The Lost Sock!

Changes coming up this year

2006-12-26T10:36:00.000Z

There'll be some changes coming up this year, as The Lost Sock website becomes more an integral part of the Felixstowe Films site . . . more soon

Where do you take yours?

2006-08-03T09:38:00.000+01:00

Watchers of the TLS website will now find a pictures of Alan Dix (Mr Big in the movie) boarding a train in Scotland while wearing his TLS T-shirt . . . so the question is. where have you taken yours?

Dot and I hope to take ours to Wiltshire at some point fairly soon, and to France in the early autumn.

We'll publish any snaps - the odder the location, the better!

Next - no, really!

2006-07-16T11:41:00.000+01:00

Next week, Giles and I are planning to have our first serious chat about the next major movie from Felixstowe Films . . . sounds pretty pretentious, doesn't it?

We've got several themes and stories from our excellent chums the Felixstowe Scribblers, and there are a couple with definite possibilities that we'd like to explore further.

We'd rather like to try our hands at something more serious and action-oriented, and it might be interesting to see what other themes might arise from a more general audience - like yourselves, for instance. Go on, throw an idea or two in!

New Film:

2006-07-14T09:44:00.000+01:00

Here are some suggested titles for the next Felixstowe film:

The Last Wok - chinese martial arts film
The Lost Frock - chick flick
The Forced Lock - chastity belt movie

What about yours? PS - no naughty ones!

400 at Premiere

2006-07-09T21:46:00.000+01:00

An estimated 400 people attended the world premiere of the only feature-length movie ever produced in Felixstowe, which was shown at the town's Spa Pavilion today (Sunday).

Purely from my own point of view, it was an amazing, though deeply worrying, experience! But I am hugely grateful to everyone who attended - and even more so to every one who played a part (literally!) or helped the production to happen!

Garden Paths . . .

2006-07-06T20:52:00.000+01:00

I really am finding it difficult to contain my mirth . . . there's all of these worried netizens out there, concerned about councillor Doreen Savage starring in The Lost Sock, and fulminating about the political contents - even dear Trevor Lockwood, who I didn't think was in any way dim . . .

I'm the first to admit that I'm not the smartest cookie in the jar; but I know (as all these clever people should) that the episodes of TLS have all been online for months. The big screen experience is for the cast and crew, people who haven't got the internet, or people who'd like to see the movie in a proper cinema, with a high quality sound track. The 60 second appearance of Doreen was in episode 4, which went online on the 18th of February, and was moved to it's present server location on the 16th of May, since when it has been downloaded rather a lot!

The big screen version of The Lost Sock is just - a version designed for the big screen. If you take a minute or two to download the episode and watch it, you'll be able to speak from knowledge about the content. It is all online - every last minute, except for the last 10 seconds!

Cor, dear, what a fuss over 70 seconds . . .

2006-07-06T17:20:00.000+01:00

I am actually quite surprised at goings-on on this blog. It's about a film, rather than local politics, and it seems that people who haven't taken the trouble to see it in its online version - where it has been available for months, as broadband users will know - are getting all excited about the appearance of one of our local councillors.

Much of the problem now seems due to the fact she is listed as a "guest star" . . . anyone who knows anything about films will know that this interprets as a cameo part where someone well-known pops up on screen for a moment or two . . . and that is the case here. Having just measured the time exactly, I can confirm that the scene in which she appears runs for 1minute and 40 seconds, and she herself is onscreen for around 55 of those seconds - heavens!

She is also talking about a ficticious incident which is part of a comedy film . . . it has nothing to do with real life. Even more to the point you can watch the episode in which she appears, and see the exact same scene (which many thousands of people have already done) at this web address:

http://www.felixstowetv.co.uk/sock/ep4.html

and the scene in this episode is the only one in which she appears in the whole film!

However, now we have been made so completely aware of her power to attract an audience, I won't hesitate to ask her to be in the next one!

Our socks are blown off . . .

2006-07-04T07:10:00.000+01:00

It can't be an experience many people have had - seeing a full-length feature film that you've been with from its inception, projected onto a full-size cinema screen.

On the 13th November, 2004, I was chatting with the excellent Dave Feakes of Felixstowe Scribblers writers group at an event they'd organised - "Culturama". I said, "What we ought to do is get the Scribblers to come up with a little episode-style drama, for FTV to produce it put online." Good idea - 20 minutes of stuff, be a giggle, no problem.

About 5 or 6 months later, after midnight-oil burning sessions by the writing team, there's a little pile of A4 paper on my desk. No, its a biggish pile - about 70 sheets. 10 scripts, in fact, calling for anything from people being set adrift in rubber boats, to an ambulance carting away a radio presenter who is the accidental victim of a bungled assassination attempt in mid-interview. 10 scripts, with an estimated running time of 6 minutes each . . . it's a worrying sight.

All we could do was make a start . . . auditions, with a crowd of actors largely found through local theatre contacts and some dragged in by the writers. Casting, with one or two of the key roles going to actors who thought the whole thing looked extremely dubious. And then we started to shoot, summer of 2005 . . . actors running down Bent Hill in bright, hot sunshine.

At around this point, the production tripped over one of it's most important ingredients - Giles Meehan, who suprisingly quickly dropped into the role of production manager, then producer, with a yellow folder that still, even today, controls much of the project's life. Despite suffering from ME, which sometimes virtually knocks him of his feet, his contribution in holding the project together, and often bullying me into doing work instead of sitting around enjoying myelf, has been massive.

But the contributions made by all the individuals involved has been amazing. The actors and crew have turned up regardless of weather, life or whatever, and just got out there and acted. Natalie, Jacky and Claire turned up in summer clothes in January, managing to look convincing despite their shivers. Two men whom I suspect Giles must have blackmailed in some complex way, turned up to strip off on the prom, and put on shiny silver suits, to became our aliens.

One of our actors completed his last day's shooting just 20 days after having his appendix and other items removed, when he was taken ill on holiday in America . . . A group of door security men from local night-life venues gave us a Saturday morning, and looked serious dangerous walking along the prom - even more so when they threw crew member and writer Ken May off the prom (no, I think we'll have to shoot that again . . . and again . . and . . . )

People and firms lent us things, and provided support, with very few exceptions . . . although the interior of the pier was the excellent Charlie Manning's amusement arcade! The Port of Felixstowe lent us an ambulance, and the crew repaired a little old lady who arrived with a bashed finger before rescuing Rachel. The police send a couple of cheery special constables along, complete with patrol car, to drag off our baddies. Landguard Fort saw people rushing about and waving fake guns in the air, all very exciting . . .

And yesterday afternoon, Giles, composer David Jennings and I had the pleasure of seeing a short clip of the opening sequences played out on the big screen at The Spa Pavilion, under the watchful eye of Roger Miller, the stage manager. The pictures were amazing; the sound superb. The film opening isn't the one online, and the end titles aren't as seen there either; but they really do look wonderful - love it!

Around 100 people have been involved in one way or another. Around 20 firms and organisations have helped us in specialist areas. And the new operators of the Spa Pavilion, Openwide International, came to or rescue at ten days notice when the owner of the cinema decided that he didn't like someone in the film, and cancelled the premiere . . . what's that word I'm looking for?

And now we've got a 900-seat cinema waiting for the show. It''s on at 2 o'cxlock on Sunday 9th July at the Spa Pavilion, Felixstowe. Between 200 and 300 seats are reserved for cast and crew, so anyone else who wants to come along, you'll be hugely and genuinely welcome - it's free, but we are suggesting you might make a small donation if you enjoy it !

The master DVD is in the post!

2006-06-30T16:44:00.000+01:00

Reckon the DVD duplication centre folk will have a fun weekend ahead of them then - especially when they see the out-takes!

Change of venue for Premiere

2006-06-29T21:02:00.000+01:00

We are sorry to have to announce that the World Premiere of "The Lost Sock" has had to change venues, for reasons far beyond our control. More details will be available on Felixstowe TV soon.

But we are very pleased to be able to announce that Openwide International, the new management at the Spa Pavilion, have very kindly stepped in and have welcomed us to hold the World Premiere of "The Lost Sock" there, on the same afternoon.

Please note the new time for the screening will be 2:00pm on Sunday 9th July, at the Spa Pavilion, Felixstowe, with some cast arriving by limo from 1:30pm. The Spa Lounge bar will be open afterwards for drinks and a chat. We are sorry for the late change, and hope you will all still be able to make it, and bring along your friends. (Still plenty of time before the football!)

We've got a film!

2006-06-28T08:27:00.000+01:00

"The Lost Sock" has now been through its final tweaking and tidying, and the music has been laid on top. Wow, what a difference that makes - and to hear it, and the dialogue, through good quality speakers (and not highly compressed for the internet).

We're now producing the master DVD to have copied, - and having a good giggle at the out-takes as we finish compiling them!

It's getting exciting!

2006-06-27T09:05:00.000+01:00

Just in the last half an hour, our postman has delivered the proof of the "Lost Sock" DVD inlay sleeve. Wow, it's a bit swish!!

And last night, I had a special preview of the excellent opening theme tune, as well as of David's smart new cooker (!). All of the re-mastered music will be going onto the film this afternoon, and then Chris's computer will start the slow and arduous task of converting the video into a master DVD to have copied.

It's all go! Tickets are going well now for the 2:30pm public premiere - and get your orders in now (from anywhere in the world!) for your DVDs to make sure we won't run out of the £6 special offer discs.

The T-shirts have arrived! (And so have some ideas for the next project)

2006-06-21T08:47:00.000+01:00

After slightly more hassle than you might reasonably wish to shake several sticks at, the T-shirts are here and looking excellent! Watch out for our cast & crew wearing them proudly over the coming weeks; there are also a just a couple of spares, if you'd like to get one quickly!

We've also agreed an order with the very helpful Duplication Centre down the road in Essex, to produce our DVDs. Let's just hope we can get it all together in time to send them the master disc, ready to start selling copies at the Premiere in 2 1/2 weeks! Chris has already worked hard to put together the film version, with a few minor changes and a couple of small extra bits. David's cracking on with the music (between waiting for cookers etc. to arrive at his new house!), the re-worked opening titles and brand new end credits are well on the way, and the graphics are nearly there (thanks in no small part to the very resourceful Reg Paley). Next week it should "just" be a case of some final "on-line" editing - slight adjustments to a few video clip pictures, adding the music, and adjusting / tidying up all the sound levels for some beautiful crystal clear audio (we hope!).

Remember, if you'd like to be sure of getting your DVD at the discounted price of only £6, please pre-order now; we've got to decide how many we're having made by next week!

And in the meantime, we've just received some very interesting ideas from several members of the Felixstowe Scribblers for another project in the future. Are we mad?! I haven't even had time to look at them yet, but I'm sure there'll be something there to get our teeth into...

Pre-order your DVDs now for a great discount! Also latest news on the Premiere.

2006-06-14T16:55:00.000+01:00

By the end of June, we'll be sending off to have the DVDs of the full-length film produced. I've spoken to well over a dozen different companies, and found a couple of very professional looking small outfits to choose from who should be able to do what we need.

But we'd like to make sure we order enough, so as a special incentive we're offering the DVDs for sale for only £6 each (plus postage if applicable) - but only if you pre-order before we send off to have them made. They should be ready to collect at the Premiere on 9th July. After then, DVDs will be £8 each (again plus postage if required). So please get your orders in to me now at giles@felixstowetv.co.uk ! Thank you.

And a few more details for the Premiere... The film's now ending up a little longer than we originally thought, at about 1 hr 20 mins, so we've had to tighten up the timing for the day slightly. Some of our stars will be arriving by limo - courtesy of Flying Lady Wedding Cars - from around 12:10pm. Felixstowe TV's very own Ruth will be there to meet and interview them as they arrive, along with hopefully other media too. Doors to the main screen will open at 12:30pm, and the showing will start at 12:45pm on the dot - don't be late!! The "doors" will open again at 2:15pm for the second (public) showing, which will start at 2:30pm.

We're then hoping to meet up somewhere nearby for a drink and a chat afterwards, from about 4pm-6pm, when there'll also hopefully be a chance to see the infamous out-takes, which will be on the DVD. Watch out Perce!!!

Update...

2006-06-01T10:01:00.000+01:00

Just a quick update on our World Premiere on Sunday 9th July. Tickets are almost all gone for the Premiere, so we shall be having two screenings of the full-length film version of "The Lost Sock", at The Palace Cinema, Felixstowe. The doors will open for the "actual" Premiere at 12:30pm, with a second showing at 2:30pm, open for the public to see. All tickets will be free, but we will be asking for a small donation (of around £2), just to cover costs, from everyone who wasn't directly involved in the making of the film. We are inviting people to wear black tie (but it's not compulsory!), and if you would like tickets, please email Felixstowe TV at the usual address a.s.a.p.!

And the latest viewing figures from Chris ... there have been over 200,000 showings of the online episodes to date - wow! (And 198,014 of those were just Bill & Bert watching themselves!!! - Only joking!!)

another comment . . . !

2006-05-30T10:18:00.000+01:00

From a viewer who, I think, knows a thing or two about making videos and films:

"Damn! Bugger!

Now that "The lost Sock"'s come to an end, what am I going to look forward to on Sunday when the missus is watching the Eastenders Omnibus?

I can honestly say, hand on heart, that "The Lost Sock" is the best fun one can have, especially after a slight smattering of alcohol or recreational drugs, which doesn't involve a Shakira lookalike, haagen daas and a bottle of maple syrup.

Brilliant."

Yet another good reason for doing another film . . .

The final . . . well, nearly final . . . episode

2006-05-28T15:00:00.000+01:00

Episode 11 of The Lost Sock is now online . . . the last episode in our 10 part serial!

Ther's just one tiny little twist in the tale yet to come - and no-one (except Giles and I) know what it is . . . it will be revealed at the world premiere on the 9th July, and online the same evening.

Now you've seen it all - what do you think?

Comment from a control room . . .

2006-05-23T10:01:00.000+01:00

This is a comment I found on a forum for professional TV people:

"I showed a soundie Felixtowe TV and episode 1. of the "Lost sock" and within five minutes the whole control room was watching all the episodes one by one, totally addicted!

If they start wearing the "T" shirts.... I'm leaving!"

Now that's a reason for making films!

Episode 11 coming up!

2006-05-21T07:08:00.000+01:00

Should complete the cut for episode 11, the final one of our "10" episodes today, thus being able to pass it to David Jennings for his musical input. Then I'll start to work on the film version, in which the titles and cliff-hanger repeats will be deleted, and some of the shots replaced - especially some of those which are technically defective!

Whatta Day!

2006-05-15T20:52:00.000+01:00

It's been a difficult day! There's been something up with the Sock front page - the version I've got here works, the version I've seen on some other peoples machines work, but there are still people having trouble logging on to the new episode!

If that's you, then my apologies! The correct link is here: http://www.felixstowetv.co.uk/sock/ep10.html

Hope you find it and enjoy it!

Episode 10 now online!

2006-05-14T13:41:00.000+01:00

Episode 10 is now online - the tension is definitely rising!

The very next thing!

2006-05-13T16:00:00.000+01:00

I think we really do have to make another movie - The Lost Sock clearly demonstrates that we can do it. There's the writing talent, the musical talent, the acting talent and even the film-making talent within our little community to do it again. We can even organise it, with the amazing Giles on board - what colour folder will he have for the next project, I wonder?

The way to do it, though, will probably be somewhat different. For a start, I think it ought to be as different as possible from the last one, with perhaps a much more plot-driven story, and not at all funny.

I think I got into a little trouble with the writers because, as often happens, I've had a little chat with them before having everything clear in my own mind. That probably gave the impression that I was or wasn't writing things off or on, whereas what I really wanted to do was wave a few thoughts about to see what responses I got.

So, this is an attempt to get how I'd like to go about film number two very clear!

Firstly, I do want it to be a serious, action-oriented film, with a very strong story element. Dramatic, rather than funny; dark in mood, rather than light. But very local in location and setting, as before. I'd like it to be amenable to an episodic internet distribution style, but this would be less important than last time - I think we now have the confidence to go straight to the full-length feature as a final outcome.

As a first step, what I think we need is a basic story, and a treatment for it. The story needs to be a very simple outline of the characters and the actual action of the story, and when we have a story that we like, we can write the treatment - a more detailed study. This means that anyone, individual or group, can write a basic story - literally five hundred or a thousand words of bare bones, that take us from beginning to end. The treatment will be similar, but longer - looking more closely at the characters and the story elements.

I absolutely don't think that this film could start with a script, with the text and stage directions. It is possible - even perhaps probable - that the writer who comes up with the initial story might decide not to write the actual script; it is possible that we'll have a team of excellent writers, like the TLS team, to write the final script for the new movie - maybe even the same team, if they decide they're interested, and want to do it.

But the key thing is that the initial step, for the writers and production team, will be simple. There'll be no major initial commitment as the writers amazingly made - and kept to - with TLS. It'll be interesting to see where we go!

Announcing the World Premiere of The Lost Sock, at The Palace Cinema Felixstowe, Sunday 9th July 2006

2006-05-08T18:04:00.000+01:00

That's right folks, it's the World Premiere of the full length feature film version of Felixstowe TV's "The Lost Sock"! It will be on Sunday 9th July, at The Palace Cinema, Felixstowe (on the Triangle). Very many thanks to Vivienne for agreeing to host it on Felixstowe's very own big screen. As the first feature film ever to be totally made in Felixstowe (conceived and written here, created here, filmed and edited here, with local actors and extras, locations, and music!), we are delighted to be able to premiere it in the centre of our town. The exact times are still to be confirmed (watch this space!), but it's likely to be just after an early lunch / early afternoon.

At the last count (a couple of weeks ago), the 8 episodes that were online at the time had been seen by well over 100,000 viewers worldwide! But if you would like to be one of the lucky ones to see the full film on the real big screen, please email Felixstowe TV a.s.a.p. to let us know you're interested. Tickets will be have to be limited, since the first 80 or 90 will be reserved for everybody who has been involved (writing, acting, providing locations and services). DVDs will be available too.

With less than 9 weeks to go, Chris and David will have plenty of work to complete the final edit, and I'll have plenty still to organise.

Finally, this is your last chance to get in your orders for the limited edition Lost Sock T-shirt. Email Felixstowe TV before the end of Wednesday if you don't want to miss out!

Ready for the music on Episode 10!

2006-05-07T07:07:00.000+01:00

Luncky old David Jennings . . he's got a whole week in which to do the music for ep 10 of TLS! - he'll get the rough cut today.

Episode 11 will probably get put together by next weekend, and when we'll start work on the movie cut . . . that should be entertaining, and I'll probably have to buy another 250Gb drive for it - woweee - that'll make over a terabite of storage for video (that's a thousand Gigabites, I think) . . . Once we have that done, I may well sink into a sad decline with nothing to do . . . but I doubt it!

A major coniption on FTV!

2006-05-05T09:13:00.000+01:00

Felixstowe TV has now undergone a major refurbishment, which I hope will make it much more newsy and interesting, while retaining it's TV aspects. The associated Felixstowe Life website will be become increasing like a local lifestyle magazine, with features, articles and other items. Should be fun to see how it progresses.

Because of our film-making work, we've also attracted the interest of some other local film-makers, so we'll be hosting films made by other people as well as us . . who knows where that might go!

Ahh, I see . . .

2006-05-03T23:05:00.000+01:00

The comment made by Confushius after my previous post may represent peoples understanding of the problem I had, and the fact that I didn't explain clearly enough - so here's the reality - the highly-compressed Lost Sock files on the web server for download to you, were deleted when I was trying to tidy up the system.

This meant that online viewers couldn't see TLS episodes at all. However, all I had to do was upload the copies I just happen to have on CD-rom, to re-instate the status quo (good band). The master files, the edls, the full res rendered .avi's, and the original tapes are still tucked away, awaiting the call from the BBC, ITV or aunty nellies satellite channel, and the cheque for £4.28 in return for the world-wide broadcasting rights!

The Golden Plonker award goes to me!

2006-05-03T07:20:00.000+01:00

Well, in pursuit of getting a more compact website - ie one with less redundant files on it, I decided to have a bit of a clear-up. Sadly, part of the clear-up resulted in my deleting the whole folder containing The Lost Sock wmv files - so no movies! It was only by good fortune that someone wrote in to see what the problem was that I discovered it - although I probably would have found what was happening during today, when my IE refreshed and discovered there was nothing there!

All's well that end's well, but it can be a bit annoying when you make silly mistakes like that!

Congratulations Debbie! We have a winning T-shirt design (order yours now!)

2006-05-02T20:41:00.000+01:00

Here at Lost Sock towers, we've had some great entries for "The Lost Sock" T-shirt logo competition - so a big thank you to everyone who sent in their designs.

But there can only be one winner, and the winning Sock was sent in by Debbie Sutton (of the Online Scribblers) from France. We did say we had a worldwide audience!! Congratulations, Debbie! You can see the final design (or an artist's impression of how it will look on a T-shirt!) at The Lost Sock "latest news" page, along with details of how to order.

We are hoping to place the printing order early next week, and although we may have a few spares, if you want to make sure you don't miss out, then please let us know your order before then (there will only be one batch made of these exclusive shirts!).

T-shirt logo competition last day!!

2006-05-01T09:35:00.000+01:00

Just to remind you that today is your last chance to get those T-shirt logo designs in to us! We'll be choosing the winning design tomorrow morning and announcing the winner soon after. Good luck!

Episode 9 online!

2006-04-30T18:19:00.000+01:00

Wow - there we are, 9 done, 2 to go! And we completed the final shoot today at about 11.40am - well done to absolutely everyone involved with this amazing effort . . . !

The world premiere . . .

2006-04-28T06:28:00.000+01:00

I'm delighted to confirm that we'll be having the world premiere of The Lost Sock on the big screen, here in Felixstowe, during late June or maybe into July - we'll try to confirm the date very soon. We're already looking for offcuts of red carpet.

Web Site revision

2006-04-27T09:57:00.000+01:00

There's a version of the web site now online, to give a bit more flexibility with how it works, and perhaps to generate a little more income from the google ads! TLS is actually generating costs at present, rather than income, essentially because the views are pushing FTV through the bandwidth barrier - we have 40Gb per month within our package, but are exceeding that every month.

Bearing in mind the stunning number of views we are getting on TLS, it is surprising that we haven't found anyone who wants to advertise - but we haven't really been looking . . .

Get Yer T-Shirt Ere Guv!

2006-04-25T09:21:00.000+01:00

From Giles:

"Today's scorching weather has turned my mind to T-shirts. There is still one more week to get your logo designs in to Felixstowe TV, and then we will be choosing the winning design, and very soon after that sending off the order to get them made.

So we thought we'd give you a chance to order a T-shirt now to make sure you don't miss out!

They will be black with white printing on the front and back, and will be available for only £9.50 (+ postage if you'd like it posted!). And as an extra special offer, if you order a Lost Sock T-shirt, you can also get a Felixstowe TV T-shirt (probably in red) at the same time, for only £7.00. They will be available in S / M / L / XL. We will show you the finished designs of both T-shirts early next week and the deadline for orders will be the end of next week."

The thing is, I really only want to order enough to fulfil your orders - so while we may get a few extras, you're not guaranteed to get one unless you order early! There will not be a re-print of this shirt - it'll be a world exclusive . . . tee hee!

It's all over!...

2006-04-21T18:34:00.000+01:00

...Well, nearly. Well, the filming is nearly over anyway. Tomorrow is our last shoot at the Fort, with only one little scene left to do elsewhere after that. We're meeting outside Landguard Fort at 9am (at least one of our number has said they didn't realise that time existed on a Saturday!!), when we'll be filming with a couple of "Special" guest stars - and a very nice car from Flying Lady in Trimley. We'll then move indoors where we'll probably be filming for the rest of the morning.

And once that and the other little scene are done, there's just the rest of the editing to finish and the music to be written (for the last episodes), the premiere on the big screen to organise, invites, posters and flyers, the T-shirts to do [you've still got a week left for the logo competition!], the film version to be re-edited, the credits to be compiled and double checked, some of the music to be re-written for the film version, the DVD to be produced, ... just all the easy stuff left to do now!!!

On watching episode 8:

2006-04-18T13:58:00.000+01:00

From a video directors' forum:

"What can I say....?

Technically it's improving, the sound, camerawork and editing are all getting better. Luckily the acting and script are still at the wonderully cringe-making squirm-in-your-seat level.

Love it!

This may become cult TV. It certainly deserves to be."

Episode 8 online . . . with a little problem!

2006-04-17T20:43:00.000+01:00

Viewers who watched episode 8 of TLS before about 7.40pm UK time this evening, might like to go back and watch it again! I missed a Bill and Bert segment in the edit, discovering that I'd edited it earlier, only to set it aside! What a plonker!

Luckily, Giles came round for a natter, and we sorted it out. So the revised version went online at about 7.30, or maybe 7.40 - so time to go back a take another look if you watched earlier than this.

The Tee Shirt

2006-04-13T11:41:00.000+01:00

We've now sorted out some details of the tee-shirts that we'll be doing for The Lost Sock. There'll be a cast and crew version, which will be all white printed on black shirts, with the winning design from the competition on the front, and a slogan on the back. These will have the words "cast and crew" also printed on the front, and Giles will be checking that you're entitled! The shirts we'll have printed will be good quality, and will cost just £9.50 locally - if you want them posted elsewhere, we'll be glad to do that at cost.

They will be a strictly limited edition, so you'll need to pre-order, which you can do by email. Once we're ready to print, we'll send an email so you can confirm your order. We won't be doing any extra copies of the Cast and Crew edition, so if you don't order, you'll have missed out!

Email your size requirements now!

Really must do more . . .

2006-04-13T06:56:00.000+01:00

Last night we had about 14 or 15 people round, and I showed the current 7 episodes of the Sock to a few people who wanted a break from the hubbub! We had three or four people in the room, ranging from 9 years old to nearly 70, and they were all giggling and really enjoying the movie.

I must say that I think we ought to work out ways of doing more with it. The internet success and range of interest is huge, but we should try to get it better known in wider media - and as I think everyone knows, the people at Archant have major problems with us, so we can't hope for help from them.

Sad really . . . .

Episode 8 edit

2006-04-12T06:08:00.000+01:00

Episode 8 went to David Jennings yesterday for a touch of added musicality, when he can fit it in! The excellent DJ is in the midst of moving house, and his recent problems have included the dog chewing through his network cabling, and varigated other interesting but not exactly entertaining events . . .

I think that David's music has made a very serious contribution to TLS, much of it un-noticed until it isn't there. Watching the rough cut of E8 made me realise how much we've got used to hearing it!

Yes, we are filming today!

2006-04-08T08:03:00.000+01:00

See you down on the beach, right next to the pier, at 11am. The crowd extras will only be needed for an hour at most. Since the crowd will be trying to see the aliens that are in the sea, feel free to bring along binoculars, cameras, or alien souvenirs!!

We also need some green slime!! We cannot find a toyshop in east Suffolk that stocks it, please let us know a.s.a.p. if you can help!! Thank you!

CROWDS THIS SATURDAY!!

2006-04-06T10:39:00.000+01:00

Wow, 2 posts in 1 day!!

We are definitely hoping to film on the beach (near the pier) this Saturday (8 April), from 11am-1pm. We still want a great crowd scene, so please do come along for your moment of fame! You won't even have to learn any lines!

I'll post on here again on Saturday by 10am to confirm absolutely whether we can go ahead (depending on the weather), but all being well, we'll see you then!

"Design a logo" competition!

2006-04-06T09:06:00.000+01:00

Next month, we shall be producing T-shirts for "The Lost Sock" (at a bargain price!) . Which means we would like someone to design a logo for "The Lost Sock" and "Felixstowe TV". The winning entry will be used on any publicity for the film, and the winner will get a free T-shirt to keep, as well as a pair of tickets to see the full-length film on the big screen in the summer - and of course a little bit of fame!!!

Designs must be black and white (or if in colour, please also send a black and white version that would look good for the T-shirts). Please send your entries as "gif" or "bmp" (or similar files) to controlroom@felixstowetv.co.uk with the subject heading "Logo Comp", or on paper, post to: The Lost Sock Logo Comp, PO Box 119, Felixstowe, IP11 2WH. Please include your name, telephone number and email address. Closing date for entries is Monday 1st May 2006, the competition is open to all residents of planet earth over the age of 0, the judges' decision is final, and correspondence is unlikely to be entered into.

Good luck!

Episode 7 online now!

2006-04-03T20:16:00.000+01:00

Well, here it is! Hope you enjoy it!

Here's a comment from a poster on a video-editing forum I use:

"It’s a brilliant series – witty, well acted, original and amusing. The channel that finally does cotton on to amateur videos will start a trend, I reckon. "

Now that's seriously nice!

Filming tomorrow morning (Sunday 2 April) at the Fort

2006-04-01T11:25:00.000+01:00

Hi, just to let you all know we will be filming at Landguard Fort tomorrow morning, scenes from Episodes 8 and 9. (And the Fort is open to the public from 10am.) See you there!

Episode 7 goes to music!

2006-03-26T11:53:00.000+01:00

Episode 7 is now going to David Jennings for him to carry out his musical magic . . . and we're not filming this weekend, which is rather nice, actually. We are sitting around doing nothing. Well, apart from editing the episode up til now, around noon, then putting a soundtrack on a seafront story, then writing a piece for the FTV NewsText page, then doing something outside, then . . . quiet day, in fact.

Crowd scene for SATURDAY 8 APRIL

2006-03-22T19:51:00.000Z

Sorry folks, we've had to postpone filming the beach scene by another couple of weeks, back to Saturday 8 April, from 11am. Plenty of time to get a great crowd together! (I've just got to hear back from all our cast that they're still available for that day.) It is for Episode 9, so we've still got a little bit of time to get it in the can.

In the meantime, we're filming Bill & Bert again on Monday afternoon, and the following Sunday (2 April), we're back at the Fort in the morning. I understand that's the first weekend the Fort re-opens to the public, so why not come down and see what's going on?!

Episode 7 edit

2006-03-22T09:12:00.000Z

Should manage to superglue it all together tomorrow - without the twiddley bits, so that David J. can get his compositional (is that a word?) keyboarding digits onto it . . .

I like the music on E6 a lot, so we'll have to see what he can do with number 7!

See Episode 6 Now!

2006-03-19T17:42:00.000Z

Episode 6 is available now at the usual Felixstowe TV Lost Sock site. You know, I always wondered what Richard Cornwell listened to while he's working...!!! There are also some incriminating photos to look at.

Saturday's filming put back a week.

2006-03-15T18:29:00.000Z

We've decided to postpone Saturday's filming on the beach until the following week (25th March), same time (11am-1pm), when it may be a little warmer?... Sorry!

Want to get in The Sock?!

2006-03-14T13:37:00.000Z

Everybody's welcome to come and be part of a crowd scene on the beach near the pier. We're hoping to film this Saturday (18 March), 11am-1pm. But please try to look as summery as possible!! If it's too cold (or snowing), we'll postpone it for a week, so please do check online here before you leave!

And have you seen the Felixstowe Forum run by Felixstowe TV yet? Join up and have your say about 'The Lost Sock'. Or about anything to do with film making and community TV, or Felixstowe and environs, or just about anything you want!!

Only 7 shoots left to film

2006-03-08T08:23:00.000Z

Nigel Stafford-Clark, Producer of BBC TV's excellent adaptation of Dickens' Bleak House last year, said that trying to organise a filming schedule was like playing 3-dimensional chess. It's a question of balancing the priorities, availability of the cast and extras, locations and props, allowing for any difficulties there might be with filming each scene, and then everything goes wrong because of the weather. I think it's more like 3-dimensional chess with all the pieces having minds of their own! (Or as my Technology teacher used to say, "It's like organising ants!") It has sometimes been difficult to get everyone together to film one scene. (We don't have the luxury of being able to pay anyone! And many of our cast are also involved in several local stage productions at any one time, some work at weekends, and one or two even have a social life or go on holiday!) But everyone has worked really hard, learning their lines and always turning up - it's taken a lot of commitment, especially considering some people thought (rather optimistically!) that it would all be finished last summer...

The end of filming is nearly in sight now though, with just 7 shoots left to go. The next one is this Saturday morning (11 March), 9:45-11 am outside the Fort, followed by 11-12:30 by the pier. We're then hoping to film on the beach the following Saturday (18 March), 11am-1pm, and we need a crowd scene for that. Put it in your diary, and why not come along?

Episode 5 at last!

2006-03-07T11:33:00.000Z

Episode 5 of FTV's The Lost Sock is now online - enjoy!

If it's not rain, it's wind!

2006-02-26T09:26:00.000Z

All our cast and crew were poised ready to film a couple of scenes down at Landguard Fort today. But our cameraman, soundman, director and editor (yes, all of them!) have had to make the decision only to film the indoor scenes (from 11:30), and not the section outside the Fort. It's because of the wind. And even with the best spoffles in the world shielding the microphones from the gales, there comes a point when it just becomes too difficult to make a good sound recording of the dialogue. When you wonder why professional (i.e. paid) productions can cost so much and take so long, you have to bear in mind all the times that filming can't continue, for whatever reason. And just as I write this, a very light snow shower has come and gone. Let's just hope the heaters are fired up and that it's not too windy inside the Fort!

At least it's dry. Almost.

2006-02-19T08:21:00.000Z

We are filming this morning - phew! Sadly, it's not as bright as yesterday, but at least it's dry (-ish!!), and supposed to improve a bit during the morning. We're filming a section from Episode 7, down on the beach near the bottom of Bent Hill, 9:30am-11:30. If you want to watch a professional movie being put together, you're probably best to get in touch with someone else (!!! only joking :) ) - but if you'd like to come and stand on a slightly chilly beach for a couple of hours, you're very welcome!

Episode 4 now online!

2006-02-18T16:03:00.000Z

Episode 4 is now online, and we've finally got two of our major guest stars on the screen - but one doesn't last long!

Green screens . . .

2006-02-16T09:51:00.000Z

The upcoming episode 4, which should be online around this weekend, includes our greatest use of green screen so far - there's the newscaster item, featuring Emma Whiting, which includes two layers of green screen (although one of them is in fact a yellow screen!), and an interview with real-life councillor Doreen Savage, where we used green screen to disguise the fact that the site operators where we wanted to film never bothered to get back to us when we asked permission!

It wasn't difficult to do, but did involve a lot of extra work. The best route seemed to be treating both segments as individual films, and then inserting them as complete AVIs into the main edit.

Rain stops play

2006-02-12T08:24:00.000Z

Unfortunately, we have had to cancel today's filming, because of the rain. Although it's not terribly heavy, it is wet (!) and looks like lasting most of the day. Up until the end of Friday evening, the forecast for today was still bright and sunny on the East Anglian coast; but Jim Bacon did apologise on BBC Radio Suffolk this morning for it raining instead!

The weather is something that we obviously cannot plan for. But so far, we've filmed 24 shoots, the vast majority of them outside, and before today, we've only had to cancel one shoot and postpone one other by one day. So it's almost true what they say: 'It never rains in Felixstowe'. Or perhaps it is true that 'it almost never rains in Felixstowe'!!

We hope our 6 cast for today's scene will be available and raring to go again next Sunday, same time, same place. Hopefully not same weather...

Grant & Phil's Dad!

2006-02-11T11:05:00.000Z

TLS has been getting many more airings recently - and one of the latest set of comments bear repeating. This is from the Britmovie forum.

Freddy said: "The guy behind the anglepoise in the fort interrogating Percy and his Moll sounded like Ken Campbell and speaking of the other two if ever there was a prequel to Eastenders the Moll could easily pass for a young Peggy Mitchell and Percy is a sure fire Grant and Phil's father, no bout adoubt it. Also unlike Eastenders yours didn't depress the hell out of me!!!! For a first attempt it is a 6 out of ten, you had to do this film to do the next one, remember though Chris."

I bet Perce and Reet will love that one!

Guess what - we're filming again!

2006-02-10T08:32:00.000Z

This Sunday morning, 9:30am for a couple of hours, on the beach at the bottom of Bent Hill. See you there!!

A whole week for David

2006-02-08T08:18:00.000Z

David Jennings says that he's delighted to learn that for the next episode, 4, he'll have a whole week in which to do the music. He's going to have a major shock, then, when he learns that he might, just might, have two weeks to deal with E5! The plan is to get the draft edit on E4 complete by Saturday or maybe Sunday and get it to him, and then have the draft of E5 ready to land on him as 4 goes online around the 17th. That means he'll have two, yes, two whole weeks! Wow - lucky fella! In the meantime, I've just got to complete the edit on two caravan channel 15 minute segments, and keep FTV going - no problem there!

Figures for January

2006-02-06T08:01:00.000Z

I've now got The Lost Sock viewing figures for January; Episode 1 has had 4,300 views, and Episode 2 has had 3,200 - not bad, I think, and a lot of Ep 2's were very soon after it went online, which we hope proves that people like enough to want more!
With Ep 3 now online, it'll be interesting to see what happens next!

Episode 3 online . . .

2006-02-05T19:09:00.000Z

Well thank goodness for that - episode three is now online, after a bit of a marathon for all concerned - is it two or three weeks later than planned?

I think it looks pretty good, and Percy and Rita, who had a preview last night, like it - although for some reason the music completely vanished. Part of today's delay was re-laying the music track, and inserting a couple of David J's pieces which we haven't used before.

Hope you all enjoy it!

Sunday 5th filming.

2006-02-05T10:38:00.000Z

We'll also be doing about half an hour on the seafront today - at about 11.30, if you want to see Percy and Rita strolling along the prom in the bright sunshine - errrr, maybe! Then when we get home, the episode 3 saga will continue! I moved some of the raw footage from one drive to another, which seems to have made the music track go walkabouts, so I'll have to re-lay that; I also have to amend the titles to allow for the extra bods.

All go, isn't it . . . ?

Filming this Saturday

2006-02-02T12:26:00.000Z

Just a quick note to say we're filming the second shop scene on Saturday, meeting just before 9am for those who are involved. (At least it'll be warm indoors!)

Episode three - nearly there!

2006-01-31T07:58:00.000Z

Episode 3 is now getting the music glued on - there are a couple of new segments from David Jennings. Should be up on Thursday or Friday.

Beyond the call of duty!

2006-01-29T15:05:00.000Z

A big 'Thank You' to everyone who braved the bitter winds for filming down at the Ferry. And a specially big 'Thank You' to Angela and Dee for stepping in at the last minute to play the parts of the Artists - they both did an excellent job (and were word perfect!). Thanks also to the other people who had been in touch about those parts. A special mention too for Doreen May, who provided the lovely painting for us. The film would be nowhere without the commitment and enthusiasm of a lot of people - cast, crew and groupies!!

So it's a wrap for Episode 5 now! And I never knew until I was listening to Chris Evans on Radio 2 yesterday, that a 'wrap' in filming is actually short for 'Wind Reel and Print'. Which is what they told the cameraman to do when they'd finished filming. Apparently.

Me acting bit!

2006-01-29T08:03:00.000Z

Well yesterday saw my own acting bit done with - I enjoyed it, and the session certainly has added extensively to the out-takes collection! I'm reasonably pleased with it, so that means that episode four is completely in the can, recording-wise!

Artists Found!

2006-01-26T19:33:00.000Z

We've had someone really good come forward to be our Artist this weekend, and she's bringing along "Lisa's Friend" too! So, we're filming this Sunday from 9:30am, down at Felixstowe Ferry, for anything up to a couple of hours. We may have to make use of the Ferry Cafe for a nice drink to keep us warm - but the forecast is looking not too bad! We're also filming on Saturday morning, by the Leisure Centre, just a couple of quick scenes.

I've seen the rough draft of Episode 3 this afternoon, and it's looking very good. Just a bit to finish off at the end, a few minor tweaks here and there, and the music to weave in. Keep watching this space!!

Episode 3 again . . .

2006-01-26T14:14:00.000Z

Episode three is very close to being completely edited now, just got to get Giles to have a look and than whizz a copy off to the excellent David Jenning for him to cast his musical eye over. Should be online around the middle of next week on this basis.We now just waiting for our chums in the police to have a chat about the ongoing attempted murder of Rachel Sloane - she was hit by the bullet way back in the autumn, and now we want to fire the gun!

Sorry - delay in Episode 3 upload!

2006-01-25T08:09:00.000Z

One of the most frustrating yet entertaining things about running FTV is that sometimes things just happen, and you have to go with the flow.
Yesterday morning, after writing the last entry, I found a really exciting new way of presenting the FTV news, and making short programmes similar to news presentations. This looks not only extremely good onscreen, but straightforward enough to use - a vital factor in production, especially when rushed.
So rather than push Episode 3 through, I sorted that out - did the purchase, etc. This means that the Lost sock is dropping back until next week. While I'm sorry about this, we do need to keep the priorities clear - without FTV, there wouldn't be any Socks, lost or otherwise!

Editing episode 3

2006-01-23T11:53:00.000Z

Big push on getting episode 3 rough cut today - should get some done this afternoon, in between shooting two FTV stories and probably editing one of these to go online today. I really think that between 10 and 15 video stories a month is a fairly sensible number to aim for; it gives us a news production of around 30 minutes a month, plus weekly newsreads running another 10 minutes in total.
And while I've been writing this, just had an invite to another do which I'll go and cover - you'll see the result online tomorrow!

Actors / Artists Urgently Required!!!

2006-01-21T12:38:00.000Z

Unfortunately, at least one - if not both - of our Artists who were cast for some filming cannot now make the dates we were hoping to shoot their little scene. (They could have made the filming last November, but it had to be postponed when Tony injured his ankle...) So we urgently need a couple of keen budding actors to fill their shoes. One must be female, aged 18-80 (!), and also be a bit of an artist - she has about 4 lines, and needs to be working on a landscape painting. The other could be female or male, and has 1 line. We're hoping to film on Sunday 29 January, starting around 9:30am for 2-3 hours, - or if the weather's too bad then, we'll try for the following week (5 February) at the same time. If you're interested, please contact us a.s.a.p., either through the blog or the usual Felixstowe TV email address.

We're also filming tomorrow (Sunday) (before the Siberian winds blow in from the East!), just a couple of short bits, meeting at 11am outside the Post Office in Hamilton Road, later moving down to the prom.

Episode 2's online!

2006-01-13T10:42:00.000Z

...just in case you hadn't noticed!! It's all happening at the Fort...

Have you seen 'The Sock' in the Evening Star?!

2006-01-10T14:27:00.000Z

Today's Evening Star has a picture of Chris filming Richard Cornwell (their Felixstowe Editor) and a rather menacing-looking Dawson (Neil Hawcroft), from Saturday's shoot. Richard said, "It was an interesting experience and I really enjoyed it." We're really glad he's got involved - a natural actor! If you want to find out why Dawson had to go to the Evening Star offices, then keep watching...

Episode 2!

2006-01-10T10:21:00.000Z

The new episode of The Lost Sock will be online on Thursday morning - 12th January, a day ahead of schedule to give us our long-planned January week of revival and renewal. Episode 3 should go up around the 27th.

It's worth mentioning at this point one of the things without which our movie would suffer - that is the music, specially composed and created by David Jennings, of djmedia.co.uk. The problem with music in any sort of drama is that the very best makes itself hard to notice fully - it becomes a part of the whole experience. I think that this is what David has achieved with his soundtrack - I've played the Coes sequence of Episode 1 with and without the faint musak, and the difference is very clear, especially at full resolution.

If you have a project which needs some specific musical backing, have a chat with David Jennings - and say we sent you!

It's a wrap! ...for this weekend.

2006-01-08T18:24:00.000Z

Well done to Alan, Nigel, Mum, and Pete, who all did a great job, in difficult conditions (i.e. cold!!). And thank you also to Dot, Ken and Damo for their help and the lamp, and to John for letting us in - and out again - of the Fort! Episode 2 should be well on its way to your screens later this week. We hope you enjoy it!!

I've still got to confirm with everyone involved, but hopefully the plan for the next few weeks will be (weather permitting): Next weekend - no filming; 21/22 Jan - a bit more Bill & Bert?; Sat 28 Jan & Sat 4 Feb - Gunner Bates scenes & other shop scene (or vice-versa); Sun 29 Jan or Sun 5 Feb - filming down at Felixstowe Ferry; first available Sun morn in Feb - the next beach scene (with Mickey & Jamie). I'll be in touch with you all soon!...

Saturday morning shoot.

2006-01-07T19:12:00.000Z

This morning's shoot of Richard Cornwell of the Evening Star and MIB Neil was absolutely spot-on - how wonderful it is when everyone knows their lines and can do them with very few problems. Richard had also organised some posters (rachel shooting, beach erosion), which looked just right stuck to the wall beside his desk.

Neil looks suitably unfriendly and threatening - nice!

Here it is at last!!

2006-01-05T08:24:00.000Z

Well, how exciting that Episode 1 is up and running - and has been for nearly a week. All the work that the writers, cast and crew have put in has finally started to come to fruition, as the story comes to life. (I sometimes wonder if 'The Lost Sock' has a life all of its own?!!) I've heard some very positive comments so far, and people seem quite bemused to see their very own Felixstowe on TV, with a genuinely local story, - and a rather intriguing story at that... (you ain't seen nothing yet!!!). Do let us know what you think, and keep tuning in to find out what comes of Chris & Lucy's encounter with the Men In Black...

Giles joins blog

2006-01-04T10:00:00.000Z

The Lost Sock's production manager, Giles Meehan, has now joined this blog and will be posting when he wants to, or when he has something to impart! We'll try to use it to give you constantly running updates on the production, and if you have any comments to make, please do so.

Responses

2006-01-02T22:43:00.000Z

Well, we've had some really good comments about the Lost Sock since it went online on Friday. One of the best was from a interesting DVD maker from King's Lynn, Geoff, who was interested enough to make some serious and worthwhile technical and artistic film-making comments. I have to admit that all of his notes were very on the ball - while I find news-film making relatively easy, the fictional and dramatic forms come quite hard.
But I do think that we're getting better at it, although only time will tell! The hardest problem to cope with is being sure you get all the angles and shots; with many actors involved, the weather, and the location availability, it's seriously hard to go back!

Filming week commencing 2nd January, 2006.

2006-01-01T08:20:00.000Z

We'll be filming Richard Cornwell of the Evening Star for the Lost Sock, at his office on Saturday morning, and at the Landguard Fort on Sunday afternoon (closed to the public)

New pages

2005-12-31T17:14:00.000Z

The Lost Sock subsite at Felixstowe TV now has a new page giving the cast list as of 1st January 2006, according to the production manager (Giles). What would we do without him, good old boy?

Episode 1

2005-12-31T15:56:00.000Z

Episode 1 of The Lost Sock went online yesterday, December 30th 2005. Although it was officially "launched" on BBC Radio Suffolk at about 1.30 pm, it had been online since that morning - and some people had already found it, proving that FTV's viewers are a smart lot!