 
Bobceng
Member
Username: Bobceng
Post Number: 66
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 10:49 am: |    |
The big Michigan movie tax-credit may soon place us in the national spotlight. If you could pitch ideas for a Detroit-based movie or TV series, what might they be? Remember, this is a Detroit site, so what would something look like that could ONLY come from Detroit? Here's for starters: "Strip this House" on HGTV, or a Purple Gang comedy with a Three Stooges feel, and theme song like the "Brady Bunch". How about "Life of Riley" with Kwame doing William Bendix? On another thread, I suggested a "Friends/Seinfeld" hybrid that would take place in the Packard building, with a group of artists and squatters as the main characters. Serious entries, inane reality TV, drop-dead humor, and biting satire welcomed. Please especially consider non-KK stuff, as this can easily end up dominating the thread. All you posters who claim to be really creative, yet under-employed because your talents go unrecognized, here's YOUR big chance! |
Spacemonkey
Member
Username: Spacemonkey
Post Number: 451
Registered: 03-2006
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 11:12 am: | |
I like Belle Isle as a setting.
Perhaps we do a take on Gilligan's Island, but on Belle Isle instead. We toss a group of castaways on the island and see how they fare living there all summer long, eating carp fished out of the river, dodging IRL cars during the grand prix, and whatnot.
That would be GREAT. |
Mcp001
Member
Username: Mcp001
Post Number: 3385
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 11:22 am: | |
I like "Strip this house".
Maybe they can show some tips on how to more quickly scrap a house. |
Johnlodge
Member
Username: Johnlodge
Post Number: 6328
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 11:38 am: | |
Survivor: Salt Mines
They wouldn't last long, what with no food and water. |
Ed_golick
Member
Username: Ed_golick
Post Number: 966
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 11:46 am: | |
Leave It To Kwame. |
Bobceng
Member
Username: Bobceng
Post Number: 69
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 11:48 am: | |
Maybe the salt mine thing could be coupled with "Biggest Loser". All that salt would take care of about 10 pounds of water weight on the first episode alone. |
Bigb23
Member
Username: Bigb23
Post Number: 1334
Registered: 11-2007
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 11:50 am: | |
National Geographic Explorer : Urban Spelunking.
The theme could last twenty years just using Detroit, starting with the Packard Plant. |
Johnlodge
Member
Username: Johnlodge
Post Number: 6329
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 12:05 pm: | |
Planes, No Trains, and Automobiles. |
Andylinn
Member
Username: Andylinn
Post Number: 823
Registered: 04-2006
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 12:09 pm: | |
how about a TV game show based in Swiss-land, NYC, and Detroit. Called "Homeless, Hipster, or Swiss Business Man." In the show, contestants would attempt to identify whether a video of someone was of a hipster, a homelessman, or a businessman.
Hey, is that man walking down the street "talking to himself" a crazy person, or a rich business person using an invisible blue tooth cell phone head set.
Hey, is that person with the 1970s band uniform jacket, ripped up jeans, dreadlocks, and torn converse Larry from the Cass Corridor or a NYC hipster!?•••
it would be quite a challenge. |
Bobceng
Member
Username: Bobceng
Post Number: 70
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 12:14 pm: | |
How about Detroit: Ultimate Survivor: here, a dozen contestants are given Rolexes, a real expensive pair of Shaqs, and have $20 dollar bills pinned to their coats. On foot, they must traverse Detroit using Seven Mile Road, starting at Telegraph, and ending (appropriately enough) at St. John's Hospital at Mack. They will be completely unarmed, and must depend solely on a combination of speed, stealth, wits, and luck. The winners (if any) will then progress to Ultimate Survivor: Baghdad. |
Zitro
Member
Username: Zitro
Post Number: 196
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 12:24 pm: | |
My Mother The Carlitta |
Johnlodge
Member
Username: Johnlodge
Post Number: 6331
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 12:25 pm: | |
Andy, I like your game. They could go into the Magic Stick on a Saturday night and show different people. "Did this guy just get out of bed, or did it take him an hour to make his hair this messy?" or "did this guy spend $2 at the salvation army for his ensemble, or $200 at a trendy store?" |
Bobceng
Member
Username: Bobceng
Post Number: 71
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 12:42 pm: | |
How about "The Real Housewives of Detroit"?
This could contain such memorable daily activities as: shopping at the Dollar Store, getting their kid readmitted to school after a 3-day suspension for arson, threatening to knock their kid's "nuts through their eye sockets" if they don't quit fighting while Mom's busy talking on the cellphone while driving.... |
Andylinn
Member
Username: Andylinn
Post Number: 825
Registered: 04-2006
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 1:09 pm: | |
actually, joking aside, i think there could be a VERY interesting ER type of show, judging from the stories I hear from friends who work at Receiving...
-a man with wounds with MAGGOTS growing in them
-a guy that tried to stiff a drug dealer, ran, and continued to run as he was shot with a machine gun... until his legs were shot away... god it must be quite a feeling to be that high
-a man that came in with... count 'em, 9 c*** rings on.
-a man that came in an INSISTED that he was possessed by a ghost named "Lashandra banks" -
man: "I have a ghost in my Abdo"
nurse: "where, sir?"
man: "right down there in my abdo."
nurse: "do you have any allergies, sir"
man: "yeah! ... to the ghost!" |
Wanderinglady
Member
Username: Wanderinglady
Post Number: 43
Registered: 10-2007
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 1:16 pm: | |
Andylinn, that actually sounds like a good reality TV show -- something they'd put on the Discovery Channel. Maybe you should try to pitch it (with your friends, of course), before someone steals the idea! |
Bobceng
Member
Username: Bobceng
Post Number: 73
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 1:24 pm: | |
Actually, maggots help clean wounds by consuming dead and dying tissue. I heard this some time back, but Googled it up, and there's a lot of information to be found on the subject. With health care becoming more difficult and expensive to access, we may all need to learn about "folk" remedies like this.
A good folk practitioner could probably handle the ghost at the same time. |
Flanders_field
Member
Username: Flanders_field
Post Number: 312
Registered: 01-2008
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 1:24 pm: | |
Aliens vs Predators: Homecoming
Futuristic movie storyline involves 1,000 upper middle class suburban parents with their rap/hip-hop loving children being forced to relocate closer to their city jobs due to severe gasoline shortages, into homes in various neighborhoods of Detroit to live and go to school. |
Gistok
Member
Username: Gistok
Post Number: 6722
Registered: 08-2004
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 3:04 pm: | |
I have one... RESORT SWAPPING... where KK and Carlita and their children are forced to stay for a week in a Detroit ghetto 1 star motel.
Where room service consists of the food in the 'vending mini-fridge'... where a spa consists of putting quarters in the vibrating bed... and the buffet consists of loose meat sandwiches and fries catered from the 7-Eleven next door... and all transportation (taking the Dexter Bus) is paid for by Bobby Ferguson and Anthony Soave.
In the first 5 minutes of the show Carlita drop kicks a hooker in the buffet line for making eyes at the Kwamster... |
Eriedearie
Member
Username: Eriedearie
Post Number: 1360
Registered: 08-2007
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 3:21 pm: | |
How about a real reality show showing unemployed people looking for work. How they scour the newspaper every day looking for help wanted ads. How they use the Internet to search for job openings. How they try to network with friends and acquaintances. What they run into when they attend Detroit area job fairs. If they're really lucky and get chosen to go on a job interview...the camera goes with them. Then the viewers get to call in and vote whether or not they get the job based on their performance during the interview. |
Detroitmaybe
Member
Username: Detroitmaybe
Post Number: 92
Registered: 03-2008
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 3:38 pm: | |
30 DAYS: LIFE IN THE "D"....
This concept is an episode of 30 Days.
"30 Days is a reality television show on FX. In each episode, a person or group of people will spend 30 days immersing themselves in a particular lifestyle with which they are unfamiliar (e.g. working for minimum wage, being in prison, a Christian living as a Muslim etc.) while discussing related social issues. As in Spurlock's film, Super Size Me, there are a number of rules unique to each situation which must be followed during each such experiment"
So u take a middle-upper class , white suburbanite and place him/her in the middle of the City ( not Midtown, Downtown, Corktown, SW, East English, Sherwood Forest, Palmer Park, or Indian Village) I mean in the worse INNER CITY neighborhood(i say deep east side..but just pick one!) They will be totally immersed in the urban culture and must experience life as many of low income Detroiters do...and see what their attitude is like when they emerge!!
Idea #2
Same concept but, put KK there instead! See if he makes it out alive..lol!! |
Downriviera
Member
Username: Downriviera
Post Number: 299
Registered: 02-2008
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 3:49 pm: | |
LOST...Zug Island. After their plane hits one of the blast furnaces and crashes on the island, the passengers split into tribes to survive. One group confronts the ghosts of the Edmund Fitzgerald, which was on its way to Zug when it sank. Others make it off the island into Delray, only to be terrorized by the Iron Coffins motorcycle gang. |
Spacemonkey
Member
Username: Spacemonkey
Post Number: 453
Registered: 03-2006
| | Posted on Friday, April 25, 2008 - 7:23 pm: | |
How 'bout we film one of dem funny boat races where people float makeshift boats made out of bathtubs and whatnot down the Detroit River. Watching them all get sucked under by the rapid under current would be a hoot. |
Spacemonkey
Member
Username: Spacemonkey
Post Number: 457
Registered: 03-2006
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 8:17 am: | |
Better yet, a different thread here just gave me a good storyline ... how about a movie about Kenneth "Bubba" Helms?
It could be done like "RIver's Edge" or "Alpha Dog" where it's a true tale about losers, but mostly encapsulating the general dysphoria of a group of youths. |
Hornist9
Member
Username: Hornist9
Post Number: 120
Registered: 05-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 10:32 am: | |
How about this one: DETROIT Survivors: Where the weak are killed and eaten! The show centers on the seediest parts of the city, at the campfire scene(on Belle Isle) when a contestant is voted off, Kwame caps 'em and then they are roasted and dined upon. Use your imagination. When KK is convicted of First Degree Murder he is hauled off to a Federal pen for his lethal injection.
Fitting for the image of the City, NOT! |
Gaz
Member
Username: Gaz
Post Number: 142
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 11:24 am: | |
A story about a family who has moved back to Detroit from maybe California, determined to bring Detroit back. |
56packman
Member
Username: 56packman
Post Number: 2209
Registered: 12-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 12:01 pm: | |
How about a reality show where a small business starting in the city is filmed during its entire start-up period? The interactions with the various city departments practicing their random acts of regulation, each department worrying about their little fiefdom might make for very revealing TV. |
Gaz
Member
Username: Gaz
Post Number: 143
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 12:15 pm: | |
56 Packman, that would be a great reality show. Say two people own the business, one white and one black, to show the absurdities of racial hatred? |
Detjaymo
Member
Username: Detjaymo
Post Number: 42
Registered: 12-2004
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 1:43 pm: | |
I heard that there may be talks of turning the story of the 67 Riots into a film, I dont know how true that is, but it would be interesting. |
Savannah
Member
Username: Savannah
Post Number: 35
Registered: 02-2008
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 2:14 pm: | |
How about a show called Who Yo Daddy? |
Kennyd
Member
Username: Kennyd
Post Number: 5
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 2:43 pm: | |
How about a show where a diverse city is slowly bombed, but the people don't realize it.
They keep going to work and school as the population dwindles and the buildings crumble. One group of people find living there anymore unbearable and they move away, building new places to live nicer and better than before.
The group that stays behind leaves the homes and buildings that burn and fall down laying in heaps for their children and urban wildlife to play in.
Both groups look at each other from across the road and shake their heads. From across the road, the most obvious difference between groups is their appearance, but each thinks the other is the a@@ hole for other reasons.
What could we call it? |
Gaz
Member
Username: Gaz
Post Number: 146
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 3:42 pm: | |
That's also a good premise, Kennyd. But it's so sad, and not too far from the truth. At least, as it appears to be now.
Do something positive that can rise out of the negatives, and bring the city up.
I saw 8 Mile Road, which depicted the city as just plain dead, and horrible, in my opinion.
Detroit deserves better! If nothing else, do a Happy Days type thing, showing the early '60's, as it was. |
Detroitrise
Member
Username: Detroitrise
Post Number: 2001
Registered: 09-2007
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 3:44 pm: | |
Gaz, I agree.
I always wondered why Detroit never got he recognition it deserved as another huge bustling city during the 60s and even 70s. |
Sean_of_detroit
Member
Username: Sean_of_detroit
Post Number: 152
Registered: 03-2008
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 3:50 pm: | |
How about a show that shows families who have had to deal with the mortgage crisis, and the effects it has on local neighborhoods? Maybe pick a street with a recent rash of foreclosed homes. A time lapse camera placed in one of our inner ring city neighborhoods or suburbs over the next year might really be dramatic (as the houses slowly get more and more run down, and eventually vandalized).
Depending on the setup and dynamics of the show or documentary, it could either make Detroit look worse, or really be used to get more people interested in joining and helping our area. It would really depend on it's setup.
If any independents are interested in this, I'd be willing to lend a hand. |
Sean_of_detroit
Member
Username: Sean_of_detroit
Post Number: 153
Registered: 03-2008
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 4:42 pm: | |
56packman, you'll like this I think.
I'm going to be doing that in a way, only online. I have more than a few people who think I'm crazy for even thinking about starting up a business in the city. The story goes that I'm going to do a startup in the city, and completely document everything in the process. I already reserved the domain and business name (it's pretty catchy, you guys will like it). I'm setting up the site now, and it should be done sometime later this summer to early this fall. Basically, "we" will have a blog, a message board with viewer commentary, weekend chat sessions, weekly podcast, and eventually a 23 hour a day live feed (23 hours with one hour for maintenance).
It started as a stupid kind of half bet and half idea, that I'm being forced to take more and more seriously every day. My family caught word of it in Livonia, and have mentioned it to several of my old boss's at some of my first jobs (mostly small restaurants). They of course have called and E-mailed me about it, or told my family to keep on me about it. I also have the original people (all small business owners) from elsewhere who have bet me I will fail within three years of starting (we have yet to agree on a official start date). I am thinking about also adding a third person pov. Basically, an expert that comments on the whole thing in a separate blog. Sort of a Simon Cowell type. I have a few people in mind, but am a little bit nervous about taking it that far. That would almost force it to be truly unbiased, which can be good and bad.
I've never even considered pitching the whole thing as a television show/documentary. I wouldn't even know how to start something like that. I really wish I did though, hmmm. Anyone have any suggestions? I think a simple site is good enough, right? Although, we are already planning on doing podcasts. Maybe something with a school or local access would be neat.
I'm hoping the site will become popular. It is a great marketing tool/idea, but I'm starting from the very bottom, so It's not going to be a huge money maker. I'm not going into details about the actual business because of time, but all the business information, along with the complete business plan will be posted on the site.
The goal is to entertain and teach at the same time. Plus, hopefully we can catch people's attention, and possibly get more people to move their business into our city. If this works out well, I might also do another site dealing with setting up a family in Detroit, as me and my fiancee are going to be doing just that. We'll see how this works out first though. |
Sludgedaddy
Member
Username: Sludgedaddy
Post Number: 35
Registered: 01-2008
| | Posted on Saturday, April 26, 2008 - 6:25 pm: | |
How about a sit-com centering around the daily goings on at "Achmed's Party Store" or an animated show called "Horton Hails a Ho". |
Bobceng
Member
Username: Bobceng
Post Number: 79
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Sunday, April 27, 2008 - 10:36 am: | |
How about a show that takes place in Rome, c. 600 AD. The Flavius family lives in an area near the old Colosseum, and the neighborhood is falling apart fast. You would have a corrupt Emperor named Gluteous Maximus running things, schools failing because so many people are moving to Venice, France, Northern Italy, or putting their kids in carter schools run by Christian monks. And then there's those whacky Barbarians who are REALLY ruining the neighborhood. The father would have worked for one of the Big-3 chariot works, which are mostly out of business now that the Khans have started making superior, cooler-looking chariots that require smaller horses to pull, saving oats and hay. And any local businesses left now have a two-tier wage system (no more 20-drachma/hour with free bleedings/leeches health care plans!) Imagine some of the laugh lines, like "boy, I remember when the area around the colosseum was really packed with small shops and shoppers", or "did you see how someone stole all the copper and bronze from Hadrian's arch...disgusting", or how about "rumor has it that the Emperor had this blow-out party, and one of the dancers ended up being put to death, but this is all still rumor; none of the Palace Guard'll admit a thing".
I don't know why Rome comes to mind... |
Retroit
Member
Username: Retroit
Post Number: 6
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Sunday, April 27, 2008 - 12:22 pm: | |
"To Catch A Scrapper" with Chris Hansen |
Gaz
Member
Username: Gaz
Post Number: 153
Registered: 04-2008
| | Posted on Sunday, April 27, 2008 - 12:29 pm: | |
How about ordinary citizens of Detroit, increasingly angry at the city government, lack of city services including police and fire protection, etc., and decide to kick out all the entrenched politicians, and take their city back - at any cost. |
Detroitmaybe
Member
Username: Detroitmaybe
Post Number: 95
Registered: 03-2008
| | Posted on Sunday, April 27, 2008 - 1:02 pm: | |
a sitcom based on "8 Mile" the movie. |
Django
Member
Username: Django
Post Number: 202
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, April 27, 2008 - 1:37 pm: | |
Mike Rowe goes scrapping. |