WIRETAP: a short film about NSA surveillance
A satire about the ongoing NSA surveillance scandal that has dominated the news since Edward Snowden leaked the information. Featuring some fine felt characters from Norman Tweeter Productions!
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Wiretap, a short film satirizing the NSA surveillance scandal that has played out over the last half year or so. I filmed it while I was back in Tacoma last October/November, during my perpetually extended return visit to my adopted city.
Wiretap stars myself, Tokens improv leader Charles Ames, and puppeteers Jeff Klein and John Wright of Norman Tweeter Productions. My shots are filmed inside one of my favorite establishments, the magical Tinkertopia, which was also the focus of its own video several months ago. I have to give a huge thanks to R.R. Anderson and Ms. Darcy for letting us film there. I think it made the whole thing a lot more fun and visually dynamic.
Honestly, I’m really proud of it. It’s far from perfect, and there’s quite a bit I’d like to fix, but it felt good getting back into writing scripts again, rather than just vlogging or improv-ing. Writing was the reason i got into filmmaking in the first place, and I lost that somewhere along the line. Moreover, as good as it felt to write it? It felt so much better to film it, and I can’t even express how good it feels to see it done and online.
And though it’s a shame that the source material for the concept exists, at least it provided rich fodder from which to craft a work of satire.
Check back later, there will soon be a blooper reel embedded into this post as well!
CREDITS
Starring
Adam J. Manley as himself
Jeff Klein as Paul Fleece
Charles Ames as Mike
John Wright as Cobra
Extras
R.R. Anderson as merchant
John Wright as man in front of store
Jeff Klein as passerby in hoodie
Tinkertopia patrons as customers
Producer & Director
Adam J. Manley
Executive Producers
Jeff Klein
John Wright
Kathryn Wright
Erin Klein
Writing
Story & concept by Adam J. Manley
Screenplay by Adam J. Manley & Jeff Klein
Characers by Jeff Klein, John Wright, & Adam J. Manley
Paul Fleece and Cobra appear courtesy Norman Tweeter Productions
Paul Fleece created by Jeff Klein
Cobra created by John Wright
Cinematography by Adam J. Manley
Camera Operators
Jeff Klein
Adam J. Manley
Gaffer
Jeff Klein
Grips
Charles Ames
John Wright
Set Dresser
Jeff Klein
Additional equipment provided by Charles Ames & Jeff Klein
Edited by Adam J. Manley
Music
He Plans Houses Like Trees by Driftless Pony Club
DFTBA Records
©2011
Special Thanks
R.R. Anderson
Darcy Anderson
Shaun Mattingly
Tristy Hopkins
Paula Manley
John Manley
Alicia Lawver
Nathe Lawver
Edward Snowden
©2014 Adam the Alien Productions
Writer. Actor. Director. Chalk artist. YouTuber. Nerdfighter. Traveler. Pansexual. Genderfluid. Millennial. Socialist. Living a complex life beyond those words.
