happens in the film is connected to the way these people aren't living up to the expectations of those around them, and to their own sense of where they should be in life. Furthermore, there is an "illicit love affair"! And it IS "subordinate" to the film's "brittle atmosphere" and all those other things. Especially the human foibles.

Anyway, I doubt there are any retailers out there with a separate category for "Comedy Of Manners", so this doesn't really help the present situation. I suppose it doesn't really matter. In a way, referring to it as a drama takes some pressure off, in that anything that might strike a viewer as amusing is considered a bonus. When people watch a comedy, they might be expecting a lot more hijinx and laff-a-minute shenanigans than we have on offer. In any case, it's just a little over a week now until the DVD is officially available, so you can decide for yourselves whether you think it's a comedy or a drama, or just make up your own categories and be done with it....

Pre-ordering the DVD

2005-06-25T18:48:00.000-07:00

The Film Threat store still doesn't have an active link to pre-order the DVD, but it's already showing up on various other sites. List price is 20 dollars, but so far everyone is offering it at a discount:

Amazon $17.98
Barnes & Noble $15.98
Mr. Skin $17.99
Video Universe $14.29
BestPrices.com $15.25

Interesting to note that the site called "Best Prices" actually comes in second, although maybe they have cheaper shipping. (I don't have the energy to investigate the various shipping options available through each of these sites, although I think most of them offer shipping for about 2 or 3 dollars, unless you're wanting Next Day Air or something...)

One clarification: "Mr. Skin" is probably best known for their popular home video guide, "Mr. Skin's Skincyclopedia: The A-to-Z Guide to Finding Your Favorite Actresses Naked", which is sold in most bookstores next to all the Leonard Maltin books. However, their online store is not entirely devoted to nudity-- they have a whole "mainstream" section which sells all manner of films from Duck Soup to The Incredibles, and that's where our movie is being sold. I guess what I'm saying is that I don't want anyone to get the impression that our movie is being sold through them because of all the nudity in our film. I say this not out of some prudish impulse on my part, but because I simply don't want people to get the wrong idea. People who don't like nudity might decide not to buy our film, while people who really love nudity might purchase the DVD and be sorely disappointed.

However, in the spirit of full disclosure: Ian McConnel appears (briefly) in an undershirt and a tight pair of briefs. I appear wearing a bathrobe on a few occasions, and at one point you can see my stomach. If there is anything else that might be even vaguely indiscreet, I cannot recall it.

Living In Missouri: JULY 12 on DVD

2005-06-18T17:40:00.000-07:00

First things first: The DVD is out soon. You will be able to order it from this page shortly.

It's been almost six years since we filmed this thing, and five years since it was more or less finished. We had our premiere at the Austin Film Festival four years ago, and a year later it had pretty much run its course on the festival circuit. Since then, the film has been screened from time to time, and last year it finally started looking like we'd be able to put it out on DVD.

Our plan was to produce and distribute it ourselves. Obviously, there are some disadvantages to this method, in that Shaun and I would rather be working on getting another movie made than spending all our time trying to hand sell our last one, or begging stores to take a handful of copies on consignment.

Fortunately, at the last minute, we got a lucky break: Film Threat DVD stepped in and agreed to distribute our movie. That means that people can order it from them, and it also means it will be available through a whole lot of stores. Real stores, with bricks and mortar and all that. Now, I don't know how many of them will actually have copies of it in stock, but at least places will be able to order it for you. After years of schlepping around on our own, doing everything ourselves, it finally feels like a real, honest-to-goodness movie.

Even better: the quality of the disc will be top-notch, and the DVD will be packed with bonus features. Shaun and I recorded an audio commentary, and he also put together a ton of behind-the-scenes featurettes, outtakes, deleted scenes and more. It's probably more extra content than anyone could ever possibly want, but that's the whole point of DVD, right? (I say this as I glance over at my collection of DVDs that I bought specifically to get the bonus features, most of whose features I have yet to even sample...)

So there you have it. Living In Missouri on DVD. I hope you enjoy it. It's cheap, too: 20 bucks is the list price, which is great for a special edition with so many extras. I'm told it will be available to rent on Netflix as well, but so far they don't have it listed in their database.

Even back when we were shooting the film, the big question I would get from everyone was "when's it gonna be out on video?” I'm glad to finally have a satisfying answer to that question. Interestingly enough, when we shot the film we had two characters interacting in a video store with a small DVD selection, and now that same location is a DVD store with NO video selection. Our film is already a period piece.

More soon.
Connor Ratliff
Writer/actor/producer, Living In Missouri