{"id":2445992,"date":"2019-07-04T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-07-04T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/?p=308730"},"modified":"2019-07-04T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-07-04T06:00:00","slug":"naomi-mcdougall-jones-and-the-bite-me-revolution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/naomi-mcdougall-jones-and-the-bite-me-revolution\/","title":{"rendered":"Naomi McDougall Jones and the \u2018Bite Me\u2019 revolution"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"swift-gallery p402_hide\" readability=\"6.5297157622739\">\n<ul id=\"imageGallery-308730-39\" class=\"gallery list-unstyled\">\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/arts-atw-070419-2-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/arts-atw-070419-2.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Courtesy photo |\" bite will screen on july aspen native naomi mcdougall jones wrote and starred in a romantic comedy set it the subculture of real-life class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-0.5\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"10\">\n<p><strong>&#8220;Bite Me&#8221; will screen in Aspen on July 10. Aspen native Naomi McDougall Jones produced, wrote and starred in the film, a romantic comedy set it the subculture of real-life vampires.<\/strong><br \/>Courtesy photo<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/arts-atw-070419-2.jpg\" alt bite will screen on july aspen native naomi mcdougall jones wrote and starred in a romantic comedy set it the subculture of real-life><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/arts-atw-070419-2-1-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/arts-atw-070419-2-1.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Courtesy photo | Jones in\" bite the film will screen aspen in glenwood springs on july each followed by and a=\"Joyful\" vampire class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-1\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"9\">\n<p><strong>Jones in &#8220;Bite Me.&#8221; The film will screen in Aspen on July 10 and in Glenwood Springs on July 11, each followed by a Q&amp;A and a &#8220;Joyful Vampire Ball.&#8221;<\/strong><br \/>Courtesy photo<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2019\/07\/arts-atw-070419-2-1.jpg\" alt=\"Jones in \" bite the film will screen aspen in glenwood springs on july each followed by and a=\"Joyful\" vampire><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"caption-toggle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/weekly\/naomi-mcdougall-jones-and-the-bite-me-revolution\/#\" class=\"show-captions\">Show Captions<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/weekly\/naomi-mcdougall-jones-and-the-bite-me-revolution\/#\" class=\"hide-captions\">Hide Captions<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">With the new film \u201cBite Me,\u201d Naomi McDougall Jones has made a charming romantic comedy set in the world of real-life vampires. But the Aspen native is also using the independent feature to test a new model for film distribution.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">She and members of the \u201cBite Me\u201d team are on an RV road-show with the movie, hitting a total of 51 screenings in 40 cities over three months. Now in its mid-point, the tour stops in Aspen on July 10 and in Glenwood Springs on July 11.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">The vampires of \u201cBite Me\u201d aren\u2019t the supernatural blood-sucking monsters of lore, but actual people who live in our world and identify as vampires and, yes, drink blood. \u201cWe don\u2019t bite,\u201d a character explains. \u201cIt\u2019s not sanitary.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">On the set of \u201cBoardwalk Empire\u201d years ago, Jones met an extra who identified as a vampire, which piqued her interest, inspired her to ask many questions and to begin researching it online (many vampires helpfully have online vlogs, a fact that makes its way comically into \u201cBite Me\u201d).<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">She wrote the first draft in 2013. It evolved into a story that met these vampires on their own terms, as actual three-dimensional living and breathing humans who are often outcasts or feel like they are.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">\u201cOne of the main reasons I wrote this movie was to make a movie for the real weirdos, for people who don\u2019t feel seen, who don\u2019t feel understood,\u201d Jones told me from an RV campsite in South Carolina.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">She stars in the film as Sarah \u2014 a leather-clad vampire with blue hair and a Tyson-esque face tattoo \u2014 who strikes up an unlikely relationship with the IRS agent (Christian Coulson) assigned to audit her vampire \u201cchurch.\u201d (A non-vampire, he\u2019s known as a \u201cmundane.\u201d)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">\u201cBite Me\u201d is the second feature Jones \u2014 a 2005 graduate of Aspen High School \u2014 has written, produced and starred in, following the <a id=\"N0x2c453a0N0x2cfdca0:N0x2c453a0N0x2eb2480\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/entertainment\/activities-events\/a-beautiful-homecoming-at-aspens-wheeler-opera-house\/\">2014 psychological thriller \u201cImagine I\u2019m Beautiful.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">\u201cEverything you see the vampires do in the movie is based on real things that at least some vampires do,\u201d she explained of her research. That includes a donor system to get blood, balls to gather the vampire faithful and legal battles to practice their lifestyle.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">The screening in Aspen, like every stop around the country, will be followed by a \u201cJoyful Vampire Ball.\u201d It\u2019s inspired by a gathering in the film, which is based on actual balls thrown regularly in New York by a vampire named Father Sebastian. No, there\u2019ll be no blood-drinking at the bash. It\u2019s a costume party. Or, at least, it started as a costume party but has evolved into something more.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">\u201cThe biggest surprise is that they\u2019ve been extremely moving events,\u201d Jones said. \u201cI discovered that we wanted these events to be creative things where we invited the audience to show up fully as yourself and risk offering that up to other people that you don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Costume pieces, rhinestones, temporary tattoos, glitter pens and the like will be on hand at a \u201ctransformation station\u201d to help Aspenites transform. On the tour, she gets to meet people after every screening who tell her the kinship they feel with Sarah and the vampires of \u201cBite Me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">\u201cThe stories I\u2019m hearing from people at screenings are incredible,\u201d Jones said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Beyond her creative work on-screen, Jones has been making waves in the film industry in recent years <a id=\"N0x2c453a0N0x2cfdd00:N0x2c453a0N0x2eb2828\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/entertainment\/aspen-native-naomi-mcdougall-jones-leading-women-in-film-revolution\/\">as an activist for gender equality behind the camera<\/a>, calling for a \u201cwomen in film revolution.\u201d Her TED Talk, \u201cWhat It\u2019s Like to be a Woman in Hollywood,\u201d recorded in 2016, drew widespread attention following the revelations of Harvey Weinstein\u2019s abuses and the birth of the #MeToo movement in 2017. It led to a book, which Jones will publish next year. She also formed The 51 Fund, which will financially back movies created by women. (\u201cBite Me\u201d walks the talk, with a female-led creative team including director Meredith Edwards.)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">The \u201cBite Me\u201d roadshow is a revolution of its own.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Jones and her creative partners opted out of traditional distribution for the film, releasing it themselves instead and personally taking it to theaters around the country.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">\u201cThe way independent film is distributed is just bad,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s bad for their filmmakers, it\u2019s bad for investors, it\u2019s bad for audiences. Distributors are just acquiring a ton of content and dumping it into the marketplace and the abyss of iTunes and Netflix and Amazon, not marketing it, not putting any kind of budget behind it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Most small-budget films disappear into a morass of content, lose money and don\u2019t get seen. So Jones and her producing partner, Sarah Wharton, figured nobody will put as much time and energy into releasing a film than they would. So they\u2019re doing it themselves.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">While they\u2019re on the road, they\u2019re producing a YouTube docu-series that covers their colorful experiences on the road (battling spiders and emptying the RV sewage container, for instance) while also detailing how the new release model is doing. Each episode includes statistics on ticket sales and revenue (working toward a goal of $1 million, the team reported making $9,903 as of the May 25 episode).<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">Jones\u2019 homecoming to Aspen, no doubt, will provide some compelling fodder for the show.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Special Sections-ATW-ATW_Body_Serif\">\u201cIt\u2019s such an encouraging community and so many people who loved me and encouraged me growing up will be there,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s just the best.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText Tagline\"><a href=\"mailto:atravers@aspentimes.com\">atravers@aspentimes.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/weekly\/naomi-mcdougall-jones-and-the-bite-me-revolution\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Bite Me&#8221; will screen in Aspen on July 10. Aspen native Naomi McDougall Jones produced, wrote and starred in the film, a romantic comedy set it the subculture of real-life vampires.Courtesy photo Jones in &#8220;Bite Me.&#8221; The film will screen in Aspen on July 10 and in Glenwood Springs on July 11, each followed by [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2445992","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-20 20:01:05","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley&#039;s Quality Rock","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2445992","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2445992"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2445992\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2445992"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2445992"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2445992"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}