Had a little party on Saturday to unveil “The Bet” to a small group of friends. Went pretty well despite a late start and my long-winded intro to thank a few people. Before the film, I added a teaser trailer for Detox, the follow-up feature, which was a surprise to everyone. Then the logos for Rubbersquare and Abe Froman came up and the film started. I tried to gauge reactions from everyone, but it was difficult to see (it was dark, and I wasn’t in the best spot to see everyone). Afterwards, it seemed people seemed to like it (at least they said they did). All my obsession to details were perhaps lost on them, which is a good thing. From the comments, everyone seemed impressed at how professional it looked. So, in all, I was pretty happy. And then today I got a revised sound mix from John McClain at Dog & Pony here in Vegas. My concern that I was beating a dead horse was put to rest when I listened because WOW! He nailed the mood so amazingly well. It absolutely heightens the creepiness of the film – the way sound design should – and I can’t wait to see it play at CineVegas with the new audio. I am in absolute heaven right now. Such a relief.

Now I can put this baby to bed (so to speak, still have the press materials to get ready for CineVegas and possibly do a surround mix or at least the final final tweaks and get it off to the rest of the fests). But for the most part, it’s DONE! And i can focus on the new film.

And, of course, there’s still CineVegas in a couple of weeks. I hope it plays well there. I’m at the point now where my only way of watching the film is through someone else’s eyes, through their reactions and responses. Hopefully those reactions and responses are good. Actually, I’d prefer if there were few “good” reactions. I’m much more the type who’s looking for “I hate it” or “I love it.” I never wanted this to be the kind of film where people watch and forget.