Join Us at THE COMMUNE

Good friend Lis Fies is putting out the word on how you can see her movie THE COMMUNE on Netflix. 

Do YOURSELF the favor, and add it to your Netflix Queue.

IF YOU DO - and comment on this post that you have done so - you will put your name in the hat to win a free DVD of the movie.  Signed and personalized by Lis. 

A BETTER BARGAIN CAN'T BE HAD!

Details below. Get to it.

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Hi filmmakers/filmlovers,

All you folks who have a Netflix account can do me a huge favor just by adding our movie, The Commune to your Netflix Queue. (If you don't have an account, you can pass this email on to your friends!)

As you may know, I recently completed my first feature film as
director/writer/producer, The Commune.  http://thecommunemovie.com

We received a warm welcome with great reviews 

<http://www.allthingshorroronline.com/2010/05/commune-new-cult-classic-delves-into.html> 

and festival showings but we are now in the grinding process of self-distribution.  

We have been selling DVDs on our website along with digital downloads through
IndieFlix www.indieflix.com/film/the-commune-a-new-cult-classic-30584
<http://www.indieflix.com/film/the-commune-a-new-cult-classic-30584>
but this is a slow and piecemeal process.

We received some good news recently that Netflix will accept our movie
with one caveat:  we have to prove that we have an audience that wants
to see this before they will order any DVDs from us.  So, we need 130
people to save the DVD in their Queue and then they will accept us.
So far we have 90 people who have saved the DVD, so we just need 40
more.

Please follow this link:

http://www.netflix.com/WiMovie/The_Commune/70139465?strackid=29781d9fbbbd2217_0_srl&strkid=1958900930_0_0&trkid=438381

Click the Add to DVD Queue button and that's it!  You don't even need
to watch the DVD (unless you want to), just by saving it to your Queue
you've demonstrated enough interest to Netflix, you'll be supporting
independent film, and you'll be doing a huge favor for me.

Thanks so much for you support!

(P.S. please feel free to forward this message to anyone else you know
who has a Netflix account)

EARNING BONUS POINTS If you've got 40 more seconds to help, please
1. rate our film
2. Mark the reviews as helpful

SUPER DUPER BONUS POINTS If you've seen the movie and want to dash 

out a few sentences of review, that is a HUGE help to us!!!

All appreciation,

Elisabeth Fies, director/writer/producer
The Commune: A New Cult Classic

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Remember - Add the movie to your Queue and then comment to add your name to win your very own  DVD  with all sorts of neat little extras on it. 

No Explanation Required: GAMERA

Because if the  world where giant turtles fly and shoot fire is wrong... I don't wanna be right. 



Coming soon on DVD.
More info here.

Buy here:  Gamera: The Giant Monster

Flash Gordon Done Right

Again, I was hopping around the web and decided to check in with Christopher Mills' blog SPACE: 1970.  As I was scrolling through making sure I was up to date on all of the grooviness that happened in the 70's (I'm old - I was up to date) I decided to read Chris's review of the FLASH GORDON DVD SET from my old friends at BCI Eclipse to see if he liked it as much as I did.

He did.

Bu then he mentions the FLASH GORDON: THE GREATEST ADVENTURE OF ALL TV movie that had preceded the series on NBC.

I HAD NEVER SEEN THIS FEATURE!!!! 

Chris goes on to explain how cool this feature version was and how it was so much better than the opening of the series. (Can ya feel my agony?)  I had to see this feature especially the opening of the movie:

Unfortunately, the DVD set does not include the prime time TV movie that preceded the series, Flash Gordon: The Greatest Adventure of All. The feature-length movie was made by the same team, but was somewhat more adult in tone and story; whereas the TV series began with Flash and company landing on Mongo, the film begins in 1939 Warsaw under attack by the Nazis.

OMG! I HAD TO SEE THIS FEATURE.

So I did.  Now you can too...all nine chapters. (Almost like a serial)



And if you've never seen this version nor the series which followed it then I would suggest you click, buy and enjoy.  BCI did a great job with this DVD set.  It contains a lot of great extras that show exactly what it was like  creating a cartoon show back in the 70's.  I'm also including links to other shows you may want to check out - ISIS, ARK II and of course, SPACE ACADEMY and JASON OF STAR COMMAND.  All from Filmation - the little company that kept many of us thoroughly entertained on Saturday mornings.

Now if only the guys who had made the recent SyFy Channel FLASH had taken the time to watch this animated feature.

[sigh]

RedBox and Netflix = Majority

Scott Kirsner over at Cinematech made a discovery today after reading this article from the NY Times.

RedBox and Netflix together represent 54% of the
DVD rental business in America.

These two companies - whose mottos advocate bargain DVD rentals and convenience (so much so that Netflix added a download to rent program) represent the consumer wishes when it comes to their rental entertainment.

I can only imagine that the current lawsuit outlined in the article will only spur consumers to find more RedBox locations near them or open a Netflix account. The Studios are in the unenviable position of having to argue that they aren't making enough money on their movies...

And when the figures are trotted out as to how cheap it is to actually manufacture and replicate a disc - the average consumer will wonder why they couldn't just make a rental version of the movie and a retail version (as some studios are doing).

The studios that are fighting RedBox have a much higher hill to climb. If they actually trot out numbers as to how much it costs to make Hollywood blockbuster movies then we'll all get a peek at how much fat there is built into the Hollywood machine. No one will argue that they have to recover their production and marketing costs.

But when they open the books and people see what the costs are - what was actually charged to the movie's accounts on the studios books - well there's going to be an outcry... Especially from hedge funds that have invested in Hollywood movie making.

This is a can of worms. Squiggly, epileptic worms.

D2R ???

Lines are drawn in the sand... Forces put on the alert.

It's Redbox v. Fox !

Redbox, the company that rents DVDs through kiosks for $1 a day, has had a polarizing effect on the movie industry.

The latest salvo in this brawl happened yesterday when Redbox filed suit against 20th Century Fox in response to the studio’s recent attempt to prevent new release movies from reaching Redbox’s kiosks. Last week, Fox imposed a window with its wholesalers that prevented the sale of discs to Redbox during the first 30 days of a title’s release. This isn’t the first attempted studio shutout that Redbox has had to deal with. In October of last year, Redbox filed a similar suit against Universal Studios Home Entertainment over its attempt at creating a 45-day window between a title’s release and when it was available on Redbox.

Why the ruckus? Some studios believe that the $1 rental price destroys the value of a film and hurts revenue from DVD rentals and sales. Why pay $4.50 to rent a movie when you can grab it at the grocery store for just a buck?

[Who are the idiots out there paying $4.50 for a rental? Seriously, I want to kick them]

But not every studio is fighting Redbox. Disney supplies it with new release titles, and both Sony and Lions Gate recently signed distribution deals with the company. According to an SEC filing from Redbox, the Sony agreement was valued at $460 million over the next five years, and Lions Gate said that its deal would generate $200 million to $300 million over the next five years.

The studios’ moves both for and against Redbox illustrate just how powerful the company has become. Redbox will have 22,000 kiosks across the continental U.S. by the end of this year, and generated $389 million in revenue last year. USA Today writes:

Redbox pays about $18 for a DVD and rents it about 15 times at an average of $2 per transaction. The company sells half of the used DVDs back to wholesalers for as much as $4 per disc, and sells about 3 percent directly to consumers for about $7. It destroys most of the rest.

Redbox has grown so powerful that Netflix considers the company its biggest competitor.

------------------------------------------

Scenario:

I have the job of being the first Direct-2-Redbox supplier. I supply them with a movie guaranteed to rent - a pulp movie - at $18 a disc? For at least a 22,000 disc order? Domestic only?

$396,000 - gross profit.

$150,000 - production costs

$10,000 - marketing design and promotion (domestic only)

$22,000 - authoring, replication and shipping of discs.

$10,000 - legal and incidentals

-------------------------------

$104,000 profit for N. American DVD rights. (+/- $30,000 based on order, price per unit)

Still have all international rights to sell. Still have TV, and VOD rights to sell. And after the discs are destroyed at the end of the agreement - you retain rights to fulfill orders direct from a website.

And then of course, there's still merchandising.

Now if I set up an operation where I'm doing this 4x year....well, you do the math.

------------------------------------

I'm not saying it will work every time. There will be some movies that will be dogs. Some that will do well domestically, but crap out in the international market or vice versa. This is the model we were discussing here.

The more you do. The better, more efficient you become. The better, more responsive to your audience you are. A bunch of eggs, different baskets. Fewer worries if you break an egg.

Now get out there and make your own media.

MEGACONDA - BEHIND THE SCENES (AND CAMERA)

Many people ask me a lot of the technical stuff about building a SciFi Channel movie (answer: Don't write one. The Channel is dead) including asking me about cameras and so forth. While I have a general producer's knowledge (just enough to make me dangerous and know whether or not I'm getting a bargain) here's an article by D2DVD mogul Fred Olen Ray (HOLLYWOOD CHAINSAW HOOKERS, CYCLONE, LOST EMPIRE and a dozen or so BIKINI movies) that will answer many of your questions better than I can:

In May of 2009, we began shooting Megaconda, another giant monster movie aimed squarely at the straight-to-DVD and television market.

My oldest son, Chris, would again direct, this time from a screenplay by SciFi Channel veteran Steve Latshaw (Stan Lee's Lightspeed, Curse of the Komodo). Under the SAG low-budget agreement we added TV’s Greg Evigan (BJ And the Bear, My Two Dads) and Stella Stevens (The Nutty Professor, The Poseidan Adventure) to the cast for star power.

We decided to shoot the entire feature in HD and felt that we needed a better camera that went beyond the limitations of an HDV camcorder like the HVR-V1U, but something a lot less pricey than hiring the Sony F900 Cine Alta we were normally using for our television work.

While the show was to be a very low-budget affair I wanted a better image quality than we had had on Reptisaurus and it still had to be affordable.

We also wanted to buy instead of rent.

From left, director Christopher Douglas-Olen Ray and DoP Matt Freund with their EX1 rig while shooting Megaconda, featuring an onboard Ikan monitor, Cavision matte box and Hoodman viewfinder shade.

Enter the Sony XDCAM PMW-EX1.

----------------------------

Fred goes into greater detail in the article and it's one of those you want to bookmark, as he touches on issues that rarely enter the mind of the low budget filmmaker when it comes to delivering a movie - QC issues, production workflow, etc... Fred knows his stuff.

NIGHT OF THE CREEPS DVD Casewrap Contest!

Courtesy CHUD:

Here are my thoughts in no particular order:

Where's Tom Atkins?

Why aren't the Creeps coming out of the zombie's head in any of these?

Get rid of the aliens.

Why not go with a 1950's vibe to which this movie is an homage? (I think that's what they're going for in #2, but it's not quite there)

I may have to go off and play in photoshop for awhile....

Remember When VHS Destroyed the Movie Biz?

I have another column up over at The wrap.com...

In the midst of my stuttering writing style take away the fact that things have changed before and they will change again...and again.

Serve It Up!

Johnnie To is one of the Hong Kong filmmakers whose work is extremely popular in his homeland and is critically regarded elsewhere. His work is seen here primarily through the medium of DVD and Cable and the occasional action film festival release or "special screening."

He doesn't get the respect he richly deserves here in the states - at least not on par with the likes of Woo or Yuen or others - but he has a unique style and perspective he brings to genre material. Check out this movie and others in his filmography.

You'll be glad you did.

Merry Christmas!

and my Mother wants to be a pirate...

(Bare with me)

My Mother has been out of the hospital for awhile now, and with the gushers of blood stemmed, she now is feeling much better and in need of entertainment. She's exhausted the offerings of the Woodside Plantation cable systems and looks to other fare to aid in her recovery.

Problem: All the stuff she wants to see is at the theaters !(Marley & Me because she read the book)

We're discussing this over my semi-annual phone call to the folks (yes, I am a bad son. I know this. They know this. You now know this) and my Mom blurts out, "You know, I just wish they would release this movie on DVD the same time it was at theaters!"

Then I recalled this discussion many of us had over at Artful Writer.

So yes, Day & Date makes a lot of sense to people like my Mom (or my Dad for that matter) who really don't want to go out to the theater (when they go out it's to a restaurant, local ball games at the University, or parties). They want to watch their movies at home. And with more and more of our population approaching elderly status it's something to seriously think about.
-------------------------------

So then, enjoy your holidays. Get some rest (I will). We have lots to do in the new year.

Cinevolve Does It 'til They're Blu in the...

From Today's Video Business:

"Cinevolve Studios will include inexpensively priced Blu-ray Disc titles in its initial home entertainment slate.

The CineBlu Collection will feature “Blu-ray titles at DVD prices,” according to Arik Treston, co-founder and CEO of Cinevolve. “We believe the new and better format shouldn’t be a luxury item, and we want audiences to see our films on the best formats out there.”
The company’s standard DVD titles will be priced lower than the Blu-ray titles."

(FYI - not all titles shown will be available in the Blu-Ray format)



Full disclosure: We at Firebrain have been happily working with Cinevolve (Hi, Arik! Hi, Nicole!) and we're pleased as punch they are getting the attention they deserve. The only key art we've created thus far is FINALLY LILIAN & DAN, but rest assured you will be seeing more kick ass design from Firebrain on Cinevolve titles.

A DVD Casewrap

(that's the DVD "cover" for you civilians) is a weird thing. It is frustrating and weird every time you undertake to design new key art for one mainly because of the clients. I've been going round and round with a client today over a design because they were saying everything "needs" to be here or there. They were citing "rules" to me (and I know them already so I really want to smash them to bits - the rules not the client, no wait...) that we "had" to follow.

Title treatment at the top.

Tagline at the bottom preferably on the left.

Etc...

Those rules are there for a reason:

1. They are a starting point. Example: Title treatments are generally at the top so they can be seen when on the shelf at the video store. A lot of clients don't understand the rules are the starting point - they think they're the end point. Go no further - "Here there be daemons" and all that.

Bull.

2. Rules are idea generators. Yes, you must put the title at the top, but how can we design around that to make the art have more depth and be more exciting? Example: layering a character in front of the title treatment to give it some depth, making the title itself part of the art. The restrictions actually force you to think outside the casewrap.

Despite what you may think - I like rules. They are made to be broken, and when done right they smash pretty. It's my philosophy that if the conditions which created those rules changes, don't the rules change as well, or at least become obsolete?

More people see artwork for DVDs and movies online than ever before. Same goes for books and comics and other media. So shouldn't people change the "rules" of design to reflect this?

You would think...

Now this also applies to stories and scripts - if you know the rules you've been operating by, then you can take them out back and "Old Yeller" them sumbitches one at a time.

Used to be you had to have a spec for an existing show in your tool kit, and could never send out an original. (Hi Shawna)
Used to be agents never looked at comic book people as writers. (Hi Bendis, Vaughn, et al)
Used to be you couldn't make a tv show without a network. (Hello, YouTube!)
Used to be you couldn't watch movies on your computer. (Hi Revver, Vimeo, Spout)
Used to be comics were only in print (Hi Wowio, ComicMix)

Rules are changing. Stories and how they are told will change with them.
Know your rules and then go out and break them.

And after time goes by, bring the old rules back for a whole new audience unfamiliar with them. (Hello web serials!)

My Monday Morning Chuckle...

So I am reviewing this week's Video Business Digital magazine and I come across an advertisement for this new DVD Premiere movie from Lionsgate.

It looks kind of cool and has somewhat of a pedigree in that the film was in the Hollywood Film Festival, Fantasporto, Brussels International Festival of Fantastic Film and was a Platinum Award winner at Worldfest Houston (whatever all that means).

But what really caught my eye was in the listing of the DVD's extras:

100K12D: The Guerilla Filmmaking of Artifacts.

This is the production model that I and many others have used before , ($100K for a 12 day shoot) but I have never used it as a selling point in an advertisement. The thing is that $100K is becoming the new $1M movie - that is, you can now produce something for $100K that used to cost you $1M to do.

I am definitely going to have to sit down and write that pulp film-making book.

Hmmm....

Making Sex...Machine

Making SEX MACHINE from Asphalt Planet on Vimeo.

Niche Players Will Have Their Say in DVD Future

In an article this morning from Content Agenda:

Consumers will spend $1.1 billion by 2012 buying DVDs manufactured on demand (MOD) in stores and online in the U.S. and Europe, according to a new report to be released tomorrow from research firm Screen Digest.

Almost two-thirds of the spending on MOD, $665 million, will be new revenue, while the remainder will replace traditional DVD spending, according to the report, “On-demand Media: Re-inventing the Retail Business Model.” MOD is also referred to as on-demand media.

What this means for those of us in the independent realm is that there will be a place for our movies and tv shows and other media in the marketplace of the future.

One of the problems the indies have always had is the fact they were squeezed off the shelf by the big studios and their big box sets. Now, with manufacturing on demand, the playing field is leveled and our audience - the pulpsters, the gorehounds, the Krimi-lovers, the creature feature afficionados - will be able to find our wares right alongside the bloated big budget blockbusters...

Because it's all a matter of ones and zeroes.

Read the article and start thinking about the implications: You make a movie, you upload a movie, your promote a movie (with free podcasts, magazines, message boards), you arrange to have a theatrical screening or gathering for your movie, you sell your movie online and as a DVD.

All from your home computer system, and with no manufacturing costs to you, the creator.
You are the creator, the producer, the marketer, the distributor, and the final say in how your movie reaches its intended audience.

That to me says "efficiency" and "purity of vision." The "Made-to-Order" system (which revolutionized computer sales) taken to its logical conclusion.

Gawd, I have a lot of work to get done so I can capitalize on this.

Care to join me here in the future?

Happy Easter, Pulpsters!

I get nothing out of this except the joy of seeing you find those cool classic serials we all love to watch.

From our friends at VCI Entertainment:

HAPPY EASTER!!!

From Monday March 17^th to Monday March 24th, VCI will offer everyone 33% off on website orders by using the following coupon code: EASTER

We are talking every single DVD at VCI is 33% off for 8 days! This is a great deal for anyone planning on purchasing any hard to find classic DVD’s. Still trying to figure out what to get Mom or that one family member you just can’t quite figure out what to buy them! Well look no further! Everyone loves movies and VCI has the largest amount of hard to find cult and classic hits that Hollywood has to offer!

VCI has set the coupon up to expire on Monday March24th at 11:59 pm (central time). As always nothing is 100% perfect and if something does happen, our customer service department is available for assistance M-F 8:30 am to 5:30 pm central time – 800.331.4077

*This is a website only special only available at www.vcientertainment.com *

All sales over $50.00 qualify for free shipping (only in the continental United States does this apply!)

Remember to get the 33% discount you must enter the coupon code EASTER on your CHECKOUT page.

Thank You and Tell Your Friends!

Christopher Rowe - PR Director for VCI

Turok Today...

Get. It. Now.

From Emmy award winning Directors Curt Geda and Dan Riba (BATMAN BEYOND) and the producers behind HELLBOY ANIMATED and X-MEN: THE ANIMATED SERIES.

The one stupid, stupid thing about all of this is the fact that the ineptly named Genius Products is releasing the DVD...


AND IT'S NOT EVEN ON THEIR SITE!!!!!

(I typed it into the Search bar and zippo. Nada. Nothing)

IDIOTS. IDIOTS. IDIOTS.

Edit to add: Newsarama has an interview here.

Post Tryptophan Hangover...

So, still feeling stuffed after the big bird blowout yesterday. Now as the serotonin levels in my brain begin to lower I am left with a desire to get to work on some projects that I've been juggling lately, and yet here I am blogging...and here you are reading.


(You enablers! Damn you all)


The holidays are now officially in full swing and we will be addressing this in an upcoming Geekerati podcast with our "What I want for Christmas this year" episode. I am taking suggestions now.


John Rogers (who is experiencing the cold up north for the first time in a long time I wager) has a discussion about short online fiction and the death of the anthology following a post by Warren Ellis on the same subject. I'm also wondering what happened to our series paperback characters that seemed to dominate the drug store spinner racks when I was a kid. Does anyone here besides me remember the Richard Blade series of books?


Warren Ellis reminded me the other day about Createspace - a division of Amazon - where you can publish on demand and videopost on demand and monetize the whole thing - including selling DVDs on demand. This is an excellent step toward self-sufficiency for filmmakers. It's possible that there could be a shift toward "regionalism" with something like this set up. Imagine a group of mediamakers who aren't in LA, New York or Chicago who have their own local programs and "stars" and are able to create content for a local market that pays the bills. Possibly similar to where Quebec is in the Canadian market - separate and distinct, but accesible to those who look for that programming. Then, as an afterthought the rights to the programming is sold elsewhere as added revenue not necessary for financial solvency.


(Yes, these are the things that run through my head as the serotonin dips)


Congrats to Denis McGrath whose THE BORDER premiered in Canada last night. I will be searching the webs for it.

I've been searching the web looking for a new blog template that reflects my pulp, movie-making and new media sensibilities. If anyone has a suggestion that seems to fit the bill, please send me a link. The template must be compatible with Blogger, easily adaptable and rockin'. I'm going to be breaking things up into better categories for navigation's sake as well as providing links to my other digital shadows - message boards, networks, business related matters.

I set aside my short story for Astonishing for a week so I can go back to it over the holidays and polish it up. I wrote down a lot of notes and put the file away so I can read it with fresh eyes right before I polish it. The twist doesn't work yet as I haven't set it up properly in the story. It has to be obvious when it happens, but not so obvious that the reader gets it before I give it to him in the story. A delicate touch to be sure and I'm a freakin' sledgehammer...

Later...

How I See It...

Scott Eggleston commented on my previous post below:

Do you see digital downloads yielding more profit than DVDs, even for microbudget indies? How soon do you see it happening?

(Takes off glasses, cleans them)

From a very practical point of view, yes I think digital downloading will be more profitable than DVDs. It's a simple matter of there being fewer expenses, more inexpensive marketing opportunities, and a wider distribution field. Let's break that down:

Fewer Expenses:

There are all sorts of expenses for DVDs - mastering, authoring, replication, packaging, and shipping. This adds to the cost of the DVD, and delays getting that disc on the shelf for the consumer to buy it. That means for a disc that costs $3.00 to manufacture, it is sold wholesale to a retailer for $8.00 then sold to consumers for $14.99.

For digital downloads, all I have to deliver is a master to a server, create links to the download and I'm pretty much off and running. The consumer - no middleman really required unless desired - pays a couple of bucks to either buy or rent the movie. That means that if I were selling my download online for $3.00 then about $2.50 of that cost goes back directly to me to defray the cost of production. That $.50 goes toward...

Marketing Opportunities:

That money goes toward banner ads, press, and other expenses. No need to buy ad space in industry catalogs to the tune of about $5,000 each. You can reach your audience directly and by establishing a talkback forum online (the software is free) you can generate all sorts of PR and other opportunities.

People can sign up to get updates. Your can do co-op advertising and marketing with other like-minded websites, phone companies, etc... (example: Spout.com)

And let's not forget the merchandising opportunities as well. Establish a CafePress stor for no cost and design your merchandise. Sell the script as an e-book with production notes and pictures. Get the T-shirt, coffee mug, etc... No cost to you.

A Wider Distribution Field:

The net is everywhere as are cell phones, and ipods. More of these than there is shelf space available for your DVD. With the web your "store" is always open, and can be available around the world. No expense of selling deals territory by territory.

When it's Going to Happen:

It is happening now. Right now, and building all the time. The studios aren't TOO involved yet, but they will be involved. Very involved, and on a variety of fronts - content, infrastructure, acquistion of social networks to market from, and physical things like satellites and fibre optic cable delivery systems.

Welcome to the future.

Ramble, Ramble, Ramble...

I thought it was high time we had another Q&A session here at DISContent. Think of it as bar talk without the beer, unless you bring your own.

This Friday, I will open up the blog to questions that you've been dying to ask:

Writing (Screen, short story, articles, marketing copy/taglines, PR)
DVD
Pulp Filmmaking
Movie Marketing and Design
Distribution / Representing movies
New Media
Los Angeles
The future of entertainment
TV Shows
Other stuff I like.

I am an equal opportunity advice-giver and venom-spewer, and what I don't know I can find out quickly. This is your chance to find out what goes on in my rapidly-aging yet still child-like cranium. We can shoot the shit, we can gossip, we can workshop and we can speculate.

Anything in this topic range is fair game.

You have a logline and title you want to test?
You want to know the possible outlets for your "Zombie love affair in drag" epic?
You want to know why so many movies fail?
You want to know the future of DVD?

Then go for it.

Starting Friday, June 8th, 2007 at 8AM PST (11AM East coast) until 8PM PST I will -- answer all your questions, consult with you, and give you the straight poop. All the lessons I've learned from the trenches are yours to mull over. Hell, for drama's sake I will debate (notice I didn't say argue) with you. No harm, no foul. Nothing personal about it at all.

I warn you now that you may not like my answers, but thems the breaks.

For you lurkers out there, and from my stats I see there are quite a few of you, this is your opportunity to get involved, to contribute and to make yourself known.

I will see you Friday...