Being an aspiring screenwriter (and still a while off from being able to move west) I've taken heart in the fact that a number of very successful scribes maintain blogs that actually offer advice and encouragement to younger writers who've yet to make their mark. One such writer is John August, whose diverse credits range from Go to The Corpse Bride to Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle. August's directorial debut, the reality-bending thriller The Nines, opens in limited release this weekend and he and star Ryan Reynolds have taken a novel approach to expanding the film's appeal on the big screen - they've already recorded a commentary track. Available as a free download, the idea is to load up your iPod / MP3 player of choice and kick back in the theater with the film's director and star providing new insight.

According to August's blog, Kevin Smith tried something similar for Clerks 2 but it looks like it never hit the airwaves / internets / earbuds / whatever (at least I couldn't find evidence of such).

While not for everyone (namely those only willing / able to see the film once in theaters), the idea of offering a commentary to help build buzz for a project that'll require good word of mouth to spread beyond major markets, to say nothing of simply attempting to further engage fans, is unique and hints at other intriguing possibilities.