Inside the Mind of Ayn Rand -- New Feature Film

[CNA]

A new feature film is in production and I'm very excited about this. I've seen one of the documentaries. Upon viewing that documentary, I was drawn in and riveted in my seat - couldn't wait to see what else was to come. Because of the first documentary I've seen and very much enjoyed, I'm very much in anticipation of this one. Also, if you are so inclined to help support, even just a bit, and getting Ayn's ideas out there at a time that it is much needed, absolutely wonderful and a very worthy cause.

Try Freedom!

If Ayn Rand were alive today, that might well be what she would cry out as she watched our nation careen toward disaster...

· Massive government

· Oppressive regulation

· Out of control spending

· Complete abandonment of the Constitution

Since the founding of our country, there has never been a time more urgently in need of embracing Rand’s ideas of limited government, free markets, and reason. And today, the best way to spread ideas to the general public is through film and television. To that end, I’d like to tell you about Inside the Mind of Ayn Rand - a new 90 minute documentary film that probes Rand’s core ideas and explores the relevance of her unconventional views on the fundamental issues facing the world today.

Many years ago, I was fortunate to work with Rand during the recovery and restoration of We the Living, the film based on her first novel. Over the years, I produced other films that promote Rand’s point of view. Now, I’m calling out to everyone who has been inspired by her books--or simply appreciates that people thrive when they are free--to help me spread her ideas by supporting Inside the Mind of Ayn Rand.

Not only are Rand’s ideas most needed right now, this is the best time to make a film about them.

Why?

Rand is everywhere in the news today. Curiosity about her is at an all time high. From newspapers and radio to Jon Stewart, The Simpsons to Mad Men, people are talking about Ayn Rand. Her novel, Atlas Shrugged, has been lauded around the world for anticipating the current crisis and penetrating the underlying causes. And now, as the film version, Atlas Shrugged, Part One, opens in theaters this month, millions more will be eager to learn more about Rand. But while many understand that she advocated for free markets and individualism, the underlying core of her philosophy is still vague or misunderstood for much of the general public.

Inside the Mind of Ayn Rand is the first major film to examine the full range of her ideas. Using all the powerful tools of film--images, words, music pacing, and storytelling-- our documentary will bring the viewer on a voyage of discovery of the essential components of her philosophy....

Inside the Mind of Ayn Rand - New Feature Film

Also their Facebook Page

Inside the Mind of Ayn Rand

[Greybird]

Angie, I've taken the liberty of extracting from their Facebook page (still worth a visit) for the benefit of non-FBers, and (from sad necessity) to alert those here as to O-faction:

Release Date — Spring 2012

Genre — Documentary

About — A new, feature-length documentary from Emmy-Award-winning producers Duncan Scott and Conrad Denke

Description — "Inside the Mind of Ayn Rand" probes the stormy persona of one of the 20th Century’s most influential thinkers and explores the relevance of her unconventional views on the fundamental issues facing mankind today.

Plot Outline — "Inside the Mind of Ayn Rand" blends the tumultuous events of Rand's life with an exploration of her challenging ideas and what they mean to an America poised at a philosophical crossroad.

Starring — Nathaniel Branden, Barbara Branden, Al Ramrus, John Hospers, Ed Snyder, Iris Bell, Joan Kennedy Taylor, Kerry O'Quinn, and Patricia Neal

Directed By — Duncan Scott

Produced By — Duncan Scott and Conrad Denke

Not something from the Orthodox Church in Irvine, but a creation (clearly of long standing, with Taylor and Neal no longer alive) of the man who produced the re-release of the film of We the Living, and the more recent oral histories of the Objectivist movement.

All the movers and shakers in such projects seem to have nothing to do with Pope Leonard I. That's hardly a coincidence.

Also, to elaborate on their appeal for support, as their Kickstarter page says, time is of the essence: "This project will only be funded if at least $34,000 is pledged by Tuesday May 10, 6:55 pm EDT." They have, at the moment, $1,420.

... Well, $1,430. I'm pledging $10 and qualifying for a digital download of the film. Several other levels of support, with premiums for them, are available.

[Greybird]

[CNA]

Angie, I've taken the liberty of extracting from their Facebook page (still worth a visit) for the benefit of non-FBers, and (from sad necessity) to alert those here as to O-faction:

Release Date — Spring 2012

Genre — Documentary

About — A new, feature-length documentary from Emmy-Award-winning producers Duncan Scott and Conrad Denke

Description — "Inside the Mind of Ayn Rand" probes the stormy persona of one of the 20th Century’s most influential thinkers and explores the relevance of her unconventional views on the fundamental issues facing mankind today.

Plot Outline — "Inside the Mind of Ayn Rand" blends the tumultuous events of Rand's life with an exploration of her challenging ideas and what they mean to an America poised at a philosophical crossroad.

Starring — Nathaniel Branden, Barbara Branden, Al Ramrus, John Hospers, Ed Snyder, Iris Bell, Joan Kennedy Taylor, Kerry O'Quinn, and Patricia Neal

Directed By — Duncan Scott

Produced By — Duncan Scott and Conrad Denke

Not something from the Orthodox Church in Irvine, but a creation (clearly of long standing, with Taylor and Neal no longer alive) of the man who produced the re-release of the film of We the Living, and the more recent oral histories of the Objectivist movement.

All the movers and shakers in such projects seem to have nothing to do with Pope Leonard I. That's hardly a coincidence.

Also, to elaborate on their appeal for support, as their Kickstarter page says, time is of the essence: "This project will only be funded if at least $34,000 is pledged by Tuesday May 10, 6:55 pm EDT." They have, at the moment, $1,420.

... Well, $1,430. I'm pledging $10 and qualifying for a digital download of the film. Several other levels of support, with premiums for them, are available.

Thank you, Steve, for the clarification and add on and also thank you for helping as well. I've done the same and put up 500. It's been an expensive month for me....LOL...put up 500 to sponsor Kat and her walk for autism and another very very worthy cause, especially since we both have sons that are high functioning autistics. Well worth it. But I'm going to watch it and hopefully it'll get very very close by deadline, if not well exceeding it I hope. If not too much shy by deadline, within a 1,000 or so and able to do it, will put up the remainder to help get it going. I know the first doc I saw I was very very impressed and wanting to see more. Well done and I thoroughly enjoyed watching and I hold and expect, given who the individual is creating it, that this doc will be equally if not more so impressive. Any amount helps and gets that much closer to the goal.

It's an absolutely fabulous idea and the kickstart website and getting the word out and many backers -- from your everyday individuals such as ourselves to those who are involved in the industry and do this for a living -- for a film and the ideas portrayed in it to be worthy enough to be funded by them and supported.

Angie

[Jerry Biggers]

Well, as long as Paul Ryan's secret line item diverting funds from PBS/NPR to fund this effort is not noticed in the forthcoming Federal budget...

(just kidding!).

Anyway, ARI is promoting another documentary on DVD, Ayn Rand In Her Own Words. It's probably safe to say that the Brandens are not featured in this effort. It may not be bad, but I say go with Duncan Scott's planned documentary as featured in this thread.

Edited April 8, 2011 by Jerry Biggers

[Kat]

Celebrate Easter by sending Duncan Scott a money bomb!

I've pledged and I'm looking forward to seeing this when it is released. Duncan Scott does wonderful work and I have his other DVDs also. This is a very important project on Ayn Rand and I hope he gets up enough funding for this to be completed.

Sixteen days to go. Please make a generous donation to this project.

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[Kat]

I received this email from Duncan.

Thank you!

By Duncan Scott

We passed the $11,000 mark over the weekend!

First off, a big thank you to everyone who's supported our project so far! We're so grateful for your pledges, and are encouraged by all the enthusiastic messages we've received. We have two weeks to go, and the momentum has been building in recent days -- we are confident that we'll reach our funding goal. Thanks for joining us on this exciting adventure, and hope you will take a moment right now to spread the word about our Kickstarter link to everyone you know!

All the best,

Duncan

Please, help this movie get made. There is still a ways to go and not much time left.

Kat

[Greybird]

Paul Beaird, who appears to be the writer and editor for the estimable Objectivist student newspaper Ergo at MIT for many years, has shown up on the Kickstarter site for this movie. He first was praising it lavishly, and then he withdrew his praise because Valliant has supposedly shown the Brandens' betrayal of Rand, et cetera, ad nauseam. My reply to him in the site's comment section is below.

Come on, folks, especially those of you who were disgusted by Valliant's opus: Pledge at least ten dollars, earning you a digital download, so you can show Duncan Scott he's not alone. You can manage that, can't you?

The Brandens were closest to Rand during nearly two decades of phenomenal, even prodigious, activity on her part — much of which Nathaniel induced her to undertake in the first place. They are eminently worth examining and soliciting to provide insights. Could we please have ONE project that is not dragged into these interminable Objectivist sniping wars over philosophic and historical non-essentials? Get their observations on record, Mr. Scott, please. They won't be around forever.

Oh, and Mr. Beaird, you could manage to pledge ten lousy simoleons, so you can get a digital download. Then you at least would have the advantage of knowing what you're talking about, when and if you choose to do some out-of-context denigration of it later. Don't descend to the level of Leonard Peikoff and others, who review books (and other media) they haven't read (or seen). If you're the same Paul Beaird who used to be a part of Ergo at MIT, you used to evince some class. Show some now, please.

Edited April 27, 2011 by Greybird

[Kat]

The time limit is drawing near and this is only half funded. I highly doubt that anyone in the mainstream or the Objectivist orthodoxy is going to back projects like this. We've seen it quite clearly with the Atlas Shrugged movie. I, for one, am tired of Nathaniel and Barbara being swept under the rug after standing by Ayn Rand's side for all those years promoting her message. This is an important documentary and I would love to see it made.

In appreciation to Angie, Mark, Jonathan, Dragonfly and others who have so generously contributed to my autism walk, I am upping my contribution from $35 to $100.

Please, if historical truth about Ayn Rand and commitment to telling the truth about the Objectivist movement is of value to you, please support this project by clicking the link or widget on my previous post.

thanks!

Kat

[PDS]

The time limit is drawing near and this is only half funded. I highly doubt that anyone in the mainstream or the Objectivist orthodoxy is going to back projects like this. We've seen it quite clearly with the Atlas Shrugged movie. I, for one, am tired of Nathaniel and Barbara being swept under the rug after standing by Ayn Rand's side for all those years promoting her message. This is an important documentary and I would love to see it made.

In appreciation to Angie, Mark, Jonathan, Dragonfly and others who have so generously contributed to my autism walk, I am upping my contribution from $35 to $100.

Please, if historical truth about Ayn Rand and commitment to telling the truth about the Objectivist movement is of value to you, please support this project by clicking the link or widget on my previous post.

thanks!

Kat

Kat: do you happen to know if the donations are tax deductible? I couldn't tell from the video.

[Kat]

I don't believe it is tax deductible. Generally, you would see that on the website or the email receipt you get. From what I understand this is independent of the Atlas Society or any other non-profit organization. They are trying to get support to make a movie and the end product would probably be better if there were a profit motive IMHO.

Kat

[Kat]

I heard back from Duncan. Don't forget to pledge. There is not much time left and it is an all or nothing thing. He needs to reach this goal to move forward. Show that you are interested in getting out the ideas that have influenced us all so much.

Kat

Hi Kathy' date=' First let me say many thanks for increasing your donation! In answer to your question, donations to our Kickstarter project are not tax deductible because we are not a 501c.3 non profit. That said, we are partnering with a well-known 501c.3 right now. We will be making the announcement in a day or two. That non-profit will be donating $10,000 to our Kickstarter project! It may be possible for that org to accept additional donations earmarked for our project and add that to their Kickstarter donation. If that is the case, and we will find out on Monday, donations made that way WOULD be deductible. Because time is getting short, I would urge those for whom a deduction is not important to NOT delay their donation. Thanks everyone for your words of encouragement too!

Also, a correction: The film is NOT starring Nathaniel Branden, or anyone else, other than Ayn Rand. The film is not primarily a biography, but about her IDEAS--making them accessible and compelling to a layman audience, showing that people thrive when they are free, and demonstrating relevance--why the current disastrous state of affairs can be turned around via her philosophy. No one will be excluded from the film if their appearance furthers that goal. and the controversies of her epic life will not be air-brushed out, but Rand and her ideas are the only star of this film.

Duncan [/quote']

[Jerry Biggers]

I heard back from Duncan. Don't forget to pledge. There is not much time left and it is an all or nothing thing. He needs to reach this goal to move forward. Show that you are interested in getting out the ideas that have influenced us all so much.

Kat

Hi Kathy' date=' First let me say many thanks for increasing your donation! In answer to your question, donations to our Kickstarter project are not tax deductible because we are not a 501c.3 non profit. That said, we are partnering with a well-known 501c.3 right now. We will be making the announcement in a day or two. That non-profit will be donating $10,000 to our Kickstarter project! It may be possible for that org to accept additional donations earmarked for our project and add that to their Kickstarter donation. If that is the case, and we will find out on Monday, donations made that way WOULD be deductible. Because time is getting short, I would urge those for whom a deduction is not important to NOT delay their donation. Thanks everyone for your words of encouragement too!

Also, a correction: The film is NOT starring Nathaniel Branden, or anyone else, other than Ayn Rand. The film is not primarily a biography, but about her IDEAS--making them accessible and compelling to a layman audience, showing that people thrive when they are free, and demonstrating relevance--why the current disastrous state of affairs can be turned around via her philosophy. No one will be excluded from the film if their appearance furthers that goal. and the controversies of her epic life will not be air-brushed out, but Rand and her ideas are the only star of this film.

Duncan [/quote']

Definately worthy of supporting!

Incidentally, they are nearing their funding target, which means:

1) They could end up just short of the target and lose the funding;

OR,

2) YOU could be the one(s) who actually push them over the required funding amount, thereby assuring that the movie will be made!