Since moving my blog over to the new domain, I’m sure some of you might be wondering what happened. Click on to read the not-so-interesting details and also the really cool stuff I’ve been working on.

MoviePartners was dead. It was the last vestige of a past Internet and real life that simply had faded out. It was something that took me a while to accept. About 2 years ago I had a new idea and thus began the long road to a clean break.

On August 6 of this year I took MoviePartners down and moved everything over to this new domain as my new venture. It wasn’t until I felt I had something close to ready. Enter: ScreenIQ Systems.

So what is ScreenIQ Systems? It’s a new entertainment software company. That’s a rather broad category, but it covers everything that ScreenIQ will cover. Starting with screenwriting and all the way to finished film, every step in-between, and then some. Bold, I know. But bold is the only way to go with this.

My rationale for this started about 2 years ago. This industry has a lot of white elephants in various rooms that nobody likes to talk about. Having a ringside seat during the production of The Cursed left me astounded. The film industry as a whole is still stuck in the early 20th Century, when nearly every other industry in the world has entered the 21st Century and embraced not only new technology, but techniques.

It was then I realized there were two camps in all of this: the independents and the studios. For everything that it was, The Cursed was somewhere in-between. It was an independent film that wanted to act like a studio project. Besides some of the people problems, I observed a number of things that were just plain backwards and wrong. It was then that the seeds for ScreenIQ were planted. This was in 2007. I still had a book to write, a few more scripts, and then I could tackle the issues I saw.

Software is very close to me. If I can see something that be done with less errors by a computer, I’ll try to make it work. In this case, it did. Originally I had written the online Screenwriter program, which still maintains a pretty healthy membership base. It’s free also, so if you need screenwriting software that’s fairly robust, take a look and try it out.

After that, I knew there was still room for improvement in the entire filmmaking process. It’s still error-prone and highly inaccurate when it doesn’t have to be. It’s 2011, I thought. Where’s the good stuff? Software in the film industry is primarily concerned with post-production (music, mixing, editing, VFX). I found that, for all important pre-production and principal photography are, writing software to manage them is not considered sexy or even possible.

Enter Pre-Producer

That’s where Pre-Producer comes in. It’s the first in a line of software I’ve been working on diligently for the past 2 years. It can automatically break down a script in a matter of seconds, let you manage all aspects of cast, crew, locations, and scheduling. The scheduling engine can give you the most optimal shooting schedule.

The biggest challenge wasn’t really in the programming. It was in creating a programming ecosystem of tools that would allow a one-man or many-man (or woman) team to produce software quickly on multiple platforms. I set several mandates out early in the development process, some of which seemed lofty at the time but looking back on them weren’t all that bad:

1. It had to run on both Windows and OS X without any considerable differences and with only a recompile needed.
2. It had to be small and fast but still retain all of the features needed.
3. I didn’t want to be more than 2 clicks from any piece of vital information.
4. All changes made should make the software adapt to the user’s needs, not the other way around.

Here are some obligatory screenshots (XP and OS X):

Interactive call sheets let you make instantaneous changes that automatically adapt throughout the production

Instant access to over 200 crew positions. Bring their pay rates into your project automatically.

Manage actors, including (not shown) pay rate, union status, wardrobe, and representation

Location management is built right in. Geolocate your filming locale to lock it in for a more accurate schedule, keep location contact information, and get a quick list of what scenes and actors are to be shot at this physical location.

Pre-Producer running on OS X, with no changes

Jump to any pertinent scene instantaneously, add props and shots directly from the script if needed. Set marker flags to aid in proper scheduling of specialized crew talent.

Add or remove roles from a scene. Pre-Producer automatically adapts existing schedules to your changes.

Breakdowns are instantly created on import of a screenplay. Multiple view modes let you view the screenplay in any way imaginable to get at a scene or information quickly.

So there’s one big thing I’ve been working on for the past 2 years. It’s great that I can talk about this now with everyone.

When does it go on sale?

Very soon. I’m still working out a price for it and its sister software that does film budgeting.