Marker.

Roll camera.

And, action.

Hollywood and Los Angeles, not Detroit and Lansing, have been the typical cities where directors, producers, actors and writers work and live.

But Michigan filmmakers are proving that conception wrong.

Jeff Daniels' Michigan-made films "Escanaba in da Moonlight" and "Super Sucker" have been bringing plenty of commercial appeal and attention.

And while Daniels' name might be the most familiar to those who don't live in the mitten, Michigan filmmakers Daniel Leys, MSU English Professor Bill Vincent and labor relations graduate student Jason Kitchen all have made films that have received critical acclaim in and out of the state.

"I think Michigan filmmakers have been around for a while, but I have seen a recent insurgence in the quality and quantity of Michigan films," Leys said.

Leys is president of Mirage Technologies Corporate Group, and he also is co-writer and producer of the film "Inherited Sins," which will begin filming in Michigan next fall. The production company is located at 2707 E. Kalamazoo St. in Lansing.

But for many Michigan filmmakers, making it big means moving to cities such as Los Angeles or New York, where they can gain help from the major studios in the industry.

"Phantasm" and "Bubba Ho-tep" director Don Coscarelli said he has noticed many of today's hottest directors are coming from the Midwest, particularly Michigan.

"There is definitely a 'Michigan Mafia' here in Hollywood," Coscarelli said. "I first heard about it in regard to 'The Evil Dead' crew including Bruce Campbell, Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert and Scott Spiegel. Lately, a young executive over at New Line named Jeff Katz, a Detroit native, has been leading the charge."

But going west or east doesn't mean success

Many local directors say the route to success doesn't mean a plane ticket to the coast.

"It is just my experience you can produce the same quality product in Michigan that you can in California or New York," Leys said. "If someone wants their mailbox in a shot - $50."

Leys pointed to Daniels' move back to Michigan as an example of successful people in film.

"He didn't want to raise his kids in California, so he moved here and said 'If you want me, here I am,'" he said. "It hasn't hurt his career at all."

Bob Brown is managing partner of Daniels' Purple Rose Films and producer of "Super Sucker" and "Escanaba in da Moonlight."

"He and I believe that talent is not mutually exclusive to L.A. and New York," Brown said. "Theoretically, the reality is in Michigan, you may be one of a thousand actors or directors, but you go to L.A. and you are one of a million."

English Professor Bill Vincent said the increase in available technology, such as cameras and sound equipment, also is playing a role in the burgeoning Michigan film scene.

Vincent is developing a movie with another Michigan filmmaker, Jeff Burton. Burton recently released a horror film "The Invitation" and last year's "Terror at Baxter U."

Horror films give many filmmakers their start, he said.

"One of the reasons why is people don't expect that much. They have cheaper production values," he said.

Coscarelli, who cut his teeth with the "Phantasm" series, agreed.

"I think there is certainly a track record of such. There was George Romero and 'Night of the Living Dead,' John Carpenter with 'Halloween' and Sam and Bruce with 'The Evil Dead' films," he said. "More recently you have 'The Blair Witch Project' and 'Cabin Fever.'"

But Brown said it is more than just the cheaper production values making horror films the way to go for beginners. He said the financial success of "The Blair Witch Project" had a lot to do with young filmmakers entering the world of knife-wielding maniacs and zombies hungry for human flesh.

"With horror, there is a classic formula that works," he said. "The problem with comedy is that you either hit or miss it. There is no middle ground. With horror films, there is some middle ground."

Students behind the camera

MSU graduate student Jason Kitchen produced a documentary about New Jersey death-row inmate Robert Marshall. Kitchen, who now is just putting together screenplays, did the documentary as part of an assignment while attending Rowan University in Glassboro, N.J.

Kitchen said just getting access to Marshall was one of many battles he fought.

"We really had to fight for that, make a lot of phone calls and in the beginning they flat out said 'No,'" he said. "Finally, they let us in for four hours."

Now, back in Michigan, he has been noticing a movement among students and recent graduates developing their own ideas and putting them on the big screen. Kitchen said just what has fueled this movement is beyond him.

"It could be high school media classes or just technology," he said. "For me, it is just Michael Moore. There are a lot of producers that live in Bloomfield Hills."

But young filmmakers should be ready for humble beginnings, Leys said.

"The one thing that has not changed in filmmaking is to pay your dues," he said. "If you want to get into this business, you have got to get out there and work on productions."

Leys said many students think once they have a degree, doors automatically will open for them.

"We want people that know the business, that have some hands-on experience," he said. "(Students) are going to have to take a lot of no-pays or low-pays."

Experience is how many filmmakers get where they are, Hollywood director Richard Donner said.

Donner, who directed "Superman," "Superman II," "The Goonies" and the "Lethal Weapon" movies, has been directing television shows and feature films since 1958.

"Just do the work," he said. "The more you do it, the more you are teaching yourself. There are too many students graduating from films schools, and they have to prove they can do it. Don't talk about it - that is my advice."