Digging the Low-Budget Films!

Today I am letting author Stephen Tremp take over and trash my blog with some low-budget movies. But don't worry - I invaded HIS blog today with an old, neurotic post of mine. So jump on over when you've finished here.

Hi everyone, and welcome to the second stop of my Grand OPENING Tour! And an enormous thanks you to Captain Ninja Alex for having me here today. Thanks Alex!

During a low point while writing OPENING, I took a break to research low budget films that made it big, some even receiving iconic, cult figure status. This was just the diversion I needed to give me back my vision and my hope and inspired me to do something really really big. It helped get me on track and finish my book.

Hence, my Low Budget Films That Made It Big List. Sorry, but no Sharktopus. (Damn! - Alex)

American Graffiti (1973) Budget: $777,000 (estimated) Gross: $115,000,000 (USA) An almost 9,000% return on investment must have made Universal Pictures extremely pleased, especially since they only took on the project after it was turned down by 20th Century Fox, United Artists, MGM, Columbia Pictures, and Paramount Pictures.


 





Clerks (1994) Budget: $777,000 (estimated) Gross: $115,000,000 (USA) This independent film reached out to a generation of slackers, spotlighting two convenience clerks named Dante and Randal as they annoy customers, discuss movies, and play hockey on the store roof. I've worked at a 7-11 in a previous life and can relate.





Fargo (1996) Budget: $7,000,000 (estimated) Gross: $60,611,975 (Worldwide) Love this show regardless of the most annoying accent in the human language. Ya! I think the wood chipper was nominated for supporting actor.






 
Halloween (1978) Budget: $320,000 (estimated) Gross: $60,000,000 (Worldwide) Who needs character development? Did you know the original budget was so low the actors wore their own clothes and Jamie Lee Curtis was paid $8,000?






MST 3000 The Movie (1996) It doesn't get any better than this! Born from the Saturday morning cult-classic, Mike Nelson, Crow T. Robot, and Tom Servo are still forced to watch the most hideous of stinker movies. Oh, has anyone seen my interociter?






Reservoir Dogs (1992) Budget: $1,200,000 (estimated) Gross: $2,832,029 (USA) Tarantino helped helped make indie films mainstream with this pop-culture masterpiece. Tarantino made careers for some actors while revitalizing those of others.




Rocky (1996) Budget: $1,100,000 (estimated) Gross: $225,000,000 (Worldwide) My all-time favorite sports movie and still inspires me today. Is there a better theme song to get you up and ready to do something great? I don't think so.








SuperSize Me (2004) Budget: $65,000 Worldwide Gross: $29,500,000 Did we really need a documentary into America's obsessive consumer culture to tell us eating fast food is anything but healthy?








  The Blob (1958) Budget: $248,000 Grossed: $12,000,000 A young jobbing actor named Steve McQueen was tapped for the lead and offered a choice: he could take a $3,000 fee upfront or get 10 percent of the gross box-office. Figuring The Blob would be just another creature feature, he opted for the former. Bummer. The movie grossed an astounding $12m, which would've earned McQueen $1.2m and set him up for life (back in the day).


 


I hope you had as much fun with this list as I did. Feel free to agree, disagree, or add a movie or two of your own in the comments! And remember, you don't need a huge budget to hit it big!

Stephen Tremp is author of the recently released suspense thriller OPENING, the second book in the BREAKTHROUGH series. You can visit Stephen at Breakthrough Blogs for $1.99. OPENING is available for download at: Amazon for $1.99 Smashwords for $1.99

Have you seen those movies? At least one? Come on, Mystery Science Theater 3000 The Movie is a classic! All right then, YOU name some low-budget winners then! And don't forget to visit Stephen's SITE for a glimpse at me two years ago...

Writing Near-Future Science Fiction

Today I welcome author Stephen Tremp on tour for the re-release of his novel, Breakthrough. Take it, Stephen!

The Information Age is moving at breakneck speed. Discoveries in areas of science that were once fodder for science fiction are now becoming part of our everyday life. Due to the explosion of technology, access to real-time information, and an ever-changing geo-political landscape, our immediate future is unforeseen. We live in an exciting and certainly unpredictable world. There is no shortage of inspiration for near-future science fiction.

What is Near-Future Science Fiction: Near-future science fiction is set in the present day or in the next few years. Elements of the setting should be familiar to the reader, and the technology may be current or in development. Stories about theoretical physics, nanotechnology or genetics often fall into this category.

Is it any wonder weaving elements of sci-fi into a present day action thrillers is so popular with mainstream America? Perhaps, sci-fi writers are merely prophets, proclaiming in advance what we will see and use in the future, or the very near future.

Problem: Science fiction is fun, but often unrealistic. Solution: Near future sci-fi can use theoretical physics, what some physicists believe may be reality, but have yet to confirm through rigorous testing. To write a realistic near sci-fi story, it’s as important to identify and eliminate certain elements as it is to include them. Example: light sabres used in Star Wars. Cool, but not very realistic. In reality, the laser would beam for miles and slice through the spaceship or building the fighters may be in and everything else in their path.

Where Can A Writer Gain Inspiration: one way to gain inspiration is to follow what the government is doing. According to an article by David Montgomery in The Washington Post titled U.S. Mission for Sci-Fi Writers , Homeland Security is boldly going where few government bureaucracies have gone before and is enlisting the expertise of science-fiction writers.

What I Follow And Research: as a writer, I doesn’t have to build a particle accelerator in my garage or my Mom’s basement in order to perform research in physics. Rather, there is so much free, real time information available at our finger tips. The Internet and the Science, Discovery, and History channels all give us a more information, in layman’s terms, that we can ever hope to use. One can also follow leading physicists who make information readily available like Dr. Brian Cox , Prof. Stephen W. Hawking , Dr. Michio Kaku , and Prof. Brian Greene among many others. Even YouTube has hundreds of informative and interesting clips.

I also follow events coming out of CERN and Fermilab . What else could be exciting is a breakthrough someone discovers in their garage or their mom’s basement. Think of revolutionary ideas and companies started this way. Hewlitt Packard, Apple, and Atari among others.

Please join me tomorrow as I visit Arlee Bird at Tossing It Out as we talk a little about Hyperspace and Hyperbings.

Stephen Tremp is author of the action thriller Breakthrough . You can visit Stephen at Breakthrough Blogs .

And Diane had asked me some questions about my blog tour - my answers are up today at her site, Spunk on a Stick’s Tips