I thought I would take a step back and write a post that gives some history into the world of magic. In the film, the father of the family dies on stage doing an illusion: Catching the bullet. Our magician catches two in his hands, then goes for the grand finale of catching it in his teeth. He’s quite the showman.

In reality, this is a trick that has been done by several magicians, and is actually the most dangerous illusion in existence. A total of 11 people have died performing the trick. Most famously, Chung Ling Soo, who was mistakenly shot in the chest during a performance. In the inquiry after his death, it was basically discovered that part of the reason the trick was fatal was because he so closely guarded the secret as to how it was done. For a great read about the magician, check out author Jim Steinmeyer, who has written several books about magic and magicians.

It’s kind of difficult to imagine now, but back in the day, magic was all the rage. My theory is that film stole a lot of the magic, because the illusions could now be done inside a camera, and there was no need for the expensive stage shows. But in the 1800s and early 1900s, magicians competed fiercely against each other for notoriety and ticket sales. There are so many names (in addition to Chung Ling Soo) that were important in the time: Henry Kellar, the Great Lafayette, and Hermann the Great. Of course, Houdini is in there, too, and my personal favorite, Howard Thurston, who was a contemporary of Houdini’s.

There’s another great book about Thurston written by Steinmeyer, and rather than hash out the history, I’ll just tell you again to check it out. I don’t want to mangle something he so carefully research and wrote. It’s a great read, and will make you feel like an expert in the world of magic when you’re finished reading it.

Shooting a film is like building a spider web. It seems so simple: just spin out a single strand, and the next thing you know, there’s this really cool thing in front of you that you just can’t help but watch. But really, there’s a whole design behind it and some planning. Where are you going to put it? Do you hide it in the corner or put it out in the open where it’s more likely to have something run into it? Do you take the risk that it will all come down at once, or hope to catch a big one? Plus you have to rebuild it any time something crashes into it, hoping it’s going to be just as pristine and beautiful as before. In short: it takes some management.

So lately, in addition to starting our fundraising campaign, casting, and getting all of our paperwork in order, I’ve done some research as well. This particular research trip involved visiting Los Angeles; the Skirball Community Center. They have an exhibit up about Houdini, so I couldn’t resist. It was really worth the trip. They had a 1920s day, encouraging people to dress up and come down to have a picnic and see the exhibit, so we did.

Honestly, the exhibit is pretty cool. But don’t take my word for it. There are some reviews out there that say the same thing. Unfortunately, they don’t allow photos in the exhibit, but there was a wealth of paraphernalia about magic: posters, costumes, props, automatons, and so on. Totally worth the trip.

We followed that up with drinks at Hotel Figueroa, which is also a place I’d recommend. Beautiful, downtown, and historic. Once you add a cocktail, it’s a perfect summer afternoon.

Lastly, we headed down to a theater with a really long name that starts with a V for some experimental short films presented by Film Forum. The theater was also dating from back in the day, which is cool. It could use some love on the inside, but alas, funding for such projects is scarce and competition is fierce (kind of like film funding!).

Anyway, that’s the lesson for the day. Research can be fun, kids.

So some of you have asked me what my movie is about. Well, at the risk of sounding like a jerk, it’s about magicians.

It’s not a historical film, and it’s not meant to be informational and teach you anything about magic. It’s just about a family of magicians. The real meat of the story concerns the mother and daughter, who are left alone when the father/husband dies suddenly.

I don’t want to hash out the entire plot (you have to come see it, right?), but the story is basically a story about illusions: the ones we see and the ones we don’t. It’s about women. It’s about family, duty and independence.

I know that doesn’t really tell you very much, but I don’t want to give the whole thing away. It’s supposed to be magic!

In the writing of this film, I have done a significant amount of research, reading biographies of a couple of magicians (I would rock a Jeopardy! category) and watching a documentary about magic. I’ve also watched any other movies about magic I can get my hands on, and I plan to re-visit the work of Georges Melies, who was a magician before he was a filmmaker. If anyone has any suggestions for ‘magic’ films I need to watch, let me know.

I’m also planning a trip to LA to visit the fabled Magic Castle, which I’m very excited about. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a magic show in person in my life, so I am prepared to be amazed. Through my research, I’ve learned how certain tricks are done, but I don’t think that spoils it. I think it only makes it more amazing, because the timing and coordination of the illusions has to be so precise and practiced, the mere fact they are able to pull it off is amazing.

I’m also planning to visit a magical place called the Museum of Jurassic Technology. I’ve been there a couple of times, but there is something about the place that changes the way the world looks in that it becomes apparent that you can’t really tell the difference between was is real and what isn’t.

So that’s some background on the film and how I went about learning about the subject matter. I hope that helps.

Speaking of research and reading, this is the book I finished reading about a week ago. I find that the world of magic is a place where the line between illusion (or delusion) and reality is hopelessly blurred, and doesn't necessarily end once someone steps off the stage. Similarly, the illusion isn't necessarily complete when one steps onto the stage, or at least has varying degrees of completion while in view of the audience.

On the other hand, these guys (and yes, they were primarily men) really knew their way around a trick.

This is the book I'm reading to research my film. So far, interesting.