MBH Project
Who is MBH?
MBH – Ms. Bobbye Hall, a moniker given by Carole King – is a percussionist who has recorded on hundreds of tracks since the 1960Õs, 22 of which reached the top ten in the Billboard Hot 100, six of those reaching number one. A friend and confidant of many she played with including Bob Dylan and Stevie Nicks, Bobbye was also the go-to person for famous record producers such as Lou Adler. She is a warm and engaging soul that impacts those she comes in contact with. Still performing today, both in the studio and live, Bobbye is a living, American icon.
Recent interview with NPR: http://www.npr.org/2015/01/09/376045541/female-percussionist-bobbye-hall-is-a-liner-note-legend
What is the MBH project about?
30 min video with online music experience
In addition to examining the past via interviews with influential musicians, composers, and producers Bobbye has worked with, we will document her current activities. We will use the set up and recording of a studio session as a narrative thread to pull us through the piece. In the end we will have a completed recording. As part of the $5k post budget we will create a 2D music video to draw traffic on-line. The music video will be based on 360 degree camera images that will serve as a foundation for the development of an interactive VR version as funding permits.
BobbyeÕs life and career will be contextualized inside a conversation about the impact, positive and negative, of technology on artists today. I have other contacts such as poets, painters, writers, photographers, and film makers I would like to explore this conversation with in further 30 minute segments.
Budget
We will produce this documentary quickly and on a tight budget. Production is set at $10k, post at $5k for a total of $15k. With todayÕs technology we can make the project happen for that amount without compromising significantly on image and sound. Ideally, the project will be ready for release by end of summer 2017. The production model we are using is similar to VICELANDÕs approach. We will shoot for one week, in and around Los Angeles, moving quickly and getting as much footage as we can. Then post in Venice.
Story Structure
Outlined below is a 30 min version with a scalable structure we can grow as we collect footage and are granted interviews. If down the road we see enough interest and have enough footage to support it, we can discuss 60 mins.
|
min |
SCENE |
Possible
questions |
|
1 |
Bio Intro Title Credits |
Who
is MBH? Use BLFL to begin |
|
2 |
Bio
Intro Title Credits |
MBH
as stats -- how many recordings, awards, etc. |
|
3 |
Bio
Intro Title Credits |
MBH
as person -- spiritual relation to music |
|
4 |
Birth to Motown |
Birthday,
parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, pets |
|
5 |
Birth
to Motown |
Name
of high school, favorite class, friends and interests |
|
6 |
Birth
to Motown |
Story
about how you hired by B Gord |
|
7 |
Birth
to Motown |
What
was it like to play in a studio for the first time? |
|
8 |
Birth
to Motown |
List
of Motown artists you played for, favorite to work with, why? |
|
9 |
Birth
to Motown |
What
is a "Motown Groove"? |
|
10 |
1971 Move to LA |
Why
the move to LA? |
|
11 |
LA
studio work |
How
quickly did you start getting booked? |
|
12 |
LA
studio work |
What
studios and what artists? What
grooves were you known for? |
|
13 |
LA
studio work |
What
do you like about being a studio artist? |
|
14 |
LA
touring work |
What
do you like about touring?
Difference with studio |
|
15 |
LA
touring work |
What
artists did you tour with? |
|
16 |
LA
touring work |
Best
stage experience? |
|
17 |
LA
touring work |
What
was happening personally in your life at this time? |
|
18 |
1985-1995 Transition |
Relation
with daughter? |
|
19 |
1985-1995 |
In
what ways did the loss of work impact you? |
|
20 |
1995-2005 Digital |
Impact
of digital sampling on you |
|
21 |
1995-2005 |
What
were you doing as the work slowed? (studio or touring?) |
|
22 |
1990-2005 |
What/who
kept/keeps you going? |
|
23 |
1990-2005 |
How
did you survive financially? |
|
24 |
Current Day |
Life
in the desert -- Duece and a
Quarter story |
|
25 |
Current
Day |
Scoring,
looping project with Brian |
|
26 |
Current
Day |
New
studio space being built |
|
27 |
Current
Day |
Personal
reflections -- best feeling while playing? |
|
28 |
Current
Day |
Personal
reflections -- future of recording music |
|
29 |
End
Credits |
|
|
30 |
End
Credits |
|
The questions are starting points for conversations, leading to more questions and observations. We will edit down from those conversations as is appropriate (the questions above are not specific to the minute they are listed under).
Visuals
We will shoot this with small cameras and small crew. Shots will include:
Interview footage with Bobbye alone and with others she has worked with
Footage of what BobbyeÕs up to now in the studio
Newly created visual imagery and found cultural footage appropriate to time
Live on Midnight Special with Leo Sayer 1976
In studio with The Temptations 1967
Promotion
Instagram promos 640x640:
Team
Robert Cook, Producer/Director
Robert has shot documentaries in the mountains of Chiapas,
the jungle plains of Guatemala, and southern Albania. He and Bobbye connected during the scoring of his recent
first feature, Holiday. Bobbye has signed a life rights
agreement with Robert.
Scogin Mayo, visual artist/DP
Scogin works in photography and video. His advertising, editorial, and artwork
have been in everything from the Dallas Museum of Art to Vogue magazine.
Brian Carter, Co-producer, Audio post
Brian is a musician, composer, and filmmaker. Brain will oversee the sound on this
project.
Sam Perlmutter
Representation