We just finished production on three new episodes. It was a large, complex shoot and we could never have pulled it off without the help of our incredibly dedicated cast and crew. And, to be honest, on this shoot it was pretty difficult to figure out which was which since every crew member appeared on camera and every cast member pitched in behind the scenes. The results look absolutely incredible, but you'll see that for yourself, when those episodes become available in early January.

We've also begun work on a Siren DVD. It will contain the first twelve episodes of the show which you'll be able to watch one at a time, as they appear on the website, or strung all together like a feature film. The DVD will also contain a wide variety of special features that you wont be able to get any where else. Pricing has yet to be determined but we promise it wont break anyone (it'll just bend 'em up a little bit.)

And, yes, Episode Twelve is now available for download so check it out.

Hope you have a great holiday and, don't worry. Siren will be back in 2002

We had to postpone shooting episodes 13 and 14 because we lost our location, one of the actors left for Italy, and the director herniated a disc. We plan on shooting them next week, and that should keep the show on schedule.

Team Effort Films is also expanding. Next month we plan on introducing a whole new feature to the website, THE TEAM EFFORT LAB, which will showcase new films, new stories, and new experiments from the entire Team Effort Family. It should be pretty exciting, and we hope you all stay tuned.

We have come face to face with heart wrenching tragedy and heart warming heroism. We have seen an outpouring of love and compassion for the victims and a wave of rage and hatred for those responsible. We are suddenly at war with an enemy we cannot find, on a battlefield where all our vaunted military power might not count for much.

And where does Team Effort Films fit into all this? It's a question I've thought a great deal about. If we are at war, then aren't there more important things to be done than our little serial? I remember the work of men like Frank Capra, John Ford, and John Huston, great filmmakers all, who, when the Japanese bombed pearl harbor, walked off the films they were working on and offered their services, free of charge, to the US Military. The result was the inspiring "Why We Fight" documentaries.

But this is a different kind of war, and I believe it presents us with a different kind of duty. It is a war not just with terrorists, but with terror itself. They want to scare us, scare us so badly that we rethink everything we do. "Should we go to work?" "Get on a plane?" "Is that dark skinned man an Arab? A terrorist?" The World Trade Center bombing didn't crash the stock market. Fear did that. Terror is the power we give our enemies, and we must not be afraid.

I believe the most patriotic thing we can do right now is to go on. To go back to work. To travel. To invest. To laugh. To smile. Should we be cautious? Yes. Should we make some changes? Absolutely. But they think we're going to cower in fear, and that is something we must not do.

If America is a great nation, and I believe that it is, then this is the time to prove it. Not just with air-strikes and troop movements, but with car dealers and sitcoms, with tupperware parties and parent teacher conferences. It is our way of life which is under attack, and it is that way of life which we must not abandon. In a war against terror, our most valuable weapon is the content of our national character.

So, what does all this have to do with Siren? Not much, except for the fact that we're going to keep on working. Episode 10 is now available for download. We're shooting episodes 13 and 14 in two weeks, then 6 more in early November.

Hope you enjoy them,

Steve

We were also recently listed on Apple's QuickTime Hot Picks website. This is a big deal for Team Effort Films, not only because it has brought Siren a flood of new fans, but also because the show is made almost entirely using Apple's products.

However, the most exciting news at Team Effort is our recently announced partnership with Jibe Networks. Jibe is a new company which streamlines the download process, allowing you to have near DVD quality video delivered directly to your computer, without lengthy download times. What this means for Siren fans is that rather than visiting our website and waiting for a compressed Episode to download, Jibe will deliver a high quality, full screen version of the latest episode while your computer is idle. All you have to do is press play.

We'll be starting the series over from the trailer and delivering an episode each week until we catch up. Don't worry, we'll continue to post a new episode every other week on the website.

If you're interested in subscribing to this exciting new service, you can click here. Jibe is currently a Windows only system (sorry Mac and Linux users) but they plan on supporting other systems in the near future. Keep in mind this is a Beta test, so there are bound to be a few bugs as we get up to speed. This also means that any feedback you can give us will be invaluable.