We wrapped a day early (with several hours to spare). Absolutely blessed to have worked with the most incredible crew and the most dynamic and incandescent actors. That shoot could not have happened without everyone absolutely bringing it. It Visits Me

Michael De Luca Warns About the Danger of Hollywood Cutting Development Funds for Original Material: ‘If You Cut Too Deep Your Pipeline Dries Up’ variety.com/2026/film/news/m… via @variety

And that's a wrap on It Visits Me pickups!

If your film can't adhere to the bare minimum labor laws, then find more money or rewrite your script to something realistic for the budget.

I'm going to say this and then log off for a bit because I have a pickup shoot to prep. On my current feature that I am producing (wrote it as well) our crew was paid fairly, above minimum wage requirements and in keeping with labor laws. Would I have liked to pay more up front? Yes. But we just didn't have that ability with our financing. My fellow producers and I structured in bonuses for our crew should the film hit certain benchmarks. Should the film do well, they'll make way more money than they would making a standard union level salary for the same amount of time. Every film is different, every financing deal is different, and so I don't think it is or should be mandatory for producers to set up deals like this. What we paid people was fair, and if that's all they ever get paid, it won't be something I have on my conscience. There's a very good chance I never see a dime, since I deferred my writing and producing fee to make the project happen. This is something I would never ask my crew, unless they begged to defer some of their pay in exchange for backend. I will always be open to that arrangement. Indie producers especially are probably way more open-minded about structuring deals to allow more profit-participation. You aren't going to get that within the studio system, at least not any time soon. So, BTL crew, please, advocate for yourself. Ask for a deal structure that will benefit you if the film does well. You'd be surprised what people will be willing to do! If you fear your producer so much for asking for that, then maybe they're not a great person to work for. If you fear speaking up about onset work conditions that violate the law, then you definitely don't want to work for that producer again, and you should seek legal counsel to see how you can protect yourself and your fellow crew members, because if the producer is abusing or exploiting people they've likely done it before and will continue to do it unless someone steps up. Be the change you want to see in the world. I'm not some heartless, bootlicking producer without a soul. I'm a writer. I'm a first AD. I'm a PA on my own film. I've worked harder than anyone else on my film (which is as it should be), and without compensation (also as it should be). But to act like we, on the producing side, are stealing from crew by not giving out bonuses when not contractually obligated to do so really misses so much of the reality of paying for a movie to exist. Until you're in the driver seat, you don't really know.

Art directors risk nothing for their work. They get paid and they can move on to the next project. If the movie blows up they can leverage that massively or complain and make themselves a byword for industry insiders. But the producers are the ones holding the massive bag if the movie bombs. Is the art director going to surrender her salary if that happens? No. Is the cast and crew willing to defer their fee in hope the movie does well? If so, let's have that conversation, but most wouldn't. So why should they get an upside if the film does well? They don't deserve it, unless they negotiated for it and it is in their contract. You can agree to the offered salary or not. But if you take it, and then the film makes a ton of money and then you complain about being exploited, you've shown your hand, and no one will want to play poker with you because they see how you operate. Pay is a proxy for effort, but also risk. The risk you take as BTL crew is zero. The effort is compensated fairly (consent to the contract is agreement to fair, equitable trade). But you don't deserve upside while also offloading all the downside to the producers.

The Obsession art director post. Man, what a choice. One year total experience. Only credit pre-Obsession is a single short film. Sign on to a low budget indie. Agree to rate. Movie explodes. You're suddenly the Art Director fo the most talked about film of the year. If this ever happens to you, let me give one piece of advice. Embrace it. Use the credit to fight off offers, get a BTL agent, turn those difficult three weeks into an incredible career. Do NOT cut every connection you have to the filmmakers, put out tweets about how you wish you'd shut down their production, and complain about the rate you agreed to (which isn't even like $100 or some student film sketchiness). Do you know how many indies I have done as an actor for $240/day? A fucking lot. Every single time I know what I'm getting into and I hope to god it turns out well and leads to another opportunity. I cannot even imagine getting cast in Obsession and then putting out a career ruining post about it instead of trying to leverage it into more work.

He wasn't a fan of Sir Mix-A-Lot either.

With y'all in spirit. #5AMWritersClub

If we're footing the bill for some liminal space's electrical usage we ought to sanction the Backrooms for contributing to our carbon footprint.

Honestly this headline cracked me up.

It's my Friday, so I'm going to party like it's 1999, but my version of partying involves #5AMWritersClub I was a fun kid.

2Back2Roomius

Get up, stand up, stand up for your right to #5AMWritersClub

You cannot rely on someone else to "market" your projects for you. This is your job. When it's all said and done, you're the one who has to live with whether you've really left no stone unturned or not. No one will ever care about your screenwriting more than you. Not ever.

It's time to get a little dangerous with our words. #5AMWritersClub

BOX OFFICE: Some incredible milestones are happening right now — for horror, for first-time directors, for original storytelling. This weekend… - #Backrooms will grab the highest opening weekend ever for a24. It’s pacing for $80M - Kane Parsons’ debut feature may also crack Top 3 all-time horror openings (domestic). - It will be the highest opening ever for an original horror film. - Folks, #Backrooms is likely to open bigger than #StarWars. - Meanwhile, #Obsession will become Focus Features’ highest grossing movie ever domestically, cracking $100M. - Curry Barker’s film is performing in ways that are unheard of: 39% last week and 19% this week. Insane for a wide release. It’s still early in 2026, but this is the story of the year.

Saw I Love Boosters, floored by the creative expression and practical effects and the COLOR! Gorgeous lighting, fun, engaging production design. You want to win audiences back from their subtle dismissal of your drab cinematography? This is one way!

Why is no one talking about Tim Robinson being a background actor in Obsession? Very random!

We've got a little time this morning. Let's be here for these characters we're about to put through the wringer. #5AMWritersClub

Alright, I'm here, I'm here. What is everyone working on this morning? #5AMWritersClub