Spinach?

Prepare yourself for a major announcement:

"Spinach is used toilet paper! It’s used toilet paper!"

Thank you.

Brock was worried about his lack of posts, yet, where have I been? More importantly, has anyone noticed? If no one has noticed, is it really that important? ;-)

One of the weeks among my long absence, I was in New York. Good times were had all around. How could you not have good times in New York? How could you not have the New York Times? Well, I didn't.

My last post - August 14th. Wow, almost two months. Was I in a coma? No, school started, and being that I work for the fastest growing school district in Arizona, I was quite busy. It's finally at a steady pace. Thank goodness. Perhaps I'll be around more. Brock's been feeling neglected.

Why spinach? Why not? Do yourself a favor, avoid E. Coli salads.

Congrats!

Hey, I just wanted to post a congrats to the folks behind Outisde In for its recent success at the Horror and Sci-Fi Film Festival. Thanks for helping me to create a creepy and unsettling film. I'm going to be honest...I've made far better films since Outside In, but no film (save for maybe Wildlifeless) truly feels like a film I would do. Outside In does. As far as I know, it isn't riffing off of anyone else's style. It's something we made happen on our own. So hurrah.

-Brock

Lost, Season 3

Let’s chat a little bit about Lost for a moment here, and the reason why I am terribly worried about this season (and the series as a whole).

First of all, the series premier was awesome. It was beautifully directed, shot and edited. The visuals were amazing. The tone was unbelieveable. We learned more about those characters in the first 20 minutes then we learn about casual acquatances over a lifetime.

The second season’s premier took place on a much smaller scale. There were no exploding airplanes, no monsters in the jungle, no tremendous special effects. Most of it was shot in dark, brooding atmosphere. But sometimes I consider it to be far more effective then the pilot. Why? Because it rewarded viewers. People wanted to know just what the heck was inside that hatch…and right within the first 5 minutes, the episode revealed that. It answered questions. Sure, it raised more questions, but it answered the main question that was put forth by the previous season.

The season premier last night? I am so luke warm over it. So luke warm. Did it answer any questions? Not really. We already knew that “The Others” were supposedly far more sophisticated than what they let on. We knew that Henry Gale was their leader. We knew that they had a connection to Dharma. Did this episode elaborate upon them in any way other then what we already had a fair idea of? Absolutely not.

For that matter, did it enrich the series in any way, shape or form? No. Through Jack’s flashback we learn that he was stubborn and that he had a hard time letting things go. Big deal. The episode in which he tried to save Boone’s life developed that character trait far more sufficiently then this episode did. What a waste.

By the way, the production on this episode was amazing. Talk about great visuals. Worthless storyline.

Consider me severely unimpressed.

Monday bloody monday...

I haven't had a good posting record lately. Monday (the 2nd) I'll post something special though. It'll be a download you can only get on Monday...or something. Hoo boy...

-Brock

Jack Sparrow...meet Winston Skinner

The best part about this film is that when it comes out, Matter of Chance will have beaten Disney to the punch by about two and a half years.

Violated

I tried to get my Production Binder for Pantomiming back from SCC yesterday (because it has some appearance releases I need) only to find out that it was possibly stolen. I gave the binder to the school after the film was done because my teacher asked for it. I guess they passed it out in class as a "teaching example" and some kid pocketed it. Ugh. I had all kinds of storyboards and notes and personal writings during the film's production in that binder. Some kid now has them. I feel so used.

Decompress

Today deserves mention...for the moment, I'm going to decompress. Josh, if you feel the need to post about it, fine by me.

Can't sleep

...gonna blog.

I have some movies I want to review very soon (when the weekend is over). They include: The 5 Obstructions/Lawrence of Arabia/The Illusionist. I think you folks may be surprised with what my views are on these three films. Josh already reviewed The 5 O's quite nicely...but I wanted to review it again (cause this film is tremendous). I also wanted to chat about LOA because I had never seen it. And The Illusionist is new, so it's not like you're just getting a slew of DVD rentals here.

We build the tent set tomorrow for Wildlifeless. So much is going into this one scene. And it's only about a 3rd of the whole film. A ton of work went into the San Diego portion of the film, but it seems like this one portion of the story demands plenty of detail. Basically, there is a sequence in the film when Winston is inside a tent. There's a bunch of props involved, and once again we're using both the jib and the dolly. It's a very plush scene...mis en scene in this one set is crazy.

I'll be back over the weekend or early next week to chat about:
-The shoot
-The films
-What Flim Flam is.

Better

I feel better today (Saturday was the worst day), even though I don't sound like it. This weekend we basically wrap Wildlifeless. That's going to be so nice. I know I'm looking forward to moving on (not that it was a bad experience mind you). Josh and Angie brought back a chair from Bisbee (sp?)...Winston's chair. Because of the era, we just can't use any chair. Has to be a specific chair. And this one is fantastic. But dirty. And old. I don't think we're going to use it again after this production is done, so my options are:

(a) We auction it as an authentic prop on Ebay.
(b) I donate it to SCC as a part of their (non-existant) Phoenix film museum.
(c) We burn it and tape the burning for the eventual MOC documentary (most likely).

We can't show the burn footage to the original owners of the chair though, as I am told they were quite fond of it. We'll simply have to send them the movie and tell them their chair will forever exist in a filmic paradise.

Just the facts

I feel like crap today. And yet, tonight was considerably better then last Thursday. The instructor? He's coo. I get him now. It's all good in the hood. I'm gonna watch Lawrence of Arabia.

A game

I have to write a feature length this semester in school (more to come). In the meantime, here's an un-rewarding and time consuming game to play over the semester: I'll give you my research threads and you can see if you puzzle the story out before I do.

One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
11
tWelve
fin

It's your host...

Yes. THIS is really happening.

I got your post right here...

Today was my first class back at SCC in what looks to be my final semester at the school. Unless they suddenly restate the school’s requirements making everything I’ve done up to this point void, I will have associates degrees in both production and (more importantly) screenwriting once this semester is complete. It’s a good time to be in my world…I’m about to sweep the board.
The first class I attended is entitled “Advanced Motion Picture Production”. What is Advanced Production? It is a 16-week class devoted to the mechanics of narrative filmmaking. It’s bent towards teaching students to work in teams and complete short screenplay ideas with the aim of learning more about film production as a whole. So, it really incorporates elements of every element of production (although, in my opinion, its screenwriting discussion has always been the bastard child of the actual screenwriting program).
Before I go any further, let’s add a little history to this semester’s staging of Advanced Production: About a year ago, the teacher who normally taught Advanced Production dropped out. Citing a number of reasons (mainly workload), she left the class to be picked up by any instructor who took a keen interest in it. Following her exit another instructor both took it up and dropped it, in short making the class the official bear of the program. There are several classes in the programs that have stories and myths surrounding them, but Advanced Production is (aside from Boot Camp and Screenwriting 4) the most notorious.
So there was a void. Attempting to fill in the void, the school picked up a new instructor for the school, someone who could take the reins of Advanced Production. What was the reaction? A lot of students (myself included) were pleased. We saw this as a new beginning for the class. We hoped that the new instructor would jettison the easy-going approaches of the previous two instructors and develop an actual curriculum for the class.

Tonight I learned the meaning of the phrase, “be careful what you wish for”.

Not only did this instructor develop an actual curriculum for the class…he revolutionized the way the class was meant to function. He completely threw away everything it was before this point and in the process ruined the plans of a lot of students. Over the weekend I will assess if that includes my plans.
Beforehand, the idea behind the class was that everyone had the chance to come in with an idea and produce it in that class. If it was 5 minutes or 40 minutes, no big deal…just make sure you have the resources and the manpower to get it made. With that in mind, the instructor would basically green light any request that came his/her way, wither that be for equipment, insurance, the studio or any extra perk the school could extend to ensure your production went a little bit smoother.
Tonight, the law of the land was this: there will only be 5 shorts made this semester. They must be under 5 minutes in length, you may not bring in any outside help to make the short happen and films will not go into production until after a 7-week period. This class is Hollywood, and the instructor is the studio…and just like in Hollywood, there are only so many productions that can be made. If your project does not conform to the standards, you’re out of luck.

Period.
If you can imagine the malaise that followed this announcement, then I certainly hope you feel better. In short, this class was going to be offering a comprehensive education like the students wished, but it would no longer be the playground it once was. And I kid you not…the reaction by the students…and the following counter-action by the teacher (who also happens to teach Sheriff Joe’s posse on the side) was the most painful in-class experience I have ever been through. Harrowing. When kids began complaining, it came down to this: “If you want to stay and get your degree, you play by these rules. If not, there’s the door.”
It was uncomfortable.

So now the question is:

Can I use the school’s resources to make White Bread, Filmic and complete Wildlifeless? I believe so, but I need to find out what my boundaries are.

Perhaps more importantly:

Is this guy going to work my butt off, making any side project I might attempt like Filmic out of the question? Let’s face it: if I’m suddenly a part of the “team”, how much time should I expect to devote to the team? Can I just hock some script out and let them all go and film it? That’s terribly rude and anti-social, but it’s how I feel. I don’t want to make another 5 minute short. I want to make MY shorts. I get it…if I can’t tell a story in 5 minutes, then I suck. Most of the kids in that class have made lots of shorts. I’ve participated in over 20. I don’t want to take 5 steps back and make another Outside In.

So basically, I gotta find out if I can still use the school’s resources…and now I need to come up with a new 5 minute idea that I will pitch to the class next week (along with the 20 other students). Oh, and here’s another little twist: it may be my idea, but that doesn’t mean I get to direct it. I wrote it, sure. But I must apply for the director’s position. So I’m sure as heck not throwing one of my golden eggs out to the class and then letting some guy who waltzed in with a Rockstar in his hand and a Fight Club t-shirt on his chest direct it.

The class itself was all terribly amusing. He basically started out by explaining the narrative film to us. And I swear to you…SWEAR…some of it was the Filmic screenplay verbatim. At one point he was even explaining the meaning of Filmic to the class, which was disinterested just like the class in the script. I was vindicated. I questioned if I was on the right pulse with Filmic…if I was even tapping in to the student experience. The second the instructor mentioned the word “filmic”, I KNEW that I got it all right. Hell, I should have just taken a camera with me and filmed the entire first half of my screenplay.

Following that we were taught about pitching and the art of the pitch…a technique he attempted to demystify by explaining that anyone could do it and that you didn’t have to be a screenwriter to tell a story or give a pitch. Ideas come to everyone. No, you don’t get bonus points for having a screenwriting education.
And then we were all given ideas to pitch and I discovered that, SURPRISE SURPRISE, you do get bonus points for knowing how to write and pitch. He will tell you that anyone can do it. But in that class, if you go in with a prior knowledge of screenwriting, you are the king of that smelly little room. Tonight, two students were from the screenwriting program…a friend from a previous class, and myself. And you had better believe that we cleaned their clocks. Here’s how it went: we were divvied up into teams of 5 and expected to give our pitch in front of the class. My team had to sell a screenplay about Hurricane Katrina, starring Harry Conick Jr. No one wanted to pitch in the group. We all hated our idea. I rolled my eyes and said “fine”, went up there and got the green light from the “studio”. Same thing with my friend (only, they had a spectacular idea). My team was pleased. This leads me to realize two extra things:

1. If I come up with a decent enough idea between now and next week, I will be one of those 5 films that gets made. No question. But do I want to? If I mop the floor, what added responsibility am I taking on for myself?
2. These kids are already talking about the chance of not making 5 films, but rather one. If that’s the case (and the instructor has indicated that if we want it to be, it will be) then the class will need a 20-minute idea. They will need someone to pitch it to them. And the entire class will pitch in money to get the idea made. After tonight’s filmic discussion, I believe that I can be the 20-minute film if things get pushed that way. The gamble? In doing so, do I give up my directorial position on the film and do I alienate Matter of Chance from it? If so, then there’s no way I’m bringing Filmic or White Bread anywhere near that class. I direct. Josh shoots. Gabe is IGNACIO. No exceptions.

So all in all, I’m a little worried. If I can’t use the school’s resources to make Filmic and White Bread, then this stinks royally. If I can use them…then great!

What really worries me: dare I let my competitive spirit go in there and sell the heck out of an idea I can’t commit to? I don’t want to bite off more then I can chew. I will participate in the class, but I want to make my shorts.

Holmes in da House

My interest in feature length screenplays and dramatic narrative has recently led me into episodic structure…something I’ve been pondering over lately due to the reemergence of an old entertainment, and the development of a new one.
First, the new: I’ve really gotten into that television show House over the last few weeks. I mean really into it. Herein lies a show with a ridiculously strong protagonist, unique dramatic mechanism and clean narrative structure…

Allow me to deviate for a moment here and state that while the character of House is brilliant, I credit Hugh Laurie for that portrait. I am sure that some general idea of his persona was conceived at the time of the show’s scripting, but it’s easy to see by the character’s inner life and the gradual comfort each episode gains with the character that the writers' had little hand in the matter. However, I believe the writers to be chiefly responsible for the show’s lean structure.

…Of course, the show has been criticized for its episodic structure, but I find that to be the show’s chief virtue. It’s kind of nice to have a program wherein each episode is self-contained and functional. After trying to keep up with the interlocked plotlines of 24 and Lost, House is a real breather. Episodic also seems to be a rising trend this year. The producers of Lost have recently announced that the third season will be much more serial in its nature than the previous plot-heavy seasons. Good, I say. But to be honest…I can’t wait for more House.

Now for the old: I’ve returned to reading Sherlock Holmes stories recently. To be fair, I used to read Holmes stories all the time; the atmosphere of Doyle’s Victorian world was instrumental in creating Sin of the Opiate, not to mention the dialogue in Wildlifeless. But as to why I started reading these stories again (since those two projects are quickly descending into history) I don’t know.

Oh, wait.

It might be because the Holmesian structure is like clockwork…a classic example of episodic narrative. I should also note that I’ve learned that the characterization of Holmes and the episodic structure of these stories play a key influence for House. Ah yes, the picture is complete.
In a final note for this rather indulgent blog entry: I picked up my reading with “The Adventure of the Empty House”, the first story after Holmes’ “death” in “The Final Problem”. While I found “The Final Problem” to be a rather flat and heartless story (you could tell that Doyle was just sick of the character by then), “The Adventure of the Empty House” was thrilling. Easily one of the best Holmes stories. Wherein Doyle had given up on trying to create a Victorian London with all sorts of vibrancy and uniqueness in “Problem”, “Empty House” has him painting a stunning, dangerous world nearly rivaling that of “The Sign of Four”. Most notable? The villain in this short work is a retired big game hunter! I wish I had read this story before Wildlifeless…and yet, it was extremely gratifying to note that the big game hunter herein was depicted much in the same grandiose fashion that we have depicted ours.

Blim-Bloom-Kablaam!

Alright, so a lot of idiots throw together rap crap, and this isn't a whole lot better, but I thought I'd share. It's not too shabby for throwin' it down quick, with Matt tossing up the very first thought of a blueberry pie theme. Matt Turner put down a sample on Pro Tools, he layed down a bass line, and I tapped some keys. And what I dub, The Blueberry Hill Gang (Matt, Brock, Jacob Dutiel, and myself), spit up lyrics. We messed around with Brock's voice and liked his part so much, we ended the rap with it. Download - Blueberry Pie.

(Gabe)
One night I rolled up in my benz to the cafe with some friendz
we was feelin' the hunger, night wasn't gettin any younger
yelled out to the waitress "yo, woman, make us some pie!"
She says "what kind?" We yell out, "a blueberry, a blueberry, blueberry, a blueberry pie
Yo, cold-check, not any pastry will do
it's gotta be a pie and it's gotta be blue
blue pie? You smokin' the crack?
No, blueberry! So, get off my back!
(Matt)
I said blueberry pie, it taste delicious
when grandma cooks it, we don't have to do the dishes
because we lick the plates clean, you know what I mean?
as soon as we're done, it's time for ice cream
rasberries, cherries, forget 'em, all we wants blueberries
all we wants blueberries
(Brock)
Why, oh, why? Blueberry pie, on my mind
eatin' all my time
something scary, it's so hairy
lookin' for Matt's fridge, gotta binge
Gabe's comin' ova, with leftova
my, oh, my, hits mouth so sweet
I swear I could die, blueberry pie, pie, pie
(Jacob, lyrics by Matt)
When I wake I ache for blueberry pie to get baked
so I wait and watch the oven
try to take my pie and a ninja kick is comin'
kick, you slip, my karate chop's so swift
with fury, take you down while I eat blueberries

A much needed post

Man oh man...there hasn't been a post 'round these parts in forever. That I aim to fix, right now.

Earlier this evening I created a costume list for Filmic's major players. So far, the actors being provided with costumes are Vincent (who will look very Lawrence of Arabia meets Thom Yorke), Ignacio (a cheep character since all he really wears are camo pants), the Muslim (who is turning out to be a direct parody of Ali's in Wildlifeless...hence, a direct commentary on myself), and the two Marines (who have the most wardrobe out of ANY character in the script. If I can get all the items I want for these guys, they will just look insane).
I also tried to revise some of the Filmic budget, getting in as many numbers as I possibly could. So far we're golden on the makeup department, almost golden on the props and almost golden on the grip. After working on the budget for a bit, I chatted with a friend from school (Brad) who is going to start looking for the studio location. In the screenplay there is a studio location that is described as a white void, similar to locations in THX/The Matrix. I hope to have that location locked soon.

Once the budget is locked I shall begin my directorial notes...

That is all.

Get Well

This post is for Josh, who just had his appendix out. Feel better dude!

Josh's Appendix: 1970 Something - 2006

My Belated Reflection on The Village

When I first saw The Village in a theater, I walked out feeling empty, and disappointed. To me, it was Shyamalan’s first movie to fall under the bar which he set so high. Even short of Signs, which had the ridiculous notion that H2O-vulnerable Aliens would try to invade a water-logged planet. Part of it for me was that he built the tension so high up to a point that, it felt like a bomb would go off, but instead, the fuse fizzled out. With that, I’m not saying the movie was horrible, because he did a fantastic job of building up the tension. However, the wound runs deeper.

I hadn’t seen The Village again until quite some time after it had been on DVD. In fact, I believe it was early this year. I even came to dislike The Village, and couldn’t fully understand why. It couldn’t just be that the ending had little payoff for me. C’mon, the villagers actually living in modern times wasn’t exactly something to fall out of your seat over. At least, not for me. So, with much time to cool down and reopen the mind, I rented it, trying to have no expectations. Additionally, I felt that knowing the ending, I could catch the finer points of the movie. That turned out to be the opposite.

What I discovered with my second viewing of The Village, outright offended me. And that, was Manoj’s cold, outright manipulation of his audience to get his surprise. This time it wasn’t the means of a genius screenplay. It could’ve been, but Night seemed to fear he would give away too much. So much so, that he resorted to manipulation in the worst of ways. And I say, shame on you Shyamalan!

The first manipulation was in the opening scene. The camera focuses in, quite poignantly, on a tombstone dating in the late 1800s. I couldn’t help but feel that was a cheap-shot. In abscense of story to draw our attention away, he outright misleads. Sure, the villagers want to live in a more simple time, but what does the date matter? I’m sure they would say that it helps take their minds off the time they’re hiding from. But really, does it make much difference?

Quite ridiculous, but necessary in order to keep the story afloat from the ending, is their manner of speech. Really, would one go through so much trouble to make up dialect, or attempt dialect of another era? However, if they spoke like we do today, it would give the ending away. With that in mind, it was wise of him to have the characters speak in a way they thought it would have been.

Another low-blow was Manoj’s use of sound, in particular, that of the creatures. No human in a creature suit could make such a loud, fearsome noise. Some might say it was the interpretation of what the frightened villagers heard. I don’t care how scared I was, I couldn’t imagine that. Go ahead, pop in the DVD and listen to what I’m talking about.

One thing that blew my mind the most, was that Night cut a scene from the version that showed in theaters. It was completely missing from the DVD, even from the deleted scenes. It was a scene between Ivy Walker (Bryce Dallas Howard) and Mrs. Clack (Cherry Jones). Mrs. Clack was relating her negative experience from the outside towns, something that happened in an alley. Ivy then quipped “What’s an alley?” It was the scene that tipped me to the ending, and perhaps enough people that Shyamalan felt it was too revealing (after the fact) and removed it for the DVD release. It’s not the first time further editing has been done for a DVD release, but the fact that he didn’t even mention it in his deleted scenes portion, showed prideful arrogance to me. It was as if he didn’t want to admit to a mistake, yet, it wasn’t a mistake, it was just a clue that more people caught onto than he wanted.

He was at the point where he should have made a movie that didn’t need a surprise ending. It felt as if he worried too much about hiding his “surprise ending” that he had to force it…force it with lies! That was a little extreme, but he should’ve tried to write outside his bubble, or direct something that someone else wrote. Unfortunately, trying to write outside his bubble produced Lady in the Water, a jarring mess.

To end on a positive note, I loved everything else about The Village – the setting, the cinematography, the mood, the tension, the acting (except his). All other aspects were there. That is why he needs to direct something where he doesn’t have himself all wrapped around the story, because he has the raw talent.

Next

It is with a tinge of sadness that I removed the cards, structure notes and paradigm diagram for Filmic from my writing cork-board today. The project is clearly finished. While the tremendous task of planning out the shots, budget and locations lies ahead, I feel that any difficulty in bringing this project to the fore has now been eliminated. Despite my past and current problems in organizing and creating movies, the problems in bringing the project to fruition always lies in the completion of the script. Along with most of the fun. In that respect, Syd Field always likened writing projects to personal relationships. Even when the relationship is well past its expiration, writers are always hesitant to let them go. Writing a screenplay, even a short one, is a grand journey. It's always sad to see the ending.
At any rate, I am also happy to be done with it. I have to work like mad in the next two weeks to get the budget and schedule together so that I can begin pushing a proposal. I'll save my directorial interpretation of the script for after the busy-work of producing...that way I have something fun to look forward to.

Next, I must attempt to elevate the screenplay for Everlast. With Filmic written, Wildlifeless nearing completion all-together, and White Bread appearing to be the next work on the horizon, Everlast has been revealed to be the armature’s work it is. In comparison to Wildlifeless' mock-suspense, Everlast is of a somewhat lowbrow persuasion. In comparison to Filmic, a screenplay that pulls back the curtain on the establishment known as film school, Everlast is laughable. Strengthening that screenplay is my next short project.

Maybe haps later I will recount our showing at the Cinema Lounge. It could have been a near disaster...but thankfully, the evening turned out quite well. It was a pleasure to be able to view other filmmaker's work, and chat with them at length about it. I'll offer more on this subject soon.

Working on the filmic script...

Getting ready for the pre-production budgeting, casting, storyboard work. Putting this (hopefully) final draft together is like putting together a mix tape.

Current scene order (make what sense of this you will):

1. The Squib
2. Vincent Shanks Runt
3. Tower Explosion
4. Leaving Baghdad/Entering Phoenix
5. Changing film
6. The Gas Mask Scene
7. Mario's letter
8. Camera jam
9. Planning explosion
10. Showdown
11. Meeting the filmmakers/Vincent's lightmeter