Just a thought
Regarding military experience and qualifications for Commander-In-Chief... is a man with no military experience any less qualified than a man whose primary defining military experience was being captured and held as a Prisoner-Of-War for many years?
I think this ends up as a draw...
Monday, September 15, 2008
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Catching up
I posted the RHUBARB PIE photos... so time for what's been going on recently, if anyone's interested. As I've remarked earlier, I tend to have to go back into the 'real' world to make a living. The last few years, since 2004 have been pretty good - usually, if there's one feature a year, that's a good year of work - two is practically a windfall. Last year looked really promising, with 4 possible films on the table -- but of those 4, only LAST BREATH and THE ONLY GOOD INDIAN actually got off the ground. The infamous NEVER SUBMIT bit the dust, and left a lot of bad feelings, and NAILBITER continues in a holding pattern.
So, no surprise that when the well starts running dry, you have to fall back on what you know... in this case, temp work - customer service, actually. And a chance to be able to finish a few projects in addition to keeping the bills paid. So, that's pretty much where the last month went - most of August spent in training, then unleashed onto the public before Labor Day.
As far as who I work for, that is to be hidden - I personally don't have a problem with saying who, but there are things as nondisclosure agreements; not to mention the fact that Eyes Are Everywhere.
Hey! Here's a mind puzzle -- Who REALLY hates thieves? EVEN BIGGER THIEVES.
Chew over that for a bit... of course nothing should be inferred by that interesting puzzle... heaven forbid.
Anyway...
all of that 9-5 drastically cut into time spent editing, creating subtitles, and generally watching stuff. So, did some time restructuring, and that always (at least for me) takes a few weeks to really kick into feeling comfortable.
Slogged through several sets of TV DVD -- last I left off, I was in the midst of the mega-set of LAND OF THE GIANTS, which I finally finished off. I find that there's not very much to add to my previous comments, other than it probably may be Irwin Allen's most consistent series (hight praise indeed, for IA shows). Towards the end, it starts to veer into more fantastical subject matter, with dimensional businessmen (Jonathan Harris, being relatively restrained), lost underground civilizations, time travellers (one pair being Bruce Dern and Yvonne Craig!), but it does avoid the silliness that usually befell later seasons of IA's shows, so watching the series wasn't quite as cringe inducing as watching LOST IN SPACE can be.
Another fun set was THE EQUALIZER S1, the 80's chestnut of ex-C.I.A. agent Edward Woodward 'equalizing the odds' for regular people terrorized by criminal elements in and around the New York area. The writing was very good for the show (holding up really well some 20 years later), as well as the acting -- a fun bit of watching old shows is spotting present day stars who were starting out at the time -- you'll see glimpses of Luis Guzman, Bradley Whitford (as a rural tough), Jasmine Guy (as a hooker); lots of 80's fashions & hairstyles.
But the main character is NYC B.G. (Before Guiliani) - THIS is the New York I grew up on, a place of awe and terror, where you could be eaten alive as well as drawn into the welcoming bosum... maybe both.
I also found ELEVENTH HOUR at the local library... you may have seen ads for the show on your televison over the past few weeks. You won't be surprised to learn that, yes, it's based on a show originally broadcast in Britain (as is more and more of our programming - LIFE IN MARS is another, and just wait for another attempt at an American DR. WHO. NBC is bucking this trend by basing one of its new sitcoms on an AUSTRALIAN series). The original British show starred Patrick Stewart, as government scientist Ian Hood who's called in to investigate cases that usually involve some perversion of science. The show is more of a thriller than science-fiction (with roots in a British show from the early 70's called DOOMWATCH), and it is good, albeit a bit dry... drier than you'd think with a show created by a writer for DR. WHO and with Stewart. Trekkers beware - if you're looking for a variation of his Picard character, look elsewhere. It was good to see what the original show was like - I think I have a pretty good idea what changes will be made for the American version (more contemporary music and a definite lack of ambiguity, I suspect.)
Currently checking out JOHN FROM CINCINNATI, David Milch's departure from DEADWOOD. I'm a 1/3rd into the series, and I suspect that this will become known as one of the most notorious missed opportunities that the public and critics had to support a show. It's definitely one of the most surreal shows created for American television... maybe a little more about this later, when I've finished it, but if you haven't seen this, rent a copy and check it out. Yeah, it ain't DEADWOOD, but it's not supposed to be. It's surfing and spirituality and Southern California.
... and that pretty much brings us to The Present.
I posted the RHUBARB PIE photos... so time for what's been going on recently, if anyone's interested. As I've remarked earlier, I tend to have to go back into the 'real' world to make a living. The last few years, since 2004 have been pretty good - usually, if there's one feature a year, that's a good year of work - two is practically a windfall. Last year looked really promising, with 4 possible films on the table -- but of those 4, only LAST BREATH and THE ONLY GOOD INDIAN actually got off the ground. The infamous NEVER SUBMIT bit the dust, and left a lot of bad feelings, and NAILBITER continues in a holding pattern.
So, no surprise that when the well starts running dry, you have to fall back on what you know... in this case, temp work - customer service, actually. And a chance to be able to finish a few projects in addition to keeping the bills paid. So, that's pretty much where the last month went - most of August spent in training, then unleashed onto the public before Labor Day.
As far as who I work for, that is to be hidden - I personally don't have a problem with saying who, but there are things as nondisclosure agreements; not to mention the fact that Eyes Are Everywhere.
Hey! Here's a mind puzzle -- Who REALLY hates thieves? EVEN BIGGER THIEVES.
Chew over that for a bit... of course nothing should be inferred by that interesting puzzle... heaven forbid.
Anyway...
all of that 9-5 drastically cut into time spent editing, creating subtitles, and generally watching stuff. So, did some time restructuring, and that always (at least for me) takes a few weeks to really kick into feeling comfortable.
Slogged through several sets of TV DVD -- last I left off, I was in the midst of the mega-set of LAND OF THE GIANTS, which I finally finished off. I find that there's not very much to add to my previous comments, other than it probably may be Irwin Allen's most consistent series (hight praise indeed, for IA shows). Towards the end, it starts to veer into more fantastical subject matter, with dimensional businessmen (Jonathan Harris, being relatively restrained), lost underground civilizations, time travellers (one pair being Bruce Dern and Yvonne Craig!), but it does avoid the silliness that usually befell later seasons of IA's shows, so watching the series wasn't quite as cringe inducing as watching LOST IN SPACE can be.
Another fun set was THE EQUALIZER S1, the 80's chestnut of ex-C.I.A. agent Edward Woodward 'equalizing the odds' for regular people terrorized by criminal elements in and around the New York area. The writing was very good for the show (holding up really well some 20 years later), as well as the acting -- a fun bit of watching old shows is spotting present day stars who were starting out at the time -- you'll see glimpses of Luis Guzman, Bradley Whitford (as a rural tough), Jasmine Guy (as a hooker); lots of 80's fashions & hairstyles.
But the main character is NYC B.G. (Before Guiliani) - THIS is the New York I grew up on, a place of awe and terror, where you could be eaten alive as well as drawn into the welcoming bosum... maybe both.
I also found ELEVENTH HOUR at the local library... you may have seen ads for the show on your televison over the past few weeks. You won't be surprised to learn that, yes, it's based on a show originally broadcast in Britain (as is more and more of our programming - LIFE IN MARS is another, and just wait for another attempt at an American DR. WHO. NBC is bucking this trend by basing one of its new sitcoms on an AUSTRALIAN series). The original British show starred Patrick Stewart, as government scientist Ian Hood who's called in to investigate cases that usually involve some perversion of science. The show is more of a thriller than science-fiction (with roots in a British show from the early 70's called DOOMWATCH), and it is good, albeit a bit dry... drier than you'd think with a show created by a writer for DR. WHO and with Stewart. Trekkers beware - if you're looking for a variation of his Picard character, look elsewhere. It was good to see what the original show was like - I think I have a pretty good idea what changes will be made for the American version (more contemporary music and a definite lack of ambiguity, I suspect.)
Currently checking out JOHN FROM CINCINNATI, David Milch's departure from DEADWOOD. I'm a 1/3rd into the series, and I suspect that this will become known as one of the most notorious missed opportunities that the public and critics had to support a show. It's definitely one of the most surreal shows created for American television... maybe a little more about this later, when I've finished it, but if you haven't seen this, rent a copy and check it out. Yeah, it ain't DEADWOOD, but it's not supposed to be. It's surfing and spirituality and Southern California.
... and that pretty much brings us to The Present.
Saturday, September 06, 2008
Rhubarb Pie - Coming Soon
I said that I'd post some pictures from the recent shoot when I could....
following are screen grabs (some excellent DP work by Todd Norris).
It's a short film featuring local KC area actors Jason Miller,
Michelle Davidson-Bratcher,
and Scott Cordes (from SUSPENSION).
Directed by Mitch Brian (on the R, next to Todd Norris, on L.
Not a frame-grab).
It was pretty good to work with both of them again... as I said before, the last time I'd worked with Mitch was on a short he did called STAY CLEAN, a few years back. He's been pretty busy with writing projects for awhile, so it was nostalgic to see the old gang back in action on set again.
I said that I'd post some pictures from the recent shoot when I could....
following are screen grabs (some excellent DP work by Todd Norris).
It's a short film featuring local KC area actors Jason Miller,
Michelle Davidson-Bratcher,
and Scott Cordes (from SUSPENSION).
Directed by Mitch Brian (on the R, next to Todd Norris, on L.
Not a frame-grab).
It was pretty good to work with both of them again... as I said before, the last time I'd worked with Mitch was on a short he did called STAY CLEAN, a few years back. He's been pretty busy with writing projects for awhile, so it was nostalgic to see the old gang back in action on set again.
Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Monday, September 01, 2008
Not Dead, Not Sleeping...
... but very busy at the new job that I just started in August, which is the main reason I haven't been updating. I also got a short film to work on, Rhubarb Pie, directed by KC screenwriter Mitch Brian (who I last worked with on the James Ellroy adaptation, STAY CLEAN way back when). So a lot of things got shoved aside or postponed.
I'm settling into the routine, so I'll post later in the week about the DVD's I was able to finish before getting back into the 9-5, and I'll put some RP production photos up too.
... but very busy at the new job that I just started in August, which is the main reason I haven't been updating. I also got a short film to work on, Rhubarb Pie, directed by KC screenwriter Mitch Brian (who I last worked with on the James Ellroy adaptation, STAY CLEAN way back when). So a lot of things got shoved aside or postponed.
I'm settling into the routine, so I'll post later in the week about the DVD's I was able to finish before getting back into the 9-5, and I'll put some RP production photos up too.
Monday, August 04, 2008
Final Girl Film Club - THE CAR
Random thoughts on THE CAR... (with soundtrack)
CAKE - "Satan Is My Motor"
If you added wheels to "JAWS", put it in the setting of "DUEL" and for added kicks, got Satan in the driver's seat, you'd probably come up with something close to THE CAR.
Derided as cheezy tv fodder for years, checking this out on DVD uninterrupted reveals a good - not great, but a damn good old-school B movie that they can't seem to be able to make nowadays.
It helps to have a star, too...
Looking like the eviler cousin of The Green Hornetmobile, it's quite easy to picture the heart attack you'd have if you looked in your rear view mirror and saw THAT on your tail. Worse than seeing the truck from DUEL heading your way.
THE CAR was written by Dennis Shryock and Michael Butler, the duo responsible for THE GUANTLET, another wonky exercise in vehicular action. There's lots of nice character stuff going on in the film... not much of it pays off to anything, but it does give a nice veneer of realism, so that when the deaths occur, they're pretty shocking.
The film was directed by Elliot Silverstein, known also for the films CAT BALLOU and A MAN CALLED HORSE, and the Twilight Zone episode, "The Obsolete Man" with Burgess Meredith and Fritz Weaver.
EddieMaxCarnage put this together: The Car and IRON MAIDEN - a match made in HELL
If you got together THE CAR with the truck from DUEL, CHRISTINE, and the Green Goblin semi from MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE, you've got a tailor made sequel for Nascar Nation.
Random thoughts on THE CAR... (with soundtrack)
CAKE - "Satan Is My Motor"
If you added wheels to "JAWS", put it in the setting of "DUEL" and for added kicks, got Satan in the driver's seat, you'd probably come up with something close to THE CAR.
Derided as cheezy tv fodder for years, checking this out on DVD uninterrupted reveals a good - not great, but a damn good old-school B movie that they can't seem to be able to make nowadays.
It helps to have a star, too...
Looking like the eviler cousin of The Green Hornetmobile, it's quite easy to picture the heart attack you'd have if you looked in your rear view mirror and saw THAT on your tail. Worse than seeing the truck from DUEL heading your way.
THE CAR was written by Dennis Shryock and Michael Butler, the duo responsible for THE GUANTLET, another wonky exercise in vehicular action. There's lots of nice character stuff going on in the film... not much of it pays off to anything, but it does give a nice veneer of realism, so that when the deaths occur, they're pretty shocking.
The film was directed by Elliot Silverstein, known also for the films CAT BALLOU and A MAN CALLED HORSE, and the Twilight Zone episode, "The Obsolete Man" with Burgess Meredith and Fritz Weaver.
EddieMaxCarnage put this together: The Car and IRON MAIDEN - a match made in HELL
If you got together THE CAR with the truck from DUEL, CHRISTINE, and the Green Goblin semi from MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE, you've got a tailor made sequel for Nascar Nation.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Dispatches from The Fortress of Ennui
Not a lot going on as we enter the Dog Days of Summer... sorry.
As far as film work is concerned, I have a few days on a short that a friend is shooting in August - another project I was on is currently in limbo after shooting for two days... and it looks like I won''t be landing any feature this summer. But that's how it goes in this line of work - the last cycle was at the end of the 90's where I had a lot of work from '97-'00 and didn't do any features until 2004.
I head back into the world of 'real jobs' in August -- answering phones, 'business casual' - yeah, I know, but money needs to be saved up for various things, and benefits need to be taken advantage of while they're there.
So... I'm back to living in the '90's. I usually don't go for the retro thing.
(thanx to Jon for the title; it actually should be the heading for this blog.)
In honor of ComicCon (which I've never gone to), and to provide the pop/geek culture links that I occasionally indulge, here's a postcard design for SERENITY ROSE, a comic that I've been enjoying for a bit.
Being allergic to BatHype, I haven't seen THE DARK KNIGHT yet, though I will at some point when BatHysteria has subsided - and will catch up with some other summer fare (HELLBOY 2, WALL E) also.
Not a lot going on as we enter the Dog Days of Summer... sorry.
As far as film work is concerned, I have a few days on a short that a friend is shooting in August - another project I was on is currently in limbo after shooting for two days... and it looks like I won''t be landing any feature this summer. But that's how it goes in this line of work - the last cycle was at the end of the 90's where I had a lot of work from '97-'00 and didn't do any features until 2004.
I head back into the world of 'real jobs' in August -- answering phones, 'business casual' - yeah, I know, but money needs to be saved up for various things, and benefits need to be taken advantage of while they're there.
So... I'm back to living in the '90's. I usually don't go for the retro thing.
(thanx to Jon for the title; it actually should be the heading for this blog.)
In honor of ComicCon (which I've never gone to), and to provide the pop/geek culture links that I occasionally indulge, here's a postcard design for SERENITY ROSE, a comic that I've been enjoying for a bit.
Being allergic to BatHype, I haven't seen THE DARK KNIGHT yet, though I will at some point when BatHysteria has subsided - and will catch up with some other summer fare (HELLBOY 2, WALL E) also.
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