EDIT: I have now read the scenario, and I have a question which I deem critical. Will you actually get paid if you mix the sound? All of these people are already losing money on this movie. Are they extremely rich? They sound stupid enough to be extremely rich.- Alan Smithee (Alan), director of Poky Stick, cinematographer of Dance Wolf, didn't touch PS2 with a ten-foot pole. Somewhere in my "hidden gold" files I have production audio that was in PS (before I mixed it) in which Alan can be clearly heard saying "*oh god the camera broke what do I do what do I do what do I do?*"
That's it, I'm moving to Hollywood. Chase the dream, baby.
It is a legitimate question. Tom and Dick are not rich. They are perhaps eight years my junior, they gambled everything on Fishing Days, they experienced modest success, and Tom rolled all of his profits from Fishing Days (and all of Tom & Dick's profits from Dance Wolf) into Poky Stick 2. Harry is not rich. His fee on these projects is less than one tenth of mine because, you see, he has 'creative control.' He also has monkey points. June is financially successful, but not "crazy rich." As mentioned, she is an internist who owns part of a successful medical practice. She also has a goodly settlement from the former Mr. June. However, these projects absorb the lion's share of her disposable income; by our best estimation, June has invested roughly $750k in April's film career and has made back approximately $35k of that ($30k of it due to Poky Stick, which posted a $170k loss) so far. Post-production on Dance Wolf was held up to shoot Poky Stick 2, and without profits from it, Dance Wolf was in danger of not being completed... but more on that in NaH#3. It should also be noted that two of June's prior projects - the only two not listed here - ended in litigation over failure to pay.Will you actually get paid if you mix the sound? All of these people are already losing money on this movie. Are they extremely rich? They sound stupid enough to be extremely rich.
And you still soldier on? You mention somewhere else that you thought these guys' star might rise and you figured being in their good books was not a bad idea. Their overwhelming success at a later date no longer seems likely. My solution to your dilemma is to leave this project and all others related to it behind.
Isn't this also about reputation? If KB would leave the others hanging, he might take a hit to his reputation. From what I read here and on hubski in general, he already has a rather good reputation (mixing national tv and stuff like that). But one of the important things about reputation is that you need to tend to it constantly. Also, trying to find the optimal solution for everybody is admirable.