This Gun for Hire - Part 2 - The "Real" Job

"Seize the day. Remember all those women on the Titanic who waved off the dessert cart."   -  Erma Bombeck*

Even as I was making the transition from freelancer, some things would remain the same, and some old habits would die hard.

Part of my job still involved handling finances,  something my ex-wife would find amusing. The irony that someone who was never very good at handling his own finances could track a film's finances was never lost on her.

Yet, here I was at a "real job;" the type of job my mother always (not-so-secretly) wished I would get, and the type my ex was sure I never would.

Technically,  I reported to the new president of the company,  who we will call Mark, because he reminded me of someone who thought of himself as a Mark Cuban-like entrepreneur.

I should explain.

First, I need to put the times in context. It was the turn of the Century, and all you heard was that 'content is king.' In many ways that, from my admittedly limited and brief perspective,  was one of the problems at Shooting Gallery. They were near the end of an era where they were "incubating " projects, including web series.  A lot of folks with an idea and not much more were given free rent, free access to equipment, phones,  etc. The idea was they would develop content that Shooting Gallery could later sell and reap the profit. In theory, it could have worked. After all, they had helped develop successes such a You Can Count on Me and Slingblade.

Of course, it's never that easy. In reality, at this point, only the production and post-production division was making money, and that was, from what I could tell, in large part due to Dave Tuttle's stewardship. Although Dave was second to Mark in title, it was in title only. Mark's successes came in other fields, and, from what I could tell, he was brought in only because he brought with him an infusion of cash.

The financial reporting I did came from within,  and from the other cities where Gun For Hire had expanded to Toronto, LA, Vancouver and Miami.  Only New York's Gun for Hire division seemed to be making money, which was part of the problem.

Still, in the beginning, things didn't seem to be that bad. In my early days in theater and film, I had temped to pay the bills, and I was always surprised at how much money big companies threw away as opposed to the low budget projects I worked on, so I just chalked some things up to the sins of largess.

The more mundane part of my job was as facilities manager - things like making sure the custodial help had enough cleaner. Not all that exciting,  but I knew it needed to be even done, and it wasn't that hard.

The upside was some client contact. Our biggest client that was still shooting was a film called Changing Lanes with. Ben Affleck and Samuel L. Jackson.  Like a guy on the romantic rebound who still pines for his ex when with the new lover, I gravitated to spending some time with the line producer,  but no so much as to be a nuisance.  It worked for both of us, as I made sure he was always happy, which, after all, was part of my job.

Remember we were in two buildings that were in prime real estate in downtown Manhattan - 609 Greenwich Street and 110 Leroy Street, which is where my office was located, I spent a lot of time going back and forth, probably a remnant of my former jobs,  wanting to be hands on.

Another remnant of my old freelance production work was staying until the job was done. While  I always preach to coordinators not to burn themselves out and leave at some point because you could never finish everything,  I still slept better if all of my financials were done.

One night,  Dave was leaving a little late and I was still working.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

I pointed out I didn't want to leave without getting my financials done, even though they weren't really due for another day and a half.

He chuckled.

"You've got to get used to your new life, brother.** There will be time to do that tomorrow.  Go home."

As a former line producer, he knew exactly what I was doing.  I eventually changed my routine to include leaving pretty much on time, with the exception of always asking Dave if he needed anything if he was working late.

Those were the good days. For the first time since my days at the political research company, I was soon going to have my health care paid by my company. Sweet.

I could not have known then how quickly they would come to an end.









*More Titanic references to come.

**Of course, all these years later, I am paraphrasing from memory. I do remember him saying something like "brother." More on this in the next article.


The Village Voice did a great article with a lot of research, as did a documentary. All of my articles on this are based from my perspective which, while from the inside, did not include access to interviews or conversations with key ;players like Larry Meistrich, nor was I in on meetings where key financial decisions were made..  

Producers Can Bake - To Help Others

Back in March, I told about an old boss of mine, Dave Tuttle. Dave had a long and successful career as a line producer before becoming a key figure at Gun For Hire, the production arm of Shooting Gallery, and a big part of that company's success (and no part in the part company's subsequent failure).  Dave will be featured in a documentary about Shooting Gallery's meteoric time, titled Misfire: The Rise and Fall of Shooting Gallery.

I said in that original post:

" Dave Tuttle was a former producer and line producer who conceived and led  Gun For Hire, and there wasn't a person who worked for him who didn't rave about the experience.  He disproved the idea that good guys finish last, or that you could either be good and efficient or a nice guy.  Dave was both, and in late 2000, he hired a guy who had been through the indie line producing wars and was ready for a "real" job - me.

I was almost 43 then, and probably older that what the position suggested.  Dave didn't care; he saw what I would bring to the job.  Ageism - and every other ism - is alive and well in the film business, but Dave looked past it."

I also said that Dave was the best damn boss a person could have.

This post adds little to the film part of the story - my apologies to those who only come here for indie film stuff, which I usually try to provide. It does talk to that great boss - and person.

As that article and a CNN report told, Dave now makes a living selling pies. It does well for him because he makes great pies with a lot of love, but certainly has not made him rich.

Thanksgiving is without a doubt the biggest time of year for pie makers, the time when their steady flow of income becomes a flood of income that will cover the slow times for a small business owner.

At a time when others would be cleaning up - and who can blame them - Dave decided to give back. While this should not surprise anyone who knows him, it is more than a token gesture. It gets to the heart of giving.

Dave posted this recently on his Facebook page:

"After speaking with friends who brought meals to those so severely affected by Hurricane Sandy and her aftermath, I decided that I too must reach out to those who lost so much and still lack the basic necessities including daily hot meals and comfort food. I have decided not to bake pies for sale this Thanksgiving, instead my family and I will bake as many pies as we and deliver and serve them on Thanksgiving Day to our neighbors in need. I know many of you may be disappointed that you will not have your pies on your Thanksgiving table however I feel this is something I must do. I am thankful for your continued support and thankful that I can help those in need of comfort."

Dave lives in Upstate New York, and had friends and neighbors who were hard hit.

On Thursday, though, Dave will be venturing from home to donate some of those pies he is donating to a warming tent in Far Rockaway.

I was displaced for two weeks by Hurricane Sandy. A writer/director friend of mine was out of his home, with his family, for the same amount of time. I know many across the film community in New York who were put out, including a location manager and college buddy who had severe damage to his longtime home. Some are still without power.

Hurricane Sandy was no small inconvenience. Although some would like to act as if it is over, it is not for many of my colleagues, not to mention so many others.

As heat and hot water have not returned to my place, I'm writing this from the home of a long-cherished colleague and crew member, who has generously opened up her home with no reservations for me. For all the pain this storm has brought, it has also brought out the good in people. I have seen so much unselfishness, and it's truly heart-warming to know that those you work with are truly friends.

Here is a chance for you to do something good as well.

Besides  those pies Dave is donating, someone suggested that people could "sponsor" pies, so as to help even more people.

Dave posted how to do so below. If you can find it in your wallet and in your heart, I hope you do so. It's called comfort food, and many people can use a little comfort this year.

I will try to spend part of my time as a volunteer for those displaced.

May all of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Hello Friends, What a great idea, "sponsoring pies" -great way to pay forward - over 20 pies sponsored and counting. Many of you have asked where you can send a check for your sponsorship here's the info:make checks payable to Dave Tuttle, 94 Grand Street #5AA, Croton on Hudson, NY 10520 . We are all in this together!

Producers Can Bake

When I rebooted this blog, I said I would not be a slave to a timeline, and there is a current news article on CNN that relates to my somewhat more recent past, as well as the state of the industry.

From late 2000 until it's end in 2001, I had an all-too-brief time as Operations Director at Gun For Hire, the production arm of Shooting Gallery.  Shooting Gallery was the a success story that should have been - a group of indie-minded film people who produced films like You Can Count on Me and Sling Blade.  Like many stars that burnt brightly, it burnt out in 2001.

When we get there in the timeline, I will talk more about my time there.  For now, there is a Village Voice article from the time that talks a little about how Shooting Gallery finally closed its doors.The Shooting Gallery 1991-2001.  This should provide a little background.

Shooting Gallery represented both the promise and the grim reality of the indie film world, in many ways it was the like a story of a rebel who shoots to fame, but who the powers-that-be that promote him finally shoot down.  In other ways, its about over-reach and, pardon the pun, shooting yourself in the foot.

None of that was because of Dave Tuttle, who ran the very successful - and profitable - production arm of Shooting Gallery, Gun For Hire.  We had everything from production offices for major films to one of the best post facilities, and the most talented post people in New York.  Dave Tuttle was a former producer and line producer who conceived and led  Gun For Hire, and there wasn't a person who worked for him who didn't rave about the experience.  He disproved the idea that good guys finish last, or that you could either be good and efficient or a nice guy.  Dave was both, and in late 2000, he hired a guy who had been through the indie line producing wars and was ready for a "real" job - me.

I was almost 43 then, and probably older that what the position suggested.  Dave didn't care; he saw what I would bring to the job.  Ageism - and every other ism - is alive and well in the film business, but Dave looked past it.

As I said, my time there deserves further study in a later post, but I'm writing this now because Dave was recently in the news, in that  CNN report.

No, it wasn't in the entertainment section - it was the "eatocracy" section.  Dave now makes a living baking pies.  Laid Off Producer Becomes Proud Pie-Maker.  I encourage you to check out the article.

The story chronicles how in 2008, the economy and the state of the film business hit one of the more talented people I know, and Dave was laid off, and after about a year, still didn't have a job in the business.  He brought a home-baked pie to a dinner party, people started requesting pies, and a new chapter in his life was born .

Dave's Homemade, which is his business now, is doing quite well, as the article chronicles.  He has also gotten some really nice write-ups, including one in the NY Times.  And Now For The Pie

Don't feel bad for Dave that he isn't in the film business right now - and may not go back.  Every picture I see of him, every post on Facebook, he looks incredibly happy.  I know we used to talk about the burn-out factor of line producing, and I can tell you that you don't see smiles like that every day going over production reports.

For me, the sad thing is that we now have an industry that couldn't find a place for a guy like Dave for about a year, regardless of what the economy.  Dave is certainly still the winner he always was, but I feel the industry is losing a lot of people like Dave, people with talent that isn't being infused into the industry.

For all of that, let them eat cake - or pie, as the case may be.  Dave is still local, but those in the Hudson Valley of New York can find his wares at the Peekskill Farmers Market Saturday from 8AM-2PM, or can order them from Garrison Market, 1135 Route 9D, Garrison, NY; 845-424-6300 or garrisonmarket.net.  Open daily, 7AM to 6PM.  His pies can also be found at a place called Grouchy Gabes as well.  For those not in the area, I don't know if they ship.

Consider this a shout-out to- and a shameless plug for - one of the best bosses I ever had.

UPDATE: September 16th, 2012

MISFIRE:The Rise and Fall of Shooting Gallery, is a documentary that will open soon, showing both that company's promise and how mismanagement (not Dave's) lead to it's demise. Dave Tuttle is one of the people interviewed for the documentary. I will do my post on my time at Shooting Gallery before it opens.