BMORE HACKS- The Movie & The Network

For Immediate Release

Riverside, CA- December 2, 2008

For filmmaker and author Maxie D. Collier cutting edge technology has always been one of the keys to self producing his own books, movies, and websites. Some of his previous projects include "Paper Chasers," the Independent Film Channel co-produced documentary on hip-hop entrepreneurship, starring Ludacris, Flavor Flav, Fat Joe,  and many others. As well as his bestselling book,  the "IFILM Digital Video Filmmaker's Handbook," one of the first guides published on amateur and prosumer digital filmmaking.

Collier is also drawing upon emerging digital technology when he debuts his new feature film "BMORE HACKS," in  Baltimore on Weds. December 10th. The period movie tells the stories of a group of illegal cab drivers working the streets of Baltimore in the mid-90s.

Collier is releasing the film direct-to-DVD and digital download on the same night as the film premiere. The debut screening will be streamed live on the web. The movie's soundtrack and t-shirts are already available online at the BMORE HACKS website http://www.bmorehacks.com

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To build the website, Maxie utilized numerous cheap and free online tools to develop a unique social networking community for fans, supports, and the cast and crew of the film. The site features e-commerce, member profiles, a message system, forums, chat, blogs, photos and videos.

"We have used a variety of vendors and services to complete, merchandise and promote the BMORE HACKS project. Our desktop editing was completed with Apple's Final Cut Pro, social website hosting with a UK service called SocialGo, digital merchandise sales thru a Norwegian company named The Biz Mo (http://www.thebizmo.com) and DVD on demand using http://www.kunaki.com. Promotional widgets created using http://www.sproutbuilder.com . With these tools, we are able to effectively produce, merchandise, and market our movie. without spending thousands of dollars of more cash and debt. And to retain greater control and ownership along the way."

Back in the 80s, Maxie and his brother Zay were coding, desktop publishing, and surfing electronic BBS services with 300 BPS modems, in the pre-web days; using Radio Shack, Apple, and Commodore, and Atari computers. Along with their brother Mar-Yoi, they published Black Reflections Magazine from their father's house in Columbia, MD. 

Their father, Dr. Maxie T. Collier, MD  had moved to Columbia in 1977, as a 32 year old medical graduate, still facing 3-4 years of internship and residence, and now a single parent of six kids. With help from his parents, Dr. Collier advanced swiftly in his professional medical career as a Psychiatrist, Counselor and Public Health Administrator.

By the time he moved the family to Baltimore, 10 years later, Maxie T. was a married father of eight children and the youngest, and first African-American Health Commissioner to be appointed in Baltimore.

After graduating from Howard High school, Maxie D. bounced around colleges, attending Howard Community College for a year, a semester at the University of Maryland, and a year at Howard University. During the Winter of 1990, he landed a part-time job as a teleprompter operator at an emerging cable TV network, Black Entertainment Television (BET).

A few months later he dropped out of Howard an accepted a full-time position as a floor director at BET. In this capacity Maxie was exposed to many emerging and veteran, Black recording artists, actors, politicians, and community activists.

He was also fortunate enough to meet filmmakers like the Hudlin Brothers, Spike Lee, Bill Duke, and Robert Townsend. These encounters inspired him to study filmmaking and produce his own short films and music videos

In 1996, Maxie co-produced his first feature film, "Detention," the debut film from Baltimore writer and director Darryl Wharton.  A few months later he wrote and directed "BMORE HACKS," inspired by people he met in his travels thru the city via the network of illegal cab drivers, and months he spent hacking, as research for the project.

The film was financed with income younger brother Zay earned as a freelance programmer, while attending Morgan State, after two years at Cornell University.

In the years that followed, Maxie wrote and self-published his DV Handbook, before licensing the text to an Internet TV start-up called IFILM.

After working in silicone Valley a few months, he kicked off the Paper Chasers documentary film project, eventually securing a production deal with the IFC footing the bill for the film's $225k budget. During a 3 year production and post production period, Maxie and crew documented the rise of numerous artists from across the country, most notably Atlanta rapper/CEO Ludacris.

Following a debut at the Tribeca Film Festival, Paper Chasers was released domestically on DVD by Koch Records and internationally by the Weinstein Company. The movie aired on the IFC 8 times, generating great visibility.

However, this exposure was bittersweet, as it neither translated into sales nor net profits for Maxie or any of the Paper chasers production team.

"On the one hand we received a greater than average DVD advance for North American and International rights, Eighty-five thousand and fifty-thousand dollars respectively," Collier candidly shares

"However, due to the nature of our deal, we receive no money for any of the cable TV airings. Therefore the income (85+50k) was less than the liabilities ($225k). We didin't recoup. But even worse, because the film was on Netflix, Amazon, Blockbuster and bootleg sales, everyone thought that I was making money from the movie.But after all those years of work, I didn't earn a cent from Paper Chasers."

It was this experience that inspired Collier to self distribute BMORE HACKS on DVD and digital download. As well as to seek alternative income streams, such as soundtrack and t-shirt merchandise sales.

This is accomplished thru social networking, webcasting, and e-commerce technology that was a sci-fi dream when the Collier Brothers first started BMORE HACKS, nearly 13 years ago.

Maxie's goal is to use niche social networks as platforms to create, distribute, and sale media products and services to highly targeted demographics. In addition to BMOREHACKS.com, Maxie is also the co-founder of the BET Alumni Network,  Gospelplays.tv,  africanfilmclub.com, and the UrbanaArtsClub.com, an online digital media training center.

"We are in the era of micro-networks. While other people are looking to build the next myspace, I am seeking to build a bunch of well maintained, modest sized entertainment and learning communities supported by members, much like member supported radio and TV stations. We have already used our website to reconnect with cast and crew members we have not seen for more than 12 years. It's amazing and wonderful."

Collier is also completing his next book, a digital technology and media production guide entitled "New School Media For Young, Old School Folks." The title ships in January via his production company, Urban Arts Club International.

His homecoming to Baltimore also has another ironic twist for Maxie, as today the press room of the health department is now named the Maxie Collier room, in memory of his late father, who passed away in 1994.

"It's beautiful and humbling to me for there to be a press room named after my father. I'm looking forward to giving back my own contributions to the people of Baltimore. "

BMORE HACKS screens 7-9 pm, at the Patterson/Creative Alliance, 3134 Eastern Ave., Baltimore, MD. To order movie tickets visit http://bmorehacks.eventbrite.com   To order BMORE HACKS  DVDs, music, or T-shirts visit http://www.bmorehacks.com

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For Additional Information Contact:
Maxie Collier
512-498-9999 x70
http://www.bmorehacks.com
http://www.urbanartsclub.com
maxie.collier@urbanartsclub.com