An Interview with Lee Rudnicki - By Herbert M. Brindl

Interviews: An Interview with Lee Rudnicki - By Herbert M. Brindl
Posted on Tuesday, December 02, 2008 @ 19:10:45 Mountain Standard Time by Duane

All over the place entertainment attorney, producer, and writer of “My Immortal” drummer extraordinaire, Lee Rudnicki talks with me about his past - present and future. How it feels to meet a Nobel Peace Prize winner, his work with up and coming talent Tracy Coogan, what it entails in being an indie producer and how to make things happen, even when sometimes the odds are against you, especially when somebody tries to shoot you. What I found out is not bad for a man who is just for a couple of years in the melting pot of Hollywood, and I can say, so far his dream works! Lee Rudnicki is a perfect example that you can still make it in America, even in times of recession, you just have to be hungry enough!

DINNER WITH THE 7er’s

(CLASSIFIED)

The Last time I was invited to a meeting of a very secret organization here in Hollywood, at least I thought so, because it was called Dinner Club 7. I was totally in James Bond fever after a “Quantum Of Solace”, and connected the number 7 instantly with 007. (By the way the best Bond ever, the “Dark Knight” could learn a thing or two from this movie!) Yeah, I thought, who doesn’t want to be a part of a secret Organization?!

So I joined them for dinner at a secret restaurant location in a misty and foggy L.A. night, dressed in trench coat and with hat, not to forget the sunglasses….

What I found out over a few Martinis ("Shaken, not stirred") about this really not secret at all, but truly independent operating organization with a lot of cool beans cats, will get now revealed in an 7 question interview with “Chairman and Ritual Master”, Rudnicki, Lee Rudnicki.

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HMB
Thank you Mr. Rudnicki, for sharing some of your free time and secrets with us for this interview.

LR:
It’s nice to be with Rogue Cinema, thank you for having me.

HMB:
Mr. Rudnicki, give us a little bit of your background, tell us, what do you do in the film business.

LR:
I’m an entertainment attorney and producer, but my role varies, depending on the project. As an attorney, I have film, music, and television clients, and I’m doing some work for a studio. I’m also a product of the UCLA screenwriting program, so I guess you can add writer to the list.

Before law school, I was an instructor of a world-champion drum corps, the Vanguard. One fateful evening after rehearsal, a deranged car-jacker shot at me as I ran across an expressway. A San Jose newspaper then reported the story (and my name) while the shooter was on the loose. After surviving the hail of bullets and free press demonstration, I made changes in my life, left drum corps, and entered law school at the University of San Francisco. For a number of years after graduation, I worked in San Francisco as a music attorney, and helped create a new drum corps, the Renegades.

In 2004, I relocated my law practice to Los Angeles. I was once told by the head of A&R at a major record label, “In LA, anything can happen on any given day.” Well, that turned out to be a true statement.

Shortly after my arrival in LA, I met Japanese motion picture director Junichi Suzuki, and producer Ko Mori, from Eleven Arts. Mr. Suzuki wanted to do his first feature in the United States, and they asked me to be a producer and attorney on this film, “Death Ride. It was an unexpected honor and I couldn’t say no. So, I dove in.

To learn as much as I could, I bought and read every book I could find, studied film finance and production at UCLA, and attended portions of every aspect of the process, from auditions, to a midnight shoot on a mountain with howling coyotes, to a mind-numbing eleven-hour session with a colorist, to press conferences and screenings in LA and Tokyo.

Luckily, with the exception of the SAG agreements and a few other areas, the legal aspects of filmmaking were very similar to the music and technology work that I had done in San Francisco. So, I worked hard and got up to speed quickly.

At the end of the day, success. Death Ride certainly didn’t win an Oscar, but we finished it and sold it to Lionsgate (who re-named it Haunted Highway), which is something. Whether the film is ultimately good, bad or indifferent, I will always be proud of it, and working on it from start-to-finish was like film school on faaaaast forward. That was my introduction to film.

The nice thing about getting your first film distributed and IMDB credit is that it instantly puts you into a different experience category, and another door will usually open up soon thereafter.

HMB:
Yes doors will open, at least after your interview with Rogue Cinema!

HMB:
I have seen several different photographs of you with former Polish politician, Lech Walesa, Chairman of Solidarity, Nobel Peace Prize winner and later President of Poland. How did that come about?

LR:
That’s a random question. So, here’s the random answer.

I spent the summers of law school studying international law in Ireland and Prague. One of my professors was on the Czech Supreme Court, and he got me into the Mr. Walesa speech and reception at the Radio Free Europe headquarters. One glass of wine later, I wandered into the receiving line (literally) and unexpectedly met Mr. Walesa in front of flashing cameras. Which was amusing, as I was the only person in shorts, and the dignitaries and ambassadors were all trying to figure out who I was.

Later that afternoon, I went to the square and saw Mr. Walesa again. When I tried to take his picture, Walesa pointed at me, barked some quick orders in Polish, and his bodyguard rushed me. The guy grabbed my camera and I thought it was the opening ceremonies of an international incident and CNN coverage. Then, Walesa grabbed my shoulder as his smiling bodyguard snapped our photo. It was surreal, but if you’ve ever spent time in Prague, you know that’s par for the course.

A few years later, I ran into Mr. Walesa again at a World Affairs Council meeting in San Francisco. I wouldn’t say we’re pals or anything, but I like to think that we have some sort of connection, and I have an enormous amount of respect for what Mr. Walesa accomplished in Poland. Incidentally, it’s a little known fact that Lech Walesa is the four-time World Champion of Tetris.

HMB:
You are kidding?

LR:
Yes I’m kidding. I doubt Mr. Walesa has ever played Tetris professionally.

HMB:
What’s the story behind this mysterious Number 7?

LR:
Okay, I will tell you. Seven is an integer. It is the sum of five plus two. And six plus one, I think….

HMB:
How does making contracts for musicians differ from doing film or actor Contracts?

LR:
Music is one of the most complicated areas of entertainment law. You would be surprised to know how many different sets of intellectual property rights come into play for a music recording, and the often-archaic, sometimes-ridiculous and always-complicated rules and laws that may or may not apply to that recorded music.

Music is an inherent part of most films, so you can’t be a film attorney without at a solid understanding of music law. I still do significant work in music, including with the New York music licensing company Sir Groovy, but most of the music projects I work on these days have a close relation to either film or television.

Regardless of what type of intellectual property that you are dealing with in the context of an entertainment transaction, the most important aspect is always the grant of rights, which in film, is needed to establish the chain of title for your film. Many new filmmakers pour their heart and soul into a film, only to discover that they have produced something that cannot be distributed.

HMB:
One of your newest projects, where you are producer, is the Psychological Thriller “Dark Woods”, which has quite some names attached to it. (James Russo and Tracy Coogan)
How did you got involved in the movie and tell us a little bit about this indie film?

LR:
I became friends with the Irish-born actress Tracy Coogan shortly after I saw her amazing performance in “Zombie Honeymoon.” Last year, Tracy started talking about a project that she stumbled upon, Dark Woods. I think that screenwriter John Muscanero and producer Mark Shady probably knew their Dark Woods concept was good, but Tracy Coogan believed in it and talked about the project so much that interest in Dark Woods surged, including in the media.

Tracy Coogan introduced me to John and Mark. A few days later, I joined the production, and things picked up speed. Dark Woods is in post as we speak, but the footage that we’ve seen so far from DP Andrew J. Whittaker is breathtaking. In fact, the Dark Woods team worked so well together that we’re planning to do another film together soon.

HMB:
One of your other projects is The Harimaya Bridge, which is starring Lethal Weapon star Danny Glover and Misa Shimizu. How did you got him attached and what’s the story about?

LR:
I did a lot of work on this project, but Ko Mori and director/writer Aaron Woolfolk were the real engine that drove this film from Day 1, and they were able to get Ben Guillory and Danny Glover behind it. Incidentally, Ben and Danny are joined on-screen by some serious talent on the Japanese side, including Saki Takaoka and pop-star Misono.

At its core, Harimaya Bridge is the story of a man who travels from San Francisco to rural Japan, to retrieve his deceased son’s artwork. During his time in Japan, however, the man learns secrets that his son left behind and takes you on an emotional journey that you will never forget. I will leave the details for the publicists, but suffice it to say that even at this stage of the game, with more post-production left to do, The Harimaya Bridge is a powerful film, and the last screening left people in tears. You never know how a film will do until is released, but The Harimaya Bridge could really be something special.

HMB:
So the film is set in Japan, is it a Japanese Production and if yes what are the pro and con’s when you have to work with people from a totally different cultural background, thousand miles away from the States? And could your Japanese Wife help out with her knowledge of the Japanese language and Culture? (By the way I had the honor to meet Mrs. Rudnicki in person, one of the loveliest women I ever met!)

LR:
Harimaya Bridge opens in San Francisco and then moves to Kochi, Japan for the remainder of the film.

And as you point out, my wonderful wife is Japanese, and she does help me translate the Japanese documents.

I enjoy working with Japanese companies, but from a legal standpoint, entertainment transactions with entities in any foreign country has it challenges and learning curve. Besides the vast differences between the structure of the United States and Japanese entertainment industries, basic legal distinctions can pose issues as well.

In the United States, for example, the copyright to a motion picture and all of the underlying rights is extensively documented (i.e., chain of title). The bottom line is that if you have don’t have the written legal documentation that proves that you own any and all of the underlying rights to your film, distributors will not touch it.

In Japan, however, there is much less formal documentation, and some business transactions get done via a simple handshake. Getting the two systems to blend in such a way that enable the deal to go smoothly and still meet all of the U.S. documentation requirements can be a challenge. But, these difficulties can be overcome, and in my experience, the Japanese are trustworthy and dependable business partners.

HMB:
On what do you base your decision on, to get involved in a project as producer?

LR:
Besides a good script, I want to work on projects with driven people who enjoy what they do, and who do not point fingers at one another when the going gets rough. To me, successful filmmaking is not about the absence of adversity, but rather, is about how one responds to adversity. Also, filmmaking is about collaboration. If you want to work by yourself, take up chess. The equipment is easier to set up.

HMB:
Do you think that an upcoming actors strike will help or do more damage the industry?

LR:

Whether SAG is right or wrong about the contractual issues, they could pick a better time for a strike than right in the middle of a global economic catastrophe. The last thing the United States needs is more people out of work right now.

HMB:
Some advise for newcomers?

LR:
Meet as many people in the industry as possible, with complete and total disregard and indifference for who they are or what they can do for your career. Yes, you read that correctly.

HMB:
What’s next for Lee Rudnicki?

LR:
To continue to work on a growing number of films. The other goal for 2009 is to get one of these three projects into production; (i) Sympathy for the Devil, a supernatural cop thriller set in LA; (ii) My Immortal; or (iii) a drum corps story.

HMB:
With such a busy schedule, do you have time for a hobby or two?

LR:
I take long walks, read voraciously, watch films, and play a mean game of video football. The problem is that the 49ers are horrible on Madden 09 and I’m running out of space for books.

HMB:
Please choose 7 people from the film business (dead or alive) you would like to have at your dinner Table.

LR:
Jada Pinkett Smith, Will Smith, Paz Vega, Angelina Jolie, David Geffen, Greta Garbo and Wolf Kramer.

HMB:
Thank you for the interview Mr. Rudnicki

LR:
Seven for Rogue Cinema

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Related Links:

Blog 7
http://drumlaw80.blogspot.com

Lee Rudnicki on imdb
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1886870

Dark Woods on imdb
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1308754

Many Morning Street
Selected writings of Lee Rudnicki
http://manymorningstreet.blogspot.com/2007/07/my-immortal.html