Round about 1995, James and Paul D\'Angelo were workshopping several movie ideas as they experimented with the earliest versions of Adobe Premiere editing software for the Mac (long before Final Cut). They read about all the upcoming technology breakthroughs and dreamed about what life would be like when IEEE 1394 (FireWire) would be a reality. So, meanwhile, with a chip on their shoulders (that is a 1 chip Sony DV camera), they shot and edited a bunch of weird skits. Almost with each new video skit, they tried on a new moniker for their production: CashJohn, Dorkdom, Bedhead, Plunger. Excited as they were with the promise of NLEs for the masses, the early versions of Adobe Premiere were nothing short of Excruciating. The biggest trouble was always syncing the video with the audio. There was an audio \"drift\" that would vary each time you played back your time-line. And so, to output your video and get it synced properly was more a function of luck than of any reliable work-around. By 1997, James and Paul were tired of waiting. Adobe Premiere versions had gotten a little better. So they decided to go for making a feature. In early 1997, James created 3 characters named Larry, Curly, and Joe. He wrote a few scenes involving these \"pinches\" sitting at a greasy-spoon, paying their respects to some colleagues whose funeral ceremonies are happening down the street after having all been mowed down in a gangland style mass-execution. Oh...And, btw, it\'s Thanksgiving! Over the course of approximately 9 months, James and Paul fleshed out an entire script based on these same characters: All 3 in one room for several hours, dealing with the complex issues that face each of them now that everyone in their organization--their friends, their bosses, their main sources of income--are all gone. Everything. Everybody...except them. Do they simply pick up the pieces and start over? There are a lot of pieces missing. They soon realize there is a lot they don\'t know about each other that only a few hours together in a dingy room can bring to the surface. Then, finally, there is also a lot they soon learn about themselves. Why did they survive? Is it destiny, coincidence, or something else beyond what they know? Having been 2 of 4 brothers, growing up mostly lower-middle-class. James and Paul were familiar with the experience of overflowing male energy in a small room. It\'s what attracts them to movies like Down By Law, and plays like: No Exit, The Dumb Waiter, American Buffalo, True West, and The Accidental Death of an Anarchist. It is what drove them to create Shaking Hands with The Unemployed. This predilection seemed to be the deep unspoken bond that was shared among them and the cast. What else could bring 3 of San Francisco\'s best actors together to work on a cramped soundstage at Shotwell Studios on a no-budget film? In November and December 1997, Tony Abou-Ganim, Ian Hirsch, and Daniel Maslijn LIVED their roles for a month and a half of production. Oh...And, btw, even on Thanksgiving! All packed together, with film crew (including SF heavy hitters Howard Shack, Chad Grochowski, Rob Lee, Randy Colosky, and Art Wellinski) in a small room. The result: Shaking Hands with The Unemployed. A 70 minute play captured on film. A master ensemble of unforgettable characters weaved together by a playful script that, bit-by-bit, betrays each of them, revealing all their darkest little secrets...Well, almost all. 10 years later, the characters of Shaking Hands with The Unemployed are as irrelevant now as they were in 1997. But their predicament is hauntingly timeless. When the world around us changes, what do we do? Do we adapt? Or do we stick to our old ways, and stay the course regardless of what lies ahead? Hands, Shaking, the, Unemployed, with