Professional Portfolio 1

Professional Portfolio for Pyrolight and Blumhouse Productions

Nia Moore
University of North Florida
Professional Portfolio 2

Table of Contents:

Executive Summary………………………………………………………………Pg. 3
Industry and Challenges ………………………………………………………………Pg. 4

Blumhouse Productions…………………………………………………………………Pg. 6

Blumhouse and Independence for Filmmakers………………………………………Pg. 6

Blumhouse Financial Statements and Analysis…………………………………Pg. 7

Interview…………………………………………………………………………Pg. 8

Pyrolight Writing Statements with Analysis………………………………………Pg. 9

Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………Pg. 13

Thank You Notice……………………………………………………………………Pg. 15

References…………………………………………………………………………Pg. 15
Professional Portfolio 3

Executive Summary:

This portfolio examines the positions of filmmakers (directors, producers, etc.) within today’s
film industry. The purpose of this examination is to determine the viability of one of these
positions within today’s film market as well as how filmmakers today are managing to maintain
their careers despite the corruption within the film industry, as well as how they use
communication in order to create their films. From extensive research, it appears that many
filmmakers are beginning to search for/ create independent projects. (Wells, 2019). An example
of this would be a production studio named Blumhouse Productions which is a privately-owned
America production company founded in the year 2000. The Los Angeles based company is
predominately known for developing this century’s most popular horror/thriller films. The
interview was conducted with the founder of a similar emerging production company, Pyrolight
Productions, that follow the same principals and ideas as the original company discussed in this
portfolio.
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Industry & Challenges

The film and television production industry has succeeded in generating support for our
country’s creative economy. This industry has also managed to create what could be seen as a
valuable export for not only Americans, but for many citizens across the globe as well. However,
when it comes to the United States, the film and television aspect of our entertainment industry is
considered to be a major employer for about 2.6 million Americans interested in this community
whether their interests are based in more background positions- such as camera work, sound,
makeup artists, designers, etc,- or positions within the spotlight. This industry, which constantly
generates about $177 billion in annual wages, employs a diverse group of people from makeup
artists, stuntmen, set builders, electricians, actors, photographers, videographers, screenwriters,
lawyers, bankers, producers, directors, etc. Every time a movie or a television show is filmed, it
will always bring potential job and career opportunities for local people as well as bring
opportunities for revenue and possible infrastructure development. This industry has the potential
to increase local economies throughout the country (more than $200,000 being placed into local
economies daily) as well as give billions of dollars per year to multiple businesses nationwide- a
great majority of those businesses (around 87% to be exact) belonging to small businesses. An
increase in tourism is usually seen in the locations where popular movies and television shows
are filmed as well. A great example of this would be AMC’s The Walking Dead and
screenwriter/director Ryan Coogler’s film Black Panther. Both were filmed in the state of
Georgia and have brought a large increase in Georgia’s tourism rates as well as an increase
within their local economies. (The Economic Contribution, 2019)

However, as promising as this industry is, there are issues and challenges within it that need to
be discussed similar to every other industry within our country. The biggest challenge within the
film industry has to do with overall corruption within Hollywood. This corruption can lead to a
number of different issues such as sexual abuse to aspiring models and actors- as seen by former
film producer Harvey Weinstein who was accused of performing multiple sexual assaults against
women, a lack of diversity within television shows and movies, and overall disrespect of
individuals working within the industry as background personnel. (Wells, 2019)

Some of these issues are slowly being alleviated because of an influx of attention recently. For
instance, due to the lack of attention given to incidents of sexual assault and rape within this
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industry, many actors and actresses once refrained from expressing their unfortunate
experiences. But due to movements, such as #MeToo, more actors and actresses are gaining the
courage to speak out against the sexual issues that constantly plague their industry. (#MeToo’s
Male Accusers One Year Later, 2018)

Similar to increased attention shining light to sexual assault within the entertainment industry,
more attention has been brought to issues of a lack of diversity over the years as well. Majority
of the movies that are produced in America mainly centered around Caucasian actors and
actresses. The same would apply to the background where positions such as director and
producer are usually associated with being Caucasian males. However, over the years, this is
slowly being transformed as more women and people of color are being given chances to prove
themselves as actors, producers, directors, etc. (Hollywood Diversity Report Finds Progress But
Much Left To Gain, 2019) An example of this would be the movie Us which featured a
predominately black cast. This movie, which impressively generated around $254.7 million
within the box office, was also directed by biracial filmmaker Jordan Peele who was also the
director of popular 2018 thriller, Get Out. (Jordan Peele Smashes Hollywood Stereotypes Box-
Office Records With Film Us, 2019)

However, despite the change that is being brought into Hollywood, many film workers are still
being disrespected to this day. From actors being told they can’t have families and having
majority of their money collected by their agencies to screenwriters constantly being fired and
having their work changed by production companies, many workers are beginning to question if
they should continue to work in Hollywood or if they should begin to work with filmmakers and
production companies who are independent. (Wells, 2019) Two production companies who are
aiming to take a more independent approach within the film industry would be a Los Angeles
based company called Blumhouse Productions and a St. Augustine company named Pyrolight
Production.
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Blumhouse Productions

Blumhouse Productions- founded by producer, Jason Blum- is a multi-media film company

whose sole purpose is to create quality content for their horror enthusiast audience. During their
time in the film industry, they have managed to innovate a new way of filmmaking which
revolves around using a low budget to create high-quality content. Blumhouse Productions began
to generate popularity for their company by producing the well renowned horror flick
Paranormal Activity- a story about a married couple vlogging their experience with a demonic
entity refusing to leave their home. Paranormal Activity grossed $200 million worldwide despite
Blumhouse’s decision to only use $15,000 for its production. Because of this strategy,
Paranormal Activity is known to be the most profitable film within Hollywood history. Along
with Paranormal Activity, Blumhouse has also produced extremely popular movies such as The
Purge, Insidious, Ouija, and Jordan Peele’s first movie Get Out- a movie about a black man
finding himself in immediate danger after going to meet his white girlfriend’s parents.
(Blumhouse, 2017)

Blumhouse and Independence for Filmmakers

Jason Blum, as well as the other people supporting/working for Blumhouse, are not only
interested in making films for their own personal gain. On April 4th, 2017, Blumhouse expanded
its multi-platform offerings, including BH Tilt- a label that is in charge of implementing new
marketing strategies for the company. The overall goal of this is to come closer in accomplishing
their dream of becoming an independent studio that will give filmmakers from various locations
a chance to create while maintaining the rights that would have been nonexistent in majority of
Hollywood’s production companies. (Blumhouse, 2017)
Professional Portfolio 7

Financial Statements of Blumhouse Movies and Analysis

The financial statement below shows the revenue that was achieved by Jason Blum’s
Paranormal Activity 4. (Paranormal Activity 2, 2012)

Paranormal Activity 4 (2012)

Theatrical Performance
Domestic Box Office $53,900,335 Details
International Box Office $88,917,657 Details
Worldwide Box Office $142,817,992
Home Market Performance
Est. Domestic DVD Sales $7,246,608 Details
Est. Domestic Blu-ray Sales $2,523,143 Details
Total Est. Domestic Video Sales $9,769,751
Further financial details...

This financial statement below not only represents the amount of wealth accumulated by
Blumhouse for Paranormal Activity 4, but also examines their film’s ranking on a number of
movie charts during its release. (Paranormal Activity 4, 2012.)

Ranking on other Records and Milestones

Chart Days In
Record Rank Amount
Date Release

Biggest Domestic October Weekend 34 $29,003,866 Oct 19, 2012 3

Top Horror Weekend Domestic 46 $29,003,866 Oct 19, 2012 3

Front-Loaded Opening Weekend 12 52.1% Oct 19, 2012 3

Top Horror Day Domestic 33 $15,110,106 Oct 19, 2012 1

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Biggest Domestic October Day 33 $15,110,106 Oct 19, 2012 1

Interview:
An interview was conducted with Kathy Wells, CEO and director at Pyrolight Productions.
Pyrolight, while smaller than Blumhouse, is a St. Augustine based production company that is
beginning to grow significantly in popularity. They abide by the same principles of quality, low
budget, and overall independence for filmmakers that Blum tries to represent in his own
company. (Wells, 2019)

Wells joined Pyrolight Productions in 2013 after meeting upcoming actor and business partner,
Isaak Wells. She began working as an aspiring actress in the company’s first short film Desolate,
a story about three people attempting to survive in a post-apocalyptic world. (Pyrolight
Productions, 2018). During this time, Wells began to become acquainted with the background
aspects of filmmaking rather than being in front of the camera. Eventually she decided that
pursuing a career in directing and producing would benefit her more in her creative endeavors
rather than being an actress. (Wells, 2019)

When it comes to the positions of directing and producing, there is one requirement that is of
great importance: communication. As CEO and co-executive producer, she is in charge of
finding screenplays- usually written by screenwriter and close friend, Scott Abrams- that she
feels would best represent Pyrolight. Once a screenplay is decided upon, she is also required to
conduct casting calls to discover actors that are proper for roles within Pyrolight’s films. She, as
well as her partner Issak Wells, is in charge of handling any financial details that could either
hinder or positively influence their production abilities. These financial details usually pertain to
camera equipment, venues for their technical crew and actors to work at, or any monetary details
pertaining to the betterment of the company (such as a recent deal closed with Amazon’s movie
streaming department for their award-winning short feature, Coffee with a Madman.) As a
director, Wells is primarily in charge of ensuring the content Pyrolight aspires to implement is
released as professionally and as entertaining as possible in order to generate satisfaction for
whatever audience they choose to appeal to. This requires her to maintain an assertive demeanor
Professional Portfolio 9

as she guides her technical production crew- which predominately consists of a group of people
specialized in lighting, cameras, and sound- and the actors she casts to present the film in the
proper manner she and her coworkers envision. (Wells, 2019)

This, specifically, is something that she views to be quite challenging. If she fails to properly
communicate with her cast and technical crew, the entire project will fail to be created. Every
person that she works with are individuals who possess their own way of perceiving information.
In order to ensure that every person on the set completely understands her goals, she has to create
methods to better her own communication skills. One of her favorite ways to do this is by using
photography or drawings of certain scenes she wants to place within her movies. She will then
show the photos or drawings to her crew and explain what is happening in each one. This seems
to give a better idea to the technical crew of how a certain scene should be portrayed, and it gives
a better idea to the actors of how should present themselves on set. (Wells, 2019)

According to Wells, communication is the main requirement when it comes to directing and
producing. Prior to her career as a director and producer, Wells had no degree related to the film
industry whatsoever. Majority of her time was spent as a retail worker. She also worked as a
photographer for three years. Once she began to develop her passion for working behind the
scenes did she began to educate herself by reading books, watching YouTube videos, and by
simply using trial and error to gather her experience. The production crew at Pyrolight work
different jobs, Wells currently employed by Best Buy, in order to fund their new movie My Life
with Death, a suicide awareness film that they hope to release on Netflix. Well’s, and the rest of
the crew at Pyrolight, overall goal is to simply pursue her passion of cinema while remaining an
independent company to escape the sexism, lack of diversity, and overall corruption within the
film industry. She also aims to inspire other people, specifically young women like her, to pursue
their passion despite the odds that may be against them. (Wells, 2019)
Professional Portfolio 10

Pyrolight Writing Statements with Analysis

The document below is an email to the extras within their recent film Coffee With
a Madman. It is giving information about when they’re planning to film as well as where their
location is going to be.

From: Pyrolight Productions

Sent: Tuesday, February 12, 2019 9:05 AM

To: hellohaidy@gmail.com; carolyn.beech.actor@gmail.com; dodd.kyle102@gmail.com; drain.a
1210@gmail.com; clairehudersoprano@gmail.com; precious827@yahoo.com; joiakinfoster7@g
mail.com; fernandez58c@gmail.com; highskye@att.net; mikellesharone@gmail.com; jkippur@y
ahoo.com; jkatemcmanus@gmail.com; hammyfuzzbutt1@gmail.com; tedorht@gmail.com; Wes
61188@gmail.com; leeann.walkerfl@gmail.com; trinajoy79868@gmail.com; a_love1784@yaho
o.com
Subject: COFFEE WITH A MADMAN EXTRAS

Hello All,

This is Jack Drain with Pyrolight Productions. Below is information for next weeks shoot. In
addition to this shoot, please confirm that you are attending with a reply to this email. If you
have any questions lets us know and we will be happy to answer them for you.

Shoot Day: Monday, February 18, 2019

Call Time: 9am - 5pm
Shoot Time: Around 10am
Attire: Modern - Please bring two items of clothing tops (NO LOGOS/BRANDS) with you as we
will be making the set seem busy.

Thank You,
Jack Drain
Cinematographer/Editor
Professional Portfolio 11

Isaak Wells
Website - http://www.isaakwells.com/
IMDb - http://www.imdb.com/name/nm5293477/
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/isaakwells

Begin forwarded message:

From: LOL JAX FILM FESTIVAL <loljaxfestival@gmail.com>

Date: January 30, 2019 at 12:03:42 AM EST
To: Pyrolight Productions <pyrolightprod@gmail.com>
Subject: Congrats on being selected for the Ladies In Cinema Film Fest JAX

Hey Kathy,

We are pleased to announce that your film, "Easy Money", was selected for the first "Ladies
In Cinema Film Fest JAX". We have attached the official film festival laurels (1 jpg and 2 png
files).

Details:

The event will be held at the UNF Student Center on the 2nd Floor on Saturday, February
9th at 6pm. It is expected to go on till 9:30pm. Parking is free. There is a parking garage,
located right across from the basketball arena. We will start the event with a panel of female
filmmakers that will be hosted by Monique Madrid. Next we will honor Jill Donnellan and
Sharon Y. Cobb with achievement awards for what they have done in this local filmmaking
community. We will the roll out the films and finally have a quick Q&A with the filmmakers of
each selected film. This is important, we are only asking that a female filmmaker represents
the film that was selected. Could you please reply back to us who that would be so can
make sure they are on the stage and have them introduce themselves.

This is a free event. Please confirm you are coming so we can make sure there is a seat for
you and a plus one. The place has 244 seats, so we are expecting a lot of people to show
up. Please arrive early if you are wanting to sit with your cast and crew.

We are providing snacks and refreshments. Since all this free, we are accepting donations
but not encouraged. We want to provide a high-quality film festival that honors these
amazing female filmmakers, this is why we want to have this event for free.

We Thank You for being a part of this event.

Monique Madrid / Adam Madrid / Richard Kodai

Ladies In Cinema Film Fest JAX
Professional Portfolio 12

The document above is an email to Kathy Wells about her film being selected for the first ever
Ladies in Cinema Film Festival in Jacksonville.

NAME PHONE NUMBER EMAIL Availibility ON SET

Haidy Andrada (hellohaidy@gmail.com

Carolyn Beech (carolyn.beech.actor@gmail.com

Kyle Dodd dodd.kyle102@gmail.com

Angela Branch Drain drain.a1210@gmail.com

Claire Huder clairehudersoprano@gmail.com

Angela Ford Joiakin Foster joiakinfoster7@gmail.com

Christain Frenandez fernandez58c@gmail.com

Thomas Hambyhighskye@att.net

Mi’Kelle James mikellesharone@gmail.com

Jeff Kipper jkippur@yahoo.com

Kate McManus
The information (470)
above was 426-6400
emailed to mejkatemcmanus@gmail.com
by Ms. Wells. It is a set of emails and names for the
extras on set of Wells’ new film My Life With Death.
Lori Melline (904) 583-0397 hammyfuzzbutt1@gmail.com

Ted Ohrt (904) 303-9457 tedorht@gmail.com

SCENE EXT. - Behind Sarah's Work - MORNING INT. COFFEE
Wesley Solomon
SHOP (904) 438-1603
- MORNING Wes61188@gmail.com
INT. ICE CREAM SHOP - DAY INT. GAME
ROOM INT. MOVIE THEATER INT. RESTUARANT - EVENING EXT.
Leeann Walker (904) 327-7733 leeann.walkerfl@gmail.com
ALLYWAY - TWILIGHT CHARACTERS Sarah/Death
Trina Washington (904) 463-5204 trinajoy79868@gmail.com
Travis/Sarah/Thomas/Jeff/Extras SARAH/DEATH/EXTRAS
SARAH/DEATH SARAH/DEATH SARAH/DEATH
Alexis Williams (954) 729-6185 a_love1784@yahoo.com
SARAH/DEATH/EXTRAS (2) DETAILS Sarah siting and eating
Tiffanylunch.
Wright Everyday life Sarah
(904) 629-1733 Walk into Ice Cream Shop Death &
msdevotedtiff@gmail.com
Sarah having fun playing Ski Ball Sarah's Relationships Eating
Stephanie Wood (904) 864-3953
What's Life about? DETAILS Death shows up after car passes.
Devyn Boring
Arnold stuff Talk999-9949
(904) about Sarah and her Friends Making jokes
and bad puns Death's Love interest Argue about Sarah being
funny Death gets angry DETAILS Death is reading newspaper
Life's Important/Reflection CAMERA SHOTS 1 Front (WS) Side
EWS Back Shot (WS) Back Shot (WS) Front (WS) Side (WS) Front
(Tracking Shot) CAMERA SHOTS 2 Side (MU) Dirty Singles Front
The documentShotabove(WS) Sidean
is also Shot
email(MS)
sentSIDE (MS/MCU)
by Ms. Dirty Single
Wells describing (MCU)
certain scenes from her
Front (MS) CAMERA SHOTS 3 Front Low Angle (WS) Side (Sarah
movie, My Life With Death.
& Travis) (MCU) Single Shot of only Sarah (MCU) Front Shot
(MS) Slide (MS/MCU) Single (MCU) Single (MCU) CAMERA
SHOTS 4 Follow (Tracking Shot) Deaths Face (CU/ECU) PROPS
Food, Newspaper, Phone, Car Coffee/Coffee Cups
Popcorn/Drinks/Candy Food/Drinks EXTRA B-Roll of Coffee
Making B-Roll of Ice Cream Making
Professional Portfolio 13

Conclusion

This portfolio mainly expresses the importance of communication within the film industry as
well as explains why many workers within this industry are beginning to seek work within or are
starting to create independent platforms/careers. Positions in this field do not require a degree.
What is required is overall experience within the industry as well as an ability to communicate
properly with a team. Without the ability to properly communicate within this field, many will
fail in their dreams to bring their communications to life. It will also be impossible for them to
find work for themselves and make a change to the corruption within this sector of the
entertainment industry.
Professional Portfolio 14

Thank You Note

-As stated by Ms. Wells, she does not approve of her number, address, or email address to
be given on this assignment. Therefore I have provided a copy of the letter that does not
have any of that in order to respect her wishes.-

Pyrolight Productions

18 July, 2019

Ms. Wells
CEO and Director

Dear Ms. Wells,

It was a pleasure meeting with you for our interview. I am writing this letter to you to thank you
for taking time out of your busy schedule to give me the opportunity to ask questions regarding
your career and for giving me advice on how I can best reach my future goals within the film
industry. I wish you the best and hope we can keep contact with each other in the future. Thank
you for your time and have a great day.

From,
Nia Moore
Professional Portfolio 15

References

Araujo, K. (2019, March 25). Jordan Peele Smashes Hollywood Stereotypes, Box-Office Records
With Film ‘Us’. Retrieved from
https://www.diversityinc.com/jordan-peele-smashes-hollywood-stereotypes-
box-office-records-with-new-film-us/

Blumhouse (n.d). .About Blumhouse and Jason Blum. Retrieved from

http://www.blumhouse.com/about/

Bradley, L. (2018, October 4). “I Was Terrified, and I Was Humiliated”: #MeToo’s Male
Accusers, One Year Later. Retrieved from
https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2018/10/metoo-male-accusers-terry-
crews-alex-winter-michael-gaston-interview

Motion Pictures of America (2018). THE ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTION OF THE MOTION

PICTURE & TELEVISION INDUSTRY TO THE UNITED STATES. Retrieved from
https://www.mpaa.org/wpcontent/uploads/2019/03/Economic_contribution_
US_infographic_Final.pdf

Pyrolight Productions. (2018). Desolate. Retrieved from

http://www.pyrolightproductions.com/desolate/

The Numbers (n.d.). Paranormal Activity 4 (2012). Retrieved from

https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Paranormal-Activity-4#tab=summary

Wells, K, director and CEO, July 12, 2019.